Once in a Blue Moon!

Wow! What a day...a Hunter's Moon Day, A Blue Moon Day, Halloween, plus another day in the Covid 19 Pandemic...what more could we wish for?!? I should be publishing a picture of tonight's Hunter's/Blue moon...and, I can see when I peek out the window...but...it's position currently is interfered with by a street light. Maybe...when it is higher in the sky...not sure that our trees that still have most of their leaves will let me capture it either. Tonight's photo is one of the scenes that Marie and I captured on our apple/barn trip yesterday. I love to see how creative folk can get with their hay rolls! I thought, when looking through the camera view finder, that I was capturing a hay monster...but then when I pulled the camera away from my eye I realized that it was a giant spider! I often don't see the "whole" picture till I am looking at it later when I get it transferred to the computer and can see i large on the screen. I did realize that this was a spider while I was there but not till after I took several pictures of it. Today was my grocery shopping day...something that I do every other week since the pandemic began. We seem to be doing well going less often to the grocery store. I seem to still have food at the end of the two-week period. I guess it is time to do some more cooking. When I am sewing, I tend to do less cooking...but I am afraid that currently I will need to do both. I did do some more sewing last night after I blogged. What I am making now looks like a pair of trousers...waist band/elastic and hems in two legs is what is left. Pants are pretty easy...and, these I have put pockets in...when I am really in a hurry I tend to want to skip pockets...but for these I wanted pockets Today we have continued with our leftovers of what I have cooked this week...tomorrow I plan to start on the next cooking session. I have a couple of things that I am going to make that have a long cooking time so I will start them in the morning...well, I will start the beans soaking for our French Market Soup (one of Woody's requests)tonight and then get them simmering in the morning. With our strange Sunday morning schedule due to Covid...I can cook things like that throughout the morning and still "go to" church. I will get the soup simmering and keep an eye on it while we watch First Baptist, Tullahoma's service on my iPad in the family room. I will say that Covid has given us a gift in the way our church service is done...it lets us "attend" from home, which is what we need to do at this time to keep Woody away from as many germs as possible. Our church continues to do a drive-in church in our park across the street from the main building. It is well attended both there and online. We appreciate the efforts of our church staff in making it possible to attend while sheltering at home. And, both Woody and I feel like we have been to church when the service is over. It is a good start to our week. Woody has been watching football this afternoon while he has been having his dialysis treatment. We got it started a little later this afternoon due to my grocery shopping. But Woody reminded me that we were really starting on time due to the time change tonight...when I get finished with the blog tonight, I will begin doing the clock changing...turning them back an hour...then we will be on time!?! After I got Woody's dialysis started and got the groceries put away, I was pretty done in...but I did get rested after sitting in my recliner for a little while. I went back to sorting through magazines that I have stored in a storage tub. This time my Colonial Homes...the only regular magazine that I have saved over the years other than those that deal with cross stitch or sewing. I really struggle getting rid of them...they are just "me"...they show my interest in history and my interests in furnishings. At the moment I am looking through each of them and putting them in two piles...one has articles about places we have visited over the years or some other interest that I have...perhaps it is an article about colonial architecture or furnishings or a colonial craft that perhaps I have seen when visiting historical places. So far the piles are unequal...the one that has magazines with articles about where I haven't been is higher than the one where I have been. I plan to definitely keep the one stack...and then will read the articles in the others that interest me and I will decide if I will keep those or not...right now I am just thumbing through them...a slow but enjoyable process. I've been listening to old songs on my iPad while I have been doing this...first the Mamas and Papas...listening to "Woody's and my song,""Dream a Little Dream of Me." Then I switched to Johnny Mathis and was listening to some of the easy listening music that I enjoyed when I was in college...and, still do to this day. Well, I guess it is time to go down and get the beans to soaking so I can make French Market soup in the morning. I have another long cooking recipe that I plan to make, but only have one large burner on this stove and also only have one large stock pot...so bean soup first! I can make the other, Bragg's barbeque, another day...just because we can since we have no where to go. So off to soak beans and then back to sorting thorugh magazines. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious...on this Halloween, blue/hunter's moon night...don't forget to set your clocks back before you head to bed tohignt...that is UNLESS you are some of my Arizona readers, who are lucky and don't have to mess with their clocks...either the clocks in their houses or their bodily clocks...I know that my body will be confused for some time!

