Hey, Floozies! Janice sent me a note and I found out more of us are back! I will try to check in more often. I miss you all so much!

Gayle-Do you have pictures somewhere of the wedding? I'm sure Liz made a beautiful bride.

Dee-How is your back? I see you are working out at the gym now. That's fantastic. I am thinking of joining, if this job holds that Mike has. I will be sans children soon and need something to keep my mind off of missing them both at college. Patty graduates on my birthday, May 31, and is going to USF in Tampa with Becky.

Janice-Wow, lady! You are doing wonderful and I love your new picture! I am so proud of you with your exercising and eating.

I've gotta go to work, but I promise to check in everyday!

WELCOME BACK SHELLEY!! We missed you. You guys really are my support and I sure need that.

Shelley it is great to hear from you. I can't believe what time you post at. Man I am still dreaming for many hours after that.
I am so happy to hear that Mike is working. Does he have a job in Tampa or is he traveling?
When the girls are both gone from home you will find you have more time to yourself. There is times I miss them at home but now when they come home it is more quality time than when they lived here. I like being an empty nester minus there is nobody to look after the dog!
I still keep going to the Y. I think I have been a member there for about 3 years. It keeps me sane. I actually see someone instead of just the walls and the dog.

Gayle do you work everyday? I am sure that you are much happier working on your own than for the LC. Those old grannies must love you as I am sure you love them too.
So where are some pics? I am anxious to see them. We need to talk girl.....weddings ahh!

Allison it sounds like your life is a whirl wind. You are busy most of the time. Remember to take make time for yourself. I guess when you are out running or walking that is what you are doing but if you have a hobby spend some time doing that too.
You have a good menu going. I love the different ideas I am getting.

Janice this whole life diet (is that what you called it) sounds fabulous. Your menus are healthy and plenty of food. Thanks for another day in your menus. I am going to print them so I have them available.

My food plan yesterday

fiber bar 3 points

cereal, nuts, yougurt 7 points
latte 1 point

fiber one bar 3 points

chicken enchalada 7 points
refried beans 2 points
latte 1 points

24 points food exercise points 5 days total points 19

This is a good day for points but my food choices are on the sweet side, usually I eat more veggies and fruits.


Hey girls I am proud of myself. I did it! I haven't driven in over a year, I walk every where. I am scared to drive because of my meds and I never was big on driving. I drove this morning to the gym and then to a garden house. I may have only put on 5 miles but hey I did. I will use the car more this week with Larry gone. I felt fne when I drrove, I wasn't scared. The snow is melted off the streets so that made it comfortable and safe for me to drive.
I am so proud of myself!

Janice sent me an email and asked me to check in. It's great to see everyone back and posting again! I have missed you all! I was checking in quite often, but then activity dropped off and life got crazy here again and I really haven't been posting much anywhere.

Travis and Noell were home for a week in March on their way from California to North Carolina. We had a wonderful (but way too short) visit. They are now settled in their new home and Travis will begin working with his new dog as soon as he/she arrives from Lackland AFB. The best news is that this new dog will be a narcotics dog and narcotics dogs are not deployed, so chances of Travis having to go back to Iraq or Afghanistan are very slim at this point!

Just when we thought our duties to our extended family were going to settle down some we now find ourselves caring for Tim's mother who has Alzheimer's. For now she is able to stay in her apartment in a local retirement complex, but we have to go in and check on her daily and field countless phone calls from her throughout the day and night. Right now we are in the process of seeing about getting some help from our local area agency on aging and if that doesn't work then we will have to seriously consider a nursing home for her. It is exhausting dealing with her.

Tim's aunt (the one who fell and broke her hip last August) has been living in a personal care home and doing quite well there, but now is insisting that she go home in May. It's unlikely that she will be able to care for herself once she goes home, but it's very apparent that she is going to have to go home and realize this for herself. That means that we will probably be moving her twice over the next few months.

