Modern Conveniences

This is what our kitchen floors currently look like. We had a dishwasher that we didn't notice was leaking a little water until a few months ago.  We put it off because we had a bunch of other things going on.  When we eventually got around to taking care of the problem, it turned out we had mold under our carpet :(  One thing I found out about mold is that it's not dangerous unless you start disturbing it, which kind of happened when the old dishwasher was pulled out to make room for the new one!!  It cost more to "fog" our house to get rid of the mold than it did for the company to rip out our old cabinet and carpet!! We have been washing dishes by hand until we get the new dishwasher installed.  My hubby grew up in a household where his parents didn't have a dishwasher.  I grew up in a household that did.   I remember complaining one time to my grandmother (the one who lived to be 101) about having to wash dishes by hand sometimes.  Her reply back was "at least you have a dishwasher!!"  One of the many interesting items we found when we cleaned out the in-laws house was this:

I have no idea how old this is, but I'm guessing it's pretty old. The back of this thing says, "ideal for silks, hosiery and lingerie or handkerchiefs."  I'm so happy washing machines were invented - it's definitely a "modern convenience" I'm glad is around :)  My in-laws never got central air conditioning.  In my family that air conditioning was running several months out of the year. It's a battle of wills in the summer with the hubby and I about when the "air" should be turned on.  He doesn't like to be cold, I don't like to be hot!!!  One of my favorite book series to read when I was little were the Laura Ingalls Wilder books - she wrote "Little House on the Prairie" and other books.   Those to me were fascinating to read - she talks about what it was like - like using a fireplace to heat your house and cook meals.  Now we flip a switch for heat and use our stove, oven or microwave to cook and bake.  Thank goodness for those modern "conveniences!"