2025 OneThing #17 - Budget Analysis and GE Water Softener Resin Tank Contact

I should call this blog entry "TwoThings" . . . because that's what happened!

I first set the goal of doing our budget analysis for 2020 - 2024. This has been on my to-do list for over a month! I had started it in February as we are looking at making some changes in our household and we want to make sure we're looking at things logically. Since we've been budgeting (2017 - present), we have a lot of data about expenses for the different categories. I did not, however, have ALL the categories with annual totals and monthly averages. Once I set that as my "OneThing" goal, I had it done in a half hour. I only did 2020-2024 because a LOT has changed since Covid-19.

So I decided to grab another of my long to-do list items. Our GE water softener worked really well for 3 1/2 years. Last fall, our showers felt different. Our soap and shampoo didn't really foam up. Our skin felt different. Louie checked the water softener to make sure it was working. I asked if I should buy more salt (even though I could see that the level was okay).

Louie said the resin tank is leaking beads. I got out the booklet and read through it, including the warranty info. I started looking for a new (non-GE) model to buy. Louie tried a few things. As the months have passed, I'm alternately "whatever" and "this hard water is making me crazy!" Our dishes all have a filmy coating on them. My skin and hair feel crunchy (it doesn't help that winter weather in Minnesota is brutal on the integumentary system).

I re-read the warranty booklet and it says they will replace the resin tank within ten years of purchase "if it fails due to defect in materials or workmanship."

So I called the toll free customer service number. I had a lovely chat with Janice. She transferred me to a repair guy (Nathan) who basically said the resin tank could be replaced IF there is a defect like a big crack. He wanted me to set up a service call. I told him my husband would look into it and asked him what were next steps / options for us. I'm thinking that rather than paying someone to come out here, we may just go shopping for a new water softener.

Thankfully, I have a wonderful life partner with whom I can talk about this. We can do the pros / cons, what are our options, and then move on. I'm ready to have soft water again. . . . 

I love photos, but I don't really have any to share this time. I do need to set a new goal for the upcoming week, though . . .

2025 OneThing #16 - March Review

I don't have much to add to this past month's One Thing. I feel pretty good about the goals I've set and what I've gotten done. I'm accumulating a list of "little things" that I can use to blog in a pinch, but setting one intentional goal for each week has been super rewarding.

I just checked the pot of dirt with basil seeds . . . I have one tiny sprout! And I just finished sorting through ALL my pairs of shoes. There are three pairs good enough to donate (which I don't wear because they hurt my feet), one pair in the garbage, and two pairs to go to the lake to assess which need to be tossed. (It's nice to have ratty shoes that are comfortable . . . )

I was able to meet up with Teresa on March 25 and give her the quilt. She texted yesterday that she was on her way to meet up with her brother and give it to him. I haven't heard how that went and I don't want to pester her. I hope he finds joy in what his mother made for him!

 

My verse for March was Luke 6:38. "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." (NIV)

I am so incredibly blessed. I want to bless others and share the love of Jesus. This month has been rewarding. I anticipate a fairly busy April and May. I need to be mindful of what God wants to do through me. Praise God for the opportunities!

OneThing #15 - Buy Shoes

This may seem like a strange thing to choose as my "One Thing" this week, but let me explain.

I have large, flat feet and most shoes hurt. I have many, many pairs of shoes and try to switch them often to relieve some of the different discomforts. I try to be thrifty and have occasionally purchased $20 ($19.99) shoes from Costco. 

 

My friend Jenifer took me to Schuler Shoes once and they were so careful to measure my feet and make sure to find sandals that were comfortable. I wore those sandals constantly one summer until my dog (I don't even remember if it was Pepper or Titus) used them as a chew toy. I've gone back and purchased the "same" pair, but they're over $100 and I really do try to be thrifty.

Last year (2024), I wanted to "treat" myself to a new pair of shoes for my birthday. I said it aloud so many times that I'm surprised my husband didn't tell me the equivalent of "put up or shut up." I finally got sick of saying I wanted / needed to get a pair of comfortable shoes and not doing anything about it, so that's why I made it my goal for this past week.

Here are my "daily wear" shoes that were mostly comfortable (with a "Good Feet" style insert to help with my lack of an instep). The sales lady at Schuler was super nice, but she definitely said I should throw these in the garbage.

