PHYSICAL CHALLENGES ~ January's Monthly Thread

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  •   #61  
    Justwant2Bhealthy's AvatarJustwant2Bhealthy , 01-20-2009 09:00 PM
    HI LADIES ~ we spent almost the entire day looking and waiting and listening for the US inauguration ceremonies for their newest president, BARAK OBAMA. Since we don't have a TV connection right now, we were able to catch his speech and the ceremonies on our national CBC radio. His speech was wonderful; and we really enjoyed it. What an amazing day this was for so many Americans. The whole world was watching and we are very happy for this momentous day in US history.

    HEY PURPLE ~ so glad that your DH got to the dentist and they have given him some meds for that infection in his gums. I picked up some chewable vitamin C for both DH to help him fight off that cold he had; they were on sale half price. I noticed that I an feeling better already. Sorry to hear that you and DH have both gained some weight or at least for you, it could have been the scales for sure.

    HI MEOWEE ~ sorry to hear your back is acting up; will send up some prayers for you. Don't blame you for just taking it easy; maybe that's the best healer right now ...

    We ate well today: had a lovely roast chicken dinner with veggies. Just did the normal daily stuff and I just finished having a shower and came in here to post while my long hair dries. HI to VAL and NUMPSTER ~ Wednesday coming up tomorrow: half the week is done ... yeah!!!

    Take care friends ROSEBUD
  •   #62  
    purpleorc's Avatarpurpleorc , 01-21-2009 12:58 PM
    Hi Ladies

    It is cold out today but sunny. So took the opportunity to put my washing on the line to have a blow outside. My fingers were so cold by the time I had finished and i did not have heaps to put out either. I have brought them in now some 4 hours later they have done well outside and just need to air before ironing them.

    I have promising news on the DH infection front. Last night he was in absolute agony and virtually climbing the walls. I suggested a salt mouth wash which he did several times, just rinsed the mouth out with warm salty water then fresh water which did provide some relief. Then a warm compress on his face again giving some relief. I am by no means religious but I did pray extremely hard last night to ask for pain relief for him. Then this morning DH asked me to look at this lump in his mouth. Has I was taking a look it just burst ( so just seeing that was just pure luck). Since that point on he has started to feel much better and the pain level has decreased. I have sent thanks up for answering my prayers. I am just hoping this is the turning point in his return to full health.

    I have good news on the weighing scales front for my DH he is down 6lbs today so it appears to be levelling out. I suppose he will have added a few pounds due to the inactivity and new scales making me a few pounds heavier also. Been good on the exercise front for the last few days I have been on the wobble machine and today took a small walk with DH who wanted a little walk out of the house for some fresh air. If I have enough energy later on I will take a session on the wobble machine for 20 minutes.

    MEOWEE Not sure what SI is as I am not so use to using many abbreviations here in the UK. Sorry to here that your in pain and having to take lots of pain medication. I hope you got to go to the clinic to see if they can help you. It sounds like your doctors is like our GP's (doctors) you wait a couple of weeks to see them but if you really need to see them then stress it is a emergency and you will get an appointment.

    My sister is waiting to have a disc gram on her spine as she has had major problems and extreme pain still after a car accident when a drunk driver hit her. Depending on what they find ( if they find what they expect is there) she is going to have a rod and screws in her spine. I know this is a big operation as I have a friend who has had this done. I am not sure what the pro's and con's of having a infusion ( I presume you mean spinal) as I don't know nothing about this or not done so in my professional capacity either.

    ROSEBUD I have heard of many 3fc users on here getting new scales and having them weigh more than previously. So I had fully expected it would happen so I was prepared. If it went the other way round and I was less I wouldn't have complained so you take the good with the bad. My clothes don't feel any different and I have been predominately on plan so no major worries.

    Yes as you say a poignant moment in history for the American people with BARAK OBAMA becoming president. I had a thought the other day in the shower I do wish that Rosa Parks had lived to see the day and how please she would be to see this moment. It was also big new here for the day also as UK is a close allie with the USA. So any important news from the USA is broadcast here in the UK.

    When is it you get your TV connection? It reminded me when you said you listened to it on the radio of an age gone by that we all used to listen to the radio avidly as that was the form of entertainment for all. Televisions in their infancy was expensive and when we were young children we did not have a televison. I can remember getting the first black and white television then the colour one a many years later. We thought it was wonderful though as much as I loved television my love still remained for my books as they transported me to places the television could never do.

