Good morning gals! It was beautiful yesterday and looks like it is going to be the same way today. I have lots of present wrapping to do today. It must be done so I am going to take my scissors and pen and drag the stuff out of the closet and get on my bed and just do it. Sort of like the Nike commercial!

Jean: Yes, most of the yarn I use is washable, especially if it is for the kids. If it isn't, I include a note indicating it should be handwashed. The boys socks are both machine washable and dryable. No one wants to volunteer for anything anymore and one reason I can understand. So many times when you volunteer for something then you are never left alone. People want you for more and more and more. If you are willing to do one job, they assume they can ask you to do more. So in that respect, I understand, but volunteerism for church is the only thing that gets the church through.

Jack has his excel computer class today so he gets to "skive off" work for all but an hour. He already knows excel pretty darn well, but they offered the class so he signed up for it. I mean it is like, "Well, should I dress in uniforms and work with spider webs, rodents, sewage etc or wear jeans and play on the computer?" What a choice!

I need to get going and get my day started. Tomorrow we will drag stuff out of the attic so we can pack and I have to give Fortune a nice bath before he goes to the kennel Monday night.

Have a great weekend all!
Faye

Good Morning, Flowers! I've been for a haircut and now am waiting for Bob to call for a ride from one farm to another. He is moving tractors so he can plow this afternoon and tomorrow. It was very foggy this morning and I chose to go the back way to get my hair cut rather than going through town. It's a truck traveled black top and I said my prayers hoping I wouldn't run into anyone and no one would run into me. An hour later the sun was peeking through and it was clear coming home.

"Gma" -- I thought you would be done wrapping by now! I understand where you are coming from on that count. It's easy to put off the things we don't like to do that's for sure. I got my 3rd "yes" for the church committee last night, so I am officially done calling for that committee! I hope they don't give me another list for awhile . . . like next fall! It sounds like Jack will enjoy his day at work today. I've noticed that job ads sometimes have experience with Excel listed. I'm not familiar with it. When will you be back from IN? I know you are so looking forward to the trip; I hope there is no snow nor bad weather for your travel time.

I need to get busy and do something. Hope you all have a TGIF kind of day and enjoy!

Jean -- from Iowa!

Good afternoon, ladies! A lovely sunny day today.

I was up .4 at WW this morning but I'll have that off next Friday. Weighing in the day after Thanksgiving is an incentive to not overeat that day...and Glory and I won't cook that much for just the two of us. I went to Kmart to get a space saver electric can opener since Walmart was out and mine died. Now if I can get it mounted is the next question. The old holes are there so hopefully this one will fit that. I went to Big Lots for Double Fiber wheat bread ($1.20 there as opposed to @2.89 at the grocery store) and found a Curves valour hooded jacket - purple - and a black top for only $5 each. I do love the bargains. Kmart had cantaloupe for 99 cents so picked one up.

We got a recipe for Black Forest cake today at WW. Very easy to make and it sounds good. I'm going to take it to my bee's Christmas party. You take 1 box of devil's food cake mix, 1 can lite Cherry Pie filling, 1 tablespoon of fat-free mayonnaise and mix it wall together. Put it into 24 cupcakes or a 9x13 pan and bake at whatever the box says. Serve with a dollop of Cool Whip Free. I'm going to get the foil cupcake linersand top them with cool whip and a cherry. A cupcake is 1 point and if you divide the cake in the pan into 12 pieces, each is 2 points.

Jean, I'm glad you finally finished your calls for the church. I'm sure that is a relief. Bob sure must be a farmer at heart. I'm with your children, if it can't go into the washer and dryer or dishwasher, I get rid of it. Excel is a spreadsheet program. It does lots of things beside computations, like graphing the results, automatically updating other worksheets, etc.

Faye, I hope the gifts are wrapped so you can check that off your list. You are always so organized when you travel. I wait until the last minute and throw everything I own into a suitcase a pray I'll have what I need.

Have a good day! I get to clean out the refrigerator.

