***Welcome To The New Cruise Countdown Club***

I spent 2 hours in the dentist chair, but got everything done and ready for the new crowns on the 21st of March. The temporaries he put on look and feel so good I'd almost be willing to just keep them, sure would be a lot cheaper!

Went to the mew Kohls and it was packed, they even had the Chicago country radio station 99.5 there, kinda far out for them to come. I did buy a Jennifer Lopez sweater that is loose weave and has sparkles all through it, it was originally $70 then reduced to $50 and I had a 20% coupon so it wasn't too bad. Also bought a purple ruffled sleeveless top and a black top with designs around the neck. I saved $69 the receipt said and I got a $10 Kohls certificate to be used the next time. Every few feet you walked there was someone asking you if you wanted to get a Kohls card, but I already have one. They were kind of pesty!

Went to church tonight and it was packed. They had the 4th grade school kids sign so all the parents came to listen. The sang with much enthusiasim! It was cute.

I wouldn't like that down my throat either, the things they make you go through, hope it works for him this time. I called for my prescription refill and it needed a doctors renewal, so they faxed the info to her. Today I got a call from the dr's office saying they hadn't seen me in a year and I needed to come in for an appmnt before she could renew my prescription, so I guess thats the next thing I"ll have to do.

The wind was supposed to be calming down around 6 pm but its already 8:30 and its still very windy. Don't forget this Sat night to set you clocks ahead, just heard it on the news.

Sharon, I did hear that about setting the clocks ahead this Saturday. Yes, it was very windy yesterday, thank goodness it is clam today. Wow, it sounds like you got another good deal yesterday at Kohl's. But then again you seem to always find good deals.

Did you hear about the solar flares that are hitting earth today. May disrupt flights and GPS and all sort of signals. I hope nothing too serious. Two hours, that is a long time to be sitting in the dentists chair. I'll bet you were tired out from the work they did.

Kids are great to sit and listen to them sing. They have such tender voices. We are going out tonight to the Chop House near to us for steaks tonight. They have some of the best steaks.

Kathy

The only thing that was tired in the dentist chair was my jaw, keeping it open for so long. Then I had to take a minute and sit on the side of the chair to get my bearings. Being tilted back for so long gets you dizzy if you try and stand too quick.

Had a great zumba class today, found out that the gal who was going to the Grand Geneva zumba class got almost there and remembered that she forgot to put her shoes in her bag. So no one went, guess I didn't miss anything, too bad I didn't know that I wouldn't have felt bad I missed it! After zumba I went to the resort and swam for an hour, well floated around and kicked. Yes it is open, the locker rooms are not completely done yet but they are really pretty, lots of stone and tile work and a new shower and toilet. The steam room and hot tub are also working now. We will have to go, maybe Sunday night so Bill can try it.

I heard about the solar flares, I haven't noticed anything not working, like radio or cell phone though.

Have a good dinner at the chop house, hope Bill is able to eat everything he wants to.

Sharon, I would have been the same way sitting in the dentists chair that long. We had a good night out last night and we both had good steaks. He was OK. Another nice day here today. A little on the cool side, but next week holds 60's and 70's the entire week.

What are your plans for the weekend? For us I do not really know at this point. I have been super busy at work and with him in the past few days even more pressure.

I'll bet you are glad the resort is back open. Go to enjoy and relax as much as you can. Any decision about getting away like you were talking about?

Kathy

That was good you had a nice evening out and tasty steaks as well! We are going dancing tonight, haven't been for 2 weeks, both Fridays before it snowed. The gal who does the line dance lessons is supposed to be there so it should be fun with a lot of dancing. Not sure about tomorrow what we are doing, but Sunday Bill got us tickets for a restaurant that is serving corned beef and cabbage and roasted chicken. It's supposed to benefit some orgainization.

I'm looking forward to next week too with the warmer weather, that wind is cold again today. I haven't made any plans yet for Tx, but did tell Bill that we needed to go. The Zumba gal in Jamaica has been putting pictures up of all the things they are doing and it really looks like fun. She is such a good instructor I bet they will want her to come back.

We got our taxes back so that is out of the way for another year.

Try not to let the pressure get to be too much, I know that is easier said then done. It's always hard when you have to not only have that work pressure but then have to worry about your DH when you get home. Maybe after next week they will have a better handle on it and he can start getting better.

Sharon, once they get the results of the test back and know how much acid he has then they can proceed to schedule the surgery. How was the dancing last night? Your former instructor will not want to come back to reality. I am sure they would love for her to stay. But it probably gets real hot there in the summer.

