nylene
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Post by nylene on Dec 13, 2022 15:58:57 GMT
Hi, my Pokey friends! I don't know where the days go, but it seems I drop into bed so tired each night. We are getting things done. Yesterday DH had an appt with an Audiologist to see about new hearing aids. They found his hearing hasn't changed so the problem is the old hearing aids. Why is it so hard to convince men to spend $ on themselves!! We will go back in on Friday to try them out. We have lots of snow so it looks beautiful outside, but it's not fun driving. How are each of you doing with the big storms going across the country? grammadee , I love your doggie photos and I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who occasionally steps on a dog underfoot. I was just worried about tripping over her. I don't remember when you are returning home. I'm sure you are having a great time with the grandchildren. I love the gnome on my Christmas card. Thank you. Linda , you are soooo busy! Making Christmas placemats sounds fun. I really enjoy fun sewing...mending and and necessities...not so much. Your pumpkin gingerbread sounds great. Do you do small loaves or the regular size? I love the design on your Christmas card. I would like to replicate it for birthdays. Thanks. kitbop , the placemats are beautiful. What a thoughtful gift! I'm sure you didn't get as much done as you expected while you had time off, but maybe you just needed some time to decompress. You need and deserve some relaxing time. I hope you get that with your family over the holidays. joyfulnana , do you get time off over the holidays? What does Rudy want for Christmas? I hope you will get some time with him and feel his enthusiasm. Christmas is more fun when seen through the eyes of a child. justjac , are you snowed-in? From the weather maps it looks like you got a lot of snow too. Will your school close soon for the holidays? Em is in charge of the homeroom party at Alex's school again. She thought her married DD and husband would be here in time to help, but they won't get here until the next morning. She has contacted every parent asking for help and had only 1 taker. I got everything ready for the kids to make a card for their parents, so some other parent could just supervise it. I have been assured that I am now immune from Covid for 3 months, but it makes me nervous to go back into that "petri dish" again even with a mask. I'm hoping a couple of parents come forward before Thurs. There are 32 children in the class. gramma , how are your retirement plans going? Have you truly decided it's time? Have they found a cure for DH's dizziness? I hope you are enjoying the season even though you have so much to do at work. I'm thinking of you! Waving hello to all the Pokeys. I really appreciate the friendships I have developed on this thread. You are the greatest! I hope all your goals get accomplished and that you get some time to relax. Virtual hugs! |
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Post by Linda on Dec 13, 2022 16:24:25 GMT
nylene - I hope new hearing aids help your dh. I wish mine would get his hearing checked - mine has always been bad (actually hearing is fine but I have an auditory processing issue) I hope someone steps up for Alex's party and you can stay out of the Petri dish - it's not just covid to worry about -flu and rsv are running rampant also. (((Hugs))). 32 sounds like a really BIG class - we have state class size limits here so 18 max through 3rd grade, 22 max in 4th-8th, and 25 max in high school. I bake small loaves for the teachers - they each get two (one of each flavour) - and large loaves for us and to give to friends. Some of the teachers DD16 has now have also had one or both of my older kids so they've been getting bread for years. I know 'everyone' says not to give homemade food to teachers because they'll only toss it but ...I know for sure at least some of the teachers eat mine because they've eaten some in class or commented on how good it is. A couple have mentioned they look forward to it.
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nylene
Drama Llama
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Post by nylene on Dec 13, 2022 20:23:14 GMT
Linda, those teachers must love having your kids in class! I would have loved some loaves of fruit bread. We are supposed to have class size limits but they tore down Alex's old school last year (it was older than I am) and combined those students with a smaller school. There has been a lot of home building going on and they must have children because the class numbers keep going up. In my first year of teaching in Utah, I had 45 third graders to begin the year and only 28 desks. I had them sitting at the reading table, at my desk and on the heat registers for the first week. Eventually they were able to move 15 out, but I had 30 all year. That was pretty much standard for Utah elementary classes in those days. It has gone down to 25 or so with some exceptions.
