Galloping Along

July is moving full speed ahead. It has been a very nice July, thus far. Cooler than we could have possibly hoped, and rainfall coming with good regularity.

I have felt very content, in many ways. Not overly eager to rush about here and there. Just happy with the status quo. Contentment with work- not overly challenging- but then they don't pay enough for me to want it to be challenging.

Some days, I get to looking at how much we HAVE. I was taking a shower. In my bathroom, with hot and cold running water on demand, I have choices... two kinds of toothpaste. Three varieties of conditioner, two types of bath soap AND body wash to choose from.
In the kitchen, I have two refrigerators. One is mostly full of condiments! Mustards, mayonnaise AND Miracle Whip, ketchup, three varieties of salsa, soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, jellies. Lots of jellies.
The laundry room has a shelf full of various cleansers, air fresheners, bug killers, and laundry aids.

These things are bought and used and so seldom thought about. It is a lot of STUFF. And being my Mother's Child, I cannot throw out a mostly used bottle or can of anything. Not if it isn't empty. I have trouble (but not as much as my Mom does) in tossing out any leftover that isn't yet growing fur. SOMEONE might get hungry for two bites of green beans. I will put away this platter of onion and tomato slices, it will get eaten. But unless I use it myself for another dish, the leftovers sit waiting for their fur jackets before being tossed into the garbage.

Last night, I really wanted to stop at the new BBQ place across the street from where I work, and take home some delicious smelling and reportedly fabulous BBQ. I refrained from it, because I had already planned to make beef and broccoli stir fry. I had a dish of rice sitting in the fridge, coming up on day four. I had fresh broccoli on a veggie platter largely being ignored. I had celery from the same platter, and onions sliced for hamburgers two days before. Even though I wanted the easy route, after my unaccustomed all day work day... I came home and cooked.

My mind keeps going back to the days when we had no options. I don't want to abuse the things God has granted us. Thanks to my Granny and my Mom, every bite of food wasted makes me think of poor starving children somewhere in the world.
*********
Today, the boys and I set off flea bombs again. I don't know if the (diminishing) rodent population of the house has brought in more fleas, or if they have come in on the dogs, or just because the house is here in the middle of the country. Three weeks from today, we will have to vacate for another five hours.

Today, we went to the library for the boys to volunteer. then we went to the Jones Center to ice skate. THAT didn't take long. It is closed until the 9th! The boys asked if we could check out a Military Surplus store in Rogers. It wasn't where they thought it was, and we got stuck in lunch hour traffic in Rogers. Not a fun thing. We sat through one light some eight times before making it through. We finished our time out of the house with a quick razoo through Wal Mart, where we got a hoe (to give the tomatoes planted in June 'a fighting chance') and birthday cards for my stepfather and my favorite son in law, who share a July 9th birthday.
Then we headed home and aired out the house.