Good afternoon, ladies! Rain and heavy fog today and a little cooler.

I had WW this morning then went and got a few groceries - strawberries were $2 today and I got some cut up pineapple, 3 big red bell peppers for $2.24 and a cucumber. The rain and fog are taking a toll on my breathing so I'm taking it easy for the rest of the day and just doing laundry.

Nothing else going on, so have a good day!

Good morning gals! It has turned back chilly again for a few days I guess. Marty and Fortune are doing fine together other than they both have to sit on my lap all the time, which drives me nuts. I didn't even get in here to post yesterday because I had a horrible upper shoulder and neck spasm that started Friday in the middle of the night sometime. I imagine it is from carrying the wet laundry to the laundromat. It is still a bit sore, but much better than it was. I have kept constant heat on it and took a couple of Jack's muscle relaxers to try and get it back to normal.

Susan: I got strawberries for $2.50 at Fresh Market, which for that place is a steal. Can't wait for fresh fruit and veggies for the spring and summer to start again. We should get fresh strawberries around the end of next month beginning of May.

Jean: Jack is not going to be thrilled if he has to have his knee drained. He is needle phobic! He will just have to suck it up so he can feel better. My hometown has become sparce and tacky. A lot of the little stores closed years and ago so there are empty buildings. It was such a nice little town too. There is only one grocery in town anymore I think and it is a little country store.

They changed out Jack's contacts to accomodate his close up reading better so he has to go again next Saturday to see if they are a better fit for him. I have that appt on Friday so it should be a busy weekend.

Jay called last night and has arranged with one of his advertising clients that owns a bus company to books a Cubs trip for July 23 so we are really going to get to see the Cubs this year in person. It isn't a bad deal, $50 per person for the ride and ticket. I just hope we aren't in the nosebleed section though at Wrigley field, that would be much smaller than the mega baseball fields they are building now. I know one thing, the seats are inky dinky so it will be no picnic for me. We will either take Fortune or ask Kelly to keep him depending on whether or not they go. They aren't sports fans and will have just come back from two weeks in Egypt and Italy so I doubt they go, but who knows.

Well, I am going to put the heating pad back on my neck for awhile they do up the laundry, make beds and such. Have a wonderful Sunday all.
Faye

Good evening, ladies! Raining yet again. And only in the 50s for the next few days. Drat.

I hope everyone remembered to spring forward last night.

The sun was out this morning and I went for my walk. Feeling good about that. Had a good day OP so far. Went to Kroger this afternoon and got some of the rotisserie chicken breasts. They are on sale for $1 each this week and so good. Having one for dinner with some bulgur and carrots. I haven't done anything interesting today. Sat around a read for the most part, James Patterson's "Sail." I love a good murder mystery.

Faye, I hope your neck and shoulder have eased up. I missed you - and the others - yesterday.

Have a good evening.

Good morning to you all. Like Jean, I am getting a later start this morning. I did feed the dogs, make the bed and such so have chores done. I guess I should tackle housecleaning again. It does seem to always need doing for some reason.

Jean: Sounds like you are living in a bowl of soup, wet and steamy! I hate those days, they are so depressing. I imagine once spring really gets rolling you will improve though. I have to get stuff bought to send to Jackson for Easter since I have to ship his. We are going to be gone for Easter this year so will probably give Thomas his stuff on Friday before we leave on Saturday. Maybe we can plan dinner out or something. Jay told his dad he has sold half the bus and tickets. He figures if he can't get enough people to go he will sell the tickets on stub hub and eat the cost of the bus. He needs to sell 50 I guess. That is a lot of people to know and sell tickets to. I looked up hotels and for some reason the prices are about $50 higher all over. I emailed him and asked him if he knew something going on in SB but he said he didn't. The prices always skyrocket if something is going on at Notre Dame. For example, we usually stay at Hyatt Place and with my senior discount get the room for around $80, they want $130! We are going to have to stay in Elkhart, which is about 25 miles away to get decent prices at a decent hotel. I found one just off the toll road for $90, which isn't too bad I guess.

