Uplifting and Lively Messages. No holds barred..
Comments
-
Clarie - I an patiently waiting on geraniums! We are still have freeze and frost warnings. It was 34 when I got up at 5 a.m. and dropped to 32 before 7 a.m. MY DH had a tenant move out and leave a beautiful wrought iron glass top table and chairs, 2 tall plants stands and a matching bakers rake type plant stand. The need a good scrubbing and that's my specialty! I will put big ferns in the stand and they will go on the veranda. I plan to use the table and chairs on the pool deck. It' a smaller 4 top which will make it perfect for cocktails in the evening or coffee in the morning. I have 2 wrought iron chaise lounge chairs that we acquired at the end of last summer that will accompany the table.
My van is in the shop for a recall and I'm driving DH Suburban. The grandkids refer to it as the party bus. It's the bigger version and we always take it on vacation or any road trip. I just took DGS (dear grandson) to school so I'm feeling like a boss! Haha.. I will be getting a new vehicle in the next few months and I'm leaning toward a Suburban or Excursion. Time and research will tell! ( not my research lol...my list of needs are...must be white, have a sunroof, amazing sound system that supports my ipod, leather, seat heaters and DVD are optional )
Michelle - I have been meaning to ask why you do a mega dose of Vitamin D once a week instead of a daily. I did the mega to get my D up then went to a daily of 5,000. I also just read an interesting article about Vitamin D and asthma. Which grabbed my attention because I developed asthma a few years ago. Basically out of nowhere. It is referred to as "reactive airway" and is triggered by allergies which were also adult onset. Never had any issues as a child and all this started late 30's.
Today is DD's birthday. Celebrating today at our house. It's easier than going out with all the littles...lol. plus the would rather be at "Ahh's" house. I'm Gowa to 4 and Ahh to 2. The youngest grandson started calling me Ahh at 9 months. I actually love the Ahh. I doubt the older ones will ever call me Ahh.
Have a glorious day! It is going to be 70 in the mountains today!
0 -
Varga, I take 50,000 units once per week and we monitor, through blood tests, my lab levels to make sure that I am not getting too much. It does give me a boost, but the first day can make me tired.
I remember the days of the Tahoe, black of course with black interiors.....that was until I purchased the dealer's own top of the line vehicle in white. We called it the snow beast. I stayed in that until my daughter's junior year in high school. Went to a Cadillac SRX, but always missed my suv. I was in that for three years, and decided the depreciation was just too much and traded it for a Jeep Grand Cherokee Altitude, black on black on black. A police officer the other day as if I was with the bureau. I said yes, "with the Bureau of M.O.M." Happy to be back in a black suv, with friendly waves from the unmarked police units.
Just finished grocery shopping, which is always an adventure. I go to Narnia, which is what I call it. The health food market, inside a very nice large store. Cashier's go looking for prices, and they just never return. I figure they encountered the lion, the witch and the wardrobe.
0 -
I discovered something this weekend. Dark Chocolate Dessert Hummus. Yes. Hummus. It is amazing! It is made by Boars Head and we found it at Lowes Food. I think they also carry it at Publix. My friend is diabetic and craves chocolate, this has a serving size of 2 tablespoons with 10 carbs per serving. Did I mention it is HUmmus!!! So good! Went to the farmers market for organic strawberries and dipped them in it. Heaven.
Normally hummus is not my thing. I like it but I dont get it often because it’s not my favorite. You can’t tell this is hummus. It is chocolate!!!!
0 -
TaRenne- I love this stuff! The first time I tried it was at a church function and I had no idea it was Hummus. They were serving it with strawberries and pretzels. The pretzels were extra salty so it was even better!
0 -
Vargadoll. I know! I had no idea it was hummus when i tasted it. It is more like frosting
0 -
I can't find that chocolate hummus where I live. Darn. Today, I ran Sam's Club, from bank to bank, stopped in at the grocery store, gave my sister a ride to work, and then came home for a nap. Tomorrow, I am meeting up with several of my first cousins in a small town about 30 miles or so away from here. Busy, busy.....
