Day 211--Women's Ministry kick-off for Advent

Tonight I attended a women's ministry event at TBC.  It was to kick off the beginning of Advent.  I have gone to church all my life, and never attended a church that did this thing called Advent so I am a novice at knowing about it.  Last year, our church for the first time included it in our December services.  This year, I decided to attended the kick-off last night and it was a wonderful time of fellowship and prayer and discussion of the Advent season.  "Advent" means "coming" and in church history it has been God's chosen people looking forward to His birth in the old testament and now for the New Testament church it also includes the 2nd coming of Christ as promised.  I've always seen Advent calendars and  boxes and wreaths in stores at Christmas time, but the true issue is based on remembering the promises of God that He would send a Savior.  We were given a little book that has four weeks of devotionals associated with Advent and activities and songs as well.  This is what the real Christmas story is all about--and why haven't all churches seen to it that their congregations focus on this?  It is so much more than the story of a baby in a manger, and I am truly blessed that I am getting to participate in this season in a new way.

Day 210 -- Road Trip to Comanche

Today I went to Comanche with Avis and two other friends who work for her.  The purpose of the trip was 3-fold:  to pick up custom made boots for Avis and Scott, to take a load of her belongings to her storage place in Comanche in preparation for her move there in January, and to take a tour of the house and property she is buying.  It was a fun trip and we met up with our other friends Sharon and Marvin who live in Comanche and who will now be Avis' neighbors.  There were a number of firsts going on during the trip but the one I will choose to focus on is the boot maker's shop, which was our first stop.  I had never been to a custom boot business before and enjoyed looking at all the boots on display that were ready to be picked up by customers.  But the really interesting thing to me was when I stepped into the "back" room where all the work is done to make these beautiful boots.  What amazed me was all the colors of leather that they had hanging back there for a customer to choose from to begin the process of making the boots.  Who knew leather could be died so many different ways from patterns to a rainbow of colors.  It captured by imagination and intimidated me to think that if I were a person wanting custom boots, I would have to pick the leather and then live with the results!  Avis's custom boots were a red ostrich--beautiful.  Scott's had a Texas Realtor logo engraved in the top of the boots.    I fear that this craft of hand-making boots will become obsolete at some time as most highly skilled craftsmen are being replaced by machines that can produce a lesser product for a lesser price and the public will be satisfied with that.  It is definitely an art form.

All along the sides are hides of leather--if you can blow this up, you will
see the beautiful colors.

Machines used to craft the leather into boots.

Day 209 -- Salmon with cilantro, lime, honey and garlic sauce

Tonight for dinner, I cooked salmon--one of our favorites.  I had eaten salmon a couple of times at Mandi's and loved it, and noticed she cooked it (in great quantities I might add) in the oven.  So I called and got her recipe and did it that way myself.  Thanks for sharing Mandi.  I made the salmon according to the recipe and it was fast and delicious!  This may become my favorite way to cook it from now on.  But I will always defer to Bill's salmon on the grill with hollandaise sauce when he's in the mood to cook!

Day 208 -- Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Today I decided to work on un-decorating from Thanksgiving and decorating for Christmas.  I do this every year so that is not a first.  However, this year I did things a little differently than ever before and I believe it relieved me of some stress--although the house did look like a wreck for most of the day!  All my boxes of decorations and the Christmas trees are stored in the garage and basement closet.  Most all of those decorations go upstairs on the main level of the house.  That requires carrying heavy things up the stairs.  I have had a dumb waiter the whole time we have lived here of course, and so have sent things up in it as much as possible.

Here is the first--the difference--this year.  I filled the dumbwaiter up, brought it upstairs, unloaded and PLACED everything that was in it before going down for another load into the dumbwaiter and doing the exact same thing.  While this may have actually taken a bit longer, it was so much more organized and BONUS, I got LOTS of steps in going up and down the stairs to load and then unload the dumbwaiter!  My new routine has just been discovered--at least as long as we are in this house.

