Holiday Season Day 1

     It is now 0149 and I have been awake for a few minutes. I had to wake Caleb up to bring in drinks from the car. I asked him to that several days in a row, but he doesn't listen. Yesterday was another busy day. I finally took a shower after Caleb made breakfast for me. He made grilled cheese sandwiches. I found a clean far-infrared compression tank top like I wanted. Ashley came over earlier than usual, but had to leave earlier than usual too. She and Caleb worked on fixing the guest room. While they were doing that, I went to the post office to mail some Christmas presents. Then I went to Food Lion to buy ground beef and blueberries. When I got back, I needed a break because I wore winter leggings and a winter t shirt. Both are designed for warmth, but it was 73 degrees Fareinheight outside. It was very warm and I was sweating. I drank some water and cooled off. When I ready I began to clean up a little in the kitchen so that I could cook cabbage soup. Here is my recipe:

4.5 lbs. of ground beef

3 large yellow onions

2 smoked sausages cooked together in a frying pan with 1 bottle of Food Lion "Soul Food Seasoning."

2 red, yellow, and orange bell peppers

2 bags of cut collard greens

1 head of green cabbage cooked together in a chili pot with 2 boxes of beef bone broth and 1 bottle of Food Lion "Soul Food Seasoning."

Cooking the meat at the same time as the vegetables cuts down cooking time. Then I mix the meat mixture in with the vegetable mixture in the chili pot and simmer until the flavors have blended into cabbage soup!

    It turned out delicious! I hurt my back doing all that prepping and cooking. I was standing too long without any breaks. The soup was done as Ashley was about to leave so I made her a container to go. I sat down for a while and called my dad. He still sounds sick and was sleeping. I ate my soup and went for a nap. It was the best nap ever, except Caleb kept waking me up.

    I got out of bed eventually. I had no other plans for the day. The guest room looks good. The hallway looks good. I think the next rooms that need to be done are the hallway bathroom,  my room, and my bathroom.

    Ashley will be back today for a full day. She will only work a part day tomorrow because she has an appointment. I really appreciate her help. 

    I have the Next Steps class tonight so I need to rest during the day to make sure I have enough energy to stay for the whole time.

    I received my Certificate of Eligibility from VA yesterday for the VA home loan.

    I think I only have 1 more package to ship for Christmas and I will be caught up. All the Christmas cards have been sent. 

    I sent out the request for dad and my C-file records the day before yesterday. 

    I finally mailed Christinia's mail to her. I ran out of envelopes so I had to stuff a smaller padded envelope to send it. 

    I am waiting to hear from the VA appraiser to schedule the appraisal.

    I failed to mention that I ran into a few people I know while at Walmart the other day. Amanda was working at the self-checkout and I got to talk to her. We saw the man who stands at the door of Lowe's asking people if they need services for their homes on the way out of Walmart. I don't remember his name, but I remember his face. I remember that I always ask for popcorn when he has it! LOL We saw Kate, the manager of Jersey Mike's, as we walked out of the door. 

    I asked the name of the pharmacy tech who handed me Caleb's medications. Her name is Cheyenne.

    I spoke to the man who works at the Oak Island post office too. I had a lot of mail going out both yesterday and the day before yesterday. 

    I handed Chris, the neighbor, his Christmas bag and card the night before last. Caleb brought Ms. Kathy, the neighbor diagonal from our house, her Christmas bag and card yesterday. I only have a few more things for Caleb to deliver to our neighbors.

    I almost bought more of my favorite towels from Dock & Bay because they were on sale, but I managed to walk away for now.

    I am working on getting back on my keto diet. I am also preparing to quit vaping. I went ahead and ordered more flower essences from Jana Carrey to support me. Making that soup was a good start because it is full of vegetables, meat, and flavor with some fat too. I intentionally left out the corn and carrots I was going to add to it. I also did not add the mushrooms I thought I wanted in it.

    I tried the 2 new hair brushes I bought from Walmart to replace the 1 I broke. They are awesome, but I think I might have to part my hair to brush it with these brushes. They are "Wet Brushes." I was able to dry brush my hair before I took a shower! I have never been able to dry brush my thick, curly hair. It was amazing!

    Caleb went back to sleep. Thank God! He is so talkative in the morning. Too much for me this early.

    The dogs are sleeping close to me on the floor. They are so sweet.

    I never got around to shampooing the carpet. I might try to get that done today since I don't really have plans for the day. 

    I decided Caleb's room is getting cleaned up next. His room might take more than a day to clean so it's best to do it next and get it out of the way. 

    My table top Christmas trees are doing good. They don't have a heavy smell like I hoped for. They are pretty though. They probably need to be watered.

    I guess I will schedule to catch up in my classes tomorrow after taking Bella to the vet. 

    News: The Trump Organization has been found GUILTY on all charges by a jury! 

    I am not surprised by this news, but I am happy that he will finally have to pay for his crimes. 

    Brandi is going through a rough time right now, so I am going to send her Reiki later this morning.

    I don't remember if I wrote this before, but I offered to train Ashley in level 1 Reiki last week. She is open to learning. I told her it has a $250 value, but I am offering it her for free because I need to attune at least 5 people before the month is over. I will attune Caleb at the same time as Ashley. They will take the class together. I should ask if she remembered to ask her friend if she was interested in learning. I need at least 3 more people to teach in-person so I will qualify to learn to teach and attune virtually. 

    I loaned my dad some money to pay for his rent when his card was locked due to security issues. He has mentioned paying me back several times, but I am never ready at my computer to access his accounts for him. He is blind so he can't do it himself. I need that money back about right now. I am paying Ashley to help me, and I don't want to run out of money before the house is ready for appraisal. 

    I am tired, but it is too warm in here. The central air conditioner is frozen and needs a break. I'm going to go turn it off. I wonder how long it takes to thaw once it's turned off. I need a nap.

    Have a blessed day, and thank you for reading!