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joyfulnana
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Post by joyfulnana on Dec 14, 2022 15:40:10 GMT
Hahaha I jinxed myself thinking I would have down time to catch up. I do that to myself all the time lol. grammadee those happy faces make me smile. You got some great pics and it looks like they had fun. That pup is so adorable! nylene I’ll bet those Skittles machines are going to be huge hit! How cool! But what a bummer about the tires. This car is my first all wheel drive, so now I know it will be $$$ when they need replaced lol. I’m so glad you found the shoes!! Yay! They sound amazing and now I want to see what they are all about  justjac I’m glad you are improving! And I LOVE your DD pages! That size is awesome looking. What paper pack is that? I haven’t even attempted to do anything as far as a December album this year. I haven’t even taken many photos. Gosh your journal looks like it would be so easy to keep up on. (((( hugs upon hugs kitbop))) ha, you are probably back to work now, but I hope you got done what you needed and found some time to relax too. Hopefully the artificial tree will grow on your family. We did live trees when I was a kid, and once or twice while I was married. Mostly they have been artificial and I never missed the hassle of a real tree. I do waffle between wanting white lights and lots of colorful twinkling ones. Those placemats are beautiful and what a thoughtful gift. I would probably use them daily - I don’t eat much gravy  - but I would eventually ruin them lol. Linda wow you are busy! And so is DD! I would love to see pictures of your sewing. If I were a teacher I would totally be looking forward to the bread. It must be good to know that some teachers do look forward to it and appreciate it. Dessert type breads are soooo good I am at a crossroads with Christmas I believe. I have known several males through the years that said things like “ I always get socks and underwear from Mom for Christmas, so I never have to worry about running out”. And I was always like, why?  Well, with my kids grown, out of the nest for what appears to be for real this time, and I don’t talk to them everyday, I have had a hard time with gifts. And now I know how a mom gets to the socks and underwear stage of gift buying. LOL. I didn’t do that, but yeah, this year feels like the first year I could really scale back everything about the holiday. I don’t even have my tree up or out of storage. I don’t have much Christmas Spirit this year. The whole year has felt pretty blah, although I’m not sure why. This is the year I should be following along with JYC and I haven’t opened a prompt. But I’m getting a lot of knitting done. I intend to finish the blanket this week and then start the baking on the weekend. I have scaled that back to each person’s favorite, but it still feels like a lot lol. nylene, we get the day of the holiday off, or the Monday after this year since it falls on Sunday. I usually take some vacation time before and after. Our Christmas lunch is next week, and since I won’t be there, I’ll take that day off and use it to get some things done. Everyone in the office gets off at noon for the party. I’ve been spending my evenings knitting and binge watching Netflix. Mostly I’m just choosing one of the top 10 trending. So far I’ve seen Where the Crawdads Sing - loved it. And Anatomy of a Scandal, and now Firefly Lane. If nothing else, I’m getting my moneys worth from Netflix right now LOL>. I’ll be watching Rudy tomorrow night at Cody’s while he plays a show. I haven’t seen him as often lately. His Mom, the baby and her SO have all had covid. And they are popping positive 5 days apart, so Rudy has been with his dad nearly everyday now since right after Thanksgiving. I think they will probably get the all clear this weekend. nylene that is terrible about Alex classroom. I hope someone or more someones step up to help. Waving hi to everyone, and sending Hugs and good Cheer! |
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Post by grammadee on Dec 14, 2022 16:02:03 GMT
