[gma22]

Good morning to you all! This heat caused us to lose power around 5 pm yesterday and it was 100 degrees out. We knew it would be horrendous to stay in the condo as our back windows don't open and our front windows have two huge bushes in front of them so they get no air either. We tried to stick it out for about 15 minutes but the temp climbed up to mid 80's in just that short time so we load up Fortchy and took a drive for about an hour and came home and found the power to be back on. Unfortunately, the temp in the house was almost to 90 and it pretty much took all night to get it back down to a comfortable level. It is 78 in the house right now and I have the fans all going so it is comfortable. My poor family up north though is suffering. They have been without power since I think it was Thurs night and my sister and son and his family still have no power and won't until around noon today. Jay called his dad for Father's Day but didn't talk long because of the inability to recharge their phones in the house. I saw their overnight temp dipped to low 60's so at least they had a cool evening to sleep.

Susan: I think it is going to be one of the hottest summers on record. It truly is miserable to even go outside here. It does warm up the pools though. Kelly and Tom's pool is just a bit cool. Their pool is completely shaded all the time so usually it will stay cooler than a pool in the sun all the time, but I noticed it only took a couple minutes and you were acclimated to it and then it wasn't very refreshing anymore.

Maggie: Sounds like the lunch went well again yesterday. Hope you had a nice day.

I am finishing up the foot on the doctor's sock today so I can wash and block it. I tried on the first one to see how it fit as she has big feet too though she is normal size and her ankles wouldn't be like mine. The foot part fit great so I am sure they will do fine for her. I am anxious to get them done and move on to the next thing, which is to finish Jackson's slipper socks. I have one almost done. I still have to get fabric paint so I can paint the bottom and make then non skid.

Well gals, I am going to go. Hope everyone has a good week this week. I am overloaded with dr appts on tues and thurs so we shall see what is said Tuesday about the female stuff. Faye

[QuilterInVA]

Good morning, ladies! Heading for the 90s again.

I'm cheating and checking my emails and posting here before I do my cleaning for today. Need to do a load of laundry as well. Tonight I have quilting bee and we are going to IHOP before hand. I plan on their talapia with sauce on the side and a double order of broccoli. I need to take a look at their website just before I go to remind myself of how bad most of their food is for me.

Faye, I hope these MD appointments find a solution to your problem. I'd love to take a water aerobics class but I'd have to go to the Y and I'm afraid their pool room is too hot and humid and clorinated. Enjoy your swims.

Have a great day!

[Maggie]

GOOD AFTERNOOON MAGNOLIAS

It is gonna be a hot one here in the Heartland. Talking heads say it will be up in the 100's. I am not a fan of hot weather. People living in the desert wear jackets when it gets down to a chilly 75 degrees. We in the Heartland swelter when it reaches these expected degrees. We may have a house guest for a few months. There is a young man here from Miss. that came to church yesterday. He is doing some work for a local candidate and we have a room in the basement he can use instead of paying huge fees at a motel. We shall see. I showed a half pound down this weigh day. I am grateful for the loss. Onward and downward.

DONNA FAYE Heat is not good with no air. I think it a shame your windows don't open so at least you can capture a bit of a fresh breeze that is if there are any of those in the humidity. What a miserable time that must have been. I can just imagine you knitting away at a furiously fast pace with needles flashing. You go girlfriend.

SUSAN You call my routine cheating but for you it is. I don't get any house work done before I post, usually if I post in the am. I open my computer and read my mail and answer important ones. Read the news on three different sites. All while sipping my first cup of coffee for the day while easing into the day. By the time I am through on my computer in the morning my coffee is gone and I am ready to meet the day and do what house chores I need to get done. My coffee is just now about gone now and I am waking up and will now head out to the kitchen.

JEAN Out there having fun in the sun. Be safe.

Take care Magnolias and keep a nice smile on your face. Type at y'all later.

[gma22]

Good morning to you all! It is supposed to be 101 today and very steamy. I wished I didn't have to go to the doctor today. It is a day to stay inside I think. I need to get some things settled and hopefully the dr and I can come to some decisions about what to do with what is happening to me.

