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Hi Lin and Aliza,
Thanks to you both for the warm welcome!
Aliza -- what a wonderful wedding celebration! I think for a once-in-a-lifetime event like that, you just have to enjoy all the goodies, right? I know I would! My dh and younger daughter attended a wedding last month (older daughter is in college) and while it wasn't lavish, there was still plenty of temptation. Plus, when I saw photos of myself I was like .. yuck!! I'm old and fat .. . <sigh>.
So, I was curious about your elliptical comment. Why do you only record 30 minutes if you're on it for an hour? I track clock time when I input my exercise b/c I've read so many articles about how exercise machines aren't accurate with calories burned, etc. (and how they can they be if we don't input our own height, weight, etc.?).
Lin -- congratulations on hitting your goal. That's wonderful! And right before a "food" holiday, too! I saw a cool note of FB a while back that these are holi-"days" not "weeks" which hit home for me. Just because I see pumpkin-y stuff in the store, doesn't mean I have to buy and eat it. And just because Christmas candy and desserts are already out, again, doesn't mean I have to eat it all up. So what were some of your success tips? I'm just now getting back into the routine of exercise/good eating and any tips are very welcome!
Hope ya'll have a good day!
~Marla0 -
Saw this and thought it was pretty cool:
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Hello ladies!
I've been running around half nuts the past few days. How can I be so busy when I'm retired?? I think I was WAY more organized when I was still working. I seemed to get more accomplished back then than I do now. We also had a couple big stormy days and my power was out off and on. I was afraid to use the computer until the storm was over. We had several really crazy power surges and my well kept kicking off. I didn't want to blow up the laptop, so I just stayed off the computer for about a day and a half.
Welcome Marla! Happy to have another lovely lady in our awesome little group! At 5'4" and 150ish, I can't imagine that you look at all fat, but I know it is all in our own perception. I am just a bit under 5'5" and am feeling pretty svelte at around 155 right now. I would love to get down another 10 pounds, but am enjoying where I'm at for awhile. My son took a picture of us together last weekend and I can see my face looks a lot slimmer than just a couple months ago. Progress!!
I went to a big fancy wedding about 4 years ago. My son and daughter-in-law have friends who were getting married in Italy (in the groom's home town). My daughter-in-law was in the wedding, so we were invited. We had to scrimp and save in order to go, but it was the trip of a lifetime. Groom's father was the town butcher, which is THE MAN in small Italian towns, and I believe his family paid for most everything. The wedding activities stretched out for nearly a week with a big welcome BBQ, sightseeing and shopping trips, and then the entire wedding day. The wedding was in an old Catholic church that was built in the 1600's. The priest said it was his first "mixed" marriage, as the groom was Italian Catholic and the bride was Afghani. The wedding reception was at a castle! We had 4 courses and were moved around 3 different times. Appetizers in the garden, dinner in the castle, and wedding cake and dessert around the pool. It was absolutely fabulous! Here was something really odd, though. The groom told all of us Americans that we were NOT to wear black to the wedding. Of course, I had a beautiful black dress already and had to buy a new one. I shopped for a long time to find a dress and ended up with a red one (which I didn't really think was that appropriate either, but I was running out of time and at least it wasn't black). When we all got to the wedding there were LOTS of the Italian guests wearing black dresses, so I have no idea where that directive came from. While the trip was delightful, I do remember feeling like a fat old lady and wishing I had been about 20 pounds lighter (especially after seeing the pictures). One of my dreams is to go back to Italy, and perhaps other countries, feeling much more confident in my appearance.
Aliza - I'm not familiar with the fish pose, I will have to look that one up. I'm a yoga novice, to be sure, but I do enjoy it a lot.
Hope you ladies are all having a wonderful day!
~Rae0 -
So nice to meet you, Rae -- thank you for the kind welcome
That fancy wedding (in Italy!) sounds simply amazing and magical, like something from a novel or movie. You should definitely write it all down in detail. I'm mean, seriously, a wedding reception in a castle?? eeeek!! And I bet you were lovely in that red dress, too!
