Merry Christmas 2018

My favorite Christmas pic of Staci circa 2011

Merry Christmas

     This year was definitely a tough one. There were times I felt like everything was going wrong. Lots of times I could only see the bad. Since I am trying to be healthier, I figure it would be good to look at all the good that has happened this year.  So here we go 😊

·        💞Staci and I took our first plane trip to Washington D.C. where we got to hang out with friends and see the National Zoo and The Smithsonian.

·       💞 I got the puppy I have been wanting for so long 😊 My little chihuahua named Honeybee. She is totally adorable and acts completely devoted to me. She is such a treat to come home to. She is always so excited to see me and curl up with me. She makes me feel good.

·       💞 I learned to mow my own lawn LOL I know this sounds silly and not fun.  It is incredibly draining, usually because of the heat, but after it is done, I feel so accomplished.  Owning my own home is the best.  It is something tangible to show I am doing ok 😊 I love getting to decorate it inside and out.  When the flowers start blooming and the grass is thick and green, I can say “I did that”.

·       💞 I got a new to me car LOL it is little and red and very smart. So many gadgets and gizmos that I haven’t figured out yet.

·        💞We got a raise at work to pay for all the decorating I do LOL

·       💞 I got to get annual passes to the Disney Parks and SeaWorld for both my kids and me.

·        💞I got a great visit from my brother, his granddaughter Eva, and our friend Vangie.  We got to go play at Disney together and just reconnect. He and I are closer now.  I learned he likes decorating and cooking even more than me LOL.  I am always picking his brain for recipes to try. Thanks to the above-mentioned car, we talk handsfree whenever we are both traveling somewhere LOL.

·       💞 I got a new kitten 😊 a pretty little calico named Penelope. She is still shy, but every now and then she will cuddle. 

·       💞 All of us are doing well in school. Lee even got his first college degree.  Staci is killing the 4^th grade, and I made the Dean’s List again LOL.

·       💞 My neighborhood is fun. I was hoping to live in a place where holidays were celebrated, and we are. Lots of fun seeing all the decorations at Halloween and Christmas.  I can’t wait to see what this area grows into.

·        💞Best of all for the year is both my kids and I are healthy.  We did not get hit with any major illnesses. They seem happy and enjoying their lives. We have fun together and are close.

So, there are a lot of things that are good that happened this year.  Sometimes when life is hard it is challenging to see the blessings.  It is just a matter of trying to look past the negative to see the positive.  I am going to try and do that more.  I have a nice life and I need to remember that more.  So now I am off to enjoy Christmas with my kids.  We are having a low-key holiday.  No cooking, just a fruit and a veggie tray per kids request.  I did make bacon, eggs, and sausage balls (a family tradition from my Nanny). Now time for presents, coffee, and watching the Disney Christmas Parade.

Build A Bear Bake Shop at the Florida Mall

Build A Bear Bake Shop  

  

          I did not even know these existed a few months ago, but during our last trip to the Build A Bear Workshop Staci noticed this place under construction.  She apparently had been paying close attention to when it was finished and informed me Monday that it was open for business LOL so off we went on Tuesday to check it out.  I was a little leery about going to the mall a week before Christmas, I figured it would be super busy. It wasn’t so bad. There were the last-minute frantic shoppers, but we still managed to find a place to park.  It is easiest to park by the Crayola Experience entrance and walk in.  

          The Bake Shop is to the left, right in front of Build A Bear of course LOL.  It is a small little kiosk set up. It has four tables and a counter for the kids to make their cupcake creations.  For $12 Staci got to choose two cupcakes, two icing colors, and unlimited sprinkles.  She also got to have a drink from their cooler. I tried to get her to choose the strawberry milk, but she wanted this strawberry essence bubble water instead. Big mistake, it tasted yucky ☹ Next time milk or juice.  They really should have plain water as an option. So back to the cupcakes.  The flavor choices were chocolate, vanilla, or confetti.  She picked confetti and vanilla.  She also chose red and blue frosting.  Here I was thinking she would choose Christmas colors LOL instead we got 4th of July.  The frosting is already in little bags to squeeze out. The tip is snipped off, so it comes out in a narrow line to decorate with.  It is just enough to cover both cupcakes. She had fun squishing the frosting out the showering them in sprinkles.  

