Category Archives: ikea

Reorganizing for one.

Posted in California, cooking, Death, decluttering, husband, ikea, Uncategorized by

Actually, it is my daughter and myself here but the reorganizing is really for me without my husband.

I’ve been reorganizing his office area where he had his computer, files etc.

I’ve mostly cleared out B’s desk area and shelves. I’m leaving some things of his there as mementos. On the wall are some of his oldest Dylan records he had as a teenager. Some on Dylan’s first albums. The next step is to take the desk out since I have my desk area in a different space. His Ikea shelves I’ll leave there as my daughter has cleaned out and painted the studiio so some odds and ends are getting placed on the shelves. ( the star war figures and some other things). But old notebooks, plus all his UCD notes etc, I’ve tossed. I’m using some Ikea white cardboard boxes to keep his favorite T shirts and hats in for now. They’re on the shelves too.

His dresser, (an older Heywood Wakefield), I mostly emptied but havent put much back in there. I have his belt buckles in a box and then some trinkets of his in another box. The kids took the stuff they wanted so really all that’s left is some odds and ends besides the important stuff. The dresser will stay where it is in the bedroom because at night when I get up I use that to lean on to feel stable before I go into the bathroom.

In reorganizing the closet, I just have my jeans and T=shirts and some sweaters hanging plus what’s left of his. I have his UNFI jackets hanging there too. I’m certainly doing a lot less laundry and that is nice in a way, sort of. B always did the laundry so I’m doing some now but mostly my daughter takes out what I put in the laundry bag every few days. Usually, we’d do laundry,(one small load), a day.

Of course, I’m organizing my weeks differently since I don’t have all his medical appointments to do. Having cancer and getting treatment is a full time job especially when things are going wrong like needing platelets and blood transfusions. So now, it’s just my appts and they are pretty low key.

I’m still organizing my swim, gym and library days though. This week is different becasue I had 2 appts and the PGE tree guys are going to be here and I’m not sure if that’s going to end up one day or two or more. Even after the tree is down, the wood reclamation guys need to come get it all. So that leaves me not able to get to the pool or gym until maybe Friday?? Next week is also off since I have the sleep apnea test and that means going to Roseville one day to pick up and then another day to drop off so that will not leave me too many choices for swimming or the gym.

Reorganizing the kitchen and food prep is also ongoing. We are just not eating the same. I’m not sure if it’s because there’s one less person or if it’s just summer blues, but meal time has been difficult. I’m actually starting a list of what we’re actually eating as some stuff has been tossed because we’re not eating it. I’ve always done menu planning ,like forever, and that has gone out the window. I still have my meal plans but am just not using them. Maybe down the road, but with just the two of us, not sure if that’s necessary. I’ve gotten rid of extra dishes, pots and bowls too because we aren’t using half of it. I’ve also reorganized pantry stuff. I’m only using two of my Far Nienete wine crates for food storage. I still need to go through and see if anything is dated or not.

Simple Sunday

Posted in books, bread, cancer, ikea by

A different morning. We went for a walk as usual but then I wanted to go to Ikea for a Hemnes that was on sale. It’s the 2 drawers one and I’ve been waiting for them to come back into stock. Plus they were 15% off so a very good deal. I plan on using this in my office area to corral odds and ends.

So there was no gym day and that’s okay. I wasn’t feeling it anyway.

This week is crazy with appts, which is my least favorite thing. But I’ll persevere through.

We’ve been watching ‘Slow Horses’ with Gary Oldman and it is sooo good. A little confusing at first but then you catch on. I just finished reading Ina Garten’s memoir and like it a lot. What a talented woman. Maybe a little over the top with a Type A personality but still I have a lot of respect for her.

I’m reading the new Thomas Perry book, ‘ Pro Bono’. Also excellent.

My son stayed overnight and did a deep clean of my car. It really needed it so I appreciate his effort.

After getting home, I started another Meyer lemon rosemary sourdough. This is a great recipe and seems to work every time.

Here’s the recipe:

88grams of starter

360 grams flour

236 grams water

11 grams salt

1 tsp yeast

Note: I think this recipe would work without the sourdough and just adjust flour and water for the 88 grams of starter and use more yeast.