Being retired sounds really nice, although I know it's busy, too. I work full-time, plus have a couple of part-time side gigs and try to keep the house halfway decent and we have a teenage daughter who's a sophomore in high school. Our other daughter is a sophomore in college. The good news is that she's at our alma mater, so that's cool, and we know the campus, people, etc.; the bad news is that she's over 3 hours away. <sigh> At least she's coming home for Thanksgiving next week!!
yay!
Talk to ya'll later,
~Marla0 -
Hi Ladies!
I'm so glad it's Friday -- I love my job, but it really leaves me exhausted. Was really proud that I've managed to work out every day this week (woot!), eventhough it was really hard for me to walk away from either work projects that were undone or things around the house. Everyone still ate, had clothes to wear and was happy, so it's a win, right?
So what are you all doing for Thanksgiving? This will be my 2nd year *not* cooking a big meal. I think I was probably born in the wrong century because I really enjoy planning ahead for a big family meal, ironing the tablecloths and napkins, polishing silver, the whole 9 yards. But last year our oldest was a college freshman and home for just a few days and I didn't want to waste time with prepping, cooking and putting away a big meal so my dh talked me into doing a restaurant Thanksgiving. I'll admit -- I had some misgivings about Thanksgiving (ha!) eating out and drug my heels on it. But . . .but. .. when the meal was over and our extended family said their goodbyes (yes!) and we drove away, I thought, "You know, it's not so bad not having china to wash by hand, dry and put away, silver to carefully wash, tons of leftovers to pack up . . .". It was the not being exhausted part that got me b/c ever since I've gotten out of shape, I find that my energy flags pretty much when I need it most for physical tasks, but I push on to finish up and get grumpy in the process. So, we're doing the same thing this year and I'm actually kinda glad. Plus, I think it will be easier to resist overeating for days after Thanksgiving b/c I won't be looking at all those leftovers in my fridge. And I still cook a big Christmas meal, so there's that.
I'm also hoping/planning/expecting to keep up my exercise routine next week as well (maybe even add some new things in since I'm *not* cooking!). How is everyone else planning ahead to stay on track? I'd love any tips or suggestions you've found that work.
I hope everyone has a lovely Friday night!
Best,
~Marla0 -
Not many people in Israel celebrate Thanksgiving. But ever since I realized that I'd planned a business trip to the US every year at Thanksgiving time for about 4 years, I decided to start an American tradition in Israel. We have about 5 couples over now every year. Everyone brings something. One friend always bakes a beautiful turkey.
One of the women has been vegan for the past two years so there's always an interesting vegan main course, too.
We play games and do karaoke and generally goof around.
I love the leftover turkey but throw out any leftover pumpkin pie since that's my weak spot.
I used to clock the calories the MFP program shows until I bought the new elliptical machine with a digital thingy that works (my old one didn't) and saw the MUCH lower number. I'd much rather use the MFP number but people in here said it's not as accurate. Where did you read that the machines are inaccurate?
That Italian wedding sounds AMAZING! Wow! What fun!
I know that lack of energy thing really well. Before I started working out every day (about 2 months ago) it seemed like I was always pooped. I have so much more energy now that I'm in shape.
Almost 1 a.m. here. Time to get to bed.
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My legs are really achy. I've been waking up and feeling them protesting but have decided to ignore it. Today I decided to be kind to them and give them a day off the elliptical machine. I'm going to try to take in 1000 calories instead of my usual 1200.
One of my sons, my dil and their 2 boys flew to Chicago for my dil's cousin's wedding and to visit with my daughter and her family. They were there for 10 days and due to fly back Sat. but had a delay for awhile due to the snow storm. Had a text message at 3 a.m. that they'd made it home. I was starting to get a little worried because I hadn't heard from them and had tried calling my daughter and she wasn't picking up.
There's a series of yoga poses called The Warrior poses (1,2, and 3). I read a cute article the other day about them saying that it's useful to become a 'warrior' instead of a 'worrier'. I'm not THAT terrible a worrier but this dil is pregnant and in her first trimester and I was already imagining the worst. I wish my kids wouldn't tell me SO early on in pregnancies.
