I've never been a good housekeeper. I can be neat, and was when I lived alone, but when I became one of many I found that I was truly a slob. Even in our last house, I was still not really doing a great job of cleaning even though I was so proud of all of the work we had done. Maybe it is because that was such a tiny place it felt impossible to make it neat (except of course when we put half our stuff in storage to stage it to sell!). I am finding that in this house, the rooms that are completed make me want to keep them clean and shiny! I have actually cleaned under my grilles on the stove twice already - this from a girl who has just replaced the drip pans rather than clean them several times over (the most recent time being in our last apartment this summer!). I think it really helps to have all of the storage here too - we do have a place for everything, and as we continue to finish rooms and unpack, everything has found a forever home that is close to where we need it. We are not even close to needing attic storage, which we used for a lot at our old house.

I am actually enjoying the detail work - I primed and painted some patched areas today, put in a doorknob and changed a light switch. The little things do make a big difference - lots of our rooms look "mostly done" and these minor details make them really finished. It also feels like a lot gets done when I can check a bunch of little stuff off the list!

We used the convection oven yesterday - baked chocolate chip cookies. They came out like Entenmann's! So perfect and not brown on the bottom. Peanut loved them as you can see - I have been cooking up a storm and really loving it. If I never have another restaurant meal again, I will be OK with that. We made pizza last night that was just heavenly - so much better than any takeout! I'm back to menu planning and shopping for real food rather than things in boxes that you can microwave. It is so much cheaper too - I was stunned the first time I went "real" shopping again after all this time. It was probably a third of the cost for a weeks worth of food, and we are not eating out, so maybe even cheaper than I am calculating. Mom and her man are coming by tomorrow so we will have a pot roast - I can't remember the last time I made one! These things make me very happy! Let's see how long it lasts until I do want to order Chinese.