Dingos bustling through December - Our running* thread - Page 5

[Plady]

Originally Posted by Realrellim 


It doesn't help that Colorado has a balance-budget law. It doesn't help that we also have a couple of other laws that while seemingly good at the time, are having a completely disastrous effect now. It REALLY doesn't help that the statewide proposition for a temporary tax increase to help education funding was voted down in November. (I'm still seething about that one, frankly.)

Yeah, the same thing happened here.  Apparently a few years before we got here there was some initiative passed that limited gas tax monies to being used for highways only.  That sounds reasonable except that it disregarded how the ferries serve as highways for people out on the islands.  Now the ferry system is falling apart because there isn't enough funding to keep the fleet in decent shape and it gets more expensive all the time to go to the mainland.

Originally Posted by JayGee 
NRR ~ I'm tapering off Cymbalta which I've been on since July.    The headaches associated with going off this drug are awful! 

For going slow and steady off the meds.  Dh tried to quit paxil in a week once and had such terrible side effects we thought he might be having strokes.  No fun.  Sparkle's idea seems sensible.

MelW - Sounds like a good family race.  I love that dd had a friend, that does make everything better!

Gaye - Congrats on being done!  Sorry about the car!

Wendy - Saw you on Huff Po!  So cool!

Sparkle - Congrats to your dd!  That sounds super intense! 

Jo - Sounds like dd is feeling better then?  I hope so.  Do whatever you gotta do to make things better for yourself.

Lala - That Nutcracker experience sounds terrific!  How lucky to get that opportunity! 

Nic - May the thrifting Force be with you!

We're just settling back into home life.  The local lighthouse is giving tours of the upstairs today so we're off to see that (and maybe some whales???) and then later Santa is coming in on the lighted boat parade so we'll head over for that too.  And we're doing loads of laundry and uploading photos.  Of course we left our camera's battery charger in Whistler, what are the chances we get that back I wonder?

[LaLaLaLa]

Good evening!

Plady--I forgot to respond to your question about our local hill.  It's Nashoba Valley and, looking online, I see that it isn't actually in our town.  It must be just over the border into the next town.  I think there are a few small ski runs, and there's also a hill for tubing.  As a complete non-skier myself, I'm a bit reluctant to get my kids into the sport, even while thinking I should be taking advantage of the resource.

The school stuff is interesting and a bit devastating.  We are lucky to be in Massachusetts and in a school district where we haven't seen these cuts.  My kids have a different special subject every day of the week, so their elementary school still has music, art, library, gym, and computers.  We do a few fundraisers, but it seems as though our school system is in decent shape.  Their school is just a K-2, though, and I haven't explored further yet to see if that continues to be true through the upper elementary, middle, and high schools.  My kids so far have shown themselves to be smart but not gifted, so it is likely they will be adequately serviced by the regular classroom teacher and the regular school curriculum.  I'll hope so, anyway.

The Boston Nutcracker was really great.  The kids weren't asking every five seconds if it was over yet, so that was a nice change from last year.  I'll be so happy if they end up loving the theater as much as DH and I do.

Tomorrow I hope to run if the weather cooperates.  In a few days when our credit card statement goes into a new month, I can start shopping again.

Enjoy the week!

[kerc]

And Jo apparently your dd shared with my dd1?   Erin just threw up. Really a bummer since her class is making gingerbread houses at school tomorrow. But instead she'll hang with me. It isn't an awfu day for that, especially since she is old enough to hang in my office for an hour during the thing I have at noon.

[tjsmama]

sparkle~Good luck tomorrow!

Long, busy, fun day here. We started off with sampling Wheaties at the Jingle Bell 5k. They had a great kids race before the 5k that DS ran...it was perfect...free, no registration, chase the snowman down a block and back, and then they got a goodie bag with an awesomely huge lollipop from a local candymaker, a pencil, snowflake eraser, a couple of hershey's kisses, some sillybandz, and a little toy. Very cool, especially for a free race! After that, we handed out 2000ish boxes of Wheaties! DS had a great time, he was the official coupon hander-outer.

