November 1st...D_Day..Want to join me?

[Belle]

Except Shelia!

 

Where's everyone?

 

Shelia..Your doing GOOD!

Losing weight, exercising and

cleaning your closets!

 

Everyone we have to follow Shelia's lead.

 

Hope to see you ALL here soon.

[WeirdEyes]

Hi Belle! I was getting very lonely on this thread! Glad you had a few minutes to stop by.

 

I wonder where everyone is?

 

Thanks for your kind words. I'm upset this week because I only lost 1/2 pound. I did lose 5 last week so I guess my body needed a rest. I'll keep plugging away and hopefully I'll reach my goal. I have 9 weeks to do so.

 

How are you doing?

 

Hugs to all!

[cmjaffe]

Hi Belle (see that you're "on" now) hope things are moving along and you're almost through w/getting house ready for market (or whatever your plans are). Hope things have also settled down w/your parents (though there will always be "something" <been there... actually will always "be there">)

Sheila.. thanks for "keeping the thread going". I'm sure with your vigilance you'll get back to your "fighting" weight real soon. You're such an inspiration.

I'm in a real "funk"... need to do something but can't figure out what.

Trying to figure out what/where family should go for summer vacation.

Need to be on "budget". Mike's suggesting Montreal but don't know much (Baby, any help would be appreciated). Then there's the date's that we have. Kids finish classes 7/27. Then Alex has dentist appt. 8/6, there's a family "gathering" for Choate at local country club on 8/24 (need to go to try to make arrangements for car pool since school hasn't shared new student list yet... UGH). Then Mike wants Alex to do a pre-season soccer clinic to get him up to "speed" (hasn't really played in a while). Not sure when that is but it's only in evening for one week. Libby starts back to school on 8/29 and Alex has been "invited" to varsity season warmup (before tryouts) Friday of labor day weekend (so no going away then for us). He'll get the opportunity to stay in dorms for 2 days and "bond" w/upper classman, get feel of school before classes start. Great opportunity that won't cost us $.

Think I better get to bed.

Baby, don't forget water.

Carolyn

[Belle]

Shelia don't want you to be lonely.

 

Your weight loss is great. 5 1/2 lbs in two weeks.

Think of it that way. You did have a big weight loss last

week. I bet anything you'll make your goal in nine weeks.

 

HEY CAN YOU HEAR ME..BABY, DONNA, CAROLYN and

who else is reading this. Come in and talk to us.

 

Shelia I'm hanging in there. My parents aren't easy to

deal with when well and now that there sick, it's worse.

Since I'm the only child, I'm the only one they have to take

out everything on. Even thro I'm the one doing everything for

them. Visiting, doctors, driving, buying, cleaning their house,

trying to sell house, paper work on everything and anything.

Aren't you sorry you asked! LOL Just had a bad day with them.

Thank you for letting me vent.

 

Will try to come in more so you won't be alone.

Hope we hear from the others soon. Am worried about

Donna's husband Joe. Haven't heard anything since his tests.

[cmjaffe]

Belle,

Know what your going through. Though not an only... with the way my sister is I wish I was (she makes it difficult... doesn't really help, actually at times makes things worse since she gives the appearance to the "outside" that she does/is involved but in reality it's on "her terms" which sometimes makes things worse (starts something and then leaves it hanging).

Know you have a shoulder and ear to vent whenever you have the need.

Carolyn

[WeirdEyes]

Hi girls!

 

Belle ~ You can vent to us at any time! Hang in there! ;)

 

Carolyn ~ Good luck figuring out your family vacation.

 

Well, gotta go. Work calls!

 

Hugs!

[Belle]

My father is in the hospital again.

Thought it wasn't to bad as bad can go..

but it is.

Don't know what's going to happen.

 

Love my parents but why do I have to do

eveything and make all the decisions?

 

I know why..I'm the only daughter/child and

there's no one else to do it. But does knowing

the reason make it any easier? NO!

 

Take care all and come in and say Hello..

Miss you all, I need a hug! You need a hug!

We all need hugs!

[Belle]

Read on the other post that your having

surgery. Is that the one on your nose/sinus?

 

Wish you well and speedy recovery.

Will be thinking of you. Hugs!

[WeirdEyes]

Read on the other post that your having

surgery. Is that the one on your nose/sinus?

 

Wish you well and speedy recovery.

Will be thinking of you. Hugs!

Yes, that is the one. We just got home from the hospital. I CAN BREATHE! I'm very drugged up. They gave me two shots of Demerol & a Percocet before I left. The pain is just dull right now. ENT said surgery went well. I've only had one nose bleed so far so I have a gauze pad taped underneath my nose. Anyway, thanks for the thoughts and prayers. They worked!

