Hello Monday

Happy Monday friends. I will tell you this has been the most Mondiest Mondays of them all. I was definitely having a Homer Simpson Day today. If you missed that post you can check it out here to see what the Homer Simpson reference is about. But I will give you a hint, absolutely nothing went right. It seemed like I could do nothing right, after I got to work that is. The computers had a glitch, the WiFi was acting crazy, none of the printers worked and when I finally got one to print it was out of ink. So it was definitely a goofy kind of Homer Simpson day.

The weekend was actually quite nice. Let’s go back to Friday. I took my sister to Knoxville to get her fourth chemo treatment and to see the doctor. She had had scans done earlier in the week to see just how the treatments were doing. We were cautiously optimistic. She has been doing great and had wonderful reports on her bloodwork. We felt that things were going good but we knew the scans would tell the tale.

We waited a little while to see the doctor. He came in and asked how my sister was feeling and she said that she was feeling really good. He said that is really good because the scans show that the splenic lesion is no longer seen. And that was very good. WHAT??? I asked just what that meant and he said the cancer is gone!!! We were blown away and so happy we were giddy. He suggested she finish the round of chemo to ensure a total remission. We walked out of his office in a daze we practically stumbled down the hall. We are so thankful and feel so blessed by everyone’s prayers and concerns. So many people have been there for her during this time. It is very humbling.

Here we are waiting to get called back for the treatment to start. I you have never been to a cancer center and watched all the brave, precious people then you really don’t know how lucky you are to worry about mundane things. Nothing is that problematic. It definitely gives you a new perspective.

So after that kind of news the weekend and every day could only be great!!! Of course a crazy Homer Simpson day is had by everyone every now and then so as I tell myself, DEAL WITH IT!!!!

I took several hats and headbands to donate to the Cancer Center when we were there on Friday. They have a basket at the infusion center where people receiving chemo or other treatments can pick a hat or scarf or anything that has been donated. I think this is a wonderful thing. I am so happy to be able to donate to them. I told the lady at the desk that some of the hats might be too warm for this time of year but she said lots of people loved them because the air conditioning was so cold. I plan to make some lighter weight ones for summer.

Over the weekend I thinned my Irises. They were getting too thick and didn’t bloom much last year at all. I took out quite a few of them and now I have to find places for them. These came from the house where I grew up. My mama loved irises and had one side of the yard full of them. They’re very special because she actually started them many years ago. I have given them to several of my nieces so that we can keep them going. I may decide to take some to work to have them there as well.

Several of my orchids are blooming. This is Ophelia. I have had her for a little more than a year. This is the second time she has bloomed. I am starting an orchid journal to keep up with all of them. I now have seven and see more in my future.

A few weeks ago a friend at work made Reese’s Pie and put them in these containers. I decided to try them for myself. I was very happy with the way they turned out. I bought these small containers to put them in. There are so many uses for these containers. They are great for individual servings. If you were going on a picnic or wanted to give these out as little individual gifts they are great!!! I got all of these from Amazon. You can do cakes also. These make great individual servings for people to take home with them.

Look how cute they are with the lids and the little fork/spoons.

I rescued these two chairs from the dumpster at work. Can you believe they were being thrown away.!!!! I am going to clean them, redo the vinyl and paint them. They are very sturdy and solid. I will give you an after picture as soon as I have them finished.

Sometimes Gus is a big bully to Kitty Kitty. I worry about her but I saw her in action today when she swatted him back and made him run away. I think she can handle herself. HA!!!

How was your weekend?

Always remember

Love your day your way!!!!!

Is it Spring? Is it Winter?

Mother Nature came out and waved her magic weather wand and zapped our poor flowering trees. Now the beautiful pink cherry trees are sort of a dull tan color. The Bradford Pear tree blooms are long gone. The Dogwood had just started to bloom so only time will tell on those. The Redbuds are still quite beautiful but they had been blooming for over a week so I guess they were safe.

***I pass this house on my way to work. These two beautiful cherry trees. were a beautiful pink color just a few days ago.***

We had a really cold weekend. It was beautiful and sunny but oh so cold. My sister and I went for a long ride on Saturday. She hasn’t been out of the house much, except for doctor appointments, since she started Chemo treatments in January. We drove a lot of the old backroads where we grew up and went to elementary school. We traced our old bus route. It was so much fun looking at our old house and seeing familiar and not so familiar things. Lots of changes in some areas.

Most of the weekend I knitted and crocheted on the temperature blanket. I listened to an audiobook while I crocheted. It was very peaceful. My work has been a little crazy. We are in the middle of construction on a new building on the property and it is something every single day. So some downtime over the weekend was really nice. I am glad to be doing something productive I have been very unmotivated lately.

***I saw these two in my backyard yesterday.***

So spring or winter it has been a beautiful time. And before you know it the hot humid summer weather will be here. I guess we should just enjoy it day by day. How have you been?

Always remember

Love your day your way!!!!

