WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR AUGUST

Michelle, thank goodness!

Hello everyone. TGIF.

We had a lovely evening yesterday for DH's birthday. We went to our favourite pub which does amazing food. It was DH, my son and son-in-law plus a friend of DH. Very laid back and I had a lentil and spinach burger, without the bun and just ate the burger and some lettuce, so did well. I only drank black coffee and mineral water (I am teetotal), so the calories were all in order. Later in the evening we walked across the road to Barnes Pond and I put a firework fountain into a birthday cake (shop bought but apparantely very tasty) and we took some photos in the dark. Great fun.

At midnight I phoned DD#2 to wish her a happy birthday for today. It is the first time ever that she has been away from home on her birthday - she is working away and won't get back until this afternoon. Her DH stayed with us last night and I really think he's missing her dreadfully. They have been married 11 years and this is the first time they haven't been together to celebrate her birthday in the morning since she was 18 (she's 32 today .... wait, that can't be right .... I'm pretty sure that I'm only 38!)

It is a bank holiday weekend in England - which means that the weather will probably be dreadful (it's pouring down as I type). We don't have much planned, but I would like to get a good hike in if possible. It may be a wellies and waterproofs hike though, but I can handle that.

I'm trying to book a holiday - but can't decide where to go. So I'm going to do a little more research now before I go to the gym.

Have a good day everyone.

Love
Amanda x

Here in Illinois we are going to have a gorgeous weekend because of the effects of IRENE, I hope that all of you that are on the east coast take care, and are not harmed by this awful hurricane.
I am still the same weight, trying to follow c2 for the most part...I am eating carbs, but usually not for dinner, just for breakfast and lunch, sometimes not for lunch.. but I would like to lose another 10 pounds, right now focusing more on my recovery from the knee surgery.
I walked around the block with just the cane last night, it worked great, altho had hubby with me, just in case, did not want to do it by myself..
Have a good afternoon.
Natalie

Faye - great on the colonoscopy. You couldn't drink for 3 hours before the procedure? I didn't have any restriction like that. Interesting..... I'm like you, I do almost all of my health-related stuff in one month. I go for my annual physical in July, then the mammogram, then the bone density scan, in Feb. I get my reclast. You know something, I usually get an annual pap smear, I don't remember if I got that this year or not. Not sure why the MD didn't question me about it. Maybe I did and I didn't even remember! Talk about getting old!!!! Next year is the eye examination (our insurance only pays for an routine visit once every two years)

Natalie - you sound so wonderful, I can't get over it! I knew you'd be feeling better once the operation was over with! Just think of all you've been thru, getting the staples removed is only a teesy tiny portion, and once this is done, you're home free!

barbie - you're so lucky you got everything out of storage. Here we are in NC, three years later, and we STILL have one storage unit. Admitted, we did start off with 6, but we're still paying for the one.

Did an hour of meditation on the Wii today, will go to the taichi class tomorrow. That's not real strenous and I won't get all sweaty. Then Sat. I'll go to the yoga class. By Sun I should be able to do some sort of aerobic workout. Then Mon I'm planning to go to the extreme pump class. I may have to be careful of my chest muscles, tho. But I'm sure for that I can modify. Still a bit uncomfortable, but I can live with uncomfortable.

Going to go to canasta today and then I'm having the evening mahjongg here tonight (Thus).

Thank you, everyone, for your congrats on my news. I'm so relieved, I tell you! Glad that's over with, just don't want to go thru it again.

genalace - I am so very careful about keeping my feet covered. In yoga I ALWAYS wear socks (except if I'm doing yoga at home), the one and only time I'm barefoot is when I take my shoes off right before entering the pool and right before I put them on shortly after I get out. I figure the chlorine will kill the bacteria, and I usually only take a step or two before I put on my shoes. Otherwise, I ALWAYS make sure I have something on my feet.

Went and played canasta today. It looks like not too many people are going to come to the evening mahjongg tonight. I kept hearing over and over "with canasta today...". I think this is the last time I'm going to volunteer to host mahjongg on a day when canasta is played.

There were only 2 who came for the mahjongg, but we played. I actually maj'd twice!