    I watched a programme about being overweight and anorexic. The father was about 320lbs and the daughter 105lbs (and she was 5ft 7" tall). They were both in councilling and it showed they both had issues with food. They both had obsessive compulsive behaviour and the father was dominating. The father was not being dominating in a cruel way but he was trying to prevent his daughter from making any mistakes in life that she had no choices. Like for her exams taken at the age of 15/16 he had told her what subjects she was taken. Though with the councelling he did not tell her what exams to take for the next level which you take normally at the age of 17/18. With having control back in her life she did not feel that the only thing she had left that she had some say over was food. It made me stop and look at my own issues with food with being overweigh for so long. Yes I do have some obsessive compulsive behaviors and if I do not watch myself they can get out of hand. I used food as a crutch for so long for when I was every emotion under the skin where now I am learning not to use food for those reasons and use other methods.

    Time to shoot must get a drink to take my tablets so bye for now and take care.

    purpleorc
  •   #63  
    Justwant2Bhealthy's AvatarJustwant2Bhealthy , 01-21-2009 03:29 PM
    HI LADIES ~ we woke up to really mild temps today, only -4C; hasn't been that mild in ages, so we took advantage and went up town to do our weekly shopping today. Well, I was able to get some more deals; picked up some more of that lean hamburger for 1.97 lb so we have enuff to last us to spring I think.

    Also I got a belated Christmas present: it a lovely sitting stool shaped like a "-u-" with sides and it was on for a really low price. I had admired it at Christmas but they only had one and a lady was buying it, so I thought I was outa luck. Today, when we went shopping, DH found another one; maybe they ordered another one or had one in storage (we don't really know), but DH insisted that I get it as a present for myself becuz he got a big tool for Christmas that cost the exact same price. The reason I had wanted it is that it is lower to the floor with and is cushioned all the way around and the chair I usually sit on to use my PC was too tall and legs and butt were always hurting from the circulation being cut off (which isn't good for me). So, now I am so comfy while I am typing and what a relief it is.

    PURPLE ~ Speaking of relief, I am so happy that you noticed that boil of infection in your DH's mouth; I bet he is so grateful that you found it. Am so glad that your prayers were answered; sometimes GOD answers us by giving us WISDOM, as in this case.

    The other day, DH lost his glasses; and we searched everwhere in this house over and over with no luck. So I told him I would pray while he went back to do the snow shoveling. Sure enuff I asked GOD if his angels could help me find the glasses as they were $300 and he needs them to see. Well, would you believe a thought came whammo into my mind to go look around the doorway and all of sudden I saw something shiny (the sun was reflecting off of something in the coat closet). I started laughing becuz the glasses were stuck to a sweater and were hanging there by a single thread.

    Apparently, DH had the glasses in his hands and was talking with his hands like all good Frenchmen do; and they got caught on the sweater, but DH was so busy talking he forgot about it totally. I'm afraid his memory is really getting bad these days, so I have to ask GOD for searching angels to help me a lot. His mother had ALZHEIMER's and I'm afraid that he has all the symptoms of early onset Alzheimers too. He gets frustrated, but lately I have managed to convince him not to get so angry becuz I can help him if he just lets me ... and everything seems new to him becuz he forgets it awhile later, like movies, for instance.

    Anyways, I was able to get some walking in today and I felt much better becuz it wasn't so cold; the cold really hurts my back and legs, which makes it harder for me to walk. So glad your DH was able to get out for a walk today and those nasty scales went down for him too. I am trying to watch how much salt I use becuz I know that can cause me to hold a lot of water in my body.

    MEOWEE ~ prayers going up for your back that you will be feeling better soon.

    HI to VAL and NUMPSTER ~ well, Wednesday is pretty much over and tomorrow is Thursday; only one more day and it's Friday again. Hope you both are feeling well ...

    Take good care ladies ROSEBUD
  •   #64  
    meowee's Avatarmeowee , 01-22-2009 10:03 AM
    Good Morning . . .

    Silly back is still annoying me, but not too badly -- right ankle is hurting a lot too -- Geez, I must be getting old or something. Your new stool sounds great, ROSEBUD. Hope it works well for you. I use a steno chair set very low downstairs and I still love my big exercise ball as a computer chair up here. Neither one seem to bother the back any more (or less) than anything else.

