FMM: Holidays

Catching up on the to-do list after being down for a few days with the stomach bug is a lot of work!  I'm still not quite all caught up with the things I wanted to have done last week. Not worried about it right now though, it will all get done in its own time. 

It took me a few days of eating more of the comfort food before I was ready to eat normal again.  That being said, today is a new day and it's going to be one that stays on track.  There have been so many things (myself) getting in my way as of late. I just need a few great days under my belt so I can start feeling good about things again.  Today will be one of those days! 

Anyway, I haven't participated in Friend Makin' Mondays in a while and thought today's topic was fun.  Why not give it a go?

If you’ve taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you’re new, please take a moment to answer this week’s question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section here at: www.alltheweigh.com so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. Please invite your blog readers to add their links here too so everyone has to opportunity to be seen. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it’s time for this week’s topic!

Holidays

1.  What are you plans for Thanksgiving this year?  This is going to be a fun Thanksgiving for us!  Normally, it's just the 4 of us, my parents and uncle and once in a while my brother and his family pops in.  So there is usually only 7 to 11 of us.  Most of my family has either passed on or they are scattered about the country which makes for a very boring Thanksgiving.  

This year though, I invited a friend of mine and her family who just recently moved to the U.S. from across the pond. We are very excited to share our American Thanksgiving with our friends!  

2.  At what point do you begin celebrating the Christmas season?  I'm already celebrating in my head.  I love Christmas.  Christmas and Halloween are my two faves!  I'm usually done with my shopping by now so I can really enjoy the season.  This year?  Well...I'm just getting started!  I'm a little stressed about it but it will all be OK. 

3.  Do you celebrate Christmas, or do you celebrate another holiday? Christmas. 

4.  If you could have one present (you know, a material good, not love or world peace) what would you want?    A MacBook Pro. 

5.  Share an idea or two that you can plan to do for someone who may need to feel loved throughout the holiday season. A few of the local grocery stores has food "boxes" that you can purchase to give to the less fortunate.  I will give weekly throughout the season.  I do it even when my wallet is feeling tight.  I figure if my wallet is tight, there are plenty more who's are tighter and I'm lucky enough to be able to shop in the store. 

We also do a lot more family oriented stuff throughout the season.  Each weekend is full of activity whether it's going to a holiday party or doing some other family fun-filled activity. 

6.  Would you rather spend the holiday season on the beach or in the snow? This is the ONLY time of year that I like snow.  I feel like Christmas isn't Christmas without it.  Once January 1st rolls around though? The snow can melt and the trees can bloom, I'm ready for spring!  

7. What is your favorite Thanksgiving food?  Stuffing. 

8.  Will you participate in Black Friday shopping?  Yes. My girlfriend and I have been planning our attack for weeks. 

9.  Will you travel for the holidays or stay at home?  If you’re traveling, are you flying or driving or making alternate plans?  Thanksgiving will be at my house.  We made a pact when we got married that once we had kids, Christmas will always be spent at home.  Anyone is always welcome over, but the kids are staying put. We will travel to NY to visit hub's family one weekend in December. 

10.  List at least 5 things for which you are currently thankful.

1.  My boys.  My husband and my two boys are my everything. There are no words...
2. My health.  I recently had a check-up at Dana Farber and saw many, many sick people this time.  I prayed for them all. I am so lucky to be healthy.  I'm afraid my day will come and I'll have my turn being that sick...for now though, I will take the healthy and will run with it. 
3. My parents.  They are very supportive and help a lot with the boys. Couldn't do it without them. 
4. My friends. I've come to meet a lot of great people over the last few years.  I realized a few weekends ago while we were out having some fun that I really do have a great network of people. 
5. My cheerleaders.  You know who you are.  Thank you.  

Now it’s your turn to answer this week’s questions!  

Recovering

Had the nasty old stomach bug yesterday.  Yeah, that was fun.

My eldest is home from school today because he was feeling icky this morning.  He has a broken knee (is out of his cast and in a brace), so I didn't want to take any chances of him getting hurt trying to beeline it to the restroom.

Hubs is out cold.  He's has the bug too.

My little guy is bouncing off the walls. Makes me wonder if he's next.  You know, the wind up before the fall.

No need to worry about eating too much today. I'm feeling much better but am still only up for bland foods.  I would love to get some protein in me but honestly, I don't know if I can stomach it. We'll see.

I've spent the morning disinfecting everything and cleaning up from not doing a thing yesterday.  Amazing how the house can turn into a pit in a mere 24 hours. Needless to say, I am now ready for a nap. I'll take things pretty easy today and then I'll have my gym time tomorrow.  Just hope Rudy will show me some mercy after being sick this week. :)

Must Hydrate

Just a quick pop in.

