Just 40 Days

My mother was born on Halloween. She enjoyed a Banana Flip on her birthday.  When she became a grandmother, we would all bring our kids to her house and trick or treat in her neighborhood.  I remember that she would take out the screen from the door and pass out the candy through that. Mom and dad moved to a different neighborhood and so did the trick or treating. There were a few years, where there were no grandchildren trick or treating, but not many. We stilled gathered at her house to celebrate her birthday. Most of the grandchildren loved to trick or treat together so the location of the trick or treats took turns each of their neighborhoods.  Mom and dad would join us and we'd sing happy birthday. Although mom passed away nearly ten years ago, we still try to trick or treat together as a family.  This year there were 8 great grandchildren followed by 11 adults.

It's official, I lost 10 pounds last month! If I keep up the good work and maintain a ten pound loss each month, I will reach my goal weight of 150 pounds before spring.  My feet are already happy with me losing weight as everyday I have less pain.  (It could also be the PT I do, but I know that weight is a large factor.) Portion control is key for me.  That is why I like the prepackaged lunch and dinners that this plan is based on.  I tend to over do it, sure to clean my plate, no matter how big the plate is.  I can do this!

Luminous Nights at Toledo Zoo I worry sometimes about my kids. As their mother, I want to my them to always get along.  I forget how unrealistic that is.  We've never all gotten along all of the time.  That doesn't mean that we don't love or care for each other. It just means that we are not always in a family mood.  When we are all together, I like to do something fun. This is not always easy as it seems.  All of us are  busy in our own lives, working through our own issues, and don't always want to be 'bothered' with family time. Lately, we've struggle to have family game night as everyone is too tired, or too interested in their cell phones.  This weekend we were able to do something together.  We all loaded up into one car (4 adults and 3 grandchildren), put the wagon in the back and headed to zoo.  It was chilly so we were all bundled up and had a large blanket in the wagon.  My heart was full of joy the entire time.  I...

I've seemed to have a couple more 'high calorie' days this week so I got on the scale this morning, hoping that I didn't gain any weight. To my surprise, I've lost some!  Now if only it will stay that way until Monday morning weigh in! BTW - I think it's safe for me to say that I've made it to 'onderland' again.  May I never see my weight begin with a 2 again.

It's always good to be with friends.  Today I met with a few of my good friends for good conversation and relaxation.  My friend Deb has a piano at her house.  It's been years, but I wanted to play a little Heart and Soul and/or Chopsticks.  I have to admit, I forgot how to play!

I know it's not Monday but my calendar event is titled Massage Monday and I just put the date when it is. 

It's true!  I wear a size ten...shoe. I'm currently working on downsizing my clothing size from a size 14/16 to a size 8/10.  I was not expecting my feet to go from a size 7.5/8 (most of my life) to a size 10.  I've been buying size 10 athletic shoes and wearing 9.5 sandals for the past six months.  Today I put on my most comfortable and favorite 9.5 black shoes and before lunch I knew something was up. It felt like my toes were smashed up against a wall.  I couldn't wait to get home and get them off.  Now I have no dress shoes for winter.  Even the winter boots I wore yesterday for 'Give Drugs the Boot' day at school were small at 9.5.  I just got them last winter. So with no shoes and not boots, I have to go shoe shopping! I also have to rid my closet of all of the size 9.5.  This makes me sad. I hope they find a good home.

Giving and receiving compliments are two of the best ways to feel good. A week ago, I changed my hairstyle and the compliments just keep coming.  Sometimes, I think to myself; "Wow, my hair must have really looked bad, that it looks so good now."  But most of the time, I can take a good compliment. What makes a compliment good?  I read a couple of blogs about the topic and liked this one, by Ty Bennett:  How to Give a Compliment  the best.  I like the GPS reference. (Genuine, Personal, Specific)  I hope it helps me to remember that giving a compliment means I'm paying attention.  Receiving a compliment, means someone is paying attention to me. Life is hard enough to not have people notice.  Life is easier, when you notice other people.  It gets the focus off of yourself and your troubles. It helps to develop empathy for family or community members who are having their own issues.  Remember, God put all of the people here...

Still going down! I've been doing pretty well, sticking to the Nutrisystem plan and it's working.  I'm  just .7 of a pound shy of a ten pound loss since beginning on September 25. If I keep up at this rate, I'll reach my goal before spring! The easiest part of this is breakfast.  It's my favorite meal and I like the choices the plan offers.  I usually add an egg as a 'powerful' (more protein) where in the past, I would eat two eggs with breakfast.  Or I put a tablespoon of JIF on their Thick French Toast, which is what I had this morning. I also like protein shakes.  I add a banana and cinnamon or a scoop of PBfit (peanut butter powder), where in the past I would add twice as much JIF. The biggest difference is that I'm back to eating more vegetables!  I've even tried some new ones:  rice cauliflower and this week I will be roasting radishes!  They're supposed to be like roasted potatoes! Bon Appetit !  Eat Healthy!  Not...

