mdrai

Suzie... That's a hoot! Lucky you, you know MORE THAN 5 "bright, funny women"!! Also, THANK YOU for the note... how lovely it was to find an actual handwritten, heartfelt note in the mail (rather than just junk & bills)!! It made my day!! ((TERRY)) Laura... your hutch is beautiful! I like the way the wood grain on the doors kinda/sorta looks like hearts... ((HAYDEE)) ... call me on one of your "nothing planned to do" nights!!! TracyK... that'll mean more time w/Macy! Hi Pa MEL a... so glad you & S are together!!! I know you're enjoying it!!! & yes, you in that hat is my 2nd fav pic from Gruene!! Pics, Kat!! (nudge, nudge) Hi Janie!! Today is dd's "End of the School Year Pool Party" w/ 15 of her nearest & dearest 9yo girlfriends (so you can see why we're having the party at the POOL and NOT my HOUSE!)... she & her "bff" are hosting it this afternoon/eve (that's why the cookie baking yesterday...)... It should be fun... Today is supposed to be a gorgeous day... sometimes SAHM has its perks... such as "I have to hang out at the pool all day"! Make it a great one, Vi's!

Note to self: Do NOT EVER AGAIN invite dd's little friends over to bake peanut butter s'mores cookies on a rainy afternoon!!! 'Nuff said. *Burp*

TracyKS... seeing that pic in your siggy never fails to bring a smile to my face! We all look so happy AND it brings me back to that instant and all the fun & happiness of it. I need to make a print and keep it w/me at ALL TIMES! ((HAYDEE)) I'll be your roomie, roomie!! Smooches!!

Good Monday Morning, Vi's~~ Busy weekend, culminating in a trip to the ER w/ds after soccer try-outs... knee v. head... head always LOSES!... & now he has his first "official" concussion. Was up w/him in the night, giving him pain meds & asking him questions... when I get the smart-alecky answers, then I know he's ok! I always want to write personals but 1) I rarely have the time and 2) you all move so fast it's hard to keep up!! But know that I am always w/each of you & whatever is going on w/you... I talk w/you in my head! (I'm sure that won't surprise you...) BUT... Janie... ((hugs)) sweetie! You've got so much going on right now w/your medical issue investigations + family stuff + your unfill... be gentle with yourself. Treat yourself as you would a sister Vi. What advice would you give to her? What kindness would you offer? Then do that for you. If you need "tough love," then get tough. If you need understanding & compassion, then do that. We love you! Laura... Great finds!! Love them! You are GOOD at the finds, girl! Pam... Congrats on the diss progress!!! & summer is here! No more Manuel!!! & Susanne is home! & you're leaving for Europe soon!!! Life is good, chica! TracyK... It can be scary to listen to the small, still voice, but it will all unfold as it is supposed to. Trust me... you will NEVER regret being "home" w/Macy... you can ALWAYS get another job, but you can NEVER replace her childhood years. TracyKS & Suzie... I think of you two every day when I hear the weather reports... you gals are really getting hammered this year!!! Stay safe!! Kat... Why am I not surprised that you're going 100mph again?? Did I think major surgery would slow you down? No! I still can't wait to see pictures!!! Ok, so today is the first "official" day of summer vaca here... I'd like to get my kids into a "routine" of "work" (chores, reading, instrument practice, helping me clean, etc.) in the morning (while I actually AM working), and then "fun" in the afternoon (pool or whatever)... so far I think they've had b'fast & are now playing Guitar Hero... hmmm... this plan may need some modifications! Make it a great day, Vi's!!

happy birthday, terry!!! :cornut: :hurray: :wink5: :thumbup:

Party @ Judy's house!!

Yes, Pam, you're one of the many voices in my head... actually, I like that I can put names w/them! :teeth_smile: You are in control, TracyK! Say it! Mean it! You don't need the junk!!! Off to knit...

