Blue Monday

Happy Monday Morning Peeps!

Actually, it's not morning any longer but you know what I mean.  Hope everyone is recovering as well as possible from the dreaded "Spring Forward" yesterday.   I'm the odd one, I do better with this change than the one in the Fall but hopefully your coffee was strong and your dogs are adjusting today!

First things first, we had a time change so you can go back and refresh yourself with some chores you might need to do this week.   I did a couple of blog posts on those in the past,  you can find them here and here.  Apparently, I only do these in the fall so I'm going to add a few additional tips below:

1) Flip/Turn your mattress. Hubster is much better at remembering to do this than I am but we actually got ours done last Friday. Friday is sheet washing day at our house, so we did it then while the bed was stripped.  

2) Most ceiling fans have remotes now, so the flipping the switch for directions on your fans is done by the  remote.  If you happen to have a few of the other types around, now is a good time to take care of that. But, you still probably need to clean off those blades so go ahead and drag that ladder out.

3) Air Filters, if you aren't changing your air filters monthly/quarterly then lets take care of that this week!

I have mine marked on the calendar because believe me, it makes a huge difference in how hard your HVAC system is working.  It may be time to schedule that pre-summer HVAC servicing too.  

4) Since you have the ladder out, don't forget to change the batteries; smoke detectors, carbon monoxide , thermostats, and hey, while we are at it.  Let's change out the tv remote batteries too.   

5) Make sure you have your storm supplies ready.   If you have a storm shelter, it's a good time to take inventory of what might need to be replaced, dust off the cobwebs and make sure it's ready for spring storms.   

Ok, let's move on to Samma's hilarious renditions of OOTD.  Also, does it grate on your nerves when every other influencer is on the camera showing off their OOTD.   Can you just say this is what I'm wearing?   Mine should be IAWTT (I actually wore this today) followed by believe it or not.  

Last Wednesday, I left the house to go out for our neighborhood Ladies Lunch date.  We meet once a month for lunch and sometimes there are 12 or more and sometimes, like Wednesday, there were less.  Four of us ladies met at Rockfish Seafood Grill and ourselves a grand ole' time.  In another strange turn of events, I'm actually wearing new things that can be found currently AND they fit! haha Small victories!

Let me link up a few things and then we'll pull in closer on a few details.

Sweater: Mason Puff Sleeve Sweater.  (size small- Runs true to size)

               The site indicates it's pale lilac but it's a soft blush pink

Pants:   Marni Barrel Pant. (size 27, runs true to size, color Fatigue)

Belt:   old

Shoes:  old but they are Born and they are an open weave mule and they are divine, I've worn the devil out of them

Necklace: Shaye Stone Layer Necklace makes this outfit come together

Another side note: These are all from Evereve, they don't know me and I don't get any kind of kickback from those links.  However if you know someone, I'd LOVE for them to know me and send me stuff.  They are the more mature ladies trendy shopping place and at my store the ladies working are always the sweetest.  The online selection is much larger but I like to go into the store if I'm out. 

Here is that necklace close up.

Both come in the set and you can see that it pulls the blush pale pink and the olive together perfectly.

I had the pants and sweater on in the store and one of the sweet salesladies brought this over and I was like....perfect!

Here's a closer look at the detail on the sweater.

It is such an incredibly soft knit.

Here's another look at the whole outfit in a bit better light.

  A funny note, we had rain and storms coming in that evening and by the time I got home, my hair had doubled in size.

I was giving off Rosanne Rosana Dana vibes indeed.

Another note, I think I might should have sized down in these pants, but I'll wash and dry them and see if that helps any.  

Also, I rarely pay full price for anything I buy.  At some point, it goes on sale.

This was Thursday and we're back at the more normal look.

This is a t-shirt from Target men's section.  It's actually still available and if you don't peek at the men's graphic t-shirts when you are in Target, you are missing out.  

T-shirt- Led Zeppelin

shorts:  old Judy Blue shorts 

Rouxby Sue is never far from my side.

