It's Hump Day - where is everyone this morning!

Hi Pat and all my OFF friends,
Pat, sorry to hear about your DIL.  I hope the medications work for her.
Someone just posted on an off-shoot of Freecycle that their 16 year old son was looking for odd jobs to help pay for his $400 fee for high school football this year.  I think I might hire him to help clean my basement.  I was shocked that it cost that much for the boys to participate in high school football.
The concert was nice last night.  I got to talk to an old friend.  Made a lot of connections with scouting people to get the fishing derby arranged for our first Pack meeting of the school year.
Our son called last night.  He said our granddaughter Sadie is really into her 3rd birthday coming up.  Her aunt is making her a poodle cake.  She kept reading her birthday card to them that my Mom (great-grandma) sent to her.  She should get the package from us today or tomorrow.  My son said there is no way she'll be able to wait until her party on Saturday to open it.  They will be at my DILs side of the family in NJ for her birthday.  We would be there if we were invited (it's only 2 1/2 hours from us).  Ah well, that's a long story, too involved to go into here.
Not much else going on in my life.
I hope your day is grand.
Bev

Good Morning Everyone,

 Got back from my two day camping trip yesterday and things are as busy as ever here at Erin's. Today is her Seattle day so Briley and I are hanging out while Josh (son in law) works at the old farm house they are remodeling so that they can move into it.

 Maggie had a close encounter of the scary kind while camping. She is my 5 lb Yorkie. Very few people in the campground and a private space so I was letting her off leash. I saw something out of the corner of my eye and Maggie started growling. A HUGE raccoon came strolling right into our space! I grabbed Maggie and this animal did not even make a move to leave! I've heard they can be really mean and it was really "interested" in my little Yorkie! Thank goodness that didn't have a bad outcome!

Had a great time. I went early on Sunday and set up camp. Erin, her 3 little ones and her friend and her 2 girls arrived about noon. They had packed "beach" things and a lunch. We had lunch and then walked down a 1/2 mile beach trail. The two year old twins did great, singing, calling out "Come on ME-MAW!!" exploring everything. When we got to the beach the tide was out and it was not the kind of beach I had hoped for.

Never having been there before. . . but the kids played in the sand and on the driftwood that was piled up on the shore. After a couple of hours we marched back the 1/2 mile (up hill!). They had a snack, headed home and I settled in to enjoy some much needed peace and quiet.

Read a book, cooked "minimally" using my little one burner stove and just thoroughly enjoyed myself. It was a quiet little county park with a family who stay in a little trailer 24/7 during the summer months to "attend" to things.  Not far away was a nice clean bathroom with a shower! Weather was nice all day Monday.

 A friend that I had lost touch with and hadn't seen in almost 20 years lives just about 50 miles from where I was staying. I had sent her a last minute email and she showed up on Monday afternoon. We spent several hours catching up! We were so close once. I feel bad that we've let time and distance intervene.

After she left I finished my book, took several walks with Maggie. When we would return from our walks she'd march right into the tent, made a "nest in the sleeping bag, and lay with her head facing the opening so that she could always see me. Other dogs you see laying in the dirt, chasing chipmunks etc. Not her. Doesn't like dirt. If she's out and about she wants to sit on the picnic table bench not on the ground!

It was drizzling when I got up Tuesday morning so I packed up and headed home early. Stopped in a little town for a hot breakfast at a local diner. Man did I get the looks. You know that small town, everyone knows everyone look? They were nice but sure curious!

Came home and spread everything out to dry. I'll pack it all back up today. By next year I WILL have a little tent trailer or something so that I can sleep off the ground. I am so stiff that I can hardly move today. I'm looking at very small, light weight tent trailers that can be pulled behind a small SUV or a regular car. Don't need fancy, just a comfortable bed off of the ground! We had a large tent trailer years ago and it was comfortable for sleeping. Even had a little couch and table. Not crazy about the putting up and taking down each time you move but the good outweighs the bad.

Briley's stirring and the twins will be up soon. Josh and I will get them up, dressed, fed, and off to daycare. Then Briley and I wll settle in for some quality time. She is being breast fed, but takes a bottle just fine. As long as there is something in it she doesn't care who gives it to her. I'm sure that comes from starting early with the bottle supplements. My Nathan was not so easy. If it wasn't Mommy he would just wait til I got back!

Hope you all have a nice day!

Karen

do you camp in primative areas or do you have electricity.  If you have power your could purchase a high twin inflatable matress.  That would get you off the ground and elimanate the putting up and taking down of a tent trailer.  Of course you would need a groundcloth and would need to take care not to puncture it.  

I've thought about the doubles. I have a neat little battery operated pump that works great. The tent trailers are really easy to put up and take down. I like having a little table and a light if I want to stay up a while. This past 2 days I took my smallest tent which is just a little more than a pup tent. No standing up in it and with two bionic knees it's hard to get up and down. Still I had a great time. And also with a couple of feet off of the ground Maggie and I wouldn't have to worry about that raccoon! I tend to gravitate towards primitive spots tho I like attended campgrounds when I'm by myself.