Mix together to form a loose ball of dough, it will be shaggy. Let rest for 30 minutes and then start your fold and turns. Basically lifting one end of the dough over to the other side. I do this on all four sides if that makes sense. Let rest for 1 hour or so and repeat. I usually forget and just do a few more folds and turns when I remember.

Put in a bucket or bowl and refrigerate overnight. The next morning heat your oven to 475 and keep your dutch over in the oven to heat up. Then take the dough out of the bucket put on parchment paper and do a few tucks and turns( rolling the dough into a ball and turning to create some tension). Then I make a few cuts on the top and put it in the Dutch oven with the top on for 35 minutes. Take the top off and bake for another 15 or so. You can take an internal temp to check if it’s done. anywhere @ 200 degrees is right.

B is not feeling very well so I’m hoping it’s only a passing stomach thing but he’ll call down to Stanford tomorrow and explain what he’s feeling. Hopefully, it’s just a bug.

Well, back to house stuff and reading:)

Frugal Friday Things

Posted in budgets, California, camping, frugalism, ikea, travel by

Well, we didn’t go to Ikea so that saved some money. I can’t decide what exactly I want in my office area so I’ll leave it until I do. I did clean it all out and put back my office wine box( it has a lid that is hinged), my L V boxes I’m using to hold some refill items, my Mac, and my cash envelope binders. It looks better but not quite how I want it.

My only shop was Winco this week. I’m considering going to TJ’s tomorrow for some things for the Napa trip but I’ll wait and see how I feel in the morning. I considered going to the pool but I think I’ll just wait till next week after we’re back.

I stopped at Starbucks and used a gift card to buy a pound of coffee for the trailer. I didn’t even buy a coffee. I only drink plain coffee with cream but I figured I could come home and make some and save me the $3.00 for a tall drip.

After Ortho, which went fine, I came home and made pizza dough for tonight and we’ll have that with salad. Nothing fancy just cheese pizza and whatever toppings I can find to use.

I’m glad this week is over and we can look forward to just relaxing in Napa. Of course, there’s walking, Models Bakery, Rancho Gordo, and Live Fire Pizza but overall we’ll be hanging out in the RV park.

Thankful Thursday

Posted in California, Gratitude, home stuff, ikea, travel, Walking by

This has been a super busy week for me with appts. I don’t like so many appts but that’s what had to happen.

I’m thankful my macular pucker is still the same and stable(Monday’s appt).

I’m thankful that the gastro appt was fine( Tuesday’s appt) and she scheduled my overdue colonoscopy. Of course, the wait time is crazy far out but she found a cancellation in May. Oh, joy:(

Tomorrow is my ortho appt(Friday’s appt) and I’m assuming that’s all they can do?? Not sure really but I’ll find out. She mentioned the cortisone shot but I’m not sure I want to add that in.

I’m thankful swimming has gone so well. I overdid it the other day because I forgot to look at the clock and time it. But it was over 30 minutes. My knee feels a little stressed but not too bad. Today I’ll do my PT exercises.

I’m always super grateful to walk and this morning, the first after daylight savings change, and the stars were out. That’s one of my favorite things, starlight.

So far this morning, I’ve swished and swiped the bathroom, washed a few windows, cleaned my office, and moved stuff out. I’m planning an Ikea trip to get a cabinet for my office stuff so it’s not on my desk and scattered.

I’m grateful the sun is out and our temperatures are warming up.

Today, I have a phone appt with Allstate to go over our auto insurance since the premium went up $500. That’s for the exact same coverage on cars that are 10 years old and my son’s 2006 Subaru. Something is really wrong with our insurance system. Honestly, I doubt she’ll find anything to change.

One of my last vintage tablecloths. I used to have so many and now only a few have made the cut. I probably should iron it later.

Two old people!!

This was taken on the new to us trail in Roseville. I was hoping to get back there this week but with everything else, it doesn’t look likely. We leave Sunday for Napa, so that’s all the time there is.

