I was able to get and print 2 of the 3 things I need from our investment accounts this morning. As soon as I can get the third, we can bag up or tax stuff and take it to our CPA. I always feel so much better when my part of this is done for another year.
I have all appendages crossed that our weather cooperates with me so I can get my massage next week. We’re supposed to get rain Monday and Tuesday, with a possible ‘wintry mix’ Wednesday, just in time for my massage on Thursday. My body would really be grateful if we can keep that appointment.
I’m doing better with my yoga, though. I’m starting to loosen up again, although it will be awhile before I get back to where I was. Why do I have to prove to myself over and over again that this old woman really NEEDS these stretches? I could win a prize for ‘hardest head’ I think. I’m also doing better at keeping my mouth shut this week. I’ve lost 2.5 lbs and hope to continue this, earning gold stars on my calendar. :0)
We’ll leave for Lunch Bunch in about an hour. It was SOOOO good to finally have most of us there last week. I just got a text saying two of us won’t be there. :0( Hopefully, Kay will be there.
I was as happy as this sweet dog today at Lunch Bunch. When I started to open the door to the restaurant, my friend KAY opened the door! (she is the one who fell and broke a bone in her back about 2 months ago now, and has been on quite a ride trying to fix the problem and find a way forward.)
Her husband is watching her like a hawk, making sure she doesn’t lift anything and is doing all of the housework for her, as well. He’s a real keeper. She is very grateful, and yet was understandably glad to be out of the house and with friends. She ordered a couple of individual pizzas to take home so they could eat together.
It was such a celebration to be able to babble at each other, catching up, giving hugs, laughing, etc. My husband was on his best behavior, only becoming ‘deaf’ when Kay was telling us all her husband was doing to help clean the house. :0)
Aside from a truly enjoyable Lunch Bunch, the weather couldn’t be nicer. Sunny and supposed to get almost to 70 this afternoon. What a treat!
I’m making a note to get outside and walk around our yard this afternoon. We’re getting a cold front tomorrow, dropping our temperatures up to 25 degrees (high of 39 tomorrow), with possible winter storm on Wednesday.
I’m still grinning at my friends finally being able to get together. I’m rich in friends.
Hahahahahahaah. I love this. I would love to hang this in my kitchen. :0)
Actually, I’m delighted that I can tell you I feel stronger and more myself each day. By the end of the day, even with a nap, I still feel I ran into a wall or something, but much of the day I’m greeting with happiness. Thankfully, I haven’t been sick much in my life. I don’t like spending time here.
I just enjoyed a chat with our son. We talk every couple of days, at least. Lately he’s been sharing pics of a new place he’s thinking of getting. I again tried to get him to send me samples of the music he’s making (he never thinks it’s good enough). We usually talk in the morning, right before he’s getting ready to head to bed. (He’s 13 hours ahead of us this time of year). He seems happy. That’s all that matters.
We’re not going to Lunch Bunch today. I don’t want to expose anyone to any lingering germs I might have.
Our weather has been truly glorious – especially for January in Arkansas. This is about to change, according to the weather people. but I guess it IS winter… Shhhhhhhhhh!
I hope you have something FUN on tap for today. You’ve earned it.
This isn’t really a picture of the “Ladies of Lunch Bunch,” but it shows the spirit. We met as usual today, except one of us wasn’t there. Kay fell yesterday and was checked out at the hospital before coming home last night. She had called to tell me she wasn’t going to be there today.
I don’t know the details of what was found, but they did allow her to go home. This morning I called and she was in pretty bad shape. She was dizzy and nauseous. She has her husband and niece there with her, and she was waiting for her local doctor to call and tell her if he thought she should go back to the hospital. I don’t know any more details than that. She said she would keep me in the loop of what was happening.
It was good to catch up with Linda and Patty, but the worry was underlying everything. We won’t be able to settle down until we know how Kay is and what is being done to help her. She didn’t tell me anything was broken, so I’m assuming she was mainly shook up and probably sore from the fall. I want to know the why of the dizziness and nausea. She only weighs 98 lbs right now. As feisty a lady as you would ever want to know, so it’s doubly disturbing for this to happen to her.
So, all appendages are crossed for her recovery. We need our friend back.
________
We are having an amazingly warm day today with a cold front and rain forecast for this afternoon and evening. I gathered what is probably the last of our flowers to bring inside.
Red roses, Rio Samba roses, twice-blooming iris. Abby
When we came home from Lunch Bunch, we found that Abby had decided that the buffet was a great spot to sleep. Amber, our 95-pound yellow lab, climbed up in my roll-around office chair with me this morning, almost causing us to both end up on the floor. She likes to make me laugh. Right before we went to Lunch Bunch, I sat on the sofa to talk to my husband, and Amber took that as an invitation to join me. She walked right up and sat beside me, crawling into my lap and licking me as if she were allowed on the furniture!