Fortunately, we are far enough inland that we aren't going to get Irene. As a matter of fact, they're calling for sun. It is humid, tho. It seems when someone hears "North Carolina" they immediately think of the Outer Banks/Wilmington area. But we are at the foothills of the mountains. Now Jessica in VA will get it and so will Denise in PA, but not us. It's even not really going to affect our place in FL. Well, we're on the third floor anyway so if we get flooded, you can bet most of FL is flooded....lol

Today (Fri) did 30 min of tai chi. Actually, she's very good (but has quite a thick accent) and talks a lot about healing the body. The talk is probably the first hour or so.

Amanda - a lentil and spinach burger -- sounds very interesting

Here's hoping everyone has a great evening.

Michele

Feeling really poopy . I can't sleep so thought I would check the posts.

Michelle I am very happy all went well with the biopsy. (I told you it would! ) Now all those negative thoughts can disappear and you can concentrate on the positive. :happy:

Last night while doing a transfer from the bed to the commode, mom had a fit and when she does, loses all concentration and her body literally starts to cave in and she gives up usually and falls. The woman that bathes her normally was there that night, but in the other room. She kept yelling her name to come and help her, when I was right there holding her and had to raise my voice to make her listen to me and get some control over herself. (She is her own worse enemy) There was no way the bathing lady could have helped as there wasn't enough room for all 3 of us. It took a solid 20 minutes to get her to move 2 feet to the bed! It upset the lady so much that she called me the next day and told me she didn't think she could continue bathing my mom if she did that again. (When mom throws a fit, she is screaming, crying and cursing the entire time while making me hold her as she crumbles). I had to convince the lady to come back and she will, but reluctantly. I told mom she cannot do that in front of anyone again, because people don't want to be around that. Her answer was, "Fine don't let her come back. I can bathe myself." She can barely hold a fork and feed herself, can't do any of her toiletry, but she thinks she can bathe herself!:noway: I told her to be realistic.

This morning while I was changing her diaper, she all of a sudden said to me, " I wish I wasn't your mother. Even when you were a little girl you were a *****." Now I know I was not a happy child growing up, but my father was molesting me for years and I was very angry and scared at the time. My mom knows this, but apparently doesn't think it is a good enough reason. Either way, when she said those things to me, it was like driving a knife into my heart. I know our relationship is strained because of the molestation that occured, and my mom has problems with it, (although I really don't know entirely how she feels) but it has never been a loving relationship between us. Still it hurt for her to say that. I know she has always preferred my brother over me and never has liked my personality, saying I am to opinionated, blunt and strong; qualities she wished my brother got instead of me (and has told me so often). But when she told me she wished she wasn't my mother, it was devastating to me. I guess I will never be as good as my brother in her eyes and doesn't appreciate anythng I have done for her since being here with me.

This was a new low even for her. When I asked her how she could say something like that, "She said it's the only way I can get a response out of you. She is a mean, bitter woman. I am tired of all her crap and what she says to me. She just jabs and jabs at me all the time. I haven't talked to he since that and am just trying to ignore her. But it gets harder and harder.

Chiclet

Hi Ladies:

Hope everyone is safe from "irene".

Chiclet - I have to tell you, my heart breaks for you. For some reason, the Lord is seeing fit to test you to your limit by having you take care of your mother after the life you have had to live with her and your father. It is absolutely so unfair to you. Where is this brother of yours that your mother loves so much? Why is he not taking turns helping with her care? Maybe it is about time you stood up for yourself and told him to come and get her for a while , that you are tired of it. I had a son who was abused by a brother of mine when he was 12 and my mother, for whom, up to that point, I did everything, turned completely against me and my children and did not speak to me again until 2 months before she died (all because I called the police and my brother was charged and eventually found guilty). It is amazing what people do when they are in denial and obviously, your mother is still in denial about your molestation or she blames you for it happening. You have described her so accurately, she is mean and bitter and so hurtful to you. From what I have read on these posts, you seem like a caring, giving, wonderful woman and don't let her nastiness get you down. You are worth more than that. Remeber, she is fighting her own demons. Turn to the man in your life for comfort at this time. Your mother is so wrong about you, you are amazing!!!! Please remember that.

Love, Cathy xx

Went and ordered new glasses and sunglasses. Cleaned the house. Now relaxing for the rest of the day. I am so happy I have lost 11 pounds. Gotta keep on going.

Just checking in to get my dose of the board. Spent a good deal of time the past two days getting ready for Irene. They are predicting they it won't be as bad as they thought. I live in a neighbor with lots of old trees and the problem is more the power outages after the storm. It did feel like we were waiting around for Irene to finally get here. I guess it is a very slow moving storm and we are still waiting!
Hope to be able to connect to you all tomorrow!