Friday had me out and about again, this time back to TCU for my Hand Embroidery class.

The top is about two years old but the link is still active for it.

Top:  Pistola Trina Muscle Tee.  (This is a Medium, true to size, it's too big but it's such a great shirt I make it work.)

Jeans: I got these last year from a little boutique but here's a Poshmark link so you can see the color a bit better. Risen is the brand, they are a size 27 and I would say they run true to size.

Shoes:  flats these came from Amazon and I got them through the Vine program.   They are cute but you can't wear them for long periods or they get a little pinchy.

Belt: Very old, I think maybe from the Gap.

see little Rouxby Sue, my little shadow

Later that evening we went to a local Bar-B-Que restaurant to celebrate one of our neighbors birthday.   I switched out a few things because 1) my feet were hurting and 2) it was supposed to start raining and I wanted shoes that could get wet.  It's a super casual restaurant too so the top felt a little much.

T-shirt:  old Willie Nelson from Daydreamer. The number of Daydreamer t-shirts I have is ridiculous.  Yes, they are pricey but the quality is outstanding and I wear the bejesus out of them.  

Shoes:  red jelly Mary janes. These were another pair of Amazon vine shoes.  Once again, cute for short periods or sitting.   

belt is old from goodness knows where, I've had it forever and it just recently started to fit.

see, my little shadow is right behind me again 

We had a couple of Hello Fresh meals last week and they were good but one will never get made again.   My kitchen looked like a tornado roared through it when I was finished.   Hubster loved it but by the time I finished cooking it I was over it.

Beef Albondigas & Patatas Brava

This is the photo from Hello Fresh, I did not plate mine like this and my kitchen might not be recovered from the disaster.  Also, the garlic aioli sauce on the potatoes was waaaaay too garlicky. 

The other meal was One Pan Beef Enchiladas Verdes and it was good.

Another note on these meals, we had this for dinner Saturday evening, then Hubster had it for lunch today and there is enough for one more meal.  So far, we are getting our monies worth from the orders. 

In other exciting news, our sweet little Rouxby Sue became a big girl this weekend.

I've never had a female dog that I owned when we went through this.  I've been at a loss, I mean I can't give her chips & ice cream or wine & chocolate, the usual remedy for this dilemma,

I did have the foresight to order some diapers but that's as prepared as I am for this. Also, the fact that it lasts 3-4 weeks is BLOWING MY MIND!!  

Let's also note her face, which I think is how every girl feels when it's that time!  At least we can have wine and chocolate.  

If you have any tips for me to survive the next 2-3 weeks, please pass them along.   She's definitely restless and clingier than usual.  Also, the number of times we need to go potty is crazy!

It's supposed to rain again tomorrow so I should probably go get a few things done outside.

Peace, Love & doggie diapers!

Samma 

Hello Fresh Returns to our house

Hi Dee Ho Peeps!!

It's Tuesday and we had a busy weekend round her cleaning up the yard and getting ready for spring.   

Let's get the hilarious things out of the way first so we can get down to business.

The clothing, see I'm being really vulnerable with you guys about what I actually wear every day. The only way it could get more real is if I took a pic with my bed head and jammies.   I'm not gonna lie though, I do have some good pajamas.  

This was Friday and yes, I had to leave the house.    I had a class at TCU, beginning hand embroidery and it's always chilly in the classrooms especially when it's warm out.    I slapped on some jeans, a t-shirt and pulled that hair back in a pony tail because it was windy and I also wanted it out of my face for my embroidering lessons.   

T-shirt: Daydreamer Prince (old)

Belt: floral (zero clue but it's very old)

Jean:  Kut from the Kloth , Nikki mid rise ankle flare. 

I'm wearing a size 2 in these, but Kut runs large so I'd say they are true to size. 

