Month: September 2010

  • This May Seem Trivial . . .

    To some friends, especially those who live in Ohio and other such places *east* of me, or in Montana "west" of me, this won't seem like a big deal.

    But to ME . . . . .

    Well,

    I'm THRILLED!

                               
                                                  So, why am I whistling and so smug????

                                
                                   Do you REALLY want to know why I'm so happy?

    Okay!  Here you go!

                                   
                                                                Because of *THIS*!!!!!

    Because of what?

    No!  No!  No!  Not because my toes turn in.

    Because of *THIS*

          
                                                                             MY SHOES!!!!!!!!!!!!

    IT'S COOL ENOUGH TO WEAR MY WINTER SHOES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

         
                                                                      And, *SOCKS*, too!

    Like I said, if you live in Ohio, you've already experienced this day - the first day it feels like fall.  If you are in Florida, I'm so sorry.  Just skip this post, today!

    I have ravioli, tortellini, and meatballs covered with spaghetti sauce and cheeses BAKING IN THE OVEN! 

    *MY* OVEN!!!!!!!

                             

    In my house, nothing much bakes in my kitchen during the summer months . . .

    . . . except for the cook!  (that would be me)

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

    Yesterday, a glorious cold front moved through the state and we needed sweaters to wear to church!

    I can't remember the last time I *needed* a sweater outside.

    Maybe INSIDE, where the air conditioning was too low, but definitely not outside!

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

    After teaching school and completing a bunch of things on my list, the girls and I mailed a package for Jesse, went to the library to return and pick out new books, and to Wal-Mart to exchange some shirts, AND to buy a cucumber for tonight's salad.

    IT IS SO NICE OUTSIDE!!!

                                

    Rissy took these pictures of me being silly (can you tell she's shorter than me!!!!!!!!!!) but the truth is, we are all embracing fall and living in the moment, while we wait for the leaves to change and begin to fall.

    I'd say, "Oh!  I love this time of year!"  however, I enjoy the change of ALL seasons and right now "FALL* is my favorite time of year. 

    I'll be whistling a different tune when the first snow falls!

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

    Next time, I'll try to take some pictures of me with my hair showing.  It's 5" now and some strands are closer to 5 1/2" inches. 

    And to think, last year, I was in bed after coming home from the hospital and healing from my horrible side effects due to radiation therapy!

    Yep!  I'm happy!  Very, VERRRRRRRRY happy!!!!!

    Be Blessed  ~

     

  • The Worse Day of Her Whole Life

    Poor Luci.

    Today didn't get off to a good start and it continually slid downhill for her.

    She had a bad attitude (REALLY bad) and got in trouble from her dad for the smart mouth treatment.

    By the time she joined the others at the school table, her mood was foul.

    She dropped books.  Dropped her pencil.  Hit her head on the table when she bent down. 

    You know what I mean.  Right?  We all have those days were NOTHING seems to go right.

    She ended up on my lap in my bedroom and I held her while she cried and cried.

    I brushed her hair from her face and said, "You're really having a rough day, aren't you?"

    She said, "Yes.  This is the worse day of my whole life!"

    I fixed her hair in a braid, so it would be out of her eyes (another irritation), and we tried school, again.

    At lunch, when the other children started making lunch, Luci looked lost.  Kind of outta sync.

    I asked if she'd like me to make shrimp salad like my grandma used to make for me.

    Her eyes lit up (she loves shrimp).  "Yessssssss," she gushed.

    So, here are the pictures of Luci's "pick-me-up" and "I-love-you" special lunch!

        

    Grandma's shrimp salad served on avocado halves.

        

    Just think, all Beaver's mom served him was milk and cookies when he was down!

    "Aw Beav' how about some cookies and a nice, cold glass of milk?"

    To which Eddie Haskell added, "Gee, you're sure swell, Mrs. Cleaver."

    Be Blessed  ~

  • We've been having so much fun!  We've ben VERY busy, but not in a bad way AT ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    We've had so much fun watching and learning about our fish.  We've added more fishies and now have 19 (we started with 20).

                       

    One of the smaller neon tetra fish has disappeared.  I might have even accidentally thrown a rock or shell over it while I rearranged the gravel colors and shells at the bottom of the aquarium.

                        

    I'm still not liking the yellow green background paper taped to the glass.  If we had a light blue, the neon tetras would show up with bright, neon blue stripes.  When I bought them, I didn't realize they mirror they backdrop through their bodies. 

    Live and learn!  

    And, we are.

         
                                        Do you see the brandy sniffer glass on top of the tank?


    Guess why it's there??????

        
    We have itty, bitty, babies!   Two neon tetras and one black molly.  SO PERFECTLY FORMED BY GOD!!!!!!

