[Ruthxxx]

Good morning! I was awake way too early this morning but the dogs were asleep so I stayed upstairs and did some sewingroom tidying. I really need about a week in there to finish odds and sods of sewing.

Busy day ahead with a booster shot for Jazz this morning and then I have to monitor and evaluate a new handler and her dog for pet therapy in another town. Tonight is my garden club meeting and I seem to be on the list for refreshments. I truly can't remember signing up for it but got a reminder in my email. My brain is too stuffed and needs a defrag.

40+80+40=160/60=2.6 Nearly three hours on the road today. Sometimes I resent living in the sticks but it sure is pretty right now with apple trees coming into bloom.

The flood has abated in the dog yard and I am starting to feel better about my septic system. It may not be a problem but I do know it will need replacement eventually and might bite the bullet and just get it done before fall. There's a limit to how many things I can worry about at one time. Right now I have a colonoscopy and jury duty to worry about for this month.

I hope your hump day is relatively lumpless and bumpless.

[cottagebythesea]

Good morning and Happy Humpday!

For the first time in days, it's not raining! We may actually see the sun for a while today, but the rain will be back by tonight. Sigh.

I have some cleaning to do this morning, and Maggie has a friend coming over for lunch and I'm going to let the girls make their own pizzas. I'm hoping it will be dry enough to let them play outside and maybe go for a pony ride. Then it's gymnastics later this afternoon, and that will about wrap up my day.

I tried on a pair of jeans this morning that had always been snug, and they slid right on!

[CyndiM]

Happy day after fresh asparagus feast Yes, it's true, I found asparagus at the newly reopened farm stand (okay, it's a table with a cash box). Can we start an asparagus recipe thread? I'd love to know what other people do with it, especially because I plan to eat as much as I can until it goes away.

Ruth - I did that last week and wished I had someone to blame Enjoy the greenery along the way. It's better than three hours driving in mud season

Cottage - Congrats on the jeans! I hope the weather holds and the girls get outside for awhile.

Well I guess I can't work at home forever so it's back to the office. I've got a fun visit this morning (there will be finger painting) and then am working on a mailing with my team this afternoon. My entire 3 person team lost hours so we will talk about how to do our jobs with three less days a week. I have a great team and it does help going through this with them. I'm slowly moving out of my funk though I think it will take awhile. After 10+ years it is like a death and I'm reminded of it every time I enter the office.

On the plus side I've mostly managed to avoid comfort eating, though I spent too much time with the peanut butter yesterday. I've discovered the weight watchers "free soup" trick and love it. Every week I make a large pot of soup with fat free broth, cabbage, greens, a can of diced tomatoes, some shredded carrot and any other low cal high fiber veggies that need to be used, and season the whole thing with something spicy (chili paste or salsa). I have a bowl with meals when I know I'll need help with portion control. It's filling, really good for me and yummy. And I know most of you already know this trick, I'm just late getting here

Time to get moving. hope the rain holds off and I can get a walk in today.

[TwynnB]

Good morning chicks!

Ruth - Yeesh, how do you do it all? I get tired reading your post!! Don't forget to get some rest!

Cottage - yummmmm, pizza Congrats on the jeans!!

Cyndi - Sorry work is so tough lately. Although, I do admit, finger painting sounds like fun. Also, I made an asparagus salad a while ago...asparagus, tomato, onion, and ... what was the main herb? Tarragon I think? Ooops, found it:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Asparag...ad/Detail.aspx

Me - Surgery day at work, so it's shorter. Hopefully have time for a run!! Then, I'm making Matt a cake for tomorrow, Friday is his last day . It's a pineapple cake my SIL makes...FANTASTIC!! We'll just say it's off plan though!! Hopefully, I'll only have one slice .

Have a great day!

[Schmoodle]

Good morning chicks, nothing like a fresh start in the middle of the week! DD said she would bring me my computer by 9AM, we'll see, she is off today and hasn't been well, so I'll be surprised if she's able to haul herself out of bed this morning. She's always been better at that than I am though. If not, I'll run down and get it first thing.

Hooray, stinky pee time! I look forward to asparagus time as much as I look forward to strawberry picking, Cyndi! My mom brought us some from her garden yesterday, mmmm. My favorite way is raw if they're garden fresh, or lightly steamed. I keep them in the fridge and snack on them all day or throw them in salads. I was thinking last night that a frittata would be good. My brother makes a good Asian peanut dipping sauce. And summer veggie soup is one of my favorite snacks.

Twynn,have a great day. Wish Matt luck from the chicks!

cottage, congratulations on the jeans NSV!! That is fantastic!

Ruth, stay safe on those roads today! Have a bumpless hump day yourself.

[Pacergal29]

Happy Hump Day Chicks! It's a bit gloomy today, but that is ok, my flowers need a drink.

Another clean P1 day under my belt, on to the next. Feeling a little off today but it will be ok, I'm armed with dairy & beans!

DD's senior pics are in so I will be working on getting her graduation invitation out this evening, later than I wanted but not too bad.

OK so I have to admit tears welled up in my eyes last night during Biggest Loser when Ron crossed the finish line of the marathon. I never would have believed he could do it just due to his health. What an inspiration!

Hope all you chicks have a great day!

[beachgal]

Yikes, Ruth! I didn't know you before retirement, but I have a feeling you do more now than you did then! You are such a busy bee...don't know how you deal. So glad the dog yard is de-flooded. Wish I could actually get a defrag of my brain...I'm the same way.

