Slept well last night, and got up around 8 a.m. Hubbie and Mother were already up. Daughter slept a little later.
Did stair stepping, resistance bands, and weights exercises, and then helped Mother set up another puzzle. She and Daughter worked on it while I got ready for the day.
Around 11 a.m., Hubbie put a pan of sweet potatoes in the oven, and later I put dishes of chicken and dumplings and Lima beans/butter beans in with them. A little after noon, we had these for lunch, along with a little of this and a little of that...cranberry sauce, goulash, cottage cheese, fruit salad. Except for sandwich makings, this pretty well took care of leftovers.
Learned today that daughter tries to avoid foods containing tomatoes, since they aggravate her stomach (I guess she has an ulcer). Wish I'd known that earlier, since goulash and homemade tomato soup were both on the menu this week. She ate them without complaint, and then suffered stomach problems afterward. If I'd known, we could have made a pot of potato soup.
After lunch, Daughter went out to start her car to make sure it was in working order, since she wanted to head home today. The car started, but she reported that she would be unable to leave the driveway, because of a pile of packed snow left by the snow plow that created a barrier to the road. So Hubbie had to go out and pick-ax the snow away. He also drove the truck over it several times to smooth it down, so Daughter's low-slung car could pass over it.
Later, we went to the WDCS to shop for groceries, and so Daughter could buy minutes for her cell phone. Felt good to get out after being confined since last Wednesday night. Cabin fever was just about to set in.
Back home, Daughter and I made another stab at recording "The Night Before Christmas" book, and this time we managed to do it. Afterward, we worked with Mother on the jigsaw puzzle, until around 3:30, when Daughter decided to head home. Even though Hubbie had smoothed the driveway out, the tires on Daughter's car still spun, and when they finally did grip, she shot out onto the road. I held my breath until I saw she was safely on her way.
Mother and I continued with the puzzle until 5 p.m., when she was ready to head to her house. I gathered chicken noodle soup and sandwich makings for her supper tonight.
Later, we had tomato soup, with pimento cheese sandwiches, and Little Cuties mandarin oranges for dessert. Then we spent the evening watching TV, including our favorite college basketball team, as they played to a wide-margin win.
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Friday, December 28, 2012
Friday, Dec. 28
Tossed and turned last night trying to go to sleep...just couldn't seem to get warm, even though there were plenty of blankets on the bed. I guess just the thought of all that snow outside chilled me. I don't know how folks are coping who have no heat due to a power outage.
We were up around 7:30. Mother had been awake for a while. Daughter slept a little later, until around 8:30.
I did stair stepping, resistance bands, and weights exercises after breakfast, and then got a new jigsaw puzzle ready for Mother and Daughter to work on while I got ready for the day.
The puzzle only has 300 pieces, so by the time I was dressed and back downstairs, they had gotten a good start on it. When Daughter abandoned it in favor of checking her social network page, I worked on the puzzle for a while.
After lunch, Mother continued to work on the puzzle, while Daughter and I went upstairs to try to read "The Night Before Christmas" on a recordable book. Our intention was to take turns reading the pages. Before we started, we read the book aloud for practice. We were flawless.
So, I began recording the first page, but I guess I read too slowly, because the tape ran out before I got to the end of the verse.
I didn't know that each page had it's own recording space, and that I was supposed to hit record, wait for the signal, read, and then hit stop. I thought the thing continued to record until we reached the end of the book.
So we read all the way through, and then went back to the beginning to listen. All that was there was the first verse, with the last sentence omitted, followed by a loud beep.
This struck Daughter and me as being hilarious, and we had a good laugh. We finally managed to compose ourselves to begin again. I made it through the first page without the recorder cutting me off. But when it was Daughter's turn, she blundered on a word, and we cracked up again.
We composed ourselves again, and she re-read the page. Now it was my turn. I hit record, but forgot to wait for the signal, so I was already talking when it beeped. "Oh, crap!" I said, which of course recorded.
This sent us into hysterics, so that we had to make a mad dash to the bathroom. It was hopeless after that, because we couldn't stop laughing. There was nothing we could do but set the book aside to try again later.
Back downstairs, Daughter worked with Mother on the jigsaw puzzle again, which they finished around 3:30. After that, Mother went to the couch for a nap, Daughter continued on her social network page, Hubbie (who in the throes of a head cold) watched a movie, and I figured out what to have for supper.