Final thought – I discovered a singer named Andreas Kummert. I think he’s from Germany. He has such a distinctive style and voice. I could listen to him for hours.
Today we have Lunch Bunch for the first time in two weeks. We missed last week due to the restaurant being closed the day after Thanksgiving. It will be good to catch up with everyone again.
It’s amazing to realize that we have been meeting our friends every possible Friday for about 20 years now. These people aren’t just friends – they’re family. We have helped each other through the hardest things there are, and celebrated joy. We have laughed, hugged, and shared our lives. Friends are truly one of the greatest riches we have.
This afternoon my husband has an eye exam. This is especially important as he has Type II Diabetes. He hasn’t had an exam in several years due to stubbornness. Our primary doc finally got through to him that he NEEDS to do this. So we go today to Fort Smith.
I’m hoping it will go smoothly. My husband used up all his patience in the Marine Corps years ago. He only gets more stubborn with age. He HATES waiting in doctor’s offices. Years ago we were waiting for a different eye doc. We waited in the room for 45 minutes with no one telling us what was going on. I checked out in the hall, but couldn’t find anyone. He insisted we leave without seeing the doc. He wouldn’t go back. Hopefully, today will be a more reasonable appointment…
Our friend gave us quite a ‘thank you’ today for making the Freedom sign for her last week. She paid for our lunch, brought us a home-baked cake/bread with a huge, pretty bow on it, and hugged both of us. I feel that we should make her another sign for the extremely nice ‘thank you’! :0)
The sign said, “Don’t want $ – Want FREEDOM.” She stood on the side of the road across from a busy intersection off the expressway in Ft. Smith. She had a flag in one hand and the sign we made in the other. She said she had people honking and waving, and one man rolled down his window so he could yell, “Freedom!” and smile. It was a good experience for her and probably made some people who saw her happy.
(I’m happy to report that no one has damaged Yosemite Sam (our mailbox decoration) today. I’m relieved, and I hope to be able to one day take it for granted again, rather than driving down our driveway with dread. I will try to finish the repainting of the back of Wonder Wart-Hog this afternoon.
Bill Watterson-Calvin and Hobbes-celebrateeachnewday.tumblr.com
It’s drizzle-y, windy, and too cool this morning. The high today is supposed to be 57. Right now it’s overcast and 47 degrees F. I was ready for cooler weather, but this is ‘too much of a good thing.’
We will join our friends for Lunch Bunch in about half an hour. It’ll be good to catch up with what has been going on for each of them. We have been having lunch together every Friday for about 20 years now. How many changes! We have shared good and bad things, laughter, hugs, and tears. Some of the faces have changed. We’re never sure how many will be there, but the core group is three of us: Linda, Kay and myself. My husband was accepted as an honorary member of the group several years ago. He sits at one end of the table looking at his “harem” he says. We have told him that he is welcome as long as he behaves…
Unless it’s pouring after Lunch Bunch, we will scoot to Walmart afterwards to replenish some supplies. We plan to stay in the rest of the day, warm and dry. I’m putting the electric blanket on our bed today when I put fresh sheets on.
I’ve been adding new products to my Etsy site – Handmade Haven by Linda. Please take a look if you have the time. :0)
To those of you who have been following the blog, I FOUND the gallon container of mold/mildew/algae/elephant remover! As soon as the weather is dry and sunny, I’ll put some in a spray container and hose down the greeter robot yard art at the bottom of the driveway that I’m trying to refurbish. When I get the green and other dirt off of him, I can prepare to freshen his paint.
Our celebratory lunch today for Susan went really well. One of our friends didn’t feel well and couldn’t come, but sent a present. We worked around customers coming in and being served, since our two treasured waitresses also do the cooking most of the time.
We gave her gifts that hopefully showed her how special she is. I also put a copy of the blog post I wrote this morning with one of my gifts and THAT made her cry. One of our group made a cake that we shared. There was a lot of eating, laughing and crying going on. My husband muttered about there being enough emotion today to float a boat. I noticed he got quiet a couple of times, a sure sign that HIS heart was touched, as well.
I hugged Susan before we left. I won’t believe it really, until we go to Lunch Bunch NEXT Friday and Susan isn’t there. She has a standing invitation to join us now, and I hope she will do it.
There is a strange, roundish bright object in the sky today. It’s been so long since we;ve seen it, it seems odd. It’s supposed to show itself in the sky today and probably tomorrow. It’s amazing.
Show + Tell
Later this morning we’ll leave to join my friends for Lunch Bunch. We have joined each other for lunch every Friday for almost 18 years now. Can you imagine how much we’ve shared over the years? Friends like this are truly priceless.
