Thriving on Thursday

[Twins' Mom]

I have another busy day going - for me at least! Stamp camp at 10 a.m. this morning (need to get moving, but at least don't s2s today) and tonight the neighborhood holiday party up the street. In between, need to pick up dry cleaning, recycle glass, make challah and work on case study. And get in 9K steps again.

Last night I did manage to get in my 9K steps. I used treadmill for awhile before we left for dinner. We had a lovely dinner with this older couple who just moved back here. He is on dialysis, and they moved back so she will be here and have support network when and after he passes away. He's a little bitter about being here but it was nonetheless good to see them again.

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Above was written right after Kathryn started us this morning, and I never got it posted. I ran late getting out of houses to stamp camp. Just got home and want a nap! Maybe I'll do that after I start the challah. I'm going to wait a bit before starting it so it will still be warm this evening...

Posting this, then circling back to CUOP.

[Elizabeth]

Good morning everyone! Well, morning, I guess. I have to get up 15 minutes earlier due to horrific construction on my commute route. Right now, I have to pass through 3 construction zones every weekday. Gross. I'm glad it was not my turn to drive because I was woken up by fighting cats, had a morning migraine, AND snow is predicted for Work City and Home City. I am out of sorts because, once again, I have lost a list. I think I know where it is, but it won't be accessible until 530 pm.

Last night, I got a reasonable amount of work done. I cooked some chicken that needed to be dealt with before it was too late. It was supposed to be a dinner while camping, but wasn't used due to the late departure. It doesn't work to thaw then refreeze, so I turned it into GF lemon pepper chicken. I also put away the turkey leftovers and made the non-GF gravy that came with it. I did a lot on my bills and budget: paid my emergency credit card bill (used when debit card was not working briefly), made sure all transactions had been recorded, updated Quicken, and printed bank statement so I can balance the account later. I washed a backpack for my friend who broke her leg (and who is waiting on the apartment's washer repair person). It was a little too big for my washer and caused water to leak, so had to clean that up. Elizabeth's Own Plumbing Company needs to get off its franny. In addition to the broken guest toilet, now my disposal stopped working. Often the latter can be fixed with a "push start". If not, EO installed it and EO can install another. Dowanna.

The doctor has FINALLY put the paperwork through on my followup blood work. MUST remember that this weekend.

If Kathryn's angel no longer serves her purpose, I suggest a giveaway.

Lucylee should not feel bad about her Poor Peoples' Plastic tree theme. My theme is "can't hurt a cat, can't be hurt by a cat". Tiki ATE a fourth of the fiber optics off a 3 foot tree one year! The x and the other woman were setting up a "perfect" tree when I dropped off DD17. It was beautiful in a monochrome, commercial, unwelcoming way.

LadyMaverick: Can I count a glass of wine as a fermented food? It's the only fermented item I can stand.

Nancy, TwinsMom, and Ramblinrose: I will be using my church's parking lot for towing practice. Huge and largely empty except for Sunday morning. I like the toy truck idea, I will try to find a toy car and camper that is similar to mine.

[Harmony]

I love sauerkraut. I rarely cook it now because it is too high of sodium for DH. I also like dill or bread and butter pickles. One of the soy products is fermented but I don't remember its name, and I don't eat that. Is vinegar a fermented product? Ok back to work here.

[Twins' Mom]

I had a washer load fail this morning. I could hear the alarm going off when I left the house but thought it was just signaling the end of the load. Turned out it thought it was overloaded. It seems to be spinning now so hopefully just that load wasn't balanced somehow. I'll start challah in a few - this is for the holiday party tonight, I slice it both lengthwise and crosswise so it's in small pieces and I take pimento cheese with it. It's substantial and easy.

So I haven't picked up dry cleaning and I haven't recycled the glass. I ran out of time this morning - I was already running late when a very talkative neighbor waylaid me - I almost felt like a deer in the headlights but finally got away. She knows a lot of neighborhood doings (aka gossip.) I may go out later for the two errands...

I'm with Elizabeth:

Can I count a glass of wine as a fermented food?

[CathyS]

Just got home from the Craft Guild's Christmas lunch. They have it at a local restaurant. I got there quite early because I wanted a parking spot and part of the parking lot is blocked off because there is construction/renovation which requires a crane. So I parked and then walked over to a local specialty store and got 1/4 of a wheel of spiced gouda cheese. There are caraway seeds in it and I love it, but I'm too cheap to buy it more than once a year. This chunk cost $20. Went back to the plaza and did some shopping for fancy crackers. Now dh and I have fancy cheese and crackers and salami to last for most of the month I think.

Dh will be having sausage, potato, onion and red pepper for supper. I think I will have cheese and crackers.

It's very cold and windy here today.

[LadyMaverick]

I vote YES on any fermented foods!

