All Things EARTH... part 2

[alidor]

MJC - you will LOVE Africa.  I am writing this from the Four Seasons Hotel,in the Serengeti.  Our trip ends tomorrow and I can’t believe it as it seems like it just started.  We have been awed, overwhelmed, and so many other emotions.  The weather also has been perfect so you should have good weather too.  It has been an amazing trip!!!

 

ENJOY!

[awhfy]

11 hours ago, MJC said:

Sally, we came home on Wednesday just as the weather was getting warmer! We didn't mind the cool days, though, because we were with family instead of at the beach. We stayed near UTC -- boy that area has really grown in a short period of time! We had a really really good meal at Apollonia Grill if you like Greek food. I was very happy to get a stroll around St. Armand's this year. We went first thing in the morning and we left before lunch when the crowds started to arrive.

 

We got our final itinerary for Africa and answers to all our last-minute questions. Sunday we'll pack. Monday is NYE with friends, and Tuesday night we leave. I honestly can't believe I'm going, we've been wanting this for so long!🦓🐘🦒🦏

 

 

 

Have an amazing time in Africa!  Can’t wait to see pictures. Happy, healthy, & safe trip. Melody

[Sailor_Sally]

Have a great trip to Africa and take plenty of pictures !

[Joby]

🐘

I can't tell you how excited I am for your upcoming Africa trip, Margaret!!!!! It will be a trip of a life time I'm sure, something I think you will compare other trips to in the future.

 

Enjoy every moment, keep a journal to record every memory and take lots of photos. But, something I had to remind myself of constantly--put the camera down once in a while and enjoy, smell the air, listen to the sounds and remind yourself --YOU'RE IN AFRICA!

 

Prayers for safe travels and we'll all be waiting to hear every word on your return.

 

🦁

[MJC]

Kim, I can't thank you enough for all your help and guidance. I continue to be so impressed and amazed at your trip planning for Tanzania. I still don't know how you managed to wade through all the information to find guides and camps on your own. Your excitement and enthusiasm for Africa are contagious. I can't wait to share our experiences when we return.

 

I have so much less anxiety about our travel plans now than I did for even our Baja cruise last year because I know we will be in good hands every step of the way. I am relieved to not be responsible for the private excursions we always book when cruising. I know it will be someone else's responsibility to handle logistics and any problems that crop up. I can just sit back and enjoy. 

 

Amazingly, my two bags together are 23 pounds. Since I have to carry them I'm very happy.

 

Alidor, I hope we get good weather too!

Edited December 31, 2018 by MJC

[laurspag]

Margaret, I look forward to hearing all about Africa!  When you do you actually leave?

 

I'm just loving that hair color on you.  One of the things for me with my color is that it is close to my natural color, but not quite there.  I mostly want to hide the gray.  But I feel like "me" with this color, so that is a good thing.

 

I will post more later, as I am off today.  I just need to do a bit of running around this morning then I will be home for the day.

[Anita Latte]

Happy New Year to everyone!!!

 

Margaret...OMG, I can't believe we are right here on the cusp on your departure for Africa!! Wow...how time flies. I hope you have a wonderful trip. I'm so excited for you. What an adventure you are going on. It will be so nice for you to just go along for the ride...to have someone else in charge of the details. I hope your trip is like dominoes in a row and without any hiccoughs...the dominoes just all fall in order. Enjoy every moment.

 

I like your hair. A lot. Very good color. I'm very impressed with your luggage weight. Very nice.

 

We have big BIG news!!! DS has been accepted to the Royal Academy of Music. He will be studying at university in London! Collectively, our family is feeling so blessed...it feels like the culmination of all the hard work and maneuvering that we have done with the moving to NC for the school here, etc. He has received a wonderful scholarship as well. Not 100%...about a 2/3 scholarship on tuition.

 

So we are pretty well sorted now. DH and I moving to Orlando in May/June and DS headed to London in the fall. We'll be doing a scouting trip to London for Spring Break. Very exciting!!!

