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Happy Homemaker Monday, Now on Wednesday

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.”

**********

Thankful Thursday Evening, Jan 7-13

Welcome to the Thankful Thursday evening edition.  Remember when newspapers used to have both morning and evening editions? And were actually paper? Delivered in the driveway?

Sometimes, I miss those days. However, I’m thankful for the Internet and the way I can use it to share all the great things from my week with all of you. And connect with other bloggers and readers.

The reason for the evening edition of my post is the weather. Today was sunny and in the mid-50’s. I was outside most of the day wearing my sweatshirt, no coat needed. One of the devotional verses this morning was Psalm 118:24, This is the day that the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it. And that’s just what I did with some help from a certain bossy little gray cat.

And I opened the windows and aired out the entire house. As much as I love candles, diffusers, and the like there is no better scent in the world than fresh air. Especially, after many in the household were sick.

Remember my list goes from Friday to Thursday each week. So some of these are possibly from last week as well.

Here are the items for my Thankful Thursday

  1. Plenty of streaming choices on the TV
  2. A Kansas City Chiefs win over Denver!
  3. Financial aid and a scholarship helping with G’s college costs
  4. A few pleasant exchanges with the teenager
  5. On-line church
  6. Drive-thru windows
  7. On-line grocery shopping
  8. Keeping my sense of humor (though it’s only Monday as I type this one) thankful Thursday evening
  9. Sunshine, warmer weather, and blue skies in January
  10. Watching out the back door as two Carolina wrens called to each other

And a few extras from today:

  1. A chance to open the windows and air out the house
  2. Managing to keep one pack of these Prosecco Bon Bons hidden for my Joe Millionaire viewing party tonight (I’m the only guest, lol). It’s not a giant jar like in the link, it’s just a bag I ordered from Universal Yums.
  3. Finding a few “forgotten” images on the bridge camera SD card

    Thankful Thursday evening
    Cooper’s Hawk, not sure when I took this
  4. A glimpse of a spectacular sunset out the back. Unfortunately, we are well suited for me to grab sunrise photos, not so much sunset pictures. The sky was filled with the most brilliant orange and red hues. Since I couldn’t get a decent photo of a sunset, here’s another from the forgotten SD card, a sunrise from a few weeks ago: Thankful Thursday Evening
  5. Remembering to fill the gas tank on the car while the weather was still nice (snow predicted for the weekend)

What things are on your thankful Thursday evening list?

Being Kind to Myself and Going Slow

So I pick heal for my word of 2022 and we all start the year with COVID. Wonderful. Last week I shared a bit about the self-care journal I found at Target.  Right now for this week I’m simply focused on being kind to myself and going slow.

Those sound like such simple things. However, I’m struggling with them a bit.

being kind to myself

Why is it so hard to be kind to ourselves? Or is it just me? I can easily encourage a kid, a friend, a family member. However, it takes so much work for me to be kind to myself and give myself the same level of grace. A lot of times it just comes down to the information found in this article I stumbled across. Not knowing what I need. And sometimes it’s knowing exactly what I need but not wanting to disrupt the peace to get it. That really needs to change.

However, for this week here are some ways I plan on being kind to myself: being kind to myself

  1. Spend sometime outside going for a walk alone (We went for a drive yesterday to get my husband out of the house but it gave me worse cabin fever not being able to get out and just be in nature)
  2. Ask (nicely) for what I need. Sick or not, I need my family to show a little (not a lot) appreciation. Thank you goes a long way with me.
  3. Stand up to that mean inner voice that tries to tell me (and sadly, sometimes succeeds) that I’m not good enough.
  4. Drink my water! And forgive myself if I fall a bit short on my goal of a tall glass of water with every meal.

Didn’t I also say something about going slow?

being kind to myself

I don’t know if going slow is really what I mean here. It’s more a case of taking the time to allow myself to feel my feelings. Not getting bogged down with them but not simply pushing them away (a bad habit of mine) either. When you don’t take the time to feel your feelings, they tend to come back in a rush and stronger over minor things. At least, that happens to me. Does that ever happen to you?

