Team Focker Watch, Part 12. Have we jumped the shark yet?

[cmp1111]

Drawing on just a piece of paper wouldn't have worked just as well. The teacher's probably a crafty one and didn't think this would be difficult at all. Good luck. Although I'm glad I don't have to think up things for kids to do.

I know, right?

It's cold this morning, only 49, but it's supposed to get to 70 this afternoon. Now comes the conundrum of what type of outerwear I bring that will keep me warm this morning but not be a PITA to carry this afternoon.

Good luck and have fun!

***********************
It's snowing again - suddenly, now, they say maybe 2-3 inches today - yesterday they said today would just be flurries. At least my snowblower is functioning again.

The driveway is a mess, though - it got sunny and 34 for a bit yesterday afternoon, so my driveway was completely cleared, but wet - and then of course overnight it was cold, and it's still only 29. Therefore, all that melt is now frozen, under the snow that's falling right down. Joy.

I'm trying to decide if today or tomorrow will be grocery day. I've got nothing much planned either day.

I didn't sleep well last night again, and with the snow, it's all dark and feeling cozy - so today may be "totally unmotivated" day - and I am OK with that.

I'm sure I'll be around. Have a good one!

 

[TEminnie]

Jimmy did when he was littler, then didin't, know is back to liking it again

....sorry Janet....I think that word can only be used in the mountains of VA!



Hey---that's a great idea about the senior pockets---our nursing home patients would really like it! Did they have a pattern?

No snow for us but lots of rain---mud everywhere. For some reason, the horses like it and roll in it.

I've been doing the Wii fit every day---the lunges are killing me! I really like it tho cause it makes you do each thing right. My yoga poses are much better now.

 

[askelton]

The driveway is a mess, though - it got sunny and 34 for a bit yesterday afternoon, so my driveway was completely cleared, but wet - and then of course overnight it was cold, and it's still only 29. Therefore, all that melt is now frozen, under the snow that's falling right down. Joy.

Ugh. The boys still had school though?

I've been doing the Wii fit every day---the lunges are killing me! I really like it tho cause it makes you do each thing right. My yoga poses are much better now.

That's really cool that is makes you do it correctly. No fudging there like I could with my trainer.

 

[jcc0621]

The assignment is weird to me. Each classroom was assigned an author. The kids were to pick any book by the author, make a hat "from materials you have at home" and decorate the hat to reflect the book. Be prepared to talk about the book.

They have just started book reports - I have no earthly idea why there needs to be a hat. Neither book my kids chose involve hats in any way. I asked if they wanted to glue stuff on, and they both just want to draw designs on the hats - therefore, we need the hats to not be cardboard brown, as the drawings wouldn't show up. I hate this kind of thing.

That sounds like busy work to me

The driveway is a mess, though - it got sunny and 34 for a bit yesterday afternoon, so my driveway was completely cleared, but wet - and then of course overnight it was cold, and it's still only 29. Therefore, all that melt is now frozen, under the snow that's falling right down. Joy.

Yuck!

Hey---that's a great idea about the senior pockets---our nursing home patients would really like it! Did they have a pattern?

Not really I will post how they were made!

Hi Angela!
+++++++++++++++++

Back at work and it has been a crazy morning already. I need a day off

Have a good one. I will try and check in at lunch time.

 

[jcc0621]

Walker Pockets:

Take foam craft sheets ( we used 8 1/2 x 11 size and cut them in half) and fold like a cylinder until the ends touch (overlap about an 1/8th of an inch)

Take Colored duct tape (yes it comes in colors other than grey) and cut in strips. Starting at the top of the cylinder (So the it overlaps the top) tape the entire piece of foam. When you get the bottom, the tape is used to closed the bottom and creates the "pocket". Do this until the entire piece of foam is covered.

Once covered take a pair of scissors or a hole punch and pput two holes at the to put in a pipe cleaner. This is what the seniors use to attach the pocket to the walker!

Decorate how you want. We used alot of the foam animals, letters, flowers etc that are self stick and easy for the kids to work with.

The are basically big enough to hold a pair of glasses or a travel size pack of tissues or hand sanitizer. You could probably use a whole sheet of foam if you wanted to make them bigger.

 

[DisneyJo]

Jo, it worked! Thanks so much. Of course I had to clean all over again because I got fingerprints all over the glass.

Woooohooooo shhh though as T may get jealous of me helping you with handyman stuff

I have been applying for jobs, in between reading TR's and facebook. LOL.

Oooh good luck

Well, by the time John showed up and we went down to look at the snowblower, it had melted out enough to see an enormous rock gumming up the works. So, all set.

At least it was an easy fix

Jo - Are you loving Glee? I am listening to the soundtrack right now.

