Happy Birthday, Flowers, a Cake, Food and Captain Serious

Hi there everyone. Hope you are having a good Merry Month of May. My month has been VERY shaky, to say the least. I try to tell myself everyday the above Meme.....but I am only human, not perfect as yet. As much as I want to give up, I can't. JP is wanting to give up, as he is very tired of all these physical and mental health issues he faces daily.

JP's birthday was yesterday, 17th, he is now 74 yrs old....yep an old man now. He got a 3 birthday cards, a call from his brother in Hoffman Estates, and a few birthday wishes from the doctor's office. I bought him a new pair of slippers that look like street shoes, he can slip them on and off with very little effort. Never got a chance to make a card for him. Forgot the cheese cake in the freezer....tonight will be okay I guess.😍

This week-end was really a tough one. I had to call the fire dept. to help me pick JP up off the floor in the bathroom. We were doing a Cath. and over he fell, that was early Saturday morning. Then early Sunday morning, I had to call again (as per his nurse that comes weekly). This time he was transported to the ER. All his vitals are perfect, BUT he needs his meds changed, the Doctor in ER says he has dementia. There needs to be a follow-up with the regular doctor and the physiatrist.

Above is a picture of my pretty tulips that opened up like roses, they are so pretty in the sun light. 💓

To continue on with JP's problems and mine, (as I am the caregiver). JP has had 4 eye doctor appointments. All confirming he has Melanoma in his right eye. The next appointment will be in Green Bay at St. Vincent's Hospital. Do not know when that will be as yet. If you would please pray for JP. We are living day by day, I just can't go any farther then the next hour.🙏🙏🙏

This was a cute Valentine's cake I got for JP......sorry to say, he was really GOOD!!! He was devoured in a day!!!😊

So once I find out when the appointment is, Community Care will find a ride for us up to the Hospital in Green Bay and home again. (I hope). The last two trips to ThedaCare Hospital in Neenah, a car-pool picked us up.....really nice people, and they helped me get JP in the car too. So helpful (the first ride, the second ride, the caregiver and car driver both got JP in the car).

In these two pictures, is a meal I made for JP. He has to have soft food, so I thought stuffed peppers would be good on a sheet pan. It's just hamburger, rice, egg, bread crumbs and seasonings stuffed in green peppers. The asparagus has oil, salt and pepper then I cut up onion, covering the asparagus. Oh and those orange strips are sweet potatoes. So everything was soft, then I covered his food with gravy. The above picture is before it was baked, below after it was baked. Yummy meal. 👍👌😀

I guess I will be getting help to find a place for JP to live, where he will get 24/7 care. He is getting very hard for me to care for and I am losing sleep, staying up with him during the nights to make sure he does not do anything crazy, like fall. 

On Monday's, Wednesday's and Friday's a caregiver comes to watch JP for 3 hours, while I can go to the store, or just get away for some free time. 

On Monday's a landscaper comes to cut our grass. (the neighbor took advantage of the situation (yesterday) and had the landscaper cut his grass also).👎I did not like that situation, but who am I???? My other neighbor did not think that was right either, because this neighbor is capable of doing it himself!!!!! Oh well, that is people for ya'!!! I asked the landscaper if this neighbor paid him and yes he did. I just did not want this neighbor getting a free grass cut on my dime....you know what I mean????👎💢😝

So now I guess we just wait to see what happens next. Tomorrow, I have an appointment at 11am to get my blood drawn for the A1C...it's been 6 months since the last one. At that time, the A1C was 6.3 which was good, I have a feeling it will be much higher with all that has been going on.....I hope not though. JP has an appointment at 10:30 with the doctor as a follow-up from his ER visit. Also the eye doctor wants JP's doctor to know what is going on. Sure glad they keep in contact....I have had to explain everything, cause JP can't remember anything.😢😭😩

Thursday, I have to take the car in for it's oil and grease job plus get some new tires for the front. JP says I do not need to do that, that they are fine. I am still going to have them checked. JP has not driven the car 5-6 months now. I do the driving. They will have the car for most of the day. Then call when it is ready and they will pick me up in the car, driving back to the service station, then I can have the car.

At 2pm I have a virtual meeting with our Insurance Co. to up-date  our insurance....hopefully there won't be a lot of changes and the price won't change much.