    We have sunshine right now but there is some snow in the forecast for later this afternoon. Hopefully not too much.

    Woke up to overturned chairs and an overturned under-sink garbage can this morning. Obviously the cats had a busy night. Guess I'll buy a lidded can for under the sink. Purrecious will eventually figure out how to get it open, but it should slow them down for a wee bit. Now, about the chairs -- all I can think of is nailing them all to the floor. Oh well, nothing really got damaged and they certainly keep things from getting dull.

    Have a good day ladies . . .
  •   #65  
    purpleorc's Avatarpurpleorc , 01-22-2009 11:49 AM
    Hi Ladies
    It has been a rainy day on and off. It rained throughout the night from about 7pm so pretty miserable here weather wise. We have building works at the back of our bungalow at the minute and it looks like they are today sorting the storm drains out at the back here. We have had very wet back gardens for a long time but no one wanted to take responsibility for this problem but now they are building on the land I would suspect they are having huge trouble with the water themselves. They were there with rods and then later they were digging up an area a couple of bungalow ups. I really do hope they sort the issues out with the water so that we no longer become water logged.

    I have been busy with the laundry stripping the two beds we have (spare one and the one we sleep in) so they are both washed now and made up. Towelling is also been washed so I think I have caught up with laundry chores. All I have is a very small amount of ironing to do. So I can have a fairly restful weekend which I had planned for.

    My DH did not have such a good night last night as once again he was woken by his mouth giving him pain. So he used my wheat pad (type of bag filled with wheat that you can heat in the microwave) to do some heat therapy on the area. He did eventually get some relief so was able to fall asleep and get some more rest. He has made another dental appointment for tomorrow to see the dentist and see which way forward he wants to go with treatment for this infection.

    Did not get to come on the INTERNET till later as DH PC decided to go “sick” on us probably in sympathy with him After some fiddling around and diagnosing it by trial and error it was found to be the video card. (This is what gives you a picture) Until DH PC was fixed I could not go on the INTERNET as my connect comes via his. It is a big enough connection to support both of our needs and worked out cheaper that way. Fortunately DH has some spare parts (parts taken out when he has upgraded PC) it is not a great video card but will work for the interim till we go shopping for one. DH never throws any PC part out just for this reason they will do for the emergency repair until you can buy a replacement. I seemed really lost without my connection so initially I have written this on a word pad my news until I get to read the posts.

    ROSEBUD Sounds like you have a really useful present a computer chair that is comfortable to your needs. We saved up our money and bought executive computer chairs. So they are padded and very comfortable. I spend a fair amount of time in my chair so we thought the buy was worth it for comfort alone. I have had mine now for years and years so the buy was well worth the money.

    Good job you prayed for finding your DH glasses as they are so expensive to replace. The trouble is you can not do without them for very long. I need them for both distance and near work now. That is why I have varifocal instead of two pairs of glasses. Mind cost me around $500 for the pair but I did have one other feature put on my glasses which makes my lenses turn darker in the sun or bright light. This makes them like sun glasses but with the prescription lenses in. Not sure when my next test is due for my eyes but lets hope there is no change to the prescription. I could use the frames again but it would mean being without my glasses for a couple of weeks or if I take them to a store that makes them up in about an hour.

    I really do hope that your DH has not got early onset Alzheimer's. It may mean that because his mum had the condition your seeing symptoms that are just down to the normal ageing process and adding two and two up and getting five. I know when you have cared for a loved one with this condition your more acutely aware of the symptoms and we all have them to a degree but this is just the normal ageing process as I said. When I started nursing and they were giving the signs and symptoms of different mental health disease I was convinced I had each of them in turn. I eventually had a light bulb moment and realised that we all have the symptoms so these diseases but for us they do not intervene or disrupt our daily living to any extent. We all get moments of being depressed and being elated. We can all have schizophrenic traits like you find yourself taking to absolutely no one If it gets to the point where you are really worried ask your doctor to take a look at him. Maybe the simple basic testing that they do will put your mind at rest. Here the basic test include asking who is on the throne, the PM , what is todays date, give the person 5 simple everyday objects to remember and a couple of minutes later ask them to recall them, what hospital is this, or what doctors surgery is this? Getting anyone of these questions wrong doesn't’t mean you have dementia or Alzheimer's you have a score and if you score below a certain amount then further tests will be asked for. ( well this is the normal protocol in the UK, the questions maybe different in Canada to suit the current events or titles of certain people. Like for example you would not ask who was the PM in USA you would ask who was the President)

