AuburnChick's Adventures

Happy New Year, sweet bloggy friends!

Did any of you make it until midnight?

I did not. I rarely do. I tapped out around 11 and went to sleep to the sound of fireworks.

We hit the ground running as soon as my Christmas break began.

Christmas Eve, my sister picked me up for our annual Christmas Eve sister date. We hit up a couple of stores looking for last-minute gifts for our husbands. We ended our outing by visiting the culinary school’s gingerbread house display.

It was magnificent!

We gathered back together later that evening at our in-laws’ house for Christmas dinner. We went our separate ways fairly early in the night.

Christmas morning, the Mr. and I were up early to jump on a FaceTime call with our girl and her crew.

They had a busy day ahead of them, so we got our visit in early. We gave the grands an art easel, smocks, clothes for the littlest one, and a scooter for the oldest.

Then, we opened our stockings. We’d forgone big gifts.

The Mr. enjoyed the goodies I’d collected for him.

He did real good with mine.

The puzzle is amazing! The candy is vegan and tastes just like real peanut M&Ms.

This is a game we are looking forward to playing. It’s a mystery based on American history.

I love this pen/wand. It’s going to work with me.

The bracelet was on my Christmas list. I’ve got a necklace that is very similar, and I bought a ring with the circle on our cruise last February. It’s a theme, y’all.

We headed over to the hubby’s parents’ house after we finished with our stockings. They’d put together a breakfast. Gambit waited to clean up crumbs beneath the table.

We always take turns opening gifts, starting with the youngest and working our way up from there. It takes a long time because we always stop to tell the back stories behind the gift giving.

I love that I get to spend the holidays with my sister so close by.

She and her husband gave us this gorgeous blanket.

It looks lovely draped across the back of our couch.

We spent the rest of the day packing for our trip to our son’s house.

I don’t pack light. Ever.

I also started work on my new puzzle. The border was beastly, and I had to stop midway through.

We hit the road early the day after Christmas (but I did sneak in a run to Kroger before we left because we earn quadruple fuel points on Fridays).

Traffic was the lightest we’d ever seen. Gambit snoozed the whole way there.

Sweet E was thrilled to see us and gave us the biggest hugs – after greeting Gambit. He gets the highest billing in our family.

After lunch, we opened gifts.

This Riprider bike was a huge hit.

We ate at a new-to-us sushi place that night. We’d had our eyes on it during our last visit.

It did not disappoint. The Mr. had looked at the menu online, and he saw this vegan offering:

It wasn’t on the printed menu at the restaurant, but when I asked about it, they assured me they could make it.

It was the best thing I’ve eaten in a long time.

The next day, we went to the mall. Before we started shopping, we ate at Agave & Rye.

I appreciated their non-alcoholic offerings, opting for a spicy, fruity drink.

This vegan taco was delectable!

The bulk of our weekend involved lots of play. This card game, which we’d also given E, was a hit once I figured out the rules.

My daughter-in-law captured this precious photo.

The kids’ puppy had grown a LOT since we saw him at Thanksgiving. He’s still naughty, by the way.

We attended church and enjoyed a relaxing Sunday afternoon. We left mid-morning Monday, which allowed us to miss the holiday traffic.

After unpacking quickly and putting my house in order, I settled in to knit and peruse the magazines I’d gotten for Christmas.

I have loved the slow, quiet mornings at home.

I’ve been binging more Survivor. I’m currently on Season 25.

I finished off one more book, bringing my total to 54 for the year, exceeding my annual goal of 50.

I keep track of my books on Goodreads and Fable.

I have too many hobbies to just read, so I consider this a good accomplishment.

I like Fable because it encourages me to read a little each day. I’m all about a good streak.

There were a few good books sprinkled among the meh ones. Fiction seems to be my jam.

I want to go back and reread all of the Hunger Games books, in chronological order (versus publication date order). The most recent book broke my heart but filled in the gaps of why Haymitch was the way he was.

This about sums up my 2025 reading journey.

We spent New Year’s Eve watching college bowl games. I also worked on my puzzle and made a lot of headway.

