Geriatric MM Warriors June 13, 2010

[Diane W.]

Beverly - I don't understand why you would feel bad about collecting unemployment insurance. I do and it never occurred to me not to. It is there to be used when you lose your job. Your employer has taken the increased premium into consideration when they let you go - so I wouldn't worry about them. That stinks that the job interview on Monday didn't work out. I know how you feel. I haven't heard anything today - they said I would hear by the end of this week. I'm going to assume that the answer is 'no'.
I hope your eye feels better.

Lisa - It must feel great to be back home together. What did Bonnie do when she saw you and Tom?

Kate - congratulations on your 10 years of sobriety! That is a wonderful accomplishment. Hawaii sounds so wonderful. I'd love to go, but hate the idea of how long it would take to get there. I hope your daughter responds well to whatever treatment they decide is best for her. Does she still date that guy?

Robin - Hope your leg is healing quickly. Hungry-girl.com is another good WW site.

Kathy - How did the physical go today for Mike?

 

[disneyeveryyear]

Kate -sorry I forgot to mention Demi. What a long road to haul for her health! Is the boyfriend still using or is he in recovery? Did he know he was Hep C before they were dating? If so, shame on him!

Lisa - glad to know you are home safe and sound and that Tom's left side was clear.

Diane - I don't know why it makes me feel ashamed. I never thought I would be eligible since I only worked part time, but one of the moms in my coffee group runs the office for her husband's vet clinic and she thought I would be, so I decided to give it a try. $340/week doesn't compare to what I used to make, but it is better than nothing. As long as I don't sub more than 2 days per week, it shouldn't impact my benefits. I have two trips in Feb and March for Bob's conference and my son's hs band playing at WDW, so maybe I will just put the job search on hold for a couple of months and kick my job search into high gear after we get back. Of course maybe when I stop looking the perfect job will come along!

 

[gettinhealthy]

If I forget someone, please forgive me. Doing this off memory LOL.

Kate, I am so sorry to hear about Demi. I will be keeping you all in my prayers.
I commend you on your sobriety!! You have much to be proud of. I know it can still be hard sometimes, so remember we are here for you. Just remember the old saying
"you can pick your friends but not your family"
I have come to find just when you think your family is the only one like that, you find out that your in the norm. I have often thought things my family does only happens in our family. I have come to find there are more families out there like mine than I realize.
Your trip sounds so nice!! I would love to go there!!

Diane, still sending prayers about the job. I know how hard it is to wait. Hope your not getting too cold up there!! We are to have some lake effect snow today

Bev, good to see you!! Please don't feel that way about the unemployment. Your employer has paid into it since you began. You are entitled to it. I like what you have decided to do with the money. You never know when you may need it, and you need to be prepared.

Lisa, I am so glad you guys made it home. Thank goodness there was no cancer on the other side. I will continue to pray for you guys.

Sorry I didn't get here yesterday. Busy day with Bailey's vet appointment.
Mike did manage to pass his physical LOL. He had to squat for 5 minutes while putting little pegs into a big board
He then had to climb a ladder and stay on it while putting more pegs on a board
And he also managed to pass the eye test, but barely. Since he had the metal in his eye about 4 years ago, his vision is blurry. So we are now just waiting for Halliburton to call to let him know what time to show up for his training. I believe that will be on the 15th.
I am very grateful for the prayers you guys have given us. There aren't enough thank yous, so please accept my virtual hugs

Bailey's vet appointment went well. He didn't understand why I wanted an xray of the puppies, but I told him I wanted one. I need to know how many she has in there (or an estimate) in case she runs into problems I know if she passed them all out or not.

Ok, off I go to do a bit of housework, then get my hair done.

 

[kater]

WE'RE HOME!!!!

All of our prayers were answered! We the preliminary pathology this morning and it looks like no cancer was found on the left side! We'll know more later and have a new plan with the oncologist.

I'll read all the new posts later. Home never looked so good. All the Fall colors have come while we were gone and the view out my own window is a blessed site.

Lisa - I got chills reading your good news! Happy Dancing in San Rafael for Lisa, Tom, J-P and Bonnie!

 

[kater]

I can't remember who Carol is. Was she the one who had a husband who was in a band? What does the hcg diet require? Does she take hormones? That's a phenomenal weight loss.

Diane - thanks for reminding who Carol was. She always had the cute stories about her dog, Lobster. Robin - please tell Carol that we miss her and that she should check in every once and awhile.


