We were up early this morning, so we could get last-minute tasks done around the house, start a couple of beef roasts cooking in the slow cooker, and finish the lemon pudding cake dessert. Family began arriving around 10:30, and by lunch, there were sixteen of us to enjoy the feast. I only had tables set for fifteen, so one family member, Hubbie's son, had to eat at a TV tray table. He didn't seem to mind.
Those who attended included Hubbie's three children...a son and two daughters...two sons-in-law, two young grandchildren, a grown granddaughter and her husband, two great-grandchildren, a sister, and a two-year-old great-niece that the sister brought along.
Appetizers before the meal were choices of jalapeno cream cheese dip with tortilla chips (dip made by Hubbie), a crab and veggie pizza (brought by Daughter), or for the sweet tooths, the orange pecans that I'd made for the Second Friday event at the art gallery.
The meal included the beef, wonderfully seasoned with herbs and spices and cooked with onions and carrots, plus mashed potatoes, gravy, coleslaw, fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, and Vidalia onions, and loaves of yeast bread. Dessert was the lemon pudding cake, of course, for everybody but me...I had a plain chocolate cupcake and fat-free vanilla ice cream.
After lunch, we retired to the yard to sit in lawn chairs and visit, while the kids played with flying discs and other lawn toys. Some folks left for home around 2 p.m., but Hubbie's daughters stayed around until about 4 p.m.
It was extremely hot and humid today, but pleasant enough under the trees in the yard. Still, Hubbie and I were ready to get back to the air conditioner after everyone left. Around 7 p.m., we had a simple supper...a deli turkey sandwich on yeast bread for Hubbie, and raisin bran cereal with yeast bread and butter for me.
Then we settled in to watch TV...several old episodes of "The Closer."
At the eagle nest, the mother was keeping the baby company. The baby is still practicing flapping his wings, but he tires of it easily and soon snuggles down for a nap.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Flower Arrangement
I used small purple cone flowers and the leaves from another plant to make this arrangement in the little ceramic pillow vase that Stepdaughter gave me last Christmas. The "vase" has three holes in the top for placing the arrangement, and it can be filled with water. The bottom of the vase is porous, so I set the arrangement on top of a glass dish turned upside down to keep the moisture away from the tablecloth. This is a small arrangement, so it doesn't take up much room on the dining room table, leaving plenty of space for bread baskets, pickle trays, spices and condiments, etc. We need all the space at the table that we can get, since we expect fourteen people for the birthday celebration today, and ten of them will be seated (or squeezed) around the table. We'll serve the meal buffet style.Friday, June 19, 2009
Friday, June 19
It's been a busy day, starting with a session of water aerobics. The pool feels wonderful, but it's cold enough to hang meat in the dressing room.
Bad news from the pool: the husband of one of our members had a massive stroke this morning and did not survive. Our leader got a cell phone call just before aerobics began informing her of his passing. The lady whose husband it was has had plenty of problems already. At some time in the past, she had cancer in a leg, requiring removal of muscle that resulted in her needing a brace and cane to walk. Then last year, she was hit by a car on the hospital parking lot after she'd visited a friend. She had multiple injuries, and it took several months of physical therapy for her to get strong enough to return to the pool. The lady is in her early 80s, I think.
After I got home and ready for the day, Hubbie and I shopped for last-minute groceries for the weekend. Then, I baked a lemon cake for tomorrow. In the morning, I'll cook the lemon pudding and let it cool, and then spread it on the cake and make a meringue topping for it. This is one of Hubbie's favorite desserts. I make a couple of them a year, one for Hubbie and one for Mother for her birthday, since it's her favorite, too. I like it as well, but I can't eat it, because both the cake and the pudding have yellow dye, and I'm allergic to yellow dye. So I'll celebrate with a chocolate cupcake and ice cream.
This afternoon, I took Mother to the Women's Center at the hospital for mammograms. Nothing is wrong. It was just routine. We got there early, and the technician took her back within minutes of our arrival. The appointment was for 2 p.m., and we were back home before 2:30.
While we were in the waiting area, though, an elderly man was busy on his cell phone...we thought he was playing games. But when his wife came out and asked what he was doing, he said, "Deleting pictures."
"Pictures of what?" she asked, obviously concerned that he was deleting important ones.
"The inside of my pocket," he said.
After they left, Mother and I burst into laughter. I guess when his phone is on in his pocket, he accidently trips the photo function.
We spent the rest of the afternoon doing tasks related to tomorrow's celebration. For a week-in-review supper, Mother put several items in a cake pan, with foil between the foods, and put it in the oven. Soon, she noticed smoke coming from the oven, and we rushed into the kitchen to inspect. Seems she'd dropped a potholder into the oven, and it was smoldering and getting ready to burst into flames.
She whisked the potholder into the sink and ran water on it. But by this time, the downstairs area was filled with smoke. I quickly closed the door to the hall where the smoke alarm is before it went off, and opened doors and windows until the smoke dissipated. I'm glad we didn't leave the oven unattended...could have been disasterous.
After supper, I set the table for tomorrow, and then cut a few flowers to make a small arrangement in the ceramic pillow vase that Daughter gave me for Christmas (see photo in another blog).
At the eagle's nest, the baby is continuing to exercise his wings and run toward the edge of the nest as if to launch, but he's not quite ready yet. In fact, he's not completely steady on his legs. But I can tell he yearns for the freedom of flight.
Bad news from the pool: the husband of one of our members had a massive stroke this morning and did not survive. Our leader got a cell phone call just before aerobics began informing her of his passing. The lady whose husband it was has had plenty of problems already. At some time in the past, she had cancer in a leg, requiring removal of muscle that resulted in her needing a brace and cane to walk. Then last year, she was hit by a car on the hospital parking lot after she'd visited a friend. She had multiple injuries, and it took several months of physical therapy for her to get strong enough to return to the pool. The lady is in her early 80s, I think.
