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*Lu and KC, your recipes sound wonderful! *Lu, your friend definitely needs the rest then. More wine for you! :juggle: *KC, I'm sorry you missed the deadline for the burger contest! Pay attention Girl!! LOL! *Ebony, congrats on the NSVs and compliments! So nice and helps with the motivation! Continued prayers with the job scene! My problem with DD is that she thinks that b/c she sees the big kids do it, she can too! Yikes! She's not normally shy at all. She waits and gets a lay of the land, then finds a spot and jumps right in. Unlike her mama, who has a hard time socially and would rather not be noticed much! *Glouc, it sounds like you got thru work fairly unscathed (except for your friend :tt2:). Are they doing more of this tomorrow? I sure hope they're done now! *Beth, I think it's great that you're just going for it with school. You and Ebony are my heros! *Football - love it! (GO STEELERS!) Actually wished I could've played as a kid! Watch some collage ball too as we have a sort of decent local team. We also watch a lot of soccer. DH has played since he was 5yrs old! I used to be totally in to Ice Hockey but when they went on strike, it ticked me off and I haven't been able to get back into it again. Oh look! All the sports I watch (or used too) are kinda violent! Does that mean anything? LOL! *Glasses - damn bill was $360 after all was said and done! That includes the co-pays for DH too. And that's after insurance! UGH! Most of that was for the dumb sunglasses! I wish I could've just done some transitions lenses or clip-ons but my eyes are so sensitive that she's actually using 2 different darkly tinted lenses together to get me the darkness that I need! Ridiculous! I have a hard time finding sunglasses that are dark enough and they need to be large to cover my entire eye area. NUTS! *Quiz - sounds like fun but I don't FB so I won't be able to find out if I'm Ghetto or not! Bummer! My life may not be complete without knowing! LOL! PJTP: Made another great dinner tonight. This one I didn't have to CHEW forever before swallowing! No tired jaw tonight! LOL! This chicken dish is a keeper and I can't wait to eat the leftovers! Usually I can eat 'em or leave 'em but not this time. I was actually irritated that I've got good restriction b/c I could only eat a small piece! LOL! I wanted MORE! A good week for making dinner! Sometimes, not so much! Comes from liking to experiment. Next week I'm trying a new eggplant recipe. We'll be getting an eggplant in our farm box! I'd probably save us a bunch of money if I'd stop buying so many food mags! Paper too from the printing off of recipes from the internet! I've got stacks of magazines, printed recipes and cookbooks! I'm kind of on a Mexican food kick right now, so I bought a cookbook! Of course! :huh2: Supplements all went down a little hard this AM so I'll start taking them about lunch instead. I'm pretty tight but I don't think I'm too tight. I'm just not used to having to pay so much attention to everything! Having a hard time getting my water in too. Need to drink A LOT slower now and not used to it! DD doesn't know it yet but my mom and I are going to try to get her a pony ride this weekend! There is this "Funderland" place in Sacramento and there are pony rides outside. I haven't told her and I'm going to tell my mom not to either in case they aren't there on Saturday for some reason. She want's to ride a "big horse" so bad! I don't think she realizes how big, "big horses" are so we'll start with a pony first! If that goes over well, my mom is going to set up another time for us to go trail riding at a stable she goes to. DD will ride with her for that one. I haven't been on a horse in over 20 yrs so talk about rusty! LOL! Weather is supposed to get cooler this weekend. FINALLY! The last 2 nights we didn't even bother to open up the house. Just set the AC to 78, put the bedroom fan on and went to bed. Near midnight and it'd still be 80 outside! Yuck! It's 9:30 and it's already 79 outside! Big change from the last couple of nights. Have a great night y'all! TTFN!

Congratulations! So glad it went well!

Kimmie, so glad to see you posting! I was starting to get a little worried! Take care of yourself and follow orders. If you feel ANYTHING, get yourself back to the hospital! Best wishes to you!

