Good Morning Girls, I hope everyone had a nice weekend. I will be back to chat some more in a bit. :)

Hey girls I am back now.

Angie, cute kitties!! Love the name Tyson. Sorry you had to sell the RV, it must have been hard....your family has some great memories from it though. I know I am so sentimental about selling old cars, even moving here to this house, just thinking about the memories. How do you like your new living room set, was it delivered or did it have to be ordered? We have a sectional also and it is old. We really need a new one. I might want to get a couch and a loveset this time....I don't know yet. I saw a Broyhill sofa I just love. It is like a red and tan design with oak legs and big comfy pillow backs on it.

Dips congrats on the loss. You are doing great. Pat yourself on the back! Did you take the promotion?

Noelle so tell us all the juicy details from your party night!! I can't wait to hear about it and see some pictures if you got some. I bet it was a Motely Crue night :lol:.

Cherie, did you get the girls all unpacked? I am so glad for the girls to have such nice teachers this year. They will be in good hands and that has got to be one less thing on your mind. I wish them a fun first day at school tomorrow. I hope your lip is better, our body does weird things to us when we are under stress. Can you pm or e-mail me your new address and info when you get a chance? Thanks!

Cal I hope you are feeling better today honey.

Kempy soak up those rays :cool:.

My weekend was pretty busy, more school shopping and we went and picked out a new mattress for dd and then picked that up brought it home and set it up, I had my head-board, from when I was a kid for her (kind of an antique :lol:now). But I polished it up and it looks really nice. I took her to the store and let her pick out a new comforter and sheet set. Yesterday we went to another church picnic and had a bowl of booyah, you probally all don't know what booyah is, I think they just have it around here....it is like a chicken soup that is cooked outside in a huge kettle over a fire. Yum! Not to mention all the other bbq items they had. But I was pretty good. Just played games with the kids. The weather was just beautiful yesterday here, finally dropped into the seventies and had a cool breeze. We also took my mom out to eat to our favorite pizza place. Well enough of boring you all, lol, blah blah....I might try and get these highlights out of my hair, as you all know my hair is pretty dark and the highlights I think are just to blond. That whole hair episode with the crabby stylist was a nightmare. Haha...
I will check back later to see how everyone's weekend was. Have a good one.

It's Monday.... I can't believe it's been two weeks since Steven died... finally, I feel like things have slowed down, and I am making steps to get everyone back to normal.

This weekend, I did alot of unpacking. In the midst of it, I felt like I wasn't making any progress at all, however, all the empty boxes says otherwise. I got the girls unpacked, and most of the spare room (den/girls hangout room) unpacked. I have a couple of boxes of books that I need to get rid of (pregnancy books and paperbacks) and about 4 boxes of office stuff that I need to go through, then that room will be finished. I also need to finish my room. I will tackle that this week. From there.. I'll move to the garage, and hopefully by then, my brother will have come up and taken the couch and dressers off my hands. I would really like to have my garage soon.

The girls start school tomorrow. Both are really excited, and want to ride the bus. Guess I will put them on the bus, and then meet them at school to walk them into their classes. Back to school time is always exciting.

Julie... your weekend sounded nice... my nephew has my bed (bunk beds) from when I grew up. Its nice they made furniture that lasted back then. I need to find some headboards for the girls... but now Hannah is asking for a bunk bed again. Not sure what I will do... it would free up a ton of space in their room... so I may have to consider that once I can afford them.

Angie... sorry about the RV. You can still vacation! :-) and the kitties are so cute. My girls want a pet so bad... but I am not up for one just yet...

Noelle, how was your weekend? Cal, I hope you feel better... and Kempy.... how is the beach? I would love to be there!

OK.. well, I really need to focus on work now... I've been having the hardest time of just zoning out. I guess that is normal and to be expected...

Oh... forgot to say, I picked up Steven's ashes on Friday. that was SO WEIRD. I carried Steven. In my car all the way home. He is in an urn, inside a black velvet box. I haven't told the girls yet... he stayed on top of the computer armoire til Sunday, when I put him on top of the bookshelf in the den/girls playroom. I'm still trying to figure out how to tell the girls.. and what to do with him for the time being. It seems so cold just to stick him on top of the bookshelf... out of sight out of mind sorta thing... but I don't want to be desrespectful. I am hoping in about 5 years, I might be able to buy a small crypt at the masolumn (ms) for the urn, I don't think I want him around forever, you know. I would scatter his ashes.. but I don't know where he would have liked that.. decisions... it's so hard... anyway.. he's got his wish.. he is "living" with me once again.

Talk to you soon....

Cherie

Hey ladies
 

Hi girls, how is everyone doing?

Dips stay cool girl, everything will fall right into to place for you! I know it must be hard trying to get everything done for before school starts, you will make it. Keep your chin up :).

Cherie, I can't even imangine how it felt to go pick up Steven's ashes. I hope the girls had a good day at school.

Well sorry so short, gotta go make dinner. I have been out all afternoon shopping for sil's b-day present and the kids were looking for watches so I called around and finally Wal-Mart said they had a scooby doo and winnie the pooh ones that they wanted for six dollars, I was like yes that is so cheap....got to the store and they were 20 dollars each :yikes: :yikes:, but I got them anyway because I told them before we left they were getting one. Oh well....it was there back to school present. We also stopped at a frozen custard shop and got take out and I just a one tiny scoop, could have ate the whole container though ;). Check back later after the kids stop fighting and dh stops asking me what we are having for dinner :dizzy: :blah:!

