Remembering our Heroes
Mike and I give thanks and honor to our fallen soldiers who gave us freedom. Because of you, our heroes, we have life, liberty and the ability to pursue happiness. Thank you.
Excellence El Carmen Part 2
This is part two of a three-part series of videos where we give an overview and review of the Excellence El Carmen all-inclusive resort. The resort is in the Punta Cana area of the Dominican Republic. In this video we will give an overview of our room, the amenities, shows, and the food at the resort.
You may find part 1 here where we discussed the grounds, the beach and the main building.
Coming up in part 3 we will give our overall impressions, our review rankings, as well as highlight a MAJOR issue that almost ruined our vacation! We hope these give a good Phase 2 of life overview as we discuss if this is a good leisure opportunity for those if us in phase 2 of life.
Enjoy!
Mike and Nancy
Excellence El Carmen Punta Cana Review Part 1
We enjoy our travel time and have discovered how much we like all inclusive resorts. This is part one of a three-part series of videos where we give an overview and review of the Excellence El Carmen all-inclusive resort.
The resort is in the Punta Cana area of the Dominican Republic. In the video we will show an overview of the main building, the grounds, and the beach. In part 2 we will discuss the food, amenities, and activities. And in part 3 we will give our overall impressions, our review rankings, as well as highlight a MAJOR issue that almost ruined our vacation!
Travel time is a blessing we can enjoy more of during phase 2 of life. As we discuss our travel locations and experiences, we hope this gives you a good overview so you may make a decision if this type of travel or destination is for you.
Enjoy life in phase 2.
Mike and Nancy
We had a “Grand” Easter
Easter is one of our favorite holidays. I personally enjoy the day as we go to church in the morning and then have an afternoon filled with family fun. We had four generations at our house this Easter and it was a grand Easter spending it with the “grand-bunnies!”
We were only missing our oldest daughter who Lives down in Texas with her husband. We did bring my mother to our house from the assisted living apartment where she resides.
I spent two days cooking and the food was wonderful and we feasted on baked ham, Texas potatoes, green beans, spinach-strawberry salad, deviled eggs, fruit salad, carrot croissants and bunny cupcakes and cookies. Yum!
The little bunny butts are a frosted oreo cookie with white sprinkles. Feet and tail are from Wilton.
I made a video on how to make these fun croissant carrots which you can see here.
I hope you had a very Happy Easter Friends.
Make it a beautiful day!
Nancy
Easter Layered Cookies in a Jar
Hi Friends,
I enjoy cooking and doing machine embroidery. It is part of my leisure life that I want to share with you. Today I am making an Easter Layered Cookies in a Jar recipe. Then I’m decorating the mason jar with a cute, personal embroidery design. This is what I’m doing to get ready for Easter by doing a bit of gift-giving preparations for the family.
Before I get going, I’m going to post the YouTube video here so you can see how the layers go together. This video is published on my personal YouTube channel.
For all who are coming over for our Easter meal they will get a personalized layered cookie mix in a jar.
Below I’ve given all the instructions on how to create these fun gifts. If you don’t do machine embroidery, just cut a 5 1/2″ circle out of some colorful cotton fabric to decorate the top of the mason jar.
Easter Layered Cookies in a Jar
Ingredients:
- 1 ¼ cup quick-cooking oats
- 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup chopped pecans**
- 1 cup M&M’s (I’ve used the pastel Easter ones here)
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup sugar
Additional ingredients:
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 1 extra large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Layer the ingredients in order listed into a 1 quart wide mouth canning jar starting with the oats. If you have a canning funnel, that is helpful. Pack the ingredients as you go. The top layer will be the sugar.
Place the lid on the jar. I decorated a piece of cotton fabric with my Easter Mason Jar Alphabet machine embroidery design which you can find here. As a side note, this design fits in a 4 x 4 hoop and contains all alphabet letters.
After machine embroidering the design, I cut it into a 5 ½” circle using my pinking shears.
To make the cookies:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Beat together butter, egg and vanilla.
- Add dry ingredients and mix on low speed or mix by hand.
- Roll into 1” balls and place on a cookie sheet 2” apart.
- Flatten balls using the bottom of a glass.
- Bake for 12 to 13 minutes.
- Let cool for just a minute before removing from the cookie sheet.
- Enjoy!
