Morning,
My niece has to be at work by 9 so we leave the condo around 8.15. Takes us around 20 to 30 minutes to get there. She's very appreciative. I dread next week because her hours will be from 6 to 11. She's working 8 hours today. Once she has completed her training she will be working in Branson.
I do like my hair. This stylist only did a light brown which is dark. She doesn't do the ash brown because it turns green. She also trimmed my hair.
My sis, niece and I are celebrating Hanukkah this week, basically food and lighting of candles.
The animals are asleep. It's very quiet.
By the way, I've decided not to mail Christmas cards this year. Too much going on.
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Annie
What a nice idea in exchanging gratitude's! Think I would be going to hubby's also. This way you can help him stay on track with things.
Happy
I've been thinking about volunteering but think I will wait till the spring. Thanks for the review on the Hello Fresh meals. I've been I'm learning how to make enough to last for to or three days so I will not get tired of it.
Laura
I know how you feel when trying on things and feel uncomfortable in them. I'm disgusted with myself for gaining back those 10 pounds I lost last month.
Hi Shad and Susie. I will come back and answer the rest of the post later this afternoon.
CEEG...Need to strap a mileage meter in your car for all the chaffering around you are doing. LOL Great side job or is this your new volunteer position? You do it well.
LAURA...sounds like you just gave yourself a smack on the hand to get started on WL. Sometimes that is what it takes. Seems like we do this WL thing our entire life...then we die and who really cares? bleh.
HAPPY....how did the CHristmas party go? Good you could take the other lady that needed to get out. You certainly have a heart of gold my dear. Nice review on Hello Fresh. I like to recycle my meals into other meals for one or two more so HF would probably not work for me. Tonight I am making pork fried rice for the others with the 3 leftover pork chops from Monday. I just ate a HUGE italian salad for lunch so I will probably pass on dinner. I am stuffed to the gill but need more water.
Cs appt went well. The doc prescribed the lowest dose of Depakote. If his main issue is triggered by the BPolar then this will help that too. Otherwise it is a personality disorder and harder to personally control. He starts this med this evening. Wish us luck.
My dermatology appt went pretty well. Doc biopsied one spot on my back but thought it was doubtful for cancer. Just looked a little odd to her. My liver enzymes came back all in the normal range. Yahoo. I attribute that to being taken off cholesterol meds back in October by my cardiologist. That is a piece of good news. Maybe I am normal like SHADDIE? lololololololololol
Location: A beautiful and peaceful place in the woods
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Good morning everyone,
Well the party I was not looking forward to turned out to be a nice time. Not a rip roaring time but a nice time. Everyone brought appetizers and they had some really good food. I made a crostini consisting of a toasted baguette slice, topped with herb and garlic spreadable cheese (also used some roasted red pepper cheese on some which I was disappointed in), topped the cheese with fresh arugula (rocket to you Shad) and topped that with small slices of thin sandwich steak I get from the Farmers Market. It called for a balsamic glaze and I had a dijon mustard infused balsamic reduction that was just fabulous. Everyone liked them. I just made extra steak that I didn't really need - the crustini is small and you don't need much meat on there so I was a bit miffed at myself that I made too much that I wound up tossing because of time constraints. Our hostess made a goat cheese stuffed date wrapped in bacon that she cooked in the oven - that was amazing. One person brought my favorite broccoli salad and we had an assortment of shrimp, dips and cheeses and things as well as sweets. It was really a nice spread. I was glad I had not eaten anything all day outside of tasting the crostinis for flavor as I made them. We had a sing along of Christmas carols and then they had a gift exchange that we chose not to participate in. It was about 3 hours - just enough time. I still don't feel in the Christmas mood
Just to prove a point about Hello Fresh saving me money at the grocery store - I stopped in yesterday to get the fresh ingredients I needed for the appetizer - a loaf of fresh French baguette, baby arugula and the spreadable cheese. While in the store I also picked up some fresh berries (this time I WILL eat them before they spoil), a couple of bottles of dish soap, a few extra vegetables to substitute for the stuff DH won't eat in the Hello Fresh menu (I don't mind a double order of zucchini), some soda that was on sale and a rotisserie chicken to cut up and use for lunch meals. Grand total - $152 dollars!!! And outside of the chicken I didn't get any meat! Groceries and gas are more expensive up here - I think we get gouged because of the tourist trade. And it's a 2 hour round trip drive to Aldi's so not really worth it for regular shopping.
And Laura I smiled at your comment about your Mom's grocery shopping. My Mom does the same thing - she barely eats anything other than sandwiches now and my sister worries that she is not eating enough. Mom said she doesn't feel like cooking. The neighbor will occasionally bring her a rotisserie chicken - Mom eats the legs and puts the rest of the chicken in the freezer. She has anywhere from 4 to 6 frozen legless carcasses in the freezer at any given time. I told her to debone the chicken while it is still warm and put the meat chunks in a baggie rather than taking up the freezer room with these unstackable carcasses but nooooooooo. That's too much trouble. I also said it would be more likely for her to eat the meat if it was off the bones. She can also use the carcass to make a quick and tasty chicken soup which she likes. When she goes to the store she buys a bunch of stuff and eventually sticks what she can into the freezer and the fresh stuff she gives to the neighbor who gives her the chickens. I asked her why she buys a gallon of milk when she only uses a quart and gives the rest away. Because it's cheaper to pay for a gallon than a half gallon. Even when you don't use it??? Well I give it to T 2 days before the expiration date and they drink it so it doesn't go to waste. This is old people's logic and you can't fight it.
