Wonderful Wednesday! How are you doing???

Happy Wednesday!! Well hello, everyone…the week is just flying by! Yesterday was lovely…perfect weather, not too hot….my longtime(30 plus years) friend JoAnn invited me to lunch at her place.  She had made salads, homemade cream of cauliflower soup and low-fat onion quiche….delish!  Then we had chaii lattes for desser…*s* and then our sorority dinner meeting at 6:30 pm. Today JB and I head up to Hamilton on the mountain…..about an hpur plus drive. First, we stop in St Catharines to pick up all my mammo  x-rays, ultrasounds and health records at the local hospital then drive to Hamilton to meet my Oncology Surgeon, Dr Nicole Hodgson. We will discuss surgery and treatments.  On the way home, we will stop for dinner..likely Red Lobster…but it depends since that will be during the big “Toronto Rush Hour” (sheer insanity as any huge city experiences) so we may wait til we are much closer to home first before stopping for dinner. At 6 pm, I drive to Niagara Falls to teach my weekly Spiritual LifePath class.  I have combined my Wed group and my Friday group so I only teach once a week, sent in my application for Hospice Certification for February instead of October now.  On Tuesday evening, I handed over the Programmes Agenda for the year to our sorority chapter president so that they can keep track til I get back, I’ve have almost every month of the season for BPW speaker programmes as well....just need one more which I will deal with this weekend.  So I am almost ready to relax and do what I need to do to deal with my health. Little “Ruby Tuesday” is FINALLY EATTING dry kibble!! WE have hand –fed her since her nursing mother was killed by coyotes three weeks ago and Ruby wouldn’t eat ANYTHING solid though she is close to four months old! She is the size of a month old kitten…very tiny and delicate… but boy can she move when we brought her in for warm milky mush!  (she had us wrapped around her little furry white paw & had JB well-trained!)    Soon I will be able to release her to be adopted…someone has already claimed her.  And Fernando may also have found a home. I mentioned last week that the rural newspaper delivery man stopped to stuff our paper into the newspaper tube at the end of the driveway and put his car in “park” to answer his cell phone.  It was a hot day so he had the windows all down.  Fernando, a VERY affectionate young male (orange tabby and white) walked to the end of the driveway and nonchalantly leapt into the guy’s car thru the window and perched on his shoulders, kissing him!! Today, the man stopped with our paper and told JB that he was trying to coax his wife into adopting Fernando! So two adopted…just 21 kittens to go!  I cannot believe how many pregnant cats were dumped at the end of our driveway this summer! Enjoy your Wednesday, everyone! Prayers, hugs and healing energies to all needing some. Nancy B

Hi Nancy and my OFF family:

Watching the recording of the White Sox game; just saw our pitcher, Mark Buehrle, get a big standing O after he was taken out. It might be his last game in a Sox uniform; I hope not. He's a good guy and a great pitcher. The fans were going wild. Lots of changes for the Sox the past two days -- the manager quit and now Buehrle might be leaving.

Well, enough of the baseball report. Had a relatively easy night at work, although it was busy. My knee has been really bothering me lately ... it feels like a knife being stuck in it. It was like that last night in bed, too. I got through the night but it wasn't fun.

Nancy, you sound like my friend Patricia with all the kitties showing up in your driveway. Glad you're finding homes for them.

Glad to hear Carla is doing OK. I'm going to bed. One more day of work and then it's my weekend. Have a good day.

Good Morning Nancy and OFF,
I have a busy day ahead.  First, I have pre-admission testing for my toe surgery in two weeks.  I am having my surgery at the bariatric hospital where I had my RNY and hernia surgery.  They used to only do bariatric surgery. Now, they also do same day procedures.  Then, I have to mail a package to my daughter.  I finished the baby blanket, but forgot to take a picture.  Argh!  This evening, I have a psychiatric appointment and a group therapy session.  Long night.  

Between the mailing the package and the psychiatrist appointment, I have cleaning and crocheting to do.  I now am working on my granddaughter's bedspread which is hopefully a Christmas present.  She picked out red, hot pink, pink and white yarn.  It is a square, not a granny square, but similar.  Trouble is, she has a full size bed, which means it must be big.  Hopefully, if I focus on this project alone, I will fini**** by Christmas.  After that, I have my Special Olympics scarves project to work on.  I am making scarves for the Pennsylvania Special Olympics state games in February, but I won't work on that until I finish Izzy's blanket.  If anyone is interested in knitting or crocheting a scarf for Special Olympics, here is the link:  http://www.scarvesforspecialolympics.org/states/view/38

Gotta scoot.

Hugs,
Trish

Good Morning Nancy and Friends,

 Nancy, you amaze me. How  did you stand still long enough for this recurrence to invade your body? Not making light of anything. I know you're going to attack this head on and get it taken care of. How DARE it slow you down!

My cousin Pat traps feral cats, takes them to the vet for shots and "fixing". She has a "deal" with her vet. Then she releases them. Some she feeds in her back yard. They will come running when she gets out the food. In the winter she puts hay and a tarp over her back porch to make them a winter shelter. A few she has managed over the years to coax into becoming house cats. We tease her that her name should be "Cat" instead of "Pat."

I'm doing ok; not wonderful yet but okay. It's still uncomfortable to walk and I sleep with my legs propped on 4 pillows to try to reduce the swelling. The swelling is just a byproduct of this thigh lift surgery and can last for 3=4 months.

Went to the dentist yesterday and found out that about the last filled tooth I had needs to be crowned. Even with our insurance it will be almost  $700.00.