Friday the caregiver will come at 1pm, hopefully giving JP a shower and clean clothes and I can take off for a few hours. She also washes my dishes, if there are any (which there usually is), she vacuums, washes the floor, cause JP pees the bathroom floor a lot. She folds towels, doing little things in keeping this place clean. She is a real help.😌😌😌Much relief to me.

So this handsome hockey player is in need of prayer. 🙏🙏🙏He plays for the Chicago Blackhawks and he is the Captain of the team. He has been out of commission this whole season. He has been dealing with an illness that has not been diagnosed as yet. His complaint is that he is weak and lethargic and nothing else has been said. His name is Jonathon Toews. The Blackhawks did not make it to the Play-offs this season. Covid 19 messed things up for all the teams. Well, the next season starts in October and hopefully Covid 19 is just a passing thought.

Time to close here, if you are still with me, I hope you will pray 🙏🙏🙏 what the world needs most is prayer, never ending prayer!!!!

You all take care and keep looking up....better days are coming and when the trump sounds we are on our way to meet JESUS!!! 

Cheers ~ Louise

PS had lots of fun playing with the emojies today....you just may see them a lot more!!!💚💛💜💙💖

GOODBYE 2020

 Hi there everyone, hope you had a nice Christmas and was able to spend it with your family and friends. JP's family lives in Illinois...where we both are from. We've been in Wisconsin since 1976. Guess we are more Wisconsinites now after 44 yrs. How time flies in a twinkling of an eye. My family is non-existent, everyone is dead. No brother's, sister's, aunt's or uncle's. I had one baby but was told to put her up for adoption. I will leave it at that, she wants nothing to do with me.

So here are a few views of my little table top Christmas tree. I have had this tree for over 20 years. I used to do real trees but stopped, they got too expensive for the pocket book. The above tree is the "USA" tree. Red, white and blue lights and red and blue ornaments.

The above tree is my "Valentine" tree. Can you tell, everything is RED and white. The elf seems to always find a place to sit in the tree. Sometimes he stays on the tree all year longs.

"St. Patrick's Day" tree. There's the elf....otherwise every is green. I contemplated an "Easter" tree for April.....but I guess by March I was getting Christmas treed out.

This tree is from 2017. My tree this year looks pretty much the same. I shall take a picture of this years tree in a couple of days, before I start taking it down. Don't think I am leaving it up as long as I usually do. I didn't start decorating this year's tree till Christmas Eve. My heart has not been it Christmas this year. 

I guess mainly because I have been dealing with JP's health issues on a daily basis and he seems to be getting worse as the days go by. A nursing home is in JP's future, it's getting very hard to take care of him the last couple of months. Still waiting to hear from Doctors. Maybe the first of the year things will start to progress. So much is up in the air because of this Covid 19....be glad when it is over, if it gets over.

Well, time to close here. I may do one last blog on the 31st. That should make 25 blogs for 2020. Yeah, I have been very laxed in doing these blogs, just not a whole lot happening. Well, a lot has happened but I just have not wanted to tell the world about my tales of woe's because someone else's tales are probably worse then mine.

So you all have a great New Year and I DO hope 2021 is much better then this last year was. Take care and keep looking up, better days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise  

14 Days Into 2019

Hi there everyone....14 days into this new year and it has been hectic and frustrating!!! Without going into too much detail, as I look at my desk calendar....everyday has something going and I am already POOPED!!!!

The last day of 2018, we had to call the plumber AGAIN. A leak under the sink and water dripping on the floor. The pipes were plugged to the tune of $264 and we still owe $40 from the last visit....the toilet was leaking down in the basement. A drip, drip, drip, every time the toilet flushed and oh did the basement smell. I thought we were in the clear for awhile and then the leak under the sink started the last week of 2018.

JP has had quite a few days off from work...the last week of December which meant a very small check for this month. We barely had enough $$$ to pay the mortgage. Not sure what next month will bring...but we will see.

I signed up for food help once a month at the Salvation Army. Yep....that took a lot for me to do. 17 years ago I worked at the Salvation Army and was helping people with getting food....now I need the help...it is quite humbling, that is for sure. So Friday I signed up and was taken into the warehouse and walked through the aisles. My cart was full and weighed out at 112 lbs of food. Guess I will not have to go shopping for a while, except for medication, paper products and Kylie's food.


