Today was a housework day. Hubby is determined to get in lots of overtime to help make up for all the money we have had to spend on fighting bedbugs, so went into work at 7am. I stayed asleep. When I woke up, I grabbed his robe and come on down to the craft room to write in my dream journal. While I was writing down my dream, I started to feel bites on the back of my neck. My lower part of my head started itching. Then I got some serious bites. Then there was a moving black spec near my journal, I squished it and there was a lot of blood. It was a frickin bedbug! I took off the robe and ran down to the washing machine and put the hubby's robe and my nightgown in the wash immediately. I jumped in the shower and washed any that were left on me off down the drain. I should have known better. Hubby had left his robe down on the trunk and footstool at the foot of the bed.
After I got dried and dressed, I got a vacuum cleaner bag and put it in the Lux vacuum cleaner. Then I pulled the trunk away from the foot of the bed, and the footstool that the dogs use to get up on the bed. All of a sudden there was 6 bedbugs that I could see, and a big hole in the bag the box springs is in! I vacuumed them up and put another hole in the plastic, but taped both up. Then I found another hole in the mattress plastic and taped that up too. these bugs, they vex me!
I pulled everything off the bed, including the mattress pad, and bagged them up until I could get them washed. I had lots of laundry to do from the weekend when I took a couple of days off. I end up doing 4 to 5 loads of laundry a day now. And today I vacuumed the bedrooms, the hallway and the main floor. Then I put the vacuum cleaner bag in a sealed plastic bag until Frank came home and got him to vacuum his room, the office and the family room. I have to pull back up what to do about the bedbugs to see what else we can be doing. I'm also going to call some exterminators to see if they will come out and give an estimate so we can see exactly what we are looking at. Then maybe we can save up for next year to get it done. But if Cassie is right, it will be around $3000.
I sat down a few times today, looked over the Ultimate Christmas Book by Reader's Digest. Thinking about selling it as there is not much in there that I would do and I can make copies of the pages of stuff I would like to keep, like all the words to Christmas songs and salt dough recipe. And a cute idea to make a block puzzle with wooden blocks that I would like to make for the grandbabies.
About 5pm I thought finally to look up in Fanny Farmer Cookbook how to make Beef Burgundy. I had a pound of stewing beef pulled out and couldn't decide what to make but then I saw it would take two hours to cook it, so I pulled out the BBQ pork ribs that hubby had slow cooked yesterday and Frank had gone to bed before eating so there were 4 big ribs left. So I encased them in foil and put them on a cookie sheet and baked them at 350 in the oven until they were hot, about half an hour. Then took the top foil off and put more bbq sauce on and put them back in the oven at 375 for 15 more minutes. In the meantime, hubby nuked some homemade mac n cheese he had made, and made a lot of, so he and Frank could eat that for dinner. I ate my jello salad for dinner. And that is what I ate all day, jello salad for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Tomorrow I'm going to go to therapy and then when I come home, I'm going to check the bed sheets. If I find another bedbug, I'll strip everything and wash it all again. If not, I'll chance sleeping on it another night. I'll lift the mattress and check for them, squishing them if I find them and taping up holes if I see more. The bedbug mattress covers are $35 each, so $70 per bed and we just can't afford that right now. We have the registration coming due soon on Kiggy, so expect that to be $500 at least. So far, we have $235 saved up for it.
Then I plan on glitter gluing the pine cones for the tree. I got red, green and gold glitter glue. I'm going to use some twine to put on them to hang. Later this week, I have to empty the coat closet to pull out all the gifts I have in there and see what we have for who. Then start wrapping. Still have to come up with $80 for Cassie for Drew's headphones for his Christmas present. Got to find some stuff to sell tomorrow too.
Monday, November 30, 2015
Saturday, November 28, 2015
Saturday, November 28, 2015
Today was an expensive day. I slept in, until about 10am. Hubby was awake but just laying there. I told him the only things I wanted to do today was meet this lady at King Soopers entrance to get a cat tower/scratcher, for free, and go to the Dollar Store to get ornaments for decorating the Christmas tree. I wanted to put it up this weekend.
So we hung out upstairs in bed, eating french toast and watching tv. Watched another episode of Apprentice UK, that hubby slept through again. I'm enjoying it, it was the one where Lord Sugar send the candidates out to purchase a list of items. Now this show takes place in and about London and surrounding area. This time the candidates had to meet in Dover in the war time tunnels for their briefing. Lord Sugar talked to them via a recorded video. The twist this time was half the team had to shop in London area and the other half had to go to France. The eyes and ears for Lord Sugar are Karen, who has been with him for a couple of years now but she replaced Margaret, and now, for the first time, Clyde. Clyde replaced Nick, who has been with Lord Sugar since he was Sir Allen and at the beginning of the show, 11 seasons now. Clyde and Karen were first introduced to us through the rigorous interviewing process of the final 4 or 5 candidates that happens just before the end, when the final two are chosen and pitted against each other for Lord Sugar to choose who he will be investing 250,000 pounds in a business with and become their partner. It's a thrilling show, far superior to The Apprentice by Donald Trump.
Hubby had to scrape a layer of ice and snow off the Saturn and let it sit warming up before we could leave. That gave me enough time to finish getting dressed and get the stuff I needed to take with me, like my glasses and money.
While I waited for the lady in front of King Sooper's, my local grocery store, hubby went in and bought milk, egg nog and a few other things we needed. Then we went to the Dollar Store to get Christmas Ornaments. We decided on gold, red, and green balls, shiny and frosted, and green and red bells. I also got 60 miniature red, green and white candy canes to put on the tree. Tomorrow I'm going to Walmart and get glue and glitter to decorate pine cones to hang on the tree. Our tree is white and comes pre-lit. I hate doing light strands. The tree is on it's last legs but we keep it going. The lower limbs have to be rebent up every year because the cats like to climb and lay on them in it. Hubby and Frank are going to pullout all the Christmas boxes so I can see what I have. I think I still have some garland. Gold. The lights are pastel colors.
We made the mistake of going to ARC thrift store after. Mistake because of course I found some things to buy. I got a basket I'm going to paint black and make a liner and cover so it can be a bread basket. I was looking for a bread cookbook but couldn't find one there. This is for January's Bingo present. So I did buy several books, a glass frog, which will be another Bingo gift, a felt advent calendar that I need to make two more felt figures for and clean it up a little. Hubby found some stuff and all together we spent $35. Most of the stuff was 50% off.
Then we went over to Goodwill. I found an autographed cookbook with breads, muffins and scones, perfect for the basket. I think I will even make a small batch of blueberry banana muffins to put in with the gift. I alsofound several vintage cookbooks that I got, and a new breadmaker! It's got a pan that is loaf shaped, sideways, with two stirrers. It came with an instruction book too. Hubby got mad that I was spending money on it when I had gotten one before and never used it, but I will use this one tomorrow.
When we got home, I unpacked all the bags, putting a stack of books for me to go through next to the craft table. I put the bread machine in the craft room so I can look at it in the morning. Then I put all of hubby's books and VHS tapes and cassette tape on the table for him to take either down to his office or to his nightstand.
I'm making my jello salad again, this time with cherry jello. I'm making it with 3 packs of jello and two containers of cool whip for the base, and then two packs of jello or three, with all the chopped stuff in it. May have some spill over in another bowl. Don't think I can do the chopped layer tonight, I started too late making it.
So we hung out upstairs in bed, eating french toast and watching tv. Watched another episode of Apprentice UK, that hubby slept through again. I'm enjoying it, it was the one where Lord Sugar send the candidates out to purchase a list of items. Now this show takes place in and about London and surrounding area. This time the candidates had to meet in Dover in the war time tunnels for their briefing. Lord Sugar talked to them via a recorded video. The twist this time was half the team had to shop in London area and the other half had to go to France. The eyes and ears for Lord Sugar are Karen, who has been with him for a couple of years now but she replaced Margaret, and now, for the first time, Clyde. Clyde replaced Nick, who has been with Lord Sugar since he was Sir Allen and at the beginning of the show, 11 seasons now. Clyde and Karen were first introduced to us through the rigorous interviewing process of the final 4 or 5 candidates that happens just before the end, when the final two are chosen and pitted against each other for Lord Sugar to choose who he will be investing 250,000 pounds in a business with and become their partner. It's a thrilling show, far superior to The Apprentice by Donald Trump.
Hubby had to scrape a layer of ice and snow off the Saturn and let it sit warming up before we could leave. That gave me enough time to finish getting dressed and get the stuff I needed to take with me, like my glasses and money.
While I waited for the lady in front of King Sooper's, my local grocery store, hubby went in and bought milk, egg nog and a few other things we needed. Then we went to the Dollar Store to get Christmas Ornaments. We decided on gold, red, and green balls, shiny and frosted, and green and red bells. I also got 60 miniature red, green and white candy canes to put on the tree. Tomorrow I'm going to Walmart and get glue and glitter to decorate pine cones to hang on the tree. Our tree is white and comes pre-lit. I hate doing light strands. The tree is on it's last legs but we keep it going. The lower limbs have to be rebent up every year because the cats like to climb and lay on them in it. Hubby and Frank are going to pullout all the Christmas boxes so I can see what I have. I think I still have some garland. Gold. The lights are pastel colors.
We made the mistake of going to ARC thrift store after. Mistake because of course I found some things to buy. I got a basket I'm going to paint black and make a liner and cover so it can be a bread basket. I was looking for a bread cookbook but couldn't find one there. This is for January's Bingo present. So I did buy several books, a glass frog, which will be another Bingo gift, a felt advent calendar that I need to make two more felt figures for and clean it up a little. Hubby found some stuff and all together we spent $35. Most of the stuff was 50% off.
Then we went over to Goodwill. I found an autographed cookbook with breads, muffins and scones, perfect for the basket. I think I will even make a small batch of blueberry banana muffins to put in with the gift. I alsofound several vintage cookbooks that I got, and a new breadmaker! It's got a pan that is loaf shaped, sideways, with two stirrers. It came with an instruction book too. Hubby got mad that I was spending money on it when I had gotten one before and never used it, but I will use this one tomorrow.
When we got home, I unpacked all the bags, putting a stack of books for me to go through next to the craft table. I put the bread machine in the craft room so I can look at it in the morning. Then I put all of hubby's books and VHS tapes and cassette tape on the table for him to take either down to his office or to his nightstand.
I'm making my jello salad again, this time with cherry jello. I'm making it with 3 packs of jello and two containers of cool whip for the base, and then two packs of jello or three, with all the chopped stuff in it. May have some spill over in another bowl. Don't think I can do the chopped layer tonight, I started too late making it.
Friday, November 27, 2015
Friday, November 27, 2015
Today was a family day. Yesterday was Thanksgiving and we spent part of the day over at my sister, Laura's house for dinner at 130pm. I made a jello salad, my first, and took it over. I made it on Wednesday and prayed and hoped that when I combined the chopped stuff with the semi-set jello and added it to the top of the pan of the other layer of jello, that it would all set and stay together when I went to flip it over on the platter. I made one mistake and when I set the pan with the jello in the pan of hot water, to melt the jello a little so it will come out, you only need to put it in for about 15-20 seconds. I melted some of my jello, so when hubby put the platter on top, then flipped it over, melted cranberry jello went all over my pants and shoes!
It was thinner than I thought it would be but had a thin red layer on top, then the mouse layer of cranberry jello mixed with cool whip, then the layer with the celery, apples, pineapples and walnuts in it. I had a bowl that I had poured some of the mouse layer in, because I thought there was too much. Well, it separated really well! I threw on a handful of the chopped stuff and ate half the bowl, it was so delicious! This is my version of a Waldorf Salad, without the mayo. The family seemed to like it, they ate it almost gone. We also took over a beef roast and chips and dip. We came home with just the pans.
Today hubby and I slept in, when I woke up he was already up and in the bathroom for his morning constitutional. He wasn't feeling well. Last night when I decided to go to sleep, he went downstairs to his office. I'm not sure what time he came to bed but he took his pills without eating something and got really dizzy and had the dry heaves for part of the night. Poor baby!
So today, he went to the store in below freezing temperatures to get a few things and some more jello. They were out of cranberry so I had him get cherry. I'm going to make another jello salad, just for us! I'm going to do it tomorrow.
We did a few things but then ended upstairs to watch tv during the day. We found out that Season 11 of The Apprentice UK has been on for 8 weeks now, so we have a lot to watch this weekend. It's on YouTube.
I've had the birds out multiple times every day since Cassie and Drew got me Christmas. Inry really enjoys coming out and riding around on my shoulder too. Getting him out of the cage first, then slowly reaching for Christmas seems to be the best way to do it. I'm excited. And when they fly down, the dogs and cats run up to them, but I yell "Hey" and they stop and don't hurt them.
I'm back to working on my college. There are three parts, lips, shoes and hands. I'm cutting these parts out of magazines then I'm going to paste them on foam board, not sure what shape yet. I have a long ways to go to get enough of everything to make the size I want. If I get done on time, maybe it will be a present for Cassie. Or maybe it will just be for me.
I started laundry today but forgot about doing it so I've got a load in the dryer to go fold and put away and put the load in the washer, in the dryer. Then I will wash the sheets. Or maybe I will just finish it tomorrow.
