Hot time in the city. hehehe

The heat is on the rise. By this time next week we will be in the 90's. Tomorrow we will hit 80 and it will be warmer each day of the week. So with that forecast I'm on a cookie baking frenzy. Once it gets hot the oven will not be used for much of anything. In the summer I primarily use our Air Fryer Oven and it does a great job.

Chocolate chip cookies are done, the cookie jar is full of peanut butter cookies and tomorrow I'll be making brown sugar cookies. All are either a double or a triple batch. Not one cookie will get stale either. We do love our cookies. And in the summer we get mighty sick of store bought.

We had church at home again this Sunday. The service is live and it's great being able to go to church and not leave the house. Although it does lose some of its luster, for lack of a better word. Whether in front of a live audience or just a camera and crew, Tom does a great job of delivering the message. Lola sat curled up to Mark on the couch again this week, I in my recliner and the bird squawking away in the background. She didn't really care for the music this week. They were a bit off key once and she really told them so. hehehe

Mark is filling the little propane tanks for next winter. We have a few empties and instead of trying to figure out the full from the empty next winter he just puts them  away full. I don't think I'll need to use anymore in the evenings now. I can handle the 60's providing I'm inside and it's over 70 inside.

Stay home, stay safe, and stay well.

Online

Today will be the first time for us to have groceries purchased online. We are not new to online shopping but never have used the convenience of grocery shopping. I much prefer to do it myself. But we are committed to staying away from people and doing our part to stay healthy and not spread the virus to us or anyone else.

There are no paper products in any store or online. There are scammers trying to sell what they don't have so beware. We are hoping that our paper products will last us another month or until some become available once again. I did not hoard, just when something is on sale I usually buy it and this time it really worked to our benefit. We are using cloth napkins, saving the paper napkins for when or if we run out of tissues. Luckily I have an ample supply of cloth napkins.  And I can make some if need be too. Most stores here have an hour early in the morning for seniors to come to the store. Nope, not unless I am really desperate will I enter a store right now. If we have to, we have face masks and disposable gloves. I'm not taking any chances

Prayers and many thanks to all the medical and emergency people for their efforts and help to others. God bless you all.

At home

We are on the third week of social distancing, isolation, grounded, quarantined, self containment, or whatever you want to call it. Anyway we are staying away from people and doing our part to not spread or contact the COVID19. The numbers are going up as the carriers are now  succumbed with the symptoms. It takes 7 to 14 days to get the symptoms so you can be a carrier and not even know you are ill. As people continue to run around unnecessarily more and more people will become ill and so the circle will continue and a curve will never be met. This scares the shit out of me. Had the president used any brain cells at all, it would never have gotten so bad in the US. But because of his lack of action or concern for anyone other than himself, the US is being hit the hardest. Each hour or day the moron changes his stand on what he will do, which is usually nothing of any benefit to anyone other than him, it he would follow through. Rot in hell trump.

We are staying busy at home with chores we have not gotten to, gone for walks here in the park, or just enjoying some quiet time. We have enough supplies to get us by for at the very least a months time. Milk we may run out of but we have plastic gloves and masks and enough soap and water if we need to get more.  But we can live without milk. What we don't have we don't need. God provides us with what we need.

The snowbirds have almost all flown the cope and headed home. Some, not all, from Washington have extended their stay to the end of this month. But for the most part, the park is quiet once again. The Canadians will have to wait at the border for 14 days before they will be allowed home, no matter when they get to their country.

Prayers for all of my family and friends to stay safe, act smart and stay well.

Church at home

Due to the COVID 19 we have missed a couple church services. This morning our church had church on line, live. It was a first for them and they did a great job. We are so happy that during this time of social distancing or self lockdown as I call it, we will still be able to "attend" our church services. I sat in my recliner and Mark laid on the couch with Lola so we were quite comfortable. I had no backache in church today.  It just never felt right not going to church. And it really messes up knowing what day of the week it is. Each night I cross off the day so in the morning we have a better chance of remembering what day of the week it really is. LOL 😂 Being retired also makes the days blend one to another.

