Sixty Something

Tuesday, January 5

2010-01-05T17:38:00.003-06:00

Slept well last night, but got up late, anyway, on this frigid morning. After breakfast, I did a treadmill session and resistance exercises. Once I was ready for the day, I did routine household chores until lunch. Mother opted to stay home this morning, but she came over after lunch to take apart and put away the jigsaw puzzles.

Hubbie and I had leftovers for lunch....a pork chop sandwich for him, and homemade tomato soup for me...and then we traveled to a nearby town to our favorite electronics store to get a new telephone with answering machine. We learned that our old phone's answering machine wasn't working when I got a letter from the nurse at my cardiac doctor's office, setting an appointment for me. At the bottom of the letter, she noted that our answering machine was full. But when I checked it, I discovered it just didn't work at all.

We found an inexpensive phone very similar to the old one, so it was simple to set up after we got back home.

We spent the rest of the afternoon doing this and that, before having a breakfast-for-supper meal of Ziplock bag omelets, with hash browns and bran muffins. I made the muffins after we got back from the electronics store. Later, Hubbie peeled potatoes and shredded them in the food processor. Mother cooked onions, bell peppers, and mushrooms, and added the mixture, plus shredded cheese, to egg substitute for her and me, and regular eggs for Hubbie. It was a very satisfying meal on this cold winter evening.

Mother went home after supper, but returned within minutes, because she couldn't get the door to her house open. Hubbie went to check on it and got it open, then walked Mother home. The extreme cold probably caused the problem.

Mother can't win for losing this week. Sometime during Sunday night, someone apparently traveled too fast around that curve near her house, skidded on the snow-slicked road, fishtailed, and knocked over her mailbox and post. Hubbie tried to set the post and box back up, but it's wobbly, so he'll have to wait til the weather gets better to repair it. In the meantime, he has asked our mail carrier to leave Mother's mail in our box. During inclement weather, the mail carrier does this anyway, since he knows Mother is elderly.

This evening, we watched our favorite college basketball team play to an unfortunate loss.

Sad news: the obituaries in tonight's local newspaper announced the death of one of the Master Gardeners. This very nice lady was only 55 years old. We've known for a few months that she was terminally ill with cancer. She and her family went to Florida to stay during her illness, and we hadn't heard anything about her since they left. But just yesterday, I thought about her, and wondered aloud how she was doing.

Final arrangements for the funeral are not complete, but the services will be here, so I'm sure Hubbie and I will attend.

Monday, January 4

2010-01-04T18:11:00.003-06:00

Had trouble going to sleep last night, so I slept late this morning. Hubbie was already up by the time I came downstairs at 8 a.m.

After breakfast, I did a treadmill session and weights exercises. Once I was ready for the day, I did lots of nit-picky chores, mostly setting the house to rights after the holidays. Mother stayed home this morning, basically doing the same thing that I was doing here.

For lunch, Hubbie and I cut up veggies for chef's salads. We added pineapple chunks, mandarin orange slices, Craisins, and pecans, as well as deli turkey and cottage cheese. It was very good served with flat bread crackers and hot tea.

Mother came over after lunch, and we planned the menu for the week. Then Hubbie quartered two heads of cabbage to be boiled. We had some of it with our supper and the rest went into the freezer. Mother took care of the cabbage while Hubbie and I ran errands...to the bank, to the pharmacy, and to the WDCS for groceries, where we shopped for Mother as well as ourselves.

Supper was leftover blackeyed peas and Parmesan potatoes (again, and for the last time), and of course the cabbage, plus yeast rolls.

Mother went home after that, and Hubbie and I settled in front of TV. We started with a movie called, "Shutter." In this 2008 PG-13 film, starring Joshua Jackson and Rachel Taylor, a newly married couple move to Japan where the husband, who is a photographer, has a business opportunity. Upon arriving, a woman runs out in front of the car the wife is driving and is hit, but is no where to be found when the police arrive. After that, strange ghost images appear in photos that the husband and wife shoot. Creepy plot twists.

The second movie we saw was, "The Glass House," rated PG-13. A teen and her 11-year-old brother lose their parents in an auto accident, and then they go live with the parents' best friends, who turn out to be not the ideal guardians.

Sunday, January 3

2010-01-03T17:06:00.002-06:00

We slept late this morning, and then were surprised to see about an inch of snow on the ground. After breakfast, I did a treadmill session and resistance exercises, and then hopped into my clothes to go outside and take pictures of the white stuff before it melted away (see photos in previous blog). As it turned out the snow stayed around all day, so I needn't have been in such a hurry to get outside.

By the time I took the pictures, uploaded them to my computer, and downloaded them to my blog, it was already lunch time.

We had pork chops baked with onions and apple juice, along with leftover blackeyed peas and Parmesan baked potatoes. After lunch, Mother continued with her jigsaw puzzle, while Hubbie and I put away the ornaments from the Christmas tree in the sun room. Then we put away all the other Christmas decorations around the house. Mother helped with this task.

The only thing remaining is the Christmas village on the mantel. I leave this up through January, as a winter scene.

After that, I helped Mother with the jigsaw puzzle, and we completed it around 4:30 p.m. Usually, we complete five or six puzzles during the holidays, but this year, we only had time to do three.

Mother went home shortly after we finished the puzzle, and Hubbie and I watched TV. One of the movies we saw was "Danika," a 2006 R-rated thriller starring Mareisa Tormei. The character, Danika, who has paranoid fears for the safety of her children following her husband's infidelity with their nanny, begins having both nightmare and daydream premonitions of deaths and disasters.

First Snow of the Season

2010-01-03T11:20:00.003-06:00

The weather prediction for our part of the state was for a possible dusting of snow today, but when we awoke this morning, we saw that there was an inch or more...just enough to provide a photo opportunity. I snapped these images in our yard.

Saturday, January 2

2010-01-02T17:40:00.002-06:00

I woke up at 4 a.m. this morning, and couldn't get back to sleep until around 5:30, and then I slept until 8:30. Hubbie was already up taking the ornaments off the Christmas tree in the living room. I joined him in that activity until we had all the ornaments wrapped in tissue and lovingly stored in a plastic tote.

We had breakfast after that, and then I did a treadmill session and weights exercises. Mother came over while I was doing that and worked on her jigsaw puzzle. While I was getting ready for the day, she and Hubbie put canned tomatoes and other veggies into the food processor to make tomato soup for lunch.

It was nearly 11 a.m. before I was ready for the day. During lunch, Mother and I watched the Tournament of Roses Parade that I'd recorded on DVR, while Hubbie took the Christmas ornaments off the tree in the sun room.

Then Mother went back to her jigsaw puzzle, and Hubbie and I watched our favorite college basketball team play. Unfortunately, they lost by one point.

By this time, it was getting too dark in the sun room to work at putting the Christmas ornaments away. There are lights out there, but they are subdued and not adequate enough for anything but getting in and out of the hot tub.

