Happy Thanksgiving

 Hi~!   Remember me? Sure you do!!

It has been oh 4 months since I blogged.  I have today and tomorrow off work so I thought about wishing everyone who celebrates a Happy Thanksgiving!

I sure would have loved to post today about COVID 19 being in the past, but alas it is still spreading rampant here in the U.S.  A vaccine is in the works, though I won't be running to be first in line.  It worries me that they streamlined this on a fast tract....(to who knows what for those who get the first shots). Anyway didn't want to make this a doom and gloom blog, so enough about that.

Despite COVID, life goes on...my granddaughter is days away from being 10 months old.  My other daughter had her baby boy October 1st.  Here is a picture taken just a few days ago as the youngest is out visiting her sister (and others) for Thanksgiving.  My little extended family is growing. :)  So I can say I am a proud grandmother or Grams as I like to go by....to a granddaughter and a grandson.  I haven't seen Asher in person yet. I'm sure I will some day.  I have to just be cautious with this ongoing pandemic.

After years of working for the same employer, I decided to make a move to a smaller company that had better pay, and better opportunities.  I did this in September and am very happy with my new employment, although it is still very busy and I often work seven days a week.  (The reason I haven't been blogging this year much.)

I am still having fun singing on the online karaoke when I can.  I make sure I am still exercising 6 days a week and eating healthy.  It is the same old routine but I like it.  I feel grounded and content.  I am not one of those people who has to go out and do things, all the time (or even sometimes).  So luckily I do not have any issues with isolation or depression that others during this pandemic are experiencing. For that I am grateful.   Hubby feels the same way I do, so we are on the same page about our lives right now.  He supports me for working so many hours as he knows I love what I do, and it helps to save more toward retirement.  I'm hoping to retire in about 4 years.  We'll see.  I may always still work part-time somewhere after being retired a bit.  I don't know.  I've got plenty of time to think about it.  Hubby and I do want to take some road trips on Route 66 when I retire which I'm looking forward to.  

Well I hope everyone is staying safe, and happy!!  Until next time. :)

Nearly 2 months later...and COVID 19 still rampant

Hi !  I'm sorry it has been close to 2 months.  And here in America COVID 19 is still going rampant....in fact Texas has been hitting some records (and not in a good way).  Prayers to all!

I thought I owed it to ya'll to at least post a blog this week since I have had this week off!
It is the first full week vacation I took off in over 2 years!  It was a staycation but a much needed rest for my brain.  LOL.

I spent part of last weekend finishing up our tax returns since we took advantage of the extended filing date.  I was glad to get that done.  I also cleaned up my office as that had been a while too.  My desk has never looked better!  There is wood there under all that dust!

One of our dogs had been developing a bad bacterial skin infection so I spent part of my time off taking care of her.  She has had 3 baths with special shampoo (that has to soak in for 10 minutes) and I sewed some leg sleeves for her from ace bandaging to cover a spot on one leg that she keeps licking to help that heal better.  Her skin condition is improving but we did go ahead and have her tested for food allergies and she is allergic to some foods including beef and rice (which most of the dog foods we give her have). So a change in her diet is also happening.

When I gave her the first special shampoo treatment I forgot to take any kind of timer with me so I doubt it was the full 10 minutes.  The second time I shampooed her I remembered a timer but didn't bring anything else in the shower area with me, so I was really bored though I did rub her back a lot to rub the shampoo in better.
By the third time I got smart and also brought my iphone in so that I could have something to do in that 10 minutes time. :)

A long 10 minutes for Tika

Hand sewn sleeve

Keeping her from chewing!

 Then we also saw the youngest and her daughter on Thursday for a nice visit.  We hadn't seen her in over a month due to this pandemic but we sure had a great time. Our granddaughter is such a joy and was laughing a lot!  Such a happy baby!

Baby Adeline - almost 6 months old

Snicker, snicker

Other than that I also sorted through some clothing and jewelry that really needed organizing. I also got to watch some Netflix.  All in all a very nice week off, though it went by too fast.  At least I still have a whole weekend to go before having to really use my brain again! :)

Almost Memorial Day....

Hi !  It is me.  Hubby guilted me into blogging this evening by asking me when the last time was that I blogged and I couldn't remember.  So I opened my blog to see when exactly was the last time. I was happy to be able to say "I just blogged last month" in response to his question. And since I'm here anyway I might as well post since I don't know when I will get the chance to again soon.  Why is that?  It is because I have been working more than ever.  LOL.