I downloaded two free Prime First Reads books first thing this morning. If you’ve got a Prime account, you can find them by typing Prime First Reads in the search bar. Amazon is offering two this month!

I usually check Goodreads for reviews before I commit. Why waste a free download on something that is meh?

And that, my friends, is my very longgggg summary of the last two weeks.

I’m going to lay low the next few days. Monday will be here before I know it, along with my 4:30 alarm and the cold trek into work.

I pray that you have been able to start off the year relaxing and, if possible, with loved ones.

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Happy New Year’s Eve, sweet friends! It’s hard to believe that we are about to close out the year. Whew! It sure did fly by!

Let’s get to Joyce’s Hodgepodge questions, which I think will help me sum up the 2025 that I had.

1. Did you make resolutions or set goals for the year we’re waving goodbye? How did that work out for you? Will you set any goals for this new year, new season, or new month? Share one or two if you’d like to share. 

I didn’t make any resolutions for 2025. My goal was to get my shoulders back in working order since I started off the year in a sling – two weeks post surgery for shoulder number one.

I’m not setting any resolutions for 2026. I’m not so sure about goals either, besides getting my shoulders back to the point where I can exercise again.

I just want to take each day as it comes and try not to stress too much about the what-if’s that may or may not descend upon me.

2. When did you have the most fun this year? 

Any time I was with my children and grandchildren was when I had the most fun. We took a family trip to Disney in May, and that was a lot of fun. Both kiddos’ families were at my house for a few days in November. It was pure chaos/fun with three kids under the age of 5 running around.

3. What’s a song or song lyric you’ll associate with 2025? Tell us why. 

Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes . . .

Two shoulder surgeries in a six-month span . . .

Need I explain further?

4. Best (or a favorite) bite of something delicious you tasted this year? 

This Summer Crush Roll was the best thing I ate at a restaurant this year.

5. What do you want to do more of in the new year? Less of? 

I’d like to do less recovering from surgery in the new year – not likely since I have two cataract surgeries scheduled already.

I’d like to do more crafting now that my shoulders are well enough to wield my knitting needles again.

6. My Random Thought

This is how I’m spending my last week of Christmas break . . .

The Mr. always gives me a couple of vegan recipe magazines. I’ll be cooking up some soup dishes that sound absolutely delightful.

I’m also working hard on a blanket. I’m almost finished with the borders for each square. Soon, it will be time to seam them together.

I pray that your new year starts off restful, and that you have a great first week of 2026.

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Guess what, y’all?

I just got home from my LAST physical therapy appointment!!

Cue the happy tears.

It’s hard to believe that I was in physical therapy for EXACTLY – to the day – one year.

I’d had a feeling that this was coming. During an appointment two weeks ago, my therapist had mentioned that they were going to cut me loose soon.

In preparation, I wrote a thank you note and kept it in my fanny pack.

I carried it to physical therapy last week, but my therapist never mentioned me being done, so I took it back home.

Today was the day, though, as he gently told me the news during my first exercise.

My right shoulder has seen dramatic improvement the past three weeks, so it was time.

I’m not pain-free yet, and I still don’t have full range of motion across my back or across my front, but things are moving along.

We discussed limitations – I don’t really have any beyond being safe and not lifting any heavier than I have strength for.

He gave me a set of exercises to do at home three days a week and a new set of bands to increase intensity.

He also assured me that if I’m still struggling in a few weeks, I can visit my orthopedic surgeon, who will be able to start me on a new treatment plan.

Honestly, I think I’m going to wait it out.

My experience with my left shoulder taught me that sometimes, God takes His time to provide full healing.

I know that months nine through twelve see the biggest gains with regard to a full return to normal activities, so I’ll try to be patient.

Wednesdays are going to look a little different. I’m a tad sad about not seeing my extended PT family each week, but change is good sometimes, and this one signifies another mile marker in my healing journey.

As I sat in the chair for my final TENS and heating pad treatments, I handed my therapist the card I’d written and simply took in the small conversations happening around me.

My physical therapist was meeting a new patient – one who has been having shoulder pain.

I smiled as I listened to his kind words of assurance that he was going to take good care of her.

He’ll hold to his word too.

