Merry Christmas!

Just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and hoping Santa was good to you :)

Have a great day!
Debbie

Thanks Debbie! I would like to wish Everyone a Merry Christmas, too!! :D

http://www.americangreetings.com/ecards/view.pd?i=451363624&m=1620&source=ag990

Joey

Merry Christmas to everyone here on the Mid-Atlantic Forum. It has been a wonderful year and have enjoyed the chance to meet many of you in person. I am really looking forward to next year and the hope that I will get to meet more of you in person. Such a wonderful group of friends.
Debbie & Joey, Ric got me a new camera for Christmas can't wait to see what I will be able to do with it. It's got a lot more Zoom & Marco than the other one did.

A very Merry Christmas to all my friends in the mid-atlantic!

A special prayer and blessing to each of you that the new year will bring you all you hope and wish for.

May God bless each and every one!

Happy Holidays!

Karen

Merry Christmas everyone. I have had a very nice day today. Both sons were here. The older son brought his wife and six month old daughter. The six month old was in a great mood and seemed to be having a really good time. She is at such a fun stage now.

I believe that everyone enjoyed the ham, turkey, sweet potato casserole, stuffing, lima beans, cranberry sauce, rolls and desserts. Yummy!!!

I hope that everyone has had an extra special good day today.

Ruby

Merry Christmas to all and a healthy safe New Year to come. Love you guys!

Christmas blessings and best wishes for a healthy and happy New Year--look forward to meeting y'all in 2008!

Same here Plantmover and we love you too Chris.

Ruby

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. Chris, I've been thinking about you and hope you're doing well.

Hi all, I went to the doctors again today, another mamo. It was unchanged so that is good. I am feeling great, taking my pill everyday, just hope it is doing it's thing on the old bones.
Before this all started in 05 I found out I have 3 degenerating disks in my lower back. Last week they started acting up again, that was probably due to slipping on the ice an falling on my butt, then about a week later a friend was driving me home after a cookie baking party and we were rear-ended when we stopped for some deer crossing the road. After hobbling around and sitting in the hot tub and icing the back I am feeling better.
Ok, 2007 is almost over, bring on 2008. (she says with a fighting stance and fist up ready for a fight) bring it on!!

2008, let's make it great!
Happy holidays to all !
Now where did I hide the seed catalogs?

Happy happy holidays!

LOL Sally, I was just thinking, Well Christmas is over the seed cats will be comming soon.

I've already gotten five, count em five, from the Randolph Wisconsin conglomerate. Funny how they do all those different 'looks' to appeal to different customers. I throw them away and hide the good ones until all my Xmas is 'done'

Chris, have you seen the Homedics shiatsu back massaging pad? I got one last year and it's the only back massager I've had that really does help with the pain. They have a new one out now that has heat as well. I can't recommend them highly enough. I don't know how I functioned before I had mine.

http://www.amazon.com/Homedics-SBM-300H-Therapist-Shiatsu-Massaging/dp/B000QTVR16/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=hpc&qid=1198779540&sr=1-2 (There's a $10 off deal on this page)

That's great news about your mamo. You're a wonder, lady.

Hart, I do have a heat & massager in my car, the heat really is nice driving home at night when its cold out. I was using the heating pad at home but I think the ice is the answer. The Homedics one is a nice one.

Chris, this is nothing like any massager you've ever tried. The heat is optional but I can only urge you to try it.

I've had every kind of back massager put out on the market I think. None have done anything to really help. They might help for a few minutes but the pain comes back. I can use this for 15 minutes and my back pain is gone.

I am embarrassed to admit that last year at some point I purchased two of these seat type massagers. Since arriving here they have been stored in the spare room closet. I never used them the first time. I guess that you can guess that back pain isn't my main complaint. ha-ha

You are doing such a nice job marketing these things Hart, that I might go dig mine up and hook it up on the corner of the couch where I sit. Ha-ha, I believe also that somewhere and sometime on these boards you were telling the joys of the "roomba." I also ordered one of those which has never come out of the box. I bad!!!

A person would think that I have more money than I have sense, but that isn't the case. The real story is that I have "impulse" issues. ha-ha No one else is allowed to laugh at me, only I am allowed. What a hoot I am now that I think about it. ha-ha

And no......I haven't been in the eggnog this morning, just feeling goofy for some reason. Maybe just giddy that the "big" day is over ad every one survived. I hope that everyone else is doing well. Have a good weekend all.

Ruby

Ladygardener, I'm happy to hear that your tests were clean and that you're feeling well.

I have degenerative discs in my lower back as well. They flare up from time to time (for the past 20 yrs) and I've "tried it all" as well. For me, it ultimately comes down to stretching, ice, and chiropractic, but I also get regular massage and acupuncture. I do love hot baths and heated car seats, but when my back is on fire, ice is what helps soothe it. Running is also helpful for loosening up my back and getting it feeling better, believe it or not.