Day 207 -- Making Kombucha

Today Mandi sent me home with some Kombucha starter so that I can try my hand at making some myself.  For those of you not in the know about this drink, it is a fermented drink that is supposed to do wonders for gut health.  So you must have some "starter" called the "mother" or something else I can't remember, and some "starter fluid" which is a bit of the juice from the previous batch.  Then you brew tea, add a little sugar, and let it sit in a glass jar and ferment for a week or two resulting in a drink that is a bit vinegary, bubbly, and good for your belly.  I have had it store-bought with a flavor--this recipe is not flavored however.  I got mine all mixed up after getting home, and have it in the pantry awaiting the finished product in about 10 days.

Recipe (but you must get starter from someone 

before you can do it.

The blob in the middle is the "mother" which 

does all the magic work.

Day 206 -- Full Day of Fun

This day was great because we got to have lunch with our friends Dave and Paula whom we all love and enjoy visiting with greatly.  We met at a cute place called the Breadstick in Trophy Club and sat and visited until about 3:30 in the afternoon!  

After going home so Ruth could clean up after her riding lessons, we got out and did some more shopping.  We went to a shop where I told them I had never found anything to buy because it all seemed like it was for small people!  However, I left with a cowl neck sweater and another blouse--all of us left with something as a matter of fact!

The real first for today though, was going to see the movie "Murder on the Orient Express" at one of the kinds of theaters in which you can order your dinner and have a drink while watching the movie complete with wait staff.  I've heard of them for years, but we don't have one in our area, and when we are going to Austin, we usually have other things on our mind.  It was a fun experience and a good movie!  

We also saw some beautiful Christmas lights while we were out.

In the bottom of this huge tree is a room that has Santa
in it and the people lined up are waiting to get their
photo made with the jolly old man!

Day 205 -- Flower Mound Bound

Today I took off to have a girls' weekend with Mandi and Ruth.  Jeff and the boys are at the ranch so we decided we would spend a little girl time while they were gone.  Ruth was taking double riding lessons on Friday-Sunday so she was busy during the morning, but in the afternoon we played!  Today we braved Black Friday to go to one store for a list of things I was looking for--mostly a hair dryer since mine died this morning before I left, and also some ideas for gifts for the boys for Christmas.  Got great advice from Mandi and found what I wanted in Kohl's so we didn't have to worry about fighting crowds anywhere else.  It was no really crowded in Kohl's and the sales were good so it was a productive trip.  After the shopping, we went to dinner at a wonderful place called The Table and indulged ourselves on some very tasty dishes that we all shared.  It was a wonderful evening.

You may not can tell unless you expand the photos, but
Mandi has on little mouse ears in this photo and Ruth
has them on in the one at the bottom--evidently the
newest fashion statement in hair accessories!

Day 204 -- Thanksgiving 2017

Our Thanksgiving celebration was very small this year.  Mom didn't feel like making the trip, Danny was home by himself and wanted to be sure someone was with Mom, Jodi and crew were in Mississippi, Mandi and crew were heading in from a week in Washington DC, so it was just Bill, his dad, and my nephew Philip and me at the table for lunch.  Because it was such a small gathering, we opted to purchase food prepared by a very nice restaurant in town--so we had a turkey breast stuffed with some sort of basil pesto which was delicious, dressing which was not the kind I am used to nor like, but it was eaten by all, mashed potatoes which PW and I jazzed up some, sweet potatoes with brown sugar and marshmallows on top which was delicious but I was the only who liked sweet potatoes, gravy which was good, cranberry and orange sauce, varied relish dishes, rolls, and the pies I baked yesterday.  We were all completely stuffed and couldn't finish what we had on our plates much less the bulk of the food we had.  Lucky for Philip though, because he took a lot of it home with him! We were blessed to be together on this day and thankful for all that God has done for us this year and every day of our lives.  Few were at the table, but all were in our thoughts and our hearts.  

Day 203 -- Twas the Day Before Thanksgiving

Today I woke up sicker than a dog.  So I cancelled my workout, laid around all morning, and finally about noon, decided I had to get going on some things for our dinner tomorrow.  First thing on the list was to clean out the refrigerators to make room for goodies--so for the first time in history, I cleaned 3 refrigerators in one day and it made me feel better!  Then I baked a pumpkin and chocolate pie, and got the table and other things ready for the small but hopefully good Thanksgiving meal tomorrow.

