Faith Based Support Groups - CHRISTIAN ENCOURAGERS ~ May

You've found a great place to come and vent, share or ask for prayer support. This is a great group who will be very encouraging, caring and loving....anyone is welcome to join!

A Servent's Prayer --

Jesus, My Jesus....How marveleous your ways....
Far more splendid than my mind can envision.
What an honor to be chosen by you.
A lowly child I am, but empowered by the Holy Spirit to
fulfill the great hope to which you have called me.
I give myself totally to you, Lord.
Take my imperfect heart and make it perfect.
Peel away the hardness.
Close the doors I have opened to the temptations of this world.
Gently remove the roots of painful memories, sins, doubts and fears.
Discard anything that separates me from you.
Lord, fill the emptiness with the light of your love that I
might be a beacon calling the lost back to you.
To love as you love.....
To serve as you serve.....
To forgive as you forgive.....
Always mindful of my nothingness while doing great and
marvelous things in your name and for your glory.
This I pray, Jesus, in YOUR name.
Amen.

Thanks Rosebud!

Hi all - hope you are having a good start to the week! I am glad it is Friday!
Anyone have anything fun planned for the weekend?

Laurie

Thanks Rosebud!

Hi all - hope you are having a good start to the week! I am glad it is Friday!
Anyone have anything fun planned for the weekend?

Laurie

I am planning a hiking trip with my hubby and Kids, its going to be really hot, maybe should go swimming instead???

Quick trip here...just finished kicking butt on my side yard...with all the ladders and scaffold...it was a mess. My brother and bil helped me.

Angie just got home and we are getting ready for kitchen happy hour...which may be on the patio...then off to dinner.

Thank-you ROSEBUD for kicking MAY off!

SCOOTER we have our monthly family get together on Sunday after church. My ex-wife and sister are doing it together at my ex's house...they are making fried chicken for me!!! Something Angie never does...fry anything...so they said they'll do it for me....and everyone is looking forward to it. I haven't had fried chicken....'cept for restaurant fried chicken salad or KFC in years....in fact I think I have been to KFC once in the last two years.

MANDY I hope you had a good birthday :)

Hey Guy and Dolls,

Glad I found May, I was heading for April. WOW, was I slow.

Went to the doc's today, and woooha, the wrist is not broken, just badly spranged and bruised, back in a splint but that is okay, not even going to go to the nose, just gonna let it heal all by it's self. Going back to work on Monday to try this again. Oh, almost forgot, I WI Thurs. evening and was up 3 pounds, Kinda expected it from my sodium intake for the week and with the fall combined, oh well, I am at peace with it, I did not lose my cool this time. This is a learning experience for me in more ways than one.

Well my kids are going to throw their first cookout all by themselves. This should be very interesting. They have bought enough food to feed three armies. I think I am going to leave home, that's way to much food in free range for me.

Glad to hear everyone is doing fine. Gary sounds like you got a lot done today, good for you. Hey and fried chicken sounds really good.

Willow, hiking, swimming, as long as you are all together having fun. If you do go hiking, take plenty of water just in case. Have fun!!!

Laurie, what are you going to do. Will you have any spare time this weekend? You stay soooo busy.

Rosebud, glad you started the new thread for the month, I would have still been wandering around aimlessly. Thanks for bringing me home. LOL

Everyone that's not here, hi and thinking of you all.

Hugs and blessings,
Ags

Gary - I almost went to my fave little "country cookin" place today. But talked myself out of it. Living in the heart of FRIED everything...it's hard to stay away sometimes. I refuse to eat fast fried food...just not the same. THis place has the BEST fried chicken, REAL mac and cheese, well...i won't list it all and get people too interested! :) It's a buffet style too...ooooo that reminds me of the other place. YUM! It's called Buckner's and they serve you with several other people at a round table with a lazy susan in the middle. IT ROCKS! I just asked Susie if she wants to go on Sunday!!! :) o boy...better get in more exercise! lol

Ags, as soon as I read about the cook out, i wanted to fly up there! I'm STARVED today, if you can't tell. Not sure why. I haven't wanted to eat for over a week and then BLAM! Food frenzie. I still haven't eaten poorly tho.
And...I need to come up there and pray for you. You need to get that book I told you about before. Blessings and Curses by Derek Prince. Speak some blessing into your life! You deserve it! I love you! :)

I want to go hiking tomorrow...but I am only half way finished with this stinkin paper. So much for going to the beach too. oh well.

love ya'll!
Peace!

Hi all,
I have been told I should stay home til this flu panademic is over.But,I have a place to go that I don't miss out on if I can help it.I'm headed to my Celebrate Recovery Group first thing in the morning,and possibly to lunch with a friend after that.So that takes up Saturday.
I like to go to church on Sunday usually.But I would also love to go to the beach this weekend,get my feet wet in the ocean and have a picnic with a good book on a blanket.I love to meditate and pray at the ocean,its soothing.

I love the fresh ocean crab at the crab house there.The Mo's fresh fish house down on the old town fish dock on the siuslaw river and ocean bay front has the fresh catch of the day,they will wrap it up for you to take home or you can order it inside in Mo's restaurant for lunch or dinner.I need to bring a ice chest to keep my fresh fish in if I buy any though as I live 65 miles away from this place.That could get pretty smelly otherwise.Uggh.

The old town part of the main city has many antique and treasure shops to gander into for about a half mile on both sides of the street.I can get lost in here easy!Especially if I'm with a friend.Oh yeah,I should mention that I like to wander down the boat docks where there are many fishing boats and other boats.I was born 7 miles away on the siuslaw river here.I often picture how it was back then as I remember the old photos of my grandmothers.I think I'll skip the ice cream and candy shop this visit.If they have frozen yogurt that would be good in a cup though.



Taking one step at a time,living one day at a time,enjoying one moment at a time.

God bless,Judi

Hi Everyone. Things have been a little crazy here so i havent been able to post but i have been trying to read and keep up on everything that is going on with you guys here. Hope the weekend goes well for everyone. I think me and the boy are going to go on a bike ride today is it doent rain. I get off work at noon so hopefully i will have a chance to be outside. Happy Saturday!

Willow - sounds FUN! Send some of that heat our way - it is still COLD here! At least the sun is shining (and yes, those of you that know me are right - next month I will be complaining that it is too hot ;))

Gary - have fun! It is still so cool that you AND Angie get along so well with your ex. Oh, and you've heard it before from me - <insert fried chicken lecture here> Have fun! :D

Ags - a body that has suffered trauma usually builds up quite a bit of fluid - I wouldn't worry about those 3 lbs. Just stick to the plan, and the next WI will show a more favorable number. Glad you can go back to work so quickly and that nothing was broken :yes:

Bev - my personal opinion is that buffets were created by the "enemy". They are evil and should be avoided at all costs ;) I'm too much of a "value hound" to be able to go to a buffet. I gotta eat my money's worth - RIGHT? And - you can't take leftovers home.
DH and I always order an appetizer or entree and split it. If that isn't possible, we ask for a carryout container when the food arrives and put half away before we even start eating. Something about eating out, good company, good food, eating leisurely makes me want to renew my "clean plate membership card". DH and I eat out quite a bit, and when we travel, we usually look for the "home cookin'" kinds of places. We tend to order from the breakfast menu, regardless of the time of day - a nice veggie omelet and hash browns or American fries is a favorite. "All things in moderation" ;)

I hope you get your paper finished soon! Hang in there!

BTW - I don't think I told you - I love your avatar picture - just beautiful! :D

Nspired - sounds like a wonderful weekend! I love the water for "centering" myself as well. DH LOVES waterfalls. Our pond and fountain are a poor substitute, particularly with a day care next door :yikes: but I can usually get in some quiet time by the pond first thing in the morning.

Enjoy! (and the yogurt in the cup sounds like a GREAT idea)

Candy - good to see you back here - been thinking about you (and praying for you too of course).

Good start to my non-exciting weekend. DH is working and I am doing chores. I did get in an hour of shape boxing this morning, which felt really good. Well, time to go deal with the fur - seems like our golden-shelty mix molts this time of year. I could knit an afghan with all of the hair I collect :lol:

Blessings to all and prayers ascending!

Laurie :scooter:

Hi Gals ~

Checking in real quick between chores. Angie is off to bells and I need to vacuum before she gets home...otherwise she'll think I hung out here all morning ;)

Put some ladders out in the driveway this morning with "free" on them....decent 6-8 ft. aluminum ones with steps on both sides....I am downsizing a bit...we have so many...these were safe but not really ready for construction abuse anymore...gone in 1/2 hour...maybe they went to recycle ;)

Side yard looks much better...Angie was so :carrot: with the work my brother and bil and I did yesterday.

We went for Italian last night...a bit pricey but good. We have been to this place before, and like our other favorites better, but we had a $25 off coupon.

We came home and started putting a jigsaw puzzle together...with me watching the Dodger game mostly ;) I did "communicate" ;)...hey Babe...watch this hit!....hey Babe watch this pitch....;)

Going to take the dogs to the duck pond and trails later if the rain stays away. Should be fun and stressful...scares me letting my mutts run wild!

COURTNEY~ :carrot: We miss you! :hug:

SCOOTER~ Angie and I try to split a lot of our meals too...we have been taking our own plastic leftover containers to some places, like out hole in the wall Mexican joint.

JUDI ~ Your town sounds cool. I have driven through the state on my way to Washington a few times...beautiful. Have only spent extended time in Bend though. Welcome.

BEV ~ I'm coming for dinner :carrot: It is probably a good thing that I live here in southern California where it is a bit more difficult to find good fried food!

AGGIE ~I am so glad you don't have anything broken :hug:

Well have to go vacuum ~

Later ~ Gary

Laurie - I agree with you on the 'value' part I tend to want to eat my $ worth, but i've realized that I just don't each much to begin with! :) I have one plate and I'm done. Thank you for the compliment and encouragement. I need to be writing that dastardly paper now.

I just measured myself and have lost 7 inches total since January! 3 were off my hips!!!! That, I am happy about...only 7, not so much. But slow and easy...at least I am learning how to do moderation. I just wanted to be much further along in this quest by now. Like maybe 21 inches gone and 30 pounds...oh well.

Susie and her son went to the lake and are hiking. I have her laptop since mine likes to shut down on me. Hopefully the new one will be here this week!!!

Peace and prayers!

Oh yeah..I have a friend that is in need of courage, peace, strength to do what God tells him, revelation, understanding, healing and love. He is very special to me. His name is Josh.

Gary - you are welcome anytime!!!! :)

Howdy group,

Hope everyones day has gone well.I had a long day but a good one.I went to my meeting and then to a chinese buffet lunch.They even had the fruit and raw vege salad bar which I took full advantage of first.I did go by myself though as my friend was to busy to meet up.Oh well,I had some good me time shopping in the craft store.I hadn't been there for a while so I kinda got lost in all the cool stuff to do in there.I think I must have been in there a few hours.Hehehe:dizzy:

Spring is always so pretty but somedays the pollen is almost deadly for me here in the willamette valley.I woke up with a horrible allergic rash and have dealt with it all day.It feels like a prickly sensation and itching.Type,itch,type,itch.I think I had better take some Benadryl.Yuk.

Looks like church is on for the morning.So I don't know if I'm going to make it to the beach or not this weekend.I definately will plan for it next weekend if not.I like to go late morning and spend the afternoon there and get back by evening.I don't care to much for night driving.

Looking forward to the week ahead.:D

:tread: :exercise: :flow1: Just For Today :flow2: :cool:




HAGW Judi

Finished paper number 1!!!!! :)

Next week I have another paper due and 2 exams....mercy!

I hope everyone is having a great weekend!!!

Gheez Luiz! Sorry I forgot to reply on your comments group.

Laurie,Thank you.That town that I was talking about is actually 65 miles from me on the beach.But I was born 7 miles from it.I live right in the center of the southern Willamette Valley in Eugene which is VERY green and beautiful.I have lived here or around here most of my life.I'm a true Oregonian.A Oregon duck!We should have web feet like one as it rains so much here.But I don't mind it to much.

Ags, I pray that you heal up soon.Sounds like it hurt.God bless you dear.

Gary,I like Bend too.It is more like the desert over there. I love the Ponderosa pines.The sierra nevada mountain range is so beautiful.We have to travel the pass when we go to Bend or that area in eastern Oregon.The ski lodges are very busy there in the winter.I have a friend that lives near Mt.Bachelor.Their kids are snow board crazy, so is one of mine.Motorcycles,Quads,snowmobiles and all kinds of fun dangerous stuff like that.I stay home and pray while they go to the lodge.Boys and Men!You guys are crazy!I just go for the scenery,the fishing,camping and friends.I especially love the crisp air over there.It is like 3500 ft in elevation in Bend and only 500 ft here where I live.I usually go to Lapine,which is about 30 miles away and even higher up in elevation.The moon over there is so big at night it looks like you can rope it.Hehehe :lol:

Candy,Looking forward to getting to know you also.Im new here.

Bev,It sounds like you go to school am I right?If so what are you taking?I'd like to go back to school one day soon.I want to major in Art and possibly take it a step further into illustration and art therapy. I love music too but only want to improve on my guitar playing and singing so I can play and sing better in groups,like in worship.

Rosebud,Thank you so much for your encouragement and the nice message you sent me.It meant alot.I love this group as your name really fits who you are and what you stand for.Coming here at the end of a long or stressful day is like taking a breath of fresh air at the end of a dusty journey.

Mandy,I love to hike when I'm not so heavy.I will be thinner and healthier one day soon and then I will go again.When I was fit and healthy I used to be a commercial mushroom picker.I did that for 7 years in season.Here in the Oregon are lots of hiking trails and camping areas with rivers,lakes and streams galore.The great outdoors there isn't anything like it.I see you live in Florida.My son and his wife and 4 kids live there in North Port.They love it there.

I think that's everybody on here yesterday and today.Have a good night all.

Lol,In Christ,Judi

Happy Sunday Ladies ~

Just got back from dropping off and setting up a table, of magazines to give away, at church. Will will go to 2nd service as Angie has bells. Then off to my ex's house for the family gathering...yummmm....fried chicken! Been a long time since I have had it.

Now off to the produce market with Angie...for "healthy foods"

have a great day ~ Gary

I will check in later

RONNI ~ I hope the yard sell is going/went well!

Bev :woohoo: on the paper being done :D

Judi - it sounds WONDERFUL! Our kids looked at Oregon as a place to land after DS1 finished seminary. Looks like they may stay in CA since the are feeling called to continue their work in the bay area.

Gary - hope church went well. Our bell choir played both services today :D I just love listening to them :yes:

Good morning here - church was great, and grocery shopping afterward is done. Time go get some gardening done - I still have several beds that need to be cleaned.

Hope everyone has a blessed Sunday!

Laurie :scooter:

Thanks for the congrats on the paper! Now, I have another due this friday and 2 exams...and my laptop is DEAD...so i am trying to beg and plead with susie to leave hers with me while she is at work until my new one comes. hopefully that will be this week!

Nspired - I am working on my Master's in Marriage and Family Therapy. I am an ordained minister and I see so much hurt, that I thought this would be a good complement to what I do. PLUS I have always had a passion for succesful families. I never have had one...YET! :) my BA is in Journalism and broadcast production with a minor in film. artsy! :D the funny thing is: for as long as i can remember the two degrees i wanted were psychology and journalism...God is giving me both now!
I think you should go back. Just take a few classes at first and decide what you want to do. School is wonderful!!! It does a lot for your self-esteem.

I ate at the lazy susan place today. the slept all afternoon. Bev meet GYM tomorrow! :)

We are having tornados and fun tonight. It's exciting. I love storms

Hi Gals ~

well my sister and ex-wife made awesome fried chicken! And my brother in law made great bbq chicken for Angie and the rest of us them that didn't eat fried. A great family gathering, about 25 of us. My daughter and son in law didn't make it as he was working a tennis tournament and she had to assist him.

Church was great as usual. Angie and her bell choir got an ovation for their song today. It takes a lot to applaud "grown ups" when they play...as much as we want to...traditional church...but when it is over the top like today nothing keeps us down! Of course we always applaud for the kiddos.

Updates for prayers are in Prayer Warriors ~ I will catch up later...I hope all is well with all ~ Gary

Bev - I love storms too. DH can't sleep during them, me - rain puts right to sleep. And, being hearing impaired - I don't here the thunder. Weird - but storms always remind me that God is in control - the lightning is a visible sign that even though humans THINK they are in control ...

Gary - glad you had a great family get-together! I laughed at your post, because the same thing happens in our church. There was a "pause" after our bell choir played. Finally someone started applauding and then everyone followed. We had a pastor about 10 years ago that felt it was wrong to applaud in church. He felt that it then became a performance, rather than a worship experience. I personally disagree with him. Applause can be a worshipful response.

Hope everyone has a blessed start to the week! Stay POP everyone!

Ags - hope you are having fun today, and that you are feeling better!

Rosebud, same for you!

And hello to everyone else!
Blessings all,

Laurie

HA...Laurie...Let me assure everyone here that we do applaud our music "teams" often but as a general rule we don't clap after the choir sings or the bell choir plays a song during service or the praise band we have every now and then...but today's song....THEY'LL know WE ARE CHRISTIANS...was very difficult and had a lot of bells going...we knew from the piece the effort they put into it....we appreciated that by applause.

Well, hello everyone and a big :grouphug: too!

Gary-your family get-together sounded wonderful! Glad you had so much fun and that Angie's still doing ok, too. Would love to hear the bells sometime-you could post it on youtube, ya know;) and we could all enjoy it! As far as the yard sale, it was kind of a slow day, but still got rid of quite a bit and made some bucks. Mom said we can do it again later in the summer and just leave the stuff stored in her shed, so we'll just see what happens then-at least it's already all priced, so all we'll have to do is set it up. Thanks for asking!

Aggie-was so sorry to read about your fall. I've always had a problem with balance and falling and it's much worse now with the MS. I really hope you heal up quickly and can keep on your feet in the future;). Take care, sweetie!

Bev-prayers that you get your next paper done and can take some time to rest and recoup. Don't know if I could go back to school like you have. I just feel like I don't think well anymore. My sis is working on her master's on-line right now, which makes me wish I could do more with my life, if you know what I mean. Thinking back on your weight loss and exercise question, I remember you mentioned that you weren't eating much. That's a killer for me. When I let my calories drop below my range of 1350-1550, I stall and the pounds just won't go. I even get heart palpitations. And, I'm not exercising nearly as much as you are, so make sure you keep those calories up and have healthy foods.

Wilma-so glad to hear you passed your test! Knew you would;). Prayers that you can stay more on plan now with some of the stress off! Keep up the good work!

Nspired2lose-:welcome2: Glad you found our Christian Encouragers spot! Looking forward to getting to know you.

Willow-how did the hiking or swimming go? Our weather has been nicer, but not to the swimming kind of nice yet. Pools won't even open till Memorial Day and sometimes it's still too cold then to actually get in the water:lol: Hope you had a great time whatever you all decided to do.

Laurie-I've been working on the flower garden beds too. And, finally got radishes planted in the veggie garden. It's been so cold yet at night, I'm scared to plant anything else-had to replant too many times in the past because of freezes in mid-May! Still can't believe the weather here and I've lived in southern MN or northern IA for 20 years now! "Back home again in Indiana is where I long to be......" :lol:

Rosebud-hope all is well with you and that your snow is finally melted! We decided to put up a finch feeder and we've had house finches and the yellow ones, along with lots of sparrows! Also, saw a beautiful bright yellow and black that could have been an oriole or nuthatch, but need to see it again to be sure. It's even more fun than I thought to be able to watch all the little birdies come and go all day. The house finches seem to be trying to build a nest in our awning, but seem to have some difficulty. She brings stuff in and arranges it, then HE comes and tosses it all out:dizzy:. Don't know if they're just practicing or just don't seem able to get together on the "plan":lol:

Well, if I missed anyone, I'm sorry, but know that your needs are in my prayers. Hope you all have a great day. Now, I'm going to see if I can get some sleep. Overdid it a little with all the running around for the yard sale, then mowed our lawn afterwards, so today (or yesterday, Sunday) when I got up, my face, back, and leg were numb again. I'm learning how too much activity and too little sleep affect the MS symptoms, I guess. And, even though I was dead tired, when we went to bed, I just tossed around, so got up and came here. But, I guess it's time to try again! Take care you all!

Laurie- Non exciting weekends can be nice. Sometimes its nice to just relax. At first i thought it said non-exercising. Then right after you said you got your shape boxing in. I was a little lost. Hope your weekind was relaxing. Hope you got tp put a dent in all that gardening that needs to be done.

Gary- $25 coupon is a good reason to go anywhere. I would be right there with you in getting distracted form the puzzle. My brain just doesnt work that way. BTW how is miss angie? congrats to her and the bell choir for doing such an amazing job.

Bev- Will send out prayers and encouragment to your friend josh. You deserved that long afternoon nap after all that hard work on your paper.

Judi- Hope that your rash has gone down. That is never a good feeling and not such a hot way to start out your day. Look forward to getting to know you as well.


My weekend just flew by. Friday i worked until 6 then made dinner and went on a bike ride with the boy. Saturday after work myself, DB and some friends went to the driving range for the first time. I did horrible! But it was still fun. My boyfriend hit a few to the 300 yard mark. He obviously did much better than I. Sunday i had to work as well and afterwards i picked up my niece and nephew and took them to my boyfriends nephews 2nd birthday. My sister and her fiance went on vacation in jamaica so my mom and i are taking turns witht the twins for 2 weeks. It fun but so much work. Im used to having them for 3 days but after that they usually go home. And now that both of them can walk its even harder. But i love to spend time with them. I havent been doing so well with the diet and exercise so i started back up today. I WILL work out 5 times a week and no more fast food 5 nights a week just because the boy wants it or i dont want to cook. Im starting over. Happy Monday!

Hi all! Hope you had a great Monday!

Ronni :hug: I hope you got some sleep! You continue to be in my prayers!

Candy - I haven't been out golfing yet this year. DH love is, me - not so much.

It looks like another crazy busy week at work. The end of the school year is like that! The weather is gorgeous here, so I gotta get out there and enjoy it :D

Blessings to all - and prayers continuing!

Laurie :scooter:

:wave: HI EVERYONE ~ well, we finally had a nice warm :sunny: day today and that helped melt a lot of snow. I would say that 95% of it is gone around here. We have one tiny patch in the front yard but our backyard is all clear, so I think by tomorrow our yards will be totally free.

