This Week With Dee – where I share our menu, my planned home tasks for the week, what I’m reading, self care plans and more. I hope it will give you some ideas for planning your own week or at least a glimpse of one homemaker’s life.
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THIS WEEK WITH DEE
Our pretty fall weather has returned and I’m so happy about that! It was 84 degrees and sunny yesterday and it’s currently 80 degrees – yay! Later this week it will become more seasonal with highs in the low 60s but I can deal with that.
What is your weather like?
MENU:
Monday…
- stir fried veggies
- rice
- wontons
- pineapple
Tuesday…
- Lentil Tacos
- coleslaw
- chips & salsa
Wednesday…
- spaghetti
- Brussels sprouts
- salad
- garlic cheese bread sticks
Thursday…
- turkey chili
- cornbread
Friday…
- salmon
- mashed potatoes
- veggies
- salad
Saturday…
- leftovers or takeout
Sunday…
- pancakes or waffles
- eggs
- fresh fruit
IN MY HOME:
REVIEW OF LAST WEEK
Monday…
I had my annual checkup and I’m glad to have that out of the way. Honestly, I would have skipped it if I could but they won’t renew prescriptions without it and we get a big discount on our insurance if we do annual wellness checks.
For dinner I made stuffed bell peppers. I prepared the bell peppers, steamed them about five minutes and let drain inverted. Meanwhile I chopped the tops of the peppers and sautéed them in a tiny bit of olive oil. When they were softened I added a drained can of black beans, drained can of corn, a can of diced tomatoes with green chilis and seasoned with garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, cumin and black pepper. I spooned this mixture into the bell peppers and baked at 350 degrees about 20 minutes, topped with grated cheddar cheese and returned to the oven until the cheese was melted. I served these with rice, roasted Brussels sprouts and salad.
Tuesday…
It was really cold this morning. I think it got down into the upper 20s. I had to go get lab work done early in the morning and it was definitely freezing. I was rather disconcerted to see a young couple with a tiny infant leave the hospital with the baby barely covered with a thin receiving blanket, not even covering the wee little head. I wanted so badly to offer some motherly advice but I refrained. Still, I worried about the baby…
It was Halloween and we went trick or treating with our granddaughter, Charlotte. It was in the upper 40s but at least it was sunny and dry…no wind. She had a great time but we kept it fairly short due to the temperature. Here is a picture of her wearing Grandpa’s jacket while her daddy went back to their car to get hers:
We drove her back home afterwards because she loves to ride in “Grandpa’s truck”. We visited awhile and finally got home a little after 8. I made tacos using the leftover beans/corn mixture from Monday night’s stuffed bell peppers. We finally finished dinner and kitchen cleanup around 9 p.m. That’s really late, even for us!
Wednesday…
I did a lot of blog work and some writing. I placed an order for a bunch of bulbs to plant this fall and hopefully enjoy next spring.
I heard back from the nurse regarding my lab results. I was pleased to learn that my kidney function has improved significantly since last year.
For dinner I made a sausage, potatoes and cabbage soup. I served it with green beans, salad and some cooked apples.
Thursday…
In the early part of the day I did some blog work including writing the monthly LWD newsletter.
Later on I emptied the dishwasher, washed the lunch dishes, shook out the kitchen rugs and started washing them (they are heavy so I can only do one or two per load), swept the floor, changed the kitchen table linens, scrubbed all the counters and used the blower on the front porch and walkway.
I had planned to make minestrone for dinner but David had to go help my mom with something and he picked up pizza afterwards.
Friday…
I had placed a grocery order Thursday evening for pickup today. My mom also needed groceries so I added hers to my pickup. I delivered hers to her later that afternoon.
For dinner I made BBQ chicken, baked potatoes, frozen California style veggies (broccoli, carrots and cauliflower) and salad.
Saturday…
The day started off rather slow and quiet. David had a gout flare up and got up at 4 a.m. to take some Advil and move to his recliner. We both sat in our recliners in the library until well after noon. David slept and I watched YouTube videos.
David got a surge of energy after his morning nap and went out to mow awhile. I did some laundry. I also dusted and vacuumed the entry hall, library, family room and our offices.
For dinner I pulled some homemade soup from the freezer for a super easy meal with minimal cleanup. Always much appreciated by the end of the week!
Sunday…
This was such a fun day! The weather was gorgeous so we took advantage of it. We picked up Charlotte and brought her to our place. We bought a Tonka dump truck for her to play with here and she loved it. She loaded and dumped rocks from the driveway repeatedly. I brought out a few farm animals for her to put in it as well.
