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Sunday, November 23, 2025

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
















Friday, November 14, 2025

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




Thursday, November 6, 2025

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




 


 


Saturday, November 1, 2025

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







Sunday, October 26, 2025

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!




Sunday, October 19, 2025

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, October 11, 2025

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.)

Saturday, October 4, 2025

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



Wednesday, October 1, 2025

October 1, 2025 Rabbit! Rabbit! White Rabbit!




Rabbit! Rabbit! White Rabbit!


October is here... and I'm so-oo glad! 
Although it's still pretty hot here in Texas,  
I know it should start to feel like Fall soon.

 Here's wishing everyone a happy healthy safe Fall Season!

Hugs (virtual),

Rian






 

Sunday, September 28, 2025

Today is a good day...




Just wanted to say that today is a good day! I can see again out of my left eye... still blurry, but I'll take it. It's only day 3.  2nd plastic surgery was Friday morning. Scary day with an urgent return to doctor's office after being released from surgical center (will go into that later). But... Saturday was better and so on. 

The 2nd surgery itself didn't take long. When in recovery room, I opened the eye that had been stitched closed for 5 weeks and I could see 'shadows of people'. Then as time went on while still there, I could see as if I was looking at things through blurry water. 

After home for about an hour, I was watching TV when suddenly the TV was doubled, my vision  became double vision... which was scary and also made me a bit nauseous. 

So we went back to see the doctor and I was told that when this happened he believed it was due to weakened muscles in the eye from either the anesthesia or the numbing agents (or the fact that the eye was stitched closed for so long - my reasoning). It should go away in a few minutes, hours, or days. He patched it closed for the day and told me to remove the patch in the morning and start the healing treatments. 

The next morning when I removed the patch, my vision was blurry, but normal. And so it goes...

The only thing I haven't mentioned is that when he told me that he believed the double vision was due to weakened eye muscles, he also said it could be due to a stroke (yes, that certainly upped my bp!) I was like, "What??". Then he said that he didn't think it was that as I wasn't showing any neurological signs. I asked "what are the signs?" And he said, "headache, weakness, etc."  I said, "No... (although I had just come off anesthesia and was feeling a bit weak). 

Anyway, patching up the eye for the night seemed to have done the trick. I see him again later this week and we'll go from there. If any of you out there watch Doc Martin on TV, this doc is a little like him... very good, but a bit abrasive. At  one point when I was telling him what was happening, he said, "Stop talking! I'm trying to examine you."(Doc Martin, right?)

Closing this with some pics that made me think of recent dreams. The last few nights this week I have dreamt of our cats (long gone).



The first was of a white cat (Betsy) we had when the kids were toddlers. I was standing in the door of a house looking out. Betsy was there on the patio drinking water. A few feet from her laying down was a mountain lion. I panicked for a second, knowing that if I called her, I would make both of them aware. In the short time that passed, Betsy simply stopped drinking and walked into the house. Dream over. I've dreamt of our cats off and on through the years, but this was the first time I ever dreamt of Betsy.

The second dream was of Ghost... one of our cats that passed away at the beginning of the pandemic. She was 15. Anyway, the dream was short, but wonderful! I actually got to pet her and she rolled over on her back and I could 'hear and feel her purring'! (My dreams are usually pictures, not much conversation, and not much 'feeling'). This was so-o different. It was wonderful and made me wake up happy.

I know many of you may think me crazy... but these are the things that make me believe that love never ends. 




Going to close this now as my left eye doesn't like the lap top light (even though I've lowered it quite a bit). I'll continue my updates later in the week. Thanks for reading. Hope it wasn't TMI.


Hugs,

Rian



 

Saturday, September 20, 2025

Life goes on... but still in the 90's here




My daughter sent me these -  pictures of her Fall Table Setting and her Fall Fireplace. She decorates for almost every holiday and usually starts early. I told her that my Easter bunny decor is still out... and I think that I will just add a few pumpkins to it for Fall and Thanksgiving.

The blue/lavender plates in the center are part of a 4-piece tea set that we gave to DH's mom at one time. When she passed, it came back to me... and I passed it on to my daughter. It's a beautiful set, called Royal Albert's Moonlight Rose. It's the blue/lavender set similar to Royal Albert's Old Country Roses which are in red/gold. Here's a pic of the teapot, etc.




Now on to Shadow, the feral cat that still comes by to eat or sleep in our backyard. Here is a picture of him eating alongside one of the box turtles.


The funny story DH tells me is that he put out some leftover chicken  for Shadow and the turtle must have smelled it, as he came over and stuck his head in the dish (under Shadow's nose) and took a piece!

Life goes on here... my next plastic surgery is this week. Not looking forward to it, but also want it done and over (hopefully). 

Going to share 2 more things here that are very different. But it's all I've got at the moment.  One is a picture of my Ice-box Lemon pie I made last week. It is so-oo good. Made with lemon curd, condensed milk and whipping cream (how could it not be good?) It's my next favorite to my dark chocolate pie (made with bourbon whipped cream as a topping). If I posted a pic of this before, please forgive me (memory isn't always great).


This other share is a spiritual one. It's just one of my favorite quotes from C.S. Lewis' book, Mere Christianity. I don't read religious books much, but this one I liked. The quote that stayed with me all these years was:

"What can you ever know of other people's souls - of their  temptations, their opportunities, their struggles? One soul in the whole of creation you do know: and it is the only one whose fate is placed in your hands. If there is a God, you are, in a sense alone with Him."

