I love my essential oils, but not when I accidentally use the same cup (that
I had flavored my previous drink with therapeutic grade essential oils) for
my coffee. 
A few weeks ago, my daughter shared a few things about vaccination and many comments were shared about their importance. With her approval, I have put together this article in response to some of the comments and to explain why the subject is important to us. I still hesitate to share it because of the criticism that has been shown...
This project took far longer than it should, because it is long and my back pain kept me from my desk. Thankfully, the pain is finally subsiding and I can sit comfortably at my desk again. 
Read Our Vaccination Saga
Just going to the barn works wonders for my mental health... this snow storm has kept me away for two days. Sigh. At least the barn owner is happy to feed and we should be able to make it out in another 10-12 hours...
I'm up in the wee hours due to a nightmare of processing the past. The processing is getting easier... no anxiety attacks, no sobbing... this time. Just... awake. 
My prayer is to be able to process the past with forgiveness and grace... instead of like a she-devil 
"90 million poor, defenseless chocolate bunnies are annually sent to slaughter for Easter. Poor bunnies!"
That's what Bob
said after I read him a trivia quote about how many chocolate
bunnies are manufactured each year for Easter. 
While on the way home from the barn the other day, I saw a muskrat!
Me! The same color as the grass he was swimming in with most of his
body submerged in the water... I saw it and no one had to point it
out to me! Yeah, I know, it's silly being excited over seeing a rat!
But, I'm still getting used to being able to point animals out
instead of it being the other way around...
when I started taking
probiotics and other supplements from Plexus, I NEVER expected my
vision to improve! Very little research has been done in that area
(though I have recently read some encouraging findings). It's just
so exciting to me that it's bubbling over and I have to share!
Other good news: Despite having hurt my back and not being able to do anything strenuous for the past month, I have lost 5 pounds! I'm really trying not to get overly excited about that (because I know how fast it can come back), but... it's the first time the scale has moved downward in... well... at least 5 years (maybe longer).
I AM
excited to share that I had pizza the other day. I have often
consumed an entire medium pizza myself at one setting (truly, a
typical veggie pizza is not very filling). This time, however, I was
satisfied with 2 slices from a large pizza and FULL with only 3
slices! It is exciting for me to see my appetite diminishing!
Image Source: Image by https://pixabay.com/photos/muskrat-rat-water-brown-rat-2679660/
I just zipped twice around the block (0.4 mile) in under 15 minutes
My back is letting me know that a third time is not going to
happen right now, but I know that I'll be able to go for another
walk this afternoon. Getting there a little at a time...
I need to vent a little... I have been reflecting on memories and it has left me rather frustrated.
When we were in California, my ex-husband built me a wonderful round pen for me to fulfill my dream of training horses. Then, he turned it into a gardening area and the only time I was allowed to use it was when it was a mud pit (he thought training horses was too dangerous for a mother of young children). When we moved to the Oregon coast, he built a wonderful barn (nearly perfect). But, I was too sick to be out there much and he didn't allow outdoor riding when it was wet, so that it wouldn't tear up the ground… the Oregon coast gets LOTS of rain, so there weren't many riding days available in a year.
Now, my children are grown and I am healthy enough to enjoy my horses again. But, the barn is 10+ miles away and I have to rely on other people's schedules to open up for my horse time. I still get to enjoy having my horses, but am not able to go out and see them whenever the mood strikes (like now!). I would not trade my life with Bob for a barn, but I am frustrated with the circumstances.
We are saving to buy a place with a barn. It is slow coming though. It is ironic that we could save a lot more each year if I didn't have horses; yet, the reason for getting a place with a barn is for the horses.
In the meantime, I am praying for patience and for strength to not succumb to envious thoughts; choosing, instead, to focus on being grateful for what I have.
I've been making my own almond milk to save a little on the grocery
bill. I haven't found a recipe I really enjoy (yet), but I am
enjoying the experimentation... especially after I found out that
you can use the almond meal for other recipes! Now, I'm getting to
do multiple experiments Sometimes, though, it doesn't go well...
I decided to make some oatmeal carob cookies with this almond meal.
I used to make them with walnut or macadamia nuts. But, I did not
refer to the old recipe and added FAR too much carob powder that no
amount of sweetener was able to compensate for.
I was a little
discouraged thinking that I had wasted quite a bit of good food.
Then, I decided to turn the nearly inedible cookies into waffle
batter! Now, I have a dozen fairly decent carob waffles to enjoy...
not exactly what I was originally going for, but I'm glad that I
didn't have to throw it all away!
https://www.foxnews.com/health/dr-marc-siegel-measles-immunity-vaccines
So... we who were vaccinated before 1989 "may not" be as protected as we thought... And this "crisis" is just now showing up and we're supposed to run to get our shots? And, of course, it's the fault of the unvaccinated (not said in this article). Like most media hype, I knew there was more to it that we were being told.
