Nice Thanksgiving

We had a nice Thanksgiving... no one was stuck with all the work!!  Everyone was allotted some of the food and everyone helped divide up the leftovers and tidy up!!
Our dinner was a little earlier than usual because our grand daughter had to work - 4 pm to close. She is a greeter/seater at Applebee's ( a chain midlevel restaurant) Since she is only 17 she cannot waitress because of the alcohol regulations. She likes her boss and coworkers and so likes her job and since she is still in school, the job is part time.

My younger daughter and her family went East to Jefferson City/ Rolla to visit her Mother-in-law . She is a nursing home and declining. We received a text this morning about how difficult the trip back was - the worst rain my daughter had ever driven in!  The weather map last night had shown a huge red area centered over St. Louis, Mo.... covering the eastern half of Missouri ! We only had light drizzle.... today it is supposed to go as high as 60 and be partly sunny! woohoo!!

We are not part of the stampede out shopping... nor one of those glued to the computer or smart phone looking for deals !  So yesterday and today are nice and quiet!!  Do have to figure how how to best use the leftovers.. !!

getting closer to Thanksgiving

I thought that with all my grocery lists I wouldn't end up hitting the grocery store again today... but we did. It seems there is always something that I have forgotten. Looking at the cars in the parking lot,  I'm not the only one!

Bob had to have some paperwork notarized so a trip to the bank was included in our trip out. Nice that one can have it done there free.
Our change holders had gotten very full so I scrounged up all I could find including the stuff in the bottom of my purse... and took it with us to the bank. The bank has a neat machine that counts all the change... throws out foreign ones or washers ... and gives you a receipt which you give to a teller and you get paper money in exchange, Or you can deposit it in our account.  Not more dividing the change by coin or wrapping it in paper holders!! Hooray!  My haul was $30.00  plus one large washer and one penny that had gone through the machine that made it oval in shape, very thin and embossed with "Love KC"!!!

We've been invited out for dinner this evening so it's rest and relax until then!!  We have bags of new books to read... hit the library on our trip out too!

Messmer Bee Farm show

Off we went to the bee farm for a craft, food etc. show. We drove down through a very unfamiliar part of South Kansas City. I had a paper map and thought we would be fine BUT we got lost!! Our Garmin's battery wasn't charged so that didn't help... until I was sure we would have to go back home.... then it kicked in and got us to our destination!!
Interesting booths... lots of bee stuff ... and  jams, jellies, pickles, nuts,dog treats, special vanillas... and so on. In the non-food things: leather goods, jewelry, shirts etc.
Picked up some things for Christmas gifts.  While Bob was standing around waiting for me he bought a huge cookie... big spender, right?!
We made it home without getting lost again ! Hooray!

Trees!! and Crafts!!!

Bob talked with the tree guys as they were working on my neighbors trees and decided to have our trimmed and whatever was necessary.
So all day yesterday we heard chain saws buzzing, tree/limb grinders groaning, trucks and other machines and men yelling to each other.
I couldn't believe how much the men removed from our  four oaks and one huge maple... still with leaves on !  One gum tree and one maple had to be cut down - rotten inside.
Squirrels will have much further to jump since there aren't any limbs reaching to our roof or the neighbors!!

This took them all day... the men and their equipment arrived at 8.30 am and everything was cleaned up and taken away by 5 pm !

Big chunk out of our bank account... but a necessary expense.

Today Bob was willing to head out to the annual craft show in Independence. It is held in a four story building that used to be a power plant ( coal fired electrical one). Now it houses all sorts of social activities such as meetings, exercising, a theater for plays and so. There is even a green house on the top floor.
We were looking for gifts for friends, siblings and so ... and a chance to see friends who have booths. We were about half successful!
I told myself that going to the show would be an adequate replacement for a trip to the gym... and it was. Managed to make it up and down all four floors... no elevator for me!!

Going to give another show a try on Sunday ... food trucks, coffee and crafts... hope to find some interesting stuff for the Christmas boxes. It's being held in a bee farm so maybe??

One oak tree

Bob has been blowing the acorns from our tree down the driveway so that he can scoop them up and using the paper yard waste bags get them into the yard waste bin. So hopefully the trash collector will take them away.
Boy those bags of acorns are heavy!  So far he has collected more than three huge bags!! And the driveway is covered again. It's like walking on marbles!! Except they crunch.
We park the car on the side of the driveway furthest from the tree but the acorns still hit the car roof with a resounding clunk!!
Who would have thought that one tree could make so many acorns!And why don't the squirrels eat them!?


