Daily Ooos: Tuesday, October 15

[faerywings]

Day Two of the correct day/date in a row.
I am more than a little shocked that we are halfway through October. My mom and I were starting to discuss Thanksgiving and Christmas plans yesterday. Terrifying. Simply terrifying. SMH. :/

It was a long day yesterday but not too emotionally frustrating. Drs appt was fine. The chest halter is a PITB, the stickers are itchy but not terrible. I got home and showed Gary the monitor which looks almost like his insulin pump and yelled "Twinsies!" Haha! That cracked him up.
My parents were ok so hopefully no crazy heart rate changes due to stress. LOL My dad is having a hard time with the hearing aid so I tried to give him a couple of suggestions. He was saying that he was going to return it but I'm hoping he gives it a little more time and gets used to it.
My brother was working from home yesterday so we popped in for a half hour so I could see Marlin, their new puppy. He's a little dust mop of a dog and lemme tell you, playing tug with him is extremely different than playing with a pittie-mix. He has the softest little growls and weighs practically nothing. Also sweet and silly and loves belly rubs.

The topic for HS today is pinecones, acorns, and seeds. I have a bag filled with different examples and we'll go on a scavenger hunt to find more. Then I have a sorting activity based on seed dispersal and an experiment on why pinecones open and close. It will be chilly today so I'll need to keep the kids moving.

4 more hours and I can take this halter off.... yipppeeee!

HAGD!

 

[faerywings]

Weis is keeping you busy!
What a lovely picture.....for scrapping!
Hard to believe Scott and Sam have been officially a couple for 2 years!
Praying for good results from the cardio testing, etc!

Thank you, thank you!
I hope that you can find a way to get to your son's without having to drive through Atlanta. I am with you, city driving is not for me.
Was it really a year ago that you broke your wrist? That's bananas, it sure doesn't feel that long ago -- to me at least. I bet you can't wait to see DS and the family ♥

@BoatLady It's crazy how those beetles can debark a tree and kill it and yet leave the coolest patterns in the wood. Beautiful and destructive at the same time.
One of the issues that they are having with the ash borers is trying to find a way to kill them without harming the native beetles. Same thing with invasive plants- putting something like roundup on the invasives also often kills the native species. It's a conundrum. I used to use vinegar on some weeds thinking that was safer than Roundup- but the end result of throwing the natural ecosystem out of balance was the same. I don't think there is an easy answer other than nature is gonna do its thing regardless of what humans want.
Weis is the ecology center where I work. We run a lot of different programs, including field trips, Scouting badges, and group hikes. I am leading the homeschool enrichment program. It's 1 or 2 afternoons a week session and each day is a new seasonal topic. I use everything on the property to get the kids involved in nature- hikes, art, science experiments, and games. I am pretty dang proud of myself since I developed the curriculum and the kids seem to be having fun and learning some cool nature stuff too.

Our dogs-- and all pets- never leave our hearts, do they? I miss my baby girl still so much and she has been gone for 13 years. She was my soulmate. I love my other dogs so incredibly much but there was something about her that I'll never get over. Pirate must be the same to you

Happy Monday!!!
I get to stay home!!!!!!! WOO HOO!!! Its house cleaning day and I am not gonna do it! I

Did you do it-- as in do nothing??

I had fun but totally worn out. Tiling the kitchen was way more work then expected. One wall done, counter to cabinet, next week will be second wall then we grout. It looks so amazing. I cant wait for it to be done.

Of course not!!

Isn't it crazy. I dont know the age range of your community but at church, its the 60+ crowd mostly the 70+ crowd who's still working hard on maintenance and doing hard work while the 20's are sitting there looking like they deserve the pampering.

My dad (85 yo) says the same thing about the fire dept crew. It's all volunteer but the"kids" seem to want to do the fun stuff but when it comes to the non-glorious tasks, they are nowhere to be seen.
I have to say that the people I work with, almost all in their 20s, are dedicated and hard-working so I have some hope for the future

Happy Thanksgiving, @taxed4ever @bcgal00, and all of my Canadian O-Fam!! Hope everyone had a wonderful time together and that the cleanup was scarce and the leftovers plentiful.

