Weekend Dispatch

Have you ever gone into a room in your house to do something and it suddenly turns into an entirely new project? Well, that happened this weekend when I went into Harper's closet to throw spare change in a bucket when, next thing I know, we are cleaning out the closet. That spilled over into disassembling her futon bunk bed (she's getting a new bed for her birthday next month) and cleaning out her entire room. That was how I spent most of my Saturday. On Sunday, the Hubs and I attended a wake for a friend's father who passed away at the hearty age of 91. He lived a wonderfully long and fulfilling life, and while it was a time for mourning, it was also a time for celebrating his life.

Since I  didn't have much down time last weekend, here's how I'll be spending this week and weekend.

Lately I've taken to reading short stories in between finishing a book and starting a new one. I like to think of it as a sort of palate cleanser. They are short enough to get through without making a huge time commitment but are just as interesting and meaningful as a full length novel. Today I finished the book I was reading (you can see that book here) and before I started my next book, I read The Zero Meter Diving Team by Jim Shepard. It's the story of three brothers who worked at Chernobyl on the night of the horrific nuclear disaster in 1986. It tells the story of the aftermath of the accidents and all the nightmarish ramifications of the nuclear explosion.

There's so much good stuff on Netflix right now that I'm having a tough time making decisions about what to watch next. I'm almost finished with You, which I wrote about here. Next up, I am diving right into Conversations With a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes. It's an in depth look at Ted Bundy's spree of murders during the 1970s. He killed 30 young women across 7 states. The conversations that law enforcement officials, including FBI agents, had with him are fascinating.

I love to clean. It's one of my biggest stress relievers. Plus, I am so much more relaxed in a clean, decluttered house. But I could alway use a helpful shortcut, especially in the kitchen and bathrooms. When I found these DIY toilet cleaning fizzies, I thought I'd give them a try this weekend. The recipe looks super easy, and I'm going to use an ice cube tray to make the molds. Let me know if you try to make these.

I'm a big fan of Starbucks' Citrus Defender tea (previously called Medicine Ball) for its antioxidant powers. In the winter, I order it several times per week and try to use the tea bags by adding hot water for as long as I can extend their life...which is usually by about 2 cups or so. But the cost adds up, so I went in search of a copycat recipe to make at home. I found one, and it's just as good as the version Starbucks makes...plus it's cheaper and saves me a trip.

So, tell me. What do you have planned this weekend?