Now it's Saturday morning and we are off to the Depot and Lowe's to see if they have any garden veggies in stock.  It's a miracle I got a picture because the Hubster was fussing at me to hurry and leave.  And you can tell this because I left my upper body undergarments hanging out on the mirror.  😂

T-shirt: Fletchers Corny Dog from the Texas State Fair (IYKYK) (very old)

Skort:   32 degrees from Costco last year (small)

Baylor Bears baseball cap to hold the hair because it was really windy and also because I was wearing no makeup.  

I did get showered and dressed later that afternoon and we hopped down to the neighbors for some cocktails on the patio,  

Sunday was a quick trip to Sam's Club for some burgers and stuff and then back home for more yard work.  We had a few neighbors over Sunday evening for hamburgers, hotdogs and general spring enjoyment of the back yard.   

Monday, the start of another week and here we go:

Hair is up in a clip because I just jumped out of the shower and it ended up going back to the clip because the wind and humidity were working overtime.

T-shirt: Daydreamer Van Halen oversized (old)

Bike shorts:  probably Amazon if I had to guess (old & comfy) 

And finally, today, I have to run to vote and to Target and to take the Reggie boy for a burger because he's the big 5 today!   Fur babies always get a burger on their birthday around here. 

T-shirt: From the Chicago Cubs stadium store (old)

Belt: American eagle (very old)

Shorts: Wit & Wisdom, size 6, almost 3 years old.  Normally Wit & Wisdom runs large but these ran small and I'm glad because they aren't falling off but by the end of the day they will be and I do have to have a belt to hold them on.  

So, you can see, I'm no fashion influencer but then again, most of us aren't.  

Now, let's talk food!   I got an email from Hello Fresh asking me to come back and try them again and the deal was pretty sweet so I decided to give it another try.

When my box arrives the first thing I do is unpack it all onto the counter.

That's kind of hard to see but it's 2 bag of ingredients, one for each meal, and the meat is separated, the recipe cards and our bonus loaf of garlic bread.  

I grab the recipe card and sort everything from the bag to make sure everything is included, mistakes happen and I want to know ahead of time, not when I'm in the middle of cooking dinner.  

Now, the items that need to be refrigerated go back into the bag and the pantry items go into a tray with the recipe card.   

Then I do the same for the other bag.

The refrigerator items go right into the refrigerator in the bags with the labels of the recipe. So when I'm ready to cook I just grab that bag from the refrigerator and the basket from the pantry.

Now when it's time to start making dinner, I sort everything out and leave that paper bag sitting on the counter.  

As I prep and cook, all the trash goes into that paper bag so there's no running to the trash can every 5 seconds. 

When dinner is ready I can roll that top down and toss the whole thing in the trash.  Easy peasy super cheesey!

Now, what'd we eat you say?  Here you go!

One-pot Cowboy Turkey & Black Bean Chili

This was a great restart to Hello Fresh.  It was delicious and I had planned to have the garlic bread with this but I forgot to turn on the oven.  Just as well, we didn't need it and the we had lots of leftovers.  This got a big 👍👍 from Hubster and me. 

Chinese Style Speedy Beef Ramen Noodles 

And here we are, not pretty to look at but done lickety-split and it got a 👍 from the Hubster and RK. 

Will I make it again, eh, who knows, but it was pretty simple.

That's it and if you'd like to try out Hello Fresh for your family, here's a handy dandy link for you to use.

It goes without saying, but Hello Fresh isn't sponsoring me or didn't send me any free meals and didn't ask for my opinion in anyway.  They really just want me to pay my bill weekly and keep ordering.

Let's jump into my Why for this convenience right now.    Hey, you need to know your WHY for what you spend your money on, right?!   It's spring and I would rather be outside in the yard any time than in the kitchen cooking.  My house has to go on a hiatus until we start baking in the Texas heat but this makes dinner so much easier for us.   I can come in and get dinner on the table lightening fast with no emergency runs to the grocery or having to pivot for a lack of something I thought I had on hand.  We had quite a bit of leftovers too so Hubster had several lunches and we even had a second dinner from the chili.   Is it worth the $$$$, that is TBD but so far, yes for awhile it will be. 