          That is the real fun. So many sprinkles to choose from.  You get to start out with two choices, but you can trade them as many times as you want. I would have loved to use them all 😊 After she was satisfied with her creations, she decided to eat one.  She said it was yummy of course LOL.  Once she was done, we looked in the ready-made options.  

          They were cute. They had seasonal ones for sale. A chocolate one piled high with a frosting Christmas tree, a reindeer, and a hot chocolate one covered in mini-marshmallows.  I wanted one of each but refrained 😊 There is also a small section where you can buy coffee cups and tumblers, as well as a few baking kits.  It did not take a long time to do all they had to offer, maybe 30-45 minutes.  Then the obligatory visit to Build A Bear where I managed to say now LOL. We have enough as it is.  The experience was fun, but not sure worth $12, maybe $10 would be a better deal. Plus throw in a coupon for the store LOL.

Monday Musings

I Need a Minion

Those little dudes are so awesome.  Most of the time I am very tolerant, quiet, and easy-going person.  I mind my manners both online and off but put me behind the wheel of a car and I become a whole new person, I become Gru LOL.  I have zero tolerance for stupidity on the road LOL. I just want to blow them all up. Florida drivers are notorious for being lousy drivers, so it has become a major issue.  I am even noticing it myself and cringing inside when I get upset.  I do not want Staci viewing me as an angry person, so I am working on that problem.   

Somebody recently posted on Facebook something along the lines of "you can't change how the world acts, but you can change yourself and how you react".  So, I am trying to not yell at the stupid people on the road who can't drive the speed limit, cut me off, or text on their phones while driving. LOL, I think people's license plate should be their phone number, then you could call them and tell them to get off the phone and pay attention to the road. 

So, for now I am trying to be a more tolerant driver, or at least bite my tongue more.   I am also working on how I view situations.   A person really does not know what is going on in another person's life or what they are dealing with.  So being more mindful that while I can't stop them from being stupid, I can at least stop myself from getting overly upset.  All that stress isn't good for me.

Criminal Justice Degree???

Use it or    Lose it  

           My mind that is. The women in my family seem to develop a memory issue as they age, I don’t want that. So, I try and keep my mind active.  I started college when I was 20 years old and have yet to stop LOL.  At first it was to get general education credits while I figured out what I wanted to do in life.  Then it was nursing school to get my BSN degree. That is a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in case curious.  After that I started just taking classes that interested me.  

         At one point a few years ago I was in graduate school for a master’s degree in public health.  I finished all the courses, all that was left was an internship and to write a thesis paper.  I could not figure out how I was going to work full time, be a full-time mom, do a full-time internship for 3 months, plus write a 50-page thesis.  So, I never finished degree.  Plus, I could not think of a single topic I liked enough to type 50 pages on LOL I love my kids and I still could not write 50 pages on them.  So, I went back to taking classes that interested me.  

          When Lee started college, I started taking classes with him.  It was a way to bond and do stuff together.  It is fun doing assignments with him. We talked on the way to class, discussed topics together, it is great.  Starting next semester, we no longer get to do that ☹ He will be going to an actual class while I am doing online.  Valencia College won’t let Staci sit in classes quietly LOL I don’t want to hold him back from getting his degree. We just finished this semester, we both got an A in Oceanography and Intro to Criminal Justice.  This qualifies him for an Associate of Arts degree now.  Next semester he starts to focus on his paralegal degree.  He is still mulling over idea of becoming a lawyer 😊 then a Judge, so he can get his goofy mom out of trouble LOL.  

          This criminal justice class though showed me I liked the topic.  So next semester I am taking a criminology class and an ethics in criminal justice class.  Both look to be interesting. Who knows, I might end up with a degree in criminal justice LOL not giving up nursing though.  Perhaps I can find a way to combine them in the future.

