~~~LCMW November~~~

[adillenal]

Poor Dak - I know how it is to be sick and not at home. And DH's nose is running like a faucet so I am sure he has spread the germs ALL OVER THE HOUSE. Just a matter of time before I start clogging up but taking the Amoicillin for my tooth should help. I hope.
Glad you were ablwe to have a nice visit in between everything else.

DS is home. He and Sami are taking a nap upstairs since he went out last night 23 minutes after he got here and unloaded enough stuff for a 6 week logn visit.

I had a great DD yesterday but I am stilll up on the scale due to Friday. Am baking some potato sticks and boiling some gold potatoes to try a potato day and see if that will help.
Hi kritter and lilmiss.

[krittermom]

Dak, I LOL at your post. You are a trooper! Good idea staying back at the hotel and resting.

adi, how long is DS home for? A nap sounds so nice. I've got to fit a few of them into my vacation plans for next week

Before I forget, if you can stand some cuteness, check out this video of 2 baby beavers that were rescued by the local wildlife center.

AarkWildlifeCenter - YouTube

I'm exhausted. My contractor finally finished painting the living room yesterday so I've been cleaning like crazy. So much dust - ugh. But boy was it worth it. It's amazing how much paint can change a room. I've been so busy the last few days shopping, wrapping and cleaning. At least it'll be nice to have a clean house after Christmas is over

Hey lil miss, how are you doing? I know you're crazy busy with the holiday and family but check in and let us know you're okay.

[lil miss]

I'm sorry, I am here and love you all to bits! DS2 got sick and then DS3 got sick and I was just not good company and then...you guessed it, I got sick! Diet has been horrible!

Anyway, very happy, well, kinda happy bc DH announced we can go to PA for NY's to see my folks but my Mom and Dad are still trying to find their new normal. It is rough to say the least. My Mom has resentment that Dad didnt get his knee fixed bc maybe they wouldn't be in this predicament , blah blah blah

I feel so blessed and happy my Dad is with us this holiday season but things are still really complicated. My parents are paying out of pocket for aides and it IS COSTLY.

Anyway, I am sorry, I am here, just kinda out of sorts so havent posted much! Love you guys and absolutely LOVE to hear all about you and what is happening in your lives!

Be back late with personals!

[Dakini]

Kritter, that was so cute, they reminded us of Capybara, but w/o the tail.

Glad you have your son home for Christmas, Adi, even though he may just sleep there. I'm sure you'll have him Christmas morning. I got my package of soaps, tell Chloe that was fast, thank you! They all smell great. DH nabbed the lavender/sage.

Sorry to hear you're sick too, Lil Miss. Hope you're all well soon.

Apparently, the wonder drug sudafed has given me the mother of all headaches. No more decongestants for me, I'd rather just carry around a box of tissue.

[adillenal]

lilmiss - So sorry all of you are or have been sick. DH is blowing his nose contantsly so there is not way I can avoid his germs. Enjoy your trip back to PA. It will all work out for everyone eventually.

Dak - Those decongestants do cause you to stop up more hence the headache. You are right in that a box of Kleenex will serve the purpose. One of my employees also loves the Lavender/Sage. Tell DH he got the last bar. I have to make more for my February show.

Kritter - Good question about how long DS is going to be here. I did not ask. He met someone from school in Giddings yesterday to take them their "stuff" he had been storing for them and just had to take our new truck. Hope he doesn't get ideas.
Glad your painter is finished and you can put your house together the way you want it. I still have decluttering to do before I can do anything. I need another storage building.HaHa. Have two rather large portable buildings already.

[adillenal]

[krittermom]

Merry Christmas everyone!

Adi, is that your sign? Very cute.

Dak, those Capybara are really cool looking. Their heads are shaped kind of like a hippo.

lil miss, hope you're all better today.

Everywhere I go around here people are coughing. I swear the phernergan with codiene saved my life. It was the only thing that enabled me to sleep through the night and the sleep did me wonders.

My turkey's in the oven. I had to fight with it for about 20 minutes trying to get the bleeping neck out of the frozen bleeping cavity. I swear next year I'm doing a vegetarian dinner because this is just too bleeping gross and frustrating. Do the turkey people lie to us about how long it takes to defrost one of them because I even took the d@mn thing out and left it sit out for 2 days (8 hours each day) and still the inside was frozen.

