How the West Was Won

I feel like I've lived through an epic adventure and it was less than 48 hours long.  The final tale of my weekend with the Grand Girls is the Saturday night shopping trip with them for long pants. 

I managed to swoop them past the Halloween Costumes, Decorations and Snacks and straight into  Girls clothing.  We agreed on several pairs of pants for each to try on. 

I stood outside the dressing room while they tried on the clothes.  The Youngest dancing and prancing in front of the mirror and the Oldest removing pants "that didn't feel good" without showing me first. 

Ok, Grandma Rules go into effect.  You put on the clothes, walk out and show me, and I tell you if we are buying them or not. 

The Oldest's favorite pair of jeans/jeggings were the tightest.  Her third favorite was my first favorite.  She is long and lean like her mother.  Low waist may be the style but if you are long through the crotch to the waist and you ever intend to bend over, then you have to pay attention - especially if your Nan is taking you shopping. 

I showed the Oldest the difference between the three pairs of pants measuring (1) across waist, (2) crotch to waist and (3) inseam or crotch to hemline.  She understood it perfectly and helped measure one against the other.  She was allowed to put all three pairs in the basket.  I was allowed to sneak the tight pair out when she wasn't looking.   

Then we went through the same process with shirts (which we had not come to buy) except we didn't have to try them on. 

When we got home, it turned out our purchase contained 2 jeans and 4 shirts for the Olders and 2 shirts and no pants for the Youngest.  Somehow, while I was sneaking items out of the basket, I must have accidentally removed the Youngest's two jeans.  Oh well, I'll go back now that I know what I'm looking for. 

Generally, with a little finger twisting, the Girls end up taking their new clothes home.  This time their Brother came to pick them up at 8 a.m. and we were all asleep so there was no discussion about the clothes or much of anything else.

A double win.  My money, their clothes, my house and a full day to myself. 
 

End of tale or tail. 

The Grand Girls are here and I don't know whether to beg for quiet or run in fear when it happens.  My son, their father, and my daughter were certainly not allowed to be so rambunctious but I try not to interfere.  I know I didn't appreciate any parental advice back in my day. 

Here are some of Elayna's new drawings and pictures of the girls drawing and playing with Play Dough.

 

I saw some interesting tv programs this evening while I had a few quiet minutes.  Both were new shows on ABC.  The first was Nathan Fillion's new series, The Rookie.  The write-ups said not to expect Castle humor from him but there was still some.  I think he is one of those actors that is himself with a slight character change in each new series.  I've loved him in Firefly so I accept his style of acting.  I'll be curious to see if I continue to like this program.  

The second series I saw was The Kids are Alright with Mary McCormak as the wife and mother of a working-class Catholic family of 8 boys somewhere outside Los Angeles.  Growing up around a lot of large to very large Catholic families I can appreciate the humor of the Catholic influence on the family lifestyle.  I also had a friend who was one of 6 boys, though not Catholic, and the tales he told of an all boy family are very similar to what I saw on the show.  Again, it was only one viewing but it looked good.  Besides I always love a flashback of the 70s.  

That's it for tonight. 

Find My Phone.Com

Well it's been an irritating couple of days.  Yesterday I was at World Market enjoying all the vintage/India/Hippie kind of stuff.  One of my friends was in a frustrating situation and we kept emailing back and forth.  I guess I was distracted when I checked out and I either laid my phone on the counter or left it in the little tote carrier. 

When I got home I walked the dogs.  When I got back I went to check my phone and couldn't find it.  And, of course, I couldn't reach anyone by email (instead of text) to ring my phone so I could see if it was here.  So I jumped in the car and drove back to World Market.  The same girl was at the single check-out counter.  She said she had not seen it.  Hum.  I asked for the manager and he said he had not seen it.  Hum.  

