This is me side-eyeing erika's father.

Get well soon, E.

sj, I'm sorrry you have had so much pain today.

Boo, hiss, IBS.

Today was the first day I have been able to eat on the small meals often plan where I had something remotely like a good balance worked out. I was all set up for carby, cheesy, sandwichy snack-type mini-meals from before. My ordinary lunches and dinners tend to feature boatloads of vegetables. If I'm not going to cook my usual boatload of veggies, then I needed to lay in stock of more raw veg to grab quickly. And I had to think ahead and bring stuff to work. Still, I think it worked. No nausea, no feeling Thanksgiving feast full on an ordinary meal, no feeling weak and sick. Thank you, Laura.

Sorry about E, and also sorry you had a rough day, sj.

Was she the one I met one time?

And yes, that is the grandmother you met. Any Buffista who came to my house when I lived in CT met her. Thanks for your sympathies.

ETA: I moved out to L.A. almost 11 years ago. That seem unpossible. /ralphwiggins

Still, I think it worked. No nausea, no feeling Thanksgiving feast full on an ordinary meal, no feeling weak and sick. Thank you, Laura.

So good to hear. I wasn't organized enough on my week trip out of town to stick to it and didn't feel as good. Back on track now.

Thanks, Pix and WS. Today is a little better. It took a while, but I was finally able to get some sleep. Today is the first day this week that we don't have any visitors. So, we're going to stay in our pjs and snuggle, as soon as mama has some tea and wakes up.

Pix, she seemed like quite a woman.

Feel better, WS.

My condolences, Pix. I'm glad I got the chance to meet her.

So, we're going to stay in our pjs and snuggle, as soon as mama has some tea and wakes up.

Excellent plan! I hope the day is restful and renewing.

Condolences Pix.

sj hope you are feeling better soon. A day of snuggling sounds like heaven!

askye it is so hard when the kids are sick and they are normally so active. Mono is no fun. Hope you can get some alone time to recharge.

WindSparrow I second what Laura said. It is hard stuffing food in your mouth when you aren't hungry. I've found that the small meals help. The thing I dislike about menopause is my metabolism seemingly got cut in half and I'm almost never hungry but without food I get so tired and head-achy. Oh, and the nighttime hot flashes. I either don't notice them during the day or they only happen at night which makes it hard to get a good night of sleep. On the positive side, no more periods!

DH and I went to Cheyenne mountain zoo and had so much fun. Feeding giraffes! Feeding elephants! My DH loves elephants so getting that close to one was really special for him. We also got to feed the birds from popsicle sticks. There were so many! They would hop onto the stick and eat a bit of food then another would fly down and eat a bit. Lather, rinse, repeat. The sticks only had a little amount of food on them but that would feed 8 to 10 of the beautiful little critters. They have 8 wallabys (wallabi?) that roam about freely in their exhibit and some would even come and play with us! Of course staff was present to keep us and the animals from getting hurt. I was surprised by the fact that every single exhibit had staff and would answer questions and give information on each of the animals. Each staff member is assigned one type of animal so they really knew everything about them including the names and personalities of each one. We spent 6 hours there and only saw about half of the zoo. Oh, and they teach the elephants yoga to keep them agile and calm.

The thing I liked was they only used positive reinforcement with the animals unlike at some other zoos and circuses (I refuse to go to the circus because of the way they treat the animals.) I have some issues with animals in captivity since they are not in their natural habit and are only around for our entertainment. I am able to deal a little better knowing they were bred in captivity and know nothing about being wild. Plus DH loves any and every critter so getting to see him so excited to interact them was a joy for me. Had a great day!

That sounds like a lovely experience with the animals, Becky.

Oh boy am I looking forward to no more periods, but I suspect I have a few more years of wackiness before I'm comepletely done with 'em. Thanks, everyone, for the encouraging words.

I really enjoyed seeing your pics, Pix.

We found a treasure trove of old photos cleaning out my dad's house in a travel bag that belonged to my great aunt. Haven't had a chance to look through them yet but the few I saw looked awesome.

That was probably the best part of the whole nasty job. Finding so many stashes of photographs everywhere. Nearly all the family photos we had in albums or frames were damaged or destroyed in a flood a few years back and it seemed like so much of our history was lost. Go team disorganization!

So the high school graduation party is tonight after work. The location is actually closer to me here at work than home is, just one freeway exit north of me, over the point of the mountain into the next valley.

But the last time I drove into the Salt Lake Valley was on a high speed run to the hospital, and a doctor telling me to hurry. And it hurts so very much.