CATCHING UP WITH MYSELF

Old Man Winter visited us last night and we had the first frost of the year.  Our impatiens that are semi sheltered by the eaves of the garage are trying to hang on.  One more frigid night and they will be gone.  Impatiens are one of my favorite flowers.  They are low maintenance other than daily watering and they come in such luscious colors.  This year we planted hot coral orange ~~~

I have been working on a machine embroidery project that has been quite frustrating due to my thread breaking every minute or two.  I can now see the light at the end of the tunnel on this project and I can truthfully say I'm happy to be done.  I can't show pictures or I would spoil several Christmas surprises.  An embroidery machine can be a delight or it can be a monster.  I have re-threaded the machine, rewound bobbins, taken the machine apart to hunt for broken threads, changed brands of thread, stabilizer and needles countless times.  This has truly been a labor of love. 

Our vacuum had to be sent off for repairs and it arrived back home yesterday via UPS.  Whoever repaired the cleaner made it look brand new, even to the point of cleaning the dust canister.  The only way to get it out of the box was to pull it, and about a million packing peanuts, out of the box.  Dottie and Olive declared our living room to be party central and had a ball grabbing peanuts and running with them.  By the time I got things under control our house was a sea of pink, white and mint green peanuts from one end to the other.  I think Dottie may have eaten one or two, judging from the peanuts crumbs on her whiskers.  I have to say that Dyson really honors their warranty.  They paid all charges for my vacuum to be packed, sent, repaired and returned in pristine condition. 

I have noticed that there are things I will buy generic, but there are other items that are worthy of buying the best I can afford.  Vacuum cleaners are one item I don't pinch pennies on.  Other items I gladly pay top dollar for are perfume, bed linens, undies/bras and dishwasher soap (Cascade Platinum).  I will scrimp on almost every other product on the planet but you can bet if I'm wearing a $3 t-shirt there's something pricey underneath it!!  This probably proves my husband's assertion that women are irrational creatures!

Life is good right now in our little corner of the Ozarks.  The days are getting shorter and before long we will turn the clocks back and lose even more precious hours of daylight until next Spring.  It's time for the smell of turkey roasting in the oven or a big pot of chili simmering on the stove, warm apple cider and oatmeal cookies and homemade bread. 

Wishing you a wonderful day filled with the blessings of Peace & Plenty.