https://chitchatwithjean.com/
Category: Blog365

A Poem

Blog365 2 Comments

While going through one of the tubs of basement stuff, I found a box of notecards. Most were old and in not great condition. Beyond salvageable. I did save a few. One small card from a company called Victorian Greetings.

This angel on the front:

Blank inside.

And this Emily Dickinson poem on the back:

Who has not found the heaven below,

Will fail of it above:

For angels rent the house next our’s

Wherever we remove. 

Seemed like a good thing to share on the last Sunday in February.

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

Day 56/365

 

 

Saturday Stuff

Blog365 Chitchat No Comments

I woke up in a much better mood than I was when I posted yesterday. No idea why. Just going to share yet another random post of some Saturday stuff. I do have a bit of a more serious post planned, probably on Tuesday.

However, I like to keep things lighter on the weekends. Normally, I wouldn’t even bother posting too much on the weekends. Maybe the bird-watching posts but even then, not every weekend. Now with the Blog 365 challenge, I have to find a few things to say even on Saturdays.

How about just a glimpse of a few things from this morning/afternoon?

I’d tell you this was my slightly indulgent breakfast but it wasn’t. I had this for a late lunch/afternoon snack. Move over cinnamon toast.

Cinnamon Croissant:

Want the recipe? It’s easy, split a croissant, add butter, and plenty of this:

Then, broil it. It’s worth it. Make yourself feel better about it by having it with some green tea. (Mine is always Stash Green Chai tea with a splash of milk.)

Let’s Blame The Candle!

This is the other candle I bought at Bath and Body Works on Wednesday (I figured out what day I went on my retail therapy trip.)

Small candle for the kitchen. Just to clarify, it smells nothing like a cinnamon sugar or a croissant. And I’m sure my cinnamon toasted croissant (from Aldi no less) tasted nothing like a croissant I might find in Paris if I ever get there.

Not sure how to transition from croissants and candles that supposedly smell like Paris to the rest of this post but…

A Cat!

I was reading my book a bit this morning until she thought perhaps my time should be spent doing her bidding instead. She’s now asleep on the daybed down here. It’s exhausting keeping us all inline.

Finally, last item for today…

Plants and Flowers

Still waiting on the second blooming of the Christmas cactus. Cat mentioned above thought she might take a bite of it yesterday. Good thing I caught her! Not like she doesn’t have an entire pot of cat grass pretty much right beside the window, just above this plant.

Don’t worry eventually, I’ll quit boring you with pictures of the Christmas cactus and indoor flower bouquets.

When, spring and summer finally arrive, I’ll bore you with lots of outdoor plants and flowers instead! I can hardly wait! Actually, that’s on my unwritten list for today. I might start some seeds and pop into the window.

Spring is coming. Unless you’re on a different side of the world, then autumn/winter will be there soon. Time to trade seasons and no take backs!

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

Day 55/365

 

 

 

 

Random Five on Friday

Blog365 8 Comments

I’m restless and finding it hard to focus today. Feeling a bit out of sorts. Ever just need some time alone at home and yet it seems such an impossible task?

I think the pandemic heightened my annoyance when this gets snatched from me. Those days I planned to be home getting things done and then, plans change. Here’s my whole family at home with me.

Do I love them? Of course, and I don’t want to hurt their feelings. However, I am someone who needs a bit of time alone. The quiet. And I like to clean when no one is home. I don’t care if they come home and mess it all up five minutes after I’m done (ok, I care a little). However, I can’t stand cleaning around people and their activities.

SIGH. Just feeling a bit gripey today. Probably the weather, spring needs to return. Deceptive beautiful sun shining today and yet the current temperature is 25 degrees, probably feels like less.

Thought I’d just do a random old style five on Friday for today.

ONE: New Flowers

My Valentine’s Day flowers were starting to fade. I couldn’t quite resist replacing them with a couple of cheap Aldi bouquets. I added the yellow roses to another bouquet to make a fuller vase.

TWO: New Candles

First I bought a new Bath and Body Works candle during my retail therapy session on Tuesday or was it Wednesday? Had a coupon about to expire, couldn’t let that happen! And while I do like the scent of the Fresh Spring Morning candle, I replaced it with something a bit more seasonal.

I seldom go into Aldi, picky family, but I do like that stuff aisle. And look what I found, a March/St. Patrick’s Day candle. Mixed feelings about their candles, some smell great but I’ve also had a few duds. This one has a fresh scent almost like an Irish spring soap/men’s cologne. Well, that sounds like a weird scent but it does smell nice.

