WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR DECEMBER 2015

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  • barbiecat
    barbiecat Posts: 17,202 Member
    <3Miriam smiley-hug008.gif sending hugs to you and hoping that you can stay in the moment as you walk through the holiday blues
  • Peach1948
    Peach1948 Posts: 2,473 Member
    Here are the 4 and 5 yr olds.
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  • miriamwithcats
    miriamwithcats Posts: 1,120 Member
    Peach, darling.
  • GRITSandSLUTSandWINOS
    GRITSandSLUTSandWINOS Posts: 2,573 Member
    Re: Baby standing by tub; only babies can get away with this much body fat and be 'cute'. My Mother was a heavy woman, especially so as a baby; Mimi was skinny as a rail; but, a fat baby was considered a 'healthy' one. We never had 'sweets' or 'desserts'; while at Mimi's there was always something sweet. To her, a meal was not a meal without something sweet for dessert. She always had a jar of jellybeans because I liked them ... all except the black (licorice) ones. I'd suck the sugar coating off them and then eat the jelly inside. DOGD brought over a game a week ago, jelly beans of different colors, with a spin wheel; and some of the colors (you'd pick a jelly bean according to the color you landed on ... might have been good; or they might have a 'nasty' taste where you would spit it out and drink a lot of water. I think most of mine were 'bad' ones. One I got, a black one, tasted like a skunk smells ... no amount of water would take that taste out of my mouth. I almost GAGGED on it. Took a swallow of coke to help somewhat.
  • janetr7476
    janetr7476 Posts: 4,001 Member
    I guess feel differently than a lot of our ladies. I have enjoyed every minute of my preparation in anticipation of my family being here. The cooking and baking done with thots of one loves this, the others will enjoy that, etc. I want to make it as special and warm as possible so they have these fond memories of Christmas at Grammy's for the rest of their lives. My only regret is that I decided to not put up all my trees in every room, special quilts on every bed, poinsiettia shower curtain and all. Decided not to as it would have all been up until February when we return from Arizona, but it has made me a little sad. I have missed it all. I'm trying not to get down about it all going by too quickly and every one going back home. :)

    Off to get a mani/pedi this morning. They will all arrive tomorrow. Hooray!

    Janetr
  • Lagopus
    Lagopus Posts: 1,016 Member
    Thanks for asking, Joyce.

    Please be prepared for a longish post. I have to let it out.

    We had our storm and it was just as glorious as we hoped. Not quite as violent - the wind never reached hurricane force - but it stayed windy longer than expected and the snow fell thick and fast for 36 hours. On Saturday morning there was a bit of a lull and people poured out to check on their neighbors and admire the drifts. We had essentially no snow outside our door but the people in the next block of apartments had drifts halfway up the windows and had to be dug out.
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    At the top of our street there was a drift 15 feet high - and all that snow fell in one day. Between the last row houses on the street the snowdrifts went to the upstairs windows. The snowplow couldn't help clear it away because although some of the humps along the street were drifts, others were cars. They couldn't take the risk.
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    But everyone was having a great time. All the children were out playing: climbing snowdrifts and sliding down them again, digging tunnels. All the adults were cheerily wielding shovels. We took some pictures, wished each other a Merry Christmas and went inside again.

    Then just after 10 am I looked at the local paper's website and saw that there had been an avalanche in town and ten houses had been hit. No major injuries had been reported, but volunteers were asked to come help and bring shovels. My husband grabbed ours and went. Half an hour later he sent me a text message. So many people had turned up that they were getting in each other's way. He and many others had been asked to go wait in the movie theater in case the diggers needed to be relieved. Several people had been dug out and transported to the hospital. He added that one man and two children were still missing.

    Around 1:30 he came home. The children had been located and sent to the hospital in serious condition. The last missing person had also been found. My husband knew nothing about his condition, but didn't think there was much hope for him after so many hours in the snow. And shortly after, the man was confirmed dead.