Hi Karen, We checked out a (Small) Travel Trailer, It was called A-liner. As I recall the company makes 5 or 6 styles. The trailers have hard tops and sides. The sales person set the unit up in 30 seconds. Very light weight, and can be towed with small car or truck, really cute.

Peace and quiet, aaaaaaah. Glad you got some recoup time.

Hugs dear girl, Peg 

Peg! It's SO nice to "see"you. I've looked at the Aliners too. I love everything but the price. Maybe I'll be able to find a used on in the next year or so. I haven't been in one. Our tent trailer was quick to put up but I like the idea of the hard sides all around.

morning all!
yesterday was busy busy -and that was good- after work; mom, brother and sil picked me up and we went to vote--get this---on the 6pm news--our township (ellsworth) is the smallest in michigan in registered voters-65....and usually they have one new registered voter per year-this year there were two-----and yup! i am one of them!!!!! anyhow- barely remember coming home/dinner and after dinner tv---
slept pretty well and was up at 430 and 730--decided heck it's my day off and went back to bed til 10---

so now i have to call in prescriptions/call drs to schedule appts/laundry and stuff---it's all good-so long as i can stay inside- humidity is a blinger again---

pat; your dil's dx is not good however she knows now WHAT is wrong and as you found it is treatable....prayers!

carolyn...i'm sure you are excited for deployment to end!

everyone else- have a great day
hugs and prayers.............

Hi Pat,

Sorry to read about your DIL, like everyone else, thankfully, today there is a lot more hope for living with such illnesses and maybe in our lifetime, but for sure in hers, there will be a cure that keeps her from any future worries.  I know attitude with any illness is half the battle and from what you said, seems she has the right attitude.  Prayers and good wishes going out to her and you.

My work day is almost half over and timewise, things are moving along. . .  I am counting down the days until my vakay (Labor Day week) and as I walked Roxie around last night, I could not help thinking that there is so much to be done around my house and so little time and then there is my very social life, which means even less time, since starting this job, I have projects that never get done, simply because there is no time, I used to have 6-1/2 weeks, plus holidays off, now over the past year plus I get 2 weeks and that just does not give me the time necessary, especially when you count that my time off has included Posion Ivy and other things that don't allow for me to do too much. . .  and I don't have the funds to pay someone to do things for me either, so I just don't know what I'm going to do, but it is rather frustrating. . .  ok, enough *****ing and now for some gratitude. . .  I have a job, I am healthy, I have friends that admire and respect me, I have a boyfriend that treats me like I deserve to be treated and I have the wonderful companionship of dear Roxie, so what more do I need. . .  hmmm, well how about just enough money to retire (lol). . .

Ok, enough time spent here, wishing everyone a very good day and prayers, peace and strength to get through those times that are not as good. . .

Hugs, Laureen

I talked to my swim PT about the assesment and felt soooo much better. He doesn't think I should lose weight, just exercise and build up these old bones.

He said the test does not take into consideration things such as loose  skin from losing over 200 lbs.

My cousin Joshua was air lifted to Thomas Jefferson Hospital in Philly. Yesterday they fused his skull to his spine. He is still in a coma and on a ventilator.

His Mom continues to feel hope even though the doctors have told her he is far from out of the woods. She told the doctors to be quiet and not burst her bubble.

Kisses
Annette

Hi Pat and my OFF family:

I had a killer migraine yesterday ... just when I thought it was gone, it would come back. I had put in a prescription for my generic Imitrex at Walgreens and after the first White Sox game was over, went out to get it. I stopped off to get gas and a car wash (birds were crapping all over my car, part of the problem parking outside under a tree, but that's where my space is). As I was driving to Walgreens, I started to feel queasy. There was an empty McDonald's bag in the car (I like their wraps), so I grabbed that ... got to Walgreens without incident, got my drugs as well as a few other things I needed. Got back in the car, headed home ... and up came lunch, all over me, the car, some in the bag, but because it was paper, it didn't hold it very well.

So when I got home, I had to throw it out, clean out the car ... yuck .. won't describe because it was really ugly. Went out there with a roll of paper towels and cleaner to wipe off the steering wheel and the cup holder. Felt crappy the rest of the night and went to bed around 8:30 p.m. ... didn't go to sleep until 10:30 or after, though. I don't know if it's the excessive humidity that's bothering me or the paper mill smell or what ... but something is aggravating my headaches. I'm going to have a massage today ... my back is killing me too.

Pat, sorry to hear about the MS diagnosis ... I don't know much about these things, but there are some good drugs out there.

Connie, I'm sorry to hear about Judy feeling no one cares. It's hard to respond to everyone's posts. I just tried to message Judy when she was on, and she didn't respond. Not everyone responds to me, and I don't feel that no one cares. I hope she changes her mind.

Well, back to work tonight. Still hotter than hell down here. 95 degrees already and rising. Have a good day and stay cool.