The pain in my shoulder blades is gone except if you touch it. I still have a low grade fever, but I don't really have a lot of cold symptoms. My eyes are burning a little and my nose is a little runny, but I have that a lot because of my allergies. I don't know. Overall, I feel fine. I have been wondering if the dizziness I was having was the start of this. The dizziness is gone now. I don't really know when the low grade fever started because I wasn't checking my temperature until I had that first pain on Wednesday.

Karrine, I'm sorry to hear that Nan got such bad news. My heart goes out to both of you. I hope her pain and discomfort are not too bad. Just remember, she is in God's hands.

Sandy, I mostly use instant rice, either white or brown. I have regular rice, both white and brown, but rarely make it. Most of the time I need rice in a hurry for something so I prefer the instant. I really can't tell the different between the instant and the regular. I have also bought some already made in little cups that you just heat up. I like them, too. I guess I am just not that picky about food.

I don't add much except salt and pepper to my quinoa, but I do use a little more water than the package suggests and cook it a little longer, too. I don't like a lot of spices. Sometimes I will make it and mix in some mixed vegetables. Corn, peas, carrots, green beans etc.

Mary, I will have to google Chinook to see what kind of fish it is. I've heard of it.

EDIT: Hmm, my first google said it was an indian. ha ha Then I googled Chinook fish and saw that it is a salmon.

Good morning GG's,

It is a nice sun shiny day so far today.

I lost my roll LOL (on a roll getting stuff done) and didn't get anything much done yesterday. Stupid headache all day. It is better ~ only slight today ~ hope it doesn't get worse ~ I need to get some stuff cooked today.

My little stick vacuum came and I did get that put together and tried it out ~ on a carpeted area in my closet, but haven't tried it on bare floor yet. I like it so far.

Carol Sue ~ glad that the pain in your shoulder blades is gone and wasn't the more serious thing and perhaps just a cold. Hope you feel better soon.

Karrine ~ so sorry for the bad news about Nan's cancer. She is lucky to know someone as kind and caring as you are for her. Will continue to pray for both of you.

Sandy ~ I love reading about your gardening/planting projects. Plants and flowers are so pretty. My attempts with plants don't turn out well ~ I guess I have a brown thumb, so it discourages me from going to the effort and then it doesn't turn out well. All except one time where I got a cutting of a plant from Steve's office and stuck it in a pot with some dirt and as it grew, kept breaking off pieces and starting more until the pot was full and I had a huge plant.

Mary ~ glad Joe is having luck with his fishing. Enjoy the meals from his latest catch. I saw a kiosk at the mall the other day that had leggins on display and thought of you. I thought maybe it was some of the Lularoe ones, but they were a different company.

Guess I'd better get moving. Hope you all have a good day.

Gayle hope headache leaves you soon. I've come to the conclusion that pushing hard is the only way I'm ever going to do more than gain and gain and become miserable.

Mary I envy you the fish DH caught. Since DH is cooking now, he has determined we shall have fish on Wednesdays and Fridays. Pat and I are delighted.

Walk today with DH in that cold blustery weather. Around the subdivision the roads are good and little traffic this time of day. I was able to get bit over 3/4 mile, but was exhausted. At least I planned it and then DID it. Food is far better this week and eating after dinner improved.

I've come conclusion that I simply must put in extra effort to get rid of this weight if I want the rest of my life to be good. Ted's sister Jennie had to go to Nursing Home with her brain tumor and learning to walk with walker after the stroke that caused her to fall and the need for brain scan that showed the brain tumor. Over 90 years old and of course no doctor will touch her to try to remove the brain tumor. She is so angry after finally regaining ability to talk. She had perforated bowel while in hospital so that surgery also hit her poor body so hard. Her daughter says she sounds nothing like the upbeat and cheerful woman she has always been. Hopefully she'll be able to work thru the extreem anger she feels now. We are 1,000 miles from her and won't be traveling down. Be glad when she at least will talk to us on telephone. We have spent lots of time chatting on phone often in the past.

CarolSue Thank goodness the pain is relieved, but the low grade fever needs watched. Are you getting plenty of water? I've noticed when I feel sick, I forget water and drink too much coffee. In fact time for a cup of Joe now.