I cut a pasted the info from my naturopathic doctor's website re HCG. It is my understanding that with the hCg, even though calories are so restricted, you are not hungry. The doctor's website is www.famtreemed.com. I totally trust her.


Services Offered: Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (hCG) Weight Loss Program

If you are at least 15 pounds overweight and have at least 1 of the following conditions, you can significantly benefit from weight loss, and are therefore a candidate for this program:

Elevated cholesterol levels
Elevated triglyceride levels
Elevated blood pressure
Pre-diabetic (fasting glucose >100)
Or other health conditions aggravated by excess weight

This is a medically supervised rapid weight loss program that includes hCG injections and a restricted calorie diet based upon Dr. Simeon’s work, but with healthier dietary recommendations and supplements as appropriate, as well as tools to help you make long term changes to keep the weight off.

Average weight loss for participants is 3-4 pounds per week. Some lose more weight per week and results can vary with diet compliance, activity maintenance, stress, and sleep issues. Known weight loss benefits include improved blood sugar levels, cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and reduced risk of disease such as cancer and heart disease.

Prior to enrolling in the program, there is a 30 minute health screening visit to determine the safety and appropriateness of the program for you. Initial cost for 30 minute health screening visit is $90*.

If qualified, you may enroll in the 4 week program at the cost of $330 which includes:

Three 15 minute visits (1 visit each week for 3 weeks);
One 30 minute visit for diet transition (week 4);
Cost of hCG prescription plus 30 pre-loaded syringes

Individuals needing more than 15-20 pounds weight loss, can repeat the program after a specified interval of time for maximum results.

*Does not include any necessary lab fees to insure safety of program for each individual; copy of recent patient labs acceptable if within the last 6 months. If you have a PPO, labs should be covered by your insurance according to your benefits.

Call NOW to schedule your appointment: (415) 785-3347 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting**************(415) 785-3347******end_of_the_skype_highlighting.

Please feel free to view other services offered.

 

[kater]

Kate: How awful for Demi to face this health challenge, but good for her for knowing to come home to you and straight to her doctors. I am quite shaken for you, as I know this was a terrible blow. However, we do know a couple of people that have been 'cured' from Hep C. My SIL has had it for many years and she is 63 with no symptoms of ill health at all. She's very active and healthy. I know people who swear by the liver cleanse of one shot glass of organic lemon juice with one drop of peppermint and one drop of lemon essential oils each morning 30 minutes before eating or drinking anything else. It makes you feel like your digestion is amazing. I like to make mine into a tea with hot water.

Also, Kate, O magazine this month had an article about Vit D deficiency. Migraines is one of the main symptoms. Vit D opens your blood vessels. Constricted vessels is a main cause of migraines. They also said the Federally recommended amount is too low and one should take at least 900 (mgs?) per day. Dad has me on 1200 of calcium with magnesium at night right before bed. The sleeping pills made me too groggy. The CalMag seems to really help. They are both natural sedatives.

I am so proud of you for your 10 years of sobriety. Please don't be so hard on yourself. If you have accomplished this, you have taken great care of yourself!

Let us know what we can do to help support you and Demi. You will be in our prayers every day. I think of you and she so much when we walk down the hall on floor 6 of 400 Parnassus.

Lisa - thank you so much for the info about the people you know living with Hep C. It makes me feel so much better. I generally hop right on the computer and start surfing the web when I don't know about something. However, with this, I have been too scared to even look at the information that is out there.

Thank you for reminding me about Vit D and Cal/Mag. My naturopathic doc has me on Vit D and I have not been great about taking it. She also has me on Mag at night for sleep and I haven't been good about taking it either.

 

[kater]

Kate - congratulations on your 10 years of sobriety! That is a wonderful accomplishment. Hawaii sounds so wonderful. I'd love to go, but hate the idea of how long it would take to get there. I hope your daughter responds well to whatever treatment they decide is best for her. Does she still date that guy?

Diane - one of the many reasons that I love Hawaii is that for us Californian's, it is the closest "tropical" place with beautiful, clear blue water. No - Demi broke up the boyfriend about 6 weeks ago. That is when she moved home with us. I hope she steers clear of him. Even before the Hep C news, she knew he wasn't welcome in our home.

 

[kater]

Kate -sorry I forgot to mention Demi. What a long road to haul for her health! Is the boyfriend still using or is he in recovery? Did he know he was Hep C before they were dating? If so, shame on him!

Beverly - I am not sure if he knew or not. However, Demi knew his history and she definitely shares some responsibility in her part in all of this. As much as I want to blame him for all of it, he is only responsible for part of it. As far as I know, he is still in recovery. But, he is the kind of person that can't take care of himself. He doesn't work.

