Are y’all getting tired of reading about house stuff? Because that’s really about all that I’ve got right now.

Our appraisal went well, so the home equity loan is all set, and tomorrow is the best part of all: we’re getting central air-conditioning! It seems like no one in the Northwest has air-conditioning because you only need it for maybe a few weeks total out of each summer. But I am a spoiled brat who was raised in the south, and I firmly believe that if the temperature outside is over 75 degrees, you’re supposed to be able to turn on a damn air-conditioner in your house.

Anyway, we aren’t getting a regular ol’ air-conditioner. Oh no. We’re getting a combination A/C and heat pump, which will apparently save us a ton of money in the winter by running our heat on electricity rather than propane (what it currently runs on). And propane is expensive, so the heat pump is a good investment, helps the house’s re-sale value, is better for the environment, yadda yadda. All good stuff.

On Saturday, Dave and I went to our local dinky hardware store, where we bought a new wheelbarrow (yay!) and other yard stuff. When we got home, I did some weed-whacking (hee!) and raking, and started my very own teeny-tiny mulch pile. (I’m sure it’ll grow as time goes on.) Dave started his own little yard project, which is to kill the grass in half of our front yard, so we can see how uneven the ground is there and figure out where we need to redistribute the dirt to make it level. Good times.

Later on Saturday, I went shopping with Kris and bought a couple of cookbooks. Dave and I are making an effort at eating healthier (again), and we’ve been doing pretty well with that for a few weeks now, but I needed some inspiration. Hence the cookbooks. On Sunday, I made oatmeal cookies that were sweetened with grape juice concentrate rather than sugar. They were pretty good, but I think next time I might have to leave out a little juice so I can add just a tiny amount of sugar. Because seriously, if I’m craving something sweet, I just don’t think they’re going to do it for me. They’re ok, just sort of… meh. They taste “healthy,” and not in a good way.

I’ve been strangely hyper lately (see Saturday: “Let’s go to the store! Let’s do yardwork! Let’s go shopping AGAIN!!”), and I’m waiting for the crash when I need to sleep for three days to balance it out. But I’m enjoying the extra energy for now, because I seem to be getting a lot of stuff done. I wonder if maybe the energy is because I’ve been eating less junk? Scary thought, that my body might actually be happier with better sources of fuel in it. Ah, if only I could feel this good on nothing but potato chips and Little Debbie snack cakes… Sigh.