https://chitchatwithjean.com/
Author: jehdld

Gratitude for Hoping and Coping

Thankful Thursday No Comments

I’m trying to use these gratitude posts as way to cope with the less pleasant parts of the week (who am I kidding? The year so far!). Hoping that it helps me to stay grounded.  I admit to struggling a bit when I sat down to get started on my post on Monday. 

However, as Wednesday evening approaches, I’m finding it quite easy to come up with items of gratitude. Hopefully, I’ll be able to add a few more items before I hit publish at some point tomorrow.

How did we already hit the mid-week point or as you’re reading this, the eve of the weekend?

My items for the week of February 4-10

  1. Finally getting a haircut on Saturday! Delayed on it almost 6 weeks because of us all having COVID to start the year. My hairdresser actually moved salons during that time. As a bonus, her new salon is slightly closer (think very slightly, she’s on the same road) to me than the old one.
  2. Dinner out and a game night with some friends on Saturday night
  3. Seeing J smile on Sunday while helping my husband with a project
  4. Getting to view an absolutely stunning sunrise on Monday morning

    two more pictures of this amazing sky were in my Happy Homemaker Monday post
  5. Not breaking my leg/arm/or anything else when I slipped on the ice in our driveway on Monday (and that said ice is all melted away now!)

    ice on a local lake, not our driveway
  6. Understanding and compassionate band directors
  7. Sunny, warm February days
  8. Celebrating my husband’s birthday with the kids by going out to dinner
  9. A chocolate cake that turned out, it doesn’t always
  10. Figuring out that the cake frosting makes a pretty good fruit dip (It’s this frosting mix and I always make too much, see cake that doesn’t always turn out listed above. Now I have something else to do with the leftover frosting. By the way, that Amazon price is crazy! It doesn’t cost that much in the store.)
  11. Remembering and making the effort to take 3 “people” pictures during my husband’s birthday. And the family cooperating! That’s a big one.
  12. Finding another good book to get lost in for a moment
  13. That the mayor and local council candidates I favored made it through to the general election
  14. The kind and encouraging comments left on this blog
  15. Getting to watch a crow chase away a hawk (and snap a couple pictures of the hawk in flight, saving the other photos for a bird-watching Saturday post)
  16. Caring school administrators who give hope and real answers
  17. Having hope
  18. Going out and spending time with long-time friends who are always there to offer a shoulder to cry on when needed
  19. J getting up and going to school for a half-day today
  20. My husband who agreed to handle the whole morning and take J to school today. Worked out so much better for all of us. Though I confess it took a lot of strength for me to stay away from it all and keep myself in the bedroom until they left.
  21. A bit of time alone to “cry, breathe, etc.” this morning

Update on my Tuesday post

Again, I’m so grateful for the kind and caring comments some of you left on my post on Tuesday. The meeting at the school went better than I hoped and we did indeed (or rather my husband did) get J up and to school today. We’re transitioning back with a half-day to start.

It certainly helped when the assistant principal was super nice and told J that he would be more worried if he didn’t feel weird about coming back after being out so long. They also worked out that J could leave a class and just go to the office or counseling center whenever he felt overwhelmed. So, I’m super cautiously hopeful (tiny slit of light in cloudy sky hopeful) that we can get back to a school routine. Trying very hard to take it one day at time. Continued prayers would be welcome and appreciated.

Back to Thankful Thursday

I’m finding these posts extremely helpful and hope you enjoy reading them. Amazed at how the start of the week seemed so bleak but I’ve now easily listed 21 items and could keep going! My list runs Friday-Thursday each week. Always thankful to God for his help each day.

Great is our Lord, and abundant in power, his understanding is beyond measure. (Psalm 147: 5)

 

What things are on your gratitude list?

 

Happy Homemaker Tuesday

HappyHomemakerMonday 6 Comments

Always behind around here it seems. I didn’t even work yesterday and still didn’t manage to get a post going. It was just a Monday. And a half. SIGH. More on that later perhaps.