After that, we ran home for a quick lunch, and then off to the mall to meet a couple of classmates/friends for suit shopping. I am SO glad they came with me, I desperately needed the help! And I have to say, I did pretty darn well. Tons of sales today! So I used gift cards for a pair of trouser jeans, a cute top for under the suit jacket, and a pair of spanx . And then 40% off at the Limited + %15 off for opening a credit card (which will most likely get closed as soon as I pay it off) = a skirt and jacket, two sweaters, a top, and a pair of tights. The suit alone would have normally been $200. And the jacket is cute...non-traditional, with a belt around the waist, so I can totally wear it with jeans, too. DS was pretty darn good the whole time we were shopping, and my friends were great about helping me keep an eye on him and entertain him.

After THAT, the four of us went out for sushi to use a groupon that I had that was going to expire on the 31st.

Tomorrow...final clinical eval, and that's it, we're officially done (except for graduation itself)! And then breakfast out to celebrate. And then there are rumors of dinner/drinks to celebrate some more.

[Realrellim]

MelW--congrats on the maternity position and the short contract for teaching. Good luck with keeping everything else together.

JayGee--a friend of mine tweeted this the other day, and as a former Illinois resident, I was cracking up:

I live in Illinois, where bipartisanship means one governor of each party in prison.

sparkle--glad she did so well with the climbs, and good luck on the GRE.

Plady--a lighthouse tour sounds fun. Hope you saw some whales.

La4--glad they enjoyed the Nutcracker.

kerc--hope Erin is feeling better soon.

tjsmama--sounds like a cute suit. We want pictures.

[1jooj]

Gaye, LOVE that jacket. You'll get a lot of non-interview use out of it, I think. Super cute.

kerc, sorry. I should have told her to back away from the laptop. Hope you got a one-puke wonder.

MelW, I'm glad you have some reliable work stability ahead. Hope things are going a positive way with your husband, and that your future is bright, whatever that looks like to your family.  fwiw, you're inspiring to be standing up for your needs, priorities and personal beliefs.

Dd stayed home today and is not doing awesome, but I took her (briefly) shopping for a pretty (overpriced) dress and shrug to wear for the holidays concert. I can't allow her to be totally shredded socially here, which she would be if she were to wear anything else she owns--Lands' End play dresses are not "holiday best," I guess. I told her it's also a birthday present. She likes it, and looks sweet in it. It's a kimono-inspired dress and a shimmery silver shrug, and she'll wear with black maryjanes. Her silver shoes are long worn out. We've been relying heavily on school uniforms and swimwear. Thank goodness there's just this one event. Poor thing is not looking like she will make it, though. I'm a little miffed the doc didn't test for influenza, since I brought her in early, and she could have got on tamiflu or similar if it is indeed flu. Instead, we alternate between ibuprofen and paracetamol and watch her fever go up and down, and try not to feed her anything challenging.

Hoping ds's khakis still fit. So not interested in more shopping for one school event.

That said, I did a little Amazon shopping today for delivery back home for the special nieces who have birthdays and Christmas coming. Shipping to my mom's, and she will wrap and place under the tree for me. I had a sister handle a birthday before, and apparently Mom was not pleased. This is my gesture to her.

Obviously, no RR today. On the bright side, dinner tonight (spaghetti) includes eggplants grown in our own tiny front garden. And I got my second-to-last column sent in. One more, ideally by week's end. If dd does go to school tomorrow, I could possibly work out in the afternoon. I did walking lunges last time, and could really feel that in my weak hips/low back. Need more of that.

Also, back on education, dd filled in half of a multiplication table this AM. I want to push the rote stuff with her so the rest is easier. I totally let ds down in that regard over the years. And dd has expressed and demonstrated a clear interest in learning French and Spanish, so I think I am going to start working with her on those--and if there are language extracurriculars next semester, that's where she'll be.

La, Nutcracker sounds so traditional and lovely. I am in a sentimental and nostalgic phase, so I of course envisioned a perfect evening. I am sure you are making gorgeous family memories.

[JayGee]

sparkle ~ sending you lots of GRE vibes  today!  Can I just say how awesome I think it is that you're following your dream .