Tomorrow I want to start putting up some stuff for sale that I want to get rid of. There are three aps I can use, Close5, Wallapop, and something else. I've noticed several things listed on more than one of the aps. They all allow you to name a price and put in a description. Then it allows the buyer to either take it at that price, or make an offer. You chat through the site's chat and arrange a public meeting place. Everybody pays cash.
It was thinner than I thought it would be but had a thin red layer on top, then the mouse layer of cranberry jello mixed with cool whip, then the layer with the celery, apples, pineapples and walnuts in it. I had a bowl that I had poured some of the mouse layer in, because I thought there was too much. Well, it separated really well! I threw on a handful of the chopped stuff and ate half the bowl, it was so delicious! This is my version of a Waldorf Salad, without the mayo. The family seemed to like it, they ate it almost gone. We also took over a beef roast and chips and dip. We came home with just the pans.
Today hubby and I slept in, when I woke up he was already up and in the bathroom for his morning constitutional. He wasn't feeling well. Last night when I decided to go to sleep, he went downstairs to his office. I'm not sure what time he came to bed but he took his pills without eating something and got really dizzy and had the dry heaves for part of the night. Poor baby!
So today, he went to the store in below freezing temperatures to get a few things and some more jello. They were out of cranberry so I had him get cherry. I'm going to make another jello salad, just for us! I'm going to do it tomorrow.
We did a few things but then ended upstairs to watch tv during the day. We found out that Season 11 of The Apprentice UK has been on for 8 weeks now, so we have a lot to watch this weekend. It's on YouTube.
I've had the birds out multiple times every day since Cassie and Drew got me Christmas. Inry really enjoys coming out and riding around on my shoulder too. Getting him out of the cage first, then slowly reaching for Christmas seems to be the best way to do it. I'm excited. And when they fly down, the dogs and cats run up to them, but I yell "Hey" and they stop and don't hurt them.
I'm back to working on my college. There are three parts, lips, shoes and hands. I'm cutting these parts out of magazines then I'm going to paste them on foam board, not sure what shape yet. I have a long ways to go to get enough of everything to make the size I want. If I get done on time, maybe it will be a present for Cassie. Or maybe it will just be for me.
I started laundry today but forgot about doing it so I've got a load in the dryer to go fold and put away and put the load in the washer, in the dryer. Then I will wash the sheets. Or maybe I will just finish it tomorrow.
Tomorrow I want to start putting up some stuff for sale that I want to get rid of. There are three aps I can use, Close5, Wallapop, and something else. I've noticed several things listed on more than one of the aps. They all allow you to name a price and put in a description. Then it allows the buyer to either take it at that price, or make an offer. You chat through the site's chat and arrange a public meeting place. Everybody pays cash.
Wednesday, November 25, 2015
Wednesday, November 25, 2015
Today was an escapism day. Hubby didn't have to be in work until 1130am, so he slept until 1030am. I was awake at 730am. He told me I could turn on the tv and so I got my cola and a yogurt and jumped back into bed to do so. I also have an overdue library book I'm trying finish so I can turn it back in. When I got up I saw a bedbug in the dogs water bowl, two in the ceiling and one crawling down my wall. So I squished the one crawling down the wall, vacuumed the two on the ceiling and put the one in the dogs bowl into a ziplock baggie to show to an expert to make sure that's what they are. At least that is what they said to do on the site I looked up on the internet.
Hubby told me to take the day off from laundry, bagging clothes and vacuuming. He gave me some money and told me to get out of the house. I took a shower, got dressed, put on a head scarf, and took some stuff back to Walmart. I was returning a pink steering wheel cover and picking up a black one, two ice scrapers and a lunchable to eat for lunch. I sat in the parking lot and ate it, reading my library book.
After awhile, I put the book down and drove downtown to The Book Warehouse. It wasn't where I thought it was so I called hubby. He gave me directions and even said he would meet me over there! I was happy.
I got quite a few books, $43 dollars worth. Some cookbooks, some murder mysteries and some craft. I am looking forward to reading the one about cooking with a clay pot. I have a clay pot with a clay lid but had no idea how to use it, so this will open up a new way to cook chicken! I found a cookbook that has recipes with 6 ingredients, a slow cooker book, and Desperate Dinners cookbook.
I drove over to my parents and showed mom all the books I had gotten. There are a few that she is interested in borrowing in the future. Dad was putting up Christmas lights as tomorrow, being Thanksgiving, is only supposed to be 28 degrees with a storm coming in by the evening. He had to run out to get more lights as he was short on the new kind of icicle. He plugged in a string to test them and they are really neat. He will have to finish putting them up in the morning before we all meet at my sister, Laura's, house for Thanksgiving dinner at 130ish.
I came home and Frank wasn't hungry. He had a big pot luck at work and eaten a lot there. So I chopped up celery, apples, and walnuts into small, small pieces for a jello salad. I made two packages of cranberry jello with a container of coolwhip and some cold water. I put that in a 9x13 pan and put it in the fridge. I put the leftover jello in a bowl in the fridge. It has to set for a little. Then in a big bowl I made two more packages of cranberry jello and put the big bowl in the fridge to set. When it is semi-set, I will mix in the celery, apples, walnuts and pineapple, then put that on top of the coolwhip layer in the 9x13 pan. Then it will sit in the fridge and get solid. Tomorrow when it's time, I will take the pan and a big platter I have and, hopefully, unmold the pan onto the platter. I am hoping that the jello will set up firm and it will taste good. I have been wanting to experiment with jello since I started reading a 1950s cookbook on the jellos they used to make with meat and veggies. And mayo. Yuck! But I want to try some of these out.
Hubby got home about 930pm. I had made Kari Dogs for dinner. They are beef hot dogs that are sliced almost in half. Then a strip of cheddar cheese in inserted, 4 dill pickle halves and half a piece of raw bacon is wrapped around the dog, held in place by two toothpicks. I put them on a sprayed broiler pan and baked them in the oven at 350 degrees. I think they baked for 20-25 minutes. I wasn't paying real close attention to the time, I was checking to make sure the bacon was done. Then you take out the toothpicks, put them on a bun with a little bit of mustard and ta da! Dinner! I ate one and hubby had two. There were more for leftovers.
I have to stay up and not forget to mix the stuff into the jello later on. We are bringing a roast, chips and dip and this jello salad for dinner. The jello salad is my interpretation of a Waldorf Salad, without the mayo.
Hubby has the next 4 days off, yeah! We will be doing some more cleaning, including a deep cleaning on Frank's room, since he hasn't done any. We will be watching all the Resident Evil movies and more.
Hubby told me to take the day off from laundry, bagging clothes and vacuuming. He gave me some money and told me to get out of the house. I took a shower, got dressed, put on a head scarf, and took some stuff back to Walmart. I was returning a pink steering wheel cover and picking up a black one, two ice scrapers and a lunchable to eat for lunch. I sat in the parking lot and ate it, reading my library book.
After awhile, I put the book down and drove downtown to The Book Warehouse. It wasn't where I thought it was so I called hubby. He gave me directions and even said he would meet me over there! I was happy.
I got quite a few books, $43 dollars worth. Some cookbooks, some murder mysteries and some craft. I am looking forward to reading the one about cooking with a clay pot. I have a clay pot with a clay lid but had no idea how to use it, so this will open up a new way to cook chicken! I found a cookbook that has recipes with 6 ingredients, a slow cooker book, and Desperate Dinners cookbook.
I drove over to my parents and showed mom all the books I had gotten. There are a few that she is interested in borrowing in the future. Dad was putting up Christmas lights as tomorrow, being Thanksgiving, is only supposed to be 28 degrees with a storm coming in by the evening. He had to run out to get more lights as he was short on the new kind of icicle. He plugged in a string to test them and they are really neat. He will have to finish putting them up in the morning before we all meet at my sister, Laura's, house for Thanksgiving dinner at 130ish.
I came home and Frank wasn't hungry. He had a big pot luck at work and eaten a lot there. So I chopped up celery, apples, and walnuts into small, small pieces for a jello salad. I made two packages of cranberry jello with a container of coolwhip and some cold water. I put that in a 9x13 pan and put it in the fridge. I put the leftover jello in a bowl in the fridge. It has to set for a little. Then in a big bowl I made two more packages of cranberry jello and put the big bowl in the fridge to set. When it is semi-set, I will mix in the celery, apples, walnuts and pineapple, then put that on top of the coolwhip layer in the 9x13 pan. Then it will sit in the fridge and get solid. Tomorrow when it's time, I will take the pan and a big platter I have and, hopefully, unmold the pan onto the platter. I am hoping that the jello will set up firm and it will taste good. I have been wanting to experiment with jello since I started reading a 1950s cookbook on the jellos they used to make with meat and veggies. And mayo. Yuck! But I want to try some of these out.
Hubby got home about 930pm. I had made Kari Dogs for dinner. They are beef hot dogs that are sliced almost in half. Then a strip of cheddar cheese in inserted, 4 dill pickle halves and half a piece of raw bacon is wrapped around the dog, held in place by two toothpicks. I put them on a sprayed broiler pan and baked them in the oven at 350 degrees. I think they baked for 20-25 minutes. I wasn't paying real close attention to the time, I was checking to make sure the bacon was done. Then you take out the toothpicks, put them on a bun with a little bit of mustard and ta da! Dinner! I ate one and hubby had two. There were more for leftovers.
I have to stay up and not forget to mix the stuff into the jello later on. We are bringing a roast, chips and dip and this jello salad for dinner. The jello salad is my interpretation of a Waldorf Salad, without the mayo.
Hubby has the next 4 days off, yeah! We will be doing some more cleaning, including a deep cleaning on Frank's room, since he hasn't done any. We will be watching all the Resident Evil movies and more.
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
Today was a busy day. I woke up when the alarm went off at 920am, and laid there petting the cat and talking to hubby for another 15 minutes. Then I got up and got dressed and headed off to therapy to talk to Steve. It's been two weeks since I've seen him and a lot has happened.
I spent the whole session explaining all the bad stuff that has happened. Finding out we are infested with bedbugs, Sunshine dying and the sewer backing up twice. Then I told him all about my wonderful daughter and her husband and all that Cassie and Drew did for me on Saturday. It was and still is amazing! Next week we are going to talk about how I can go about starting to get over being mad at Frank for the bedbugs. Which is really hard because I have given him two sets of sheets so he can strip his bed and comforter and wash them everyday. And vacuum his room every day. And he hasn't done it once. So tomorrow, I'm going to start striping his bed, vacuuming his room and even wash the bag of clothes he has had sitting on the floor next to the washer but hasn't done. But I have been doing laundry non-stop so maybe he just hasn't been able to have access to the washer and dryer. But I'm determined to eradicate these bedbugs and the infestation is in his room, it needs constant action. I'm going to strip his bed and tape up any holes in the plastic mattress bag we put on it.
After therapy I came home and relaxed for a little. Then I started laundry. Only three loads today. I got the dressers clean out and vacuumed in our room and got the clothes redistributed into bags that would fit in the dresser drawers. I got both mine and hubby's done. Extra clothes are in bags in the closet on the floor. Both doors are shut and will stay that way. I got all the sets of sheets bagged individually and double twistie tied and put in my trunk. I put another comforter in the trunk too. I got everything out of the craft room and it looks as good as when Cassie and Drew cleaned and organized it.
Tomorrow I am attempting to make my own creation of a jello salad. I got 5 boxes of cranberry jello. I'm going to chop fine apples, celery, pineapple (canned), and walnuts. I've also got some cool whip but not sure how I'm going to incorporate that. We have been invited to my sister, Laura's, for Thanksgiving dinner so we are taking this jello salad and a beef roast that hubby is going to rotisserie.
I have to decide if I am putting the jello salad in a 9x13 pan to set then unmold it onto a big platter, put the jello salad in two jello molds and unmold them onto a big platter, or just put the jello salad in the 9x13 pan and let them dish it up that way. Haven't decided.
I spent the whole session explaining all the bad stuff that has happened. Finding out we are infested with bedbugs, Sunshine dying and the sewer backing up twice. Then I told him all about my wonderful daughter and her husband and all that Cassie and Drew did for me on Saturday. It was and still is amazing! Next week we are going to talk about how I can go about starting to get over being mad at Frank for the bedbugs. Which is really hard because I have given him two sets of sheets so he can strip his bed and comforter and wash them everyday. And vacuum his room every day. And he hasn't done it once. So tomorrow, I'm going to start striping his bed, vacuuming his room and even wash the bag of clothes he has had sitting on the floor next to the washer but hasn't done. But I have been doing laundry non-stop so maybe he just hasn't been able to have access to the washer and dryer. But I'm determined to eradicate these bedbugs and the infestation is in his room, it needs constant action. I'm going to strip his bed and tape up any holes in the plastic mattress bag we put on it.
After therapy I came home and relaxed for a little. Then I started laundry. Only three loads today. I got the dressers clean out and vacuumed in our room and got the clothes redistributed into bags that would fit in the dresser drawers. I got both mine and hubby's done. Extra clothes are in bags in the closet on the floor. Both doors are shut and will stay that way. I got all the sets of sheets bagged individually and double twistie tied and put in my trunk. I put another comforter in the trunk too. I got everything out of the craft room and it looks as good as when Cassie and Drew cleaned and organized it.
Tomorrow I am attempting to make my own creation of a jello salad. I got 5 boxes of cranberry jello. I'm going to chop fine apples, celery, pineapple (canned), and walnuts. I've also got some cool whip but not sure how I'm going to incorporate that. We have been invited to my sister, Laura's, for Thanksgiving dinner so we are taking this jello salad and a beef roast that hubby is going to rotisserie.