THREE: A Finished Project

Turns out I do kind of enjoy the Diamond Painting/Art. And now I have this little framed rainbow to display through March. (The light wasn’t great in this photo, it does have a bit more sparkle and the frame is white.)

FOUR: Freshening Up Front Room Decor

Starting with a new wreath for the front door. Aldi again. I shouldn’t look at their ads. We actually need a completely new front door, however, that is a warm weather project indeed.

Top of the bookcase, a little lighter for Spring.

New vase of “flowers” for small entryway table. I’m trying to figure this out still. The key basket must stay. It’s the only way I keep track of my car keys.

FIVE: Taking Care of Business

Picture of roses because it’s pretty than paperwork.

I’ve spent this morning gathering tax documents/working on paperwork for an upcoming tax appointment. Might explain the gripey mood I suppose. In between, I’ve tried to clean house and catch up on some laundry.

Later, I think we’ll just have frozen pizza and salad for dinner. And I’ll spend some time either watching You on Netflix or reading my latest book. I’m reading one called The Personal Assistant by Kimberly Belle. The weather is supposed to improve tomorrow so I’m hoping I can leave the paperwork behind and spend lots of time outside.

What are your plans this weekend?

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

Day 54/365

 

 

 

February List Review

23listfor2023 Blog365 No Comments

I decided to post on the 23rd of each month how I’m doing with my yearly list. It’s only February but I’m not feeling super motivated this time. Probably because I stalled big time on making progress with my list this month.

Let’s take a look and see if maybe (doubtful) I accomplished more than I think.

  1. Clean our basement a tub at a time (I’ve already told my husband of the plan) *In progress, we were doing good but then kind of stalled out on it. And I’m more than ready to open a tub of “junk” rather than seriously sentimental items.*
  2. Participate in every Happy Homemaker Monday for 2023 *So far, so good on this one*
  3. Read 92 books *Goodreads says I’m 2 books ahead of schedule*
  4. Create a cozy, inviting home filled only with things I love (though I’ll probably have to allow my husband/kids to keep their things as well) *Trying, focusing on the entryway for now*
  5. Get my ears pierced (again, I had them done a long while ago but haven’t had them in years) *Not yet*
  6. Get tubs to store the Christmas books *Not yet*
  7. Unsubscribe from at least 3 junk newsletters every time I clean my email *In progress though sometimes I think unsubscribing from the spam stuff makes it worse*
  8. Throw away any broken or worn out items! *In progress*
  9. Re-watch the David Tennant episodes of Doctor Who, old school style…just one episode a week *In progress, I’ve done a good job of limiting myself to the one episode a week*
  10. Rediscover the lighter, fun-loving open to (almost) anything adventurous side of my personality *Trying to let go of stuff to do this*
  11. Celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary in August with either a trip or a party *No progress*
  12. Join in for the Blog365 challenge and post every single day in 2022 (in progress already!) *This is going well so far, keeping up with it though it is a true challenge some days*
  13. Buy 2 Christmas presents for the boys each month (and one stocking stuffer for myself) *Haha, nothing done on this front. SIGH, wondering if I should just do gift cards each month*
  14. Be better about reaching out to friends/family members. Make an effort to call/text someone once a week.*Falling very short on this goal, need to do better. My problem is thinking of people at 6 AM and that’s not an ideal time to call/text anyone.*
  15. Put space between the holidays to make each one feel more special (example: don’t eat Valentine’s Day candy/treats until it’s actually Valentine’s Day) *Doing okay on this one, my husband did buy Peeps the day after Valentine’s Day and I ate a few but I’m not decorating early at all. Haven’t even taken all the Valentine’s Day down yet though I do plan to do that today.*
  16. Make individual binders for our bank statements *Not yet*
  17. Frame the photos from when J was in the all-district bands *Not yet*
  18. Leave a review for things I purchase (I’m so bad about doing this and yet, I always read them before I buy things) *I’ve left a few reviews but need to do better*
  19. Figure out a way to either subscribe or keep all the blogs I enjoy reading in one place (Bloglovin’ isn’t really working for me anymore) *I need to just sit down and take care of this one*
  20. Take at least 2 people photos at each holiday/special occasion *In progress*
  21. Get storage containers for our DVD collection, sort, and store them *Not yet*
  22. Accept that a some family situations aren’t likely to change and realize I’ve done enough. *So much guilt with this one. Hard to admit defeat. SIGH*
  23. Invite people to our home (family, friends, etc…been too long since I’ve done this) *Invited brother-in-law and sister-in-law for husband’s birthday but they couldn’t make it* *Need to do better*

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

Maybe next month, I’ll have a better progress update to share. I see so many things on here that I could easily take care of doing. Just need some motivation. Did you make a list this year? How is your list going?