Sunday the tickets to eat some good food should be a good afternoon out. You have probably heard that they brought back the South Side Irish Parade. It was always promoting much crazy drinking and trouble. We are not going but it will be interesting to see how well they control it this year. There are those who need an excuse to drink and act crazy.

How about going to the resort on Sunday. Is that still in the plans? Have a great weekend.

Kathy

Had a great time last night, lots of line dancing which was good because Bill said he was so tired and didn't really want to dance very much. Of course today he is all hyped up to go the the resort for dinner and the DJ and do some dancing. Tomorrow we will go eat the corned beef and cabbage and then go to the resort and try out the steam room and pool, he will do the hot tub, but I don't like to do that very much. It is very windy here today, I'm really getting tired of it blowing all the time so much!

This afternoon I went up to the library they were having a book sale. I bought 15 paperbacks, 3 hard cover books and 6 audio tapes, all for $12. Then I got to thinking I should go get more audio tapes, I could listen to them while I walk, so I went back. I saw several others that had came back also, and now at 2pm the price was $5 for all you could fit in a bag. Well I had 2 big boxes full of tapes and books and she only charged me $10. So I have enough to read for quite a while, but at a good savings.

Yes I heard about the parade, you are right some people don't know when to stop drinking and get carried away, they ruin it for eveyone else! Lets hope this year they keep it under control.

Sharon, on Saturday I went to Carson's and tuned in 8 pieces of clothing and got 8 20% certificates in return. So I bought tops and some Capri's. Some were on sale and then you take additional 20%, so that was something good.

It sounds like you did very good at the library with the books and the tapes. How was the resort yesterday and how about the corned beef as well. We might go to a St Pat's party on Friday that includes dinner as well. This was also a charity event that I bought tickets to a while back.

This week temps will be nothing lower than 60, and the rest of the time in the 70's. But it is still very windy here today.

Kathy

The corned beef was ok, nothing special, we have tickets for another corned beef benefit tonight so hopefully it will be better. The pool at the resort was great as was the steam room, very nice and eveything was clean. We'll see how long they keep it that way.

Yesterday I went with 2 other zumba gals to Grand Geneva where our regular zumba instructor was subbing for someone. She said just tell them you are with me and you don't have to use up one of your passes. So it worked great, we had the class then went in the pool to cool of and then into the hot tub. A very nice day. Today I went again to zumba as she was subbing for someone today also, but just at the regular place, which is just a park building. Tomorrow going to the flower show at Navy Pier and have spent all afternoon tryint to figure out how to go without getting lost! A friend is going with me and she said today that she has never ridden on a train. We will take the train in to the Oglivie Transp. Center and then try and connect with the #124 bus to Navy Pier. Sounds like it shouldn't be too complicated if we can find the right bus.

Dancing tonight after the dinner, seems like it has really been busy the last couple of days!

Good going on the clothes, I usually get some of the coupons too, but have not been to Bergners or Boston Store (what its called in WI) to get anything. Last buying trip was at Kohls, where I got several nice things at a discount.

Sharon, I have been out of action here for the past few days. Yesterday when I got back from downtown my Internet was off so I was not able to post. On Tuesday the jerk in STIL was calling and asking me how to set up his IPad. I informed him I had never set his up to begin with that has other wife had done that. It is kind of a joke around here as this woman whom he has been seeing for the past 16 years and he is never going to merry her. So I am sometimes referred to as his other wife for all that I do for him.

Yesterday we went down to get the tube inserted into and down his throat. They knocked him out to do that and did some testing and removed it and then put another tube down that he came home with yesterday. So this afternoon he will go back down and get it removed and wait for the results.

Well it sounds like this time you had a good class up in WI with the other gals. Too bad you could not go to the flower show on the weekend, otherwise I would have met you there. Let me know how it all went especially with the train and bus. Sure has been nice weather.

Kathy

Thats funny about 'the other wife", I bet you do have to do a lot for him. I had Best Buy set up my tablet when I bought it, only took the gal a few minutes to get it done, me would have taken hours.

How is Bill doing with the tube down his throat, can he feel it, bet he will be glad to get it out!

The other corned beef dinner we had on Tuesday was much better and they had dessert and an Irish band there. After dinner I went to line dancing, after 2 hours my feet and legs were really tired.