The dreaded beeps went off signaling the end of my session.

I hugged each therapist as I left, thanked them, and wished them a Merry Christmas.

As I headed out, I asked the gal at the front desk to remove all of my future appointments.

It was bittersweet.

I am incredibly thankful for the people God has brought into my life through this experience and how much He’s changed me since I first walked through those PT doors.

To God be the glory.

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Good Monday-before-Christmas, friends!

Gosh, but it’s hard to believe that Christmas is only four days away! I always find that the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas fly by in a blur.

But here we are!

Friday night, the Mr. and I hung out around the house. No surprise there given that this is just how we roll nowadays.

We watched the big football game between the other team in our state and Oklahoma. It was strange rooting for a team in red. Unfortunately, OU lost, much to our chagrin.

We also received an impromptu FaceTime call from our oldest grand. She is beyond excited about Christmas and wanted me to show her our tree with the gifts underneath. Then, she showed us theirs. They had to put a baby fence around it because their puppy is quite naughty right now.

Saturday morning, I had an agenda, so I quickly got ready for my day.

I hit the road early – headed back to Waverly to purchase a gift card at a bakery/coffee shop she and her hubby frequent.

I was a nervous wreck fully expecting to run into them.

I decided to two-hand it with drink options because the holiday tea blends looked too good to choose from.

I had to try the chai latte because it’s my jam during the winter.

The other one was a mint tea blend. It was okay, but it made my car smell like a nail salon. So strange!

On my way home, I stopped by World Market to I pick up a little something I’d seen last week. The hubby enjoys making egg bites, but they are a bit of a pain to prepare. I’m hoping this little gadget will be of use.

I ran to Kroger for Christmas dinner recipe ingredients. That was a fun trip. Ha!

Then, I went back home to start ribbonizing the gifts the Mr. had wrapped and put under the tree.

He’s fine with plain presents. I am not. I’m of the opinion that shiny, glittery ribbons make the world a much more fun place.

I did a lot of knitting this weekend. I am beyond grateful that my shoulders have healed enough to let me enjoy one of my favorite hobbies.

This is a project I’ve been working on and off on for nine years. It’s a booger, let me tell you, but I’m determined not to give up. I’m close to the finish line.

Speaking of close . . .

I prayed real hard while I was knitting one section and came super close to running out of yarn for it.

We watched football all of Saturday. I love the college playoffs and bowl season.

Sunday, we went to church – early because the Christmas services were being offered at times that differed from regular Sundays.

Last year, the Mr. and I didn’t make it to the Christmas Eve service because we had made a horrible, wet mess of the bathroom while trying to get me ready. It was my first shower post-surgery, and we hadn’t figured things out yet (like it’s much easier to take a bath after shoulder surgery).

I was almost teary-eyed when we lit our candles at the end of yesterday’s service. it was what I’d missed the most last year.

I chose not to meal prep Sunday because just why? With me being off for two weeks, I didn’t feel the pressure of having all the things ready by Sunday night.

Instead, I got myself comfortable in a bedroom and binged season 23 of Survivor.

Coach and Ozzy made their returns – for the upteenth time – that season. I’ve gotta admit that Coach has grown on me as I’ve rewatched the seasons. Seeing him evolve through the years has been heartwarming.

And that, my friends, is a wrap on the weekend!

If I don’t “see” you before Christmas, I wish you the very best. I pray that you’re able to be with the ones you love the most and can create memories that you’ll gently tuck away for safekeeping.

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Y’all, this past week was a tad busy for this home-loving girl.

Monday was COLD.

The drive into work was much more solitary with the absence of students quite evident.

Auburn is so pretty during the holidays.

My walk into work was miserable. Thank goodness for the hand warmers I bought last year. They’re rechargeable.

My colleagues and I attended a holiday lunch in another building. They handed each of us a goody bag and a very lovely rain jacket embroidered with the Auburn logo and our department name.

After I got home and had freshened up, the Mr. and I headed out to a Christmas party – an annual shindig hosted by dear friends of ours.

I don’t know what I was thinking, though, because I should have remembered that the couple always leaves their patio doors open with the food and seating outside.

