You get until 6 before she forgets?  Gracie is on the prowl for more to eat the second her dinner is gone, lol.  If she had her way she'd be 200 lbs!  Yoda is so patient - in comparison, I have to force  Gracie outside to do her morning business because she'd rather eat first.  She hasn't been out for 9 hours at that point!

 

a scary one?  Creepy.  Glad your DS has already gotten acolades - not surprising, though. :)

Yes it was dressed all in black and had these piercing eyes. I didn't like it either. DS was the only one with a 3D head on his friend. :) 

Well, you know, these kids are only 6th graders, and some don't have the same art talent as others.  Do you think the student meant him to be purposely be gothic?  I suppose it was a project that was supposed to represent the person in the story they had read, and perhaps that's the way he pictured the person.  I think they all should get "A" for all the work and effort that went into each one.

 Bedroom cleaned and polished, and just as well.  Dr. Phil had a terrible case on today about the torture murder of a couple of 14 year olds.  Terrible what young people can do to each other.

Oh I'm sure the person he created was described like that it the book. The face drawing was pretty realistic, hence why it was creepy. It had these really long fingers. I asked DS to find out who the character was. It had to be about historical fiction, so it could be anything.

Dr. Phil was on a horrific story, indeed.

Can I guess?  A Poe character?

almost ready to start dinner.  Have been taking down the Christmas decorations.  Need to dust and wipe the windows and sills down where Graice makes a daily mess with her nose.  She's exactly the right height to lay her chin on the window sills and watch out the windows.

I noticed nose prints on this window when the sun was shining in.  Cheerio hasn't jumped up on that sill for a long time.  Time to give them a cleaning too, but it won't be this week-end.

Ribs were delicious.  Thought there were only 2 in the pkg, but turns out there were 4 meaty ones.  Poured a can of diet pepsi in the last hour and that added a nice flavor.

Haven't heard from GD yet, so don't know if her stomach ache is better and she's coming tomorrow or not.

Oh, man a bonus two ribs!  I looooooove ribs just the way you do them with the cola.  Yum!  Hey, I'm starving...

looking pretty decent here.  Not perfect, but good enough for me to not be embarrassed or fear being tattled on.  The wood stove is going after being out much of the day so it wouldn't get too hot in here.  It's hard to regulate it when it's in the 40s.  too cold without it, too warm with it.

took down most of the Christmas decorations today.  No traditions associated with it, just a hasty collection of stuff in a pile ready to be boxed up and taken to the attick.  Maybe if we had kids I'd have a post-Christmas tradition...oh, well.

chicken is in the oven for butternut chicken soup, and I've just about enjoyed a whole Sam Adams Winter Lager pre visit, lol.  Ahhh.

to the rest of the soup...here I go.

You've still got a busy evening ahead of your, Kargiver.  I just changed into my nightgown and robe.  The dishwasher is swooshing, and I'll take out the frozen gingerbread dough and put in the fridge for tomorrow's baking.  Hope because I haven't heard it doesn't mean she's still sick.  Son left it that he wasn't going to say anything to her until she felt better, and he would call me later in the week.  Must be waiting until the last minute.

Think I'll have a gingerale and watch the evening news.  Hope your evening and morning go well.  I'm sure your DH appreciates the effort you put forth, especially for this BIL.  Keep an eye on him with Gracie.

I hope she feels well enough to join everyone and have fun, tt.  A lot of improvement can occur in one day so there's hope yet.

Yes, he does appreciate it - out loud in so many words, in fact, not just implied.  Good of him to be so vocal about it; that's not one of his natural tendencies.

I wonder if BIL is even going to show.  No calls, no sign of him.  Usually, he rings the phone off the hook on days he's due to come.  Regardless, the soup will be done, and the house in order, both of which needed to be done, anyway.

So funny how our animals can "tell" time!  Dinner time that is!  Spencer knows when it's 3:30 and comes to bug me - and days that we're working he knows to go upstairs to bug "Nana!" 

Made chicken piccata, noodles, and spinach for dinner.  DH liked it, but I thought it was a bit too lemony.  Oh well.

More drs appointments tomorrow, however, I am still slated to go back to work on 1/21.  I am really looking forward to it!

Chicken Piccata cannot be too lemony for me, Prin - I bet it was delish despite dh's (wrong, lol) opinion. ;)  And, how awesome is spinach with a lemony dish?!  YUM!!

I think it's funny, too, that our pets can tell time despite the sunlight being different throughout the year - doesn't seem to throw them off at all.

How I'd like to know what the HECK is going on.  Dh said he expects to be home befofere 6:30. Not home. Very unusual.  And, still no hide or hair of BIL and no calls.  SIGH.

Was your husband supposed to pick BIL up at the airport?  Can't you give your DH a call on his cell phone?  I'm sure it's just heavier than expected traffic.

BIL is driving here; he lives in NH, and DH is on his way home from work.  However, I missed a call from DH, and he met up with him on the way home and is taking care of that errand that brought BIL down here.  They should be pulling in together any second.  Dammit.  Was hoping the plan changed entirely.  Oh, well...I'm just on edge.

Signing off - wouldn't want this discovered!  Have a nice evening, everyone. Thanks for being there for me!  :)

Good night.  I'm closing down for the night too.  Chat tomorrow.

tt, I know you are closing the computer for the night. But you will see this tmw. morning. I stopped by S&S on my way home from work. They have plenty of gluten free cake mixes. Cookie mix, brownie mix, yellow and chocolate cake mix. Plus they even have gluten free bisquick. They are located on the top shelf, above the other cake mixes and frostings.  Maybe too late for Sunday, but good to know for the next time.