Hey girls. My sister just came and picked up my old sofa so my new one can come tomorrow. I gave it to her she needed a different one but doesnt have much money. My couch was in okay shape it was just old. We bought it about 10 years ago. So now I am sitting in my empty livingroom. So while we were looking for sofas we happened onto the bed section. :lol: Needless to say I bought the sofas and desk and coffee table cash but wanted a new bed but didnt have any cash left over to spend. IThe store was running a 1 year no interest special so I picked out a King size Serta memory foam bed. That wont be in until next week but hey at least we can sleep good. The mattress we had was one my inlaws bought for us when I was pregnant with the twins. I wasnt allowed to walk upstairs and we had to sleep downstairs so they bought us a new bed so we wouldnt have to move our downstairs.

Julie, We had a sectional too. This time I wanted an actual sofa set so I could change the livingroom around. I like moving furniture every once in a while but cant with a sectional. :lol:

School starts here on Monday. :cheer: YEAH!!!

Well, I better get movin.

Angie way to go on the new furniture. It is going to seem like a new house with all the furniture coming. I know what you mean about moving a sectional, darn near impossible....ours is a reclining one and the old thing is so heavy. I wish we could get some new stuff around here, but money is kind of tight, **** I wish I could afford some new clothes for fall, haha....
maybe dh will get me something new for my birthday....I don't know though, remember the home depot gift certificate for mother's day lol. Such a romantic :p.

Noelle, Tommy goes to college is on tonight and also an A&E special is on about him tonight also. Are you recovering from the party last weekend?

Hi out there everyone, going to get going....kind of tired tonight.

Bumping us up!! What is going on everyone, anything new? Not much on my end. Hope you all are having a good day. Check back later to see if anyone popped in.

Hey girls!! Well, they came to deliver my furniture today. I was supposed to have 2 chaisse lounges,1 sofa,1 bureau and 1 side table. They forgot the sofa and second chaisse lounge so I have one seat in my livingroom right now. :( BUT.... Jay talked to the owner of the store and they will send them up first thing in the morning. That is good customer service since they are located over an hour away from us. :D

Tomorrow is my 15th wedding anniversary. I cant believe we have been married that long. We have been together for 17 years...we met when we were 16 and have been together every day since then. Time sure flies when you are happy. :p

I am going to get my hair cut short and highlighted tomorrow. Brit has really blonde hair and she is getting darker streaks put in it so we will see how that comes out. ;) Alicia is just getting a cut since she is such a tomboy and doesnt care about appearance just yet.

oh yeah, Jay is going to buy me a new diningroom table this weekend too. They have the 12 months with no interest so I figured I would get that and my mattress with that but the livingroom set is paid for. Thank god. We have lived here for 6 years and havent bought a single new thing for the house so we figured that since we wont be getting a vacation this year we will get some actual nice furniture for the house...+ this way we can eat supper like a family. :cofdate:

well, that is about it for me.

Hey girls, I'm not able to post from my work computer since my browser keeps freaking out. I can check email though, so feel free to drop me a line there. Otherwise, I have to wait until I get home to post and honestly, sometimes I just don't have the energy. I just realized that I said nothing about my weekend with the girlfriends. Hmmm, I think I've just fully recuperated today. There was lots of good food and drink, lots of laughs, tears and just plain fun. We had tons of photo albums being passsed around, both past and present. It's really weird how we fall into our old dynamics of friendship. I just found out that one of my girlfriends husband now owns his own hair salon so I'll be checking them out before my trip to CA and NV. My sis gave each of us our own new rock t-shirt--you know, those 80's black tee's w/ Motley Crue or Metallica logos on them? :lol: :rolleyes: I can't wait to cut the neck and the finished hem...maybe some slashes along the sides? :lol: I think we stayed at my sis' house til 2 a.m. It was great fun and maybe we can do it again soon. One of my girlfriends still lives in UT so she only comes once a year. Gawd, I can only imagine how much fun we'll all have when we get together :crossed:.

Angie, early congratulations on 15 years of wedded bliss :love:. Wow! You guys got me and Rick beat by one year. We've been together 16 years as of July this year, only 10 years we've been married though. We took 6 years to decide if we wanted to get married....lived together for 14 though :o Enjoy your new furniture, I'm sure you'll have fun w/the bed :lol: oops, did I say something inappropriate? :devil:

Cherie, so glad you're getting back into a normal routine. I'm sure you will find the right words when presenting(?) the girls w/the ashes. Maybe just find a nice framed photo of Steven and have a special place on a shelf in the girls' room?

Kempy, how was your beach weekend? Hey, I know you probably don't follow Little League games or anything, but one of the teams from Hawaii (West Oahu) is doing real well in a 'world series' tournament up there. I think they either played in LA today or will be playing soon.

Julie, I only watched a few bits of the Tommy Lee show, was that the same episode as last week? or were they doing a recap? I turned it off and went to bed. So how do ya like my new yummy avatar? :lol: Just found that online somewhere...

