6-30-13

9:30pm

Been pushing myself to do things this weekend.

I still do not feel well.

My belly hasn't felt the greatest and so far

I've been to the bathroom 7 times today

if you know what I'm talking about and

today is not over with yet.

5:00pm rolled around and I couldn't take

much more so went and laid down.

Next thing I know hubby is waking me

up at 9:00pm.  I took a 4 hour nap and feel like

I could of just slept til tomorrow morning!

But I had to get up and change the laundry over

so hubby would have some clean work clothes for tomorrow.

Body is hurting, just took some tylenol, again.

What I don't understand is that 

a week or so ago I was taking antibiotics

and steroids for bronchitis.  It's pretty

much some meds that they give people

with Crohn's flare ups so why did I flare up?

I don't know.  I guess that's why they 

say they still don't understand Crohn's

or have a miracle cure, let alone some

kind of relief cure.  Because when it rains it pours.

They say stress can cause it.  I haven't really had any.

We spent most of the weekend around water

and relaxing.  Yesterday we went to Hoover Dam

and Hayden Falls.  Today we went to

Twin Bridges at Hoover then over to Alum Creek

doing some fishing.

Then this weekend I worked a little bit here and

there when I could on my dehydrator.

I got the sides wrapped in rubber material

and put on the box.

Hubby's complaining.  I know he wants the carport 

back for his car to tinker with.

He helps me though when and where I need it.

I'm trying my best when I feel my worst!

I think if I keep moving about

rather than laying in bed all the times

would keep the old bones from getting rusty.

Not sure if that's working for me when

hubby says I look like I'm walking around

like an old grandma.

It just sucks and I know no one knows exactly

what I am going through or experience with

Crohn's unless they have it.

Hubby is having a hard time believing I've

been poo 7 times today and could very

easily go 8-9 before going back to bed.

He also thinks that just because I take

my prescription medicine everything 

should be fine and I should not have any problems.

So totally wrong.

Like I said no one will know what you experience.

Only you know how you feel

and I understand that people don't comprehend

what I go through.

People see me up and walking around doing some

things and think everything is hunky dory.

That is so not the case because inside

I feel like I'm dying.

Just because someone looks good on the outside

does not mean that they are fine!!

ok gotta run to the potty!!

Later.


I did not add screen to the outside of the dehydrator box,
just the rubber material.  Still need to add screen to
all the trays.

I might experiment with it some and set it out
in full sun to see what the temperature gets inside
before attaching a solar heater to it.
I can still add a fan attached to solar panel
for air flow to go through it.
I need it to reach around 135 degrees to
be able to dehydrate fruits and vegetables.

Remember what this used to look like?

Once in awhile stores will runs a sale on
potatoes for .99 cents for a 10 pound bag.
Hoping to run across some in the near future
and be able to dehydrate them.
Right now they are around $3.00+ for 10 pounds  
100 pounds of potatoes for $10,
now that's what I'm talking about!
Have to keep an eye out for them to go on sale
which is not very often.
This way I'll be able to stock up on the much
cheaper price.
Plus we'll see if I get any potatoes from the garden.

Any dehydrated veggies now will make
for some filling casseroles and soups
this coming winter at much cheaper prices
and better quality veggies than those purchased
during the winter months.

6-28-13

7:45am

Taking mom to some yard sales this morning.

Still not feeling 100%.

She doesn't know I feel like crap.

Don't want to ruin her outing for a couple of hours :0)

1:15pm


Went yard saling from 8:30 - 12:45pm
and that included a stop for lunch at Taco Bell.

Before getting to some of the things I got
at yard sales, which wasn't much,
I wanted to show you a few more things
we got us from the vacated apartment
that was still in the truck.  All free!

Here we have 18 double chocolate muffins
from Nutrisystem.

A small desk/writing table with drawer and 
matching stool.  Putting this in one of the boys
rooms to replace a table that is literally falling apart.

This is the hope chest I got for my son filled
with things for his new home.
Still in the truck since it is very heavy to lift
with all the things inside it.

Now onto yard sale finds...

sunglasses for hubby .50 cents.
wooden Myers box .25 cents.
Got that because that is my in-laws last name.

This planner, headset and apple spice candle
were all in free boxes.

Honeysuckle candle .25 cents.
Hazelnut coffee candle .15 cents.
Blue scented candle .05 cents.
Fall festival scented candle .35 cents.
thermometer (for dehydrator) .25 cents.

Window insulation kit enough to do 5 windows $1.00.
75 sq. ft. Reynolds freezer paper .25 cents.

