A New New Dawn

Carole, if there is an address I can send a care package to, could you forward that on? I would love to send one, if possible.

Sissy!!! f**k ya!!!! (sorry, ladies but that was well warranted)!!! I am so happy for you!

Dee, I hope Charlie is ok, please keep us posted when you can.

Momma - oh HELL ya, Emilia (beautiful name) is looking good!!! How's ange feeling? How's your brother a.k.a - uncle doing??

Went to chiropractor at lunch. He actually said, though my back is what's hurting, that he is most concerned with my neck. Based on the x-ray it was as if I had a whiplash injury. I have had consistent headaches on one side of my head (not Migraine level but painful) and did an mri, ck'd ears, etc and could never determine cause. I hadn't even mentioned it to him but after he showed me my neck, it made me wonder and he agreed it could well be the cause. I just learned to deal w/ the pain as I felt silly since all tests were fine. They did an electrode treatment on my back today and an adjustment. Going back next week again.

Have a great day, Ladies!

Very happy that Dee and Terri's visit went well. Safe travels home! The quilt was very sweet for a very selfless and deserving angel on Earth.

Carole, sorry to hear about Sushi having more medical issues but so happy Sushi is still happy and being loved unconditionally. You are really a trooper keeping up with your exercising and not giving up.

Janet, so sorry for all the challenges you have been facing recently. I hope today is a better day for all. How are Ange and your mom doing today? Big hug!!

Michelle, sorry about your struggle. You will get there. You are a fighter and so driven I have all the faith in you!!! I am sure the stress of school isn't helping either. Thankfully, you are on the home stretch with that!

Diane, I hope things are going well at home as well. What a sweet and caring son you have raised as well!!! That's very sweet!!

Happy Terri and Dee day!!!

Ok, seriously, this is a picture of the desks right behind me...... wtf?????

Hi, Ladies! Well, gallbladder and blood test were fine. The doctor's office (nurse) called and said everything was fine/normal. I am still uncomfortable in my upper left abdominal area (near my port area) and my back is still bothering me a lot. I was dealing w/ some tingling in my back and now just this pain. I kind of feel silly because my abdomen was really tender and nauseous, etc. and they essentially found nothing. In speaking to a chiropractor he suspects I may have a pinched nerve in my back too (going to him on Wed). I can see my chart online from the doctor's office and am going to call them back tomorrow just to ease my mind as it says on the report: The right hepatic simple cyst is noted, measuring 13 x 14 x 21mm. This is a new finding since the prior study. Not sure if this could be causing me abdominal discomfort or not but worth asking about at least. Definitely need to get my back looked into. I have never had back issues and w/ the stomach issues it seemed it was internal and I really didn't think it was a back issue. I just want some relief. Sitting at my desk all day is not comfortable.

Anyway, Diane, glad you had some Di time tonight!

Janet - welcome back!!!! So glad all is well and guessing the family is glad you are back too. YES, Benny needs the dog whisperer!!! Funny thing is I see that show and they always have nice (and big) houses so I know they would never put my cubical of a house on there. So I have thought maybe once I move to Omaha I will try to enter him, lol.

Terri and Dee ~ yahoooooo.... can't wait!

Michelle, hey skinny twin!!! So proud of you!

Ugh, it's 12:30 at night here (no, I shouldn't be up). Audrey is watching Teen Wolf and our doorbell just rang. Of course, HELL no I am not answering it at this hour and it freaked me out. I finally was able to get to window (discretely) and see it was the police. I opened and they asked if I noticed anything as someone had their yard stuff all messed up and vandalized. Earlier today, the police were at the door this a.m. because the guy across the street had his tires slashed. This USED to be a quiet, residential neighborhood and I hate it now. I soooo cannot wait to get out of here. I am always really nice to all the neighbors (even the "thugs") as I don't want to be on anyone's bad side. Last year someone went through my shed and my neighbors.... It freaks me out! No area is perfect but I just don't feel so safe here anymore and stopped crating my dogs at night so I feel safer if anyone ever tried to break in.

On that note, goodnight ladies. Have a great day!

Hi, Ladies... sorry, with having not been feeling well and running around, I haven't been on here much. Would sure be easier if I could access this group on my phone.

My tummy is feeling better the last few days. I will find out next week the results of my gallbladder scan to see if that may be the culprit. My reflux has been better this week too but I had other issues instead. Anyway, all in all I am not doing too bad. I didn't get a fill and at least found out what is in my band (4 cc). The dr. didn't give me one until we figure out my issues. Also, he was telling the PA in the room that because I have a slight slip they don't want it too tight as that can make it worse. I think the scan they did this week at least showed the slip isn't any worse.