For gift giving:
Include a note with the jar that lists the liquid ingredients that the recipient will need to provide as well as mixing and baking instructions.
When I make mine, I line up the number of canning jars I’m going to create and then make these in assembly line fashion.
They are so much fun to make and it creates the most charming gift.
Enjoy!
Nancy
Unusual Cruise Essentials
Unusual Cruise Essentials
Since we have been able to much more traveling in Phase 2 of life, one of our favorite activities is cruising. We have been cruising since our Honeymoon in 1988. Suffice it to say that cursing and cruse ships have changed A LOT since then. However, that has not changed our love of cursing and the whole cruise experience. As we always try to do here at Living Phase 2, we want to highlight ways to make the most of your life and in that vein we want to present some items when you take a cruise you may not have considered. These are a bit unusual but we have found them very useful to enhance our cruise experience.
Please note, in this blog we will recommend some products we have used and found to work well. We will embed links to these products on Amazon and if you use these links, we will make a small commission. However, this in no way influences what we recommend, as we will only suggest products, we believe will truly enhance your travel experience.
Friends, we also have a general Packing for a Cruise video which you may find HERE.
Device Charging Essentials
The first is a very simple solution to what can be a big mess when traveling. We all have more and more charging cords and cables along with more electronic devices. Your Kindle, iPhone, Android Phone, Laptop, smart watch and tablet can all take different cable types, and these can become a big mess. Keeping your cables organized not only make travel much easier and pleasurable, it also protects your cables and makes sure you never leave home without the cables you need.
Here are VERY simple and inexpensive solutions.
First, the easiest and least expensive solution, you can use something you already have around the house. That’s what we use. I have some travel kit bags from business class travel that work perfect.
Next, you can also use a simple pencil bag either left over from your kids’ school days or from the dollar store. Here’s an example:
Here are a couple of purpose designed cable organizers that not only work very well but also come with cable ties and keep all your cords separated and protected.
Sunsir Travel Cable Organizer Bag
Whichever solution you select, we recommend you use some type of cable tie to keep them rolled and can organized. You can use a simple bread tie or purpose made hook and loop ties, which is what we use.
Cable TiesOne last item for your charger bag is a USB charger. We use this one and keep it in our travel cable bags to make sure we always have a good, multiport USB charger. A bonus with this charger is it works well for fast charging of iPhones and Android devices.
Finally, now that you have your cable bag and USB charger, make sure to purchase enough extra cables to keep it stocked and ready to go. Charging cables are now inexpensive enough to allow for buying duplicate cables and keeping them packed in your travel bag so you are never without this important necessity.
Electrical Plug Items
On most cruse ships there is a distinct lack of electrical outlets. With all our electronics that need charging and other electronic devices we use these days. we often need more outlets than what are available. You will find many cruise ships have two types of outlets, a US standard and a European standard outlet. With the right equipment you can make the most of both of these. We carry a European plug to US adaptor to give us use of all the outlets in our cruise cabin.
US to Europe Power Adapter with USB Hubs
PLEASE NOTE: This adaptor does not convert the voltage, only the outlet. If you are not familiar or comfortable with the difference in voltage between these outlets, PLEASE DO NOT use use this product. In the future we will do another blog especially on voltage converters and adaptors and the different voltage and frequency standards.
Extension Cord
We always carry an extension cord when traveling. It comes in handy for many reasons, but especially in cruise ships. Like we’ve mentioned, there is a distinct lack of outlets in cruise cabins. Also, as seen on our channel my wife uses a CPAP, and we always need power by her side of the bed. A good, heavy duty extension cord is always a good travel companion.
Medical Kit
Another item we keep packed and stocked at all times and it is always ready to go, is our medicine bag or esentials bag. For the bag itself you can use anything you have around the house, we use an old travel toiletry kit. That size is prefect. Because our list of what’s in our “go bag” is rather extensive, we have dedicated a separate blog for just that topic. You can find that here: Travel Essentials when Living in Phase 2.
Baggage Scale
Bag weight limits are very tightly controlled so with packing and unpacking, and adding souvenir purchases, you can never be sure if the weight of the bags you packed at home are the same when you are returning. There’s little worse than getting to the check-in counter and being told you are over 5 pounds and having to pull out items and repack your underwear in front of the whole airport. Fortunately, there is an easy solution for this, a portable baggage scale. I’ve been using one of these for travel for years and it’s a life saver. It is cheap, lightweight, and easy to pack. Just throw it in your bag and bring it with you. When it’s time to come home pull it out and weigh your luggage to make sure you are under the 50 lb limit.