We've just had episode 3 and it is good If your dizziness continues you must see the Dr and stay safe

Judy just joined a GYM and is excited about it !! She is continuing to loose weight and this will speed the process !!!

Fantastic

Walker Pockets:

I think we need a photo


Golf was OK today, didn't score great but not terrible either IYKWIM it was nice to get out and get fresh air and exercise though

Last night was weird, at 2 am I woke up with a nose bleed, literally running with blood not sure what happened, maybe I picked it in my sleep

I've got the heating man coming tomorrow, our new boiler has suddenly started playing up and making a big bang several times a day Luckily it's under warantee!

 

[cmp1111]

Ugh. The boys still had school though?

Yep.

Back at work and it has been a crazy morning already. I need a day off

Have a good one. I will try and check in at lunch time.

Hope it's improved.

Golf was OK today, didn't score great but not terrible either IYKWIM it was nice to get out and get fresh air and exercise though

Good for you!

I've got the heating man coming tomorrow, our new boiler has suddenly started playing up and making a big bang several times a day Luckily it's under warantee!

Yikes!

 

[TEminnie]

Thanks Janet!



well, I decided to look some more at Paris info.....

the websites are confusing....I click on the English (often the UK flag but whatever...same language right??)....no......the stupid calendar is wrong....Sundays go first.......and they switch the month and date apparently...and then everything is in euros for some reason.
I'm gonna write the web site people and tell them to translate stuff to American so my brain does not have to work so hard.

...vent for the day.


So last nite Ab wanted me to help her study for her French III exam....after 4 minutes, she was laughing so hard that tears came down. She said "you're gonna have a fun time in Paris"
(still don't know what was so funny about the word "lever"---LEE VER right??

 

[TEminnie]

That said, leave your logo tee shirts, tennis shoes and baseball caps at home.


????so what do people wear in Paris?? How do you walk without tennis shoes?

 

[TEminnie]

Always keep a few 50 centime pieces handy- in case you need to use public restrooms where attendants may ask you for a 40 or 50 centimes fee for use fo the restrooms.


???? I have to pay to pee? What's a centime?

 

[KatGarcia]

Afternoon!

Sure is quiet around here!

I never made it back to sleep after KC left for work so I have been trying to be productive. I finished the "Down and out in the Magic Kingdom" book. Pretty good. Worth a read I think, a little strange but the Disney stuff in it makes it worth the read.

I went to pick up a book from paperbackswap from a girl who works locally. Saved her the $3 to send it and me the wait of getting it.

I stopped at the store for milk and tomatoes to go with tomorrows dinner (its taco night).

Now I am waiting for the super to come and install the new shower head. It'll be a standard carpy one but it'll save us the $ this week of buying one. He is so slow, I hope I am not waiting all day because eventually I will need a nap since I only slept for about 5 hours. I hate waiting.

I have a dress for the vow renewal! I bought it last week but just got around to trying it on, because I didn't want KC to see it until that day. I LOVE it! I may need to find a sweater or something to go over it and I need new black shoes but thats it! Invites went out yesterday too.

Here's the dress:

The embellishments on the top part:

I'm off to eat some lunch.

 

[DisneyJo]

the websites are confusing....I click on the English (often the UK flag but whatever...same language right??)....no......the stupid calendar is wrong....Sundays go first.......and they switch the month and date apparently...and then everything is in euros for some reason.
I'm gonna write the web site people and tell them to translate stuff to American so my brain does not have to work so hard.

...vent for the day.

Oh my goodness BTW I start the week with a Monday not a Sunday

Always keep a few 50 centime pieces handy- in case you need to use public restrooms where attendants may ask you for a 40 or 50 centimes fee for use fo the restrooms.


???? I have to pay to pee? What's a centime?

You sure do, that's where the phrase spend a penny came from, well except in this case it's centimes which now they've changed to Euros or € I doubt it's centimes anymore

I have a dress for the vow renewal! I bought it last week but just got around to trying it on, because I didn't want KC to see it until that day. I LOVE it! I may need to find a sweater or something to go over it and I need new black shoes but thats it! Invites went out yesterday too.

Very nice, can't quite make out the colour from the photo. Is it black or dark blue/brown?


Nothing to report, sorry

 

[cmp1111]

That said, leave your logo tee shirts, tennis shoes and baseball caps at home.


????so what do people wear in Paris?? How do you walk without tennis shoes?

You need to dress a bit. I brought a bunch of easy skirts, which are fine with plain t's or nice tanks, also khaki's are fine for day. I had a pair of mary janes that worked great for walking, and in fact wore my ballet flat Crocs a time or two.

Here are some pictures of what I had on - and always look in the background, too!

