Dazzling December

[SKendall]

Re: Dazzling December

Lav, I am thrilled for you. Yes and maybe it is the Christmas Spirit. Thank you.

Have a wonderful day everyone.

[paulywogg]

Re: Dazzling December

Merry Christmas all!

[SKendall]

Re: Dazzling December

MAE, Set my alarm for 5:00 a.m., I couldn't sleep last night so when the alarm went off it was 30 minutes before I heard it. I messed about having coffee and left at 7:30, perfect timing, Vivian was up. She was excited about giving rather than receiving, I don't wish it would last, I know it will.

She loved all her gifts, especially her brand new big girl bike! I am really glad I got her elf on a shelf, she liked the mystery and it enhanced the season for us all. I bought her Barbie's camping set and Barbie's locker set. She can't wait to get a locker at school, so it was appropriate.

Daughter was very congenial and SIL the same. They liked the gifts I had bought them.

Lav, I'm so glad you got your Christmas wish.

Hi Pauly, hope you're feeling better.

Star, maybe some "training or Exposure to positive thinking. Dr, Norman Vincent Peale wrote the book," Power of positive thinking" it's a little old by now, but my husband who was executive management insisted all those who worked beneath him read it and they would be quizzed.

It maybe dated, but the message is not.

Laters.

[Lavande]

Re: Dazzling December

Merry Christmas friends

Had a very quiet day here, just us two old farts but that's OK. Yesterday's miracle still has me feeling happy!
Don't know what the future will be like considering all the different personalities involved. I'm just going to be happy with what I have for now.
It was SO nice to see the kids together again, honestly.

Star, glad your get together was nice. I know they are tiring but fun too.
Yesterday I cooked & served lots of foods that I no longer eat. I had a small spiral ham, roasted a turkey & made meatballs & sausage plus all the sides. Just for the heck of it I thought I would have a slice of ham, couldn't remember the last time I had ham. This morning I woke up with puffy lower legs & feet, 2 lbs heavier & my B/P 44 points higher than the day before. All that from one thin slice of ham. That's how salt sensitive I am I'll be sure to give the remainder of that ham to someone, ha ha!

SK, I am happy that we both received our Christmas miracles - enjoy!

Pauly, Merry Christmas & I truly hope you are on the mend!

Cyn, I hope you are enjoying your Christmas. I'm guessing you are caught up in that snowstorm? It completely missed us except for a few flakes this morning. Very cold & very windy here, grateful to still have power because lots of folks don't.

Wishing everyone a peaceful night!

Lav

[Snoopy56]

Re: Dazzling December

Good morning the day after....

Lots of clean up for me, it went well, glad it is over, back to normal.

Lav, I ate turkey, dressing, green bean casserole and woke up swollen and not feeling really good. Yuck. I threw out all the sweets left over, now to get rid of the other left overs today. I gave the rest of the ham to my SIL, he loves it. So glad I am not eating this way all the time, it would age me quickly. Nice you are still flying high with family matters.

Pauly, hope your day was good.

Skendall, how great you were able to spend the day with family and it turned out well.

Cyn, hello and hope your weather is not too severe.

Have a good one.

[treegirl]

Re: Dazzling December

Hello all,

I hope everyone is holding on to their merry moments. So glad to hear of the Xmas miracles going on!

Long long weekend, but all OK. I just arrived home after taking HB to the airport 1.5 hrs away. SD went home, and will return for NEw Year's eve, butfor the moment the house is blissfully quiet and it's just me and mr. pooch. Cooked and cooked and cooked, so there is some food that I can choose from to eat.

Just got a big assignment from the festival, sheesh, I was hoping for a real day off. I guess they wrote to me yesterday... I took the holiday off from email, so I didn't see it.

Off to do my Homest Guys meditation, and then will get going on projects.

Love to all, and so happy you are all here ---

[Lavande]

Re: Dazzling December

Good evening friends,

Still chilly here at 26 degrees but nothing is falling from the sky, grateful
We decided to take a ride out to see what was going on at some local(ish) stores & found them all closed. Then we realized that most of these places are run by Amish & Mennonites. Apparently they take most of the week off between Christmas & New Year's. Why didn't we know that, we've been living here for nearly 15 years, ha ha!

So, I woke up this morning not puffy & was down the 2 lbs of water weight aftr taking the diuretic yesterday, great. I figured my B/P would be down as well - not so. Actually it was a little higher & I have a slight headache, geez. So I popped another diuretic this morning & I'm hoping it helps reduce my pressure. Honestly. all this because I ate one slice of ham (which didn't taste salty). I think the almost continuous hot flashes & lack of sleep for the past few weeks is also causing my pressure to rise. I really, really do not want to go back on HRT, I'm getting too old for this stuff. Sorry to be boring you all, ha ha!

Cyn, I think it's nice you have the place to yourself to regroup even if you do have to do some work. I get so much more work done when I'm not constantly being interrupted, how about you?

Pauly, check in please!

SK, I hope you had a good day after Christmas!

Have a nice night everyone!
Lav

[Snoopy56]

Re: Dazzling December

Good morning...