It was another gorgeous day here.  High 70's in October!  I took advantage of it and went to my favorite Metropark: Pearson Pearson is my favorite park for many reasons.  Childhood memories of picnics, reunions and softball games. High school memories were made as I learned how to drive a stick shift with my sister Barb in her brown Pontiac Firebird.  All of my sisters used to take wagons full of our kids to Pearson.  My four kids and I would ride our bikes there. Cross country practice was held at Pearson.  I would walk the outer loop while my kids practiced. I have memories of the paddle boats, sledding hill and even some events that were held at the shelter house. Today did not disappoint as Aiden and I walked the 3 mile loop.  The sun was shining, the leaves were crunchy and the smell of autumn was everywhere.  My goal was to walk the loop in less than an hour.  I just made it with a 19 minute mile pace.  I can't wait till I ...

I love Saturdays.  I get so much done around the house.  I always find time to workout. But most of all, I find time to relax.  I love Saturdays.

So I'm trying to lose weight and I'm using Nutrisystem for portion control.  I'm keeping track of what I eat on their Numi app.  Every day I can have between 1200-1500 calories a day.  I'm at 1503 and I came home from the YMCA to the lingering smell of what my family had for dinner.  Now I'm hungry! What to do?  Drink more water. Have a NS snack.  (I ended up have a couple, ending the day at nearly 1700 calories.)

know that good days are usually determined by your attitude.  I guess I had a good attitude today!  It didn't really matter how much work I had to do, or the problems I had to solve, I just muddled through and felt pretty darn happy all day!

So I'm sitting on hold at work, (it's been 20 minutes so far), reading some old posts of mine.  I decided to go to the beginning of this Blog - March 5, 2014.  I moved onto April and read how I was feeling when Haylee died.  I read about  Clarence , with tears streaming down my face.  I decided to look and see how often I wrote about my grief.  I found another time  and decided it wasn't a good idea to go back and read all of those posts during my lunch hour. BTW - I've now been on hold for 40 minutes.  I have a repair that needs to be completed so that I can work, there has got to be a better way then waiting on hold with piano music and a friendly voice that says: Thank-you for your patience. Please stay on the line and we will be with you in a moment.

The scale moved this week!  After working hard to follow the plan, the scale moved in the right direction.  I'm down two more pounds, bringing my total loss to nine pounds!  I can do this! I remember blogging those ten years ago on

I didn't realize just how many things I've neglected around my house until this weekend when I changed the filter in my furnance, and the one I replaced was dated October 17, 2915.

Paul & Derrick working together  It's not often that my sons show their love for me.  Today they did.  They hung a black storm door on my airing deck where the old one was removed for as a Mother's Day surprise, only to find the first black replacement door did not fit.  I am so happy!  First of all, I can finally open that door to let the breeze flow throughout the upstairs.  Second, I love how it looks!  It's black like the other two storm doors on my house.  And finally, I love to see my kids working together to solve problems. After they finished, they went out together to run errands and came home with a gift for me: a Dyson v8 Absolute.  I can't wait to try it out in the morning. Thanks you guys for making my day today!

Hmmm... Someone told me "Be careful what you say, your mind is listening".  I've been having to retrain my brain in alot of areas lately.  After two foot surgeries in 2016, I was having pain all over my body. I had to learn to walk straight by focusing on pointing my toes inward; which is what my MIND thought, but if you saw me walking, my feet were straight!  It's funny how our minds work. Within one day of that focus, I had little or no hip pain, that I had been having.  It took about four days of focus to be able to walk straight without thinking about it.  It's amazing how quickly our bodies learn things.  Our mind is a powerful thing.

"Take little sips"     "Everything in moderation"     "Baby steps" I grew up hearing all of these things.  Sometimes I remember them and they are helpful.  Other times, I could care less.  

If you are a person watching the news these days, you may find that your town is a scary place.  It may cause you to want to move away or stay inside.

The ongoing saga of my recovery continues.  Now in the thirteenth month post surgery, I'm beginning to feel better. Everything I've been told and read about tendon repair has been true, it's hard work and can take more than a year.  I've was at PT yesterday, (I go every two weeks), and I felt pretty good walking in after working all day.  Feeling pretty good means that the pain level in my foot/ankle was less than 3. Just a short time ago, I would be at 6 or 7 by the time I made it to therapy.  Now I'm walking better and able to begin more weight bearing exercise.  This is great news for me as exercise has always been a stress reliever for me...and pedaling the recumbent bicycle just wasn't getting it!