Hi everyone.

Hope all is well with you all and for those in Irene's path, are safe.

Natalie- I am so impressed with your recovery. You are moving ahead with great strides and to be walking so soon is amazing to me! I can't believe you are doing everything you say so soon. I thought you were going to be in horrible pain and walking would be far off. Someone on the site said it took a long while to heal, but you are obviously the exception to the rule. You go girl! I am so glad you are doing so well after the ordeal you went through with the pain and worrying about the surgery. I went to my doctor and asked if she thought I should get a knee replacement and she told me no. She told me to just ice it after working out and do stretchiing. oh well.

Cathy- You know a long time ago I used to think God had a bad sense of humor when dealing with my entire life. But it wasn't until last year when I came to grips with it all and started taking classes and reading books on positive thinking that I stopped letting it affect my weight and attitude. But every once in awhile something triggers things and I sink down a little. When my mom told me that, it was like she sucker punched me. I didn't even see it coming. I didn't even have an answer for it. She has always been an instigator in my life, but lately she has gotten real good at handing out blows. Usually I ignore them, but that one hurt.

As for my brother, I guess you weren't on our group when I had to take over for my mom's care. It was because of hiim that she ended up this way. She lived with him and he had her down in the basement (made into a room). Things got very bad and he had stopped caring for her. She developed swelling in her legs which caused edemas all over her legs which made it impossible for her to walk and her muscles deteriorated. He also was only feeding her beef jerky and other packaged foods and she became so malnourished that when she tried to get up to go to the doctor (because they were going to go on vacation and when they finally came down to see her they noticed all the edemas and realized she needed a doctor) she collasped and paramedics had to take her. Long story short, the doctors would not allow her to return to my brothers due to elder abuse, I had to fly to Washington and bring her back here and have been with her ever since. So it is just me that can care for her. I have no other family.

I guess sometimes I think after all that I have done for her to get her the best help I can find and things she needed, she would appreciate it and want to exercise and be able to walk and use the restroom again. But she still has my brother on a pedestal. I will never be good enough obviously. That's just the way things are.

Well to commemerate my low feelings about what she said, I really messed up badly and last night went and bought a lemon topped cheesecake and proceeded to eat the entire thing!:embarassed: All I kept thinking all day today was I ate a whole cheesecake! I was so ashamed of myself. The last time I did something like that was right before I changed my way of eating and I ate an entire double layer white cake over the weekend. This time I best myself and ate it in one night. Consequently I went in the pool and doubled my workout and didn't eat until this evening and only had a lean cuisine dinner. I am kicking myself for doing it.

Chiclet

Friday, I picked up DBF from Emergency - he had been given yet another prescription for pain killers - nothing seems to work very well. This morning he called to say he was calling 911 because he can't stand the pain any more. So now I have to wait to see what is going on. I had a lawn bowls game this afternoon, but unless I hear from him before I think I'd better stay here to find out what is happening. Unless someone makes a decision to actually operate and remove the wires in his leg that are causing the problem, I don't see how any of this will ever be resolved.

All very worrying and I can't see any easy resolution.

Natalie - so pleased to read how well you are doing. Don't do tooooo much too soon - be really guided by the doctor or physiotherapist. You can over-exercise. The muscles etc need a rest time between exercise too to rebuild. Speaking from experience here as while I haven't had a joint replaced, I've done lots of physio to get back movement after broken bones. I have osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bones to the uninitiated) which, although not as severe as it could be, has caused me problems now I'm getting older. The disorder mainly affects children up until puberty, but can cause problems later too. It is a genetic disorder and my gr-nephew has it and so has his little one year old son.

I think I did overdo....

Had a bad day yesterday, lots of back pains and abdominal, don't know whether it was gas, or constipation, not good, I was up until about 3 am, then I guess I fell asleep and I did not wake up until 6:30, when I took my pain meds, so I went from 11:30 last night until 6:30 in the morning with out taking pills, perhaps I took to many, I don't know.

I walked over to the clubhouse yesterday, rode the nustep (kinda like a stepper recumbant bike), for 20 mintues, then walked back to the house.. perhaps I overdid? Who knows..

Anyway, weighed in this morning, same weight I have been, no loss no gain, will have to start trying again when I am feeling a bit better..

So you got lots of rain on the east coast? Hope no flooding...

Natalie