My weight bounces between 158.5 and 159.5. I'm happy to be in the 150's but sure do wish it was the mid-150's and not so close to 160.
Bought some new clothes yesterday. Great sales going on. I kept trying on the mediums and a larger size in pants and the sales person kept admonishing me. Happy to be in the smalls and lower size pants but not used to it yet. The 10 lbs. I've lost is great but I think it's the elliptical machine that's making the biggest difference in shape. Right?
How's it going for all of you?
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I'm having a hard time getting motivated to workout this week (well, yesterday and today, so far). I've been having a lot of joint pain lately, thanks in part to my medication and probably also the cold weather. It is getting down into the 20's at night and only mid-40's during the day. A bit cold for me to go out walking. My favorite aquasize classes are cancelled for the week and the high school swim team is using the pool for practice during my usual morning time, so I can't swim laps either. I did about 20 minutes of my own yoga flow, but spent the rest of the morning in the kitchen, looking at recipes, and deep cleaning the bathroom.
I was getting excited to try some new recipes for Thanksgiving, as my DIL is allergic to eggs and dairy and I'm gluten-free. Was planning to get more creative this year to accommodate dietary restrictions. I was actually going to set the table with the good dishes and cloth napkins, rather than the usual paper plates and buffet style meals. We have had as many as 30 people in the past, so no table big enough for everyone! My eldest son and family were the only ones coming this year, so it would be a small gathering. Then my son called to say my grandson is sick and they have decided to stay home this year for Thanksgiving. Everyone else has other plans. So now I have nobody to cook for except my husband. He doesn't want a big meal for just the two of us, so now what? After I had a good cry over it, now I'm ready to think of something else to do. Maybe we'll bundle up and go for a hike or go to a movie. I guess life is full of changes and we just need to go with the flow.
My weight seems to be hovering around the mid 150's (154-155). Ideally, I'd like to be about 145, but I'm feeling OK with where I'm at right now. Maybe I'm just not inspired to put in the hard work to get there at the moment. I did take a couple things out of my closet this past weekend (too big) and put them in the charity box. I was tempted to keep them "just in case", but told myself "NO! you will never wear them again"!
Hope you ladies are having a good week so far!
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Maybe there's someone in your community who would LOVE to have a real Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings but doesn't have anyone to share it with? Maybe a young couple/young family who are far from their extended family or an older couple in that situation.
Just an idea.
I've been feeling my food intake getting soft around the edges for the past week. Other than one serious binge, though, I haven't strayed too very far. I doubt I'm going to lose any weight, though, unless I get back to that strict desperation that I felt when I was 9 pounds heavier.
The cold weather does sort of encourage less strictness.
I'm making pumpkin pies today. Other than that, it's my day for teaching 3 yoga classes so I like to veg out during some of the day. But I still may get on the elliptical for awhile.
Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!0 -
Hi ladies! I'm still here! Haven't been om mfp much simply because life has been crazy busy. But I'm still doing okay with trying to stay within my calorie allowance and all. Weight this AM was 172.9.
Rae.....I wish you didn't live across the country. When I read that you had a good cry over Thanksgiving and it just being you and your husband this year....well, my heart cried for you too. Anyway, for the past several weeks I have been not looking forward to the holiday because of my crazy daughter going through the marital breakup. But as much as I wished I could just cancel the holiday, I knew everyone else in the family was and is counting on me. So I have thrown myself into full Thanksgiving prep mode these past few days. While everyone coming does help by bringing something, be it an appetizer, vegetable dish or dessert, the bulk of the food prep is on me. Always is, so I'm used to that and I also really don't mind.