An Up and Down Day

Today I have done a lot of stepladder climbing. I have been changing what I store on the top shelf in the closet in what used to be Melany's room then our office and then an office/school room. I put away all the school things that are still over here...or at least I have started. I still have to decide what to do with all the art stuff. Some Joy and Esther still need to get...the rest...not sure. But the table is now pretty clear except for my stuff and a copier. I have something in mind to use the table for, but I will have to shift some of the storage tubs that are under it. I have been going through the cross stitch magazines that used to be stored on the top shelf in the closet. I'm still trying to decide whether to keep, throw, or see if someone might be interested...I have one person in mind. I will contact her once I have them all gone through and put in order. It has been fun looking through them. I still found things that I would like to stitch...that is IF I were still stitching...and then I think...MIGHT I stitch AGAIN one of these days? Of course if these totally disappeared and I decided that I wanted to go back to stitching I have plenty of cross stitch books and graphs to choose from...I am not "in want" when it comes to possible cross stitch projects! I started to sew this morning, but started at the wrong time...just as !oody came upstairs...he was later coming up to print off his puzzles today. So I left the sewing machine in the middle of a seam and never got back because I got busy moving things around. I just finished the first seam on my pants while I waited for the computer to come on. So I have begun sewing...just not getting the job done very quickly. But I guess these days there is really no rush for much of anything...just plodding along is a good pace for 2020! Woody is well underway with today's dialysis treatment and again things are going smoothly. He's watching Friday news programs. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

An Apple/Barn Trip

This morning I woke up waaaaaay too early...like 3am and never got back to sleep. I finally got up and decided that it was a good time to sew. I got going on my corduroy pants. I did the preliminary sewing steps of serging around the edges of the pattern pieces. Next I cleaned the sewing machine. By that time it was breakfast time and Woody was awake. I warmed up his pancakes and sausage and I made myself a cup of tea and had some toast. I did doze a little after that so got a little more sleep. My next endeavor was to make what we call "liquid gold," which if you have read the blog for long you know is a term for chicken stock/broth. I read once that having chicken stock in the refrigerator or freezer was like having liquid gold for recipes. I used the last of what I had in the freezer the other day when I made the tuna casserole so it was time to make some more. I freeze it in two-cup portions and it is ready for various recipes that call for it. And, this time I didn't have to stew a chicken as I had frozen the carcus of a chicken that roasted a while back and used that for the broth along with various veggies and fresh herbs. I got that simmering and just left for a lot of hours. About that time Marie called and asked if I wanted to go with her to Bain's Orchard to get some apples. It sounded like a fun outing and wouldn't have me away from home for a long time...not like some of our barn trips that last all morning and sometimes till dusk! I decided to take my camera just in case we passed a barn or two. Bain's had an amazing assortment of apples so I picked a variety both for eating and cooking. I also got a pie pumpkin for our Thanksgiving pie and some sweet potatoes for our Thanksgiving sweet potato casserole. Woody had mentioned that one of the things that he wanted to have next week was tuna stuffed tomatoes (something that was on his "no-no list" for the last 2-1/2 years. So when I saw the tomatoes I had to get those too! We each had an apple this afternoon. Woody had a Jonagold and I had a pink lady...very crispy and tasty! Marie took a different way back so we would pass some barns. The sky had the most beautiful cloud formations as the clouds were leaving our area from Zeta, which by the way mainly dropped rain on us...we didn't have much wind till late this morning and on into the afternoon and it is still quite breezy at the moment. We enjoyed our outing...that was the first outing like this that Marie and I have taken since before her knee surgery. It is good that she is doing well enough to be able to get out and about once again. After she was cleared to drive by the doctor and/or physical therapy, Marie's husband made her pass his driving test last week! Glad she passed! Now for a real barn trip before much longer! I got back just a little after we normally get Woody started on his dialysis. We started about an hour after we did yesterday...but yesterday we started early. He is well into the third cycle of tonight's four cycles. We had leftovers for supper and now the dishwasher is going and the by-hand dishes have been washed...so the kitchen is closed for the night! I think that I will wind a bobbin and thread the machine. I think that is where I will leave the sewing room for tonight. My back is bothering me so I think that it would be best if I wait till tomorrow when I am fresher before I actually start the sewing. But we will see...the night is still young and sitting and reading for a while may be all my back needs. Woody is reading and/or watching TV and patiently waiting for his dialysis to be finished for today...probably between 10 and 11 tonight. Then it will be lights out and hopefully we will both sleep and greet a new day in the morning. The temperatures dropped quite a bit from when I headed off on our apple/barn trip this morning and the middle of the afternoon...another cold front has moved through...guess it should start feeling like November...we have had a pretty mild October. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

