Hello girls just popin to say hi. I haven't been so good in the food dept. today guess I will attempt to do better on thurs. Friday is my work christmas gathering. I am attending if the weather is good but no staying too late as the hubby will be home alone. But I think I will go for a bit. Maybe they will give us a bonus hah hah they say not this year but I have a feeling it will be a little something extra time will tell. I think it would be okay to give it for how many years in attendance. Well gonna go off to bed and Marie you are very right I think the hospital should cover the cost of those items related to this but who tells them us? I don't want to get stuck with them thats for sure. Oh time will tell just want life to get back to normal here at home with the health etc.. Catch yah on thurs.

Good morning all I am up and sitting here with my hair dye on. Oh trying to be one step ahead of my game. I tell yah many reasons lately for a few extra grays. Anyways thougth I snaz myself up before my christmas party friday. Having a nice cup of coffee and thinking about having a healthy plan for the day. Gonna eat a nice breakfast then take some salad for lunch and a tangerine, planning on making my ck breast for dinner and some veggies. So I am hoping to stay within my cals today a little lower might even be in order.
I need to sew maybe tonight I have three christmas stocking to make and send to HI. So if I don't get started those will never get done. Also whipping up some of my cookie dough might be a smart move too. Take care and have a super day. Oh the director yesterday asked me how I thought things in the office were going. I told her great and she said I am so glad you stayed and I replied me too. Then she said that would of been a great loss to our dept. I thanked her for her kind words. Sometimes things work out for the best. I just got my print out of time yesterday and at this time have 1.5 weeks vac and still 40 hrs. sick. Pretty good for this time of year. I am saving at least the week of vac. for March HI trip. I am taking off the 21st and then the 26th for christmas little added time off. Maybe a real break!! Bear is being so good today I just have to give him a bone every morning hah hah!

Morning all, well it was raining this morning so Kody gave me sad eyes as I rode the exercycle for 5 miles. Poor puppy. By the time I left for work it was snowing. Go snow go. I really want to go skiing.

Carol, good for you having a bit of time left over for time off from work. With the lousy November you deserve a break. HI will be fun. I envy you on that one.

Penny, I hope you're drying out up there. The weather has sure been mean lately.

Juls and Judy, hope you're doing good.

Food was better yesterday. But definitely room for improvement. Thankfully I love exercise and it's helping keep me on an even keel. If I didn't I'd be shopping for new, bigger clothes.
Marie

Sorry I haven't been checking regularly. It's been very busy at work--fundraising, fundraising, fundraising--and at home I've been distracted by family issues. My 87 year-old grandma, who's always been extremely healthy, sharp and self-sufficient, has suddenly turned up with what I think is moderate dementia. My mom and her eight siblings (all in their 50s and 60s) around the country are all panicking, grieving and constantly on the phone to each other. Although my mom is on OH and Grandma's in CA, my mom is the big sister, and she is worried about everyone else's issues as well as her own...We have been blessed that Grandma's barely spent a night in the hospital her whole life, but it's unnerving to have the aging process accelerate literally in a few weeks. In the midst of Xmas shopping, I will need to make sure to leave money and credit card space to help Mom fly across the country if she needs to.

Penny, I thought of you with this weather lately! I'm glad you aren't negatively impacted.

Carol, I'm glad that even with all of your struggles at home, you haven't lost your zest for Xmas! I hope the hubby continues to improve, and maybe even gain some weight.

Marie, poor Kody must think he's on punishment. I hope you can take him out on the slopes soon.

Juls, I hope you are doing well!

I am hanging in there. My foot's beginning to hurt again, so I will call the doc and ask for meds again (boo!). Eating could be better--my season for lunches out and receptions has started again, and it's very cold and icy outside, so I have to step up the exercise!

