Daybook: Monday, Jan. 28/19

Outside my window....it is clear, cold and sunny. It is presently minus 20 *C or minus 4*F My driveway is shoveled because I was outside for an hour again yesterday clearing the snow.

I am thinking.....that this is the last week of January and the first week of February. It will be time to examine my goals update for the month.

I am thankful for.....being able to stay in my home for another year after my husband's passing.

From the kitchen.....I baked a keto loaf and made more yoghurt. I spent quite a bit of time on Saturday cleaning the  filter and sprayer arm and the inside of my dishwasher with baking soda.

I am wearing.....black denim jeans, my gray flutter sweater, my red hooded sweater and red and gray striped socks (with red knit slippers). I am bundled against the cold.

I am creating.....no paper crafts for the time being. I did finish an embroidery project yesterday.

I am going.....nowhere today, I don't think. I may have to go out tomorrow, so plan on doing several errands at once.

I am hoping.....the weather remains favourable tomorrow for when I need to go into Kingston to attend a follow-up to my Cravings Workshop.

I am hearing.....Pop classical music right now on my Amazon Echo (specifically "The Cello Song" by the Piano Guys.)  I got this wonderful gift at Christmas from my Dad and Dee, but because I was already having problems with using up increased bandwidth, I was NOT using it. Now that I am paying for  unlimited Wifi, I have discovered the joys of listening to music again in my house.

Around the house.....my dining table is piled high with scrap booking materials waiting for me to get back into it. I have another embroidery project waiting for me to begin. My valentines are waiting to go into the mail early next week.

One of my favourite things.....is the ability to craft and do the things I love.

A few plans for the rest of the week......include a final appointment with the "cravings" workshop tomorrow afternoon at 1:30. I also need to do a grocery shopping trip to stock up again for February.

Weekly Goals:

• Send 3 cards out
• Print out today's 10 minute decluttering tasks, and try to get as many done this week as possible. 
• Pick up new blades for my paper slicer so I can back to my scrap booking project.
• Do a monthly goals update.
• Make up a list of February goals.

Here is a photo I am sharing.....

Before Christmas I ordered 2 pkgs. or 14 flour sack tea towels. I embroidered 13 as gifts and had one left over. Yesterday I finished this one with yet another kitchen quote.----Kitchen Rules: The last day to complain was yesterday. I will put this away until I need another gift.

Saturday Goals Update

My Weekly goals

• Work on this week's 10 minute decluttering  tasks from Monday's printout    Not done

• Organize my filing bin and throw out papers and instruction manuals no longer relevant        My organizing is done and I have taken care of a lot of outdated manuals.
  

• Put weather caulking around smaller kitchen window     Done
  

• Start putting photos into a scrap book      Started

• Produce one hand made gift   In progress

• write out 3 note cards and send in the mail     Done
  

• go over my budget for the month of January to find more money savings         Took some time to go through February's budget

Today I drove to Amerstview and spent $15 on dairy.  Eggs were on for $1.88 a doz. and butter was only $2.99 a pound.  I needed to buy more milk so I may make some more yoghurt tomorrow. I baked a loaf of keto bread and washed two loads of laundry. I hung up one load today and will hang the next load tomorrow after I have folded and put away the first load.  I spent the afternoon working on an embroidery project.

Dinners This Past Week  (Friday to Friday)

Roast pork and vegetables
Leftover roast pork with vegetables with grated cheese
Chicken stir fry  (frozen Oriental mix veggies)
Cooked ground beef with veggies in a cream cheese sauce
Pork chops with leftover veggies in cream cheese sauce
Meatloaf with mashed turnip and green beans
Leftover meatloaf with roasted cauliflower and broccoli

Middle of the Week Doldrums

I seem to be taking a kind of break. It isn't something that I planned but I just seem to have lost my mojo. Having goals is fine but if I don't want to do much, than not much gets done. Tuesday afternoon I realized that the cutting blade on my paper slicer is really, really dull. I didn't really notice when I was making all those cards at Christmas and afterwards because I was slicing card stock. However, when I tried to measure and cut decorative paper for my scrap book pages, well.... So I have to put that on hold until I drive to Michael's and get another replacement package of two. I don't want to make a special trip, so I will wait until I next go into Kingston.

So yesterday morning I decided to start on my filing bin. I pulled out two file folders full of instruction booklets for various tools and appliances that we have owned. Some were quite straight forward. I knew that these were for my current appliances (or not), but when it came to my husband's tools, I didn't know which ones we still own. For instance, we have three booklets for three different push mowers. I gathered all of those into a bag and will keep them until I can get outside to the shed to look for them. At that point, I decided to give up on filing for a few days. 

It was snowing quite heavily, so I decided to go outside and shovel snow for an hour. The temperature was forecast to go up to 0*C and the snow change to rain. I needed to clear the snow before that happened or it would be impossible to move that heavy wet stuff....worse, if it started to ice.

 After lunch I watched a "free" on-line course on how to get organized and  set goals.  It was kind of like an infomercial to entice you into buying the larger course where they would provide worksheets, etc. But I think I garnered some useful information from the program. I also paid for my annual license renewal sticker on-line. It will arrive in the mail within about a week for me to affix to my license plate. Then I had myself a hot bubble bath and used a pumice stone on my feet. My first Spa Day of the year!