WILMA ~ WE actually had some of that snow that came out from the west the other day: and DH was not a happy camper about that, but thankfully, it all melted very quickly!!!

THANKS RONNI ~ my legs and feet have been bothering me a bit lately; a bit more pain than usual. I had to take some pain meds to go shopping last Thursday. My doctor had suggested more respite each day, which I am now taking. I am trying to put them up minimum two (2) times a day, but three (3) whenever possible. Spreading the housechores out over the week and DH has been helping me out a bit more too.

Yes, we just love watching the finches and sparrows as they play in the tree; we put up a NYGER SEED SOCK and some seed bells in the big fur tree, plus we have the CHURCH FEEDER with the Nyger seed mixed with a corn mix and they are lovin' all that. We have a sneaky neigbourhood CAT that we have to watch though; as he gets bored and wants to chase them for fun, but for now we have managed to convince him that playing in the empty lot across the road chasing leaves is much more fun! ;)

HI LAURIE ~ been keeping busy lately; I just love going outside and basking in the sun on our front porch with NIKO and do some reading and praying and such. This is a good spot for doing my devotionals too; on rainy days, I do them in my rocker in front of the window. We keep getting this mild cold or something that comes and goes, so I stayed home today while DH took some friends to the city. I'm trying hard to rest my legs and feet more, but I kept on plan well today.

HI COURTNEY ~ so nice to see you visit again; sounds like you've been having fun hiking and bike riding too! Good for you; hang in there ... this isn't a sprint, it's a marathon for life!!!;)

HELLO TO EVERYONE ELSE OUT THERE, including our MIA's ~ gotta go put my legs up before they turn numb on me. Take good care and know that ^^PRAYERS^^ are ascending for you and yours ...:hug: ROSEBUD:hug:

Hi all, hope you are having a great day! Busy day at work again - the end of the school year always is.

The weather is glorious today, I got a lot of gardening done, and took the dog for a walk in the woods. And, I did get in 30 minutes of shape boxing :D

Prayers continuing!

Laurie :scooter:

HI GALS ~ :)

Angie is doing a crossword puzzle behind me and talking to her mom. She finished the jigsaw puzzle last night while I watched the ballgame....team work ;)

I confessed on my "baloney" thread that I made a killer mac and cheese yesterday and we have had it two nights in a row for dinner and my lunch today. I gave blood today so I can "qualify" mac and cheese for lunch...but...Angie advised me to not make a whole recipe...I did it anyway...now I have many more miles to do ;)

SCOOTER ~ Enjoy the weather and busy end of the year :) Angie will probably be getting ahold of you....she has been thinking of making her own yogurt and since a little birdie over in the 50's mentioned you do that....well, she may contact you.

ROSEBUD ~I am happy the weather is nice for you too. Sorry the legs are giving you trouble but glad dh is there to help. Wish I knew what kind these little birds, pooping all over my fence, are ;)

COURTNEY ~Way to take control of that boy...;)...er fast food! Enjoy your time with those little ones...and yes they can be a handful at that age ;)

RONNI ~ Continued prayers for the MS :hug: How is the search going for aid for the college bound kid? Sorry the yard sale was a little slow, it happens here too.

BEV ~ BARGOO ~ WILMA ~ AUNT SUE and all the MIA's :hug:

Gary - I hope Angie does - we ADORE homemade yogurt. Really - not only is it much, much cheaper, it is much, much BETTER!

DH would never eat yogurt - now, he eats more of it than I do. In fact, he eats so much of it, he has taken over making it much of the time :D

Glorious night here - after working in the yard, we had a fire in the firepit. A nice two hours "connecting" with each other and enjoying the fountain, the birds, the beautiful evening - what a reminder of how blessed we are to have a Creator that gives us so many, many beautiful things!

Blessings all!

Laurie :scooter:

Not much happening around here. Just work and getting the house ready for Sunday. We're having a few of my relatives in to honor our mother for Mother's Day. We're going to BBQ!! It's finally nice enough out to do that. I'm looking forward to it.

I've done much better with my eating this week. I chose frozen yogurt over ice cream. That's a start! I've also been looking at different ways to exercise and found a few routines in some magazines that I'm going to try.
Some walking, some circuit training and some weights. Hopefully I'll see some results. That's when I get motivated.

Talk again soon!

Hi everyone! I have been mostly a lurker here on 3fc. I have been successful in the past getting the weight off, but somehow I have always ended up gaining it back. Here I am again with about 50 lbs to loose. No more trying to do it on my own! I have realized that I need God's power to work through me from the inside out! And I need some support, so here I am! :) God is helping me work through my issues with food and I am beginning to find a healthy balance.

I am really excited about getting to know you all! I am starting a group at my church called First Place 4 Health and I am very pumped about all the things I am learning.

I am so glad I have found some people to journey with - hope you don't mind me jumping in! :)

Hi there guy and dolls,

I have been reading but had not been posting for the last couple of days, was a little down but I am back now. Legs were hurting badly, but this too shall pass, I have to always remember to keep looking up to Him and not down at my circumstances. Am having a pretty good day today and it has been very productive for my job, I landed a large account and they will be quite happy. I guess with this feather in my cap they will keep me awhile longer. LOL

Happy to see all is well here and I have missed each of you.
It's nice to meet you Godsgirltmm, stay awhile and I hope to get to know you better. Everyone here is great, so caring and always sharing. I'll be back later this evening. Have a blessed rest of the day.

Aggie

Gary - I hope Angie does - we ADORE homemade yogurt. Really - not only is it much, much cheaper, it is much, much BETTER!

DH would never eat yogurt - now, he eats more of it than I do. In fact, he eats so much of it, he has taken over making it much of the time :D

Glorious night here - after working in the yard, we had a fire in the firepit. A nice two hours "connecting" with each other and enjoying the fountain, the birds, the beautiful evening - what a reminder of how blessed we are to have a Creator that gives us so many, many beautiful things!

Blessings all!

Laurie :scooter:

SCOOTER I love yogurt, I eat it almost every day and have for over 30 years. You probably know Angie PM'd you on her way out the door to yoga at church. Sounds like a very nice evening!

Not much happening around here. Just work and getting the house ready for Sunday. We're having a few of my relatives in to honor our mother for Mother's Day. We're going to BBQ!! It's finally nice enough out to do that. I'm looking forward to it.

I've done much better with my eating this week. I chose frozen yogurt over ice cream. That's a start! I've also been looking at different ways to exercise and found a few routines in some magazines that I'm going to try.
Some walking, some circuit training and some weights. Hopefully I'll see some results. That's when I get motivated.

Talk again soon!

Wilma, you need to move by me...we can BBQ almost every night of the year if we want...I'll start looking for vacancies ;) You can do this...on the weight...after all you kicked butt on the "school work" :)

Hi everyone! I have been mostly a lurker here on 3fc. I have been successful in the past getting the weight off, but somehow I have always ended up gaining it back. Here I am again with about 50 lbs to loose. No more trying to do it on my own! I have realized that I need God's power to work through me from the inside out! And I need some support, so here I am! :) God is helping me work through my issues with food and I am beginning to find a healthy balance.

I am really excited about getting to know you all! I am starting a group at my church called First Place 4 Health and I am very pumped about all the things I am learning.

I am so glad I have found some people to journey with - hope you don't mind me jumping in! :)

WELCOME GOD'SGIRLTMM! You are more than welcome to join us! We will always be here...stop in anytime :)

Hi there guy and dolls,

I have been reading but had not been posting for the last couple of days, was a little down but I am back now. Legs were hurting badly, but this too shall pass, I have to always remember to keep looking up to Him and not down at my circumstances. Am having a pretty good day today and it has been very productive for my job, I landed a large account and they will be quite happy. I guess with this feather in my cap they will keep me awhile longer. LOL

Aggie

Outstanding on the account! I hope the healing gets quicker for you :hug: How's your kiddo? She didn't join my new Mother's Day 5K :(...maybe you should talk her into it and join her...for a mile or so;)

:wave: HI EVERYONE ~ we have had 3 :sunny: days in a row, with temps in the mid-70's F; and we both are feeling much better too. I'm sure you all have been sending up prayers for us and we really appreciate that as well ... so, thanks! NIKO and I spent some time on our deck this afternoon catching some rays while DH was out and about doing his hobbies.

I had cabbage rolls for dinner and DH has lasagna as he doesn't care for CB's too much. I did some reading, daily chores, fed my birdies and NIKO, did my dishes, and now it's time to put my legs up, do a puzzle and just plain rest. Glad to hear that everyone is doing so well this week.

:welcome: BACK, GODSGIRLTMM ~ nice group of very supportive folks here; for me, this is a lifelong journey -- I am trying to get healthier for the rest of my life with the LORD's help, of course!

GARY ~ the ***** is gone in most of our place; DH says there is a tiny hidden spot behind his trailer about the size of a small house rug and that should be gone by morning. And -- I saw the SWALLOWS today, so that is a sign that spring is here for sure, as they are usually one of the last birds to return here to build nests to have more babies, as they wait for the warmer temps.

Well, not much else going on here right now; just a wee bit of shopping tomorrow as I ordered a taller lawn hook to hang our bird feeder on as we have a neighbourhood cat that is so big that he can almost reach the feeder if he wants to (oops, I already told ya about that little rascal). ;)

Anyhow, take good care and have a great week :hug:ROSEBUD:hug: ^^PRAYERS^^ continuing for you and yours ...

I'm behind...

Ronni - thanks for the advice. i have eaten a TON lately...stress eating with papers, i guess. i haven't been to the gym yet this week...finished paper tonight and will go tomorrow

Candy - thank you for the prayers. he is such a dear, sweet man.

i thought that other paper was due friday...PSYCHE! it was due wed at midnight...i got it sent off about 15 mins late. better late than never. it was torturous...15 pages of adolescent development and the stimulators and influencers that can send an adolescent on the wrong path. i cried when i finished.

i saw dennis yesterday - susie went with me. he was in good spirits and loved having a cute girl to look at. not much fun staring at your sister! :)
Gary - i told him that you had sent him a note...he hasn't gotten it yet...they are slow
Aggie - told him you sent one too. he's tickled to know he's getting mail and harrassing me to draw him a calendar to keep up with dates...i have to get on that.

the paper wore me out. 30 pages in 6 days. i'm wasted. i have also ate a pan of brownies...lol seriosuly. :D

i will go to the gym tomorrow and am already hating the way i feel with all that icky stuff crammed inside me.

well, now its 2 finals before friday and one is all essay questions. joy.

love you all, prayers for you.

peace

Hi all! I had a good day yesterday. Ate properly. Didin't exercise but ran around so much at work that I was pretty tired. Things are looking up. It's kind of rainy today. I'd love to stay home and get some work done around here but that's not going to happen!!

Rayne: I sure don't envy you having to write all those papers. My one course just about did me in. You'll do great. Glad to hear that Dennis is doing better. Still praying for him!

Rosebud: Glad to hear you're doing well. I think we're sending some rain your way. Hopefully we have nice weather for Mother's day. I'm not sure if my house will hold the 25 people coming!

Gary: Thanks! I'll start packing. You know, I would love to experience a winter without any snow just once. I do think I would miss the seasons. It's just that winter is so long here.

Aggie: Way to go on the big job. Don't feel bad about being down. I think that happens to everyone. I sure know what it's like. Take care of yourself.

Godsgirl: Nice to meet you. Hope to see you posting often.

Scooter: You make your own yogurt? Wow! Is it hard to make? I have yogurt every morning. I think it does help with my digestion. I eat it with fresh berries and granola. LOVE IT!

Off to work for me. Everyone have an awesome day.

I am really interested in hearing about the homemade yogurt! Could you please share the recipe? Thanks!

Hi GALS ~ not much here...will try and get back later...but BEV it has been almost 3 weeks since I sent Dennis that letter! Are you sure we have the right address?

Hi all, sorry I was MIA yesterday. We had our annual staff appreciation dinner for church and I didn't get home until late.

Tonight was the "Spring Fling" for the hospital, so I have been hopping.

Yogurt is pretty easy to make.

You can make yogurt many different ways. In a nutshell, you need to heat the milk to a temperature that kills any bacteria (184F), then cool it to 100-110F and keep it above 90F for 5-12 hours.

It can be done several ways.
1. Easiest way - buy a yogurt maker. You heat the milk (microwave or stovetop, cool the milk, mix it with the culture and put it in the yogurt maker to incubate.
2. Next easiest way - use heat sources available - many people use the pilot light from a gas oven.
3. Hardest way - any other heat source.

Here are some resources for you. We eat yogurt daily, and make it weekly. I use 1/2 percent milk with added non-fat milk powder to boost the protein content. I use Fage (or other brand Greek yogurt) for culture to make very thick, creamy, natural yogurt. We splurged and bought a yogurt maker. It paid for itself within months.

1. Premium yogurt maker (http://www.houseofnutrition.com/yomuelyoma1k.html)
2. Economy yogurt maker (http://www.buy.com/prod/salton-ym9-1-quart-yogurt-maker/q/loc/66357/203153704.html)
3. Using heat source from home (http://hubpages.com/hub/How_to_make_your_own_yogurt_-_An_illustrated_guide)
4. A crock pot (http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/10/you-can-make-yogurt-in-your-crockpot.html)

I have used 1 & 2, and read reviews that were positive on 3 & 4. I currently use #1 - it was worth $40+ dollars to me to have this yogurt maker - I love it!


godsgirl :welcome: to Christian Encouragers! Glad to have you join us! This is a GREAT group of folk!

Wilma - WOW that is a lot of people to entertain! I don't envy you & I hope you have "outdooor" weather :yes:

Bev - glad the paper is done, good luck on the rest! I hope you get a break soon. Prayers continuing for Dennis.

Rosebud, you have the patience of a saint! I would be taking a blowtorch to that little pile by now. I don't want to see **** again until - MARCH :lol:

Gary - I hope Angie's yogurt turns out for you. It is delish!

Ags :hug: hope you are feeling better soon!

Whew, I'm glad the weekend is almost here. May just flies by. We were able to scoot out to the hospital event (at a local establishment specializing in micro-brews - so DH was happy). The weather was glorious.

DS2 can use prayers. He has another infected tooth. He is one miserable puppy right now.

Hope you all have a fantastic Friday!
Prayers continuing for all!

Laurie :scooter:

Yeah ... it's gone; it's gone; it's all gone -- no more ***** anywhere as far as my eyes can see ... it's all gone!!! :carrot:

Just went shopping and my 84" garden hook will be delivered tomorrow with a lovely cast aluminum bench that I found there today as well. No more having to bug DH to carry my chairs out onto the deck anymore.

LAURIE ~ yogurt is so popular here that it takes up at least 1/4 of the dairy row in our grocery store, but it is getting expensive. I used to make it years ago, but forget now how I did it. I am the only one eating it, but with these prices, it may be worth it to buy a machine eventually. :lol: yah, from your lips to GOD'S ears ... no more snow until next year, OK??? ;) Prayers for DS2's infected tooth -- that's no fun!

WILMA ~ thanks, Wilma, it arrived just past noon; and it's still here, so we'll send it back real soon, cuz we have enuff now thanks!!! ;) Sounds like a fun MOTHER'S DAY for you; hope you get to enjoy it, especially if everyone pitches in ...

The day started out with warm temps and :sunny: and then we had :rain: for the rest of the day, so that finally took the rest away! Well, time to put up my legs and have my tea: BTW, did a bit of shopping and my legs are feeling much better. Must be all your prayers and the extra respites I have taking, which will now become part of my daily routine from now on.

Take good care and GOD BLESS ... :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Hi all, sorry I was MIA yesterday. We had our annual staff appreciation dinner for church and I didn't get home until late.

I bet it takes your church a loooong time to appreciate you!



Gary - I hope Angie's yogurt turns out for you. It is delish!

Check out what she "made" me eat tonight...in Vegetarian Chicks ;)


DS2 can use prayers. He has another infected tooth. He is one miserable puppy right now.



Prayers for your son...ouch :(

Yeah ... it's gone; it's gone; it's all gone -- no more ***** anywhere as far as my eyes can see ... it's all gone!!! ROSEBUD[/COLOR]:hug:

:carrot: YIPEE! ROSEBUD :carrot: I am so glad your legs are feeling better...continued prayers :hug:

Gary - yes...it took him 2 weeks just to get a receipt that I had put money in his account! but if it isn't there by tuesday, i will re-send you the address and we can make sure it is right. i think they are just slow and don't really care.

thank you wilma and laurie - i only get about 2 days of a break before the new semester starts. :(
I'm going to start working on the exams here in a minute...
I did get a 90 on the paper I finished last night...she grades FAST. I pretty much BLEW the reference in APA format.

Hi Gals ~

Well have to go vacuum ~

Later ~ Gary

Coming out of lurking mode a bit. Just wanted to say...I know you must be a godly man, cause godly men VACUUM! :D

Coming out of lurking mode a bit. Just wanted to say...I know you must be a godly man, cause godly men VACUUM! :D

It is actually punishment for my weekly sins :devil:

BEV re-send the address for Dennis. I just accidentally erased it cleaning out my private messages...oops!

Our vicar and his wife are coming over for dinner tonight. They got their call last week...to a city in Canada...10 hours north of Montana...they are my age and spent most of their lives in Washington state...they are a bit nervous going to such a remote area.

Be back later ~ Have a great week-end everyone!

Rosebud - so glad the legs are improving - whatever the reason! Take care of yourself, and keep that progress going :D Prayers continuing!

Gary - LOL - you are so spoiled! Angie's cooking is outstanding. People pay HUGE bucks in spas to get what you get, daily! Hug that wife of yours - she is a KEEPER!

Hope you enjoyed your dinner. I know you will miss your vicar! Do you enter into a call process for another one?

P31Mom - Yeah, he is! He is modest, be he is an AWESOME member of this forum - and we love having him around.

Hope you all had a FANTASTIC Friday! A good day for me - very busy, but balanced. Work is done for the week :woohoo: We went out after work with friends, then grocery shopping, then a fire outside. What beautiful weather we are having. A baby bird (I need Rosebud to visit to tell me what kind) flew right over my chair and sat next to us on an empty chair around the fire. He sat there for several minutes, joining us and our conversation. What a joy! He was quite interactive and chatty.

But, the fun is over - I gotta get caught up on house stuff this weekend!

Prayers continuing for all!

Blessings!
Laurie :scooter:

Hi Gals ~

Just sitting around drinking coffee and watching the local news. My ex-wife just called to borrow some tables I have for a brunch she is doing tomorrow for Mother's Day, we are invited but not sure if we are going.

Have to meet my son this afternoon for a walk through on the house he is buying.

Other than that today should be easy...maybe a duck pond trip, not sure yet.

Our dinner with vicar and his wife and my brother and sil was nice. Angie made black bean tacos and carnitas, everyone enjoyed both. Had a nice visit. We really have a lot in common, of course some of that is because he is my age! Not the oldest vicar we have had at church but up there, usually they are in their late 20's early 30's.

SCOOTER ~ I agree Angie is a keeper! Speaking of spas, years a go I did the drywall on a local spa here...http://www.cal-a-vie.com/html/content.cfm?CID=1116

I have read in the paper that it costs around $4,000 a week to stay there! Must be because of my excellent drywall textures ;) They hired me to do the job because of a hand texture that I do...made some sweet money for back then too! But...alas...that was in my youth....1988 I think :)

We already have another vicar coming in August I believe. There was a little blurb in the bulletin last week, I think it said he was married with a couple of kids. Our vicar's call is to Fort McMurray Alberta Canada...way up there...he was shocked when he got the call but has a great attitude. Oil up there...and expensive! We looked online last night at a 1,000 sq ft older cottage for $625,000! WOW!! That is pricier than here!

Have a great week-end and HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY WEEK-END! :hug:

Hi Everyone!

Hope you are having a relaxing Saturday! Mine's been good so far. Got up this morning and had a walk with my husband. Then we went shopping. Had to get groceries and I picked up a pedometer (that was my Mother's Day gift - well that and my family is taking me to lunch tomorrow). Just got through enjoying a snack. Think I'm gonna take a book outside and soak up some of the beautiful sunshine. Later tonight we will be attending a softball banquet on behalf of my daughter. Hope they have some decent food on the menu! It's looking to be a pretty relaxing weekend overall and I'm loving it!

~Tammy~

Gary - LOL, I think it would be cheaper to shopping for CARS to see your work than stay at that place - it is now over $7000 a week. And to think that I provide a healthy plan and lifestyle for my family for FREE! :shrug:

Tammy - sounds like a nice day indeed! A pedometer sounds like a great gift! Walking is a big part of my exercise plan!

Hi to everyone else! Gotta get back at it. Laundry awaits!

Laurie :scooter:

Scooter I can't believe it is that expensive now...well, I guess I can. The spa is about 5 miles from my house but hidden from the road.

Tammy, Angie and I have been to many "a" softball banquet...and tennis...track...basketball...cross-country...soccer...have a great time! I hope you get a lot of use with the pedometer.

Angie and I did our Mother's Day 5K this afternoon through the neighborhood, didn't break any records with the dogs but really had a great time. We walked through the neighborhood where my son is buying his house. Later in the day we met him, my ex, the agent and the inspector. A nice house, the inspector and I agree that most of the work is cosmetic and no big ticket items which is good news.

Went to Kohl's for work boots and tennis shoes then to the produce market for some goodies.

Angie is working on her first batch of yogurt right now. As for me...a little beer...a little baseball and NASCAR on TV.

HAVE A GREAT MOTHER'S DAY!

Good Evening All,

Seems As Thought Everyone Is Doing Just Fine. Gary That Spa Resort Is Beautiful But Expensive Yes. I Can Only Dream About It Right Now.

Happy To Know All Is Well And Bev, Hope All Of Your Papers Or Over For Now.

Had A Nice Day Here Today So We Went Back Outside For Another Day Of Grillin'.

Gary, I Met To Ask Cakes About Your 5k. I Know She Has One This Month And Next Month. She Stays In Something, Always.

All Of You Wonderful Ladies That Are So Special To Me Please..............have A Wonderful Love Filled Mother's Day!!!!!

Have A Blessed Evening And A Glorious Morning!!!

Love Ags

Angie is working on her first batch of yogurt right now. As for me...a little beer...a little baseball and NASCAR on TV.

So, you're a NASCAR fan huh? My husband loves NASCAR! Who's your favorite driver? My husband is a huge Jimmy Johnson fan (has been since long before he started winning so much).