Magnetic Hooks
This one is especially necessary for cruse ships. What a lot of people don’t realize is the all walls and ceilings on cruise ships are metal, so magnetic items are very useful in cruise cabins. We travel with 2 types of hooks and magnetic clip. The hooks are great for hanging up hats, clothes, lanyards, etc. The clips are perfect for any paperwork that you collect during your cruise. Note that the pound rating is based on pulling the hook straight out, not how much it can hold when attached sideways on a wall. If you want to hold something heavier on a wall, we recommend you get the larger 100 lb. hooks. We have found the 22 lb. hooks are perfect for hats, lanyards, and other smaller items.
Gaffer Tape
One of the most versatile items you can take with you when traveling is gaffer tape. No, not duct tape or masking tape, but gaffer tape. This stuff is great and is what holds together most movie sets. You never know when you you’ll need to tape down an extension cord, or just keep the hangers from banging around your cruise ship cabin when the ship is rocking. Gaffer tape can help with many situations.
Locking Bag
When we are at the pool or beach there’s always some concern leaving our stuff (phones, Kindles, etc.) when we go for a swim, head up to the bar or just hitting the restroom. After looking for some time we found a great solution, a locking waterproof bag. Please note this is NOT ultrahigh security. However, after all our research, we feel this locking bag is a good compromise of large size, waterproof, and locking ability. We say this bag keeps the honest people honest. If someone was very motivated to cut it open and steal your items, this won’t stop that, but it does offer peace of mind.
Silicon Straws
Quite often when traveling bars and restaurants are not offering straws with their drinks. Even when they do, they are sometimes paper and fall apart. Therefore, we always travel with our own silicon straws. There are many options for these, but most come with 8 to 12 straws, a cleaning brush, and some holders. Here’s one we’ve picked that works well. In addition to the straws think about bringing some antibacterial dish soap to clean the straws. Silicon has a tendency to pick up tastes and orders from items and a little wash can take that away.
Tumblers with handles
When getting a drink at the pool bar it’s often very warm outside and your delicious, cool, frozen drink can melt very quickly. Having a stainless steel, insulated, tumbler can come if very handy to keep your drinks ice cold. We select 20oz. size. We’ve found that’s the perfect size for most drinks. You can get high-end Yeti™ style, but we’ve found the Ozark Tails tumblers from Walmart or inexpensive ones from Amazon work great. We always get them without a handle, as that can be added later.
20 ounce staneless steel insulated tumbler
Nightlight
Hotel and cruise ship rooms can be very dark. After quite a bit of research we found a battery powered, motion sensing, light activated night light, with an amber light that won’t wake you up the way a blue light will. Its small, lightweight, and easy to pack and works great for very dark rooms when you need to make those middle of the night trips. The Mr. Beams nightlight we recommend comes in a 3-pack so you can have them in a couple of places such as in the room and the bathroom.
Mr. Beams Motion Sensing Nightlight
Friends, we hope you have enjoyed our list of unusual items that we take when we travel. They have made our travel and cruising trips even more enjoyable as well as give us some peace of mind.
Our general How to Pack for a Cruise video may be found HERE.
We wish you all the best on your travels, and if you have a travel item you think is important that we haven’t listed here, please leave us a comment below. We would love to hear what you take on your trips. We can all learn from each other!
Enjoy life in Phase 2,
Mike and Nancy
Grandbabies Update
Hi Friends,
It’s been a bit and it is time for a baby update on the grandbabies. They are growing steadily. Levi, on the left, is 12 pounds and Hudson, right, is 14 pounds.
Little Levi has been having minor struggles. He continues to use his NG tube for feedings. It was discovered he has a third cleft between called a laryngotracheal cleft which is an opening between the larnyx and the esophagus which can allow food to go into his lungs. The good news is that Levi had his second surgery and they were able to put a patch in that opening. We are hopeful that after this next doctor’s visit, he will be able to take his feedings with a bottle. Levi’s first surgery was cosmetic to repair the lip and nostril. Here is our daughter Emily with Levi during recovery.
