HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BRENDA!! I'd post a pix but my camera is in the kitchen and I don't want to wake the 'baby' up! Can't wait to hear about your princess day. Eden, the Brug Charles Grimaldi you have me is blooming and has lots of other buds this year. Yeah! Also, the double white finally has 2 buds on it. I can't wait to see it bloom for the first time! Thanks, you guys, for all the support. I feel like a whiner, tho, compared to Chelone and others dealing with such adversity. Re DD, she hasn't always made good choices and she's had bad things happen. I guess as a parent you always want the best for them and it's frustrating and dishartening when they choose not to achieve what they're capable of. This saga will be ongoing, but thankfully DD is feeling better from both the flu and Shingles. Last night, my DB phoned and woke me up b/c Mom called him about DS and her antics. He's beside himself over what DS is doing and how Mom's handling it. They both love the negative attention so it just perpetuates. I just can't wait for Sat. DB is having us over for fresh-picked corn from his garden. I'm sure Mom will recount all the antics for the entire visit. Oh joy. Oh, and by the way, my DB tells me that if you cook corn within 15 min. of picking it, it's sweeter b/c the sugar hasn't had a chance to turn to starch. I'm sure Michelle and Brenda know this, but I didn't! Yesterday I was just at my wits end with Missy. I was commiserating with my neighbor who has a Bouvier puppy the same age as Missy. She looked as haggard at 9 am as I did. What scared and frightened me is Missy testing her growl and lowering the tone of her bark. After thinking about what we're doing, I realized that we've been inadvertently encouraging aggressiveness in her. Also, I think she's picked up on my stress and frustration over other things. Luckily, I've read that dogs forget your mistakes and it's just to pick up from here and go forward. First, it was a huge mistake to get Missy a tug-of-war toy. So I trashed those. We play fetch instead. Also, I've realized that when I've been reprimanding her she's perceived it as my getting aggressive and has escalated her bad behaviour. So this am, I'm trying new tactics. My interaction is calm and soft with lots of scratching her belly and talking softly to her. I'm using a pop can filled with marbles that I shake loudly when I reprimand her for barking. It gets her attention and she stops. So, so far so good. Tomorrow am I have a special session with the trainer and hopefully I can pick up some pointers. I just have to find the 'right' parenting skills for this baby. Marian, I'm so sorry to hear about the bacterial infection on your chin. I hope the antibiotics take hold quickly and the itching diminishes. When you get a chance, please post a pic of your new kitty. I need a kitty fix! Babs, it sounds like the results of Chris's tests is good news! I'm so very glad to hear that. About getting a puppy, puppy training was much easier last time. The puppy was 4 mo. old and we had a fenced in yard. It is just like having another 'baby' in the house and is a lot of work. Cindy, I meant to comment earlier that I so admire your offering your friend safe haven from the domestic violence situation. Hopefully, she'll be able to pick-up her life and not seek out another relationship with someone similar. It would be great if you encouraged her to get some counseling, if it's available in your area. Kathy, that's great you can find your way around LA. I don't mind the driving per se, it's figuring out where the heck I am. I can't navigate out there for some reason. We're going to meet up with friends for dinner tonite. Can't wait. We haven't been able to get the whole group together for 8 months! So it'll be great to see everyone. And I get to wear something other than a ratty ole t-shirt and jeans. Hmmm, I have to take a pic in my garden for Sue. I have similar acoutriments, tho not as large, as that photo of her that was circulated, lol. OK, here's some good news. DH just phoned and he put together a report that shows that if they keep he and his partner instead of laying them off and disposing of that part of the business, they'll net $19.5 mil. in profit/yr. Altho it's no guarantee mgmt won't do something stupid, we're hoping they'll decide to transition these two jobs into the new reorganized co. We'll see. Hope Mary has a safe fun trip; that Sue is feeling better; that all these paver projects come out exactly as you hope them to; and a big Hi to everyone else I missed! It's all I can remember for now. Missy is awake and it's time for a walk! TTYL, Honey