And I also empathize with you about the clothes. I have gained about 5 pounds from not being as active with the foot as well as more salty foods consumed and less fruits and vegetables. I have also been wearing stretch pants instead of jeans because it's way easier to accommodate them with the foot and leg brace. Last night I wore a red v-neck pull over sweater and white button down shirt with a pretty Christmas wreath pin. The button down shirt was fitted which was ok under the sweater but I would never wear it with a cardigan and then I decided to wear some of my black dress pants. OMG I tried on 3 pairs and didn't like the way any of them fit. So I wore the new black stretch pants. Told myself as you did that I GOTTA get serious about this and restyle my eating. I made some slice and bake cookies - for DH not me and I have no temptation to eat them. Yesterday my sweet of choice was a nice blueberry crumble someone made which was very tasty of berries and delightfully light on the sugar. It was the only sweet from about 15 kinds that I touched.
Ceejay - it's better that your hairdresser did a darker color because the brown will fade up lighter after a few washings. Lots of people have issues with ash tones not coming out right - sounds like she knows what she's doing there. I'm thinking I won't do cards this year either - thanks for supporting me on that
Laura - how did the Christmas party go? I agree with you on not being keen at all having to take a bus to the party and then wait around for bus transport back. Even though the venue sounded very nice. Which museum? To your question on Hello Fresh it's $10 a serving so a meal for two is $20 and some which are premium or make enough for a leftover lunch the next day are a bit more. One of the nice things about the Hello Fresh is that it would make it very easy for DH to make the meal on Thursdays when I go to bingo or Mondays when I work late at the Thrift Shop since everything you need is in the meal bag.
Susie - your tree and decorations are just gorgeous. I like your ornaments too!
Hi Annie Glad you got a good report from the doc. I think the less meds the better for us. Fingers toes and eyes crossed that C's medication will help him AND THAT HE WILL TAKE IT REGULARLY Speaking of recycling meals - I am going to make some pork stock with pork hocks. May use the leftover meat to make a pork ramen soup or maybe some wontons.
going to post this now and eat one of my delicious oranges.
The pork (chop) fried rice was a huge hit last night. I made a plate of the sauteed veggies and pork before adding the rice for my dinner. YUMMY. Samantha ate 3 helpings of the fried rice and C ate 2 helpings. The lil babysitting girl, who is adorable btw, ate a small helping also. Royce ate several bites off of Sam's plate. Of course, Mr. Picky Jacob ate NONE. He did have a cheese roll up that Sam made him.
After dinner and the babysitting kid was gone, Samantha and I went to Kroger for a few groceries. I got my ham for Christmas. A 45$ ham on sale for 10 bucks. Spiral cut honey ham at that. One thing down 50 to go. lol. Then we went to Bath and Body Works to get a few gifts for my friends at work. Then to Payless shoes to get me a couple of my fav slip ons for work as my feet have lost weight and I needed a size smaller shoe. WOW, what a NSV.
C started his new med for his issues last night. He goes back to the psych doc on the 27th, to see how he is doing on this med. I am not going to lie, this is a lot of work, time and patience, which I don't always have and just want to scream.
Not a lot on the agenda for the weekend. Meeting and church for sure, other than that, not much.
HAPPY...glad you had a great time at the party. Did your lady friend that you took with have a good time? This time of year is so hard on single, lonely people. I feel sad for my SIL, Pia, Michael's wife around the holidays and his birthday. She sure puts on the happy front, but like me, I know she is hurting and missing him something awful. Fake it till you make it. Fresh market foods sounds great for single or a couple of people, however I think with 5 people in my house it would not save me much $$, but only time. Most days I enjoy making dinner. Especially if I know what I am fixing ahead of time.
Location: A beautiful and peaceful place in the woods
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Good morning everyone,
The snow just keeps falling - we have almost a foot of snow or close to it. It just keeps falling - soft flakes floating through the air. Last night when we came home from bingo it was like the Ivory Snow powder - my favorite - soft, light and sparkly. On our way to bingo the roads were snow covered and slippery. We pulled out on to the main road and within a minute a trucker with a double trailer LOADED with timber came barrelling up behind us. He had to be doing 60mph. DH was doing 45 as were all the cars ahead of us because it was poor road conditions. This SOB climbed right on top of DH and was trying to nudge him to go faster EVEN THOUGH there was no place to go as all the cars were keeping a respectful distance. He just had to slow down. The speed limit drops from 55 to 25 as you head into town which is where we were anyway. These timber truckers are the devil incarnated - most of them are in a huge hurry and they are very dangerous. It doesn't do any good to complain or call the police as timber is big up this way and sadly, like drinking it's an industry that brings the money in so they look the other way.