Yesterday we cleaned and rested, threw all the bad food out and ate healthy. I feel like a new person today.

Lav, boy is it cold here but we missed the feet of snow. Very grateful for that. I want to exercise today, we'll see if I can force myself out of the house, haha. I am worried about your physical symptoms, sounds like you kind of need the HRT to level out. It's complicated. Trying to figure out what to cook today, something healthy for sure.

Hello to Cyn, nice you are able to have a little time alone. Hope your holiday was sweet.

Hello to Skendall and Pauly.

Have a good one.

[treegirl]

Re: Dazzling December

Morning all -

Lav, this is scary -- I hope that your symptoms diminish today. So sorry, uuugh!

SK - how are you feeling after all the excitement?

Pauly, would love to hear how you are truly doing - share please!

Star, so glad you have made the switch back to "your" food, hope you feel well today.

Lav, did you escape the snow? We had a beautiful 4 inches and woke to a white Xmas, which was quite a gift. Glad I don't live in Erie, PA though! Started out below zero today, but is climbing now. I will be driving an hour away to work on a move today. Yes, it is good to be alone in the house and do my work - I actually finished up 2 projects and made gf banana/pumpkin bread for myself, so that was quite a victory. I'll need to continue working tonight when I get home, but that is better than just worrying about getting things done!

Wishing all good health today, and warmth. Thank goodness for the $$ to pay for heat - what a stress it must be for people who are worried about staying warm in this weather... so much to be grateful for...

[SKendall]

Re: Dazzling December

MAE.

Lav, what to do re BP? That concerns me. Could it be high because of Christmas trepidation and then excitement. One slice of ham, dang.

Star, you really sound organized and relieved to get over Christmas clutter. Well done you!

Well, color me shocked! I don't use F/B much and just checked yesterday to see if a video of Vivian was posted and I found a message from DD calling me a hero! About 180 deg. turn from last week. I had told sil that I was going to ask her out to lunch to see what her issues are and I seriously doubt I've done anything to inspire this much anger. Which is sad in itself that she feels it is okay for this behaviour. Anyway I will still push the lunch.

Has anyone seen the Samsung remote? I only have Netflix. but it's still it's something on dull days like this. 54" of snow is tres difficult to get over, wow.

[Lavande]

Re: Dazzling December

Good evening friends,

Currently 16 degrees, heading down to 13 tonight, geez!
While Erie, PA was getting 54" of snow all we got here was a few flurries early on the a lot a high winds. I am grateful for that!!!! That is one hell of a lot of snow!!!

Glad to report B/P is almost back to normal, what a relief! I feel a whole lot better too.
Don't know if I mentioned it was super low on the 23rd so that's why I thought I could get away with a thin slice of ham. I usually stay away from all the salty stuff because it messes up so badly. Anyway, it's improved & I made sure to consume zero sugar & zero white flour yesterday as well so the hot flashes were mostly missing last night BUT I still keep waking up, over & over thru out the night & that's hormonal related. I am & always have been a basket case when it comes to hormones, ha ha!

Star, glad you're back to good eating too. I fashioned up a non-dairy turkey pot pie today, loaded it with veggies, seasoned it with a lot of thyme instead of salt
Too cold & windy to do anything outside here, for sure.

Cyn, we escaped the snow , sounds like you got the perfect amount. I feel sorry for the folks in Erie getting 54", ridiculous!
Nice you enjoyed your alone time & got some baking done too, yay!!!

SK, your daughter is keeping you on your toes kind of like my son does. What would we do without them, huh??
I hope you two can have a calm & healing lunch together & maybe move past all this awkwardness.
We are now using Direct TV (dish instead of cable). I think I liked cable better but it was getting stupidly expensive.

Pauly, come on now, let's hear from you.

Have a nice night everyone, stay warm!

Lav

[Snoopy56]

Re: Dazzling December

Good morning...

Well, back to reality for me today, my husband goes back to work. So, bills, hair appointment, library, etc., etc. And that is OK with me. We had a nice time off, went to see the movie Darkest Hour yesterday, it was really good, about WWII in England.

Lav, glad you are feeling better, it does take a few days to get back to normal after eating things we don't usually have on the menu. Good you know your food sensitivities or you would be sick all the time. Me too. It is freezing here with a little snow, but the cold is intense, I think warmer today with a high of 24. It's winter is all I can say. We heard from our son yesterday re: being in New Orleans and he sounded good. Glad he could get away, he loves to travel. I am trying to make plans for the winter, what I want to do, goals to achieve, do you have any this year? I plan on finishing the FOK cooking class in January, focusing on eating clean in January, no going out to eat and exercising regularly, even more than I do now. I also want to organize all my recipes into a binder so I have go to things to eat. Still working on some other thoughts too. When do you take down your Christmas decorations? I usually do on Jan 1 but was thinking of leaving them up longer. However, I feel like taking them down today. I guess there is no rush and the lights are needed it is so dark.

