We made it back to Grand Junction where the temperature was 77F. As I get ready for bed, I am feeling a bit chilly. We will have a low of 37F tonight so the furnace will be working instead of the swamp cooler! As we were getting ready to go, I could not find my Fitbit that I had taken off when I took my shower. I searched everywhere I could think that I had been including taking the trash out of the wastebasket to see if I had thrown it away. I finally gave up and figured I would need to get another one but Praise God, when I unpacked my suitcase it was inside there. I don't know why it was in there but I must have gotten distracted as I was packing and laid it down and covered it up with more clothes. I was complaining about being forgetful and a friend suggested Lion's Mane mushroom supplement. She took it after she had COVID when she had memory problems. She gave me some so I will starting taking it although it can lower blood pressure so I need to pay attention to see if this happens. It will be interesting to see if it has an effect on my memory.

Susan - Thanks for the ideas of what you do when going out to eat. I will share the thoughts with my son. I know that when he comes to family dinners, he does bring his own food if we are eating what he can not. Your chorography sounds fun but I am sure that you will be careful not to hit your neighbor in the nose when you have your hand in front of their face. LOL

Barb - I have a cousin and uncle that were born at Christmas. They agree that having a birthday in December is not as exciting as having one on the other months. I heard of a person who had a December birthday but he celebrated his half birthday in June so he could have a birthday with no holiday. Our plumbing is working great! Yes it was a lot of money so I hope it works for a long time. You spoke of Golden Corral. I had a bad experience with them two times. One time I found a piece of wood in my coleslaw. I assume it was part of the cutting board and another time I had to return my glass and silverware because it was not clean. They did offer me a free meal the time I found the wood in my salad. Great picture of the homeschoolers as they got to sit in and learn about the fire trucks. Every August we have a gathering on our street where we all get together and talk about our summer activities and the police and firemen come and show the children all about what they do. The children love it and they find out that the policemen are very friendly and helpful. I grew up thinking the police were looking for things to arrest you for and to stay away from them.

Judith - I hope that you are doing well. Maybe you will be posting at the same time as I am. I hope you got rested up after all the celebrating you did for your birthday.

Marilyn - praying for your continued recovery and mobility.

Judith, that is sad about the mail strike continuing so long! It's sad your sunflowers haven't been able to get to you and some birthday cheer too. I hope they resolve the issues soon. What a back log there will be. About the shaker card, I have the dies and stamps to go with the domes. I do have a punch from a few years ago but it doesn't fit the domes. About Joe, he is less talkative and restless due to the meds they ate giving him. They catheterised him to stop him getting up at night and falling but now he has an infection in the bladder. Today Colin is sitting with him most of the day as Eileen has to go have a cancer treatment on her bladder in a hospital far from Joe. So please pray her treatment is routine and not painful, that they find a way for Joe to manage daily life without falling (he cut and bruised his arm last time he fell and he often hits his poor head when he falls) and that both feel comforted by their faith in the Lord. May the Lord's will be done in their lives. I suspect we won't have Joe with us much longer...I'll pray for Wendy, too.

Linda, glad you found your Fitbit and that the Lions Mane helps you. You have such a busy life and have to remember so much. It's not surprising that some small details escape you at times. You are welcome for the food ideas. I hope it helps somehow. Yes, the play practice is fun and so far, so goid. None of the 25 if us have hit anyone! The Uke group also has to learn some simple steps while we play one of our songs. I think We'll have to.learn more steps for another one we are doing. I am not so coordinated any more so h as ve been practising at home, too! Lol!

Barb, the pictures of your grandsons are so very cute. What a great day out for them. No, we don't have that restaurant chain here. I had never heard of it before you mentioned it. Only a couple of independent restaurants here have buffets, and we have one restaurant which allows you to order individual things from the menu for your plate. It is called Cafe 63 and I like to go there. One of the things I order there is breakfast or lunch - two fried eggs, two rashers of bacon and a slice of fried tomato. No sauces. No bread. I rarely have fried food so that is a treat for me and I don't get sick from it. They also have a grilled chicken caesar salad that I sometimes have for a dinner as the dressing seems to agree with me. There's no onion or garlic in it. I ask for the salad without croutons and they are happy to leave them off. It seems to work! Otherwise a grilled steak and roast vegetables or plain salad works. No sauces, no bread.