1/2 mile today (on the Gazelle) in my first 15 minute workout of the
day - without my back reminding me to take it easy! Woo-hoo! 
Not
only that, but I did 0.9 miles yesterday (2 15 min workouts), which
is a new 2 year record, with just a few aches this morning.
I
think I can safely say that my back has healed and now I'm pressing
forward to improving my core. This is great timing because I need
to start cleaning out the barn again... just as soon as it dries up
enough to actually get the wheelbarrow out of the barn again (I
missed out on the week where the snow was almost gone and the ground
was still frozen enough to walk on)
I was telling my oldest some small events revolving around duct tape that have happened recently and she said that Bob and my relationship is uber-irritating.
Here's what happened...
1. Early last week, Bob noticed the cat box was leaking from a crack in it. He had asked if we had duct tape. No, I didn’t think so. A little while later, I heard some tape being used as he fixed the litter box. Without being asked to.
2. I have retrieved nearly a dozen broken plastic fence posts (that I use to create a small enclosure inside the pasture with the intention of playing with the horses) from the pasture now that the ground has thawed out. 
There are a lot more bent ones that I will attempt to salvage. The “heavy-duty” plastic just can’t handle the abuse between the amount of snow we had this winter and the horses using them as rubbing posts. So, I decided to try some step-in metal posts instead (I want to try some fiberglass ones, but the local store didn’t have any). I was concerned that the horses would injure themselves from rubbing on a hard edge on the side of the posts. When I showed it to Bob, he suggested using duct tape to soften the edge, but we didn’t have any (he had used packing tape on the litter box). I figured I’d pick some up later. But, he left the house while I was on the phone and came back with duct tape. Without being asked to. 
3. Last year, my temporary electric tape fence came down a couple of times in the wind and I have decided to try using duct tape to reinforce my knots (since we have some now!). I looked in all of the usual places that stuff gets laid down… the table, the dryer, the table in the garage, the shelf above the washer next to the basket that tape belongs in… I figured it had gotten left in the truck after using it to tape the fence post edges, but I decided to check the basket where I would put it before I went out into the rain. It was there! Bob put the tape away in the place where it belonged… without being asked to. I told my oldest: Man, he’s good!
And that’s just the duct tape.
In the past couple of weeks, he has also
1. cleaned the yard (I helped a little, but it was his idea and he did most of the work), taking away 3 truck bed loads of tree limbs (it was quite the mess)
2. worked on my youngest’s motorcycle
3. replaced the front door knob (it hasn’t been latching readily) without my reminding him that the weather was finally warm enough to do it
4. made his own coffee, though I am happy to do this for him
5. warmed up his own supper after telling me he wasn’t quite ready when I was hungry
6. treated me to a take-out meal when he had a craving for pizza (neither one of us enjoy sitting in a noisy restaurant and I was on the phone)
7. cleaned up after a cat without being asked to (a job neither us enjoy)
8. paused my favorite TV show when I answered the phone so I wouldn’t miss anything and wouldn’t be distracted while talking, without being asked to
9. oiled a very annoying squeaky joint on my Gazelle
10. cleaned my cassette tape player
11. duct-taped the posts for me
12. AND complimented the work I’ve done in the garage ??
I probably have forgotten a couple…
My “Love Language” is “Acts of Service” and he does something for me nearly every day – typically without being asked to - and he does it all without complaining!
It just occurred to me that although my love language is acts of service, most of the other categories are on the list too…
“Words of Affirmation” in his compliment;
“Receiving Gifts” in the surprise meal;
and “Quality Time” in watching our shows (we do talk each day too).
“Physical Touch” (Bob’s primary love language) is provided in holding hands while watching the TV (or rubbing his head, back, or feet – dependent on the moment); plus, a hug and kiss when one of us leaves and another on returning.
Most of the stuff on this list are small, but a BIG deal to me. These little things add up, you know.
So, why does my oldest find our relationship so uber-irritating?
Bob and I have been together for nearly 3 years and have yet to have a quarrel. How unusual is that?! We’ve had plenty of tense moments, uncomfortable conversations, and don’t agree on everything. Yet, we’ve never gotten angry with each other and have never taken our frustrations out on each other, which is a common problem in relationships.
We get along abnormally well. We recognize the truth in that and are both grateful!
If only every relationship could be as wonderful… it’s like a little bit of heaven right here, right now! 
And just like that [snaps fingers] I'm binge watching Mike & Molly and eating every thing in sight. Ugh! Now I have a stomach ache and head ache from over-eating. All because someone didn't show up for their shift, so my youngest couldn't come home on time and Bob is working late and now we'll have to feed horses in the dark (though I do have my wonderful headlamp). I just get so upset when plans get changed. Sigh