The train and the bus worked just fine. My friend Pat said she had never ridden on a train before so it was a new experience for her. When we got out of the Ogilvie station we just had to cross the street and get the #124 bus to Navy Pier. We ate at a nice restaurant with a great view of the lake, then went on to the flower show. They had some really pretty displays. I bought a bamboo water fountain, it has to be delivered because he didn't have any and they were back ordered. I should get it around the end of April he said. Then I"ll have to get a really big pot to put it on. He charged me $80 including the delivery for the fountain and the pump. I didn't think that was too bad, although I have never priced them anywhere. He said they were the distributors and nursery and flower stores carried them. We didn't realize that the bus takes longer to go back to the station then to get to the pier so we missed the train we were going to take back. It worked out good though because the 5:16 we got was an express so not so many stops. It would have been nice to meet you down there, one day hopefully we can get together.

Sharon, I called him a little while ago and he is doing fine. He said it was no problem having it removed. He went back down 2 hours earlier than when he was supposed to go, because he wanted to avoid the traffic. He could feel it while swallowing and the monitor that he wore around his neck was not the best for comfort. So now I am sure he is glad it is over. Now he just has to wait for the results and for the scheduling of the surgery.

It sounds like everything worked out fine for the flower show. If it could have been done on the weekend. I thought we might be able to talk our Bill's to accompany us and those two could amuse themselves. There will be other opportunities down the road.

We are going to a fund raiser on Saturday and the fair will be corned beef and cabbage. It sure is a nice day today.

Kathy

I forgot all about having a dr appmnt this afternoon, luckily I looked at the calendar around 1pm and saw it at 3:45. It was just to get my prescriptions refilled since she hadn't seen me for about a year. She gave me a pnuemonia shot, said I should have one now while I'm not sick and told me to schedule an appmnt for a bone density test and blood work. I used to take Fosamax for years, then they came out and said after 5 years it wouldn't do any good and might actually cause harm. Now I don't take anything so she wants to see if I have lost any bone. Also I'm going to stop taking my cholesterol pill for 2 weeks and see if I feel any different. It seems I am so stiff when I get up from sitting only a little while. Cholesterol medicine can damage muscle tissue so thats why we are seeing if there is a difference or not.

When I got home Bill had turned on the outside water and gotten the hoses out. It hit 80 degrees this afternoon. Then we ate dinner and went to the resort. The steam room was great and so was the pool. Only one young couple was there when we arrived and they left soon after. Then just as we were leaving around 9:15pm 6 more people came in, so we timed it just right for a relaxing time.

That would have been fun for all 4 of us to get together! Maybe after Bill gets his surgery and is all better we can arrange something.

I was looking into the flights from Ohare to Dallas then Dallas to San Antonio then back to Ohare, price was $878.00. Thats without a car or hotel, so its way too high a price, we might just have to settle for going to Dallas for the birthday party and do the other a separate trip some other time.

Sharon, very lucky you checked you schedule to see you had the appointment. I never heard that about Cholesterol that is something one should know. It sounds like you did get lucky at the resort. I do not like a lot of people running around either when I am at a pool.

We are supposed to go to Hawaii next Wednesday. We are also flying on his passes. With the merger being complete now they have changed a lot of things and made it more difficult for us to fly now. So he has to look and see how everything looks and that will determine if we go or not. Also a lot will depend what the Dr says from the test and when he schedules the surgery.

That is a lot of money for such a short time. So what do you think you are going to do? I cannot believe this weather. He is also taking out our hose and draining all of the gas out of the snow blower today. Tomorrow they are coming to clean our pond and start it up for the season. One month early for that. I think he said he is going to buy fertilizer and put it down on the grass today.

I went last night after work and got a pedicure and manicure for our upcoming trip. If all goes right we will be drinking Mi Ti's on the beach in front of the Hilton Hawaiian Village next week.

Kathy

I hope everything works out for you so you can get to Hawaii, would be great to get away for a little while for both of you.

I reversed the order from ORD to DFW to SAT to ORD and the price is a little cheaper. So starting out in San Antonio wouldn't be a bad idea, going to check it out with Bill and see what he thinks. I had also looked at the wrong dates thinking she would have his party the weekend before, but she is having it the weekend after on May 5th. Still would need to get hotels and car rental.

Beautiful day again today!

We got a lot done yesterday, Bill got the mowers going and rototilled the garden, I cut down the old asparagus stalks and the mums. Now everything can get a little more sun and bloom. We were so tired and had aching muscles from all the bending and stretching.

Well you only have a couple of days left until you get to go, hope it works out and they can schedule anything medical that needs to be done when you get back.

Going to look for flights again today and tomorrow, I heard that the rates sometimes go down on Tues or maybe it was Wed?

Sharon, we are leaving tomorrow morning. We are getting picked up at 7:30 and the flight leaves at 10 am. Direct into HNL. So it is going to be a long time crammed in coach. We return home from SAN on April 1.

