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Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Quick Update

Hi All,
Sorry I have been so bad about posting lately. Things have been super crazy lately with work, family and just life in general. The summer always seems to fly by so fast. I can't believe it is already the end of July.

We've been pretty preoccupied with family stuff lately. My mom had surgery on her left hand last week and she will need her right hand done before summer ends. She stayed with us for 2 nights so that she would not be alone and we could help her with stuff. For those of you that don't know my mom, she is the energizer bunny and after 2 days strait of not doing much she was out of her mind. She still is because she can't drive and she is stuck at home. She is also worried that the surgery did not work b/c so far her hand does not feel better. I think it is too soon to say though.

Regarding my father, I saw him last week. He looks better physically but is still very week. The past four times I've seen him he's been using a wheelchair and pushing himself with his lefts. That has been kind of weird. Anyway, I think he is slowly making progress but the road ahead will be a long one.

I am very discouraged with my diet b/c I gained 2.9 pounds this week. ERRRRRRRRRRRRR!! Last week I only lost one pound and was really frustrated with that but I never expected to gain this week! I don't know why b/c I followed WW and wrote every single thing down that I ate or drank and I even included the 2 glasses of wine and the Margarita I had on Saturday with Kyle!!! My WW leader kept telling me not to get discouraged but I am!! I thought after using 8 pounds the first week that it would be pretty quick and easy to lose the rest but so far no such luck.

Things are progressing on the adoption front. We are working on gathering pics for profiles that birth mothers will view and we also have multiple applications to fill out for various agencies. November is going to be here before we know it!!! In case you don't remember, we can't have our adoption occur until Mid-November b/c of Kyle's new job. Once he is there for 6 months they will give us $ toward our adoption.

On Thursday I am heading to Cape Cod to see my sister Megan and her family for an overnight. I can't wait. If the weather is good, I'll spend the day on the beach on Friday. I really hope the sun is shining b/c it will probably be my only chance to spend the day on the beach this summer. Plus the beach near her house has a beach wheelchair which makes it a lot easier.

Ok, that is about it for now. I'll try to be better about posting. BTW, thanks everyone for your prayers and diet support. I really appreciate it. Brig- I can't believe that Justin has lost over 50 pounds. That is so awesome. Congrats to you too for your 15. I want to see pics!!!!!! The frustrating thing with Kyle and I is that he's losing and he's not even officially on the diet. I like to say that he's on the diet by default.

Hugs to all my pals. xoxo

Monday, July 14, 2008

Weight Watchers Works!!!

Hi All,
Sorry I haven't posted in almost 2 weeks. Things have been crazy. I'll get to the good news first!!! I lost 8 pounds in one week!! Yeah!! I started Weight Watchers (WW)online one week ago. I was initially planning to just do the online version of WW b/c I knew I had to do something to get back on track and I really didn't want to go weekly to the WW center to get weighed. I thought the online program would be easier for me and I also wasn't sure if my local WW center still had the scale that I made them get a few years ago. Anyway, I had a DR's appointment last Monday and was weighed. I had not been weighed in months and I was BEYOND MORTIFIED at my weight. I gained 20 pounds over the last year and I had no idea that I weighed so much. Anyway, after that frightening realization I knew I had to do something. So, I went to the center tonight after tracking everything I've put in my mouth for the last week and I'm so happy to report that it is working!!! I am just so pumped. So, I have twelve more pounds to go and I'm feeling really motivated. By the way Tami if you are reading this I've been tracking my points with the online tracking tool and I absolutley love it!! It is so much easier that the paper journals.

The great thing about WW is that I don't feel like I'm depriving myself. I had dessert last night, mind you it was pudding with blueberries made with low fat milk but it was still delicious. I also had sour cream potato chips on Saturday. So, Yes I am cutting back but I can still eat the foods I like just in moderation. I even stole a few of Kyle's french fries on saturday but I counted them in my food journal.

The past few weeks have been horrible as far a family crap. I found out that my aunt may have cervical cancer. She means the world to me and I am just so upset about this news. The most upsetting thing is that she knew something was not right with her body and repeatily told her doctor and he/she did not listen to my aunt. ERRRR. Please keep her in your prayers and if you can learn anything from her experience let it be to listen to your body. We know our bodies and when something does not seem right, trust your gut!

On to more depressing news and the main reason I haven't been blogging: my father has been in the hospital since the 4th. As most of you know my father has battled cancer and serious heart issues over the past few years. He is currently in a nursing home/ Rehab and he is non-compliant with his care. He is supposed to be on a strict diet and he's not following that. There is a lot going on but I am too emotionally drained to get into it all. Kyle & I went to Keene on Saturday to see my dad. It is a 2.5 hour drive so that was our whole day. The trips back and forth are also hurting financially b/c gas is so flipping expensive right now!

