Diary of a Homemaker's Week: BANG!

 

Saturday:  We don't go to the Strawberry Festival every year, but we do enjoy going occasionally.  I'd mentioned to John I'd like to go this year more than once.  Each time, he'd remained quiet.  I was all too well aware that his not answering is an answer of sorts but this morning, I asked him one more time if he'd planned to go.  "No, not at all."   I knew Katie and the children were going, I knew Bess and the children were going, and I really wanted to go as well.  I told Katie I'd drive into town and call her when I got there, and we'd meet up.  

John was absolutely not having it.  He went and got dressed, grumbling the whole while. I explained to him that I am perfectly able to go into town on my own.  No, he wasn't going to let me go on my own. I told him he didn't have to go.  Oh yes, he did.   Finally, I said, amongst the grumbles, "You are a very dear man..." and he snapped hard, "But...?"  "There is no but.  I said you're a very dear man and I mean it."  I confess I bit my tongue hard at that point and I do mean hard.   The truth is he is also a very reasonable man for the most part and he knew full well what the 'but...' was that I might have added to that statement.  However, I sincerely was saying to him that he was a dear man and that was all I meant.  He left it at that, and we proceeded to go to the festival peaceably.  Why spoil a pleasant time if we could just get along by not saying unnecessary things?

The trip into town took a little while because we arrived at Parade time.  We ended up having to park over at Katie's home and walk back to town, about six or seven blocks.  Yes, it was a trek and I'd very much have liked to not walk that far but I wasn't about to complain.  At the fire station which was about four blocks in I sat down on the bumper of a fire truck and rested.  Then we walked two more blocks to the Electric Membership office and sat down at a picnic table outside of that.  One more block and we made it to the fair.  That was two blocks more of walking and three blocks back to the Electric building when we were done.  

It was beautiful weather.  There were loads of people in town and more booths and options for entertainment than at any point in history.  I was so proud to see our little town with so many vendors and offerings. 

I stopped at the Old Book Fair which was organized in a lovely way.  Admittedly the airy big EMC building was a lot nicer to use than the former dark small room they'd used in former years.  I was disappointed, however.  It seemed the selection was slimmer than in years past and I didn't see much that intrigued me.  In fact, when I got to the front with the single book I'd chosen in hand, the coordinator who knows me well looked aghast.  "Is that all you could find?"  I nodded.  "I only found this one."  "Wasn't there a second one of her novels?"  "I didn't see it.  Perhaps it was already purchased.  I actually found this one at the end of the row as though some one had decided against it."  

Funnily enough John was as surprised as Carolyn had been.  And later when Katie asked what I'd gotten she was also shocked I'd only found one book.  It was she who had informed me they'd moved the book sale to the new building when we spoke earlier that morning.

I didn't have to walk any further than the Electric building because Katie called (never did find her) and said she'd be coming to pick me up as she'd just made it back home (she and the children walked from there as well).  I went back to her home with her and got our car and went back to pick up John who'd walked another two blocks closer.   He'd insisted I go ahead since there was no place to sit down.  He told me "It was easier to keep moving than to stand still."  I could well understand that.

Had we both had to walk all the way back to Katie's house, I doubt I'd have stopped anywhere on the way back at all.  It was lovely that I have a thoughtful daughter to come and fetch me. 

We came home.  Katie and the children came out to eat lunch with us.  John had insisted I buy extra sandwiches the evening before, and I'd wondered why on earth it was necessary.  We seldom eat one 12-inch sandwich between the two of us and he'd insisted I buy three! Let's just say the man might have been using his intuition.  We had more than enough food for the five of us together.

Two things that just tugged hard at my heart.   Caleb's showing that he's growing up.  Taylor offered to help me by carrying chips and a handful of other things to the table from the pantry.  And Caleb stepped right up when she turned to leave the room and held out his hands, too.  "Do you want to help?" I asked him and he nodded gravely and held up his empty hands a little higher.  So I gave him something to carry to the table and he did it.

And later, after a comedy of errors with a diaper blow out, I had to put him in the tub and clean him up.  I happened to have a shirt I'd gotten from a bag of things Bess brought over that I thought looked small enough to fit Caleb now.  It had Paw Patrol or something like that on it and Caleb was so proud of that shirt!  I told him to go show Grandpa and he ran into the living room and pulled the front of the shirt forward and said "See?!"

