Mostly Sunny on Friday

 

Variegated Succulent

My blog post titles are starting to sound like a weather report, aren't they?   But, the rain has ceased and it was mostly sunny on Friday, lots of clouds in the sky.

I went for my blood test in the early afternoon and picked up one of my medication refills from the pharmacy on my way home.  

Then, after eating a Jamaican meat pie for my brunch, I went to the Armenian grocery store to get fruits and vegetables for the most part.  I didn't buy any dairy or meat or fish.  Just fruit (apples, papaya, grapes, mandarins, blackberries, one avocado) and vegetables (Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli, beets, carrots, lettuce, cucumber, yams, cassava) and chestnuts.  This store has a greater variety of fresh produce and at more reasonable prices than the supermarket, for the most part.  Of course, they do not offer curbside pick up, but, I wore my mask and I felt comfortable enough shopping there in person.  Today's shopping trip came to $28.17.

I met neighbor S's husband at the grocery store as he was there, shopping.  I think he does the majority of the grocery shopping in their household.  When I came home, I called neighbor S and told her that I saw her husband at the store and she laughed and said that he had just come home, himself, and the first thing he said to her was that he had seen me at the store.  

M was already tending to the garden when I came home.  We chatted a bit and he did some weeding and tidying up in the back yard.  

Then, I am afraid I took a nap on the sofa while listening to the evening news!  I guess I was tired.  I made a cucumber salad and daughter and I had leftovers for dinner. 

On Friday, I was grateful for:

- Access to medical care
- The availability of medications
- Safe driving to the clinic, pharmacy, and grocery store
- M's help with the garden
- Working appliances

Friday's joyful activity was playing the piano after a long time of not playing it.

Plans for Saturday include meal planning and cooking; ironing something for daughter; and maybe doing some laundry.

How was your Friday?  Did you celebrate St. Valentine's Day?  What are your plans for Saturday?  

Rainy Thursday

A Wet Chicken Little

It rained practically all day on Thursday, quite heavily at times. M texted to let me know he received a flood alert on his phone, but, I didn't receive one, although there were flood alerts in various parts of the city and people in the burn areas were told to evacuate due to potential mudslides and debris flows.  According to weather reports, we received over one inch of rain in some areas and there's more rain in the forecast for later tonight/early tomorrow morning.

Chicken Little came looking for kibbles because she didn't want to look for worms and insects in the rain.  She has taken to pecking at the glass door to let me know if she's there and there isn't any kibble available.  LOL.  I just wish she wouldn't poop all over my back steps.  M and I take turns washing the steps, but, it is a bit of a mess in between washings.

Chicken Little

There are some days when I am very productive, but, today wasn't one of those days!  I cooked mung beans for brunch, having put them to soak overnight, and daughter and I both enjoyed the boiled mung beans with lunu miris (a type of sambol; me) and sugar (daughter).  I ran the dishwasher and tidied up the kitchen a little.  I put away the washed and air dried dishes, later.  I watched some videos about Japanese culture and mythology and, later, I watched the news and a documentary on the public TV channel.  Daughter had a Jamaican hand pie with her coffee in the evening and we both had breakfast for dinner (scrambled eggs and hash browns) along with a salad.  

On Thursday, I was grateful for:

- More rain for the garden
- No flood alerts in my area
- Working appliances
- Quick and easy meals when I don't feel like cooking
- A warm and dry house

Today's joyful activity was watching some videos.  

Plans for tomorrow include going for a blood test in the afternoon and tending to the garden with M in the evening.  I might or might not go to the ethnic grocery store in between because I need more fresh produce and they tend to have lower prices than the regular grocery store.  

How was your Thursday?  What are your plans for Friday? 

Rain on Wednesday

A Rose Bud

We had rain again, on Wednesday morning.  A light rain, but, rain, nonetheless!  The garden plants were happy.  The rain had ceased by the time M showed up to tend the garden.  He brought me a cutting from his plumeria plant and planted it for me.  He didn't need to water the garden, but, he did some tidying up.  

