Christmas tree is finished!! And the Christmas train is back!

showing Mardi Gras beads!

There really are many more ornaments to add to the tree... but lately I've been just putting up the ones that hold memories: ones I made for the kids when they were babies, ones the kids made themselves, ones given to us, ones bought on travels, and a few glass ones from my parent's tree years ago (and I add Mardi Gras beads to our tree because it makes it feel more New Orlean-sy).

And I have to share my Christmas train with you! We've always had a train around the tree or elsewhere for Christmas. But the larger one got lost (or possibly one of our kids took it at some point). Then we had a small one that the grandkids played with so much, it no longer worked. So recently I saw this one on Amazon for $20 and couldn't resist. It is so cute... and makes train whistles, etc.!! 

(Remember to click on square on right to make video larger 

and to click on Esc to get back to post)

And of course I'm doing my Christmas baking. Sent off the first batch this week. Working on the 2nd batch today. Then only one more needed for family and friends close by. I usually bake Christmas tea cakes for my youngest granddaughter here and the twin girls next door - and rum cakes for the adults. 

This is a new version that I'm trying this year. I'm putting lemon curd or chocolate (maybe Nutella?) in between 2 thin teacakes with leaf cutouts in the center. Here's a picture of a few of the test ones with lemon curd (the 4 on the right):

That's all I've got to share at the moment. Hope your Christmas preparedness is under way and bringing you joy...

(This is the first Christmas since we lost our 17 year old grandson last January... so it's a bit bittersweet. My oldest son is still having a hard time dealing with it... as can be expected.)

Until next time...

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

(For those interested, my eye is healing. Still on Rx antibiotic drops for the clogged tear duct, but otherwise doing fine.)

December 1, 2025 Rabbit! Rabbit! White Rabbit!

 

Rabbit! Rabbit! White Rabbit!

OK, December is here!  and the end of 2025!  (and we're all still here... so far... but I think it's been a scary year for many)  

However, I'm going to focus on the magic of Christmas for the time being. I think we need to try to enjoy the season while it's upon us (with family, friends, food, decorations, etc.) 

A few pics from our house:

Yes, it's a bit 'cluttered'... but we like it!

this was taken at the garden center where we get our live tree...

I won't put up any pics of the tree yet... as it isn't decorated, but DH has put the lights on. We have gone from 12 ft trees to 10, then 8, and now 6 foot is what we got this time. Not only for the difficulty getting them in and set up (at our age), but also for the ridiculously increased prices. We love live trees for the aroma and just the naturalness of it. But we may end up being priced out if this continues... or we may have to get a 4-5 ft real tree and put it on a table next year.

I don't usually post much on Rabbit! Rabbit! days, but I wanted to share a little of our Christmas decor so far... 

... and also because I mentioned at some point (in a comment) about posting something in reference to the 1968 movie, "2001: a Space Odyssey". Someone brought it up in a comment on Apache Dug's post... and it reminded me of what happened almost 58 years ago. 

DH and were married in January of 1968. The movie came out in April... and we went to see it in September (or thereabout) - I was 8 months pregnant with our first child at the time. 

Do you remember the music to 2001? Well, it's very dramatic and  the baby inside me certainly responded to it. He almost kicked his way out during that movie. We thought about leaving, but didn't. Luckily he wasn't born for a few more weeks. But listening to that movie's music always brings back memories of that time and place... and confirmed that unborn babies certainly hear the sounds around them.

And the reason I'm posting this so late in the day is because DH and I went to the mall earlier today to do some Christmas shopping and I wanted to show you these 2 Lego pieces that were featured there:

full size adult Lego Santa!

and this black and white Lego Cat

How cute is that?

That's it! Try to stay warm (it's finally cold here - in the 30's). 

Hugs (virtually), 

Rian

Thanksgiving Day Nov 27, 2025

Happy Thanksgiving 2025!