I Love the Holiday Season

 Holidays 
          Are fun.  My brother and I grew up with just our mom, I have no idea how she did it. Looking back now, knowing what I do, I am amazed at how well she hid things from us. She loved us 😊 She hid the fact that we were poor. My brother and I did not know that, we were happy. We had what we needed, I never felt that we lacked anything, it was a great childhood.  Plus, we always had the best holidays.  My mom knew how to decorate beautifully.  The Christmas tree was always so gorgeous.  The only thing missing was a house. We always lived in apartments, even once a trailer.  So, when I bought this house last year it was a big thing 😊 I could not wait to decorate it for the holidays.  I thought I was a bit much in the decorating until this neighborhood LOL it is like National Lampoons Christmas around here.  About 70% of the homes in this community are all decorated, and on my street alone I would say 90% decorated. I am not talking just a few lights, I am talking airplanes can see us in the sky LOL it is great.  I thought Halloween was impressive with all the decorations put up by the neighbors. Plus, we had lots of trick or treaters. I was so proud of my new little community. Then Thanksgiving rolled around, and Christmas exploded all over the community.  There are huge blow up characters everywhere, lights strung up on houses, lights projected onto houses, lights in the trees and bushes, grapevine reindeer galore, music playing from décor, plus lots of Disney decorations scattered about.  There is even one house done up in LED lights, I think. They have them programmed for show.  We walked over there and were mesmerized. The front porch was like a projection screen with the lights. They formed realistic animals and a fireplace.  It kept changing to music!!!  It was awesome.   Staci and I watched for about 10 minutes LOL.  I am so happy I was able to buy a home in this community, and even more so that I am on the street that really gets into a holiday 😊 My son is already plotting what to do next year for decorations LOL so if anybody is in the Kissimmee area and wants to see lights or trick or treat next year, let me know and I will give you name of my neighborhood 😊


The video is one I sent my brother to show off my decorations this year :)

S.A.D. but fighting it :)

Good Morning 

It is all bright and sunny today, which makes me feel a whole lot better.  I love the rain, but cold and rain do not mix.  That is why I moved away from places where it was cold and dreary in the winter.  If it is going to be chilly at least have the sun shining.  After the past few days of dark clouds I was so happy to see sunshine when I woke up.  I think I have Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.) which is depression linked to the changes in the season, generally because of lack of sunlight.  Light therapy is a treatment for it.  I looked it up and the signs/symptoms are:

·         Feeling depressed most of the day, nearly every day

·         Losing interest in activities you once enjoyed

·         Having low energy

·         Having problems with sleeping

·         Experiencing changes in your appetite or weight

·         Feeling sluggish or agitated

·         Having difficulty concentrating

·         Feeling hopeless, worthless or guilty

·         Having frequent thoughts of death or suicide

No worries about the thoughts of death or suicide, I have kids to live for 😊, but I do get the other ones.  So, I try and find me some sunshine when I can, get outside, and adding in the regular exercise (yep I did 30 min of cardio this morning before coffee).  According to Mayo Clinic you can also take medication, but I did that years ago and hated it.  Doctor gave me Zoloft to take daily and I always felt like I was in the clouds and not in a good way.  I had no feelings good or bad. Thankfully Florida has more sunny days than gloomy.  That is one of the perks of living here.  So currently waiting for my mini me (Staci) to wake up so we can figure out something to do. Disney is out of the equation since we downgraded to weekday passes which blocks out school holidays. We figured we would not want to go on those days any way. Not really warm enough to wander around SeaWorld, the chill keeps the animals in their dens. Maybe Disney Springs 😊 We can look at Christmas Tree Trail again and do the Stitch’s Scavenger Hunt.  We have done it past two years and it is fun. So, time for 2^nd cup of coffee and making a bit more noise to rattle Staci out of bed. 

Vitamins Are Now More Important Than Ever

Vitamins So today I woke up early, I didn’t want to, but the pets said otherwise.  They will come like my nose until I get up, no matter how hard I try and hide under the blankets.  I am still of a mindset to be healthier. I thought about it all day. All sorts of memes and inspirational sayings to keep me motivated.  I like having something tangible to do though, so I decided I need better vitamins.  I know most nutrients can be obtained through a healthy diet, but my diet isn’t that healthy yet. Plus, apparently women over 50 lose the ability to properly store and/or process vitamins. So, I thought I would get me some I need to maintain a healthier body. After researching these are the ones I came up with as needing now more than ever:

          Vitamin A helps fight infection and maintains healthy eyesight. Will need this to prevent driving like an old lady. Recommended dose 800 mcg.

          Calcium keeps the bones and teeth strong, so I can avoid dentures and broken hips. It also helps keep the heart beating.  Recommended dose 1,200 mg.

          Vitamin C produces collagen which holds tissues together, repairs cells, and strengthens immune system. Don’t want to get sick. Recommended dose 75 mg.

          Vitamin D help maintain strong bones. Again, do not want a broken hip. Recommended dose 400 IU.

