Good Afternoon. Taking a break from chores, actually, done for the day, I'm taking more than just a break. It's so much cooler today, really nice, typical overcast NW day, in the 70's, but, I'm still ready to quit for the day.

Kel's sister Peggy is having her lumpectomy today, haven't heard any news yet.

Got an email from long-time friends from California and they are going to be in Portland on Wednesday. We will plan to get together for either lunch or dinner. It will be fun to talk over old times.

I also have a lunch date with my friend Carol on Thursday. We made the date weeks ago, (she was going to be busy all of July), so I'll be going out twice this week. What Fun!!!

I don't plan to do any more work this afternoon, but I better go check on John all the same.

Good Morning...I was very good and cleaned up after dinner, sink is still clean. Boy, that's a first!

Got a phone call from our friends and we'll meet for lunch tomorrow. They flew up to Eugene to visit with their son and are then driving from Eugene, about 2 hours south of us, to Seattle, about 3 hours north of us, so a stop here is a nice break in the middle of their drive. It will be so good to visit. Funny thing, John and I were reminiscing yesterday afternoon and there is so much that John can not remember from his days with Oscar, I'm hoping Oscar can fill in the blanks.

John is up already, I better check email and get off the computer.

Good evening, I've enjoyed a couple of slower days and a little catching up so now I'll do the same with you. The fair went well. I didn't spend as much at this year for different reasons. Friday was set up and that went quickly since the honor camp had done a lot on Thursday. I brought Thomas home with me and got him off to Youth Retreat and then went back in and helped with the grandkids baking. Saturday morning started the fair with foods judging so was there to help the grands with that. In the afternoon the hogs came in. Then Lori's, Alan's, Julie and I all ate at Freddy's before going our separate ways.

Sunday morning I headed out and went to the County Fair church service. I missed the first Sunday with our new pastor but I'll have chances to hear him. The afternoon was crafts judging for the grandkids and I assisted with the crochet/knitting judging. I wasn't the judge but got the kids up there, helped arrange the things and stuff like that. Our club worked from 8-10 in the concession stand so I got home late. Monday was getting the hogs washed. I had lunch with a friend (we try to get together at the fair every year) and then headed for Jim and Lori's. I stayed with Emily while Jim had a volleyball game and then went to the hog judging. Tuesday was 3 hours in the concession stand and then to an appointment and sopping with Ralph. My plans for Wednesday changed when a friend found out the buyer for her house decided the house had to be emptied even though he had said he would finish cleaning it. So Jim and I and some of other friends of hers went and emptied the house. 2 trailer loads to a church garage sale and three full trailer loads to the dump. Then I went and got a haircut. I just went to a place I had gone to several years ago. I ended up with the one guy which was okay. I've just never had a guy do it and he had a hair style that was not one my boys would have ever had. But I like my cut (after we trimmed off some long hairs later). Kids got purples and blue on their foods and crafts and mostly reds on their hogs. They did very well.

Thursday morning was cleanup. It rained so I got wet but did dry. Prize money ws handed out about 10:30 and I made a couple of stops and got home by noon. So I had the afternoon to put things away, get the beds ready and rethink meals ad then go get the 4 grands about 6:30. Their time here went well. The first night Aven's diaper came loose and her crying woke her sisters but not me so Taryn came up and she said I was hard to wake up. She thought it was funny that grandpa's and mine noses were almost touching. I made sure the diaper stayed the other nights by putting masking tape around it. It amazed me at how much putting the swaddling cloth on Madden would calm him and then he'd go right to sleep. They all had their moments - and some had more than others but really they did well.

Sunday I did lasagna for dinner and it was just Alan's, my sister and us. They all left around 3 and we headed for Derek's house after Ralph got done choring. They were happy to see mom and dad. From there we took the flowers from church to Lori and then went to visit a family where the guy had gotten a new hip on Thursday. And they thought they would have more time but they induced the mom to have her baby today. So they've had a lot going on.

Monday and Tuesday have been at home. I kept up with dishes and laundry (as best you can when the dryer is not working) but let everything else go so plenty to do. Tomorrow we are taking the big car in first thing to get worked on and then we're cleaning the Community House in the afternoon. I'm lining up times to help some of the 4-Hers with their record books and need to get a book bag bought for Thomas. That's his gift for his 8th grade graduation and we ordered one that was too small so I thought I'd take him to Dick's and see what we can find in person.