Yippee!  The scale moved in the right direction, even after an  eventful weekend!   Although it was less than a pound, a loss is a loss.   This is very encouraging news:  If you plan for events, follow the plan and don't over eat or drink, you don't have to gain weight. This coming week, I don't have an special events to attend so I will follow the nutri-system plan more closely.  It's a sacrifice I have chosen for myself. It's only as hard as I make it for myself.  My attitude will get be to my goal because I am worth it! I am also so happy that the number on the scale begins with a 1!

I had two events that I had committed to before starting my journey with Nutrisystem.  The first was the Zoo Brew on Friday and the second was a family wedding on Saturday.  I needed a plan so that I would not sabotage the progress I have made in the past ten days. I began thinking about a strategy to participate in and enjoy these events.  I knew that I would increase my intake of vegetables Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.  Increasing fiber from the veggies will help my body get rid of the excess caloric intake.  It's not a cure all plan, but I've learned that it softens the blow. Friday night was much harder than Saturday as alcohol was involved.  Alcohol lowers my ability to stick completely to my plan of not eating things that are not on my plan...so I had onion rings and some tortilla chips with spinach/artichoke dip.  I did drink plenty of water and walked alot while enjoying the zoo and the company of my good friend Paula. My plan for the ...

I think that we've all felt sad before, but if that sadness lingers day after day, it may signal depression. I know that I've suffered from it several different times during my life: in high school, after a break-up; during and after my divorce, grieving for my sister Barb, my mom and my daughter Haylee.  Stress can create havoc on our bodies. When I'm depressed, I sleep more, eat more, and do nothing more.  I may also shop more, drink more, and complain more. Luckily for me, eventually, I tend to get back on track with little or no help from the medical field.  I have learned what works for me. Not all  people are like me. Some of my children continuously suffer from anxiety and depression. Some of my friends and family have suffered greatly from this illness.  They lost loved ones to suicide.  I will not even try to imagine how that feels.  September was suicide awareness month and many fundraisers and walks are happening this weekend.   ...

Most of the time I know that God is in charge of my life.  Actually, I KNOW God is in charge of my life.  What I don't know is whether he is in charge of the lives of the people I love most...my family. As I write this, I'm thinking to myself, why would God be in charge of your life and not those you love? Hmm...I guess I KNOW that God is in charge of the lives of my children too.  That brings me relief!

One of the most important things I learned ten years ago was to EAT if I was hungry, especially when I'm trying to lose weight! As I embark another life changing journey to health, I hope I remember all the things I've learned.

Added Green Beans Portion control works for me.  Although I don't like to admit it, I am a rule follower.  That doesn't mean that I never break rules, it just means that I usually follow rules. A program like Nutrisystem or HMR helps me stay on track and meet my goals. I know that I need volume to keep me satisfied and so I always add plenty of vegetables to their meals. 

I have to admit, I've taken my body for granted.  I'm 56 years old and have never really broke any bones or injured myself doing activities and sports.  I have always been active...until I couldn't be any longer. So I had surgery to fix the problem that was causing me pain.  The surgery was much harder than I thought it would be and recovery is lasting over a year. I really don't like it when my ankles causes me pain.  l feel like I take one step forward and two steps back with recovery from the two surgeries I had in 2016.  It's been over a year since my tendon repair. I have to say, I have had one totally pain free day!   So what did I do, I walked my dog at the park.  We were only out about 30 minutes.   Still feeling good. Then I wake up this morning to pain!!!  UGH!! 

After Week 1 One week ago, I started Nutrisystem to help me achieve my goal of reaching and maintaining a healthy weight for my body which is around 150 pounds.  The first week was hard at times but I stuck to it.  Relying on what I learned the last time I was on a pre-packaged meal plan. I will eat when I'm hungry, but it will be only their food.  I will add veggies to the dinners to give them more volume and when I'm tired of plain shakes, I'll improve on them too.  But for now, I'm satisfied.  I lost more than five pounds.  I'm in one-hundreds again!  Only fifty more to goal!  I will do this.

Dad serving at Mass I hadn't seen my dad for a week or so and decided to call him last night to tell him my granddaughter Carly and I would be joining him at Mass at his church.  Little did I know he would be serving. My dad is the kindest, most loving, Christian man I know.  He is always there to lend a hand or tell a joke.  He treats everyone with patience, love, and respect.  He is the real deal. He lives his faith in everything breath he takes. I know I've said this before, but my dad has a way to make everyone of his children (8 original), grandchildren (35), or great grandchildren (13) believe that they are his favorite.  And we all are, he loves us all, His face lights up whenever he is with his family. A Father's joy is His children. I love you dad!