WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR JUNE 2014

Good evening ladies!
Only one day off work and I already feel so much more human!! I packed a lot in the day. Feels so good to get some things done! Started the day off by driving to pick up my daughter and take her to work. She is finally full time and hopes to get a car soon. Meanwhile, I can help her by transporting her. It gives us some time together. DH and I then drove in the other direction so that I could meet Mom at the grocery store while DH went to help dad with a phone problem. Mom and I got to spend some quality time together. We have the phone company coming to check out their phone line. Problem seems to be outside the house.I will go back over to be there when they come. Mom seems to be more willing to share their struggles than she has in the past. I know that during the school year she doesn't want to "bother" me and tries to do everything on her own. Dad is capable of less and less. I worry that she takes on too much. Need to work on convincing her that she is my top priority, not work.

When we got home, I worked on some chores and then started painting a floor cloth for the room my DMIL will be staying in this summer. I also have a quilt started for her room that I want to finish this week. She is 92 and very spunky. She is always a lot of fun to have around and usually spends the summers with us. Last summer she decided to stay in Florida because it is too hard for her to travel. By December she had gotten antsy and flew to Maine to stay with friends for over a month. We went up to see her then and she looked 10 years younger! Hoping she is well this summer.

I also baked a strawberry rhubarb pie at DH's request. Been busy all day and spent very little time sitting. YEAH!!

Anyone with a fitbit that would like to friend me, please let me know. I am good about challenging myself and DH bought one yesterday, but I would love to up the level of "responsibility" to wear it everyday. I think having friends on the fitbit site would help.

Drkatie- tangent, radical, degree. My student is very funny. One I will remember fondly.

So glad to hear that Bodi is doing better. Must be very difficult to watch him struggle so. Hugs.

Sylvia- Always love the jokes!! Some days your jokes and other stories on here were the only things that made me laugh. Really appreciate the stress relief.

Joyce and Meg: Love the way you write!

Heather- Wish I could cook like you do! Luckily for me DH is a great cook. I have had to work with him to tweak some recipes to make them healthier. We do use Skinnytaste.com for inspiration often.


Guess that is it for tonight. I am very tired and need to get up early to take DD to work in the morning. Another advantage to doing this for her is that once I am up I stay up. I can get a reasonably early start on my day. Tomorrow I will exercise after dropping her at work so that nothing gets in the way! Needs to be my new routine. Here's to a summer filled with peace and joy for all.:drinker: May we all find ways to build on our successes and (for me at least) learn how to live fully in the present.
Good night ladies. Talk to you tomorrow.

Deb A in CNY

And now I see you already answered my question. I'm batting zero tonight!

Bump to find my place. See you later, alligator.

Good morning everyone!

Patty: it’ll be an exciting day for you. Enjoy!

Joyce: you did tell the NP about the chest pain, didn’t you? Very good that you have an appointment in two weeks. Glad you’re getting some tests. About McDonald’s: why not just plan for it? Then you can enjoy it.

Jane: yay on your good news! That’s the most important. Seriously, have you looked into renter’s protection? There must be a free (or cheap) legal advice possibility near you. You might be able to buy yourself some time.

Alison: “they” could contribute to the groceries if you all get low; sounds like they’re eating a lot…. Agree with Joyce.

Carol: great NSV! Hope you slept well and will have a cooperative son today!

Meg: great lab results and hope you enjoyed your dinner.


Yesterday I felt ill and was in bed a lot of the day, so my calorie burn was terrible. We had takeout, which didn't help matters, although it was interesting to notice that no way could I eat as much of the takeout (Indian food) as I used too, so that's good. Feel a bit better today. I hope I stay better, because tomorrow we're renting a minivan and moving some office furniture from a place I used to work to our house.

Hope everyone has a good day!
Cynthia :flowerforyou:

Good morning everyone from a Hampshire that looks as if it's trying to rain, but isn't quite managing it.:grumble:
If it doesn't we may have to get in a watering session before we go away for two days.

Meg- I buy a bunch of fresh beets, cut off the stalks and roots and just wrap them loosely in foil and put them on a baking trsy in the oven. I use my small oven. 400F, 200C. I poke a knife in them after about an hour and a half, but they usually take two hours.
The worst bit is peeling them, so I use rubber gloves and kitchen towel to protect surfaces. I try to scrape the peel off warm, but sometimes I'm too lazy and I do them when they are cold the next day. Then I have them as part of a grain salad with salt and pepper and lemon juice. Or you can stir some half fat creme fraiche into the quatered beets with some chopped chives or scallions and warm them through. Hope that answers your question.

