Daily Ooos: Monday, May 5

[faerywings]

Where did the weekend go?? Wasn't there supposed to be a weekend? LOL!

I honestly feel like the last week or so has flown by in a flash, especially this past weekend. I commented at dinner that I was exhausted, but didn't do anything. Cait counted out some of the things she saw me do, so I guess I did more than I assumed.
My most time- and mental energy-consuming activity was trying to scrap a LO for the Mixed Media challenge. I tried two different versions and I and not happy with either. The paper and blending part was easy, and I loved the effects on both of the LOs. But I couldn't get the pictures and frames right and nothing was coming together. I closed out PS and will try again today.

That's my "big" project today. I also need to head out to the local library for kids' nature books and buy some more bird seed. After that, I have to not really redo tomorrow's lesson plans but come up with some extra activities to do inside. The forecast is for rain (that's fine- we can be out exploring in the rain), but also a chance of thunderstorms. We have to be inside for 30 minutes past the last "boom" which in a 2 1/2 class could be the bulk of the day. (I think I would rather be outside with 20 ten year olds making fart noises than inside with a handful of kids and nothing to do. LOL! I need to be prepared. )
At least we are getting some rain.

What exciting things do you have happening today?
Make it grrrrrrr-eat!

*said in Tony the Tiger's voice*

If you didn't hear it that way, go back and read it again

 

[faerywings]

Now you don't have a choice but to hear it.
I think that is one of the images that you can't see without hearing at the same time, at least if you are in my generation.

@BoatLady It sounds like you had a wonderful birthday weekend, and I would be most excited with the camera too. That photo in your post is just amazing. I love the duck's feet. And the siblings watching him go. And their sweet expressions and fluff. I guess all of it. ♥
I'm sad that your friend didn't get to see them. It is nice to hear that she is improving, probably too slowly for her, but reassuring to see the progress.
Have a great day getting the last-minute stuff packed and have a blast with the camera!

Took a couple of resets on their end but finally got the landline working again. So... now I have 2 cordless phone systems... the old one and the new one I just bought yesterday. I am going to go back to the old system... once I get all the handsets on it recharged. Will pack the new one back up and keep it until I need it. Found the receipt on the old one and it is 3 years old so it will probably fail sometime this year. At least I will be ready when that happens!!!

What a PITB! ITA, that is so smart to hang on to the second phone set. Who knows how much they are going to cost in a few months if you can get them at all? I just asked Gary this morning if we should try to get a new window AC now. One of ours wasn't working that great last summer. I just know it is going to die during a heat wave and the only ones on the shelves are going to be way out of our price range.

Got home for dinner which was creamy chicken and spinach with potatoes. I am loving the variety we are getting with these delivered meal kits. The good thing is, aside from the recipe cards that come with them, is that many of the sauces I can make myself later when we don't get the delivery. One of my fave sauces has been apricot jam, dijon, stoneground mustard, garlic and maybe a few other spices, can't remember offhand.

Sounds very good!! My BFF made me Hello Fresh Flatbreads for lunch a couple of years ago and they have the recipe on their website. It is one of our favorite meals.
What service do you use? I should stalk their website for recipe ideas.
You are going to do great at the markets! Have fun with the crafty ladies today.

Happy belated b-day to Gary. Did you have a family dinner?

TY! And no, no May Bash this year. Maybe I'll try to have one in September. Last year I did one in May but not in September. Everyone's schedules are just too complicated. My parents came up on Tuesday and Scott came over on Thursday. Gary's parents were going to come by this weekend but they are both sick.
A 1.5-hour walk would tire most people out, good job doing it!

I know you say karma, but this to me was a beautiful God moment. How wonderful to have blessed a family you dont know. And then to find the cake for Gary. Hope he loves the cube with the photo. I am sure he will. Its a special photo.

Lots of positive energy flowing is always good!
He did love the little cube too. He is cute ♥

@vickyday So excited that you saw the hummer again!
I hope that the new church office chair helps your back. I can't imagine a folding chair would be comfy at all.