    MEOWEE Seems that your cats have been rather mischievous to say the least. My dog is rather mischievous especially when we are out. He likes to remove the cushions and seat cushions into a heap in the middle of the lounge floor. I do wish I had a camera to see him achieve this task and how long it takes him. He manages to take it off the 3 piece suite , and the two armchairs. Have been out for a short while today and fortunately no furniture arranging today

    I hope that your back starts to improve soon it is not nice being in pain constantly it starts to get you down no matter how upbeat person you are.

    Must go, I have been typing this much longer than I expected so it is turning into a Marathon entry. NUMPSTER and VALDINE hope your both well. One more day to go and then it is the glorious weekend for you to both enjoy.

    Take care and catch up with you soon
    purpleorc
  •   #66  
    Justwant2Bhealthy's AvatarJustwant2Bhealthy , 01-22-2009 07:52 PM
    HI LADIES ~ We had another milder day; it snowed all night though, but the sun came out nice and bright by this
    afternoon, so DH took NIKO for a walk, but he said there was a terrible cold wind so he had to come back.

    Just made some apple-bran muffins for a change. I tried them without sugar and we still liked them, but I think next time, I will put a couple of artificial sweeteners in them and see how that is; I forgot to today. I did my towel laundry today too. We're having leftover roast chicken and veggies tonight.

    HEY PURPLE ~ You are so right; as we age, our memories play tricks on us, and DH is 61 years young. He gets so upset with himself (even angry sometimes); and I try to assure him that this is quite normal. Yes, his mother had Alzheimers and I worked with these patients, so it is so easy to start thinking, 'oh no, that reminds me of my mom' or 'that reminds me of our patients' and so on, just like you say.

    I have suggested that the next time he goes to see his doctor to mention this; but he will have to write a note to remember ... heck, even I have to write a note so that I remember to mention things to my doctor, as I forget things as well. I have heard doctors complain about patients who bring notes, but I think they must have a problem or something. My doctor didn't seem to mind it.

    HI MEOWEE ~ sounds like your kitties have a ball playing around at night. Our NIKO loves to play by himself too, throwing balls around and running after them. But, if we leave him in the porch while we are away, he chews the edges of the straw snow mat, even if we give him bones and toys: we think this is separation anxiety as he was abandoned in the past. Lately, we have been taking him with us instead, and he is good as gold in the car. You're right, our little furry friends do make our lives so much more interesting and fun for sure ...

    HI VAL and NUMPSTER ~ TGIF ... well ladies, tomorrow is Fantastic Friday ... the last day of working for this week -- Hope you both have a good day!!!

    Take good care ROSEBUD
  •   #67  
    purpleorc's Avatarpurpleorc , 01-23-2009 06:18 AM
    Hi fellow chicks

    Well it is still continuing to rain none stop so getting the canoe out tomorrow Seriously it is very wet here and big puddles forming due to the level of rainfall in the past 24 hours or so.

    Dentist is looming for my DH today at lunch time so will no more as regards the treatment he wishes to give to DH. One blessing DH did sleep all through the night so that is a good thing. Though I did leave out pain killers just in case. Now DH is not taking the pain killers much he is terrible about taking antibiotics I have to chase him up to make sure he has taken it. Thank goodness he does not have to take it on a regular basis or I would have no hair left

    I have a little crack on my thumb where the skin has spilt for no reason. I fell with a bottle when I was a child and it was in the day when they were made of glass. I was going to the local shop to get some vinegar. I was going to buy the amount that we needed and they put it into the bottle or container you had given them. The ultimate way of not using the planets resources unnecessarily. You recycled your bottles and kept them for getting things in the quantity you wanted rather than the quantity the shop sold. Not many items went into the bin as very little packaging and certainly very little wasted food as you could not afford to. Well I digress it is splitting down the scar from this injury. The only thing I can think of is with it being winter my body is devoid from moisture and due to the dry skin it has cracked. i can remember my Nanna suffering the same way when I was a child but you do not pay to much attention at that age.

    ROSEBUD I think most doctors do not mind a reminder list for their patients though I think what bothers them is when you put down every ache and pain. So you end up with a list that is really long rather than one that has maybe 3 or 4 things you wish to ask.