Not much to talk about today.

There is a lot of (little) things going on in my world right now. I feel as though a lot of it is distracting me and I'm trying really hard to ground myself.  

Calories were great yesterday.  I was well within my calorie budget for the day.
Today?  Well, I would have been fine if I didn't snack on popcorn during TV tonight.

Tomorrow, my goal is to drink more water. Honestly, it's probably half of what my problem is. I'm fairly dehydrated and when I'm dehydrated, I tend to make poor choices.  I remember being told once that when you find  yourself scouring the cabinets for something to eat but nothing is hitting you, you are probably dehydrated.  That's me.

So, I commit to having a glass of water before I hit the showers tomorrow morning.  I will have a bottle of water with me while I run errands and will not have anything else to drink until I've had at least 24 oz. of water.

Hi there, stranger

How do I begin a post after not saying a word in nearly a month?

Things have been a bit rough for me with the weight stuff.  I'm slowly finding myself getting back into old habits.  I haven't been in a place like this in well over a year. Now that I'm here, I've got to dig deep to pull myself back out.  I *think* I'm finally at that bottom point where I'm ready to do that.
What did it take?
A photo.
Someone posted a group photo that I was in and I just did not like what I saw.  I haven't gained weight but I sure look like I've put on about 15 pounds or so.  Ugh.

How did I get here?
Honestly, I don't know.  I did really well over the summer. I didn't lose but I didn't gain either.  For me, that was a huge win.  I lost seven pounds after starting back at the gym. One would think that would put me back on the track.  And it did, for a bit but then a derailment happened.  It happens so slowly, it's really hard to recognize it until it's too late.

I suppose it's not really important as to how I got here. The focus has to shift to getting out.
It starts right here. Right now.

My good decision for the day is when I didn't bail out on my personal trainer because I don't feel well. It's nothing that is contagious.  I'm just in a bit of pain and don't know why.  Before leaving for the gym, I felt like curling up in a ball. But I didn't.  I sucked it up and went to the gym.  I'm still not feeling 100% but mentally I feel great.

------
Shifting gears a bit, I thought I would share photos of our completed bathroom.
I still can't find curtains that I'm in love with and I haven't found any art for the wall. I will wait until I find something that speaks to me. Until then though, I will just enjoy it as it is....

 My BIL made these doors for me. I told him of a similar design I saw on Pinterest and he made it happen.  Just have to get that big white container out of there and all will be right with the world. :) 

Mixed bag

I've been very busy over the last few days with getting my house back in order.  Hubs took the boys on a road trip to visit with his friend and family out of state while I stayed back for some alone time. I spent the better part of Saturday working on stuff around the house.

Once all my chores were done and I felt I could relax a bit, I buried myself in my craft room. Of course a little organization had to be done in there as well so I quickly got to it and before I knew it I was able to get to scrapping.  I finished three layouts this past weekend and hope to get back in my room soon to get some more scrapping done.  Must say that it felt good to get some little projects done but it took a while to get started. I haven't scrapbooked in months and months - it really seemed like I forgot how.

I'm feeling extremely frustrated right now.  It's been over two weeks since we got the shower to a place where the plumber could come finish things up.  He's yet to show up.  He's made excuses like "Oh, I didn't know it was you that texted me" or "my truck is in the shop". I'm about to explode.  I want my shower and I want it now! Feeling like Veruca Salt right now...

As far as everything else goes, I'm hanging in there. I've been feeling a bit run down and overtired.  Honestly, I think my iron and probably Vitamin D is low.  I started back on both yesterday and we'll soon know if it helps.   

I had a killer workout with Rudy last Friday and another one with Damon today. I kept asking Damon what I did to tick him off.  I haven't sweat (sorry to be gross) that much in a very long time.  It's been a good 45 mins since my workout ended and I'm still feeling a bit weak and shaky.  It's a good feeling though. Let's me know I'm alive. 

Alright, off to chase down a plumber. Wish me luck. 

Back on track

I've lost 7 pounds in the last two weeks!

My trainer noticed today. Did I mention I love him, and he's my newest BFF?

I'm feeling a lot better too. My pants were getting a bit snug, I was noticing that I didn't have the energy to complete tasks, I've been moody (although, I don't think that will change much-HA). Suddenly though, I am feeling a lot better.  My pants are getting loose again, I'm not having any trouble keeping up with the kids and I'm just feeling better overall.