Good Wednesday morning, Pokeys. Arrived home yesterday complete with some kind of bug I picked up from my toxic dgk's, and went right to bed. I am out of bed this morning, but thinking I will head back there soon. Whatever this "bug" is, it seems pretty determined to sap all my energy. Not going to take on anything today. Happy that with a couple of boxes mailed to BC and the deliveries I made to the Calgary area there is wrapping now only for us and for dd's family, and they won't arrive until the end of next week. All gift shopping is done except for one niece & hubby and I may just get a restaurant gc for them. Five for Christmas dinner does not sound like a chore. Of course I still need to get my hands on a turkey. Was hoping to do last minute stuff next Monday when our book club meeting is, but will have to wait to see how I am feeling before I decide if I will go. Can't give you yet ANOTHER bug, justjac. Those place mats are lovely, kitbop. What a sweet gesture by your mom's friend. Can you put a white table cloth on, then the place mats, then a clear plastic cover? That would forestall the gravy stains. As kids grow up, it is tough to keep holiday traditions going, isn't it, Linda? Maybe you can just embrace the peace that comes with fewer "need to do" items on your list. Those mini loaves sound good. Would you mind sharing a recipe? I love the camera strap a friend sent me for a gift exchange a few years ago. Will either---or both--the older two be home for Christmas? Hope you share a photo of those gum ball machines your dh is making, nylene. Your family are really lucky to have all those lovingly crafted items. Hopefully someone will step up to help Em at school. Are most of the parents working, so not free to come into the classroom? They may be afraid to teach card making, but if others would come in to handle other activities, maybe Em could do the card making project. joyfulnana, choosing gifts for adult children is difficult. I usually try to get a least one small thing that represents their interests or personality, and then include a gc or cash. Occasionally one gets a larger gift. Thought of a perfect gift for one of my ds's and my dsil yesterday on my drive. A couple of years ago I found a head cam for underwater photos for a different son (he was heading to Hawaii over the holidays and planning to scuba dive). The two I was searching for were my motorbike riding ds (for his birthday) and my rock climbing and snowboarding/skiing dsil. But the store I stopped at did not have anything like that except for a GoPro that costs three times the amount I paid. So I quickly picked up a gc at a mountain sports store instead for dsil. My ds's bd is not until April, so lots of time. But if I could knit, I might just plan to knit stuff for people (hint, hint). Thinking of you, gramma. Are you buried in cloth and thread, frantically making gifts for family? Hope to hear from you soon. |
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Post by Linda on Dec 14, 2022 16:09:11 GMT
joyfulnana - right there with you on Christmas spirit - and Christmas seems to be arriving FAST. Scaled back the baking here also - I've asked for favourites and it looks like I need to bake mince pies, dark cocoa crinkle cookies, toffee triangles, and whatever DH and DD16 request. I hope you're taking some (well-deserved) time off for the holidays. DH put in for TWO weeks (which is very unusual for him - typically he never takes more than a week at a time and never at the holidays but apparently his boss isn't travelling for Christmas this year so he feels he can take off). Our big kids arrive just after Christmas for roughly 2 weeks. I need to get working on my ornaments - I started them last year and they just weren't working out so set them aside. Pulled them back out last nkight and figured out how to do them so need to finish them up. Had a dr visit this morning - she went over my knee MRI - severe arthritis, bursitis, baker's cyst, meniscus is torn/fraying, and what put me on crutches earlier this fall was an ACL sprain - which as of late Nov was still showing up as mild on the MRI so she figures it was probably a pretty decent sprain. Going to look into virtual physio (PT).
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Post by Linda on Dec 14, 2022 16:10:46 GMT
As kids grow up, it is tough to keep holiday traditions going, isn't it, Linda? Maybe you can just embrace the peace that comes with fewer "need to do" items on your list. Those mini loaves sound good. Would you mind sharing a recipe? I love the camera strap a friend sent me for a gift exchange a few years ago. Will either---or both--the older two be home for Christmas? happy to share the recipes - I'll come back and post them. Yes - both big kids come home right after Christmas Take care, rest up, abnd get to feeling better soon. ((((Hugs))) |
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Post by Linda on Dec 14, 2022 16:13:59 GMT
this one I got from a friend over 20 years ago on a parenting message board - she had gotten it from a magazine. I had always made pumpkin bread before but everyone really liked this so I switched.