Bingo was fine - we had a small crowd due to the weather. I suspect we will have an even smaller crowd next week with people travelling for the holiday and it's about to get bitterly cold - single digit temps.
Going to the senior center for lunch today - meatloaf. I love meatloaf and can't make a decent one myself so I go out to get it. DH made a balsamic steak with roasted green beans and potatoes last night for himself from the Hello Fresh bag. He said other than a small piece that was tough, overall it was really good and he had no trouble making it himself so that was good. I was wondering why the microwave and stove that I had taken apart and cleaned so well in the morning was greasy again and then I remembered it was him. He did wash all his dishes though. I'm glad he got a good meal and didn't mind cooking it himself.
Annie - big score on the ham! Such a deal! I don't know what I want to make for dinner - been tossing around ideas. I did buy and freeze some Gulf Shrimp earlier - should incorporate some of that I suppose. They had nice beef roasts at the store but I'm sort of beef and chickened out at the moment. How cool that your weight loss affected your shoe size - wow I never would have guessed. Are you rings loose too? And yes, Grete was so grateful that we picked her up and gave her a ride and "dropped her off front door to front door" as she told DH. She is such a sweet lady and she did have a good time as did we at the party. I have not seen T - the girl I helped with the job application. She said she'd stop at bingo and hasn't been there for 2 weeks. I hope she is doing ok. You are right, it's a tough time of year for lots of people. Reach out and help those you can. God love you and give you strength for dealing with C's issues. Hard enough just to deal with them being men Just make sure you take care of Annie first. A lot of people depending on you.
Enjoy your long weekend Laura! My sister wants some of our snow - said you guys have nothing but grass.
I'd better post this and pack up Mom's gift to send out. Bye for now.
Afternoon,
Niece was going to work till 3 but just texted and asked if she could work till 4. Going to dinner with sis, bil and bill's family. Then to a Christmas show.
I'm not in a talkative mood so I'll try to do better tomorrow.
Yes HAPPY, my rings are all too big for my fingers. I wear my wedding ring on my middle finger....does that tell you more than one thing about it? hahahahaha
SUSIE...Glad to hear you are back on the WL/exercise wagon. Good for you. I am proud of you and your WL.
HAPPY...please keep all the snow up your way. Not a fan of the white stuff. Unless of course I did not have to work, could stay at home all winter, drink coffee, watch talk shows and Hallmark channel, play with the furry animals and cook and bake. What a dream that is. Bah.
CEEG...how are you doing. Hope your spirits perk up.
Peaceful weekend.
The boys were painting pictures...Royce was painting white paint on white paper, I said, Royce what are you painting? Nanna it is a secret and you cannot see it. Well, true and lmbo. Such a hoot. I made chocolate chip cookies as that is the boys favorite. Before I even had the dough mixed up, both boys had their little trays in hand waiting on a cookie. Had to laugh.
I have a full day today—my first day of vacation. I have a work anniversary lunch to attend at 11 a.m. today for two ladies that I mentor at work. The lunch is company paid and at Maggiono’s. It is located in our Kenwood Mall (this is a very nice mall if you are ever in my neck of the woods) and that is handy as I want to go to a couple of shops in the mall.
I have almost all of the Christmas Shopping done with the exception of a gift certificate I need to pick up at Cooper Hawk’s, which is across the street from the Mall. I do have a couple more things that I would like to get for DH’s birthday which is New Year’s Eve. So my first day of vacation is full of running around.
I meant to get up early when DH got up this morning to go to work and get my workout in but I slept instead, so I’ll have to do it when I get back this afternoon.
Happy: I have been thinking about trying Hello Fresh and your review is very helpful. DH has said that he would be up to try the Vegetarian subscription as he can always have a pork chop or chicken breast with it. He could make those ahead on the weekend or sloppy joe’s or something. So I think we are going to give it a try.
Annie: I am praying for you and C as you both work through his issues and changes with taking the medicine and things. It’s not a easy road sister friend but as you know, you won’t walk it alone. Hugs!
Your AA luncheon sounded very nice. Also happy to hear that your end of year health visits were good ones.
Your low key weekend sounded very nice.
Laura: How did the work party go? As for not being happy with your dress clothes and the way they fit, I have been there many times. You can change it…..I know you can.
Ceejay: You are doing a lot of driving! It is nice you can help out. It’s wonderful that you found a hair dresser you like. I always feel great after I have been to the hair dresser.
Shad: You are so knowledgeable when it comes to plants and you do such a lovely job with your gardens. I think if you are looking for some work in your retirement you should get a job at a Green House/Florist.
I must get going and get my shower so I can get all my running around done.
