I like the feel of this thread, so I'm hopping in. Today we're supposed to have highs in the 30's yay. A great day to put up my Christmas tree and to put out my Let it Snow sign. Yep, I'm one of those. lol. Love winter and love Christmas. My granddaughter and family are coming over for chili this afternoon. Maybe I'll talk them into helping with the tree.
If any of you are Christmas fanatics, check out mymerrychristmas.com and go to the forums. My user ID there is snowberry so be sure to say hi.
I've added my fitday journal username to my profile. I've decided to be open about everything this time. Maybe I'll do better if I know everyone can check out my journal. Oh, I just noticed it's in my info to the left. How about that? lol.
Hmmm. Maybe not. It just went to my log-in. Oh well. I'm not sure how to fix it so anyone can view it.
Hi girls!
I hate to rub it in, but it was 82 yesterday, in November! Can you say "global warming"? Wierd weather, and today is sunny, golden-leaved and warm. My husband keeps walking by with that "Well?" look on his face. We talked about all the gardening we were going to do this weekend, so I'd best get to it. I so seldom get such "quality" time with my sweetie. Have a great day and I will check back in tomorrow!
Hi Fitdivine and welcome to our small forum! Hope to see more of you here. I really love Christmas, too. Although, this year we have sworn off the over spending part of it. We vowed to take a family holiday together instead and just buy a few, thoughtful, not extravagant gifts. But, the tree, the decorations, the music, the good cheer and the family get togethers, all of that is so wonderful. We don't get snow here, but it is a half day drive away and I have spent Christmas in the snow before. I lived in Colorado for a few years and loved the swirling flakes and moaning of the wind around the eaves. The drifts of snow against the house and the icicles hanging down. The bright stars in the cold clear night.
I love Christmas too, but I don't put up the tree until about a week or two before Christmas and leave it up until January 6 which we call Old Christmas Day here in Newfoundland.
Had our first choir practice for Christmas today. We're starting late this year as I am so busy and so is the other music coordinator at our church. We're both involved in the healthy lifestyle seminar our church is doing. So we're doing our favorites from past programs and calling the program "Christmas Memories." All the songs and carols will be familiar and will actually just be a refresher for most of them. I'm singing O Holy Night this year. I must have sung it every year for about 20 years running until I finally put my foot down and refused to sing it again. But I think I'd like to do it again this year. No one objected so I'm doing it. Some years we do the whole Christmas pageant thing and other years it's more of a variety of carols. Last year we did Christmas carols from around the world. That was quite a challenging program because many of the songs were entirely new to all of us.
Hi Frances, nice to meet you. Hope we get to chat every now and then.
Hi everone,
Thanks for the warm welcome. Didn't get my tree or lights up yesterday, but spent some wonderful time with my one month old great grandson. He's such a cutie. My son has promised to put my lights up today and put my tree together. I'll just decorate it a little bit at a time.
I had an unexpected treat yesterday, too. I was feeling sorry for myself because the blood clot has kept me from going to Silver Dollar City this year and now they're in the middle of their Christmas festival. My friend Angie and her family were going so I sent one of my books along to Cedric Benoit, the leader of the cajun connection at Silver Dollar City. He had graciously given permission for me to use his name and the band in the two sequels.
The phone rang and it was Angie who then handed the phone to Cedric. He thanked me for the book and we talked for a while. What a wonderful surprise.
Then she texted me later to let me know she'd bought me some wassail mix, so she's bringing a touch of Silver Dollar City to me.
Nothing too exciting for me -- just listening to the howling wind. It's so windy all the cats are in hiding. It is definitely warm out there, though at 70F. The wind seems to be moving around to the north now and that will certainly blow the warm weather away pretty quickly I'm sure.
Hi Girls!
Today I tore my room apart and put it all back together, clean. Out with the dust bunnies and accumulated junk. I put together a 30 gallon trash bag full of clothes to go to the Goodwill! yep, I am moving it all on. Yesterday I started out with lots of ambition to work in the garden all day and ended up LAZING around, total couch potato. My DH is always so good about my lazy days; he lets me know that I deserve them cause I work so hard. He had a bad cold, so wasn't entirely enthused about working hard either.