Day 53/365

 

This Winter Sky Reflects My Mood

Blog365 Just Photos Winter Wednesday 2 Comments

Keeping it super short today. Captured this sky while out doing a bit of retail therapy.

The current weather: by the time I arrived home, the sun was shining. It’s currently 61 degrees and partly cloudy. A cold front supposedly moves in tonight. High of 32 predicted for tomorrow. Rained most of the morning.

I miss the sun in the wintertime. I miss being able to step out on my front porch and tear off a sprig of rosemary, mint, or lavender to crush between my fingers. Inhaling the scent of the herbs and flowers as I sit on the bench.

Rain or snow, needed or not, I’m tired of all the brown and not seeing the sun nearly often enough. I know though that tomorrow brings us one day closer to spring and more flowers and sunshine.

How are you coping with these last few days of winter?

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

Day 52/365

 

Chocolate or Vanilla

Blog365 2 Comments

As mentioned in a previous post, I love dark chocolate and strongly dislike (being polite) white chocolate. However, when it comes to cakes and cupcakes….

If you ask me: Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate or White Cake?

My answer almost every single time is going to be…

White cake. Vanilla ice cream. Unless strawberry is a choice, then my answer is…still going to be the same. I might take carrot cake over the strawberry, chocolate, and vanilla choices though.

I’d really probably rather have a slice of pie and even then, I’d prefer apple over chocolate. Still with the vanilla ice cream. I don’t want to think about the type of person who’d put chocolate ice cream on apple pie! No. Please, just don’t do that.

So to review: white cake and vanilla ice cream unless there’s pie. Then, I’ll have a slice of pie. Only ice cream? Still vanilla, please. Unless you happen to have spumoni? Then, I’ll be very happy with just a bowl of that.

What about you? Do you prefer chocolate or vanilla? What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?

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

Day 51/365

Happy Homemaker Monday, Almost Spring

Blog365 HappyHomemakerMonday 6 Comments

Happy Monday! It’s almost Spring, 27 days away according the my Farmer’s Almanac daily email.

The countdown is upon us. Winter is starting to pack his bags. Although I’m not so naive as to think he might not do some last minute sightseeing.

It’s also a holiday around here (President’s Day) so a bit of a later start today. Time to plan this shorter week with Sandra and her link up over at Diary Of A Stay At Home Mom.

The Weather 

It’s a beautiful sunny day. Currently 58 degrees. It’s supposed to hit the 60’s a couple of times this week. Also, rain on Wednesday. And cold for the end of the week. Then, we yo-yo back up to the 50’s for Saturday and Sunday.

As I Look Outside My Window

Sunny blue skies, saw this bird (I think it’s a hawk of some sort though at first, I debated if it was an owl) across the street early this morning. 

Right Now

I just got back from dropping off some donations. We went through a tub this morning. Or rather I did, an emotional one of things from my parents’ home. Kept very little of it. Time to let it go.

Thinking And Pondering 

Quite a few things. Main thing on my mind is the meeting I have on Wednesday with J’s school counselor. Hoping and praying it goes well.

On My Bedside Table

Nothing but the lamp and phone charger but here’s a glimpse of my dresser. I don’t do as well at keeping it cleared of stuff. (Clothes, coupon book from store, framed photos that do belong there)

On My TV Tonight

Nothing tonight but I might watch an episode or 2 of the second season of You later today.

Listening To

I can hear G playing some online video game with his friends.

On The Lunch Plate

Nothing, wasn’t really hungry

On The Dinner Plate

Probably rotisserie chicken and salad.

On The Menu For This Week

I had this all worked out in my head at the store and now I’m drawing a blank!

MONDAY: Rotisserie chicken, asparagus, and  salad *J has a baritone lesson at 6:30*

TUESDAY: It’s pancake Tuesday so what else would we have? Pancakes! Probably with either bacon or sausage as well.

WEDNESDAY: Chicken sausage, broccoli, and orzo skillet*I have a meeting with J’s high school counselor at 8:30*

THURSDAY: Steak sandwiches (stuff I bought at store, we’ll see…), potatoes

FRIDAY: Taco salads

On My Reading Pile

I’m between books but I’ll find one by tonight to read during J’s lesson. I did finally finish Kurashi at Home by Marie Kondo.  Enjoyed it enough I’m pondering buying my own copy, it’s a pretty book.

