AnneLyze

I'm sitting here this morning reflecting back on my week and it's quickly obvious to me that the recurring theme is gone. So much in my life is either going or has gone this week, both good and bad. Let me explain. I watched Ted Kennedy's Memorial Service last night on CNN. I shook his hand in 1980 when he was running for President. He spoke at Dover City Hall. He came with his wife Joan and son Patrick. It was a little like watching a rock star. He was the greatest Senator in my lifetime. And now he is gone. Wouldn't it be nice if all the bullshit flying around about Health Insurance be gone and something real and affordable be put in place. Sam left yesterday to go back to college. I really liked having him home this summer. He has been a blessing this week. He has grown into a such a nice man and I cried when he left. His room is empty of stuff he wanted and cluttered with all the crap he didn't. Oh Sam. He is gone. Ben turned 13 on Thursday. ...

Ben will be 13 on August 27, a teenager. He is in the S phase of boyhood; smelly, sullen, snotty, self centered, silent, starving, skinny, smartmouthed, sensitive, silly and yes, even sweet. He is the child I never thought I'd have and while I want to choke him almost daily, he brings so much to my life. I am so filled with love for this boy and I can't imagine my life without him. School starts on September 8. Ben hates school and always has. He is going into 8th grade and 8th grade orientation is on his birthday. Ben is not happy. "How could they do that to me?" He likes seeing his friends every day, likes gym, lunch and playing soccer, but would happily skip the rest. It's boring. His biggest complaint this summer has been about reading. "It's vacation, why do I have to read? I'm already good at it, why do I have to practice it? It's not right that they get to ruin my summer vacation by making me read!" I reminded him t...

For my entire career I have had the honor of taking care of people with cancer. Most of my patients are older with the average age in their sixties. I had never wanted to take care of kids. I thought it would be too hard. A year and a half ago I started to work part time for Anthem Home Infusion Services. They have a large Pediatric clientele and I took the job dreading the day I would have to take care of the kids with cancer. A year and a half later they are my favorites. Jeff has bone cancer in his right arm. He was diagnosed when his little brother pushed him off his bike and the arm broke. He calls his little brother his hero. Jeff has finished a year of intense chemotherapy and numerous surgeries. He is tall and skinny, with a huge smile and a mouth full of braces. He is 13 and amazingly enough grew about 5 inches this past year, something he proudly proclaims every time I see him. Jeff loves the Baltimore Colts and the Boston Red Sox. He recently visited Fenway and got to meet N...

My new favorite morning drink: 1 cup very cold water 1 cup skim milk 1 packet no sugar added chocolate Carnation Instant Breakfast 1 splenda 1 heaping tablespoon instant espresso 1 heaping tablespoon unsweetened good quality cocoa Blend 160 calories, 0.5 grams fat, 4 grams of fiber

Part of my goal in 2009 was to reclaim my physical self or in other words get back in shape. I ripped out a picture from a magazine of Olympic Gold Medalist Dara Torres. Maybe you've seen the ad, the one for milk. She's a swimmer, I'm a swimmer. She's in her early 40's, I'm kind of in my early 40's. Now when I grow ten inches, I might have a million to one shot of having her body. Many people think she's too muscular, but I think strong is the new beautiful. Anyway I had an inspiration, probably unrealistic, but I can dream. As I was walking this morning, I reflected back on my week of exercise and my goals for the year. My goal this week was to exercise 7 times. I swam three times, walked four times, did weights once and went to BOOTCAMP Saturday morning. I love to swim, I love to walk and even weights are kind of fun. Swimming is great outside on hot days. The water is cool and it just feels great. I'm a natural swimmer...

After leaving Jiminy Peak, we headed to Wilmington, Vermont to meet my family at Dot's Restaurant. No surprise,I got there early and we found a place to park in a free lot down the street. I gave our name at the door and told them it would be nine of us. Shortly after a man from the restaurant informed me that we couldn't have a table for nine but eight was ok. I told him we would figure it out. Mom and Martha got there next. Mom hugged me hard and clung to me whispering how much she loved me and kissing my cheek repeatedly. It was almost an automatic reflex to push her away, but I tampered it down and just gently extracted myself. She couldn't believe how much weight I'd lost and I replied, "I would have told you more about it but you always talk about how much you have lost". She looked hurt and I felt mean. That's us in a nutshell. She clings and I want to run, but ultimately it's all about Mom. Don and Nancy got there nex...

Welcome to my life. I hope to add new blogs a couple of times a month. The guys and I are up at Jiminy Peak for a long weekend. Jiminy Peak is located in Hancock, Ma and is a ski resort that has a summer adventure park. Yesterday it poured rain all day and we just hung out. I read a trashy novel and started to plan my blog. Today was hot and sunny and we throughly enjoyed all that Jiminy Peak had to offer. We loved the Alpine Coaster. Ben fell off the Alpine Sled and got scrapped up. He was going too fast and tipped out. I got stuck behind slow pokes each time, but it was so much fun to go fast when I could. Tomorrow we are meeting Mom, Martha, and Nancy for lunch in Wilmington. Then we go home. So much of my energy and thinking since January has been about losing weight. I have lost 50lbs. This weekend, I thought about eating light and healthy, but ate what I wanted. Not sure why or what I was doing, but I will be happy to get home and get back to work. I will seek forgiveness and t...