judy

Good morning girls well its christmas party evening at work so I am attending. The hubby is all for it and even said I should stay over as some have rented a room. No need for that I will have a little veno early on and then lay off for several hrs. before attempting my trip home.We are not getting a christmas bonus someone from past employment made a big mistake in the budget so we all have to cut back this year hopefully in the future we get it again. Things happen and thats life. I am going to call the hospital today as oh so funny the records we requested on wed. a.m. haven't come yet. Wonder why? Oh some follow up today I say! I feel bad for people whom don't have anyone advocating for them in these situations what happens to them? Work is busy but going well. I have an emergency meeting this afternoon didn't plan on this one but will suck it up put the big girl panties on as the younger folks say hah hah! My intake was good yesterday around 1500. I made a wrap for lunch running late in the a.m. and just threw it all in a ziploc and ran out at lunch time put it together with some jalopeno hummus. A friend in the office that eats her lunch and is all sticking her crackers or grabbing a little of your lunch etc. carrots or what ever you may have stuck a cracker in my hummus when I had my mouth full. She let out a yell when she realized it was hot. Hah hah that will teach her to stay out of my stuff we all had a good laugh not at her but kind of with her. Well exercise hasn't been great I feel a bit guilty not coming right home and then with stopping to due some christmas stuff it just isn't happening so I am trying to do the stairs at work park a ways out and walk to our main office 10 min each way for a meeting yesterday. Better than nothing. Well catch you all soon we are having good weather today but the weekend is to be rain turning to snow Marie did you send that my way? Marie I am so willing to give you all my snow for your activity but want the ground to be just white for christmas. Shopping is coming to a close and last night I decided no way am I sewing christmas stockings I am going to buy them and revamp them with putting the names on them with cross stitching. I must be either getting lazy or wiser not sure which one. Take care and have a super day. My clothes are fitting better but I haven't done the white box in a bit. Oh Judy its not easy is it. A friend of mine is going through the same thing with her mom aging isn't fun at any rate but when changes happen quickly its so hard on everyone. My thoughts are with you. In this past yr. we have seen changes with my mom whom is going to be 86. She has always tried to be generous to lots of charity causes and people who send her enevolpes all the time but always only sent a few cks. Lately my sister has informed me she is sending alot more than we knew and she really can't afford too. So we are trying to not let our other siblings know yet but deal with it in a sensitive manner me of course being the one because they would just out right take her ck book away and thats not good. She needs some independence. With your gram is she on meds and if so is she taking them properly cause that can make big changes in their life. Just a thought.

Ok, I just wrote a long post that I accidently deleted. The quick post needs an undo.

Quickly, Carol, the stockings will look great.

Judy, I'm very sorry about your grandmother. My thoughts are with you.

Kody was good yesterday and today he got to go out for a walk on the ice/snow with the pretty stars shining.

Marie

Oh, hooray, hooray, it's Friday! I can't wait to sleep in a little bit on Saturday. I'm feeling a little run down, and I know that a lazy weekend day will really perk me up. I'm trying not to come down with something, so the past two mornings I've slept a little extra, at the expense of morning workouts. I will ride the exercise bike when I get home tonight, I don't see myself working late today.

Marie, your evening walks sounds lovely. I miss starry nights--it's too bright in the city to see much, then I find myself staring at a beautiful, bright...airplane headed to the nearby airport!

Carol, I hope you're enjoying your party! Re Grandma, she hadn't been on many meds before. I'm wondering (from the other side of the continent) if she has Parkinson's, from the little I heard through the grapevine. I've pushed for the southern California family members to get her to a geriatrician ASAP so we'll know what we're dealing with.

I'm thinking of spending next weekend in NYC, to see friends and celebrate my upcoming birthday. But it's so expensive this time of year! It would be quite a splurge. But you only turn fifty once .

Hope everyone has a great weekend--judy

G,day ladies sorry I haven,t been around for awhile we have been having some terrible weather here downunder thunderstorms with hail and terrific winds so we have been having frequent blackouts so to scared to turn on anything electrical that isn,t needed at the moment.

Carol I hope DH starts to put weight on again soon and you get something done about that bit that shouldn,t have been left in he shouldn,t have to take medication for something that was their fault, I,m with your DH only I would tell the Doc to put the meds where the sun doesn,t shine sorry your not getting a bonus you work so hard all year you deserve it but like you say that,s life. I,m off to my DH works Chrissy party tonight and I,ll be in big girls panties too but they are a God send at times, I could just picture that poor lady with the hot mouth it was good she could laugh about it but I guess she will be a bit more careful about what she helps herself to in the future, do you colour your hair or just cover the grey I,m a redhead so no grey hairs for along time for me yet I remember you describing your DH village last Christmas it sounds so cosy.

