Life Last Week 2015-17

Quite busy last week, both in the house on the computer and out of the house.  Monday was planning day for the April Rudolph Day on the 25th and it was my turn to pick the movie and get the posts up on the Magical Holiday Home Forums so that everyone had time to find the movie and plan their day.  You can read all about mine here.  Love the Forums - great group of Christmas-aholics there full of ideas and inspiration.  If you love Christmas, join us! I started disassembling the scrapbook area in the family room and moving it back to the office.  It was such a dreadful mess spread all over and by the time I got it organized, I found I could manage quite well in the office with my scrapbook cart next to me (it's on wheels so I can move it around easily).  I began the processing of scanning and uploading things that I wanted to include in the album, mostly things that had to be re-sized.

It was off to IKEA with the Ladies of Leisure on Tuesday.

I haven't been to IKEA in ages, probably four or five years, and it hasn't changed.  Still full of really tempting things but I restrained myself and settled for a hanging set of rings to hold scarves and a set of colored plates, bowls, and cups for Sophia.  I think they are designed for little children as they are plastic and very colorful but we've had a set for ages and use them all the time for quick snacks.

We had planned to eat lunch at Chick-fil-A as the one in Tacoma is the closest to us and just opened recently but it was a nightmare to even get into the parking lot and then there was a line out the door so we headed for some Thai food instead and it was delicious.  A little stroll around the mall to walk off our lunch and then we headed home.

Wednesday was Administrative Professionals' Day (hoping to be one of those again soon - more on that later) so I dropped some flowers off to the lady who is our contact at the community center where we hold the monthly COMPASS sessions.  She was really thrilled - I'm not sure anyone else in her office was on top of the celebration so I'm glad we brightened her day.  Then it was off to the dentist.  I think I was so stressed about Wednesday's appointment the night before that I slept with my jaw clenched and woke up in agony.  I had to keep opening and closing my mouth all morning to make sure that I was going to be able to hold it open once I got to the dentist.  The whole procedure was fine, but I'm such a ninny that I gave myself a fearful headache by being tense through the whole thing and decided to reward myself with not-so-Whole-30 soup and a soft bread roll since one side of my mouth was still numb.  I tried to be careful but I still managed to bite my cheek, pain which I didn't feel until after the anesthetic wore off.  I was so drained by the whole thing that I fell asleep in the recliner after my lunch and woke up with a stiff neck.  Good grief, I am just a mess!

Met a friend for lunch on Thursday at what she said was the best Chinese restaurant in the area.  Sorry, not.  We have had such a struggle to find Chinese in the area and it looks like the struggle continues.  It was nice to see her though and we had a lovely chat.  A few errands and then home to fed and walk MudLynn.  We live in a quiet neighborhood, three streets sort of like a trident and we usually walk a circuit around the outer U-shape.  We were just walking along when I heard a shout and looked up to see a huge (at least a hundred pounds) black dog jump his fence and run straight at us.  His companion dog was a little slower but he was coming for us too.  The black dog attacked MudLynn but I somehow managed to keep myself between them, lashing out with my leg to keep the black dog away.  Either they had been in the car (the owner had just pulled into the garage) or she was bringing them from the backyard through the garage into the house and when they spotted us, they bolted.  She had to kick off her shoes and run across the street to grab both of them by the collars.  She apologized and asked if I was ok; I said yes and told her to take her dogs back to her house while MudLynn and I stood rooted to the spot in the hope that she would be able to control her dogs.  That was really scary, thank goodness MudLynn was ok and that one of them didn't bite me.  I think it was more posturing than actual attacking because MudLynn didn't have any injuries but I will be checking into some options for things to carry with me in case anything like this ever happens again.  The thought of a stick doesn't thrill me; some of my friends recommended bear spray which must be like pepper spray for animals?

On Friday, the announcement for the first job opportunity closed so I am hoping to hear if I made the short list soon.  During the week, I received another announcement that was opening on Friday so I shot off an application for that one.  Fingers crossed!

Saturday was Rudolph Day and I was much more productive than I thought.  One month closer to Christmas. I was supposed to take MudLynn up to see Sophia and to meet her new roommate, Hannah, but Hannah had to go home so we'll postpone the trip until next weekend.

I hope you all have a great week!