JUst got back from my kidney doctor and everything is fine. She did increased the iron talbets to 2 day.And said I was lucky to get thru the stents without damageing my kidneys any further. It teated out about the same as 8 months ago. So I was lucky there.

Marie

Marie, everything you said to everyone else goes right back to you too.. You are a wonder all on your own, and we all love you very much, and all of us would like nothing better than to give you a big hug!
Please don't try to do too much, it takes time, and everyone has good days and bad.. summer is always a drag on energy, except for children, who thrive in the heat, don't they?

Today it is only 82 degrees and here I sit with these computers. one is crashing and the other is taking its own sweet time about loading my audiobooks, I had no idea this apple ipod would be so much slower on loading books.. but the books are free, so what can ya do? I'm on the last one now, and I will be free to Wii, etc. maybe I can make it to the lake today. Have to do some errands, laundry.
we leave in the morning.

Jeffrey, here is the information on the cat meds .. call your vet to confirm the info, I would if it was me getting info from a 'non' vet' source.

chlorpheniramine 4mg that is on the bottle from the vet. the name on the bottle sold at wal mart in the pharmacy dept. is Chlortabs... just verify the ingredient is chlorpheniramine maleate 4mg.
the dosage is for about 10 pounds 1/2 a tablet as needed. A whole one is fine, it has virtually no side effects, except for slightly more drowsy, but how could you tell in a cat??

take care of yourselves this week, laugh a lot, and remember you are important!!

I change my ticker to what I weigh in last Sunday. I sign up for Sunday Succes here and we wi on Sunday. I have done real good this week so far. I got to get serious about this.

I order some cheese crakers on the internet that sounds good. I have bought their gourmet Noodles and like them real well.Here is the link if anyone want to check them out. click on continue shopping and it will take you o there products. Marie

http://www.fibergourmet.com/ShoppingCartWindow.aspx

No, You didn't mention this before. Yes, we had lovely time at the lake. It would terrific to do a houseboat vacation, we saw lots of them out on the lake. No sign of recession with people from Alberta holidaying on the Shushwap.
Hot here today at 34 or 35. Same as southern California. But the cherries are ripe and the blueberries are in. Makes it a whole lot easier to eat healthy. Who needs ice cream?

Hey, Marie, good health news. Rejoicing with you.
Keep up the good work.
Ellen

Marie---you’re right. It helps to have cooler weather if you want to exercise. I’m glad you got good news from the kidney doctor. Good luck on losing those pesky pounds. Thank you for all your kind words. You are such a thoughtful person. If I were closer to you I’d give you a hug and tell you I want to be more like you.

It’s about 71 degrees here (22 degrees C). It was even cooler this morning when I went to line dance. It was warm after lunch when I took the dogs to the dog park. We stayed only 30 minutes because the dogs lay down in the shade under the trees and came running over when I got the leashes so I knew they were ready to go. Later I took a walk for an hour down still another road less traveled in my neighborhood and found another way to get to the discovery trail. Jake had to go to Seattle so I did all this stuff by myself.

Phoebe----all that computer stuff always takes longer than you expect. You’ll love having those audio books with you when you travel. You are right about the heat being a drag on your energy. Will you be going someplace cooler on this trip?

Ellen----I’m glad your vacation on the lake was good. You’re right about the fresh fruit. We had some blueberries in our breakfast shakes this morning. I’m glad your flat tire wasn’t too much of a problem for you and that you are safe.

Sandy----you look so great now. It’s no surprise that you got compliments and with a great tan, you are awesome. Did anyone tell you not to lose too much weight? Thank you for all the encouragement.

Gayla----I hope you’re feeling energetic and ready to do some good stuff for yourself.

All that exercise earned me some extra calories so I’m going to enjoy a big bowl of cereal and soy milk for the last snack of the day. Jake is safely home from Seattle and all the pets are more relaxed now that he’s home.
Hugs,
Barbie

Good Morning Everyone!

Marie- Glad to hear that your Dr. appt went well! So happy for you! Keep it up!

Barbie and Jake- glad you are enjoying!

Pj- Thanks for the info. I appreciate it and so do the cats!

Ellen- I do NEED ice cream! LOL

Sandy- Whats going on this weekend?

Gayla, Ellie, Beth and everyone else- I hope you are all fine! We think of you all!

Not much going on here today. It is a little rainy but we really need it. I am going to replant a little in the garden tomorrow or Sunday. I think that I will put some more green beans in. I have to come up with something for supper tonight? Any ideas? I am going to make a beef stew tomorrow. We have not had any red meat in 2 weeks. I miss it! Tomorrow we are going to the farmers market and then to a very large fruit market and stock up on tart cherries for holiday pies. The girls are good and Sam may be home for a few days in 2 weeks. Amanda went to Savannah for a few days and will be starting back to school in 2 weeks. The job search has improved a little and I have a couple of things working. So at least that is something!

