WOW! it's Wednesday- What's new?

Hugs back at ya!  Thanks, Honey

Good morning OFF family,
The weather here in Kalamazoo is rainy but it's warm...so I'm not complaining.  Hopefully it won't be raining this afternoon and I can take a short walk during breaktime.

Nothing new to report on my end. You all have a blessed day.

Morning Off.
Kinda cloudy here in My part of mi today  but Don't look like rain,   I hope its dry I want to get out and pick up the winter litter in the yard.  I love the springtime!  
My house is quiet today   too quiet.  No little jabberbugs around.    They are doing fine I have already called this am.  I am delighted when my little charges go to great placements  but I hate the quiet here.   And I say I want out of foster care??  
Stepdad has decided its time for him to go face life alone at his house when we take him home for church this weekend.   I will be praying he does ok  and I know he has my siblings and family's to watch over him.   The last thing we can do for mom.   Our promise to make sure Ted is ok.
Miami countdown!!   as I tell the kids   only 7 sleeps till we go!  No one can tell I am excited can they ?    total adult time with a great hubby and good friends  seeing an area we have never been to.    
Prayers going up from our house to all of yours that either need them or want them!!!   

Good morning all.  I'm sitting in my son's kitchen listening to the train horn.  They live in Durand which is sort of a railroad hub or something.  They're known as the Railroaders I think.  Any who, it's a sunny morning here.  They're calling for rain this afternoon, but most of the snow has melted.  I could see tulips peeking out of the soil out front yesterday.  A sure sign....
I've gained a couple of pounds over the last couple of noncompliant weeks.  This is going to be a battle from here out, because I have found, much to my dismay, that I can eat anything (in moderation).  Nothing makes me sick anymore.  Damnit.  I'll just have to reach inside and use that willpower that has been unused most of my life.  Sure hope I can find it.  I've done pretty well for 8 months I think.  I'm still below the goal my Dr. set for me, but not to my personal goal which is 25 lbs lower than my Dr.'s goal.
Today I'm making a turkey meatloaf for the kids for dinner.  Yesterday and the day before it was chicken.  Tomorrow will be chicken too.  They love their chicken!
Helping them out with the baby is a joy.  Getting up at 4 am to feed him isn't a problem for me.  It gives the kids an extra hour of sleep, and being teachers, they both need it.  It's been a tough week for Jessica being back to work.  She's exhausted.  Don't we all remember those days?  Well, sort of anyway. :)  The baby rules, but he's so cute it doesn't matter.
Well, off to clean the kitchen and make a chocolate protein banana smoothie for breakfast.
Take care all.  Brenda R.  Good to see you posting again.  Being a Gram rules!
Jan

Well I'm up and ready to go back to work today.  I do hope I can make it all day.  I should be able to, given it's a desk job, but we'll see.  My boss is wonderful, so she won't care if I decide to do 1/2 day.  I work with a bunch of nurses, so they'll take good care of me!  We're short one nurse right now, because she's been in the hospital with pneumonia. 

My DH is getting a new sleep apnea machine today.  I don't remember what it's called.  It does something different for inhaling and exhaling.  I hope he uses this one like he's supposed to and eventually finds out how much it helps. 

Nothing more planned today. 

We are planning to take all our kids to Disney World in December (yep, all 11 of us).  We spent a lot of time last night researching.  I'm using a travel agent, but wanted to know what kind of questions to ask her and to know what to tell her we want.  There are direct flights out of Des Moines on a couple of airlines, so that will be nice.  I'm as excited as the grandkids!  We had planned to do a cruise to Hawaii or Alaska for our 40th anniversary, but we both decided that we would enjoy this more since time with our kids and grandkids is more fun than anything else we do.  The kids have all agreed to pay their own airfare.  G'pa and I will pay for Disney, hotel, meals that will be included in our Disney package and a couple of special events that we all want to attend, one being Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party and the other a meal with all the Disney Princesses.  Miss Sena, age 4 by then is in heaven dreaming about that!  Jarod, age 6 by then is trying to decide what kind of character meal he wants to attend, because as he says "Princesses are dumb". 

Oh grandkids are the best!

Wanda

Good mornin', ya'll.

Well, it's Wednesday.  All you working folk are looking toward the weekend.

Today I see Dr. A, my chemo oncologist.  We will discuss the results of my liver ultrasound.  Yesterday I went to have labs done and the tech read me the report on the liver and about all I understood was 'unremarkable' and 'smooth surface'. So it sounds OK.  My DIL is meeting me there.  She and my daughter want to be sure we all know what is going on.  Two sets of ears are better than 1.  We both always have a list of questions. After the Dr. visit I will have my chemo treatmant.

Our son is deployed and since he left we have sent him 3 packages.  So far, he has gotten one.  That was while they were in Haiti. The ones I mailed Feb 2, and Feb 10th, still not there.  HMMM. I guess it's different when he is on a ship. Once they get 'in country' I hope the packages catch up to him.

It's gonna be another lovely warm day here. I hope to get out and pick up some of the pine cones and such all over the back lawn.  I hate the fur trees that surround the back yard. Unfortunately they are not on my property, or I would be tempted to hire someone to take them down!

I am finally losing weight again after I got this fill tweaked to almost perfection. It is amazing how fast I went back to bad eating habits after I had an unfill and could eat anything I wanted again. With a correct fill I not only can't eat certain foods (pasta, rice, bread), but the foods I do eat I need less of, and I have no cravings to eat the junk I used to eat.  Yeah, Lap Band!!!  Wouldn't trade it for a King's ransom!

Have a fantabulous day.