Today I was still not feeling it....filing, that is. So I stayed on the computer and went to a new-to-me keto website. It is a really good idea to go back and review what it is you are trying to achieve, because I discovered some really useful information today.  I don't know WHERE I thought it was okay to eat sweet potatoes. I think it may have been left over from my earlier days of trying to avoid sugars and simple starches. Sweet potatoes were preferable to eating white potatoes because of a lower glycemic value, and because it was considered a super food. Well the website I visited today advises against eating any sweet potatoes on a keto diet. Oh, oh. So I peeled and cooked the one I had in my fridge, mashed it and put it in the freezer to give to someone  else.  I learned that berries are good on a keto diet, but blueberries are probably the worst choice. I should be sticking to raspberries and blackberries. I also have a few new recipes for my binder, so a morning well spent. This afternoon I prepared two new embroidery projects and started one of them.

 I am not doing anything I planned to do; however, it hasn't been a total loss of the past two days. I am learning a lot and I DID start on a handmade gift (which is one of my goals). I will have a quiet evening and tomorrow is another day.

Tasks For Tuesday

I stroked another goal off my weekly check list first thing this morning, by writing 3 note cards to three people and got them in today's mail pickup. I used 3 cards that I had already made. I used $10 from my "found money" jar and used it to buy 10 postage stamps to last me until the end of the month.

I peeled and diced a whole rutabaga, cooked and mashed it.

I baked another loaf of keto bread.

I decided which photo album I would like to work on and sorted photos all afternoon. Of course, this is a huge project and won't be done quickly. Doing one a month is just a little too ambitious.

My pork chops are done and  I will be eating them with creamed veggies tonight for dinner. I will have some of the rutabaga tomorrow.

Monday Morning With My Cable Company Again

It was another Monday morning on the phone  trying to sort out what I thought was already figured out once already.

So that you understand this problem, I pay for a plan that offers me 175 gigabytes a month. That is a LOT. Everyone that I have talked to cannot understand how I can use up all of that in a month and still need 50 more.  Especially since I only watch Netflix at night and my usage has remained exactly the same for the past two years. When my husband was alive, he would watch Netflix all day, while I might be watching You Tube videos in the next room. In October I wasn't using 25% of my allotment. Then something happened in November where I started using a crazy amount of bandwidth, except that I wasn't. They thought that maybe someone was stealing my signal and accused me of giving out my password. So I chose for them to come out to my house and set up wireless Wifi. Then I would be secure.

Last Tuesday, the 15th of the month, I called customer service to report that my online account was still showing as me owing the extra $100 for going over the bandwidth of my Wifi. I was concerned because they were supposed to remove that amount from my bank account in 2  days, and the money would not be there. She checked on-line and told me that no, the adjustment was made and my account was fine. In fact, there was no charge at all on my account.  Huh? I was still expecting my bill to be around $126. On Saturday, after spending all my cash on hand for grocery purchases and gas, I checked my  account to see if there was much left in there to buy more groceries if I needed, or to place an extra payment on my credit card. You guessed it. My checking account was dry. The whole amount plus the extra $100 was taken, and because the account did not have the full amount, the bank had to take it from my savings account. To rub salt in the wound, I was close to being extended over my bandwidth AGAIN. I only had 13 gigabytes left until the end of the month.

Hence the need to get back on the phone today. One of the technicians got testy with me. In trying to understand why my usage was coming up so high, he told me he couldn't tell me what I was doing to use up so much bandwidth....just that I was and that I should buy a bigger plan. He transferred me to my fourth department this morning  (the Sales dept.). So I am now paying $10 a month more for unlimited Wifi. (which is a whole lot better than $100 extra  a month). And of the 9 representatives I have spoken to in the last two weeks (three of them being technicians), this sales person asked me IF I could have inadvertently changed my Netflix settings to HIGH resolution during my many attempts to get decent reception in my house. She was the only person who tried to explain the problem. Tonight, when I turn on my TV, I will check that first. As far as my bill?? Well, apparently there is a credit in my account for $288.  I was only expecting $100 and the  tax, but I will take it.  I have a feeling this will not be the end of it.

Daybook: Monday, January 21/19

Outside my window.....it is bright and sunny and bitterly cold. (-24*C  or -11*F)

I am thinking.....of my morning on the phone with my Internet provider, AGAIN. I have written a separate post on this, if you want more detail.

I am thankful for.....my two mystery helpers who took care of the heaviest load of snow at the foot of the driveway that you can see in the photo. This is heavily packed snow that is plowed up from the highway in front of my house. I only had to spend about one hour outside yesterday clearing with my shovel.

From the kitchen.....this weekend, I made a loaf of keto bread (which is already gone) and seven containers of homemade yoghurt.

I am wearing....blue jeans, a gray knit sweater and red zipped cardigan, socks AND slippers.

I am creating.....nothing today. I cleared off my table and washed up all my supplies before putting them away. I am ready to start a new project.

I am going.....nowhere today. I don't need to go anywhere and it is too cold to venture out.

I am hoping.....to be able to start scrap booking this week.

I am hearing.....just the blower on my furnace.

Around the house.....I have the laundry done up, the downstairs plants are watered, and I have caulked around the window frame in the kitchen.

One of my favourite things.....is a working furnace and a warm and cozy home.

A few plans for the rest of the week.....(see my weekly goals) I have no appointments scheduled.

My Weekly goals

• Work on this week's 10 minute decluttering  tasks from today's printout    Not done

• Organize my filing bin and throw out papers and instruction manuals no longer relevant        My organizing is done and I have taken care of a lot of outdated manuals.
  