Gaye ~ your interview suit is awesome.  Great jacket, and totally useful too.

Real ~  funny stuff!  Gotta love Illinois .

MelW ~ congratulations on the maternity job! 

Lala ~ do you live close to Nashoba Brooks School?  My SIL went there for K-8.  I learned to ski at a little hill like that when I was about 7 or 8.  Literally, one lift and 3 trails!  Then we "graduated" to the Middlebury College Snow Bowl in VT which is awesome, uncrowded and relatively cheap (as skiing goes).

Plady ~ speaking of skiing, I love your pictures from Whistler.  Looks like you all had a great time.

kerc ~ hope your DD feels better and the bug is a 24 hour deal.

Jooj ~ I hope your DD feels better quickly too.  If if makes you feel any better, Tamiflu doesn't really work too well.  I took it last year when I tested positive for Flu A and still felt craptacular for a week.  Not much you can do for that bug, I'm afraid.

RR ~ took an hour walk yesterday to decompress.  It worked wonders for my mood and my headache .

NRR ~ our adopted cat vomitted worms this morning (guh-ross!), so I need to get him to the vet.  Easier said than done though, because he spends all day outside, catting around the woods (where he likely picked up his lovely parasite).  I am going to have to just keep him inside if he visits during the day and just bring him when I have him.  I'm so glad this weekend is done!  Now all we have is DD1's 2nd grade play on Tuesday, and I'm teaching a class about Degas for "Get Smart with Art" on Friday.  Now to think of a way to make ballerina paintings interesting for 2nd graders....  Ideas????

Re: tapering off Cymbalta ~ unfortunately, it's a capsule, so I can't cut it.  I was on 60mg, now taking 30mg, and then down to 20mg next week, then off.  It's got a really short 1/2 life (12 hours, I think), so you can't skip days without having withdrawl symptoms.  I do NOT recommend this drug, if anyone is considering it.  Tapering off it is difficult and it's got unfortunate (ahem... sexual) side effects.

[Nickarolaberry]

Jaygee, that cat thing is disgusting. Sorry. EUW.

Jo, hope dd is feeling better and you are feeling more peaceful. It's a tough time. Thinking of and praying for things to come together for you. 

Sparkle, good luck on the GRE!!!

Mel, congrats on the job offers. Awesome. (Can you send me some happy vibes for the same thing?!)

Gaye, congrats on your last test of nursing school! Woot!

Lala, the Nutcracker events sound fab. LOVE love love the Nutcracker.

Zub, if you're reading, we're thinking of you. 

Kerc, hope your dd feels better.

If I forgot anyone, I humbly apologize

Just put a pot of lentil soup up to cook in the crockpot. Hoping it works out better than last week's epic fail black bean/corn tamale pie crockpot recipe. That was nasty. I guess we'll see! I also took an hour and totally cleaned out dd1's huge box of crap that has been moving around with us for a few years. She is such a hoarder. She likes to do random crafts with thrown out tissue boxes, paper towel and toilet paper rolls, and whatnot. Which in and of itself is not a bad thing but you know, after a while the stuff starts to pile up. One can have too many tissue box doll houses, you know.  Seeing as the box was closed and has been for months I figured it was safe to do a cleanout. I put the good crafting stuff in a rubbermaid box and toted the rest straight to the recycle center (so she can't find it). I may burn in hell but it will not be old tissue paper lighting the fires.

Sigh.

Last night we did gingerbread men which was so fun and I wish I could eat them. Bummer. 

Now, off to the thrift store...the funniest part is there is a pajama and toy drive at the library. I have to go to Target to buy new things for that, but for ourselves I go thrifting! Ha.

[Shantimama]

I love reading the Nutcracker stories. Our kids danced in an amazing production of it when they were younger and it was incredible. Exhausting, but incredible. We had about three years where they put the Nutcracker music on every night after supper and danced together - and no, I am not exaggerating. If I ever get around to scanning all of the photos for that period of our life and making a slide show, the music from the Nutcracker will have to me the background music. We wore out a few CD's before they outgrew it. I have to say I preferred Tchaikovsky to the current Taylor Swift love the girls have going on. 