Day 202 -- Church of Scientology

Today, I finished reading a non-fiction book written by the niece of the man who is the head of the Church of Scientology.  I have always been curious what this "church" is about as I have been in cities where I have seen "Scientology reading rooms" and was curious what those were for.  Well, this book was a complete expose about what a real fraud the whole thing is.  Started by L. Ron Hubbard, it is really just a cult made of a number of layers who are charging fraudulent amounts of money to people who believe they can better their lives by taking these courses that they sell.  They separate families, inslave people to work for them, all the while assuring them that all this is necessary to get across the "bridge" which I suppose is some kind of arrival at a heaven of sorts.  They believe in continual rebirths and reincarnation and when you want to become a member, you have to sign a contract for "1 billion years" of service to the church.  It is just amazing to me that people actually believe this stuff but it is something that many people in Hollywood, number one being Tom Cruise, follow believing it is what brings them their wealth and fame.

Day 201 -- CASA case

Today we had a hearing on the only CASA case I am now handling to see if the mother could have visits with her youngest child being supervised by her estranged husband.  I thought this was really a bad idea because the physical fights the two parents had with each other is one reason the children went in to care.  However, I was overruled by the judge on my concerns so supervision by the husband is going forward.  I never cease to be amazed at the extremes between severity and laxity in the CPS and judicial system sometimes.

Day 200 -- Concert in Georgetown

Today the Master Singers had a concert in Georgetown at Faith Lutheran Church.  It was a mixture of Thanksgiving and Christmas music as well as church anthems and a couple of gospel songs.  I have worked really hard on this music this week as I had kind of ignored it in favor of the Christmas music, but it went off really well I think.  I knew more than I thought I did so was able to sing most everything without faking it on notes or words too much.  I had never been to a Lutheran Church before and this one was very pretty and unique in that they had a collection of over 6000 crosses in the foyer and down the halls in the church.  This collection was first started by a pastor who was serving there who had his own collection of crosses and then people would give him more and more so he started hanging them at the church on display, and after he left it continued to grow as a tradition.  It was pretty amazing to see.  Another unique thing about the evening was that when the pastor stood up to say a prayer, he actually did a chanted prayer which I had only ever seen done in Rome at St. Peter's Basilica during the Pope's Mass on the Sunday we visited there--and that was done by dozens of Cardinals and was absolutely beautiful.  Anyway, it was a good evening and I saw and learned some interesting things while there.

These are just a few hundred of the 6000 crosses on display.

Day 199 -- Hum drum day

Today was such a windy day that it was hard to make myself get out of the house.  So I practice my music for tomorrow's concert, did the usual laundry chores, went to Sam's with Bill, and watched the Aggie game until after my bedtime!  But it was a really good game--just not on the scoreboard at the end!  Nothing really a first today except what I am learning in a book I am reading about Scientology written by the niece of the high leader of that "church".  It is about how she finally escaped the clutching of the "church" and I am finding it quite interesting.  I've always been curious about it as in some cities we have visited, we have walked by "Scientology reading rooms" and I wondered what those were about.  This is L. Ron Hubbard's brainchild to control people while emptying their pockets.  Of course, he is long dead but his scam church is still alive and well, and what is really interesting is how many Hollywood celebrities are members of it--including Tom Cruise for one.

Day 198 -- Pre-op day at S&W--oh joy!

