Sunday, December 10, 2017

Ten Things of Thankful

When our family used to take trips to see my grandparents who lived where snow was never something that would be on the ground at Christmas, I remember thinking how strange it seemed to me to have sunshine and blue skies at that time of the year. Now having roads free of snow and ice is what I prefer, especially if I am traveling on curvy and/or hilly roads and in high elevations. So while certain parts of the country are dealing with the heavy snow, we are seeing sunshine, although with lower temperatures. Christmas Day is fast approaching, paying no heed to the temperatures. This year I kind of wish I could insert an extra week in the calendar before Christmas Day.

I am thankful for Josie Two Shoes blog hop and her reminders to share a post at her site Ten Things of Thankful. There are weeks when even with the reminders I mostly ponder possible entries instead of writing and sharing them, so I'll try to not let that happen again this week.



My TToT

The last of the dental appointments for my Mom, at least for another six months, but my husband is up to the plate this week. Merry Christmas to our dentist. All kidding aside, he really is a great dentist. I recently learned that not all dentists and hygienists are as willing and able to do X-Rays, cleanings, and treatments for  patients who are wheelchair bound. I'm so thankful that my Mom's dentist is able to accommodate her situation. (If she had to have any drilling, etc. she would most likely need to that done elsewhere, i.e. hospital or ?.) Seriously, this is a topic that needs consideration. As people continue to live longer and with dental care having improved drastically and people able to continue to have their original teeth, there needs to be a way that people can receive dental care even though they may be wheelchair bound. This is also a concern of people who become disabled much earlier in their lives.

I'm thankful that what apparently was a little tendinitis on the top of one of my feet most likely came about because I hadn't quite matched my desires for increased fitness, and the energy I felt to get into gear, with my body's capabilities of doing so when I started going to the fitness club. After skipping a class at the fitness club and admitting to myself that it was okay to  take a different pace when I returned, my foot is getting back to normal.

Hair stylists who are willing to tackle cutting curly hair and all its quirks.


The natural curls that just keep appearing on the back of my head, apparently a gift to me in my mid seventies.

Did you know that there are some composers who offer downloadable free sheet music? It has been a while since I went to the site of one composer who does this. Today I printed off a few pages of her arrangements of Christmas music to play on the piano.
Understandably, one must adhere to the guidelines of how the 
music is used.

Real life experiences that remind me of the Savior and what he taught and how he lived. These happenings also remind me that there is so much goodness in people of all faiths and beliefs and good acts often promote a pay it forward action.

Date with my husband to see the movie, Wonder. It is an inspirational movie!

Discovering another way to increase my knowledge of the Spanish language by viewing some You Tube Spanish classes and listening to children's songs sung in Spanish on Pandora. The following songs sung by Jose Luis Orozco on this YouTube video would be fun to learn and sing with my great grandchildren.






Trying new recipes but revising them a bit to suit our tastes. We once in a great while have artichokes to eat and have always dipped the leaves in melted butter. Since I'm watching calories a lot more now, I searched for a less fattening dip and found one that uses yogurt, lemon juice, and a little garlic powder and dash of salt. Delicious! After recently cooking pork loin chops a few different ways, I found a recipe that we really like using apple and onion slices and pork loin chops. They are so good. I'm not sure I'm going to want to cook them any other way.

Scales, whether they are to weigh oneself or to weigh the food you are preparing, are beneficial. I suppose that with time, I will get to the point when I have an idea of how much certain portions of food items might weigh, but in the meantime, I'm weighing some things, like meat. Celebrating new numbers (good numbers)! For those of you who have a battle with numbers, whatever your particular battle may be, I think you can relate.

Wishing you all a very wonderful week.


  


12 comments:

  1. Our ward choir sang Sally DeFord's arrangement of "I Heard the Bells" last week. It's really pretty, but the piano accompaniment is a bear. I was glad I wasn't responsible for playing it! Another site for sheet music is http://www.petriefamily.org/. Our choir sang his "Silent Night Medley." That one I had played before in our last stake; it's not as difficult as "I Heard the Bells."

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    1. Thank you for the other site that you like. Although I printed off a few of Sally's free piano solos, it is going to be a real challenge for me. Maybe the site you suggested will be a better match for me.

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  2. Here near Toronto I am fretting over the snow because I want to make it to see a concert there tonight. Not sure yet if that will be so easy.

    Enjoy your snowless Christmas.

    :-)


    I guess there are some benefits to geography.

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    1. I think it just depends on the year. Our winters can vary a lot from one year to the next.

      I hope you were able to make it to the concert you wanted to attend.

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  3. "The last of the dental appointments.. surely this is a deca-grat.*

    Yes, I am one of those who cringe at the mere thought of a dentist visit. So that is a very good item indeed.

    I will agree that, while exercise is good for a person at any age, it requires a careful assessment as to pace and intensity. Sort of like getting over the flu, but in reverse.**

    *an Item of such gratitude worthiness as to count for Ten (without even trying)
    ** we almost always convince ourselves that we feel better sooner than our actual recovery would dictate. exercise tries that same trick, 'the more the better'...'nothing succeeds like excess' until the sore joints convince us to take it slower than we want to believe it prudent.

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    1. Getting my Mom to her dental appointments involves arranging for a transport vehicle because she is wheelchair bound. Because that can be a little frightening for her, I end up riding along with her (three different times over a three month period of time. Fortunately the procedures were nothing lengthy. My husband's appointments however make me wish we had dental insurance. :-/
      "Getting over the flu, but in reverse," is a great analogy.

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  4. Great list of thankfuls. I would like an extra week before Christmas too.

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    1. Maybe time will slow down a bit so it at least feels like we have a little extra time to get those things done before Christmas. :-)

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  5. So many happy thankfuls, and your curls are beautiful. Sweetie has naturally curly hair, and has finally stopped fighting it. You are right about it not being easy to find someone who can cut it correctly.

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    1. I like the curls that keep appearing, but some of them act more like cowlicks. :-)

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  6. It's snowing here now, and I just hope we get enough for Tucker to go sledding in it tomorrow. I never thought about the dentist and having work done in a wheelchair. I wonder whether there are dentists who specialize in that. It really is an issue that they should figure out!
    I can't wait to see Wonder. Tucker and I listened to the audio book and I really want to take him to see it. Maybe if there's not enough snow for sledding, that'd be a good thing to do tomorrow if it's cold outside. Thanks for the reminder. I like your curls and am glad you've found a good pace for your fitness to keep your feet from hurting!

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    1. Did Tucker get to experience some sledding over the past couple of weeks?

      I really hadn't thought about the challenges the elderly face, until I began seeing those things that are impacting my Mother's life. I also see some things differently now about my own life in relation to what is convenient or less convenient in homes, restaurants, etc.

      Fortunately my feet are doing better now, so I want to go back to the fitness center and see what I can do without overdoing. It seems to be a delicate balance.

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