Hey Skendall, my daughter can be up and down too. She kind of reamed me and my husband on Christmas about caring about our son too much. It hurt my feelings, she will see what its like as her kids grow up. So, I get where you feel a little frustrated, as I do too. Relationships are messy sometimes.

Cyn, your weather sounds perfectly winter, enjoy! It seems like your moving business has really picked up this last year! Good for you. Take care.

Pauly, we miss you and wish you'd check in if you can.

Have a great AF Thursday.

[treegirl]

Re: Dazzling December

Evening all -

Home from one job, now ready to start my evening work... I'm getting a little tired. Star, this move job is one done out of love - a 92 and near-80 couple, friends of my husbands that really need help or they will not get out of their house by January 3rd. I am a little frustrated, as I had set this week between the holidays to get my office set, finish my book proposal, do some self-care. But instead I 'm double-shifting, and not even working on the right stuff! Eeeek. But they really need the help and I will get to everything, I'm sure.

Lav, so glad to hear about the BP. Our temps are pretty brutal - was below zero this morning, and I just drive the hour home from this job in 4 degrees. It took a loooong time for my car to warm up. I hope you continue to feel well!

Star, all your plans sound good. Sorry about your daughter's comment, but you are right, she just doesn't have perspective. So glad your son is having a good time.

Pauly, come on, let's hear how you are doing...

SK, what a wonderful surprise about DD, I hope the glow grows.

Having a cup of tea in front of the fireplace, then off to work I go...

Wishing everyone warm and well --

[Lavande]

Re: Dazzling December

Good evening friends,

Woke up to a frosty 9 degrees this morning, yikes!
I made a big bowl of oatmeal for the chickens, felt sorry for them & they loved it, ate it right up!
Didn't sleep worth a hoot last night (no hot flashes) so naturally my B/P is up again - this is a giant pain in the a$$ to deal with, honestly!

Star, My plan for the new year is to do less - less of everything. I have essentially closed my shop, have not taken on any big jobs for many months. I am just going to do small personal type requests for folks. I have arranged my SS to begin in January, a bit early but I want to get some before the thieving politicians finish looting. I think it's time to just take care of me so I don't completely fall apart. My kids & grandkids don't need much from me anymore so I may as well pay attention to myself. That, is actually not an easy thing for me to say/do after spending decades of caring for everyone else, ha ha.
I traveled to NO once & that was enough for me. YB thought it would be nice to go there for an anniversary years ago - it was so hot I thought I'd croak, ugh. I hope your son is enjoying cooler weather there.
We took the tree down yesterday because it was pretty dry (it went up early this year). I am slowly putting everything else away. I am dreading having to pack up everything except the bedrooms to have these floors refinished some time in March. The contents of the kitchen, living room & dining room have to be moved out!!! May as well just move, ha ha! It will be a good time to unload a lot of unused stuff.

Cyn, you get to work double duty - lucky you! Take care of yourself too!
I just heard we will be getting about 2" of snow on Saturday, yay (not). Keep yourself nice & warm. Nice of you to help the older folks

Hello SK & Pauly!

I made an interesting pasta & bean soup with kale today. I was looking for alkaline soup recipes & ran across this one from Whole Foods. I didn't have the dried cranberry beans it called for so subbed with what I had on hand. And I used some red rice pasta instead of regular - pretty good. Something different anyway

Have a cozy night folks!

Lav

[Snoopy56]

Re: Dazzling December

Good morning...

Freezing cold here too with predictions for a few inches of snow later today and into tomorrow. It is harsh weather right now. Brrrrrrrr.

Cyn, very kind of you to help your older friends move, sorry you will not be able to complete your original plan to rest a little and get things organized. Moving is so hard, but with a plan it can make it so much easier. Still alot of hard work. Sounds like you are fitting in self-care when you can, good for you.

Lav, that new soup recipe sounded delicious. I am boiling black beans that I soaked all night, to make some refried beans later today and then to have some to use in other recipes. Batch cooking a little. It was interesting to read your plan of self care, I will be there myself in a few years too. When my daughter does not need the help, the boys in school, lots more time for me. What do you plan to fill your time with? Found any exercise places? I am telling you my exercise place is a life saver for me and lots of others. Lately it has been hit or miss due to the holidays, but I am sure in January we will be back in full force. So sorry you did not sleep last night, makes it hard to get through the day. I just bought myself another portable CD player, found some old relaxation CDs and plan on using them in the middle of the night if I wake up. Sleep is sometimes a problem for me too, but mostly early morning wake up. 5:20 am today. A little early I would say. Any plans for New Year's Eve? We were invited to a party in the neighborhood, but I am not interested. I feel awkward at parties, drinking is probably the main goal, and that is not how I plan on starting 2018, hungover. So, I will probably just keep it low key and on New Year's Day put the Christmas stuff away. Hey, I feel for you in having to pack everything up, but what a great chance to declutter. Why oh why do things seem to accumulate so fast? I need to go through my closet again and get rid of stuff I just don't wear. Still, I feel for you Lav. Huge job.

Hello to Skendall hope you holidays are going well.

Pauly I am worried about you and wish you would let us know how you are doing.

Have a great AF Friday all.