• Put weather caulking around smaller kitchen window     Done
  

• Start putting photos into a scrap book      Started

• Produce one hand made gift   In progress

• write out 3 note cards and send in the mail     Done
  

• go over my budget for the month of January to find more money savings         Took some time to go through February's budget
  

Here's the picture I am sharing....

Seven cups of yoghurt made and this week's list of 10 minute decluttering tasks

Snow at Week's End

We got snow...lotsa snow. Someone (I don't know who) plowed out  the worst of it from the bottom of my driveway. When I finally went out this afternoon to clean up the remainder, someone came over with his snowblower and removed even more of it for me. I was left with the cleanup with my shovel and the top of my driveway. I only spent about an hour outside. What wonderful neighbours!

Other chores that I accomplished today

• I cleaned off the dining table, completely

• I washed my stamps, acrylic blocks, and my Cricut mats and put everything away. The table is now cleared to do scrap booking, if I can get my photos in order.

• I put away my two loads of laundry I washed and hung yesterday.

• I made a batch of yoghurt

Weekly Goals:  Update

•     Continue to moisturize at night and apply lipstick in the mornings until it becomes routine.Missed lipstick on Wednesday, and didn't remember until late in the afternoon some days. Even so, I  still put it on when I finally remembered  because I want it to become a habit. I missed putting on moisturizer last night.  
• Continue to journal every day to keep better accounting of my spending and my weekly menus   Done

•   Write 3 note cards to send off to 3 different recipients this week.     Done
•  Prime the bathroom door (inside and outside)      Done
• While I'm at it, find other items to prime (bedside tables, small shelving units, any unfinished trim)   Done
•  Go through another binder and purge papers that are no longer useful or relevant. I finished my recipe binder last week.     Done. I actually went through all of my binders this week (purged and organized)
•  Sort through some photos and start scrap booking.     Not Done
•   Change the filter on my furnace.      Done
• Make  up my valentine cards this week.     Done  I added this goal after the list was published.

I also did not add to my goals list to work on my 10 minute decluttering list that I printed from the "organized Moms" website, so I did not even look at it.  Not done

On the table this past week  (Friday to Friday)

sauteed cabbage with cooked ground beef mixed in
2 bowls of split pea soup with 2 slices of warm buttered keto bread
pork chops with veggies and feta cheese cooked in heavy cream
fried peameal bacon with leftover creamed veggies and feta
the second half of the sauteed cabbage with cooked ground beef
roast chicken thighs and veggies roasted with grated mozzarella cheese on top
roast pork roast with veggies and grated cheese

Poor as a Church Mouse

My eldest son used the expression "Poor as a church mouse" to describe his early adult life as he had a family to feed and he was a student trying to get his university degrees. I checked on-line this morning to find the origins of this simile, but it isn't quite understood WHY it came to be. But everyone understands the expression to mean destitute and hungry (without a crumb to eat).  I was beginning to feel that way recently....(not really), but I am determined to keep my household costs as low as possible. I went for a few groceries this morning because I had run out of everything. There were no eggs for my breakfast omelet this morning, so I had blueberries and yoghurt. I was also completely out of milk for my tea after finishing the last of it for my morning 2 cups of coffee. The forecast is calling for a snow watch this afternoon and evening, so it was important to get the shopping done early.  The temperature was minus 20 degrees C, which translates to minus 4 degrees F.

I made two stops. One was for No-Frills and the other was Shopper's Drug Mart on the way back home.  Both places give me Optimum points on my loyalty card. Here is what I bought.

Produce cost me $28.05 (5 bags of winter veg, 2 of oriental mix, 2 kg of blueberries, 1 rutabaga and 1 sweet potato)

Dairy cost $30.26 (2 blocks of cheese, yoghurt which wasn't on sale, milk, 2 doz. eggs, 2 pkgs. of cream cheese, and 2 heavy cream)

I had already spent $41.55 of my remaining $45.00 grocery budget at No Frills, so I had to spend a $15 gc at Shoppers from Christmas, plus $1.75 cash oop.  With my remaining $1.70 I spent all of it at the Dollar Depot for another roll of 2-way tape that I am completely out of. I don't have one nickel left. Usually, when I return from a shopping trip, I put all my nickels and dimes from my purse into my "found change" jar, but there was nothing today. On the way home I spent the budgeted $50 on gas for my van, so I have almost a full tank of gas.

This afternoon I have placed my bed sheets and light load of laundry into the washing machine. I will be making my own yoghurt after lunch  (I don't know why I stopped making it), and a loaf of keto bread. Lunch is the last of my turkey soup and dinner tonight will be the leftover roast pork and veggies from last night. Almost the entire $300 household budget went to groceries this past month, as well as $55 in gift cards.  I am beginning to think that $300 is going to be unrealistic, but I don't quite believe yet that I am as poor as a church mouse.

Kids' Valentines

They're done. It took most of the past two days, but I think I am pretty well done with making all my valentines. I have to stop anyways because I am completely out of my 2-way tape and I just had enough postage stamps to put on the kids' envelopes. They are all signed, addressed and stamped. I think when I look over what I accomplished this week to make my report, I will not have accomplished as much as I'd hoped. On the other hand, I never even put down "making valentines" when I was considering my January goals. What was I thinking? I enclosed some Valentine riddles in some of the kids' cards, but have yet to write any notes inside the cards intended for the adults.

 I used stamps and punches for the first one (girl) and used my cricut for the next two (male) The one in the middle is for my adult grandson (I can't leave him out), so I distressed and grunged it up. It looks like I left it out while painting my door earlier this week.

