Babysitters - Will Travel

How far would you travel for a babysitting opportunity with your only grandchild?  Bubba and I just returned from Baton Rouge (again) where we kept Amelia two nights for Amy and Darryl to go out.  The first night (Friday) they went to New Orleans to eat at Emeril's Delmonico in celebration of their 15th wedding anniversary.

The next night they attended a gala which is actually a fundraiser for the school Amelia attends.  There is a nice meal with a lot of auctions both silent and regular.  It's a dressy occasion and apparently a lot of fun.

Amelia thought her mom and dad looked "gorgeous" and I tend to agree.

Meanwhile we managed to get in our customary trip to Chuck-E-Cheese where I ate the salad bar instead of pizza which was not fun because I love pizza.

Amelia usually stores her valuable prizes in our car so for two trips to Chuck-E-Cheese, she has a hot pink braid, a blue braid, and two bracelets.  She is a lucky girl.  She could score more prizes, but she likes to play a lot of things that don't reward the player with tickets for prizes.

We enjoyed time outside in the beautiful weather.  I'm finding it very difficult to stick to my plan to not buy her something every time we go for a visit.  This time we took her a ball and bat which she seemed to enjoy.

We also played soccer (her version) again.  She is very bossy.  She has a soccer whistle and props her foot on the ball while she explains the rules to us.

Unfortunately Bubba does not follow the rules and enjoys aggravating Amelia so he was frequently in "time out" for his bad behavior.

She read "Abe Lincoln's Hat" to me and I agree that it is "seriously" a good book.  I'm amazed at how well she reads to just be in kindergarten.  Amy says that most of the children in her class are also good readers, but I just don't remember actual reading starting at such an early age.

We made the trip home today in the usual eight hours with just a stop for lunch and gas.  It was rough, but we did enjoy our time there.  Amy and Darryl treated us to lunch yesterday as a "thank you" for babysitting although we were happy to do it.  Bubba was a happy camper with his tray of crawfish.

Now, I sure you are interested about my diet progress although Bubba thinks it's not that great a topic.  I said that I would report on the Beef & Asparagus Stir Fry.

The recipe made four generous servings so we ate it for two meals.  It was delicious.  I served it with a wild rice blend and steamed broccoli.  We also discovered that we really like fresh asparagus so we will be repeating this recipe and also eating more asparagus in the future.  We're trying new foods and so far we are eating well (probably better and healthier than before) and enjoying it.  Tomorrow is my day to weigh.  I don't know what to expect.  I chose well when we ate out and when we ate in, we prepared meals like I would have eaten at home.  The down side is that I've been almost a whole week without any exercise to speak of so we will see and I'll report.

The root canal that I wrote about last week has finally been done.  I loved the lady that did it and there was absolutely no pain before, during, or after.  I go back in six weeks to have the medication she put in removed and replaced with a permanent substance.

It looks like we have a few days of spring weather ahead.  I have some things I want to do around the house and I may decorate for Easter.  It's one of my favorite times of the year.

Good News on the Scale

I weighed in this morning and I had lost five more pounds for a total of fifteen in three weeks!  I'm excited because it proves that we can enjoy camping without adding pounds.  I'm trying a WW recipe for Beef with Asparagus Stir Fry tonight.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

I talked to Amelia last night.  She talked and talked about all the books she can read.  She told me that she was going to read Abe Lincoln's Hat to her class Thursday and that she was excited because "It is seriously a good book".  I'll have to get her to read it to me because I've not read a "seriously" good book lately.

Time to Catch Up

When I last blogged, I had a root canal and a weigh in scheduled for Tuesday.  I weighed and had lost two more pounds.  That makes ten in two weeks! I'm very pleased with the new Weight Watchers program and look forward to the challenge of camping and visiting while sticking to it.  Pictured below was my favorite meal of the week.

The weigh in may have taken place as scheduled, but the root canal did not.  I was at the dentist at 7:30 and was back home by 8:30 having been numbed and drilled (a lot).  He was unable to "gain access to the nerve" so he stuck some "putty" in the hole and referred me to an endodontist next Tuesday to have it done.  The good news is that he did not charge anything for the work he did and I'm assuming that whatever he drilled will not have to be done again.