But you know, I have a great wife, beautiful kids, and my health, so it is not all bad! Everyone have a great day and smile more than you have too!

Jeffrey

And a happy good morning to all of you!!
Our weather is much cooler today, after those hot days it seems almost chilly being in the high 60's.
Marie, glad your news was good with your kidney test. You are our icon so take it easy on yourself and just do what you can. I think without your good morning post each day we wouldn't be so motivated. we love you
Phoebe, did you clean up your temporary files before downloading the books? Sometimes you have to free up space and shut down all other programs to make your computer run faster.
Ellen, Ice cream is what I miss the most, I love the soft cone ice cream from Mc Donalds, but it has been a long time since I've had one.
Gayla, hope your hip and knees feel better soon. I have bad knees from playing tennis when I was young. I take over the counter meds that seem to help a lot. How is Neil, are the seizures any better?
Jeffrey, with your attitude how can you go wrong? If you take each day one at a time, something positive will happen before you know it.
Barbie and all who have complimented me, thank you very much. The only people who tell me I lost too much are those who don't diet at all and should. I know what makes me feel good and gives me more energy, so I just worry about myself and let other's worry about themselves.
That is why I love reading and posting here, we all understand each other and we are all trying to maintain good health. Three Cheers for Us!! Hip hip hooray, hip hip hooray, hip hip, hooray!!

Sandy

Boo hoo hoo!!! I just finished writing my usual longer than needed post and it vanished into cyber space!! I think I pushed the wrong button. I don't have time to redo it but just know I am thinking of you.
I do want to answer Sandy's question about Neil though. The seizures (Neil's) have decreased tremendously, some days none and there haven't been more than 2 in a day for a couple of weeks. His behavior is back to his old self. He has had a couple of meltdowns but they last for an hour or two instead of 2 or 3 days. I think we have our happy Neil back and I am so thankful. I need to write the Dr. a note. I will always be cautious about the long term but for now we are so happy for him and us.
Keep smiling. Gayla

Gayla, that is wonderful news about Neil. You will all enjoy your trip to Edm. so much better. You all go there every year, don't you? You all have a lots of lakes, or they natural lakes or man made. We have lots of lakes around in our area but they are all man made.

I got some real nice peaches at the store today. Would love to go back and get enough for a cobbler but I best not. Enjoy your weekend. Marie

Gayla that makes me so happy!!!

Hi everyone,
Well, I am back from Puerto Villarta. I have not read the posts to get caught up but just wanted to get back tto normal!

It was a wonderful week! Everything went off without a hitch except that this Mother of the groom was not at the wedding! Four hours before the wedding I got really really sick After that my sister got sick and then Vicki got sick! I was still sick last night and I am hoping that it is over!

Anyway gals I will look forward to playing catch up!

Hello Sandi. So sorry to hear you got sick and missed the wedding. But glad you are on the mend. Missed you aound here Glad to see you back. Did you all get a hold of some bad food or what?

Sandy---- how is daisy Mae doing? She sounds like she will be one spoild young lady. Already going to the Bingo Hall. My Sammy has learn all of our body language and our words. We are having to spell out words. He will soon catch on to that.

Gayla, Its is wonderful that Neil has improved so much. I know he is happier and easier to get along with. Glad you have your boy back and doing so great.

Phoebe--- I guess you are out on the road again.Be careful.

Jeffrey,, good hearing from you. No more family get together untill Thanksgiving I guess.

Barbiecat---and Jake---- Well I have lost all the weight i have gain in the last month. In the morning is my offiicial wi. Hope to have my ticker back down to where it was, 15 lbs lost. And no getting off the bus to thiness this time.

Chowhound. Which one of you Canadian lives the farest north from me. I'm thinkg it is Gayla.

Ellen , You can shipped me some of those cherries down here. Love them. I am gettting some nice peaches here.

elli. Been missing you. Hope you haven't got tired of us.

Beth , Look like things ar gettin rought overther. You be careful and stay out of harms way.

Barbs, Did you ever fet yor fridge clean out.

Big G.---Still thinkg of you.

Marie

I have a minute while Jake gets dressed then we're going for a walk

Gayla, that is such good news about Neil----he deserves a little more peace in his life and so do you

Sandy-----I feel happy thinking about you and Daisy Mae playing together

Marie-----I alway spell "dog park" so the dogs won't know what I'm saying but they're starting to catch on to the sound of spelling and probably know that if I'm spelling then it's something for them

Sandi I'm glad you're back and sorry that you got sick and missed the wedding.