Supper was leftover chicken and dumplings, a choice of Lima beans or large butter beans, canned cranberry sauce, and sourdough bread and butter. Mother finished her nap in time to sit down to the meal.
Afterward, we watched TV, including "Happy New Year, Charlie Brown," and "She's a Good Skate, Charlie Brown."
We followed that with a new Lifetime Movie Network movie, "Sexting in Suburbia." A teenager commits suicide by hanging herself in her room. Her mother sets out to find out what went wrong, and uncovers a startling secret.
Finished the evening watching a documentary called "Back to the Beginning," which takes a television journalist on an odyssey to the lands of the Middle East in order to follow the stories of the Old Testament.
We were up around 7:30. Mother had been awake for a while. Daughter slept a little later, until around 8:30.
I did stair stepping, resistance bands, and weights exercises after breakfast, and then got a new jigsaw puzzle ready for Mother and Daughter to work on while I got ready for the day.
The puzzle only has 300 pieces, so by the time I was dressed and back downstairs, they had gotten a good start on it. When Daughter abandoned it in favor of checking her social network page, I worked on the puzzle for a while.
After lunch, Mother continued to work on the puzzle, while Daughter and I went upstairs to try to read "The Night Before Christmas" on a recordable book. Our intention was to take turns reading the pages. Before we started, we read the book aloud for practice. We were flawless.
So, I began recording the first page, but I guess I read too slowly, because the tape ran out before I got to the end of the verse.
I didn't know that each page had it's own recording space, and that I was supposed to hit record, wait for the signal, read, and then hit stop. I thought the thing continued to record until we reached the end of the book.
So we read all the way through, and then went back to the beginning to listen. All that was there was the first verse, with the last sentence omitted, followed by a loud beep.
This struck Daughter and me as being hilarious, and we had a good laugh. We finally managed to compose ourselves to begin again. I made it through the first page without the recorder cutting me off. But when it was Daughter's turn, she blundered on a word, and we cracked up again.
We composed ourselves again, and she re-read the page. Now it was my turn. I hit record, but forgot to wait for the signal, so I was already talking when it beeped. "Oh, crap!" I said, which of course recorded.
This sent us into hysterics, so that we had to make a mad dash to the bathroom. It was hopeless after that, because we couldn't stop laughing. There was nothing we could do but set the book aside to try again later.
Back downstairs, Daughter worked with Mother on the jigsaw puzzle again, which they finished around 3:30. After that, Mother went to the couch for a nap, Daughter continued on her social network page, Hubbie (who in the throes of a head cold) watched a movie, and I figured out what to have for supper.
Supper was leftover chicken and dumplings, a choice of Lima beans or large butter beans, canned cranberry sauce, and sourdough bread and butter. Mother finished her nap in time to sit down to the meal.
Afterward, we watched TV, including "Happy New Year, Charlie Brown," and "She's a Good Skate, Charlie Brown."
We followed that with a new Lifetime Movie Network movie, "Sexting in Suburbia." A teenager commits suicide by hanging herself in her room. Her mother sets out to find out what went wrong, and uncovers a startling secret.
Finished the evening watching a documentary called "Back to the Beginning," which takes a television journalist on an odyssey to the lands of the Middle East in order to follow the stories of the Old Testament.
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Thursday, Dec. 27
Two days later...the snow persists, and the roads remain hazardous. And now sleet and freezing rain are predicted for tonight and early tomorrow. So daughter has decided to stay here until Saturday. Fortunately, she is on Christmas break from her work, and is not due to return until January 2.
So we are making the most of our forced confinement, with lots of good food, marathon movies, sessions in the hot tub, game playing, and working a jigsaw puzzle.
Today, Daughter painted a Santa face on an oval glass ornament I'd given her last year. I guess she didn't have time to paint it last year, so she brought it with her to work on this year.
Hubbie spent his time shoveling snow...making a path between our house and Mother's, and creating a space in front of the mailbox for the delivery vehicle. There was no mail delivery yesterday, but we felt sure there would be today, and there was. Yesterday's and today's editions of the local newspaper were also delivered.
We were up this morning at our regular hour of 7:30. Of course Mother was up earlier, but stayed in bed until we got up. Daughter was up pretty early too, around 8:30. After breakfast, I did stair stepping, resistance bands, and weights exercises, and then got ready for the day.