The temperature was frigid; my legs and toes nearly froze. Thank heavens for their beautiful fireplace inside, which allowed me to thaw out midway through our visit.

Next year, I’m wearing a warm, dressy pants outfit. Ha!

Tuesday, I left work early for a hair appointment.

Wednesday, we had another holiday lunch with a department one floor up. We work very closely together, so it was nice to have time to chat about non-work stuff.

I left work early for physical therapy.

My therapist had several new exercises for me to try out. My shoulders were on fire when I finished: the TENS stimulation was a blessing before I headed home.

I watched the Survivor 49 finale when I got home. I really enjoyed this season and was satisfied when the winner was announced.

While I watched, I finished knitting the pair of mittens I’d restarted after running out of yarn.

I cannot wait for my granddaughter to open her gift.

Thursday, I got to listen to workers drill on the wall outside of my office. The result was this . . .

We aren’t quite sure what’s going to be displayed on this screen – hopefully directions to each of our departments because people are forever getting lost in our building. There are lots of nooks and crannies.

Thursday evening, the Mr. and I decided to try a new-to-us Thai restaurant that a gal at work had told me about. We have a favorite local sushi bar that we frequent once a week, so we were a little nervous. You know how it is when you change things up.

We saw this list of specials when we walked in.

Oh y’all, why was I worried?

The menu was extensive. I saw several things I had to order. I’m usually a cheap date because restaurants rarely offer many vegan items.

It was going to be an expensive night.

My appetizer was fried tofu with peanut sauce. It was very light in texture – so good!

A robot delivered part of our meal. This was my first experience with a robotic waiter. Our server came over and apologized after explaining that she’d been busy and had sent the order over. We didn’t mind one bit.

I opted for Massaman curry for my entree. I’ve been a fan of this dish for many years after first trying it out when we lived in the Florida Panhandle. My standards are pretty high because I compare every restaurant’s take on it to the first place I ate it.

It did not disappoint. Wow!

I had plenty of leftovers.

By Friday, campus was a ghost town. My director had taken the day off, an advisor left at lunch, and my supervisor left mid-afternoon.

The calls still rolled in, though, with people responding very gratefully that we were there, answering the phone.

As much as I love my job and my gals at work, I did the happy dance as I walked out the door. The two-week break is something I look forward to each year.

The university will be closed until January 5th.

Whew! It’s time to turn off my weekday alarms and see if my body will let me sleep in. Years of early wake ups have trained my eyes to pop open when it’s still dark outside.

I hope y’all have a wonderful weekend!

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One year ago, I was coming out of surgery to repair my left shoulder after several months of intense pain.

The night before my surgery, I had experienced the worst pain I’d ever had in my life (with the exception of when I broke my ankle).

I chattered in nervousness the entire way to the surgery center. The Mr., normally not a morning person (especially at 4:30am) didn’t complain at all. He knew I needed an outlet. He’d seen all I’d been through since September.

I was absolutely exhausted and rated my pain as a 1000 on a scale from 1-100 when the nurse took my vitals as she prepped me for surgery.

I was beyond ready to start down the path toward healing.

I was looking rough when I got home from the surgery center . . .

When the nerve block wore off, I was feeling pretty rough too. The pain was something else, let me tell you. Thankfully, a phone call to the pharmacist helped us get my meds straight so I could start recovering with some measure of comfort.

Christmas sure did look a lot different last year, but thanks to the wonderful care provided by my hubby, I managed to get out and about, albeit very slowly and very infrequently while I regained my strength.

Figuring out how to get dressed was a daily struggle. I didn’t win any Best Dressed awards, that’s for sure. Comfort was the most important thing.

Although I’d been warned how tough the recovery would be, nothing could have prepared me for the beastly twice-weekly physical therapy appointments.

I almost threw up during the first one. It took a few visits before I actually started smiling during those pain-laden hours.

I haven’t done an exact count of the number of PT sessions I’ve had since this journey began, but I think a conservative estimate would be between 65 to 75.

I missed one week because of our cruise and maybe two and a half weeks while I waited for my second surgery.

It took me a long time to get comfortable with the fact that I would have a lot of tough weeks, with good days sprinkled in sporadically.

