SHAVUA TOV~Self-Care 2025; Ocean Park-WA

"Shavua Tov" (שָׁבוּעַ טוֹב) is a Hebrew phrase meaning "good week".

We're leaving here on the 28th.

Holland worked on the door latch this afternoon - taking one out, and replacing it with another. Eventually he wants to get a digital one, but for now, this is what happened today:

Betsy & Independence; Ocean Park-WA

Holland wrapping tasks up.

Very strong winds - not gale force, but pretty strong.

The wind is high here in Ocean Park-WA today, so I engaged in some indoor stretching exercises for a bit. There are many workout movements that don’t involve machinery - as a Messianic Christian Jew, I am not bound by the endless orthodox rules and regulations enforced in many Jewish homes and communities … but I do join in solidarity & respect for the Shabbat Rest, with my Jewish brethren spread across Earth's surface; so I try to do things during my Shabbat Rest period that honors both my Jewish & my Christian heritages.

I like working my body - to strengthen it, and to keep it flexible. As much as possible, I want to be able to use my body for the purposes and with flexible abilities, it was designed and crafted for.

The Reverse Lunge exercise primarily works the quadriceps and glutes, with significant contributions from the hamstrings, which are responsible for hip extension and stability. The exercise also engages the core muscles (abdominals and back) for stability, and the calves and inner thigh muscles (adductors) act as secondary stabilizers and supporters for the movement.

Reverse lunges are beneficial for building lower body strength, improving balance and stability, and enhancing functional movement.

The Step Jacks exercise engages a full-body workout, targeting the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, adductors, abductors, and calves in the legs, along with the shoulders, lats, traps, and core for stabilization and upper body involvement. This low-impact exercise is a versatile cardiovascular and full-body strength move that benefits the entire body.

Adductor Muscles: (https://www.brisbanephysiotherapy.com/news/adductor-muscles-strain-injury)

Step Jacks work the heart and lungs to build fitness without too much impact on the joints. They improve balance and spatial awareness (spatial awareness is, very simply, an visual & mental awareness of the objects in the space around us, and also an awareness of our body's position in that space), help develop muscular endurance in the legs, arms, and shoulders

The lats are the latissimus dorsi muscles, a large, flat, triangular muscle located on the back, below the shoulder blades and extending to the spine. They are involved in shoulder and arm movement, as well as stabilization of the back.

The trapezius muscle, commonly known as "traps," is a large, triangular muscle in the upper back that plays a crucial role in scapular and neck movement, as well as posture. It's divided into upper, middle, and lower fibers, each with distinct functions that contribute to a wide range of movements

The Standing Knee-to-Elbow exercise primarily works the abdominals and obliques due to the twisting, contracting motion of the core. You also engage the hip flexors to lift your knee and the glutes and quadriceps to stabilize your standing leg and maintain balance. The shoulders and arms are also lightly engaged to help guide the movement.

As you lift your knee, the hip flexors activate. Simultaneously, you twist your torso, contracting the obliques to bring your opposite elbow to your knee. The abdominals work throughout the exercise to stabilize your core and facilitate the crunching motion. Meanwhile, the standing leg's muscles (quads and glutes) are engaged to keep you upright.

Mid-day, I’m ready for a Shabbat naps - even if I can’t actually sleep, I'll embrace that luxury of staring into space for a while, with nothing scheduled and no consequences. I may, or may not, pick up where I left off in my current Clive Cussler novel. Reading is encouraged during Shabbat observance; it doesn't always involve spiritual themed material.

And we'll eat light, tonight. Holland will finish off last night's chili mac & cinnamon cornbread leftover's; and I'll have a ramen noodle bowl. While the orthodox community does not cook or bake on Shabbat … it is permissible to reheat food prepared or bought before Shabbat, according to personal halakhic (hall-soft a-kick) practice = Jewish law and tradition that governs the religious and daily life of Jewish people.

