Dieting with Obstacles - PHYSICAL CHALLENGES ~ April's Monthly Thread #008

WELCOME EVERYONE ~ this thread is for anyone with any kind of physical obstacle and/or challenge like SB, CP, MS, MD, PK, Lupus, Osteo, Arthritis, Rheumatism, or any other condition (s), whether genetic or acquired (like injuries), that causes physical limitations and/or difficulties.

Please join us in this special thread ~ to give support and encouragement; and share ideas, or just chat with one another ...



:D HAPPY APRIL EVERYONE :D

Hi Ladies


Happy April everybody, yikes another month gone it doesn't seem possible. For some reason time got away with me yesterday and I did not get on my PC at all which is rather unusual. Did have my head stuck in a good book though :book2: and finished it yesterday afternoon. Will be busy tomorrow going to London for his brother tomorrow to a well know television company. Looking at the map I am fairly certain that we have been to this site before. The only blessing is that we have not got to go into the heart of London where we have congestion charges. Which is the equivalent of toll charges for the privilege of going into the centre of London. The congestion charge was suppose to cut down the amount of traffic in the heart of London but I don't think it made a blind bit of difference. Apart from the fact that you now pay to sit in traffic queues :D So likelihood is that I will not be on tomorrow as I will be too tired. Also an early start for me which I am hopeless at at the best of times. I am willing but my body isn't ;)

Val was asking did I watch many sporting events. I tend to watch things like the boat race and grand national. Plus the Olympics and commonwealth games. Unfortunately this year with the Olympics coming from China I think the times will be very early in the morning. So I think most of the time I will have to be satisfied with the highlights programme. I remember though some years back one of our famous rowers Steve Redgrave was going for his fifth consecutive gold medal in the Olympics and I did so want to see if he did it. Well I was up at silly o'clock in the morning watching to see if the crew won the gold medal. It was such a emotional moment that he did achieve his 5th gold medal something very few sports people have done.

Well time to take the dog for a walk he is crossing his legs bless him. I think my shoulder is on the mend as well so fingers crossed I have started to make a full recovery. Thanks for all your well wishes and prayers. bye bye ladies and take care till next time. :hug:

Hey everyone

OH MY GOSH IT'S APRIL WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE?

sorry about that -- I'm a little bit of an over emotional, drama person. Sometimes I just stop and wonder what the heck I'm doing and why.. other times I lay awake until 6 in the morning and ponder my tiny little problems.

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers Rosebud My parents refuse to worry -- they say they want to take care of finding a townhouse for my and my brother (they've always taken care of their baby boy even when he didnt ask and I think I'm going to take advantage of the situation). Did you end up getting the 10 (inches? cms?) of snow you suspected?

Purple Take your time to recover your energy after your journey into London tomorrow! We all know that trying to push it after a draining day will just make things worse. Have a good visit too!

I usually watch things like the Olympics too. The commonwealth games were in Winnipeg, my province's capital, in 1999 but I didnt see them on TV. The 2010 olympics are in vancouver and I would love to be able to visit my friends on the coast while catching any part of the games.

BizMaz So you have a summer break coming up soon - thats nice :) My friends who are teachers are on spring break this week. I'm kinda jealous of the chunks of time they get off work -- but I know it's so well deserved! I've only seen tornados in movies! I think I will stick with living in 'north america's winter weather testing capital' with the extreme cold (it keeps MS at bay all winter too!)




Did I mention I started a course of prednisone this week? I'm taking the steroids to hopefully cut off my bronchitis... but it's making my appetite go wonkers. I am trying to be very careful with exaggerated eating impulses. I may go home early today because I have a full day tomorrow 9-6:30 with a working lunch and I still feel pretty miserable.

take care all :hug:
Val

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ Well, GOD decided to play an April Fool's joke on us today: we woke up to a white-out snowstorm that is still raging right now. The police just advised that all the highways in the surrounding area are closed. Of course,they didn't send out any buses this morning; as we knew this was coming, but I was hoping it was a joke; NOT! And, we got a lot more than 10 inches; just outside our door is more than THREE FEET!!!!

We have a new snow mountain in front of the other one we already had (which was taller than DH) that is about four+ feet high right now. DH says that if this keeps up our bird feeder will be totally buried. But hey, they are calling for sunshine tomorrow and temps in the 40's F and rain on Thursday, so that might get rid of some of it. DH just hollered in that we lost the radio; meaning our local station just went off the air for some reason. They'll probably get it back soon, but those winds are pretty strong and that could have done it.

Presently, we have a lovely flock of SNOWBIRDS out in the yard wrestling over the birdfeed that the wind hasn't blown away yet; cuz the winds are fierce out there right now. We've had a bunch of birds show up today; they don't seem to be phased by this storm at all. I was saying to DH, 'You'd think that they would stay in the bush'. But nope, they are here stashing up on food: what brave, little souls ~ LOL!!!

VAL ~ Our neighbours have stashed up on bags of corn getting ready for the spring goose hunt. We have a lake behind us that they go to and every spring, they thin the flocks down; but, I secretly pray that they won't stop here; oh, I know that's naughty of me ... shhhhh ... don't tell! Yes, do take advantage of your parents help with the housing; that's one area, we need all the help we can get these days. Don't worry about being seen as a 'DRAMA QUEEN', VAL; that just makes you a more interesting person (just as long as you can 'REIGN' her in, now and then; pun intended ~ lol).

PURPLE ~ Hope you have a good trip to LONDON and do enjoy the day as best you can; cuz you will have to rest when you get back. I like watching things like track & field and the Olympics too: the summer ones in CHINA this year and the winter one in Vancouver in 2010.. DH likes hockey, but the Toronto Maple Leafs got knocked out in the first round of the playoffs for the third year in a row. We haven't been following it as much this year as we had so much other stuff going on.

BIZMAX ~ yes, I'll bet you can't wait for your summer holidays; I think we all envied teachers' holidays, but not having to control and teach a large group of kiddies each day. We're retired, so I'm on extended holidays now ~ lol!

WELL, it's time to go have a tea break; and then I think I'll watch the snow blow by for a while; isn't my life exciting??? LOL! But not really much else we can do; oh I could do some sewing or something boring like that, but heck I just donnawanna do that right now ~ lol!

Oh ... DH just broke my blue light bulb in my pretty bedroom lamp; what a clutz!!! ;) It's so pretty; the base is an old-fashioned tinted canning jar with a bird's nest and blue eggs and little white flowers in it. Someone was very crafty; I bought it at a second-hand store. Told DH that he has to buy me some more blue bulbs cuz this is the second one now ~ LOL. He says he's going to go outside to clear a pathway from the back door so poochy can get out there to do her duty; and so he can stay out of trouble ~ LOL!

ANYWAYS, that's enuff rambling for today; take good care ladies, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

:wave: HELLO MY CHICKADEES ~ yeah, all the snowsqualls are gone and we woke up to gorgeous sunshine; and boy did I wake up early: at 6:30 am and a large flock of SNOWBIRDS came around at the same time. I'm glad I was up to see them and got a few pics; hope they are clear enuff to see.

The snowbirds are white with special black markings that make them look like a colidascope in the sky as they fly around. They fly in such a perfect formation that it's amazing to watch. Maybe that's why they called the Airplane Group the SNOWBIRDS becuz they have to fly the same way.

We just stayed home today: DH worked on repairing a tool, and I did stuff around the house. We had a lovely steak dinner with M & O's, a mixture of veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, corn, carrots, and beans from our garden) with one small new potato each. This is one of our faves so we are trying to have it more often.

WELL, that's all the news for today; it was pleasant. DH is praying the snow will melt soon; can't really blame him. I went out on the deck to get some fresh air; can't wait to get out there for walks again. We were planning our garden today; deciding what to plant this year. Take good care, your friend
:hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Morning Everyone!
Not much new going on here! Just another day as normal! LOL! Lots of sunshine today,but it sure is windy!! They say we have more severe storms moving into the area later on today! Its almost the weekend again! Yeah! I live for weekends! LOL! Especially this one! Saturday(5th) is my birthday so I am looking forward to that. A group of friends are taking me out that day so I am sure it will be fun! Hope you all have a great day!

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ another (mostly) sunny day today; DH cleared the rest of the deck off for me, so I can go out there everyday now (several times a day actually). Our Whiskey Jacks (large Gray Jays) came today looking for some bread; she looked young (smaller in size) and came right up to me (only a foot away) waiting for me to throw it to her. Got a few pics of her too.

Not doin' much today; Dh is watching a movie resting up after a bit of shovelling. I'm just doing laundry today; doin' the books and bills; plus the general daily chores and meals. Decided to take it easy this week; why not??? I'm calling it 'My Spring Break' ... hehehe. Oh, and I am making my plans for our garden as well; all this brain work is really tuff ~ LOL!


Our poor little PIN PIN has a wee accident yesterday; she banged her nose really hard, and it was bleeding this morning: poor girl. She seems to be feeling a bit better now, but at first it was kinda yucky and gross; sorry if you were eating right now: LOL! I almost chucked my lunch ... :rofl:

ANYWAYS, not much going on here; trying to decide what to have for dinner tonight. Usually I have it planned ahead; it will likely be chicken or fish I think. I picked up a nice big butternut squash and some yams, so maybe we'll have one of them too. Yummmmm ...

