Here Comes The Snow

December 11, 2014

Good morning.  Well, it rained all day yesterday, not to heavy though.  Just enough to make us get out the little rubber boats for navigating the driveway.  Just kidding!  Although it was a wet gray day, it was warm enough to leave the inside door open all day.  This, of course, meant that Pogo spent a good portion of the day sitting on his blanket by the door and watching the antics of the birds and squirrels. 

This morning it is snowing.  The flakes are getting bigger and are coming down faster, so we could get a bit sticking to the ground.  I'll just wait and see what the rest of the day brings.  Of course, the windshield cover is not on my car as I was expecting rain for today. 

Later today, I do have to pick up a few groceries, so hopefully we won't get too much snow.  I also want to make a stop at the Post Office to send off a few of these boxes.  The rest can go tomorrow. 

Yesterday, Joe brought home some materials to build a post to set the new bird water bowl on.  I'm hoping we can get this set up by the weekend.  The post will go inside the hedge outside my window.  There is an awning over this window so the birds will be protected from any bad weather while they enjoy the water.

I've been watching the Jewelry Television channel all morning, and I've been drooling over all the beautiful colored diamonds.  Especially the yellow diamonds.  Oooooooooo!   No, I've been very good.  I have not called in to order any, but oh my they are simply beautiful! 

I used to have a lot of beautiful jewelry, but several years ago all of it was stolen.  Except for the two rings on my fingers.  It's because of this that I can resist buying much new jewelry.  It's hard to steal what is not there.

Well, yesterday I finished decorating my Christmas tree, and got it all set up, complete with presents and my new Christmas Angel that daughter Deanne had given me.  Both the tree and the angel have optical lighting so the colors keep changing.  It's really quite pretty.

I also took a photo of the Dwarfs' Christmas tree.  The lights were out except for the tree.  One of the dwarfs was watching a program on TV.  This photo was taken with my phone.  I'll have to take one with my camera to see the difference in clarity.

Last evening, I cooked the chicken. It was skinless and boneless.  I cleaned it, dipped it in whipped eggs, rolled it in bread crumbs and cooked it in a bit of olive oil.  DIL Janet had already called to say that she had to work very late and would not be here for supper, so I decided not to cook the pasta and the sauce.  I have to say that Pogo and I enjoyed our chicken very much.

I got a late start this morning, and it's almost time to make some lunch for my little guy.  So, till tomorrow, Y'all have a fantastic day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Winter Storm Damon Isn't Through Yet

December 10, 2014

Good morning.  The rain here stopped around 11:30 last evening, and we did not get very much water in the basement.  Thank goodness!  I checked a little while ago, and the little bit of water that we did get is almost all gone.  The yard was full of huge puddles (sort of like little ponds) yesterday, but most of that is gone too. 

I've been watching the Weather Channel all morning.  They've been showing videos of all the accidents due to flooding and ice covered roads.  What I don't understand is why so many folks still try driving through flooded areas and on roads that are covered with ice.

If the roads are not safe to walk on or drive on, why haven't the schools been closed for the day?  This alone probably would have kept a lot of vehicles off the roads this morning.  I don't know.  The older I get, the less I understand the hows and whys of peoples' thinking. 

According to the weather forecast, we have more rain, and probably snow too, headed our way for later today and maybe a bit tomorrow.  Actually, I just looked outside, and it is already raining again.  As long as I can get out to the Post Office by Friday, I'll be happy.  There is a huge stack of boxes piled on top of my washing machine just waiting to be mailed out.

Yesterday, I did not get to finish decorating our Christmas tree, so that will be my project for this morning.  I was so busy worrying about how much water might be getting into the basement that I didn't do much of anything else. 

Last evening, I got an email from my Secret Santa recipient, and I fell asleep with a huge smile on my face.  This morning, I opened the big box that came in the mail yesterday, and oh my goodness!  It was filled with lots of presents that will be placed under and around our tree.  Pogo sniffed each and every gift, and now he seems quite happy.  We are so very blessed.

I have started working on a poncho from one of the old crochet books from 1970.   I'm making it very light weight and a bit shorter.  My idea is that it will be very comfy to wear indoors while sitting, watching TV and crocheting.  It will keep the shoulders and back warm.  Well, it's an idea.  When it is finished, I'll see how it works out.

This morning I have the last few of the photos from "The Morning After The Big Party" series.  I think the dog's face expresses his feelings best.

Rhoda, thank you so much for forwarding this delightful series of pictures.  I really enjoyed them. Now I think it's time for me to get dressed and see what mischief I can get into today.  So, till tomorrow, Y'all have a fantabulous day.

Hugs, Edna B.

We'll Be Needing A Canoe Pretty Soon

December 9, 2014

Good morning.  Well, it's really almost noon.  I got a lot of rest/sleep yesterday and last evening, so I was awake most of the night.  This, of course, meant that after making some breakfast this morning I went back to bed to catch a few winks. 

It has been raining since very early this morning, and already we have huge puddles in our yard.  It's supposed to keep raining through tomorrow.  My one concern is that if we get too much rain, my basement will get flooded. 