Of course I'll forget about it after a few glasses of wine

It snowed last night! It was so beautiful when we were driving to my brother's but it turned to rain. Our place was still covered with snow when we got home but it's all gone now. Still it was pretty while it lasted.

Better go get showered and sweep the kitchen floor. Then peel potatoes, fix the stuffing(super easy) and wait for folks to get here. And pray the turkey finishes cooking

Hope you all have a wonderful day with family and friends!

[adillenal]

Kritter - yes, that is our Christmas Greeting down by the road.
We had a spiral ham so no cooking invloved and I served it cold. It is easy to cook when DS is here because our menu is very plain cause that is what he eats. Broccoli, baby carrots, ham, homemeade cranberry sauce (he doesn't eat that) ham or turkey and cornbread. Plain cornbread. He won't eat dressing so this time we all ate plain cornbread. No dessert. Gosh I love this kid. easy prep. Easy cleanup.
We have super high winds today and further East of us is having terrible rain, wind storms and tornadoes. Dallas area is getting snow.
DS has to be back in GA at midnight Jan 6. Sounds like a Cindrella story line there. I have some sweet potatoes to cook for DH and me for tonight or tomorrow to go with the leftover ham.

[adillenal]

It is once again time for our yearly Christmas picture of DS and dog.

[Dakini]

Merry Christmas everyone! 🎄🎅🎄
Love the pic of your son, Adi! I was wondering if there might be a picture this year, he's such a good sport.

We had a lovely Christmas morning opening presents and having breakfast. Now, just kicking back.

LOL at your frozen turkey. When DS was little I'd get him to pull the neck out for me, he thought it was great fun, shudder.

Cool sign Adi. Did you do the artwork?

Hope Lil Miss is feeling better. My headache has shunk to just the left side of my head, so progress. 😊

[adillenal]

Dak - The banner is by an artist that also raises goats. She did a drawing and posted it on a goat forum and everyone wanted to buy cards and such so she had banners and cards printed. Those were my Christmas Cards this year. The banner is heavy duty and can be used for many years. I love the goat's outfit.
Poor DS knows we have to do our yearly son and dog with reindeer antlers picture. He is good about it. And Sami was a total angel with the antlers. Then DS decided to go to town this evening and we looked out and he was driving off in our new truck. What???

Suddenly the temperature dropped from 63 to 39 just in time for my evening chores and the wind is awful. I am finished but frozen now.

[Dakini]

He just took the keys to your new truck? Somehow, I suspect there might be a discussion when he gets back.

We had a really nice Christmas. I made latkes, with applesauce and bacon. (not exactly kosher, LOL) DS's GF is a super picky eater, she was so funny, I'll just try one. She ended up splitting the last one with DS. How can anyone not like fried potatoes?

It rained last night, going to spend the day working in my garden, perfect time to pull weeds, which I have a great deal of, .

[adillenal]

It is TOO cold here to go outside. I consider anything below 50 cold but it is 30. Not going out there for any reason until late this evening when I have to feed.

DS left us HIS truck. HaHa. I believe DH had told him he could use the truck WHENEVER he wanted to. DH can't always keep his mouth shut.

DD today and I have a headache probably from too much whatever yesterday.

[krittermom]

It started out snowing today and turned into sleet when I was out getting suet for the birds. The bird feeders are incredibly busy. I think they knew the storm was coming. It's nice to be off and hunkered down in the house when the weather's nasty outside.

Dak, love the pic of your son. I can't believe how big he is.

I'm going to make green beans with bacon and garlic. My SIL brought them yesterday for dinner and they were so good.

DH really wanted a treadmill so we ordered one today. It got good rating on Consumer Reports.

I love being on vacation!

[Dakini]

So it's your DH being generous with your truck. LOL (I think I'm guilty of doing that with DH's stuff, ) 30 degrees in the daytime is cold, I would stay inside with a good book.

I made a wild rice and mushroom soup that I just had for lunch, so nice when I've been cooking and can have good leftovers. I made the best brussels sprouts, just olive oil & salt. I roasted them in a hot oven 400, and turned them every 7 minutes so they browned evenly. It was worth the work, salty & sweet.