I trimmed Jasper's face yesterday. He looks so cute. I took a blurry picture of him on my lap after the grooming session. He was even smiling a little. Archie is the best smiler but Jasper is learning to.

I just lost a big post…

Just to summarise:

Linda, the restaurant serves fried red tomatoes only. Fried green tomatoes are not really a thing in Australia. My Mom knew of them being from Arkansas so told me about them but never cooked them.

Judith, photo frame cards are lovely. I sometimes add a window sheet behind the frame to make them into shaker cards too. I hope and pray your appointment goes well.

Barb, yes, we are in opposite seasons so Dec 21st is our longest day. Christmas is in the heat of summer. People like snowmen but lately I have seen them made/drawn on cards from sand! Santa wears board shorts, sunglasses and is often found surging atnthd beach. People still string lights up everywhere so imagine that happening in summer and you'll have an idea of what it is like here. Crazily, icicle shaped lights are popular.

Glad you all liked Jasper's face 🙂

Joe is very restless and unfortunately his mind is not what it was so he does not understand why he needs to use walkers and have help when he gets up. The staff have many like him to care for so cannot always be with him. He doesn't understand that, either. It's very sad and hard. Eileen's treatments and travel took all day yesterday which exhausted her so she went straight to bed when she got home. I hope she had a good rest. She needs it.

Barb and Susan I am sorry that MFP lost your posts. That is so frustrating. I do a lot of "save draft" to keep at least some of what I write. My headache is gone today after taking the Lion's Mane supplement yesterday so I think I will try it again tomorrow to see if the headache was related to the medication or other conditions.

Susan - you and Judith have mentioned "shaker cards" several times. Can you explain what they are? It sounds like you put something inside of the card that moves when shaken. Eileen must have been exhausted from her treatment that too so long. I am glad that she did not feel she had to come to the place where Joe is staying. She needs to conserve her energy as much as she can and still be with Joe. It is so hard when working with someone who is confused and does not understand what is happening. After my Dad was taken to the hospital for a temporary pacemaker placement, I went home to sleep. My Dad became confused and pulled his temporary pacemaker out of his chest. The doctor was extremely upset so they put it back in and called me to come sit with him until they could get the permanent pacemaker in. My Dad did not realize what he was doing but it still could have caused a lot more problems than it did.

Barb - Your decorations for the Joy group look very Fall like. Are these decorations yours or do they belong to the church? It sounds like your group is growing if you need to add another table for next month. Have you heard anything more about 3 having his therapy reduced? How does 3, the girls and you feel with your colds? So far I just have had a few sneezes and runny nose then it went away. It may have been an allergy since it was so short.

Judith - how was your appointment today. I assume that you are resting now as you usually do after a long hard day with the surgeon. Let us know how it went when you feel like it. We pray that God is comforting you as you sleep tonight.

Judith, it's good to see you had energy to post at all after a long day with Drs. No need to apologise! I hope you were OK with the appointments yesterday. Thank you for continuing to pray for our friends. Yes, shaker cards are fun to make. You can also use a clear cellophane bag to put a shaker element behind some kind of cardstock window.

Linda, you guessed right about shaker cards. Adding a clear pocket or some to hold sequins, tiny beads or something shiny like glitter is what a shaker card is. The glittery stuff is supposed to move and make a sound when the card is shaken. Glad the Lion's Mane isn't continuing to cause you problems. Yes, Joe is confused more often than not now. It must have been hard watching your Dad go through that but you could help him by sitting with him, which was good. I had to do the same for my Dad when he had quadruple bypass surgery and was confused for weeks by the drugs they used and his own heart condition. That's why Colin is spending so much time with Joe. He's a calming and reasonable voice when Joe tries to do something not in his best interest.

