Here

I'm here - meeting with the nutritionist once a week for accountability, working out with Jeff a couple of times a week. 

My co-worker M died.  First she has breast cancer, then they found brain cancer nearly a year ago.  My heart hurts for her family, for her kids, and for the many, many friends she left behind.  I've lost 4 friends to breast cancer. 

Anyway. we've been busy working on projects areound the house.  This weekend we painted the guest room and I hemmed new curtains.  We have to put it back together, but it looks really nice.

breakfast

Mushroom, asparagus, tomato, and olive omelet.

Stress

I haven't been posting much because there is a lot I'm just not comfortable posting (some family stuff and some work).

But I am hanging in there.  I met with the nutritionist at work today for some extra accountability in ticking with my good habits and Jeff and I are hitting the gym together. So I'm hanging in there!

Take care & enjoy the holidays!

It’s been a long week.

I received some not very good news about my friend M (I’ve written about her in the past). I also received some concerning news about my (ex) stepdad and his treatment for cancer: they are doing stem cell treatment and he has to be in the hospital for 6 weeks and has to have a family member with him at all times. Again, I am thankful for the flexibility my son has with the virtual school schedule which will enable him to help out.

Mostly, I’ve just been really, really, down: not sleeping well, nose constantly in a book (a preferred form of avoiding life for me), not wanting to take care of things (like dishes), no dog walking, just not in a good place mentally. I am so looking forward to 1) hub’s temp job ending (the money is great but working 50+ hours a week leaves no energy for him to help at home) and 2) heading to NC this weekend to visit family. It’s a quick trip, but I am hoping that seeing family will help to recharge my mental batteries.

A lot of people are posting about the holidays. Honestly, I guess I’m an anti-social recluse because I don’t see this as a huge deal for me. I didn’t buy candy (no small kids in our neighborhood) and avoided what my co-workers brought in Thursday. For Thanksgiving we’ll have a nice meal but it’ll be scaled down since once again we’ll be renting a cabin in Georgia to visit my great aunt.

Anyway, I’m hoping a break and hub returning to a more normal work schedule (please let the temp agency return him to any work though!) will help snap me out of this funk.

Retreat

I am struggling right now.

We have decided to make some pretty drastic changes in our lives in the course of the not too distant future.  Exciting, good stuff, but BIG changes.  And that's scary.

Right now a big part of me wants to continue to rely on my old coping mechanisms and I am bargaining with myself "We'll just rely on food for now.  Once ____ has changed, we'll stop."  Right.  So I have had a couple of over eating episodes and I have my nose stuck in a book pretty much all the time.  The book is a preferable retreat, but its still a way of disconnecting from what is going on in my life.

So that's where I am.

I really didn't want to go work out today.  I was hoping Jeff would be there to help motivate me.  But he wasn't so I went and worked out on my own.  But I did it at least!

Anyway, things aren't going along great right now. 

One thing I am working on as part of going to OA is wrapping my head around the idea that for some people, overeating is a disease, like alcoholism or anorexia.  People overeat for lots of reasons and operate along some sort of scale - some have a slight issue easily overcome and for others, its a lot more difficult.

I am trying to view this as an issue that I can overcome but stop the feelings of shame and guilt because those simply perpetuate the problem.

As always, its a process.  And now that I am really focused on addressing the issue, my self defenses are working overtime to talk myself out of changing.  In some ways it was easier when I was ignoring it and just going along, but that doesn't work long term.

Kettlebells etc.

I’ve been reading Tracy Reifkind’s blog for many years and I love how she took a very simple (yet powerful!) move in the kettlebell swing, and essentially built a new way of conditioning based upon it. Tracy says the single most important goal you can set for yourself (with kettlebells) is to build a practice of 20-30 minutes, 2-3 days per week of equal work to rest.

I have several of Tracy’s videos, including one (“Give and Take”) that is simply a workout. It is 3 rotations of ladders, with a front half and a back half to each work set. Right now I am only doing the front side of each work set. With this workout, that means I am doing 463 swings in about 35 minutes (including a short warm-up). When I build up to equal work to equal rest, I will be doing 615 swings in that same 35 minutes.

My goal between now and the end of the year is to build up to equal work to rest – the 615 swings. I have devised a way of inching up the ladders to achieve this. There are 3 work rotations: first I’ll add the back half to the first one, then half the second one (even numbers), then half the third, then all the second, and finally all the third.

It sounds kind of convoluted – but this is away to build up gradually. By the end of the year, I will have an equal work to rest kettlebell practice of 35 minutes, 3 days per week. I really love kettlebells – they are a great way to build strength while doing a HIIT workout. I feel like I’m getting double benefit from my workout time.

I know I haven't posted a lot about Overeaters Anonymous.  Honestly I'm trying to wrap my head around it - its a LOT of information.  I will say I find it a bit of a relief - I know I have issues with food and it is nice to be in a group of folks who GET IT, and are working toward a better relationship with food without judgement.

Progress

So, I lost 2 pounds Monday to Monday, not too bad.  I have laid out a kettlebell plan for myself to get to the end of the year which should keep me busy!

Anyway, things are going along.

Something new

I went to an OA meeting last night.  Because trying various diets hasn't addressed the root cause and I'm not sure I can do it on my own.  It went well and I definitely plan to go back.

It’s all unicorns and rainbows from now on!

Weight: Down 1.2 pounds (not weighing every day right now).

Plan for today:

Breakfast: meat loaf

Lunch: vegetable salad with chicken

Dinner: baked pork chops, sautéed brussel sprouts, corn on the cob

Exercise: kettlebells

After I wrote my last post, I didn’t mean to imply that now, everything is magically solved and perfect and shiny. For some people, they seem to be able to resolve that they eat too much and do something about it, end of story. They don’t feel the need to examine too deeply why they eat too much. Or maybe they do but choose not to share it. Either way is okay but lack of understanding hasn’t worked for me.

I lost over 30 pounds, kept it off for years, and still managed to gain it back when too much stress was piled on. To me, it’s kinda like a crying baby: they cry, you go pick them up. Sometimes that’s enough – they stop crying. Other times not so much and you begin the “mommy checklist”: are they: wet, hungry, cold, hot, etc etc? You find the root cause: wet diaper. Great and that’s what I finally did – I found the root cause of the void I tried to fill with food. But now I have to take the next step: change the diaper. Identifying a problem is not the same as solving it.

Having said that, as adults, I think knowing what the problem is gets us down the path of resolution. To use another lame analogy: if you have a flat tire on the side of the road in the middle of a dark, rainy night, don’t you feel better if you know AAA is on the way? Why though? Nothing has changed about your situation! Except now you know help is on the way and that’s enough to give you comfort and reduce your uncertainty.

That’s how I feel now. I know the issue so I can stop casting about trying to fill that void with random stuff and fill it with what is supposed to be there. I have something I am working toward and I am now longer making excuses for why I “can’t” make the changes I want. I am going for it even if that doesn’t necessarily conform with society’s idea of what is logical. I can’t fix it today or even this month – but as adults we’ve gotten accustomed (one would hope) to the idea that true gratification is not instant.

It’s been a long week.

Epiphany

I got hit by a slow moving epiphany this morning. I say slow moving because its wasn’t like being struck by lightning or the heavens parting and a ray of light shining down on me, it was more like watching a flower bloom. It began to form and then gradually open up to its fullness.

I’ve felt vaguely discontented for years. Don’t get me wrong – I’m happy with my family, my marriage – the fundamentals of my life are good. Which is part of the reason I think I’ve always felt guilty for feeling discontented. Well, either guilty or just plain wrong. “Why should I be unhappy?” I’d think, “I’ve got a great family, a good marriage, a good job…” So I would invalidate my feelings, which would lead to a lot of inner turmoil.

Over the years I’ve tried loads of things, eating, exercising, doing triathlons and marathons, camping, veganism – all sorts of things to try to fill the void I’ve felt but tried to deny. Then this morning it came to me: I’m not unhappy with my life, I’m unhappy with my lifestyle. Notice how many things on the above list involve lifestyle changes? The problem is, they weren’t sufficient.

Life v. life style isn’t just semantics – to me at least they mean very different things. Life is the fundamentals: family, religion, self. Life style is how you live your life: how you earn your living, what you do with your extra income and time.

Have you ever thought that our “comfort zone” rarely is? “This "comfort" zone is rarely comfortable, but it's very familiar. It's what we've always known. Any change from what we've always known creates anxiety--and anxiety sucks. To avoid this feeling, it's easier to revert back into old habits and behaviors. Even though it's a place we might not like, we do it because it's familiar---we know what to expect. The fear of the unknown is a horrible beast.”

Maybe it’s because I’m at an age where the years ahead are probably not more than the years behind, but when I think of living in a way that feels unhappy – for years – for what? A little extra money? To avoid risk? My five year plan is now more like a one year plan. Scary, but its such a freeing feeling to understand why I’ve felt the way I do.  Kowing the root cause makes things feel easier.

Saturday

Weight: down 0.8 pounds from yesterday.


Plan for today:

Breakfast: spinach meat loaf

Lunch: vegetable salad with chicken

Dinner: ?

Exercise: probably just some swimming

Friday and the meat parade

Weight: Up 1.8 pounds from yesterday.

Plan for today:

Breakfast: spinach meat loaf

Lunch: vegetable salad with chicken

Dinner: roasted chicken in the crock pot, quinoa, roasted brussel sprouts

Exercise: kettlebells and yoga (yes, I know I’m not supposed to do kettlebells 2 days in a row. I paid, believe me)

Dinner last night was good, but I’ve now had the experience and don’t feel the need to go to a Brazilian steak place again. The salad bar was excellent (lovely roasted veggies NOT slathered with oil), olives, heart of palm etc etc.

