This morning Dear Husband helped me to take eight boxes to the Post Office to be sent off to our troops in Iraq. It’s quite an experience to do this for the first time. One of the ladies in our exercise class spearheaded this effort last year, when her son was stationed overseas. She took six or eight boxes to the Post Office and discovered that she would have to open and list their contents, the weight of the items, and the value, on a customs form, before they could be sent.
Needless to say, she guided us in the preparations this year, and we met after class to begin the work. I even remembered to bring my kitchen scale! We were very short on time that day, so I volunteered to finish the boxes in my car, and get them to the post office. Remember, I said I was short on sleep? (See the next entry) I was up until 1:00 doing the customs forms.
I finished addressing the customs forms this morning, and we headed out. I thought I had all the boxes checked, and everything was ready to go, when the clerk asked me where I wanted to put the addresses on the box. Rather than hold up her work on weighing the boxes and getting the customs sheets set up, I used labels the clerk provided, and wrote all the Sender and Recipient information once again, for the eight boxes. I can tell you I was really happy to see this project to it’s finish.
We hope these boxes arrive before Valentine’s Day. We thought it might perk up some of the troops, and ease their days. At least they’ll know that someone from home cares about them.
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Today is a day full of errands, but it snowed last night, and I’ve decided to get a late start so that I won’t have to compete with those who are trying to get to work under less than ideal conditions. (That’s a classy way of saying I slept in, and am off to a late start. *G*)
I need to start with the bank for both the business and our personal banking.
Then, Home Depot is across the street. I need Safer Soap, and those crystals that absorb water and then release it into the soil of potted plants. I hope they have them, this time of year.
Then I need to stop at one of the big fabric chain stores and pick up two yards of camouflage fabric to make cooling scarves for the troops in Iraq. Our exercise group is sending over comfort boxes, and I’d like to add these to the boxes. The absorbent crystals are used in these scarves.
The next stop is Target for toothpaste and nail clippers to round out the shopping for those boxes. Elegante Mother and I went hog-wild at Sam’s Club yesterday, but I wanted the small travel sized toothpaste tubes, and Sam’s doesn’t carry that sort of thing.
I need to make a stop at my favorite fabric shop to pick up a yard of fabric for the quilt I’m presently creating. I can’t wait, or it could be gone, never to be reordered. If I miss getting the fabric, I’ll just sit down and pull my hair out, I swear! I’ve been working on the color placement for this project for the past month, and I think I’ve finally found an order to the colors that I can live with. Unfortunately, I’m short about half a yard of fabric to create the design, and I’d have to start all over again should this piece not be available. Pray for me!
I need to go to the post office. EM has a letter that needs to go to Canada, and it requires overseas postage. I think I know the amount, but I don’t want this to come back, so I’ll make the extra stop.
THen…..groceries. I sure wish I knew what we were having this week other than salad. I’m fresh out of ideas. Do you think if I cooked grilled cheese sandwiches every night that my family would get the idea and give me a hand planning our meals??
Once I get the errands run, and bring in the groceries, it’s office work for me. I’m actually looking forward to it. The day is bright and sunny, but cold, so it will be good to be where I can look out,and enjoy it, but not have to deal with the wind chill.
Have a good day!

I THINK it’s spider mites. I’ll have to get the plant disease reference to check.
At Christmas, I moved the plants that reside along three of the big windows in the living room to make room for the Christmas tree. I have to admit, the Christmas tree is still up, because I’ve been enjoying it, and I’ve had other things to do. It has to come down before next Friday, when my quilting bee returns for the second time after Christmas, so I have a goal. But, until then, I’m going to enjoy it, darn it all!
Back to the subject… I’ve been growing a small, shrubby tree that was originally part of a mixed planting that was given to my mother years ago. It was perhaps two feet tall then, and is roughly four feet tall, with a spread of four feet. I love the silly thing, but it’s been hard on it, having to grow inside. We’ve had some leaf drop, and I thought it was due to my erratic watering, but now I think that it could be due to an infestation of spider mites. I can see small white “bits” on the underside of the leaves on about half the plant.
I’m fairly sure that this problem came into the house on a plant that was give to my Mother. That plant has been residing in the garage (read: dead, frozen, but not yet buried), since November. Apparently we weren’t quick enough to see the problem, and now, it’s spread. I’ll have to keep an eye on all the plants in the house.
My first line of defense will be to wash the leaves with Safer Soap. If that doesn’t resolve the issue, more drastic efforts might be necessary. Research first, attack later is the plan. I hope I’m not too late to save this plant. It’s an old friend.

