mdrai

Hey girls... lunchtime check-in... glad to see you all are so chatty today! I am pooped! I just got back from helping my widower neighbor/friend clean. I was there from 10-12:45. We did make a dent. A dent. He helped. It's still a horrendous mess in 98% of the place, but when you walk in, the eating area of the kitchen + floor of kitchen + little bit of the floor going into the family room is CLEAR & VACUUMED! When I left, the kitchen table had a fresh green & white tablecloth on it w/a Juicy Orange Yankee Candle burning in the center of it, w/3 empty chairs pushed under it. The uncle kept saying how much the son was going to like it when he gets home from school, and really, that's who I'm doing this for! So I suggested a nice family dinner @ the table tonight & I think they may do it! So I feel good. The uncle & I also got "permission" for me to go there during the week & help the uncle organize the kitchen, so I will arrange that with him. I told them that I was happy to keep coming for snippets of time as long as I saw that they were attempting to keep it maintained... so we'll see. Honestly, part of me wants to cry now, for the horror of it, but mostly I feel good that I'm helping folks who need it. TTYL...

Good Morn, Vi's! I'm up & running this a.m.... Book Fair, cleaning, working, here & there... make it a good one!

I'm getting excited for you, Judy!!! Oh yeah, & Kris, too... heh heh... Good day... have to do a bit more work this eve... then another busy day tomorrow. Tomorrow morn I am going to go over to my neighbor's house to help him clean! :thumbup: Wish me luck!! G.night!!

Good Morn, Girlies~~ Another busy day! Besides the usual I'm taking dd BACK to the doc for a spirometry test for her asthma/breathing/coughing thing that's been going on for 2 months now (grrrrr... wish they'd figure it out!), then am helping w/ Book Fair set up @ Noon (at least I'm not in charge of it anymore... helping is much easier than RUNNING it!), then loads of work & maybe we'll go out to dinner tonight @ a chili / pool table place called "Hard Times Cafe" because they have FREE chili night tonight for everyone w/a purchase of anything... it's National Chili Day or something like that... so that fits my budget and sounds fun! Make it a great one, sweethearts!

Now yer acting more like my brain fart!! Awwww, I'm just joshin' w/you!! (& you said "fart"!! )

OH yeah...still not sure what to give up for Lent...I know I SHOULD give up chocolate...but I think I am setting myself up for failure w/ that one. Or SUCCESS?? It's just 40 days... I think you could & SHOULD do it!!

So Judy's giving up exercise for Lent! And I quote: Yes, Michelle, I have turned slothful in terms of my exercising. That's what I hope to give up for Lent.

Good Ash Weds, Vi's~~ Another busy day on tap... I'll be here, there & everywhere... cleaning, laundry, working, coffee w/my friend, grocery shopping, taking dkids to activities, the Y, & ending up the day w/a PTA Exec. Bd. meeting here @ the house to go over the budget & forecast out for the rest of the school year. Phew! Just typing it exhausts me! Suzie... loved your mistype: I was absolutely georgous today. At first I thought, "You go Girl! Love yourself!"... but then it clicked... but I still like to read it that way, anyway. I hope we all get to the point when we'll type sentences like that!! Terri... That is a major accomplishment w/the budget! I've tried & tried but have never been successful. I admire you for it!! Judy... I never took you for a slothful person... are you sure it's legal to give up a bad habit that's not a bad habit?? Pam & haydee... "Truly Scrumptious... you too are Truly Scrumptious..." that's my fav CCB song! Kat... I would love to meet that Granny!! She sounds like the one on "Beverly Hillbillies!" lol!! Laura... Glad at least your narrowing it down, even tho it's not the best news... the cat one is hard, I know!! Janie... I knew you'd have the hair answers!! TracyK... You know that if you had something you wanted to TALK about, there are lots of us here who would answer the phone when you called, right?? Cuz' we love you!! TracyKS, Jen... Hi!! Make it a good one sweeties!!

"I am in my pjs...gonna have left overs...play scrab and watch the boob tube!" Sounds deeee-lightful, PamELa!! Relax a little for me!! (after working, I have to staple 400 PTA newsletters! :smile: AND fold laundry!)

