Gaslight ~ A Movie or Reality

Dear Doctor,

There are strange things happening in Chez Thomas.  When I describe them to you, I wonder what reaction you will take ~ reality or Gaslighting.

In case you don't understand the term "Gaslighting" please watch the movie Gaslight.  It stars Ingrid Bergman and Charles Boyer.  It is a great movie about a man trying to prove his wife is crazy, and she isn't.  So he does things in the house and denies they happened.

Why this topic?  This morning, I go into Mom's room to get her up.  Her brown reclining chair is raised up and tilting forward and Mom swears the chair did it on its own AND she could not make it go back down.  

Then, in the bathroom, I find this container of Rose talcum powder:

I ask her about it, and she tells me she couldn't find any other powder.  Never mind the 2 bottles of Gold Bond medicated powder on the counter.  Where did this come from?  I have asked her again and again to not use anything other that Dove for Sensitive skin and Gold Bond.  I buy Dove and Gold Bond.

I have been thru her things and gotten rid of all that could cause a reaction to her skin.  And still things turn up.  

In the past, she was using Lamisile because "a doctor" told her to use it.  I did research and it was recommended to use Gold Bond medicated powder and the Gold Bond did heal the areas up.  Mom was asked to not use Lamisile anymore.

Guess what arrived in the mail yesterday FROM ENGLAND!  Yep, a small tube of Lamisile.

So I ask:  who is gaslighting who?

Much love,
Leslie

Merry Christmas 2016

I am writing this while in a deep coma after Christmas Brunch at Jim and Lori's house.  I hope I am coherent.

First, pictures of Lori's Christmas:

Looking out the front door.

Lori's tree

The table with Mom and JJ.

Lori made this ~ I think it is adorable, I love it!

Jesse and Sam

Jim and his AMAZING french toast!

No words are really needed.

Amy in her food coma

The dogs have had it.

Happy Birthday to Loki!!!

I am getting ready to feed the dogs and then hopefully a nap ~ before we do this all again at Nana's.  

Lori reminded me that they used to do this every year and then drive up to Maryland and do it again!  OMG!!!!!!!

Fun present this year ~ Nancy sent us Nasty Women Unite mugs and when buying the mugs a donation was made to Planned Parenthood in Donald Trump's name.  Ha Ha Ha!!!

Nice present this year was the gifts from Tiffany ~ bracelets for all the girls and T & Co. money clips for the guys that somehow translated to TACO.  We are not right.

Anyway, I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas ~ we certainly did!

Love to all,
Leslie

I Just Need a Nap....

Wow ~ it seemed like I has so much time and wham, Christmas will be here in two days!  I am ready, finally.

Of course, this morning, the fiber optic topiary that Mom and I found in Davidsonville several years ago decided that it was going to stop this morning.  I took it apart last year and replaced the light and this year the motor would get stuck.  I unstuck it twice, but now, the third time has got me worried that it will burn the motor out when we are not around.  So, I took it down and had to get another arrangement for the front table.  And here it is:

It is a flocked Christmas tree that I put lights and berries on.  Amy likes it better that the fiber optic topiary, and so do I.

Tomorrow I  make the creme cheese pie and ambrosia.

I hope everyone has the merriest of Christmases!

Love, Leslie

Ho Ho Ho

Got the Williams Christmas card and the picture is terrific!  I couldn't figure it out ~ I knew they hadn't been to Europe and they were holding something that looked like wands or thin cigars.  I had to ask.  Harry Potter World.  Great picture!!!

And in the same note, I took a photo of Amy as she was working tonight:

She thinks she looks like the Emperor in Star Wars.  It just makes me laugh.

And, here is my table for Christmas Eve dinner:

Much love,
Leslie

More Holiday Images

Lori sent this photo last night.  I would have posted it, but I could not find my mouse.  Where was it?  Under my cookbook.  

Jesse and Leah

I have a gingerbread house ~ I should bring it out.  I don't think I will wear a Christmas sweater to decorate the house though.  Maybe.

