Going Green and other things

Hi there, today I officially started yet again another diet. You know losing weight is really a state of mind and giving up fattening foods is just like giving up alcohol if you are an alcoholic. It's a one minute, one hour, one day at a time. You have to do a lot of praying and convince yourself that a)you are not hungry b)that the donut(ice cream, candy bar...substitute your own weakness)you want is really poison to your body especially at the quantity that you want. c) that yes you are upset about WHATEVER but an eclair WILL NOT make you feel better d) that you are beautiful(even at the current weight) but that for your health NOT your looks you want to lose the excess weight. Well okay, the last one is horse poopie mostly, because the bottom line is we all want to be the girl who can cross her legs and be thin enough to hook one leg behind the other one. If you are a man you want to lose the man-boobs. So I visited Planet Nutrition at my son's request and met with Chet and stocked up on things that will make me ummm... healthier.

On to saving the environment and going green. I have been green off and on for years. I have wondered though if you are not green what color are you, brown maybe? I never really got serious about it. I remember once I was saving cans. I saved cans for weeks. I had cans in plastic bags(not very green)I was up to my yang-yang in pop cans and didn't know what to do with them because our trash people didn't separate. They weren't very earth friendly at the time. Anyway I was at work lamenting my overflowing of cans and a co-worker volunteered to come over and collect the cans. We filled the back of his pick up truck with plastic bags full of cans. I felt pretty special that I was helping conserve. Afterward for several years I got eco-lazy and just pitched everything in the trash and carried all my groceries in plastic. Today I changed. I paid .99 cents each and got 10 bags that are made of material and I can carry them into the store and use them instead of paper or plastic. Is that neat or what. Eco-Deb was back. I really felt special and immediately went to the store so that I could buy something to put in my new bags. I bought fruit and toilet paper and a rag mag so that I could find out why Katie Holmes-Cruz is unhappy( betcha she doesn't separate) The guy at the check out put it all in plastic until I started waving my bags... then he said "do you want me to put the plastic bags in your bags".... duh!!!!! No Mr. Rocket Scientist I want to use MY bags only. So he took everything out of the plastic and put in my new reusable bags. I feel the urge to buy some earth shoes and a long flowered skirt. I am starting out small but really believe(no fooling) that we all have to help preserve our environment.
Till later, lots of hugs to the two of you
Ecodeb

Gift Bags and Wedding Souvenirs

I have always believed that my sister Patti started that most wonderful of all traditions, THE GIFT BAG. The gift bag is what you get when you go out of town to a family get together or wedding. The gift bag is waiting for you when you check into the hotel and is full of meaningful little items and chocolate. You might also find Jordan Almonds nestled in a special gift bag. The first gift bag I ever encountered was (I believe) at my niece Jenny's wedding in Iowa..... hence my idea that my sister was the genius behind the goodie bag. Imagine my surprise when a friend was telling me that when they checked into the hotel for her relatives wedding they had a gift bag full of goodies. I was stunned at how fast my sisters idea took root(I don't get out much)... I am glad I kept my mouth shut and didn't brag that my sister invented the things. I found out sadly that my sister did not invent gift bags. I will, however, say that she may not have done the first gift bag but she is in the running for the best. Rebekah and I now have a problem: THE GIFT BAG. What to put in it... we have a family image to uphold. I can't have my relatives whispering behind their hands that our bags were somehow inferior. The real trick is to fill the bag with useful items and things that make the recipient go.. awwwwwww looky at this... how cute, and to do it without spending the mint to do it. Beck and I have discussed this for a year. Gift bag items rank right up there with what to serve at the reception. In fact a great gift bag can go along way in decreasing the complaints about the reception food... for example "man that cake was as dry as toast but boy-o-boy didn't we get a great GIFT BAG, these people sure know how to throw a party". We come from an area that provides great sample goodies like Tabasco sauce from Avery Island, pralines, Mardi Gras stuff, plastic alligators...you know the neat stuff. The ultimate goal is to continue to hear about the gift bags that you have created for at least 2 family reunions.