Might look for another one from Loreth Anne White for tonight. Read The Patient’s Secret last week and it was pretty good.

On My To Do List 

  1. Grocery store *DONE*
  2. Drop off donations at thrift store *DONE*
  3. Spend some time outside
  4. Finish paying bills
  5. Get bird seed at Menards
  6. Take back embarrassingly late library book (on Tuesday)

Plans This Week

Not sure, meeting at the high school, give the house a bit more of a cleaning, work outside on the nicer days clearing off the porch.

What I’m Creating

Really need to get started on that diamond art kit.

Simple Pleasure

Sunshine!

Looking Around The House

I did clean a bit over the weekend but it’s kind of hard to tell. Need to do it again. Trying to make our tiny entry area more welcoming. Time to lighten things up for spring as well.

From The Camera

Mostly took pictures of my flowers this week.

Quote For The Week

I stumbled across this a couple of weeks back and I keep thinking on it. Seems a pretty powerful sentiment:

Let go or be dragged. (Zen Proverb)

 

 

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

Day 50/365

Waiting

Blog365 Just Photos Wait2023 2 Comments

 

Nothing is lost in the waiting process because waiting is a growth process. (Ann Voskamp)  

No matter how long the winter, spring is sure to follow. (Proverb) 

Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. (Sharon Begley) 

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

Day 49/365

Two Very Good Books and TV Viewing

Blog365 Books and TV Shows 2 Comments

That title seems clunky. Anyone else have trouble with blog post titles? Or is it just me? Maybe I should stick to the basics like the name of this category: Books and TV Shows. Anyway, I thought a long holiday weekend (Monday is President’s Day) might be a good time to share what I’ve been reading and watching lately.

Books

I recently read two very good books right in a row! They were very different types of books though both extremely well-written. Made the book I read after them both stand out for its glaring mediocrity.

I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

The first book, I somehow had mistakenly thought was going to be a comedic book. It was not. AT ALL. This was the heartbreaking memoir of the actress who played Sam on the show, iCarly. G used to watch that show when he was in middle school, I think.

Sometimes when I read memoirs, I question the claims of the author. She wrote this in a way that I didn’t do that. What I did question was how so many adults could fail her. Basically this is a story of child abuse. She spends so much time trying to please her mentally unstable mother that she loses herself, to a career she never wanted, to eating disorders (her mother basically teaches her to be anorexic!), and the wrong relationships. There are adults in this book who notice but then, seem to do nothing. It is truly heartbreaking but not without hope as by the end of the book she’s beginning to find her voice and her calling as a (clearly very talented) writer. Worth your time.

Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng

I’ve been a fan of Celeste Ng since first reading Little Fires Everywhere. By the way, I never could make it through the Hulu series despite loving the book. Not sure why. Her newest book, does not move at a fast pace. Honestly, the beginning is a bit slow, considering this is a Dystopian novel of sorts. In this story, a law passed by congress after a “crisis” makes it possible to remove children from parents who are suspected of working against the government.

It focuses on a young Asian boy and the disappearance of his mother after her poem is used in several protests. Is his mother a traitor? The law in the book is used and abused to discriminate again mostly Asian families. It’s hard to give a proper plot summary without spoilers but while the book could feel a bit political yet doesn’t, it seems a lot more chillingly possible than the likes of something like The Hunger Games. Even the ending felt realistic to me. If you are looking for a work of fiction that makes you think with well-developed characters, this is it. Each character made me consider how I would want to react to things vs. how I would actually react to the things happening in the book.

I do suggest having a good light romantic comedy or something funny lined up as your next read as both the books I mentioned here were pretty intense. I just finished Smells of Tween Spirit by Laurie Gelman (#4 in a series) which while not her best had just enough sarcasm and snark to balance out some of the heaviness of my last few reads.

Or just plan to move on and watch some TV instead.

My TV Viewing Lately

Did you know the Amazon fire stick doesn’t work if it’s super outdated? We had to get a new one! Annoying but at least now we have special buttons to go right to Netflix or Disney.

Streaming Shows:

My oldest is happy because I finally started watching You over on Netflix. Somebody, please tell me why I am cheering for a psychopath stalker over here? What is wrong with me?

Still watching the one episode a week of the David Tennant era of Doctor Who.

And I started casually re-watching my favorite show of all time, Fringe over on HBO Max.