We are very fortunate with schools where we are. The arts could always use better funding but we live in a very artsy community so there are a lot of great opportunities for the kids to make up for what the schools can't do. All of my kids are in publicly funded schools and have had a pretty good experience. They are in French Immersion which means smaller class sizes and because we are in a rural area it isn't as if the English classes are huge either. Dd1 is in grade 8 and there are 11 students in her class. Dd2 is in grade 6 and has 14 in her class. Ds is in high school and there are 18 - 20 students in his French classes and 23 - 25 in his English classes. 

 I hope all of the sick dingo-kids feel better fast. Mine are old enough now that when they get sick they just crawl into bed and stay there until they feel better - and they don't get sick nearly as often any more, thank goodness.

Gaye - way to go!!! That is great to have your last test behind you.

[LaLaLaLa]

JayGee--I googled it, and apparently we are sort of close to Nashoba Brooks School.  We're two towns away from Concord.  Nashoba Valley is a weird categorization for an entire area here.  It's not a town itself, or a county, but several towns are part of it.  Actually, it might have something to do with high school sports leagues.  I know my high school was in the Merrimack Valley League, which was a similar conglomeration of towns.

The Nutcracker weekend was good.  The Boston production is really neat, and they went on and on about this being the last year with the old costumes.  Next year I think everything will be updated.  DS is five and didn't really care about it in general and just told me to let him know when the tree was going to grow.  He's a cuddler, though, and was perfectly happy to sit on my lap or DH's lap and suck his thumb and ignore everything going on.  DD is seven and now that she's been dancing for a bit she's at the point where she can actually appreciate the amazing stuff that's happening on stage.  And plot her future trajectory, I'm sure.  

DH's dad has what I consider a very sad life right now.  He's alone, lost his job, and is in pretty poor health.  He lives on coffee and cigarettes, has probably never cooked a meal ever, doesn't sleep normal hours, and has thus far had three diagnosed heart attacks and some major surgery.  We don't expect he will live a very long life, and, in fact, we consider him lucky to even be alive now.  When he was in the midst of his most recent heart attack, his first plan was just to ride it out, go to bed and see if he woke up or not.  Then the pain got worse so he drove himself over to the hospital.

Anyway, all that is to say that he loves the theater and so the past two years we've invited him to come with us into Boston.  This year he caught both shows with us, and it feels really nice to have a tradition with him that we will be able to refer to when he is gone.  I'd like to give the kids a really solid happy memory and connect The Nutcracker in their minds with their grandfather.

No running today after all; I forgot until I looked at my calendar this morning that I was expected in DS's class this morning.  It was fun but tiring, and now I have permanently blue fingers from the stamping craft with which I was helping, and not nearly enough time to change and run before DS gets off the bus in an hour.  Looks like tomorrow will be the day.

[kerc]

Originally Posted by LaLaLaLa 

DH's dad has what I consider a very sad life right now.  He's alone, lost his job, and is in pretty poor health.

ahem. flash back 15 years and subtract cigarettes and you've got my family.....it's ugly.
 

[Motivated Mama]

Dingos!!

I haven't been on this thread in quite awhile. I think that the last time I posted, I was 5-8 weeks pregnant and still running. Then I fell off the wagon. And I stopped posting on mothering for quite some time. Not sure why

Anyway, I'm back. Baby Katherine was born on Thanksgiving. And I started the Couch to 5K today to ease my way back into running. I had a really healthy pregnancy and right now I weigh 35 pounds less than I did this time last year! And 5 pounds less than my pre-pregnancy weight! 35-50 pounds more to go to get back to pre-4 children weight I'm looking forward to catching up with an awesome group of ladies!

[Nickarolaberry]

Congratulations Nina! 

Crockpot lentil soup, thumbs up. (Phew! After last week's epic crockpot tamale pie fail, we needed a success). Aiden, upon viewing the crazy plethora of cookies we have around here (gingerbread men we baked yesterday, chanukah cookies we baked at school today, cupcakes from shabbat) -- talking to himself: "Aiden. First stop and see what looks best. It all depends on you." 