After I got home and ready for the day, Hubbie and I shopped for last-minute groceries for the weekend. Then, I baked a lemon cake for tomorrow. In the morning, I'll cook the lemon pudding and let it cool, and then spread it on the cake and make a meringue topping for it. This is one of Hubbie's favorite desserts. I make a couple of them a year, one for Hubbie and one for Mother for her birthday, since it's her favorite, too. I like it as well, but I can't eat it, because both the cake and the pudding have yellow dye, and I'm allergic to yellow dye. So I'll celebrate with a chocolate cupcake and ice cream.
This afternoon, I took Mother to the Women's Center at the hospital for mammograms. Nothing is wrong. It was just routine. We got there early, and the technician took her back within minutes of our arrival. The appointment was for 2 p.m., and we were back home before 2:30.
While we were in the waiting area, though, an elderly man was busy on his cell phone...we thought he was playing games. But when his wife came out and asked what he was doing, he said, "Deleting pictures."
"Pictures of what?" she asked, obviously concerned that he was deleting important ones.
"The inside of my pocket," he said.
After they left, Mother and I burst into laughter. I guess when his phone is on in his pocket, he accidently trips the photo function.
We spent the rest of the afternoon doing tasks related to tomorrow's celebration. For a week-in-review supper, Mother put several items in a cake pan, with foil between the foods, and put it in the oven. Soon, she noticed smoke coming from the oven, and we rushed into the kitchen to inspect. Seems she'd dropped a potholder into the oven, and it was smoldering and getting ready to burst into flames.
She whisked the potholder into the sink and ran water on it. But by this time, the downstairs area was filled with smoke. I quickly closed the door to the hall where the smoke alarm is before it went off, and opened doors and windows until the smoke dissipated. I'm glad we didn't leave the oven unattended...could have been disasterous.
After supper, I set the table for tomorrow, and then cut a few flowers to make a small arrangement in the ceramic pillow vase that Daughter gave me for Christmas (see photo in another blog).
At the eagle's nest, the baby is continuing to exercise his wings and run toward the edge of the nest as if to launch, but he's not quite ready yet. In fact, he's not completely steady on his legs. But I can tell he yearns for the freedom of flight.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Thursday, June 18
We got up around 7:30 this morning. After breakfast, I exercised on the treadmill and with weights. Once I was ready for the day, I did this and that until lunchtime.
Sad story: a couple of weeks ago, after we'd returned from our trip to a campground couple of hours south of us, we found that someone had dropped a gray cat in our yard. The poor thing looked half starved, and he was weak. But he was friendly, so we let him hang around in hopes he'd eat and gain weight and strength. Yesterday evening, though, we noticed flies were swarming his rear, and that maggots had appeared.
We knew that he was not long for this world, and because we didn't want him to infect our healthy cats, or to suffer himself, Hubbie took him to the vet this morning while I was exercising. As feared, the vet said that his condition had gone past a cure, and that he needed to be put down. This kindly veterinarian took charge of the cat, saying he would put it down at no charge. I felt bad for the cat, because he was so gentle and trusting of us, and then we had to do this to him. These sorts of things break my heart. If the vet had seen him sooner, he could have been treated and cured.
This afternoon, Mother and I attended our scrapbook meeting at the Extension Services office. Four of us worked from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Mother and I completed five pages, except for the journaling. We'll take care of that on the first non-busy day. Our focus today was great-grandchildren, particularly the year-old boy.
Back home, we got veggies ready to cook for supper. Yesterday, while Hubbie and I ran errands, we stopped by a farm that was selling produce out of a shed. We picked up yellow squash, cucumbers, and new potatoes. So tonight, we sauteed the yellow squash with zucchini , along with another batch of yellow squash I'd bought from the roadside vendor, and had this with baked sweet potatoes, and sliced tomatoes and Vidalia onions. Yum.
Wow, it was hot today! In the high 90s, and very humid. The trees and grass are lush and bright green, though. Vegetation hasn't had time to dry up in the heat yet, or get dusty after a stretch of rainless days, like it does in deep summer.
When I checked the eagle nest (it's very windy there, today), the baby was alone, but presently, the mother landed, bringing a fish. The baby tore food and fed himself, and then later begged his mother to feed him. She refused, turning her head away when he darted at her beak. As he has been doing the past several days, he stretched his wings and flapped from time to time. He even got close to the edge of nest today, but backed off after flapping a couple of times.
Tonight, we watched the movie, "The Conjurer," rated PG-13, and starring Tom Nowicki, John Schneider, and Maxine Bahns. A photographer and his wife move to a farmhouse, and scary stuff starts happening, including the appearance of a female ghost...but only the husband experiences these things.
Sad story: a couple of weeks ago, after we'd returned from our trip to a campground couple of hours south of us, we found that someone had dropped a gray cat in our yard. The poor thing looked half starved, and he was weak. But he was friendly, so we let him hang around in hopes he'd eat and gain weight and strength. Yesterday evening, though, we noticed flies were swarming his rear, and that maggots had appeared.
We knew that he was not long for this world, and because we didn't want him to infect our healthy cats, or to suffer himself, Hubbie took him to the vet this morning while I was exercising. As feared, the vet said that his condition had gone past a cure, and that he needed to be put down. This kindly veterinarian took charge of the cat, saying he would put it down at no charge. I felt bad for the cat, because he was so gentle and trusting of us, and then we had to do this to him. These sorts of things break my heart. If the vet had seen him sooner, he could have been treated and cured.
This afternoon, Mother and I attended our scrapbook meeting at the Extension Services office. Four of us worked from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Mother and I completed five pages, except for the journaling. We'll take care of that on the first non-busy day. Our focus today was great-grandchildren, particularly the year-old boy.