Taylor was absolutely crazy over the graham crackers with Hazelnut spread that I served as 'dessert'.  She'd never had that before and thought it was pretty good.  She and her Grandpa managed to go through a whole sleeve of grahams together.

I was rather pleased that I'd managed the walking and the follow up luncheon without any issues.  John and I didn't do much of anything after that.  No great surprise there!  We were both well and truly tired.  Supper was almost as easy as lunch.  

Oh, the book I bought?  It was a Georgette Heyer's Behold, Here's Poison  <<Amazon Affiliate Link>>

Meals:  Bagels, Cream Cheese, Maple Turkey

Sub Sandwiches, Chips, Grahams with Hazelnut spread

Chicken Pot Pie (leftovers), Collard Greens, Pear Salad, Apple Pie

Sunday:  It's been a rollicking busy day today.  I'd invited Sam and family, Katie and family to lunch with us today.  I'd ordered Gramma's Fried Chicken and set up all the items needed for dinner preparation last night.  I was very thorough in my thinking and didn't miss setting out anything except the two refrigerator items required to prepare one of the dishes.

Up early as we generally are on Sunday mornings, I made breakfast and we left for church.

When we arrived at Publix, I picked up several cans of the Del Monte Pineapple that was on sale this week $2/two cans.  That's a sale I haven't seen in about three years or more and I wasn't about to miss out.   That and the chicken and soda was all that we purchased.

We headed home and ended up being about 15 minutes later than I'd planned.  No matter.  Everyone else was late, too.  Taylor helped me set up the children's chairs and table, Katie helped me get things into the right pots and fed Caleb a graham cracker.  Sam and Bess arrived shortly after everything was ready and we got everyone fed.

After dinner, Sam and John talked, the older children played outdoors, Bess and Katie sat on the back porch to discuss things, and I was inside monitoring the two year olds.  Millie and Caleb probably played together far more nicely than they ever had but both longed to be outdoors with the bigger kids.  The trouble is Caleb takes his shoes off and can't run about in the grass here due to some yellow flowering plants we have in the spring.  When those flowers die back as they now have, they turn brown and turn into stickers.  They are very fine and they hurt tough old feet.  They hurt tender young ones even more.

It was all a bit raucous with yelling and crying and adults talking loud to be heard over top of the mayhem in general.  The children, most of whom had eaten all of two bites wanted a snack.  I told Taylor she could get out another packet of grahams but we'd skip the Hazelnut spread for today.  While no one was looking, Caleb salted and peppered his graham.  

Sam and John took down the last remaining cabinet on the wall.  Everyone admired the space it gives by taking it out.  There's a smaller cabinet next to the vent hood we can't remove because it apparently is the anchor for the hood.  I told Sam it was fine.  Eventually we plan to modify the hood cover and make it look nicer.  We can wait to remove that cabinet when we're ready for that which is likely going to be one or two phases further in the future.

Then they switched about the water hoses on the washer to see if that gives us cold water but they didn't test it, so I don't know yet if the washer will work correctly or not.  That test will come later this week when we do laundry.

Katie rounded up her children and headed to meet Taylor's daddy.   Bess and Sam said goodbye and we let their children stay an additional hour or so before they went home.   Then everyone was gone and there was a big mess with things out of place due to cabinet removal, dishes in the sink (rinsed and scrubbed but not washed properly with soap), the children's table and chairs pushed back where they couldn't be gotten to, and just generally a mess.   

I played with Millie and Josh and Isaac while they were here.  That mess waited patiently right there in the kitchen.  After they left, there was plenty of time to clear it up and it took plenty of time to do it.  I was going to start supper halfway through the clearing up, but John suggested we just eat whatever leftovers we felt like we wanted and just skip making a meal.  I'm all for that idea.  I stopped to have coffee and a slice of banana nut bread with him at that point and then finished up the mess.  Floors need to be swept, dishwasher needs to be run and there's a sink full of dishes soaking but all the chickens from the tops of the cabinets need a nesting place after being washed before I can start doing those.

A phone call about a call received sort of knocked us all collywobbles but it's going to be all right.  This is not something that took God by surprise.  Just this morning at church I'd felt compelled to go forward and ask for prayer from a proven prayer warrior.  We refuse to give in to fear or worry.  So ends a rather hectic and crazy weekend.

