broccoli
I harvested this yesterday when it was super hot. I didn’t harvest any romaine because I just got too hot out there. I’ll do that later today.
head lettuce
Spinach
I also wanted to show you our tomato plants in the two planters we converted to square foot gardening on the east side of the house.
The first tomato blossom of the season!
My husband has been trying to get clematis to grow happily at our place for several years now. The past couple of years it has given us a nice display.
We used 4 half-barrels and arranged for something for it to climb on. When you look at the flowers from the house, there isn’t a lot to see.
But when you look at the flowers from the BACK, this is what you see. We’ll take it.
Filed under Gardening
The cutoff date on making changes for our 2nd Nutrisystem order was the 13th. I got my frozen stuff today! We’ll get another delivery for my husband’s frozen stuff, and two more for our UN-frozen stuff, but I was amazed – and I admit, unprepared – to get my new frozen order so quickly.
We quickly decided that we want to be sure we eat everything – liked or not-liked – from the first order before we dive into the new one. We made a bunch of changes on the new order, so we know we’ll like MANY more of our meal choices, but that’s the point. It’s too easy to just keep trying to stash the things we don’t care for back farther and farther into the shelf or freezer.
I just finished putting all the remaining breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks from our original order into freezer bags clearly labeled as to ‘eater’ and which meal is in the bag. As soon as I have a chance to catch my breath, I’ll put away my new frozen things, trying not to get TOO anticipatory that my resolve to eat the other stuff first goes away.
The end of Week 3 is tomorrow. I’m hopeful that I’ll be able to report more lardage and more inches gone.
One good sign – I bought some shorts to hold me through the summer a week or so ago. They are already loose – to the point that I’ve put “new, SMALLER shorts on our list! My husband entered a new, lower ‘decade’ on the scales this morning. He was really encouraged. We also monitor his blood sugar number tomorrow, so fingers (and all other appendages, including our eyes) are crossed for a good number.
Here’s to keep on keepin’ on!
Filed under DIET!
thedailyblog.co.nz
We had storms really early yesterday morning. Lightning apparently hit the radio tower on a ridge line across the valley from us that brings our Internet, email, and TV, knocking it out completely for much of the day. We felt disenfranchised, but soldiered on. :0) I hated not being able to write blog posts, check email, look up the phone number of our Internet provider on the net in order to report the outage ( :0) ), or do things like read what was happening on the news – or watch it on TV – since much of our TV service is tied to Internet service.
My husband went to an auction that was nearby. While he was gone, I used the time to get caught up on filing and cleaned up the office. I also started a spreadsheet that will list our ‘stuff’ in case of a catastrophic loss, such as a tornado blowing our home to smithereens or a wildfire burning everything to a crisp.
I told you that we arranged a meeting with our insurance agent recently to learn in PLAIN ENGLISH what our coverages included, what needed to be increased, what was excluded, and if the DVD with pics and information was enough should the worst happen. The end result was that we feel much more confident about our policies. We added an endorsement that would better cover the stuff in our basement. We discovered that the first thing we would have to do in case of a gigantic loss would be to fill out forms that listed, in our own handwriting, each thing we had lost, including brand name, serial and model numbers, when and from whom we bought it, what we paid, etc. Our DVD covers a lot, but not like this.
I got a copy of the spreadsheet form we would need to fill out and I’m building a spreadsheet to mirror theirs, working on it as I get the time, working from our DVD, taking new pics when needed, listing things room by room, adding things if needed, subtracting things, etc. I would much rather have this if we need it, in the safe deposit box at the bank, than try to do this after we’ve lost everything. I started on this yesterday. This will be a long project, but I’ll work on it a bit at a time.
We ran errands for much of the afternoon. We did what was needed at home and then discovered our Internet service had been repaired. Hooraaay! Sad to say, I was too pooped by that time to even think about getting on the computer…
Filed under Challenges
“Alone” – Paul Militaru Photography
“Blackbird and Forget-Me-Not Flowers” – Paul Militaru Photography
“Careful Supervision” – Paul Militaru Photography
“Lady in Black” – Paul Militaru Photography
“Lady of the Lake” – Paul Militaru Photography
“Gull” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under Paul Militaru Photography
Our raised bed square foot garden is doing well so far this year. We have six 4’x4′ boxes on metal ‘tables’ at about my chest level. I can just walk up to them, planting, weeding, or harvesting without having to get up and down from my knees or bend over double – a thing I can’t tell you how very MUCH I appreciate!