@BrightEyes good to hear that you feeling better/coughing less every day. Good for you to still be taking it easy!

I almost didn't get my dental work done because my bp was so high, it had been a bad rellies day, week .

Hugs, Jeanne~~~~~~ I will keep on hoping that this situation gets easier for you even if the actuality of it is low.

I spent 35 years in education, I know what people who are born to teach & those who went into teaching to be a coach. You are the former, all you need is to believe what everyone who knows you has known forever.

You are so sweet! TY!! I don't know why I-- along with most women I know- doubt ourselves so much. Its a problem, yannow?
Don't forget your bleacher cushions tonight!

@Cherylndesigns

He's a cat - he does what he does.

Understatement of the Year.
If that doesn't describe cats perfectly LOL!

I think the weather change/season change is getting to me. I laid down on the ouch with Daisy and took a VERY long nap today. That's not like me, but it sure felt good. When I got up, it was 4:30.

Where is your light therapy lamp???? GO GET IT NOW!
(yup, reminding myself of that too)
How has Marley been doing with her health? Still doing well?

@mimes1 I am sending Gunner some extra treats through the internet and belly rubs too. Please make sure he gets them from me ♥
I am super glad that the cysts were benign. I truly hope that you got some pics of him with his droopy butt. That is good scrap material LOL!
You have no idea how difficult it is to keep pets from chewing until you have pet rats... A couple of years ago, one of Cait's rats chewed open the incision after she was spayed. We had just brought her home and within minutes, she had the incision open. Talk about speeding on the mountain roads to get back to the vet. Previously, Caitlyn used socks as little vests to keep the rats from chewing post-surgery, but this particular rat was more than a little neurotic and didn't even give Caitlyn a chance to try that.

Anyway- I got sidetracked there---- I hope the one you got from Chewy works and fits well!
Get one for Mark too. Sounds like he needs something to keep him from overdoing it post-surgery as well

 

[BoatLady]

@faerywings and whoever else wants to read---

Invasive plants like the Kudsu brought from Asia is all over the southern states We have seen so much of it as we have traveled, it's an vine that covers trees, power line and anything in it's path including abandoned houses. Brought over to help control erosion but went wild here.

Then there is a water chestnut that was brought over from Eurasia and Africa this is clogging the Hudson River, when we took our boat up there years ago it was along allot of the river and creeping in. Huge bays were filled solid with it people cannot even get their boats through it. When I stayed overnight in a lighthouse on the Hudson river with my girls in 2013 we had to walk 1/2 mile to the lighthouse and the whole bay was filled with it the beach was littered with seedpods that has spikes--do not step on them..

Cuban tree frog is another invasive brought over in the ships by accident...they eat all the local lizards and frogs. They are all over Florida now and we are encouraged to kill them to preserve our locals. We have had many in our yard...no birds or turtle eat them.
.
Asian Carp that jump into boats on the Mississippi are another invasive species. then there are zebra mussels that are causing all kinds of boat problems. I have not seen these myself but they are talked about in all the boat magazines.


Ooops sorry about my rant.

 

[faerywings]

Debby, rant away my friend!! There is room on that soapbox for everyone. Unless we get some Japanese knotweed up there with us
Scott's (DS) senior project (Environmental Science degree) was on invasive plants and remediation. It's freaking depressing.
My next homeschool session is going to touch on native vs invasive species as well as sustainability, conservation, and biodiversity. I know it is a huge and complicated topic for elementary-age kids but if I can even build awareness as a foundation, the other parts will fall into place as they get older.
If you -- or anyone else- have child-friendly resources, I would love to see them!