A minor spat over J’s breakfast this morning brought back so many feelings of inadequacy from this time last year when his struggles with anxiety started. The voice in my head started in telling me that this taking care of a sick family thing wasn’t that hard and I wasn’t doing nearly enough or anything right. That I was a “crap” parent. My plan this year is to take a minute and fully feel things, including sadness and frustration. Hopefully, doing that allows me to heal a bit from some past hurts I’ve simply ignored.

Note, I don’t plan to dredge up the past but simply acknowledge the hurts and not rush away the feelings. Hoping this approach helps to lighten the mental load a bit in the coming year.

Of course, I also plan to take some time and experience the feelings of joy. That’s the focus of my Thankful Thursday posts, new one coming tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Homemaker Monday, We’re Positive People

Usually being positive is a good thing, right? Unless, of course, we’re referring to the dreaded Covid-19. I’m late this morning because I had to take J for a test through the school district and of course, he tested positive. I’m not surprised.

That makes 3 out of 4 around here. I’d likely test positive as well (maybe not, no symptoms) but finding tests is still crazy impossible in these parts. Feel lucky to have found the 2 I did last week. Yesterday, G went to his appointment to take a PCR test at CVS and the drive-up was closed. Big sign in the window that they were closed due to staff shortage and to reschedule your tests. SIGH. And the test he ordered from our state almost 2 weeks ago, still not shipped. So much for that.

Big sign on the store where I found the 2 at-home tests, currently out of stock. That said, I realize we are very fortunate that the illness has hit our house with pretty mild symptoms. Sore throats, sinus congestion, and a bit of fatigue. A bit of a cough for them all as well. No serious breathing issues, big relief on that.

Hope if you are reading this your family is healthy and far away from any Covid-19 illnesses. Time to join in with Sandra at Diary Of A Stay At Home Mom to plan this second week of the year.

The Weather

Checking the weather out the window this morning

Chilly this morning, in the 20’s, but supposed to warm up to the 50’s by tomorrow. That’s just about shorts weather in January in Missouri. Not really, well, maybe for the middle school kids. However, it is definitely open the windows for a tiny bit to air out the house weather! Chance of rain on Friday. We still need some moisture around here. It’s been a pretty dry winter so far.

How I Am Feeling This Morning

A little bit stir-crazy. Thinking I might make my husband go for a drive later just so he can get out of the house for a bit. Confused about all the quarantine regulations. I *think* I’m good to wear masks and get stuff still (since I’m vaccinated & boosted & all that) but I’m not sure. Definitely don’t want to get anyone else sick. Not working this week for sure (again, so much for a paycheck) but think I’ll be okay to work the 21st when I’m scheduled. Did I mention I was confused?

On The Breakfast Plate

Strawberry cheesecake flip yogurt, coffee, and vitamins. Might make the rest of them some cinnamon applesauce muffins in a bit.

On My Reading Pile

I read The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning by Margareta Magnusson. Thought it would inspire me to declutter a bit but honestly, it just wasn’t my cup of tea. Next up on my stack of library books is The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It’s a children’s book but one I’ve never read believe or not! I feel as though I need to read it.

On My TV

NFL Football. Go Chiefs! That game about did me in on Saturday. I think every Chiefs fan was a Texans fan on Sunday, sigh, the Texans gave a valiant effort. Congrats to the Titans. And I’m happy for the Steelers! Though for obvious reasons, I can’t root for Pittsburgh this coming Sunday. Other than sports, I’m also watching Around the World in 80 Days on PBS (it’s very good) and *hanging head a bit, talk about a pivot* Joe Millionaire on Thursdays (the millionaire is from Missouri so I feel obligated to watch). Also, caught a bit of Next Level Chef which seems like it’s going to be good.