Today I go for a hair trim and hope that I have a bit of my body perm left for our trip to St. Louis Oct 7=15. I've enjoyed it and will probably continue to wear it this way for a while.

Don't know if I mentioned it or not, but I decided last year that come January or February of each year I'm heading somewhere warm. Last year we spent a week in Arizona and loved it. This Feb my husband, daughter, and I will spend a week on Kauai! I was creative with tickets. Used an Alaska companion ticket for 2 of them and miles plus cash for the 3rd. I've rented a 2 bedroom condo ON the beach for a week and got a good deal on a rental car. Our condo even has a "youtube" video if you'd like to see it.  Search "kahalani 224" and the video should show up. Erin's husband spends 10 days in Canada each summer fishing so when she mentioned it he told her to go for it. It will be some much needed R and R for all of us.

Nothing much else. We go to Seattle area on Tuesday so that we can spend two nights with the grands before leaving for St. Louis. Can't be within 90 miles and NOT see them.

You all have a nice day today. I think summer is over. Last week's warm sunny weather is about 10 degrees colder, a bit windy cloudy. The sun is just creaping over the horizon and there are just a few clouds in the sky AND the wind is not blowing so as Martha say's, "It's a good thing!"

Karen, I have a cracked tooth that I need to get fixed; even with insurance it will cost $600. I can't afford it, so it will have to wait until next year when my new FSA kicks in. Hurts like hell, but what else can I do? Dentist's financial person said they have CareCredit, but I was turned down, so I'll have to wait.

Kauai is really neat; there's a place called Waimea Canyon (I think) ... big waterfalls, just beautiful. I took a trip there off the cruise ship several years ago. Loved it. Enjoy.

Good thing that I don't live closer or I'd probably end up with some of your cats.

"Yellow Cat" now comes to the door and meows to be fed. He lets me get within 2 feet of him. As I was talking and inching closer he HISSSSED. Don't think I ought to try and touch him.

Tom didn't call his doctor so I said I need to shop for some black clothes. He laughed and said I'd probably buy a sexy little black dress.   MEN!!!

Men! Tell him no reason a grieving widow need look dowdy!!!! And tell him while you're at it you're increasing the insurance policy on him big time.

Sure wish they could get that blood pressure under control. I know how frightening that must be for you and probably for him too even if he doesn't let on.

Morning all, sober 332 days and so proud of me.
Making plans about our trip north when the baby comes. Need to bring our winter coats and our gloves.We really like the heat now and dread the cold. Our grandson Alex,age 8, is so excited. He wants the baby to come so we will. He has missed us very much, especially grandfather. 
Traveling bra on,laundry almost done, great Yoda walk.....we are heading to Goodwill and Habitat for Humanity today, looking for luggage and other who know whats.
Need to keep centered about stuff...wishing my mind did not go on so many tangents all the time. I am making great headway (ha ha) on OCDing.
Finding success with PT, still having vertigo, but not as many episodes, great improvement with balance and leg strength. Amazing how 2 min of exercise reps can seem so long. Glad I can do the exercises at home. Up to 3 lbs weights on legs. Therapis had me lower my cane position, this has really helped my neck and shoulders relax more.
Spoke with Carla on FB. Her BP is too low so she was still in hospital, pain not too bad.
Hope all have a good Wednesday, Hugs, Monica

Good Morning Nancy, Everyone. . .

Sounds like you've got things about as orderly as you can, which is great, less stress to deal with and more energy to focus on what is at hand, beating the heck out of that intruder, cancer.  I wish you all the best and will continue to keep you in my thoughts and prayers.  Those kitties are something and my old sponsor, used to go downstairs every now and again and find a kitty, or several in a box left for her, seems word got around that she was inclined towards taking care of strays, at one point she had 13 in her home, as well as a Great Pryenese (sp?), and you would never know it, she was meticulous about cleaning and changing their litter boxes, anyway fond memories of a very special woman, who gave me so much, I miss her, as she passed away in 2002, but I have also been blessed with a new sponsor, who is just as giving and loving. . . 

Well it is another grey and gloomy day here, seems like our weather since August has been more Seattle like in nature, but we also had a long dry spell, so at least everything is replenished.  I have gotten a good start to my day, went to the gym where I worked out for 35 minutes on the ARC trainer and then I spent 10 minutes in the tanning booth to get my vitamin D and then 10 minutes in the massage chair, as I believe I have siacta which is really a pain in the arse and creating a weakness in my left leg.  I have to make a doctor's appointment to confirm it, but based on others I've known, the symptoms are the same, sitting all day does not help at all, but there is little I know that can be done for it, other than moving around, chiropractor and NSAIDs which are no nos in my book.  This too shall pass and I do feel good otherwise, so while painful, I'm functioning with a little tylenol when absolutely needed, I hate meds. . . otherwise, I have a few things to take care of today here at work, then after work I am headed to my son's house to celebrate my grandson, Vaughn's 6th birthday and I got him a Nintendo DS, along with the accidental coverage for 2 years, this is a big gift, so he knows that come Christmas time, grandma will get him a game for his DS and that will be it, so that's my day.  Oh and at 4:00 p.m. today, my vacation starts!!!

Wishing everyone the best possible day, peace and strength to face life challenges. . .

Hugs, Laureen

Laureen my pain dr gave me a shot for my sciatica and it helped me alot!! Might ask your dr about getting one!! Shot hurts like hell but after that its well worth it!!!