Snow day

This is what my grandkids do when they have a day off school. 

My son works at this water park resort...Wilderness in the Smokies. 

Issuu

Have you discovered Issuu? It is an online source for magazines and a great place to browse. These magazines are of all categories and I particularly like the Home and Garden ones. If you have some time to just go through the different ones it is fun. The quality of the writing is excellent and the pictures are professional. You can find them at issuu.com.  

Another EGD

Yesterday morning I went to the surgical center in Olean for another EGD ..throat scope. I have a narrowing of my esophagus which causes me to choke on food periodically and I need my throat enlarged or stretched. It is not a long procedure and you are put into a twilight sleep. Unfortunately my esophagus has scarring from acid reflux and it is hard to expand it but he did his best. I was sleeping most of yesterday and all night last night from the anesthesia. I’m so glad that I have a husband who takes such good care of me. He waited on me and fixed me something to eat. I really lean on him in times like these. 

My isn’t it beautiful?

Just yesterday there was no snow on the ground and today we have a foot. It’s so pretty. Especially if you can stay inside. Don went out and said the road by our house was full of ice. Yesterday's rain had turned to a glare of ice. 

We have been watching all the playoff games. Our two teams. Buffalo Bills and the Steelers lost their games. I also was reading and finished a good book. Switched by Joseph Finder.  Don and I also made bubble buns.  He remembered how good they tasted and we haven’t made them for a long time. I had some frozen roll dough and when we let them rise....they didn’t.  So I made some homemade sweet dough. Not only did we make the bubble buns but a pan of cinnamon on rolls too. It was a good day to have the oven on. 

Willow Dale

I have often shown pictures of the Willow Dale Cemetery pond which is a stone’s throw from my house. It is a lovely little pond with ducks and in the summertime many people and children sit on the benches and feed the ducks.

The little bridge is often used in wedding photos.

 



I often walked Sadie in the cemetery and around the pond.  In all season this pond was a thing of beauty.

But Mother Nature sometimes has her own way. Yesterday we were hit with a lot of rain which melted all our snow and caused flooding all over the area. The little pond was flooded and rose high over the highway which had to be closed.

And our little beautiful bridge was destroyed.

It is sad to see.

I’m so tired of little annoying problems

Now another electronic problem...the tv won’t turn off.  It seems that I have been vexed lately with little annoying problems. When it comes to electronics it seems to take a superhuman effort to solve them. I dread having to call technical support. One, it’s very hard to even find a human and two, when you do sometimes their accents are so pronounced that you can’t understand them. It’s hard enough to follow those step by step directions when you are totally unintelligent in electronics but having to decipher an accent on top of that is just too much for me. 

So ..happier things....I picked up this hyacinth at our new Aldi’s store out by the mall. What a beautiful store it is. I had shopped in the one in a neighboring town and I’m very happy that we have one right here now. The produce was lovely and they have some foods that just aren’t found at Walmart. Last year I had purchased a hyacinth bulb with a container this shape but despite my best efforts it never really grew. This one has a great head start with all those white roots. I really need the sensory input of spring because it is far, far away. Last night it rained all night and melted the snow which caused flooding around our town. Tonight we are expected to get a snowstorm with deep snow so I plan on staying in all weekend. I needed this hyacinth for my soul. 

Just a little bragging.

Sean won an award at school for being one of the top Accelerated Readers. He is an amazing reader. A few years ago when I heard him read from his reading book using different voices for the characters I knew what talent he had. I’m so proud of him.

I just wanted to share this picture of Jenny and Ryan at their wedding that she posted today on Facebook along with such lovely words that showed how committed they are to each other. I love that they found each other.
Me at the gym…

A warmer day and the snow is melting a little.


But as you can see the creek is still frozen.

On a Tuesday

It was a gloomy day yesterday although the freezing cold temperatures were not present. The roads were dry and it made my trip to Buffalo easier. I was taking my friend to a specialist for some surgery. Since our town is small we rely on going to Erie or Buffalo for any major medical surgeries and she had been diagnosed with skin cancer on her nose and chin. My friend has been through so much recently having two back surgeries which she is just now getting over and dreaded facing going under the knife again. We went early since we wanted to get some lunch before her appointment at twelve forty five. 

  The little town of Hamburg had very few restaurants but we went inside one that looked interesting. It was very modern and had a unique set up. It was a place where you ordered at the counter and your food was brought to the table. 

The menu was very different. My friend was of Italian descent and in her family they ate very plain foods but she did find an egg sandwich that she ordered. 

I ordered the butternut squash soup which is one of my favorites but I was so disappointed in the taste. I’m not sure of which spices were put in that soup but it tasted like a whole can of curry was poured in it which completely covered the squash taste. THe menu had a few things on it that I had never heard of before...caciocavallo which is a hard cheese similar to Parmesan, fennel pollen,and Calabrian chili flakes. We also shared a homemade almond puff which was the best thing we had. 

