Long time, no post, because I have been so busy!

 Made eight pans of caramels with only one fail! Yeah!

Yes, I did have some fails, we all did.  When making candy you cannot multitask, which I do and then I screw it up!

But all in all, it was a total success, and we made a lot of People happy.

Five pans of peanut brittle - one fail!

This took us almost three days and we made 18 dozen rosettes.

I do not know how many cookies and 10 lbs. of potatoes for lefsa!

Sissy made all of the cookie batters, and I did most of the candy.  Little Sis made the lefsa, which is quite a chore.  Husband and one of Kim's friends and I spent 6 hours making rosettes. We were a stinky greasy bunch.

By day number two my feet had a heartbeat of their own!

It was a lot of work!  In addition to this I also made 6 pans of almond Roca, and I do not even know how many tins of Chex mix.

Sissy and I finally got everything delivered yesterday and that was a big relief.

We wanted to do it Wednesday, but the windstorm put the kibosh on that!

That was one wicked storm and the damage all over the Northwest is bad.

Daniel and I fared well, but the house next door lost most of their shingles, which ended up in our backyard.

The ground cloth took a beating where the driveway will go and that is an easy fix, but Sissy and her neighbor's fence is a goner.

We are waiting on an estimate and are prepared.

Today I must go and get Sissy's soda on my Husband and my apps. Need to go to the post office and also do a small grocery shop as I am out of a few important things.

I do not want to leave the house as it is so damn windy, and I hate the wind, but needs must.

I think I am basically prepared for Christmas. I have the filet mignon ordered and I will pick that up next Tuesday. Lil Sis is providing the Lobster; I will make the Cesar salad and round this out with a baked potato and call it wonderful!

Sissy will be at her eldest's with the entire family and Husb and I will be here with Lil Sis and her husband.

WE are looking forward to a quiet Christmas with lots of good food and laughs.

Now I am off to get my errands done and then home to read and relax!

Hugs.

Kay

Trying to stay above the?......long post, please read, I need it!

Sissy is so down, I mean so down.

I do not know how to help except to be here!

And maybe I am also!

Thanksgiving went well but we were under the weight of the phone call... which came early Friday morning....

Our beloved Heidi is gone.

The funny is I was so exhausted from Thanksgiving cooking (I need to pass the torch, and as I did not breed there is no one to pass the torch too!) I spent the night at Sissies again as I had hit the wall and the Husb was not ready to go home yet?  I just peeled my clothes off, got my P.J, s which I keep there and crawled into bed.

Woke early on Friday morning, intentionally thinking about taking Sissies car down the hill to start Christmas decorating (which is our tradition).  But as it turns out I made coffee (yes, keep a pot at sissies with all the makings) had my three cups and was in the shop playing on the computer when I heard Roscoe bark so loud and it scared me. It was very early, so I jumped up and I belly bumped with Sissy in the hallway! She told me that Heidi had passed.  We scared each other badly! But we laughed because we are truly sick individuals.

Now it was close to eight a.m. by the time we got it together, and I looked at Sissy and said get dressed, we are going "Black Friday Shopping".  Now as any of you who have ever visited this valley, there is no "Black Friday Shopping" anywhere!  But I was determined to find something, anything?

So, we went to Hobby Lobby as they were open by eight! Yeah!  We cried and laughed as that is what we do...and found eight dessert dishes to match Sissies Thanksgiving service for 75% off and I got two jigsaw puzzles for the Husb at 50% off.  Then there was an Art Fair in the Mall (if that is what you want to call a Mall) and we toured that.  I did find a gorgeous shawl (I wear a lot of them in the frigid temperatures here) and I could not have bought the yarn for what it cost.  Both Sissie and I love supporting home businesses. 

Then home to a depressing weekend.  Did not know Funeral arrangements yet.  Sissy dropped me off at home and everything is a blur.  

On Saturday and it was frigid cold; I pulled my cut garden and the bulbs for the flower that is gorgeous but do not remember its name? Just knew it needed to be pulled and gathered three geraniums and two spikes to carry up to Sissies green house.  I was dirty and I was sore once again!

On Sunday I took said plants to Sissies greenhouse and did something anything, and She was so down...

But we had Funeral arrangements do that was good.  Well, is that good? My planning gets in the way of real life.

I knew I was cooking Sunday night, and I pulled burger and made homemade spaghetti sauce with garden fresh tomatoes, and I placed a whole Boursin cheese block in the center (saw this on a website) and it was delicious, and we started a new puzzle.  Sissy joined us!

Now onto Monday, so many things to do.  December first!  Can you believe it?

I paid all bills for the month, (except my taxes) I will make them wait.  Due December 20th?  I mean who does that? Sissy and I have agreed that we will wait until after the Funeral. My grill which I ordered from Home Creepo two months ago was finally going to be delivered at 3:30 along with the grill cover and the large mat I ordered.  Yeah, I can grill some steaks out back.  I pull two beautiful New Yorks's. 

Well, the grill showed up way after dark and too late, so I pulled shrimp from the freezer, and we had fried shrimp and tater tots, and Sissy came for dinner we worked on a new jigsaw puzzle. 

However, the mat I ordered the grill to go on did not arrive, and it was there last Friday when I checked the grill to see if it had been put together correctly (yes, I am that jaded) and it had.  The mat was with it. Now I was just waiting for delivery.  Well, it did not make it! I am sure it is still on the truck!

Tuesday, up to Home Creepo again to explain to them that the mat is missing and they generously believed me and refunded the missing mat, and the new one would be here between the 9th and the 12th of December? Yes, third world problem, but I am still a little disturbed,

Well Sissy just called and we are having spaghetti again tonight as I have not frozen leftovers yet, and she wants to work on the puzzle. so, this is good news!

I plan on leaving with Sissie on Friday morning, but plans can change.  Crazy world live in.

I am tired.

Have not started to decorate for Christmas and will probably wait until I get back from Hiedi's Funeral.

Don't know!

I did make a phone call to Sluggy to let her know that Heidi had passed so she would not read it on the Blog.  I felt it was Sissie's place to mention it, but I wanted Slug to know beforehand, as she had met Heidi and liked here. 

Now have to go reheat dinner.  This is what I do...

God is Good!

Kay

 

Making Pies today and getting ready!

 Heading up to Sissies in a while to make pies.  I got the Prime Rib, and it was very pricey but will be worth it!

Made eight pie crusts yesterday and four gluten free crusts.

Of course, the entire kitchen had to be deep cleaned after the first batch of crust as I did not want to cross contaminate regular flour with gluten free, so it was a longer process than normal, but it is done.

I will say that the gluten free crust went together very well for the first time.  I am getting the hang of working with this flour as well as almond flour, which is also gluten free, but has a somewhat nutty flavor.