As far as crazy daughter...well, I haven't updated anyone here but a lot has happened in the past 3 weeks. A recap...first she talked to us and moved in with us for awhile so she didn't have to stay in the same house with husband since he decided he didn't want to live at his girlfriend's apartment anymore even though she's still his girlfriend. She moved her stuff in with us, but the kids stayed at their house and my daughter was there in the AM to put the younger kids on bus and was there after school until bedtime for the younger kids each day. After one week of that, her husband told the kids that he invited his girlfriend to come to the house to sleep over and meet them on a Saturday. Kids did not want that and my daughter took action by moving the kids and pretty much everything in their house to my house on a Friday. We all helped her move everything and it was crazy. Husband came home Saturday to an almost empty house. Then my daughter saw her lawyer. Fast forward a few more days and she and the younger 2 kids moved back into their house. Most of their stuff is still at my house...or in a storage unit she rented nearby. However, their 18 yo daughter and their almost 16 yo daughter refused to move back to the house until their dad is moved out for good. 18 y o is staying with a girlfriend, the 16 yo is staying with me. I think it was she that made the most difference. Her father texted her as to why she doesn't want to live with him. She basically told him that he never learned how to be a parent and that mom did everything for their family. She gave him examples. He had no rebuttal since she was telling the truth. I think she felt empowered because she wasn't in the house there anymore. This is the granddaughter that everyone loves. She is the sweetest thing....never says anything to anyone that might upset them. She finally stood up for herself and said what she was thinking. My daughter was surprised, but has been very supportive of her decision. So....for now, looks like my daughter and her husband will be heading to mediation in a week. My daughter is talking to me now. Still not back to normal, but I have hope things will be fine eventually. She is armed with advice from her lawyer as to what to asked for and hold out for in mediation. 16 yo is going to stay with me until dad is out for good. So my daughter and the kids will be at our house for Thanksgiving. It's what she and her kids need. It's a start on the road to recovery for them and for all of us.
Anyway.......so I am an hour away watching grandchildren today. But, my son should be home early afternoon so I can get home and start the cooking/baking. With my 16 yo granddaughter there to help me, I should be fine. My family room looks like a storage unit with lots of crazy daughter's stuff that she didn't take to the storage unit or back to her house still down there....but I'm hoping she will clear most if it out later today.
Then on Friday, my sister from upstate NY and her husband and 2 of their adult children and families will be in NJ. We, including my parents, are all going to go out for dinner on Friday evening. Between Thanksgiving and Friday....there goes the diet!
So...wishing you all a happy Thanksgiving. You never know what life is going to throw at you, but when you consider all the horrible stuff going on in the world, we really do have so much to be thankful for. And....I'm thankful for you my friends here on mfp for sharing your weight loss journeys and life stories here with me.
Lin
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Wow, Lin! You've had a busy and crazy week for sure! You are so right that you never know what life is going to throw at you. It sounds like your daughter is beginning to see things more clearly and that's a good thing. You have been so good to her, I can tell from everything you've done! Moving her in and out, and taking on the kids, as well.
I had dinner last night with a friend and we shared some personal stories. She has gone through a lot of difficult times in her life, serious illness herself, and is now dealing with her elderly parents and her father who is very ill. Her daughter has mental health issues and just recently lost her job of 30 years as a manager at Nordstrom. My friend knew a little about the rift with my son and daughter-in-law and had similar situation with her former daughter-in-law before her son finally got sick of all the manipulations. It took a long time, but he finally woke up. One thing she said was that a controlling wife like that just keeps making the "box" that the husband lives in smaller and smaller in order to keep control. That was a good visual, because I see that happening with my son. I do miss him though, and hope to hear from him tomorrow.
After all my boo-hooing about Thanksgiving, my husband and I talked about making dinner for a few of his co-workers who are not close to family, but everyone seemed to have somewhere to go already. Then we talked about helping to serve dinner at the local mission. I was going to call them today to volunteer. Then, last night my oldest son called to say may grandson is feeling much better and he and family ARE coming for Thanksgiving! Since they had previously said they were not coming I haven't done anything to prepare. He told me not to cook and he would bring food, but I already bought all the food and I do love to cook. Today I will be cleaning and doing some food prep. Tomorrow having lunch with my father-in-law at the nursing home, then dinner at home. Friday traveling to see the Oregon vs. Oregon State Civil War football game. With all going on I don't know how I'll find much time to work out, but I'm not going to worry about that. I am stressing a bit about tomorrow but I always do that. Now I'm sitting here faffing about on the computer when I should be scrubbing the toilet and changing sheets. LOL (I'm such a procrastinator - no wonder I have stress!)