Sheryl, I hope your sister had a good trip to Arizona. It was a nice break from everything else she's been doing.

Isabella, I think most of those who come to our County Fair have some relationship to the 4-Hers. We have very good support for our livestock sale. In fact Lucy got a $600 premium and I think the boys got $500. That's why they want to take a pig - helps with college money.
I can't imagine a saurkraut pizza. Glad you enjoyed it. Glad you didn't have to wait to long to get your teeth to feeling better. Glad it was a fairly easy fix.

Anewstart, you have sure been working hard in the house but the results sound wonderful. So nice on your bone density and blood pressure. I've never had a bone density test so I'm hope mine are okay.

Sheryl, that's fantastic that Christina got her disability. That will be a help. Very cool that a TV station is going to interview her.

Marcie, never thought about palm trees dropping their fronds. Poor Cisco on having his space invaded. Bummer on your fitbit but nice that fitbit is replacing it. Hope it comes soon. Glad Simon had a good check-up. Slow and steady is a good way to lose weight so tell her to keep it up.
I don't make it to our State Fair much either. They don't have the big machine Ralph likes and it's too much walking for him. There's plenty else to do.

Sheryl, I've known quite a bit about animal sex but learned new things about llamas. Nice that you already have interest in the house. I'll pray Norma can hang on a little longer. You're right. Thank you goes a long way.

Marcie, did you see any new cars you wanted while you looked around. Smart to get that free service in. Oh my, I can imagine how your dad feels after going through that somewhat with Ralph. Three weeks wow. I'd by some over the counter stuff and give it a try.

Isabella, hope the rush slows down at work - you want the new work but the contracts on the old jobs should get done. Glad the wall is coming along. Hope it holds up for a very long time.

Jannie, cool on getting the cabinets ordered. Progress. Sounds like you'll keep busy until they come.

How fun, Sheryl, that you get a couple of meals out this week. Yay on the kitchen counter and sink.

Sorry for the long post and I realized I did some repeating but it will be more work to try and edit so you can ignore it or suffer through it. Ralph just got home from a field day. We ate before he left but they served ice cream floats. Today was a cooler day so it was a nice evening to be out. I think it's supposed to get warmer again tomorrow. Well, better get busy on my list. Good night.

Hello again, I had breakfast with my friends this morning and had to say goodbye which kind of made me sad because I only have a couple of friends here and they used to be here, lol. Ah well, I'll see them again next year maybe.

Hubby is so sweet, I help him install my new supports on the pantry door so all of my utensils are now hanging there which means now I get my 12" counter back and I don't have things falling out of the cupboards at me. I just wish I had more regular storage but I am determined to make a small kitchen work. Maybe all I will need to do is paint the cupboards, install new counter tops and flooring but I really do want a new kitchen laid out how I designed it, lol.







I hope you all had a great day!

Sheryl, I have this written down and hope this is right whether you celebrate or not.

Happy Birthday To You!
Happy Birthday To You!
Happy Birthday Dear Dear Sheryl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Happy Birthday To YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I hope you are having a wonderful day.

Yep, another day late, Happy Birthday!

Good morning everyone, yesterday was a day of rest instead of work and my kitchen looks like it but it won't take long to get that under control this morning. I have a wonderful husband who installed a new ADA toilet in the guest bathroom for me this morning while I was sleeping and I like it so that means another one for our bathroom!

I have been sleeping but having trouble staying there but at least I am still in bed at night instead of awake because I am forcing myself to try to stay in bed. It's amazing what a little sleep will help a person to accomplish.

My single dad neighbor came over with his boys for some ice cream last night. I really like his boys they are very polite and have some great thinking minds. The dad is a nice guy too and I am always asking him who his new girlfriend is but his response is always, "I don't have one". I hope he finds one soon because he is such a nice guy.

Hubby was working on the new/old racing trailer his friend bought last night. They are replacing all of the plywood and building a workbench and shelving in it. Today they race the son's car that wasn't stolen.