So you have it all figured out what you want to do with the flights, but you have not purchased your tickets yet? I have been so busy at work, I did not get home yesterday until after 8. One reason my car would not start and I had to call to get a jump. I am going to have to get a new battery.

How about this weather. Can you ever remember being this warm so early. It is nice at night cooling off. I can't believe weeds are cropping up already.

I will try to check in once in a while. Enjoy the weather.

Kathy

Thats sounds wonderful!! Have a great trip--enjoy and relax!

I got our flights and the hotel in San Antonio, still need the hotel in Ft Worth/Dallas area and a car.

We will leave just before you get back, but only going for a week, can't leave Tinker too long.

Hope our grass doesn't need cutting before we go but I bet it does. I love this weather, sure beats 30's and 40's.

Hope you are enjoying beautiful Hawaii, thought I better post a little somethimg to keep us on the first page.

Sharon, we got home yesterday. The weather in Hawaii was great. San Diego was much cooler. The flights were rough, and Bill was getting sick a lot. I am back to the grind today so things are crazy.

I guess you on a short vacation. I hope everything works out OK. Enjoy and we'll talk more when you return.

Kathy

Hadn't been checking in, so was surprised to see that you are back. I was thinking you were coming back next week for some reason. Thats great the weather was good, Bill's daughter was out there to see her son and it rained the whole time. Too bad about your Bill not feeling good, hard to enjoy a vacation like that! Is he getting something done pretty quick now that you are back? Bet you have a lot of work to catch up on, they always seem to save it for you.

We had Bills bday party last Saturday and all the kids/spouses/signifacant others/grandchildren and great grandchild were there. Twenty-seven all together. We had a whole room, but they only gave us one waiter and he just couldn't handle the job. Even though he took the order around the table, he didn't have enough of the right kinds of soup, didn't put bread, butter, cheese or sour cream on the table without us asking and got all the prime ribs mixed up so that the ones who ordered it rare got well done and vice versa for the others! They diffenetly lost a big account, we will not go back there again. Next time will go to a buffet where everyone can get there own.

Glad you are back!

Forgot to say, we haven't been anywhere yet= not until the end of the month.

Sharon, that was going to be my next question, where you were. Maybe it does not sound like it, but we were gone 2 weeks. That was pretty crummy to have poor service for the party. Lesson learned, as I would not go back either, they will get the message the hard way.

He got a call from the nurse today and she is going to check with the Dr., to see when they will do the surgery. I was right next to him the entire time and I saw first hand how he gets sick at the drop of dime. As I am usually at work and I am not around him all day. So I could not see how he gets sick.

It is always good to get away, but always good to get back home again. After you are gone so long, it feels good to sleep in your own bed.

I hope all is well with you and Bill.

Kathy

Yesterday when I went to stand up I got a cramp on one side of my lower back. I tried to keep moving to work it out, but last night after sitting and watchin TV, I could hardly move without it "zinging" me. I took one of Bills Hydrocodone pills he had when his neck was so stiff and it helped me sleep, but it is not any better today. I can't bend over at all and if I just move the wrong way it all tightens up and hurts. I know there is nothing to do for it but wait it out, hopefully it won't take too many days.

One of Bill's daughters invited his sister over for Easter dinner when she was at the bday party. We kept thinking she would also invite us but as of yesterday she hadn't. I got tired of waiting so made reservations for brunch at a restaurant. She's going to be surprised when she finally does as us that we are busy. She's the one that had us over for Thanksgiving and didn't open the Fruit basket we took. Her husband goes to WW and both her and her daughter keep their weight down, so no one hardly ate anything, so we didn't feel we could either. Going to the buffet we can eat as much as we want! Speaking of which, how are you and your daughter doing with the nutritionist?

Hope it doesn't freeze tonight, our cherry trees are blooming and the asparagus is coming up.

Sharon, my daughter has been loosing weight while I was gone. I fear that with all of the drinking especially those Mia Tia's . I hope I can get back on it next week, but now I am afraid to even look at any scale.

From all of the planes we were on, 6 total. My back has not been doing very well either while on the trip. The seats on the planes are no all that comfortable especially for a bad back. I hope you can get some relief. How about going to the resort and getting into the spa for a while?

I think that is good that you are doing your own thing on Easter. Why wait for someone who really does not appreciate you. They all decided while we were away, that everyone will go to my # 2 daughter's house for Easter brunch. She lives close to us so that is our plan for Sunday.

A little cooler today and yes, I hope we do not get frost.

Kathy