I have to decide if I am putting the jello salad in a 9x13 pan to set then unmold it onto a big platter, put the jello salad in two jello molds and unmold them onto a big platter, or just put the jello salad in the 9x13 pan and let them dish it up that way. Haven't decided.
Monday, November 23, 2015
Monday, November 23, 2015
Today was spendy day. I started off my day waking up in time to kiss hhubby goodbye, go downstairs and shut the sliding glass door he left open for the dogs, and go back to bed and sleep. I woke up at 1130am. I got my yogurt and cola and after I sat back down upstairs in bed to watch tv and read. I have a book out, the new Stephanie Plum murder series book, number 22, that JAnet Evanovich wrote, that I can only have out for 7 days, it's a rapid read from the Library. It wasn't until I was a wake for a little that I noticed I had several spots that itched,so I figured I got bitten by bedbugs again. I put some Aloe with numbing stuff for itching on the spots and they stopped itching. I'm doing better about not scratching, much! Hahaha
I read until hubby called and said he would be coming home for lunch around 1pm. So I got up and got dressed and fed all the beasties. When hubby showed up, he said let's go upstairs and fool around. I told him I just got dressed. He said I'll help you get dressed again. I said ok, so upstairs we went.
Hubby had just enough time to make a sandwich to take back to work with him and he left. I poured myself a travel glass of apple cider and left to get my nails done. I was having the gel nails taken off and just getting regular nail polish. With the car to pay for and all the money we have put out because of the bedbugs, I can't afford to keep doing my gel nails twice a month, that's $35 each time. So while I was there, I got a pedicure too, so I will have matching toes and fingers. I chose sparkly red, for the coming Christmas season.
Next I went to PetSmart to get some rat food. They had a kind I hadn't seen before and it was on sale, so I got that. I also found 3 squeaker toys on sale for $1.88 each for the dogs for Christmas. Walmart was the last place I had to go, I had to get cockatiel food, bread, hamburger and hot dog buns. I also got a polish that is a close shade to the sparkly red I got done at the salon. This way when my nails chip, I can redo them myself.
Saturday morning I got a call from Cassie. She chatted for a little and asked me what we were doing. I told her about all the clothes we had to wash and bag to protect from bedbugs. And all the stuff we were having to move out of the house to the garage, where it will have to stay for a year before coming back in the house, like all the boxes of material and stuff that has been boxed and sitting in the craft room. All the stuff we had boxed and put in the library. For bedbugs, you have to clean out as much stuff out of your house as possible. We said we loved each other and hung up.
I got another call from Cassie a couple of hours later and she said she was really missing me. I told her I was missing her too but there was just too much to do to come up and visit her, but I promised I would soon. She said I should go to my front door. I asked her if she sent something for me and it was delivered and waiting for me. She said yes, so I told her to hang on for a minute, and when I opened the door, there she and her husband were! They had come to surprise me since I was so depressed with all that had happened, with the bedbugs, Sunshine dying and all.
They said they were taking me out to lunch at Cassie's favorite place, King's Diner, downtown. We had a lovely lunch and then they told me they were taking me on a drive. It was a long drive and I didn't know where we were going. Cassie was driving Kiggy, the bug, because they had come down in her truck and there wasn't room for three in there. I was confused when we pulled up in front of this lady's house. When when we got to the door, the lady was expecting us. She led us back to her kitchen and there was a big cage with three cockatrices, mom, dad and baby girl. She took out the baby, who was 5 months old. She handed her to me and it was love at first sight! She stepped up and then sat on my shoulder. Cassie and Drew were buying her for me as an early Christmas present. I was over joyed.
We drove back home and introduced her to Inry through the cage bars. I decided to name her Christmas. There was no hissing on either of their parts, so I put her in the cage with Inry. They ignored each other so that was ok.
The other Christmas present Cassie and Drew was giving us was they came to help do everything we needed done to get the stuff out of the house and clean the craft room, from top to bottom. I was good to get all the stuff moved out, after taking an anxiety pill. Then when it came time to clear the craft table and do the bookcases, I was too overwhelmed to help. I was sent upstairs to relax and later dinner was brought to me with the instructions to stay upstairs until they called for me.
At 10pm, they came and got me. I was walked downstairs with my eyes closed. When I opened them, I was truly amazed. They had scrubbed, cleaned and rearranged everything. The shelves were dust free and they put up pictures and my corkboard. She cleaned off my craft table, used the organization stuff she gave me for Christmas last year, and even cleaned the rat cage. They wore painter suits with booties and taped up wrists to avoid getting any bedbugs on them. Cassie wore one of my bandannas around her face as there was so much dust everywhere.
I was overcome with emotions for all that my kids had done for me. Now I can vacuum everyday without having to move stuff out of the way. I can start going through my stuff on the shelves and start getting things put up for sale. I can start crafting again. For obvious reasons, the kids spent the night in a hotel.
Sunday hubby and I packed up all the rest of our clothes that we will be wearing and put them all in bags and loaded up the car. We took it all to the laundromat. $80 later, we had bugfree clothes. We bagged them all up and brought them home. We put them in the craft room and tomorrow I will vacuum out the dressers and we will put the bagged clothes in the dressers again.
A bedbug can live for 10 months. They can survive for several months without eating (biting and sucking out our blood). We will be living out of bags for the next year.
I read until hubby called and said he would be coming home for lunch around 1pm. So I got up and got dressed and fed all the beasties. When hubby showed up, he said let's go upstairs and fool around. I told him I just got dressed. He said I'll help you get dressed again. I said ok, so upstairs we went.
Hubby had just enough time to make a sandwich to take back to work with him and he left. I poured myself a travel glass of apple cider and left to get my nails done. I was having the gel nails taken off and just getting regular nail polish. With the car to pay for and all the money we have put out because of the bedbugs, I can't afford to keep doing my gel nails twice a month, that's $35 each time. So while I was there, I got a pedicure too, so I will have matching toes and fingers. I chose sparkly red, for the coming Christmas season.
Next I went to PetSmart to get some rat food. They had a kind I hadn't seen before and it was on sale, so I got that. I also found 3 squeaker toys on sale for $1.88 each for the dogs for Christmas. Walmart was the last place I had to go, I had to get cockatiel food, bread, hamburger and hot dog buns. I also got a polish that is a close shade to the sparkly red I got done at the salon. This way when my nails chip, I can redo them myself.
Saturday morning I got a call from Cassie. She chatted for a little and asked me what we were doing. I told her about all the clothes we had to wash and bag to protect from bedbugs. And all the stuff we were having to move out of the house to the garage, where it will have to stay for a year before coming back in the house, like all the boxes of material and stuff that has been boxed and sitting in the craft room. All the stuff we had boxed and put in the library. For bedbugs, you have to clean out as much stuff out of your house as possible. We said we loved each other and hung up.
I got another call from Cassie a couple of hours later and she said she was really missing me. I told her I was missing her too but there was just too much to do to come up and visit her, but I promised I would soon. She said I should go to my front door. I asked her if she sent something for me and it was delivered and waiting for me. She said yes, so I told her to hang on for a minute, and when I opened the door, there she and her husband were! They had come to surprise me since I was so depressed with all that had happened, with the bedbugs, Sunshine dying and all.
They said they were taking me out to lunch at Cassie's favorite place, King's Diner, downtown. We had a lovely lunch and then they told me they were taking me on a drive. It was a long drive and I didn't know where we were going. Cassie was driving Kiggy, the bug, because they had come down in her truck and there wasn't room for three in there. I was confused when we pulled up in front of this lady's house. When when we got to the door, the lady was expecting us. She led us back to her kitchen and there was a big cage with three cockatrices, mom, dad and baby girl. She took out the baby, who was 5 months old. She handed her to me and it was love at first sight! She stepped up and then sat on my shoulder. Cassie and Drew were buying her for me as an early Christmas present. I was over joyed.
We drove back home and introduced her to Inry through the cage bars. I decided to name her Christmas. There was no hissing on either of their parts, so I put her in the cage with Inry. They ignored each other so that was ok.
The other Christmas present Cassie and Drew was giving us was they came to help do everything we needed done to get the stuff out of the house and clean the craft room, from top to bottom. I was good to get all the stuff moved out, after taking an anxiety pill. Then when it came time to clear the craft table and do the bookcases, I was too overwhelmed to help. I was sent upstairs to relax and later dinner was brought to me with the instructions to stay upstairs until they called for me.
At 10pm, they came and got me. I was walked downstairs with my eyes closed. When I opened them, I was truly amazed. They had scrubbed, cleaned and rearranged everything. The shelves were dust free and they put up pictures and my corkboard. She cleaned off my craft table, used the organization stuff she gave me for Christmas last year, and even cleaned the rat cage. They wore painter suits with booties and taped up wrists to avoid getting any bedbugs on them. Cassie wore one of my bandannas around her face as there was so much dust everywhere.
I was overcome with emotions for all that my kids had done for me. Now I can vacuum everyday without having to move stuff out of the way. I can start going through my stuff on the shelves and start getting things put up for sale. I can start crafting again. For obvious reasons, the kids spent the night in a hotel.
Sunday hubby and I packed up all the rest of our clothes that we will be wearing and put them all in bags and loaded up the car. We took it all to the laundromat. $80 later, we had bugfree clothes. We bagged them all up and brought them home. We put them in the craft room and tomorrow I will vacuum out the dressers and we will put the bagged clothes in the dressers again.
A bedbug can live for 10 months. They can survive for several months without eating (biting and sucking out our blood). We will be living out of bags for the next year.
Friday, November 20, 2015
Friday, November 20, 2015
Today was a sanguine day. I slept through hubby getting up and leaving, waking up about 930am. I woke up with 4 bedbug bites. We didn't change the sheets, used them two days in a row and I guess we can't do that. This weekend, I will be cleaning out the nightstands and vacuuming them in all the little cracks and crevices. Our good vacuum need the belt replaced in the power head but is fine to use the hose. It uses bags but when you vacuum in a house with bedbugs, after you are finished vacuuming, you need to seal the bag in another bag and immediately take it out to the trash. We do have a bagless vacuum to use and that should be working and that's what I'm going to use tomorrow.
I ate some yogurt and leftover french toast and drank my cola. I watched Quincy and then got dressed. I pulled a big comforter out of the dryer, rearranged it and put it back in for another hour. Then I fed all the beasties and left to go to the library.
I turned in some books and found out there are two missing books that I have to have hubby look up so I can see what they are and find them. I found the new Janet Evonavich book in the Rapid Read section, which means I can check out the book for 7 days and then it has to be returned, you can't renew it. I found two other books that looked good too and checked those out at the same time.
Then I went to Walmart. I bought some 13 gallon trash bags to make putting laundry in them easier than the giant bags we are using now. I got some Hefty two and a half gallon slide zip plastic bags for things like underwear and socks. I picked up some more scrubbies for the dishes, snacks, a 5 pound bag of white rice and another winter throw and three different kinds of hot chocolate for Bingo next month. I got some more carbonated flavored waters since they at 68 cents each. I got Cherry Limeade, yum! Total was $56 something.
I stopped at the liquor store on the way home and got some red wine and some vodka. The red wine is for cooking and the vodka is to clean my face with. I have a patch of skin under my nose and on the side of my chin that keeps breaking out. It's also supposed to be good to clean mirrors and your glasses.
I got home and the puppies had been really good. We block them from the lower level and from the bedroom level because they will get destructive. They seem to do just fine on the main level. I gave them treats and let them out. When Frank came home,he brought in all the stuff from the car. I fed and watered the bowls for the skunks. I cleaned all the litter boxes and took that out to the trash. I kept doing laundry and bagging the clean stuff after folding it. I still have to go upstairs and strip the bed and remake it. The comforter has to be sewn back together in one section but that can wait until tomorrow. I have a clean set of sheets and comforter to put on the bed. I have been doing so much laundry and there is still lots more. I have to wash and dry all the stuff we have in the drawers and hanging. I don't even want to thing about how much the utility bill is going to be next month!
Mom and I were supposed to go to a craft fair and costume fashion show tomorrow but I had to cancel as there is still too much to do to try and combat these bedbugs. I have to go through everything and throw away a lot of stuff and pack the rest and store it in the garage. I have to go through the garage and get rid of a lot of stuff there too, to make room for everything else.
A bedbug can live for 10 months. They lay 1-5 eggs a day, over 500 in their lifetime. A spartan lifestyle with daily intense cleaning can eradicate them, so hubby says. I have to do more research.
I was hoping the three bad things would end our bad streak but on his way back from Denver tonight, hubby got stuck in really bad traffic and the Saturn started to overheat. So he pulled over in a parking lot for an hour. Then taking the back way, a truck passed him and he hit some ice and slid into a ditch. Some guys tried to help him out but it didn't work. Now it looks like it will be midnight or later before AAA can get a two truck out to get him out of the ditch.
But wait! Hubby just called and a guy in a Jeep with a winch stopped and got him out of the ditch! He is driving and is coming home! YEAH! I thank God for good Samaritans!
I will do another load of laundry and then warm up his dinner. I need to go upstairs and strip the bed, sealing the sheets in bags until I can wash them in the morning. I pray that God will give me the strength to let go of so much stuff, to not hold onto materialist things, so that we may rid ourselves of this problem.