Tomorrow we will take a run into a small town about 40 miles away to pick up an old 6 panel door we will use to build a small kitchen island on wheels and maybe a night stand or two for the makeshift guest bedroom. We decided we will combine the office and the guest bedroom together so that will mean building a Murphy bed setup because the room is very small. If we build a Murphy bed I won't need nightstands so maybe we will build a little stand for a coffee station on the wall between the kitchen and dining room. This would open up my 4' counter to put my mixer on and allow for my 36" counter near the sink to be clear. Ooh, maybe my whole kitchen will be very useable by then.

Here is the idea, mine will have to be much smaller but I need it because I am 5'2" and using the countertop is very uncomfortable for me because it is much too high for food prep and causes me pain in my shoulders because I have to raise them to cut veggies. The door is 30" wide which is perfect starting point in height before a top and my chopping block go on top of it. I need an overall height of about 34" for comfort.

The idea, see how the panels are standing upwards instead of sideways?

https://pinterest.com/pin/449234131558694904/

This one has a picture of the kind of door I will be picking up although not the actual door, the white one is the one I am getting, it is 30" wide and 8' tall.

blueroofcabin.com/2012/02/kitchen-island-from-door.html


Mygnsac-I love the new utensil setup but I have to be slow when opening and closing the door because the rattle is enough to wake the household, lol. I also had the smaller yellow strainer but found I never really used it so I gave it to the resale charity shop about a year ago. This takes up alot more space than a counter top utensil holder everything is stuffed into, but I don't have to fight to get anything out of the door so the payoff is much better. The big stuff was stacked on things in the one upper cabinet I have for baking pans and food prep so they always fell out on top of me when I was trying to get something else out. I am happy I'm not having my head hit with anything, lol.

Well, I think I will start cleaning the kitchen and decide what else I will be doing today. Have a good one everyone!

A peek into my bedroom, I wouldn't normally do this but I am quite happy with the mix and match of new and old. I still need to hang my curtains and remove the towel blocking the sun but it works for now.

The first photo is of the vanity my husband made me with old nightstands we didn't need after we bought the new bedroom furniture. I still need to decide on my top, do I stain it a really nice dark or do I paint it? I am leaning toward staining it because I think it would hold up better.





The second photo is of the bench we have which began life as a dresser. We bought the bench at a yard sale but made some changes to it. The top was solid on it and is the original to the dresser and the drawers were working drawers but didn't have any tracks so they fell forward when you opened it. The drawers have some real nice Tall Ships paper that was glued to them. My husband removed the solid top and took the drawers out. Then he removed all but the drawer fronts and screwed them onto the frame. Then he lined the entire inside with plywood and painted it white for me. He installed a piano hinge on the back and sturdied up the bench on the bottom. We can both sit on this thing without a creak.




The third pic is a view into my room, it is small so I couldn't get a strait on shot so this one will have to do. The old door hanging above the headboard was made by the same man who made the bench. It is an old built in ironing board cabinet door and the pictures are of the shrimp boats of the King Shrimp company that moved from here many years ago. He had taken the photos on a cloudy day while out for work and couldn't pass up the view he was getting. They were moving and couldn't take the ships or the bench with them.





The fourth shot is a pic of my vanity mirror which started out in my other house hanging on a dining room wall. I thought it was perfect for what I needed.

Good Morning, I'm back...had computer problems and was without for a couple days. The Dell in the "family room" needs a new hard drive, I kept getting a warning dialog box that told me to back up all my data, it was ready to fail. Fortunately, I have an external hard drive to back everything up and Todd, my computer guy, came by Thursday and took the computer to work on. So, Thursday night, I turned on the HP computer in the back bedroom and it had been off for so long, it started to do updates. And updated, and more updates, and longer updates and 24 hours later, still updating. I figured it was broken and I'd have to give this one to Todd also, but finally, yesterday, it finished and is working fine.

Thank you for the Happy Birthday wishes. It was a good day in the fact that we got a lot accomplished outside. I don't do anything extra special simply because of my birthday. My sister asked if we would be going out for a special birthday dinner, but I said no, so she said that she wants to take us out when we're down there visiting. I suspect that every meal will be either going out or take-out brought back in, because we are not going to have stuff to cook with while cleaning out the house.

