Dec. 1, 2009 - Double Delight Peanut Butter Cookies

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Nov. 30, 2009 - Working & Homeschooling - Sharing Chores

~~ Working and Homeschooling  ~~

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Nov. 28, 2009 - Love Letters to Your Kids

I received this info in an email from TOS, but I'm sure there will be some who stop by who do not receive those weekly emails.  Because of that, I just HAVE to share this really cool website with you!  It is love letters to your kids.  Each Friday, she posts a new topic on which to write.  I searched my bookcase diligently this afternoon until I found an unused journal.  I am going to start this project for my daughter because I think it will provide a rich heritage for her in years to come.  I am so excited to start this!

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Nov. 27, 2009 - Weekly Wrap Up

Visit www.homeschoolblogger.com/threelittleladies for more wrap ups. 

 From the Heart:

Do you know someone who has lost a loved one this year?  If so, please send them a note and let them know you are thinking of them.  You will never know how much it means to them to know someone remembered that their holidays are going to be quite different this year.

 

I lost a very dear friend when I was just 15.  He died on Christmas Eve.  Since he was the closest person I had ever lost to death at that time, it was devastating to me.  Even though it has been 30 years since he died, I still have times that I struggle with the loss.  His parents attend the church we used to attend.  Every Christmas Eve service, I would find his family in the sanctuary to let them know that I love them and that I did remember their pain.

 

On the Homefront:

I was supposed to be off work on Tuesday, but before I even clocked in on Monday, I was asked to come in for four hours, which turned into 4-1/2 hours.  Anyway, once I finally got home, dd and I put up the  and got the rest of the house decorated.  We were a bit concerned about how the new  would be with the tree, but so far, so good. 

Since we were playing Christmas music and decorating the house, we agreed that we should have some cookies, so we went to Save A Lot and got some of the chocolate chip cookies in a roll and baked them.  (We were too tired to make them ourselves.)  We also made cinnamon rolls later in the evening. 

 

Wednesday we went shopping and got a new DVD/VCR player.  We still have some video tapes we need to watch, plus I want a couple of shows recorded so I can watch them later.    We bought a few more  gifts too.

 

I have to admit it -- I'm a sucker for those annual Christmas movies.  DD and I have spent a lot of time enjoying some family-oriented movies. 

 

 In the School Room:

Since I had 2-1/2 days off from work, we only did school on Monday.  I wanted to have some special mom and daughter time while it was Thanksgiving week. 

 

 To our health:

This week has been a hard one where the asthma is concerned.  I think a lot of it has to do with the change in the weather.  We had a temperature drop, wind, and rain.  I seem to notice a change in the asthma every time there is a big change in the weather.  Usually, it affects me with being more short of breath than usual, as well as my chest hurting.  The best way to explain the chest hurting is to say that if you've ever gone out on a bitter cold day, after having an upper respiratory infection, and taken a deep breath.....well, that terrible feeling you get in your chest is what I feel like when my chest starts hurting. 

 

 On the work front:

I found out I will be working the afternoon shift in ER on Christmas Day.  That will be nice in the sense that I will be here with my family Christmas morning.  However, by the time I get to work, people will have had their Christmas dinner, ate too much, have heartburn, and think it's a heart attack.  So guess where they will be headed?  You got it.....ER! 

 

I work this weekend in admissions.  I will have to miss hearing the man who is coming from Vegas to candidate for the "next generation" pastor's position.  I work with his mom in ER.  She is a rare gem.

 

In the Kitchen:

I made hot potato salad and sweet potato crunch to take to my sis-in-law's house for our  meal.  DH bought some pies to take with us.

 

Without knowing my work schedule for December, I did the best I could to work on my menu plan.  I posted how I did it on my menu blog. 

 

  Refreshing my spirit:

I spent some time doing a Beth Moore study on the apostle Paul.  It's going to take me a long time to get through this study, but it looks like a good one.

 

 In the Literary Scene:

I'm beginning to think I need to read Passionate Housewives Desperate for God a second time.  It is a  really good book, and wouldn't hurt to "digest" it again.

 

 for stopping by! 

May the Lord bless you and keep you and make His face to shine upon you.

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Nov. 25, 2009 - Great coupons!

I usually don't use coupons because I can often buy the generic much cheaper.  However, I got an email with a link some coupons I will actually use.  Here's the link if you want to check it out:

http://print.coupons.com/couponweb/Offers.aspx?pid=13930&nid=10&zid=js37

We are going to be making homemade trail mix for the holidays.  Some of the coupons will be good for things to use in our snack mix.