The last time this happened, it cost me thousands of dollars to replace the furnace and water heater.  Plus, we lost everything that had been stored in the basement.  I'm not looking forward to going through all of that again.  Joe just checked the basement, and so far it's still nice and dry.

We just got another fuel oil delivery, and Pogo was having a wonderful time barking at the delivery man.  (Through the storm door, of course.)   The drop in oil prices has certainly been a blessing. I don't cringe when I pay the bill.  This may change, but for now it is a welcome relief.

Today I have a few more of the cute photos from "The Morning After The Big Party" collection.  I think the giraffe and the owl are my favorites from this batch.

I got the rest of my Christmas boxes sealed and ready for mailing, and ran out of sealing tape on the last box.  Of course!!  I'll have to make a quick trip to Walmart to pick up more tape.  We were going to take all of these boxes to the Post Office yesterday afternoon, but I wasn't feeling up to going out.  Of course, today is raining so the boxes will have to wait for another day or two.

I did, however, get a nice surprise in today's mail.  The postman brought a big box from Holland for Pogo and me.  I'm not quite finished decorating the tree, but as soon as I finish it, I'll be putting the packages by the tree.  My goodness, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here!! 

My appointment at the nail salon got cancelled yesterday.  It seems two people were booked for the same time.  I decided to come back home, and I'll call in a few days for a new appointment.

Before I take my leave, I want to mention about a really sad item that was on the news yesterday.  I only caught part of it but I was so hurt by the headline that was shown on the TV screen.   It read, "Throw Away Pups rescued when van rolls over on the highway.  (or something like that)  Imagine!!  I could cry when I hear people refer to our doggies as "Throw Away Pups".

On that note, I'll take my leave.  Till tomorrow, Y'all stay dry and have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

It Feels Like Winter Here In New England

December 8, 2014

Good morning.  Surprise surprise.  I peeked out my window this morning and found a light layer of snow covering everything.  I wonder where that came from?  I'm beginning to think that there's not much point in watching the Weather Channel if the weather that shows up is unexpected. 

It's Brrrrr here this morning.  Only 22F.  The high today is supposed to get up to around 36F.  Tomorrow the temperature is expected to get up to 52F, with heavy wind and rain, and then work it's way back down to cold (and still rainy) for the rest of the week.  Starting at 6 a.m. tomorrow, we will be in a flood watch until 1 a.m. Wednesday.

I'm starting to think that we might be better off with a few inches of snow instead of all the rain we're expecting.  The good thing about the snow is that it will melt slowly and not flood my basement.  I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed that we don't get enough rain to cause flooding.

Later this morning, I have an appointment at the nail salon.  Today though, I think I'll leave Pogo at home.  He'll be much warmer here.  Of course, he does not agree with me.  He really doesn't care how messy or cold is gets outside as long as he can go with me.  So, when I leave him at home, I tell him that I really need him to protect the house for me while I'm gone.  This seems to make him feel better.

I don't have new photos for today, but a friend sent me some simply adorable photos that I thought I would share with you.  There are several of them so I'll post a few a day.  If you love animals, you'll like these.  They are all titled "The morning after the big party".

Gosh almighty, you gotta laugh at these cute photos.  My favorite is the baby elephant.  I can't imagine that this position is really comfortable, but it doesn't seem to bother this little cutie pie.

There are some new words being added to the Webster Dictionary.  One of them is "Mahoosive", which means really really huge.  (Perhaps bigger than massive.)  Hmmm, I like the sound of this word.  It's so expressive.

Well, as you can see by my banter, there's not much happening here.  So, I think I'll wash the dishes, and get dressed.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

A New Visitor To Our Yard

December 7, 2014

Good morning.  Today is cloudy and cool.  It's only going to get up to the mid 30'sF, and then drop down to about 19F tonight.  Brrrr!!  I think this will be our coldest night so far this season.  After tomorrow, we have a few days of mostly rain coming.  Hopefully, there won't be any snow mixed in with it.

I'm watching the Weather Channel this morning, and the videos of the typhoon in the Philippines are just awful.  A lot of these poor folks were living in tents and tiny shacks, and now they don't even have those.  These folks were hit hard by last year's storm, and a lot of them haven't even recovered from that storm. 

The weather has changed so much, and not for the better.  We seem to be constantly having heavily damaging storms on a daily/weekly basis.  In my whole life, I've never heard of so many devastating storms happening with such frequency.  These past few years though, the weather patterns have really changed.

All of this makes me wonder, where and how will folks live in years to come.  Will it be worth putting up buildings that will be brought down by the weather?  We can build our homes higher up off the ground, but then the strong winds can bring them down.  We can build underground, but the floods will make living in these buildings difficult.  Hmmmm, lots of thoughts to ponder about.

Well that's enough about the weather.  I had some really special crochet and knit pattern booklets that I had saved from many years ago, (1970) and somehow they have disappeared.  A few days ago, I went on E-bay to see if I could find any replacements and I got lucky.  I was able to order three of these same pattern booklets.  Yesterday, one of them came in the mail, so now I have a new project to think about starting. 