:highfive: Congratulations, Cottage, on the wonderful jeans NSV! You are a stud! Hope you have fun during gymnastics!

Cyndi, I'm sad about my asparagus. We've had it three years and it's done great for the past two, but it's not coming up this year. I don't know why--or if it's on its way but is late--but I'm worried about it. I love fresh asparagus, though! I'll check to see if I did a Veggie thread on asparagus. If not, it'll be veggie of the month this month!

Twynn, sorry about Matt leaving. Hope you have time for arun!

Schmoo, about the stinky stuff!

Stephanie, good luck with day 2. Sounds like you have it well under control!

Me:
I'm exhausted. I'm just not getting enough sleep. My nutritionist noted that I gained 1/2 a pound (2 lbs on my scale), but it was half fat and half lean, so that's a relief. Anyways, we decided the main reason I feel like eating my house and then having the garage for dessert, despite the fact that I know I'm full, is the hormones you release when you don't get enough sleep. So I headed upstairs at 9 last night and was asleep by 10:30...it's a record. Then why do I feel like I'm swimming through mud today? I just want to head back to bed. I wonder if I'm fighting off some bug?

Anyways, it's a busy day...off to the gym after work, then a quick dinner at home (I made a turkey kielbasa/bean soup with cabbage in the crockpot), and then off to my food and mood group, which usually doesn't end until 9. So it'll be a fast run around when I get home to try to get lunches made, stuff put away, etc. before an early bedtime, God willing.

Hope you all have a great day!

[nancy237]

My son comes home from his first year of college.

It doesn't seem like long ago that I dropped him off
(in the fall) and cried for a month.

My diet is going good. I am not sure about the scales
but my pants feel looser.

I have to fix dinner for company Thursday and that has me stumped.
Most of the things I used to fix are No-no's now.

Any great ideas...grilling would be fine.
Casual is fine.. (4 teens)

[hmacneil6]

Good morning ladies!!! Happy Hump day!!!

Ruth - Sorry to hear that you're going to be on the road so much today. I hope it doesn't bog you down too much.

Cottage - Congats on the jeans! Fantastic news!

Cyndi - I too love asparagus. Roasting and grilling is probably my favorite way to eat it w/ some olive oil, salt & pepper. I also made a great asparagus and artichoke frittata a while back. Let me know if you want directions...it was quite yummy!!!

Twynn - Hope your surgery goes well. Enjoy your run!

Schmoodle - Here's hoping your DD sticks to her word.

Stephanie - I totally agree about biggest loser. I was totally in tears last night with all of the finishing the marathon. AMAZING!!!!

Laurie - Hope you're able to pull yourself out of the sleepiness you're feeling and find that the sleep you're going to be getting now will be helpful!

Me - I feel like I really need to thank all of you for your kindness. Yesterday was very overwhelming, but knowing you all were praying and such really made things calmer. It's very strange to think that even though we've never met, I feel so connected to you. Thank you all for being a part of my life.
Tonight we're headed to friends for dinner and cooking with the girls. I think we're going to make a salad tonight together. It'll be better than dessert I had been thinking of making before last night. I'm hoping the girls enjoy it!
Have a lovely Wednesday, everyone!!!!
BLESSINGS!

[sophie]

no time for personals this morning. Ruth, I am off to Kingston today.
Hope everyone has a wonderful SB day.
Sophie

[Pearlrose]

Hello everyone,

Am about to head off for a meeting so no time for personals. Sounds like everyone has a super busy day today.

Hmacneil- Glad to hear that yesterday went well.

I only got to watch the weighin last night for BL- I hope they vote Mike to be in the final three.

Today is just work and not sure what is going on tonight at home. Had to work concession stand last night for DD1 soccer game. Also though today is Day 12 for me on Phase 1, still doing good.

Have a great Day everyone.

[SmilesIowa]

Happy hump day!

So today I'm helping at my Uncle's restaurant, yikes! It's only day three for me, so I hope I can stay strong. I figure if I eat meat and veggies, I'll be good.

I also about lost it watching the Biggest Loser last night. When Ron crossed that finish line it just gave me this hope and encouragement that if he can do it, I can do it. It was a really good episode!

Well off to work, have a great day everyone!!

[Chelby29]

Laurie, Could you be pregnant?

We are having the craziest weather today! The tornado sirens were screaming, and it wasn't even raining! What's that about? Right now it's sunny outside, but there is another line of storms coming. Public schools are letting out at 1:00 today. I feel pretty safe with the sun out, but I'm watching local weather.

Y'all have a good day!

[beachgal]

Here you go, Cyndi! Veggie of the Month: Asparagus!

Chelby, I guess I could be, but it'd be unlikely. TOM just left. Good question, though!

Nancy, there are tons of things you can make for company! You may want to check out the recipes on www.myrecipes.com. They have the recipes from Cooking Light (you need to do the "Enhanced Recipe Search" version and select Cooking Light at the bottom of the page), which are really easy to adapt to SBD. Their rating system is based on whether a dish is right for special occasions, so that should help a lot.

[Barb0522]

Yeah! We're up to 174 boys and 109 adults registered for camp. Okay so we still need at least 280 more boys but we are getting there. I'm getting many phone calls and emails from people with questions. Tomorrow night is the staff meeting at my house. I think we should have around 20 people. I need to do some major straightening but at least most of the cleaning is done.

I have Cajun Sausage and Beans in the crockpot which should make it easier since we have to be at the pool for the swimming merit badge tonight.