Before lunch, I helped Hubbie make another batch of fruited popcorn. For lunch, we had more chicken noodle soup, with sandwiches, chips, Italian Cream Cheese ball and crackers. For dessert, there was a choice of cherry or apple pie, with ice cream.
After lunch, Daughter helped Mother work on a jigsaw puzzle that has been up since the weekend that Hubbie's family visited. Once I'd finished gathering laundry and doing some other household things, I joined them.
Hubbie, in the meantime, spent his time taking care of Mother's and our cats, among other things.
Mother seemed stalled on the puzzle, but since I put a fresh eye on it, I was able to help her finish it this afternoon. Daughter had abandoned it earlier in favor of enjoying her social network page. I don't think she is a real fan of jigsaw puzzles.
Now that the puzzle is done, Mother can start one of the two I gave her for Christmas. The two new ones have 300 or 350 pieces, instead of 500+. She has more difficulty completing the bigger puzzles now.
Later, we had a supper of leftovers...goulash, baked sweet potatoes, asparagus, cottage cheese, and sourdough bread and butter. Then we watched a movie..."The Hunt for the I-5 Killer," a true story about a year-long search for the man who murdered forty-four people along the I-5 highway in California, Washington, and Oregon. Randall Woodfield had once been drafted by the Green Bay Packers, but was cut during training camp, and failed to make the roster.
A second movie we watched was "Borderline," a 2002 feature from the Lifetime Movie Network. A prison psychiatrist is getting a divorce from her husband, and he gains custody of the children. A delusional inmate under her care is released from prison to a half-way house, and he decides to kill her husband and his girlfriend.
So we are making the most of our forced confinement, with lots of good food, marathon movies, sessions in the hot tub, game playing, and working a jigsaw puzzle.
Today, Daughter painted a Santa face on an oval glass ornament I'd given her last year. I guess she didn't have time to paint it last year, so she brought it with her to work on this year.
Hubbie spent his time shoveling snow...making a path between our house and Mother's, and creating a space in front of the mailbox for the delivery vehicle. There was no mail delivery yesterday, but we felt sure there would be today, and there was. Yesterday's and today's editions of the local newspaper were also delivered.
We were up this morning at our regular hour of 7:30. Of course Mother was up earlier, but stayed in bed until we got up. Daughter was up pretty early too, around 8:30. After breakfast, I did stair stepping, resistance bands, and weights exercises, and then got ready for the day.
Before lunch, I helped Hubbie make another batch of fruited popcorn. For lunch, we had more chicken noodle soup, with sandwiches, chips, Italian Cream Cheese ball and crackers. For dessert, there was a choice of cherry or apple pie, with ice cream.
After lunch, Daughter helped Mother work on a jigsaw puzzle that has been up since the weekend that Hubbie's family visited. Once I'd finished gathering laundry and doing some other household things, I joined them.
Hubbie, in the meantime, spent his time taking care of Mother's and our cats, among other things.
Mother seemed stalled on the puzzle, but since I put a fresh eye on it, I was able to help her finish it this afternoon. Daughter had abandoned it earlier in favor of enjoying her social network page. I don't think she is a real fan of jigsaw puzzles.
Now that the puzzle is done, Mother can start one of the two I gave her for Christmas. The two new ones have 300 or 350 pieces, instead of 500+. She has more difficulty completing the bigger puzzles now.
Later, we had a supper of leftovers...goulash, baked sweet potatoes, asparagus, cottage cheese, and sourdough bread and butter. Then we watched a movie..."The Hunt for the I-5 Killer," a true story about a year-long search for the man who murdered forty-four people along the I-5 highway in California, Washington, and Oregon. Randall Woodfield had once been drafted by the Green Bay Packers, but was cut during training camp, and failed to make the roster.
A second movie we watched was "Borderline," a 2002 feature from the Lifetime Movie Network. A prison psychiatrist is getting a divorce from her husband, and he gains custody of the children. A delusional inmate under her care is released from prison to a half-way house, and he decides to kill her husband and his girlfriend.
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Wednesday, Dec. 26
First white Christmas in years, even if it did happen after dark. We remember having one about 2004 in our county, though it was nothing like this one, which was the heaviest snow in recorded history. When this one arrived, it came with a force, blowing snow sideways into drifts for several hours of the night.
Many thousands in our state lost power, including members of our family, but we were fortunate that the lights never even flickered at our house. We feared that with the howling wind, we might either lose power, or lose trees, in the night, but we awoke this morning to a warm house.
