Ten Things of Thankful

What an exciting week it has been, in a good way! I hope it has been that way for you too, but I know sometimes life and one's circumstances may feel overwhelming. In reality life is full of ups and downs, and so it should be, otherwise we would be flatlining.

Before I get on the road with my Ten Things of Thankful post, I just want to give a shout out to Josie Two Shoes who is the administrator for the Ten Things of Thankful blog hop. She reads every Ten Things of Thankful post which is linked to her blog hop and responds with thoughtful comments. Click the link to see what others have posted this week. Bloggers' posts can be added beginning shortly after midnight (Central Time) Thursday evening until Tuesday evening. 

1. Serendipitous discovery. For a while I've been trying to figure out what would be helpful in alleviating a certain situation with my body. One day this past week I was making a fruit salad using crushed pineapple, bananas, and canned mandarin oranges. I'd intended to add some coconut flakes to help thicken it a bit. When I went to the shelf to get the coconut, I discovered there was none to be had. One item I did find was a small unopened container of guar gum that I suspect I'd purchased because it was called for in a gluten free recipe. (Some friends of mine eat gluten free meals.) 

My husband was confusing guar gum with something else and suggested that I might be able to use some of it to thicken the salad. When I googled the use of guar gum, I discovered that one of its uses is as a thickening agent. I decided to give it a try because it can thicken both cold and hot liquids. Although I had no idea of how much I might need, I thought the amount might be similar to how much cornstarch would be required. Let me just say, that was not a correct assumption. One does not need anywhere nearly as much, and it thickens quite rapidly. We enjoyed the thickened fruit salad, and found that my body benefited quite nicely from eating it. That discovery sent me back to the internet to read about health benefits and any interactions from eating guar gum. It isn't for everyone, but can be helpful for some people. Have you ever found the solution to two problems while in the process of just trying to solve one problem?

2. Accomplishing goals in moderation. In the past I've been one to push onward trying to finish the desired objective without taking forever. At the time, it seemed like a good idea, but over the years I've learned the hard way, that doing things in moderation and taking breaks, resting, going on vacations, etc. offer healthy benefits. This week, I started doing some hoeing and weed pulling but made myself, often with my husband's reminder, stop after a half hour or 45 minutes and then going back in the house. I worked in the morning when it was cooler. After a couple of years of not being able to manage a hoe, I wanted to make sure I didn't overdo. I've felt excited about this jump in my flexibility without additional pain. Seeing some tidiness outside, at least in one area, has lifted my spirits as has the higher FitBit scores from the exercise involved.

It took me most of the week to weed this area.

3. Multiple uses of things. A whiles back one of our daughters shared how she cleaned her cacti. It was one of those things that for whatever reason, I'd not considered. I usually associate showers as a place people can bathe. This week I used the handheld sprayer in the shower to spray the dust off my five Christmas cacti. They probably wished I'd used this method a whole lot sooner. It certainly beats trying to wipe each leaf with a moistened rag.

This Christmas cactus just had a shower.

4. Walking with a friend. One evening I invited a friend to go on a walk with me down and back on a nearby dusty road. It was after dinner, still light, but relatively cooler than it had been earlier in the day. We hope to do more walking together, as we have a similar goal to do more exercising.

Inexpensive "sparkly" I found on   dusty road

5. Names that just seem exactly right. With all the wild animals that come around, we've never given one a name, but there is one doe who has been visiting who just beckons to have a handle, maybe Dandy or Daisy. We've seen her eat the flowers off the English Daisies and the Dandelions. Interestingly, she doesn't have any interest in the leaves or stems. 

There were more Dandelion blossoms before the doe ate them.

doe eating English Daisies

7. Warm places for the cold blooded animals. Among the various animals here is a lizard that enjoys hanging out and soaking up the sunshine on top of a pile of bricks.

Western Fence Lizard on pile of bricks

8. Challenges. There is a patch of wildflowers (or weeds) growing in a dry shady area.  I have been trying to identify them. With all our books and the online helps, this should be easy, but so far the only one I've found that looks similar supposedly grows a different area of the country. The reference book is kind of old, so I supposed it could be a plant that has migrated westward over the years. Anyone up to identifying this plant?

Can you name this plant?

9. Finding a pen pal I used to write to when I was 10 years old. At the beginning of the week I was thinking about a girl from Sheffield England. She and I were pen pals for a few years, but then stopped writing to each other. The thought came to me that perhaps with all the past family history research skills I had learned and with all the resources online, that I might be able to locate her, even though I had no idea what her married name was, if she still lived in the same area, or if she was still alive. Within a couple of days, I'd learned enough to be fairly certain I'd found her. I decided to call her. She answered the phone, and we had a delightful visit. We were both equally excited about being able to talk to one another. It just made my day, and we will be keeping in touch. 

10. My husband. My husband was just as excited for me having found my pen pal as I was I think. He encouraged me to phone her. In fact, that is one thing I enjoy about my husband. He is an encourager. He also likes to surprise me, such as having a  photo enlarged and printed on canvas of me wearing my floppy garden hat. It came in the mail this week as a surprise.