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@NextOne Wow, I am sure glad that it all sorted out and that you are home to stay! @smitty34877 I've been thinking of you and your family all day. I hope all went well and that the memories bring you comfort. @cruising sister More great news for Baby Murphy and your DB. This train is rolling in the right direction! @Cruising-along The picture of the two boys is fantastic. Keep that for their wives. @grapau27 I agree that it is wonderful that you have had a good recovery from your heart attack. Follow all the doctor's advice! We had a great time painting houses for River's fairy garden. We relocated the fairy garden to a spot where it isn't covered in leaves. But, I'm thinking it needs to have some leaves and trees around it.

Good morning, everyone! It is a nice morning here in mid-Michigan with a temperature of 45F and partly cloudy skies. The high today is supposed to be 54F. I'll take that! We are dedicating today to being six years old. We'll paint rocks for the fairy garden and go on a shopping spree to Claire's. Aunt Jodie is coming over with her dog, Rita, to visit. Last night we had an early birthday celebration with cake and presents. Miss River was very surprised and loved all the attention. We may go to a hayride and outdoor activities at a local church and then, we might not. @cat shepard Thank you for the maps of Hawaii. I have been wanting to go there for decades. I love the cruise idea as it eliminates a long, torturous plane ride. We are going to have a blast! Today's meal is a great one for cold weather. I think I'd like @0106 Tina's better, but that is just me. Sometimes I'm in the mood for pie crust. To get started we'll take a look at Ree Drummond's recipe https://www.thepioneerwoman.com/food-cooking/recipes/a11686/pot-pie/ I think the Cognac in this recipe would be a nice touch. https://www.onceuponachef.com/recipes/chicken-pot-pie.html Lastly, we have an offering from Ina Garten. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/chicken-pot-pie-recipe-2014304 Wishing you all a wonderful day!

Thank you, Jacqui! I was looking in the right part of San Diego on the map, but just couldn't come up with the name. I remember thinking it was very nice when you reported on it. I'll check it out and see if we can do that. I will anxiously await your report. Super excited about this! We like fish places. Good is ok. That is a long time to go when you are in the kind of pain you are having. Any way to get the MRI and x-rays sooner? I had Gabapentin for my stenosis problems but I don't think it did much of anything for me. When I weaned off it, there was no increase in pain. And I don't remember any decrease in pain when I started taking it. Ibuprofen seemed to work the best for me, even when I had the herniated disc. Oh, no! A broken wrist is almost worse than a broken arm. The wrist is a complicated joint. I hope he's comfortable. I know he can find consolation with his Grandma.

I'm so glad you got this checked out. This is a perfect example of why it is important to do so even if you don't suspect something is broken. May Jim heal quickly and be at his best for your cruise. @JazzyV I am so sorry about your pain problems. I sure hope they can figure something out quickly because you've been in pain way too long and yes, pain does have a bad effect on overall health. If you need the pain pills for the short term, do take them. As my orthopedic surgeon told me, there is no need to be a hero and suffer. @kazu Jacqui, I am thinking it was you who stayed at a lovely hotel in San Diego that really looked good to me, but I can't remember the name of it. Can you enlighten me?

Good morning, everyone! It is an overcast morning here in mid-Michigan. Temps are at 43F right now and will soar to 54F for a high. Tonight DB Bill and DSIL Lauren are coming for dinner and Farkle. We will also have a small birthday celebration for River. She turns 7 on November 9th. Her mom is having a party for her, but we haven't been invited to it. Her other grandma is also hosting a party for her on the 18th and we are going to that one. Dysfunctional families sure make life interesting. Today's meal is not for the faint hearted. Warning: It is spicy hot! I suppose you can tame it somewhat, but then it wouldn't be the same thing. I did enjoy reading the narrative for this recipe. I'm pretty sure I won't be making it. https://redhousespice.com/sichuan-boiled-fish/ It looks so pretty, but that is from all those little red peppers that promise to numb your mouth right up. You could probably have some dental work done after eating this. There are slightly different ingredients in this recipe. https://thewoksoflife.com/sichuan-boiled-fish-shui-zhu-yu/ And we have one last version. https://omnivorescookbook.com/shui-zhu-yu-boiled-fish/ I hope I've inspired someone to try this dish. We're having the apple dijon chicken from last week tonight. And birthday cake. Wishing you all a wonderful day!

Looking forward to meeting you as well!

Thank you! We think it is a good way, too, and we booked an extra night in San Diego after the cruise.

Please add Sue and me to the list for January 30, 2024 on the Koningsdam 18 day round trip from San Diego to Hawaii. We are so excited!

We are booked for Hawaii. I am so excited. @Cruzin Terri I third or fourth the suggestion that Jim should at least get an x-ray. Then he can tell you that he told you it was nothing serious.

Great news. It sounds like your family is really turning the corner on all the health woes. Good for them! That makes it a wonderful day!

