Thursday, October 08, 2026

{ Blogtober 2026 - Day 8 - Turning the corner }

October 7, 2026

 
Well good morning dear friends!
 
It is a beautiful fall morning here in Texas.  Being able to finally turn off the air conditioner, open windows and doors and let the cool air in, is something I very much looked forward to for months.

October 7, 2026

Yesterday afternoon, the fever came back again and with it the body aches, the chills and the headache.  I threw dinner in the oven and then laid on the couch in the den in between checking on dinner and getting the table set. 
 
I wanted a proper meal but didn't have the energy or well being to be standing over the stove, so I made something quick.  I had some leftover rice in the fridge which I used to mix with some ground beef, made a nice tomato sauce and then instead of doing stuffed peppers I did stuffed tomatoes which turned out so delicious......even though I only had one small one because I just was not hungry.
 
After eating dinner, taking a hot shower and climbing into bed, Curt gave me a shot of the Jim Beam Whiskey with Honey and I went to sleep.  I sweated the fever out and thankfully woke up feeling so much better, except for the cough, drainage and the phlegm which has made my throat very sore this morning, but as much as I hate sore throats, I will take this over the high fevers and body aches, and truly I feel better aside from the runny nose and sore throat. 

October 7, 2026


October 7, 2026

While unwell yesterday, I tried to get as much rest as possible but also became a bit bored, and didn't want to just sit around, so I began my newest crochet project from my new book, as seen above.  
 
Crochet Fairy Tales from Kerry Lord.  It is filled with the cutest fairy tale animals and I will definitely be making them all.  But, I had to choose the first one, and I knew exactly which one it would be, Puss.  How adorable is that cat?
 
And the best part is that after making him, we also have the patterns to make his lettuce, the bag, his boots and his cape.   I can not wait.  I've already made two of his paws and just have two more paws to make today, which I will start as soon as this post is published.

October 7, 2026

October 7, 2026

October 7, 2026 

On the ironing board, I have a pile of laundry that I need to iron.  I don't usually iron a lot of clothes, but Curt's work shirts and some of my dressed need ironing.  If you've followed me for a while, you know I love ironing so this isn't so much a chore for me, although while sick the past few days I didn't have the energy to do it. 

 
I also watched a Hallmark movie yesterday while crocheting.  It is one of the newer ones called A Knight to Remember, it was quite cute. 
 
As of this morning Nicholas is a college student and will be starting classes on Monday.  We are so proud of him and so excited for this new journey of his.   
 
He is going to do an Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) with a major in Business Administration, and then will follow with a Bachelor of Business Administration. He has been waiting long for this so he is very excited to embark on this new journey. 
 
With that I am closing this very short post because I'm still not well.  Hopefully tomorrow I will be back to normal.
 
Have a great Thursday! 

 

 

Wednesday, October 07, 2026

{ Blogtober 2026 - Day 7 - Wordless Wednesday }

 
 
Day two of high fevers and body aches.  Just tried to rest as much as I can and worked on a new crochet project.
 

 

Tuesday, October 06, 2026

{ Blogtober 2026 - Day 6 - Sick day }

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Oh my word.  Curt has been sick with a bad cold since Saturday and I thought I had missed it, but this morning it smacked me so hard upside the head.  Woke up in the middle of the night with a sore throat and I just knew it was on it's way.
 
I am currently sitting at my desk trying to put up a post for today, completely out of it, with a headache, body aches and the beginning of a fever.  But, I do not want to start skipping days already, so even if it's not a long interesting post of any kind, I still want to put something up.
 
I haven't been very productive today, well, actually I have done some things because they needed doing, but I obviously haven't been as productive as I would have liked to have been.
 
Groceries arrived this morning and I got them all put away and sorted.  
 
Worked two more rows on the crochet blanket and I'm loving it right now, mainly because the intricate part of the pattern is over and we're just creating the corners and structuring the blanket into a square.  It's going much faster than the first few parts.
 
I have now set aside two books that I picked up to read.  First was The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne, I just don't think it's the time for me to read it and when I feel wrong about reading a certain book I follow that instinct and drop it.
 
