So Lonesome Today

I had the office all to myself today. The guys were in Pensacola in a meeting, so we closed down the doors of the warehouse (where my office is located), and I had the place all to myself. Kim was in Crestview all day, so I didn't have anybody to have coffee with this morning. I got a lot of work done, but it sure was quiet. I'm not used to working in a quiet office, so I played CD's all day just so I'd have some noise.

Went to the Christian Bookstore at lunch and bought a book on prayer. I just feel like my prayers aren't as good as they should be. I pray continually, but I feel there should be more to my prayers. I want to be a true intercessor. I guess the Global Day of Prayer has got me to thinking about my prayer life.

Yesterday, I did pictures of Tabitha in her graduation gown, plus the rest of the family. We decided to do it again after work today to make sure I get a good picture of Tabitha to use to make announcements. I've got to get it done before the end of the week, so we can mail them out. She graduates on Mother's Day, May 11th. I got some good pictures of the kids, too. I'll finish uploading them to Picasa sometime this week. I didn't have time to do it tonight. Check out the pictures above. I just love the one of Hope.

I'm getting too sleepy to type, so I better go to bed. Goodnight and God bless......

Sleepy Sunday

Went to church and had a great service. Chad came with Tabitha and the kids. They left right after church so Tabitha could get homework done. She only has two weeks before graduation and the homework is unreal. She is beginning to feel overwhelmed. They left the kids with me because after church, we had dinner under our new pavilion. There was a cool breeze and it was great. Lots of good food. Fried chicken, which I did not partake of - not supposed to have fried foods. It sure looked good though. I ate chicken and dumplings instead. Yum! And lots of veggies. And, of course, there was a lot of yummy desserts, but I passed those up, too. I'm trying really hard to watch what I eat. I certainly don't want to have another attack. It would be nice if I could lose some weight, too.

I carried the kids home and talked to Chad and Tabitha for a few minutes. Then, I came home and took a nap. I was so sleepy. There was no way I could have driven very far; I would have fallen asleep at the wheel. Woke up around 4:45 and called Tabitha. We were going to go to Deer Point and take pictures, but it was so overcast that we decided to try maybe tomorrow afternoon after work. We want a pretty blue sky for a background. It was kinda foggy and that just wasn't what we were looking for. So, I laid back down and slept till 7:00. I was just so tired today. Had a hot dog for supper. Scanned a few more pictures, and uploaded some pictures to MySpace of the grandkids.

It's after midnight, so I think I'll go to bed. Goodnight and God bless..........

Super Saturday

I slept late this morning. It sure felt good. I'm finally getting a good night's sleep. And that's when your body heals - when you sleep. My arm is getting much better.

Vance went to play golf with Skip and Troy at the Country Club, which is right down the road from us. So that meant he wasn't gone most of the day. He got home right after lunch, and I was in the middle of cleaning the living room. I moved my grandmother's old sewing machine into the living room and changed a few things around.

Tabitha called to see if I would come pick her up from work so she could come over and we could work on graduation announcements together. She wanted me to come inside and meet the girls she works with and share a chicken sandwich with her. The girls seem very nice. One girl is a model and she is really beautiful. Tabitha says she is such a humble, sweet girl, not flaunting her beauty and making the other girls feel bad. She seemed really nice. One of the girls is from Germany. She sat down and talked to me about going to college and some of the problems she had transferring college credits from Germany.

I think we've got some good ideas about her announcement. I'll work on it some more tomorrow after our photo shoot. I think we are going to Deer Point. She says there are some great trees to pose on. It should be a lot of fun.

Chad and the kids came to pick her up. I sent them home with all kinds of food that I can't eat anymore. Stuff that Vance wouldn't eat anyway. He's strictly a meat and potatoes man. Me, I'll eat anything that doesn't eat me first. :)

After they left, I started scanning more photos into the computer. Found our 28th anniversary wedding vow renewal photos, so I started scanning them.

Now, I gotta go get my beauty sleep...........Goodnight and God bless..........

Freaky Friday

Boy, have I had a day! The company decided to upgrade our computers, so I ran the program as I was leaving work yesterday. It should have only taken a few hours. Yeah, right! It was still upgrading when I got to work and didn't finish until 10:00. Then, I had a person disappear out of the timesheets I had entered for him all week. Can't find him, but there is time out there. Had to contact the technical support team. Haven't heard back from them yet. But, I did get commended by the STARS team because of my work with them since the new timekeeping system went on-line. There are still a lot of timekeepers who haven't even tried out the new system and the old system will be deleted on May 5th. Boy, are they going to be in for culture shock!

Was invited to lunch by one of the supervisors I do time for. He took three of us to the Captain's Table (same place I ate Monday with Kim and her group). It was very good. But, it meant that Kim and I didn't get to exercise today. We've got to get in four more days before the end of the month in order to get reimbursed for this month. I'm going to try to go tomorrow.

Daddy called about four times to give me his grocery list. He kept adding to it. I had to go buy his groceries when I got off work. His dog, Reba, is sooooo hyper! She was Mama's dog, but she chewed through her oxygen tube. Mama gave her to Kim and Kim couldn't keep her because her granddaughter kept hurting her, so she gave her to Daddy. Daddy says she will run until she just gives out and goes and lays down for about an hour, then starts again. Mama would never have been able to put up with her. Daddy is good about training dogs, so Reba will listen to him when he tells her to go lay down. She gets so excited when I come over; she just won't leave me alone.

Came home and Vinnie and Shadow would not leave me alone. They smelled Reba all over me. Got home and realized I had left my cell phone at Daddy's, so I had to turn around and go get it. I didn't get home until about 7:30. Then I went to Ole Mexico and got us something to eat. Now, I'm ready to go to bed.

Goodnight and God bless................