 

Hope everyone has a happy new year transition. DH's bday is tomorrow...it's always the combo thing for us. Happy New Year and Happy Bday!

[awhfy]

How wonderful Anita!  What an amazing, amazing experience for your son, congratulations, 2/3 scholarship is nothing to sneeze at!  Happy bday to your DH as well. Lots of HUGE changes in your lives upcoming quickly. 

 

We had almost most everyone together for Smorgasbord the Sunday after Christmas. DIL stayed home with sick (diagnosed flu) daughter & bonus boy was still in CA with his dad. But here’s the rest of my wacky family ❤️

Edited January 1, 2019 by awhfy

[Sailor_Sally]

Anita , Congratulations ! That is great news .

Melody , Fun pictures !

[laurspag]

Melody, that is such a fun picture!  We take a lot of those kind of shots, as well as the nicer, more put together ones.  I'll post a few shortly!

 

Well, it's been sooooo busy since just before Christmas.  It's nice to not have anything planned today, although I have some thoughts about things I want to get done...

 

First, there is a local pub we often go to, and they have a Christmas party every years.  They have this on Sunday, after they close, and the food is free.  Really.  I have found that it is always packed, and the money earned from the bar alone more than covers all the wonderful food, I bet.  Even so, we have such a good time.

 

Then decided to go to a basketball game just a few days before Christmas.  That was great, and fun too.  I usually get so caught up in all of the things on my to do list, that this time, I told myself I would not commit myself to too much.  I would bake cookies, starting with the ones that were most important to me.  But if I only made two types, so be it.  If I make ten types that is good also. 

 

Christmas eve was at my daughter's this year, which was a big change for us.  It was me, my husband, daughters, future son-in-law, and his mother.  Very casual, very relaxed.  They have a budget, so they made chicken and a vegetable.  I made roasted red baby potatoes that they just had to heat up to warm.  Our dessert was cookies, which we had while watching "It's a Wonderful LIfe".    It was really relaxing and enjoyable.  I always get a little nervous, because one of their dogs is a pit bull.  But Leila is the sweetest thing.  She slept with her head on my lap through the whole movie.

 

Christmas day, instead of having the whole family over, we had Dashaun and Steph for what I normally cook in Christmas eve - a beef tenderloin.  We played games after dinner and it was just so nice.  It has been YEARS since I had a Christmas day that wasn't filled with running around and cooking for a ton of people.  I loved it.

 

Then, we had another basketball game that my future son-in-law treated the family too.  He has met a lot of the players, so we had floor seats.  After the game, he introduced me to some of the players, which was amazing!

 

Sunday, we had about 20 people over for dinner.  This was in place of my usual Christmas day party.  It worked out very well, but went on later than expected.  I'm glad I took Monday off. I'm losing some vacation time, so it was nice to be able to use at lest 1 of the 3 days I had. 

 

Our New Year's eve tradition is pretty quiet.  My hubby and daughter were watching an Indiana Jones marathon, and I made homemade pizza.

 

That was probably the most boring play by play ever, lol.  But I think my emphasis is that it is good to do what you love, and not get caught up in the whole performance thing sometimes.  It's okay not to make everyone a cookie tray.  It's okay to make less food.  It's okay for others to bring a dish to pass.

 

Anita, you must be so excited.  When you were talking about your son choosing where to go to school, I never thought about overseas.  Wow.  Having even a partial scholarship is a big deal, as it is not cheap to go to school.  Books, room and board, fees and general expenditures are a very big deal.  My daughter did a summer abroad program, and she wouldn't trade the experience for anything.  It was related to one of her majors, political science.  It was very exciting for her to be exposed to a bit of her heritage as well, seeing that some of her stops were in Germany, Poland and so forth.  It was also a lot of hard work, as she had a lot compacted into a short time.  She made lifelong friends in the process.