Although the cards are mine, I used some stickers here to embellish. Instead of hoarding them, I am beginning to use more and more of my supplies to help me in my card-making. For example, the first card with the shaker window, I used a ready made sentiment,ladybug and a flower sticker in the corner. The owls in the second card are also stickers. The third card uses up some of my 3-D treat stickers. I have made ALL my own embellishments in the past, but this saved me some time. I still consider these homemade. And if I already possess all these materials, I should use them, right?

It snowed last night and most of the day. There still isn't a lot. I haven't gone outside to shovel the driveway because for a while this afternoon, it looked as though it was melting again. That could change. I feel I could have a little snooze on the couch before dinner. I have a small pork roast in the crock pot. There isn't a lot to report until tomorrow, so I will wish you a great weekend. Bye for now.

Yesterday I could not get enthused to do more painting.  I don't mind painting, but the prep and cleaning up takes so much time and effort that it takes all the joy out of it. Rather than drag everything out again, I opted to go through all my binders to purge more sheets of paper and organize the rest of it so I can find what I am looking for  more quickly.  There's a clue for you. I chose filing over painting, which is a good indication about how I was feeling yesterday.  Anyways, it was a job that lasted all morning. After lunch I decided to drive into Amherstview to my drug store to wait while my prescription was being filled. Last week when I drove in to pick up a refill, I missed the opportunity to drop off my script so that it would be on file. Then all I would have to do this week would be to call in for it. If the weather turned bad, I could have it delivered free of charge. I have only done that once, last winter, when the weather did turn bad. Of course I gave the driver a tip, but I appreciate that the service is available.

So when I returned home yesterday afternoon I was feeling tired and felt that I could have lay on the couch for a wee nap. But I didn't. I decided to start my valentines. The kids cards take some time doing because I put together die cuts from my Cricut machine. So I won't show those cards until I have them all finished.  I only finished two of the kids' cards yesterday but I also worked on some friendship cards that I will mail off as valentines to the "old" kids in my life.

This morning I bit the bullet and dragged out the primer and equipment again to put a second coat on the bedside table and two small bathroom shelves I started. I won't be painting them until Spring, when I can take them outside to spray paint. My daughter called to tell me that she had received a parcel from "Dee" for her son. (He is the one who has been sending cards to me and other family members all summer and through the Fall) I know that "Dee" was sending him more blank cards and envelopes and stamps so she could support his habit. *laugh* It was then that I learned that he has set up a "mail box" outside his room. She was going to place the parcel in his mail box for him to find.  I felt so bad that I didn't know he was checking his mail box every day.  So today my valentines were placed on hold so that I could make him some "fan mail". That is what he is looking for. And I couldn't make him a card without sending to my other two young grands.

My grandson's thumb's up card says "Hi there, from your #1 fan" It is a combination of two stamps I own that I cut apart to make the sentiment. He loves all things nautical or boat-related, so I found some scrapbook paper with anchors that I used for a background. His sister is mad about llamas. I am sending the parrot to my youngest grand daughter. It says, "Hope you have a wonderful day". I will write a note inside each one tomorrow morning and get them off in the mail. This is how priorities change from one moment to the next. I have to remain flexible.

Daybook: Monday, January 14/19

Today is my oldest grand daughter's birthday. Happy Birthday, Sweetie.

Outside my window.....it is sunny and cold. The cold is much easier to take under sunny skies.

I am thinking.....of all the work I envisioned for the month of January. What was I thinking?

I am thankful for..... having enough materials to get things done.

From the kitchen.....I got a lot accomplished on Saturday. I made 2  pots of turkey vegetable and split pea soup. I baked a loaf of keto bread and I fried up a package of bacon from the freezer. I also shredded and sauteed a whole head of cabbage that will provide two dinners this week.

I am wearing.....a pair of knockabout jeans and an old red t-shirt for working around the house. I wouldn't wear these out in public.

I am creating.....some cards for all occasions.

I am going.....probably nowhere today. I have not written out my note-cards yet, so probably will not be going out to the Post Office. Besides, I am still in the old clothes I put on this morning because I was painting.

I am hoping.....to get started on another craft project this week.

I am hearing.....just the blower on my furnace.

Around the house.....my dining table is messy still with the supplies I used to make more cards over the weekend. I have some painting supplies brought into the computer room where I was priming the bathroom door and a bedside table this morning. The door has two coats of white primer, but my table needs another coat tomorrow. I also primed a small hanging corner shelf. Since the preparation and the cleaning up is such a big chore, I want to do as much as I can.

One of my favourite things.....this past weekend was a Christmas gift from my daughter. She gave me, among other things, a large paper pad filled with water colour backgrounds, which inspired me to make a lot of cards.

A few plans for the rest of the week.....include a visit to the pharmacy to pick up another prescription. I have no scheduled appointments.

Weekly Goals:

• Continue to moisturize at night and apply lipstick in the mornings until it becomes routine.

Missed lipstick on Wednesday, and late in the afternoon some days.

• Continue to journal every day to keep better accounting of my spending and my weekly menus. Done

• Write 3 note cards to send off to 3 different recipients this week.     Done
  

• Prime the bathroom door (inside and outside)      Done
  

• While I'm at it, find other items to prime (bedside tables, small shelving units, any unfinished trim)    Done
  

• Go through another binder and purge papers that are no longer useful or relevant. I finished my recipe binder last week.     Done

• Sort through some photos and start scrap booking.     Not Done

• Change the filter on my furnace.      Done

 

• Make  up my valentine cards this week.     Done

Here's the picture I am sharing.....

