Sunday: Monthly Prayer Gathering and April Grocery Shopping Week 4

Star Jasmine, just coming into bloom

I had the best of intentions to go to bed before midnight, last night, but by the time I did my blog post, read a couple of other blogs and commented on them, cleaned the litter box, dithered about making a dessert to take to today's prayer gathering (I decided not to make the dessert, after all), said my nightly devotions and so forth, it was 2:00 a.m.  Then, I stayed up another 30 minutes, trying to do a sudoku puzzle!  Finally, it was lights out at 2:30 a.m. and I believe I fell asleep right away.  Only to wake up at 4:30 a.m.!  But I managed to fall asleep, again, and slept until almost 9:30 a.m.  (Alarm went off at 9:00 a.m., but I stayed in bed and dozed for another 20 minutes or so)  So, I had about 7 hours of sleep, which was good. 

I had a cup of coffee, checked my emails, responded to blog comments, etc.  Then, around 10:15 a.m., I decided to tidy and dust the living room and dining room.  They were two of the items on the "Big Long To Do List" I made on Friday, which I couldn't do on Saturday.  The living room was relatively tidy; only a few things needed to be put away and the furniture dusted.  It probably took me about 10 minutes to do that.  The dining table was a bit of a mess, with things piled up on it (sewing, paperwork, etc.)  It took me about another 10 minutes to tidy the table, dust the furniture, and put a new table cloth.    Yay!  Two items crossed off my Big Long To Do List! 

At 10:45 a.m., I went to take my shower.  I was just coming out of the shower, when the phone rang.  It was friend R. calling to find out what the arrangements were.  I said I will pick her up around 11:30 a.m. and she was fine with that.  Then, I called friend F to see if she was feeling well enough to go to the prayer gathering (last night, she had called to say she wasn't feeling up to it, but I thought I'd check again in case she had changed her mind), but she said she won't be going (she said she sent me a text, but I didn't receive it; I had checked my text messages before I called her).  Then, I called my cousin to let her know that I was about to go and put gas to the car and pick up friend R.  But cousin said that her daughter had agreed to drive us and I didn't have to drive!  Well, that was a pleasant surprise! 

I picked up friend R (didn't put gas because I didn't need to make the long drive to the prayer gathering and back) and we came back to my house and chatted a bit while we waited for my cousin and her daughter to come and pick us up.  While we waited, neighbor T called, too, for our weekly Sunday morning chat and daughter called to say good morning and that she is sore after her gymnastics class, yesterday!

Then, we went to the prayer gathering.  It was yet another small gathering of just six of us - my cousin, her daughter, friend R, myself, and the friends who were hosting the gathering.  I enjoy the smaller gatherings more, I think, because we are able to sit as a group and talk. 

Afterwards, we came home and R and I had a cup of tea and chatted a bit more.  I gave her a portion of the chicken and vegetable soup I had made to take home with her. 

Then, on the way to drop R, I put gas to the car ($3.49/gal; I put for $30) and we stopped at the grocery store.  R bought some bread and milk for herself; I bought bread, milk, and two bags of dry cat food.

April Week 4 Groceries

The bread cost $.99 and the milk cost $1.99 = $2.98

My April grocery budget is $75 - $.69 (that I overspent in March) = $74.31
Spent to date = $27.05 (week 1) + $20.49 (week 2) + $28.84 (week 3) + $2.98 = $79.36
Amount over budget = $5.05

My May grocery budget will be $75 - $5 = $70 (I am going to ignore the $.05!)

After I came home, I turned the sprinklers on in the back garden, watered the indoor plants, and replaced the battery in the wall clock in the family room. 

Gas, groceries, buying cat food, watering the back garden and indoor plants, replacing the clock battery - five more items crossed of my Big Long To Do List!

Miko: One of the reasons for all those bags of cat food I buy

Today, I am grateful for:
- Being able to attend the monthly prayer gathering
- Cousin and her daughter giving me a ride to the prayer gathering and back
- A pleasant afternoon spent in the company of family and good friends
- Being able to accomplish a few things from my To Do List
- An overall good day.

Monday's To Do List:
- Go to the office
- Take the trash cans to the curb
- Water the front garden
- Load of laundry

Rest of the Big Long To Do List:
- Tidy & dust family room
- Vacuum: living room, dining room, family room, kitchen, hallway, bedrooms
- Kitchen: clear and wipe counters, wipe stove top
- Bathrooms
- Bedrooms
- Laundry (bed sheets, chair covers)
- Gather documents needed for retirement seminar
- Attend seminar (5/3)
- Locate payment papers re. dr's office billing
- Call re. dr's office billing
- Buy new batteries for the anniversary clock
- Replace clock batteries
- Buy kitty litter
- Sort out donations/bag them up
- Call for donations pick up
- Garden - plant seeds

My plan is to fit in a few of these items into the daily to do lists, but, most probably, the majority of them might have to wait until next weekend. 

How was your Sunday?  What are your plans for the upcoming week?