 

Belle ~ I'm so sorry about your DF being in the hospital again. What is going on this time? He's in my prayers. {{HUGS}}

[donnaw]

Sheila, Glad the surgery went well and hope the pain is gone quickly!

 

Belle, As another only surviving child, I ask that question a lot. Mom has rallied with Joe's problems but that won't last forever. How are they doing now? Is Dad out of the hospital yet?

 

Carolyn, Sounds like life is pretty much status quo. Figure out where to go for summer vacation yet? Did Diane go home? Are you behaving now?

 

Baby, Where is your water?

 

Wow, no idea that it has been this long and not sure where the time went to. I pretty much worked on the 4th. Final payment was due on the 7th but our TA messed up giving us until July 10th to make the decision and we did decide to cruise. Of course, I never even looked at anything until we made final payment so now it is the mad scramble to figure out what we can do (both with Joe's limits and financially). We ended up booking a direct flight on Virgin Air on 9/10 which will give us 4 days in London and we plan on heading straight back on 9/27 rather than stopping in NYC. My boss totally freaked when I told him yesterday (acted as if he didn't know I would be gone at all - NOT) so I don't think we'll change our minds on NYC at this point.

 

Joe still needs to see the doctor but all the tests are done and his right diaphragm is paralyzed which means they damaged the nerve during surgery. If you can picture have a balloon behind your right breastbone you'll get an idea of what he is going through. Every time he turns or bends, he is in pain. The right lung isn't filling and releasing fully so stairs and hills are a real challenge. What they have said so far is learn to live with it but that is unacceptable. When we get all the final info from them, I will contact my dbil and see what he has to say since there are some things that might help. Actually, depending on damage, the nerve that is causing the paralysis has been known to recover spontaneously within the first year though they don't think that is going to be the case this time.

 

Meantime, work, 7 miles per day and trying to finally get this trip together have taken over my life. If nothing else will attempt to report in and say hi more often.

 

Yikes, better get moving!

[cmjaffe]

Donna,

Are you looking for hotels in London for your trans a? If so do you have an entertainment card? Several hotels (you can e-mail me directly if you'd like) do participate and it can "help". London's getting to be "horribly $$" Mike's got 3 stays there starting w/a midweek stay for meetings IN London. To save a little $$ he's staying near airport first night -- and even then it's over $150 per night. Also know of a few "tricks" (aka discount codes) that might work for you. Let me know. Hope Joe has "some relief". It must be SO FRUSTRATING for him. Glad you're DM is holding up "OK" (actually from what you had posted a few weeks back she's better than "just ok"). It's surprising what they can do when they realize that got other things to be concerned about.

As for me "behaving" (come on.. I'm at the stage right now with wondering if "it's all worth it" -- meaning going "off" and gaining but not too much and then being "good" for 5 days and not seeing any results UGH). Diane's back in IL and in "her 'little world'" so hoping to not be concerned. She's let me know that she'd like to buy a place for herself and said someone she knew got a 2600sf senior place... that D would like that size... my thoughts -- more space for her stuff and clutter and I'm sure it's $$. It's only her and her dog... but she INSISTS on needing that much space.

Sheila, glad you're recovery is going well and hope that this surgery will be successful w/eliminating your sinus problems.

Belle, HANG in there... the hospital rollercoasters are going to be part of your life now (unf. know this first hand... you try to have a bit of time between their "medical hotel stays".. for me if Mom goes 3 month's it's incredible!!). Be gentle with yourself.

Baby, have you returned from your trip to Maine (think you said you were going there). WOuld LOVE a report since we're we'll end up this summer. How expensive is Montreal (we don't have to stay in fancy hotels... we're a fairly low maint. family). What would you suggest is this is somewhat you're "backyard".

Hugs to everyone

Carolyn

[babylene]

First...weight..it's been up and down. Today it's down. So here I am!!!!

It's really hot and humid. I took a walk at 7am this morning. I also did physio. Now I am trying to ORGANIZE "STUFF". I am forever organizing stuff. I have so much junk, that when I finally throw something out, I feel like I have accomplished SO much!!!

 

Carolyn, we loved Maine. We went to Bar Harbor. Weather was so-so. Really bad only one afternoon. We walked and we ate and we ate and we walked!! Had our fill of clam chowder and lobstah!

 

The only reason I wouldn't recommend BH is that it is so far! It really is a shlep to get there. Once there, of course, it's great. There is a lot of natural beauty and if your family likes the outdoors, it is a treat.