Saturday, I had Spectrum come and set up the tv, internet and phone. I am cancelling At&t and Directv. Cost wise, I was paying $225 a month. Spectrum will be $75 dollars cheaper. Now I have to get used to the new numbers. Just looking for ways to save money. Tuesday I will be signing up for Energy assistance....will see how that goes. Hopefully I can get a few months paid, and that will help. Hopefully....by the end of the month I will have enough $$$ to pay our house taxes. Since JP went part-time it has been really tough making ends meet.

Maybe this is why I have not been blogging a whole lot....just have not felt like it as there is nothing exciting to write about or take pictures of.
 
 I got a new used stove last month....so it has been a joy to cook again. I made some 30 Minute Dinner Rolls, that were really good. Following is the recipe: Hope you can read it.

Last week I made "IHOP" copycat Buttermilk pancakes. Oh my gosh.....were they delicious. I am going to make more, but I will have to use regular milk and add a little bit of vinegar to make the milk sour....that should work.

My only enjoyment has been watching the Chicago Blackhawks on TV and computer....only wish they would start winning more. But I am getting into the other teams and only hope the other teams don't beat the Blackhawks....it's been an interesting season though.

Card making has been at a minimum lately....Valentines and St. Patrick cards....cleaned out my stash so there are lots of cards for those two holidays. Just have to put inserts inside the cards. BUT my printer is not working, so I may not have enough inserts to put in the cards.....I tell you, there is always something to hinder me from doing what I need to get done.

Health wise....we are still plugging along. JP still gets his arm pains, people who don't know him think he is having a heart attack. Then he tells them he has been getting these attacks for 8 years and has been to 5 specialist, none of them could point the finger at the problem. So, we live with it. 

Kylie still deals with her blindness and hard of hearing, but she seems to be doing better and loves to eat, go outside, sleep and walk around the house bumping into things. When it is not cold, we go for walks, but since she can't see that well, we never quite make it down to the corner because she is already heading back the other direction. Funny how a dog's life can change so radically.

As for me, I am still on the Keto diet (part-time), it works for me. I want to lose another 20 lbs this year. That is doable. My Doctor will be happy with me. My A1C is 6.2....next appointment is May, so I need to keep working on that. I still deal with a sciatic nerve problem on the left side of the butt. Gosh, it hurts when I get up in the morning and can barely walk....after an hour or so it gets better. Guess I am stuck with that pain for the rest of my life.

Well, now that I have completely bored you to death with all my problems, I shall close here for now. No telling when the next time I will be here. But I will keep you updated now and then. So until then, keep looking up because I am very sure, better days are coming soon and very soon. Cheers ~ Louise

Secret Stamper Images Pt. 1

Hi there everyone. How has your week been? I am a little bit slow at getting these cards posted on my blog. These cards were from the Secret Stamper Image Reveal Party from April 22nd....oh well, guess spring has been a bit busy or, not so busy. No excuses. 

Have really been enjoying May and June. Not so much April though, when we had that bad snow storm....gosh that was a mess. It took my husband 3 days to get the snow shoveled and the car going down the driveway. He missed one day of work and then his supervisor picked him up the 2nd day. Third day he got out. I think by the end of the week you would never have known we had a snow storm of about 22-23 inches.

I had a really neat Secret Stamper. With each image, she sent a letter and where she got  the different stamps and dies. So the above cards were for December. She sent the deer, her card is on the left, my version of her deer image is on the right.

February being Valentine Day, she sent a Valentine kit, the white back ground with a cut out heart, the silver heart, pattern paper for the heart and the little strip of hearts. Her card on the left, my card on the right. I embossed the white back ground with hearts, running it through the cuttlebug. Adding the Love die also.

March, being St. Patrick's Day. She sent the leprechaun, again, her card is on the left and my colored in leprechaun is on the right.

Well, I guess I did not get October in the right order. She sent the small leaves. Her card is on the left, and my card is on the right.

January....She sent the "hello" her card is on the left and mine is on the right......I love that giraffe. I saw the idea at Hobby Lobby and made quite a few of these cards. When my secret stamper sent the "hello" I thought that would fit perfectly for the giraffe.

April's card was the flower. I have this stamp, but she also had the die cut to go along with the flower. Her card is on the left and my card is on the right.

I know I did not get the months straight, should have put them in order when I was taking these pictures. Well, next group of cards will be better....I hope!!

So there you have it. there is another Part 2 to these cards. The images that I sent to my secret stamper. That will be my next post....maybe in 3-4 days or so.