After Lunch Bunch, my husband and I will hit Walmart and the local grocery store for supplies.
My new shop on Etsy is open now. Though I’m still adding some things, it’s basically done. I would appreciate it very much if you would visit when you have the time and inclination and let me know how I can improve it.
We may spend part of the afternoon testing our irrigation system in the yard. We haven’t really needed it yet with all the rain we’ve been having, but we will need it soon. Usually we have to fix several breaks in the lines.
I hope that you have a wonderful day with something deliciously fun thrown into the mix.
We will leave for Lunch Bunch in about an hour. It looks like we may need a boat if this keeps up.
I would like to harvest more lettuce, but Mother Nature has been playing with us over the last week or so, starting the rain up every time I get ready to go outside, almost like a faucet, waiting until I am out there, and then dumping on me. I can imagine her laughing at me. :0)
Other than squeegeeing, mopping, and toweling off the porch floor over and over, I’ve been playing in my art room. I’m trying to eventually try an ‘acrylic pour,’ but I’m a bit intimidated, so I’m trying one new technique at a time, building up to it. I put the second coat of a stuff called, “crackle medium” on the background of a painting on which I used Unicorn Spit paint. So far, nothing is ‘crackling.’ I’ll continue to experiment, having lots of fun, until something good starts to happen. :0)
I think I already told you that I am newly motivated to get the lard off. We had a routine doctor appointment Monday. We were doing so well that she said we could wait 6 months to come back, rather than the usual three. I’m now trying to lose a significant amount of my lard before we see her again in November. This week has been a good start for me.
I hope the weather is good where you are and that you can make this a wonderful day.
It looks like today will be another perfect day. We had one yesterday, too – sunny and 80 – and I’m not taking a minute of these for granted.
We leave in a bit more than an hour for Lunch Bunch. Today I’m taking gallon bags of spinach and lettuce from our garden to my friends. I absolutely love it when we have enough to be able to share with people who mean so much to me.
I’m hoping that one of my friends will have pictures of her new kitchen floor to share. She had a pipe burst during the last winter storm and it completely ruined her floor. Apparently a LOT of people had damage because she had to wait a long time for someone to be able to build a new one for her. I talked to her on the phone, though, and she said she was THRILLED with it.
I have some pics of our new carpet and new porch floor to share with my friends. It will be a LONG time before I get up to walk anywhere on the first floor of our house and fail to smile ear to ear. It’s such a pleasure to have things looking good. We’ve been opening our front and back doors to enjoy the weather in the afternoons. I can also see our new porch floor when we do that. And the carpet FEELS so good when you walk on it. :0)
Yesterday when we were going to get our mail and make a quick run to the grocery store, we couldn’t get our garage door to stay closed. It kept going down, then ‘bouncing’ off the bottom and going up again. Apparently the last big storm we had recently blew its mind. We ended up getting out the paperwork and reprogramming the remote that lives in the truck and the manual opener that lives outside the garage. Now it seems to be working fine.
Yesterday’s project bundle was threefold: 1) three loads of laundry, 2) put new sheets on our bed and change out the electric blanket for a summer velour one, and 3) change my clothes in my closet, putting winter stuff in the guest room closet and bringing summer stuff into my bedroom closet. I got most all of this accomplished yesterday. Today I’ll finish organizing my closet today, plus I’m promising myself to actually go through my stuff carefully, looking for things to donate.
I will also check my garden to see if I need to start the automatic watering again. We’ve been getting a lot of rain, so I turned the system off. We’re supposed to get more rain tomorrow night into Sunday…
We splurged last night, eating hot dogs and chips, with ice cream and fresh cut up strawberries for dessert. It’s been about a year since we did that last, so it tasted like Heaven. :0)
I hope that your Friday is wonderful. Enjoy every minute!
Yesterday I had a glorious massage after SEVERAL days of mixing and spraying 2-gallon containers of weed killer, and then switching to 6 hours of using the power washer a couple of days ago, cleaning outdoor furniture, our deck, and the back sidewalk. My body was really anticipating the miracle that is Lynn Moody, my massage therapist. 479-629-7601. I spent the rest of the day reading, resting, and sleeping. AHHHHHH! I capped it off by getting a good night’s sleep last night.
Not even the fact that today is supposed to be very rainy can dampen my spirits.
We’ll go to Lunch Bunch in about an hour, catch up with our friends while enjoying chicken fingers, and then hit the local grocery store for supplies before coming back home.
Weather permitting, I’m hoping to gather the first harvest of the season from my veggie garden! My mouth is watering for a salad made with lettuce and spinach from our own garden.
I hope that you are safe and well. Enjoy your Friday.