Tammy I like Denny Hamlin and the 'ol man Mark Martin...yay for tonight's win...Jimmie is a more or less local boy here....my brother and bil (Kasey Kahne fans) can't stand him...so of course I always have to say stuff like "poor Jimmie got robbed last night"..."hope I see Jimmie at Lowes today"...I even have my little 3 yr old great nephew giving me "knuckles" saying "go Jimmie JJ Johnson"...really iritates my brother and bil!

Hi all!
Happy Mother's Day! Hope yours is going well!

We had a great church service this morning - and I split the Hershey's Kisses with DH :D

Breakfast was OP, and we are staying home for lunch and dinner - by my request. Mother's Day is a terrible day to go out to eat if you are a vegetarian. Chefs do not appreciate special requests with so many patrons.

We will spend the rest of the day visiting with our mothers. Visit DH's mom and call mine. Then the kids from CA will probably call later tonight.

I will get some planting done in between (I hope).

Hope you all have a blessed day!
Prayers continuing!

Laurie :scooter:

Tammy I like Denny Hamlin and the 'ol man Mark Martin...yay for tonight's win...Jimmie is a more or less local boy here....my brother and bil (Kasey Kahne fans) can't stand him...so of course I always have to say stuff like "poor Jimmie got robbed last night"..."hope I see Jimmie at Lowes today"...I even have my little 3 yr old great nephew giving me "knuckles" saying "go Jimmie JJ Johnson"...really iritates my brother and bil!

That's funny!

Hope all you mom's are having a fabulous Mother's Day!

My family took me to my favorite restaurant for Mother's Day. It was great. We went right after church and I was pleased to find that there wasn't a wait. Now for that Mother's Day nap! :)

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY ~ to all the moms out there ...


We had a lovely day; went to the lot; checked our trees; checked the foundation (it's A-OK); had a nice leisurely drive; then came home and had CHINESE leftovers for dinner (that we picked up yesterday to avoid the Mother's Day mayheim; just ordered a dinner for two and there was enuff for two days).


Hope you all have a BLESSED AND MARVELLOUS MONDAY!!!


:hug:ROSEBUD:hug: ^^ PRAYERS ^^ continuing for you and yours ...

A belated Happy Mother's Day!

We had an awesome day yesterday. The church service was really inspiring and we had a fellowship lunch afterwards. Always good! Then some of my family came for a BBQ to honour our mother. Lots of food, lots of fun! AND the weather was pretty good. All in all a great day. Now, it's back to work and back on schedule again.

Gary: Your vicar is moving to a beautiful area. It is remote but it's beautiful. God will use him greatly. I'm in shock about the housing costs in the western part of our country. Here in Manitoba it's not quite so bad although our house has doubled in value over the past 6 years.

Have a great day everyone!

Hi Everyone. Hope all you mommies had a great mothers day. I had to work job #1 (panera bread) and man were we busy! It made the day go by fast though. I stopped by to see my mom and sister and dropped them off some cards and gifts. Then we spend the evening with db's family and did the same for his mom and sister. They all got candy and gift certificates for pedicures. Besides my mom since she works in a salon she got one to her fav. resturant. My eventually will be SIL had baby #3 on thursday. Baby Everett. He is so tiny! 6lbs 1oz. I forget how small they are since the twins are both walking now. Mom and baby are doing just fine, buy man auntie is tired. I will be taking 4 of 5 neice and nephews and 2 of my friends children to "monkey jump" tomorrow. Its pretty much like a hige indoor blow up kid place. Thats right 6 kids all under the age of 4. Man oh man wish me luck.

Rosebud- Im so glad there is no more ****. Thats great news.

Happy Monday Everyone!

I will be taking 4 of 5 neice and nephews and 2 of my friends children to "monkey jump" tomorrow. Its pretty much like a hige indoor blow up kid place. Thats right 6 kids all under the age of 4. Man oh man wish me luck.

Yeah, good luck with that - you are brave! ;)


Sounds like everyone had a great Mother's Day - I'm so glad.

I was really sad to see the weekend come to an end. Now that my dh is out of school for the summer we have come up with a plan to get up early and get our walking in. We were up at 5:00AM this morning. Getting up early is a huge struggle for me, please pray that God will give me the strength to keep it up.

We are in the process of planning out our summer. There is so much going on this summer - isn't summer time supposed to be relaxing?? My husband is going on a mission trip at the end of the month and the day after he returns my oldest son has big gig with his band. June includes Vacation Bible School, lots of softball practice for my daughter, and at the end of the month a tournament for all-stars. July will include youth camp, my kids going to visit their grandma's for about a week, and my husband has a week long workshop for college - thankfully all this will be followed by our VACATION!

Well, I'm off to grab an apple for a snack. Hope everyone is having a great Monday!

I will be gone for a few days but will be back Friday. I am taking some of my low calorie food with me but generally will be at the mercy of my son and daughter in law.

Bargoo-have a great trip! We'll miss you. But, don't worry about the food-you know how to make good choices, and one week a little off plan won't hurt too much! Enjoy the time with your family!:hug:

Hello to everyone else, too! Glad everyone seems to have had a nice Mother's Day. I spent mine sick, so no fun there, not even church. Still feeling queasy, so even though I'd like to stay and go on and on and on, I think I need to go lay down a bit. I'll try to be back tomorrow. In the meantime, everyone have a great Monday evening!:hug: to all!

Bargoo - have a fun and OP trip! We will miss you!

Hi to everyone else. Not much time to post. Gotta head out to a church finance committee meeting tonight.

A good day, even if it was cold. We will have another hard freeze tonight - glad I didn't put all my plants out yet! I only have a few things to cover.

Hope everyone has a great week! Prayers continuing for all!

Laurie :scooter:

RONNI ~ sorry to hear you were sick on Mother's day of all times; will send up some prayers for you.

HI BARGOO ~ have a great trip with your son and DIL; great idea to take some stuff with you, but do have fun while you are there too.

COURTNEY ~ I second that you are indeed one brave young lady; but I would have done the same at your age. Back then we were strong and courageous and not afraid of little kiddies at all. ;) I also spent a lot of time taking care of other people's children and had so much patience when I was younger; I just loved to play games with them and do fun things like coloring and painting and sports. Now, this old bod couldn't keep up with them!

LAURIE ~ our temps are still cold too (50-60's F during the day; we had sun today, but one night we actually had some ***** but thankfully, it melted by the afternoon.

GARY ~ we finally solved that 'water leak' mystery; it was our washing machine water out-take hose (had two cracks that couldn't be seen by the eye), and our water intake mechanism was jam-packed with rust from the hard water from our old place. Our landlord cleaned it out and we are good to go again -- truthfully, the man just saved us about $600-700 for a new washer: so Dh is gonna do some body work on his van for him in exchange.

GODGIRL ~ sounds like you and your family have a very busy summer lined up; hope you do get to enjoy some of it!

WILMA ~ you and GARY are correct: the prices of homes are getting crazy in this country too; esp out west. In our province, the houses are going up by leaps and bounds for no reason whatsoever: pure greed is the only thing that comes to mind ...

Hope everyone else has a lovely week; and do take good care :hug:ROSEBUD:hug: :wave:

Hi all! Hope you are enjoying this glorious day! Another church meeting tonight, so I gotta make this quick. Not much new in MI - a busy day at work, yoga and shape boxing afterward.

Prayers continuing for everyone. Hope that those Mother's day lbs. disappear quickly for you!

Blessings,

Laurie :scooter:

Hi Gals ~

I am here and "lurking" daily!

Angie had a great Mother's Day. We went to church then she took off for yoga for a few hours. The kids came by after they visited my ex and my daughter and her husband saw his mom.

Funny thing....by chance my daughter had to go to Postal Annex to buy a cylinder to mail something for work...not usual...my son had to go to Postal Annex in another city to fax some paperwork for the home he is buying...not usual...both saw cards for sale and saw golden retriever Mother's Day cards...both purchased cards with goldens for Angie...figures...well both were the same cards...not that unusual considering the circumstances...here is the funny thing....the card had a mama golden with 5 leashes in her mouth, on the end of each of those leashes was a "toddler" puppy...very cute card...welll...each of my kids put names under each of the puppies for me, son, daughter, step-d and nephew and of course Angie for the ma dog. We were all just busting up...but before we all think twi-light zone....son named the dogs right to left by youngest to oldest...daughter the opposite.

Son in law and daughter took us out for dinner. It was a nice day for Angie.

Went and saw the house my son and dil are looking to buy, we got to go inside for the first time, looks like it's in decent shape.

Angie and I took the dogs out for a couple of miles after dinner tonight, getting ready to watch the Biggest Loser finale.

have a great week ladies!

Gary

Gary: That's hilarious! Glad Angie had a nice Mother's Day. I did too. The BBQ went really well.

I've been doing better with my eating. After watching the Biggest Loser finalee last night I feel a little more inspired to exercise. Wow! Those people looked amazing.

My job is going so much better. I'm starting to understand what I'm supposed to be doing. I love meeting with people and of course I want to help them all even if I can't!

Today is a rainy day. We did need it though. It's so dirty and this will really start the trees budding. Can hardly wait to see green.

Have a good day!

I watched The Biggest Looser last night too! Boy, Jerry was amazing!! I really wanted Tara to win, but they all did great!

I woke up this morning with my equilibrium off. I am having a hard time walking. Don't know what it's all about - never had this happen before.

Got my walking in this morning anyway and I'm hoping it's going to clear up soon.

Hope everyone has a blessed day!

Hi all, hope you are having a great day!
Tam - I have equilibrium issues when my allergies kick in - a typical spring for me! Hope you are back to normal soon!

Wilma :woohoo: glad you are doing so well!

Gary - LOL - great Mother's day story!

A rainy day here, too. Too rainy to scoot :(

Currently multi-tasking by attending a pre-retirement webinar online. Nothing like planning ahead :D

Prayers continuing for all!

Laurie :scooter:

Hey there everyone,
Good to see all of you here. I am staying quite busy and have not been posting to much, plus when I tried on the 12th a notice came up saying maintenece was being done and would try to be back up soon as possible. Did anyone else get that? Anyway all is well here and on a good health note for me, the swelling in my legs seems to be slowly going down. PTL..Doing pretty good with my eating, we will see results tomorrow at WI. Hugs to everyone.

Love,
Ags

Godsgirl- Whew thinking about all you have planned this summer makes me tired. It will be great though and God will give you the strength to get through it and enjoy it.

Bargoo- HAve a nice visit with the kiddies.

Ags- Good luck at your weigh in.

Hope everyones week is gong well. Things arent too bad here. Things did get a little crazy at monkey jump but all together it wasnt too bad.

I need a prayer favor. My sister is moving back to town with mt niece and nephew without her fiance/ ex-fiance. She is moving in with my mom. Her fiance was beating up on her and not treating the kids very well. He has a big drinking problem and needs to stop. Saturday me my mom and dad are driving to indiana to get some of her things. Pray that everyhting goes okay. We are really worried that he is going to start some drama and try to hurt someone. Im also a little worried taht he is going to come to town while she is home alone with the kids.

Im off to finish the day at work then to the park to play tennis with the girls. Happy Thursday!

Hi everyone,

It's been a while since my last post.To many distractions in life lately I guess.

Has anyone here tried the "thin Within" program? It sounds like a good program.I got the idea from someone on the "weigh Down" blog.I'm ordering the book today.It sounds like a good discipline,whether you count calories,ect or not.

I woke up listened to some worship music and started my morning with good enthusiasm and lots of couragous thoughts about staying on plan today.Then in walks my dd with the ultimate test.My dh had bought me 2 of my favorite candy bars(King size even) and sent her in with them.I have told him I'm dieting! Arggh.Normally I would open one and devour it.Suddenly,I felt a strength to resist so I instantly tried to give them away,But after no success at that,I rushed to the freezer and threw them in.
Long story short I gave in and ate one just now.

Rayne- I feel like you did with the pan of brownies last week.YUKKY!

Laurie- I love the verse 1 Cor 6:19.It's a good thing for me to focus on right about now.

Gary- The mothers day card tale is so like God,always working in others on our behalf.Its so cool how that turned out.

I have decided that I can't have chocolate candy here in the house and expect to win over the battle to resist at this point.I need to be more convincing to my dh and dd also.God,I pray for mercy!


I usually buy the slim-fast Optima meal bars (rich chocolate brownie) and keep them on hand for my chocolate craves,as I know they will come.I don't crave them like I do candy so I have control there.They fill me up and I satisfy my craving at the same time.Not to mention they are on my plan!That is as far as I need to go with keeping anything chocolate though.

Anyone else have insatiable cravings?:m: :cookie:

Judi :dust:

JUDI ~ I think most of us have our ups and downs and cravings for certain foods; honestly, I just don't keep them in our home for that very reason. The things I can eat in moderation (like vanilla ice cream) I can have here, but I get myself other things instead like popsicles, mini-puddings (I eat sugarfree ones), yogurts, rice cakes, fruit, etc.

Try not to beat yourself up too much ~ I know that for me, at least, that just doesn't work -- so people who try to shove that in my face are just wasting THEIR time and energy, not mine. I do best when I feel good about myself; when I have peace in my life; and when my family isn't crapping me into the ground (that's my family's way of SABOTAGING me; some people sabotage you becuz they are jealous of your success). I'm praying for the shield of faith to ward off the darts and daggers that come my way sometimes; thankfully, it isn't all the time.

I think the LORD is trying to show me something lately: and that is not to waste MY time and energy on people who just can't seem to treat others with respect. I think it's time to clean house again (so-to-speak); every now and then, DH and I go thru our acquaintenances and look for new friends to associate with ...

I will pray that your DH and DD will stop bringing home things that are sabotaging your efforts to live in a healthier way. Maybe a little talk is in order here: everything can be said in a kind way.

COURTNEY ~ :hug: meant to mention earlier that I will be sending up prayers for your sister and your family concerning this situation. DH was talking to me while I was posting and I had to leave to go help him with something. :hug:

AGGIE ~ that notice came up for everyone as 3fc's changed servers that day; they were back on early that evening. Glad to hear that your legs are feeling better.

LAURIE ~ you are blessed that ALL your cravings have disappeared. I don't have them all the time, but every now and then, one rears its ugly head; you have a lot of strenght to be able to fend them off so well. I am trying to keep on plan at least 90% of the time; I'm hoping that will bode well for me for the long-term. Am sending up prayers for your allergies too ...

We had torrential kind of rains all day here; and the temps dropped down so far that the rain turned into *****, but they say it's supposed to be :sunny: tomorrow: hope they are correct!

SHY ~ just wanted to say hello. I noticed that you posted yesterday in another thread. Nice to see you dropping by again ...

HELLO TO ALL OUR OTHER CE FRIENDS and all our MIA's too ~ have a great evening and a FABULOUS FRIDAY TOO!!!.

Ags - glad you are doing better, hang in there! Hopefully, you will be completely healed soon!

Courtney - prayers ascending for your sister and the family! Let us know how it turns out!

Judi - most of my cravings have disappeared. It took quite a while, and for me - eating clean and eating protein every few hours really helps. If I overdo carbs, it isn't pretty :yes:

Good for you - you know your triggers and have a plan. And Rosebud is right - do whatever you need to do (including bringing your family into the process) to help you stay on plan. Your health is worth it!

An OK day here - a little slower paced today. We met with a vendor for lunch at my favorite restaurant. I ordered my favorite dish and brought half back for tomorrow's lunch. :D

:lol: We had wind gusts that were really intense today - I wasn't sure I was going to be able to keep my scooter upright. There are some disadvantages to losing all this weight ;)
Yoga for me today. My allergies are really bothering me, so I'm opting for a flexibility routine that doesn't make breathing any more difficult ;)

Hope you all have a fun Friday planned!
Prayers continuing for all!

Blessings,

Laurie :scooter:

Hi Gals ~

Angie is off to the yoga studio to work the desk tonight. Just taking a few minutes to check in while I wait for the Laker game to come on.

We had a chef salad for dinner tonight, boy I sure love the combination of green leaf salad with a handful of spinach leaves, turkey, ham, eggs, cheddar cheese wedges, tomatoes and some 1,000 Island dressing....as Rachael says..YUM-O! Throw in some sourdough bread and wa-la a nice easy dinner on a busy night.

While Angie was moving the desks in the portable classroom yesterday at church, preparing for her yoga classes, the youth director came in to help her. He said that at the meeting on the new building, the day before, all the talk was on Angie's yoga classes and where to put her to continue the growth of the class and to best suit her students. I guess the "men" were trying to figure out if the new gym would be too large and not personal enough. Anyway, she was very happy to hear she is at the top of the concerns for space in the new building. The building is coming along nicely I might add, if I remember I will take my camera and take some pictures on Sunday. I am glad that they are taking her seriously...of course it helps that Pastor's wife is loving it ;) I used to be on those committees but stepped out years ago...I found out it's best if we just let the retired guys deal with it! I will leave it at that ;)

I really like the mid-week boost this week on God's love...so true isn't it? How we love conditionally EVEN when we try not to! Our vicar did a great job on his sermon this week in sharing that. He was at my house last friday when Pastor called him to "throw" something together, for a sermon just in case, since he felt under the weather...vicar did a great job.

This week-end it is supposed to be hot here, I don't think we have any major plans until Sunday night, then we are going over to :p the kidnapper's :p mom's house for a party. My :p son in law's :p mom just earned her nurses "degree?" and is having a celebration...a taco bar :carrot:

I will catch up with all of you later ~ Prayers, Gary

Hi all,
It is a great day and I am glad to be amungst the living. Just a quick drop by and will be back this evening. WI went well, I was able to drop 2.2 of that water weight and only 9.8 of it left. I will get there by and by.

Courtney I will certainly be praying for your sis, her kids, and your parents as well as to them having a safe journey and return home. I will pray that the Lord touches his heart also and is releaved from what ever it is that is tormenting him. Be Bless

thanks for everyone's kind words towards my weight and my healing. I am looking forward to it. Glad everyone is well, hugs and kisses to all.

Bev, has Dennis recieved letters and cards yet? Keep me posted.

Blessing to all,
Ags

Hi Ya'll... I've been gone for far too long. I desperately need some encouragement and motivation.
Lauren

Gary, I finally got around to reading the mid-week boost. Very, very good! Thanks for continually taking the time to post them!

So glad that Angie's yoga class is going so well! I know what you mean about those committees! :yes:

Ags :woohoo: Nice loss!

Lauren :hug: We missed you, girl! Glad you are back. You already know that this is a GREAT place for encouragement, and support, and prayers! Let us know how we can help.

A really quiet day here today. I came home from work yesterday with a nasty sore throat. I assumed that it was allergy related (not unusual this time of year after a hard rain). But, the accompanying 100+ temperature is NOT allergy related. Thus, I'm having a very quiet day on my couch with my PDA, computer, audio books, and my pillow.

I think my schedule has caught up with me. :( Thankfully, the several items that had deadlines at work, were all completed by yesterday afternoon. I think I knew I was getting sick, because I stayed late to submit everything, instead of waiting until today.

Have a great weekend all!
Prayers ascending!

Laurie :scooter:

Hi Everyone!

Had a great day today. My husband and I spent the day together (while the kiddos were all at school). Now he is gone to take my daughter and her friend to the movies and I am here relaxing with my youngest son. My oldest son is gone to the studio to record some tracks with his band. I am hoping for a relaxing weekend with no major plans, just hanging out at the house, doing a little housework and resting.

Courtney - I am saying a prayer now for your sister and your family. Please let us know how it goes.

Rosebud - hope you got the sunshine you were looking for today.

Gary - As a pastor's wife and a church secretary I definitely know how those committees can be. ;) I am so glad it is working out well for Angie's yoga class.

Lauren - I'm new and just jumping in here. It's nice to "meet" you! I hope to get to know you better!

Laurie - sorry to hear you are under the weather. Hope you are feeling better very soon.

I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend. :D

Hi Everyone!

It has been a long time since I've been on this site. I have not been doing good with the dieting and know it is partly due to the fact that I don't have that accountability that I did when I was posting.

The Lord has been good to us. My husband just got hired for a computer operators job. We are so excited that he will finally be back to work after being laid off for almost 2 years.

I look forward to visiting with all of you again!

Kathy

Tam - sounds like a WONDERFUL weekend to me!

Kathy - PTL - GREAT news on DH's job! Welcome back, girl! We missed you! Don't worry about the past - just get back on plan, and go from here :)

It is a journey, with many, many twists and turns!

I will catch up this week-end.

Scooter prayers you start feeling better soon.

Angie had a special yoga class tonight at the studio, took a pasta dish...hummm...sounds like a fun one to me!

leaves me all alone on date night...I'll survive!

We hope to take the dogs down to the harbor tomorrow and have dinner at the fish and chips joint...we shall see...

Be good! Gary

LAUREN ~ we do remember you and are glad that you came back; everyone needs encouragement now and then, so just keep on going, like Laurie says.

KATHY ~ PTL -- so glad our prayers have been answered for you DH; that's two for two with Courtney getting a job as well. Only BEVERLYJOY's DH who needs a job yet: and I'mastill praying for him to find work too! ;) And, glad to see you back here too!

:wave: AGGIE and TAMMY ... hope you both have a good weekend too!

LAURIE ~ prayers continue for you that your flu or cold goes away real soon; glad you are getting some rest, as you are such a hard-working lady and you need some down time NOW! :drill:

GARY ~ oh well, guess you'll just have to bach it for tonight, and spend the whole night watching all those games on the telly instead! Ah, gee, shucks! ;)

COURTNEY ~ prayers going up for you and your family for the rescue trip! Dear Father, we ask that you surround this family with your Angels for protection and safety all the way there and back! In Jesus' name we ask and thank you ... Amen.

Hope all our other CE friends and MIA's have a WONDERFUL WEEKEND!!! :hug:ROSEBUD
:hug:

Hi everyone! Well, we finally moved to MO. We just got here yesterday and closed on our house today. Lots to do including getting a 48' semi box trailer unloaded. I am glad to finally be back here. But I could sure use lots of prayers for my Dad. They took him to the ER last week and his kidneys are shutting down. We did go to the hospital and saw him last night and he still recognizeaa us both (myself and hubby) But they had decided last week to just do whatever to make him comfortable and just wait... but then he perked up day before yesterday and they started him back on is insullin and blood pressure meds and now will wait to see if his kidneys kick back in in the next few days. If there hasn't been any improvement by Tuesday of next week they will go back to just keeping him comfortable and letting nature take its course. It is very hard since we have been trying to get back here for a year and a half and now that we finally made it......well, who knows. But he recognizes us and was very excited to see us last night. I am really tired since it took us a over a week to load this huge semi and today we worked at getting it unloaded. Tomorrow we should have help though and hopefully get it all unloaded... Then we can start our hunt!!!