I will spend the night at Sissies and then start prepping in the morning.  So prime rib, mashed potatoes, Brussel sprouts with bacon, Aus jus gravy and popovers!  Will make both regular and gluten free.

Sissie will make pumpkin pie, and I am making apple.  Will do two small gluten free crusts for our friend so she can have both pies!

I have found if I make my popover batter early and let it come to room temperature; they cook up so much fluffier.

I also bought olives and will have my famous smoked salmon dip for appetizer with toasted gluten free baguette and gluten free crackers.  Bought some sparkling apple and cranberry cider for most and of course I will be drinking wine!

Should be a great time with Family and friends.

Now I am going to run to the store and get flowers for the table!

Here is wishing everyone the happiest of Thanksgivings!

Gobble, gobble, but no turkey for us!

Kay

Home again!

Oh, it is so good to be home!  Sissy and I pulled into town about 3:30 yesterday afternoon after a seven-hour drive.

We were not needed at her late Mother in laws house as the granddaughters had finished it, so we went on to Twin Falls to see Sissies eldest. Before we left the Boise area we stopped at Talbot's and Lulu Lemon for several Christmas gifts.

Sissy really got to relax, and we did a lot of shopping which was great as there is no shopping in Lewiston.  Sissy also made herself useful and altered eleven garments for her eldest and two for her eldest MIL

Sissies cold finally has been abolished which is wonderful!

On our way back home, we stopped in Nampa to see Heidi after checking to see if she would take visitors, and it was so good to see her, but oh so sad. She looked like a concentration camp victim.  All teeth and eyes, but her spirit was there.  It was a very brief visit as she sleeps a lot and when we left, we just sat in the car for abought 30 minutes and cried our eyes out. I do not think she will make it to Thanksgiving. Cancer is damn cruel!

I unpacked everything last night and today I have done four loads of laundry and planned my menu for the next three days.

I made my list for Thanksgiving, and I know where I am going to buy my Prime Rib.

Tomorrow I will make my pie crusts, eight regular and four gluten free.

Sissy and I have decided on the menu with the exception of vegetable which will be either Brussel sprouts with bacon, or green beans almondine.

Sissy will make the Pumpkin pie, and I will make apple.

I am waiting for my last load of laundry to dry and then will do a small grocery shop and then up to Sissies to drop some things off and retrieve some packages that came for me while we were gone.

Then home to get my ironing done and make dinner.  Tonight, it will be chicken pesto with linguini!

The dryer just beeped so downstairs I go to finish my chore.

Blessings to everyone this Sabbath!

Kay

 

So much to do to get out of Dodge!

 

Oh, it has been a busy time since I last blogged, and it just getting crazier.

Sissy has been really sick with a bad cold, and I have been running interference.

She is on the mend but still has a wicked cough.  Her immune system is just horrible.

We are leaving tomorrow to go to Nampa and help Joels family finish the clean out of His Mother's house and then onto Twin Falls to see Kim's oldest for a day or two.

We will also pack funeral clothes, as Joel's sister is now on Hospice and it could be any day now.  The thought just terrifies me, as I so love this woman.

She has been battling ovarian cancer for four years. She is Sissy and my age, and we graduated from high school the same year. Such a lovely woman and I am just sick for the family.

I need to pack and get so many little things done before I leave town.  I will spend the night at Sissy's tonight, so we can get on the road early and I will drive the five hours to Nampa.

I am such a planner, and this has thrown me for a loop as I want days and days to plan.  I wanted to get some Thanksgiving baking done this week and I will have to push that to next week, but it can be done.

Now grab a suitcase and get to packing that is my goal.

Pray for us as we undertake this trip.  I do not want Sissy overdoing which you all know she tends to do.

Husb will take care of Roscoe and hold down the fort here.

Now I am heading downstairs to pull a suitcase and then shower and dress for the day.  Then run a myriad of errands.

Everyone take care.  We shall return.

Kay

Thursday the 6th of November!

 So, what has been happening at the Nichols Homestead.  A lot!  The weather has turned cold and rainy and with time change very dark by late afternoon.  By the time of the winter equinox, it will dark by four in the afternoon and not hit sunrise until 8:00 in the morning!  The winters are dark here and I feel like we are living in Alaska.

The rains are upon us, but we need it so not to complain.

One of our last outdoor projects was to pull these very heavy pavers and large stone, so our landscaper could come and dig 3.5 tons of topsoil out of the front boulevard and get it ready for hydroseed next spring.

As soon as this work gets done, we will lay the pavers for a larger path below grade.

These pavers were very heavy and the Husb and I had a workout.

Complete, and I have not retired my gardening clothes yet as I still have to process the cut garden which I will do after the first hard frost.

We have worked so hard in this yard and now we are really at impasse and need another project.

The jigsaw puzzles help! 

I went and got a Library card and stocked up on books and am making plans within plans.

Sissy is really down with a bad cold, and we so hope that we do not catch it.  I will go and check on her later today, Husb is steering clear, as when he gets a cold, it is weeks and weeks.

One of my goals this month was to stay out of the grocery store, but the loss leaders were just too good this week.

I was able to get six eighteen counts of large eggs for 1.97 each (Christmas Baking is soon upon us)!  Sissy will also pick up three more or I will do it for her, will find that out later today.  Her chickens are no longer laying; last Christmas we were paying six dollars a dozen!

I also got six pounds of beautiful center loin porkchops for 99 cents a pound, and they are gorgeous.

This is a roll back to the 1960's.  I will also ask Sissy if she wants me to pick some up for her.

My freezers are full!  Her chest freezer is not.  We shall see.  If I had more room, I would have bought more as there is no limit!

I also picked up 8 boxes of kraft macaroni and cheese for .49 cents a box (my Husb and I hate this) as Sissy's grands love it and it is a quick meal for them.   So, I spent all told $21.09!

Tonight, we are having flanken (beef short ribs cut across the grain) with mashed potatoes and green beans.  We finished homemade potato soup last night and it was even better the second day.  I ran some up to sick Sissy and cleaned her kitchen because that is what Sisters do.

I have finally made an appointment with an Investment Counselor who is one of Sissy's very good Clients, as Husb and I want our investments handled locally.  This has been on my list of things to do since we moved here.

I am waiting on an estimate for the front yard and boulevard, and I will fill you in when they arrive.

I want so badly to get out in the yard and blow leaves, but it is just too wet and will not dry out until the weekend.  I just do not want leaves piling up on our new grass and with the trees next door this is what is happening.

Now I must go and make myself beautiful (this is very difficult) and then head up the hill to check on Sissy.

Hope everyone is doing well!

God is good!

Kay

P.S. 

Second puzzle finished!

November 1st and a Halloween report!

This is me and I am one of the monkeys as I way over bought Halloween candy.  WE had about sixty kids and what was I thinking.  So, I have bagged up the leftovers and am taking them to the Neighbors across the street. 

