Category: The Weekend Wrap

Now that I am back home, I can write about my visit with Mandy, Matt, and the kids and my trip home. It was all pretty interesting, so here we go!

After getting my prescription I headed to Mandy and Matt’s house. The kids were so thrilled to see me and to introduce me to their new puppy, American Eskimo Puppy, Winter.

I will say that Winter is one of the sweetest puppies ever and of course, I am already crazy about her

Naturally, since she is not quite 12 weeks, we spent a lot of time taking her outside to learn how to do her business there, before coming back in for more love and cuddles.

I offered to watch everyone so Mandy and Matt could go on a date. Restaurants here are allowed to serve outside and with social distancing. I think it was their first date night since February.

I also was able to ask Matt some questions about my Amazon Echo. I was not getting the coverage from my Wifi with it and I wasn’t sure what was going on. Matt had some good suggestions.

So while their parents were out, we watched Frozen 2, which I had not seen, and I made dinner for them.

I also brought with me Mickey Mouse Ice Cream, like they have at the Theme Parks and they both enjoyed that!

Savi and I talked and played word games and Quinn got into my lap and cuddled quite a bit.  It felt wonderful!

Soon, I crawled into bed with them both and fell asleep almost instantly. There is no better feeling than snuggling with your grandbabies!

The next morning, Mandy made an awesome breakfast and we sat talking for a long time. She is such an amazing woman and I am so proud of her.

Before I knew it, I needed to start my journey home. I needed to stop at the grocery store closer to my home to stock up on food and drinks.

The trip from Mandy’s house usually takes me 45 – 50 minutes, at the most to a good grocery store called Market Basket. But as I got onto the highway, I drove less than two miles and came to a dead stop! Seems there were many people from Massachusetts coming up here to New Hampshire to go Leaf Peeping. The trip took me two hours and fifteen minutes! I don’t think I drove over 15-25 miles per hour the entire way. It was grim!

While shopping I discovered that two of my favorite items are back in! Koru Apples from New Zealand and a cold cut called Cranberry and Sage Turkey Breast! I also got a Roast Beef, which I am currently cooking.

Soon I was home and Jack helped me carry up the sacks of food, and I got everything put away. I was feeling pretty tired by then and so I had picked up a frozen stir fry meal, which I cooked at the appropriate time. It was just okay.

Soon I collected Arnie and went to bed. I was still having trouble with the Echo Show. It was not connecting to the Wifi. I was simply too tired to care and I fell asleep.

Today (Sunday) I woke up and noticed the Echo was sending me messages. So I stopped what I was doing and sat there and entered my Wifi password and then my Amazon password and now it is working fine! I swear to God that if I sleep on a problem with a computer or it’s peripheral, the next day it fixes itself!

So, the weekend was a very interesting one, and despite the traffic jam yesterday, I have been able to kick back and relax and work toward recovery from my UTI.

Here is hoping the week ahead will be calm and relaxing. Something I think we all need during this time of Covid.

It was an ABBA kind of weekend. What does this mean?

Well, it means I was into listening to their music, dancing when no one was looking, and pondering that time, that ABBA time, in my own life.

I was in High School and then married to my first husband. I had little ones who also liked to dance to their music and in many ways, it was an easier time for me.

Life has a way of teaching you lessons that you never would want to learn, and it was at the end of the ABBA era that my innocence was lost. Their last poignant ballads brought tears to my eyes.

So I danced and I got lost in the music and that suited me just fine. What did you all do this past weekend?

One can dream of sleepy, lazy, weekends, but for me, it is rarely the case. Both days I was up exceptionally early, and I was working on Jack’s computer both days.

How I would love to back up his machine and do a total wipe of his hard drive and start again. Now that I know how to do it within Windows 10, I am happy to do it, again and again, to keep in practice. Quite honestly, Jack’s computer is a programming disaster, and one day I will have to do it.

I cooked and stopped the beds and then did some sewing. Miraculously, I got it all done.

I even read for a while. A good book, about Carrie Mathison before the start of the series Homeland. It’s kind of a prequel.
The week ahead will be a quiet one. I have no appointments, and simply need to go out and buy some fresh vegetable for the week. Other than that, I am good.