Sandy

We enjoyed having our oldest gs here all day. He doesn't talk much and is mostly on his computer (working most of the time I think) but knowing he chose to spend the day with us made us happy. The chicken pot pies were a hit. Funny how sometimes the simplest things are the most liked esp with young people. We each had one and our gs had two. I made the extra one thinking he might. He's a tall, but slender guy and he usually doesn't eat much so I'm glad he did. I like my "cooking" (not much required for frozen entrees!) to be appreciated. :D

Tonight I have to do something with some chicken breasts. Not sure whether he will be with us or not. All the guys (except dh) went target shooting up in the mountains. I think I will prepare the chicken in the oven with veggies. We like it that way sometimes. I usually cut the meat in cubes because dh doesn't like whole pieces. I have some leftover rice so may serve that too although the chicken dish will contain some potatoes as well. In that case I usually don't eat the rice since I prefer the potatoes.

Our oldest son's family came over this morning as his gf's son (abt 6) is going with the guys. So we got to see the baby! The whole fam has been sick and she is still coughing and felt a little warm, but she looks good and smiled and cooed.

Halo didn't know what to do last night. She is used to having two beds to choose from at night, one in the fam room and one where our son used to sleep (we still call it his room). Last night our gs was in there and he chose not to have her so she was left with only one bed! :dizzy: So she was sorta in a dither about what to do. So I got her bed (usually in or son's room) and put it in my office. She was so happy she hardly knew what to do and she lay right down. I put some objects on top of the bed we keep in there to keep her off just in case. She has jumped on it before altho I suspect she had a little help since it's kind of high and she could hurt her back. But any object in her way will stop her. Funny she's so smart in some ways but doesn't understand she could easily get around the objects:?: I'm glad though.

It's a nice warm day again...suppose to get into the 80s again...so dh is bathing Halo outside. I bought her an oatmeal shampoo plus we will continue our usual routine with baking soda and maybe a dilute vinegar rinse at the end. I think we do a better job than Petsmart!

Sandy/Carole - We don't eat instant rice. I used to keep a little on hand for those times I forgot to put the rice to cooking or for fast meals, but we almost never used it so I stopped buying it. I don't mind instant but dh really doesn't like it. I have to say for fried rice, I do prefer white rice over brown. Otherwise I like brown. Dh likes his rice much stickier than I and sometimes if it's too sticky It tastes like starch to me, and I can't eat it. We try to compromise by using just slightly more water than 2 cups (to 1 c rice) but not much more if that makes sense.:dizzy: When I used to make straight brown rice, I needed a bit more water though and that was one of the problems with mixing the two rice types...one would get softer and the other a bit too crunchy. I like one or the other not mixed.

Sandy - Sad to hear about your dh's sister. She's had a long life but it's still not easy to have so many things happen physically. I pray she will go easily and at peace when the time comes. It would be nice if you could all talk on the phone before then.

Karrine - Continuing to pray for Nan, for healing and strength to get through all the treatments. And for you too..I'm glad you are there for her but it must be very hard on you too both physically and emotionally. How old is she (if you don't think she would mind your telling us)? My mammogram wasn't bad..they have a new 3D machine now that slides down and squeezes hard, but then a second later moves and the pressure is eased so easier to stay there while the picture is taken. So better than it used to be and I have sensitive breasts. She had to retake one but I don't think it was because of any concern. Should get the result by mail in a few days.

Glynne - You got a lot done while on your roll at least. This week I hadn't gotten far with the extra tasks but caught up yesterday except for mopping the kitchen floor. Our gs was still up and working on his computer at the table so I didn't want to disturb him. I'll probably get to it today as well as wipe down the table and chairs. If not there's always tomorrow, but we will be going out for a while so today is best. Also need to weekly clean the living room. Flylady calls the weekly cleaning...which is a quick dusting of surfaces, cleaning glass (mirrors, glass doors etc) and vacuuming/mopping middle of floors the weekly home blessing. Everything is just done very quickly and is not a detailed cleaning. I like the idea of blessing my home and it really doesn't take me very long but it's already 12:21 so I need to get to it.