BMGCJM ~ That is very nice of your friends to do that for your :woo: BIRTHDAY :woo: Hope you have a great time on Saturday!!!

VAL ~ it's almost the weekend; only one more day!!! Hope you had a good week.

HEY PURPLE ~ hope you had a wonderul day in London.


Take good care all, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Hi Ladies and good afternoon

The trip to London went well but was rather a long day over all. So rested well yesterday to make up for it.

Today is overcast but not too cold so managed a lovely walk and took our dog to the park even for a play about with his ball. He was in his element and loved every minute of it. He never wants to come off though he is like a kid when it comes to coming off the park he is so reluctant and digs his heals in and goes at snails pace :D

Had a productive day in the kitchen and made several individual jellies. I have put some pears in some (for DH) and peaches in others (for me). I have lightly steamed some small chopped up vegetable to make a vegetable and bacon egg white omelette for tomorrow. So they are cooling down ready for me to store in the fridge. Will shortly be going to cook tea. I have swapped our cooked meal that we normally have a lunch time to tea time as we were up later today. I had muffins with a small portion of cooked gammon chopped up small. I had toasted the muffins (wholemeal) before I started and put some salsa and a very minute portion of low fat cheese. I have only put a smidgen of salsa for me because my tummy is still very delicate :( Going back to doctors in just over a weeks time for a review of this situation. This a recipe from a member here on 3fc Zelma so a big thanks to her for this recipe as it is a nice treat which is very similar to pizza.


Hope pin pin is on the road to recovery poor thing Rosebud. The only time my dog had a bloody nose was when he encountered my parents next doors neighbours cat. There he was through the gate poking his nose through and the cat had got his claws out and was scratching his nose. My silly dog never backed down and come back inside he just stayed there and got a bloody nose for his troubles. Not that he has learned he still is fascinated by cats and he now stares our next door neighbours cat out. Many a time I have gone outside and there they are virtually nose to nose in our garden and neither is budging or making any move.

Well time to start dinner otherwise it will be supper by the time I finish :D bye ladies and take care till next time :hug:

Hi Ladies

:bday2you: BlzMaxGnrCCJkMly :bday2you: I hope you have a wonderful day with your friends when you go out for your birthday.


Well today is a big change from yesterday. When I got up this morning it was lovely and sunny just nice for a walk. By the time I had finished breakfast hey presto the weather had changed so rapidly it is now so cloudy and raining. I could not believe it could change so swiftly. So it looks as though the exercise today of walking will not be as pleasant as I had hoped.


After begin busy for the best part of yesterday I did not take any rocking to get me to sleep last night. I slept really well as I was very tired when I got into bed. I watched the last episode of the series of torchwood. A British scifi series which is a spin off of doctor who. Though doctor who starts tonight to get my weekly fix of it ;) Torchwood is though based at a much older audience and deals with more adult topics. I was brought up on doctor who and remember quite vividly watching it with a cushion in front of me. There was something compelling to keep me watching be slightly scary at the same time.

Nothing much planned for the next couple of days except relaxation and recharge the batteries. Not sure what DH has done but his legs for days have been heavy feeling and stiff. Also a little painful. So not sure whether he is coming down with something or just pulled some muscles in his leg. I am sure if they do not improve he will go to the doctors to get a medical opinion.

My sisters husband so my BIL is unfortunately not so well and is experiencing hot burning sensations in his hands and feet. So he has got to go for some blood work to test for diabetes. There is a history in his family and his sister is insulin dependant. I hope it is not that for him and something that is much simpler explanation. I am not sure that he will deal with the dx of diabetes very well if that was the outcome but he may surprise me. My sister is also under the weather and has had to go for a chest xray. Not sure what the results are but they suspected pleurisy unfortunately she has had it before. I would love if she could give up cigarettes as that would help her chest immensely though I have never bullied her about it as it would be the pot calling the kettle black as an ex smoker who suffered from bronchitis as regular as clockwork. It took me several attempts to give up the weed sticks but I am so glad that I have and now the price of cigarettes here is absolutely crazy they are so heavily taxed.

Time for me to move and crack on with todays chores that I have planned. Nothing too strenuous I might added a bit of hoovering and stripping the bed is about the most strenuous I will be attempting ;) Bye ladies and take all till next time :hug:

Happy birthday Bizmax! Have a great day :)

Hello to Rosebud and Purple! I am passing by on my way to go for a walk.

Yesterday I hit '90 pounds lost'. I celebrated by buying a pair of jeans that werent 'plus size'. a pair of size 15 dark wash trouser jeans. yay!

We've yet to find a place to live -- but if I can get financing I will try to buy my parents house from them. I'll know more next weekend after meeting with the bank! *fingers crossed*

:hug: Val

Hi Ladies

So I am back again I just had to stop and write another post in order to celebrate Valpal's big victory.



:carrot::congrat: VALPAL :congrat::carrot:

on losing 90lbs well done and keep up the good work and we will soon be celebrating your century lost.


Bye again Ladies have a good night and take care till next time :hug:

THANKS YOU GUYS for keepin' in touch on our thread; we've had a hectic couple of days. Our poor PIN PIN has also come down ill; we don't really know what's wrong with her. We thought she was just depressed over her mom passing 3 weeks ago today, but she seemed awfully quiet the last couple of days. Then this morning, when we woke, she couldn't walk right; she kept falling over. It almost seems like she had a stroke or has pneumonia as her breathing seems a bit fast (labored).

She got sick first thing; her dinner from Friday night, which isn't good, but that can happen. She has been drinking water all day, and took a little ice cream (her fave treat); and just now she tried to eat some food, but hardly got a spoonful down, but at least she's trying. She seems alert tonight, but she is still very weak. When we took her mom to the vet, he said that our girls were very old and these kind of things should be expected.

I guess we were naive about their age; as other furry babies in our family had lived long lives too. Someone said Sweetie was over a 100 y/o in doggie years, and Pin Pin is almost there too. Pin just turned 14 y/o; we were just hoping to have her a little longer, esp with losing Sweetie. Anyways, thanks so much for keeping things going; so appreciate. DH is so upset as she is his buddy! We are going thru a tuff time right now.


:congrat: VAL on losing 90 lbs; only 10 away from the big 100!!! You can do it, kiddo ... I just know it!


PURPLE ~ will catch up later; haven't had time to read yet; thanks for carrying things for me ...


BMGCJM ~ here's a special message for ya ...

:bday2you: :bday2you: :bday2you:


:hug: ROSEBUD :hug:

Hi Ladies and good morning


Woke up this morning to a fine covering of snow on the floor this morning. Though as the morning has gone on it has started to melt rapidly. Hopefully will have a walk later this afternoon. We had a walk yesterday at about 7pm it was dry and still very light now we have turned the clocks forward. It was very cold though so not surprised that we had snow over night at some point. Even though it was cold it was a lovely walk and did see a couple of foxes on our travels as well.

Made some yoghurt moose yesterday by mixing jelly and 200g of yoghurt and whisking for 5 minutes. This particular one is raspberry not made this flavour before I have only had strawberry. So it will be a bit of guinea pig tasting later today. Making these low calorie deserts satisfies my DH sweet tooth and help keeps him on the straight and narrow.

ROSEBUD :~ It really saddens me to hear that pin pin is so unwell. I always imagined that she was quite a bit younger than sweetie. Not that you had ever said but that is how I imagined the two of them together. I really hope that pin pin recovers and you have some more time together. It is so hard when our beloved pets are sick you feel so helpless to help them.

So I fully understand that you are unable to visit the site as often as normal with home circumstances as they are I would expect your priorities to lie else where.

Bye for now ladies and see you soon :hug:

Morning everyone

THANKS!! for the Birthday wishes! Had a great time at lunch with my friends then spent the rest of the day just hanging out with my husband then he took me too dinner that night! Obviously not a very good day for eating healthy but its just one day! I am getting right back on track today!
Its going to be another nice spring day here so I am thinking of taking the doggies for a walk or taking a bike ride, maybe both if I have the energy for it!
Hoep you all are doing well!
Purple-hope the snow melts soon for you
Rosebud-sooo sorry to hear about pinpin!!! prayers!!

THANK YOU ALL ~ for your kind words and prayers ... PIN PIN passed away early this morning (10 am); and very quickly which we are so thankful for. GOD was gracious: it felt long becuz we were so upset, but it really took under 15 minutes; but, our prayers were answered for her (we didn't want her to suffer).

She adored her mother (SWEETIE) so much; they were kinda like twin souls. She seemed under the weather on Friday night to me and she was so quiet too, but she got up on Saturday morning and just fell. We spent almost every single minute with her; I just took out enuff time to write and ask family and friends for prayers. We had hoped that we would have her for a little while, but GOD knows best.

PURPLE ~ I will always treasure that beautiful poem you shared with us; it made me feel so much better, and will for years to come. WOW, snow again; but it won't last too long, and ours has gone down quite a bit over the last few days. We had temps in the mid-fifties, which is helping a lot.

