Judi's Jots

Jan 23, 2012

2012-01-23T07:26:00.000-08:00

Well, I have discovered that mixing 2 weight loss programs doesn't work for me. I tried the Food Mover and Weight Watchers and I had something wrong because that didn't work.
So now I am trying a different tactic. I decided to do an exercise cd on Mon-Wed-Fri and walk the treadmill (it's still too cold and nasty outside) on Tues-Thurs-Sat and give myself Sunday off. I hope this works. I need to change something to get out of this rut and off the plateau I'm on. Donna will be back today and after my church meeting I'll go see Jo and pick up some groceries and go to Walmart and come back to organize my kitchen and get my menu plan together so I can get back on track. Time for breakfast and I can hear that French toast calling me....

Jan 20, 2012

2012-01-20T08:18:00.001-08:00

The snow is finally gone. The rain took it away. It's been around 50 for the past 2 days and Non and I are working on getting the patio ceiling insulated. I've been trying to catch up on all my housework. I had a mouse in my kitchen and put down some Decon. By the second day all signs showed he had not returned. So I waited four more days to make it a full week to be sure and then I got rid of the Decon and scrubbed the shelves with bleach and detergent and put down new contact paper and rearranged my kitchen, cleaned out the buffet in the dining area and got rid of a lot of stuff. Then I put most of my things in drawers before I put them onto the shelves again and in the skinny cupboard where the drawers wouldn't fit I put my small appliances. I love the fact that I don't have to get down on my hands and knees and reach over behind stuff any more to get what I need. Should have done this years ago. Eventually I will go through all this again and do a more thorough cleaning out. I figure spring cleaning time for that. Then I will get started on stripping down my cupboards and doing the painting I have been trying to find time to do. Just hope it happens this year. So many things going on. I was so afraid we were going to lose Jo there for awhile, but once I talked to the doctor and he saw Jo as I did, he changed all her meds and she has responded so well it's amazing. She is gaining weight, eating like a champ, writing and reading her mail again and now is asking for pillowcases so she can finish embroidering. I can't explain the difference this has made in my life. I used to dread going there. Now I only have to go there 2-3 times instead of 3-5 times a week. It's been great to finally have some time to do things here. I finally got my ironing, laundry, vacuuming and dusting done and other than a dentist appointment (cleaning) at 11 am, I am free to help Non with the patio. He took the day off so we could finish it. I have been watching all the reports of the flooding in Scio, Jefferson, Turner and parts of Salem and then saw that on Cambridge Circle in Corvallis the flood was so high. That is where my Aunt Lola lived. I am so glad she was not there any more. Her home was so lovely, and flood and mud are so hard to clean. I hear Non getting ready now so I best go fix us some breakfast. Maybe I can remember to post more often now that I am a little more caught up. Jury Duty will be over the end of the month and that will halp, too. God bless.

Dec 27, 2011

2011-12-27T13:18:00.000-08:00

Whooo Hoooo!! As Jody would say. I am now at 183 and that's a 26 lbs loss from Aug. Not only that but my lab work showed my A1C at 6.0 which is so much better than 7.2 like before. Anyway, I'm excited to be able to just do 6 mos. checkups from now on and not this every 2-3 wks lab stuff. I feel that every pound I lost was worth it and I want to now set my new goal of 160 by March 21st which is our 48th wedding anniversary. That's a pretty big goal, but I am determined to get there. Please continue to pray for me that I might get the rest of this weight off, figure out a new schedule and walk more. All of my stats were good except my good cholesterol was a tad low but she says activity will bring that back up where it belongs. So, by losing the weight and doing more activity I should be able to get my A1C even lower. That would be a great accomplishment, however, I am a diabetic and I always will be. I can control it completely by diet as long as I keep the weight off. She also put me on baby aspirin today forever so I don't get a stroke like Mom and Dad. I'm hoping that works. So today I am praising the Lord for providing my aunts, cousin and sister (which are my best friends), Shirley, Linda S & Linda L and Donna for being my Weight Watcher Buddies. Without them I'd never have gotten this far. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

While you are praying, please do not forget Mom. Mom has bronchitis and you all know that it can go into pneumonia in 20 mins. So please put her at the top of your prayer list. Thank you. God bless. Joyful Judi

DEC 10!! I Made My 10% Goal!!!

2011-12-10T06:59:00.000-08:00

Good morning blog!
I have been stuck in such a rut for the past month. I just couldn't break that 187-188 plateau. But this morning I did it.. 186.3 exactly at my 10% goal. I will check to see what my new weight goal is, but it should be around 176. I am hoping that I can actually get there much sooner than it took me to get to this one, but that depends on the plateau and also how much time I can squeeze in for exercise. That was my main problem before. Supposedly Non only has about 3-4 more weeks of work, then we can get back on our old schedule and I can get my mornings back. When I get up at 4:30 and get him off at 5:30 to work, then I start laundry, baking for the church, doing lots of paperwork for Jo and getting all the reports in that Senior Services and Brookdale and Veterans need and filing her receipts and bills and then there is our own paperwork and budgeting and posting all the receipts of things we bought. Then comes breakfast, dishes and I'm on the road depending on what day it is. Monday to the church, then Jo, then Winco or Walmart or both before coming home to lunch. Then it's get something started for dinner and finish any laundry or whatever I didn't get done before I headed out and get ready to greet Non when he gets home. Tuesdays I used to go meet Mom at Jo's but now that Donna is here she will be taking Mom shopping. So maybe Tuesday I can start back on my treadmill. One of my problems is that I am very light-headed/dizzy and I'm not sure if that is caused by the blood sugar dropping between meals or what it is. What ever it is makes me nervous to drive at times. Jo's blood sugar drops and she gets weak and can't even function when she doesn't eat right. I am trying so hard to eat right so I can get rid of this diabetes, but some of the foods that are okay for diabetes I can't have. I can't have sugar-free anything. I can't have broccoli because it messes with my thyroid meds. I am going to go shopping today to find fruits and veggies I can have and still be satisfied. I miss my pasta and my bread a lot. But I do occasionally have a sandwich. I couldn't just go cold turkey without bread...hmmm that sounds good right now... cold turkey sandwich... Anyway, I'm looking forward to the next month to see how much more I can lose and see how it affects my A1C for the diabetes test. I'm going to the lab on the 19th and see Dr Hull on the 27th to find the results. Here is hoping it's not 7.2 any more. Off to breakfast...

Nov 27 - Sunday morning

2011-11-27T08:38:00.000-08:00

Had a great Thanksgiving. This was Vernon's Thanksgiving - he cooked the turkey, ham and prepared for the girls to make the deviled eggs. He helped Mom and I stay on schedule by letting us know exactly what came next and it came together perfectly. I only had a little turkey, some green beans and a yam. Non brought me a yam and I stuck it in microwave to cook. No butter, just a tad of salt & pepper. That was my entire meal. No pie, no cookies, no dessert. I ate just enough and I felt great. After Tara and the girls did the dishes, we visited and played Rummikube until around 3 and then I left to go join Non at home. Butch and Non left about the same time - around 1:30 or so. It was a great day and we had a great visit with everyone.Finally got to 187.7! I've been stuck at 188 lbs for almost 2 wks and could not get it down. I added some different exercises to my treadmill walk. It seems to work better, so we'll see how much more I can lose this week. I have only 1.4 lbs to get to my 10% off goal!!

Nov 21 - Monday Morning!

2011-11-21T08:45:00.001-08:00

Good Monday Morning, Bloggers,
Well, I gained 2 lbs this last week and I seriously doubt I can lose that before tomorrow's weigh in. BUT I am down to 190 and that is 19 lbs less than I weighed in August. My problem is trying to figure out how to deal with diabetes and thyroid problems, yet eat correctly to lose weight when we eat out a lot. This is not easy.
Diabetes requires no white (processed stuff), no wheat (grains all turn to sugar in your body), no dairy (too many chemicals). The thyroid requires no broccoli and other similar foods as it messes with your thyroid meds. Yet I'm suppose to eat fruits and veggies almost exclusively. Only a small amount of meat should be eaten and only seafood or poultry - only small amounts of red meat and seldom. Non only eats meat, potatoes and green beans or salad (lettuce / tomato). Unless we eat out and then it's pretty much a salad buffet or Sonic, Mike's, 5 Guys, or Quizno's. We ate at Izzy's on Friday, Chan's on Saturday, Quizno's and Mike's on Sunday. Today I get to fix a meal here... I think. We went to Whole Foods after church so we weren't home and these places were handy to where we were. I am going to have to change my entire schedule because I've not walked on my treadmill since last week on Wed and it was only for 10 min because I had upset tummy that day. This lifestyle change is not an easy one to manage if you have no schedule for any day of the week. Every day is different, Jo or Mom or Non or the church or my house require certain attention and I have yet to get this thing figured out. Give me time and I'll get it... but then Non will stop working and it will change again. Hopefully he will be able to re-retire before Christmas. I hope so anyway. Off to church meeting...will walk after lunch...I hope.

Oct 28 - I'm sure glad it's Friday!

2011-10-28T08:05:00.000-07:00

The scales weren't very nice to me today. I gained a pound so far this week, but I think yesterday that I miscalculated on a couple things, so I'll be more careful today for sure. Points are not always black and white and some things that should be 1 pt are sometimes 3 and that can throw off your whole day. Anyway, I got a lot done yesterday, so today I just have to finish my laundry, it's almost done now and vacuum the floors later and do my walk. I've been so busy all week that I haven't walked but one day so far and I'm back in my wrist brace (a much better one now) so it takes longer to do things than normal. Mom and I visited Jo yesterday then headed out for shopping at Walmart and Winco and lunch at Wendy's. Had a great visit with a lady friend of Mom's, but she never introduced us, so I can't remember her name. Then off to Willamina and put away her groceries and 2 rounds of Skipbo, both of which she won. Home to wait for Non. He didn't get home till after 5pm and then we had tacos. He had lunch yesterday at Sonic in Tigard. That made us even because I had lunch at Sonic last Sunday when he was working. BUT he had onion rings. I had tater tots because they are a lot less points. We got some fruit snacks for Halloween but we've not had any treaters for years. Sometimes the 2 kids across the street come over, but not always.
Mom says she has over 100 so she and Vern both got candy bags yesterday. I discovered that you can make Ovaltine with Almond Milk and since I can't have dairy anymore that works for me. It's only one point for a full glass. Best get busy, the vacuum doesn't run itself like that machine I've seen on tv. That would make me nervous to have a machine running all over my house and under my feet. Hope you have a great day!!

Busy, Busy Day

2011-10-25T12:49:00.000-07:00

Today has been absolutely crazy. First off I got Non off to work, then had to unscramble all the wires from my Comcast Modem and get them in the box. Why can't you ever get stuff back in the box it came in? I tried and tried and finally after re-arranging stuff several times managed to get it all in there with only one tiny tear in the flap. Not bad. Then I had to grab breakfast and coffee, chat with DJ when she called and head for the eye doc. He didn't warn me that he was going to dilate my eyes. So today of course is the sunniest day we've had in weeks. I leave the doc's office next to hospital, head for Lowe's and then remember I have to go to Comcast which is on the other side of hospital. Back again to Three Mile Lane and on to Comcast. Get the modem and head back to town. Drive to Court House and have to ask directions to tax office. Pay my taxes and don't forget receipt. Then I'm off to Staples for highlighter for Bible that won't fade through to the other page... they don't carry those. So I got a box of colored pencils instead. I have a hundred colored pencils here somewhere but I couldn't find a one of them this morning. So after Staples I go to Clare Bridge and see if I can figure out what happened to Jo's bright red lipsticks. Kylie said she saw Jo's pic and she wasn't the same without her lipstick. I suddenly realized she was right. Jo almost always wears lipstick. So when I got there Angie and I looked and finally in the bathroom drawer in a bag we found 8-10 tubes of her lipstick, so the lost was found and I was very glad I hadn't lost them in the move. That's what I was really afraid I'd done, but now I know I didn't. Jo was asleep so I headed off to Walmart for some more seal a meal rolls and then over to Winco to pick up last of the weekly items. Finally made it back to Lafayette Post Office for the mail. Got home just in time to fix lunch. (Leftover stew and cottage cheese). Now to set up the modem. I got all the wires connected in the back, but the computer wouldn't go online. The number I was given to call didn't work, so I called Comcast again. Edward reset the modem, then finally had me restart the computer and voila Google appears!! I tried to get the dial tone on the phone but no luck so he began to work on that. Then after several minutes he says he'll have to call me back because it looks like it's going to take awhile, just be sure the phone and everything is plugged into the back. SOOOooo. I look and sure enough the phone plug is on the floor. It evidently wasn't pushed in all the way and fell out and as soon as I plugged it in, the dial tone was there. It's a good thing Edward couldn't see my red face from there... Anyway, now all is back to normal and we are online with all 3 computers and my phone is working great. So much for the 96 days of the $80 router from Netgear. It may have a lifetime warranty, but you can't get your money back; they will send you a new router. I don't want another router and now don't need one. Non said I could give it to someone else. Who wants a router that only lasts 3 months? I said I wouldn't give another one to someone knowing it probably wasn't going to last that long. That's not even nice. So I'll just consider it a lesson learned and Thank the Lord that he was able to provide me with a brand new modem that includes a router and wi-fi inside for the same monthly price I was paying for the other modem. Timing is the Lords and I am very grateful. Time to relax and find my kitchen. Fried chicken, hash browns and green beans or salad for dinner tonight. I saved my points. No more pie for me. I've now officially lost 16.2 lbs and I am sticking to my plan because it works for me. My size 18 jeans fit me great and I'm enjoying this new season until I can get into my size 16 again...

I MADE IT!!

2011-10-21T07:30:00.001-07:00

WOW! Finally made it into my size 18 jeans comfortably. I'm so excited I sent cards to tell Donna, Aunt Shirley and Aunt Linda and Cousin Linda, too! I've been wearing those baggy size 20 jeans and had to keep pulling them up for the past 2 weeks. Got Non to pull down the tote with my old jeans in them and tried them on this morning. They fit great and I'm excited at the progress so far in this Weight Watchers lifestyle. I am looking forward to my next goal, but so far so good!! Today I get to be a regular housewife. No appointments, no shopping, just me and house cleaning and laundry and mopping floors, etc... WOW what a change... I love it!

I even remembered to send a card to Jeanne Robertson for her birthday! Shirley told me about it, so I put it in my Kindle so I wouldn't forget.

Jo's pics

2011-10-21T07:22:00.000-07:00

I promised pics of Jo after she got her hair done.. She did not want it cut any shorter so Celeste set it and it looks really nice. She had just got out of bed and the light was better in the bathroom...

Busy Week!