We’re having a good day. It’s cold outside (35 degrees F., cloudy and gray, with a bit of spitting rain.)
We just got back from Lunch Bunch. One of our good friends and her husband was there. The other friend and her daughter weren’t. (My friend wasn’t feeling well, so maybe we can see each other and catch up next Friday.)
We hadn’t seen each other since the Friday before Christmas, so it was GREAT to be able to share a meal and catch up. We came straight home afterwards so that we could try what will be the last attempt at a ‘fix’ for our broken microwave.
We bought it in 2004, so we can’t complain that we haven’t gotten our money’s worth, but it would be wonderful if we could fix it. The mechanism that goes between the rotary turntable motor in the bottom to the part the plate sits on inside the microwave is the problem. We have mixed up some really good, apoxy-type glue to see if we can bridge the gap and make the parts work together again. (The plastic parts are not replaceable and we cannot remove them because one part is under a metal plate that is welded in.) So, this is a last-ditch effort before we either live with a microwave where the plate doesn’t rotate or we buy a new microwave. We have it glued now, and will look at it again tomorrow.
I will head out as soon as I finish a cup of coffee to the garage to do my elliptical trainer exercise for today. I’m looking forward to playing in my art room this afternoon. I have another piece started and am eager to see how it turns out. I am planning to take the bleeding tissue paper artwork I’ve done recently to Rags & Roses (the local shop in town where a friend and I share a booth ) either tomorrow or Tuesday. I will do my yoga practice when I finish in the art room. Today is DAY TWO of getting serious about our diet and exercise plan.
My husband is working on an addition to our house security system. He has the physical part done now, and is waiting for help on a password before he can finish up.
I’m in the middle of re-reading #32 in J.D. Robb’s (Nora Roberts’) In Death series. I’m re-reading the series in preparation for the latest to come out in paperback (# 51 Shadows in Death) that I received recently.
It’s a good day to have a warm, dry house and too many interesting things to do for the time I have.
I love this. It shows a great sense of humor. I’m still smiling. Thanks to the creator of it. :0)
Welcome Wildlife
When we started up our driveway yesterday, there were two white-tailed deer! We stopped and watched as they looked at us briefly and then crossed the driveway to disappear into the trees to the west of our property. Beautiful sight.
We had a really special Lunch Bunch on Friday with our friends. Since Christmas is next Friday, we exchanged gifts. We have been meeting at The Pizza Barn every Friday for over 17 years now, and this is more of a family gathering than simply really good friends. The two waitresses, Susan and Mikey, are a definite part of our family and we exchange gifts with them, too. My husband kept us all entertained by opening all of his food goodies, sampling each one (while waiting for his lunch order to be delivered) and then stashing them in a humongous gift bag, being quite territorial about his presents. The way the holidays fall this year, we won’t meet NEXT Friday or the NEXT – and will have to wait until Jan. 8th to meet again.
Otherwise, that is our Christmas this year. Our son is in Thailand, and I’m hoping that we can arrange a video chat either on Christmas day or that weekend sometime. There is 12 hours time difference, so it’s a bit of a challenge to find a time we’re all up and functional, but we’ll manage. I am grateful that we are all pretty healthy right now. I am thankful for a quiet holiday.
Today’s project is cleaning the aquarium. I will see if I can find something festive to put in their tank for the holidays.
My whole day thus far has been spent trying to get my computer updated.
I updated to the newest version of Windows, and then made a system disk, just in case my computer crashes with no warning. That took from 9:00 this morning until about 20 minutes ago. I was beginning to think I would die of old age before it finally finished.
I am not a computer or technical person. It’s all magic to me. I love my computer when it’s working and am ready to toss it out the window when it isn’t. Happily, it seems to be working okay now, except for a folder of images I’ve gathered for my blogs. They have names under an icon for a picture, all looking the same. Arrrrgh!
SO. I will limp along, hoping that if I can’t figure out what to do to fix it, it will miraculously heal by itself. (One can HOPE…)
Clipart Library
On a happier note, our weather is nice now, although it’s still a bit brisk outside. There is lots of glorious sunshine and the temperature is now 46! We will probably get rain Saturday, but no more forecasts of snow/sleet, and flying hairballs in the near future. I’ll take it. :0)
Pinterest
We will celebrate Christmas with the Lunch Bunch tomorrow, exchanging gifts, eating, laughing, and catching up. The next Friday is Christmas, and the following Friday is New Year’s Day, so we probably won’t meet again until January 8th. We’ll have to make it last.
Tricolor Heron_Green Cay Wetlands_Scott Helfrich_The Natl Wildlife Federation Blog
Mother Nature treated us well this morning.
