What's on your Wednesday Menu?

I've often gotten good deals on AirBnB. For hotels, I used to use Priceline and Hotwire a lot, but don't so much any more because you can sometimes get the same price directly from the hotel (once you factor in the fee that Priceline and Hotwire charge). I check all - AirBnB, Priceline, Hotwire, and then directly with the hotel once I find some I like on Priceline and Hotwire (PL and HW's prices on hotels where you don't know the name of the place are usually lower than those where you DO know the name of the hotel - but I can sometimes figure out what hotel it is based on the limited info they provide).

I would think hotel prices and availability in January in St Louis are going to be decent, though - not a hot vacation destination in the winter!

I've also used Kayak and Expedia to find places - as well as Booking (although I've read some hoteliers and B&B places have had trouble getting their $$ from Booking.com - and some customers have discovered when trying to check into a place that the place doesn't have the reservation, so I'm not going to use them anymore. I've never had issues with them, but after reading a fair number of negative reviews, I'm not going to use them again. Sounds like it's more than an occasional issue)

I loved the Kayak commercials with the woman that spent too much time at home during COVID-19. "No Cancelling!"

A lot of the hotels have good pricing in their apps, I book that way mostly now, and with so many hotel consolidations, you can check multiple brands at a time. Also, airbnb is not always cheaper, especially for shorter stays but I do still compare.

Mornin' All!

well my weight was 0.2 lbs lower than last week, so I'm relieved. It's still too high, but at least it didn't go up any more. So I'm going to reel everything in starting today. Party season is over, so this should be a bit easier. I hope...

It's sunny and will be 40-ish today, so I may go walking - or go over to the gym and use some of the cardio equipment. There was an 8:00 aqua fitness class, but I didn't get up until 7:30, and I had no desire to rush out of bed to get over there in time. The noon aqua class was cancelled, so that's that. It's either walking or recumbent bike today.

QOTD: we don't have an external ice maker, but we have one inside the freezer (that just makes standard ice cubes). I'm good with that, though. I'd never go back to ice cube trays. It seems like they shouldn't be that much of a hassle, but I couldn't stand them.

B: coffee with half & half

MS: yogurt or skyr with berries

L: protein shake

AS: salad with grilled chicken strips

D: probably a small piece of spinach lasagna

have a great day, everyone!

Good Morning Queen JB and Meneurs,

We all deserve a little ***** day after dealing with the holiday. I had quests over an hour late for the holiday dinner and I had a SMO SIL yacking about how hunger she was. I turned and said out loud. Hunger is not an emergency ***** And went on with what I was doing. Not one person helps with anything. I never even seen them as much as bring dirty plates to the sink and then they're going to tell me where I fell short. Oh No not happening. I did have so many leftovers I had them over again yesterday to help lighten the load. They were much kinder yesterday.

QOTD: Yes, and it is awesome. The one at my friend's place in Costa Rica makes 4 types of ice!! Crushed, cubes, pea pellets, and big bourbon balls it is amazing.

Accountability: not completely on track but doing better.

TSS: 6 years 0-months 15-days 164.2 Lowest (129.4)

B: Coffee with SF coffee mate chocolate caramel creamer

MS: Friendly farms vanilla Greek yogurt, and berries

CB: Coffee with SF coffee mate chocolate caramel creamer

L: chili creamed spinach and snack select

D: creamed spinich roasted cauliflower and grilled shrimp

Exercise: Dog walking.

Water and Vitamins: On track. I take a Bariatric Advantage Ultra multi w/iron I use bariatric advantage Calcium chews and 500mg of Magnesium. I also use MiraLAX and fiber in my first coffee of the day.

Have a great day my friends.

Brightest Blessings,

Chrissy

QOTD- I have a very small kitchen in this house, and the refrigerator that came with it doesn't have water or ice. So we were using ice cube trays and I hate them. The freezer is so small that I finally bought a countertop ice maker. I love it, eventually I will replace the fridge and it is plumbed for water so I'll get one with an ice maker. I never drink anything lukewarm...We also have the brita water dispenser in the fridge that takes up too much room. The space for the fridge is small so I'm not sure we can find one to replace this one that has any more room. I hate to take the cabinets above out since we have limited cabinet space, for a house this big (5 bedrooms) the kitchen is tiny, I'm not sure how the previous owners did it with 4 kids. They did live here for 50 years though.

Too many other projects to do first, definitely need new windows before a fridge. it's just too depressing. I figured out that I can probably never retire unless I can refinance this house at a lower interest rate. Right now my house payment would take all of my social security check, and then I would only have my pension to pay for everything else, which wouldn't even cover the essentials like insurance, food, electricity, water, gas etc...I guess I'll wor****il I drop.

I'm trying not to be negative but not succeeding...I'll get over it.

Have a great day everyone!

The refrigerator in my condo had no ice maker. I tried to buy one but it was from Sears and no longer can get parts. I buy ice at the grocery store and store it in a bin in the freezer. I have had automati**** makers for many years and miss that. I bought a countertop one but sent it back because I have limited counterspace. Because of the way the kitchen is configured I am not sure if an ice maker can even be hooked up but will talk to a plumber before I replace this refrigerator.

QJB-I hope your mood is better today. It is hard during celebration days to forsake food, especially any of your favorite. My food was very limited because of my short bowel syndrome. I was limited to protein (prime rib, crab, shrimp, ham) but was missing out on all the yummy carb items. I did try some green beans and paid the price for it. I also had 3 bites of lasagna that did me in also. I am hoping that today will be better. I have to admit I was a bit pissed off that I was so restricted in what I could eat. Before with the RNY I could pick and choose items to eat, have a small bit of dessert. Now I can't have so many things without sitting on the toilet half the day. Ugh, how did I get to this place? On the positive side, I had a really nice time with my sister, BIL. their grown kids, my dad and his girlfriend. So nice to have family here. I hosted but they did most of the cooking.

Last night was my last night of IV nutrition! I am so happy about that. My weight has remained stable at 130ish, so I must be absorbing some of the food I take in. One more day of IV antibiotics also, then PICC line comes out. I anticipate going back to work when my FMLA is done, so most likely January 8th. I will work from home for a while. This is a nice option.

QOTD: I have the ice trays only. DH never wanted to have an ice maker because when he was growing up his parent's bout a fridge with an ice maker that had a weird taste to the ice. Now that wouldn't be a problem and I would love an icemaker.

Food is the usual trying to get 2000 kcals. Exercise will be walking, bands, and maybe yoga.

Wow! You're making some real progress. Getting rid of the IV and PICC line are big wins. It's hard to believe you're ready to go back to work though.

You've really stayed strong during all you've been through.