To be posted VERY LOW on the refrigerator door – nose height:
Dear Dogs and Cats,
The dishes with the paw print are yours and contain your food.
The other dishes are mine and contain my food.
Please note, placing a paw print in the middle of my plate and food does not stake a claim for it becoming your food and dish, nor do I find that aesthetically pleasing in the slightest.
The stairway was not designed by NASCAR and is not a racetrack
Beating me to the bottom is not the object.
Tripping me doesn’t help because I fall faster than you can run.
I cannot buy anything bigger than a king sized bed.
I am very sorry about this. Do not think I will continue sleeping on the couch to ensure your comfort.
Dogs and cats can actually curl up in a ball when they sleep.
It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other stretched out to the fullest extent possible.
I also know that sticking tails straight out and having tongues hanging out the other end to maximize space is nothing but sarcasm.
For the last time, there is not a secret exit from the bathroom.
If by some miracle I beat you there and manage to get the door shut, it is not necessary to claw, whine, meow, try to turn the knob or get your paw under the edge and try to pull the door open.
I must exit through the same door I entered.
Also, I have been using the bathroom for years — canine or feline attendance is not required.
The proper order is kiss me, then go smell the other dog or cat’s butt. I cannot stress this enough!
To pacify you, my dear pets, I have posted the following message on our front door:
To All Non-Pet Owners Who Visit & Like to Complain About Our Pets:
1. They live here. You don’t.
2. If you don’t want their hair on your clothes, stay off the furniture. (That’s why they call it “fur”niture.)
3. I like my pets a lot better than I like most people.
4. To you, it’s an animal. To me, he/she is an adopted son/daughter who is short, hairy, walks on all fours and doesn’t speak clearly.
Gentle readers: I have no idea who wrote this e-mail, but he or she definitely knows my cat, and the dogs from my earlier life. I’d be happy to give the author credit for a post that made me grin in recognition.

One of the blogs I read, one that is written by someone who is not an American, suggested that Americans have a very narrow vision of the world, and that we are rather unaware of the world in general. In some ways I’d agree with the author, but I was quick to point out that it can take Americans a LONG TIME just to get to their own borders. We are a surprisingly well traveled community, but we may be less well traveled than our counterparts in Europe, simply because we have to travel so far to get out of our own country.
With that in mind……here is a list of the cities that my oldest niece will visit in the next few days:
Almaty (Kazakhstan), Atarau, Uralsk, Astana (the capital of Kazakhstan),
Istanbul, Ankara, Turkey,
Baku (the capital of Azerbaijan),
then Moscow, London and finally, Perth, Australia.
Not bad for a little Midwestern girl, huh??? *G*
I may be the least well-traveled of my family, and I’ve been to Western Europe and England twice, and I’ve been to Canada a number of times. I hope there will be more travel (both inside and outside the US), in my future, and I can promise that I will be a well mannered tourist. I may not be able to speak your language, but I’ll do my best to know your customs and behave myself.
I’ll have to give it some thought and compile a list of places in the world my family has visited. I think South America may come off with the fewest hits. We’ve managed to cover almost every other continent except the Antarctic! Way to go, family!

Our Red Hat chapter met today. We had a pot luck luncheon at a member’s home. It always astonishes me how a potluck meal turns out. Today we had shrimp, salads and dessert. To the best of my knowledge, there was no attempt to avoid duplications. There were three jello salads, but each was very different. Only one pasta salad showed up, which really surprised me. There was one tuna salad, a spreadable salmon something, watermelon, mixed fruit, and I brought Waldorf Salad.
Elegante Mother loves Waldorf Salad, so we’ve made it a couple of times this winter. I expected to be short on time this morning, so I chose the Waldorf as a quick way to make a salad for a ladies’ meal. I used Granny Smith and Red Delicious apples (with their skins left on), celery, chunks of walnuts, and dried cranberries. It was bound together with just enough mayonnaise to coat. I set out roasted sunflower seeds and Chinese Noodles for those who wanted a little crunch.. I was relieved to see that two-thirds of it was gone by the end of the meal.
Dear Husband feels that Waldorf Salad would be improved if one used Miracle Whip in place of the mayo. YUCK!! I COULD do the chopping and set some aside in a bowl for him, and let him add the Miracle Whip.
I thought today that dried cherries would be a good addition, and it seems to me that I’ve seen it made with miniature marshmallows. That’s not to my taste, but I can see that it might be fun to play around with the recipe and make it my own.
The ladies talked through lunch and then swapped gifts. While we were seated, the “Queen” instructed us to get to know the lady seated next to us. Since EM was to my right, I turned to the lady on the left. After we had chatted we were to introduce our new friend. I thought I knew the woman to my left, but it was a lot of fun asking her 20 questions.
The meeting ended shortly after a discussion of places to meet in February.. One woman said she had eaten at the new tapas bar, and the room instantly quieted because they had all thought she had said “topless” bar. *G*
Give me a ba-boom! on the drum and I’m outta here! *G*