Wedding souvenirs are those take home things that are given at the reception.(I could just slap the snot out of the person who started that little tradition) Everyone gets those as opposed to the gift bag which only those who stay in the hotel get. We now have to find an item that is meaningful, says 'we care' and reminds the recipients of Becky and Shane AND doesn't cost the moon for 250 of them. I also don't want something that involves me tying ribbons around, gluing, or doing any manual labor in getting it ready for presentation on the souvenir table. It was a piece of cake when everyone smoked.... books of matches. I thought about getting those small personal purse sized toilet paper rolls(found those and gave it to the kids in their stockings 2 Christmas' ago) It's meaningful, it certainly says 'we care' and they will remember Becky and Shane each time they hit a bathroom that has run out of toilet paper. It would be really cute if we could get a picture of the bride and groom wrapped around the roll.
Later, y'all

Happy Birthday Party for Patti

Becky and I took off for the outskirts of Chicago to celebrate my middle sister's 60th birthday. One thing you can depend on when we get together is that we will eat well.(and often) That and we usually shop. Several neat things happened during the weekend. Number one neat thing was that all of us met Chris's new bride the uber creative Jen. Neat thing number two was that we met our new nephews(and cousins) Keenan and Malcolm

Jack was our host for dinner at a wonderful steak restaurant. The above pics are of (from left to right) Kryss and Jen, then a pic of Patti and her chicks, Kryss and Jenny, and finally the host with the most Jack and Patti!

Jenny Martens is Patti's daughter and a vet in Geneva, Illinois. She was the party planner along with her dad. Her friend from work made a feast for all of us when we arrived.

My own precious daughter Rebekah.

This is my favorite pic of my older sister Barbara and her husband Bob.

Barbara's two daughters spent the weekend with us. On the top is Mindy and on the bottom is Carrie.


This was a group shot after lunch on Saturday.

This is the family that Ina made and was so very proud of. Her wish was that we would always be close....and we are and even a greater blessing our kids are as well.

I really had the best time. We ate till we couldn't eat anymore, we talked, laughed and enjoyed each other as we always do. I can't imagine a better family. The only down side to the weekend was that Stan wasn't there, Mark and Robbon couldn't make it because of a carrot emergency, and Joshua was with his students in Houston for dance competition.

I get all warm and fuzzy inside when I am with family especially after long absences. Becky and I awoke early Saturday morning and went to the hotel gym. We were energized and I felt a need to bond with my nieces so I called them up and told them to open the door that auntie deb was on her way. Mindy was sitting up looking cheerful and happy. Carrie was still buried under her covers apparently the night had not gone well. She did however rise to the occasion and joined us for breakfast.

Patti, Barb, Jack, Bob, Jen, Jenny, Christan, Malcolm, Keenan, Brandon, Ian, Rebekah, Mindy, Carrie, Kryss.... You guys are the very best. When I look at my family(even the absent ones) I see some very funny, creative, unique individuals that offer so much to each other. I love you all!!!

Happy Birthday Joshua

As I had previously written in Rebekah's birthday post..I must have thousands of pictures of my kids and can't locate the ones that I want at the time I want. I found these of Josh and was transported back in time so I think they will do

Joshua was born on Good Friday April 8, 1977. I was not prepared to be a mom. I didn't know if I would even like the job.... that was until he made his entry into the world and I fell in love with a red squalling 9lb5oz potato. He was a good baby and I couldn't imagine wanting to be anything else but a mom.We lived in an apartment complex called the English Cove Apt's. in Gulf Breeze, Florida. Our apartment was right beside the pool. Joshua loved the pool as a baby and would spend hours in or near the water. He is just over a year in this picture. One of my favorite 'Josh" stories is when he got up(under the age of 2) went downstairs got the oil and eggs out. I found him sitting on the floor with the frying pan between his legs filled to the brim with oil smashing eggs into the oil singing " making 'bekest' for mommy, making 'bekest' for mommy" Why oh why didn't I take a picture of that it would have been a classic. Like my niece Carrie pointed out(and I laughed when I read it...sorry) the picture will always be on my heart. I had saved my money for professional pictures when he was 2 and 1/2 and just prior to the picture event i realized he had cut his hair. I had to cancel. Made a new appointment and the weekend before kept looking at him. He just didn't look right. Sitting in McDonalds (Heckdonalds as he used to say) I looked at his face and loudly said " oh my God" he had shaved most of his left eyebrow off. "To be like mommy" because I used to shave the stray hairs off my eyebrows instead of plucking. I again had to cancel and the photographer asked me if I was really watching him. I should have canceled and got someone else but he was the 'best'.

This next picture is a first day of school for he and Becky. He went to Brazos Christian School and Becky was at Kinder Care. He has never changed. He really looks the same from the day he was born till now. He LOVED the camera and the camera loved him.