0 -
- If you have a grocery store that carries Boar's Head Deli meat they will have the dark chocolate hummus.
0 -
Michelle- easy peasy to make:
https://www.google.ca/amp/s/www.acouplecooks.com/dark-chocolate-hummus/amp/
Scroll waaaaay to the bottom for the recipe. If anyone is interested in a low carb version just switch out the beans with avacado.
0 -
Michelle - Not sure if you have ALDI stores in your area, but I have seen chocolate hummus there, as well, at a bargain price compared to the Boar's Head. Egads - Thanks for the recipe!
Looking forward to meeting up with Vargadoll soon in the Asheville area & then, to the beach (Isle of Palms, Charleston, SC)!
0 -
CeliaC- the weather is gorgeous now! I'm looking foward to catching up with you to!
0 -
It must be so exciting to meet up with girls on the forum!!! You will have to post pics pls. Thanks for all the chocolate humus ideas. Sounds yummy. Today is DH's birthday and we will celebrate with a dinner, club meeting and a little bocce ball throwing.
0 -
Egads... thanks! I may try to make it myself. I love it. Went to the store today and found organic strawberries (already ate the whole basket I got over the weekend) and some more chocolate hummus. Side note, my favorite farm decided this year NOT to grow organic strawberries so it has been a struggle to find any. Farmers market had a few, but that’s about 30-45 min away and only open weekends. But it’s worth it. Guess I’ll be making regular trips for a while.
0 -
TaRenee - the organic strawberries and blueberries are the best!! Some fruit and vegetables I can't' taste a difference I just have to know they are better for me. Organic broccoli and spinach are the 2 vegetables that have a better flavor to me. I always follow the clean 15 and dirty dozen list while shopping.
0 -
Varga, yes I am a nurse. I work at the University of Iowa.
I hope everyone has been having a really good day. Honestly I've been feeling pretty good and I had a very productive day. Did a lot of things I need to do. we're getting ready to road trip it to Indiana this weekend for my mom. She's going to be having cataract surgery in a week. So I wanted to get down there and help her adjust accomplish some things that she's been wanting to do so that when she has her eye surgery she can just fully concentrate on her recovery. I am getting ready to go to my daughter's State band contest. They're doing the large group portion of it so it's basically a large group performance and it is a contest. She plays the trumpet. I hope everybody has a wonderful weekend and enjoys this wonderful weather. Even though we had some thunderstorms recently but they weren't really too bad. bye all!
0 -
Derby Day!!! I plan to wear my funky hat to a race day party. What is everyone else doing for Derby Day?
0 -
Meeting up with our Kentucky friend CeliaC for coffee! Then pickup my Walmart order. Have you girls tried the Walmart App???? It's a huge time saver! I get all my household supplies there (paper towels, laundry detergent, coffee creamer, all the cats stuff, zip lock baggies...so much more) I load my virtual shopping cart and select my pick up time pay for my order and I'm done! I just drive over to Walmart pull into the selected spots I don't even have to get out to load they do it all for you. The weather is amazing here in the mountains finally. Enjoy your day girls!
0 -
It's the most glorious sunny day here and I need to log miles on my bicycle. So that is what I have planned. Had the most fabulous dinner last night with a friend who is leaving Seattle for Phoenix. He just sold his place for a tidy profit. It was bittersweet as I have known him since I moved to Seattle. However, he needed a change, so I am thrilled for him.
We were overlooking the Puget Sound and got to watch all the ships, ferries, and boat traffic. Always fun. I was fortunate enough to have a similar view for seven years so it was very special.
I dressed up in my Chanel blazer, gorgeous slacks, a scarf, and black ankle boots. Felt extremely chic.
Vargadoll, was laughing at how you cut steps out of your Walmart shopping trip. I do the opposite, because the supermarket I frequent is literally across the way. So I will go out the far side of this building, and the long way to the supermarket. If I do that, walk the aisles, and walk back to the far side, I easily add an extra mile to the distance walked in one day. If I forget something, it's 2 miles!