New treadmill should be great, I wish I had room to set mine up.

[adillenal]

I love brussels sprouts.

[lil miss]

Mmm sounds delish Dak! DH LOVES sprouts too!

I recovered from my cold in time for Christmas! Yippee!

Adi-Oh, I love the annual photo of DS! He is such the good sport and I cannot get over how much he has grown! I also loved the sign with the goat! Too cute! The outfit was the best! Youa re my JUDDD hero and I hope to emulate your success in the coming weeks.

Hi Dak, love that you had a relaxing Christmas. Sorry the sudafed gave you a headache, for me, it was the ONLY thing that saved me! Funny... Latkes sound wonderful! I LOLed that your DS' girlfriend dove into them, good for her!

Hi Krit! Sounds like you are having a wonderful holiday! A new treadmill? What fun!?!!! Sounds like the new place is all coming together, kitchen complete, walls done, etc

We leave tomorrow for a brief visit to my parents. Hope it makes me happy and isn't too depressing. Hoping to help my mom relax. After holiday eating to my heart's content I am so ready to JUDDD. I plan to do a lower carb version sicne I am allergic to wheat anyhoo...

[Dakini]

So good to hear you Lil Miss, hope you have a good trip to visit with your folks.

Read something interesting on the JUDDD board, there are really only three types of diets out there, low calorie, low carb and low fat. I never thought low calorie would ever work for me, that I'd go into starvation mode, funny that its turned out to be the easiest of all of them for me.

[adillenal]

Lilmiss - good to hear from you and enjoy your trip.
kritter - Oh a treadmill. I am cleaning mine off slowly so I can use it since the neighbor's cows are out in the field that the oilfield road goes through and I am skeered of those big old mama cows. And I love being on vacation too. Never want to go back.
Dak - I read that on JUDDD too. I have started doing the potota thing for DD's and I eat more calories but maintain just fine so today I am doing it a little different. I had cofee with HWC and one egg for breakfast. Then I will have faux cream of potato soup (mashed cold boiled potato, broth and gluc) for lunch and dinner. I love that soup and it fills me up.
Have a dentist appointment today to get my stitches out.

We went to Fort Hood area yesterday to look at the housing situaiton for DS. He wants to live on the lake. Strangest lake subdivisions I have ever seen. A mansion on one street, probably 6 lots and around the curve back to back with it was a slum, then further down the road more nice houses. Course DS has no idea about how much 2 or 3 hundred thousand dollars is. To me they are affordable being as how those are waterfront and housing is cheaper in Texas but he isn't aware of qualifiying etc. There was one very nice one, brick , two story on the waterfront for $225,000 that (in my opinion) would be a great buy. Nothing to do to it but move in. He is planning on a roommate but that doesn't matter when tryuing to get a mortgage. He needs to go talk to the mortgage lady at our local bank to see what can be done. Youth.

I want to get my business organized so am searching for software for inventory etc. Found one that is a monthly fee but does what I want and of course would be updated easily since it is an online subscription. Decisions, decisions.

[krittermom]

We got a few inches of snow yesterday. It was beautiful.

We're having another couple over tomorrow night. I'm trying to plan the menu(all appetizers) and so far I have a bacon bean dip and potato skins with cheddar, bacon and sour cream. I just can't think of what else to have that's easy and can be made ahead.

I made turkey stock yesterday and then today I cooked it down because it made so much of it. Good grief that was a messy project.

What are everyone's plans for tomorrow night?

Lil miss, will you be home tomorrow?

[adillenal]

No plans for us old folks. I am busy making wire crochet necklaces and bracelets. They are so easy I thought I would whip up a few for the craft mall. Anything to earn feed money for Chloe.

I agree about the stock. Then I have so much I run out of containers to put it in the freezer.

No snow here but it is cold for us. Thank goodness the wind quit blowing. I was frozen by the time I finished chores yesterday. Today was not as bad.

Tomorrow is an UD for me so will try to control myself and try eggs for breakfast and potatoes the rest of the day.

[krittermom]

New Year Thread: ~~LCMW~~ January 2013!