    They have everything the big fishies have except size!!!!!!!!

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

    We are on our second week of full day school.

                            

    In history, we learned about Christopher Columbus. 

    This year, there is a test & quiz booklet, as well as a geography booklet.  Filling in the blanks is uncharted territory for them and only one child is doing well.  Oh well, that's my job . . . to persevere

    and TEACH!!!!

    There is a larger amount of work with these higher grade levels, and it's taking us longer to complete stuff each day. 

    We may have to revamp by starting school earlier, at intervals of 30 minutes.  We start around 10 and finish around 2:30.  That includes a lunch break.  Looks like that's not going to be enough time, this year.

        

    AND, since I've made a promise to myself to include music and art, this year, that makes more subjects to accomplish than before!

    After learning that Christopher Columbus's family were weavers and they had wanted him to become the same, we did an art project  "weaving" paper. 

    I wanted to show them how thread is woven to make cloth.  Also (the lost art) darning socks.

                

    The response was a good one.

        
                              

    Today we are going to tear the white paper off the paper "fabric" so they can see the end result of weaving!

           

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

    I continue to eBay shop and have started looking for fall/winter tops in thrift stores.  We've been blessed with near to new clothing and some pieces still holding their store tag.  Hard to believe we only have a few weeks of really warm weather left. 

    It's become easier to cook things in the oven because the low 90's are easier on the air conditioning system!  October is normally a beautiful month of nice weather with leaves beginning to turn at the end of October.

    Yayyyyy for fall!

    Be Blessed  ~

  • It's Not Like it Used to Be!!!

    I remember getting up every morning and sitting down to type something on Xanga, while I drank my coffee and woke up.

    That's me today.

    Maybe this is the best way to accomplish posting new info.

    My each, and every, day hold so much.  I'm glad for the activity, as it was this time, last year, I was in the hospital, burned from my radiation treatments.  I could barely swallow a pill, much less expand my chest to breath, without pain.  What a WONDERFUL difference a year makes!

                                      

    Today will be day *FOUR* of our school.  It's beginning to come together.  There's just so much more work with these older grades.  First grade wasn't much different than kindergarten, but mixing 1st, 2nd, and 3rd is a challenge.

    I was pulled in 92 million directions yesterday, making it hard for me to focus.  The chemo has left me without the ability multi-task, to the extent I used to multi-task.  The max I can handle is two things at the same time.

    We're still suffering from the after shocks of the freezer door being left open for more than 24 hours.  A couple of nights ago I made frozen corn and it had a mushy texture.  We have a bunch of things in the refrigerator taking up space.  Things that would have normally been in the freezer (like butter).

    Yesterday afternoon, I lost it.  Three different times a Cool Whip container (with rice and meat stored in it) fell out of the refrigerator and onto my toes.  The fourth time it fell, I picked it and threw it ("chucked it" might be more accurate) across the room toward the sink filled with dirty dishes.  Jesse was home and saw the flying projectile missile and said,
     
    "Hey!"
    to which I replied,
    "I don't care!"
    to which he said, "Cher'"??????!!!!!!"
    and I again said (but with more emphasis),
    "I DON'T CARE . . .
    I just don't care, anymore!"

    That's when I stormed off to the bedroom to put *myself* in "time out."

    When Jesse came through the room, a while later, I said, "Jesse. I'm not mad at you, it's just . . . " and he said, "Then don't talk.  Just be by yourself."  I think I weakly said, "Thank you."

            

    It's a culmination of too many things on my plate, *PLUS* full time homeschooling again.  I ended up with tears dripping down my cheeks and muttering, "They don't know I can't do as many things as I used to do.  They still think I'm smart and I'm not.  I've turned into a bumbling idiot, but they still think I'm as sharp as I used to be.  They don't realize how difficult "that which used to be simple for me" (a daily routine) has become.  

                                         

    I've never been a huge crier, but those drops down my cheeks helped to take the cap off of the bottle within me, that was about to explode.  After 30 or 45 minutes of being alone, I felt a bit revived.

    I went to church last night (hungry, because dinner lacked 10 minutes of being finished) and bathed in the love of our Lord.  Some of the hymns we sang were my favorites.  We closed with "Abide With Me"

    Oh!  How I needed to read and savor those calming words!  Then, as always, the congregation was SO FRIENDLY after the meeting had closed.  All the warm hugs from the women and hand shakes from the men - it was the acceptance and genuine joy (that group of people give) that I needed.

    Of course, I sleep hard last night, and that ALWAYS makes the next day easier to handle.

    As you can see, I've finally gotten my shelves cleared out and less cluttered.  The additional third bookcase has been a real blessing.  Now I can easily see all of my books and they are grouped in sections.  All fiction, all historical, Christian growth, Condensed Reader's Digest volumes, quick read pick me up booklets, books about raising children and the family . . .

