SHOPAHOLICS: ONE DAY AT A TIME (MONDAY, March 23)

Kathleen glad you have all arrangements for DD's graduation next month, at least that's a major relief off your mind. did you decide on the bracelet /necklace you want to get?

Chilly day here this morning was only 19 when I got up....it's into the 30's now sunny and windy. I went to the store this morning and picked up items to make chicken soup.....think I am going to make shrimp Risottto with asparagus for supper tonight. Havent't gotten my Easter/ spring decos out yet so hopefully I will get around to that today too. Have a nice afternoon everyone........Marijane

Hello friends!! I woke up thinking of Jean, as well, and hope that she is doing great!

Spring is here as well, and the day could not be prettier. Sorry to hear about your friends Linda, very sad to see people being taken advantage of. What did you find at Costco?

I could not sleep last night. I got online and ordered a couple things - anchor earrings for me and a blue tie with little anchors on it for DH to wear to graduation. I guess 1 tie every 7 years is acceptable, although I suspect the cost per wear is astronomical!

I also got online and booked flight - cheaper than our hotel room!! That's about all that's happening here, I got about 4.5 hours of sleep so I will be dragging later. I went and got a Subway and a SmartWater for lunch so I'm trying to be healthy.

Marijane I ordered a necklace earlier, can't even remember what it looks like. I love the Macy's bracelet (wanted more, looked again today and they are back at $55 ea) but did not buy more, and found a couple necklaces on etsy that I love. Need to get her a couple things on Amazon for her, just seem to be spending money every which way.

Hi girls!

It's a beautiful day out - 70°, bright and sunny. It's supposed to be in the 80s for the next few days, but I can't shut the heat off just yet - it's forecast to go back to the 50s by the weekend. At least it's not cold like Marijane's neck of the woods.

Praying all goes well for Jean.

Well, yesterday's dinner was...interesting. I got to my friend's place at 4 p.m.; it was originally supposed to be at 3 but she emailed to change the time. I picked up a meatball sub from Firehouse, and when she answered the door she wasn't dressed and looked surprised to see me...turned out she had called and left a message that dinner was moved again, to 5 p.m., but I didn't hear the phone. So, I ended up playing with my Kindle, which I had fortunately thought to bring along, while she worked on her taxes. Made no sense to me - why not do that after dinner? - but hey, it was her show. She had also invited a neighbor and a woman from her church, both nice ladies. I had to reheat my sub, and when I saw the platter of corned beef remembered another reason I didn't like it: all that fat! She had cabbage, microwaved little potatoes, and made Irish soda bread. I had a piece of the bread, which wasn't bad, although I don't see mixing raisins and caraway. Reheating my sub dried it out, but I was hungry, so I ate it. I couldn't make the cinnamon bun cheesecake that I had planned on for dessert as I didn't have as much cream cheese as I thought I did, so I ended up making cherry almond mini-bundts, which were a hit.

LindaL, that's awful about your neighbor! I have ZERO compassion for anyone who would harm or take advantage of someone else, but particularly the elderly, animals, or little kids - they can just rot for all I care. I hope the perpetrator is caught.

I picked up my packages at the post office, but haven't gotten the CD player set up yet. My haul included a set of Bible study CDs from Erwin Lutzer of Moody Church that I'm looking forward to listening to, so hopefully I'll get around to that today. Dr. Lutzer is an outstandingly good teacher. The Walmart Beauty Box was there as well, and I did cancel future deliveries - what a disappointment! Lady GagMe perfume? I don't think so! It really wasn't worth the $5; I liked it better when the Walmart website had an area where you could request free samples of various products; you could choose which you wanted, and they sent them to you free.

Pinky Ann, I love my Kitchen Aid stand mixer; I'd like to get some of the accessories for it. I can't believe you don't want yours anymore! My kitchen cabinets have several sets of dishes in a couple of them (plus other sets in my dining room breakfront), there's a cabinet for pots and pans, and one for small appliances. The rest are food, with more than half of those devoted to baking supplies. I had to set up a shelving unit at the top of my basement stairs which I used for some of my baking pan collection and baking supplies, and there are more of them, as well as extra baking supplies, in a pantry cabinet on the back porch. I also have another shelving unit in the garage for canned goods and some more baking pans. I really hate my kitchen - my house has plenty of storage, except for the kitchen, which was not designed with someone who loves to cook and bake in mind.