Location: A beautiful and peaceful place in the woods
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S/C/G: Stuck/Working on it/Good 2 Go
Height: Fun Size
Good morning fine chickie ladies of the World
I'm a bit on pins and needles here - my orthopedic doctor's appointment is up in Duluth on Thursday and we are sitting on the potential of a big snowy storm between Wednesday and Friday. It's 70 miles to Duluth in mostly open area (blowing white out on the highway) and Duluth itself is built on a hill and it's like a mini San Francisco with roads up and down. I have always wondered how those people drive in those conditions in a place that gets a lot of snow. DH talked to a friend of ours today who was up there a few days ago and said it was rough going when it's snowing up that way. Weatherwise it's touch and go about the storm - it MIGHT get bad, might fizzle out. It's bad enough DH said he won't risk driving there IF it's the 3 to 5 inches of heavy snow they said might happen. I don't want to wait and reschedule the day of the appointment, DH said to give it another day to see how things will go. This is a bummer because it means I will probably have to wait until 4 weeks for a rescheduled appointment. My foot is marginally (and I mean very marginally) better. But there is still something obviously wrong that needs to be fixed. AND as always happens to me, I chipped a front tooth over the weekend. A good sized corner piece about this size OO. My front teeth are very thin at the bottom because I have a bad overbite that should have been corrected 40 years ago. Apparently no dentist I saw (and I saw them regularly) ever thought it bad enough to correct. But over the years my lower teeth have worn away the underside of the front teeth to the point that they are thin. I saw hairline cracks in them too and asked my dentist here about it and he said not to worry - that was normal. I bit on something Saturday - not even sure what and heard that familiar sound of enamel cracking. Ran to the mirror and sure enough. It's not noticable when I talk so minimal smiling - more of a grin for now. No way will I be able to get into the dentist before January as they are flooded with people this time of year trying to use up the last of their dental insurance. I ALWAYS seem to have a big dental expense in December carried into the new year. Oh well I was debating about not doing dental insurance next year, guess it's good that I did. There was water leaking in the basement by the furnace the other day - DH thought it was the hot water heater leaking. He turned it off but did not drain it and the leaking stopped. We called a plumber but no one of course responded. He turned it back on again and no leaks. Mystery water. My washing machine seemed to seize up last night stuck in the soak cycle - what IS IT about everything deciding to toy with us??? So far everything is holding up but we're keeping a watchful eye...
Susie - PM me your email address. I just got an offer from Hello Fresh. I can send them up to 4 email addresses. If those people sign up for the program and pick a plan, you get your first week free from them (including shipping). I looked at the vegetarian plan and that food looked really good to me. I think it's a good idea for your DH to just add a meat protein to the meal as long as he likes things like brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes and beans. I'd eat the vegetarian meals as well but my DH would not. For a busy person like you to come home and have everything ready to make with 20 or 30 minutes prep to eat time I think that would work great with your lifestyle. If you want to try it, let me know. I have not been to Cooper's Hawk but there is one by my sister's and she had spoken highly of it. Will have to try it sometime. Good for you for being on top of all of your holiday shopping. I realized that I have been to a shopping mall ONCE since we moved up here 6 years ago. And I liked it! I am not counting the "mall" they have in Duluth because it's not the same as a real shopping mall. And yes, I live 3 hours from Mall of America but that's NOT the place you go to have a good time IF you have to have your husband drive you there and follow you around. I'm so glad to hear that your tests came back all negative on the breast. What a relief!!! Now you can enjoy your week off and be joyful. I got kind of excited because we went to lunch at the senior center on Friday. There are a bunch of folks who are die hard bingo fans who play on Friday afternoons for 25 cents a game. They had a crisis because the bingo caller had to take his wife to the doctor for an unplanned emergency visit and no caller no bingo. One brave lady said she'd give it a try but she didn't know how to work the bingo machine. I called my partner and while he was coming over to show us how to use it I got to talking to Carol who said she was a TOPS leader when she lived in Kentucky and wanted to start a TOPS group up here but didn't know if there was enough interest. We have a TOPS meeting but it's 30 minutes away on a winding road that is not the best in winter weather and I can't see having DH drive me all that way every week and sitting around. I told Carol I'd help in any way I could but would love to give it a try as I desperately need to get out of this rut and get weight off. Even with their "new program" which is just their current program re-tweaked, Weight Watchers is still not the program for me and their meeting happens to be at the same time as Thursday bingo so I can't do it anyway. So I'd love to try TOPS!!!
I just realized I was supposed to go for my B12 shot 30 minutes ago. Oh well that's just a walk in have the nurse set you up kind of thing I can reschedule to tomorrow.
Annie - your sentence "...Unless of course I did not have to work, could stay at home all winter, drink coffee, watch talk shows and Hallmark channel, play with the furry animals and cook and bake. What a dream that is." reminded me that I could do EXACTLY that if I wished. So I guess I could say to you that dreams CAN come true and I am once again blessed to be livin' the dream myself. And that dream was born of the ashes of literally what was one of the darkest periods of my life. Never thought it would turn out this way, mighty glad it did. Of course as we both said the other night, much if what we can do is based on the fact that we don't have children so that does make a huge difference. You are a wonderful person with a big heart and you deserve goodness in your life. It will come, don't lose hope. That is so funny about Royce and his secret painting. I just looked up making invisible ink - there are a bunch of recipes on line - you make it with lemon juice or vinegar paper and a paint brush - easy peasy. Looks like a fun activity. I remember as a kid my brother the chemist mixing up something that we brushed on paper and then held it up to a light bulb and when it heated the message was revealed. I smiled about you wearing your ring on your middle finger God likes to throw you curve balls, doesn't he However it IS nice to know that fingers can get smaller too. I used to have tiny fingers once upon a time.