We had trouble going to sleep, though...maybe because it was so eerily quiet outside, where absolutely no traffic was on the road. Then we awoke around 6:30 this morning for some reason.
As soon as it was light enough outdoors, I snapped a few pictures of the winter wonderland through the windows. But after breakfast, I lost no time suiting up to go out and walk around the yard.
I didn't stray too far, though, because it was very difficult walking in Hubbie's rubber boots through the eight to ten inches of snow. I stayed out only a little while, because it didn't take long for my fingers and toes to freeze.
Later, around 10:30 a.m., when daughter got up, she suited up to go out and build a snowman. I stood on the back porch and shot pictures while she did that. Like me, she got cold pretty quickly, and was ready to come back inside.
She skipped breakfast, since it was so close to lunchtime. For lunch, I added noodles to the stewed chicken we cooked Monday. Chicken noodle soup was just the thing on a cold day like this. With it, there was a choice of sandwich materials...homemade pimento cheese, or deli turkey...as well as Italian Cream Cheese ball and crackers, and veggie chips.
Afterward, Mother headed to the couch for a nap, and the rest of us spent the afternoon watching Lifetime Movie Network mysteries. Mother slept a couple of hours.
For supper, we had chicken and dumplings, mashed potatoes, corn-on-the-cob, asparagus, fruit salad, and sourdough bread. Afterward, we played four games of Skipbo, with each of us winning a game.
Mother was ready for bed after that, and it wasn't long before we were, too.
Many thousands in our state lost power, including members of our family, but we were fortunate that the lights never even flickered at our house. We feared that with the howling wind, we might either lose power, or lose trees, in the night, but we awoke this morning to a warm house.
We had trouble going to sleep, though...maybe because it was so eerily quiet outside, where absolutely no traffic was on the road. Then we awoke around 6:30 this morning for some reason.
As soon as it was light enough outdoors, I snapped a few pictures of the winter wonderland through the windows. But after breakfast, I lost no time suiting up to go out and walk around the yard.
I didn't stray too far, though, because it was very difficult walking in Hubbie's rubber boots through the eight to ten inches of snow. I stayed out only a little while, because it didn't take long for my fingers and toes to freeze.
Later, around 10:30 a.m., when daughter got up, she suited up to go out and build a snowman. I stood on the back porch and shot pictures while she did that. Like me, she got cold pretty quickly, and was ready to come back inside.
She skipped breakfast, since it was so close to lunchtime. For lunch, I added noodles to the stewed chicken we cooked Monday. Chicken noodle soup was just the thing on a cold day like this. With it, there was a choice of sandwich materials...homemade pimento cheese, or deli turkey...as well as Italian Cream Cheese ball and crackers, and veggie chips.
Afterward, Mother headed to the couch for a nap, and the rest of us spent the afternoon watching Lifetime Movie Network mysteries. Mother slept a couple of hours.
For supper, we had chicken and dumplings, mashed potatoes, corn-on-the-cob, asparagus, fruit salad, and sourdough bread. Afterward, we played four games of Skipbo, with each of us winning a game.
Mother was ready for bed after that, and it wasn't long before we were, too.
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Tuesday, Dec. 25
Merry Christmas to everyone!
Up late, around 8:30, and skipped my exercises again, and got ready for the day. In the meantime, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house. As soon as I was ready, we set to work making a peach cobbler. When the cobbler was in the oven, we made dumplings.
I was glad when daughter arrived around 10:30, because I didn't want her on the road when winter weather rolled in.
At 11 a.m., I started cooking the dumplings. I like to do them a small amount at a time, so they don't stick together. Since we'd made a double batch of them (because Daughter just loves them), it took about 45 minutes to complete the task.
Hubbie peeled potatoes, and I set them to cooking, along with a big pan of corn-on-the-cob. Close to lunchtime, I mashed the potatoes, and put a dish of asparagus in the microwave. Mother sliced sourdough bread.
The meal, served with fruit salad (Hubbie's favorite Christmas dish), was very comforting on this cold day. Daughter has always declared that she didn't like asparagus or fruit salad, but she agreed to try both today, and she found that she loves them.
After lunch, we watched the Disney World Christmas parade. Before long, though, Mother was too sleepy to continue watching, so she retired to the couch for a nap. She slept most of the afternoon.