The meat was good. I am guessing I ate roughly 8 ounces of steak and 2 of lamb. The portions were small and I didn’t try everything by a long shot – only the things that sounded really good. And then we generally shared. Most portions were around the size of a piece of meat on a kebab. But that’s still double or more the amount of meat I would eat with a meal! Anyway, good food, nice atmosphere, crazy prices.

I told hub that I did not buy any sort of birthday cake of anything – I wasn’t sure if he would want anything since I know he is watching his weight as well. I offered to pick up a slice of cheesecake or something, but he said no. We went home and each had a hard cider and called it a night. (Party animals, that’s us!)

This weekend we are planning to get together with a couple of neighbors to watch some football. I plan to make baked chicken wings – that’s “football food” without being too off the rails. They aren’t of the food pushing or beer drinking variety, so we can enjoy the game without it being all about the snackies.

It’s been a tough day.

Thursday - dragging

Weight: Down 0.2 pounds from yesterday.

Plan for today:

Breakfast: spinach meat loaf

Lunch: vegetable salad with chicken

Dinner: ? We are going to one of those Brazilian “meat buffet” restaurants for dinner.

Evening Snack: Uh, no.

Exercise: kettlebells and yoga, Insanity Cardio Power & Resistance

I went home yesterday and had a nap, then we got in the pool for a bit, which was wonderful! We had dinner and a colleague came over and ate with us. He needs a place to stay for a few months and is probably going to be moving in with us in January. I wanted him to meet the dogs and the husband. Things went well and while it’s a bit unusual, it will help him out A LOT and the extra cash will certainly help with my dental work.

After dinner we watched a couple of episodes of Dr. Who (I love Netflix – no commercials!). I was feeling restless and wanted …. Something. Luckily there was nothing junky in the house. Having to actually leave to go get junk helped me realize that it wasn’t worth it – effort or calorie-wise. So even though I’d planned a green drink, since I also made a fruit salad to go with dinner I didn’t have anything later.

Based on my coughing the night before, I decided to take some Nyquil before going to bed. I slept through the night (like a log), but I woke up this morning feeling a little tired & fuzzy around the edges. Gah. My cold is mostly gone but I have some lingering sniffles and cough that just won’t end. I can’t wait to feel better and have more energy!

Today the 1 pm group is doing Insanity, ugh.

Wednesday

Weight: Down 0.4 pounds from yesterday.


Plan for today:

Breakfast: spinach meat loaf

Lunch: vegetable salad with chicken

Dinner: salmon, sweet potato, roasted green beans

Evening snack: green smoothie with fruit, spinach, and green powder

Exercise: P90X back, biceps, & abs, yoga video

Last night we ate, cleaned up, walked the dogs, watched a couple of Dr. Who episodes and ended with an episode of “My Name is Earl”. Then I read a few minutes and went to bed. We had a cup of coffee after dinner and I ended up awake until midnight. Sigh. Clearly I am not a person who can have caffeine in the evenings!

Tuesday

Weight: Down 1.4 pounds from yesterday.


Breakfast: spinach meat loaf

Lunch: vegetable salad with chicken

Dinner: leftovers from the last 2 nights

Evening snack: a cup of coffee with alomd milk

Exercise: Insanity Plyometrics cardio circuit with the 1 pm gang

Last year we managed to get a season behind on Dr. Who. Since the new season has now started, we are getting last year from Netflix to catch up. We watched the first 2 episodes last night. They were good, but overall the latest cast hasn’t captured my heart the way the earlier new seasons have. I’m glad they brought the show back – it’s still some of the most entertaining sci-fi on television today. I guess I just miss the David Tenant Dr. – not to mention Captain Jack.

It started raining last night and basically has been raining ever since. It would have been a wonderful day to stay home wearing footie pjs and drinking hot tea except for the fact that it’s 90 outside, rain or no rain. The rain brought out the frogs last night. Thank goodness for child size ear plugs.

Monday

Weight: Today I went back to WW. I haven’t been avoiding it on purpose, but I attend an at work meeting and the reality is I spent a lot of August and September not in my office for one reason or another. I’ve been hopping on the scale periodically at home so I wasn’t shocked or anything to find out I have gained 4.5 pounds over the past 2 months.


That’s not huge, but its 4.5 pounds I now have to lose again. Back to tracking. Back to being accountable to myself. There has been so much going on since the beginning of August – some pretty major stressors, some pretty major decisions about how and where we intend to live our lives. We’ve both been expending such a huge amount of emotional energy (not to mention time) on BIG things, that little things (like making time for an evening walk) have slipped through the cracks. But the little habits can have a pretty big cumulative effect!

Thankfully I am realizing this now rather than later. I would hate to have undone all my efforts!

Breakfast: spinach meat loaf

Lunch: vegetable salad with chicken

Dinner: sautéed cabbage with chicken sausage and roasted green beans

Evening snack: green smoothie with fruit, spinach, and green powder

Exercise: Tracy Reifkind’s kettlebell swing dvd and a Rodney Yee yoga video

When I went to the gym, Jeff stopped in while I was swinging and asked me if I wanted to go to the gym around the corner to lift weights at lunch sometime.  The fitness center is nice, but it doesn't have heavy weights.  I told him that would be great! 

Quiet Day

I slept in today and woke up feeling like I was finally on the mend.  I did some housework this morning, went to Costco (we needed a LOT), did the food prep for the week, and finished all the housework except cleaning off the dining room table (where the mail lands when it comes in the door).

Hub is about 3 hours from home - its a tough drive even with someone else in the car.  I've been calling him regularly because he's having to do the thing by himself.  After this things will be pretty quiet until we head to Georgia for Thanksgiving.  My bff (and former lunchtime walking buddy) is coming down for a visit in October, but other than that its just work and the usual housework etc. until T-day.

With hub not getting home until late, I bought a rotisserie chicken to use in our lunch salads tomorrow until he can get the chicken grilled up tomorrow night.  I made meat loaf for breakfast with spinach.  I know it sounds weird but 1) it's really good and 2) it's a convenient grab and go breakfast we both enjoy. 

Hub's birthday is this week and I am taking him to a brazilian steakhouse for dinner.  Not sure if we'll go on his actual birthday or on the weekend after.

The new sessions of classes is starting at the fitness center at work.  I was disappointed that they aren't offering the AMP class that I used to enjoy so much.  I've been working out either by myself (weights and kettlebells and yoga) and/or also working out with the ladies at 1 o'clock some of the time.  I miss AMP class, but I have been enjoying the kettlebell I took in. 

Having access to a fitness center at work really makes it easy to get workouts in.  Doing my food prep on Sunday makes it so that I have healthy meals available all week long.  Dinners are planned.  Having hub counting on me to prep healthy food gives me an extra push to make sure it gets done.

There are a lot of things that aren't ideal right now, and I don't have control over some of them.  But I do have control over taking care of myself and helping hub take care of himself.  It feels good to know that we are making progress toward our goals, both health and otherwise. 

Slow Motion Saturday

So, the guys went to Tampa yesterday to pick up parts for the jeep.  I took MIL home last weekend and picked the boy up for a short visit.  Hub is took him to Tampa then they are going to NC today, with hub returning home tomorrow.

I picked up a cold that I haven't been able to shake.  I've resorted to taking actual cold medicine, which is proof of severe illness in my world (I hate the way cold medicine makes me feel weird).  I did the grocery shopping and a bit of housework today, but that's about all.  I'm washing my sinuses with salt water, drinking plenty of water, etc.  Blech.

I've felt run down and crappy, exercise has been minimal.

Unexpected

I've been dealing with some very unexpected feelings lately and haven't felt ready to write about it until now.

To recap: I had my bridge removed and 2 additional teeth pulled.  My front 2 teeth were knocked out in a swimming pool accident when I was 15 and I've had a bridge every since.  The 2 teeth next to them held the bridge but over the years, the pressure was killing those teeth.  They had to come out this time as well.  Bone grafting was done and once that heals, I will have implants. 

But I am looking at roughly 8-10 months of a temporary appliance.  I knew that up front, but I didn't realize that I would't be able to chew with this thing in.  I can't bite any food because I am missing my 4 top front teeth.  So everything has to be cut up.

I didn't know up front that eating with this in would not work for me.  So going out to eat is very uncomfortable since I have to remove my teeth.  This I avoid any social situation involving food.

But the biggest shock is how I feel about myself.  The first time I looked in the mirror, my initial reaction was "I look like Willie on 'Swamp People'."  I felt robbed of my femininity and my physical attractiveness.  Now, I don't feel particularly pretty at my current weight, but I don't feel like a troll either.  And after losing 30 pounds I was feeling pretty good!

Not any more.  I feel like a part of my womanliness is gone.  And its a part I never thought would reside in my teeth, you know?

Today has been really awesome.  Hub and I went for a terrific ride on the mountain bikes this morning.  There are a couple of trails near our house out through the Everglades (we live about 2 miles from the end of civilization).  We rode for an hour or so, then came home and cooled off with a swim in the pool.  That was followed by chores (oh well, but plenty of time left to slug out in front of football and an evening swim.)

Today has been a very nice day.

Blah di blah

On Wednesdays there used to be a noon stretch class. One of the other ladies and I have continued the tradition, and a few others have joined us. We have a good dvd we all enjoy, and it’s a nice way to mark the mid-point of the work week.

Jeff IMed me this morning and I asked if he’d be available to work out this afternoon as I really wanted to do some weights and kettlebell swings. He said yes so we had an afternoon appointment rather than my doing zumba at 1. Hopefully Liza will post a schedule for the 1 pm workouts soon so I can plan.

This weekend hub and I are taking our bikes out to the Everglades trail we checked out last weekend, weather permitting. We can get some pretty serious storms down this way and I haven’t checked the forecast yet for the weekend. We had a brief evening storm last night which was the first rain we’d gotten since Isaac rolled through.

My MIL’s visit is going pretty good. Honestly we haven’t done too much since she generally sleeps until 1 or 2 in the afternoon. She seems to be having a good time, so that’s nice.