We've had two new bird sightings this week that I've never seen here before. One was a Rose-breasted Grosbeak, the other was a Blue Grosbeak. Both unmistakable and so beautiful!

Hey Amy!! I have never seen either of them aside from photos. Does the excitement of seeing a new bird at your feeder ever go away? I hope not. I am turning into a bird-dork.

Time to start my day if I want to get seeds for the bird I adore so much this morning.
xoxo

 

[vickyday]

Where did the weekend go?? Wasn't there supposed to be a weekend? LOL!

I honestly feel like the last week or so has flown by in a flash, especially this past weekend. I commented at dinner that I was exhausted, but didn't do anything. Cait counted out some of the things she saw me do, so I guess I did more than I assumed.
My most time- and mental energy-consuming activity was trying to scrap a LO for the Mixed Media challenge. I tried two different versions and I and not happy with either. The paper and blending part was easy, and I loved the effects on both of the LOs. But I couldn't get the pictures and frames right and nothing was coming together. I closed out PS and will try again today.

That's my "big" project today. I also need to head out to the local library for kids' nature books and buy some more bird seed. After that, I have to not really redo tomorrow's lesson plans but come up with some extra activities to do inside. The forecast is for rain (that's fine- we can be out exploring in the rain), but also a chance of thunderstorms. We have to be inside for 30 minutes past the last "boom" which in a 2 1/2 class could be the bulk of the day. (I think I would rather be outside with 20 ten year olds making fart noises than inside with a handful of kids and nothing to do. LOL! I need to be prepared. )
At least we are getting some rain.

What exciting things do you have happening today?
Make it grrrrrrr-eat!

*said in Tony the Tiger's voice*

If you didn't hear it that way, go back and read it again

Yes, I "heard" the Tony the Tiger's voice!

I think I would rather be outside with 20 ten year olds making fart noises than inside with a handful of kids and nothing to do. LOL! I need to be prepared.

AMEN to that!

 

[vickyday]

View attachment 446753

Now you don't have a choice but to hear it.
I think that is one of the images that you can't see without hearing at the same time, at least if you are in my generation.

@BoatLady It sounds like you had a wonderful birthday weekend, and I would be most excited with the camera too. That photo in your post is just amazing. I love the duck's feet. And the siblings watching him go. And their sweet expressions and fluff. I guess all of it. ♥
I'm sad that your friend didn't get to see them. It is nice to hear that she is improving, probably too slowly for her, but reassuring to see the progress.
Have a great day getting the last-minute stuff packed and have a blast with the camera!


What a PITB! ITA, that is so smart to hang on to the second phone set. Who knows how much they are going to cost in a few months if you can get them at all? I just asked Gary this morning if we should try to get a new window AC now. One of ours wasn't working that great last summer. I just know it is going to die during a heat wave and the only ones on the shelves are going to be way out of our price range.


Sounds very good!! My BFF made me Hello Fresh Flatbreads for lunch a couple of years ago and they have the recipe on their website. It is one of our favorite meals.
What service do you use? I should stalk their website for recipe ideas.
You are going to do great at the markets! Have fun with the crafty ladies today.

TY! And no, no May Bash this year. Maybe I'll try to have one in September. Last year I did one in May but not in September. Everyone's schedules are just too complicated. My parents came up on Tuesday and Scott came over on Thursday. Gary's parents were going to come by this weekend but they are both sick.
A 1.5-hour walk would tire most people out, good job doing it!


Lots of positive energy flowing is always good!
He did love the little cube too. He is cute ♥

@vickyday So excited that you saw the hummer again!
I hope that the new church office chair helps your back. I can't imagine a folding chair would be comfy at all.


Hey Amy!! I have never seen either of them aside from photos. Does the excitement of seeing a new bird at your feeder ever go away? I hope not. I am turning into a bird-dork.

Time to start my day if I want to get seeds for the bird I adore so much this morning.
xoxo

We shall see! The chair is at the parsonage, but if it doesn't work, I will look at the one in the church office because we bought that one, too, back in the day!