She noticed the pumpkin on our porch and asked, “Carve the pumpkin?”. Why not? I also let her plant one of the pansies I had bought a couple of weeks ago and still hadn’t planted. We walked down to our pond and she threw rocks in it for quite awhile.
We were supposed to just have her a couple of hours but nearly three hours later I figured her parents might want her to come home. She was not thrilled about leaving but Grandpa asked her if she’d like to see a fire truck. That worked. We stopped at the volunteer fire department and she “drove” all of the trucks and tried on Grandpa’s helmet.
It weighs almost as much as she does – ha! She now has one her size on its way from Amazon.
It was a perfect way to spend a beautiful fall afternoon.
Since we were in town to take her home we decided to pick up dinner from Rib Crib. It was a bit of an ordeal but I didn’t have to cook and cleanup was minimal again. Yay!
I had put the sheets in the washer before we went to get Charlotte and moved them to the dryer before I sat down to dinner. I didn’t realize the top sheet had gotten twisted until I went to remake the bed at nearly 10 p.m. and discovered that it was still wet. I had already put the bottom sheet on so we have mismatched sheets this week. Oh, well…at least the pillowcases are ironed!
THIS WEEK
This week kicked off very, very early. David had cataract surgery this morning and we had to leave the house by 6:10 a.m. Now, had we been smart, we’d have gone to bed early since we had to be up by 5:30 a.m. Did we? Nope. I didn’t go to sleep until well after midnight.
His surgery went well. I sat in the car in the parking lot for the two hours he was in the surgery center. We picked up breakfast at McDonald’s on the way home since he had not been able to eat prior to surgery. After we got home, he fell asleep in his recliner with a cat in his lap and slept until about 1:30 p.m. I sat in my recliner in the same room working on my laptop and staying close in case he needed anything.
Tomorrow afternoon he has an appointment with his eye doctor to check his eye. He can’t drive so I’ll be taking him.
I have two Zoom calls this week – Tuesday and Thursday.
I don’t have any major plans for the house other than just keeping up with the usual day-to-day stuff: making the bed, cooking, washing dishes, laundry, tidying up…that sort of thing. I’ll clean bathrooms at some point and may try to find time to mop the kitchen floor.
WORK
Most of my efforts this week will be on writing and blog-related tasks.
READING
I finished Make Me Rain: Poems and Prose by Nikki Giovanni. I’ve had it in my upstairs bathroom and have been reading a poem or two here and there for a few months. This was the June LWD Art Appreciation poet selection.
I’ve still not finished “The Echo of Old Books” yet. I have mostly been reading this in bed at night but since we go to bed so late I keep falling asleep after only a chapter or two. But it’s really good and I want to finish it this week!
I’d like for David and I to listen to some more of the audiobook we started on our most recent trip – Undaunted Courage: Meriweather Lewis, Thomas Jefferson and the Opening of the American West by Stephen Ambrose.
If you don’t already have Audible, you can get a free trial here. We’ve definitely been enjoying it on long drives.
SELF CARE
Last week I said I wanted to continue watching the British comedy, “Hold the Sunset” starring John Cleese. I did watch a few more episodes and plan to watch more this week. Laughter is the best medicine, right?
HEALTH & FITNESS
I really want/need to get back into my walking routine but my hip is still giving me fits. It was slightly better but sitting on the ground with Charlotte and climbing up into the fire engine didn’t do it any favors. We’ll see how I feel tomorrow but today it’s quite painful.
FUN ACTIVITIES
I ordered and received a new coloring book and I want to spend some time coloring each day. Here is the one I purchased:
I have crayons and colored pencils but I’m thinking about ordering these:
HABIT OF THE MONTH (NOVEMBER)
This month’s LWD Challenge is to intentionally listen to music every day. I love making Spotify playlists and have been listening to this month’s LWD playlist:
I’m loving my new noise cancelling headphones. They are much more comfortable than wearing earbuds. The only thing is that they do such a good job blocking out sounds that David startles me when he comes into my office. I told him I need some sort of light up alarm that would tip me off that he’s coming in – ha!
If you aren’t already in the group, here is the link:
LIFE WITH DEE
I’d love to see pictures of your challenge so feel free to share them in the group or on Instagram and tag me:
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What’s on your plan for the week ahead? Home tasks? Menu? Fun? What are you reading?
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