 Just a few favorite memes:

... and something Jo (a Brit in Tennessee) had on her blog a while back:

Count your blessings instead of your crosses;

Count your gains instead of your losses.

Count your joys instead of your woes;

Count your friends instead of your foes.

Count your smiles instead of your tears;

Count your courage instead of your fears.

Count your full years instead of your lean;

Count your kind deeds instead of your mean.

Count your health instead of your wealth;

 

Count on God instead of yourself.

~Author Unknown

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

Christmas prep has started...

Now making my list for Christmas gifts and goodies... and starting to store cookie cannisters and boxes for mailing. Yes, it is only Thanksgiving next week, but that makes Christmas 4 weeks away! In that short time we need to order, buy, clean, and bake - as well as wrap and decorate. 

We usually get our tree the day after Thanksgiving (as well as any live garlands from the local nursery). DH put up our outside Christmas lights yesterday (we don't do the whole house, just across the front). 

There's not much decorating for Thanksgiving... so it goes from Halloween pumpkins to Christmas here. And I like Christmas. It's my 2nd favorite holiday (Easter being my first). But there's more 'magic' in the air at Christmas... not sure why, just always has been for me.

Also next week my youngest granddaughter becomes a teenager (13)! Hard to imagine as the time passed so quickly. 

Oh, and for the longest, the only feral cat that comes to eat regularly has been the one we call Shadow. He was born here in the yard, and once grown had gone off (as most do eventually), but he returned a few months back and has been staying around. Now he has brought a friend, a black female that could well have been part of the same litter.

The reason we believe this is because she comes right up to the door and looks in - like the ones who knew this yard from birth would do. She seems very comfortable and not at all afraid (not that she'd let us too close). Also Shadow has always been a loner... not getting to close to other grown cats. He was good around kittens - and he doesn't seem to mind her eating close to him.

We've been here 40 years and have seen many many ferals come and go. Occasionally we think maybe they come back for the holidays??

And recently, our grandson who lives with us, just had his 27th birthday! He moved in when he was 18 and his parents moved to Hawaii. He tried living there for a bit, but decided he was a Texas boy and moved back. Love having him here! We celebrated with a Tiramisu cake and dinner at a favorite Italian restaurant. Pictures of our dinner following:

My chicken Campanella

DH's Sausage & Peppers 

Grandson's Niko's Special

Bread pudding

Cannoli

And a quick update before I close this, my eye is healing well... one small problem has occurred that is keeping us watching is that my tear duct seems to be partially blocked. Apparently it has nothing to do with my surgeries, but still bothersome. I had the doctor check it and he did something (like put a tube down it and irrigated it?) and said yes, it was partially blocked. I'm using warm compresses, Systane drops, and may use a Rx antibiotic drops if it doesn't clear up soon (there is a surgery... but really really don't want another surgery 😟). If anyone out there has ever had a blocked tear duct  -  I would love to hear any advice or solutions.

a few memes:

That's it!  Wishing you a happy Sunday! 

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

Update on eye surgery... and a few pics

Starting this update on Monday after last Friday's surgery. All went well as far as we can tell. Eye Plastic Surgeon cut across left eyelid to lower it as it didn't quite come down as far as needed after 2nd surgery. It's swollen and blue, but seems to be ok. I see the doctor for post surgery visit on Thursday, so will know more then... and won't post this until then.

The only complication (which really wasn't one, but seemed like it) came on our way home from the surgical center Friday afternoon around 3pm. We had stopped at Whole Foods to pick up some sourdough bread and while DH went inside, I sat in the car. As he was returning, I noticed the wad of gauze in my hand was quickly filling up with blood... a little bleeding is ok, but this was more than a little... and it kept coming. I filled up another wad of gauze and DH said, "We're going back!" and we did. The doctor checked it right away and it had almost stopped by then. He said that most probably it was a blood clot that just burst.

Anyway, it's the 3rd day after surgery. I can see fine. The eyelid is lower, but still very swollen. We did cold packs for the first 2 days and start on warm compresses several times a day now. 