We are growing iceberg head lettuce, romaine lettuce, sweet onions, radishes, spinach and broccoli. We have two converted planters on the east side of the house with tomato plants.
I’m going to go out and harvest some things today, but I wanted to show you how nice the plants look before I do.
I have some celery started in the kitchen that I’m hoping I can transplant to these empty squares soon.
On the lower right, you can see the start of radishes in the square.
I pruned the three bushes we got for the first time recently. Essentially, I had to prune ALL of the blooms, so I was a bit worried.
I had to wait for a couple of weeks, but they’re in bloom again now and seem to be happy in their new digs.
Filed under Gardening
Filed under Beans & Seeds Art, Creativity
Amber’s had a really fun, doggy type day and we haven’t even gotten to lunch yet!
It started with a romp in her kiddie pool. Instead of just getting her feet wet, she got down and really cooled off. (That brought a distinct reminder that one of the things we need to do today is scrub out her pool and fill it up again.)
We dried her off as much as possible and let her in. (We can’t leave her out very long because she gets bored, goes onto the front porch or into the garage and finds something wonderful to play with (destroy)).
She then decided to play in her water dish, leaving a pool of water. (I used one of our hair-washing towels to sop it up.)
We’re supposed to have a rainy week, so we decided to get out and do our yard work today before it got super hot. My husband used the riding mower and got the lawn taken care of. While he was doing that, I was going around the yard with the weed eater. I needed to do several sessions, having to drink water and rest in between.
One of the times I came in to rest, I found blobs of fuzz everywhere. Amber had found my neck pillow that I use every day in my yoga practice and had shredded it. (It’s now on the Walmart list for replacement.)
One of the times I was out, my husband let Amber out. She found a mud puddle beside one of the planters because he arranged for the irrigation system to work in the back and side of our yard so that our two tomato planters could be watered on a regular basis. Amber had a WONDERFUL time, coming to greet me in a few minutes with mud all over her – especially on her feet, legs, face and nose. I yelled into the house, asking my husband to hose Amber off and put her on the back porch with the door shut to dry off.
I came in for the last time, having finished the weed whacking and having used the leaf blower to clean off the sidewalks and driveway pad, and there was another pool of water around the water dish. (We are now starting the clothes washer to deal with all the wet towels.)
That’s it for the morning entertainment for Amber. I will be really happy in another 11 months when there is some chance that this 93 lb yellow labrador retriever ‘puppy’ will have calmed down a bit…
Filed under Amazing Animals, Family
“It is not until you become a mother that your judgment slowly turns to compassion and understanding.” – Erma Bombeck
“Motherhood has a very humanizing effect. Everything gets reduced to essentials.” Meryl Streep
When you are a mother, you are never really alone in your thoughts. A mother always has to think twice, once for herself and once for her child. Sophia Loren
The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but the mother, never. A mother is something absolutely new. ~Rajneesh
Grown don’t mean nothing to a mother. A child is a child. They get bigger, older, but grown? What’s that suppose to mean? In my heart it don’t mean a thing. ~Toni Morrison
Being a mother is learning about strengths you didn’t know you had, and dealing with fears you didn’t know existed. ~Linda Wooten
Biology is the least of what makes someone a mother. ~Oprah Winfrey
HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!
Filed under Favorite Quotes, holidays
I was really tied in a knot when I got my last massage therapy session Thursday. To say I needed help was an understatement. Somehow I made the muscles that run from my neck to my shoulders and across my back hurt so badly they burn. Hot showers and pain medicine didn’t help. My wonderful massage therapist, Lynn Moody, expertly got to all the sore muscles, kneading them into relaxation.
We were agreed that I should stop doing whatever it was that caused the problem in the first place, should I ever discover what that is.
She also suggested –
Inestlive
I’ve been doing all but the over the door thingie since I had my massage Thursday morning. The combination is helping. I actually had almost an hour where I didn’t feel any pain across my back last night!