*Lu, best wishes to your friends! Taking wife out should help her a lot. You and DH are great friends! Hi to everyone! I was on late last night and it's late afternoon here now and there is NO WAY I can post enough to catch up! Best wishes to everyone! PJTP: DD did GREAT at swim class this AM. I think a switch has turned on for her. She couldn't wait to show her instructor what she could do. She actually used her arms and legs when on the noodle and going across the pool too! It was fun to watch. Had an eye appt today. Yikes! My Rx has changed a bunch and is going to cost me a small fortune from now on. Having the lenses replaced the the pair I already had, I like the frames and saw no reason to change them out. BUT I also now need Rx sunglasses! OUCH!!! DH went too and now has to have readers. All of them should be back in less than 2 weeks. DH and I tried the new cajun place for lunch. Very good. Can't wait to go back but it's a little pricey so it won't be often, unfortunately! Off to the Farmer's Market for some fruit. BBL!

Congratulations to both of you! Candice, so glad you got the news! Better late than never, I always say! :juggle: Holler if you have any questions.

I know how you feel. I'm 5'3 and when I started the process had been fooling with the same 4lbs (240-236) for nearly a year! I'd been higher but had managed to lose some weight on WW but when I gained it back I was able to stop at 240 without gaining ALL of it back! Then the 4lb yo-yo started. I too started getting so uncomfortable. Everything started to hurt. BP was barely managed, etc, etc. I needed to DO something! I feel SO much better now! I've still got a long ways to go but things just are SO MUCH BETTER now!!!

OH MY GOSH! These sound SO GOOD! Can't wait to try them! Did anyone say WHY no peanut butter?! My surgeon recommends it as it's a good Protein load and easy to eat most times. It's part of his soft foods list after surgery. It's always a go-to for me if I'm having trouble with "harder" foods. Or just don't really want to eat but need something to tide me over. I also add it to my hot Cereal for more protein and to help with the holding over longer. I've not heard of peanut butter as a no-no. Maybe it's a calories/fat thing?

No update? Was hoping you'd have some answers by now. Prayers that things are getting taken care of and you come out of this okay!

Welcome! I've heard excellent things about Dr. Felix! Have you tried calling their office and asking them about PCPs who they like working with? Just a thought. Don't know if they could help or not but might be worth a try. I have Kaiser, so it was all done in-house. Best wishes on your journey!

HH, what a wonderful story! Thanks for sharing!

*Oh Kristen, I'm so sorry! How're DS and DD handling it? I don't know that you can recover when a child dies. I think you just keep breathing and waking up each day and living the best you can. *TPG, that was weird. I'm not even sure why the OP even started the thread. Why keep something that was closed, going? YIKES!! *Beth, Congratulations!! That's a lot of damn credits, Girlfriend!! I refuse to watch it. 'Course I don't watch Bachelor or Bachelorette either. They just hold no interest for me! Now, Deadliest Catch, Survivorman or Big Medicine and I'm all over it! I'm getting hooked on Ruby too. Problem is I keep missing the new episodes of Big Med (almost said BM!) and Ruby! *G4e, So sorry for your family! Congrats and Happy B-day to GDS!! Hmmm, something to read! Thanks! *Lu, so sorry for your family! Re: losing a child, it's my worst nightmare with DD. I literally have nightmares about horrible things happening to her and I can't stop it. About makes me crazy. I have always had an active imagination and actually dream in 3-D with sound and color! I don't know if that's all that normal or not. Have no idea! I think part of it has to do with the fact that DD was adopted. My theory is it would be bad enough with a Bio child but since DD's Birthmother handpicked us to raise the daughter she couldn't, then I've put added pressure on myself. I MUST make sure she's okay, that the people we leave her with are "safe" and that we do all we can to raise a happy, healthy, well-rounded child. Yeah, I know, I probably need some serious therapy! PJTP: DD had swim class again this AM and she needs to practice so we went back to the pool late this afternoon after I got my work done. She did great! So proud of her. She finally dunked her head under water by herself! WhooHoo! She's only just 3 but the head instructor wanted to try her in the Level 1 class which usually starts with 4 yr olds, so we have had no idea what would happen or if this would work or not. She wants to swim like the big kids SO BAD! It's still early (2nd day), and we may need to practice in the afternoons if we can but I'm hoping it works. She does NOT want to go back to the "baby" class. (That's what she calls the "mommy and me" class!) So, we'll see how this goes but so far, so good. Made a great dinner tonight. Gave up eating it after a few bites. Took to flippin' long to chew! Orange glazed Pork Chops (was supposed to be tenderloin but the store didn't have any!) and Sauteed Corn. Dammit! I love corn! Definitely have restriction now. Have to really slow down on the drinking even b/c if I go too fast, it hurts for a minute til it goes thru! Start to get stuck on stuff I didn't before but then realize I'm eating it too fast too. Starts to get all clogged up and hurt. After a minute, I'm usually okay but it's throwing me for a curve. Haven't had to worry about it much before now! I hope y'all have a great night!