BMGCJM ~ yes, enjoy every minute you have with your furry friends; we tried to do the same and were rewarded for it over and over again. They are so loving and accepting; it never ceases to amaze me the wonder of their lovely characters. It is a love that keeps on giving and giving ...

VAL ~ I picked myself up a very small MP3 player; and finally figured out how to put some songs on it. I got it so that I could take it with me on walks, which I can go on now that the snow is finally clearing away. Now, I'll have something to listen to when I'm walking. It's so small; how amazing that such a small thing can do all that.

DH says it is so terribly quiet in our home now; and right now, he it outside hammering his sadness into another small coffin. We are going to bury the girls together on our lot in the country and put a rock garden over and around them. I can have fun making the plans for that to ease my mind.

WELL, that's all the news for now; I am going to go out and keep DH company. Thanks again, and do take good care, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Hi Ladies

:yikes: yikes 2 post the last 2 days I will get talked about :D. Just come back from my walk ( my exercise) it was a lovely even but cold though I was well wrapped up. Spring is out in earnest now we have had the daffodils, now the tulips are just about out. The primroses and polyanthus look beautiful with their array of colour and the small cowslips. The trees have started to come into bud and the grass is growing. We had to cut the lawn the other day as it was becoming rather long ( well when I say we I mean the council ;) ) Though the grass is left on the lawn so DH goes round with our mower and picks it up so it looks much better. Our next door neighbour does the same also.

BlzMaxGnrCCJkMly Glad you had a wonderful day on your birthday. It may not have been your healthiest day food wise but one day a year I think we are all allowed off the straight and narrow. I think these treats like that help me keep on plan rather than being rigid and allowing no treats along the way.

I have just come back with my DH after taking our pooch for his walk he is now flat out on the floor after his walk. I would love to take our dog on his own for a walk like I use too but that is not possible now as I am so unsteady on my feet the majority of the time. for any distance I walk with the aid of my husband or a walking stick. Though I feel much safer with my DH.

The snow has all gone within a few hours. Here in the UK we do not get much snow fall you may get more in the mountainous regions in wales and Scotland each year. Those we have had no real snow fall in years not that I am complaining like. ;) Though as our climate has appeared to get warmer here in the UK my DH and BIL bought me an air conditioning unit which I am very grateful for. Very few of our homes have air conditioning it seem to be in more public building like shops and hospitals. I am unfortunately effected by the heat so the air conditioning unit helps me a great deal function on a better level than I might.

Bye for now time to have my coffee. :hug:

Hi Ladies

Just returned from our morning walk it sure is brass monkey weather out but at least it was dry. I wrapped up warm so it was not too bad once you got going. At least it was not raining :rain: which I hate walking in.

Watched this morning something that I had taped from last night television it is a drama in 3 parts showing was the London hospital in the East End of London was like 101 years ago. It has been created by reading diaries and memoirs of nurse and doctors of the time. Also historical data from the hospital itself. The one thing it sure makes you appreciated how far medicine has come since then you were only expected to live until you were 45 years old. It was 40 years nearly till free health care and antibiotics. This episode highlighted that it was common place for alcoholism to exist in children until laws were changed in 1908. Also that if a hot spell in the weather occurred it meant that many children perished due to stomach bugs. I was so shocked at the end of the programme when it said it was not until the 1960's did they discover that a simple solution of salt and sugar can help prevent most deaths in children with stomach bugs. With this being a medical drama it is right up my street ;) I know that it was not mental health as such but here in the UK alcoholics who wish to stop come into a special unit only for drug and alcohol abusers. In this episode of set in 1907 it showed a boy of 15 who was prevented from drinking as he was poisoning himself with the volume of alcohol he was drinking. With no alcohol he started to experience the DT (delirium tremors) this is where they hallucinate visually. I have only seen this once when I was training and still till this day I remember this gentleman screaming about beetles and spiders running up the wall in his room. The actor who played this part experiencing the DT was very good and very believable.

Just had a look to see what I require when I go shopping tomorrow. I normally do my weekly shop on a Tuesday or a Wednesday depending on what we have planned. I need to go Tuesday as I have used up all our vegetables and virtually all the fruit. I used a lot of vegetables this weekend with lots of vegetables on our plates to fill up on rather than carbohydrates as we did in the past. Plus I steamed a whole bunch of vegetables to make a egg white / vegetable and bacon omelette oh boy was that filling. My eyes were definitely bigger than my belly so ended up leaving some. Though it did not go to waste as our dog seemed to think it was the bees knees :dizzy: Normally he hates carrots and if I cook him a meal and it has carrots in and I do not mash them within a inch of there life you go in the kitchen and find it peppered in carrots. This is were he has spit them out as he does not like them it appears he can get them a long way :D So I never though he would polish this omelette off with carrots in.

Time for me to get myself into gear and have my cup of coffee before it is stone cold. I think I might even go and sneak and have a further read of my book which is getting rather good. bye bye ladies and take care :hug:

Hi and good morning

Well I am up bright and early for me (8am) it is more like 10am when I surface and even then there is not what you call much go in me. Takes a while for me to get going in the morning. It appears a lovely sunny morning and not so cold. I have managed to take a stroll to the top of the garden so far. Was on a mission our dog had mislaid his beloved ball so was lost without it. We found it at the top of the garden in the spot where the lilies are.


I showered last night before bedtime so that my hair would be dry I left it down for some time then plaited it shortly before bed. Well I did manage to get quite a bit read from my book over 100 pages in total yesterday so I am on the homeward stretch with my book. The trouble is I always want to get to the end to know the entire story. Then when I do it is like saying goodbye to old friends the characters in the book. Then you have to start a new book and the process starts over again. Sometimes after an exceptional book I find it had to pick up and start another book. This one is set in 3 places, France, Coventry (England) and a small village in Wales. It is set just before the WW2 and then takes you in to the WW2. The trouble is it is very good and I can not put it down. The only reason I stop is that I am falling asleep.

Well shopping day is upon us again it sure does come around quick. My fridge is starting to look like old mother hubbards as I have used most of my fresh produce up. So will stock up on plenty of fruit and vegetables. Last week at weight in for me and my DH (by the way I stopped the same) he was mortified that he had put 5lbs on in a week. I had tried to tell him that the cereal that he was munching his way through in the morning that he had insisting on buying was very high in calories. So after a weeks breakfast and 5lbs later on the scales he believed me. So this week he has gone back to weetabix and exercised every day. So far the weight has been dropping off. So fingers crossed it will be the same come weight day on Friday. It is hard at times to motivate him when the scales don't move for him and fortunately they have on a regular basis for me. Though saying that it has slowed up considerably now and it does not change every week.

Well time for my mid morning drink so bye for now ladies and take care. A big hello to VAL, ROSEBUD & BlzMaxGnrCCJkMly :wave: Take care of yourselves till next time :hug:

:wave: HELLO LADIES ~ we are feeling a little better today; it was dull as can be outside today. They had predicted another bad snowstorm but we didn't get it; yeah! So now they are saying it's coming tomorrow; we are praying that they will be wrong again; and maybe we'll get back to sunshine again. One thing I did notice is that our weather here can be much different than the weather in town, which is about 10 miles away.

PURPLE ~ thanks so much for holding down the fort for us; I came on to read very late last night, but started nodding off while reading so decided I'd come and post today instead. Yesterday we went out for a while to get our minds off things. We went to that new restaurant I told you about (it's Chinese) and had a very nice lunch; was able to bring home a bag of leftovers for dinner too. The place is very attractive: very bright with lovely cultural decor.

Then we went around to a few places picking up odds and ends. I picked up a new muffin tin; hope it works well as they had three different kinds, so I hope I got the good one. DH loves muffins as they are his favorite snack, so I am always trying to find new kinds to try on him; adding different ingredients too.

OF COURSE, it is so very quiet and boring around here without our girls; we are trying very hard to keep busy. DH did the floors again and washed a carpet today as well. We spent some time planning our garden and our cabin together: everything helps. Your new book sounds interesting; I finished mine. One of the stores that closed up has reopened and will be selling used books; we went to look for some yesterday, but the second-hand store will be closed for the next week.

Maybe we'll go to the library and see what I can find there; just want something to get my mind engrossed in. One of DH's friends came by today to encourage us and he did brighten our day.

We were gonna go out today, but the air was damp and cold and was affecting my lungs a bit; we had a flu, but I thought it was over, but as soon as I went out in the air to give the WHISKEY JACKS some bread, my breathing felt yucky like you are when you are congested. DH's friend says he has the same problem. I think we may have to pick up a DEhumidifier for this summer; and we could use it to humidify in the winter too.

WELL, I think that DH has snuck off to bed early; I think I'm gonna try to get him to come out for tea. He says it is so boring here without our little buddies. We want to get another little one but we want to make sure we get the right one and not rush into it. We have one kind in mind: they are very small, short-haired, cute, quiet bark, dogs that kinda look like a chihuahua, but they are a little bigger than them. One of our neighbours has two of them and they are very nice.

I can't have a big one becuz I need one that I can walk with and handle myself when DH isn't around. We trained our girls ourselves with great success, so we want to do the same again; but we are just waiting for the right time and opportunity.

VAL ~ How did the meeting go about buying the house??? Drop by and let us know. That is a great challenge and responsibility, but I loved my place and had fun decorating it. That's why we can't wait to get started on the cabin this summer; we are starting with the foundation base first thing.

ANYWAYS, that's all the news for now; will be back more often over the next while. Once again, thank you PURPLE, for your lovely chattiness. HELLO TO VAL AND BMGCJM ... thanks for all your kind words, prayers, and thoughts ... and do take good care my friends :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Thanks for the support about my loss this far ladies. I suppose we do have the celebrate how far we've come. It can be hard when I know how far I still have to go!

:hug: Rosebud I'm so sorry to hear about pin pin. :hug:

Purple sounds like you are great support and inspiration for your DH! You are smart to not expect larger losses this far in!

My parents moved back into their house with us last weekend.. unloaded all their worldy belongings and drove 700 km's south.. to sign paperwork for my Dad's next nursing job and settle their next house. We made the bank apt for when they are back in town this weekend. I'm trying not to think about it too much because I tend to expect the worse case scenario in life.

Rosebud - how do you like your mp3 player? my parents were 'ghetto blaster' users all the way.. ya know with cd/casette players. When I bought my car it included an IPOD so I gave my mp3 player to them and they really enjoy it.. when they get the hang of all the buttons!

Because we got so much snow over the winter -more than usual.. water has collected at our back entrance and is seeping into our basement laundry room - I'm hoping it's just coming through the window. I know my Dad did a bunch of foundation work when I was a child... so I'm wondering if I'll just have to be more dilligent with snow removal next winter.

my laptop battery is dying sooo I need to get going. :wave: bizmax and take care ladies!

:wave: HELLO LADIES ~ Well we did get that storm today and it's another doozy with whiteout all evening; I guess one more won't hurt now and it does make things look cleaner. They are expecting sun for the rest of the week and the weekend.

WELL, we had a big surprise last night. A man came by around 11 pm and told me that he had a present for me ... a small dog/puppy. I had to laugh becuz I was just praying about that. DH had mentioned earlier that he wanted to go to the city later this week and look for a puppy becuz he missed the girls so much; so I said OK let's do that as soon as we have a clear sunny day.

ANYWAYS, he is on trial for now; and we started training him right away and boy he is learning a lot faster than we expected. Poor thing was abandoned and so scared and confused; but now he is sleeping like a log. I think he hasn't had much sleep for awhile becuz of all the changes in his life.

We kept busy doing some more spring cleaning and did training in between that; we tackled two rooms simultaneously and got more done that way. So we had a very busy day today, but that is OK with me.

VAL ~ I got just a small one for now to see how they work; yes, you do have to fiddle with it a bit to work the radio, music, voice recording, and other modes. I have most of it figured out now; the downloading took a bit of doing, but I finally got it down. It's just remembering the sequence of push this and then that, when your memory wants to take a holiday. That happens when you get to our age, so take advantage of yours now ... LOL!
You know what they say, 'USE IT OR LOSE IT!' That is so true.

Best wishes for the meeting coming up. When I bought my place many moons ago, I did have to get a co-signer becuz I was young and single at the time. The banks are tough on people today, but some are trying to give people a chance to prove themselves too which I think is great. Today they put mortgage insurance on (which I recommend) just in case you lose your job or something like that.

ANYHOW that's all for now; gotta go check on our new guest, so take good care, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

HI TO PURPLE AND BMGCJM ~ hope you both had lovely days today.

Good evening ladies :hug:

I re read more your last post Purple - and I hear ya on the 10 am 'emerge' for your day. I do the same thing -- I dont start work until 10 in the morning.. nearly 2 hours after everyone else in my office. I've accepted the fact that I just do better work if I have slow mornings to myself for my brain to kick in. So you have lillies growing already? Do they grow during the winter as well?

Rosebud!! how is it going with the puppy trial? I hope it's going well. Thanks for the well wishes with my apt coming up. I am an insurance junky (I always buy it.. even at the age of 23!) I even have insurance on my car so that if something health related-not connected to ms- makes me unable to make payments the insurance kicks in.

A friend of my Dad dropped by and put up a water diversion to try and stop the water from going into our basement. It's so gorgeous outside everything wont stop melting. what a nice problem :)

and unfortunatly I got stupid again. My knee was feeling better so I decided to wear my kitten heels today at work - they're awesome brown leather shoes that I JUST BOUGHT!! Tonight I'm on the couch, icing and using ibuprofen full strength... so note to self. give away my beautiful shoes. i wonder if they are almost worth the knee pain - they're so beautiful!

time to go. nite all!

Hey Ladies!
Hope everyone is doing well! Its been a LONG week here! Dodge another tornado on Wednesday night! Lots of tree limbs down but other than that nothing more serious at my house, others were not so lucky! Been helping neighbors do some cleanup in the evenings! My furry children were kinda freaked out, 2 of them are really scared of storms but they are all good now. 2 more hours and I am off work and ready for the weekend! wohooo!! its supposed to be a really beautiful weekend weather wise! yeah! Talk later!

Hi Ladies


I haven't quite fallen off the face of the earth as yet :D I have been so busy over the past few days that I have had little time left to post on here. I have been over a 140 miles one way to deliver some bean bag sofa's to a customer who wanted a Saturday AM delivery. Gosh what a setting the house was in. It was in the ground of a country park which people seem to use for walking the dog, or just generally walking and running. It had big wrought iron gates which had a panel behind them to make their home private which was electronically operated. You drove down the drive way and there was a huge statue with two stags one bigger than the other with antlers in black. Gosh that looked stunning in itself. Their house then just over looked the countryside for miles around. It was so quite as vehicle were not allow past a certain point unless authorised to do so. The delivery was done in a little over 6 hours and that allowed for two toilet stop breaks. Feeling some what tired but I have been to bed this afternoon to help me.

Tomorrow DH and I are off to friends for Sunday dinner (well cooked tea ;) ) she wants to do it as it was my DH birthday on Friday. So any excuse and she is inviting you round for a meal as she enjoys cooking.

Then Monday we are off round to another friend to see if we can set up when I say we more like DH can set up a wireless network. He has never done one so that is going to be fun. She knows that he has never done one so it happy if he can set it up but understands if he can't.

Then Tuesday we are out to dinner with DH brother for his birthday meal as we were all busy so that was the first day we were free for this meal.

Then I have the doctors Wednesday morning really early at 9'10am so that is going to be a struggle to get up for that then do the shopping afterwards. So the busy schedule seems to continue. Nothing is planned after that thankfully :D

Saw a George Foreman grill on sale on the internet which was 1/2 price and I have been looking for a bigger one than I was given as a present years ago. This also allows you to take the plates of for easy washing which will be a godsend after the other which you had to carefully wash as the plates where not removable.

Time to go as I am starving I have tea on the go and need to do some pasta now the water is on the boil. Bye for now and take care all. :hug:

PS a big thanks to all who have keep the thread going whilst I have been MIA ;)

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ We have been pretty busy lately with our new guest; being that he is a very big puppy, he needs a lot of attention: which means we gotta watch him like a hawk. He isn't anything like our little furry babies; this is one large, mischievous teen puppy, but he is very lovable and is trying very hard to please us.

I think he will be OK; we have the SIT command down pat; COME is well on its way; and we just started DOWN tonight. He's a bit behind becuz of his age, but we'll do the best we can and try not to confuse him. We picked him up some bones but then forgot to go to the pet store for a couple of toys, so we'll do that next week as we have to go to get new glasses.

He had his first ride in our car and did very well. Oh, we decided to name him something like NIKO or close to it. He's a fun kinda guy, so we have gone with a name that reflects that. I have to admit though, that he alone takes up more time and attention than both our girls did ~ LOL! Oh well, at least it's not boring around her anymore ...

PURPLE ~ I see that you have been busy; as we have. And as the summer finally gets here, we will be busier. Glad your trip went well and have fun at those dinners. Hope you don't get too wiped out.

VAL ~ high-heels are no good for your feet or your knees; yah, we all learned the hard way. There are some cute ones that have lower heels, but you do have to look for them. Hope your feeling better soon; and that the meeting goes in a positive direction. Sometime lenders will offer you tips on how you can make your dreams come true ...

BMGCJM ~ We had cloudy skys until today; it was lovely sunshine, but the winds are torrential out there right now. We have these huge icicles hanging down from the eaves that look like giant daggers; hope they don't fall on anybody. Glad you all made it thru the storm; yes the little ones suffer during the storms too! We close the blinds and put music on and bundle up in comfies to make things seem calmer for them.

Well, that's all for now; have a great weekend everyone and take good care, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Hi Ladies

Well I slept well last night as expected due to my early start yesterday morning. Plus to top it off it was one of those rare occasions you see virtually every hour on the clock. I cooked a simple meal of meat balls in soup with wholemeal pasta last night. Gosh it was filling I find I can not eat much at one time at the minute with my tummy so it is the adage of little and often.

We had a lovely walk yesterday evening after lunch to walk off our cooked tea. Plus the weather was kind of mild so it was rather nice. Our pooch enjoyed himself also. We thought he deserved it after being in the van for 6 hours and he was so good. We did stop several times for him to stretch his legs and have a call of nature. Though on the journey he just tends to sleep in between me and my DH. His head always resting on my DH knee.

Today is the big marathon run in our capital London. It has been taking place now for about 16+ years or maybe more you know how time flies by when you get older and it doesn't seem that long. To be honest it is one of the our countries most known about marathon and it is televised on the BBC ( a television company British Broadcasting Company ). My own GP is taking part today for charity the last marathon he did along with his wife was the New York one. He for a "fun runner" and I say that very loosely as running a marathon is no mean feat is clocking times around the 3 hours 30 minutes range which is none too slow. I wish him and his wife if she is taking part all the best and hope they raise money for their nominated charity and they come through unscathed.

I want to shower early today so that I can wash my hair and let it dry which takes many hours with being long. Somewhere in the region of four to five hours to dry naturally. I never blow dry my hair as my ends have a tendency to be dry anyway so I do not want to dry them further. Will be leaving home around 4.30pm so will have a light bite to eat at lunch time to tide us over and so I can take my pills and potions :D

I have now had some time to read over the posts put in over the last few days properly so now I will take sometime to reply to those

ROSEBUD :~ I am so sorry to hear that you have lost pin pin as well as sweetie. The only blessing is that she did not suffer as I know you would have both not wanted that for her.

Your prayers I see have been answered with another dog for you to care for and love. I think it seems like having a toddler in the house with them being into everything that they shouldn't ;) When we first had our dog he was a very mischievous 19 month old who would shred paper of any sort given half a chance. He seemed to have a thing also about insoles in shoes for some reason and he loved to take them out and chew them to pieces. It took many many years for him to grow out of both those. He is now an angel compared with those days but he still gets that twinkle in his eye and oh boy he is looking for mischief. Look forward to hearing of your new dogs antics in the coming weeks or new things they have learnt.

BlzMaxGnrCCJkMly :~ Glad to hear that you are OK with the tornado that was close by to you. It is a worry that our dogs are so fearful and there is very little you can do to comfort them. It is a good job that people like you and your neighbours are prepared to help others with the clear up operation that is needed with such winds that cause so much damage. I am sure that those who have been affected are so appreciative of any help they get from other folk.

VALPAL :~ I am not sure if there are any varieties of lilies that grow in the winter in the UK as our winters are relatively mild there is very likely their could be. Our lilies in question are just starting to shoot and are about a couple of inches in length. Though they do not flower to much later in the season. We have leaves for far longer than the flowers which are a bright orange in colour. The only flowers we have at present in my garden are a few polyanthus and the very last of the daffodils which are about on their last legs.

I am very much in the same category as you regarding shoes. They are a nightmare to get anything that I can walk in correctly without breaking my neck. I wear mainly flat shoes which aren't actually the height of fashion but at least I am safer. Also I have a pair of black shoes which have heal and are my "dressy" pair. They are a pair of slip on shoes with nice pattern on them. They are also the way they are designed less likely to fall off my feet and stay on them. Plus I can walk fairly well in them providing it is only short distances. So you may have to be like myself look for shoes that give you a lot of support in the foot and not very high heel. A nightmare shopping for those sort I must admit but I rather be safe then injured. I can fall easy enough without helping the matter along ;)


Time to go and get dressed and sort the washing out that did over night. So bye for now and take care ladies till next time :hug:

:wave: HELLO FRIENDS ~ We had beautiful sunshine today, so we decided to go out for a drive. We ended up near town, so we went and picked up a couple of good chew toys for NIKO; and got a wee bit of walking in, and had coffee at our favorite spot. We took our time and mosied home around a favorite lake; the water is running over the dam but the ice has now turned to slush. We can't walk around here as the water turns to ice as soon as the temps fall, so we have to drive somewhere else to do any walking.

PURPLE ~ Thanks for your kinds words; it was terribly hard to lose them both so close. GOD has indeed sent a needy little fella to help us over this sad time. He likes to chew things and tests us at every opportunity. We have a lot of wooden stuff in our place as DH made our own tables; and we have antique things like our piano and a grammaphone from my Dad. He even wants to gnaw on the wooden legs DH made for our sofa; the legs on it before weren't that secure and we wanted it higher off the floor.

So far not too much damage has been done; we picked up some bones on Friday and chew toys today and he loves playing the FETCH Game with us: we toss and he fetches them; and I must say, he has that one down pat too (his favorite pastime already). He's goofy, but very cute too; and has already won DH over.

HI VAL AND BMGCJM ~ hope you are having a great weekend. We had a lovely roast chicken dinner today; very healthy too. That's all for now, so take good care :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ we had lovely warm sunshine again today without the winds, so a lot of the snow melted; and we were able to take NIKO for a couple of walks (morning and aft). The road was almost clear but our lane is quite slushy yet; maybe tomorrow, it will be even better we hope (should check the forcast) ...

OUR newest addition to the family is settling in well; and we finally figured out why he kept complaining about our rope. It is now apparent to us that someone has trained him to do his "duty" along the side of the road: we were wondering why he wasn't going in the back forty. :?:

I searched the net for training tips as it has been many years since we needed them; and they were really helpful and it brought back memories. They say that first you have to train the trainer, then train the pet: how true that is and DH and I need to be on the same page, just like parents. I found out that he was walking him on his right side and I was walking him on the left like the trainers say to do; now we are on the same track, so things are going a lot smoother. And this fella is a smart cookie and tries really hard for us too.

WELL, not much else other than laundry today; had a pasta dish for dinner (nothing fancy; just weekly fair). Now I weigh the dry pasta and measure the cooked pasta to make sure not to overdo it; and we have pasta only about once a week now. I try to mix it up with new potatoes (which have lower starch levels), brown rice, beans, and whole grains.

HOPE you all have a great week, esp you VAL as you start a new work-week. Has the snow started melting up there yet? Take good care, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Hi Ladies


Did not manage to come on yesterday as my DH was trying to do a wireless network for a friend. Not that he had done one before though he did have his nephew on the phone for advice. Well 5 hours later he had to admit defeat and now his nephew is going up tonight to try and sort the issue out for our friends. After that day I just seem absolutely drained not that I was doing anything more energetic than watching television or talking. Nevertheless I was wiped out so we stopped off at a pub on the way back for something to eat. After I had eaten I did feel a wee bit better. Fortunately a good nights sleep and I am OK today.

Managed to fit in 2 small walks yesterday as we felt so sorry for our furry baby that we had left him for 5 hours without us. We thought it only fair that he got a bit treat of a nice walk. He loved it and it was a rather chilly night though. In the day we went into two parks which are practically yards from one another so Rizzie could burn off his energy. One of the parks has recently had new tarmac laid on all the pathways so they are really nice for me to walk on.

ROSEBUD :~ Seems like your new addition to the family is keeping you on your toes. It must seem somewhat strange to have a youngster who is up to mischief and having to have eyes in the back of your head. Especially as Sweetie and Pin Pin was well past the stage of getting into so much mischief. Learning your new dogs foibles takes time it is a pity they can not speak it would make matters a little easier. I am really interested in your new dogs day to day antics and milestones. It is so pleasing to hear and makes me smile.

Talking of picking up some chews for your dog. When I go shopping tomorrow I will have to pick up some treats as he has had his last ones last night. Plus his food is getting rather low. He is really picky with his dog food. He appears to like the dried food which you can squeeze with your fingers and it is soft to touch. He does not like the dry food which is crunchy for some reason. Plus you can not have ones with vegetable in. Now that we have found a couple of brands that he likes it means no waste any longer. When we first had him he was fed a tinned food and I hate the smell and looks of those. I did not want this sort of food down especially in the summer as it attracts flies so it was nice to convert him to something dry which does not attract to flies so readily.

We were suppose to be going to lunch with his brother today but unfortunatley he was called away on business so we have rescheduled for Thursday teatime to meet in a pub near to his home. That works well for us as we have sandwiches on a Thursday as I go for my oxygen therapy treatment on that day and then have a cooked tea.

All the news for now ladies. Bye bye for now :hug:

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ we had a full and busy day today; dang it, I woke up with another flu; sore throat and all, so took a NEO-CITRON as soon as I got up and it helped a lot. Then we had to go to town to get our eyes checked this morning and good news all round. The doc says that I don't need full-time glasses just yet, but to make sure that I wear my reading glasses as much as possible, esp when reading and writing.

AND they finally found out what was wrong with DH's eyes: his tear ducts were completely blocked. Poor guy had to go through a painful and yucky procedure to fix it: if your squeemish, DON'T READ ANY MORE OF THIS PARAGRAPH! LOL! They had to stick needles in them to drain them out, and of course one needle to lessen the pain first. He also injected some medicine in which ran down into his mouth; how yuck! Anyways, felt sorry for him, but that's why his eyes were watering all the time ~ the water was coming out of his eyes instead of his tear ducts: how tres weird is that???