Katla - The important thing is to have a vigorous starter. It should be really volcanic! ! :laugh: I feed mine daily in order to reinvigorate it. It is not in the fridge. Daily take some out and add fresh bread flour and a touch of water. It should look like lava!
Then I use 300 gms of mixed flours - usually wholemeal, white and rye. I like the rye for an extra tasty crust. Add 4/5 large tblsp of starter and a cup of water. Leave the large bowl covered with cling film for as long as it takes to look volcanic again. Mine took 24 hours. Add the same amount of flours again and I like a touch more water, 10 gms of salt. Mix and knead for a short while. Becsuse of the long start the gluten doesn't need so much working. Then shape into a nice lump. I put it in a floured, muslin lined baker's basket which I bought from Amazon. You can see the nice lines round it in the photo. That stops it spreading too much. Then cover in oiled cling film. I make a little pleat in mine to allow for expansion. Allow it to rise by about a third.
The next bit is crucial to ANY bread making.
Heat the oven to almost its highest setting. Have inside it a baking tray large enough for the loaf. Underneath have another shelf with a roasting tray on it. Put some baking parchment on the worktop. When everything is very hot gently tip the loaf on to the parchment and with a very sharp knife slash one or two slits in the top of the loaf to allow for expansion. What you want from the oven is what bakers csll the "push". Pick up the parchment, open the oven, (stand back - it's hot) and place the loaf on the baking sheet. Have a kettle of boiling water ready and pour some into the roasting tin so that you get a burst of steam. Shut the door as soon as you can so as to keep it hot. After ten minutes at the highest heat turn it down to about 400F/200C. I usually give it between 35-40 mins in total, looking at it and tapping the underneath to make sure it is cooked. Cool on a rack.
The bread is quite dense, that is the style, but it should be very tasty and wonderful with cheese, cold meats etc. Great toasted as bruschetta, with tomatoes.
So I would say it's not so much a recipe as a method. I was very pleased with this last effort, which looked classic to me. In the end I froze it whole as I couldn't bring myself to cut it in half, so some lucky guests are goingbto enjoy it. It will probably be my son in July who will no doubt give me a detsiled critique! ! ! ! !
It is work, but I love a challenge! A good book is one by Dan Lepard which is where I learned that you can keep your starter in the fridge for months without feeding it as long as you revive it. That was a grest relief as I only make sourdough bread about four times a year!

OK, enough already! Love you all.
Jane - so sorry about your upheaval!:flowerforyou:
All those travelling - may it be peaceful!:flowerforyou:

We are looking at our holiday choices for February now. Looks exciting, but we haven't decided yet.:bigsmile: :bigsmile:

Bye for now, Heather in flowery Hampshire UK

Checking in with everyone...

Sometimes I find myself doing too much for kids, but I don't get to see them too often in their busy work, married, kids raising lives, so I like to help out when things get too hectic. I can relate, as we probably all can, because we have been there already right ladies?

Our busy lives get in the way of taking care of ourselves properly too.

Made it through yesterday without any rain (on me anyways) , checked out a couple greenhouses yesterday with MIL. She was happy, she doesn't get to the city very often, nice outing. Got home in time to water greenhouse and weed garden.

Today I am off to take mom to see eye specialist to have her macular degeneration checked....

Saturday - the start of my "Canada Day" long weekend!! Yea... yard work and maybe some golf with the hubby or the kids. OR maybe I'll just hug the grandkids instead.

I set my goal for June at 100 miles and 10,000 steps 15 days out of 30. 15 miles to go and need to make over 10,000 steps on all of them.... so may have to walk the golf course. Pretty happy with the results of my active June considering it has rained here everyday for 20 days

Take care everyone and have a good weekend.

Lilly for sunny Saskatchewan!! at least today anyway.