2011-10-20T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is the before picture. Jo gets her hair done this morning, so I'll take a pic either this afternoon or tomorrow depending on how things go. Yesterday I was in Salem to get my car serviced and picked her up 2 sweaters. One black and one a black/white tweed one that is heavier. Why don't retailers understand that not everyone is a teenager that wants their belly to show or their pants around their knees!!! I want pants that fit my body, I'm not an eighty pound 14 yr old without bulges and curves.
It is getting very hard to find places that actually carry adult clothes. If you find a place let me know. Anyway, off the soapbox. I'm so busy all the time that I'm actually looking forward tomorrow to having time to mop my kitchen floor! This is just so weird. My days are full from 4:30 am till I drop in bed around 9-9:30 pm. I always figured retired meant I could actually keep my house clean and have time to reorganize my office. That was so unrealistic, but I didn't know it at the time. Well, it's time for breakfast, then off to Mom's to gather info for a questionnaire Clare Bridge needs and the totes for the shed and for Jo. This morning I am still at 191.5 so that is great considering I ate out 2 meals a day for 2 days in a row. This may come back to bite me later, but so far so good. Next week I have 2 doc appts. Tues is Dr Grinich, my eye doc and Wed is Dr Van Patten about my wrist that still hurts like crazy every time I move it. Tues after appt with Dr G, I'll go see Jo and pick up Mom so we can do her shopping and after lunch we'll head back to Willamina. Linda is getting ready to go to Hawaii for the whole month of November. It would take me a long time to pack for something like that. Not that I have that many clothes, but trying to decide what to take, what I really didn't need, etc. When we went back to Virginia in 2010 I did fine with only one suitcase and we were gone almost a month. I'm sure I could do that again...well, pretty sure anyway.

Oct 18th Weigh In

2011-10-18T06:11:00.000-07:00

Good morning! As of today I have lost 15.4 lbs in 7 weeks!! Not a bad beginning to a new lifestyle. Am looking forward to getting to the next goal - just 3.3 lbs and I'll be at 10% off goal. I weighed 207 at beginning. Then 196.7 was 5% off goal and 186.3 is my next goal. If all goes well I could be there next week. That's a mighty big IF since today is Non's birthday dinner tonight and for lunch Mom and I are taking Jo her favorite foods - KFC Chicken and McDonald's french fries. PLUS I have a chocolate cake and chocolate frosting ordered for a special treat for all the Clare Bridge residents. Jo seems to be adapting a little more each day to her smaller room and having more activity. They don't let her just lay there in bed and watch tv all day. I really think this will help her with her dementia because she has real people to interact with and not just tv characters. She has a lot more one on one with the care givers and they really care about her, too. They did at Wynwood as well, but they are spread much more thin there as they have a lot more residents than Clare Bridge. It sounds like 2 different places but it is all in one building. Clare Bridge is just down the hall from where Jo lived before - on the other side of the dining room. She is in room 129B and her next door neighbor is Jean Nettrouer. Hope I spelled that right. Anyway, very nice lady and they do bingo, go out for meals once a month and I have set up an appointment to have her hair done every Thursday starting this week. That should really help her morale. I've not had breakfast yet, so I better get busy. Lots to do before I go pick up all that food for Jo's bday lunch. Yesterday I washed and detailed my car so I am ready for the new trunk tray and all weather mats. Elantra is due for tires to be rotated and oil change that will happen tomorrow. Thursday I will be helping Mom sort stuff and Friday I get to mop my floors !!! YEAH! Housework is something I like to do but have very little time to accomplish any more. I want to have time someday to clean out my office / craft room. It's more like a junk/storage/computer room right now. Hope your day goes great - mine is off to a very good start. Thank you, Lord!!

HOW TO MAKE A BFAST BURRITO --- NOT!!

2011-10-04T08:05:00.000-07:00

OK, So, here is how NOT to make a breakfast burrito. I was trying to do the eggs in one pan and open the fat free cheese slice (why do they always have those wrappers so tight you can't peel them?) and open my salsa fresca (no pull tab - you have to cut into that plastic top with a sharp knife) and heat my tortilla on the other burner.... OK. Note to self - first turn on the fan so when you burn the tortilla the smoke alarm doesn't go off. Second note to self - open all containers and peel the cheese cover off BEFORE you start the eggs. Third note to self - get out the spoon before you try and pour the salsa on the egg and cheese because it can flop a lot more than you intended.

Second try at burrito - I did great. The egg and cheese are okay I just had to cook the last tortilla (thankfully I had another one) and put it all together. Then I poured out the excess tomato liquid into the sink ( and I didn't even spill any of my burrito doing it!!! YAY!) Second try much better than first one.. but the house still smells of burned tortilla... will have to open doors and windows and start the fans.

OK Breakfast is over and I pulled up that poor tomato plant. It started out as a topsy turvy one but it wasn't doing well at all, so Non and I put it in a planter and propped it up and I got 3 tomatoes off it before it stopped doing anything. I left it for a couple weeks, but then the rain started and it still wasn't doing anything so this morning I just put it to rest in the garbage can. The other tomato plant is doing okay and still has 8 tomatoes on it that are growing but it's a lot cooler now and no sun to speak of - just rain. So I'll probably have to find a recipe for green tomatoes and pull that one, too. The flowers are still blooming and that's cool. I will probably take them to the cemetery for Dad's grave eventually. They just toss them later, but it will be pretty for a bit, anyway. Time for my treadmill walk.

Kaleb's 18th Birthday! Oct 4

2011-10-04T07:33:00.000-07:00

Today Kaleb is 18 and it doesn't seem possible. He is much taller than Jody and almost as tall as Dave. Actually he might be as tall by now. I haven't seen him in over a year. Makayla is going to be as tall as he is, I think. I have trouble keeping up with the nieces and nephews and grandkids, let alone the great nieces and nephews and great grandkids. Let's see. John has 2 - Vanessa - who has 2 - Patience and Serenity; Candy - who has 2 - Destiny and Fayht. Donna has 3 - Karen - who has 2 - Trevor and Barret; Jody who has 4 - Kaleb, Makayla, Jacob and Nathan; Arte has daughter Meriden. Vern has 4 - Angela who has Samantha; Raquel who has 2 - Grant and Gavin; Vern Jr has 4 - Allora, Aubrey, Alesia and Jasmine; and David. Don't think David has had any children yet, but haven't heard from him in awhile. That makes 9 nieces and nephews and 18 great nephews and nieces and 4 grandkids and 2 great grandkids. No wonder I can't keep up. I do know their birthdates, I just can't remember all the birth YEARS. I don't know how old they are for sure. I get close, but it's really hard to remember when you see them so seldom.

Anyway, Happy 18th birthday, Kaleb - I posted on Facebook. And next celebration is Ray and Cindy's 19th anniversary on Oct 17th and the next birthday is Aunt Jo and Non who have a birthday on Oct 18th. Then on Halloween John and Amanda will celebrate their 2nd anniversary on the same day as Non's parents anniversary. October is a busy month.

Oct 4 Weigh In

2011-10-04T06:51:00.000-07:00

OK today scales said 194.9 so I'm down 12.1 lbs from my WW beginning weight of 207.0! Not too bad, but Non said this morning, "Did you ever think you'd see a time when those numbers sounded like good ones?" I thought about it a half a second and said "NO!". I never ever thought I'd be over 145 again which is what I weighed the morning before Ray was born. the next morning after he had been born at 10:51 at night, I weighed 107. He was my entire weight gain. BUT 9 years later and after having horrid complications with birth control chemicals (pills) thrown into my system, I had a hysterectomy at age 30. The anesthesia damaged my thyroid and within a very short time I had gained 50 lbs in 30 days. Later the thyroid would cause me to have many more problems because it arbitrarily chooses a number and nothing you do can change it. No amount of exercise, lack of calories or adding calories will change it. I did manage to change it for short spurts of time. I went on "Eat Yourself Slim" diet and lost from 165 down to 140 just before my gall bladder surgery. After surgery, the weight came back. Later I did the Richard Simmons tapes and diet and got back down to 138 and kept it off for almost a full year, then without warning or change of diet/exercise, I gained 22 lbs and was up to 160 and climbing. A few years later I heard about Weigh Down and did it again - I got down to 140 for about 9 months. Then I got discouraged when the same thing happened again and the weight came back. Then it went to 170 - 185 and I was so down. Then I did Nutrisystem and lost 22 lbs the first 2 mos. I was really pumped but then they changed the food and I kept getting sicker and sicker and finally quit. They made it more "healthy" for you. Added chemicals or something my body couldn't tolerate. Then the weight came back again. I met Dr Radzik and he tried for 5 yrs to get my thyroid where it should be. I ended up going to Dr. Marian Hull and within a couple visits my thyroid was on track just before I retired from Evergreen and the next week started Weight Watchers. I did that for several months but then several new ladies joined the groups that decided to bathe themselves in perfume. I couldn't even stay long enough to get weighed in. I just got so sick - like having a bout of pneumonia. So I gave up WW and the weight I lost all came back. Finally at 209 lbs I was just discouraged. Then at Mom's 85th birthday party, my aunts, Shirley and Linda, both talked to me about Weight Watchers online. They decided to be my WW buddies and I would check in with them every week. That was all the encouragement I needed. 6 weeks later I am definitely on the right track and I have lots of company. My cousin Linda in Corvallis is also on WW and she has been a great inspiration as well. My doctor is now on the program and she has lost 15 lbs. So everyone has been so positive this time that I really feel I can make some progress. I know I am on the mend again and it feels right this time. No iffy stuff as long as the thyroid meds are working. We will be monitoring them closely to make sure they are good and stay that way.

I had to buy a brand new tape so Non could help me measure myself at my 195 weight on Oct 1st. He has been losing weight with me. We are doing this together. He isn't registered on WW online, but we eat same foods mostly and he is down to 197 so that's good. I never thought he'd actually do it when I told him I'd be at 170 before he was. He says 175 or 180 would be okay for him. Whatever he chooses... I'll be at 170 before he reaches it. I'm determined. But my ultimate goal is actually 135-140. That's for later. Small goals for now. My next WW goal is 186.3 and if I keep working at it and walking, then each small goal will get me closer to the real goal and that is to be healthy enough that I'll be able to keep up with Mom!

Sep 28 -Shirley & Carrie Birthday

2011-09-28T09:26:00.000-07:00

It's a COOOL morning! It was only 67 in the house when we got up at 4:30 and it hasn't warmed up yet. It's suppose to get up to 79 or 80 today, so we are still not ready to turn the furnace on yet. It won't be long if this keeps up because Non doesn't do well if it is cool. It affects his back. Yesterday I took Shirley her birthday card and she fixed a terrific salad for lunch and we visited till 3pm and Stan came home. I headed for the Farmers Market in Newberg and picked up onions and cantaloupe, corn, raspberries and HUGE blackberries. Home to fix Non an onion sandwich to tide him over till I could get the burgers fixed. Still haven't heard from the doc regarding results of the biopsy I did 3 wks ago. We are playing phone tag. Today I still need to walk, scrub bathrooms, vacuum and iron, but here I sit going over my old blogs and trying to warm up enough to move. Two cups of coffee and I'm still not warm. For someone who rarely if ever gets cold, this is a very weird morning!! Maybe my walk will warm me up. I've got to try something.

WOW - I did it!

2011-09-22T16:10:00.000-07:00

Today I hopped on the scales and it was awesome... 196.3 which is 0.4 less than my 5% goal. In less than a month I've made it to the first goal and I'm very excited. So my next goal is the 10% and I'm not sure exactly where that will put me but I think around 186 or so. Will find out on Tues of next week. But whatever it is, I'm sure going to try to get there by the end of October. I am now on an incline of 6 on my treadmill and walking over a mile every day. I am doing my best to make it into a "healthy habit" so I will continue this as part of my "lifestyle" change.

It sounds like Non may be working up until sometime in November. Tristan called Joe to tell him that one of the screws in his foot broke in half which requires another surgery. That means at least another 4-6 weeks he will be out. So Non will be covering for him during that time. Mom and I have no appointments until the 30th so I am going to start tomorrow on some of my goals here at home. I want to clean each closet of every piece of clothing I haven't worn in a year (or more) and I want to clean every drawer in the house and get rid of JUNK!!! So tired of pawing through stuff to find what I need that I've had enough. So this next week will be my way of pushing the "DELETE" button on my house and rid myself of this unwanted collection of "things" I don't need or use. Thank Goodness for VFW and Civic Club sales and Goodwill.

Doing Better

2011-09-10T12:08:00.000-07:00

Today is a milestone for me. I've spent a lot of my summer camping, going for doctor visits either for Mom or me and last week I had two tests done. The second one - the needle biopsy of my thyroid has left me with quite a bruise on my neck. It will go away eventually, but it can't dampen my spirits today. When I was at the Birthday Party for Mom, Linda and Shirley both promised to be my Weight Watcher buddies. That gave me just the encouragement I needed. I signed up for WW online because of all the perfume at the meetings and I have a WW scale here. Then as an added incentive, I've challenged Non to get to 170 before he does. Today for the first time in almost 2 years I am less than 200 lbs. I weighed in at 199.6 and although I realize that .4 of a pound isn't much I can't begin to tell you what seeing that 1-- instead of 2-- did for me. I've weighed 203-207 without being able to get under that since before I retired. But knowing I have to report to Shirley and Linda and knowing they are both on WW and going through the same thing gave me the boost I needed to start walking. Non got me a treadmill which I have used haphazardly for the past 3 yrs since he got it. BUT not any more. I started out slow - only 1/2 hr a day but today I went for 47 minutes. I have a tiny little shelf like thing on my treadmill that is just thick enough for my Kindle to sit on. I have been reading the best book on getting your life back on track while I walk. The book is called "Made to Crave: Satisfying Your Deepest Desire with God, Not Food" by Lysa TerKeurst - President of Proverbs 31 Ministries - Zondervan. This book was sent from God for such a time as this. She has been there done that and understands this struggle like no one else I've heard or read about. She tells it like it is and I love what she is doing for me in explaining why I had to go through this in order to start the weight loss. This book should be required reading for all women. It helps if you are overweight, but also if you are having struggles with anything. God bless her and her ability to express just what I need to hear each day. It's a lot like my devotional book, "God Calling". Anyway I'm back on track and something tells me this time I will actually succeed. I will read and re-read this book until I have it memorized. Buy the book as soon as you can and see what I mean...God bless.

Camp Trip at South Beach

2011-09-06T07:25:00.000-07:00

When Donna came for the Bday party we decided to go for a short camp trip to the beach. Here are some pics of the "beach combers".

And they're off in search of agates...or ??

Gorgeous Day - warm and sunny

Lots of other beach combers were on the scene

DJ looking for that special rock

Looks like she found something

Mom's got something, too - that hill was really steep to climb as Mom and DJ rest on way back up.

Mom's 85 bday

2011-09-06T07:18:00.000-07:00

Here are some family pics of Mom's 85th bday - before everyone else arrived...

Mom and Shirley

Bakery Cake

Tara made this one - took about 9 hrs to create - awesome!

Allora, Junior and Tara helping set up for party

Butch and Phyllis - cousins and great friends

Mom with her cakes

Linda - aunt and Weight Watcher Buddy

Shirley - aunt and Weight Watcher inspiration - below are Stan and Non checking out tables.

Mom's 85th Birthday party is today!