On top of that, I have found myself facing some health issues of my own. The doctor did some blood tests and found that my cholesterol was very high, which usually can be solved with medications, but my liver studies were not good (at this point we don't know why that is), so I cannot take the cholesterol medications. My blood pressure is also running a bit high. I've been on a strict low fat/low cholesterol diet in an effort to try and get my cholesterol down and will have it tested again in a few months. The good thing is that I have dropped 7 pounds since I began the diet. I guess I just needed a real smack in the face to get me going again.

It's so good to hear that everyone is doing well! This post is already getting pretty long and I need to get back to work, but I'll try to get caught up with everyone soon!

HEY THERE LITTLE SUZY.....

It is great to hear from you. I am sorry to hear that you are so busy helping everyone else that you probably don't even have time to take a pee. I am sure you must be exhausted if you have to get up through the night to answer the phone. There must be someone that can help.
Aunt Hazel is wanting to go home.....is it possible that you could set her up with home care? If she could have someone come in everyday and help her with the daily chores and aid her in taking care of herself that would help to keep her independent.
Being our ideal weight is so important. Often we think only of losing weight in terms of how we will look but that is probably the least important thing. Please take care and watch what you are eatting.
I bet the week with Travis and Noell must have been a blast. That is great if he gets to stay in the US. Where did he get the love of dogs from? Was his job something he knew he wanted to do? It is such a specialized job that most animal lovers wouldn't even think of it.
How is Tim and the business doing?
You guys sure do have your hands full.
Glad to see that you are posting again.

Janice thanks for letting everyone know that there is still some action around here.

Do you think that we could set up the birthday anniversary list again? I feel so lost without it. I know that Gayle's birthday will be coming up but I am lost as to every other occasion.

Dee, please don't remind me of my 16th birthday again!! LOL!

The wedding went well other then a few things out of our control. The main thing is the kids are happy and very appreciative of all we did. They came out for dinner last night. I made rib eyes, grilled chicken, tossed salad, baked potatoes and caramel apple pie. Not exactly diet friendly, but I watched my portion sizes. Liz called tonight to check in since Steve is out of town. She cooked dinner tonight and Andy was doing the dishes.

Suzy, I didn't realize you had the issues with Tim's mom. Sometimes they can seem perfectly ok, but other times, things just slip right by them. Bless her heart. I really wish Aunt Hazel would have a change of heart. The assisted living facility is probably the best place for her at this point in her life. Prayers sent sweetie, that you find out news about your own health condition.

Dee, I am very proud of you for driving! It is a small step but also a very big one considering it had been a year. I'll post a few pics after we get them back of the wedding.

Janice, you are doing a great job! the menu sounds "right on"!!! Keep up the great work.

Shelley, please stay here and visit. I have missed you and had hoped we could all catchup with each other again.

I'm tossing around the idea of visiting with our parish priest and starting a healthy living/weight loss support group. The group would meet at our home. Everyone would be assigned an "Earthly angel" to help guide them thru daily struggles like a mentor/sponsor. The 1.5 hour group would consist of 30 minutes weigh-in/chat/opening prayer, 30 minutes scripture in regards to our daily living/weight control then 30 minutes of focus on healthy food/living ideas/recipe revisions, prayer intentions and closing prayer. What do you all think? Steve is offering to help me with it if I want to pursue it. Opinions: Would you prefer a group of required weigh-ins, no weigh-ins or optional weigh-ins? Steve thinks everyone should be accountable, I'm thinking some won't come if they know they will be weighed. Opinions please!

Well, nice visiting again and thank you for the very warm welcome back!

Gayle

Gayle, what a great idea. I think a weigh in for everybody will help too. The dinner sounds yummy. Good for you on watching your portions.

Suzy-It's so good to hear from you. I can't believe how busy you stay with everyone. I hope you are able to stablize your liver. I have been on Vytorin for awhile now. I guess we never realize how our own bodies can manufacture cholestrol.