Good morning everyone,
Today is laundry day and I also want to spot shampoo some dirt spots on my living room carpet. I think it will soon be time to have a professional in to clean my whole living room/dining room area. Now that Nan can't do the jobs she always did I need to rethink and create a schedule for cleaning the house myself. Nan always love gardening too but that will all be up to me now. She is still trying to do things and I let her but usually have to help a little bit. For instance she can wash dishes (I don't have a dishwasher) but no longer can put the dishes back into the cupboard as she can't reach that high with her bad arms. We went to her Bank yesterday so she could get her signing authority on her accounts checked out and found that all was in order.

Carol Glad you are feeling better. At our age we have to be alert with any changes to our body.

Gayle You will really like your stick vacuum. I almost bought a 2nd one last week because they were on sale for half price.

Sandy I really envy you at being able to walk 3/4 of a mile. That's great that your eating habits improved lately. So sorry to hear about Jennie and her brain tumor. It is too bad there is such a distance between you.

Mary Your chicken pot pies sound yummy because I love chicken. Glad your mammogram went well. I have mine scheduled for this coming Tuesday morning. Nan will be 79 years old this August. She doesn't mind anyone knowing how old she is.

Have a good day everyone,
Karrine

The fact that this is an "over fifty" thread seems to make it that we all have some ailment that needs to be tended to! LOL I guess that's not really funny in some cases, but it's true. My eyes are watery and nose is runny but otherwise I feel fine. No excessive fatigue, but the low grade fever lingers on. A puzzle to me, but I'm not ready to go through all the tests the doctor would put me through. I'm hoping it's gone by next week. I know that if it's a virus it has to just run it's course. I'm glad I don't feel worse. I wouldn't mind losing my appetite, though. LOL

Karrine, it's good that Nan is still trying to help when she can. She shouldn't wear herself out, but I think helping will keep her mind off the cancer and treatment.

Sandy, I'm sorry to hear about your SIL. I can imagine she is angry about the doctor refusing to remove the tumor, but it is probably riisky at her age. That's very sad. I hope she gets some brightness into her life to cheer her up a bit.

I too have to get more serious about weight loss. I really think I'm doing good with eating, but probably not as good as I think. I also need to get serious about exercise, but don't really want to start now with this fever lingering. I don't know if it would hurt of not. Maybe this is just another excuse. I have many.

Mary, here you are having 80s temps and we are having 30s and 40s with more snow. It's light, just an inch or so, but this should be gone already.

Gayle, I hope your headache goes away today. Is your stick vacuum a push one or is it rechargeable? I would like to get a little rechargeable like I saw them using in a restaurant, but since DH does most of the vacuuming, I will let him continue to use the big one. We have a separate vacuum that we use downstairs so it doesn't have to be carried up and down. Maybe I will see one at Goodwill that I can get for a few dollars. I hate to pay store prices for some things that I can get cheaper at Goodwill. People seem to buy things then don't like them and donate them while they're still new. One man's junk is my treasure! As long as I'm not in a hurry for something I can wait for a donation.

We had to get up early to go to our gs' dance recital. We just made it too as they started his part right on time. His solo came first and although I could tell he was nervous he did better than last time (his first time for a solo). However toward the end he forgot some steps, but then finished ok. His mama said he was in tears when he left the stage...he's a perfectionist and so it was hard for him...also they are moving soon and his mama took him to see his new dance studio, meet the teacher and the kids. Everyone was nice and welcoming to him, but it suddenly dawned on him that he would be giving up his current teacher whom he really loves. He also danced a duo today and did well with that. I'm sure he will miss his current dance partner for a while too. He is a very sweet, sensitive little boy (9). I had bought a skirt from my dd and we finished the transaction while waiting for gs to dance. It is really pretty...red with little while birds flying around it and then on one side (of front and back) you see these little dark birds flying in. Kind of different. I think the birds are navy but it's hard to tell because they are almost black..I don't have a navy blue top but these birds are so dark they often look black so I will wear a black top with it at least for now. Showed dh and he likes it too. After we left the dance recital we stopped at an outlet mall and dh bought a light jacket and I bought the baby a couple outfits. Then we stopped for lunch at Jack in the Box before coming home.

Now I'm tired and don't feel like finishing my house work as I figured. Maybe I'll take a nap and then maybe I'll get at least some of it done.

Good to be in nice warm house on such a cold day. Snow had roof tops white and some on rocks, cars, etc but usually it simply made it icy on windshields and looked pretty falling. Never got much above freezing and that is way too cold for me to be outside in.