2011-08-27T07:14:00.000-07:00

Just after my camping trip with the church, Mom and I started a round of doctor visits and I found out I had radial syltoid tenosynovitis which is just "overworking the thumb". Thank Goodness it is my left one, but this splint is really making typing very difficult. Jo fell and broke her leg on the 11th and we have been dealing with her dementia which is getting so bad with her hallucinations that you can't carry on a conversation with her any more. She is rarely at home in her mind. She is on a plane, or in Montana visited her "step mom". We have no idea who that could be since she never had one. It gets worse, but there's nothing we can do about it. Just pray for us. Donna and Art came from Minnesota to help me with Mom's birthday party on Monday. We went shopping on Tuesday in McMinnville, Wed was Donna's birthday so we went to the beach and celebrated and shopped some more. Thurs I went to Salem to finish the shopping and Friday we baked cakes. Today is the big day for the party. Tomorrow after church is the bbq here at home and then we are off camping till Tues. Wed we will celebrate Mom's real birthday at the State Fair. Thursday I report for Jury Duty and Friday Non and I will head for Packwood for Labor Day weekend. Then life gets back to some kind of normal again as Donna and Art head back for Minnesota as we head for Packwood. Mom and I have several more doctor visits in Sep. I have a biopsy on my thyroid and an ultrasound on my tonsil. Crazy. I didn't know we had 2 sets of tonsils. One set they took out when I was 4, this other set is on the other side and one is enlarged and he wants to know why. I also had a glucose test that showed over 200 so I'm being tested for diabetes again. Crazy world. Life just gets busier and busier. I think this is the Devil's way of trying to distract us from God because he knows time is short. Off to bfast and pick up the bakery cake....

Aug 10

2011-08-10T12:52:00.000-07:00

Google is working again... Not sure why or for how long, but found out my mother board was a bad one and it crashed, so when I got the computer back from Fry's, Google was working fine and so was my shockwave. It was an update from Microsoft that messed up my computer stuff, now all is almost back to normal except the Yahoo email is still not usable. I do not want my name on the web sending out garbage like that. I am so glad Allan and Alice told me. Some one else did too, but my memory fails me...that's been happening a lot. Dr Slough and I are working on it. Gave 4 vials of blood today so they can check every thing out. Will most likely need a CT scan later to check out that thyroid lump. It's not very big but they can't decide if it is on the thyroid or the parathyroid which is a whole different ballgame. Had a great time in Jacksonville/Medford and Grants Pass with Mom 7/13-7/16 and just got back from church campout 8/3-8/6 at Fishermens Bend near Mill City. Great fun. Yes, I have bruises and bangs, but it was still a lot of fun. Today I made cupcakes - little tiny ones and I'm going to make a salad and a casserole to take to some friends at church. They have a new arrival !! A little boy. I forgot to ask his name...will find out later. Gotta go get started on the casserole and by that time the cupcakes will be cool enough to frost... bye for now

Google Not working again

2011-05-17T17:09:00.000-07:00

Looks like I'll have to find another place to blog. I can't get Google to work on any of my computers. This is Mom's computer. I'll now be posting at Comcast.net: http://home.comcast.net/~mcjudi/site/?/blog/ I have more pics and the rest of my blog there.

I'm back!

2011-05-15T08:24:00.001-07:00

Not sure what is up with Google, but today I was able to log in for the first time in weeks. It says the Certificate for Google is not valid and Google Chrome, Safari, IE8, and Opera won't open it either. You would think that Google could open it's own, but it just says the certificate isn't valid and refuses to let me go to the website. Today for some reason it let me in. The van is really taking shape. The closet is built, but needs to have the doors added and the white vinyl cover put on and then it will be all set. I'll add the pics if I can get back in again later. I'm looking forward to a busy week. Today I have Nursery during church, then need to go to Staples and tomorrow is counting and finishing up the packing for our camping trip. Tuesday Mom and I go for our annual physicals and Non goes to airport to pick up Art and Donna and after that, pure chaos. We will plan our menu - most of which I have already stocked in the camper, all except the marshmallows. I don't want the ants to find them. Then Wed I finish the loading, Thurs morn I have an early mammogram and then hook up my van and camper and I'm off to pick up Donna and Mom and we ladies are off to the beach for a camp out. Mom and I haven't been camping since last August. We are going into withdrawal... :-)

The Cabinet is in!

2011-05-03T12:08:00.001-07:00

He even found a white stereo and speakers to go in the ends

of the cabinet. It looks awesome! It is awesome!

May 3

2011-05-03T07:08:00.000-07:00

I've been hurting too bad to post much. My knee is giving me fits. I've had the x-ray, my doc appt is tomorrow, so hopefully I can get some answers and some relief from this pain so I can get on with my life and try to lose some of this weight. It's hard to lose when you can't walk off the pounds. Non is doing so great on the cabinet for the van. It's almost done and I can hardly wait to take pics and post them. Time for breakfast...

April 23 - Easter is tomorrow!

2011-04-23T11:58:00.000-07:00

Non is making progress on the van. He has finished the wall and got a microwave. Now he just has to make the cabinet to go over the bed/couch and bolt down the sink, stove cabinet, and porta potty. He will later make a closet next to the stove cabinet. We left the drawers out of the stove cabinet until he bolts it down to make it easier. You can see by the shape of the wall that he had a very difficult job of getting that done. He made template, then modified and re-modified until finally it worked. He did a great job as usual. It's beginning to look like a camper now and we were really tickled that the cooler fits right between the seats and the bed can still open just fine. One less thing to buy. The best part, though, is that it all unbolts and it can be an empty cargo van again later when we need it to be.

This morning I managed to get my herbs seeds planted: basil, cilantro, chives, oregano, parsley and marjoram. I also started the seeds for some marigolds, baby breath and cosmos for some color in our yard. Maybe they will sprout before my birthday or Memorial Day but I'm not going to hold my breath because it's still pretty cool out there. It was only 31 yesterday and 36 this morning.

April 20 - Gramma Barber's 111 birthday

2011-04-20T07:06:00.000-07:00

Good morning! Today we are off to see Hugh and Rene Cain, lunch out, then Mom will go get her bone scan and neck scan and then we are off to Willamina and puzzling or maybe we'll play Rummikube. Last night I went to Salem Withnell Hyundai to go over the Elantra warranty and maintenance items with Roxie. There were 5 of us in the class. One couple had a Genesis they had bought in September, one lady had a Sonata she bought 2 days ago, a man who'd bought an Elantra like mine only grey 2 weeks ago, and me. After the class she gave us each an emergency roadside kit in a great looking little bag. Worth the trip to Salem. Non says that costs over $30. Tomorrow is my day to begin washing and reloading the camper and getting ready for a summer of trips and fun. I won't know about our California trip till after I see Dr Van Patten on May 4. Then we can go from there. I have been complaining about being busier now than I was when I worked for a living, but I realize that I have not been very realistic about that because I need to be thankful that I am able to be busy. Some people would love to have something to do, someone to visit, someone to take them for a drive, or just be there for them. I need to stop and smell the roses and think about how blessed I am to have my family and enjoy them while I can.

Thank you, Lord, for opening up my spiritual eyes that I can see my blessings as they are.

April 18

2011-04-18T11:38:00.001-07:00

Hi, Blog! Had a great weekend. Very calm, which is what we prefer nowadays. Today is back to business. Went to church meeting, then to hospital for x-rays of my knee, then got mail on my way home. Now am doing laundry and getting ready to fix lunch, then the rest of the afternoon I will spend ironing because I kept putting it off. Non has a lot of shirts, so he won't run out, but there are at least 10-12 shirts in the ironing and I hate having it stack up like that. Tomorrow night is my class on how to take care of my Elantra. It's in Salem and so I might sneak over there a little early and go out to dinner.... Wednesday is Mom's afternoon at hospital for bone scan and scan of her neck for carotid artery - Doc says she doesn't see a problem, but this is to put Mom's mind at rest. Then we are free of appointments (except for my knee) until May 17th when all 3 of us are scheduled. That is a big relief as we need to get started on the gardens if the rain will let up long enough. Today is sunny but was only 30 when I got up. Too cold to do much. Now the clouds are moving in again. We'll have to wait to see what Thursday brings. Hope it's sunny and warm for a change.

April 13

2011-04-13T20:49:00.000-07:00

Hello Blog. This day started out different - I was to meet Mom at 9 at hospital as she was due for fasting blood test. Got a call from Vern at 7:30 saying the power was out and they were heading in to hospital as Mom was freezing in the house. When I got to parking lot Mom called to say they had seen a lot of emergency vehicles near Wallace Bridge and a semi and a horse trailer had been involved in an accident. They had no idea what happened, but figured that's why no power in Willamina. Mom only took a few minutes for the blood work, so we headed to McDonald's for breakfast. Look what we saw when we sat down to eat!!

This 30 Ford Bus is from New Jersey!

The 3 couples inside told us all about driving it out last year and then garaging it in Tacoma, then they flew out again this year to drive it back, but this time they will take southern route instead of northern route so they can see the whole country. Sounds like fun! After breakfast we headed to see Jo and found out Dr Herd is going to move to Keizer so we changed her to Dr Kimani and she will see him on May 17 at 10. Mom and I both have doc appts on that same day, but with Dr Hull. It will be easy to remember as it's Jim's birthday. Dick's birthday is the day after. We had a good visit then we were off to do our shopping at the Grocery Outlet and Winco and lunch at Wendy's before heading to Willamina. I got back to Lafayette around 4 and Non was working on the van. We did some re-figuring and moving around the furniture inside and have come up with a better floor plan. Just need some different lights for inside and to fasten down the furniture in position and we are pretty much ready to go try it out. Now if we can just get the weather to cooperate a little. That would be great.

April 12 - Part B

2011-04-12T13:29:00.000-07:00

Dr Marian says it's probably a torn cartilege and I'm going to have to see Dr Van Patten and get an MRI. The doctors will call me to let me know when they have it all scheduled. When I got home Non mowed the lawn while I washed my car, then he washed his while I cleaned the brake dust off my wheels. My car is a lot bigger and takes a lot longer to wash than his little hatchback. I'm tired and hungry. It's after 1:30 and lunchtime was over an hour ago. Gotta go find Non and get something to eat. 4 pnut butter cookies aren't going to do it.

April 12

2011-04-12T07:58:00.000-07:00

Hello blog, Today I go see Dr Marian about my knee. I messed it up on July 17 when helping Non with garage door project. Thought I just sprained it and after a couple days it would go away. It did, but it kept coming back - sometimes after a week then after a couple days and then it would wake me up from a sound sleep and it's been driving me crazy. So today I go see what I can find out. Non hurt his knee on Saturday when he was on lunch break from his electrical class so work on the van came to a halt. The weather hasn't really cooperated much either. Our plans to go see Rene and Hugh Cain also came to a halt. They are both having heart problems and not doing too good. They have been our friends since we were little tots and it's awful to see people you love hurt. Will blog more later...it's time for breakfast!!

Van is Looking Good!

2011-04-06T16:49:00.001-07:00

This is what happens when you marry a perfectionist. WOW! This is great. It really looks professionally done. He has the wall outlets, the carpet and the entire thing is just amazing. I can hardly wait to go camping!!

April Already

2011-04-04T07:19:00.000-07:00

Good morning world! It's April 4th. As a family we've had 4 funerals in the last 3 wks. Donna and Art had 2 and we had 2 here in Oregon. Maxine Endres Williams and Mary Gladys Stenson. I grew up knowing April's mom, Maxine, and Mary Gladys was in Insurance Women with me back in 1979 when I moved back here from Prineville. It rained every single day in March and I am hoping April is better. Mom and I visited Ilene Thomas (Mom's niece) last week and we hope to go see Rene and Hugh Cain next week. This week Mom has a doc appt. on Wed and I have a ton of house cleaning to do. I decided to try to finish last year's Spring Cleaning. I did get a lot done right after I retired a year ago, for the first two weeks, but then we were getting ready for our trip and most of my efforts went towards that goal. This year since I bought my new car, we decided to wait a year and get the house in order before taking another trip. Non has to finish fixing up the van and I have to clean and clear out the house of all the unwanted / unused stuff we've collected over the years so I have room to actually organize and have a place for everything and everything in its place. Hey, I didn't say it would happen overnight, but I do have the technology to get it done eventually...without life's crazy interruptions it would definitely be easier, but then life is what happens when we make plans. Right? Besides, God never promised we would be bored...or that we would be able to get our plans done on our schedule. He has a schedule, too, and if ours match, life goes on great. When they don't match, and He has other plans, ours just go on hold for awhile. I think that's what makes life interesting. A tad crazy at times, but interesting, none the less. Sometimes I just have trouble laying down my plans and accepting His like I should, but it would be great to be able to do that without griping about it. At least I'm sure He feels like that. Funerals are always interesting. Did you notice that according to every pastor, every person is going to heaven? How does he know? I mean the Bible says that there are some who have even cast out demons in His name and yet they will not enter the Kingdom of God. That's a bit scary...I mean we need to remember Jesus words: "those who love Me and keep my commandments" and ONLY those that love Him and obey Him will enter. That means the 2 great commandments - "Love God - with ALL your heart, mind and soul" and "Love others as much as you love yourself" are not suggestions, those are real marching orders. There are some people out there that are very hard to love. Really... and I know a few. So I have to figure out how God wants me to deal with that. I really do want to go see Jesus, I do not want to be left behind. I really try to do the best for everyone around me. Sometimes I do it with the right intentions and love for them, but sometimes I do it just so they won't complain any more. That's not the attitude He wants me to have. I know that. I'm working on it, but it's a lot harder than I figured it would be. My voice and my words are sometimes my worse enemy. I am too loud. At Maxine's funeral I said that I wished I had a voice like hers. She never raised her voice. EVER - NEVER. She kept her cool and had a peace in her heart that I wish we all knew. I never got a chance to tell her that I really envied her ability to do that. I know envy is a sin but there are some things that we should all strive for and she was my hero for having the ability to do something I am still trying to figure out how to do. Rest in Peace my friend.

Tues Mar 29

2011-03-29T08:56:00.000-07:00

Farewell, Joyce, till we meet again. Glad we got to visit last summer. You will be missed.

Good morning! It's still raining. I'm beginning to think that we should trade the camp trailer for a boathouse or get Non started building an ark instead of fixing the van as it won't float. The rain has been relentless for weeks. There was so much we wanted to do when Donna was here, but the weather prevented most of it. We wanted to go camping but it only stopped raining for a couple days to get our hopes up then it started again. Or it snowed for a few days or just plain drizzled. It has given Non fits as he tries to fix up our van. We want to keep it a regular van and have our camping gear as in/out not permanent. We won't use it full time as camper, but will be nice when we want to do an occasional beach trip or go back east again. We didn't get a chance to see Don or go to Bob's grave, either. It seemed like there was always something going on and it just didn't happen. We didn't play that many games of Skipbo or Rummikube either. We did get together with Junior, Tara, Allora and Aubrey and that was a great Thanksgiving. I've spent a huge amount of time getting Jo's Veterans benefits and Senior Services papers completed each time they send a new batch and also getting her to and from appointments and making sure she has transportation when I can't take her. Assisted living means the family does a lot of assisting. Off to prepare for another week of rain and housecleaning.

No trip this year

2011-03-02T07:39:00.001-08:00

We went to Salem to get an oil change in my 2001 Hyundai on Feb 22 and while we were there Karen talked me into getting a new one. So here is my 2011 Hyundai Elantra GLS. Since we just went back east last year, we have decided to wait till we pay this off next year before we take another trip like that. I really like my new car. This one has bluetooth if I can figure out how to use it. You can change the volume or station of the radio with buttons on the steering wheel and it has cruise control which is awesome because I tend to have a lead foot. It's hard to see here but it has a diamond pearl white paint job. Will be great for me because it gets 40 mpg. We paid off Non's car on Monday so this is now the only bill we have other than normal utilities, insurance, tags, etc. Also with the warranties we have I won't have to worry about anything going wrong for over 5 years. That is a big relief. Thank you, Lord. The other one was almost 100,000 miles and was starting to need work.