A Wet Midweek

It's obvious that tonight's photo wasn't taken today...it has been a gray and very wet day. So I chose a fall picture from another year that looked very cheerful and sunny! I worked in my sunny kitchen this morning...turn on all the lights and it is like the sun is shining in! I made Woody high protein pancakes for his breakfast this morning. He has enough in the refrigerator for two more days. I like to make enough for another couple of days so he can then get his own breakfast without having to do much except heat it up in the microwave...that way he doesn't have to wait for me to get up or have to make it on his own. Just easier this way. I make them high protein by using some of the high protein additive that Fresenius Kidney Center gave us, some Greek yogurt and some flaxseed meal along and oatmeal and flour, etc...very hearty pancakes! Late morning we headed out in the rain for free taco day at Taco Bell. During the World Series there was a stolen base that gave the award to the country of free tacos and today was the day. I wonder how many of you knew that! I should have mentioned it last night. The first time that Woody had had a Taco Bell taco in years. He enjoyed it...though he said that there just wasn't enough of it! A little treat before getting connected to his dialysis cycler for the rest of the afternoon and most of the evening! We did get his dialysis going a little earlier today due to the possible storms tonight due to Zeta...possible high winds that might cause power outages. We decided to be safe rather than sorry. He is well into his treatment. He should be finished before 10 tonight. I had my weekly library "meeting" with Donna over the phone and today we actually did talk a little library and then moved on to catching up on family doings. After we talked, I spent the rest of the afternoon straightening and cleaning things in the sewing room...putting spools away and machine feet back in their proper place in their storage boxes, etc. I have, again, been reclaiming my sewing space and brought things back into my sewing room from the guest room where the children sewed. I put everything that belongs to them back in some plastic drawers that they brought over for us to use for their sewing things and brought all my things back to my sewing room. During projects things from my sewing room often traveled down the hall to their work area when they needed them and sometimes didn't get back to mine till I missed them when I was working in here (the laptop that I am typing on is in my sewing room). We would pin patterns, etc.using my pins when they were cutting out because my pincusion was there and then when they sewed the pins would land in their pin cushions...I left them pins but reclaimed some as my pincushion was bare! I cleaned my serger and will do the same for my sewing machine shortly. I have the serger ready to use on my corduroy pants that I am getting ready to make. So things are getting ready for the next sewing project...now to decide if I am going to make my corduroy pants before I construct the needlepoint stocking for Melany...haven't decided yet. I do have everything for the stocking ready to begin on that too. I am tired tonight so doubt that I will begin any sewing tonight. We will see what tomorrow brings in sewing endeavors. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Friend Time