    Those most seriously injured were airlifted to the mainland for treatment - but it takes nearly two hours to get an ambulance plane up here and then another two hours down again. Meanwhile the injured people were tended by the doctors at our local hospital, who are highly skilled at emergency medicine and handling hypothermia. All the patients made it alive to the University Hospital on the mainland, but in the end, one of the two children who had been missing died. She was just two years old. Her sister, age three, will live – and we're all holding on to that. It has been said repeatedly that she wouldn't have survived if it hadn't been for the quick reactions of all those volunteers. We lost two community members, but we also saved at least one life.

    I've just come home from the memorial service for the man who died. He was 42, father of a 12-year-old and 10-year-old twins, a teacher at the primary school, active in choirs, brass ensembles, the bluegrass band, a barbershop style quartet - you name it. We often say the town is so small everyone knows everyone else. That's a bit of an exaggeration, but in his case, it was true. He will be sorely missed.

    The minister spoke about our beloved "dark season" when we gather together and enjoy each other's company, about school letting out for the holidays, the anticipation of the Advent season – and how all that joy was cut short. The dark season suddenly went black.

    I can feel it in the town. When those houses were hit some of them were swept 80-100 yards from where they stood, crashing into other houses farther down the hill. They're mainly intact, but jumbled together, like Lego blocks somebody has carelessly swept aside. It's ghostly, seeing houses where there shouldn't be any houses, and seeing no houses where there should be a neat row of them. The hill above is floodlit (I'm not sure why) and that also feels horrific. About a tenth of the population has been evacuated from their homes, for fear of new avalanches. There's no telling when they'll be allowed to move back home. What Christmas cheer for them?

    Going into this storm I wrote about what we were expecting and added "I love it". Sometimes I'd like to eat my words, but painful as it is, I'm sticking to them. At the memorial service, the man's best friend spoke about all the beautiful white stuff that lay glistening out there in the moonlight. Glistening and deadly. But he knew how his friend loved experiencing Nature's power and majesty. That's what this town is all about. We ALL love those extremes: that's one reason we moved here.
    /Penny, sad, but still happy to be at the emoticon-object-026.gif
  • terri_mom
    terri_mom Posts: 748 Member
    Happy Tuesday ! ! !

    I'm still not caught-up, but I did read today from where I left off yesterday (I think) .

    Mia – congrats on the t-shirt size. Wonderful NSV ! ! !

    Lisa – I missed the original post about your nephew, but Hugs and Prayers for all of you ! ! !

    Mary – Thanks for sharing the picture of cookie decorating. I have fond memories of my childhood, both with my Grandma, then with my Mom after her Mom passed. Thanks for the trip down memory lane. I’m so glad you were all having so much fun !

    Vicki – Hugs and Prayers for your DH ! ! !

    Mindy – so much of your post brings back memories for me. My Grandparents were married on Dec. 26 during WW2. We had a huge bell nailed to the front porch that my Mom would ring to bring us home if we ignored the streetlights (or if she needed us home early).

    Heather/Mia/et al - Thanks for the marriage success laugh/advice. We have 3 working TV’s and separate bathrooms. We have multiple computers, and now have comparable cell phones as well (for many years I was upset because his phone was WAY better than mine). Years after his mid-life crisis, we are back to sleeping in a huge memoryfoam bed together. We also have together and separate social lives. I hope those are good signs, too.

    Katla – I’m so glad the police chase was not worse, and everyone was uninjured. I’m certain I would have been quite frightened. A similar situation happened in front of my house once, and I couldn’t hardly think straight about what to do. I just called my then-boss, and took pictures. So scary for you. Hugs !

    Janet/Mia/Michele/et al – If coded properly, the Shingles shot is preventative if a person is over 60 or has co-morbidity that makes it preventative instead of elective. If you fit into one or more of these categories and get a bill, ask to have it re-coded.

    Becca – Thanks for the adoption. I need all the help I can get, and I appreciate you (and everyone here ) ! ! !

