[meowee]

Same old roller coaster -- going to double digits again today (50s) and, of course, no more sun.

To continue in the Canadian way -- did you here that Winnipeg has managed to get below the point where C and F meet (-40 below zero); counting windchill they are at about -43C . . . . . . they don't call it "Winterpeg" for nothing.

I'm finally getting to that pile of laundry that has been calling my name -- other than that, npothing much going on around here.

[Karen3]

Morning all....I wish I could push some warm weather your way. It's 66 right now and be 80 by noon. Lots of sea fog has rolled in but I know the sun is out there.

Isabella what a great compliment. She knew the face but not the body....wow!

Quiet here....Have the next Christmas party today. I was able to not pig out at the last one by remembering what some of that food did internally. That is behavior mod at it's worsest.

Poor DH yesterday he went fishing. They cast net for bait and instead of bait fish got a redfish too big to keep. It was over 30". Had to throw back and then they didn't get even a bite. The moon tides have everything churned up and low tide is beyond belief it is so low....We have 17' of water in the canal behind the house and yesterday you could almost see bottom. Manatee are getting stranded. They had to rescue 3 right here in town this weekend. Moving 1800lbs of blubber ain't easy.

Cheer up...After Saturday the days will start to get longer! Spring is coming...I promise....hugs, Karen3

[the slim me]

Good Morning all,

Karen, I'll take some of that warmer weather, please! It's cold here! I've been looking for something good and quick to make for gifts this year and the biscotti sound just the thing for my neighbor that doesn't bake. And, yes, i remember the scarab bracelets. In fact i still have mine. I wore it not long ago, cheap little thing that it is. Ahhhh, good times.....

Congratulations on the success of the concert! And on getting "mom" out to have some fun!

Everyone, make it a good day, Freda

[Bobbolink]

Good Morning!
It's 36 below zero today with the wind chill, brrrrrrrrrrrrrr! We're expecting another snow storm tomorrow, I really should go into town for some things before the storm hits but it's too cold.
Karen... That dog collor fad is funny, it definitely wasn't a Minnesota fad.

Gee Bobbie, can't believe you didn't have a scarab bracelet as a teen. Must have been an East Coast absolute! Ha, that was a fad that came after wearing a dog collar over your bobby socks.What? Never heard of that either, dog collar? Which ankle depends if you were going steady or not. That was same time we wore poodle skirts and crinolines starched with sugar. We did that, I rode the bus about 10 miles each morning and my starched crinolines flattened out on that long bus ride.And the wide elastic belts! Saddle shoes and never allowed to wear patten leather shoes because they were shiny and Boys could look up your skirt! Lip stick came in one color called tanaglow.I loved that orange lipstick! Saturday night was Your Hit Parade where Smookie Landson lipsinc the top 10 songs of the week. sighhhhhhhhhhhhh gesh am I glad I survived those years.

Isabella... Congrats on your concert! Now you can relax and enjoy the upcoming holidays. Bless you and DH for taking your mom with for the festivities, I know how hard it is to take elderly people out, in our case just loading MIL into the car is a chore.

Helloo. I survived the concert!!! It was perfectly marvelous and we all sang quite well. I did "O Holy Night" and didn't crack a flat note through the whole song. We were given many compliments which made it all worth while. The church was full, and most people stayed for refreshments afterward

Hi everyone, gotta get going and not much time to chat.

[WoodLily]

Whew! I survived the party without over-eating. I kept myself busy by trying to circulate and spend a little time with a lot of different people. I did have a piece of cake, but it took me almost two hours to eat it. People probably thought I was on my 2nd, 3rd or 4th piece because I was carrying it around and setting it down so much. No bread, candy, cookies or delicious (I hear) almond bars.
Our weather here is a delightful minus 12 degrees right now. I do need to go out and shop for some gifts yet, so I will have to brave the cold. It is supposed to be colder tomorrow and more snow is on the way. We were lucky and only got 3" this last storm and the all day rain we had before the temperature dropped by 53 degrees melted a lot of the old snow. Our driveway has a sheet of ice on it, so I hope I can get back up the incline and into the garage when I get back. Ahhhh, life in the frigid north.

[meowee]

Warm and wet at daybreak but moving toward cold and white by mid- afternoon. At least I've got a couple of things to take my mind of the chronic lower back pain this morning.

(1) Didn't sleep well last night and woke up with a sore, stiff neck. (2) The tooth I had the root canal done on this past April decided to discard it's gigantic filling while I was enjoying my big salad last night. Hey, at least it doesn't hurt. Luckily, the dentist has a cancellation for this afternoon so hopefully it will be okay over Christmas but I guess I`d better start saving up for a crown in the new year.

Nothing else exciting on the go for me . . . hope everybody else is having a great day.

[Karen3]

Morning all....Phew had a small cheat yesterday at the party. Someone made a cranberry apple cobbler. I have never had it before and it was lovely. Kinda cross between apple betty and cobbler. If I think about it can probably make it close to OP. Then they also took the filling and dropped into wonton wraps stuffed in mini muffin tins and baked. Good too......oh and one bite of homemade cheese and apple strudel. All together wasn't a serving but so far off OP. And I enjoyed every smidge! Did fine with rest and didn't get my annual bellyache.

