Hello Everyone, we got home from our vacation, last night at 6 PM. Did one load of laundry and went to bed.
This morning we have to take the rental van back and then to Walmart for groceries. The rest of the day will be laundry and going through the mail.
I cleaned the house before we left so not much to do on that front.
I gained 5 lbs on vacation. I am on the exercise bike this morning.
We had a wonderful time on vacation. There were some things DH and I wanted to so and didn't get to, we have decided we want to go back next year and stay in the 300 block of the strip. We have decided to put a certain amount back each day that is marked for vacation so next year we can go back.
Anne, I hope you are feeling better after the spill you took rolling in the dumpster. How did your daughters procedure on her leg turn out?
Dee: work is keeping you busy these days but it sounds like you enjoy it and I know you are getting your steps in.
Laura: how nice that your mortgage is paid off! Congratulations!
I love ABBA music. I plan to go see Mama Mia
Happy, so your mom is going to be moving to the Senior living place close to you?
I am sorry you are drowning in commitments. Maybe if you make a list each day of what to 3 things you will work on each day and just stick to them would help? Plot is out from your current overall list. Also sounds like you need to say no, to anything else that isn't on your current overall list.
Ceejay: how nice you have a trip coming up and how generous your sister is going to treat you to it.
Michelle
Great to see you posting again.
Laura
You are doing great with the exercise. Glad that you are not over doing on the foot.
Susie
I saw your pictures on FB. it looks like you two had a great time.
Hellos to Happy and Shad
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I came home Friday morning to mow the lawn but it was still hot. I waited till the yard was shaded but it was still hot so I just mowed the front yard. Mowed the back yard this afternoon with the push mower. There was a breeze this afternoon which was nice. I did have to avoid the
unburied cable. that is why I didnt use the rider.
Good morning!
I am on the bike this morning while posting this post.
I have 4 more loads of laundry to finish today, and still need to dust the living room. That will be this afternoon after church.
The scales this morning showed me down 3 lbs from yesterday morning. I knew I was up from all the sodium in the restaurant food. Also no formal exercise all week. I am working to be down a total of 7 lbs by Thursday TOPS weigh-in.
Sam is doing well with recovery. Will know the results of the biopsy on both spots by week's end. Chris kept the boys until this morning. That was a great help. I did get her out for a bit both Saturday and Sunday as she was going stir crazy. Boy do I understand that one. She finally got to take a shower and take the bandages off on Sunday. The spots look great. No blood ooze either. She has to keep them vasolined and bandaged for two weeks. She is residing on the couch. Took her to lunch both days then she got to choose where she wanted to "shop" after that. One place, not doing the in and out of the car as it requires help from me and adjusting the pillows she sits on, belting her in and closing the door. That was a nice little outing. We rented several movies at Redbox that we missed at the theather. Amy Shumer's I Feel Pretty...eh, barely ok. Reminded me of Shallow Hal. Rampage with the Rock. Was ok, def a rental. Jumanji, we all liked this one. Good laughs. Also Blocked or blockers. We all had good laughs on this one. Pretty good, could of been cause we were all kind of tired. Also Quiet Room. Just weird not as scary as it is pumped up to be, def a maybe rental or free when it comes to TV. Silly really. All those rentals cost less than going to ONE movie. So there is that. I cooked on Friday and Saturday night. Leftovers on Sunday night. Sadly I don't even remember what I cooked. Oh, I know baked a butternut squash with butter, salt and pepper. Made steak stir fry only instead of putting it over rice, I put cheese on top of it and melted it in the pan. Served it by the section. It was good. Sam's bf, Meghan came over yesterday for a short visit and brought a bouquet of flowers for her. She is a good friend and a very sweet girl. I like her a lot. Meg's kids are girls and about the same age as Sam's boys. Fun. Meg's oldest loves her some Jacob and Jacob just shrugs her off. Keep doing that boy.