I remembered as I was already driving to back to World Market that I have that find your phone app.  Straining my brain, I remember before I got home that I had plugged my phone into the car charger because it was really low.  In my mind, I did that on the drive back from the first visit to World Market.  When I logged on to the app from my computer it told me my phone had about 10% power and that it was way out on the other side of town. 

I don't know how it could get all the way across town so fast except that somebody was right behind me and grabbed it up from wherever I left it.  Then, before I could delete everything and reset it, the power died and it was off network.  Hiss. 

You can't do anything like delete your personal information, contacts, etc. if the phone is offline.  This morning I had my daughter call the telephone company and take my phone number offline so that even if they charged it, it would be useless - or at least that is the way it is supposed to work until some young hacker figures out a way around that. 

I told myself last night that I was going back to the store this morning and tell the store manager where my phone was and ask if he had an employee who lived in that neighborhood.  I was out for blood last night but this morning I calmed down.  By talking to the manager I ran the risk of getting some young person fired and having his career tarnished for years to come.  I'm not sure the punishment would fit the crime.  I really had for stupid young people to get arrested with the really bad characters. 

I know that I could be helping some young hoodlum further his career but I would rather err on the side of forgiveness since I was the dumb #%$ that lost the phone.  My replacement phone comes Friday.  Thank goodness for insurance.  I, by the way, am the only one in our family plan that has had to use the insurance.  (insert Frowny Face)

The good news is that I backed my phone up the day before.  I wish I could say I did this often but if I do it twice a year I'm proud of myself.  I take most of my pictures these days on my phone so losing all the Grand Girl pictures would have been heartbreaking. 

I'm sure there is a lesson here.  Don't talk while you are shopping.  Don't go shopping at all.  Or put one of those motorcycle chains around my phone and clip it to my pants.  Hahaha. 

Things will get better.... 

A tour of the Neighborhood

I managed to take a few photos of the neighborhood on our dog walk yesterday.  Mine is a neighborhood in transition but in the best sense of the word.

Nice, well-kept older home.

And the Townhouse complex across the street. 

Here we have a nice Townhouse, a duplex and two long, skinny townhouses on a single lot. You can see that there must be deed restrictions in place that keep the front of the house line levels but some of these beauties, like the one below, are built right up to the lot line on the sides and back. 

 I call this one the Castle.  It continues with the same front house line.  I can't decide whether this is one lot or two.  Behind the fence is a smallish swimming pool.  They were swimming last weekend.  So tells you what the weather has been down here. You can see what appears to be two stories over the garage and continues and continues and see below..

Just past the garage, the building goes to full three-story from ground to roof, all the way into the back and side. It doesn't look as massive in this picture as it does in person.  There is a metal gate just on the other side of the brick wall and you can see into the compound with views of the pool and the living room which has a totally glass front wall.  I guess I should get to know them. 

Yes, I am the poor country mouse of the neighborhood but I am content to walk the neighborhood and share the beauty of the young and the old houses. 

I'll get some more pictures of the duplexes, fourplexes, and duplexes with garage apartments in back, all comingled with beautiful new homes, to share.
 
Later...  

Houston - We Have Fall

I saw this on Facebook and thought it was so Houston.  I went from shorts and sleeveless shirt on Sunday to long pants and jacket on Monday.  My phone said it was 57 today.  Shoot. That's winter folks.  

A little Halloween humor I shared with my son on Facebook.  I know there are some creative folks out there that might want to try this too. 

To continue with my bird feeder shenanigans, this is a bag of the bird food I purchased that I really liked.  Even though the birders have not found my feeder yet, I'm thinking positive and buying a good mix.  Below is a picture of a 3 in 1 bird food holder/pitcher. 

It is heavy plastic.  The top lifts up on one side to fill it up with feed and the nozzle has a cap to prevent insects from crawling in.  I bought this for an add-on price of around $5 on Amazon. I'm not sure of the full price but if you have a lot of feeders to fill in different parts of your yard (like I did at the old house), this would be really convenient.  Below is the manufacturer's label if you are interested.  

