Happy Independence Day!

I'm beyond proud to be an American.

With all its good and not-so-good moments ...

I love my country.

This flag, to me, is a precious symbol of hope and freedom fought with the blood, sweat, tears and lives of many, past and present, both known and unknown.

I thank those I've known and wept over and those strangers who gave life and limb for my freedom. It's not free and I certainly do not take it for granted.


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I've been a stranger to my laptop, other than bill payment, since my aunt had a stroke on May 17. I've missed so many blogs and playing catch-up is not something I can do right now. My aunt has no spouse or children. I am the only one who will care for her needs and finances. Right now, she is in an assisted living facility but I will soon have to bring her to my home. Please add the both of us to your prayer lists. It's difficult using a wheelchair and caring for oneself. To do that and care for another is terribly difficult. I do need all the prayers you're willing to say for me and my aunt.


I hope in a few months I'll have everything settled to a strict schedule with enough time to blog and visit those I enjoy so much.


God bless you all.

I have felt poorly for quite a while now. On 31 March, I had a total hysterectomy. I feel much better now, except for exhaustion. I have severe anemia but am working hard to clear that up. Iron pills and eating well is all I know to do.

I bought these tulips at Aldi's before I had surgery. I love that store. They have unique items along with the best produce around. The tulips bloomed while I was home, recovering. I really enjoyed watching them open and show their lovely color.

Six tulips from Aldi's $2,99

Miss Cleo ... showing her true diva self.

I couldn't put Samson's bed away after he passed. Miss Cleo has found it to be one of her favorite spots. I have it on the couch because it keeps hair off the couch cover. If someone happens to drop by, I just put it in the floor. I've tried to go outside to enjoy coffee or relaxing a bit but every time I do, I can't help but cry; how lonely it is to be without my happy companion. I pray I get past this bit of sadness. I love being outdoors but it's not the same. I have never spent any time outside without Samson since we moved here 12 years ago.

I've wanted a small step-back cabinet for many years. Unfortunately, I've not come across one that fits my budget. A friend of mine found this at an estate sale for me. She called and asked if I thought it was worth $35. I jumped on it! There is a drawer and a door on both sides, 3 pegs on the left along with a 14" drop leaf on the right. I don't have it in this particular spot now but this is the only picture I have of it. It's helped tremendously with storage of two appliances and some small items. I'm still looking for a small step-back cabinet ... one day ... :-)

I hope your weekend is wonderful and you have the opportunity to get outside and enjoy the sunshine.

Unexpected things ...

 

 See ya in a day or two!

Friday ...

I have progressed a little with the Hugs of Love baby blanket but not as much as I should. My cousin asked me for an infinity scarf. I decided to use LionBrand Landscapes in sand dune.  Luckily, I got many skeins on clearance for $2 each. I used a pattern stitch called "That Nice Stitch".  After I got the pattern memorized, it was smooth sailing. I enjoyed knitting it. Today, I got the scarf and a few other goodies packaged. It's now bound for Virginia and my sweet little cousin planning her mark on the world at college. I hope she enjoys it. I've mailed her packages since she was about 2 years old. I doubt I'll ever stop.

It looks a little blurry although it isn't. This yarn has a slight "halo" to it.

 

Mister always looks so innocent and perfectly content when he's sleeping.

The daylight hours have been hanging on later and later with each passing day. The temperatures, however, have certainly gotten colder. This weekend is predicted to be the coldest thus far in this season. Wind chills below zero tomorrow and I've a birthday party to attend. UGH! 

A friend brought the 2016 Farm to Table garden calendar to me this past Sunday. It's full of information that I am enjoying reading pertaining to gardening and all involved. I'll be following its advice on when to plant and harvest and all chores in between.

 

I've enjoyed getting closer to my kitties lately. I didn't get to spend as much time as they deserved while caring for Samson in his last months. The "new normal" is becoming more normal every day. With that said, there is not a day that goes by when I open that back door I don't think of him. I don't particularly look forward to spending time outdoors now. Since I moved back here in 2004, I have never been out there without Samson overseeing my task. It will be another "new normal" to face and I'm not looking forward to it.

Snow and snow and snow ...

The blue "snowflake" in the picture is a window cling. I put them on the glass door to break the reflection so the birds won't try to fly through it.

The snow has covered the land and all it holds with a heavy blanket. I took this before it finally stopped on Friday. That tiny brownish strip on the other side of the tree is the one strip of paved roadway that is left to be seen. By the time it was all over, there was no tiny strip. The DoH had scraper trucks out with gravel and dirt spreaders. It was far too cold and coming down too quickly to use salt. There is a total of about 18" of dry, powdery, lightweight snow. As beautiful as it is, I thought I was going to die because of it. 

  

This photo below is the reason why. I begin to smother if I feel I'm "tied down". I know it's crazy. You'd think after 35 years of wheelchairs and crutches, I'd be familiar with being "tied down". But I have never really felt that way because I've always been 100% independent. That independence is very slowly diminishing in certain areas (I'm concerned with making my way up a ladder to change a light bulb now) but not in the area of getting myself "out" if I need or want. The front door was completely snowed shut. The back door was as you see below. I could get out but my wheelchair wouldn't be going with me. ha I've never had the extra money to have roofs put on the porches so the snow piles up to the doors. It's a horrible feeling. Fortunately, two very dear friends who always watch out for me came with shovels and brooms yesterday afternoon. I can now get out on my porches and feel like I can breathe. My cell phone battery died when we were out yesterday before I could get any pictures. I'll have more tomorrow. My car is out there somewhere. ha It's totally covered except for a tiny area on the front wheel.

