Our coffee bar, patient news, weekend chores

A few months ago, I looked online for sugar free coffee flavors. I found Skinny Mixes. We tried a couple flavors, but they were too expensive to accumulate, and Mama and Victoria were not very impressed by the thought of flavoring their coffee. I, on the other hand, have enjoyed the flavors, especially the chocolate ones. When I got an email recently from Skinny Mixes that many of their flavors were on sale – more than 60% off – I decided to explore their offerings. After doing so, I ordered several.

Two that I thought I would like and two that Mama would perhaps like. One flavor is Slated Dark Chocolate Expresso. It is exactly the flavor I have been looking for. This morning I tried the Mocha syrup. Another amazing choice. In addition to those two flavors, I have Pumpkin spice and Caramel Pecan available. I thought Mama might like those. If not, it is no big loss. At least I have two that I know I will like. I cannot drink my coffee black, but I do not want to add any calories to the beverage. Using the flavorings keeps me from having to use Truvia to sweeten my coffee. It always left an unpleasant aftertaste in my mouth. These sugar-free flavorings have given me some great options.

Hopefully, Mama is coming home Sunday evening. She told me last night that she was feeling achy and nauseated. Beginning symptoms of a Delta variant illness? We are not sure. This morning she was feeling better but not 100%. Part of her malaise is from poor sleep and constant stress. She will have to get back home to get past those two contributing factors. If push comes to shove and she is restricted from getting on a plane due to her symptoms, I will have to drive down to get her. It is a little over eighteen hours’ drive time each way to make the trip. Challenging but not impossible. Our prayer is that she can fly back to DFW where I can pick her up. The next several days will tell whether or not that is possible. Complicating the trip to collect Mama, should I have to drive down to get her, is the damage to Southern Louisiana from the recent hurricane. I am hearing reports of extended travel times on I-10 across Louisiana and lack of gasoline at many stations. We will cross that bridge – literally – when and if we come to it.

As for Mama’s patients in Florida, all are certainly on the mend. She has accomplished what she set out to do. Now Mama has to try to coast through the next two days as she turns her heart toward home. Grandpa remains the most well of the trio with Norman not far behind. The pressures of having no income will eventually drag Norman out of the camper and back to work. Grandma is still the problematic patient and the most argumentative. Grandpa stands alone in his appreciation of the sacrifice Mama has made to be there. We are appreciative of all the financial help Mama has gotten that has made her extended stay with her parents possible as she helps them through this illness. Without that help, it would have been far more difficult for us to provide the help Mama has been able to give over the past week.

Back at the farm, I have debated whether or not to mow our yard before Mama comes home or let it go so she can do so when she gets back home. Two more days will not be a deal breaker and Mama enjoys the chore far more than I do, but I will do the trimming and weed eating that is my part of the yard work over this weekend. I have that on my very extensive list of things I need to get done this weekend. I have spent the last several evenings burning out the sticky burrs in the yard and along the fences. Burning the plants is the only way to get rid of them other than digging them up and discarding them. I am not an advocate of digging them up because of the problem that exercise is for my back, so I have resorted to burning them out. I do not know if we are making any headway against the spread of the weeds into our yard, but we are trying.

I will feed and check on the bees again tomorrow. They are a fascinating insect. We have a hydrant at the coop yard with a little concrete pad poured to facilitate cleaning and filling waterers for the chickens. At that water station, Mama set out a rubber dish to keep full of water for the chickens. The bees have taken over that dish. It probably holds two quarts of water. The bees empty the contents of that dish daily. Pretty amazing. So, Mama and I keep the dish as full as possible in spite of the dozens of bees constantly at the dish. When we are adding water to the dish or filling the water containers for the chickens, the bees do not bother us, although they get curious and check us out.

It has been Mama’s one point of contact with the bees and she loves that.