I ate some yogurt and leftover french toast and drank my cola. I watched Quincy and then got dressed. I pulled a big comforter out of the dryer, rearranged it and put it back in for another hour. Then I fed all the beasties and left to go to the library.
I turned in some books and found out there are two missing books that I have to have hubby look up so I can see what they are and find them. I found the new Janet Evonavich book in the Rapid Read section, which means I can check out the book for 7 days and then it has to be returned, you can't renew it. I found two other books that looked good too and checked those out at the same time.
Then I went to Walmart. I bought some 13 gallon trash bags to make putting laundry in them easier than the giant bags we are using now. I got some Hefty two and a half gallon slide zip plastic bags for things like underwear and socks. I picked up some more scrubbies for the dishes, snacks, a 5 pound bag of white rice and another winter throw and three different kinds of hot chocolate for Bingo next month. I got some more carbonated flavored waters since they at 68 cents each. I got Cherry Limeade, yum! Total was $56 something.
I stopped at the liquor store on the way home and got some red wine and some vodka. The red wine is for cooking and the vodka is to clean my face with. I have a patch of skin under my nose and on the side of my chin that keeps breaking out. It's also supposed to be good to clean mirrors and your glasses.
I got home and the puppies had been really good. We block them from the lower level and from the bedroom level because they will get destructive. They seem to do just fine on the main level. I gave them treats and let them out. When Frank came home,he brought in all the stuff from the car. I fed and watered the bowls for the skunks. I cleaned all the litter boxes and took that out to the trash. I kept doing laundry and bagging the clean stuff after folding it. I still have to go upstairs and strip the bed and remake it. The comforter has to be sewn back together in one section but that can wait until tomorrow. I have a clean set of sheets and comforter to put on the bed. I have been doing so much laundry and there is still lots more. I have to wash and dry all the stuff we have in the drawers and hanging. I don't even want to thing about how much the utility bill is going to be next month!
Mom and I were supposed to go to a craft fair and costume fashion show tomorrow but I had to cancel as there is still too much to do to try and combat these bedbugs. I have to go through everything and throw away a lot of stuff and pack the rest and store it in the garage. I have to go through the garage and get rid of a lot of stuff there too, to make room for everything else.
A bedbug can live for 10 months. They lay 1-5 eggs a day, over 500 in their lifetime. A spartan lifestyle with daily intense cleaning can eradicate them, so hubby says. I have to do more research.
I was hoping the three bad things would end our bad streak but on his way back from Denver tonight, hubby got stuck in really bad traffic and the Saturn started to overheat. So he pulled over in a parking lot for an hour. Then taking the back way, a truck passed him and he hit some ice and slid into a ditch. Some guys tried to help him out but it didn't work. Now it looks like it will be midnight or later before AAA can get a two truck out to get him out of the ditch.
But wait! Hubby just called and a guy in a Jeep with a winch stopped and got him out of the ditch! He is driving and is coming home! YEAH! I thank God for good Samaritans!
I will do another load of laundry and then warm up his dinner. I need to go upstairs and strip the bed, sealing the sheets in bags until I can wash them in the morning. I pray that God will give me the strength to let go of so much stuff, to not hold onto materialist things, so that we may rid ourselves of this problem.
Thursday, November 19, 2015
Thursday, November 19, 2015
Today was a better day. Getting up before hubby, I got my yogurt and cola and came back to bed. I love being near him, especially when he is sleeping. I didn't turn on the tv until he got up at 10am. Then I watched Quincy on MeTV. Neither one of us got any bites last night, so we decided we could use the sheets one more night before washing them. The comforter has to be sewn back together in one place, it's got a big rip in it and the stuffing is coming out. Project for tomorrow.
Hubby encouraged me to get out of the house and forget about all that we have to do so I took him up on that offer and went to Fazoli's for lunch. They have a $5 deal where you pick two items and it includes a drink. I got the ravioli and a salad. Then I have a Coke. I had folded the laundry that was in the dryer and bagged it and sealed it before I left, put more stuff in the dryer and added another load into the washer. This is a full time job for me. I just found out that my phone has a timer feature so I'm using that because I have a tendency to forget about the laundry. I'm hoping it will make it faster to get done.
I just finished up the last of the sheets that were waiting to be washed and have several comforters to do still. I have clothes to do and towels, before I can even start on what is in the dresser drawers and the closets. All dry clothes get folded and put in a large plastic garbage bag, then I use a twistie tie on it, twist the bag some more and double over the twisted part and use another twistie tie.
I still have to clean out my nightstand and vacuum it all down. Do hubby's too. Put stuff we want to keep in them in zip lock baggies. I have to wash and dry all the stuff in the linen closet, that's close to Frank's room so I'm sure bedbugs have gotten in there already too. All the outlet covers have to be removed and vacuumed, in all bedrooms, especially Frank's.
I've decided to purge myself of a lot of belongings. Since most of the stuff in the house has to be taken out and put in the garage for a year, I'm going to go through it and try to get rid of most of it. Minimalist is the word. It will be a good start for making the house into what I want it to be.
Hubby is working until 1030pm tonight, trying to get in extra hours. He has the work and we need the money. This bedbug experience has cost us a lot and we are behind in bills now. I found one of my adult coloring books that I haven't used and I put it with the two other coloring books I won at Bingo and set them aside to give to hubby for Christmas. I know he will love them.
I am taking my anxiety medication twice a day now. I feel overwhelmed but am trying to concentrate on doing only one thing at a time. I don't want to make a list as that will just be too In My Face about everything.
We are having to tell Frank exactly what to do now. Change and wash your sheets. Vacuum your room, pull everything away from the walls and use the hose to vacuum above and below the baseboards. Vacuum the dresser drawers, tops and bottoms. Do this every other day. Wash your pillow. I don't trust him to do this stuff on his own.
I don't know how to get past this feeling that I have been violated by him with his non-caring of hygiene in my house. He brought in something that is causing us grief, is affecting me physically and mentally and emotionally, and seems to not understand this will take months, if not years to eradicate.
Tomorrow I'm going to the library to get out of the house for a little while. I'm taking back a series of books I check out to read that I just haven't. So will try them again another time.
I want to get a tattoo of a 1950's red vinyl kitchen table with chrome on my upper bicep on my right arm, with the saying "You're my kitchen table...". I was reading a book on women's history and in it I read out loud to hubby that a man is to the woman like a table is to a kitchen, a necessity and important part that we can't do without. Hubby is my kitchen table. I also found a needlepoint pattern of a dragon wrapped around a castle that I fell in love with. I have a castle on my rear right shoulder. I would love to have a dragon drawn around it and color in my castle. Something to save up for the future.
Hubby encouraged me to get out of the house and forget about all that we have to do so I took him up on that offer and went to Fazoli's for lunch. They have a $5 deal where you pick two items and it includes a drink. I got the ravioli and a salad. Then I have a Coke. I had folded the laundry that was in the dryer and bagged it and sealed it before I left, put more stuff in the dryer and added another load into the washer. This is a full time job for me. I just found out that my phone has a timer feature so I'm using that because I have a tendency to forget about the laundry. I'm hoping it will make it faster to get done.
I just finished up the last of the sheets that were waiting to be washed and have several comforters to do still. I have clothes to do and towels, before I can even start on what is in the dresser drawers and the closets. All dry clothes get folded and put in a large plastic garbage bag, then I use a twistie tie on it, twist the bag some more and double over the twisted part and use another twistie tie.
I still have to clean out my nightstand and vacuum it all down. Do hubby's too. Put stuff we want to keep in them in zip lock baggies. I have to wash and dry all the stuff in the linen closet, that's close to Frank's room so I'm sure bedbugs have gotten in there already too. All the outlet covers have to be removed and vacuumed, in all bedrooms, especially Frank's.
I've decided to purge myself of a lot of belongings. Since most of the stuff in the house has to be taken out and put in the garage for a year, I'm going to go through it and try to get rid of most of it. Minimalist is the word. It will be a good start for making the house into what I want it to be.
Hubby is working until 1030pm tonight, trying to get in extra hours. He has the work and we need the money. This bedbug experience has cost us a lot and we are behind in bills now. I found one of my adult coloring books that I haven't used and I put it with the two other coloring books I won at Bingo and set them aside to give to hubby for Christmas. I know he will love them.
I am taking my anxiety medication twice a day now. I feel overwhelmed but am trying to concentrate on doing only one thing at a time. I don't want to make a list as that will just be too In My Face about everything.
We are having to tell Frank exactly what to do now. Change and wash your sheets. Vacuum your room, pull everything away from the walls and use the hose to vacuum above and below the baseboards. Vacuum the dresser drawers, tops and bottoms. Do this every other day. Wash your pillow. I don't trust him to do this stuff on his own.
I don't know how to get past this feeling that I have been violated by him with his non-caring of hygiene in my house. He brought in something that is causing us grief, is affecting me physically and mentally and emotionally, and seems to not understand this will take months, if not years to eradicate.
Tomorrow I'm going to the library to get out of the house for a little while. I'm taking back a series of books I check out to read that I just haven't. So will try them again another time.
I want to get a tattoo of a 1950's red vinyl kitchen table with chrome on my upper bicep on my right arm, with the saying "You're my kitchen table...". I was reading a book on women's history and in it I read out loud to hubby that a man is to the woman like a table is to a kitchen, a necessity and important part that we can't do without. Hubby is my kitchen table. I also found a needlepoint pattern of a dragon wrapped around a castle that I fell in love with. I have a castle on my rear right shoulder. I would love to have a dragon drawn around it and color in my castle. Something to save up for the future.
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
Today was a depressing day. I woke up ok, snuggled by cats and dogs, pinned in bed. I got up, let the dogs out in the snow to pee, well, 2 of the three dogs. Cookie doesn't get out of bed before 10am usually. Then I got my yogurt and cola and went back to bed to Instagram and eat. Hubby was sleeping until the alarm went off, then he got up. I was feeling ok when I looked over and saw a big bedbug walking across hubby's pillow. I grabbed the pillow and took it in the bathroom to knock the bugger in the toilet but think it dropped off before I got there. That was the beginning of my downward spiral.
Hubby got his shower and put on his pants, shoes and socks then headed down to his office to check the bank accounts. And happened upon the sewer back up in the downstairs bathroom and utility room. Luckily not on the carpet. He yelled at me to not flush or run water while he changed into some jeans and a tshirt. Then he went to rent the snake to fix the clog. He pulled the toilet in the downstairs bathroom and snaked out a lot of roots. We were overdue for doing this, should have been done in August. He finally got the clog taken care of and we tested it by flushing both upstairs toilets and running the kitchen sink. This took all morning and part of the early afternoon, so he had called into work to tell them he would be in by 5 at the latest.
Once he got everything running, replaced the wax ring and toilet, cleaned and sanitized the floors, he took another shower and got dressed. Then he took me to Village Inn so we could get away from the house. I told him that I was feeling that Frank, by his carelessness of how he has treated our home, makes me feel violated. I have made so much progress mentally and physically because I have felt safe here. This was my home, I was ok, loved, able to be myself. But now, I can't. There is an infestation of bugs that chewed on me and I have marks on my body, all because of Frank and his filthy way of life. No respect for how to live and practice hygiene. I'm taking 2-3 anxiety pills a day now. This is something I'm going to have to learn to work out with my therapist and I don't know what hubby can do to help me right now.
3 bad things have happened to us now. 4 if you count Rick Grimes dying. But if bad things happen in threes, then we are due for things to get better again, right?
Hubby got his shower and put on his pants, shoes and socks then headed down to his office to check the bank accounts. And happened upon the sewer back up in the downstairs bathroom and utility room. Luckily not on the carpet. He yelled at me to not flush or run water while he changed into some jeans and a tshirt. Then he went to rent the snake to fix the clog. He pulled the toilet in the downstairs bathroom and snaked out a lot of roots. We were overdue for doing this, should have been done in August. He finally got the clog taken care of and we tested it by flushing both upstairs toilets and running the kitchen sink. This took all morning and part of the early afternoon, so he had called into work to tell them he would be in by 5 at the latest.
Once he got everything running, replaced the wax ring and toilet, cleaned and sanitized the floors, he took another shower and got dressed. Then he took me to Village Inn so we could get away from the house. I told him that I was feeling that Frank, by his carelessness of how he has treated our home, makes me feel violated. I have made so much progress mentally and physically because I have felt safe here. This was my home, I was ok, loved, able to be myself. But now, I can't. There is an infestation of bugs that chewed on me and I have marks on my body, all because of Frank and his filthy way of life. No respect for how to live and practice hygiene. I'm taking 2-3 anxiety pills a day now. This is something I'm going to have to learn to work out with my therapist and I don't know what hubby can do to help me right now.
3 bad things have happened to us now. 4 if you count Rick Grimes dying. But if bad things happen in threes, then we are due for things to get better again, right?
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Today was a depressing day. Last night I was just crying at all the idea of what all has to be done still, my beta fish, Rick Grimes, died on Saturday and last night, Sunshine, my female cockatiel died. It was all just too much. So I stayed in bed for the morning, doing nothing much. Watching The Profit on Hulu. He seems to have a lot of business answers, thought he might make me feel better. I eventually got up and fed everybody and got some yogurt and a cola, and went back to bed. We had a blizzard warning yesterday and it was snowing and blowing like the dickens outside. All the schools were closed except hubby's, so he went in and dropped Frank off at work since the buses were all delayed and he couldn't get into work.