Both are happy little guys and will give us big belly laughs in response to our silliness. Thank you for your continued prayers for this little one. We know God has big plans for him. Correction, God has big plans for them both.
Have a blessed and beautiful Sunday ,
Nancy
CPAP Tips Tricks and Supplies
Today’s video shows some tips, tricks and supplies for your CPAP machine as well as how to care for it. This is part 3 of 3 in the videos about the correlation between sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation.
You can find part 1 HERE. Part 1 is where I share my story of sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation.
You can find part 2 HERE. Part 2 talks about the relationship between the two, sleep apnea and afib.
At the end of this video, Mike joins me and we discuss our feelings related to the use of the CPAP machine and how it has helped my overall health.
Friends, we care about your heart health. You know we are not giving medical advice, but we hope that these videos give you food for thought and possibly help you think of questions you may wish to ask your health care provider.
May we all live Phase 2 of our lives strong and healthy.
Mike and Nancy
Travel Essentials when Living in Phase 2
Travel essentials when living in phase 2 can be a bit different from our earlier years.
Ah, to be in our 20’s with no thought of all the little health issues we now experience in life’s second phase. It used to be when we would go on a travel adventure, we’d stay out late, eat and imbibe a bit too much, and then jump out of bed the next day to do it all again with few aches and pains or other ailments. However, although we may have a few more issues in Phase 2, those little things don’t have to stop us enjoying our leisure and adventure activities. It just takes a bit more planning and preparation than before.
In that vein we always keep a kit packed and ready to throw in our luggage regardless of the type of travel, be it a cruise, weekend BBQ tournament judging, or visiting family. Today we are going to review our travel kit recommendations to help make sure you are always ready for your Phase 2 adventures.
Please note you will see some products from Amazon. By purchasing through these links we earn a small commission at no cost to you. We only recommend products we use and enjoy. Thank you for your support.
The Travel Bag
Really you can use anything you have around the house. We use an old travel toiletry kit. That size is prefect. But any zip up bag that’s about 5” X 4” X 8” size will work well. You can even use a heavy duty gallon zip top bag.
Now that you have your bag let’s get it filled. Almost all these supplies be purchased at Walmart, Target, or even Dollar Tree. We will break down it down by possible ailment.
Foot and Skin:
Medicated Body Powder such as Gold Bond™ or Anti-Monkey Butt™
When traveling, especially when on a cruise or at the beach it very easy to get a skin rash. Medicated powder is great for those swimsuit rashes after spending all day in a damp swimsuit. After many years of Boy Scout hikes and trips, our favorite is Anti-Monkey Butt™.
Moleskin
It’s very easy to get a “hot spot” or blister while on travel adventures. We always keep a set of pre-cut patches of various sizes in our kit. We use the pre-cut vs. the large patches, since mole skin can be very tough to cut. He’s a link to the pre-cut kit we use.
Sunburns
We hope everyone already knows to always pack sun screen, sun glasses and head protection. We take sunburn and skin cancer very seriously, but occasionally we can still get sunburned on our adventures. In that case we have some post-sunburn relief products we always keep on hand.
Aloe Sunburn Gel – There are various brands we use. Be sure to pick a brand that has both aloe and Lidocaine.
Solarcaine™ Sun Burn Relief Spray – Can help with sunburn pain, make sure it also has aloe and lidocaine as well.
General Medication
You may end up over doing it a bit, be it long hikes, over exertion, a few too many at the pool bar. After that you may end up with sore muscles or even with a bit of a headache, so we always keep generic versions the following on hand:
• Headache medication that is a combination acetaminophen, aspirin, and caffeine such as Excedrin™.
• Ibuprofen such as Advil™
• Acetaminophen – such as Tylenol™
• Acetaminophen PM – A Nighttime aid to help with sleep, should you need it, such as Tylenol PM™
You never know when you may catch a cold or have an allergy attack. For those, we keep generic tablet versions of Dayquil™ and NyQuil™ in our kit.
Stomach Needs
We may not want to admit it, but we can’t always eat what, and how, we did in our 20’s. In Phase 2 we can be more susceptible to acid reflux, upset stomach, diarrhea, etc. This can all be exacerbated when traveling with unusual foods, more drink, and new activities.