SNOW IN FEB!

2011-02-24T07:44:00.000-08:00

It's gorgeous out there. Very nippy at 32 but still very pretty. I saw this snow stuck to my fence between the front and backyards and had to snap pics. I'm sitting here with my hot drink and watching the kids have a snowball fight across the street. Ashley, Beau and Luke were at it by 7 am. There's only about 2 inches but since they are the only kids on the end of the block under 18 they are enjoying it. Justin is in the military and Amanda is off to college. The garbage recycle man should be here shortly. Then the street won't look so nice, but it's pretty now. This will all be gone by Saturday so we will enjoy it while we can. I'm debating a trip to Willamina because the other drivers out there are crazy in the snow. Time to warm up my Pero. I figure Donna will put on pics of Willamina snow and they always have more than we do.

I'm pretty angry right now

2011-02-11T07:05:00.000-08:00

Sometimes life deals you blows you have trouble facing. Right now I have a biggie. Someone has hacked into my email and is sending all kinds of stuff to every person in my yahoo contact list. I've had that yahoo account since 1996 and to think that I now have to delete all my contacts and start all over again is just plain disturbing. I do not understand why some people take so much joy in making other people miserable. It doesn't make sense. Live your life and leave others alone. It just is so frustrating with so much to do as I help others, to have someone add to your workload this huge burden as well. I've been receiving emails from classmates and others telling me about how they do not believe this stuff came from me and I am so thankful they recognize that, but I am sure that others do not realize it's not me. That is why I have to now delete all my contacts from there and get a new email address. I need to pray for these people because they are very sadistic and need Jesus badly. Please, Lord, you are our Guide, Master, and our Avenger. We do not need to take on that burden of "getting even" we just need to turn over these situations to you and let you take care of the rest. Help me to let go of anger and frustration and realize this is a good chance to re-organize my email contacts and delete those I no longer use. Thank you, Savior. Amen.

Feb 9 2011

2011-02-09T21:28:00.000-08:00

Hello all! Wow, it has been a long time since I've signed in to write my blog. So much has happened since Dec. It seems eons ago. Just before Thanksgiving Non and I decided to start on our fix up project on the house. He pulled up the carpet in the bedroom and then took the doors off the kitchen cabinets so I could sand them down. Then with Jo and Mom and the planning sessions for Thanksgiving that's as far as we got. Vern Jr, Tara, Allora and Aubrey, Vern & John, Art and DJ and Mom came over for Thanksgiving and we had a great time. That started the whole holiday season off right. Then came the "little dresses for Africa" push and I made 4 of the dresses, while the rest of the ladies were also busy. Not sure how many we ended up with but we packed up dresses, with filled pockets for the girls and shorts and t-shirts with gifts for boys and sent them off just before we had the living nativity and handed out Bibles and candy canes and pamphlets by the gobs. Then it was Christmas and New Years and BAM!! it was 2011. First Sunday in Jan the church requested helpers for preparing the rental house for new renters since the prior renters were now gone and we had a chance to do repairs and clean up. So Non and I got busy in the yard and cut and sawed and hauled off brush and tree limbs by the trailer load for days and days. We were actually working in the yard on Jan 10 when our little greatgrandson was born. Alex weighed in at 8 lbs 7 oz and 21.5" long. We also repaired doors and window blinds and Non did a lot of repairs while I wasn't able to help because of dentist and doctor visits for both Aunt Jo and I. Tomorrow I go in and get this temp crown removed and a new gold one instead. I'm looking forward to that because this temp one has a terrible taste that affects everything I eat. I've had headaches and it's not been a fun 2 wks waiting for the new one to arrive. Today Aunt Jo was tested for hearing problems and we ordered her new hearing aids to be here in about 10 days. Non has been working on our own project of the van and preparing the bed and the cabinetry since the day he finished the rental project of the church. He has made the drawers to go under the bed and it looks great. But then everything he does has to be looking great or he won't do it to begin with. He's a perfectionist. I didn't get a chance to send out Christmas cards this year and I thought I might get them out for New Year but that didn't work either. Oh, well. I will try and write to everyone later - one at a time if the year allows but time is just not on my side.

I may someday learn how to "retire" but as of yet the concept is somewhat vague. It's like there is no schedule, you do not dare make any plans because sure as the sun rises those plans will be changed and new ones may or may not actually work. So you just take it one day at a time. Or one hour at a time which most times works best. Gnite.

Dec 3

2010-12-03T19:55:00.000-08:00

On Wed Mom and I cancelled our California trip we had scheduled for next week. It just wasn't the right time. Yesterday we got a call from Ilene letting us know that Orrin had died during the night. I'm so glad we decided not to leave. We would have missed the funeral and all the family getting together. Orrin is Mom's nephew who lives in Dallas. Ilene was a tax accountant but is retired now.

I can't get rid of that Bank of America account soon enough. First we sign a contract of $65/mo payments due by 19th of each month. Then they don't send the bill - I have no address or account number, so I give them 60 days and finally I call to find out what is wrong. They sent it all to the wrong address. So I pay the first payment over phone to her, she waives the $25 late fee since it was a "postal error". When I ask her about the next payment she says your next $65 payment is due Nov 19 so I paid it on 11th or 12th. They got it on 15th posted it on 16th and it is due 19th, but on the bill it says I have a $10 late fee. How can it be late if it is 4 days early???? So when I called today they said it's because I owed the $10 from the first payment. I said why did the lady tell me to pay my $65 payment if I owed $75?? I would have paid that if she told me why...he said it was not $65 I owed, but $97. I asked why it changed. He said it's a percentage of the balance due plus interest. Now my interest is suppose to be 3.99 or something but they charged me 16.99 percent interest on something (plus whatever) to get that up to $97. So why did I sign a contract for $65 / mo and she told me my payments were $65/ mo and now I am paying $97?? I don't get it. Two different stories from 2 different people who both supposedly are looking at my account. I want out of that situation as soon as possible before I go crazy dealing with these people. The tree is up and decorated, we have the great granddaughter's gift on its way and Mom's gift is given to her, so it's just birthday cards and Christmas cards and one gift to send to Virginia for our Godmother. Not bad for the 3rd. Tomorrow is Mike's 21st (youngest grandson) birthday. Next Thursday John (oldest grandson) will be 29 and Serenity (great niece) has a birthday on the same day. The following week on the 17th, Sara (youngest granddaughter) will be 18 and Art's (brother in law) birthday is the 20th. Cousin Rick Van Winkle's is 22nd and David's (nephew in Marines - in Hawaii right now) birthday is the 24th and Al's (high school buddy of Non's and mine) is the 25th. December is a busy month for our family. Time to get busy and get ready for bed. Weigh In is tomorrow for Weight Watchers and they are changing the program. Will get all new info in the morning. Hope it works as well as the other program.

Nov 12

2010-11-12T07:34:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I've not blogged since Sept. I've been so busy. Non and I took down the chandelier in the kitchen, moved the fridge to the other side of the room, put the pantry cupboard in the hole where the fridge was, and this week he took all the doors off my cabinets. I'm going to get some organizers so things can be reached a lot easier for me. My short arms and bum knee are making it hard to crawl around on the floor looking for things in the back of the cabinets and I'm going to wear out my little kitchen stool from trying to reach some of my spices on the top shelf. So a little re-arranging is in order. I'm going to start work on my kitchen soon. But it will have to wait till next week. I have an appointment with the Veterans Affairs person today regarding Aunt Jo's finances and Saturday is the Willamina Art Tour right after my 8 am Weight Watchers Weigh In. Next week would be the best time to start so I am all ready for Thanksgiving preparations the following Monday. I am going to confess that I really got off track this past 2 weeks. I have been doing a lot of things and we've been eating out so much that I've not remembered to track or be careful. Too much on my mind to focus on food. I am still at a 11-12 lbs total loss, but need to re-focus on my priorities. Non is going to move the treadmill out on the patio which should help. I get too hot in the house. He keeps it 76-78 in here and it's difficult for me to exercise when I''m hot before I start and have to have the fan going the entire time. But on the patio where it's only 45-50 I should be able to walk much easier. I must admit that each change we make in the house makes a huge difference. He cut out a hole on the shelf under the sink so I could put the garbage can in there. That is awesome. For over 18 yrs I've had that thing sitting under the edge of table, by the fridge, or someplace else it's in the way. Now it has a home. Yesterday I fixed my ravioli with fresh tomato and fresh herbs from my garden again. It's one of my favorite dishes. I have some transplanting to do and some new ones to start and I'm really enjoying my little herb garden. I also planted Cosmos and got 3 big planters of color this year. Next year I'll be able to start sooner and have more color, I hope. It's almost 8 am and I've got a lot to do today. Friday is laundry day - change sheets, etc... and I've got to do something with all these apples and be at Wynwood by 11 am. So best get started. I also need a haircut, but haven't found time for that yet. Maybe next week???

Third Schedule Change for Sep 20

2010-09-20T19:14:00.000-07:00

At 10:50 Mom called to say she has a doc appt tomorrow at 9:45 am. So I went to Jo's after the church meeting to tell her of the change of plans and Darlene was there. After a short visit (still longer than I intended), I headed for Walmart and Winco. Got more planter boxes and potting soil at Walmart and then groceries at Winco. Got home around 1:15 and transplanted the little plants before I made me some lunch. By the time I'd finished it was almost 2 and my day was basically gone. I got the pork loin in the crockpot and the kitchen cleaned and plopped in front of the tv set and tried to plan what is left of my week. So tomorrow I go see Jo at 7:15 and pick up 4 totes to drop off in Sheridan and any cans or whatever she has to go to Mom & Vern. Then off to the storage unit to drop off the totes and then get to Willamina by 8:30 to pick up Mom and get her back to the doc appt on time. After any shopping or whatever she wants to do we will head back to Willamina and then I will try and figure out what to fix for dinner when I get back. Looks like I will need to get the sewing done and get to the DMV on Wednesday, do the rest of my chores on Thursday because I'm back in Willamina on Friday and Sat will probably mean a trip to Costco... Cleaning the upstairs will be on Tues because Monday is Willamina day. Thankfully Bruce and Sherry aren't coming until the 8th. I should have it clean by then even with my crazy schedule changes.

Later Sep 20

2010-09-20T07:46:00.000-07:00

I posted at 5:50 am and already at 7:50 am my schedule has changed. I won't be going to Willamina today as Mom has a meeting. So I'll go tomorrow. That moves the DMV to Wed because they aren't open today. I will need to call Jo and let her know to have the totes full by tomorrow morning instead of this morning. That gives her a little more time. After the meeting at church I will do shopping and then come back to face the pantry and camper because I won't have time tomorrow. Wed after DMV I will try to get the last 2 dresses sown up. Every time I have planned to do sewing, something has come up, so I will really try to get them done this week, because if I don't they may not get done. My time is definitely NOT my own.

Good Morning! Sep 20 - Enjoying My Retirement

2010-09-20T05:50:00.000-07:00

Good morning, World! Today begins Non's 6th week back at Climax and I thought I would have more time during the day to get things accomplished...WRONG!! I have been busier than when he is here! Go figure. I have done more and have so much more to do that I'm absolutely amazed. My mornings start earlier (like 4:30am) and end at the same time (10pm) and I still have a list a mile long for the rest of the week. Today first thing I need to order my thyroid pills. I will do that as soon as they open. I will go see Aunt Jo and pick up the totes she has filled to take to the storage unit. Then go to the church to meet with the ladies. Then off to Sheridan to put the totes in storage and then on to Willamina to see Mom. I am taking her a large recycle bag so she doesn't need to use all her paper bags. After our visit, I will come back to grocery shopping and home to fix dinner. After dinner is quilting and then home to bed. Tomorrow I need to go to DMV for tags on the Willys and reorganize my pantry. I have been so busy I have just been stuffing things in there on the run. Not like my usual "a place for everything and everything in its place" situation right now. I also need to clean out my camper - scrub windows and cupboards and start restocking them as DJ and Art are coming out next week and we want to go camping the first part of October. That will take up most of Tues-Thurs what with laundry, vacuuming, cleaning house, and sewing the "Little Dresses for Africa", etc. Friday I will go back to Willamina and visit Mom and if it's not raining we can work outside and get some more done in her yard. I know there is more to do but I don't have my list in front of me right now. How did I do all this and work, too? I am at a loss to figure it out. I rarely have time to sit down for a cup of tea unless I am at Mom's helping with her jigsaw puzzle. Most of the time I am on the run. I love working with my tomato plants or my herb garden or my jumble of plants. I am really enjoying my retirement gift of the herbs and flowers and I have to get bigger planter boxes now. The weirdest thing is not being able to plan my day. Every day I make a list of things to do and every day no matter how hard I try, I can never get it all done, but I've done other things instead and added to the list for the week. I love retirement but it's not very relaxing.

Happy 84th Birthday MOM - at the State Fair

2010-09-01T09:59:00.001-07:00

When we first arrived at the fair, it was really cool and windy. Even I had to wear a sweatshirt! But by afternoon it warmed a bit and both of us shed our coats. We saw flowers, exhibits and shows, but when we got to the baby chicks I had to take a pic for Kari. The cakes were pretty amazing, but this one of a Hershey bar really caught my eye...thinking about some-mores at our next campout. By end of day it started getting cool again - back on with coats. I saw Cliff Herbison from Evergreen at the Jane Rae Band stage, but he was really busy and the music was too loud for Mom and her hearing aid as well as my ears, so I didn't get a chance to say HI.All in all a good day at the State Fair - lots of people wished Mom Happy Birthday - even George & Della Lee from Willamina Christian Church. We shared a banana split to celebrate...

Camping at Lincoln City

2010-09-01T09:46:00.000-07:00

The first week of August Mom & I went camping at Lincoln City KOA. Here are some pics. We had a great time..when we first arrived we were greeted by a cheerful semi circle of chairs and "Vern" sitting and waiting to visit...

Our neighbors changed constantly and there was always something going on. Lots of dogs, lots of kids, lots of activity. We especially liked the last of our new neighbors. They brought class to the campground.

They had a white tablecloth, with fresh flowers, and the table was set with fine silver and it looked fabulous!

Surprised today!

2010-08-20T22:02:00.001-07:00

Today I was visiting Mom and heard a noise at the back door. There was Fayht and right behind her familiar faces. Pat and Zip Potter!!!

It seems that the Potters are next door neighbors to Juanita Parker, Fayht's other great gramma.

Since they were coming to McMinnville they decided to come a little earlier and deliver Fayht to Mom! We had time for a very short visit before they had to head off for a wedding reception in Tigard. It was great to see them again. Zip Potter is the pastor that married Non and I over 46 years ago. He's the guy sitting in front of the girl with striped shirt. Pat is below in the purple shirt. They were there with the Highlakes Church for the baptism. Eight people were baptized Sunday Aug 15th. Congrats all..

Fayht got baptized!!

2010-08-20T21:51:00.000-07:00

Little Dresses for Africa

2010-07-29T15:26:00.000-07:00

Our quilting group at the church is sewing dresses for an orphanage and school in Africa. So I signed up to do 4 of them. Got one done - here is the pic. You can't see the pockets very well, but they are there.