My dad seemed better on Saturday, but he still has a LONG road ahead of him. My sister Megan & I are heading back to Keene tomorrow for a family meeting at the rehab. He has only been there since Thursday so we are hoping to learn what his treatment plan is and address some of our concerns.

We are still progressing on the adoption front. We have our final meeting with our Social Worker on Wednesday night. We have to meet with her again since we switched to domestic. She will have to rewrite our home study from an international home study to a domestic one. We also have to work on a profile which has pictures of us, our home, extended family, etc for the different adoption agencies to view and any potential birth mothers. We also need to write a "Dear Birth Mother" letter. So things are progressing. Although I do need to check w/ our contact at our adoption agency b/c she never received the check I sent her and it was a certified bank check so I need to figure out what to do. Ugh!!!!
On a happy note, one of the adoption blogs that I frequent daily just got placed with a brand new baby boy. The couple adopted their 2nd child from Vietnam and we planning to adopt a 3rd from Vietnam but then all the issues with Vietnam happened. They were still on the list for Vietnam but they also put their name on the domestic list. It is great to hear this b/c it happened so quickly for them.

Anyway, hope everyone is doing well. I can't believe it is already the middle of July! Where does the time go?

Saturday, July 5, 2008

Great B-day for Caitlin


Hi All,
We had a great 4th. I made Kyle take the picture of me above last night @ 11:00 PM b/c I wanted to showcase my balloons that my nieces Caroline and Lauren bought me. I kept them tied to my chair all day. Yes, I know I am a total dork!!!
The weather was very odd for the 4th but it was still a good day. We are used to hot days and it was pretty chilly for this time of year.
My sister is in from NYC so it has been great to spend time w/ her. Yesterday we headed to my mom's house around 9am. The town I grew up in has a parade and my mom's house is in walking distance to the parade. Generally everyone goes to the parade and then to my mom's house for a cookout. This year we changed things up b/c my mom's carpel tunnel is so bad. We had brunch before the parade and then hung out at my mom's house for about an hour after. I did not attend the parade b/c I'm not really into it. Kyle went with the crew though. Thanks Natalie & Stephanie for stopping by. It was so wonderful to see you both!
After the shindig @ my mom's house we headed home and took a nap four under an hour. Then we headed to my best friend Megan's house (actually her parents) for a great cookout. We played my favorite game sequence and then watched some of the Boston Pops. It was a great B-day. I ate way too much and still felt horrible @ 11:00 pm.
Thank you all for all the nice Birthday wishes. It means a lot. My dad is in the hospital AGAIN w/ heart issues. My sister Meg, Kyle & and I are headed to Keene, NH tomorrow morning to visit him in the hospital. Please keep him and his wife Barbara in your prayers for us. We need all the prayers we can get.
Thanks everyone.

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Having My Voice Heard

Hi All,

A few weeks ago I emailed the the Mayor of Boston about a very frustrating issue I have encountered with Boston Cab Drivers. We have a free paper called the Metro that has a daily Q&A with Mayor Menino. Someone suggested I email him about my issue and I figured "What the heck." I never received a response back and frankly I forgot about it. Today at work a co-worker congratulated me on making the local paper. See the link below. I'll also paste the article in case the link does not work.
http://www.metrobostonnews.com/us/article/2007/09/25/19/3340-72/index.xml

This week's questions


Hello Mayor Menino,

I am a person with a physical disability that works at the Tip O’Neill Federal Building on Causeway Street. I am writing to you about a chronic issue I’ve had with cab drivers blocking the crosswalk and curb cuts in front of the TD Banknorth Garden. I use a wheelchair and I can’t even count how many times I’ve had to ask a cab driver to move off the crosswalk so I can finish crossing the street and get on the sidewalk. Often, the drivers just ignore me. Could you please do something to educate the taxi drivers in Boston about the rules of crosswalks? Thanks for your time.

Sincerely, Caitlin Reilly

Caitlin, with the exception of emergency situations, taxis and other vehicles should never be blocking crosswalks and curb cuts. I will have both Boston police and transportation departments keep an eye out for taxi cabs and any other vehicles blocking the areas you mentioned. Our officers will move the vehicles along and fine them if necessary. If you continue to come across taxi cabs ignoring you, or for any other problem with a taxi in Boston, take down the cab’s medallion number and call the Boston Police Hackney Division at 617-536 TAXI (24 hours a day) and a police officer will assist you. The medallion number can be found on both sides of cab, on the rear and interior of the cab. Fines for illegal parking offenses have just been raised, and now, the fine for parking in front of any curb ramp designed for use by handicapped persons is $100. The fine for parking upon any crosswalk is $85.