Charlene, I also enjoyed the Hannah Swensen series by Joanne Fluke, but I started to get annoyed with the last couple of books. IRL you wouldn't find two guys vying for the attention of someone who couldn't make up her mind as to which she prefers for years; Ms. Fluke needs to either have Hannah make a choice for once and for all, or else get one of the guys killed off. It's getting ridiculous! (I think she should go with the dentist...)

I supposed I should take the girls for a drive, as it's so pretty out. Saturday evening I took them for a ride, as I didn't know what I wanted for dinner - nothing I had in the house appealed to me. Well, I drove around and finally decided on a pizza from Hungry Howie's - they have flavored crusts, and also an individual size available, which would have been just right, since I didn't want to spend a lot. To my surprise the store was closed and dark; I was afraid they were closed permanently, but I dialed their number and got a message that they're closed for renovations. Well, by then I was in a pizza mood, and I made the mistake of going to Little Caesar's - never again! That stuff is NASTY! It was cold, has almost no sauce, and the crust was half-baked. Well, at least the dogs enjoyed it... Anyway, I don't know where we'll go today; I can walk two at once in the park, but three are too overpowering for me - Angelica and Honeybun in particular are very strong. I might have to have them take turns on walking outings, and Autumn is much smaller, so she's no problem.

Have a blessed day, everyone!

Hello All,

Jean: thoughts and prayers your way.

Today we are having beautiful weather. I had an am appt. at the lab and followed it with walking and a light lunch. I just hit the library and went to my resale shop to pick up my check from things sold. Well, instead of leaving with the cash I brought a pretty QF tunic for a whopping 6 bucks. It is A231179 and still is available on QVC for over 45 dollars so I guess I did o.k. on that one. This was actually my first QF purchase.

Reading this afternoon. I am anxious to get my lab work results. I have been feeling a little "off" medically speaking and hope to have some feedback soon.

Everyone, have a good day!

Hi Everyone!

Good luck to Jean, and everyone waiting for or going through any type of medical issues. I hope they are resolved quickly and easily.

I took a drive to exchange two tees at Macy's, but found their replacements at Sam's. Everything they had, had some type of detail or stitching that I couldn't imagine sleeping in. The new ones are Eddie Bauer, and I've had tremendous luck with them the past few years. I've bought them every spring and fall since Sam's has carried them. While at Sam's I bought DH a lounge chair for the deck. They had the anti gravity type, and they looked great. He was very pleased with it, so it was a very good trip.

Arlene, I don't use my Kitchen Aid stand mixer more than a few times a year now. It's not worth it to store it, and I can barely move it when I want to use it. I have a good hand mixer if needed.

Baking has nearly come to a stop here. DH is a diabetic, and I just don't need the calories. Our cupboards are more than what we need, but counter space isn't as plentiful. I love my stainless work table/island and would be lost without it. It just bugged me one day as to why so many pots, pans, etc. were needed to cook for a such a small family like ours. I'll have a better idea of how much empty cupboard space we'll have after Easter, as lots is stored for Easter dinner, and goodies for everyone for the holiday. I can't wait to finish this last pare down, and know we're keeping things "just right", and not in excess for us.

The Miss Minimalist blog has been a great motivator as we're at the end of a clear out that's gone on a long time. The posters there vary from very extreme, to those who feel like I do. I want my home to look nice, and function very well. It has to be easy for me to care for, and I hope we can downsize one day. DH is not on board right now, but maybe over time he'll come around. Hope this post didn't put you to sleep! pinky

I saw on FB that Jean didn't get very good news. Continuing to pray for her.

I had some fun at COSTCO, Kathleen. Ended up with my regular stuff (croissants, yogurt, frozen strawberries for smoothies, etc.), but I also found a cute top -- lacy, but not really fancy, and in navy (good color for me.) Then, I shopped at Beall's and found a pair of exercise capris and a pair of red sandals. Neither were expensive, and I got my Monday discount (over 50).

I will be reading that miss Minimalist blog -- thanks pinky ann. Like you, I don't use my Kitchen Aid mixer much. And, it is pretty heavy to move when I do use it. I don't bake as much as I did in the past, and what I do bake can usually be done with a hand mixer or just a spoon. On the other hand, I use my Vitamix almost every day to make smoothies, and I use the KA food processer pretty often. I haven't brought myself to unload the mixer yet, but if DD lived closer I would give it to her to replace her older one. She adores her stand mixer.