Marie poor Kody he really is in the dog house lately with his walks, I think I would swap the thunderstorms for the snow you guys have I hate thunderstorms I,m a big sissy lightening scares me and when I was little I used to hide under the bed if there was wind, if I could get away with it I probably still would

Penny thanks mate, it was a big job but very rewarding they look tops and I got plenty of exercise in to so a plus all round Sydney does have some great thunderstorms in fact all of aussieland does, mother nature can be cruel or kind but I think it is her way of letting us know the way she feels about the way we treat her earth sometimes. I remember The Outback Rocket Ship its an oldy but a goody

Judy I feel for you with your grandma, age plays some dirty tricks, hope everything is OK with everything else and you don,t come down with anything you are probably run down because you do so much, Take care of yourself the exercise routine will be there when you are ready to get back to it don,t sweat it. I know what you meen about starry nights when we lived in the city you couldn,t really see them now we are in the country they are so bright you can make out constilations and it looks like if you reached up you could touch them, they are so beautiful its the little things that make life good. I just hugged 50 it isn,t to painful I think I like it better than 49 I have a thing about uneven numbers

I,m doing OK staying on track
Well everyone take care and try to have a good weekend.

JULS

Hi everyone, well I learned my lesson yesterday - to go the advanced posting as there is a undo button.

Judy, I hope that you can get your GM to a specialist through your relations. Knowing what you're fighting is always better than wondering. I hope you enjoy your weekend. I am totally with you on the too much work and no unwind time. Today I'm a bum. I'm going to make my family's Czeck holiday bread and grind the last of the stained glass for the Christmas presents so DH can solder them tomorrow during football. And Judy, I vote for spending #50 celebrating in style. That's a cool number. I agree with Juls on that.

Juls, oh how I love thunderstorms. I think they're erotic. Too bad they don't do that for you.

I'm sitting by my fireplace staying toasty as I look out the window and see about 1" of the white stuff. The mountains are frosted with the stuff. It's absolutely gorgeous out. Mt Shasta, the ski area I have my season pass is hoping to open next Friday!!!! Oh, I'm thinking snow but the long term forecast isn't. But it's to be chilly so they can make snow. And they are on a humungous mountain (14,000 ft) so the weather is always different even though they're not far away.

Well, I'm going to start my holiday bread. Have a great weekend. Penny and Carol, take care.
Marie

Judy - Sorry to hear about your Grandma. It's especially hard this time of the year to be worrying about loved-ones. It sounds like she's been in good health otherwise, so that's a blessing. I hope you don't come down with something. Don't overdo the exercise till you get your energy back. You probably get exposed to a lot of bugs traveling so much. Congratulations in advance for your big "Five O". I hope you manage to get to NYC for your birthday bash.

Carol - That's funny about your coworker with the "sticky fingers" grabbing some of your spicy dip. That will teach her a lesson! I hope you had fun at the Christmas party. We've been invited to a New Year's party, but my DH doesn't want to go as it's "Dinner Jacket and Tie" for guys and he hates dressing up. He doesn't even have a dinner jacket, so I don't know what else someone would wear in that situation. It's one of my best friends, so I'm a bit torn as to whether to nag him and get him to go but then he'll just be sulking all night. I hope your DH is continuing to feel better. Sounds like the hospital is already giving you a bit of a run around.

Marie - I bet you were so ticked losing your long post. I know the feeling! Kody must have loved his snowy walk under the starry sky. It sounds lovely. Did you guys get much snow from the last storm that went through? Today the sky is blue and it looks gorgeous out, so we're looking forward to going for a walk down by the river. It's still almost at flood stage but starting to go down. Luckily the paths in the park aren't under water.

Juls - Sounds like you've been having some dramatic storms down under. Good for you staying on track. I've had some good days and some bad ones so I'm at a standstill with losing weight, but hopefully the new year will bring some new willpower! I usually gain 5-10 lbs. between Thanksgiving and New Year, so I'm right on track! I'm a redhead too but mine is courtesy of L'Oreal these days! I was naturally red when I was younger, but it faded out. I don't know if I'm gray as I've never let it grow out.

I have two parties coming up next week, so I'm going to have to be extra careful with the calories. I may try having a protein shake first to kill my appetite a bit. We're looking forward to getting outside a bit now that it's drying up after all our wet weather. We're so much luckier than some people who lost everything in the terrible floods we've had, mostly near the coast and people close to rivers. I'm so glad our house is a lot higher than the river down below. Just the thought of all that mud in the house is just awful. I feel so sorry for the folks having to clean up and throw away most of their possessions, especially with the holidays just around the corner.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Morning everyone, it's a cold one here today. When I got up it was 11 degrees. It was a cold walk. DH went with me again today. DS2 and I are going to yoga today. We got distracted yesterday (hime with computers and me with Chrstmas stuff). But today, we're going to try. I'm not sure how my toes will do as they are still very sore.

Penny, enjoy your river walk. I'm glad that you didn't lose much with the storm. We got a little snow but what we got is staying. I just wish it would dump 3 feet on us and then I could go skiing.

