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December 13, 2006

Tale of the Christmas Bear

the Christmas bear It really doesn’t seem all that long ago… but I know that Karen wasn’t but a couple of years old… old enough to know the ‘truth’ about the tooth fairy, the Easter Bunny and Santa…. that they were all “real” just as YOU or ME!

It all started after one fateful visit to Santa Claus… Laura had briefed the children that they would watch Santa Fly in by Helicopter from the North Pole to the local Elks Lodge. The Elks was a familiar place to swim in the summers.

Santa finally made his yearly appearance making a number of passes overhead to the wild and enthusiastic cheers of the children below. However, no one was more happy to see him … than Karen… who carried the biggest smile and burst with many requests this season.

Finally, Karen made it to the head of the line and her mother suggested that she sit on Santa’s lap and tell him what she wanted for Christmas. Santa nodded in approval and said,”Karen, I will make sure that you get all of your special ‘my little ponies’ including “starlight.’ Santa concluded,” besides ,Karen, so I don’t forget, I will make sure I keep your presents on top!”

As Karen prepared to leave Santa, Santa tugged at his beard lowernig it slightly and said, “See you tonight Karen… you see, little one … Santa is YOUR daddy, too!”

Karen beamed ear to ear.

Kristin tried to convince Karen that Santa was ‘just’ dad… but Karen now KNEW that Santa WAS Dad! So, when I finally got home, Karen came up to me… and asked as sweetly as she could,” can I ride with you tonight …. with the reindeer?” “Hmmmm… tonight the Christmas Bear flies alone because he is soooo big and heavy and because his load is sooo heavy with all the presents for the children of the world, Karen… but if Santa could bring one… he would bring you!”

Merry Christmas, Karen… Kristin & Karla

the Christmas Bear

Angelique Kiss Show
starting to feel Christmasy
Christmas “HAT”?
early Christmas Present
Got a WII for Christmas!
Tanners first visit to Santa
Christmas Questions from Texas
from a children’s Pastor”
Christmas in Dubai
Giving to Charities at Christmas

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December 8, 2006

Jeane Kirkpatrick … a woman for all seasons

Jeane Kirkpatrick It is always sad to see someone pass along that you admired.

Jeane Kirkpatrick was certainly admired by many… and we are among them.

Laura and I had a chance to meet her and her husband over dinner in 1986… she was gracious enough to be present at a fundraiser…. and we were lucky enough to sit next to her and her husband.

Although the conversation was very enjoyable… I did find myself ‘stepping in it’ at one point. I asked her if she ever considered being the running mate with Jack Kemp — who I also admired. She looked at me, smiled… and said something to the effect…’ oh, I think we would have trouble with who gets top billing.’ Ooops.

America wasn’t ready to give her top billing… but we would have been in good hands had it happened. Wikipedia reminds us: “she called on the Congress to issue a formal declaration of war against the ‘entire fundamentalist Islamic terrorist network’ the day after the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center”. She was ahead of her time.

Hay Adams... a wonderful experience ni Washington, D.C.

Our dinner was at the Hay Adams Hotel… quite an experience.

This was my first visit to our nation’s capital… and certainly one of the most memorable.

I’ll leave it to others to talk about her many accomplishments, experiences, the foundations of her beliefs and her transformation from a young socialist to a democrat… and finally President Reagan’s choice for our U.N. ambassador.

My memory of her is of a strong, determined, and principled individual… and as they say… someone of whom we could use more of today.

Roger Freberg

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December 8, 2006

Jenny Craig & Me! …. Day 4

oh, it is sooooo hard losing weight... 10 lbs in 4 days... why is it takng so long?

Okay, first thing I will confess is that way back when I was in college… I loved the food in the cafeteria! There was hardly anything I didn’t like… especially the self serve soft ice cream! The food was all 5 star to me! Bring on the chipped beef!

Now, why am I telling you this?

Well, to put in a proper persepctive what I am about to tell you….

I love the Jenny Craig food… what amazes me most is that the food actually ‘tastes’ wonderful and delicious! Most diet foods taste horrible… I remember trying some store bought stuff once and thought, ” do I want the chocolate flavored styrofoam or the beef flavored styrofoam?”

With Jenny, the portions are small.. but it is all good stuff. The chocolate brownie is as good as any I have ever made… and the ‘pocket sandwiches’ are meaty and juicy.

I do feel like a ‘hobbit’ from ‘Lord of the Rings’… you might remember he had… breakfast, elevensies, lunch, threesies, linner…. you get the idea. I think that eating often is the secret to it all… and frankly, I can live with that.

There is a downside, the women in my family do not look at me with much love and affection when I get as a ‘nine-sie’ snack what they have for dinner… well… it sucks to be them. One of the few advantages of being really big… you start off with more food.

Hey, not bad for four days on a diet… I’ll check in next Friday and I’ll let you know how it goes… time for ‘elevensies’… it’s a strawberry yogurt! yum!

Roger Freberg

other blogs:

My Jenny Craig Breakfast

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December 5, 2006December 5, 2006

Jenny Craig …. “extending your snacking experience”

here's a very common weight for me... but it's time to take it off

Hmmmm…. I don’t know if it was watching my daughter Karen shrink before my eyes, or watching my wife Laura lookin’…. good! …. but I was impressed… impressed enough to want to jump on their band wagon and sign a year’s contract with Jenny Craig!

Now, I did find a diet that helped me lose weight from 427 down to 240.. but it was high on the cauliflower and low on… anything that tasted good. Don’t get me wrong… my diet works… but after watching them devour chocolate brownies, frajitas and stuff that I haven’t seen in years… well, it just seemed that it was time to change. This morning, I ate a banana nut muffin, glass of milk, & cottage cheese as part of my 2300 calorie diet…. it was delicious! I don’t have to wait until lunch , as I get a yogurt mid-morning! Jenny has something for you about 6 times a day…

I started yesterday at noon… so this completes my first day on “Jenny Craig”.

My goal weight is 229… which I set just to test my limits. The last time I weighed this was in 1978 and my mother sent me $20 thinking I was a victim of wifely abuse and needed some food money.

Starting a diet for me is a social activity… Laura and Karen have been at it for a month now and , frankly, I wanted to be sure that they would stay on it before I joined them. Too many times I join an activity only to find myself ‘alone’… this is called ‘loneliness.’ However, they have been strong… so the future looks promising.

Now, I know what you guys are all thinking… “Jenny Craig” is for women…. well, not really. Besides, do you think I really want to be in a weight loss program with a bunch of sweaty guys… or hang with gals who are really concerned about their appearance? Hmmm… let me think about that for a moment.

Weigh ins are once a week so I let you know how it goes… so far it has been fun… eating with no dishes to clean ( it all comes in portion controled microwavable packages!).

Roger Freberg

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December 3, 2006