Wakey! Wakey! I know Kara is out there so we are banging on the chicken coop door to wake the rest of you.

This morning my house is very cold so I'm sitting with a poncho on over my robe until the furnace warms us up. The woodstove usually heats the back room and kitchen but didn't do its job very well last night.

This morning I take my darling Hershey to the Pypers' farm for a few weeks - only two, I hope. I'm really going to miss having her around but there's no way I'll be able to manage her while I convalesce from my operation. Three more sleeps until I get my new knee!

My new puppy arrived yesterday afternoon and is doing well. He was the only pup (first litter for Momma) and is doing well although he will be thoroughly spoiled with no competition at the milk bar. Since he's a Russian breed, I'm thinking of appropriate names - all suggestions welcome. It'll be two months before I get him so there's loads of time. "Igor" is not an option as these dogs always look like puppies. I'll attach a pic of a dog who looks just like his father. He's a rare breed - Tsvetnaya Bolonka.

Gotta grab some breakfast and get ready to hit the road. I hope to be back here by noon unless I get distracted driving past the Big City!

Have a wonderful day.

Great morning to ya Ruth The dog is just adorable & to cute for a name like Igor. Those two weeks you are away from Hershey will go fast and then all will be back like it's suppose to be. Get warm and have a great day!

As for me I am going into te office today even though we are closed. I'm feeling pretty good this morning so I want to see how I do as I don't want to have to go back to doc tomorrow for more test.

Good morning to all the other chickies. I guess most will sleep in if they are closed for the holiday as well.

Check in with you gals in a bit

Oh, Ruth, the pup is adorable! My suggestion is Sasha, the Russian nickname for Alexander. He looks like a Sasha to me!

Hi, Gonna! It sounds like you're feeling a bit better!!! Have fun at the office!

Busy, busy day here. Our friends from the States are in town and we're having a blast with them! It is always fun to see old friends, especially when you can just jump back into conversations as if it hadn't been three years and half a world since you saw them!

I've started on the Extreme Fat Smash diet this week, basically because it's just about the same as Phase 2 and has three weeks worth of meals already planned out for you. I've gotten tired of logging all of my calories and I struggle with portion size issues, so I have to keep on top of that, so this is my lazy way to stay in control. I did give up my daily weigh ins because they were making me bonkers. I'm going to weigh on the first of each month (for the board) and then the seventh day of each cycle (for my personal record) and use those weights to track how I'm doing. I thought I'd be freaking out about not knowing exactly where I am, and using that blissful ignorance to indulge in things I shouldn't, but I feel much more upbeat and dedicated to staying on plan, so this is a good thing. Thank you to everyone who encouraged me to decrease the frequency of scale use!!!

Kara

And Artic cold snap is going through here, it's 11* this morning! I put on my warmest clothes and am sipping a steaming hot cup of coffee, mmmmmm!

The kids have off school, so I'll probably head on over to Cindy's around 10. She's supposed to go fox hunting today, but I wonder if it will be called off because of the weather? No way I'd want to be riding around horseback in this weather! Amber may come with me, I want to see if Cindy has made any other plans first, though.

Who gets the holiday off today?

Seriously? Fox hunting? That sounds so very upper class! Have fun with the girls today!

Kara

Good morning Ruth, GONNA, and Kara!

Ruth, I'd been waiting for you to start this thread, doesn't it figure we'd both post at the same time again? LOL! I gave you some suggestions for the new wee puppy already, but I do really like Kara's suggestion of naming him Sasha! The name suits him perfectly!

Kara, Cindy is very, very into any activity that involves horses. She has 16 of them on the farm. She plays polo in the summer, and is in a very pretigious fox hunting club in the winter months. She's obsessed with her horses, LOL!

It makes me happy that she is able to enjoy her passion! Connor is constantly talking about getting a horse, which we will never do. He'll probably have one as an adult, though!

Kara

Good Morning All

Ruth I know it's not a Russian name but I think he looks like a Bailey. Hope your day goes well and you stay warm.

Gonna I'm glad you're feeling better. Take it easy though you don't want to do too much too fast

Kara I'm glad you're having a nicce time with your friends. Sounds great.

Cottage Stay warm and have a great day.