Maya appears to be making improvement with the physical therapy, but he hip keeps rotating and the lady has to get it back in alignment. I’m hoping that will stop soon because I can really tell she’s uncomfortable when it happens, poor thing.

Hub is being kept busy for now with work and for that we are both thankful. And he is genuinely enjoying this particular job, so it’s really good all around. I know he would love to find a full-time job, but things are going okay.

Das boy seems to be doing well in school so far this year – there’s a lot less drama and misery than this time last school year, so I am very grateful for that as well.

We have booked a cabin in Pine Mountain for Thanksgiving again this year so we can pick up my great aunt for a few days. We all really enjoyed it last year and I am looking forward to doing it again. The boy’s gf may be coming with us. That’s still up in the air.

Hub’s down 2 pant sizes!

Life’s certainly not perfect, but it’s pretty good.

Happy holiday?

Hope you all had a nice Labor day.  Hub and I both worked, so it was a pretty normal day for us around here.

I spent A LOT of the weekend doing food prep, but I'm in good shape meal wise for the week.  My MIL has lost about 5 pounds in less than a week after eating my cooking.:-)

I worked out at 1 today.  The ladies chose Billy Blank's "Combat Boot Camp" (I think that's what it was called).  It was a little too military-ish for my taste (8 years was enough for me), but it was a good workout.

This weekend we checked out a trail in the Everglades just down the road from the house.  It will be a great place to ride bikes and that's the plan for this weekend.

Other than that, we picked out a nice color to paint the master bath and I plan to do that sometime soon.  Not this weekend - I just want a quiet weekend and the weekend after I am driving to NC to take MIL home and pick up the boy.

Workouts

I've been out of town for quite a while, followed by some minor surgery which somewhat limited me physically for a week or so.  Then of course I was out of town again for the funeral.

A new session of fitness classes started while I was out of town in Pennsylvania and sadly AMP was not offered this round.  Jeff is still available for workouts but I was very disappointed!

So I've been working on a new plan.  There is a lady who works out every day at 1.  She does a good mixture of body pump, cardio, and yoga videos.  Given that I have been feeling a little burned out on my particular yoga class and I missed sign-up anyway, I think I am going to join her for workouts as a supplement to my own yoga and kettlebell workouts.

Yesterday I worked out with Jeff and today I worked out with Liza at 1.  It was a very good session and I am so glad I went!  She will be posting a September schedule so I can come up with a plan.

So life is beginning to get back to what passes for normal aorund here! :-)

Not much

Don't really have a lot to say today.  The physical therapist made getting the dog to do her rehab exercises easy.  It isn't. But she did them.  She wants to please - she just had no clue what we wanted.  Hopefully we'll all get better at it.

What to say?  I'm really sad about my godmother.  Just doing the things that need to be done - cooking, eating, working, paying bills... you get the idea.

Made it through Isac fine - we got a lot of rain here but that's pretty much it.  I got in the pool for a while after I got home which was lovely.

MIL did some housework today and helped me load the dishwasher after dinner. I was pleasantly surprised.

Trip to NC

So, hub brought my MIL back for a visit for a couple of weeks. It's been 36 hours and I haven't given in to the urge to buy beer yet!!!

Home again

I got back this morning from NC.  My godmother died unexpetedly Friday and I went up for the funeral.  I will post more later, but for now I am home.

Tuesday

I had my oral surgery yesterday - it went well and the recovery doesn't seem too bad so far. Maya begins her physical therapy for her arthritis and hip displasia next Monday.  She's only 7 and given her size will likely live another 5-6 years - I want them to be as healthy and pain free as possible!  She's feeling much better already thanks to the treatments Saturday.

Not much else to tell, just trying to get back into the routine.  Hub grilled up breakfasts for the week (hamburgers, no bun, with veggies) and lunches (chopped veggie salad with grilled chicken).  Dinner tonight is korean kim chi stew - good for the immune system!

More headway made on getting the house back in order post vacation.  We'll each do a little each evening and I'll finish next weekend.  Hub is driving to NC to pick up his mom Saturday, returning Sunday.  I'll get things tightened up plus the food shop & prep.  I'm glad she'll be here to keep an eye on Maya - we need to make sure she isn't trying to climb on the furniture or overdoing it!

Good news!

So Maya doesn't need knee surgery! She has chronic hip displasia and arthritis and she did something (sprain, strain etc) to hurt it short term, but after they sedated her and did x-rays, the doctor said she didn't need surgery!

Short term, they are doing shockwave therapy before she comes home today (sound waves) and she is going in for a regime of physical therapy and she's going to be on a couple of medicines, but the news is terrific!

Today has been a nice day: breakfast then grocery shopping then lunch then pool time then nap. :-) Now its time for the afternoon thrunderstorm.  Florida weather is so predictable!

TGIF

Ah Friday!

I had a dentist appointment this afternoon (cleaning) so I am working from home for the afternoon.  So even though I am working, looking out a window helps it feel like the weekend. :-)

Like I said, putting the house back in order and getting back into our routine.  Hub started a new temp job this week, so we've been trying to settle back in around that as well.  The result has been that we've both been pooped!  The good news is that we had left pre-cooked meals in the freezer and lunch salads are easy enough to throw together, so food has been going along fine.

Hub's blood pressure remains completely normal, blood sugar remains normal or slightly pre diabetic and we continue to lose weight. I want to ramp my physical activity back up so I can do some things next year (Run for your life, goruck challenge, etc.), but progress continues!

Have a good weekend!

We're back

So its back to the real world after vacation. The world of work, bills, dogs needing knee surgery, etc. Le sigh.


We were planning to go to an SCA event over Labor day weekend, but Maya is having knee surgery this Saturday ($3600 – ouch!), so I’m not sure I want to go off and leave her that much less than a week after. Because she's a big dog, it’s a bit more extensive (and durable) than it would be for a smaller one.

Fitness: Camping means lots of walking and working (hauling ice, water, garbage, etc.) so I stayed pretty physically active for my 2 weeks of primitive camping. We cooked our own food for the most part and did a good job of focusing on vegetables and grilled meats.

There is a “Run for your life” event in Orlando the weekend before Thanksgiving. Because a 5K is fun, but a 5K with obstacles and zombies trying to kill you is better!

This weekend is more work getting the house back in order. MIL may be coming down for a couple of weeks soon, so I want to get everything put back away, some meals in the freezer, and the guest room ready for company.  It would certainly help to have someone home while Maya is recovering from her surgery.

Here is something I am interested in - maybe sometime toward the end of 2013?  I need to find out the schedule for the latter half of the year:

http://dsc.discovery.com/adventure/goruck-yourself-take-a-team-challenge-inspired-by-special-forces-training.html

Anyway, look for more regular posts!

Checking in before we head out

Sorry for falling off the planet – that tends to happen in July. If you’ve never spent 2 weeks primitive camping, all I can say is that it requires a lot of prep work. Add that we are doing it with a new vehicle and basically skipped last year (because all our stuff was in storage and we were in the midst of the move) and we are trying to re-figure everything out, well, it’s been busy.

The Tour de France was an overall disappointment this year. Andy Schleck wasn’t there and Bradley Wiggins and team Sky just didn’t really excite me. I dunno. None of the mountain stages were as inspiring as they have been in years past. It was kinda blah, which is a heck of a thing to say about what is IMO the most amazing race on earth.

My big news is that hub is now off the BP medicine he had to start taking a few years ago. He was feeling light headed, so he stopped taking it and called the doctor. She asked him to get a BP monitor and to record his readings for a month and then come in. Well, he’s in the normal range with no medicine! Woot!

I still have 20-ish pounds to go (we’ll see as I get closer to the end) and hub wants to lose 40-50. So we’re both roughly at the halfway point. It’s amazing how much better we both feel, we look better, and his health numbers are improving dramatically. Mine were good before and they are good now. But having his support and doing this together makes it a lot easier.

Hope you enjoy the rest of your summer!  I'll be back post vacation in Pennsylvania!

Friday

Just a quick note - things are going along.  Busy sewing, packing for vacation, and watching the Tour de France.

Obsessing about the uncertainty of the future won’t change the outcome.

I’ve had a lot on my mind lately. Some is the simple ‘Am I on track to lose a couple of pounds’, some the ‘where will the hubs and I be in 5 years’, and some of the ‘where will our son be in 5 years’ variety.

It’s a lot to obsess over. I’m getting a little too caught up in outcomes and instead I need to focus on the actions and on the process. It’s not that things aren’t necessarily headed in a good direction, it’s more than I am spending too much effort worrying. It’s easy to say “don’t worry”, but that can be a tall order for those of us that are naturally prone to obsessing. Anal retentive can be useful, but it can also be tiring.

I’m a natural born worrier – it’s not that I’m a “glass half empty’ person, I’m a “the glass may be half full but it might fall off the table so should I construct special sides” person.

What is the antidote? I think gratitude. And I have so much to be grateful for. A big one is that despite all the upheaval, the bills are paid, our son is (mostly) okay, and our marriage is stronger than ever after some really rough times. And we are planning our future, as opposed to just going along the way we were, which I think will make us both happier in the long run, but change can also be scary.

Stuff

Things here are good. Spent some time looking through my fabric and doing a little sewing, which has been fun. Watching the “Tour de France”, which is always enjoyable. It is very quiet at work this week.


I did a little weight lifting today, just a light leg workout. Tomorrow Jeff is teaching me how to use the new TRX here at work and I am prepared for an overall body thrashing! How awesome is it that we have this equipment here at work???

I made “gyros” for breakfast this week. I have a recipe which uses ground meat plus spinach, feta, and spices to mimic the flavor. I use a mixture of lamb and turkey. I basically make a meat loaf and then serve slices over a bed of cucumber, tomato, and Vidalia onion and topped with a little homemade tsaziki sauce. Really excellent and very filling.