Well, Thanksgiving is just around the corner here. What are you doing for the holiday Donna and Devine? I invited my son and his girlfriend to meet us at the Oregon house for Thanksgiving. My DH does not like to travel so far on Thanksgiving (they live in Portland, which is a 10 hour drive) so, the house in Coos Bay is a good compromise. I am really excited. I just adore my older son and I miss him so much. I want to make sure that we keep seeing him as he moves further into adulthood. I don't want to lose touch with him.
Meowee-the kitty in your ativar is a beautiful calico. I have a calico, too. She is the momma kitty to our other cat. She is a sweet, pretty gal with long hair and lots of pure, pure white fur. Our kitties are outside cats, though as they always have little pee contests if left inside. Never could break them of it, so out they went. We don't get the cold weather like you do though, and we have an enclosed back porch where they sleep and rest in the sun in the windows. And, they can come and go when they wish so no litter box problem. They have turned into quite the "mouser" kitties and rid my garden of gophers entirely!
Devine-you had not said that you were having a health problem. What is the blood clot all about? I hope you are feeling well soon. And, being a Californian, I don't know what Silver Dollar City is, although, being close to Reno and Las Vegas, I am guessing that it is a gambling place? And cajun...are you cajun? How fascinating! Fill us in on this sequel you mentioned!
Isabella-good luck with your Christmas choir. I so loved the Christmas pageants when I was a little girl. There is an all ladies choir that has formed here that I have been thinking about joining, but my voice is pretty untrained at this point!
Christmas, ah Christmas! After Thanksgiving i will get out the ornaments and put up the tree, etc.. Usually, we have a live tree that we bring inside, but over the summer our big live tree decided to kick the bucket! However, a friend who was planting trees for the forestry service brought us 25 beautiful little live fir trees. So, I am thinking about decorating a few of them and not getting another big, live tree. I hate it when they die before i get them planted. They are so expensive. And dead!
I seem to have hit a bit of a plateau. I have been fluctuating between 186 and 189 for about two weeks now. This morning I was at I87.2. I know it is because I have not been eating totally on plan and eating too much salt. So! Today I went back to Atkins induction and I will do that for a couple of weeks to shake things loose a bit. I don't like to stay on induction because it really is not a complete diet (no fruit and no grains).
We'll see how that goes! I do love my exercise bike though and I am using it all the time; increasing my speed, time and resistance gradually. I am really trimming up from using it, so perhaps I am gaining some muscle and I should get out the tape measure. The pair of pants I have on today would be a public embarassment if I wore them to the store, which is where I am going next. But they are swimmingly comfortable!
Have a great week, ladies!
Sheri
Oh, the blood clot. I had some extensive surgery in July. For the first 3 or 4 weeks afterwards, I couldn't eat and barely managed to drink water. I got very weak and stayed in bed most of the time which is probably what caused the blood clot. It's a biggy, reaching from my groin to below my knee. I'm on blood thinners.
Silver Dollar City is an 1880's family theme park. They open in the spring then start with World Fest which has entertainers from all over the world. Then there's a bluegrass and barbecue festival, Fall harvest fest, and An Old Fashioned Christmas which is my favorite. It starts in early November and goes until the end of December.
My favorite fun place.
Oh, my Frances, that blood clod sounds awful. Definitely take care of yourself.
Yesterday, I was so tired but I did finally do my exercise and felt much better. Today I seem to be on track so no lolling around on the couch. I've got all the songs ready for the Christmas program and today I'm going to get the music sorted because we have another practice tonight.
This morning I had a bowl of old-fashioned oatmeal, you know the large flake type. I really enjoyed that for a change and only 75 calories for 1/4 cup dry. I'm making pea soup for lunch and who knows what for supper so an easy day in the kitchen.
Meowee, we got the wind last night. It was warm and rainy all day Sunday with some wind but last night it just howled. It kept waking me up. The wind was hitting the back of the house and when I went in DS's bedroom to look out the window I could feel the house shake. The wind was unusually warm for this time of the year.
