CHOICES

Happy July!

Sandy Hook, New Jersey is about 3 hours away.

Hello lovely people! Happy July! I'm so happy you stopped by! I am at the end of the 14 day quarantine since my return from Maine. I'm not sure my life will change all that much. The risk of exposure is still there so my habits remain the same. There's really no place I really want to go anyway, at least right now. We are invited to my son's house on the 4th for a family pool party. Hubby and son share July 10th as their birth date so we will most likely be having cake! 💖

The day Lucy(belle) had her surgery Roger and I took a drive after dropping her off. Since we live in a valley we have to drive over mountains. I had Roger stop at a lookout so I could get a few pictures. This is Fountain Hill that borders Bethlehem.

Bergy's

Then we took a drive to a place called Wassergass so he could show me his new haunt, Bergy's, He likes their fat subs, eggs over easy, fried potatoes, toast and great coffee. Being the friendly guy that he is, he has become great friends with the owners and staff. Evidently, the general store/diner has been there since the 1800s. I took a few other pictures along the way.

Speaking of Lucy, she is doing well. The first day after surgery she hardly moved and didn't eat or drink. The second day home she drank but didn't eat. The third day she would only eat treats. The fourth day she moved around a little but we carried her out to the dog yard and up and down stairs. I stopped giving her treats and she accepted only table food. So, on the fifth day she chased a squirrel across the dog yard so we decided she was going back on her doggy schedule with the exception of jumping and doing stairs. She is a handful though. She chases squirrels, jumps on and off chairs, runs up and downstairs, all of which are a no-no. Sometime during my few sleeping hours she pulled out one of her stitches. Roger says it's not a problem though. He is the medic (21 yrs US army) in the family. I will be glad when they are healed and out so I can move on from being on Lucybelle duty. 😳

I am slugging away trying to do some deep cleaning. I have used Bee's wax on my china cabinet and it looks so much better. I've had it for about 20 years. I cleaned Roger's orchid house, my great grandmother's oil lamp and also my antique hand-stitched quilt. Whew, I'm tired. I've also redecorated Zeppe's feeding counter. He has his own dining area in the family room so the dogs can't get to his food.

These days a lot of choices have been taken away from us. I think we all wonder what the new normal will be like. I miss the freedom to worship in my church. I have always looked forward on my return home from Maine to reuniting with my church family. I love my pastor, his sermons, the old hymns, and hugging my friends. I miss the Bible study group for retirees that used to meet weekly in a different denomination.

My church, about 5 minutes from my home.

Clivia plant

This morning a friend stopped by and I gave her all my Clivia plants. I acquired one plant in Maine many years ago. They multiplied to many and have taken up lots of space. I hope I don't regret it but I feel I have to start somewhere. our walkway between the house and garage is overflowing with plants and other stuff. We use it as our main entrance so I like for it to look inviting. Right now it looks like a thrift store! Finding good homes is hard. Yard sales aren't allowed. Charity and thrift shops still aren't open and most people/friends of our generation don't want more but less! What about you? Do you find yourselves having to make choices about what to keep and what to part with? Do you have a special formula? For instance, my friend says if it hasn't been used, thought of or admired in the past year, it goes.

INSIDE LOOKING OUT

Maurice, our resident groundhog.

A brave squirrel in our dog yard.

So, stay cool. We live in a haze of heat and humidity here. Well, it's time to think about supper. We are having leftovers. It's called "poor man's meal". Corned beef from a can, mashed potatoes, and sharp cheddar layered in a casserole dish. Microwave for 10 minutes, brown top under broiler and serve with green beans. Only we ate all the green beans last night so we are having salad instead. Ice cold grapes for dessert. Roger and I are working our way through the English series, BORN AND BRED. We love it! Takes place in the 50's. Lighthearted and refreshing. I just finished rewatching my MONTALBANO collection. So it hasn't been all work and no play for me. 😊