 

Gluten free Bisquick??  Good to know.  We have a couple of gluten free people in the fam, too.

well, he's come and gone, and it went ok.  No overnight...his choice.

Good morning,

Yah, Kargiver - no sleepover!  Wonder how that came about - maybe he and your husband had had a chance to visit when they met up before coming home, and that and the errand he had done, were all he really wanted.  Whatever the reason, spared you a possible migraine this morning.

Pingo, thanks for the tip re the gluten free mixes.  DIL has found and brought different products home and they both said they tasted terrible.  Not those that were in S&S, but other probably not as well known names.  Son brought a delicious home made almost toffee cookie with choc bits to G.T.'s at Thanksgiving, and may bring that.  He and I are probably the only ones in the fam who really prefer puddings tho, so this Spanish Creme works out well.  I'll tell him about the others tho, he may want to try one on  his own.  In their basket I did put a couple of gluten free products I found at Marshall's.  I'm sure he'll have fun trying them.

Woke up at 12:30, and couldn't get back to sleep until around 4:30 when I finally took a Tylenol.  This always happens to me when something is coming up.  I go through sleepless nights and feel less than my best for the big occasion.  Glad all the heavy cleaning is done, safe dustmop this room and maybe wash the toyroom floor.  Gingerbread dough thawed out nicely in fridge overnight.  Once I'm showered and dressed, that will be first on my agenda so they'll be ready and waiting for their little scarves.  No news yet whether or not she is coming.

Forgot to bring in Harry's dish and water bowl yesterday, and no signs of him this morning.  Probably he came by, saw the empty dish, and figured someone else got here first and ate his breakfast!  I'm sure he'll amble by later if  he doesn't get a handout somewhere else.

Long post for so early in the morning.  Have to get a go on.  At least no rain this morning, thought I had heard we were getting some overnight.  Below freezing overnight tho, Harry's water bowl was frozen solid.

Catch you all later when others have had a chance to post.

 

"Whatever the reason" is right - YAY!!  However, I must admit he seems to have gotten it through his thick skull that I don't take guff.  Other people in his life SAY they don't...big difference.  So, the upshot is that, while annoying, he's not so adversarial and disrespectful with me.  Only took ~4 years, but better late than never.

brrrrr, is right!  We thought it was going to be much warmer overnight and didn't add wood to the stove before we went to bed.  Whoops!  It was 61 in here this morning.  It is creeping up since I have the stove chock full and blazing away.

tt, I hope you have enough done ahead already that you can rest a bit today - a nap, maybe - so your usual pattern is broken and you are in tip top shape tomorrow to enjoy your party you've worked so hard on.  Hoping DIL makes it, too.

I'm walking Gracie in a few minutes then heading East for the birthday lunch.  Have a great day, everyone - I'll waddle to the iPad when I get home.  :)

Good morning friends. Glad your BIL visit when better then expected, Kar. Have a good time out East for your birthday lunch. tt, hope you are feeling better to make those gingerbread cookies today. I agree with Kar that you should rest a little, since you didn't sleep very well.

In response to toytrumpet's comment:

Strawberries with bananas are one of my favoirites, I also like to add blueberries and 1/2 & 1/2, call it my Patriotic pleasure....ss

Good morning! I am sorry I have crashed your blog! I know Kar and I have had some interaction with children and relationships. Whatever that cold that is going around is brutal. I was out of work for a week or so, and I still have a lingering cough. It's been almost a month now. It has become very annoying.

 

So fiance's niece made some pulled pork on NYE in a slow cooker. I am afraid of that machine, having once tried to make a chicken stew and it was so horrible my Boxer wouldn't eat it! I may try again at some point, since that pulled pork was amazing. I bought fiance a panini press for Christmas that I cannot wait to try out!

Just went out to fill the feeder and that snow is now a coat of ice.

Wnter, any reports yet on the "people".  Fascinating to hear about that, to me.

Watched the news and while I was doing it changed around some pictures, etc. in the l.r.  A little switch here, a little switch there, moving my sculptured cat G.T. bought me when he lived in P'town and worked in a gallery, from one place to another - gives the room a fresh look.  When I had washed the floors, temporarily switched birdseed container, kibble container all onto the same wall floor space, and that  opened up the hallway too.  Funny the little things that can improve the flow of a room.

Just had my oatmeal and waiting for coffee to brew.  Still not dressed yet, but that's OK, if she is coming, GD won't be here til 3:00 or after.  If she is ill and can't make it, when they come Sunday, will give her a bag of gingerbread men and the red and green frosting tubes with tips to take home and she can decorate them when she feels up to it.

Can smell the coffee, so that's next.

Have a fun time at the birthday lunch, Kargiver.  Good you have a good dependable car, you do a lot of driving.  Laughed when you spoke of "50" or so stores and restaurants.  I picture you way out on a country road (sumilar to the backroads of Maine) and driving miles to a little town with a couple of specialty shops and a quaint lunch shop or two!

Jeepers, don't apologize for joining us - always glad to see a new nom.

I'm with you that I'm not overly fond of the results of my crockpot.  I really preferred the oven barbecued ribs that I did last night, to the crockpot ones.  Of course they were in the oven for 3 hours, but still, it was a throw together recipe that I made up on the fly, but it was delicious. I don't like chicken in the crockpot, to me it always comes out stringy.  I know a lot of people swear by them.

As for that cough, this is the first week I'm not coughing at all, and it is I think 5 weeks that I had it.  All of a sudden one day I noticed I wasn't coughing and my throat wasn't sore at all anymore.

Sipping my coffee, and then I will get showered and dressed.  My puttering around here this morning, has brought some good results, so don't feel I've lallygagged.