Michelle, that is AWESOME! So happy for you! Yes, football is quite demanding time wise. My daughter was a football cheerleader at one point and I was amazed how much just their practices took. Plus, the games. Enjoy!!!

Terri, can't wait to hear about your visit with our Dee. Franc gets to meet all the LB ladies too. How cute! As for my doggy, Benny... well, he has ISSUES. Essentially, he is a very nervous dog and also very scared (threatened) by people he doesn't know. He seems to be fine with people that ignore him but if people try to pet him, he will snarl and snap. People see him so little and think what a cute little (harmless) dog and don't expect it so they don't approach him with caution. Years ago he bit Brad's daughter as he freaked out when she rode past him on a skateboard and last year he bit my sister. I was frustrated w/ the issue with my sister because knowing he had issues, it wasn't a good idea to very loudly and excitedly yell Benny and just jump in his face. He bit her arm and ran away from her. The kids' dad comes over from time to time and he doesn't like dogs so he ignores Benny and it works fine. Sudden movements or strangers scare Benny. Ignore him and he is fine. Once he gets to know someone he is fine and is very affectionate. We are his 3rd home and I don't know what treatment he endured before. He is also very scared when I cook w/ oil or if he smells smoke (he hates the firepit). He is a good dog in spite of all that but... When you see CJ, make sure you tell him "shut the front door" for me so you get a good giggle from him.

Janet, big hug to you dear!!! I hope your mother is doing better and you are doing well.

Carole, awesome that you are able to get so many steps in!!! Such a loving momma taking care of her bab(ies). I went with my friend yesterday while she did her first 10k (6.4 miles). She was able to run most of it. She was sooooo excited as she's never run a 10k before. She is 47 and hopes to do a half marathon by the time she is 50. I felt like a slacker as a spectator seeing a VERY pregnant woman running it too! Definitely motivational though. You are doing so well; especially knowing the injuries and setbacks you have had.

Diane, I sure hope whomever would do something so low like that was desperate as you said and I sure hope it was someone that doesn't know you. I cannot imagine anyone knowing (the awesome YOU) and doing that to you. I shake my head in disbelief that someone could do that. I am so sorry. I am praying for NICE JUNE today!!! I hope one of the authorities can help relieve the financial burden so you can get more assistance with your mom. Are there government agencies that help with this? We seem to have a lot of avenues here. Also, have you looked into your local chamber of commerce for suggestions? I am not sure if you have the same things there but our counties and each village's chamber of commerce offer a lot of community assistance. I never knew and was surprised at all they do. Also, if there is a senior citizen club in your area, they often know of or have a lot of resources. Big hug to you, my friend.

Still no moving date but expecting late fall. Getting things ready for Audrey to head off to college. Gotta get sheets and towels today. Poor Ericka texted me yesterday after getting injured. Since she was very young she would pass out every once in a while out of nowhere. We went to the Children's hospital and they did all kinds of tests and never figured it out. Closest we figure is she is borderline anemic and they checked her ears and said one was weaker and can cause dizzy spells. It doesn't happen often (maybe 1x per year) or sometimes a few years go by without an episode. Well, she went to a outdoor spa thing yesterday with friends (she is still in Ecuador) and started feeling weak. She passed out and face planted. Thankfully, she didn't break her nose or teeth but her lips are cut up and swollen. I'm just so glad she didn't get hurt any worse than that.

Have a great day!!!! Love you ladies.

Glad to hear Jack's surgery went well! That is great news!! ))))

Just logging in before heading to bed.... again, my thoughts and prayers for you Diane. This is such an unfortunate situation that just doesn't make sense. Big hug for you, my friend for peace and good days for you and your family.

I would suggest checking Amazon or another discount vitamin/supplement site. I bet you can get them very reasonable (the capsules or something). I, too, had a slightly enlarged liver and had no problem with following the pre-op diet I was fine at surgery.

Are you on a pre-op diet? For me, that was enough just following the pre-op diet.

You may want to try an egg white omelet or scrambled egg whites. I seem to do better with those. Just experiment with different ways. What does/doesn't work for others may or may not work for you. I have seen many people not do well with salad and for me it goes down really easy so keep trying and find other things that do work for you.

Sounds like you have done very well over the years! Congrats on your hard work, dedication and success. I wish you much success getting back with your dr. and getting off those last few pounds!

You will both do great! I am excited for you both. I am one year out, down 80 lbs and very happy with how I feel and the sacrifices I have made. It's all good. It takes work but soooo worth it.

Bring chapstick with you to the hospital.

Keep us posted!

have a great night all, heading to bed soon....