Yesterday we checked our supplies to make sure we were still sitting good. But we found a couple items that really could use a refill. So in the morning we set out to get what we could. Some things we will have to go without, but we have had to do that before so it's not the end of the world.

In the afternoon I cleaned the house from top to bottom with bleach. It smells like a hospital in here now. And it sure does feel good, now to keep it up. But we go nowhere so keeping it this clean shouldn't be as difficult. The park is almost empty of the snowbirds, yippee, as most left to get home before the country or their state went into total lock down.  As the days warm up we will once again be able to enjoy the pool to ourselves. 

Looking on line there is a shortage of face masks. If I have enough of what is needed to make them, I would like to make some for the hospital or clinic here. And a couple for us as well, just in case.

Another home update

We now have some metal sunflowers to brighten up the already pretty paint job on the house. Mark attached the top flower thing with some large coffee cup hooks that I had, and some zip ties for added security. The colors really pop with the new paint on the house. An added attraction is my Dump trump sign. 😍

Rain

Another heavy rain day in Yuma, making it a good day to bake cookies. I found a cookie recipe that I had gotten from a neighbor we had at the COOP. I remembered it being a very good, light and crispy cookie. And my memory served me right. Oh wow, are they good and they bake at a high heat so it doesn't take long to make them. They also won't last long in the cookie jar either. 😆

Yesterday I received some very disturbing news. My stupid brother still thinks that the COVID19 is a hoax even with all the evidence that proves otherwise. It's people like him that will create more spreading of the deadly virus. I always knew he was a few tools short of a tool box, but I didn't think the tool box was totally empty. The really sad thing is he is not the only one with a lack of an intelligent thought process. I am so glad that I am 2000 miles from the idiocy of my family.

Poor judgement

Busy busy

Since the house is looking so nice with the new paint and other work Mark has done, the cabinets on the porch needed to be addressed. So  we ordered some new low profile cabinets to match our large ones.  I had been using Sterelite ones that you can see through. Which let a person see the mess in each drawer.  I'll sell the Sterelite cabinets since I really have no place to keep them or Mark will find a place in the canvas shed because the cabinets are quite new. I know storage is storage but we don't want the clutter.  We are so excited to have gotten one step closer to making our house more to our liking. It's been a lot of work since so many things that the previous owner did was wrong or very poorly done. God gifted Mark with many talents and the ability to learn how to do so many things.

Mark just heard that the CDC has urged all who are over the age of 60 to self quarantine. So we will make one last run to see if there is any milk and potatoes to be bought. If not we can live without the items for a few weeks. One last quick trip to a less crowded store and then we will be going NOWHERE for 2 to 3 weeks or however long we are asked to stay home. There is always pick up and delivery if there are items left on the shelf.  So far there are NO cases of Covid19 in Yuma county but AZ has closed all schools.  Good thing we still have a lengthy to do list to keep us busy. And we do like to go for rides.

I'm happy to say we got milk, bread and of course some munchies. There was a limit of one gallon of milk, but luckily we still had one at home. Then to a wayside produce stand for onions and potatoes that the grocery store was out of stock. We are, as of now, self quarantined for the next two to three weeks. Depending on the spread/threat of the virus. Good thing I can bake and cook. :)All activities in the park are cancelled and about 20 snowbirds left this morning. 😄 It's starting to thin out in the rv parks. 😍

Ignorant people

With all the scientific/medical proof that the coronavirus is a serious threat, there are still some ignorant people that think it's a hoax or not serious. They believe it is the media making a mountain out of a molehill. To them I say "get your head out of your ass and off of FOX news". No, I take back what I said earlier, they are not ignorant, they are just plain stupid.

The virus is nothing to take lightly and I see many schools and businesses across the country are closing, much like what was done in China. In China everything closed to contain the spread and it is working, it's slowing down. But the people that listen and believe what our idiot president, government and FOX say, news they still are in denial, brainwashed, and have no thought process left.

The virus hits the young, elderly, and those with underlying health issues the hardest and the deadliest. My husband and I both have heart issues and he has diabetes. We aren't ignorant enough to take the threat of the virus lightly. We have taken appropriate measures to protect ourselves as best as we can. We did not hoard products or food, but purchased what we felt would last at least three weeks to a month, and we are staying away from crowds. Some things we know we will run out of but we aren't stupid, we can figure out how to make do. There is nothing wrong with being prepared. In fact it keeps you safe and others as well.

Great visit

Yesterday we met Mark's sister and hubby in Gila Bend at an authentic Italian restaurant. We took Lola along so she didn't have to stay home for 8 hours without any potty breaks. She loves riding in daddy's truck and doesn't mind waiting in the truck for us to return. We make sure she has water. And it was not a warm day either. She is such a good girl.

We had a wonderful visit, it was so great to see our family again. It was a 4 hour visit and not once did anyone make us feel like we had sat there too long. They even kept the pop and water glasses full. The food was wonderful, the best pizza outside of Godfathers. It was obvious it was made from scratch and real Italian cooking. They even spoke Italian. So cool to find Italian in a Mexican dominated state.

The weather was rainy all day and night. In a year Yuma gets around 3 inches of rain. So far that has been exceeded by inches. A very rainy week and much cooler temps has some birds packing up early to head home. 😍 Some will be missed but most will not.

Tuesday five of our windows were measured for sunscreens. We are getting a dark gray with white framing to match the house. This summer we won't have to put up the foil insulated stuff on the windows. That, we found out is NOT good for windows. I know what it did to the windows in the RV so I can imagine what another year of use would do to the windows in the house too. One doesn't see anything but the sunscreens on windows, and now we know why. But we had to wait to be able to afford them. It was a good price this year so it was under budget. I like when things work out that way. 😃 In three weeks Specialty Sewing will come and install the screens.  They can be removed so the windows can get washed too. It is not a permanent mount. Some day we should have things set around here and have nothing to add. hahaha
                                          Cloud covered foothills:

More frightening than the Coronavirus

Being prepared

We are not looking forward to going to WM this morning. With the virus spreading, we are going to try and avoid crowds. So it will be a quick trip and we will stock up on as much as we can to avoid going out into crowds any more than we have to. We are not eating out in a crowded restaurant either. I have always had hand sanitizer in both vehicles and in all rooms for as long as I can remember, and a few extra on hand as well, so we are good there. I use it religiously too and I wash my hands like a germaphobe. Working at school for all those years washing your hands often was a must. Mark needs work on that matter though. There have been no cases this far into AZ but why not be cautious and do what you can to avoid any problems. Especially at our age.

With the virus spreading it got us to wondering about the Canadian snowbirds. Their president is taking action, unlike ours, and has put up stringent rules of entering Canada. I wonder how that will work for them going back home. They will be tested upon entry so that will really slow the border entry process. Some of the birds from Washington are concerned about going home as well as Oregon. There are quite a few people that stayed the winter here from those states too.

It feels so good having the whole house cleaned in one day. That could be why I slept better last night, I wore myself out yesterday. That and it was cooler in the house by bedtime last night. I don't sleep well when I'm too warm.

The next couple weeks it looks as though it will be in the mid 70’s. That is much more to my liking. Cooler nights too and that makes better sleeping.

Earthquake

Last night around 9 pm I was reaching in the cupboard for our morning pills. I like to set them out the night before. When all of a sudden the house trembled hard and I could here cracking or like something falling hard. It set the dog on full alert, running for cover under the bed, and my heart to misfire. After the trembling stopped I called to Mark who was in the shed, as usual, to see if he felt the earth move, even though I wasn't with him,😉. He said that the whole little shed shook hard. And if it had not been chained down it could have moved on the cement slab. The quake only last a very short time. We thought that it was a tremor from somewhere else since that is usually all that we get here.

After reading this morning I discovered that we indeed had a small earthquake. The quake only last a very short time, only about a minute with rolling tremors following for about 6 seconds. There is also an alert for people to check there power and water lines. All of which are not buried very deep here in the desert. It will be interesting to walk around the park and hear what those in an RV felt!!! I would imagine they REALLY shook.

How is that for excitement in a retirement community? 😅

We just learned that the earthquake was in Baja California Mexico and it was a 5.5. That is only about half an hour from here so a quake can easily be felt here.

Home Sweet Home Arizona Home

Before: light green trim and cream.

After: charcoal gray trim with white.