Conga Friday

[Harriet]

It's Conga Friday! What are you dancing through today?

Jump in,
hang on tight!
We're circling the house*
with and swish and a swipe!

Da Da Dee Da Da ... swish!
Da Da Dee Da Da ... swipe!

*(or circling the desk, or circling the neighborhood, or insert project here!)

[Harriet]

Today's one of those days when I have so much to do I just have to laugh. Dd34's family arrives, there's a bday party, we're going to a Highland Games, probably for most of Saturday.

Sent dd off today with sunscreen in a baggie (wonder what people will think?), and money for a bottle of water, but forgot money to pay for gas. So I hope she can figure out who to reimburse and handle that later. I assume I won't see her until their team returns from the game late this afternoon. She's also lucky I remembered to wash her team shirt. We got almost out of the driveway when I asked about her Civics and Economics assignment and she had to ask me to back up. Sigh.

By Fridays, we are not handling school organization as well around here.

Lilac, my sliding doors look like French doors because of the removable mullion between the two layers of glass. I knew I wanted to have a window treatment up anyway for privacy, so ultimately it didn't make much difference. Of course, if it had been in an area of the home that was part of entertaining, it might have been disappointing.

Tea Talk
Ivy, the plant called tea (which is really the only thing that should be called "tea" IMO, because calling drinks made from so many other plants "teas" is confusing) contains oxalate. Most kidney stones are made of oxalate and calcium combined. So it's a problem. Other foods have oxalate, like spinach and chocolate, but we actually drink large quantities of tea, especially when thirsty, so it's a bigger deal. Ice tea is only worse than hot because you're likely to drink more.

Tea expert Bruce Richardson's research shows that black tea made from leaves has the most oxalate, tea bags a close second, but green tea (including oolong) has only about a quarter as much as they do. Now, black tea is just green tea that has gone through a 4-hour oxidation process, so that makes you wonder. But no one has ever proved whether the process is the real problem, instead of the plant. Real lemon juice or milk added to tea both keep the body from retaining as much oxalate, but no one knows how much.

Other drinks that are just called "teas" have nothing to do with the tea plant and don't contain oxalate. But lots of them have their risks, too, so moderation is always good.

Next up - Make frosting and color it in a variety of colors frost cupcakes.

[DeeClutter]

Need to get a move on and 'conga' out of here. Have the church bulletin to do this morning and I'll be alone. DPastor and wife are on a cruise & we have a fill-in as well. Hoping he's left a message on the answering machine so I can do what I have to do. Have my doubts as he had to go to southern NY state this week for his father's funeral. Going to see dsisil after church work is done.

Been sitting here, browsing and taking time for my meds & let them settle. Have a LOL going -guess I'd best go see if that's ready for the spinning twin.

[BookSaver]

Good morning, villagers ~
Still trying to transition to new pc in an orderly manner.

"Supper with friend" yesterday ended up taking over 6 hours if I include time to s2s, makeup and hair, and commute to The Big City. It was a fun evening, though. We had not seen DH's college buddy for over 9 months, there was a lot of news to share.

However, that did not get any work done here at home and now I am way behind schedule.

Today's priorities:
* DPC as soon as it's decently late enough to call someone at home.
* Prep for tomorrow's sewing group general & board meetings.
* Coffee meeting with old friends mid-afternoon.
* Try again to pick up Rx. (Pharmacy did not have it in stock on Tuesday.)
* Research financial question in sewing group archives.

Harriet ~ The cupcakes sound delightful.

[helia]

Good morning! It looks like another beautiful day here. Dd15 is on the flight home and dd18 slept over at a friend's house. Not sure when she'll be home - she's meeting a youth group freshman for lunch today. She has taken it upon herself this past year to reach out to the freshmen in the group, to keep things from becoming clique-y. She is wonderful in so many ways, it is just annoying when this mission takes priority over family time.

PODA:
-I'm hoping to go to WW meeting, despite a week I probably gained - with visit to my parents and bday party. I think going consistently, despite how my week has gone, will be helpful
- A jog would be nice; it is not windy as it was yesterday.
- Laundry catch up would be good - towels and bedding.
- work on teaching would be good too; I'm thinking of revamping the plan
- leave around 3:45/4:00 to go pick up dd15. Plane is supposed to land around 4, but she'll need to go through customs. I'll park and walk in to meet her by the baggage carousel.
- no tutoring - he needs to do something at work and I need to pick up dd15
- dinner will be leftovers

I should delve into yardwork at some point, the downside of the snow melting. Now, my yard, which is full of sticks and leaves and dog ____ which we didn't pick up during the winter (and small craters - thanks to Maia) is fully visible. At least the weeds haven't started growing yet.

I need to leave in 20 minutes - need to feed the 3 beasts first. I have checked accounts since dh paid a large cc bill earlier this week. The cc bill wasn't due, he was just paying charges since the last statement (so he could file for travel reimbursements, I believe) and I had just paid the full amount of the bill a week earlier - so I wanted to check w/ him re: exactly what/why he paid so we weren't double paying the cc company, which I've done before. . . . .

[Nancy]

I need to focus on our bed room and the table in the dining rm. diving in now.!

[Harmony]

Good morning!

Harriet, where did you find the MCraft clothes? They sound adorable. I have at least 3 DGSons who think that's the bees knees, one or 2 quite addicted! Incidently, using clothes for boy gifts in my family is quite fine. They seem to appreciate them, especially if there is a favorite sport team logo. One DGS just seems to appreciate plain jeans and colorful shirts. Amazing to me! One family of boys wears school uniforms, so new clothes are a treat. Last running outfit I sent to one DGS, he took them out of the package and immediately put them on and went out to play!

How did I get started on all that?! Oh, DD1 made a MC halloween costume a year or 2 ago out of cardboard to which she glued squares of colored paper all over. Said it took her forever to do!

I did my bit for the guys this morning. Took SUV full of machinery to the jobsite, stopping for special ethanol-free gas on the way. They are starting another job. Too many trucks, not enough drivers. DH was at landfill with his.

I'm thinking I might look at my fabric stash.....been wanting to do that.....

[Nancy]

I worked on those two areas not done but progress made yea.

Farm chores done I cleaned the coop, replaced the light and bulb the chicks heat lamp have fed the birds as well.

Harriet what are the cupcakes for?

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

I'm congaing through the kitchen still un-s2s.

Last night I did above the counters and today I'm working on the counter tops. Certainly misjudged the time required. I set a timer for 30 minutes and only finished 1/3 in that time. I've got one small section left to do but got distracted by the outside of the fridge (covered with 'stuff.') It is better now but will have to be completely cleared off if we have to sell on the open market.

Just realized I have the clock in here to clean as well.

Dh still has cleanup to do from sap boiling. He brought in the lids and spiles and put them down on a clean counter. I hit the roof because, while I realize they will be dirty again soon enough, I wanted them to at least stay clean until I finish the kitchen from one end to the other. So he's playing music now and avoiding the kitchen.

Off to finish up. Sigh... I'm exhausted again but have only walked 1600 steps so far today (although they were all around the kitchen.)

[Dove]

Hi everyone!

Back from a short errand run after meeting a dfriend for breakfast. I'm preparing for snow & cold weather -- not because it is in my weather forecast, but because I just took the flannel sheets & winter comforter off the bed ! The only signs of spring around here are a few brave daffodils & a slight greenish tinge to the grass. Hopefully the upcoming warm weather will nudge the trees into budding.

I'm off to cuop from the last couple of days while enjoying my tea. Hope you all have a wonderful day!