Worked Out Today

Tabitha called and asked if I could take Hope to school today. Tabitha was sick all night and still this morning. Hope was supposed to go on a field trip and Tabitha didn't want her to miss it. Chad took her to Corey's and I met him there and carried her to her school. You are not allowed to drop them off before 8:00, so we sat in the car and talked until 8:00. Hope talks about everything. She has the sweetest little voice and you can't help but fall in love with it. She was telling me all about their new dog. He's a brindle pit bull and is just as sweet as Dixie. Chad told me that the only time Dixie sets him straight is when he tries to get on the couch on the back porch. She will not let him get on that couch. That's her couch and she won't share with him. The kids can sit there with her, but not Austin. (His name was Boston, but they changed it to Austin.) So, Hope had to tell me all about him.

Got to work and had problems with the new timekeeping system. They are doing away with our old system on May 5th and we are still having major problems. I don't know what we will do when we can't rely on the old system. I've been working on this new system since Bambi and I went to Atlanta to test it over a year ago. All the other timekeepers have just now started using it and they are finding the same problems I've already reported. Now, the timekeepers are calling me for help because it's so hard to get through to the team in Atlanta. They are being bombarded with calls. This is going to get interesting the next few weeks.

Kim and I went and worked out today. We are able to go a little longer on the machines. I'm very surprised that my heart rate is in the normal range. I believe God has healed me of the tachycardia. Used to, when I worked out, my heart rate went over 200. Curves kicked me out because they were afraid I'd have a heart attack while working out. So, far, my heart rate hasn't gone over the range for my age. Kim's has gone higher than mine. I'm excited about that. Not that hers has been higher than mine; just that mine is staying within a normal range. Hers is normal too, but just higher than mine. We were jelly-legged as we walked out, but excited that we are getting able to go longer on the machines. I think we will get an appointment for someone to train us on the weight machines next. My arm is getting better and I'm ready to work out on the upper body.

What I'm really ready for is getting over the sleepiness in the afternoon. I don't know if it's because I no longer drink caffeine or if it's some of the medicine I'm on. I came home from work and hit the couch and didn't wake up until Vinnie barked at me. He was telling me to get up and feed him. Vance was at the store and when he came back, I told him that Vinnie scared me when he barked wanting to be fed. He said that he asked them if they were hungry, but they both came and laid down on the floor beside me and acted like they didn't want to be fed. He thought I had fed them while he was outside when I first got home. No, I guess they felt like they needed to watch over me while I slept - until they realized I wasn't going to wake up soon enough for them. They can be so weird sometimes.

I'm glad tomorrow is Friday. I have nothing planned for Saturday, but church and dinner on the ground afterwards on Sunday. That should be fun, then I'm taking pictures of Chad's family at the beach around 4:00. I will definitely enjoy that.

Now, I'm going to bed. I'm still tired. Maybe I should call my doctor and go get that B12 shot after all. I'm taking the sublingual, but maybe I need the shot to get my energy going again. If I'm still really tired on Monday, I'm calling.

Goodnight and God bless..............

Happy Admin Day!

I made it in time for the safety meeting. Still not much that pertains to my job. Since it was Administrative Assistant Day, several of the engineers took Kim out to eat and invited me to go along. That was so sweet of them. We went to The Captain's Table. I had grilled amberjack, cheese grits and cole slaw. It was very good.

Debb called several times to let me know that she hadn't heard from Eva. Eva had a heart cath today. Finally heard from her late this afternoon. The cath went okay, but she started vomiting and they decided to admit her to the hospital and keep her overnight. Debb had been at Eva's place, intending to spend the night to help her out. But, since Eva wasn't coming home, Debb decided she wanted to go home, so she asked if I could carry her home. No problem. I got off work and carried her home, then came home to see Vance for a few minutes before I went to pick up Trent and Hope to carry them to church. Tabitha is sick - vomiting. Hope had been sick on Monday, so I guess Tabitha got it. With Hope, it just lasted overnight, so that's what I'm praying for Tabitha. That she will get over it quickly and be able to get back to normal by tomorrow.

Church was real good. Pastor Sammy talked about the gifts of the Spirit. He's going to be doing a teaching on it for several Wednesday nights. Should be good.

May you be blessed!

Goodnight and God bless...............

It's Been a Good Day

Kim had to go to Pensacola today for a meeting. It was pretty lonely at the coffeepot this morning. Only had the guys to talk to. Today is Randy's birthday, so he wasn't there. Paul was really busy - mostly outside, so my office was pretty quiet. But, I was busy, so it was okay. I've got to get some new Christian music CD's to play in my office while I work. I don't like the quiet. It's hard to talk on the phone with my arm in the elbow brace. It's supposed to keep my elbow from bending, so holding the phone hurts.

Went to Wal-mart at lunch to get a pedometer. My old one quit working. I found one that is also a FM radio. It only cost $8.88, so I bought it. It looked better than the other two I had to choose from.

Had to take Daddy to the doctor today. He has stopped smoking. It's been six weeks now. He had been on high blood pressure medicine, but ran out about two weeks ago and didn't call to get it refilled. Believe it or not, his blood pressure was normal today. I believe it's because he quit smoking. The doctor said for him not to take any blood pressure meds for a month and he'd check him again to see how he's doing. I'm supposed to buy him a blood pressure machine to take his blood pressure at home and record it. I'll have to wait until I get paid on Friday before I can buy him one.

I was so sleepy when I got home that I had to take a 30 minute nap before I could go to Praise & Worship practice. We had a great time, then had prayer afterwards.

Vance was ready to go to bed when I got home, but he had grilled hamburgers for us, so I ate one and now I'm ready to head off to bed.

Goodnight and God bless............

Typical Monday

It was a beautiful day today. I've been sleeping all night every night since I started wearing the brace on my elbow and wrist. What a difference it has made. Vance has to wake me up every morning when the alarm goes off. That hasn't happened in months.

Kim and I exercised today at lunch on the treadmill, bicycle and elliptical machine. Our legs were like jelly when we left. Ate a salad from Arby's. Haven't checked the calories in the Martha Vineyard's salad, but it's probably a lot. But, since I'm not eating sugar anymore (or drinking sugar - Sonic sweet tea), I'm saving about 1000 calories a day.