Dee-I totally forgot you workout at the Y. Are you still taking water workout classes? Do you use the weight machines?

Janice-I am so happy you reminded me to come back. Things are started to be like old times around here.

I have been very busy at school. The Fl school system is having major $$ problems, due to the loss of taxes and tax rebates on homes. I'm thinking I might have to start thinking of getting out after next year.

IT is great to hear from everyone and get caught up.
Suzy - sounds like you have a lot on your plate again. My daughter Amanda is having some problems with high liver enzymes which they aren't sure why. I took her to a Naturapath (Sp) this week. She did a lot of tests and said she thinks a lot of the problem is caffeine and aspartame. She lives on diet pepsi and hardly eats, just supper. She is also getting headaches and taking a lot of ibeprofen (sp) which also can affect your liver. She is now on a plan to get things under control. Fruit Smoothie for breakfast, vegetable drink for lunch and lots of protein and veggies for dinner. No caffeine or headache pills. She is also on vitamins and vitamin drops in water. She is also waiting for more blood tests to come back from the doctor. It is such a worry when you don't know what is going on in your body.
I hope they figure out what is going on with you Suzy.
Dee - go girl, I didn't know you hadn't been driving. I am proud of you.
Gayle- it sounds like a great idea the support group. Maybe you can ask some of the gals that would be involved what they would like for the weigh-ins. I would say leave it optional until they are comfortable with the group.
Shelley - glad you have come back to us. We missed you. Sounds like you are busy as usual. Please keep some time for us.
Allison - how is your Mom doing?

Shelley I didn't realize that the school systems would be affected from the tax rebates on homes. It sure affected a lot of families.
I still do a few aqua classes, swim lengths, 2 weight classes a week, 2-3 classes of yoga, jog on the tread mill, and use the exercise bike almost daily. Of course I walk a couple of miles to get to and from the gym too. I am as active as ever.
Where is Mike working?
If you changed jobs from being in the school system what would you do?

Gayle dinner sounded wonderful. Lucky dinners! Andy is a keeper if he is doing dishes. Tell Liz to keep encouraging him to continue to help out.
You have a good idea getting a support group going. It will get you to be accountable too. I think that weigh in keeps everyone in check. Maybe if someone is really afraid to, that it could be optional but encouraged.
Are you sure you have enough time for this? You are one busy girl.

Janice has it warmed up out there? The sun has been shinning and we are in the double digits! Yippee the snow is going.


Suzy you are one busy lady. Take care of yourself so you don't burn out.

Allison how are you doing? I hope all is well.

Dee-Mike is working for an air-conditioning company, both fixing and selling them. He is still in training, though. You are still the workout queen! Since I have quit running, my booty and thighs have gotten huge again. Biking doesn't seem to help. I bought a new pair of running shoes, thinking perhaps it would help with walking, but my feet and knees still hurt badly while walking. If I had access to a pool, it would probably be good for me, but I don't like going out of my way to find one. I still have a problem with night eating. I eat breakfast and lunch, then dinner and grazing for the night, even though it's not high calorie snacks, it's still lots of them. Good for you on the driving. My mom quit driving when she hurt her arm years ago and hasn't driven since. It is very hard on her. Please try to keep driving a bit.

Janice ~ I'm so glad that you let me know that everyone was posting again! Shelley is right, it's starting to be just like old times. We just need Cheryl to come back now.

I don't take many medications of any kind, I don't drink alcohol at all or use any kind of artificial sweeteners. I do have a cup or two of tea each day, but that's the only caffeine that I get. I'm hoping that the change in my diet will make the difference in my blood work...I didn't realize just how high in fat my diet was until I started keeping track! Keep me posted on how Amanda is doing!

Shelley ~ It's wonderful that Mike is finally back to work! I would think that the AC business would be a good one for your area...I hope he does well!

I'm sorry that you are still not able to run. It seems like biking would be good for your legs and thighs without having the stress on your knees.