 

[vickyday]

Good morning,
Quick in and out. I'm heading to the track before it gets too warm. Lots of items on the to-do list today.
walking
laundry
bank
parsonage chair
pick up groceries
probably lunch with Mark
more laundry
heating pad for my back, I'm sure!
Hope you all have a wonderful Monday! I'm off to the track!

 

[BoatLady]

LOL @faerywings -Bird dork!!!LOL , me too but got hooked in CT from a co-worker. Then when I met up with Amy- @mimes1 who showed my the Merlin Bird ID app I listen for different birds then try to spot them. I use it when we travel because there are so many different birds in other areas of the US. I used to put on Hummingbird feeders but not the last few years because we leave and it's not fair to start feeding then stop for the summer. I have seen a few come by to feed off the aloe plant flowers, natural food for them.
@faerywings I never know what to get our son for his birthday he has everything and buys what he wants but you gave me the idea--ferro rods...he builds bonfires at his house in CT and his McCabin in NY. It will be a new toy for him. Now to think of more stuff for him. FYI got one for hubby to so we can have some campfires this summer!!!

Went for my bloodwork today, always fun. There is a momma Muscovy duck sitting on eggs under our magnolia tree so fingers crossed that we have more baby ducks around. Got to go prune my fig tree and move some potted plants into the irrigation area for when we leave..Yesterday I hung another orchid in a tree so hopefully it will do ok while we are gone. Music and dinner at the club tonight so now plans to cook today-yes!!!
Got to go outside to work while is cool high 80's later.

 

[faerywings]

Quick pop in with a question for Amy @mimes1 or anyone else.
Is there an ethical way to keep cowbirds away from your feeder? I saw the male around a few times, but now his mate is here too. I suppose they don't listen to earnest appeals to be nicer friends to fellow birds.

 

[BrightEyes]

Morning, all. We had RAIN yesterday... several different storms came through. The first one had lots of pea to quarter sized hail with it. Then a couple more later on in late afternoon and evening. Woke up twice to thunder and lightening during the night... was not a restful night to sleep. Gave up at 4AM and got up. Some lite rain falling but stopped by 5:30. There was some flooding down in the valley but as I live up on the west mesa, the rain water ran off into the arroyos. More rain later on this afternoon. Glad to finally be getting rain as we really need it.

Need to run a couple of errands this morning - hopefully before the rain starts up again. So off to get my shower now that the heater has the temp up to 70*F... Glad I haven't turned the heat off as tomorrow's high is going to be around 58*F for a high!! BBL

 

[taxed4ever]

Good Monday Morning everyone! It is going to be a lovely sunny day here! I have been MIA as my back is simply killing me and it hurts to sit for too long, but then it hurts to stand for too long too . Lots of heat on it now and some more pain killers and hopefully I will be back to being pain free soon. I made the mistake of going out in the kayak early in the morning with SIL and while the time on the lake was beautiful, my back was not very happy lifting the kayaks and dragging them out of the water!! Gary and I are headed to Home Depot this morning to get stain for the new fence, its finally warm enough to get that job done. Oh I know that a few of you are interested in my recipe for the War Wonton Soup so here is what I used for it.
First and I think the most important ingredient was home made Chicken Bone Broth, it really makes a difference in the flavour!
You bring 2 quarts of broth to a boil and add chopped broccoli, sliced carrot, chopped bok choy , salt and pepper to taste and some chopped chicken breast ( i cooked up one breast a head of time). If you have any left over pork that is great in the soup also. Then I added the prawns about 12 of them. If you find it has too much stuff in it, then just add more broth. The last ingredient is the the won tons, I used these ones that I got at Costco.
. Just throw in a bunch of them and let them cook for a couple of mins, don't let them cook for too long or they will get mushy. We usually add some soy sauce to the soup once we dish it up, so darn delicious! I am sorry I don't use measurements, I just throw it all together and load it up with lots of goodies until it looks like enough. I hope you get to try it and love it as much was we all do! Better get a move on and get ready to go! Hope to catch up with all of you soon! Have a great day!