          Iron is essential because it helps transport the oxygen to the body. Cells need O2. Not enough will lead to anemia, which lead to a frail weak old lady. Recommended dose 8 mg.

          Magnesium apparently is involved in over 300 enzyme systems that do all sorts of stuff like support immune system, produce energy, regulate blood sugar, regulate blood pressure, and the heat beating properly. All of those are important to staying out of a hospital bed. Recommended dose 310-320 mg.

          Potassium does a lot as well. It regulates fluids and is essential for a healthy cardiovascular system.  It transmits nerve signals, contracts and relaxes muscles, and helps achieve a good blood pressure. No wonder we give so much of this at the hospital. Recommended dose 4,700 mg.

          Vitamin B6 is part of over 100 enzyme reactions that help the metabolism. Not enough of this can cause confusion. Definitely need more of this since I already am clueless. Recommended dose 1.5 mg.

          Vitamin B12 is found in every cell of the body. It helps the red blood cells, and most importantly, it keeps the nervous system healthy.  I must be deficient since I am always nervous.  Recommended dose 2.4 mcg.

          Vitamin E apparently decreases risk of cardiovascular disease and helps repair cell damage.  I always thought it aided memory and reduced chance of me getting Alzheimer’s. Either way it is a good one to remember to take, which I rarely do LOL. Recommended dose 8 mg.

          Omega 3 Fish Oil just sounds gross, but women over 50 need it in their diet.  It assists with metabolism, immunity, and cognition. I want to stay smart 😊 Recommended dose 1.1 g.

Today I am (shudder) Fifty Years Old

          OK it has been about a year since I blogged, it has been a rough one, more heartbreak than I ever thought I could handle. Not sure I am handling properly, but I am getting by.  Today is a day I have been dreading for a long time.  I turned 50 years old, half a century.  I know I should be thrilled that I am healthy and fifty, but it is that number that irks me.  I do not feel fifty, well sometimes I do when I first wake up LOL. My brain does not feel 50.  Most days I am the mental equivalent of my 9-year-old daughter LOL.

          For a lot of people, hitting 50 feels like a whole new beginning, me included.  I think it is a time for dreams of what could have been needing to go away and plans for what will be needing to take hold.  My kids are pretty much self sufficient in the day to day tasks.  They can handle alone time, so that leaves me with some alone time.  I like it in the mornings best. I wake up before they do and get a cup of coffee, open the windows to feel the breeze, listen to the world waking up, as I get on the laptop to see what is going on in the world today or do school work LOL. Now that I am 50, I need to make a few adjustments if I want to make it to 60, 70, and beyond…

          So today before coffee I turned on my smart TV to my YouTube channel and played TheFitness Marshall workout routines 😊 I did 30 minutes of light cardio. It was a beginning LOL one I am hoping to make into a daily habit for the next 365 days. After that came coffee and the sound of rain pouring down LOL it has been raining for hours now.  People at the theme parks must be so mad. Oh yeah before I sat down, I checked on my new little kitten.

            Her name is Penelope, but the kids are calling her Penny 😊 she is doing ok, even had a bit to eat finally.  I am hoping she will venture out of the bedroom today.  Just have to protect her from Honeybee. Yes, since last post I got my dog 😊 she is a spoiled lil chihuahua. Definitely a mama’s girl (I love it).

          So, I finally sit down, with my new mindset for being healthier, and went to SparkPeople. I really like that website. Lots of great articles on all sorts of topics, pus a wheel to spin (I love those), and a way to get points for virtual prizes LOL if I could only trade those in for something tangible LOL I would have a new car.  Anyway, the topic of course for today was FIFTY.  I plugged that in to see what popped up.  Not a lot but a few articles to make this decade the healthiest one yet.  It says this stage of life in ideal for revamping fitness and nutritional goals.  So that is what I am going to do:

    GOALS

💖Don’t be afraid to try something new.

💖Treat this as a lifelong commitment. Make fitness a lifestyle.

💖Train the brain, if you don’t use it you lose it.

💖Find your “why” (for me it’s my kids).

💖Add more nutrition into your diet.

💖Choose exercises that make you feel better not worse.