Back home, we got veggies ready to cook for supper. Yesterday, while Hubbie and I ran errands, we stopped by a farm that was selling produce out of a shed. We picked up yellow squash, cucumbers, and new potatoes. So tonight, we sauteed the yellow squash with zucchini , along with another batch of yellow squash I'd bought from the roadside vendor, and had this with baked sweet potatoes, and sliced tomatoes and Vidalia onions. Yum.
Wow, it was hot today! In the high 90s, and very humid. The trees and grass are lush and bright green, though. Vegetation hasn't had time to dry up in the heat yet, or get dusty after a stretch of rainless days, like it does in deep summer.
When I checked the eagle nest (it's very windy there, today), the baby was alone, but presently, the mother landed, bringing a fish. The baby tore food and fed himself, and then later begged his mother to feed him. She refused, turning her head away when he darted at her beak. As he has been doing the past several days, he stretched his wings and flapped from time to time. He even got close to the edge of nest today, but backed off after flapping a couple of times.
Tonight, we watched the movie, "The Conjurer," rated PG-13, and starring Tom Nowicki, John Schneider, and Maxine Bahns. A photographer and his wife move to a farmhouse, and scary stuff starts happening, including the appearance of a female ghost...but only the husband experiences these things.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Wednesday, June 17
We were up at 6:30 a.m. this morning, so I could get ready to go to water aerobics. About 35 folks showed up at the pool today. The number of people who come increases with the warm weather. In the winter, there are days when fewer than a dozen of us show up.
Before I left for the pool, I gave Hubbie a birthday card...today is his 75th birthday. The front of the card features two goldfish smooching. It reads "Happy Birthday....(inside) to the catch of a lifetime." And he is.
Today at water aerobics, our leader lectured us on how noisy we are. She said she's gotten a complaint that one member cannot hear her instructions because of our chatter. Our leader, bless her sweet heart, chatters constantly between instructions. Nevertheless, we were all silent today. But several ladies were offended at being chided, so she'll probably get more complaints.
Once a member has been through the routine several times, it is not necessary to see every move the leader makes...we're sort of on automatic pilot. So we like to chat while we exercise. The complainant who has trouble hearing her needs to move closer to the front. I'm way back in the back, and I can hear her fine, because, being a former teacher, her voice carries very well.
At the pool, we ladies trade lots of information, like where the best fresh fruits and vegetables sales are, who is ill, whose grandchildren are graduating from high school or college, who has a new great-grandchild, etc. Water aerobics will certainly be a lot duller if we can't chat. In fact, some members will probably drop out. I'm anxious to see how everyone behaves Friday. Hubbie says the results of the lecture probably won't last long, and we'll go right back to chattering soon.
Back home, after I showered and dressed, I got busy getting the house ready for Hubbie's birthday party Saturday. Later, after we ran a couple of errands, we walked down to the whimsical garden on the west side of the house, where I rearranged yard art. Hubbie put the items out a few weeks ago, but he has a tendency to just line stuff up like little soldiers, while I prefer to place things here and there, at the base of trees, or peeking out from the leaves of plants, etc.
This afternoon, too, I called the scrapbook club members to remind them of our meeting tomorrow afternoon. The member whose great-granddaughter suffers from a brain tumor reported good news. The tumor is not the rare kind that was first suspected, and doctors say that this one is much more treatable. Surgery removed most of the tumor, and she is now on meds, but she probably will not have to undergo chemotherapy or radiation treatments. I'm so glad about this.
She also reported that a friend of hers was recently diagnosed with meningitis, after being found unresponsive in her home. The lady went to visit her friend in the hospital and held her hand (this was before the diagnosis was made). So now, she is taking a strong dose of antibiotic to prevent her getting the disease. She is not quarantined, however, so she'll be attending the scrapbook meeting. I researched online about the spread of meningitis and learned that it is not easily spread, except through direct contact with infected nose and throat secretions. And this lady is not infected.
For supper tonight, we made beef tips sauteed with bell peppers and onions, which we had with baked potatoes, and garden salad, plus jalapeno blackeyed peas for Hubbie. I also grilled shrimp for the meal.
I gave Hubbie a small gift after supper...a travel hair dryer. The dryer is intended for him to use for Shih Tzu after he bathes her, because often after he uses mine, he forgets to take it back to the upstairs bathroom, which I usually don't discover until I'm out of the shower, with a wet head, and then I have to jump in a robe and run downstairs to fetch it, because Hubbie is out in the yard, or something (try reading that sentence out loud without taking a breath.)
This is not his main gift from me of course. I plan to help him get the pressure washer he wants, once he knows how many gift cards he gets Saturday. He doesn't expect family members to give him gift cards, but he knows they're going to, anyway.
I didn't fix a birthday dessert for Hubbie tonight, since I'll be making a lemon pudding cake for him this weekend. Instead, I treated him to a cup of soft-serve ice cream from a local fast food restaurant. Mother and I went along to enjoy the treats, too. Mother and I got medium size cups of the ice cream, which seemed pretty large to me. I was only able to eat a portion of mine. Hubbie, who is a fiend for ice cream, was glad to finish it for me. Mother ate all of hers, which surprised me, but she said she was really hungry for soft serve.
We spent the rest of the evening, as usual, watching TV. When I checked the eagle nest, the baby was still alone. I don't know how often the adults visit the nest, now, but they must have to still bring back food, since the eaglet can't hunt for himself yet. Poor little guy looks sort of forlorn huddled all alone in the nest, though.
Before I left for the pool, I gave Hubbie a birthday card...today is his 75th birthday. The front of the card features two goldfish smooching. It reads "Happy Birthday....(inside) to the catch of a lifetime." And he is.