Susan: I have some lovely fresh fruit I bought at Fresh Market I am having for breakfast. I really love it when you can get a nice bargain shopping. It improves your mood! lol

Well gals, nothing else going on in my part of the world. I guess I better eat something and get to work. Have a great start to your week! Faye

Good morning to you all. It is cool this morning but supposed to warm up nicely. I have to get a move on and get upstairs and make the bed and such and get a shower. Jack has his ortho appt for his knee later on and I am going with him just for support. He has been told how much it hurts to have the fluid drawn off by needle so I know he is probably anxious about it if that is what they do. I wonder why people tell other people horror stories about their procedures and treatments. That is what happened to Jack. A friend he used to work with told him how awful it was and how much it hurt. He has to have it done though because it is workmen's comp. If he had just injured his knee outside of work he probably would live with the pain rather than have that done. Hopefully, they can do something else for him and it isn't fluid on his knee.

I am about ready to go round the bend with the dogs. Fortune is jealous so he is always on my lap the minute I sit down. Marty follows me around and right now is sitting at my feet. I can't go anywhere without him being right with me, which I don't mind, but I have almost fallen over the two of them a couple times and I do get tired of not being able to sit in a chair without both of them in my lap. They are sweet dogs and I love them to death but sheesh!

We only have two and a half weeks and we get to go to Atlanta. I am really looking forward to a little get away and have some fun. I just hope it is warm and doesn't rain for the game. There is a cool WW2 aviation restaurant I think I am going to make a reservation at for dinner on Saturday night. You can't take the military out of a retired military husband and he especially loves WW2 stuff so I thought he would enjoy it. It sits at the end of the runways of their regional airport so you can watch the planes takeoff which is nice. The other place I want to visit as far as eating is the Varsity. It is a really old drive in that supposedly has terrific food. The waiters in the old days used to jump on the running boards of the old cars and that is how the name "carhop" came to be in existance. It was first used at the Varsity. I am hoping on Sunday to see some of the antebellum mansions if I can find them.

You gals have a nice Tuesday. I am off to the shower and get some breakfast in me. Faye

Good Morning, Flowers! Weather is still the same with a mist thrown into the mix this morning. I just took a card out to the mailbox and discovered the mist. I hope it stays a mist and doesn't turn into rain. We ordered pictures, online, from the wedding and they came yesterday. I didn't take time to look through them but did this morning. There are 4 of one picture and 2 of another; we didn't order any duplicates! Now I have to sort through them to find the picture numbers we are missing. Makes me growly that people don't do their job correctly and double check to make sure. Nuts!

"Gma" -- I'll bet Marty enjoys having a person around all day if he is usually home alone. I think hotel prices jump when the summer travel season is in sight. I've found that online prices and when you call the 800# to make a reservation also vary. We don't stay in hotels/motels that often so usually just suck it up and stay where it's most convenient. It's too bad that Jack has heard the knee fluid stories; that's like women comparing having babies. As I recall Bob didn't complain about the pain and his knee felt so much better afterwards. I wish Jack good luck! We used to enjoy watching the planes take off and land when we lived in Sioux City, Mpls., and Cleveland. Now you can't even get close because of security. The restaurant sounds neat! There used to be a restaurant in Des Moines called Stellas, and it was straight out of the 50s in music, decor and food. For whatever reason it didn't make a go of it, but it was sure fun while it lasted.

I need to get started on my picture search while the dishwasher and washer are doing their jobs. Have a terrific Tuesday!

Jean -- from Iowa!

Good afternoon, ladies! After an overcast day that barely made it into the 50s, the sun has finally come out. It's supposed to be cold one more day than back to the 60s.

The quilting books I ordered from Amazon last Tuesday night arrived today and I can't wait to get upstairs to my quilting room and start cutting. I will get it all cut out and then box the pieces to take to retreat to sew together. I don't dare start cutting today, I'm tired after work and I know I'll make mistakes if I do so I'll wait until I'm fresh in the morning.

Faye, I hope Jack survived his doctor's visit and his knee is feeling better. I know the feeling of not being able to work on my project because Cupid has to sit on my lap and try to catch the thread as I sew. I don't remember a lot of antebellum mansions being left because Atlanta was burned. It's been nearly 20 years since I was there. If you really want to see them, plan a trip to Charleston, SC sometime. They are magnificent. It's a wonderful city. And you could eat at Paula Dean's restaurant "The Southern Lady".