HAPPY...your retirement sounds like too much work. I think I may just keep working, at least I get paid and paid vacations. You are still getting too involved with the thrift shop. Stop it, just stop it. Just say no. Girl what are we to do with you. You are supposed to be enjoying your time with hubby in retirement, not volunteering all your time away from him....altho I do get that!! JUST SAY NO!!! and all of this cannot be helping your body parts either. Rolling pin and a few thumps on the noggin girl. Hugs and may the force be with you.
SUSIE...your vacation look fun and loved all your stylish outfits you sported on FB. Way to get back on the wagon of eating right and exercising. Awesome! Good luck at WI this week. I know you can do it.
Posting this and coming back to do more personals. Potty break.
CEEG...we have been following the duck boat incident in MO all weekend. The family that lost 9 members with only one survivor is from Indy. She has been on the local news several time. She lost her hubby, and two or three kids, parents and other extended family. How tragic. God bless her heart. I would not want to be the one left behind to grieve. I would die from sadness.
HI CHELLE...glad to hear from you. You cross my mind now and again. I can't believe you are coming up on your 4 year anniversary of RNY. How are you doing on that? Hard to remember it is just a tool and not a miracle. Still a struggle daily, at least for me. I have been keto way of eating for 1 1/2 years now. I just love it. It is hard. Totally had to give up my favorite carbs (popcorn) and sugar which is not an issue for me. I do miss chips, popcorn and an occasional dinner roll. Lost 40 lbs in the first 5 months now have maintained (mostly) since. I now fluctuate with about 8 lbs. Down at the moment. What a mess with your apartment. Hope things get back to normal soon. Hugs
LAURA...I bet the ABBA cover band was great. Abba is one of my very favorites. Reminds me of my late teens and early 20's. You know good times before marriage. lol. I didn't know what ABBA stood for either, great tidbit. I would like to see Mama Mia but don't know if I can work it in. May be a later rental. If you go, do give your review.
HELLO SHADWICK!! Hope you are feeling ok. Did that nasty cold finally leave? Time to check in girl, we miss you.
DEE...hope you are doing well also.
I am in a continuing ed class for my insurance license tomorrow. 8 HOURS. Starting over on the recount of the 24 hours for my renewal in two years. This particular class is a freebie and have to take advantage of it. If you have to purchase the classes, it is about 30 bucks for one hour. The company reimburses but I have to put the $$ out first. Just easier to do the free classes.
54 days till vacation. Cannot wait. Beach and pools. My fav kind of vacay. Well any vacation is really my favorite. I am not opposed to any of them. lol.
Location: A beautiful and peaceful place in the woods
Posts: 8,905
S/C/G: Stuck/Working on it/Good 2 Go
Height: Fun Size
Good morning guys,
I managed to stay at home all day yesterday and I even changed out of my pjs at a reasonable hour! Worked on the house - boy that is slow going but I am making progress. I have SO MANY things I am supposed to be doing for the Senior Center and Thrift Shop (enter sales which I'm behind in, build a new Facebook page and update website for Sr Center - all time consuming things). I DON'T WANT TO DO THEM. Some one slap me hard when I offer up services I am having difficulty and guilt pangs untangling myself from all these committments but I'm getting better at them. I was supposed to go swimming today - I got away from that and need to get back again - I will try for later on this afternoon. DH wants to go out tonight and try and catch photos of the northern lights. Thing is they can appear anywhere from 7pm to 1am. I really don't want to sit out on a dark lake front for 6 hours!!! But he asked me to go so I said I would.