Gotta run for now, Lucky the bratty pup is nipping at Michael's heels. I have got to get her into a puppy class for some training.

:wave: to Dips and Cal. Hope you all have a good evening.

Hi girls,
 

Okay, so I'll give you the condensed version of "Dips' goes to college" Not as entertaining as the Tommy Lee version (sorry Noelle :) ) but twice as stressful. Here goes:

Got my class schedule, it looks pretty good but I want to make some minor changes to accomodate my work schedule but I can't make adjustments until my financial aide kicks in. Speaking of financial aide, I was expecting my first GI bill check from the army this week but my application papers got kicked back becasue I was short on postage by 23 cents. In all of this stress I paid all my bills; cable, phone, credit card, etc. only to realize that I already paid them this month (idiot!) so now I'm trying to get things in order so that I'm not still dealing with it when class starts.

By the way, Tome stopped by today so I'm hoping that he stays only 1 week instead of that horrible two week stay he pulled last month.( crossing my fingers and toes) I want to go back to the school today and check up on things but I swear I don't have the friggin' energy. Instead I've opted to go grocery shopping (it's amazing how fast you run out of sh*t when your man stays over all the time), clean up (after him ofcourse) and organize my mail (separate the important stuff from the junk) I have to sit down and phisically shred all those wonderful "Pre Approved,0 interest" God and platinum credit card applications and figure out how to get these people to stop sending them to me.

I'm so sorry to be whining like this when you all have real fsmily issues with hubbies and kids and all but I hope you all understand my plight. Anyways,

Angie- Congrats on your anniversary and the new furniture. I'm glad that you are happy still and I wish you guys the best. Make sure you celebrate hard! Let us know how your new haircut comes out.

Kempy- I'd kill to be where you are right now.

Noelle- I clicked on your avitar and came across the pic of you and your son. I can't get over how cute he is. I want to grab him and kiss his cheeks. You're quite the looker yourself. I don't think I had seen you without your glasses. What a fox! This little ecrush of yours on Tommy Lee is so adorable. :) Glad you had a great weekend with the girls, definately check out that salon. I'm crossing my fingers too for our reunion. Who knows what the future holds.

J- I was in staples the other day and immediately I thought about you. I can see how Moms get all excited about school shopping. I was there to get some things for work but I was soooooo tempted to do some personal shopping. They had everything! But lucky for me I have a mom who still couldn't resist hooking me up with school supplies so I'm pretty much set for my first semester. Gotta love Mom.

Cal- I went throught the aisle for teacher supplies and ofcourse thought about you. I wondered what kind of teacher you are, Strict, Softie, stern, flexible. Are you a smily-sticker teacher or a red pen radicle! :lol: You can tell a lot about a teacher by her supplies. Hope all is well with you.

Cherie- You seem to be doing well, considering. Your girls seem to be trooping along as well. You all have eachother so you all will be fine when the time comes to discuss the ashes.

I really wish I could get up and go to my school today but If I go there and learn of one more set back, I'm going to flip out so I'll wait til next week to finalize everything. I'm off to the store now. Take care ladies.

Good Evening Girls

Angie and Jay Happy Anniversary :balloons: :lucky: :cheers: :dance: :hat: :love:!!!!!!!!!!!! You two are such a great couple. Congrats on more furniture too. How did your hair turn out? I bet you look wonderful!

Noelle I am glad you had a fun time with your girls. I would love to see a picture of you in that T-shirt with you hair teased up (80's style :lol:) ;). I love your new picture of Tommy. That show was an hour re-cap of last week and the new one was after. Missed that one though. Call me crazy but I think he is really getting handsome with age. I love his hair. I love his go with the flow attitude. Okay how many times did I just say the word love in this post to you :lol: LOL. Did you hear Bo Bice had broke his ankle and just had emergency surgery on his intestines? Talk about bad luck.

Dips you poor thing. Your little brain is working on over-time....Deep breath in and deep breath out....feel better? You will do just great and everything will just fall right into place. I hope your Tom does not stay to long. I have pms like a mad woman, eating wise :^:. Btw how sweet of Mom to help you out.

Cherie, I am wishing that the girls had a nice first week at school. Are you hanging in there?

Kempy are you still on that beach holding a cold one? If you are....order one for me, LOL!!

Cal have a nice relaxing weekend.

Well girls going to get off of here for now. We had brats for supper. Tailgating a day early ;). I can't wait for TOM to get here for this eating to stop and monster headache to go away. Oh well enough ranting about that. Plus side I get boobs once a month :lol:. Bye for now.

Good Night Girls....Have a nice Friday.

Hello everyone.... Its finally Friday, and I just transmitted payroll, so I can goof around for a while.

The girls and I are doing great.. they are adjusting fine.. I guess. They do know about the ashes now, and tonight we are going to get the black box down and show them the urn. I found a note that Steven had written Hannah a while back, and I wish he would have written one to Megan, but oh well.. it was a day that she had asked him to draw her a unicorn, and he did and wrote her a small note on the paper. It's priceless. I showed it to her this morning, and her face was just beaming. I told her I would keep it in a safe place, but whenever she wanted to read it, just to let me know.