Thankful Thursday

Posted in California, cash envelopes, cooking, decluttering, Gratitude, ikea, Walking by

Very grateful to do 1/2 mile this morning and did ok. Part of the reason is now dex is masking some knee pain but I did go to the gym yesterday and my knee was ok, not great but ok. I think I just need to scale back the swimming. Even though you’re in the water, you’re still using the leg muscles. So I did almost 40 minutes last Saturday and that'(what I think) caused the relapse. I guess if it continues, I’ll need to get the MRI and see the doctor and maybe that will be the surgery:( I’m a waiter on things so I’ll go a little while longer.

I’m grateful that my schedule isn’t fixed with anything that I have to do and I can have these down/up dex days.

I’m very glad I took all the Christmas stuff down and is all put away. There wasn’t much to declutter. I put a string of lights in the donation bag and I have two tins to give to.

I moved the plant stand from my office to the LR to put plants on. I still plan on buying the Ivar cabinet for my office, maybe next week. This is a closed cabinet with a shelf on the bottom where I plan to put my printer. It’s made of pine and I may or may not paint it white.

Tonight ,I planning on grilling some chicken and tofu and probably a salad. I do have some TJ’sfried rice I could make too. The chest freezer is emptying out nicely and it’s good to get it used down. I’ve started a stock up envelope for Costco so I can get butter, chicken, GF bread, and some other staples.

Wild California Weather or Frugal Friday

Posted in Blood test, bread, budgets, California, camping, home stuff, ikea, Myeloma, Pantry, swimming by

We are still getting clobbered. Right now it’s been raining here nonstop and there’s some wind. There are flood warnings everywhere for N Ca, specifically the Sierras and the Bay area. At this point, I’m guessing we’re canceling New Brighton because of the flood dangers in the Santa Cruz Mtns. Plus we’ll be right on the coast so I’m not too comfortable with the whole idea. Also, the day we leave it’s raining nonstop all day in Capitola. Reserving something in March is always a gamble, so we’ll be flexible. I do hate to give up the spot because it was an electric one. Oh well, that’s life.!!!

This week was busy but not too bad. I swam on Wednesday and that was lovely. I went to the gym on Tuesday and the library. We went to Costco on Thursday( yesterday), and holy cow was it busy. We didn’t have a clue as to why. It seemed just a regular Thursday. Weird. Anyway, I got lots of things to bulk up the freezer and pantry. I plan on going back in soon to get a few things more that we need like AA batteries. I didn’t want to add them to the cart yesterday.

After Costco, we went to our favorite pizza place, Celestino’s which is the closest to a NY pizza I’ve ever had out here. Although I left NY in 1970, thankfully, NY pizza has always been near and dear to me since I grew up right next to Pepe and Eddies. Now that might seem strange since I grew up on Quaker Rd in Highland Mills which back then was VERY rural. But right up the road, actually, the end of the road was this Italian family who ran the restaurant. There was the grandmother, Nonnie, Eddie, Pepe, and 2 children, Barbara and Johnny. Johnny was a few years older than me and we did play together occasionally. Anyway, their pizza was the best, ever.

We also spent money at Ikea but I brought cash for that from my ‘home’ money. The Ivar shelf is absolutely fabulous. I wish I had room for a second one. Maybe if I look at the space closer, I may be able to fit it in but that would mean using most of the wall and I’m reluctant to do that. ( at least for right now).

I should have bought another shelf and actually when I did my calculations I had the extra shelf in there but Ikea sells the Ivar as separate pieces. I had figured the 5 shelves( as shown on the website were all together but they weren’t. I got 6 shelves instead of the 7 I had planned thinking that was all I’d need but I can see I need the extra one for pint jars and half pints. I love that I can see what I have left in the canned goods and what I need to do this summer.

This is such a clever system and the total was $115. So a fabulous deal.

Today is a home day and with the rain and wind, I’m glad to be home baking and tidying things up.

Overall, an expensive week but since it’s all stuff we don’t normally do, I’m ok with it.

