Michelle, I hope your mother is okay. There is a bug going around the office that a couple of people have suffered through and now one of them has a child (aged 11) who has been the the hospital because of it.

Dorothy, we get quite a robust winter here in North Texas. It's not like North Dakota, but from December through March it can be cold and windy, weather that would make a wood burning stove welcome. My friend Susie has an insert in her fireplace. I think my chimney needs work, I'm afraid an insert would rust out too soon. For now I have my fireplace completely sealed (I lined the insides and top with that pink board of insulation you get in 4x8 sheets at Home Depot) and the front has a piece wedged into the entire opening so it is a stone wall with a pink panel in front. My television sits in front and blocks the view of it, and last year at xmas as we opened gifts I streamed a NetFlix movie of a burning fireplace. :)

This morning is lovely and cool, our first day that really feels like fall. It's too early to last, but for a couple of days it is brisk. I had a window open last night and no ceiling fan and added a light blanket to the bed.

Cool weather makes me feel like cooking. I picked up a pot roast yesterday so I'll fix that and have it for leftovers for lunch during the week. I have to dice some more veggies from the garden to put in the freezer. I picked up sugar so I may make one more batch of jelly (2 so far). It's a great gift. I'll be making banana bread tomorrow evening to cool overnight and ship in the morning as part of a care package to my son who is now a week into a new job. There are several folks he knows from the university who relocated to Seattle for work, they have a facebook page for the group so I suspect those homesick puppies will be doing things together on their weekends as they adjust to the new climate and new life situations.

SRS