The rest of us continued watching the parade, and then we watched the Mormon Tabernacle Choir concert from the PBS channel. This was a very good performance that included "The Night Before Christmas" in song (by Nathan Gunn and the choir), "Good King Wenceslas," from the book by Omar Rayyan, as read by Jane Seymour, intertwined with the carol, as sung by Nathan Gunn and the choir. I've heard this popular Christmas carol forever, but never realized what an interesting story it tells.
The story is about Good "King Wenceslas braving harsh winter weather to give alms to a poor peasant on the Feast of Stephen (the second day of Christmas, December 26). During the journey, his page is about to give up the struggle against the cold weather, but is enabled to continue by following the king's footprints, step for step, through the deep snow."
Mother slept through this performance. I think she'd enjoy it, so we'll play it again tomorrow (I'd enjoy seeing it again).
Later, when Mother finished her nap, around 4 p.m., we watched a Lifetime Movie Network mystery, and then had a supper of homemade tomato soup, with a choice of pimento cheese sandwiches, or Italian Cream Cheese ball and crackers. Dessert was peach cobbler and ice cream.
It began sleeting this afternoon, and snow soon followed, but only a light dusting by dark time. But warnings for an overnight blizzard continue for our county, so we might wake up to ten or more inches of snow in the morning.
Spent the evening watching LMN murder mysteries.
Since the weather is so threatening, Mother will spend tonight with us, and maybe the next couple of days, until things clear up. Hope we don't lose power. If we do, we'll be moving to the camper, which can be heated with propane.
Up late, around 8:30, and skipped my exercises again, and got ready for the day. In the meantime, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house. As soon as I was ready, we set to work making a peach cobbler. When the cobbler was in the oven, we made dumplings.
I was glad when daughter arrived around 10:30, because I didn't want her on the road when winter weather rolled in.
At 11 a.m., I started cooking the dumplings. I like to do them a small amount at a time, so they don't stick together. Since we'd made a double batch of them (because Daughter just loves them), it took about 45 minutes to complete the task.
Hubbie peeled potatoes, and I set them to cooking, along with a big pan of corn-on-the-cob. Close to lunchtime, I mashed the potatoes, and put a dish of asparagus in the microwave. Mother sliced sourdough bread.
The meal, served with fruit salad (Hubbie's favorite Christmas dish), was very comforting on this cold day. Daughter has always declared that she didn't like asparagus or fruit salad, but she agreed to try both today, and she found that she loves them.
After lunch, we watched the Disney World Christmas parade. Before long, though, Mother was too sleepy to continue watching, so she retired to the couch for a nap. She slept most of the afternoon.
The rest of us continued watching the parade, and then we watched the Mormon Tabernacle Choir concert from the PBS channel. This was a very good performance that included "The Night Before Christmas" in song (by Nathan Gunn and the choir), "Good King Wenceslas," from the book by Omar Rayyan, as read by Jane Seymour, intertwined with the carol, as sung by Nathan Gunn and the choir. I've heard this popular Christmas carol forever, but never realized what an interesting story it tells.
The story is about Good "King Wenceslas braving harsh winter weather to give alms to a poor peasant on the Feast of Stephen (the second day of Christmas, December 26). During the journey, his page is about to give up the struggle against the cold weather, but is enabled to continue by following the king's footprints, step for step, through the deep snow."
Mother slept through this performance. I think she'd enjoy it, so we'll play it again tomorrow (I'd enjoy seeing it again).
Later, when Mother finished her nap, around 4 p.m., we watched a Lifetime Movie Network mystery, and then had a supper of homemade tomato soup, with a choice of pimento cheese sandwiches, or Italian Cream Cheese ball and crackers. Dessert was peach cobbler and ice cream.
It began sleeting this afternoon, and snow soon followed, but only a light dusting by dark time. But warnings for an overnight blizzard continue for our county, so we might wake up to ten or more inches of snow in the morning.
Spent the evening watching LMN murder mysteries.
Since the weather is so threatening, Mother will spend tonight with us, and maybe the next couple of days, until things clear up. Hope we don't lose power. If we do, we'll be moving to the camper, which can be heated with propane.
Monday, Dec. 24
Up late, around 8:30. Skipped my exercises, because I had a busy day ahead. Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house around 9:30, and she chopped veggies for a couple of pots of chicken...one for chicken noodle soup this week, and one for chicken and dumplings tomorrow.