 

[kater]

Kathy - I am so glad that Mike passed his physical! More happy dancing! Keep us posted about Baily and how many babies there are. Robin and I will have to figure out how many each of us are going take during the puppy-napping!

 

[Wisteria1956]

I've been self employed too many decades to remember for sure, but doesn't the employee also contribute to unemployment insurance? I'm sure one must because that's the reason someone like myself isn't eligible. Point being: if you pay for something, you should expect to use it when the time comes you qualify for it. Go for it, Bev!

I'm more than a bit tempted to visit Kate's doctor friend! I wonder what happens when people go to maintenance. That's where all diets seem to fall apart, but maybe getting a handle on why I've gained so much as I've aged would straighten me out? I've never liked the idea of those liquid diets. I wonder what you eat on the HCG diet. Hunger isn't always the problem for most of us, huh? Sometimes we eat for fun or comfort. I know I did in SF. Once I made the exception because of the original sourdough bread there, the rest was history. I did walk way more than I do here, though. My Dad always says the girls in SF have great legs because of all the hills.

Robin I have a confession. I ate pumpkin bread pudding twice! I shared it both times so I didn't eat a whole piece. It was heaven on earth. That makes me realize what I really need is to ramp up the muscle use so I can eat a treat once in awhile without blowing how my jeans fit. Tom can do it and I'm sure it's because he does resistance training.

Kate: Do you want me to ask my SIL how she maintains her health? She's an old hippie so she's been in to health food since the 60's. She eats a lot of fiber and a lot of raw food. Very little meat. I do know that. Whether or not it's because of her liver, I don't know, but I can ask.

My sis has a client named Tina Jo who is a raw food chef. She has online ebooks and recipes. I'll try and find the link to her site.

Hearing my birds in the morning has a whole new meaning today. I want to do everything home means - walk the dog, work in the yard, drive my own car to the grocery store, sit in my chair, drink out of my own cup and best of all sleep in our own bed, lol!

 

[Virginiaponygirl]

Hi Everyone...sorry I went missing, but had the appointment with the ortho doc on friday and he took one look at my swollen leg and ordered me IMMEDIATELY across the street for another leg ultrasound (had one two weeks ago and they only saw trouble in surface veins)...well darn if they didnt find not one but 6 deep vein clots, from upper thigh all the way down to ankle...so shipped me straight off to the hospital, where I have spent the last two days languishing in hospital comfort on IV blood thinners....OMG...I think the best diet in the world many actually be 30 days on hospital food! Thank goodness Rick accompanied me to the appt, so was with me all day and night until they finally got me admitted and situated...he is a dear friend and I know it was hard for both of us to be in the hospital and even on the same floor where we spent so much time while Dennis was sick. But Rick refused to leave me until I ordered him to go home around 10PM! He managed to stay home for almost 9 hours, then was back at the hospital with coffee in hand, so I forgave him and almost ripped that REAL coffee out of his hand!
I am home finally, giving myself blood thinner injections in my belly twice a day for the next week, taking coumadin..the dreaded rat poisin...yuk...and it looks as though I may be a coumadin "lifer" now, since this is a clot re-run of the ones I had in my lungs 5 years ago...no answer as to why I keep clotting, so lifetime bloodthinners to prevent a "next time" I guess.

But on a happier note...YAY!! Tom and Lisa are home and things are looking up!! I am so so happy and Praise God!!

Diane - Lets keep praying, maybe no news isnt bad news after all...

Bev - sorry about the job, but Im sure that means something better is on the horizon for you! And dont you DARE feel bad about taking unemployment...like Kate says, YOU have paid into that benefit too, and you are entitled to take it! I had never in my life filed either until I got laid off from the car dealership, so I collected for 6 weeks, and was glad to have it. My employer encouraged me to collect when I was laid off, since he was selling the business and felt so bad about laying off so many "family members" as he called us!

Kathy - thanks for the links, I cant wait to check them out...thats GREAT that Mike passed the peg test...what the heck is that about? I know I feel so much better when I have employees who can squat and put pegs in a board!! And so.....how many puppies are there!?? Kate and I have to plan, especially since she will be doing all the work, and I will be sitting in a wheelchair cheering her on and acting as a distraction!

Pam - hang in there, we are praying for you and your family...