Today at water aerobics, our leader lectured us on how noisy we are. She said she's gotten a complaint that one member cannot hear her instructions because of our chatter. Our leader, bless her sweet heart, chatters constantly between instructions. Nevertheless, we were all silent today. But several ladies were offended at being chided, so she'll probably get more complaints.
Once a member has been through the routine several times, it is not necessary to see every move the leader makes...we're sort of on automatic pilot. So we like to chat while we exercise. The complainant who has trouble hearing her needs to move closer to the front. I'm way back in the back, and I can hear her fine, because, being a former teacher, her voice carries very well.
At the pool, we ladies trade lots of information, like where the best fresh fruits and vegetables sales are, who is ill, whose grandchildren are graduating from high school or college, who has a new great-grandchild, etc. Water aerobics will certainly be a lot duller if we can't chat. In fact, some members will probably drop out. I'm anxious to see how everyone behaves Friday. Hubbie says the results of the lecture probably won't last long, and we'll go right back to chattering soon.
Back home, after I showered and dressed, I got busy getting the house ready for Hubbie's birthday party Saturday. Later, after we ran a couple of errands, we walked down to the whimsical garden on the west side of the house, where I rearranged yard art. Hubbie put the items out a few weeks ago, but he has a tendency to just line stuff up like little soldiers, while I prefer to place things here and there, at the base of trees, or peeking out from the leaves of plants, etc.
This afternoon, too, I called the scrapbook club members to remind them of our meeting tomorrow afternoon. The member whose great-granddaughter suffers from a brain tumor reported good news. The tumor is not the rare kind that was first suspected, and doctors say that this one is much more treatable. Surgery removed most of the tumor, and she is now on meds, but she probably will not have to undergo chemotherapy or radiation treatments. I'm so glad about this.
She also reported that a friend of hers was recently diagnosed with meningitis, after being found unresponsive in her home. The lady went to visit her friend in the hospital and held her hand (this was before the diagnosis was made). So now, she is taking a strong dose of antibiotic to prevent her getting the disease. She is not quarantined, however, so she'll be attending the scrapbook meeting. I researched online about the spread of meningitis and learned that it is not easily spread, except through direct contact with infected nose and throat secretions. And this lady is not infected.
For supper tonight, we made beef tips sauteed with bell peppers and onions, which we had with baked potatoes, and garden salad, plus jalapeno blackeyed peas for Hubbie. I also grilled shrimp for the meal.
I gave Hubbie a small gift after supper...a travel hair dryer. The dryer is intended for him to use for Shih Tzu after he bathes her, because often after he uses mine, he forgets to take it back to the upstairs bathroom, which I usually don't discover until I'm out of the shower, with a wet head, and then I have to jump in a robe and run downstairs to fetch it, because Hubbie is out in the yard, or something (try reading that sentence out loud without taking a breath.)
This is not his main gift from me of course. I plan to help him get the pressure washer he wants, once he knows how many gift cards he gets Saturday. He doesn't expect family members to give him gift cards, but he knows they're going to, anyway.
I didn't fix a birthday dessert for Hubbie tonight, since I'll be making a lemon pudding cake for him this weekend. Instead, I treated him to a cup of soft-serve ice cream from a local fast food restaurant. Mother and I went along to enjoy the treats, too. Mother and I got medium size cups of the ice cream, which seemed pretty large to me. I was only able to eat a portion of mine. Hubbie, who is a fiend for ice cream, was glad to finish it for me. Mother ate all of hers, which surprised me, but she said she was really hungry for soft serve.
We spent the rest of the evening, as usual, watching TV. When I checked the eagle nest, the baby was still alone. I don't know how often the adults visit the nest, now, but they must have to still bring back food, since the eaglet can't hunt for himself yet. Poor little guy looks sort of forlorn huddled all alone in the nest, though.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Tuesday, June 16
We were up by 7 a.m. this morning, and after breakfast, I did a treadmill session and resistance exercises. Once I was ready for the day, Mother and I went to the greeting card shop to buy birthday and Father's Day cards for Hubbie.
Just as we arrived at the shop, the sky opened up and it poured rain and got really windy. So we sat in the car until it abated, about fifteen minutes later. By the time we left the shop, the sun was peeking through the clouds and it got muggy-humid.
From the card shop, we went to a popular restaurant on the river to join other members of the arts council board to plan how we'll set up the dining area to display art work for a live auction, and items for a silent auction, at the Summer Celebration event next week. Mother is not a member of the committee, but since this was a Dutch treat lunch, I figured she'd be welcome, and she was.
There were seven of us ladies in attendance, and besides planning for the event, we enjoyed catching up on each other's lives. One lady, in her 50s, has been battling a lung ailment since last Thanksgiving, and only after visiting a specialist recently has the problem been identified. She is being treated with meds that are making her feel a lot better now.
This same lady has a new granddaughter, born last Friday, and she's over the moon about it. The mother of the baby is one of the sweet Cardiac Rehab RN nurses that worked with me last year. As soon as I have a moment to spare, I want to design a special congrats greeting card for her.
Another lady is battling a severe sinus infection that is causing her to be hoarse, but the rest of us are in pretty good health right now. Mother is no longer coughing from her bronchitis, though she still hasn't gained all her strength back.
Mother and I opted for baked potatoes for lunch, since we didn't want the high fat, high sodium sandwiches listed on the menu.
The meeting lasted an hour and a half, and adjourned around 1 p.m. We returned home to relax for a while before going to our 2:30 beauty shop appointment. From there, we went to the pharmacy to pick up meds for Mother, and were back home around 3:30. While we were gone through the day, Hubbie spent his time working in the yard. He said it didn't rain much here this morning, so I guess Mother and I must have been right under a cloud while we were at the card shop.