My laptop is also threatening to crap out. It keeps just shutting down with no warning, then taking forever to restart. It happened 4 or 5 times last night while we were trying to Skype with the grandson (for the first time in months). Grrrrr! It's gotten a heavy workout for the past 8 years, so might just be wearing out. I'm not a fan of the phone app, don't have great cell reception at my house anyway, and my Kindle app doesn't have access to the groups (so annoying). If I disappear for awhile, it's not because I don't love you all! LOL
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!0 -
Rae......I can relate because I don't use my cell phone in my house at all because the reception there is so poor. To use the cell phone in the past, I had to walk out the door and down the driveway to get service. My laptop has been giving me problems too.....shutting down and all. But since my husband is an IT guy, we have a bunch of laptops in my house that he has refurbished. All the grandchildren that needed a laptop got one from him. I'm sure he'll have another one somewhere for me.
Glad your son and family are coming for Thanksgiving....and I hope your younger son calls you tomorrow. Have fun cooking and cleaning. My son just texted me that he left work and should be home by 2....so I can leave and be back at my house by 3. It's going to be a looonnnngggg night of cooking and cleaning for me. I am really grateful that the 15 yo granddaughter is at my house. She is such a big help. She has a boyfriend too that is supposed to come over today and help. He likes to bake. I'm putting him to work too then.
Talk to everyone later.
Lin
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Just taking a break and sitting down for the first time in hours. I still haven't cleaned the guest bathroom or changed the sheets, but I got the main part of the house pretty clean. My hubby promised to help me clean a bit in the morning. I've got the turkey thawed and all the ingredients for the dressing prepped. I made gluten-free vegan cornbread to make the stuffing this year, so that took some time. My daughter-in-law recently found out she is allergic to eggs and dairy, and I don't eat wheat or soy, so I had to get creative this year. The cornbread turned out pretty good, so I think the dressing will be fine once I jazz it up with all the goodies. I also made cranberry/blueberry sauce and homemade salad dressing. Tomorrow I will make a fruit salad and finish prepping the veggies. I bought pies this year, and I am OK with that. Thank you Costco! LOL
I am considering a couple new ideas (variations from the traditional):- Cauliflower mash or 50/50 potatoes & cauliflower. I've never tried that before but I hear people talk about it all the time. I have a vegan butter that's really good.
- Squash medley with brussel sprouts. I usually do the usual sweet yams with brown sugar, but I have never really liked it all that much. Looking for a healthier alternative. I have butternut and acorn squash and yams, so thought I'd cube them, mix them all together with the brussel sprouts and roast in the oven.
There will only be 5 of us (including my 2 1/2 year old grandson), so I know I'm cooking WAY too much, but I will send a lot of it home with them and put the rest in the freezer.0 -
Hi Lin! I had decided that it'd been WAY too long since you'd been here and I was going to track you down to see how things were going and then, voila!, there you are. Glad to hear that things seem to be going in a positive direction for your daughter and her family. Big shout out to the younger granddaughter. Takes a village to raise a parent.
And glad to hear that your son and his family will be coming for Thanksgiving, Rae. Those were really good ideas you had about sharing with other people but it's so nice to have the family together.
What a great idea the corn bread stuffing is! We have a group of people we always have Thanksgiving with and one of us became vegan and gluten-free about 18 months ago. I made her a really cool looking spiral eggplant and butternut squash "roast" but the stuffing and side dishes are someone else's job. Corn bread is a great idea! I love it anytime of year. Being brought up in Texas, we ate lots of it when I was a kid. Think I'll whip up a pan. Jalapeno corn bread is THE BEST!
Btw, Lin, I think it's doable to have a great Thanksgiving (or two, like we're having this year) and NOT gain weight. I managed to get through those 2 big food events without gaining and hope to do it this week, too. We'll see. I'm a bit of a fanatic because if I gain weight I go ballistic and binge. So no stuffing for me this year (a big trigger for me) and no roast potatoes (another trigger). Sticking to turkey, salads and (can't resist) a small piece of pumpkin pie. Adding a piece of corn bread.
So it's onto the elliptical for me. Working off that pumpkin pie in advance.
