Winter Can Be Over Now!

All the decorations are down and packed away for another year.  Now I just have to wait until the rain stops so I can take the boxes to the shed.  At the rate it is raining I will probably need a boat to transport them.

 

Penny has started a new project.  She lays on the kitchen floor staring at the base of the sink cabinet.  I have gotten on the floor to see what she is staring at, but I cannot see a thing.  Oh well, at least it gives her something to do.

Yesterday I downloaded pictures of Mattie that Jana had taken to my computer.  Since Jana doesn’t have a printer I printed some 4x6’s, 5x7’s and one 8x10.  They turned out really good.  She is going to do a collage with the 4x6’s.  We just need to get to Walmart or Hobby Lobby to find a frame.  By the way, my new printer worked wonderfully!

 

As most of you know, I love to read.  James Patterson is one of my favorite authors.  I have been reading some of his books known as bookshots.  I have enjoyed a couple, but I think most of them are pretty dumb.  Just an observation J  When Jana leaves I will go back to doing crafts.  I have a whole list of projects, and since I am feeling better who knows what all I will accomplish!

 

Jana and I both bought one of those new small Polaroid cameras.  They work well, however, the pictures are really small and the paper is rather expensive.  Anyway, it’s fun to play with.  We both need a lot of practice though.  And, if I want to save the pictures to download on my computer I will have to buy a microchip.  Oh well, live and learn.

 

Jana had this small quilted piece made for me for Christmas.  I love it and wanted to share.  At first I was just going to hang it as it, but then I decided to frame it.  It looks great as you can see!

We sure were lucky yesterday (Monday).  We did not have a tornado but we had plenty of thunder, lightning, some wind and almost seven inches of rain.  It was pretty rough for a while.  This morning the sun is out and there are just a few clouds.  According to the weather reports we could have snow flurries here by this weekend.  J

 

This morning was really busy.  Jana is doing her laundry.  I cleaned the living room which included moving furniture.  Really needed it.  Sure smells good.  I fabrezed all the furniture, curtains and rugs.  Kevin and Ryan moved all my boxes to the shed.  Yea!  We have some room to move around now.

 

Okay, it is cold.  I am going to complain.  I know it isn’t as cold here as a lot of you are experiencing right now, but when it goes down in the 20’s with wind chill in the teens that is really cold for us.  I am dripping the water at night now so it doesn’t freeze.  The wind is blowing hard which makes the cold even more miserable.  When Jana takes Mattie outside to do her business Mattie pees and poops faster than any dog I have ever seen.  Kevin has covered the lemon trees so they hopefully will survive. 

 

Okay – winter can be over now.  We have had 24 hours of cold weather.

Penny and Mattie

If these two don’t give Jana and me a heart attack it will be a miracle.  They are still chasing each other from one end of the house to the other.  Penny smacks Mattie.  Mattie stomps her feet.  They touch noses. Then they are off and running.  Penny usually jumps up on the book cases or the pantry cupboard.  What makes it funny is that when she does this Mattie loses track of her and can’t find her.  So Penny is looking down at Mattie and Mattie is running around trying to find her.

Penny still plays in Mattie’s water.  We have to watch Mattie because she eats Penny’s food.

When we watch television or read, Jana sits on the couch and I sit in one of the chairs.  Penny likes to lay on my lap and snuggle.  Well…..Mattie has decided that she should be able to do the same.  Of course, she doesn’t sit on Jana’s lap, when she sees Penny coming to sit on my lap Mattie jumps on my lap.  When that happens Penny sits on the back of the chair.  I am surrounded by pets J

 

We had to take Jana’s tree down earlier than we planned because Miss Penny was not only playing with the ornaments and chewing on the tree branches, but we were worried that she was going to jump onto the tree.  She would sit on the railing between the dining room and living room and stare at the tree like she was going to jump.  She had already broken one ornament and we didn’t need her to break any more or damage the tree.  It as safer to take it down.

Jana did get a picture of her trying to hide in the tree.

She didn’t bother my tree hardly at all.  I did catch her chewing on the branches a couple of times, but that was it. 