Regular TV Shows

The Masked Singer is back! So excited to be watching that one again. That said, I do wish they’d go back to the format where they only did one unmasking a show. I’m kind of over the whole battle royale set-up of it all.

I also enjoy Next Level Kitchen though I missed most of the season premiere of it for some reason.

Things I don’t go out of my way to watch but will sit and watch if they happen to be on when I have time to watch: Just Call Me Kat, The Rookie: Feds, Whose Line Is It Anyway, the new Night Court one. Random PBS documentaries.

If my husband has the remote, he’s usually watching either Forged in Fire, Pawn Stars, Swamp People, the Tree Logging one (that one really annoys me!), or one of the bazillion seasons of Top Chef. And I’m reading one of my books.

What are you reading and/or watching lately?

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

day 48/365

 

 

Galentines and Valentines

Blog365 Chitchat No Comments

This is a bit of an overdue post on my Galentine’s Day dinner as well as our Valentine’s day. Wanted to share before the details faded any more from my mind. I’m going to work backwards and start with my Valentine’s Day. I’ll have a lot more to say about Galentine’s Day.

Valentine’s Day

This was a work day for me and a pretty low key day. Our work party (for the preschool kids) was fun though the weather wasn’t cooperative. They keep this holiday very simple at my work. The kids decorate paper lunch bags with stickers,  have an ice cream party, and then exchange Valentines. It was tiring entertaining hyped up on sugar kids with no outside option but the kids had fun.

At home, we were very low-key. I’d started losing my voice on Monday night and working all day Tuesday didn’t improve things. We planned to order in from our favorite Chinese restaurant but they were closed for Valentine’s Day! So we made do with Hawaiian Bros which was very good and probably a little (a lot) cheaper than the Chinese restaurant. I just gave all the boys a package of Kit Kats and my husband a card. He gave me flowers and a card. The kids just gave me a card (which they actually forgot to give me until last night). It was a nice, relaxing night. Much needed since I worked the next day as well.

Galentine’s Dinner

Fresh Strawberry Cheesecake

This happened last week but today is the first day I’ve had time to share about it. We all met for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory on the Plaza. And we all exchanged “tokens of love and friendship” which stressed me a bit trying to figure that one out.

The Galentine’s Day Gifts I Put Together:

I opted to go simple by filling a gift bag with a few meaningful small gifts. Homemade chocolate chip cookies to start.

And, since the price of eggs lately is so high lately, I did this:

Not the best photos here. I took plastic Easter eggs, filled them with Hershey’s Kisses (strongly recommend the Lava Cake flavor if you can find it!), and added Fortune cookie sized strips of paper with the words “our friendship is priceless” printed on them.

Finally, I added small flower rockets and small Valentine’s day cards where I wrote “may our friendship continue to grow” as my message. I also gave everyone a heart necklace from the Dollar Tree just for fun (and wore one myself).

My Galentine’s Day Gifts From My Friends

Such wonderful, thoughtful, and fun gifts! A new plant, a homemade bracelet, a beautiful scarf, more flower seeds to plant, and of course, candy!

It all worked out great in the end. I’m very blessed to have so many wonderful friendships in my life. The Galentine’s Day dinner was with a group of my mom friends. We’ve been friends for over 20 years now as we met through our local Mom’s Club. We were actually the founding members of the group in this area.

A Few Funny Moments From The Night

Chicken Bellagio from the Cheesecake Factory

Shall I just confess to you all that I’m a mess? See my lovely dinner pictured above? It was delicious by the way! And the Cosmopolitan drink back there? (Also delicious) I managed to spill my first one all over the table before our food even arrived!

Side note here: While the food was very good indeed, let me just say we were all a bit startled by our bills (drink prices mostly). Cheesecake Factory is definitely a special occasion location. Or maybe a lunch date place.

Then, at home, I look in the mirror and I have a red “rash” all over my neck. Start panicking thinking I’m having an allergic reaction to the drinks or something in the food. Until, I realize my allergic reaction is wiping off on my hands. Cheap plastic Dollar Tree necklace turned my neck red from the beads. SIGH. I know for sure it was the necklace because I wore it again on Valentine’s Day and had the same issue.

This was the first time we’ve ever had a Galentine’s Day celebration. Imagine it won’t be the last.

Have you ever celebrated Galentine’s Day? How was your Valentine’s Day and/or Galentine’s Day if you celebrated it?

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

Day 47/365

 

 

 

 

 

Proudly powered by WordPress & Skyrocket Themes

MENU

Navigation