It's Thursday morning now and was getting ready for doctor appointments when I noticed that the shirt I was wearing and had hung up after my eye surgery last Friday has blood all down the left side. Being otherwise occupied, I hadn’t noticed it till now. Hope it comes out as it’s one of my favorite tops. 

OK, it's now Thursday after 4 pm and my post op visit is over. Doctor checked my eye and seemed a bit disappointed that it is a little 'droopy'... but believes that it's only been 6 days since the surgery and that once the swelling has gone down more, it should be better. Wants me to continue the warm compresses and ointment on the stitches (which are across the top of the eyelid and dissolvable - thank goodness!) And next appointment in one month... but said we will give it 3 months to heal.

This small growth on my left lower lid certainly turned out to be more than I'd expected. I guess I just expected the growth to be taken off... and the area stitched up. Never did I expect it to take 4 surgeries and all this time to heal. But... I'm not complaining. Truth is I'm just glad that the basal cell carcinoma is gone and my sight is not affected. If I end up with a droopy left eye, I really don't care. 

Thanks for putting up with my medical adventure. Sharing things like this helps. Not sure why. Perhaps it makes a person feel that they aren't going through it all alone. And I certainly haven't. DH, my grandson, and my kids have been with me all the way (DH crushing ice and bringing it to me to ice my eye for 10 minutes every 30 minutes the first few days and taking over the cooking, etc. for me on those days). And I love my friends and bloggers encouraging comments and texts. It all helps. Thank you.

a few funnies that fit me lately:

and...

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

Voice typing by Microsoft... and a recipe

I wanted to mention a new feature I just found when I went to Word on my computer the other day. It's called voice typing. And you just have to speak - and the words will be typed out for you. Voice typing launcher will appear when. You go to Word on your computer or laptop. The punctuation is a little iffy (as you can see). As it puts a period down whenever you pause. But I still think it's a neat feature.

And could be very useful for those who have any problem with their eyesight. This way they can continue blogging by simply voicing their blog instead of typing it. I'm on Windows 11 and I guess it is a new Microsoft feature. Or if it's not new. Then I just wasn't aware of it. I am using it now, as you can probably see from all the pauses and incorrect punctuation.

I will continue to use it for the first half of this post, just. To see how it works and if it's convenient, possibly for everyone. However, the incorrect punctuation can be a bit annoying...

And here are a few funny tech memes:

and...

There were many of these funny technology memes, but these 3 made me laugh... so I'm sharing.

And will also share this recipe we tried a few days ago that we all liked. It's called The Ultimate Hashbrown Casserole.

Here is a pic:

Ingredients:

4 cups diced smoked sausage

1 cup diced yellow onion

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup all purpose flour

2 cups whole milk

2 cups chicken broth

4 cups shredded cheese (Colby-Jack) divided (I used 3 cheddar)

1 cup sour cream

1 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1 (30 oz) package of frozen shredded hashbrown potatoes (thawed)

Garnish with chopped green onion and black pepper if desired

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350

In large skillet, cook sausage over medium heat, breaking up meat until browned (about 5 minutes). Then remove from pan with a slotted spoon. Set aside.

Add yellow onion to skillet, cook until tender (about 5 minutes).

Add butter, stirring until melted and add flour, stirring constantly for one minute.

Slowly add milk and broth, stirring constantly. Bring mixture to a boil and simmer until thickened (about 10 mins).

Add 3 cups cheese, stirring, then add sour cream, salt and pepper.

Stir in sausage and hash browns until well combined.

Bake in oven until brown and bubbly (about 45 mins). 

Sprinkle with remaining cheese (1 cup) and bake 5 mins more till cheese is melted. Garnish with green onion and pepper.

This makes a lot! You can cover leftovers in refrigerator and keep for up to 3 days. But I just made half the recipe. It was plenty for the 3 of us and even had some left-over for breakfast.

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

 

 

November 1, 2025 Rabbit! Rabbit! White Rabbit!

 

Rabbit! Rabbit! White Rabbit!

Good Morning Everyone! I'm a little late posting this today. But things have been a bit busy around here. Yesterday was Halloween and although we no longer open our doors to trick or treaters (most now go to trunk or treat at the schools), I do make Halloween cookies and candy for my youngest granddaughter (who will be 13 soon! Can't believe that!) and the twin girls next door. 

But we did have a strange thing happen Halloween night. We live at the intersection of 2 streets and have a street light in our driveway. Well, somewhere around 9-10pm or so, we saw activity on our security cameras of about 2 dozen or more people (some grownups, mostly maybe teens) dancing in the street there. Most were dancing, some were taking pics. It went on for about 10-15 minutes. (We were already in bed or would have gone out to check it out). Flash dancing?? Don't know... After about 10-15 minutes they all moved on collectively down the street. 

Our neighborhood didn't have young children for a long time. They did when we moved in 40 years ago, but they've all (including ours) grown and moved on. Then the pandemic hit and Halloween trick or treating was more or less a no-no. Now we are getting an influx of more young people, so perhaps Halloween trick or treaters will become a thing again. We shall see.

Well, that's it. Don't usually post much on Rabbit! Rabbit! day, but wanted to share this... as well as the news that apparently I do need another eye surgery in the next week or so (ugh!). Will keep you updated. 

And I know that most of you know nothing about the video game "Animal Crossing" (which my grandson got me started on at the beginning of the pandemic). It's an island life game (no survival, no winning, just life on an island) very relaxing. Anyway, Nintendo just announced that we are getting a great update in January 2026. I know this means nothing to non-players, but this is something we didn't expect and are really excited about. They will also offer a new Switch 2 with the game plus extras, but the update to the old game (on our old Switches) will be free. So happy and pleased that the Nintendo people did this!

Closing with a video that my son sent that is really funny... if you're into cats.

(you really need to enlarge this by clicking the small square 

on the right side to enjoy it thoroughly. It's hilarious!)

Happy Halloween!

Hugs (virtually),

Rian

Halloween cometh...

There was a time that I always made us a pumpkin custard pie for Halloween. Haven't done it in years now. But I will make some pumpkin and bat tea cakes to give to my granddaughter and the twin girls next door... as well as a Halloween bag full of candy (we no longer open our doors for Halloween trick or treaters - stopped with the pandemic and was replaced with "trunk or treat" at the schools.) 

And I already had our grandson order Pepperoni and cheese pizza for tonight (no usual Sunday roast or whatever due to baking cookies!).

I did make a Shepherd's pie the other night. I make it a little different from the original Irish recipe... as I use a Pet Ritz pie crust brushed with a little bourbon, vanilla, butter, and a tiny bit of sugar. We find it makes the crust taste very home-made - got the idea from a Chef on TV. It works great!

And I've been doing a lot of reading. Now just finished "The Last Letter" by Rebecca Yarros and am in the middle of  her "Great and Precious Things". 

By the way, our feral cat numbers have been low lately. Only Shadow (the grey) turns up. We have however been getting a mother raccoon and her babies, as well as 3 possums, and several box turtles.

Shadow and a box turtle

The crows continue to come. My son sent me this sign for the house.

So I will leave you with this:

and...

Wishing you a great Sunday and a Happy Halloween! 

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

(Update on my eye... had to reschedule my eye appointment this past week as not feeling well, but will go in this week to see what the doctor has to say)

Oh... and my youngest granddaughter makes "masks" (think I've mentioned this before?) . Anyway, she made a bunch more and brought them over for me to see yesterday. They are really good. My favorite was this one:

Had to share this... so cute!

 It's a purple Yorkie mask!

October 18, 2025 No King's Day

We went to the No Kings Day protest yesterday.

It was a great turn-out... probably over 3000 people there in our area alone lining the streets from one end of the shopping center to the other... and past into the neighborhoods - waving flags and holding signs! Cars passing were honking and giving the thumps up! There are more all over the city and the U.S. If the turnouts are all this good... and peaceful, it's a hopeful sign.

Loved some of the signs people waved. Most said "No Kings" or "No Dictators", some said, "Congress - Honor your oath", "We have a constitution, not a King", "This is what Democracy looks like". But my favorite was an elderly woman's sign that said, "I need to be able to tell my grandchildren I didn't stay silent". I agree with that. We didn't take a sign, but if I had, it would have said, "Make America KIND again!"

Favorite signs:

and 

Seeing all the news coverage of the event today was definitely encouraging. Thousands plus turned out all over the country (and apparently there were No Kings protests in other countries  too).

Wish people realized that we all love America and just want the freedom and equality that the constitution promises...  and we need to remember the words that are on the Statue of Liberty.

"Give me your tired, your poor,

 your huddled masses 

yearning to breathe free."

IMO, basically we were all immigrants... and America was built and became great on these words. Yes, understandably there must be some control and regulations... but not like what's going on now. Fear is not the way and whatever happens, I believe history will prove this. 

The words "WE, the People... " are so important. 

And at the moment I'm remembering the words of Mother Teresa when she said that we can't all do great things, but we can do small things with great love. Hoping and praying that this is enough.

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

Saturday thoughts...

I found this pic on the internet, but DH actually saw a white crow one day when he was pulling in the drive. I watched for days, but if it was there, it never came back. I believe that any creature can be born albino. It's just rare and I'm not sure how well they're accepted. 

I googled it and read that they are extremely rare and occur only 1 in 30,000 to 100,000 births. It is due to a genetic mutation that prevents melanin production. Sadly it also said that it can impact the bird's ability to find a mate and also harm their eyesight.

And... in some native American tribes a white crow sighting signifies a great blessing.

We have 6-8  black crows that come by every morning and evening for peanuts and Cheetos. The other day we came home from an errand and they were all over the trees cawing... like "They're home! They're home!". It was only about 3 o'clock and not actually feeding time... but I went out and threw them a few Cheetos. They were down on the lawn before I even got back in the house.

And observing them, it's possible that they come from different groups as one can be fine feeding close to some, but chases others off or is chased off himself. I raised and bred English Budgies and Zebra Finches years ago and it was fascinating to watch their interaction. Seems like these crows also have a pecking order.

OK... just wanted to share about the white crow. Didn't mean to go on and on. 

If you're still with me, I'll talk about something else... although it's not terribly exciting either. I've been baking a lot lately. Sent teacakes and home-made nutty granola to a friend last week. She was having some down days and thought it might perk her up.

And now making espresso shortbread and pralines to add to my oldest granddaughter's care package for her birthday this coming week.

espresso shortbread cookies
with dark chocolate centers

Also wearing my back brace today as lately my lower back is acting up when I get out of bed. It acts like one wrong move and it'll freeze up on me. But once I'm up and moving about (albeit very slowly at first), it seems to loosen up and be OK. (Just another sign of age, I'm sure).

And remember that Halloween is coming - so please keep your inside cats in - and possibly create a safe yard for the outside ferals.

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

(For those interested, eye is healing and seems to be doing OK... but still the possibility of a 3rd surgery looms.)

just a few thoughts...

I was texting this morning with a friend that has a lot going on in her personal life these days. And we were discussing how worrying about it doesn't help... and that we need to find little things that bring us joy. 

And I happened to look up at my cat calendar hanging on the wall above my desk... and smiled.  Gary Patterson makes these and I find them adorable. They make me smile, so I thought I'd share a few with you.

 

This last one is my favorite!

I know this is a post without much content. But if it made you smile, then I'm happy. 

On a more serious note, I want to share a few pics I came across of Jane Goodall:

May she rest in peace... her life made a difference.

Hugs (virtual),

Rian