Happy Monday all,
Janet, I know your trip was filled with so much joy and love. Your time with your dear Aunt Pat had to bitter sweet, but so glad you had this precious time with her.

Bert, sounds like your student will not make the best teacher, don't envy you on this one. I know you are in your glory working in your flower beds.

Time to get it in gear and finish this rental. Doubt I will make it to Zumba tonight but I think I have worked hard enough to justify skipping. Will check in tonight if I can move my arms, lol!
Patti

Hello ladies! Hope your Monday is going well. It sounds like things are on an upswing for most of us; good to hear all the good news
going on, though I see some sad things too.

Brian was asked to get email information for references, give certain information so a background check can be done, and also to
"find time" (lol, that's all he has right now) to head to their office one more time to look over an intent to hire form. We pretty much
decided he would take this job no matter what and then he could keep looking if it isn't enough money. I think he'll really like it,
though, sure seems to be right up his alley.

Janet - so sorry to hear about this dear woman in your life, but it is good you are getting to spend this time with her. I am praying
with you that she passes quietly and gently.

Patti - sounds like you are busting through getting that house clean! It is nice your nephew can rely on you to do a good job with
getting it well cleaned; not everyone is good at that kind of thing. And I agree that you are definitely getting your workout!

MaryLynn - thank you for your ever encouraging words! I hope you and your hubby are doing well also

Karla - I always enjoy the pictures you share; what a beautiful background for your pool area and it looks like you are making the whole
thing a great pleasure to be in. I hope all health issues with you and your hubby are going well/healing well.

Myra, Cindy, Beth - hope you are all doing well and enjoying some good weather where you are. I'm thinking of you and wishing you well!

We had a good visit with family while my brother was here; I'll post a bunch of pics on FB in the next couple of days. It would have been nice if everyone could have been around for a little longer so the shy ones (my niece's kids) could have gotten used to us a little more, but it sure was nice to see almost everyone together! Here is a picture of the whole group

Have a wonderful start to your week!
Grace and peace to you
Jeanette

Home, showered and laundry going. Was on a roll with the rental and had hoped to be done today but my son called and he needed immediate help on another rental that was going to be shown today. They had 18 people coming to look at it. So I worked there for several hours. Still more work to be done but we got enough done to at least show it. One young couple with a 1 year old said they were so anxious to move in they didn't care if we didn't finish the painting that still needs done. They are living with her mom in a 3 bedroom home, with 5 other siblings!! I home they pass the background check. They seemed like the best candidates. So now I have to try and finish the other rental on Wed as they are turning the keys over to the new tenant on Thursday. Luckily I work well under pressure. But tomorrow is my day off to spend with mom, grocery shop and go to TRX.

Jeanette, love the pic and I bet your parents were so happy to have you all there. Good news on the job front for Brian it seems. I hope he is happy with the job and the money and won't have to keep looking while he is working.

Now what to eat for dinner. Never had time for lunch. So glad I had a good breakfast.
Patti

Hi, all. Still tired but much to do today. Am out of salad fixings after last night's dinner so that's priority one. And BB&B for some berry keepers (Rubbermaid has some new produce keeping containers that do seem to keep things fresh quite well), plus a few other errands.

As of yesterday I am seriously back on track. Might as well tell you that i rejoined WW online yesterday so I can scope out the new points system -- most of the point changes make sense to me -- lean proteins are finally valued properly and they have put exorbitant amounts of points on empty calories, which makes you think twice about tht treat. I will do dual tracking for at least a week or two.

I've been doing the "I'll get back on track tomorrow/Monday/first of the month" thing for too long. I really need to relose about 15 pounds gained over the last ween months. Yes, two rounds of low-iodine diet, the surgical recovery around the holidays, etc. But mostly it was just me disrespecting myself and stubbornly wanting to be able to eat the way other people eat. I can't do that -- and I know it, so not sure why I needed to prove that to myself again. But I guess I did. So I am stopping that and putting the brakes on shame as much as possible and just moe forward, eating the way I know I must. For good.

OK -- storms are due later so I must get rolling. Later!

Good evening to all. Jeanette, love the family photo. You are posed so elegantly -- dancers have that effortless poise I so admire.