Meals:  Cheese Toast

Gramma's Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Gravy, Greens Beans, Mac n Cheese 

Leftovers from lunch  

Monday: It was a busy weekend.  I slept like a rock last night once I got my mind to quiet down.  I wasn't up too terribly late. I fell asleep in my chair and then woke up to find John had turned off the television and was just sitting there with me asleep.  That was a sweet thing for him to do.  

I went to bed and slept but then woke right up again moments later.  I finally found the right combination of cover, air, etc. and drifted back to sleep.  I don't remember moving the rest of the night.

I didn't mean to hit the floor hard this morning. I knew I had tasks to do that were left yesterday evening. I also knew I would be tired after two intense days of activity.  However, I found myself starting breakfast right away and I never sat down with coffee until breakfast was on the table.

We talked about what to do with the two cabinets on the back porch. I said I'd like them hung in my shed but until I could move things around, they'd go into John's first shed.  

There was no resting after breakfast. I was too aware of the messy bedroom I'd left and the messes in other rooms.  Not only did the house need a Monday tidying, it very much needed me to finish the work I'd been doing to recover the house from family visiting.

I guess I worked about two and a half hours before stopping to drink my first glass of water.  Then I carried things out to the shed and blew out many of the lady bugs, gathered one box of items to be donated and started a bag of trash. I have several items set aside for Bess.  I've already checked to see if they are something she could use.

Back indoors, once I cooled off, I made lunch.  I had completely forgotten to get things out of the freezer for the week and hadn't made any sandwich fillings, etc.   I sat and contemplated the options for the rest of the meals for the day while I drank my second glass of water.  

I finally stopped work about 2:45 this afternoon.  The day has flown.  I've gotten a lot accomplished.  I even managed to touch on several of my weekly goal items.  Go me!

I was looking for the next book in the Mitford series last week and didn't see it on my shelf.  I thought perhaps I'd borrowed it from the library in years past when I was reading the series.  I was about to order it the other night but decided to wait, look at the old Book Sale at the festival and see if they had it.  The book wasn't there either though they had several of The Karon novels.  Today I was neatening up the bookcases in the living room, picked up a book that appeared to be out of place and discovered it was the exact book I'd been looking for all along!  So glad I didn't order it last week.  

Meals:  Cheese Grits, Banana Bread

Burgers and Fries (the burgers were frozen solid but cooked nicely in a pan over medium heat with a lid clamped on tight.  The Fries were the tail end of a bag of frozen ones I'd kept moving about the freezer.)

Sausage Pizza with vegetables

After supper this evening, I took time to grab things out of the freezer to thaw for this week's meals.  I also have leftover fried chicken.  I need to figure out what I'm going to do with the meat from those pieces.  There's a whole breast, a chicken tender and a thigh.  But first I'll make a tuna casserole.  John's already asked that I let the top get really crispy.

Tuesday:  It's early to stop working today but...I think I'm about to stop until supper meal prep time.  I haven't done a lot but I've done a few things.  I made breakfast, unloaded the dishwasher, fed the pets, watered plants on the front porch and cleaned up the bin I use as a mini greenhouse over the winter months.  

I've been very pleased so far to discover that the broken bits of begonia I tucked into a pot have created new plants that are blooming already even though they are literally just a couple of inches high.  The mandevilla and poinsettia I thought had died are both sporting new green leaves.   

It was warm outdoors already.  Bess and Millie walked over to pick up the things I found in my shed I thought she might want. Millie played indoors under Grampa's supervision while we went to the shed.  It wasn't much but I was right that they'd like those things and I'm glad they'll be useful. I filled another small box with items to be donated, set aside a cracked slow cooker crock for possible planting (or trash...I can never make up my mind.  It leaks when I cook because it's cracked but will it drain water at all if I water plants in it?   I'm so torn about those sorts of things, torn between thinking something might be useful or come in handy and being overwhelmed with all the 'mights' I keep hanging about.  

For a first pass to fill two boxes is pretty good.  I want to go through the Christmas bins too, and then I'll do another round of looking at things to see if I'm keeping too much.  But I'm only doing it in small bites at present.  I've no desire to run myself into the ground.

