I had a similar experience with the puppy joining me on my mat work. I love the tummy rubs, but not the chewing on my mat. 😅

I just got in a really nice strength and stretch work-out this afternoon while watching the Australian Open men's finals match. The work-out felt great! I'm going to gradually build this up to 3x/week. Also got in a second dog walk in the woods.

Good luck! Hope it all goes well.

@Soror You've come a very long way in the last year. Congratualtions for all the time and effort you've put in, working through all the physical pain!! @Laura Corin I really hope you are feeling better for your holiday! @Wheres Toto Great job with eating healthy, being active and losing weight! @bookbard All the best with balancing the physical activity and eating! It's challenging. ------------------------------------------------------------ I played 2 hrs of really fun doubles tennis. It felt so good to get back after an entire week away. I also got in a dog walk in the woods yesterday and today. Again, really nice to get out again after missing 2 days. The dogs were really getting wild without their walks, but the freezing rain just wouldn't stop.

I'd bring him to your pediatrician or family doctor. Bathroom issues are definitely up there with things that need to be addressed medically and in a timely manner. There are a lot of different things that might be at play, and a good dr will help narrow down the causes.

I got in a really nice, long dog walk in the woods with dd yesterday afternoon. Really glad we did, as there was freezing rain last night and today there is a very thick layer of ice over everything. The puppy was afraid to walk on the ice to go potty this morning, but I chopped through enough ice so all the dogs could walk a little easier. No walk in the woods today. 😌

This would be my border collies!

Sadly, tennis was cancelled last night, which worked out well as I wasn't feeling great. I'm much better this morning, and heading out for a dog walk in the woods now.

All the best!!

I understand your anxiety about the situation and feeling 'abused' by your co-worker. I also see her side of the situation, and your desire for her to kill a large bug does not mean she has to do it. Perhaps a better solution in this case would be to contact the building manager or custodian and inform them of the large bug and potential infestation (I don't know if this is a real possibility in your region). I have a dear friend who is very afraid of snakes, and myself and a group of friends frequently walk together in woods where there are occassionally garter snakes (non-poisonous) sunning themselves on the path. We do not make fun of her fear, but we also do not feed into it by chasing away, removing or killing any of the snakes who are doing their thing. She doesn't ask us to, either. We all have mutual respect for each other and for the living creature.

Got in a nice dog walk in the woods with dd. It's my last day of tennis this evening in my 5-day streak. So far, so good! I'm slightly successful in doing my stretch and strength work. Eating is going ok. I'm staying away from sweets and salty snacks.

Day 3 of my 5-day tennis streak completed. It was a lot of fun! I missed out on a dog walk, though, as I really needed to sleep in after the evening tennis yesterday. 😉

Got in my dog walk in the woods this morning. Tennis this evening. It's the first day of a 5-day playing frenzy. I hope my body holds up! 😉

With all the co-ops and private schools closing down, where are these families going? Are they all using this hybrid school, and if so, are the class sizes really large? What are the qualifications of the 'tutors' and will there be leadership who are likely to be successful in working with your ds? I wouldn't set myself and my ds up for failure.

@Eos Congratulations!! That's fantastic news!

I've been doing most of the dog walks on my own the last few days as dh isn't feeling well. It's beginning to tire me out, along with the tennis. 😉 I have tomorrow free from tennis, then 5 days in a row. I think I'll be napping a lot this weekend!

I got in two dog walks in the woods and some mixed doubles tennis. Great day! The dogs are LOVING the masses of snow we have right now!!

Thanks for the explanation! It sounds like a lovely loop! In my mind, I was thinking perhaps 'den' was a little like 'glen.' Is a 'glen' a small valley, as well?

Congratulations! That's really exciting! As an aside, I'm happy to see helmets being used now. I used to cringe when they competed with a cowboy hat.

@Laura Corin Hope your back pain recovers quickly! What does it mean when you say, "I walked to the den." Is this a particular location? I'm still keeping up with my dog walks in the woods and tennis about 3x/week. Stretching and strength work is getting to be nearly daily. Eating habits are good, so that's a big plus.

We got a huge dump of snow that started last night and continued this morning. Then it stopped and the temps were around freezing. It made for a wonderful walk in the woods with the dogs. We decided to do one very long walk. Then I played doubles tennis in the late afternoon for 2 hrs.

I played some fun tennis yesterday for 2hrs, and I've been keeping up with the daily dog walks in the woods. I'm still not 100% consistent with my stretching and strength work, but I'll keep trying! 😉 More tennis tomorrow, and 3 times next week. My work has started a winter fitness challenge for Jan and Feb. I'm currently in 3rd place! It doesn't look like I'll move up much, as the leader is really rocking it. I'll just keep doing my tennis and walking, with perhaps some skiing added in if it every snows enough.

@Laura Corin Thanks for starting this thread! It's refreshing to think about the positive aspects to aging, rather than the negatives. I'm happy that I am in a place of contentment with what I've accomplished, while still being excited to try new things. I've had to 'retire' from a few activities that are now too physically demanding, but I've found replacements are I love. I don't look back with regret about these things. I did what I could at that moment, and now I'm moving onto new things. I'm more confident now in my workplace to ask questions and seek support when needed. I've noticed that others are often experiencing similar challenges, so it's not because I'm 'old' it's that these things are challenging to many.

I'm still in the contemplating/dreaming phase of retirement. I know that I'll need to have enough brain and body stimulating activities to keep me satisfied, and so will my dh. We both enjoy social activities as well. Happily, many of the physical and social activities that we current do are perfect for continuing for the next 10-20 years. The trickier bit will be how much mental stimulation do I need, and how will I be able to maintain this without outside structure, such as work. I tend to get a little lazy if left completely on my own, so I know that I'll need some outside accountability, even if it's just a regular exercise buddy. I did a lot of volunteering while homeschooling my dc, but cut back when I went back to full-time work. I imagine I'll enjoy rekindling volunteer activities in things like local theatre, horticulture, church, etc. Things I'm doing now that I'll keep doing for as long as possible are: - Playing tennis - Daily walks with the dogs at a nearby woods with other dog walkers to meet up with - Regular walks with a group of friends - Occassional travel to visit family and friends - Providing support to my dc by providing a homebase to live and/or visit, etc.

Mine seems pretty tame compared to many here. I try not to ruminate on it at all, but it kind of takes my breath away if I consider the 'what if.' When I was in my mid-20s I worked in Norway as a teacher at a sports college. I went on a guided ski tour with a colleague to ski across a glacier in Norway. At one point it was quite foggy, and the group skied close together so as not to lose sight of each other. We noticed some people shouting at us directly to our left. The guide stopped and led us straight to the people shouting. When the fog cleared, we saw the track we were on led straight to the top of a recent avalanche. We were very close to skiing right off the edge of a very large drop-off.