Good morning, everyone! Another cold morning here in mid-Michigan. We have an expected high of 48F. We are not doing leaves today. The leaf fall has slowed considerably and Sue says what is left now can stay there. I will probably go out with the blower one more time. Other than booking our Hawaii cruise, we've got nothing planned for the day. Today's meal will be a pass for us. It is way too high in carbs to even consider. One of the recipes gave the carb count as 97, more than my daily allowance. I do best when I keep the carbs around 30 per meal. But, for those who can tolerate the carbs and like chickpeas, I have three great recipes. The first one comes from Ahead of Thyme. The carb count there is more reasonable. https://www.aheadofthyme.com/curried-chickpea-stuffed-acorn-squash/ This next one is the carb overload recipe. It also is done in the pressure cooker (insta pot). https://www.veganricha.com/pressure-cooker-curried-chickpea-stuffed-acorn-squash/ This last one isn't a curry, but has chimichurri and a lemon yogurt sauce. https://www.loveandlemons.com/acorn-squash-chickpeas-chimichurri/ Wishing you all a wonderful day!

Yes, Sue will be coming with me.

We will be on the Koningsdam from January 30 - February 17. What a wonderful respite from the snow and ice of a Michigan winter. Maybe we'll find a place in CA and stay until March. Wonderful! Congratulations to her!! Making progress! Those rabbits have been working overtime today. We just got word that our niece and her husband are moving back to Michigan from Florida in January. We are thrilled! Of course, the rabbits owe us. We give them free housing under our deck and tons of food to eat.

Happy to read this! I'm sure you're cute as a button in your hat, gloves and sweaters.

We have the Hawaii cruise on a complimentary hold until tomorrow, but in the meantime I have to reverify for the educator discount. The problem comes in that my verification comes from the retirement system, but I can't load that in as such. I can only submit the name of the school district I retired from. So, I keep being told that my pay stubs are not sufficient to verify me. This is the same problem I had last time. You'd think they would have fixed it by now. Rabbit, Rabbit, White Rabbit sure worked here today! Sue found out she doesn't have to pay for a new wheel bearing in the car. So, it is only an oil change today. Then we stumbled into a great sale at one of our favorite stores. Sue got two tops and I got two pairs of pants - all at 50% off. We're going out to dinner tonight to celebrate. We've been to Juneau three times on BHBs. The second time we took the big blue bus to Mendenhall glacier, but it broke down so we made an unplanned visit to the Wal Mart parking lot until a new bus could pick us up. We still made it into the glacier and Nugget Falls. Nephew Matt and me at Nugget Falls. Sue and Matt The last time was in 2021 and we did an excursion out of Juneau and got to hold sea urchins. When I talked to mine, it responded by waving its quills at me.

Rabbit, rabbit, white rabbit! Good morning, everyone! It is a cold start to the day here in mid-Michigan with a temperature of 27F. But, we do have blue skies and that helps make up for it. A few more leaves have fallen, but not enough to drag me out to rake or blow them to the curb. Our niece came over last night with her two little guys for Trick or Treat. We were their last house, so they came in for cupcakes and cider. We had a nice visit with them. We only had 6 trick or treaters come to the door, but that is 6 more than the neighbors said we would get. I guess they are getting braver to come up our street with no lights or sidewalks. The kids we did get were older, so no littles except for the one from next door who brought his mom and dad with him. We are going to have River this weekend so we made plans to take her out to our nieces so she can play with the boys and see the chickens. River needs a break so she can just be a 6 year old for a couple of days, so that is our plan. Today's meal is an interesting way of cooking chicken or turkey. Spatchcocking a chicken or turkey is supposed to speed up cooking time while making the cooking more even. It makes sure the dark meat gets done without over cooking and drying out the white meat. https://natashaskitchen.com/spatchcock-chicken-recipe-video/ It is easy to turn a spatchcocked chicken into a one pan meal. Just surround it with the vegetables you like! https://www.southernliving.com/recipes/roast-spatchcock-chicken The seasonings you use on the chicken can vary according to taste. The ones in the recipes are suggestions for you, but if you have a favorite way to season your chicken, go for it! Spatchcock chicken is a method of cooking more than anything else. https://www.themediterraneandish.com/crispy-spatchcocked-chicken-recipe/ And there you have it! Safe travels and loads of fun to our Dailyite friends embarking on cruises. What fun! Wishing you all a wonderful day!

Thank you for the update. I'm glad things went well. Your DB's situation of living in a small town and having to drive distances for health care was a consideration when we decided where to buy our retirement home. We wanted to be close by the services we know we will need as we age. So, right now we can walk to the hospital.

She is adorable! You must be one proud Grandma! I'm glad you made it through yesterday ok. It was my nephew's birthday as well. Thanks for the update on Tana. She is blessed to have such a loving, caring family. @Cruzin Terri Congrats on the cruise! I hope it is just what you and Jim needed. @ger_77 A February cruise? Where are you going? How exciting! @Vict0riann I have put pride aside and regularly use a cane if I have to walk long distances. If I want to appear sporty instead of old, I use hiking poles. The leaves are all done again. I hope this is the last for them. The back yard should be just about done for the season.