Then I picked up Arabella by Georgette Heyer and usually I love a period genre read but wasn't feeling it either.
 
So, now I have started The Familiars by Stacey Halls and am just 3 pages in but quite enjoying the story already, it has pulled me in so this may be the new read.  We will see.
 
That is all I have managed today, the fever has just arrived in all it's glory bringing with it the body aches, the headache, the chills and the sweats.  I'm thinking I will just throw together some beef ravioli and sauce, for the boys for dinner.  Don't think I'll be eating, will likely end up with a big cup of tea with ginger, lemon and honey and some toast.
 
Have a blessed Tuesday!   


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Monday, October 05, 2026

{ Blogtober 2026 - Day 5 - Happy Homemaker Monday 10/05/2026 }

Good morning dear friends, welcome back to Diary of a Stay at Home Mom. ♥
 
I hope you've had a wonderful weekend.  Ours was very quiet, very much relaxing and filled with laying about, watching tv, reading, naps and downtime.  I looked at Curt yesterday and said "You know we just had the weekend that we used to love back in the day, quiet, nowhere to go and nothing to do."
 
It was very much needed, and kind of forced upon us too because Curt came down with a horrible cold on Saturday morning, and actually stayed home from work today because he does not sound good at all.  Must be the change in the weather. 
 
So, it is going to be another quiet slow day here at home, and I am all for it.
 
I hope you have a blessed week.  Let's get right on with our post for today.
 
Sandra
xoxoxo 




♥♥ The Weather ♥♥
It has been wonderful, we had a weekend full of rain, cool temperatures and pure bliss.  I loved it, of course because I'm a huge rain lover.  We have a sunny week ahead, temperatures in the lower 80s, so should be a nice week.  
 
Monday - Sunny, 83
Tuesday - Sunny, 84
Wednesday - Sunny, 86
Thursday - Cloudy, 85
Friday - Cloudy, 85
Saturday - Sunny, 85
Sunday - Sunny, 86


♥♥ As I look outside my window ♥♥
The sun is just starting to come up.  It's getting brighter later in the day and sun is going down earlier at night too.  Sure signs of Fall.  Right now I can just start to see the trees against the mornings sky.   


♥♥ Right now I am ♥♥
I am at my desk.  In the background is a crime documentary, Elliott is asleep on my bed, Kaia is with Curt in the office.    
 

♥♥ Thinking and pondering ♥♥
Have to work on my new meal plan, and want to look up some recipes to get back to healthy eating.   
 

♥♥ How am I feeling ♥♥
I am doing well, not feeling 100% which makes sense since Curt is sick and it will obviously head my way next.  
 

♥♥ On the breakfast plate ♥♥
I have had a cup of coffee and just had a bowl of oatmeal with a teaspoon of brown sugar, cut up date and shredded coconut.  I only had half the bowl though, just not feeling super hungry. 
 

♥♥ On the lunch plate ♥♥
I will be having a Tuna Chickpea Salad.  
 

♥♥ On the dinner plate ♥♥
Oklahoma Fried Onion Burgers, Potato skins, Salad.   


♥♥ What I'm wearing ♥♥
Still in my summer pajamas, pant and short sleeve top.  Pink with black polka dots.  It is one of the Joyful Spun pajamas that I love so much.   
 

 

♥♥ On my reading pile ♥♥
I finished 1 Samuel finally, and am now in 2 Samuel.    

Finished A Lady in Attendance by Rachel Fordham.   I was going to start The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne, but read two pages and set it aside because I'm not in the mood for it.  I told you I'm a mood reader and will often pick up a book thinking I want to read it, and then set it aside.
 
I picked up Arabella by Georgette Heyer instead.   
 

Also starting What to Do in a Valley by Jabin Chavez, for a book review. 
 


♥♥ On my TV this week ♥♥
Youtube - 
Homemaking and book vlogs
Vlogtober
Crochet and Knitting podcasts 
 
Netflix - 
I Survived a Serial Killer
Drew Binsky
 
Turkish Soap -
Mercan Kosk
Cirkin
Guller ve Gunahlar
Muhtemel Ask
Halef
Sevdigim Sensin
Gunesin Dogdugu Yer
Anne Yarisi
Sevdan Bir Ates
 

♥♥ On the menu ♥♥
Will start working on the new meal plan today.  This is what I have planned until I get groceries on Wednesday.
 