That left me home with the animals. I did some of the massive amounts of laundry we have to do. I folded and bagged all the sheet sets, a set of sheets for Frank and two sets for us. That actually makes 3 sets of sheets for hubby and me, counting the new set of sheets on our bed. I need to pull out the rest of the sheets in the bottom of the linen closet and see if I can find Frank one more set of sheets, so he will have one to use while he washes the other. Every day. If we are going to fight this bedbug infestation, this will be key. I also found out they get in the outlets and you have to take the covers off and vacuum inside. And take off the registers and vacuum in there too. Hubby says we can get rid of them with a lot of hard work over the next year. I cried and said I thought you can only get rid of them for sure if you get a professional in to do the heat treatment three times in a 6 week period. But the first hing to do is get all the stuff out of the house and put in the garage for a year.
So even though we had snow up the wahzoo today, tomorrow it's supposed to be in the 50s. That means I'm going to go out in the garage, open the door and start getting rid of a lot of stuff to make room for all the stuff in the house. I need to take the house down to bare bones, take out all the stuff on the shelves and all the books. Don't think we have room for all the book cases in the garage but need to pack up everything in the house and get it out. Going to be making lots of piles for the trash man! And putting up some stuff to sell.
So I'm taking my anxiety meds twice to three times a day now. I'm frazzled and overwhelmed. I itch all the time and feel like bugs are crawling in my hair. I know it's all in my mind, but not really.
That left me home with the animals. I did some of the massive amounts of laundry we have to do. I folded and bagged all the sheet sets, a set of sheets for Frank and two sets for us. That actually makes 3 sets of sheets for hubby and me, counting the new set of sheets on our bed. I need to pull out the rest of the sheets in the bottom of the linen closet and see if I can find Frank one more set of sheets, so he will have one to use while he washes the other. Every day. If we are going to fight this bedbug infestation, this will be key. I also found out they get in the outlets and you have to take the covers off and vacuum inside. And take off the registers and vacuum in there too. Hubby says we can get rid of them with a lot of hard work over the next year. I cried and said I thought you can only get rid of them for sure if you get a professional in to do the heat treatment three times in a 6 week period. But the first hing to do is get all the stuff out of the house and put in the garage for a year.
So even though we had snow up the wahzoo today, tomorrow it's supposed to be in the 50s. That means I'm going to go out in the garage, open the door and start getting rid of a lot of stuff to make room for all the stuff in the house. I need to take the house down to bare bones, take out all the stuff on the shelves and all the books. Don't think we have room for all the book cases in the garage but need to pack up everything in the house and get it out. Going to be making lots of piles for the trash man! And putting up some stuff to sell.
So I'm taking my anxiety meds twice to three times a day now. I'm frazzled and overwhelmed. I itch all the time and feel like bugs are crawling in my hair. I know it's all in my mind, but not really.
Monday, November 16, 2015
Monday, November 16, 2015
Today was a mixed day. Still dealing with bedbugs and even though we steam cleaned the mattresses and sealed them in plastic bags, changed all the sheets, blankets and conforter, I still woke up with two more bites. The sheets we had pulled out of the closet and the blanket was sealed but still in Frank's room. The comforter was one that was clean but I had washed it in cold water and hung it outside to dry, so wouldn't have killed any bedbugs on it. But it was all we had last night.
Today I slept until 1015am when Janice from across the street called me to tell my that our neighbors, Russ and Ruth, had the fire truck and ambulance in front of their house again and could I see who was being taken? I watched with her on the phone but my tree still has some leaves and I couldn't really see much. Then I got dressed, fed the beasties and waited until Lois was due to pick me up for Bingo with the church ladies.
When Lois got here, I was wearing a short sleeved shirt, jeans and sandels. I walked out without my purse or a jacket. It was chilly out but I was hot so it felt good. We arrived at one of the ladies house and sat out front for a little bit since we were so early. Finally Marilyn came out front and told us to come in. I had decided to take the first card on top of the stack, so I did. And that choice let me win Bingo 11 times! During the initial phase, when we play different types of Bingo games using a cheat sheet, we play until all the gifts are passed out. Then we eat lunch. Today was a slightly spicy stacked chicken enchilada and a salad. Then we open our gifts to see what we got. I won 4 times and got a Thanksgiving sign, a neat box with two Avon lotions, my own gift of a soft fleece Christmas throw with 3 different kinds of hot chocolate, and a box set of a giving plate and brownie mix. We put it all out for everyone to walk around and look to see what they want to steal during the next part of the game.
Next Marilyn sets a timer for an hour, faces it away so no one can see how much time is left, and we play straight bingo. Any line, straight or diagonal, or all 4 corners, makes a Bingo. Over the course of the hour, I lost all my gifts, won back two I really wanted, my own and the adult coloring books with crayons and lost them several more times. At the end, I won those both back and a kitchen set with utensils and pot holders. Winner, winner, chicken dinner!
By this time it had been snowing for a little while with bad winds. When Lois drove me home, the snow was going straight across the road. Later we had whiteout conditions. It was 4pm when I got home and the roads were already beginning to freeze. I called my therapist, Steve, and cancelled my appointment. I don't drive in snow and ice anymore and hubby and I don't want Kiggy the bug out on the road in it at all.
I did some research on bedbugs. They live 10 months. They lay 1-5 eggs a day, over 500 in their lifetime. They like to hide in outlets, in nightstands, in crevasses in nightstands and walls, behind furniture, in clothes. The steam cleaning the guys did will help some but since they didn't move everything out, still left piles of stuff in the library and in our room, it's not enough. So I need to start throwing away massive amounts of things in the house and in the garage so we can take the house down to basics. Hubby said that he read that we can eradicate the bugs with keeping up with the vacuuming, cleaning and washing and drying. I'm feeling overwhelmed and have been taking my anxiety meds twice a day for the last two days. I broke down and cried this afternoon.
I fixed dinner for us tonight. I thin cut 7 medium sized potatoes, two polish sausages, 3 onions, and mixed all that with two cans of drained green beans, Italian seasoning, pepper, salt and 4 tablespoons of chopped garlic. There was so much stuff, I had to put it in a big pot and mix it all by hand. Then it filled to a heaping amount in a 9x13 pan. I drizzled it with canola oil. I baked it uncovered at 350 degrees for an hour, but the potatoes weren't quite done yet, so we covered it and baked it for another 35 minutes. Hubby is just now pulling it out of the oven so hopefully it will be done.
While sitting there waiting for dinner, I looked over at the bird cage because Inry was singing and noticed Sunshine laying on the bottom of the cage. I went to her, and she was still warm but dead. I took her out and held her for a little bit. She was only 9 or 10 and hadn't been sick so it's a bit of a shock. I cried. Hubby held her for a little too. Then we wrapped her in some paper towels and put her in a gallon zip lock bag and put her in the freezer chest. With the snowing and freezing going on now and the next several days, we can't bury her yet. I put our beta fish, Rick Grimes, in with her. He died Saturday and has been in the fridge waiting to be buried. They are resting together.
At that point I gave up on dinner, got a glass of milk and some Carnation Instant Breakfast, and came to do my blog and let the rattie boys out for a little. Fed them too. Now I'm calling it a night and going upstairs to read and watch Major Crimes, if we can get it. Maybe too early. But I can't face the world anymore.
Tomorrow will be spent doing loads and loads of laundry. I have to start washing all the clothes we have in our dressers, wipe down the dressers and put all the clean clothes in bags to seal up with twisty ties. And drink hot chocolate. And eat ice cream!
Today I slept until 1015am when Janice from across the street called me to tell my that our neighbors, Russ and Ruth, had the fire truck and ambulance in front of their house again and could I see who was being taken? I watched with her on the phone but my tree still has some leaves and I couldn't really see much. Then I got dressed, fed the beasties and waited until Lois was due to pick me up for Bingo with the church ladies.
When Lois got here, I was wearing a short sleeved shirt, jeans and sandels. I walked out without my purse or a jacket. It was chilly out but I was hot so it felt good. We arrived at one of the ladies house and sat out front for a little bit since we were so early. Finally Marilyn came out front and told us to come in. I had decided to take the first card on top of the stack, so I did. And that choice let me win Bingo 11 times! During the initial phase, when we play different types of Bingo games using a cheat sheet, we play until all the gifts are passed out. Then we eat lunch. Today was a slightly spicy stacked chicken enchilada and a salad. Then we open our gifts to see what we got. I won 4 times and got a Thanksgiving sign, a neat box with two Avon lotions, my own gift of a soft fleece Christmas throw with 3 different kinds of hot chocolate, and a box set of a giving plate and brownie mix. We put it all out for everyone to walk around and look to see what they want to steal during the next part of the game.
Next Marilyn sets a timer for an hour, faces it away so no one can see how much time is left, and we play straight bingo. Any line, straight or diagonal, or all 4 corners, makes a Bingo. Over the course of the hour, I lost all my gifts, won back two I really wanted, my own and the adult coloring books with crayons and lost them several more times. At the end, I won those both back and a kitchen set with utensils and pot holders. Winner, winner, chicken dinner!
By this time it had been snowing for a little while with bad winds. When Lois drove me home, the snow was going straight across the road. Later we had whiteout conditions. It was 4pm when I got home and the roads were already beginning to freeze. I called my therapist, Steve, and cancelled my appointment. I don't drive in snow and ice anymore and hubby and I don't want Kiggy the bug out on the road in it at all.
I did some research on bedbugs. They live 10 months. They lay 1-5 eggs a day, over 500 in their lifetime. They like to hide in outlets, in nightstands, in crevasses in nightstands and walls, behind furniture, in clothes. The steam cleaning the guys did will help some but since they didn't move everything out, still left piles of stuff in the library and in our room, it's not enough. So I need to start throwing away massive amounts of things in the house and in the garage so we can take the house down to basics. Hubby said that he read that we can eradicate the bugs with keeping up with the vacuuming, cleaning and washing and drying. I'm feeling overwhelmed and have been taking my anxiety meds twice a day for the last two days. I broke down and cried this afternoon.
I fixed dinner for us tonight. I thin cut 7 medium sized potatoes, two polish sausages, 3 onions, and mixed all that with two cans of drained green beans, Italian seasoning, pepper, salt and 4 tablespoons of chopped garlic. There was so much stuff, I had to put it in a big pot and mix it all by hand. Then it filled to a heaping amount in a 9x13 pan. I drizzled it with canola oil. I baked it uncovered at 350 degrees for an hour, but the potatoes weren't quite done yet, so we covered it and baked it for another 35 minutes. Hubby is just now pulling it out of the oven so hopefully it will be done.
While sitting there waiting for dinner, I looked over at the bird cage because Inry was singing and noticed Sunshine laying on the bottom of the cage. I went to her, and she was still warm but dead. I took her out and held her for a little bit. She was only 9 or 10 and hadn't been sick so it's a bit of a shock. I cried. Hubby held her for a little too. Then we wrapped her in some paper towels and put her in a gallon zip lock bag and put her in the freezer chest. With the snowing and freezing going on now and the next several days, we can't bury her yet. I put our beta fish, Rick Grimes, in with her. He died Saturday and has been in the fridge waiting to be buried. They are resting together.
At that point I gave up on dinner, got a glass of milk and some Carnation Instant Breakfast, and came to do my blog and let the rattie boys out for a little. Fed them too. Now I'm calling it a night and going upstairs to read and watch Major Crimes, if we can get it. Maybe too early. But I can't face the world anymore.
Tomorrow will be spent doing loads and loads of laundry. I have to start washing all the clothes we have in our dressers, wipe down the dressers and put all the clean clothes in bags to seal up with twisty ties. And drink hot chocolate. And eat ice cream!
Sunday, November 15, 2015
Sunday, November 15, 2015
Today was a creepy day. And by creepy,I mean in bugs. Bedbugs. We have them. We found out last night when I went into our roommate's bedroom to get toilet paper, his bed is crawling with them! And he not only tore a huge hole in the new set of sheets I gave him to use when he moved in with us, but they are almost black! Doesn't look like he has changed and washed the sheets in months. The place was filthy and crawling with bugs. I was totally grossed out but that does explain all the bits I have been getting for the last month all over my body. They have spread into our room too. Hubby and I thought that we were flea infested and have been vacuuming the bed and changing the sheets frequently. But no, it's the dreaded bedbug! Nightmare come true.
Hubby and I sat down and looked it up on the internet. The bugs are def bedbugs. And if you can't afford an exterminator, you have to do a lot of things. You have to rent a stream cleaner and steam clean the mattresses, box springs and floor. Then you have to bag the mattress and the box spring in plastic bags and seal them. Well, several holes got poked in the bag when moving the mattresses so we sealed them up with packing tape the best we could. We saw bugs come back out under the plastic.
Hubby and Frank worked on his room and our room and got those done tonight. Frank is taking the day off to finish doing the library tomorrow. We have the futon with two mattresses on there that have to be done. The floor needs to be done and the stuff in there have to be moved into the garage. I have to find my diabetic meter, it got moved when hubby cleaned off my nightstand. With me drinking so much apple juice, I have to check my blood sugar to see what I'm at.
I did the grocery shopping from a list and dinner menu that hubby and I made together. Bill came to $209. I was shopping for two weeks. Not bad. But that's with using most of the meat still in our freezer, so I only got a little bit of meat.
