spring giveaway!

To celebrate the first day of spring, and for something fun in these trying times, I'm doing a giveaway!

The winner of the drawing will receive two scrubber sponges and a Mrs. Meyer's hand soap and dish soap in your choice of scent: fresh cut grass, lilac, mint, or rose. Click here to view the items. Every Mrs. Meyer's product I've tried smells lovely!

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment below. If you are unable to comment, text me and I will enter your name. The giveaway will be open until 5:00 pm on Sunday, March 22, after which the winner will be announced!

Also, if you are interested in shopping the website where I'm getting these products, contact me and I can send you a referral link that gets you FREE items and FREE shipping on your first order! 😊

joy in the time of coronavirus

Maybe we're tired of hearing about COVID-19 by now, but I think we've all been affected by it. It's hard to believe how quickly things can change.

Hopefully we have not succumbed to worry and fear during this time. With the absence of school, social life, and work (for some), we can find joy in simple things like playing games, reading a good book, or taking a bike ride. I find nature very calming at any time, and with all the upheaval going on in the world right now, it seems even more peaceful. Start taking notice of all the changes taking place as spring arrives. Here in Pennsylvania, I've heard the first spring peepers, seen cherry trees in full bloom, and watched daffodils poke up through the soil and spread their sunshiny cheer. It seems people are spending more time outdoors than usual during this period of social distancing. While walking the Union Canal trail today I saw more kids and parents out than I normally see. Cliff drove by a family picking up trash along one of our local roads, which I think is a FABULOUS idea!

Maybe it's easy for me to sound upbeat because my daily life has not been affected too much. My occupation certainly gives me job security during a health crisis. There are so many changes, preparations, and regulations being put into place at the hospital that I might write a whole blog on that. If I didn't have a full-time job I think I'd have more time to worry, especially since Cliff is working very limited hours and there are bills to pay.

I was getting a little worried we might run out of toilet paper since I only have one extra pack (I thought) and every store I've been to lately has been sold out. Then I discovered I still have a gigantic 40 roll pack and my mind was put at ease! 😅 I'm rather paranoid of running out of TP!

There's still so much beauty in the world. Let's leave the scary what-if's behind and focus on the good!

green velvet cake

Since St. Patrick's day is tomorrow, I'm sharing a recipe I made for Cliff's birthday, which we celebrated tonight. If you're quarantined at home with the kids and want to try something different, here you go! This cake uses basic ingredients except for the food coloring. For locals, I believe Echo Hill sells single vials of food coloring, also Walmart has single bottles of green color at this time of year. You could also use the more concentrated coloring, but much less than the thin kind. Red velvet cake is a favorite of ours, and this is the same recipe. You can make this into cupcakes as well.

Green Velvet Cake

1 cup buttermilk

1¼ cup oil

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. vinegar

1 - 2 Tbsp. green food coloring
(Depends how green you want it. I did 1½ Tbsp.)
2½ cups flour
1 ½ cups sugar
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cocoa

Mix liquid ingredients except food coloring. Beat two minutes. Add food coloring and gently mix to avoid splattering. Add dry ingredients and beat two more minutes. Pour into a greased sheet cake pan and bake at 350° 15 - 16 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool and frost with cream cheese icing.

Cream cheese icing

4 oz. cream cheese, softened
¼ cup butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
2 - 3 Tbsp. milk

Beat softened butter and cream cheese together. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and enough milk to achieve a spreadable consistency (not too thin).

For extra decoration, sprinkle with green sugar or whatever sprinkles you like!

the world turned upside down

According to legend, the British army sang "The World Turned Upside Down" when they surrendered to General Washington at Yorktown in 1781. Each stanza of the song ends with Yet let's be content, and the times lament, you see the world turn'd upside down.

Has COVID-19 turned our world upside down? If you've gone grocery shopping or read any news this week, it looks like people are preparing for the apocalypse. Personally, I just can't get worried about it. It is necessary to take precautions (hand washing, hand washing, hand washing!) but healthy people shouldn't fear this virus. As with the flu, it's the elderly and immunocompromised who are at the greatest risk. For a little perspective, look at these facts: the CDC estimates 22,000 people have died from the flu this season, and so far there's been around 40 deaths in the United States from COVID-19.

