Leftover scramble to end of 2025

 

I told my daughter in law that I would be eating off her Christmas ham for several days, and I did not lie.  The last of the ham went into my Sunday morning scramble.  Also, onions and pepper, which are not good for the doggo.  I used it as a training session / reminder to Ember of "what a good girl does"... sitting on her hot zone and waiting her turn.  I even got to sit down at the table to eat this scrumptious encore!

Ember did get a couple of bites of ham, and to lick the egg bowl, but only by doing what she knows how to do:  sit on her hot zone, and when beckoned, provide me with what I call a polite sit.  Good girl!

I had a ham sandwich on Friday for supper, and on Saturday for lunch.  I had leftover mashed taters and gravy on Saturday.  The pumpkin pie disappeared early on.  Christmas dinner is now in the memory banks, accompanied by a sigh of contentment.

Sunday morning the wind was howling. The outdoor temperature dropped like a rock.  "Light snow" blew in the gusty winds for a few hours.  Ember opted for a crate nap, and she also did a voluntary crate entry so the kitty could have safe passage to his luxury suite in the laundry room on Sunday.

One extra special holiday "event" this year: our cousin shared home movies converted to digital format.  Remember what a big deal that used to be, when uncles and dads would hang a bedsheet and roll out the slide (or in my uncle's case movie) projector?  It took a lot of effort, and it did not happen every family gathering because of that.  It all depended on what else was going on in family life.  

What were these home movies of?  My mom and dad the spring before they married, and his mom and dad's wedding, with my parents as best man and matron of honor, the following January.  It was so moving to see my grandfather walking his daughter down the aisle and recognize in those big ears the man my brother grew into!  

Ember's action that impressed me Monday was hopping into the car sans leash and harness and staying in the back seat while I ran into the post office.  Having had little exercise over the past couple of days she was getting a bit of cabin fever, and so was I.  

Monday afternoon the sun came out, and it looked cheery.  The 23 or 24 Fahrenheit degree high in the sun, sheltered from the wind, felt pretty good after having tasted the morning wind!  

Kitty on the deck rail Monday afternoon.  Ember planted herself on the threshold to watch him.  This also stopped him from coming inside until Ember got into her crate for a nap.

New Year's Eve Day

On Tuesday we tried to get back to semi-normal, with doggy day care for Ember, and a trainer workout for me.  I took advantage of her absence to put away the little Christmas tree, re-configure the parlor x-pen, exposing a bit more of the room, and moving a cushy dog-bed from the "training" x-pen into the parlor.  When she came home from daycare, she sniffed at it, then hopped up on cue, and snuggled in.  At last call, when she came back into the house, she chose to lie on it.  And this morning (Wednesday) she once again snuggled in for a bit.

I gave her a toy each time she got on it, a "gentle" toy (her snuggle puppy) once, and her stuffed wreath this morning.

On New Year's Day I am supposed to go over to my son's house for an afternoon pasta-fest.  Time depends on Ember's nap schedule.  It also depends on how people are feeling.  On Tuesday, FGC had an all-day play date with his BFF. That evening DIL got heads up from BFF's mom: she had tested positive for Covid!  We shall see how confident folks are and how much risk we are willing to take for the sake of togetherness.  

All that said, here's hoping for everyone to be safe and sane ringing out 2025 and ringing in 2026.  May we have hope, health, and prosperity in the New Year!

Life is good. Spark on!