For gastro-intestinal issues we always travel with some bismuth subsalicylate tablets. The brand name would be Pepto-Bismol™, we have used both the name brand as well as generics. These are a must have when traveling. They are, just like their ad says good for upset stomach, diarrhea, and indigestion. We use the tablets, so there’s not a chance of the liquid spilling.
Many of us have heard the expression “Montezuma’s Revenge”. Without going into the full story, it is the name for severe diarrhea contracted by travelers. Diarrhea when traveling is very common. It can come from changes in diet or bacterial infections. We always make sure we have some Loperamide HCL based anti-diarrhea medication. Yes, the Pepto™ will work for mild cases, this medication is more targeted and stronger and faster acting. Just don’t over do taking it.
For acid stomach we keep a simple calcium carbonate antiacid, such as Tums™ or Maalox™ as well as a preventive antiacid is important to have on hand.
If overindulging is causing a bit more recurring heart burn our go-to preventative antiacid is Pepcid® AC or Generic equivalent. We get the generic Sam’s Club Member’s Mark product called Acid-Pep Famotidine Tablets.
Motion Sickness Medication
Fortunately, we don’t find we are susceptible to much in the way of motion sickness. However, we have family members and friends that struggle with motion sickness. Our preferred medication is Meclizine HCL 25 mg, the name brand is Bonine™.
Miscellaneous
Stain Wipes
You will spill something on yourself and if you pack minimally you will need to re-wear some outfits. Therefore, we always keep Shout™ wipes on hand for the small spills and stains.
Lint Roller
Hair, lint, can get all over us when traveling, there’s were a mini-lint brush comes in. You can get the reusable or the tape kind. Here’s a link to the small reusable one we keep in our kit:
Ear Plugs
Nancy has always had trouble sleeping when there is excessive noise. Hotels, especially, can be very noisy. To help get a good night’s sleep, we always travel with some ear plugs, just in case.
Travel First Aid Kit
You will get a few cuts and scrapes as you travel. After being a Boy Scout leading for years, Mike never leaves home without a basic first aid kit. You don’t need a big one. You only need one that contains various size adhesive and gauze bandages, tape, small medical scissor, tweezer, antiseptic towelettes, safety pins, and Q-tips™. That will do you well for small incidents.
We hope this list of health travel aids and a peak into our Phase 2 leisure life helps you make the most of your own Phase 2 journey.
Thank you again for making your Amazon purchaces through these links or by visiting our Amazon Storefront where you will see all our recommendations.
Until next time, Happy Phase 2 Travels.
Mike and Nancy
Home from a Cruise
Living in the second phase of life has given us an opportunity to do more traveling which is something Mike and I have always enjoyed. Back in 1988 we went on a Royal Caribbean cruise for our honeymoon. We have just now returned from another Royal Caribbean cruise down in the Caribbean. We were on Odyssey of the Seas and went to Cozumel, Costa Maya and the Bahamas. The weather wasn’t the most cooperative on this trip as we were unable to get off the ship in Costa Maya due to the high sea swells. They weren’t able to lower the gangway. So the captain turned the ship around and we had another sea day. Honestly, I like our sea days a lot. They are the most relaxing and relaxing is what I like for a vacation.
Odyssey of the Seas is one of the newer ships and it had some fun aminities. Mike and I got to do an imersive virtual reality experience. I’d never done anything like that, but we wore the full gear on our heads, back, hands and feet. We were pirates in this experience and it was unbelieveably realistic. Even though I knew we were in a room with a floor and four walls, there was a point where we had to walk across a virtual plank of wood to get from one place to another without falling off. There were times we had to duck or walk through a narrow tunnel. Crazy. I can see the future of video games for our grandchildren will be very different.
Odyssey of the Seas has a North Star experience which is a large ball that holds about a dozen people at a time. It lifts you high above the ship so you can view the surrounding area. The picture above shows us in the North Star.
The entertainment on board was amazing. They had a couple of commedians, a singer and some great musicians.
Other things we did on the ship were ride bumper cars – I didn’t remember being that fun but we had a great time. We played pickleball, went swimming, lots of reading, visited with others on board, and ate way too much.
Mike and I have some videos coming up that will be showing some tips and trick that we do while crusing.
It always feels good to get away for a bit, but it is always good to be back home.
Make it a great day everyone,
Nancy
Sleep Apnea and Atrial Fibrillation
Friends, there is a direct correlation between between obstructive sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation. In the video today I discuss the relationship between the two.