I wanted instant relief.

Yeah, that was a pipe dream. Ha!

Ibuprofen, Aleve, ice, and a heating pad became my best friends.

It took months for my arm to hang straight down. This photo was from last spring. You can see how I was still favoring the left arm. Gravity was not my friend – the pull on my shoulder still so painful.

During one of my follow-up appointments with my orthopedic surgeon in May, his nurse told me, “One day, you’ll realize that you’re not hurting as bad. It will happen out of the blue.”

She was right.

I finally hit that milestone nine or ten months into my recovery, but when I did, I almost felt like crying – because it was a blessed respite given that I was in the midst of h-e-l-l thanks to the June surgery on my other shoulder.

Undergoing two shoulder surgeries in a six-month time span isn’t for the faint of heart.

Although the journey has been l-o-n-g, as my physical therapist likes to say, I’m moving forward. That’s what’s important.

I couldn’t reach my arm straight up one year ago.

I certainly wasn’t decorating a tree last year.

That’s a new tree – a temporary one until next year when I can help the Mr. lift our much bigger, heavier pre-lit tree.

I’m still in physical therapy one afternoon a week, and I still experience pain for a day or two afterward. Strengthening my angry muscles has been a tedious affair. Regaining mobility has been absolutely grueling.

I’d say my left shoulder is about 90% better. The rotator cuff on that side starts yelling when I’ve over exerted myself, and my bicep doesn’t enjoy it if I reach too far across the front of my body. Weirdly enough, my shoulder feels okay when I reach behind my back, which I couldn’t do even three months ago. Yay me!

The difference from where I was last year is incomparable, and I find myself so in awe of what God has done for me.

It’s been a hard year but I’m thankful for the mile markers that I’ll always have to look back on when the next challenging season of my life hits.

God is always with me. He never abandons me. He’s my strength, provider, and healer. I am nothing without Him.

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Happy Wednesday, sweet friends. We are on a countdown around these parts. I have three more days before I’m off for the wonderful two-week break that the college generously grants employees each year from Christmas through New Year’s.

Alrighty. Let’s get to the questions Joyce has bundled together for us this week.

1. What’s one thing on your to-do list that you want to get done, need to get done, or that must get done before the year ends? 

I’ve been itching to go through the clothes in my closet and grab the items I no longer wear, so my husband can donate them before the end of the year. I’ll probably do that first thing next week. I’ve got a lot, let me tell you, so I’m looking forward to all of the empty space that will be left behind.

2.  December 17th is National Maple Syrup Day…are you a fan? Do you like maple flavor in other food items such as candy, cookies, donuts, oatmeal, hot toddies, coffee? 

I love maple syrup! Fun fact: My mom was from Canada. In fact, I was born there too. My grandfather had maple trees. The maple syrup on tap is NOTHING like pure maple sap that comes from those trees. It’s almost clear and heavenly.

As a vegan, I use maple syrup quite often. I’ll take it in anything when given the choice.

3. Time magazine names a person of the year every year.  The tradition started back in 1927 with a ‘man of the year’ but has since changed to recognize not only an individual, but also to consider the impact of a group, movement, or idea that most influenced the year. The selection is not always someone or something good (think Hitler in 1938 and Stalin twice). 

This year they’ve named The AI Architects as their ‘person of the year’. What say you? Is this a good choice, an obvious choice, a logical choice? Who do you think should have been named person of the year? 

What a terrible choice! I’m so disappointed with the popularity and promotion of AI. I’m also scared of it. With everything that has happened in our world this year, why choose that group of people? I’m convinced there’s a whole lot of people with no sense whatsoever.

4. What’s a city, state, or country you’ve visited that you never care to visit again? Tell us why. 

Seattle, Washington is a place I’ve been to twice – enroute to both of our Alaskan cruises. It sure did change a lot from one cruise to the next – a span of about ten or eleven years in between visits. I was disappointed by how dirty the city had gotten. The airport was a nightmare to navigate through as well. I’ll purposefully avoid this city in the future.

5. Next Sunday (December 21st) marks the first day of winter (or the opposite if you’re living down under). What’s one thing you love about this new season? 

