Dancer's Battles

 

This Little Kitty...

This little kitty went to the vet's clinic, again.  

Dancer has been battling fleas, again.  I had given him his flea prevention treatment at the end of September, but, we had to give him another treatment a week before the next treatment was due.  However, we've been noticing some tell-tale signs that the treatment hadn't been very successful.  I've been flea combing him daily and changing the sofa dust covers daily, too, and daughter has been spraying the house with indoor flea spray.  She even bought a different spray that is supposed to be stronger.  And we've been vacuuming daily as a precaution.  

However, on Friday, we saw signs that he has tapeworms, again.  So, I woke up quite early on Saturday and called the vet clinic at 7:15 a.m.(they openat 7:00 a.m.) and made an appointment to bring him in at 12:30 p.m.  They wanted a stool sample and this time, I was able to collect the sample right away.

I gave him his sedative an hour before we left and I took him to the vet's clinic by myself as daughter was having a migraine.  Of course, he threw up.  But, I suppose I should be glad it wasn't worse!  He received a pill for the tapeworms (this time, the technician gave it to him) and had his nails trimmed. He's been sleeping it off ever since we came home.

Daughter was feeling better by the time Dancer and I came home from the vet's.  She vacuumed the house while I helped a little bit.  Then, I stripped my bed and did a load of laundry.  Daughter sprayed my mattress cover with the flea spray since Dancer sleeps on my bed at night.  

I had a bagel with cream cheese for breakfast and both daughter and I had leftover Mexican rice for lunch.  I was summoning the energy to cook dinner, but, daughter ordered pizza as her treat.  There is something about dinner being delivered to my front door that appeals to me.  LOL.  

I still need to make my bed with the sheets I washed and dried.  Then, maybe I'll go to sleep at a more reasonable time, tonight.  I had 4 hours of sleep last night and didn't take an afternoon nap.  I wonder if this will reset my internal clock and reset my up-side-down sleep schedule?

Today, I am grateful for:

- I was able to get Dancer in for a same day appointment
- The availability of medications and treatments for him
- Daughter helping with the vacuuming
- Working appliances 
- A safe drive to the clinic and back

Today's joyful activity was knitting.  

Plans for Sunday include some cardmaking and more flea control!

On the lookout for the enemy!

How is your weekend coming along?

The Week So Far

 

Another Red Rose

It feels like the days are going by so quickly!

Monday was mostly about my dental work and I wrote about that.

On Tuesday, I took my daughter to get her Covid vaccine during her lunch break.  We went to the walk-in clinic, except they had a one hour wait.  However, they also had a drive through vaccine station set up in the parking lot and there was no line there, so, we drove over, she received her vaccine, and we drove home, again.  I dropped her off at home and went to the pharmacy to pick up Dancer's medication.  That pharmacy is next to a doughnut shop and I decided to get us some doughnuts for a treat.  By the time I got home, daughter was starting to feel the side effects from her vaccine and took the rest of the day off from work.  

I put away the Halloween decorations in the bin in the garage, did a craft project, mended a pair of my knitted socks, posted a meal plan, and watched news coverage of the elections.

On Wednesday, my gardener friend M arrived to tend to the garden.  He had bought some plants, including several Japanese herbs that daughter had wanted, and a bag of potting soil for us (I reimbursed him for them) and shared some extra onion sets and celery seedlings, too.  He planted some of them, but, the rest will be planted on Friday.

Wednesday afternoon, I ordered and picked up some groceries.  Later, I did a load of laundry, finished mending my socks (I'm going to count that as my crafting time), and relaxed.  Friend R called in the evening and we chatted a bit.  

Thursday was another sunny day and another red rose had bloomed.  There are a few pink roses in the back garden and a couple of white roses, too, but, I didn't take pictures of them.  

I walked for 20 minutes in the afternoon and then, spent about half an hour knitting.  Then I watched some news and a couple of online videos.  

For dinner, I wanted to make something with the leftover rice I had in the fridge.  I usually make fried rice with leftover rice, and that's what I put in my meal plan for the week.  But, on Thursday, I wanted to try something different, like a rice casserole.  But, not the usual chicken and rice with a cream-of-something soup base.  Besides, I had some canned items in the pantry that needed to be used up as they were well past their best by dates.  The contents were still good, but, they were past the "best by" dates stamped on the cans.