Katla, I'll be switching out my shampoo for the dawn immediately, I think I'll
extend my shower time too. Lol
Brenda from Md

Good morning Ladies,

Happy Friday! Today I did 25 minutes of yoga and will be getting on my treadmill in a few minutes. I'm having a problem with one of my feet, sesamoiditis. The ball of the foot behind the big toe swells, I think it is caused (for me) by years of high heels and also lots of running. I just read online that you can take a plastic water bottle and fill it 3/4 up, freeze it, then roll it under you foot to help with the swelling and pain. I've been using baggies, which leak and don't last long. Love the internet!

Katia, I love the shampoo warning! It has worked better on the body than the hair!

Dr Katie, age is a number, I'm only 4 years behind you! Forever young!

Cynthia, I hope you feel better today.

Lily, great stepping!

Yay Bodi, glad you are improving!

Patty, your exciting day is here! Love to your family.

Hugs to all I missed. Safe travels to those vacationing!

Cindy in OK

Yannie Jannie - just what I needed, something else to waste time on. I'm loving that Upworthy site. I watched the one about a waitress and one about Jimmy Carter. I'm hooked.

Katla - you made me laugh out loud!

HOORAY for Bodi!

Heather - i don't get it. My freezer is the place where questionable things go to die. Things that weren't very good to start with go into it and stay just long enough for me to think it's acceptable to throw them out. It's like a staging area for the trash can. Your freezer is a magic box that opens and wonderful things pop out.

I'm a little frustrated this morning. Yesterday I decided to increase my salt intake just a little. I had two slices of regular bread, which added 220mg. This morning my weight was UP by almost a pound and a half. Now, since I know that a pound is 3500 calories and I did not eat 3500 extra calories yesterday, it has GOT to be water. I'm trying to wait till tomorrow before I freak out, because it has to be just a fluke. It'll probably be gone tomorrow. But I am trying to increase my salt without going overboard. It's really hard to do. I'm kind of an all or nothing kind of person.

This morning on my walk I was attacked by the neighbor's bull mastiff puppy. She made me rub her belly and then kept running out in my path, lying down and making me do it again. She's such a sweet dog, but I worry that since she's not on a leash or in a fence her days may be numbered. I'm trying not to get too attached. She's only 6 months old and she's already huge. Her feet look like paddles.

Last night as I laid in bed, my hand brushed against the side of my leg and I noticed something different. It was a little firm, not squishy. Hmmm. All that walking and the leg presses at the gym must be doing something good. I still have plenty of squishy parts, but at least a few that aren't.

We are leaving Sunday to meet hubby's sisters in Chattanooga, TN for a few days. I wish I could have lost a little more weight before we see them, and I wish I could have gotten my hair cut, and I wish I had more clothes that covered my arms, but at this point I am what I am. They will just have to deal with my inadequacies. They are sort of southern belles and I always feel like the poor relation around them. But that's my problem, not theirs. They have mostly been very nice to me, even when I was huge. I'm sure everything will be fine. I do tend to worry in advance and then afterward feel relieved.

We have to drop the dogs off at the vet tomorrow morning even though we aren't leaving till Sunday morning. I hate being home without the dogs. But the kids are coming over Saturday afternoon so I get to play with them a while before we leave. My son and his wife are going out to eat for their anniversary, so hubby and I get to spend time with the kids. Yippee! By the time we get home my granddaughter will have the cast off her arm and I have promised to take them to the big pool where the water slide is. Can't wait for that!

Well, I have work to do, so I'd better get back to it.

Here is today's joke of the day:

:happy:

When Albert Einstein was making the rounds of the speaker's circuit, he usually found himself eagerly longing to get back to his laboratory work. One night as they were driving to yet another rubber-chicken dinner, Einstein mentioned to his chauffeur (a man who somewhat resembled Einstein in looks & manner) that he was tired of speechmaking.

"I have an idea, boss," his chauffeur said. "I've heard you give this speech so many times. I'll bet I could give it for you." Einstein laughed loudly and said, "Why not? Let's do it!" When they arrive at the dinner, Einstein donned the chauffeur's cap and jacket and sat in the back of the room. The chauffeur gave a beautiful rendition of Einstein's speech and even answered a few questions expertly.

Then a supremely pompous professor asked an extremely esoteric question about anti-matter formation, digressing here and there to let everyone in the audience know that he was nobody's fool. Without missing a beat, the chauffeur fixed the professor with a steely stare and said, "Sir, the answer to that question is so simple that I will let my chauffeur, who is sitting in the back, answer it for me."

:laugh:

Later, ladies!

Sylvia