I love that now when I read your posts, Pam, I pronounce Susanne's name properly in my head! Actually, what I hear is YOU pronouncing it!! (Yes, there's a lot of chatter in many voices in my head at all times! That explains a lot, huh??) It's Thursday! Tomorrow is the last day of school!! I'm crafting like crazy right now, too, Suzie. I need to finish another knit market bag by tonight to give to DD's teacher tomorrow for an end-of-year gift. I even knit at the pool! Make it a great one, Vi's!!

Way quiet! Just checking in before going up to fold laundry & go to bed. Day 3 of proper eating is in the bag! Yay me! Will go for 4 tomorrow. Am interested to see just how long I can keep this up! I am in control! (or at least faking it! :thumbs_up: Sweet dreams, Vi's!

Gravity. It's our friend.

And YES! YES girls... all that crap is crap and you know it!: PB cornflake cookie dough & syrup teaspoon-full of icing chewy pecan praline two choc chip cookies holding icing between them rolled in sprinkles -- EVEN MINI's! :tongue2:

Good Weds Morn, Vi's~~ I actually Cut the Crap yesterday! Yay! That makes it 2! 2 days in a row! Amazing!! I'm going for 3 today!!! If I get a big chunk of work done this a.m., then I can go to the pool @ Noon w/just the mom's -- while all the kiddos are still in school (just 2.5 days left), so I'm motivated!! Thanks for the walk down memory lane, Terry!! I need to do that, too, pull all the pics & print a few, too! The other night I priced tix to PALM SPRINGS over Labor Day just for fun... $409... not too crazy (altho the 8 hours in the air each way might be!)... hmmmmmmm (have we actually been invited?) Make it a great day, everyone!

I've been gone all day, so I didn't know it was CTCD, but I Cut it anyway! Yay!! Have the munchies now, tho, so need to AVOID THE KITCHEN!! Love the pics, Laura! TracyKS, you can do it!!! 170s!! What a dream... ((hugs)) everyone...

Good Early Morn, Vi's~~ For some unknown reason, I woke up @ about 4am this morning... couldn't fall back to sleep... DH's alarm goes off @ 5am... I turned on the tv... too much bad news, so clicked it off & came downstairs... & now what?? Had a good food day yesterday -- yay! -- finally! Every time I was tempted I just thought, "Who's in control?" or "Control what you can control." and that seemed to work. Am avoiding the scale for a week. I really want to kick out these next 20lbs & get to -100! Need to keep that in mind. And so it goes... Make it a great day, Vi's!

"...when before the zipper teeth were so far away from each other they were practically in different zip codes. " HA HA HA HA HA... thanks for the laugh, Haydee!

What a pretty church!

Good Monday Morn, Vi's~~ It's the last Monday of the school year! This time next week will be SUMMER VACATION! :smile: I need to maximize my alone time this week, as there will be a shortage of it in the coming months... Not much else to say. Weighed myself this a.m.... 239.something... bleh. Am going to TRY to jumpstart myself w/a day of liquids... ha ha, we'll see how THAT goes... I need to de-tox from the crap, sugar, etc... and get some CONTROL back... I thought about the irony of how I'm feeling like life is out of control lately, and how my answer to that is to eat out of control, which is odd, as that IS the ONE AREA that I CAN control! Duh! No one ever confused me for a nuclear physicist (oh wait! yes they did! :tongue2:). Anyhoo, I'm going to try keeping the CONTROL idea in my head today & see if that helps. Make it a great day, Vi's!

Good Sunday Morn, Vi's~~ It is hot, hot, HOT here... upper 90s, w/"heat index" in the "triple digits" (gotta love weatherman lingo!). Have the AC cranked & will probably visit the pool later. It's too early in the summer to be this hot! I am eating OUT OF CONTROL!! I am trying to examine WHY. This is what I've come up with: #1: DS "graduating" 8th grade & moving into HS. I really think that this is bothering me more than I realized. He's always been my "little buddy" and, while he still is, he's a very good teen... not too much teen angst/crankiness/"I hate my parents" from him, very little, actually... there's still the natural separation & I'm a bit melancholy. and #2: Prices/money/the state of the union. It's ironic that as TracyK is getting out of her job, I'm seriously considering trying to get one -- a "real" one, not just at Starbucks or something. Just this morning at breakfast DH told me that our mortgage company sent us a letter saying that because of the declining price of homes, our line of credit (read: our safety net) has been reduced... basically from about $60K to NOTHING! I think I said, "Pass me the bacon." It's scary. I realize both of these things are out of my control, and that eating will not make them any better, but it makes me FEEL better, or not feel at all, depending... so I'm glad that I am aware, and can consciously choose OTHER ways to deal... exercise, working, whatever... but it's still getting to me. There, I feel better for having typed it out & acknowledging it. "Hi, my name is Michelle and I'm a worrier!" Sorry I'm a downer. Bleh. I need a Gruene 'Rita!

