Hey there, I've been MIA and missing you all. I'm still in the midst of fiscal year end chaos. Last week I was in training all week, and working before and after training trying to keep up. This week is just as crazy. I'll be glad when the month ends and we have a bit of a slow down for a week or two. I did get a promotion though. Considering the economy I was very pleased. I'm the only one in our team getting promoted.

Meg, good job on resisting the evil breakfast buffet and other food, and maintaining your weight in such a situation!

I can do okay at most buffets, but breakfast (sweets) is tough for me. I have to be in the right frame of mind or I can easily over indulge. At the training last week they have tons of food every day, breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, candy in bowls, etc. I did better than most, but was still up a lb by the end of the week, but I'm back down again.

Lily, I'm so glad you DD is okay and getting the help she needs


Sheila, I think of and pray for you and your family often. Mothers day was just a few weeks after Ryan died and it was really tough... every day is tough really. Grief counseling sounds like a good idea. I've thought about going to a family grief counselor, especially to help the little girls, but I just haven't had the energy to make an appointment. I'm still a bit of a walking zombie much of the time. To most, I probably seem like I'm doing well and functioning, but inside I'm still just a wreck. HUGS!!!

Michele, I'm sure I'd do the same thing with the strawberry cheescake bites, they sound heavenly! Soup almost always has a lot of sodium. I'm sure after a day or two of drinking water and being OP the scale will be back down.

As I said to Sheila above, I'm functional - I get up, work out, go to work, smile and chat with co-workers, go home and do all the family stuff, but... it's hard to talk to people, I mean - even here, either I have to keep everything superficial so that I can function, or the grief is still overwhelming. I mean, not all the time, but - my heart is just still so very heavy. I miss my boy so much. But at the same time I remind myself every day how blessed I am to have four other healthy, wonderful, loving children, an incredible husband, a great job... God is so good, but it's still hard. At least I'm not gaining weight.

Hugs to all,

Shanna and Sheila, I'm also thinking of the 2 of you and what you and your families are going through. Hugs!

Things here are still very hard. I find myself in a mental dilemma. I don't know whether I should just sit in the house and wait for any word from Lacy's facility or if I should go ahead with my usual life. My plans this week were for golf on Friday evening, my HS reunion on Saturday night and attending a birthday party (at a water park) for my 2 year old granddaughter on Sunday. I can't see or talk to Lacy until visiting hours from 1-4PM on Saturday. Sitting here is depressing but thinking of going anywhere makes me feel guilty.

I called and talked to the staff this morning to check on Lacy. They said she is voluntarily attending her group and individual therapy classes but not really talking to anyone. Sleeping any time she can. Eating "miniscule" amounts. Showing no signs of anger or agression. Basically "following the rules , but very withdrawn".

My heart just aches for her and I can't seem to think about much anything else. I can tell that DH feels the same way.

Lacy's work keeps calling me to check on her. I don't know really what to tell them. They know she's in the hospital, but don't know why. They are pressuring me wanting to send her flowers. I told them she doesn't want visitors and that I'd be happy to pick up her flowers and take them to her. But, they aren't allowed to have flowers where she's at. Her boss keeps wanting to know "when will she be able to come back to work? My only response was "when her doctor gives her a signed release to return to work". I'm not even sure if she'll want to keep her job at this point. But I want to wait and let her make that decision.

I am still eating my same low-fat/low-cal way, but trying to not think about it. I don't feel like getting on the scale. Trying to just think of it as "eating healthy", not of as trying to lose weight.

Lily, Shanna, and Sheila -- I'm thinking of all of you.

Lily, does the facility have your cell phone number? If so I would say go ahead with your usual life. If they need to contact you they will be able to reach you on your cell. It will probably take her a couple weeks to start opening up in the treatment center -- they are trained to handle this situation so I would put my trust in the staff.

Lily - I know this is a hard time for you and your family, I'm so sorry, but glad that Lacy is getting the help that she needs. Do they have any family counseling as part of the program? It might be helpful for you guys to know how to support her when she comes home. And, her job is the least of her concerns right now. It was a new job, right? Not one with FMLA protection available? And, I would say that you should try to go on with your life as much as you can, though I know it must be hard - with today's technology options the center can reach you anywhere at any time if they need something.

Shanna - I'm so glad that you are hanging in there, I've been thinking about you this week. Congrats on the promotion!

Michele - thanks for the Strawberry Cheesecake Bites update! I'm going to try those for our Father's Day gathering.

Midwife - hey there! Glad you are having a good trip!

Sheila - The grief counseling is good idea - I really hope it helps your son, and you as well. And hope you heal from your injuries soon!