Pat was going to the gym so DH and I joined her. He simply watched as she and I got 55 good minutes of exercise of different kinds. I was able to do more than I did on Wednesday. I 've gone very few times the past 3 months, so I was bound and determined this month I was going to go at least every Wednesday and one day on weekend. Only had 2 days in garden and 1 walking, but this week was more active. Housework got pushed back, but with two neat people living with me, it still looks pretty good. I was thrilled I was able to get more reps on the strength machines than I did on Wednesday. Still below what I was when I was going regularly. Now I do ache, but I feel successful.

Love hearing about how each of you are getting along, and your interaction with family and friends.

Thanks for sympathy on Jennie's brain tumor. Hope to talk with her soon. Right now she doesn't want to be bothered. Agree, part of her anger is at this tumor slowing her down and she can't do anything about it and is NOT living in her own place.

Just read The Rocking Chair. What a great novel!!!!

Sandy

Good evening GG's,

It has been a pretty good day. I had a little time of feeling kind of blue ~ then feeling guilty about it. What with some of you here having friends or relatives with such serious health problems ~ I felt bad to be whining about things that are probably trivial in the whole scheme of things.

I messaged with my sister and then she called and listened to me ~ sometimes that is all I need ~ just someone to listen. Not to suggest how to fix anything ~ she sometimes can't help herself and does that, but did a better job today of just listening. ~ sometimes there is no fix really. Just needed a listening ear.

After she and I talked, I got out my guitar ~ I haven't picked it up in a few years and I tuned it up tried to play a little. It had been so long, I couldn't remember how to finger the cords ~ had to look them up on a chart. I was able to play a little, but because of the arthritis, my fingers aren't very strong anymore, and the size of the guitar now kind of hurts my shoulder. I am kind of toying with the idea of getting a smaller inexpensive one so I could enjoy playing a little again ~ found a beautiful blue one on the website of a local music store that was a reasonable price. I guess I got interested again because Sara got a guitar and has been playing ~ had hers over at the house one day. Jason also plays and we were talking one day and he encouraged me to get it out and try playing again. I used to play every Sunday for the youth group at church.

I got a pot of soup made. Tomorrow, I need to make another pot of that chili ~ Maddie really likes it and was asking for it.

Mary ~ I'm glad you got to enjoy your little grandson's dance recital, a visit from your oldest grandson and a visit with your son's family. Getting to spend time with our kids and grandkids is such a bright spot in our days. Your new skirt sounds pretty ~ you should post pictures so we could see. Take a rest ~ take care of your self.

Carol Sue ~ I feel bad that we each other have the health things at times, but it is maybe helpful to be able to share about it ~ maybe one of the others has a suggestion for something to try that has helped them. My stick vacuum has a cord on it and if you take the handle off it is a dust buster. It wasn't very expensive. I get stuff at Goodwill sometimes ~ and then other times, I forget that I should look there first.

Karrine ~ hopefully you will be able to go for walks again after your ankle gets better. You ladies mentioning your mammogram appointments reminds me that I need to get one scheduled ~ it's that time of year again. Glad that Nan is still able to do some things ~ that probably helps her feel a little better about things.

Sandy ~ glad you got to go for a walk the other day. Hope the weather warms up before too much longer so you can enjoy it more. Sorry for Jennie's health problems. That is sad for her. Praying that things will be able to be better for her somehow so that she can feel better and be happy again.

Bobbi ~ thank you for checking in on us. I have heard of cous cous, but have never tried it. I have been using quinoa quite a bit ~ it is in the chili I mentioned ~ Maddie loves it.

Gotta go fix up Steve's supper. Hope you all are having a nice weekend.

Here is a picture of that guitar I am thinking about

I did take a nap and didn't get any housework done. Oh well there is always next week.

Yes, Carole Sue, a Chinook is a type of salmon, and is often called King salmon. It is SO good! Much better than the other kind in my opinion.

Glynne - I didn't know you play guitar! That's nice that both your dd and son do too. I used to play piano but not very well. I was not a good child about practicing but did take lessons several years. My sister practiced and is still a good pianist. The guitar you posted is pretty...of course blue has always been my favorite color.

Gayle, that guitar looks so pretty. I hope you can get it. I think it's so nice that Maddie is interested in it too.