Hi, Ladies,

Diane, no worries at all you are not an ASS! You are my dear friend and I am glad you remembered whether on time or a day late. I am amazed at all you are able to handle. That's awesome you are a rock star at work too.

Hanging in there still?

Hi, Ladies, so far news from my appt was good. I was less than impressed w/ the radiologist. He looked like he could be my grandchild. The tech didn't even know his name because he was a brand new dr. He didn't see anything alarming. I will follow up w/ my dr. tomorrow after he sees the images himself. I have a lot more faith in him. However, if there was something majorly wrong, I think the radiologist would have seen and that nasty barium was going down. The dr. felt if I didn't have a slip issue going on that my band may be too tight based on my symptoms.

I texted Janet and she said to tell everyone hi! She is with her mom and her mom is running a fever. She said she hopes to be home Thursday.

Love you all! Thanks for looking after me and checking on me.

Terri, thank you for the birthday card I got today.

Have a great trip, Terri!

Dee, click that box before you start typing and it should allow you to do the returns. The font looks weird while you are typing but when you post it will be fine.

Did my bike ride today ~ yay! About 6 miles round trip and fairly hilly. I even got to bring back summer squash and zucchini from her garden that I am roasting right now.

Terri, forgot to reply... my LB appt. is Tuesday morning.

Good morning, Ladies (afternoon for some). How is everyone?

I am having a good weekend. I went outlet mall shopping on Friday (love my new Ugg sandals) and bought my first pair of shorts in YEARS. Yesterday, got caught up on laundry, did some housework and colored my hair. Yay, me! My gray is gone for at least a couple weeks. I am thinking of going for a bike ride in a little bit to my best friend's house too. She is having a heck of a day and struggling with some things and my booty could use the exercise. My crockpot oatmeal was yummy for Breakfast too!!! I make it with skim milk and almond milk and used the steel cut oats and diced apples. MMM.

Dee, so good to hear from you. I am not surprised you are BUSY! I am elated to see how you are enjoying life in "your new body". I am sure your kids are so grateful as well that Mom is able to do more. I am very excited that you and Terri will be meeting soon as well! I am glad to hear you are pursuing the $ with the court too. Not only for the sake of what he took from you but for the sake that who else has or will he do this to. I hope he is held accountable. The trip to the movies sounded fun! What did you see? I recently saw Despicable Me 2 and it was hilarious!!!

Michelle, I am sorry your son is taking things out on you. Parenting can be so challenging at times. I am so glad you are able to see past it though and what's behind it. He is lucky to have such an awesome mom. Btw, love the backyard and chairs, etc. Hopefully, a little break at big sis' house will help things settle a bit.

Diane, I hope your night with your mother was restful for both of you. She is lucky to have a caring daughter like you as well always looking out for her and her best interest. I hope you are able to have a "me" day one of these days soon. I so wish I could take those kitties home too and adopt them! I love cats and miss having one here. I loved seeing Mason recently by Brad. Brad doesn't want anymore cats w/ the dogs, etc. Plus, Mason is FIV positive so he can only be paired with another one like that.

Janet, how are you feeling these days you skinny thing. When I saw one of your pics on FB yesterday of you with charcoal on your nose from a couple years ago. My gosh, what a difference this past year made. You are doing so amazing w/ the band and I am so happy for you. Any word on how Maddy's test went?

Carole, so sorry you had a rough night again. I am happy that you were able to talk with Seth. As much as it is a reminder of where he is, it is so nice that you are able to see and talk to him and know he is ok. I am so happy he keeps in touch as well. You have so much to be proud of with your boys. Happy unpacking again today. I need to start getting some of my things packed. Brad will be out here Aug. 2nd for the weekend and will be taking 2 of his kids and some of my stuff back with him. My uncle and godfather passed away far too young years ago. He was from Austria and was a very talented glass carver. I have some glasses and bowls he carved that I won't entrust to a moving company. I don't have a date set for moving but each time Brad is out here I try to send a few things with him. I need to get off my butt and get more things ready for when he comes. He gave me tons of the moving boxes from his move.

Terri, that sounds like a fabulous trip. I have heard there is so much to do in the DC area. I would love to go one day. I cannot wait to hear about your visit with Dee and her incredible family as well. Hopefully, no snakes will be involved, lol. Yesterday, I made it reflux free, which was nice. I have really been watching what I am eating, etc and the scale hasn't been budging... It will happen though as I know I have been doing what I am supposed to. So far, still stuck at 206. Sticking to mushies the past couple days has helped my tummy. I am going to make cashew chicken tonight and see how that goes. Glad you like my doggie too. He cracks me up every day. He is such a charismatic dog. How can you not smile when every day you wake up and come downstairs he jumps up, grabs a toy and does this growl/yodel thing in excitement. He is very vocal in a playful way. Like his momma in her long posts. Funny thing is, in person, I am generally a quiet person and keep to myself.