PURPLE ~ YES, our pets have their own idiosyncrasies just like people do. NIKO doesn't like tomatoes either; I gave him some leftovers the other night. He picked up the tomato and dropped it on the floor and just left it there and ate the rest of the stuff in his bowl. He does like carrots but prefers them cooked verses raw. Our girls just loved hard carrots; maybe he wasn't hungry, I'll try that one again.

He's not a big eater, likes that semi-dry stuff too; we added in some puppy chow to make sure he is getting lots of vitamins and minerals specifically for growing puppies. I'm not a fan of canned food either: I was told many years ago that the semi and dry stuff has better rouphage for the dogs and have always had success with it. We also bought him some PIG EARS and COW'S HOOVES today for that chewing issue. DH caught him gnawing my oak kitchen table yesterday, and he left a signature behind so DH is going to get something to fix that up. We never heard of the cow's hooves before, but they seem really hard and were very reasonable costs; I chuckled for ages in the store, but thought "Heck, I'll try anything to see if it works!"

DH says NIKO is walking better, and doing his "duty" very regular now. When he first came, we were concerned that he wasn't going as much as we expected, but he kept pulling on our yard rope and talking to us ... "Yip, row, row, row, yip" and like that. I said he is trying to tell us something, so I asked DH to take him for walk and that was indeed the problem.

We learned a great trick to stop dogs from pulling on the leash: you just STOP in your tracks and count to ten; call the dog back; praise him, and then continue on ... and it's working like a charm. He has learned that pulling doesn't pay, you see? I'm writing all these things down so I don't forget them. We also brought out our old trick of pop cans filled with pennies (3) to distract him when we catch him doing something he's not supposed to. It's funny ~ you can tell he knows he isn't supposed to do it, but it's like he's checkin' to see if the rule still stands each day. It is kinda cute and funny in a way ...

ANYWAYS, we finished up some errands; picked up a blanket for NIKO's bed at the second-hand shop and chatted with DH's sister, then picked up something for dinner before coming home. That was a full day and I got lots of walking in today (my feet always let me know when they've had enuff). We all layed down for a nap after we got home for two hours; must have been exhausted.

My throat is bothering me a bit, so it's time for some more lozenger drops again. I sure hope this one doesn't last as long as the one I had in March. Hope you ladies are all well; have a good night and take good care of yourselves ... your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Hi Ladies

I am up really early today for me as I have the doctors very shortly. I know I will pay for this early start later on and will more than likely end up having a sleep to catch up on lost sleep from earlier in the day.

So this post will have to be a quick one as I have a busy schedule today with one thing or another. Firstly off to the doctors, then straight off to his brothers work to pick up the van. Then off back home to wait for his brother in law to come. Then my BIL and DH are taking our three piece suite to the rubbish skip. (unfortunately can not be reused by someone else it is so well worn and helped along by our darling little pooch :o). Then they are collecting another three piece suite from his sisters house. ( we are having their old one which is in much better state than ours.) When the furniture is in place if it is not too late it is off to do our weekly shop.

ROSEBUD :~Your poor DH the procedure for his tear ducts being blocked sounded rather painful and something you would want to happen in a hurry again. I hope now his eyes don't run and it has solved the problem. I had never heard of it before today. I have heard of dry eye where the body does not produce enough tears and you have to have artificial eye drops ( really just a solution of salt and water )

Niko seems to eat something that Rizzie wouldn't touch with a barge pole like tomatoes for instance. Though he does like some fruit especially granny smith apples oh yes and any fruit that is covered in cream ! :D Mind you if my dad is here he will eat all sorts from him that he will not touch. Dad will say to me will he eat this and of course I say no and the next thing you see him doing his munching away on it making you a complete liar.

You have some great tips for training dogs to walk on a lead rather than pull you to pillar to post. Unfortunately our breed of dog is notorious for pulling on a lead. Though Rizzie is not too bad at all as we adopted the same tactic as you to prevent pulling. Other dogs have never really interested him very much unless he sees DH petting them. Then the green eyed jealous monster comes out and he is quite aggressive towards them as he is so attached to my DH. Rizzie tries to come between us if we have a kiss or a cuddle. He is never aggressive then though but likes to shove his way in between us.

Never heard of cows hooves for the dog. I have heard of pigs ears which Rizzie like or the shoes. Though they are a great investment if they distract your dog from chomping on the furniture. It is nothing worse when they think your home is a thing for chewing on. Friends of ours the cats have clawed the three piece suite and the door jamb. Here we do not declaw cats as it is illegal to do so which I know maybe the veterinary procedure in other countries

Talking of reading glasses my DH has a pair his very first he has had to have. I have had glasses for 23 years now so are second nature to me mine you I do wear them all the time now. To try and get my DH to use his reading glasses is a nightmare. I have strapped his reading glasses to his book he is reading at present so at least when I am in the tank for my oxygen therapy he is more likely to use them for an hour or so. I now could not read fine print which is in books without my reading glasses now. I do not have 2 pairs of glasses I just have a varifocal lens which allows me to look through different parts of the lens for different things.

Well I must shoot off to the doctors now. If I have a spare moment I will put in what the doctor tells me regarding my tummy ulcer. So take care ladies. A big hi to VAL and BlzMaxGnrCCJkMly :wave: So till the next time bye bye :hug:

Hi Ladies

Did manage to stop by for a flying visit whilst having a coffee break. Just to let you know how the visit went to the doctor a short while ago. They are pleased with my progress so far and have given me more medication which I can use more to my digression. Even given the advice if I am having a really bad day to have a double dose. So I feel really pleased that I have not to have to had a endoscope which I really did not want. The doctor ask more about my family health history for their ulcers. They are both sufferers from it and it looks like I will be that way for the rest of my life now. Due to the strong family history of both parents with ulcers who keep having reoccuring medication to heal them. Fingers crossed once this is healed properly lets hope I am very fortunate and it does not come back. Though I am prepared if this does happen. At the moment eating food is a bit of a mind field and you have to be so careful what you have to eat.


Bye bye ladies and take care till next time :hug:

:wave: Well, I spent a good part of today in bed wrapped in a big comfie becuz I felt like crap!!! LOL!!! I did get up and made a big pot of homemade chicken soup for lunch with half a leftover over roasted chicken and boy, was it yummy. We just had some leftovers for dinner too as this flu is taking it's toll on me. I don't know how DH does it; he has the same flu but doesn't have all the same symptoms yet (maybe he just hasn't got them yet).

So don't really have much to report; will come back and talk more when I am feeling better. A friend of mine is a former Vet assistant; she had to retire when she found out she had MS. She advised that we get big soup bones for NIKO instead of the pig's ears and calves' hooves as she says that they can choke on them. I have done that in the past, cooking them, and then cooling them first.

I just got the others becuz I thought they were OK; and they are handy; and they like them a lot too. There goes some $$$ down the drain; oh well, DH says it's a matter of LIVE AND LEARN. It's too bad we can't rely on things to be safe though ...

PURPLE ~ hope the meds work and clear up that ulcer. I had one in the past and had to watch what I consumed too. You sound like your pretty busy these days too. Don't blame you about the naps; we have to take them all the time. Today, I took two and will be going to bed early again; gotta get over this thing (flu).

HELLO VAL AND BMGCJM ~ hope you ladies are well. Do take good care; your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

:wave: :wave: :Wave: I'm on 12-16 hour day number 4.. flew back north home last night.. I got approved for financing. work is crazy and I can feel the cortisol building up in my body.

My knee has been great this week.. and I know another day of this will put me numb, dizzy and in bed.. so I'm hoping to do a couple hours of walking tonight. :hug: take care all!! I'll be back on this weekend :)

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ I just took it easy today; still got this terrible flu. It's another nasty one; DH has it too, and he went to bed really early (about 8 pm); so I took NIKO out for his evening walk for about 20 minutes. I also went for a short one in the afternoon, so I'm at least glad I got that in despite being so ill. Had some more of that good old-fashioned chicken soup today: it always makes me feel better. Gramma does know best, doesn't she?

VAL ~ so glad that you got the financing for the house; but boy, those are sure long hours at work. You'd better get lots of sleep along with them, so you don't end up with burn-out.

HI PURPLE & BMGCJM ~ hope you ladies are doing well also; not over-doing it I hope. We didn't go anywhere today; changed our plans until my health improves. I'm going to make myself a nice hot cup of tea, and then it's off to bed for me too. So, take good care of yourselves, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Hi Ladies

I am a bit under the weather regarding my ulcer must have ate something it didn't like so it has been painful for the past 2 days. It is a little better now but I will just have to ride it out.

I have had a walk today was not really not looking forward to it as I did not feel the best. Though after I had done it I felt better than I had done. I suppose the bodies natural pain killer had kicked.

I bathed Rizzie today and oh boy is he moulting. I am sure he must feel better with all those hairs gone from his coat. He is now sleeping like a baby after his walk and run around on the park.

ROSEBUD :~ Sorry to hear that you have the flu again and your DH. You both have been though the mill with your health this year. You never seem to recover long enough before something else seems to come your way. Your doing the right thing and wrapping up warm and keeping indoors most of the time except for the necessities.