I’m not a big fan of winter. It’s way too cold when I walk into work each morning, and the darkness I face when I leave each afternoon is depressing. I guess the main thing I like about this season is that I can finally justify hunkering below a big pile of blankets.

6. My Random Thought

Y’all, we have had the hardest time getting things we’ve ordered online delivered lately. Oh, it’s not a problem getting things to my house. Things that we are having sent to our daughter’s house, from MAJOR retailers, are going missing on the way to the shipping companies.

What is happening?

If I hadn’t been on top of my tracking, I wouldn’t have known either because NOBODY bothers to communicate information any more.

I’ve had to reach out a total of four times (twice for each company) in the last week to get down to the bottom of things.

This “Person of the Year” award shouldn’t go to the AI people. They obviously haven’t figured out a way to get our packages to show up at the intended addresses.

Maybe if they could do that, I’d be less salty about the nod they were given.

I’m stepping off of my soap box now.

Ha!

Have a wonderful Christmas!

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Happy Monday, Friends!

First of all, brrrr.

It. Is. Cold.

So, how was your weekend?

If I had to use one word to sum up mine, I’d call it “productive.”

But first – Friday. When I got home from work, the Mr. told me that he’d accidentally had my sister’s Christmas gift sent to our daughter – but the address didn’t match her address, so he had no clue where the package was going.

Y’all, what the heck? The chat support wasn’t connecting, so we drove back to town to visit the brick and mortar shop (where we should have purchased the item from to begin with, but that’s another story).

They couldn’t help us with the tracking on the original order, but I did manage to buy the item in the store.

What a mess.

For the record, we figured out the address situation the next day. It was my son-in-law’s parents’ address. Whew!

Crisis averted – for the moment.

We finished watching Slow Horses that evening. I think we had two episodes left. It had taken us a few months to watch them because football had taken over our lives.

Saturday

Although I typically like to stay in my pajamas on Saturdays, I had things I needed to do, so I went ahead and got up, washed my hair, dressed in regular clothes, and put on makeup.

One of the gals in my office had mentioned a cute little shop I’d never heard of, so I wanted to check it out. I was on the hunt for a trinket or two to add to my sister’s Christmas present.

While I waited for the Mr. to get up, I did a few of the chores I usually complete on Sundays. It was nice to get ahead for a change.

Bed linens were washed, as was Gambit’s water dispenser.

The Mr. opted to stay home once he heard what I had planned for the morning. It was a gorgeous day!

I made my way to a little town called Waverly.

The road reminded me so much of the tiny town I grew up in.

This is the view of the five or six shops that encompass the town.

The shop I stopped at was Fig & Wasp. I didn’t take a picture of the front, but my goodness, it was so cute!

There were a lot of odds and ends inside.

I saw this beautiful nativity, but the price tag was too hefty for me.

I saw this puzzle and knew it was going home with me.

I bought a book for the Mr., who happens to be a big John Wayne fan. We aren’t doing gifts for each other, but we are still doing stockings. This won’t fit in a sticking, but whatever.

I didn’t find anything for my sister, but I did get ideas.

On the way home, I stopped by Ulta to grab a few things.

When I got home, I started another knitting project – a pair of mittens to accompany the scarf I made my granddaughter.

Here’s the finished scarf.

I added a personalized tag, which I’d purchased last year when I crocheted a few hats as gifts.

I looked in my yarn boxes for yarn for the mittens and pulled out the remnants of this skein, which I thought would complement the blue on the scarf.

The first mitten knitted up fairly quickly, but after weighing it, along with what was left of the skein, I realized I was going to be short what I needed to finish.

Sigh. I decided to let that be a problem for the next day.

Saturday evening, we walked a few houses down to attend an open house a neighbor was having for the people who live on our street. They moved in a couple of months ago and were simply precious.

When we got home, we watched Auburn basketball (we won), and we watched the other school in our state get beat. Yay for that. Ha!