 

Montreal is a great city. If you want to come I can recommend a good apt. type hotel. It is called Hotel du Fort and you can google it. That is where lots of out-of-towners stay when they come for weddings, etc.

 

When our kids were young we used to take them to Cape Cod or New Hampshire. In NH we used to stay in Waterville Valley, which was inexpensive in those days. They had lots of activities (including tennis lessons) and we were close to lots of fun sight-seeing.

 

Donna (one second..I must go and fetch my water!) I am really happy to read that you will be taking your cruise. (A trans atlantic, right?) I have never taken one, so you will have to give us a report!) If you stay in London, you can try Priceline. Hope Joe improves daily. Poor guy.

 

Sheila...glad that the surgery went well. Wishes for a speedy recovery!

 

Belle...hang in there. I know how difficult it is for you at this time.But, with your sunny personality, I am sure that you brighten your parents' day.

 

The bride and groom are leaving tomorrow morning for their honeymoon. They are off to Costa Rica for 2 weeks. They are married one month. Can't believe it! This weekend we are attending a wedding at the same synagogue. This time, I will see everything from a much different perspective!!!

 

Take care, all!

[cmjaffe]

Babylene

Thanks for the tip re: hotel. What's to do w/kids in Montreal? (Alex going on 15 open to "anything"... Libby's almost 11 <in a week> a bit harder to please... ok w/museums for varied amounts of time). Also Quebec? (OK, I'm showing my "ignorance" of you're fine country... please have patience). Would it be possible to contact you? Hopefully we're getting to NYC next week <Libby wants to try to see a show or two on student rush/lottery and I really need to check in on my Aunt> Anything we could "pick up for you" in NYC <or here in US that you can't easily get "up North"?

Thanks,

Carolyn

[cmjaffe]

One more thing, Baby... where's your water?

(just looked at Alex's atlas... is everything so far away from each other or is it just the way things are on the map?

Carolyn

[babylene]

Weight is so-so today.

 

Sheila..hope you are feeling well. Not used to you not posting.

 

Hope everyone else is doing O.K.,too.

 

Carolyn...what is your time frame? You want to go first to NYC, then Mtl, then Quebec City?

 

It is difficult to recommend for kids. (I am so old!!) I guess you would just choose from the regular list of sight-seeing...whatever appeals to your family. If they prefer outdoor activities vs indoor for example.

 

Montreal is a good 6-7 hour drive from NYC. Quebec must be about 3 hours from here. North of Quebec (about 2 hours) is the Charlevoix area which is AMAZING. That's where all the cruise ships sail. You can take a day boat along the fjords and see the whales. Lots of whales!

 

In Montreal, we have an amusement park. I don't know if you want to come all the way here for that!!! We have a gorgeous botanical garden. We have various museums, art and science. We have the old city. You could rent bikes or rollerblades. We have a mountain in the middle of the city. You could rent peddle boats. We have the Laurentians, 1-1/2 hours north. There are cute towns and lakes and water parks.

 

What would they like?

[WeirdEyes]

Hi girls! Hope all of you are doing well. :) I had my nose splints removed yesterday, but still feel poorly. I'm heading back to work on Thurs.

 

Carolyn ~ Happy vacation planning.

 

Baby ~ Your trip sounded lovely.

 

Belle ~ How are you and your parents?

 

Donna ~ How are you and Joe?

 

Take care!

[donnaw]

And month end at the same time!

 

Carolyn, We have the entertainment book but the intention is to use Priceline. We are working on it but Joe has to start low so it takes time. Actually, he would love to wait until September 1st but I did threaten to put him out of his misery when he mentioned it. Does Mike have any tips for cheap places to eat? London actually makes NYC look cheap in comparison!

 

Sheila, Hoping you feel better quickly! That definitely doesn't sound like fun.

 

Baby, this will be our second TA but this is the first time on any of the Millie class ships.

 

Belle, Here is praying that your having a good week along with them having a good week.

 

Well, weight appears to be in major stuck mode but there is major good news. All my formal clothes from December is a bit loose right now and that's with 15 more lbs. than then. The 5 - 7 miles a day is paying off after all though the scale moving would be even nicer.

 

OK, month end so back to work!

 

Have a great day!

[cmjaffe]

Actually, how long are you going to be in London?

Mike's going over Sept. 9th. In the past he's done Priceline and it's been good. Sometimes better deals than others. I guess you really need to stick w/4*. 5*'s WAY too expensive even w/P-line.