At work, all our masks have been locked up in the safe. We use masks, gowns, gloves, and sterile alcohol on a daily basis for compounding sterile products. We have enough supply for a limited time, but are having a hard time getting more of these necessary supplies. The hospital has established a command center and town hall meetings are being held. In the event we have cases of COVID-19, an empty wing of the hospital has been set aside to keep those patients in isolation. Even though we are taking all precautions, I haven't seen anyone become panicked about the situation.

I keep thinking this feels like the end of the world. I have seen nothing like this in my short life (with the possible exception of Y2K). It makes me wonder, would all this preparation be happening if it was announced Jesus will return sometime next week? Somehow I think not.

Avoiding media, if possible, would be a good idea. Making lists of things we are thankful for, playing with children, cuddling a baby, or taking a walk in the fresh air are all ways to lessen the tension. Most of all,

STAY CALM

WASH YOUR HANDS

telling the truth

Tonight I'm "living the dream." At home on a Friday night sitting by a warm crackling fire, with the choice to read, set puzzle, or blog. Nothing could be more comfortable for an introvert.

Life has been fairly uneventful the past few weeks, which is actually a blessing, but doesn't generate much writing inspiration. Something did happen today that I thought I'd write about. To tell what happened, I first need to give some background information.

We pharmacy technicians are scheduled to do a nursing unit review once a month. Each tech has a specific area assigned to them with a checklist of tasks. Every nursing floor has two medication rooms and a supply room. Most of the nursing unit review is focused on these areas. Supply rooms have hundreds of items, such as lab tubes, IV supplies, toiletries, dressings and bandages, and other nursing necessities. Medication rooms each have a Pyxis machine where drugs are dispensed and cabinets stocked with supplies used for giving meds, such as needles and syringes. We go through all these items, looking for any expired products. The Pyxis machine needs to be cleaned and code carts opened and searched for expired items. We also randomly check approximately 4 patients to make sure IV tubings are tagged properly and antibiotics and other drugs given on time. 

The nursing unit assigned to me is one of the smaller ones, so I volunteered to take on another one when someone recently quit. February was the first time I did the new unit, and it took me quite a long time since it's one of the messiest and I did some extra cleaning. We are only scheduled one day to do our review, so I ended up getting only one of my two nursing units done. Today our lead technician asked me if I had done my second unit, and when I told her I hadn't, she said, "We're just going to make it look like you did and fill out the paper." When she brought me the paper to sign I said I couldn't do that because I felt like it was lying. By her reaction, I couldn't quite tell what she was thinking but it seemed she was slightly disgusted. She said, "Can you do it today then? How long do you think it will take?" It was around 11:30, I hadn't had lunch yet, and was only working till 3:30.  I told her I could probably do it 1-2 hours, and thankfully there were enough other techs working that someone could take over what I was doing in the pharmacy. 

I didn't have much time to think of how to respond in this situation, and it was my superior asking me to falsify information, so I wasn't quite sure at first what to do. When she wanted me to sign the paper though, it became quite clear to me I couldn't go along with it. There's been other times when I wondered if I had been completely honest, or just being tormented with doubt. I'm glad it was so obviously wrong to me this time. 

winter walk

A couple times this winter I've went on a walk after work at a nearby park. I knew this park was close by, but didn't realize how lovely and historic a location it was!

Click picture to enlarge and zoom in

I begin at Berks County Heritage Center (#3 on above map), and walk along the Union Canal Trail past Red Bridge and Gring's Mill (#5, 6, 8). All along the path, Tulpehocken Creek gurgles by.

Tulpehocken Creek along Union Canal Trail

Red Bridge, spanning Tulpehocken Creek 

Originally known as Wertz's Bridge, Red Bridge was built in 1867 and is the longest covered bridge in Pennsylvania. 

Gring's Mill and Farmhouse

The grist mill was built in 1811 and farmhouse in 1831. To reach the mill and farmstead from across the creek, a bridge is built over a small dam. Stopping to watch and listen to the rushing water is a must!

Gring's Mill bridge and dam

This stone house adjoins the bridge and dam

Scott Althouse, a dye manufacturer, built the dam and bridge around 1931 to create direct electricity used in a paint making process.

Remains of the Union Canal

I only learned this today, but remnants of the Union Canal can be seen alongside Tulpehocken Creek. At one time, this canal ran 82 miles, connecting the Schuylkill and Susquehanna rivers. Construction began in 1792 during George Washington's presidency. The canal was used to transport coal and lumber to Philadelphia until the 1880's. Wow! To hear the stories those trees and canal banks could tell of days gone by!

What a beautiful place to take in the beauty of nature! Even though the trees are bare and it was a biting cold day, the loveliness was still there. My walk also took me over this cantilever footbridge.

The very best part of this winter walk was when I happened to see a patch of small bright yellow flowers along the trail. They weren't crocuses, and I don't remember seeing anything like them before. It felt like a new discovery! How could anything so brilliant be blooming on this bitterly cold day? I found out they're called winter aconite, and are part of the buttercup family.

When I started looking, I saw they were all along the trail in patches of woods where the sun shone through. These tiny bloomers totally made my day!

I had almost convinced myself I was too tired to go on a walk, but am so glad I didn't skip it. Hopefully I'll remember that next time! I can't wait to see how the trail changes as spring comes. If it's beautiful now, how gorgeous will it be then??

winter mood

It's been too long since I've blogged. Maybe it's the winter blues, or the fact that I was sick for two solid weeks, or because I've been spending most of my spare time working on puzzles. Somehow there hasn't been an inspiration or topic to write about. So I'll just write what comes to me now.

It has been such a gray, dreary winter. There hasn't been any snow to speak of, neither has it been bitter cold. It's just day after day of clouds and weak light. There was one day last week of clear blue skies and sunshine that reminded me again how glorious a sunny day is. On the positive side, I spend most of my days inside with no windows anyway, which is actually more of a trial when it's a beautiful day. Winter has its blessings, the greatest of which is evenings spent working on a puzzle in a warm basement with the fire going. I've been working on a 2000 piece for the last while. Usually I don't save them, but this one is pretty magnificent, so I'm thinking about gluing it together when I'm done.

A couple weeks ago I bought an Instant Pot and have been trying it out. There was one recipe I threw away, but otherwise everything I've tried has turned out well. It seems like you're kind of limited to soups, meats, or goulash though. Those casserole type dishes might taste ok, but they just look sloppy. If you have any great recipes to share, let me know!

I'm enjoying this "home season" and choose to focus on that instead of the bleakness of winter. Spring will be here before we know it!

To my students

To the students who were in my classroom between 2013 - 2016:

I just want to give you a glimpse of the thoughts I've been having. In some ways it seems like yesterday we were doing algebra on the chalkboard, having story time, and so much more in the 170 days (or more) you and I spent in the classroom. You may not remember it as clearly as I do, but those were some of the best days of my life. The passing of time makes all the good times stand out, but I acknowledge there were tough times too. Even though I tried my best, I made mistakes and failed. Hopefully I didn't cause any lasting damage.

Now you are all part of the youth group, and when I see you singing in front of church, or giving your testimony during revivals, I am filled with admiration. Every one of you has grown into a more mature, polished version of the younger you who sat in my classroom. It's so amazing to see the beautiful person you have become! I'm so proud of you.

Building relationships with my students didn't always come easy, but I want you to know I loved being your teacher. You might not have loved being my student, and that's ok! It doesn't change the fact that you will always be one of "my kids."

Love,

Miss Smith

to a new year

I love the feeling of a fresh start at the beginning of a new year. Who knows what might happen this year? That thought could be exciting or scary. 2020 is the beginning of a new decade and a leap year!

Although I'm not too good at keeping New Year's resolutions (ok, I'm terrible at it), I still like to reflect on the past year and dream of improving myself. It frustrates me that I can visualize something but really struggle to enact those good intentions. Any real advice on how to stay motivated and make new habits?

When looking ahead at a whole new year, it seems long and full of potential. But the days, weeks, and months fly by so fast. I find myself wondering if I'm doing anything worthwhile with my life. I'll turn 35 this year, and I would've thought at this point I'd have it figured out!

To start off the new year, I'll enjoy mom's pork and sauerkraut. Can't wait!

Happy New Year! 

best books 2019

Here's my list of favorites from the books I read this year. On a scale of 1 - 5, I'd rate most of these as a 4. I might've already mentioned some of these books in previous posts, but since they're ones I read this year, I'll mention them again.

Nonfiction: 

3 out of 4 of my top nonfiction books happen to be WWII escape stories. I love history, and it seems like so many of the books I read come from that time frame.

Destiny of the Republic
- Candice Millard
My review: I knew next to nothing about President James A. Garfield, and this book made him come alive. The assassination attempt and efforts to save his life especially interested me. The ignorance and incompetence of the doctor who took charge of his case made me angry! Garfield's patience during the suffering he endured was outstanding. He was a truly remarkable man.