We have had over four inches of rain in the past couple of days with more expected.  Poor Mattie doesn’t like to get her feet wet so Jana has to carry her over the puddles so she can potty.  As soon as she is finished she wants back in the house.  Jana looks like Nanook of the North when she takes Mattie outside.  She not only dresses for warmth but also for the rain.  It hasn’t been very cold, just damp.

We are not complaining though because we are about fourteen inches of rain short here.  This will help somewhat.  Besides, it wouldn’t do us any good to complain because it will either rain or not.

Penny likes the box my printer came in.  So, when she goes in the box, Mattie lays and looks at her.  She doesn’t understand why she would want to go in there.  If Mattie gets too close, Penny smacks her across the nose. 

Last night I sat down on the couch to watch the news, and Mattie started growling at me as if to say I am not supposed to sit there.  However, it didn’t last long.  She came over and wanted to be petted and started licking my hand as if to say she was sorry.

We are thoroughly enjoying these girls.  They definitely keep us entertained.

Where To Begin

It hasn’t been just a while – it’s been quite a while since I updated my blog.  I have decided to just give an overview of the past few days/weeks to get caught up.  Then, hopefully, I will get back on track.

Christmas Eve we went to Mass at St. Patrick’s.  It was the children’s Mass and we thoroughly enjoyed it. It was different from what we experienced in Cincinnati.  After Mass the children were in costumes from sheep to Mary and Joseph.  One of the parishioners told the story of the birth of Jesus and the children re-enacted it.  Kevin and Renea also joined us for Mass.  Bruce, Jennifer and their children were there also.  Afterwards Bruce and family went home and Kevin, Renea, Jana and I ordered pizza, picked it up and ate at Kevin/Renea’s.  We had a really nice evening.  Jana and I then came home and had our Christmas (exchanging gifts). 

Christmas morning we went to Kevin/Renea’s for breakfast and gift exchange.  Stephanie and Ryan were both there.  Renea had fixed a French toast casserole and bacon along with orange juice.  We had a lot of fun.  (I even got the printer I asked for.  It was from Kevin and family and Brian and family.  THANK YOU!)  Later Jana and I came home because Kevin and family were going to Bruce’s for Christmas dinner.  Jana and I elected not to join them.  We were invited.

The week between Christmas and New Year’s was quiet except for one day.  Jana had started feeling pretty bad so we went to the Urgent Care in Tigertown.  Turns out she had the flu.  She was given a shot and two prescriptions.  While in Tigertown we had her prescriptions filled, stopped at Kroger and Office Depot.  Then we came home and hunkered down for the week.

New Year’s Eve was quiet for us.  We were in bed by 10:30 p.m.  Didn’t see the ball drop.  We figured it would be 2017 even if we slept through the midnight festivities, and we were right.  New Year’s Day was also a quiet day.  We have been watching quite a bit of football.  Alabama won.  Ohio State lost.  Green Bay won.  Bengals won.  Tonight is Auburn. 

Jana is feeling much better.  Today is her last day for her medicines.  She still has a cough, it isn’t as bad as it was.  We plan on taking it easy again today.  She has to get better because we have too much to do for her to be sick!

No pictures were taken so I don’t have any to post.  However, I do have some Penny and Mattie stories and pictures.  Will get to that later.

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year.    

We Sure Don't Stay Home Very Much

The weather has been on a roller coaster this week.  It has been cold, warm and we have had two inches of rain in 24 hours.  The rain was on Tuesday.  Today is sunny and cold.  Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and warmer with rain moving in by tomorrow night/Sunday. 

Last Monday we spent the day running errands.  In order, we went to the bank, Walmart, Kroger for gas, SAM’s, Office Depot, Books A Million, Petco, Target and Kroger.  In between we stopped for lunch – just a quick sandwich at McDonald’s.  We left the house at 9:30 a.m. and didn’t return until 4:30 p.m.  We were exhausted, but we sure accomplished a lot!

Tuesday was a day of recuperation.  Of course, I did my morning chores, two loads of laundry, and made a pot of chili.  We had hamburgers for supper.   Wednesday was a day of odds and ends around the house.  We took Kevin and Renea to Red Lobster for supper.  Had a great time.  Kevin drove my car, and when we pulled in the driveway upon arriving home there was a beautiful doe laying in my front yard.  She got up, looked at us, and slowly walked away.  Several times she looked back.  Eventually she was to a point where we couldn’t see her any longer.  Kevin and I both have deer in our yards most nights. 

