AH, all the kiddies are home.........we finally get some time to recharge some badly abused batteries and get ready for September! Welcome.

Well, I made it thru the day, did not cry too much, although seriously I was crying and so were several of my students. Gonna miss those little buggers- well most of them.

Mouse- please take the time you need to get better......Please?

Robyn, the trip sounds wonderful. Recharge, regroup! And with a WW buddy to boot? Hehehehehe!

I am pooped. We had company last nite.......so I am going to take a nap (unheard of!). Sorry for being short. See ya later!

Found ya! Cleaned the bathroom....now I've got to sit a spell..... wheew! This cleaning stuff is not fun! Will respond more later...was just reminded of baseball tonight...yummy! ahem!
Take care,
meee

Hi Ladies,
I am back from my little mini-vacation. I had fun with my TOPS friends. But I didn't have fun at home. I was basically left to my own devices and no one in my family really wanted to do anything. Then I came home to my dh telling me how much fun he had over the weekend and it really burnt me. Then every night since I have been home, he ends up going out with our friends and I stay at home. Because how much fun is it to watch everybody sit around and drink beer all night long and bs for hours upon hours. Then he hurt my feelings at the pool today. I had to go in to the pool this morning to pick the kids up from swimming lessons and bring them back to the house to eat lunch. Then I took them back to the pool for a little bit. While I tried to talk to my dh a few times to ask him a couple of simple quick questions and I was told to leave him alone. So then he comes over to talk to me later and I was already in a foul mood because of the heat and no shade and his attitude towards me to ask me what is wrong. I told him that I was getting ready to leave so I could workout at Curves and he was like fine. So when I collect my sdd and all her stuff, I am told by one of our friends that my dh went with one of our other friends to pick up baseball pictures, so I couldn't leave just yet because the twins were in the pool. When they finally come back, my dh was like bye see ya later and made a point to kiss his dd but blew me off. While needless to say that hurt me a lot among not really getting to spend time with just him. But he had time to chat with all our other friends there or he made the time. So I am suppose to go with him tonight to a friends house for a little bit and I don't know if I want to go now or not. I have decided that I am not going to the pool and sitting awhile when it is really hot out or it makes me sick and cranky. I did miss talking with you all while I was gone. I was going to check in with you all yesterday, but was in a little bit of pain from my dentist visit and three fillings put in yesterday morning. So I stayed off the computer yesterday.
So how is everyone enjoying the start to their summer vacation? I better go and get in the shower to really cool off now. Talk to you all later.
Kerry

Hello!

Mouse, thanks for your note about CPR and related stuff.... I will have to reread it and figure out what direction I want to take...and then of course, it is up to the boys really! Thanks so much for the information!


Kerry, Welcome back! Sorry to hear that your trip to visit family was less than wonderful! Also sorry to hear that youve got your own Atilla to deal with! While you were away, I joined our local Curves for the summer months! I joined on Tuesday morning....and my body reminded me this morning that I haven't been doing ANYthing that involved moving this larda$$ in a long long time! I've gone daily since I joined....but will not go on Sunday...They are closed! Anywhooooooo....... glad you're back! Missed your chatter!

Gin, is it over yet? I had to giggle at your reply to my note from Spring Break! Hehehehee! Today my friend Patti and I got the 3 boys gathered up and took them and a zillion extras to the local beach (York River) ....literally ....as we got out of the Jeep it began to pour rain! It is still raining....hours HOURS later! Geesh! Thanks for the support with my emotional binge eating....... I don't know when / IF I will see my "old friend" again......but I have realized that I must 'prepare" myself for bumping into her and not letting my heart get in the way of my logical head! Sighhh! I also KNOW that I can NOT eat the kitchen......but mannn!

