Picture it. Sunshine. Light breezes. About 70 degrees. And not having to go to work!! Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!! :D We cleaned up the back yard literally all day long. But it was so beautiful out and I got lots of exercise and fresh air. Felt so much better than being here, that's for sure.

Tuesday night, we went down to Delaware Park for a "must be present to win" drawing. Grand prize was $15,000. Picture it. A million people in a room the size of a glorified phone booth. It was horrible. I'm not normally the claustrophobic (agoraphobic? whatever.) type but it was starting to freak me out. :stress: I understand how people get crushed and trampled in crowds like that. Never again!!! By the time they got to some of the "smaller" $1000 prizes, people were trying to make their way out saying they didn't care if their names were called because even a thousand dollars wasn't worth this.

After the drawing, this wall of people just started towards the door. We found a corner to sort of hide in until the place cleared out somewhat. But it never happened. Even after literally 3/4 of the people pushed their way out, it was still so crowded we couldn't get any machines, etc. We finally left in disgust around 8:30. So much for our late night out. :rolleyes:

But it all ends well, I suppose. We were able to get up early yesterday morning, go out for a nice breakfast, work in the yard for a while, go out for lunch at this great mexican place that's usually so crowded we can't get in, do some more work around the house.... Well you get the idea. I hereby declare that when I'm president, I will make it a law that all companies must have 4-day work weeks: Mon, Tue, Thur and Fri. Wednesday should be a mid-week day off, every week. :queen:

OK enough rambling. I have to go get caught up on all the work that seems to have migrated from the boss's desk to mine. :chin:

Tiger, it's usually harder on the family than it is on the patient, isn't it? Glad your dad's doing so well though. It's normal for your mom (and YOU) to be worried. I'm keeping all of you in my prayers.

Gotta run. Later.

Hello?! Come on girls...we can do better than this. Especially if we are going to get our rears in gear like Semo.;) DNW?where are you hide'n these days Sarge?

I'm giving Atkins some serious thought. I searched out some other websites and did some reading. I might pick the book up today if it doesnt cost an arm.
I actually think DH could deal better with Atkins WOE. He gets freaky when I buy low-fat foods or thinks I'm fixing something "diet". Heaven forbid he should eat anything healthy.
Me, I want to eat healthy. I just need someone to shop for me and then fix it! lol

Jello, thank you for the prayers.

Off to town... :wave:

Hi girls, just a quick stop to say howdy. Tomorrow is day 60 and only 30 more to go to finish this round. DH said this morning, (interupting in the middle of my 200 ab tape) you're gonna have a heart attack! With my face all red, I told him that if I do would he mind putting a cut off shirt on me so everyone can see how tight my mid section was getting! His response was guess you want your calfs to show too!:lol: I am indeed seeing some results but no flat tummy, probably never see that. Oh well I can dream. I up my weights last night, don't laugh cause the tape is really HARD, but I pretty much use the 8 pounders all the way through. So today, I am really hurting, sore everywhere.

Well better get back to the salt mines, Tig ~ thinking and praying for you and family! Quilter, DNW, you guys are being way too quiet. Hey to everyone else, gotta scoot.

Have a lovely day!

Goooooood Morning!

My houseguest is flying away - probably in Denver by now changing planes. Going back to sunny so. CA while it's 35 and rainy here. Maybe he's as glad as me, LOL!!

Anyhow, the dinner grand finale went well last night. I was proud that I pulled it off after being at work until 4:15 (yes, I left a LITTLE early). So it's all good.

Now, marching on with life! I'm feeling a little skip of freedom, and my house is WAY cleaner than a week ago! It's quite nice really. Should (as Tig said) have company more often. It's a good thing. Dear L. and DH reupholstered our dining chairs yesterday as a surprise. I can't tell you how nice it is - they had worn down and were very HARD. They picked good materials and did a very professional job- I'm loving it. And I love the fabric they chose.

So, just enjoying the contentment this A.M. while knowing it's time to move on to what's next.

Tig, the yardwork sounds lovely! I'm happy that you got to spend some QT with your folks. I'm sure that it was soothing for all of you.

Jello, more yard stories, starting to get jealous. It's great to have a day that's "stolen" isn't it? Because everyone else is out on the weekend too, it is especially great to experience a weekday off.