Yep. That's a long string on the door knob. It's the only way I can close the door behind me instead of completely turning around and closing the door. I'm not patient about things like that and it was just too irritating to try to close the door, especially if I'm loaded with groceries.

While I'm snowed in for the next few days, I'm working on several projects. This crochet project is for a dear lifelong friend's first grandchild. It's a girl. The body of the blanket is Patons Astra (acrylic) white. I haven't chosen the three trim yarns yet. I know I want pink, light pink and gray. I'd like to find a yarn with a little sheen to it that will compliment the Astra. The nursery is in pink camoflouge and Jersey cows. Never have I seen or heard of such a combination but to each their own. ha This pattern, called Hugs of Love, is of intermediate skill level, but if you read the pattern carefully, and not get too involved in the television, you should be able to do it. 

 During one of my snack breaks, Miss Cleo decides she needs my Cheez-its more than I do. ha She loves Cheez-its.

I wanted some blueberry muffins for breakfast so I went to Just Cats, Deb's blog, in search of her blueberry muffin recipe.

I baked them in my Oster countertop convection oven that I really love. The only problem is I forgot to choose convection bake instead of just bake. That's partly why the tops didn't brown evenly. I baked the dozen on the right at the same time. They're blueberry with brown sugar. The three on the left I baked last because I wanted to try something different. I added a chunk of pineapple to each muffin center and put nutmeg and cinnamon on top. They don't look perfectly baked but they tasted perfectly baked. :-) I had one each and a big cup of hot tea.

Most churches and some businesses are closed today. I've been awake for several hours and haven't seen more than five cars on this main roadway. 

I hope wherever you are, you're warm and happy. And please, snow or no snow ... feed the birds and all the other little critters out there. They really do depend upon us.

Oh boy ...

After one hour and forty-five minutes of snowing ...

The snow started at about 8:30 this morning. I'd prepared yesterday by filling the feeders and the heated bird bath for the various critters. Got the kerosene heater ready with an extra few gallons of kerosene in case the electricity fails. I moved the gas grill so I could easily get to it if I wanted something hot to eat while the power was out. I also bought peanut butter and bread for me and tuna for the furry ones. Lastly, swept the porches and covered my car. My cousin gave me a car windshield cover for Christmas. What a great gift. It's got covered magnets in each corner and a little flap at both front windows that I closed the door on. No way it can come off. It even covers the wipers so they won't freeze. This is one of those great gifts that make my life a bit easier.

 

Most of the snow melted yesterday. The sun was so warm I only had to have on sweats and gloves. No coat needed although it was very cold in the shade. The snow was so dry, only a broom was needed for removal. That was wonderful. The snow shovel is too long for me and my shoulders just can't manage the weight of it. 

Mister is much better now that he is taking a glipizide pill every day. He's gained a little weight and his coat seems fuller. He is much more active and as happy as that makes me, it irritates Miss Cleo. He likes to pounce on her when she's sleeping. Just like brother and sister. :-)

Huh? What snow?

I'm in the middle of sorting through an early phase of Spring cleaning. Please excuse the mess in the background. Mister and Miss Cleo love playing in and around piles of "stuff". They're like kids with a fort. 

I've decided I'm going to take a break from sorting and cleaning today and tomorrow and work on some knitting, crocheting and a small sewing project I want to attempt. So, with the blizzard still blizzard-ing out there ... I'm going to prepare a small pot of hot lemony tea and do what I love best ... crafting.

If you're in the blizzard area, I hope you stay warm and have plenty of what you need and the electricity stays on for everyone. 

Just another day ...

The weather here has been unseasonally warm. The mornings are cold with very heavy frosts but the days have warmed to near 60 until today ... 73 degrees! Tomorrow is supposed to be near the same. I feel a bit odd searching for icicle lights to hang outdoors when I feel the need to weed a flower bed or do some sort of outside work.

I purchased my dishwasher last evening. I feel I made a good choice and got a good price. Whirlpool 51-decibel (supposed to be quiet enough to not disturb kitchen conversation); originally $599, on sale for $379. I'm used to the $100 loud one I had so I won't know what to do with a nice one! I'm excited for Thursday's delivery. I gave the old one to my aunt's cleaning lady. Her husband will be here Monday to get it and repair it. I'm told it's just a hose plugged up. I hope that's all it is. I'd rather give it to someone who doesn't have one than let Lowe's take it off and dump it.

Mister, my tabby buddy, has been diagnosed with diabetes. It just broke my heart when the vet told me. I just didn't want to deal with another sick one. He's lost one pound. He has a skin condition that requires steroid shots. The steroid shots have caused diabetes. I can't stop the steroid shots because the skin condition gets quite severe. He loses hair down his spine and raw sores develop. I will wait longer periods of time between the shots. That should help a little. He's shown signs of diabetes with the lethargy and abundance of water intake. He'd gotten to the point where he would just lay by the water fountain because he was too tired to walk to it so often. I just placed his bed by it so he'd be comfortable. The vet started him on glipizide and I get it filled at my pharmacy. I got an odd look when they asked for my date of birth and I said "I have no idea; it's for my cat". ha He's doing better after the medicine. I give him a tablespoon of plain Greek yogurt with a crushed pill in it and he gobbles it down twice a day. Hopefully it will always be this easy.