Weekend Happenings, Springing Forward

Well here it is winter again. The temps tonight will drop well below freezing. Some of the Bradford Pear trees have been hit by the cold and their milky white blossoms have turned a yucky light brown. That’s just how it is in East Tennessee. You never know what kind of weather you will get. The redbuds are also blooming but they seem undisturbed by this little cool spell Mother Nature has thrown at us. It is also time for the Dogwood blooms to emerge and I am holding my breath that they don’t get bit by this cold weather.

Thinking of flowers and blooms and colors, I decided to get some seeds started inside in small pots so that they would be ready to plant outside in a month or two. If we wait until the fear of frost is over, to plant outside, we could be waiting for a couple of months for blooms. I think planting them indoors and getting a good root system going makes for better plants once you put them outside. Plus it is a way to get spring going inside the house. I worked on them Sunday and now I have them spread all over the house trying to find spots that will give them ample light. I will let you know how they do. I planted Marigolds and Zinnias, two of my favorites for summer.

***I had to move Zsa Zsa over a bit to get these little seedlings into the light.***

I was feeling very creative over the weekend. I pulled out these big needles and made a scarf. The yarn was very thick and it knitted up fast. It will be good for next winter. I am wondering though, if maybe I am procrastinating by not working on the temperature blanket. I have it almost finished and like I mentioned before I am just over it!!!! But I have to finish it. I must!!! It has grown into more than I can handle. I know I will love it when I am finished. I guess.

I also made a hat. I have been working on doing some hats to donate to the Cancer Center where my sister gets chemo. There is a basket in the infusion waiting area and people often donate hats, bandanas, headbands etc. This one is a bit thick and might be too warm for spring, but who knows since our weather is so fickle. I am working on some that will be a lighter yarn and will be good through spring.

I made a blueberry cobbler over the weekend and did the meal prep for my breakfast burritos. I love blueberry cobbler and I put it in the refrigerator to have for the week.

I am reading a couple of good books. All in all a pretty lazy weekend, except for that jolt into Daylight Saving Time, I am okay with lazy weekends because my work is about to be crazy and will continue that way through summer. Any down time I can get now I will happily take it.

How was your weekend?

Always remember

Lover your day your way!!!!!

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday!! I am so glad to see the weekend. It’s been a really long week. I was out of work on Monday with some kind of stomach bug. We were without power all last weekend because of the bad storms. My poor hubby had to clear the tree off of the driveway by himself because I had no energy to help. I went back to work on Tuesday and my sweet sister in law Pat came over for a couple of days and helped clean the yard. I don’t think my yard has ever looked so good. Thank you Pat!!! So on to the favorites from this week.

Actually this was a leftover from last week. I met up with two of my friends Michelle and Chuck, well Michelle is also my niece, and we had a fun lunch and walked downtown in Madisonville and checked out a few of the shops. It is always fun to get us together.

I went to an estate sale last week and look what I found. A pie crust shield. I guess I knew these existed but I have never had one. I always use tinfoil and wrap it around the edges of my pies. Sometimes this doesn’t work out to well and when I pull the foil off some of the pie crust comes with it. I can’t wait to try this pie shield. A great excuse to make a pie I think. I think I will make a coconut cream pie.

I may have mentioned this eyelash primer from L’OREAL before. I can’t remember. But it deserves to be mentioned again. If you have very fine lashes, like I do, sometimes mascara can overwhelm them and make them appear clumpy. If you use primer, and this is the best one I have found, before applying your mascara it will be a game changer. When I wear this I actually feel like I have eyelashes. As we age our eyelashes become very few and far between, literally. I think I can actually count mine. Try this you won’t be disappointed.

Last week I listened to this audio book by Valerie Bertinelli. Enough Already. I loved it. I always loved her as an actress and the as the host on her cooking show. This book is about her finally telling herself that enough is enough on the weight loss roller coaster. She finally starts to believe that she is enough just the way she is. She also talks a lot about her ex rock star husband Eddie Van Halen and her son Wolfie. If you get the audio book it is read by Valerie. Because there are many of her favorite recipes in this book I decided to order the book from Amazon. Listen or read this you will love it.

Look at this stack of bandana scarf thingies I made. I love making them. I sent a few to friends and I am making more to take to the hospital where my sister has chemo. They have a basket where people donate hand made items like this and hats and different things. I am also working on some springlike hats that would be light weight and good for spring. I can’t wait to donate those.

My co workers and I had a field trip yesterday to look for some items for work. We went to Athens and ate at Yamato’s. It was so good. We shared a few things with each other.

The Redbuds are blooming. This makes me so happy I just love them.

My orchid, Ophelia, is blooming. When orchids lose their blooms it can take several months for them to bloom again. I couldn’t remember what color Ophelia was. I thought she might be yellow but no she is white. She is so beautiful.

This was a favorite outfit I wore last week. You can probably guess that black and white together are my favorite clothing combinations. I got this shirt from Kohl’s and it is a little short. I like it with a sweater or jacket over it.