I gave Sissy a large box of Fruit snacks for the kids at Choir tomorrow and a large bag of rice crispy treats for the adults. So, she does not have to bake today!  I call that a win! I want this stuff out of the House as Husb is diabetic and has no self-control, which he readily admits.

Sissy came for dinner last night (pizza)and we worked a jig saw puzzle which Husb and Sissy finished long after I went to bed.  I did a little as I was handing out candy.

Sissy then decided to spend the night, and I did not even hear her come to bed, I was that tired.

The finished puzzle and I cannot get this picture turned.  This was only 750 pieces!

It is that time of year again, just too cold to be outside, at least for me it is.

However today we have the last warm spell of the season, and it will climb to the high sixties.

I am hoping that after I get back from my small grocery shop the Husb will help me trim the trees along the side path.  We shall see.  I also want to pull the large pavers and large rock from the boulevard path, so our lawn guy can come and level and get rid of a lot of the dirt to bring this area below grade.

I will then relay the path (below grade) and cover the earth with yard cloth until next spring.

This area will then be hydroseeded when it gets warm enough.

So, plans within plans.  I did manage to get to Home Creepo yesterday and get more ground cloth pins and laid another layer at an area on the back driveway area that kept blowing up.  We do occasionally get some high winds.

I am making a ham, bacon and cheese quiche for dinner as that is what Husb wants along with a small side salad.  This will feed us for three meals.

My goal this month, and I mean it is to stay out of the grocery store and whittle down the freezers.

Wish me luck as I have been bad.  I have done a full inventory of the upstairs freezer, but not the downstairs and that I will do tomorrow and then report.

My problem is I cannot stop buying loss leaders as groceries have become so expensive, but I am past the point of being ridiculous.  I just cannot pass up a bargain.

I think I will have to challenge Ann to do the same.  Go Ann, go! Oh, wait she is still working on the room of horrors, but is making progress, and all progress is good!

Talked with both Sluggy and Ann yesterday and Sluggy is struggling.  The surgery really took it out of her, but she is strong and will bounce back, it is just going to take time.

Both Sissy and I think she will not be ready for Company by the end of November so we will make plans for next spring, but things could change.

Now I must get to the store, deliver candy across the street, put gas in my car, and then home to vacuum the basement and make a quiche!

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend!

God is good.

Kay

 

Tuesday the 28th of October!

Thank you all for the positive comments on the yard, I so needed them.

This is a picture I forgot to post yesterday of an area on the other side of the yard that we filled with pavers to the fence.  The sidewalk is in bad shape, but then the house is 100 years old.  This area was weed city with old wood laying in the area, just awful, now filled in with pavers.

Another taken from back gate.  Looks so much better.

The plan for today was to cut back trees, but it is just too cold and will be warmer tomorrow.  I also have errands to run for Sissy and myself so might as well get that done.

I spent the night at Sissy's last night and we had leftover beef stew, and my popovers were different but good.  I forgot to take a picture.

They did have a nutty flavor from the almond flour and were a bit eggy?  Also did not rise as much which I was forewarned, but they were dense and good.

One of our Friends stopped by while they were coming from the oven and she is seriously gluten intolerant and she loved them.

Said Friend is spending thanksgiving with us so I will make gluten free and almond flour popovers for Thanksgiving as we are having Prime Rib and not turkey.  The combination of almond flour and gluten free flour will give me a higher rise. While not as low in carbs, better than regular flour.

So, I am dressed and ready to head out the door.  I must put gas in Sissy's car, head to URM to check the price of sugar (stocking up for Christmas baking) then to the North Forty for a 10-gallon food bucket as one of Sissy's bit the dust yesterday when filling it with flour.  I then need to go to Petco to try and find a Halloween bandana for Roscoe, and if that fails, I will go to Hobby Lobby and buy a small piece of yard goods to make him one.

Then I will head back up to Sissy's to work on a project and then sauté up the 3 pounds of mushrooms in here fridge that need to be frozen before they go bad.  So good in spaghetti sauce.  then home to make my famous smoked salmon dip (freezes beautifully).  I have the cream cheese on the counter to come to room temperature.

I will serve this as appetizer for Thanksgiving with gluten free homemade pita bread.  So easy to make and you cannot tell the difference!

We are having brats and coleslaw for dinner, and I am so determined to eat the freezers down.  Like Anne, I have duplicates of everything and no room at the INN. 

There is a loss leader tomorrow for 80/20 ground beef for 3.77 a pound which in this day and age is fantastic, so I will buy nine pounds and put it in Sissy's freezer, and this will be made into spaghetti sauce and chili, when there is finally room.  Between Sissy and I we have nine pounds already, so this should get us through the winter months.  I have all the beans and sauce already! Go Kay!

Now I am off, like a Prom dress!

God is good!

Kay

 

Another busy week and so glad to be home!

It is now Monday the 27th of October!

I have had a busy time since I last blogged.

Got Home from Lil Sis's last Tuesday and Sissy got Home late Tuesday night.

I was so glad to be back in my own home, and it needed me.

On Wednesday I did a boat load of laundry and washed kitchen and bathroom rugs to dry outside.

Husb and I worked on put and take with yard tools and did more organizing in the garage.

Lil Sis came over and had brought me my favorite hazelnut chocolate bars from Aldi in St Louis!  I was thrilled.

On Thursday I spent four hours playing with pavers on the side yard and could just not make anything work to my liking.  It is a strange space and very shady, so I started to feel very discouraged.

I just went down into a depression which is rare for me?  We have worked so hard in this darn yard, and I just felt like it was not enough!  Not enough done and the weather is really changing. I have hauled those damn pavers into twenty different locations, and nothing was working in my brain. Sissy came over and looked at the pattern I had had designed and agreed with me.  Well sort of as I am a perfectionist and so is Husb.  This is why he kept putting the project off.  I now understood.  

So, I moved the 54 pavers back onto the patio and sulked.

 Here are the 111 (yes that many) that I have hauled all over the place for the last 5 months.  Here they will stay for the winter until the driveway is completed and I can build paths to the garage door and to the deck so we do not walk too much on the lawn.

I also want to build a pad where my gas grill will go.

What we don't use will go on Facebook Market place!

So, no more moving this stuff for a season.

The side path with I think the dead hostas (we shall see next spring). This area was completely overgrown and Sissy and Dan worked on it for several weekends.

Our plan was to put down a paver path and then mulch around them and then were told (after I bought 20 bags of mulch (most stored in the garage except for what you see at the end of the picture) that we should not put mulch up against the foundation.  Lewiston is very buggy, and these critters can enter the home. The first thing I did when we bought this house was to get a monthly contract with a pest company as I had learned this the hard way at sissy's various homes, she has lived in.  I would clean the garage of all the spiders and webs, and it would be beautiful and turn around the little bastards were standing at the door of the garage with their suitcases ready to move back in!