Good job, Irish! You figured out what was going on and are making changes to fix it. Here's hoping the next fill helps a bunch!

Good job for taking today and making your plan work! The mind is a very powerful tool. Make it work to your advantage! Start a mantra or find a quote or verse that you like and repeat it to yourself and often. Keep checking in here. Find the August '08 threads and jump on our weekly WI thread (Fridays). Jump on to our Anniversary Challenge thread and just pick a number, a couple of lbs and shoot for that by your surgery date. Most important of all, don't isolate yourself and you must stop the negative self talk. Best wishes to you! Take care! You are so worth it!!

So why couldn't he leave for training from your place? Just asking! :smile2: Well, perfection would be breakfast included! Fanny, LOL! *Kat, as always, you have wonderful, stellar, wise advice. *Tap, I forgot to mention it earlier and don't know if you've thought about this but you can both freeze and dry Oregano. I think you can freeze it "fresh" and I think you can also freeze it dry. Not sure tho. But I know you can do either with Oregano. And vases full of Oregano sounds wonderful! Why not? People cut flowers to put in vases, why not fresh herbs?! I think it would make the house smell great! Makes me wish I had an over-abundance of fresh herbs! Have a good night y'all!

What a wonderful result to such a scary situation! You must be over the moon with seeing your baby's heartbeat! I'm so excited for you! Hopefully they can figure out what's going on with you. Take care and keep us updated.

You could do this part-time OR sell it all off and go full-time. I know people who do. There are a couple in our church. Take the cats with you! It is very doable if you're serious about it! *Oh Glouc! Your poor baby! I'd call Animal Control on them again! The cat thing would've been bad! *All of your dogs are so cute! I love dogs! Have a nice breakfast! Sorry he's leaving! Ummm, no incentives for him to NOT leave or to come back ASAP!???!! *Oh Beth! I'm so sorry! Tap and Ebony and Kristen, all have given you great advice. I agree it's all about YOU now. No one else. Make your plans, follow through on your arrangements and GET OUT! If you need anything, let me know. I'm offering you a place to stay for a break, if you need it. We have good colleges in our area but you have to travel at least an hour to get to any of them so that's not reasonable for you. BUT if you need a break, somewhere different, with lots of nature, my place is open to you. I even have a little car you can use while you're here. My heart is breaking for you. I know how serious you took your vows, same as me. You'll have to reconcile that with yourself later but know that you are making a good decision for yourself. (((HUGS))) to you Sister! :smile2: PJTP: DD did pretty good in her first day of swim class. We'll see how the next few days play out. Off to fix dinner. Made the potato salad earlier and now it's off to make the meatloaf. Have a good evening. I'll try to BBL.

Oh Beth. I'm so sorry! Both for your trip and what you heard about DH. I know you've got a lot of good friends on here but PM me if you feel the need. I'm a good listener. Take care of yourself. Just a question for you. Are you SURE about the source(s) re: DH? Just don't act til you can think things thru thoroughly. And TALK with DH. ((((HUGS)))) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To everyone else, y'all were having way too much fun without me! LOL! Thank you all for all the birthday wishes! Day ended normally enough. Didn't make it to the new restaurant. They are closed on Sundays!! AHHHH!!!! Ended up at the lake at our fav place and had a nice dinner anyway! DH and I have eye appts at 11 on Wed and I got a sitter for DD. I'm gonna angle for lunch at the new cajun place afterwards! It's across the driveway from the eye doctor's! Works for me! Lu, where abouts is Brandy~? Kristen and I are going to try to hook up when I head to her area in September. Maybe Brandy~ can slide in too! I'll have to ask her next time she's on! It's going to be a busy week. I've got my regular church work to do plus the state and federal quarterly's have to be in the mail by the end of the week. DD starts swim lessons tomorrow, Wed the eye appts, grocery shopping, laundry, then packing Thurs to head to my mom's on Friday for the weekend with DD. Okay I'm outta here! I hope everyone has a wonderful start to their week! Take care!