And I will leave you with this. My time and attention has been taken up with this eye situation and getting by with this eye stitched closed, so I've not been paying much attention to the political atmosphere. I get a little here and there from DH or my iPhone... but there is another quote that seems appropriate here (yes, I like quotes and seem to remember the ones that speak to me). 

"Sufficient for the day is the evil thereof" - meaning don't worry about future problems. Take it a day at a time. I'm trying...


Hugs (virtual),

Rian

Wednesday, September 10, 2025

Old age and sleeping/dreaming...


 
me and Gigi napping (years ago)


You'll have to excuse the 'old' pic, but I don't have any recent ones of me sleeping. This was taken years ago when Gigi and I would nap together on the sofa. Anyway, last night I was thinking about how many of my family and friends have trouble sleeping. I wonder if this is just an age-related problem or does it have to do with the stress of the times or has it always been this way?

I actually sleep fairly well myself. Go to bed around 10 pm, read for an hour or so, and then sleep until around 7 or 7:30 in the morning (with 2-3 bathroom breaks during the night of course). DH pretty much does the same (except that he doesn't read - just falls asleep pretty quickly). He gets up around 7:30 am 2 days to get the garbage out before the garbage man comes at 8 (comes at 8 'sometimes' - but if you don't get it out, he's sure to come early - so we call it his 'beat the garbage man mornings'). I usually stay in bed dozing or thinking about things until 8. Then up for coffee/tea... (or sometimes DH brings me coffee/tea in bed!)

I also have an Amazfit Band 7 watch that is connected to my phone that keeps tract of sleep. It tells me how long I slept, times I was awake, how much was deep sleep, my heart rate during sleep, and hypopnea times/hour. Then it tells me my steps during the night and gives me a score. I usually score in the 80's and 90's - a few in the 70's occasionally. 

And of course there are some nights (not many, but some - I call these my 'dark nights of the soul') when my mind is too busy to shut down and I wake up in the wee hours. Generally I make myself a cup of tea and either play with my Animal Crossing game or write lists of things to do the next day. Then return to bed and usually sleep until 8. 

Two of my friends have trouble sleeping. Both are my age or close. One has had trouble for years and years. She hardly ever slept. Don't know how she did it. But now her doctor has found something that works for her... thank goodness, she now can sleep. The other has pain problems as well as restless leg syndrome. She is up and down a lot during the night. 

Younger people I know have trouble also. One only sleeps maybe 4 hours a night and has to have a couple of beers before bedtime. Another goes to sleep quickly, but wakes up within a few hours and can't go back. Both of these people have a lot of stress in their lives, jobwise or personal. That leads me to believe that STRESS is one of the main causes of trouble sleeping - maybe for everyone. 

What do you think? Do you sleep well at night? I've always believed that good sleep was very important as that is the time our body rests and recoups, does repairs, and boosts our immune system. 




Also, do you dream? I used to dream long lucid dreams that I remembered in the morning and enjoyed. Nowadays I hardly remember what I dreamt... and when I do, they're short, confusing, often confrontational... things I would never do or say when awake. 

Just curious, but do you have trouble sleeping? And do you dream? If so, do you remember your dream?

Just sharing my thoughts here. Would love to know yours...


Hugs (virtual),

Rian
(question: is this type size too small? This is medium. But I've been using large lately and looking back, it may be too big?)

Sunday, September 7, 2025

Hanging in here... and trying to stay busy

 


Not complaining... really, just putting my thoughts down. This having my left eye stitched closed is weird, scary, and uncomfortable. It doesn't hurt... aches a little on occasion, itches sometimes, but is just plain a nuisance. 

It's been a little over 2 weeks since the Mohs and the plastic surgery - and 3 weeks until the next surgery (where I believe they will take the stitches out and allow my eye to open again - I hope ). I actually have an appointment this coming Thursday to be checked over and talk about what's next.  

I know there are worse things... and I keep telling myself to be thankful to have had the basal cell carcinoma removed. And that I can still see out of my right eye during this time.  I also know that this too will pass. But in my mind, it's just taking too long...

I guess I just thought there would be a surgery and then it would be stitched up and that would be it. Apparently not.

If I'm going to get through another 3 weeks, I'm going to have to keep busy to keep my mind off of this situation. Can't sketch - my perception is too messed up. But I can read (thank goodness for kindle on my phone where I can enlarge the print), can binge watch Netflix,  and I can bake! 

Today I baked Halloween cookies... a little early I know, but I don't have any "Fall" cookie cutters (maybe I should look for 'leaves'?) Besides, my cousin in N.O. has a birthday coming up and I'm not exactly able to do much shopping, so I may send her cookies.  I could order through Amazon for her (and may still do that), but thought the cookies would be a good back-up plan.





Not a lot else going on around here... daughter sends me pics of Ryder, oldest granddaughter 's Bernese Mountain dog. He is still a puppy (about a year old) and is a sweetie. First pic is of him at home, the second he is on a play-date with his yellow lab friend. They're hanging out by the pool... (a bit spoiled, yes?)





I have been reading a lot lately (actually I always read a lot...). Last book was "Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure" by Rhys Bowen. Enjoyed it, but different from her other spy books. 

Watched "Queen Charlotte" on Netflix. I'm sure that it's not historically accurate... but was definitely interesting. 

Believe it or not, it was in the 60's here Friday morning. Today it's in the 70's! Love it! We are able to get out and walk around the neighborhood a bit. I do miss getting outside... but not when it's in the 90's and triple digits.

That's it... not an exciting read, but it is what it is. If you're still with me, thank you.

This next pic has nothing to do with anything... just made me laugh when I saw it. If you're a cat person, you might appreciate it.




Hugs (virtual),

Rian