When I returned home we headed for Frank Jackson State Park in Opp, AL.  This is my all time favorite park to stay at so far and it has the added benefit of being close to Joe and Judy.  We haven't seen them since Joe had his shoulder surgery a month ago and Judy's broken foot was put in a boot.  We had boiled eggs en route.  After we got set up we went to Joe and Judy's and Judy had made chicken salad which she served with apples, honey dew melon, canteloupe, grapes, and strawberries.  It was a perfect WW meal and was delicious and filling.

We went to Larry's Bar-B-Q in Andalusia for supper.  I was able to get chicken with a baked potato and salad, still staying on my diet.  (I carried my own salad dressing and spray butter).

At WalMart afterwards, Judy and I had a good time grocery shopping for diet items.  We loaded up on Jello and sugar-free pudding.  It was actually fun.

A fish fry with "legal" vegetables and salad.

Judy and I had our fish grilled = delicious.
Grilled pork chops, oven fried potatoes, carrot and apple salad, steamed vegetables, corn on the cob and mango-corn salsa.

In addition to the delicious WW friendly meals we had at Joe and Judy's, we grilled hamburgers one day at the camp site and grilled chicken another day.  Both times we were able to sit at the picnic table and enjoy the beauty of the lake.

While we were there Bubba helped Joe with a few of his farm chores.  We spent a lot of time visiting and catching up.

  Note:  Joe is the foolhardy one on the left.

Judy and I did a little shopping and I was able to get a much needed pedicure while she was having her nails done.  As much as I love pedicures, this was my first one since I retired.  I just haven't been able to work it into my schedule.

We ended up staying four nights and would have stayed longer, but the campground could not accomodate us any longer.  It is spring break in the surrounding counties and people were filling the park up in a hurry.  I got to sit outside and read for a few hours one afternoon and it felt so peaceful and good to enjoy the sunshine after so many dreary days.

When we returned home Saturday afternoon, it looked like spring had sprung while we were gone.  All the azaleas and dogwood are blooming and it looks just beautiful.  Busy days are ahead, but we are enjoying this freedom called retirement.

Diet Status

I have to admit that I'm having a harder time this week with Weight Watchers.  I'm staying on the plan eating absolutely nothing that is not allowed, but feeling hungrier.  In addition, I have no energy.  The first few days of Weight Watchers I experienced a surge of energy.  I don't know if this is part of dieting or if it is due to the strong antibiotic I'm taking in preparation for my root canal on Tuesday. We'll see how it goes.

We ate dinner out last night with Bubba's younger brother, Tim and wife Winifred.  It was good to see them and it was all over with too soon.  We're already looking forward to next time.

Eight Pounds!

Today was my day to "weigh in" and I lost eight pounds!  It has been years and years since I lost that much weight in one week.  I even got a warning from Weight Watchers that eight pounds was too much in one week; however, I'm happy about it.  It's a good start to a diet and gives me encouragement to go on.  I realize that the first week is usually the best so I'll not expect that much in one week again.  It's a good plan and I feel good about being able to stick to it.

The Week After Mardi Gras

This week started out full of optimism and ended in despair.  On Monday evening after a day of travel, I joined Weight Watchers online after a lot of indicision about whether I thought online would work.  The main thing about going to the meetings is having someone hold you accountable for following the program.  I finally decided that Bubba could hold me accountable probably better than a roomful of sympathetic women.  The downside of this is that now he knows how much I weigh.  That is a number that very few women want to share and I hope I don't live to regret it.  The latest version of Weight Watchers has a two week plan based on their power foods.  

This was my breakfast this first morning.  It is plain Greek non-fat yogurt on shredded wheat and topped with strawberries.  I had tried Greek yogurt before but didn't like it.  This time I sprinkled it liberally with Splenda and the extra sweetness actually made it pretty good.

This was Bubba's breakfast that first morning.  Looks good, doesn't it?  The good thing is that I'm not very hungry in the morning anyway so I didn't feel deprived at all.







To make a long story short, I had no problems sticking to Weight Watchers all week long.  On Wednesday, I started the day by walking 30 minutes on the treadmill and then doing 40+ minutes dancing with Richard Simmons on a "Sweating to the Oldies" DVD which is really old, but it still is a good work out.