Whew, that was longer than anticipated but we had the whole weekend to catch up on so I'm off.  I've got some Condo paperwork to take care of then I need to get up and out of the house soon!

Remember Peeps,

Peace, Love & Kindness to everyone

Samma 

Fat Fit Fun Spring 2026

Good Thursday Morning Peeps!!

I'm going to attempt to revive my blog...I know, I know, I say that about 4 times a year then I start well and drop off but you know what, I'm REALLY going to try this time!

Why? Because there is so much hate, negativity, divisiveness, etc going on that I just want to post ridiculous mundane things.  I mean if you are gonna scroll endlessly on social media then let's at least do  something fun, upbeat, hilarious...I don't know probably even boring.   You want funny, I might even give you an Outfit of the day post.  Why?  because I need people to know that not everyone who is home all day every day gets up and gets dressed like they are leaving the house for a job interview, brunch with the ladies, etc.   Let's be honest, most of the time we are wearing our "house" clothes and no makeup but hey, if you get up and get the full on scene done then good on you!   I'm a more mature age now and let's just say the IDGAF's have taken over!   I will run to the Dollar General with my comfy leggings, old sweatshirt and no makeup on and only stop on the way to the car to see if I'm wearing shoes.  

Let's just kick things off with today's look:

Let's just break down this hot mess of an outfit:  

Sweatshirt: old from boutique but brand is Chicka-D

Shorts; old, Judy Blue

socks: compliments of Bacchus parade 2025

I have a t-shirt on underneath until it warms up later today.

Hair; approaching wash day but I'm working out in the yard later so it's up in a clip.  

Makeup: zilch 

Golden Girls t-shirt underneath

(very old).  It says Future Golden Girl but I realized this morning it should say Golden Girl  

Yes, my clothes are too big-you don't need to tell me, my poor husband does that on a daily basis.  One day I will write a post about the 47 lbs. I've lost in the past 15 months.  That day is not today.  However, if you know me and see me out, ask me, I will be more than happy to discuss it.  There's a therapist somewhere with dollar signs in their eyes waiting to talk to me about food/body issues I've experienced throughout my life.   Once again, that day is not today.

Ok, now, let's talk about my most recent Fab Fit Fun box.  Remember those?  Did you even know they were still around?   I subscribed for several years, then I felt like it was a variation of the same thing every month and they changed their name and I left.   About 2 years ago I got an ad and it was for FabFitFun and I thought, hey, let's see if it's better.  And you know what, it is!   I enjoy my little quarterly surprise and so far each box's value has been more than what I pay for an annual subscription so I'm keeping it for now.  I have two more boxes this year before it renews so I'll re-evaluate at that time.   I wasn't as happy with my box choices this quarter so we'll see if it improves or not.   Also to note, I pay for my subscription myself.  I'm not a fancy schmancy influencer who gets stuff for free, although I'd like to be!  haha.  Just be warned, I'm brutally honest and just because you give it to me a good review it does not guarantee.

Let's check out the Spring 2026 box choices I made.   If I was a good blogger I'd tell you what I had to select from, but I'm not so you just get to see what I selected.  Being an annual subscriber means that I get to choose all my selections before the box gets shipped.    If you are so inclined you can actually go to the Fab Fit Fun website and see all of them.   If you are super jazzed about it, then here's a lovely little discount code that'll get you $20 off your annual subscription.   I probably get something out of the referral but since I've never gotten one, I couldn't tell you.  haha.  I'm a savvy influencer aren't I??   (Please don't hurt yourself laughing at that comment).  

Here's the box after I opened it.  Side note: I love their boxes, I rarely throw them away as they get recycled as gift boxes for the holidays.   They are always so bright and cheerful on the inside.