I have been through a number of pre-op days with Bill, but this one was by far the best and most productive!  Because he is having a hip joint replacement surgery, the bone and joint clinic requires that the patient and caregiver if possible attend a one-and-a-half hour class half of which was taught by an orthopedic RN and the other half by a physical therapist.  We both thought it was kind of irksome to have to attend--but it was very helpful and informative.  All pre-planned surgeries should require patients to attend a similar class for the type surgery that patient is facing.  Not only did they tell the step-by-step with photos and actual protheses of knee and hip replacement surgeries, but they also gave in-depth lessons on how to scrub up before surgery, what to especially eat before and after surgery (tank up on protein for weeks), what post-surgery helps you might want to have on hand such as raised toilet seat, shower seat, etc. and care of the wound site after going home.  They sent home a packet with 3 special anti-bacterial sponges to be used for the two nights before surgery and the morning of surgery to help eliminate bacteria around the area.  Bill was told not to shave for at least 3 days so that there would be no open wounds on his face.  He has to use an anti-bacterial, antibiotic cream in both nostrils 3 times a day for 5 days before surgery to prevent the inhaling of bad germs.  They showed us a kit they will give us to use to remove the special bandage that will be on the surgical area.  The bandage itself is water proof so that a shower can be taken every day--just no soaking.  Then no bandage needed on it after that because there will be a clear film left on the surgical site after the removal of the first bandage.  They talked about the PT while in the hospital and gave exercises for afterwards, and just really didn't seem to leave anything to chance or question.  This is not the Scott and White we have known for years--I was very impressed at the thoroughness of the Bone and Joint Clinic pre-op.  Hope everything goes as smoothly as they talked like it would.

Day 197 -- New Listing

Today I measured a house at the lake that we are finally putting into MLS for sale.  The owners wanted us to sell it, but would not let us publish the address, put in MLS, or have a sign out front so you can imagine how successful that has been!  Finally they saw they light and called and asked that we measure the rooms and get it on MLS with the address, but still no sign.  So I went out and did my measurements.  Only thing is, the living area is so big that my electronic measuring device could not measure that far a span--we walked it off and believe it to be approximately 40 feet long.  Never had that happen before!  Anyway, glad to finally have a chance to at least let people know about the house and hopeful get an offer.

Day 196 -- "I Cannot Live Without Books" Thomas Jefferson

I bought this plaque while Weston and
I were at Monticello.  My favorite quote of T.J.

Today I finished reading a very eye-opening book by an Egyptian-born Christian evangelist who has a church in  Atlanta, Georgia.  The book is called The Barbarians are Here and is about how Western Civilization has let in the barbarians (terrorists) into our midst with open arms and how the Christian church has relaxed and even turned to false teaching in order to give tolerance to all, not calling sin what it is.  The last chapter was especially powerful.  I have the book if any of you want to borrow it to read--it is as I said, eye-opening.

Another book I finished this week is a novel by the author of The Goldfinch (which I hated).  But this one kept me captivated through all 559 pages.  A little weird with a lot of allusions to philosophy, Greek literature, etc. but a good mystery in it as well.  Also for loan if anyone interested.

Day 195 -- Sometimes I Amaze Myself!

Today is November 14, and look what I accomplished today:

Yes, you are seeing correctly:  I have bought AND wrapped 15 Christmas presents as of today.  What an amazing FIRST!  

Day 194 -- Ink Blast

This is a small thing when you tell it, but believe me it is not a small thing when it happens--and it happened to me for the first time today.  A blue gel pen exploded in my purse and got all over a lot of things including me, my pants, etc.  What a blue mess all over my hands and my light blue denim jeans.  I was just going into the CASA office to deliver some papers so there I was with a mess.  Washed my hands in the sink until the water quit running blue and then went straight home and sprayed hairspray on the ink on my pants.  I somehow remembered hearing about doing that for ink--many years ago.  I washed the pants with some dark towels and when they came out there was still a much smaller amount of ink on them so I sprayed them again with hairspray and Shout and washed them again--and the ink came completely out!  And it is faded off my fingers as well so I now only have the stained inside of a purse but no other indication of the mess it made!  Didn't get pictures because well, just because.

Day 193 -- Scottish Highland Games

Every year, Salado is host to the gather of the Scottish Clans and a weekend end of everything Scottish from games, to bagpipe contests, to Scottish dancing contests, food, vendors, etc.  We have never gone to it before, and so today after church we headed to Salado to see what the fuss is all about.  Many of the games had been done on Saturday, but we were still able to walk around and see all the booths of the various clans that were there from all over the country and perhaps from over the waters as well.  Lots of kilts to be seen as well as groups performing bagpipe tunes for judges.  Anything Celtic you might want to buy was surely in one of the booths that were there.  It was a beautiful day for a stroll through a wee bit of Scotland right here in Central Texas!