After lunch we went around the corner to the medical center and I waited as she went through the door for her procedure. I was told it would be an hour and half to two hours but she didn’t come out for three and a half hours. The procedure takes a long time but most of it is spent waiting for the results of the lab after they remove the cancer they analyze it to make sure they get it all. For my friend they didn’t so they they had to remove more and wait again. It was more extensive than they realized and she came out with bandages on her nose and stitched chin. She may have to return in a month for a skin graft. 

 

It was over an hour to get home so it was a long day for both of us. I had taken my ipad to read but though they had WiFi they wouldn’t give out the password. Luckily I had my phone with me. I was glad that I old be there for my friend to give her love and support. It was a difficult day for her. 

TV

My name is Peggy and I am a tv addict. On these cold days of winter I am watching a lot more tv than usual. Our remotes are corralled right beside our chairs with easy access (and so I don’t keep losing them). Since Chris gave us a new tv last Christmas and hardwired our internet to the tv we have been able to stream Netflix and Amazon right to the tv easily. We also have Apple TV and can show anything that is on the ipad. Without Chris I would be electronically challenged. Streaming along with a DVR has changed completely my way of life. With a DVR I record all my favorite programs and watch them at different times when I feel like it without watching commercials. Since there are 20 minutes of commercials to every hour of tv it saves me a lot of viewing time. And the programs automatically record once you set it up so it is not a problem if you are not home for your favorite show.  Here are some comments about the shows I watch. 

  Ten Days in the Valley...This detective/missing child show with Keira Sedgwick has held my interest although right in the middle they stopped the show for a while only to have it come back last night as a surprise to me. 

   Football...who hasn’t watched a lot of football lately? My Buffalo Bills made the playoffs for the first time in seventeen years. Today they play at one o’clock.  Wish them luck. 

    Blacklist....it’s back. I think it got off track last season so I am looking forward to better shows now. 

    The Housewives of....ok...I like them all but ATlanta. I like to see how really rich women can be so catty and petty. And how they spend their money. 

     Top Chef...love this cooking competition. 

     Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, How to get away with murder...I miss these Thursday night shows. 

     Rachel Maddow....my favorite newscaster who breaks down the news so I can understand it. 

     Other BRavo shows like RelationShep and Southern Charm. ..I’m a sucker for the south. 

     On Netflix....Grace and FRankie, House of Cards, Orange is the New Black

    ON Amazon Prime..Goliath, Suits

    ON DVD....GAme of Thrones

What are you “can’t miss” shows?

   

winter transition

Winter is a season onto itself. While in the south things pretty much look the same all year long in the winter we are covered for months with white. Blankets of white cover all the ground and the trees on the hills show layers of white on the branches. Everywhere you look it is white all over. So we decorate inside to give us something else to look at.

After the Christmas tree is put up in the attic I change to winter decor.  This arrangement I just put together on a whim. I used a silver bowl that I found this year at Pier One which had many beautiful things this season. I added some berries and greenery on the outside and in the center put one of my very very favorite objects.

I always decorate the black table in front of the sunroom window. I love mercury glass and found these round bowls at Kohl’s one year. I think the amaryllis are perfect to transition from one season to another.

And in the center is my large trophy filled with white flowers, artichokes, eucalyptus and branches from my contorta tree.




This year I found these silver pheasants at a consignment store in Tennessee and they hopped right into my cart.

Another thing that I just had to bring home were these little candle holders from Pottery Barn. They are glass with silver on the outside and a hint of gold on the inside.


My table stayed mostly the same. I traded out the glittered white deer for the bronze stag and added some pine cone trees.

Now I am set for the winter season.

Cleaning and Organizing

Sooooo…I had a free day. No commitments, no appointments, no coffee. I could do anything I want including being lazy. Yeah, sure.

  I woke up and six and stayed in bed till six thirty. I put on my coziest robe and headed for the sunroom to watch the rest of Top Chef. I had to turn it off last night since I couldn’t keep awake for it. But first I had to watch Last Chance Kitchen on my ipad to see who came back to compete. Then I watched the episode where they camped in the snow and cooked over a campfire. Despite all those challenges they served really good food.

My next goal of the day was to do some organizing. I went through every drawer and cupboard in the kitchen trying to eliminate some things that I don’t use. I can proudly say that since we had our kitchen redone several years ago I have narrowed things down pretty well. But I had one drawer full of knives that I sorted and put about half in a box for the garage sale next spring. I saved all the Case and Cutco knives. If you are familiar with these brands they are excellent knives. Cutco is in the neighboring town and they will sharpen all their knives free. Case Cutlery is a local company and known all over the world for their excellent products. It was fun to open the drawer afterwards and see everything in order. This is a good time of year to do those sorting and organizing chores. How about you? Are you one of those people who always keep things in order or like me find a time to really go at it?