Came home and started cleaning in my craft/dining room. We had just put things in there, but I had never gone through the boxes. So, tonight, I threw away a lot of stuff. I'm still not finished, but I'm in the mood to get rid of stuff that I don't need. I need to get rid of as much as I can cause Vance wants to do the floor in here. That means moving a lot of big, heavy stuff from one end of the room to the other and back again. Not something I look forward to. But, it would be nice to have the floor done.

It's been a long day, so I'm going to head off to bed. I just pray that I can sleep without the braces. I had to wash them and they aren't dry yet. I guess I need to buy another pair and swap them off. I just hate to spend another $30.

Goodnight and God bless..............

Miracle Sunday

Tabitha called to tell me they wouldn't be at church. Hope had been vomiting since 4:00 this morning. Talked to Hope and she sounded so pitiful.

I went to church and we were all surprised to see Deanna's sister, Charla, walk in. Charla has been in the hospital for weeks. The doctors had her on life support and had called the family in to say their goodbyes. Mrs. Sandi said she went up there several times to pray and could literally feel death in that room. Deanna has been very strong in her faith to pray for her sister. She has always believed that Charla would live. Charla got saved while in the hospital (before she got put on life support), then she took a turn for the worse. Anyway, Charla was in church and the doctor's say that she is a miracle, because none of them can explain the turnaround. According to them, she should be dead. We give God all the glory. We've been seeing quite a few miracles happening to people in our congregation. It has been awesome.

Had to fill up my car on the way home from church. I could not believe how much it cost - $49.50. Gas is $3.55 a gallon. I can remember when it was 35 cents a gallon and we went to Tampa on vacation and they were having gas wars 12 and 13 cents a gallon. We'll never see that again.

I took my usual Sunday afternoon nap. Got up and worked on pictures. I've still got 1000's to scan. I'll just do a little at a time. I'm glad I got my scanner/copier working again.

I guess I better get to bed. Monday is coming way to quickly. Goodnight and God bless........

Saturday Work Day

I slept like a baby last night. Why do we say that? Babies wake up about every four hours. No, I slept like an adult - all night long. I woke up around 6:00 and moved to the couch. Got woke up when the appliance repairman came in to fix our washing machine. Vance let him in and I went to the bedroom to read until he left. He got it fixed, so I spent the day washing clothes. Towels first. We were down to our last towel. I also mopped the floors, scanned a few photos and went to Ross to see if I could find some small rugs for the kitchen. Couldn't find any that would match.

Vance went and played golf with Troy. The course they were going to play on was flooded (it rained last night), so they had to play on another course and wait until almost noon to tee off. He enjoyed it, but hated having to wait that long. It was almost 4:00 before he got home and he was wore out. He usually plays at Sunnyhills, but they played at the beach today. He said it was crowded. I bet it was. There was a lot going on at the beach today.

Not much else going on except laundry, which I have to go fold. TaTa for now.
Goodnight and God bless............

Friday Again????

I slept all night again in the bed. Those braces on my arm seem to be helping. I didn't wake up with any pain. It is so nice to sleep a full night. It has been years since I've slept two nights all night.

Today was timesheet day, so it was very busy. Kim and I had other things to do at lunch, so we didn't go exercise. I took lunch at 11:30 and went to Cato's to see if Joyce was there. I didn't see her at first, so I got a couple of tops to try on and then saw her at the cash register. I tried on the tops and decided to buy them. I walked up to the counter and she said "How are you? You look so much better than the last time I saw you. Did you go to the doctor?" I gave her a card and she almost cried. She did tear up and walk around the counter and gave me a hug. She said she had been so worried about me and had prayed for me everyday. She said she truly believed in healing and so she was praying that God would heal me. I told her I had seen my doctor, or nurse practitioner, and I believe she was going to be able to help me. She said that she couldn't believe that the other doctors hadn't given me anything to take. I also told her that I had gotten vitamins from Mount of Olives and that they had been able to help me once before, but that insurance wouldn't pay for vitamins and supplements, so it just got too expensive to keep buying them. Joyce kept telling me how great I looked. She said "Your eyes are so bright and sparkling. You were so sick. I was so concerned because you were throwing up and sweating profusely." I told her the attack lasted four more hours, and took several days to get over it, but I felt great now. I also thanked the other lady and apologized for tying up the bathroom for so long. She said she was glad I was better, cause it had scared her. I bought the tops and then went to get something to eat.

Back at the office and things started falling apart. Our timekeeping system was doing weird things. I thought I was finished at a little after 3:00, but when I tried to lock, there were about 8 people that had weird time - 88 hours, 92 hours, 10.50 hours, etc. I went back over the entire two weeks day by day and couldn't find the problem. Called the help desk and they didn't know why. I had to delete all their time, drop them out of my time group, wait for the computer tech to call me and then re-enter the time. I finally left my office at 6:00 totally give out. Got home and just sat down on the couch for about an hour. I was so tired.

Vance had called a repairman to come look at our washing machine yesterday. It has been leaking for months and he couldn't figure out where the water was coming from. The guy came by yesterday and said it was the water pump. He had one on his truck but broke it when he tried to put it on. He's supposed to come back in the morning and fix it. We will have to buy a refrigerator when we get our income tax back. It's been leaking for about three years inside and nobody can find the problem. We've had repairmen out to look at it and they think they have it fixed, but it still leaked. It still keeps things cold and frozen, but I'm tired of cleaning up the water in the bottom of the refrigerator.

Talked to Penny for a long time tonight. So far, all her tests have come back negative, so they still don't know what's causing the pain in her side. The doctor thinks the endometrosis is back. We'll just have to wait and see.

