Done: The carpeting is in. I have to say they finished product looks great. He did a good job measuring and cutting, as far as I can tell. So while I actually took photos from the unit of them outside cutting the carpeting on the filthy dirty parking lot, I probably won't bother pursuing the matter. Now if I can only get rid of that awful chemical smell.

Nearly done: My new entry way is looking GREAT. The stairs are done, as is the extension of stonework to the foundation of my house. The stairs are super wide now (4.5 ft) with beautiful stone walls on either side and seem like they're more in scale with the dimensions of the house. Instead of a narrow, dark and somewhat cavernous steep staircase, the new staircase seems more fitting for a front entry way, and more welcoming.

All they have left to do is the paver circle landing at the top; he had also said he would repair loose mortar joints in the landing directly in front of the front door, and I will remind him of that.

It was quite a bit of money, but I'm so happy with the results. Now I'll never want to leave here! I'd like to share photos here, but so far I've been unable to post them.

Scheduled: The replacement of slider doors in finished basement. The guy had come over last Friday to take measurements and told me to call on Monday for the price. Well, I called on Monday, still not ready; called on Tuesday, still not ready. Finally, on Wednesday, they told me the guy who took the measurements left the company, which I guess accounted for some of the delay.

Because I was able to get contractor #2 to install the door I picked out at Lowes, I was able to save $1250 compared to contractor #1, who said they only installed certain brands. The labor both were charging was about the same, $1100 vs $1,000. So yes, it was a cheapie set of doors at Lowes, at $300 (!), but it actually got 4 star reviews, and since the place will be sold, I don't really care about how it holds up over the long term and I didn't get it with Argon gas inside.

The wanted to install this Tuesday, which would be great except that I'll be back at work at that point and it won't look good if I return after a week away from work and announce I need to take off Tuesday. So on Tuesday at 8 a.m. I'll meet the contractor at the condo to open the place up. I will give them the 2 keys needed to lock up and they will return the keys to my mother's neighbor, a few doors down. I will get them from him next time I go over there.

So much in the way of logistics, not to mention making sure Lowes knows someone other than me is picking up the door, giving them the guy's name, etc.

Yesterday I was back at the condo. I cleaned the floor and counter of the half bath. As before, I was down on my hands and knees (with a gardening cushion, what a lifesaver) scrubbing the black stuff off the joints between the tiles) but it seemed to go much faster than scrubbing the linoleum floor in the kitchen.

Onto the master bath. I also scrubbed this floor, washed down the counter and the mirror and the bath tub. The tiles in the shower surround, however, look terrible. There is some mildew/mold that just wouldn't come off, but I notice some of the tiles really need regrouting; there are some holes are gaps where there is no grout at all.

So I think I'll try my hand at regrouting. I think it's fairly easy. After cleaning anything loose, press the grout into the grooves with a spatula-type object, than use a washcloth or rag to clean any grout off the tiles. Any other tips on this, fellow do-it-yourselfers? Also, anyone know how to make an old, dull bath tub (ceramic) shine?

I have to also leave the disclosure form for the realtor today, at the condo. It's a form required for any CT real estate transactions where you disclose any known major defects. Because I'm not the resident there, my realtor's attorney advised that I might want to just check "Unknown" for every item on the list down the line. My realtor had told me earlier that buyers may be suspicious if they see "Unknown" checked, but I think if it's explained that a daughter is selling a parent's home they might understand.

Yesterday I also donated a car full of frames, matts and photo frames of my mother's to the local middle school here. A custodian there helped me load everything into a cart, an art teacher stopped by to see what the goodies were, and they were both very appreciative. I had original plans to donate to the local Montessori school and had already set that up with a woman there who said call before you come. But when I called and asked if someone could help me unload my car, she seemed annoyed and changed her mind, saying it wasn't a good time for me to donate, they had art camp going on, that no one could help me, and when I asked how far a distance I would need to carry stuff, she changed her mind entirely, saying she didn't want the stuff. I thought she was really unpleasant.

I also went to the dump yesterday and got rid of a pile of stuff. I also dropped off a few extra parts to the small loom I sold to the realtor who bought them, at her office.

In between all this I managed to shred some health insurance paperwork and other items with my mother's Social Security number onf them, going back to 2002.

At day's end, when i was reading my emails, I found a brief note from my sister informing me that my mother was back in the hospital with pneumonia.

I had called and left a message for a nurse at the assisted living place 2 days prior after my mother's neighbor told me he'd visited her and during his visit she began having trouble breathing, wasn't sure if it was an anxiety attack or allergies. So I called the nurse, she never called back and next thing I know, 2 days later, she has pneumonia.

I spoke to her on the phone last night, and the nurse at hospital, who said she's doing much better and is on antibiotics but it sounds like she'll be there several days longer.