Projects vs. housecleaning ~ the choice is now clear over here!

I slept in today. I hadn't planned on it but that's what happened! So I jump into blog world (hey, blog world was in a spell check! haha and yeah, I got it wrong) over my coffee to get inspired. That it did. Still in pj's, I sprung into action and painted the table top of my patio table.

I happily entered back into the house and gasped.

For about 2 weeks, I chose to close my eyes to all that was going on inside the house. Every single surface had too much busy-ness going on. Floors proudly displayed pet fur. This one was gonna hurt.

Last night I had already alerted myself to the riffraff of the interior. It stressed me to the point of going to my patio, lighting the propane fire pit and just chill. I even hung up white Christmas lights for a nice glow! Hence me painting the table today. (yes, one thing does lead to another, I admit it!)

So, I started to clean. Nests were picked up, piles made in more appropriate places. I scrubbed the toilets and sinks and dragged out the vacuum, all the while dreaming of what I'd much rather be painting.

I wasn't having fun, but I was getting great satisfaction out of watching my house become my home again. I actually worked up a real sweat with this cleaning stuff!

And then I found it. And nearly died in the process. In a BAD way.

Warning.. not for the faint of heart where tiny bugs are concerned. Read on if you dare.

All around my vacuum cleaner head swarmed ANTS. What?!? Ants do NOT reside in this here house! They are outdoor varmints that have no place where cozy country and coastal touches rank first and foremost!

My stomach knotted and without thinking, I sucked up every one of those critters pronto! Not daring to turn off the vacuum, I stood on ant watch alert. Another, zap! ZAP ZAP ZAP! YUK!

In panic mode, I had to chill. Ok woman, think! WHERE are they coming from? No use having them disappear if you can't stop them. Stop, breathe, and watch. So I did. Vacuum cleaner still screaming in the background.

Slowly they reappeared, one by one. They were coming from outside under a doorway. Whew! At least I didn't have an anthill popping up inside the house! So while the silly vacuum kept roaring ( I didn't want them to crawl back out you know!) I dashed for any silicone gun and gunk I could find. FAST.

I'm so proud of me. I had the gun fully loaded so I pressed with all my might (no time to wire it open people!) ... POP, and out oozed the white gold that was going to SAVE MY LIFE.

I slathered it on everywhere I could find a small crack. Gobs of toilet paper later (to clean up the silicone mess), ant watch again. I wait and wait and wait. Nothing. Hopeful, I continue to vacuum the rest of the house. I go back moments to find a few more. NO!!!! Then think, maybe the captured ones are trying to get back home. Nope, I missed a small spot. Silicone, got it. Wait, nothing. Go back to clean. Come back to look, nothing. No way. This worked?!?

So what IS the moral of my story here? How long those ants were down there I'm not certain, but I'm thinking it only happened overnight because it's at the main entry and I would have seen what I did today. But no matter. Point being, if you regularly clean, you spot these things before they get outa hand here.

As for the house, reason it got so bad was simply was because, LAST weekend I chose to paint and left the housework thinking I'd do it during the week. Sometimes you just have to if you want a project done, ya know? But I didn't do the housework. And this weekend Cody was with me more. So instead of cleaning, we went to a local lake for a lovely evening, then took in local festivities in town. It was a play weekend. Until today.

So, what comes first in your home? You KNOW you want to do that project, but your house is a wreck in motion. Do you fight past the urge to clean and play anyway? Or do the right thing and clean first to earn your playtime?

Now, excuse me while I go on ant watch again AND retrieve Cody's backpack and my lawn chair from the front lawn. I think they're allowed back inside now.

{{{{{ shiver }}}}}