Good morning gals. Seriously rainy here and will be probably through Saturday. We are gearing up for things that have to be done while everyone else is gearing up for Christmas. Jack is buying new tires on Thursday afternoon, we have commissary duty on Friday morning then Friday evening we will have dinner with the kids. We have no plans the rest of the weekend. I think I may make a small ham for Christmas dinner for the two of us, I haven't decided yet. It is hard to get a nice ham in a small size. Most of them I have found have a rind type of thing on them and aren't very tasty. Maybe I will just check with Honey Baked and see what they have, who knows? We decided we didn't want turkey.
I have one bathroom to clean upstairs today then that is done for a bit. Seems like always something to do. You wouldn't think a house would get dirty with just two people, but like everything else the house always needs to be straightened up or cleaned.
I am coming right along on the wrap. This one is an easier pattern to memorize so I don't have to continually be looking at it, which can slow you down. I noticed last night that Jack had glitter from the yarn all over his face! I have no idea how it got on his face, but you could see tiny glittery pieces here and there. Guess he just wants to be in the Christmas spirit.
Jack took the cookies today because I guess they aren't having a lunch on Thursday. He called at 8 and said they are all gone and the guys loved them. I should make them another batch and maybe I will for next week and have Jack take them in. I didn't do kieflies this year and they aren't as popular around here because there isn't a big middle european community like there is in Indiana. So I will stick with chocolate chip, these oatmeal style cookies, maybe even the chocolate marshmallow ones.
Other than that, life is kind of boring around here this week. I did get my sister's birthday package mailed. Glad I did the postage online and then could just take the box and dump it inside the post office in their package recepticle because there were at least 50 people at the post office when I got there. The parking lot was full and I had a devil of a time getting a parking place. So much for mailing early I guess!
Jean: Oh my gosh, Jack's dream would be to have a big house with an area he could have a whole train set so it is big boys too for sure. I bought Thomas a wooden train set sort of like Thomas, but he didn't play with it all that much. Jackson seems to enjoy the hot wheels cars and racing set I bought and he loves books and puzzles, which is nice. He is so into super heros though that is funny. Alicia just posted a couple pics of him at one of their friends house with his super hero gear.
Maggie: I think we are getting rain where others are getting the snow out of this storm that is moving east. I will put up with the rain thank you very much. I don't mind snow at all, except living down here people just don't take it seriously enough when it snows. They drive like maniacs. Sounds like you have meals all lined up. We had pot roast last night and I had a bit of the roast and a couple carrots, but just didn't feel up to eating much.
Well gals, I need to eat as it is getting late and get some work done this morning so I can sit and knit on my wrap. Have a great Tuesday! Faye
Good Morning, Flowers! It's a cold 19 degrees, but no wind so far today which makes it a "good" weather day. I finished my cards this morning, wrote the rest of the church birthday cards for the year, and have made a grocery list for later this afternoon. Next on my list is the gift shop counting. I am meeting one of my retired lunch bunch friends for coffee later this afternoon. Her husband has just been diagnosed with bladder cancer (from smoking and he is still smoking ); her son is visiting here and called to ask me to get her out of the house for an hour or so. The guy also has dementia so she has her plate full.
"Gma" -- I would take some rain over the snow that the southern states are getting. There still isn't anything in our forecast through Christmas Day. The lady at the meat counter recommended a pit ham; she said it was something new they haven't carried before, but everyone really likes the samples they give out. I think we are having a ham again this year; maybe a turkey breast which doesn't excite me much. I wish you could come and clean at my house! We have a funeral in the mix now, over in Bob's little hometown on Thursday. She is the mother of the guy who was our best man, and he lives in FL. We haven't seen him in years so Bob would like to go.
I need to start counting money and get the deposit ready! Enjoy the rest of your day, whatever you are doing today.