Today, besides being caught in the rain..... the boys are totally bored less than a week into summer! Dh will have tomorrow off....I'm hopeful to have a bit of help with getting the junk out of the living room... it is amazing how much unnecessary JUNK can accummulate! The oldest is driving me insane about taking him to the movie store...too bad that he has zero cash to support his whining!

ya'll take care
meeee

Hi Ladies,
Things are sort of settling back to normal here. Now if I could just get back into excersing regularly again. I did make it to Curves two times this week. But other things came up and I didn't get to make it any other day. I did go swimming for a half hour on Thursday though and today I went to the lake for a 2 mile walk. But after going to the TOPS convention and going home for a few days, I fell out of the habit of excersing and now have to jump start my butt again. Maybe I can get some of that energy off of Robyn.
Congrats on joining Curves. How do you like it so far? I am going to try to start going 4 to 5 times a week, so I can kick start my weight loss again. So did it finally stop raining there? What plans do you have for your boys today? I hope you are not boring them again today. LOL Don't worry I go through that same thing with my three stepkiddos all the time.
Ginny, so are you glad that school is done for another year. What are your big plans for this summer? Hope you have been able to rest up.
Hi to Pam and Mouse. Hope all is going well with you.
Well the house is empty for now, so I think I am going to go sneak a nap in. Watch just when I drift off to sleep, my dh and sds will come home or the phone will start ringing. Keep your fingers crossed that it won't happen and I can get some sleep.
Talk to you all later. Have a great Saturday!
Kerry

I will respond personally later.........feel yucky today, actually took a nap. I am just tired and dragged out.

Kerry- sorry about your troubles at home...as I said, I will mention more later.

Robyn- kids are bored already??? Uh oh! Get to WW this am?

Sorry for being short........

Hope that you were able to squeeze in your nap, Kerry!
Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

I got my WW meeting in this morning...trust me 5:45 seemed to be MUCH earlier than it should have been! I am down a pound! ...and I'm staying OP today! I have a snack planned at 7:30! Sad, isn't it?! LOL

I am searching for at least one more pair of shorts for my trip to Florida..... instead of going to Curves this morning, I went shopping... managed to spend $100....but was not successful finding any shorts. Summer has JUST begun here.... and they are having clearance sales on summer stuff....AND everyone has the same size fanny that I have....14/16 (Women's 16s are too big! ) While I'm grinning over the smaller size...I'm frustrated.... too small (what a joke!) for fat clothes and too big (more like it!) for "normal clothes"! ....AND it doesn't really matter what size my fanny is because there ARE no clothes in ANY department (in the 3 stores I checked!) in my SIZE.

It poured for hours here yesterday.... figures....we were at the beach when it began! Today has been horribly humid.....HORRIBLY! I've stayed in once I returned home from my shopping and WW meeting. I'm thinking of going over town to Kohl's. Certainly THEY know that it is summer AND they would have SOMETHING that would fit my fanny.....RIGHT?! I don't know if the drive is worth it .........I guess I'll figure it out!

Gotta go clean something....I'm making sloooooooooowwwwwww progress!