Towel/blanket warmer
was $4.00 marked down to $2.00.
You ever been in a hospital where it is freezing
and request a blanket and when it comes
it's all toasty warm.  I always said if I find
one of those contraptions I would buy it.
Well here it is.
New it would have cost $100 to $160!!

Crossbow pistol $2.00
included holster and 5 arrows.

That's all for now.
I can say I feel a little better today but
that could be the ibuprofen talking.


2:15pm


Worked a little more on shelving for the dehydrator
and got the door put together.
I'm no carpenter or anything of the sort
and I don't think I'm doing too bad
for no directions on this thing.
I know it's taking me awhile to make.
I try to work on when I can.

I installed a thermometer to one of the shelves.

Since I don't have enough aluminum framed
screens for the sides I'm going to make wooden frames
to fit the side and attach screen and/or the rubber
material to it instead.


3:20pm


Never made ice cream before and are trying
out a $3.93 thrift store find,
a Donvier Ice Cream Maker.
Goes for $60 new!
No electric, ice or salt needed.
Makes 1 quart ice cream, ice milk, frozen yogurt or sorbet.
I don't really have a recipe for it.
I added milk, sugar, vanilla and some 
pecan flavored coffee creamer.
Tasting pretty good!
Ice cream is getting expensive to buy so
thought we'd try making our own instead.

10:15pm


I got a little more accomplished on the dehydrator this evening.
Made frames for the rear and side of the dehydrator,
made 5 trays and the door frame then called it quits.

This is momma's work bench, lol,
with a padded frilly stool to sit upon.

I'm just feeling like total crap.
Stomach cramps and pains have started.
Hurts to talk and use any stomach muscles.
Getting dizzy spells and feel like from my neck up
is hot.  Hubby felt my head and said it
didn't feel like I had a fever.
Bowel movements are still not normal.
Body just throbs.
All signs of a flare up.
Keep hoping each day that I wake up that
it starts to go away!
I'm getting so behind with doing things.

6-27-13

8:00am

Oh my goodness my stomach is still in an uproar!

Been to the bathroom twice in the last hour.

Pain in the rear (lol) when you're trying to get stuff

done and have to stop every couple of moments

to run to the restroom.

I spent the last hour measuring and marking

wood for 5 more railings and trays,

and part of a door.  Still need more wood

to make 2 more trays and inserts for the screen

and rubber siding.

I think I will end up with a total of 

11 trays in the dehydrator.

Right now I am taking a break because

the ole stomach is churning up a storm.

I still need to bring the truck around

to the carport and start unloading and

going through everything I got last night.

Now I need to start getting things for my oldest son

who sounds like he is FINALLY getting

his first apartment in August!!! YEAH!!!

I told him to be patient and I could get

him probably everything he needs for it

from hubby's work with all the move outs

and things people leave behind.

How do you think we got started?

We had nothing and found most of our

items for our apartment back then to get started.

If it wasn't for all these wasteful people

I don't know how we would have done it

or still do it today!

9:45am


Ok, my back is broke unloading the truck
and going through everything we got last night.
Sometimes I don't remember what we get.
I just grab, throw into a tote and go.

Alrighty then, where do I even start???

2 boxes cinnamon apple bars.
Pancake & waffle mix.
2 boxes Kashi cereal.
Instant oatmeal maple & brown sugar.
2 fried rice rice-a-roni.
spaghetti.
2 cans pear halves.
1 can green beans.
6 cans chicken & noodles.
3 cans tomato soup.
1 can pineapple.
box of lemon & ginseng green tea.
1 can progresso vegetable soup.
season salt.
tabasco chipoltle sauce.
3 pouches sloppy joe mix.
1 pouch snack mix.

4 boxes creamy chocolate protein shake mix.
5 jars peanut butter.
11 packages ramen noodles.
2 boxes dishwasher detergent.
3 boxes trash bags total of 551 trash bags!

Package of Charmin toilet paper.
Roll of paper towels.
Windex.
Tide detergent.
Dawn dish soap.
Closet dehumidifier.
Green works all purpose cleaner.
Kroger all purpose cleaner.
Wesson cooking oil.
Blistex.
5 shot glasses.
AA batteries.
Appliance light bulb.
Gauze bandages.
Elastic wrap bandage.
Coffee filters.
Emergen-C.
2 bottles Dulcolax Balance.
Metamucil.
Women's vitamins & minerals.

3 silver picture frames.
Studio X gift set.
Koala speakers.
Some kind of adapter.
Belkin wireless.
Always Kiss Me picture.