 

I don't know who follows college football, but SU did great in the bowl game!  One of the things everyone talks about is that we beat Clemson last year, and we almost been them and Notre Dame this year.  Our program is really building

 

It's funny, because I still struggle a little with my daughter who is engaged not living at home.  I probably shouldn't say I struggle.  I would say I get a bit lonely at times.  All that being said, we text every day, pretty much.  And Dashaun loves coming over and as I mentioned earlier, we all went to the basketball game together.  I think for me, I was a divorced mother of two for a long time.  I had a lot of responsibilities with home and work, and my family came first.  As a result, I'm very close to my daughters.  One thing I realize now is how I wasn't able to go out and do things on my own for so long, that I have a lot of friends, but not close friends.  They're people I talk to regularly, but we've gotten to the point where we don't go to the mall, or to grab a cup of coffee or whatever.

 

I have a sister who worked nights, and now that she took an early retirement, it's nice to meet her dinner or whatever. 

 

So, do any of you make resolutions?  I do, but I don't tie them into January 1st.  I also make them a bit more open ended - a journey instead of a destination, if you will.  I don't say "I'm going to lose 20 pounds but this date" I say, "I'm going to eat better, exercise more, and loose weight."  I find that having a limited goal usually means I stop once the goal is reached. 

 

One of the things I've been asking myself is what I need to do better, and what I need to let go of.  I'm aiming to improve the healthier eating I've been working on.  I'm not a big fan of diets, but I do find I pay much more attention to my food.  I eat more organics, read the label more.  I love learning the health benefits of foods, and what they do for you.

 

I want to enjoy some little things more, such as going for a drive to wherever, my husband and I going to a movie or all of heading to a basketball game.  Just enjoying little things, since I can only plan out vacations for once or twice a year.

 

Margaret, you are nearing a bucket list item for traveling.  Alaska and Hawaii are on mine.  I really do want to plan out a cruise for Alaska, and I would love a 9 day to make the best of it.  One thing I would like to maybe do at some time is be able to witness northern lights in person.  It makes me think of our visit to the Grand Canyon, where the best, most unexpected thing was the clarity of the night sky, and how much bigger and brighter the stars were.  I could watch them for hours.

 

 

[laurspag]

On 12/2/2018 at 9:02 PM, laurspag said:

Christmas party night.  Not a good color for me, but I e been trying to find something with sleeves for a while, so it will d

 

[laurspag]

Sorry for the duplicate post before the pictures.  I hate the new version on my phone!

[laurspag]

[Sailor_Sally]

Laurie, Great pictures ! Your daughter's fiancee is cute . They make a great couple .

 My New Years Resolution is to reign in my budget . I want to cut down on my impulse spending so I can spend that money on something I really want . My other resolution is to toss lots of stuff in preparation for downsizing .

[laurspag]

When they got engaged:

 

[purduemom1]

Happy New Year to all.  I don’t post much but do follow along.

 

Anita, I know your joy and happiness because of your son’s accomplishment. Our son also had a dream that he knew would not be an easy achievement but we were with him every step of the way. He has now achieved that dream and I know that your son will so the same.  Gosh, some visits across the pond just might work into your new phase of life. Exciting!

 

Laura, lovely family pictures. The bride and groom-to-be look so happy. I like your outlook on eliminating holiday stress. I bet many of us agree with you.

 

Margaret, safe travels and may your adventure be all you hope for.

 

May 2019 be everyone’s best year ever!

Sharon

[Anita Latte]

Fun pictures Melody and Laurie! We are not in the photo habit with the family. We didn't really take any when we were in AZ. Pretty typical for us. 

 

Thanks to everyone for the happy wishes...and thanks for posting Sharon. I didn't want to share too much about our high hopes for the London schools...some things you keep close when they are so precious. It is all still a bit in the realm of "We can't hardly believe it." I just booked us flights to London for a visit over Spring Break...so we're all headed to London in March!

 

I'm so excited...I haven't been to London. DH has for work but it'll be DS and I visiting for the first time. Pleasure travel is so different from business travel...it'll have that element of the new for DH too. 

