2021 RESOLUTIONS

None.  Nada.  Zero.

After 50 years of making a list of outlandishly ambitious resolutions and feeling not so good about myself by the end of February when everything ceased, no need to write them down.  I know my weak spots and where I need improvement.  There was so much comfort watching too much Netflix and Hulu and Amazon.  Don't think I am going to give that up until the pandemic is over.  Same with comfort eating.

After the dumpster-fire of a year we had in 2020, I'm focusing on the good in my life, my country and the world.  If they will have me back, I'm going to volunteer with WLLO again.  I know they will understand if I say no to more than I want to give.  I'm also going to return to being a cub reporter for our HOA newsletter.  

This year I am volunteering to make dinner once a week and bring in dinner once a week.  With one night being "clean out the fridge" night, that leaves each kidult two dinners a week.  Plus all the breakfasts and lunches.  Our kitchen is too tiny to have more than two people in there working.  I want to include more fish and hopefully more ethnic food.  I've been keeping a list of potential meals that the boys will enjoy (I hope).  That is as close as I get to a "resolution".

Cheers to another year of blogging!

 

STAYING HOME

Oregon is still on lockdown.  Restaurants are only open for take away.  Grocery stores still limit how many customers in at a time.  I continue to buy groceries online with contactless delivery (unless I buy wine, then I have to put my driver's license face down for driver to scan).  I stay in my nightgown and robe all day long.

We are staying home for New Year's Eve.  Might make a nice dinner or order IN a nice dinner.  Boys will get to do a few fireworks.  And get to stay up late!

Staying home yet looking forward to saying goodbye to Covid in 2021.

SHARE YOUR FAVORITE STREAMING SERIES - FOR BINGE WATCHING

You are probably watching more TV and movies during quarantine .... I know I am.  I'm trying to choose those that have at least 3 seasons.  I have started a list of those I like as family and friends often ask.

Rizzoli and isles

Body of Proof

White Collar

Call the Midwife

The Good Wife

Law and Order SVU

West Wing

Longmire

The Crown

Vera

Shark

Burden of Truth

White Collar

CSI

CSI - Miami

Cable Girls

The Guardian

Downton Abbey

Upstairs/Downstairs

Rookie

Madame Secretary 

New Tricks

Self Made

Veronica Mars

For Life

New Amsterdam

Rosewood

Have any others to highly recommend?  Jesse just built me a fire (they are out and about) and I have great noise blocking headphones so I can watch movies sitting upright in the living room.  Otherwise, I'm on my stomach and with elbows taking the weight of my heavy head.  Starting to get callouses.  

I especially like shows set in1800 and 1900 or series from 1980's and 1990's (when I had a busy life and didn't watch much TV)....

Share with me?

OLDER LADIES

 I'm not sure how or when I first heard this song ... but I still love it!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4QzHeUE-CM

JUST A GLIMPSE BEFORE CHRISTMAS

CHRONIC BLOGMOSIS

My brain's a fog, I cannot blog.  I'll try again, I don't know when!

NEWEST FASHION ACCESSORY

Yep.  The mask. 

I started out with disposable.  

Did we all start out with the basic, pretty thin disposable blue?

Next I bumped it up to black so the mask would always blend with my outfit.  But still disposable.

A WLLO friend made me two cloth black masks which feel much safer. I steam clean them every few wearings.  Now I'm investing in cloth with changeable filter ... and a bit of style.

Then I went for a little fun!  I only use this outdoors because it doesn't have a nose wire and is just one layer.

This Covid seems to be here for the long haul and Etsy introduced me to this more stylish version.  And it has a pocket for changeable filter.  But when I put on my reading glasses, they still fog up a little.

Coming soon ...

Origami style which supposedly helps reduce the fog.  Nose wire and filter pocket.

I also got some KN95 disposables.   After hearing from a friend about plastic face shields, I bought some of those although none of us has had to wear them.

NO GRINCH ALLOWED

 

This sign has now been recycled. 

I'm amazed how much more boy time I have since stepping down from "too much" WLLO volunteering.  My email has been reduced by more than half.  They each claim Gramma's room for distance learning.  One in the morning and one in the afternoon.  (They have EACH finished a grade level in Math already!  Three months!). It was such a great hug when Braeden "graduated" just the other day right by my side.  He has such a hard time with Math.  Mom helped him celebrate by making him a s'mores pie.  He is gaining confidence by the minute.

My Christmas shopping is done, thanks to Amazon and Etsy.  Fortunately, I made the kidults order in November ... I've heard of delivery delays.  I usually buy too much for the boys, so some can go to stockings.  My favorite choice this year is "stinky" crayons (by Crayola!) ...  kids will love the smelly scents, including old rotten tooth, moldy sponge, grass, cough syrup, mushroom, pizza, cheese, dirty potatoes, onion, barn, socks, and flat tire.

They are going out this afternoon (sunny and crisp) to get a tree.  Then there is an outdoor local craftsman fair starting at 4pm.  Our Covid rates have gone up 15% since Thanksgiving so I'm not too keen on being around anyone, even with masks, even outside.  There was an article in NYT about a couple getting arrested for knowingly taking a plane to Hawaii for vacation ... they both were tested before traveling and BOTH have Covid. I hope they do jail time although I feel sorry for the other prisoners.

Life at my house is still going well.  

DECEMBER 2020

 

6 months old. He's now 15

The elves came quarantined.  Zooming with Santa at night.

The straight scoop!

Busy putting together an edible Christmas Village

The main feature - Oreo House