Supper was leftovers...chili mac, sauteed cabbage, and glazed carrots. Mother went home after that, and Hubbie and I settled in to watch our favorite college football team play their bowl game. I'd recorded the game for a while before we began watching it, so we could fast forward through the commercials. And yay! Our team won in a heart-stopping overtime.

Re: commercials: in the waiting room of the ophthalmologist's office, one lady complained of how many commercials there are during TV programs.

"Years ago," she said, "there were only a couple of commericials during a show....just time enough to go to the bathroom."

"That's right," said another lady. "But now there are so many commercials that you have time to go to your neighbor's bathroom."

New Year's Day

2010-01-01T18:59:00.002-06:00

Happy New Year's Day to all! Hope everyone is having a great start to 2010 (will you be calling it two-thousand-and-ten, or twenty-ten? I think twenty-ten is easier to say).

We slept late, until around 8 a.m. Since I didn't know what time Niece and family would visit today, I skipped my treadmill session. As it turned out, they didn't come until late afternoon, after they'd had lunch and visited with Niece's in laws.

So we spent the day doing pretty much nothing, except getting lunch ready. Lunch was a pot of blackeyed peas cooked in both chicken and beef broths, with low-salt ham (a stand-in for hog jowl), onions, banana peppers, garlic, no salt seasonings, and paprika. We had the peas with cabbage sauteed in olive oil and seasonings, and red potato halves baked with margarine and Parmesan cheese, and restaurant yeast rolls. It was a very tasty "good luck" meal that hit the spot with all of us.

Niece said her family had a similar meal at her in law's home...blackeyed peas, cabbage, and deep fried hog jowl (not my favorite...and I'm pretty sure Niece didn't eat that either, since she doesn't like pork).

During the afternoon before Niece arrived, Hubbie and I watched the college football games following the Tournament of Roses Parade, while Mother snoozed in the other room. I recorded the parade on DVR, which we'll watch tomorrow, prior to our favorite college football team's game.

We had a nice visit with Niece. She brought a white ceramic Santa head ornament for our white Christmas tree, and a book and video store gift card for Mother. In exchange, we gave her family a big box of goodies...a jar of Mother's delicious strawberry preserves, a variety of homemade cookies, an Italian cream cheese ball and crackers, and five envelopes each of hot chocolate mixes in various flavors, and five envelopes of apple cider mixes in various flavors. We'd put the gift pack together yesterday.

All three of Niece's children are talented, and today Great-Niece entertained us by playing her keyboard, and Great-Nephew played both his guitar and fiddle. He is most noted for playing bluegrass music. Great-Niece taught herself to read music and play her keyboard. Younger Great-Nephew plays saxophone, but he didn't bring it with him today.

An interesting note is that Great-Niece has auditioned for a role in a movie re-make of True Grit. A call went out for dark-haired, blue-eyed girls between fourteen and sixteen years old to audition in our capital city, so Great-Niece went. 3,000 girls were pared down to 500, Great-Niece among them. She has now had a second call-back. It's a long shot that she'll be cast, but it's a good experience for her, anyway.

Niece and family weren't hungry for a meal when they arrived, but they did indulge in cheese and crackers, cookies, and slices of cake. They stayed until around 6 p.m. and then headed home, about two hours away.

After they left, we had a supper of deli turkey wraps, and then Mother went home. Hubbie and I vegged for the rest of the evening.

Tonight's movie was "The Point Men," a 2001 R-rated film, starring Christopher Lambert, Kerry Fox, and Vincent Regan. A team of terrorist assasins hunt down an Arab terrorist.

Thursday, December 31

2009-12-31T20:49:00.002-06:00

Didn't wake up until 8 a.m. this morning. Hubbie was already downstairs, having risen a few minutes earlier. After breakfast, I did a treadmill session and resistance exercises. Mother came over while I was doing that and worked on her jigsaw puzzle.

As I was exercising, the cable TV guy came and reset the cable box. Hubbie asked about exchanging it for a DVR unit, but the cost per month was more than he wanted to pay, so for now we'll stick with the old unit.

After I was ready for the day, I did this and that around the house, including doing a few computer tasks upstairs and printing a copy of some materials for one of our scrapbook club members.

At 11 a.m., Hubbie went to the local restaurant to pick up yeast rolls for our New Years Day lunch tomorrow. Other than that, he spent most of his day reading one of the western novels I gave him for Christmas.

After lunch, I made another double batch of fruit salad, but I didn't notice until I'd mixed the sour cream into the fruit that Hubbie had gotten regular rather than light sour cream yesterday...even though I'd specifically reminded him to get the light variety. So unless Niece and her family eat a lot of it tomorrow, Hubbie will have plenty of the stuff to eat in the coming days, because Mother and I won't indulge.

Mother went on working on her jigsaw puzzle this afternoon, and I continued doing this and that, including washing and drying a couple of loads of laundry. The excitement never ends.

Around 4 p.m., Mother put sweet potatoes in the oven to bake, and carrots on stove to boil, while Hubbie and I went to the WDCS to get a deli chicken and a container of light sour cream. Back home, I seasoned the cooked carrots with margarine, honey, and ginger. They were good with the chicken and sweet potatoes, but the meal sure was orange. I didn't plan very well when I decided to have both sweet potatoes and carrots for supper!

After supper, I put together a single batch of fruit salad for Mother and me. The recipe calls for two cups of sour cream, but I dumped the whole carton into the fruit before discovering it was a 24 oz. container. So to correct my mistake, I added half the amount of the other ingredients. If we have nothing else to eat this coming week, we certainly won't run out of fruit salad.

Later, I cleared away the jigsaw puzzle so we could play a few games of Skibo, before Mother went home around 8:30 p.m. We played four games, with Hubbie and I each winning two. We were hoping Mother would win at least one, but it didn't happen. She didn't care.

She was a bit tired and wobbly tonight, so I walked her home. She'll no doubt hit the sack early and skip the ball dropping at midnight in Times Square. I don't know if we'll see it either, since we'll probably be in bed by that time. Last year, I stayed awake long enough to see the New Year in, but Hubbie was snoring. We'll see what happens this year. The excitement never ends.

On the walk to Mother's house, we noticed the "Blue Moon," which of course is a second full moon for the month. The term "Once in a Blue Moon" just means something that happens only once in a while. One website says that in every century, there are an average of 41 Blue Moons.

Wednesday, December 30

2009-12-30T18:31:00.002-06:00

We were up at 6:30 this morning, so I could get ready to take Mother to her ophthalmologist appointment at 8 a.m.

Weather predictions last night were for possible light snow or sleet this morning, but fortunately nothing much happened. At the clinic, a decorated Christmas tree stood in front of a picture window, and shortly after Mother and I were seated in the waiting room, we looked out the window and saw snowflakes drifting down...very "Christmasy" on this fifth day after the big day.

A few minutes after 8 a.m., all the patients who'd had surgery yesterday were marched to exam rooms in the back. Mother's exam went smoothly, and we were out of the clinic around 8:30.

