Virginia

Hey y'all! Tali, glad you had a great time at the party! I wish I could say that I've worked with people that I wanted to spend time with off the clock, lol! Most I could barely tolerate when we were on the clock! I spent the afternoon milling about Barnes and Noble and picking up a few groceries. I went into Hobby Lobby to check out the new 365 Happy Planner but they didn't have anything to choose from. Then it was time to pick up hubby from work, pick up baby formula for dd and then head home. I'm now ensconced in my wholly pj's and slippers, in my recliner and watching Emma. I see a repeat of this tomorrow. Sometime near the end of this week or early next week we should be closing on our house. I need to start packing up but not this weekend!

All I can say about today is that its a repeat of yesterday. The meteorologist DID say that we would see sunshine.That. Was. A. LIE! LMBO!!

Really wet, dry, COLD and dreary day but it was still a GOOD day!

I really REALLY thought I'd have outgrown my cozy mystery phase but it seems not to be the case, especially in this new season, lol! I came across a new to me series by G. M. Malliet (Max Tudor Mystery). I've already consumed three of them in the past week. I can't seem to break away from the genre. Oh well, I'll just ride it out til whenever, lol! What I enjoy about Max Tudor is that he's kind of a modern day Father Brown. Set in a little village with quirky inhabitants and dead bodies he seems to fall upon. The difference seems to be that he is brought into the investigation by his friend who is a DCI. That almost never happens! They hate having a civilian, especially a vicar, snooping around. I guess Vicar Max Tudor, its not just his personality and compassion but his background with MI-5. He can get into the lives of his suspects as a vicar AND snoop around for his friend, DCI Cotton.

Hey y'all! It's a rainy and cold day here in South Carolina. We had the grands since yesterday. The cleaners came in this morning to clean up the soot from the kitchen fire. It was just easier to keep them overnight then to rush over there first thing this morning, rouse them out of bed and drag them out into the cold. Not much planned for today. Its just a dreary day. The Christmas tree lights are on and candles are lit. We're all in our pj's and when I drop them off at home this afternoon, they will STILL be in their pj's lol! I'll make one or two stops after I drop them off and then head home where I'll most likely remain for the weekend.

Being an American is stressful. We worry about health care, crime (guns) childcare, education, the economy, jobs, terrorism, racism and of course, politics. When we turn on the tv or go on Facebook we are constantly slapped with the cruelty of not so much the world but our country. I can't lie, it was really getting to me to the point where I was avoiding the internet and the news. I was getting more and more angry and it showed in my online comments. It took me out of "character" so to speak. After a couple of pretty nasty retorts to some a$$ho!3 my dear mother (I regret introducing her to FB, lol!) inboxed me to gently remind me of my home training. So, I have been weaning myself from angry retorts or comments of any kind (I'll never be completely quiet, its not in my nature) but I choose my battles and how I now engage with strangers online. One thing that I've found to help redirect my anger and frustration is my introduction to "hygge." Pronounced Hyoo-guh, Hygge isn’t something that can be directly translated into English. Hygge is more of a feeling, an experience and an atmosphere all rolled into one. Hygge is basically a heart warming way to live a life filled with love, happiness, wellbeing, simplicity, laughter. It’s like a cosiness for the soul. To Hygge is to not sweat the small stuff and to not get bogged down by life’s pressures, but to focus on living well and living simply with an appreciation for what you have, and most importantly spending quality time with the people in your life that matter the most. Our daughter mentioned it one day as she's been trying to find peace in a home with 6 little ones and a hubby who travels for work. She mentioned the word and it triggered something I'd come across months ago. I decided to do a little more research and have now found my "happy place." It was such an easy transition. A cozy home, family/friend centered, good food and drink, the overall feeling of warmth and contentment even as the world goes to hell in a hand basket. Americans in general aren't geared towards simplicity and contentment. We tend to want more, are restless, all for one and none for all. We work too hard and even though some jobs give holiday pay, most don't so there's no way for low pay workers to take a vacation. Most don't even get major holidays off. You get sick you may be out of a job, your child gets sick and you may be out of a job. Heck, if you die, some anal manager wants to see the coroner report. Hypertension and stress. It can be disheartening. So, once I found this new to me concept, I jumped on it full sail and I'm dragging my family along for the ride. I'm feathering my nest with what's meaningful, what's useful and comfortable. I want to bring in beauty and serenity. I truly want to make my home a safe haven from the madness. And even more so, I don't want to contribute to the madness anymore. I can't respond to negative comments or stupid people when I'm sitting in front of a gorgeous view, sipping coffee and listening to soothing music surrounded by candles and wearing cozy jammies and fluffy slippers and socks, can I?! lol! The best thing about this new state of mind is that I'm carrying it outside my home. I'm more polite and in tune to other people, I'm more forgiving and easy going and I wear a smile. This is a concept that will probably not catch on here in the USA but I can only do my part. For those of you who've grown up in this culture, what do you do to perpetuate it? How has it made a difference in your lives?