Hi Ceejay, Shad and Laura
I need to find something to sustain me for lunch and then get ready to head over to the shop for my afternoon shift.
Ceejay – Are you finished with your driver duties yet? Happy Hanukkah to you.
Annie – Yes, for some (many) people, WL is a lifelong struggle. Not that I like dealing with overly snug clothing, I have to say I care less about my appearance nowadays than I do my health. My excess weight isn’t helping my foot any, and lack of exercise is making me achy. == How long will it take for C’s new meds to take effect? == I’m glad the derm appointment went well – I hope the biopsy comes back negative. So now you’re normal, or at least your liver enzymes are, LOL. == What a deal on that ham!! We’ll be shopping for one of those later this week – that’s what I want for Christmas Eve dinner. Oh wait, I think we’ll probably just get it from the restaurant guy again. I hope bf finally orders the right amount this time – the last few times he gets way too much and we have too much left over. == Smaller shoes and loose rings – nice NSV’s.
Happy – Glad the party was a nice time. That goat cheese stuffed date sounds so tasty. I love the sweet/savory combos. == LOL re the multiple chicken carcasses in your mom’s freezer. And “old people’s logic”. == Thanks for the Hello Fresh clarification. I think I’ll try to get back to more home cooking before going the HF route. == Boo on all the snow you got up there. Nothing here, and it’s rainy here today, and the temps will be mild for a few days. Dreary, but I’ll take it. == I hope the weather doesn’t mess up your doctor appointment in Duluth. == I’d recommend a nightguard to protect your teeth, but you said you broke your teeth eating something? Or did the damage that weakened the teeth come from grinding while you sleep? I had a former dentist that didn’t think my issue was a big deal and so I didn’t end up getting a nightguard until the damage was very obvious (to me). That’s why she’s my former dentist. And when I finally got the nightguard, it was a flimsy thing that I ground through in no time. Switched dentists, got a rigid nightguard and have been a faithful wearer ever since, probably for 20 years by now. Anyway, hope you can get in to get that tooth repaired soon. Good thing you kept the dental insurance!!! == Oh how great if there were a TOPS meeting close to where you live. I might just seek that out for myself. I just don’t want to bother with WW anymore.
Susie – Great news that the biopsy came back negative. What a relief it must be for you! Now just enjoy your vacation and holiday without that worry hanging over your head. == Congrats on the weight loss! Good for you getting back in the WL groove. == Enjoy your vacation, and hope you enjoyed the luncheon today. Nice that you can hop over to the mall and get more shopping done. Cooper's Hawk - yum - there's a braised beef dish I had once that I haven't forgotten!! Need to get back there for it.
Hi Shad!! How's it going Down Under?
=
The holiday party last Wednesday was nice. Thankfully, it didn’t take too long to bus it to the Museum of Science & Industry (and back). The food was very good. One buffet station was Asian food and my favorite was the spicy green beans – two portions of that. So simple, but I need to seek out a recipe for it. It was nice to see the two exhibits that were located where the party was being held (the model trains and Christmas Around the World), one of which my employer has been sponsoring for many years.
I had a pretty good weekend. I repotted the orchid arrangement, but had to use two pots. I’m thinking based on Shad’s advice that I might just need to pot the orchids in separate pots from the other plants. The roots of the orchids were contained in clear plastic cups that were buried in the sphagnum moss/soil and looked very crowded. I have no idea why that is, but it doesn’t seem like a good condition for them. Hope I don’t kill these things while trying to figure out how to deal with them.
I got some shopping done (online). I sent out some Christmas cards. I laid out my pj pants pattern on the fabric and adjusted the pattern based on an existing pair of pj pants I own. I pinned and cut. That stuff is the most time-consuming for me, no matter how easy the sewing project. The stitching part will be quick, so maybe I’ll tackle that some night after work this week.
I took Mom out to a few furniture stores on Friday, but we found no tables that worked for her. She wants only wood, and nothing darker than a medium shade of stain. So you can imagine how difficult finding something will be when most of the tables are some combination of metal, glass, stone, and dark wood. Oh well, there’s more stores to visit sometime in the future. And a last resort might be something online like Wayfair.
The piano is now out of the living room and the empty corner is still awaiting our tree. We didn’t make much progress on holiday decorating this weekend - I just hung some lighted garland in the LR. It’s getting a bit late, but I’ll ask bf to get the tree from the attic tonight.
I went to the thrift shop on Thursday because they had a half-price sale on items over $1.00. I bought a couple books and some Christmas ornaments and a few other Christmas items. Oh, bought a scarf to match bf's new jacket. But it was too funny yesterday when I was going through the coat closet for a couple of my winter headbands, I found that we had two other scarves that also match bf's new jacket. At least it was half price, lol.