DH has been jonesing on a big porterhouse steak so Saturday on the way through town I stopped at the meat market and got him a whopper. And a boneless ribeye for me. We cooked them up last night. Used the meat thermometer but it still came out more overcooked then we wanted it. Good flavor and I could barely eat half of mine so todays leftovers will be a sandwich or fajita or something. We had a nice dinner out on Saturday - the one cook makes this most amazing mushroom soup and it was phenomenal as always. I had a taste of DH's caprese salad and ate 1/2 my eggplant parmesan and will have the other half for lunch probably today. I am eating smaller portions but the weight is holding steady. Frustrating. When I drink water I get the most horrid acid reflux. I need to get to the store and pick up some cucumbers and fresh ginger and make some flat belly water and see if the ginger will help ease my stomach. I am just ready to throw in the towel and accept I will be a roly poly for the rest of my life...
Mom is going around telling everyone "I'm not going in no #@)(@#@(* NURSING HOME". Sis and I had a long chat. Mom is getting on my nerves with this. I am ready to toss her in a @#(*@&$*#&$ NURSING HOME - we have a few lousy places here and I'm sure I can find an abundance of them in Chicago... Don't make me mad Mom. Just waiting for the call to find out if they have a place for her - then it's rush, rush, rush to get everything done with a move in for September. DH is going to Colorado for a week towards the end of September for a camera class so we need to work around that also. And the temps dropped about 10 degrees Saturday - in the low 70's so all of a sudden it feels like autumn instead of summer. That always makes me sad. We have lots of good weather yet so all is not lost. I won a 2 night stay at a resort nearby that includes dinner and a river trip. The place is changing hands so I was asked to use it soon because the new owners might just decide not to honor it. I have to find a nice enough day for the river trip which is tubing on the nearby waterway so it needs to be warmer than 70 degrees for that. Friday I worked at the Senior Center all day. It was a busy, hectic day for a Friday. There is still a lot of commotion going on there and whispers and sides being taken that I don't want to be a part of. This week I am reluctantly being sucked in as a coach for training seniors to use tablet devices. I say sucked in because DH is managing the effort and we don't have enough coaches at the moment so I got "an offer / demand I was unable to refuse"
Annie - sounds like you had your hands full nursing but still managed to do some things. I hope the biopsy comes out clean for S. Sounds like it's rather sore - did they have to dig far into her leg? Sister you are so strong staying keto loyal. I am still working on the head games for that - slowly transitioning off the sugar. Would be easier if it was just avoiding dessert type stuff but low carb involves a lot of foods I currently enjoy. Although I admit you DO make it sound worth the sacrifice. A BEACH VACATION - oh that sounds sooooooo wonderful. I am starting to get the itch to go somewhere myself. Been far too long. DH wants to do a weekend up the shore of Lake Superior before winter sets in. I found 2 cat sitters so maybe we can do that. Then maybe a REAL vacation next year if the sitter pans out. I guess the idea of the vacation will be great motivation for you to stay clean on your eating. Do you sit on the beach or just enjoy relaxing around? Hope you plod through your classes without falling asleep
Speaking of beach - Susie your pictures were making me wish for water fronts I hope you had the very best time, you work so hard you deserve a break from the hamster wheel. Yay for you girl for getting off that vacation weight quickly before it settled in and made friends with. Yes, if my Mom moves in up here she will only be 2 miles from my house - a short hop even I will drive in the winter and I am only 4 miles from town and shopping so this location is very convenient to everything. And the majority of doctors offices are in the 2 clinics which are adjacent to the hospital and the apartments and nursing home are all connected to the complex so you can get some walking in and not have to go outside! It really is a good set up.
Ok guys - I was not a big ABBA fan - but even I knew what ABBA stood for! Guess because I've always like music.
Michelle - good to hear from you but rather sad about the news of your apartment. Sounds like you are finding a way to make it work even if you are living the hippie life right now - which ACTUALLY isn't such a bad thing. How is your dog taking it? Glad you were able to land another job that pays well. They would have to in order to make up for the high cost of living out that way. I'm sort of glad we didn't decide to move out there in the 80's. I'm not sure we could have afforded to retire early like we did. It's a gorgeous area with wonderful weather - just super expensive as you say. Hope the apartment can get renovated quickly.