I slept fitfully that night because my sweet Gambit got me up every single hour. He’s almost 15 and is starting to show his age mentally. I’m concerned that he’s getting senile. He seems so lost sometimes, and it’s breaking my heart. He jumps off of the bed at night and stands in the middle of the hallway just staring at nothing before I am able to coax him back to bed. Nights are just tough for our little old man.

Yawn.

Sunday, the Mr. and I headed to church and heard an amazing sermon.

When we got home, I headed back out to the gift shop I’d visited the day before because I wanted to grab a couple of things for my sister’s birthday, which is in January. I always buy her birthday gift around Christmas since there’s not much time in between.

I should have taken a picture of the watercolor book and paints I bought her.

Does she paint? Nope. Will she after her birthday? Yep. Ha!

On the way home, I stopped by Michael’s to buy another skein of yarn for the mittens.

Knitting had to wait, though, because I needed to make a tin of toothpaste using this coconut oil/baking soda recipe.

Then, I meal prepped Tofu Mahkani.

The spice combination for this was unique but tasty!

It was my turn to work on the advent puzzle. The Mr. and I are trying to play nice, but it’s hard, y’all. We are competitive, but there aren’t enough pieces in each day’s box to share fairly, so we take turns with the days.

The puzzle I got this year is difficult. The colors all look alike, so we have to be very mindful of how they fit together (and they all seem to fit well together at first glance).

I was pooped when I finished all of the things, so I relaxed the rest of the day.

I restarted the mitten (no picture yet). I also watched a few episodes of Season 21 of Survivor. This is the season Jimmy Johnson was on. I honestly do not care for this cast. It’s going to be a long season.

How was your weekend? Did you get much accomplished?

Have a wonderful week and stay warm!

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Today marks six whole months since I had my second shoulder surgery.

I am in awe of how far God has brought me through this journey because, if I’m being quite frank, it’s been quite the experience.

Having two shoulder surgeries within six months of each other was a daunting task. After going through the first one, I dreaded the second.

Look at me now, though.

I am almost where I need to be with regard to raising my arm over my head. I couldn’t do that even a week ago – a testament to trusting God to do His thing – in His time.

This week has seen some big milestones. I almost feel as though something loosened up Tuesday.

During Wednesday’s PT session, my therapist worked on pulling the back of my shoulder blade down, and we both felt a pop/release – twice! Oh my goodness! We have been waiting so long for this!

I can even, as of a few days ago, use my right arm to open the blinds.

I’m still in PT once a week, but I have a feeling those appointments will be coming to an end soon – most likely later this month or sometime in January. I still have some important functional issues that need to be resolved.

I’m still unable to reach behind my back at all, and I am limited on how far I can stretch my arm across the front of my body. Putting on deodorant and washing under the left arm are still difficult tasks.

These are goals we are honing in on during my physical therapy sessions.

I still have almost constant pain, but it’s fainter than it was and only makes me grit my teeth when I raise my arm in front of me to do such things as reach for the garage door opener in my car, reach up in the kitchen cabinet, or fix my hair. This is due to my labrum injury and subsequent repair. Strengthening my bicep muscle, which was relocated during my surgery, will help eliminate that pain.

There have been a lot of ups and downs with this second shoulder surgery recovery – frustrations and fears vying for space in my head during tough days.

But God.

He has shown Himself to be incredibly tender and faithful in the way He cares for me.

I know, from what I’ve dealt with regarding my left shoulder, that the next six months will bring about even more healing in this second shoulder, and I am here for it, let me tell you.

Happy Friday, y’all! Have a wonderful weekend!

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Hi friends! Happy Wednesday!

How goes it?

Students are currently taking finals, so the college has a quiet vibe. Traffic will start to thin out after this weekend’s graduation festivities. Getting home each day after work will be a snap!

Anyhoo, enough blathering. It’s time for my answers to this week’s Hodgepodge questions, posed by the always fun-ever inventive Joyce!

1. Do you struggle with the commercialization of the holiday season? What helps you keep your focus when the season’s busyness and commercialism start to take over? 

Honestly, I’m not the shopper in the family. My hubby is, so he’s the one dealing with all of the things. I live life a bit blissfully – somewhat unaware or ignorant of the rampant commercialism. When I am the person doing the purchasing, I try to select something outside of the norm – something handmade by me or a local artisan.