Barb, I hope your day with 3 is not too hard and you can get help with the wheelchair at the Rehab centre. Your fall table decor is nice. I especially liked the colour of the table cloths! Candles are always a lovely touch. Glad your Joy group seems yo be growing. Yes, Christmas here is very different than it is there. We usually cook the day before so we can have cold meats and salads on Christmas day. I found you something that might make you smile 😃

It has been raining all day long. There was water running down the parking lot when we went to exercise. Our ground is very dry so there is no water running on the ground. It is soaking it all up. I have been washing my inside windows but with weather like it is today, the outside windows will have to wait for a good sunny day. I took my Lion's Mane capsule this morning and I did not have any headache so maybe my body is getting used to it or it might have been dehydration. It is supposed to be taken twice a day but I just did it once today and will try two times tomorrow. My rose outside my office window are starting to bud again. Maybe it is the last of the season but I look forward to seeing them one last time. I am trying a new recipe tonight. It is Quinoa stuffed peppers and I will include the recipe if it is any good. It is vegetarian which we try to do once in a while. I did add black beans also to give it a little more protein. I went out to lunch with a friend today and I was careful to not pick things that had a lot of calories. I had the soup and salad and felt good about my choices. I did gain weight at the TOPS meeting so I am trying to be more careful this week.

Susan - Thanks for explaining shaker cards. I will need to go back and look at your cards again to really appreciate them. How do people who celebrate Christmas in the Summer have Santa bring the presents? Does he drop them in your chimneys also? Are your songs different also? We sing of Frosty the Snowman and Sleigh bells ring as we walk through a winter wonderland.

Barb - I chuckled at the picture that Susan gave to you about Christmas in the summer. That is so different from us that have snow during the season.

Judith - I am so glad that you are taking care of yourself and getting the rest you need. Was the surgeon able to remove some skin growth this time?

Judith, thank you for your health update. I am so sorry it was so intense and the surgeon couldn't do everything he wanted to do. Praying. I was glad your friend could come over and make your day so special though. The flowers are gorgeous and hopefully will last awhile. You are welcome for the shaker card idea. I just seal up ordinary protective card bags when I want to make a card like that. That way the bag can be cut down if needed to fit.

Linda, you're welcome for the shaker card explanation. In our part of Australia chimneys are rare so Santa comes through a window or just magics himself inside. Song words are often modified but we use the same tunes. Jingle Bells is changed into riding through the bush in a rusty Holden Ute, for example. We do sing the traditional words as well. When we have Santa come to a community or attending a parade before Christmas, he could arrive by helicopter or on the back of a fire truck or on the back of a motorbike or in a speedboat or something else. He never arrives by sleigh unless someone has created a sleigh float for him. There are no reindeer hence the song 'Six White Boomers' (Boomers are large albino kangaroos in this case!)

Barb, you are welcome for the surfin' Santa picture. When he delivers gifts in his boomer pulled sleigh, he always wears his warm clothes..

I know. It doesn't make sense, but there you have it! Lol! Glad to hear you have some blooms coming in the garden. I noticed my yellow orchid is blooming and my tiny lemons are growing. I will try to get pictures in coming days.

Church today!

It continued to rain all day today up until 4pm when it stopped just in time for us to have our BBQ and prayer time for our adult children. A lot of people were out of town so we only had 6 attend the prayer time but we did get some prayer requests for some who were not there so we were able to pray for them also.

After the rain stopped, the sun would shine then it would get dark then light again but I think the rain is over now. It has been wonderful for the moisture. My tomatoes are cracking though with the extra water the plants have gotten. This morning with the high humidity and rain we had our gas insert lit to warm up the house. I have a space heater in my office that takes the cold off too. Last year I had to have a lap blanket on my legs to keep warm but now with my space heater I am much more comfortable.

Susan - it is so interesting with what your do for Christmas in the Summer time. I had to look up what a Holden Ute was. I had not heard of this. I am glad that you have people who have imaginations and can rewrite/modify songs that make more sense to your environment. How is Colin feeling? Does sitting with Joe tire him out or does he enjoy the time together even if Joe is confused?

Barb - You said that 3 was going to graduate from speech therapy. I had thought that they might stay in for a while to work on his paralyzed vocal cord but that might be a long term healing situation. I am glad that you were able to get a new walker for him and that you were able to walk with him in the driveway and road. It is so true that when working with therapies, it is not like the real area in a home with chairs, rugs and other things to walk around. I hope you see some wonderful colors as you go through Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin. I would love to see some pictures since I missed my chance to see the colors last week.

