He's 80!

We celebrated my dad's 80th birthday yesterday.
How is that possible that he's 80?
In my profession 80 is ancient.
Often I'll be taking care of patients in the ER that are much younger than my dad and have poor health.
80 sounds old.
My dad seems young.
Maybe it's cuz he's immature.
Totally.

Mom is 76 and Dad is 80!
He's sold cars,
insurance,
carpets,
he could sell manure to a bull.
No lie.
He was so good at selling "stuff" that he decided to go out on his own.
When I was in high school he went to Auction school.
He did extremely well in that business.
Traveled all over the country doing auctions.
Huge ones.
I still can't understand a thing he says.
But I do know I've bought a bunch of stuff I didn't want just cause I was brushing away hair from my face.

Here he is auctioning at a family reunion. I bought a single can of Pepsi for $20.00!
He's an awesome grandpa and my kids all have great memories of fun they've had with him.

Happy Birthday DAD!

HOLY PIE

We celebrated Thanksgiving on Friday.

"Thanks for the Apple Pie Nita!"
She knows how unSTELLAR my pies are and she took pity.
I must be world renown for making horrid pies.
Just as we were sitting down to eat, the mailman stopped by with this box.

?
So I opened it right then.
Inside.....

A homemade PECAN PIE!
I am not lying!
Packaged so carefully.
From Gigi in Georgia.
She had told me earlier than every good Southern woman who is worth anything at all serves a Pecan Pie.

The packaging was a feat in perfect engineering.

Unbelievable.
Not a scratch on it and because it's so stinkin' cold here it was perfectly preserved.
I laughed.
Then I cried.
Then I ate.
Then I converted to the truthfulness of being a Southern Woman.
And of Pecan Pie!
And Apple Pie.
And many other pies.
Today I suffer from Pie Coma.
Amen.

AND SPEAKING OF THANKSGIVING

Just a few NURSELY tips to pass along.

MY TOP TEN TIPS TO HELP YOU HAVE A GREAT THANKSGIVING DAY!

#10 Give yourself plenty of time to arrive over the river and through the woods.
(Of course all of the occupants in the vehicle are seat-belted in and the driver is NOT allowed to text)

#9 Think of that knife as a carving tool. It carves....stuff.
'nuff said.

#8 Take a baby aspirin everyday. (I'm serious)
It's good for your heart.

#7 If you haven't been off the couch for the last 12 months and think that you are up to playing football with the nephews and grandsons after eating massive amounts of dinner....think again.

#6 On that same note...if there is a lot of heavy snow coming down and you think you want to go out and shovel the driveway cuz-you-need-to-have-a-break-from-the-noise-and-chaos inside....think again.

#5 Chew your food 1000 times before swallowing. (you heard me right)

#4 The stove is hot. No double-dog dares to see how long you can keep your hand on it.

#3 Consider the lid of the green bean can a weapon. You know what I'm talking about don't ya?

#2 Have some immodium, tylenol, earache medicine, Motrin AND gas X on hand. Most stores are closed and the ER has them, but you will probably have a long wait because of all the other above mentioned STUFF. And your need for gas X doesn't trump someone who only chewed their food 999 times, no matter how differently you feel about it.

AND THE #1 NURSELY TIP FOR THANKSGIVING DAY.....
.....Keep cold foods cold and hot foods hot.
Get that turkey off the bone and in the fridge before the dishes get cleared.

I'll be working all day on Thanksgiving.
I don't wanna see ya there!

BUT, you are more than welcome to have a bite with us on the day after, we'll be celebrating that day. There will be so many of us that I won't notice another couple of dozen.

And while I'm thinking about the things that I'm grateful for.
It was freezing cold here last night.
Bitter cold.

I'm thankful for my HOT hubs!
My feet are always cold.

I KNOW IT'S AN EMERGENCY ROOM

It's there for a reason.

And there is some stuff that I feel more comfortable doing
than other stuff.

"run of the mill" stuff.

Stuff that you expect in an Emergency Room.
Stuff that we do frequently.

Birthin' a baby.
That's the other stuff.
Birthin' a baby in a car....
that is really way out there-what-the-heck-and-why-did-you-wait-so-long-and-park-right-in-the-main-entrance-and-I-haven't-run-that-fast-in-years-and-.... the ER doc clamped the cord of the already delivered baby and did the hand off to me. I made the little guy cry...love crying babies...and got him out of our November cold.

It wasn't really just another normal day of stuff in the ER.

Just sayin'.

I'VE LOST A WEEK!

Seriously!
It's gone.