Everything was going great.  I was having no problems with the Weight Watchers plan and followed through with the exercise program on Thursday.  We had plans to eat with Tim and Winifred on Friday night and were planning to leave on Monday to camp in Opp so we could have a good visit with Joe and Judy.  Joe is still recovering from shoulder surgery and Judy is dealing with a broken foot (again).

Then things changed.  Thursday night I didn't sleep well because of an aching in my jaw.  I had a tooth that was sensitive to any pressure.  I called the dentist office and he called in a prescription for pain killer and antibiotic.  I was scheduled to see him Monday.  We headed out for Panama to see Bubba's sister, Azalea, who had fallen off a ladder trying to trim a limb and broke her leg.  (By the way, Azalea, is 72.)  Well, I was standing in the hospital room and realized that I was feeling like I was going to faint.  I sat down and put down my head, but I was too late to stop it from happening.  When I came out of it, I was on the floor and sweating profusely.  Needless to say I left the hospital room in a wheelchair.

Things went downhill from there.  By Friday evening, my tooth was throbbing with pain and the pain medication did not help it at all.  By the middle of the night I was on the internet looking and trying every home remedy that I could find.  For the record, salt water, peroxide, and tea bags will not stop a tooth from hurting.  On Saturday we got permission to double the pain meds and the antibiotic.  This stopped the pain but caused me to itch like crazy.  Finally I went with a dose of NyQuil and was able to get a decent night's sleep.  Sunday night was even better.

Today I went to the dentist and was advised that I need a root canal which is scheduled for next Tuesday.  I've got more medicine to take until then.  The diet is still going well -- Bubba has already lost six pounds.  I will weigh in the morning and report on my progress.

Mardi Gras Baton Rouge Style (The Real Story)

Okay, you probably know us well enough to know that the first post about Mardi Gras was just my idea of a joke.  We did stay after the family left for Disney World.  We did have a good time although it was a little different from the first version.

We ate at Tommy's Fish House which always has delicious fresh seafood.

This picture of me standing in front of the restaurant is probably why I joined Weight Watchers immediately upon our return to Florida.

We visited the outlet mall in Gonzales as well as a Trader Joe's.  We enjoy visiting a big produce stand that I wish we had one like at home.  Nice produce at good prices.

We enjoyed watching tv.  We rented "Gravity" on Saturday and "Captain Phillips" on Sunday.  In my opinion, "Gravity" was just okay.  "Captain Phillips" was really good.  Afterwards I googled it to see how close the movie was to what actually happened and they really did a pretty good job of telling it.

Monday morning we headed for home.  Traffic on I-10 going towards Baton Rouge was nearly at a stand still for miles because they were moving several Mardi Gras floats down the interstate and that, my friend, is as close as we came to a parade.

Mardi Gras Baton Rouge Style

With our family on the road, we were ensconced in our own little vacation paradise.  And what better place to be during Mardi Gras than Baton Rouge?  (No way are we wild enough to go to New Orleans.)  

When my friend, Bridget, where I used to work heard one of our co-workers was going to Louisiana for Mardi Gras, she gave her my cell phone number so she could contact me while she was there.  Contact me, she did.






They were formerly from the area and were going to be in a parade on

Saturday evening.  They asked us if we would like to join them and we did.  We didn't get a picture of the float itself, but we did get a picture from the float as we travelled the parade route.  What is the facination with those beads?  It was a lot of fun.  Following the parade, my friends had a reception they had to attend, but I gave them Amy and Darryl's address and they said they would come by if they got through in time.  

Although Bubba and I don't care for wine ourselves, we felt like we had an adequate supply on hand for entertaining a few friends.  Apparently the drinking is a big deal with the Mardi Gras festivities so we were sure they would know what to do with this even if we didn't.

They showed up around 9:30.  Connie, the girl in the black dress is my former co-worker.  She is originally from Houma, Louisiana, and was really enjoying her time off.  We certainly felt under-dressed, but enjoyed laughing and talking with them.

Even Bubba was getting into the spirit of things.  Isn't he cute in Amelia's mask?

Of course, he's not as cute as I am.  I know that we stayed up later than we have in years, but that made sleeping in the next morning even more enjoyable.