Ceejay - we are seeing that horrible boat accident on the news even up this way. Really sad - can't even imagine that woman's grief - all her children and her husband and family members. I hope she has some support to help her through this. Are you home for a bit now?
Laura - quite honestly I don't know if I am coming or going. I just remembered I need to hit the farmers market today among other things. And no, I wasn't much in town so I didn't see the hot lumberjacks I am waiting on the news to see if the Aussie and Kiwi guys won again for the all around title. Some local people won individual competitions. Hope you can get some vacation time in before autumn rolls around. Do you bike much in the forest preserves? They have such lovely trails although they can be quite crowded at times. Does bicycling bother your foot? Hope you have a quiet week with the boss gone. When are you guys planning on moving buildings?
Shad my buddy - where you been???? I hope you are not in bed sick!
Hi Dee!
Well I'd better get dressed and off to the farmers market. I'd rather stay home but I am at the very end of anything fresh in the house. I had one last tomato I sliced up with dinner last night and baked some potatoes I got at the farmers market the week before. We ate out ALOT these last 2 weeks - I'm sure that's a good part of the reason the scale is not moving even if I only eat a portion of the meal. I am planning on getting back into cooking again this week. But first I need some groceries. AND it's a pain - when eating out I just get up and walk away from the table - here I have to fuss with cooking everything and THEN I have to clean it all up!! Including dishes, counter and stove. Too much work
Michelle – So great to have you post! Yes, sounds like a very stressful situation with your housing. I hope you can work something out so you can bring "the family" together again.
Susie – I’m so glad you enjoyed your vacation – and so much you’re going to return there next year! == I’m sure you’ll lose the vacation weight quickly once you’re back in your routine.
Ceejay – Thanks for the reminder about the cable. Bf and I will be having some landscaping done in a week or two and part of it will be the back part of the yard where the cable comes down off the telephone pole. There will be some grading being done, so we’ll have to make sure the landscape crew knows where the cable is buried.
Annie – Glad to hear Sam is doing well with her recovery. Hope the biopsy comes back clean. == There are so many ways to watch movies cheaply nowadays it’s amazing how movie theaters stay in business. I guess all those superhero movies are what must save them – everyone wants to see them on the big screen. Thanks for your take on all those redbox movies you watched! = LOL re your comment that Happy’s retirement sounds like a lot of work! ! I agree!! == Bleh on the CPE course. Thanks for the reminder. I charged a conference fee (it’s in November) to my credit card and need to do an expense report to get reimbursed for it.
Happy – Have to echo Annie re all that volunteer work – just say NO!!! == Roly poly is one thing, but your health is another – don’t give up on the WL!! == I hope you get to take advantage of that resort stay you won. It’s really not right that it shouldn’t be honored, but I’m not sure it would be something the seller can force the buyer to do. And all the seller really wants is to sell! = No hot lumberjack viewings. == No, thankfully, bicycling doesn’t bother my foot. I try to be careful when pedaling out of the seat not to put weight on the wrong part of it. I haven’t been out but once this summer on the forest preserve trails. The weather this past weekend was rainy/drizzly both days, and muggy too, bleh. I’ll try again sometime soon - might plan a combo trip of some sort to try out a path out by my friend in the far, far NW burbs and also spend some time with her before or after.
Hi Dee!
==Weekend was alright. Saturday we went to the farmers market with bf’s mom in her suburb. Bought several things, including fresh eggs. Went to lunch afterwards. Got my checkbook updated, went to the library. Of course I totally forgot to go to the post office to mail the final mortgage payoff (certified mail or signature, or whatever it is that makes sure it has been received), but bf will do that today.
Sunday I went to the fc and got in a good workout. Laundry, tv, reading. I bought a couple lottery tix on Friday and I think I won back the $4 I spent on them, so whoopee.