Would appreciate any prayers that you can send this way. It is hard to be happy with a new home knowing that they are saying my Dad has maybe days to a few weeks left. I need help to be strong.

Thanks for letting me ramble.. I'm tired and need to get up early and get finished unloading tomorrow.

I will try to stay in touch but still haven't got anything set up yet so am still using my brothers internet connection...

Take care and keep smiling!!

Karen, good to have you back! Glad that you can finally be in MO, I know it has been a LONG time coming! Prayers ascending for your dad and your family!

Rosebud - thanks! Still under the weather today, but I'm hopeful that it will pass soon. I'm glad that it is the weekend, and that I don't have a lot of "must do" things planned for today!

Gary - hope you enjoyed your walk! I'm not feeling too sorry for you for missing date night - my guess is that you fared just fine ;)

Another quiet day planned for me. I hope this fever breaks soon - I'm tired of sitting on the couch! I do think I'm feeling perkier today, so maybe that is a sign of things to come. Thank you all for your prayers.

We have a guest pastor tomorrow since both our pastor and parish assistant are gone this weekend. Thus, I am scheduled to be the liturgist, give the prayers, etc. I really need to be well by tomorrow!

Prayers continuing for everyone!
Blessings!

Laurie :scooter:

Back from a few days vacation, had a nice time visiting with oldest son and family. I also had an appointment with my oncologist, he says I am Stage 4 but an unusual Stage 4 in that I am doing so well. I attribute that to the power of prayer.. We serve an awesome God !

Bargoo - prayers continuing for your healing! God still has some interesting things planned for you. We do INDEED serve an AWESOME God!

HI GALS ~

Angie just took off to buy some plants for a flower bed she is re-doing. I took the mutts out for 3.5 miles this morning and did some laundry and vacuuming while she went to bell choir practice.

We are planning to go to the harbor in a couple of hours for fish and chips and walk the mutts.

BARGOO ~ I am so happy that your stage 4 is as good as it can be :hug: I hope your visit with your son was wonderful, we sure missed you around these threads!

SCOOTER ~ I hope you are feeling better today. Take it easy at church tomorrow. I have been on many committees over the years, I enjoy them for the most part but I tell you at our church we have a lot of retired contractors and the things they can disagree on...well...enough said ;) I found out it is best I stay out of the mix and just $$$ pay my way $$$ ;)

ROSEBUD ~ Yep...it was real difficult being ALL ALONE with that pizza and a few beers with the games on ;) I am sorry you are having "difficult" people in your life right now.

KAREN ~ I am happy you finally made it but sad that your pops isn't doing well at the moment. Prayers for a speedy recovery and many days ahead. Funny, not funny ha-ha, but you have shared this dilemma with me for several years now...how when you get there it may be too late....HE knows dear...HE knows...don't try and figure it all out :hug:

TAMMY ~ I have been a member at my church for over 25 years and I can say for the most part the committees are usually fine...but those building ones....ahhh! but then we are taking several million bucks! I usually just go in with my crew and brother and knock out all the drywall work on the buildings and classrooms whenever we re-model or build then sneak outta there! I am glad you had some "grown-up" time! :)

KATHY and LAUREN ~ :carrot: WELCOME BACK :carrot:

COURTNEY ~ Prayers for your sister and family as you tackle this situation! I sure miss you around here kiddo :hug:

JUDI ~ You know every time I type "Judi" it reminds me of my mom! Prayers that you can relate to your family the importance of "TEAM WORK" on the healthy choices :hug:

AGGIE ~ I hope you are healing nicely and that work is going well for you. Dear that weight will come off...it takes time and effort....remember Romper Room? Don't be a Don't Bee...be a Do Bee ;)

RONNI ~ I hope you are feeling much better than last week-end. How is the college stuff going? The boys? The MS? We miss you here! :hug:

WILMA ~ I am glad your new "job" is working out for you. Yep...wasn't Biggest Loser inspiring as always! I hope you didn't lose that "attitude" of you can do this too ;) How are those boys and dil/niece and the 'ol ice road trucker doing...hugs, old friend :)

ALL YOU MIA's...Hello!

:wave: HI KAREN ~ We are so glad to see you back here as we love your friendly posts; and we are glad for you that you were able to sell your house; and move back home to be with your Dad and sister. I am sorry that he is unwell at this time, but we will pray earnestly for him that his health is restored enough that you all can spend some quality time together. I'm sure that your Dad appreciates the fact that you are there with him. Sometimes, that means a lot more than we can ever imagine in our minds. I agree with GARY -- don't try to analyze the whole thing too much; circumstances were not of your making. Just try and settle in the best you can (without overdoing it) and enjoy every minute you can with your Dad today ... In the meanwhile, we will pray for all of you! :hug:

THANKS, GARY ~ things are getting better really. Unfortunately, we have a handful of family members who have issues with being overly critical of others, shall we say. Thank goodness, they are few in numbers and we are taking measures to lessen these occurrences. I guess we all have our crosses to bear, but the LORD is helping us deal with this by being as positive as we can in spite of them. I think this is the best kind of response: to forgive them, then be happy and cheerful anyways!!! The bible says (JESUS, I think) to always return good for evil, and this is the best way to handle it; but he didn't say it would always be easy. ;)

BARGOO ~ so glad to have you back; we do miss you when you are gone. It is so nice to know that our GOD can heal any stage they know of; and we will continue to pray for 100% restoration of your health, in Jesus' name we ask, and thank our dear Father in heaven, for his Amazing Grace ... Amen!:hug:

LAURIE ~ prayers that a restful weekend will help you feel much, much better too ...

We spent this week moving things around to get ready for new floors on Monday and Tuesday. DH put down some plywood on the shed floor so we could put the rest of the stuff from the spare room in there for storage. We have given or thrown aways dozens and dozens of boxes and bags already. The plan is to do our bedroom first, then the spare room. Hope it all works out. Dh is moving his dresser as we speak; trying to save time, I guess.

NIKO keeps grabbing DH's slippers becuz he wants him to stop moving stuff around, as he has issues about moving. He was abandoned by people who just up and moved, and left him and his sister behind to starve. It just shows how smart this little guy is. ;)


HELLO to all our other MIA's and all our CE friends out there; hope you all are having a blessed weekend!!! :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Good Morning! We did get the trailer unloaded yesterday about noon. Our friends that had the semi trailer left about 12:30 to go on to Arkansas to pick up hay and get back to Colorado. So at least everything is in the new house, not put away ---but in there! HA!

My Dad kind of bounced back so they have been trying a few more things for him. But his kidneys still aren’t functioning right and if they haven’t started working better by the middle of the week they are going to re-evaluate what they want to do. He is all swollen in his arms and legs and they said that is because of the kidneys but if they start working better the swelling should go down. Although they did an ultra sound on his left arm yesterday---my sister said they are thinking it could be a blood clot. He is getting the best of care so I am just saying lots of prayers. When we went up to the hospital to see him yesterday he was in a good mood and laughing and carrying on just like Dad! So I guess we’ll just have to wait and see what happens in the next week.

Rosebud-- we didn’t sell our house in Colorado yet. We just happened to find this house in MO. And made an offer and they accepted. It was just too good to pass up especially with Dad being the way he is right now. But we have some people from Texas that are very interested in our house right now and they are working with our realtor right now to do everything possible to be able to get it. I’m hoping all goes well with that.

Thanks Gary, for all your kind words over the last year or so. And I know more will be coming! I will be working at getting my house all done and be able to get to the hospital everyday too! Dad was saying yesterday that he is looking forward to coming over to a cook out on our patio and wants us to get the pool up and running so he can swim!! LOL!! I don’t think he would be able to swim anyway, but the pool does need lots of work and really isn’t up close to the top of our priorities for this summer. House needs a bit of TLC before the pool. But who knows-- everything may come together and the house sell in Colorado and we’ll have money to do that too.

Everybody have a Great Day and I will too!!

Gary - hope your walk was good and that you and Angie SPLIT the chips ;) I'm sure the girls had fun!

Rosebud :lol: Our furbabies really are smart, aren't they! I don't blame Niko at all for being scared. Our Mozart gets the same way when he sees the suitcases come out!

Karen - Prayers continuing for your dad and the sale of your other house! What a blessing that you found this house. How did the pups fare during the move?

I'm doing better today - still stuffy and sneezing, and I made it through being liturgist at church without any embarrassing incidents :D It just feels like full blown allergies right now. Nothing that sugar-free cough drops and some Early Grey tea can't sooth.

I am going to let the Roomba do its thing today and do a bit of cooking for the week (which with all my gadgets isn't a big deal :lol:) and call it good.

If it warms up (below freezing again last night) I hope to sit out in the garden and enjoy my tea.

I'm off to reacquaint myself with a couple Shakespeare plays, in prep for next weekend.

I wish you a fun and BALANCED Sunday!

Prayers ascending!

Laurie :scooter:

Hi Laurie, Thanks for the prayers for my Dad. I am so glad that I am here now. The "girls" did fine on the trip. Ginger, the red one rode in her car seat with Tim in his pickup and Sissy rode in her carseat with me. They love to travel and be able to watch out the window. Love the car seats!! We have a few spots in the fence at the new house that need to be repaired before we can let them out alone but they will be happy to have a yard again.

Well, we are getting ready to get busy and get things done today. Need to get things put away.

Have a Great Sunday everyone.

Karen, I'm glad to hear your dad is doing better. We will keep him in our prayers and prayer for his continued healing. I trust the sale of your house in Colorado goes through and wish you the best as you settle into your new home.

Laurie - Glad to hear that your are feeling better. Allergies can really be a bugger. I have allergies too and I know how miserable they can make you feel. Do you take any kind of allergy meds? I take Allegra every morning. I couldn't make it without it.

Today I got up and walked for 1.5 miles. It has been a long time since I did any exercising, but it felt so good. I always feel much better about myself when I exercise. After my walk I came home and lifted weights and used the Ab Lounger. My goal is to exercise 5 days a week. The harderst part is getting up at 5:15 in the morning. If I waited until I came home from work it wouldn't get done because I am so tired when I get home.

Trust you all have a good week.

Kathy

HI GALS ~

EDIT ~ I just copied and pasted for the first time from one thread (my bologna one) to here to save time...Guess the little smileys faces don't come along...oh well heck!

Well Angie and I didn't make it to the harbor last night for dinner. We got busy in the yard, then the fog rolled in just a bit, so we decided to go to church and out to our fave Mexican joint for dinner. However, we did make the harbor this morning for a 3 mile or so walk. We didn't eat there though because there was a bazillion youth soccer kids there, for the annual beach soccer tournament, which meant the only place to grab coffee and something to eat at 7am was...well, let's just say FREAKIN' BUSY! Mom's and dad's needing their fix! We headed up the coast to the place we normally go to for croissants when we take the dogs for a walk along the beach wall in the morning.

We did have fun "remembering" our grown-up now youth and their beach soccer tournaments...and how, although we miss those days , we don't miss the loooooong days out in the sun!

Angie took off for a yoga class after we got home and I headed to the grocery store for a nice surprise! My daughter and her husband...aka kidnapper were there! They live about 45 minutes away but are up here for the kidnapper's mom's graduation from college nursing program. Angie and I will be attending the party after the ceremony...looking forward to it! It will be a taco bar The kids were in the store buying turkey for the tacos. I don't hate telling anyone that will listen what a looooser my son in law is (although everyone ignores me ) but I will tell you he is one outstanding cook! Of course I will tell you but never-ever him

Feeling a bit old today since my little sister turns 50 this week...ouch!

Well my LAKER game is coming on and I still need to load gear on my truck for tomorrow. I will catch up with all of you soon!

Angie will be home soon and then it's off to Kohl's....she has a 30% off coupon and I need new pants....ripped out the crotch in 2 pairs of pants this week! Stop laughing I caught one crotch on a tie wire climbing up scaffolding in an elevator shaft and ripped one climbing through some duct work to get to another shaft to work on...it's not because I ate too much pizza Friday night!...it's not

Hi everyone,
It's has been raining here like crazy for the last few days, guess we will get those tomato plants in the ground sooner or later.

Laruie, sorry you were feeling bad and glad you are feeling better now.

Wow Gary, two pairs of pants in on week. Thank goodness you have
Angie and Kohl's. Enjoy your dinner from the good cook!! LOL

Kathy, I know how excited you and your DH are about his new job. God is good. Glad you are back.

Bargoo, hoped you enjoyed that vacation, I will get one one day, not just staying home from falling. LOL

Rosebud, will be keepin you lifted up in prayer. Difficult people come and go, I hope they go soon.

Karen, hi there, can't wait to get to know you. Be blessed.

Ronni, I think of you everyday, you are always in my prayers.

Bevie, hi there baby girl? How is Dennis and your Mom. Tell Susie hi for me.

Has anyone heard from Annie? Miss her.

Hope everyone has a blest rest of the day and sneek back in soon.

Hugs and much love,
AGGIE

Kathy :woohoo: Congrats on the exercise! It makes such a difference. It IS hard to get up early, but the results are worth it!
If I have to exercise after work, I come home - grab a big glass of water and a protein snack. I change immediately into my workout clothes and get moving. If I sit down, it is ALL over ;)

Once I get going, I find that I actually do have the energy to work out. It also helps me release some of the stress of the day.

Allergy meds - um yeah, I take generic Claratin when I absolutely have to (like this week). I usually don't start taking it until my symptoms are pretty severe, so it takes a while to kick in. I have a real aversion to medications and only take them when ABSOLUTELY necessary. (I know, a strange philosophy for someone married to a pharmacist :lol:)

Gary <HINT> When copying from one post to paste in another forum, hit the edit button on your post, and copy the text. Then hit cancel. Go to the new forum and paste. That way all the smilies come with.

New pants huh, likely story ;) DH is very thankful we don't have a Kohls close by. I got that same coupon and the combination of 30% off AND their 70-90% sale racks is - well :yikes: We actually program the location of Kohls into our GPS when we travel, just so I can stop and shop.

Ags - how are you doin' girl? Are your bumps and bruises healing? Here's hoping for a good weigh in again this week for you!

I did get in some shape boxing this afternoon. The wii chastised me for missing 3 days of workouts. I really don't appreciate being lectured by my computer game ;) I can't even talk back to it - well, actually, I do. In fact I can throw back some pretty snarky comments, sometimes.

Enjoy your week all!
Prayers continuing!
Blessings,

Laurie :scooter:

KATHY ~ did I hear you right? Did you say that allergies can give you boogers? :lol: Gee, I'm so glad I don't have too many allergies right now; well, as long as I avoid strong soaps and wool, that is ... ;)

LAURIE ~ glad you told that computer game to mind its own business, and I'm glad you didn't catch any boogers from Kathy either! :D

GARY ~ I think you and my DH must be distantly related; he is slim, but invariably, he still ends up ripping out his crotches all the time. He says it is from squatting too much! Yah, right, sure ... I think it's from too many muffins! ;) ... and puddings!

HI AGGIE ~ I hope you get a real holiday sometime soon; and not from any more falling. We really do hope that all your bumps and bruises and breaks are healing up well! You have kept your sense of humor; thankfully, that didn't get broken by the fall! :D

KAREN ~ yah, that was some mix up; I thought you were closing on the old place, and going hunting for a new one! Haha! Funny how words can get mixed up. Prayers for your DAD and his kidneys: so glad he is perking up. We hope that those people from Texas can buy the other place with the Lord's help. Those car seats sound so cute, and what a good idea for your little furrybabies. Do you strap them in; and I guess you can train them to adjust to anything really?

Well, our day started out cold and we even had some light *****, which melted as it hit the ground; but by late afternoon, the clouds cleared away and made way for sunshine for the rest of the day. We had a nice chicken dinner (I bet you guessed that); then DH moved our clothes to the spare room closet to protect them, as they are starting to put the new flooring down in the bedroom tomorrow morning.

Spent the afternoon downloading free songs (Aaron Neville's AVE MARIA and AMAZING GRACE); I tried to find LeAnn Rimes' Amazing Grace, but they didn't have it yet (I got those free music cards from Hunt's pudding cups that are Dh's favorite). It was nice to get them free too; DH says he's gonna go out and buy some more so he can have the puddings and I can get the free songs!!! :lol:

Now it's time to put my legs up and rest for the evening. HI to all our other CE friends and all our MIA's too! Take good care and I hope you all have A MARVELLOUS MONDAY!!! ^^Prayers^^ continue for you and yours ...:hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Rosebud- I hope all that awful **** is gone. The weather around here has been crazy lately too. Yesterday after noon i was in a t-shirt and shorts and a little hot. This morning i wake up to a frost advisory and have to scrape ice off my car! Yuck! Hope everything goes well with the floors this week.

Laurie- Good for you to have that will power. Eating only half of something is one of my hardest battles. Hope you are feeling better!

Lauren- Welcome back!

Bargoo- Glad that you had a nice couple days with your son.

Karen- Prayer going up for yur father and family. Glad to see you go everything off the truck. Hopfully you arent too sore from it.

Gary- I tink you would make a great rachel. I could just hear that voice in my head when i read YUM-O. BUT your salad was missing 1 important thing that she NEVER forgets to use... some EVOO. GLad to see that the kidknapper brought back your little girl for you to see. And you know if you werent break dancing and dong splits in your pants you woulnt have holey jeans.


Hi Everyone! Looks like we were a chatty bunch this weekend. Thank you for all the prayers. My family made it home safe and without any confrontation. The weekend started off well. My boyfriend worked on my car for 14hours yesterday so i could get to work today. He saved me a LOT of money doing it himself. Im so thankful that he is mechanically inclined. My sister got a job already! Im so happy for her. She filled out the app on friday, i took her to the interview on saturday and she starts today. Thank you Lord.

I do have one other prayer request. Last night when DB was finishing up my car his mom walked over to our house to talk to us. (we live 5 houses down from her.) His aunt went into the hospital last night. Her heart stopped beating but they brought her back. Some type of infection has sprad through her body and she got septic shock. As of 2am when we left the hospital she was in critical but stable condition. Please pray that the family can stay strong through this. She is the youngest of 7 and im worried that she wont make it because she no longer wants to live. Even if she doesnt have the strength to pull through i hope his family has the strength to get through this.

My monday is starting off very slow here at work and dragging with the little sleep i got. HAppy Monday!

Hi, Everyone! So much going on here over the weekend-I hope I don't miss someone.

Nspired2lose, Lauren, & Kathy-glad to have you back! Hoping to get to know you all better in the future.

Laurie-sorry you were feeling poorly and glad you're now getting better. Allergies are a bummer, but I have the same aversions to meds and rarely take anything for mine.

Courtney-been praying for your family and very glad that everything went well. Prayers for DB's aunt and all of you. Seems that it never rains but it pours sometimes, huh?:hug:

Karen-prayers for your dad and your family. Glad you were able to get all the stuff unloaded, though.

Bargoo-:hug: You are already doing such faithful work here that I know God has much more in store for you. Glad you had a good visit with your son!

Gary & Aggie-thanks for thinking about me. It's been a long couple weeks. As far as the college things go, he's prepping to take the ACT again and improve his score to help with any scholarships he applies for. Fortunately, he's just finishing up his junior year and we have a little more time to do more searching and researching.


Been feeling a little better, but sure wish I could get this latest MS issue out of the way. And, of course, my systems that are affected are always embarrassing and not to be talked about in public, so I won't shock you all with details:o:lol:. We did have a busy weekend with several graduation parties to go to. The whole huge graduation party thing they do here in MN and IA is totally different than where I came from-everyone in whole towns & churches are invited and lots of food is prepared and it's considered an insult if you don't EAT! Then, DS1, DIL, and the grandkids came down yesterday, so we grilled brats and burgers and had a really nice time. Of course, DH and DS1 worked on their vehicle and DIL and I cooked & played with the kiddies :D. Pray for DS1. I don't remember if I told you that he had had an injury to his leg, but the skin and tissue started to die around the wound (he almost tore off the kneecap and originally had over 150 stitches to repair the leg), so he had to have surgery last week to remove tissue and close it up again. It's still not looking right and he sees the doc again Wednesday. But, he had been laid off and called back the day after the injury, but hasn't been able to go to work(it's now been almost 4 months since he had a paycheck), so pray that his leg is healing and he'll be able to report for work next week, as he hopes.

Beyond that, not much going on here. I was going to plant some annuals today, since our hopefully final freeze came last night, but it's very, very windy so might not be able to.

DH found out last week that his company is making all management take week-long no pay furloughs in the near future, and they're trying to get the union to agree to the same with the bargaining employees, which will really hurt (as the salary discrepancy between management and union is huge). We really don't need a week with no paycheck right now and I know many others have been in worse situations, so I hate to whine, but when there's only one paycheck in the household and we've been trying to help out DS1 and others, this will really be an issue for us if the union agrees. We're hoping they can negotiate 1-day-a-week furloughs for a series of weeks rather than having to take it all at once. This is where I know my faith is being tried and I'll keep praying for wisdom and patience. Thanks for listening!

Hope you all have a great day!

Hi Everyone! Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!! I did. Church was great yesterday and I ate lunch with a couple of friends at my favorite restaurant (mexican).

It was pretty cold here this morning. Usually not cold at all by mid May here in south Louisiana. The sun is shining out now so I am hoping that it warms up pretty quickly.

Kathy, I know exactly how you feel about getting up early. It's the hardest part for me too! I know that if I wait until after work something else will come up. It really helps me that my husband is getting up and walking with me.

Happy Monday everybody!

Hey guys, thank you so much for the warm welcome. I have been very busy this weekend and it's all running together! We kept our niece this weekend, she is 11 months and already walking. Life with her should get real interesting real quick. :) She is such a joy to keep and so good and so happy. Please pray for her parents though, they seem to like the idea of having a kid but don't want the responsibility and Grandma is the main caretaker for her.

I received an unexpected phone call yesterday morning while getting ready for work. A lady that I know called and asked for prayer for her grandfather. He is a pastor of a local church. Sunday morning he suffered a severe stroke and the last I had heard on Sunday afternoon was that he was doing a little better and had begun talking. The family is asking for prayers of complete healing.