Right now since I’m a day late, let’s just get straight to the planning post. Joining in as always with Sandra, the host of Happy Homemaker Mondays, over at Diary Of A Stay At Home Mom.

The Weather

Clouds late Sunday afternoon

Snow is almost all gone now. We’re having another set of nice weather days. Yesterday was a bit breezy though. Another cold front is supposed to arrive on Friday or Saturday, I think I heard them say on the news. However, most of this week is going to be in the 50’s. In February? Sold! No rain/snow chances. While we need the moisture, a few partly sunny days is something I’m happy to see.

How I Am Feeling This Morning

Honestly, I’m a bit of a mess. J’s struggles with anxiety/depression/school avoidance are something I’m finding rather hard to cope with as a parent. Still looking into homeschool options but am not sold that’s in his best interest either (He’s a very talented musician and with homeschool so many opportunities simply disappear for him. Our current laws here do not allow him to participate as a home school student. And it’s not that I want to push him but I do know in happier times, he loves the music and contests and concerts. I have a child who was in the band and did not love it at all so I feel confident in that assessment of things.). I currently have too many tabs open on this computer with everything from otter videos to homeschool options to pages on resources for anxiety and depression. (We do have an assessment scheduled for early March and I may call today regarding getting in with another therapist prior to that, good luck to me there).

He’s overwhelmed, I’m overwhelmed. SIGH. I let him sleep this morning after a bit of a row with him last night. Later today when we’re both calmer (and rested) we’ll sit down and go over things. We have a meeting at school with the assistant principal and hopefully, also the counselor tomorrow afternoon. Prayers for the meeting to go well and them to offer some *helpful* assistance greatly appreciated.

Oh and yesterday, I slipped on an icy patch on the driveway hitting my knee and scraping up one of my hands. Ice 1 Jean 0. I’m okay just a little sore this morning. It was a bit ironic as I was telling J to be watch out for the ice right as I slipped!

In happier news, it’s my husband’s birthday and I’m looking forward to celebrating him later tonight.

Whew! Next category!

On The Breakfast Plate

Nothing yet other than coffee. Trying to decide between the usual (yogurt), oatmeal, or a mini cinnamon roll.

On My Reading Pile

Went from not having anything engaging to read to tearing through quite a few books. Read the Kevin Kwan trilogy that starts with Crazy Rich Asians. These were indeed good escapist reads about a very dysfunctional over the top rich family with roots in Singapore and Hong Kong mostly. Still working my way through How to be Sad by Helen Russell, it’s good it just takes a bit of time to process.

And finally, I read The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah. It was a *skip the line* library loan (e-book) and my first time reading anything by the author. I’d heard of this book but thought nah on a number of occasions. However, I read the first few pages and was hooked, checking it out immediately. With apologies to any huge Steinbeck fans out there, where was this one while I was suffering through The Grapes of Wrath back in high school?

On My TV

Not much really. It’s that lull after the excitement of football. Next Level Chef, Joe Millionaire (I think they probably made the right choice last week.)

On The Menu This Week

Crusty white bread, it turned out although not super pretty, I made a few mistakes so a second try is in order

 

Nothing overly exciting, I don’t think. I did get inspired by Sandra last week and made homemade bread to go with our beef stew. The beef stew probably won’t be a repeat but I’ll try the bread again sometime soon since I made a few mistakes (it turned out anyway but I want to try again following all the directions).

MONDAY: Ham, hash browns, carrots (subbed in for a really bad tasting cucumber), and cornbread *J had a baritone lesson at 6:30*

TUESDAY: OUT (Cracker barrel) for husband’s birthday, chocolate cake with white frosting for dessert

WEDNESDAY: Roast in the crock pot *Meeting at school at 1p.m.* *Mom’s (much needed) Night Out with friends*

THURSDAY: Spaghetti or pork chops/undecided. Probably go with the pork chops, need to use up some potatoes so pork chops and baked potatoes

FRIDAY: Spaghetti and meatballs, salad *I work 1-4:15*

Looking Around The House

Pondering why the kitchen table just won’t stay cleared off and clean? G cleaned his room over the weekend and moved some stuff into the living room while doing it, “I’ll move it back when I’m done” SIGH. Famous last words. Plan to spend some time cleaning today.