I am still working and planting my gardens....planting flowers, tomatoes, peppers, onions, beans, lettuce, zucchini and what ever else I can get in my planters. When I am finished, I will take pictures of the things I have been working on.

Time to close, church tomorrow and I need to get some sleep, that's if I can sleep, drank too much iced tea. Talk to you later, keep looking up, better days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise

February ~ What's UP!!!

Hi there everyone. Wow....February and what's up??? Thought I would add another picture of the peony stamp I bought from Altenew. This one looks like it might be a water color rendition of the peony. Looks like fun. I do have the die cut that goes along with this stamp. So most definitely I will have to try this effect.

Started working on my income tax....first I have to go through the files, cleaning everything from 2017 out and start the year fresh....out with the old and in with the new I always say!!! (and I have a lot of OLD to throw out ~ upstairs, downstairs and in the garage.) Maybe 2018 will be my "throw out the junk year." After living in this house for almost 27 years, we have a lot of old to throw out, no doubt.

Otherwise, it looks like February will be quiet....for now. I really need to get some cards made.....looks like Valentines day is coming up soon, an anniversary and birthday at the beginning of March. 

Hospice meeting March 2nd....things might be a bit easier this month. As I finally made labels to place in the cards rather then the regular inserts. So if there happens to be a card with a saying inside, rather then take it out and replace with the Hospice insert, I can just place a label at the bottom of the saying. This might save some time, making life easier.

Well, think I will close here for now....it's 12:03am....time to go to bed. You all take care and keep looking up....better days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise

Making Cards At Betty's House

Hi there everyone. Well, finally we met at Betty's house to make cards. She took the summer off to enjoy the summer with her family. Don't really blame her....everyone needs a break and time off. Today I will show you the cards we made at her house. I took pictures right away....so these cards were fresh off the press.

I like this card which was colored with Copic markers. We pretty much used the colors we wanted so each of our cards were a little bit different color wise.

Another neat card. The flower is stamped with versa mark then embossed. We colored the back side of the flower then cut it out. and place it on the card and added the gems and bow.

I really like this card, I think it is actually 3 different stamps. Betty let me borrow the spider with the heart. I will probably use it for Valentines. But I like the way she set the spider on the daisy....so cute. We then colored in the image with copic markers.

And here is a leaf turned into a cute fox. His ears are made from a butterfly punch....must remember this for cards next year. She already colored in the fox we just rubbed black ink on his face and added the nose and eyes.

Well, I think I will close this post for tonight, you all keep looking up cause better days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise

Hey.....7 Days into March Already!!!

Hi there everyone!!! Wow....7 days into March already, "time do fly by fast when we're having a good time???" I'm not so sure about that saying and if I believe it.  As I sit here typing and looking at my calendar, which is right be side my computer. The days are filled and I guess I have been busy.

Today we took our income tax stuff to the accountant. I have been going through papers, bills, receipts, etc. since February and working right up until this past Saturday (with a lot of procrastination in between) I finally finished.....YAY!!! We celebrated with a piece of chocolate cake last night. No, it didn't look like this....but was just as good.

Today we celebrated again by stopping at "The Taste of Windy City" and got fries, Gyro and Windy City Special with hamburger and gyro meat.....whew....the special was all I ate for today, filled me up good!!!

A tray of food at the Taste of Windy City in Appleton.

Windy City's Gyro and the fries below.

I think when we go to pick up our tax stuff.....and if....we are getting a refund, there will be another stop at "The Windy City"....yes there will!

Been working on cards....a new batch for the Hospice meeting this next month, April 7th. Our past meeting was on the 3rd. of March. I took a lot of cards that were already made up and used those...now I have to get some new ideas for the next batch. I will be working on Easter and Mother Day cards this time around.

The Chicago Blackhawks played Wednesday, Friday and Saturday and won all 3 games. So I was glued to the TV watching the games, although I could only get the 3rd period for the Friday and Saturday games. It's almost as good as being there, but not quite. #72 is my favorite player...Artemi Panarin.

Went shopping Thursday, on the north side of Appleton to Shopko and Festival and Friday, on the west side Walmart, Sam's Club and Hobby Lobby. I have to keep my shopping down to a minimum, only a couple of days a week.

Tomorrow, I will just do some house work....I finally took down the Valentine decorations and now have St. Patrick decorations up. Maybe tomorrow will be a "surprise day" and just do whatever comes up....seems like I have a lot of those days.