Happy Friday everyone! Thank you for your words of encouragement. I have lots of support and a friend who wants to join me at the AA meeting. I am looking forward to going and hope with all my heart I will take this seriously and not just go through the motions. Part of me thinks I can handle a beer but a larger part knows it is not in my best interest. It sure as heck can't hurt to attend. Especially now that I am working on a spiritual journey which fits right in. Jan don't worry about the cat. Just do the best you can. If you sit with the cat each visit for a few minutes the cat will get used to you. Each cat has it's own personality. If the cat seems distressed in any way don't be shy to call your neighbours or the vet. They sleep alot normally. Donna, I feel for you knowing how hard it must be. My dad was a binge drinker. It was hell on us when those episodes hit. I agree it's one day at a time. I am responsible for myself, no one else is. The same goes for anyone with an addiction or abuse problem. It does help knowing people care. I am okay right now - probably more now than I have been in years. Raeanne, it's not the gift that counts - it's the way it is accepted. Given the economy right now may I suggest you could ask these folk to make a donation to support a local food shelter, charity basket in your name? Let them know you appreciated the gifts of the past year but this year you would like to start something new given how hard times are affecting many people. If you do get some baskets anyway and don't want them - take them to a shelter, seniors home. They won't go to waste. I dunno, just a suggestion. My MIL asked what I wanted this year - I know she won't accept 'just a place at the dinner table and family'...I suggested a gift card to a home centre so I could spend it in the spring on my garden. She liked that idea. I won't waste it. Better than pj's that don't fit or one too many potholder/dishtowel sets. Happy Saturday! (I started this last night....) It's raining this weekend. Luckily I got my yard work done, minor things left now before the snow flies. Today I am going to take stuff to my charity shop, do a little retail therapy there and when I come home - who knows. I'll see what mischief awaits. DH is putting new trim around our livingroom window and sanding a couple of spots we touched up on the walls to prepare for painting. I'm sending all of my pals Happy Happy Thoughts today! LOL Will check in again later. Cheers, Peggy

Yes Annie! Don't bargin shop for cat food. Cats have tender tummies and do best with one flavor of food. One local grocer probably thinks I'm nuts because the only thing I buy in his store is catfood... and I clean off his shelf of my cat's favorite when I'm there. Sometimes when people ask how many cats I have I tell them just one but he is big and very hungry. I buy all my cat litter at Walmart because I can get 100 lbs for $10... yup big kitty (most regulars know I have several small adorable kitties with names like Annie and Jessy). I so seldom use coupons. I've made the cashier shake her head when I turn to the customer behind me and give away the register coupons. I think of myself as a value shopper. If a product has quality and I'll enjoy eating it then I buy. Even being single I'll buy a 10lb roast and cut it into usable portions. I like beans and rice so my grocery budget is not big enough to worry about. Meat and fresh fruit seem to be the big hitters on my bill... and of course beer is almost a budget of it's own. We have a super bargin meat market 20 minutes down the road but I hate using that much time and gas. When I do go I fill the freezer... beef tenderloin is currently $7/lb, lake perch $9/lb, any kind of beef steak between $3-4/lb, ground chuck normally $2/lb. They probably only make pennies a pound but they sell meat by the ton everyday. I've been working with a very nice lady that enjoys coupons so I give her my Sunday paper. Last week she saved $11 with them. She enjoys it so I was careful not to rain on her parade but when I asked what she bought she said "junk food and a couple things I normally buy". I'm a terrible shopper and usually just buy the same things over and over. I noticed I now have three bottles of my favorite vinegar in the pantry. At least I've done a fair job eating down the pantry and freezer so I can see what I have in there. Just picked another quart of tomatoes out of my garden. People were telling me a month ago to pull up the vines but they keep flowering and putting out new tomatoes so I'll hold back until the frost kills them. Hard to beat "free" food. : ) lyra

Kkay, that almost sounds like a fried pie. We have two produce markets near us. One we rarely go to as it is not as near, and we just don't go to the area where it is located often. BUT, the wife of the husband/wife owner team, makes delicious fried apple and peach pies. We love the peach. To get one warm is heaven! The other little market gets the pies from an Amish community and I have tried a strawberry one this spring. I had to mush out much of the filling but other than that it was tasty. They also have a fruit and cream cheese combo in the pies, but I have not even let myself look at those. LOL