On The Menu

Clearing out the freezer while trying to feed sick people is a bit of a tall order. Trying still…all subject to change.

MONDAY: Lasagna, garlic breadsticks (salad if I get to the store, see my confusion above)

TUESDAY: Ribs in the crockpot (Why we have so many ribs in our freezer I do not know), corn on the cob

WEDNESDAY: Pepper steak, rice

THURSDAY: Tacos

FRIDAY: Homemade pizza, salad

On My To Do List

  1. Take J for Covid-19 test DONE
  2. E-mail results to school nurse DONE
  3. Cancel J’s Doctor appt for Friday (just a check up)
  4. Pay Bills
  5. Put away rest of Christmas (it’s all down just not properly put away)

From The Camera

Not too much as we were stuck inside most of last week due to illness and cold weather. Played around with taking photos through the front door this morning.

Looking Around The House

Most of this is now put away thankfully

Walls are closing in on my a bit. Need to put away some laundry that’s still sitting on the couch, usual clean up chores. Did shine one side of the kitchen sink last week.

Something Fun To Share

Just some music I heard on the TV Saturday morning and liked. Probably the last person to have heard of this song but I enjoyed it.

Quote For The Week

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. (Romans 12:12 NIV)

Thankful Thursday: First of 2022

Welcome to my first Thankful Thursday of 2022! In my plans to *Heal* (my 2022 word of the year), my goal is to definitely take some time each day for a bit of gratitude and share a bit of it each Thursday.  Thankful Thursday

This isn’t a new idea at all, there are lots of thankful Tuesdays and Thursdays and other days (we should be thankful everyday) to link up and share gratitude. I have no plans to complicate this by making it a link up but if you’d like to join me each Thursday in your blog post, just let me know in the  comments and I’ll come by and visit. Definitely, always grateful for blog readers, comments, and my fellow bloggers!

Thankful Thursday for the Beginning of the Year 2022

  1. Spotting a hawk sitting on the fence by suet feeder at dusk on Saturday. I startled it (we startled each other) so it flew off before I could even think to look for the camera.
  2. A phone call with a friend on Monday afternoon. It was cut a bit short so definitely more catching up to do at a later date. Thankful Thursday
  3. A beautiful sunrise on Tuesday morning! Thankful Thursday
  4. Starbucks still having holiday drinks, one last crème Brule latte for the season!
  5. Library books, everyone here is sick except me so it’s nice to have a book or two for company
  6. Finding at-home COVID tests in the drug store (Not great results)
  7. Feeling healthy enough to take care of all the sick people in this house (Booster shot for the win?)
  8. For the discipline to tell myself “there’ll be another sale” when looking at on-line deals
  9. This silly cat that keeps me on my toes Thankful Thursday
  10. Easy phone calls and e-mails with the extremely kind and helpful high school nurse (attendance protocols are so confusing right now)

I’m stopping at 10 this week and that’s probably going to be my number each week. Not going to lie, coming up with a few of these items was a challenge this week. Didn’t plan to start the year with half my household testing positive for COVID. 

Bonus Items

So, I took a break from this post to run to the bathroom, check on the sick people, and change over the laundry (so much laundry…lots of bedding and blankets getting a run through with an add-in capful of bleach). And I thought of three more random things to add to my Thankful Thursday list.

  1. The flower/garden seed catalogs I’ve collected, sitting and waiting for me to plan the garden for the warm, sunny days ahead
  2. A vain one but I’m very thankful for a great hairdresser because my hair still looks decent despite having to postpone an already over-due hair appointment.
  3. Bigger and more important: I’m so very thankful for clean, running water to drink and have available for basic chores. The church service project on Christmas Eve was to collect money for clean water wells in Mozambique (100% collected went to the project and they collected double their goal!). I tend to take our clean water (we have really good water around here, it’s won awards and stuff) for granted but I am so very thankful for it.

What things, big or small, are making you feel thankful?

 

 

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