I didn't accomplish anything between 3:30 and suppertime. Mother decided to go home for supper, so I fixed a hamburger meal for Hubbie and myself...the grilled patties (beef for Hubbie, and ground turkey for me) that were in the freezer, leftover from our family gathering at camp a few weeks ago. We had salad and whole kernel corn with the burgers.
Later, Hubbie and I watched several old episodes of "The Closer." We are both fans of Kyra Sedgwick, who plays the very southern, quick-witted Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson of the Priority Homicide Division of a Los Angeles police department.
I checked the eagle nest around 6 p.m., and found the baby alone again. Neither adult was visible at the nest while I watched, though when I turned the sound on, I heard one of them loudly calling. So I supposed he or she was perched somewhere out of sight right above the nest. Later, though, both adults landed on the nest, but they stayed only moments before flying away.
The baby looks fully feathered now, though his head is not yet white. He won't get his white plummage for four or five years. He's spending a lot of time stretching, running to the edge of the nest, and flapping his wings, but not flying, yet.
Just as we arrived at the shop, the sky opened up and it poured rain and got really windy. So we sat in the car until it abated, about fifteen minutes later. By the time we left the shop, the sun was peeking through the clouds and it got muggy-humid.
From the card shop, we went to a popular restaurant on the river to join other members of the arts council board to plan how we'll set up the dining area to display art work for a live auction, and items for a silent auction, at the Summer Celebration event next week. Mother is not a member of the committee, but since this was a Dutch treat lunch, I figured she'd be welcome, and she was.
There were seven of us ladies in attendance, and besides planning for the event, we enjoyed catching up on each other's lives. One lady, in her 50s, has been battling a lung ailment since last Thanksgiving, and only after visiting a specialist recently has the problem been identified. She is being treated with meds that are making her feel a lot better now.
This same lady has a new granddaughter, born last Friday, and she's over the moon about it. The mother of the baby is one of the sweet Cardiac Rehab RN nurses that worked with me last year. As soon as I have a moment to spare, I want to design a special congrats greeting card for her.
Another lady is battling a severe sinus infection that is causing her to be hoarse, but the rest of us are in pretty good health right now. Mother is no longer coughing from her bronchitis, though she still hasn't gained all her strength back.
Mother and I opted for baked potatoes for lunch, since we didn't want the high fat, high sodium sandwiches listed on the menu.
The meeting lasted an hour and a half, and adjourned around 1 p.m. We returned home to relax for a while before going to our 2:30 beauty shop appointment. From there, we went to the pharmacy to pick up meds for Mother, and were back home around 3:30. While we were gone through the day, Hubbie spent his time working in the yard. He said it didn't rain much here this morning, so I guess Mother and I must have been right under a cloud while we were at the card shop.
I didn't accomplish anything between 3:30 and suppertime. Mother decided to go home for supper, so I fixed a hamburger meal for Hubbie and myself...the grilled patties (beef for Hubbie, and ground turkey for me) that were in the freezer, leftover from our family gathering at camp a few weeks ago. We had salad and whole kernel corn with the burgers.
Later, Hubbie and I watched several old episodes of "The Closer." We are both fans of Kyra Sedgwick, who plays the very southern, quick-witted Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson of the Priority Homicide Division of a Los Angeles police department.
I checked the eagle nest around 6 p.m., and found the baby alone again. Neither adult was visible at the nest while I watched, though when I turned the sound on, I heard one of them loudly calling. So I supposed he or she was perched somewhere out of sight right above the nest. Later, though, both adults landed on the nest, but they stayed only moments before flying away.
The baby looks fully feathered now, though his head is not yet white. He won't get his white plummage for four or five years. He's spending a lot of time stretching, running to the edge of the nest, and flapping his wings, but not flying, yet.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Monday, June 15
Today was the first day back at water aerobics, after being off for a month. The pool has a new coat of paint, and the water was crystal clear and warm this morning. It felt good to be back in it. About 30 of us showed up for the session.
While I was at water aerobics, Hubbie drove the truck to another town for repairs. Since the truck was scheduled to be in the shop most of the day, he drove a loaner car home. Once I was ready for the day, Hubbie and I ran errands...to the pharmacy, to the WDCS for grocery items, and to the everything's a dollar store to get a gift bag.
I needed the bag for the gift for the lady who is retiring from Extension Services. The only bag I had on hand was too big, I thought. So I found one at the dollar store that I thought would be more suitable. But when I got home with it, I found that it was exactly the same size as the one I already had. I guess when I saw it hanging in the store among much larger bags, I thought it was smaller. So I stuffed it with white tissue and the gift, and then added more tissue to the top to make it do.
At 3 p.m., Mother and I went to the Extension Services office for the retirement party. We were there for an hour and a half, and enjoyed visiting with folks. While we were there, Hubbie went back to the other town to get the truck.
On our way home, Mother and I stopped at the roadside vendor to pick up two cantaloupes. Hubbie had picked up a couple of containers of tomatoes on his way to the other town this morning, but didn't think about getting cantaloupes. I'm surprised he didn't think of buying one to share with Shih Tzu, who dearly loves them.
By this time, it was nearly 5 p.m., so we had a supper of leftover kraut and pork, with leftover mashed potatoes, and canned sweet potatoes.
Later, I got an email from Granddaughter, who said that Friday night's storm had done a lot of damage near her home, leaving her neighborhood, and much of the town, without power. The power is still off at her house today.
I learned from Sis's blog that she was without power for two days, and even after the power came back on, the air conditioner at her place of employment wasn't working. Sis relies on electricity, as we do, to run the pump at her house, so when the power is off, there is no water. She had a few jugs of drinking water, but none for bathing, which was a miserable circumstance in this hot, humid weather.
