My Secret Santa has been so good to me this week. It’s really been fun to come in to work and a gift be on your desk each day. So fun!
I plan to use the planner as a Gratitude journal and I’ll have a years worth of Gratitudes by year end and will do a blog post on them.
My sponsor in Isagenix (Lou, Lisa J’s husband) texted me and said I was about to go under 100 BV and would lose my points (to get paid). I only needed a few points. I also had my coupon in for $200 off products from doing the Isabody challenge (all you do is track weight and take pic and upload). Also they had the skin care line on sale for Christmas and I get 25% off for being an insider as I call it – by keeping something in my monthly shipping box (auto ship). I have at least one item in there that ships every month and I can change it up, the other times I just order what I want. Since I’ve slowed down on the products some, I’ve not run out as fast. (You get tired of the same things all the time). However, I was able to gift myself this nice skin care line. I’ve wanted to try it for two years but would not pay for it. I had used my $200 for vitamins and supplements and other products. But since I’m so well stocked, other than strawberry shakes, I ordered myself this. I have been using the Bamboo scrub which was pricey but really good and it lasts a while. It gives Clinique a good run for the money. lol But I do think the Clinique lasts a little longer and perhaps is a little less oily, but at my age now a little oil is good. It does a good job. That is the only thing I’ve tried. So I’m looking forward to this. My Rodan and Fields is almost gone.
I’ve still not done any wrapping after work other than get my Secret Santa gift wrapped each night. There’s always been some errand to run. Wed night I went to Publix to get Rx Meds (BP meds) and a few other things Christmas related. It was about 7 when I got home and then we ate, watched the British baking show and I headed for bed.
Oh ok so…this is a little intrusive but I must share – it’s too funny….I won’t say who – but it wasn’t me – but an big elf just landed a big fart in the shower and then said “yeahhhhh baby”. lol lol lol
After “the elf’s” shower I asked how the “big one” was. And he said “aww it was great – those lima bean leftovers from lunch” as he rubbed his belly. He said “we need to get on the news and see if it registered on the Richter scale. I said it may have and he said – regardless it measured on the Rectum Scale.
So last night I needed to come home and make 4 dozen cookies. I’ve been getting home fairly quickly at night as far as zipping down the interstate and getting to our area. However, last night, on the night to get the cookies made – traffic took forever and I was low on gas. My reminder light NEVER came on. I have never run out of gas and I feared it was going to happen last night as we sat and heavy traffic and my needle moved past E. It said I had 45 miles to drive but then the mileage when off and then the gas menu itself went off. I felt like I was entering the twilight zone, where things began to deteriorate fast.
I wasn’t able to go toward my house and the nearest gas station because yet another wreck blocked the way so I went the other way and found a place to park at a shopping center til I could figure out where the closest Shell was. I couldn’t get to the one that was .08 miles away and there was one 8.4 miles away but that was too far. So I had to think out of the box. Do I sit here and turn car off and try to wait out the traffic and then go the .08 miles away at the Shell when I can get to it? Then I saw Kroger. They have gas pumps. So I went to get gas at Kroger. I was in a hurry and didn’t want to fool with the Kroger fuel points, but made a mental note to do that later. I’ll compare and see if it’s cheaper to do that. We’ve always just used BP and Shell because it seemed easier mainly b/c it’s habit and you get the bill later all at once. Once I had a full tank of gas, my mind eased and I didn’t care about the traffic so much. The wreck had cleared, traffic was still stuffy but I was able to get home pretty quick from there.
I got the cookies made. I had enough for George and I to have one. I told him, (after watching so many British baking shows), “look at that gloss in that chocolate”. It was surprisingly shiny. I’m not sure but I think you have to have the temp of the chocolate get to a certain degree and cooked long enough to get the gloss? I can assure you it was purely by accident other than I did let it boil for about 90 seconds before taking it off at medium heat. Anyway these were chocolate oatmeal cookies with peanut butter. For the most part I don’t usually put nuts in things I take to work because one has a nut allergy but for once I’m catering to the masses that love peanut butter as there will be lots of others that don’t have nuts -so a good time to take it but I will put a note on mine that it has peanut butter!
I totally forgot to take a pic. But these are no bake (you heat on the stove). It’s kinda like making fudge without the fuss, but dumping oats and peanut butter in it. I also used a vanilla and brandy infusion as a little side kick. They were good, but with a cup of sugar per dozen of cookies – yeah – it was quite good. An invitation to diabetes awaits? I only had one but I did lick everything in sight with the chocolate on it – the stirring spoon, the tasting spoon, scraping it from the pan, lol.
It was 10 when I got to bed, instead of 9 ish. And so George had to wake me up this morning. I have a habit of somehow turning my alarm off via my watch when I’m tired. I don’t even know I’m doing it. Or perhaps my phone was on silent and it didn’t wake me up. But oh it was hard to get up.
But the coffee is good this morning and today is the Secret Santa reveal and cookie swap. Have to wrap our ornament’s tonight for tomorrow’s ornament swap at Paul and Judy’s.
Then Sunday, George is going to the Titan’s game. We were both invited to go but since I’m not taking any vacation time at Christmas I don’t have any days to wrap so I have to say no to a lot of invites so I have time to get our Christmas ready. So he’ll go to the game and I will wrap. I will start with his gifts while he is gone and get that done and test his stocking. Then I’ll go with the rest of the wrapping. I just can’t get into the groove of it unless I have a chunk of time. It’s no fun at 7:30 or 8:00 at night when you are tired, hungry, and spent already. I like to be creative at the wrapping and when I get up at 4 something every day – by that time – any creativity or activity period is about over.
And I’m off to get make up on and get out the door. I will say this though before going.
I absolutely loved this book and I’m sad it’s over. It was great!
I’m now reading this one…(well listening via Audible)
It seems a little dark in the beginning. She seemed to have kindof a rough childhood. But I’m interested to hear about her life.
Anyway….best get off to work. The monthly taxes are done and I’m trying to get ready for 2020 as much as I can and figure out how to redo a couple of returns where someone was put in the wrong state early in the year. And getting ready for next week’s payroll.
Ya’ll have a fun time and hope your season is still jolly? Hope your trees are up and shopping about done and that you too will be getting things wrapped and then we focus on the food and groceries and baking and such. I’m really struggling a bit not having time off, but I’ll survive. One way is saying “no” to overscheduling our time. We would literally have everything scheduled up in all our free time if I let it. But I have to reserve time to get the wrapping done and to clean for guests and to prep. And that is that! And I’m looking forward to doing that Sunday! A day to myself to try to conquer Christmas.
It makes my day when I hear from you…