Steam mops and the weekend

I had a lovely weekend. Jamie was here all day Saturday and there were visits from Kerry and his friend Josh. Jamie and I did some cooking, talked about Opa and acceptance, and Jamie did some drawing. I washed Gracie, changed the bedlinen, did some washing, cleaned the range hood and pottered around doing this and that. It was a wonderfully free and calm time. Not all weekends are like that so I really appreciated this one.

When I cleaned out the linen cupboard recently, I had several old sheets that I put aside to cut up for rags. On the weekend, I sat outside with the radio on and cut up two sheets. These old sheets are really absorbent and make the best rags.

For all the Gracie fans, and I know there are a lot of you, here she is on Saturday, sitting on her favourite cushion watching Jamie drive off with his dad.

Now Spring is here so are the Amazon lillies. I grow these on the front verandah.

There has been a slight change in me and in my home. I've not felt this way before and although I'm sad for the loss of Hanno every day, when I start moving and make the bed, organise lunch for Gracie and me, sweep the floor and wipe benches, I have a feeling of comfort, not just in myself but also in being here, at home. I think I've moved from intense grief to something else and I suppose when I think about it more and when time passes, I'll have a better understanding of it.

I wrote about upgrading appliances a couple of posts back but here's something I don't have to upgrade - it uses very little electricity.  It's a very old radio with cassette player! The radio still works, the cassette player doesn't open.  This table is next to where I sit when I'm on the front verandah.  Nowadays, I light a mosquito coil and turn on the radio and I feel I've gone back in time 50 years.

There's another couple of months before I start my Home Care Plan. When that starts I'll have funds on hand for all the lawn mowing and outside maintenance here. But now I'm trying to find someone to mow the lawn. I went on airtasker and I offered $150 for the job but no one would do it at that price.  Looks like the going price is $170.  Anyhow, I withdrew the job and thought I might be able to get a local to do it.  I'll look on the bulletin board when I go over to the shops again.  If you have any suggestions, let me know. 

I'm currently organising my home so I can do the work I need to do easily and efficiently. Many of you know I have a non-malignant brain tumour.  The main problem I have with it is that it makes me dizzy when I walk on uneven ground (gardening), when I look up or down (hanging out the washing), or when I pick up items that are too heavy for me. I found that mopping floors and carrying a bucket of water made me really dizzy so I looked for other options. I don't want to give these jobs to someone else until I absolutely have to.  I think when you stop doing something at my age, it's difficult to keep the ability to do it again.

This is the area in my laundry where I hang a few of my rags to dry.

I ended up buying a steam mop and I love it. It a Black and Decker 1300W 10 in 1 steam-mop. It does a very good job on the floor using no cleaning products, it's light and it comes with attachments so I can steam clean the venetian blinds, the oven or stove and the range hood. I wish I'd know about steam mops before.

When I finish this post I'll peel some vegetables, feed Gracie and start cooking my lunch.  It's meatballs with coleslaw and salad today.  Thank you for your visit here today. I send my thanks and appreciation to everyone who comments here. I don't often have time to answer but I do try. I hope everything is going well for you and that the rest of the week is smooth sailing. xx