SO COOL!!! I would've loved to have had my grandmother's collection, she had a huge and very expensive library but her wishes were that it went somewhere else. :thumbup: And NOT in the family, some library somewhere. She continually had book collectors trying get her to let them have her books. Please don't leave! I would suggest that you put her on your IGNORE list. There is a handy-dandy button just for that purpose. Granted you have to go FIND her in order to do it but it is an option. Oh G! Don't do that again! Take care! Oh Tap, maybe instead of you coming to my house, I should go to yours just so I can see your new books! Have fun! I think that is a WONDERFUL idea!! We've got 2000 sq. ft of a house that needs work! The downstairs, 2 bedrooms and a bath, are torn up. We have the supplies but just not the time! I've got a storage unit and what few closets I have that you can organize while your DH puts the downstairs back together. Then if you want to stay a little longer, I have a kitchen that needs a total gut, a wall taken down, sofetts to be removed or modified, plumbing to be moved, wires to be moved. I want a ceiling fan/light in my LR. The wiring is there but attached to a plug with a light switch. The DR needs to be painted and the carpet ripped up and new wood floors put down. LR needs new floors too. Carpet is trashed and it's not that old! I have nearly 2 acres so you can park anywhere and we can run a cord and a hose! Heck, get the downstairs done and you can move in there til you get the rest of the house done! LOL! Oh and the outside needs painting too! And that's not even touching our bed and bath which ALL needs to be ripped out and re-done as well! I'm making lists, when are you coming?? PJTP: Well, today is my 41st b-day. Nothing exciting. Went to church, went to our fav Mexican food place for lunch. Tonight we're going to a new place for dinner. It's New Orleans fare. I've heard nothing but good about this place so am looking forward to it. So a quiet day. No cards, no cake. DH can't seem to think that far ahead and he got off work this AM. I hope everyone has had a wonderful day! TTFN!

tutornmom, I think that is a great NSV and I'm SURE that's why no loss. I'm on HTC for my BP as well and whenever I forget to take it, I gain 2lbs. Every. Single. Time. I'm hoping to be able to stop mine soon but I'm just now finally keeping it in the normal range with the meds. It's one reason I really started thinking about surgery. With the HTC it was still a little too high. I was looking at more meds soon and just didn't want to go there. I also have major heart/BP history on BOTH sides of my family so I'm probably behind the 8-ball anyway but am doing all I can to at least be healthy as I can be. I am absolutely thrilled for you! I'm in a contemplative mood with my 1 year coming up. It's just amazing to me, this last year. I haven't lost a lot but I am happy to be where I am. Especially when I look at where I was! If I hadn't had surgery, I would've gained. Before surgery I had been playing with the same 4lbs for the better part of a year! I'd be on more BP meds, I could hardly walk with my bone spurs, my back hurt (still does sometimes but it's WAY better!), and on and on and on. Today I turn 41 and without surgery, I would be MISERABLE! Now, I'm excited about how I'm feeling and looking. Just amazing to me. Absolutely amazing!

I have no idea! I would think they'd be calling to set up appts. When I had my surgery, Kaiser - Fresno had only been doing the surgery for a month so I went thru a whole different process than what they're doing now. Do you have the name of the person who called you? I'd be pretty upset with DN! LOL! That happened with us when we got the call about our DD. She was adopted. My caseworker was out of town so her boss called me to say they had a birthmother interested in us and to call her back. Well, that FRIDAY I'd had a bunch of errands to do after work and didn't get home til JUST before 5 to get the message on our machine. The office was already closed by the time I called back! Talk about a long weekend! LOL! It all worked out tho. Two weeks later we had a beautiful baby girl! Try to keep busy this weekend. I know I found this late. Sorry. And really, I'm no help! LOL! Best wishes!!