Me Well, I have to go to work today to get payroll done. I'm thinking about taking a couple extra days off soon though and maybe heaing to Vegas. I need a break from work and home right about now. Have a great day everyone.

We are also in the deep freeze and supposed to get snow tonight.

Ruth The puppy is adorable, I am no help when it comes to naming we had such a hard time naming our own.

Gonna take is easy today, glad you are feeling better and would hate for you to back slide.

Kara Glad to hear you are having a great time with your friends. Good luck on the new "plan".

Cottage I agree, it is way to cold to be out on horses regardless of how much you love them! BRRRR!

Dawn I wanna go to Vegas!

I am putting on another pot of coffee, I think we all need it. Schmoodle there is a special cup just for you since I know you are going to be missing DH bringing you one!

Yes I am working today, hoping with it being a holiday it will be a calm one! Beyond that not much going on in my world. Stay warm girls!

Ruth - I like the name Sasha but there are so many good Russian names. Good luck with the new knee! Have you stocked up your freezer with premade meals to help you during your convalescence? I know you have lots of friends locally but I just hope you are able to rest and recover without trying to do too much.

gonna - I've got to work today but I'm working from home so I do have to admit I slept in until 6:30. I wish I could have slept longer.

kara - Have fun with your friends. I love catching up with old friends.

cottage - I HATE the cold and know I wouldn't be out there.

thin - I love Vegas but haven't been there since I had Brian. It is a fun place.

Me - Brian is home since there is no school. I'm trying to make sure I get everything ready for the hearing tomorrow.

The fox hunt has been cancelled so there's no big hurry for me to leave today. Amber was invited to spend the day with one of her classmates, so she won't be coming with me. I think we'll just spend a nice cozy day beside a roaring fire in the familyroom, getting started on making Valentines. They'll probably want to have a baking session today, too. Hmmm, maybe banana bread?

Just a quick check in to see whats going on.

Kara enjoy your time with your friends and good luck with Fat smashing and beating the scale.

Mornin Cottage enjoy your day!

Dawn thanks for the advice. Vegas! can I go?

stay warm Stephanie Enjoy your quiet day

Hiya Barb have a great day

Good morning everyone. It's a bit nippy outside. I want to drink something warm but I don't drink coffee and I don't have hot chiocolate and even if I did, I can't drink it because of the diet plan i'm on. Tea also. I decided to take a break this weekend from dieting and starting on a new one. I'm gonna start the one I was on when I lived in California. I loved it. I didn't go too much off plan but just ate more than I should have. My husband had his PTSD moments everyday single day this weekend. I think they've lasted all day long Saturday and Sunday. I talked to him about it Sat and Sun and he doesn't realize that he does it. I don't know if he's geting worse or if I'm just getting tired of it. I used to be able to just let it roll off my shoulders but now sometimes I can't. It gets to me. Arg. Well, no puppies yet from our female dog. We're thinking probably end of Jan/early feb. My boys have the day off from school so I have all 4 children while my husband goes to work. A day off----what's that?! Well, I think I've chatted your ears off. Hope everyone stays warm today.

Thin-where in Cali do you live?

Good morning ladies!

Ruth, those 2 weeks will fly by and you'll have a happy reunion with Hershey.: hughat puppy is adorable!!

Gonnabe I hope you have a wonderful day today!

Tomandkara good luck on the extreme fat smash diet! You'll do great!

Cottage enjoy your day by the fire. That sounds cozy!

Thinbyjune have a good day at work today...Vegas sounds nice...I"d like a few days of as well!

Pacergirl have a good day at work today as well. Stay warm!!


As for me....well Yesterday I was off and so I sat here for 4 hours going through all of the wedding pictures online and narrowing it down from 595 to 275 just so I can get my proofs....Once I get thouse i have to narrow it down to 75 just for the album. It was a pain....but it was nice to look at them. It was cold here last night. I think it got down to 10 degrees. It's supposed to warm up to a toasty 35 degrees today lol. I'm one of the unfortunate ones who has to work tonight. I wanna make those peanut butter cookies everyone is writing about!! I'm craving a cookie. I"ll have to do that tonight when I get home! I hope everyone has a great day today!!