I'm leavin' on a jet plane...but I DO know when I'll be back again. I am leaving Friday for a week's vacation in Florida with my oldest daughter, her treat. Not sure if it will come through but this is the link to where we will be. http://www.vrbo.com/563854 It is right across the street from the ocean so there is the pool, the spa, the ocean, yeah...pretty much everything. I will be completely disconnected because I am not carting my laptop with me and neither is my granddaughter. I have what seem like a million things to do to get ready so I am actually going to disable my notifications of blogs and when I come back...I am going to TRY to check in every day in the morning and again in the evening but not be here pretty much all the time. I think I need to at least TRY to have a life away from the computer. Since I have not been working, I feel as though I "need" to be here...more for me than anyone else...it is time to take the next step forward. I will continue to look at blogs, maybe not comment on all of them because it is not necessary...I have been really OCD about trying to read blogs and comment on them. I am thrilled to be smoke free and I never want to go back to where I was. I could not sleep last night and I wanted to get up and smoke a cigarette like in the "old days"...a little over six months ago. I could not believe the strength of that crave, it is a VERY good thing that there are no cigarettes in my house...I am not sure at that point if I could have remembered what that would have done to my quit. Wow! I have a very long ways to go, my friends. I AM going to become a 6%er but is it definitely going to be one step at a time. I will be vacationing with my daughter who is back to smoking a pack a day. Clearly, there will be no smoking inside but we will be giving up some visiting time when she wants to smoke. I will have to ask her to PLEASE not leave them around. I have already told her that I will not be drinking, she said, "well it is MY VACATION and I WILL be drinking." That's fine...she will be drinking and smoking alone. Just the way it has to be. I am incredibly grateful, I am thrilled to get to go to the beach, and I am also going to keep my quit safe come Hell or high water. I may or may not have a chance to check in much before I go but PLEASE protect your quits. They belong to you and only you. Each and every one of you is an important member of this community. Stay with us, learn from us, teach us what YOU know, travel with us on this smoke free journey.
Sending each of you peace and strength.
Ellen