I also keep myself focused on the Word – the fact that Jesus came to sacrifice himself for my sins. That puts things into perspective and helps me to, as much as possible, avoid the trappings of the commercial world we are living in.

2. What’s one small thing you want to savor before the year ends? 

I want to savor small moments of rest – when the only lighting I see is the twinkling from the Christmas tree. December evenings as an empty nester are quiet affairs. I’m especially looking forward to the two-week break I’ll have – a generous gift from the college – and one that is very appreciated. It’s been a hard year, physically.

3. December 9th is National Christmas Card Day. Do you still send Christmas cards? If so does yours include a photo or is it a more traditional card, or maybe homemade? How do you feel about the tradition of exchanging cards at the holidays? If Hanukkah is the holiday you celebrate in December do you send cards to mark the occasion? 

Oh, this is a bone of contention with the hubby and me. He wants to send cards; I do not. I don’t even know where our address book is. It got lost somewhere along the line during one of our multiple moves.

We used to send cards, but somehow, we stopped. I do enjoy getting them, but I don’t want to be bothered with addressing envelopes.

Plus, with social media in the mix, I feel as though cards aren’t really that necessary.

4. What’s your least favorite holiday related task? What’s your favorite? 

Putting away ornaments after Christmas is my least favorite task. There’s such a blah feeling to it – that the season is over.

My favorite is visiting my kids. I love watching them parent their own littles during this special time of the year.

5. Let’s do a little holiday this or that? 

• shopping or wrapping – WRAPPING
• baking or decorating – BAKING
• eggnog or wassail – EGGNOG (a vegan version please)
• real tree or artificial – ARTIFICIAL
• turkey or ham – NEITHER (I’m a vegan)
• white lights or colored lights  – WHITE LIGHTS
• ugly sweaters or matching pjs – NEITHER (we have not done either and don’t plan to)
• peppermint or cinnamon – PEPPERMINT
• presents Christmas Eve or presents Christmas Day – CHRISTMAS DAY (one gift to open Christmas Eve though – a tradition we had kids and that we did in our own family)

6. My Random Thought

Monday, I had my appointment with a cornea/cataract specialist. You may remember that I’ve got nuclear cataracts, and they are making my nearsightedness worsen very quickly. Hence, my appointment with the specialist.

Because my eyes were going to be dilated, I’d planned on not returning to work afterwards.

Thank goodness I’d asked for the rest of the day off because this appointment ran almost two hours long! I was impressed with the thoroughness of the staff. They ran all of the diagnostic tests on my poor eyes.

Because I had LASIK and PRK on my eyes almost 25 years ago, my situation is a lot more complicated. The doctor carefully examined the notes sent over from my regular eye doctor in the effort to piece together which eye had which procedure. Unfortunately, my paperwork from my long-ago the eye correction surgery got lost in the many moves we’ve made since then.

The doctor determined that I am definitely in need of cataract surgery. He presented my options, and we decided to correct my distance vision.

Before I left, I’d scheduled both surgeries. My first one will be on my non-dominant eye – which is, surprisingly, my right eye. Conveniently, it’s the worst of the two.

I’ll have my first surgery early January and the other one early February. There will be a couple follow-up appointments after each surgery.

It was a lot to take in – especially given my addled brain from my dilated eyes.

I’ve got everything on my calendar now, and I’m very excited about the surgeries. I’ve read that people can see vibrant colors after they heal from cataract surgery. I’m looking forward to not having a film over my vision.

Point of note: Since my appointment Monday, and once my brain had time to process everything, I’ve been going back and forth about correcting for distance. I’ve done a lot of research and think my best option, given my love of reading, crafting, and cooking make me think I should correct for near vision.

I’ve drafted a long list of questions and plan on calling the doctor’s office today to see what he thinks. The thought of spending hours wearing reading glasses to enjoy my favorite hobbies just doesn’t appeal to me, and given one of the doctor’s first comments to me when I met him about how he didn’t want to put me in glasses all the time, I think he’s probably going to agree.

Lots to pray about and ponder . . .

Have a great week, y’all!

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