The company I work for has gone 100% remote for the most part and with that and the low interest rates, it seems that everyone is working all the time. Well not ALL the time. There is the needed energy (food) time and brain rest (sleep) time that are important to squeeze in between the work time. I'm working so much that I've had to stop and ask my hubby if we are still on COVID19 lock down.  He said "You look familiar but I can't quite remember your name".

So hopefully you are convinced that I haven't had the time to blog because I really haven't. That being said, my granddaughter is nearly 4 months old and I haven't seen her for over 2 months, we have already hit our first 100 degree day here in Texas this year and Memorial Day is right around the corner.

That pretty much gets you caught up. :)

Toilet Paper

If your area is anything like mine, toilet paper is one of those hard to find necessities today!!
Every time we order curbside, delivery or even give up and go into the store, there is none to be found.

When my mother was still alive I used to shake my head when she'd insist on using just one square of toilet paper to wipe. She grew up in the depression era and I guess it just stuck with her to always be very conservative with toilet paper use.  When I took her to doctor appointments and she had to use the rest room, I'd insisted she used MORE than one little square.  I don't know how she did it, because I definitely need more than one little square.  I was afraid to ask her how much she used when she went #2!

Growing up during the Depression was a challenge for many I gather from the stories my mom told.  One dim light bulb for the one light over the dining room table.  Eating bread with lard on it was a treat, and going without was a daily event.  I'm hoping that with this pandemic and how long it is taking to get through the states, that we don't head in that direction.  So many are already losing their jobs or have loved ones who are sick or both. Hope we will all get through this strong!!

Back to the toilet paper shortage though, these days I do find myself trying to count out no more than 4 squares when I use the toilet, well unless it is #2.  ;-)

What do we do when we are told to stay home?

Farmers Market was Open

I have been really yearning for some honest to goodness fresh vegetables for a while now.  The stores have been understandably sorely lacking in that department and I found out that our local farmers market was still taking place in a shopping center parking lot in town.

I donned a pair of thin gloves for protection and went on Saturday when it opened in the morning.  Although I could not find any eggs that hubby wanted me to get, I was able to get loads of vegetables to satisfy my fresh veggie withdrawal.

I picked up beets, cauliflower, broccoli, spinach, carrots, scallions and also got some local honey and fresh strawberries. Although one of the fingers of one glove got a hole in it, I was still very pleased with my purchases and there weren't a lot of people there at the time I went.  

A spinach salad with carrots, scallions and califlouwer was in order for lunch! :)

Then I blanched and froze most of the vegetables to have as sides with dinner for the next few weeks. I did the carrots this evening after work.  I feel much better about the vegetable situation now!

Fresh Spinach Salad 

Blanching broccoli and cauliflower

Beets cooling after blanching

Chopped carrots, ready for draining and freezing

Near the end of March..

I know it has been over a month since I blogged and that was not intentional.

Things at work were getting busier and then I went to visit my granddaughter the first weekend in March after the news of the virus spreading to the US was increasing.

I hope that everyone reading this is safe and well and did not have anyone close to you pass away from this horrible covid-19 pandemic.  It is really a scary situation and it is hard to not be worried about everyone's future.  I feel such respect and frustration (empathy) for the areas hardest hit and the hospitals and doctors/nurses, etc., trying to deal with the lack of equipment, masks, beds, all the things that are so badly needed.

I am grateful that my loved ones are healthy and safe and I hope they remain that way.  My oldest is pregnant and due the beginning of October.  She has a lot of nausea from the pregnancy but hopefully it will go away very soon.

The stores have been picked over by hoarders over and over unfortunately and there are several items that are rarely available.  Hubby was waiting outside one of the three grocery stores in town at 5:30am to try to get some things we needed last Tuesday.  He didn't get everything but was able to get some ground beef and chicken. Our county is on a 'stay at home' order and nothing but essential businesses/services are open right now.

I was happy to find out that the Farmers Market (food is essential) was still going on and was open this morning. It is held in a shopping center parking lot.  I got there when it opened to try to avoid crowds.  I wore a pair of thin gloves that we happen to have but I did get a hole in one of the fingers so it didn't really help that much.  I really was missing getting fresh vegetables and was so happy to get broccoli, beets, carrots, spinach, cabbage, strawberries, and a few other things I can't recall now.  I plan to blanch and freeze small portions of much of the vegetables so that I can pull out what I want to heat up to go with dinners.  We have only had canned vegetables for a while and that is just not the same.