    Peach – I’m curious about the tree – toilet paper – elf hanging in the tree. Do you have a picture or a back-story?

    Miriam – Hugs !

    Tomorrow I will go to the bowling alley with DS and DH, just so I can go to Big Lots (want to take coffee drops, water drops, yogurt, and granola this weekend). I will walk if it is warm enough, but will likely take the car (hip is not completely better yet) . Thursday morning we leave for Winona. Christmas Day we will sleep late, then everyone will meet at MiL’s house. We might go early so DH can help her with the cooking (she usually makes turkey or ham or both, and all the traditional holiday carbohydrates, so I will bring a salad). We usually open presents right after lunch (dinner). DBiL opens the bowling alley around 4:00pm, so we will likely spend most of Thursday evening at his bowling alley. We will likely be in Red Wing Saturday, because the entire family will probably want to spend some time at the Casino. Sunday probably a late breakfast with DD and/or MiL, then return to Milwaukee.

    I still have not cheated, so I will put another sticker on the calendar. I’m being quite supportive of my co-worker, but the adult beverages are louder than I. I will keep doing my best for her, but she refuses to log, so there is only so much I can do to help.

    Hugs for Everyone ! ! !

    Terri in Milwaukee (soon in Minnesota for the weekend)
  • miriamwithcats
    miriamwithcats Posts: 1,120 Member
    Penny, so sorry! What a tragedy. Breaks my heart.
  • janetr7476
    janetr7476 Posts: 4,001 Member
    Penny I have cried with you, very tragic. I am glad you are able to stay positive through this. Praying for your beautiful little town and for all the families that suffered such devastating loss. (((Hugs)))

    Janetr OKC
  • margaretturk
    margaretturk Posts: 5,258 Member
    Penny heart stopping! Prayers...

    Miriam (((sunshine)))

    :heart: Margaret
  • miakoda40
    miakoda40 Posts: 467 Member
    Penny - Thanks for the link to Skinny Taste. It is now bookmarked on my computer at home. There are some excellent ideas for my upcoming potluck.

    Mia in MI
  • bwcetc
    bwcetc Posts: 2,827 Member
    Penny ... Thank you for sharing ...
  • fanncy0626
    fanncy0626 Posts: 7,152 Member
    edited December 2015
    penny- I am sorry for your loss! What a tragic loss for the whole town. It is heartwarming to hear of the love that everyone has for each other. We will be praying for your town and the people that have been hit by it the most.

    Terri - i'm glad that the picture of us decorating the cookies brought back happy memories to you! My DDNL is the one that brought the cookies and decorating supplies. This is the first time we did this as a family. Everyone enjoyed it as well as the end result! I know believe it will be a tradition at our Christmas get together.

    Carol/Peach - I love the pictures of the children! They certainly put a smile on my face.

    Becca - you are beautiful! Definitely you can see a difference in the pictures.

    We are off to go Christmas shopping. We will be celebrating on Thursday. Have a great day everyone!

    Mary from Minnesota
  • csofled
    csofled Posts: 3,022 Member
    Penny, so sorry for your town's loss. Praying everyone stays safe going forward!

    Cheri
  • Vickil57
    Vickil57 Posts: 1,882 Member
    Happy Tuesday. I am working 6-noon today and already stressed. I have to just let it go and worry about my work. But I have been here 29 years and care.

    Mindy--Please be careful and if it happens again call the doctor. Better to be safe then sorry.

    Kim--Thanks for the info on snapfish. I am going to try that.

    Peach--Cute pictures, thanks for sharing.

    Miriam--Sorry you are having a tough time. Sending hugs!!

    Penny--Not sure what to say. Sending lots of prayers and hugs!!