SEMO - Day 60!! Woo-hoo! I'm so proud of you! Hang in there, you might see that flat tummy yet, if you can continue to apply yourself with THAT kind of dedication. You are awesome.


Ciao for now, bellas!

:bravo: SEMO!
I can't imagine doing anything for 60 days..except maybe breath. :lol:
I did used to go to the gym...almost 6 years ago. I went almost every day. I could jog 3 miles and wore a happy size 12. Now, I can't jog a block and I'm busting out of a unhappy size :censored: .

Time for reflection and reality check.:chin:

I went to Walmart...can ya believe they didnt have Atkins book?! What a crock. I'll probably have to go to town tomorrow, maybe I can swing by Kmart. I did buy some self-tanning lotion...hope I get a healthy glow and not a streaked orange. :cool:

later girls!

sORRY i hAVEN'T haD mORE TO sAY....
 

My ladies they are working me to death here and the keyboard on the computer at home is broken...

Tiger: You are very brave and this is a very difficult time you are going through...keep praying for acceptance and stay hopeful...I have your dad always in my prayers.

Cafe: Anyone who will reupholster chairs when visiting is tops in my book!!! Ask them back maybe they'll do the couch the next time!!

Semo: You little exercising fiend you...I am very jealous you have so much more motivation than I do right now...gotta walk tomorrow morning.

Jello: Please run for president soon because I want a 4 day work week..they are killing me here in my office lately...thank God they are reasonably nice people or I would murder them!!

Huntress: 4-5 lbs a month is so doable and in a year that's 60 lbs....I'll take it!! Good luck I know you can do it.

Bright and Quilter: A big :grouphug: to you both too!!

Tiffany, Kayla, Holly: where are you!!!!!!!!!:drill:

Went home from work last night and decided to get on my treadmill. Got my portable CD player and plugged in .... now don't laugh ... Barry Manilow. Yeah, yeah. The guy my older brother used to teasingly call Barry Mellow-Fellow. :rolleyes: But you know, the guy can rock!! 35 minutes later, I glanced down to see I'd done a mile and a half or so and wanted to keep going!! :cb: :cb:

Tiger, not doing anything for 60 days except breathe!! :lol: Too funny!!

Cafe, it's a nice feeling when the house is clean, isn't it? My problem has always been keeping it that way. Ah, there's the challenge!

DNW, sorry they're trying to kill you at work. :( It is a good thing though that you like the people you work for and with. I need more of that where I work.

Speaking of that, I've adopted a new "laugh instead of cry" attitude lately and am feeling much better. I'm not going to let anyone ruin my good mood, not matter how hard they try. And brother do they try!!! :p I've even found myself mentally counting to 10 (sometimes 20!) before responding to one of them.

Semo, 8-pounders!?!?!? I can't even LIFT the 8-pounders at the sporting goods store!!!!!

Guess I'll get to work now. TGIF!!! :D Yesterday felt like a Monday all day, I guess because of my day off Wednesday. So glad it wasn't! Well, I'm off to report in at the exercise thread!

I'm not streaked orange, but my palms are a nice bronze color. Good thing I have them in 'n out of water all day...be back to normal in no time.:smug:

I was going to order Atkins online, but got confused...there are several.:?: While I was there, I came across another book. The Schwarzbein Principe. I already own it. :^: So, I'm just gonna read it again...maybe I'll be more receptive to it this time given my current thought process. :dizzy:

Jello! Way to go with the exercise. And about Barry...well, anything that gets ya moving!

DNW, a broken keyboard :fr: We have a generic spare for just that thing. DH saved it when he upgraded to a new one with all kinds of silly buttons and gizmos that I dont understand. :rolleyes:

It's Friday! This weekend is tape 'n mud drywall. My job is to provide support, food and entertainment.:dance:

Hope everyone has a great weekend! :df:

Good Morning and Happy Friday.......:dance: Love that little fella.
TODAY IS MY DAY, SIXTY.....

Jello, My vision of you and Barry :dancer: I'm very proud of you, and as an added bonus exercise is very good for you mentally. Yeap, I can tell that you are in a good mood. UNLESS, there's something else going on that you're not telling us about.:tape: :ziplip:

DNW, what's all the extra work about???? I'm getting hammered too, but it's normal for us this time of the year, runs about 6 months then slacks off. Can't complain, I need the overtime.