I've thought seriously about painting porch furniture but I think John's going to mow and if he does it will be super dusty.  I'll wait to do that when I'm sure he's all done in the yard.  Some projects just plain have to wait, that's all there is to it.

later: I'd thought I'd write this afternoon, but Katie and Caleb came out.  I discovered why when she arrived.  Caleb was withdrawn, quiet and very low key.  He didn't want any of us to hold him or love on him.  He wasn't fussy or ill natured but just didn't want to be bothered.  He stayed near me in the kitchen while I prepared our lunch but didn't ask for "Piece, please" as he normally does.  He ate well enough.  

After lunch, I made him a pallet and said, "Only if you want to...you can lie down."  He did lie down for a little bit and finally he got up and gave his mama a little loving and then came and lay at my feet. I reached out and touched him which he ignored, but in a moment or two, he threw his leg across my foot and left it there.  

"He hasn't got a fever, but he does have a stuffy nose and cough.  He slept in this morning.  He just isn't getting into anything.  I've never spent so much undisturbed time on my phone while he is awake!"  Katie was worrying but I felt that it was entirely possible he was just like the rest of us get at times.  Not sick, but just a wee bit 'off'.   They went home just after 3.  John finally went out to mow about 4pm.  

I finished reading my latest book by that time. It was another Wanda Brunstetter book, The Sugarcreek Surprise.  <<Amazon Affiliate Link>> I was hoping the story would pick up a bit but it's a very mild book.  Nothing wrong with that.  I just felt the book and the characters needed a bit more action.  I'm not terribly sure what the 'surprise' was either, but I was interested enough to continue the book and finish it.   It was a quick and easy read.

After John headed outdoors, I put together supper and left that resting in the kitchen to reheat when John returned indoors.  Then I sat down to do some research for a future post.  I was glad to get something accomplished even though I no longer felt like writing, I made progress.

Now the day is truly done, all except supper dishes which will take little time since there's one pan to wash.  

Meals:  Blueberry Muffins, Bacon (remembered I had about 1 cup of blueberries in the freezer so I pulled those to use this morning. I made a half batch (just six) muffins.  I used lemon zest in the muffins, a nice contrast to the blueberry flavor.

Southern Fried Chicken Salads.  Caleb got a plate with chopped chicken, green beans, raw carrot and tomato, croutons and he asked for and got pieces of lettuce as well.  I still had a thigh left over, so I stripped the skin and bones from that and slipped the meat into the freezer.  It's just enough to make Spaghetti a la Diable one night soon.  I also have cooked spaghetti in the freezer that I can thaw and use for that dish.

Italian Pepper Steak, Rice, Breadsticks.  I was digging in the fridge to get the leftover Mongolian Beef out for Katie to take home and discovered the mixed vegetables I'd also cooked the same night.  I'd tossed them over the leftover rice.  Tonight's dinner was easy peasy once I'd sliced my steak and cooked it.  Then I just added the last of a bottle of Italian dressing (I prefer fat free in this recipe), added the zucchini, mushroom and rice mixture and heated it all through.  

Wednesday:  I got up a wee bit earlier than I might have this morning because I was cold!  I checked the weather app on my phone, and it said our low was 48F.  Brrr!  That's what I say.  I got up, dressed and put on my jacket before I headed to the kitchen to have my coffee.

I'd planned last night what I'd make for breakfast this morning.  I'd noted our last loaf of bread was quite dry and it seemed a good way to use it up since we have plenty of croutons. I made those yesterday from end pieces of two or three loaves, bought and homemade.  I've started saving all the find dry crumbs as well.  I am adding them to a partial canister of bought breadcrumbs.  

I started a new loaf of bread right away.

John had partially mown our yard yesterday and come inside to say there was something wrong with the mower.  He was sure he knew what it might be and planned to fix it this morning.  So I felt no need to hang about indoors except to see to my bread.

I did a quick clearing up here in the house and then headed out to the front porch this morning.  After blowing off the dirt the dogs and cat have tracked on the porch, I cleaned up the plant pots, repotted a tiny pansy that had come up from the cell in which they'd been planted.  I'd lost all of them to a freeze, so I was pleased to find this baby one holding on.  I hope it will live long enough to bloom.  

I decided to weed the area around the Faith tree.  I'd pointed out to John from the window what I thought was some of the wildflowers that once grew there.  When I got closer today I realized with some excitement that they were sunflowers!  I knew they had shallow roots and wouldn't survive there as they had sprouted atop weed mat in a mulch layer.  I pulled them all up gently, planted about half in what soil I could scrap into a bucket and then put the rest in a jar of water on the windowsill.  I offered them to Bess who is excited to get them.  I had taken a count and had twenty four plants.  I think I planted about half.