Also, I am having a hard time right now. I know that I need to make a commitment to God about treating my body as the Temple of God that it is. I am afraid to make that commitment b/c I am afraid that I won't keep it. But then I think to myself that if I don't make this commitment based on that reason then my faith is lacking and I'm not trusting God that He CAN help me through this struggle. I am so frustrated with myself. ARGH!!!! I don't understand why I allow myself to be so easy going with something that is so life threatening. I guess it's because I feel like I'm healthy other than the fact that I am morbidly obese and my female issues, which that alone should concern me. DH and I are really wanting a child and have been trying but with our weight we are both usually too tired to ya know and also with my female issues it makes it harder to time it. ugh.... I'm sorry I didn't mean for this to turn into a pity party, I just had to get it out.

If you made it this far, thank you for listening.

ronni, thank you for your kind thoughts. I will be praying for your son that his leg will be healed. Also will be keeping the financial situation in prayer, a concern for so many.And of course praying for a touch from the great physician for your MS.

Courtney - prayers going up for DB's aunt!

Ronni - Grad parties are the same here. My tried and true excuse to turn down food is - "oh, my - it looks DELICOUS! But, I can't eat another bite. We have xx number of these to attend - you know how it is <wink>. When the dust settles, will you give/send me the recipe for xxx? I would love to try it when I can really appreciate it."

It works every time.

The unpaid time off is happening here too. Our local paper has been running a lot of articles on how to weather the economic crisis. So many folk are hurting right now. If you can, try to set aside some of each paycheck into a "fund" that you can use to weather the upcoming furlough.

Continued prayers for your health and healing, girl! :hug:

Tammy - sounds like a lovely Sunday - I love Mexican food!

Lauren :hug: Girl, you need to just give it over to God. He ALREADY KNOWS how successful you will be, what trials and bumps on the road you will face. I absolutely PROMISE you that you WILL FAIL - at some point you will stray off your plan a bit. It is OK. God does not ask you to be perfect, he only asks that you follow and trust. You CAN do this, girl! Every step in the right direction causes God to delight in your actions. You CAN'T disappoint him - NOPE!

Bargoo - prayers continuing for your health as well! Your grace and spirit shine through - even as you face such a difficult challenge. :D

I'm still struggling with this nasty allergy/cold/flu thing. I went back to work today, and sneezed and coughed my way through the day. Everyone made sure to comment on how awful I looked and sounded. They really know how to lift a gal's spirit ;)

I'm off to take a nap - maybe I can shake this thing, who knows.

Blessings to all - and prayers continuing for each of you!

Laurie :scooter:

Wow! It sounds like everyone has a lot going on in their lives. I'm so glad that no matter what are needs God is able for each one of them. He is

Jehovah Jirah - Our provider
Jehovah Rapha - Our healer
Jehovah Shama - God is with us.

He is all this and more. I myself fail to remember that God knows our needs and desires and He is there we just have to call on him. My prayers go out to all of you who have physical needs or have family members that need a physical touch from God.

Lauren - God loves you and here is there even when we fall down. But when you fall down, you don't just lay there you get back up and wipe the dust off and move on. I have fallen down on my diet for about 6 weeks, but I've finally dusted myself and getting back on track. As Laurie said, you will fall, but you will get back up and move on again. You can do this. God love you for who you are and not for who He thinks you should be. You are loved!

I walked yesterday and again today and my body is screaming at me. My plan is to get up again in the morning and walk. My husband has been walking with me so that helps.

Have a great evening everyone and God bless you all. May His presence be real to you tonight.

Kathy

HI GALS ~ :)

Well the party at my :p son in law's :p mom's house for her nursing graduation went well...too well! The :p kidnapper :p sure is a good cook! From the fruit kabobs to the salads and guacamole dip to the tacos....turkey, black bean or refried to the (which I skipped) awesome dessert table. The guy outta swing a skillet rather than a tennis racket for a living! Of course...I am probably the reason he is such a good cook....I am the one that gave him all my old Rachael Ray mags and gave him a subscription for Christmas...so it is ME!! That is the hero...me-me-me!!;)

SCOOTER ~ Did you just sneeze on me? I hope you feel better soon :hug: and get that nap in. Angie just loves Kohl's! Seriously, my wife is not a mall person or one that loves to shop (notice I didn't mention the word jewelry ;)) but she never seems to mind going to Kohl's....as for me...I can buy cheap pants for work anywhere...I did pick up a new Hawaiian shirt though ;) Great advice to Lauren. Now go roomba.

KAREN ~ I hope your dad is better today. Such a mix of emotions you must be going through dear...how are your "babies" holding up with the move? I hope when things settle in you will be able to join us more often...and still find time to treadmill!! ;) Funny...your dad and the swimming pool....sounds like something my dad would be saying if he was still with us! :hug:

COURTNEY ~ Again, I just love your posts! I am so happy things seem to have gone well for your sister so quickly!! Send that boy over to my house Angie and I both need brakes jobs!! My mechanic (my ex-wife's SO) is out of action with his back...it is tough finding a good mechanic! Prayers as you requested.

BARGOO ~ DITTO what Ronni said...you have helped all of us so much...God has big plans for you Miss Elder ;)

TAMMY ~ I can't get enough Mexican food here!...well...I can...;) and I do...too much sometimes! So happy to hear DH is walking with you...Angie and I make a point of doing that with each other and the dogs of course, several times a week...it has really given us strength in our relationship...2 things we always do...no matter how mad we may be (which hasn't happened for several years now) at each other...and that is we make sure we get our 3 mile walks in and make sure we get to church and we always no matter what...hold hands during the sermon....so many times just that touch has healed many a hurt feeling with each other. God is good...but as you know being a Pastor's wife...you need to be where He can reach you!

LAUREN ~ Laurie gave you great advice...especially the "you will fail" part. You will...we all do. But that is OK because Jesus didn't fail and never will. It is on His strength and what He did that we succeed....not on anything that we do or try to do. All He is asking is for that personal relationship with Him...that's it. You don't need to account to Him every single thing you do or say or eat...as long as you keep looking at Him as your strength through HIS WORD and HIS WORK. He gives you the resources to do what you need to do. He gives you the strength to do it. He gave it to you before you were ever born! If you take what He has given you and use it to lose the weight that He wishes you to for your own health it will not be magical....nope...it will be much, much more than that! But regardless of the outcome of your weightloss journey...you will not fail God...you can't...IMPOSSIBLE! as long as Jesus is your Savior....We go to God through Him...He will not fail you. You can do this! We are some of His resources in your journey :hug:

RONNI ~ My neighbor has MS so I got it ;) Your son is on the right track....having time to re-take tests and time to research scholarship options. Because both my kids did very well in college...both magna cum laude/with honors for my daughter...I know a little bit....and I will say that after knowing so many of their friends...it really matters more on the person and not the school as far as success. My kids have friends that did not have the grades to get good scholarships...but had the effort...they are doing OK...other kids that had the grades...went to good schools....are not doing quite so well....thinking the grades would carry them through....gotta have that effort!

ROSEBUD ~ Dont'cha just love LeAnn's AMAZING GRACE! :D on the crotch story! Enjoy the new floor. Prayers for the legs and for healing within the family for the struggles that concern you all.

AGGIE ~ I hope your days are less crazy!!

Gotta get dinner going...be good gals!

Hi all!

Wow what a week.Lots of things to do and never enough time to do it.Life is like that at times.I did go to the coast and have that fish and chowder lunch that I have been planning and looking forward to,with my dh and dd,But we got caught up in a big Festival crowd and so we I didn't make it to the beach as planned.But at least I got away for a while.Next time Ocean here I come!

Rosebud:Regarding the post 5/14, Thanks for the encouragement.I do deal with sabotaging people in my life at times.Im in a christian recovery group for co-dependancy and food behaviors and anything else that God need to expose to the light.So I agree and fully am with ya on what you said.I also buy and keep on hand "My Foods".Post 5/17 I love Aaron Nevilles voice.

Lauren: I also am going through a similar thing with the treating my body as a temple.In my support group we talk about this at times,and it helps me some in that.I also had female issues,severe ones! So I sympathize.I went to Doc and resolved mine.I will pray for you.Message me if you want to talk about it.

Kathy: Thank you for the blessing for us all.Those words are very inspiring.

Gary: Was your mother's name Judi?

Goodnight all.Its early evening here and a warm one at that.It was in the 80's today.Nice to have sunny weather.God bless all.

Judi :hug:

:wave: Had a good, but tiring day; and the new floor looks fab!

COURTNEY ~ glad everything went so well for you sister and family; prayers for DB's Auntie as well ...

THANKS, JUDI ~ glad to be of help; yes, I am a big fan of Aaron's voice too: awesome tones!

Time to rest now though; the other floor gets done later in the week. Have a TERRIFIC TUESDAY ... ALL!:hug:ROSEBUD:hug:^^PRAYERS^^ ascending for you and yours ...

Good Morning, Everyone! What a wonderful day our Lord has given us today! We actually have more :sunny: today-this may be the first time this spring we've had sun 2 days in a row. If not, it's been a really long time since we had 2 consecutive days of it, anyway. Must run to town for fuses in a bit. For some reason, our dishwasher and dryer are on the same fuse and it blew again, so I have a half-washed load in the DW and half-dried load in the dryer:dizzy:! The joys of living in an old house....

Gary-should have known I couldn't shock you. Thanks for your continual support. You are a real blessing to all of us.

Laurie-thanks for the good advice! I'm just so glad the graduations are over for this year now. I was reading James this morning and God really put it on me to work on our finances and set more aside, so your words reaffirm what I need to do!

Lauren-you've gotten some really good advice already, so I'll just keep my 2 cents short. When I realized that I needed to work on my weight again, I made no commitment whatsoever. I was at a point where everything I had ever committed to had failed and did not believe there was any way for me to not be fat forever. God showed me that He needed me to let go, give up, and let HIM lead. My control would not do it. He led me to 3fc, and I was here several months before I knew what I had to do. He kept leading me to posts talking about calorie counting which I had failed at before, but had been doing it totally wrong (by the 70's starve-yourself-to-death-method;)), and He even let me know when it was time to start my new life. I haven't committed to anything beyond letting go of my own control. The days I fail are when I quit letting God lead. :hug: You can do this and God is there all the way to keep you on the right path. And, there are lots of supporters here to help as well!

Kathy-excellent words! Enjoy your walk. I've found that it really does help loosen my back and legs up if I keep going out even though I'm stiff from the day before:)

Well, hi to everyone else and hope you all have a great day! God bless!

Hi Everyone!

I'm exhausted this morning! My daughter had a softball game last night. When we got there we found out it was our turn to work the concession stand. :rolleyes: (Can you say lack of communication?;)) It was so tempting smelling all those french fries fresh out of the fryer and hamburgers hot off the grill. But you know what??? I was victorious!!!:carrot: I did not touch even one bite! Praise God! It was hard too because we were there a lot later than we usually are and I was starving by the time we left. Even though I am tired this morning, I feel so good about making a wise decision to wait and eat what I knew would be good for my body.

Gary - yes those walks are proving to be really good for our relationship. Of course it would be kinda hard for me to hold my husband's hand during the sermon, since he is up on the stage and all! ;):lol: That's a great idea though, maybe I'll pass that along to some of our friends.

Lauren - just a little encouragement that the only way you can fail is if you fail to try. I can completely confirm what everyone else has said, you will make mistakes. The key is to not let the enemy convince you to give up just because of a slip up. I think one of my biggest struggles has been having a particular idea of what the perfect diet/perfect person looks like. What I am finding out is that whatever may be the perfect for everyone else may not be what God has for me and that is ok. I have had to allow God to remove all the preconceived notions that I have been fed (mostly by myself, and sometimes by others) and ask Him to replace them with the truth of who HE wants me to be. The bottom line of that starts with spending time with Him and that may be exactly where you need to start. Then the other changes will follow. Funny thing about God is He does things on His timing and not on ours. ;) :hug:

Judi - We have Celebrate Recovery (I think that is the group that you were referring to) at our church. Being a part of CR has been instrumental in God helping me to overcome in so many areas. It has been a tremendous blessing!

Courtney - How is you DB's aunt doing? Still praying for her and his family.

Ronni - Praying for your financial concerns and that your dh's company will do what is best for their employees. I know that it would hurt us to be without a weeks pay all at one time.

Laurie - Hope you are able to get those allergies under control pretty soon. I'm only experiencing a touch of it and I know it's pretty frustrating.

Kathy - So glad your husband is walking with you! Mine is doing that too and I know it is a tremendous encouragement and motivation for me.

Aggie - How's it going with those tomato plants? Did you manage to get them planted?

Well, I better get to work. Only one more day of school for the kiddos and then I can sleep a little later since I don't have to take them to school. :carrot:

Hope everyone has a great day!

Thank you guys so much for all of the wonderful advice and encouragement. I need to spend some serious time in prayer.

Ronni, I like what you said to not make a commitment but to give it to God and let him lead me through this.

godsgirltmm, you're a pastor's wife? Me too! My DH is a youth pastor. I lead a Monday night study with the girls and through that I have drawn closer to God and have learned a lot from the girls.

I did really well yesterday, I use sparkpeople.com as a nutritional guide and after logging my food I was within all of my daily limits and I wasn't pushing the limits on them either. That was such a great feeling for me. Today will be a struggle though, I've got a headache and don't feel very well and days like today are the ones that I struggle with. I want comfort foods and I did what I always do, indulge in those cravings. But, I won't let my lunch determine the rest of my day which is what usually happens. I have pulled a Jennie O turkey breast out for supper and I'll steam some broccoli for supper.

Again, thank you guys so much for the words of encouragement. I really need this support and encouragement.

Hey there little darlin's
So good to see everyone is doing well and still being blessed no matter what's going on.

Godsgirls, when I came home from work last evening DH was planting the tomato plants and I just smiled. He is the hardest working man I know, he is a long distance truck driver and is gone most of the time, but when he is home, he is doing everything that needs to be done, including caring for me and I am so blessed to have him. God choose this man just for me. sometimes I feel so badly that I cannot help him more. We have nicknamed him IronMan, and he was IronMan before they ever came out with the movie. We just laughed.

Rosebud76, you look awesome in your picture and I bet you teach a mean youth class and the kids love ya.

Courtney, still have your DBF Auntie in prayer, praying for her improvement and recovery.

Kathy it is sooo good to have company walk with you, especially your hubby.

Ronni you are always in my prayers.

Laurie, the bumps and bruises are coming along slowly, but I will take what I can get.

Bargoo, prayers ascending for you and always.

Rosebud, I just love you.

Gary, how goes it? Angie bought you any new pants lately?

Darlin's, I am asking for prayers from all, my legs are not doing great at all and way tooo much stress from two youngest daughters. Morgan and I are bickering constantly, and Jordan and Morgan bickering with each other. There just seems to be no peace and I am soooo tired of it all. We did not raise them to be disrespectfull but to be mannerable and polite, this is really starting to take a tole on me. I pray and I pray, I need peace in my life and in this stituation. It makes me just want to cry and I do. Prayers Please. I have not been posting as much and when I do, for those of you who know me, I am sure you have noticed the change in the ones I do. Please pray for my household. Gotta go, crying about to take over.

Love and Blessings to all,
Ags

Kathy - I like your avatar pic! It is nice to put a face with a post :D

Gary - :congrat: on skipping the dessert table! I KNOW that was hard!

Judi - sounds like a nice day, even if you didn't get to go swimming! I'm thankful we live only a few blocks from the lake :yes:

Ronni :hug: I know the joys of an old house ALL to well! They have their charm but ...

Tammy :woohoo: AWESOME victory! That had to be very, very difficult, particularly when you weren't mentally prepared to work the concession stand!

Lauren, I had to add some new comfort foods to my list - ones that are more OP. I found some wonderful gourmet teas that are a real treat and zero calories.

Ags - prayers ascending for peace for your family! Prayers for your legs as well. While they are hurting you, just remember how much good you have done for them already. Losing 32 lbs makes a big difference! Thats 120 less lbs of pressure on your knees alone!

I'm doing quite a bit better today. I actually was able to sleep in the bed last night, which really helped. (Probably didn't help DH much though).
The weather is glorious here! I took a picture of the memorial tree (for FIL) that we planted last spring. The weeping crab is just gorgeous!
http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/9371/memtree3.th.jpg (http://img151.imageshack.us/my.php?image=memtree3.jpg)http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/9863/memtree2.th.jpg (http://img141.imageshack.us/my.php?image=memtree2.jpg)

I am new here. It's always hard to just jump in.. but that's what I'm doing. I am a Christian and could really use support on this WL journey!

:welcome: heatherlynn! We are glad you DID jump in! This is a very friendly and fun group of Christian Folk! I just LOVE hanging around here!

I hope you come back and post often!

heatherlynn welcome and good luck !

Heatherlynn - Welcome to this wonderful group of people. You will find great support and friendship here.

Ags - My prayers are with you for your girls. God is able to work this out just keep trusting him. I'll also pray that the Lord touches your legs and takes the pain away. Isn't it wonderful having a husband who helps with everything. My husband is the same way. I thank God for bringing us together.

Gary - Kuddos to you for skipping the dessert table. I don't know if I would have had that kind of strength. I love dessert.

godsgirltmm - Yeah! for the victory over french fries and hamburgers.

Keep up the good work everyone and keep encouraged in Jesus.

Kathy

AGGIE ~ Prayers ascending for your girls and YOU for peace in the heart and home. My SISTA (NUMPSTER) went thru this with her two girls in their teens; if one wasn't bickering with her (to press the house rules and such), she was fighting with her sister. But just to show you how things change: mom (stressed to all get-out) hung tuff with a little tuff love, and the girls grew up and are the best of friends now; and both adore their mom too. This is a phase they need to go thru as they are growing up and pushing for space and their own identities; trust me, they will grow out of it. My mother used to say, 'Choose your battles carefully' -- meaning she would just let some things go and only put her foot down on the most important things. I know it's harder when Dad is away working and mom has to deal with it all by herself.

I know NUMPSTER won't mind me sharing this with you; I remember trying to console her at the time too. When I say 'tuff love' I mean set some house rules about respectful behavior towards one another. Do you drive? Might I suggest going for a drive when they start up? That should help them get the picture fast! Or do you have a caban or tiny hideaway in the back yard you can escape to with some big earphones and some peaceful calming music or a good book? Maybe something you could ask for on your birthday or Anniversary. :hug:

LAURIE ~ that weeping crab is beautiful -- yesterday, I mentioned to DH that I wanted to get a crab apple tree to put in our back yard on our lot becuz I just loved the one my gramma has on her old farm. Does that kind have apples on them? I like to make jelly or apple butter from the crab apples and the flowers are gorgeous too, plus the birdies just love coming to the tree for those mini-apples also.

:wave: HEATHERLYNN ~ you can jump in and post anywhere, anytime; and tell us some more about yourself and your life as you feel comfortable doing.

We woke up to ***** this morning and cold temps, but this afternoon the sun came out to shine, but it is still a bit cool at this time. Had a good OP day; fish and coleslaw for dinner tonight!

Hope you all have A WONDERFUL WEDNESDAY!:hug:ROSEBUD:hug:^^Prayers^^ continue for you and yours ...

heatherlynn-:welcome2: We're always glad to have new people here! You'll find lots of great support and ideas.

Aggie-praying for peace in your home and for tempers to calm, and for your pain to ease up. I'm sure that doesn't help with the other situations.:hug:

Laurie-I've never heard of a weeping crab tree. It's just beautiful! Thanks for sharing the pic.

After the trip to town for fuses, we were able to plant most of the rest of the garden today-tomatoes, yellow bell peppers, cabbages, & cucumber, along with the green beans, potatoes, radishes, & strawberries.:carrot: Tomorrow, I'll be able to put in the annual flowers, if the wind dies down a bit. Sure was nice to be out in the sun! But, I now discover that my swimsuit tank-top (which I was wearing in the yard) is now waaaay toooo big to try wearing in a pool, so I'm going to have to go on the dreaded swimsuit shopping expedition sometime:p. Oh, well, things could be worse-it could be too small:lol:

Everybody have a great evening!

Heatherlynn, so glad you are here, as they have said before, we love new folks. I remember when I was new and they all just embraced me in love and kindness. I would not ever trade a single one of them.

Laurie, your pics are beautiful, I too had never heard of a weeping crab, but I do know this, I want one for my front yard across the lawn from my Japanese maple which it beautiful. I will try to take a pic and post it. Thank you so much for your prayers, they are appreciated totally. WOW 32 pounds makes that much of a difference, did not know that. Thank you, told you, you are so smart!!

Kathy, tahnk yo so much for your kind words amd yes I too thank God everyday for sending my Jimmie to me.

Rosebud, thank you for you insight into my plite. Even though I trust God, at times it can get so very frustrating. I will find a special place and quite place to retreat when it becomes to overwhelming. I want a water fall, I think they are so peaceful and calming. I really could use one now, but until then, think I will go to the store an buy one of those water fall CD's.

Ronni, your garden sounds fan-tab-u-lous, fresh is just the best, walk out the back door and there it is. Now it sounds like you need to take a trip with me to the store, it is bathing suit shopping time, ugh!! LOL Oh yes, I would rather look for smaller than larger. You go girl!! You made me smile. Thanks.

Gary, good job passing those goodies. You are the MAN!!!

Anyone heard from Bev?? Where is my girl??? I am putting out an APB for her...Bevie, Bevie, where are you???

Everyone please have a blessed evening,
Ags

You gals are killin' me :lol:

Everyone of you is just like my wife! :yes:

and none of you :listen: listen to me :no:

I thank you for the kudos on not eating any dessert....

but seriously for me that is no big deal! I could be starving and walk right by cakes/cookies/pies/sugary stuff....

Read between the lines (guacamole-chips-tacos)

I was not that good....nope...;)

Love the pictures SCOOTER

AGGIE prayers for the difficult situation with the girls....being a step-d that has ripped doors off...I understand

TAMMY....my oh my...are you kidding me? You don't have a secret handshake? (Hand hold-sign) when he is up on the pulpit? Goodness...so much I could teach you :D Ok...I have time, it is half time of the Laker game...go grab your DH and kids...I'll wait...I have time....Ok...have everyone take their right hand and hold it up...got it? good...now take your pointer finger and "wave" it at each other...got it?...of course you do ;) now that is the I LOVE YOU sign....which is shared by me with my wife and kids/nephew under all circumstances (works very well when the kid is up to bat....in the field after a big error...on the tennis court....at the free throw line...confirmation....speeches)....so this is a simple way to say I love you anywhere at anytime...oh, if you don't want anyone to see...for example it would be too obvious if dh and you were "waving" with your pointer finger to each other during service.... you just hold the finger to your chin (:chin:) and "wave" I love you....most people will think you are just scratching your chin...I am sure Dh can pull this off in front of the entire congregation and no one will know but you and the kids!