Finished the drs socks last night and blocked them so they will be all ready for me to take on Thursday. I just hope she likes them but considering she is going to Alaska sometime next year, I imagine she will get use out of them.

Maggie: Congrats on the loss We take everything that comes at us. I hope the houseguest works out for you all. I don't do chores usually until after breakfast either then I kick in and get things done. With this heat being so bad this year I try and get stuff done really early because the upstairs is stifling after around 10 am.

Susan: Yes, IHOP isn't very diet friendly that's for sure unless you stick to plain salad or can find fish on the menu.

I weighed myself this morning and it is back up again even with eating right and I know it is because I am retaining water a lot. I think it is the hormone medication doing it because it started again about 5 days after I went back on those meds. Ahh well, at least I know sooner or later I will get things back to normal.

You all have a great day. I am off to do laundry and get breakfast. Faye

[QuilterInVA]

Good morning, ladies! We're heading for 104 today with awful humidity.

I had a good time yesterday evening. IHOP has a new menu and they have a whole page of things under 600 calories. I had the senior talapia and it was listed as 340 but I added 2 extra points just in case. Very good and filling. They also had 2 fruit and grain pancakes with eggbeaters and SF syrup for about 400 calories (that does not include butter) which I debated over.

Faye, I love those socks. You're like me, I love bright colors. I hope you and the doctor find a solution today. Keep on with your plan and the scale will catch up.

Maggie, Congratulations on the loss! I get up, make my bed, get washed and dressed down to shoes, and swish and swipe the bathroom. Then I take my meds and read the paper, do the suduko puzzle and by then and hour has gone by and I can have my breakfast. Then I get on to the chores for the day. I set a timer for 30 minutes and do as much as I can in that time. Then I take a break for 30 minutes and keep doing that until I have finished what chores I wanted to do. If I get on the computer or start quilting before chores, I end up spending too much time on it so that's why I do it that way. I realize that's not the way everyone works, but it works for me.

Jean, I hope MN is fun!

[Maggie]

GOOD AFTERNOON MAGNOLIAS

This is going to be a very hot day this day in the Heartland. So thankful for good air-conditioning. I don’t have a clue about what I am going to fix for dinner. I had better decide so I can get it thawed. There are some Schwans® boneless pork chops that can be grilled and some of my rice mixture still to be fixed. Got lots of different kinds of canned veggies and fruit to choose from. Right now I am just not in the mood to cook which is not a good time to plan a meal. But I gotta do it. OH, and there are some boxes of sugar free fat free pudding that I can choose from to make a tasty desert out of. It’s good to get that all settled now. Now I need to find out from Will if we are going to have any guests for dinner so I can thaw more chops. He is good about letting me know in time if he has invited anyone for dinner. Somehow I just feel like I need more coffee. I found a couple interesting things to do with crushed red pepper which I will share with you here:

SWEET-HEAT BUTTER
Melt together ¼ cup butter (I use I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter)
1 Tbsp. packed brown sugar (I use the Splenda® mix)
½ tsp crushed red pepper
Brush on grilled pork chops or shrimp.

BURNIN’ BURGERS
With a fork, mash a heaping tsp of crushed red pepper
& a pinch of salt into
2 minced cloves of garlic
Gently mix into a pound of ground beef
Form into patties, and grill

HOT CHOCOLATE-DIPPED PRETZELS
In a microwave-safe bowl stir together:
½ tsp crushed red pepper
12-oz bag of chocolate chips
Melt it according to package directions
Dip pretzel rods in the melted chocolate
Cool on waxed paper
The chocolate will set up in about an hour

DONNA FAYE I love those sox. The recipient will surely be jazzed to receive them. I do hope and pray that your doctors can get your system back to exact. I also hope that those offices you have to go to have good air conditioning. Don't let yourself get discouraged about the scale for if you stick to your program when you get that water retention taken care of you will show a loss.

SUSAN I do believe in different strokes for different folks. A gal does what works best for her. It is neat that you can find something on the IHop menu that is program friendly. I always stay away from that place because it is so loaded with calories but now that I hear from you they have good things for us on the menu I may give it a go once again. Will does like going there for their breakfast.

AH JEAN Out there having fun in the sun.

Take care Magnolias and enjoy the day. I'll type at y'all later.