Joshua went thru a period of time when he was lost. I know that without his grandma "Lucky" and his sister Rebekah he might never have found his way back home again. My mom prayed for him every day. She prayed angels around him to protect him and gave him over to God. He would call his sister and she was his 'touchstone'. When I would be sleepless from worry, Becky would let me know that he was alright. He and his sister formed a bond during that time that remains to this day. Grandma Lucky was there the first 3 weeks of his life so that I could go back to work. She used to call him her little Toad Frog because his feet touched heel to heel when he was born.... that gave him a near perfect turn out for 5th ballet position.He now is 31 years of age and with his partner Desiree Doucet own a dance school and a non-profit theater I have not said anything about his dancing in this post for a reason. Too often he is defined by his dancing and his talent. He is so much more. He is passionate and hot tempered. He is gentle and often cries when I cry. He is happy and can make us laugh till we have tears streaming down our faces. He can be ruthless when he wants something and then terribly saddened if he has hurt someone along the way. He loves what he does and is hurt often because he cares so very much for each of his students. He often has the attention span of a gnat but we know and accept that about him and adjust ourselves to accommodate him. He has turned out to be a savvy businessman and can think on his feet... and we have to catch up to him. In passing he can throw out incredible ideas and leaves us to figure out how to make them work. He has a gentle heart, and is a faithful friend. He has a personal relationship with Jesus and isn't afraid to tell you. He is my first born. He is known as 'bubba to his stepfather Stan and sister Rebekah. His father Steve and step mom Peggy live in Iowa and with them he has 2 other sisters, Carissa, and Chelsea and 2 brothers, Brian and Brandon. He is complex and simple. He is very smart and can be completely oblivious. I am better because of him. I thank God each day that he is in my life. HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOSHUA!!!!!!

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To Fart or Not to Fart

I really don't want to offend anyone so take note this more than likely is a R rated post as I am going to discuss a personal body function so if you are easily offended you really need to stop here. What has been placed upon my heart to discuss is farts. Call it what you want...gas, stinkers, farts, bubbles, toots, nose burners WHATEVER, it amounts to the same thing flatulence or flatus. Flatus is the unpleasant odor of gas passing thru the intestinal tract. This unpleasant odor is made up of such gasses as indole, skatole, and most commonly hydrogen sulfide. (My children will swear that flatus is made up of digested White Castles) It has become apparent that during my 30 years as an ER nurse that a high majority of stomach pain that presents to the ER (minus a fever) is caused by GAS. I am constantly amazed that people just don't stay home and deal with it on their own. Instead they come to the ER, spend a thousand bucks for the visit, the x-ray and the professional cost of the ER MD to tell them that they have gas. It came to me that most probably these poor suffering people don't have a clue how to rid themselves of excess bubbles. So my two faithful readers this is your lucky day!!!I am going to share with you my years of knowledge in dealing with the pain of excess gas. First of all, if at all possible, use your head. If you are going to sit down to a meal of cabbage, broccoli, and navy bean soup, do the world a favor and buy some Gas-X or Bean-o and take as directed. But sometimes a food just up and gives you the worst cramps ever created and you walk around groaning just wishing you could let it rip. STOP WALKING and get on the floor on your knees with your butt in the air and your face on the carpet. Gas rises. Pretty soon all that trapped gas will just bubble to the surface and relief is but a toot away. Now given that some people have larger butts than other people take note that you may need to grasp each buttock and 'spread your cheeks' to obtain OGE or optimum gas expulsion. When my kids were little and complained of gas, I would upend them and it just worked like a little charm.
Recently I had a large visitor to the ER with gas. She weighed in at about 400lbs but admitted to only 250. She waltzed in in Daisy Duke shorts and a latex top. The shorts were completely unzipped so that I was gifted with the picture of her HUGE overhanging belly. I mentioned to her about getting your butt higher than your head and when I walked by her room she was on the stretcher with her butt facing the door. She had her butt up in the air with her face pressed into the stretcher. I opened the door to pull the curtain across the window and she informed me that it wasn't working. I decided not to tell her the method of OGE(see above) because I didn't think she could manage to get her arms around her buttocks to assume the position without smothering herself.
You remember when you first started dating a new guy how you would rather blow up than pass gas. Truth be known if you were like most girls, you didn't eat or use the bathroom while in the presence of your boyfriend, at least until you got the engagement ring. Guys usually didn't have the same misgivings about bodily functions and would fart and indeed think it was just the funniest thing especially if in the presence of their friends. I dated a guy in college who used to light his farts. He would bend over and hold a lighter to his butt and expel gas. He did have other redeeming qualities but it was touch and go for the dating after the first time I saw him do that. I had a friend who dated this guy who thought it was totally cool for him to stop and say to all of us.."Listen to this" and he would bend over and expel gas swearing that it sounded just like a goose honking. Maybe it was just guys from Ohio in the 70's that did this stuff but I have heard other women in the south discuss the same thing.
It's always a good idea if you have a chronic gas problem to own a pet. You can pass off any silent-but-deadly expulsions as a pet problem unless of course the dog jumps up and takes one whiff of your back end and gags.
Last piece of advice to women. It really isn't ladylike or fair to fart in bed and wave the covers just because he didn't take the trash out. (it's not fair but it sure is funny!!)
Have a good day.