MaryLynn, enjoy your sunset. We're supposed to be getting storms tonight and tomorrow -- a bit of thunder earlier hae both cats scrambling for cover. Never mind that they are indoor cats who will be safe and dry no matter what -- they just do not like storms.

Karla, watching JJ with Izzy just has to warm your heart.

Patti, you must be exhausted! How was your mom today?

Cindy, your life is a multifaceted whirlwind -- don't know how you do it all so gracefully.

Lots of errands done today and organizer this evening. She helped me recover a chair seat (desk chair for my dad's antique desk) and it looks nice. We moved some stuff into the garage for sorting later as well.

Two GOOD eating days under my belt -- had a soft pretzel today for National Pretzel Day but planned for it and tracked it, still stayed within my limits. Feeling like I can get a handle on things again -- though snack foods keep screaming my name while I'm out. Yesterday and today I said no. So that's progress. YES, I certainly deserve a treat, but I cannot have it. That's just the3 way it is and so I try tough love on myself.

I have to be up an out early tomorrow for my detailed eye measurements for the cataract surgeries to come. So I'll be dilated again. Tomorrow evening my organizer's partner comes to hang the rest of my wall art. Whee!

Hi all! No time like the present, even if it's after 11 pm local time, to check in after a long absence.

Hellacious thunderstorms in OK his evening, but think the worst is over finally. I think there was either a brief tornado touch down or very strong straight winds out at the farm. The preliminary report is a tree came down and hit the corner of the garage with no ore damage to the house and hopefully the barns too. It was too dark to really tell tonight. Jessi and Dinky are spending the night here with us to be near the storm shelter. The 3rd floor of an apartment building is no place to be during a tornado!

Patti, Janet and everyone east of here, be weather aware...

I'll chat more tomorrow,
Suzi

Good Morning, Ladies. I finally have a morning where I don't have to race around and be somewhere. I'm battling allergies. I think the windy day we had a few days ago put my sinuses under attack!

Patti: She's great in the classroom, but is weak in paperwork. I do know teachers who are already employed that have this characteristic. It's a hard decision to make.

Jeanette: Great pictures of your family!

Janet: I'm with you, refocus and eat right. I like the 21 Day Fix for myself as the containers are right there in front of me. I just need to use them fo EVERY meal as I once did when I first got started. I'm in a plateau once again, so it's time to be more serious with my routine.

Suzi: We had storms here too. Southeast of us had tornado warnings last night.

Bert

Hi ladies-
Mid afternoon check in- so busy right now but we are seeing Rick's son and soon to be wife for dinner and handing over a check to help out.
Still anxiously awaiting the manuscript back but working hard at Ellie's story- working title- Fall with Me- just something to call it at this point.
My eating is much better than last week but really want M n M's- just ate a mango - still didn't hit the spot and drinking lots of water.
For everyone dealing with weather issues- stay safe-
As a reminder to all
Today- I'm going to eat like I love myself-
need to run- hugs and ^5's to all
Cindy

Never got back to sleep so pretty tired -- and desperately want to be awake for the Warriors game tonight.

Had eye measurements done and cataract surgeries scheduled for 5/24 and 6/7. Fresh adventures ... hoping my cat sitter friend can pick me up (I can get a ride to the surgery center but they want someone to be sitting there, which may be a stretch).

My Aunt Pat passed peacefully this afternoon, just as her son was arriving. She is free now, with my Uncle Bob and her wonderful parents. There will be a memorial service in early May, perhaps the 7th. I let my brother and nieces know she has left us. I feel sad and empty but immensely grateful that I was able to tell her what was in my heart before she passed. My cousin said that not long after I left on Sunday, she pretty much fell asleep and stayed that way, so I was privileged to be there for some of her last semi-waking moments.

Another line of storms coming through soon -- nothing severe but enough to get my attention and make the cats hide.

Karla, I like the protein points but I think they have gone Full Overkill on some things -- demonizing all saturated fat flies in the face of current science. But the protein part is MUCH closer to where it should be. This is my third on-plan day. I try to fast for at least 12 hours each night/morning too.

Not feeling chatty so will sign off. Have a restful evening, friends.

