Good evening! Not too bad today. We did see the sun. We’re supposed to get rain overnight though. I sure hope the Caribbean settles down. All these earthquakes and such make me nervous about our trip. I read they’ve been happening for a couple months now, but keep increasing in magnitude.

I had to buy a new phone as mine konked out. Jack got me an Iphone 11. I use my tablet more than anything, but my shoulder hurts so much of the time now that I don’t take it with me. I need something when I am out and about that’s more than just a phone. This one is bigger. My old one is an Iphone 5. They sure aren’t cheap and I didn’t get the newest or most expensive.

We had stead and air fried potatoes tonight and I had sliced tomatoes. Can’t wait until I can get homegrown ones from truck farms. We have to vacuum seal meat tomorrow so we’re having chicken patties. Well I think I’m having chicken tenders because I don’t want to eat a bun. He’s having chips and I’l probably have a veg of some kind. He’s lost two more lbs but my knee is giving me trouble and I can’t weigh right now. I wobble so the scale keeps giving me an E. I know I’m losing though because I’m developing a hollow in my throat area. Upping the water a lot is helping a great deal too.

The receptionist out at the plant had breast cancer surgery last Tuesday so I ordered flowers to be delivered Wednesday and they had already sent her home. They flower place didn’t tell us they couldn’t deliver until around 7, so we were scrambling trying to figure out how to get her home address. We looked like two of the stooges. Jack called the plant and nobody answered, I looked them up online white pages, but we weren’t sure if it was them so in the meantime, Jack called his foreman to help. In the meantime, I went to the county property records and looked them up to see if the addresses matched and they did so I sent a chat message to flower place with the home delivery address. I just finished with that when Jack’s foreman texted the address and it matched. Friday she called and left Jack a message thanking him for the flowers so she got them. I was kind of panicking and couldn’t believe they sent her home the next day.

Jean: I noticed direct tv raised ours $10 a month. It will go up another $35 in a couple months when extra innings start and it lasts 6 months. It’s the only way we can watch the games though. They got approved for a rate hike with our utilities too and they’re trying to raise our car tags $75 for next year, which means $150 since we have two cars. Jack’s gonna have to work until he drops over dead at this point. He does want to work as long as possible though because his pension goes up each year he continues to work. It’s ridiculous how prices of services seemed to have skyrocketed. Our phone stuff went up too.

CeeJay: Does your nephew not go to meetings everyday and call his sponsor when he feels the urge to drink? I imagine you had fun with the baby. Your poor bil. Is he mobile or in a wheelchair? I would imagine he tires extremely easily. I’ll keep praying for him. Good luck with your piano playing. I know you’ll do great.

Everyone have a good evening and a nice day tomorrow.

Good Evening! It’s been another gloomy foggy day in my neighborhood. It has that damp cold feeling so the furnace is turned up for the evening. I’ve putzed around most of the day, accomplished some more laundry and cleaned out the fridge which it badly needed. I don’t know why but lately I’ve had trouble going back to sleep if I get up during the night. We need a new mattress but don’t think that’s it. Consequently I am dragging by late afternoon.

Ceejay, was your nephew back living with you? Hopefully he will figure it out eventually. It is disappointing when your bil can’t have the chemo. I know that happens. Does he tolerate this kind better than the other chemo he had first? The baby is at such a fun age! I loved the baby years even though they are a lot of work. We are supposed to get some snow tonight but just a dusting. It is staying lighter later in the afternoon so that’s good.

“Gma,” send the sun my way please! So many gloomy days are sure depressing. Bob finally bit the dust and gave up his flip phone for an iPhone 11. Mine is a 7 so I can’t answer all his questions. Told him to make a list and go see the Verizon lady who sold it to him/us. I wish they would leave things alone! Did you make the steak in the air fryer? Bob’s office friend said she does and it’s really good. Mine is sitting here taking up space and collecting dust. You had a challenge to get the flowers delivered! I hope the receptionist gets along ok. Our car license charge is according to the make and weight of the car; the more expensive your car the more you pay. Mine was just $390 and the pickup is $196 because it is listed as Bob’s work vehicle. The cable rep agreed a $65 increase in two months was a bit much but “it is what it is.” We are switching providers when we get home because we also want to keep our land line.

Bob is hinting that he is hungry so guess I will see what is in my clean fridge! Enjoy your evening!

gma
That was a nice jester on sending the flowers. But you honestly did have to do a marathon to get them delivered to the correct address.
No nephew hasn't been going to his meeting or talking to his sponsor. He thinks he's better than that. I'll explain later.

Jean
No nephew is not staying with me.
____________
Nephew thought he would have a place to "hang out" and "dry out" yesterday but he found out differently. Things went from bad to worse before he left. He actually pulled a fist on me yesterday. I tried not to let him see that it frightened me and told him go ahead and hit your 70 year old aunt. I'm really 69.5 years. He ended up hitting the coffee table. That hurt me so bad I cried for more than 20 minutes. I'd texted his mother earlier and told her. Think she called him and told him to leave because he left. I immediately looked up and put the police department's phone number in my phone on speed dial. I text him this morning and apologized and he did too but I told him that he was not welcome at my house unless his brother, mother or step dad was with him. If he continues to come around I'm swearing out a protection order.
I'm now afraid of him.

Good Evening! We got another 1/2" of snow last night, enough to shovel the deck and driveway. I ran some errands this morning one of which was signing with a new cable company the end of February. Before the installer comes I want Bob to help me move the tv furniture away from the corner so I can vacuum what I'm sure is a pile of dust bunnies. I ordered some new knit shirts with three quarter sleeves so washed them. I put shampoo and conditioner in approved travel bottles and unboxed little tubes of toothpaste. I try to do things as I think of them then put them in the carry on bag.

Ceejay, I am so sorry about your nephew’s behavior! I would be afraid of being alone with him too. I hope he gets smart pretty soon.

Bob has been trying to get his new phone to sync with his pickup and it's not working. Now he is mumbling to himself while he is reading the truck manual. Enjoy your evening!

Good evening. It is wet but drying out this evening. I was going to go out to get my nails done but nixed that as I didn’t want to fool with an umbrella. I must go tomorrow though. I have waxing Friday, they’re too busy on the weekend and my mammogram is Monday. They’re closed on Tuesday. I bought several lovely new polishes and I need to try them out.

We fixed a new brand of chicken patties in the air fryer and they were wonderful; nice and crunchy. These are not precooked so they aren’t soggy coming out. I’ll certainly try them again. After putting holes in my vacuum seal bag for the kabobs, I slide them off, washed the sticks and vacuum packed without them. We did meat tonight. I got some nice smoked pork chops and more strips of steak to make pepper steak down the road again.

Jack has been coughing so I hope he’s not getting sick. He bulks at getting his flu shot and I haven’t gotten mine. He says he’s fine, but he tends to hide feeling bad if he can get away with it.

CeeJay: You poor thing how frightening. I don’t blame you telling him not to come alone anymore. I think he needs to rethink doing this on his own because he’s doing a poor job of it. Everybody needs help now and then. There’s sure no shame in it. Look at us we’re on a weight loss site. Granted we don’t talk about it a whole lot, but we started coming here for support. I sure hope your bil gets to feeling better so he can get going on his chemo again. How advanced was his cancer when he was diagnosed? It doesn’t seem like a huge amount of time since you first told us about him. I know you have to be looking forward to spring as you seem to like to do gardening. I noticed because of mild temps the weeds are back again. I told Jack we are killing them then laying mulch across the whole area to ****** the weeds. I’m told they don’t grow through mulch.

Jean: Jack just made an appt Saturday at ATT to take in the phones and get it all set up. My phone is working then not then working then not. I decided not to screw with it and just get a new one. I have a 5 so it’s quite a bit older. Better you than us getting snow. I am a list maker. I just add on to the column it belongs like paperwork or electronics or hygiene, etc. then as I pack I just scratch it off the list. We now have all the new luggage so Jack is going to take it empty out to the car and put it in to make sure we have room. It’s not us traveling, but Vicki’s luggage has to go in the back seat with her from the hotel to the ship terminal so we can spread out ours while traveling but ours all has to fit in the trunk to go to the terminal. We have a big trunk though.

Have a good evening. Weekend is nearly upon us.

Good Afternoon! Another gloomy foggy day in my corner of the world. I needed a few things at the grocery store so headed there first thing this morning. Next I dusted the most visible spots and vacuumed the dust bunnies. I started ironing clothes to pack next week and that has been my day so far. Not much newsy from here today.

”Gma,” do you polish your own nails between your appointments or take your own polish along. My new place puts nail art pictures on Facebook, some of the techs are very creative. What brand were the chicken patties? Did you put bread or cracker crumbs on them to make them crunchy? We bought new luggage because our original soft sided sets from 2006, had zipper issues on our last Maui trip home. I’ve watched them load the plane and I don’t know how any luggage survives. I hope Jack isn’t getting sick.

Ceejay, how are you today?

Guess I will see what the mailman delivered today. I paid two credit cards by phone today since both bills would come while we are gone. Hope you are enjoying a terrific Thursday, last Thursday in January!

Good Afternoon! I am waiting for the washer to finish cleaning itself and then continue to do another load of laundry. The sun is shining today! It is so bright and cheery for a nice change. I did some more ironing this morning and found the crossover purse I think I will take along. I have another larger bag that is actually a laptop bag that I put iPads in along with a book and printed papers for my carry on. Bob gets to claim the piece of carry on luggage. The mouse (mice ?) must be busy under the deck today because the kitten is sitting on the pile of corn and birdseed staring intently down the crack. Every once in awhile he bats at the crack like he is waiting for the mouse to peek out. One of the sites I visit has NOT SECURE in bright red letters today. Guess I won’t go there right now.

I need to get back to my ironing. Hope you are enjoying a nice sunny day too.

Morning
I've been MIA for a bit this past week. I decided to bite the dust and go back to MRC but not sure how well I will do.
do. I got a call from nephew yesterday asking if I could come and pick him up and I told him No, I'm done. I have to completely cut ties with him right now. As far as I know he doesn't have a place to stay unless it is with friends. And I'm trying not to let it bother me but it does. I thought he was seeking help but evidently that was short lived.
Talked to my sister in Georgia yesterday and asked if it would be alright for me to come for a visit soon. She said yes so around the last of February to the first of March I'll be going to Atlanta.
Church went well. I did make a couple of mistakes on the piano but I heard some from the other musicians making mistakes as well yesterday. Maybe I can practice on the churches piano this week end. We have a Valentine breakfast at church on Saturday where the men cook for the ladies.
I am wondering whether or not bil will need me to take him to Branson today or whether he will stay in Ash Grove. I bought a top yesterday and need to return it. It's too tight. Then I think I'm going to go back to J.C. Penny and try that store again. I went last Friday and got lost in the mall. I finally went outside and walked around the building of the mall
to find the car.

Jean
The chemo treatment that bil is now getting is for maintenance only. In other words it's keeping him alive.

Good evening. Raining all day and tomorrow too. It is very mild so far this week. Been in 60’s. Not going to last though.

We just finished eating. I made smothered chicken. Jack really likes it and the points aren’t too bad. He’s rolling along losing weight. He lost another 3 lbs. I quit weighing myself. I just can’t stand on our scale without wobbling. I’ll just eat right and leave it until I go to the dr next month.

I did all our packing today to make sure everything fits and it does with room to spare so I have room for all the hygiene stuff I have to take. So when it’s time to repack we know it will all fit.

Jean: I started getting gels, which last longer and lacquer that lasts long too so I don’t change polish because it has to be filed off. I have never gone and gotten a new set. I need to go, but something seems to come up. I ended up canceling my mammogram because I wasn’t feeling well over the weekend and didn’t want to cancel at the last minute. I hope you two have a great time in Hawaii and have quick and easy flights.

CeeJay: Oh, it’ll be so good for you to get away from all your nephew’s drama and visit with your sister. I really like Atlanta. What’s life without a few booboos? No one is perfect.

Time to clean up the kitchen. Have a good evening.

gma
yum,I love smothered chicken. I went back to Metabolic Research Center on a whim but almost stopped at WW. I really need to be accountable.
I'm happy that every thing will fit into the suit case. Will you be taking one for yourself and Jack one for himself.
I need to make an appointment for a mammogram.

Jean
When did you say you were leaving for your trip to Maui.?

Think I will call sis tomorrow to set up a date for me to come to Atlanta
Bil went for his pain block procedure today. It was snowing earlier this morning but a friend from church took he and sis in for the appointment. It was an out patient procedure. We just got flurries here.
I haven't been in the mood to do much of anything this week except to weigh in. I lost 2 pounds. It's really not hard to follow their program but I'm refusing to do all those supplements. I was craving doughnuts this afternoon but got a protein
bar and ate that. That seem to satisfy that craving. I have been on plan today thus far.
Practicing the piano today also. Trying to get some rough spots out of the piece that my hands will not coordinate with the music.
Watched the Senate vote on the impeachment of the President. They acquitted him.
After I weighed in I stopped by J.C. Penny's and bought a quilt for my bed. The other one is looking tired. I used my gift cards that I got for Christmas. I still have 4 dollars left on on of the cards. And I got it for 60% off.

Good morning! Went back to being chilly and we’ve had a lot of rain, but at least no snow. I just want spring to get here. Of course that brings us closer to vacation, which is ok by me. I had some password issues so couldn’t get in for a couple days.

I am fixing taco salads for dinner tonight. We fix them the way we want them. I brown burger and warm up a can of refried beans, but then we construct them how we want them. Jacks is a meat, onions, beans, cheese, taco sauce, jalapeños kind of guy. I am a kitchen sink. I put meat, beans, cheese, jalapeños, Christmas (red and green combo,) chile sauce, guacamole, sour cream, taco sauce, black olives, lettuce and tomato. They’re small tortilla bowls so hard to get all my stuff in.

I have been making my grocery lists for the weekend deliveries. I do two weeks at a time and then fill in during week when we need milk, bread, etc. My Kroger one is up to $225 and my Fresh Market is $150. We were out of a lot of stuff and I buy stuff like dish soap and paper towels, etc ahead so I don’t run out. You’d think I had 6 kids instead of just the two of us.

CeeJay: Jack has a big 29” suitcase, two hanging bags, a hygiene hang up bag, his camera bag and backpack for his ipad and laptop. He takes both because he transfers photos onto the laptop. I have a 29”, 25”, a duffle with shoes, a backpack, a large Vera Bradley bag with our clothes just for the driving trip, and a handbag. We definitely don’t travel light. We found because we drive splitting it into three days, it’s so much easier to pack a bag with traveling and sleeping clothes and then we don’t have to carry it all into a hotel every night. Best solution for not giving into cravings is don’t have it in the house and don’t get in your car and go buy it. Jean left this morning. They fly into Omaha then to Hawaii tomorrow. She emailed me to tell me she couldn’t get in to post and ask that I let you know. I couldn’t get in either so I apologize for not letting you know sooner. If you feel comfortable, message Jean or myself your email or phone number so we can text or email when something happens. I’ll send you mine as soon as I’m done here. Two lbs is great! Just keep plugging away, you’ll get the piano pieces.

Have a great day. Aloha, Jean! We’re jealous of you going where it’s warm.

gma
Thanks for the information. I've sent you mine in a reply , same message.

For whatever reason I can get in here tonight. It has been a very long day and I am super tired. The day started at 2am, leaving for the airport at 4. Plane left on time for Chicago where it was snowing and we had to wait for a fire truck and ambulance before we could get in to unload. Then we waited over an hour for planes coming in for passengers going to Maui with us. Instead of 9 1/2 hours to Maui, it was “only” 8 because of no winds. Lots of kids on the plane. Will post personals soon. I am going to bed!

Afternoon
Jean
Hope you are enjoying your day in Maui? I'm very envious.

gma


Lost another pound at weigh in this morning. It could have been more but i was craving pizza but I only purchased a mini one and had salad with it so not to bad. I could live on pizza but I know it's not the healthiest choice.
Need to do some laundry.

Good afternoon. It snowed here last night and was cold over night, but it melted around noon or so. We’re going to have cold temps but not for long.

I got my other two pairs of dress pants, one of which was a return because of how it was bagged and the tags reattached. It had been in a store and the dope didn’t take off the plastic anti theft tag so I’ve got to take it to the store and get it taken off.

I put in my grocery orders so one will be delivered tomorrow and Jack will go and pick up the other on Sunday. Then the fun job of putting it all away. I just hope they have the majority of it.

I sure am glad it’s Friday. Jack can rest most of the weekend. He’s doing better but he’s still coughing. Hopefully I won’t catch it.

Jean: You don’t ever seem to have a stress free flight. Hopefully coming home will be better. Have a good time!

CeeJay: Tx I’ll pass it on to Jean when she gets back home. I love really good pizza. Jack is a chain pizza guy but I like a couple places from my home town area. I do like Mellow Mushroom though. I too love pizza but I am a chinese food person. None of them are diet friendly for sure.

Have a great weekend!!