Kate - glad you are home, Proud as a Peacock about your 10 year anniversary of sobriety! And thanks so much for the added info on the Hcg...Carol actually had a friend of hers e-mail with more info too...she is also on the plan and has many of my same medical issues, so its all been quite interesting. Now I just have to be sure it is ok to do while on blood thinners! Will be praying for Demi and her latest trial...its just too bad that she doesnt respect herself more and realize that her actions can have such consequences...that boyfriend needs his #*#@ kicked! I have often gotten on my soapbox to rage against those who carry transmittable diseases and feel that they have the right to conceal them and thus transmit them to the unsuspecting...

I have to get back to my bed now, so take care everyone and soldier on!!! Love you all so much, and am here for any of you who care to call, chat or what have you!

Have let Carol know we would love to see her stop in here to chat, so dont be surprised if she does!! She is doing well and just has occasional computer issues like I do, so that and trying to keep up and keep track sometimes keep her from us, but I told her now that we are down to a much more manageable group, we dont seem to have trouble keeping up!!!

 

[Diane W.]

Robin - Wow, you've had a rough time. You're lucky Rick was with you - what a great friend. I know it was tough to be on the same hospital floor. My niece has to inject Lovenox into her stomach every day during her pregnancies. That prevented miscarrying - they discovered some blood disorder after her first 2 miscarriages. I think you're lucky you went to the doctor when you did. Bloodclots are scary stuff.

Yesterday when I got home there were 2 messages on my phone. Both of them were hangups. I looked on caller ID and one was the place I'm waiting to hear from. Why didn't they leave a friggin' message?! Either yes or no on the machine would've been okay. Now I can't wait until tomorrow to see if they call back. I can't believe they called on a Saturday - that's weird.

Beautiful weather today! A little chilly, but sunny. My nephew's wife is running in the NYC marathon today. It's her first marathon. I would love to be a runner.

Lisa - How is Tom feeling? Does he have to have physical therapy or anything?

I'll check in later. Enjoy this wonderful Sunday!

 

[kater]

Robin - OMGosh! I am glad you are home. What an ordeal. How long will you be at home? Are you confined to a wheel chair? Don't worry - I will do ALL of the puppy-napping work.

 

[Wisteria1956]

Robin: OMG! Your poor leg and now your poor tummy from the shots! I am so glad you took yourself back in to the doctor and straight to the hospital. What a scary time. Tom was on heparin to prevent blood clots from his surgery. He didn’t have to take it after he was released though. Sounds like some research is in order. I know you have thick skin, but thick blood – come on! Sorry, just a bit of levity. You are really blessed with great friends. It sure means a lot to have people gather close when you are down. Wish we all could be closer to one another geographically, but we are close in spirit, right gang??

Kathy: Congrats to Mike! The physical sounded difficult. I can scrub, or weed til the cows come home, but I don’t know about pegs in a board, lol!

Kate: I’m thinking there needs to be a Godiva ride in Hawaii, too. Our little MM family has been hit pretty hard lately. We need a break and a vacation!

Diane: Praying hard for you today that you get good news from the prospective employer on Monday. Weird they would call on Saturday. Maybe they were afraid someone would overhear the message other than yourself?? I’m on my way to church so I’ll put in a good word for your job.

I just looked up at Kate’s post again about the HCG and it looks like you have to inject yourself!! I don’t think I could do that. Robin is very brave. I’m a chicken.

 

[Virginiaponygirl]

Thanks all of you! I am going to the doctor today so I will know what the new plan is going to be...looks like at least another 2-4 weeks out of work, and of course now they cant deal with the pain in the surface veins due to the active clots! OMG...I wish I had an internet business I could do while hanging out! LOL, I supposed I could set up a webpage of diet and eating plans NOT to try!

Diane - sounds to me if they called on Saturday and DIDNT leave a message that would be good news? They could have left a no thanks on the machine, but if they were going to offer you a job, that would need to be done in person!! Keep praying Ladies!! Interesting comment on your niece and her pregnancies...I had all kinds of pregnancy troubles and there was always discussion as to whether or not there was some genetic disorder that caused me to miscarry or not carry to term, since it happened to me repeatedly. When I had the clot in my lung 5 years ago they did a bunch of genetic testing and didnt come up with anything, but this doctor ordered another round of testing, so maybe there will be something that got missed the first time.

Kate - not wheelchair bound, just only able to walk and stand for very short periods of time, so I guess technically I am "recliner bound" at this time! Sorry to saddle you with all the physical aspects of the puppy-napping, but I will be happy to carry out the planning, subterfuge, and any nessecary mind games we need to play!