💖Stay mobile, get outside, act like a kid 😊

          So now I am hoping I can maintain this for 365 days LOL ok let’s just go for a week, and then 2 weeks, then a month. We will work up to a year.  I am also hoping I can get myself to blog more. Maybe I will do a series of blogs relating to being 50 LOL might as well embrace it since it isn’t going to change. Maybe I will though…

My Mom Died

My mom died on Friday, January 19, 2018. She was only 69 years old. She would have been 70 next month on the 8^th of February.  I am trying to type this and not cry.  I have cried a lot the past couple of days. More than I thought possible.  When I am home safe, I find moments of calm, but when I go out I see simple, unimportant things, and I fall apart.  Peanut butter did me in, mom loved peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I still have two big jars of both. Trying to buy coffee creamer, and I start crying in the store. There is always a BOGO for creamer. I would get one for me and one for her. There are so many things I would share with her, and so much more I didn’t get to share.  It isn’t fun anymore to decorate my house.  That was her joy. She was great at it.  Growing up, every time she stayed home, my brother and I knew we would come home from school and the place would look completely different. She re-arranged her room weekly it seemed.  Mornings are hard.  I am used to seeing her slip out of room to make a cup of coffee, then she would go sit by the window, and read her bible. I keep looking for her on my patio.  My tree out front still has Christmas lights on it. She put them there. I do not have it in me to remove them, so they will forever be there.  My mom and I had lived together for about eight years now. I saw her every day.  We had tension though after we moved into new house. It was very stressful. I kept wanting to do things my way, but she, being mom, always had to chime in and try to tell me to do it her way. It was generally a good idea, I just wished I had been more of an adult in her mind. I felt like she still thought of me as a kid.  I’m not even sure what happened, but she got mad on November 29^th, 2017 and instead of biting tongue I got upset too. I told her if she didn’t like living with me she could leave.  I never ever believed she would. She did though. Within 24 hours she was gone. She packed up her stuff and flew to Reno to live with my brother.  I drove her to airport, and dropped her off. No hug goodbye, she just got out and walked away.  I cried all the way home.  It was calmer in my house, but empty. I missed her so much.  She missed my birthday. She never called me, and stupid stupid me never called her.  I was so so stupid.  I was afraid if I called she would ask to come back, and I wasn’t ready for that yet. I thought we just needed a break from each other. She spent all of December living with my brother. She was having a good time, but not totally.  In January she went to Tucson to stay with my Uncle Jimmie.  From what they tell me, she was very happy there.  She made friends, she was going out doing things, she had discovered hiking. People keep telling me she was very happy.  I hope so.  I have to believe that. I never got to ask her. She never spoke to me after November 30^th.  I know the date because it have one 15 second voicemail telling me she had arrived safely in Reno.  That is all I have left. I always thought she would come back. It never occurred to me she wouldn’t.  She was so healthy. Never had been in hospital. On no medications, she did everything right.  So when my brother called, it didn’t make sense.  It still doesn’t. I cannot believe she is gone. She touched so many areas of my life, that everything hurts now. It hurts to go on patio, because she loved to sit out there. It hurts to go into her room. It hurts to get in car, because I never really went places without her.  I am not really sure how to function. I think I am fine, then boom, I am not. I miss her so much. I wish I could tell her I am sorry. I wish I could tell her I love her. I wish I could ask her to come back home.  So many things I wish for, and none of them possible. She was an amazing woman. She loved traveling, she loved her family, she loved going to new places. She loved adventure.  Most of all she loved Jesus, so I have to believe she is happy now. There was no place on Earth she wanted to be, she wanted to be in Heaven, and now she is there. I try to picture her there, living in a gorgeous house of the beach, with an awesome view of the ocean. That is what I try and picture. Not working right now. Right now just hurts. Is a gorgeous day outside. She would be antsy to go out in it just walking. Maybe I will try that. Ok maybe I will force that. Only alternative is crying, and that needs to stop. I miss you mommy, I miss you so much. I love you and will always love you. 