Time to close, JP will be home in 10 minutes, so I better get something going for his dinner. You have a great evening and keep looking up~~~Better days are here again. Cheers ~ Louise

Pretty Valentine Flowers

Hi there everyone. I hope you had a lovely Valentine's Day. JP gave me $5.00 to spend on some flowers for myself. Whew, I thought, where in the world am I going to find some flowers for $5.00???? Everything I saw was $10, 20, 30 dollars. BUT!!! the day after Valentines I found these flowers at Pic n Save.

The check-out girl said, "they were $28.00 yesterday and today they are $5.00!!!" Yay....I got a good deal!!

I have put them in fresh water with an asprin and cut their stems down.

Hopefully they will last until the week-end...they sure are pretty.

I love the salmon colored roses and the hydrangea's were so pretty. I wish I had a bush....maybe this year.

The yellow roses are starting to weep a bit. I still think I got a good deal though. Maybe before they completely die, I will dry them by turning them upside down.

It's always nice to have some flowers in the house.....feels springy and summery in the middle of winter.

Although, it is starting to feel very much like Spring outside...tomorrow it's supposed to be in the 50's. It's time to sit on the front porch, maybe tomorrow...Kylie is looking for sunny places to sunbath. Next week, the temps will be in the 40's.....I like this kind of weather. Felt like I wanted to start raking the yard and bring out the lawn furniture.

Today I went shopping and actually wore my spring jacket. My winter coat seemed too warm. I saw a man wearing shorts already today....yep, spring is in the air.

I went to Betty's house Wednesday to make some cards....I will take pictures of them and put them up in my next post. We won't be meeting for the next few months....as she had knee surgery on her right knee and on March 6th will have surgery on her left knee. So she will be taking time off to heal.

Had my blood drawn today for the AC1....or is it A1C, I can never get that straight. Here's hoping I get some good numbers. Will find out in the next few days. Probably after I get the results, the Doctor will want to see me for my annual exam....ish!

Well, tomorrow I shall be working on my taxes...I have 2 weeks to get it all together and then take them in for the accountant to finish it off. Also in the next 2 weeks I have to get cards ready for our Hospice meeting March 3rd....I better get cracking. Who said Retirement was boring....I am not bored, have much too much to get done.

Time to close here, have to get a few miles in on my bike, don't know if it is doing any good....but I feel better after it. You all have a great weekend and keep looking up....better days are here again!!!

Cheers ~ Louise

Happy Valentine's Day

Hi there everyone.....Happy Valentine's Day to you!! Hope you all have a wonderful day and you feel the love of those around you this lovely day.  

We don't celebrate that much here. I already bought my flowers and really not sure what I will make for Valentine's dinner.  I have steak and fish in the freezer, so I may pull one or the other out tomorrow before we leave for church.

I always liked Valentine's Day....I like the card making and lots of hearts. This card I made last year...perhaps tonight I will make JP a card....plan and simple and add it to the end of this blog.

My printer broke down after 6 years of use....the printer head went kapoot...and after I invested in $50 worth of ink....honestly, not too happy about that!!! I did have an extra printer downstairs (new, never used) so I brought that one up here for this computer....maybe I will get another cheap printer for downstairs at a later date. Will hook it up so I don't have to run up and down the stairs to print off stuff that I need for card making. We shall see.

I picked up some Easter napkins to make cards with. I was going to take a picture of them, but will wait till a card is made with the napkins....which came first, the card or the napkin???

It's really cold outside, uge, don't care for this hard cold....but I guess there are only 36 more days left and SPRING will be here.....I can't wait!!!! I love spring, but that too never lasts long and then comes the summer......geez, no wonder time flies, we are always looking forward to the next season. Wouldn't it be nice if we just enjoyed the season at hand instead of rushing on to the next?????

Well, I think I will make this a short post...nothing much is going on that is exciting. I did make a Blue Apron meal the other night "Goat Cheese and Kale Quiche with Butter Lettuce & Chive Salad" I loved the butter lettuce so much I went out and bought another head....just for ME alone!!! I told JP I would not share with him!!! Man do I like that lettuce.....my new obsession with oil, garlic vinegar, salt, pepper and a little sweetener. YUM!!!! 

Have a great evening and a wonderful Valentine's Day!!! Keep looking up, better days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise

A Snowy Monday, Cards From Friends and Risotto

Hi there everyone....hope you are still enjoying this lovely season and last few days of 2015. Yesterday we had a foot of snow fall (12.2 inches). JP got stuck in the snow and the car doors froze up at work, so he did not make it home. I guess lots of people got stuck in snow around this area, at least he was stuck in the building and was warm.