I'm so mad at Frank! How could he be so disrespectful to our house? And live in such filthy conditions? It cost us $60 to rent the steamer and buy the shampoo. $45 to buy the mattress bags. $30 for a new set of sheets. Not to mention all the extra cost on the utility bill for having to use hot water to wash and all the extra loads that are going to have to be done. No more washing in cold water.
Tomorrow I have Bingo with the church ladies. I'm looking forward to that and getting out. I got a Christmas fleece throw and three kinds of hot chocolate for my gift. I intend to steal it back and make it mine!
Hubby and I sat down and looked it up on the internet. The bugs are def bedbugs. And if you can't afford an exterminator, you have to do a lot of things. You have to rent a stream cleaner and steam clean the mattresses, box springs and floor. Then you have to bag the mattress and the box spring in plastic bags and seal them. Well, several holes got poked in the bag when moving the mattresses so we sealed them up with packing tape the best we could. We saw bugs come back out under the plastic.
Hubby and Frank worked on his room and our room and got those done tonight. Frank is taking the day off to finish doing the library tomorrow. We have the futon with two mattresses on there that have to be done. The floor needs to be done and the stuff in there have to be moved into the garage. I have to find my diabetic meter, it got moved when hubby cleaned off my nightstand. With me drinking so much apple juice, I have to check my blood sugar to see what I'm at.
I did the grocery shopping from a list and dinner menu that hubby and I made together. Bill came to $209. I was shopping for two weeks. Not bad. But that's with using most of the meat still in our freezer, so I only got a little bit of meat.
I'm so mad at Frank! How could he be so disrespectful to our house? And live in such filthy conditions? It cost us $60 to rent the steamer and buy the shampoo. $45 to buy the mattress bags. $30 for a new set of sheets. Not to mention all the extra cost on the utility bill for having to use hot water to wash and all the extra loads that are going to have to be done. No more washing in cold water.
Tomorrow I have Bingo with the church ladies. I'm looking forward to that and getting out. I got a Christmas fleece throw and three kinds of hot chocolate for my gift. I intend to steal it back and make it mine!
Friday, November 13, 2015
Friday the 13! November 13, 2015
Today was a lucky day as Friday the 13s are my lucky days! I woke up before the alarm clock, telling hubby when to get up to get ready to be at work by 9am. I laid there, itching but unwilling to get up yet, until I had to pee too much. Then I did. I itch because the dogs have fleas and we don't have the money to get them flea and tick repellent right now, didn't know they had them until I started getting bites all over. Now everyday I wake up to some new bits. Got about 30 of them on my back and lots on my legs. Using aloe with pain relievers and anti-itch stuff on them and that helps a lot. Next month we are starting to get the dogs treated. In the meantime, we are vacuuming the bed and changing the sheets often.
I stayed up in bed, watching Shark Tank on Hulu, got the idea for a Sock Subscription for my son in law for Christmas. Have to research that online to see how much it costs monthly. Think it would be fun for him to have a new pair of outrageous socks to wear to work. I imagine he has to wear a uniform and this would be something he could customize. It's a thought.
Did a load of laundry early. Sunday is hubby's 53rd birthday and I wanted to get it done earlier than Sunday, so I won't get lazy and he would have to do it. For dinner tonight I have leftover pork roast and chicken drumsticks in the fridge that need to be eaten or frozen, so I decided to make twice baked potatoes to go with it, along with a veggie. I started at 515pm, and used the potato backing bag for the microwave that mom made us. I put in 4 medium potatoes, no vents or anything in them, and nuked them for 10 minutes. Perfect! Then I cut them in half lengthwise, and scooped out the insides. Out of the 8 halves, 7 of them remained. I took the insides and put in sour cream and, for the first time, used the potato masher we have in the gadget drawer! Mashed it all up! Added about 3 tablespoons of softened butter, a lot of onion powder, some salt, lots of pepper, more sour cream, some steak sauce, shredded Mexican Cheese and...nothing else. I thought I had bacon bits but I did not. So then I stuffed the potato shells and heaped the stuffing in it. I sprinkled more cheese on top then sprayed PAM-like baking spray on a 9x13 pan, put the stuffed potatoes in, and baked then at 350 degrees for half an hour, more or less. Until the tops were brown. I never did make the veggie and they guys never did eat the meat, we each just had 2 potato halves each for dinner. They were good!
Tomorrow I have a Docent meeting at the Zoo that I have to be there at 9am for, but that won't be too much of a problem getting up. I've been waking up around 7 most mornings now. I've been falling asleep by midnight at the latest, usually by 1130pm. I haven't adjusted to my normal sleeping schedule since the time change, of sleeping until 930-10am and staying awake until 1-2am. But that's ok.
I stayed up in bed, watching Shark Tank on Hulu, got the idea for a Sock Subscription for my son in law for Christmas. Have to research that online to see how much it costs monthly. Think it would be fun for him to have a new pair of outrageous socks to wear to work. I imagine he has to wear a uniform and this would be something he could customize. It's a thought.
Did a load of laundry early. Sunday is hubby's 53rd birthday and I wanted to get it done earlier than Sunday, so I won't get lazy and he would have to do it. For dinner tonight I have leftover pork roast and chicken drumsticks in the fridge that need to be eaten or frozen, so I decided to make twice baked potatoes to go with it, along with a veggie. I started at 515pm, and used the potato backing bag for the microwave that mom made us. I put in 4 medium potatoes, no vents or anything in them, and nuked them for 10 minutes. Perfect! Then I cut them in half lengthwise, and scooped out the insides. Out of the 8 halves, 7 of them remained. I took the insides and put in sour cream and, for the first time, used the potato masher we have in the gadget drawer! Mashed it all up! Added about 3 tablespoons of softened butter, a lot of onion powder, some salt, lots of pepper, more sour cream, some steak sauce, shredded Mexican Cheese and...nothing else. I thought I had bacon bits but I did not. So then I stuffed the potato shells and heaped the stuffing in it. I sprinkled more cheese on top then sprayed PAM-like baking spray on a 9x13 pan, put the stuffed potatoes in, and baked then at 350 degrees for half an hour, more or less. Until the tops were brown. I never did make the veggie and they guys never did eat the meat, we each just had 2 potato halves each for dinner. They were good!
Tomorrow I have a Docent meeting at the Zoo that I have to be there at 9am for, but that won't be too much of a problem getting up. I've been waking up around 7 most mornings now. I've been falling asleep by midnight at the latest, usually by 1130pm. I haven't adjusted to my normal sleeping schedule since the time change, of sleeping until 930-10am and staying awake until 1-2am. But that's ok.
Thursday, November 12, 2015
Thursday, November 12, 2015
Today was a catch up and rest day. So I took over a week off the computer. I have over 3000 emails I have to go through, Facebook says I have over 100 things I'm mentioned in and I have a lot of stuff to write to my cousin. Was it worth it? Yes! I feel refreshed and renewed. I thought about, briefly, bringing my computer up to the bedroom again so I could work up there while watching tv and staying warmer, more about warmer later. But I persisted in keeping the computer downstairs on my craft table. My poor rattie boys got out a little bit each day as I sat at the craft table and read. The days I was out of town, hubby fed and watered them but didn't sit here and let them out. Boo, hubby!
Last week I went off with my parents to their annual dog show for the English Bulldogs they raise and show. This was the show that their club is hosting. So when they do that, I go along and sell raffle tickets and merchandise. This used to be to raise money for the club and for the rescues that they did, but this year the people doing the rescues have gotten burned out and so they have stopped doing rescues. This year was all about raising money for the club.
My parents picked me up Wednesday morning and I rode down to Pueblo with them in the van, with my mom, as my dad drove the RV down. They needed to take the car so they could ferry people around for the show, like some of the judges. And the banquet, that hubby and I would be attending as guests, was across town from the State Fair Grounds where the dog show was being held. We were going down a day early and I was spending the night in the RV so we could get up very early the next morning to get set up before 745am.
I had a good visit with my parents and their friends. I had brought a book with me so I could stay occupied while they were visiting. The day before and the day of the show went well. There was another daughter there to sell as well. At the end of the show day, dad said we raise over $700. That was enough to cover all the expenses and then some. YEAH!
Hubby came down after my part of the show was done and he and I got to visit in the RV for awhile. Dad finished showing The Admiral, and mom had helped break down the tables. We all got dressed and went to the banquet. It was fun and the food was Mexican themed. We ate our fill and then hubby and I made our goodbyes and left. Hubby had driven our new car, Kiggy, down and it was really nice to ride back in her. The seats are sturdier than the Saturn so it's taking a little time to get used to them.
Saturday, I drove Kiggy to Canyon City for Cassie's old roommate's baby shower. I'm not sure why I was invited, but I went. I bought bibs and socks for the baby, who was a boy. She is due in December. Good to know that Cassie stayed friends with her.
Sunday afternoon, Cassie came to the house and spent the night. It was fun. She showed me how to use Pinterest. Hubby cooked a pork shoulder roast for dinner. Since I can't eat pork, I had a loaded baked potato for dinner. I wasn't really hungry and my appetite has gone way down since it has gotten cold. I have skipped dinner several nights this week. Just nothing sounds good. Yesterday the only think I ate all day was my yogurt in the morning with a cola and a extra large glass of apple juice. Trying to get myself to poop,you know? I'm out of Miralax and we don't have the money to get more until pay day. I have plenty of soup to eat and I will make myself during the day, most of the time. But in the meantime, I cook for the guys on the weekdays.
Monday night I baked chicken thighs and drumsticks for the guys to eat for dinner. I made mac n cheese and french cut green beans, Frank's favorite. I cooked a big pack of each so the guys would have drumsticks to take for lunch. The chicken thighs I skinned and deboned. I shredded the meat and bagged it in the fridge for dinner on Wednesday. I save the skin, the fat, and bits of meat so I could make the dogs a rich broth later.
Tuesday was a Red Hat event. It was Judithmary's birthday and the chapter's anniversary. Judithmary had reserved a private room at Uncle Buck's Fishbowl, a restaurant in the Bass Pro Shop. Apparently this is a tourist attraction and a hunter's wet dream. They have everything in there for hunters and fishers. The store is filled with stuffed animals displayed in scenes, like wolves hunting bison and deer running through the forrest. There is an awesome, large aquarium filled with bass, trout, catfish and pike. They are all huge. There is bowling alleys but none of us wanted to bowl. We all ordered our own dinners, Virginia and I split a Supreme Pizza without mushrooms or bacon. It was on a thin crust and was quite tasty. There was cake afterwards and I ate a couple of bites of the cake, without the frosting. I had finished the shawl I designed for Judithmary the night before for her birthday present. It was royal purple with red tassels on the 4 corners. All night I had her convinced that I was giving her an elephant for her backyard garden. She was happy it was the shawl.
Last night I made the Chicken and Pasta I had made once before for the guys. Only this time, I used their suggestions of what they thought would make it better. So I started off by melting the frozen 12 oz package of chopped shipach in a big skillet with two heaping tablespoons of chopped garlic and olive oil. Enough to coat the pan good. Once the spinach was all melted and mixed with the garlic, I added the chicken meat and mixed. While that mixture was heating up, I boiled the pound of shell pasta. I cut a container and a half of cherry tomatoes in half and added those to the spinach and meat mixture. I seasoned it with half a teaspoon of nutmeg, salt and pepper. I added more olive oil. Then I drained the pasta and added that to the meat mixture. I stirred it all up and coated liberally with olive oil then I added over a cup of shake cheese, you know, the stuff in the green can, Parmesan and Romano cheese. I then squeezed two lemon halves over it. The tomatoes and the lemon juice was what they wanted added last time. They loved the new version and there is plenty left for lunches and leftovers the next night.
Today I had lunch with my parents after I went to the Prayer Shawl meeting at the church. It was nice to go back. Monday is Bingo and I got the address to go. Sunday I will have to go get my gift.
Sunday is also hubby's birthday. I got him a drill bit set from Sears and a coffee table book on the first 200 years of advertising in America. I thought he would like that because of the old ads in there. Goes back to the 1800s. Tomorrow I am going to cut out the material to make him night pants but might not be able to sew it before his birthday. I have to find my stuff for the sewing machine. Mom offered to let me come over to her house to use the big table to lay out and cut the material. I will probably do that.
Last week I went off with my parents to their annual dog show for the English Bulldogs they raise and show. This was the show that their club is hosting. So when they do that, I go along and sell raffle tickets and merchandise. This used to be to raise money for the club and for the rescues that they did, but this year the people doing the rescues have gotten burned out and so they have stopped doing rescues. This year was all about raising money for the club.
My parents picked me up Wednesday morning and I rode down to Pueblo with them in the van, with my mom, as my dad drove the RV down. They needed to take the car so they could ferry people around for the show, like some of the judges. And the banquet, that hubby and I would be attending as guests, was across town from the State Fair Grounds where the dog show was being held. We were going down a day early and I was spending the night in the RV so we could get up very early the next morning to get set up before 745am.
I had a good visit with my parents and their friends. I had brought a book with me so I could stay occupied while they were visiting. The day before and the day of the show went well. There was another daughter there to sell as well. At the end of the show day, dad said we raise over $700. That was enough to cover all the expenses and then some. YEAH!
Hubby came down after my part of the show was done and he and I got to visit in the RV for awhile. Dad finished showing The Admiral, and mom had helped break down the tables. We all got dressed and went to the banquet. It was fun and the food was Mexican themed. We ate our fill and then hubby and I made our goodbyes and left. Hubby had driven our new car, Kiggy, down and it was really nice to ride back in her. The seats are sturdier than the Saturn so it's taking a little time to get used to them.
