here I am!

settlement day!

I know I've been MIA, and I felt badly for not posting after closing. But here's what happened- settlement was fine and I now own the house. But I didn't sleep at all the night before because I was so excited for the next day and then I woke up to my realtor text messaging me- she forgot that we had to do the walk through. So I had to rush to get ready, feed and walk the dogs, and get over to the new house to do the walk through before going to the office at 9 for settlement. Then once I got downtown and sat down with everyone I realized that I left the certified check at home on my dining room table. So I had to race home, grab the check, and race back. Everything worked out but by the time I got back to my house afterwards I was exhausted and had to cancel my other two appointments for the day and go to bed. It's so frustrating because in my previous life I would have kept going for another two hours before even having breakfast, but now being on chemo I get so wiped out. I was literally in bed for the next day and a half, and I could feel my heart pounding. Over the weekend I could do things during the day but would crash hard in the afternoon and that would be it for the night.

But today I feel SO much better. This is my week off from chemo, so I'll feel great until next Tuesday. I met with the contractor and the project manager this morning; they will hopefully get started next week. I've been in there in the meantime trying to clean. I am not- by any stretch of imagination- a clean freak. But there is something about other people's dirt that just grosses me out. Not to mention the lady I bought the house from had cats and the whole house seems to be covered in hair.

I bought a shopvac and spent hours literally vacuuming out the cracks in the wood floors. She also liked to use lots of artificial fragrances and chemical cleansers- which are toxic and gross. So I had the windows open all day, trying to get some fresh air in there and I mopped the floors with vinegar and water. In case you think this is weird, it's actually a great way to clean without harsh chemicals. Here is a website that I use to create natural cleansers. Baking soda is my new favorite thing, and who knew?! Plus it's so inexpensive and completely harmless to your body- it's fantastic. The other day I made scrambled eggs and they were all stuck on the pan and I was scrubbing and scrubbing to get them off. Then I remembered baking soda and I put a little in some water and literally just had to wipe and it all came off!

You all might think I'm a big dummy for not already knowing these things, but I just automatically thought- dirty dish, use dish product. Dirty floor, use floor product. Dirty sink, use another product. And all of these products are full of mystery chemicals and do not need FDA approval to be sold in the United States, nor are they required to list their ingredients on the bottle. Some do, but they do not legally have to. Have you ever used a 'bathroom cleanser' and almost felt high off the fumes? It's all a little scary to me, and I'm not saying I got cancer from Clorox, but nobody can seem to tell me why I did get it, so who knows!

OK- sorry for ranting, I get all worked up about the chemicals! So it was a gorgeous day and I took the dogs on a really long walk around Fishtown and ended up at Ashley's house talking to her for awhile. Then I went to Ikea to get some ideas for the house and then I went to South Philly to take a yoga class that Kiley is teaching this month. I was so excited to go and start up yoga again with a teacher that I feel really comfortable with etc, etc.. but I got lost and couldn't find the building and by the time I found it I was too late and the door was LOCKED! So, I'm going to get there for sure next Monday.

Speaking of exercising this body, check out what I'm getting tomorrow:

Ohhh!! Isn't she pretty? I found it on Craigslist, it's a Raleigh 3spd from the 70s. Abby and I have big plans to ride bikes this summer so I had to get it. I find it hard to imagine me peddling anywhere very fast right now, but soon come. Spring will be here and chemo will be done and I'll be cruising all over the Fish! yeay! I had a beautiful black vintage Schwinn a few years ago when I lived downtown and I really loved that bike. But a- I got the tire caught in a trolley track and flipped it while riding it b- it was really heavy and c- I don't think I'm cut out for downtown riding. I need to be more of a local girl. Oh, and d- I was an idiot and "locked it up outside", which meant wrapping the cord around it and through the rail, not through the bike. So, some other short girl in Philly is riding that beautiful thing, and I curse her and hope she lives in a 5th floor walkup.

Anywho, tomorrow is supposed to be another beautiful day. Maybe I'll take her for a spin before I pack up me and the boys and head to mom's house for a few days. What is everybody else up to?