Jean, I'm right around the corner from Langley Air Force Base's West Gate and we can see planes taking off and landing all the time. When the stealth bomber came out (quite awhile ago now, I guess), they put the time they were expected to arrive in the newspaper and there were hundreds who lined the highway along the fence to see them. It was rather eerie because you couldn't see or hear them and all of a sudden they were landing. They have air shows in the summer for us.

Maggie, I can relate to getting things at the hardware store cheaper than the craft store. Quilters use all kinds of stuff from the hardware store and then all of a sudden they put quilt on the label and sell it in quilt shops for twice the price. Door hole peeps are an example. They are used to look at your quilt through to see how the finished design is working of to lay out the fabrics you plan to use and then see if they really go together.

Well, chicken for dinner tonight. I'm going to grow feathers and start cackling pretty soon. Have a good evening.

Good morning to you all! Another cloudy day in my world, but HAPPY ST PADDY'S DAY! I don't have an ounce of Irish in me, but like cooked cabbage non the less! I can do without the corned beef. I would hand that over to Jack as he likes it.

Jean: They gave Jack a cortisone shot in his knee and he is waiting for a schedule for 3 therapy sessions on his knee then he has to go back next Friday and see the ortho dr again. Hopefully the shot will ease the pain. The doctor yesterday didn't seem to think there was fluid or a tear, but just a stress on the tendons and such. We shall see I guess. I stick our appt cards on my computer with tape and it looks half covered with appts. We are definitely getting our money's worth of the insurance this last year.

Susan: I started scouting out things to do in Atlanta and boy everybody wants their buck, that's for sure. It costs $15 to go to Coca Cola world, plus $10 for parking, then you have to pay to go through Margaret Mitchell's house, pay for this place and that and they all are downtown so you have to pay to park everywhere you go. The only free thing I found was touring the money museum at the Federal Reserve and even that costs because you have to pay to park your car in a lot or garage. On top of that, we aren't leaving until Saturday, Sunday is Easter and Monday is the game so won't be much time to sightee anyway I guess. We may just go to the mall and maybe a movie.

I guess I need to go. I tried to make a reservation for the aviation restaurant through their email but they said I have to call them so I better do that. You all have a grand green day. Too bad you aren't in Chicago. They really do St Patrick's Day up, beautiful bright green Chicago River, green beer (if you are so inclined, which I am not) and a huge parade. Faye

Good afternoon, ladies. A lovely day in the 60s. I just came in from my walk. The neighbors are out cleaning up their yards and planting flowers (I think it's a little early for that). It definitely feels like spring has sprung.

Happy St. Paddy's day to all of you. Nothing Irish going on around here. I have quilt bee tonight and dinner at an Italian restaurant before hand. Doubt they will have corned beef and cabbage. I love it, but I don't want to eat it for a month so I don't make it anymore.

Faye, I hope the cortisone shots help Jack. They charge so much for tours every where you go and they wonder why people don't travel. It costs $260 for a family of 4 to go to Busch Gardens for 1 day and they wonder why fewer are coming...duh!

Jean, do you need us to send sandbags for your basement? LOL No basements here or they would be swimming pools all the time. I'm using a technique from my new books for the quilt.

Hi, Maggie!

Time to go meet Glory and Elaine. Have a good evening.

Good morning to you all! Jack just left for his first physical therapy appt then he will come back and leave the mariner, pick up his lunch and go on to work.

Got the Census form yesterday, filled it out and will put it out in the mail. I thought it was stupid to spend millions mailing out a letter saying "expect the census form soon." I mean the census form envelope was bright white and red and not easily missed as junk mail.

Susan: Hope you and Glory and Elaine had a good time together. It is the one thing I miss about living here is the lack of friends.

Tomorrow is my dr appt so I hope we can get in to the hospital soon and just get the procedure over and done with. I will wait though if they can't do it next week as I don't want any problems to pop up while we are in Atlanta so will wait until we come back if they can't do it next week.

All in all, it is quiet and cool this morning. It should warm up later today, but I have things to keep me busy here at home. Better hop to it and get some breakfast. Faye