Pumpkin Gingerbread
Cook Time: 15 min Total Time: 1 hr Servings: 2 loaves or 6 mini loaves
Ingredients
• 3 C. sugar
• 1 C. vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 2/3 C. water
• 1 (16-oz) tin of pumpkin
• 2 tsp. Ground ginger
• 1 tsp. Allspice
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp. Cloves
• 1 tsp. Nutmeg
• 3 1/2 C. flour
• 2 tsp. Baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp. Salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
Directions
Preheat oven to 350º. Grease two 5x9” loaf pans or six 5 3/4 x 3 1/4” loaf pans.
In a large bowl, combine sugar, oil and eggs. Beat until smooth. Add water and beat until well blended. Beat in pumpkin and spices.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, soda, salt and baking powder. Add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture and blend JUST until all ingredients are incorporated. Divide batter appropriately and bake about 1 hour for large pans or 45 min. for small pans.
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Post by Linda on Dec 14, 2022 16:15:18 GMT
and this one was the recipe my mum used when I was growing up - I suspect it might have been an Ocean Spray recipe originally
Cranberry Bread
Prep Time: 20 min Total Time: 1hr 30 min Servings: 2 loaves
Ingredients
2 C. chopped cranberries
1 2/3 C. sugar
2/3 C. vegetable oil
1/2 C. milk
2 tsp grated lemon or orange peel (optional)
2 tsp. Vanilla
4 eggs
3 C. flour
1/2 C. chopped nuts (optional)
4 tsp. Baking powder
Directions
Heat oven to 350. Grease bottoms only of 2 loaf pans. Mix cranberries, sugar, oil, milk, lemon peel, vanilla and eggs in a large bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients. Pour into pans.
Bake 50-60 min. or until toothpick inserted into centre comes out clean. Cool 10 min. Loosen sides of loaves from pans; remove from pans. Cool completely on wire racks.
Store well wrapped in fridge for up to one week or freeze.
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Post by grammadee on Dec 14, 2022 16:38:55 GMT
Thanks for the recipes, Linda! Maybe next week I will attempt the gingerbread pumpkin loaves. Still have two pumpkins in the basement and I am planning to get them cut up and cooked and turned into something. Don't need many pies with only five of us, so this is a nice alternative.
Opened the mail this morning. Thanks so much for your cards, Linda and nylene . And just for you, Linda , a pic of me as part of the baking process:  |
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nylene
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Post by nylene on Dec 14, 2022 16:51:50 GMT
grammadee , I hope you have not caught a long-lasting bug! It's nice that you have most of the preparations done for Christmas. I hope you can just rest and take it easy until you feel better. Hugs! Linda , hooray for having your family all together after Christmas. I hope they have good weather for traveling. Your breads sound wonderful. I still have no taste or smell so I am missing the fun Christmas smells and tastes. Your teachers will be so happy! joyfulnana , I remember those years right after all the kids left home and Christmas decorating and shopping just held no joy. Slowly adding the grandchildren has really helped and having 2 families move back to Utah was a great help too. I hope Rudy avoids Covid and can spend time with you. I'm sure he's excited for Christmas.  Skittles Machine These are the Skittles and M&M machines DH has built for the kids and for our neighbors. I think he made about 45 of them. We will have some left over but I'm sure he'll think of someone who would like one. With his eyes getting worse, I don't know how many more years he can make wooden things for the kids for Christmas. He built all of these with donated wood that DS had from his home building. As he finishes each home he calls saying he has some leftover oak, walnut, or whatever pieces that he will haul to the dump or to our basement. The basement wins.
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joyfulnana
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Post by joyfulnana on Dec 14, 2022 17:22:22 GMT
Here’s a pic of where all my creative time has gone lol. 2.5 more stripes.  |
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Post by Linda on Dec 14, 2022 18:13:12 GMT
grammadee - good job getting a picture of YOU - now make sure it ends up on your layout also! The breads both freeze well - I like to make the small loaves when it's just the 2 of us and then pull them out during the year for a breakfast treat. nylene - I hope your taste and smell return soon - I never lost smell completely but I did loose taste for a bit and that wasn't fun. ((((Hugs))) Those skittles/m&m machines are awesome! Your dh is very talented. And 45? wow that's a LOT. joyfulnana - so pretty! I love the colours!