I mended another sweater.  It's a cardigan I had knitted in 2002 or maybe 2003.  The yarn was a blend of wool and acrylic and the color was called purple heather, I believe.  Two of the buttons fell out and I sewed them back on and I mended a small tear on one of the front sides.  I had to use the burgundy colored yarn because I didn't have any of the original yarn left and I decided to disguise the mending by turning it into an embroidered flower bud.  I think it looks more intentional this way:

Mending Disguised as Embroidery

For those who might want to know, there is only this one rose bud on the right front half; there is no matching rose bud on the other side.  Although, there's no saying what might happen if I get another tear on this sweater!  Next up is a shawl I knitted

The day was fairly cool on Wednesday, with an afternoon high of 51F (10.5 C) and it remained cloudy and overcast all day.  It started to rain again at night and the forecast calls for rain all day on Thursday.

I spoke with my sister in the morning and chatted with friend R in the evening.  I caught up on my blog reading, tidied the family room just a little bit, and generally took it easy.  Not a very productive day, but, that's okay.  

Breakfast was tortillas with seeni sambol.  I had a Jamaican hand pie for my lunch and daughter had leftover rice and stir fry.  Dinner was cucumber salad and leftover pot roast with frozen green peas added to it.  We had grapes for dessert.  I will have to do some cooking, on Thursday.

On Wednesday, I was grateful for:

- The rain we received 
- M's help with the garden and the plumeria cutting he brought me
- A working heater 
- Phone calls with my sister and friend R
- Being able to mend my sweaters and cardigans, etc.

Wednesday's joyful activity was picking more oranges from the tree.

Plans for Thursday include tidying the kitchen and cooking.

How was your Wednesday?  What are your plans for Thursday?  I hope everyone is safe from the winter storms that have been in the news today.

Productive Tuesday, Too

 

Frayed Sweater Cuff

One of my hand knit wool sweaters had a frayed cuff on one of the sleeves.  It also had a small hole, further up on the same sleeve:

Small Hole on Sweater Sleeve

I had just enough of the grey wool leftover to mend the hole, although I didn't do the neatest of repairs:

Mended Hole

But, I didn't have enough leftover wool to mend the cuff, so I improvised:

Visible Mending

I took some black yarn and sewed a row of blanket stitches around the cuff that was fraying and the other cuff, too.  The blanket stitching will prevent any further fraying.  

On Tuesday morning, my daughter had her follow up appointment with the podiatrist.  She required another injection as she seems to have an inflammation in her plantar fascia, as well.  She was also recommended to have her foot scanned and be fitted for a more supportive shoe than the one she is currently wearing, so, we will schedule that, next.  She has an appointment for physical therapy and a follow up visit.  

She took time off from work to attend the doctor's appointment, but, worked after we came back.  While she was working, I mended my grey sweater.  

I also brought in the emptied trash bins, looked through the grocery ads for the week (new ad prices go into effect on Wednesday), washed my bed sheets and remade my bed, started reading my library book, watched a few gardening videos, and cooked a pot of rice for dinner.  Lunch was pot roast sandwiches; dinner was rice and leftover sausage stir fry and leftover sauteed green beans.

On Tuesday, I was grateful for:

- Access to medical care for my daughter
- Her foot is healing, although very slowly
- A safe drive to the clinic and back
- Free parking at the clinic
- Weekly trash collections

My joyful activity on Tuesday was watching a video with my daughter.

Plans for Wednesday include tending to the garden with M (although, there is a chance of rain in the forecast for Wednesday), some tidying up in the family room, and some paperwork.

How was your Tuesday?  What are your plans for Wednesday?

Productive Monday

 

Flower Seeds for the Garden (from the dollar store)

Monday was a sunny day, with a high of 71F.  I had made myself a To Do List with 15 things listed and was determined to get as much done as I could.  So, while I waited for the tea (for me) and coffee (for daughter) to brew,  I put away the dishes that had been air drying in the dish drainer, overnight.  

Then, I responded to the e-invitation to former neighbor T's Celebration of Life, expressing my regrets that I would not be able to attend.  Earlier, I had called and spoken with T's daughter, to make my excuses, as I have a doctor's appointment and a bone density injection scheduled for the same day and at the same time and rescheduling it was going to be difficult.  In any case, the Celebration of Life was being held at a restaurant and I am not yet ready to eat at a restaurant; I would have made my excuses even if I didn't have a doctor's appointment.