We went to Lunch bunch and then did several errands afterwards. The rain didn’t start in earnest until shortly before we drove up our driveway. The rain is supposed to continue the rest of the day into the evening, and then we’re supposed to get more for sure on Sunday, along with cold fronts, so it was good to get things accomplished and be able to enjoy our warm, dry house now.
I spoke too soon about our window replacement yesterday. An hour before the guy was supposed to be here, he called and said he only had 2 of the 3 parts we needed. We agreed to try again when the part (backordered) arrives… I had taken most everything out of the dining area and had cleaned in preparation for the installation, so now I have an unusually clean dining area – an exercise in character-building now. :0\
After Lunch Bunch we stopped at Stu’s Clean Cookin’ in Greenwood to see what frozen meals they had to offer this week. I am so impressed with this company. Everything is spotless. Even though there are always other customers, we never have to wait long for good service. Sometimes we order ahead. Today we just stopped to see what they had. The man who fills our order is always very friendly. Great place to find frozen meals that are good for you, ready to put in your freezer or right in the microwave. Between Stu’s and another company called Real Food, we are very spoiled. They make it easy to stay on our diet, using that as the main meal of the day – UNLESS we are in the middle of a pandemic, tending to eat bad things as comfort food…
Yesterday I received a happy email notice that one of my hand-painted wooden Christmas ornaments sold in the local shop in Greenwood where I share a booth with a good friend. (These ornaments are all painted to resemble Gingerbread cookies.) Today I checked my Etsy shops and discovered I had sold an etched and hand-painted cylindrical vase called, “Fancy Butterflies.” This was bought as a Christmas gift – bought by one lady to have sent to another. I smiled all the way to the post office. :0)
I hope that you are having a great Friday, feeling ‘very spoiled’ by something or someone.
Good morning! I hope your day is shaping up to be a fun one.
We will join our good friends for Lunch Bunch today. I’m looking forward to being able to catch up with what is happening in their worlds. One of my Lunch Bunch friends called during the week to say that she does NOT have to have surgery, so today will be a celebration. Two other wonderful friends are recovering from their surgeries, so I’m feeling very grateful today.
My ‘cull-the-books’ project is continuing, although slowly. I will make an effort to clean out several shelves in my bedroom today. I’ll take pics to share when the project is finished.
I dreamed of some ideas for Christmas presents. I woke up early this morning with more ideas. I will see if I can get started on them when we get home from Lunch Bunch.
So far, changing the time back an hour is messing with me. I liked the idea of getting an extra hour of sleep, but the reality is that I am waking up super early – the middle of the night for me – and having grim thoughts. This is not like me and I’m going to see what I can do to stop the cycle.
Our weather is gorgeous again today, so I’ll plan to spend some time outside. There are LOTS of things to do.
I feel good today. My mouth is no longer hurting from my tooth filling. I had a wonderful massage yesterday. I’ll see my friends, and hopefully have a productive day.
My heart goes out to the people in the path of Hurricane Delta. Stay safe and well!
Wikimedia Commons
We will join some of our good friends for Lunch Bunch today. One of us won’t be there, having to drive her car to a dealer in another town for service, but 4 of us will be there.
I am HOPING I can finish filling up the garden boxes in our raised bed, square foot garden today. We have one-and-a-half boxes left – about three double-loads of Mel’s Mix. When we finish, I will take pics when the boxes are filled, and again when the tarps are on.
Ridgeline Owners Clug
All of a sudden, the headliner in our truck started sagging and hanging down! I’ve never seen that happen before. (The picture above gives you an idea)
I got on chat with the Honda dealer in Fort Smith and someone was supposed to email me, but hasn’t. I called a company that repaired damage to our Vette last year, and she gave me the phone number of a man she says is really good with our problem. I called HIM, we went to his house in the next town, he gave me an estimate after we agreed on a color.
He says this is a common problem. The foam backing on the fabric deteriorates and then the fabric lets loose and hangs down.
We will take the truck Monday afternoon and pick it up Tuesday. I feel really lucky to have been connected with someone who can fix our problem!
I am hoping I can finish in the garden today because I have some ideas rattling around in my head that I want to start on in my art room. The outside work takes precedence, but I’m eager to be able to play. :0)
The sun is shining! We have had so much rain, so many storms, flash flooding, etc., here lately that I had almost forgotten what it was like to enjoy happy sunshine! A welcome sight, indeed.
We will join our friends for Lunch Bunch in half an hour. One of my friends has been in the process of moving, so I’m eager to hear how it went and what she thinks of her new place. Our other friends are usually into an interesting project. It is always a great time for us to catch up with what has been going on, future plans, etc. We are lucky to have been doing this for over 17 years now, through years and years of things to celebrate and things to help each other through. Friendship is priceless.