Wednesday lunch was wonderful, visiting with old friends. We had a great time.
I still get shocked when I realize how much John has deteriorated...as we were driving to the café to meet up, John asked me if he had ever met Oscar's "new" wife. I said "What?!?!", of course we know his wife, we've been to their house, they've been to our house. John said he remembered Oscar's first wife, but not his "new" wife. I must tell you that Oscar and his "new" wife have been married for 30 years now. whew, sometimes, John takes my breath away.

My lunch with Carol on Thursday was also wonderful, just a couple hours for me to get away and have girl talk. She is such a great friend.

And then, Friday we worked on another waterer. When we set up the waterers, we had to raise them up so that the geese would stop putting dirt into the fresh water. I used concrete blocks and after all these years, they were failing and tumbling down. Two years ago, I bought the extension bases that go with the waterers, but then I got sick and didn't install them. Since we needed to replace all the internal parts, new valves, hoses and floats, we also got two of the bases put in as well.
This is before:



This is after:



The water tastes a little sweeter when it's fresh...



The East waterer is still on blocks, but since it wasn't leaking, I'll wait to work on that one until after the California trip.



I better shorten this up, refill my mug and come back to write more, I suspect these photos might bump us up to another page of comments.

Hi everyone! Wow, you've all been busy!

We had our monthly free concert yesterday. It was nice. 2 girls who harmonized very nicely. Then we had 2 coupons for a free personal pizza at this new sports bar so we went to dinner. Of course we added stuff so we still spent $25 but we can't complain. It was a nice evening. We tried to watch an old Shirley temple movie called Poor Little Rich Girl when we got home that we recorded from TCM but the movie or DVR messed up and only recorded 25 minutes of it - just enough to get us interested! Oh well, nothing we can do about that.

My friend Jami dyed my hair today so I look decent again for an old gal!

Anew, your house is really coming along. Your room with all the beautiful re-purposed wood furniture is wonderful! You guys are amazing! The new counters with the wood from the door will be great too. My counters are too high for me also but not much I can do about it. We can't afford to remodel. I sometimes put my cutting board on the table and chop there or I will have Dan mix batter for me. That helps.

Sheryl, your waterers came out great! Glad you had a nice visit with your friends. Thanks for the update from Granny so glad she's doing well and sounds so much more positive.

Jannie good that you finally bit the bullet and ordered the cabinets. There's light at the end of the tunnel.

OK ladies, hubby is waiting for me to watch our shows so I'll say good night.

Have a wonderful week!

Good Morning. Another beautiful morning and we'll be in the 80's today, will probably get more done outside.

Isabella, your monthly concerts sound like such a great outing, just getting away from regular routine and a large variety of talent. I agree with Debora, seems like it's more than once a month, how time flies.
Oh, how I hate when the vcr/dvd doesn't record as planned. You're right, nothing to do about it after the fact. Hopefully, the program gets repeated soon.

Debora, heading to OK is a great idea. If you are able to see Granny, I know she will love that.
'No' on my mom spending a day with us in Pasadena, she has already stated that she doesn't want to go back to that house. Plus, it would be an extra trip to and from Redlands to Pasadena because we plan to stay there nights. I'm putting our air bed in the car and Norma is bringing her sleeping bag. I believe all the furniture is gone now, so not even chairs to sit on. Mom would only slow us down and be complaining the whole time. She seems so miserable and unfortunately is no fun to be around. Norma is taking books and photos to her house and we can go through them later in the week, at her house. We will probably have Mom join us for that. But, she wants no part of cleaning out the garage and carport. I actually told Norma that John might slow us down too, but that I can't leave him home alone for two weeks again. She said that we can work around him, no problem.

Anew, we all must have gone to Tupperware parties...I have a yellow strainer also. I use it constantly, one of the better purchases, so many other Tupperware pieces just sit in the back of the cabinet.

Jannie, seems like a long time before cabinet delivery. I hope the time goes fast for you, it usually does, like I said, time flies, at least for me.

Marcie...It's Monday, the start of your work week. Hope it's a good one!

Good Morning.

Carla, how interesting that you are planning a trip on Hwy 395...I'm plotting out our journey on that route as well. Another TSSAB moment. John and I are traveling down next week to help my sister finish cleaning out the Pasadena house so we can sell it. I thought, to make it more enjoyable for John, we'd take a more scenic route. He absolutely hates I-5. I'm sure you can do it and will enjoy every minute and mile of it. This ol' 62 year old is doing it with an ol' grumbling 75 year old in tow.