We’ve had a peaceful evening. We choose to celebrate the fading away of the old year safe and sound at home. Dear Husband used to watch every Marx brother movie made, but that tradition seems to have gone by the way this year.
DH has has had some time off, which is very unusual. Saturday, I asked him to run errands with me, and we ended with grocery shopping. We’d barely gotten in the door of the grocery store when he was waylaid by the lobster sale. He decided we needed to have a special dinner to see the year out: Lobster tail, green beans with bacon, white cheddar macaroni and cheese, and crusty bread. Oddly, it came off as peasant fare, especially if you live where lobster is abundant. *G*
We’ve enjoyed the time off, doing bits of things here and there. We made one more foray on the grocery store to gets odds and ends of things we’d used up, and we did a bit of work for our company in the morning. I spent some time piecing a quarter of a quilt top, and we chatted with Elegante Mother and Second Son.
New Years Eve is a bit melancholy for us. Two years ago tonight, we lost Dear Husband’s oldest son to a massive heart attack. I still find things I want to share with him. Like his dad, he loved puns and odd collections of facts. I’ll think…”Oh, he’d LOVE this!” and then remember I can’t e-mail him. But, I’m sure that he’s in good hands and knows that we think of him.
It’s snowed almost daily, but in small amounts. I doubt this particular area has more than four inches of snow, but there are other places in the Chicago area where roads are clogged and sidewalks have disappeared. It’s left us with a Winter Wonderland look. The shrubs are outlined in white, and there are paw prints in the snow. Last night, DH had made the rounds, turning off the lights, when he realized there were two deer at the bird feeder. I joined him, and we watched for ten minutes or so. A mom deer and her yearling, I think. I put out corn for them tonight, and topped off the bird feeder for those who can figure out how to empty it.
The new year has crept in, as we’ve listened to a James Taylor Special on PBS, enjoying songs from our past. Ed has snuggled up to me, trying to keep my hands off the keyboard. I’ll take that as a sign.
From our house to yours, we wish you a happy and healthy New Year. Stay safe!

Go, Illinois! Enough said!

Margaret.
And last night, Christmas night, I was given the blessing of a new grandniece. I won’t print her full name here, but I’m delighted to tell you that her middle name is Margaret! Margaret is an old-fashioned name. Not many girls are given old-fashioned names these days, so I figured that no one in our family would carry on my name.
My youngest sister came close when she named her oldest daughter, but this time it’s right on the money!
Thanks, kids! I hope she grows to be a healthy, amazing kid!

But……
My sister has a mouse in her dishwasher. They don’t know how he got there, or if he is capable of getting outside. When they open the dishwasher, he runs to the corner and disappears. There was some discussion of the port where the water exits, and the fact that it must share a communal pipe with the kitchen sink. Other than that, they have no clue how he comes and goes. They don’t know if he’s trying to get out, or if he’s trying to make it his new home. Dear Husband suggested putting one of the cats in the machine, and turning it on.
Elegante Mother fell this morning. Nothing seems to be hurt other than her pride. I think we may have to get her one of those devices that allows her to call for help when we are sleeping. To assuage her angst at having fallen, Dear Husband bought chocolate covered éclairs at the bakery. I assumed (you know what they say about assuming things…) that the éclairs were for dessert. As I walked past Elegante Mother, checking to see if she was all right, she was reading the newspaper. She dipped it when I spoke to her and I realized she couldn’t respond due to the mouthful of éclair she was eating! AND…..as I passed through the kitchen, I realized that there was not one, but TWO of the éclairs missing. You KNOW who ate the other! (And, it wasn’t me!)
Ed, our fifteen year old cat, doesn’t care for cold weather any more, so he was delighted when the temperatures rose into the forties this week. We still have fog, and the snow is melting. It seems rather wet and drippy out, but to Ed, it’s the perfect day to go hunting. He runs out the door about thirty feet and plops his butt on the edge of the sidewalk, and takes up this petrified stance facing the garage wall and a hole in the ground. He seems to think a chipmunk is going to come out of that hole sooner or later, and he plans to be ready to greet him. Do you think it’s too late for me to explain the concept of hibernation to Ed??