Happy Holidays

Ric & I were talking about setting up somekind of watering arrangement down in the veggie garden either pvc or soaker hose so that we don't have to keep dragging the hose down between rows of plants.
The extension office had plans to build rain barrels. Wonder if I can still find them the plans showed everything you would need to get and how to put it together. Very simple

Holly, if you do get the plans for the rain barrels, would you post them or dmail them to me, please? I meant to put some together last year, but that never happened. I understand that old olive barrels (etc.) from the restaurant industry are excellent for this treatment, but I haven't found a supplier yet. I refuse to purchase ready-made rain barrels given their prices... :)

Ruby, LOL, I do love gadgets but there are only a few I rave about. Roomba is one and these shiatsu massagers are another. I can only suggest you try it and see how different it is. Instead of vibrating like most back massagers these have rolling balls that feel about as close to a real massage as you're going to find.

By the way, be careful when you do try it and don't overdo the first day or two you use it. It felt so wonderful, I stayed on it too long and it actually made me sore. That doesn't happen if you don't overdo it at first.

When I had access to a pool and could swim laps several times a week, that did more good for my back than anything. Swimming puts no strain on your joints. But I don't have access to a pool any more.

You should get that Roomba out too, Ruby. LOL It's great to be able to vacuum the living room while doing something else.

Wrightie, I'll be moving my plants back down into the living room next week, they go upstairs when I put up my Christmas tree. Once the plants are out of the craft/storage room I'll be able to get in there and actually look for them. I know I still have them somewhere in that room. If you don't need them before maybe I could bring them to Critters seed swap.

Oh gosh, I'm certainly in no hurry, Holly! I've got far too many projects on my plate to get to! ... and before long, we'll have a new puppy in the house, so that will take even more of our time. No rush!

Rain barrels- I heard once you could go to a Coke plant (Laurel?) and get blue barrels for about 5 bucks. try this link for instructions- beginning with some slides about it as it is a presentation format.
http://www.arlingtonecho.net/pdf_files/barrelppt.pdf

This message was edited Dec 28, 2007 3:10 PM

Good idea. I think that there's a coke or pepsi plant on Kennilworth, near Rt. 50.

I about choked when I saw someone paying over 100 bucks each for two of the fancy pretty ones

Wrightie, Those flared up discs can be pretty painful, I have been good for a long time and then wham! I don't keep my hot tub above 100º in winter but the massaging jets and the buoyancy of the water seem to help, I get some stretching done in there.

Holly, I go with the soaker hose, I lay it on a few sheets of newspaper and secure it with u shaped pins to keep it in place, set out my veggie plants, then cover it with mulch/compost that way I am not dealing with a lot of weeds. I do remove it every year and store it so it is not damaged by our cold winters. I've had the same hose for maybe 10 years. The mulch also protects it from the suns rays.

Sally, I did the same thing. I saw them for sale somewhere and thought oh maybe I'll just buy one. Then I saw the price tag and almost fell over.
Ladygardener, That's the kind of thing we were thinking of. Ric's looking at putting a piece of pvc pipe across the head of the garden and then attaching several sections of drip hose to the pvc that run down thru the garden in rows. We have been working at reclaiming the veggie garden the last two years. Since we haven't been doing much veggie growing we just let that area go and didn't even mow it. I have an asparagus bed, raspberries and some mints. Sometimes I'd throw in a few pumpkins and gourds and sunflowers that I would leave for the birds but most part it was just a huge section of perineal weeds. Two years ago I cleaned out a spot for some pumpkins and then this year Ric & I really made a big effort and cleared out most of it.

Chloe sends a belated but heartfelt - Merry Christmas!!

What a Christmas doll!

She is precious!!!!

oh Chantell, did you take that? You should go pro, really. Totally sweet

What a doll baby!!! I will have to see if I can figure out how to post a picture of my six monrth old granddaugher, Emily. Will make a note to do so soon. Thanks Chantell and where have you been lately? You are missed.

Ruby

Ya'll are sweet...thank you! She's turning into quite the little person - cutie pie that she is!!! Sally thank you but - I had to use a higher speed and it's actually a very "grainy" shot - lots of noise - I should try and fix it...ugh!
Ruby - please do post some pics of your baby!! Not seen any since he was only a few days old, I think. It's been busy busy at the house and I probably already mentioned this but decided after my bday (in Oct.) that is was time to get serious about healthy eating and exercise...so many evenings I'm at the gym....what fun!!! LOL

Good for you. Sounds like you are really serious about the health issues. My clothes are getting tighter and tighter every day. I may wake up one day and decide that I need a bit more discipline in my life also. I will give you a call for some hints.

Good job Chantell.

Ruby

Ruby - thank you...you're always such a good encourager (is that a word?)!!! Can't imagine YOU with any extra weight let alone clothes getting tight! I actually survived the holidays with no major damage...down 26 pound now....many more to go..ugh!

You happened to see me at my thinnest. Weight has always been an issue for me. I was always the heaviest girl in my elementary school classes. Today, the weight that I was then, is the norm. We are growing larger and larger people.

You can do it Chantell. The getting started was the hard part and that is way behind you now. Keep us updated. Good news on making it through the holidays without too much damage.

Ruby

"We are growing larger and larger people." Ain't that a fact?!?! When my kids were younger and in elementary school I was always amazed that the numbers of "kids" that were my height OR taller....mercy!!!

That's funny...I haven't felt that way....................

LOL ! But I did meet a seventh grader who was well past me!