Monday - Carne de Panela, Rice, Sauteed Greens  
Tuesday - Baked Catfish Nuggets with Garlic and Parsley, Curried Quinoa, Roast Vegetables 
Wednesday - Mediterranean Chicken Bake, Roast Potatoes, Salad
Thursday - 
Friday - 
Saturday - 
Sunday - 


♥♥ Looking around the house ♥♥
I have really enjoyed getting back on track and in my usual routine.  I've given the house a good clean, good organize and am now working on finishing the painting projects and decorating.   


♥♥ To Do List for the week ♥♥
- Carpet clean, vacuum, dust
- Normal daily cleaning, kitchen, bathroom, living spaces
- Meal plan, grocery shopping
- Budget and bills  


♥♥ What I am creating ♥♥
Will be picking up the Universe in Bloom Blanket.  I want to finish it as soon as possible because I just got in the mail a crochet book and am planning to make every single little cut animal in there, starting with Puss in Boots.  Can't wait.   
 
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♥♥ Something fun to share ♥♥
Just recently found a new YouTube channel and I'm loving following her.  She talks about faith and slow living, which are two of my favorite themes to follow in a YouTube creator.
 
Go on and check out Ese, she is so sweet and I just love her gentle soul.  Her channel is called The Little Light Journal.  She lived in the USA for 9 years but has recently returned to her home in Nigeria.  



 
♥♥ From the camera ♥♥
One of the stray kitties outside is a tuxedo.  She has the sweetest personality and is constantly at our door.  Jasmine wants her, so we need to try and get her to the vet to check her out and hopefully she is then adopted by Jasmine.  She lets her pet her, pick her up and is always pawing at the door and will do this with our hands when we go near her, I think she wants to be an inside cat for sure.  How sweet!!!
 
We call her Pepper.  ♥ 
 
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♥♥ Devotional ♥♥ 
I am starting a new bible study today from Daily Grace, called When Fear Meets Faith.  One of the first quotes in the book say:
 
The only one who can truly calm our fears is the one who will eventually rid us of our fears forever.  
 
Love it! 
 


Sunday, October 04, 2026

{ Blogtober 2026 - Day 4 - October Book Possibilities }

October 3, 2026

I have long given up on making TBR piles of books.  I found that when I tell myself I need to read specific books in specific orders, I don't like it, and then I don't want to read them all.  I am a mood reader for sure, so I pick up whatever I want to read at that moment.
 
With October here, I did want to grab a few books to have on hand as possibilities for this month.  I just grabbed a basket, and went through my bedroom bookshelf picking out books that I felt I would want to read soon.
 
Little did I realize that they all look very Fall like, and just perfect for this month. 
 
Am I actually going to read them all, or any for that matter?  Well we will have to see as the month goes by, but at least I have a starting point, so let me show you quickly which I picked for my October Book Possibilities. 

October 3, 2026

Arabella by Georgette Heyer - 
 
If you love Bridgerton, you'll love Georgette Heyer

A fiery debutante. An ill-tempered bachelor. A romance for the ages.

Arabella, the daughter of an impoverished country parson, dreams of a new life in London. But her beauty and charm will only get her so far—and when Arabella embarks on her first London season armed with nothing but a benevolent godmother and her own notoriously short temper, she quickly runs afoul of Robert Beaumaris.

He's the most eligible bachelor of the day, with a personality as strong and combative as hers—and Arabella cannot abide him thinking of her as just another pretty girl after his wealth. So she allows herself to be provoked into a game of deception—one that could have unexpected consequences...

October 3, 2026

The Tale of Hill Top Farm by Susan Wittig Albert - 
 
In 1905 England, it was most unusual - if not outright scandalous - for an unmarried woman to buy and run a farm. But that's exactly what Beatrix Potter sets out to do when she purchases Hill Top Farm in the Lake District hamlet of Near Sawrey. Trying to recover from the death of her fiancé, Beatrix believes that the country will have a healing effect - until one of the villagers dies unexpectedly.