Dee ~ It sounds like you are doing great! Good for you! Do keep driving a bit here and there...it's important for your independence, if nothing more. How is Dez and the rest of your family doing?

To answer your questions...

Ever since Travis was about 5 years old he has wanted to be in some kind of law enforcement. It was when he enlisted in the Marines that he decided that he would like to work in the K-9 unit. He really loves it!

Our business is picking up again now after a couple of slow months. We have a couple of big contracts that just came in this week, so it's going to be really busy in a week or so. That's usually how it goes around here...feast or famine!

Gayle ~ I agree with everyone else...we need wedding pictures!!!

My dad had dementia and memory problems mostly due to a head injury from a car accident that he was in 12 years ago. I thought that was bad, but Alzheimer's is so much worse. At least my dad knew who I was. Tim's mom always "knows" him, but she doesn't know he is her son. Tim's bother had a stroke 2 weeks ago and when Tim told her that Tom had a stroke she asked "Tom who?" and when he said "My brother, Tom." she just had a blank stare on her face and said "Oh." and went about what she was doing. It was very obvious that she didn't have a clue as to who he was talking about. It's really sad. There's never been any love loss between she and I, but I wouldn't wish this on anyone!

(Tim's brother lives in Florida. The stroke affected his right side, speech and vision. He's doing much better and is able to walk with a walker now and his speech isn't as slurred, but his vision is still impaired. He's only 54! It was a plaque related stroke, so that was also more incentive for me and Tim both to change our diet.)

Suzy, alot of my clients are the same way. They know my face now and know I'm safe, but really have no clue who I am until I tell them my name and I'm from the beauty shop. I have several who come in and out all thru the day asking about having their hair done. Many can't remember past a few minutes. It really is sad. Most seem to pickup some type of compulsive behavior too, from pulling hair out, taking care of babies (stuffed animals) who they think are real children to constantly doing laundry even to the point of rewashing folded clean laundry! I feel so sorry for the families. They say one should always just call the person by their first name, because you never know in their mind what stage of life they may be in. I noticed some of the women with sons, begin to think the sons are their deceased husband.

Janice, did you watch Biggest Loser this season? It has been my favorite show. I still think the shutting the light off to the fridge is cheesy, but the show it's self is really good.

Dee, the new SIL is more domestic then the daughter! He can cook from scratch, she needs help if it involves anything past boiling water. LOL!
I'm still tossing the support group around... I'm thinking it would really be good for me too and keep me accountable.

Shelley, is Mike liking his job? I know you are going to miss the girls terribly. How far away will they be?

It is cold and yucky here today. Steve is out of town all this week. He told me today he drove through a blizzard then ran into rain and finally was in a town with sunshine! I couldn't believe he ran into snow the second week of April.

Gayle

Gayle - I love the biggest loser, that is the diet plan I am following now, just need to get more active. I think it is amazing the weight the people on the show have lost and how it has changed their health and outlook on life.I know what you mean about the elderly, I work in long term care and the Alzheimers clients are the ones I love the most. We have posters in the rooms showing what they did in life, and a lot of the history of each client. It helps to know more about them.
Shelley - Air conditioning in Florida has to be a busy job, its wonderful that Mike is working again. Are you still doing two jobs?
Dee - you are the exercise QUEEN! How do you keep so active with your back pain?
Weather here has been much nicer. Sun and warmer.

Hey gayle I love your new picture, you sexy mama!

I am going to bed now but will post more tomorrow.

Far from sexy Dee! I am not photogenic at all!

Janice, I giggle when they show me a pic of a grandchild and say it is a sister of theirs and they are younger then them. Yesterday I had a lady in the shop tell me she was close to 90, a few minutes later she told me she was nearing 100. In reality, she is in her 80's. She also told me her parents are living, but packed up and moved away without telling anyone where they moved to. Boy, do I hear the stories!