Hubby and I are staying at home for the most part except for shopping for food.  We used a curbside pick up today which went pretty well and we are going to try a delivery service too.  I really don't like him going out at all because he has lung issues from having smoked so many years so I would consider him high risk.  

I am, as I'm sure we all are, looking so forward to being on the other side of this monster!!

Hurry up March!

Normally I don't like time to fly and I really shouldn't complain as someone who lives in Texas, as it really hasn't been all that bad of a winter.  We didn't get lots of snow or anything like that.  But all we get is teasers.  We get a day or two of nicer 70 degrees or warmer outside and then winter comes back with a cold chilly rain and temperatures in the 40's.  Tomorrow it may be around the freezing mark when I walk.  This is the type of crap I want to have over for this season.

Come March it should warm up and stay that way for once.  I keep ping ponging between heavy sweaters to lighter tops.  LOL. I know...things could be so much worse but hey I thought I'd share what I've been dealing with these last few weeks or so.

I haven't seen our granddaughter in person since visiting a while ago but hopefully will go for a visit in the next few weeks.  I really don't want to expose her to more germs either.  I actually read something online about a baby who died at 2 weeks old because she caught some illness that she got from someone who kissed or touched her that had dirty hands or something like that shortly after she was born.  Anyway, baby's immune systems are so meager for a while so they recommend avoiding going out in public or having lots of visitors until they are 8-12 weeks old. Even when I was at the hospital for her delivery the nurse who was assisting with her vitals and such said no babysitters for a while and even anyone visiting should have a booster shot beforehand if they haven't in a while.  I asked my daughter what she meant by that and she said she thought it was for tetanus, but I don't know.  It has been a long time since I had any shots of any kind, so I made sure I didn't try to kiss her or hold her hand that day.  And when we visited her I held her but only with her fully clothed.

I know it has been a while since I've blogged but since I no longer have to try to blog every day, the pressure is off and I don't feel compelled to write as often.

Other than the regular daily routine there isn't a whole lot going on.  I did have a skin doctor appointment a few weeks ago and two more moles need some additional removal done.  This is not new to me.  I feel like I'm a petri dish for skin cancer.  Paying for those sun bathing oil slathering teen years is all.  Hopefully with my continual check ups, I can avoid getting anything severe like melanoma.

Random pictures and such...

Could hardly believe I saw a butterfly in the back yard on January 31st!
But here's proof :)

Today we went to visit our granddaughter.  Hubby had not met her yet.  She was sleeping most of the time. We got some cute photos though.  :)  One of their dogs kept coming around trying to sniff her....so I let him (Beau is his name) sit up next to me and I cradled his face and he was so sweetly curious about the baby.  Then he fell asleep too.  

Here are some more pictures of just her.  :)

February already?

Hard to believe it is February already!!  So what did you miss?  Me becoming a Grandma for the first time.  Yup. Last week my youngest had a baby girl.  I was fortunate enough to be there to support her and witness the birth.   They certainly do things a lot differently than they did 30 years ago.  After the birth they don't take certain 'stats' right away.  In fact I never heard an APGAR score for her. They promote skin on skin contact between mother and baby which was nice but I was just surprised they didn't weigh and measure her first.  Like I said things are done differently nowadays.  It was about 2 hours later that they got her weight and length.  She weighed 7 lbs, 4 oz, but I forget the length.

I was proud of my daughter as she did great throughout the labor and delivery.  It went rapidly too once she got an epidural.  Hubby hasn't met the baby yet so we will be going to visit soon so that he can meet her and I didn't get to hold her yet either.  So that will be nice too!

I'm not sure what I'd like to be called, though I really don't like Grandma or Grandmother.  That reminds me of a little old lady who is hunched over, in the kitchen with her apron on.  LOL.  So I prefer anything else, like grams, or grandmommy or grandmama (sounds younger), but we'll see. I suppose it doesn't really matter much.

Fun fact. My granddaughter was born on my oldest's birthday.  Will make it easy to remember, that's for sure. They are 32 years apart.

And my oldest dog Tika turned 13 years old on the 30th.  She makes the 2nd oldest dog we've owned.  My oldest so far was Molly who lived to be 13 years and 9 months old.  Tika is my shadow and I don't see her wanting to leave my side any time soon, so maybe she'll outlive Molly.  We will see if time is on her side.

Work has slowed down as it often does after the 1st of the year.  I only worked a handful of OT hours this week and it was weird as I'm used to being so swamped.  So I am taking it in stride.  This weekend I don't have to work so it has been relaxing.