Ray's Birthday

2010-07-29T15:24:00.000-07:00

Today is Ray's 44th birthday and I managed to get his card in the mailbox day before yesterday so he'd get it on time. This has to be a first for me - at least for the past several years. I've been very late. Tonight is also my weigh in and I have to go give Jo some stamps. Busy night. Just wanted to be sure you knew I didn't forget!!

Back of Garage

2010-07-29T15:14:00.000-07:00

The back of the garage turned out to be a bigger hassle than the front, because the person who built the thing didn't put any braces in the roof at all. Non had to cut all the little boards and climb in that itty bitty hole up there and inch worm his way from the front to the back screwing in all those little 2x4 pieces to brace up the roof before he could close it up and set the other outside walls in place. He was just a bit uptight about the whole thing, but managed to get it all done.

Non's new project - The garage

2010-07-26T16:31:00.001-07:00

All he wanted to do was scrape off the old paint to get it ready to redo, but this huge hunk fell off and revealed a major problem... the pictures tell the story better. This is just the front, the back of garage was the same. Thank goodness for Dan and Cody who were there to help with the 20' board. Not sure Non and I could have done it.

Vern's been busy

2010-07-26T16:22:00.001-07:00

Vern has been cutting back the Port Orford cedars and hauling the remains plus all Mom's weeds and brush to the city dump. The tree on the corner split and he trimmed that tree as well and put a strap around it to hold it from splitting further and hopefully this will work till we can make a decision later on how far back to cut it or whether to just take it down before it does more damage. Doing a great job with a bad back...

John turns 58

2010-07-09T07:20:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, JOHN!!

It was over 90 and I grabbed John just before he headed out the door - Monica was too hot to eat but she fixed a great coleslaw salad. Vern made a macaroni salad and a seafood salad that Fayht had been really anxious for him to fix. He and Mom made the cake and I helped frost it.

Candy showed up with a 7 layer dip that was awesome and she and Mom sorted out the kitchen.

Jo helped keep the table going and John P manned the BBQ. It was so hot outside, but Mom kept the doors shut and it was 20 degrees cooler inside than out.

Fayht and her friend Kenzie were there, too.

So we had quite a house full. The table was

pretty well stocked when we started, but Non was the hero...when he arrived we were out of propane for the BBQ so he ran down to get some. Then Candy and Monica had to go get bread for the burgers and sausages. All in all a great birthday party.

Weigh In

2010-07-08T07:27:00.000-07:00

Wow - I forgot about tonight being Weigh in, I should have gone last night, but it was so hot it was hard to think and I really didn't want to go outside at all. We ordered Domino's. This morning I decided to be brave and got on the scales.... 190.9!!! WOW - That's 3.5 lbs less than last week!

I don't think this will count because I was on antibiotics for my ear infection and my system is a little weird right now, but it sure made me feel good. I started at 203.6 so this is a boost I needed.

Please pray for me as I get back on track after vacation, infection and get ready for camping season. Our church is having a week long camp-out in August and Mom and I plan to go. It will be great fun.

Happy 120 Gramma McKinney!

2010-07-07T22:09:00.000-07:00

Well, if Gramma McKinney had survived she would be 120 yrs old today. I'd love to tell her about our trip back to Virginia. We left on Thursday my 65th birthday in cloudy weather which soon turned to rain at the Washington border near Umatilla. It rained all day. We stopped in Couer d'Alene the first night and the next morning after we crossed the summit the rain began in earnest. We went across Montana and by nightfall and North Dakota it was so foggy and rainy we could hardly see to drive. That night we stopped in Dickinson and the next morning the rain was still with us. It was quite a shock at noon. Literally it went from rain to 85 degrees and sunshine and it was just plain hot. Not a cloud in sight. We drove on into Pengilly Saturday and Donna and Art were waiting for us. The next morning when we were sitting in church the rain caught up with us and it came in buckets. They were needing rain because they'd had none in a long time, so that was a good thing, but it didn't last too long. Later that night Donna and I made a cake and decorated it for the twins birthday. We decided to have a BBQ at Jody and Dave's to celebrate both our birthdays and it was great. Jody had burgers and salads and with the cake and all it was a great party. Makayla was painting her school project when we arrived, but she took time out to play pool - we 4 gals played while we waited for the twins to get up from their nap. After that Non and Art played and Non and Kaleb played pool. Dave joined us for a turn at foosball, I think he took pity on me because he saw how very inept I was. I had never played the game and for someone who won tournaments, that must have been pretty painful. I watched him carefully unstick that little ball from under those men and I think I figured out how he did it. Someday if I ever get a chance to play again I'll try those tricks. Once the twins woke up there wasn't time for playing in the garage any more. It was all getting them to get over new people and then I was really excited because I kept listening to Jacob. He was telling me something very important and I was just too dense to get it until I heard Donna talking to the little ones.

She repeats each thing to them to be sure they understand. So Jacob was repeating everything also. I then figured out he was telling me that Nathan got his food first and he also got the first piece of cake. I told him he was right and that it would be alright this time. Next time he could be first. I shouldn't have said that. After lunch the boys opened the wagon and Jacob latched onto that as soon as Dave helped tear away the last of the paper. He yelled "Mine, Mine" and ran clear behind the couch with it. He went all the way around the first trip because he wanted to pick up the blocks that were in it, but Nathan already had those in hand, so he just took off on another trip behind the couch and kept the wagon there. I have a video of the first part I have sent to DJ, Kari, Jody and Mom. Tuesday we went to Dave and Gloria and Joyce's for dinner and we got a surprise because we got to see Daniel and meet Allison and Lily, Isaac, and Alena and I hope my name spelling is correct. It was really great to get to put a face to all these names I have been hearing for so long. We left on Wednesday morning and headed East to Wisconsin and south on 53 till we got almost to the southern border at Spring Green. There we made a pass through and decided to spend the night at Dodgeville and go back to Spring Green and spend the day at the House on the Rock on Thursday. It was quite an experience. Five story buildings and staircases and gorgeous rock rooms and Tiffany lamps and decorations filled the place. The landscaping was amazing. We took pictures, but the best bet is to go to the website and check it out. Just Google "House on the Rock" and you get a great idea. We went to the Infinity Room which is a glass room that extends out from the rock without visible support. It was cool to take pictures of the tops of the trees under you. The music machines were absolutely amazing. Organs, pipes, violins, cellos, flutes, horns, guitars, banjos, bells, pianos, and all kinds of chimes and drums - some as large as an entire room - greeted you at nearly every turn. There were huge fireplaces everywhere and flowers and statues and collections of bottles, dolls, guns, doll houses, and even the Royal Crown Jewels of England. It was just too much to take in one day. We took a small rest stop midday for a sandwich and then hit the tours again. They call it Tours 1-2-3 and each one is a loop you could spend a day in. There were cars, airplane models, and HUGE generators and magnetos and clocks and cannons and Gatling guns.

It would take days to describe all we saw. We left late that afternoon and drove on into Illinois that night. Way too late to see Ray and Cindy, so we met up the next morning for breakfast at Cracker Barrel. Mike was with them when they got there and Sara had a break from school only a couple blocks away and she joined us so the only ones we didn't get to see were Amanda and John as they were both working. Non hasn't met his latest granddaughter yet. They just got married last Halloween. After breakfast we spent the day exploring the entire area and shopping and finally got Non some shoes at the same store I bought Ray's shoes 2 years ago. I got some short pants. I hadn't realized how fast the weather was going to turn on us. It was now definitely SUMMER. Saturday we met Ray again for breakfast and after telling him goodbye, we did a 5 state run. We went across Illinois, part of Indiana, Missouri, West Virginia and all of Virginia to Tappahannock, VA. Just 30 miles short of our destination. We were exhausted.

So next time I will tell you about Virginia and more of our trip. This is going to be in parts as we are having 97 degree weather and the only time it's cool enough to be in here in the office is at night. Tomorrow is John's BBQ dinner for his 58th birthday, so not sure when I'll get to Part 2.

Gnite.

The birthday boys

2010-07-04T22:18:00.000-07:00

We went 7300 miles in 22 days. I will not be able to send all the pics in one post, not even 3 or 4 but I will organize them into sections and send them as I can.

First pics are of the twins cake and the cleanup afterwards.

Mom in the Parade

2010-07-04T22:12:00.001-07:00

Mom was waving and on the very first float.

VFW Chaplain at your service. July 4, 2010 in Willamina.

Bob Adams Memorial

2010-07-04T21:53:00.000-07:00

Non, Mom and I were the first to arrive so I took the time to take some pics without people.

This is the actual grave in the wall, it's the one on the bottom #EE106 and since several people had died, there were flowers all over the small area. I took a pic across the wall to the scenery and it's a gorgeous view from the place. Very peaceful. Just like Bob when he crossed the Jordan. He went very peacefully in his sleep. Those attending - Shirley, Stan Eggert, Linda Schmidt, Niki & Rod Conner and family, Noel & wife (sorry, I don't remember her name) - Brittney and her guitarist and friend - Nancy( Jacob's mom), Jacob (Rodney's son) and Brittney, Rick, Lori, McKenzie, Lexi, Austin, Pastor Jim McClellan and wife Connie, Myrtle Barber, Non & Judi McDaniel, Mr & Mrs Ken Ducksbury, and Ken Buckhart from Precision Cast Parts. I hope I haven't forgotten anyone. If you know names I am missing, please let me know.

BACK ON TRACK

2010-05-22T09:06:00.000-07:00

On May 20 I weighed in with a 1.4 lbs gain. Non and I had not been home to eat for almost 3 days except for breakfast. I did make my 5% goal, but then had the slip up. I'd have been OK if I hadn't messed up at Fuddruckers - Burger/Fry/Pie special for Seniors. That one meal was 16 points and my whole day allowance is only 24. I didn't get a chance to walk it off or go to Curves but once before my weigh in so the scales really tattled on me. I am being very good ever since and am watching every thing I stick in my mouth. I want this to work. Today I am going to try and plot us a course to Minnesota and from Minnesota to Virginia with things to see on the way. Monday I will work on the next leg after that. I want to take my time and figure in everything. All is looking good so far. Might as well start packing...

FINALLY - 10 lbs OFF!!

2010-05-12T19:15:00.000-07:00

Today I made it to 10.4 lbs total lost in 5 weeks. I'm excited. Sometimes I've not lost much, but I continue to lose something every week. Hopefully I can lose a little more next week and make it to my 5% loss goal. We are to make short term goals in order to reach long term goals. 5% off your original total is a biggy. It's the first step in this new life style conversion. You watch what you eat and you are in control. Food doesn't control you. It's a different concept. I am thinking this is a project I can continue. Please continue to pray for me that I might lose this next 60 lbs I want to lose just as fast and just as easily as this first 10. Thank you..

We have changed our plans again due to all the tornadoes and storms from Oklahoma to the Great Lakes. We hope to leave in June after this season of bad

weather finally subsides. We had planned to leave next week, but the storms just will not stop.

Mothers Day

2010-05-10T20:20:00.000-07:00

Had a great Mothers Day. Rebecca and I built towers in Sunday School. She had a bit of a problem putting on the top one once it got too high and decided to take it out on the tower by dismantling it. At church we were given pansies - every mom got one. So I then had 22 pansies to plant. Off to Mom's after Wendy's lunch (Izzy's was packed). Non went along to try and fix the weed eaters, and Mom and I planted the pansies. I put 10 of them in her front yard:

Then I put 4 in Donna's flower bed:

That's when I found that Mom had been working earlier in the flower bed pulling weeds and it was looking pretty good.

The other 8 I gave to Carol with a card for Mothers Day for taking good care of Mom. Mom keeps very busy and Carol is trying to keep up with her and her own family, too. John is like a kid with a brand new toy in the garden. He has planted corn, lettuce, squash, zucchini and I'm not sure what else, but he has a lot more to go and he's waiting on the weather. He says this year is just experimental so he knows what to do next year instead. I think this is a great idea. The squash (of various varieties) is in the garden next to his house and the rest of the veggies are in the big garden. Mom has peas and onions planted and I'm not sure what else. She's suppose to let me know if she wants more planted. Things are finally settling down. The muffler will be installed on Wednesday and I'm going to Weight Watchers weigh in Wed and go with Mom to Girlfriends on Thursday. We plan to leave the following Wed so I will be busy packing, planning and sorting and doing last minute details right up until we head out. Now I'm getting excited. We have finally got a date. But as we were watching the weather today we found that Oklahoma has had tornadoes today and 2 people have died. This is just not a good time to be traveling.

Two more pounds off!!

2010-05-07T21:33:00.000-07:00

This Weight Watchers works!! I'm now down 8.6 lbs from exactly a month ago. This may not be big news to anyone else, but I was at 203 for almost a full year before I got brains enough to switch doctors and finally got my thyroid under control. Now I am finally on the right track. I realize there will be ups and downs. This is a life style change and it's not easy to re-learn how to live, but I'm tired of my thyroid controlling my life. At least this is working and I'm feeling better about what I'm doing.

Non now has the van complete. He's had it rebuilt from front to back. It has new windshield, tires, and wheels; the front end and has been redone; it has new ball joints, rotors, brakes, etc. He modified the bed and we put the cushions from the camper on it. He's wired in a switch so we can turn the light off at back of van, and all 4 new mud flaps are attached. We are ready to load it up and set up the porta potty, just as soon as we know where we are going and when. We are really undecided due to the crazy weather situation in the central USA. Getting to Virginia isn't the hard part. but getting back is going to be different than our original plans. I wanted to show Non the Grand Old Opry hotel, but it's under 7 feet of water. I was in Nashville a few years ago with Aglow and it was gorgeous all decked out for Christmas. I think maybe another time we'll take the southern route. Not sure where we will be going yet on our way back. Will have to do some strategy talks, dig out all our campground books and motel books and start plotting all over again. Will keep you posted as we discover and take each day one at a time. G'nite!

Gorgeous DAY!! NO RAIN!

2010-05-02T20:49:00.000-07:00

What a gorgeous day we had today. Non and I took off after church and headed for the beach. We stopped at Mak Mak Haws restaurant next to the casino for lunch. It's a little deli like place inside the country store. Non had a deer burger and I had a grilled chicken sandwich (keeping on my Weight Watchers plan). Then we headed over to the Tanger Outlet Mall. Because it's my birthday month I got 20 percent off at L'eggs where I got a box of 10 knee highs and 3 new bras. Then we went to the Shoppers Services and I got a $10 gift card and I managed to get a new large grill basket for shrimp and veggies for the bbq, a new strainer spoonula, and a huge pancake turner at the "le Gourmet Shop" and used my gift card there. It's nice having birthdays. Off to Eddie Bauer who was having a t-shirt sale - $7.99 so I got 3 (yellow, aqua and purple). Also got a black skirt. We picked up a present for Florence (today is her 81st birthday). So by this time it is time to head to Depoe Bay where almost every thing is closed but the Chowder Bowl and Sea Hag. We decided to eat at the Chowder Bowl... WOW - great choice. I had sauté shrimp and Non had the fried shrimp. It was awesome. I had salad and he had chowder. Great food. Finally we headed home and it was so pretty...the clouds reflecting the sun and it was breaking through and shining on the mountain tops. Although it wasn't blue skies everywhere the sun did break through enough to keep the day at a no-jacket needed temp. It was our first runaway day to do just something fun since I retired. It was great. This week will be really busy again, but for today I am happy that we could relax. I'm looking forward to our trip in a few weeks.