Got the Father's Day gathering sorted out. I reread my post about the chaos in scheduling and realized how whiney it sounded... Difficulty scheduling a gathering is such a minor thing compared to some of the things other folks here are going through, and compared to things I've gone through in my family in the last few months... We are going to do a joint gathering with my brother and his in-laws, as my parents and my SIL's parents are good friends who don't see each other much anymore. We've moved it to the 28th, not the actual holiday weekend, but the dads are okay with it. SIL is going to host it at her house, we are just working on a menu.

I cut the grass last night as my main exercise, in 95 degrees. What was I thinking! According to my HRM, my heart rate stays around 170-175, even with a self propelled mower. And it was definitely a workout! I can't imagine how hard it would it would be with a normal push mower... Did some yoga before bed to stretch out the angry arms and legs, feeling good today.

Good day everyone!

I agree with Jessica, Lily. One of my friends had a daughter who got burned, and was in the hospital in Denver. She alternated being down there and being at home, but the hospital was constantly in touch with her on her cell phone. Be sure the facility has yours, and then carry it all the time and go about your normal life. Sitting home waiting for a call is not good for you - you know that Lacy is being cared for and that they'll call you if there's something you need to know.

Life goes on it's merry little busy path here. DH is ready to leave Sat morning for his trip; I'm about to pack for mine as soon as he leaves.

And Shanna Sheila as well. My sister lost a son several years ago, and still goes to a grief group on occasion. Like when she got divorced 18 months ago - brought up a lot more issues with her son's death. I think it's a good thing - and a "safe place" to talk about your feelings.

I did a cardio workout last night, and then went home and cut the grass. We have a riding mower, so it's not exercise for me. DH had done the edges during the day, so I could zip through the main areas - well, just 1.5 hours instead of 2+

Got up at 5:30 and did LBWO at the gym this morning. Plan on doing the same tomorrow, but UB of course.

Shanna, I highly recommend grief counseling. The grief counselor said that the majority of people wait about three months before coming to see her. It's quite cathartic to be able to talk about your loss and how you're feeling with someone who is familiar with grieving. She said that children naturally know how to grieve, but as we grow up, we throw a lot of "shoulds" into the mix that kind of inhibit us from grieving.

Lily, I hope that you'll go on with your life and not feel guilty about it. Going on with your life doesn't mean that you're any less worried about Lacy, but it will help you with your stress level.

Midwife, sounds like you're having a blast!

Shannon, glad you got your scheduling issue resolved. And it isn't any less important than anyone else's issue. Kind of like losing weight--the 10 lbs. someone else has to lose is just as hard for them as the 100 lbs. another person has to lose.

Pat, how big is your lawn area? My X had a small tractor that he used to mow the small field next to our house. When our son was a baby, the X would hold him on his lap and drive the tractor. Now when I think of that it scares me, but it was cute back then. We didn't have mandatory car seats for kids back then either.

Did the step class (without the step) again today. I'm sure one day I'll be able to figure out the choreography. For now just moving as best I can is a pretty good workout. I'm glad it's a smaller class. I think I will try the Zumba on Monday.

Pat has inspired me to go mow the lawn.

I wanted to share what I bought online. It came in the mail today. I was worried it wouldn't fit but it does and I love it!
How do you all link pictures? When I try to copy the URL it is extremely long....

Lily-- I agree that you need to do your best to live your life and bring your cell phone with you. I imagine time goes much more slowly if you are staying home waiting for the phone to ring.

Hugs and prayers to you, Sheila and Shanna. I do need to appreciate my relatively small issues and not complain. I also think grief counseling is a great idea for you Shanna. It can't hurt to try.

Yes, the facility does have both mine and DH's cell phone numbers. They called yesterday to get permission to put her on a new medication. I'm gonna try to put on a happy face and go ahead with all my scheduled plans for this weekend (including visiting Lacy from 1PM-4PM on Saturday). Just sitting at home feeling sad and worried isn't helping me or her.

Yes, they do have family counseling too which DH and I have signed "contracts" to attend these sessions too. The center will notify us when they feel these sessions should begin. I think they are first mostly concerned with getting Lacy to a more functional state of being.

My son will be leaving again next month to the Army. He'll be stationed at Fort Leonardwood , MO and training other soldiers who will be going to Iraq. I hate to see him leave again, but the job market here isn't good and I know he'll be doing what he thinks is the best thing for his life/career. Next week I will be helping him to put all his stuff in storage and get ready for his move to Missouri.

Shannon, what's going on in your life is just as important as what is happening in our lives. Never feel bad about posting it. We all go through cycles of having difficulties in life. (I do tend to have more than most or so it seems). Just being able to vent about it here helps me.

I have decided to make the strawberry cheesecake bites for Father's Day dessert for the family. I am wondering if one recipe will be enough for 6 adults and 3 kids? I might just dip some plain strawberries in chocolate, too.