I tried on many pairs of shoes and ended up with the light grey tennies (super comfortable!) for my new daily wear shoes. I also bought the cute red ones for occasional wear . . . they're a little snug on my toes, but the next size up was way too big. I hope that I don't regret buying them, but they were on sale (pretty cheap for Schuler). I plan to wear them for church this morning.

 

 

So now I have two new pairs of shoes and I plan to go through ALL my shoes to get rid of the ones that hurt my feet the most (in good shape - to donate) and put the ratty ones in the garbage (I wish they were recyclable, but I've found mixed info online. I think they'll go to the landfill.)

 

The black shoes were really comfortable, but I decided to go with Jenifer's recommendation - the "white" and the red. (I texted her photos because I trust her judgment!) And there's no way I'd buy THREE pairs of shoes at once!

A silly "One Thing" it may be, but it's finally done! And the gal at Schuler Shoes was so patient and helpful. It's really worth going there.

2025 OneThing #14 - Plant Stuff

I wrote "Deal w/ plants, seeds, dirt, and pots."

 

Plants - I am NOT a "green thumb" person. The live plants we have are more my husband's thing. However, it drives me a little crazy to see them looking scruffy, so I often gather up dead leaves. I didn't do before and after photos because they still don't look so great!

 

Seeds - I LOVE having fresh basil to add to dishes! My basil plant was thriving until Titus and Pond knocked it over during a fit of barking at dogs passing by on their walk last fall. I gathered up what I could, but for the last three months it has been a pot of dirt with dead stems sticking up. I bought a new packet of basil seeds (more than a month ago). I was in my metal seed storage container for something else and found . . . a packet of basil seeds (from 2016). Being curious, I freshened up my pot of dirt and planted half with the new seeds and half with the old. (The new ones are on the side closest to the stick thing that tells you how to care for basil.) I did NOT plant the seeds six inches apart. I just spread some around and if they germinate and are too thick, I'll pull some. This took me about ten minutes but I've been intending to do it for quite a long time.

 

Dirt - I needed to add dirt to some plants, most especially the aloe veras. I did take before and after photos of the little one I keep on my window sill. I removed the dead "leaves" and added dirt. (It looked like it was sinking down into the pot and the dirt was evaporating!)

 

Please ignore the filthy windows . .  . that can be a task for a different day.

 

 

Pots - When I got rid of the dead tomato plant and the dead pepper plant and other stuff last FALL, I put the pots of dirt onto the porch to "deal with." It's March now and they've been sitting there all winter! I asked my sister Ann about using old dirt vs. new dirt and decided to reuse some of it today in the aloe vera plants. The rest got dumped into a five gallon bucket for future use. After storing away the bucket of dirt and the empty pots, I cleaned up the areas where I worked and am blogging on Saturday before noon! 

 

Please note that this stuff has been bugging me for a really long time, but it took less than an hour to deal with it. That makes me think of my mom saying, "If you just did the chores I asked you instead of belly aching about it, you'd be done by now!" True, Mom. True. I guess the One Thing and blogging is now my mom voice.

Car Rental Complaint

I waited too long to fill out their Customer Survey link . . . but I need to get this out of my system.

I booked our January Florida trip with Costco and I *love* using Costco Travel! They are the best!

We reserved a car at the Fort Lauderdale airport with Budget Car Rental. When we got to the desk, there was a long, slow line (worse than the TSA line!). We had been up and traveling since about 3:30am and just wanted to get our car and go.

When we got to the desk, the guy kept asking us about extra options - more insurance, prepay the gas, etc. It was so irritating! We don't travel much and are not savvy about this. We ended up prepaying for gas, since we didn't know what to expect in Key West. He told us the price per gallon at that moment was $3.26 and if we turned the car in needing gas, it would be $9.99 per gallon. Again, we didn't know what to expect, so we paid up front. By the time he rang it up, it was $55.33 for a tank of gas!

The Hyundai Tucson has a gas tank capacity of 14.3 gallons. Completely filled, $46.62. The receipt has gas service option of $46.54 (ooh - a "savings" of 8 cents). The there were fees . . . I'm adding a picture of the receipt. 

Needless to say, there were plenty of inexpensive options for filling the tank all along the Keys. We didn't bother to run the tank empty, even though we had already paid for that option. Live and learn, right? This lesson is my biggest takeaway from this experience. Don't be pressured into paying for gas in advance unless there's a really, really good reason for it.

The other irritating thing about Budget is that when we finally went out to the garage to get our car from the numbered spot the agent had told us to, the parking spot was empty. I walked toward the little booth and saw a girl sitting off to the side on her phone. I walked around the garage and found a guy with a Budget vest on and told him our car wasn't where it was supposed to be.