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Nov. 24, 2009 - Asthma update

We got a new air purifier from Oreck a few weeks ago.  It has made a huge difference in how the house smells.  I didn't notice that the house had a musty smell about it until I saw how clean it smelled after using the air purifier. 

With the asthma, I cannot be directly in front of the purifier for any length of time because I will immediately notice that I start coughing.  I think it is because the purifier is pulling the air toward it.  So, if I'm in front of it, the bad stuff is passing by me before it gets to the purifier.

For several months, dd has been doing all of the vacuuming because that tends to really stir up stuff and causes my chest to start hurting, as well as making me short of breath.  Yet, today I did vacuum (twice), and I never noticed any problems with my breathing.  All I can attribute it to is the purifier. 

I decided to try to cut back on the herbal stuff to see if I could wean myself off of any of it.  After all, it is rather pricy.  Unfortunately, I noticed a big change for the worse within just a couple of days.  At least I know that I really do need to continue the herbal stuff.  (The types of herbal stuff I use is listed in the journey with asthma category.) 

I am still using both inhalers every day.  I have to use the albuterol inhaler three times a day; the steroid one gets used twice a day.  I cannot seem to get off that albuterol inhaler.  Though it has been rather frustrating, I have decided not to let it rule my emotions. 

I discovered another interesting thing over the weekend.  Since I was off from work, I took a two hour on Saturday.  When I woke up, I was in the middle of a nasty asthma attack.  I was really struggling to breathe.  I used both inhalers, but still continued having problems.  I remembered hearing that caffeine can help.  Normally, I will drink a diet coke (usually when I'm having issues while at work).  This time, I decided to make a cup of my instant, homemade cappuccino .  Within minutes, I could feel my breathing settling down.  It was  moment for me that left me feeling  so that I could enjoy the rest of the weekend.  And it was  too!   

Two praises:  I'm not having asthma attacks as frequently now.  And on the rare occasions that I do, I don't have the panic attacks that accompanied them when I was first diagnosed.  I'm learning what I need to do, doing it, and patiently waiting for things to settle back down to normal again. 