Sounds like another busy day all round. Have a good sleep tonight, ladies!
Hugs,
MaryLynn

Good Morning, Ladies. It's a gorgeous sunny day today.....I'm going to work in my flower beds this morning. I finally have a day where I don't have to be somewhere at a certain time. It feels good! I turned in my paperwork yesterday. The only thing I have to do is grade my field students' notebooks. That will be a breeze as I have already seen them, and they are very nice. Have a great day everyone!

Bert

Hello ladies!
Well, Brian has signed a "intent to hire" contract and as long as his UA and background check come back clean (which they will) he will start on May 9th....which so happens to be the same day he officially is off the payroll at his former job. We are quite relieved! We are very much hoping this job turns out to be as good a fit as it seems to be.

Thanks for all the compliments on the picture

Judy - Nice to meet you, hope you are recovering well and that your husband finds some relief with the cataract removal.

Patti - your May sounds full, but like it will be all kinds of fun. It is nice you were able to accomplish so much in order to be able to leave early; hope your trip is dry and wonderful!

Cindy - you saying you can schedule the dentist "at will" made me chuckle...just depends on what kind of "at will" that would be, right? What exciting news about your writing, it would be great for you to win one or both contests but you are right that just getting your name/writing out there more is exciting in itself!

Karla - yes this is the job that comes with a work vehicle; it will be such a relief to have two vehicles again! Sounds like you are busy busy busy...and off to Destin today?

Janet - well done getting back on track. I've done the "I'll start over (Monday, beginning of the month) thing far too often myself. Though it is sad that your aunt is now gone, I was glad to hear it was peaceful and that you feel good about the time you were able to spend with her before she left. You have dates for the cataracts; have you started shopping for sunglasses yet?

Suzi - good to hear from you; glad you didn't suffer too much damage from the storm. Hope you are all safe and that the severe weather has passed.

MaryLynn - thank you for checking in

Bert - sure sounds like you are a great mentor to have; I imagine you have "seen it all" over the years.

Diane....where are you? I sure miss you here!

At the last minute it looks like I might just have a place to do my practicum! My advisor found a WIC program near me that actually has an agreement with my school! I have been talking to the woman in charge and my school advisor trying to get it all together in time; my deadline was extended to next Wednesday due to some outages in the online program at the school! Even if I don't get to do it this summer (I am really really hoping I do) I still have that contact/possibility of a place to get it done; I am so very thankful! Thank you very much to those of you who have prayed for me for this!

Have a wonderful day
Grace and peace to you
Jeanette

Jeanette, happy dancing all over the place for you and Brian. I hope it all works out for both of you. Will pray you get your practicum in this summer. Sometimes it is just your turn!

Janet, the morning concert sounds like such a good time and exactly what your soul needs right now. It also sounds like you got your Mojo back.

Karla, hope you are in Destin safe and sound.,is this another reunion meeting?

What a day and not what I had planned. Made it to the gym but I am having lots of back pain, can't seem to find a stretch to work it out. Ran some errands, picked up my wall hanging and a gift for our friends at the consignment shop. Dropped by my GFs garage sale, they were having a community sale so I had to check it out. Found a vintage bowl , to match a water pitcher I already own, for a buck. Then found a mini freezer for Mom. She has been complaining that she has so little freezer space. It was very cheap and super clean. We will need to build a stand for it so she doesn't have to get on her knees to see what is in it, lol. She said it can wait until we get back from our trip. I managed to fall on my glasses and pop one lens out, luckily no other damage. So unplanned trip to Sears to get them fixed. I skipped TRX, partly due to my back pain and partly because I just plain ran out of time. Need to do some cleaning tonight. I hate coming home to a dirty house! Will,go,to,the gym in he morning and then to Mom's for a bit with some flowers. Then home to get the camper packed. There is a benefit tomorrow night that Edd wants to go to, not sure if I will go with him. Depends on how much I get done before then.

Patti

Good Morning, Ladies. It's another gorgeous day. I'm having lunch with my best friend today. We haven't been able to get together for a while, so we have much catching up to do. It is supposed to rain this weekend (bthe days), so I'll work in my flower beds when I get home. Have a great day everyone!

Bert