Camping Club Weekend

Yippee, it's that time again! We so look forward to this one weekend each month. It's always great to be able to spend time with good friends, relax, eat delicious food, and enjoy the nice weather. I can't wait!

The theme this month is Cinco de Mayo so I won't be eating much of the food this time though. I'll be eating salads and such since I started my diet on Monday. The diet is going good although I do have a massive headache right now. Caffeine related possibly!? I've already lost a few pounds. It feels good to be headed down the right path. The extra weight isn't only menopause related, I've overindulged way to much this last year and it's caught up with me.

I have my 30 Day Shred DVD and will start on it on Monday. I knew I'd be out of town Thurs-Sun so I've been walking instead. I'm anxious to start the 30 day Shred but I hear it kicks butt. That's ok, this butt needs kicking!

I'll get to spend time with my kids this weekend too. Courtney is leaving AZ today for Orange County to babysit my nieces and nephew for the weekend. My nieces are 16 and 17, have boyfriends, and my SIL doesn't trust them to be alone while they're out of town. Smart woman that SIL of mine! We'll be at the beach near Courtney and the kids so they plan on spending the day with us on Saturday. I'm planning on seeing my son tomorrow for sure. He asked if I'd like to go to lunch, maybe do a little shopping with him tomorrow. He's no dummy, he knows momma's got the checkbook! No really, Brandon never asks us for anything so I'm HOPING he lets me treat him to a few things this weekend. I'm blessed with 2 loving, very responsible, and incredibly beautiful children!

As always, I'll take along my camera and hopefully will capture some good memories. Even though I think about it, I hesitate to take pictures sometimes because people don't know I have this blog. I often want to say "lets take a picture so I can blog about it" but of course say nothing and end up with no pictures either. I'll work on that!

Be safe and have a fantastic weekend!

Courtney (aka Little Sis)...

Today was the last final of your Sophomore year. You're now officially a JUNIOR!

Sis, you've worked so hard these last 2 years in college, Dad and I are so proud of you!

But now that it's summer, GET A JOB, please!

Love, Mom

Excuse My Language

But really...Menopause sucks!

I don't eat enough to keep a bird alive yet I keep tipping the scale. A few pounds here, a few pounds there, enough already!

It's time to pull out the big guns...


Ok, now that I've got my exercise plan intact, anyone know of a good remedy for those darn hot flashes that seem to have taken over my life now too!?!

Do You Have A Rose Garden?

My mother-in-law hired an interior decorator to help her when they remodeled their old home some 25+ years ago. Sandy, the decorator, was terrific and really did a superb job. The house turned out beautiful.

Of all the things that were bought and/or changed during the remodel, the large wall in the family room became my mother-in-law's favorite. Sandy had such an eye for detail and the wall in the family room turned out gorgeous. Sandy took old family photos, placed them in beautiful, expensive frames, then hung them all over the wall. To make it even more of a showcase, she hung track lighting from the ceiling to spotlight the photos. It was stunning.

My mother-in-law called this wall her rose garden.

My mother-in-law Sally passed away eleven years ago, and soon after, the family home was sold. My in-laws always had a second home in Palm Springs and my father-in-law decided to make Palm Springs his permanent home. During the packing and moving, my FIL asked my husband if he wanted any of the pictures. He didn't have to ask him twice.

My husband brought home some of the photos years ago and I didn't hesitate to hang them in our home.

I have a rose garden.


My mother-in-law and her only brother...


My father-in-law's parents on their wedding day...


My father-in-law as a child...


This is a picture of an ice sculpture at my in-laws wedding. It has their picture inside the ice sculpture...


I also added in these pictures of my husband and I...


Do you have a rose garden?

A Person's Worst Nightmare

Thursday morning my husband mentioned that he thought he heard sirens earlier that morning, around 3:00am or so. Sirens that were REALLY close by. As it turns out, a home in our neighborhood caught on fire. It didn't burn to the ground but I would imagine it's a complete loss. This was a well maintained 4700 sq foot home, with pool and 4 car garage. As you can imagine the loss is devastating. I drove by yesterday to take some pictures and saw the clean up crew busy at work. A gate has been put up around the house to keep people out. I also noticed that they lost 2 cars in the fire, they are still parked in the garage.




This house sits on a large corner lot and has always been known as the "Santa Claus House." Every year the owners decorated big time at Christmas, drawing crowds from all over the city. The owners would dress up as Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus, hand out candy canes and pose for pictures. They also had 2 trains decorated for Christmas and gave children rides around the neighborhood to see all of the decorations. Our neighborhood has long been known as the place to be during the holidays. At times I'm not even able to back out of my driveway due to traffic. We have limo rides that come through as well as horse drawn carriages giving people rides around the neighborhood to see all of the decorated homes. Christmas in my neighborhood is magical to say the least.

The owners of the Santa Claus house sold it recently due to health issues. It was too large of a home for them to care for any longer. The new owners have only been in this house for a year or so. They have done some remodeling and updating and were really showing pride of ownership. Having your home burn down is every person's nightmare so my heart just breaks for them.

If you get the chance, please keep these people in your thoughts and prayers. I'm sure they would appreciate it.

Blue Monday

Thank you Sally for hosting Blue Monday each week. To join in the fun or to visit other Blue Monday participants, click here.

I haven't mentioned it in awhile, but hubby and I are members of a camping club that meets once a month. We've been members of this club for almost 3 years now so needless to say, some of these people have become dear friends. Like family really.

The club members officially start arriving on Friday afternoon/night and leave on Sunday, but a handful of us try to arrive on Thursday night. That way it gives us 2 full days to enjoy each others company. We talk, play games, go on walks, sometimes shop or do crafts, but there is one thing that we do best...EAT!

For this week's Blue Monday, here is a picture of a group of us on a Sunday morning, eating breakfast before we pack up and head for home. Our official club colors are blue and white. A few are wearing their blue camping club jackets in this picture. Also, look at that blue sky. Isn't it beautiful!


I can't wait until the next campout...and we'll be wearing our blue!

It's Friday

And I'm nosy...

So here's the question: Are you worried about the Swine Flu?

I wouldn't say that I'm worried, I'm cautious.

I work with sick people on a regular basis normally so I'm cautious to begin with. I'm just more cautious now. Many of our patients have relatives coming from and going to Mexico.

So...

As always, I'll wear a mask when dealing closely with patients, especially if they have a cough, I'll report to our doctors any patients with flu-like symptoms or respiratory issues, and most importantly, I'll stress handwashing. We've put out even more bottles of hand sanitizers than normal...and we normally have alot.

So far, it's business as usual.