Tomorrow, I get busy with my tasks ✅ of getting Independence ready to roll come Thursday 👍

Susanna - 'The Lord Bless You And Keep You Aaronic Blessing': (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mc-WaFYk3U)

WOMAN'S WORK; Ocean Park-WA

August 2nd: Holland's younger brother called last night to say he was thinking about coming to the beach, and if he did - he would be stopping by to see our home, Independence; Holland was looking forward to the visit, but since there was no definite given, he wasn't sure Mark would actually be coming.

We woke up.

We drank coffees ☕️ and waited.

The Day got longer 🤔; Holland went upstairs for a mid-morning nap 🛌

About an hour into the nap, his cell rang … Mark was at the Ocean Park Beach Access: Holland got up and went to meet him.

While Holland was gone, I went into turbo woman's work mode, and tidied the house for visitor inspection 😉

The guys pulled up outside just as I finished sweeping the floor, set a chair in place for an extra seating ✅, and was finishing up an interesting article 🧐 about the russian earthquake that had put the western part of American on alert a couple days ago:

Russia’s Magnitude 8.8 Earthquake Caused An Eerie Disturbance 4,000 Miles Away In Death Valley National Park: (https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/russia-s-magnitude-8-8-earthquake-caused-an-eerie-disturbance-4-000-miles-away-in-death-valley-national-park/ar-AA1JNieA?ocid=winp1taskbar&cvid=2707a8d939e5408ad53cd6984b8f7d05&ei=11)

Oregon & Washington Under Tsunami Advisory After 8.8 Quake Strikes Off Coast Of Russia * Tue, July 29th 2025: 

(https://katu.com/news/local/80-quake-strikes-near-peninsula-in-russia-tsunami-danger-being-evaluated-for-west-coast)

I like Mark; he's a quiet person like Holland, and speaks with a gentle sexy voice, like Holland - they are manly men who came of age in the past century with confident mannerisms. After the inside visiting came to an end, they went outside for about another half hour of schmoozing:

Holland and his younger brother, Mark; Ocean Park-WA

When Mark had left, we ate supper and relaxed in our own ways … Holland went online to veg out with humorous reels; and I got busy with more woman's work, which actually relaxes me. Some women get annoyed with domestic tasks, but I like doing them.

I like being a wife.

I like taking care of my man 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨

I sorely missed doing these mundane tasks during my widow years, and I am thankful Elohim has blessed my life with these simple chores, again.

I like having this man in my personal space.

I like hearing his laughter.

Whatever he's listening to, or watching, has seriously tickled his funny bone 😘

Sorting the laundry, I hadn't realized that the hamper had gotten so full. When I said that to Holland, he said, "Don't worry about it Baby; your hands were sore, and I didn't want to burden you with laundry. You're not my slave." My guy is so thoughtful … and he is capable of doing a load of laundry if his clothing cache had been severely depleted. And he wouldn't mind doing it, either (until we married, he has done his own laundry since he was 14 years old). So, I laughed, and said, "Well, I'll never be anyone's slave - but what piddly amount of woman's work I do … is wife work; not slave work. It's one of my few job descriptions under the heading of Wife - and I'm thankful to be doing it again."

Hanging Laundry.

Because I hadn't had time for it earlier, I did my exercises later in the evening … and feel blessed in that area of my life, also 😊

WE'RE NOT LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE; Ocean Park-WA

Today dawned foggy - dirty foggy: and stayed that way all day, so, we stayed home.

The day remained foggy; we stayed home today.

We're not like everybody else.

We have to protect our lungs; from grit on the breeze, & from moisture on the breeze that could possibly lead to an ER visit for Holland. The air here has been nearly as bad as it was in Arizona … and Holland has been using his nebulizer machine every day. We've been married 30 months, this month, and I've never seen him use it until recently.

I don't know whether to be glad the macho-man side of him is sliding - or if I should be scared that the COPD appears to be getting more aggressive. I think I'm probably a little of both.