I know I’ve said it before: there are foods that I love the tastes of that I prefer not to eat on a regular basis – by creating something similar with those same flavors I get the enjoyment without the down side. Eating healthfully doesn’t have to be tasteless, but it certainly helps if you like to cook!

There is a lady in my WW meeting who just made goal. Its great that she’s lost weight, but the ‘end’ result is a smaller version of her former self. She willingly admits she never cooks – only eats out or buys prepared foods. She doesn’t work out. Well, she is happy with her result.

Lunches are the usual grilled chicken with salad. The steaks last night were excellent. Hub also grilled the asparagus which was awesome. Tonight we are having chicken tikka masala I made in the crock pot. I’m serving it with quinoa and steamed broccoli.

It is my first 4th of July here in Florida and I have discovered an interesting fact: it is legal to buy fireworks down here – pretty much any kind. You are supposed to have a permit to shoot them off, but I don’t think it’s enforced much judging by the neighborhood last night. Seriously, there were things being shot off that sounded like mortars. It reminded me of when I lived near the artillery range in Hawaii! The dogs were scared!

That's all I got - have a good one!

We're back

We made it back to Florida in one piece, me, 3 teenagers, and 2 dogs (the bonus dog belongs to the boy's gf).  He's a daschund mix and rode in her lap - he did a great job, although the little guy had the farts!

It's hard watching your teen struggle with having no idea what they want to do in life.  I admit, I worry, even though I certainly didn't know what I wanted to do.  He's a good kid - good grades, doesn't hang with a bad crowd (no drugs, no criminal activity) - he just doesn't seem really excited about anything.  I think he's depressed and I'm not sure how to help him. Anyone who tells you parenting isn't the toughest job on the planet is full of it.

Other than that, things here are ok.  Hub's up to 40 pounds lost, blood sugar remains below diabetic levels.  We went to the gym yesterday and I did an hour on the arc trainer while he lifted weights.  This morning we walked together and then I banged out 395 kb swings.

Today we are grilling out - steak, grilled asparagus, and corn on the cob.  Nothing special, a pretty typical meal around here.  Tomorrow is our CSA box!

Just life

So, things have been hectic around here. That’s not the start of an excuse for why I haven’t been losing weight. As a matter of fact, I lost 2.6 pounds last week and I haven’t been this low since the week of 12/25/2009. I have an Excel spreadsheet where I’ve been recording my weight on Fridays since October of 2001. It’s not in there for every Friday – there are blanks, but overall I’ve tried to keep a record. It’s sad to go back and see a regain, but it’s good to see consistent progress for the past few months. I realized I hadn’t talked much lately about my own journey other than the actions, so I thought I’d share that.


Hub has lost 37 pounds and is doing excellent. Last night he came home wiped out from working in the heat all day. The kids and I were in the pool (the boy, girlfriend, Noah, and N’s little sister) while dinner did its thing in the oven. Hub jumped in with us and we all splashed around a bit before going in for dinner. That’s exactly what I envisioned when we bought a house with a pool. It was great! Dinner was baked salmon, roasted zucchini, and a quinoa casserole. Yum!

After that we changed, ran a couple of errands (including picking up Butchie’s remains, which made us both cry), and then we went for a walk! I’m so thrilled that even when he’s tired, he’s committed.

Today I did the tank top workout I snagged from Norma – mostly. Here’s what I did: warm-up of 10 pushups followed by the workout (10 pushups, 24 biceps burners, 15 shoulder presses, 10 pushups, 15 tricep dips, 15 back rows, 15 lateral raises, 10 pushups, 15 tricep kickbacks). I did that twice and then I did 20 minutes of yoga with a Rodney Yee video. It took less than an hour and my arms were feeling very heavy and full – a sign of a good workout.

Tonight will be crazy as I wrap up a few things last minute and get the car all packed. Noah is going back to NC with us – we’ll have a full car going and a really full car coming back as we’ll have Belews with us as well. Luckily she is a really good traveler. I will not volunteer to spend one minute in the backseat of the Sentra! Sometimes it’s good to be the grown-up! Ha ha ha!

Today the team went out for lunch at an amazing Israeli pita place.  I had a schwarma platter with eggplant and cucumber salads.  It changed my life.  I might go back for dinner but they close at 4 on Fridays.  Just kidding (about going back for dinner, not about closing at 4).  But I will go back.  I bet the pitas are good too, but the veggies rocked.

Have a good weekend!

T minus 2

Headed out Saturday - trying to get everything taken care of at home.  Not to mention shopping & prepping some food for the hub so its easier for him.

I had a good workout today - Jeff was working with another lady so I went down and did 360 swings with the 26 lb kettlebell and 100 walking lunges.  I was toast.

Terrier-a go go

Yesterday I worked at home (I needed to take my car in to the shop plus I had a dental appointment) and hub wasn’t working. We dropped the car, he went into the office to drop off a time sheet, we picked up my car, he went to Lowe’s .. and everywhere we went, the terrier was along for the ride. That dog loves to go, and yesterday she was in heaven!

Sadly, I couldn’t take her to the dentist – I could’ve used the comforting. Long story short: I had to get a bridge when I was 15 for my 2 front teeth (swimming pool accident). I’ve had my current bridge for 6-7 years and it was killing the teeth holding it – so now I have issues with 4 teeth rather than 2. Yesterday the dentist removed my bridge and she & the oral surgeon (it’s never good when you get special guest visitors at your dental appointment) took molds and x-rays so he could tell me what he could do and then we could come up with a plan. I’m looking at either 2 or 4 implants. Ugh. I now have a temp bridge.

I left tired & feeling a bit weepy (I dunno – maybe I was just wrung out – I was there for over 3 hours). Dinner wasn’t happening – there was beef stew in the crock pot but my mouth was still numb and there was no way I could eat soup. We went out – thankfully there is a Mexican place that has good, healthy food – not loaded in cheese, not fried, etc. She knows we don’t eat rice so she always adjusts the meals to our needs, which is awesome.

I have to go back to the dentist today for her to adjust the temp bridge, so no AMP class for me. I’ll do kettlebells at home – not as fun, but a solid workout.  Tonight's dinner is something new: I am going to make General Tso's chicken - it's one of my husband's favorites.  Hopefully it goes well.  I'm serving it with steamed broccoli and leftover crab fried quinoa.

Ah vacation

I am leaving Saturday for NC and I couldn't be happier.  I need a break!  You know you need a break when you get pissy over every little annoyance, ya know?  Looking forward to it!

I am taking my kettlebell with me.  Which reminds me, I got another 26 lb kbell, so now I have one at home and one at work.  I christened the new one with 350 swings as part of my workout with Jeff yesterday.  He was on a call so I got started and he joined a little bit later.

I am working at home today as my car is in the shop (nothing serious, just an oil change and check-up prior to my trip). 

Hub's blood sugar was 115 this morning - I continue to be amazed by the difference regular exercise and our change in diet has made.  I read "The Blood Sugar Solution" by Dr. Mark Hyman - that is the gneral plan we are following.  I would describe it as "paleo lite" - we both have been surprised by how easy it has been to make these changes.

The house got a thorough cleaning over the weekend so its in good shape.  Hub has a couple of days off (the ups and downs of temp work) and he is using the time well - working on the pool, sprinkler system, regrouting the hall bath, replacing a broken towel bar.  Little things, but things that need to be done.

We are going to the gym this evening (hub will lift weights and I will use the arc trainer).  Besides that, I am going to go through my drawers in both bathrooms and get things better organized.  That'll take all of 15 minutes, but its one of those things that is long overdue.  When we moved in I put my make-up in the hall bath, but I get dressed in the master, so I need to just re-organize.

Well, that's about all I got.  Posting may be spotty next week since I'll be travelling and won't have my computer with me.  Take care!

Monday - blah

Had a great workout with Jeff this afternoon - I love that noodle-y feeling in your arms, manky smell & sweaty hair that lets you know you had a good workout.

Tonight's dinner was crab fried quinoa - a riff on crab fried rice (which my husband adores) but since we don't eat rice any more, I did it with quinoa.  It was yummy!  Hub's numbers are down in the solid pre diabetic range and he's dropped nearly 40 pounds in 2 months.  I am so thrilled for him - he's feeling so much better and is determined to keep going, which makes it much easier for me.  Win!

We worked like house elves this weekend cleaning, de-cluttering etc.  I could have used an extra day, but I'm working from home tomorrow so that's the next best thing.  I have a dental appointment - they are removing my bridge and figuring out what will be done: new bridge or implants.  That giant sucking sound is the $$ flying to the dentist and oral surgeon.  Oh well, whatcha gonna do?

A bit adrift

It’s been a tough couple of weeks. My son was in a car accident. He’s fine, but my mom’s car is totaled so she’s been without a car and we’re having to deal with the insurance and the adjustor is an idiot, so the whole thing has been a big headache. Of course the headache really starts once my car insurance goes sky high since my 17 year old son will have been in an accident. He didn’t get a ticket, but in the world of insurance, police reports are irrelevant.

Our dog Butchie passed away on Monday and we are both just heartbroken. We are having him cremated. It’s been really hard – he was 13 years old and he was very much a part of our family.

Anyway, the past couple of weeks have been tough and I haven’t been as consistent or as focused with either diet or exercise as I have been and it shows. I haven’t gained any weight, but I’ve only lost a pound in the past 2 weeks, which is essentially stalled.

It’s time to get refocused. Its tough when things happen, but being unfocused won’t change anything. It’s understandable, but not really helpful.

I had a very good AMP workout yesterday – upper body. Jeff is on the mend and is beginning to do weight training, so I’m hoping for some more really tough workouts. This weekend I am going to Play it Again Sports to look for a heavier kettlebell to bring into the office. The 18 pound one is no longer heavy enough. It’s great for cardio, but I’d like a tougher weight.