Tig, I found this website you may want to check. lowcarbfriends.com keep breathing, keep breathing. :D

Cafe, if your houseguest isn't too picky about what he eats (you know how I hate to cook), just send him my way. Can't believe they did that, how great.

Alright now Quilter, I'm starting to get worried. After you posted your nice words of wisdom, you vanished...... You aren't dumping us, are you?

Bright, Hoping that the wind hasn't blown you away, you know cause you're so much LIGHTER! Way to go!

Huntress, hang a pair of those shorts out so you see them everyday. Helps with motivation, sort of like the yogurt commerical where the gal looks at the bikini, and then ONE DAY SHE COULD WEAR IT!

I'm back to work, I have mounds and mounds of work to do.

(((hugs to all))) and hey to anyone that I may have missed.

:dancer:

Happy Friday, peeps! I'm sure looking forward to a weekend off! One way or another, don't you always feel "ON" when you have guests? But it's an upbeat WOL at the same time, no time to get whiny when you're focused on others.

My goals for this weekend: Clean my house again even though it isn't really dirty yet. If I can discipline myself to do this, it will always be enjoyable AND easy to spiff up. Tame the monster that is my poor unbalanced checkbook. This is overdue. Take time for myself, time for God, and get organized and ready for what promises to be a busy month starting Monday. AND, put my gym bag together because it's time to try to be like SEMO.

None of this is so hard -except maybe the checkbook :dizzy: so I'm going to write the list in my planner right now.

First of all though, Tiger - hope the taping goes well! My DH is in school right now to escape a career in drywall finishing so I know how this is... Make some time for fun, and remember that once it's done, the whole remodel is almost over! It's just paint, trim, floor and then decorating. This will help you deal with the dust.

DNW & SEMO, I'd send the guest along to you but he had to go back to work. :( It's amazing the impact that a small project can have on how you feel about an area of your house. :) Let that be a lesson to me. I made do with those chairs for YEARS - now they are a joy!

Jello - If Barry Manilow makes you happy, more power to ya! Nothing wrong with that. YES! I want to 'laugh not cry' too. It's my post-vacation attitude - nothing bothers me - because if it does I stop and deal with the feelings, not let them build up. Just because they CAN piss me off daily doesn't mean I have to let them. By dealing with each incident separately, I can overcome and be my positive, happy self. Screw 'em, I'm going to be happy in spite of their negativity. :D

OK, I'm out~

Edited to add: Hmm, SEMO, what COULD be the reason why Jello is so... happy? :s:

Heeeeeyyyy!! You guys, cut it out!! What d'ya mean!?!? Don't pick on meeeee!!! Mmmmmoooooommmmmm!!!!!! :p

I tell you guys EVERYTHING!!! No deep dark secrets in little Jello's world, I swear.

Well, there was that 2AM wandering the neighborhood in my jammies thing.... Wait! I told you that too! Yeah, I was looking for the dog. Yeah, that's it! The dog!! :s:

Actually, I'm not sure why I'm feeling so darn happy these days. But I'm sure as heck not going to frighten it away. :sssh:

It's probably the weather. Well, not today cuz it's cold and gray and rainy. But I mean maybe it's because the spring might actually be arriving here in my little corner of PA. Winter's fighting to stay that's for sure but I think (and my little sprouting bulbs think so too) that spring will win eventually. And although I'm not nearly as short-shorts and cut-off tops skinny as I thought I'd be by now, I'm happy about it.

Now everybody dance! :cb: :cb: :cb:

Just learned today that the frenchmen are coming back for a visit next week. They emailed me to make them hotel reservations, etc. So when I emailed them back with details, confirmation numbers, etc, I sent a copy email to my boss and the president of the company. What an uproar. Apparently, no one had told THEM that the frenchmen were coming!! :yikes: Hm, I guess the frenchmen don't realize that I'm just a little peon around here. Good thing I cc'd them or I'D be entertaining the french next week.

Nah, I just want to hang out here in my little corner and watch the little birdies and waving little flowers out the window....

La, la, la, la, la-de-dah.....
(Sounds of Jello goin' off the deep end.)