Quick good morning to you all! I am now in crunch time to get all the things I need to get done and get Thomas's other sock done so I can put it with his jeans and sweater and finish wrapping it.

I have all the other gifts wrapped and brought downstairs thank goodness. I found a great way to wrap gifts. Bring Jack's office chair into our bedroom and use the bed as a table. It works great and my legs don't start hurting or my back sitting on the bed and trying to wrap stuff.

Here is T's first sock. The color is called lily pad, don't know about that, but it is a nice color for a boy I think.

Jean: We are leaving O dark thirty on Tuesday morning so we can get there in the early afternoon. It is a straight 10 hour drive and takes us about 12 with bathroom, meal, and gas stops. I used Excel for my household budget. It works great for me and keeps me on the straight and narrow with my bills. Jack won $20 yesterday because the guy has a contest at the end to see who has learned the most. Each person holds the 20 until he answers a question wrong then has to sit down. Last person standing gets the money and it was Jack. I told him it was rigged as he already knew the program in and out, but he just smiled.

Susan: Let me know how those cupcakes turn out. I am a chocolate and cherry freak so it would be right down my alley. Looks like you got some great deals at Big Lots.

Well this was short and sweet, but I need to get the dog a bath and get hair dye on my hair so I need to go. Have a wonderful Saturday all!
Faye

Good Morning, Flowers! The sun is shining and there has been one deer here for a drink from the bird bath. Yesterday there was a dead deer up on the highway so I'm wondering if that was the other one that was also coming. There had been 2 several days in a row and one even came up on the deck to eat. Today is Ian's 7th birthday and that is hard to believe! It was very cold and we had snow on the ground 7 years ago. We are going to his other grandma's for the party later this afternoon. Ian and his family were supposed to come here tomorrow but those plans were changed earlier in the week.

Susan -- I know you will have the small gain off by next week. It sounds like you found some good bargains shopping yesterday. Thanks for sharing the recipe with us. My family likes anything that is chocolate! I'm planning to be more organized when I pack for Maui this time. It seems like I always take too much, but I don't want to have to wash clothes while I'm there either. The kids are saying they plan to live in their bathing suits so won't need many clothes. Bob is off plowing this morning -- his farmer friend wanted to try out Bob's tractor and plow yesterday. He called early this morning saying that something broke on the hitch so Bob needed to stop for a part before going to the farm. He does love to do field work and would have his own farm if he could figure out how to get the money. Farmland here is selling for roughly $5000 an acre if it is "good" land.

"Gma" -- It took forever for my post to go through and then I saw yours . . . I must have been waiting in line behind you. I wrap gifts on the kitchen island if I have a lot or else the kitchen table. Ernie thinks he needs to help so it takes me awhile. I've never heard of "O dark thirty" but know I have been there and done that a time or two! Congrats to Jack on winning the $20! He can treat you to lunch on your way north!

I need to get the laundry started and clean off my kitchen counters. Ian's presents need to be wrapped and I need to figure out what I am wearing this afternoon. My daily uniform of jeans and tshirt/sweatshirt just doesn't seem appropriate.

Have a nice day and I hope the sun is shining on you!

Jean -- from Iowa!

Good afternoon, ladies, its in the 50s and the sun is shinning!

Just doing my house work today. Tomorrow I need to move a few bits of furniture that will be in the way when they install the windows.

I sent you the newsletter I just received from my WW leader and a couple of recipe books she gave us. I hope you enjoy. Tonya is a great leader and I really appreciate her newsletters that she does on her own time.

Faye, I love those socks!

Jean, enjoy the party.

I'm off to finish my cleaning so I can sit and quilt.

Good morning to you all! I am not at serious crunch time to finish his other sock. I am down to the foot part so I imagine I can whip the rest out this morning then get it washed and blocked. I am going to stick it out in the fresh air and see it that helps it dry faster.