After putting the bread in the pan to rise, I headed outdoors to the shed, knowing I had a half hour to work in.  I sorted through my bins of Christmas decorations and set some aside to donate, threw away excess packaging that was flimsy and not working well for me and generally organized the whole end of the shed.  I left a mess on the floor of the shed. I'd run out of room in my box for donations and I couldn't reach my trash bag so threw things in the general direction of it.  Had I not been hot, tired and convinced it was time to put the bread in the oven, I'd have stayed and completed the task.  

As it was, the timer went off on the microwave as I came up the steps.  I put the bread in the oven and then went outdoors to work on one more job.  I laid weed mat in the corner flower bed this morning, leaving Maddie's 'hole' area.  I need to buy mulch but, in the meantime, big planters and rocks are holding the material down. I noted while working in that flower bed that the hydrangea has budded, and the Amaryllis is about to bloom out. I came indoors to drink a cool glass of water.  As soon as the bread was out of the oven, I felt ready to shower and change.  Where was all that nice cool morning air?  There was a breeze, but it had gotten very warm outdoors.

John discovered the problem with his mower and there was a blessing in it.  We had the parts!  I don't know why we had the parts, but we had them.  Did we buy extra last year?  All I know is that we have the part, didn't have to place an order for it, wait for it, etc.  John was able to install it on his mower, which ran just fine. Then he came indoors to join me for lunch.

After lunch, I spent some time watching two of my favorite vlogs, read my emails and looked over the weekly ads.  I noted a few surprising prices.  A box of brand name graham crackers was on 'sale' for $4.29 with a special coupon.  And here I'd thought the rise from 85c to $1.59 at Aldi was a leap!  I did see the 2 pound Rice Krispie Treats at Publix for $9,99, a price that Lana mentioned to me earlier in the weekend.  And I noted that boxes of some cereals were being sold as a BOGO.  The ad said "Possible savings $7.49.  Whoa.   

I mentioned to John who was sitting nearby that two months prior when he'd not felt up to leaving home, he'd asked me to shop at Publix which was the nearer store. "I spent extra money in our budget that month despite being very careful about what I bought...I can't imagine going in now and finding some of those prices as the new normal.  I reminded him that the Easter sale on Pillsbury flour had been $10.49.  "We just may be priced right out of shopping at Publix entirely if this a preview of their prices."

I decided to go ahead and make a second loaf of bread for Shabat, instead of waiting.  I never know what's coming up in a week and so as I set up the dough to begin mixing, I thought about Publix and prices.  Overall, many things are still affordable, but Publix has always been the highest of the stores we've shopped at routinely with the exception of the organic market I used to visit every few months.  

I wondered why exactly their prices were so high. At first, I thought, "Well perhaps because they get an exclusive item," but then I remembered the cereal was a General Mills cereal on sale for $1.99 a box at Kroger this week (price with card and with a $1 off coupon) and the flour had been Pillsbury, which was selling for under $3 a bag at Walmart just last week.  Isn't it the same cereal and the same flour?  The very same brands, the very same boxes and bags?  So why are they charging so much more than other stores?   

I've always like shopping at Publix.  The store is well ordered and brightly lit.  The customer service is excellent and the goods on the shelves are clean.  I've known all along that I could never do all my grocery shopping at the store but I feel almost like, well honestly, that I'm being outclassed and won't be able to shop there at all in the future simply because my income isn't up to their level.  

Oh well.  I can't figure out the rhyme and reason of the world at large, but I can make my own bread at home and remind myself that shopping at one store or another isn't a status symbol.

When the bread was ready to rise in the pan, I made supper and let it bake in the same oven when the bread went in.  John had gone to mow over across the field at what he calls "The Manor House".  I suppose he'll finish our yard tomorrow, and knowing him he'll likely mow the front yard all over again.  I'll finish up the shed and then I'm going to try to work on the back porch for a bit.  

I used the quiet time here at home to get some more writing done.  I'm enjoying having the balance of hard work and writing time these days.  