He clearly had trouble walking and said he'd find us a car. He walked back to the empty booth and started working on his computer. It took a while, but someone else brought up the Tucson for us. It was an upgrade over the economy car I had reserved, but it didn't feel like a win. And it turns out that the girl sitting on her phone was an employee, while the whole place was super crazy busy.

Overall, not a terrible experience, but definitely not a pleasant one. We overpaid, waited a long time, and were glad to simply get out of Fort Lauderdale with a car!

Side note, I really enjoyed driving the Tucson.

2025 OneThing #13 - FINISH Teresa's Brother's Quilt and set a date to get it back to her

This one has been a long time coming! I won't put all the info here, but my friend Teresa's mom died in September 2023. (Here's the obit.) When I was subbing at NPMS that fall, she asked for my advice about a quilt her mother had started for her brother Gregory. Their mother, Patty Nelsen, had hand traced, cut out, and pieced the top in two pieces. She had layered each piece with batting and backing.

She had basted with thick green thread. She had started the laborious process of hand quilting it by stitching in the ditch.

Teresa wasn't sure what to do with it. I offered to help her and initially planned to finish the quilting by hand, as her mother had started it. Quickly, I realized that was not feasible. It would take more hours than I was willing to spend. In December of 2024, I met with Teresa to talk about a plan to machine quilt it. We talked about the thread color, the binding, the label, etc.

I went to my friend Rose Allen's house to machine quilt it in January (before the Florida trip). It took two days to quilt the two pieces, then another day to finish the quilting after I sewed the two pieces together. As I warned my friend, there are some wrinkles sewn in; it couldn't be helped without removing some of the existing stitching.

 

I added the binding and the label. (I've taken "final" pics, but am not adding them here now.)

I wrote a letter for Gregory and am ready to deliver it to Teresa! We have set a coffee date for March 25, so everything I mentioned for my "One Thing" is done. That feels so good.

 

 

 

 

 

Piñatas!

I have finally taken "pics" of my pictures from piñatas past. (I used CamScanner just to be quick.) There are more pictures of piñatas somewhere (like the first one I ever made for Morgan - a red hot comet with fiery plumes behind . . . ) but I wanted a place to "hold" these. The photos of photos are not great, but I still have the originals.

It was weird to make one for Joshua this year. Most of these were made between 1998 - 2005 (roughly). I typically started with a balloon, added papier-mâché layers (with strips of newspaper in a flour / water mixture), then painted and added any pieces to make it look more like the target item. After almost twenty years, I had practically forgotten how to do this! Louie was in charge of hanging them. He worked out a rope and pulley system that worked well and allowed him to raise and lower the piñatas for a greater challenge.

 

 I believe these are in chronological order.

 

Nick had a cat / mouse / cheese phase. 

 

 

 

Since this is at Borden Lake, I'm pretty sure it was Charlie's birthday party. Luke was so little that we didn't make him wear a blindfold and the dinosaur was down low.

 

 

Mike Wazowski from Monsters, Inc. was fun. But this is also at Borden. I may have mixed up a few birthdays! Here, Lindsay is trying to take him down.

 

 

 

I don't remember who Thomas the Tank Engine was for . . . 

 

I honestly don't remember the identity of the turtle, but this one was for Lindsay. I vividly remember that I hadn't started early enough and I was trying to quick dry the piñata in the oven! The balloon was still intact and the hot air made it inflate. I laughed so hard I was crying.

 

 

 

 

 

This tiger for Charlie was fun!

 

 

I'm not sure why we let Nick wail on it without a mask . . . this may be one that was seeming to be unbreakable. The quality control on these things was nonexistent! The Pikachu for Luke was one of my favorites.

 

 

 

The eagle was for Lindsay (No idea why my pic is of Nick holding it). This birthday party felt bittersweet for me. Mike said he hated to see kids bashing away at a model of an eagle, one of his favorite birds. The cardboard wings definitely protected the trove of candies!

Kirby for . . . ? I don't remember.

 

 

I'm pretty sure "SuperPup" was Lindsay's own creation.

 

 

 

Luke wanted a Pac-Man one year.

 

 

 

Tails from Sonic the Hedgehog was for Charlie, I believe. (So I should have switched this around with Luke's Pac-Man.)

 

 

 

This hat . . . was maybe for an event at my kids' school? Honestly, I don't even remember making it! I love that Louie let me take a picture with him holding it.