Lisa - Carol isnt injecting her hcg...I have also been conversing with another friend of hers who started the hcg 29 days ago and has lost 20 pounds! They are using homeopathic hcg drops that go under the tongue. Apparently they are available at alot of chiropractic offices for some reason? Both of them are doing so well and apparently the maintenance plan is to continue to try to eat low carb, so we can definitely relate to that! The restricted diet part of the hcg plan is different from MM in that carbs arent restricted so much as fat...there is next to NO fat allowed on the plan other than some of the butter sprays and cooking sprays to cook with. And apparently there is no problem with staying on plan for 30 days, then going off if you want to around holidays, etc. Carol went off for awhile and is back on now, so I understand as long as you are careful and dont go carb or fat wild while you are off, there is no problem with starting and stopping. I have to admit its starting to sound pretty interesting to me! If I could lose a pound a day for a month I would be pretty darn happy. I feel like if I could somehow get past that 25 pound plateau I always seem to hit, maybe I could continue to lose the 75 total I want to lose!
Hope Tom is feeling well, and I agree with you that our little group could sure use a break! Im sending my neighbor out for this weeks lottery tickets, so cross your fingers!

By the way...I got a chuckle out of your comment...please amend it to Thick Skin, Thick Blood and Thick Head!!!! And you are FAR from a chicken my friend, you are one of the strongest people I know and I am always inspired by that!

 

[Wisteria1956]

Robin: It's too bad you and Tom can't hang out together and let me bring you Mom's soup. I'm sure he'll be home through Thanksgiving. John-Paul is coming home for 8 days at Thanksgiving. He can work from home part of the time. How great! Your post today made me smile, laugh and say Awwww.

Diane: Praying hard for you to get good news today! Your perfect job is coming; I just know it.

Tom’s doing great today. No real pain, getting up the stairs and sleeping pretty well. His behind hurts from too much sitting. He tried to tell me they rubbed it with cream at noon every day in the hospital. I’m not buying it!

 

[Diane W.]

I didn't get the job. The CEO called and was really very nice. She wanted to let me know how difficult the decision was. I said now that I'm not in the running may I ask what the salary range for the position was since we never discussed it. It was 1/3 less than I was making, so it made it feel a little better. If it was more, which I doubted, I would have been really disappointed. But it was in Dutchess County and although I live here I've always worked in Westchester County because the pay is higher (along with everything else - that's why I don't live there anymore. ) She said she wished there was something she could do to help me find a job and I said just to keep her eyes/ears open and to let me know if she comes across anything.
So the search continues. I applied to a place in Connecticut on 10/4 and just received an email saying they're going over my resume. It was a 'do not reply to this email' kind - so I'm not holding out too much hope on that one.

Robin - It was discovered that my niece has a genetic disorder. I think it's called MTHFR (or something similar) I remember because my sister called it Mother Fu---r. They tested her after the second miscarriage. She has to stop injections one week before her due date. Her daughter was 3 weeks early and after delivery, when she was in her room she almost bled out. She was rushed to the OR for a D & C. Her husband has served as a Marine in Iraq and is now a NY State Trooper and he said he's never seen so much blood and was never so scared in his life.

Lisa - Tom sounds like he's getting better! Butt rub, my a**.

 

[Wisteria1956]

Diane: I know you must be disappointed, but you are worth more than they could pay anyway. It does seem like that job is getting closer and closer. Still holding good thoughts and praying for you every day.

Your niece's ordeal sounds terrifying. They will know what to look for this time, thank goodness. Bless her heart.

Made my carrot cake into cupcakes for sis and Mom's Bdays, which we are celebrating together tomorrow night. Thought we could sneak them into a restaurant easier that way. Of course that made me and Tom eat one. Rats! They are too good. I need to set a date and hop back on Step 1 for 8 weeks. It's a quick fix to my current problem...Tom's not going out with us, but we have a lot of food here and his best friend is coming over to sit with him. Sis goes back home Wednesday. She lives above Eureka, CA, where the redwoods meet the sea. Gorgeous.

Tom is very sleepy. I think it's from the drugs. I hope anyway. He's resting now. I sent him back to bed.

 

[gettinhealthy]

Diane, sorry to hear the job didn't work out. I have to agree with Lisa though. It's right around the corner. With so many prayers going upstairs, you'd think he'd get the hint and get that job here sooner!!
That is such a story about your niece!! I don't know what I'd do if it were one of my relatives that bled out that much!! Thank God she's ok!!