Kim and I are planning to exercise tomorrow. If we can't, I'll exercise to my Leslie Sansome tapes. I don't have any other plans for the weekend, except maybe to take my printer to Best Buy to see if they can fix it or send it off to he fixed. Forget that - I just fixed it myself. I plugged it into another plug on my power strip and it started working. I guess the one it was in is not working. I'm so glad I don't have to take it to be repaired. I wanted to scan some more pictures. Thank You, Lord, for giving me the idea to try another plug.

Kim and I are talking about taking off next Friday and going to Bellingrath Gardens in Mobile. Should be able to get some great flower photos. I'm looking forward to a road trip. I need to get away!!!

Okay, it's getting late, so I better get to bed. Goodnight and God bless..........

Visit with the Doctor

This should have been yesterday's blog, but I was tired and didn't post one. Please read the blog below this one, because I've written two today.

Yesterday morning, I went to see my Doctor. Actually, she's a Nurse Practioner, but she's very knowledgeable. We went over my bloodwork and my glucose was still right under the line of becoming diabetic. She asked if I was still taking the Byetta and I told her no, that I didn't want to take shots everyday unless absolutely necessary. She said she could give me a pill to take the place of the shots. Then, I told her about the Meniere's attack I had. I have not had one since I've been seeing her, so she didn't know about them. She asked me "What did the doctor put you on?" I said "He tried a diuretic, but I had an attack every time I took it, so I quit taking it." She said, "They didn't give you Valium and Fenegrin?" I said "Valium? I didn't think they used that anymore. My mother took that when I was a teenager for her nerves." She told that Valium stops the dizziness. That she had a patient that has Meniere's and was becoming suicidal (I can understand how that could happen). She put her on Valium and it stopped the attacks. I quickly said "Write me a prescription." I have always said I would never take Valium because my mother was hooked on it and doesn't remember anything about my teenage years. But, if it will stop the attacks, I'll gladly take it. I want to have a normal life, not always worrying when the next attack is going to happen and where will I be and will I be driving and have an accident and hurt somebody. She also gave me a prescription for Zolfron to take if I did have the nausea and vomiting. Then, I talked to her about my arm. She could see the swelling and felt it and it was hot. She asked if the doctor had sent me for x-rays. Of course not. So, she ordered an x-ray on my wrist and elbow. After asking questions about my job, she said it was definitely job related. But, I don't dare tell my boss that. I don't want to give the company any reason to let me go. She told me to go get a wrist brace and elbow brace - one that covers the whole elbow. She also gave me samples of Celebrex (another drug I said I'd never take) to take for two weeks to get the inflammation down. She said if I didn't take something, it would just get worse. My bloodwork also showed that I was low in B12, which can cause anemia. She was going to give me a shot once a week for four weeks, but we both forgot about it and I didn't get one. She told me after the shots, to go get sublingual B12 and take it. So, I decided to go ahead and start taking it. Picked up some when I dropped off my prescriptions. Connie is very smart and I think she will get my health turned back around. I told her I was going to start exercising and I had already given up sugar and caffeine and was cutting out as much salt as I could. I've already lost a couple of pounds since I gave up sugar. With the exercising, I think I'll start dropping the weight.

Anyway, that should catch you up on what's going on with me. Goodnight and God bless..........

10 Years Ago Today

As I was getting ready for work, I called Penny and wished her a Happy Birthday. She should have been at work, but she kept getting so many calls that she wasn't able to get ready. That shows that she is well loved.

This morning I had to take Daddy to get bloodwork done. We went to the hospital where we usually get it done. We signed in as usual, but then they sent us a 1/2 block away to have the blood drawn. Daddy can hardly walk, but he managed to get there. Then we had to wait again. We got there around 7:45 and I got back to work at 10:00. We won't be going there again. Next time, we will drive a little farther and get it done - the place I always go to. It doesn't take all morning and Daddy won't have to walk very far.

Kim and I went to the gym and worked out. We ran into one of the young men from our church and talked to him for about 15 minutes. We had only planned on working out on this one machine for 7 minutes, but we went 15 because Alan was talking to us about the Lord and we just forgot about the intense pain in our legs. Our legs felt like jelly when we got off that machine. But, we felt pretty good afterwards. I think we are going to try to go again tomorrow. Alan promised us in two weeks we would get our wind and be able to go for almost an hour without any problems. We'll see......

Today is also the anniversary of my youngest brother's home going. He went home to be with the Lord 10 years ago. Penny and I had spent the day with him because we knew the night before that he would die on Penny's birthday. It was on my birthday, March 18, that the doctor told us there was nothing else he could do for him and he had about three months to live. But, Earl was getting weary and was ready to go home. Penny had to leave around 4:00 to go pick up her daughter, but I stayed. I told Jennifer that I was not going to leave his side until he drew his last breath. I had been with him when he was told he had cancer and I took him to almost all of his doctor's appointments, held his hand and prayed while he took his chemo treatments. No way was I going to leave him before the Lord took him home. The hospice nurse came in to give him a bath and change his sheets. As she was changing his sheets, I saw him take his last breath. She nodded at me and said he was gone. It was so peaceful, that I wanted to shout and praise the Lord. Some people will think that's a terrible thing to say, but I loved my brother, was with him when he got saved and I knew that he was going to heaven to be with the Lord. I called Jennifer in and she started crying and begging him to come back. He had been dead for over five minutes at this time, but she just kept begging him not to leave her. Earl had a vein in his neck that stuck out and you could see it beating. That vein started beating again and he started breathing again. I told Jennifer to let him go, please let him go. She finally said okay and started praying the Serenity prayer. I was watching Earl and he took a breath and the vein stopped beating again. I knew that he was in the arms of Jesus at that moment. Where he is, I would never ask him to leave. But, I know that one day I will see him again. He'll be waiting for me when my time comes. I miss him and think about him every single day. We were so close from the moment he was born. Mama used to wake me up at night whenever she had to go to the papermill to pick up Daddy and tell me to listen out for the baby. Well, the baby had asthma and he always picked those times to have an attack. I would be walking the floor with him when Mama got home. He taught me all my mothering skills and I loved him like he was my own son. I LOVE YOU, EARL, AND MISS YOU!!! HAPPY 10TH BIRTHDAY IN HEAVEN!