I sent a personal message to Elli and she replied that she is very busy and doing well.

It's time to go walk
hugs
Barbie

Sorry to hear about the "case of the vanishing post." Hmmm, sounds like a good title for a mystery novel. Well, anyway, just passing on an idea for you and others, that I started after the same thing happened to me. Use wordpad, notepad, whatever word processing program you have on your pc, compose your post in it, then copy what you have written, open your window in MFP and "paste" it in. That way you still have the info on your own pc if the website misfires, or you hit the wrong button. Then you can add the emoticons (smiley faces, etc.) whereever you want them.

If you want to be doubly "safe" you can save what you posted in the word processing program before you copy and paste it.

Another hint, if you are posting directly to the website and your info disappears, try hitting the "back" arrow on your browser before you do anything else and sometimes, depending on what caused it to disappear in the first place, you can recover it.
********************************************************

Caliecat, you asked about my fridge. Well the monster still lives back there for all I know. Maybe this weekend I will get to it.. It is ridiculous really, I have a large side by side fridge and it is just me and the doggies, but there are some things in the back that have been around a while. Not leftovers, they get tossed if I don't use them, but I seem to accumulate, salad dressing bottles, condiments. I also keep bread in the fridge because it lasts longer, but sometimes I "bury" things back there that evenually need to go to that "great refrigerator in the sky." I have been doing a little here and there around the edges, but maybe this weekend I will have a big enough block of time to get it done right.
****************************************
My friend Linda, the one who had been ill and hospitalized , is doing much better and I don't have to be going over to her house every 5 minutes, as it seemed I was for the last few weeks. I also have another friend who has needed my help more frequently in the past few weeks, due to moving and also having a spouse who suffered a "meltdown" due to the stress of working the past 3 months in the Middle East, so between those two and still working full time, and still having 2 pesky little doggies --one of which has his chin sitting on the edge of my laptop as this is being written-- I have had less time than usual for walking, but I have continued to eat right, so I am not gaining, which is an accomplishment for me.

Usually, as soon as I stop "watching it" the pounds seem to sneak in the bedroom and jump on at night. Maybe the "fridge monster" has eaten all of them and so they can't get me anymore!!

Barbiecat, I have the same problem with my guys. I have to spell "Grandma" and "Grandpa" because as soon as they hear that word, they think we are getting in the car to go see my mom and dad. My first Shih tzu--the late and ever great "Dreyfus" --was an absolute piglet about ICE CREAM so I use to have to spell that word, or he figured we were walking to Ben and Jerry's, which was near the home I lived in with my former hubby, before I came to my condo.

Today, if it is a choice between 5 miles on the walking trail or cleaning the fridge, the trail wins. I have to spell THAT, too around hear, 'cuz if you have doggies--"Walkies" means only one thing. Grab the lease and hang on!!!

Have a good weekend, everyone!!

Barb

Barbs. uou post such interesting post . So funny. Enjoy reading them. And you got 2 adorable doggies.How ever I bet they don't think they re doggies. Sammy don't. They are so smart. Now my cat do not know her own name or just don't care. She knows the sound of her food tho.

I had a good breakfast of Stouffer Spinach stouffle with an egg steam with 1 T. of water and 1 T of Pincinte sauce. I was going to add some cheese but i figure i would just save those calories. It was really good . I love spinach. For lunch I am having tuna salad.
Hope you all have a good eating day.

Marie

Well, hot, hot weather here - 35 plus [almost 100], humidity 19%.
A fire started spontaneously down the lake across from Kelowna about 2:30 or 3pm today but it spread so rapidly that 4,000 people have had to evacuate already, several houses burned, nobody knows how many really. Another town is on evacuation notice. Every water bomber in BC is down there trying to contain it. The major highways south of Kelowna are totally closed. So far no one has been injured.
Now we hear there is another fire just across the lake from us and our skies are filled with smoke already. It is very dry, hot, windy with high gusts. May the Lord help us. They have about 1 or 2 hours left that they can fly the bombers. It seems reminiscent of the 2005 Kelowna fires.
Ellen

Caliecat,

Thanks for your kind words about my last post. I am glad you enjoy my attempts at humour.

I actually didn't do 5 miles.......I did SEVEN!!! Took me about 3 hours, including about 20 minutes of stopping here and there, and it was about 85 degrees F, but the humidity was very low, so it was not bad out there. By the time I got back to where my car was parked, I still felt like I had a couple of more miles left in me, but I still had other things to do today, so I quit while I was ahead.