It seems that in the late afternoon Penny and Mattie usually decide to chase each other.  On Tuesday Jana had just set the table and put her pills (which she puts in a small plastic cup by her plate) on the table.  About that time the “girls” started their chase.  Penny jumped on the table, slid across and the cup of pills went flying. My first reaction was chase the girls out of the room so we could get the pills picked up before they decided to eat them.  Not sure if they would, but didn’t want to take any chances.   

Thursday, for some reason, was another lazy day.  We had the chili for supper.  Then after supper Jana and I played the game Sorry.  She bought the game just for the heck of it.  The rules are different than we remember, so we adjusted the game to be the way we played it when we were kids.  We had a lot of fun and had a lot of laughs. 

However, today has been busy so far.  Before I showered and dressed I got my morning chores done.  Paid a few bills and ran the sweeper in the living room.  Jana is now playing cards on her computer after checking her emails and bank.  I really need to get outside and fill the birdfeeders. 

Beautiful Day In Alabama

Good Morning.  It’s a beautiful, but cold, morning in Alabama.  Jana and I are ready for Christmas.  We are just hoping the trees remain standing.  Yesterday afternoon Penny started messing with Jana’s tree.  We have found if we ignore her she just stops and goes about her business.  However, this time she got caught in the strand of lights and couldn’t get out.  The tree was shaking, Mattie was barking, and Penny was starting to panic.  When I tried to help her she got scared and didn’t want me to touch her.  So, Jana held the tree and I finally managed to get her untangled.  She wasn’t hurt, but she was not happy.  Didn’t last long though.  Next thing we knew Penny and Mattie were chasing each other around the house.  Oh such fun!

Our whole day was kind of like that.  One or the other was constantly getting into trouble.  Of course, it all started Thursday night with Jana and me.  We went to Mass at St. Patrick’s and decided to eat supper at Ihop before going home.  When we arrived it was not crowded, but there were people sitting on the benches waiting to be seated.  We waited patiently (J) for someone to seat us.  However, no one came until several people came to pay.  That woman asked for our name so she could put us on the list.  We questioned why a list when there were a lot of empty seats.  She said that was how it was done.  There were people waiting ahead of us.  We also heard a waitress telling a family that their order would be out “shortly.”  This was our clue to leave.  Apparently, they were short of help and things were not going well. 

So, we decided to stop at Wendy’s since we passed that on the way home.  (There isn’t a lot of places to chose from along that portion of Hwy 80.)  When we arrived, it was dark, there were boards blocking the driveway.  We knew they were remodeling, but they had been open.  Check that one off our list.  We finally decided to pick up a sandwich at Subway and take it home to eat.  Turned out to be a good choice.

The burn ban has been lifted since we had some rain, so Kevin decided to burn the pile of brush that has been accumulating from his cleaning out the woods.  It was huge!  He checked with the fire department to make sure it would be okay.  They said to go ahead.  He hooked up the hose, dug a trench around the pile, added water to that, and started the fire.  This was Thursday.  Today is Saturday and it is still smoking.  When we talked to him yesterday he said when it cooled he would clean out the barbed wire and other “stuff” to take to the dump.  He would then bury everything else, spread some dirt and grass seed.  Sure looks different when I look out my back window. 

I have definitely been feeling better now.  I moved a lot of things to the shed for storage.  That was something I had been putting off.  I have been keeping the birdfeeders filled.  The birds eat a lot in this cold weather.  I have even been doing some cooking while Jana is here.  I don’t do much cooking just for myself, so this has been nice.  Sure glad I have a dishwasher.  Also, the new shower has been a blessing.  Of course, Penny loves the new shelves.  We never know where we will find her.  I think both Penny and Mattie wore themselves out yesterday.  Both are having a lazy day.  Right now Mattie is laying in the sun.  Not sure where Penny is resting.  She has been getting on top of the pantry cabinet in the kitchen and snoozing. 

Not sure what we will be doing today.  The Christmas cards are written and mailed.  We will be going to Mass at St. Patrick’s later today.  This might be a lazy day for us.

Almost Ready for Christmas Holidays

Good Morning!  I am going to try and do better with my blog.  Yesterday Kevin and Renea stopped over so Kevin could put the topper on my tree.  Looks good! 