We gave up doing the Christmas card thing, except for a couple of aunts. We put the tree up and the grands will be decorating their Christmas stocking sometime today. I purchased Christmas gingerbread houses and gingerbread train. I have the gingerbread tree decorations for them to do for my house.

Looks to be very gray and overcast with temps in low 70's though I'm not sure we'll make it that high. Tomorrow we drop down tot he 50's and the 40's for the rest of the week.

Hey y'all! I'm so jealous of all the traveling you've been able to do this year Tali! I'd love to visit outside the USA but honestly, the way things are with Dotard Drumpf (Trump) I fear we are about to enter an era where we will be the most hated humans on earth. Gaia, make sure you get that rest! Nothing is better than self healing and rest. Speaking of which, that's what I'm doing today. Yesterday was exhausting, even for ME! Started the day off a bit of house work before seeing my two clients, Hubby took the tree down from the attack along with the decorations. He set it up while I was visiting my second client. I cleaned the dining area (where the tree is) packed another box then changed and went to take paperwork to our lender, stopped by dd to pick up a ham for hubby, picked up a few items from Walmart, visited our credit union and my mom's bank. I also had to use a laundromat as my washing machine died last week. I finally was able to come home nattered and was able to finally rest by 5pm and was asleep by 8pm. I plan to do nothing today other than putting the decorations on the tree and walking Kizzy. Come to think of it, I may do this the rest of the week!

Thought I'd start a topic on what 2017 did to or FOR us, lol! I mean, did you meet any goals you set, fulfill any bucket list items, find yourself in unexpected places? How about we do a year end review of how we've managed to survive the year!

Soooo, no one wants to welcome in December? LOL! Hey y'all! Been pretty busy the last few weeks. We had a bump in the road with the house and are getting it sorted out. We had to change the closing date til 22 December unless we can get it done sooner. Our previous lender fudged some numbers on the mortgage so we had to part ways. I passed my real estate exam and will be doing a final sales class around 22 December. It lasts 4 days. Our real estate agent is putting in a good word with his broker and so is our lender, lol! ALWAYS shop local! This year has been filled with intensive activity and periods of quiet. I really appreciate the quiet, especially when I think about all that we did this year. Graduated from college Attended real estate school Made 3 trips to El Paso, Texas (1642 miles each way) within 3 months. Had a new granddaughter born 2 months early Moved dd and grands back to South Carolina (her hubby loves the new place and wishes he could spend more time in it) Finally took my real estate exam (as you can see, its been busy and it takes time to study for the exam Purchasing a house I know I'm missing some stuff but these are the major life changes this year. And we still have this month to get through!

Sunny and relatively warm today with a little breeze.

RIP Della Reese and Earyl Hyman (he played Grandpa Huxtable on the Cosby Show) and David Cassidy from the Partridge Family. Death has been busy this week.