Now look at the trees overhanging the fence form the abandoned house property.  This is part of the problem as this area is very shady. The concrete pad the A/C unit sits on is part of the problem laying a path as it is crooked to the rear gate. Just not what we want, we are striving for balance. Or we are just too particular.  I was just so damn down on Thursday!

Now onto Friday...Husb and I got up and donned our ragged work clothes and headed to the other side of the house and finished putting in the pavers there and it turned out nice, or as nice as we could get it.

I also cut back all the rose bushed and the large hydrangea out front.  WE spent five hours outside and were spent.

I felt a little better about things.  We decided to go to alate lunch/early dinner and went to Ace hardware and bought a very expensive tree saw.  Our plan is to go onto the abandoned house property and trim everything back before the snow flies.  I will have to fill the yard containers at least four to six times to get all the crap out of there, but this will give the area lighter, and I hope help with the damn bugs that were eating the hostas.

Our new plan is to use driveway gravel that we will have to haul in in fifty-pound bags and place pavers willy nilly to create a steppingstone path.  This will happen next spring.  We can easily blow the leaves that do get into this area with our blower out to street in front.  Why we did not see this sooner is beyond me, but when we started this past spring, it was so cold, and nothing had blossomed yet.

Live and learn.

Saturday Sissy and I spent three hours shopping together and stocked up on flour and sugar for Christmas baking.  We had a lot of fun and a lot of laughs just tooling around Costco looking at everything.

Sunday, I pulled everything from my upper freezer and reorganized and set my menu for the week.

There is so much food in this house, and I must stop buying and start using.  Last night we finished the last of the spaghetti sauce and I will not make more until I finish other things.

It is now Monday morning and tonight, I will take beef stew up to Sissy's and have dinner there and will make almond flour popovers. Almond flour has a very low glycemic index which we be good for Husb.  Never tried this before and I will keep you posted.

I also swapped my summer and winter wardrobe as it is time and culled another bag of donations for Salvation Army.

I have a doctor's appointment this afternoon and this morning I plan on getting all of my ironing done.  Oh joy!

Saga to be continued...

God is good!

Kay

We are still alive...almost!

 Husb and I are still busy working on the yard!  We finally got all the red lava rock dispersed and found yet another stump! Damn!  Called my Stump Guy and he came within two hours and ground it out!  Yep, People love cash!  Cash is king around here! This is a picture of Husb burying the hole!  Still a lot of work to do out on the Boulevard, but it will get done.  At least we can almost open our car doors.

Now where did the red lava rock go (this took us five days three hours a day) Well let me show you!  Remember I will not pay to dump rock!

Well, it went across the street under the trash can dilemma that we solved several weeks ago! I had permission front DOT compliance to move it there! No way an alley has to be ugly, and I have to look at it! All this cost was our labor!

Moving on....

Our back yard, three weeks later with a second mowing!  It looks like a golf course lawn, and we could not be happier!

Now onto other Family things!

Sissy has done something to her back and hip, and she has been in agony.

I know this came from she and Gusb pulling the garden beds, and it just got worse and worse, until she was almost 

worthless and in a lot of pain.  Then Her beloved MIL passed away, and this was very sad but also a true blessing.  Joyce was 97 and a half.

She wanted to go when Joel passed. She got her wish. Sissy left yesterday morning after I packed her, and she had been on a muscle relaxer for two days.  It was helping.  I so wanted to make the trip with her as I loved Joyce.  Being an Identical twin (the strict Morman Family always understood, that Sissy and I were a package deal), however we have other family obligations that we had committed too, and I was not going to leave my Husband with those obligations to make the trip. (He also pulled his knee AGAIN helping Sissy pull the garden.  So, they were both GIMPS!)  I love my life!

Little Sis is in St. Louis helping her oldest Daughter (who lost her Husband of only one year last September at the age of 41) move into a new place and her Husband is flying out today to help her.

Husb and I are taking care of her neurotic dog and three cats (which means I will have to stay at her house) and Husb will take care of Kim's dog the chickens and our cats!)  This is what Families do although the timing can sometimes be horrible!

We have so many plans within plans for the yard, but the weather has really changed, and we are pushing the very cold to us!

So, we are just going to take a break I am tired and I mean very tired of the work and being dirty all the time and my house needs love! (I mean the interior).

Today I managed to pull the last of the basil and made three beautiful servings of pesto which I have frozen, Husb and thoroughly cleaned the back patio and put many yard tools away in the very clean garage!

I have packed to spend the next four days at little sis's, and we are taking my BIL out to dinner tonight as he flies our very early tomorrow morning.

Sissy made it safely to Nampa, so I can breathe easy, and hope she gets better day by day.

Now I am going to sign off and will fill you in the coming and goings.

Life is strange, but it is a wonderful strange!

So much going on and it is hard for me to wrap my miniscule brain around it. 

On a side note, Sluggy had a jiffy knee replacement yesterday and Her Husband texted me that they were keeping her one night and I must text him and find out how my girl is.

When the dust settles, Sissy and I are planning a trip to PA to visit her.  So those of you who pray, please do, and those of you who don't send positive thoughts!

Stealing from Sissy!

God is good!

Kay

Allergies are kicking Husb and my Rear

 So strange that Husb and I both are so congested and plugged up and we know it is allergies, so we are both back on meds. It takes a couple of days to get to a medicated level.  Sissy says it is the wheat smut from harvesting, and we will get used to it!

Last summer it was July and August that we suffered and this year the end of September...so strange.

Our back yard is looking great and grass is really growing, so exciting.

I was up very early this morning as zi went to bed at six last night.  I was so plugged up and had a massive sinus headache, but it has abated.

I did my morning chores and then made two tiramisus, one for dinner tonight up at Sissy's and one for the freezer. (Yes, it freezes well if properly wrapped and thawed in the fridge for 24 hours).  If I am going to make a roaring mess in the kitchen, I might as well do two. And I did make a roaring mess, which I have now cleaned up.  I also need to make a salad for tonight but will do that later this afternoon.

Sissy is making a shrimp pasta (so good, I could eat it every night) and homemade French bread.

Little Sis and her husband will join us, and we are going to pow-wow the plan of attack on setting up the green house on Sissy's property.

I need to text Sissy to tell her I am feeling better and call little sister.  I then will go to Winco for a few more salad fixings and run to Home Creepo to look at the Mums.  Not crazy about Mum's but Husb loves them.  It is time to pull the flowers from the large pots out front as I have cut them back for a second bloom and they are now getting too shaggy.

Need to put some makeup on as I scare my public.

Off to set the world on fire!

Have a blessed Sabbath.

Kay

Drum Roll please!!!

We have grass coming up!

Hard to believe, but true!