On My To Do List

  1. Bake husband’s birthday cake/wrap presents
  2. Clean house up a bit
  3. Laundry
  4. Sit down with J and go over his options/talk about things
  5. Pay bills
  6. Make some phone calls if I have time
  7. Breathe?

To Relax This Week I Will

Drink tea, spend some time outside taking advantage of nice weather in February!

From The Camera

Cabin fever cat:

Monday’s stellar sunrise:

Quote For The Week

This verse from Sunday’s service has been on my mind so far this week:

Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, (Ephesians 4:26)

 

Finally, how about a little humor this week? This was the quote to start one of the chapters in Crazy Rich Girlfriend (book 2 in the series, really the 1st and 3rd books are the best). Made me chuckle a bit.

If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to. (Dorothy Parker)

*************

 

 

Backyard Birds After the Snow

Birdwatching 4 Comments

Today, it’s blue skies and 32 degrees. I can hear the dripping of melting snow from the living room. And the robins are out in force. Spring fever is high.

Robin

The birds are enjoying the melting snow. At least I think that’s what is happening over on the roof next door.

Starling

 

However, going back to Wednesday and Thursday, the winter storm paid us a visit. Not horrible, really pretty standard for February snowfall around here. And believe it or not, the news said even with the snow we’re still in a drought. It was cold though. Too cold to take photos except through the backdoor.

Too bad because I had lots of birds visiting the feeders on Wednesday and Thursday. Most of them, I couldn’t get a decent through the door photo to show you. This happened a lot as well:

Time to take the photo and they all decide to fly away as I press the button!

brown-headed cowbirds

The brown-headed cowbirds were out in force. This is the first time I’ve seen them at the feeders since early fall or maybe even last spring. Not sure if they migrate?  Looks like our area is right on the line between year-round and breeding. 

Not going to lie, they are not my favorite birds. At all. And they were crowding out a few of my favorites like the cardinals and white-throated sparrows.

New Visitors

However, there was another pairing of blackbirds with the brown-headed cowbirds that I’ve never before had visit my backyard birdfeeders. It was very easy to identify the male red-winged blackbird (not pictured as I only saw him a couple of times) but the female bird took me a minute.

Did you have any idea female red-winged blackbirds were so beautiful? I know I didn’t.

Cardinal on left, female red-winged blackbird on right

 

Perhaps they’ll return on a sunnier day when I can be outside with the camera to get decent shots instead debating if I want to risk frostbite for an attempt. (Sometimes, common sense prevails).

Of course, with the obscene number of cowbirds, I did switch back to safflower seed, the favorite of the cardinals and small finches, not so much the bigger birds. So, I may just have to be satisfied to see them in passing and not in my own backyard.

Other Birds Spotted This Week, Not Photographed

Cardinals, sparrows including the white-throated sparrows, large numbers of dark-eyed juncos, blue jays (loud birds!), robins, tufted titmice, chickadees, both the downy and red-bellied woodpeckers, and occasionally a mourning dove.

In addition as I sat simply watching the birds on Wednesday mid-morning, a Cooper’s Hawk arrived and perched right over the bird feeders. Then, my son who came to see the hawk noticed a second hawk in a tree not too far off from the first one before they swooped away.

Do you ever see different birds when it snows?

*joining in with the Bird Depot hosted by Anni at I’d Rather B Birdin’

Thankful Thursday, End of January into February

Thankful Thursday 4 Comments

The week from Thursday to Thursday was a little rough (and busy) this time. Honestly, I’m making most of this list from memory as I didn’t come down here and log things each night like I usually do.