Around the country people were experiencing lots of rain and hail, floods, tornados and earthquakes....My goodness what is going on??? If it is not the ISIS Muslims terrorizing us, the weather is also. I guess this is just a sign of the end times, just as the Bible has said. Better days are coming.

So for tonight's dinner I made a beef stew with green peppers and onions and stuck it in the slow cooker. Along with that was my Blue Apron (here's their site) meal "Spinach, Parmesan & Parsnip Risotto with Crispy Parsnip Chips and Sage" Oh my goodness....was this ever a good dish. Never cooked with a parsnip before and this was really good. Half the parsnip was grated and added to the Arboio Rice, onion, garlic and water. While the rice cooked, the other half of the parsnip was shaved and fried in the oil and browned. After the rice was cooked, spinach, sage and Parmesan cheese was added. I have to say that shaved and fried parsnip was a special touch to this dish. Will most definitely make this again.

Thought I would post the homemade cards that I received this Christmas. The top card is by Shirley. A very intricate card that probably took a long time to make...I always enjoy her cards. She is very artistic in her card making.

This ornament card is by Betty. She always has new ideas rolling around in her head. I enjoy going to her house to see here new creations.

This card was made by Sue. I really like this stamp, very simple yet elegant. Sue makes some nice cards too.

This card is by Tina. I go to her blog everyday to see what she is up to. I always know it is her card....her trademark is the stitching around the squirrel. She does a lot of origami cards, an art I have not yet accomplished.

This card is by Joan.....lot's of work went into this one too. I don't throw these cards out....but most likely these cards will end up in my Hospice card collection for next year. Always recycle.

I didn't take any pictures of all the snow we got yesterday, maybe the next snowfall. After awhile you can have just so many pictures of snow. I was out shoveling a little. The front porch and steps and part of the sidewalk....yep...that was enough for me.

Pretty soon I will be working on Valentine Cards.....can you believe that??? Right now I am reorganizing my stamping area....putting all the Christmas stuff away and cleaning and moving things. Guess that will be my Winter project, going through all the stuff and maybe unloading a few things at the thrift store or save for a garage sale in the summer. Yep....always something to keep me busy.

Well time to close this post for tonight. Keep looking up, better days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise

The Christmas Elf......

Hi everyone.....well, just 2 more days left in 2014 and the count down begins. Do you have any plans? We stay home....I will head downstairs to watch the New Year come in on TV... I like watching the big ball drop in New York City and watch the throngs of people, then on to Chicago and LasVegas. I think this year they added one more city....Nashville??? Will have to watch and see. 

Probably will make a few snacks for us in the early evening, nothing much, cheese and crackers, bbq hot dogs, celery and carrots, pin wheels, Greek olives and whatever else I can dig up. Then JP can munch all night to his hearts content.

I re-re-decorated the tree again. The lights burned out, so I bought some new ones today at 50% off. See that little elf that Mr. Snowman is looking at????? I think the elf was the culprit....I didn't see him do it, but I think he is the reason the lights went dead....yep he was up to some mischief alright.

Doesn't he look all innocent sitting in the tree....he acts one way when I am around and then totally different when I am out of his sight....bad elf!!!! Now that the tree is redecorated in red and white.....I probably will keep it up till Valentines. I have some hearts that I can put on the little tree.....when it comes down, I will just leave the lights on and that little elf will nest there till next Christmas. I have taken down about 50% of the ornaments....that is early for me....I usually wait till around the 16th of January to take Christmas down. We'll see I just may take it all down earlier.

Well tomorrow I have an eye appointment at 11am, eyes need to be checked yearly for diabetes. I have noticed a slight difference...my right eye seems to be a bit blurry and good grief...my bifocals never work cause I still have to take my glasses off to see up close. Won't it be nice when the trumpet is sounded and Jesus takes us home....no more pain, tears and "glasses" yesssss....20-20 vision!!!

Tis' time to close this blog for tonight. I am going to try and blog one more time before the end of this year is over.....we'll see if something interesting comes up. You all take care and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

Snow, Smoothies and...................

