Wow. I can't believe that I have not written in over a month. It has been busy around here lately. We just got back from a trip to Florida and in the same weekend helped load our daughter and son-in-laws worldly possessions on a truck and move back to Moberly. The final move won't happen until the end of the week, but the bulk of their home is now in a storage building in Moberly. They will be staying with us for a few weeks while they wait for their renters to vacate their home. It is amazing how people scatter when you say the four letter word, M-O-V-E! We were fortunate to have our son, Josh help. Scott and Jessica made the move easier by having everything packed and waiting at the door. All in all, it turned out to be much quicker and easier than I thought (of course I wasn't the one actually moving much). Anytime something like this happens, you really get a strong sense of how important it is for family to support each other. It takes a lot of effort to give of yourself, but the rewards are many. I am guilty of not doing enough for others. I know I help my immediate family, but finding the time to reach out past that is difficult. After the recent move, I reminded myself of the importance of being a better sister, daughter, and friend to others in need. I will have to work on this. I know that any help others have given to me or my family has always been appreciated.

There is a story about a Navajo grandfather who once told his grandson, "Two wolves live inside of me. One is the bad wold, full of greed and laziness, full of anger and jealousy and regret. The other is the good wolf, full of joy and compassion and willingness and a great love for the world. All the time, these wolves are fighting inside me." "But Grandfather," the boy said, "Which wolf will win?" The grandfather answered, "The one I feed."
I recently read this in a novel by Elizabeth Berg. I found so much truth in it that I had to post it. Don't we all tend to personify the part of us that we feed? The crime is not in having the two wolves inside of us, but it comes by deciding which one we will nourish.
Since I can't possibly improve on that Navajo story, I will sign off for today.

This has been the most beautiful spring day you can imagine! Warm, sunny, slight breeze, just perfect! I had an evening meeting tonight and on the way home I opened the moon roof, turned up the stereo and set the cruise control. This is the weather that I kept praying for through the long, dreary winter. Funny how the weather can affect a person's mood. I feel more hopeful, optimistic and relaxed when the sun is shining. As I pulled into my driveway tonight, there was a small herd of deer milling around our hay field. What a perfect way to end the day.
It has been a good diet day. I did a hard 30 minutes on the treadmill this morning, had a low cal breakfast and lunch, and limited myself to 2 small pieces of cheese pizza for supper (provided at the meeting). I even passed up brownies, cookies and multiple servings of chocolate (I had one bite size piece of chocolate). Tomorrow I am planning on going to the Y again. I have an evening presentation to make, so supper will be late. But I will stay strong and keep on the healthy track. Overall, this has been almost the perfect day, especially since it is Monday!!

Well, the long journey begins again. After a few months of being out of control, I am back in the weight loss game. In fact, as I write this, I am enjoying a small bowl of Fiber One and Bran cereal. Yummy! I never really lost control, but I must have the slowest metabolism on the planet. I can work out, eat right and still not lose weight. When I do lose, it may be a half pound or so a week. I know that is still something, but come on, how discouraging can that be? I see others eat more and do less than me and lose two pounds a week. What I really need is Bob Green and Dr. Oz on the case! They could certainly figure this out.
One thing I know for sure, I am probably the healthiest eating fat person you will ever meet. Lots of veggies and fruit, whole grain pasta, bread and tortillias, high fiber cereal, chicken (not fried) etc. I am switching from diet soda to water too. I guess I will just keep working at this until I figure it out. But at this rate, it may mean rocking and my great grandchildren and still trying to figure out how to get thin. . . Sigh!
For now, I am going to keep on concentrating on good health and exercise and let the pounds fall where they may (or most likely may not!)

Well, here it is again. March 21st and we have probably 4 or more inches of snow on the ground. Forecast today is rain, sleet and possibly more snow. I can't even express how discouraged this weather makes me feel.
I was watching a "Private Sessions" last weekend on A & E, and a singer/songwriter was describing how she experienced spurts of writing lots of new material at once, and then she would go for long periods without writing at all. She said that she enjoys that because it takes the pressure off of her. I feel the same way about this blog. I don't want to make it a job or even part of my daily routine. I want to use it when the mood strikes and let it lay when I don't feel like writing. There, I have put my thoughts into words, and now I can get on with it!
I was thinking the other day about romance and gift giving between couples. Someone was saying how their husband was the best gift giver. She then proceeded to enumerate all the wonderful gifts she has received in her life from him. The list was long and impressive and included; jewelry, flowers, trips etc. Although I was happy for her, it made me reflect on what is a good gift. I think a gift goes beyond the glitter and cost. To me a good gift is when someone takes the time and thought to purchase something for you that they think you would really like. Anyone can order flowers or pick out something with a lot of shine and a big price tag (of course paying for these things is another story). But a great gift, to me, reflects the thought and care the giver puts into the present.
Last year for Christmas, my husband (who struggles with gift giving, because I am not a traditional gift receiver) bought me the best, most thoughtful gift he has ever given to me. Why was it the best? Because I know he listened to me, and really wanted to give me something that was important to me. Don't laugh, but he got me a book on Tim Russert. I actually cried when I opened it. I think my entire family was caught off guard by my reaction. Randy had listened to me talk and talk and talk about Tim Russert, his work and his untimely death. His life and work had a big impact on me, and the loss of his life, shortly before the 2008 Presidential Election was a sad event.
I knew the gift had come from his heart and was selected because he knew I would like it. Of course he had other gifts for me which I liked, but by giving me this book, he was telling me that he had really wanted to get me something that I wanted.
The year before Jessica had done a similar act when she (somehow) found a little golden type book from my childhood. The book was titled "Me Too" and had a special memory for me. The only thing I remembered about this book was the story line (a younger sister following an older one around copying her every move) and the title (as best I could remember). I also told her that I thought it was a pink book. How she ever found this book from the 50's, I will never know. But she did, and her thoughtfulness and effort also made me cry.
I think I probably drive my family crazy because I am not very traditional in this way. I love what they get me, but I am not the kind of person who craves "normal" gifts like flowers, jewelry and candy. It is probably my one most difficult trait that they have to deal with. But when they get it right, I never forget it.