I started off good getting to Sunday. However, the rest of this week? Not so much. Let’s see what gratitude from earlier this week comes to mind.

  1. Sunrise colors that linger

  2. Time spent together watching movies

  3. A great and exciting season from the Kansas City Chiefs

  4. The gift of art work from a sweet preschool student 

  5. All of those sweet preschool students. I’d bring any of them home here in a heartbeat if asked.

  6. J going to his baritone lesson on Monday (small progress)

  7. A beautiful day of weather before our storm

  8. That the roads weren’t bad Tuesday evening when I got off work so that I could stop and get birdseed (we were completely out!)

  9. The wonderful variety of birds I spotted at the feeders on Wednesday morning. New to the backyard feeders: a pair of red-winged blackbirds. We won’t talk about the aggravating brown-headed cowbirds though. And not 1 but 2 hawks! And of course, my regular birds (Cardinal pictured below, saving my red-winged back-bird for Saturday)

  10. An incredibly sweet and kind (and very unexpected) text message from the teacher I worked with all of last week and the beginning of this one thanking me for my help

  11. That we didn’t get the crazy snowstorm predicted (okay, I admit it…I sort of wanted to see 12 inches of snow but I know it’s better we only got about 4-5 inches)

  12. Not having to worry about trash day on Wednesday morning or getting out and going anywhere (Bonus item: that they did come and pick up the trash today!)

  13. The boys helping me clean the cars and shovel the driveway on Wednesday afternoon (plus getting some wonderful and very cold fresh air!)

  14. Two snow days in a row!

  15. Husband getting a snow day today as well (cold day really, wind chill was -9 this morning brrr)

  16. Finding a book that’s holding my attention well, The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah, didn’t think I’d like it at all but am finding I can’t put it down and am going to finish it much too soon.

Not too bad of a list after all. Do wish I had a few more pictures to go along with it. Hoping if it warms up above negative wind chills to get out for a walk somewhere. Of course, I may just still stay here drinking cocoa while planning my dream flower and vegetable garden.

The groundhog may have said 6 more weeks of winter but really, spring is only 6 *short* weeks away! And it’s just about time to perhaps start some seedlings indoors. A “throwback Thursday” photo of my daffodils in the warmer Spring sun:

What things are you thankful for on this wintery February day?

Happy Homemaker Monday, Now on Wednesday

HappyHomemakerMonday 2 Comments

Another quick planning post as I’m still working a bit this week. Have a feeling it’s going to be another full week unless there’s a snow day or two in there. 

*I started this post right after the Chiefs game on Sunday night, original title was Sunday night blues. However, life kept me busy and I’m just now sitting down to finish it on a snowy Wednesday morning. Snow days for all of us (except my husband).*

Definitely working tomorrow so trying to get this done late (too late really) on Sunday night. Still a bit sad about the Chiefs game but congratulations to the Bengals, coming back like that at Arrowhead stadium, a very well-deserved win!

Joining in as always with Sandra over at Diary Of A Stay At Home Mom.

The Weather

Supposed to be crazy warm tomorrow, almost in the 60’s, so that means a day or two later: snowstorm on the horizon. Nothing like hit the east coast but a decent snow for sure. We’ll see what happens. Same old hot/cold weather pattern. Today wasn’t bad, in the 40’s.

As I mentioned, it’s Wednesday now and we did indeed get the snow (after a very nice Monday and cool, somewhat rainy Tuesday).

How I Am Feeling 

Disappointed about the football game outcome, a bit frazzled about the week ahead, and a bit tired. I really should go to bed. (How I felt on Sunday evening). How I am feeling on Wednesday morning: Glad to have a snow day to reset, still a bit unsettled about a lot of things.

On The Breakfast Plate

Toast with probably too much butter and coffee. Vitamins.

On My Reading Pile 

Really struggling to find a book that captures my interest enough I can simply “escape” into it. Non-fiction: How to be Sad by Helen Russell (probably finish it today). Fiction, currently trying to read Dune and I also started Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan after watching the movie on a whim over the weekend. Dune is probably going to end up as did not finish for me. Hoping the first reads from Amazon has an engaging read as a choice this month.

On My TV

Congratulations to the Bengals and the Rams! (I’ll be cheering on the Bengals, since the 80’s is a long time to wait for another championship, just ask any Royals baseball fan)

Mentioned I watched Crazy Rich Asians, really enjoyed it! Probably a little more chick-flick than I’d normally choose but a nice, feel-good kind of movie if you need one. J and I watched Kung Fu Panda 2, we’ll have to watch 3 now (1 is on Netflix but even with a “million” streaming services we ended up renting 2 from Amazon as I couldn’t find it anywhere).

TV series I’m watching right now: Around the World in 80 Days, really enjoying it. Going to be sad when it ends.

My guilty pleasure show of Joe Millionaire. Been planning a snack for Thursday nights as I watch it making a whole ritual of the experience of watching my trashy tv show. And if you’re watching it with me, I’ve come up with a theme song for Caroline:  Sweet but Psycho by Ava Max. Or maybe you are fan of Caroline? Personally, I am not and was sad they didn’t just send her home last week. Oh, the drama! On that note, glad my Missouri millionaire is so far somewhat staying out of it all. Oh, I am way too invested in this show. Help me!

On The Menu This Week

Thankfully, I went to the store before the game on Sunday so we’re pretty well set here for snow days and such. For the game we had BBQ little smokies, precooked heat and eat chicken wings, and I made the winter salad Carrie shared a couple weeks back (it was a hit!) along with a pineapple upside down cake for dessert.

MONDAY: It was a bit of rough day with us all going in different directions *G and I had BBQ ham sandwiches, J had heat and eat chicken wings, and my husband had leftover taco meat* *I worked 8:15-4:45* J had a baritone lesson at 6:30* My husband had to attend a visitation*

TUESDAY: Pepper steak and rice, G doesn’t like steak so I made some of into pepper chicken using the same recipe, turned out good  *I worked 8:15-5:00*

WEDNESDAY: beef stew (crock pot), homemade bread of some sort

THURSDAY: ham steaks, corn bread, salad *Meeting at high school at 1:00*

FRIDAY: Frozen pizza

From The Camera

Feel like I say this every week lately, but I didn’t pick up the camera enough last week. Took the first photo from the deck on Sunday night, no coat needed. The second one out the backdoor this morning, definitely need a coat, gloves, all of it if I go outside even on the deck today.

Looking Around The House

Giving it a good cleaning it definitely on the list for today!

On My To Do List

  1. Clean the house (see told you it was on the list!)
  2. Laundry
  3. Enjoy my snow day!
  4. Call new trash company as I’ve lost the billing info (yahoo e-mail glitch, grr)
  5. Set up appointment for J

Something Fun To Share

J showed me this fun you-tube channel of Kotaro and Hanna, river otter pets in Japan and I can’t stop watching them.

On My Prayer List

Those still sick with the virus right now including the teacher I’ve been working for as she deals with COVID induced pneumonia, the co-director at my work as he’s also battling lingering effects from the virus as well as in need of kidney transplant (from diabetic kidney disease), the young (and older) children struggling. A friend of ours who just lost her husband back in August and also suddenly lost one of her brothers a week ago, that she is enveloped in peace as she grieves her losses. My son, for us to get answers so he can overcome the anxiety and depression he’s currently suffering through. Friends, family, strangers.  All those out working in today’s snowy and cold weather to stay safe. A return to kinder, happier, more peaceful times throughout the world.

Quote For The Week

Proverbs 3:5-6

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

*************

I definitely plan to spend part of my snow day catching up on a few of your blogs!

Thankful Thursday, Week of Jan 21-27

Thankful Thursday No Comments

Another short post that is just straight to my list. Just a reminder I start my list over each Thursday afternoon/Friday. So some of these go back to last week.