 

 

Good Morning, All

I was up early today.  One of my "girls" decided I'd had enough sleep, so she kept wiggling the bedroom closet door.  Every time I'd tell her to stop she would, then 10 minutes later, she'd do it again.  I finally caved in and got up.  Guess I'm well trained.

Today I have to take a 3 hour mandatory Infection Control class to renew my RN license.  It's supposed to be a nice day, and I took the rest of the day off, and will do some bumming around as well, shopping, and just enjoying the 50 degree weather.  Fifty degrees!  Whoopie!  It's been a long winter.

Sleep has been elusive the past few nights.  I made an appointment with the retirement system for next Thursday to get an idea of what to expect re: retiring this year as opposed to next year.  I'm pretty much decided that this year will be it.  If I'm careful, I should be fine.  I've pretty much had it with all the drama and bull**** at work, and in the entire state system.  Probably much of the problem is with my increasing feeling that I've worked for 48 years and it's time to stop.  I'm getting too old to work well with others, I think.  I have little patience, and all the various personalities that I work with are trying what patience I do have.  And that's just the staff.  I actually think they're worse than the clientele.

sunshine...lollipops and rainbows.  I just can't seem to see them right now when it comes to work.

So, as of May, I may be one of the gainfully UNemployed.  The figures will tell.  I just hope they have something good to say.

Sorry to be such a downer this morning.  I guess I'll get moving and get outside and enjoy the Spring-like weather.  That always lifts my mood.

Everyone have a good day.

Candy

Hi Margo and everyone on OFF,

I feel spring in the air even if the mornings are a *****illy!  We're supposed to get a lot of rain starting tonight and through the weekend.  Thank God it's not snow!  The temps are supposed to be around 60 and I'm thrilled!

I don't have anything really to talk about, not here anyway.  :P  Too personal.

Margo, I think it's wonderful you found your birth mom ten years ago.

I don't have the usual doctor appts and stuff today so I almost feel at a loss, lol.

Have a wonderful day, everyone!
Cassie

Hi Margo and my OFF family:

It's kinda cloudy in my part of West Michigan ... but the sun is trying to come out. I'm going to go to see "Crazy Heart" today. I've decided I've got to have something to do everyday or I'll just sit on my fat ass every day and never leave the house. I'm becoming more and more like my mother ... she sits in her pajamas all day and never gets out of her recliner, sleeps most of the day. I have to get a life! So today's job is to go to a movie, do a little shopping and then come home. Tomorrow, I have to go renew my license plates and there's some stuff at the store near the Secretary of State's office that I need too. I may hit the pool, too, either Thursday or Friday.

I got rid of my old lift recliner last night. The woman who wanted it a couple of weeks ago to give to a disabled vet friend finally came over to get it. I gave it away; I had advertised it for $20 but I was glad to give it away because I got it for free from Paulette and Earl. And now I have more room again in my living room.

An old friend from college called me last night ... well, I called her first and then she returned my call. We worked on the college newspaper together and we used to be really close ... the last Christmas I spent in Illinois, I spent on her living room floor. On Christmas Eve, I couldn't get my car started because it was 80 below wind chills and I parked outside. So her husband came out to Alqonquin to pick me up and take me to my brother's house in Hanover Park (they lived in the same town) for our family gathering. Then I spent Christmas Eve night with Brenda and Clif, and we watched "It's a Wonderful Life" together ... their daughter Rita was just a year old at the time. I still watch the movie on Christmas Eve every year because of that. Anyway, Brenda S. and I had a good chat, I told her about my layoff (she is a reporter on a newspaper in St. Charles, Ill.) and asked if there were any jobs on her paper. I don't really want to go back there because her paper is owned by the same company that owned my first paper. 

Margo, I'm glad you have enjoyed your time with your birth mom. Happy anniversary!

Well, I need to check on a few other sites and get in the shower if I'm going to go to the movie.

Have a good day.

Morning Margo & OFFr Friends,

It's wonderful seeing you start the thread today and I sure hope that your day works out even better than planned, what a great story that is about finding your birth mother and having a great connection as a result!  As for the job, yup, it is what is, being employed is a good thing these days, that's what I tell myself every morning as I get ready for my job. . .

I am really seeing how this winter has affected me, as the past few days I have felt much better than I have in the past month, even if winter is not "officially" behind us, this has been a promise of better weather and longer days, which I really needed.  Now I am planning my list of house projects, things I need to do such as finish painting, waterproof the new deck, as well as the front one (that should be at least a 2 weekend project), then there is my backyard, I want to start the process of landscaping it, which will be a slow process, as it costs a good deal of money to do such things, but I do have my friend Owen, who has volunteered to help me do the labor and he has a good friend who is a plant seller (on the volume level), he said she wants to help out too and that she gets lots of returns, people over purchasing or changing their minds and since always has more than she can possible return, she will give me some.  I also want to plant a vegetable garden, nothing too big, as I am a relative newbie, but I've been reading the Farmer's Almanc, which I get emailed to me, on suggestions and ideas and how to create compost and so on, oh and then too, I have to get my basement cleaned out, time to get rid of unwanted stuff that has collected there over the past 7 years and then I need to waterproof the back wall.  This home ownership is certainly quite a lot to handle at times, but I do love my home and pray to God that somehow I can keep it, as the taxes are squeezing me harder and harder in conjuction with the way everything else has gone up over the past 7 years, that with my earnings having gone south, oh well, these are problems of privilege and I have more to be grateful for than many, so I will leave you with that and get back to the work at hand. . .

Have a wonderful day and prayers and positive thoughts for all!

Hugs, Laureen