Nothing fancy ~ just lots of butter and sugar ~ next ginger cookies.

Five more days until Christmas.  

I have successfully stashed a hidden pile of candy behind this Christmas scene and it keeps getting larger, not smaller.

Much love,
Leslie

Really Want to Take A Nap

Here it is, 8:45am in cold Durham, NC.  Of course, it is bitterly cold everywhere with lots of snow.  We have a thin sheet of ice that supposedly will be melted in the next 15 minutes.

I have all my baking supplies on the counter.  I have tremendous plans for biscotti, cut-out sugar cookies and ginger cookies that Amy and Mom like. I have the bins and plates for the cookies, I just need some energy.

Here are cookies that Carole has ALREADY made:

They look fabulous!  And delicious.

And, check out the wrappings on Amazon wrapped presents.  I like them.

Which reminds me, I have some wrapping to do.  I did get the boxes out for Mom and I hope everyone has received their boxes.  

Ok, I really want to take a nap ~ but there are things to do that luckily do not have anything to do with lights.

Love,
Leslie

Finally Done With the Lights!

I am finally done with the lights ~ I put more lights on our Charlie Brown tree and I put a string of lights on the buffet in the dining room.  And a wreath in my window.  

I am pooped.

And on the decorating side, Zoe sent some photos of her floor in her dorm.  I love the creativity and the use of lights!  Why didn't we ever decorate our dorms?

I am pooped.  
As Scarlett said "tomorrow is another day".

Love, Leslie

Lights, Lights and More Lights

I did get my Charlie Brown Christmas tree ~ and have it in the front.  I got the lights on it:

it is on the right.  And of course, Bennett opened the door so he could be in the picture.
Not to stop there, I put lights in Mom's room (and yes they are LED).

And they are on a timer.  

And here is the beginning of the candy and treat stash.  Ho Ho Ho!

Love,
Leslie

Merry Christmas to Amy!!!

Amy just got back from the barn and announced that Jake is sound!!!! And, she says it is the best Christmas present she could get.

Love,
Leslie

Christmas At Nancy and Drew's

When Jim and I drove up to Nancy's house, the first thing we noticed were all the lights!  Drew put lights on the bushes, but for Nancy's birthday present, he had Homestead Gardens put lights in the tree right in front.  Beautiful!!!!!

A Pokemon tree

The den

Christmas soap in the bathroom

No explanation needed

Even the upstairs hallway is decorated.

There are even Nutcrackers over the refridgerator.

Almost life sized in the kitchen.

The Charlie Brown tree in Zoe's room.

Zoe's Carnegie Mellon id picture.

Jim is thrilled that Navy did not win and he did collect his $20.00 from Amy.

Again, Nancy's house is gorgeous and she and Drew cooked for us and it was delicious. We had such a good time and it was an easy drive.  So, this trip could happen again!!!
Love, Leslie

Decking the Halls....

I got a good start today and things are looking festive:

I am even listening to Christmas music!!!

This tree is stashed in the corner of the kitchen. 

I have a bunch of plaid bows made and they were right out in the open and now ~ Gone.  I wonder where they are?  Oh well.

Time to relax.

Love, 
Leslie

Okay, Happy Holidays....

First off, I FINALLY tripped over Mom's walker and went flat.  Somehow I missed the corner of her table, so luckily I am alright.  

I have started working on Christmas:

My supervisors ~ they come cheap ~ a few treats here and there and they are happy.

My Christmas cactus is blooming.

This is my new tree ~ LOVE it!!

Wreath in the front.

I could not get a wreath on the front of the house last year because of the brick but this year I had an idea!  I would get one of those Shepard's crook things that you hang baskets on. BUT, when I went to Home Depot, they were not tall enough.  But I saw the trellis things and thought that might work.

I got it home, boo hiss, still not tall enough ~ but I moved the big planters behind the bench and stuck the trellis in ~ one leg in one planter and one leg in the other planter and It Worked!!!

