Wednesday Prepare and Persevere

[Rhy]

I try to post more b ut it only let's me post sometimes.

Hello to everyone! You are and always have been such a welcoming and encouraging group. You hold each other up daily through this life journey.

[DeeClutter]

Don't get discouraged, Rhy. Some of us have had problems for lengthy times (namely Elizabeth & me, mostly). Just keep trying. Maybe finally it will recognize you. Never did figure out our problem with posting.

Well, dh is finally landed in Rochester. Oh, he's going to be soooo cold! DS-A called about 5 minutes ago to say he was on his way. We only lived less than a half hour from the airport. Depends on the roads.

Going to get dinner going and it should be just about ready when dd gets home from school. If only she (and many teachers) got paid for the hours they really put in.

[Nancy]

Made a yummy friendship bread style dump cake with dgd today. One my yellow cake mix, plus 2 handfuls of oatmeal 1 can fruit cocktail, 1 tea. Cinnamon, (forgot the 1 tea. vinalla oops.! LOL!) Baked it @ 350* apx. 45 min. In a bread pan. House smells yummy. [Still tweaking this recipe.]

[Harriet]

((Dee)) So many providential things happening for Mr. DeeClutter, with flights working out and neighbors ready in an instant to help. Warm thoughts for him.

lucylee and OKay, I hope it helps.

Went to the healthy foods grocery and used a coupon for organic-grown whole chicken at $1 a pound. Glad for that. Have a recipe I want to try tomorrow. Found some fresh fruits and veggies that look good, too.

But I should add, I'm not sorry to know that our chicken prices have gone up over the last decade, because the reason has been better regulation of chicken farms, which was needed. Less salmonella fears now, more humane treatment that doesn't shock us when we learn about it, all around good deal.

Our light for the hens' waterer went out so HRH and I changed that bulb today. I forgot to open their hen-door back up after our work, so when he went out to visit his uncle and returned, the hens ran to him to let him know something was wrong!

Kathryn, I can see your frustration. I like the idea of a large tote bag if there are things you need to insure won't be hidden. No one would so much as peep into a tote bag, and what's the worst they could do - make you search for it in the back of the closet. But all the items you mentioned wouldn't be helped by that, of course. What about a sharpie marker mark somewhere on a hidden part of the shoe tongues to distinguish?

Got all the trash taken to the cans. Lots of work in our master bath made HRH announce that somebody had broken in and stolen all our toiletries.

[Elizabeth]

Hi everyone! I slept way too late today, but some stuff has gotten done. I have done a bit of cleanup, gotten vet appointments for foster kittens, completed a travel survey (for which I will receive $20), checked and sent emails, and filed for unemployment. This is the second week they have denied me for undescribed 'pending issue(s)'. I have contacted them to find out what these issues are. I have looked through my job agents to find stuff to apply to. I had planned on perusing Sunday's newspaper too, but that may be done tomorrow. I have found two I might apply for, but they are pretty marginal matches.

My alarm has just gone off, so I must prepare for Bible study. After that, I will get gas, mail a card, and swap a DVD at the library. There are many other things I ought to do tonight, including actually getting a resume out.

Harriet: The dragon painting is coming along nicely. It will almost certainly be ready for DD11's birthday on 2/15.

[Nancy]

Found the show I wanted to see the first one of Klondike h. Is getting to see it. Waiting for pizza to get here.

H. Has a sore foot & knee this week says its arthritis acting up.

Dgkids have gone for the night, dgson forgot most of his homework except some of his math reducing fractions. I did not want to do too much helping to make sure he understood it first. He was excited about their life group /Bible study tonight.

I listened to a sermon on u tube today got some. Notes that was a good one but I had heard it before.

Tomorrow I have carpool and granny duty & I Need to pay attn. To laundry.

[Sunny]

I wanted to say Hi and welcome to our new member, Rhy. Also SHEsPandora and Hazel from earlier this month.

Happy Birthing day to Harriet; and Happy Birthday to dd34. She is just a month or so younger than my youngest ds and our ddil, his dwife!

Sorry to hear so much of the crud is going around and hope all who are affected are better soon.

Dee, good to hear dh has made it home; will be thinking positive thoughts for his dr. visits!

Lilac, sounds like things will be going well for dd2 and her house sale!

Nice to hear from Suzlew; hope you will stay healthy now and able to check in often!

Nothing much going on with dh and me. Our doggie sitting for dfam#2 ended Sunday and they were happy we could do it. Ddil had left us a note on their coffee table and wanted to give us $60 for gas and lunch out. Both dh and I said absolutely not! It was nothing for us compared to what ds does when we go away!

I did get a nice letter from my dsis, with some family dates I needed. I will be answering her letter very soon!

We finally got all the holiday decor put away, managed to get most of it in one large tote; just have a couple of items to put in another bin, but ds will have to reach that one down for us first.

Just heard a commotion outside; I looked out but didn't see anything. I thought maybe a neighbor returning home. Both ddogs came to tell me something was happening and led me to the living room where dh asked if I heard the cats fighting...right outside the window. I think both dogs barking at the window must have scared the cats away; I haven't heard them since!

Wow, what a time you had with those horses, OKay. Glad you and dbro could finally get them corralled safely.

I have been reading the book The Purpose Driven Life. I had started reading it a long time ago, but just started it again. I have been reading one chapter a day; much better to read it a little slower.

It has been chilly here all day and supposed to get down to 38* - 40* tonight, probably the coldest so far this winter. I am thankful there is no ice or snow on our roads!

[CathyS]

Hi everyone.

Kathryn~Tell your butler and whomever works with them that you would like to see both of them in your cabin for a minute. When they both show up, tell them that you don't want your things moved and to please stop moving your things. Then ask them if they understand you. After they both say yes, in front of you and your dh, then the next time they move something, like your shoes, call the front desk and complain. Explain that they were both told not to move anything by you and your dh. When they are told by their supervisor that there has been a complaint, maybe that will stop the behaviour. On HAL, we haven't had that problem yet. As soon as we get to the room and one of the stewarts shows up, I ask for "Lots of wire hangers, 30 or 40" and an ice bucket and an ash tray for the balcony. (Mike smokes cigars) Other than that interaction, we rarely see them for the rest of the cruise.

[DeeClutter]

It was 30 on the screened porch this morning, Sunny. But did I hear 20 for next Wed?

[lucylee]

Enjoyed dgs so much last night and today. He still is not talking -- but I did get him to say "na-na" and "da-da" on command a bit, and he seems to be chattering in general a little bit more. He also very much enjoyed knocking down the towers and houses ds & I were building w/his blocks. Then he took all the alphabet blocks away from us, one at a time, and carried them across the room to put them on a table. After that he started taking the others also, but we were fascinated with the way he started out by sorting the alphabet blocks first. DS said, "He gets that from his granddaddy (dh). Poor thing, already OCD and he's only 19 months old."
This morning, when he noticed I was eating his Cheerios, he started feeding them to me, one at a time. He was just in a really good mood all evening and today.

DH is at ds's house now, and I have finished focus vacuuming of master bathroom, vacuumed the main area of the master bedroom carpet, and did a little declutter of the bathroom, also. Soooo much to do, but every 15 minutes is progress, right?

Just need to do the utility room floor and I'll be able to put the vacuum away.

I also washed dh's clothes and hung them to dry.

AND * finally * got Thanksgiving notes organized and onto 3x5 (really, 5x8 piece of paper -- I cut down a sheet of note paper so I could fold it to fit in cardfile.) That was part of bathroom declutter, too, b/c it had been laying on the bathroom counter ever since Thanksgiving! My cardfile stays on my bathroom vanity, so that is one more thing Off My Mind. (I do NOT plan to cook Thanksgiving again this year, but wanted to be prepared for the next time I'm called upon!)

I talked to dmom today, and she sounds more cheerful and energetic, but good gracious, she cannot focus on ANYTHING for 5 minutes. Talking to her is like playing word association. * shaking my head * Trying to be patient *
Will she have to special order the D-Mannose, Harriet, or will she be able to find it at Wmart or CVS, etc?

YES -- glad Mr. Dee is safe and sound, back on the ground!

Sunny, our church read The Purpose Driven Life several years ago. I really enjoyed it.

Nancy -- my DVR is supposed to be taping Klondike... I certainly hope it is working! Hope your dh feels better soon.

* sigh *
DH approves of my decluttering (really, just rearranging) so far as it involved his stuff... but when he looked at my sand jar, he said, "Did you put anything between the two sands? Because if you didn't, that is NOT going to stay that way forever." * sigh *
Have I told y'all about my sand jar? It was inspired by something I saw online -- someone had a large vase w/sand from various beaches in layers, and it was pretty -- to see the different colors, you know. So -- I already had sand from the Gulf of Mexico, which you know is supposed to be sugar white. (Mine isn't exactly, but, compared to the dark brown of the Pacific, yeah -- it is.) So on our trip to California, that was my BIG thing: MUST GET SAND from Pacific Ocean beach. So we did, and made sure to get it home w/out spilling all over the car... and now dh tells me it's going to mix with my Gulf Shores sand, and who knows when I'll ever even get back there again. Good grief.
Y'all got any ideas? This is all in a quart Mason jar, w/seashells on top. * sheesh *

RE: vacuuming, I told dh I had done "all the rooms we use."
He said, "I thought we used all our rooms."
I said, "Well, we do, but I'm not counting the three rooms on that end of the house. Do you think I need to do them?"
DH said, "Nah. I didn't think you needed to do the ones you did."

Do y'all SEE why it is hard to get any real burning desire to do housework around here? Good grief.
And keep in mind, this is the first time the house has really been vacuumed since Christmas.
I DO honestly NEED to do the study, b/c they were eating in there... but it doesn't look as though it needs it, so I'm just waiting till that zone comes around again, I guess. It does not have daily traffic.