I am filling up my leaf bags quickly now – one for donations and the other for trash. I’m hoping to fill at least two extra leaf bags of trash each week, and I will systematically go through, room by room, trying to gather things I am no longer using or can do without that someone else might need or enjoy.
We are supposed to get our first week’s delivery of BistroMD today. I’m looking forward to eating our first dinner tonight.
I am finding it difficult to get my work on Amazon Handmade so far. I have been accepted, but when I click on the ‘register’ button in the email they sent, they send me to a screen that says they don’t like the version of Chrome I’m using as a browser. They don’t provide a URL – just a clickable square – so I can’t use another browser. I will try to upgrade my Chrome again after lunch and keep my fingers crossed.
This will be a hopefully quiet day for us. We only have a couple of errands to run, and so will be home to receive our deliveries and try to get organized for the new eating plan.
We just got back from relocating raccoon # 13 of the spring/summer season this year. This one was so large, he almost completely filled the humane cage! We are getting tired of having to deal with this. I think our highest count in all the years we have lived here (over 30) is about 4. We are ready to be finished with this for the year.
We will leave for Lunch Bunch soon. We lucked out so far on Tropical Storm Laura. It went to the east of us. We got some rain, but nothing severe. We are still due for more rain, but we feel very, very lucky. The sun is shining and we will turn on the a/c when we return.
We are narrowing down our trouble with low water pressure – which then causes trouble with our hot-water-on-demand system – which means not enough water pressure or hot water for our shower. We now have a new water pressure tank in the well house. We now have a new shower head. My husband thinks the problem is the valve in the shower. Our plumber, Travis Hawkins, will be here later today to see if he can fix things for us. HOORAY!
I’m not sure what my project for the day will be yet.
My heart goes out to the people still in jeopardy from the wildfires in California and the people who sustained damage, or will sustain damage, from Laura.
I can’t decide my favorite between the Tawny Owl and this sweet Shoebill Stork. I think they are both wonderful.
I had fun yesterday working in my art room a bit. I decided to try a new ‘stained glass’ look on a couple of pairs of earrings. I’ll post them later to see what you think.
My South Beach efforts are paying off. I’m down 11.2 lbs since we started with them, and down 40.2 overall since my lardiest. I’m almost into ‘new territory’ on my weight loss efforts – about 2 lbs to go.
I’ve decided that no matter how hard I try, my body measurements aren’t that accurate. Today they are showing I’ve lost 33.2 inches since I began trying to lose weight and exercise. This varies – due to my ineptness – but it shows the general trend is downward, always a good thing. Suffice to say I’m down a few sizes and my current clothes are looser. My husband noticed my jeans are looser, and I was able to finally wear a blouse today that I’ve kept for years, hoping I could lose enough weight for it to not be too tight. Today it’s loose! :0)
I’m getting into the habit of doing my elliptical trainer (or equivalent cardio/whole body exercise plus about 30 minutes or so of yoga stretches & abdominal exercises daily. I am feeling better with less pain/stiffness and am feeling my stomach muscles when I walk now, if that makes any sense…
We will join our friends for Lunch Bunch in about an hour. I love getting to see their faces, laugh with them, and catch up on what has been happening since last week.
I will start getting things out of our greenhouse today.
It would take too much money and too much work to get it back to working condition since the storm. We weren’t able to afford to heat and cool it, so it’s better to take it down. We will do this a bit at a time, salvaging what we can.
Our weather has been perfect lately – cooler temperatures and lower humidity. I think tomorrow we start getting back to our normal too hot, too humid summer tomorrow, so we will enjoy every minute today, enjoying having the doors open and ceiling fans.
Today we meet our friends for Lunch Bunch. Our ‘core group’ (Linda, Kay and I) have been meeting every Friday possible for over 17 years now. “Priceless” just isn’t a strong enough word to describe how special this is. Others come and go. Our husbands were made honorary members of the group years ago. Linda’s husband is gone, now, but we share memories of funny or touching things from the times he was able to join us. Kay’s husband has joined us recently. He isn’t working now, laid off because of the virus. He is at the age where he should have retired long ago, but loves the work. He is working now to define himself as much more than his work, and I’m delighted. He has a wonderful sense of humor and it’s fun to hear what he has to say. My husband has been a member for several years now. He presides over his ‘harem,’ ( :0) ) though now graciously sharing that fantasy with Bud now. We enjoy catching up with what the others have been doing, or hearing about plans for the future. We have borne the sad news together over the years, and have helped each other deal with whatever has happened. We had to miss a few Fridays due to the virus. Then the restaurant owner was allowed to serve us outside at picnic tables. Now we’re back in the restaurant, wearing masks in and out. It’s good to be back.
