I guess it's been awhile since I've posted. I didn't realize a whole month went by, but we've been preoccupied with all sorts of things. Plus, I don't live in Alaska anymore, so I sorta feel like I don't have anything worth writing about anymore.
However, here is my update.
Halloween came and went without my permission. Since I didn't have my stuff in time, I had no choice but to let it slip by me without much recognition. The best I could do was enjoy looking at all the decor in the stores and on the houses when we went driving through various neighborhoods.
But then! Lo, and behold! Our household goods arrived on Saturday, October 27, just 4 days before Halloween!!! This meant I was too busy unpacking boxes to think about Halloween.
But then, I saw it!! My pet skeleton was carried into the house, still stuffed in his box. I was so glad to see him! I put him in the car so he could hang out with me whenever I had to go somewhere.
At first I had him in the front passenger seat, but I eventually had to move him to the back seat. I don't know if he was noticed by anyone, but he really enjoyed waving at everyone we passed.
So anyhoo, as I mentioned, the movers came, which meant we got really really busy. It meant several days of cutting boxes open, unwrapping everything, and I do mean everything was wrapped in paper. Chuck said he even unwrapped a half-empty Kleenex box. Ya.
And then folding all the paper that seemed in good condition. I didn't want to see all that paper go to waste, so I gave a big pile of it to my friend for her grandkids to scribble and draw on. Some of it I saved for scrap booking on (to protect my table). Most of it, Chuck ended up hauling to the dump for recycling.
I had a LOT of boxes with the letters "SB" written on them.
You can probably guess what "SB" stands for.
"Scrap Booking" of course!
The movers carried all those boxes downstairs and I had to unpack them all, and then figure out where in the world I was gonna put everything!
What a mess! Did you notice what I did with my punches and ribbons?
Those long thin shelves that used to hold model trains is absolutely PERFECT for holding my punches! It's as if they were built just for me!
Anyhoo, now two and half weeks later, I've got it "mostly" organized and I am already working on my Christmas cards. :-D
I also had a table, plus the box on the floor, stacked with lots of stamp sets. It took me awhile to organize those cuz I wanted to go through each of them and create an inventory list of all the sets that I own. And then I organized them into different categories (Christmas, Halloween, Nature (plants), Animals, and everything else that just went together for lack of a specific category. It's still not exactly how I want it, but it's good enough for now. I'm sure I'll be doing more organizing as I figure out what's most efficient for me.
I've got over 250 stamp sets, not counting the wheels and background stamps.
Sheesh! That's a bit excessive.
So last week our daughter Steph drove up from Louisiana to visit us, and she brought her "baby" Lula.
The kitties were not happy.
We had Peeka set up to live in our bedroom for a sanctuary, but every now and then she would get brave enough to come out. Lula would growl and bark at her, but it turns out Lula was actually afraid of Peeka and would "run to Mama" whenever she needed to be reassured that everything was okay.
Of course, the fear was mutual between them. By the end of the week, they managed to just sit and look at each other without growling, but they never became close friends.
Weeners lived with Justin downstairs the whole time so we hardly saw her at all.
Lula is a very sweet dog. She's MOSTLY well-behaved, and she can do a few basic tricks.
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| "Sit" and "lay down" |
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| "Shake" |
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| "High five" |
I think her best trick of all is looking at you with "that face" when you're eating something.
She's got that one down pretty good.
While they were here, we took a little day trip up north to Holland, Michigan, about a two-hour drive from here. It's a quaint little town with some Dutch heritage attached to it.
We ate at this "Windmill Restaurant" for lunch.
And then just walked around town and acquainted ourselves with their numerous vintage shops.
They had a lot of nice shops there, but after awhile, they all started looking the same and blurring together. So we stopped for pie and coffee and then went on our way to the shore of Lake Michigan where this lighthouse sits. They say it's the most photographed lighthouse in the state, but I don't really understand why.
It was cold and windy that day, but we were there, so we made the best of it
I was thinking it would be a nice place to go in the summertime.
Also, while Steph was here, we got our FIRST SNOW, and Lula thoroughly enjoyed it!
It wasn't a whole lot, but it was enough to get her excited, roll around in it, and then come back inside the house all wet!
Last night and this morning, we got more snow. When there's snow on the ground, there seems to be more bird activity around the bird feeders, which in turn brings sightseers of the feline kind to the window.
We have a male and female cardinal that comes around regularly, which is kinda neat to see.
Hmmm, this almost gives me inspiration for next year's Christmas cards.
Anyhoo, one day last week, also while Steph was here, more neighbors came to our door to introduce themselves and they brought us a box of "Amish crack". Everyone here knows what "Amish crack" is and we hear people talking about it all the time, but we've never had it until now.
They are donut holes rolled in caramel sauce and then sprinkled with cinnamon, made in an Amish bakery called "Rise'n Roll".
Once you've had them, you're hooked.
Thus, the term "Amish crack".
And after the box was empty, Chuck wanted me to go buy another box.
Yup. It's "Amish crack", and we found a dealer.
They are SO GOOD, especially paired with a cuppa joe.
Here's the downside: Most of the ingredients on the list aren't that bad, except for ONE thing. They use hydrogenated oil in their caramel sauce, which is a HUGE no-no. So, we're gonna have to sever this tie before it gets to the point where we'll need rehab to let go.
So next week is Thanksgiving already. It looks like we're gonna be all by our lonesomes this year. We're so used to having our potluck feast with the Valley congregation in Wasilla.
It's a bummer, but I will just have to make myself be thankful for all my blessings, which are many.
Happy Thanksgiving to you all.