Please note, the two pieces of metal art on the back of the garage that my Husband painted and hung. We have one more piece that I ordered for the space between the door and the downspout that will be here the first week of October.

It has been a challenging week in many ways, but I have accomplished for the most part what I wanted to do.

I did get another coat of herbicide on the front yard and thought I could plant grass seed this week, but no I must wait three weeks!  Bummer, I wish I had known that.  I made another visit to the Ag Center and they told me to go ahead and plant as the weather should stay warm enough until the end of October.  We shall, see?

Today the sisters and I are going to lunch and then back to Lil Sis's for a swim if it gets warm enough, again we shall, see?  My new favorite phrase!

Accomplished a Mission I have been on for months and the squeaky wheel does work.

Across the street and kitty corner to us is a duplex that houses seven people on one side and six on the other.  They are all basically adults.  The duplex has one trash can and recycle bin for all.  Simply not enough for that many people and recycle is only picked up every other week. So, there is trash overflowing everywhere.  And of course, does anyone break down a box?  The crows get into the overflowing garbage, and it creates a mess that blow all over.

My husband and I are constantly going over there and picking up trash, and it is driving our 88-year-old Neighbor across the Street nuts.  Her yard is pristine, and she should not have to live with the mess.

Of course, the duplex is owned by a Slum Lord and He pays for the containers, and said Neighbors do not want the rent to be raised, and I understand.  Seven poor college students and a single Father with five children and barley scraping by!  Now these people could bag the overflow and take it to the dump (which is free), but they are not going to do that.  Sissy and I have bagged overflowing recycle so many times and taken it to the dump ourselves.

So, I called the city of Lewiston and asked if I could pay for two more containers on my bill and was told no.  Hmmm! Here I am trying to be a good Neighbor and can get no cooperation. I finally said to the young woman on the phone, is this how you would treat your grandmother?  She told me to call code enforcement, and I did!  The Officer came, and I explained the situation and the very next day the duplex had two large trash cans and two recycle bins!  How he did it, I do not know and I do not care, but problem solved!

Color me happy.  Now I must go and clean out my fridge and head to Sister's lunch.

Planning my next yard project and will fill you in next week!

Have a wonderful weekend.

Kay

Another Monday and the first day of Fall!

It was a busy week last week and a lot was accomplished!

The backyard has been hydroseeded and watering has begun.

We should have grass ready to mow in about three weeks.

I got to the dump with Sissy, and the garage has been cleaned out and we can move in it!

The front yard is still a work in progress as I could not put the herbicide on, this past Sunday for the second time because it rained heavily for an hour and the ground is still too wet!  Hopefully by tomorrow I can do this and then get the grass seed planted by Wednesday! We shall see.

I was so disappointed when I got up yesterday and realized that rain was upon us so I used the 1.5 hours it would have taken me to spray and did a major clean out of several cupboards and some work on my closets.  I have a large bag of donations to go to the Salvation Army.

On Friday, Sissy Dan and I went to lunch and then to an Antique Junk store as Husb and I were looking for metal wall art we could spray black to hang on the back of the garage.  WE found two pieces that we absolutely loved and they were dirt cheap.  Husb has sprayed them and they already to hang sometime today.

On Saturday I tried a new chicken pesto recipe, and it was so good.  Husband loved it and I now wish I had grown more Basil. Will do so next year and only in large pots! Lori is right it grows so much better.

Sissy cooked last night, and it was wonderful. We had very thin cut rib eyes with purple smashed potatoes from the garden along with garlic green beans!  So good.

Lots of left over rib eye that I will process along with many bones and bits of steak and make a beef stew this week as we are craving it!

The weather has turned very cold in the mornings, and fall is officially here. Still getting quite warm in high Sun.

I spent the night last night at Sissy's and now must take her car back up to her along with Her dog Roscoe who came home with Dan.

I will then go to Salvation Army with my drop off and then home to vacuum and dust my basement. I also have phone calls to make and some other business on my desk.

Will pull beef broth from the freezer and start cooking down bones for more broth. Also want to make two loaves of French Bread.

So, I am now off to conquer the world!

Hugs,

Kay

We have leftover pesto chicken, so I will make more pasta and dinner is done.
 

Tired, just plain tired....

This is me! This is also Sissy, both of us bit off more than we could chew! 

But the good news is we did it! Now we can collapse.

The Party went off splendidly despite the massive rain fall (which we desperately needed), but so much work, and I had a lot of help! Thank you, Lord, for that!

Now that is done, and Sissy and I can both relax for a bit! 

Really, I mean really, when does that happen.
 

So today, all the cousins left, and Husb and I dropped my Neice off at the airport at noon after taking her to lunch as she will not land until eleven tonight her time and came home and just sat looking at our mud hole back yard that is way too wet to seed on Tuesday.  Our Lawn Guy stopped by and we greeted him with "it is way too wet to seed on Tuesday and he about fell at our feet with gratefulness and said, so you do understand!  Well, yes, we have both worked outside the last twenty some years and understand that Mother Nature is going to get you!

It now looks like it will be Thursday, and we will take it!  This gives me time to get a few other projects done in the House as it is way too wet for me to work in the front yard also.  I got to spend the weekend and today clean of dirt and mud!

I did manage to process two pounds of mushrooms today and grate black olives for pizza and froze several batches Husb and I will be having a pizza tonight which I will be putting together shortly, and this will feed us for two nights.  I am then going to clean up and binge watch Netflix and go to bed!

After all, " tomorrow "is another day. (Scarlet O'Hara)

I am out of here and going to conquer a pizza, it is all I can handle.

Borrowing from Sissy!

God is good!

Hugs.

Kay

The best laid plans?

Well, I wanted to work on the front yard today and it poured all last night, so too wet to do anything, but we need the rain!

Yesterday we met with the Yard Guy, and he said the yard was very ready and we had done a fabulous job! I'll take the compliment.

He will be here Tuesday to install the hydro-seed, and we should have a lawn is about three weeks!

Now the watering six times a day will be gruesome, but we are so ready.

I spent most of yesterday shopping for Lil Sis's party and took all the fruit up to Kim's and she will take this task from me. Ordered the cake from Albertsons as Costco could not meet my needs!  Will pick cake up Sunday morning after Mass and also three large bags of ice.  The party starts at 2 so will have plenty of time to decorate and get things together.

My Niece (Lil Sis's middle daughter) is flying in tonight, and Lil Sis's good Friend flew in last night, so I have plenty of help!

Sissy has been very busy in the shop this week and has really worked hard and I am proud of her!

I have to take lawn chairs, a cooler and six pounds of ground beef to Lil Sis today.  Will cook the burger and process into Taco meat tomorrow and refrigerate.

It is still sprinkling slightly, and I want to work on the garage so that is on hold, and it should stop within the next hour.

I need to go downstairs and change my sheets, and the others are in the dryer as I type but will have to be ironed and that is not happening until next week.