ROSEBUD I can come anytime for fish and cole slaw...really I can ;)

LAUREN You will do this!

HEATHERLYNN...just jump in....that is how we roll here...so...jump in!

RONNI Happy :) planting!

WILMA where are you?

AUNT SUE did you ditch us?

BEV...see above....all ok?

KATHY no strength needed for sweets...now salty...look out!

What up BARGOO

JUDI...yes Judi was my mom's name! Gramma Judi to most or Grammi...they both worked!

Not trying to be pushy here but we have many prayer requests and we will honor those. But we also have the PRAYER WARRIORS thread too...if we put our requests there, also...then we can all go there quickly and get those prayers going....then take time later to view the personal posts.

I'm still alive and kicking. It's been a bit hectic around here and on top of that I came down with a bug on the weekend. I feel a lot better today. Work is still kind of a blurr with all the learning I have to do. Things are beginning to make sense.

DH and I went for a nice long walk on Sunday and I thought that this would be a good start to my exercise regime. NOT. It's been so windy here that I wimped out and didn't go. I have been eating properly though so that's a plus. I plan on walking tonight either before the American Idol finalle or after it. GO ADAM!

We've booked flights to go see our kids in Ottawa. We're not going until October but at least it's something to look forward to.

I have to head to a seminar today so I should get going. I wanted you to know that I'm still around and do read the posts. I'll try to be more faithful in posting. I miss you guys when I'm not here.

Have a wonderful day!

Hi, everyone! I too have been wondering what's happened to some of our faithful posters. I can't remember, but was Bev still having computer issues? I hope it's nothing more serious.

Well, we had a sudden shift in focus, mood, etc. last evening. DH's sister called with the results of DH's dad's biopsy and the prognosis has changed for the worse. Harry's (DH's dad) lung cancer is inoperable and the doctor feels that he would not survive chemo. He has another appt with an oncologist Friday, but the surgeon's opinion was that he will die soon and needs to get his final plans made. Unfortunately, Harry was in total denial that it was even cancer as one of his doctors had hinted that it could be a virus and that is what Harry had told DH's sister, so they are very upset, as are the rest of us, but we hadn't bought into the virus fairy tale, so were more prepared, I guess. No time table at this point, but I guess the oncologist is supposed to have more info when we're there Friday. But, as I shared before, Harry is not saved, so I'm praying that he will now have the time and desire to come to God.

And, yes, Gary, I'll put this on the prayer thread too:D.

Just having trouble knowing anything to say right now, so I'll go, but hope you all have a really nice day!

ronni, be assured prayers are going up for your FIL and other family members , as well that God will see you through this trying time.

Gary - I will give the sign a try! Thanks! :)

Lauren - yes I'm a pastor's wife. Keeps life interesting doesn't it? ;) :lol:

Aggie - I can definitely relate your prayer request about your daughters. I'm not sure how old your daughters are, but I have a 15 year old son, a 14 year old daughter, and an 11 year old son. And believe me when I tell you there are days when I am completely overwhelmed at trying to raise them. I try not to let the difficult days overshadow the encouraging ones, though it's really hard. Just wanted you to know that someone else out there understands! :hug:

Heatherlynn - Welcome!!:hug: I'm pretty new too and I just did what you did - I jumped in. No one has booted me out yet, so I'm still here. :lol: So glad to have you!!

Ronni - praying for your dh's father and family.

I'm glad to say that I feel great today! School is over so I got to sleep a little later this morning AND I got my walking in! I stayed home last night and did little to nothing because I was exhausted. Had a great dinner and watched the Dancing With The Stars Finale.

It's beautiful outside here today! Wish I didn't have to work so I could head out to my porch swing with a good book.

Hope everyone is having a great day!

Hi all! :wave:

I'm so excited to find this thread!! :D I've been on 3FC for a while now and had not seen the faith based forum!

I'm have to log off soon to get ready for church but looking forward to reading more of the posts and getting to know everyone!!

Have a fantastic evening all!!

Rosebud - I don't know how good the fruit will be, since this is a miniature tree. But, it should get some small crabapples given the number of blossoms :D

Ronni :hug: on the swimsuit shopping. Even now, it isn't my favorite task! I ended up getting a new suit on ebay (an thankfully it fits!)

Aggie - do post a picture of your maple! I would love to see it :yes:

Gary - not true - we listen to you! Really, we do. We just do what we want anyway (just like Angie) ;)

Wilma - glad you are feeling better! And that you got your tickets booked.

Ronni - prayers ascending for Harry and the family!

Tammy - I wish school was done here! Glad your weather is like ours - it is glorious!

TammyJo :welcome: Glad you found us! We LOVE new folk! Post often so we get to know you better :D

Good day here! I'm feeling so much better. I can't dawdle because I have to get packed for the Chicago trip. I'm soooo looking forward to it. I won't post my itinerary because much of it is food related, oh, and of course several stops include Gary's beverage of choice (no - not Coke Zero) ;)

We have 4 plays planned, and the zoo and several urban hikes. Maybe even some clothes shopping - who knows?

I probably won't get another chance to post before Tuesday - so I hope everyone has a very safe and blessed holiday weekend!

Prayers ascending!
Blessings,

Laurie :scooter:

Hi Everyone!

Today was a good day. I did not take a walk today because I felt like my body needed the break, but I plan on being up at 5:15 am and out for a walk before it's time to get ready to go to work. As far as food goes....I did well until I came home. We had McDs for supper. Since I do WW I had to use some of my weekly points but that's what they are there for.

Ronni, our prayers go out to you and your family. We'll be praying for Harry's salvation.


Laurie - Wishing you lost of fun on your trip to Chicago.


Tammyjo - Welcome! :)

Ronni - It sounds like you have a big garden. I have a small garden plot. Basically just enough space to enjoy the fresh veggies for the summer. I am going to plant some carrots and sugar snap peas to freeze. I'll probably go to the farmer's market and buy corn to freeze.

Gary - Thanks for the tip on the Prayer Warriors site. I was not aware that this site existed.

Has anyone heard from Bev? I haven't seen her online since I came back.

Have a good evening!

Kathy

Good evening all,

Ronni, prayers are in progress for Harry and all of your family.

Gary and Godsgirl, thank you for understanding and declare Gary you do have a way of putting things to make folks smile. Godsgirl, have you tried Gary's hand signs yet? Thought that was so cute. Gary, Laurie was right, we do listen and then do what we want. LOL

Hi Bargoo, how are ya?

Wilma, was very glad to see you, please feel better soon, and a trip, WooooHa!!

Tammyjo, glad to meet, kick your shoes off and stay awhile. Glad you are here.

Laurie, will try to get a pic posted this weekend of the tree. Glad you feel better and now going on a trip, you do get around. HA HA Enjoy!!! We will miss you.

Hey there Rosebud, how's your day going?

Kathy, how are you doing today? Wanted to send a shout out to you. Kathy, your post came as I was typing, I do WW too and this week was not good for me. I used all of my daily points and my weekly points allowance and then a few over that. I don't know what happened other than I trully cannot hang with the girls from the job on there eating expeditions without planning ahead. That's what is was, failed planning. Back on track tomorrow for sure.

Courtney, how is everything going with DBF Auntie? How are you guys holding up?

Still no word on Bevie, okay I am going in on a PM.

Today here was pretty cool, I had an on-site at a health fair. It was fairly slow, so I took advantage of the slowness and I got a free massage, my blood pressure checked and it was good, joined a community center and got a two week free exercise class ( all I have to do is go) we will see. Oh and I am babysitting Malaci now, hot dog, what a day. Oh yeah and my WI is tomorrow and if I gain, I am oky with that. WOW, I am growing. Nothing much new with the girls, same old same old. I cannot figure out where they learned so much selfishness from, they were not like that when they were younger. Lord, I pray this passes.

Everyone have a peaceful slumber and a blessed tomorrow,
Ags

Hello everyone!! We are still unpacking boxes and I really don't have internet yet but I found a corner in the house that lets me get on an unsecured site so I thought I would just pop in and say Hello. My Dad has been moved back to the assisted living center and there really isn't any changes. They had hoped that his kidneys would kick back in but they haven't so we know now that we are just keeping him comfortable for the time he has left here with us. It is really hard when we see him because he sometimes is just like Dad and other times he just seems to be so confused. But we see him everyday and also call him on the phone. My son and his family are here for a little while now too. They have moved to Florida so they have came to get all of their furniture out of storage to take back with them. Dad was really happy to see them and recognized them all.

Sorry it has been so long since I have been on but like I said I really don't have internet yet-----just found a connection that I am able to use at least for now. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers and I will try to at least give short updates when I can. Thanks.

SCOOTER have a safe trip!

KAREN ~ Prayers!

RONNI ~ Prayers!

TAMMY ~ I guarantee if you and your family choose to do the wave...you will find all kinds of places to do it...batters box....across the room during meetings...endless...

AGGIE ~YIPEE on the new class!!

KATHY ~ Need a wake up call for that walk?....wink

YOU GALS NEED TO CHECK OUT THE THREAD I PUT IN WEIGHT SUPPORT on walking today from my local paper...58 yr old women loses 150 pounds in one year walking....good things can happen!

BARGOO ~ HI

TAMMYJO ~ Welcome!

Hi - thanks for all the warm welcomes!

Just a little bit to introduce myself. I'm 39 years old, married for 9 years. I have 3 children - 17 year old daughter and twin boys who are 8. We live in TX in the middle of nowhere between Dallas and Houston and I work from home (what a blessing that is).

I've been serious about my relationship with the Lord for about 5 years now. My husband has recently come back to Christ and I'm seeing wonderful things happen in his walk with the Lord!! It's very exciting!! God is good!!

My daughter didn't get the full benefit of growing up in a spirit filled home as my boys will but she does know the Lord and has had a close relationship with him but seems to be falling back somewhat and doing some things that have really surprised us. I would appreciate your prayers for her. Her name is Taylor. I know that she is still in God's hands and he'll watch over her.

As for my weight, I've struggled off and on almost my whole life - except for when I was younger and on drugs which is another testimony of what God did in my life!! I have just continued to gain more and more weight thru the years but would never stick to a diet or a plan. I went to the Dr about 2 months ago (first time since my boys were born 8 yrs ago). I knew my numbers would all be high but when I got the results and saw HOW high - it was just what I needed to motiviate me! I started changing my eating choices (no more fried food - my favorites!!) and started to try healthier things (I'm VERY veggie challenged - I even hate lettuce!) and started walking. I'm now "somewhat" counting calories, have increased my walking, added in some swimming (when it's warm enough out) and just yesterday got my Biggest Loser Bootcamp DVD in and Oh My Goodness it was hard!!! I think I'm close to 18 pounds lost so far. I had always heard - "it's got to be a lifestyle change" but it never really sank in until now. I've yoyoed up and down all my life and I know I can't go back to my old eating habits or it'll happen again. God's been good to me and giving me strength and motivation to do it this time!

Well that's me in short. I look forward to getting to know you all better and as I said I'm SOOO excited to have found this group. It's always nice to share with people of faith!!

I hope you all have blessed and wonderful day!!

Ronni- Thank you for the prayers. Sounds you had a busy weekend. Hope you start feeling better, and prayers for DS1 that his knee heals well and he can return to work. I will be praying that your FIL and family can stick together and make it through this though time.

Lauren- Sounds like things are a little bit stressful for you right now. I will be praying for your family, the pastor, and you and DH. And girl if you have having "female" problems please go see a dr. if you havent already.

Laurie- Hope the cold starts to die off. Its horrible enough being sick, but being sick and having to work is awful. Have an amazing and safe trip!

Gary- I think that you may be a little jealous that the kidknapper may be slightly more gifted in the cooking dept. that you. I love that your mechanic is your ex's SO. Your family is so blended and everyone gets along so well for the most part. I love that you guys can all be grown ups and still come together and be friends. Not a lot of families can still hold onto any connection with their ex's and what not. YuMM Guacamole!

Rosebud- So glad the floor is done and you can enjoy it. Get lots of rest before the other floor comes. Sorry to hear about that darn ****. Im trying to send some of the sunshine from OH up to you.

Tammy- That is so AWESOME!!! That is such a great victory and accomplishment. I know it must have taken a lot of will power to resist all the fattening goodies. Your kiddies get out of school awfully early. Good thing is now you can sleep in and get some much needed rest.

Aggie- Prayers are going up for you dear. I really hope that your legs get better. As for the daughters i really hope that they can stop the bickering and for your sake realize it is not healthy for you.

Heather- Welcome! This place is so awesome to make great friends and get amazing support. Hope you stick around.

Wilma- Glad to see that things are going well for you. And good for you for at least eating well. Do the kids know that you will be visiting or will it be a surprise?

TammyJo- Welcome! This place is great i hope to get to know you better. I have family that live in the colony down there and i just LOVE visiting. The weather is great down there and so is the gigantic mall.

Karen-Prayers

Well Hello Everyone and Happy Thursday. I had a busy few days gone. Tuesday was my day off and me and the boy went to Cedar Point. For those of you who dont know what it is its the largest amusment park in the world and we live about an hour away from it so its a must do every summer. It was a beautiful day out and there werent many people there since it was a tuesday and the kids are still in school. Wednesday i had to work then went out to dinner with some friends. After dinner we went and played a few games of laser tag. Lol it was great and i felt like i was 12 again. I forgot how much of a work out it is too.

We are not so sure what is going to happen with DB's aunt. She took a turn for the worse yesterday. They told us that she did have a heart attack as well and she had major brain damage. Today all of the brothers and sisters are going up to the hospital to make the decesion if they want to keep her on the ventilators or just let her go. As much as they want her around i know that it wouldnt be much of a life for her to life, brain dead, and not wanting to be alive. Its not fair for her. I will keep everyone posted when i know more.

Happy Thursday!

Hi! Got quite a bit accomplished yesterday and today-flower pots planted, more cabbage in the veggie garden ('cause I forgot that I had already bought some with the flowers :dizzy:), most of the garden fencing up, and DS2's irrigation system partially put together! Whew! Tomorrow going to Rochester with FIL:cry: DS2 has 2 days of class then one test and finally school will be out. We've been done with the homeschooling part of our stuff for a couple weeks now, so I'm more than ready for the rest of it to end!

Karen-prayers for you and your family continuing.:hug:

Courtney-prayers for you, DBF, and his aunt also. Never been to Cedar Point as I grew up in the southeastern part of IN, so we always went to Kings Island-love the Beast!! Planning a trip this summer to see my dad and aunt and do the KI thing, depending on what we find out about FIL. Glad you've had a couple nice days to enjoy in the midst of work and worries.:hug:

Tammyjo-:welcome2: Glad to have you here and looking forward to knowing you better!

Laurie-this is probably too late to catch you,but enjoy your trip!

Hi to Wilma, Rosebud, Judi, Lauren, Bargoo, Gary, Kathy, Aggie, Bev, Tammy, Heatherlynn, Sue, and anyone I may have missed (and if I missed you, it's just because of my bad memory:o). Hope you're all having a great day and looking forward to a fun holiday weekend. Just remember to give thanks for those who've given their lives for our freedom! See you all later!

UPDATE: Just wanted to let everyone know that i appreciate all of the prayers. DB's Aunt passed this afternoon. The family is doing okay. I think the boy is really devastated. He was holding her hand when she passed so i think this is going to be very hard for him. Im going to do what i can to keep the family together and look to the Lord in the families time of need.

Just checking in to say hello! Today was a good day. I was able to get another walk in this morning. I walked a little further today then I have been.

Courtney - Our prayers are with you and your DB at the passing of his Aunt. Jesus is our Comforter and he will be with all of you.

Have a great evening.

Kathy

:hug:COURTNEY ~ condolences to DB and family for his Auntie's passing; this is hard when we are so fond of someone like he was, but GOD's Grace and Mercy is everlasting -- it is not His will that she (or anyone) suffer needlessly. :hug:

:hug:RONNI ~ feel your pain; hard to accept such a severe diagnosis for our loved ones. Our family has faced so much cancer, but the the LORD is gracious and has carried us through. Hope you get to make those trips with the kids this summer ...

:hug:KAREN ~ prayers going up for your DAD's kidneys and health; and for you and your family too.

:wave: HI AGGIE ~ we have been busy; the second floor was cancelled and delayed until tomorrow as it poured :rain: all day long. Must have a sunny day as the boards have to be cut outside. So after we moved the desk and cupboards out of the room, we decided to go do a bit of shopping instead. Got a bit wet, but the really hard rains held off until we got back home! Phew ...

:welcome: TO ALL THE NEWBIES ~ glad you found us!

TAMMYJO: thanks for all the info about you and your family. Prayers for TAYLOR -- you can put a special prayer request for her in the PRAYER WARRIORS thread in this forum too!

GARY ~ will check out that ladies story; love inspirational stories ...

Well, we picked up a great deal on our favorite Spit BBQ'd Chicken (got two for half price each; had one for dinner and put one in the freezer for another day). Had veggies and cucumber salad with that; and made a light apple crisp for dessert or snack really.

Time to go and put my legs up; did get some walking in today and they are tired. The second floor will get done tomorrow as long as the weather holds out. DH is in there painting the walls one coat tonight so it will be dry BEFORE the new floor is put in tomorrow.

HI to ALL our CE friends and MIA's; nice to see so many in for a visit today!

Have a great night; and hope everyone has a FANTASTIC FRIDAY tomorrow!!! ^^Prayers^^ ascending for you and yours as always ... :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

I am so sorry for all the pain here this week my dear friends.

Prayers for the concerns of Ronni ~ Courtney ~ TammyJo ~ Karen ~ Rosebud's legs

I will catch up by this week-end

I just stopped in to say hello and see how everyone is doing. I am praying for those with losses and struggles. Yesterday was not a good day for me. There is some stuff coming up at work and I am just praying that God will intervene. Thankfully today is the first of a four-day weekend. We made the kids help us clean house today and now I'm looking forward to a very relaxing weekend.

Hope you all are having a great day!!

Today was a busy day, but a good one. I took the day off from work, but did a lot of work at home.

I had to go to the chiropractor today he commented that it looked like I lost weight since the last time I was there. That made my day. I did not walk again today, but I did mow grass so that made up for it.

My husband and I cleaned the house and I made 2 batches of WW Banana Oat Muffins, pistachio pudding and chocolate chip cookies for my kids. It felt so good to get some work done at home. Tomorrow we have to get our graden in.

Our prayers continue too go out to everyone that is going through a hard time.

Have a great holiday weekend.

Kathy

Courtney-my prayers are with you and your DB and his family. I am so sorry for your loss:hug:

Hello and prayers for everyone else, too. Long day and very tired right now, so I'll have to come back later. God bless!

Hey there everyone

Courtney, I have been praying for peace in each of the family memberrs lives. She is such a better place although I know she will be missed. Hugs and blessing to each of you.

Gary, thanks for yipee on the class, now keep me in prayers so as I actually get there.

Karen, prayers for you and your Dad.

Ronni, all I can say is lean on Him as He will carry you through. Prayers going up continuously. Take is easy girlie, get here when you can, you need your rest.

Rosebud, great job on the Spit Bbq, the whole meal sounds delish!!! That hubby of yours is such a worker bee, what a keeper!! I must remember to put my legs up more often, I am sure it will help in the fluid area.

Kathy, good job on the walking, cannot wait to get back to it. Further is always better, your getting stronger. WTG and PTL!!! Kathy, taking the day off can be a wonderful thing, and you got lots done, and that was good, making muffins with hubby, what togetherness, choc cookies, and pudding, look out for the knock at your door, cause I'm a coming,

Today is a good day here, beautiful out and It's my oldest DD birthday, wow the big 36 and we are having a huge bbq at nephews, it's bd also. I will be taking special treats for me, chicken sausage with spinach and cheddar, salad, grapes, and crystal light!!! I have to because they will have everything under the sun, I am even taking raisin brand muffins to replace the cakes.
Next, my hubby is going to get pepper plants, basil, chives, mint, thyme, cukes and more and putting it all in the ground today. WHoray!!!!! Would love some scallions and flat leaf parsley. I had lots of that growing and he did not what it was, and that was that, mowed to smitherines!!! Tomatoes already in the ground. I am so happy I could just fa*t, I do that when I laugh hard sometimes. LOL

Prayers for my Bevie where ever she is. Please know how much I love you and miss you. You are continuously in my heart and my prayers.

All of my little darlin's have an exciting, wonderful, safe and blessed weekend.
Hugs and kisses and lots and lots of love coming your way.

Ags

Ags - How did the birthday party go? Way to go on taking the food that you know you can eat. We are planning a picnic lunch here at home. We'll make healthy stuff for us and most times the kids don't even realize it is healthy :D

Prayers and God's strength for all of you. I'm thank we serve a God who cares about all of our needs. Keep encouraged in Jesus.

This morning I did my measurements since I haven't done them for months and I was amazed at the inches I have lost all over. That has given me the encouragement that I needed to keep doing what I've been doing.

Today I took a walk then planted my garden and some flowers. It seems like I have more energy everyday.

Have a great holiday weekend everyone.

Kathy

:wave: HI EVERYONE ~ we've had some very tiring days here too; moving all the furniture, emptying closets and cupboards, out of the spare room. Yeah, the second floor is down and it looks great (one was medium mahogany in our bedroom and the spare room is done in medium chestnut; both lovely colors). DH helped the landlord both times to do the floors; the second one, he sure did lots of the walking and fetching and he was exhausted last night. So was I; fell asleep after dinner and woke up at 3 AM; went to bed and didn't wake up til 8 AM. :lol:

So, today we spent putting everything back in there. The one advantage being that we could take our time, use our noggin's and everything went back in easier, faster, and more neatly and organized this time. Every other time was such a rush, things were practically thrown in there. We ended up with our newest cupboard empty, so I am taking that as my new office :D cupboard (a place for everything on my desk and PC and related stuff). We decided to stop around 3 pm; and will finish the smaller things next week (like putting books back on the bookshelf; and we finally found the shelves DH misplaced in the shed between two boxes). ;)

We're so glad that big job is all done. DH even painted the spare room two coats of paint on Thursday night and it was dry well before morning. Later on, we will do the hallway as well; and we had already touched up the bedroom last week. So the rooms look much nicer and these floors have a nice grip on them; not slippery like the livingroom and hallway. Guess they are getting better at making them now.

