Ahead of the July 4th weekend, I decided to take some days off in order to refresh, recharge, and also to try and get caught up a bit on a few projects around the house that mostly involved decluttering areas that could really use some TLC.

Admittedly, my track record on doing projects while also taking time off is mixed.  I think we've all been there before. You map out a course of action well ahead of your "staycation," but then when it starts, you suddenly decide to wait a day to officially get started on the to-do list. Then the one day becomes two. 

And before you know it, you're down to your last day off before returning to work, and you've gotten very little done outside of making sure the side tables and coffee tables are cleared off enough to fit your beverages, snack bowls, and various remote controls.

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I'm pleased to report that this time around, I knocked it out of the park. I completed just about everything on my to-do list during my time off while also managing to get some rest and relaxation in between.

During the process, I was reminded all over again how decluttering and organizing one area can lead to ideas and opportunities to take care of another area. For example, I was able to clear off a small bookshelf, with most of what was on it being donatable. I was then able to use that bookshelf in another part of the house in a way that got stuff off the floor and into its proper place.

By the time all was said and done, I had a car and trunk FULL of items to donate. After dropping them off, it felt so good; a weight lifted. And what made it better was that I had done it all with a day off to spare. So I could spend that last day kicked back in the recliner and proud that I'd made good use of my time off.

The evening before I was set to return to work, I was double-checking to make sure the front door was locked and that the alarm was set when I noticed a water stain on the ceiling. Now, we'd seen things like this before, but it was a couple of decades ago, before a previous roofing/shingles project that Mom and Dad had paid to have done.

This one was new. We knew we needed a new roof, something that had been hinted at by a home inspector a couple of years ago and then confirmed by two roofing contractors who had provided us with quotes on a small roof repair job that needed to be done last fall.  We had just wanted to wait until after the house was paid off (which will be in three months) to give the project the green light, just so we didn't have to take on an extra payment.

After I saw that new water stain, I knew it was time to green light a roof replacement. So I went to bed that night, feeling deflated, with my happiness over all I'd gotten done overtaken by another Life Happens moment.

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But I woke up the next day with a fresh perspective. It was an extra payment we were only going to have for a couple of months before paying off the house. Plus, we already had quotes for a full replacement from two different contractors, the same two who quoted me for the roof repair last fall. I'd also had them send me quotes for a full roof replacement at the time.

They were both in range of each other, so we went with the one from the company that actually did the repair work, who we met with last Thursday. And by the time we were told the timeline, and chose a financing option, I felt much better about things.

In addition to all of this, I've decided it's time for a new (to me) car after what happened in the April car accident, and I'm aiming to get the vehicle by the end of the summer. I will say I'm very comfortable with that decision for reasons I'll explain in a future VIP, but it's been a wee bit of an emotional roller coaster to have to make these financial decisions so close together.

I'm choosing not to view these as storms that Mom and I are having to weather, because having to get a new roof and a newish car are two of those inevitabilities in life that you have to grin and bear. I'm thankful we are in a position where we can do both and am appreciative of the silver linings that have come from them.