Snow, snow everywhere.....this picture was taken from my kitchen window in the morning and we still had more snow coming all day. The drive way got shoveled and snow blown about 3 times. We got about 8 inches.....that's enough for one day!!! A big semi got stuck on our street  and could not get out, he had actually Jack-knifed, was kind of scary cause he was pretty close to the electric pole. A couple of good Samaritans came by and tried digging him out. FINALLY the city came and plowed him out and he was on his way to make his deliveries. Hope he made it.

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My smoothie for the day was:
3 strawberries
slice of lemon
2 tablesp. chocolate chip Chobani
1/4 avocado
water
All ingredients were enough to make 1 cup.

My review? Not bad, was going to put a banana in it to thicken it up, but did not need to as the avocado did the trick. Color of the smoothie, a lovely creamy pink.

www.atticfullofclutter.blogspot.com left me a recipe for a smoothie, which I shall have to try, not sure of the proportions, so I will just list what ingredients were:
Blueberries
broccoli
orange juice
yogurt
Sounds good, a must try for this girlie!!!

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So I went to Biz's blog today, www.mybizzykitchen.com which is on my regular "things to do list" and she was talking about going back to Basics today. Journaling, calorie watching, exercise and using a diet site on her computer which she pays $$ for. She found that after one day, her calories were about 1600 for the day but when she looked at her sodium intake for one day she was amazed at how much sodium she consumed: 3700 mg of sodium............wowzers!!!! Here is my comment to her as follows:

 
Oh man Biz…..sodium is the killer for me. If we only knew how much sodium and sugars were in everything we ate…..it would probably chock a chicken. When I went to Inches A Weigh they told me I should keep my sodium intake to 1500 a day and even that was high. I know when I have taken in too much sodium my ankles swell. (water retention) When shopping I read A LOT of labels…sometimes sodium is so high, you can get your quota of sodium in one meal!!!! Yikes! I immediately put that product back in it’s place!!


In Inches A Weigh, I thought I was eating too much (breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack, gosh and don’t forget the smoothies and protein bars, writing everything down, WI on Mondays and measurements once a month and riding those toning machines every day….deep down, I hated it)…then one person would tell one thing and another person would tell me something else….I would get so confused. they all had a lot of good to say. But there was so much stress not to mention the politics amongst the trainers that went along with trying to lose weight. I was glad when I left. The place is closed up now, maybe that says something about the place.

I think you are doing good, keep it up and you will make your goal. Hey, it takes us years to gain weight and it will take years to take it off and keep it off….it’s a total “lifestyle” change!!! One day at a time. LOL…..I should copy and paste this for my blog today

An added note: in the two years that I went to Inches A Weigh I lost 10 pounds and 20 some inches. Not bad, but then, not good. OH and I probably spent about $3500 ~ NOT GOOD!!!!!! There is no way at this time that I could afford those prices now as I am not working. At this point I am not really interested in trying another weight loss fad. I'll just watch Biggest loser and get some tips from them and read Biz's Blog and a few others that have lost lots of pounds......true, tried and tested!!!

French Peasant Bread

MMMM is this ever some good bread. Biz had it in one of her blogs and I followed it to the tea and was it ever delicious. I found this recipe from the http://www.recipeshoebox.blogspot.com  You will have to go to  "Top 12 Recipes of 2012" (Tues. 1/1/12). Peasant Bread will be #8. Hopefully the above address takes you to her blog, if it doesn't, just type it in, I seem to be having a problem getting addresses right. Anyways back to the recipe.

I have added flax seed flour, and this last batch, flax seed flour and graham flour, such a good bread, then I brush with butter and sprinkle parsely and sea salt. A delicious bread, toasted with a little cream cheese.........I know, I know, doesn't sound like a nutritious meal, but with a smoothie not bad!!!!

Well, I guess it is time to close this blog for today.......last blog of January 2013........See you in February and OH Valentine's Month.............YAYYYYYYY!! Take care and keep looking up for your redemption draws nigh!!! Cheers ~ Louise

Pretty Little Post Cards from the Antique Show

I found these sweet little postcards at one booth, her prices were more affordable. As some of the other vendors were selling their cards and postcards for anywheres from $3-$8......I thought that was a little pricey!!



Aren't they cute???? Some of the cards are written on and the addresses are really short, with the name, address, town and state.......and NO ZIP CODE!!! How did we live without zip codes!!!!

Postage was 1 cent for domestic and 2 cents for foreign. Have two cards postmarked from 1910 and 1921. Should have looked on the back of the other cards, maybe there were some older cards. Oh well, perhaps if we go back tomorrow I can take a peek again.