I have found that it's better to stop in at Goodwill every once in a while to see if they have anything you might be interested in, rather than going there to look for something you want to buy right now. It seems that when you are looking for it, they don't have it. We go there at least once a week and browse. DH loves to buy things that he can fix. Our local Goodwill is closing at the end of the year. I don't know if they will open up at a different location. The Hospital bought the whole shopping center and is turning it into medical offices. Each business has to move out when their lease runs out and there are only a few businesses left now.

Mary, my step-daughter's neighbor gets food from the local Food Bank. It contains things that they don't like and she gives some of it to my step-daughter. There were some cans of red sockeye salmon that no one wanted so I took them. I have only had pink salmon, but I will try it out and maybe make some salmon patties. My mother always made them, as all she could afford was canned salmon. I am surprised at how many people will not eat any fish. Fish of all kinds is a favorite of mine and it's so healthy and low in calorie. I had salmon on Friday at a seafood buffet, and also yesterday at home for dinner. Guess I'm all set with my Omega-3 for this week. LOL

CarolSue Salmon patties sound good! I haven't made those in years. We eat fish two times a week and I may bring out the salmon that is in the garage and make the patties. I'll make the can's worth because I'll eat them for lunch the next day. Never thought about them being good bargain, but realize they are.
Weekly I pas good will but always simply contributed, never thought to look inside. Someone complained they hang their clothes by colors not by size, but I think that is a very good idea. I looked for weeks for a dark red winter blouse and couldn't find one. If I'd tried there perhaps I may have done better.

Gayle You play guitar? I do hope you follow thru and enjoy it as much as you can. Bet it would help the arthritis if you don't push too hard. Is yours a 12 or 6 string? I remember I couldn't reach my daughter's 12 stirng but would love to have tried. Now she has a smaller and better one but little time to play. What fun that must have been to sing and play in the Church choir.

Mary Good for you taking time to relax. You work too hard.

We tried to go for walk this afternoon, but could only go 1/2 mile. Better than nothing, but it was in lower 50's and I really hoped to get more distance and burn more calories.

Loved singing in Mass this morning. The Church is a very welcoming and lively place. Friendly, too. Great message as well. Thank goodness DH enjoys going as much as I do. My parents did also. Sunday wouldn't seem right without Church.

After High School I moved out of state for the business school my Mother insisted I take. I hated it. I hated the horrible boarding house and the lousy biscuits and gravy that made most of breakfast and dinner. Lost lots of weight, but did love going often to the Y pool on way home walking from classes. I was so depressed I tried a few weeks of NOT going to Church - made life worse. Never again will choose to do without what I need.

Sandy

Wonderful service at church this morning. I wore my new skirt for the first time. I wore it with a black Lularoe top and topped it with a black, gray and white sweater. Sometimes our church is kinda chilly even for me. I also wore red socks with my black ankle boots. I was thinking how in the past I wouldn't have been caught dead with socks and a skirt...how I've changed! I didn't want to be cold since it's the first time I've bared my legs this year. I figured if my feet were warm at least, I'd be ok and I was.

After church we ate out at a new Asian place we recently found. It was ok..the food was fresh and I liked they served smaller portions. Unlike most places here they served from the lunch menu even though it is Sunday...that meant the servings were smaller and the price is less. Fine with me. Even with the smaller entrees, dh brought home about 1/2 his.

I took a 2 hr rest/nap after we got home and a little while ago, our son called to chat for a while.

My dd (who sells Lularoe) was on Periscope today and it was my first time on there. It was fun watching her interact with her customers. I don't think she recognized my username as I forgot to tell her what it is. ;) So many ways to communicate with people these days, it's amazing.

I like salmon patties too...dh finds them too dry so I usually make a white gravy to serve on top and sometimes I add peas to it as for some reason I think peas go with white cream gravy. I use canned salmon when I make them. I can eat other salmon like sockeye or choho but really really prefer Chinook (King) grilled! I don't know what you can get back there but here's a list of Pacific salmon. We stay at the top of the list (top 3) http://zesterdaily.com/fishing/alask...acific-salmon/

Sandy, our Goodwill hangs their things by size, but The Salvation Army Thrift Store hangs theirs by color. It does make it harder to look through for you size. I don't buy many clothes there, mostly household items. I buy purses there because I don't like to spend a lot of money on purses. Yesterday I bought a pair of denim capris for 99 cents. I like to wear denim capris because they go with any color top.