Well, it's time to walk the dogs.  There are too many dog walkers before and after work so I try to make it at 11 and 3.  Buddy the Barker makes too much noise when the rest of the world is out walking. 

Later....

Monday, Monday .. Love the Mamas and Papas

I finally had time to get bored over the weekend.  I guess that means I'm settled in. 

Life has been difficult for me with all the Halloween candy out.  As a diabetic, my uncontrolled sugar levels begs for chocolate.  The only thing that gives me a fighting chance is the price of candy these days. 

I'm not sure if we have any kids in our neighborhood.  Most of the homes are new-builds after the teardown of something old or they are the original homes, well kept and, in my opinion, still gorgeous, or they are duplexes or fourplexes similar to mine.  I'm going to get out with my camera and take some pictures to share.

I went to a candle making workshop Saturday night.  It was fun but I went as a serious crafter and many of the ladies were there in pairs or groups as a night out.  The price of the workshop included a drink or two and some hors-d'oeuvres.  It also included a choice of several vessels to make the candles and many essential oils to chose from.  By the time I got home the smell of the melting soy wax and all the essential oils I had sniffed had given me a stopped up head.  Word of warning if you ever try such a workshop. 

My finished product.  I think they were (1) cinnamon, (2) lavender, and (3) vanilla.  I really can't remember after all the oils I touched that night. 

I woke up to a lovely rain this morning.  Soft and steady.  The ground needed it and I was glad.  Over the weekend, I put out one of the three bird feeders I purchased last week from Amazon. Two will be returned as they are too flimsy to withstand the beating they will get from birds and squirrels.  

Speaking of squirrels, I was told by two different neighbors that we have quite a few squirrels around and they use the branches on the side of my house as their Chisolm Trail.  So, I've had to rethink the bird situation. It is really hard to keep your bird feeders full if you have squirrels around.  They are smart little devils when it comes to finding a way to reach a feeder.  That made me realize that looking through my bedroom window I see lots of squirrels running up and down the trees.  I tried to research the pros and cons of feeding squirrels - as in fighting a losing battle - but I'm still inclined to feed birds.  

This is the view from "my chair".  Note Buddy's bed and his scratching rugs. Since we have hardwood floors I have to be sure he gets a place to scratch or he will be asking me to do the honors. You can vaguely see the number of trees (above) between my window and the neighbor's drive.  

Darn.  Just as I walked over to snap this picture a little squirrel ran up.  I see a non-stop movement of squirrels on this particular tree as I sit in my chair. 

I included a lot of photos today and I didn't reduce the pixels in any of these pictures.  Please let me know if they take eons to open. 

Later.

Who's your Buddy? Who's your Friend?

Here's my Buddy.  The Grand Girls are supposed to come this weekend and we are all ready.

We're Home

Here I am in the Laundry Room at the old apartment getting a coke.  Can you tell how red my face is?  That was some work.

Here we are at the New House.  Boy, was that a tight squeeze with all the boxes. I wish I had counted the boxes.  There were so many for the size of the house that you had to unpack the closest box first.  There was no pushing them around to get to the one you wanted.  I was lucky in that I got a free load of boxes off Freecycle from a lady who had just moved into this area. Of course, I had to drive across town to bring them back to the old apartment but free was worth the trouble.  I also got rid of them the same way.  I advertised on Freecycle and a lady came and picked them all up.  I broke them down as we unpacked because I was hoping that I could get rid of them on Freecycle without having to take them to a Recycle Center.  Worked out great.  

This is a corner of the large closet behind the recliner in the picture above.  I believe it is the 1938 version of a walk-in closet.  I'm not complaining because we have used every inch of it.  These are my (grown) daughter's games.  She is one of those "gaming" addicts and belongs to several groups that meet up at different places on different nights.  As a child, she and the other two little girls who lived down the street played a lot of games.  If they weren't on their bikes or laying on the trampoline dreaming of things to come, they were playing some board game. 