  1. J going to school (Last Friday)
  2. Everybody getting home safely (Friday was quite the day with J deciding to walk home from school, G having car trouble, me getting locked outside for a bit, and my husband dealing with most of it while still at work)
  3. lazy Saturday mornings
  4. Sunshine!
  5. A new book arriving in the mail (through Amazon)
  6. An exciting play off football game and of course, a Chiefs win!
  7. An old friend willing to help out and share her experiences as well as some very sage advice
  8. Coffee!
  9. A really wonderful compliment from the teacher I’ve been working with this week. She said it’s been very peaceful in the classroom while I’ve been in there. And that she even feels peaceful herself when I’m working in her classroom.
  10. Another compliment from one of the kids telling me I look like one of the other young, pretty preschool teachers (We both have dark hair but that’s about it…still, a nice compliment and I’ll take it)
  11. J getting his driving learner’s permit. Hooray for a confidence boost!
  12. McDonald’s getting the order right for our entire family right (J’s choice for a celebration dinner)
  13. Clear kitchen counters and sinks
  14. Green plants that just keep growing.

Lots to be thankful for around here even in the midst of an otherwise somewhat busy and stressful at times kind of week. What’s on your thankful list for this last week of January?

 

 

Happy Homemaker Tuesday, Early Morning

HappyHomemakerMonday 6 Comments

It’s a very full work week for me so I’m a bit late with my weekly planning post. And probably going to be a bit brief with it as well.

Joining in with Sandra over at Diary Of A Stay At Home Mom!

The Weather

Ten degrees and feels like 0 this morning. It was a high of 50 degrees yesterday and then got colder all day long. Same old up and down stuff. Not a snow/rain cloud in sight so far this week.

How I Am Feeling This Morning

Tired, rushed, frustrated, and slightly hopeful. Lots of feelings. Looking into switching J to online homeschooling. (If you have some experience with that, let me know) As well as trying to figure out if he can still do band at the high school so a mixed option of sorts. Have a friend calling me to talk about it more later tonight.

On My Reading Pile

Dune by Frank Herbert (honestly, glad I saw the new movie first) and How to be Sad by Helen Russell.

On My TV

NFL play offs. (Got to say it, GO CHIEFS! and wow, what a game…that I watched mostly through my hands screaming, I can’t watch! Tell me did he get the field goal? Did they score? What a great game that truly could’ve gone either way.) I am sorry and bit disappointed it won’t be a Green Bay vs KC match up. Of course, the Chiefs still have to face the Bengals and I’m thinking that’s not going to be an easy game either.

Looking way too forward to my Thursday night viewing of Joe Millionaire.

On The Menu

Sad to say I’ll probably be winging it a bit this week.

MONDAY: husband heated up leftover ham and rolls while I went to the grocery store *I worked 815-445*

TUESDAY: Something easy, maybe BLTS and fries *I work815-445* *Phone call at 6*

WEDNESDAY: Maybe chicken fajitas of sorts *I work 815-1* *J to take driver permit test in afternoon*

THURSDAY: ???? *I work 815-445*

FRIDAY: ????/ *I work 815-445*

Looking Around The House

It’s been worse

To Relax This Week I Will

Watch my guilty pleasure TV show with snacks

From The Camera

Managed a picture of the sunset sky one evening over the weekend. I usually can’t get a decent photo because of houses but that night my timing was great and the colors extended high enough into the sky that I could point the camera up at the sky enough to capture it and not the houses.

Something Fun To Share

Today is Rudolph Day, a day to celebrate/plan for Christmas on the 25th day of each month.

Quote For The Week

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7)

***********

Thankful Thursday, Third Week of January

Thankful Thursday 1 Comment

This was definitely a better week than the last one with everyone sick. Nice to have everyone on the mend and things slowly returning to a routine.

