Getting in the groove

Another week just flew by me. I'm getting into a routine and it feels good. Up at 5:30 a.m. I make my bed, get my tea ready and then call my daughter. We chat for about a half hour about a variety of topics: Eli, the cats, the weather, the news, and family. This week was my nephew's 25th birthday. How the heck did that happen? It seems like yesterday we were meeting him in the hospital room. 

My parents had three sets of grandchildren. My oldest brother's son was born in 1970. My children were born in the 80's, and my brother's two were both born in the aughts. (2000's). R and P were both in their late 30's when K and L came along, while my older brother was only 20 when his son was born, and M is 12 years older than R. Since mom passed away in 2003 and dad in 2008, it means that the youngest grandchildren didn't get to know them. 

Back to the present. I've been doing outside work in the morning most days, sweeping the patio, running errands, and most recently spray painting three chairs I got from next door. I've now decided that the Adirondack chair, which is a faded green, needs a touch up too. Next time I'm in a hardware store I'll pick up a can of spray paint.

I also picked up a couple of items from Walmart to make my life a wee bit easier. One is a small shoe rack for the front closet, the other a three shelf bookcase. It tucks in beside the dinette, and as you'll see I've made the bottom shelf the recycling area. It gets those small containers out of my way and provides additional storage...for what is yet to be determined.

Afternoons, I generally spend inside the trailer, enjoying the a/c. It has been hot this week, though has cooled slightly into the high 80's (31C). Better than the 90's but still stinking hot to be outdoors in the sun. I've used the time to start knitting Christmas gifts. I didn't think to bring safety eyes for amigurumi ornaments I'm making for K and L, so had to place an Amazon order. I added in a couple of other items to get free shipping, useful items like a collapsible colander and a drying rack. The order isn't expected to arrive until today, so I moved on to knitting coffee cup sleeves for my brother, SIL, and Eli's many teachers and aides. 

I finished one, knitted flat, but I didn't like the way it looked when I sewed it together. So I switched to knitting in the round. The first one didn't work because I didn't read the pattern properly. I'm not sure when I'll get these done, but I'm glad Christmas isn't for another six weeks. I'm going to need the time!

Don't mind the clashing colours. I didn't have a travel mug and needed one to test the sizing on so picked up a cheapo one at the dollar store. I took it (the mug) to coffee hour to hold my tea, and what a useless piece of junk. Getting the top off was a struggle and putting it back on was worse. Now it just gets to be a model.

On Friday, I did a little grocery shopping, and went thrifting with L. I picked up two t-shirts at the Humane Society Thrift store for $3, a box fan, a document folder, and a pair of shorts for just over $20 at Goodwill. The fan is out in the gazebo and provides quite the breeze! 

I also stopped at Lowes and picked up a pot and a few succulents to plant. The container was on sale, the succulents were not and cost nearly as much! I did a wee bit of research, they like temps between 60F-80F, but can't be left in direct sunlight as they may sunburn. I foresee bringing them indoors in January when the weather is cold overnight. Next year I'll plant something else, more hardy and less expensive. 

Speaking of weather, the cooler temps are arriving this weekend. The forecast is suggesting we'll have rain starting this morning, with a high temp of 24C/76F. The rest of the week is even cooler with temps between 20-22C/68-72F. I'm looking forward to being able to leave the a/c off in the afternoons and early evenings.

To finish off my routine, everyday at 4 p.m. is Happy Hour where many of us meet up and enjoy some time visiting. On Friday, it was finally cool enough to sit out on the outdoor patio in the shade with the breeze. Back at the unit, I've been using the BBQ to cook up smokies or hamburgers for my dinner, which I enjoyed along with a pasta salad I made up earlier in the week. It's much cooler by then, and the bugs aren't bad so until it is too dark to read, I have my meal outdoors. On Friday, I cooked up taco meat in the morning for a salad that evening, and also made a crockpot of chili. There was enough for three servings which I froze. If it does in fact rain on Saturday, I'm thinking it will make a great meal - just re-heat in the microwave. 

Today, I've nothing major on the agenda. I'll likely knit and watch college football. The BIG game is on Sunday, with the Canadian Grey Cup on the line. One of the park members has purchased the channel we need to watch it on, and anyone who wants to watch will be set up in the clubhouse. It was agreed, we'd each bring our own "gameday" snacks and drinks. The teams playing for the honour of hoisting the Cup are the Montreal Alouettes and the Saskatchewan Roughriders. You know who I'll be cheering for, Go Riders!!!

Have a great week ahead everyone!