VALPAL :~ Gosh what long hours your working. Though be careful with your health I would hate you to get a relapse as Rosebud said. Excellent news though about your mortgage coming through. Will be nice to own your own home rather than rented.

Time for me to head toward bed. Though I have a few things I need to do before I go to bed. Bye for now and take care ladies. :hug:

Hi Ladies

I am dropping in quickly just to let you know that if I go MIA the reason why? This morning Dad was taken into hospital early this morning with a suspected angina attack. He has had had 2 previous MI (heart attacks) and has had a heart by pass done about 2 years ago. He still remains on medication for his heart though no where as much as before the by pass surgery. He has been admitted to the high dependance unit at their local hospital. So if I happen to go missing my Dad's condition may have changed.

Bye ladies and take care all till next time :hug:

purpleorc... I'm sorry to hear that, If there's anything I can do, just PM me...

hi there, i just found this thread.. This is nice. I haven't been diagnosed with Rheumatysm yet, the DR is having me get a blood test and x-ray next week, but he's pretty sure that's what it is. I'm getting the name of a good rheumatologist from around here to go to also. We'll see how it goes. But I'm happy to be here! And I'll be checking in often!

Thanks for your concern all :hug:

Rosebud sounds like things are going great with Niko - good to hear :) And your poor DH!! ahhhh! I hope you are able to get fully rested and feeling well this weekend.

Purple :hug: I'm sorry to hear the bad news about your father's health - please do come by and update us when you have a calm moment but not until then! take care of yourself during this time too - as I'm sure you know to do. It wont help anyone for your own condition to worsen :hug:

:welcome: tdiprincess! sorry to hear you are kind of in limo-land while waiting for a diagnosis. But come back and give us some background on yourself. Everyone on this thread has certain health related obstacles to overcome to live our best lives, but we support each other as much as we can. Purple even recently passed the 100 lbs lost mark!


As for my own update. My body has been 'telling me' I needed to stop... basically with asthma attacks getting bad - but nothing worse, thank goodness.. I am going to rest all weekend.

I bought a used elliptical trainer yesterday - because I tried one in the hotel I stayed at and it didnt hurt my knees. My Dad is redoing my bathroom.. and bought new doors for the house - because the current ones have locks that freeze all winter. I also bought tickets to see cirque du soleil this summer in Winnipeg. It will be a long 8 hour drive each way but I'm hoping a girlfriend and I will be able to do it!

:hug: take care all

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ just wanted to get in here and let you that I'm a bit better than before; seems this flu get really bad before it gets better. I have been in bed for the last two days. I have been taking lots of hot lemon drink and menthol drops for my throat and cough. Nothing worse than a cough that keeps you up most of the night, so you are dozing all the next day. I'm sure you've all been there. This flu is going around our building and town right now. A little different version of the one I had before only with coughing added in; yuck! The kiddies were out playing today; still rough around the edges, but playing outside is a good sign that they are getting better too.

PURPLE ~ sorry to hear your Dad has taken ill again; will definitely be praying for him, and you and your family during this time. Thanks for coming in and keeping us informed on how you all are doing. I agree with VAL; do take care of yourself as well. Sometimes we end up ill when we are trying to take care of everyone else around us.

I don't usually get two flus in one year; this is very unusual, but we have been through a lot lately. Yah, this flu is similar, but just different enough that I caught it too; I was upset as it isn't a nice one at all. I sure hope I am building up an immunity to them, so I don't get them again or at least, not as bad. :^::^::^:

VAL ~ WOW ... so much going on in your life right now; good for you! That trip to see Cirque de Soleil sounds like a lot of fun for you and your friend. Thanks for keeping us up and going sweetie; we all seem to be having our rough times lately. That elliptical sounds fun; lots of people here like them and say that they are easier on the knees (sounds like something I need).

:wel3fc: TDIPRINCESS ~ glad to have you join us; yes, do come back and let us know a bit about yourself. We are a small, but friendly and chatty group here ...

We had some sunshine for part of the day; and a beautiful full moon last night that was lovely to look at. We had piles of new birdies arrive today; we've had some sparrows and more junkos and another grey bird that we haven't seen before. DH says that some white birds around look like seagulls but he's not sure why they're here, but we've seen an amazing assortment of flocks coming through that we've never seen before and we are having a very late spring. The number of blackbirds is in the hundreds; DH says our yard has become an bird sanctuary ~ LOL! Hope the neighbours don't mind. We don't feed in the summer, so it's nice that we get to see so many before they move on to their regular habitats.

Well, I hope as this flu dwindles away from us, that I'll be able to come in more often again; send lots of prayers and good thoughts our way, and we'll do the same for all of you. Do take good care of yourselves, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ we had a warm sunny day today and the temps got up into the 70's and hotter inside so DH put up the air conditioner to cool things down inside for us. It's hard enuff having a flu but being excessively hot or cold doesn't make you feel better ~ LOL!

JUST did a load of laundry and meals today; we had nice lean pork chops with brown rice and veggies for dinner: yummy! I only ventured out onto the deck today for awhile as I'm trying to get rid of this flu. I woke up breathing clearer, but am still a little congested: it seems to be getting better each day (it's day 8 today). Hope it doesn't last much longer.

NOT much to report tonight; the snow is melting and we can see lots of grass (even if it is brown). DH is still taking NIKO for his walks and we're working on his training. This week's lesson is LAYING DOWN and he's getting pretty good at it too.

WELL, that's all for now; take good care, and PURPLE you and yours are in my prayers (and you too VAL). I'm pretty much a prayer warrior and pray for everyone I know and hear about as time allows. Have a good night, from your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ had another lovely sunny day today around 70F, which is really perfect spring weather for us; we'll gladly take it. More of the snow melted becuz of that as well; will be so glad when it's all finally gone; it will look a lot better too. Then we can start getting some of the yard work done too. Put out my deck furniture today and my umbrella; sat out there with my tea today.

We're having chicken with a homemade tomato-BBQ sauce with roasted new potatoes, long green beans, and salad. Trying to keep things as healthy but tastey as possible. DH has been busy all day with his hobbies, but he is limited as we have a new lake in our back yard (all the snow way out back has turned into a very small lake ~ LOL). We kinda figured that would happen, but I think it should be all gone and dried up by the end of the month: at least, we hope it will be.

PURPLE ~ hope things are going well with your DAD; we continue to keep you and your family in our prayers ...

HI TO VAL and all our other visitors ~ hope you are all having a great week and enjoying the lovely spring weather. Take good care, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

:wave: HEY CHICKIES ~ GEE, I hope everyone's OK out there in Chickieland!!! LOL!

We had lovely sunshine that I know came out so we could have a pleasant ride into town today. And we did too; went shopping and got some walking in. I still have that flu, but I determined after a short nap this morning that I was going no matter what. Well, the nap helped and the fresh air was really invigorating: I felt even better! Now, after I got dinner finished, my feet are paying the price for it all. Oh well, I can rest them up a bit tomorrow.

PURPLE ~ we are keeping you and your family (esp your Dad) in our thoughts and prayers. Hope things are going well for you and your DH as well.

VAL ~ hope you are having a great week and that your snow is finally melting. Most or our backyard is melted; just one stretch where the snow drifted left, although the far back is like a small lake right now. In town, there was hardly any and our big lake is finally starting to melt too. Yeah, I think it's safe to say, that Spring is finally here!!!:D

Our new buddy, NIKO, is starting to learn some new things: we are working on the LAYING DOWN which is pretty good. He loves the FETCH game, esp with his balls or rope toys; and he is taking to car rides very well: so far he is very quiet and just lays down on the floor. I hope he stays like that; it will make trips much easier if he does. DH is working on the casual walking and says he is getting better every day. I think he is doing very well since we have only had him just over two weeks.

HELLO TO ALL OUR VISTORS TOO ~ hope you come back soon and let us know how things are going for you. Take good care everyone, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Thanks for keeping us moving Rosebud :) Things are busy for me.. as the possession date for the house gets closer.. and my parents pack up 2 households worth of possessions. (they never took anything from this house.. just bought all new stuff)

You've been eating pretty well too! Those dishes sound delicious -- I've been eating a lot of subway lately.. my parents took over the fridge when they moved back in -- and I'm not really in a position to complain.

I'm glad to hear Niko is doing so well, especially with learning commands and car rides! Some pets just dont do cars.


The snow is melting here too.. I had my winter tires switched off the car yesterday. People still drive on the lakes... so it'll be May before it's really that warm. Of course it snowed the day after I had my winter tires removed.. but it's still beautiful outside!

I hope you are taking care Purple and finding strength as you are away. :wave: to everyone else!

looks like it's my turn to keep us current around here so here goes;

Today I booked my cruise to Mexico - I got an ocean view stateroom for my friend and I for only 4690 airmiles! I now have more than enough left to buy my flight to los angeles with airmiles too :)

I FINALLY started the reformulated interferon formula (my M.S. drug) and it's going so great. My injections are so much easier now that the formula doesnt burn or sting like the old stuff.

