Busy Day

So much to do today. Let's see...

1. Put pallets together to make compost bin.

2. Laundry

3. Make brownies (gluten-free)

4. Find some bigger pots for two plants and repot.

5. Make an apron.

6. Make placemats.

7. Make a new tote for work.

Plus all the usual... vacuum, clean, cook

Farmgirl Sisterhood

I'm so excited. I joined the Farmgirl Sisterhood at MaryJane's Farm. It will be nice to talk to some women who don't think I'm crazy for making things myself. According to MaryJane, farmgirl is a condition of the heart. I am definitely a farmgirl at heart, even if I am stuck in the suburbs.

I'm going to join the local chapter too, so I can talk to other farmgirls in person.

Taxes

I did our taxes last Saturday, and I realized we are paying more taxes because we are healthy! I added up our medical expenses and they were not enough to take a deduction on our taxes, so this means we are paying more because we are healthy. How is this right? Healthy people should pay LESS. We are not a drain on the health care system, we don't miss work days, and we are not passing diseases around!

The government complains about the high cost of health care, but those of us who don't drain the system are penalized. If the President is serious about making Americans healthier he should give tax breaks to healthy people who don't use the system.

What a Weekend!

Well, it was a crazy weekend. We left for a local hotel Friday after work. Saturday was our anniversary, and we always stay a couple of days at a hotel for it. We have stayed at the same hotel for almost the whole 12 years we have been married. Not this year, they recently renovated and have switched to smoke free. My husband smokes, so we can't stay there anymore. I was disappointed. I love that hotel. I was a little angry at him for having to smoke too. I found another hotel locally, so we didn't have to call off the weekend.
The hotel we stayed at is close to the mall so I went shopping Saturday. I got three sweaters, two of them for $10 or less! I even got a new pair of warm boots for about 1/3 of the regular price. Score! The day was going well until my sister called. My mother had a stroke yesterday. She is doing all right now, but it wasn't happy news. About twenty minutes after that, my daughter called to say our water pipes were frozen again! Happy anniversary to me! I didn't tell my husband about the pipes. No point ruining his day too. They could wait another day.
It is good to be home and have this weekend over. Now I have to get my car fixed so I can go visit my mother in the hospital. Ahhh life!

Frozen Pipes and the Power of God

I woke up this morning and my husband told me the water wasn't working. Oh joy! After it got light out, he crawled under the house and looked at the pipes. None were broken, but they were frozen. By God's grace we have a salamander so he used it to thaw the pipes out and we have water again. Some one had unplugged the heat tape, and it has been down in the single digits here. When I left for church the water wasn't on, but I knew it would be when I got home. God can fix anything.

New Year's Resolution

My resolution for this year is to write something every day; posts on my blog, articles and stories. I also resolve to submit something at least once a week for publication. I have been taking a writing course, but haven't been working very hard at it. I am getting lazy. I must write more!

Charity Season

I work at a toy factory, so every year at this time the charities come to pick up free toys to give away. I have noticed that the Christian charities are grateful for whatever you give them, but the secular ones are choosy. Why is that? Some of the secular ones actually refused to take toys, because they were sand toys. That is what we were giving everyone, but they didn't want them.

I think beggars can't be choosers, and you should be thankful for what you get. Of course, if I was in charge, it wouldn't be sand toys in the middle of winter. This is Michigan, not Florida!

I just thought it was rude.