Well, OK. I apparently didn't put a 1/10th of my pictures in photobucket, so here's one. As it happened, though we were there at the beginning of June, it wasn't very warm, thus the sweater.

Always keep a few 50 centime pieces handy- in case you need to use public restrooms where attendants may ask you for a 40 or 50 centimes fee for use fo the restrooms.

???? I have to pay to pee? What's a centime?

Where are you getting this? I feel like centimes were fractions of Francs, which of course aren't in use. I don't think I ever had to pay to pee. Just have some change handy - I do remember having to pay to pee in London.

I have a dress for the vow renewal!

It's lovely!

*************************************************
I couldn't decide if I should snowblow again or not - we do have over an inch again today - but then the city plow came and decided for me - blocked the end of the driveway. So, I've been out doing that. The kids do have tennis tonight, so... It's probably for the best - I won't mush down a bunch of snow that will then be harder to get off later.

 

[lazydoxy66]

Hello Friends!

I'll be back later with a Focker update.

I wanted to give you the news for Doug.

He will be starting an intravenous drug therapy called Avastin. We are awaiting approval from his insurance. Here is a description of the drug:

Avastin® (bevacizumab) is the first U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved therapy designed to inhibit angiogenesis, the process by which new blood vessels develop and carry vital nutrients to a tumor.

Avastin is approved, in combination with intravenous 5-fluorouracil-based (5-FU) chemotherapy, for first- or second-line treatment of patients with metastatic carcinoma of the colon or rectum; in combination with carboplatin and paclitaxel for the first-line treatment of patients with unresectable, locally advanced, recurrent or metastatic non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC); and for the treatment of metastatic renal cell carcinoma in combination with interferon alfa.

He didn't get to talk to the doctor. I am assuming, and this could be wrong, that since there has been no mention of another chemo drug, that it is mainly damage from the radiation that they want to fix. His doctor told us on the last visit that they would combine the Avastin with a chemo if it looked like the tumor was growing. I'll let you know when we get to talk to the doctor next time.

Side effects are minimal with the Avastin. Only 2% show any signs of stomach probs or bleeding issues, headaches, nausea, etc.

Thanks for all the good thoughts and prayers. Keep them going, please.

I reported this on Enchanted, so skip it if you saw it over there.

Since Doug is home, he is dirtying dishes more often. He can't wash them very well with his hand all screwed-up. I asked him to read the instructions for the dishwasher. The dishwasher came with the house that we bought 6 years ago. We have never used it. I know you are all going,"Como se what?" There are just 2 of us so no need.

Anywho, he did 2 small loads and broke it! It won't do nothin'! He has a friend who works on this kind of stuff. Hopefully he can help us fix it. I'm not very keen of buying one at this point since Doug's hand may get better with the treatment. We'll see!!!

Again thanks, you guys are the best!
Big, Big Hugs!!!

I'll be back later. Prolly a lot later but I'll get here!

 

[cmp1111]

Thanks for all the good thoughts and prayers. Keep them going, please.

Will do! Hope it helps.

Sorry about the dishwasher! That would be about my luck.

 

[askelton]

???? I have to pay to pee? What's a centime?

We had to when we were there 12 years. Not everyplace but most. FYI some of the wc's are not male/female. They are unisex which I wouldn't mind if I didn't have to walk past a urinal to get to the stall. Seems they should be in the back.

Pretty!

You need to dress a bit. I brought a bunch of easy skirts, which are fine with plain t's or nice tanks, also khaki's are fine for day. I had a pair of mary janes that worked great for walking, and in fact wore my ballet flat Crocs a time or two.

There are lots of uneven streets so keep that in mind when you're picking shoes.

I wanted to give you the news for Doug.

The dishwasher came with the house that we bought 6 years ago. We have never used it. I know you are all going,"Como se what?" There are just 2 of us so no need.

Mitch and I use the dishwasher all the time, and I'm still using it whilst he's not here. I do wait to run it until it's full however.


AK was so crowded today! What's the deal? We rode Everest twice and left. It seemed like we went backwards much longer than before or have I just not ridden it in awhile? I like it though.

 

[TEminnie]

Oh my goodness BTW I start the week with a Monday not a Sunday

Seriously? Like if you look at your Jan calendar, the Monday is first?

You sure do, that's where the phrase spend a penny came from, well except in this case it's centimes which now they've changed to Euros or € I doubt it's centimes anymore
:

so, do you pay for each person or are the kids free if with me?

You need to dress a bit. I brought a bunch of easy skirts, which are fine with plain t's or nice tanks, also khaki's are fine for day. I had a pair of mary janes that worked great for walking, and in fact wore my ballet flat Crocs a time or two.

Here are some pictures of what I had on - and always look in the background, too!