I’m going to keep this post brief and just get to my posting my list of things I jotted done from last Friday until today:

  1. J showing me how to change the language on you-tube and laughing with him at funny videos in Swedish
  2. An Irish Cream Cold Brew as the featured coffee at Starbucks
  3. G getting to work (and home again) safely during the snowstorm
  4. A warm house providing shelter from the storm
  5. Hearing a couple of barred owls call to each other early Sunday morning
  6. Everyone slowly starting to feel better after COVID and that our family didn’t have any serious issues with it
  7. An older brother who takes great care of his younger brother even when he doesn’t have to do it
  8. Hyacinths blooming indoors in winter
  9. Returning to routines of work and school
  10. Remembering trash day and a great new company that actually picks up our trash and recycling
  11. Zippers that look like toasters and preschool kids in my life who point out such wonderful observations to me
  12. Wonderful coworkers who make work as pleasant as the kids who see toasters in zippers
  13. My oldest son buying me lunch
  14. Getting a little (very little) cleaning done

Guess I should add a bonus item and say I’m thankful I decided to splurge on these hyacinths as they bloom because they are also starting to give off a wonderful scent as well…

Do you enjoy the scent of hyacinths? What things are you thankful for this week?

Clearing Clutter to Clear My Mind

Heal2022 No Comments

My focus this week I’ve decided is going to be on clearing clutter.

Cleaning is actually the focus for the third week in my self-care journal.

Want a funny story about that? I share lots of photos of our cute little gray cat. Chelsey is a tiny little Russian blue cat with a big bossy attitude.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Jean D (@jeaninkc)


She’s also a puking kind of cat. I’m sure you cat people know what I mean. She usually does better in the winter but sometimes she’ll get those hairballs or get into the wrong thing outside and then, blech. Puking cat.

Guess I should probably add being thankful for hardwood floors to my current thankful Thursday list. However, they didn’t save me yesterday.

I keep my self-care journal on the table by the couch. And since cats aren’t always particular about where they puke, she chose right on top of my brand-new self-care journal. SIGH. Glad it’s a hardbound book. Cleaned it up, wiped it off with a Clorox wipe.

And then, opened it up to see what the focus for this week was going to be about.  clearing clutter

What are the odds?

My plans for clearing clutter this week:

  1. Clear off my nightstand (easy since it’s one of the flylady missions anyway)
  2. Sort through and declutter the holiday tubs as I switch them out (had some Christmas to officially put away still. Got out some Valentine’s Day stuff)
  3. Make a casual plan for clearing the rest of the clutter especially in the basement

So far this week, I’ve already managed to clear off the kitchen table (it was bad) and clean out our make-shift mailboxes in the kitchen as well. I was also happy to finally get the Christmas books sorted and put away (it’s a weird deal but they’re stored in J’s closet and he’s been home sick so…). Now, I have 2 empty boxes to fill with donation things since I’d boxed the books up and put them in our bedroom until I could put them away.

Sometimes it really is the little things. Do you find clearing clutter helps clear your mind?

 

Happy Homemaker Monday, A New Week

HappyHomemakerMonday 10 Comments

Happy Monday! I feel like we are having a delayed start to our New Year’s over here. I know it’s the 3rd week of the New Year (already!). However, since the boys all had Covid-19 (I might have as well but never had any major symptoms, a minor headache one day, being tired a bit…which could have easily have been caregiver fatigue), it seems as if we are just now starting our New Year with the holidays behind us. At least that’s what I’m pretending.

sun shining through lemon grass plant on front porch

 

Of course, it wasn’t like everyone being sick was a huge extra holiday. It did delay our return to routine and the excitement of a fresh New Year. So, I’ve decided I’m treating this new week like the first week of a New Year. Complete with starting over on the New Year resolutions I didn’t really make (see my list of 22). Tomorrow (since today IS actually a holiday), I’ll focus seriously on drinking my water, eating less crap food, etc.

Today, I’m taking it easy and refreshing the house a bit. Changing out the bedding, laundry in progress. And of course, working on this post so I can join in with Sandra over at Diary Of A Stay At Home Mom.