Once I'd learned all this, I called both of my son's homes and spoke to both daughters-in-law. Though there was damage in their neighborhoods, neither of their homes were affected. But the families were scared spitless while the storm was raging, of course. One family is talking about getting a tornado shelter. I don't blame them. They are in an area that is frequently hit by storms.
We had severe storms both Friday and Saturday, but no damage beyond small limbs blowing off the trees, so I didn't imagine that the storms were so severe where our families live. I began to worry about their welfare, even though I thought that surely someone would have called if anything really bad had happened. Nevertheless, I was anxious to talk with family to satisfy myself that everyone was all right.
This evening, Hubbie and I watched "The Hurricane," a movie starring Denzel Washington. It's based on the true story of the boxer, Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, who was wrongly convicted of murder in 1967 and spent nearly twenty years in prison. He writes a best-selling autobiography that captures the admiration of a young man, who begins corresponding with him. It's a very good movie, R-rated for violence and some language.
While I was at water aerobics, Hubbie drove the truck to another town for repairs. Since the truck was scheduled to be in the shop most of the day, he drove a loaner car home. Once I was ready for the day, Hubbie and I ran errands...to the pharmacy, to the WDCS for grocery items, and to the everything's a dollar store to get a gift bag.
I needed the bag for the gift for the lady who is retiring from Extension Services. The only bag I had on hand was too big, I thought. So I found one at the dollar store that I thought would be more suitable. But when I got home with it, I found that it was exactly the same size as the one I already had. I guess when I saw it hanging in the store among much larger bags, I thought it was smaller. So I stuffed it with white tissue and the gift, and then added more tissue to the top to make it do.
At 3 p.m., Mother and I went to the Extension Services office for the retirement party. We were there for an hour and a half, and enjoyed visiting with folks. While we were there, Hubbie went back to the other town to get the truck.
On our way home, Mother and I stopped at the roadside vendor to pick up two cantaloupes. Hubbie had picked up a couple of containers of tomatoes on his way to the other town this morning, but didn't think about getting cantaloupes. I'm surprised he didn't think of buying one to share with Shih Tzu, who dearly loves them.
By this time, it was nearly 5 p.m., so we had a supper of leftover kraut and pork, with leftover mashed potatoes, and canned sweet potatoes.
Later, I got an email from Granddaughter, who said that Friday night's storm had done a lot of damage near her home, leaving her neighborhood, and much of the town, without power. The power is still off at her house today.
I learned from Sis's blog that she was without power for two days, and even after the power came back on, the air conditioner at her place of employment wasn't working. Sis relies on electricity, as we do, to run the pump at her house, so when the power is off, there is no water. She had a few jugs of drinking water, but none for bathing, which was a miserable circumstance in this hot, humid weather.
Once I'd learned all this, I called both of my son's homes and spoke to both daughters-in-law. Though there was damage in their neighborhoods, neither of their homes were affected. But the families were scared spitless while the storm was raging, of course. One family is talking about getting a tornado shelter. I don't blame them. They are in an area that is frequently hit by storms.
We had severe storms both Friday and Saturday, but no damage beyond small limbs blowing off the trees, so I didn't imagine that the storms were so severe where our families live. I began to worry about their welfare, even though I thought that surely someone would have called if anything really bad had happened. Nevertheless, I was anxious to talk with family to satisfy myself that everyone was all right.
This evening, Hubbie and I watched "The Hurricane," a movie starring Denzel Washington. It's based on the true story of the boxer, Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, who was wrongly convicted of murder in 1967 and spent nearly twenty years in prison. He writes a best-selling autobiography that captures the admiration of a young man, who begins corresponding with him. It's a very good movie, R-rated for violence and some language.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Sunday, June 14
We had a pretty ordinary Sunday. I got a treadmill session and weights exercises in, as usual. Then I spent some time programming the DVR for this week's favorite shows. I really don't like this new system that won't let me use an alphabet menu to search for future programs. I have to search day by day, which is very inconvenient. We're happy, though, that the switch-over from analog to digital TV went off without a hitch. We don't have HD TV, but the picture on our old TV is sharper, we notice.
Lunch today was pork chops cooked in sour kraut. The sour kraut was rinsed, rinsed, rinsed to get rid of as much salt as possible. Hubbie thought it also removed the flavor, but Mother and I still thought it tasted fine. We had mashed potatoes and baked sweet potatoes with the kraut. It probably seems unusual to have two types of potatoes at a meal, but the mashed potatoes cut the sour taste of the kraut (which it didn't have today, anyway), and the sweet potatoes provide a sweet-and-sour combination, which is tasty.
Later this afternoon, we went to the museum for a program about fishing nets and how they were made in the 1940s and 1950s. Two local folks, a man and woman, spoke about how their fathers made the nets, using handmade wooden needles and shuttles, and how they used the nets, treated with tar to protect them from rotting, to catch large quantities of fish to sell commercially or use personally. This was in a time before the river was dammed and polluted, making it less habitable to catfish and other fish types.
At the end of the program, the man read a touching poem to us...one that his father loved. I found it featured at an online site:
Fisherman's Prayer
God grant that I may live to fish
Until my dying day
And when it comes to my last cast
I then most humbly pray
When in the Lord's safe landing net
I'm peacefully asleep
That in his mercy I be judged
As good enough to keep
Back home, Hubbie made a recipe of dog biscuits, while I mixed a batch of pancake batter for our supper. Hubbie is fond of having pancakes for Sunday supper. When he finished baking the biscuits, he fixed the pancakes in the electric skillet, while I set a table in the den (it's a little pull-down table in the couch), heated plates and pancake syrup, peeled and sectioned an orange, etc. Since we eat later on Sunday nights, we prefer to watch a movie while having our supper in the den.