I also need to process mushrooms and freeze them and a can of black olives for pizza.  I am making pizza for dinner tonight. NOT HAPPENING PLEASE KEEP READING

Okay, it has been six hours since I last typed a word, and the day has been full, but I am determined to finish this post!

Husb was finally ready to clean out garage and it is done for the most part for now.  I can move in it! that is the blessing.  I will take every one of them I can get! Took us about an hour?  Why do Men stress over this.?  I threw a bunch of little crap left over from old owners and then there is a load to take to the dump which I will use Sissy's car next week to do that trip!

Then we went to Ace hardware and bought the hose that he wanted and then to Home Creepo, (yes that is what I call it as no one there knows what they are doing! I will willingly pay the price at Ace to save time and sanity). Bought downspout extenders that we need so the downspout's do not injure the hydroseed.

Then of course to lunch as Husb was HHUNGRY and you have to feed a Man as we had much more to do! That cost us $ 52.00 damn and that was just lunch! Of course, we tipped generously but still???

At lunch we had a call from Sissy (who was melting down and this happens as she has worked very hard this week and too many Brides' showings up today) So up the hill we went after paying check quickly and went to the problem and we also had things from the garage clean out that needed to be at her place.

I had a list for the errands and forgot to get the cooler from Sissy's garage for the party on Sunday as I was helping Miss Meltdown.   I did NOT LOOK AT THE LIST! I HATE THAT WHEN I DO THAT! BUT THEN MISS MELT DOWN CAME FIRST! (That would be Sissy).

She had a right to melt down and it was a vale.  The bride wants a long white vale (On very thin netting) with lace placed all the way around the bottom, but the lace she ordered was way too heavy and Sissy had tried everything she could think of to attach it.  She tried a fabric glue and then had to sew around light netting and had only gone halfway up the vale. I then become the model and walked it up and down the long hallway and the lace is too heavy (after Sissy spent hours sewing this damn stuff on and only halfway up!)

I told Sissy to tell her the truth, and it worked.  The vale will either be shortened, or the motives will come off.  End of story.  Now Sissy knows and every time you touch a job or a new fabric it is a learning curve, and some you simply do not accept.  Also, Sissy knows that brides can turn into bridezillas and that is always a worry.  You just have to talk them off the edge!

We then went to Lil Sis's to take things for the party and talked for a half hour with her Friend.  Told Lil Sis I forgot the cooler but that would go on my list for tomorrow!

Now it is 5:12 in the evening and I am damn tired!  I was going to make pizza for dinner but left-over hot dogs sound better and I still have to put clean sheets on my bed.  I just hope that homemade crust does not explode all over my clean fridge!

What a day, but as Sissy says... God is Good!

Everyone have a blessed weekend, will tune in next week!

Hugs, Kay

 

Some Good News! Also feeling very lazy this morning.

 It has been a busy week so far and I still have a lot to do. Finished my three cups of coffee and am still dragging, so I thought I would take the time to fill you all in on what is happening here at the Old Homestead!

 I have been working on the front yard which is horrible and have tried to pull all of the spurge, but it is really overwhelming me.

While I was working on it yesterday morning a Neighbor stopped by to say things were looking good and he too was overtaken by spurge and clover. He suggested that I go to the AG Center and buy a sprayer and a herbicide that worked great on his lawn and I needed to do this before I tried to reseed.  So, I did!

This was a great learning experience and $54.00 later I will start to proceed.  They also told me what to do step by step and also said that spurge had taken over the valley this year.  Some years are worse than others.

The nasty front yard and it is everywhere. Because I have watered heavily, trying to soften the dirt to pull the spurge etc. I must wait a couple of days to apply the herbicide and there can be no rain in the forecast.

So, I will wait a couple of days and then spray.  I am to wait at least a week with no watering and spray again. Wait and then plant my seed.

And this is exactly what I am going to do!

This just looks awful, so hope my efforts work.

Just checked the front and still pretty wet. Damn!

I am anxious to get the ball rolling and am not a very patient person (working on this and will the rest of my life).  The lack of patience means that sometimes I jump the gun to my own detriment.

Yesterday was a whirlwind and I think that is why I am dragging today.

I worked on the spurge for three hours early and then Sissy called and needed chicken breasts and had no time to break away because of the shop, so I stopped and took her the breasts.  I then went to the AG Center and also picked up the special-order Cat food that had come in at my Vets office.

Then home to process four huge zucchini (which is bagged and must go up to Sissies as my freezers are once again full!)

I toasted a pound of pine nuts as I plan to get my basil processed this morning. I also proceesed a large block of very expensive parmesean which I froze in small portions.

I then cleaned my refridgerator which was a real chore and this took me two hours of put and take.  It was disgusting. 

Then I made steak Cesar Salad for dinner with homemade croutons and dressing.  It was very good and my Husband loved it.

I had cooked two large New York strips, and we had leftovers (of course) so Steak Salad it was. But a lot of steps and work to make the dressing.

I was just exhausted after spending four hours in the kitchen and it was P.J.,'s and some Netfile before going to bed early and then up early this morning. I wanted to sleep longer but I am not one to loll about in bed and I got up!

Now onto the good news!  Remember I am practicing patience? WE have still heard nothing from the Landscaper we hired and have heard through the grapevine that he is really struggling, and I so understand.  To lose a child is the worst thing in the world.

However, needs must, and we do not want to live with dirt all winter.  Our Neighbor is having her lawn reseeded by a Company that does beautiful work, and I have seen their lawns all over town.  My thought has been that we could never afford this process.  Well, I reached out to the Company and the Gentleman came (turns out he is a Neighbor) and he said we had done all the prep work, there is no grass, and the area does not have to be cleared.  We have rototilled and she is ready for something, anything.  Got the quote this morning and it is so damn reasonable, that I am running the check over to his house this morning.

Hopefully this will get the ball rolling.

I am throwing a birthday/retirement party for little Sis this Sunday and she and I will shop tomorrow for most of the needs.  It is Mexican themed, and I expect between 20 and 30 people.

I need to ask Sissy to make the big fruit bowl.  I am ordering the cake from Costco as that is what little Sis wants.  So, it is going to be a busy next several days.

Now I need to get in the shower and then take stuff up to Sissy and get back here and start on my basil project.

Sissy and I are taking an elderly Neighbor to the food bank this afternoon, and I am making hotdogs for dinner, as that is what Husband requested, and I make a great hotdog with all the fixings!  Need to chop some onion and make some coleslaw today also the rest will fly together easily!

Now off to clean up and set the world on fire!

Hugs,

Kay

Happy Friday!

 So, this morning I was up and worked in the front yard, which is in horrible shape, but I am taking steps to correct it.

I spent a good 45 minutes yesterday at Ace Hardware picking the brain of one of the best minds in town when it comes to keeping grass alive and weed free (is there such a lawn?) in Lewiston (the desert) Idaho.