One step at a time.

midweek

Interesting article on Norma’s web site I thought I’d pass along - from Mark Hyman regarding REAL FOOD:


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/food-industry_b_1559920.html?ref=diet-and-nutrition

The weekend plans changed a lot when we got the call from our son that he had been in a car accident Friday night. Thankfully he, the girlfriend, and her puppy were fine, but it was one of those major multi car pile-ups that happen on the highway due to bad weather. The damage is mainly the left front quarter panel – he avoided being squished between 2 other cars. (Unfortunately, they totaled the car.)

Yes he was fine and no, there wasn’t anything we could do. But after that we both felt wrung out and decided to postpone our trip to Port Charlotte until next weekend and just futz around the house. It was nice. We got in the pool Saturday, but Sunday just puttered around, I did the food prep, and we went to the gym. Nothing super special, just a nice weekend. As always, we felt like we ran out of time and energy!

For the fourth morning in a row, hub’s blood sugar readings were below the diabetic range. He is really making terrific progress. I don’t know what else to say about that. I went to WW – I continue to lose weight, but it feels like it is taking forever! I need to get over it. Two days wouldn’t feel “fast enough.”

What else? It’s a busy week at work, and we are trying to finish up a few odd chores that didn’t get done over the weekend, so that makes for a long evening. Plus we’ve been walking in the evening – we have a 2 mile loop we do. The good news is we haven’t had rain force us to cancel but a typical walk means about 90 degrees and what feels like 1000% humidity. I thought NC was humid – it’s freaking Arizona compared to this stuff! It’s not that we mind walking in the rain – it’s when we have the thunderstorms that we opt to stay home. But it’s been a few days since a big storm, which is a nice change!

Friday!

Things here are pretty good. Tuesday evening we went to the gym, ate dinner, and I spent evening 2 of operation “organizing my CDs” (which are in cases, each other’s covers, scattered about etc.). I suspect it will take 2 more evenings or so to get it all squared away.


We have a new person on our team. I took her with me to AMP Wednesday – she liked it. She has 3 dogs and a BlendTec blender – we have so much in common! Ha ha. Seriously though, she seems very nice.

Not too much else to report. Things here are going along. I’m headed to NC on the 23rd.

Wednesday’s dinner tonight was chicken with alfredo sauce, steamed broccoli, and quinoa. I was pooped after AMP, I went home, took a shower, we ate, and then I was a bum.

Last night we went to Miami to look at a couple of mid century chairs I found on craigslist. They were very comfortable and I think they ill well in the project room. They were a great price and I love the look of them, although they will need to be reupholstered down the line.

They’re baaaaaack

We had a theory about the frogs: we weren’t running the pool pump at night and we wondered if maybe they were attracted because the water was still. So a few nights ago we began running the pool pump at night rather than during the day and we enjoyed several frog free nights. Unfortunately, last night we discovered that given enough rain, frogs still came despite the pump. Sigh.

We had a lovely weekend! We went to the German restaurant for our anniversary dinner (which was awesome of course). On the way we stopped and checked on my great-grandparents’ graves. That was nice. They had a lot of flags up on the graves of veterans.

I remember going one Memorial day to the Presidio in San Francisco and visiting the cemetery. It was when I was stationed in Monterey. When I was on active duty, it was always comforting is a strange way to go to a military cemetery and to know that those places are there if that’s what you want. I doubt that makes any sense, but I honestly can’t explain it very well. It’s just a visible symbol that (while imperfect) we do try to take care of our own.

Saturday we enjoyed some quality pool time, the only down side of which is that afterward you are sapped of all will to get stuff done! Something about lazing around in the sun and water mid afternoon, totally sets you up for a siesta and then all of a sudden it’s dinner and the day is nearly done but your chores aren’t! ;-O

Sunday we went to the beach. Now, my husband has never been a big fan of the beach. When we go to Edisto Island, he loves it but he rarely walks on the beach with me & mom. So I was very surprised when he agreed to go to the beach with me. We headed out early Sunday morning to the oh so famous Ft. Lauderdale beach. The weather and the water were awesome!

We swam & sat in the sun and talked. It’s very easy to take 95 to Sunset, hang a left on A1A and there’s beachfront parking right there, very convenient. And just a half a block down is a Primanti Brothers (a Pittsburg mainstay) right across from the beach. We didn’t go, but it would be a good place to grab a bite to eat after the beach if you wanted. Anyway, it was really nice and we are going back soon! I’ve tried several beaches while we’ve been down here and Ft. L is my favorite – and not just because of childhood memories.

We bought ourselves a digital camera for our anniversary gift, so no more excuses about posting pictures (once I’ve learned to use it!) I took a bunch of the house on my mom’s camera and never got them posted before she left!

Presuming Luke is available to come over & feed the dogs their supper Saturday, I plan to ride to Port Charlotte with the hub to visit some of his friends.
I had a terrific workout yesterday at the fitness center even though Jeff had the day off. I did a riff of Norma’s tank top workout and mixed in a couple hundred kettlebell swings for a fun and hard workout. I didn’t see a soul the whole time I was there. It’s nice having my own personal huge gym!

Terrier 2 – lizards 0

I decided to work at home today – it’s been quite an exciting afternoon. Jordan has caught and partially eaten TWO lizards. One I took care of, but the other I got Luke (who was out mowing) to come over and handle. It was big and still alive. Ewwwww!

It is a beautiful sunny day in south Florida and I took my lunch break in the pool. I had to pick up a prescription for someone, so I took advantage and picked up an anniversary card while I was at Target. I also bought a lounge chair for lounging by the pool.

I am working Monday since we have no plans other than going to the German place for dinner.

Have a good one!

The secret ingredient is crack (just kidding!)

Can I tell you how good the chicken was last night? We agreed next time we’d do 2 roasted jalapenos per stuffed breast instead of one, but it was awesome. And it tasted like homemade jalapeno poppers! It got me thinking and I said we could use the idea to recreate other flavors (I miss pizza!). I suggested pizza and the response I got was “How about fettuccine alfredo?” Yes, it’s on hub’s “most missed” list. If you stuff the breast with broccoli and mushrooms and put alfredo sauce on top I bet it would be awesome! So not only a good meal, but a concept for more really good meals!

I have been disappointed with my weight loss this week – only half a pound. Since everything is the same, I find that a little frustrating. Oh well, consistent behavior leads to a trend of consistent results, there are always blips up and down of that trend line. I’ll just stay on course and things will even out.

Have a great weekend!

mid week

This morning I helped hub get his lunch packed. After that I made juice (carrot, apple, cucumber) as well as a green drink. The green drink contained: 1 banana, mixed frozen berries, bee pollen, VitaMineral green powder, chia and flax seeds, spinach, and water. Now that my mom isn’t here, I will probably stop with the juice once we use up the carrots & stuff – we are both eating so many veggies it feels a little redundant. OTOH, the dogs love the carrot pulp in their food, so I may still juice periodically. I think the green drink feels more important for us these days. Any excuse to get extra greens.


Breakfast (for both of us) this week is a hamburger with baked beans. Lunch is a salad the size of Montana with grilled chicken. My snack is 12 almonds (if I feel hungry mid morning) – hub is taking a couple of boiled eggs, sardines, apple, and almonds for him to nibble on as needed during the day.

Last night’s dinner was awesome – I have a recipe for doing a chicken in the crock pot with just spices and a diced onion that is so simple and tastes amazing! Tonight we had “jalapeno popper stuffed chicken breast” – I beat chicken breasts until they were thin then covered them in a mixture of cream and shredded cheddar cheese (not too much) then added a roasted jalapeno (hub did them on the grill and I pulled the skin off and took the seeds etc. out) and a slice of bacon. Then I rolled it up. When I got home I baked them - amazing. We had sweet potato and roasted brussel sprouts on the side.

Last night I had a good workout at the gym – 45 minutes on the arc trainer. Today was AMP class with Jeff. Woot!

I must figure out why the frogs love our back yard and figure out how to make it inhospitable.

Das boy wants me to drive up and pick him & Katy up after her mom’s birthday July 6. Mom told him she didn’t think that would work. Uh, no. Unless death, birth, or marriage of someone every important is involved, I do NOT travel in July. Two reasons: Pennsic prep and Tour de France. Sorry. Coverage is anywhere from 2-6 hours per day. (The only really long airtime is on days of critical mountain stages – usually only 2 of those, one each from the Pyrenees and the Alps). Still, miss a day or two and you are totally lost on what is going on. Also, watching the Tour is my Pennsic prep – sewing, mending, cooking, packing – it all goes on this month, with the Tour as the backdrop. I become a recluse.

I guess that makes me sound terribly selfish, but I’m tired of being accommodating for everyone but me. I need my prep time darnit!

For the curious - Overhauling your food

I am fortunate in that for years now I have planned and cooked most of our food. I thought we ate pretty healthy (and we did eat healthier than a lot of folks) but when hub got diagnosed with diabetes, we had to take a hard look at the menus and cupboards.

I threw away open boxes of pasta, crackers, etc. It was just easier not to have it around. We have eliminated bread, pasta, and all grains except quinoa and I have some sprouted wild rice mixed with quinoa. I know that sounds hard.

We eat a lot of stuff that anyone following a paleo diet would turn their nose up at: some cheese, an occasional diet soda or popsicle, last night we had a couple of corn tortillas each with dinner. We simply chose what we were willing to give up in order to achieve the goals of weight reduction and hub’s blood sugar reduction. The processed carbs had to get the boot, no question. We opted to leave some things that aren’t healthy (sugar free popsicles are nothing but chemicals), but that would make the transition easier. In time those things may go as well, or we may just accept a certain amount of crap in our diet – I don’t know.

But I will say this: it gets easier. Some meals are so easy to adapt it requires no thought: tonight we had a chicken in the crock pot with baked organic sweet potatoes and steamed artichokes. Other things were tougher (lasagna). Some things I’ve adapted (like lasagna) and others have simply fallen by the wayside (homemade chicken and dumplings are gone with the white flour).