October 3, 2026

The Familiars by Stacey Halls -

In 1612 Lancaster, England, the hunt for witches has reached a fever pitch…


But in a time of suspicion and accusation, to be a woman may be the greatest risk of all.

Fleetwood Shuttleworth, the mistress of Pendle Hill’s Gawthorpe Hall, is with child. Anxious to produce an heir, she is distraught to find a letter from her physician that warns her husband she will not survive this pregnancy.

Devastated, Fleetwood wanders the estate grounds, where she catches a young woman poaching. Alice Gray claims she is a local midwife and promises to help Fleetwood deliver a healthy baby. But a witch-obsessed frenzy sweeps the countryside. Even woodland creatures or “familiars” are thought to be dark companions of the unholy. And Alice soon stands accused of witchcraft.

Time is running out. The witch trials are about to begin. With both their lives at stake, Fleetwood must prove Alice’s innocence. Only they know the truth.

Set against the real Pendle witch trials, this compelling novel draws its characters from historical figures as it explores the lives of seventeenth-century women. Ultimately it raises the question: Was witch hunting really just women hunting?
 

October 3, 2026

The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart - 
 
Born the bastard son of a Welsh princess, Myridden Emrys -- or as he would later be known, Merlin -- leads a perilous childhood, haunted by portents and visions. But destiny has great plans for this no-man's-son, taking him from prophesying before the High King Vortigern to the crowning of Uther Pendragon . . . and the conception of Arthur -- king for once and always. 

October 3, 2026

The Cottingley Secret by Hazel Gaynor -
 
1917… It was inexplicable, impossible, but it had to be true—didn’t it? When two young cousins, Frances Griffiths and Elsie Wright from Cottingley, England, claim to have photographed fairies at the bottom of the garden, their parents are astonished. But when one of the great novelists of the time, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, becomes convinced of the photographs’ authenticity, the girls become a national sensation, their discovery offering hope to those longing for something to believe in amid a world ravaged by war. Frances and Elsie will hide their secret for many decades. But Frances longs for the truth to be told.
 
One hundred years later… When Olivia Kavanagh finds an old manuscript in her late grandfather’s bookshop she becomes fascinated by the story it tells of two young girls who mystified the world. But it is the discovery of an old photograph that leads her to realize how the fairy girls’ lives intertwine with hers, connecting past to present, and blurring her understanding of what is real and what is imagined. As she begins to understand why a nation once believed in fairies, can Olivia find a way to believe in herself?
 

October 3, 2026

The Mercy Falls Collection by Colleen Coble -
 

The Lightkeeper’s Daughter

A storm brings an injured stranger and a dark secret to Addie Sullivan’s California lighthouse home. The man insists she is not who she thinks she is, but rather the child long lost and feared dead by the wealthy Eaton family.

Addie secures employment in the Eatons’ palatial home, keeping her identify a secret. As dusty rooms and secret compartments give up their clues about her past, Addie finds faith and a forever love.

The Lightkeeper’s Bride

Working the phone lines one evening, Katie Russell overhears a chilling exchange between her friend Eliza and a familiar male voice. Katie soon learns that Eliza has disappeared, and the crime may be linked to another investigation headed by the handsome new lighthouse keeper, Will Jesperson. Katie and Will soon form an alliance—an alliance that blossoms into something more.

The Lightkeeper’s Ball

Olivia Stewart is heiress to an empire. Her family numbers among the Four Hundred—those considered the most distinguished in America. But their wealth has evaporated and now their security rests upon Olivia marrying well.

Using her family’s long-forgotten English title, Olivia travels to Mercy Falls, California, as Lady Devonworth. There she plans to marry Harrison Bennett, a wealthy bachelor. Harrison soon falls for her, but it turns out they’ve both been hiding something.  
 

October 3, 2026

The book I am getting ready to start is The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne.
 
I have read so much Christian Fiction the first part of the year, and I need a little break so I don't get burned out.  I think I have quite a selection of different genres with these books to shift my reading to a more October like feel. 
 
What are you reading at the moment?