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nylene
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Post by nylene on Dec 14, 2022 18:21:06 GMT
grammadee, I love that photo of the two of you mixing cookie dough. Just so sweet! joyfulnana, your needlework is beautiful. I'm glad you have had a creative outlet when the scrapping mojo isn't there. How big will this be when you finish. It looks so warm and cuddly. You'll have it finished in no time! The Skittles machines have really kept DH busy since the weather changed and he isn't going to work. He always needs something to keep him occupied in the shop.
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joyfulnana
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Post by joyfulnana on Dec 14, 2022 19:14:26 GMT
and Christmas seems to be arriving FAST. , thank you. And I agree with the quote above! And I think that's part of the problem for me this year. It's here too fast. Thanks so much for the recipes, I love cranberries and will definitely give that one a try. That's so exciting that all your family will be together, I'm so happy for you! What kind of ornaments are you making? grammadee I'm glad you are feeling at least a little well enough to post and it's good you are pretty well done with preparations. Not like me, waiting until the last 10 days - well, for the baking and wrapping anyway. LOL Can't wait to see the scrapbook page from that photo of you. It would make a wonderful calendar page You are such a great grandma! You and nylene both! You mentioned knitting gifts, and I have already been thinking about hats and maybe cowls. I'll be staying on the lookout for things for next year for sure. nylene those skittles machines are soooo cool! I knew they would be, I'll bet the kids are going to love them! I think it's a combination of how fast Christmas is getting here, and all of the families and schedules to work around. Now DGS has ONE more place to be this year lol and my feeling of a real empty nest this year. But it has also taken such a weight off me. I think it's going to get harder to get all of my people at one place at the same time, so I'm also trying to adjust to that. This would probably have been a good December to document, since it's a little different for me lol. I know someone up thread ( Linda?) mentioned chocolate crinkle cookies. I love those, and haven't made them in at least 15 years. The kids never cared for them lol. I got my slow day at work in case that wasn't obvious |
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nylene
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Post by nylene on Dec 14, 2022 19:53:16 GMT
Wishing a Happy Birthday to kitbop today!
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kitbop
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Post by kitbop on Dec 15, 2022 1:23:51 GMT
Thanks nylene! Linda - I made your cranberry loaves last year and they were delish. But this year I don't think we'll get around to them, and I don't have cranberries in the freezer anyways! joyfulnana - Your blanket has turned out gorgeous. It looks so soft and something you'd really like to take an afternoon nap under! SO glad you got a "quiet" work day! Unfortunately, I've been asked to work extra days next week because my co-workers Mum is declining quickly and she needs to be off for her. And today I got the e-mail that another co-worker is off with covid. So between now and Christmas = holding a hospital together with a skeleton team! nylene - agree with everyone - those skittles/m&m machines are brilliant! Today I made pecan crescents (they're like shortbread with nuts in them, then rolled in icing sugar once cool), mint brownies (3rd pan of the season) and peanut butter balls (I think they're called "buckeyes" in some States, but my recipe has rice krispies and a bit of coconut in it to give the centre some texture.) DH brought me home some incredible butter tarts (he went out of the way to get them) and we did take-out sushi for supper. We dressed up the dogs in Christmas pajamas, and DH gave me a new living room lamp. Our old one, which I adored, got broken by painters many years back and had red tuck-tape holding it together! |
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Post by Linda on Dec 15, 2022 2:30:06 GMT
joyfulnana - I got the ornaments finished - YAY! They're ribbon candy ornaments - I started them last year, got frustrated, and put them away. This year I figured out that if I left out the beads in the middle, they came together much easier. Mine are all red and white - I used coordinating fat quarters - and just have a bead at the top and bottom www.craftystaci.com/blog/fabric-ribbon-candy-ornamentTomorrow's project is to work on the camera strap covers - I have 5 to make and they should come together pretty quickly once I get them all cut out and the fleece fused on. ((((Hugs))) it's hard to adjust as Christmas traditions change as people's lives change. I know I'm struggling with that this year - my house isn't empty but DD16 isn't the most enthusiastic participant. I think it was me who mentioned the cocoa crinkle cookies - I had never eaten them never mind made them until a few years ago when DH's office had a cookie benefit - people were asked to make cookies to donate and then they were sold by the