As of today, I am back on the South Beach Diet. After talking to a friend of mine, (Cathy, she and her husband Tim are best friends of Alan, and they are going on the cruise with us) I have found my motivation and determination to get healthy before the cruise. I have exactly 8 weeks, and any place lower than where I am today will be an improvement. SB worked so well for me two years ago, I figured, instead of trying to wing it like I have been doing, I would go and buy the paperback (I loaned out my hardback book, and it was never returned) and just go by the rules and see where it takes me. I managed to unpack my bedroom enough last night to get to my treadmill, so I will be doing that tonight, and pulling out an abs video to work on. I also plan to start having a nightly walk around the block with the girls, just to spend some time with them, and get us all out moving a little. So, after it cools down a little this evening, we are going to go do that. I am really loving my new place... just to feel like I can walk out the door and do that is great.

Angie.. congrats on your anniversary! That is fantastic! And enjoy your new furniture! I got all my old stuff back that Steven had, so I feel like I've gotten new furniture again!

Dips.. Enjoy school! I really miss college.. and one day, if I am able, I am going back!

Julie.. how are you doing? The first week of school went fairly well, however, on the second day, I had to go get Hannah and take her to the doctor... but she is doing fine now. Last night we had the back to school ice cream social (which I didn't even have any of) so I think they are really going to enjoy their new school.

Cal... have you started back to school yet?

OK.. well, I need to get back to work. TGIF.. I am feeling so much better today, mentally, and energy wise, now that I've decided to start back on South Beach and to get on my treadmill. I've got 8 weeks! :-) Now I'm feeling back to my old self!

Talk to you all soon!

Cherie

Noelle.. I hope your computer gets well soon!

Hello Everyone,

TGIF is right!! I've been so tired lately, but I've been getting to bed a lot earlier and it seems to be working.

Angie: Congrats on your anniversary. You two are a cute couple. I've got that picture of the roadrunner I said I'd send and I just found your address; so, look for it soon.

Noelle: How long until you go to CA? Too bad we can't meet up again. Have fun.

Cherie: I'm so glad you're feeling better. We just finished our 3rd week of school. Only 6 more until break. :lol:

Dips: You'll do great at school. I'm taking some classes, starting in about 3 weeks, to get an ESL endorsement on my teaching certificate; it will mean about $1500 more a year.

Julie: Thanks for everything. I wasn't aware that you didn't know that I used to live in Wisconsin. Hope everything is getting cooler there for you. It's still getting around 105 every day.

Kempy: Hope you're really enjoying the beach.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Cal

Hi Everyone!! I hope you all are having a great weekend.

Cherie, I am so glad to hear that you and the girls are doing better. That is so sweet that Steven wrote a letter...that is something for her to cherish forever. I am sure it will help her feel like he is always with her in the future when she misses him.

Noelle, More computer trouble huh? I checked out the link you sent of Jude Law. Poor guy cant even get naked in his own yard without pics being shot...haha :lol: Your girls night out sounds like so much fun.

Dips, I hope you can get your schedule squared away soon. You are a very busy woman these days. I hope you get a chance to get some free time to yourself to relax. My hair came out okay by the way. I got it highlighted so it is pretty blonde and cut short again.

Julie, Have your kids started school yet or is it this week? Mine go on Monday. YEAH!!! It is about time. I will be so happy to get those few hours not having to break up a fight everyday. :lol:

Kempy, I hope your vaca rocked. We miss ya though.

Cal, Wow, you guys have been in school for 3 weeks already? That went by quick. (easy for me to say since I didnt have to teach them all. :lol: )

I dont have any big plans for this weekend...the twins went to the fair all day yesterday and my parents met up with them last night and took them to their house for the weekend and Brit is going to the fair today with her friends so me and Jay are going to Bangor to buy a diningroom set and get a Moolatte and that is my big exciting weekend. :lol: I bought a nice bedroom comforter set yesterday it is ultrasuede like the sofas and it should look nice with the dark plum color I painted my bedroom....now for the bed to come. :lol:

Hey girls, just a quick one this Saturday. No big plans here either. We may go to a Greek fair tomorrow to eat some yummy Gyros :hun: and listen to some Hellenic sounds. Just went to do some small shopping. I had to buy all new sheets for my bed since the mattress is like 15+ inches and my old sheets just don't fit. I found some great 500 thread count sheets at Costco for around $54 for queen size. Joy! :rolleyes:

Kempy, hope Katrina doesn't wreak too much havoc for you. That thing is massive! i'm watching the weather report and that storm system is huge. They said they are evacuating New Orleans? Stay safe girl, I know that's just a few miles from ya.

Angie, your house will feel like all brand new again with all that new furniture. Enjoy. Yeah, I know poor Jude law in the privacy of his own family's house...tut tut. But I'm not sorry for the pics :devil:

Cal ESL is what my mom taught for all these years. She's retired about 3 years now though. We will be in CA at the end of Sept., the 28th? Then end our trip in LV thru 10/6. I can't wait :dancer: Too bad our schedules don't coincide, I'd love to spend a few extra days @ Disney w/you and Ashley--Bert too if she came along. I still remember riding that CA Screamin' roller coaster w/her. It's a bummer that it may still be closed when we get there.

Cherie, how did your talk w/the girls go last night? That is sweet of Steven to have the foresight to write a letter to Hannah, she will cherish that forever. Good luck on South Beach, w/Dips' results, the water looks real good. You'll look mahvelous on your cruise.

Julie, how ya doing this weekend? I did hear about Bo Bice and his emergency surgery but I didn't know what it was for. I hope he's recuperating ok. As for that broken ankle, what's with that cheap stage set up for the AI tour? Didn't Diana Degarmo do the same thing last year? They better do some improvements so no one else gets hurt. I saw somewhere online that they were calling this years AI tour the "Bo Bice show"--everyone knows that even though Carrie won, he's the real winner--kinda like Clay and Ruben? ;)

Dips, thank you :o you make me blush :lol: Yes my boy's cheeks warrant a pinching every now and then. That picture's back in early '04 in Vegas I think, New Year's I believe. You best be training your man to bring the groceries with him if he plans on extended stay overs. :lol: Yup, men sure can eat you out of house and home. Good luck with getting your GI bill stuff straightened out. Don't stress too much.

Well, gotta go and order some sushi for dinner tonight :sumo: I'll try and pop on tomorrow. have a good rest of the weekend. Be safe!

I just got off the treadmill... first time I've been on it in how many months???? Well, I did only 30 minutes, but it's my start over. So far, I've stayed on track with the South Beach Diet... tonight may be a little harder. Alan got back into town last night, and tonight he has asked to come over and bring dinner. Hopefully I can do decently and stay on track.

I got Steven's death certificates yesterday. Another one of those small shocks I guess. I need them, but just to actually have them is another dose of reality.

I've got the place all unpacked. (well, not counting the garage... I need my brother to come get the furniture, then I can start on those boxes). I have to say, I really love my new place. Feels like a home. First time in a long time I can say that.

Noelle... your festival sounds great! I hope you had fun.

Kempy... I hope you and your dogs and hubby got out ok. I have a friend there in NOLA and he and his daughter are heading towards Texas.. however, the roads are almost gridlocked.. and it's taken him five hours to get the distance it normally takes him one.

Angie.. how does your new comforter look? I've got my eye on a new one, but I will have to wait til I get the Social Security stuff straightened out....

Cal.... hope things at school are going well....

Dips.. how is your weekend? Your guy still in town??

Julie.. are you doing OK this weekend?

OK.. well I am going to go finish my laundry.... talk to you all soon!

Cherie

Hey girls, i just got done watching the Little League WOrld Series Championships and the team from Ewa Beach, HI won it! it's amazing! They played against a team from Curacao (the returning champs from last year) and they pulled out a win. Some of the boys on the Ewa Beach team are sons of my former classmates, so it's like the win really hit home with me. We were cheering so loud this afternoon. Well, gonna go head to the Greek fair... just wanted to celebrate a little.

Cherie, I know you can stay on track w/South Beach. Just enjoy your visit w/Alan and think about the cruise coming up :dance:

Well girls, gotta head out the door. Have a good one.

PS Kempy, hope you're doing ok!!!

Hey girls sorry I have not been around this weekend. I have been busy non-stop. Plus I have just been feeling horrible waiting for TOM to come, just a really rough pms month not feeling well all around. But I did get some excercise in this weekend, went to my mom's today and took a long walk and came home and mowed the backyard. Cutting the grass is great excercise! We went to some furniture stores yesterday to look for a new living room set. Nothing caught my eye that much. But I did see an ad in the paper this morning with a sofa in it that I liked and it was only $499.00. Finished up school shopping, found some shoes for the kids and a lunch box for ds. Glad that is done. Ds starts the 1st and dd on the 6th. Dd only goes a couple half days a week though. I should come home and excercise for those two hours. Try to ;). I feel so bad because I am gaining again. I have to get control of my eating. Last summer I was at my goal and now I am not, oh well. I will work on it.

Noelle congrats to the team....way to go!! Have fun at the fair. Enjoy your gyros! Great job on the sale on the sheets. Good price for that thread count.

Cherie, have a nice visit with Alan. Great job staying on track and getting on your treadmill. I am so glad you are liking your new place. You and the girls deserve to be happy where you are living. I am so happy that you are enjoying it. Btw I think it is great you are still going on the cruise, you probally need a vacation so bad.

Angie back to school tomorrow huh? I bet you are ready for that. You know since it is my ds's first year going to be gone all day everyday I have mixed feeling. Happy and Sad....but there will be less fights that have to break up with him and his sister :lol: actually they don't fight too much but you know what I mean. Your comforter sounds nice. I took mine off today and washed it. Did you find a dining room set? Your house will look even nicer with all that new furniture. I love the color of your walls in your house.

Cal I hope you rested up this weekend.

Kempy hope you are staying safe with that storm. Thinking of you and Joe.

Dips how are you doing?

Well girls going to get off of here for now. I will check back later on. Have a nice Sunday night. Gotta go see what my drama queen dd is yelling about :lol:.

Kempy, I hope tha you,Joe and the babies are all safe. I am worried about you so when you get a chance to post could you just say hi so I know you all are okay. We are glued to the weather channel to keep up on what is happening.

Angie: Enjoy the freedom you'll get tomorrow with the kiddos in school!!

Kempy: I echo Angie. We are worried about you and are praying you are all ok. We are glued to CNN, Fox, and the Weather Channel.

Julie: The one thing about our kiddos starting school is that they seem to grow up faster. Of course, the plus side is...a quiet (read..clean) house for a couple of hours. :lol:

Noelle: Enjoy the fair. Bert starts back to school tomorrow. She said that she's looking forward to it, but could use a little more time to get everything ready.

Dips: When exactly do you start school? How many hours are you taking? Try to make sure you have some down time for yourself.

Cherie: I'm really glad that you are enjoying your new place and that the girls are in a good school. What cruise are you going on? We are planning on one to Alaska in June, 2007. So far my brother has gotten enough people to reserve 96 cabins. He likes putting these things together.

Have a great week everyone.

Cal

Hi girls just checking in this afternoon to say Hi :). And to see if Kempy posted yet. Have a great day everyone.

Good morning girls, I'm on my way to work.

Kempy, thinking about you! Stay safe, warm and dry.

I'll be back later, have a good one.

It is so hot and muggy up here. I cant believe I am saying this but...I can not wait until summer is over. Just to be able to go to work and not sweat will be awesome. :lol:

I cant stop watching the weather channel to see what is going on with Katrina. I am so shocked how bad it was. I hope Kempy is safe and at least got back to her house in time to board up and get everyone to safety, since this came during her vacation time. Kempy, we miss ya and are all praying you all are safe and sound.

Not much happening here.

Angie I hear you on the heat thing. Hasn't this been such a hot summer? I think I will welcome those cool crisp fall days. My hands have been swelling like crazy. But I will be wishing for this heat come Jan. ;).

I wonder if Kempy did make it back in time to get her house ready? I am sure she had to know about it from the media? But the traffic looked horrible on the news. I know she said the pups were going to her Fil's. I hope your entire family is safe Kempy.

Cherie how was your visit with Alan? Hope you two were able to catch up and had a nice time together.

Noelle I hope you are not working to hard today.

Dips how is the stress level? I hope you are nice and calm. Everything will be just fine, this is such a exciting time for you.

Cal have a good week at school.

I actually ate OP today for the first day in a while. I am not going to munch on anything tonight. Just water. Well that is about it from me. Bye for now girlies

Good Night All :)

Hi ladies! Sorry I have been gone for ages!! Can I rejoin? Am hoping my pic will come up, looks like it was accepted.

Holly :)

Good Morning everyone... I am back at work.. I took a mental day yesterday.. meaning.. I called in and took the day off from work. I needed it. I had a really nice Sunday night, thanks everyone for the nice thoughts. Alan came over and we made some soft tacos and watched Dusk til Dawn, with George Clooney... silly movie, but entertaining. I went yesterday, and just spent the day with him, and we made salsa and went to lunch at PF Changs. Like I said, a nice break.

Today, I am back at work... not really wanting to be here, but I'm here. I've been watching the news and reading the reports on the damage of the hurricane, and I am very concerned about Kempy and her family. I have some other friends that evacuated and are currently in Port Arthur, TX, but I cannot get through to them on their cell phone and I am concerned for them as well. I wish he would call. Kempy.. you are in all of our thoughts and prayers.... I hope you are safe.

Julie congrats on being OP yesterday... I wasn't.. but I didn't do too badly. Today, I am back on the South Beach diet... I have gotten on my treadmill for 30 minutes, for two days in a row now, so I am happy that I am finally doing that again.

Angie.. how are you today?

Dips.. school going ok?

Cal.. same to you.. School going ok?

Noelle.. I saw part of that little league game and it was pretty awesome.. that is so cool you know some of the people involved! The boys of HI did a fantastic job!!!

Welcome Back Holly... of course you can come back! We need all the support here we can get, and will give back to you! :-)

Well, I was trying all day yesterday to get ahold of Steven's HR contact at Cox Communications so I could drop off his death certificate yesterday and get the ball rolling on the very small life insurance policy he had.. but she never called me back. I guess I need to call again today and leave some more messages. I can't believe it's been three weeks. It feels like more.. and then it feels like just yesterday... you know?

OK.. well, I need to get back to work.. my tummy is telling me I am hungry, but I think I am really just thirsty, so I am going to go fill up my water glass. I'll check back in later.

((((HUGS TO KEMPY))))))

Cherie

Happy Tuesday girls...I have a dental appointment this morning so I have a little goof off time right now. it is sooooo muggy here right now, we've been getting dumped on some rain and stuff but there's hardly any wind to speak of. I am not complaining though, we need it badly. There have been so many brush fires on our side of the island it's scary.

Kempy, we really really really really really hope you and your family are doing OK, praying for you!

OMG Holly! Welcome back, always nice to see someone return to the fold. :) So how have you been? How are the kiddos? How are YOU?

Cherie, people not returning calls is one of my pet peeves for sure. I always try to return calls when I get messages. I hope everything goes smoothly and in your favor! WTG on the treadmill, one day at a time, one step at a time is all it takes. i guess i should take my own advice, eh? :lol:

Julie, you too, WTG on being OP. You've got it going on. So the big 1st day of school is coming up for your DS soon. Im sure he'll be fine. I know how you feel about the growing up so fast thing for sure. I had tears for Michael on the 2nd day of preschool and the first day of kindergarten too. :lol: Hey, did you choose your dining room set? or was it living room furniture you were looking for?

Cal, that is one big AK cruise party! 96 cabins? That will be one fun trip. I would love to do that cruise one day, maybe for my parents' 50th wedding anniversary in a few years. So how's Ashley liking school so far?

Angie, have you gotten all your new stuff delivered yet? How are your new kitties? They are having the time of their life I bet, they have that posh condo.

Dips, don't work too hard girlfriend. Have a great day.
Well, gotta head out for now, just wanted to say hey and welcome back again to Holly. Be back later.

Good Morning Ladies
 

Good Morning everyone! I'm doing good.. had a really good day yesterday, stayed OP and did some really good exercise. 40 minutes of step areobics and after the girls went to bed, I walked on the treadmill for 30 minutes. Today, I plan on doing the same, and maybe find my abs tape to do.

Dips... I think I am going to stay on Phase One for a while.. (ok, so I might cheat every now and then, especially if I see Alan) but, I am going to try to at least stick to what I am eating for the next month and see what happens. And it will be a piece of cake.. I don't like cake.. so that didn't bother me. :D (Pie on the other hand... hmmmmmm).

Noelle how are your teeth? Did your appointment go ok?

Kempy... still sending out prayers... doesn't she live in Folsom? I heard this morning or last night, they didn't have any flooding there, so I was hoping that is where she lives. The pictures and reports coming out of that area is so devestating. I am so sad for them all. It's like a war zone. :-( I'm supposed to be going to New Orleans at the end of October, that is where the cruise is supposed to leave from, but I am sure that could be changing now. We will see.

Hi Julie and Angie and Cal and Holly..... I guess I better get busy working. :-) I'll talk to you soon.

Cherie

Hi girls

No Kempy here yet? Praying that everything is safe with you. Thinking of you and Joe.

Cherie great job staying OP. Also so happy you took the day off and had nice time with Alan.

Noelle I am actually looking at getting a new kitchen table and a new living room set. When I get some funds for that :lol:. My tears will start tomorrow I think after I drop off ds at his first day ;). I hope your humidity lets up for you. But the rain is good, those brush fires are dangerous.

Dips nice to see you!

Angie how are ya girl?

Welcome back Holly. How are the kids, yourself and are you still working?

Hi Cal!

Well girls I was checking to see if our Kempy posted. I have to go find an old shirt for ds to take to school for painting. I am really stressed, because ds and dd start school at the same time and I have no idea how I am going to get her there on time....I figure she will be be 20-30 minutes late for class on good weather days and the thing is it cost so much money for two half days a week to be late. Pre-school cost almost as much as college these days :lol:. So I am scrambling to find another one. I don't know if I should just enroll her in a dance class and have playdates with her friends? She is really outgoing and social and my son needed to go to preschool to learn some social skills. So I am thinking about what to do. End of my rant :lol:.
Well going to get going I just wanted to check in with my girls :). Have a great day everyone.

Hi guys. I am so worried about Kempy and her family. It seems like the more pics they show on tv they are getting worse and worse. I hope they are safe. I have been searching the internet trying to find websights for her area and I cant get anything to come up. I read a story about a family in Covington who left before the storm hit and they are worried because they have yet to hear how the town turned out. That is by Kempy I think. She is in Ponchatoula. God, I hope they are all okay.

Julie, School is getting so close huh? You will enjoy the break though once you get used to it. Do any of the furniture stores in your area have the specials going on with no interest for a year. I went with that for the bed because I think I can pay it off by next summer no problem. It would be great if you get big income taxes back like my sis does.

Hello my girls.
 

Anigie- you spoke for all of us when you said how worried you are about Kempy and Joe. I've been thinking about her througout the day. The images in the papers and the news are so sad. You just can;t imagine that kind of devestation until you experience it yourself. These days I go to bed at night so thankful for my shoebox apartment in NYC. I try not to take any of these things for granted. Anyways Angie, keep looking to see if Kempy's area was affected as much as New Orleans.

J- I remember my first day of school as if it were yesterday. Both my parents drove me to the school but my mom didn't get out of the car. My dad walked me up. I leter found out that my mom didn't want me to see her cry and good thing she did because I would have cried myself. Once she realized how much free time she would have during the day, she had no problems what so ever driving me to my first day of school ever again.:lol: Funny thing though, when I went into the army, my mother did not come with me and Dad to the bus station. She didn't want me to see her cry. It's emotional because it's a sign that your child is growing up and becoming independant. But trust me, that feeling will pass until they move out for good. Good luck on finding a good school or play group.

Cherie- The good thing about SB is that it is flexible so occasional cheating won't throw you off completely. Way to go on the excersise. You are such a trooper. Glad you had a good time with Alan. You so deserve to have fun and smile.

Noelle- I can't stand humidity. Hope you come through yours okay. How are the choppers?? Gotta keep that smile bright and beautiful.

Okay, I'm going to watch the boob tube. I'll check in when I can

Good Night Babes

Happy September 1st everyone! I am so glad a new month has started. I have wiped the slate clean, and let go of all the stress from last month. This will be a much better month for me!

I weighed in this morning, and have already lost 3.5 pounds from last Friday when I started on South Beach and getting my exercise back in. I am sure most of it was that initial water weight, but it is sure a nice feeling to see those numbers go down, and the measurements go down ever so slightly. I did really well yesterday by staying OP all day long and doing my 45 minutes of step areobics (I just love it that I now have space again to do that), 20 minutes of abs pilates, and 30 minutes of walking on the treadmill while I was watching TV.

