The weather has been warmish up to now - most days in the 40s or even 50s. We did get a dusting of snow back on November 7th. 

I've been using my phone to take pictures as I keep it in my back jean's pocket and therefore, always have it. And I quickly took the snow picture before it melted!


In late October, I defrosted the freezer - a major task since it was desperately needed. Everything needed to be moved out of the freezer - which required weather that was moderate - not warm so stuff wouldn't melt but not so cold that I would freeze while working in the garage  I remember having a large chest type freezer back in our Somerdale house and again, in the Voorhees house. Both were in the garage for easy access. I had "areas" for different types of food - chicken, pork, veggies and such. It made locating things easier. Chest freezers are deep and stuff can easily get lost. At the Lake I had an upright freezer and stuff was organized by shelves rather than sections. This freezer didn't need defrosting! A nice luxury. When we bought this house I got a large chest freezer with sliding baskets. And again, organized by areas. And I finally got it defrosted and re-organized. 

Before with frost really building up!

And after all cleaned out!

Last year I purchased a Cricut cutting machine. And after a lot of reading, trial and error, reading FB group posts and watching lots of U-Tube posts, I ventured into paper crafting. And below are two of the projects.

These are candy huggers - little characters with long arms that wrap around a piece of candy. They are layered and I enjoyed making them!

Another thing I'm doing is making cards. This witch is three layers that are cut out on the machine and then glued. 

While I enjoy crafting, my creative ability is limited. However, this is an Internet based craft that enables files to be chosen, modified and made. I'm really enjoying playing with this - and am now working on some Christmas cards. 

Technology Problems

Anticipating the onset of rain, we headed out this morning to breakfast and then Sam's. We had only intended to check out one thing.....naturally we found several things that we needed. They were having a sale and with Thanksgiving closing in on us, the "deal" on stuffing was too good to pass up. Of course, that wasn't all we got.

Every time I think about posting, I wonder what to post about. Quite frankly, our lives are rather mundane, not much exciting happens and we do the same old, same old. But when I think about what we have been doing, I believe it might still be interesting even if it isn't exciting. 

We have been having technology woes lately!  We got a new TV to put in the master bedroom with the intention of moving the TV we had to another room. We have Comcast cable, Internet and phone. We had gone with them after having an ongoing frustrating time with ????  Hooking up the new TV should be simple - unplug and unhook the current one, and then plug in the new one. Not so simple.....  The TV turned on and needed to be set up. First the directions suggested we use an app to set up and use the TV. After checking that out (could not find it on the Apple store site) we opted to simply set the TV up using it's remote. Rather straight forward and only needed information on our Internet password. But then we could not get the TV to "talk" to the cable box - and we were positive all wires were correct. Long story short, we called Comcast and B had a lovely conversation with the numerous people he talked to who made all kinds of requests for us to do. However, none worked. (this happened yesterday). They said they would "ping" us in a short while and then it should work...it didn't. We chose to wait until today. B again called and got a different person who had him do some of the same things but one new thing (pushing a different button on the TV remote) and we got a picture! YEA....  however sound was not controlled by the cable remote but could be controlled by the TV remote. After asking him to do several more things, it was suggested that we take the cable remote to the local store and get a new one. That's on tomorrow's to do list. The important thing is we have TV.  Hopefully, when we move the old TV and hook it up, it will go smoothly.

I'll let you know....

September 8 2017

I find that when I think about posting I wonder what to say. Which, for those of you that know me, is funny because I'm not usually at a loss for words. But really, same old, same old!  However, I also find that going back and reading what I've posted in the past reminds me of the interesting and enjoyable things I've done. 

The weather has been unusually cool. The trees are starting to drop leaves and my tomato plant finally bit the dust having taken quite a long time to bud a measly 3 tomatoes - then it got bumped when Honey took off around the planter and I crashed into it bending the tomato cage. So yesterday I cut it down and pulled the roots out. The patio looks much better!

It was raining off and on all day. B was busy doing stuff in his office and working on the iPad. I started to bring out the fall decorations - why fight the weather? Fall wreaths are up and I washed towels and table cloths that were stored downstairs. We have a lovely LARGE storage area at the bottom of the lower level steps. The rest of the lower level is carpeted and there is a large TV and very comfortable sofa that I enjoy using at night when I binge on Netflix. But off to the side is a huge space that we have set up for storage. And as well as shelving, I store seasonal things in totes.  I also vacuumed the tile floors on the main level and the steps going down to the lower level. Honey takes her numerous walks out back using the slider that open onto the back yard and then tracks dirt up the stairs. I change shoes so my outside shoes rarely go beyond the shoe/boot tray. 

While our weather has been cool, we are fortunate that we are not dealing with hurricanes and earthquakes!  I follow several FaceBook groups that deal with crafting and one of the major topics has been how those living first in Texas and now in Florida are preparing for the terrible weather. We count our blessings.

Summer Cleaning

We have been enjoying outdoor living over the past month - warm but not too hot temperatures have encouraged us to use the deck for morning coffee and paper reading. I've planted flowers in containers on both the deck, front porch and patio while B has been feeding the lawn and shrubs. Some outside furniture from the Lake house was brought over in the early spring. 