I will make a point of enjoying my deck later. Should be gorgeous with the flowers I just planted and the mountains in the distance. I will catch the Derby later on the Internet, and yes, look at all the hats. - Claire
0 -
What a fabulous day it has been! Met CeliaC for breakfast and had a wonderful visit! The 2 hours passed so quickly! I needed more time!
Claire - Walmart is a nightmare to shop in pushing a wheelchair! I push my girl and drag a cart behind me. It's an easy task everyhere but Walmart. When I'm shopping most people are amazed at how effortlessly I move through the store pushing her pulling a cart. Walmart on the other hand Lord help! If it's an easy shopping day and I just need to pick up a few things I just hang a bag on her chair and we go in and wander around. I average 10 plus miles a day I'll make up the ones I lose at Walmart at the park LOL.
Here's the two of us as we were going our separate ways .
0 -
Beautiful picture, ladies!!! Happy Cinco De Mayo and race day!! I think it is so wonderful that friendships can form through these forums and threads. We feel less alone with the support and encouragement for each other. Instead of the yaya sisterhood, we are the tata sisterhood. I just looked up the tata sisterhood and apparently, there is an organization for triple negative breast cancers called tata sisterhood.
Hugs to all my girls...
0 -
Got out and cycled 20+, but I think that Vargadoll has me beat on exercise. I can imagine how it might be a lot easier to pre-order basics at Walmart and then they load them into your car. Just as I thought 20 years ago that shopping using Tesco Direct in the UK would end up being a lot cheaper than trying to do the same thing at the store with young children in tow, even after paying for delivery.
Wisteria was out as were the clematis and carpets of forget-me-nots. Amazingly fragrant. At home, I am enjoying the flowers I planted earlier this week.
Two funny food stories:
The first is from yesterday evening while at the wine bar. I tasted a wine that is now 11 years old and starting to fade. They are pricing it for quick sale, and I bought a bottle after asking for a taste. When I tasted it, I realized that I can make a most amazing pasta sauce with tomatoes, Italian sausage, mushrooms, and the rest of the usual suspects plus a large quantity of fresh oregano which I happen to have in abundance at the moment. My friend who was tending bar poured himself a taste (this is technically a tasting room, so staff can legally do this) and agreed! I will report back.
The second is eggs. I am always looking for farm-fresh local eggs, so driving back from my ride, I stopped where the guy had eggs for $5. I was imagining Yakima (about 3 hours from here), but no, the place is literally right around the corner from where I live! It turns out that he and his partner bought a place that would have space for a real brewery as there hadn't been enough space at the brewpub they ran in Redmond. So they bought 5 acres. Then they were left with the problem of leftovers from the brewing process. The solution was chickens. Which is why he was selling eggs. Will report on these as well, but suspect those chickens have a very good life indeed.
Making the rest of the Chicken Franchese for tonight plus local purple asparagus and the mushroom risotto I made a few days ago. Think I will roast the local carrots as well. Life is good. - Claire
0 -
Varga, cool picture! Since I don't know either of you who's who in the picture?
0 -
Lol...I guess I should have said who was who...I'm the one with dark hair (it's darker than brown but not quiet black??) and CeliaC has the gorgeous platinum hair.
0 -
two beautiful women! I'm glad you got that time together.
0 -
Hey, girls,
The weekend did not go as planned, but I managed to organize a ton of paperwork on my mom's real estate holdings done today. DH and I went out for dinner to Red Robbin, where I had a southwest salad. Yumm. I am trying to work on organizing my bead area for a big project that is upcoming. DH worked again on painting my closet, which should be ready to move into and organize this week. Just in time too, because the college students are moving home for the summer and I need to get my things consolidated into to one or two rooms.
The weather was awesome today, although I did not sit out in the sun. I did take my megadose of vitamin D and hopefully that will put a bounce back in my step.
0 -
I grocery shopped, cooked some bbq chicken, took in some sunshine, and ended my day with an amazing massage. Tomorrow, I have to finish picking out items that I need for my son's graduation party next week. My daughter moves home on Thursday and I have to vacate her vanity which I have been using. Both kids will be home this summer and I think it is going to be a really fun one. Just feeling the warmth of the sun on my face, 4pm sun not noon sun, was wonderful. Today was a good day.