 

 

 

This dragon was possibly for Charlie. The photos were developed in November of 2005. Louie said that this is Borden Lake.

I've tried fixing the formatting several times, but am just going to leave it alone! This is another pic of the tie fighter I made for Joshua this year (after Titus ate the rough draft, I tried a different tactic that didn't involve papier-mâché.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2025 OneThing #12 - Contact Missionary and Prep for MM (Missions Minute)

I don't like making phone calls very much and so I tend to procrastinate. Sometimes I'm not even good about contacting people via email! But this week, I decided to make it my One Thing goal so I would stop avoiding it. 

I emailed the person I had been meaning to contact for almost a month. She got back to me right away. I now have a video clip to share in church on Sunday. Praise God! 

I still need to get the video onto a flash drive, because someone else will be showing it. But the first time I downloaded it and saved it, it was upside down and had no sound. I ran out of time and so will try again today.

I'm blogging on Monday instead of Sunday because I don't feel as though I'm "done" with last week's thing . . . though I technically just wrote that I wanted to "contact" her. Done. Our missions committee meeting is tomorrow, so I'll pull together the last pieces of prep today.

On to a new goal! And a picture, just because I like pictures. Though I don't remember where I got this one . . . and I usually like to attribute my sources. God's grace - I need it today and always.

 

Edit 3.13.25 to add: I got free software called "Bandicam" that allowed me to capture the video onscreen. The flash drive is loaded and ready to drop off. Woohoo!

OneThing #11 - February Summary

It was a fast and busy month. I didn't get into my studio as often to look at my calendar, read the Scripture, and think about my time. I missed the more peaceful pace of January. It is a bit of a lesson to me - take time to think, pray, and be in God's presence. I need to not always be a busy bee!

 

I've already blogged about these things on a weekly basis, but on reflection I am pleased that my mood / tone / perspective is one of awareness of my need to be quiet and still sometimes. 

Weeks one and three probably felt the most fulfilling, but besides my "One Thing" each week, I was subbing, watching my grandsons, helping my sister, sewing at RaDon, etc.

My verse for this month was Isaiah 26:3-4. "You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in You. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD Himself, is the Rock Eternal." 

I'm going to continue to use my whiteboard and plan One Thing each week to focus on and pray about. God is so good!

2025 OneThing #10 - Research and Act

 I wrote down four things, but the goal was to make progress.

Trusses - I contacted two different companies to get bids. Then I followed up with the full pole barn plans and a request for supply bids. We talked with Nick and shared his contact info. I hope to make a decision (with Louie, Nick, and Mike) and hire one of the two this next week!

Lou - I didn't really do anything because I haven't talked with Joyce yet. I'm not interested in spending a lot of time and energy on something that may be completely ignored. Viv is trying to contact a VA rep in Scott County. Joyce and Del have been in frequent communication and are talking about options. I hope / plan to call Joyce today and see if she wants me to look into applying for elderly waiver and / or for a spot for Lou at a VA home. I also plan to go visit Lou this afternoon.

Water softener - I spent some time looking at reviews and prices to buy a new one, but I also looked through the GE info booklet and talked to Louie. This water softener should NOT be leaking resin beads after only being in use for three years! The warranty said the resin tank is covered for ten years. Louie is willing to contact GE this week to pursue a replacement resin tank.

RaDon office manager - Sue Kennedy stopped by last week and is very interested in the job. I strongly encouraged her to call Don and talk with him. I need to not take on the burden of hiring someone to replace Lynn. But I do want to help.

This was progress. Except for my father-in-law, I did some looking into topics and communicated and DID stuff to move forward. 

 

I didn't really have any photos this week, but since I love pics I'll add one anyhow. This is Joshua and his friend Locke at yesterday's rescheduled birthday party. The piñata finally was smacked into oblivion. The kids seemed to enjoy it, but it was much sturdier than I anticipated. Louie and Morgan hung it up in the garage and put a heater on. Then they laid a clean tarp down for "catching" all the treats.

2025 OneThing #9 - Post Ads for Impala Tires and Snowblower

This week's goal was a success. I took photos of these items on Tuesday (bitterly cold "off" day from school) and posted the ads on Wednesday. 

 

The tires were posted for free on Facebook and the clicks were almost instant! They came in so fast and I had four people expressing interest within just a few minutes. I had to mark them as "pending" because the responses to the ad were coming so quickly. Someone named "Alfredo" said he really needed them and I put them out to the curb. He and his girlfriend(?) came and got them that afternoon.