Are you cold?

Everyone’s in the deep freeze. I feel sorry for my southern relatives to whom this is phenomenon. For us it’s business as usual. It is not strange at all to have temperatures below freezing in the wintertime. In fact it’s the norm. We have been spoiled this winter since November was unusually warm and we had little snow. There are a lot of places suffering with the cold now besides our little section of western Pennsylvania.

Our high tomorrow will be three degrees. It will be one of the rare times that our coffee group won’t be meeting in the morning. My Women’s Literary Club group also cancelled their meeting for tomorrow. I plan on staying in all day marathon watching Game of Thrones.

How is the weather where you are?

Have you met Mila?

This little girl is hilarious. I know the season has past but this is too funny not to share. enjoy

I am me, that is enough

Do you have an inner critic? That small voice in your head that picks apart the things that you have done. The voice the plays over and over like a record on those nights when you cannot sleep?

We tend to be our worst enemy and very unforgiving of our faults. It is a strong person who can project self esteem when with a crowd but also when alone.

I found this poem and wanted to share it with you.

to see this clearly by May Stein

I am no magic trick, no doer of miracles, no water walker.

I am no architect of glory, no layer on of hands, no angel wing.

I am no weaver of gold, no mythmaker, no parachute artist.

I am no halo of stillness in a down pour.

I am no treasure chest, no hero, no thunderbolt wielder.

I am no rabbit foot or lottery number.

I am no combination lock, or mystery ingredient, no optical illusion.

But here is a handful of sunflowers from the florist’s sidewalk jungle.

Here is a blanket to spread on the grass for an afternoon.

here is a song on the radio that calls for dancing.

here is a chocolate bar I will share with you.

here is a road sign, a notebook, photographs of those I have loved.

here is a slice of bright blue sky, a hummingbird thrashing her wings around an apricot tree. To see this clearly is enough.

Cauliflower Mountain

If you like cauliflower I have a great and easy recipe for you. I first had this two years ago at my son's mother in law's house at Thanksgiving. It's so delicious. 

Diffuser

In November I received a box of essential oils in my Nikki box. (AT home with Nikki sends you a box of goodies every month as a subscription. ) I really wasn’t sure what to do with them. She provided a recipe for making a kitchen counter spray which I love. Yesterday I finally bought a diffuser. It’s purpose is to steam scented water vapor into the air. I found this one in Walmart. It is very easy to put in the water, add a few drops of essential oil, and turn it on. You can’t tell from this picture but it is silver filigree. It has a light switch which enables it to turn different colors if you want. It really puts out a lot of vapor into the room which is good since our houses are so dry with the heat on all winter. But I must say I was disappointed with the smell. It said to only add two drops it I didn’t find that it was enough to make a difference. I will add more today and see if I can get that lovely smell in the room. If you have any ideas for me on how to use the essential oils please share. Thanks.

Mr. Fixit or as I call him K-man

There are a lot of things to love about a husband and of course I think I’ve got the best one there is. One major thing I appreciate about him is that he can fix just about anything. He has the kind of mind that relishes solving a problem or making something work again. Over the years there have been countless items that I have brought to him in my hand saying , “this won’t work”. Just today he fixed the gasket on my humidifier. Without him I would have thrown it out and purchased a new one.

And he helped me assembly a essential oil diffuser (I’m so bad with things). Over the course of many years he has been my electrician, plumber, car repair serviceman, tinkerer, and assembler. He can take apart almost anything and get it working like new.

He passed that skill onto both my sons. My oldest Chris is a mechanical engineer who has 7 patents and works in research and development. My youngest Ryan is in maintenance at a large water park and does all of his car repair work himself. There isn’t much that they can’t fix between the three of them.

Just a little laugh for the new year

18 for 2018

Here are 18 things I want to do in 2018

1. Learn to take my DSLR off auto to learn what all the buttons do and improve my photography. 

2. Pack a picnic lunch and go off on an adventure. 

3. Go to France. 

4. Get the house organized and throw away all that I don’t love. 

5. Continue to take advantage of any social activities such as plays and concerts.

6. Improve my garden and plant some more flowers. 

7. go to Destin, Florida. It’s been calling me for years. 

8. Simplify my life. 

9. Read more. 

10. Learn to use my new Photoshop program. 

11. Feed the birds and enjoy watching them through the window. 

12. Paint with passion.

13. REconnect with old friends. 

14. Walk more. 

15. Eat healthy. 

16. Buy less. 

17. Develop a passion for cooking. 

18. Write my autobiography for my grandchildren.