0 -
Varga, my friend tells me that anything with thin skin should be organic. Berries, apples, beans, just to name a few. Thicker skinned foods are not so susceptible so I don’t get as much organic in bananas or oranges. I am trying organic milk and cheese (this recommendation came from my MO because of all the added hornones)
0 -
Hey, girls, finally moving into my new closet....yeah. I am the newly designated Wedding Planner/Master of Ceremonies for a friend's wedding next week. I also have to make some bows for the altar area. We get to sit in the front row!!! I feel so honored... Kids are moving back today and tomorrow. The onslaught has begun. I am actually excited for their return and look forward to planning a fun summer. Can't wait to finish moving all my things into my closet. I will feel a sense of accomplishment.
Hugs to all my girls,
0 -
It's been glorious here and promises to be the same for Saturday's ride. That is super-exciting as half of the ride is the most spectacular scenery along the water and through farmland. Lots of climbing, so it should make me stronger and fitter. There is one hill that I can't do, and I refer to trudging up it with my bicycle as "cross training."
I can't wait to be through the next 10 days when the spring events will be over. The next thing after that is preparing for a move of offices and then the trip to Boston and Vermont for my high school reunion.
Yesterday morning I ponied up the cash for a La Fuma reclining lawn chair. I had one of these about 20 years ago, and just loved it! I found a sale online and snagged the last one. Plus free shipping. There is a park with a nice lawn just down the street and can't wait to set up there with a book and a nice lemonade. I have a couple of nice metal beer glasses from my cycling adventures, so have a chance to boast as well.
The chair has a pillow, so expect to snooze as well as read. And it folds up, so I can stash it when not using. I am so excited.
Mulling dishes that contain oyster mushrooms as guess what I spied during last night's run. Loads of them. Not risotto, as just finishing up what I made a week ago. But think they might be lovely in a pasta sauce. Will report back.
Congrats on the closet, Michelle. Amazing when things are functional once again.
As for me, the latest life upgrade is a very chic haircut. I think she got it perfect this time as hair is now long enough to shape up well at just above the shoulders. I was wearing it shorter for a while, but I think this length suits me better. I will get it trimmed just prior to heading out for my reunion. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. - Claire
0 -
Thanks, Claire, it has been a long haul on that closet. It feels good to be moving things into my closet. The weather here was nice today, and we played bocce ball this evening. Won first game, lost second to very "good ole boys club" type of guy. I had three winning balls, which should have been 3 points, and "they" decided to give me one point. I know I am going to have to play my best games from here on out.
Plan to take a few more things upstairs to my closet this evening. Daughter is officially moved back home from school.
0 -
I have been thinking about all of the things that I have gotten rid of during my closet clean out. I have been able to let go, like never before. I want a different life, with less but better. I don't think I have realized what normal is, until after I went through bc and wanted to have a different life. I want to let go of mental clutter, emotional clutter, physical clutter and friend clutter. Somewhere along the last 22 years, I lost my vision of who I was. Only through this diagnosis, did I have a re-awakening. I have become alot more socially active with adults, as opposed to socializing at high school events, etc.
Today, I was going through my faux Chanel bags, and put most of them in a "to go" container. They are 20 years old and lambskin leather. I am to the point, if I want a Chanel bag, I will get one. But, I do have fab Marc Jacobs quilted bags that are stunning and can last many years. I can't wait to get them all in their little cubbies in my closet.
I don't know why I held onto this stuff for so many years, but that part of my life is over now and I want a different lifestyle. Part of it was getting so caught up in all my kid's activities that I had no time for myself. I am glad that I was available and had the skills to oversee several sporting activities. I think I was a really good role model and leader in girl's USA volleyball. I made so many great connections with parents and coaches from other clubs. There were no issues with inappropriate behavior of the coaches, as long as I oversaw the interactions. Would I do things differently if I could go back? No, I would still be that former athlete parent who wanted to guarantee the safety of my children and other's children.
Who knew that cleaning out my closet, would help me to analyze where I have been, where I am and where I am going? I totally recommend it.
0