It is a chilly day here today in the Heartland and 26 degrees as I type. We got about 10 inches of snow and it quit yesterday evening and we are supposed to get another 2 inches this day sometime. Some kind person plowed our front sidewalk and right up to our front door. It is true that goes around comes around because Will used to plow our neighbors walks when we lived in SD. We are not sure which neighbor did that but we will find out to thank him for sure. We are going to go out and about in it not because we have to go anywhere but because we want to go play in the snow with our Jeep. When I got up this morning and looked down the hallway there were little clumps of snow on the carpet. Beanie loves to frolic in it and he dropped them off of his body as he made his way down the hall. He is curled up now to take a nap. AH the heater just came on ~ I was wondering for I was getting chilled. I have decided to start carving that ham up today and bake a chunk of it with cloves in the top for dinner this day. I'll cut up the rest of it and get it into the freezer. The bone will have it's place in a pot of bean soup later I am sure. Today I think I will bake some cut up red potatoes that I will have sprinkled with dry onion soup mix. I can bake the ham and potatoes at the same time. I have some green veggies to go with it. Sounds like a plan. Anyone want to come for dinner?
DONNA FAYE I would gladly let you have a chunk or our huge ham for your dinner on Christmas. It is a good one and too bad we don't live closer to each other. I would love to share. New tires especially this time of the year are great to have. Glitter is so lite it floats in the air and if your dear hubby was anywhere near you when your needles were flying I could just see, in my minds eye, the glitter floating up and away toward his face. He was being festive. Cookies, guys do like cookies don't they. I think they like them more than we gals do.
JEAN That would be so nice of you to get your friend out of the house for a bit. Give her a break from what is happening around her place. So you didn't get any of this snow ~ your time surely will come.
Maggie -- I'm waiting for the phone call to meet my friend for coffee. You really don't have to share your snow although I'll bet your neighborhood looks very Christmasy now. I would love to come to dinner. I keep hoping someone would start a "meals on wheels" business here. One of the teachers, who likes to cook, claims she is going to do that when she retires. She lives close to us so I can be her BEST customer! My deposit is ready for the bank so guess I will clear off the island . . . again. Did you see the comment on the #54 (?) thread, about the food store??
JEAN I saw that comment but I think she was just on the wrong thread. She is new here and probably asked a question on another thread. I would gladly share some of our snow. It is the wet kind and we can hear the sound of stuck cars once in awhile for they haven't cleard the streets nor the alleys yet. We can't get out with all the wet drifts we would probably just spin our wheels even though we have 4 wheel drive and such. No traction out there at all. Good thing we "don't have to" go out for anything today. We could get out today if we really had to though. It is melting fast so tomorrow folks with cars should be able to get out. Since they aren't quick to clear the alley next storm Will will park the Jeep out front somewhere probably on the lawn.
My break is over so I need to get back to the kitchen and deal with that ham now. Type at y'all later.
Good morning, ladies! A rainy day but its supposed to hit 70 today. There may be rain on Christmas - there's a Nor'easter that could hit the coast over the weekend. Right now they don't seem to know much about it.
Good doc appointment yesterday. He said my foot looked like 6-8 weeks post-op instead of the 4 it actually is. I can now start wearing real shoes for 1 hour today, 2 tomorrow, etc. until I build up to a full day and I can try driving next Wednesday. I think I'll be glad to get this shoe off - it's only been 15 minutes.
Maggie, snow~please keep it in KS. I see there has been a really bad storm out that way. I hope everyone is okay and gets to their Christmas destinations.
Jean, your friend surely has a full plate. I know an hour with you meant a lot to her.
Faye, I'll bet those were good cookies~not that I need any. Does Jackson like to play in the snow?
My friend's are picking me up for my library bee tonight. All of us are meeting at Olive Garden for dinner (apricot chicken for me) and then we'll go sew.
Good Morning, Flowers! The sun is shining and it's warmer at 25 degrees! I'm debating about going to the grocery store this morning; I'm making cheesy potatoes, for Christmas dinner, and one time the store was out of them so I had to do something else. I also need to make a WM run for a few last minute items.
Susan -- What wonderful news from your doctor! You obviously have been following his orders. It took a long time before I could wear a shoe all day. I ended up buying new shoes in a larger size, which eventually were too big. Have fun at the OG and the library bee tonight. You have such nice friends!
I need to make a list and check it twice! Enjoy the rest of your day!