Hey Everyone!~~ Judy... Dessert Demolition Derby -- what a great idea! I think I'm going to steal it for the PTA this year!! Thank you!!! After our amazingly crammed week, I think we're going to take it easy today... altho DH is currently riding 100 miles in the MS ride today... guess he's not taking it easy! It's supposed to get up to near 100 here today... hope he's drinking a lot!! Make it a great one, my lovely Vi's!

Hey Ladies... 3 weeks ago... well, you know... :tongue2: I was up @ 5am this morning to chaperone the 8th grade band field trip to Hershey Park... yes, THAT Hershey... the CHOCOLATE Hershey!!! :thumbup: They played in a competition in the a.m. (they earned a "superior" rating & came in 2nd overall) and then we went to Hershey Park in the afternoon... phew!... a lot of walking... I didn't ride any rides, the lines were too long... I went to a seal show! cute! and drank iced lattes... didn't really each any chocolate, now that I think about it! hmmmmm... but I did buy dh a 5 POUND bar for Father's Day from the kids! He's always prowling around for sweets in the eves after dinner, and is frequently grumpy that I don't bake as often as I used to... so I figure this should keep him busy for awhile! I am beat!! It's off to bed for me. G'night my lovelies!!

This is why I'm fat. I TRY to be good, but food is conspiring against me: This afternoon I was a judge for the 5th grade congressional hearing... afterwards they had refreshments... and one of the moms made these ADORABLE cookies that really looked like little miniature hamburgers!! So of course I had to have one... yum! Then I saw little slices of watermelon, so I think "Fruit. Nutritional. Be good and have a piece." So I do... and WHAT is my reward but that the watermelon "pee'd" all over my crisp, white shirt!! So see, the good food is against me!! Should've stuck w/the 'burger cookies!!!

Just for fun??

I am here... just busy w/the "countdown to summer" & all the extra activities & trips & meetings, etc., that are crammed into the last two weeks of school! Phew! Oh, and for some extra-added fun (ha!)... yesterday ds had a make-up soccer game at 6:30pm south of DC, which is basically impossible to get there from here on a Tuesday during rush hour... so we (me, ds, & two other players) left @ 3:30pm... drove 2.5 hours... get there... the boys warm up, then play about 10-15 mins of the game... and then "BOOM" -- a thunderstorm hits, we all get soaked to the skin... we wait... but finally they call off the game... so now we've got 4 drenched folks (3 of whom are stinky, wet 13yo boys... can you imagine the scent in my car??) back into the car & another 1.5 hour drive home (faster, even tho I could barely see out the windshield w/all the rain). We got home around 9:30pm. This is just an example from my life lately. (& of course, I wouldn't trade it for the world!! but it does make me tired!!) I did get to the pool for a couple hours earlier yesterday, w/a friend... so that was nice. We're coveting the few days of pool time while the kids are in school... it makes for a very quiet pool experience! Off to see what today brings!! Make it a great one, Vi's!

Tracy... hang tough! You are right about this on so many levels... maturity, responsibility, etc... If it were me, I bet I would've just laughed out loud at the theatrics... which, when I do that here (w/9 yo drama queen dd), only makes it worse... but it is just so darned FUNNY! If they could only see themselves! Of course, if it were my 13yo ds doing it, I would worry... that does sound a bit odd... but whether it's emotional or spoiled, I can't tell... um, yeah... good luck w/THAT!!

Living well is the best revenge, Kat! Enjoy!! :biggrin2: