THANK YOU FOR THE PRAYERS. We are praising God because Dorian passed us by last night and today (DOWN FROM A CATEGORY 5 TO A 2) and we had very little rain, no yard or home damage from wind. AND, we didn't lose power! There was lots of damage to the beaches and the sea turtle nests, but not to people or homes. He's riding close to the coast a he goes north, so keep praying friends. Our prayer was for him to turn east and to lose strength! Haleluyah!
My dear husband and our son-in-love worked like Turks to get ready for the storm. We couldn't have done it without dear William. After William finished boarding up their house and helping his parents, he came to help Jem with the new generator. They worked for hours on it setting it up, adding oil, and letting it run. Then when it was time to drain the oil, the nut where the oil drains would not come off because the tool to release it was not in the box. They tried all of Jem's tools and asked a neighbor if he had one -- but no luck. William finally found a tool somewhere, somehow and they got it done!!
I was amazed at the endurance and strength of my sweet husband - who just turned seventy-three. He worked from morning till night on Monday boarding up and moving plants and moving the stuff on the patio to the shed. At the end of the day, his poor feet had huge blisters. But, even as tired as he was, he saw our neighbor struggling to move something and went across the street to offer his help. He's a hard-working man and I admire him so much. He never gives up and never gives in until the jobs is done -- and done well. All of this is done with NO complaining. What a man! Can you tell I love him? I love my son-in-love, too. Men like those two are very rare and I'm thankful for them both.
We started preparing for Dorian last Wednesday - that's a whole week, Gail-Friends! While organizing the shed and cleaning off the patio, I realized we still have too much STUFF! This, after cleaning out and donating three van loads of STUFF before, during, and after the garage re-do. So, the van is filling up once again. We both worked hard getting ready in the house and the yard, and I told Jem, "This is why old people move to condos."
God was so good to us in not letting anything happen to us or our neighbors and we give him all the praise and thanks.
The weatherman is talking today about more storms in the Atlantic that could be headed our way. I told him, "Shut your mouth!" (Yes, I talk to the TV.) Those memories of three back-to-back hurricanes in 2004 are still very fresh! It could happen, Gail-Friends, so,we came through Dorian with resolve to do two things:
1. To talk to our neighbor about cutting down the three pine trees adjacent to our front yard, one of which leans toward Golden Cottage. That was our biggest concern.
2. To purchase storm shutters that stay on the windows all the time. Putting plywood up is a tough job.
While we were waiting for the storm to arrive and then move north, I was struck by a burst of energy and a burning desire for ORDER!!! I cleaned cabinets and closets like a mad woman. I organized my office files and decades of family photographs, records, and cassette tapes. So, thanks to Dorian, I'm super organized.
I also decided to color my hair and give myself RED highlights. Then I decided to cut it. All of this was NOT a good idea, so I'm not sharing any pictures. My daughter, Amanda, is going to try to help me tomorrow.
While we waited (and listened to the weather people go on and on) I went through recipes and found a wonderful treat I have to share with you. During hurricanes in the past, I ate crunchy junk food and chocolate -- but not this year! I loaded up with raw veggies with hummus, triple zero yogurt, and THIS Trim Healthy Mama treat:
Easy-Peasy to make, too!
the picture and recipe makes seven large marble sized truffles
TWO MINUTE CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES from My Montana Kitchen
I'm telling you, Gail-Friends, I could kiss the feet of this woman. Jem ate Snickers and I ate these wonderful treats, which are sugar-free, low-carb, gluten-free, dairy-free, keto, and THM-S. You have to visit her blog because she has tons of good, healthy recipes. The blog post has the ingredients and instructions and, like she said in her post, don't be ashamed if you eat it with a spoon right out of the bowl. I asked Jem if he'd like to try it and he loved it. So, I made a double batch the next day. (The Trim Healthy Mama books are available on their website. They also have a Facebook group that's very helpful.)
I was determined to stay on track with my health goals through the hurricane and I praise Hashem for giving me the strength to eat right. I've lost sixteen pounds over the past four months and I feel fabulous! I've been exercising four or five days a week, too. I do two pool days and two gym days weekly, and then walk on the weekend. I've been working with a personal trainer and she has taught me so much. I told Jem I think I'm getting addicted to exercise because I really missed going over the past week. I still haven't experienced those endorphins people talk about, though.
Please continue to pray for those in the path of Dorian as he heads north. Let's just pray he heads further east and fizzles out completely. And pray for those in the Bahamas,too. The reports are horrific - people were killed and thousands of homes are completely destroyed. They're going to need lots of help, so let's pray about what we can do to assist them.
Blessings and have a good week. Let me know if I can pray for you.
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