Hair Puzzle Solved

The past couple of weeks I have been waking up with the worst 'bed head' with matted hair that looks like I took an eggbeater to the top. It only happens on my 2 days off and not when I sleep during the day. I sort of figured that it was because I was sleeping harder at night then during daylight. Last night the mystery was solved. Let me preface by saying that Stanley has been out of town for the past few weeks on my 2 days off so I have had to sleep with the Baby Elizabeth. She is used to sleeping with her 'daddy' and has to spend part of the day in the crate so I get she and Bentley out when I get home and then they get to sleep with me( Demi is my day time sleep partner).
I was having the best dream last night that I was getting my head massaged and woke up to Elizabeth sucking on a strand of my hair while kneading my head with her front paws. Her eyes were closed and she was sound asleep. This explains why my hair was wet in sections in the morning. I thought that I was sweating. Yeccccht!!!!!! Elizabeth was bottle fed as a puppy and when we got her she would suck on a section of your arm and knead with her front paws when she was going to sleep.. we thought it was so cute. It sort of loses its' cuteness with her sucking on my hair. When I told Stanley this morning he was predictably charmed.
Have a good day
Deb

Getting Groceries, Physical Therapy, and Wedding Update

I worked last night and it was a breeze. I think we had 2 patients all night and three nurses. I had time to do several crossword puzzles.USA Today and Universal crosswords are my favorite. To those who don't do puzzles, those two are fairly hard. After several years of doing nothing but reading and doing crosswords, I am an expert of sorts and have a plethora of useless facts floating around in my head that I can bring up at a moments notice. I used to crochet but haven't been able to for the past 3 years because of my hands and wrists.(more on that later) I joined a puzzle club for 20 bucks a year and have over 70,000 crossword puzzles at the click of my mouse. Doing any kind of puzzles that stimulate the mind is supposed to help your memory or so I have been told. So I diligently work my puzzles without the answer sheet and feel ever so proud of myself keeping the spider webs dusted from my gray matter as I finish 90% of most that I set out to do.I just know that each puzzle I do is preserving and even enhancing my memory. Then something happens that brings me back to reality for instance this morning shopping for groceries. I went to the store without my list. I got EVERYTHING without a hitch. I even remembered the green scrapey things for the pots and pans. I was feeling good about me. I scanned my own groceries and bagged them. I went back to the front of the line to swipe my debit card, got my cart and walked to my car. I popped the trunk and reached around to get my bags to find that I had left them all in the store in the bagging section. I had to walk back into the store and the checkout girl is watching me. I just told her that I had gone to the car to make sure I had enough room for the groceries. Thank goodness she had the sense of a potato because she said " that's a good idea, I never would have thought of that." I got my groceries and left.
I got evaluated for physical therapy on my hands which have developed fairly bad trigger fingers and overall tendonitis. I can't open cans, or unlock a door or brush my teeth without a high degree of pain. The therapist evaluated my back, neck, arms and hands. When I tell you that it felt wonderful to have him squeeze and punch around on those areas I am not lying. After doing my neck and back I told him that I wasn't sure that 15 minutes was enough time to truly do a thorough evaluation. I felt that he should have spent at least and hour on the shoulders and neck. The good news is that I get ultrasounded, massaged and my hands and wrists creamed twice a week for two weeks then three times a week till I am better. WOOOOHOOO I bet it's going to take a while till I feel good again!!! All joking aside the therapist did say that he felt he could help me because I really don't want to have surgery.
Wedding update: We have a dress and it is beautiful. I was going to post a picture of the 'tryons' but decided that it's best to have it a surprise. We also have picked out invitations. Becky and I went one day and had a few that we liked, sort of. I called Frances ( Shane's mama) and asked her to meet us the next day and give her opinion. She looked over our selections and looked at a few more and found the one we are using. Becky and I love it. It's simple, elegant and cheap. Frances.... you are simply the best. My daughter is getting the best in laws. Shane's in laws aren't too shabby either.
Well my faithful two readers it's time for me to get Demi the boxer and go to bed. She is the best bed partner.She curls up next to me and sometimes rests her head across my neck. She lets me know if ANYONE comes in the house. When I am home alone during the day she makes me feel safe. I can sleep if Stan is home as well even though he doesn't growl if someone is outside.
Hugs to all