Mary, I usually cook my salmon on a grill pan on the stove. I am going to try poaching some one of these days to see if I like it. I'm sure fresh salmon tastes better than the frozen I buy, but fresh is so expensive here and I can afford the frozen. What I cook here tastes as good as what I've had in restaurants, with the exception of the seafood buffet. Theirs is outstanding and it's a treat for me when I get it.

I hope everything is ok with Karrine. This is the second day she has not posted. She is usually the first one here in the AM.

Good morning GG's,

It is a cloudy dreary day here today so far. Weather app says it is supposed to be like that most all day ~ with possible rain. The chance of rain lessens by about 5 pm.

My left knee has been bothering ~ not sure why. I have been keeping up with my PT exercises pretty good. My knee had started to feel a little better, but after those exercises, it felt kind of like those aggravated it. So, I just did them only with the right leg. Yesterday, I added back a few more as my PT lady had instructed me, the knee seemed to feel worse after that, so I guess I will do those only on the right side as well.

My knee (after a night's rest) felt pretty good this morning, so I did my walk on the treadmill. I did 15 minutes instead of 10 so that I only have one more 15 minute session to get in. I like it better when I do 10 minute chunks, but I'll get the first one done, then don't seem to get around to doing the rest of it. Also, if/when I get started on a project, I hate to stop ~ want to keep going and feel frustrated at having to stop to exercise.

My rheumatologist prescribed some cream to rub on painful places. I discovered that it is the same thing as Aspercream that I have seen advertised ~ except that this is a little stronger than what you can buy over the counter. So, I thought I'd try some of that on my knee. That was quite an experience. It came in a tube and I couldn't get the top off ~ saw the words child proof cap. Well this adult couldn't get it off either. I had to use a pair of pliers on it ~ got the top off, but in the process, the ointment oozed out into the cap and onto my hand. Kind of a mess ~ I put the tube in a small zip lock bag ~ was afraid that if I put the cap back on I wouldn't be able to get it off again without making a mess with it. It sure wasn't designed with any thought to how a person with arthritic hands was gonna get it open.

It was kind of a quiet day here yesterday ~ Steve spent time with Sara at and art festival, then later watching Maddie while Sara went for a run, then just visiting and helping her with laundry when she got back. I made the pot of chili and some applesauce that Maddie had been asking for ~ so she's all set for snacks after school.

I made the applesauce in a small crock pot ~ first time to make it like that. I think I will make some adjustments to the recipe next time I make it.

Jason stopped by after work to pick up something. I felt bad that because it would be late at night, I probably wouldn't be awake and get to see him. But this was one time that having to get up in the night to go to the bathroom turned out to be a good thing. He was here and hadn't left yet, so I got to see him and get a hug. I wasn't up very long, but I guess it was just long enough to get too waked up. I went back to bed after he left, but couldn't get back to sleep. So, got up and messed around on the computer until I got sleepy again, then went back to bed. One of the perks of being retired ~ LOL.

Carol Sue ~ where do you buy the frozen salmon? Is it packaged so that you can use just one piece at a time? I think I might look into that. I am supposed to be able to get my protein from beans with this diet, but lately they have been upsetting my stomach, so I am thinking to maybe try getting the protein with something other than beans. The Goodwill here I think hangs their clothes by color and size. I haven't had much luck finding any clothes there because of my size, but I have found other things.

Mary ~ I do play the guitar, not very well, just chords so that the kids at the youth group could sing along. I learned to play it in college ~ sort of self taught ~ there was this cute boy (red hair and freckles and wire rim glasses like John Denver) at the church fellowship group ~ LOL. I was shy, but the guitar gave me something I could talk about with him. Glad you enjoyed your church service yesterday. The outfit you described that you wore sounds pretty.

Sandy ~ my guitar is a 6 string. I always wanted a 12 string ~ they sound so beautiful to me ~ I got a chance once to try one out, but never did end up buying one. Glad you got out for a walk ~ like you said ~ ½ a mile is better than none. And glad that you also enjoyed a nice service at your church.

Karrine ~ How are things at your house? How is your ankle doing? Has that snow melted away? How is Nan doing? When does she start her treatments? Prayers for you both continue.

Guess I'd better get off here and get something done.

Hope you all are having a good day.