Hi everyone,

I'm glad that I get to spend today in the AC-ed office. I've got lots to catch up on at my desk and I think my brain got cooked in the sun. I was really overheated by Wednesday night and just stood in a cold shower for a while, and felt much better. The good things about doing field work for days straight with a heat index of 110 is that it's an appetite suppressant. I've been getting up and going to the gym before work this week, b/c I know I won't go after with this heat. After my "poor me" post about being in a "fat mentality" all the time now in the thread Amanda started on Monday, I just felt so pathetic that I've actually stayed OP for 4 days straight, and am hoping to continue.

Lily, I'm so sorry to hear what Lacy is going through. As everyone's said, I agree that making sure the facility has your cell phone and keeping your plans will help you. Sitting home worrying doesn't help anyone, and getting out will help your stress levels. You are a wonderful mother! Hang in there.

Shanna, Sheila, I know you're both grieving. All I can offer are my and let you know that I'm thinking of you both.

Michelle, when you're replying to a post, highlight the word or words you want to attach the link too with your cursor. With those word(s) highlighted, click on the little symbol of a world & paperclip on the toolbar above the writing box. A little screen will pop up that you can paste the url in. When you go back to your reply, you will see the whole url, but when you put the post up, the entire url will not show.

Have a good Friday all.

I think everyone around here lately needs a big group hug.

I'm feeling self-pitying today because the weather is wreaking havoc on my joints. My wrists ache more than they have in months and I just know it's because it's humid and there are storms on the way. I'm 26 for god's sake, not 96! I'm trying to feel better about it by telling myself that even though they hurt a lot right now, it's just temporary until the weather gets better, and it is still not as bad as it used to be. I wouldn't say this with DH around, but I can't help but wonder if moving back to the drier climate in LA would help.

This weekend we have a cooking club meetup Saturday night, and then we're going to see Wicked Sunday night. It will be a pretty busy weekend, we also have to get oil changes for both cars, return library books, and DH has to get a hair cut. (I know, those of you with kids are laughing at me for thinking that's a lot of stuff to do!)

I might be going to NYC in July! My favorite Japanese singer is doing a US tour and stopping in NYC, and I have a lot of friends in the area plus my sister lives there so I think I'm going to go for the weekend. I haven't heard back from my sis about if I can stay with her or not, but my other friend said I could stay with him if she's too busy so I think I'll go ahead and get the plane tickets. I have just enough credit card points for a free ticket!

Dumb -- it just occurred to me that if my wrists are achy, and I know it's temporary, the obvious thing to do would be to take a couple Tylenol and forget about it. Duh. Why do I not think of these things sooner?

Michele~see the little icon that looks like a world and a piece of a chain? Copy your url and then click that icon and paste the link in the little box.

Yes, it should be plenty. I brought it for a potluck with about 15 women. There were a few other desserts brought, but not all the strawberries were eaten.

Good morning!

Wow, sore today... spent 1:15 doing strength training with the Weider, swiss ball, dumbbells, then 20 minutes of kickboxing for my cardio yesterday afternoon. In my 85 degree garage. I need one of those sweatbands to put over my eyes!

Jessica - no reason to be in pain if you don't have to be, I say take the Tylenol! And, it looks to me like you have a lot of stuff to do this weekend, and I have a kid in the house! We saw Wicked a couple of months ago - love it!

Megan - Good job on getting to the gym before getting outside! I imagine that heat really drains you out. And high five on the OP days!

Ward - I have about that many people to make the bites for myself, and have been thinking about two recipes. My event isn't until next weekend though, so I have some time. We will also have cake, so one recipe might work for me. The plain chocolate dipped ones might be good for your group, particularly with three kids? Will they eat the cheesecake ones? (I'm accustomed to kids who eat nuggets, fries, fruit treats, candy.. )

Lily - I'm sorry your son is leaving again so soon! How are you doing today?

Michele - I want to see the pic of what you bought! I don't always copy and paste the link, I sometimes do the picture. I go to the website with the item pictured, right click on the image and pick 'copy image location', then click on the 'insert image' icon and paste the link. That makes the picture show up without a link to it. Or, when you copy and paste the URL you can change the second set of text to the word you want the link to be on, you don't have to leave the long one in. I inserted one and took out the first bracket so you could see it, highlighted the part you change blue. You can make it say anything, one letter will do it, or a word or sentence. You may know that already, but I had no idea until recently!
URL="http://www.usmagazine.com/news/neil-patrick-harris-im-not-expecting-a-baby-2009186"]http://www.usmagazine.com/news/neil-patrick-harris-im-not-expecting-a-baby-2009186[/URL]

Shelia - Zumba sounds like fun!

Pat - I really coveted my neighbor's riding lawnmower halfway through my yard on Wednesday! Sounds like you have a much bigger yard than I do, so riding lawnmower is a necessity!

to everyone else! Have a great day!