    I like organization.  I always have.  Now that I only have half a memory to work with, it's proved to be a powerful tool!

                             

    I've ordered new sweaters and long warm skirts for the girls and me from Ebay.  People who don't know me (like in line at the store) ask, "Have you recently lost a lot of weight?"  I take it to mean, my old dresses are too baggy on my frame, due to the  25+ weight I've dropped.  I have even dropped two sizes in underwear and my ring size and watch!

    Last week, I started going through the closets, pulling "summer" clothes.  I've almost gone through all of the dressers, pulling "summer" shirts.  The girls still have short sleeve shirts, but they are in fall colors instead of pastels.

    All of the girls and I got new sweaters, skirts, slips, and hooded t-shirts.  We are excited.  Wearing those heavy sweaters seems like light years away, but that cold weather will be here before you know it!  Rissy's and mine are currently on the love seat at the end of my bed.

    Speaking of "bed," usually, when I read in bed in the evening, one or more of the girls will climb in with me and talk about how cozy they feel.  Recently, the conversations have been turning to chilly night stories.  Memories of starting up the fireplace in the morning, and so on! 

    Chirper sure has captured the beginning of fall.  He's been eating like crazy (actually, he's finally slowed down a bit) and sleeps on my side of the bed by my pillow.  He welcomes us by stretching out as long as his body can and literally wiggling his toes!

                         

    I've thought about becoming a cat, although I don't know how to make that happen!!!

    Oh to be him!  Everyone loves him, talks to him and strokes him all the time and tells him how sweet and good he is.  He's told umpteen times a day what a good boy he his.  Then little treats are sent his way (secretly) under the table at meal time! 

    Everyone is always glad to see him, and when he walks into the room a family member will almost always say, "Chiiiirrrr - perrrrrrr!  Hiiiiiiiii" 

    He's kept warm.  He's played with, when he's in the mood.  And he is kissed on the forehead and cheekbones more times in a day than I can count.  What a life.  People doting on you and catering to your every whim!!!!

    Dream on, Cher', dream on!

    I have some mini muffins (apple and cinnamon) about to come out of the oven.  I'm going to jump right on that challenge, and see if I can eat a few! 

    Be Blessed  ~

  • A Restful Labor Day Weekend (????)

    So, where do I start? 

    This might be a perfect time for another bullet blog!   

    You know those weeks where EVERYTHING goes wrong, day after day?   

    We did well to keep joy in our hearts and not blow a gasket with the bad tempers, that were looming just on the fringe of our sanity. 

    We held our tongue, afraid to speak, and said to each other, "Boy!  What's going on with us?  Do you feel like we're being picked on??!!"  

    Monday:
         *  A long hard day of cleaning and moving around books, etc. to accommodate the new bookcase in our room.
         *  The girls had their last social skills therapy session from 5:30 - 6:30pm.
         *  I dropped them off and was supposed to go to Stephanie's to hang out. 
         *  She didn't answer her phone (left it in her car). 
         *  Went to Payless Shoes to kill time.
         *  Stephanie called and said JanaLyn was crying because we weren't coming over. 
         *  I said we would be by after I picked up the girls. 
         *  I *RUSHED* back to pick them up and sat in the car and extra 15 minutes.  Our therapist is ALWAYS LATE.
         *  Her lateness further confirmed our desire to drop the Monday sessions. 
         *  Nice visit at Stephanie's - bought some things from JanaLyn's school fund raiser.

    Tuesday:
         *  I was in a cleaning mode, at my desk and files, when the cleaning lady showed up. 
         *  She told me what time she'd be here Wednesday, but hadn't mentioned coming on Tuesday. 
         *  I found something to keep her busy.
         *  I cleaned off the top of my desk.

                 

    Wednesday:
         *  Went to a Physical Therapy appt. *EARLY* (made appt. early, so I'd be here for cleaning lady).
         *  They sent me home with an apology.  Some sort of bookkeeping mix up. 
         *  Went to the jewelry store to buy Luci & Rissy heavier silver chains for their new cross necklaces.
         *  Deposited money at bank.
         *  Cleaning lady came and went.
         *  Jesse and I noticed a huge wet spot on the dining room carpet, just outside the kitchen door.
         *  I thought the bucket of water the cleaning gal used to mop the floors had spilled.
         *  That would have been too easy to fix. 
         *  The dishwasher was leaking. 