Crazy Cat Lady in Training

Jumanji

          So since I got this house I have been wanting to get a dog. I have found a few, but something always got in the way. Usually I would find them Thursday night, and since could not get until Monday I would miss out. I also am still having issues getting the fence up. People cannot seem to do their jobs properly.  I signed all the paperwork Dec 19th, but company did not submit it until 29th. I called yesterday and found out the HOA had it sitting on their desk and had not been submitted to board yet. I was ready to bang head. At this point now I am looking at February before it goes up. OK enough with the venting. Anyway no puppy yet.  Kids though still wanted a new pet to play with. My son it a total cat lover so he convinced my daughter she wanted another cat LOL then they teamed up against me. So last weekend I said they could go to Petco's adoption event sponsored by Spay the Strays with specific instructions.  They were to go look at cats, find a fluffy female kitty, who liked to cuddle up on laps. They were just to take pictures and notes about cats, then bring those home to me so I could chose, and then go back on Sunday to get the one I picked. So fluffy, cuddly girl kitty was what I agreed to. Saturday I wake up to them coming home with a cat. It is an adorable, sleek, male cat, who I cannot catch LOL the only part of my instructions they got right was they went to Petco. I cannot believe those volunteers told my kids he was a cuddler LOL. His original name was Guppy, but my daughter renamed him Jumanji because he is so wild.  The first night the cats would have nothing to do with him. Thankfully the place is big enough that they all had their own space.  Second day there was testing of each other, a few hisses and growls, but that is all. By the third day all was ok, they had learned to live together. Now the boys ganging up on me. Tonight I tried to close door to patio, but just in nick of time Jumanji dashes outside. I go to get him and the other boy cat, Commander, runs out.

Finally he sleeps

          I grab him, and out comes Jumanji again LOL I had to call in reinforcements to help me catch them both so I could close up the house and set alarm for the night. Is funny, the new kitty is very vocal. They other two were always quiet. Now all three vocal. The best thing about the new kitty is he is bonding to my daughter which is driving son crazy. He is usually the one cats gravitate to. Staci loves that Jumanji seems to like to cuddle up with her occasionally. He will follow her room to room too. Dynamics over here have shifted a bit, the girl cat, Midnight, tends to stick by my son's side, Jumanji follows Staci, and Commander is currently cuddled up by me as I type. So it all worked out :)

Welcome 2018

I can't believe it has almost been a year since my last post. I think I stopped mainly because I started writing for others and not myself.  It became more about how many hits I got, than enjoyable for me. So this year I am just going to write what I want. No sharing it on Facebook. It seemed all that sight wanted was Disney posts LOL While I love Disney, I didn't want that to be all this was about. OK so 2017 was definitely a big year of change.

It was very stressful because of one majorly huge purchase. I bought a house :) It was purchased as a spur of the moment impulse.  I was driving home and saw the sign, so decided to turn in.  There I met Alex who showed me the gorgeous model homes, and somehow convinced me I needed a house. He said if I signed that day, I got a prime $5000 lot for free and a $6000 credit to use at the design studio for upgrades.

No chance for me to think it through, and talk myself out of it, so I just went for it. LOL oh boy did the stress start piling on after that.  It seemed as if anything that could go wrong, did go wrong. The house I wanted was not available, I had to get the most expensive model. 

The color scheme I wanted was already taken, and good grief upgrades were expensive.  The financing was a nightmare. It seemed as if every time I thought I had all the paperwork together, they needed something else. The finance department could not seem to wrap their head around the fact that I did not work in December or January by choice. They kept asking me how I got paid. They didn't get concept of I used my savings.

Then my company would not cooperate in telling them yes I had job, even though I had paychecks to prove it.  I never really knew what was going on with the financing.  They kept me in limbo all the way until one month before the house was finished.  I honestly had no idea if I would have a place to live. Also no furniture since I was not allowed to buy anything major LOL it sucked. All along though I got to watch my house being built.

At first I had Sam as the Construction Manager. Then all of a sudden they said I had Miguel.  Turned out to be the best thing ever.  Miguel was amazing. He let me come over to look a lot, and without my even asking he gave me some nice free upgrades. Simple ones, but nice.  The one thing I was so excited about was my landscaping. I was so curious about what I would be getting.  Finally they planted and I was so happy.  So November finally rolled around, and I got the gold status on my home loan!!! It was all mine :)

We got to move in November 14th. I got to buy my furniture, and oh my goodness I had to put it all together.  Everything in my home, I put together myself LOL. I thought I had a lot of stuff, but since house so big inside, I figured out I have very little. It still echoes on the inside.  I am working on it, slowly, but hey I have a lifetime to get it all together.  Still waiting on fence approval so I can get backyard to what I dream it to be.

I also want to get a dog for companionship and protection. Still trying to decide what type of dog.  Never knew it was so hard to get a dog. So 2018 is going to be dedicated to getting my house feeling like a home.