So, I decided to make my version of a Mexican rice casserole, using a can of corn, a can of dark red kidney beans, a can of crushed tomatoes, and a can of chicken.  I sauteed about a third of an onion with cumin powder, chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, a bit of oregano, and a very small amount of homegrown celery I had in the freezer, added the leftover rice, the kidney beans (drained and rinsed), the corn (drained and rinsed), the chicken (drained and rinsed) and the can of crushed tomatoes, a couple of homegrown Serrano chilies, and a bit of salt.  It turned out really well.  Daughter and I both enjoyed it and there are leftovers for at least one more meal.

Mexican Rice Casserole

One could add other ingredients, too, I'm sure; I considered adding some bell peppers, but, I couldn't find the bag of frozen bell pepper strips I have in the freezer (someone needs to reorganize her freezer) and besides, bell peppers give me indigestion, especially if eaten at night.  Or one could add cilantro.  In the past, I've used a jar of salsa instead of the canned tomatoes and that was delicious, too.

This could be easily be made as a vegetarian dish if the canned chicken is left out; the beans would provide proteins (one could add more beans, too).  It could be a frugal meal if the canned items are bought on sale.  Even otherwise, the store brand cans of corn and dark red kidney beans are priced $1 each, a can of store brand crushed tomatoes is $1.99, and a can of chicken breast is $3.79 according to the store website.  A 2 lb. bag (the smallest size they have) of store brand white rice is $1.99 and one wouldn't need to use the whole bag of rice.

Afterwards, I ran the dishwasher and wiped down the stove top, etc.

I am grateful for:

- M picking up plants and potting soil for us and sharing seedlings with us
- Roses blooming in the garden
- A walk in the park driveway

- Working appliances
- A card from my oldest half-brother

This week's joyful activities have included crafting, enjoying the sunshine, and chatting with friends.

Plans for Friday include some housework, some crafting, and tending to the garden with M in the evening.

How is your week coming along?  What are some of your favorite meals to make with leftover rice?  

November Grocery Shopping - Week 1

I ordered and picked up groceries, today (Wednesday).  After missing out on some deals, earlier, possibly because I waited too long to order groceries and supplies ran out, I made sure to order what I wanted on the first day of the sales.  I needed milk and half & half.  Condensed milk was on sale for even less than before, so, I decided to stock up on that, too.  Chips were on sale this week on a multi-buy offer and, since daughter's favorite Cheetos weren't on sale, we went with chips.  In addition, I wanted some fresh fruit.

I bought:

Order Summary

Original Item Total$83.82

Item Coupons/Sales-$35.20

Fulfillment Fee+$0.00

Other Fees+$0.40

Sales Tax$0.00

Order Total$49.02

---

Item Details

17 Items

Doritos Salsa Verde Flavored Tortilla Chips, 9.25 oz$2.50

1 x $2.50 $5.99 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$3.49

Doritos® Nacho Cheese Flavored Tortilla Chips, 9.25 oz$2.50

1 x $2.50 $5.99 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$3.49

Doritos® Spicy Sweet Chili Flavored Tortilla Chips, 9.25 oz$2.50

1 x $2.50 $5.99 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$3.49

Fresh Strawberries – 1 LB Clamshell, 1 lb$2.49

1 x $2.49 $3.99 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$1.50

Hillshire Farm® Polska Kielbasa Smoked Sausage, 14 oz$6.98

2 x $3.49 $6.99 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$3.00

Item Coupon/Sale: -$3.00

Item Coupon/Sale: -$0.50

Item Coupon/Sale: -$0.50

Kroger® Cage Free Large White Eggs, 18 ct$1.99

1 x $1.99 $3.69 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$1.70

Kroger® Cinnamon Graham Crackers, 14.4 oz$3.59

1 x $3.59 each

Kroger® Fresh Seedless Red Grapes, 1 lb$4.84

2.43 lbs x $1.99 $3.49 each (approx.)