Clan Booths

Scottish Dog Contest

Scottish Jam Session

Bagpipe contest

Bagpipe Contest

Clan Scott--which I figured was as close as I would find
to my clan.

You can't tell it in the photo, but this kilt-wearer
also had a sidearm strapped to his side!

Day 192--Soccer Day in Sequin

Today I got up early on a Saturday and headed to Sequin so that I could get in at least one of Tyler's soccer games this year.  As we headed to the field, I asked Tyler how many scores he thought he would make, and he told me 9.  Well, he didn't quite come up to that lofty goal, but he made two very solid scores and helped his team to a victory.  His team was a few players short, so he played sweeper (a term I was totally unfamiliar with until today) at first and then went on to play fielder or whatever that position is called.  I wish I lived closer to all my grandkids during so I could attend all their events and cheer them on--but I'm glad I got to get this one game in at least!

After lunch, we drove to Buda to the Cabella's store for a few items I wanted for gifts, and Tyler tried his hand in the shooting range that they have there.  He loves that store with all the stuffed wildlife and just the fun things they have for little boys to wish for!

Sweeper

Good save!

Eye on the ball

Score--Teasley!

So much running!

Running for the ball

Target practice at Cabella's

Day 191 -- Popeye's

This is a silly little thing, but today I had lunch at Popeye's Chicken which is new to Belton.  I had never eaten at a Popeye's because I thought all of the chicken was Cajun spicy.  Turns out they also have mild and it was good--but I still like Bush's Chicken better!

Day 190 -- Veteran's Day Program

Tonight a small performance group from Master Singers, called Thrive which has12 members, sang at a Veteran's Day program in Georgetown at the "Field of Honor" in San Gabriel Park.  When we drove up to the location, there were 1400 American flags planted in the ground around the area where we were to perform.  People had bought the flags in memorial or honor of some veteran they knew and loved.  It was such an impressive sight to see.  Members of the Rotary Club had organized this first annual event and were there to greet visitors and help them find the flag represented their loved one.  Probably a small crowd of 50-75 people were there for the entire program which included a color guard by a Brownie Scout group, the reading of "war letters home" from men on the fronts of wars all the way back to the Civil War, intermixed with musical presentations by a high school group of singers and then our group.  Our first song was the singing of the theme songs for all the branches of service with people who served in that service standing for their song.  The crowd loved it.  The second song was a medley of America the Beautiful, My Country 'Tis of Thee, and Battle Hymn of the Republic and the last song was Gratitude Changes Everything dedicated to the men and women in the emergency responder professions.  It went well although it was a little cold--but we were under a tent which gave shelter from most of the wind which was slight.  This was the first time Thrive has ever performed, being created just for this event.  I hope we will have other opportunities.

Day 187 - Day 189 Days of Sameness (Nov. 6-8)

I can not think of even one thing I did on these days that was new but some days just happen that way.  And sometimes routine is actually relaxing which can also be a good thing.  I will make these days up at some point when new things come at me in doubles and triples,.

DAY 186 -- Rehearsal Overload

Tonight, we had a 3 and a half hour rehearsal for Master Singers.  I've never had a rehearsal that long for anything that I can think of, and what I found is that the first half was very productive and to me the second half wasn't because we were getting tired.  Pretty soon, it becomes hard to process everything from notes, to words, to changes, etc.  I don't think I was alone in that thought process as we kept getting scolded more as the night went on for our mistakes!

We have a concert Nov. 19 at a church which is mostly just regular music with a few of our Christmas songs mixed in as teasers.  The first Christmas one is Dec. 5 then Dec. 10 and 11th.  So time is marching by quickly and we do have a lot left to do.  Having seen this group in concert many times before, I know they always manage to get it done so that no one in the audience at least knows there were any hiccups.  So I'm sure that is what will happen this year as well.,

Day 185 -- Fine Arts Museum in Albany

I have driven through Albany to and from Temple/Haskell so many times, I can not even imagine what the number would be.  I know at least 10 in the last 3 months!  Today, on my way back to Temple from Haskell, thinking what in the world I could do for a first, I drove through Albany and went to a couple of fun shops there that I love going to, and then...as I starting out of town, I realized I should go to the Fine Arts Museum in the Old County Jail for Shackleford County, which I have never been to before.  So I pulled in, went in and was stunned by the collections they had.  I was expecting just a lot of Western Art, etc. out in the middle of ranching country, but it was filled with so much more.  There is an extensive ancient Chinese art section, two Renoir's, and lots of things from modern to Western.  It was a really well-done art museum for such a small town.  Their biggest contributor of art was Bill Bomar, an artist from Ft. Worth who had an extensive collection of art and was himself an artist.  His mother was evidently one of the heirs to the Nail Ranch empire.