    Going to be short for now. About time to get off work and DH just called and said he went home sick from work. This is a man who never misses work. Also I know he only ate 1/2 a baked potato all day yesterday. So will go home and see what is going on and call the doctor see if they found out anything.
    Blessings, Vicki GRAND ISLAND, NE



    December Goals
    1. weigh less end of the month then at the first.
    2. log my food, every bite
    3. Take each day as it comes
  • lhannon062709
    lhannon062709 Posts: 1,140 Member
    Penny, I know the ambivalence in your heart . I wish I had better words, healing words, but all I have is holding you and your community in my heart, and aching for you all. There is no evil in an avalanche, no hate, no intent... perhaps if you can hold on that, it will help a little. Perhaps not. Thinking of you all.
    Lisa
  • drkatiebug
    drkatiebug Posts: 1,976 Member
    Penny, wow! Just wow! I cannot imagine that much snow. I am so sorry about the avalanche and the loss of lives and homes. Here in Georgia, we freak over 3 inches of snow. My husband is from Minnesota and his grandparents were from Norway. Our last name is very Norwegian.

    Heather and Miriam and everyone else that is struggling with the season, hugs and prayers to you all. Heather, my husband is feeling some of what you're feeling because my sister's visit at Christmas kind of dictates everybody's plans. Although I am somewhat sympathetic, I also know that we don't get to see her all that often and that our lives will soon be back to their peaceful normal. I get frustrated with him and tell him to "suck it up buttercup." He tries, but his anxiety plays on mine a little. I, like you, get frustrated with plans being up in the air, but my DH really freaks out about it.

    I have been an organizing freak. All of my clothes are now folded nicely. My drawers, my closets, and my cabinets are works of art. This morning I organized and decluttered my sewing basket and my buttons. One day I am going to get brave enough to tackle the attic, but it will have to be in 2016. I have come to the conclusion that I have way too many shirts, but they do fit in my drawers so I will keep them. I am going to adhere strongly to the one-in, one-out rule. What will really help me to let them go is to lose some weight so that they will be too big. Again, this will have to happen in 2016.

    Terri, I loved the Christmas poem.

    Pip, your dogs are gorgeous. I love the special effect picture. Very nice!

    Beth, oh my, that baby! Too cute. The picture does express how I've been feeling lately. I'm not using the holidays as an excuse to go crazy, but neither am I passing up my high-calorie favorites either. I'm working on moderation. I should finish the year down about 10 lbs over last year. I am going to be happy with that and strive for 20 or 30 in 2016.

    More later,
    Kay
  • exermom
    exermom Posts: 6,530 Member
    Did 30 minutes of HIIT on the elliptical then 15 minutes on the rowing machine. The plan for tomorrow is to do a Beachbody Brazil Butt Lift DVD. The place where I get a lot of these DVD's is really going downhill.

    Well, the cooking for Christmas Eve has begun. I made the seafood chowder (found that I needed more cheese in it by tasting the soup), the spinach/crab dip and I'll put together the seafood lasagna. I did find that I had a few of the cookies, but it's really weird I don't seem to want more. Not that I'm complaining, mind you.

    Denise's flight comes in at 7:20 tonight and Jess is coming, only she didn't know what time. Guess if worse comes to worse, she has the code for the garage and we can just leave the house unlocked.

    Becca - you look so much better in the latest picture, younger and more vibrant.

    Penny - are you SURE you didn't copy that first pic off a christmas card???? What a wonderful thing your hubby did by volunteering! So sorry for all the tragedies.

    Terri - a few months ago I went for my shot of Prolia. The previous year insurance covered it so we figured it would be still covered. Then, a few weeks later we get a bill for over $4,000. Vince spent, literally, hours talking to the hospital and the doctor's office. Seems it was coded improperly. The hospital resubmitted the bill with the right code, it was paid in full.