Have a great week everyone and enjoy these last summer days. September is almost upon us!

The weekend seemed to fly by, even though I kind of checked out for the weekend. I’d pulled a muscle in my back and it was tender, so I worked on stretching and resting it. It’s Sunday night now, and I think it is somewhat better.

Poor Jack has eaten so much fish lately, that I decided to cook different meals for him. But I’ve been almost craving fish and I have indulged myself.

I’ve also watched quite a few movies. Not that I sit here with popcorn, but I have them on while I am doing things like making meals and chopping up vegetables for salads.

“Red” with Bruce Willis, “The Family Stone” with Diane Keaton, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Rachel McAdams, “Sully” with Tom Hanks, and the last two Harry Potter movies.

I also sat stitch ripping a mask that I had ordered, that came and was sewn so poorly. I know that once I pin and sew this, I will have a very adorable wire-haired dachshund mask.

Laundry will be done today (Monday) and I am also planning on sewing a few things, so that will keep me happily busy.

The Covid-19 life means that none of us see our friends and family too often. I’ve been very careful about where I go and also have been keeping myself masked and gloved and clean. My “bubble” is a small one.

So I was able to go and see my daughter and her family! My darling Savannah and Quinn!

I think that’s been the hardest part of the Pandemic. The isolation. However, when the numbers were very high I didn’t feel safe seeing the kids. I did not want to get them sick!

Seeing their faces when I arrived filled me with such joy. I realized that they had missed me as much as I had missed them!

Friday I had an appointment with my Glaucoma Doctor late in the day. I asked if I could come down to visit, and it was the perfect day for a visit and a swim in the pool! My appointment went well, and so far, my eye pressures are holding steady.

Then it was off to Mandy’s!

Savannah and her Mommy, my daughter, Mandy!

We were in the pool for a couple of hours. It felt so good to relax in the cool, pleasant, water. My second swim of the year!

Mandy made a wonderful dinner, with Matt doing the grilling, and it was so nice not to have to cook or clean up!

Quinn and me, his Oma!
Me with my darling Savannah.

We talked we played and I got to hold my babies. Oh, how wonderful that was! All too soon, I had to go back home, as Papa Jack and the doggies needed me.

Still, Friday and into Saturday was just a great day!

I woke on Sunday morning and knowing that I wanted to change the sheets on my bed, I simply got up and stripped the bed before I even made the coffee.

This proved to be a wise move because after showering and starting the day cooking and cleaning, I lost interest in changing the sheets. However, since the bed was stripped, I had no choice but to make it up!

It was hot here today and rather soupy with humidity. I do try never to complain about humidity as nothing up here compares with what I lived with during the 6 years I spent in Florida. Southern humidity is a thing unto itself!

Over the weekend I watched two movies about a Dog’s purpose.

A Dog’s Purpose was the first one and A Dog’s Journey the second one. In many ways, I liked the first one best, but both were good, especially if you love dogs.

And how was your weekend?

Over the weekend I decided to lighten my hair with the lightener that Madison Reed sent to me. The very dark brown was not rocking my world.

So, I read the directions and set out to “lighten my hair”. Just a shade or two!

What happened will go down in another volume of “Things Maribeth Will Never Do Again”!

My hair came out a very orangey/reddish color. Which on some people looks very nice, but on me, not so much!

Ugh!

Yes, it’s this bad!

So I wrote to my hairdresser and threw myself on her feet, begging for mercy and help. I go in to be normalized on Wednesday!

I call this shade Corona-19-Red!

This about the craziest thing I have ever done with my hair. I’m just not that much of an adventurer!

I am also all set up with my Pampered Chef Party. As I said, if you want an invitation let me know.

The two dackels seem to be better, although they tag team me as to who is feeling better and who is feeling worse. I suppose this is to keep me on my toes.

It’s been hot, humid, and hazy here for the last week and it looks like the week ahead is going to be the same. At least having lost 45 pounds, I am no longer hiding under heavy clothes.