I've had to use my asthma inhaler more than usual, too - which leads to mid-day naps, and all-night-hoot-owl episodes. Between the both of us, we have been burning the midnight oil, and falling into bed in the very early wee hours of the dawning morning: daytime activities haven't been happening until sometime around noon for Holland; sometime around 10 AM, for me.

Adjustments to social activities have had to be made.

Plans to look at the beach artwork and get a few pictures of the sand sculptures this afternoon, fell through: pictures are not worth a trip to ER.

I'll have to wait some more before trying out my new camera pouch 😕

The Bible Studies I had hoped to get to with a reliable frequency, have been put aside. The meeting is a hour away on good days, and a bit further when the winds are up and fog is thick. The sketchy ocean atmosphere has had the warning siren going off more than we've ever heard it - and that keeps us a little closer to home, and to each other; neither of us wants to be an hour, or two hours away from each other if the precautionary warning suddenly morphs into a reality situation.

Visiting with friends (his, mine, ours) has been pretty lax this year; our energies have been pretty drained just trying to stay alive - visiting anyone, for any real length of time has been very spotty. Struggling to breathe makes one lethargic, and attention span lags.

We're not like everybody else.

Some people understand; some people don't … and we can't help that. 

THE KINKS - 'I'm Not Like Everybody Else': 

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y76ilaVZ5FM)

Our Life is what it is - our social life is pretty much determined by how Mother Nature treats our lungs, and currently she hasn't been too friendly. And it's not just here in WA State, where she's kicking up a fuss 😵‍💫: she's going on a rampage, nationwide 😳

Holland has been checking weather reports everywhere, trying to find us a safe harbor when we leave here in September. Brookings-OR, is still on the docket, but afterwards is anyone's guess. He feels bad that he can't promise me anything in regards to exciting and adventurous explorations - and I assure him that everything is fine; he's doing what he can, and all we can do is just go with the flow, and ride this time of uncertainty out, knowing that Elohim has everything under control.

Holland has done righteous by me, always looking for ways to make my Road Gypsy Dream come true.

Elohim has done righteous by me in all ways, at all times: even when I don't understand. He had never let me down. I can blindly trust him - and I do.

Yeshua does righteous by me, every Day. Regardless of the tempestuous weather … He still breathes life into my body so I can enjoy Life with my new husband.

I am truly blessed.

I am daily thankful.

And I am eternally grateful.

We enjoyed our mugs of warming, eye-opening joy juice that allows us to function at adulting.

Holland spent some time outside fiddling with stuff that needs to be taken care of before time runs out to take care of it. Thankfully, he wasn't out there all day long.

I really wasn't that upset to have missed today's big event - it is Shabbat, after all - a Day of Rest = the ultimate Health Day. Shabbat is a reminder that there is an alternative to being upset: there is a world of peace that comes at least once a week if we lend ourselves to it.

I enjoyed working my body 🏋️‍♀️ keeping "the temple" operating smoothly & efficiently, is important. Yeshua, Himself, walked all over the place on Shabbat - gritty fog may keep me from outdoor exercise, but it needn't keep me from indoor exercise; I puttered around in the kitchen preparing a meal that was more than a protein drink & ramen noodles 😊; and I even had time to fiddle around with a yarn project ✂️

Chicken-Rice Casserole & Biscuits, for Supper tonight.

CHICKEN-RICE CASSEROLE; Shavua Tov~Ocean Park-WA:  (https://roadgypsiesvalandholland.blogspot.com/2025/07/chicken-rice-casserole-shavua-tovocean.html) 

MOD Crochet Dragonfly Plant Pot Cover. 

MOD COCHET PLANT POT COVER Pattern; Ocean Park-WA:  (https://roadgypsiesvalandholland.blogspot.com/2025/07/mod-cochet-plant-pot-cover-pattern.html)

And when my tired hands couldn't summon up enough strength to move the lid even a tiny bit off the honey jar … I was thankful there was a big, brawny man 💪😊👌 in the house.