Filed under Challenges, exercise, taking care of yourself
Chiang Mai, Thailand
This is the view as our son walks from the house he’s renting to downtown Chiang Mai every day.
Filed under Awe-Inspiring Photography, quality of life
Filed under Beans & Seeds Art, Creativity
NikhiRoy-nikhilroynilz.wordpress.com
Signed, but I can’t read the signature – http://www.pinterest.com
Filed under Creativity, drawings
I think I’ve told you that I hate computers when they don’t work and make me feel stupid. This happens a LOT. Recently, my husband really insisted that I change to a PC with Windows 10 from the iMac my son set up for me. My husband wants to be able to fix things when I have problems. Our son is across the world from us, and so many times isn’t available to help.
My husband ordered the same hardware he’s using for me, but for some unknown reason, it wouldn’t work. He fought and fought with things, returning and changing out parts, and finally got things going. Then there was a fight with Windows 10 and getting other software on to emulate what I was using on the iMac. He’s still trying to get our computers to see each other so we can share files. Usually, this is a simple process (for a computer person) but even the Microsoft tech support people, taking over both of our computers, haven’t been able to get it so we can see each other. It’s a mystery.
Meanwhile, my biggest aggravation on a daily basis is that I couldn’t see the pictures I use every day in writing the blog. I have a lot of pics collected and can’t remember all their names, so I was having to get on each one, open it to see if that was the one I wanted, over and over. My normally fairly nice demeanor has been eroded over several weeks now of fighting with this.
My husband is at an auction in Oklahoma today so I have the house to myself and relative peace – except for the animals wanting to go in and out constantly. I was determined to get my pics to show this morning AND I DID IT! I was prowling around and saw ‘options’ under the viewing menu. I clicked on view below that and found a box in which my husband had placed a check mark: “always show icons, never thumbnails.” That was the OPPOSITE of what I like and I UN-clicked the box. VOILA! I can see my pictures!!!!!!
There is no telling WHAT this newly empowered, puffed-up lady can do next!
aprilbushnell.blogspot.com
Filed under empowerment
Filed under Beans & Seeds Art, Creativity
We’re almost to the cutoff date in order to change our Nutrisystem Order for Month #2. I asked my husband to sit with me at the computer and go through his choices for next month. He was very complimentary about the fact that I had gotten on the computer immediately when he said he didn’t care for something and deleted it from next month’s order. He also said I had done a much better job of choosing things than he did and welcomed my help. (I’m still shocked :0) )
Nutrisystem emailed us that our deadline for changing our order was approaching. That’s a good really good policy. The reminder is also at the top of the page in red whenever you go onto the website. (I guess you could miss it, but these people are helping you out the best way they can.)
It’s easy to see what your current order is for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. You can order a la carte if you’d like, as well. You can change things as many times as you like. They keep track of the number of choices you’ve made in each category so you know when you’re finished. Technically, we have until 6pm on the 13th, to make changes, but I doubt we’ll need to do more. The end result is that each month you have more and more items you like – making it easier to stick with the program.
Good job, Nutrisystem!
Filed under DIET!, Healthy Eating, taking care of yourself
commons.wikimedia.org
I have trouble understanding why people don’t vote. Turnout is especially low in primaries, and I’ve come to think those are the most important of all. I’ve complained for years that I’m not for EITHER candidate in election after election, but it’s my own fault if I don’t help determine who is in the final election.
I’m particularly happy that Arkansas allows us plenty of time to vote before we have to stand in long lines. This year I think we may have two full weeks to drop by City Hall whenever the mood strikes us and it’s convenient to vote. How civilized is that! And the process used makes me feel secure that there is little – if any – fraud here. You have to have a photo ID to vote. You show it to the lady, she finds your information on her computer. You have to provide your address, your birth date and sign the screen, which is then compared to the signature on file from when you registered. I think it would be pretty difficult for someone to try to look like me, know all my information, and be able to produce a signature close enough to the one on file to qualify as ‘me.’ Then, after we’ve used the touch screen to choose the candidates, it shows you a summary of what you’ve input for you to okay, and then a printed ballot is produced by the machine. You verify that and then personally feed it into a machine. The printed ballots are available in case of any question.