Goodnight and God bless..............

Pretty Slow Day

It was cold when I woke up this morning. Had to pull out one of my sweaters to wear. Thought we were through with cold weather - but, hey, we live in Florida. You never know........

It's been over a week since I've had my Sonic Route 44 sweet tea (or any other sweet tea), but I never did have withdrawal symptoms. God is so merciful. Yes, I do miss the tea, but I can live without it if it will keep me from having those attacks. I've only had a little bit of sugar - had some ice cream before I even thought about it.

Tomorrow, Kim and I have an appointment with a trainer to show us the machines at the gym. We haven't been able to go yet this month, but we plan to start tomorrow. We just can't seem to get off to go to the aerobics classes, so we are going to start with the machines. Connie will set up a regimen for us tomorrow and then we can go at lunch. We are ready to get started.

Tomorrow morning, I've got a doctor's appointment to find out the results of my bloodwork. I'm hoping it will be okay.

My sister is having some health issues. She's undergoing a lot of tests and will have to have even more. She's going back to the doctor Thursday and I get to pick up Swayde. He's always so good when he's over here.

Looks like my printer/scanner/copier is dead. I can't get it to turn on. Our lights went out Monday for just a few seconds and it hasn't worked since. I guess I will have to take it to Best Buy and let them check it out. I've unplugged it and plugged it back in, but it still won't come on. I just got it 13 months ago. I wonder if I've worn this one out. If so, that will be three in less than three years. At least, it's still under warranty.

My friend, Sharon, and I may be collaborating on a quilt to enter into a contest. She might use one of my pictures of St. Marks lighthouse as a pattern to sketch onto the top of the quilt, then she will applique it. I'm excited about working with her. We've never met, but have become friends on-line. I think it would be fun to see a quilt that is inspired by my photo. I've seen Sharon's work and she does a great job. This might even inspire me to learn how to quilt. My grandmother used to make quilts all the time. I have two that she made; one made from my own clothes that she cut up.

I must have slept wrong last night because I've had a crick in my neck all day and now I've got a terrible headache, so I think I will take something and go to bed.

Goodnight and God bless............



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Where Did the Weekend Go?

The weekends sure do go by fast. It's hard to believe today is Monday again. As usual, I got up and went to work. I was sore all over, especially in my left arm. I guess I used my left arm to catch myself when I fell in the bathtub yesterday. Didn't really get hurt, but felt pretty stupid.

I forgot to tell you about Hope yesterday. After church, Chad and Tabitha took the kids to the Strawberry Farm to pick strawberries. Tabitha said Trent was very particular and picked only the red ones. Anyway, after they were through, they went home and Tabitha washed the strawberries and put some in a bag to bring to me. Hope came with her. Tabitha called as they got on our street to tell me that Hope would be bringing the strawberries to me. It seems Hope told Tabitha to stay in the car and let her deliver the strawberries. She said "Mom, let me do it by myself. You stay in the car. I'm a big girl now and I can do it by myself." So, when they drove up, Hope got out of the car and brought the strawberries to the door while Tabitha stayed in the car. She came in and said "I brought you some strawberries." She came in and hugged PawPaw, kissed me and said she had to go, that Mama was waiting. I walked her to the car and she climbed in her seat and let Tabitha buckle her up. She seemed so proud of herself. She is the cutest thing. Tabitha kissed me and said she had to go cook supper. As they were driving away, Hope told Tabitha to roll her window down so she could yell "I love you, Nonna!" out the window. God love her! She's precious.

I went to Cato's at lunch looking for Joyce (the lady who helped me in my time of need), but she wasn't working. I wanted to thank her face-to-face for helping me when I had that bad attack. I'll mention it to my doctor on Wednesday when I go.

Penny called to tell me that she went to the doctor today. They want to do a bunch more tests on her because she is still hurting in her abdomen and she's lost 13 pounds in a month. Penny is concerned especially since the 17th (her birthday) is the 10th anniversary of Earl's death. I'm praying for the source of the problem to be revealed through these tests and that she will be fine; that it is nothing major; nothing to worry about.

We had our monthly Ladies Meeting tonight. Watched a Joyce Meyer video. It was all about joy and she told some of the funniest stories from her life. Met her four children in the beginning of the video. Had never seen them before. It was really good. We got out late and I didn't get home until 9:45. Ate supper, and now I'm ready to go to bed.

Goodnight and God bless............

Just A Scanning...........

I have spent the day scanning photos into my computer. I scanned about 250 bringing the total over 10,000. I found old Christmas pictures and pictures of Trent when he was two and three, plus a bunch of others.

Talked to my sister-in-law, Robbie, this morning. Then Michelle called. They are in Orlando this weekend.

Vance played golf all morning - his usual Saturday activity. After he got home, he sent me to Cahall's to get steaks to grill. The ones we've been getting from the grocery store just haven't had any flavor to them. I went to Sam's and got a few things and then came home. He was in bed taking a nap. He said he wanted to get a nap so he could stay up and watch the race tonight. Unfortunately, he fell asleep before the end. It just finished and Jimmie Johnson won.

I'm feeling pretty good now. The dizziness is finally over with. And, I think I will head off to bed now.

Goodnight and God bless..............

A Day of Vacation

I woke up this morning and felt kinda dizzy and real tired, so I called in and took a day of vacation. Then, I went back to sleep and slept till 9:30 when the phone woke me up. But, I did feel better when I woke up. Good enough to sweep, wash clothes and dishes.

I decided since I had a full day with nothing to do, that I would download my pictures (about 10,000) onto CD's (29 of them) since hurricane season is coming up. It took eight hours to download. But, I feel better now. Now, I've got to start scanning the other 100,000 or so and get them downloaded.