While the chicken simmered, I got ready for the day. Then Mother and I watched "Scrooge," starring Alastair Sim, followed by "Amahl and the Night Visitors," a 1951 opera in English. A lame boy tells tall tales to the point that his mother doesn't believe him when he tells her there is a bright star with a tail in the night sky.
Later, she doesn't believe him when there is a knock on the door, and he tells her there are three kings there. As can be guessed, the boy is cured, and he goes with them to visit the Christ Child in order to leave his crutch.
After lunch, Mother went to the couch for a nap, and Hubbie and I went to the WDCS for last-minute groceries for the holiday. The store was packed wall-to-wall with people doing the same thing. Plus, folks were stocking up in case of a predicted winter storm on Wednesday.
Judging by the mild weather today, though, it seems strange that we could be in for such harsh weather in only a couple of days. Most folks are praying for snow, but our concern is that ice will accompany the snow, and ice threatens to knock out power.
Later, we had a supper of leftover goulash, with cottage cheese, and slices of sourdough bread and butter. Afterward, we made our annual trek around town to tour the Christmas lights.
This year, the local Chamber of Commerce gave awards in several categories...to the river park display, which features thousands of lights and animation, and which this year also features a display synchronized to music, and sequential white lights in a tree that look like snowfall; to an over-the-top display at a local home, which was given the Griswald award; to Main Street, where public buildings are dripping with lights; to a bank as the best business display (but we disagreed...we like another bank's display better); to the best of show home...a home in what we call the "Ego Mountain" area (for the homes of wealthy folks); and to a home with an animated horse and buggy, which won, of course, for best animated display.
Back home, we enjoyed cups of hot chocolate, with slices of chocolate cake (rum cake for Hubbie), and then we opened gifts. We were all pleased with what we got, except for one gift I got from Hubbie as a joke...a padded toilet seat, which he bought because he decided we needed a new on in the upstairs bathroom, and thought it would be funny to wrap it up for Christmas. He guffawed when I opened it, but Mother and I just gave him a strange look.
To his credit, he also gave me a beautiful sparkly and fringed paisley shawl, a glittery red and green pendant necklace, a real leather coat, and some scratch-off tickets (taped to the back of a box of chocolates) that netted me $10. Mother gave me a gift card to my favorite bookstore.
My presents to him were gift cards to the home improvement store, and the farm store, three novels downloaded to my e-reader (one is the new John Grisham novel), a big package of peanut brittle (homemade, but not by me), a bottle of lotion that is supposed to be good for his dry, cracked fingers, and scratch-off tickets that netted him $14. Mother gave him two new shirts...one black knit pullover, and one burgundy and black plaid flannel.
Mother got a Whirl-a-Squirrel, a pouch for her wheelchair, a tray to attach to her walker, a jigsaw puzzle, and a book entitled, "How to Tell if Your Cat is Planning to Kill You," an appropriate choice, since she has such a tempermental cat.
Mother was ready to go home around 9 p.m., so Hubbie accompanied her. He and I spent a little time watching TV, and then headed to bed, too.
Note: I checked department store buttons today, and found I'd won on two...$10 for one and $5 for the other. Could be a while before I can use them, though, thanks to the storm. But they are good until the end of the month.
While the chicken simmered, I got ready for the day. Then Mother and I watched "Scrooge," starring Alastair Sim, followed by "Amahl and the Night Visitors," a 1951 opera in English. A lame boy tells tall tales to the point that his mother doesn't believe him when he tells her there is a bright star with a tail in the night sky.
Later, she doesn't believe him when there is a knock on the door, and he tells her there are three kings there. As can be guessed, the boy is cured, and he goes with them to visit the Christ Child in order to leave his crutch.
After lunch, Mother went to the couch for a nap, and Hubbie and I went to the WDCS for last-minute groceries for the holiday. The store was packed wall-to-wall with people doing the same thing. Plus, folks were stocking up in case of a predicted winter storm on Wednesday.
Judging by the mild weather today, though, it seems strange that we could be in for such harsh weather in only a couple of days. Most folks are praying for snow, but our concern is that ice will accompany the snow, and ice threatens to knock out power.
Later, we had a supper of leftover goulash, with cottage cheese, and slices of sourdough bread and butter. Afterward, we made our annual trek around town to tour the Christmas lights.