I went to the library on Saturday. Season 3 of Fargo that I had on hold was ready for pick up. I also learned that the latest season of Twin Peaks that I never finished watching is now available on dvd, so I have that on hold now.
Okay, better get this posted and finish my lunch. TTFN.
Afternoon
Unfortunately I'm still on uber patrol, but only once this week. I'm taking my niece to an appointment in the morning at 8 and after that I'm done this week.
I've had a busy week end. Friday I went to dinner with my sis, bil and two of his sister's and their spouses. After that we went to the Moon River theater for a Christmas show. It was a nice show. My cousin and his wife came up from Arkansas Saturday and spent the night. Then we all went to church for the Contanta. That was a nice program. Needless to say I was worn out completely. I've come back to Branson this afternoon so I can be here for nieces 8 o'clock appointment in the morning.
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Happy
I hope you don't have to change you appointment but don't risk driving in the blowing snow. Hope that you can get a group together for a TOP's meeting. I'm still going to look into something like that in the near future. Think I need that extra bit of help. I still haven't had the right mind set, and I started this when I was 52 years of age.
Annie
Aren't the little guys fun to be with? I love it when my nephew's sons come around. Can you have your rings resized?
Susie
So thankful that the biopsy showed good results. How was your Christmas party? Glad you got started aback with your exercise routine.
Laura,
We had rain too but not enough. My cousin's wife and I were out on the front porch in our jammies watching it rain Sunday morning. The rain smelled so good. I still haven't gotten into going to the Library for books or DVD's. One of these day's I'll take up reading.
On Dancer on Prancer on Visa and Mastercard...thank you One America, lol.
CEEG...so remind me, is the niece here permanently? Will you Ubering go on forever or is she going to get her license and a car? Where is she working? I am nosy. I could get the rings resized however I have my old rings on now too so all fingers are ringing...lol
LAURA...I wouldn't bother with a tree at this point. I usually take mine down the day after Christmas if I can get away with it. Samantha bullies me into leaving it up for a while longer. I am over it by the time CHristmas gets here. Funny how mom is so picky on things. I mean what does it really matter. I guess a good thing she still has her wits about her and can be picky. If not it would be an entirely different battle. Yikes. I still have not visited the Thrift Store I found not too far from me. When I think of going there I am out of time. Don't really need anything so I guess there is no hurry to visit it.
HAPPY...hope you can make your appointment. You have suffered enough with your foot. We are having mild temps today of 50 and sunny. I will take it. It has been a few days without the sun so I am welcoming today's weather for sure. We are supposed to drop to the 30s by the weekend with really no snow in sight. I will take that also. You are so right about children getting in the way of a softer life. And now they have children. Chain of life that Samantha reminds me of all the time. Especially when animals eat other animals. yuk. OMGosh on your tooth. That is a fear of mine. My grandma (mom's mother) and my mom both had broken teeth at the end of their life. G-mas were worse than momma's. Grandpa (mom's pop) had dentures so I will never know but tells me a lot about the teeth line in our family. My dad's teeth were strong and thick. Only one brother had troubles with his teeth and now he has mostly implants. Good grief on the washer. Is this the same washer that has been serviced many times or did you end up replacing it? Can't remember.
Hi SHADDIE and SUSIE.
Today is my Wednesday...I will be off the 29th through the 2nd. Oh the joys of vacation. I am only carrying over one day into next year. WF did give us two more holidays, the same as the bank now. Which will include Columbus Day and President's day. THey also added two floating holidays of our choice. Said this was done to boost moral. That is 4 extra days for next year.
I made Keto mushroom burgers with mushroom sauce. VERY delish. Samantha hoped for leftovers for today. She lucked out, one burger left. I made thick sliced potatos in the air fryer for the rest of them. Leftover fried rice if they wanted it. C finished deep cleaning our bathroom. Floors, walls, tub, re-chalked the tub, around the toitie and the sink. It looks so nice in there now. Hated to use the bathroom to get ready for work. Marvelous job. I laid on the couch and drank my water and rested. lol. I am just exhausted. Mentally and physically.
C is doing ok on his meds. Seems to have a clearer mind and more focused. A bit hyper so he is taking a run around the neighborhood when he gets home from work. Then he wants projects to do like the bathroom. Nuf said I will get you a list. The doc said he would notice a difference being on the meds the first couple of days and he has done that. It will improve even more with time. He goes back to the pshyciatrist next week.
I will have to post and come back later....my boss is here from Chicago and just got in. Rough party night I guess. haha
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Good morning ladies,
I get to stay home today and am happy for that. The sun is shining - first time in about a week. DH is headed outside to clear some snow before the deep freeze hits the end of the week. Still waiting about the doctor's appointment on Thursday. Our local weather said a storm is brewing and by Saturday we should get 10.6 inches of snow between Wednesday and then as a pocket with hit our town and dump at least 5 inches from just one day's storm. Then the Weather Channel has the complete opposite. Possibly 3 - 5 inches of snow up in Duluth Wednesday - nothing but flurries on Thursday when we have to go up there. So we are waiting another day to see.