It is a chilly 14 and expected to climb to a high of 31 this day and supposed to snow again tomorrow which is the first day of winter. That, my friends, is the forecast. I got that ham all cut up and in the freezer yesterday so we will have lots of ham this coming year because there are now two in there. We are both really looking forward to using that bone in a big pot of beans this winter. I left quite a bit of meat on the bone. I also cubbed a lot of it and have many slices. I have lots of recipes using ham so none of it will go to waste for sure. A good friend of mine who is five years older than me out on the coast sent me a picture of her new man friend who is an actor. Quite a nice looking old fellow. I hope things go well for them. Some man to go and "do things" with is great for her for she is a real fun gal to be around. I am so happy for her. They didn't get my perfume in yet but gave Will a promise paper that he will still get the 20 dollars off when it does come in. They didn't think the shipment would be here before Christmas because it didn't come in the other day like they had thought it would. Fine with me for I know it will come in sometime soon and doesn't have to be here right on Christmas. It is one of those tradition things he gets me every year. A bottle lasts me that long for it takes only a little to get the scent. I don't bathe in it. He brought me a neat plastic box that is fixed like a present. It is a 4 inch red plastic cube that has a lid. It is wrapped with pretty plastic striped ribbon and the lid comes off easily and has a plastic bow on top. The things they can do with plastic now days is amazing. It really looks like a beautifully wrapped package.
SUSAN for healing so quickly. Little by little your foot will get used to having a real shoe on it. Each time with it on will get better and better. Couldn't you just dance a happy jig. You are verry fortunate, and I believe you know it, that you have wonderful friends that you can lean on. We got about a foot of snow and expect a couple more inches tomorrow. Our alley is cleaned out and we can get out now which is a good thing. The drifts were about as high as the Jeep and it was wet snow so impossible to just drive up and over to get out. Sink we would. Will did get out last evening for they had plowed by then. He just had to get out. I didn't want to for I knew the roads would be lumpy and I was nice and warm and didn't want to go play at that hour. So he went to see if my perfume was in yet and came right back. We found out it was the guys from the building supply store that plowed our walk yesterday. How very nice of them to come over here and do that.
JEAN What brand of cheesy potatoes do you buy? I have never bought them but make my own. But buying them would certainly be easier. WM is probably very busy now till the end of the week. Isn't it marvelous that some folks are paying off lay-a-ways for several families at K-Mart. That's the spirit. Tis the season.
Have a wonderful day Magnolias. Type at y'all later.
Good morning gals. I have had a time of it getting in here this morning. I would get to one spot and then it would quit responding so I would go back a page and it would give me a blank page and on and on. Anyway, here I am finally.
I just finished paying the bills so we will have medical insurance, phones, electricity and the like for another month! It is nice to sit down and pay bills and have enough and not have to decide which one I won't be able to pay. When Jack was in the Navy it was sure like that, always tough to pay the bills and I always dreaded it.
I never did get upstairs yesterday. Lazy me got involved in a hidden object game I bought and sat here on and off all day playing it. I love to do the puzzles in those things, keeps the ole brain sharp.
Jack and I are going to go to Grisantis for dinner tonight. He wants toasted ravioli. Me, I haven't decided what I want to eat there. They have some nice salads and such and some of their pasta dishes are within points so will probably go with one of those, just not eat the whole darn thing.
Susan: Great news and I am sure wearing a shoe is going to be a trial for awhile and absolutely miserable until the ole foot gets used to it. I guess this is pasta eating out week! Thank you for the beautiful Christmas card. So many folks don't send them anymore. I have only received 3 and haven't gotten Kelly's yet. I know she is sending cards as she emailed me regarding some addresses she needed. We are in the low 60's mid day here, but it is always pretty chilly in the morning and it is so gloomy here for the last few days.
Maggie: I have just found that those small hams you buy taste more like the pressed deli stuff and not like the real ham. I may just buy one and freeze part of it like you are doing. I have the room and I love ham and would have it more often if I had one I could grab out of the freezer. I would love a nice pot of Navy beans and ham, but Jack hates beans except pork n beans, green beans, and pinto beans and though I like pinto beans and ham, prefer the Navy beans. Pintos tend to thicken while they cook. My mil put sugar in her pinto beans, which I don't like, but Jack likes them that way over corn bread. I am a purest, put ham in a pot of Navy beans and cook them and that is it! Fortune hates the snow. He comes in shaking his paws. I remember when he was a puppy in Indiana and we would take him out and he would be completely in a hole of snow because he was so little!