And, yes, no matter WHAT'S going on, we do have blessed lives. I can't tell you how often I thank God for all the thousands of blessings in my life. Did you know that some HUGE percentage of people in the world don't even have access to potable water? And I worry about the 12 pounds I want to lose. Ay yai yai!
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Figured I'd have gained but I've lost 1 lb. Woo Hoo! (and the turkey was GREAT! both of them!)0
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Are you guys all hiding out because of Thanksgiving?0
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Hi Everyone,
I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving! (and I wasn't intentionally hiding Aliza, honest!). I did pretty well, food-wise (not wonderful) but I didn't manage to lose anything this go around. Our older daughter was home from college for the holiday and we ended up eating out more than we normally do (I know, I know . . I need to make better choices than all-you-can-eat fried catfish. . . yikes!). Oh well, onward, right? And it was beyond wonderful to hug her again. She's doing finals now and then back home for over a month!!
I signed up for the December Ultimate Challenge here on MFP -- did any of you all? Basically you pledge to log in every day, exercise at least 20 minutes every day and track all food. I figured it was the kick in the pants I need to move the needle on the scale like I want. When I'm working, I can do all 3 of those things (track, eat well and exercise) . . . the challenge for me is going to be Christmas travel this month, eating out, etc. I hope I do o.k. <eeek!>
Well, I don't know if I mentioned this or not, but I'm located near the Great Smoky Mountains and in my part of the world, it has been raining for about 3 solid days. The good news is that it's not cold, but the rain is getting tiresome especially for moving about and getting outside. Hopefully it will end soon.
Hang in there ladies -- we can do this!
Hugs,
~Marla0 -
Can you believe it is December already?! Oh my goodness, I am feeling the holiday stress already and it has barely started. <deep breath>
I last weighed myself on Thanksgiving morning (before eating anything) and haven't gotten on the scale since. I really didn't overdo it with food, but I missed exercise for several days in a row (Thur-Sun), so I would be happy to just maintain for this week. I will weigh again this coming Friday and hope for the best.
I also signed up for the Ultimate Accountability Challenge for December. I am hoping that will keep my on track and in check throughout the month. I don't really expect a lot of Christmas parties or other events, so it will just be the actual Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to worry about. When I was still working there was so much temptation at work with everyone bringing goodies all the time (like every day). I'm glad I don't have to deal with that anymore!
Marla - I've heard the Great Smoky Mountains is a beautiful part of the country. When I lived in Mississippi, my brother went with some friends on a backpacking trip up to the Great Smoky Mountains one summer. They were camping for about a month, as I recall. I live in Oregon where it pretty much rains fall, winter and spring. If we have more than one consecutive day without rain it's worthy of a celebration! While we don't actually have the most rainfall in inches in the US, I believe we do have the highest number of rainy days annually. I sure do get tired of the rain, but it makes everything here very green and that I do love. Right now I am listening to the rain just pour down.
Aliza - Congratulations on the 1 pound loss! And on Thanksgiving! Yay!!! I am intrigued by the eggplant and butternut squash "roast". I just can't picture what that might look like, but it sounds delicious! We are still eating turkey. I put some in the freezer and keep taking it out a little at a time. Today was a turkey vegetable shepherd's pie, which turned out pretty good. I always freeze the turkey carcass to use for soup. I just put about half the bones in the crock pot with water and some veggies to make turkey broth. My pregnant daughter-in-law is eating a lot of bone broth these days, so I will take some to her this weekend and use the rest for soup.
Lin - I hope all is well with you and you're just busy doing holiday stuff and babysitting. Miss hearing from you!
My husband and I are going up to Washington to my son's house this coming weekend. We'll be babysitting my grandson overnight while his parents go to a Christmas party. It's at a big fancy lodge and most everyone is spending the night. I think we'll be going out on Saturday to get Christmas trees, so that will be fun times with the kids. If the weather forecast holds true, Saturday may actually be a day without rain! Oh, exciting news - We just found out last week that our new grandbaby is a girl! I have only sons and one grandson, so a girl baby is pretty fabulous! My daughter-in-law is an older mom (at 38), so they decided to have some genetic testing done and it's a healthy girl for sure!