take care,
meee

Good morning, everybody.
It has been raining here since Thursday. Its either drizzling or pouring. We lost power on Thursday evening for about 5 hours; we've been good to go since then, but apparently there were issues because people came home or tried to go to work when the power was out and couldn't get out of the garage or into the building! The security system for the garage is electric! I'm not sure about the door sensors... they might have a battery back-up. The elevator on my side of the building was out too, so I had to walk to the other side, and then up the hill to get to my car.
Friday, I went to straighten the apartment a bit, and change the bed linens... and discovered that I REALLY REALLY needed new pillows. So... I bought new pillows. Cost a fortune too, but I must admit to a bit of indulgence: two standard size pillow cases made of this new fabric called modal. It feels like silk, but is really a plant fiber, so its much more washable. And a microsuede cover for the body pillow. The cat wants the body pillow, and insists on trying to lay on it!
I had to work at the gym Saturday, but the weather was so bad... I was nearly late for work because somebody did something on 95 North... Not quite sure what it was, but it apparently involved rubber pieces of truck tires (you know, the shredded rubber you see a lot of on the highways?), and the fire department hosing down the on-ramp. And then... we closed the pool at 2:45 for storms (its a state law; even the indoor pools have to close for thunder). We have to stay closed for 30 minutes after the LAST occurrance. So, I didn't get the pool opened again until 3:50. Then, we only managed to stay open again for 30 minutes before I had to close again, and this time we stayed closed for the rest of the evening. We had to cancel the children's lessons last night, too... but the aquatics director is going to pay me for my full shift of guarding and the two lessons I would have taught. He's rewarding those of us that showed up because half the staff bagged out and didn't bother to call or show up to see. I mean, it was pretty obvious lessons were going to be cancelled, but we still had 120 kids that showed up!
During my guard shift, while the pool was closed, I sat in the lobby to watch the pool because its much cooler. I turned away from the window for a minute, and when I turned back around, there's some guy in the pool!!! Mind, now, we have this HUGE (waist high!) sign on a WEIGHTED stand (its not heavy once you get used to it, but it is awkward!) that we put in front of the doors in the locker room hallway whenever the pool is closed. The sign says, 'Aquatic Fitness Center Closed' in big white letters on a teal background. We set the sign right in front of the automatic doors, so in order to open the door you have to MOVE the sign. I go running into the pool, and its storming... lots of lighting and thunder... and this guy is SWIMMING. I start yelling that he needs to get out of the pool, and he can't hear a word I'm saying. I finally got his attention, and he looks at me like I'm nuts. Then says, "I'll just swim back to the other end of the pool and get out." I'm like, "No. I need you to get out here, at this ladder, now." Once I got him out, I had to ask...."The pool is closed for the storm. There are signs everywhere!" We have a sign at the check-in desk, one at the towel desk, and the huge one leading into the pool! "I didn't see any signs. I don't have my glasses!" I just looked at him. He had to go complain to the manager on duty, of course, who told him that he had to have MOVED the sign to get in the pool.
One of the membership coordinators who talks to me when I'm there thought we should have left him in there and tested the theory about what happens to somebody who swims during a thunderstorm. We figured it was a win-win situation: I could use my training in CPR, and we could see if somebody really fries when they're struck with lighting in the water.
Also, because of the weather, I got to go to my friend's house for a few hours and chat... I was supposed to go home for the rest of the weekend, but my parents didn't want me driving up there because all of the small streams that I have to pass over (and it was dark) had flash flood warnings.

Robyn- hopefully Kohls had some nice shorts for your fabulous fanny. Congrats on being a size 14!!!!!! And the 1# loss! Proud of you, my friend. Did you get any cleaning done at all? (I am having such a tough time motivating myself to clean.) And it is humid here in NY too. Stinks.

Mouse- now, how long have you had Imp???????? And you did not know that everything Imp owns (including that nice snazzy new expensive body pillow!) is hers, on loan to you at her discretion! You have this rain too, eh? Sounds as though you have made the best of it, despite crummy weather.

Got a walk in this am, and then church. PMS time here, so I am tired and drained (and also fighting a cold or whatever.). Perhaps todays baseball obsession will be rained out.........taking Dd to the movies ( I think!).
See ya

(Pam and Kerry, you both ok I hope!)

Hello people!

So. The weekend is coming to a close and I'm NOT in a panic about school for next week! WhooooHOooo! No plans to put in order, no newsletter or homework to worry about, no parents to call....no meetings to arrange...WELL, I'm sure that you all get the picture! Sigh.... I guess it is safe to say that I'm enjoying summer!

Spent nearly 4 hours at a pool party for the baseball team... This is THE last event of the season for them as a team! I actually enjoyed spending time with the other moms who hung out instead of dropping their son off to attend alone! My husband was one of the coaches.... and was also on call for work....AND the gathering was nearly 30 minutes from our home... So. I stayed there!

My friend, Patti, and I shut down Kohl's last night..... didn't know that they were open til 10...after trying on EVERY pair of white and kahki shorts and capris in the store! I purchased a purse and a tshirt. NOT what I went there for! Then we headed over to one of the "never closes" Marts to pick up a few groceries....and I discovered THE most perfect pair of white shorts ...on sale for $5. Had to laugh after the HOURS spent in Kohls! Patti and I have fun doing stupid stuff like grocery shopping together...

gotta get the doggie out...will return...but don't want to lose this........

Sorry for my "quick" exit! Didn't want a mess...so...well, you know!

Hope all is well with everyone!

Mouse, sounds like a GREAT science experiment! I'm not too sure that I would have been able to resist the temptation to try it! ...and Kitties OWN everything!