Jean: Sounds like you have a busy schedule still. Jack is taking the car for tires, commissary on Friday morning and dinner with the kids on Friday night and that is the extent of our Christmas stuff. We are planning on shampooing the carpets, but not much woohoo in that! I think that other poster is a bit of an air head because I think it is the second time she has posted to our thread with a comment that absolutely doesn't make sense. I looked at her profile to see where she has posted and it isn't even in the support groups so I am not sure how the heck she got onto our thread. I don't want anyone to think they aren't welcome, but she obviously didn't even pay any attention to Maggie saying the thread was closed.
Well gals I should get out of here and be a bit more diligent and get some work done. I just feel all blah again today like I just want to sit and do nothing, but I have one bathroom to clean upstairs so it isn't like it is a huge thing and it needs to be done. Have a great middle of the week all. Keep warm and dry if you can!!!! Faye
PS: Interesting article about this no fat, no calorie noodle sensation out of Japan. Hungry Girl touts this noodle on her website I hear
Maggie -- I got my pit ham yesterday . . . $43 worth! I don't expect there will be much left after we eat leftovers Christmas night. I make my own cheesy potatoes also; I buy the frozen little square hash browns, add my own soup, cheese, sour cream, etc. I'm glad you are going to smell nice next year. I did go to WM for some Christmas gift bags and thought I would pick up the few grocery items. They were out of 6 out of the 7 until the truck comes in. I HATE that store!
"Gma" -- I get a box message saying the site is running slow and do I want to continue. I just hit yes and it comes right up. When we were first married we used envelopes to divide out the monthly bills. There were times when we didn't have much left over until I started teaching and Bob was in Viet Nam. Where do you find the hidden object puzzles? I ran across one when I was looking for something else but don't see them very often. Let us know if you find the noodles. I find it hard to believe there are no calories nor carbs in them. Makes me wonder what is in them. Enjoy your meal out tonight.
Jean: According to the article, they are made with no wheat flour, but only water and some fibrous plant in Japan so there are no fat, no calories, no carbs. The one type she said tastes more gelatinous than the other more like asian noodles, but then I love asian noodles. She said they are sort of "flat" tasting so you can use any sauce with them and they taste good. I don't know, but I know Whole Foods supposedly carries them and we have a Whole Foods here so I might check and see if they have them just to try them. I would love to find something to substitute for pasta. I know a lot of people like spaghetti squash, but Jack would never ever eat it and one squash is pretty big so a lot would go to waste I am afraid. I have never heard of pit ham. It is like a regular ham or what??? I used a site called bigfishgames.com It has a huge group of hidden object games. You have to join their "club" but it has no restrictions or anything. I have a lot of hidden object games and the cool thing is I can uninstall them and then go to the site and download them again as my account keeps them activated even if I am no longer paying the fee every month. I like playing them over and over as I have so many that I never remember the puzzles or the hidden object areas.
Our dinner was lovely. Jack was a total hoot. He loves their toasted ravioli and the regular ravioli as it is beef and not cheese, which he doesn't care for. I ended up with salad that had gorgonzola cheese crumbled on it, and it was delicious but I am sure the cheese is fatty. All in all it was really nice. The restaurant sits inside an Embassy Suites and they put us out in the courtyard area instead of inside which meant all the people walking by and the noise of that, but it was ok as we were the only people in the restaurant. One little girl who was about 5-6 and was walking by with her brother says to Jack, "Good evening sir!" Cracked me up.
Well, Jack ran to the store and to the atm for me as I started cramping pretty bad at the restaurant so I going to sit in my chair and knit or watch tv or read until bedtime. I did get the bathroom upstairs cleaned and the laundry done so I can tackle downstairs tomorrow and this weekend. Have a lovely evening all!!! Faye
Good morning everybody! Rainy day here again all day and night then it will be sunny and nice for a whole week. Guess we will wait until tomorrow and get the nasty car washed. It has rained here so much that we haven't been able to get it washed. Last night I walked into the garage and the whole garage smelled like the sewer smells from the plant, EUWWWW!! The whole car smelled that way. Jack said it had been particularly bad out there yesterday and that was why.