 

Jana and I finished the decorating and found that we need to buy a few more items (of course).  I think we have enough Christmas dishes.  We bought two of this and that and different stores and now have two cabinets full.  I had to pack my everyday dishes and put them in the shed.  Well, actually, Kevin carried them to the shed because they were too heavy for Jana and me. 

The house is ready except for my bedroom.  That room is a disaster.  I will get to it later.  Have too much other stuff to do right now.  As long as I can get in my bed I am happy. J

This morning Jana and I took all the plastic containers out to the shed.  We had them stacked in the laundry area, and could barely get to the bathroom.  I bought a new hanger for my shower to put my shampoo, etc. on.  It looks good and should work well.  I bought two small pump containers for my shampoo and conditioner because they are so heavy.

I finally took a few pictures of my Christmas tree, Jana’s tree and some new decorations.

 

My Christmas Tree

Jana's Christmas Tree

The Stockings Were Hung on the Railing With Care

The Wreath Above the Door

The Bow Above The Window

Candy Canes Above A Different Window

The New Top Ornament

(you really can't see it on the picture of the tree)

Straightened up the bedroom.  Jana and I went to Mass at St. Patrick’s on Saturday night and then went to Applebee’s for supper.  Tasted very good.  Neither of us had been there for a while.  After supper we came home and watched some television.  I had recorded several of our favorite shows so we watched Designated Survivor.  In the afternoon we had watched the end of the NASCAR drivers show.  Of course, it ran overtime and we didn’t get to see the very end.  But that’s okay.  We enjoyed what we saw. 

 

It started raining during the night and will be doing so today and for the next couple of days.  We are planning to stay in and watch some football.  I have a couple of gifts to “bag” yet.  I hope to finish that today.

Busy Times

It has been so long since I have added to my blog that I am not even going to try and say much except what has been done in no specific timeline.  I haven’t even been on the computer very often.

Jana and I have finished Christmas shopping.  Still have a few gifts to wrap.  The decorations, including the trees, are up and looking great.  However, I bought a top ornament for my tree that I am going to ask Kevin to put on for me.  I cannot get it to stay upright.  We both bought a few new ornaments.  I may have to get a bigger tree next year.  Pictures to follow.

I am sorry to say that I did not make any ornaments or gifts this year.  With all the problems I was having I just could not concentrate or do the type of work required.  I sure have a lot of kits and ideas for next year though so my family better be prepared! 

Jana and I have been running a lot of errands.  I am getting caught up on so many things that I let go for most of this year.  We have been to Barnes and Nobels twice.  We have made several trips to Tigertown to shop at Petco, Target, Hobby Lobby and Kroger.  We also went to Walmart in Opelika. 

Jana has her Christmas cards written and ready to go.  I haven’t even started mine.  Anyway, we needed stamps and decided to try and find the post office in Opelika.  SUCCESS!!!!  It is tucked away in an area where I had never been.  I will go there from now on.  It is one of the nicer ones I have been to.   Jana has her stamps and will be mailing her cards tomorrow. 

The girls (Penny and Mattie) are still doing fine.  They chase each other all over the house and then collapse for a nap.  Mattie tries to smell Penny’s butt and she doesn’t like that.  When she does it that starts the chase all over again.  Today Mattie licked Penny on the nose.  Penny was so surprised that she didn’t move.  The only thing I am not used to is Mattie following me everywhere I go in the house.  Penny follows me to certain areas, but Mattie is always “under foot.”  I am so worried that I will step on her or fall.  I just have to be careful.  Penny has been a bit of a problem with Jana’s Christmas tree.  She doesn’t bother mine as much as she does Jana’s.

This past week I picked up my new glasses.  The frames aren’t much different than my last ones, but I sure can see better.

As most of you know I have been interested and involved in doing my family tree on all branches of the tree.  Anyway, I had my DNA done and when I checked the list of people who have some of my family on their tree I contacted one of them.  We have been in touch with each other now.  The gal I have been corresponding with lives in Cincinnati, and I hope to see her the next time I am there.  She is related to me on the Althoefer side, and is a cousin several times removed.  That’s okay.  I think it is exciting that I found a relative!

That’s it for now.  Back at you later.