Item Coupon/Sale: -$3.64

Kroger® Half and Half Quart, 1 qt$3.69

1 x $3.69 each

Kroger® Original Cream Cheese, 2 ct / 8 oz each$3.29

1 x $3.29 $4.69 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$1.40

Nestle La Lechera Sweetened Condensed Milk, 14 oz$8.76

4 x $2.19 $3.69 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$1.50

Item Coupon/Sale: -$1.50

Item Coupon/Sale: -$1.50

Item Coupon/Sale: -$1.50

Ralphs® Vitamin D Whole Milk Half Gallon, 1/2 gal$2.99

1 x $2.99 each

Ruffles® Sour Cream and Onion Potato Chips, 8 oz$2.50

1 x $2.50 $5.99 each

Item Coupon/Sale: -$3.49

---

Other Fees

$0.40

Bag Fee$0.40

4 x $0.10 each

My November grocery budget is $250 + $15.09 leftover from October = $265.09

Spent to date = $49.02

Balance left in the budget = $216.07

I am grateful for:

- Being able to order groceries and pick up
- For a safe trip to the grocery store and back
- For the availability of groceries
- For daughter putting away the groceries for me
- For weekly deals and sales

Have you grocery shopped for November, yet?

October Meal Planning Week 5 Review and November Meal Planning: Week 1

Peach Cobbler

These were my meal plan options for October Week 5:

Brunches:  Cold cuts sandwiches; Bagels, Cereal and milk;  milkrice with fish curry and seeni sambol (on Saturday, November 1); leftovers from dinners; uppuma; pancakes

Dinners:  Rice and beef curry with green beans, Stringhoppers and/or rice with fish curry and seeni sambol; Ham and split pea soup; breakfast for dinner (scrambled eggs, bacon, toast); Baked yams; parathas and curries; Leftovers/Planned-overs 

Snacks/Desserts:  Fruit; crackers; granola bars; cereal and milk; Hot Cheetos; bread pudding?  Peach cobbler

And here's how it worked out:

Monday:

Brunch:  Ham sandwich

Dinner:  Stringhoppers and fish curry, with seeni sambol

Snacks/Dessert: ??? Didn't keep track

Tuesday:

Brunch:  Leftover stringhoppers and fish curry (me); rice and beef curry with sauteed green beans (daughter)

Dinner:  Ham & split pea soup, scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast

Snacks/Dessert  Strawberries (daughter), tangerine (me)

Wednesday:

Brunch:  Cold cuts sandwich

Dinner:  Beef curry, microwave backed sweet potato, (me); rice and beef curry (daughter)

Snacks/Dessert: Cereal and milk, persimmons

Thursday:

Brunch:  Cold cuts sandwiches

Dinner:  Parathas with chicken curry and green beans

Snacks/Dessert:  Home canned peaches and custard (me); daughter doesn't like custard made with a powder

Friday:

Brunch:  Uppuma

Dinner:  Ham and split pea soup (me); rice, chicken curry, and green beans (daughter)

Snacks/Dessert:  Halloween candy shared by M

Saturday:

Brunch:  Milkrice, with fish curry/seeni sambol/lunu miris/jaggery

Dinner:  Ramen noodles, Japanese style pickled cucumber slices

Snacks/Dessert: Pomegranate from the garden; Peach cobbler with ice cream (daughter) or custard (me)

Sunday:

Brunch: Pancakes, sausages, syrup, orange juice

Dinner:  "Breakfast for dinner" - leftover pancakes and sausages (daughter), scrambled egg and baked sweet potato (me)

Snacks/Dessert:  Peach cobbler (daughter); I didn't have dessert, but, snacked on Sri Lankan murukku mix

I didn't necessarily keep to the meal plan options I had listed, but, I didn't go too far off the plan either, so, I am happy.

Which brings me to meal plan options for November Week 1 (11/3 to 11/9)

Brunches:  Cold cuts sandwiches; Bagels; doughnuts, leftovers

Dinners:  Hamburgers/fries/chicken nuggets (Monday); Parathas and spicy sauteed potatoes (Tuesday); Breakfast for dinner (Scrambled eggs, sausages, and hash browns);  Fried rice; Leftovers/Planned-overs 

Snacks/Desserts:  Fruit; crackers; granola bars; cereal and milk;  Peach cobbler

Or something else!

As always, I am grateful for having access to many different foods and for having sufficient to eat, 

Are you making a meal plan this week?

Another Dental Appointment on Monday

 

Bougainvillea

On Monday morning, I called the pharmacy to request a refill of Dancer's thyroid medication, took down the Halloween decorations and ironed the Halloween table runners and cushion covers I had washed on Sunday, and dusted the living room.  I wanted to vacuum, too, but, daughter was having online meetings and I don't like to make a big noise when she's working.  I wished one of my friends for her birthday, ate a bit of leftover milk rice for brunch, and then, it was time to get ready to go to my dental appointment.