My hands were worn out from weights & busy work … I needed my man's strength; & took the ribbing 😉

My man is a good man; and some day, he'll realize what I know 😘

US~Newlyweds, January 2023; Lexington-WA

Despite the rough beginning of this marriage, we are truly thankful Elohim put us together ❤️ All things considered, I have a good husband. And Holland knows he has a good wife.

We know we're not like everybody else, and we know we have a good Life.

We're building a Home: aware that we're not like everybody else.

We're building it our way - for US.

CHICKEN-RICE CASSEROLE; Shavua Tov~Ocean Park-WA

Betsy & Independence; Ocean Park-WA

I haven't made this casserole for some time … but I've been missing it - and tonight those left-over chicken bits in the freezer from a recent chicken meal served us again, in tonight's Supper dish 👌

I liberally sprinkled paprika over the surface of this casserole before popping it into the oven, to add flavor as well as a vibrant color; I like color 😉

But Paprika, derived from dried peppers, also holds a treasure trove of health benefits in it's vibrancy: it's a good source of vitamins A and E, which support eye health and immune function. Paprika is rich in calcium, potassium, and phosphorus, all of which are important for building strong teeth, bones, and muscle. Paprika contains zinc, a mineral crucial for collagen synthesis, which can support wound healing and skin health.

Paprika also contains capsaicin, a compound with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, potentially aiding in pain management; and may help improve heart health by potentially lowering LDL cholesterol and triglycerides. Capsaicin, found in paprika, may also have a positive impact on blood pressure and blood vessel health.

The capsaicin in paprika may have anti-obesity and appetite-suppressing properties. Studies have shown that it improves fat metabolism, especially the oxidation of abdominal fat. Capsaicin may also reduce appetite and caloric intake when incorporated as part of a healthy diet.

Other compounds in paprika called xanthophylls also show the ability to reduce abdominal fat and BMI.

Incorporating paprika into your diet may help protect your skin from UV-induced skin damage.

Chicken-Rice Casserole; with leftovers for tomorrow's lunch.

CHICKEN-RICE CASSEROLE  – 6 servings (about 1 cup EA)

¼ cup Margarine, reduced-calorie * 1/3 cup Flour, all-purpose * 3/4 teaspoon Salt Substitute * 1/8 teaspoon Black Pepper * 1-1/2 cups Skim Milk * 1 cup Chicken broth * 2 cups COOKED chicken, cut into bite-size pieces * 1-1/3 cups COOKED white rice (to make 1-1/3 cups of cooked rice, you'll need approximately 1/2 cup of uncooked rice & 1 cup of water) * 1/3 cup Green Bell pepper, chopped * a drop of Almond Extract * 2 TBSP Pimento, chopped * 1/2 c. Mushroom pieces, chopped * 2 tsp. Paprika

Ingredients

1) Heat oven to 350-degrees.

2) Heat margarine in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat; stir in flour, salt & pepper and cook. Stirring constantly, until bubbly; remove from heat. Stir in milk & broth and heat to boiling – stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in remaining ingredients.

Move cooked rice off burner & to the side; melt margarine …

Whisk in the milk & broth - cook as directed.

3) Pour mixture into UNGREASED 2-quart casserole or square baking dish, 8 x 8 x 2 inches; sprinkle with paprika.

Casserole, oven ready.

RV Ovens are small things, & timing is everything: the casserole will be slipped into the oven as the biscuits are pulled & set on a cork hot mat; cover the biscuits with a kitchen towel to keep warm.

Bake UNCOVERED for 40 to 45 minutes … or until bubbly. Garnish with parsley if desired.

This casserole is not spicy - it's kinda bland; but my husband , who douses everything pretty liberally with black pepper, says this chicken casserole is "a repeat" 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨

Holland's pepper-doused portion …