Week 51

Welcome back and happy Wednesday!  I'm just a little behind because of the holidays.  I hope everyone had a great Christmas and is gearing up to celebrate the New Year.  Bring on 2023!  We need and are ready for a good year.

Here's a look at last week's fun family times:

Day 353- Monday, 12/19/22

I get home from work today and this is what I find--the college boys are tired from their school finals and have been napping a lot upon their return home.  At least Rusty can relate and is enjoying the extra napping buddies.

Day 354- Tuesday, 12/20/22

Good thing Justin is napping safely at home. They had a big earthquake near where he lives for school at 2:30am this morning and many aftershocks.  He made contact with the roommates staying at the house over break and all is ok there except power that is expected to be out for the rest of the day.  Interestingly enough, Justin is sad he missed it.  In other news I'm getting some nice gifts from people at work.  So far some chocolates from a grad student and these amazing blood oranges from a co-worker's tree.  Oh my, they are so fragrant and full of flavor.  I've never actually seen one in person before.  I've had many blood-orange flavored things but never the actual oranges.  I'm an even bigger fan now even if they are kind of messy to eat. 

Day 355- Wednesday, 12/21/22

Today Justin and I made our way to the store for baking supplies and started off by making some Christmas Crack to enjoy over the next few days.  Later for dinner Brandon helped fry up some taco shells for dinner tonight.  It's great having help in the kitchen again.

Day 356- Thursday, 12/22/22

'Tis the season and we're so close to being ready.  Pretty much all the presents are wrapped and under the tree. We started baking (day #1) and tried a new graham cracker toffee recipe that turned out great.  The mailbox has been full with cards from family and friends which is fun to see and we are collecting them for now in this sleigh.  Plus today is my Friday since my winter vacation break from work starts tomorrow.  Yay!

Day 357- Friday, 12/23/22

Baking day #2.  It took all day but we finally finished right around dinner time and will be ready to pass out cookie plates to the neighbors tomorrow for Christmas Eve. Our Friday night movie was the newly released Knives Out mystery on Netflix featuring so many great actors we haven't seen in awhile. It was actually pretty good. Rusty found a comfy spot to watch with me.

Day 358- Saturday, 12/24/22

Happy Christmas Eve!  We had a nice relaxing and sunny day, made pizza for dinner, ate cookies for dessert and opened one gift before going to bed.  Tyler and Lupe are with her family tonight but they will be with us tomorrow for dinner at least.

Day 359- Sunday, 12/25/22

Merry Christmas!  I had the peaceful morning tree to myself for a good bit while everyone else slept in which is totally fine. I'm good with a slow relaxing start to the day.  Once they all got up we did stockings and then ate a nice eggnog French-toast breakfast with cranberry-orange mimosas--Yum!  After that we opened gifts and then enjoyed the rest of the day with our new stuff before sitting down to a good prime-rib dinner.  This was my first time making prime-rib since John is usually the one cooking our meats.  He supervised though so it was really a team effort.  We work best as a team.  Then we had cake and took our first full family picture since last Christmas.  My monthly family photos just did not happen at all this past year with John's health issues starting in late January.  I can't believe it's been almost a year now.  We're so grateful even though it's been a really rough year that he pulled through and continues to get stronger and be with us. This picture on this special day says it all.

That's it!  See you next week in the next year.  Have a safe and wonderful time ringing in 2023.

Week 50

Welcome back and happy Tuesday! Here we are at the week before Christmas.  Thankfully this past week I was able to get a lot done in terms of preparation and we have helpers back home which is great.  John also wrapped up the last of his cardio rehab sessions which frees up a lot of time.  It will be nice to have that break through the holidays so we can enjoy more fun times with family and friends.

Take a look at last week's pictures:

Day 346- Monday, 12/12/22

This right here is a cold winter sky.  The sun will shine brighter later but it's still REALLY cold out and not a fun way to start the week.  Brrr!

Day 347- Tuesday, 12/13/22

We're having dinner by candlelight these days with the advent wreath and then warming up with a fire in the late evenings.  It really hasn't been cold enough for a fire until now.

Day 348- Wednesday, 12/14/22

Wednesday at work we're trying out a new card agglutination test and it looks like we're working with pretty rose pedals.  What I like most about the test is that it only takes 4 min to run.  In other news, just before heading home, I got word that John is finally officially on the UNOS heart transplant list. Getting all the procedures and tests we needed to get done before being able to get him listed literally took months but now it's done and we wait while he also works to keep getting stronger.  Once I got home for the day, I weeded through boxes and sorted packages to find what needs to be wrapped and put under the tree.  Never a dull moment.

Day 349- Thursday, 12/15/22

After that cold clear sky the beginning of the week we had fog and frost the rest of the week.  You can bet my roses are not as happy anymore.  At least the fog layer helps keep the air warmer so it doesn't feel quit as cold.  It's just no fun to drive in.

Day 350- Friday, 12/16/22

This cat can sure nap, and I love his little pink paw pads.  Also look who's home!  Brandon flew in super late last night and is enjoying the comforts of home.

Day 351- Saturday, 12/17/22

Today I finally got some wrapping done.  I'm not finished but at least made some good progress.  Later, after dinner, we watched this new Netflix movie with Brad Pitt and many other great actors.  It was actually pretty good and better than expected.

Day 352- Sunday 12/18/22

We woke up to more frost on this gloomy winter day and we have another boy home for the holidays.  Justin came in yesterday and has been helping me do some shopping to get ready for baking next week.  He also found some leftover cider from Thanksgiving in the fridge.  I thought it would be flat but he says it's still good.  Great find for him. Tonight we'll have family dinner with the whole gang. Can't wait!