 

The snowblower has had some nibbles, but nothing serious yet. I dropped the price from $50 to $40. I would like it if Louie could recoup the cost of buying Tom a functional snowblower, but we're just ready to get rid of Tom's old one. More projects than time! Today, I finally put the ad on Craigslist (instead of just Facebook). One FB response was from a guy who's 80 miles away and has no transportation . . . what?

 

I purposely set this goal as "post ads" rather than to actually get the items gone. I learned from last week about setting realistic goals that I could accomplish. I hope to see the snowblower move on soon, but it's not a priority.

 

On to a new week!

2025 OneThing #8 - A Fail and A Lesson

My "One Thing" for February 9-15 was "Order trusses and telehandler." These are for our pole barn project at Strawberry Lake. I have not yet done those things (Fail).

The lesson is: set a goal you can achieve independently. 

Our son was working on the plans and specs for the trusses. He emailed it to us on Friday. He is incredibly busy right now with work and his own projects. I didn't even really know how to find someone to build custom trusses and I didn't make any phone calls because I didn't have the plans. Anyhow, I have the plans now and I have an idea of how to find a builder. But it was not a this week thing . . . 

I almost ordered the telehandler! I had one onscreen, the delivery date and pickup date, the address, etc. . . . then while talking with Louie and Nick on Thursday night some questions arose. Do we need a truss jib or not? Their website doesn't seem to show that as an option. Are we okay with the 233-1370 model or do we need the 233-1650 with the support legs? Louie wants to talk to his brother about it. 

 

I don't think waiting until next week will be problematic, but I'd rather set an achievable goal for myself! This isn't time sensitive (yet) but it's important to me. Since I'm calling this week a "fail," I'll put some of the little things I've been hanging on to:

I made two baking beads bags for two of my daughters-in-law. I had gotten the pie weights (baking beads) as Christmas stocking stuffers for them, but they weren't in reusable containers. So I made two of the yellow bags. The turquoise one was my model. It was my first time and I had to figure out the technical parts of the opening and double-ribbon closure. It was more challenging than I expected! (Done 1.6.2025)

I made a difficult phone call to a challenging person. (Done 1.6.2025)

I wrote "quilt query 4 sibs" . . . but I have no idea what that refers to now! (1.7.2025) Whatever it was, I did it. <Update on 3.2.2025! This was contacting Ina Mae's four living children (Jennifer, Cookie, Bonnie, and Scott) to see if any of them wanted the Christmas quilt and pillow shams she had made! I didn't feel right about donating them without checking with her kids first. Today in church, Bonnie brought me some glassware from her mom's house that none of them wanted. Scott and Catherine ended up taking the quilt and shams.>

Bow bin sort and donate (1.14.2025) I had a LARGE bin of bows (which I almost never use any more) and I put nice groups of bows into plastic bags to donate to Goodwill. The bows I have left are nice, a variety of colors, and fit in a Rubbermaid bin that's half the size of the old one! Most of my gift wrap these days consists of whatever cloth bag I've sewn and some tissue paper. Still, bows can add a nice touch to things. I just didn't need so many.

2025 OneThing #7 - Prep for Birthday Parties

I'm blogging this on Wednesday instead of Sunday because . . . life. It has been a very full last week and I'm playing catch-up today on a lot of things!

When I set a goal about being prepared for parties, it was about more than just Joshua's piñata. Since his "kid" party was set for Saturday morning, I needed to have that done. But we had planned for the Somers extended family party on Sunday afternoon, so I needed to do some cleaning and food prep (and make sure I had something for each of the birthday folks).

Alas! I got a call Saturday morning that Joshua had a fever and his party would have to be rescheduled. The piñata is ready for whenever that event happens. I wish it had turned out better . . . but since he's not had a piñata from me before, I hope he doesn't realize how poorly it turned out. (This tie fighter looks like JarJar Binks tried his best . . . but failed miserably.) I think Joshua and his friends will just have fun bashing it and getting the goodies.

I have decided to make a separate entry just about my piñatas over the years. They've been pretty fun!

I managed to get the house clean enough. Louie helped me on Sunday after church to take care of the last few things. I really do love having a clean home, I just don't love cleaning! It's looking pretty good and I'll try to keep it this way. (But not with a card table with gifts on it . . . that was just for Sunday afternoon.)

On to the next thing on my "catch up" list . . . and back on track to blog on Sunday.