Dips.. how is school going? I just looked at your weight tracker, and you are doing such a great job! I can't wait til I can say I am at 133!!. Still 21 pounds to go, but I"ll get there.

Kempy... still praying for you and Joe and your dogs. I hope you are safe and OK. We are all here worried about you. (((((HUGS)))))

Hi Noelle, Angie, Julie, Holly and Cal! It's month end closing for accounting, so I need to get busy doing all my journal entries that I put off yesterday.

Talk to you guys soon.

Cherie

Hi! I am so far behind!! Well, life has been a little bit crazy on the home front. I left my husband in May because he refused to stop treating me poorly. On the 4th of July weekend I found out that he had been sleeping with another woman, in my house, in our bed while I was gone (started 11 days after I left). Also found out that he had slept with another woman from work 2 years ago for 1 1/2 months. I found out because one of our mutual friends told me. Long story short, he begged me to come back, I said ok if we leave that town, that house and start somewhere else. So, we are in my home town, and things are so so. Am trying to focus on my kids.

On the weight front, I am down to 135. I seem to bounce between 133 and 139. I am thinking I would be happy at 125-130. I did get a surprise though!! I had my measurements taken at the local gym, and am 1 1/4 inches taller that I thought! I thought I was 5'5 and am actually 5'6 1/4!!

Cherie,

Hi! So sorry to hear about your ex's passing :(. Hope you and the girls are doing ok (((Cherie and girls))). Great job on getting back on track!!

Noelle,

Hi! How are ya? We had alot of rain here yesterday, and I was at the State Fair of all places, lol! Actually went to my first concert ever, Motley Crue!! My husband won tickets, that's the only way I ended up there!! Was quite the LOUD LOUD LOUD and CRAZY experience!!

Dips,

Congrats on the weight loss!! Great job! You and I are close to the same weight now :). How's school going? I have been considering going back for my Bachelor's. I currently have an Associates. Not sure yet though.

Julie,

Hiya! The kids are doing good. My youngest is starting Pre-K, middle is going to kindergarten, and oldest 3rd grade!!! My babies are growing up on me :( :(. No, am not working right now. I had a work injury, and am awaiting dr's decision on surgery or no. Hopefully no!!

Angie,

Hi! How have you been?

I too am so worried about Kempy and her family! I hope they are safe!! What a scary time for them :(. They are all in my prayers!

Happy Thursday girls :wave: Well, maybe not so happy because we haven't heard from Kempy yet...the news is just freaking me out. I am worried but don't know exactly what to do. Angie, did you have her phone number? I really wonder how far away her home was from NO city and if there was any damage to her place. The news just shows so much carnage over there with so many people needing help. It's so sad. I made a donation to the Red Cross thru Michael's school today.

Hey, I have some good news, I actually went walking yesterday. I sent Michael off to karate lessons w/his dad so I took Lucky for a walk. It wasn't anywhere near the 3+ miles uphills I used to do, but I am working my way back to it. It actually felt good to be out. With the crazy gas prices out here (the gas cap law went into effect today) I'm sure if it gets too ridiculous I'll be walking a heck of a lot more. I would like to be a little more conditioned to walking since we'll be going on vacation in 27 days :dancer:

(((Holly))) Girl, I give you credit for starting over with your man. I think I would've killed mine if he did that to me, but that's just me :^: I am wishing the best for you guys. Holy smokes, you are doing great with the weight huh? Good for you! And dang, what I'd give to find out I'm actually taller than my 5' 3/4" :lol:. I'd have to be around 6' to be in the proper weight range for my height :lol: But anyway, I'm so glad you're back with us. Motley Crue concert?????? I'm sooooooooooo jealous! Did ya see my avatar? (where is that drooling smiley???) That's my babe Tommy Lee :devil:

WooHoo!!! Go CHERIE, Go CHERIE :dancer: Congrats on the progress! Seriously, I am going to Sam's or Borders and checking out that South Beach Diet book. I would love to join the losing weight club.

Dips, just wondering, how much does a "shoebox" apartment in NYC rent for? Prices in HI are really ridiculous but I'm sure it's the same situation there. I was watching the Gastineau Girls (spoiled rich socialites) on TV yesterday (the first time ever for me) and the daughter was apartment hunting, ending up somewhere on Park Ave hoping to get a $10K p/mo. apt and she's never held a job in her life! It was ridiculous. :lol: That show is horrifyingly riveting :rolleyes:, kind of the same reason why I like to watch Dog, the Bounty Hunter :o:

Julie, did you need tissues today? Is it almost time to pick him up? :)

Well, take care everyone and have a great day...gotta go for now.

Hey Noelle,

Everyday I pop in hoping to see something from Kempy and each day I get sadder and sadder when she doesn't show. :( Still I try to remain optimistic. I just hope she's okay. Well, my shoebox is 600/month. Utilities included (Thank God) But I think I live in one of the last rent-controlled apts in the city. Depending on where you are ou could pay anywhere from 550/mo to 1600/mo. The rent is rediculous in this city but I love NYC. I don't want to live anywhere else.


hope everyone else is okay today. TTYL