I feel like my brain is on overload because I am working on too many things at the same time. I do better with less multitasking and more focused efforts. But it doesn't seem possible to do just one thing at a time if I want to get everything done. Washing going, dishwasher going, homeschool going, tracking foods and calculating how many macros left for the day, food prep in progress, texting with 3 people, waiting on a phone call, etc, etc, etc. Reminding myself...If this is all I have to complain about then I am truly blessed.

DGD8 had a first today. She completed her daily list before she went to school! She was so pleased with herself. Not having to spend 15 minutes brushing tangles out of her hair is reaping even more benefits.

43 SHE cards completed so far today.

Our weather is beautiful today. Bright sunshine, minimum wind, and a high of 68F. I want to take advantage of this weather so this evening we are doing our yearly Christmas horse & carriage ride through the park to see the lights. I have heard they have added another million lights to the exhibits. Hopefully, the crowds won't be too bad on a weekday night. I've invited DGS22 and DD to join us. I haven't heard from them yet.....add another item to the multitasking list. LOL

[lucylee]

Can't say I'm exactly THRIVING, but things do seem to be looking up.
I was awake all night, too, Dee... but unless 4 people have lied to me today, things ARE better. Details in J&C.
FitBit did not even register ANY time asleep, although I was in bed from around 3:00 a.m. till 8:00 a.m.

LOVED the story about your stockings and bells, Kathryn! That is such a neat way to individualize each stocking and keep such a wonderful tradition going.

Hmmm... one would think the cold nights of February would lend themselves to romance...

Lucylee should not feel bad about her Poor Peoples' Plastic tree theme. My theme is "can't hurt a cat, can't be hurt by a cat". Tiki ATE a fourth of the fiber optics off a 3 foot tree one year! The x and the other woman were setting up a "perfect" tree when I dropped off DD17. It was beautiful in a monochrome, commercial, unwelcoming way.

Thank you, Elizabeth! DS & DDIL and I were talking about that last night -- ds LOL, saying he guessed he liked Poor People's Plastic as a theme because that's what he grew up with -- but assuring ddil and me that he would NEVER want a "decorator" type tree or home, that it just seems unnatural or something to him.
I would never want that either -- I enjoy all the odds and ends, things ds made in elementary school, things students gave me... but it all does get mixed together in a cluttered sort of way.

BUT a special note -- remember I laminated ds's handprint and school picture every year, kindergarten through 12th grade?
Sunday in children's church, the leader asked the kids if they had any "special" ornaments on their trees at home.
DGS said, "At my Nana & Granddaddy's, they have pictures of my daddy when he was little, but we don't have those on our tree."
It made me smile that he thought about those. (I have not put them out yet, so they stuck in his mind from years past.)

I don't like fermented foods either. Sigh. I'm a picky eater, I know.

I must s2s.
Also on my top three today -- get lights on the tree, go to the tree lighting long enough to get some gumbo from the food truck we just found out would be there.
We walked through the "Tinsel Trail" last night -- they had it all lit up, and people were still finishing a few trees, but most were done. This is such a neat thing for our town, and I am sooo proud of dcousin whose FB post last year started this whole ball rolling. Some groups made such cute trees -- just one example -- the garbage company has one. The tree skirt is a galvanized garbage can, and the topper is the lid with a stuffed worm. The tree is wrapped almost solid with green ribbon, and has Oscar the Grouch's face on it! A couple of churches incorporated large wooden crosses in theirs, and our church has a Noah's Ark theme.

Okay... I'm finally going to get on with my day. I'm not going to worry about that phone bill anymore until January!

[Twins' Mom]

I laid down for an hour while challah was in bread maker. It will be done there in 10 and ready to shape and rise. I can either work on case study or get in some steps. Since I'm obviously procrastinating on case study I'm going to walk a few laps while the challah rises. I think that will do more for my mood. Dh is going to pick up his own laundry. He could have gone after it yesterday afternoon late but elected not to, since I forgot while out earlier today I just asked him to do it. Recycling glass can wait; it's five minutes away and takes 10 min and there's no hurry on it.

[Elizabeth]

Time to get cracking on those training videos. I have typed up and organized some notes. There are still more to do.

I finished the book I was reading at lunch. In some ways it was good: an interesting reason for the murder, unexpected plotting. But GAH! The heroine is a new mom and the baby is necessary for the plot. The baby's diaper bag is also an essential plot element. But I DON'T WANT TO KNOW EVERY TIME THE BABY HAS AN IO PROCESS!!! I guess the feedings were ok. Longwinded, tedious descriptions of the raptures of breastfeeding and the wonders of a new baby are not my thing, but not offensive. However, I don't think it is necessary to describe the contents and relative fullness of every diaper and the sounds involved. I didn't want to know that about my own baby, why would I want to read about it?

[Twins' Mom]

I'm not doing well at multitasking either, LadyM. I forgot to set the timer for the bread rising when I went out to walk. I set the oven but failed to hit the start button. So I'm waiting now until the oven is heated to try for two more laps while it's in the oven.