Up first is Verb leave-in conditioner.    Yet another side note, I'm obligated to tell you that some links will take you to the site with a personal code embedded and allegedly I could receive funds for you clicking on the link and purchasing. I've done this awhile and I've never received a dime so safe to say your girl isn't getting a retirement plan going on this stuff.    I'm always on the lookout for anything that claims it can reduce frizz and is reasonably clean.  Last week I accidentally forgot to condition my hair in the shower so I used this.  As a bonus it also works as a detangler and I would say that I didn't notice my hair being any drier than if I had used conditioner so I'd give this one a thumbs up.  Would I use it every time I shampoo, probably not but it's nice to have in case you forget to condition, run out of conditioner or are just in a general hurry on hair washing day.   Other times, THIS is my preferred detangler.  It's clean and it smells divine.   It's made for children so it works so well on my hair and it's quite affordable.  I also find it at Target when I'm trying to ween myself from Amazon. 

Next up is Living Proof Perfect Hair Day shampoo and conditioner.  I have not tried these yet as I still have plenty of shampoo and conditioner in my shower.  It's currently sitting in my back stock bin in the bathroom cabinet.  Listen, I wash my hair 2 maybe 3 times a week (in the summer) so shampoo and conditioner lasts me a long time.  I will tell you that I really like the smell, it has a very light fresh clean scent.  Also, if you don't know what a backstock bin is then I highly suggest you watch the lovely ladies from Home Edit.  They are my organization heroes.

Ya'll, I don't buy candles very often.  You know, toxic things and all that they be having BUT this one is sooo nice.  The brand is Siblings and this scent is Soli Neroli.  I'm going to pop this link to this candle on their site.  First let me tell you that the holder is a nice beautiful ceramic pot and it will end up getting used as a planter OR as I've just discovered, they sell refills!  How cool is that?!   I was able to remove the label with my trusty Young Living Lemon oil.  (Side note; yes I still purchase Young Living and I still love everything they sell.  I don't really "sell it" but if you are interested in Young living I would love to chat your ears off!).  Let's get back to the candle and this is the scent profile from the website: 

Top: Bergamot, Mandarin

Heart: Neroli, Lavender, Jasmine Petals
Base: Cedarwood, Clary Sage

It smells so good, not overpowering, just light and clean.  This is not the scent I would have selected but I would probably refill in this smell because it's that good.  As far as candles go, this one seems to be decently clean and free from ridiculous toxins. 

Next up is Salt & Stone body lotion, it came in the Santal & 

Vetiver scent.   The Salt & Stone products have become kind of viral and people often rave about them, especially the deodorant but I honestly have never felt the need to try them.  Since it was one of my choices and since I live on the fact of one never has enough body lotion because apparently I'm part lizard, I decided to try this.  I appreciate that the ingredients are decently clean and it's vegan (I'm a vegan lover in my products not my dinners) but ya'll this stuff is strong!   I mean like you aren't wearing any other scent that day if you put this on.  It's a bit grassy, a bit fresh, a bit floral but honestly it's a little much for an everyday lotion for me.  I will say that it goes on very well, is lightweight, not greasy and absorbs quickly so those are all big bonuses.  Is it super hydrating, probably not any more than other body lotions I've used but then again, we've established that I might be part lizard. 

  The box also contained a little bonus trial of Mrs Meyers dog shampoo in the white peach scent.  Now, who decided white peach was a good scent for a dog?  I don't know but I appreciate that they tried to branch out of the usual chamomile or lavender scents.  We have yet to use it because we also use the Young Living animal scent shampoo and we love it.  Actually the Hubster gets a little huffy when we run out, it's his favorite dog bathing shampoo. 

Next up is this cute Olive & Piper vale ring.  Let me get you a better pic.

The center stone is a light, neutral olive green and there is a pale pink and pale lavender stone in addition to the clear stones.  This little ring is quite adorable and will pair with so many pieces.    A nice fun piece that I wouldn't have bought for myself but have already worn it because it's so dainty and versatile. 