The Weather

Winter arrived over the weekend. Cold and snowy! Of course, it’s supposed to boomerang back up to almost 50 tomorrow and plummet to 15 on Thursday. Still on the roller coaster.  I prefer the sunny, warm days but the snow does make everything pretty.

How I Am Feeling This Morning

Ready for a return to some type of a routine. And in the mood to clean and clear clutter away.

On The Breakfast Plate

Bacon and biscuits (husband cooked), coffee, and vitamins. Need to go drink some water.

On My Reading Pile

Went on a bit of a reading binge last week/over the weekend. Finished The Secret Garden, now one of my all-time favorite books. Might break down and order a hardbound illustrated copy like the one from the library. Read one called The Nanny by Gilly MacMillan, it was one of those creepy fun suspense kind of novels. When the Stars Go Dark by Paula McLain was a bit predictable I thought, found myself more interested in the secondary plot than the main one but it was a fairly quick read. Dark material though as it dealt with the kidnapping and assault of young girls. Also a dark one but well-written was Good Neighbors by Sarah Langan. *Spoiler Alert* The neighbors are not good. Not at all.

On My TV

Husband and I binge-watched Kobra Kai, I’m still enjoying it, he’s on the fence about it. Tried to watch the new 2020 version of The Secret Garden but it was so far removed from the book, I couldn’t finish it. A dog in place of Ben Weatherstaff? I don’t think so! Then, why stop at one bad movie…I watched The Eternals. I did finish it but was unimpressed (and seriously, a love scene in a Marvel movie? It’s brief but still UGH). Sad when the 2nd end-credit scene was more interesting to me than the entire movie.

To make up for bad movies, I watched 3 good movies, one a classic. Guardians of the Galaxy, needed some humor. Then Shang-Chi, worth your time if you’ve not seen it yet. A very well-done story. And finally, at J’s urging since I’d never seen it, I watched Citizen Kane. Very good and of course, worth your time.

Other things I watched: Joe Millionaire, at least I expect that to be bad, guilty pleasure tv. Next Level Chef, despite saying I wasn’t watching any more cooking shows, I’m intrigued. And the NFL playoff games including watching my Chiefs beat the Steelers. I did wish they’d have let Ben Roethlisberger have that last touchdown pass.

On The Menu

Now for the hard part of the weekly planning…

Still trying to clear out the freezer a bit

MONDAY: Chicken strips, either cooked from freezer or homemade, just depends on how the day goes

TUESDAY: Ribs in the crock pot *Carryover because I keep forgetting to thaw them*

WEDNESDAY: Baked ravioli (in bag in freezer), salad

THURSDAY: pork chops (already cooked in freezer), baked sweet potatoes

FRIDAY:  Homemade Pizza *I work 7:45-4:15*

Looking Around The House

It’s okay but I’m feeling the need to spring clean even though it’s only January

To Relax This Week I Will 

morning glory seed pods in the garden

spend some time with the huge pile of gardening and seed catalogs calling my name

From The Camera

Last Friday, before the storm arrived, I went out, took a walk, and did a little “house-hunting”. The trail at a local nature center had a wooden gingerbread house display (families and organizations paid a fee to charity for a cutout to decorate).

This was my favorite
Little Pink Houses for you and me…
The detail on this Mario one impressed me

 

Something Fun To Share

On a whim, I’ve been trying to learn Swedish on Duo Lingo. I can now tell you I’m eating bread and drinking water in very broken Swedish. J helped me and said a better way was to change you-tube to Swedish. And while playing around on there, I found this fun video. (It’s mostly in English as it’s an Ed Sheeran interview of sorts)

On My Prayer List

An end to this virus, for the numbers to decline (our local community is at a 41 % positivity rate!), the health care workers, those who are struggling with any aspect of this awful virus, a peaceful week. Friends, family, and strangers.

Quote For The Week

I have to share this quote again since it is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.”

**********

Proudly powered by WordPress & Skyrocket Themes

MENU

Navigation