I’m happy to report that I’m finally back in the 1’s on the scale. Still tracking on MFP. The exercise is helping too, of course.
I’ve been very antsy and distracted (and less productive than I need to be) at work lately and that’s how I know I need a vacation day!! I’m thinking I might take a day off next week. I have a lot to still use up...
Okay, gonna get this post and get back to it. Oh, just gonna cut and post, so I apologize in advance for the funky font sizes, etc. Have a good evening everyone.
Hi Everyone. I survived the first day back to work and I only worked 8 hrs!
Annie: I missed that your daughter was having the cyst removed from her leg last week. It sounds like you all made a fun time of it with all the movies and things. Praying for a clean report.
I read through the posts last night and all I can remember to comment on is Annie's post. I will have to reread and come back. I am posting from my phone and I can't scroll back. I just finished lunch and must get back to work. See you all later.
Morning
I hoping I don't have to go back to Branson. Monday I worked in the front lawn and side yard. Yesterday I did nothing and that's okay. I'm almost 68 years old. I tire a lot more easily than I did when I was 58. This morning I cleaned the kitchen and dining room. Also straightened up two cupboards. I may do 2 more loads of laundry.
Yesterday morning I went to PF to work out. This is the only place that I don't have switched over to my new bank and they wanted a voided check and all I had with me were the debit and credit cards from that bank. I'll do that today.
I think I left my fitbit at the condo so I have found an app on my phone that I'm using. .I'm getting used to it but I need some way to attach it to my body.
My niece told her mom that she called and found out about her fines. She has no warrants in Springfield so that is good. They said if and when she got her fines paid that they would help he to get her drivers license back. She is getting there.
My air conditioner froze up yesterday. It may have been happening Monday but I'm not sure. I was working near the ac unit and notice that the screen was dirty and grass was clogging part of the bottom. I turned off the ac and cleaned out the grass with the water hose. I'd changed filters last week. I should have noticed whether or not it was dripping but didn't.. It stayed 81 degrees inside the house yesterday afternoon until 9 p.m. when I went to check to see if there was ice on the pipe. Sure enough there was. so I turned off the ac and turned on the fan on the ac and waited a couple of hours and turned it back on. This is what the guys would tell me to do at work. This morning it's okay but I'm sure the coils need to be cleaned and freon added. I text my sis last night to tell her. and again this morning to tell her it okay for now.
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Susie
Good for you in only working an 8 hour shift.
Laura
Think I'll play the lottery this week. The last time I played the cashier picked them. I want to pick my own numbers this time.
Happy
I 'm glad that you got to spend time at home yesterday.
Whew what a long day yesterday. I was brain dead at the end of that 8 hour cont ed class. Good news...8 hours toward my 24 need for renewal of license. They did serve an excellent lunch. Swiss steak, greenbeans, parmesan chicken, mashed potatos, salad, rolls and dessert. Of course I only ate the keto approved items. Steak, chicken, greenbeans. Very yummy.
Got home last night and Samantha had made grill cheese for everyone, not me tho. I don't eat them. So I did not have to fix dinner. Good thing as I was in no mood to do so. With the traffic of I69 and I465 to get home from Noblesville, I was in no mood. haha. I fixed me jalapeno (from the garden) poppers with cream cheese in the oven. I am awaiting the repercussions from those. My b*tt will be on fire I am sure.
Still no results from Sam's biopsy yet. I don't feel like this is anything to worry about. Giving it to the man above. And like they say no news is good news.
SUSIE...great you are back on the exercise wagon. Boo to going back to work after a vacation. Sure can be a mess to clean up.
HAPPY...hope you get momma are situated and settled. Things like this are really hard to do. I remember getting ready for dad to come live with me. Lots of preparation. Hugs my friend. Maybe you need to have that talk with momma. You know, mom you are acting like a rotten little 3 year old. Just stop it. Ha, like that can happen, no way. Fun to think about it tho.