So now I suspect you are wondering why I bought these little cards????? Well, I shall copy them off on my printer (there is not copyright on them) and turn them into modern day cards for my Etsy store....sounds like fun, huh?!? I picked up some Valentine cards at an antique store and did the same with them at Valentines and they turned out really neat. As long as I don't have to spend a humongous amount of $$$ for the cards, this can be a do-able project.

As we were walking around,I found another booth that was selling "Vogue Dolls". Some were $59 and some were $79....all depends on if they are in good condition. I told the lady I had some dolls with their clothes. Her eyes widened, she said did you cut their hair..........no I said, my hairdresser techniques did not kick in till I was a teenager. Well, I got her card so I can call her if and when I pull my dolls up from the basement and check them out. I really should, could have a little fortune in the basement and not know it. I was saving my dolls for "my daughter" so she could play with them. But, my life took a wrong turn and that never happened.

Well, it is getting late and "Titanic" is on TV tonight. Talk to you all later and keep looking up for your redemption drawth nigh.
Cheers ~ Louise

♥Some New Valentine Cards♥

Been working on some new Valentine cards the last couple of days. Saw this idea on one of the blogs I visit, thought it was a good idea.... of coarse I changed it around a little bit. I will give her kudos after I finish this blog and direct you to her blog so you can see her cards also. Here is the address: http://understandblue.blogspot.com/2012/01/with-apologies-to-lionel-richie.html well hopefully this will take you to her blog.
It's a pretty easy card to make. Ran white cardstock through the cuttlebug. Sponged red or pink ink around the edges. Punched out the heart, then punched out a little heart within the large heart. Layered them with pop-up tabs. "Sending Happy Thoughts" was layered on top of red and pink cardstock. Red and pink ribbons embellish the cards. Probably will make enough of these to put in my Etsy store, there's still enough time to get the cards up and selling before Valentine's Day. Hopefully they will sell.

This is going to be my fun week. Tomorrow I go stamping at Betty's house, she teaches us how to make 4 different and unique cards. I saw 3 of them, will take pictures and put them up on this blog on Thursday or Friday. Thursday is stamping at Sandi's, "Girls Night Out." We bring a card to make plus the makings for that card for 6 ladies to make. It's kind of fun, but sometimes I dont' feel like I am a good teacher. Saturday is the Secret Stampers Revealing Potluck dinner. I will find out who has been sending me my cards. I have been sending my cards to a lady in Colorado, so I guess she won't be at the potluck.....oh well, I usually never see the cards that I have sent to my secret stamper, they either live too far away or just don't come to the revealing party. The food is usually good. We are allowed to bring old stamps to sell, so I end up selling a few stamps but buy a few stamps too. So this week is my "learning" week and I get a few new ideas in making cards.....always looking for something new.

Well, it's pretty late now, time to go to bed and get some sleep. Keep looking up for your redemption draweth nigh.

Cheers ~ Louise

Getting Ready to do the Etsy Tap Dance

Been working on a special order of 12 Valentine Cards this weekend. This is the end product. I liked the idea so much, made these cards in red also. Probably will put them in my Etsy store as a set of 6 (3 in red and 3 in blue) for $18 + postage ~ that would be $3 a piece. I am pretty happy that these 12 cards are finished and ready to be sent, as they will be going overseas to a military base someplace.
It's been a very busy weekend. A friend called me to see if I would like her 3 year old couch and chair and lazyboy.........YES I said.......Out with the old in with the NEW........well, it's new to me. Soooooo, I cleaned all day Saturday, moving and rearranging things. The old couch went out on the curb, sometime during the night it took legs and ran off to some far off destination. I hope it serves its new owners well, with much comfort and pleasent sleep. If you will read my previous blog, I mentioned in one of my 2012 resolutions "This might be a long shot, but I would like to get a new/used stove and a couch". I wonder, does God read blogs??? Cause just a few day later, after I wrote that thought, the friend was calling to see if I would be interested in her couch. She said she had not even read my blog. Will wonders ever cease? I hope not!

Tomorrow, I shall take some pictures of our new frontroom furniture, as soon as I move the furniture around again. Well, I guess I will close this blog for tonight, as it is getting sort of late and I want to watch another episode of "Up Stairs Down Stairs" Cheerio ~ Chaps!!!

Keep looking up for your redemption drawth nigh!!!
Louise