Coincidence ???  Trying not to trip on the acorns ... who should just roll into my cul de sac but many many tree trimming trucks. They are going to trim and remove two of my neighbors trees. Bob is not home so I went out to talk to them and show them which of our trees need work. Got an estimate... and an idea what the trimmers would do.

One tree ... a maple that would take three people to put their arms around... would need extra work.

another batch in the freezer

Yesterday was ginger cookie day... today chocolate chip. Those are for my brother-in-law who lives alone and doesn't cook and are his favorites. Tomorrow will probably be hootercog cookies. Have to be careful not to fill the freezer... it has to be empty enough for the turkey which I will start to thaw on the Sunday before Thanksgiving!!

Slowly but surely my daughters and I are getting organized... each of us has been assigned certain foods and tasks.

Our trash hauler decided it didn't like where we had the bin and decided to skip us for several weeks. A phone call to customer service resulted  in an argument, being told that she couldn't do anything and finally  hanging up on us. Some customer service. Luckily there are several companies handling our subdivision and we are switching. As soon as the new bins arrive my husband will cancel the old one.... and then write to the head of the company. We've been with them for 20 plus years...

Hootercogs are being postponed... the turkey won't fit in...

new follower

I have a new follower who is also a bookaholic... small world isn't it??

Started  on my Holiday food stuff.  Since my daughter has a busy weekend ahead with work stuff, I am starting off with my friend Rita's Chex mix. Great recipe... better than the bought stuff!  It is a real favorite of my daughter... just right for a work filled weekend. The recipe makes a huge amount so there be plenty left for the holidays!

Think the next will be ginger cookies... we all love them and they freeze wonderfully!

By the way I now have a nice fully functioning kitchen faucet ... good sprayer...easy to switch from sink to sink etc.

Visit ... mine... to the cardiologist

I had a nice visit with my cardiologist yesterday. After checking me over and telling me everything is fine... we talked books and cats. He was interested in the fact that Jack and I have similar symptoms and some of the same pills....lol.
He was also interested in the book I had brought along to keep me occupied while I waited. Turns out we like to read the same type of books and are both book-a-holics. The one I brought along was a rural French policeman police procedural... with oh such great food described as well. There are currently 12 books in the series. The author is Martin Walker ... the hero is "Bruno".  Bob likes the series too!
Our library system has some of them ( we "ordered" all they had in hardback) and Amazon has all versions even Kindle.  What are we going to do when we've read all 12??

Best of all I don't have to see the cardiologist for another 6 months...

last year's new cookie

Last year Bob and I watched a PBS show hosted by two Bostonian Jewish sisters. On one episode they made rugelach. I decided to try to make them and they were a success... the family loved them.
This evening I was trolling through some blogs and one discussed wanting a try a new recipe for this holiday.... and the memory of rugelach came to me.

More rugelach it is... just have to get past all the Thanksgiving coking!


I think I used Ina Garten's recipe.... here's the link

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/rugelach-recipe4-1957830

Jack's check up

Jack went to the vet for a check up today.... the vet was very pleased with him. He's gained 1/2 lbs and is no longer dehydrated and quiet. Blood was taken and will let the vet know stuff about Jack's heart etc.  If the test results are good we will continue as we have been and bring him back in February...

We have been bitterly cold and windy today... as low as 8 F this morning. BUT the weatherman says a warming trend starts overnight. Looking forward to that!!

Off to the cardiologist tomorrow ... 6 month check up. Jack and I have similar symptoms and take some of the same medications... Weird right?!

Spent part of our evening sitting in the bleachers of Dominic's middle school gym. Comfortable? No! Dominic, my grandson, was playing his trombone in the advanced ( 8th grade) band's fall concert. But first we had to listen to the intermediate ( 7th grade) band play. Worst part was walking from the parking lot into the school ... COLD!! ... and then back to the car.

Grandkids at the band concert

Winter has arrived... Nov. 11th

Looking out the window from our computer room... snow!  The leaves are still on the oak tree and are green!! Temps have dropped since midnight and the wind has increased...
Bob has tried mulching the leaves... spent yesterday afternoon... but only the maples have really lost their leaves.