Casa Del Rio purse.
3 soft soaps.
Palmolive dish soap.
John Freida hair color.
2 candles.
2 bags incense cones.
1 bag incense sticks.
incense holder.
Bamboo shampoo.
CVS lotion.
Suave professionals shampoo.
Dermalogica eye care.
Kenra smoothing creme.
body wash.
Paris Amour cologne spray.
Bath & body works spray mist.
Deep pore wash.
Peter Thomas Roth moisturizer.
CHI hair treatment.
No 14 hair treatment.
Blowout creme.
Clean & clear face cleanser.
Pink sparkling body mist.
Bracelet.
Watch.
2 necklaces.
ring.
ear cuffs & earrings.
Real stone & silver bracelet.

2 boxes envelopes.
2 large containers of pens & pencils.
Snowbunny halloween outfit.
rabbit ears headband.
New box of 64 crayons.
package of nails.
Package of thumb tacks.
Pliers,
Bandaids,
Baggie full of AA batteries with battery tester.
New gloves with tags.
ear buds.
Fake diamond studded mouse.
Greenish blue duct tape.
Ipod case.
3 notepads.
Stockings.


5 sheet sets.
towel.
gold colored silverware.
love and beauty shimmer spray.
matching set of 2 pot holders and 2 oven mitts.
package of napkins.
Thingy that dispenses bear on a keg.
(there were 2 kegs left on the patio of this apartment.
one is completely FULL!)

Apples to apples game.
Karma cards.
One tree hill dvd complete series 1.
It's always sunny in philadelphia  3 dvd's.
Scrubs DVDs from 1, 2 & 6th season.
Burlesque DVD.
Talladega Nights DVD.
The break up DVD.
Magic Mike DVD.
Misc CD's

RCA surround with bass speaker,
mid range speaker and 4 other speakers.


Push broom.

$5.00 - $6.00 in change.
That included 3 gold color Ulysses S. Grant $1.00 coins.

Whew... that was a lot!


12:35pm


I can't get motivated to do anything else.
Feel like crap and are feeling sooo tired.
These little people in my house keep thinking
I should make breakfast and lunch for them
so I have to keep moving when I can
and rest when I can't.
Breakfast consisted of marked down 
Kroger bakery bagels toasted with some $1.00 on sale
cream cheese.
Lunch will be the same as yesterday,
tortilla pizzas.
Supper is marked down Kroger hamburger topped
 with garlic cheesy bread as the buns,
a bag of $1.29 Kroger Value french fries and
for dessert a package of Hershey cookie dough
marked down to .75 cents at Kroger.
After lunch I think I will lay down for a few.
I should be doing laundry right about now
but have no energy to do it.


5:45pm


Supper time!
Chocolate chip cookies are still in the oven for dessert.

I got to thinking about a hope chest that was
in the vacated apartment yesterday.
I think I want to go back over and get it.
I could put things that I find 
for my son and his girlfriend's first apartment
and give it to them when they move in.
I'm going to tell them early Merry Christmas!
This to me is a lot to be giving someone
and I can't afford much at Christmas time.
I do have a couple small things for them for Christmas.
So they can either get the hope chest full of stuff
now or wait til Christmas time.
I think they'd choose now.


9:15pm


Got home not long ago.
Went back over to hubby's work and got
some items for my son and his girlfriend.
I'm just trying to find basic things for them to start out with.
But I start having second thoughts in the back
of my mind with getting things when the girlfriend
IM's me and says, "if you find a flat screen LCD TV
we want it."  Yeah right!  Like I find those all the time.
Uh NOT!
My response was,
"it took me 42 years to get one."
It flew over her head as to meaning
you don't start out with top of the line things.
Be lucky you get what you get or is given to you.
If I find a working flat screen tv it's
not being given to anyone but ourselves!
We work our butts off to find things,
go get them, round them up, put them in the truck,
haul them home and unload it all.
And on top of it all I'm having a Crohn's flare up
and feel like total crap to be doing this.
When I tell them there's an older tv with remote
in this apartment their answer was,
"we'd really like a flat screen tv."
My answer to that was,
"beggars can't be choosers!"

But anyway I got them a few things tonight
and if they turn their noses up to them
well that's the end of me finding things for them.
I got them (all FREE)-
toaster, food processor, set of matching dishes and glasses,
kitchen utensils, a couple skillets,
cookie sheets, casserole dish, 
electric can opener, manual can opener,
collander, vegetable cutting board and strainer,
dvd player with remote, a couple matching bath towels,
plastic shower curtain, fabric shower curtain,
shower curtain hooks, picture frame,
key holder than hangs on wall, 
decorative iron candle holders for wall,
a small decorative table lamp,
a hope chest to put it all in along
with other things that I can't remember.