We will have to set our humane trap again tonight because it looks like we have ANOTHER raccoon. This has been a record-braking year. We have relocated 8 raccoons so far, and it LOOKS as if we will do it again..
We had quite a storm yesterday evening. LOTS of lightning, loud thunder, wind, and heavy rain for about half an hour that I was aware of. No damage, though. We are due for more today. Our grass and plants will be happy. My husband is frowning as he imagines the grass spurting up again.
This is yesterday’s tomato harvest. We are enjoying fresh sliced tomatoes for part of our lunches and dinners every day. It has been glorious. Even if the harvest stopped suddenly – as it sometimes does – we have been very lucky this year.
Not sure what today’s project will be. I’m trying to choose one area to ‘heal’ every day. Yesterday it was my kitchen desk and the shelves above it. I also spent a lot of time scrubbing one of the downstairs bathrooms. I have LOTS of good choices, as I am a slob. I’ll report later on what the choice is.
I’m doing really well on my exercising. Being able to add a gold star to my desk calendar is motivating for me – a person who hasn’t fully grown up. They motivated me as a child in school and I will still get off my duff and go earn one now. I’m giving myself one for each session on my elliptical trainer in the garage and each session of yoga stretches and abdominal exercises. So far, this is an 8-star week. I’ll go for 9 and 10 today.
I hope you have a wonderful day today, productive and enjoyable.
Lunch Bunch began over 17 years ago. We meet every Friday to share lunch, laughs, and news. The core group is Linda, Kay, and me. We have other wonderful people join us from time to time as they can, but the core is the basis.
This is Linda.
“Friendship doubles our joy and divides our grief.” – Swedish Proverb
This is Kay.
“When you cherish the value of the gift of FRIENDSHIP, it can never be lost, for what you always carry in your hearts is yours to keep forever and your friends’ too!”
This is Bud, Linda’s Husband – an honorary Lunch Bunch member.
“A friend is one who knows us, but loves us anyway.” – Fr. Jerome Cummings
And this is my husband, another honorary Lunch Bunch member. (He refused to cooperate with my taking his picture.)
“Love is blind; friendship closes its eyes.” – Anonymous
We are now eating at a picnic table in the parking lot of the restaurant, rather than inside, due to the pandemic. Our wonderful waitress/friends, Susan and Mikey come outside to take our orders and bring our food, chatting for a minute, even though they are really busy. We are very grateful to be able to once again share what is happening in our lives.
“The best things in life are never rationed. Friendship, loyalty, love, do not require coupons.”
I can’t say enough about this photo. I get lost in his eyes.
Mother Nature is smiling as us – giving us a perfect day today! The sun is shining and it is 72 degrees F. right now. Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!
I will go out soon and see what’s what in my garden. My friends at Lunch Bunch, plus the 2 waitresses at The Pizza Barn, were pleased with the lettuce I gave them yesterday. We may already be at the end of the early spring garden, though. The lettuce and spinach are starting to bolt, signaling the end. (Lettuce and other greens are cool weather crops. When the warm temperatures come, lettuce moves from leaf production to flower and seed production. Very often the flavor of lettuce changes and it becomes bitter.) I’m going to salvage what I can and pull out the rest of the plants.
Bolting Lettuce – Gardening Know How
I’m still dancing around, 3 inches off the ground, because I sold a vase on my SassyGlassByLinda shop on Etsy. (I sold the daisies one in the middle.)
My customer should get her vase Monday. I’m enjoying nice mental pictures of her unwrapping it. It’s the highest compliment there is when someone likes what you do enough to want it for their own, or buy it to give it to someone who means a lot to them. :0)
It was GOOD to see our friends at Lunch Bunch yesterday. We have been having lunch every Friday for over 17 years now – only interrupted by the Pandemic. The Pizza Barn put out some picnic tables with benches and umbrellas in their parking lot so that they can offer not only carry-out, but also the ability for people to eat outside until the restrictions are fully lifted and we can eat inside again. It is priceless to be able to actually share a meal in person with people you care about, catch up on what has been happening, eat and laugh together once again. (Next time I’ll try to get pics so I can share them with you.)
I am hoping that the space launch will happen today. I have watched, glued to my seat, each time we attempt a launch. I still remember watching the grainy, incredible pictures of our astronauts actually walking around on the moon. (That happened in 1969 – the year my husband and I married.) I’m hoping the weather in Florida will be cooperative today, giving us the chance to send our astronauts to the space station ourselves, rather then having to rely on others.
First thing this morning I went out to harvest some lettuce so I could take it to Lunch Bunch and share some with Linda, Kay, and the two waitresses at The Pizza Barn, Susan and Mikey. I knew we had rain forecast for today, but it looked like it might hold off until we could share lunch at the picnic table in the parking lot before it started.