Saturday, I drove Kiggy to Canyon City for Cassie's old roommate's baby shower. I'm not sure why I was invited, but I went. I bought bibs and socks for the baby, who was a boy. She is due in December. Good to know that Cassie stayed friends with her.
Sunday afternoon, Cassie came to the house and spent the night. It was fun. She showed me how to use Pinterest. Hubby cooked a pork shoulder roast for dinner. Since I can't eat pork, I had a loaded baked potato for dinner. I wasn't really hungry and my appetite has gone way down since it has gotten cold. I have skipped dinner several nights this week. Just nothing sounds good. Yesterday the only think I ate all day was my yogurt in the morning with a cola and a extra large glass of apple juice. Trying to get myself to poop,you know? I'm out of Miralax and we don't have the money to get more until pay day. I have plenty of soup to eat and I will make myself during the day, most of the time. But in the meantime, I cook for the guys on the weekdays.
Monday night I baked chicken thighs and drumsticks for the guys to eat for dinner. I made mac n cheese and french cut green beans, Frank's favorite. I cooked a big pack of each so the guys would have drumsticks to take for lunch. The chicken thighs I skinned and deboned. I shredded the meat and bagged it in the fridge for dinner on Wednesday. I save the skin, the fat, and bits of meat so I could make the dogs a rich broth later.
Tuesday was a Red Hat event. It was Judithmary's birthday and the chapter's anniversary. Judithmary had reserved a private room at Uncle Buck's Fishbowl, a restaurant in the Bass Pro Shop. Apparently this is a tourist attraction and a hunter's wet dream. They have everything in there for hunters and fishers. The store is filled with stuffed animals displayed in scenes, like wolves hunting bison and deer running through the forrest. There is an awesome, large aquarium filled with bass, trout, catfish and pike. They are all huge. There is bowling alleys but none of us wanted to bowl. We all ordered our own dinners, Virginia and I split a Supreme Pizza without mushrooms or bacon. It was on a thin crust and was quite tasty. There was cake afterwards and I ate a couple of bites of the cake, without the frosting. I had finished the shawl I designed for Judithmary the night before for her birthday present. It was royal purple with red tassels on the 4 corners. All night I had her convinced that I was giving her an elephant for her backyard garden. She was happy it was the shawl.
Last night I made the Chicken and Pasta I had made once before for the guys. Only this time, I used their suggestions of what they thought would make it better. So I started off by melting the frozen 12 oz package of chopped shipach in a big skillet with two heaping tablespoons of chopped garlic and olive oil. Enough to coat the pan good. Once the spinach was all melted and mixed with the garlic, I added the chicken meat and mixed. While that mixture was heating up, I boiled the pound of shell pasta. I cut a container and a half of cherry tomatoes in half and added those to the spinach and meat mixture. I seasoned it with half a teaspoon of nutmeg, salt and pepper. I added more olive oil. Then I drained the pasta and added that to the meat mixture. I stirred it all up and coated liberally with olive oil then I added over a cup of shake cheese, you know, the stuff in the green can, Parmesan and Romano cheese. I then squeezed two lemon halves over it. The tomatoes and the lemon juice was what they wanted added last time. They loved the new version and there is plenty left for lunches and leftovers the next night.
Today I had lunch with my parents after I went to the Prayer Shawl meeting at the church. It was nice to go back. Monday is Bingo and I got the address to go. Sunday I will have to go get my gift.
Sunday is also hubby's birthday. I got him a drill bit set from Sears and a coffee table book on the first 200 years of advertising in America. I thought he would like that because of the old ads in there. Goes back to the 1800s. Tomorrow I am going to cut out the material to make him night pants but might not be able to sew it before his birthday. I have to find my stuff for the sewing machine. Mom offered to let me come over to her house to use the big table to lay out and cut the material. I will probably do that.
Tuesday, November 3, 2015
Tuesday, November 3, 2015
Today was a revealing day. Now that we have two working cars, hubby got up and got ready but I had woken up at 7am, so I had sat in bed reading, eating yogurt and drinking a soda until he woke up. Then I turned on the tv and kept him company until he kissed me goodbye and left.
I read for another hour until it was time for me to get dressed and go to therapy. I texted Holly to check in that we were still meeting over at Fazoli's when I got done with therapy and that she was still ok with buying me lunch if I provided the coupons. She was. So I drove off in the Bug, Kiggy, to therapy.
I was 5 minutes late, but then Steve was 10 minutes late. I talked about buying the car and all the reasons we had for doing it even though we still had payday loans and taxes. I told him my reasoning and asked him if it made sense. What I thinking clearly. He said my thinking process was sound and reasonable. The financial decision was up to us but he could see how we really needed a back up car. I told him that I can justify anything to save my life but I appreciated his input on this. We said goodbye and made an appointment for next week at the same time.
I texted Holly before I started driving, because I don't text and drive. That's how accidents are made. I drove over to Fazoli's, a fast food italian eatery. Hubby and I had our date night there a couple of weeks ago and it was very romantic. While I was waiting for Holly and Abbie, I texted Cassie a message with my picture of how I looked yesterday to take my driver's licence photo. I really like the outrageous way I did my make up and I kind of liked wearing the wig, so this will not be the last time I will be wearing them. I turned on the cellular data for a moment to send the picture to her. Then I turned it off after the pic was sent.
Holly arrived with Abbie and she was in fine form. She brought me a box of Honey Nut Cheerios and left over food that her cat won't eat. Then we went inside. I had two coupons to use today, one for her to use to get a free kid's meal with the purchase of an adult entree, so she bought that. Then I ordered and used a coupon to get a free dessert with the purchase of a meal. I got their lunch special, choose two things and get a drink for $5. I chose the raviolis with marinara sauce and a salad. I got a lemonade and Sprite mixed drink.
We had a good lunch and Abbie entertained us. The amount of food was perfect but when the lady came around with additional breadsticks, I got two more. So yummy! The italian donuts were 6 pincusioned sized balls of fried dough coated in sugar. There was a wildberry sauce for dipping. Abbie is 2 years old, well, two and a half now. She was fascinated with the sugar coating. She would lick her finger then rub it on the dough ball and hold her finger out to her mom. Then she would say "Mine!" and laugh. Holly would play along and all of us were laughing. Lunch went well.
When we were done and in our respective cars, I sent a text message to hubby about what I had done, having lunch with Holly and where. Then told him I was remembering our night there and how wonderful it was. I told him I was so in love with him this moment. And that he probably wouldn't get this text anytime soon, but that was ok, I love him and now and forever.
I next went back to the Department of Motor Vehicles so I could get an amount of how much it was going to cost us to register the car. Between $500-$700. The clerk was a little sketchy, I showed him the paperwork and the paper where they had taken out taxes for the county. The clerk next door came over and said the dealership will send a check with the taxes when they send in the title. The best guess they could give me was around $500, as long as they send in the check. I really hope so!
So Friday I will have to sit down and go over the budget, call the people we were supposed to make payments to out of this paycheck and tell them we will pay them in the middle of the month. Then I will need to calculate everything and figure out where we are getting the $500 in 45 days. And pray a lot.
So I came home and made dog biscuits as we were getting really low. Hubby's ad is coming out on Thursday at the dog show in the catalogs and then he will make the dog biscuits on demand. I check the freezer and we have plenty of spent grain.
I defrosted a steak and hubby will cook it when he gets home. I was going to have him grill it but I forgot that we are out of propane. So he will broil it. I fed the dogs and had Frank feed all the cats and spend some time with Tommy. I will go in a little later before I shut off his light and play with him. I still have to pack, mom and dad are picking me up at 8am. I will be spending the night with them in Pueblo in the RV then getting up at an ungodly hour of the morning to start the dog show. My job will be to sell products and tickets for the raffles. Then hubby will be driving down from Colorado Springs and joining us at 4pm. Then we will be getting dressed up and going to the banquet as mom and dad's guests. Afterwards, hubby and I will drive home and I will be sleeping in on Friday. Or as much as I can with this time change.
I read for another hour until it was time for me to get dressed and go to therapy. I texted Holly to check in that we were still meeting over at Fazoli's when I got done with therapy and that she was still ok with buying me lunch if I provided the coupons. She was. So I drove off in the Bug, Kiggy, to therapy.
I was 5 minutes late, but then Steve was 10 minutes late. I talked about buying the car and all the reasons we had for doing it even though we still had payday loans and taxes. I told him my reasoning and asked him if it made sense. What I thinking clearly. He said my thinking process was sound and reasonable. The financial decision was up to us but he could see how we really needed a back up car. I told him that I can justify anything to save my life but I appreciated his input on this. We said goodbye and made an appointment for next week at the same time.
I texted Holly before I started driving, because I don't text and drive. That's how accidents are made. I drove over to Fazoli's, a fast food italian eatery. Hubby and I had our date night there a couple of weeks ago and it was very romantic. While I was waiting for Holly and Abbie, I texted Cassie a message with my picture of how I looked yesterday to take my driver's licence photo. I really like the outrageous way I did my make up and I kind of liked wearing the wig, so this will not be the last time I will be wearing them. I turned on the cellular data for a moment to send the picture to her. Then I turned it off after the pic was sent.
Holly arrived with Abbie and she was in fine form. She brought me a box of Honey Nut Cheerios and left over food that her cat won't eat. Then we went inside. I had two coupons to use today, one for her to use to get a free kid's meal with the purchase of an adult entree, so she bought that. Then I ordered and used a coupon to get a free dessert with the purchase of a meal. I got their lunch special, choose two things and get a drink for $5. I chose the raviolis with marinara sauce and a salad. I got a lemonade and Sprite mixed drink.
We had a good lunch and Abbie entertained us. The amount of food was perfect but when the lady came around with additional breadsticks, I got two more. So yummy! The italian donuts were 6 pincusioned sized balls of fried dough coated in sugar. There was a wildberry sauce for dipping. Abbie is 2 years old, well, two and a half now. She was fascinated with the sugar coating. She would lick her finger then rub it on the dough ball and hold her finger out to her mom. Then she would say "Mine!" and laugh. Holly would play along and all of us were laughing. Lunch went well.
When we were done and in our respective cars, I sent a text message to hubby about what I had done, having lunch with Holly and where. Then told him I was remembering our night there and how wonderful it was. I told him I was so in love with him this moment. And that he probably wouldn't get this text anytime soon, but that was ok, I love him and now and forever.
I next went back to the Department of Motor Vehicles so I could get an amount of how much it was going to cost us to register the car. Between $500-$700. The clerk was a little sketchy, I showed him the paperwork and the paper where they had taken out taxes for the county. The clerk next door came over and said the dealership will send a check with the taxes when they send in the title. The best guess they could give me was around $500, as long as they send in the check. I really hope so!
So Friday I will have to sit down and go over the budget, call the people we were supposed to make payments to out of this paycheck and tell them we will pay them in the middle of the month. Then I will need to calculate everything and figure out where we are getting the $500 in 45 days. And pray a lot.
So I came home and made dog biscuits as we were getting really low. Hubby's ad is coming out on Thursday at the dog show in the catalogs and then he will make the dog biscuits on demand. I check the freezer and we have plenty of spent grain.
I defrosted a steak and hubby will cook it when he gets home. I was going to have him grill it but I forgot that we are out of propane. So he will broil it. I fed the dogs and had Frank feed all the cats and spend some time with Tommy. I will go in a little later before I shut off his light and play with him. I still have to pack, mom and dad are picking me up at 8am. I will be spending the night with them in Pueblo in the RV then getting up at an ungodly hour of the morning to start the dog show. My job will be to sell products and tickets for the raffles. Then hubby will be driving down from Colorado Springs and joining us at 4pm. Then we will be getting dressed up and going to the banquet as mom and dad's guests. Afterwards, hubby and I will drive home and I will be sleeping in on Friday. Or as much as I can with this time change.
Monday, November 2, 2015
Monday, November 2, 2015
Today was a mirthful day. I woke up at 8am, when hubby had set the alarm. I was going to sleep in and get up later but I was awake. I was going to go get my driver's licence renew because it expired in August and I had forgotten to do it then. Then this weekend it was pointed out to me I have been expired for the last two months. Boo!
There is the new Human Services Center and DMV just down the road from hubby's school but I was having a hard time picturing exactly where, so I was going to follow hubby to there, then have him go to work. He looked it up on Google Maps, got a street view and then told me he didn't think it opened until 10am, so I should just go in later. I was ansy to get going, but he was in a hurry to get to work, so I stayed home. I kissed him goodbye.
I ate the rest of my McDonald's pancakes, leftover from Sunday, and drank a cola. I watched tv but mostly read my Diane Mott Davidson book I got from the library. This is another female lead character that solves murders and cooks. Her books have different recipes in them too. I read for a while, until 11, when I expected Quincy to come on, but it didn't! So I decided to get up and get going. I spent some time in with Tommy, our local stray cat. I have to cut down on the amount of canned food I am giving him as he is getting kind of heavy.
I got dressed in yellow pants, blue short sleeved shirt and a gauzy thing that Judithmary gave me. It's the kind of thing old women wear. I don't know why I took it. But it served my purpose today. I put on some really loud eye shawdow and liner, coming way out the sides of my eyes. I put on dark red lipstick. Then I put on my 1970s women's wig. The one I wore for Halloween. Since I was going to have a bad, new driver's license photo, I wanted to really play it up! And for the two days I wore the wig and bite mark tattoos for Halloween, people thought this was my real hair, a badly styled real hair! And here in Colorado, we get our licenses for 10 years at a time so I wanted a worthy picture!