Meals:  French Toast, Turkey Sausage

Bologna and Cheese Sandwiches.  John had cookies and I ate 7 pieces of dried pineapple and 1 tablespoon of mini semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Tuna Casserole, Green Peas, Fruit Cocktail with cottage cheese for John, just plain fruit cocktail for me.  

Thursday:  They say time flies when you're having fun. I can say quite honestly that it flies when you're working hard, as well!  We've just completed another work day and plenty was accomplished in it.  I was shocked earlier to realize that today is Thursday...this week has flown by and we are barreling right to the final days of April, as well.

I woke naturally around 8am this morning.  Mind you we've been sitting up most nights of late until 11:30.   Don't ask me why.   Last night we started watching Shane Smith on Dry Bar comedy which we really enjoy.  We like Shane Smith and a few other regulars who appear there.  Dry Bar is in Provo, Utah and is clean, good humor.   We didn't realize when we started watching that particular video that it was over an hour long.  We watched about half and then headed off to bed and fell right to sleep after prayer, something we've done a lot this week.  

I was slow moving this morning, but I had a plan for the day.   I didn't start the day with a breakfast plan, so I had to think hard before coffee.  Fortunately, I came up with an easy enough idea and I could go snug down in my chair while it cooked, sipped my coffee, read my daily devotional and get caught up in the first chapter of the next Mitford book, Out to Canaan.<<Amazon Affiliate Link>>

After finishing that chapter while I ate my breakfast solo, I got up and got busy.  I started in the kitchen and put everything that was out of place back where it belonged.  If it belong in another room or was going outdoors, I put it on the counter nearest the rest of the house or at the back door.  This streamlines things and keeps me focused on the room I'm working in.  If I stopped to leave the room, I'd see other things to do and walk away.  I proceeded around the room, starting at the laundry area and working my way through the back entry, the kitchen sitting area, to the dishes and then the other counters in the room.

I looked over the living room, dining room and went on to clean and neaten the bedroom and bath. This took about an hour and 20 minutes.  Then I headed outdoors, back to the shed to finish off that last task.

Today in the shed, I decided to sort out the last bin which was packed too tightly with my silk and faux florals.   I separated them into Fall and Spring/Summer.  You'll note I didn't mention winter.  I had the faux pines shoved in with Christmas and I decided to donate those.  I'm so over faux garlands.  I know that having cedar and pine in the house is a mess, but it truly is far prettier than anything fake you can buy.

I was surprised to find that I had so many things for spring/summer.  I guess I didn't get them out last year and so it was a pleasant surprise.  Although it's early yet for peonies in our climate, I have a big bunch of faux blooms in the vase on the mantel.  It looks lovely.  I also had lily of the valley and a tiny purple flower that reminds me of Squill together in another pretty jug.

John came out on the porch as I was loading my wagon with trash and the box of stuff to donate.   He just sat there watching me work.  I called across the yard "Are we going to go work at Katie's?"  "I was thinking about it."  "Well, if we're going let's head on because it's getting pretty warm out here."  I think I heard him grumbling but I can't be sure.  I went on to the car with the trash and put the box I'd packed for donating the other day into the wagon so we'd have room for all the tools.

At Katie's, I started work blowing off the walkways and around the back door.  John went to work on her mower blade.  He'd brought along his grinder to sharpen it.  Katie was home.  She came out and blew off some of the concrete while I held the mower for John.   Caleb had had a rough night.  When he was out this weekend, she was worried about him and had already kept him home Monday due to a deep rattling cough.   Today she made a doctor's appointment for him.

After John finished getting the blade back on the mower, I went back to work blowing off the deck.  He mowed about half the back yard, Katie mowed the other half.  I weeded about half a flower bed.  Then we trimmed up the Japanese Maple.  One branch was growing up to touch the electric connection at the top of the house.  Another branch was lying on the roof.  We know firsthand that is like an open invitation to ants to invade the house.  We wanted to get those down.  By taking off things in small increments we found we didn't have to take off nearly as much of the tree as we thought we might at the beginning.

Then we walked around to the only side of the house where only minor work has been done.  We cut tree out of the old azalea.  That doggone tree must have been 20 feet or more tall.   It wasn't big around, but it was certainly tall.  I was more shocked by the size of the vines that held the tree in place.  They were like huge old cables and we had to lop those to get the tree loose.  