I missed my belly dancing class. I haven't gotten to go to a single class yet. I'm hoping this dizziness is over with so I can start exercising. Robbie, my sister-in-law, sent me an email telling me she had started exercising to Leslie Sansom's DVD's. I had forgotten that I have several of her videos. I need to find them and start working out to them at home. That way, if I have another attack, at least I'll be home. And they are different levels, so I can start off with the 18 minute one. That might be the best thing to do right now.

Don't have much more to say tonight. I need to fold clothes and get to bed.

Goodnight and God bless................

I'm Doing Better

It's been three full days without sugar or caffeine and I'm doing fine. No withdrawal symptoms at all. I know God has His hand on me because the last time I went cold turkey from sugar and caffeine together, I got a terrible headache and had heart palpitations. The Doctor said going off sugar and caffeine was as bad as trying to go off of heroin. He made me go drink a Jolt Cola (it was like triple the caffeine) and the palpitations stopped and the headache went away. He said I would have to go off a little at a time. But, not this time. I'm also eating better. I am still a little dizzy headed, but I can tell it's getting better.

Wasn't able to exercise today because I still can't walk a straight line and I'm light headed. Maybe tomorrow - it's belly dancing class! That should be fun. Kim and I have decided to contact the trainer and get her to set us up a regimen on the machines so we can go there during lunch and not get too hot. Then, we'll do belly dancing and line dancing just for fun when we can.

Not much to write about tonight. I'm also trying to get in bed earlier than my usual midnight or after. So, I will head that way now. Goodnight and God bless..........

Okay, I'm Making Serious Changes in My Lifestyle

This last attack has really made me stop and think about my lifestyle. Upon research, Meniere's Disease can be caused from being obese, eating the wrong foods, too much sugar and caffeine (there goes my sweet tea), too much salt. I believe the salt is what caused this attack. I had just eaten some of the saltiest french fries I've ever gotten from McDonald's. But, I was hungry, so I just washed them down with sweet tea. It was about 15-20 minutes later that I had the attack.

Today, I went to the health food store and talked to the nutrition expert and got manganese, omega 3-6-9, Zymactive Proteolytic enzymes. He told me to also take a good multivitamin (Vemma), B-Complex, essential fatty acids and calcium. I had all but the B-complex. Guess I'll go back tomorrow and get that. I have already given up sugar and caffeine for two days and have not experienced any withdrawal symptoms. I believe I'm finally doing the right thing and God is helping me get through this. I've lost 8 lbs. since Friday, mainly because I couldn't eat much for three days and emptied my body of everything.

This got my attention quicker than the possibility of having diabetes. You can live a normal life with diabetes, but not with Meniere's Disease. I don't want to be chained to my house, laying on the floor, throwing up. I want to be able to get in the car and go to Tallahassee to see Vance, Michelle and Fox. Until I get this under control, I can't leave town by myself. I want to be able to exercise without fear of falling off a treadmill or throwing up during an aerobics class. Right now, I'm having trouble walking a straight line. But, I'm not giving in to this. With God's help, I'm going to get through this and come out better on the other side.

Worst Attack Ever

I took off Friday to go to the hospital to sit with Angie while Chip was having surgery. Penny and I met in the parking lot and surprised Angie in the waiting room. Nobody else was with her, so we were glad we went. He was supposed to have surgery at 8:00, but it was probably 9:30 when he finally went in. Surgery was successful and he was doing fine when we were allowed in to see him. Cracking jokes and everything. Penny and I left around 1:00. I went to work to straighten out the five employees that would not lock the day before. After I got them corrected, other things kept popping up that was fine on Thursday. A whole group mysteriously unlocked overnight and had employees who wouldn't lock. I was there almost two hours trying to fix the problems. Got them all corrected and left.

Daddy had called and wanted me to pick up his prescriptions and drop off the one I had. I went to the drugstore and dropped the one off I had and they said it would be ready in an hour. I went to McDonald's and got something to eat and sat in my car and ate it and watched the rain fall. I wanted to go to Wal-Mart and buy a couple of short-sleeved tops, but it was raining too hard. I didn't want to get soaked, so I went to Cato's instead. I parked right out front and went inside. Found two tops and was looking at shorts to try on when it felt like the whole store tilted to the left. I grabbed onto the clothes rack and everything was spinning. I thought I was over having these attacks!! I called out to one of the ladies who worked there and asked her if she would help me. She came over and asked what was wrong. I told her and asked if I could sit down someplace. She helped me to a bench and got me some water to drink. I then asked if she could carry me to the bathroom because I was about to throw up. She helped me to the restroom, praying for me all the way. God bless her. As soon as we got in, I started vomiting. She tried calling Vance and left a message for him to call back. I sat there about 20 minutes and then tried calling the house. Yep, he was there. He had taken off early. He came and got me. I threw up for about an hour the whole time I was there. It was the most violent attack I've ever had. I got the ladies name - Joyce. She asked me to please call my doctor. What for? They can't do anything for me. Vance got me home and I threw up another three or four hours.

Saturday, I slept on the couch most of the day. I was so exhausted. These attacks take so much out of me. It took a long time before I could force down a whole bottle of water. I knew I had to keep drinking because of dehydration. By noon, I was able to eat some grits and keep it down. When Vance got home from playing nine holes of golf, I was feeling better. He cooked supper and I was able to eat. I called Joyce and thanked her for being so kind to me. She still wants me to go to the doctor. I told her there was nothing they could do. They can't really tell if it's Meniere's Disease or aura migraines.

Didn't go to church today. I woke up still very tired and had a terrible headache. Everytime I coughed, my ribs hurt. I feel like I've been beaten with a baseball bat. I hurt all over. That's how I know this episode was worse than the rest. I don't remember hurting so bad from the others. I slept all morning and then Tabitha came over this afternoon and we worked on a brochure for her class. I feel better this afternoon. After Tabitha left, I uploaded a few more pictures to Picasa - Easter and a new album of family photos.

Tomorrow, Kim and I are going to try to go work out. I want to get started and get the habit going, so I can get healthy.