AGGIE ~ yes, BBQ Spit Chicken is one of my favorites (chicken in general is) as the fat cooks and falls away as it is turning on the rotissierre. We are fortunate to be able to get this here now and at a reasonable price too. Yes, DH is a good help to me; and he prefers to keep busy as much as possible; and I really appreciate that about him too.

DH says that you two would get along great becuz his favorite hobby is f***rting: when he laughs, when he sighs, when he stands, walks, bends -- well, all the time really; and that leads to pillow fights in the bedroom sometimes becuz I threaten to banish him to the doghouse forever, and he just laughs and f***rts some more ... :lol:

* About putting your legs up: yes, my doctor recommended that I put my legs up 3 times a day (at least two, minimum) to ease swelling (water retention) and just give them a break which helps lessen the pain in them. I do find also that when they get really bad, about a half bottle of BEER takes the pain away (I think it's the diuretic properties in the beer and the pain-killing abilities of the alcohol combined, that works so for well for this condition) ... ;)

REGARDING BEV ~ I do think that she mentioned that she had to get a new computer; and, something about finishing up some exams too ...

Time to go put my legs up again; as they are very tired and then my right knee starts collapsing when I overdo it. Gonna take it easy tonight and tomorrow as well. They are predicting :sunny: weather all next week ... how wonderful!!!

Take good care everyone, and remember that ^^PRAYERS^^ continue for you and yours ... :hug:ROSEBUD:hug:

Hi GALS :) ~

Going to church in a little while then off to a chocolate festival in town. After that I will go to the kid's house and finish repairing some drywall and texture it so we can finish painting.

My son and his wife called us while we were at dinner Friday night saying they had picked up the keys for their new house. Part of me was :carrot: excited for them of course, but part of me was...:devil: "oh no!...I was hoping to have 3 days of "nothing" to do!"

Angie and my daughter in law painted most of the day and I went over in the afternoon and did some repairs. I hope to finish them this afternoon so we can get most of the house re-painted by tomorrow afternoon. The house has been recently painted so we don't have to do everything...which is a blessing since it is around 2,200 sq. feet and has a 22 ft ceiling slope in the living room which I will paint but almost all the rooms have a clip in them, not all that high of course. Of course all my good ladders and scaffolding is on the big job we are working on during the week!

Anyway, we had a blast hanging out with my daughter in law, son was at the league track meet finals with his kids so he couldn't help.

A nice house, close to us, about a mile and a half away, right off the route we usually walk....a perfect halfway stopping point. It just amazes me the prices for homes today. Even after the prices have fallen, this one once sold for 200 thousand more than the kids bought it for, and I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't fall even more. I'm not saying I am a bit "scared" for them but their down payment was 15 thousand MORE than my first house cost!! Of course that was in '74....a long time ago. It is well within their budget at the moment...but the way the state of California is looking here....well...many of us are headed for drastic changes...rock on...PRAY ON! :)

I better get ready for church, Angie has to be there early for bells and I loaned my son my truck last night, so they could bring more stuff than his car would carry, from their condo (the ex-wifes condo) so I need a ride!

Angie will leave me in the dust if I don't get ready....but then she usually does ;)

Have a great day with your friends and families :hug:

It's a beautiful sunny day here in Winnipeg. I am looking forward to some warm weather! It's been a long time coming. We are going to a BBQ at my boss's house this afternoon. Should be a good time!

I spent yesterday cleaning my house and doing some cooking. Made a big pot of hamburger soup - lots of veggies.

Not too much happening around here. I am hoping to get into my yard this week and get some plants put in. Hopefully the frost is a thing of the past.

Have a great Sunday! My prayers for all of you!

Hi all,
It was so good to be able to make it to church this morning and a wonderful service it was.

Kathy, the bbq was grand. they had absolutely everything from grilled chicken to smoked ribs, chicken sausage, to cerviche Panama style spicy with tilapia to Carribean citrus with flounder not to mention, scallops and shrimp. It was great and all the family, it was a massive bbq. Our family has from Japanese, to Panamainean, Spanish, Black, Causian, to Puerto Rican. Talk about diversity, we have it all. I must admit when we throw and shin dig, the dancing is way cool, so many different flavors and I have just about learned them all.

Rosebud, I almost peed reading your post. Yes, he and I would get along real fine. Taking your advice on the legs and on the beer, will keep you posted as to the progress.

Gary, your and Angie's weekend is really full and overflowing, but you are such a good dad and I know your son appreciate's you both. Sounds like a great house. If you can, post a pic, would love to see it.

Wilma, bbq's are always great. Bought and extra indoor/outdoor Geroge Forman yesterday to go with our charcoal Webber. Nothing beats the smell of charcoal. Hope you get those plants in.

Have a great day everyone,
Ags

This is my third attempt to write this post. Hopefully I won't lose it this time.

Aggie - It sounds like your family is a great mix of cultures. That's what makes families exciting. The food you had at your BBQ sounds yummy. We wanted to have a BBQ but our grill broke and we haven't been able to get a new one.

Gary - You're a great dad. Helping you kids even though you wanted to have a relaxing 3 day weekend. The place you and Angie walk sounds so neat. I would love to have an area like that to walk. I walk around the neighborhood which is a lot of hills.

I didn't go to church this morning. I slept in until 7:00 then got up and took a 40 minute walk. I may get my bike out and ride it today. Hopefully my DH will go with me.

Have a great holiday weekend.

Kathy

:wave: HI EVERYONE ~ just a hazy lazy day here for us (well, me at least); we did have sun on and off with cool winds and temps around 60F (I'll take it; it's actually one of my favorite times; well, before the hot temps come and no buggies at all). We shouldn't have too many buggies here since we are in town now; there usually aren't very many from what I remember from living in town before.

I stayed home and rested while DH went and picked up some of our wood with his trailer. We have decided to build a small 8' x 8' shed to put all our stuff in (storage) at our lot; and DH says it should take him less than a week (a few days) to put up, even if he takes his time. If the weather is nice, we might go up early this week; this is a good time of year for such a project.

AGGIE ~ that BBQ sounded great; with all those meat dishes, one could have a bit of each and some salad and still stick to their plan pretty well.

GARY ~ your son's house sounds great; nice of you and ANGIE to help them out so much ...

HI WILMA and KATHY ~ hope you both have a great week ...

We just had a light dinner of a pasta with tomatoes and cheese sauce that we call CREOLE PASTA; very quick and easy and yummy too. When I was putting all the food back in the pantry, I noticed that we have piles of pasta that needs to be eaten up, so pasta for dinner tonight (instead of chicken). A good meatless meal is healthy for us anyways. ;)

Well, there's not much else to report from here; just gonna have a quiet restful evening at home tonight as next week, we'll be busy at our lot as we can (according to health and weather, of course). Also getting things ready to lay the floor on the cottage as well!

Take good care everyone and hope you all HAVE A MARVELLOUS MONDAY!!! :hug:ROSEBUD :hug: ^^PRAYERS^^ continue for you and yours ...

Hi everyone!

This weekend wasn't as relaxing as I had hoped - it actually turned out to be sorta busy. My husband was busy getting ready to head out for a trip and so we had to do all the things that accompany that.

It's supposed to be stormy here today. I'm really glad I don't have to go anywhere and I can just stay here in my nice dry house! Guess I better go let the dog inside before the rain gets here.

Hope everyone has a great Memorial Day! So thankful for all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom!

HI GALS ~ :)

I hope this finds you all well and having a great Memorial Week-End :) I agree with Tammy...and of course all of you... THANK-YOU TROOPS! :carrot:

Angie and I went to brunch at our neighborhood Mexican restaurant after church. We have never gone there for breakfast but we did yesterday while trying to kill some time before the Chocolate Festival started. The festival was cool, didn't buy or eat any chocolate, but we did get a new flag (see avatar) for the front yard and some garden decorations for the back yard, plus an outfit for my god-grandson.

Spent most of the afternoon at my son/dil's house texturing and painting. I grabbed my brother for a couple of hours to help me...he was so happy ;) since he had just finished building a boat with my niece to race in a pool for science class. He was happy to help the kids but like me...needing some rest. I try to focus on the "I am so happy to be ABLE to do these things"...yet an tired and need a break every now and then.

Great sermon by Pastor yesterday about being in the world and not of the world. He talked on whether Jesus would be a "twitter" on "facebook" or even have His own website. Angie and the bell choir rocked their song too :carrot:

TAMMY I hope your DH has a safe trip. Stay safe from the storms, I saw on the news this morning how strong they have been.

ROSEBUD The Creole pasta sounds awesome. We have a real simple tomato/basil/bacon pasta dish we make that I just love. Hope dh has fun building the shed...can he come over and build one for me? ;)

KATHY Angie and I live in a track, actually several tracks of homes, that is close to business. We are off the busy streets but close enough to walk to them. We can head out of our house and go many different directions. If we want to walk to Starbucks, with the mutts, we can get there in a little over a mile, then go the long way home from there right at 3 miles. One of our favorite routes is right through the neighborhood, out 1.5 miles and back. This route goes right by my kids new house too, right about the halfway point which is cool. The walk is on sidewalks and about 1.5 miles of it is up a street that is really pretty and shaded with trees. We have many options, we actually have walked to church, which is about 3 miles away.

AGGIE I wanna join your family!! :) Sounds like a fun place to be on party days :carrot: I will try to remember to take pictures of the house today. I hope all is well with you and your kiddos :hug:

WILMA A BBQ with the boss...hummm...new job....hummm ;) One day I am gonna have to have that hamburger soup! Hope you got the planting in :)

SCOOTER I hope the trip is going well :)

BEV we are missing you! :hug:

COURTNEY I hope the sadness with the BF family is easing as they go through these difficult days of his aunt's passing :hug:

BARGOO~RONNI ~ KAREN ~ SUE ~ LAUREN ~ TAMMYJO and EVERYONE! :)

Hi Everyone! Happy Memorial Day to you all!

Today is a beautiful day. I was able to get a 2 mile walk in. Also did a lot of laundry. It was so nice an hung my towels out on the clothes line. I love to hand clothes out.

It sounds like we are to get rain tomorrow so I will probably have to get on the treadmill. That isn't my favorite thing to do, but it is better than not walking at all. Walking outside is better because you can hear the birds sing and see the beauty of God's handywork.

Tomorrow is back to work and I'm not ready. I took Friday off, so having this long weekend spoiled me. There is a lot more work I want to get done.

Have a great week!

Kathy

Hi all! I've read everyone's posts and prayers are ascending. What a busy thread this has been while I have been gone!

We are back safe and sound, and it was a WONDERFUL trip to Chicago!

More details later, but I did want to check in with all of you! I missed you!

Prayers ascending!


Blessings!
Laurie :scooter:

HI LAURIE ~ nice to see you back too; glad you had a great time in Chicago ... WOW, Laurie -- just read your post details about your trip; sounds like awesome fun. Can't believe you gained anything eating so well and walking 9+ miles each day; but it may have been the 'stout' for sure ... ;)

GARY ~ your pasta dish sounds very tastey too; bet the bacon gives it a nice flavor as well. Will have to try that sometime too. We serve the Creole Pasta in bowls just to make it seem like we are eating huge amounts when really we're not. The only thing Creole about it is the tomatoes, as we don't put any fish in ours, although I have heard that some people put tuna in their versions. Just three ingredients really: pasta al dente, chopped tomatoes (fresh sauteed or canned), plus we add a bit of cheese (we just use about 1/3 cup processed cheese), but any kind will do. Sometimes, we just have the tomatoes and then sprinkle grated parmesan or romano cheese on just before we eat it (but you MUST put lots of black pepper in it ;) and a bit of salt; if you used canned tomatoes, you can leave out the salt if you want to, or add to taste).

We just stayed home today and rested, as we were gone almost 12 hours yesterday at our lot. DH got lots done; we took up a load of wood and he did another row of cross-blocks for the floor to save money on wood (only one to go and the floor gets started). Didn't have dinner until after 9 pm last night, so I just had a BLT and DH had his beloved Super (big) Dogs!

Anyways, we had a really healthy dinner of nice tender sirloin steak (DH had hamburger steak), mushrooms & onions & kniblets corn, and other veggies (sliced tomatoes & cucumber) on the side; so had a good OP day today. I had to put my legs up for a couple of hours this aft, and will again as soon as I post here and have my evening tea.

BBL ... gotta go for a sec ... OK -- I'm back; had to go help DH with something. We have noticed that the steps at my Dad's cottage are way too steep for me and they are aggravating my knees and feet, so DH is gonna put some proper stairs in with railings on each side like the ones we have here. Another project for poor DH; but he says not to worry about it, as he likes to keep busy and hates just sitting around doing nothing.

Anyways, not much else going on around here; as soon as we feel better, we'll go back up to the lot and get some more done. We may follow last year's schedule again, so we don't totally wear ourselves out. I think that we'll have to limit it to about 2 days a week, as it seems we need at least a day or two in between, to recuperate after a long day at the lot.

HI to all our CE friends and MIA's -- hope you all have a WONDERFUL WEDNESDAY!!! :hug: ROSEBUD :hug: ^^Prayers^^ continue for you and yours ...

OK, I've got an extra lb. to lose. My weight was up 3 lbs. this morning - two of which I had already planned for. Back on plan this week!

Warning - food porn alert below!

Chicago is the BEST for vegetarian fare. Lots of strictly vegetarian restaurants, and so many others that have a great selection. Back home we usually have the choice of one or two items on the entire menu.

My favorite restaurant on the trip was Karyn's Raw Cafe (http://www.karynraw.com/Gourmet-Menu/). They had a Sunday brunch that was absolutely amazing. Pricey - but we had a $25 certificate that made it worth the splurge :)

Karyn's Cooked also had some wonderful food! We really enjoyed both locations.

The surprise hit was Handlebar (http://handlebarchicago.com/) which is a "biker" (as in pedal type) bar/restaurant. We had an amazing asiago penne veggie dish - one of the best pasta dishes I've had!

The Chicago Diner (http://www.veggiediner.com/wp/) is a favorite - good old fashioned comfort food - vegetarian style. The avocado tostada was scrumptious!

Of course DH's absolutely favorite part of the trip is ALWAYS the Triple Chocolate Stout Cheesecake with an oatmeal stout to chase it down. (There is the extra lb - right there - even though we split it ;))

Thankfully, Chicago is a WALKING city. We barely used our transportation pass and chose to walk almost everywhere. We averaged 9 miles a day :D

The plays were good - with "Twelfth Night" at the Shakespeare theater on the pier being our absolute hands-down favorite!

We rounded out the trip with a trip to the zoo and several parks, the Beer Garden on the end of the pier had different bands each night, and fireworks on Sunday :)

Laurie: Your trip sounded awesome. I think you did really well with only a 3 lb gain. You'll get that off in no time!

Rosebud: You are a very busy and organized lady! Those sound like really long days. What are you building on the lot?


Gary: Isn't it amazing what we'll do for our kids even though we'd rather be relaxing? I guess we wouldn't be doing it if we didn't love them. Your day at the Chocolate Festival sounded like fun. BUT, how could you NOT have bought any chocolate? I just don't understand that!:D

Gotta get going to work! Have a great day!

Hi everybody!!

I didn't make it on yesterday. Our internet is down at our house. The repairman is supposed to be out to take a look at it today.

My daughter is down to her last two softball games for the season. Her team is tied with another for first place in our league. The bad part is two of their best players are out of town this week. We were at the ball park last night until after 10PM. Either way my daughter has been asked to play on the all-star team this summer. Looks like they will have a pretty good team and they are expected to make it to the regional level - at the least. That means more activities for the summer.

Well, thanks to the holiday I've got a very short week this week at work so I better get back to business so I can get everything done.

Hope everyone is having a great week!!:)

Hi, everybody!

Laurie-I'm glad you had a great time in Chicago! We go to the western 'burbs to visit my sis, but never really do anything else, because everything seems so expensive. My bil brags about the Chicago pizza, but has never taken us out to get any (he's cheap-he always goes to the gas station and gets frozen pizzas:p for us). Oh, well.....but glad you had fun and don't worry-those 3 pounds will be gone before you know it!

EZ-I also can not believe you went to a chocolate festival and got no chocolate! Amazing! Or, was it all fancy, filled with icky gooey stuff kinds of chocolate:p? I'm a purist-I like my chocolate dark and plain. Glad you had a nice time! You're a good dad, too, helping your kids. Not many dads are as dedicated, you know.

Well, :wave: to everyone else too! I'll try to get more time later to come back, but must get something done here now. DH is at doc with his dad and sister, so waiting to find out what all the final test results say and if they are going to try any kind of treatment. Take care, you all!:grouphug:

Hi all - hope you had a good day! I'm still trying to get caught up after being gone. Back at it with the shape boxing today!

DH signed me up to be on his "team" at work for "Let's Get Moving Northern Michigan". It is a wellness competition among the cities/towns up here. So, in addition to getting rid of those couple of Chicago lbs., we are trying to help out the hospital pharmacy team. All the walking in Chicago counted, so we are actually helping the team quite a bit :)

Oh, and I'm down a lb. today :D

Ronni - prayers continuing - let us know how the tests come out!

Tam - sounds like a busy summer ahead! I don't miss all the kid running we did with the boys! It was fun, but I'm glad it is over ;)

Wilma - I'm with you - chocolate is definitely a weakness for me! Yummy, dark chocolate :D

Rosebud - you take it easy, don't injure yourself! Take care of those legs! Prayers continuing for your health.

Prayers continuing for all!
Blessings!
Laurie

:wave: HI EVERYONE ~ we had lovely weather today and warm temps too, with a pleasant light breeze. I could only sit on the deck a little while as the south sun was hot, but it would be nice now as the sun is on the west side.

DH went to the old farm and picked up the wood needed to rebuild the steps on my Dad's cottage and start the small shed. So we hope to go up to the lot one more day this week, but not sure which one it will be as a friend of DH's needs his help for something tomorrow.

HI WILMA ~ we have a few projects this year: 1) fixing the steps on my Dad's cottage so they stop hurting my knees 2) a small 8' x 8' shed for tools 3) the floor of our cottage. If we have any time left after all that, we will just continue on, and get as much done as is possible on the cottage until the fall.

It all depends on time, health, and $$$; as we want to buy and build, in that order. We ordered our generator this week; that will give us the power to cut the wood, and later we can use it for temporary power. We are going to start with handy battery lights and such (if needed only); later the hydro will be hooked up (we hope). One-step-at-a-time though ... ;)

Our plan is in phases -- becuz we don't want to have a mortgage or any debt when we are done. My Dad did his that way, so we know it can be done, if we stick to our plan. We have wood already for the shed and the deck and part of the porch from DH's other little building, which was actually a small house (24' x 16') that we bought years ago to take to the lot. As we had to leave in a rush, we didn't have time to have it moved to the lot, so Dh had to take it apart piece by piece (and he did). A nice fella let us store the wood and siding in his garage over the winter.

Now, the cottage itself is being built out of all NEW wood and materials; and we are buying that in small bunches (just enuff to use at one time; like each week, for instance); that is the way my brother suggested to do it, as that costs less and is easier to cart in our trailer. The phases are: 1) site prep (done); 2) foundation (done); 3) floor and supports (doing now); 4) walls & roof; 5) doors & windows & siding; 6) inside stuff like plumbing etc 7) indoor & outdoor finishing (liked back deck). So, that's the nutshell of the plan! :D

Gee, sorry if that's TMI (too much info); got off on a rant, but we've been planning this for so many years and it's such a big dream for us. It's very exciting to see it progressing as it is, just gotta watch those things that come up that get in the way of getting things done, so we have decided to designate 2 days a week to go there (no less than 1 for health reasons), and the other five for everything else.

Anyways, I just stayed home and did small chores around here. We had some lovely boneless and skinless chicken breasts with roasted veggies tonight for dinner (carrots, onions, celery, cauliflower, broccoli, and new potatoes). I also made some of my very own special coleslaw that I call --"HEAVENLY COLESLAW". I made two small batches for the week using my new mini-hand chopper/whizzer thingy I got for Christmas, but if I was making a large batch, I would use my regular Food Processor (FP).

HEAVENLY COLESLAW:

1/4 large red/purple cabbage, minced in Food Processor
2 x carrots, peeled and minced in FP
1 small onion, also minced in FP
*salad dressing of choice*

*I like to use either Miracle Whip salad dressing or light CEASAR salad dressing you buy from the store. You could also make your own light version of dressing with oil & vinegar and herbs OR light sour cream with herbs too. Also, if I am making this for a crowd (which isn't too often these days), I add some green minced cabbage too. This is a very bright and pretty coleslaw and the onion makes it nice and pungent too, just the way we like it.

I prepare this ahead with no dressing and keep it in sealed containers in the fridge. It will keep at least a week in the fridge very well, but I eat it almost every day so it goes pretty quickly. Just before serving, I mix in my dressing of choice for that day.

Anyways, not much else going on here; the sun is getting pretty hot out there; think I'm gonna have to pick up a window blind for my kitchen window as that western sun comes beating down on us and the temps go up to the roof. Oh, DH just opened up the big windows and we now have a nice, cool breeze whafting through here ... ahhhhhhhh!!!

Whoah ... looks like I wrote a book! :lol: Hello to all our CE friends and MIA's out there; have a great evening. :hug: ROSEBUD :hug: ^^PRAYERS^^continue for you and yours ...

Hi everyone! I just got back from choir practice so I thought I would check in. It was cold and rainy here today, but I was able to get a 30 minute walk in and lifted weights for 15 minutes.

Work was crazy and very stressful today. I ate one mini snicker for my stress, but was able to keep it under control otherwise. It wasn't easy.

We just got the word today that my husband starts his new job on Monday. I'm so glad he finally got a job. It will sure help to lift the load.

I must run. Have a good evening.

Kathy

HI GALS ~

I am waiting for Angie to get home from church. She is teaching 2 classes of yoga tonight. I am watching the Laker game. we are having bbq chicken sandwiches tonight for dinner.