So Judy... are you practicing giving up your "trucker talk" for Lent? :smile: Love that movie, Haydee! What fun!! I made a traditional shrove Tuesday night dinner for the family... bacon, sausage, eggs, & pancakes: plain, banana, AND choc chip -- AND I warmed the real maple syrup! Am I good or am I good? Even better -- I didn't eat any pancakes! -- just a few slices of bacon & a strawberry vanilla yogurt protein shake! Yay me! Now I'm back @ the computer working, working, working! If anyone ever needs to know anything about Canadian Arbitral & Labor Relations Law, I'm your gal! :cursing:

Haydee, that's not hi-jacking the thread... it's what the thread's supposed to be about! Remember, this is a band support site! We've just turned it into an EVERYTHING support site, thank goodness! Oh, & your hair queries I leave to our resident hair expert, Janie, to answer. I haven't a clue!

Yes Haydee, Yes!! You're describing EXACTLY how I feel mentally/emotionally & how I physically can eat, too!! Anything! Any amount! Any time! I HATE IT!!! Self-control. pffffffffft! If I had that, I wouldn't have gotten the band!

A quick lunch-time check in!! No kinklings for me, either, Judy. (They're German fried powdered-sugar donuts that are made & eaten only in the weeks leading up to Lent, esp. TODAY!) Nope, no, nuh-uh!! (It must be the devil's last temptation of me before LENT!) All my mom's grandkids call her the traditional English "Nana". I love it & that's what I want to be called. So many of those other names (MeeMaw??) sound too country for my taste. DH's mom is "GaBa", because there wasn't a name she wanted (she didn't want the Yiddish Bubbe) & that's what ds could pronounce at first, so it stuck! She's not thrilled w/it, but I figure then she should've found one she wanted then... + I think it's cute cuz' he made it up all by himself. Awwwww. Both grandad's are Pop-Pop (which can get confusing so you have to use context to figure out which one is being discussed). Am burning a Cafe au Lait Yankee Candle on my desk to create a nice atmosphere while I'm chained to my computer all day working!! Like it's actually tricking me! HA! But it is nice... Back to the grindstone...

Good Tuesday Morn, Vi's~~ I owe, I owe, so off to work I go!! That's my theme song today! :w00t: Make it a great one, Vi's!!

Good Monday Morn, Vi's~~ Ok, life is starting to speed up again... I'm like a the little engine that could... "busy busy busy busy"... I'm fine when I keep going, but if I sit down it's the kiss of death!! I'm definitely a physics theorem: an object in motion stays in motion; an object at rest stays at rest! LOL! I'm back up to 248 again... grrr... I seriously have spent a YEAR now bouncing between 232 & 250... the only time I feel or know I have the band is if I eat a hunk of meat, then I have to chew chew & only eat a bit... but EVERYTHING ELSE can go down... the last 2 or 3 times I've gone to my band doc she's told me I'm maxed out on fill & then chatted about nutrition stuff. Which would be fine -- IF THAT WERE THE PROBLEM! But it's not. I need more fill! + now my doc is self-pay... & I dread going in & paying $200 or whatever for a "chat" about nutrition! DUH! So... I think I'm going to call/email her & see if I can get a referral for a flouro fill & then MAKE those folks do it! Seriously, I would rather be reduced to a few sips of soup than how I'm living now. I eat well, but just too much; I exercise now where I never did before... I need to band to work just a little bit more for me. Mentally, I'm back where I was 2 years ago... "bargaining" w/myself: "If you do just pro shakes every other day, and then just 1 small meal or lc or salad the other days, then blah blah blah whatever" -- & then I get mad @ myself because that wasn't supposed to be the deal w/the band, it's supposed to be eating NORMALLY, just less, yes?? But it's just a whole fight/can of worms I don't know if I have the time/patience to wage/open right now. Bleh. Sorry. I've been ranting lately, huh?? Sorry! Make it a good day!! Keep in motion!! :hurray:

Good Evening... Am getting situated on the couch w/the laptop in front of the tv for the Oscars... good Sunday night! I did speak w/my friend/neighbor today, and I'm "scheduled" to go over on Friday morning to help him "tidy up"... we had a great talk... he's open & honest about it... acknowledges the issues... I told him to pick where we would start & we'd work 'til noon & then see where we were then... & that I'd commit to coming over every Friday 'til the job was done... just the "public" areas kitch/familyroom... not the garage, basement, or upstairs... but if he's willing to try, then I'm willing to help... so we'll see... Ok, off to snuggle up & enjoy the celebs! Enjoy the eve!