Well, OK. I apparently didn't put a 1/10th of my pictures in photobucket, so here's one. As it happened, though we were there at the beginning of June, it wasn't very warm, thus the sweater.

[
Where are you getting this? I feel like centimes were fractions of Francs, which of course aren't in use. I don't think I ever had to pay to pee. Just have some change handy - I do remember having to pay to pee in London.




It's lovely!

*************************************************
I couldn't decide if I should snowblow again or not - we do have over an inch again today - but then the city plow came and decided for me - blocked the end of the driveway. So, I've been out doing that. The kids do have tennis tonight, so... It's probably for the best - I won't mush down a bunch of snow that will then be harder to get off later.

that helps. What about capris? They're my summer wear of choice. Jeans ok for the teens? They're wondering what to wear--probably hard to be fashionable---I just wanna be comfortable and not stick out. Still confused about the tennis shoes--I thought they walked a lot??

 

[PrincessV]

Yay, TE's going to Paris - my favorite place in the world!!!

Use the Metro there, don't be scared.

Ditto. It was ludicrously easy to use and so efficient. That said, if it's nice out, walk as much as you can; your heads will spin, there's so much to see!

We had absolutely NO issues with rudeness

Ditto again. The opposite, really - everyone was extremely kind and helpful. Use French as much as you can, but don't hesitate to ask for English; I had to at the train station and they were more than happy to switch over to make sure I got on the right train!

Oh, and I totally second V's recommendation of a wine shop in Paris run by an ex-pat. I know it translates to "The Last Drop" but I'll have to look it up - or V will have to remember.

http://www.yikes.com/~patty/html/goutte.html

I need to start getting in shape---I saw someone on Tripadvisor write that you have to walk a lot in Paris and Americans were all dying!

Lots of walking, but honestly, I think we walked less than at WDW. Paris is a surprisingly small city.

That said, leave your logo tee shirts, tennis shoes and baseball caps at home.


????so what do people wear in Paris?? How do you walk without tennis shoes?

Comfy, dressier shoes, though I saw plenty of sneakers, too - dressier styles more than athletic. I was there in winter, so I saw lots of boots, but also comfy leather flats.

Always keep a few 50 centime pieces handy- in case you need to use public restrooms where attendants may ask you for a 40 or 50 centimes fee for use fo the restrooms.


???? I have to pay to pee? What's a centime?

Y'know, we never did use a pay toilet! I saw them, they are there, but we just always wound up in restaurants, museums and dept. stores that were free. But no more centimes - Euros.

Another recommendation: www.ricksteves.com
I LOVE his walking tours, which you can print out and bring with you.

Thanks for all the good thoughts and prayers. Keep them going, please.

You've got it.

There are lots of uneven streets so keep that in mind when you're picking shoes.

Great point; I never wore my stiletto boots!

Jeans ok for the teens? They're wondering what to wear--probably hard to be fashionable---I just wanna be comfortable and not stick out.

Absolutely. I wore jeans the whole week, and lots of Parisians were, too.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[cmp1111]

There are lots of uneven streets so keep that in mind when you're picking shoes.

Good point!

so, do you pay for each person or are the kids free if with me?

From what I remember in London, it was more like a drop slot into the stall door, so one for each. But truly, I didn't pay at any of the museums or restaurants in 2008.

that helps. What about capris? They're my summer wear of choice. Jeans ok for the teens? They're wondering what to wear--probably hard to be fashionable---I just wanna be comfortable and not stick out. Still confused about the tennis shoes--I thought they walked a lot??

Yes, but in nice shoes. Jeans are fine - especially the fashionable ones for teens - but probably not for dinner unless they are actually designer. Capris are probably OK, with the right shoes. Truly for touring, anything's fine, especially if you don't mind looking a little touristy and you stay casual for lunch. We did dress up some for dinner, no matter where we went.

I'll e-mail you the links to my snapfish albums - which contain every picture we took over there. There aren't actually a ton of me or D, but there are some good crowd shots which will give you ideas.

ETA: V & I were posting at the same time - but I agree with everything she said! I followed her advice when I went, so it makes sense.

 

[TEminnie]

Thanks guys! I'm clicking on the Rick Steves site. I HAVE to have a good guide book--I still carry a new Passporter each time to WDW (even though some of my own tips are in it!) But I don't want to overload myself. Will need a new bag---my bagaillini got left in the Bahama taxi on the way to the airport.....the girls were glad...they did not see it as very fashionable.

What book are you reading?

...don't have to worry about stilletos--whilst I would be taller, I would fall down.!

Ab wants a knock out pill for the plane--she wants to try to sleep so she will be up. I'll prob be kinda nervous so may need one or three too. Ideas?