I have...we have...been busy at the kid's new house painting and moving stuff in. I took some pictures of us painting but can't seem to get them to come up :(

Angie and I will go over Friday and help my son paint one of the bathrooms and my bil and I will go over Saturday to paint the high stair way, I need to bring scaffolding from work, then I think that is it for awhile except for some touch up. Son was "whining" in his :D comical way yesterday about all the painting and I said "It's your fault for buying the big house" and he says..."No pops, it is your fault for telling Nicole and I to buy one big enough to live in your entire life if you plan on having kids"...

I am not sure of the sq footage...gotta be between 2,100-300 sq ft. It has a master bedroom and bath, 2 bedrooms, another full bath and a bonus room upstairs bigger than the two smaller bedrooms. Downstairs is a family and living rooms, den, kitchen and a 3 car garage with a laundry room in it. It also has a yard with a yard big enough to play catch in. A requirement my son had because of all the years he and I played catch with baseballs and footballs and played basketball in the back yard...with his sister playing "girlie" stuff. I remember we would play catch for awhile then run over to her for her tea parties...she would be the "crowd" watching our game along with her "babies"....I miss those days :(

But then I have these two golden receivers! That keep me busy....I throw...I fetch...they get a cookie....something wrong with this picture ;)

YOU GALS ARE THE BEST!!! :hug:

Sounds like everyone is busy this summer!

My husband is back from his trip! :)

Our internet is still down at our house :mad: The repair man came yesterday, but he didn't bring the part that he needed to fix it, so now he has to come back. That wouldn't be so bad, but getting them to come out in the first place was like pulling teeth!

Last two league softball games for my daughter tonight. Wish us luck (well not really luck, but pray God will let us win! ha!)! These will determine if we finish first or second, either way they did pretty good and I'm really proud of them.

I'm off work tomorrow and looking forward to spending some time with my husband. I missed him while he was gone!

Hope you all have a great day!

~Tammy~

Hello, Everyone! School's out! Finally:dance: And, we managed to finish our grocery shopping while DS2 finished his final exam, which is a very good thing, since we were out of almost everything! Now, if only he can get a job-he's put out several apps, but no calls yet. :(

To update you all on my fil. Test results were not good. Besides the 6" tumor in his lung and around the heart and bronchus, there is another tumor behind his liver and one more in his abdomen, along with 3 in his brain. They are starting radiation Friday for the brain tumors and will do chemo after the radiation, but the treatment is only to "help prolong and improve his quality of life" but he probably only has about 6-9 months. It's kinda strange to be planning for the end. All my close relatives have died suddenly, by sudden illness or accident, so I found myself wondering if it's inappropriate to be looking in stores for clothes for a future funeral. I want us to be prepared and not have to rush out to find the boys suits, but I don't want to be morbid, either. Anyone else faced this? My fil says he wants to be cremated and the ashes spread at the local dirt racetrack:lol: Just knew he'd want something like that! All prayers are truly appreciated.

Tammy-best wishes for the softball games! No matter what the outcome, I'm sure your DD's had fun!

EZ-your son's house sounds wonderful! We'll trade him even-up for a nice little house in small-town Iowa;) Oh, and the receivers get the cookie because they've learned how to keep you busy and entertained!:lol:

Kathy-PTL for your DH's job starting and for you in dealing with the stresses wisely and not inhaling the entire bag of Snickers! Good job!

Well, gotta go get something out for dinner, so God bless you all and take care! Have a great day!

Ronni :hug: Being prepared is not morbid. And, being prepared to celebrate the life and resurrection of another is a good thing! So, go pick out those clothes now. It will help the boys prepare mentally as well.

Tam - hope the games go well!

Gary - don't you just "love" it when your own words come back to haunt? :lol: It was good advice indeed. Being able to stay in this house for 20 years has definitely helped our financial situation!

Rosebud - how exciting that you are actually seeing your dream come to life before your eyes! You are very wise to pay as you go, too. We did that when we built our first house - it took 9 years from start to finish, but it was all paid for in advance :)

Yucky weather here - cold and rainy for the last 3 days. No opportunity to ride my :scooter: :(

At least the flowers are loving all this rain ;)

Prayers continuing for all!

Laurie :scooter:

Hi everyone!!!

Well, I've been super busy and have had a great weekend/week. This weekend DH and I kept our DN and went to visit my brother and his family and my parents came up and brought their RV and stayed at a campground. DN was such a PLEASURE to keep up with and to take care of. I can't believe that her parents have literally zero desire to want to take care of her and to be an active part of her life. Ok, not going to go into that...

This weekend was great, my side of the family all cooks healthy so staying OP was not a scare or issue for me. Plus something I've noticed is that when I have DN and I'm trying to make sure she is eating I tend to eat less b/c I feel full when I am full. Go figure huh! lol It was so nice seeing my parents, brother, and SIL and my beautiful Nephew, he is getting so big, and looks JUST like my brother! LOL

DH and I came back on Monday and we took DN home to her house. Her "parents" (which I like to call them "donor" and "host") was all laid up in the bed when we got there. We had been there for like 5 minutes before the "host" decided to come out to see her, she picked her up gave her a kiss and a hug and set her down then grabbed some clothes from her bag and went back to the bedroom with the "donor." My MIL had to take DN back to see the "donor," then come to find out that they did not give DN any love or attention the rest of the night, they left to drive around get high or whatever they do all day and never once played with her, fed her, changed her diaper, bathed her or anything. And yet they NEED her! HA! she is a pawn to them. er..... sorry.... i get so fired up over this!

Tuesday was my scheduled day off so I had a lovely 4 day weekend. I did laundry and my Bible study then DH and I went to Hobby Lobby for some supplies. We are going to PAINT! I'm so excited. Mine will be something that I feel I should do to represent what God has done in my life. My DH on the other hand wants to splat paint... lol he's so funny!

Yesterday was a normal Wednesday night and today the same ole Thursday. Tomorrow and Saturday should be fun. We're having a Prayer Meeting with the youth tomorrow night and a car wash fundraiser on Saturday. hey DEBI you should come up and support!!!! LOL

I've really been trying to count my calories and stay OP, I have been doing good and was very happy to see when I was on the scale at the dr's office today that I was down another 3 pounds. I'm always leary about it though b/c they do it so fast! I will take it though.

So, the dr's appointment. In February I went to my OB/GYN (1st visit actually) and had my yearly exam. I explained to him that I have PCOS and that DH and I are TTC. He put me on 2,000 mg Metformin daily and also paired it with Clomid. He told me to do that for two months and if I do not conceive then to come back and we will discuss options. So if I had normal cycles that would have been back in April. well, I don't so I'm actually on day 62 right now... He told me today that we've got two options right now, I can either continue with the meds for another couple of months or have a procedure done called ovarian drilling. WHAT??? apparently he will laparoscopicly drill my ovaries about 5 times to decrease male horomones and to increase ovulation. I told him that my husband is a minister and we do not have insurance so I would rather continue with the meds. He told me that he was "comfortable" with me doing that. So PLEASE everyone pray that God will bless me and DH with a precious baby within these next two months.

Well it's late, and DH has asked "what are you typing in there!" LOL Thanks for listening to my ramblings.

Hi everyone!

Well, dd's team ended up being second place. They were both close games. Very exciting and fun to watch. DD's coach had her catching the second game. She has NEVER caught before in her life. I was so surprised, she actually did pretty good! She got some awesome hits and played good defense too.

Spending the day with my husband today. We slept in a little this morning and now we are about to head out for a daily walk. After that I think we may head out to my favorite (mexican) restaurant for lunch.

We did manage to get our internet working at our house. But whatever fried the modem must have fried our router too. :( Have to have the laptop hooked up to a cord to get online. It's amazing how spoiled I have been to being able to roam all over the house and still be "connected." :o :)

Hope everyone has a great day!

TAMMY ~ just want to mention that electrical storms can fry your modems (and possibly your router cards as well). LAURIE is our resident computer expert on this thread, but this happened to us during a bad storm once, so now whenever we have a bad storm, we UNPLUG the power cord -- and we also DISCONNECT the phone line that supplies the internet to us. We have a very good quality POWER BAR, but even that does not give a 100% protection against really bad storms or lightening strikes ...

Hi Everyone.

Not too much time to post today but i wanted to drop by and say thanks to all of you. It rained on us the day of the funeral. And the procession on the way to the cemetarty got split up 3 times! by people who clearly dont understand the laws of the road. But it was a beautiful serviece and the family in held it together really well. After the wake was nice and it was a great time for most of the family to mend those broken relationships. We had the family over last night for a cook out after the wake and it turned out very nice. Luckily it was nice outside cause we dont have enough room in the house to fit our 30+ guests that we had. Hope everyone has a great day. HAppy Friday! Oh yea and i put a bid on a new car. The credit union that i work at does silent bids on cars that we repo. Keeping my fingers crossed taht i had the highest bid. My car needs to be retired here soon.

Lauren - so happy to have you back posting! Thanks for the update! :congrat: on the loss :D

Tam - I would be lost without my wireless connection! I know what you mean! Congrats on your DD's team results.

Rosebud - good advice to Tammy! Hope you are doing well and not overdoing it today ;)

Courtney - :hug: Hope the new car works out for you!

Good day here - glad it is Friday! The last couple weeks of school are always CRAZY!

We finally got some good weather here :D
I hope you all have a blessed weekend. Prayers ascending!

Laurie :scooter:

Hi everyone,

Had not been here for a day or two, not feeling really well but really wanted to come a say hello. Miss talking you darlin's, hope I will be back up to parr soon. Hugs, love and blessings to all. Take care, see ya soon.

Love Aggie

:) I am here...busy at the kid's house!

Hi all, happy Saturday :)

Ags - hope you are feeling better soon! Prayers ascending!

Gary - don't work too hard on that house ;)


Busy Saturday here - being gone last weekend means that I didn't get anything done around the house. So, I have two weeks worth of chores to get done. And, two contractors were here to measure the roof. This old house is need of a new roof, badly. And, with the current tax incentive - it makes sense to get it done now.

I'm happy to report that the Chicago lbs. have disappeared and my ticker is accurate again :woohoo:

Prayers continuing for all!

Blessings!

Laurie :scooter:

Hi guys :)
Just dropped by to say I'm a Christian girl as well who is definetely going to need God's help with losing this weight.

Hi All!

Trust you had a good day. I didn't feel good when I got up this morning so I didn't get a walk in, but as the day went on I felt much better. This evening we worked outside and pulled weeds and mowed grass. I just love being outside.

Ags I hope you are feeling better soon. Keep encouraged.

Have a good evening and a blessed Sunday.

Kathy

:wave: HI EVERYONE ~ the day started off with some sun, but dark clouds rolled in and we had :rain: for most of the day and it was windy and cold too (chilly & damp which goes through my bones ... yuck!) So I just stayed indoors and rested today; except for the daily chores and meals and such, of course.

We didn't get done what we had hoped today, as DH went to use our trailer and noticed that the signal lights weren't working right, so that's gonna be a job that must be solved right away; but he had to stop when it started to rain on him. Our generator we ordered came and we will pick it up next week sometime. Didn't get to the lot as the weather hasn't been good at all.

:welcome: ELEANORIGBY ~ glad you found us; tell us a bit about yourself so we can get to know you better. This is a friendly group and very supportive too.

AGGIE ~ I was wondering what had happened to your cheerful self. You have such a fun-lovin' southern flare to your personality that it is very noticeable when you are not around. Hope you are feeling better soon; prayers going up for you and yours too ... :hug:

THANKS LAURIE ~ trying to keep warm and dry right now; we are experiencing a kind of wet and cold late spring up here ... not too comfy.

HI COURTNEY ~ prayers going up that GOD will bless you with a better car ...

HI GARY ~ kids are blessed to have such a good Dad like you; and I'm sure they know it ...

LAUREN ~ prayers ascending for you and your family at this time ...

HI to KATHY & TAMMY & RONNI, and all our other CE's and MIA's out there ... hope you all have a SUPERBLY SERENE SUNDAY !!!

:hug:ROSEBUD:hug: ^^PRAYERS^^ continue for you and yours ...

;)Hi Justwant2Bhealthy! Thanks for welcoming me. :hug: There isn't much to say about me, I'm young (only 15) and I've been overweight for around 6 years and I've really had enough!

I know I'm not a "fat" person on the inside, I just need that to translate outside. I really want to make more friends, get a boyfriend (!!!) and join the track team next year.

As for my Christian faith, I've been offcially saved since I was about 8 years old and 'renewed' that when I was 13 after going through a state of emptiness and depression. Even though my life isn't ideal at the moment I always have God to fall back on and there's no amount of weight loss in the world that can come close to that kind of happiness.

With diet, exercise, AND prayer I know I will lose weight this summer! I'm SO motivated right now!

Speaking of motivation I'm making a workout playlist right now on iTunes :cool:

Hi everyone! Aggie got thru to me today...I'm sorry I haven't been on...I have been traveling a lot and just going thru some 'head' stuff.

:welcome: eleanor rigby! like the beatles, do you? :)

i haven't read to catch up...so sorry for not doing that. i'm tired. it's been a lot lately. but i am good. God is good! i've missed you all!!!! i've not been in the gym in a week due to travel and this nasty coughing thing i got while flying everywhere. but hopefully, i will monday!

school may be over for me for now. i somehow got denied student loans for next year. guess God has another plan for me! :D maybe it involves a husband, child and travel...fingers crossed and prayers going up!

take care!

Hi everyone! We finally got moved to MO. YAY!! Things are still a mess but it is getting better. My Dad is in a skilled nursing center and he has good days and bad. They have told us he really has just weeks left with us here on this earth. This past Monday he was doing fantastic and was up most of the day and beat the pants off of everyone playing dominoes!! Then Tuesday he had a really bad day and it has been up and down like that since we got here on the 15th. So between tryiing to get the house set up and going to see my Dad everyday it has been a busy time! I really don't even have internet set up yet--- just being able to catch an unsecured connection every once in awhile. We should have ours set up by the 10th.

My son and his family are here and have been a big help with getting heavy stuff done. I'll be pretty sad when they leave in a couple weeks to go back to Florida!
I hope everyone is doing good. I will try to get on here more often and let you know how things are going here. Take care and enjoy the rest of your weekend!!

eleanorigby :welcomes: Glad you joined us! Post often so we get to know you!!!! How wonderful you are dealing with those extra lbs. now :cp: Take it from this "old lady" - you will be so glad you did!

Kathy - I'm out to pull weeds today too - they have grown so tall since we got all this rain!

Bev - I like your attitude girl! When God closes a door, he always opens a window. Stay "tuned in" to His will, and I'm betting that the year has some twists and turns in store for you :D

Karen - prayers continuing for your Dad and your family. I've been through it with both my and DH's dad and it is very hard. :hug:

Well, I'm off to tackle those weeds! I hope everyone had a blessed Sunday!

Prayers ascending for all!

Laurie :scooter:

thanks laurie! I know He has a plan that goes beyond anything i could expect or imagine! :)

i'm pretty sick right now. i have a fever and achy. i will be fine...just can't talk

peace

HI GALS ~

Well I have had a busy week-end between more painting at my son's house with Angie, my ex-wife, my brother and brother in law and son and dil. Lots of fun but I think all of us want to be "so over" with it ;)

After painting yesterday, Angie and I went down to my daughter's and :p kidnapper's :p condo. Angie made polenta and chicken cacciatore while the :p and I watched the baseball game...I was so :) happy to be with him as his padres lost ;)

We spent the night then went out early to watch my daughter run her marathon. We got about 5 miles in ourselves. My daughter had a lot of trouble with her right IT Band so she had to stretch every mile or so. She was looking good around mile 14 when we first saw her, she said it was hurting but would be fine...nope :( it just got worse. She was about 45 minutes off what she had wanted to run. She finished in 5 hrs 18 minutes but had hoped for 4 1/2 hours. She is hurting now but ready to do it again :carrot: Besides her brother told her she can't count her first one either...it's just practice ;) 26.2 miles of practice!

Painting again tomorrow night after work....I will get it done one day :carrot:

Take care and God Bless all of you!

Hi all --
Christian Encouragers sounded like a great place to start my new 3FC experience. I was reading through some posts last night after discovering this site and was surprised to notice a little lump in my throat and tear in the corner of my eye. Even those of us who consider ourselves tough cookies need encouragement, and I'm glad to have found a source for it here. Here's my very brief story...

I carry my weight well and like my general shape, there's just too much of me in that shape! We are a military family getting ready to move for the 12th time in 12 years (!), and every time we are displaced by moving, it's hard not to gain at least 5 pounds. After several moves and pound accumulations, my husband was deployed to Iraq 5 years ago. I purposed in my heart to lost the weight, and did it! 40 pounds lost; fit into the wedding dress; more energy and stamina than I'd had in years -- the whole she-bang. Then.... hubby comes home, happiness sets in (just like we you first get married), we move again, I slide off the program, then slide more, then feel hopeless, then wake up one day 2 years later to realize I've put it all back on, plus 10. Ugh. So... Now I'm determined to get back the lifestyle that had me feeling so fantastic 2-3 years ago. We're moving in 2 weeks, but that isn't going to stop me or slow me down this time - I'm confronting it! We have a trip to SeaWorld planned for this September, which will include getting in a wetsuit and swimming with a dolphin, and I'm bound and determined to be ready. However, that's not my primary motivation. My motivation is the same as it was the last time I was successful -- to be healthy and active for my precious family, and to be a good testimony for my Lord. That's pretty much it, in a nutshell.

If anyone out there has lost and regained weight, and lost it again successfully, I'd appreciate your words of advice and encouragement. I know how to do this and I know I can do it -- I've had the necessary "making up of the stubborn mind." I'm just so excited to find this forum where I can be held accountable and report my successes and failures without my sweet husband having to listen to them for the 900th time!

I'm already behind schedule today, but the workout will be done! I'm ready, so here goes... :exercise:

Bev - prayers continuing for your health! Hope you are feeling better soon!

Gary - I hope you get the painting done soon! Glad you got in some miles :) At least that paintbrush will keep the beverage consumption down ;) Seems like we need to tough love you back down to 170 :hug:

fishcookies :welcome: I LOVE your screen name - there must be a story there!

Count me as one who lost, regained, and lost again. I changed jobs, had some family issues and let stress eating become the norm for me. Little did I realize that and extra 100-200 calories a day = 10-20 lbs per year. Multiply that times 8 years, and I put on about 85 lbs.

This time I decided that it had to be a lifestyle change. No more "diets". I also knew that I had to find an exercise routine that I enjoyed if I was to keep at it. I experimented with a LOT of different things until I found what worked.

I like the book Faithfully Fit. It is a spiritual workbook of sorts that helps you turn to God's word to help with emotional eating and yo-yo dieting issues.

Feel free to click on my goal story link for more specifics of my plan.

Gotta fly all - garden is calling.
But - prayers are continuing for all!

Blessings!
Laurie

Thank you, Laurie, for the kind welcome. I have actually already read your story -- I believe it was what put the tear in my eye. Now I have tears in my eyes for another reason -- I injured my ankle on ye olde treadmill today. It's not even that I overdid it -- I think I just had my sneaks tied too tightly. Good grief. I'm fighting back the urge to bawl in frustration at getting so psyched and now this. I can hardly stand the thought of my momentum getting stalled just off the starting block... But I'll figure out how to get back in the game, and my husband (the fitness guru) already has me iced down and propped up... I'm so glad to hear your story and that it really can be done a second time (I even noticed that we shared the same starting weight). I needed to hear that, especially after trying on the swimsuit that came in the mail today. Ugh.

On a happier note, thank you for noticing my ID. "Fishcookies" is something my daughter used to say when she was a toddler. It's from a cartoon where the little character is a penguin, and his favorite snack is fishcookies. On one episode, the penguin was taking a picture of his mother, and instead of saying, "say cheese," he said, "Smile, say fishcookies!" From then on, when my daughter wanted me to smile, she would say, "Mama -- say fishcookies!" :D And a memory was born. Now that's my silly moniker for everything, including my eBay seller name. It makes me smile to see it written.

Blessings,
Shannon

Hey there sweet taters,

I just want to thank all of you for missing me, cause I surely missed each and everyone of you. Legs are getting better but the infection in them is not totally gone and the pain gets pretty fough, but I still here, still alive, and still praising OUR GOD!!! BY HIS STRIPES I AM HEALED!!!!

I AM SOOOOO HAPPY TO SEE MY BEVIE, GOD IS DOING A WORK IN YOU KIDDO, PEACE BE STILL AND LET HIM WORK BEYOND YOUR WILDEST DREAMS. lAURIE IS SO RIGHT, IF HE CLOSES A DOOR, HE WILL OPEN A WINDOW, TAKE IN THE BREEZE AND LET IT FLOW. NOW SLOW DOWN AND GET WELL, OKAY?

Laurie, you always give inspiring advice and I always look for it from you. I am going to start calling you and Kathy the WEED-O-NATORS. LOL

Eleanorigby,
So joyous that you are here, it is a blessing to see young folks like you lovin' the Lord. How positive and encouraging is that. WTG!!! You will accomplish all you have set out to do, you have the right spirit, and determination. You will be right here to support and encourage you.

Gary,
You are doing a lot and that is just the way you like it. Keping it moving I believe keeps you going!!! Your nickname will be SUPERMAN!!! You ROCK!!

Karen, finally all moved in, what a relief and now maybe you can enjoy.

O2bthin (Kathy),
Thanky you for your heart felt words, I pray you will be feeling better even more, and then you can come a pull my weeds. LOL!!

Rosebud,
You do make me smile, it warms my heart to know that people actually miss me when I am not around. That was a boost for me and I appreciate it.
Yes little darlin', the chilly and damp weather is not our friend no matter how much it pretends to be. Prayers that your trailer will be fixed in no time and then, ON THE ROAD AGAIN !!! Hope those bones feel better soon.

Oh my goodness, Fishcookies,
Here is a huge welcome to you, happy you are here, the more the merrier, so sit back, take your shoes and stay awhile, you will fit in just like a glove.

It has been a nice day here today and now I am going to make it a just a little bit better, gonna go and put my legs up.

Hugs, love, blessings and prayers comming your way,
Ags

Aggie - someone told me today that God said "sssshhhh....don't fret, don't question...I got this!" :)

she spoke the same thing you and everyone has said. that God has a plan with me and him! :D

SOMEBODY start a new Christian Encouragers...it's June and I am not gonna do it! ;)

Welcome Shannon!

I painted tonight but not tomorrow night...I willl try and catch up then!

You gals are the best!

Tammy started the JUNE thread (http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=173209) :)