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

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Nov. 23, 2009 - Working & Homeschooling - Refocusing

~~~ Working and Homeschooling ~~~ 

Last week I mentioned the struggle of trying not to focus on what I missing, now that I am working outside the home.  I went through some very dark days of depression shortly after starting my job.  I came to realize that I was in a season of grieving.  Here is some of what I had to battle, and how I chose to reframe my situation.

• No longer a SAHM/Thank God I could find a job in a field I love.
• Developing chronic asthma shortly after starting a job and dealing with the loss of a healthy body/Thanking God that I have a job so that I can manage to go to the doctor when I need to.  Thanking God for the drug assistance programs which help provide the necessary meds to keep me going.
• Loss of social time with my friends/Thanking God that my friends understand my situation.  Thanking God that I am in a job which places me with people all day long.  (I am a "people" person.)
• Loss of dh's income due to the recession/Thanking God for any jobs he gets (self-employed), as well as thanking God that dh is able to be w/dd and help her when I can't be here.
• Rarely able to do things I really enjoy (watch TV, read, write devotions) - Thank God that I have the energy to do what I really need to do to make things work for us right now.
• Loss of our 18 yo cat in August - The Lord has provided us with a kitty who loves to cuddle, which is exactly what dd and I wanted.  At the end of a long, stressful day, I can come home and unwind while cuddling our kitty.  It really does help lessen the stress of the day if you can pet an animal.
• Loss of being able to homeschool dd in the way I had done previously/Thanking God that these changes have helped dd to mature and take on more responsibility (and that is a good thing).
• I have added a HUGE amount of stress to my days by working outside the home/Thanking God that I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He has placed me in my current job and will give me the strength, grace, mercy, and compassion that I need to do that job and do it for His glory.

As you can see, we have had some MAJOR things to deal with.  And that doesn't even count all of the things we've had to deal with in the past few months.  However, the Lord is good and ALL He does is good. 

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Nov. 21, 2009 - Weekly Wrap Up

Visit www.homeschoolblogger.com/threelittleladies for more wrap ups. 

From the Heart: I thoroughly enjoyed having a couple of days off from work this week.  Since I've been doing so many 7-3 shifts, my body is used to waking at 4:30 or 5:00.  I decided to take a Tylenol PM one night to see if it would help me to sleep in a bit.  It was  to  in until 8:00 the next morning!  Since dh's  was yesterday, we invited his family over for some cake.  While talking with my sis-in-law, I mentioned that I would be unable to have  with my family since I have to work the day of the family dinner.  She invited us to her house on  day.    On the Homefront: I'm getting geared up for the season.  I know I will have to do well with managing my time to make sure that the get wrapped, that the homemade gifts get done, etc.  I plan to enjoy the season though.  I refuse to let myself get  or  over getting things done for . While dd headed out to a church activity on Saturday morning, I turned on some  music and wrapped a few gifts.    In the School Room: Since I had a couple of days off work this week, we did a girls' group on Wednesday afternoon.  Each girl brought something to be used in making trail mix.  I poured each item into a separate bowl.  Next, the girls could come along with a baggie and fill it with the items of their own choosing.  They seemed to enjoy putting together their own trail mix.   Since I don't know my schedule for December, I don't know if we will be able to plan any girls' groups for next month.  Because of that, dd and I bought several different Christmas mugs so each girl could take a mug home with her today. If we do have a meeting next month, we'll have to try to come up with something different.   While purchasing mugs, I decided to get for me that has a  on it.  I love snowmen, and I like that I can continue using it even after Christmas because it isn't a mug.       On the work front: One day, an elderly lady came in by ambulance.  When she realized where she was, she yelled, "OH!  You can't keep me here!  I have an appointment to get a permanent in my hair tomorrow!"    Another time, I had a patient walk in my office.  I said, "What are we doing for you today?"  The patient replied, "I'm here to get goosed," then handed me the paperwork with prep instructions.  He was there for a colonoscopy.    Starting in December, our work days will be 8 hours long instead of 7-1/2 hours long.    In the Kitchen: On Monday, I worked all day then came home and made a double batch of Cincinnati chili.  By double batch, I mean I used 2 packages of the spice mix for it.  This means I had to use 12 c. of water, 3 pounds of ground beef, and 2 cans of tomato paste.  It sure took a while, especially when I had to puree all of it in the blender.  Once finished, I put meal-sized portions in freezer bags so that we will have several meals saved back for later use.    On Wednesday, since we were having the girls' group, I wanted to do something quick and easy for supper, so I made taco soup in the crock pot.   Thursday morning, I assisted dd while she made a chocolate sheet cake for dh's  .  This is his favorite cake, so he was quite pleased when he walked in and saw it on the kitchen counter.      Refreshing my spirit: I continue to struggle in this area because I am so terribly tired when I get home in the afternoon.  Now that I am back in the admissions department (as opposed to ER), it is hard to read anything at lunch because it is always so noisy on the floor.    In the Literary Scene: I am still reading Passionate Housewives Desperate for God.  This book is a great read, even if I am working outside the home.  It has given me much food for thought.  (Thanks Bobbi, for telling us about the great deal on this book through Vision Forum.)    for stopping by!  I hope you return soon. May the Lord bless you and keep you and make His face shine upon you.

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Nov. 17, 2009 - Gifts from your kitchen

With the holidays upon us, I thought I would share a site that has a lot of neat ideas for homemade gifts.

http://www.giftsfromyourkitchen.com/

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Nov. 16, 2009 - Working & Homeschooling - Making Different Choices

 ~~~ Working and Homeschooling ~~~

I have to admit it -- I am a news junkie.  However, with working outside the home, I have made the choice to cut back on my TV time.  I will watch about the first 15-20 minutes of the news, and then the TV is turned off. 

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Nov. 14, 2009 - Saturday

~~~ Working and Homeschooling ~~~

I have been trying to get as much as possible done on the days when I do work, so that when I have the day off, I can actually relax and unwind a bit.  Unfortunately, that isn't how yesterday played out for me.  Instead of resting, here is what I did:

• a load of laundry
• posted an ad on vegsource for some hs items I want to sell
• organized a cabinet in the kitchen
• made bbq sauce
• made granola
• made soap (recipe is posted in the body care category)
• blogged
• made some phone calls
• planned a girls' group meeting for next week
• contacted someone about using their facility for our local 4-H clogging group
• swept
• made supper
• got my lunch prepared for today
• did school w/dd
• organized some hs items
• washed dishes at least 4 times 
• got all my stuff together so it would be ready for me as I got ready for work this morning
• went to bed at 7:30 because I was

While it felt good to know that I was making a lot of progress, I have to admit that by evening time, I was less-than-pleasant.  It is hard to balance keeping a home, working outside the home, and hs'ing.    And when your hormones are amuck, it's all the more difficult. 

Would anyone care to give me a nice, long back rub? 

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Nov. 13, 2009 - Weekly Wrap Up

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Nov. 9, 2009 - My #1 Hint