    When I go to the MS clinic once a year well this time it is 18 months I take a list of important things. This is because if I forget to ask about something then I have a long time till I see the specialist. I do have an open ended appointment as well as they are called which means you can phone up and ask the MS nurse about seeing the doctor. Though it has got to be something very serious before they refer you. I have only got to see the doctor once that way and it was when I was suffering extreme pain in my face. I was getting passed from my dentist to my doctor with no joy both saying that it other was responsible to get my pain under control. I was referred to the MS doctor and it was such a relief to get a name to what I had wrong with me. I had trigeminial neuralgia and it was treatable ( though notoriously difficult to get the pain under control ). My own doctor had not picked it up as it is not a common condition so hence would not suspect it.

    Fridays here which must be your best day when you work. I know I always loved my last day at work before some days off. IT was not necessarily Friday as my days off were often mid week. Hi to MEOWEE, VALDINE & NUMPSTER I hope your all well and the weather is being kind to you.

    Bye for now I must start to get lunch under way. Plus start to make preparations for a casserole for tomorrow (turkey thigh one with heaps of beans and vegetables) Take care and catch up with the news soon

    purpleorc
  •   #68  
    Justwant2Bhealthy's AvatarJustwant2Bhealthy , 01-23-2009 03:07 PM
    HI LADIES ~ we have been having a bit of a snow storm here all day, but the sun still tries to peak thru every now and then. The snow and cold winds are coming from the north; so I don't even want to go out there. DH went out and did the entrance way of our place as well as our neighbours, so he could go to the hospital: GOD BLESS HIM! He is good that way ...

    I made a pot of tomato-bean soup for lunch as I knew DH would appreciate that after being out there in that cold; and it was very yummy. Not really doing too much today; just the every day housechores which I spread throughout the week to make it easier on my back. Well, we've been doing pretty good not using too much gas for our heat, as they did an adjustment for us as we'd hoped they would, which means savings for us in the end. It just makes sure we keep within our planned budget and won't have to dig into our discretionary funds too much ... yeah!!! That's with our temps actually higher than last year (another 6 degrees colder on average).

    HI PURPLE ~ glad DH was able to sleep better last night; yah, I have to remind DH to take his pills and vitamins too. That's why they need us around, right? My DH gets those cracks in his hands too and they can smart pretty good; they say that they are from the cold and dry conditions. I picked up some local sausages that are very lean and am gonna make them up with a tomato base and beans; I think that will taste very good. Tonight, we may end up having fish ...

    HI MEOWEE ~ hope you were able to get in your weekly Thursday mall crawl and/or shopping and the weather isn't too bad. Also hope your back is feeling better too!

    HI to VAL and NUMPSTER ~ hope you both have a great Friday night and weekend ...

    Well, it's time to go put my legs up and do a puzzle; take good care ROSEBUD
  •   #69  
    purpleorc's Avatarpurpleorc , 01-24-2009 07:07 AM
    Hi Fellow Chickie's

    It is freezing here our lawn is all whited over from the frost. The paths are a bit treacherous as they are all icy from all the rain we had the last few days which meant when it froze it was wet on the ground. So I will not be venturing to far a fields today unless it thaws out.

    DH when to the dentist yesterday and he was examined by him. The dentist could see two abscesses on his gums so he numbed the region and then cut the gum slightly for it to drain. DH has to go back next Friday to see the dentist then. He slept through the night again but mouth sore now from the sites injected to numb the area. DH is renowned from getting infections in these injection sites so fingers crossed this does not happen this time. He says that the site that they injected are the most sore this morning which is not such a good sign.

    I have a casserole in the oven at the minute a turkey thigh one, with lots of vegetables in there and beans Flageolet and ballotti). There will be enough casserole for us for two days. I though if there is enough vegetables left from the casserole I would make a vegetarian type cottage pie from it. ( not completely vegetarian I know as it has been cooked with turkey) So I will squeeze another meal out from it. I have prepared plenty vegetables to steam as well. If there is any left over I will make a bubble and squeak type potato topping for my cottage pie.