Tomorrow is the Superbowl.  I plan to watch it mostly for the commercials, but hubby heard there will be a lot of political commercials and isn't interested.  So we'll see.  I may be watching it by myself.  LOL.

Rainy Day

It rained all day long and we really needed it.  I even skipped my walk this morning because it was so dark and I could hear the steady rain hitting the metal roof after I got up. SO I told hubby to wake me up in another hour.  It was really nice getting to sleep longer. :)  So no exercise for me today but I hardly ever miss either my walk or exercise so I consider it my hump day break today.

We are having a drought here in Central Texas, but it seems to be typical every year or other year so I'm sure we'll get out of it in the next few months.  I think we got close to if not at least an inch today so that's good!

Keeping this short just wanted to post something.. as I know it has been a while. :)

Sunday fun day

Why was it fun day?  Because I didn't have to work for once.  I had the entire day off.   So I didn't get up until close to 7:30AM and exercised as I always do (except Saturdays).  Then watched an episode of Hoarders and grabbed a shower, etc.  Oh before showering I swiffered and vacuumed my office floor as it was really in need of it. 

I got in some singing on singsnap and also got in some reading! :)   We also gave Bella a bath and I got a load of my cold water wash done (that I hang on racks).  So overall it was a good day....and it is only 7:11PM so I can get some more reading in.  Tomorrow back to the grind.

Mid day Moon?

I worked just a few hours this morning and then hubby and I went to an Antique Mall to look around as it had been a while since we've been there.  That is the place we rent a small display case at to sell antiques.  We got a few cast iron dogs and some other goodies.  It was really nice walking around and checking out all the neat things.

On the way home the sky was so blue and I was admiring how there wasn't a cloud in the sky.  It was 3:24PM and there to the right I saw the moon.  At least I believe that is what it was.  I have never seen the moon mid afternoon.. and really thought it was strange. I grabbed my phone and took a fast picture of it for proof.  LOL.  

Tomorrow is the first full work week in January...okay yes I worked a few hours today but what I mean is I will be working all week long without taking any days off.  Hopefully it won't seem too terribly long.  :)

Happy New Year 2020!

A new year...a new decade. ...a blank slate for the next 365 days right?

This year will be something new for me as I will become a grandmother for the first time.
It still is hard for me to wrap my head around that fact.  I know it is common, no big deal...happens to most women at some point in their lives...but to me it is a first and just something that will be new.  I am sure I will embrace...lol.  I know I'm weird!   I never really had grandparents to use for an example.  My mom's dad died before I was born (I'm pretty sure) and I only recall one visit from my mom's mother. I was young when her mom visited us and don't recall much about it other than there was an old bent over woman sitting on the stool in our kitchen. A stranger to me.

My dad's folks weren't visited often enough for me to feel comfortable with them as grandparents.  I was more afraid of my grandmother cornering me to get a kiss than anything else.  Sad, I know...but I can count on one hand the number of times I recall anyway, seeing them.  I'm sure they were fine people.  And if my aunt is reading this, no offense intended!!  It is just my memory from my childhood.

I guess my biggest concern is that I want to be a good grandmother. Someone that has grandchildren who will know her well enough to be happy to see her, accept her and love her.  My one sister seems to have fit into the grandmother role very easily as her son has two children now.  They live in the same town as well so that makes it much easier to visit a lot.  I'm told it will come naturally.  Fingers crossed. :-)

So I am not making any unreasonable resolutions this year for 2020.  Like blogging every day.  Yea, I should have thought more about that last year.  Some days there was just nothing really to write about and other days I was working so late that I didn't want to stay up and write period. :)

I am making two resolutions this year though that I think will be easy to stick with.
#1 drink at least 64 oz of water/liquids daily.
#2 Wear at least one piece of Paparazzi jewelry every day.

The water challenge I have already been doing for over a month now.  I have been horrible about getting enough water as I always hated drinking it.  I rarely just would pour a cup to drink. I already exercise and eat a pretty healthy diet but I am pretty sure I've been getting maybe half of the water intake I should. So I've been drinking and tracking and am going to stick with it. I can tell a difference already with more energy, etc.

The jewelry resolution is just due to the fact that I have a lot of the paparazzi from having sold it so there is no reason I should not wear a piece every day.  It will make it seem more worth it that I have it by actually wearing it every day.  :)

So those are my 2 resolutions!  I look forward to what this year holds!