Robin, you had better be taking care of that leg, or I'll have to come down and do some serious a$$ whopping!! Thank goodness you went to the doctor and that Rick was with you!!
My dad takes Coumadin (sp) and I know when he has surgeries and such, it takes a while to re-regulate his dosage. I believe he goes in weekly for blood work. That was why we were so worried when he got hurt when he wrecked the car. It took about 9 months for the wound to heal!!
How has Rick been doing? I know he probably still has good/bad days. I still think about him from time to time.

Lisa, tell Tom that one good turn deserves another LOL. I am still sending prayers out your way.

Kate, I hope Demi is feeling better today, and each day is easier and easier until that dreaded disease is gone for good!! I will continue to pray for you all also.

Bailey is holding her own. She looks like a huge balloon that if you prick it, it would burst. We can see the pups moving around. I'll have to try to video it LOL. Mike said she was panting and breathing heavily last night again. She is now sleeping comfortably on the love seat. Or sleeping as well as she can with 8 puppies in her LOL. She is softly snoring away. Since she gained weight, she normally snores very loudly LOL.
Robin and Kate, with only 8 puppies, it shouldn't be too hard to dog nap them LOL.

Mike is to go to his training this coming Monday sometime. I have no idea what the deal with the peg board was. Maybe just to check dexterity or something. Or see if you can concentrate on 2 things at once. I am ready for him to get back to work. It will be weird with him being on call 24/7. And he will be at the job until it's finished. It could be 2 hours, it could be 24 or more.
We discussed that once he finds out how much money he'll be bringing home, I am going to cut back working. My body just can't take it like it used to. Man does that make me sound old LOL. But cleaning the offices is really getting to me. I just don't want to do them anymore. And thinking of quitting the lady I clean 4 days/week for. That is the one whose husband didn't go to the funeral of the 2 guys who worked on the gas well that blew up. I have been working for her for almost 10 years and only had 1 raise. I do most of my hard work at her house, and it's just getting crazy. Tomorrow I have to take all the stuff out of her 3 spare closets so she can get carpet laid in them. They are such a mess, and tons of stuff in them. She is the one who keeps buying stuff and buying stuff and no where to put it. Her house is starting to look like a hoarder's house.

Off to wash some clothes and such before my busy day today. I have 3 houses plus my office tonight.
Later everyone!!

 

[Virginiaponygirl]

I am finding that not working means all the days seem to be running into each other and I cant always remember what day it is! OMG, maybe its just a bad case of CRS!!! Seriously though, I check the calendar every day just to be sure....I guess its not really going to make a difference if its Monday or thursday though!

Went to the Doc yesterday and am on house arrest through the end of the month at least...DARN...cant sit or stand for more than 15 minutes at a time until the swelling is all gone, the blood thinner levels are stable and the hematologyoncologist visit end of next week. This is putting a serious CRAMP in my style! The ponies are wondering what the heck is going on with me and the dog is thrilled out of his mind. He parks himself in my lap on the recliner all darn afternoon!

Lisa - Im sure Tom's sleepiness is his body doing what it has to do to recuperate...I find myself cat napping here and there too, something I NEVER do! The Butt Rub is a stretch though, LOL! You mentioned going back on step 1 for a few weeks...I know you are still being good, but are you finding yourself eating stuff you shouldnt? I think I would have dove into the comfort foods if I were in your position, but I know you have much more willpower than I do!

Diane - I am so so sorry about that job, but I think you have the right attitude...if the money wasnt good then it wasnt the right job...our continued prayers are going to lead you to the perfect one for you, I just know it! Thats awful about your niece and the bleeding...I was on coumadin for 2 years after my lung clot and I was totally paranoid the whole time. I wear a medic alert necklace stating I am on blood thinners and allergic to morphine, so hopefully that would at least help if I were to be in an accident or unable to speak for myself...hopefully she has one too?

Kathy - I cant resist this one, sorry!...Bailey's new nickname is "OCTODOG"!!!! Get it? Like Octomom? The weirdo that had the 8 babies a few years ago? OMG, when I read that there were 8 puppies that just jumped into my mind! Can you guys tell I am seriously starved for entertainment? Please try to ignore me for the rest of the month!
Sounds like Mike's job will take some adjusting to for all of you, but its all good...if you can ditch out the cheapo lady and the offices even better! Chances are if you tell her you are quitting she might cough up a big raise to try to get you to stay? I always thought finding a cleaning person would probably be like finding a new doctor, dentist or a new hair stylist...when you find one you like you'll do ANYTHING to keep them!