It spit slush on the way home...something between snow and sleet that turned into rain. Otherwise, the weather was winter-nippy, but not too bad, since there was no wind.

Mother went to work on a new jigsaw puzzle when we got home, and Hubbie and I ran errands...to a grocery store to get on-sale grapefruit (yuk, I don't like this fruit, but Hubbie and Mother do), potatoes, and sour cream to make more fruit salad. From there, we went to the bank, to the appliance store to pick up our upstairs TV, to the cable TV office to order another DVR for upstairs, and to the WDCS.

At the cable TV office, we were told that we would either have to take the DVR home and install it ourselves, or pay an installation fee to have someone come do it. Well, we protested, since the old cable box isn't working. It began giving us problems a couple of weeks ago, and then today, when we hooked the TV up, we found the cable box doesn't work at all anymore. It's our understanding that the cable company is responsible for maintaining or replacing non-working boxes, sans charge. So we'll see what happens.

It's been one thing after another with the upstairs TV...first it was thought that the problem with the unit was the remote control, and it took forever to get a new one, and then when that didn't help, the tech decided it was the TV's sensor. Today, after waiting forever for the new sensor to come in, he repaired the TV. And now it's the cable box.

We're glad, though, that the TV is still under warranty, because otherwise it would have cost us $147.99 in repair charges! Or else we would have ditched it for a new one.

We went to the WDCS to pick up a few groceries for when Niece and her family visit on Friday. Great-Niece emailed yesterday to see if we would be home for New Years, and of course, we will. We don't know if they will be here in time for lunch, or won't be here until after lunch to join us for dessert. And we don't know if they can stay for supper. So now we are prepared for however much time they can spend with us.

Back home, Hubbie and I made another batch of fruited popcorn, because he wanted a batch that tasted less like molasses and more like caramel. Then he popped two more batches of popcorn to bake in the oven for 15 minutes. He claims that baking popcorn crisps it, while simply air popping it makes some of the kernels taste like cardboard. I hadn't noticed that, but I'll take his word for it.

Later, he heated the popcorn again before we settled in to watch our favorite college basketball team play to a loss. Phooey. With the popcorn, we had glasses of fresh squeezed orange juice with pulp. This afternoon, I'd juiced a bag of oranges, because we found them too tough, membranous, and stringy to peel and eat in sections. The pulpy juice was sweet and good, though. Mother took the orange peel halves home to scrape for making zest.

For supper tonight, Mother boiled wheat rotini pasta to add to leftover chili. The chili, stored in the freezer, was leftover from last week. It came in handy tonight, when we didn't feel like cooking from scratch. We had the chili-mac with slaw and cottage cheese.

Tuesday, December 29

2009-12-29T19:23:00.003-06:00

5:30 a.m. rolled around pretty fast this morning, but I hopped right out of bed when the alarm went off, so I could get ready to take Mother to the ophthalmologist's clinic for her second cataract surgery.

We arrived a few minutes before the appointed 6:50 a.m. hour, and the receptionist took Mother right back for preps.

The waiting room was frigid, as it was for her first surgery earlier this month. The nurses and receptionist shivered, despite commenting that they were wearing thermal underwear and several layers of clothing. The patients stay in their coats during surgery, and are provided with blankets for further warmth. I guess this is a clinic bent on keeping the environment cold enough to inhibit the growth of bacteria.

By 8 a.m., Mother was out of surgery. She was a bit more wobbly this time, and seemed not to feel as well. On the way home, she said her stomach had become queasy after taking her BP meds this morning. And the evil-tasting med she was given to relax her during surgery wasn't as effective today. So although she was in no pain during the procedure, she was more alertly aware of pressure in her eye as the doctor worked.

Back home, she was ready to have something to eat, and more than ready for her morning coffee. She had three pieces of toast, with margarine and pumpkin butter, and several cups of coffee. After that, she lay on the couch and napped for a few hours.

When she awoke around 2 p.m., I fixed her a bowl of Ramen noodle soup, with lots of crackers and cheese, and more coffee. She felt much better after that, and was ready to walk around the house a little.

Even though she ate a late lunch, she was still ready for supper at 5 p.m. We had leftover chicken noodle soup, with yeast rolls, and fruit salad for dessert. After that, Mother was ready to work on her jigsaw puzzle again. Together, we finished that puzzle by 7 p.m., and she chose another one to begin tomorrow.

She was alert and ready to go home by then, so I walked her to her house and made sure she was settled in, before coming back to my house.

I didn't accomplish anything much other than taking care of Mother's needs today, which is all I meant to do. While she slept, though, I did write a letter to my high school friend who sent me a Christmas card (I haven't seen this friend since we graduated). I also sent a note of congratulations to my widowed sister-in-law, who recently remarried. And I put away my Christmas movies and music CDs, as first step to getting my house back in order after the holidays. Most of this chore will be done after New Year's Day.

After supper, Hubbie and I watched the movie, "Eight Men Out," a 1988 PG movie starring John Cusack, Michael Lerner, Charlie Sheen, Christopher Lloyd, and others. This film is based on the 1919 sports scandal, when the Chicago White Sox threw the World Series. We got this movie DVD free with cereal box proofs. It's a good movie.

Monday, December 28

2009-12-28T17:35:00.002-06:00

Got up late this morning, and then did a treadmill session and weights exercises after breakfast. Mother came over and worked on her jigsaw puzzle while I got ready for the day. Didn't accomplish much before lunch.

After lunch, Hubbie and I ran errands...to a grocery store to get cottage cheese, to the Post Office, to the greeting card store (needed to buy a couple of cards to satisfy my points accumulation for the year, so that I can get special discounts in 2010), and then to the doctor's office, so Hubbie could be examined for a hernia he has developed over the past several weeks.

As we suspected, Hubbie will need to see a surgeon, who will schedule a time for hernia surgery. Hubbie's doctor said that the surgeon is over-scheduled right now, because another surgeon left town to work somewhere else, and his replacement is seriously ill. So the surgeon's office is to call with an appointment date as soon as possible, but it could be a while.

From the doctor's office, we went to the cable TV office to pick up a couple of channel listings, to the health store for 8-grain cereal and multi vitamins, and to the WDCS for groceries and incidentals.

It was about 3:30 before we got back home. We didn't do much else for the rest of the afternoon. Supper was leftover veggies, rice, and gravy. Mother went home after supper, and Hubbie and I relaxed for the evening.

I will need to get up early tomorrow morning, since Mother is scheduled for her second cataract surgery at 6:50 a.m. She's very ready to get the surgery over with, so she can get a new pair of eyeglasses.

Tonight, Hubbie and I watched a movie..."The Caller," rated PG-13. This 2008 movie stars Frank Langella and Elliot Gould. An energy company whistleblower sends an anonymous email with a video-clip attachment of a burial ground at the firm's factory in South America. The corporation in New York begins hunting the whistleblower. Fearing for his life, the whistleblower disguises his voice and hires a private detective to follow and find out all he can about an unnamed man, who turns out to be himself. The plot is a little hard to follow, since the movie starts with scenes from 1940's France, before moving to modern-day New York, and then does not reveal the connection until the end of the movie.

