"Love, Marilyn" and a Mid Century Housewife Update

Hi all!!!

sigh...

It's been a loooonggg week for this lady. Luckily, I have only one more ballet recital to go before I am done for the summer (well, most of the summer anyway).

Today, Honey and I had both had the day, off so we spent some much needed quality time together.

We were able to catch a great documentary on HBO called "Love, Marilyn". Have you seen it?

Its a really well done documentary with different current stars reading excerpts from Marilyn's journals. It also had interviews with some of the people closest to her. The film gave great incite into the star and what she went through during her lifetime.

I have always known a lot about Marilyn, and always considered myself a fan but this film really got me thinking about how sad her life really was. To hear about events in her own words was beautiful and tragic. She was so lost and lonely. And completely broken. I really feel for her and wish her life wasn't cut short in the manner that it was. Even Honey says she has a new found respect for Marilyn after watching the documentary. It was really touching and poignant.

After that I HAD to make Honey watch "The Seven Year Itch". Can you believe it was her first time seeing it in it's entirety? I guess that is my fault. Whenever I'm able to catch classic films online or on television I assume she's not interested and watch them on my own. In the last year I've been (gently) encouraging her to watch my classics. She resists at first, but soon gets into it and loves them. If you get a chance to see "Love, Marilyn", I highly recommend it!

Now for a Mid-Century Housewife Update:


While lounging around today I had some time to look through the new to me cookbook I got from ebay. I LOVE it. It has so much vintage scrumptiousness in it that I find myself picking it up like its a novel!!!! I was going to give you all a peek into the book but I think that I'll show the recipes as I cook them.  I  have also ordered a couple of vintage Good Housekeeping magazines for more inspiration.

I found this neat website called Open Library. It enables you to borrow ebooks for free!!! I found a copy of "America's Housekeeping Book" from 1941. I haven't gotten through the entire book yet but it has a wealth of information on homemaking. I'm sure much of it I will keep in mind even after the project is over. It has a great daily cleaning schedule that I'm going to use to help me keep track of the day to day home maintenance. I was able to alter it to fit our household.

Would you like to see what I've come up with so far??

Of course you would! So here it is (in all it's exhausting glory).

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
Early Morning	Prepare Breakfast	*	*	*	*	*	*
Forenoon	Complete a light pickup around the house	*	*	*	*	*	*
		Marketing	Laundry	Thorough home clean	Thorough home clean	Plan meals for upcoming week
Noon	Prepare lunch and start initial dinner prep (such as marinating, defrosting)	*	*	*	*	*
Early Afternoon	Finish any tasks that were not completed in the morning or forenoon	*	*	*	*	*
Late Afternoon	This is time for relaxation (nap taking) . FINAL DINNER PREP	*	*	*	*	*	*
Early Evening	Dinner and after dinner dishwashing	*	*	*	*	*	*

 So that's the basic outline of what's going to happen...

Now... I was reading a few blogs and it seems as though THIS is what should  actually be happening during those time periods I laid out... Ready??

1. Throw back the covers
2. Open up the blinds and windows
3. Freshen up
4. Make and serve breakfast
5. Clean up breakfast
6. Complete a 10 minute exercise regime
7. Shower, do hair and make-up, get dressed
8. Gather a basket for tidying. As the rooms of the home are tackled, pick up items that aren’t where they belong and place them in a basket. Redistribute them where they should be as you enter a new room
9. Straighten up the living and dining room, including picking up potential clutter, light dusting, fluffing / straightening pillows, and watering plants or flowers
10. Make the beds
11. Tidy the bedroom, including light dusting
12. Hang up any clothes that may be about or ensure dirty ones are in the hamper
13. Do a light tidy of the bathroom including removing and replacing used towels, refilling toilet paper and soap (if needed) and cleaning the sink and basin area including soap dishes
14. Review the menu for the current day and the next and compare it to what’s currently available in the home. Make note of anything that needs to be prepared ahead of time or marketing (shopping) that needs to get done
15. Begin long-advance preparations for dinner (such as making dessert)
16. Wipe down kitchen work surfaces and inside the fridge
17. Dispose of garbage
18. Rinse dish cloths and hang to dry
19. Sweep or mop the kitchen floor
20. Handle errands that might take you out of the home (such as marketing, volunteering, going to the post office, getting an item fixed, etc), bookkeeping, correspondence, or indulge in a hobby
21. If returning from the grocery store, wash vegetables, wrap them and put them away. Place rest of groceries or purchases in their proper place
22. Have a quick 
23. Start advance food conditioning like crisping vegetables or thawing frozen foods
24. Handle weekly chore for the day 
25. Set the table for dinner
26. Arrange the living room for evening enjoyment (such as “the Mister’s” newspaper, book, and cigarettes)
27. Do a quick sweep of the floors and ensure entrance ways are clear
28. Prepare a special dish for dinner
29. Freshen up before the husband (or Honey's) returns from work. Consider changing into something more festive if the day dress is plain
30. Set out a tray with equipment for making cocktails, should Honey want to serve drinks before dinner
31. Greet Honey “gayly”
32. Serve dinner
33. Clear table and wash dishes
34. Pour boiling water down the sink to ensure pipes are flushed
35. If necessary, pack the Honey's lunch for the next day. Set aside a lunch tray in the refrigerator for yourself if having leftovers
36. Set table for breakfast
37. Ensure breakfast foods are available and do any make-ahead preparations for it
38. Enjoy an evening of relaxation

Ummm...yeah... I'll try to get some of that done but... Holy Mother of Vintage, that's a lot of stuff to get done in a day!

In the midst of all of that I still have to carve out time to blog about the whole experience. I guess that should come before bed or when I wake up.

You know what's funny? Even though there is so much to get done the main thing on my mind is what I'll wear while doing all of it! Terrible I know!!!! Ugh!! That darn dress addiction is rearing it's ugly head again.

I think I'll go thrifting tomorrow for some aprons and maybe some pretty table settings. I'm really starting to get into this.

That's it for now. You'll be hearing from me more often now that I have a little more free time. YAY!

xoxo