My labs came in with another 6pt increase. 😦 so now I’m at 36.7mg/L for kappa Light chains. It’s a bummer but as I’ve said,” your blood is your blood and it is what it is”. I did go back and looked at the graph for my increases in 2019 and they really started doubling at about 55mg/L. So in one month they went from that to almost 100. And then the next month almost to 200mg/L. So that’s what I don’t want to happen this time. The Myeloma cells are clearly on the increase and why wait till I’m at 600mg/L to start treatment. We don’t even know if Velcade will be effective since this will be my 3rd time on it. Lots of unknowns.

Frugal Friday

Posted in budgets, California, cooking, home stuff, husband, ikea, swimming, Uncategorized by

We’re finally getting sunny days. It’s still very cold(32′) this morning but at least there’s sun!!

It’s been a good week. Barclay had his port out and that all went well. It was almost 4years to the date he had it put in. Lots of blood transfusions.Whew, what a story that was. But he’s 100% better and has no lingering GVH issues.

I had my annual Well care check with my PCP. It was fine although maybe a slight waste of time as I didn’t have anything to discuss and he didn’t have a lot to say. Oh well, it’s fine. I did say I still had some pressure in my left ear and he just said to go see the ENT doctor. Er, okay then.

After that appt, I went down to the Roseville gym and then the library. I also swam on Wednesday and it was busy but I did get a lane. Near the end of my swim, some guy came and shared the lane.

This morning I’m making some sauerkraut and doing a general tidy-up. I’m making a pizza for dinner and need to defrost the dough. Last night I made my first ever meatloaf and it came out really good. I did follow a recipe and I suppose that does help. I decided to make this since I had a lb of local pork sausage I had bought at the farmers market this past summer and as part of the pantry challenge wanted to use it up. I also had some organic ground beef to use up too. I topped it with my canned BBQ sauce and it was excellent. The pantry challenge is going splendidly and I may continue into February. There are 11 more days in January so I’ll decide then. I do plan on doing an Azure order in February so that will be some pantry restocking.

I got the new Marie Kondo book from the library. What a waste. It’s mostly repeat stuff but there’s so many photos of her. It seems the book is really about how many photos can she have taken of herself.

And here’s a shot of the sauerkraut wilting and about ready to go into a jar with the fermenting lid on.

This was one head of cabbage. It does shrink down.

I haven’t spent a lot on groceries this week except $80 at Trader Joes. Since I was going in for a few things I added some extras like pita bread for falafels, OJ, micro greens, and some other random stuff.

I also tackled washing the couch covers and saw that one corner at the bottom was ripping so I will need to get a new cover eventually. I’mgoing to pull some embroidery thread out and sew it for now. I think these white covers are over 5 years old probably more. I’m not ready to buy a new couch so a new cover will be fine. Next time I go to Ikea I’ll check it out.

Frugal Friday

Posted in Blood test, California, cooking, ikea, Multiple myeloma, Myeloma, Uncategorized by

I was going to go down to the Rec center( aka as the gym) today but decided not to being it is Black Friday and HWY65 where I turn on to is right on the way to The Galleria shopping mall and big stores like Walmart. I will go swimming tomorrow. It’ll be early enough that I should miss the shoppers although I might get some traffic heading up to the Sierras on the way home.

We don’t go out to shop on Black Friday but I did find a 25% off deal on Bombas and bought a couple of T-shirts for B and a pair of socks for me. Then Amazon had a good B F deal on a comforter and we need a new one so I got that. It was $20. I think that was 50% off.

I put away the pumpkin and fall things from the table and will decorate with a few Christmas-themed things later. I have some red candles and a few other things to put out. I won’t do a lot yet as it’s a bit early for me.

We all had a good Thanksgiving with lots of good food. I don’t know why eating dinner at 2 pm sets me off but it does and then I don’t feel like eating at all later. I did have some homemade pumpkin pie around 7:30 though.

I’ve been somewhat depressed at my kappa light chains going up 4 points. Even though Dr. Laptalo said, it’s just a small increase, don’t worry, I do worry that now things will start doubling. I mean I know intellectually that my cancer will come back and I’ll need treatment again but maybe it’s just so tiring to think about it all. Anyway, in a few days, I’ll feel better once I process it. There’s nothing I can do about it so…

I’m going to look up a pressure canning recipe for turkey broth or soup and see what it looks like. I may do that tomorrow. I think I’ll make the broth today. and then if I want to do some pressure canning it’ll be ready to do. I might put up our small Ikea Christmas tree this weekend too.