Sunday, December 27

2009-12-27T20:30:00.002-06:00

Got up late this morning, but still did a treadmill session and resistance exercises after breakfast. After that, it was a usual Sunday of programming the DVR for movies and shows this week, and reading the Sunday newspaper.

Mother came over mid-morning to work on her jigsaw puzzle. For lunch, we had leftover beef roast with various veggies and fruit salad. After that, we relaxed and just watched TV, read, and worked the jigsaw puzzle. I did my usual part with the puzzle...put in the sky and trees.

Supper was leftover potato soup, with restaurant yeast rolls. After supper, Mother and I continued with the jigsaw puzzle, while Hubbie watched football.

Mother went home around 8 p.m., and Hubbie and I watched the movie "Transsiberian," starring Woody Harrelson and Ben Kingsley. In this R-rated movie, a couple on a trip from China to Russia meet a strange couple and become involved in deception and murder. It's a pretty good thriller.

Saturday, December 26

2009-12-26T17:21:00.003-06:00

We were up by 6:30 a.m. this morning, but I skipped my exercises so we could do last-minute household chores and food preparations for when family visited.

The first group arrived around 10:30, and by noon everyone was here. Thirteen of Hubbie's family came, including Daughter and her husband, Grandson and his wife and three daughters, Sister and her two sons and two granddaughters, plus Nephew's girlfriend.

They came with healthy appetites on this cold, windy day, and enjoyed the three choices of hot soup (11-bean with ham and Rotel, potato, and chicken noodle), plus barbecued pork on hamburger buns, and cole slaw. There was also a choice of dips and cheese balls with crackers. Daughter brought several kinds of homemade candies to add to the desserts we set out...fruit salad, various homemade cookies, rum cake and rum-soaked fruit cake. Drinks included wine, tea, soft drinks, and coffee.

Following lunch, Nephew and I adjourned to my office upstairs, where Nephew downloaded a program to use in transferring cassette audio books to CDs. He also showed me how to use the program, and then spent time cleaning my computer. In order to use the new program, I needed a special jack to hook my tape recorder/player to the computer. So Nephew and Hubbie went to the WDCS to buy one. Now I can begin getting books recorded on CD, and play them in the van when we travel. Yippee.

Nephew has also volunteered to clear my old word program out and download an updated version, as well as add memory to my computer. He needs to order something or other to do this, so as soon as he has what he needs, we'll take the computer to his town and let him work on it. He's very enthusiastic to help me, because he's a natural at technology and a born teacher.

Around 3 p.m., after Nephew had finished working on my computer, the family was ready to go home. Grandson and his family had left shortly after lunch to go visit with his wife's family in another town.

A few minutes after the family left, I got a call from a high school classmate. She was contacting class members to see how many of us might be able to attend a 50th class reunion at the end of May. That time-frame would be perfect for me, since we usually camp in the area on that weekend, anyway. So I hope the reunion committee nails it for that time.

We had a small class...only about 30 of us...and sadly, five of us are gone. So of the 25 of us remaining, there will probably be only 20 or so, plus spouses, to get together (some live too far away to attend). We will probably have the reunion at one of the classmate's homes, like we did ten years ago.

Mother, who slept only a couple of hours last night, was pooped by the time family left this afternoon, so she was plenty ready to go home and crash. Hubbie and I are feeling the effects of a busy holiday season, too, and are glad to just sit and veg for the evening.

After an eggs and toast supper, with cottage cheese, and fresh oranges and prunes for dessert, we watched the movie "August," that I'd recorded on DVR. Two brothers try to keep their start-up dot.com business alive after the 9/11 attacks. The movie is rated "R" for language.

The second movie we saw was "Spinning into Butter," an R-rated (for language) movie starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Beau Bridges. A black student is the object of hate crimes that turn a small, ethnically diverse, New England college into a tailspin, as racism is examined on campus.

Christmas Day

2009-12-25T19:39:00.005-06:00

Got up around 8 a.m. to a smattering of snow that dusted the roof of the house and the van. Not exactly a white Christmas. After breakfast, I did a treadmill session and weights exercises. Mother came over while I was getting ready for the day and put a beef roast and veggies in the slow cooker.

Then Hubbie decided to scratch off his lottery tickets. He won $30, a $10 gain on the $20 I'd paid for the tickets. Of course, it was a $30 gain for him. When I bought the tickets at the grocery store this week, the clerk said lots of folks were buying them to use as stocking stuffers.

While the beef was cooking, we spruced the house for company. The beef, with carrots and onions, was delicious served with mashed potatoes (Hubbie peeled the potatoes, and I mashed them after they were cooked), gravy, canned asparagus, and fruit salad that I'd made yesterday. We also had mouthwatering yeast rolls that we'd bought from a local restaurant.

After lunch, we set the tables with alternating poinsettia patterned and plain green place mats, and alternating white and green dinner plates, alternating white and green bowls, and clear stemmed goblets, for the soup and sandwich lunch tomorrow, when Hubbie's family comes. We expect thirteen to come, so there will be sixteen of us for lunch.

After that, we watched a couple of Christmas programs....the Disney World Christmas Parade, the St. Olaf Christmas concert, and the animated features, "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," and "The Little Drummer Boy."

Then Hubbie and I went upstairs to straighten the office, since tomorrow, Nephew plans to load a program into my computer for transferring audio tapes to CDs, and then teach me how to use it. Nephew is a technology teacher.

Mother went home later in the afternoon, and Hubbie and I relaxed for the evening.

Christmas Eve

2009-12-24T21:53:00.008-06:00

We were up by 8 a.m., and after breakfast, I did a treadmill session and resistance exercises. Mother came over while I was on the treadmill and started some chicken stewing for chicken noodle soup Saturday. Hubbie went to town while I was exercising. I didn't even know he'd left the house until I was done with my session. I guess he sneaked off to do some last-minute Christmas shopping.

While I was cooling down, the door bell rang. I really didn't want to answer the door in my exercise clothes (a t-shirt and shorts), but I did. One of our neighbor teenage boys was there. He handed me a couple of small gift bags, one holding sugar cookies, and one holding fudge. I was glad I had a gift box ready for him to take to his family. I think he and his family were on their way to visit relatives, so maybe the goodies in the gift box I gave him will become part of their refreshment table.

After I was ready for the day, I did a few things related to getting ready for company Saturday. After lunch, we watched "Scrooge," starring Alastair Sim. This is my very most favorite version of the Scrooge movies, and I look forward to seeing it every year.

Then Hubbie and I worked together to make a batch of fruited popcorn. It didn't turn out as usual, though, because this morning, Hubbie had brought home a bag of dark brown sugar instead of light brown. So the popcorn had a molasses taste instead of a caramel taste, according to Hubbie. I never eat this popcorn, which has real butter, candied cherries, and pecans in it.