After that we called it a day at the town house.  As we headed home, John offered to stop at the local diner.  "Closed."  "The sign says open."  "Uh huh.  It said open last week too but when I called to place an order they said they closed at 1pm on Thursdays."  "Oh...well we got anything we can eat at home."  "Yes."  I told him what we had and he drove for another minute or two and said "Why don't you order us a sandwich and we'll go pick it up."   

So we had a short drive and then went to an old church to eat our sandwich after we'd picked it up.   It was shady and cool there and we enjoyed sitting there to eat.  Somewhere down the road we could hear the continuous 'Beep Beep Beep' of heavy equipment backing up.  

When we got home, while John unloaded the car, I took the loppers and trimmed some branches that were hanging low now they are fully leafed.  I trimmed the Gingko tree of dead limbs.  John very nicely loaded up my donations from the wagon.  

I told him I was officially done.  The only other job I'll do today is to make supper and clear up behind it.  

Katie called while I was in the shower.  John actually dug down in my purse to get my phone which is really a rare thing.  You'd think I kept baby rattlesnakes in my purse the way he acts about taking anything out of it as a rule, but he knew Katie would be calling and when the phone rang he answered.  Poor little fella has a double ear infection.  He's getting antibiotics and a round of steroids to help with the continuing allergies he's struggled with.  That should clear up the rattling cough.  

Meals:  Blueberry Muffins, Boiled Eggs

Sandwich Shop sandwich, Soda

Bbq Chicken Legs, Hashbrown Casserole, Green Beans, Corn Muffins

I thought my day was done, lol.  The dishes are stacked in the sink and will wait until tomorrow.  I at least got them all rinsed.  

Millie is two, just like Caleb and today she absolutely refused to nap for even the shortest bit of time.  She was apparently determined to show her parents how a two-year-old can be.  Unfortunately, Josh had a school play tonight and his was the lead role.  Sam called me just as I was getting supper ready to go into the oven.  "Could you possibly babysit?  I know it's late notice and all, but I just know if we take her with us, one of us is going to miss the play because she's going to show out."  I quickly calculated how long it would take for supper to cook and me to have time to eat.  I agreed I'd come up to their home.  I figured any little girl who hadn't had a nap was going to be more than ready for her usual bedtime.

Millie couldn't stop smiling when I arrived.  She didn't mind one bit that everyone else was leaving.  She snuggled with me on the sofa until bedtime and then she happily went off to bed.  I heard two whimpers from her when I took away her 'tab-it' as she calls the Kindle.  She's not allowed to have it at bedtime, and she knew this, but I suppose it's worth a try to see if Gramma will give in.  

I carried my book along with me and had a lovely hour to myself (well with all the cats gathered around me) and read.  I turned off the television and enjoyed the quiet.  It was restorative.  I think it was just what I needed.

Friday:  I was watching Kimmy on She's In Her Apron last night.  I confess I generally fast forward through watching vloggers doing their cleaning.   However, towards the end of the video she talked about comparison shopping for groceries.  She said she'd taught a food storage class recently and she's was surprised at how few people do any sort of comparison between stores when shopping for groceries.  

This is something I've done for a long time.  There was a day and time when I shopped at one store and one store only.  I went to that same store weekly and bought my groceries there.  I was savvy enough, when items were on sale that we routinely used to stock up on them, but I did NOT comparison shop.  I began doing that when we were moving here.  What changed?  I worked in Warner Robins and there were a number of grocery stores in the area.  The place where I worked had one of those weekly papers delivered (the sort they toss in driveways for free) and I read the sales sheets from the groceries included in the paper.  Later when we got the Sunday paper there were more sales ads to compare stores.  Now with the internet I can access online ads and through a few sites even view the ads ahead of time.  

I had given up comparison shopping after Aldi came into the town where we do most of our shopping because they truly were the very best priced and I only shopped elsewhere to pick up items I could not find at Aldi.   

I have returned to the comparison shopping method over the past three years.  Between pandemic outages and rising food costs, I have to agree with what Kimmy said in her video.  "Now it's so important to know what is a good deal and what isn't..."  I couldn't agree with her more.

I'll end here today.  This diary is plenty long enough and I thank each of you for reading here.   

Meals:  Cold Cereal, Peanut Butter Toast

Turkey, Gravy and Dressing (leftovers from the freezer combined into a quick meal)

Tamale Pie, Corn, Salad