Thanks Twynn! I've been going wavy again so I thought I should update it.

FIVE MILES? :faint: Good for you!

Oh good grief!!! I finally start feeling ok after hurting my back Monday night, and now my stomach's acting up! Figures. :( I spent most of Phase 1 like this last time, because I hadn't figured out that my lactose intolerance had spiked from mild to fairly severe over the summer. But I haven't had dairy, not even with lactase pills, in DAYS. So while it feels like I accidentally drank a couple glasses of milk, that's not it. My best guess is just a bad case of dehydration; I was getting 90+ oz M/T/W but then yesterday flaked out and got maybe 40 or so. It's possible it's also a touch of SB Flu, since I've been kind of bad about getting the full amount of veggies and can't have milk. Blehhh.

Sorry to vent everyone, I'm just frustrated and cranky with the incredible "if it's not one thing, it's another" timing of it all. I guess it's one more afternoon in bed for me. Gonna sip water for a few hours, and try to add more veggies with dinner.

ETA: No wait, just double checked the symptoms of dehydration, that's not it. Weird. I guess my wimpy stomach just isn't liking something I ate. Mom always joked that I had a "tin foil stomach" (like the opposite of a cast-iron stomach where you can eat anything and not get sick) when I was a kid, and it's still true.

Oh Stacy, I'm so sorry you're having such a hard time. :hug: Is there any way your husband (and step son) would agree to some sort of compromise? Can you find a way to help your step son out (without him moving in) and have it be based on some sort of condition such as looking for a job or joining some sort of group that could help him?

I wish I could help... like knock their heads together and make a rock garden, as my mom always like to say! Here's some :dust: to help you stand your ground and make it through this rough patch.

im thinkin of caving in... im just so tired of the stress and the fighting over this kid.... hes comin tonight for his "weekend visit".. and i know the subject is gonna come up... my hubby had a meeting today, my best friend works for him so she was there.... he said in the meeting, "i have 6 kids, 5 liviing at home and my son is moving back in" so... hes already made the damn decision without even talking to me... im so mad right now i could spit nails!! so im thinkin of callin their bluff... tell them when im approached that i knew this was comin and that i will agree to him moving back in, but there are going to be stritch rules!! like number 1 is i want a lock on my bedroom door, so no more of our stuff goes "missin"... then i will look like the good guy and not the hard headed b*tch that im accused of being when this subject comes up. he'll be given 3 months, and if in that 3 months, if he messes up even once, hes out... for good. this is the last chance. so what do ya'll think?? the way i see it, this is happening whether i like it or not. so might as well go with it and not look like the b*tch.

Stacy, that's a very sad and touchy situation. Do you have a branch of Tough Love near you? They have wonderful counseling for situations like yours. Good luck.

Laurie, have fun tonight! Could you have the restaurant make you a nice veggie & cheese omelet with ww toast on the side? That's what I'd go for, or a steamed veggie plate.

Chelby, when my oldest granddaughter was 6, she and a playmate decided to give themselves new hairstyles. Both girls had long, beautiful hair. Luckily, Caitie only trimmed her bangs, but they ended up about 1/16th of an inch long. Her friend had long braids, and the girls hacked off one of them right at the scalp. What a sight to behold!

COTTAGE.. nah we dont have anything like that here... we did put him in a group home, and he was messing up there big time... they shut down, so he went to live with his friends family... okay get this... when he moved in there john said (exact words!) "wow, that lisa is biting off more than she can chew with him" exact words!!! so why is it that shes biting off more than she can chew but i have to put up with his crap??? that makes no sence to me! why am i the bad guy here? ya'll have no idea what this is doin to me, i could just scream. i love my husband. trust me or i would of left along time ago. i just dont see any way out here. the thought of him comin back in my home makes me sick to my stomach. his history teacher called today.. he wants to talk to john, says that SS aint doin nothing in class and doesnt know what to do with him. hes gonna get suspended, hes missed 85 days of school so far... 85 days!! he told john this last week and john didnt say anything to him!!! can you believe that?? so let the kid do what he wants, hold on to your a$$ and pray?!?! it makes no sence to me, none at all... talkin in here is helpin my stress, just wish there was a magic pill to make this all better. im afraid that something really tragic is gonna have to happen b4 john sees that this kid is rotten. and thats not a price im willin to pay right now or ever. i dont know. the talk is gonna come up tonight or 2moro... pray for me please. it certainly wont hurt!!

stacy x0x

Prayers to those needing them. Sounds like a few are going through rough times! :hug:

The boys are gone and I miss them already. :( Sigh. I'm so pathetic. I have things I could do, I suppose, but I don't feel like leaving again. I need to buy some cardstock at the office supply store, but it's ALL the way across town. Hmm.... maybe Walmart has cardstock? It's not too far. I created some HAPPY BIRTHDAY postcards on the computer and need to print them out so I can send cards for April.