We decided to run to the grocery store and get a bag of light brown sugar. On the way, we noticed that after the hard rains of last night and today, the creeks were swollen, and low-lying fields looked like lakes. Before going to the store, we went down to the river, and found that it was flooding out of its banks. The deluge makes this the wettest year in our state's weather-recording history, surpassing the last most rainy year of 1882.

Back home, we made another batch of fruited popcorn, which turned out just right. We'll save this batch to give to Hubbie's daughter Saturday. She loves it as much as Hubbie does, so we make a batch for her every year.

Later, we had boiled chicken, with rice and gravy, and mixed vegetables for supper. Shortly after supper, my brother from Florida called, and we talked for quite a while. This brother, who is ten years older than me, doesn't have a computer, so phone calls and snail mail are the only ways we can communicate.

Around 7 p.m., we adjourned to the living room to open Christmas gifts. It is our tradition to open gifts on Christmas Eve, instead of Christmas morning. We will be busy tomorrow, anyway, getting ready for company Saturday.

We each got nice gifts. Besides a 12th day of Christmas present this morning of a scented reed diffuser and refill bottle, Mother got several puzzle books, a humorous gardening book, a Magic Chef cookbook, a jar of peach preserves from the Wildseed Farms in Texas, jersey bed sheets, a photo mug with her cat's picture on it (her favorite gift), and an original painting of a Japanese woman that I'd gotten at the art gallery silent auction last summer.

Hubbie got an electric toothbrush and an electric razor, as well as a shoe box full of western novels, a wine-colored sweater shirt, a big bag of peanut brittle, and some scratch-off lottery tickets.

I got several gift cards, and a beautiful heart-shaped pendant necklace from Hubbie. I'd already gotten several gifts before Christmas, including a new pair of brown leather gloves, a pair of gold colored Swarovski crystal earrings, a book about the wildflowers of our state, and a food blender.

As usual, Hubbie was clever in wrapping the gift cards. One was taped to the bottom of a small box of Whitman's dark chocolates (I'll sample those later), one was on the back of a cake of bird suet, and the other one was taped to a box of mini candy canes.

After we opened gifts, we enjoyed glasses of the Riesling wine that Granddaughter from Michigan gave us for Christmas, along with slices of the fruit cake that we brought back from Corsicana, Texas last spring. I'd stored the cake in the freezer, and then got it out after Thanksgiving. wrapped it in a rum-soaked cloth, and refrigerated it after a few days. Mother had a glass of sparkling grape juice with hers.

Then we played two games of Skipbo, with Mother winning one game, and Hubbie winning the other. Mother went home after that, and Hubbie and I watched an episode of "The Good Wife," before retiring.

Wednesday, December 23

2009-12-23T17:52:00.002-06:00

Another special day...Grandson's 24th birthday. Happy Birthday, Grandson.

We were up by around 8 a.m. this morning, and I did a treadmill session and weights exercises right after breakfast. Mother came over about 9 a.m. and worked on her jigsaw puzzle. Before she got started, I gave her an 11th day of Christmas gift...a can of tuile cookies (see description below), and a key chain flashlght, so she can locate the keyhole on the door of her house at night when we return home from trips like the one we made Monday.

While I was getting ready for the day, Hubbie went to a local restaurant to pick up the dozen yeast rolls that I ordered yesterday, and then ran some other errands that he kept secret.

After lunch, we both went to the WDCS for more last-minute items for Christmas weekend. We also stopped by a local food and clothing store for the disadvantaged, because I wanted to leave a small donation. But they were closed, so I'll have to drop it by there next week. The store is in constant need of donations, so the money will be just as welcome next week.

From there, we went to the farm supply store to pick up several cakes of suet for the birds.

While we were gone, Mother put together an 11-bean soup with ham and Rotel to serve Saturday, when Hubbie's family will be here.

Back home, I put together a food gift pack for our neighbors. The young husband of the family is very good at helping Hubbie with heavy-duty yard chores, for which he refuses payment. In the food pack, I included a tin of tuile cookies (thin rolled cookies shaped like cigarettes), a Ziplock bag of assorted homemade cookies, and individual packets of hot chocolate and apple cider mixes. Hubbie will take this pack to the neighbors tomorrow, when it will hopefully be too late for them to reciprocate.

Later, Mother enjoyed catching up on e-mails, blogs, and online Christmas cards on my laptop. When she finished, she went back to her puzzle, and I gathered ingredients for making whole wheat pancakes for supper.

After I made the pancake batter, Hubbie stepped in to take care of the cooking chores, while I heated dinner plates and pancake syrup in the microwave. The pancakes were very good. Mother especially finds them to be a treat, since she doesn't fix them for herself when she's at home.

Mother went home after supper, and Hubbie and I watched a Hallmark movie that I'd recorded on DVR..."The Three Gifts," starring Dean Cain. An orphanage needs someone to host three trouble making boys (about 10 years old) for the holidays. A couple who cannot have children of their own agree to take them in. Life lessons are learned.

Then we watched a movie called, "The Wool Cap," starring William H. Macy. A woman leaves her young daughter with the mute superintendent of her building and never returns. The man doesn't want to be responsible for the child, but as times passes, he becomes attached and tries to adopt her. Problems ensue.

Tuesday, December 22

2009-12-22T21:05:00.003-06:00

Slept late this morning, and then did a treadmill session and resistance exercises. After being away from the treadmill for several days, I had to slow my pace just slightly. It doesn't take long to lose strength. But then, exercising regularly also means I can get back up to speed in a day or so.

Mother came over mid-morning, and we made a list of groceries we'll need for Christmas weekend. Hubbie called our favorite barbecue restaurant to order pulled pork to have with soups on Saturday, when Hubbie's family will be here. He ordered it for 11:30 a.m., and then went to pick it up around that time. He also picked up a package of hamburger buns, so that we could sample the barbecue for lunch. We put the rest of it in the freezer until Friday.

Before I went upstairs to get ready for the day, I called another local restaurant to order a dozen of their mouthwatering yeast rolls to have with Christmas and New Year's dinners. We'll pick those up tomorrow.

While we were doing those things, Mother chose another jigsaw puzzle to work on. Before she got started on the puzzle, I gave her a tenth day of Christmas gift...two word search books and some intimate apparel in a style that she likes and that are hard to find. She was excited by these.

After lunch, Hubbie and I ran errands...to the pharmacy to pick prescriptions for both Mother and me and to the Caring Hands Hospice office to pick up a pewter dove for Hubbie's sister. From there, we went to the WDCS.

When we got back home, I turned right around and went to town again, because I had some last-minute Christmas shopping to do. Things went very well, and I was able to quickly find what I wanted, as well do Mother's Christmas shopping for Hubbie, and get back home within an hour. I was even able to apply a $10 discount coupon to the purchase, which helped both Mother and me.

While I was shopping, Mother put together a pot of chili to simmer for supper. I returned home around 3 p.m. and sat down to catch up on reading newspapers from Sunday, yesterday, and today.