Note to Amy and Darryl-
We're sorry about the wine.  There was a little dust on the bottles, so you must not need it too badly.  You are also low on cheese, pepperoni, crackers, bacon, eggs, ice cream, oreos, and coffee.

Oh, and we charged two movies to your account.

We had a great time and look forward to next time!

Grandparents' Day 2014

 There is only one thing that would cause us to drive the 400+ miles to Baton Rouge for only a short visit.  It  was time for the annual Grandparents' Day at Amelia's school.  It was going to be a short visit this time because she and Amy are both out of school for Mardi Gras and they were going on a family vacation to Disney World, leaving on Friday evening when Amy got home from school.

We arrived Wednesday evening and enjoyed a delicious dinner of steak, green beans, and risotto with peas in it.  It was a delicious meal and our first time for eating risotto.  I didn't think I would like it, but it was yummy.  And since it was Mardi Gras we had a choice of apple or blueberry cream cheese king cake for dessert.

Amy doesn't teach on Thursday but she had a doctor's appointment and had made a commitment to serve cake at the ground-breaking ceremony for the new playground at Amelia's school.  Bubba and I just stayed at home.  I had offered to help Amy with her laundry because I knew she would probably be up all night washing clothes and trying to get everything packed for her trip.  I didn't count how many loads I washed and folded, but it would have been a couple of months worth of laundry at my house.  Amy was very appreciative and I was glad I was able to help.  Thursday night we went to a musical program at Amelia's school and out to eat Mexican afterwards.  I got Amelia into bed while Amy packed furiously preparing for their trip.

Friday morning we thought we were getting to school early enough to get a good seat for the program, but we had to park two blocks away.  Boy, those grandparents are something else.  They asked who had come the farthest.  I thought it would be us, but there were people there from Kentucky, North Carolina, and even California.

This is the school's annual musical program and each grade had a song and dance they performed.  Amelia's group sang "You've Got a Friend in Me" from "Toy Story".

That's Amelia on the right.  We had a hard time getting pictures.  Some grandparents are really pushy about such things.  (The ones we sat next to did not seem to mind when Bubba crawled out over them to get a better picture.)

I like the way they do their programs here.  They rotate the children while they are singing and dancing so that each one gets their time in the front row.  Amelia takes all this seriously and loves performing.  I predict that we will see her starring in her high school musical one day.

By the time we made our way to the classroom, Amelia's teacher already had them at tables working on a project.  If you liked cherries, you made George Washington.  If you didn't, you made Abraham Lincoln.

I know my eyes are closed, but this is the only picture of us together that day.  That's Amelia's friend, Gabriele, on the right.

Amelia asked us to take this picture.  She loves her friends.  There was a little boy, Jax, who was really upset when his grandparents left.  The teacher was in the floor trying to comfort him and Amelia went right over to assist.  She spoke such soothing words to him -- how sweet.

This is Amelia's teacher.  I really like her.  Amelia says she is "really sweet".  She really bragged on Amelia's reading and her creativity.  I am amazed at how well Amelia can read.  When I was in kindergarten, we learned our ABC's.  She can read all the level one and two readers as well as much of what is in books way above that level.  Since we only had the afternoon with her before she headed for Disney World, we checked her out of school and headed for our usual destination - Chuck-E-Cheese.

On the way something was said about picky eaters.  Amelia said, "My dad told the doctor that I'm a picky eater and that is not true!  Mom got some chocolate chip cookes that were chocolate, and I tried them and I liked them!"

I agree that she is certainly not a picky eater when it comes to sweets.  She is always willing to try a new dessert -- especially if it is chocolate.

We had a good time.  Amelia ended up with 125 tickets.  She was able to get a bracelet with a big jewel on it and a pink "hair" braid to clip in her hair.  She was very pleased with her prizes.

When we got home, I helped her get a bath and into some comfortable clothes for travelling.  Amy came in, Darryl loaded up the car and they were off to Disney World.

Bubba and I stayed behind and took advantage of having the house to ourselves for a little Baton Rouge vacation of our own.

It wasn't long until we began receiving pictures from the vacationers.

I think Princess Amelia is having a wonderful time, don't you?