[sparkletruck]

Need to catch up, but I have to say: DONE. And I didnt suck! The new scoring (how to interpret/what does it mean/do the schools even know what they mean???) is 130-170. I got 169 on the verbal Math was good enough , and I smoked the essays, so feeling pretty good, and so ready to use these GRE study guides for kindling (too bad we dont have a fireplace)

In related news, there were 3 docs in training at the testing center/in the waiting area. One a cardiologist (young), one a med student and one a 2nd year resident in Neuro (I gleaned all this from eavesdropping). Point of the story is that the cardio was smokin. Seriously, Indian guys dont really do it for me, but he certainly was! Sexy to spare. So of course I tell Dh about it all when I get home, and of course he knows the guy I told him he better not tell

Meanwhile, Dh cleaned the whole house, got a babysitter, and made reservations for dinner!! Who the he** is this guy? Whatev, Ill take him

Oh yeah, post test: prepared/packaged 10 bags of gift cookies/chocolate bark that we delivered to teachers and friends at school. Still have another round to prepare and hand around. Im pooped. Oh, and DS' bday party is Saturday...

[Geofizz]

Yay for done, Sparkle! And the jaw dropping verbal. Go you! It was all the eye candy beforehand that did it, right?

Congrats MM!

I came home from my conference with a cold. Grrrrr. Our work got so much press that now we have to get the paper submitted pronto. I need old data from a long, lost grad student to make a better figure, and of course, I can't find the data or lab notes. At least I now have a clean office as a result.

Running yesterday in the cold made my cold worse, so I may treadmill it a bit tonight.

We've got a crazy week coming up, with something major for at least one person out each night for 9 nights in a row. That includes everything from parties to neuropsych exams (DD for the whole spelling and writing bit.)

...and tomorrow we learn how many teeth DD gets pulled this round. Poor kid...

[zubeldia]

Wowza, Sparkle, that is an amazing score. Nicely done. And I do have a thing for Indian men so I can only imagine how much I'd have appreciated the nice young Dr! Hope you enjoy your evening out.

OOf, jaygee, that sounds pretty miserable. How long were you on the med?

Nic, I'd be interested to know how that recipe goes as I only ever see to have absolute disaster crockpot creations. And congrats on the very fast 5k time! (And thanks for the shout-out).

Hi all, reading along but just feel so quiet these days. I dont know how my life could have fallen apart to such an extent so quickly. We returned from Spain last Tuesday with my mum, who'll be with us until the end of February. My dad and I were extremely close and while I am fairly close to my mum, she is very stoic and it's difficult to know how she really is. She does appreciate being with us, though, and I'm glad she is here. I keep imagining how life could be so different right now: I could be 7 months (or 4 months) pregnant, in a new home with my folks about to visit for a couple of months, and instead I have had two miscarriages, my dad has died, and we'll probably be moving into our new place right before Christmas. This morning I really felt like I was at my limit and then our heating and hot water weren't working and it seemed, in fact, that life could get even more craptastic. Amazing to me is that I am sort of coping: going to work (I'm proctoring an adjunct's final as I type), taking care of DS and my mum, arranging to move, and smiling and interacting with those around me. I do feel as though I am sort of in shock still, mind you, and I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I can't recall when I wrote here last and what I wrote, I have total brain fog, but the funeral (in Spain) was fine and even nice. We played Amazing Grace - the only nice tune my dad liked (terrible taste in music), one of my sister's read a poem and I wrote and read a eulogy (I posted it on my blog http://usandpoppet.blogspot.com/2011/12/eulogy-for-wonderful-dad-and-grandpa.html

And I know it sounds probably trite and inconsequential, but we're home and now hurting financially as we weren't expecting to spend $5000 on a last minute trip to Europe. I wouldn't have changed anything, of course: I got to hold my dad's hand, and that is what I am holding on to.

I am sure I am repeating myself in this post.. sorry!

[Shantimama]

  Yummy soup today - leeks, carrots, celery, potato, chick peas, thyme, garlic, rosemary, pepper, tahini and lemon juice. This is going to have to be a regular around here this winter.  

[Nickarolaberry]

Oh Zub,  go easy on yourself. You have been through the wringer and if you didn't have some PTSD I'd be shocked. Give yourself some space to breathe, to grieve, and to heal. 

Recipe...Sautee 4 scallions (including green parts) -- you can also use regular onion chopped if you don't have scallions. Throw in some minced garlic also. (This is very scientific.  ). Dump into a (sprayed with Pam!) crockpot insert. Peel and chop 2 carrots, 2 celery ribs, I also added a chopped parsnip. Rinse and pick over a cup of lentils (not red, they disintegrate) and 1/4 cup brown rice. Throw into pot with veg. Add about a teaspoon of dried oregano. Then 8 cups of vegetable broth, some salt and pepper. Cover the crockpot and set on low for 8 hours or so, or high for 4-6 hrs. Stir every once in a while.

It came out very tasty.

I made a quinoa pilaf sort of thing to go with it -- boiled up 1 cup quinoa in 2 cups veg broth. Added some sauteed onion and garlic, sauteed sweet potato, and sauteed kale. Right before serving I also added about a cup of sheep's milk feta cheese, chopped up (although you wouldn't if you were vegan).

Really yummy dinner.

[Plady]

Oh Zub - You have been through the wringer and silencing all the "could have beens" must take more energy than you could possibly be expected to muster.  You've been hit from every side and the financial blow is like lemon juice in the cut.  Last night C and I went to the Community of Compassionate Friends yearly candle lighting ceremony for lost children.  I thought that it might be interesting for her to see that there are other people who have lost children/siblings but I didn't really know what to expect.  It turned out to be a very lovely, very heavy hour.  There were grieving parents and siblings from losses between 57 years and 2 months ago.  The man whose daughter was killed by a grizzly in Alaska (and who then endured her death becoming a movie) was there, as were many parents of stillborn children and one woman whose 25 year old son had shot himself in October over a girl.  But, as sad and tragic and senseless as so much of the loss represented there was, it was still obviously a healing hour too.  For everyone there.  And though I hadn't known anyone who was going to be there it turned out that a family we know fairly well with two sons about C's age were there to remember their son they lost at birth.  C cried a bit throughout but afterward said that she felt much less alone and was amazed that the other kids she knew had btdt too.  Anyway, all this the long way to say that if there is a grief support group near you I urge you to give it a try.  You have just had so much hitting you this year, it might be a real relief to be able to share the load with people who really understand how hard it can be to get from one day to the next.   And, of course, come here often and type out all you need to to stop that loop of woe that might be buzzing in your head incessantly.  We can take a bit of your load too.

Nic - That recipe sounds really tasty!  I should give it a try this week.  One of our favorite tried-and-true crockpot recipes is to take a load of chicken, split breasts work especially well, and just dump them in with a heaping spoonful of curry paste.  Cook for as long as you have on low or high depending and then about 30 minutes before serving, pick out all the bones (should come right out) and then mix in a bag of frozen peas.  Serve with rice or naan.

Speaking of recipes, is the cooking blog still accessible?  I haven't been there in ages but I just thought of Shanti Cookies....

Nina - Congrats! 

Sparkle - yeah Girl!  Way to rock it!  I love that you didn't have to wait 6 weeks for your score either!  I hope you are enjoying every moment of your victory night!

Geo - I'm not sure if I should thank you or not but your post made me suddenly feel very conscious of the treadmill sitting unused at the bottom of my staircase.  I've been feeling grumpy and out of sorts about not getting any exercise today and now I see that I really have no excuse.

[bec]

Zub - Just giving my love and support.  And to echo what the others have said about being easy with yourself.

RR: I had a double workout today to make up for many days out of the gym!  Spent about an hour on legs.  Crazy stuff.  It was some leg strength thing, in between sets of jumping things (jump rope, long jumps, lateral jumps, etc.).  That was in the morning, and in the evening, I went to tri class.  We had a run tonight.  4 x half mile repeats with a 1 minute recovery in between.  With warm up and cool down, about 3.5 miles run!  I was surprised how well the run went. 

And now, back to retail craziness.