Sheri, I have leg and thigh muscles that ripple when I'm on the bike and it delights me to see them when I'm peddling. I had a good ride last night and was dripping wet when I finished.
Boy oh boy a day or two can certainly make a difference -- high temperature Sunday, 70F; yesterday, 41F; today we will be lucky to make it much above freezing and the precipitation that is expected will probably be white and lingering. At least it isn't nearly as windy.
Hi girls, I'm going to have to make this a quick stop by. Need to get my signature changed for the Holidays too. I'm hanging in there at 142, can't seem to shake it.I did get my neck muscles to relax and so I will try the exercise class again tonight, but think I will go a little slower this time. Welcome Frances,look forward to getting to know you.You watch that blood clot,we don't want anything to happen to you.Those are so scary. Can't believe that Thanksgiving is next week already. We will be home alone again this year, at least that is the plan today!! Talked to oldest DD and they just can't get away, she will have to work the day after, but so do we.Youngest DD is still trying to get the corn harvest over with, they had 8" of snow last week so that really slowed them down.I'm going to bake a couple of pies for the church here that puts on a free dinner for anyone who wishes to come eat. They always have a large crowd,guess that is the least I can do for my fellow man. MEOWEE, I hear you on the weather.Yesterday we had 42 degrees and today it is going to be in the upper 60's but terribly windy.Suppose to yo-yo like that for a couple of weeks I think. SHERI AND ISABELLA,Sounds like everyone is so busy planning for the Holidays.We haven't gotten that far. Unfortunately with one daughter being a nurse and one a rancher, nothing is ever for sure with our family.We always are able to get together at some point in time but not always on the Holiday. That's fine with me, to me it is about being with loved ones whenever you can, and of course eating way too much I had better scram and get for home to plan lunch then it is off to work Have a great week and maybe I will get back sooner, my intentions are always good.DONNA
Went to the doctor yesterday, then walked all over Walmart. The doctor just told me to listen to my body. By the time my body said okay that's enough, I was at the rear of the store so I sat at subway and had a veggie delight with cheese and a glass of water. Then headed back to the front.
Got home, my leg was hurting and I ended up in a near-binge, paid for it today in water weight but I'm not going to cry over yesterday.
Today I have to write at least 2000 words, preferably more. I'm so far behind. Wasn't planning on surgery and blood clots. But God is good. He'll get me through this.
My tree is up and even has a few ornaments on it. I'm doing them a few at a time. The tree is prelit so I opened my blinds and turned on the tree last night.
That'll encourage some of my neighbors to get theirs going and the rest will probably think I'm crazy. lol.
Gotta go get busy. Everyone have a great day. Be blessed.
Frances, my neighbor has had her tree up for over a week. It's the lone Christmas tree on the street and will be for a few more weeks I'm sure. We'll see more going up come the first week of December. What kind of book are you writing?
Hi Donna, glad you can get in a little exercise again. We miss you not posting as often but happy you're still with us.
Got to get on my bike when DH gets home. I can't leave mom upstairs on her own for that long. When I get the bike ride done I'm done exercising for the day. Now to load the dishwasher and clean up the kitchen. Catch you all later.
Last edited by retiredone; 11-18-2008 at 01:23 PM.
My son finally got my outside iights around my windows. So, tonight my door wreath is twinkling, my window lights are bright and my tree is lit up, even though I don't have many of my ornaments on it yet. It looks pretty. I love Christmas. I did laundry today, worked on the tree and have most of my chapter written. Only about 600 words to go. yay.
Isabella, just now I'm working on a historical romance for Heartsong Presents, but I have a cozy mystery due at the same time. Both deadlines are Feb 1st and it would be so easy to panic right now. But I won't.
for you Frances . . . glad to hve you joining us.
Oh, I just noticed it's in my info to the left. How about that? lol.
It's so windy all the cats are in hiding. It is definitely warm out there, though at 70F. The wind seems to be moving around to the north now and that will certainly blow the warm weather away pretty quickly I'm sure.
DONNA