 

From a parent perspective, I'm really excited for the structure of the school in London. I like the way the Academic year is scheduled. I like the breaks. I like the housing. I'm thrilled with the idea of what having my son in London means for DH and I and travel. I think DS is well suited to the urban school setting. The unique thing about studying music is that it is very much like being in a trade school...you really aren't putting off or preparing for "the real world" so much as beginning your career as an "apprentice" to a "master"...honing your craft and continuing to do what you will basically be doing after your graduate.

 

Laurie...I don't know if I really make resolutions so much as I do the same kind of reflection on what I would like to improve upon or accomplish. My current goals are all financial and health related. 

[Sailor_Sally]

 Welcome Sharon , Jump in any time !

[MJC]

Can a glam city girl and her giant husband do 15 days with just a backpack and a duffle? We shall see! My two bags together are 30lbs, Mark's are 29. I love love the nylon backpacks for travel, they were a good choice.

 

We're at Heathrow with a four hour layover, ensconced in the premium lounge. We had a circuitous bus ride to change terminals that took us past a retired Concorde jet. It was fun to see. 

 

I was fretting over our liquids. A lot. I had a mental list of the things I'd be willing to purge that I could likely replace when we got to CDG. The rules are different in Europe, we're only allowed an 8x8 inch clear ziploc bag. Ours have a gusset so there are two layers of items and it is stuffed. STUFFED. The teeny bags they give out on line were freaking me out that I'd be called to the naughty room, but no. We had packed deodorant separately and we both got searched at Heathrow when we changed terminals. EVERYTHING that is not an actual solid is counted as a liquid, including things like lip balm. Just an FYI. For anyone who might be traveling to and from London. Anita.  😉

[awhfy]

15 hours ago, Sailor_Sally said:

Laurie, Great pictures ! Your daughter's fiancee is cute . They make a great couple .

 My New Years Resolution is to reign in my budget . I want to cut down on my impulse spending so I can spend that money on something I really want . My other resolution is to toss lots of stuff in preparation for downsizing .

We started downsizing yesterday by doing the upstairs closets. I had no idea I had 12 coats/jackets in the upstairs hall closet...I purged 8 of them...hmm, there’s a nice jacket on sale at Eddie Bauer...Melody

Edited January 2, 2019 by awhfy
Addition

[awhfy]

Margaret, safe journeys. Thanks for the info. 

 

Anita, so exciting.  

 

Sally, I’m trying to downsize without purchasing more “stuff” but...

 

Laurie, your daughter & fiancée look very happy...the dogs look like (put me down...now!). I love doing relaxed pictures. 

 

Sharon, welcome. Enjoy the input. 

 

We’re off to see the Ice Castles up in ski country this weekend, stand by for (many) pictures. Melody

[pacruise804]

Happy New Year, everyone!

 

Anita, congratulations to your son   Our daughter has a visit later this month for the honors programs at the two schools she is still pursuing.  She has been accepted at both and one is the strong favorite (but also twice the distance from home).

 

Margaret - safe travels, your trip sounds amazing. (Your hair looks great too.)

 

Laurie and Melody - great pictures

 

Welcome, Sharon.

 

Sally - I've gotten a lot of benefit from YNAB (you need a budget).  There is a fee, but it's been the best budgeting system for me.  

 

I've also got a lot of purging/decluttering to do in the home, and DH is finally getting on board too.  I'm also focusing on my health again this year and plan to take off the weight I gained in the past 3 years.  Between my kids and my mother-in-law I received 12 books this year (some as multiple volumes in 1 cover), so I think I'll tackle one book a month too and get back into reading.

[purduemom1]

Thanks for the warm welcome! I’ve enjoyed reading the posts and have picked up lots of useful tips and info.  Margaret’s info re liquids at LHR-was there in 2016 and did not have an issue with my usual 3-1-1 bag so glad to know the rules have changed.