Hey, it's Friday. :^:

Yep, it's official... Jello's got spring fever! ;)

Heck, me too, even though it's SNOWING in the frozen North. (argh) Last night the victorian wood stairs on our front porch got glazed with ice. Yep, you guessed it, I came out at 7pm and my feet flew out from under me. In spite of trying to grab the handrail (yep, more ice) I impacted the stairs with my back and bounced down them all flat on it.

Can I have an ouch?

I was really thinking my back would be sore - or my neck which felt a little whiplashed - but what really hurts today is my tailbone. I guess I must have hit that too. I don't remember anything but my back hitting the stairs. But I have to say - sitting is not so bad but getting UP - that really hurts.

Excuse me, Mr. Boss-man? Uhm, I'd like to leave 3 hours early on a Friday because my a$$ hurts. :lol:

Hey all,

Cafe: that had to have hurt! sorry you hit your bum! gotta be sore! I'm doing the housework shuffle this weekend, also, along with many errands tomorrow morning. It seems the sidewalks roll up and are put away for the weekend sometime on Sat. at noon in this town! Boy, do I miss the city when that happens!

Sarge: know what you mean on the work! Piling up in my office!

Jello: lets' dance :cb: :cb: :cb: (let's call it "circuit training", ok?)

SEMO: you are my inspiration! I packed my gym bag in tribute to you....it will have to stay by my door, however, until my work interferences next week allow me to cont. with my workouts. Meanwhile, people (that will remain unmentionable) cont. to kick my butt out there will their motivation and persistence! I will catch up to you..... Kudos to you for sticking with this so long! Only 30 more days to go and I know you'll make it!

Tiger: I have orange palms at least once a year! My sis is talking me into a tanning package this year....first timer, I am, so a little hesitant. Never have indulged in any sort of luxury for myself before. Might be kinda fun!:^:

Howdy down there, Huntress! Got rain? We are windy and rainy tonight and I thought it might have blown from your way. Hope all is well...

Hello to everyone I missed. Getting tired and need to rest....talk to you all later in the weekend.

"Bright"

Cafe, ouch! :( Hope you're feeling better now.

Well guess what. It's snowing here. And we're supposed to get 3-6 inches followed by sleet and freezing rain. The weatherman said to expect a "winter storm". Uh, someone want to tell this bozo that it's NOT WINTER!!!! It's supposed to be SPRING!!! :mad: My poor little flowers. :cry:

Add to that - Jello's got a big ol' cold. I'm all stuffed up and want to die. What the heck am I doing at work? Well, we've got the frenchmen coming tomorrow and have to be prepared. It's very stressful considering how the American-French relations are these days. But this is business after all.

I will not stress eat. I will not stress eat. :stress: One good thing I guess is that I don't have much of an appetite. And I guess I'm supposed to drink plenty of fluids, right? That should help a little with getting the water in. See? I'm trying to look at the bright side. :^:

Meanwhile, I got no exercise whatsoever over the weekend. Anyone know anything about exercising with a bad cold? Should I try to "work through it" or should I wait until I get my strength back?

Guess I'll get some work done. Starting to snow a little harder already. Oh, Jello's not happy.....

Happy Monday!

Bright - the housework shuffle - I like that. Know what you mean, I'm a city girl. But the charm of not having a million strangers outside your door must be okay too?

Jello - we're due for a little snow too, but not 3-6. I'm sorry. A little light exercise can help with a cold because it gets the lymph (part of the immune system) moving a bit more freely and warms the body. If I'm home sick with a cold I try to do load after load of laundry so that I'm in motion throughout the day (especially with the folding and putting away which I always try to do FAST). A nice walk or treadmill session would be great, just don't overdo it and DON'T get chilled afterward.

I did everything on my list this weekend... Plus some supplemental furniture rearranging and minus the paperwork which I need to do tonight. My DH was working and I need to find out where he stashed all our mail when we had company.

DH is really in the doghouse, though, because he threw away some things that were important to me. Mind you, if I MOVE something of his he has a childish fit if he can't find it immediately. Men! Still, what I despise more is the "play dumb" tactic. One of these days he is going to learn that the "I didn't know" lie doesn't work - and that the lie itself that REALLY sends me through the roof. Because you know that I can prove that he did know. Do they ever learn? Can anyone tell me?

Okay, I'm going to hit post and look for SEMO who always types while I'm typing.