Well, I guess I'm going to work on that flyer and some other stuff for work since I don't have an appointment tonight. All the movies that are out are ones that Tommy wants to see too, so I'm going to have to get creative finding things to do. What's on television these days?

Weezle, there is NOTHING on tv. I'm watching The Weather Channel as I type. :) Regarding cardstock, my dad says, "If you can't find it at Walmart, you don't need it!"

Stacy, Sheesh!!! I'm sorry you are having such a tough time! How old is John's son? Can you talk with his school counsellor? They might have some good references for you. Someone had said to lay out some rules for him. That's a good idea. You have little ones to protect. I'm thinking of you, girl!

Me: There is a possibility that the volunteer job I did today could turn into a real job. I've been a SAHM since the day Auston was born. I know that moms go to work every day, successfully! I've just never done it. The thought of balancing what I'm doing now with a full time job is terrifying. But, I'm worrying in advance. There has not been a job offer yet.

I haven't even made it to the kitchen to eat dinner yet, let alone turn on the TV. I've been taking stupid quizzes on facebook. Anything to make the evening go by. I'll get my cardstock tomorrow.

Weather Channel you say? That's really funny. My dad's a meteorologist and that's my parents' favorite channel.

Sigh.

There is a big possibility of severe weather here tonight. I wish they had the "GO TO THE BASEMENT AT 2 A.M." warning. :)

Stacy - I'm glad venting about it here is helping, and I hope laying down some conditions woks out - the lock on the bedroom door sounds like a great idea. In my experience it's fairly easy to replace a doorknob (in this case, for a locking on). Maybe you should go ahead and do so? That way they can't say they agree to it and never get around to it.

Weezle - I'm so sorry you're missing your boys. :hug: They'll be back soon. Oh, and I bet Walmart has cardstock. :)

Chelby - I bet you'd manage just fine. Look at how you handled today with a minor haircutting crisis.

Me - Thankfully my stomach ache turned out to be short-lived, and I felt more or less fine by dinner. I also didn't have any bad cravings today; not sure if that's Day 5 or the stomach ache, but either way I'll take it! I would SO love to see the 170s by the end of P1. Not getting my hopes up, but at my current rate it's not wildly unreasonable. :) I even got on the Gazelle after dinner for an easy-does-it 20 minutes or so. Yahoo!

stacy - I can't imagine the stress you are going through. I haven't exactly been very successful with marriage but I'm wishing you the best. Replacing a door knob with a locking one is easy as long as the diameter of the hole is right. Brian and I did our bedroom door knobs just fine but I had to get Don to drill bigger holes for all the doors to the outside. I guess the holes were smaller in the 70's.

chelby - working with kids is mainly a matter of managing your time. There is never enough of it but it gets easier as they get older. I am happier because I am a working mom and that makes it happier for Brian (not to mention since Robert last worked in 2001, it wasn't much of a choice).

Laurie - Sorry I can't help with the menu. I had shrimp stir fry for lunch and tilapia for dinner but I like fish.

Me - Busy day at work and Don cancelled on lunch because he got a job. Being in remodeling/handyman type work in this economy, the job has to come before a pleasure lunch. It rained this morning and looks like the rain is over so Brian and I took the dog to Dirty Dawgs and washed him. It is so much easier doing a 56 pound dog there with all their equipment. The day started at almost 70 degrees and now it is 45 and will be in the 30's tonight. They are talking a possibility of snow tonight! Wow! I hope not.

well... john took me out for supper tonight.... i knew waht was comin lol... it actually went very good. i remained calm,which is not one of my better fortes lol.... i talked, he talked, i told him my fears.. that he and will split if ss comes back into the house... it hasnt been finalized yet, but hes thinkin about it and ss doesnt know that we are talkin about it. so i can only hope. and chelby, he turned 16 in oct hun... i guess hes wanting to go into the military... so he gonna be gone all summer with that.... i told john that i didnt think it was right that he basically ignored the fact that the kid aint going to school... he said "come on stacy, what good is it gonna do? i say go and he dont, theres no consequences fit for that cuz he dont live with us" i said "well youre still his father, you can tell him to go to freakin school cant ya?!" but overall, things remained calm, and peaceful which was good but i expect that to change.... we'll see... im just glad that tonight wasnt a fight. thank you for all your input, it was greatly appreciated! have a good night and ya'll take care

stacy x0x

Chelby, you need a meteorologist for a father. He gave me my own personal weather radio, so if any kind of watch or warning happens at any time within 15 counties, it goes REEEE-OOOOO-REEEE-OOOOO-REEEE-OOOOO-REEEE-OOOOO no matter what time of night it is, even if it's for a Wind Advisory 3 counties away. Then you hear the National Weather Service talking about whatever is going on once you shut the darned alarm off, and it goes off with EVERY update.

Oh, also with battery backup in case of power loss. They think of everything.

This weekend the weather is good. We should go out for a walk.http://photo-collection.co.cc/img/31...0ygij/grin.gif