dozen with the proceeds going to charity. He came home the night before and asked me to bake so I went through the cookbooks looking for something I had ingredients on hand for - and that's what I ended up making - and since I didn't actually read the part about chilling the dough, I then got up super earlier to actually shape and bake them. But they were really good and have become a staple at our house for the holidays. kitbop - Happy Birthday!! I'm glad that you liked the bread - hopefully you can make it again another year. Are cranberries available year-round in your area? Here they show up just before Thanksgiving (Nov) and disappear after Christmas so I always stock up. Your baking all sounds delicious and I'm glad your DH made the day special for you. I'm sorry to hear that work is going to be so short-staffed. (((Hugs)))
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nylene
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Post by nylene on Dec 15, 2022 3:07:07 GMT
kitbop, congrats on the new lamp. I had to chuckle at the duct tape holding the old one together for years. We broke a little lamp in the move to this house 50 years ago and it was glued back together, but one side had a big hole where the pieces were too small to glue. It was next to our bed until 2 years ago. The things we hold on to! Glad you had a nice birthday and I'm sorry you will be overloaded at work through Christmas. Linda, those ornaments are so pretty. I remember when you were working on them last year. I hope you get them finished and on the tree. grammadee, you asked about the other parents of children in Alex's class. Many are working or have little ones at home that would have to come with them. Last year we had a mother bring her 3 year old twins which just added to the hubbub! They have put 2 schools together, many of the students are immigrants and the parents don't speak English. One responded in Spanish but decided she was too uncomfortable to help because the children wouldn't understand her. So...I guess I will be going. I will wear a mask and have had the 5th Covid immunization and also the flu shot, so hopefully I will be ok. I can't leave Em to do it all with that many children.
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joyfulnana
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Posts: 2,820
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Post by joyfulnana on Dec 15, 2022 4:12:37 GMT
Thanks nylene and kitbop! Happy Birthday kitbop!!! I'm glad DH made it a fun, special day for you. That sucks about work. That would be icing on the cake of this crappy year for me  Linda those ornaments are so pretty! And they look just like ribbon candy. Those cookies are just the best, IMO but they are kind of a pain to make. Not noticing the dough needed chilled is absolutely something I would do. And getting up extra early to finish them is too. lol. |
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Post by grammadee on Dec 15, 2022 18:32:23 GMT
Good morning, Pokeys. This bug is still dragging me down. May have been able to do a bit today, but started out with having to call Telus on my cell phone about our land line being down. They guy on the other end was rude and talking to me like I was an idiot. Made it seem like he thought we had done something ourselves to cut the line, even though i told him people 5 miles down the road were without land line, too. Insisted on making a home technician appointment for JANUARY 4th! Informed me that if the tech came here that day--any time between 8 AM and 5 PM--and no one was home we would be billed $150. My voice barely works and between trying to make myself understood and being so upset with him I think I burned up most of my day's small allotment of energy. Did manage to put together a page for next year's calendar. This one has been in my head ever since I snapped the pic's last week.  December 23 Puppy holidays! by Gramma Dee, on Flickr The PhotoPlay Christmas pp was still strewn all over my counter from card making before I left, so not alot of effort required for this one. That being said, I am going back to bed.... |
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kellyr21
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Location: California
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Post by kellyr21 on Dec 16, 2022 21:16:35 GMT
Happy Friday! Boy, we have been in a whirlwind with apartment building stuff. This week was my first week in a while I was able to stay home and try to get some of my routines back. Just thinking about you sweet peas and wanted to wave, hello. Hopefully soon, I can get back to normal. Have a terrific weekend! nylene- I got your card! Thank you! |
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Post by Linda on Dec 16, 2022 21:51:42 GMT
grammadee - what a mess with the phones - I hope it all been resolved. Love your layout - those are great pictures! Hope you're on the mend - and resting. kellyr21 - hope you have a good holiday despite all the whirlwind of activity - always good to see you popping in. Making progress on my sewing projects - five camera strap covers finished and 2 sets of placemats. Just cut out a robe - not sure if it'll get done before Christmas or not... Now I need to wrap some stuff so it can get mailed tomorrow.