Was given a lot of good tips and bought grass seed, topsoil and a good sprinkler.

The weather is changing and although it will get to a high of 96 today it then will start to go down and next week is perfect for me to get new grass planted.

I then went up to Sissies and did three hours of ironing (finished mine on Wednesday) and still did not finish.  I do not think she has ironed in two months.  It is so hot here that we wear cotton and some linen and I do not care if you pull it from the dryer immediately it still looks somewhat wrinkled.  We also grew up on starched sheets and pillowcases as well as cloth napkins so those have to be ironed as well.

I need to go to Costco today and get some things for my Husband that the Doctor recommended for his diabetes.  The appointment went very well but he has not been taking care of himself and some of his numbers are not good, but we are on the right track, so He feels better about things as well as I.

It helps having a new Doctor that is also a diabetic as She knows what to get and where for the best price!

They are completely redoing his meds which makes me very happy.

I also have to go to Walmart (which I hate) but they are the only game in town for Placker's ( Sluggy I used your last pack).  Yes, Sluggy used to keep me well supplied when the Rite Aides were still going strong!

I will also go to WinCo for fresh vegetables to make a large salad for the husband which he can eat on for days.

Before I head out to run these errands I am heading up to Sissies to take her some goulash I made last night (she eats like crap) and I want to see if she finished the last eleven pieces of ironing and if not I will do them as I can't stand things hanging out there!

Now I am off to conquer the world.

I am going to hit Sissy if she did not finish that ironing.

Hugs.

Kay

 

It is so hot!!!!

 Had a wonderful time in Seattle and got home late Monday.  The weather was wonderful!

Here it has been in the low 100's and it is just awful, but this too shall pass.

I was able to get rid of all my rock along the way and saved one piece for my Friend (she thought it was hysterical) to put in her garden!

Just trying to take it easy and get things done around the house.

My backroom project is getting closer to completion, and I work a little on it every day.

This morning, I grated four very large zucchini for the freezer and processed 6 pounds of walnuts (roasted and chopped).  I also made a batch of homemade taco seasoning which is a first and I hope we like it.

Pulled the last of the spaghetti sauce from the freezer and Sissy is joining us for dinner tonight.

I was very proud of my budget last month and ate out of the pantry and freezer almost exclusively and will continue this throughout this month.

Paid all my bills for this month and hit all my sinking funds before I left on Friday, so I call that a win.

I did hit the grocery store for loss leader burger and froze it as I plan to make sauce in the next couple of weeks.

My basil needs to be picked, and I will dry some and also make pesto for the winter. Need to dig the pinenuts out of the freezer, defrost and toast.

I also boiled six eggs and will make egg salad for lunches the next couple of days.  Just too hot to heat up the kitchen.

I have only planned my meals for today and tomorrow and need to get to freezer and figure out the rest of the week.  The weather should break on Sunday and then I can bake bread next week.

Have the ironing board set up downstairs and need to go tackle some of it, and I am really not in the mood.

If I really get to it, I can get it all done before I go with Husb to his first official Dr appointment with the VA.  What a hassle, but it will be worth it in the end.

He just has not felt well in a while, and I want to get to the bottom of it!

Now I am off to tackle the ironing....ugh!

Take care.

Kay

Will take it a little easy today!

Well now that I look at it, from a distance they do look like a toilet.  But this is all that is left of the things that have to be moved.  I so hope Sissy and Dan will do this this weekend.

I consider the driveway project done and dusted until the fences are moved!

Sissy you will have to light a fire under his butt!

I did get banana bread made yesterday so all my baking for my Friend is done.

The chocolate zucchini bread is delicious!

The backroom project is at a standstill as I must go through our two large boxes of pictures and clean them up before I repack.  But I do have everything sorted and know where it will go and will finish this project next week as it is going to be very hot next week.

Today, I have paid bills for next month and entered monies into all my sinking funds.

I need to get to the bank and get cash and fill my car with gas.

I did get a box in the back seat with the rock I plan to disperse as I head north tomorrow.

I also pulled the small cooler from the garage (which is a nightmare) and the is a project for when it is cooler!

I will also go to two grocery stores for loss leaders.

Sissy and I went to the food bank with her Neighbor yesterday and the Women running it know we bake a lot and gave me, four large zucchinis (which I will process when I get back).  They also gave me three two-pound bags of walnuts which must be toasted and a 2-pound bag of almonds which have been roasted so this will save me a step.  We are almost stocked for Christmas baking.

I know that we will need:

Caro Syrup

More pecans

Flour and sugar

Heavy cream

brown sugar

And I think that is it.

Still have over 50 lbs. of butter in the freezer and this is about what we used last year.

We have been given:

dried cranberries

dried cherries

raisins

dates

almonds and walnuts

So, blessed!

It is such a shame that these beautiful food banks have so much, and most that need to use them do not cook, so a lot of the donations eventually get buried or thrown away.  I hate waste, to me this is a sin, so I will gladly take what is given knowing that I am not taking from someone else but saving a valuable resource which I can then share.

Sissy is making her famous shrimp pasta tonight with homemade French bread and a German chocolate cake. I gave her toasted pecans for the frosting and mushrooms that I needed to use before the weekend.

I am telling you this pasta is Restaurant worthy.

Now I am off to run my errands and then I will come home and pack what I can and just take it easy until I head up to Sissy's.

Off to conquer the world...

K
 

Another busy week!

 Up early this morning and watered my almost dead front yard just hoping that I can bring it back after pulling all of the crabgrass and spurge. Just trying to keep alive what I can.

Husb has two Doctors appointments today and I will accompany him, so my day is pretty well shot.

Thus, the earlier than normal rising time to get things done before his first appointment.

I did not work in the yard this morning as I get so damn dirty and I did not want to shower and wash my hair again, as my skin is getting so dry.

I did however work on the back driveway area yesterday and dispersed a lot of the rock that people did not take this past weekend and decided to place it behind the garages. I absolutely refuse to pay to dump this.

I have a bit left and here is my plan!

The broken small pieces of cement can go in the trash, but the rock...no!  So, I am going to gather it and place it on an old bath towel and take it on my trip to Seattle this weekend.  Every time I stop for a potty break (every two hours) I will disperse three or four of them at rest areas.  Yes, think Hansel and Gretel.  Then on my way back on Monday I will make the same pit stops and see if they are still there?

I am so hoping that Husb and Sissy will get the six large landscaping stone up to her house as she wants them, and I want them gone.  Please Sissy do this this weekend while I am gone!

This is the area I will work on Wednesday morning and possibly Thursday.  It has many river rock throughout and a lot of trash that must be disposed of and then we will be ready to rototill the area and get it flattened.

Also, two stumps to be ground out when fence is moved forward.