The Long Walk
- Slavomir Rawicz
From goodreads: The harrowing true tale of seven escaped Soviet prisoners who desperately marched out of Siberia through China, the Gobi Desert, Tibet, and over the Himalayas to British India.
My review: An astonishing story of escape and survival. I rated this one 5 stars.

We Die Alone
- David Howarth
My review: This story of one man's escape from the Nazis during a battle in Norway and his subsequent attempts to reach Sweden is almost unbelievable. Battling exposure, frostbite, and starvation, Jan Baalsrud survived unimaginable conditions with the help of some villagers. Another 5 star book - it's a must read.

The Great Escape
- Paul Brickhill
My review: This book details the incredibly organized escape of 76 POW's from a German prison camp. The project required intense effort involving hundreds of prisoners, one of whom is the author. Unfortunately, the ending is not a happy one.


Historical fiction:

America's First Daughter
- Stephanie Dray & Laura Kamoie
My review: This novel draws from letters and original sources to tell the story of Thomas Jefferson's oldest daughter, Martha Jefferson Randolph. It's a long book but very interesting! I learned more about Thomas Jefferson as well.

The Alice Network 
- Kate Quinn
My review: I've read many historical fiction novels set during WWII, but this one stands out. There are two storylines spanning both world wars. One is the story of a female spy during the Great War, and thirty years later an American college girl searching for her cousin in the aftermath of WWII.

Fiction:

These are the kinds of books I read for pleasure or as an escape. Nothing too remarkable or deep here!

The Secret Life of Bees
- Sue Monk Kidd
My review: Set in South Carolina in 1964, this book tells the story of 14-year-old Lily Owens, a white girl taken in by a trio of black beekeeping sisters. I fell in love with the characters and the tone of this book. It's my favorite out of the three.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine
- Gail Honeyman
From goodreads: Meet Eleanor Oliphant: she struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she’s thinking. Nothing is missing in her carefully timetabled life of avoiding unnecessary human contact, where weekends are punctuated by frozen pizza, vodka, and phone chats with Mummy.
My review: I found this book funny in a sad way. The twist at the end was rather surprising.

Where the Crawdads Sing
- Delia Owens
From goodreads: For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand.
My review: A tale of love, murder, and mystery. Another surprise ending.


*Sometimes I get asked for book recommendations for teenagers or young adults. I wouldn't necessarily suggest any of these books for children, as they contain adult language, murder, romance, etc. I am working on a blog of book recommendations appropriate for young adults.

Best of 2019

It's always fun to reflect over the past year as we look forward to the beginning of a new year. Here's a few of the highlights from 2019. I've already blogged about most of these activities, so I won't go into too much detail. If you want to read more about it, I'll include a link to those blogs in the heading.

Kitchen facelift
Tearing off wallpaper, repainting, and putting up shiplap took a long time, but I love the new look!

Visiting my sister in her Kansas home
I'm so glad we made it a priority to visit Derek & Camille this spring, especially since they no longer live in Kansas! I got to see their newlywed house and help do some landscaping. We made good memories.

Summertime  
I don't have to say more!

Helping Chad & Keela move
It worked out for Cliff and I to spend a few days in Ohio helping Chad's move into their new house. It was a big job, but we had fun doing it!

Anniversary trip to Boston
We celebrated 15 years with a weekend trip to Boston, a place I'd always wanted to go. Whale watching and lounging at Castle Island looking over the Harbor were the best parts of the trip.

Not a highlight: Shelby & Kait moved to Tennessee 
This was an unhappy event. We loved having Shelby's live a few yards down the road from us and miss hanging out with them.

Swarey reunion
We waited three years for this! Good times.

Derek & Camille moved to Pennsylvania!
So nice to have a sister living near me.😍

Christmas in the Smokies
This is one I haven't blogged about, so maybe I'll go into a little more detail. We met Shelby & Kait in the Smokies for 4 nights and 3 days this past week. We rented a cabin high up in the mountains overlooking Pigeon Forge. (Here's a link to the place we stayed.) We did some touristy things, went to Cade's Cove, and ate at many delicious restaurants. Apparently Christmas is a popular time to visit the Smokies, because traffic was terrible and everything was packed. We still had a great time, though! It was a relaxing way to spend Christmas.

Other events
Cliff left his job at Spray Foam Insulation Services and went back to Bowers Sales & Rentals. He's happy there.