Jack has a vet's appointment tomorrow... we will see how we should progress.  He's much more active again and still eating a lot!!


Where we used to live... sw Michigan - St. Joseph/Benton Harbor ... they are expecting about a foot of snow.

heavier???

Jack does seem heavier and we'll know for sure how he is doing on Tuesday. He is still eating and eating!!

Bob and I went to a craft show yesterday... Practically the first booth we came to was one selling local wine with a chance to taste. It did seem a little early ... 9 AM... but we tasted anyway and bought a bottle of a strawberry reisling. Quite nice even with that name!!

Lots of booths to look at and managed to find some "smalls" for my quilting/ stitch and bi*** group's Christmas gift exchange which pleased me mightily!! Not saying what since a group member might read this blog!

I even met up with a fellow bear maker that I hadn't seen in 10 years!! We managed to catch up on our respective families and discovered she still makes bears from old family fur coats ( which I don't anymore!). So when I get that odd phone call out of the blue asking whether I still do , I can say "no" and pass on her name and details!!

The town where this craft show was held has lots of little antique stores so we stopped at a favorite... I think the store may have new owners ... few antiques and loads of Christmas decorative things. I can't complain too much since I found "something" I had to have.

Working on emptying the freezer... turkey etc time !

hungry hungry hungry Jack

The appetite enhancer has made Jack eat and eat and eat. And when he eats, the medicine goes into him too!! It will take sometime for him to gain the two pounds back.

Still a little quiet and not jumping from couch to counter to recliner... yet .

Memories of Guy Fawkes Day

Looking at some of the blogs I follow from the UK brought back memories.... we lived in London until I was six and I remember groups of boys rushing up to my Mother and me asking for money for the Guy.... and bonfires... and  the Guy dressed in rags to be thrown on the bonfire.
When we moved to the US...a group of kids from my street came up our driveway for "trick or treats"... I'd never heard of Halloween or trick or treating! But I was more than eager to go along with them and in the future!!

Jack ...the cat

When we returned home Thursday from San Diego  Jack's behavior was a little off. Our son-in-law who had been feeding and petting both Jack and Tigger while we were gone said he had been fine. So we thought perhaps he was mad at us for leaving him.
But no.. his behavior got more and more "off"... not eating, very quiet, no climbing on the furniture etc. So Saturday we took him to the emergency vet ( open 24/7). By then he was also having trouble breathing. The vets were concerned and wanted to keep him and do tests.
The result is Jack and I have similar heart problems.
We took him home Sunday night with pills like mine - lasik, one to prevent blood clots and a blood pressure one.
We are not having great luck getting his pills into him but he is eating somewhat, drinking and more active... lots of purring too.
Tomorrow he goes to our regular vet... it's a group practice and he will be seeing one with experience with cats with heart problems.  We can tell him how today went and get help with the pills maybe.

Went to the vet... he gave us a gel to rub on Jack's ear to increase his appetite. Since we are having problems with getting his medication into him, the vet told us to stop the Plavix for now. The feurosimide and blood pressure ones are more important. So we will work on getting Jack better and see the vet again in a week.
Jack was easy to get into the carrier and well behaved at the vet...thank goodness.

All over SanDiego...

I'm not the best at using my phone to take pictures... but here are a few!!  I was surprised by San Diego ... lots of small neighborhoods like Little Italy and Old Town with very distinct characters. And SD isn't really very big.  It is very military down by the Bay... lots of boats etc.
I'd go back in a heart beat to see what we didn't have time for!!
Bob says he would love to have time to take Red, Green and Yellow trolley lines and the Coaster down to the ocean ( It covers the county)... San Diego has day passes!  One can also take AmTrak down to Mexico or north  ( maybe even up to Washington State).

We're back

We all left Sunday morning and flew back into KCI Thursday ( last) night.... home from warm 70's in San Diego to cold snow dusted Kansas City !

Older daughter really enjoyed her convention and learned a lot. Bob, younger daughter and I walked and walked and walked! We went on a tour of San Diego on an amphibious vehicle driving all around and then heading into the BAY for the water part of our journey. We saw a dolphin training exercise going on, a seal one too, lots and lots of military boats and facilities.... and then a floating dock covered with seals, sea lions, cormorants and gulls. There were fishing boats, lobster boats etc etc.

Here we are ready to head out...
More next time!