I made the elections for my health and dental insurance yesterday. $978 a month with a $2,000 deductible. That is RIDICULOUS!!! So much for getting a social security check. And they cap prescriptions at $2500 a year. Good thing I am not on any expensive routine medications. This is the last year for private health insurance, I am almost (almost but not quite) anticipating going on Medicare the following year. And this is through IBM - some break for retirees, huh? My sister called yesterday. Mom is having a fit. She saw her new cardiologist 3 times Sept, Oct and Nov. She got a bill for $130 and was ranting and raving "I CAN'T AFFORD THAT!!!! YOU (my sister) NEED TO FIND ME A NEW DOCTOR". This cardiologist is a replacement for her last cardiologist who left his practice and very quietly disappeared and went with another group we suspect to get himself out from under the load of Medicare patients. Now my Mom is saying she never liked this new doctor - even though she sang her praises UNTIL she got a bill to pay. This supports my sister and my opinion that Mom goes unnecessarily to all sorts of doctors 1) just to bask in the glow of them telling her how good she looks for 91 AND 2) that under Medicare she didn't have to pay a dime to the doctors - so it was basically free praise even though my sister has to take her to on average 1.5 doctor appointments even though my Mom has no problems and no medical issues. "I HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF MYSELF BECAUSE I LIVE ALONE" - which infuriates my sister because she makes it sound like her daughters have abandoned her in a cardboard box under a bridge to fend for herself.
Last night I made Mediterranean chicken from Hello Fresh. Chicken thighs with a spice blend of oregano, mint, sumac and coriander that was actually quite tasty. It came with zucchini that I just lightly cooked in a cast iron pan for me and also had couscous. We both agreed the couscous was dry - if I made it again, I'd add my own chicken stock and make it wetter but since I had never made it before, I stuck to the recipe. It got topped with a sauce made of plain greek yogurt, fresh chopped parsley, lemon zest and juice and salt and pepper as well as a sprinkle of chopped dried apricots and slivered almonds. The meal came with extra chicken because this is a premium meal and came with arugula and you save some of the chicken and couscous and sauce to make a salad the next day. There were 6 good sized chicken thighs in the package. I took one because I had the extra zucchini on my plate, left 2 for the lunch meal and put 3 on DH's plate on the bed of couscous. His plate was quite full but just on one side. He comes to get it and sees the two pieces of chicken left in the pan. "what's this for?" "the recipe makes extra - that's supposed to be for a light salad lunch tomorrow" "hmmmm... I don't think so" and he puts the extra 2 pieces on his plate. So much for diet and portion control... He was wondering why my plate had more on it than his did until I reminded him I had the sauteed zucchini and he was welcome to some if he wanted it It wasn't a bad meal, we both agreed if we made this again, the couscous needed a bit more tweaking. I told him that couscous is a grain, more diet friendly than rice or pasta and probably took some getting used to. He said he'd rather have Rice a Roni I get another box today.
I am a bit surprised at the number of people who are saying that they just aren't feeling Christmas this year. I am home today - I think I will have time to clean and do a bit of decorating. I know I will probably regret it if I do nothing at all.
Annie - I would usually leave my tree up until January 6 - feast of the Three Kings. That's how Mom did it. Yum, I would have gobbled up the mushroom burgers - DH not so much. I'm glad your family likes your Keto food - makes it much easier to cook. How is Sam's foot coming along? Good to hear that C has energy - keep him busy and occupied with household projects. As for the teeth - my sister was allergic to milk as a baby and some antibiotics stained her baby teeth but her adult teeth grew in strong and hard. She said she could grind rocks with hers. She had problems as a baby - I had problems as an adult. However I have to say that my parents got her braces and that also helped. I could have used braces too but there was no money for me. I know now that there are things I could have done younger that would have alleviated problems now but isn't that how life goes? Still as we age the teeth like everything weaken up. Let's all hope we can keep what we got To your question - the washing machine I have is about 12 years old - got it in TN. I have been buying the extended warranty and using that to hold it together. It seems to be ok now - I had it on the soak cycle and thought the clock would count down but apparently it doesn't show on the display. I hope it holds up until the warranty expires next November.
Ceejay - yes you are the Uber lady! I hope the niece gets situated. Saw your picture on FB and your hair looks really nice. It's good that you can spend time with your family you have a busy life in retirement. I do understand what you mean by getting a good mindset for the dieting. Me too. 2018 is the year, right? Your talk of the smell of rain had me nostalgic. I love a good rain smell will be 5 months before we get that up here.
Laura - thanks for the suggestion on the nightguard. I had one once but it was so tight fitting that I was afraid I'd crack my bottom teeth removing it so I never really wore it and now my teeth have shifted again and it won't fit. but you are right about needing it and the good that it does. It should be fairly easy to find a recipe for spicy Asian green beans. You could roast them in the oven to get a bit of crispness and then use a sirachi or thai chili sauce to give them a light kick. That's too bad you can't find a table for your Mom - all these furniture stores and nothing works. We have 2 up here and I have to say that the (lack of) quality construction is what got to me. We have a lot of lighter wood selections here because everything is pine and some other light wood. Good luck repotting those orchids. Yikes, what an ordeal! Yes Shad is the garden master of the group!