Have a great week Everyone!

I sometimes wonder when/if we will get back to normal life? It’s an odd time for us all right now. If/when we go out, we wear masks, some of us wear gloves. I cannot even recall when the last time I went out to eat was. I suspect it was probably sometime well before Christmas, as I was sick most of November and December.

Right now, I have no desire to go out to any restaurant, although I must tell you when my daughter ordered take-out for me and I got some wonderful Haddock and a salad I didn’t actually have to make, it felt incredibly good!

I’m trying to get back in the swing of things, but there is one big problem! It’s Summer-time and the Summer Residents/Tourists have arrived back in my little town. People from all over our country and some from other countries as well.

My grandmother’s voice rings in my ear, “Don’t touch that kid, you don’t know where that kid has been!” Her words could not be more appropriate at this time.

I even had a Covid-19 dream. I dreamt that my eye pressures were down to 6 and I leaped up and went to hug the technician and she recoiled and yelled “Covid” at me. You see, I cannot escape it, it’s even there in my dreams!

I’ve been watching old movies where people are actually holding each other and (gasp!) kissing! But then yesterday we watched Soccer and The Belmont Stakes, Horse Race and although these were live events, there were no spectators. That was so strange.

We are in day 4 of a heat-wave and even the dogs don’t want to go out. My birds have been hitting the suet pretty hard. This leads me to believe that the fatty suet may be a nice soft liquid in the tiny throats.

And lastly, Today is my cousin Janet’s Birthday. I suspect there would be no me if there had not been a Janet. She is a year and a half older, and I’ve always suspected my mother had an “I want another baby moment” after holding Janet.

We grew up, closer than close, and in some ways, she was more like a sister than a cousin. We may not see each other that much as we live far apart, but in our hearts, we are and will always be there for each other.

So Happy Birthday to my dearest and much-loved cousin!

Janet and me at the Ice Fishing Derby.

Our weekend was a full one. Part frustrating and part wonderful.

The frustrating part was about our TV. Or should I say our satellite coverage?

On June 1st our provider could no longer provide us with the networks from Los Angeles and New York. The Congress in all their wisdom decided that people outside of those viewing areas had no rights to the coverage. Even though we were paying for it and had this service for over 20 years!

Have I mentioned that I think we need term limits in both the Congress and Senate? These jokers make laws with no input from all of us.

I digress.

I had heard from a neighbor that he had the local stations (networks) out of Boston, Massachusetts from our same satellite provider. So on Saturday, I got all our information and called the Provider.

The first woman I reached kept telling me it couldn’t be done. She argued with me, and after a half an hour, I asked to speak to her Supervisor!

She said she didn’t have one, but would put me through to programming.

I will just tell you that this is where I should have landed all along. This nice young woman, had us all signed up for the Boston package and reduced our fee for the next 24 months for everything we’ve been through. Yay!

Problem solved!

Then on Sunday, I was walking around in my favorite Merrell Clogs, which I use as slippers, and the sole came off one of them! These lasted just about 4 years. Ugh.

Now I am online to find a cheap in price, but comfortable Merrell Clogs to replace these as my slippers.

The week ahead finds me meeting up (and social distancing) with a few of my dearest WW friends. We have not seen each other since March 11th. I’m so happy about this.

I hope you all have a great week ahead. I hope this finds you getting your life back to what might be termed as normal.

Crazy things can happen on weekends. Usually, I try to catch up on odds and ends, but Sunday found me cut off from my local world. Well, sort of.

When I got up on Sunday morning, we had no local cable TV nor did we have Internet service.

I tried to call the Service Provider, but they have now done away with all real people and all you can get is this perky automated voice that leads you round and round and then hangs-up on you!

Fortunately, when I got my Tablet I got the one with access through our Cell Phone Company. So I was able to monitor things with that.

Our service did not return for 10 hours! But, at least it did return.

I made a nice dinner but was fretting about the leak I discovered in the laundry room. I have the plumber’s number all set to call tomorrow so we can get that fixed.

So, despite all the events of the last few months, life, regular life, goes on.