LAURA...girl get that final mortgage payment in the mail before they up the pay off. Back to onederland! Whew who, you go girl. Congrats.
Location: A beautiful and peaceful place in the woods
Posts: 8,905
S/C/G: Stuck/Working on it/Good 2 Go
Height: Fun Size
Hi ladies,
Busy life. Lately I feel like the clock is spinning at 3 times it's normal rate. It's looking good to get Mom an apartment up here in the senior complex. She doesn't know about it yet. They will do a video assessment August 9. We have to tell her ahead of time so she doesn't ruin our chances. I told the director that she has no choice but to move - circumstances make it necessary and this is an ideal situation for her. She will fight tooth and nail. As she said - she will take all her pills and my sister's response is "which bottle do you want first mom?" - it is a stern reaction when she starts acting like a 2 year old on a tandrum. I have a long list of why this is good for her none of which she will listen to. This is an ordeal that none of us are looking forward to. We will tell her next week as right now my BIL is on vacation and I want my sister to have some peacefulness. So I have been busy with that.
I am trying to juggled demands on the Thrift Shop and Senior Center and temper them with my own life. Some things are necessary right now - one of our long time volunteers who ALWAYS fills in for people - her husband had a stroke this weekend and she needs to be with him so I will break precedent and go and take one of her shifts on Wednesday afternoons for the next 2 weeks starting next week. I also have so much work to get done at the Senior Center - tomorrow I will be learning (reluctantly) how to be a coach to teach seniors to use tablet computers - I don't want to do this but DH needs help and I don't want him to walk off the project in frustration. So I will help.
I am making progress on cleaning up the living room and tossing things. I feel badly that I threw out about 5 pounds of fresh peaches that I didn't get to cook up in time. I can still salvage some of them and will try tonight to make my peach sauce.
Tomorrow I was hoping to get back to swimming but I realized I have training with DH tomorrow and then bingo tomorrow night. Maybe Friday... there is a blood drive at the church, I would like to participate in that. We are in for thunderstorms the next 3 days so no boating or ATV. DH has been working hard in the yard and made a beautiful stone path connecting the 2 back deck stairways. Too bad it's in the back of the house where you can't really see it but he did a wonderful job.
Annie - I agree - no news is good news with S. Still hoping all goes well. Good for you for plodding through training. I could not survive eating poppers!! You are right about the folks - everyone has a story about dealing with making the adjustment to make them more comfortable so we all know the battle ahead and EVENTUALLY they will settle in nicely.
Laura - congrats on getting back to Onederland. You worked hard for it. GET THAT MORTGAGE TAKEN CARE OF!!! I agree if you are distracted, you need a mental health day. Find a nice weather day and take off and have some fun!
Ceejay - I hope the niece gets everything straightened out but mostly I hope you can have some time at home for a change. You have been doing alot of running around. Yes, I often wish I had the energy of 10 - more like 20 years ago!! Still looking for it...
Susie - yay for you for ONLY putting in what is a normal day for regular folks upon return from vacation. The work will get done - pace yourself. Glad you had a great vacation.
Hello to Shad and Dee
I have to hop in the shower - M asked if I could watch the phones while she had to attend a transportation meeting at the Center. That's ok, I hope the phones are quiet and I can get some Senior Center work done at the same time.
Location: A beautiful and peaceful place in the woods
Posts: 8,905
S/C/G: Stuck/Working on it/Good 2 Go
Height: Fun Size
Good morning ladies,
Last out, first in I suppose today.
Going to be a long and busy day. Had to get up early - I am participating in some training today to learn to be a coach for a project at the senior center which involves working with people in a self guided course to use tablets. We are starting our first class August 7 and today is to train coaches. Then I have to run to the thrift shop to check out something and then home for a few hours and then off to bingo for the evening. I got to bed after midnight and up at 5 today so I will be low on gas...