 I wish I had taken before photos of these things. You wouldn't believe the difference. The door looked so dirty, but it wasn't. I had scrubbed the original paint right off of it, so it was looking very shabby. It now has 2 coats of white primer on it. Eventually, I will put a high gloss finishing white on it.

This upside down bedside table had a matte black finish on it. I need it to be white. This is one coat of primer. I will probably put another coat on it tomorrow to hide most of the black. This will also have a high gloss white on it eventually.

Weekly Goals Update

At the end of my Daybook Monday post, I wrote down these goals for the week

• take down all the indoor decorations and put in storage    Done
  

• take down the tree and put in storage    Done
  

• accomplish this week's 10 minute decluttering tasks and perhaps  the last two weeks    ongoing

• start journaling again in my composition book     every day
  

• make at least 5 cards    Done
  

• embroider my mom's name on her  birthday gift and get it into the mail   Done
  

• send off at least 3 "Thinking of You" cards  Done
  

• moisturize every night     every night
  

• lipstick every morning      every day

When it came to working off the 10 minute decluttering tasks, I did pretty well. I don't have bathroom counter tops in my bathroom or the powder room, so that was a non-issue. I am ALWAYS eating from my freezer, so that was hard to do. I cleaned out my pantry before Christmas and gave LOTS away to my son and DIL, so that was done already. I did however turn my meat broth from a ham into split pea soup and I turned the turkey carcass into soup as well, so I am confident I "aced" my 7 decluttering tasks for this week. From the two previous weeks' lists, I am carrying over 5 items I haven't done yet, but I think have value in accomplishing.

I actually completed 16 cards this past week. The reason for that is because I was checking against my goals for the month of January and discovered that I had set a goal of 25 for the month of January. Five cards a week is not going to advance my goal, especially as I want to do a scrapbook AND complete a gift as well. So I need to up my game this week coming.

Because  weekends are rated as lower cost hydro consumption, I generally  save my laundry for the weekends. Yesterday I did a load of cleaning rags and scatter mats. I also washed a load of darks in cold water and hung up to dry. I also worked all morning in the kitchen. I made a crock pot of split pea soup and I simmered a turkey vegetable soup on the stove top. I fried another package of bacon for the freezer, baked a loaf of keto bread, and shredded and sauteed a cabbage. Half of it was mixed with cooked ground meat for dinner last night and lunch today. The other half will be eaten later this week. I spent the afternoon making cards and enjoying a bowl of hot soup.

Turkey vegetable soup with a slice of keto bread (carrot, green bean, celery, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower and dried minced onion)

Frigid Friday

Before dinner last night, I tackled cleaning and organizing the cupboard under my kitchen sink. That is a huge job done and I feel really good about it. Then before going to bed last night, I put a turkey carcass into my crock pot with some  water and left it on  overnight. This morning I woke up to -17 degrees C and a big pot of turkey stock which I will make into soup tomorrow. The broth is in the fridge so any fat will rise to the surface and congeal, and I have stripped all the meat from the bones. There was still quite a lot of it. I brought this carcass back home from my brother's house from our Christmas Day meal. He took off the remaining meat from the turkey but couldn't be bothered to make stock with it. His loss is my gain.

I began my day with one of the 10 minute decluttering jobs from this week's  list. I cleaned out one kitchen drawer. I emptied it, vacuumed and washed out the inside and only put back those items that I am keeping. I have a pile to donate. I also took the time to go on-line to watch a You Tube video showing how to sharpen knives using the knife and tool sharpener that I gave my husband years ago.  Then I proceeded to use it myself on all the knives before they went back into the kitchen drawer. I also made a note that I am needing to find another storage compartment for that drawer.  I could buy it at the Dollar Store, but I will wait a bit to see if something else in my house surfaces that will do the job.

I brought all my succulents downstairs to set in front of my living room window where they belong, and I watered them well. I took them upstairs before Christmas to make room for my tree and other decorations. I embroidered my mother's name on the wing of the owl that I bought for her birthday. I placed the owl in tissue paper and used a box saved from Christmas deliveries and then I wrapped it up in birthday wrapping paper from my stash. I wrapped it again in brown paper, addressed it and took it over to the Post Office to mail off this afternoon before leaving town for Kingston. Postage and insurance cost me $16.85 Ouch!  Regular postal delivery with no insurance was only 50 cents less, so I opted to be that big time spender. I paid less than $9 for the gift.

I went to Bulk Barn first to buy almond flour, yellow split peas and beef bouillon powder for a total of $21.70  I will have to make a note in my journal to see how many loaves of Keto bread this will make me. I made some beautiful broth before Christmas using a ham bone, so I am going to make a split pea soup with it next week. I am not supposed to eat legumes, lentils or pulses on my new diet; however, when I complained to my doctor about deprivation (ha,ha) she allowed me to partake maybe once a month. Split pea soup with ham will be my indulgence.

I stopped at No-Frills to buy another bag of frozen blueberries and 2 containers of plain yoghurt and paid $14.35  I stopped at Guardian Drugs to pick up the prescription I had phoned in. No oop. And I stopped at the bank to take out $50 for gas, which is my budgeted amount for the month and which I also wanted to keep at home, along with my grocery money, in my cash envelope. I have $45 remaining in my grocery cash for the month of January. Will I make it? Stayed tuned.

Dinner This Week:
veggies with alfredo sauce and fried  peameal bacon
 roast veggies and chicken breast
chicken stir fry
Chili con carne with cheese (but not the beans)
porkchops with cauliflower and broccoli poached in heavy cream and grated cheddar
veggies with alfredo sauce and roasted chicken thighs
and tonight will be the same as last night

I Have Great WiFi Now

Yesterday was another productive day for me. My biggest accomplishment by far was getting down the decorations off the tree and putting  away ALL the Christmas decorations from the walls and surfaces. They are all tucked in boxes and rubbermaid bins upstairs in the spare room closet for another year. Because I was on a roll, I decided to bring in all of my outdoor lights and decorations as well. I took advantage of the milder temperatures and the lack of snow to get it done. Not only that, but I was able to also take down my tree and get it into storage in the deck box at the back of the house. I didn't think I would be able to with my injured thumb, but when there is a will, there is a way. By then, I was pretty much exhausted.

I gathered up the waste baskets throughout the house and filled a garbage bag this week (with the addition of wrappings from Christmas that cannot be recycled), and I prepared the gray box for paper recycling. The garbage went to the curb last night for the 7 AM pickup this morning.  I made 3 more birthday cards late in the afternoon and spent some time on one of my hotspots for clutter. That was my dining table and craft cupboards that I have in my dining room. It isn't finished, but I certainly spent well more than 10 minutes on the task, which is all I am required to do. 

This morning I knew that the cable technician would be arriving any time between 8 AM and 5 PM. So I made sure I put out the 2  bins of paper and cardboard recycling and salted the drive up to my entrance for the technician's arrival. While waiting for him/her to show, I watered all my indoor plants very well and then worked on my dining table and craft cupboards some more.

When the technician arrived he used my phone to call the cable company to report that his "something-or-other" wasn't working. He had been to three other jobs already this morning, and now suddenly it wasn't registering. When he got off the phone, I casually said that it must be the house working against him. I mentioned that people are unable to use their cell phones because my signal is SO weak. His reaction was REALLY!!  He said that is exactly the problem. I also told him that I couldn't get any technician out to my house to examine my concerns in the past until I decided to upgrade the Wifi. I am not sure if he will report this to his supervisors, but I felt vindicated. I guess as long as I was paying the bill, they didn't see any problem. Ha.

So on my To-Do list today was vacuuming all the bits of Christmas off the downstairs floors and put back my pictures and regular decor where Christmas had been. I can now scratch that off my list. 

Rainy Tuesday

I feel today that I have earned my bread and butter. It's not that I am working through my goals very quickly, but I am nonetheless getting some things accomplished. On Day one of my weekly goals, I remembered to put on lipstick this morning and I put moisturizer on my hands and face last night. I wrote out my 3 "Thinking of You" cards for this week and sent them off in the mail. I talked to my friend this morning to see if she was up to a visit but she had errands to run this morning, so it was not a good time for her. However, we talked for well over an hour. I feel she got a lot off her chest. I also called Ontario Hydro today and set up the account in my name. It is almost two years since Rick has passed, and I had not yet changed all of the utilities over to my name. I believe that is the last of them done now. I also signed up for e-billing since I pay the bills on-line anyway. I also called my pharmacy to renew a prescription. It seems I have spent an incredible amount of time on the telephone over the last couple of days.

I have shredded just about all of the papers that I pulled out last week. I put one bag in the outdoor composter along with all the scraps from my kitchen composter today. I spread four bags all over one of my garden beds. It is pouring rain right now, so the paper will get good and soaked and spread into the dirt. I am probably jinxing myself, but we don't have much snow on the ground right now. Perhaps this rain will turn to snow overnight?

I cleaned off all my counters, including my coffee nook,  and disinfected them. It was not one of this weeks 10 minute "decluttering" items. It is actually one of last weeks that I didn't get around to. Maybe I can start this week's list tomorrow morning. I have to tackle a hotspot, which for me is my dining table or the top of my desk. Another job on the list is under the kitchen sink, but I'm afraid that will take more than 10 minutes. Ha. After lunch I was able to make four cards....2 winter cards (general notecards) and 2 birthday cards. They are basically the same, but the girl's card is sparkly and glittery, while the boy's card is shiny. Here they are....

Daybook: Monday, Jan 7/19

This morning began as one of those days that do not go as planned.  I intended to call my Cable company and then visit my friend who lost her husband recently.  I made an early call before 9 AM but the wait was lonnnng.   I received an on-line bill yesterday from my cable company for more than double my monthly bill. The accounts representative did nothing for me except to explain that the overages were for excess usage this past month.  I explained that my usage had not increased, and she needed to connect me with someone who could explain what happened. Each time I was transferred to another department, I was put into another long  queue and had to go through the same security protocol each time. The second person thought that perhaps someone was stealing my signal. (I had a new router installed one month ago)  He got me the number for the manufacturer and offered to take the overages off my bill. Yay! Then I was transferred to a third department where I arranged to have Wifi brought to my house. A technician will arrive on Thursday to set me up and make my system more secure. It will cost me nothing more than I am paying now.  She also took off the cost of the set-up. I called the number I was given for the new router that was installed and she walked me through HOW to change my network and my password. It was all Greek to me, but somehow I muddled through. I honestly can say that no-one knows my password, so indeed I have no idea how anyone could hack into my network or how it is that my network became insecure. But once the Wifi is set up, I will closely monitor my usage on-line to see if I need to upgrade my service. But according to the second representative I talked to at the Cable company, my usage WAS minimal until just the past month. Finally, I had to go into each of my other devices to change the network and password on those. I didn't get to eat lunch until after 2:30 PM.  I have called and texted my friend but have not heard from her yet.