I told her to debone the chicken while it is still warm and put the meat chunks in a baggie rather than taking up the freezer room with these unstackable carcasses but nooooooooo. That's too much trouble. I also said it would be more likely for her to eat the meat if it was off the bones. She can also use the carcass to make a quick and tasty chicken soup which she likes. When she goes to the store she buys a bunch of stuff and eventually sticks what she can into the freezer and the fresh stuff she gives to the neighbor who gives her the chickens. I asked her why she buys a gallon of milk when she only uses a quart and gives the rest away. Because it's cheaper to pay for a gallon than a half gallon. Even when you don't use it??? Well I give it to T 2 days before the expiration date and they drink it so it doesn't go to waste. 
This is old people's logic and you can't fight it. 
and then I decided to wear some of my black dress pants. OMG I tried on 3 pairs and didn't like the way any of them fit. So I wore the new black stretch pants. 
Told myself as you did that I GOTTA get serious about this and restyle my eating. I made some slice and bake cookies - for DH not me and I have no temptation to eat them. Yesterday my sweet of choice was a nice blueberry crumble someone made which was very tasty of berries and delightfully light on the sugar. It was the only sweet from about 15 kinds that I touched. 
Glad you got a good report from the doc. I think the less meds the better for us. Fingers toes and eyes crossed that C's medication will help him AND THAT HE WILL TAKE IT REGULARLY 
Such a deal! I don't know what I want to make for dinner - been tossing around ideas. I did buy and freeze some Gulf Shrimp earlier - should incorporate some of that I suppose. They had nice beef roasts at the store but I'm sort of beef and chickened out at the moment. How cool that your weight loss affected your shoe size - wow I never would have guessed. Are you rings loose too? And yes, Grete was so grateful that we picked her up and gave her a ride and "dropped her off front door to front door" as she told DH. She is such a sweet lady and she did have a good time as did we at the party. I have not seen T - the girl I helped with the job application. She said she'd stop at bingo and hasn't been there for 2 weeks. I hope she is doing ok. You are right, it's a tough time of year for lots of people. Reach out and help those you can. 
God love you and give you strength for dealing with C's issues. Hard enough just to deal with them being men 
My front teeth are very thin at the bottom because I have a bad overbite that should have been corrected 40 years ago. Apparently no dentist I saw (and I saw them regularly) ever thought it bad enough to correct. But over the years my lower teeth have worn away the underside of the front teeth to the point that they are thin. I saw hairline cracks in them too and asked my dentist here about it and he said not to worry - that was normal. I bit on something Saturday - not even sure what and heard that familiar sound of enamel cracking. Ran to the mirror and sure enough. 
I'm so glad to hear that your tests came back all negative on the breast. What a relief!!! Now you can enjoy your week off and be joyful. I got kind of excited because we went to lunch at the senior center on Friday. There are a bunch of folks who are die hard bingo fans who play on Friday afternoons for 25 cents a game. They had a crisis because the bingo caller had to take his wife to the doctor for an unplanned emergency visit and no caller no bingo. One brave lady said she'd give it a try but she didn't know how to work the bingo machine. I called my partner and while he was coming over to show us how to use it I got to talking to Carol who said she was a TOPS leader when she lived in Kentucky and wanted to start a TOPS group up here but didn't know if there was enough interest. We have a TOPS meeting but it's 30 minutes away on a winding road that is not the best in winter weather and I can't see having DH drive me all that way every week and sitting around. I told Carol I'd help in any way I could but would love to give it a try as I desperately need to get out of this rut and get weight off. Even with their "new program" which is just their current program re-tweaked, Weight Watchers is still not the program for me and their meeting happens to be at the same time as Thursday bingo so I can't do it anyway. So I'd love to try TOPS!!!
You are a wonderful person with a big heart and you deserve goodness in your life. It will come, don't lose hope. 
== I’d recommend a nightguard to protect your teeth, but you said you broke your teeth eating something? Or did the damage that weakened the teeth come from grinding while you sleep? 
I had a former dentist that didn’t think my issue was a big deal and so I didn’t end up getting a nightguard until the damage was very obvious (to me). That’s why she’s my former dentist. 
== Oh how great if there were a TOPS meeting close to where you live. I might just seek that out for myself. I just don’t want to bother with WW anymore. 
== Congrats on the weight loss! Good for you getting back in the WL groove. == Enjoy your vacation, and hope you enjoyed the luncheon today. Nice that you can hop over to the mall and get more shopping done. Cooper's Hawk - yum - there's a braised beef dish I had once that I haven't forgotten!! Need to get back there for it. 
It wasn't a bad meal, we both agreed if we made this again, the couscous needed a bit more tweaking. I told him that couscous is a grain, more diet friendly than rice or pasta and probably took some getting used to. He said he'd rather have Rice a Roni 