            
              
         *  Jesse turned off the water supply to the dishwasher, which left me with no hot water at the sink.
         *  I don't have the strength to carry water from the bathroom to the kitchen.
         *  So I boiled 4 kettles of water for each dish washing job! 
         *  At first, we had an oscillating fan to dry the carpet (lots of "white noise")

     
      

         *  Our friend gave us a dehumidifier to dry out the carpet.  The pad was ruined.
         *  The sound of the dehumidifier was "distracting" to say the least!  Much louder than our fan.
         *  I continued to boil water to wash dishes.
         *  That's night's meal was HORRIBLE!!!  I made chicken, that dried out, and curled up, like shoe leather. 
            The green peas were hard, the black-eyed peas were mealy, and the corn on the cob was w/o flavor!
         *  Went to church, despite severe fatigue.

    Thursday:
         *  The girls had their regular therapy appointment and I had my IV at the cancer place. 
         *  Jesse and I returned home to find blood (and a swarm of flies) in front of our large freezer. 
         *  Annamarie had gone out there to get bread for Wednesday's lunch, the door had been opened over 24 hours. 
         *  We threw fish away and tried to save as many things as we could.  It was FULL of meat.

                                                      
                                                                     The freezer "Now".

         *  Rice, beans, cake mixes, oatmeal, and other things that didn't require cold temps, were pulled from freezers.

                                
     
         *  We alternated "almost thawed" with "very frozen" foods in the small refrigerator freezers.
         *  Then we mopped the blood up AND generously sprayed Black Flag to fight the bugs! 
         *  Food was on the washer.  Food was on the dyer.  Food was on the top of the refrigerator.  What a mess!

       

    Friday:
         *  I got up and came to the computer with my coffee. to relax.
         *  The keyboard was locked up.  No matter what I checked or unplugged and plugged back in - it was locked. 
         *  We gave ourselves a "high five" because the fish we bought were still alive 24 hours after being purchase!!! 
         *  When Jesse dumped them in their new tank, I asked if he wanted me to time them to see how long they lived!
         *  Thursday night, Jesse had cooked a bunch of the freezer meat - pork chops, chicken breasts, steaks.
         *  Dinner on Friday was fruit and leftover chicken.
         *  I got to bed at a reasonable hour - we're both exhausted from the past week.

    Saturday:
         *  Jesse was going to rotate the tires on his trailer when he noticed the wire mesh showing on one tire. 
         *  Why are trailer tires the same price as huge car tires?
         *  A carpet guy (a friend of a friend) was supposed to come by to give us a bid.  Never showed up.
         *  Luci broke her brand new silver chain.  I took it and her ID bracelet away from her.

    Sunday:
         *  Went to church without event and came home to eat MORE leftover meat from Thursday night. 
         *  Jesse took care of a few things around the house and cleaned the  pool for the girls (green water, again)
         *  Annmarie opened a kitchen cupboard door that we had told her not to open.  The hinge wasn't working right. 
         *  But, as usual, she didn't listen to her sisters trying to help her.  
         *  The door broke off the hinge when she opened it, despite the cries of many who said, "No!  No, Annamarie!  Don't
            open it!" 

            

    Monday:
         *  Jesse put an old tire on the trailer and took the Suburban to have the oil changed.
         *  They informed Jesse the rear brakes needed to be replaced. 
         *  Jesse cooked home style ribs outside and I made green beans and 4 cheese mashed potatoes.
         *  That's when I discovered the milk expired on 9/1.  It was 9/6. 
         *  The milk hadn't been rotated after our last purchase. 
         *  Now we have NO milk.

                                          
                                              See the vacant spot on the right?

         *  The friend who knew the carpet man, came to replace the brakes.
         *  The carpet guy called (finally!) and said he'd be at our house at 8pm Monday. 
         *  Jesse was in bed (I was getting ready for bed), when the carpet guy called Jesse at NINE O'CLOCK!! 
         *  He left a message.  I don't know if he was thinking he'd come at 9pm or had another excuse for not coming.

    Tuesday:
         *  I woke up this morning and went to the kitchen to get my coffee.
         *  The dishwasher was running.  (Annamarie forgot to run it last night after cleaning the kitchen up.) 
         *  Also, everything from under the sink was sitting on the floor with the door open. 
         *  Jesse said their was water standing in the plastic tub that holds our cleaning products. 
         *  He thinks the water is from the day they worked on the dishwasher.  I hope so!

          

         *  The cleaning lady just called and said she has a sick baby - just as well.  I'd like to enjoy the silence!
         *  The physical therapist called to reschedule me. 
         *  She explained the secretary had been wrong and I *should* have been seen last week.

    ALL THAT *AND* PICTURES, TOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Would you like to hear of something happy?

           

    Everyone slept in today and there's nothing much planned - except, what I'll fix for dinner and my first week of school teacher's planner (we start the 13th) needs to be filled in.

    I seriously hope last week isn't repeated. 

    In my opinion, "Labor Day Weekend" is highly overrated!

    Be Blessed  ~