Kerry, how was your weekend? Hope it was great!
Gin, hope the PMS has passed! Did it rain?!

Ya'll take care...have to go "fix" the oldest kids attitude! JOY!
meeeee

Went to Curves this morning in the pouring rain.

Returned home to walk the puppy in the drizzle. How can a dog who hates a bath SOOOO much love the rain equally??? Next walk today, I might take her shampoo!

Today I gut the kitchen of all the crap that I never use! AND the boys begin their summer studies.......I dread both! We begin at 10.... I am enjoying the remaining hour online!

Today, my abs are letting me know that they exist......

Hi!
Robyn, so glad your abs are keeping you company! Ain't I a b****!?
Mine need a major workout too.......and I will be sore tomorrow, as I did my WW tape this am instead of walking. The tape works out most everything, and I usually know it the next day. Congrats on finding some shorts. I love the all nite Marts......and have found some great clothes at them (of course other times I completely strike out!). Love your story about shopping with Patti. I had a friend Brenda, we would go out shopping at all kinds of insane hours (5 am the day after Thanksgiving, 11pm anytime before Christmas......)a nasty divorce and move (and her own personal problems) ended that. Glad you found some shorts! And ok, you would have needed the purse and shirt anyway, well, maybe? Good luck with summer school and the boys....I feel your pain. Read on.

My Ds failed the regents for English 11 (shall we all start singing the I love NY song?? We are the ONLY state with this dumb test, that noone else gives a hoot about). So he has to retake the course this summer, despite that he actually passed the course, got an 83 on the final, just failed the regents.
So I am now dealing with a very upset 17 yr old. Reality is a tough thing for a teenage boy. You mean baseball and playstation are NOT regents courses?
In a way I am happy about this, Dh and I have tried for years to tell him that we might just know a wee bit about HS and studying etc. And it has been rejected. So now he has to face reality. Yeah, it bugs me...........what bugs me more is that he is so darned lazy. Oh well. I sure could use Robyn to declutter my kitchen! Today's mission is to catch up on the bills and shredding. The last few weeks of school (when I prectially slept in my bus) I was able to just barely maintain- not file, shred etc. Hopefully I can finish this soon. Kitchen is tomorrow or Wednesday.

Gotta go!!! See ya!

Afternoon, all.

It is STILL raining. And storming. Would somebody please tell me why I chose swimming as my favorite form of exercise? There are so many times you can't do it: if you have a cold, if you have the flu (even after you're done, you can't swim for 2 weeks: health laws), thunderstorms. Between the weather and the pneumonia, I haven't been in a pool since MAY!
I need something to do... Any ideas for somebody with my bum ankle????
On other weather-related topics: My county has evacuated bunches and gobs of people to the east of me, and it is now POURING... POURING... so hard that I can barely see outside the window... again. In fact... I think one of the drains across from my building just went flying off because it couldn't handle the rain anymore. I'm glad that I am on the 4th floor. I don't have to worry too much about flooding.
I'm sitting here, kind of waiting to see if the Red Cross calls me.
Robyn: Congrats on finding the shorts!!!!!!!! I have a friend that I like to go do stuff like that with to, but we don't live near each other, and don't get to do it often.
Ginny: We have an 11th grade English test here in VA too, and if you don't pass the test, you don't get a diploma. So, its the same deal. We let the kids take the test over again if they didn't pass the class, but we recommend summer school.
As for Imp: he's male, and he's owned me for 10 years. I'm reading a book about Cat Wizards (Diane Duane, The Book of Night with Moon) and the book is written from the point of view of the cats. Its very clear that they keep US as pets, and not the other way around. I asked Imp this morning if he felt that way and he head-butted my chin and meowed. He's actually on my list right now: he meowed from 4:00 a.m. this morning till 7:30 or 8, so that coupled with the Weather alert chirps all night (flood warning, flood watch, flash flood warning, thunderstorm warning), I didn't get more than an hour's sleep at a time.
And, as if the rain we just had weren't enough, now its trying to get sunny again. That is the absolute worst: the energy from the sun sucks up all the moisture, and we get it all back again in a few hours.