The Dackel Princess

Dust

As the weekend neared, our temperatures began to moderate some. we actually had some melting in the drive and on our back patio. Jack decided to clean up the yard a bit and make the doggy run area a bit wider.

My work was washing the master bedroom and family room. Since I’ve been laid up for a while the dust was deep. So out came the Clorox Wipes and everything got wiped down. Tomorrow will be vacuuming day. Both the family room and the bedroom, and probably the kitchen too.

I expect that we will watch another marathon viewing of Homeland. We’ve really enjoyed watching the older episodes as we wait for the new ones.

The birds have been busy at the feeders, and I really enjoy watching them. I find such peace with that.

I hope you all have a great weekend!

The Friday Five

Well, here we are, the fourth Friday in January. This is one long month as we will have a fifth Friday next week! It’s been a busy week for me. I had to do a lot of driving, and the saving grace to it all was that we had a beautiful sunny day. So here we go. This week’s Friday Five!

Have I mentioned that I have a Raven that lives in my yard? He arrived last Spring and has stayed. He has been a calming influence in the yard. When I get to the point of changing the suet feeders I toss the smaller pieces on the ground for him.
New Hampshire has quite a bit of snow right now and I doubt it will be going anywhere. We’ve had exceptionally cold days and nights. In fact, we will need our oil tank filled again pretty soon.
Anneliese had her Ophthalmologist appointment on Wednesday. He told me what I pretty much knew. She doesn’t see much in the way of objects anymore. She sees light and dark. Large objects have only a rough shape and no real definition. The only good news is that what is wrong with her is not something that would be passed to her children. Arnie has great eyesight and so far I have not heard from the puppy owners of any problems. Anneliese’s were caused by injury and then infection. In any case, Anneliese is a happy girl and she runs around like a puppy. I just work to keep my eyes on her, to keep her from bumping into something.
About a year ago a friend of mine gave me a Tervis Tumbler mug. I started using it in the evening when I wanted a smaller cup of tea. Then I noticed that they had a 20-ounce mug with the Dunkin’ Donuts logo on it. So I bought that because, why keep using styrofoam cups when I can reuse the Tervis Tumbler mug? The coffee stays hot for a long time and I’m doing my part for conservation.

I like it so much that I bought a second one to use solely for tea during the day. Another 20-ounce mug. It is my go-to drink container now.
I decided to catch up with my laundry on Thursday. I was doing so well, and then when I was eating lunch, I spilled tomato sauce all down the front of my nice clean shirt! I raced to the laundry room and hit the front of my shirt with Dawn dishwashing liquid and tossed it in to wash. Did you know that using a good dishwashing liquid will take out almost any spill/stain from your clothes? Seems that it helps break down the protein and other elements. I swear, it works well. At least my tomato sauce stain is gone!

So that’s it as far as what’s been up with me. I am planning a nice quiet weekend and a few nice meals. All WW approved!

I Can Do This!

As you all know, I returned to WW Class on January 1st, 2020. My New Years Resolution was to stick to the plan and lose the weight I need to so that I can get my health back.

In the three weeks, I have stuck to the plan 100%. No cheating, no overeating, and I have done very well. In fact, I am so encouraged that it is actually making it easier to stay on plan, and I feel I have fallen into a good routine.

Here is what I have done since January 1st!

I’m feeling good and I started to anticipate things in my mind. For instance, if I can lose 15 pounds a month…

But, I quickly reined in my thoughts and said to myself, “Not so fast, Maribeth. I need to simply take it one day at a time”.

I’m also thinking about things differently. I’m making these changes in my eating because it is healthier for me.

Really I feel pretty good about the whole thing. No, I feel very good! This is working out nicely. I will keep you all posted!

Here, There, & Everywhere

I was out most of the day on Tuesday. I had a doctor’s appointment and then I headed over to do our grocery shopping.

Now a funny thing happened on my way to the grocery store.

I’d made a detailed grocery list and printed it out. Neat and precise! Well, I was at the doctor’s and I went to add something to my list and I couldn’t find the list! I know I had folded it up and put it in my purse, but suddenly…POOF…it was gone!

After my appointment, I checked all over the car and even dumped out my purse. No list! I called Jack and asked if I’d dropped it at home? Nope. It was simply gone.

Now I am a woman who just misplaced her list, I was not feeling too good about remembering everything on it!

Once I got to the store, I simply went slowly and hit the usual things and looked for a few new ones. I spent well over $200.00 so I am hoping that I got everything on the list!

Today I am driving Anneliese to Portsmouth for her eye exam. I will be doing that after WW Class in the morning. It is supposed to be a nice day and I expect I will enjoy the ride!

I Think I Can

I am happily here to report that I figured out my keyboard problem and fixed it! It turned out not to have anything to do with my poor mouse (which I was totally blaming!). This morning, while drinking my coffee, I said to myself, “Settings – Keyboard!” And it was like a light bulb went off!

My laptop back when it was new. 2013!

I quickly got to my settings menu and searched for Keyboard. Then I went through the settings. Somehow, all the little boxes for shortcuts were checked! I unchecked them all. I never use shortcuts because my knowledge of my computer keyboard is not that great.

So I unchecked them all and so far so good. No wandering cursor. No typing into another paragraph. So far things seem to be working the way they should! Alleluia!

I am praying that this actually has been the one thing that will work. If not I will keep on looking.

It was another very cold day here. However, we were lucky because it was also a dry day. No snow! We do have a lot of snow and ice around though.

Since it was Martin Luther King Jr. Day, almost everything was closed, so I just snuggled up to the dackels and Lili and enjoyed a nice quiet day.