Hey y'all! Great news Gaia! Things have been crazy. Got a call last night. DD had a kitchen fire. Stove and microwave gone, big ugly hole in the wall, some smoke damage and a little water damage. The kids and dog are safe. The roads were blocked off when we got there. She's a nervous wreck but that's to be expected. She was trying to get every thing ready for her hubby's return last night. He was on his way home for Thanksgiving. The neighbors are stepping in and helping with meals and such. The littles are with me and hubby. On a GREAT note, my BFF's daughter (22 years old) just signed with Janklow and Nesbit as a YA author. They are talking books and movies. She's been in negotiations for a couple months and made her decision today. The amazing thing is that THEY contacted HER! She is such a talented and amazing young lady. Her mother and I homeschooled our kids together. She is the same age as our youngest son. Even though she was homeschooled with my youngest, WE graduated this year from university. She walked behind me, lol! How crazy is that?!! So, its a rainbow kind of day.

I'll have to look into that. I have it on Britbox or AcornTV. Can't remember which one but I've seen it. Anything like MIdsomer and I'm for it!

Today's dinner is roast chicken with red potatoes, onions and mushrooms. Yum!

I truly LOVE my library and have to give it a bouquet! Not only does my library offer books, an amazing selection of video and audio, a wonderful children's department, they also have employment training classes, computer classes, they are linked with social services (workers meet applicants in one of the many meeting rooms) 10+ meeting rooms on each floor (4 levels) a room dedicated to local and state history, about at least 50 computers, free printing (10 sheets per day) free fax (state and national) they offer extracurricular classes for kids in traditional school and homeschools. We are opening a cafe in a few weeks (what could be better?). Another plus is that it offers inclement weather shelter for the homeless during open hours. They don't bother the patrons and we do have security all around. The walls are used to hang up local artwork, sculptures and such. The seating is very comfortable and one could get lost in whatever for hours! My grands LOVE it as much as I do! This library branch is the main branch but the county has about a dozen or more scattered throughout. They have all recently been remodeled. They are all connected so I can drop off or pick up at any location. When we decided to stay in the city, this was one of my pro reasons! http://www.thestate.com/news/local/article150555457.html

Started a new series today, Grimm. Kinda reminds me a little of Once Upon A Time. I think I could enjoy this.

Today looks kind of "iffn." The weather gods can't decide iff'n its gonna be cloudy or iff'n its gonna be sunny so the sky is just looking kind of confused. I'm just going to lay low while they weather gods sort it all out.

I'm going to treat myself to a matinee to see OE this afternoon or tomorrow. Can't wait! I didn't realize there was a P2!!! I've got to take the grands to see it but I'll have to divvy them up. No way I'm taking 5 (baby wont be going) to the movies at the same time. I'd have to sell a kidney!

Hanging out with the grands til its time to pick up the hubby. Then it'll be back home to do paperwork, study and relax. Last night was "salon day" where I do the little divas hair. The parts are never straight and by the morning it looks untouched BUT its clean, its healthy and its over, lol! We got word that the house appraised at $1,000 over the asking price. This is great news as it means we won't have problems with the Veterans Affairs Loan people. The repairs are just about done and things coming along smoothly.

I got to meet the seller of the home we are purchasing. He is a certified contractor and takes GREAT pride in his home. We got a bit of history on the house and the neighborhood.

Finishing up a bottle of Woodchucks Granny Cider. Yum!

The cold weather has inspired me to break out the heavy stew pots! Actually today I did not a roast or stew but corned beef and cabbage. Boy do I love a good corn beef and cabbage on a cold day! With any luck there may be enough for leftovers for tomorrow.

Hi Brian! Its a cold and grey Sunday and we are doing what we love to do on such a day. Nothing. Our son and bonus son are home today and have taken over the den. DS has a "friend" so we're relegated to the bedroom, lol! No problem, I have my Microsoft Surface Pro, my tablet, magazines and other goodies back here so we're good. I planned to walk the dog up to the new house but its just too cold to be bothered!