All in all, it was a good year. I'm very happy to be at the point in my job where I'm not new anymore and understand what's expected of me.

I thought of including my favorite books from this year but it looks like that will have to be a blog by itself!

Christmas stories

Today I read two short Christmas stories that made my day off even better! A new one for me was The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. It's a great story! Kid's books are the best.

The other book was The Christmas Box by Richard Paul Evans. I think I read it many years ago but had forgotten it.

I have to say, my all-time favorite is still A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. I'm having fun telling the story through WhatsApp statuses this year.😄 My illustrated copy is displayed and referenced every year.

I want to give a shout-out to my 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teacher Mrs. Schmidt for instilling in me a love for this book. She'd read it every year in her incredible way. I think it's probably safe to say that her many students remember it to this day!

As a side note, last year I found this wonderful wooden four piece Christmas Carol series at an antique store. It's one of those things that grabbed me instantly and I knew they belonged to me.

Scrooge and Marley

Scrooge's flat

Fezziwig Warehouse 

Cratchit's house

Back to Christmas stories. Another classic favorite is O. Henry's The Gift of the Magi.

Skipping Christmas by John Grisham is a humorous Christmas story.

Any more Christmas books I should read?

work, food, and Christmas plans

My weekend at work 

I was ready to collapse after working Saturday and Sunday. Weekends can be brutal because there's only a few people working and sometimes the workload is the same as a weekday. This weekend there were only 2 pharmacists and 2 technicians. I was the only one making all the IV's, which the blister on my hand from pulling syringes can verify. Wintertime is our busy season. There's a large amount of IV antibiotics being used, and on Saturday I had to batch a lot of them (106 bags) to get us through the weekend. In addition, there were several CCU patients who were on IV sedatives, insulin drips, vasopressors, and end-of-life pain management. My other weekend responsibilities include cleaning all the hoods, (where we do the sterile compounding - for more details see this blog) inventory of our stock of IV antibiotics  and making sure there are enough to last 24 hours, watching the label printers and filling orders, and 3 cartfills (large batches of IV's that print every day). I ended up staying 45 minutes late both Saturday and Sunday to get somewhat caught up. I keep thinking of a Jordan B. Peterson podcast I listened to where he said, "The bulk of the work is done by a small minority of the people. The square root of the number of people who are doing the job do half the work. So if there's 10 people, 3 do half the work. For 100 people, 10 do half the work." Using that formula, if there's 4 people, 2 are doing half the work. That seems about right as it relates to my job! I certainly felt like I did the work of two people. Thankfully I'm off today so I can recover.

Easy, delicious treats
Someone brought these tasty pretzel M&M hugs to our Swarey reunion and I wanted to make a batch for the holidays.

Mariah and Allie came over Friday evening while Charles and SaraBeth went caroling, and we made these together. It's a perfect project for little helpers! The combination of sweet and salty hits the spot. Plus, they're pretty and so easy to make! Click here for the instructions.

Christmas preparations 
It's hard to believe Christmas is only 9 days away! I guess Christmas cards and letters are a thing of the past for me. It looks like a few people still have me on their list though, as I've received 3 cards. My family isn't getting together this year. Some have other plans, so Shelby's and we decided to meet in the Smokies for a few days. I worked last Christmas so was able to get off this year, and managed to get a few extra days between Christmas and New Year's. Time off during the holidays is very limited, so I figured we should do something since I was lucky enough to get it this year! A vacation in the Smokies will be perfect.

and the winner is...

Tina Koehn

won the giveaway! Each person's name was written on a piece of paper and carefully mixed up before I closed my eyes and picked. Tina told me she couldn't decide which item to choose, so I'm still considering which one to order. 

If anyone is interested, the signs can be purchased on Etsy from Misty Hollow Product Co, one of my favorite small businesses. I've ordered custom signs several times and been very happy with each one. This one is on my mantle right now.

Thanks to all who participated in the giveaway! It was so much fun I might have to do it again sometime!

Giveaway!!

It's been almost a year since I started blogging. To celebrate, I'm doing a giveaway! The winner will be able to choose between this Katie Daisy 2020 planner

Or your choice of one of these adorable mini wood beverage signs. I have the "hot tea" sign and love it!

To be entered in the drawing, comment below on what you would pick if you are the winner. The drawing will be done on Sunday evening, December 15.

Blogging has opened up a new outlet I never imagined I'd enjoy. This past year has been enriched because of it!