Please friends, if you are experiencing any of the symptoms mentioned, don’t hesitate to contact your health care provider. I don’t want you to go through atrial fibrillation and then need to have a cardioversion like I had.
This is part 2 of a 3 part series on sleep apnea.
In Part 1 I share my story of sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation.
In Part 3 we cover CPAP tips and tricks.
Layered Cookie Mix in a Jar
Layered cookies in a jar are quick easy and fun to make. And they are delicious too! I’ve been getting ready for Easter by making these for all who will be coming over for dinner Easter Sunday. When I have a little more time on my hands, it is fun to get back into the creative side of things. I absolutely LOVE making food gifts for others. Below is my version of the Cowboy cookie recipe. I’ve used the pastel M&M’s for Easter, but you could use other colors at other times of the year as well.
Layered Cookies in a Jar
Ingredients:
- 1 ¼ cup quick-cooking oats
- 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup chopped pecans**
- 1 cup M&M’s (I’ve used the pastel Easter ones here)
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup sugar
Additional ingredients:
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 1 extra large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Layer the ingredients in order listed into a 1 quart wide mouth canning jar starting with the oats. If you have a canning funnel, that is helpful. Pack the ingredients as you go. The top layer will be the sugar.
Place the lid on the jar. I decorated a piece of cotton fabric with my Easter Mason Jar Alphabet machine embroidery design which you can find here. As a side note, this design fits in a 4 x 4 hoop and contains all alphabet letters.
After machine embroidering the design, I cut it into a 5 ½” circle using my pinking shears.
To make the cookies:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Beat together butter, egg and vanilla.
- Add dry ingredients and mix on low speed or mix by hand.
- Roll into 1” balls and place on a cookie sheet 2” apart.
- Flatten balls using the bottom of a glass.
- Bake for 12 to 13 minutes.
- Let cool for just a minute before removing from the cookie sheet.
- Enjoy!
For gift giving:
Include a note with the jar that lists the liquid ingredients that the recipient will need to provide as well as mixing and baking instructions.
When I make mine, I line up the number of canning jars I’m going to create and then make these in assembly line fashion.
They are so much fun to make and it creates the most charming gift.
When I make mine, I line up the required number of wide mouth quart mason jars that I need and put these together in an assembly line fashion. It goes quick and easy. Have your grandchildren help build these and enjoy munching on a few M&M’s in the process!
Enjoy,
Nancy
Nancy’s A-Fib Story
In today’s YouTube video I share my story of having atrial fibrillation, also called a-fib. I had to have my heart shocked to get the rhythm to return to normal. This was all due to sleep apnea.
Friends, please care for yourself and know if you are experiencing either sleep apnea or atrial fibrillation. A-fib is serious and can even be life threatening. I hope my story will help keep you informed and if needed, spark a conversation between you and your health care provider.
Here is the video.
This is part one of a three part series.
In part 2 I talk about the correlation between atrial fibrillation and sleep apnea and you may find PART 2 HERE.
Part 3 gives tips and tricks for your CPAP and how to care for it. Find PART 3 HERE.
Thank you friends. It is my wish that you stay healthy and for us to remain Living in Phase 2 as long as we possibly can.
Make it a great day!
Nancy
Favorite February Moment
What a blessing to live close to our grandchildren. They bring us so much joy.
At four months old, our little Levi had his first surgery for his cleft lip and palate. This surgery was all cosmetic to bring his lips together and build a nostril. Levi actually has a third cleft called a laryngeal cleft which is an abnormal opening between the larnyx and esophagus which food and liquid can pass through the larnyx into the lungs. This is why he has to have the NG tube through is nose. It is how he gets his feedings. I get to give him the first feeding of the day on most weekdays before I head into Apple Spice. The photo above is the day before his surgery and now you can see him after the repair.
Let me tell you, Levi is such a happy little guy. He wakes up smiling and the tube doesn’t seem to bother his in the least. There is nothing better than to start my day off with baby snuggles.
My favorite February moment is that Levi had his first, of numerous, surgeries for his cleft lip. I am amazed at how well the repair went. I am so grateful for his surgeon and all of the cleft team that are involved in his care. God is good and I know He has big plans for this little guy. So getting is facial repair….that was my favorite February moment.
I’d love to hear your favorite February moments. Leave a comment down below and let me know.