Dinner for me today.. was a plain mcdonald's hamburger with broccoli and calorie wise ranch dressing. Our fridge is still packed with all my parent's food.

I hope spring is continuing on for you Rosebud and that you are relativly well Purple :hug:
:wave: to bizmax and tdi.
Val

THANKS VAL ~ I was here earlier but had to go make dinner and then came back and was reading and such before coming back here and posting. We had another lovely sunny day; the temps were cool, but still nice really. I don't like it to be too hot anyways, as you know.

I am feeling much better today; my flu symptoms are slowly lessening each day. I have been drinking hot lemon drinks before bed and one in the daytime if I need them to lessen the conjestion. I have been surprised by the severe symptoms and the length these two flus had this year. I usually only get one cold or flu each year; but I think my resistance was down as I just had a flu a matter of weeks before I got this one.

I took NIKO out for a walk this afternoon so we both could get some exercise. I bought some new clothes this past week and was pleased to find that my clothes are looser now; I have indeed gone down another size and maybe even two. I'll find out the next time I get some; I also got some new shoes to go walking in (a shoe-like running shoe) and just had to try them out too.

We had a very simple dinner tonight too: beans with l/f franks with coleslaw, green beans, cukes, and baby new potatoes for DH. Maybe not the most imaginative fair, but Thursday is a puzzler for me. Maybe back to the planning board for me. ;) Tomorrow we are having steak with mushrooms and veggies and salad and tomatoes.

Some weeks I have a hard time coming up with ideas; I mean how many ways do you want to eat chicken or fish? We try to have lean pork, lean beef, fish, and chicken at least once a week. Most weeks we have fish and chicken twice, but you can get tired of that too. We all have our ups and downs, don't we?

For lunch today, I did make some homemade veggie soup and tossed in some leftovers. It's based on the old French potage: diced onion, celery, and carrots in broth with herbs, to which I added some peas and leftover roasted sweet potatoes: it was really delish.

PURPLE ~ you and yours remain in our thoughts and prayers ...

ANYWAYS, that's all for now; have a great evening :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Hi Ladies

So sorry this is another flying visit as I do not have lots of time to answer your posts though I will give you an update.

My Dad has now been transferred to another hospital which is renowned for dealing with heart problems. It is now been found that Dad did have a heart attack and is awaiting an angioplasty. He has had to wait for one of those has he was previously on warfrin which is a drug which thins down the blood and lessens the ablity of the blood to clot. It is scheduled for sometime on Monday and there is also a possiblity that also a pacemaker will be fitted.

I hope you are all OK, as I have not had the time to look at your posts as I am travelling over 60 miles a day plus visiting there does not leave lots of time in the day.

Bye for now and thanks so much for the well wishes that I have seen. :hug:

Thanks for the update Purple. Our best wishes and prayers are with you during all this stress. I hope you stay well and your Dad stablizes. :hug:

Rosebud thanks for posting - we just missed eachother that day. It's great to feel clothing getting loose isnt it? I recently bought new walking shoes too... hopefully they will prevent future knee trouble for me. They arent very stylish! What brand of shoe did you end up buying?


I have spent most of the weekend sleeping. I got home from work yesterday.. ate.. and slept the evening away unitentionally.. then woke up about 11pm.. exercised and went bake to bed. The best part of my day today was being able to load nearly a hundred boxes into a trailer for my parent's move. I noticed they were struggling this morning.. so I ran outside and took over the lifting. A year ago I couldnt have done this.

Theeeen I slept more this afternoon. and I'm feeling pretty tipsy now so I think I'll lay low this evening.

take care,
Val

:wave: HELLO LADIES ~ the day started out raining but by this afternoon, we ended up with sunshine again so we got to go out for a small walk. We also went out shopping today: it's a secret for now, but I will be able to tell you about it in the next week or so and maybe I'll even take some pics too. I'm sorry for the tease, but I'll explain the reason then.

PURPLE ~ THANKS so much for coming by and giving us an update; we were very concerned for you and your Dad. WOW, that is a lot of traveling; hope you are getting some sleep in there somewheres. We will be keeping you and your family (esp your Dad) in our thoughts and prayers each day, and we hope things get sorted out for him soon, so he can get on the mend as soon as possible.

VAL ~ you remind me of my younger self; sometimes I would overdo it and then end up exhausted the next few days. Hey, don't worry about having to sleep: as DH always says to me, 'you must have needed it or else you wouldn't have slept that long'. It was nice of you to help your parents out. These flus we've had have the same effect: one of the symptoms is that you feel tired all the time, so needless to say I have been falling asleep all over the place (nodding off at the computer and on my rocking chair and so on ~ LOL!)

SHOES ~ the running shoes I bought are NEVADA'S and look like Mary Jane's in style; they are black and very comfortable too. I got them at Sears. They come in blue and beige as well; and the price was good too.

We had our version of fish & chips tonight; we had breaded fish with baked fries and coleslaw, tomatoes, cukes, and veggy. After a busy day, we wanted something that wasn't too difficult.

My flu is almost gone; just a few weak symptoms left, but I can breathe so much better, thank GOD! Gonna take it easy for the rest of the evening and likely hit the hay early too; DH already has ~ LOL! We're not big partiers these days, but I am listening to the SATURDAY NIGHT GOLDEN OLDIES on the radio while I'm on here, which is a fave of mine. Take very good care of yourselves, ladies ~ your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ just a quick check-in tonight. We had an overcast day with cold winds, but hardly any of the predicted *** Yeah ... just a lazy day for us on Sundays; we really like to take it easy and we did.

Had a lovely roasted Chicken Dinner with roasted veggies: celery, onions, carrots, turnip, new baby potatoes, and long green beans on top. I also roasted a large Butternut Squash: it was yummy. We had our first one at Easter, so we just had to try it again; and the roasting gave it a nice sweet flavor. For dessert, we had my version of light apple crisp with a dollop of vanilla ice cream (just fresh apple slices with cinnamon and granola on top). We had the dessert later with our tea ...

VAL ~ how is your elliptical work going? Does it bother your bad knee at all? Down in the EXERCISE FORUM, a lady and her DH are using one and say that the elliptical machine they have bothers their knees. Many other people say that it is great for people with bad knees. I am just curious as I have a really bad knee myself ...

Not much else to report; hope you all have a great week. You are all in my thoughts and prayers as always, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

:wave: HELLO CHICKIES ~ We had a lovely sunny day, albeit with cool winds, but it was nice anyways. Just did regular daily stuff today; and my flu is really on the mend: I am breathing a lot better too. NIKO is keeping us busy, but that's no surprise with a big furry puppy like him. Tomorrow, we are taking a trip to our lot; hope the weather is as nice as today was ... we are gonna take a picnic lunch to have while we are there.

A friend of mine called today who has a cyst on her ovaries. It's not cancerous, but they want to remove it as it's about 7 cm in size. I'm gonna go and put her name in some prayer groups, as she asked me to do that for her.

We had a nice dinner: lean pork steaks with leftover roasted veggies, salad and such too with brown rice. Had a good day overall. Hope you ladies had a good one too; take good care, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

:wave: HELLO LADIES ~ we had a lovely day today; it was very sunny here, but when we went up to the lot, clouds and cold winds rolled in, but we managed to get things done. We buried our furry babies up there and made a rock garden around it today and later I will plant some permanent flowers on top as well; it looks really nice. We took a picnic lunch and didn't get home til late this afternoon.

Thank goodness, we didn't get any of that *** but I should have taken my parka with me; I did take too thinner jackets and had to put both of them on to try and stay warm. This was NIKO's first trip there and he was pretty good; although if DH gets out of sight for a minute, he gets upset; he is a man's dog for sure ...

ANYWAYS, we had a good day and just had leftovers for dinner tonight becuz we were tired and sore by the time we got home. Tomorrow is our day to go to town to pay bills and pick up fresh foods so we will be busy again.

PURPLE AND VAL ~ hope you ladies are well; you are both in our thoughts and prayers each day. Take good care and have a great week ladies, your friend :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Thanks for keeping us moving Rosebud! We've gone nearly a week without **** up here -- maybe it's officially spring for both of us?! Even the semi truck that spends summers in my town hauling fresh British Columbia produce here to sell has set up again.. so spring must be here :)

My eliptical machine has been great for my knee actually. I can even use it without my knee tensor for support.. but I have found out the hard way to keep the tensioni low. I think upping the tension on the machine is one way people with poor knees can do a number on themselves. (mine goes up to 9... and yesterday I 'let it' go up to 7... and woke up with aches this morning.. so today I kept it at 2)

I think I am having a less hectic work week. I am headed out of town.. to a nearby town. about a 2.5 hour drive away for a regional tourism meeting... so I will have to get up earlier and drive. I'll have to make a starbucks run before hitting the road!

:hug: Purple and you too Rosebud. Sounds like Niko is settling in and definitly a keeper!

:coach: NOW HEAR THIS ~ we are on the move again ...


:nono: STOP!!! DON'T POST HERE ANYMORE ...


Please go to the new PHYSICAL CHALLENGES MAY'S MONTHLY THREAD #009 -- see you there ... and thanx!


:hug: ROSEBUD :hug: