Isolating At Home

We haven't been leaving the house much lately,

but that doesn't mean we've been bored!

The cats are THRILLED that Greg and I are both here all the time.

I've been continuing to work on getting my ankles stronger,

and I try to ride my indoor bike as many times per week as I can.

Allistair likes to sit on the desk!

Sometimes Claude wants snuggles at the same time.

I also do yoga.  The seated one causes almost no ankle problems at this point,

my favorite Rodney Yee one causes minimal ankle problems, and the Tara Stiles one

caused minimal problems, so that's pretty good!  Still I have a way to go.

Sometimes I get TWO cats to help me with yoga!

Everyone else has been cute and snuggly.

Claude:

Allistair - with his favorite toy, Wanda.

Stephen joining the party:

Stephen in his tent with his tongue out!

Precious!

Look at that dapper gentleman!

More fuzzy Claude:

It's gotten hot how (111 degrees F for a high today - ew)

and cats get loooooong when it's warm.

Even though I'm able to be more active than I was,

I still do a lot of this (and I enjoy it!)

I love looking out at the backyard and watching nature being its beautiful self.

Often cats join me.

Sometimes they prefer to snuggle in bed.

They help me when I'm working, too.

And Wanda comes too!

Greg took this photo of Stephen yawning and it's hilarious.

Sometimes they just laze, enjoying the cool tile.

Can you find Stephen?

When they are asleep, I play with their faces.

Look at the widdle teefies!

Sometimes they just need to touch us.

I was having a sad lonely day missing our families in Minnesota,

and look what God sent me!  I found it on the floor

and it apparently was just ripped unknowingly from some tissue paper I used!

God loves me and is with me and He reminded me.

When we do go out, we wear masks

to protect other people and ourselves.

My dear friend Cindy bought us some new ones!

Greg's is camouflage with skulls on the back.

Greg makes it look cool.

Mine has white dots on one side . . . 

and aristocratic cats on the other!

The cat side went well with my yellow polka-dot top!

We finally have toilet paper in the stores now.

And before I could easily find it again, Cindy

brought us a very generous gift!

It's strange to go shopping, but people and stores seem to be getting used to new routines.

Sprout's has one-way only aisles now, and there are marks on the ground where to stand when we're waiting in line.  Everyone wears masks.  It's strange to think that the new normal might last a long long time.

COVID-19 can't stop the sun!

And COVID-19 hasn't stopped palm trees or flowers!

I have been cooking and baking, but that's pretty normal around here.

I tried a new chocolate chip cookie recipe that is fabulous!

Looking at the photos is making my mouth water.

They had the taste and texture of Chips Ahoy

(from what I remember). YUM.

I need to make some more tomorrow.

The texture was wonderful.

I also made stuffed peppers for the first time and I LOVED how

they turned out!  I liked them so much that I've already made them a second time.

I kind of made up my own recipe.

This time I made meat from walnuts, onions, and mushrooms,

then I filled the peppers with that and veggies.

Of course, I've made a good number of casseroles.

This one is a lemon lentil pasta casserole.

I've been eating a lot of potatoes, too,

and trying to get my system used to sweet potatoes again

because I LOVE them.

Blueberry muffins . . . 

Black bean and rice burgers with sweet potato wedges. . . 

Tater tots . . . 

Veggie stew and acorn squash . . . 

We got to see our sweet niece's piano recital

(she's the wiggly one in the bottom right hand corner):

This is us watching her on Zoom.

I also haven gotten to enjoy our floor steamer mop more!

Look how pretty the floors look!

And I have been continuing to film videos for my YouTube channel.

I've decided to do an online church for kids (especially those with special needs)

because even as churches open, it won't be easy to have safe children's ministry programming,

so I assume some families will probably continue to stay home

(I certainly will continue to stay home for quite some time!)

Fridays we've been ordering pizza from a local place (either Pieology or Barro's)

and watching old Doctor Who from the 60s and 70s.  It's a delightful ritual we've started that I'm very much enjoying! I hope you have created some meaningful ways to celebrate and enjoy life even though life is different from how it was before.

Stay healthy and look for beauty today!

xo

I'm A Podrishioner!

I'm a part of a great church in Minnesota from a distance

and I love it!  They did an interview post with me recently.

Check it out here!

Road Trip!

I decided to take a nice road trip into the mountains.

I wasn't sure if I'd head to Sedona (one of my favorite places in the whole

world is by a river there) or Flagstaff (it's cooler there and there are aspen woods!)

I decided on Flagstaff because I didn't think my ankle was ready for the wading

in the river it would have been sure to enjoy if I went to Sedona.

Here I am at Sunset Point!

It's a rest stop with a beautiful view.

I always stop!

(They had toilet paper.)

I used that black handkerchief as my mask when people were nearby.

Very pretty!

After a couple of hours, there was Mount Humphrey!

I stopped at Target for the bathroom and for some snacks. 

I found toilet paper!

It is the most terrible toilet paper I have ever used, but

if we get down to our last good roll, we'll be happy to have it!

Then I looked on the AllTrails app to find a short hike nearby.

I decided this gentle walk in the juniper pine trees would be perfect!

I didn't want anything too steep because 

1. ankles aren't great

2. it's around 7000 ft elevation and I wanted to enjoy myself.

I have to say, though, I didn't notice the elevation, so I guess the beets

are doing their job oxygenating my blood!  

I walked in about 30-45 minutes.

It was a gentle sloping trail without many other people on it.

It smelled delicious.

I felt calm and happy.

Do you know why this tree stump has an X in it?

I don't!

Look whom I saw!

A horned toad!

Look at his grumpy little face!

This fallen tree was loooooong.

I also saw butterflies.

I love it when tree roots are used as steps!

It was a little over 80 F.

I stopped by Whole Foods to get a few grocery items (I had a cooler along!)

so I wouldn't have to stop on the way home.

Then I went back to Target for another bathroom break.

The TP was all gone.

On the way home, I had a special snack!

It was dark chocolate with almond butter inside.

(Drooling).

I saw red hills on the way home

(I stopped to take photos!)

And of course, I stopped at Sunset Point on the way home!

Beware!

Poisonous snakes and insects inhabit the area!!!

It's often windy on the Mogollon Rim.

I hope you are able to get outside a little bit.

It does help the brain and the emotions for sure!