This year I was unfamiliar with most of the candidates, so I spent part of two days looking up each candidate on the Internet, so at least I could compare credentials and background. Some candidates I dismissed because they gave all the standard answers. I call these ‘old political hacks’ whether they’ve held office or not. I’m looking for new blood, new ideas, thinking-outside-the-box people. Sometimes both or all of the candidates seemed qualified. Then I simply chose who appealed to me more for some reason.
I still cringe when I think of a wonderful friend of mine here in Arkansas, now passed, who, when she started talking about the mayoral race for Greenwood, readily told me who she voted for. When I asked her why she liked that candidate, she replied, “He’s some kind of kin to Cecil.” (her husband). And she voted every election – I assume with the same reasoning.
Whatever your political affiliation, I urge you to cast your vote. Each of us has a voice. It’s important that we study the candidates carefully and support those who we think would do the best job for our town, our state, and our country.
Happy Voting!
Filed under Acting Like a Grownup, Attitude
Dirk Dzimirsky-World of Arts.eu
drawingninja.com
Filed under Creativity, drawings
Funny Signs and Funny Headlines –
“Man Struck By Lightning: Faces Battery Charge”
He probably IS the battery charge!
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“New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group”
Weren’t they fat enough?!
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“Astronaut Takes Blame for Gas in Spacecraft”
That’s what he gets for eating those beans!
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“Kids Make Nutritious Snacks”
Do they taste like chicken?
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“Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half”
Chainsaw Massacre all over again!
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“Hospitals are Sued by 7 Foot Doctors”
Boy, are they tall!
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And the winner is…
“Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery; Hundreds Dead”
Did I read that right?
Filed under Funny Signs - Humor
“Last Full Day at the Beach” – Mary Lou Lewis
Filed under Awe-Inspiring Photography, vicarious enjoyment
“Happy Water Dance” – Paul Militaru Photography
Filed under Paul Militaru Photography
Funny Signs and Headlines –
“Miners Refuse to Work after Death”
No-good-for-nothing’ lazy so-and-so’s!
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“Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant”
See if that works better than a fair trial!
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“War Dims Hope for Peace”
I can see where it might have that effect!
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“If Strike Isn’t Settled Quickly, It May Last Awhile”
Ya’ think?!
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“Cold Wave Linked to Temperatures”
Who would have thought!
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“Enfield ( London ) Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide”
They may be on to something!
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“Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges”
You mean there’s something stronger than duct tape?
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Filed under Funny Signs - Humor
Since starting the ‘Nutrisystem for Fat Ladies’ program two weeks ago, there is less of me!
*(Couple this with what I lost before Nutrisystem – and my total loss since “MY WORST” is 19 lbs and 15.5 inches.)
My husband refuses to do anything but weigh, and he’s lost 3 lbs. He’s drinking stuff during the day, but doesn’t want to even think about drinking 64 oz of water per day. He’ll eat fruit and nuts, but fusses about anything else as his PFs and SCs each day, eating some of what I bring him, but not all. He will eat a salad, but fights other veggies, mostly, so I’m doing veggies and dip for lunch and salad for dinner. He’s on the diabetic program, and his blood sugar readings, which we take twice per week, are the best he’s had since we started monitoring him!
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I’m still feeling a bit obsessed with food, since I’m setting the alarm so I don’t miss one of our ‘feedings’ at the zoo, and am fixing PowerFuels, SmartCarbs and Veggies a good part of each day. I’m still needing to ‘read the list’ of what is good, but I’m getting better at it. I’m finding it easier to drink the 64 oz of water daily. In-between, I have a cup of coffee in the morning and another during the evening. My body is still trying to get used to the different eating regimen, but I’m gradually feeling more comfortable.
My husband and I are going to sit down together at the computer tomorrow and make final decisions about what will be in our order that will ship soon for month #2. He found he had chosen several things he didn’t care for. I’ve been letting him eat some of my choices to get him through this first month and he wants me to help him choose for next month.
I’m learning some general things on how to eat so that we can keep this weight off as we go and through the rest of our lives:
I think the weight loss after week 1 is supposed to average 1 to 2 lbs per week. I would be very happy with that. I want to get the lard off and KEEP it off, becoming healthier in the process.
On to Week 3!
creativeartworksblog 