Saturday, hubby and I went up to Thorton, which is a suburb of Denver, and talked to a dealership about buying a car. We talked before we went into the dealership that we would only buy the car if the payments were $325 or less. And we talked about what kind of car we wanted. I wanted something with not too many frills. The more you have, the more you have go wrong. I liked power windows and locks and wouldn't mind a seat warmer. We talked about that we really didn't need a large car anymore, it was just the two of us. We weren't trading in the Saturn, we were keeping it until the end. The letter I had gotten said that we could do a $0 down and low interest rates. So we went to see. It was a VW dealership and I had always wanted to own a Bug. We decided if they had any original Bugs or Buss, we were walking out with one. But even if we got one of the newer ones, that would be ok too. But I wanted to get a new or like new car that we could afford so it will last us another 18 years, like the Saturn.
We got there, filled out some paperwork and let them run our credit. Then we pointed out all the stuff that went into the bankruptcy. They said we were fine. They told us to go out and look at the cars. We found a couple we really liked, Bugs. I loved the brown one and a red one. Butthe brown was my favorite. When our salesman came out, he said the brown one was a little out of our price range and it had a lot of extra features, so we took the red Bug for a drive. The salesman let us go by ourselves. It was a 2014 Candy Apple Red Beetle. The engines are now in the front, since they are a front wheel drive. All cars have ABS now, so the brakes won't lock up. It has front airbags and side airbags, which is a nice safety feature. It's turbo, so has good pick up and go. We drove it around the neighborhood and liked it. We decided to go in and talk to them about it.
We gave the keys back and sat to talk to our salesman. He went in to the Big Boss, and came back with some figures that was above what we told him we wanted to do, $360-$375 with $4000 down. We told him no, Paul had told me $0 down. So he came back and asked me if we could do $100 down. We said sure and gave him a $100. He presented more monthly payments of $350. We explained that we would go home, think about it and let him know on Monday. He said "What monthly payment would you have to get to buy this car today?" I said "$313 a month, including all taxes, fees, and dealer charges." He went back to the Big Boss.
He was gone for a long time. When he came back, he came back with the finance lady, The Big Boss. She said "I got you a payment of $308, all inclusive." We said "Great! Now I have to call my insurance company and make sure it's not a big payment." So I called Amica, our insurance company we have our house and cars with, and talked to them. I gave them the VIN of the car and asked how much it would be to have full coverage for this car, liability on the Saturn, and drop Elroy, my pick up truck from the insurance. It turns out we would only be paying $10 more than we have been. Score! So we bought the car.
I thought we would have the 3 day grace period to bring the car back if we changed our mind but the law had changed and you can't do that anymore. So we have a new car. We did look at the Facts Report, the one with the commercial with the Fox? It showed that there has been no accidents, this car was bought new and used as a rental and had had two service calls for routine maintenance. It took a couple of hours and then we were done. I called up Cassie and asked if we could come by and show her since we were only 25 minutes away. She said yes, they were just handing out candy to trick or treaters. So we did. She and Drew were excited for us.
Hubby and I went to Gunther Toody's down the way for a celebratory dinner. Then, each in our own cars, me in the Saturn and him in the Bug, drove back home. By the time we got home, it was 830pm, Frank had handed out all the candy and was just shutting down. We fed the beasties and went up to watch some tv.
Sunday was the Friends of the Library book sale, the $5 fill a paper grocery store bag. I had set aside money to buy $12 bags. Hubby said he would go with me and help. I explained I fill the bags with random paperback books that look interesting. I was buying so many books to refresh our personal library, get some for trade to the used bookstores, and the rest to sell at the garage sale next summer. He just shook his head and said he will take one bag and put in stuff that he wanted and I could do the rest. He would carry them out to the car. We had taken the Bug, who we name Kiggy. I wanted to name her Kandy and he wanted to name her Iggy, so we compromised and came up with Kiggy. It would be a good test of how much we could get into the trunk.
It was a madhouse at the sale. At one point, a guy threw a book at hubby, so he threw one back. Then hubby caught a guy starting to carry off the bags I had filled and set aside! So he stayed there and guarded our loot. We got mostly books, hubby got hardback and paperbacks. I filled a bag with VHS tapes, DVDs, books on tape, and some cookbooks. By the time we were done, we had 11 bags. 7 of them fit into the truck, and the other 5, in the back seat. Since this was a two car door car, there is levers on the top of the seats that you pull up to access the back. You do have to bend to get back there, thank goodness we won't be doing that often! When we got home, Frank and hubby unloaded the car, then I drove off to the mall and hubby went to print some stuff at work for my parents.
It was when we were buying the car that the dealership noticed my license had expired. In order to get the car, I had to promise to get my license renew today and email a copy of the paper copy showing I had done that this afternoon. So I got dressed up and went and did it. Since it had my old address, I brought the two insurance cards and new registration to prove my address.
When I got home, hubby came home for lunch. We visited then he went back to work. At 530pm, I put a spiral ham in the oven. I didn't spice it, I wasn't in the mood for cloves. I covered it with foil and baked it at 350 degrees until 730pm, when hubby was due home. I made peas and mashed potatoes. When the ham was done, I uncovered it, put on the glaze and let it sit for 5 minutes, like the directions said. It was wonderful! I have been craving spiral ham for several months now and it's been over $2.60 a pound, so I have waited. At Walmart, I found it for $1.79 a pound, so I got an 11 pound one. After dinner, hubby separated the cut part and put it in a bag in the frig. We put the uncut part in a gallon sized bag in the freezer, to be used for casseroles later. Then we put the bone with some meat on it in a bag in the freezer to use in split pea soup this winter. I put the leftover peas and mashed potatoes in my "stew" container in the freezer. All veggie juice, leftover veggies and stuff goes in there so when I got to make a stew, I have all this good stuff.
Though it is going to be really tight and we are still paying off payday loans, this was a good thing. I have to get back to budgeting every cent we have and keep costs down. But it was worth it!
There is the new Human Services Center and DMV just down the road from hubby's school but I was having a hard time picturing exactly where, so I was going to follow hubby to there, then have him go to work. He looked it up on Google Maps, got a street view and then told me he didn't think it opened until 10am, so I should just go in later. I was ansy to get going, but he was in a hurry to get to work, so I stayed home. I kissed him goodbye.
I ate the rest of my McDonald's pancakes, leftover from Sunday, and drank a cola. I watched tv but mostly read my Diane Mott Davidson book I got from the library. This is another female lead character that solves murders and cooks. Her books have different recipes in them too. I read for a while, until 11, when I expected Quincy to come on, but it didn't! So I decided to get up and get going. I spent some time in with Tommy, our local stray cat. I have to cut down on the amount of canned food I am giving him as he is getting kind of heavy.
I got dressed in yellow pants, blue short sleeved shirt and a gauzy thing that Judithmary gave me. It's the kind of thing old women wear. I don't know why I took it. But it served my purpose today. I put on some really loud eye shawdow and liner, coming way out the sides of my eyes. I put on dark red lipstick. Then I put on my 1970s women's wig. The one I wore for Halloween. Since I was going to have a bad, new driver's license photo, I wanted to really play it up! And for the two days I wore the wig and bite mark tattoos for Halloween, people thought this was my real hair, a badly styled real hair! And here in Colorado, we get our licenses for 10 years at a time so I wanted a worthy picture!
Saturday, hubby and I went up to Thorton, which is a suburb of Denver, and talked to a dealership about buying a car. We talked before we went into the dealership that we would only buy the car if the payments were $325 or less. And we talked about what kind of car we wanted. I wanted something with not too many frills. The more you have, the more you have go wrong. I liked power windows and locks and wouldn't mind a seat warmer. We talked about that we really didn't need a large car anymore, it was just the two of us. We weren't trading in the Saturn, we were keeping it until the end. The letter I had gotten said that we could do a $0 down and low interest rates. So we went to see. It was a VW dealership and I had always wanted to own a Bug. We decided if they had any original Bugs or Buss, we were walking out with one. But even if we got one of the newer ones, that would be ok too. But I wanted to get a new or like new car that we could afford so it will last us another 18 years, like the Saturn.
We got there, filled out some paperwork and let them run our credit. Then we pointed out all the stuff that went into the bankruptcy. They said we were fine. They told us to go out and look at the cars. We found a couple we really liked, Bugs. I loved the brown one and a red one. Butthe brown was my favorite. When our salesman came out, he said the brown one was a little out of our price range and it had a lot of extra features, so we took the red Bug for a drive. The salesman let us go by ourselves. It was a 2014 Candy Apple Red Beetle. The engines are now in the front, since they are a front wheel drive. All cars have ABS now, so the brakes won't lock up. It has front airbags and side airbags, which is a nice safety feature. It's turbo, so has good pick up and go. We drove it around the neighborhood and liked it. We decided to go in and talk to them about it.
We gave the keys back and sat to talk to our salesman. He went in to the Big Boss, and came back with some figures that was above what we told him we wanted to do, $360-$375 with $4000 down. We told him no, Paul had told me $0 down. So he came back and asked me if we could do $100 down. We said sure and gave him a $100. He presented more monthly payments of $350. We explained that we would go home, think about it and let him know on Monday. He said "What monthly payment would you have to get to buy this car today?" I said "$313 a month, including all taxes, fees, and dealer charges." He went back to the Big Boss.
He was gone for a long time. When he came back, he came back with the finance lady, The Big Boss. She said "I got you a payment of $308, all inclusive." We said "Great! Now I have to call my insurance company and make sure it's not a big payment." So I called Amica, our insurance company we have our house and cars with, and talked to them. I gave them the VIN of the car and asked how much it would be to have full coverage for this car, liability on the Saturn, and drop Elroy, my pick up truck from the insurance. It turns out we would only be paying $10 more than we have been. Score! So we bought the car.
I thought we would have the 3 day grace period to bring the car back if we changed our mind but the law had changed and you can't do that anymore. So we have a new car. We did look at the Facts Report, the one with the commercial with the Fox? It showed that there has been no accidents, this car was bought new and used as a rental and had had two service calls for routine maintenance. It took a couple of hours and then we were done. I called up Cassie and asked if we could come by and show her since we were only 25 minutes away. She said yes, they were just handing out candy to trick or treaters. So we did. She and Drew were excited for us.
Hubby and I went to Gunther Toody's down the way for a celebratory dinner. Then, each in our own cars, me in the Saturn and him in the Bug, drove back home. By the time we got home, it was 830pm, Frank had handed out all the candy and was just shutting down. We fed the beasties and went up to watch some tv.
Sunday was the Friends of the Library book sale, the $5 fill a paper grocery store bag. I had set aside money to buy $12 bags. Hubby said he would go with me and help. I explained I fill the bags with random paperback books that look interesting. I was buying so many books to refresh our personal library, get some for trade to the used bookstores, and the rest to sell at the garage sale next summer. He just shook his head and said he will take one bag and put in stuff that he wanted and I could do the rest. He would carry them out to the car. We had taken the Bug, who we name Kiggy. I wanted to name her Kandy and he wanted to name her Iggy, so we compromised and came up with Kiggy. It would be a good test of how much we could get into the trunk.
It was a madhouse at the sale. At one point, a guy threw a book at hubby, so he threw one back. Then hubby caught a guy starting to carry off the bags I had filled and set aside! So he stayed there and guarded our loot. We got mostly books, hubby got hardback and paperbacks. I filled a bag with VHS tapes, DVDs, books on tape, and some cookbooks. By the time we were done, we had 11 bags. 7 of them fit into the truck, and the other 5, in the back seat. Since this was a two car door car, there is levers on the top of the seats that you pull up to access the back. You do have to bend to get back there, thank goodness we won't be doing that often! When we got home, Frank and hubby unloaded the car, then I drove off to the mall and hubby went to print some stuff at work for my parents.
It was when we were buying the car that the dealership noticed my license had expired. In order to get the car, I had to promise to get my license renew today and email a copy of the paper copy showing I had done that this afternoon. So I got dressed up and went and did it. Since it had my old address, I brought the two insurance cards and new registration to prove my address.
When I got home, hubby came home for lunch. We visited then he went back to work. At 530pm, I put a spiral ham in the oven. I didn't spice it, I wasn't in the mood for cloves. I covered it with foil and baked it at 350 degrees until 730pm, when hubby was due home. I made peas and mashed potatoes. When the ham was done, I uncovered it, put on the glaze and let it sit for 5 minutes, like the directions said. It was wonderful! I have been craving spiral ham for several months now and it's been over $2.60 a pound, so I have waited. At Walmart, I found it for $1.79 a pound, so I got an 11 pound one. After dinner, hubby separated the cut part and put it in a bag in the frig. We put the uncut part in a gallon sized bag in the freezer, to be used for casseroles later. Then we put the bone with some meat on it in a bag in the freezer to use in split pea soup this winter. I put the leftover peas and mashed potatoes in my "stew" container in the freezer. All veggie juice, leftover veggies and stuff goes in there so when I got to make a stew, I have all this good stuff.
Though it is going to be really tight and we are still paying off payday loans, this was a good thing. I have to get back to budgeting every cent we have and keep costs down. But it was worth it!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)