One More Weigh In

2010-04-30T06:42:00.000-07:00

Only lost .4 lbs this week, but I was so busy I didn't have the time to walk like I usually do, I just did it when I got the chance. Thank Goodness I have my treadmill, I don't think the rain is going to stop. Non ran out and mowed the lawn last night after 6:30 because the rain stopped for a few hours, but it rained after he got done. It's been a hectic week, but we now have new tires, wheels, shocks, windshield, brakes/rotors, etc and the van is as ready as it can be at this point. Now we have to get down to the planning part and we have been so busy it's been just plain crazy. Today I will go to town and turn in items to St Vincent De Paul, get Jo more tapioca pudding and take the Pepsi bottles she gave me to the church. Then I will have my trunk available to get my groceries. I haven't even had time to make out a list yet and I don't dare go to the store without one. I am now down 6.4 lbs this month and for me that's a great start since I'd not been able to lose any for over a year before that. Things are looking up. I'm on my way to Curves now and that is helping.

Weigh in - End of Week 2

2010-04-22T20:13:00.000-07:00

Didn't do nearly as well this week as last, but my 1.4 off this week and 4.6 last week is total of 6 lbs off! Not bad...they say you need to go slowly and keep it off, not try to lose too much too fast. It looks like our trip to Virginia will be around 15th-20th as a start date. Not too sure yet as there are more and more things keep popping up. It's all in the Lord's timing, so we will do what needs to be done and then we will go. Need to start planning our itinerary someday soon as we haven't decided on a route or what all we want to see yet. We will get there eventually...

Blue Van

2010-04-17T07:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to Vancouver and traded the white V-6 van for this 2006 Ford V-8 4.6 instead. This will give us more room and we'll need it when we go on the trip and also when we are getting materials for the addition to the garage when we get back.

4.6 LBS!!

2010-04-15T21:01:00.000-07:00

Today was weigh in after one week on Weight Watchers. I went from 203.6 to 199!!

That's a loss of 4.6 lbs. Not bad - I've been at 203 for a full year without being able to lose anything. I'm excited. I think the plan will work if I can just keep up this momentum. YEAH!!!

We've been working

2010-04-13T11:30:00.001-07:00

We've been working on the carport every sunny moment for almost 2 weeks but the moments it wasn't raining were far and few between. Yesterday it stayed dry long enough for us to finally get the last of the roof on the east side and to fence that side in. We will wait till next sunny day to get the west side done. Last night Non also put boards down the side of the patio to try and keep the grass from growing close to it. I like having a little porch for the rear patio as well. Keeps it a lot cleaner inside.

I LIKE RETIREMENT

2010-04-07T21:25:00.000-07:00

So far I am having a great time - it's been 3 days and life is good. Monday I was up and headed for Curves by 7 am. Came home and after breakfast I cleaned and rearranged my cupboards, got BBQ pork chops in crock pot and did laundry while Non replaced my burned out headlight. Then I scrubbed the microwave in and out, did dishes, watched some History channel with Non and then went to Walmart to turn in Jo's film and pick up some groceries on the way back. Got home and had dinner before heading out to Quilting at the church. Home around 8:30 and bed around 10. Tuesday I headed for Willamina around 8:30 to pickup Mom and we went to Salem to go window shopping at the Salem Center then out to visit our friend, Alma, who broke her hip in November. She's getting around pretty good. After lunch at Sizzler we headed back to McMinnville and went to visit Jo. She was doing good and I got her grocery list so I could pick up what she needed later. Mom gave her some embroidery and a pair of dark turquoise pants she could wear. Mom and I made a quick trip for groceries, then we were off to Willamina and dinner. I fixed simple supper of toasted ham/cheese sandwiches, re-heated tater tots for Mom and cottage cheese for me, with root beer floats. Then we worked on the puzzle for a bit till it was time for me to go. Today I was back at Curves first thing and did my weigh in - I lost 2" off my waist and 2 lbs!! I know it was lack of stress and that my thyroid is back on track. So tomorrow I am ready to face my first Weight Watchers meeting. After breakfast I cleaned kitchen and emptied dishwasher, and played a game of Spider Solitaire. Then it was time for lunch and I fixed Non a sandwich and put a hamburger stew in crock pot for dinner. The rest of our day was spent at Home Depot in Sherwood, then Fry's in Wilsonville, then Harbor Freight in Salem. Home by 5pm and dinner was at 6 with biscuits and turnovers for dessert... There goes my 2 lbs of lost weight. It was really good, though. Now it's almost 10 and I am getting ready for bed. Tomorrow is a new venture. I like doing what comes next and not having a deadline or alarm clocks. I know it's still pretty new, but it's great right now.

RETIRED!!!

2010-04-02T18:44:00.001-07:00

Today was my last day at Evergreen. There was a lot to do and I didn't get the last report for Greg done the way I wanted, but ran out of time. Here is a pic of Non and I on our 46th anniversary and the rest of the pics are of my retirement gifts and card from the whole gang. There are 4 ceramic planters, lots of herb seeds - dill, marjoram, chives, sage, etc.. and 2 of marigolds. There is a trowel and 2 pair of gloves and a basket to carry it all in. They also got the potting soil!! For my quilting projects they included a $50 gift certificate to Joann's Fabrics!! So I'm all set for the summer! With Mom's projects and yard work and Non's projects and our trips we will be busy for at least a year!

ONE WEEK TO GO

2010-03-26T21:11:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, March 18th, I turned in my notice at Evergreen that my last day would be on April 2nd and I am then going to be officially retired. I've been at Evergreen as International Accounts Payable Specialist for over 15 years. Did the Payroll for a glove company for 2 yrs before that, and before that I was an insurance agent for over 25 years. I am ready to quit. I turn 65 in May and I've got so many projects to do that I'm not sure I'll get them all done even without the job any more. We want to take a trip to Virginia but haven't decided if it will be June or May, Non's waiting to see what the weather will do. We want to add a room to the back of the garage so he has room for his equipment and tools and actually can put a car in the garage as well. What an idea! If he manages it, he will be the only one in the neighborhood that uses his garage for a daily driver. Right now the Myers Manx is in there scrunched up against the center beam. We walk around it and the equipment has been moved so there is a small path you can use to circle it. I must admit Non has made great strides in his massive cleanup campaign he started a week ago. All nuts/bolts/screws are now on a shelf in one area and the tools are now sorted into their own drawers in the different tool boxes. One for metric, one for standard, one for electrical, etc.. I finally got him to fix the clock today so it tells Daylight Savings Time now. I am excited to have just one more week to go before I can get started on my projects. I joined the quilters at church who meet every other Monday evening and Non is going to put a light in my family room so I can set up my table and sew there. I also have boxes of pictures and photos that need to be put into albums. Mom and I both need our kitchens painted and I can sit here and think of more and more items to list in my "TO DO" book. It started out as a list, but it keeps growing... it's much more like a book now. This weekend I want to take Non to the Evergreen Aviation Space Museum and IMAX theater as he's not been there yet and I will be a member until next Friday only. It's a good excuse to go see it again. I've taken Mom, Dad, Donna, Art, Kari, Trevor, Barret, Bettina, Calvin, and Rayven. I'm not sure if Jody and Kaleb and Makayla got to go or not. Can't remember - but I guess that's expected when you get this old. I got to tease Kolette today. She's been picking on everyone all week, but today she was telling me she had 6 flights at $XX dollars and that she found all 6. I said, "you can count to 6. That's great!" All the girls laughed and so did she. But we got serious again pretty quick. We have to cram a lot of invoices and a lot of training into the next 5 days. I really have neglected my blog and mostly it's because I am up at a4:30 or 5 and keep going till around 10 pm. I'm working at the office now instead of at home and Non is busy in the garage so nothing gets done much right now on a schedule like before. And next week the schedule will change again. Monday is Quilting; Tuesday I go to Mom's to do the books; Wed is Bible Study; Thursday I go to Mom's to help her finish her baking for the Sale the next day. Friday is my last day and we are having a luncheon at Izzy's. So I will depend a lot on Non next week to keep up the daily chores. I'm glad it's just one week more, not sure I could do this much longer. Will post again when I'm officially retired and I can report how "unstressed I am"... Right!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-13T21:35:00.000-08:00

Tonight Non and I went to the Valentine Banquet at Valley Baptist Church and it was awesome. The teens had decorated the dining area with 7 tables - 6 couples each and it was gorgeous. They had put up a screen between the kitchen and dining area and put dark red silky material on it and then draped sheer curtains and small white lights in scallops across it. There were artificial trees decorated with the same small white lights and the sheer curtains were decorated with loops of these lights. The front had a large banner and both sides were arranged with the same scallop pattern and the piano was moved into the hall. This made it possible for Hannah and Emily to play for us during the first part of the meal and still allow the servers to pass through easily. The "Singing Servers" quartet sang for us and later the pastor of the Newberg Baptist church gave a talk on Eph 5. The meal was cooked just right - we had tossed baby greens with mild vinagarette dressing, breadsticks with marinara sauce, and lasagna for dinner. Dessert was a choice of Strawberry cheesecake or Chocolate Torte. Non got cheesecake, I got the CHOCOLATE! It was delicious and full of marshmallows and chocolate creamy cake, topped with whip cream. So much for a diet. But this only happens once a year. The tables blended in well with the clear plates and glasses and the red napkins and candles glowing on the tables. It was very well thought out and beautifully done. Amanda, Jillian, Katherine, Elizabeth, Nick, Peter and Micah worked very hard to get this organized and set up on Thursday. We were at the church working on the lights and got a sneak preview. It was even better tonight. I'm impressed by the talent of our young people in the church. Non even wore a tie!!! WOW~!

Sunday Feb 7

2010-02-07T18:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Donna, Mom and I went to the beach. At Lincoln City we went to Goodwill where I found a puzzle, then to Canned Food Outlet for some snacky food. Then to DQ for lunch. Took our burger bags and headed for Dee Lake parking lot to watch the waves while we ate. After DJ and I finished, we went for a walk on the beach, leaving Mom to finish her fries. When we got down to the water we looked back and there was this HUGE seagull on the top of the car! Mom tried banging on the roof from inside but that did not discourage him, then she got out and tried to shoo him away but he just looked at her. She finally gave up and got in the car about the time we got there to rescue her and the bird flew off. We then headed for the Outlet Mall where DJ and I got some free tote bags... nice big ones. We shopped till almost 3 before heading back to Willamina to visit with Carol(Mom's neighbor) for a while. Donna had her camera, I forgot mine. It was a nice day and didn't rain on us till we were ready to leave for home. The weather was even better today, nice and sunny. I had just one little one, Rebecca, (15 mos). in my nursery classes for Sunday School and Church. She is a joy to teach and play with. She is learning new words and loves to repeat after me so we did well today with puzzles of animals and she likes the words "turkey" and "hippo". We went to Rickreall after church and browsed through the flea market, then off to the Sonic in Salem for lunch. We are checking out motor homes and that was fun. Home to Chinese take out and a quiet evening. Hope to get a lot done this week on my Spring Cleaning. Have to get ready for company. Rayven is coming in March just before her 2nd birthday. I will finally get to meet Calvin, too.

It's FRIDAY!

2010-02-05T06:53:00.000-08:00

Got a call last night when we got home from Mom's. My glasses aren't in. Not only that but I'm allergic to my new CPAP mask, so that has to go back. So I'm back to square one again until my glasses come in and I can talk to Apria about my mask. I could get seriously bummed out, but I am too busy. I have to completely redo the spare room because instead of one person, I'm going to have 3 there this time. Calvin, Bettina and Rayven are coming in March and there is a LOT to be done. I have to find a bed for Rayven and clean up the place, dig out my toys, etc. SO much to do and so little time. And work has changed and I have to be in the office more now. So the running back and forth means less done and that is going to take a major attitude readjustment for me.

I've got to find a place for my sewing projects and not in the spare room (until after March) because of our houseguests. So I'm scrambling here. Next week I go back to Curves after 2 wks off due to work situation. I will redo my daily schedule to go to Evergreen after Curves to check for wires. Lots of changes, lots of stuff going on and I just found out that Cindy is an AVON lady!!! Cool.

It's been awhile - Jan 30

2010-01-30T19:42:00.000-08:00

I've been so busy I forgot about my blog till tonight. Tomorrow is Aunt Geri's birthday and I forgot to send a card to Aunt Nita last Sunday and Sue's birthday (Non's sis) is on Friday. There is just a lot going on and my days seem to slip away. Does anyone else have that problem? I just get through with one project and here are five more to take its place. So I decided that if I'm going to be busy anyway I should be busy doing something I enjoy. So 2 Mondays a month I have joined the quilting group at church. I even got me a new sewing machine so I could help out. Wednesday is Bible Study and prayer meeting and on Sunday we are now studying Tozer's the "Attributes of God". This is going to be a great study...it starts tomorrow. Mondays, when I'm in the Evergreen office, I can join the Bible study group for lunch. It's lead by various pastors in the county that take turns so you get a varied group. It's very good to get others' ideas. My days are as busy as can be trying to keep up with all the changes at work and the evenings are a blur with dinner, dishes, and trying to keep up with Jo, Mom, Donna, Non and my extended family via emails and phone calls. We are trying to work in a camping trip before Donna and Art have to go back to Minnesota at the end of March or when the weather allows. So far it's been a tad cool or wet, but we are watching it. I'm going through a lot of changes this month. I get a new CPAP mask - it's suppose to arrive on Tues or Wed. My new glasses arrive on Friday in Salem and I have an appointment with my new doctor on Feb 22 at 1 pm and she's promised to help me with my thyroid. When they stopped making Armour, my thyroid went to 20+ which means very little thyroid in my system. The following month it went down to 13 and on Thurs it was finally down to 7 but we have a long way to go. It is suppose to be around 0.3 for me to lose weight. So I decided to try a new doctor since I'm not making much headway now. We plan to finish paying off Non's new car and then settle in to get ready to start on the new deck. We'll have to get permits and submit plans or something before we start our new addition on the back of garage, but we'll do what ever it takes. He needs to have that room so he can work on his projects on his 3 days he doesn't work for Climax. I have to get that thyroid back to normal so I can lose weight, start sleeping and stop losing my focus and short term memory. If the thyroid doesn't work, nothing works for you. No one understands that where I work. They just yell at me for making mistakes or for not remembering what I did yesterday. It's not my fault - I'm doing the best I can for now. It will get better as we get this under control. It doesn't help that my glasses were so bad that the doc had to bump up my prescription a lot and I've not been able to see for 6 weeks or so. I first noticed it when the pastor got fuzzy and out of focus on Sundays. I thought it was because the glasses were just dirty, but Dr says, nope, it is my eyes - they are really that bad. Being on the computer so many hours doesn't help. Anyway, that being said, things are now on the upswing since with the new mask, glasses and doctor I hope to get back on track this month. It really helps your attitude when you make positive changes in your life. I even cut my bangs so I could see out again!! Time to get stuff ready for church in the morning. Good night...