Good morning, everyone! We are ready for any trick or treaters we may get. We're not expecting any as the neighbors insist we won't get any. No street lights and no sidewalks discourages them from coming. My niece is bringing the littles over for cider and cupcakes. We will be doing the leaves in the back yard this morning. Fun, fun, fun. Today's meal sounds good for the vegetarians in the crowd. We're having left over bean soup for dinner. This first one is an easy, quick dinner. https://www.aheadofthyme.com/tofu-and-mushroom-stir-fry/ Or maybe you'd like this variation. It calls for baked or smoked tofu. https://www.eatingwell.com/recipe/277158/mushroom-tofu-stir-fry/ Or this one in a sweet sauce with a little heat for balance. https://thefoodietakesflight.com/tofu-mushrooms-sweet-soy-sauce/ No matter what you choose for dinner, I wish you all a wonderful day!

Me, too! This reminds me of a time when I was teaching middle school on an interdisciplinary team. For every holiday the women on the team made cookies. So, for Halloween Val and I made ghost cookies. We were up until 2 am baking, cooling, and frosting ghost cookies. I said never again and that the men could bake cookies as easily as the gals and from that time on the baking was shared by all four of us. We are still looking at Hawaii. There is one we have our eye on and final payment is Wednesday. If the price goes down after final payment, we might jump on it. We'll see.

Good morning, everyone! We got our hopes up over Hawaii yesterday, but it turns out that the dates don't work for me. So, back to the drawing board. I've always wanted to go to Hawaii, so we may do just the Hawaii portion. And the driveway can crumble. It will get fixed eventually. Nothing else on the agenda. Neighbors tell us that we won't get trick or treaters here because there are no sidewalks and no street lights. I'm going to pick up a bag of baby candy bars just in case. We're hoping our niece brings the littles by for a treat and the people next door are bringing their little guy by. Today's meal is most likely very flavorful, but not for me. The carbs would be very high between the chickpeas and the rice you put it over. I could use riced cauliflower, but DS Sue says she hates chickpeas. This first recipe is vegan for those who need to accommodate that need. https://www.emilieeats.com/chickpea-pumpkin-coconut-curry-vegan/ This next recipe includes a few other vegetables and cubes the pumpkin instead of using a pumpkin puree. There are some good health benefits to pumpkin. https://www.aheadofthyme.com/pumpkin-chickpea-coconut-curry/ This next one has a little heat in it and a lot of information on how to make the dish, substitutions you can make, and what kind of pumpkin to use. https://www.averiecooks.com/thai-pumpkin-chickpea-coconut-curry/ Wishing you all a wonderful day!

Unfortunately, the dates won't work for the eclipse and Hawaii. So, we're looking at just Hawaii. I forgot that I have to go to Columbus, Ohio for a meeting in April and the date is the last day of the eclipse and Hawaii combo cruise. Sigh.......

We are having pretty much the same type of day. We did venture out and worked on the leaves in the front yard this morning. It is supposed to rain tonight and I wanted to get to them before they got wet. They are so much easier to move when they are dry. To entertain myself I played with Plan A Cruise on the HAL website. I shouldn't have done that. I really need to save up to have a new driveway poured, but a cruise for the solar eclipse and on to Hawaii is winning out. I may be calling my PCC tomorrow and the driveway can wait another year or two. We shall see.

Good morning, everyone! It is a cool gray day here in mid-Michigan. I plan to work on the leaves this morning I want to clean off both decks and the front porch and driveway. The front yard looks like it is covered in leaves and we just did them all last Monday. Sue did the back yard on Friday, but you wouldn't know it now. It is supposed to rain tonight, so I want to get to them while they are still dry. Last night DB stated a desire to do some actual cooking. When it is their turn to provide dinner it is usually bad pizza or KFC. Last night was KFC, the better of the two choices in my opinion. But, it would be nice to see him branch out. He said next week he's going to bring over some cookbooks and we'll look for recipes that we can do together to get him started. Today's meal sounds very good to me. For those who only like the white meat of the chicken (me), you can easily substitute chicken breasts. We'll start with this recipe that has a surprise ingredient in it - soy sauce! https://www.aheadofthyme.com/apple-dijon-braised-chicken-thighs/ This next recipe doesn't call for carrots, but carrot lovers can easily add them in. I'd probably leave out the sugar. https://www.macheesmo.com/dijon-braised-chicken-thighs/ This is like the previous recipe without the sugar. https://domestikatedlife.com/2018/09/17/apple-dijon-skillet-chicken/ The caramelized onions in this recipe is what caught my eye. I think this one goes in the rotation for me! https://brooklynsupper.com/cider-braised-chicken-and-apples/ Wishing everyone a wonderful day!