Dee, I have the same problem with typing paragraphs and C Mom told me how to fix it. At the top left of this box we type in there is an eraser. The box to the left of the eraser is for "toggle editing mode". If you click that then start typing it will allow you to hit return and type in paragraphs. It works for me.

Have a great day all you FABULOUS ladies!!!

Best thing when you make a mistake at work is to own up to it (without making excuses) and do what you can to make it right. All of us at every level make mistakes and we have to learn from them and move forward. If people are talking, you can talk to people and shut it down. In my office, they offer a course called "crucial conversations", it has been very helpful to have those difficult conversations. One way to approach others is to use "I"... like I feel hurt or I am upset you feel this way, etc. No one can deny how YOU feel and it makes it less confrontational.

Try not to beat yourself up. We are all human and S*** happens. Unless your coworkers walk on Water, they too, are not perfect.

For those of you that have experienced a slip, do you know what caused yours?

Diane, I am so happy to hear you are back home and your brother as well~!!! That is WONDERFUL news!!!!! I really enjoyed your FB post too today! It is sooo true. We seem to always be wanting it to be Friday or the end of the week or month or another point in time and lose sight of enjoying our right here and now.

For any of you that may eat sandwiches from time to time. I found these things at costco today called "One Buns" folded bread. It reminds me of a pita. It is a whole grain folded bread. It's not real doughy since it is whole grain and is the size of about 1/2 a normal sandwich. They are 130 calories, 1 g of fat, and 5 grams of Protein per "bun". I am sticking to mushies/soft food today but did try a tiny piece of one and it was tasty and not overly doughy like white bread would be.

Carole, sorry to hear about your reflux again. Do they know what's causing it or what's behind it? I have been struggling with reflux lately and just curious.

Diane, I love the idea of us all meeting next summer. I WILL be at goal next summer or at least damn close. You ladies are very dear to me and I would love that opportunity.

Hi, Ladies,

Janet, thank you (and Paula) soooo much for my "new Dawn" Water bottle. I LOVE IT and LOVE the card!!! You are an awesome C Mom!!!

Sorry to hear about your stuck today with your grandkids. Ah, the other "joys" of banded life. It's all worth it though. I am a little concerned about my band and will see how I am feeling when I do GO to my doc appointment on Tues. I have never had reflux and it has been off an on this week. I thought it was some food I ate but after several days, it seems it is more than that. I also have had intermittent pain in the middle of my back. Gonna stick to soft or mushies tomorrow and see if that helps.

My friend and I went and saw "The Heat" tonight. It was funny. Certainly, not kid friendly with a lot of f bombs, but funny! There's a scene we want to re-enact with scotch tape too, lol. My major news for today was that I went out in public wearing shorts. Of course it was a dark theater. I bet my friend, in our 10+ years of friendship has probably never seen me in shorts. Brad was shocked I went out in them. LOL.

Carole, I hope the procedure goes easily for Jack. I agree that a test run driving is in order. The last weekend in Omaha, I insisted on driving us to the mall 20 minutes away. The roads are very easy to navigate in Omaha but I just couldn't grasp where anything was. I realized it's because I never do any of the local driving there. Now after doing the one trip, I get it and it makes sense to me now.

Diane, I hope your brother is ok and thriving. I know life is throwing a lot at you right now. Know that you are loved and thought of often.

Terri, how's the walking going? It has been so nice here that I went to the outdoor outlet mall to get fresh air. It was really nice.

Dee, oh dear, I would be screaming not taking pictures if there were snakes in my yard, lol. I don't even like bugs....

Michelle, I hope you have a very nice weekend! Anything exciting going on?

It's almost midnight, guess I should call it a night (me and my reflux, that is).

ttyl

Sorry about your dialation. How did they detect it? I, too, have this concern.

Di, I hope no news is good news. I pray all is well and improving with your brother.

Michelle, <<big hug>>, hope you are doing well tonight.

Janet, how is your mom doing? Any word? Definitely keeping Maddy in my thoughts as well. Is there something behind why they are doing the endoscopy?

Terri, beautiful quilt and very beautiful goddaughter. Oh, the innocence of youth.

Dee, studying hard? One day closer to you and Terri meeting.

Carole, I hope your Migraine has subsided. Those really can be so debilitating. Take care of yourself too. The boxes will be there.

Have a great day tomorrow everyone. I think my "funk" is subsiding.. PHEW!!!