TO HOME TUESDAY

[Emptynester]

Well, we've been here for over an hour and that included lunch at Subway and stopping for new temporary meds at CVS. I've also mailed the new meds scripts to our mail order provider and stocked the temporary script in our weekly pill boxes.

It is good to be home. DH has changed to some shorts and is happily in his big chair. (I just heard a snore!!) We got footlongs at Subway so supper is done, too, as we only ate 1/2 for lunch.

Follow up appointment with cardio Dr. is May 2 and I fully expect him to be released as he is doing well now.

I have appointment on Apr. 23 for my knees. That was the only thing that bothered me on the drive home. Holding the footfeed made my knee ache. It was much better once I got in the country and away from the traffic as I could put it on cruise and move my leg.

Time for me to kick back with a Dr. Pepper and relax now that we are home. Thanks again for all your good thoughts and comments.

[Twins' Mom]

Oh what a be-a-u-tiful day! (actually, it's raining, but....) We are done. I left the office around 1:45, the office was closing at 2:30 for the day. I've slept since then. I feel like I could just sleep and sleep and sleep and then sleep some more.

I am planning to take tomorrow "off" off everything. No pressure to answer emails, start w temple biz, clean the house or anything else. At 4:30 dh and I have to walk through the new house with the builder to assess plugs, light switches, anything else that might need to remedied before the drywall starts up. I noticed on Saturday there's a thermostat in the middle of a wall I consider decorative, so we'll ask about moving that also. I've spotted a couple of places where we ordered outlets that they weren't installed.

On Thursday I need to get rolling with temple biz. We have the "annual meeting" on Sunday afternoon.

I feel free again, the world just opened back up. Or at least it will once I take another nap or two tomorrow.

[Elizabeth]

I'm about to head out to Girls' Night Out. I may or may not do anything useful today. I will pay attention to the new foster cat, though. All else is optional. See you tomorrow.

[Indiana]

The president of the council and I just solved all the problems here. Now if only we can get the others to see how much better it would be if they did it our way.

[lucylee]

Woo hoo for TWINS!!! Freedom at last!!!

Good luck, Indiana! (I'm sure you could convince ME your way was best... but not so sure about some of those people you've been dealing with lately.)
BTW -- Woo Hoo for "Nurse Indiana," too! Pretty brave...

Hope you feel lots better by the time you read this, Harmony! (((HUGS)))

Harmony -- re: dress for the party... that's what I was thinking -- dressy pants (black, maybe?) and a nice top. Would a somewhat dressy sweater do? Surely EVERYONE else won't show up in sundresses or something really frilly. Especially since it's at night. I knew it was NOT a blue jeans sort of affair... just saying, that's more my comfort zone.
But shoes... * sigh * I REALLY need some new shoes -- for church, actually, and now for this occasion. And I absolutely DESPISE buying shoes. One can get away w/wearing casual shoes w/dressy pants for school, at least THIS ONE does... b/c people realize you want to be comfortable when you're on your feet all day. But those shoes look much too heavy/comfortable/winter-ish for this occasion, I think.

Harriet -- the gift card in dh's pocket is an EXCELLENT idea!

Now... how long do we have to STAY to be polite? * sheesh * Do y'all think these people are lurking in our village? They are perfectly nice people; it's not that. Most of them go to church with us. They are just a tad... I don't know how to put it... intimidating, maybe -- to me.
DH and I are both just a tad anti-social, I guess. * sigh * If I still went to Sunday School, it would be better. But since ds started college, I guess, I've dropped out, mainly b/c dh doesn't want to go. Maybe it will be good for us to attend this little gathering.

We just got back from the local nursing home, where dh, ds, and ddil sang for monthly entertainment.
(That kind of "social" I can stand.)

I guess I'll go read some more.
Have you ever read a book that you feel like you need to slow down, b/c you're reading TOO FAST, and you don't want it to end? The Hunger Games were kinda like that for me, but my new one is REALLY like that. Total change of "scenery" from The Hunger Games, and I don't know if it's going to end well or not, but so far, I would really recommend this novel:
The Homecoming of Samuel Lake, by Jenny Wingfield.
It is set in 1956, Arkansas. Samuel Lake is a good, decent man, a Methodist preacher who has recently been "unassigned."
He, his wife, and three children move in with his mother-in-law.
His daughter, Swan, age 11, is described on the back cover as the "sassiest, truest girl heroine this side of Scout Finch," and I would definitely agree with that description.
There are some TERRIBLE things happening in the neighborhood, parts of the story have been hard to read, but I am hoping that Samuel will find some way to right the wrongs in his community.
Regardless of how it ends, though, it is certainly a believable step back in time for me -- although 1956 was a few years before my time, so much of it reminds me of the stories I've heard, the people I know, from my parents' generation.

I may not be accomplishing much this week, but maybe I'm re-charging my batteries?

[Harriet]

LOL! Indiana, I say this all the time - I continue to be amazed that people don't just admit that I know best. Happy for you.

Well, Kathryn's handmade single-serving pizzas idea was a huge hit here for our family-project supper. When I found a bagged Italian blend of several shredded cheeses at the grocery, to mimic Kathryn's blend, I knew I wanted to try it. Dd13 really liked it, but it was HRH who was most impressed. He went down the grocery receipt and then divided by servings to see exactly how much each 7-8" pizza cost ($1.90). I cut up bell pepper on his and mine, then he decided to cut up onion on ours, too. Dd didn't want veggies, and that made hers cook faster, so we had to pull hers out of the oven first. We sprinkled basil flakes, and HRH sprinkled red pepper flakes on his, and says that gave it an extra "kick" that seemed like take-out pizza to him.

lucylee, I didn't know dh, ddil and ds ever sang together - how lovely. What a nice gesture, too. I've often thought I'd like members of our family to sing together, but dd32 would be the glue who would hold that together, and any weekend she can manage to get here, she can't manage much else.

I have all the gifts wrapped, including DangerBoy's little extra gift for NOT being the birthday boy. Had everything but a bright colored tissue paper, and picked that up at grocery of all places, so worked out well.

I'd been trying to S2S all day. Sigh. My ddad just couldn't relax today and never napped at all. So now I've finally S2Sed and am ready to call this a Ta-Da. It's amazing how little things start looking like big accomplishments.

Twins' Mom and Emptynester are so happy, with a side of optimism - it's catching.

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Harriet glad I could help inspire your dinner choice this evening! Tonight we had homemade shake and bake style chicken pieces cooked in the new toaster oven. I put the chicken on top of cut up potatoes. Dh made a salad and heated up frozen corn. I had ice cream for desert. I have no right to be hungry but I am so I might have 6 almonds. Or a piece of dry toast.

My evening meeting went well. It is the church board I dislike but the personalities that rub me the wrong way weren't there. We have trouble brewing with one of the people and someone has to meet with her about it. I said, "I do not have a good working relationship with her." and got out of the task (plus applause from one of the other members for recognizing the fact!)

I'm taking tomorrow as my Sabbath.

[lucylee]

Hmmm -- I should correct myself, Harriet -- ddil does NOT sing. She seems even more reluctant to sing than I, if that is possible! She plays upright bass for ds when no one else is available, so that was what she was doing tonight. She enjoys going to the nursing home, too, b/c she got sooo attached to so many of the patients there. She really has a gift for that kind of work.
DH & ds sing together fairly often, though. In fact, tomorrow night, they have to practice w/church group for 5th Sunday music.
In addition to their threesome, we had additional "special guests" tonight -- one of ds's banjo students, a little boy about 12 years old, I think, his sister -- about 8 years old -- who plays the piano, and his six year old sister who has been taking fiddle lessons 2 months! They each played a song, and of course, those older people just LOVE seeing little children.
And I have to admit, I love seeing ds with those kids, too, b/c he is so good with them, and I haven't had much chance to see him in that role, you know. His younger boy cousin is six years younger, but they were always extremely competitive -- in spite of ds's age advantage -- and since he is 11 years older than girl cousin, he's never really had a chance to really get close to her, I guess.
It's going to be a lot of fun -- and very interesting, I suppose -- to see how ds manages fatherhood!

Well... I'm going back to my book.

[Lilac]

Today I met our buyers at the other house and they signed the contract. I then took it and their earnest check to the title company. The lady at the title co. told me they are also doing the work on the sale of their property. So it looks like it is really going to happen. We put the for sale sign in the yard on Feb. 17. 2 months ago but is sure seems longer than that. We have a May 25 closing date set but it is possible it will be before we leave on our trip May 12. I hope it is done by then so that we don't have to mess with faxing while we are gone. For some reason if their sale goes thru before May 25, then the title co. will then set up our sale for the same day.

Tomorrow is dgd first birthday. Dd2 is planning to have a lunch and her birthday party Sunday afternoon. Dm is coming on Saturday and staying until Tuesday or Wednesday. I told her that I need to do things at the other house and she volunteered to help me. Everything will need to be done before our trip.

Tonight dh took the shower doors off the master bath bathtub. We haven't used it at all. We have been using the main bath for showers. I have been taking baths once a week or so at the other house. I have claustrophobia and I can shower behind shower doors but I can't take a bath. The tub in there is larger than the main bathtub. This way I can live with this until we redo both baths. They will have to wait until next winter. In the meantime we are thinking about putting hardwood floors in the living room, dining room and hall. If we do that we will do it ourselves. Also we have to replace at least the front and back fences. He plans to put a cement base under the fence.

Guess I better head to bed. I have a lot of work to do before dm arrives on Saturday.