As far as eating, Mike usually does ethnic (Indian or Thai). It seems like the only way to not get "burnt". Also last time he stayed at Paddington (at Hilton) he finally hit a fish/chips shop (take out) and enjoyed it.

I'd suggest lock something in w/Entertainment rate (or SPG we use 18000 rate -- IBM code... they NEVER check) and then play with Priceline making sure you're not overbidding.. It's very easy to get carried away.

Carolyn

[WeirdEyes]

Hi girls! I'm feeling better today! :D

 

Donna ~ When we went to London, we stayed at the Holiday Inn Mayfair. We don't normally frequent Holiday Inns, but this one got good reviews on tripadvisor.com. It was a GREAT location! The price was around $190/night, which is fantastic for Mayfair. The hotel was around the corner from Green Park and a tube stop. Starbucks was across the street and Boots the Chemist was around the corner....very good for those things you need. I loved going to Starbucks and getting breakfast and then going to Green Park and eating it. Walk thru Green Park and you'll be at Buckingham Palace. Sigh. Have fun planning! I'm jealous!

 

Did I tell y'all that we're going to the Scottish Highlands this trip? I can't wait! We'll be staying in Inverness.

 

Have a great day! I'm off to the doctor for a back shot.

 

Cheers! (getting in my British mode)

[potterhill]

In Montreal go to see the Bodyworld exhibit if it is still there. We went on July 1st on our way to Nova Scotia. It is really amazing. Even a jaded 15 year old should be interested.

 

Mo

[donnaw]

One less week before we leave and I can officially say we are cruising next month.

 

Carolyn, we will be there 4 days from the 11th till we board on 9/15. For convenience with our to ship transportation, we are bidding for Kensington or Bayswater. No luck so far but we haven't been all that diligent about it.

 

Sheila, Glad your feeling better. Sounds like we will be leaving very close to the same time. Ship won't stop in Scotland but is stopping in Dublin and Cobh . I had hoped to see HollyB but they are really busy right now.

 

Baby, Where is your water? I'm definitely sorry we won't get a day in Montreal but just didn't want to wear him out before we started.

 

Belle, How are you holding up?

 

Hoping we have nice weather this weekend so we can get to Ren Fair. Need to get Joe out and walking more. Now back to work!

 

A big hello to everyone else and have a great weekend!

[WeirdEyes]

Morning, Ladies! :D I had a good weekend. Went to see Daughtry in concert. It was very good. The guy can SING!

 

Donna ~ Yes, I guess we will be gone at the same time. I didn't realize it before. We went to Kensington while we were in London and it is a beautiful area. Have you stayed there before? We looked at several hotels in Kensington as that was my first choice. Let me know what you get and for what price for future reference. Thanks!

 

How is everyone else doing?

 

Belle ~ How's your father?

 

TTYL!

[Belle]

Sorry I haven't been writing but

have been reading the posts.

 

Donna and Shelia really happy you

both have trips planned. Donna glad Joe

is better and Shelia glad your feel better too.

 

Carolyn might be on a trip right now. Wasn't

she maybe going to Canada? Are you still home?

 

 

Baby are you going anywhere?

 

No trip here planned here.

 

My father, not doing well but better than

I thought. Having problems with paperwork

in dealing with him. Don't need that at this time..

Visit him and mother most days and tend to his and

my mother needs or least try to.

What's sad he will just be getting worse instead of

better. That's hard to deal with.

 

Thinking of you all. Will try and post once in awhile.

[WeirdEyes]

Belle ~ I'm so sorry to hear your DF is not doing any better. I hope you can get the paperwork under control so you can enjoy more time with just visiting your parents. I'm sure they are so grateful for everything you've done for them. You're a wonderful daughter. {{{HUGS}}}

 

How is everyone else?

[babylene]

Weight pretty much the same. Up and down the same pounds. Not great, not awful!

 

Belle, my thoughts are with you. Hugs from me,too!

 

Sheila, so glad to read that you are feeling better and off on a wonderful trip! When are you going? For how long?

 

Donna, so glad that Joe will be able to cruise! We stopped in Dublin and Cobh on a cruise a few years ago. What are you planning in those ports? We have never done a TA. I have always wanted to. Maybe one day.

 

Carolyn, where are you? Where did you decide to go? Hope you and your family are having a great time.

 

We have no plans in the works. No big trip until the winter. No cruise until next summer. Hopefully, a couple of long weekends. Not so terrible.

 

In the "I said it here" department. Since the winter, my physiotherapist has been after me to go to aquafitness. Finally, I decided to join this week. Friday, I am going to the "Y" for a massage and I will join at the same time.

 

Take care, all!