I think I'll upload a few more pictures before going to bed. Goodnight and God bless............

Nothing Went Right Today

I woke up late. This is becoming a habit that I have got to break. Had to wash my hair, so that made me even later. Then I got sick to my stomach. I walked out the door and drove about a block down the street and realized something just wasn't right with my vision. Yep, I forgot to put my contacts in. Had to turn around and just grabbed my glasses and took off again. I got to work 15 minutes late, but at least I didn't stop at Sonic to get sweet tea. But, I did get a cup of coffee as soon as I got to work.

Today is my Friday because I'm taking off tomorrow to be at the hospital with my brother while he has surgery. Since tomorrow is timesheet day, I had to get them done today. Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. I don't know what they did with the new timekeeping system, but it was doing crazy things today. I would put in a regular day - 8 hours - then try to add overtime and the totals were all crazy. It would show 8.01 or 7.99 straight hours and 3.48, 3.49 or 4.01 overtime hours. I never could get the new system to work out right, so I switched to the old system (which will be deleted May 1).

Had several phone calls that I had to attend to while trying to figure out what was going on with the new system. I think they made some upgrades last night and they just weren't right. I sent emails to the technical support team letting them know all the problems I was having. I was so close to tears all morning.

Hadn't planned on going to lunch, but Daddy called and needed groceries. So, I had to stop and go buy his groceries on my lunch hour. I had to be off at 3:45 to go get my hair colored, so I had planned on working through lunch. Instead, I had to show myself on vacation for an hour.

Going back to work, I was caught in a line of traffic which slowed me down. Then, I got up to the traffic light and had to stop. I needed to turn left and there is no left turn signal and there were 12 cars coming in the opposite direction. I knew I would have to sit through another light. Well, God showed me just how much He cares for me as I sat there almost in tears. The driver in the truck that was directly across from me rolled down his window and started waving for me to turn in front of him. God bless him! I did cry then, because God is so good. He cares so much for us that He even lets us break in line and go before others. When I got back to work, I had a whole different attitude. No longer did I feel like crying, but I didn't even get upset when I finished inputting the time and found out that all the account numbers were invalid (something they failed to do last night when they made the upgrades). I was calm enough to figure out how to correct that problem, but came across even more. I left work with problems still unsolved, but I will go back to work tomorrow after Chip's surgery and correct all the problems. I'm not looking forward to May 1st. We are having way too many problems for them to do away with the old system. And most of the timekeepers haven't even tried to work on the new system, so they will be totally lost.

When I got to my appointment, I was so tired. Marsha could tell I had had a rough day. She colored my hair and we talked about her upcoming trip to New York. She and several girl friends take a yearly trip to N.Y. Must be nice to get away for awhile.

My day had been so chaotic that I forgot to tell Vance that I had a hair appointment. He called at 6:00 to see if I was okay. I felt so bad that I had worried him. He wasn't mad at me, just worried. I came home and apologized again. He was okay, especially after I told him what kind of day I had.

I went to Captain D's and got supper for us. We usually do that on Friday nights, but I'm going to exercise at 6:30 tomorrow night. Yep, I'm finally going to start. I've put the classes in my calendar as appointments, so if anybody asks me to do anything on those days, it will have to be very important to get me to break my appointments to exercise. I have got to do this. Especially after hearing so many people tell Penny last night how beautiful and gorgeous she is. And she is beautiful, but it got me motivated. I'm not going to be fat anymore. I'm going to get down to her size and then we will look good together.

I came home, ate and uploaded a few more pictures from Easter. It's still real slow, but I'll get them all uploaded soon.

It's getting late. Goodnight and God bless............

Could not get off the couch this morning. Had to sleep pretty much sitting up because of indigestion. I love spaghetti, but it sure doesn't love me. Maybe if I eat it for lunch, it wouldn't cause this problem; but supper is out from now on. I tried to go to bed, but couldn't lay down flat; so it was back to the couch. I was able to sleep all night, but I was so tired when I got up. I guess I slept but didn't really rest. Got my shower and woke up a little. Went to work and got a cup of coffee. That helped. I think one of my problems is that I didn't have my usual dose of caffeine yesterday or didn't drink any when I woke up.

Had a pretty busy day, but didn't make it in time for the safety meeting. Just couldn't get there early today. Mama called first thing to tell me that Jean's family loved the orchid. Said it was the prettiest one they had seen. That's because it's so unusual and it's big - a little over three feet tall. A picture of it at the top of the page. It's a Nun's Cap Orchid.

Had several calls from Debb today. She's feeling a little better. Was able to drink some chocolate milk and a little water this morning along with some cereal. That's good to hear.

Kim had doctor's appointments today, so I only got to see her for a few minutes around lunch. They poured the concrete in her bedroom today, so it's on it's way to being rebuilt after being flooded twice.

~There must be something in the air that I'm allergic to. I've got the window open, felt a breeze and all of a sudden I've started sneezing like crazy.~

Called Penny to see if she wanted to go to the visitation tonight and she said she'd let me know. She called back right as I was getting off work and said Tiffaney could watch Swayde, so she'd come by and pick me up.

I came home and waited on her. We went and I got to see my cousins that I haven't seen since my grandmother died. Jack, Cassie and Susie are doing okay. Jack got on to me and Penny for coloring our hair. He said we should just let it go gray. That ain't happening!! Not in this decade anyway. We stayed around and talked to everybody that we knew since we can't go to the funeral tomorrow. We got to meet my cousin Diane's adopted daughter Cheyanne. If she had red hair, she would easily pass for Diane's flesh and blood. She's so cute. Robbie is working at Parker Elementary in their Bay Base program. I never thought she would ever work around kids, cause she never wanted children, but she likes her job and I can tell she does a good job just by listening to her talk about the activities she arranges for them.

I decided to eat an egg salad sandwich instead of spaghetti tonight to see if I can sleep. Tried to upload Easter pictures to Picasa and it kept messing up. I managed to load a few, but it just took a long time. I'll try tomorrow night to load a few more.