 

[taxed4ever]

Good Morning everyone! It's quiet and peaceful here this morning, whew the clean up is all done, the laundry is done and the only thing left to do this morning is to empty the dishwasher. Dinner was fabulous if I do say so myself and the turkey was done to perfection (thank you Jamie Oliver!). Leaving the turkey to sit for 2 hours really is the best way to go! Today I tackle the calendar pages and see how many I can get done. I have a parcel that I need to get out in the mail today for free shipping to Isaac and Sadie and then go through all the photos that the kids sent to us from their get together at Heather's over the weekend. Everyone is home safe and sound, so my Momma heart is at rest and happy to know that they had a lovely time together!

Debby, rant away my friend!! There is room on that soapbox for everyone. Unless we get some Japanese knotweed up there with us
Scott's (DS) senior project (Environmental Science degree) was on invasive plants and remediation. It's freaking depressing.
My next homeschool session is going to touch on native vs invasive species as well as sustainability, conservation, and biodiversity. I know it is a huge and complicated topic for elementary-age kids but if I can even build awareness as a foundation, the other parts will fall into place as they get older.
If you -- or anyone else- have child-friendly resources, I would love to see them!

Here are a few resources for you Chris I know the one is just on B.C. but its a pretty cute website. https://ssisc.ca/youth and maybe you have already seen this one?? https://www.plt.org/activity-resources/prek-8-activity-12-invasive-species/
Invasive plants are bad here also, especially the broom that is taking over and growing everywhere!! The only time to kill it is when it is in bloom. For some reason someone thought that it was pretty and thought that they should bring it over from England years later and we will never be rid of it!! I have also heard that we are getting jelly fish in our fresh water lakes, because people are too lazy or too stupid to clean and drain their boats.
I love that you are having such a great time with your new job!! You are certainly in your element my friend!! I bet you can't wait to get that darn chest halter off!! Glad your Mom and Dad are doing well, hope your Dad can figure out his hearing aid! My FIL puts his on but doesn't remember to turn them on LOL after all you wouldn't want to have to replace the batteries, they cost money don't you know .

Cuban tree frog is another invasive brought over in the ships by accident...they eat all the local lizards and frogs. They are all over Florida now and we are encouraged to kill them to preserve our locals. We have had many in our yard...no birds or turtle eat them.

We also have invasive frogs, the bull frog is eating all of our native little frogs, we have been told to kill them also. It is mind boggling how many invasive plants and animals are here on our Island! I have joined you on the soapbox, so rant away!! .

Waving Hello to @AK_Tracy ,@BrightEyes, @mimes1, @Cherylndesigns and anyone else that pops in here today! I hope your day is filled with happiness!!

 

[AK_Tracy]

Good Morning Lovely O family!
Its another cool morning (okay Chris and Marilyn I hear you its cold) Its 28* and frosted hard last night. Today is a slow busy day. Suppose to be sunny and cool up to 48* but we shall see. Thinking its time to pull out the thick sweatshirts. Maybe dust off the winter jackets. Need more coffee. Hips/feet/knees killing me after working on my kitchen upgrades yesterday. Going to make it a long day starting down a spoon but will carry on and keep going.
Have a wonderful day!

 

[vickyday]

Day Two of the correct day/date in a row.
I am more than a little shocked that we are halfway through October. My mom and I were starting to discuss Thanksgiving and Christmas plans yesterday. Terrifying. Simply terrifying. SMH. :/

It was a long day yesterday but not too emotionally frustrating. Drs appt was fine. The chest halter is a PITB, the stickers are itchy but not terrible. I got home and showed Gary the monitor which looks almost like his insulin pump and yelled "Twinsies!" Haha! That cracked him up.
My parents were ok so hopefully no crazy heart rate changes due to stress. LOL My dad is having a hard time with the hearing aid so I tried to give him a couple of suggestions. He was saying that he was going to return it but I'm hoping he gives it a little more time and gets used to it.
My brother was working from home yesterday so we popped in for a half hour so I could see Marlin, their new puppy. He's a little dust mop of a dog and lemme tell you, playing tug with him is extremely different than playing with a pittie-mix. He has the softest little growls and weighs practically nothing. Also sweet and silly and loves belly rubs.