    Vince just told me that we need to leave around 5 for the airport. So I'll post this, still need to assemble the seafood lasagna, don't know if or when I'll get back in

    Michele in NC
    who is proud to be adopted
  • terri_mom
    terri_mom Posts: 748 Member
    Penny - you posted while I was typing. Hugs and Prayers for all that loss.
  • Katla49
    Katla49 Posts: 10,385 Member
    edited December 2015
    Janetr: I run, too, but only if I'm being chased by bad guys. With wild lions, running just makes you look more like prey. I don't run for exercise due to knee issues. :wink:

    Michele: I think you're right about vaccinations. I didn't have to pay for the shingles vaccination. It was fully covered by insurance before Obamacare. So was flu vaccine. I guess I count myself lucky to have had insurance all along. :flowerforyou: DH and I had a destination wedding and it was very tiny as far as guests were concerned; both sets of parents, best man and maid of honor, two photographers and the judge. We took my cat. We got married in an ancient stone whale lookout tower in a park on the Oregon Coast. The reception was later at my parent's home. DD got married in Mexico, and DS got married at a ski resort in Utah. I loved my destination wedding 45 years ago and still think of it fondly. It is filled with good memories. :heart:

    Becca: Thanks for the adoption. It is good to have you in the "family" and to be included in yours. The photos are proof that you're making good progress. You're pretty in both pictures but look healthier & happier in the current one. :smiley:

    Joyce: I love your wisdom and perspective. :smile:

    Miriam: I have been struggling a bit this year since we are on our own for Christmas, but am currently doing okay. You have two new daughters to consider. Can you "fake it till you make it"? I also recommend Vitamin D3 as a weapon against the blues. Hugs. :heart:

    Beth: That poor baby is starting out life with a big strike against it! The only things I've seen that are more distressing are pictures of starving babies. :broken_heart:

    Grits: Were the jellybeans Bertie Botts Every Flavored Jelly Beans? (inspired by Harry Potter) They have some really gross flavors. :noway:

    Penny: I am so sad that your community has experienced the tragic avalanche and loss of life, particularly just before Christmas. Sending hugs and prayers for the whole community and especially for those who have lost loved ones. :broken_heart::heart:

    Terri in Milwaukee: Don't waste sympathy on me. The poIice were armed and we were well behind them. but the person arrested didn't appear to be. don't have enough sense to be afraid in a situation like that. :embarassed:


    Our window and door installation from this summer is finally complete. We have a metal u shaped piece to bridge the deck door channel where I injured my foot, and all of our window screens have been delivered. The metal piece had to be specially made and ordered.

    There must have been wind gusts in the night. One ornament from my wreath was on the ground this morning. It was unbroken and I reattached it. My neighbor also has one ornament from her wreath on the ground. Just spoke with neighbors. The wind storm happened yesterday while we were away shopping. Wind gusts in our neighborhood exceeded 35 mph! They thought the ornaments were likely blown down in the afternoon storm.


    Katla in Beautiful NW Oregon

    “Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” Thomas A. Edison

    December Goals :
    1. Log every bite and swallow.
    2. Cardio exercise at least 3 days a week. Work on flexibility and back strength.
    3. Have fun every day.
    4. Drink at least three glasses of water daily, preferably more!
    5. Eliminate alcohol.
    6. Monitor sleep. Try to average 7 or more hours of sleep nightly.

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  • GRITSandSLUTSandWINOS
    GRITSandSLUTSandWINOS Posts: 2,573 Member
    Penny - sorry to hear about all the snow that created such a tragedy in your community; but, I am sure it helps that people turn out to help. Those snow tunnels look nice; but, they can be deadly; even if you live in a place that has a lot of snow. On a mountain there's always a chance for avalanches; bad to happen anytime; but, especially at this time. Prayers for all injured or lost their homes. You really have to be outside watching kids playing in the deep snow.

    I'm with DrKatieBug - 3" of snow in Georgia is a pain ... school lets out; and, snow as far south as I live in Georgia is probably once in every 15 - 20 years. It snowed down here when DOGD was a Freshman in HS; she is in her last year of her sophomore class in college now; and, I really don't remember any snow in this area since my DOS was a baby and he is 39. It's pretty while it lasts; but, only stays a couple of days.