 

[AK_Tracy]

Good Morning Os!

I commented at dinner that I was exhausted, but didn't do anything. Cait counted out some of the things she saw me do, so I guess I did more than I assumed.

We moms always do more than we realize. The kids see it but assume that's just what we do. At one point I texted everything I did in a day to hubs while he worked cause it felt like what I did, didn't matter. It helped us both to see what I did and that while small jobs they matter and it helped me see what all I did and why I was tired.

Now you don't have a choice but to hear it.
I think that is one of the images that you can't see without hearing at the same time, at least if you are in my generation.

Nope, didn't have a choice. As soon as I saw the grrrrr it was in Tony the tigers voice.

Quick in and out. I'm heading to the track before it gets too warm. Lots of items on the to-do list today.
walking
laundry
bank
parsonage chair
pick up groceries
probably lunch with Mark
more laundry
heating pad for my back, I'm sure!
Hope you all have a wonderful Monday! I'm off to the track!

I am exhausted just reading your list. Hope you get it all done and dont end up too sore.

There is a momma Muscovy duck sitting on eggs under our magnolia tree so fingers crossed that we have more baby ducks around.

Awwww how fun. I hope you get to see them before you leave. Baby ducks are so cute, like chickens. But then they grow up and loose the downy cuteness. We have a bunch of returning ducks and its so fun to see them again. The mallards are back. Heard the loons last week. Saw a couple swans fly over. Geese are back too.

@taxed4ever Trudy you better take it easy!!! Paining/Staining the deck sounds like a great way to aggravate the back. Dont do that!!

We have winds and rain again. So far no snow so yeah! Dont know what I did but my hip is killing me this past week. Now my back is tweaked and woke me up a couple times last night. I'm sure a bit of its stress. I took on Kitchen Manager at church (volunteer) and while we aren't inventing the wheel, we are re-treading it. Need a digital calendar cause paper isn't gonna work. How do you know who added an event if its paper and the paper copy they have is 25 miles from me and someone calls me to see if they can use the kitchen. Or the other way around. UGH. And where oh where do you keep cleaning supplies??? Oh well, it will all work out. Off and running. Need more coffee!! Have a wonderful day Ladies!

 

[BrightEyes]

I'm back... Went over to the new market and got some freebies and used some digital coupons. Loaded up on some fresh veggies. And got a free gallon of milk (bonus as a new member). Got smart and put half of it in a plastic jug and stuck it in the freezer... as I won't use a full gallon by May 20th. I used to freeze milk when all the kids were still living at home.... Thank goodness it wasn't as crowded today as it was on Friday!.. Then over to my favorite grocery store and loaded up on fruits and more veggies!! When I exited the parking lot... there was a huge line of cars at all 4 corners...the traffic lights were out!!! Nice drivers let me cross in front of them to get to the left turn lane. Then everyone was careful at the intersection and let everyone take their turn. Whew... was glad to get home. The sun was shining but a huge storm was moving in from the northwest - just north of my house. I got home just in time...

Guess things will get back to normal now that iNSD sales end tonight.

YIKES.... heard thunder so time to close this out.

 

[AK_Tracy]

I'm back... Went over to the new market and got some freebies and used some digital coupons. Loaded up on some fresh veggies. And got a free gallon of milk (bonus as a new member). Got smart and put half of it in a plastic jug and stuck it in the fridge... as I won't use a full gallon by May 20th. I used to freeze milk when all the kids were still living at home.... Thank goodness it wasn't as crowded today as it was on Friday!.. Then over to my favorite grocery store and loaded up on fruits and more veggies!! When I exited the parking lot... there was a huge line of cars at all 4 corners...the traffic lights were out!!! Nice drivers let me cross in front of them to get to the left turn lane. Then everyone was careful at the intersection and let everyone take their turn. Whew... was glad to get home. The sun was shining but a huge storm was moving in from the northwest - just north of my house. I got home just in time...

Guess things will get back to normal now that iNSD sales end tonight.

YIKES.... heard thunder so time to close this out.