JAN 8TH, 2010

2010-01-08T19:42:00.000-08:00

Well, we survived the first full week of 2010. It wasn't easy. So much happening. Dr visits most of the week. Mom had to have blood work done on Tues for her appt on Friday. I went to Curves Monday and Tues and did my weigh in and then went to Dr Radzik for my appt on Thursday. I thought it was going to be just an in and out going over the thyroid med but I was wrong. He started lecturing me about how I should get this weight off and I should eat a jar of dill pickles every day because it would keep my sugar levels down and it would help to also eat the red cabbage as well from his favorite deli - Victor's right by the Hometown Buffet in Tigard. I tried to get a word in edgewise, but it wasn't possible. So I just pointed to my chart and showed him that my thyroid was 13!! He says, Well, if you don't get your thyroid under control you can't lose weight. I said that's what I've been trying to tell you. You are lecturing me about doing something I can't do until you get my meds straight! I finally just left after getting my magnesium. I was a tad uptight. Then today Mom had an appointment at 8:20 with Dr Herd and I stayed with her while Donna went to get Jo because her appointment was at 9:10 so Dr Herd finally told Jo she could not drive but she says she will NOT get rid of her car. I am going to try and convince her that it is costing her money to just have it sit there. Insurance, tags, etc and not to mention when she does decide to sell it she won't get much if it doesn't run right. She should just give it to Paige so it can be used and not cost her any more money. We will see how that goes. It is her decision but I sure hate to see her pour good money after bad into it.

I've found a new favorite drink. It's Canada Dry Green Tea Ginger Ale. It's sweet, tangy, yet has a green tea taste to it. It's different but I really like it. I am going to try and sew up the drapes we washed earlier this week. Non got me new curtain rods and the tie downs and new blinds all through the living room. Since my sewing machine doesn't work, Donna is bringing me over Mom's portable and we will get the drapes all back together. Mom is serving at the VFW tomorrow morning as usual so they'll be over after she is off work. I think I'm going to start one room a week and see how much stuff I can get rid of in each room for the next few weeks. Tina will be sending me her homework to proofread and I want to have the house pretty much child proof before Rayven comes in March. Wish me luck on that one! Time to get busy again ... no time to sit much any more.

HAPPY 2010

2010-01-02T17:45:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! Today I took down the Christmas tree and all the trimmings, except the nativity scene in the front window, did 2 loads of laundry, and a load of dishes, fixed hot dogs for lunch while Non worked on my car and even vacuumed it!! Then he decided to put the legs on the work table and we talked and measured and decided to go ahead and put it in the office and take out the heavy metal desk. So I now have a corner desk for my work computer and he has the original Sauter desk we got with our first computer in 1996. My PC sits on a roll around table so I can move it if I want. I'll put my laptop on this when I retire some day. But for now we are both exhausted and hungry. We had to unplug everything, including the router and modem and re-set them up again with a whole new configuration of wires. He had to hang all my maps and cork board in a different place as well. It's got a whole new look to the place. I have to go get us something to eat. Manon's tummy is growling so loud I can't concentrate. Today is Christi's birthday. Ray was born in 66 and Christi in 67, just around 5 months apart. Hope your day wasn't as hectic as mine!

Merry Christmas!!

2009-12-22T19:05:00.000-08:00

It wasn't quite this cold, but almost last year. We had 2 feet of snow, but this year it's just rain, rain and cold wind. This is a lot more like Oregon Christmas. Some people miss the white stuff, but I really like seeing it from a distance. I don't like having to drive in it or walk in it, but if I just get out and make a snowman or have a snowball fight with the neighborhood kids, I'm happy. I don't miss it a bit if it doesn't show up. I'm finally ready for Christmas. Have my shopping done anyway; I still need to do some wrapping, but that's Non's specialty. I will make pies for Christmas Eve and consider myself ready for sure. I've taken off Thursday and will pick up Angie and Jo on my way over to Willamina. Non hasn't decided if he will come with us or bring a separate vehicle. With Jo, her walker, Angie and her bag, presents, etc... it might be a tad crowded in my little Elantra. Wanted to take the time to tell everyone HAPPY CHRISTMAS!!! God bless all...

MERRY CHRISTMAS LIGHTS!

2009-12-19T07:03:00.001-08:00

Yesterday Non came home and didn't come inside and I couldn't figure out what was taking him so long. I stepped outside to see and was greeted by all these colored lights on my new patio. He put up the smaller lights the day before all around the top edge and the colored fluorescent lights last night. Blue, red, orange, and yellow. It's really cool at night. It wasn't quite dark enough to get the full effect, but I had to get to the Living Nativity at the church so Donna took some that are better. She also remembered her camera and took pics at the church. I had my hands full of cookies, purse, food for the Christmas baskets and candy canes and forgot the camera! Time to go get busy. Non's at work, so today I get to clean house - REALLY clean house...

Wed 12/16/09

2009-12-16T08:33:00.000-08:00

Donna and I are off to Salem today to finish our Christmas shopping and to visit my friend Alma (my Watkins lady) who fell and broke her leg - between her knee and hip, just like Dad did a year ago. She loves M&Ms and her home is a virtual display of all items M&M. Donna and I will be going to Bi-Mart, Walmart, Costco, Freddy's, and who knows where today. Hopefully we will get some ideas for the last 3 or 4 items we need. I'm hoping Non & I can come up with a gift for the house or something. We really don't need anything... well, I could use a haircut and a pair of jeans. The seams are showing on this one I've washed them so many times. Hope you all have a great day. Donna should be here any time from Willamina and we'll be on our way.

12/12/09

2009-12-12T16:54:00.000-08:00

Finally got the Nativity Scene in the window! I had it up, but it was way too high and blocked the tree. So I had Angie take it down so I could wash the window and put it up again. Then I got distracted with all the excitement of the burst pipes and crashing ceiling and forgot it till today when I was working on my Christmas cards and realized I hadn't put it up. So here it is now.

I like this because I can use it every Christmas and have for years. The grandkids enjoyed it when they were little. Not so little any more. John is 28 and married to Amanda. Tina is 23 and married to Calvin and they have our 21 month old granddaughter, Rayven. Mike is 20 and Sara will be 17 on the 17th of this month. So I have 6 grandchildren now and 1 great grandchild. I got to meet Amanda last May at Mike's graduation celebration and I've yet to meet Calvin, but we have talked on the phone and Tina has sent me many pictures of the 3 of them. I hope this coming year to get to see them all. I better get back to my Christmas cards. I've got the letters written to those that are far off and don't have email and now I'm getting ready to sign and stuff the others and get them ready to mail off on Monday. Non will finish his shopping tomorrow, I'll finish mine on Wed. Thurs is the Office potluck/gift exchange and Friday is the Living Nativity. I am looking forward to that and making all those cookies!!

December 9th - OUCH!

2009-12-09T19:21:00.000-08:00

Today was not a great day for me. I got a lot done but I couldn't finish 2 of my large invoices because I didn't have all the information I need. I am waiting for 2 vendors to get back to me and tomorrow is the noon deadline. As soon as work was finished, Non came in from his shopping trip and after we talked a bit he headed to the garage to wash his car - Yep, I know, it's only 30 degrees out there and the water kept freezing to his car, but he had to have it clean, so he washed it. But he sure didn't like the way the SHAM WOW worked, so he used towels instead. I decided to check my email before I started dinner and the first one to catch my eye was the pastor's plea for help. The pipes at the church had frozen and burst and there was water leaking in the kitchen and the classroom and the bathroom. So I went out to get Non and tell him and since he didn't like the SHAM WOW I took the entire box and my mop and bucket and Non drove us to the church. WOW was I glad I had my stuff. The kitchen had water all over the floor and the light fixtures were half full of water, too. So Non took care of the lights and I grabbed my mop and the SHAM WOW and started mopping up the water puddles. Once we got the kitchen under control we headed to the back classroom and the carpet was like a sponge and squishy. So I threw the SHAM WOW sheets on the floor and stepped on them and wrung them out, Non went to find more buckets and waste baskets to use and then he set up a drain system with the light covers we took down and an easel, and I used a wet/dry vacuum to take up some of the water. Then we got a better system. I stepped on the sheets and he wrung them out. My knee finally gave out as his shoulder did, and we were getting ready to quit. The pastor came to check on us and I wrung out the last sheet and turned to go just as the roof collapsed on my head and neck and ear. It was heavier than I expected it to be. I tried to get my arms over my head to protect me, but it happened too fast. The entire 4x8 sheet came down almost sideways and struck me with its entire weight. I couldn't see Non or Pastor Ronny because the old insulation was so thick and it was like a white out snow storm only grayish. Non and Pastor said they couldn't see me for awhile either. It was like it wasn't going to stop. Non grabbed me and got me out the door of the classroom, but the insulation kept falling all over and I was completely covered. So was Non's hat. I decided that was enough. Non brushed me off enough so I could get into the van and we grabbed the bucket and the sheets and mop and I got here and headed straight for the shower. Had to wash my hair twice to get it clean. I'm starting to feel the aches now. My shoulders and my back and my left ear and now my elbow where I tried to keep it from hitting my head, but didn't quite succeed. Will let you know later how I'm doing, but I think I'll survive just fine. A little stiff maybe, but I'm doing okay considering. What a mess the church has to clean up. That insulation stuff was everywhere. Have to eat now. It's almost 8 and we have to be up at 4:30 since Non works tomorrow. Gnite all.day was not a great day for me. I got a lot done but I couldn't finish 2 of my large invoices because I didn't have all the information I need. I am waiting for 2 vendors to get back to me and tomorrow is the noon deadline. As soon as work was finished, Non came in from his shopping trip and after we talked a bit he headed to the garage to wash his car - Yep, I know, it's only 30 degrees out there and the water kept freezing to his car, but he had to have it clean, so he washed it. But he sure didn't like the way the SHAM WOW worked, so he used towels instead. I decided to check my email before I started dinner and the first one to catch my eye was the pastor's plea for help. The pipes at the church had frozen and burst and there was water leaking in the kitchen and the classroom and the bathroom. So I went out to get Non and tell him and since he didn't like the SHAM WOW I took the entire box and my mop and bucket and Non drove us to the church. WOW was I glad I had my stuff. The kitchen had water all over the floor and the light fixtures were half full of water, too. So Non took care of the lights and I grabbed my mop and the SHAM WOW and started mopping up the water puddles. Once we got the kitchen under control we headed to the back classroom and the carpet was like a sponge and squishy. So I threw the SHAM WOW sheets on the floor and stepped on them and wrung them out, Non went to find more buckets and waste baskets to use and then he set up a drain system with the light covers we took down and an easel, and I used a wet/dry vacuum to take up some of the water. Then we got a better system. I stepped on the sheets and he wrung them out. My knee finally gave out as his shoulder did, and we were getting ready to quit. The pastor came to check on us and I wrung out the last sheet and turned to go just as the roof collapsed on my head and neck and ear. It was heavier than I expected it to be. I tried to get my arms over my head to protect me, but it happened too fast. The entire 4x8 sheet came down almost sideways and struck me with its entire weight. I couldn't see Non or Pastor Ronny because the old insulation was so thick and it was like a white out snow storm only grayish. Non and Pastor said they couldn't see me for awhile either. It was like it wasn't going to stop. Non grabbed me and got me out the door of the classroom, but the insulation kept falling all over and I was completely covered. So was Non's hat. I decided that was enough. Non brushed me off enough so I could get into the van and we grabbed the bucket and the sheets and mop and I got here and headed straight for the shower. Had to wash my hair twice to get it clean. I'm starting to feel the aches now. My shoulders and my back and my left ear and now my elbow where I tried to keep it from hitting my head, but didn't quite succeed. Will let you know later how I'm doing, but I think I'll survive just fine. A little stiff maybe, but I'm doing okay considering. What a mess the church has to clean up. That insulation stuff was everywhere. Have to eat now. It's almost 8 and we have to be up at 4:30 since Non works tomorrow. Gnite all.

December 8, 2009

2009-12-08T20:13:00.000-08:00

Today is the in-between day. Yesterday was Mike Spencer's birthday and tomorrow is my grandson, John's birthday. He'll be 28 but I think Mike will be 51 or 52 I'm not sure. I can't remember how much younger he is than my brother John. He was like another little brother while we were growing up. We shared beach trips and swimming trips and built grass forts and dug ditches together while we were growing up on the same street. John just got married to Amanda and now they will start their own Christmas traditions. That's kind of fun. Trying to decide which family you celebrate the holidays with gets a little weird sometimes. We used to do Thanksgiving with one family, Christmas with the other, then have a 2nd Christmas with the opposite group and it got to be a bit much when we lived in Seattle. Seattle to Prineville and Seattle to Willamina were very long trips. They got a lot longer when Ray came along, too. The only solution to that was to have both families join us for Christmas in Seattle. That was a year that made so many wonderful memories for us. Being apartment managers set us up as targets from any angle when the snowball fight began. We had 2 separate buildings, 4 stories tall and the swimming pool building was between. All apartments had balconies which overlooked the swimming pool. So any time you walked out to the pool for maintenance or any of the parking lots which surrounded the outside of the apartment complex, you took a risk of getting a snowball down the back of your neck or on the head. Our families also became involved in the apartment fun and one tenant who happened to be the VP of Fred Meyer Seattle, brought around the Oscar Meyer weiner truck and gave us all gorgeous trays of deli delights. I still have the tray and use it often. That was in 1970 so the tray is 39 years old. WOW. I didn't stop to think how long ago that was until now. Ray was only 3 1/2 yrs old. Christmas is a great time to dredge up lots of memories and to build new ones. This year will be different, but I hope it will be a happy one for us all. Last year was also memorable because we couldn't get to Mom's house. We could only get to the bottom of the hill and had to park in the Post Office parking lot and walk up the hill and Art tried to help us and almost got stuck himself. It was a very cold/wet and treacherous walk up that hill and I dreaded the downhill trip as well. I'm glad it was only a short walk. I'm one who has trouble walking on dry flat ground. Add snow, ice and steep climb and I'm dangerous to anyone near me. This year we made a new memory with Mom. Donna, Mom and I joined Santa on his sleigh and Mom wasn't too keen on the idea of sitting on Santa's lap, but since my last weight gain I knew he wouldn't want me sitting there. Donna also decided to opt out and that left Mom in the sleigh.

Next week is Evergreen Accounts Christmas potluck and party and on Friday we will have the living nativity at the church. I can hardly wait to start baking all those cookies. Angie and I will have to go through the book and decide which ones to do. We've already chosen peanut butter as one, and probably chocolate chip, but there are so many recipes and so little time....

Deadlines at work, meetings and parties and baking and cooking and all this leads up to a special holiday to celebrate Christ's birth. I think the Oakridge Boys are right, though. We may think all these things are stressful, but the most inconvenient Christmas was the first. When Jesus came to be born in a stable to grow up and to die in our place and take the punishment for the sins that we commit so we might be able to live with Him forever in His home, Heaven. What a trip she had to make on a donkey at 9 months pregnant; or walking all those miles and then finding out you have no place to stay but a barn. Giving birth to your first child in a stable of hay and animals may have been a tad disconcerting to say the least, but Mary was evidently up to the task. Let's just say it wouldn't be my choice of places to give birth. West Seattle General was perfect. It's past my bedtime so I'm traveling off to a nice warm bed. Good night all... till next time.