Around 5 p.m., we had bowls of chili, and afterward, we went on a tour of Christmas lights around town. We usually do this tour on Christmas Eve, but predictions are for stormy weather that night, so we decided to do it tonight.

We were impressed with how our town has outdone itself decorating for Christmas. Both the downtown district, and the park at the river are ablaze in Christmas lights...very enchanting. I think the reason for the extraordinary display is that we are listed this year in the tourism department's trail of lights brochure, so our town's powers-that-be wanted to make sure we are well represented.

It rained a little while we were out and about, but the temperature was moderate, so it was still pleasant. When we got back home, we had cups of hot chocolate with slices of chocolate date nut bread. Yum.

Mother went home after that, and Hubbie and I watched our favorite college basketball team play to another nail-biter win, after the game went into overtime. I had recorded the game on DVR.

Note: I got a very special Christmas card today from a high school classmate, who was one of my best friends, but that I haven't had contact with since graduation. I learned that she lives in a town about five hours away, near Hubbie's daughter's home. So I hope to be able to see her some time when we go to that area to visit Daughter. Tomorrow, I'll send her a New Year's card and letter.

Monday, December 21

2009-12-21T20:43:00.004-06:00

It has been a very long day. We got up at 6:30 so we could get ready to go to another town to be with Hubbie's family. Of course, I skipped my exercises again. Before we left town, Hubbie and I delivered a box of cookies to Caring Hands Hospice to be used in making gift boxes for hospice families. I also left a tin of cookies as a gift to the office staff.

We got on the road to the other town around 9:30 a.m. We arrived at the church where the family gathered for a "cousins party" around 11:00. Here, all the ladies set to work getting food ready for lunch. We provided a tray of deli meats and cheeses, along with flat bread for wraps, and various cheese balls and crackers. Others brought fruit and veggie trays and a ton of desserts. Pizzas were planned for the kids and whoever else wanted one, so some of the ladies prepared meats, sauces, veggies, etc., so that each individual could make their own.

Many of the adults, including Mother and I, preferred sandwiches, though, so I was glad we'd brought the makings for them.

After lunch, there were games and crafts. Daughter led the kids in a game about the Nativity. An aunt helped the kids make beaded Christmas ornaments. And we led them in constructing graham cracker cookie Christmas houses. Then a nephew involved everyone, kids and adults alike, in a game in which we all sat close together in chairs in a circle, while he read a story about Mr. and Mrs. Wright and all the Wright children, who did things going in right or left directions. As the story was read, we were to move to the chairs on our right or left. It was a fast game of moving right and left and sitting and standing, so some folks were out of breath at the end of it. This was one time I was glad that I exercise regularly.

Nephew provided a couple of other games, too...a "guess the name of the Christmas carol" paper and pencil game, and another in which teams blew up balloons and stuffed them into the legs of pantyhose. The leader at each table then put the pantyhose on his or her head, ran to a chair and sang "Jingle Bells." Folks wearing balloon stuffed pantyhose while singing "Jingle Bells" look pretty hilarious.

It was clean-up time after that, and by about 2:30 p.m., we had the church fellowship hall looking spruced. From the church, we went to Daughter's house, where we visited until time for the gift exchange. Hubbie's daughters an son gave him a new Bunn coffee maker to replace the one that quit working in the camper. He also received a pocket knife from his granddaughter. Mother got hand cream and Christmas themed dish towel and pot holder. I got a new makeup case (which was really for my birthday rather than Christmas) and a colorful tote from Granddaughter.

At 6 p.m., we had a supper of turkey and dressing, a choice of baked sweet or white potatoes, green bean casserole, corn-on-the-cob, raw veggies and dip, canned cranberry sauce, and homemade crescent rolls, plus an array of desserts.

Finally, around 7:30, we headed home. Shih Tzu, who had stayed in the van all those hours (because she can no longer tolerate crowds of people) was plenty ready to be home. Hubbie had tended to her frequently while we were at Daughter's house, feeding her and walking her and seeing that she had plenty of water, but she finally grew bored with being confined. I don't blame her.

At home, we watched a movie, "Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus," an R-rated film starring Nicole Kidman. The movie is about the real-life famous photographer, Diane Arbus, but as the title implies, this is a fictional account that supposes Arbus falls in love with a man with werewolf syndrome, a condition that causes excessive body hair. Arbus is noted for her photographs of "members of society's fringe." The movie starts with a brief scene featuring not-your-model-type fully nude folks.

Sunday, December 20

2009-12-20T18:13:00.002-06:00

A special day today...Son's birthday. Happy Birthday, Son.

We were up by 6:30 a.m. this morning, and I skipped my exercises again in order to get ready for a visit from Daughter and family. Since they planned to be here at lunch time, Hubbie and I ran to the WDCS for sandwich makings and other groceries.

Daughter arrived around 10:30, along with Granddaughter and her husband, and two great-grandsons. We had a good visit. Daughter brought gifts for Mother and me...acrylic nativity scene Christmas tree ornaments. Daughter also brought Hubbie and me a gift...a bottle of Riesling wine...from Granddaughter and her husband, who lives in Michigan.

Daughter and Granddaughter enjoyed helping Mother work on the jigsaw puzzle before lunch. For lunch, we served deli turkey, ham, and cheeses, along with herb and garlic flat bread for wraps. With these, we had a choice of tortilla chips or pretzels, and cottage cheese, as well as crackers and a variety of dips and an Italian cream cheese ball. Dessert was rum cake and several types of homemade cookies.

Daughter and group left about 2 p.m., and we spent the rest of the afternoon being lazy. I helped Mother finish the jigsaw puzzle, and Hubbie read the Sunday newspaper. Later, we had a supper of braised pork chops, baked sweet potatoes, and canned vegetables.

Just as I was sitting down to supper, my friend from Springfield called, and we chatted for a while. My supper had cooled by the time I got back to the table, but it was still okay.

Mother went home shortly after supper, and Hubbie and I watched a movie..."The Color of Freedom," an R-rated film about Nelson Madella's personal prison guard, who shifts his alliance from racism to Mandella's fight to end racial segregation in south Africa.

Saturday, December 19

2009-12-19T17:49:00.002-06:00

I woke up really late this morning, around 8:30, so I skipped my exercises in order to get ready after breakfast to go to the funeral of our friend's husband.

There were several glitches at the service, not the least of which was that the cell phone of the water aerobics leader rang during a prayer. She was sitting right next to me. Also, the program announced our friend's husband's birth year as 2009. Then after the opening prayer, there was a very long, silent pause, as folks fidgeted uncomfortably. Finally, someone stepped into the room (the service was held at the funeral home) and announced that staff couldn't get the music CD to work, and the minister should just go on with the service. And then later, we learned that the plan to allow folks to offer testimonials during the service was inadvertently overlooked, and instead, promptly at the conclusion of the minister's sermon, ushers urged attendees to immediately begin filing up front to offer condolences to the family.