The gift items that I had ordered online are dribbling in oh so slowly.  Usually these orders arrive quickly and all together.  Lately they are taking longer to get here, and orders are being split up into more than one box.  As long as they all arrive this week, I'm okay.  I can still get the rest of my holiday boxes out by the end of the week.

We had a new visitor to our yard yesterday, a tiny red squirrel.  Gosh, he was just too cute!  I've seen these little red squirrels in neighboring towns, but never here. 

Yesterday, I  got my first Christmas card in the mail, and it had me smiling for quite a while.  It was addressed to me and "doggie".  I just love it!!  I've already started getting the bookcase ready where I will set up my little Christmas tree.  This afternoon I'll dig out the ornaments and start decorating. 

I made my final decision on which health and prescription plan to switch to for next year, and called to get enrolled.  Hopefully, I made a good choice.  Only time will tell.  For anyone who is thinking of changing to a new plan and hasn't done it yet, keep in mind that the deadline is midnight tonight.

Last evening, I finished the lapghan, and put a few more rows on the shocking pink afghan.  I'm hoping to have that afghan finished in the next two or three days.  I may pick up another large plastic tote to store these finished crocheted projects.  I'll have to remember to pick up some cedar chip packets to put in the tote.

Today before I start any hand crafts, I need to do a bit of exercising with the vacuum.  The dust bunny population is increasing rather quickly and it's time to re-locate some of them to the outdoors.   First, I think I'll enjoy a hot cup of coffee and do a bit of blog reading.  So, till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Only Twenty More Days Till Christmas!!

December 5, 2014

Good morning.  It's sunny and cold here this morning.  At 8 a.m. the temperature was 29F degrees, but it will get up to around 41 by early afternoon.  In the upcoming days, we have some rain and/or snow coming our way.  The weatherman says that whatever it is, there will be a lot of it so I'll have to keep an eye on the weather reports.

Yesterday Joe helped me take a few boxes to the Post Office.  Afterwards, we did our food shopping.  By the time we were finished, it was too late to go to the hardware store.  I'm hoping we can get there this afternoon so that I can pick up some bird food.  Also, I want to drop off a couple bags of dog and cat food for the animal shelters.

We may make another run to the Post Office later today if Joe isn't too tired after work.  If not, we can go Saturday or Monday.  The things that I had ordered on-line are starting to dribble in.  As soon as they are all here, I can close up my last few boxes.  Gosh, there's only twenty more days till Christmas! 

Last night, I worked on the shocking pink afghan for a while, and now I'm down to the last twenty six rows.  Woo Hoo!!  I'm getting anxious to pick out a new color to work with. 

Wednesday evening, I went on-line looking for a present for Pogo.  He doesn't play with his toys, so it's not easy coming up with something he can enjoy (other than steak).  Because he prefers to sleep on the sofa in a pile of fuzzy blankets, I decided to get him his very own sofa.   He can't jump up onto my sofa, but he will be able to jump up on his own sofa.  I hope he likes it.  We'll see.

Today I have a photos of a rather handsome pigeon, and a tiny sparrow peeking out from his safe spot inside a hedge.  No matter the size, I think all the birds are beautiful.

Speaking of birds, I had ordered a heated water bowl for our birds, and it came yesterday afternoon.  Joe says he will make a post to attach it to, and hopefully we can have it up and running soon.   When it's set up, I'll take a photo to share here.

Well, that's about all the news for today.  It's getting close to lunch time and I need to think up something tasty for my little guy.  So, till Sunday, Y'all have a fabulous weekend.

Hugs, Edna B.

It's Time To Start Making Trips To The Post Office

December 4, 2014

Good morning.  The sun is shining and it is cold.  It is 39F degrees headed towards 42F, and tomorrow will be about the same.  Saturday promises to be warmer, but with rain.

Yesterday I got all but two of my Christmas cards in the mail.  Just before I put them out, I found out that two of the addresses had changed.  I now have the new addresses, and this morning I will put new address stickers on the envelopes and put them out in tomorrow's mail. 

When Joe and I go food shopping later today, we'll stop at the Post Office and mail out some of my boxes.  We'll have to make another trip tomorrow, and one more as soon as the last few gift items that I had ordered arrive in the mail.

We'll also have to stop by Ace Hardware and pick up some bird seed.  It's on sale for a very good price.  I'll also buy a large bag of dog food and cat food to put in the "Animal Shelter Donations" cart that will be at the front of the store.  Every year, Ace Hardware collects food for the local shelters the whole month of December.  This is the only store that I know of that does this, so I'll buy some food each week to put in the cart.

Today I have a few more photos from our recent trip to the park.  There were a few people there that day feeding the geese and ducks, and the first photo shows a gull flying off with a chunk of bread.

Today I need to check out a few more health insurance alternatives while I still have some time.  The deadline is Saturday.  There really should be insurance seminars at all the local senior centers before the open enrollment time rolls around to explain all the different plans to the seniors in the community.  So far I have not found any of this offered at our local senior center. 

Well, there's really not much news for this morning, so I think I'll mosey on out to the kitchen and make myself a cup of coffee.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a fantabulous day.

Hugs, Edna B.