Thanks for the responses, girls... it helps to get some perspective on it... obviously, by how much I typed, I was (& am) concerned & uncertain how to proceed. There are 2 SILs who I thought might step up & take charge of the situation, but the BIL last night said that the dad got so mad at one of them one time when she cleaned up that it made her cry and she pretty much washed her hands of the whole thing. So. I feel like he & I have a good, honest relationship and that I could completely take any flak he might send my way... he would NOT make me cry!... also that coming from me, suggestions might be heard... so we'll see... like I said, this isn't exactly a "current" situation, but it is MORE a mess than ever before... seriously, you'd all be flabbergasted I think if you saw the amount of stuff we're talking about... I need to go over there today to make sure they put the food I took over away AND to get my bag back (before it disappears forever)... I'll feel out the situation & see... hmmmmmmm... Other than that, I'm still in my pj's unshowered. Lovely! Guess where I"m headed?? BBL... SMILE!

Busy day... went to Longaberger Basket Bingo for the HS Soccer Boosters but didn't win... "almost" a few times!... my mom got to shout "Bingo!" & she won a nice basket filled w/movie stuff... candy, popcorn, Blockbuster card... cute! Moral dilemma of the day... my friend/neighbor who's wife died of cancer on Xmas eve (w/the 10yo son)... their house is in SHAMBLES... seriously, it could be on one of those organizing tv shows... it was never "House Beautiful", but it's WAY worse now... w/ 2 big guys & a kid living there... I don't know how they manage it... so the dilemma is... do I do anything? I've offered to help, I've talked w/him, & tonight I had to go over to take some meals & my friend wasn't home & I slipped on trash on the kitchen floor so I picked it up... then I picked up some more... & then before I knew it I had a whole trash bag full... & the BIL is standing there saying, "John's going to be mad at me if you clean up much more" and I said, "Tell him not to stand me up" (we'd pre-arranged this time for me to go over... he was supposed to "pay" me w/a G&T, lol)... & I said, "It's all trash. None of it is anything else." & it was... empty cracker boxes, lids from things, straws... I think since it's so messy, when something drops they let it or don't notice or something... it's NO environment for a kid to be in, I know that... it's not lethal... there's no spoiled food or flies or anything like that... mostly just piles of papers & boxes & layers & layers of stuff... everywhere! I know they're still adjusting to life w/out the mom... & I'm sure every woman who goes in there has the same fantasies of cleaning it as I do... in fact, I know 10 gals who'd go w/me to do it... there's no judgment in it... just wanting to help them... but is it my place to talk w/him about it? Or is this just the way some folks are/live & it's not my business? I don't know. I know I freaked out the BIL by the teensy tiny bit I did tonight. I actually brought the bag home w/me & put it in my trashcan! I don't know... a group of gals cleaned it up pretty well before the mom came home from the hospital the last time... but in a blink it was back to shambles... so I feel like he'd have to be part of the process... but again... is it my place to be the motivating force behind it? Is it possible? The mom couldn't keep up w/his mess... how will the BIL? My thoughts go 'round & 'round... I want to help, but don't know if I should or even if I did if it would stick... + is it my business?? Discuss.

Good Saturday Morn, Vi's~~ Another busy day here at the R household... everyone going every which way at once! I think the Winter "lull" in our schedule is beginning to wane... March begins the Spring sports season + other activities get geared up... March - June will be crazy, which is the usual around here, I guess... hope I rested up enough in Jan/Feb to get through them!! lol! Make it a great day, Vi's!

Good night, my lovelies!:tt2:

Good Morning... Couldn't get on earlier... hmmm... now don't have much time... have to pick up dd & take her BACK to the doctor re: her coughing/sinuses... poor kid's had a rough winter. Kat! What a story!! But she's home, and the next phase of her healing can begin. You're amazing! & Denise! You're amazing, too! We're all amazing, when you come to think about it!! We Vi's ROCK!! each in our own ways, in our own little corners of the world! Make it a great day, everyone!!

:tt2::tt2::tt2::tt2::tt2::tt2::tt2:

Laura, No I am not feeling stimulated yet. I don't think he's rubbing me the right way. :tt2:

That's weird... I made apricot glazed pork roast two nights ago!! It was yummy. Great minds!!

EXACTLY Judy... we need to make OURSELVES the PRIORITY for once... for just on little itty bitty weekend... they'll all survive just fine w/out us!!