Got tons of more move outs coming up
and I know I can pretty much get everything
they will need.
But screw me over and start getting picky
and it will be their loss.
Yes, I am very tired, hurting and cranky.
Crohn's makes you this way.
I try to trudge on but after awhile can only do so much.
I didn't get any laundry done today because
I had to lay down and take a nap.
The tiredness overwhelms you.
I did have hubby cut me up some more wood tonight
and I got 5 more railings installed on the dehydrator.
The shelves will have to wait til tomorrow
as my energy is gone.  It doesn't take much.

6-26-13

8:55am

It seems like every time it rains the garden goes crazy!

Today I got some baby cucumbers growing.

Some grapes are beginning to turn a purplish color.

Carrots

Potatoes

The garden

Sure has come a long way from this...

1 month 5 days ago.

10:50am


I knew something wasn't quite right with my body 
last night.  Now this morning my stomach feels horrible
and we're back to having diarrhea
and body/joint aches and pains.
I've started taking fish oil again because
for me that helps with the achiness.
Crohn's sucks because it strikes whenever the heck
it wants without any warning.
And I was thinking about making some chili today
in the crock pot.  Maybe I'll make it for the family
and have something else to eat instead.
I found 12 ounce John Morrell ground sausage rolls
at Dollar Tree the other day for a buck each!

Still trying to push on with getting a few things done.
I laid out all the rubber "fabric" and got it
all measured and cut out for the sides
of the dehydrator.  Not putting it on now
because I still have trays, rails and a door to
finish making.  This will eventually get stretched
over the sides and attached with a staple gun.
The black rubber will help absorb more heat.
I had some extra left over that I'll use to make
a roof.  Not sure how just yet.
Want to keep water out of the top if it should rain.

OK, what really are the chances of 
a couple of old screens I got from hubby's work
fitting into the sides of this box almost perfectly???!!!
I got out the screens and was going to
cut them up and put them on the trays
when I thought, I wonder if this would fit the sides?
Thinking if they fit around the open space I
could just screw them in over top.
Well those beauties fit in that space perfectly!
The back side and door will have to have
screens cut down to fit and the one side has
a cross bar along the bottom that will need cut out
in order for a screen to fit in there.
This would make it so nice to be able to remove
them if I had to instead of pulling out staples.
Just a thought for those wanting to make
one.  Make one to accommodate some old screens.
I am adding the screens in addition to the rubber "fabric"
to help keep any bugs out.

12:00pm


Food around here during Summer vacation
is costing us much more than any other time of the year.
I'm trying really hard to find cheap lunches and
snacks to make.
Today's lunch is tortilla pizzas.
The flour tortillas, can of spaghetti sauce and
pepperoni can be found at Dollar Tree.
The cheese I get from Kroger because
Dollar Store cheese isn't made from milk.

I reuse small canning jars and small misc glass
jars like those that maybe some relish came
in as drinking glasses.
They are made of thicker glass than some drinking glasses.
Drinking glasses seem to break a lot more.
They barely tap one another and the next thing
I know I have pieces of glass in my dishwater.

12:20pm


Got a crock pot of chili going for supper.

-2  12 ounce packages of ground sausage, fried up and drained.
-1 can tomato juice.
-1 can diced tomatoes with juice.
-1 large can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed off.
-2 to 3 teaspoons splenda or sugar.
-1 packet onion soup mix
-1 packet of chili seasoning mix.
-and sometimes if I have it I like to add a jar of salsa.

6:25pm


Let's get ready to rumbleeeee!

The Easter Lilies started blooming today.

Getting ready to go to hubby's work soon to check
out a couple move outs.


9:00pm


Just got back home.
Got about 4 totes full of stuff from two apartments.
What I don't understand is how people can
up and move and leave about 90% of their things behind.
I left all the stuff out in the truck because I
haven't been feeling well today.
Was supposed to go there yesterday but
the tiredness, body aches and stomach pain overcame me.
So today I forced myself to go get some
freebies because ya just never know when you'll
get the chance to do it again.
I needed things like dish soap,
was almost out of toilet paper and
needed trash bags and things of the sort.
Found all of that along with cupboards of food
and misc. items.  Probably hundreds of dollars
worth of things.  The high ticket item
I got was a complete surround system.
I did find about 3-4 boards in one apartment
and had hubby cut them up for me while at work.
Now I can continue working on making 
railings, trays and my door on the dehydrator.
Free wood is good.  I think the only expense I 
have in this dehydrator is the $3.00 roll of rubber "fabric".

I know what I'll be working on tomorrow, 
laundry, considering I've been out of soap
and on top of our regular laundry I have two
totes of clothes I found for the boys that need washed up,
and marking/measuring boards to have hubby cut them.

Well it's time to chill, take my medicine and
watch some Ghost Hunters and Paranormal Witness.