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Post by grammadee on Dec 17, 2022 4:50:25 GMT
Linda , you seem to have found your energy again. That is alot of sewing this close to Christmas. Good to hear from you kellyr21 . Hope your construction woes will be over soon. nylene was today your day in the classroom? I hope you came home with all of the joy and none of the germs. Thanks for the love in the Gallery. The good news is that the line crew got our phone system working again. The bad news is that it took several phone calls and alot of waiting on "Hold" to cancel the appointment they insisted on making for me even though I knew I didn't need it. Glad your dh made your birthday special, kitbop . Sounds like you checked off a few items from the baking list. I have one recipe I still hope to make. It is dd's fav recipe and adapts to gluten free really well, so a win/win. Not up to it yet, though. I keep thinking "Tomorrow I will wake up feeling way better, and then the day after...", but each day I wake up tired. And by evening I am exhausted, even though I am getting next to nothing done. Today my claim to fame was sorting a few gifts and getting five of them wrapped and under the tree. Had a coughing fit this evening and decided to do a home Covid test, but it was negative. So still hoping... Dh picked up groceries today and was in a panic about getting a turkey. (Turkey was NOT on my list: I prefer to choose the bird myself). Thank heavens he sent me photos, LOL. The birds were way too small and being seasoned neither dd nor I could have eaten them. After he had left the store, I called the young fellow at the back of the meat department to order one for next week, and he happily went through a box in the back and set aside a turkey for me in just the right size. He said it is marked SOLD and that I can pick it up any time next week.
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Post by Linda on Dec 17, 2022 5:59:28 GMT
grammadee - I'm sorry you're still not feeling well. I'm glad you were able to make arrangements for a turkey and that the phones are back in order. Sounds like it was quite the hassle though. I got the stuff wrapped that needs to get mailed - DH will head to the post office tomorrow morning and send them on their way. I think I just have one more order I'm waiting on - and it's not a present. I do need to wrap the rest of the gifts though - and figure out gift tags that'll work with the cloth bags I made in January - the sticker tags don't stick to the fabric. I'll work on that tomorrow. I'm hopping DH will hang the outside lights and assemble the trees this weekend - hoping to decorate trees on Sunday. Then Monday I'll catch up on housework before spending Tuesday baking teacher gifts. I think I'm probably done scrapbooking until the new year but we'll see.