My poor hubby is sick. He has one of his famous colds. That's what he gets for not getting his flu shot. He doesn't feel very well this morning but had to go to work because to get paid for tomorrow and Monday he has to work Thurs and Tuesday unless he takes vacation and he has no more vacation until the first of the year again. I told him to come home and I would take the car to get the tires but he said he would do it. We compromised and he is going to come and pick me up before he goes over there. They usually get off early the day before Christmas Eve though and don't get a lot of work done either so I imagine around noon he will be coming home.
Nothing is going to get done today like I had hoped and tomorrow is a full day so the downstairs is gonna have to hang in there until Saturday I guess. The house won't fall apart if it waits a couple days to be cleaned again. I keep it straightened up and cleaned up pretty much anyway, it is just a mind set with me. Once a week I clean house.
Oh I talked to Gail a few days ago. She is doing fine as are her fil and father and Wayne's new job seems to be stable. So she said to tell everyone hi and happy holidays!
Nothing much else going on around here today, just errands and such when Jack gets home. Have a wonderful day!!! Faye
First day of Winter this is and it is snowing lightly. It is currently 30 degrees and not said to get any higher than 32 this day with a low of 13. Will has gone to the museum for his volunteer work there and I am just hanging around here. I have my favorite desktop holiday picture up on my computer screen of an old fashioned winter scene of a church with a modle T parked out front and kids pulling a sled up a snow path and trees laden with snow ~ nice winter scene painted by some famous aritst but I can't remember who. I also have my little snow program that has snow falling on my screen that piles up on the bottom for about a half inch. I can adjust the size of the flakes and the direction the breeze blows them etc. It is a little program I bought for about 5 bucks years ago and enjoy it every winter. My cursor is a lighted christmas tree from Cursor Mania. Life is good. Not much happening around here as you can tell. I don't yet know what I will be cooking for dinner. I need to go out and shop in the freezer. I'll surely find something in there to make a dinner out of for I have veggies in the fridge to go along with whatever it is. I know ~ I can work on my shopping list for "good for us" food for when we next go grocerey shopping. It always helps to have a list.
DONNA FAYE Does your dear husband Jack use Cold Eeze when he gets a cold? I love that stuff for it truly cuts a cold in half ~ it's proven ~ yep they ran a study on it. Sucking on zink sure does the trick and makes one feel better in the process. That's something we keep on hand. It comes in different flavors also. I prefer the lemon but I have a pack of tropical fruit in my desk drawer as I type. I also have some red hot jaw breakers that are 2 points+ for three and I can only eat one. They are . Your poor car ~ hope you can wash away that odor with the dirt.
Other Magnolias ~ good day to you. Type at y'all later.
PS: The snow has quit and it has cooled down to 28 with a 50% chance of more snow. The snow that fell awhile ago was not even enough to fill in the dog tracks.
Good Afternoon, Flowers! The sun is shining brightly and it's a beautiful "winter" day with just a dusting of snow last night. The temperatures are to be in the mid 40s over the weekend so it won't last long. We just got home from the funeral and I need to get busy on my "to do" list; a nap sounds much more inviting! Bob went to the office so Ernie and I are home alone.
"Gma" -- I'm sorry that Jack is sick! I hope he is feeling better soon and will enjoy going out to eat with Kelly and her family. You said, "once a week I clean house," -- I could swear you clean something every day! After driving on sloppy roads this morning my car needs a bath too. Bob said he would take it to the car wash after the snow is gone and the streets are dry again. Thanks for letting us know that Gail and family are ok. I was beginning to think she didn't like us any more.
Maggie -- I always when you mention shopping in your freezer. I put some frozen items in the neighbor's freezer because both of my fridge freezers are full. I guess I don't plan ahead very well to buy a bigger freezer and we usually eat out more than we have been lately. I get tired of that, since our local choices are limited.
If I don't keep moving I won't get much done today and the time is slipping by too fast! Hope you all enjoy the rest of your day!
I have decided to do pork chops this evening with the usual side dishes. Not real exciting but we like it. I am even going to bake some biscuits. Will loves the little bisuits I make which are just made with low fat Bisquick ~ nothing special ~ but yummy for sure. The dogs are both asleep out on the couch and Cecil is in here curled up on his play station asleep after his grooming bath he gave himself. He is sure growing fast. I never saw a dog and cat get along as well as Beanie and Cecil do. They are true friends. He looks so cute all curled up with his front paws crossed over his eyes.