Jean: I have lots of "Navyisms." Sailors and all military tell time according to 2400 hours so "o dark thiry" would be 12:30 am actually and it is dark so there you go! It is too bad that so many of us can't do what we would really love to do with our lives. We take jobs that are ok, but maybe not the dream we had for ouselves or have jobs we even hate just to get us through. At least Bob has an outlet for his yearning for farming, which is nice.

Susan: I am packing today then I think I may go ahead and get out and do errands today instead of tomorrow so I can relax and nap tomorrow since we are planning on leaving in the middle of the night between Monday and Tuesday. The car is filthy as it has rained here so much I haven't been able to get it washed so it is going to get a good bath and cleaning inside and out today before we go.

Maggie: Sorry you are having computer issues. My pc has so much stuff on it now it is slow, but nothing I can do about that but get a computer with a bigger hard drive, but for now, I just have to plug along.

I see the Senate is probably going to pass that health care bill. I told you I thought they would. What a mess that is going to be. I feel for all you folks on medicare as they are going to completely screw that up let alone private insurance. I saw the other day at my nail salon that the owner is talking to someone about insuring his people. The smaller business owners are going to get hit hard with this and of course besides higher taxes, higher insurance fees, higher Medicare costs, we are going to have higher prices on everything to cover store's employees' health care.

Well gals, gotta go and get stuff going this morning. Jack stayed up late so is still snoozing. Have a beautiful Sunday all.
Faye

Good Morning, Flowers! It is kind of hazy here with the sun peeking through every once in awhile. It's warmer and not raining so that's good. We got home late (for us) last night and just didn't feel like church this morning. I have a roast cooking and it's beginning to smell good. I have fur/dust hunks to vacuum and a pile of ironing that needs attention. My grandma would be shocked to think that I would even consider cleaning or laundry on Sunday.

Susan -- Thank you for sharing your newsletter with us. I haven't had a chance to read through it all, but I will. I get one from a leader that I met online many, many years ago. I will have to share it with all of you. The birthday party was huge success! Ian is into anything camouflage and his other grandma found pjs and undies; it was cute when he opened them because he was a little . The kids are between the ages of 4 and 7 (6 of them), a 1 year old, a 10 year old, and a 9 year old. They all got along really well considering it was late in the day and the excitement level was pretty high.

Maggie -- I just sent my email address to you. I feel sorry for you having computer glitches . . . I wouldn't have a clue how to fix any of them! Good luck!

"Gma" -- When I posted yesterday the sock picture wasn't there. I think it looks great! I'm sure Thomas will get a kick out of the fact that you made them especially for him. I don't think I've ever left home at that time of the night. I always have trouble getting to sleep the night before we are leaving on a trip. We get up at 4 to make it to the airport 2 hours before we leave for Maui. I noticed our plane is leaving an hour later this time, but that can change. Bob gets so angry whenever Obama is on TV and/or anyone brings up the healthcare bill. This is the time of year when Medicare people can change plans for their drugs and he's had the week from he**. Some people are pretty sharp and others a just plain dumb! The dumb ones won't listen when he tries to explain things and usually end up telling him to choose the best plan for them, which he can't do. I see that public opinion of Obama has dropped a lot. It was headlines on our state newspaper today. Pretty soon "they" are going to have to quit blaming Bush for everything that is wrong in the US!


I need to check on my roast and put gift receipts with the kids' Christmas clothes before I misplace them. Hope you all have an enjoyable Sunday!

Jean -- from Iowa!

I forgot something very important when I posted this morning!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY IAN!!!!!

Good morning everybody! Lots of errands today and finishing up with packing and getting stuff hauled downstairs to pack into the car when Jack gets home.

Finished T's other sock and got it washed and dried and it didn't need blocking so it went straight into his box and I taped it up and wrapped it and it is ready to go. Hope he likes them.

I started my dr's socks and the colors are terrific. I can't wait to see what the whole sock will look like.