When I checked the eagle nest, I saw that the baby has grown tremendously and is much darker in color. He seems to be getting around the nest much better. Both adult eagles were gone when I checked, and a wind was blowing. So the baby snuggled into a little alcove of the nest and snoozed. It was around 6 p.m., nest time, when I looked in, and the shadows were deepening in the twilight.
In all the times I checked the nest tonight, the adults stayed away from the nest. The baby stretched his wings, and looked over the edge of the nest, as if longing to fly and wondering if he should give it a try. But finally, he nestled back into the alcove for a snooze again.
Lunch today was pork chops cooked in sour kraut. The sour kraut was rinsed, rinsed, rinsed to get rid of as much salt as possible. Hubbie thought it also removed the flavor, but Mother and I still thought it tasted fine. We had mashed potatoes and baked sweet potatoes with the kraut. It probably seems unusual to have two types of potatoes at a meal, but the mashed potatoes cut the sour taste of the kraut (which it didn't have today, anyway), and the sweet potatoes provide a sweet-and-sour combination, which is tasty.
Later this afternoon, we went to the museum for a program about fishing nets and how they were made in the 1940s and 1950s. Two local folks, a man and woman, spoke about how their fathers made the nets, using handmade wooden needles and shuttles, and how they used the nets, treated with tar to protect them from rotting, to catch large quantities of fish to sell commercially or use personally. This was in a time before the river was dammed and polluted, making it less habitable to catfish and other fish types.
At the end of the program, the man read a touching poem to us...one that his father loved. I found it featured at an online site:
Fisherman's Prayer
God grant that I may live to fish
Until my dying day
And when it comes to my last cast
I then most humbly pray
When in the Lord's safe landing net
I'm peacefully asleep
That in his mercy I be judged
As good enough to keep
Back home, Hubbie made a recipe of dog biscuits, while I mixed a batch of pancake batter for our supper. Hubbie is fond of having pancakes for Sunday supper. When he finished baking the biscuits, he fixed the pancakes in the electric skillet, while I set a table in the den (it's a little pull-down table in the couch), heated plates and pancake syrup, peeled and sectioned an orange, etc. Since we eat later on Sunday nights, we prefer to watch a movie while having our supper in the den.
When I checked the eagle nest, I saw that the baby has grown tremendously and is much darker in color. He seems to be getting around the nest much better. Both adult eagles were gone when I checked, and a wind was blowing. So the baby snuggled into a little alcove of the nest and snoozed. It was around 6 p.m., nest time, when I looked in, and the shadows were deepening in the twilight.
In all the times I checked the nest tonight, the adults stayed away from the nest. The baby stretched his wings, and looked over the edge of the nest, as if longing to fly and wondering if he should give it a try. But finally, he nestled back into the alcove for a snooze again.
Saturday, June 13
I started Saturday as I do most days, with a treadmill session after breakfast. Mother came over while I was getting ready for the day and sorted through cardstock for making scrapbook pages at a meeting next Thursday.
While she was doing that, I ran to town...to the store that has a sale every weekend to try on swimsuits. It was fortunate that I waited until today to shop for the suits, because the store had added another discount to them, as part of a promotional sale from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. I found a suit that I like and got it at a deep discount, when I applied a $10 coupon to it. The coupon was good on a purchase of $25 or more.
From there, I went to the WDCS for an item, and then to the little dress shop where I saw the cotton blouse yesterday. Today, I tried it on and bought it.
I got back home around noon. Mother had cooked turkey bacon in the microwave, and sliced tomatoes and Vidalia onions. We added lettuce from the garden to make BLT's on toast, with cottage cheese on the side.
After lunch, Mother and I chose photos and cardstock for scrapbook pages. Getting photos and papers organized takes quite a while. It's the biggest part of the job of scrapbooking, but to do it ahead sure saves time at the meetings. After we finished, we cleared our materials away, because we need to start getting the house in order for a birthday gathering in Hubbie's honor next weekend.
For supper, I fixed bagel pizzas, which we had with microwaveable baked potatoes, and salad. After that, Hubbie went out to work in the yard for a while, and I did this and that, including a few loads of laundry.
We really had a severe thunderstorm during the night that knocked out the power for a while, and blew small limbs off the trees. We got three inches of rain in the storm. Even Shih Tzu, who is practically deaf, was distressed by the storm.
While she was doing that, I ran to town...to the store that has a sale every weekend to try on swimsuits. It was fortunate that I waited until today to shop for the suits, because the store had added another discount to them, as part of a promotional sale from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. I found a suit that I like and got it at a deep discount, when I applied a $10 coupon to it. The coupon was good on a purchase of $25 or more.
From there, I went to the WDCS for an item, and then to the little dress shop where I saw the cotton blouse yesterday. Today, I tried it on and bought it.
I got back home around noon. Mother had cooked turkey bacon in the microwave, and sliced tomatoes and Vidalia onions. We added lettuce from the garden to make BLT's on toast, with cottage cheese on the side.
After lunch, Mother and I chose photos and cardstock for scrapbook pages. Getting photos and papers organized takes quite a while. It's the biggest part of the job of scrapbooking, but to do it ahead sure saves time at the meetings. After we finished, we cleared our materials away, because we need to start getting the house in order for a birthday gathering in Hubbie's honor next weekend.
For supper, I fixed bagel pizzas, which we had with microwaveable baked potatoes, and salad. After that, Hubbie went out to work in the yard for a while, and I did this and that, including a few loads of laundry.
We really had a severe thunderstorm during the night that knocked out the power for a while, and blew small limbs off the trees. We got three inches of rain in the storm. Even Shih Tzu, who is practically deaf, was distressed by the storm.