After washing a few outside windows, we noticed not only how much the windows needed cleaning but also how dirty the front brick was. The sidewalks, front porch and back patio also needed cleaning. Having had success with having the roof washed, B suggested we again contact Apex Soft Wash. A representative came out and we ordered a home exterior soft wash that included the entire house, front walks and back patio. They came this week and we are amazed at the difference! And of course, I was out with the camera taking pictures.

All the furniture had to be moved off the patio along with the potted plants

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The two deck boxes were emptied and moved

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And a very dirty patio was left

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They first sprayed the cleaner on the house including the windows. The spray was "soft" enough that spraying the windows presented no problem.

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Honey supervised from the master bedroom window

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The spray reached the top and got all the windows

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The brick on the front was done

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And the front porch as well as the front walks

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Here they are using a round scrubber to clean the back patio - this was also used on the front patio and sidewalks.

An amazing difference!!!

We are so happy with the results! The lawn guys will be trimming the overgrown shrubs within the next few weeks. This summer we are looking forward to enjoying outdoor living at our Park house. 

Rainy Memorial Day 2017

As many of you are experiencing, our weather is wonky! We had 90 degree temperatures for two days earlier in May and this past week has been cool....and today we again have rain! Thankfully the past two days were partly sunny and the temperatures did get into the 60s.

Yesterday I went out and cut some plants - the rhododendrons are in bloom and one of the perennials is flowering. I also cut a few twigs off the shrubs to fill in and ended up with several nice displays that I've posted below.

One of the things I like about this kitchen is the small island. And lately I've been trying to use it as a display area. The reddish "flower" is from our rhododendrons and the fill is shrubs. We have a red maple tree in the front that is just lovely - and one or two branches are sticking out. So, I liberated them for this display. This shot is toward the breakfast area.

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Same bouquet other side of the island shot toward stairs to the lower level (the door is closed) and the dining room. See the picture on the wall? A close up from the Lake house. I've always liked to take flower pictures.

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To the left of the sink is a long stretch of counter topped by a "shelf" that is wide enough to use as a display area or a holding spot. This bouquet has some rhododendrons and a flower branch from the perennial planted two years ago. Anyone know what that is? The yellow and red go well together.

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And to the left of the vase above, is the final rhododendron flowers. You get a better view of the breakfast area. 

We are thankful to those who served and enabled us to enjoy this day.

Where are the May flowers?

While the calendar says May, the temperatures say very early spring. It's been abnormally cold the past several days - and cool temperatures continue into the weekend. The band of storms that caused so much damage earlier this week only gave us winds. While nothing you could call "damage", there was a lot of twigs and small branches down. I bought herbs and put them in a crate and have brought them in on two occasions due to low overnight temperatures. But, it is Spring and the trees are in bloom as are the azaleas and other flowering shrubs. 

B has been buying mulch by the car-full and we did put a lot of it down last week when we had warmer temperatures. We dumped a few bags over the past several days. These pictures were taken last week when the mulch was mostly in the bags. We are just about done!

 This lovely tree has both pink and white blossoms

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And you can see the bags of mulch all ready to put down

We replaced two azaleas and are leaving the one on the right in and pruning it. Spring wreath on the front door The front door can't be considered a "porch"!

 This pretty, small red maple is so lovely. We had a red maple at the South Jersey house. 

We have never had a "front porch" before. And even though it's facing front, it's really the side door that is next to the driveway and opens to the kitchen. It's the door we use the most. I've started on the decorations and still have a way to go.

And around the corner you can see a different view of the porch as well as a bit of the garage door. This is where we had all the mulch. 

We are anticipating warmer weather and look forward to putting some flowers in and getting those herbs planted! 

The Blizzard of 2017!

I don't remember ANY storm dropping as much snow as this one did! We have drifts that are 40 inches deep on our deck. Yesterday as the storm progressed we went out to snow blow using the big blower - first we used it this year. Thankfully it started at the first try. B and I took turns as I can't turn the darn thing around. The wind was whipping the snow into major drifts. So we went out again this morning. I've got  pictures to show the progression of the storm and what we were doing. Right now there is a path down the driveway but the SUV is not dug out. More pictures later.

I opened the door that leads to the deck - OMG look at the snow! Honey was also amazed The high mound of snow on the left is where the grill is. The hump on the back right is the table.

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And here is the same view around 5 PM. We hadn't shoveled this area - the wind had re-arranged the snow! 

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And the SUV on Tuesday after we did the driveway for the first time. You can see it. The mound behind it is my red car. Probably see that in April!

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A Snowy March Day

After some nice rather warm days, it's snowing.....again.....

It's a lovely snow - large soft flakes that started last night. Honey and I went out for our final walk of the day around 9:50 and the flakes were falling. This morning we awoke to several inches on the ground and more coming. As I look out my office window, it looks like a snow globe that someone just shook. Lovely fat flakes that are making a lovely view. The borough truck just did another pass dropping cinders. Many local schools are closed - and that gives the kids a three day weekend! 