Some days, things just go along so nicely!

The Weekend Wrap

The weekend was fairly quiet, with the exception of the snowstorm and the additional 6-8 inches of snow that fell Saturday and into Sunday. It was beautiful but required more plowing and snow-blowing.

I cooked a few nice meals for Jack and then for me. I am still cooking two separate meals most of the time. I don’t mind because it helps keep me on track without making Jack feel like he is on a diet.

Our birds came to feed and that was also great. I love seeing them enjoy the food I put out. I noticed that one feeder was full of snow and ice, so I brought it in, cleaned it up, and put it back out for their enjoyment!

I’ve also been noticing that I will be typing along and all of a sudden my cursor jumps to another sentence, this is throwing off all my work. It keeps happening and it’s driving me mad!

I decided to try shutting off the mouse and see if that works. Sadly it seems to. I say sadly because it is inconvenient to have to shut off and turn on the blasted mouse!

I’ve discovered turkey cutlets! It’s simply uncooked slices of turkey breast meat. They’re low in WW points and easy to cook. Yummy!

Well, that wraps it up for another weekend!

Have a great week everyone!

Seven Things I Love

It’s my Sunday meme day. Seven Things I Love. Here is this week’s list!

1. Apple Blossoms. So delicate, fragrant and beautiful.

2. Peach Blossoms. They fill our yard in spring on our lovely peach trees.

3. A Bee pollinating the apple trees. I always love watching this happen. It is part of the growing season.

4. A sign for every season. This sign is near my home. I always laugh when I see it!

5. A basket that was full of my garden vegetables. I grew all of those! I miss my garden.

6. Lilacs. My favorite flower is lovely and the scent cannot be mistaken for anything else. How I wish they made Lilac perfume or air fresheners.

7. The most beautiful rainbow on my lake. Yes, I took this picture myself. It was so beautiful that day.

It’s All In A Days Work

I was up early on Friday morning. It had been snowing the night before and I was concerned about driving in the snow up to the Veterinarians office. (16 miles, much of which is in the hills and mountains) Fortunately, the snow had stopped.

My first activity of the day was to get a urine sample from Anneliese. Now, this certainly could win America’s Funniest Video had it been recorded.

It was Zero degrees Fahrenheit, I was dressed in two layers of clothing, plus my hat, coat, and gloves. I had a little metal pan taped to a ruler to quickly shove under Anneliese at that special moment. I followed her around. I waited for her to squat so I could act quickly.

The wind blew with wind chills that were easily 20 below zero! She walked and paced and walked and paced and finally…bending down I shoved the pan under her and she went! I let go of the leash, and carefully poured the pan ingredients into a Ziploc bag!

Finally, she was done and we came in. I imagined having to tell people how my nose was frostbitten! LOL Fortunately, my nose made it through fine.

I came in and after washing up, I began to make my breakfast. Eggs, tomatoes with toast. As I was slicing my tomato I cut my own finger!

What more could go wrong?

Well, my hair was not cooperating with today’s comb out, so I got out the curling iron and while trying to pretty myself up, I burned my index finger.

Well, folks, that was all before 8 o’clock this morning! After that, I had to wonder what would happen next?

Fortunately, everything went well. Anneliese is on new medications, and for the most part, she is a lot better. She will go to the Canine Ophthalmologist next week.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. If you are close by, watch out for more snow, and if you are down under in Australia, stay safe from the possibility of fires and smoke.

The Friday Five

Here we go. January is slipping by rather quickly, and I know in the blink of an eye February will be upon us. I know, this week alone, just sped by me. Here’s what’s happening!

Well, we all know I had my eyes examined. Now I could not find a new frame that I liked, so I gave them my current frames to make the new glasses and I brought with me my last pair of glasses.
Me and my much-loved frames! I will be so happy when they are back!

I didn’t realize just how much I dislike these frames. (below)

These are the old frames and even though they are small, they just do not sit well on my nose. They never really did.

They are so uncomfortable. I will be happy when I have my glasses back!
After WW Class on Wednesday, I went to see one of my doctors down in Portsmouth, NH. All went well, and I am good for another 6 months. The ride down was so nice and pleasant and the sun was shining. I had packed a lunch for myself and as I drove home, I nibbled on it. Truly a nice day!
Then on Thursday, I was supposed to bring Anneliese in for a recheck of her urinary tract infection. However, when I woke we had our first major snowstorm going on.
Pretty, Yes?

The schools were closed, the roads messy and there were many accidents. So, I called my Veterinarian and postponed the appointment until Friday. So, we hunkered down and enjoyed the bright whiteness of the snow.
If you have never spent time in the snow like this, you will not be aware of the magic. My favorite thing to do is go outside alone, stand in the middle of my yard and listen to the absolute silence! There is such peace.
My Downey Woodpecker came to the feeders on Thursday and he hung around long enough for me to get this picture.
I’d hoped to see Mandy, Matt & the kids this weekend, but tomorrow we are due for another 8 inches of the white stuff. When we take Anneliese to the Vet’s, later on, I will stop at the grocery and pick up a few things to help me bear getting snowed in over the weekend!

Goals

I’ve been back to WW for 2 weeks. Wednesday was my weigh-in and folks, I am not crying!

In the last two weeks, I have weighed, measured, planned my meals and tracked my food. The first week was much harder then the last one was. I swear I was going through sugar withdrawal!

Now I seem to be hitting my stride with the diet and I’m actually enjoying the planning and the cooking.

Most of all, I am really enjoying the fact that I have now lost 11.6 pounds in these last two weeks.

I know I will not lose vast amounts like this each week, but this certainly encourages me to stay on plan and keep up the good work.