JEAN Our freezer is an upright one like a fridge and so easy to find things in so when I go shop I don't have to have the door open long at all. When we had a chest freezer I would do a header and almost fall in looking for something that may have fallen to the bottom. Mysteries abounded in that thing. I think you would really like it if you had an upright freezer and ate at home more often. Just my thought. I am also so tired of eating out and we don't eat out that much considering. Schwans has a wonderful veggie mix of mushrooms and onions that go with so many dishes in fact I am going to use some of the bag tonight. My freezer holds a lot of Schwan products that when I go shopping in the freezer I can make a whole meal plan quickly. I can always be ready to make a meal when we have company drop by around dinner time so we can invite them to stay for the meal. That's one good reason we have that upright freezer. That is something I believe I learned from my mother ~ always be ready for company.
Speaking of company our friend Paul is home this week with his wife. Their baby was born nice and healthy on the 19th. They named the little girl Niana Pauleen who came into the world weighing 6 pounds 8 ounces and was 19 and a half inches long. All are doing fine. Paul will be back here probably on Monday. He may or may not keep his radio job here ~ we shall see. Several things factor into his decision making on that subject.
While all the animals are sleeping I think I will play a few games of spider solitaire here on my computer.
I have no idea how it got on his face, but you could see tiny glittery pieces here and there. Guess he just wants to be in the Christmas spirit.
I finished my cards this morning, wrote the rest of the church birthday cards for the year, and have made a grocery list for later this afternoon. Next on my list is the gift shop counting. I am meeting one of my retired lunch bunch friends for coffee later this afternoon. Her husband has just been diagnosed with bladder cancer (from smoking and he is still smoking 
There still isn't anything in our forecast through Christmas Day. The lady at the meat counter recommended a pit ham; she said it was something new they haven't carried before, but everyone really likes the samples they give out. 
I think we are having a ham again this year; maybe a turkey breast which doesn't excite me much. I wish you could come and clean at my house! We have a funeral in the mix now, over in Bob's little hometown on Thursday. She is the mother of the guy who was our best man, and he lives in FL. We haven't seen him in years so Bob would like to go. 
Titilating Chilly Tuesday
GOOD MORNING MAGNOLIAS 
Cookies, guys do like cookies don't they. I think they like them more than we gals do.
Type at y'all later. 
I would love to come to dinner. I keep hoping someone would start a "meals on wheels" business here. One of the teachers, who likes to cook, claims she is going to do that when she retires. She lives close to us so I can be her BEST customer! 
You obviously have been following his orders. It took a long time before I could wear a shoe all day. I ended up buying new shoes in a larger size, which eventually were too big. Have fun at the OG 
for healing so quickly. Little by little your foot will get used to having a real shoe on it. Each time with it on will get better and better. Couldn't you just dance a happy jig. 
You are verry fortunate, and I believe you know it, that you have wonderful friends that you can lean on. We got about a foot of snow and expect a couple more inches tomorrow. Our alley is cleaned out and we can get out now which is a good thing. The drifts were about as high as the Jeep and it was wet snow so impossible to just drive up and over to get out. Sink we would.
Will did get out last evening for they had plowed by then. He just had to get out. I didn't want to for I knew the roads would be lumpy and I was nice and warm and didn't want to go play at that hour. So he went to see if my perfume was in yet and came right back. 
I just hit yes and it comes right up. When we were first married we used envelopes to divide out the monthly bills. There were times when we didn't have much left over until I started teaching and Bob was in Viet Nam. Where do you find the hidden object puzzles? I ran across one when I was looking for something else but don't see them very often. 
Let us know if you find the noodles. 
Enjoy your meal out tonight.
. Your poor car ~ hope you can wash away that odor with the dirt.
when you mention shopping in your freezer. I put some frozen items in the neighbor's freezer because both of my fridge freezers are full. I guess I don't plan ahead very well to buy a bigger freezer and we usually eat out more than we have been lately. I get tired of that, since our local choices are limited. 