Go me!

I am going to visit a Girlfriend from college this weekend and am very excited to spend some time with her.

As we only have the one car which I am taking, my Lil Sis generously offered me her car while she and her Husband are in Europe, so Husb will have a vehicle.  Sissy will feed him and keep him entertained.

I have two loaves of chocolate zucchini bread in the oven, and I made two loaves of regular zucchini bread yesterday. 

I will make banana bread tomorrow morning or maybe this afternoon, if Husb appointments do not take too long.

I am taking my girlfriend threes loaves of different bread for her freezer.  She hates to cook, and her Husband is gone on a special project until the middle of September, so I know she is eating like Sissy. 

Her husband does all the cooking as he is a retired Dot Com exec, and she is still working hard as a grade school principal as she still enjoys it!

WE are having leftovers tonight, so I just have to reheat, which I love.

I have made huge progress in the back storage room/pantry and took a large load of goods to Salvation Army yesterday.  I think I am about half done so I am proud of myself!

I downsized back east, and then I downsized when we moved into the little house, and I am sure I can downsize more.

I hope to work on the rest of this project Wednesday and Thursday afternoon and call it done.

But as Sissy and I like to say, "we plan, and God laughs" after all he must have a sense of humor he created Sissy and me?

When I finish this task, I am going to go through both my closets and dressers again as there are so many things I just will not wear again, and I must do the same for Sissy.  We got her master closet so well-organized last year and she needs it again.

I then need to pack as I am leaving early for Seattle on Friday morning.  The trip is about 6.5 hours with potty stops.  I will pack some snacks and drink water the whole way.

Oh my, the bread is smelling delicious! Yum!

Now I need to go and clean my kitchen floor as it is a mess.  

Hope all are doing well!

I am off to conquer the world!

Kay

My Rock and stone are leaving!

I put all the leftover rock we did not want on Facebook marketplace for free and yesterday was a whirlwind of texts and messages. 

I had a Gentleman come over and he gathered almost all of the River Stone, and it was hot!

What little is left which I worked on this morning to clean and organize as it was spread everywhere can easily be dispersed in my other areas that have this stone.  I am just waiting for said Gentleman to call me back to see if he wants the remainder and I know he will.  

Look I will be able to park the Car carefully back here and very soon!

Someone is coming over shortly to look at the landscaping rock and I hope they take some.

I need to toast walnuts this afternoon as I am out of processed nuts for breads and cookies and I want to make some chocolate zucchini bread. I also have one larger zucchini to shred.

Oh, the Gentleman just came back for the rest of the river rock, and the couple came for some of the landscaping rock, but not all of it, but I can disperse this elsewhere!  That is a project for another day.  I am so sweaty that my makeup is in my armpits!

Time for a glass of wine.  I am done!

Hugs,

Kay

Postscript:

It will reach 99 today at high sun and will be over 100 degrees through Thursday of next week so the basement project is what I will focus on for the next several days.

I have made remarkable progress on my pantry and freezer challenge and will more than likely extend this into the month of September.

Our Landscaper may be stopping over tonight to discuss the final plans.  WE shall see.

We went to Sister's lunch today and I made homemade pizza last night no cooking as we will finish this tonight.

Tomorrow we are celebrating Kelsa's Birthday, and Uncle Dan will go up to the festivities.  I am not much for Children's birthday parties, but He is.  Hot, hot hot!

The backyard is cleared and ready!

 Well folks, for the most part we have moved all the dirt, and I am calling this done and dusted until we have the stumps ground out and this will happen when we move the fence forward and to the side which will happen next spring.

WE will mark out where the sod will be laid and live with it!

Still have to lay the path on the right side of the house and do some brick work on the left and get rid of all of the leftover rock and stone in the back driveway!

So much work!

A friend of ours is going to bring his truck so we can get the ground cloth to the dump!

Yesterday I did manage to make eight pie crusts and must take four of them up to Sissy after I shower and clean up.

I must also put gas in the car and do a return to amazon.

I pulled blueberries and huckle berries from the freezer last night and will make a pie this afternoon.  Don't know what dinner is going to be yet!

I was able to make the pie crusts in under 35 minutes as I used my kitchen aide grinder attachment that absolutely love to grind the cold butter.  It has become harder and harder for me to hand shred all of my cheese and butter when I bake.  It was not expensive, and I already own the meat grinder attachment which I use a lot.  I have come to the point in my life where I need to work smarter, not harder.

I am still pinching myself that the huge project is done!

I have a lot of work to do in the front yard that has been sorely neglected, and crab grass and spurge took over with a vengeance, even though we kept it mowed.  I sprayed and pulled all the crab grass and this took several mornings.  I have managed to get half the spurge and will spray again tomorrow morning early.

WE need to plant grass seed and fertilize but this cannot be done until cooler weather.

We are going into another hot spell starting tomorrow, and this will last at least 10 days. So, I will water the front and my plants very early and then work on the basement.

I really want to work on the path, but I get up very early and the Husb wakes up 3 hours after me and cannot seem to get started until it is too hot to work!  I start when the sun comes up.  I need his help to do the path so I will wait. The same with the brick work.  But it will get done eventually.

Now I am going to get in the shower and wash my disgusting gardening cloths and go run my errands.

Oh, and plan dinner?  I am thinking porkchops and something!

Have a great day!

Hugs.

K

It has been a while!

I cannot believe I have not blogged since the 31st of July.  I have been that busy!

Am I getting anywhere? Well not fast enough for me.

The weather has been extremely hot, and I have had other projects to take me away.

I did manage to get rid of more rock by placing it behind the abandoned garage and the alley is looking better.

We have almost and I say almost rid ourselves of the dirt on the soon to be parking pad.  This has been back breaking work, and I can only move so much in a day, or I start to stumble and am worthless.

This pile has gone by half, and I will try and get the rest done tomorrow morning.

Because the yard work has been all encompassing, besides traveling etc. I feel like there is fall out around me.

I need to organize my downstairs back storage room and a large set of shelves in the basement.

When we moved in, we were just overwhelmed and things got put where they could and now it is really starting to bother me.  So, this is going to be one of my goals for the next several weeks, and I will tackle this at least one hour a day. 

I have also made August a stay out of the grocery store month and eat from the pantry and freezers, and so far, this has been very successful.

Yesterday I made four dozen chocolate chip cookies and shredded six cups of zucchini, along with four pounds of mozzarella cheese.

Today I am going to make eight pie crusts, as I am out, and have blueberries and huckleberries to make a pie.  

I also need to make some French bread and some baguettes.  I now have some room in the freezer.

Have no idea what is for dinner tonight and I must go downstairs and figure this out.  Will call Sissy first and see if she wants to join us.

Now it is time to get in the shower and clean up as I am one very dirty monkey.

Hope everyone is doing well!

Hugs;

Kay