Outside my window.....it is overcast and minus 4 degrees Celsius. There are snow flurries in the forecast, though they have not started yet.

I am thinking.....that at 3:30 PM, it is already feeling dark and I am feeling drained again.

I am thankful for.....the two wonderful service people I talked to this morning.

From the kitchen.....I sliced up the 4 lbs. of peameal bacon and both large pork loin roasts into mostly pork chops and two roasts of pork to put in the freezer.

I am wearing.....black jeans, a royal blue long sleeved t-shirt and an ivory coloured cable cardigan.

I am creating.....hopefully, some cards this week. I used up all the bits and pieces of cotton that I used in the Fall to create knit dishcloths as gifts, to knit up a cloth for myself.

I am going....nowhere today. I didn't even make it to the Post Office this afternoon.

I am hoping.....we are not in for a big snow storm anytime soon.

I am hearing.....the quiet. The school kids have already walked past and it is still a little early for rush hour traffic coming home from work.

Around the house.....it is still looking a lot like Christmas, though the lights have not been turned on since New Year's Day.

One of my favourite things.....this past weekend has been my paper shredder. I am slowly getting rid of excess papers from my filing folders and binders. I use up the shredded paper in my garden composter and as mulch in my flower beds.

A few plans for the rest of the week....include a visit to my friend and face time messages to family members. I do not have a medical appointment this week.

• take down all the indoor decorations and put in storage    Done
  

• take down the tree and put in storage    Done
  

• accomplish this week's 10 minute decluttering tasks and perhaps most of the last two weeks

• start journaling again in my composition book     every day
  

• make at least 5 cards    Done
  

• embroider my mom's name on her  birthday gift and get it into the mail   Done
  

• send off at least 3 "Thinking of You" cards  Done
  

• moisturize every night     every night
  

• lipstick every morning      every day
  

Here is the picture I am sharing.....

My new dish cloth and my weekly 10 minute tasks.

Sunday Shopping

Yesterday was the funeral for my friend who died just before Christmas. I had a good visit with each of the kids and his wife and stayed for the service, of course. I did not stay for the lunch afterwards. I will be driving out to see the family tomorrow. As soon as I returned home, I lay on the couch and slept the rest of the afternoon. I have been feeling so very tired this past week.

Today I traveled into Kingston and shopped at four stores.....3 grocery shops and a walk-about through Value Village Thrift Store. I wanted to go to Food Basics today for some pork loin specials, and since the Thrift Store is in the same mall, I decided to check it out. I spent a lot of time checking out the craft section. I considered the wood block stamps too expensive, and since I haven't a knitting project in mind or even know what weight of wool I would need, I didn't buy anything there. I looked at jeans, but decided I don't need any more. I have enough jeans that there is always a clean pair to put on. I found a bag of  four "never been opened Christmas crafts" from Dollarama and Michael's which I immediately grabbed to put in my gift trunk for next year's Advent calendars. The four brand new gifts cost me a total of 55 cents. I am sure that had I not found this grab bag, I would have walked out of the store and not spent any money at all...so I am jazzed about that.

I bought a few specials at Food Basics before driving to No-Frills where I bought the bulk of this week's groceries. My last stop was on the way home in Amerstview where I knew the butter, cream cheese, eggs and toilet paper were on sale yesterday and today only. This is what I bought today.

Produce cost me $27.49  Again, I bought every bag of winter veggies they had, even though I still had a couple of bags at home.( 2 kg of blueberries for $11, 4 bags of winter veggies at $8, one of green beans and one of oriental blend for $4, chopped spinach for $1,  4 garlic bulbs for 50 cents and 6 avocados at $2.99)

Meat cost $56.68  (4 lbs of ground chicken and 3 lbs of ground beef for $10 each, 2 packages of chicken thighs for $10.76 total,  peameal bacon for $1.99/lb, regular bacon for $2.97, and two large pork loins at $1.44/lb.)

Dairy cost $21.53 (eggs were only $1.88/doz., cream cheese was 2 for $5, no name butter was $2.99, yoghurt was only $1.97 a tub and no-name cottage cheese was $3.87)

Pantry cost me $9.77 (toilet paper was $3.99, facial tissues were 79 cents, 100 bags of tea was $2 and
no-name baking powder was $2.99) My total expenditure for groceries today (including tax) was  $116.10 which I paid for with cash. I am hoping that this is the only meat I will buy until February and that I will not need to go for groceries for a two week interval. Fingers crossed!

My Mile Long To-Do List for January 2019

1.  Print out a new budget sheet for January

2.  Print out checklist called "100 Things to Throw Away" and see how many I can check off in January

3.  Subscribe to Organizing Moms to receive their weekly "10 minute tasks" to complete.

4.  Take down indoor Christmas decorations and tree and put in storage.

5.  Take down outdoor decorations and lights and put into storage.

6.  Organize my filing bin and throw out papers and instruction manuals no longer relevant

7.  Organize my recipe binder and throw out papers no longer relevant

8.  Organize my card-making binder

9.  Organize my Christmas and gift binder

10. Organize my home and finance binder

11.Shred all papers and save to the garbage bin to use as mulch in Spring.

12.Paint primer on door (inside and out) of downstairs powder room

13. Put weather caulking around smaller kitchen window

14.Put together one scrapbook

15.Make 25 cards this month

16.Produce one gift



This will be my go-to list for special projects in January. I have come up with this list to help me get started on my list of goals for 2019. It is ambitious, but I need to stretch myself to get things started. Whatever does not get done can be forwarded to February.