Christmas Holiday 09

2009-11-30T21:28:00.001-08:00

The day after Thanksgiving I drug out the Christmas tree, and all the boxes of decorations. Vacuumed the entire living room, family room and kitchen and began building my tree and cleaning off the buffet to put everything Christmas I could find out to display. That was fun. Then I talked Angie into helping me decorate the tree.

I think it turned out pretty good. Here is my

Christmas living room. Madeline and Mac are on the wall beside the tree watching our festivities.

I sure miss her, but she would have liked the tree. She liked anything Christmas.

Today we went to Fry's to get my printer fixed and got me a loaner. Then we went to Busters Barbecue for dinner and then to Fred Meyer for a gift for the giving tree on Wed night. That's Evergreen Christmas Dinner/Party and Donna, Art, Angela, Mom, Non and me are all going because Non and Angela and Mom haven't seen the Space Museum yet. Yesterday after church I went to Willamina to balance Mom's books and was one penny off. Was driving me crazy. But after I went over it again I discovered that Donna had read the amount to me of 400.00 instead of 400.01 and the mystery was solved! I have never been off a penny before, so it was really a puzzler. Glad it was so easily fixed. Nice to have "help", sis. Anyway, the walk was a good one, it didn't rain on us that day either. Is everyone else ready for Christmas?

Thanksgiving 09

2009-11-30T21:08:00.001-08:00

It was as usual a regular crazy day. Trying to get everything done by noon. But we made it!

My lemon pie didn't last long. Of course Non has to stand up just as I snap the pic. But he did say the pie was edible. Mom and Donna put the turkey in the rotisserie, the ham in the crockpot and the oven was stuffed with everything else. Dressing, sweet potatoes, biscuits, and green bean casserole were included. We finally finished off most of the turkey yesterday, just enough left now for Donna to make some soup, but no one readily volunteered to eat it. Mom said, "NO, Thanks!" She and Non and Art aren't turkey lovers. But that's okay, I like chicken and turkey and so does Donna, so that suits us fine. Thanksgiving was different this year, but was a great meal and we played Rummikube. Donna, Mom, Jo and Angela played while I tried to download a hidden object game called Greenscapes onto my computer with Art's help. John, Art and Non were watching a football game while we got dinner ready. Jo was cheering on her team with the fellas. Was a good day all around. Didn't rain on us either. Thank you, Lord, for family and for friends. We missed Vern but hope he'll be with us next get together.

Holidays Coming UP

2009-11-15T19:35:00.000-08:00

Hello again,

This is a pic of Mom's Christmas tree last year. You can almost see all the snow out the window. It was really white and deep. I am hoping this year it will be more like normal -- just wet. We had to park at the bottom of the hill at Post Office and walk up to the house and it was cold and icy and slick. It's almost time for Thanksgiving but there's lots to do before that. On Monday is my weigh in at Curves. Tuesday Kolette is back from vacation!! YAY!! Thursday we find out the court decision for Angie and sometime this week Donna and Mom and Vern are going to go look for Jo's winter coats in her storage locker as she still has her summer clothes only right now. Next Monday is Art and Donna's 37th wedding anniversary, Tues I go to get my blood checked to see if we need to change my meds once more. Wed we get ready for Thanksgiving and a 4 day weekend! That sounds nice about now. A short break will be a good thing. Angie and I will drag out all my Christmas decorations and we will see if we can get the house dressed up for the upcoming holidays. I'll take some pics when we get it all ready. For now I'm just glad that things are starting to calm for a bit so we can put some thought as to why we have this season and I just wish people would realize that Christ is the reason we call it CHRISTmas. Thanks is the reason we have THANKSgiving. So we can give thanks to those that sacrificed and allowed us to have all the blessings we enjoy today in America. I think we better start counting our blessings now because I'm not sure that we will have them much longer the way the country is heading. God bless our "CHRISTIAN" USA.

Oct 22

2009-10-22T09:48:00.000-07:00

Haven't updated my blog for awhile. Too much going on. While John, Candy and the girls were here we had a bbq with the whole gang. All 14 of us, Shirley and Stan (Dad's sister and hubby) came as well. It was great fun. We decided to do this more often. We can do it year round now that we have the enclosed patio. It's going to be great. John and Candy left on Sunday and this past week Donna, Art and Mom have been back and forth to McMinnville several times, Dallas, Monmouth and all over the place. Art went wild turkey hunting and Non has been trying to find his garage. Now that my project is done he is starting his own on his days off. Next he says he's going to paint the garage. I'm trying to figure out how he can do that because every wall is covered with shelving, cupboards, car parts, etc. But knowing Non that will not stop him. Where there's a will there is definitely a way!! Once he has determined a course of action - nothing stops him. Me, I'm plugging away at Evergreen every day and teaching Angie to cook, but so far she's taught me a lot of things, too. Spare time is a rare commodity around here. Hopefully someday I can retire and get time to garden and do something besides work on the computer. I'm dreaming again... time to go back to work..

Oct 9th

2009-10-09T21:15:00.000-07:00

Things here are going so fast it's hard to find time to sit and update everyone. On Oct 2nd I picked up Angie and brought her here to stay with me for awhile. We haven't been in touch for many years and it was about time we got to renew family ties. Then we found out that Candy and John, Destiny and Fayht are coming up this Sunday, the 11th for a week. Rita, who works with me at Evergreen, is getting married on the 11th as well. I told her that would have been my parents 65th anniversary and it was also my Grandparents' as well. Mom and Dad got married on their silver wedding anniversary. So we will have a barbecue while John & Candy are here and celebrate their visit and Non's & Jo's birthdays. I need to practice on my new barbecue first so I don't burn the meal. We've not fired it up yet, but it is all hooked up and ready to go. Non has the lights all wired in to the patio ceiling and we are ready for company. Angie has been a great house guest. We've been visiting Willamina often and played a lot of Rummikube. I won a game tonight, but usually it's Donna who wins. Mom won last week. Last night (Thurs) Non, Angie and I went over and did the yard work we've not been able to do earlier. We trimmed the tree by the telephone pole and the big Rhody in front of the porch so Mom can now see over it and the fuchsia is now cut back to normal. We also trimmed the laurel hedge, both the neighbors' side and Mom's. She was very pleased, but we didn't have time to visit. By the time we'd picked up all the leaves and brush and loaded the truck for Donna to unload later, it was time to go eat. Had dinner at Coyote Joe's and then home to bed. Tonight Angie and I went to go have dinner at Mom's and we took the roast pork. Mom and Donna fixed the cream peas / potatoes and Donna made a hot milk cake. I'd never heard of it before but it was sure good. Lot of good it did me to order all that Nutrisystem, huh? Today was accrual deadline. Everything single invoice for Sept had to be turned in and I was ready and had it all done by 11. A full hour before the deadline. First time in a long time. Thanks to Kolette. If she wasn't there I'd still be running tapes and it's 9:30 pm! Bedtime for me. Will update more later... Good night.

Willys ready, too

2009-09-26T17:25:00.000-07:00

We got insurance and new tags and plates for the old Willys. With that all gray paint job, it is road ready. Non has put on different hub caps and has been tinkering with that off and on with the patio project. Just had to keep everyone up to date.

9/26/09 Porch is done

2009-09-26T17:08:00.001-07:00

The plexiglass windows are all framed and in

place. This makes it look very "finished". Non has done a spectacular job and I'm very proud of him and his know-how to do it right. The barbecue is in place and my picnic table is right beside it ready for action when Donna & Art get here. Bring on the steaks!!!

9/22 - And 94 is too too hot in Sept

2009-09-22T13:33:00.000-07:00

Hello again, world. Climax finally discovered Non was missing and held his retirement party yesterday. It was a good party with a BIG cake. It was decorated with a 34 era hot rod with flames on the hood and white smoke coming out the tailpipe. A stop sign behind and a traffic sign ahead out on a country road with a fish pond complete with plastic fish sticking out. I wish I'd remembered my camera, but I didn't. Even forgot to use my cellphone. It was 2 layers of white cake with strawberries in between and Karen cut 3" square or larger pieces and there was still 1/3 left over by the time the party was over. Stan had 2 pieces and I'm sure others did too. For a going away gift he got a great bbq and bbq tools and a book that most of Climax signed.

Here's the bbq with the tools on the right. The left side is a burner under the side table top. We started putting it together last night after dinner and worked til it got too late - almost 9pm. Then Non finished assembling it this morning. It is going to go great on the patio! The book he got was great, too! It has pics of Non and group pics, too. It has pages of autographs of his co-workers and is a great memory book. Here are a couple of pics from the book...

Sep 16th

2009-09-16T19:05:00.000-07:00

Thought you would like to see the old Willys all one color. Non did this yesterday and today and we will eventually get it tagged and insured and road ready again. He tipped up the mirror when he was painting and forgot to tip it back down when I went to take picture, but it's okay. Looks a lot better than the old shed out back. If the weather gets better, I hope to get that painted.

Today we put the glass in the doors because it decided to rain again.You can see the sills he made for the end windows. You can't see the plexiglass he put over the windows, but it's there. He just tacked it up for now, but later will make frames to put the windows in after he finishes the inside siding. It sure looks great. Every day more gets done no matter the weather.

Here's Non's new stand for his chop saw and he really likes it. Had quite a deal trying to get it. Went to Home Depot Sherwood and they had this stand sitting with a 10" Table saw on top of it for $114. Waited quite awhile for the helpers to get to us because it took 2 of them to help this blond who wanted a 7/8" drill bit. After 15 min or so they decided they didn't have one, so the guy went to make a call to see if he could find a store that did!! The other helper was just chatting with the customer and there were several people waiting. So I butted in and asked her if we could please see the saw as advertised. She said very bluntly they were sold out. Then she ignored me and went back to the blond. This would not have bothered me so much but she came in after other customers including Non and I. Anyway, Non says, very loudly, "never mind we'll go someplace where we can get some service from someone who knows what they are doing". And we left. Went to Tigard Home Depot... WOW! Was that a different story. Got help right away from Jose who happens to also work at Grainger and is a Spanish teacher besides. Anyway, he told us that they should not have set up that display because it was very misleading. The stand alone cost $179 and the saw came with a very flimsy squarish stand for the $114. When we told him what had happened at the other store, he apologized profusely for the lousy service and promptly knocked off $25 from the stand so it was only $154. He then got the store manager to sign off the credit slip and he also apologized for Sherwood. Jose and Non talked about what he was using his saw for and the guy was impressed that Non knew so much about it as most people don't. They get in way over their heads. But Non knew Jose from seeing him at Grainger. We came home and the next day Non assembled it. We didn't get the table saw, because it was not as advertised, but we got a good deal and great service.

Rain quit now it's HOT again

2009-09-11T16:42:00.001-07:00

Hello all, the rain quit the day after Labor Day weekend and now it is over 90 again. I give up. First we didn't think summer would get here and now it may never end. I like SUMMER.. don't get me wrong, but more like high 70 to low 80 area, not 90++!

Since the rain stopped, Non got really busy with the gutters and he finished today. So I took pics again.. he routed the gutters from the mobile to the downspouts on the garage and then he put the ones that snap up out of the way when you mow the lawn on the back corner of the mobile and the front corner of the patio. So now we are ready for the next rain. Yesterday Mom and I had lunch at Wendy's after she visited with Jo in the morning and then she came to my house for the afternoon and we visited and played Rummikube and Skipbo till dinner. Other than the burnt hamburger steaks, dinner went pretty well - the green beans, biscuits and veggies were pretty good. I got in a hurry and bumped the dial on the stove and turned the burner too high on the meat, Mom and Non were very nice and tried to chew it, but it weren't easy.

Today suddenly my brain snapped into gear. I've been on auto pilot for the past month and for some reason I suddenly decided I can actually function again. Way past due. I started remembering things I had to do at work and why I did things weeks ago and where I put them. It's about time. I hope this is a permanent return to normality and not temporary.
We took the furniture off the porch again and it's going to turn back into a wood shop temporarily while Non does the finish work on the patio. He is going to put the siding on the inside now and the sill board getting ready to put the screen and the plastic in for when winter sets in. We'll be able to have barbecues year round once that is done. I'm looking forward to that. Grilled scallops and burgers and apple sausages!!

Wet Labor Day Weekend.

2009-09-06T17:51:00.000-07:00

I mentioned that it was wet this weekend. I wasn't kidding. Here is my front porch view...
Of course it only rains in spurts. About 10-15 min then the sun comes back and it's really warm again. It does this just often enough that you can deal with it easily. And we gave up a trip to Packwood because it was suppose to be raining like this the entire 4 days from Sat-Tues!!!

September - Labor Day Weekend - it's wet!

2009-09-05T16:16:00.000-07:00

Is my guy talented, or what??!!... he has turned my house into a great home. The house project continues as soon as the wet weather ends. Sometime next week if they are right. But Non has been really working on it. It sure looks great compared to the "before" pics. And here is the car we've been talking about.

I thought I already had put these pics on, but when Art said he hadn't seen them, I checked and sure enough, they weren't here yet. So this is Non's car I've renamed "Stripes". They are so fragile we can't wash the car yet, but he's been rinsing off the car just to keep the dust down. Also got a car cover for it and put it in the white tent as well. That put old Willys out back in front of the trailer. But at least we can now let the poor garbage man do his job easier. Not so much stuff parked all over.

This is what our yard looked like on Thursday. The Spitfire is leaving us and he is going to pick it up sometime this weekend. With the Willys and trailer out back, Stripes in the tent, that just leaves my Elantra and van out front. Looks less like a used car lot now.

New Month, New Project - THE OTHER SIDE

2009-09-01T20:43:00.000-07:00

New Project: The other side of the Trailer. Now we are in a race against the weather. Non needs to take off all the rotted face boards, put up new ones, paint them and get the gutters on before rainy season hits. Since Allan told us today that it's going to rain on Thursday, the odds are pretty tricky. But he's got a good start on it. He tore off the boards on the front half of the garage side and replaced them, then he marked the ones he needs to pull off tomorrow. All this was before he went to Lowe's to get the rest of the wood he needed. Things are just hectic with one thing on top of another. Last night at Mom's we checked out the front yard and lots of things need trimming, and it's not something I want Mom doing, for sure. So Thursday we'll be back to Willamina to get yardwork done.

I'm going to be ready for that 3 day weekend coming up.

This is for Art

2009-08-30T16:51:00.001-07:00

I saw this sign at the fair and I just couldn't resist taking a picture of it... This is a classic Art statement. Hope you had a good trip home and now you can get some rest before you come out and get busy cleaning again... Thanks for all your help....

Car Changes again

2009-08-30T16:40:00.001-07:00

We are getting ready to say goodbye to the old Triumph Spitfire. It's sat on the front porch for a long time and now it's time for a change. The guy is suppose to come and pick it up later this week, but with Mom's birthday tomorrow and me having to deal with Month End and everything else, it's going to be hectic and I wanted to give this car the same send- off as the 85 Ford.

Sunday Aug 30

2009-08-30T16:28:00.001-07:00

While Non was finishing up the patio, Mom and I stole away to the State Fair in Salem. Saw some very unusual flowers and got a couple FREE pansies. Mom is pointing to some new varieties we hadn't seen before.

As you can see the porch is now done and I'm thrilled with it. We will later add the screen to keep out the bugs, but for now it is done.

Next Non will tackle the front and the side with the garage. One step at a time again. It's been a long process but well worth the wait.

I am anticipating my first bar-b-que...