Here’s the thing: 1) it’s not like we can never eat those things again, ever. We can, but right now it is simply too important to mess around with “moderation.” Define a moderate amount of cyanide, for example. If something is pure poison, how much is it okay to ingest? My body treats a chemical like a toxin and processes it as such (like a popsicle) but it doesn’t do the kind of active damage that pasta will to the hub. That’s where we drew our line in the sand. Your line may be somewhere else.

But overall it hasn’t been too hard. We eat meat, vegetables, fruit, nuts & seeds mostly, with a little bit of other stuff to smooth the path. Our allergies and allergy headaches have improved dramatically, so has sleep, and other bodily functions. We are seeing the payoff in terms of our health – and not just on the scale or in hub’s blood sugar readings (which were again out of the diabetic range this morning).

Because I am a list making fool, I made a list of menu ideas. I was able to come up with 31 dinners out of what we used to eat that I can make without processed carbs. Since we eat out once a week that means we could go about 5 weeks without ever having the same dinner twice!

It has required some planning, but the payoff has been well worth the investment of time.

Well, we left the dogs today. Luke (the kid next door) came over a couple of times during the day to check on the pups while we are both at work. Butch has been doing better, so hopefully things will be okay between him & Jordan. (Hub is working a temp job the next few days.)

Speaking of pups, did you catch the news about the pet treats? http://vitals.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/05/22/11798368-nearly-1000-dogs-now-sick-from-jerky-treats-fda-reports-say?lite

I have a very good recipe for dog treats that the dogs LOVE and they are easy and cheap. I buy organic kibble (Blue Buffalo or Wellness) and make their wet food and dog treats. I bought a cookbook for dogs. That’s just how I roll.

Today was yoga at lunch and gym after work.

Friday is our 10 year anniversary. By marrying each other we’ve saved two sane people from a life of misery. Ha!

And I am spent!

It was a very busy weekend. The usual meal planning, shopping, and food prep on top of which we organized all our craft stuff! Two closets stuffed full of jewelry making supplies, garb accessories, sewing supplies, etc. I still need to organize my sewing stuff, but it’s at least all together on the shelves next to my sewing table. I also need to go through my patterns, but that can be post vacation since the only garb I’m making beforehand is a pair or two of fighting pants for hub.

We also enjoyed pool time both days and went to the gym for a good workout yesterday. I also bought a new MP3 player – my one I had for years died and I bought a cheap replacement which was a pain in the butt. So I sucked it up, went to Best Buy, and bought one which seems like it will be pretty easy to use for $45. I’ll find out tonight when I attempt to load music on it!

Well, it’s happened. In a little over a month my husband has caught up to me in the weight loss department, and I’ve been at it for months! I call justifiable homicide! Ha ha ha. Seriously though, I am proud of him!

I pestered Jeff to lift weights with me this afternoon. My own free personal trainer! How lucky am I?

Ugh

Ugh.


I left work yesterday missing NC very much, wondering just what the heck kind of life I want to create for myself – here, after here, for forever…. (Mid life crisis???) I was looking forward to a serious workout, but it just wasn’t meant to be.

Hub called while I was on the way home – the plumbing under the sink broke (“fell apart” was the phrase he used) – he was on his way to Home Dept for new pipe and couldn’t make the gym. Okay, so I go alone.

When I got home the noy called to let me know N was on his way over (his best friend in Florida). His dad had kicked him out (this happens regularly.) They’d gotten into a fight and the boy said N was crying. The child lives a mile or so from us, so I finished changing, got in the car, and headed out to find him. I picked him up, let him in, and headed for the gym.

It wasn’t much of a workout, but I got there and did something.

He stayed for dinner and hung out until his grandma came to get him.

All in all, not much of an evening.

In good news, Hub is going to be working at a temp job most of next week. In bad news, I don’t know what we’re going to do with Butchie.

Thank heavens it’s the weekend. I need it!

Down another half a pound!

Dinner last night was awesome. The pork chops were really good, but they were so big that we ended up splitting a small sweet potato because neither of us could eat a whole one! I made 4 pork chops so there are plenty of leftovers. Actually, we are just having leftovers for dinner tonight because there is enough to feed the two of us tonight, Saunooke’s lunch today, and probably still be leftovers. I’m not very good at cooking for 2 apparently.

We got to the dog park last night so that was good. It was a little wet but not too bad. The dogs had a great time.

I brought leftovers for lunch today. It’s yucky and rainy and I decided that a hot lunch sounded pretty good. I generally eat salad every day. Now, I change up the ingredients and dressings a lot, and in my world lettuce isn’t even required (nor is any leafy green), but it’s nice to have something different every once in a while.

AMP class yesterday was awesome, as usual. I left feeling slightly woozy and mucho sweaty. Win!

Donna Summer passed away today. When I was 11 or 12 I really wanted to be just like her when I grew up. (Yes, I loved disco!)

Quick Wednesday

The shepherd’s pie last night was awesome. Hub couldn’t believe that it was made with mashed cauliflower. I think it was that good and had nothing to do with the tough workout at the gym prior to eating. Hee hee hee!


On the vet’s advice, we tried getting a muzzle for Butch, thinking that would be a way to keep Jordan safe during the day. (They make them so the dog can drink so they are humane.) Uh, no. Hub took him to the store for a fitting and he busted out immediately. They tried 2 stores with no luck. We can’t crate him – he was very close to destroying the crate we have – and really, he’s 13. It just seems cruel to lock him up for hours every day when he’s always had free run of the house and yard.

After the gym and dinner I did pretty much nothing last night – it was lovely. I’ve been going to bed at 9 and reading a few minutes. I have a book from the library “The Blood Sugar Solution” by Dr. Mark Hyman that I need to start. I just finished “A World Lit Only by Fire” by William Manchester and I was in that mood so I picked up Book 4 of Durant’s “Story of Civilization”, “The Age of Faith”.

We are both down another pound (yay!).

We plan to take the dogs to the park today even though it rains every evening these days. I would like to go to the park, but not in a thunderstorm – hopefully it’ll be okay!

Today was AMP class. I had a meeting up until class time so no time to swing kettlebells beforehand. Which is okay because class is hard enough on its own!

Dinner tonight was pork chops, baked sweet potatoes, and sautéed zucchini. Yum-o.

There is a crossfit gym near my house, and there is one a little farther away that offers the first 2 classes for free. I can’t afford to join another gym right now, but I’m keeping that in the back of my head for later.

Interesting article on why we have become overweight:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/15/science/a-mathematical-challenge-to-obesity.html?_r=2

I’ve read a lot of articles along similar lines. Any time I get into a serious discussion about nutrition (which isn’t often, it’s as bad as talking about religion or politics) I feel like I should be wearing a tin foil hat to protect myself from the MIB or something. A discussion of agribusiness and government food policy quickly begins to sound like some X-Files induced paranoid conspiracy theory. I don’t think it’s that complex – I just think that humans are that greedy.

Link courtesy of Norma. http://www.notnormajean.blogspot.com/

There are times it’s very helpful to have your mom or a close girlfriend around. I’m talking clothes advice. I’ve lost about 25 pounds and I think some of my clothes are too big and probably look dumb, but I hate wearing tight clothing so honestly I can’t really tell. I really don’t have anyone I can ask down here. Sigh.

Tuesday - no lizards

More evidence that the end of civilization is near: my husband is drinking UNSWEET tea! And judging by the sounds last night, I do believe it must’ve been raining frogs.


Last night’s dinner was shrimp diavolo over quinoa with a big salad. It was very good and since I had extra sauce already made up in the freezer, it was very simple. Tonight I have a shepherd’s pie I made over the weekend with mashed cauliflower in place of the mashed potatoes. I also have a bag of organic sugar snap peas from the CSA box. Since we are going to the gym it will be nice to have a meal that only involves heating stuff up.

I stopped buying store bought salad dressing years ago. It’s expensive and not very good IMO, not to mention full of chemicals. Making my own is easy and cheap. Also, the one good thing the 1970s gave us was green goddess dressing. (Love the 50s, but the 70s were just plain weird.) Yes, Kraft does sell a chemical faux green version, but homemade is so good. Apparently its popularity died with the 1970s as well because you never see it in restaurants or anything (I guess ranch killed it) except that one lone bottle of Kraft lurking amongst 1000 varieties of ranch. Being a big eater of salads, I demand variety, and I expect my dressings to be tasty and healthy. Hub, OTOH, eats the same French dressing I’ve been making him for years.

Yesterday was a kettlebell workout at the fitness center at work and an AM walk in the hood. Today was yoga at lunch and gym after work.

Last night was odd in that we had so little to do. We sorted through some stuff to send to Goodwill, worked on our project list for what we want to get done around the house and watched a couple of “Star Trek: DS9” episodes. We had planned to go to the dog park, but an evening thunderstorm nixed that idea. Lifestyles of the rich and famous down here in south Florida, I tell ya.

Uber productive weekend

First of all, I saw an amazing lizard on the fence last night. He was a knight anole – a foot or so long and bright green with bright yellow markings on his face. We were inside and he sat there for a long time.

Hub has lost 18 pounds in just under a month and his fasting blood sugar was below the diabetic level yesterday. He’s doing great. We went to the gym yesterday and had a really good workout. We love our gym. It’s so convenient and has enough equipment that it’s not crowded at all – of course, we’ve generally gone in the morning. Tomorrow we’ll be going after work, but there should still be plenty of equipment.

This weekend was all about giving the house a deep cleaning, picking up, decluttering, and doing a bit of rearranging in the kitchen. The house feels much better but we still had a good amount of time to just relax. If it weren’t for Mothers Day, it would have been an excellent weekend.

Hub texted The boy last night and reminded him to call me. He was crying the whole time he talked to me. He’d had a really lousy day at his grandpa’s house. His uncle and grandpa get along about as well as fire and gasoline (they both want to do things their way on their terms) and he feels caught in the middle. Add the fact that the whole reason his uncle is there is to help out since his grandpa can’t do the stuff due to his cancer, and you have an all around tense situation. Luckily today was better.

I think The boy thought it would somehow magically be okay since he would be closer to Katy (ugh!), who doesn’t get out of school for another month. Le drama. Thank god I’m not 17 – I don’t think humans are able to survive that more than once.

It was a nice day, but not much of a Mother’s Day. In any case, things are coming together around the house.

Up next weekend: organizing craft stuff. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Weekend!

TGIF


The boy and mom left for NC yesterday. I know he’s worried about his grandpa, but I will say I’m very hurt and disappointed that he was in such a rush that Mother’s Day was pretty much blown off this year. I know that sounds horribly selfish (and I guess it is), but that’s how I feel. Please allow me a few moments to pout.

Thursday was tough. He had a math review, then the final, then the chemistry final. It was a very long day. I gave blood yesterday and felt awful after. I mean, I had to go to the nurse’s office and lay down for a while. I felt like I was in 4th grade or something. Giving blood is generally no big deal, so I really don’t know what happened. Weird. Fortunately (or unfortunately) I was leaving work early to go to the dentist. I still felt woozy, but Hub talked to me till I got home then he drove me.

My weight has stayed the same the past 2 weeks. Between the cold, the trip, and the crazy schedule at home, exercise levels have been down and some sub-optimal food has crept into the diet. One up side of it being just the 2 of us for a while is more time for exercise. We plan to hit the gym 3 days a week together. Hub’s commitment to losing weight and eating healthier is making my commitment easier to keep. The other morning his fasting blood sugar was in the 120s!

This weekend we are giving the house a thorough scrubbing and planning a schedule for operation “finally get everything in this damn house organized!” Because I am tired of never knowing where anything is! If we tackle a room a week we’ll be done just in time to pack for vacation. (Good thing there are no projects that need to be done!)

In sadder news, we are going to have to put Butch down soon. Have I written about this? He’s just gotten too snappy with the other dogs. He doesn’t seem to be in any pain, but he’s 13 years old and he’s always been a bit touchy. He’d been in the shelter a long time when we got him and I’m not sure he’s ever really gotten over his bad experiences early in life. But he’s had a good life with us for the past 11 years.

Our anniversary is coming up. Because our minds think alike (I won’t claim they are great) we both thought that the German restaurant would be the perfect place to go for dinner. We were thinking about a trip to Key West, but I think our plan will just be to chill out in the peace and quiet of our own house, in our own pool, with our own dogs.

Have you ever heard of the group “Friends of Alice Ivy”? Jango and Pandora are so cool – I’ve heard some awesome music that way.

When the mangoes fall off the tree into the yard, if we don’t spot them quickly Belews (“the puppy”) thinks they are balls and likes to play with them, which sort of ruins them for eating. Luckily they are a bright color and therefore pretty easy to spot, even on the other side of the pool fence. (We have one of those mesh pool fences which we now keep up at all times. It looks ugly, but keeps the dogs from accidentally falling in the pool while chasing each other.)


Last night The boy randomly decided to drag out the overhead projector and put a large sun on his wall. Since I put celtic knotwork all over the last kitchen, I can’t really say anything, can I? I think it’ll be pretty cool when he finishes.

Last night’s dinner was spaghetti squash, baked fish, and roasted green beans. I made a pot of chicken and dumplings for mom and The boy. We have been getting thunderstorms most days for at least a little while. It was pouring when I was driving home yesterday, which meant no pool time. Bummer.

In other exciting news, we have a dog sitter for vacation! It is hard to find someone to move into your house for 16 days. The kid next door (18) is very mature and responsible – not to mention just next door. We were planning to drive the dogs up to NC to stay with my mom, but this will be much easier, if more expensive. So that’s a good thing.

Today’s workout: AMP class. Jeff is back from surgery, and while he is limited in what he can do, he can boss us around. Hurray!

Have you seen this already?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qX9FSZJu448&feature=youtu.be

One step at a time

First of all: My cold is all gone. It was gone fairly quickly (3 or 4 days) but it was a doozy! I’m so glad it was gone before we went to Georgia.

Trip to Georgia: Did I mention this? Mom and I went to Georgia to visit my great aunt. We drove up on Friday (it took just over 9 hours) and drove back Sunday (just under 9 hours). We did the usual things – antique shops, eating out, visiting the cemetery for flower checking and grave cleaning, the obligatory trip to W-M for a few items for Alma, putting a little extra money in her bank account.

We did do something a bit different – we rode over to Warm Springs (home of President Roosevelt’s “Little White House”) for new antique shops and a new place to try for lunch. It was a nice ride over, but the GPS (her nickname is “Brunhilda”) took us through some serious back country. But it was just beautiful – so different from south Florida. Also, we ate at a good restaurant with excellent vegetables, which Alma thoroughly enjoyed. All in all it was a terrific trip.

The antique report: I bought a cute little painting of a chipmunk on a tree (he was so cute and it was only $3 so it had to come home) a couple of fat quarters of pretty fabric for MIL for Mother’s Day, and a 1974 hamburger cookbook (Betty Crocker, I believe). I actually did get a couple of good ideas and so many laughs that it was well worth $2! I’ve been eyeing a beautiful walnut lazy susan but couldn’t justify the expense at my fav antique shop. Maybe next time.

Not sure exactly when the boy and mom will be heading to NC – given the circumstances he is anxious to get going the second school is done. He may not even be here for Mother’s Day, which makes me very sad but I know how worried he is about his grandpa.

It’s rare you get to do something that your teenager thinks is cool, but I managed it. The boy decided to do a little rearranging in his room and wanted some new art. I had a bunch of old posters, so we decided to look through them. He was unimpressed with Garfield (high school) or Spuds Mackenzie (various barracks rooms), and he just laughed at Jean Claude van Damme (I don’t even remember owning that!). He was mildly impressed with the Marine Corps posters which were from the then senior chief petty officer of the MC (my friend Glenda’s dad), but what really blew him away was a large collection of Soviet propaganda posters purchased in 1991 in Moscow. He thought they were awesome (and they are!). He hung one in his room. I don’t think of myself as a packrat, but the Garfield poster from my high school dorm room? Really???

Hub continues to make progress, with the occasional lesson learned. The other night he went to a friend’s house and had a couple of slices of thin crust pizza. He also tried skipping his walk a couple of days. His blood sugar results and scale are keeping him on the straight and narrow – he is feeling better and seeing results, which helps.

We traded in the gas guzzling truck for a Honda CR-V – much better suited to what hub needs for work and we need as a family vehicle. So that’s good.

I’m looking forward to some nice quite routine and puttering around the house this summer. Let that commence – the summer weather already has! The pool yesterday afternoon felt fantastic. I love having a pool in the backyard.

Today’s workout: 560 kettlebell swings.

I am a germ bomb!

I have the worst cold I have had in years. I am tired and I am a coughing, sneezing, nose blowing germ factory on 2 feet. I can’t wait for this to be over. Especially since we are going to Georgia this weekend and I do not want to be sick and give this to my great aunt!

We are working very hard to get school wrapped up by Mother’s Day so mom and the boy can head to NC. The news on his grandpa keeps getting worse. They were hoping with aggressive treatment to knock his cancer into remission, but it has progressed farther than they thought based on the most recent tests. The boy just wants to be done with school (well, sometimes he doesn’t even care at all) and get up there. This is so hard.

Apparently it is now the rainy season (the down side to living in a sub-tropical climate). It has been raining since Friday. Since we live maybe 50 yards from a canal, the wild life tends to seek drier ground. Frogapalooza has gone on for 4 nights now. Thank goodness for child size ear plugs. There was the largest roach I’ve ever seen in my kitchen the other morning. (And remember, I lived in Texas!) Tough girl that I am, I jumped on the counter and screamed. I really, really, loathe bugs.

I went to the gym Sunday morning – the last day that I felt decent. Unless sneezing counts as exercise, I’m not getting any. Hub has it too – he’s the one that gave it to me, curse him. I have homemade soup and hot tea and medicine, but mostly I just want a nap.

Friday

Down a half a pound – which puts me down 2 pounds since Monday. Yay! Hub’s blood sugar was 132 this morning – so clearly the change in eating plus exercise is making a HUGE difference. He has been stunned by the change. And the day earlier in the week when it had been down then spiked back up? He admitted he’d had a Gatorade that day. He said he learned his lesson about THAT. I’ve been reading about nutrition so long, I sometimes forget that he genuinely doesn’t know how some things are going to affect his blood sugar or what foods have sugar. To me it’s like “duh” – but he has to learn it for himself. If I just tell him he may not get it. But he’s also listening, which is a refreshing change. Ha ha!

Stomach is feeling better this morning. I left work early yesterday – I was in misery. I did eat some dinner (salmon patties, quinoa, and broccoli) but I just felt like crap. I hope I don’t have a repeat of that any time soon!

Tomorrow we are planning to head to Coral Castle (http://coralcastle.com/). Random fact: The story about the construction inspired the song “Sweet Sixteen” by Billy Idol. Anyway, the weather is supposed to be dodgy again this weekend, so this is a fun little half day trip that gets us out of the house but isn’t entirely weather dependent.

My step brother headed up to our stepsister’s today - she’s about 3 hours up the road. Truck work was all finished up! Ready for things to quiet down a little around case de crazy.

Not good news on the boy's grandpa's cancer: very rare, very aggressive.  No ure, only treatment.  But knocking it into remission could buy him years - not just months.

Weight was the same today. I was hoping for a loss, but oh well. I knew to expect it. Sigh.


In good news, hub’s blood sugar was 130 this morning. 130. Awesome. His weight was up about half a pound. I reminded him that some fluctuations are normal when you are weighing daily. Now, I need to take that advice myself!

Workout yesterday was awesome. First I did 505 kettlebell swings, then I did AMP class. Jeff is having shoulder surgery next Wednesday so he is in crazed workout mode. He was a self described “mean man” – and I loved it! We did a total body workout full of crazy stuff. Like: Imagine a push-up but with one hand on a step and another holding a weight. Do a push up, but when you come up lift the weight toward the ceiling and twist your body and hips so you are looking at the ceiling. Lower the weight and do another push-up. I was a red-faced sweaty mess at the end!

Nevertheless, I am feeling kind of down today. I don’t know why. (I really wanted to get a ham croquette at the cafeteria this morning - thankfully they didn’t have any today). I think its money stress. It just sucks. I’ve tried not to worry and just have faith that things will work out. They have so far for the past year in spite of hub’s surgery and unemployment. And I tell myself there’s no point worrying because there is only so much I can do, you know? And for the most part I am doing the things I can, but I just hate the unsettled feeling.

My step brother was supposed to leave for NC today – he drove his truck over Tuesday night so he could work on it at our house. Now he’s headed back to NC for a while. He was doing some more work on the truck but I’m hoping he’ll be heading out tomorrow. He was recently at our house for a VERY long stay, and a break is in order. I feel mean saying that, cause we love him and all, but....

Last night was math – we went over 2 lessons on sequences and series. They were both pretty short. Tonight is only a quiz on those 2 lessons. Uh, ok. Anyway, schoolwork this week hasn’t been as bad as I was worried it would be. It takes a lot of time, but for the most part I have enjoyed sitting down and doing this stuff. It’s been a pretty unique experience – it feels a lot like home schooling. Even though our dispositions are a little too similar to make it ideal, I think it’s brought the boy and I closer together. But I will admit I’m looking forward to more free time this summer! Ha!

Today was lunchtime yoga. I have had a stomach ache for some reason for most for the day. (I couldn’t even finish my salad at lunch – I just picked at it.)

I am very ready for the weekend.

Back side of the week

Down another half pound! I expect to stall for a day or two, as that seems the way of things with my weight loss, lose big then pause, lose then pause. But that’s ok – the numbers are heading in the right direction and I am so pleased with the progress I am making.


A certain amount of this is vanity – finding clothes when you wear anything over a size 12 is hard IMO. Maybe it’s my body shape – I tend to have big-ish hips at any size, but at higher weights finding clothes that fit and that I like is tough.

But honestly, a lot of it is simply about being comfortable in my body. I like feeling strong and feeling like I can do the things I want – camping, hiking, snorkeling, etc. without being overly limited by my lack of fitness.

And then there’s the fact that I just turned 46 years old and I am on no medications. I don’t need any – and I intend to keep it that way for many years to come. I think many modern medicines do as much harm as good and I simply don’t want to have to go down that path. At the end of the day, whatever motivates you is great for you!

And then there’s the fact that I happen to enjoy moving my body – challenging myself to go harder, faster, or lift more. Ever won a lifting competition? It rocks. Finished a triathlon or road race? Also rocks. Those are moments that I feel truly alive.

How much muscle is too much? There’s no such beastie unless a person is taking so many steroids that her face is beginning to get what I call ”the horsey look”. (And I would still admire the muscles.) Check out the book “The Women” by Bill Dobbins (which I own). Just amazing. I don’t have the desire to do what I would have to do to look like that, but I can be fit and strong and feel good. That’s achievable and valuable to me.

The dentist yesterday was – ugh. Two hours! First the cleaning, the my oral surgeon came over to the dentist’s office so they could look at my mouth together and come up with a plan (I’m losing a bridge because the 2 teeth on either side are dying because they aren’t strong enough to support it). Then they had to make multiple molds (yuck).

I got home worn out and demoralized. I’m guessing this is going to cost in the neighborhood of $8000 out of pocket. Seriously, who has that kind of money these days? Heck, I’ve never had that kind of money just lying around! Ugh. Well, it’s that or wait for the thing to fall out and get dentures. Uh, no thanks.

Last night was cool (I turned on the heat in the car this morning – it was 57. Clearly my blood has thinned). I slept with the windows open and it was so nice. I didn’t want to get out of bed! But I did. Breakfast this week is a big veggie & egg casserole type thing – all I had to do was scoop out a serving to take to the office. For lunch I chopped a tomato, a huge cucumber, and a big orange bell pepper and divided it into 2 produce bags. Then into each bag went a diced grilled chicken thigh and boiled egg. I’ll buy a bed of greens at work from the cafeteria and lunch is done!

Dinner tonight is leftover night. I have vegetable soup with ground turkey and a chicken soup. I’ll make a big salad to go on the side and call it good. I have loads to kale to use up and ends & odds of veggies. The CSA box comes tomorrow so I’ve got to make room in the fridge!

Random musings on a Tuesday

Hub and I were both down another pound this morning. Oh yeah! One nice thing about tracking my weight so long is that I can tell you the last time I weighed less than this was the week of February 12, 2010. Woot! Right now losing weight feels 1) very exciting and 2) pretty easy. I’m eating well and plenty – I may get hungry an hour or so before a meal, but I’m hardly starving. Sure, there are times (like last night) I would have liked a cookie, but I got busy doing something and it was no big deal. Amazing.

I am listening to Kraftwerk’s album “Tour de France” in the car these days. Now, I love Kraftwerk (I always envision Dieter from SNL dancing around. I’m totally in touch with my German heritage and am so happy I got to live there.) But this album is special because it was commissioned to celebrate the 100th year of the TdeF – and if you’ve been reading this a while you know how I feel about that! Last year the Tour sorta passed me by. I wasn’t home – we were living in a hotel at the time and I wasn’t able to relax and enjoy it – indeed, relish it, the way I normally do. This year will be so different. Watching TdeF and working on projects for Pennsic – July is the best month of the year.

Speaking of which, I doubt I’ll be making too much for Pennsic this year. We’re both good on garb and I haven’t stayed in our camp for a couple of years so I don’t really know of anything I want or need for camp. So I’ll probably just check to make sure everything is in good repair and call it good. I have lots of fabric, but nothing is truly needed and I still haven’t organized my craft stuff. I’ve never even found my Viking wire weaving stuff – in any case I’ve probably forgotten how to do it. Oh well – I guess that means Eilis and I need to go shopping and maybe she can teach me (yet again)! Bummer – shopping with Eilis. *lol*

Today is an early day at work – I have a dental cleaning. Good times.

Lunch today was yoga. The agenda for tonight is going to the gym, probably for the arc trainer.

Monday, again

So, nice weekend even though the weather was terrible Saturday and we cancelled snorkeling. On the plus side, we live here so we can go any time! Lots of yard and house work accomplished. The boy and I went for a nice walk last night – the dog park was voted “too muddy” to take the dog. Ha!


Saturday morning I went to the gym with hub (for cardio mainly – I do my weights at work or at home with the kettlebells). His weight routine takes an hour so I programmed the dreadmill for 60 minutes of hills. Each piece of cardio equipment comes equipped with a tv and a fan. I never understood folks who could read while on an elliptical or something, but I’m not averse to watching the tv to change it up from my mp3 player. I watched British soccer on ESPN 8 or something – that was the channel it was on and cute guys being sporty seemed like a pretty good choice.

In a week hub has lost over 5 pounds and his blood sugar has come down from the 180s to the 130s (137 this morning). Behold the power of food and exercise. It has to be over 125 to be considered ‘diabetes’. Granted, a reading of 80 is better, but he is on his way and thrilled with how quickly he is seeing changes. He already feels much better!

Tomorrow I go for a teeth cleaning and I’ll ask the dentist what the outcome of her consult was with the oral surgeon. That giant sucking sound you hear is money going from us to the dental professionals. I have shallow roots. I have great hygiene – just lousy roots.

I’ve lost 4.5 pounds since my last WW visit 2 weeks ago. Sweet! Workout today was kettlebells. I am doing the front and back side of the minute for the first 2 rotations of Tracy Reifkind’s “Give and Take” video – it works out to 20 swings per minute for 18 minutes, plus warm-up. I am currently using my 18 pound kettlebell.

In other news, I was a cooking fool this weekend. I made kale chips (in the dehydrator) and crackers. The boy pronounced kale chips “too weird” and the crackers as tasting “just like seeds” (considering the fact that the recipe is just 2 cups seeds to 1 cup water and a little seasoning, I don’t find this a shocking development). Hub loves the crackers and thinks they make a great snack with a little pb.

Dinner last night was a roasted turkey breast (cheaper than fancy Whole Foods sliced turkey), corn on the cob, and roasted green beans. Tonight is fish and salad and broccoli and quinoa. Death by green vegetable is the current motto in our house. Just kidding. But I’m not. I’m out of green vegetable ideas and I’m a woman who gets a CSA box! Luckily everyone loves roasted brussel sprouts.

Congrats on the kettlebell Val!  Tracy's blogs are great - I followed her old one for years and it was a great source of inspiration.  Her book and her video "Give and Take" are both awesome!

As a matter of fact, this morning I did the first 2 rotations of Tracy's video - the front and back side of the minute - roughly 400 swings in a little over 20 minutes.  Then I went to the gym with hub - walked on the dreadmill for an hour doing the "rolling hill" program.  I love walking outside, but I like to go when he goes to support him.  Then took the dogs to the park for a walk!

I didn't get enough done today - I have loads of picking up around the house and food prep, and not nearly enough time to do it all tomorrow! Oh well.  That's the way it always seems to be.

Didn't go snorkeling today - it was stormy in the Keys and rainy here all day.  A nice day to piddle around the house.

It's been a pretty nice and very productive weekend.  Not looking forward to going back to work Monday. This has been like a mini "staycation" - thoroughly enjoyable!