This year, the local Chamber of Commerce gave awards in several categories...to the river park display, which features thousands of lights and animation, and which this year also features a display synchronized to music, and sequential white lights in a tree that look like snowfall; to an over-the-top display at a local home, which was given the Griswald award; to Main Street, where public buildings are dripping with lights; to a bank as the best business display (but we disagreed...we like another bank's display better); to the best of show home...a home in what we call the "Ego Mountain" area (for the homes of wealthy folks); and to a home with an animated horse and buggy, which won, of course, for best animated display.
Back home, we enjoyed cups of hot chocolate, with slices of chocolate cake (rum cake for Hubbie), and then we opened gifts. We were all pleased with what we got, except for one gift I got from Hubbie as a joke...a padded toilet seat, which he bought because he decided we needed a new on in the upstairs bathroom, and thought it would be funny to wrap it up for Christmas. He guffawed when I opened it, but Mother and I just gave him a strange look.
To his credit, he also gave me a beautiful sparkly and fringed paisley shawl, a glittery red and green pendant necklace, a real leather coat, and some scratch-off tickets (taped to the back of a box of chocolates) that netted me $10. Mother gave me a gift card to my favorite bookstore.
My presents to him were gift cards to the home improvement store, and the farm store, three novels downloaded to my e-reader (one is the new John Grisham novel), a big package of peanut brittle (homemade, but not by me), a bottle of lotion that is supposed to be good for his dry, cracked fingers, and scratch-off tickets that netted him $14. Mother gave him two new shirts...one black knit pullover, and one burgundy and black plaid flannel.
Mother got a Whirl-a-Squirrel, a pouch for her wheelchair, a tray to attach to her walker, a jigsaw puzzle, and a book entitled, "How to Tell if Your Cat is Planning to Kill You," an appropriate choice, since she has such a tempermental cat.
Mother was ready to go home around 9 p.m., so Hubbie accompanied her. He and I spent a little time watching TV, and then headed to bed, too.
Note: I checked department store buttons today, and found I'd won on two...$10 for one and $5 for the other. Could be a while before I can use them, though, thanks to the storm. But they are good until the end of the month.
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Sunday, Dec. 23
Today is Grandson's birthday. Happy Birthday, Grandson!
Up around 8 a.m., and skipped my exercises, as I usually do on Sunday. After breakfast, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house, while I got ready for the day.
We spent the morning in the kitchen. First, we made goulash sauce (or what we have sometimes called slumgullion)...a regular recipe of spaghetti sauce, with leftover beans and ham added. While the sauce simmered, we made a pot of tomato soup.
Then I made a glaze for the rum cake I baked last night, and Mother spooned it onto the cake.
Spent the rest of the morning watching "It's a Wonderful Life," until it was time to cook the macaroni for the goulash. The goulash was really yummy today, with a side of coleslaw, and slices of bread and butter. Mother ate two helpings.
After lunch, I started the movie "Miracle on 34th Street," but halfway through it, mother was ready to head to the couch for a nap.
While she slept, Hubbie peeled and sliced apples, and I made a pie. It was out of the oven before Mother finished her nap.
Since it was around 3:30, I made a batch of chai tea, and then fixed cups of it for us, which I served with tea cookies. Not long afterward, Mother was ready to go home, so Hubbie accompanied her.
Hubbie and I spent the rest of the evening watching TV.
Up around 8 a.m., and skipped my exercises, as I usually do on Sunday. After breakfast, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house, while I got ready for the day.
We spent the morning in the kitchen. First, we made goulash sauce (or what we have sometimes called slumgullion)...a regular recipe of spaghetti sauce, with leftover beans and ham added. While the sauce simmered, we made a pot of tomato soup.
Then I made a glaze for the rum cake I baked last night, and Mother spooned it onto the cake.
Spent the rest of the morning watching "It's a Wonderful Life," until it was time to cook the macaroni for the goulash. The goulash was really yummy today, with a side of coleslaw, and slices of bread and butter. Mother ate two helpings.
After lunch, I started the movie "Miracle on 34th Street," but halfway through it, mother was ready to head to the couch for a nap.
While she slept, Hubbie peeled and sliced apples, and I made a pie. It was out of the oven before Mother finished her nap.
Since it was around 3:30, I made a batch of chai tea, and then fixed cups of it for us, which I served with tea cookies. Not long afterward, Mother was ready to go home, so Hubbie accompanied her.
Hubbie and I spent the rest of the evening watching TV.
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