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Post by Linda on Dec 19, 2022 1:36:50 GMT
no trees today - I'm running a fever and have muscle/joint aches, and chills - most likely from one of the vaxs i got yesterday. Took a 4hr nap this afternoon and wont be late to bed. Hoping I feel better tomorrow because my to-do list is long
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Post by grammadee on Dec 19, 2022 3:06:40 GMT
Oh no Linda ! Here is hoping the Vax effects wear off quickly! |
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joyfulnana
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Post by joyfulnana on Dec 19, 2022 15:22:41 GMT
grammadee I'm glad your phone snafuu got fixed, and I hope you are starting to feel better. Your page is gorgeous! That's one of my favorites of yours. I also think you are lucky to be able to call up the store and have them set aside the turkey you need. I can't imagine anyone here being willing to do something like that around here. Linda I hope you are feeling better too. Those vaccines are no joke sometimes but I take every one they tell me I need. I feel you on that long to do list. I had my weekend all planned out to be super productive. I finally figured out I'm feeling so crunched because I AM crunched. I lost a week to Covid and that has thrown off my timing. I intended to get the cleaning done an the majority of the baking out of the way. Except that the universe had other plans for me lol. A slow leaking tire that I found a huge nail in. I decided to try to get that fixed (and hopefully not buy 4 new tires) on Saturday. Only now, my battery is dead. Dead dead. Can't even jump it. Rudy wanted to make the cut out cookies and have a sleepover. (I wasn't going to do the cut out cookies this year, because I didn't think anyone was really interested in it. Only to find out that's Rudy favorite thing) So we all piled into Cody's car, ran to get a few ingredients I needed, and started cookies. That took all of Saturday and by the time he left Sunday morning, I was feeling toasty lol. So I'm homebound until Friday when Cody and I are both off and get the battery replaced. I ordered a big grocery order for delivery from WalMart. Cool. I'm set for the week. And I watched the door dash driver drive up and down the street outside of my complex, lost. I tried to call him and he didn't take the call. He marked the order as delivered, put up a black screen as proof of delivery and left. He never even turned into my complex. It took two phone calls to get a refund. And now poor Cody has to drive me to WM to pick up that order after work tonight . I still have one more batch of jerky to make, and more cookies and peanut butter balls. And all the wrapping. And one more stripe on the blanket. It's definitely going to be a busy week lol. I love all the cards that have come and brightened my days! grammadee , justjac , kitbop , and msliz I got yours. All of your ladies are so creative, I love all the cards we send each other. I hope everyone has an awesome week and holiday! I'm waiting for the 26th so I can breathe lol
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Post by Linda on Dec 19, 2022 16:00:08 GMT
Thanks grammadee and joyfulnana - feeling mostly better today, still tired though. Took a 4-hr nap yesterday and then went to bed for the night less than 2hrs later. Gosh joyfulnana - that's a lot! What a weekend! Hopefully the rest of the week goes smoother. I wasn't planning to make cut-out cookies either but the big kids want to do them so we'll make them sometime during the 12 days of Christmas. |
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Post by grammadee on Dec 19, 2022 16:56:47 GMT
Thanks, Ladies. Feeling more energy this morning, maybe because I don't have to stop to cough up a lung every few minutes and then take the time to get enough oxygen back into my brain. Still have cancelled my trip to get my car serviced and to meet up with justjac and the book club  . (Maybe if I had stayed put instead of driving across the province LAST Tuesday I could have fought this thing off before it completely grabbed hold.) Feeling a bit bummed, cuz I had looked forward to our usual pre-Christmas get together and one last trip to a larger center for a teeny bit more shopping. But to cheer myself up, I decided to forego all the work piled up for me and scrap a couple of pages.  Christmas wishes by Gramma Dee, on Flickr gramma you would have enjoyed watching me fight with Silhouette and hearing my swearing. I actually designed a cut file for the tree design at the sides, but when I went to cut it, no luck. The blade barely scratched the surface. No idea why. You would NOT have enjoyed watching me give up, grab an Xacto knife and manually cut all those pieces. Of course I do not advise laughing or lecturing at me when I have a knife in my hand and am in that kind of mood... Anyway, I like the way the pages came together. Too funny about our cut out cookie experiences this year, Linda and joyfulnana. Turns out that taking my gingerbread recipe and cutters to Calgary was super popular. Way more fun than making perfect cookies at home and then delivering them. And way more fun to photograph! |
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- but I would eventually ruin them lol. 
Well, with my kids grown, out of the nest for what appears to be for real this time, and I don’t talk to them everyday, I have had a hard time with gifts. And now I know how a mom gets to the socks and underwear stage of gift buying. LOL. I didn’t do that, but yeah, this year feels like the first year I could really scale back everything about the holiday. I don’t even have my tree up or out of storage. 
. (Maybe if I had stayed put instead of driving across the province LAST Tuesday I could have fought this thing off before it completely grabbed hold.)