    I tried yesterday very unsuccessfully to try and do a walking Pilate's weight loss video. Well I am so uncoordinated I could not do both hands and feet together. I tried desperately to keep up with the work out. Not that it was very strenuous or anything like it but it was making me hotter. So the raise in my body temperature was a disaster I had to stop my DH was worried about me as I looked unwell. I felt it as well for hours afterwards. So I think this was too much for me I will stick with my own type of exercise walking when I can and wobble machine. Unfortunately I react badly to heat it brings on symptoms of my MS and now that I have deteriorated it is more marked. I still do not feel 100% this morning so I have well and truly learnt my lesson.

    ROSEBUD Your bean and tomato soup sounds lovely and just the right thing for these cold winter days. Do you blend your soup once it is cooked or do you leave the beans whole in this? I certainly like the sound of your sausages with a tomato base and beans. I love a sausage called Lincolnshire which is a pork sausage seasoned with sage. So it has a peppery like taste to it. The sausage is more chunky texture as it is coarsely ground. If I can not get hold of those then I will select Cumberland. Traditionally they were made in a long coiled length though today you can buy them and they look like your traditional sausage shape. Again these are pork sausages flavoured with herbs but the predominate taste is peppery. Again this is a coarsely ground meat inside so has a more open texture to it. I am not so good at explaining what sausages are like not something you do every day These are local sausages and traditional English. Frequently served with mash potatoes and maybe an onion gravy. The dish is called bangers and mash. It maybe the same in Canada I do not know though I know you have many sayings and terminology from the British culture.

    Needless to say each region of the UK has it own traditional foods so there are many types of sausages but these are the two I was brought up on but mainly Lincolnshire as we came from there.

    Time to run I need to put the steamer on for my vegetables bye all and take care.

    purpleorc
  •   #70  
    Justwant2Bhealthy's AvatarJustwant2Bhealthy , 01-24-2009 08:52 PM
    HI LADIES ~ the temps have fallen around here again; down into the -20'sC, but we had lots of sunshine today too and that helps a lot. Well, our Winter Carnival is coming up in a couple of weeks so we will need temps at least in the -teens so everything goes off without a hitch for that. They are planning the biggest carnival they've ever had this year, so that should be nice for the people this year as it has been very cold here.

    We're just staying home and frankly, I didn't do a dang thing today becuz an old visitor decided to drop by unexpectedly; and that always exhausts me (TOM); yah, guess old TOM didn't move away after all: dang it!!!

    HI PURPLE ~ yah, I hate that when it rains and then freezes; we get lots of ice and then it snows and it becomes so slippery on the steps and roads too. You be extra careful out there when you go for your walks: we don't want you getting hurt now. Glad DH is finally getting some help with his mouth; prayers he doesn't get anymore infections.

    That cottage pie sounds like our Shepherd's pie or Fireside Pie, which DH loves; that is what we are having for Sunday dinner tomorrow too.

    DH is out in the kitchen making some homemade popcorn for our weekend snack; it sure smells good. Then I put my legs up and do a puzzle or two.

    BBS ... I'm back; I had to go help DH with something in the kitchen. They venture in there so little that they can't find anything.

    HI to MEOWEE, VAL, and NUMPSTER ~ hope you all are having a great weekend. Take good care ROSEBUD
  •   #71  
    meowee's Avatarmeowee , 01-25-2009 07:37 AM
    Hi there . . .

    Sorry I've been missing. The past couple of days have been relatively mild (right above the freezing mark) and very damp and my back has been very unhappy about it. Today is is extremely cold again but also pretty dry and sunny and it's amazing how much better the old SI area feels. Never thought I'd be happy to see a cold stretch.

    Hope the rest of you are having a glorious Sunday . . .
  •   #72  
    purpleorc's Avatarpurpleorc , 01-25-2009 07:59 AM
    Hi Ladies

    Good morning our weather is so changeable at the minute now we are back to rain and it has warmed up some what. No frost this morning on rising.

    Managed a good work out this morning aka the house work. I was mopping the kitchen floor gosh it sure does get your upper arms. Went through the house with the hoover this morning as well. Have a small load of washing on at the minute like hand towels from the bathroom and kitchen.

    Watched a lovely film last night with DH not full of swearing. It was called the secret life of bees. It starred several well known stars Queen Latifah, Dakota Fanning, Jennifer Hudson and Alicia Keys. It was set in 1964 in South Carolina about Lily Owens (Dakota Fanning) who is 14 and is haunted my here memories of her mum. She runs away( due to her father unpredictable and vindictive nature) and finds her way to the Boatwright sisters a group who are intelligent and independent ladies. They are bee-keepers and Lily finds comfort in learning the art of looking after bees. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0416212/plotsummary This website tells you more about this film.