Well, they just put out the yearly 10 most dangerous cities to live in:

No. 10: Memphis, Tenn.
Rankings in Crime
Assault: 4
Murder: 25
Rape: 75
Motor Vehicle Theft: 58
Robbery: 6
Burglary: 3
Jean: Looks like no rain traveling to Indiana or Sunday coming home, but it looks like it is going to rain the whole time we are in Indiana. At least it will be warm enough we will have no snow this year. Thomas is a Beatle freak so anything that is Beatle's he would enjoy. I bought him a John Lennon watch with a face that is a cartoon drawing, John Lennon drew of himself. It is pretty cool. I also ordered him a Trivial Pursuit game that is Beatles so I am sure he would beat all our behinds in it. Jackson is totally Ku Fu Panda. I call him my little Ku Fu baby. Nobody is going to blame the president until what he is proposing doesn't work so his time is coming. He is getting hit because the economy didn't turn around like he said it would, but I don't feel for him, that's for sure. Luckily, we move right into Tricare for Life from Tricare Prime so we don't have to go searching for a good supplemental.

As per usual, the idiot mailman or in this case a woman, delivered our mail on Saturday even though I put in a hold card on Thursday to stop the mail on Saturday so of course like every other time I have stopped the mail, I am going to have to call and gripe to the delivery supervisor to make sure the mail gets stopped. I have Christmas gifts coming through the mail and I don't want them getting stolen because they can't seem to get it together. I even gave it to the mailman instead of the post office this time and she can't get it right.

Well, I have to get hopping so I can get things done. Have a wonderful holiday and I will talk with you again when we get back, probably on Monday.
Faye

Good Morning! It is a dark dreary day in my neighborhood this morning. I wouldn't be surprised to see some rain; we had about 6 drops yesterday. I'm up, dressed, read the papers, and am ready to pick up the clutter. I could start wrapping some Christmas gifts and get a head start on that. I think we will go to Beth's since it will be closer for Jason. I thought maybe the kids would hold out for coming here, but they don't seem to care. It will give the grandkids more time to play with their new toys and enjoy some family time at their own house.

"Gma" -- Was Cleveland in the 10 worst cities list? It was bad when we lived there back in the 70s. At least if it rains you won't have to shovel while you are gone! I really appreciate the garage when we travel in the winter and have to warm up the car before we can leave. I don't think "service" people have any common sense any more. We normally get our mail around 2 during the week. On Saturdays we are lucky if it is here by 4 and that is when the mail truck is supposed to be leaving town! The Sat. carrier is a woman and she can barely reach the mailbox from the car. I know you will have a great time with your family. Enjoy yourself and have a !

I need to get busy! Have a Marvelous Monday today!

Jean -- from Iowa!

Good Morning, Flowers! It started raining last evening and we've had an inch so far. It is sure dark and gloomy -- a good day to stay home, but I have a few errands to run. Maybe the rain will quit and I can go this afternoon. I noticed fur/dust hunks this morning so should vacuum and my pile of ironing is piling up again.

I stopped up at school yesterday to see the kids (seniors) for the last few minutes of the day. There is no other way to describe what is going on other than disorganized, secretive, and impossible to tolerate. Any communication from the office is on "a need to know" basis. I'm so glad I'm out of there! Teachers have been told not to fail anyone nor give 0s on assignments. They are not to talk to school board members (the retired math teacher is now on the board). Kids come to school late in the morning or not at all; no one checks on them to find out why. There is no Saturday School this year. There will be no restrictions during final exam open campus time. If a student owes a teacher assignments, detention time, fines, etc., the teacher has to deal with them. All meetings are for certified staff and IAs are not allowed to come. They cannot bring up any matter that has not been presented to the asst. principal 2 weeks prior to the meeting. Rumor has it this is the principal's last year, the asst. principal who is supposed to be in charge of discipline but does nothing will become principal, and the choir director, who has NO pr patience whatsoever, will become the asst. principal. Since no one has resigned nor applied that will be interesting. Well, enough jabbering about school!

I imagine Faye is well on her way to IN by now since they planned to get started "early."

Maggie and Susan -- Hope you are both having a good day!

I need to get myself moving. Have a great day!

Jean -- from Iowa!