Simple Sunday and we got RAIN!!!!

Posted in California, cooking, covid-19, Flylady, husband, ikea, simple foods, Walking by

We woke up to rain and more is forecast for today, tomorrow, and Tuesday. The Mosquito Fire is still going but probably this is the boost the firefighters need. Yay. We walked with umbrellas but it was only a drizzle by then.

I started some minestrone for dinner in the crockpot using the cranberry beans from Ranch Gordo. Plus lots of veggies, onions, garlic, tomato sauce, and water. I think I might make some cheese toast on the side. This week’s menu will probably include some chicken, tofu, rice, and maybe a pasta dish. I reordered from amazon the freezer containers ( which were definitely worth it) and so I want to do some lasagnas and cheese enchiladas. I’ve tried freezing the mac and cheese and it just doesn’t freeze well. ( my version). I think you need to use Velveeta or maybe evaporated milk. Homemade mac and cheese is really easy. There’s a blogger on Youtube that thinks Wincos mac and cheese is real ‘home’ cooking. I don’t think she’s ever made homemade, probably too much work.

My arm is still sore from the Omicron shot but no ‘real’ reaction. I kind of felt off but that’s about it.

Tomorrow, I plan on going to the gym although if it’s raining too hard I won’t. Roseville is usually milder than here so that’s positive.

This week is the bedroom zone and closet. I will move my canning jars out to the garden shed as I’m done for the season except for applesauce. I’m planning to over to Apple Hill near Placerville to get apples, probably 20lbs. I’d like to get some heirloom apples but I’m not sure that’s what they have. There is a farm over in Petaluma that has heirloom apples but that’s 2-3 hours over there. Then I would like to put up the winter curtains but then I thought maybe I’ll do a between season one in a light linen. I’ll check if Ikea has any.

I have my appt with Dr. Laptalo on Thursday which happens to be B’s birthday. Not sure what he wants foodwise but usually the birthday person chooses their favorite meal.

Well, that’s a wrap.

Snow…

Posted in budgeting, budgets, cooking, ikea, minimalism, seasonal things, simple foods, swimming, Uncategorized by

Whoo Whee…it is cold. We woke up to snow on Tuesday morning and it kept going off and on. We usually get a sprinkling of snow at our elevation a couple of times during winter. This was a big snowstorm for the Sierras and is much needed. Needless to say, I didn’t venture out to swim. I probably would have been fine on the freeway but with Caltrans discouraging any travel, I didn’t feel I needed to add to it.

It’s bright and clear this morning and 27degrees. So the trees in the park were very frosty.

I went into Winco after swimming yesterday for a few things. And next week I’ll hit Trader Joe’s for a few things including fondue, which is our traditional Christmas eve dinner. So far even with Costco, I’m under budget for food/alcohol( mostly wine). If my calculations are correct, a total of @ $550 is really quite good. So if I add the TJ’s trip at about $100 that brings me under budget. Of course, there will be the run to the market here for the odds and ends before the end of the year but usually, that’s not too much. Shopping at Winco and the new Trader Joe’s, and of course, Costco has definitely made a difference from shopping just Safeway.

Other than that there are no unusual budget expenses for the rest of the month. January is a NO SPend month so no projects or Home Depot trips. Anything that the house might need is excluded like vacuum filters or the filters for the air filter thing.

Today I’m planning on taking the couch covers and washing them. I do this around every 3 months. This Ikea couch has been absolutely fabulous and I love it. When it’s time for a new one I’ll definitely do Ikea but maybe a bit more of a midcentury look. I’ve been waiting for the two chairs forever( since the beginning of the pandemic). The Poang chairs still look good and quite comfortable.

My son is headed to Yosemite today and is going to be there a few days. It should be quite beautiful as it got a lot of snow.

I need to go make some pizza dough and I was going to make bagels but the Barley Malt I ordered from Amazon was lost in the mail so I need to find it in a store. I haven’t been too inspired with cooking lately but maybe over the Holidays or not???

My minimalist Christmas decor.