Ellen,

So sorry to hear about the fires in your area. I don't have family in the Okanagon area of BC, but all of my mom's family are in BC, just further west in the greater Vancouver area, and some in Williams Lake. The fires you are referring to from 2005 and they were horrific as I recall., so I hope the firefighting efforts are successful, and SOON for the sake of your neighbors.

I am in the process of winding down for the night, so good night all.

Barb

Hi everyone from hot and sunny Saskatchewan. I went out to do a bit of gardening but decided to wait until it was cooler and never did get back out there. I know you will be impressed that I did finally get started with the Wii Active. I did an easy workout that still left me sweating!! Man, I am so out of shape. I was very cautious with my knee and did get a few prompts to speed up (which I ignored). Obviously, I didn't burn as many calories as I could have but I didn't hurt anything either. I will do it again tomorrow if all is well in the knee department when I get up.

Ellen -- So sorry to hear about the fires. Stay safe. I am not sure where Kaslo (my friends home) is in relation to Kelowna and the fires but I hope they are out of danger.

Beth -- Hope you are doing ok. Will be glad to hear from you.

Elli -- I know you are terribly busy, thinking about you.

Sandi -- So sorry that you missed the wedding. You must have been very disappointed. Glad you are starting to feel better. Hope the other recover quickly as well.

Marie -- Way to go on the weight loss. You are doing great. Thanks for the kind words about Neil.

Phoebe -- I hope you are travelling safely as always.

Jeffrey -- Glad the job market is looking a bit better for you. It sounds like you garden is doing great. Mine is coming nicely but will be awhile before we have anything other than lettuce.


Barbie -- Walking with or without your dogs, you amaze me. You are so right, we all needed a little peace in our house. I didn't realize until Friday when Dave and I went out for lunch on our own that Neil had become the center of our lives. Of course, that means that Neil was a large part of our daily conversation. It was nice to talk about something else without even realizing we were. The stress is lifting but I am so aware of it's closeness.

Barb -- Thanks for the suggestions for posting, I am giving it a try. I used to do this a long time ago but it seemed easier to miss this step. But -- it is really annoying to lose a post!!


Sandy -- Is Daisy playing you out? It is kind of like having a new baby and they sure play one out. We only had cats for pets and they are so independent they don't take a lot of work. They did like to sleep on our bed but unless they were hungry they were quiet. I really miss having a cat in the house.

Time to say good-night. Gayla

Hi All,
Things here are fine...I am fine and other then being hot and dusty all the time doing very well. I am not sure how much weight I have lost since being here... but...My uniforms are all hanging and my PT shorts look like I am waiting to jump off a roof and could parachute to safety.
I have been MIA a lot in the last few months but we are working a 5-5 schedule which means the guys get off at 5 and I work at least until 7 and still havent caught up. I may be very glad when this deployment is over with in more ways then one... I am thinking a hot date with a pillow and no alarm sounds about right (just dont tell my boyfriend but the pillow is winning my affections and since he wont be home till December he may never know)
Marie how have things been going? Gayla great news I read about Neil.... everyone else I am not trying to be rude but I am short on time again...so I will try and get back and read the rest of the comments. I need to get back out to the job site and once again tell a man that he is wrong and being female does not mean I have some kind of brain tumor and dont know my job :)
Miss you all
Beth

PS... there is still snow up in the mountains here too bad its so hot in the valley :)

Hi


So nice to hear from Beth. You surely have been miss. take care Thanks for reporting in. Great on losing weight.

Ellen, I do hope the fires do not reach you. Keep us informed. Feel bad for the ones it has already been hit. Take care.

Galyla. Hey you got a start on the wii. Good for you. Don't over do it.

Barb--great walking. I remember going on our walking trails here and what a lovely walk it was. Going thru the woods, over little bridges and looking at the creeks. Just me and my dog, Angel. She loves it. I sure missed her. She was my little sweetheart.

Hope to hear from everybody else today.

This was WI day on Sunday Sucess thread. I lost 5 lbs. 4 lbs that I had gain during last month ordeal and an extra lb. for a total of 5 lbs. I am double please. I know a lot of it was water but at least it is gone.