My goodness the weather you have had. Dust storms, thunder, rain. I hope it levels out soon and you get calm warm weather to enjoy. All those fresh veggies sound amazing.

 

[mimes1]

Quick pop in with a question for Amy @mimes1 or anyone else.
Is there an ethical way to keep cowbirds away from your feeder? I saw the male around a few times, but now his mate is here too. I suppose they don't listen to earnest appeals to be nicer friends to fellow birds.

Quick pop in for an answer! I don't know!!! We have flocks of them come through here and they wipe out the feeders in no time. Literally hundreds at a time. Here's a screenshot from a video on my phone. All cowbirds!!

 

[mimes1]

Heading to bed! See you all tomorrow!

 

[vickyday]

Good Morning Os!


We moms always do more than we realize. The kids see it but assume that's just what we do. At one point I texted everything I did in a day to hubs while he worked cause it felt like what I did, didn't matter. It helped us both to see what I did and that while small jobs they matter and it helped me see what all I did and why I was tired.

Nope, didn't have a choice. As soon as I saw the grrrrr it was in Tony the tigers voice.

I am exhausted just reading your list. Hope you get it all done and dont end up too sore.

Awwww how fun. I hope you get to see them before you leave. Baby ducks are so cute, like chickens. But then they grow up and loose the downy cuteness. We have a bunch of returning ducks and its so fun to see them again. The mallards are back. Heard the loons last week. Saw a couple swans fly over. Geese are back too.

@taxed4ever Trudy you better take it easy!!! Paining/Staining the deck sounds like a great way to aggravate the back. Dont do that!!

We have winds and rain again. So far no snow so yeah! Dont know what I did but my hip is killing me this past week. Now my back is tweaked and woke me up a couple times last night. I'm sure a bit of its stress. I took on Kitchen Manager at church (volunteer) and while we aren't inventing the wheel, we are re-treading it. Need a digital calendar cause paper isn't gonna work. How do you know who added an event if its paper and the paper copy they have is 25 miles from me and someone calls me to see if they can use the kitchen. Or the other way around. UGH. And where oh where do you keep cleaning supplies??? Oh well, it will all work out. Off and running. Need more coffee!! Have a wonderful day Ladies!

Gotter all done! Got 2 miles walking in, too!

 

[AK_Tracy]

Gotter all done! Got 2 miles walking in, too!

YOU ROCK!

 

[vickyday]

Good Monday Morning everyone! It is going to be a lovely sunny day here! I have been MIA as my back is simply killing me and it hurts to sit for too long, but then it hurts to stand for too long too . Lots of heat on it now and some more pain killers and hopefully I will be back to being pain free soon. I made the mistake of going out in the kayak early in the morning with SIL and while the time on the lake was beautiful, my back was not very happy lifting the kayaks and dragging them out of the water!! Gary and I are headed to Home Depot this morning to get stain for the new fence, its finally warm enough to get that job done. Oh I know that a few of you are interested in my recipe for the War Wonton Soup so here is what I used for it.

Quick pop in with a question for Amy @mimes1 or anyone else.
Is there an ethical way to keep cowbirds away from your feeder? I saw the male around a few times, but now his mate is here too. I suppose they don't listen to earnest appeals to be nicer friends to fellow birds.

View attachment 446766. Just throw in a bunch of them and let them cook for a couple of mins, don't let them cook for too long or they will get mushy. We usually add some soy sauce to the soup once we dish it up, so darn delicious! I am sorry I don't use measurements, I just throw it all together and load it up with lots of goodies until it looks like enough. I hope you get to try it and love it as much was we all do! Better get a move on and get ready to go! Hope to catch up with all of you soon! Have a great day!

Thanks for the recipe. I'm going to have to look up "prawns" as I've never heard of them!

 

[vickyday]

Quick pop in with a question for Amy @mimes1 or anyone else.
Is there an ethical way to keep cowbirds away from your feeder? I saw the male around a few times, but now his mate is here too. I suppose they don't listen to earnest appeals to be nicer friends to fellow birds.

Paintball gun!