    ROSEBUD The winter festival sound good fun lets hope it warms up a wee bit to let it go smoothly. Yes it is nice to see visitors but they can be tiring especially when TOM is here. I suppose now that TOM are infrequent they are humdingers when they do arrive.

    Here cottage pie was traditionally made from beef and shepherds pie is made from lamb. I have the "cottage pie" in the oven at the minute getting nice and brown with those crispy bits on top.

    That is one thing I have never made from scratch pop corn. What do you flavour yours with after? I know I like pop corn sweet rather than savoury (i.e. with salt on). I know I should be more adventurous with doing my own and I know it must be heaps cheaper than the shop bought pre done packets.

    Time to go my dinner is nigh on ready now. Bye ladies and take care.


    purpleorc
  •   #73  
    Justwant2Bhealthy's AvatarJustwant2Bhealthy , 01-25-2009 04:02 PM
    HI LADIES ~ we've had beautiful sunshine here all day; so nice for a Sunday (it seems to suit Sundays, I think). We're just relaxing at home again: I am definitely turning into a bear!

    HI PURPLE ~ oh, I know that story: THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES; I actually owned and read the book a few years back. I either still have it, or I donated it to our local library or the goodwill for resale (can't remember which now). It was an intriguing story indeed, with some sad moments in it, but also some very interesting things too. I like the analogy about how 'life can sting us sometimes' esp for women (bees can sting, but they give us honey too); and that good can come out of bad too, like the scriptures say (all things work together for good) like the pain of childbearing, but we forget about that for the love of the child, and so forth ...

    That analogy is true a lot in life: life has a lot of painful or sad experiences, but we can learn from them, heal, and then move on; and sometimes, great things can emerge out of a terrible tragedy, if we let it (like a parent, who starts a school scholarship in the name of a child they lost way too early).

    Most people here call Shepherd's pie one with ground beef with a layer of corn (cream-style corn is popular with the French); Fireside Pie is the same with only peas and carrots for the vegetables. I have also heard it called cottage pie too; I have recipe for one that puts diced tomatoes with the cooked ground beef and green beans in the center with mash on top.

    I can really see why Shepherd's pie would originally be made with lamb, but since that isn't commonly eaten here, ground beef is used instead. My mother used to make her shepherd's pie with a bottom crust, but I stopped that to get rid of all those extra calories. I also have made a cottage or Shepherd's pie with leftover roast beef, gravy, veggies, and mash or sliced potatoes: I use two forks to shred the roast beef and put it with some gravy on the bottom, layer of roasted veggies, then potatoes on top. I put the gravy on top of the meat or the whole thing, if I am using leftover sliced, cooked potatoes.

    HI MEOWEE ~ Glad that you are having some better weather out there; we are sure liking these temps, and all this gorgeous sunshine we have been getting lately!

    HI VAL and NUMPSTER ~ hope you ladies are having a wonderful Sunday too ... take good care ROSEBUD
  •   #74  
    meowee's Avatarmeowee , 01-26-2009 11:16 AM
    Another very cold but lovely and sunny day for us . . . back and ankle are still niggly but definitely could be worse.

    Hope the rest of you have some good stuff going on this Monday.
  •   #75  
    Justwant2Bhealthy's AvatarJustwant2Bhealthy , 01-26-2009 08:52 PM
    HI LADIES ~ we had another lovely day with lots of sunshine; it was so warm, we turned the furnace down a few degrees. It's dropped down again tonight, but it's suppose to be nice all week, fair temperatures for this time of year.

    Just stayed home again today and did stuff around here; daily housechores and such. We had some nice lean center boneless pork chops with rice and mix of veggies (broccoli, carrots, and kniblets corn) for dinner. Did good today staying OP; happy about that.

    HI MEOWEE ~ Gee, I see you all over these boards. You do a lot of travelling! But then, so do I! Glad to hear that you have nice weather and you are feeling better too.

    Tonight, DH and I played some games; he won 3-2 ... drats! Oh well, it's worth it, becuz it makes him so happy to win! And we like happy hubbies, don't we ladies?

    HI to PURPLE, and VAL, and NUMPSTER!!! Hope everyone had a Marvellous Monday! Take good care ... ROSEBUD
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