Real World Word Problem for House Wives

This is the kind of word problem we should have had to work in school:

6. Sam has a desk job and wears jeans to work every day. If Sam has 4 pairs of jeans and also gardens at the end of the day 20% of work days, how often does his wife need to wash his jeans? (Bonus points for answers that don’t require a wash for every wearing.)

I wonder whether HomeEcc classes back in the day covered this. It’s just another reason I wish I was born 100 years ago.

Pensively,
Miss Mary Clare

PS: When you have the answer, would you please raise your hand and share with the class? Thank you!

Purse Repair. DIY Sewing. Mom Pursinality Episode 1.

Frugal to the point of recklessness.

I like the bag my in-laws gifted to me a couple Christmas’ ago. Problem is, I’ve been a Mom Purse person since high school (many years before my actual state in life warranted such a title, incidentally). Folks of the Mom Purse mentality understand that paring down what’s carried in the purse is never a good solution, even when shoulder a soar from the sheer weight of the items.

And don’t bother thinking that something that hasn’t been used in a month ought to be tossed aside from the purse. No! It may be used next month. You see, folks with Mom Purses thrive on having EVERYTHING handy. You don’t need EVERYTHING every day. But you do need EVERYTHING, eventually. And if you don’t, surely someone you encounter will need it. For instance, 1 pen is never enough in a purse. This, of course, is because someone will need to borrow one when you are using yours. Hasn’t this happened to you? Let’s stop a moment, assess our lives, and realize that all of us, at some point or other have either been the beneficiary or the benefactor of a spare pen. We all need Mom Pursinalities in our lives.

Wait. We were talking about this specific purse. Sorry. I felt the need to explain Mom Purses. This particular one is lovely, but of very light weight fabric. Ergo, it burst at the seems. Several of them. As in, the weight of the necessary items in my purse caused the fabric to pull away from the seems.

Here’s an example. There’s a big hole that shouldn’t be there. This wouldn’t be a problem for a reasonable person of the Minimalist Pursinality. Like my sister. My brain will never understand this http://wechoosetolivethislife.blogspot.com/2011/06/some-summer-organization.html.

One may think that I should just get a stronger purse to suite my pursinality (oh man, I’m having fun with this pun. Sorry! It’s punny! It just came out, out of nowhere!). A new, stronger purse would that would cost money and time. So I’m going to modify this one to suit my Mom Pursinality.

My goals: repair, add compartments, reduce strain on current seams, preserve exterior appearance while enhancing shape definition.

I’ve gotten as far as repairing the burst seems. Will I ever get to the re-enforcement and enhancement stages? Stay tuned! Time will tell.

Love,
Miss Mary Clare

Photo: shabby chic & cottage style inspiration.

I took this photo last week using our tablet PC. It’s completely raw and unedited. I didn’t even crop it. Not to be bragadocious, but I think it’s perfect. Sure, there are several things wrong with it from a fine photography perspective. I probably will never hang this on a wall. You can see our window screen, for one thing. And the yards aren’t exactly pleasing to the eye. What I love and what makes it, to my mind, better than an edited or well-planned image, is that it speaks for itself. It captures the reality in the same way it captured me out of the corner of my eye while I was busy with many ordinary things. It’s beautiful. It’s ordinary. It’s unexpected that the two would become one on a random Saturday when I’m cleaning the high chair tray for the 10th time that day and hoping desperately that nap time will come soon.

Also, this photo is in style! I’ve never wanted to pin myself down to a trend (even if I love it!), but I can’t help but notice that this photo would be great inspiration for anyone re-decorating their home in the popular cottage style.

I’ve been thinking a lot about ordinary life. As a friend shared recently: ‘God must really love ordinary life, because he sure created a lot of it!’. This image is there in the midst of our ordinary life. Ordinary life is full of beauty.

I want to share this with you in hopes that your day today is ordinary.

MMC