Make it a great day friends!
Nancy
Turning Hobbies into Income
While in the second phase of life, either pre-retirement or early retirement we are often re-evaluating our current career or life situation and determining at what we want our work-life balance to look like.
It is common during this phase to look at the entire picture of our lives. If we are retired, we may feel at a loss as to what to do with our time. If working, we may feel tied to our current career due to retirement benefits, insurance and more. Although we may feel tied to this career, we may be finding that it is time for a change. This could be due to many causes such as our changing family dynamics, changing health, changing work environment, stress, changes in the current demands in our lives, insufficient pay, workplace harassment and the list goes on.
Once we have made the decision that we want to make a change, but are unsure of what to do next, here is a good first place to consider.
Make a list of your hobbies and interests.
If you weren’t at work right now, what would you like to be doing? Below is a list of ideas that might just spark a jumping off point leading to a second income or even a second career.
- Writing: blogging, books, magazine, newspaper, or online articles
- Graphic design
- Woodworking, carpentry
- Photography, video
- Sports: coaching, refereeing
- Music: teaching, playing
- Crafts: selling, teaching
- Website design
- Social media: YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and more
- Buying and selling: antiques, Ebay etc.
- Personal shopping for others
- Baking and cooking
- Gardening and landscaping
- Reviewing: products, movies
- Interior design: sewing furniture covers or sewing curtains and bedding
- Pet care
- Travel: writing reviews and articles, being a local guide to visitors coming into your city
- Fitness: Instructor, coach
What is on your list of things you enjoy doing? Once you have made your list, then spend some time brainstorming ways your interests can generate an income. You may just find that the interests you have could potentially generate a supplemental income or may even replace your current income and more!
This is part 1 of 2 in turning hobbies into income. Next time, I will share with you how I’ve turned my hobbies into a significant income for our family.
Make it a great day friends,
Nancy
Our Introduction Video
Hi Friends,
There is so much to share about Living Phase 2. And as they say, sometime a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, sometimes a video can ‘show’ what we want to talk about better than the written word.
Living Phase 2 has a YouTube channel and we will be consistently adding more content over there. You can find the Living Phase 2 YouTube channel HERE.
The videos will give you an even greater opportunity to get to know us. While you are there, we thank you for liking the videos you watch and please subscribe so you will be notified each time a new video is released.
Our first video is our introduction where we tell a bit about ourselves. We also discuss the phases of life and our intent for our Living Phase 2 website and the content we will cover.
You may also find our WELCOME PAGE HERE.
Thank you friends and know we appreciate each and every one of you.
Mike and Nancy
Happenings Over the Weekend
Weekends are such a blessing. Mike continues to work full time on our business, Apple Spice. I, however, have cut back to 4 days a week most weeks so about 30 hours a week for me. So weekends give us a chance to unwind and recharge.
We spent this weekend with Mike working on the snow plow and me doing some menu planning and creating a shopping list for this next week. We went to church and had dinner with our daughter Emily and her family. Family brings us so much joy. Emily and Matt have twin boys who are four months old. One of the little guys has a cleft lip and palate. He also has a third cleft between his esophagus and thorax which is why he requires an NG tube for his feedings at this time.
Often times before heading into Apple Spice I will help Emily by doing this little guy’s morning feeding. So while having dinner with them I had the opportunity to do his evening feeding. He has had his initial surgery just over a week ago and the surgeon closed his lip and created a nostril. In about seven weeks he will have a patch inserted into the cleft between his esophagus and thorax. We are hopeful that at that time they will be able to remove the NG tube.
Since his surgery, we have been babysitting their dogs, so we say we are babysitting the grand dogs, and boy do the grand dogs like attention!
I hope your weekend was as recharging as ours was and that you have an amazing week!
Nancy
Spring is Coming
What a happy day that although the snow continues to come down, we caught our first glimpse of spring with robins feasting on seeds from our red bud tree. I know up north we will continue to have snow for a while with many dreary days but despite that, spring is on its way. The first day of spring is in 31 days.
It is so important to keep our spirits lifted throughout winter and seeing God’s beauty in these tiny animals while giving thanks lightens our heart and minds.
Spring is a sign of new life. It is a sign that God fulfills His promises and gives us hope to renew and begin again. I pause to think of the areas in my life I need to renew and I’m filled with gratefulness for God’s mercies and understanding. I am grateful that I’m given a chance to begin again.