After that, I scheduled my lab test to do the blood work that is required to be done before the doctor's appointment.  

Dancer received his morning dose of thyroid medication.

In the afternoon, I went to the pharmacy to pick up one of my prescriptions that was ready for pick up.  The receipt showed that I had $2 in Rewards, so, I checked the food aisle to see if there was anything I wanted.  Several types of breakfast cereals were on sale and I picked up a box of cornflakes that was on sale for $1.99, so, free with rewards!  

Afterwards, I went to the dollar store that is next to the pharmacy.  I wanted to get a few household items (small trash can liners, an air freshener,  some quart sized storage bags; all of which were cheaper there than at the grocery store or online) and to see if they had the frozen Jamaican beef hand pies that we tried one time and liked.  The store didn't have them the last time I checked, but, this time, they had them on sale for $0.50 each, so I bought four each of the spicy and the mild.  Daughter had one for her lunch after I came home from the store.  I just had some dry toast because, on Sunday night, I had a bit of an upset tummy.  I spent $4 at the dollar store on food items/groceries.

Later in the evening, I cleaned out the fridge, took the kitchen trash and another bag of recycling to the bins and put the bins by the curb for pick up on Tuesday morning.

Daughter wanted to soak her feet before her podiatrist appointment on Tuesday, so, I got the foot bath ready for her and cleared it away, afterwards.  

Dinner was leftover pot roast, and I cooked some green beans to go with it. Daughter and I both had bread with our dinner.  I will cook rice on Tuesday, to have with leftover stir-fry for dinner.

Afterwards, I did the dishes and looked up the directions to the podiatrist's office, just to remind myself how to get there.  

I also gave Dancer his evening thyroid dose and cleaned his litter box.  

And watered the houseplants (don't have that many, just seven of them).  

The only items on my To Do List which I didn't do are a load of laundry and play with fabric.  They will be carried over to Tuesday.  Plans for Tuesday include taking daughter to her podiatrist appointment, doing a load of laundry, bringing in the trash cans, doing some paperwork, and playing with fabric.  Plus all the daily stuff like preparing meals, doing the dishes, giving Dancer his medications, cleaning his litter box, etc.  

On Monday, I am grateful for:

- My upset tummy has settled down
- My medications being available 
- A safe drive to the pharmacy and store and back
- "Free" box of cereal with store awards
- What I was able to get done 

Monday's joyful activity was watching a genealogy program on TV.

How was your Monday?  Do you make daily To Do Lists?  Do you find them helpful with being productive?  What are your plans for Tuesday?

The Weekend

 

Hummingbird in the Blueberry Bush

A hummingbird was enjoying the nectar from some of the blueberry flowers on Saturday afternoon.  I took the picture with my cell phone, from inside the house, through the sliding glass door, and it's not the best picture, but, the bird was facing me, showing its belly.  Not that I could see any colorful markings.  I've no idea what kind of a hummingbird it is.

I spent a relaxed weekend,  On Saturday, I did the blog posts about the grocery shopping and the meal planning, reattached the towel rail in my bathroom which came off the wall (it had been loose for some time) with my daughter's help, vacuumed one of the air purifier filters which needed cleaning, paid a few bills, cooked a pot roast for dinner, and made a citrus drink with some of the oranges and lemons I picked from the garden.

On Sunday, I tidied up the family room a little bit, broke down several cardboard boxes that packages had been delivered in and took them to the recycling bin, took the kitchen compost to the garden, mended one of my sweaters, and spent a very pleasant hour or so playing with fabric!  I cut up some of my scrap fabric into strips and did a bit of crumb piecing with the leftover bits.  Then, the bobbin ran out of thread and that was my signal to stop and cook dinner.  

Breakfast had been tortillas cooked with eggs and sambol - my mother used to beat up an egg, add some sambol to it, and then, pour it on top of a tortilla that was warming in a frying pan on the stove.  Then, when the egg has started to set, you flip the tortilla over, so that the egg side is down and gets cooked quickly.  Cooked this way, the tortilla reminds me a little bit of a type of flat bread called godamba roti.  

Lunch was pot roast sandwiches.  I sliced some of the leftover pot roast, reheated it in a saute pan, and used it as a hot sandwich filling.  