I brought the lettuce in and dumped it all into the sink. 45 minutes later, I had several small heads of lettuce and a lot of extra lettuce leaves ready to put in bags.
About an hour ago, Kay called, telling me the forecast now said we would get at least two waves of storms – each possibly severe – with hail. We agreed to call off Lunch Bunch for today. :0(
I let Amber into the truck and we went down the driveway to get the mail. Just as we pulled into the garage after getting it, the rain started. We haven’t had hail yet, but it’s obvious we are in for the day now. The sky is dark, almost like night. The garage door is shut to protect our vehicles.
Now we appreciate being able to stay inside a warm, dry house and hope that we JUST get rain today.
Yesterday I emulated a slug. It was a wonderful day.
Life Time Athletic
Arkansas is reopening, so I was able to have my first massage in three months. AHHHHHHHH! Each part of my body let out a big sigh as my therapist, Lynn Moody, found another tight or sore spot and eased our the kinks. I tried to get her to just let me sleep there when she finished, but she calmly, sweetly, told me I had to get up and go home, and gave me an appointment for next month. :0)
When I got home, I fixed lunch. We ate, and I thought I would drink a cup of coffee and watch the news on TV. The next thing I knew, it was an hour later.
I did only what was needed yesterday, taking another nap in the afternoon. The life of a slug is sweet!
Today Lunch Bunch is trying to meet at the Pizza Barn. It rained overnight, and it’s looking like it might rain again. We were planning to eat at one of the picnic tables they have put in their parking lot, but that might not be in the cards. Kay is calling to find out if it would be possible for us to eat inside if it’s raining. The jury is still out on whether we can finally enjoy a meal together or not. I usually hug them – but I’m learning to hold my hands behind my back to remind myself to take care of each of my friends. If not this week, then maybe next week. Till then, we’ll just have to say, “Hi” on the phone.
I’m hoping to get up to my art room this afternoon, since it looks like the work in the yard and the garden might not be possible. I want to start painting a new group of wooden earrings – these with posts – so I can add this option to my Etsy site, Eyecatching Earrings . I’ll show you pics when they are listed.
Today is rainy, windy, and raw. I’ll get together the makings of keto chili in the crock pot for tonight.
There is a bright, round shape in the sky lighting up everything around here today! It’s 34 right now and is supposed to get to 50. You can’t ask for much more for a day in February!
We are about to leave for Lunch Bunch, our every Friday celebration of friendship. Usually there is Linda, Kay, Kay’s husband, my husband, and me. Sometimes relatives of ours join us. Sometimes other friends. It’s good food and good conversation with hugs and laughs with caring friends.
After Lunch Bunch, my husband and I will go to Ft. Smith to leave another donation with the Veterans Thrift store. This time it’s a lot of clothes, shoes, and purses.
Today’s Project – scrubbing bathrooms. We have two full baths upstairs and two half baths downstairs. Since I’m a lousy housekeeper, they all need work.
I’ve been trying to get up to my art room, but time and energy run out before I can get there. When I get things a bit more caught up, my priorities will change.
I’m really sad about the loss of animal life in Australia. People are trying to save as many as possible, and I’m grateful for that. My heart goes out to the people who have lost so much.
We are getting ready to go to Lunch Bunch, our weekly lunch with long-time, treasured friends. It will be good to be out, especially because we are due for some severe weather later today – high wind, chance of tornadoes, strong wind, hail, heavy rain, and flying hair balls. It’s supposed to start at 2 and last throughout the night, changing to sleet tomorrow. I’m about to suggest dances and songs for Mother Nature – trying to get on her good side…
I had a nice online chat with our son in Thailand yesterday. I always feel so good after talking with him. The fact we can type back and forth whenever we would like makes me almost forget he’s half a world away. :0)
I’m trying a new keto bread recipe this afternoon. Fingers crossed!
I’m excited about sharing a booth in a local shop with one of my best friends. It’s fun to see what sells, to plan what I want to add to the shop, to make new things for it. The owner of the shop is Joanna Brandt, and the shop’s name is Rags & Roses Collective. She has divided the shop into booths so that lots of people in the area have a chance to show and sell their wares. Our booth is called, “Blasing Bright.” I have a group of new things to put in our booth today. The shop will be open today until 5:00, I think. Then Joanna will take a well-deserved vacation and will reopen Jan. 6th.
My family is doing well.
We will go to Lunch Bunch soon, joining our good friends for conversation and laughs. It’s good to be able to share the good times (and help each other with the bad) as we watch one year turn into another.
My new shop – EyecatchingEarrings on Etsy – is coming together. I’m hoping to have it fully up and running by the end of the weekend, though the shop is open for business now. :0)
I hope you had a happy Christmas and that 2020 will be a wonderful year for you.
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