May each of you see beauty in your corner of the world today and know that spring with its new beginnings is on its way.
Nancy
Enjoying Wordle
Our children have introduced us to Wordle from the New York Times. It is a web-based word game where players have six attempts to guess a five-letter word, with feedback given for each guess in the form of colored tiles indicating when letters match or occupy the correct position. It reminds me of a game I played as a child called Mastermind.
The nice thing about Wordle is there is only one game a day and the game can be played in under 10 minutes. And I must say, it is fun!
Both Wordle and Mastermind are good brain games as they use logic and strategy to discover the solution.
Have a great day everyone!
Nancy
Phases of Life Defined
The Phases of life
As we thought about our life, some major changes had taken place over a relatively short period of time. Our children had grown and moved out which had brought along that accompanies being an empty nester. We had moved away from our first careers and raising our kids to becoming owners of our new business. Our parents needed more care as they were aging. We started calling this time of our lives “Phase 2”. Looking back, we saw all the changes we were experiencing and how much we had to learn. That was the genesis of Living Phase 2.
But what is Phase 2? We’ve defined it as that time in life after an early career and raising families, but before the late retirement years. We measured each of life’s phases using 3 key characteristics, time, money, and health.
Thinking about each of these measures, let’s look at each of the phases of life to see why and how Phase 2 can be possibly the best time of our lives.
Phase 0
Phase 0 is the start of life. It’s our childhood. It is days of playing, going to school, growing up, while living with a family support system. Phase 0 continues up until we start “adulting”. It’s that time of life where we have the freedom and minimal responsibility. Looking at the chart in Phase 0, there’s plenty of time and great health, however, there is little “money” available in this phase. While our family may have “money” it’s not generally our choice how that money is spent, and it is not an important component for a person in phase 0.
Phase 1
In Phase 1 it’s time to transition from childhood into adulthood. It’s the time in life where many of us start our careers, marry, have children, and raise our families. During this phase, our time is often limited. We are early in our careers, not making much in the way of income yet. We may have only 1 or 2 weeks of vacation and time off is spent around family activities. Money earned goes towards necessities along with buying cars, houses, raising families, and hopefully investing in the future. Although we have excellent health and vitality, our time is often not our own.
Phase 2
Now here we are, phase 2 of life. Our children are grown and most likely out of the house. At this point we may start to feel some of the early effects of our age. We wake up a little stiffer. After a night out, it takes a bit more to get going in the morning. We start grow hair in places where we didn’t want it and lose it where we do. It is at this time of life when we are well into our career, making more money, and most likely have more in the way of vacation and free time. We may even be wondering what to do with ourselves now that we aren’t spending all our time catering to our children and their activities that have been such a significant part of our life. We also may be looking at a refreshed career, more travel, spending time with grandchildren, and caring for aging parents. Our thoughts become more concerned about our health. We also look outside ourselves and consider how we can spend our time, talent and treasure to help others. Finally, our retirement is on the horizon, and we are thinking about options and hopefully seeing the fruits of our retirement investments and wealth planning.
It’s around these pillars of Health, Wealth, Career, Leisure, Family, and Faith & Charity that we will have discussions in our Living Phase 2 community, including website and social media. It is our hope to build a community of others in Phase 2 where we can share ideas and help each other have the best Phase 2 life possible.
Phase 3
And last, lets identify phase 3. During the transition from phase 2 to 3 we find that we have even more time with being retired and having less career responsibilities. Often our home, cars, and other debts are paid off. We also have fewer family expenses and if our retirement plans are well executed this can lead to more disposable income. However, it’s during this transition that our health and vitality decline. That is the major transition indicator from phase 2 to phase 3. We have plenty of time and money, but not the energy or health we once had.
Wrap up
We would like to note, we certainly understand that this is a very broad and generic view. You will note that we don’t put ages on these phases. They are keyed by the balance between health, wealth, and time. Everyone’s experiences will differ and how we experience each of life’s phases will be unique. How we see phase 2 is the time in life where you have the freedom while having a good balance of time, money and health. For some people that may be in their 30’s and for others it may extend well into their senior years. We hope you will enjoy our journey through phase 2 and look forward having you join us. Together, we can help each other get the most out of life.
Nancy and Mike Jacobs