Now all I need is weather proof red ribbon and I am in business.  The ribbon might show up in one of the boxes.

Today, mantels and indoor wreaths.  And try not to trip over anything!!!!!

Love,
Leslie

Speeding Tickets and Arrest Warrants

A fair warning to anyone who reads this blog.....do not speed in the great Commonwealth of Virginia.  

On my trip to see Andy make Captain with Lori as my co-pilot, I was stopped by a Virginia State Trooper on Route 58.  I was surprised that we were stopped, because Lori's words to me as she buckled her seatbelt were:  "Don't make my foot move!"  And her foot never moved!

It was a beautiful clear day.  Of course it was a holiday weekend and we did notice the HUGE police presence on Route 58.  The speed limit jumped from 35 to 45 to 60 to 55 and somehow I missed a return to 55.  So imagine my surprise with the blue lights. 

70 in a 55.  How precise.

So today, I went to Emporia, VA for my 11am date with a docket.  I arrived at 10am.  Was greeted with a sign that said No phones, no purses, no guns, no knives.  Ok, back to the car. 

Back into the courthouse.  There were quite a bunch of us waiting for the courtroom. Evidently, the 9am docket was running a little long.  The 9am docket ran to 12:30pm and a deputy came out to tell us that there was going to be a break for lunch and that "we might get in by 1:30pm".

There was no place to go, so I waited.  We were allowed in the courtroom by 1:45pm.  Court started at 2pm.  The first defendent wanted his case dismissed because the trooper had written down the wrong day on his ticket.  There were 40 of us there and this was the first case.  I could see that this was not going to be fast.

His case was not dismissed.  And, the docket was going alphabetically, not how we signed in when we arrived for our original 11 am docket.  Where am I?  Almost dead last.

I was finally up at 3:15pm and I pled "no contest".  Got out to the clerk's office to pay and found the same people in front of me in court, in front of me to pay.  There was one clerk. Of course there was only one.  

I got out of there at 4:10pm.  I cannot believe that no one fussed or created more of a problem during this process.  Oh there was one guy who thought he had no fine ~ the judge really didn't announce any fines, the clerk told us when we approached to get our copy of the decision. He was rather surprised his fine was $350.00.  Mine was a surprised $191.00 but no points.  So a win.  I paid my fine, unlike the guy ahead of me.

I get home at 5:30 and told Mom all about it.  And Mom asks me if I remember when Dad got phone call saying there was a warrant for his arrest for an unpaid ticket.  No, I don't remember this.  Do you?  Besides, I do not think you would get a telephone call about an arrest warrant.  I think they knock on the door ~ loudly.

I remember when Dad got stopped on 50 for an out of date registration and the Trooper knew Dad was the President of MADD, so he gave Dad a warning and told him to take care of the registration quickly.  So Dad runs down to the DMV (which is never fast) got to a clerk and was told he could not get the registration because Mom had several unpaid parking tickets.  So, he had to go to the Annapolis Police Station and pay the fines, then go back to the DMV.  And he didn't even yell when he got home.  He said that it took so long that he got over it.   Huh.

Anyway, the moral of the story?  Stay out of Virginia.

Love, Leslie

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

I was the first one up this morning and it is amazing how quiet the house is when there are guests and no one is up yet.

I have the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade on television, it is a bit drizzly here and cool.  

Amy's protest against the peanut M&M's ~ NO MORE she cried!

Breakfast and watching the Macy's Thanksgiving parade.

Our door decoration and as I took the picture, Bennett nudged the door open and Snoopy was right behind him!

Turkey pillow.

My favorite ~ a caramel Caroline's cake ~ delicious!!!

Apple crumble pie ~ I made this including the homemade cinnamon spice crust.

Breakfast is over, everyone is up.  Mike had to go and find a charger for his phone, it is of course a SAMSUNG and we didn't have one.  I sent him to Walgreens ~ he went to WALMART, which is no longer in Durham.  I wondered why he was gone so long.

Well, time to get ready for the onslaught, rather festivities!

Love,
Leslie