Tim McGraw. Oh my goodness! Last night we went to see the Lady Antebellum/Tim McGraw concert at the Mizzou arena. The evening started off rather crazy, but then got better and better. First Randy was late getting home from work. Then we got stuck in concert traffic, and went bumper to bumper for 40 minutes. When we got to the arena, parking was difficult, and we had a long walk (and boy was it cold). We finally got in and seated, 30 minutes late. Fortunately, we got seated right before Lady A came on, so we didn't miss anything. Plus, we had great seats, 8 rows off the floor.
I like Lady A, but am not a huge fan. However, they put on a good show.
But when Tim M came on, I was hooked. Not only does the man look sensational, and sing well, but he has incredible energy. He began singing one hit after another. My new favorite of his is "Blank Paper". However, the most moving was his hit about the soldier writing the letter home. You could feel the emotion in the place. A service man and his family sat in front of us, and after he sang, several people around him, obvious strangers, hugged him and shook his hand. I think that is just a piece of what makes America great. It was an amazing concert!
On a separate note, we finally have sunshine. The forecast is even great. The temperture should be in the 40's all weekend, and into next week. Which means that hopefully our road will thaw and be easier to travel. Only one little negative about the sun. . . it has made me realize that my house is in desperate need of cleaning. No sun equals invisible dust and floors. Lots of sun equals dirty windows, dusty floors and furniture. I think I really have my work cut out for me in the next few days. It is worth it to see the sun. Maybe this long hard winter has ended. Amen and thank you!

Well, here I am at work at 6:30 a.m. The winter and our roads have digressed to the point that I am afraid to get my little car out. The problem now is that the road ditches are full of ice and snow, so the monsoon that we had on Sunday has no where to go but on the road. I worried a few times yesterday when Randy and his 4- wheel drive truck brought me to town. He was the taxi man yesterday. He dropped me off at work, picked up the grands and took them to the sitter. Came back in town to take me to lunch (spoiled, right?), went home for a little while, then picked up the kids, and then me and then dropped the kids off! Today, he is working, so I rode in with him at 5:45, and will be here until 6:15 or so. The good news is that I should get a lot of work done. The bad news is that makes for a very long day.
I feel like such a whinner, but I am really so very tired of this winter. A cousin is vacationing in South Texas and posted beach pictures. It made me want to jump in the car (which would probably get stuck in the driveway) and drive South. I need to feel the sun on my bones!
Enough of all this. I really wonder what I will ever blog about once winter is over. It seems like most of my postings reference the weather. I guess in Missouri the weather always give us something to talk about.
On the bright side (and I had to think hard about this one), I am caught up with all my Tivo'd shows. I tape Oprah and Dr. Oz daily. The way I see it, I am not really wasting my time watching these shows, I am just learning something in passive mode. Dr. Oz hammers daily about healthy eating and exercise. I think the message is coming through, because today for my lunch I brought 3 pieces of fruit and I have a vegetable based soup. The weather is definitely interfering with my workouts. No car means no trip to the Y, and slush and mush make it difficult to walk outside. Although on Saturday, the kids and I braved the elements and went on a long walk. We happened upon an old downed telephone pole and had a great time walking on it. Maddison seems to have great balance and Mason, well, he had fun just jumping off. They had a blast, and didn't want the walk to end. Unfortunately, Mimi had very cold toes, so we had to cut the walk short. It was great to get them outside and get some fresh air, even if the sun didn't shine.
I am looking forward to long walks in the spring. A final, last sad note. The giant hay bales that we had so much fun sliding down and jumping over are gone. The farmer across the road used the last of them to feed his hungry cows. I guess we will just have to wait until next year to do that again!