Goals For 2019

Last year my recording and accountability was abysmal; therefore, I hope to take an example from Bless at My Two Cents to record my successes AND failures at the end of each month. I did it for a short while last year but soon gave up. Looking over last year's goals for 2018, I did not do well at all. So this year I am not changing any of them, but will instead try harder. I did however, find that making a list on Mondays and following up on the week-end did help me for a while to focus more  on the task at hand.

Environment:
House- I wanted to do a little home maintenance last year, but was side-tracked when I considered selling the house as is, and therefore not sink any money into it. Well, now that I am considering staying in the house as long as I am able, I want to make the place comfortable for me. I will be fixing small jobs and doing some painting for MY benefit. I can see myself staying here for a few years. I do not have a lot of money to put into repairs anyway, so I will do what I can. I will feel a sense of accomplishment with what I can achieve. I will post monthly goals, but also list the things I'd like to accomplish week  by week in order to work on those goals.

Garden- I wanted to work my vegetable garden last year; but again, when I thought I might sell the house, I saw no purpose in growing vegetables if I wasn't going to benefit from all the work. So I worked on my flower beds to improve the curb appeal. I also got rid of a large flower bed and turned it back to lawn so I didn't have so much to look after. I transplanted those flowers into the other beds that are well established and also gave away other plants to family members, so as not to destroy them.  I made an arrangement with my friend to give him my husband's van for labour. He was heaven-sent to me. He tore down and replaced my front door entrance, new stairs, replaced my gate, took down the dead tree branches out back and directed me to rent a bin to get rid of a lot of stuff from the property. I only had a certain amount of money and he decided where it should be spent to get me the most value. This year I will definitely grow a vegetable garden.

Finances:
Spending: I continue to mark down food and non-food expenditures. Starting this month, I took out $300 for household expenses in cash. When it runs out, I will have to go into savings for more. I will not want to do that, thereby making me more aware of how much is at hand. It is too easy to use my debit card to "borrow" from a different category. It will be cash only for household variable expenses. I will continue to pay my bills on-line.

Saving- I am paying my Savings and my Emergency fund at the beginning of each month as though they are bills I pay on-line.  My found money is going into a piggy bank at home. This includes winnings from scratch tickets gifted to me and rebates for products I've bought. If I sell more card sets this year, it will also go here as "found" money. I DID make more of my gifts this past year...one of the few resolutions that I did succeed at.

Family and Friends:

This was another goal that was successful last year. I sent out a lot of cards and face-timed with family a lot. I made several long distance trips to visit with family members. I would like to continue with this success and build upon it.

Health:

I was also successful in staying true to my new way of eating a low carb diet. I do not cheat on this diet. It is very easy for me to follow, though more expensive.  I will try to expand my recipes this year so it does not become boring or more like a chore.  I will also look out for my personal care this year, by incorporating a home "spa" day into my week. I need to remember to wear sun screen, a hat  and moisturize my skin and hair.  A little makeup wouldn't hurt. I have a ton of beauty products. Why aren't I using them?

Crafts and Leisure:

I expanded my crafting this past year to include macrame and embroidery. It paid off by providing me with lots of gifts that I gave for birthdays and Christmas. I also sold some of my cards. Though it became  difficult to use a whole day to craft (especially during the summer), I will resolve to put in at least 6 hours of crafting a week.

It is another ambitious list of goals, but even with the accounting that was sorely lacking, I did manage to achieve some of what I wanted. Hopefully, it will be better this year.

Small End-of-year Injury

On Sunday I was in Kingston to help my Amherst Island team serve Special Meals to our clients at St. Andrew's Church. I was lucky enough to obtain a ride in and back home with other ladies from  my team. Of course the dinner was a success and we served 49 clients sweet and sour meatballs, rice, peas, baby carrots and cole slaw salad. Clean up was quick and we got out in record time. I am still not sure how it happened, but when I exited the car, I managed to slam the thumb of my right hand in the car door. I was in shock and didn't let on what had happened. I got inside my house by keying the lock with my left hand, and then I thought I was going to be sick....the pain was that bad. My thumbnail was already black. I took two extra strength Tylenol Gel caps and drifted in and out of sleep that first night. I am fairly certain I did  not break any bone but the swelling has kept my right hand pretty immobile since. I have been sleeping a lot in the days since.

Yesterday was a pretty good day. I was able to put the  key in the ignition of my van with my left hand and turn it on and off with the fingers of my right hand, so I drove myself into Amerstview yesterday. It was a gorgeous sunny day. When I did my Boxing Week shopping (about which I blogged in my last post), I noticed that they made some mistakes on my receipt.  After I posted, I called the manager to explain what had happened. I was charged $11.05  too much, so yesterday was the first opportunity to get those mistakes corrected.  It pays to always check your receipts for errors. With the money I received back yesterday, I was able to pay for 2 containers of cottage cheese and two containers of whipping cream that were on sale 2 for $5, and still get back $1.05  I felt good about that because I am not able to accomplish  very much these past few days. I cannot yet take down the Christmas decorations or make cards. I cannot do needlework (knitting or embroidery), but today I've noticed that my thumbpad is not nearly as sensitive to touch, so I am able to use it on the space bar on the keypad. I cannot pick up a pen or a kitchen utensil, but I am now able to type. Maybe I will be able to get my 2019 goals written up sometime later today.

This accident has shown me just how important it is to take care of myself. An accident or a diagnosis of illness can change everything in an instant. I am so excited about 2019 and I am hopeful about the New Year ahead. I have lots of plans. They will just have to wait a few more days.