I have no idea where I put it.

On Sunday I signed up to bring a meal for a family on Tuesday the 15th.
"No biggie. That's like a week and a half away."
I even wrote it down in my planner so I would remember in a week and a half.
Dentist appointment, a week and half away.
Then yesterday I realized.....
"no, that's this week!"

Where did my week go?
I checked my purse, closet, pockets and the junk drawer.
Can't find it.

Thanksgiving is NEXT week!
What?
I guess I better quit looking for the week and just get busy.
(I thought my husband and my mother were overly concerned about the menu and food assignments.
Sheesh, Thanksgiving is like WEEKS away. Chill!)

Thanksgiving will be spent in the Emergency Room,
but dinner is being hosted the next day
at my home.
Black Friday indeed.

If you find my week....
would you kindly return it?

I'M NOT CAPABLE OF NORMAL

Howie flew home last night.
He always texts me when he gets to the airport to head home.

Yesterday afternoon I received this text:
He's the yellow text box, I'm the blue.

Seriously, I cracked myself up!
Who knew that the Periodic Table could be so fun???
(AND who knew I would ever use it after I received my Bachelors?)
And then another text a few hours later:

(Again, I think I'm pretty funny.)
AND still one more:

(On the Periodic Table Copper is Cu.
Get it? C. U. ....see you there....)
Ok, maybe it was only funny at 10:30 last night after a 12-hour shift in the ER.
And last picture.
Taken this afternoon in the backyard.

(Photo challenge from Gigi to take pictures of fences.)

WHOLE WHEAT BREAD

I work with a doctor that is helping his son earn money for his mission and college tuition.
By growing wheat.
He's not a farmer, but they grew wheat.

He knows I'm a breadmaker so he offered some to me so I could make some bread and give him an honest opinion of his wheat.

So I got home from work and ground some wheat.

"Very pretty wheat doc! Thanks!"
After it was ground I mixed it and baked it.

Start to finish 2 hours.
That includes clean up.
Doesn't everyone make their own bread and grind their own wheat?
(except NITA!)
I told the doc that I would make his family a batch of bread.
My recipe makes four three loaves.

ZCMI Whole Wheat Bread
5 1/2 C hot water
2/3 C cooking oil
2/3 C honey
2 Tbs salt
3 Tbs instant yeast
2 Tbs lecithin (usually I forget)
1/2 C vital wheat gluten (usually I forget)
11-14 C whole wheat flour (really doc, your wheat is great!)
Put into 4 bread pans and bake at 350 degrees for 42 minutes. Take out of pans, butter the top. Let cool and enjoy.

I'M A TALL TWO YEAR OLD!

I read somewhere that someone that is tired is just a tall two year old.

I'm cranky.
I'm having a tantrum.
If you don't want cranky or a tantrum today...
turn the page.

I think it started Thursday with the city I live in.
I was informed that my "pile" of wood was on city property.
"Uh, it's not a pile, it's stacked on my property."
We've stacked wood in the alley against our fence for 20 years.
Apparently Thursday they wanted it changed.
Saturday, Howie was home for the weekend.
We spent the afternoon moving wood.
Still another stack to go.

While we were outside the Mayor of the town came by.
He was campaigning.
I invited him into the house.
Then took him through the house.
And out to the alley.
I showed him our stack that remained.
I also show him the phone poles and bushes that stick out further than my wood.
He agreed, that we needn't have moved the wood.
And that it didn't encroach upon "city" property.
Rich, you have my vote tomorrow!

Speaking of the alley,
It's being driven down like the Indy 500.
As this town has grown, so have the creative ways to get from one place to another.
It's an ALLEY people!
For some reason the alley has turned into a damn thoroughfare.
(Yes I said damn.)

Cars should not drive through alleys like that.
I have had two cats killed in that alley the last three months.
Yes, my toilet paper destroying cat.

I miss them.

Another reason for the crankiness.
I'm tired of Howie being gone all the time.
He's been gone for more weeks this year than he's been home.
He's my best friend.
He's my lover.
He's my foot warmer.
He's my fixer guy.

He left again yesterday afternoon.

And I hate the daylight savings time change!
I don't love it dark at 5:00 PM!

And it's freezing cold outside!
And gray!

And I can't make Toll House Cookies.
They turn out flat and horrible!

I know, I have so much and am so blessed.
We are employed.
And the traveling will end.
And we are healthy.
I truly know that.

BUT today....
I'm a tall two year old.
And I need a nap.

Maybe after I've read this I'll delete it.
Or not.