And finally the last piece, a sweet little bag from Few Moda.   The Theia bag is made from Vegan leather and can be worn as a crossbody, with the removable long strap, or carried as a clutch.   Occasionally, I have a need for a small clutch bag and most of mine are black, bold color (specifically purchased to match a dress) or gold.  The gold one belonged to my mother and I've had it for years but I found myself wishing for a lighter bag for the spring and summer events.   It has a magnetic closure but also this fun closure that adds some interest in whimsy to the bag. 

It's not something I'd carry on a daily basis but if you have an event where you'll need your phone, a card and some lipstick, it's perfect.   

Let's take one final look at everything in the box because while I wasn't over the moon with what I got this time ( I mean the Winter box had a pair of the SOFTEST pajamas ever) I do think it's a good value and it's a fun treat every quarter.  

That's all for today, I'm off to do some more yard work and figure out what's for dinner. 

I have posts coming up with Hello Fresh meals (we're trying that out again) and a fun Mardi Gras parade one.

Stay class and stay sassy but always be kind!

Samma

Winter Storm Prep thoughts

Hi Deee Ho Peeps!!

Well, we are finally, maybe, possibly on the back side of this delightful ice storm arctic blast here in Texas.   I know everyone knows all the usual tips and tricks for prepping for Winter storms but I'm going to pop in to give you a few more that were new to me and handy as heck, even though we very thankfully only lost power for a total of about 2 hours.  

1. Drip yo' faucets!  Fo shizzle...I mean it should go without saying but man, some people never learn.   Listen, I live in the land of $500+ water bills in the summer so I don't like to run any unnecessary water but like the Hubster said, $20 extra on your water bill is better than goodness knows what for busted water lines.   Live in an apartment and think this doesn't apply to you....WRONG, ask the Merebear about that.

  

2. This is for us more mature people and I can't believe I never thought of it before.  If you have an adjustable bed and you have a certain position you like that bed to be in to sleep, then put it in that position and leave it.   If the power goes out, at least you are comfortable under the covers.  Yeah, the bed looks funny when you make it up but it ain't like anybody coming calling on you is there?   

3. Clean up the house BEFORE the bad weather.   Listen, we all turn into veggies when we are stuck in the house and it's a tundra outside and you can tell yourself you'll clean but you know you won't.  Go ahead do a nice quick clean before the storm arrives and you can veg out without looking at the dog hair and dust bunnies on everything. I said quick clean, not scrub the baseboards clean unless you enjoy that then by all means, proceed.   If you are like me and have one of those amazing cordless vacuums, make sure you are all charged up, if the power goes out and someone makes a mess that needs to be vacuumed up, you've got the power to take care of it.

4.  While we are at it, get all that laundry done.  Sure, the power may never go out and you could have more than enough time to get all that laundry done but listen, all those winter clothes are bulky.  They pile up quickly, especially if you've got littles running in and out playing in the snow.   Start the storm out with an empty laundry basket and you don't have to pause your movie to get up and move a load or if the power goes out, everyone's got clean underwear.   

5. Cook...everything you might want for the duration of the storm.   Listen, this won't work for a hurricane but if you've got frigid temps then you have all the outdoor refrigeration you could need.  I might add, you should probably have a gas stove for this to apply in the event of a power outage.  I spent all day last Friday cooking meals for us and then they just went outside to the patio, covered of course.   They were frozen solid and if the power had gone out, I wouldn't have had to open and close the refrigerator to get out food.   This also frees you up to do fun baking things as long as you have power.   Dinner is already done, so get in the kitchen and pretend Paul Hollywood is waiting for his dessert.     Cookie baking is way more fun than dinner making. 

6.  Fill up your cars with gas, even if you know you won't be going anywhere.  We learned this in Snowmaggedon.  If you are without power for several days you can go to your car and get warm and charge your cell phones.  Just make sure to open the garage door or back the car out of the garage.   Let's be safe out there kids.

7.  If you have a septic system, cover your septic sprayers with a big 5 gallon bucket.  It'll create a nice warm air pocket so your sprayers will continue to to go off.  Nobody wants to be out in single digit temps trying to unfreeze your septic sprayers and your neighbors will appreciate you not stinking up the neighborhood when those things finally do go off.   