It's late, so I need to get to bed. Got a long day tomorrow. Goodnight and God bless........

We Did It!

I made a decision this morning not to stop by Sonic and get my usual 44oz sweet tea. Yes, I know, that's a lot of empty calories. But, it is so good! But, since Kim and I are going to start trying to get healthy, I figured I needed to give up my sweet tea. I really love sweet iced tea, so this is a huge sacrifice for me. I just drove right on by. Believe me, it was hard.

I did drink a cup of coffee so that I wouldn't go through such bad withdrawals. Got a call from HealthPlex. They wanted to change our appointment to 10:30 instead of 11:00 today. I went in and talked to my boss about what Kim and I were going to do and he was all for it. He said I could switch my lunch hour around every day if I wanted to. He said he would support whatever I wanted to do to get healthy. Then, he told me he was also dieting and exercising and showed me a picture of him two years ago when he was fat. I never would have know that picture was of him. It sure didn't look like him.

Kim and I went to HealthPlex at 10:30. We actually walked through the door this time. Back on November 1st, we walked up to the door, but turned around and went back to the car and went to lunch. We panicked. Not today. We went in, paid our money, got our member cards and Connie showed us around. She took us to the Spinning class, showed us the treadmills and weight machines, showed us the aerobics room, the aquatic room, sauna, etc. They have a lot to offer. Then, she measured us. It didn't faze me cause I've measured myself for years going to all the classes and weight loss places I've been to. But, it was traumatic for Kim. She had never been measured before. I don't even remember any of my measurements. But, Connie got a funny look on her face when she measured my left and right thighs. The difference in them was about an inch and a half. Then she measured my shins and arms and the same thing was true. She asked if I had been in an accident and maybe a half body cast to make one side smaller than the other. I said "Nope, I'm just weird. My body has always been smaller on one side." She measured again just to make sure she didn't mess up. No, she had gotten it right the first time. We will have to make another appointment for her to set us up on a program. Right now, we're just planning to take some of the classes. Ran into an old friend. I played softball with Joy and Vance played in a band with her husband, Eric. Joy works at the front desk.

After we finished, we went through the drive-thru at Arby's and got a salad. I think I'm going to start buying Weight Watcher's meals to keep at work. That's what my boss does. And, it wouldn't be as expensive as eating out every day.

Debb called. She still hasn't been able to eat or drink. Even water tastes metallic to her. She said she thought she might have to go to the ER to get an IV to get some fluid in her. She's probably right. I offered to take her, but she said she would rather call an ambulance. That way, you don't have to wait 4-6 hours in the waiting room. She's probably right.

Mama called to get me to order flowers for Jean's funeral. She wanted an orchid cause Jean loved orchids. I called several florists and they don't sell orchid plants, just cut orchids in arrangements. Finally decided to call a nursery that I buy plants from and they had some. I ran by there after work and bought one for Jean's family and one for myself. They can be planted outside in the shade. They will die down in the winter, but come back up and multiply in the spring. I took the plant over to my aunt's so she could take it to the family. She was not there, but I did get to talk to my uncle.

Called Daddy on my way home, cause I haven't heard from him since Friday. He's doing fine. I told him about Jean and he was so sorry to hear that. He knew Jack and Jean, too.

I came home and Vance was still putting up ceiling tiles in the living room. I had Praise and Worship practice, so I called Penny on my way there to make sure she got home from vacation okay. She has a bad headache. She had one yesterday and got sick. When I got out of the car at church, I got dizzy. Not the spinning dizzy, just not able to walk a straight line dizzy. I am not accepting this again! God healed me and I will not take it back. We had a good practice, then had prayer afterwards. I got home around 9:15 and Vance was just finishing his supper and going to bed. I ate and sat down to let it digest. Can't go to bed just yet cause I ate so late. But, I may go anyway. I'm really tired.

Goodnight and God bless..............

Whirlwind Lunch Hour

I went to bed fairly early last night, but didn't want to get up this morning. I just wanted to roll over and go back to sleep. But, I didn't. I went to work.

Debb called as I was heading out the door. She seems to be doing a little better today, but still can't eat. Lord, I pray that she gets her appetite back and can start tasting food again. She needs nourishment.

Gave Kim the paperwork for Healthplex and she called and made an appointment for us to go tomorrow at 11:00 to be given the tour. One of the classes we are going to take is belly dancing. Can you believe it? Me? Belly dancing? That's going to be a hoot. I have no rhythm, so that should be interesting. And, if we want to go on Saturdays, we can take Line Dancing. That sounds like fun, too.

Mama called before lunch to get me to pick up some money from the Credit Union. Tabitha called in pain and wanted me to pray for her. She left school early and was heading home. As soon as lunch time arrived, I jumped in the car and went by Mama's to drop her money off. I ran in, gave her the money, hugged her and ran out again. Went to CVS to pick up something to help Tabitha with the pain and rushed to her house to drop it off. Then, I came back by R&L Catering and picked up something to eat. I love going by there. Randy and Lynita always make me smile. They are the sweetest people and I love their food. I was able to do all this in 65 minutes. Whew! Ate my lunch while entering timesheets. Yes, I'm a multi-tasker. Aren't all women?

Debb called again to ask if I knew anybody who could take her to the doctor on the 9th. Sue, the lady who usually takes her, has a doctor's appointment herself that day and can't take her. Of course, I don't know of anybody, so I said I'd take her. She said she'd take me to lunch, but I told her I wouldn't have time for that. I would only have time to take her to the doctor, take her home and then get back to work. I have to save as much vacation time as I can for taking Daddy (and possibly Mama) to doctor's appointments. My brother is having surgery on Friday, so I plan to take off to go to the hospital to sit with Angie. I think Penny is going to take off, too.

Since it's been such a hectic day, I think I will go to bed. I'm getting tired. So,
Goodnight and God bless.............