Monday I'm going to attend a 7 week balance and falls prevention class. I took about 4 sessions of it a year ago and never got to complete it. This new teacher should be fun.
Not much else to report so I will just say Hello and have a good one ladies. See yah tomorrow!
Nuttin like fresh cucumber and jalapenos from the garden for breakfast. Threw in a very small avocado. Lil pink hymalayen salt and pepper, yummy. Breakfast of the champions. Bullet proof coffee and a side of iced green tea. Sooooo the jalapeno plants (two) we planted were both supposed to be hot ones. One plant turned out to be not hot the other hot. Which is kind of fun cause we never know until we bite into one what we are going to get. This morning my mouth is on fire. Loving it.. Yes we could pick one from each plant, eat it to determine which was hot and which was not, but what would that fun be?
THis weekend on Sunday around 2 pm we are going to have a taco bar and water balloon fight. My bro and SIL are coming over. Son is coming home, C, Sam and the boys. We had one early in the summer it was fun. THis is the last blast before school starts this year. Jacob goes back to school on Wednesday, August 1st. Royce starts Pre K after labor day. Also hoping to take the kids to the zoo on Monday or Tuesday next week. Don't know if we will get that accomplished.
Tomorrow night we are all going to see Hotel Transylvannia 3. Don't know if we have even see 1 and/or 2, but I am sure we can catch up. The boys should like it.
HAPPY....Anything new/else comes up with your volunteering gigs the answer is NO. Or refer them to me. Take a message, send me the number I will handle it going forward. GOT IT??? How much of your retirement have you truly enjoyed? Think about that one. I am really concerned about you and your health. Hugs my sweet sister. Remember to take deep breaths and a relaxing sigh several times throughout the day.
Hello to all ya'll. Gotta get my stuff going. Make it a great day/night.
I've not done a whole lot today. I did sleep in till 9.30. I needed it.
Things are looking extremely good on niece's end of things. she called me last night to tell me she had called about her fines and she did pay some on them. She will pay the rest when she gets paid next week. I've been off this week and it sure has felt good. to be home.
Annie
I personally do not like hot peppers nor cuke's. Hope the diagnosis for S's biopsy is good news. A balloon fight in this heat sounds like fun.
Happy
Have fun at Bingo. I have never given blood. Usually have a mild case of anemia.
Last night was cheese, bacon, grilled onion and mushroom burgers. OMGoodness, sooooo good. Also....drum roll please....two YELLOW tomato slices fresh out of the garden. That is all I served. Made C two, he ate on on bread and one on the plate. I ate mine on a plate with tomatos so did sis. Boys were at the dad's. Mellow evening. In bed by 8:30. Felt good to sleep entirely through the night with no wake ups. Guess that is what happens when I am up a lot the night before.
CEEG...Glad you niece is coming down the home stretch with her fines, etc. You just might get your life back. Hugs.
JUST SAY NO!!! and all of this cannot be helping your body parts either. Rolling pin and a few thumps on the noggin girl. Hugs and may the force be with you. 
I am having difficulty and guilt pangs untangling myself from all these committments but I'm getting better at them. I was supposed to go swimming today - I got away from that and need to get back again - I will try for later on this afternoon. DH wants to go out tonight and try and catch photos of the northern lights. Thing is they can appear anywhere from 7pm to 1am. I really don't want to sit out on a dark lake front for 6 hours!!! But he asked me to go so I said I would. 
Sounds like you are finding a way to make it work even if you are living the hippie life right now - which ACTUALLY isn't such a bad thing. How is your dog taking it? Glad you were able to land another job that pays well. They would have to in order to make up for the high cost of living out that way. I'm sort of glad we didn't decide to move out there in the 80's. I'm not sure we could have afforded to retire early like we did. It's a gorgeous area with wonderful weather - just super expensive as you say. Hope the apartment can get renovated quickly. 
You worked hard for it. GET THAT MORTGAGE TAKEN CARE OF!!! 