 

Here is the little girls' area of the closet.  Fresh baskets and everything sorted nicely.  We'll see how long it stays that way.  I also bought one of those tall drawer things from Michael's and put all the colors, markers, tape, punches, stickers, colored paper and white paper.  I know I'm dreaming if I think it will stay organized!!

Here is Buddy sitting on one of the new pillows and not on the blanket put there just for him.  You can almost see the window unit in the right corner.  Haha.  There was no central air in 1938. Luckily I have the newest and coldest unit in my bedroom.  You know I tend to get overheated from this diabetes so a nice place to cool down is important.  

Here is part of the front.  I didn't realize I cut off the top and got part of the garage apartments next door.  I'll get a better picture of the front and share it.  There is an archway porch on the left side of my building just like this one.  

My daughter put up Halloween yesterday.  She loves to decorate for the Holidays.  That works out fine because I love to look at someone's hard work decorating for the Holidays.  

So I'm settled in and very happy.  This definitely was the right move.  I'm going to try to be a little more socially active.  I looked on Meetups for some groups I might join to meet new people.  I'm also trying to decide on what my new hobby is going to be.  I ran across some pictures of my ice dyes I had posted on Facebook and they warmed my heart.  I'm not going to do that again because I don't have the grandson around who wanted everything I made but I'll find something fun to do.  

Is this a Blogger change?

I've been reading the blogs I follow on my phone lately because I don't like my new Chromebook.  I noticed last night after I received some comments and I pushed the publish button, I got another email that said did I want to "unsubscribe to comment emails for this (my) blog." It asked me this for every comment I published. 

Where did this come from?  Is it happening to anyone else?  I'm afraid I might have unsubscribed to any or every comment source I receive. 

Ok, I'm getting old and cranky.  I want them to quit making changes without my permission.  And especially, don't be jacking with me during my move or I might just accidentally on purpose lose my laptop, also known as cut off my nose to spite my face.  I'm not sure what that really means except my mother used to say that to me quite frequently.  Guess that tells you what kind of child I was.  Hahahaha.

T minus 2 days

It is T minus 2 days until the move.  Everything is in good shape.  I have Wednesday and Thursday to throw the final objects into a box for the movers on Friday at 8:00 a.m. 

I've been feeling very nostalgic today.  I'm not afraid that we are making a mistake, I'm just thinking this is another chapter in my life and just how many chapters do I have left.  Not really sure where that is coming from.  I guess from the lack of physical energy I am able to expend.  It's like I blow and go for an hour and then I rest for two.  Oh well, no sense being morose, it's just the way life is.  I may still be fairly flexible now about these things as I age but when I get back to the diaper stage..... not gonna be so happy, not gonna be so flexible ...... I'm warning the daughter now. 

My life has been full of phone calls, appointments and moving the small stuff.  Every day I take a load while I complete whatever chore I have in the old neighborhood.  Today I moved pictures from my daughter's room.  A lot of small, light pictures so it wasn't too bad.  I've used my little grocery cart almost every day.  On the other days, I am likely using the small dolly I bought for $10 at the junk store.  Boy was that a great find.  I realized today I needed a box cutter to slit open all the tape I have put on the boxes.  I stopped at Big Lots near the doctor's office and they didn't carry it.  Hum, wonder if it is considered a weapon now.  Haha.  I could hurt somebody with one -- most likely it would be myself.

Today's business included a stop at a sandwich shop in my old neighborhood.  I had an egg salad with cheese, avocado, and bacon.  Yum.  Yum.  Then I was off to the endocrinologist for the first time in 6 months.  Yeah, that's over for another 6 months.  My A1C was down a tiny bit.  I was excited.  This calls for cake I thought.  She wasn't that impressed.  Ha. 

Well, I guess I'll see you on the flip side (a little CB language in memory of Smokey and the Bandit).  10-4.  Over and out.