Take care ladies and make healthy choices for the rest of this week!
~Rae
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I'm here!!! So I will be going to Lancaster County, PA (where the Amish live) this coming weekend to do some Christmas shopping. Looking forward to it. Leaving Friday AM and coming home Sunday evening. Going with my mom and my youngest daughter and her boys...and 3 out of 4 of my other daughter's kids. That daughter doesn't want to come to Lancaster with us because she is worried if she is away from her house for even a day or two, her husband might bring the girlfriend there. I can totally understand why she wants to skip Lancaster this year. I agree she should stay close to home. She's been painting and doing some major re-organizing and cleaning there so she'll have plenty to keep herself busy this weekend.
Haven't weighed myself in a few days. Not even home right now. I slept over at my youngest daughter's house last night watching kids. But....I've been doing good watching what I eat which is not always easy when you aren't home a lot.
When I was home, I've been packing away all the fall decorations and pulling out the Christmas decorations. I have so many boxes of Christmas decorations...way more than most people will ever need, lol. So the Christmas tree in the living room is up and decorated and the mantel in my living room is done....but I've got tons more decorations to go through and put out throughout the house. I left my living room with 6 more giant Rubbermaid boxes loaded with stuff to go through. When my nurse daughter gets home this AM and I can leave her house, I will be heading to my son's house to watch his 2 youngest. However, I think I will take his 2 with me to my house and continue going through the boxes. I would like to have everything done and decorated before I leave for Lancaster on Friday. Not sure if that is even possible but I'll give it my best effort which may be hard to do with a 22 month old helping me.
Going back and reading about all your recipes....I love oven roasted vegetables! Most vegetables cut up and roasted with a little olive oil and garlic and seasonings (or just use olive oil and Lipton's Savory herb and garlic soup mix). Yummy! I do not like yams/sweet potatoes no matter how they are prepared. My mom said I didn't like them even when I was a baby. I also love cornbread. My daughter in law made a cornbread casserole to share with us on Thanksgiving. It was really good.
That was another thing I did on Monday...I cleaned out the fridge and got rid of any leftovers that hadnt been eaten from Thanksgiving. Not much left though. But I miss my pig at times like that. He would have enjoyed all the leftovers.
So.....going to go eat a bowl of bran flakes (still working at getting some iron in my body) and then go wake up the grandchildren here that have to go to school today. Hopefully in about 2 hours I'll be on my way home to continue working on Christmas decorations.
Have a wonderful day everyone!
Lin
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Ahh, Christmas decorations. I love and hate them at the same time, LOL. You have a lot, Lin! I actually only have about 3 totes now. Besides the tree decorations I just have a few large Santas and my nativity set which my mother made me about 30 years ago. I have scaled back and gotten rid of a lot of random decorations over the years, so it's not such a chore anymore. I usually just decorate the living room and a few things in the kitchen. We live in the Christmas tree capitol of the world, so we MUST always have a fresh tree. The few times I mentioned getting a fake one my husband would give me such a look, as if I've lost my mind! The benefit to living where they grow the trees is that you can find them pretty cheap. There's a place just a mile from our house that sells any tree for $15 AND they deliver. We usually go out with the kids and wander about picking out just the right tree. Then the tree lot owner comes and cuts it down and follows us back to our house. I usually get a pretty big tree and cut some of the bottom branches to use for outside decorations (swag, wreath, etc).
I haven't done ANY shopping yet this season. I bought a lot of sale items after Christmas last year, so I need to take inventory and see what I have. It's mostly clothes for my sons and their wives (assuming we see the youngest at all). At any rate, I'm not going to go overboard with gifting this year. I just can't afford it, plus we all have way more than we need or can use anyway. I'm planning to get my husband a locking mailbox (silly gift, but we need one). Our mailbox is a cheap plastic thing that is kind of warped and doesn't even close anymore. That gift should get a laugh, at least.
Lin - what are you shopping for in Amish country? Do they sell stuff they make? Or is it just like everywhere else and there's a big outlet mall in town?0