 

Downsizing......have been trying to work on that for awhile now. Have made some progress but there is soooo much more to tackle.  Hardest of all are those items that were my mom’s and granudmothes’. Unfortunately my children only want a few of these items. I have inquired about selling at antique stores and apparently I’m not alone because every store I’ve visited seems to have a lot of the same kind of things I have. The money my things would bring IF they were to sell just doesn’t seem worth it.  I have donated many things to The Discivery Shop which supports the American Cancer Society in hopes that those items will benefit others.  But so far these donations have been things I have acquired and not inherited items.  So that is my dilemma. Then there is my DH who seems to be stuck in the collecting stage-not sure what the work around is for that-LOL!

 

 

[Sailor_Sally]

4 hours ago, pacruise804 said:

Happy New Year, everyone!

 

 

 

Sally - I've gotten a lot of benefit from YNAB (you need a budget).  There is a fee, but it's been the best budgeting system for me.  

 

I've also got a lot of purging/decluttering to do in the home, and DH is finally getting on board too.  I'm also focusing on my health again this year and plan to take off the weight I gained in the past 3 years.  Between my kids and my mother-in-law I received 12 books this year (some as multiple volumes in 1 cover), so I think I'll tackle one book a month too and get back into reading.

Thanks I am going to look at YNAB. I do have a loose budget but I feel I am wasting money that I could use for better things .

[laurspag]

I'm not one to stereotype but it sure seems like it is the guys who hold on to everything and resist change! 

 

In reality, I am a mixed bag.  I am so focused on making life easier, but there are always forces that work against you.  I try to find ways to integrate both sides.  For example, I have been very fond of having separate savings accounts for different things, then once a week it seemed like I spent an excessively long time taking care of transfers, etc.  Then I realized that with my payroll deduction, I could have as many accounts as I wanted.  So every pay day, all those deposit i was making before are all complete.  And I mean about 9 accounts worth.  :-)  It not only saves time, but it helps me to adhere to the planned budget better.  It's that old out of sight, out of mind trick.  But it still lets me be that organizer as well.

 

I have plans for cleaning out certain storage areas.  It isn't related to having resolutions or anything, it's just something I have been working on.  With the spare bedroom situated, I am now loving the cleaned up, clutter free look so I am moving on to the next task.

 

Some things I just do when my husband isn't home, lol.

 

Margaret, I admire your packing. I think if I needed to, I could pack light.  I even was thinking about items I already have that would work wonderful for something such as that.  Travex is wonderful stuff.  Wrinkle free, quick drying, comfortable and made for the outdoors.   These days, i'd be limited to certain athletic shoes, but I think they would work well.

 

I only had one pair of sneakers that really seemed to be okay with the neuroma.  I was looking everywhere, and just coudn't find them anymore.  My daughter Stephanie, who is the one getting married, saw the sneakers (athletic shoes) when shopping in a different color pattern, and instantly called the other daughter, who was trying to figure out what to get me.  What is neat is that they are somewhat earthy!

 

These are the ones I already had.  It was the first picture that came up for these:

 

https://www.mercari.com/us/item/m81761344812/?gclsrc=aw.ds&&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=860520439&utm_content=t0&adgroup=44259517100&network=g&device=c&merchant_id=117157415&product_id=m81761344812&product_id=297546631617&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI2auNg8TQ3wIVCz0MCh2seQNmEAkYEiABEgJLDvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

These were my Christmas gift:

 

https://www.ebay.com/p/Nike-Air-Zoom-Mariah-Flyknit-Racer-Womens-Aa0521-300-Multicolor-Shoes-Size-6/3010410086?iid=232752922957&chn=ps

 

And then these may be next if I can find them cheaper!

 

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Nike-Air-Zoom-Mariah-Flyknit-Racer-Black-Blue-Women-s-Running-Shoes-AA0521-009/739682113?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=6091&adid=22222222227265792295&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=315711780222&wl4=pla-579359353322&wl5=9005074&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=114442082&wl11=online&wl12=739682113&wl13=&veh=sem&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI2auNg8TQ3wIVCz0MCh2seQNmEAkYFyABEgI4ufD_BwE

 

I don't normally even where things like this, except to the gym.  But it has made it much easier for me to walk, and I have been able to make the colors work very well with my gym clothes too.  There are even other color combos out there.