The appointment was at 4:00 p.m., but, it takes one hour to drive there due to traffic.  So, we left at 3:00 p.m. (daughter accompanied me).  The appointment was with the dental hygienist to clean my teeth, but, afterwards, the dentist attended to me to replace part of the bridge that came off.  He was able to use part of it to make a temporary crown for one tooth to protect it for the time being.  The teeth cleaning went well because I asked for and received a local anesthetic to numb my mouth (topical gels don't numb me enough).  Only one quadrangle (right upper jaw) was done and that was more than enough for me for one time! Another quadrangle will be done later this month and I made the appointment before I left the dentist's office.  On the way home, we got hamburgers, chicken nuggets, and fries for dinner and a milkshake for me.  

I took it easy after we came home.  Daughter took the trash cans to the curb for me and I watched the evening news.  Afterwards, I spent an hour or so doing some crafting while I listened to some chanting of blessings online.  I'm not quite sure where the rest of the evening went, but, I did some sudoku, visited a few blogs, and relaxed!

On Monday, I was grateful for:

- Another sunny day
- A safe drive to the dental clinic and back
- Local anesthesia for a pain-free teeth cleaning
- Validated parking 
- Daughter accompanying me for moral support

Monday's joyful activity was crafting.

Plans for Tuesday include dusting the dining area, picking up Dancer's medication, taking daughter to get her vaccination, and putting away the laundry that I didn't put away on Monday!  And maybe making a meal plan.

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

On Sunday

 

Red Rose

On Sunday, when I first woke up at 6:00 a.m. to feed Dancer (he didn't care that I went to sleep at 3:30 a.m.; he wanted breakfast), I looked outside and it was so misty that I could barely see to the end of the garden.  When I woke up for the second time, it was sunny and bright; the mist had all disappeared.

We had pancakes and sausages for brunch.  It wasn't in my meal plan, but, it was what I was in the mood for and what I felt like making.  Afterwards, I walked for 15 minutes, did a couple of loads of laundry, changed the dust sheets on the sofas, watched some TV (cooking shows), and spent an hour or so crafting, as that's my new goal for this month, to spend more time crafting on a daily basis.  I also watched the evening news and some online videos and watered the houseplants.  

For dinner, we had "breakfast for dinner" - daughter, quite literally, as she ate the leftovers from brunch, and I had a scrambled egg and a microwave baked sweet potato.  Daughter had peach cobbler for dessert and so far, I have managed to avoid it.  

On Sunday, I am grateful for:

- A sunny and warm day
- Time to do crafts
- Working appliances
- Emails from friends
- Kind blog comments

Sunday's joyful activities included doing crafts and walking in my garden.

Plans for Monday include:

- Going to my dental appointment in the afternoon
- Putting away laundry
- Watering the garden
- Taking the trash cans to the curb
- Crafting
- Taking down and putting away the Halloween decorations
- Cleaning the living room
- Making a meal plan

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

Starting November

 

Peach Cobbler

Happy November, everyone!

November dawned sunny and warm with a high of 77F.  I made my usual milkrice for brunch.

In the afternoon, daughter and I went to the library.  We dropped off our ballots at the ballot box outside the library and then, we went inside the library.  We spent a few minutes browsing the shelves and I borrowed a book I had borrowed earlier, which I hadn't been able to finish reading, and a magazine.  Daughter borrowed several books, too.  She practiced her driving on the way home, which was nice.

Afterwards, daughter did some beading and I did some diamond painting.  I am determined to spend at least 30 minutes (preferably one hour) a day doing a crafts project this month.  It's an activity that brings me a lot of pleasure and yet, I often don't take the time to sit and craft.  

Dinner was ramen noodles and daughter made a Japanese style pickled cucumber salad which was delicious.  Later, she decided to bake a peach cobbler, using a packet of homegrown peaches I had frozen.  It was delicious! 

On the first day of November, I was grateful for:

- A new month and a new beginning
- Being able to vote, thanks to everyone who strove to obtain the right for women to vote
- Public libraries and all the resources they provide
- Daughter is feeling more confident about driving
- A sunny and warm day

The day's joyful activities included spending an hour or so crafting and going to the library.

Plans for Sunday include spending another hour crafting and doing some laundry.

How was your Saturday?  What are your plans for Sunday?