More summer weather, so we'll be outside again today. It's starting to look like someone decent lives here instead of "white trash". Although, there are still junker vehicles in the driveway and pasture. Even though they are junk, John has a real attachment to them. So strange.

My cousin, Virginia, is having knee replacement surgery tomorrow. I hope she comes through it as well as Elaine did. She is an active woman and the pain has really slowed her down. I hope she can get back to the way she used to be.

My mugs needs a refill...

Good Morning, I spent most of yesterday making phone calls or waiting for call backs. Since I was inside, I planned out how far we'd travel each day on our drive down to California and I made reservations for the hotels for the two nights on the road. Now that it's all booked and paid for, I think John won't try to back out.

Today, I have blood work scheduled at 11 am and then I'll run errands and that will probably be the last time I hit the grocery store before we leave. I have stuff for sandwiches and stuff in the freezer, so I'll buy very little so nothing spoils while we're gone for 2 weeks. Whatever fruit I buy, we'll take with us.

I was going to have the regular servicing for the car done before our trip. A month earlier than planned, but thought it would be good to have the fresh oil change, all the fluids topped off, brakes checked and tires rotated. To my surprise, when I called yesterday, they are all booked up until next Wednesday (and we're leaving on Tuesday). In the past, every time I've called, they've said I could come in that day or the next, but not this time. So, I'll check the oil myself and have all the servicing done when we return. It will be closer to the mileage that way too. They say I should be having the 25,000 mile check, based on how long I've had the car (5,000 miles every 6 months), but I only have a little over 12,000 miles on it right now. The round trip to Pasadena should put on another 2,500-3,000 miles.

I still haven't told my Mom exactly when we're coming because I don't know how much time we will have to spend with her. I know she'll expect to see me more often than I plan to visit with her. Even if I spent the whole time with her...it wouldn't be enough.

I don't know if Christina will get over here soon or not, but I'll share her great news...she got her Social Security Disability benefits. She received a letter stating that she was approved, but no word on when the checks would start coming in. She called the bank to check on finances, because it's so hard to make ends meet right now, and was told there was a huge deposit made a few days earlier. She got all the back pay from when she started the hearings and will now get monthly benefits. What an answer to prayer and a great financial relief. I'm sure it helps her mentally and emotionally too, knowing that she is contributing to the household and everything is not on Jason's back alone. She can now afford her new wheelchair. She is having more and more trouble with balance and getting around.

I think that's it for now. I need to refill my mug.

Good morning all, been having some trouble sleeping again and felt like a zombie, lol. Finally had some sleep last night so I am better. Today won't entail too much work in the house, I will be heading out to the store and cook dinner but that is about it for today and my lazy day. I've managed to keep the house clean although yesterday I didn't make my bed and I tried oh so hard to get a nap but that was not happening. Some sort of switch turned on or off and sleep was not in my favor.

We have the door we bought the other day all planned out. I decided that after building my little island I want to use the leftover door panels to make a tiny coffee station for my husband that will sit in the 24" wide space in the dining room next to the window. If I have a small station for him it means my 48" counter will be free for baking and food prep. This space contains my spices and all baking supplies so you can imagine daily I am using this counter but things are in the way. I would like to have my cookbook, bowls, measuring devices and such on the counter without fighting with his coffee things. Here is an example of what I want to do but it will be on much smaller scale and the shelving could be regular shelves, or baskets or???

https://bing.com/images/search?q=coffee+station+dining+room&view=detailv2&&id=3A5B1DE90E39F422195283BD4D161E2E0A76C67B&selectedIndex=0&ccid=6HzE31ot&simid=608046908838185095&thid=JN.EncX%2ffMI0hCpUf21vHbtxw&ajaxhist=0

Sanferris-Your waterers look great and it seems you have been working hard outside. I would like to have less humidity so that I can walk outside and not be soaking wet within 5 minutes, lol. Thank you for the update on Granny and your mom's house with all your plans to travel, I love to travel. I traveled by myself from South Coastal Texas all the way to Michigan in 2006, it was fun and I enjoyed the itinerary. I enjoy music too, it's the one thing that can bring my spirits up if I am feeling down. I turn it up loud and block out the world, lol.