The funniest thing that happened while I was there is I was talking with the man sitting at the front desk and the docent introduced me to him as the Sheriff.  I told him I met one of his deputies yesterday--he asked if it was in an official capacity and I said yes and that he was very nice and actually let me go with a warning when I knew I was guilty.  He just laughed and said he was glad to know his deputy was courteous!

The Old Jail original building

Custom made piano from Tiger Oak

Scuplture garden has this
granite windmill

Renoir

 

Standing Mule Tang Dynasty 618-907 AD

Day 184 -- Best first ever

Today on my way to Haskell for my friend's funeral, I once again got caught for speeding, this time by a Shackleford County Deputy Sheriff in the little town of Moran.  Dang it!  So we go through the routine of id, insurance, and him running my rap sheet.  BUT, miracle of miracles, he comes back and hands them to me and gives me a verbal warning about where the speed goes back up to 75 once I get over the hill, not before!  No ticket--FIRST TIME EVER!!!  I thanked him profusely and went on down the road.  As it turns out that was a 20 mph over the speed limit stop because I had hit my resume too early after going through the town--it would have been quite speedy!  Thank you Lord!

Day 183 -- TBRI

What, you ask, is TBRI?  Well, that is what I learned about today in a CASA inservice training.  It stands for Trust Based Relational Intervention and is a program sponsored by TCU and the Presbyterian Children's Homes and Services to help children who are in or who have come from dysfunctional homes.  Its mission is to help traumatized children who are victims of the same PTSD that we associate with our military personnel in combat situations.  Facts:

• PTSD is experienced buy children in the US foster care system at a rate more than TWICE that of combat veterans
• Early trauma and stress can significantly alter a child's brain chemistry.
• A fearful child focuses strictly on survival issues so they cannot learn and cannot regulate their behavior as healthy children can.  This is where our CASA children usually are.
• Brain development is crucially compromised.  

  

  I can't get this turned, but the PET-scan is of a normal 3 year old brain is
  on the left, and on the right is a traumatized 3 year old brain.
  The black areas are non-developed brain areas and the brain itself is
  much smaller than normal.  These kids are doomed to failure
  without intervention.
  
  

  We also learned about calming techniques to use for children whether ADHD or traumatized (interestingly, the symptoms are almost the same):

  • Deep chewing
  • Calming music or metronome
  • Wall pushes
  • Weighted items
  • Fidgets (don't like these myself)
  • Deep breathing
  • Calming g smells (essential oils!)

  
  

  Also learned that 20 minutes of sensory input organizes the brain for up to two hours.  

  
  

  Anyway, I thought it was fascinating and I am glad to see that my children are using some of these with their children although they are not traumatized.  

  
  

  Next time Nana is with her grandchildren, ask me about doing the weather forecast activity!

Day 182 -- Sad Day

Today the first thing I was faced with was to learn that my friend Beth Middleton Guess had died in the night.  I suppose she has been the friend my own age that I have known the longest since our parents were friends before we were very old.  I will always think of Beth as the sweetest, quietest girl I knew.  She always had a smile, a soft voice, and was a loyal friend.  We had so many sleepovers together, so many vacations together, trips to the lake together--just a great childhood full of memories that we shared.  Today was her oldest son, Chan's, birthday.  She and Mike were the first of our friends to have a baby, and we all doted on him like he was a baby doll instead of a human being! I know that Mike, Chan and Mart, Paula and her two sweet granddaughters are so devastated at her death even knowing that it was coming due to her advanced cancer.  I will always remember visiting with her at Dad's funeral, and how she just had a sweet smile on her face like nothing was wrong in her world.  The world will be less without her in it.