For dinner, I made a smoked sausage stir fry with vegetables and walnuts and served it with rice.  There were pears for dessert.

Smoked Sausage Stir Fry

There are leftovers for tomorrow or later in the week.

This weekend, I was grateful for:

- Hummingbirds pollinating the blueberry flowers
- Lemons and oranges from the garden
- Sunny days
- Working appliances
- Home cooked meals

The weekend's joyful activities included watching online videos and playing with fabric.

Plans for Monday include picking up one of my prescriptions from the pharmacy, doing some housework, taking the trash cans to the curb, and more playing with fabric!

How was your weekend?  What are your plans for Monday?

February Meal Planning: Week 1 Review & Week 2 Plan

This was the meal plan for February Week 1 Meal Plan (2/1 - 2/7): 

Brunches: Milkrice with sambols (Saturday and Sunday)✓; eggs, sausages, toast✓; peanut butter sandwiches with bananas, French toast✓; oatmeal; pancakes with sausages fried rice, hamburgers, banana muffins

Dinners: Leftover fried rice (Saturday)✓; beef curry with rice and vegetables; ground beef with  potatoes and/or rice and vegetables; beef stir fry with vegetables over rice; pizza and salad, chimichangas, salmon with rice and vegetables, leftovers.

Snacks/Desserts: Fresh fruit✓; smoothies; bread pudding and/or banana muffins✓; cereal and milk✓; peanut butter & banana toast; yogurt; cheetos✓

Here's how it worked out:

Saturday:
Brunch: Milkrice with assorted sambols (seeni sambol, katta sambol, lunu miris
Dinner: Leftover fried rice

Sunday:
Brunch: Leftover milkrice with assorted sambols and/or sugar
Dinner: Salad and chimichangas from the freezer

Monday:
Brunch: French toast and sausages
Dinner: Ground beef with vegetables (red onion, cabbage, bell pepper, snow peas, tomato, etc., shredded in a food processor) added to it along with spices; served over rice (daughter) and baked potato (me)

Tuesday:
Brunch:  Scrambled eggs, leftover sausages, toast
Dinner: Leftover ground beef mixture with rice

Wednesday:
Brunch:  Fried rice made with leftover rice, leftover ground beef, scrambled egg, green peas, and peanuts
Dinner: Rice, salmon, vegetables (carrots, broccoli, green beans)

Thursday:
Brunch: Hamburgers, fries, milkshake
Dinner: Leftovers/toast and seeni sambol

Friday:
Brunch: Banana muffins, cereal & milk
Dinner: Pizza & salad

Once again, I went off the meal plan quite a bit, this week!  For one reason or another, I didn't feel like cooking much.  Also, with my sleep schedule being so off, I am often sleeping till late morning or, even noon, then I make us our morning tea or coffee, after which neither of us wants breakfast or brunch.  What I am referring to as brunch is often eaten once daughter gets off work for the day, around 5:00 or 5:30 p.m.  I have been calling it brunch, but, daughter says it is lunch, and I know that some people might even have their dinner at that time.  Then, we will have our cups of evening tea around 6:30 p.m. while I watch news. I usually cook dinner after I finish watching news and we usually eat our dinner around 8:30 p.m. (which is how it has always been).  But, lately, I haven't felt like cooking in the evenings, so I've been going off the plan for dinner.  I know that I need to be better about meal prep and batch cooking, but, a lot depends on my energy levels.

Anyway, it's a new week, so here's the plan for February Week 2 (2/8/25 - 2/14/25):

Lunches: Leftover pizza with salad (Saturday), pancakes and sausages, scrambled eggs with bacon and fried potatoes or toast, boiled mung beans with sambol, tortillas with egg and sambol

Dinners: Pot roast with rice and vegetables (Saturday), smoked sausage stir-fry with rice, chicken curry with rice and sauteed green beans. sauteed cabbage, and spicy sauteed potatoes; leftovers

Snacks: Fresh fruits, banana muffins, smoothies, tuna salad and crackers, Cheetos, etc.

Maybe I'll keep to the plan, this week.  If not, there's always ramen noodles or tuna salad sandwiches!

Are you meal planning?  If so, have you been keeping to your meal plan?