Isyvanek-What a lovely evening for a concert and pizza. Thanks for the positive comments on my room, I enjoy it very much and it took me years to get there. My makeshift kitchen island is currently a three tier not very wide wire basket thingy with wheels on it to hold onions, garlic, potatoes and chicken broth that I put my cutting board on top of. It is wobbly, but it is the right height so I scootch it up to the cabinet for balance and start my chopping. I am excited to have a true but small scale footprint comfortable height kitchen island.

I had my husband dye my hair last Saturday because I found something all natural with the promise of no reactions. It was perfect and I had no reactions to it at all. It is called Hairprint which is only for brown or black hair, they are working on red hair and blondes but for now it is just brown or black hair. This stuff is so natural you could probably (I don't know, maybe) eat it(don't do it) although I wouldn't, lol.

myhairprint.com/pages/the-science

Arobed53-Still busy as ever and I wonder how you keep up with yourself, you must be very tired by the end of a full day.

Sanferris-Yes the Tupperware parties, I had to tell my friends no because I couldn't afford all that stuff so then it was hosting them so I could get it, lol.

cjdigsindirt-It's good to see you here, go on that trip and make it all about having a great time. Just don't pick up hitchhikers and pay attention to your surroundings. Have a set course with maps and let people know what that course is. I went on a trip to Michigan and started in South Coastal Texas back in 2006, it was a fun trip and I checked in with my husband on the phone at set times during the day to let him know I was ok and where I was on my planned trip. I had a great time and so will you.

Sanferris-Thanks for the update on Christina, she must be so relieved.

Mygnsac, I hope you are doing ok, haven't seen you here lately.


Everyone have a great day.

Well hello everyone! It has been way too long since I've "heard" your beautiful voices. What have I been doing? I don't know! I've been a slug. I've been a procrastinator. I've gained weight. UGH!

Sheryl, I want you to know I sent LOTS of positive vibes your direction on your birthday. I remember you don't make a big deal of birthdays, but you were thought of none-the-less. I intended to call, but then worried talking on the phone would be bothersome for you. Plan B: Send an email. That is where the procrastinator took over and well ... it didn't happen. But you were thought of none-the-less. I hope you had a fabulous day.

Debora, I've been intending to send you a Facebook message or email too. That procrastinator reared her ugly head again. Our son is moving to Iowa. He started his new job in Iowa Aug. 3, but his wife and daughter are still in KS until the house sells. So I am very sad to say I may not end up in Hesston again any time soon.

I think of you all so very often. I love "seeing" you on Facebook.

What's new? I hit a deer at a full on 65 mph July 3 and came within a few dollars of totaling my car. I was not hurt thank heavens. My car would have been totaled if the insurance adjustor knew it would need a new air conditioning compressor. But that was unknown and our insurance approved it's repair. I was without my "deer" car for a month.

We have been experiencing a drought in our area. Not a Sacramento level drought Marcie, but a drought none-the-less. We are drylands farmers, meaning we do not irrigate our crops. We've had minimal moisture in the past year. Triple digit temps in June and July. Our crops really suffered this year. Idaho County Commissioners declared and agricultural disaster in the past couple of weeks. We finished harvest yesterday; we normally start harvest the first week of August.

There are about 150 fires burning in our immediate area; ignited by lightening a couple of days ago. We have had very unusual weather this summer. Our crops matured about three weeks earlier than normal; the grain itself is very poor quality. It is extremely dry, so there is a lot of fuel for the fires. One fire is fairly close, within twenty miles, but hopefully can be kept from burning up on the prairie where we live.

So, are you all comfortable with the food log here @ MFP? I think I am being a poopy head and still pouting about losing NM. I have not yet figured out how to log a recipe. I tend to give up easily. Hence the weight gain. No?

The hubs has been pushing me to get my knees replaced. I've decided it is time. My orthopedic surgeon said when they keep me from doing things I would normally do, it is time. I surpassed that point a long time ago. So I am actively trying to lose 30 pounds before knee surgery early next year. My plan is one knee is January, the other in November, one insurance deductible. We'll see how that plan works out.

On that note, I've challenged myself to strengthen my core doing planks. At the moment I am not a fan of planks, but that could be my flabby tummy talking.

Okay, nuff for now. I miss you all. I'll try to hang out a little more often, but I'm not sure I can keep up with you all!

Did Granny move?