8.   If your power goes out and comes back on, make sure you check your breakers.   Our power went out a couple of times yesterday and once when it came back on it popped the breaker that runs the heater for the greenhouse.   Thankfully I was out with the dog and walked over to check to see how the temp was holding in the greenhouse.   This same breaker is the one with our big freezer and garage refrigerator so that could've been a mess. 

9. Speaking of freezers, put a bowl with some water in your freezers.  Let that water freeze then drop a coin on top.  If your power goes out, you've got a quick easy way to check to see how much unthawing occurred.   Nobody wants spoiled food.

10.  Coffee....ok, let's be real in the scheme of things this may not seem too important but if you are a coffee drinker it's important indeed.   I drink one cup every morning, not a lot and I enjoy it, every sip I enjoy.  Since we have a gas stovetop, I had a friend who loves antiquing and thrifting hunt me down an old corning stovetop percolator.   Friday I hopped online and found the directions of how to percolate coffee and taped them to the inside of the coffee cabinet.   Now they are where I'll see them anytime I might need them.   I also saw some people say that they boiled water and put it in a thermos type container and would do a pour over or use those handy little instant packets you can buy.  Whatever works for you but there's no since in having that lack of caffeine headache if you can avoid it.

11. Wash your hair. Yeah, you heard me, just before the storm is set to hit, go ahead and wash and dry your hair.  Don't say, oh I've got another day or two before I need to do that because sometimes that day or two turns into 3 or 4 or more and then you are over here looking like a greaseball.   Some lessons are learned the hard way.     

12.  Here in Texas we don't winterize our pools, they stay "open" year round so if the weather is going to be super cold and there's a potential for power outages, drain your pool filters.   It takes Hubster about 5 minutes to do this, then we shut the power off to the pool.   Believe me when I say, you only learn this lesson once.  Replacing frozen pipes/parts on pool equipment is not cheap nor fun.  We also threw a couple of pool noodles in the pool to give the ice some obstacles.  Also, best to do this in the daylight before it happens as opposed to hearing your power go out at 3 in the morning and knowing it's single digits outside and your pipes are gonna go.  

13.  Take a hot shower as soon as you get up or before bed if you have power.  At least you'll get a nice warm shower in if the power goes out and just like underwear, everyone likes to be clean. 

14. PLEASE for all that is good and holy do not run your space heaters at night.  Let's not burn the place down.   Also, if you are running your gas fireplaces nonstop, make sure you open up the door/window for a few minutes to get some fresh air flowing in the house.  Once again, let's be safe kiddos. 

15.  Get some fresh air, every day.  If you've got pets then this won't be too hard as they have to go outside to do their business anyway so go out with them.  Bundle up and get outside for a minute or two.  I know it's cold out there but go get a good brisk breath of fresh air, fill up the bird feeders, stand there and listen to the quiet, I promise you'll feel better.  We took the dogs on a short little walk yesterday and it's the first time I've left my yard since last Thursday.   Just be slow and safe, we have a dusting of snow over the top of a LOT of ice so it's slippery but the dogs appreciated the time out of the house as much as we did.  

My last little tip is CHILL the you know what out!  Seriously, your house is going to get messy, you are going to watch too much crappy television, eat way too many carbohydrates but it's ok.  Read a book, watch tv, play some games, take a hot bath, drink wine, eat cookies, whatever floats your boat but relax.   You can't go anywhere so cuddle up under a blanket, pet the dog a little longer and enjoy it.  It'll be gone soon enough and we'll all be running around doing a million things wishing we had time to just sit down and do nothing, take your chance while you've got it.  

Take care my peeps, stay warm and take care of each other!

Samma

P.s.  One final tip, fill up the bird feeders.  You will be rewarded with so many happy birds in your yard.  And hey, if you need some fresh air, go refill those feeders.   Birds need love too!