    I can remember visiting my sister and at-the-time BnL in Chattanooga; and, it started snowing there. Surrounded by the Smokey Mountains and we were to leave the next day. She assured me that it usually did not snow there because the mountains made it go around. Well, next AM there was a foot or more snow on the ground. First of 2 times that DH and I got stuck somewhere during a storm that kept us from going home and back to work. Second time was when hurricane INEZ stalled over South Georgia for nearly a week. That time we were in Miami and it was beautiful down there. When we came home, we had to drive about 50 miles out of the way to be able to get across the Flint River. Water up to the bottom of the bridge; one week later the lake was completely dry. Damn down stream had burst. Rebuilt and lake is back to normal. Albany, GA got slammed with what they called a 500-year flood.

    DrKathieBug - I plan on cleaning out drawers and refolding everything in there - planning on tackling my MBR closet (my side of it). I have a lot of hanging clothes; but, would like to have a closet organized. Then, I'd really like to tackle my studio; but, husband doesn't want to do it my way - which is to take everything out and then take back everything I want to keep and throw out the rest Has to be a couple of boxes we have never unpacked since moving because I am missing a few items that I know I had in my last house. I did not have anything to do with any of the packing.
  • GRITSandSLUTSandWINOS
    GRITSandSLUTSandWINOS Posts: 2,573 Member
    B) - NOT!
  • cityjaneLondon
    cityjaneLondon Posts: 12,712 Member
    edited December 2015
    Penny - Thank you so much for sharing that with us. <3<3<3 I hope to get my DH to read it as we will be there next June. He is strangely resistant to this group and is often jealous of my involvement. We had an argument in a restaurant about it on holiday. :*
    Really feel for your community. :flowerforyou:

    Heather UK

    PS - having said all that, this afternoon DH fitted a new toilet seat which was the devil to get off, made our visitors' soup, and has nearly completed composing the Christmas quiz. :love: All I did was make a delicious curry and our dinner. :*
  • exermom
    exermom Posts: 6,530 Member
    OK, girls, I am officially stress eating. Having to assemble the seafood lasagna, make sure the house is clean, all before we leave to pick up Denise. Stress.......

    How I hate this, I wish I weren't this way. I'd love to just sit back. Maybe Thurs will be better, Jess will be here to help me make sure I get everything cooked and ready on time. Sad to say....Denise doesn't help much at all. The last time she was here she almost floored me...she actually helped clean up the table! Never did that before. I'm not expecting help from her this year (like in past years). Tomorrow I'll get the fish all prepared so we only have to cook it thurs.

    Michele in NC
  • pipcd34
    pipcd34 Posts: 17,269 Member
    sorry to hear lagapus ;0(
  • mikesmom1983
    mikesmom1983 Posts: 582 Member
    So sorry Penny. I just don't know what else to say.

    Chris in MA
  • terri_mom
    terri_mom Posts: 748 Member
    Michele - B O O T ! ! ! and additional hugs for the stress and work. You Can Do This ! o:)
  • bwcetc
    bwcetc Posts: 2,827 Member
    Just checking in while I eat an apple ... Not the cookies! Seriously, I have obviously been overdoing ... I'm ravenous with true hunger signals! Feels good actually...

    Katla ... I agree ... A baby that fat is not good. A church member's daughter is rolled like that child... It took her forever to learn how to roll and crawl! Too much to move?

    Heather ... My husband gets grouchy about this group too ... Usuallly when he wants to talk and I'm reading the posts.

    Michelle ... Put the food down and just enjoy your family's company. Let them help you later if need be.

    My grocery shop is done and if anyone is hungry in the next few days it's their own fault!

    Off to wrap...

    Beth

  • cityjaneLondon
    cityjaneLondon Posts: 12,712 Member
    All you girls talking about the Easy Crust less Spinach and Feta Pie made me get the spinach out to defrost. Tomorrow night - yeah!
    Hx x X
  • GRITSandSLUTSandWINOS
    GRITSandSLUTSandWINOS Posts: 2,573 Member
    I've got to look that recipe up; sounds delicious!