After the service, we came home for lunch. Mother had baked three sweet potatoes and heated three biscuits for us. We topped the biscuits with pumpkin butter. The jar of pumpkin butter, along with a jar of peach butter, were Mother's seventh day of Christmas gift. I got the butters at the Amish shop, when we were in Branson in October.

Around 1 p.m., we went to our friend's house for a while. I took a small bag of homemade cookies for the children of the family, since I was told that others were providing ample food for the reception. We had not planned to go to the reception, but our friend seemed to really want us there, so we accepted her invitation.

We only stayed for a short time, long enough to visit with our friend and join her in having dessert. I really didn't need to indulge in sweets, but to be polite, I took a small slice of fresh apple cake that I knew had been baked by another water aerobics friend. It was delicious.

Mother stayed at our house today and worked on her jigsaw puzzle. After we got home from the reception, Hubbie bathed Shih Tzu, and then we both worked to spruce the house, because his daughter and family are coming for a visit in the morning.

Later, we had hamburgers/turkey burgers, with sauteed potatoes for supper, which we ate in the den so Hubbie and I could watch our favorite college basketball team win a nail-biter game that I'd recorded on DVR.

Mother spent some time after supper continuing to work on the jigsaw puzzle, and then went home around 6 p.m. Hubbie and I watched TV for the rest of the evening, including a movie called "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3." This 2009 R-rated (for strong language and violence) film stars Denzel Washington and John Travolta. It's about a man (Travolta) who hijacks a subway train and holds the passengers hostage while demanding ten million dollars from the city. This is a pay-per-view movie that I downloaded to our DVR as a complimentary gift from our cable company, because when they changed out our DVR recently, we naturally lost all the movies and programs I'd recorded on the old unit.

Friday, December 18, continued

2009-12-18T19:41:00.002-06:00

We were up about 7:30 this morning, and as usual, I got on the treadmill after breakfast and then did weights exercises. Mother came over after my exercises, and chose a jigsaw puzzle to begin working on. Before she began the puzzle, she opened her sixth day of Christmas gift, which was two word search puzzle books.

Not much else happened for the rest of the morning. After lunch, we went on an excursion to see a large gingerbread house at the women's center of our local hospital (see photo below). I took several shots of the house, by itself, and with Mother standing beside it.

After that, we toured the art exhibit in the main hallway. We know several of the artists and photographers, a couple of whom serve on the visual arts committee with me.

From there, we went to the library of the college that is just down the road from our house to see an exhibit of small works on paper, which is on tour from our state's arts council.

We came home after that, and Mother resumed working on her puzzle, while I watched a ballet version of Scrooge, and Hubbie cleaned the van for our trip to see his family on Monday.

Supper tonight was baked salmon, with baked potatoes and English peas. After supper, Mother went home, and Hubbie and I dressed to go to the visitation for our friend's husband. Lots of folks showed up at the funeral home, including several ladies from water aerobics.

We stayed about a half an hour at the visitation. Back home, we half-heartedly watched a few one-hour shows on TV.

Friday, December 18

2009-12-18T16:54:00.003-06:00

This afternoon, we went to see this gingerbread house, which stands on the floor near a Christmas tree at the women's center of our local hospital. It was made by hospital staff and stands over four feet tall. In fact, it stands over 4' 9", which is Mother's height. On a plywood base, graham crackers have been attached to the walls and roof. The chimney features hundreds of peppermint disks as well as several inverted ice cream cones. Candy canes serve as icicles hanging from the roof. Details were added with piped icing. Chocolate drops, gumdrops, orange slice gels, Lifesavers, and Skittles add further interest to the house.

Thursday, December, 17

2009-12-17T17:54:00.003-06:00

We were up about 8 a.m., and I did a treadmill session and resistance exercises after breakfast. While I was getting ready for the day, Hubbie cut up and cleaned a pumpkin to be baked. We'd used the pumpkin in the outdoor fall display. We got nearly eight quarts of the pumpkin for the freezer, which we put in Ziplock bags. There were two pumpkins in the display, but one went south before we could get it cooked. We also baked several acorn squash for the freezer that we'd gotten on sale a few weeks ago.

While the pumpkins were baking, we watched a Scrooge movie musical, starring Kelsey Grammer. After lunch, while the squash baked, we watched "A Miracle on 34th Street." As we were watching this movie, a friend returned a phone call I'd made to her this morning. I wanted to know if she was going to be at work this afternoon, so I could drop a food gift by. She said she would be there, so we made a batch of spinach dip, which I put with snack crackers, and then Hubbie and I delivered the gift on our way to the WDCS (I guess we're destined to go there every day until Christmas).

When we got back home, we found that Mother had already gone to her own house, taking her fifth day of Christmas gift with her. Today's gift was a pair of lint rollers, which delighted her, because she uses a lot of these to remove cat hair.

Yesterday, we gave her a large can of beauty salon hair spray, which we'd picked up at a silent auction. She was excited by that gift, too, because she had just run out of her usual brand and was about to ask me to go get another can for her.

On Tuesday, we gave her a box of chocolate covered coffee beans. On Monday, her gift was a jigsaw puzzle, and on Sunday, it was a 2010 calendar featuring photos of exotic animals.

Later, I fixed a breakfast-for-supper meal of potato pancakes, eggs, biscuits and gravy. After that it was TV, as usual. Tonight, we watched the movie, "The Stone Angel," starring Ellen Burstyn. The family of a nearly 90-year-old woman wants to put her in a nursing home, but she refuses. She runs away from home to return to the town where she lived as a youth and young adult. Here she traces her unconventional life and her relationships as she moves in and out of lucidity. The movie is rated "R" for intimate scenes (though there's no full nudity), and mild language. Good movie.

Wednesday, December 16

2009-12-16T18:53:00.003-06:00

We were up at 7:30 this morning, and I got on the treadmill and did weights exercises right after breakfast. While I was getting ready for the day, Hubbie sliced dates and chopped pecans for a recipe of chocolate date nut bread. Mother came over while he was doing that and gathered the rest of the ingredients for the bread.

When I came downstairs, Hubbie was sitting in the living room, and he beckoned for me to come sit with him. Then he told me that he'd gotten a call from one of the Master Gardeners that the husband of another MG had been killed in an automobile accident yesterday evening around 5:30 p.m.

We'd just seen this man last Thursday at the MG Christmas potluck. So today I immediately visualized him opening a gift during the Dirty Santa game. We all laughed when he held up a quilted apron and some kitchen tools. Someone stole that gift from him, and the next gift he opened was a sparkly little Christmas tree. It's hard to believe that such lighthearted moments can be followed by such tragedy in the space of a week.

The man's twelve-year-old granddaughter was in the car with him but, thank God, she survived. It is speculated that the man became distracted by fiddling with the dials on the dash of his new car while traveling on a curve, left the road, and then overcorrected and went off and embankment on the other side of the road, flipping the car several times.

