Monday, November 25, 2013

November 25 - 30, 2013 - SF

Monday, November 25.  Happy Birthday to my daughter-in-law, Tracey!  Wow!  She was born the year that I graduated from high school.  I feel old.

This week has started on a good note.  I was with the twins for about 3 hours today and I enlists the help of my friend, Marta.  She said that she even cut her fingernails last night so she would be prepared for handling babies.  They were quiet and ate well for us.  Jill treated us to some yummy sandwiches and a pastry from La Boulange for lunch.

The upstairs neighbor stopped by to see if any of us had heard any noises from the basement last night, as her husband's golf clubs and mountain bike were stolen from the garage.  Later on, when he got home, he discovered that all of his hunting equipment was also missing.  It doesn't seem like any of Ben and Jill's stuff was taken but then, they don't have a lot of high tech stuff down there.  I sleep right over the area where the clubs were and I never heard a thing.  For years, I have been the lightest of sleepers but not recently.  My days are so full that when I hit the bed, I am out.  

I have always envied Mike's ability to sleep anywhere at any time, even when even when I was driving.  Ha!  Recently, I have been able to enjoy it myself.

Thursday, November 28.  Happy Thanksgiving to all of my wonderful family and friends!  I am thankful to have you in my life.  Unfortunately, my day hasn't been too happy.  I started feeling ill around 4:30 this morning and haven't improved.  I have been holed up in Ben and 
Jill's room most of the day.  Their friends, Joan, Kerry, Henry and Penelope are here to share the dinner.  We decided there was no way we could manage a big dinner, so we bought the prepared dinner from Whole Foods.  Everything is precooked and just has to be warmed when it gets here.  The smells from the kitchen are yummy?  I don't think I will be having any today, as even simple crackers are not sitting well.  Top that all with the depressing thought of a holiday without Mike and I would like to crawl in a hole.

I spent some time with the twins alone this week and was feeling fortunate that they weren't hungry or fussing at the same time. It went well both times.

Friday, November 29.  Well, I missed out on Thanksgiving dinner and the togetherness of family but I did wake up feeling better today.  I'm certainly not feeling good, but definitely feeling better than 
I did yesterday.  I started slow with food this morning and was able to have leftovers for lunch.  Ben is working from home today, so he took his break this morning and we all walked to the playground.  It is an absolutely gorgeous day here and it felt good to get outdoors for a breath of fresh air.

Jill made a large pot of turkey noodle soup for dinner and we will get at least 3 meals out of it.

Saturday, November 30.  My stomach is feeling much better today.   My morning started with a nice FaceTime conversation with Pat and Tracey.  Charlotte really warmed up to them when he showed her his cats.  That really broke the ice and then she talked to him a lot.  

We had some interesting ways of using up the Thanksgiving leftovers and have actually gotten about 6 meals out of half a turkey dinner.  Ben made a breakfast casserole this morning with leftover dressing put in a buttered baking dish, indentations made and eggs out in them, topped with grated parmesan cheese and baked until the eggs were done - yummy!  For dinner, we made Potato Croquettes - leftover mashed potatoes and diced turkey, an egg and some flour added to bind, rolled in balls, dipped in flour, then egg, then bread crumbs and fried to a golden brown - delicious!  A little more time consuming than we expected though.

The twins are getting stronger every day, lifting their heads and looking right at you when you hold them.  They are also starting to smile and make some cooing sounds.

Norah Lou

Camille Rose

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.  Elf on the Shelf came out and the story was read at least 3 times, the stockings were hung on the fireplace, and we got a Christmas tree today.  The fun begins.