Retirement card
This is a photo of the card that Mother made for the lady who is retiring as a secretary from the Extension Services office after 45 years on the job.Friday, June 12
Note: Our Internet was down on Friday and Saturday (unknown cause), so I am just now catching up on my blogs for the past couple of days.
Friday: After breakfast, a treadmill session, and getting ready for the day, Mother and I went shopping. I was looking for something festive to wear to the arts council Summer Celebration event, and Mother was looking for summer weight long-sleeve blouses.
We looked at a little nearby boutique store, and at the store that has a sale every weekend, but had no luck at either. At the boutique, I found a pretty cotton blouse with sleeves that come to the elbows, half price, but I wasn't sure I wanted to buy it, since I was really looking for festive wear.
At the store that has a sale every weekend, I found that swimsuits were on sale, 40% off, but I didn't want to take the time to try on the ones I liked, because Mother was tiring. So we came home and had grilled cheese sandwiches (Hubbie did the honors of grilling them). Afterwards, Hubbie and I shopped for groceries at the WDCS.
Hubbie spent the rest of the afternoon in the yard, and Mother made a card (with my help) for the lady who will be honored at a retirement party Monday evening. A photo of the card appears in another blog. I framed the black and white photo that I manipulated on computer, to be donated to the silent auction at the Summer Celebration event.
Around 3 p.m., there came a severe thunderstorm, with lightening that doused our power a couple of times, But fortunately, the electricity came back on before I needed to fix supper. For supper, I made freezer bag omelets, which we had with leftover potatoes, and toast and plum or peach jelly.
After supper, Hubbie and I went downtown for the Second Friday event, which turned out to be a bust. There were fewer than a dozen people on the streets downtown. Except for the art gallery and a new theater in a storefront that features country and bluegrass music, and country comedy acts, no businesses were open. A lot of people were seated in the theater, but only a handful showed up at the gallery. So the orange pecans that I supplied for the refreshment table weren't needed, and we brought them back home.
The weather had cleared up nicely by 6 p.m., when Hubbie and I went downtown, and the air was pleasantly cool, so we decided to take a leisurely stroll up one side of the street and down the other. Since there was nothing going on, we stopped and read all the historic plaques on the buildings. We were surprised to learn from one plaque that the building that now houses an architectural business, was once a saloon and brothel! When we noted this fact to the ladies at the art gallery, they were pretty surprised, too, and were anxious at the first opportunity to go down and read the plaque for themselves.
Besides ourselves, there was another couple out for a stroll, leading a beautiful afghan hound. The dog was shy of people, though, and clung to his master when anyone approached, so we just admired him and spoke softly to him as we passed. His owners assured us he was friendly and wouldn't offer to bite.
Around 7 p.m., we helped clear the refreshment table at the gallery, bringing a few cookies and a quart of grape/ginger ale punch home with us. Second Friday is supposed to be from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., but since no one was out and about, we decided those manning the gallery should go on home.
At home, we relaxed and watched TV for a while, before heading to bed. In the middle of the night, another storm blew through, so we didn't have a really restful night.
Friday: After breakfast, a treadmill session, and getting ready for the day, Mother and I went shopping. I was looking for something festive to wear to the arts council Summer Celebration event, and Mother was looking for summer weight long-sleeve blouses.
We looked at a little nearby boutique store, and at the store that has a sale every weekend, but had no luck at either. At the boutique, I found a pretty cotton blouse with sleeves that come to the elbows, half price, but I wasn't sure I wanted to buy it, since I was really looking for festive wear.
At the store that has a sale every weekend, I found that swimsuits were on sale, 40% off, but I didn't want to take the time to try on the ones I liked, because Mother was tiring. So we came home and had grilled cheese sandwiches (Hubbie did the honors of grilling them). Afterwards, Hubbie and I shopped for groceries at the WDCS.
Hubbie spent the rest of the afternoon in the yard, and Mother made a card (with my help) for the lady who will be honored at a retirement party Monday evening. A photo of the card appears in another blog. I framed the black and white photo that I manipulated on computer, to be donated to the silent auction at the Summer Celebration event.
Around 3 p.m., there came a severe thunderstorm, with lightening that doused our power a couple of times, But fortunately, the electricity came back on before I needed to fix supper. For supper, I made freezer bag omelets, which we had with leftover potatoes, and toast and plum or peach jelly.
After supper, Hubbie and I went downtown for the Second Friday event, which turned out to be a bust. There were fewer than a dozen people on the streets downtown. Except for the art gallery and a new theater in a storefront that features country and bluegrass music, and country comedy acts, no businesses were open. A lot of people were seated in the theater, but only a handful showed up at the gallery. So the orange pecans that I supplied for the refreshment table weren't needed, and we brought them back home.
The weather had cleared up nicely by 6 p.m., when Hubbie and I went downtown, and the air was pleasantly cool, so we decided to take a leisurely stroll up one side of the street and down the other. Since there was nothing going on, we stopped and read all the historic plaques on the buildings. We were surprised to learn from one plaque that the building that now houses an architectural business, was once a saloon and brothel! When we noted this fact to the ladies at the art gallery, they were pretty surprised, too, and were anxious at the first opportunity to go down and read the plaque for themselves.
Besides ourselves, there was another couple out for a stroll, leading a beautiful afghan hound. The dog was shy of people, though, and clung to his master when anyone approached, so we just admired him and spoke softly to him as we passed. His owners assured us he was friendly and wouldn't offer to bite.
Around 7 p.m., we helped clear the refreshment table at the gallery, bringing a few cookies and a quart of grape/ginger ale punch home with us. Second Friday is supposed to be from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., but since no one was out and about, we decided those manning the gallery should go on home.
At home, we relaxed and watched TV for a while, before heading to bed. In the middle of the night, another storm blew through, so we didn't have a really restful night.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)