His wife, the Master Gardener member, is also a member of my water aerobics group. We are just sick at heart for her. We don't know yet when the visitation and funeral will be scheduled.

Keeping our friend in our thoughts and prayers all day, we went on about our business. I mixed the ingredients for the chocolate date nut bread and got the loaf into the oven. While it was baking, Mother and I watched "The Polar Express," on DVD, which took us up to lunch.

After lunch, I made a batch of jalapeno dip and used it, along with snack crackers, to make a gift plate for the ladies at our beauty shop. Hubbie and I dropped the gift off at the shop before we went to the WDCS. At the store, we picked up ingredients like cream cheese and sour cream for making dips and cheese balls. We also bought a new blender, because the plastic top to my old one practically crumbled when I tried to use it today to blend the ingredients for homemade tomato soup.

Back home, Mother and I watched "The Nutcracker," with Mikael Baryshnikov, and an old video recording of the Boston Pops, which features a really cute reading of "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas."

For supper, we had the homemade tomato soup (yummy) and cold meatloaf sandwiches, plus slices of the chocolate date nut bread.

Later, Hubbie and I watched as our favorite basketball team played to a wide-margin win.

Funny: got a message from Sis thanking me for the Christmas card I sent her, but saying that if it had not been for the return address on the envelope, she wouldn't have known who it was from. Apparently, I forgot to sign the card. I wonder how many others got no-signature cards?

Tuesday, December 15

2009-12-15T17:44:00.002-06:00

Got up late this morning, and hopped on the treadmill, and then did weights exercises after breakfast. I didn't accomplish much after that except typing a recipe for sugar cookies and printing it to add to a cookie gift for Caring Hands Hospice. I also called a friend to see if she could join us for lunch downtown sometime this week, but she is busy all week. We agreed to try to get together shortly after Christmas.

Last week, our mutual friend from another town had come for a visit, and Mother and I were invited to join them for lunch. But that was the same day when Mother went to an Extension Homemakers luncheon, and I joined Hubbie for a Master Gardener potluck, and then Mother and I went to the "Cup of Cheer," party at the home of one of the water aerobics members, so we had to decline the invitation.

For lunch today, Hubbie did the honors of making grilled cheese sandwiches. Mother came over and joined us for those and dishes of fruit. After lunch, Hubbie and I ran errands. Just as we were ready to leave the driveway, one of the scrapbook club members pulled up. She had dropped by on her way to town to get her Christmas rubber stamps. I was glad she came by so I could give her a basket containing jars of hand cream, scrub, and bath salts from last month's Crafts Extravaganza in another town. I also gave her a couple of beaded projects, and a stack of instructions from that event.

After the lady left, Hubbie and I went to the art gallery, which was closed, even though it was 1 p.m. by this time. From there, we went to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription for me; to the WDCS for several grocery items; and then back to the gallery. This time it was open. We learned that the director had been at the restaurant across the street when we stopped by the first time.

The reason I needed to go to the gallery was to deliver a copy of the regional paper with the article about the graham cracker cookie Christmas house workshop, plus leave a Christmas card for the arts council director.

And because we don't have time to make another one, I also wanted to pick up one of the screen door Christmas cards that Mother and I made to sell at the gallery. We'll add the card to a gift of homemade cookies for the Caring Hands Hospice office staff. Since making greeting cards is one of the projects we do for Caring Hands, we felt it only appropriate that we add a handmade card to the gift of cookies.

We came back home after that. Mother was already in the process of making sugar cookies (I thought she was going to wait until I got back to start them), so I got busy and helped with the project. This sugar cookie recipe yielded several dozen, so there were plenty to fill a tin for Caring Hands Hospice staff, as well as for donating a couple of dozen for volunteers to add to baskets of cookies for fourteen patients. The Christmas cards we made last month will be added to the baskets.

We won't be able to help put the baskets together next Monday, because we're scheduled to go to another town for a gathering of Hubbie's family, where we'll be doing a Christmas house workshop with ten or more kids.

While the cookies cooled, we sat down to watch the 1970s musical, "Scrooge," starring Albert Finney. Later, for supper, we had stir-fry over rice. Mother went home after that, and Hubbie and I relaxed in front of TV. We started with a movie, "All Roads Lead Home," starring Peter Coyote. This family film is about a girl who loses her mother in an automobile accident and then becomes difficult. Her father sends her to live with her grandfather, who owns a horse ranch. The story then centers on the girl's relationship with the animals on the ranch, particularly the dogs.

During the movie, my friend from Texas called, and we talked for a long time, catching up on each other's lives. I'd sent her a screen door card for her birthday in November, along with a long letter, and her call was in reponse to that. It was a nice Christmas gift.

Monday, December 14

2009-12-14T18:01:00.003-06:00

We were up by 7:30 a.m. again this morning, and after breakfast, I did a treadmill and weights exercises session. After getting ready for the day, I baked a rum cake for Hubbie. He'll enjoy the cake by himself through the season, but because it's made with a yellow cake mix and instant vanilla pudding, both of which contain yellow dye, I can't eat it. Mother doesn't care for rum, so she won't eat it, either.

While I was making the cake, Hubbie ran a couple of errands...to the bank, and to the post office to mail a stack of Christmas cards for me.

Mother came over around lunch time and had turkey wrap sandwiches with us. After lunch, Hubbie and I ran errands...to the Revenue Office so that I could renew my driver's license (egad, what a photo); to the greeting card shop to take advantage of a 20% off coupon (my birthday gift from the store); to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription for Mother; to the cable TV office; and to the WDCS.

At the greeting card shop, Hubbie chose a birthday card for me, and we each selected anniversary cards. My birthday and our anniversary are in January. Since we had purchased three cards, I was also able to get the newest edition in the Hallmark Christmas storybook series for $2.95. I now have a collection of five of these cute books.

Funny: a clerk we know at the card shop asked how long we've been married. As I opened my mouth to respond, Hubbie jumped in with, "We're coming up on our 27th anniversary."

I didn't contradict him, but in the car I asked him what 1981 subtracted from 2010 is. "Twenty-nine," he said. "Well," I said, "then by that calculation, we will be married 29 years next month, not 27."

"It doesn't seem that long," he said, looking at me and grinning. "Though it obviously seems longer to you."

Back home, Mother and I watched a couple of Christmas shows that I'd recorded on DVR. For supper, we had meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans, and the remaining yeast rolls we'd brought home from the Master Gardener Christmas potluck.

Later, Hubbie and I watched a movie..."Santa Baby 2: Christmas Maybe," rated PG. This family movie presumes that Santa has a daughter named Mary, who moves to the big city to pursue a career. Santa puts an ambitious someone else in the job of managing the elves, while he relaxes and enjoys recreational activities. Things go awry, and Mary has to return to the North Pole to straighten things out.

After that, we watched a new animated Christmas feature, "The Flight Before Christmas." A young reindeer leaves home to find his father, whom he has never met, but believes to be one of Santa's "Special Forces" reindeer. Wolves pursue.