Direct again Friday. Think I'll do sandwiches and cake and dip. Then around 3pm put out plates of Christmas cookies. I have an old favorite. Bake a nut bread, slice long ways and fill with rhasberry jam and then ice top with chocolate frosting. I call it my Xmas cookie cake....has everything in it the Xams cookies have.

Sorry for the sweet talk....but it is the season.

My poor fur face...This morning he came to me when I had the shot ready before I even called him. He was shaking so hard the needle popped out. It's as hard giving him the injection as it would be to one of my kids. And afterwards he gets 3 mini marshmellows. See even the dog needs food rewards in this house.

Inch by inch I am getting my closets reorganized. Have one little lamp that I'll never use but it was in the kids room when they were young as a nite light. Hate to toss but why am I keeping it????

Have an OP day and stay warm....Karen3

hi Linda see your yolk lite

[Bobbolink]

Hi all!
I had to cut my Christmas shopping short today, it started snowing really hard and I'm chicken when it come to driving in snow storms.
DH had Elk tenderloins and a crisp salad with blue cheese on top waiting for me when I got home. Yum!
Stay warm lily, Minnesota is going to get it again.
I'm going to post my water/exercise, get my jammy's on and do the cross word puzzle.
P.S. Does anyone watch the survivor? I was hoping 'Sugar' would win just to show the snobby Corrine that she's not so dumb and un-educated.
Nite all!

[Karen3]

Morning all....I grew up in the mountains and remember even the blizzard of 1948 where we had no power for 10 days. But I can't imagine -32! Want to invite you all to come down and stay here......If the sea fog burns off will be about 80 here! Dh and buddy went fishing this morning. Have you ever heard of sail by braille? me neither.

Gonna bake a couple batches of cookies and take to bridge Friday....wish I could figure out how to make some edible coal.

Stay warm and OP....Karen3

[meowee]

It's snowing. It's been snowing all day. There's snow in the forecast every day for the next week. If anybody needs some snow just let me know.

[Bobbolink]

This explains my fat layer around my tummy!

Why Do Women Feel Cold More Than Men Do?

The proper setting for the thermostat can spark fierce disputes among couples, and while there are exceptions, typically, women complain of cold temperatures more often than men do.
Ironically, this is probably because women are better at surviving extreme cold than are men. Mark Newton, a clothing-industry consultant and researcher at the University of Portsmouth, explains that women have a more evenly distributed fat layer and can more effectively pull all their blood back to their core organs in cold temperatures. While this fosters survival in sub-freezing conditions, it also means less blood flows to their hands and feet, and as a result they feel cold at higher temperatures than men typically do.
There is no simple answer to this disparity; it simply suggests that in cold weather, men and women should be more willing to compromise in the thermostat battle, as their differences are determined genetically - a fact no amount of arguing will alter.

[Karen3]

Good morning.....Just got emails and phones calls that everybody got their packages. The oranges were extra sweet this year. must have been the hugh rains we had this summer. Checks are cashed and I guess Christmas is over.

DH had such fun with the package of weird stuff that they advertise on Tv. So I have been building another stash. Even got him the manly pedpod! Be like having a kid in the house and have to have batteries available.

Looking back over the year and decided my goal for this holiday is maintain. No way can I loss and be unrealistic to try. If I stay OP most of the week then my small slips should be covered. That beats the dickens out of internally scolding me again.

Hey that is the basis of a great New Year Plan...Be kind to me year!

Do you realize Sunday is the 1st day of Winter? Okay that's yucky, but Monday the days start to get longer. Karen3

[WoodLily]

I'm with you on just maintaining Karen, I don't want to have to refuse to eat holiday cooking when we go out to visit relatives.
Bobbi, sounds like we are in for more snow again today. Don't mind the snow as much as the cold though. Got a new parka yesterday that is good to -10 degrees without layering. Bring it on!

Lily

[glynne]

Bobbi ~ in one of your posts you mentioned Sweet and Sour Cabbage Soup. If you have posted the recipe, could you direct me to it, if not would you be willing to share it? It sounded good.

Thanks

[Karen3]

evening....am tired. Spent the darn day cooking and making stuff. Have a dark chocolate cake with chips and dried cherries in it. Have the nut bread made with raspberry jam and chocolate icing. Made batches of oatmeal and chocolate chip cookies and batch of biscotti. Will make ham, egg and seafood salad sandwiches in the morning. Plus have a dip and chips. And a bag of coal candy. Even has the little pick to break off pieces for the naughty ones.

DS and family sent a box of goodies for Dash. He usually goes bananas when the UPS truck pulls up tonight he never uttered a sound. His nose was plastered to the box and he got glassy eyed. There were some weird things in that box....pigs ears and this hugh bologna tube of dried beef.

I didn't go off plan with all the baking. Wasn't even tempted. Be okay until about 7pm tomorrow. When I will get a munchy attack and want to eat everything in the house. Luckly everything will be gone.

Found the 2 rolls of film from last Spring's trip to Colorado. Have been out in the Jeep for a year. They came out pretty good. That hopefully be the last time I have my feet in snow. Sorry but the older I get the less I want to see that stuff. I taught both my kids to drive in snow/ice....spent many an hour doing donuts in the parking lot at Round Valley park.....now just driving around old people on rainy days scares me. So you all stay warm and hugs, Karen3