The topic for HS today is pinecones, acorns, and seeds. I have a bag filled with different examples and we'll go on a scavenger hunt to find more. Then I have a sorting activity based on seed dispersal and an experiment on why pinecones open and close. It will be chilly today so I'll need to keep the kids moving.

4 more hours and I can take this halter off.... yipppeeee!

HAGD!

I'm glad your twin got a kick out of the monitor! And doubly glad you only have to wear it for 24 hours! If you pass the test after being at your parents' I don't think you have anything to worry about!

 

[BrightEyes]

Just a quick in and out this morning. I am taking another "rest and relax" day today. Have one more day of meds tomorrow then hope to get my lab work done before this weekend. Need to go to the base and pick up Rx refill and do the commissary run. Today is the last day of "summer" heat..(82*F) and tomorrow will be lucky to hit 62*F!!! Looks like fall will be hitting us finally! Guess I had better think about digging out the winter comforter... I took a look at the challenges but don't feel up to working on them yet. << sigh >> Will give it another few days.. maybe by next week I will feeling like scrapping.

 

[JeanneMN]

Hugs, Jeanne~~~~~~ I will keep on hoping that this situation gets easier for you even if the actuality of it is low.

The situation is like a snail climbing Mt. Everest, it could be in the next couple of months, but that family will never be whole again, a lot of bridges have been burned, but thank you for the hugs, they are always appreciated.

Ooops sorry about my rant.

Move over on that soapbox honey & let me on. Zebra mussels have invaded a lot of Minnesota lakes, again boaters are too lazy and|or stupid to drain live wells, pull boat plugs, pick off weeds, etc., eurasian milfoil has ruined many as well, don't hear as much about it now, but it also introduced chemicals into the eco-system in some cases. When we had a landscaper landscape our yard 40 years ago or so, they put 3 columnar buckthorn in front & one on the back corner, I got sick of those ugly things a long time ago and the burning bush doesn't burn, it's becoming more blazes every year, and then there's the Asian beetle brought in to kill some bug in soy beans, they look like orange lady bugs with the teeth of a crocodile, they don't sting, they bite and with their hard shells they still manage to come through a hairline crack and they stink if you crush them. I joke that native grass is another name for weed, but Joe Pye weed is native to our area & if I didn't keep it under control it could take over the garden, but it has to start from ground up in the spring compared to Asian beetles which have been known to come out on sunny windows in winter. Ok, next number in line for the soapbox?

Its another cool morning (okay Chris and Marilyn I hear you its cold) Its 28* and frosted hard last night.

Ah yes, it's Minne-laska weather. It didn't get out of the 40's yesterday and was 30 when I got up this morning and 28 when hubs got up a couple hours later. Supposed to be a killing frost tonight, but then 70s later in the week.

Just a quick in and out this morning. I am taking another "rest and relax" day today.

Hooray, Kay, good for you! Wise woman!

I spent the morning going thru vb pics from last night, very few of dgd, she played way less than the other night, I could climb on another soap box but still have splinters from the other box. I don't know if I mentioned one other girl's grandma asked me to take some pics of her dgd. She's a 7th grader playing on the 8th grade team and she is as fun to watch as my dgd and way shorter. They both play hard and like team players, they are great together. The rest are a bunch of drama queens that spell team with an I, makes me cranky watching them. Her mom & dad & grandma really appreciate the pictures and are so thankful . It's a lot more fun than when I would try to get pics of all the girls, share them & not a single thank you. My time is more valuable than that.

Last game of the season tonight. Last night after 8th grade game we went one gym down to varsity game warm ups to listen to pep band play pre-game, both kids are in it, then went home for a glass of wine before beddy bye.

 

[AK_Tracy]

Careful Twin, @JeanneMN those splinters are a pain in the bum. And they hurt to get out!!

I'm glad the other Grandma was thankful for the photos and let you know. Its never fun to give the time and energy and then not get thanked.

As for 70*, that ended waaaay back in August, early August. I think we hit 47 today for a high. But the sun is out and its beautiful. The mountains are all white and really stand out against the blue sky.