~~~ Working and Homeschooling ~~~ 

If I had to come up with only ONE hint for making working outside the home also work with homeschooling, it would be to get in the habit of making a menu plan.  I do mine for a month because I have my schedule for the entire month.  If you only know your schedule for a week or two weeks in advance, then plan it for that length of time.  This has been the biggest help for me.  Being able to come home and know in advance what I'm doing for supper is a HUGE relief.  No more wondering, "What in the world am I going to make?"  No temptations for stopping at McDonald's and paying a small fortune for unhealthy food that is going to make all of us feel sick.  It also alleviates constantly running to the store to pick up something.

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Nov. 6, 2009 - Weekly Wrap Up

 From the Heart:

My nephew is home after completing basic training at Ft. Benning.  He and his girlfriend decided to get  on Tuesday.

On the Homefront:

Dh, dd, and I went to a 25th wedding anniversary on Sunday for some our friends, Sonny and Renita.    Sonny was the best man in our  over 21 years ago.

I was off Tuesday and got a lot of litte projects done.

• Refilled the baking soda container that I keep in the bathroom for my netty pot,
• Straightened up the bathroom closet while looking for a few needed items of which we had run out,
• Washed the kitchen counters,
• Took several boxes to the attic,
• Washed 3 loads of laundry,
• Removed a lot of my clutter from the kitchen and the chest in the bedroom,
• Got my work clothes ready for the rest of the week,
• Started making plans for a few activities next month,
• Organized my spices
• Got out my Christmas dishes so we can start using them.  (I figure if the merchants can start marketing Christmas before November, I can enjoy my own Christmas items for a few extra weeks.)  
• Paid a couple of bills, and a whole lot more that I just can't seem to remember right now. 

We also got our new air purifier on Tuesday.

My mom's side of the family has a gals' night out once a month to celebrate the for that month.  This month, we stopped by to get our favorite fast-food meal, then went to my mom's house to play games. 

Since I have the weekend off, I plan to get a lot accomplished Friday evening so that I can relax on Saturday and take a nice, long . 

 In the School Room:

Tuesday was a different kind of school day for us.  I heard the city trucks that remove the leaves.  DH and dd quickly ran outside to  our leaves to the street before they got to our street.  They didn't get all of them done, but they sure got a lot of them!  .   DD was glad to take a bit of a break to help her Dad.

She still had to do most of her school work that day though because she has fallen a bit behind in her science, and I am trying to get her LA course for this semester finished by  .  I'm not sure we will get it done though since I have 3 days in a row off that week.  We will be decorating the house those days for .  I doubt that much school will be done while the decorating is taking place.  I am getting to the place where I am letting dd do a lot of the decorating on her own since she enjoys it so much.

  To our health:

We got our new air purifier this week.  We are hoping it will help with my asthma issues.

Since I take so many pills (herbal stuff, not meds),   dh bought me one of those pill holders that holds a week's supply.  I bought 2 more -- one to take to work to use during my lunch break, and one for my evening herbs.  It has made taking my pills a lot easier.  I only have to distribute them once a week, as opposed to doing it several times every day.

 On the work front:

Monday was a rather odd day in the ER.  We had several patients coming in for the exact same thing (and it wasn't H1N1).  I asked if it was a full moon.  The doctor said the full moon was a couple of days prior to that.  I said perhaps people just missed it by a few days. 

On that same day, I saw FIVE different people I know, and I know ALL of them from the same social circle.  Isn't that just ?  Please don't  at me, but due to HIPAA guidelines, I can't give any other details. 

I was working in ER one day when they actually lost a patient.  I think this young patient was actually gone before the ambulance brought them in.  Very, very sad.  You can definitely tell when a family's grief is the kind when they have "no hope."  It was so heart-wrenching.

 Refreshing my Spirit:

I haven't had a weekend off for many weeks, so I am really looking forward to going to  this weekend and reconnecting with my church family.   (For some odd reason, I keep having trouble getting my last category to work on weekly wrap up.  Even when I try to change the categories around, it still doesn't want to work.)

Have a  week!

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Nov. 3, 2009 - Pumpkin Latte