That's it!  See you next week.  Have a Merry Christmas all!

Week 49

Welcome back and happy Tuesday!  I'm feeling the Christmas crunch since it's just around the corner.  This past week brought on the mad rush to get the house decorated before the college kids come home and they will be here in just a few days--Yay!  We're so excited to have them back and home for a good long month. We have so many fun traditions this time of year and I know they love them all so it will be good times.

For now look at how we worked to get things prepped:

Day 339- Monday, 12/5/22

The Christmas cards I ordered were delivered today so now I can work on getting them out.  Later John had his cardio rehab class.  He only has 1 more week of it left before he transitions to picking up more PT focusing on leg strength and walking.

Day 340- Tuesday, 12/6/22

I was working remote today so got to enjoy my morning coffee by the tree.  It still only have the lights but Tyler is coming over this afternoon to help get the ornaments out of the attic so we can finish decorating it.  Rusty is enjoying the season too and especially likes the treats in his advent calendar.

Day 341- Wednesday, 12/7/22

Wednesday at work I'm helping the teaching hospital lab optimize on of their tests and discovered a new lab pen that would be useful for us so I took a picture with the information I need to order some. Outside the lab there are puddles from the rain last night and sunshine from the blue sky today.  We're expecting a lot more rain though and good snow in the mountains.  Bring it on!

Day 342- Thursday, 12/8/22

Despite our winter weather I have yet another rose bush that is thriving but this time out front.  I just so happened to notice it while hanging our winter wreath.  It seems strange to be seeing both of these things together at the same time of year but I love them both.

Day 343- Friday, 12/9/22

Cheers to the weekend and warm Chinese food from East Side Chef for dinner on this cold winter night.  We watched Amsterdam as our movie for the night which had so many great actors but it was kind of a weird flick.

Day 344- Saturday, 12/10/22

Today started out with rain and so much wind.  Rusty likes watching the wind blow the leaves around our yard and none of us are in a hurry to get dressed and go out today given the circumstances.   It was the perfect day to stay home and continue putting Christmas out.

Day 345- Sunday, 12/11/22

Thankfully after a little morning rain the sky finally cleared and the wind went away so we ventured out to Costco.  Time to restock our food supplies before the hungry boys come home.  Thank goodness for those motorized carts--what a big help!  We also pretty much finished decorating the house which is now complete with hung stockings and lit railings.  Next up will be to finish Christmas shopping (not sure what I'd do without online shopping) and to get some presents wrapped for placing under the tree.

That's it!  Check back next week as the Christmas craziness continues.

Week 48

Welcome back and happy Tuesday! Last week was a full week which included the start of a new month, another trip to San Francisco, and a lot of rain. Winter is for sure coming even in California.

Take a look:

Day 332- Monday, 11/28/22

It's time to appreciate the blue sky and sunshine even if it's deceiving because the clear sunny days are colder than the overcast days.  The rest of the week will be slightly warmer but will be a lot darker and wetter.

Day 333- Tuesday, 11/29/22

He continues to put in the work and it is paying off but he still has a long way to go.  At least there are others here that have been where he's at and have pretty much fully recovered so he see and feels hope.  I love the big windows and good light here with a nice fall view outside.  It was sunny this morning but got darker and more grey in the afternoon as captured by the mood in my second shot.

Day 334- Wednesday, 11/30/22

He sure knows how to get cozy on dreary days.  Wish I could stay home and cuddle up with a warm blanket too but I'll be away from work the next couple days so have to get as much as possible at work today to make up for what I'll miss.

Day 335- Thursday, 12/1/22

Happy December!  Later this morning we made our way to San Francisco in the pouring rain for John to meet his transplant surgeon who must evaluate and confirm that he is strong enough to tolerate the surgery before being added to the list.  That all went well and interestingly enough it's his height that will be most limiting factor in finding him the right heart.  The donor must be of similar stature and since he is taller than normal that could delay things a bit.  We'll see.  We're staying the night in the city, having dinner with friends, and prepping for another appointment tomorrow.

Day 336- Friday, 12/2/22

Today was an early start where we had to be at UCSF hospital by 6:30am.  John was in the cath lab for a diagnostic informative procedure all morning while I waited. Thankfully all went well and he came out hungry so we tried a place recommended by one of his cardio rehab nurses that was walking distance from the hospital.  It was nice and sunny out which was perfect for a good walk and the brunch there was excellent.  All is good right now and look--I even have a small bacon shaped heart on my plate.  I'll take a  good heart sign wherever I can find them!

Day 337- Saturday, 12/3/22

Speaking of good heart signs, while I was enjoying the view eating breakfast in our room after our second night in SF I spied a paper heart displayed in the building window across from us. 💗

After that we headed home in the pouring rain again so we could get weekend chores started.  Once home I had some catching up to do on opening my advent calendar- 3 new wines to try from 3 different countries.

Day 338- Sunday, 12/4/22

The rain has been a lot and continues today but we do need it and as long as I can keep dry while out in it I'm good.  We had a nice warm meal of chicken wings and fries by Christmas light tonight.  This is our new artificial tree we picked up today which for now is simply plugged in and not decorated yet.  We prefer live trees but with everything going on right now the last thing I need to add to my plate is caring for another living thing.  We miss the good smell of a real tree but will get a live wreath closer to the big day which will help fix that problem.

That's all I have until next week.