Shortly after we got Woody's dialysis going this afternoon, I headed off to spend a little social distance visiting with two friends. I drove to Carolyn's house and then we headed off to Jo's. Carolyn and I had a gift for the bride and groom for the virtual wedding that I showed the invitation for a while back on the blog. The wedding is drawing closer and the groom and his bride-to-be are going to be in town this weekend. Carolyn and I had fun shopping for the gift virtually...she in her home and me in mine...both of us on our computers checking out the selections that the bride and groom had chosen. The way we do things is so different. I will say that Carolyn and I enjoyed shopping together in this way...though, we probably would both have chosen to go off looking together if the circumstances were different. But this worked. We delivered the gift today to the groom's mom and got to visit for a while...we wore our masks and visited out on Jo's deck...nice afternoon for a visit. We got caught up a bit and look forward to the next time that we can get together. We left with plans in our heads for the next time we might get together...after the wedding...so we can get all the details. I look forward to getting to attend the wedding on my iPad! My main task completed for the day was to cook a pork roast this morning. I found this recipe in one of the cookbooks that I enjoyed perusing some time back. This came from a Roasting cookbook that was in the group and I decided to keep it as I seem to roast meats these days using the convection settings on my oven. This roast is rubbed with olive oil and then with finely chopped fresh rosemary, ground fennel seed, and minced garlic. It is really flavorful and comes out so nice and tender and juicy. It is definitely a keeper recipe. I also roasted a couple of potatoes cut in wedges while I was cooking the roast. Woody likes the potatoes that way...he still doesn't eat a lot of potatoes now that he can once again...but he likes the this way. Woody is well into today's dialysis treatment. I'm going down to check on him and finish cleaning up the kitchen for the night as soon as I publish this. We are due some of the winds and rain from the current hurricane tomorrow. They mentioned on the news tonight that it could bring power outages...we think that we may start his dialysis an hour early tomorrow...we'll see! Power outages were never a major concern before...but would just as soon not have him in the middle of a treatment...would rather keep the power going during the 8-9 hours that it takes for his treatment! But we will adapt if we have to! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Busy Monday

I got up and started getting ready to head out to run errands. We needed to drop off some paperwork at Fresenius Kidney Care Clinic, I needed to buy some cording for the stocking that I constructing for Melany, then this was my monthly run to WalMart to pick up over-the-counter medications and get a few other things, lastly I stopped at our pharmacy to pick up a prescription for each of us. That done I headed home and Woody had already spooned up his lunch...leftover tuna casserole and green beans from Saturday's lunch. I started getting things set up for today's dialysis treatment. Kathy and Esther stopped by to see if Woody had any prayer requests for tonight's prayer meeting. Once he was connected and the dialysis treatment got underway, I headed upstairs to do a few things. In the end I spent a good part of the afternoon on the phone either talking or texting. I was expecting a call from an insurance person who said that she could get me better rates for the next year...sounded good until she started going through existing conditions and she found out that I have chronic kidney disease...that ended the call quickly and it is good to know that now when folk call to try to lure me to another plan that I can say what I say about Woody...you don't want me and or him. Simplifies things! I am wrapping a present now...almost forgot to get up and blog. Woody is well into his daily dialysis. Things are going smoothly. He had an omelet tonight and said that it tasted good...so something else to add to possible things that give him more protein. Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!

Nice Visit But Very Different

We had a nice visit with Melany today, but it was very different to wear masks the whole time except when we were eating lunch. Woody stayed pretty isolated from us. He chose to eat at his TV tray and Melany and I ate in the dining room. We all thought that was for the best. Melany is a teacher so is exposed to all kinds of germs. Melany is not just a teacher in a classroom...she is an art teacher and she sees many classrooms of students in a day/week. So she ends being exposed to a lot more than a teacher who just has her one classroom of children. Melany brought a cute needlepoint Christmas stocking front that I will be completing into a stocking with a back and lining...so Santa can put some presents in it! Woody has watched a lot of football today. Now he is watching the World Series. He enjoys watching sports on the weekends during his dialysis treatments. Melany thought that his color was better than it was the last time she saw him...that's good. He is almost to the last part of the third cycle of today's treatment. He has just a couple of minutes left of the dwell time and next is the drain time. Then "all" he has left is one fill, one dwell, and one drain time left. Woody says that by the fourth cycle of a treatment it starts to get old! I know even to me that the first cycles seem to go more quickly than the last. I guess towards the end we are both ready for them to be over and ready to get him disconnected! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!