Judith - You really stayed up late yesterday to be posting after midnight and then came back later today to post again. The flowers your friend brought you are so pretty. I was looking at your couch and thinking that the pattern looked familiar. I finally figured out that I have a set of sheets with the same pattern. Most of my sheets are plain colors or dark but when I the sheets like your couch on my bed, it really brightens my bedroom. One more thing we have in common. 😁

Linda posted just before you, Judith. You probably were posting at the same time! Happy Thanksgiving weekend. Glad you enjoyed seeing Santa in a new light. Lol! Happy to share the differences with you all. It must be so difficult with the way things are going with your treatment 😕. I am extra glad that you trust in the Lord and continue to see His purpose in all of this. You are an inspiration.

Linda, yes, the slang here is different as well as the vehicles, the food, etc. There are a lot of things we have in common, but there are lots of little surprises. The first time I saw Santa dressed in summer clothes it just seemed so wrong, but then it made perfect sense! Our summers are so hot, we only put on Santa hats for taking family pictures then remove them immediately. Some families buy summer pjs to take family pictures too. They are more likely to feature summer graphics instead of snowy ones.

Barb, glad you enjoyed the Santa pictures too. Oh, the Bush is what we call the Outback. It's all the deserted, dessert land out west that has little vegetation or roads. Bush bashing means taking your Ute through areas with no roads, just for fun. It's frowned on by environmentalists now but people who live on the land farming beef cattle or sheep still do it with glee. It their land after all! But I digress. The lemon tree has some cute little fruits on it:

And I got a picture of the yellow orchid for you all.

Colin is mourning already and his attention has shifted to supporting Eileen more. Joe rarely wakes now and is breathing more slowly. The staff are keeping him sedated as he is in too much pain. Colin does seem exhausted when he comes home and debriefs. He takes a nap right after he talks about what id happening. The Drs think Joe will pass in the next few days...heaven will regain another beloved son.

Judith - I am sorry that the medication is not killing the cells like it should. Would the medication that they refused to OK work better? I wish that they would change their minds. Maybe the Cancer clinic will have some answers for you. I will be praying. I do love the doilies and family hand made decorations. I hope that you did see my posting from yesterday. Maybe we need to schedule when we post so we do not miss each other. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your Canadian friends. Do you have the same foods we have for our Thanksgiving - Turkey, pumpkin pie, stuffing, etc?

Susan - Does Australia have a day like our Thanksgiving? The little lemon is very cute. I did not realize that they started out as green. It almost looks like a lime. Your orchid has such pretty colors. Mine has not bloomed for a while and looks wilted. I have watered it but do not want to give it too much water. I know it grows in humid climates which is not what we have here. I understand that Colin would be grieving already. I am glad that you can be his listening ear to process his feelings then he can take a nap to rest. You two and Eileen are in my prayers as is Joe also.

Barb - so far we have had 2 inches of rain over the past three days. We have not had it during the Summer but now that there is a hurricane in the Pacific Ocean, we are getting the moisture. We are not getting any flooding right now. We live in the Central Western part of the state. The irrigation ditches are full of very muddy water. We will need to clean out our filters on the pump system so the irrigation pipes do not get clogged.

Happy Thanksgiving, Judith. It sounds like a lovely celebration at your daughter's house and how nice to extend your birthday like that.

We don

Judith. Happy Thanksgiving. I’m glad you can have some foods I just had Panera’s Autumn squash soup. The mango pineapple smoothie sounds good. So glad you were with family.
I also wonder if that cream that you can’t get would help you. Praying

I loved your Thanksgiving Blessings. Hooe you can rest too after today’s activities and bday celebrations plus drs Thursday.

Susan prayers for you all especially Joe & Eileen. So glad you can help them too. Prayers. Sorry about the thieves. People just don’t care any more so sad.
That’s neat about lemons being green first, who would know.

Linda. It’s nice you had 2” of rain. We had a bit this morning before we left home. Under trees there was nothing so not measurable again.
we are in Ames, Iowa where iowa state is we went to their garden Reiman garden. The butterfly garden was cool. I’ll send pics not seeing much color but I’m sure we will.
prayers for all.

There was 41 different speeches and over 100 butterflies

I did a very silly thing today. My virus scan said I had apps that were not used for a while and wanted to know if I wanted to I uninstall them. I was uninstalling a program that we no longer use for the school. I misread which one and agreed to uninstall a vital program so now my laptop is totally blank. We will take it to the computer repair shop. I hope my error is not too expensive.

I will get back to posting when it works. Using my tablet today has not been working well. I have had to restart 3 times so far.