I went out after breakfast and took these pictures.... We plan on going out this afternoon and dealing with this "mess" by both blowing the driveway and cleaning off the cars. The forecast is calling for colder weather over the weekend with temperatures well below freezing. So what's there will stay and most likely freeze solid. Then we could get more snow early next week. The Scranton St. Paddy's Day parade is scheduled for this weekend. A very cold day for those who venture out. 

As I stepped out onto the back patio, the chairs just caught my eye. 

As I looked to my right the steps up to the deck that's off the breakfast area looked interesting

And the trees in the back were draped with snow

And it's still snowing.....

More Snow!!

Here it is, Monday February 13 and....IT'S STILL IS SNOWING!!

We had snow late last week..that then continues as rain to ice pellets to sleet to ice..... dang, it's slippery out there!

Yesterday was miserable with gusts that blew the snow around and sleet/rain/snow that made walking treacherous. We stayed home. Honey still needed to go out. And that was somewhat comical as the snow was higher than Honey's belly...well you get the idea...

This morning the sun was out and the temperatures below freezing. Snow showers all day and walking was difficult as there was a very thick crust of ice on top of the original snow with today's snow on top of the ice. A challenge for both Honey and me. I went out to start up my car and had difficulty getting the door open - frozen shut. I was able to open the passenger side and get the car started. We let it run for about 15 minutes and I slid down to get the morning paper. The streets have been plowed but our driveway is covered with drifted snow on top of ice. Tomorrow is supposed to warm up so we will snow blow then.

B snow blowing the first snow on the 9th.

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Honey in the kitchen. She has a new collar - orange!

This Weeks Storm

Another week, another storm! Last week we had some warm days with temperatures in the 40s. And as the week drew to a close we were hearing about the major storm headed our way. Last night when we took our last walk, it was sleeting - about a half inch was on the ground that was like little pebbles. No slipping or ice skating but I did walk carefully. The wind was blowing but not howling. This morning we awoke to snow on top of the ice with a ground cover of a bit over an inch. The day was overcast but the trees were quite lovely. 

This evergreen is on the edge of our property by the driveway. 

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And this tree is to the right of the one above

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I've always liked this tree - with the branches that grow long and look so pretty. The dormer window and the triple window are where I look out in my office. It gives me a good view of the street. Honey's favorite spot is looking out that triple window. She is just the right height to stand and look out at everything that is going on. And, anyone driving up the driveway is greater with a lot of barking.

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This evergreen is located at the far back of our property. The snow was weighing down the branches.

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Later, when I took Honey out for another walk I noticed on the other side of the house the tall evergreens that shield us from our neighbor's back yard were icy and bending down. And the rhododendron next to the evergreens was also covered with a heavy icy snow. So I put Honey in the house, got a broom and gently hit the them to knock off as much snow/ice as I could. They sprang up once the weight was off them. I was pelted with snow. I'm so glad I was the they were in trouble - if left alone I'm sure some of the branches would have snapped.

An Icy Morning

The weather has been bouncing all around. The past few days were very cold. The good news was it had warmed up enough to melt the snow we had before it went down to the single digits. And we were expecting another warm up! 

Last night it was windy. When Honey and I went out around 9 PM for her "final final", the wind was blowing. We walk back to the tree area in the corner of the property the branches were creaking and it was cold. We were both glad to get in. This morning, we took our first of many walks around 5 AM. So, out we went this morning at 5..... and the first step out was a shocker....no traction...slippery and very silent out there. ICE!!  OK, so I slipped my way over to the stairs from the deck and hung on while Honey did her thing... And the stillness and silence was awesome. Back in and, as we have been doing for a while, back to bed. And when I did get up and about it was around 7:30. We went down stairs to take another walk and the outside sparkled from the ice. The local news had talked about a major pile-up with tractor trailers jackknifed. (don't believe any major injuries). There was no way I was going to walk/skate out there for Honey's walk so I grabbed the clothesline we had prepared with a clip on the end for Honey's collar, hooked her up, took a few careful steps to the stairs, threaded the rope through the banister and hung on while Honey had a larger area to use and I could be sure I would remain upright. Again it was silent outside and it appeared that it was raining - but the sun was out. And the sun was melting the ice on the trees and house and that was the "rain".  A bit later the township truck came by plowing the road (removing some of the ice) and putting cinders on the road. Schools are closed in many districts. It's now almost 10 AM and we are back to normal. The street looks dry, the trees are no longer dripping and the air now carries the feeling of warmth. We should get into the 40s today and with the sun out that is a definite possibility!  

Another Year Ends

Another year draws to a close. While the end of every year is often a time for reflection, this year I'm dealing with two events - an anniversary and a birthday!

B and I were married way back in 1966 - June 4th to be exact. It's hard to believe that we have been married that long!  And then, just the other day, I had my 70th birthday! HOW CAN THAT BE????

We are enjoying retirement and consider ourselves fortunate to have good health. 





Several days ago, while looking out the office window, a cardinal came to visit. 

He/she fluttered around in the bush and on the ground. Such a lovely site.  Happy New Year!