Calie

Morning all,
The sky is not so smokey here right now, so I am thinking the Terrace Mt. fire across the lake has been contained.
In Westbank a second fire has started, possibly from the first.
Sounds like they had to evacuate a lakeside campsite and another area up in the hills. Many more people are on evacuation alert.
The water bombers should be in the air by now so hopefully they can get the fires contained. The potential is there to lose a whole town. So far about 10,000 people evacuated. People have been so good, opening their homes, providing space for animals, rv's, taking in lost or displaced pets, taking water and food supplies to the temporary shelters. It is really heartwarming to see the response.
By the way, the location is about one hour south of here and across the lake from Kelowna. [At about the middle of our 80 mile Okanagan Lake. Vernon, where we live, is at the north end of the lake].
Correction - the Kelowna fire was 2003, not 05. My mistake.
Ellen

From someone from the Midwest those fires sound terrifying Ellen. The worst weather I have ever seen is a potential tornado which thank God I have never seen. So really bad thunder storms are mild compared to what some of you go through. My prayers are with all who are affected.

Beth, so glad to hear from you and know that you are safe. Congratulations on the weight lose, although it sounds like really hard work in terrible conditions. I think you boyfriend would understand completely that you would welcome a clean, soft bed with cozy blankets. (at least for a few days)

Marie, so proud of you on your weight lose, I knew you could do it. Soon you will be reaching your goal and we will have a party for you.

Gayla, I agree the Wii Active makes me sweat which I normally never do. I can't do any of the running or any track because of my knees so I increase my workout to 40 minutes and select my own type exercises. I was doing the 30 minute challenge but now I just pick my own. I am glad you had some alone time with your husband, sometimes we forget about our spouses when we are involved in our children's lives. Being a parent is hard work and being a mom is twice as hard sometimes. (no offense Jeffrey)

Must be something with the name Barb. You girls put us to shame with all your walking and hiking. You must have some good stamina to walk and/or hike all those miles. Keep up the good work, those pounds will be melting off.

I did do my Wii Active on Friday and plan on doing it today. I found that if I do it every other day I get better results and my muscles get a chance to relax. Of course I still watch my calories . I seem to lose weight faster doing this and as long as it is working I am going to continue to do so. Once I reach my goal I will go back to my eliptical which I haven't done in ages.

Daisy is doing wonderful, her housebreaking is going great. She sleeps in her crate at night without any bed because she is too hot otherwise. Loving my baby girl.

Have a great Sunday and keep love and happiness in your heart.

Sandy

Glad to hear the report from you. Hope they get it contained today. Sounds like people are really helping out each other. Love that human kindness.
Marie

Good morning everyone

Ellen, Thanks for the update on the fire. I googled and found a story on CBC.com about the fires. There hasn't been a peep about it on our local news, but it often takes a day or two for them to figure out what is going on north of the border.

Here are some excerpts from that story:

"About 5,000 residents were forced to flee their homes Saturday as fire crews battled a quick-spreading forest fire covering two square kilometres of West Kelowna, in B.C.'s Okanagan region.

Three homes have been destroyed and 12 others were deemed under serious threat in the Glenrosa area. A further 1,500 homes near the blaze have been evacuated, fire officials said.

B.C.'s Okanagan region has been plagued by forest fires in the past. (CBC)
The evacuation zone includes Upper and Lower Glenrosa, and the Seclusion Bay, Gellatly Bay, Goat's Peak and Horizons areas.......
.....B.C. Forestry sent six helicopters, eight aerial water bombers, 45 firefighters and two water trucks to assist the Kelowna and Peachland fire departments in battling the blaze.......
....Strong, hot winds gusting to 50 km/h and extremely dry conditions were hampering efforts to contain the blaze and were expected to continue late into the night, officials said......
.....Sun 'blotted out': Day
International Trade Minister Stockwell Day, ....."I can see the flames, and the winds are very strong," he said early Saturday evening. "The sun was blotted out for quite a while earlier in the afternoon."....
.......Day said that the highway leading out of the area was jammed with people taking pictures and trying to leave.......
.....In 2003, a wildfire in Kelowna forced the evacuation of approximately 45,000 residents and destroyed more than 230 homes. The final size of the fire was estimated at 25,000 hectares"

I am not sure what is worse, a tornado that comes and goes in a matter of minutes, or something like this that carries on and has the potential to come after anything in its path, depending on the wind direction.

Let us pray they don't lose any more homes, or any lives.

***********************************************************

In a completely unrelated vein, I am sitting here listening to "doggie snores"--courtesy of Mai Li, my Lhasa Apso, who managed to stagger from the bedroom to the kitchen floor, before crashing again for a little more sack time. At the moment, she is the only one, but it can be quite a racket if "Pepper" the Shih tzu joins her in a "chorus of snores." Ooops, I spoke too soon, now there HE goes!!!

I am happy to report that I did lose 2 more pounds as of my weigh in today. WHOOPEE!!

Hope everyone has a good Sunday.

Barb