Sounds good! And you too! Ummm, they couldn't come up with anything better than that?! UGH! How was the Mexican food? Love, love, love Mexican food! Thank you! I'm going to have to go find it. I've liked a couple of their songs before, might like this one too. I don't get to listen to much lately. I did have a nice Saturday, thank you. I hope yours was nice as well! Yep, she loved it. The only reason I got her away from the pool is that I offered her a cheeseburger kids meal from Carl's Jr. She hardly eats any of it, a couple of bites of burger and a few fries and she drinks the milk. She wants the toy! LOL! She'd been asking for a "star burger" a couple of days ago and we hadn't been in a really long time, so I kinda threw the better part of a day away on junk. She did have some fruit today and a huge carrot before bed! Wow re the step-daughter. Glad it wasn't just a cover for asking for something. Maybe she has grown up and is reaching out to her family. Sometimes getting married or having a kid causes some major growing up. It would be strange if there's bad history. You have all of that and you're just waiting for the other shoe to drop b/c that's all you've ever had to go on. Let's hope it's changed for good! PJTP: Finished the day off quietly. A few movies, dinner, then bed for DD. Hope y'all have a good night!

Oh my GOODNESS!! That is too flippin' funny G!!!!! I'm sure it wasn't funny at the time but oh my! And yes, I've done that too! Oh my heart! <sigh> LOL!

Warning! Another long-ass post from me! Yeah, shocking, even for me! Morning! Okay well it's 4:30 here now. First time on the computer today. WHOO HOO!!!!!! You too! I've always hated weeding. Now where we live, I don't have beds to weed. It all gets whacked with the weeder or the mower! AND DH does ALL of it! The only thing I do outside is keep my garden! Heck, if he can cook, let him at it! DH is pretty good in the kitchen too. I think it's a firefighter requirement! LOL! LOL! Have fun mowing! I actually don't mind doing it, used to at the place we used to rent but now with DD, she'd insist on being on it with me and I just don't want to go there. Good luck and try to have fun! Sorry about no air! Y'all aren't used to temps like this normally, if I remember right. Well, since we're about the same age, I think you're already dated! LOL! Oooooooo a massage! I'm hoping to take advantage of that when I'm up at Black Butte in Sept! I had a Hot Rock way too long ago and LOVED IT!!!! UGH!! re the step-daughter! PJTP: DD and I hit the HS pool today. They open at 10 and I think we were there before 10:30. Didn't leave til nearly 2. Both of us were starving even tho we ate at their snack bar. It's all crap so I tried to keep it to a minimum. Only 1 of each hot pocket, corn dog and ice cream sandwich and we split them. Oh and 2 bottles of water. We came home and ate. Last time, I took our own food but for some reason, it didn't even occur to me today. Next time, I'll be sure to pack our own again. Now we're watching Shrek 2. DD gets a kick out of it. Loves Puss in Boots! Puss reminds DH and I of a cat we used to have. Better than Puss. Way cooler and best damn cat in the universe! Miss that old guy! DD would've LOVED him. And actually he would have adored her too. He loved kids!

Wow! Ummm, just, wow! Okay! Think she has some anger management issues! I also think I'll send her my bar of soap! I don't need it as much as she does! I was actually thinking about hitting the report post button but while I was trying to decide WHICH post of hers to actually report, I noticed that the thread had been closed and she'd been suspended! Whew! Found the chicken thread too and there really is just something WRONG with her! I'm not much of a prude but WOW! And talk about TMI!! ~~~~~~~ Oh man! It's getting to the point where the weather report on the news is just as bad to watch as the headlines and "breaking news!" UGH! More 100+ at least til NEXT weekend! Go away already! YUCK!!!!! :biggrin: I'm going to bed! Night all!

YAY, KRISTEN!!!!!! So completely happy for you! WhooHoo! Prayers it sticks! Misty, a loss is a loss! I think you're doing great!