Food was so-so yesterday and probably will be most days through the holidays. I try to be good and if I'm not bad then that's progress. As long as I don't give up. Right?

Well, today is football day. Go Packers Go!!!
Marie

Marie - It's cold here too and we may get a few snowflakes. I hope your toes let you get out and about today. It's very cold in Boise today (15 deg.) and our DS has a shooting match all day - that's dedication!

I don't know much about football, but I'll root for your team! Go Packers!

Oh, the weekend is almost over...boo! It was mostly good for me. I'm feeling peppier than I did on Friday. I slept late both mornings , and did some chores, bought fresh produce and did good workouts both days, including an other 45-minute stint on the XBike. I've earned gold stars on my food log--having groceries at home helps!

I just learned that my rent will be going up by $235 a month . That's getting me up off my rear on the question of buying a place. I've already signed up for a free homebuying education seminar in early January, and I've pulled out all the material I've collected this year about mortgages, condo fees, etc. Maybe I will be a homeowner by the summer, or at least renting in a cheaper and/or better apartment.

Juls, I love your chic new graphic! Very elegant--and slim! I don't mind thunderstorms, as long as I'm inside. I gre up with people who were really frightened by the storms, and my grandfather was killed by lightening when my father was young. As long as I know where the flashlight and candles are, I'm fine.

Marie, I would love a fireplace. It's so nice that you use it. But I would never wish for a big dumping of snow...unless I could stay at home for a few days (in front of a fireplace) and not have to venture outside. And I agree, not being bad is progress, if that's your goal, especially during the holidays. I am trying hard for a "whoosh" next week. Once I go to my folks for a week at the end of the year, I will be doing well to maintain.

Penny, i'm so glad that your lovely home wasn't damaged by the flooding. Good luck with the parties. I have been buying the Curves shake mix, and the chocolate is starting to taste good. I have it for b'fast most days, but since it's all pumped up with vitamins, I don't take my multi those mornings. But Penny, you are rooting for the wrong team! The Browns are the ones who really need your help!

judy

G,day lovely s.

Marie I love to get under the covers in a thunderstorm and hide thats about it my DH gets frisky when there,s a storm I guess we are all different. I think my fear comes from when I was little I was locked out of the house when my Mum was at work she was late home, well we got a hail storm with heavy winds and lots of lightening scary for a 6yr old so I have not cared for them since. You make your Mountains sound so beautiful and your fire sounds so warm and cosy, we have two open fire places here one in the dining room and the other in the living room they are lovely when we get really cold nights in the winter which we do. How is the book going I,m almost finished it is a hard one to put down.

Penny I use Loreal too when I feel like having a blonde moment DH likes my natural colour it,s a dark honey colour going more auburn as I,m getting older, I hear you loud and clear with the weight over the festive season I,m going to try and be good but I am not going to sweat it if I gain a lb or 2 I,ve been having the Ultra slim diet shakes they seem to help with cravings especially the chocolate ones.

Judy I thought if I put a slim Red Head up there it might help with motivation I hope to get somewhere near my goal weight by my 5th wedding anniversary in January I want to get a long evening gown and go somewhere really posh for dinner, crikey it will be just my luck we will get a thunderstorm on the night and I,ll be hiding under the covers instead bummer about your rent it is like that here it is getting nearlly as expensive to rent as it is to buy your own home good luck all your doing is paying off someone elses mortgage for them with a bit of luck you could be in your own home

Carol I hope all is well with you and your DH

Take care everyone I,m in a hugging mood I guess I just love Christmas

JULS

Hi all, a quick note as today will be a bear at work and almost DIL's birthday party at my house this evening. I think I've got everything managed except my co-leader for the seminar today hasn't bothered to do anything. Can you tell I'm mad. she emailed me over the weekend and complained how busy she was...

Judy, I'm sorry about the increase in rent. I guess they had to pay for the expensive gym equipment. Good luck on the house hunting. Now is definitely the time to buy but watch for inflated prices.

Juls, good luck on the 5th anniversary goal. Wow, I finished Double Cross a couple books ago. I very much liked it. I can't wait till the next one comes out. Let me know what you think when you're done. I'm not going to give anything away. I'm into the Vince Flynn's Mitch Rapp series now. I'm on the third one. They are very good.

Penny, don't listen to Judy. Rooting for the Packers is the wise choice. They won and clinched their division. I know they won't win it all but it's been fun watching them have a good season.

Hi Carol, hope your weekend was good.
Marie