I totally didn't want to go to the gym today.  So much so that I was trying to find any excuse not to go. The thing that stopped me from making excuses?  Money. I already paid for the session so I had to go.  Sometimes money is a great motivator.  And today I was glad I went.  I worked my butt off! I can't remember the last time I had a workout quite like the one I had today.

Are things perfect?  Nope. But they are much better and heading in the right direction. I have lots of mini goals in mind for the weeks to come and am just focusing on the day-in and day-out sort of stuff. I can't be bogged down by everything all at once. Baby steps.

Things are starting to settle down a little bit over here. I had to give up some of my online time due to having too many things to do all at once!  Something had to give, so this was one of them.  I finished all that tagging on time for the tag sale. I won't know my final sales figure for another week or two but I have a sneaking suspicion that I did really well.  I was a bit nervous at first because the sale wasn't nearly as crazy-busy as it was in season's past. I went ahead onto the sales floor when my shift ended, which was before the sale ended, to see what I had left out there. Honestly, I could't find any of the toys I had out or any of the larger items, it was just clothes.  Fine by me.  I didn't have too much to take home and I know I have a fairly decent check coming my way to help with the holiday shopping!  Can't wait.

I've started working on the memory book for my son's school.  We've had four activities at which a ton of photos were taken at already. I went through all but the photos I've taken and sorted out the best ones.  Now, I just need to go through mine before I can narrow it down to the best-of-the-best. This is going to be one heck of a time-sucker project but it should be great fun!

As far as the immediate future goes though, I'll be working for my brother for a few hours tomorrow and then the rest of the weekend It's all about ME time.  I plan on getting my craft room in order and some scrapping done. I am in desperate need of me time and it's happening for sure this weekend.

Stuff

Thank you all for the positive vibes and tips on digging out of what could be a depression.  I'm having a hard time deciding if I'm on the cusp of an actual depression or if it's more of an anxiety issue that I'm feeling.  Either way, I have not taken any meds as of yet.  I've been practicing my deep, calm breathing and trying to focus on one thing at a time.  

That is all easier said than done with all that I have going on around here.  Still dealing with the bathroom project (ALMOST done!). And now I'm participating in another tag sale which is being held by a local mother's club. I've put off tagging everything until the last minute because I really didn't want to see all the clutter from the tag sale on top of all the miscellaneous tools and such that are still laying around from the bathroom.

This is what is greeting me when walking into my kitchen from the garage

Reminds me, I have to go drop that birthday present off

 Two giant piles of kid's clothes covering the ottoman and floor of the living room

what you can't really see is the trash bags of stuff that needs to be sorted and put in the attic

Pile of toys that still need to be sorted and tagged. 

That Jake (pirate) stuff angers me.  My little guy INSISTED that Santa and everyone get him that stuff for Christmas last year - he played with it ONCE! 

Lesson learned. 

There is another one just like it on the other side of this giant chair in the living room

Needless to say, I have a lot of work to do.  I worked on this project for the greater part of yesterday. Today's goal is to get through all the buckets in the photo from the kitchen.  What does that entail? Well, most of those totes are filled with clothes. I need to go through them making sure there aren't any rips or stains, then I need to run them through the wash. After all that is done I'll sort them by size, enter them into the online system, print, tag and put everything on hangers.  It sounds like a lot (and it is) but I have a system.  The longest part is having to wash it all.  Good thing I have a large washer!  So, if you need me, I will be buried under some crazy pile of kid's clothes.  

I'd like to note that I have this amount of clothes because I saved them from my first son to be used for my second. Well, they are opposite seasons so my little guy didn't get much use out of the elder's stuff. I was hanging on to all their clothes thinking I may have a third child and if it was a boy, clothes would be covered.  Now I realize that it's just crazy to have all this stuff hanging out in the attic.  IF (big IF at my age) I have another baby, I will shop at thrift shops for his/her clothes. 

As if all this isn't enough to do, I'm also taking on another giant project; my son's fourth grade memory book.   I've been volunteered to put the memory book together and get it off to the printer in the spring.  It's going to be a lot of work, but I think it's also going to be a fun project.  There are a number of parents (including myself) who are "photographers" for events throughout the year.  Last week I went in and took photos of one event that the classes were doing.  All the photos will then be put into a shared space where I will weed through them to find the "best ones" and start putting together a page for the memory book.  I'll then meet up with the team to see what everyone likes/doesn't like and make changes from there.    It's a bit of a learning curve for me but I'm really looking forward to it. 

The final thing to tell you is that I made it back into the gym!  Today was my first day back with my trainer.  I'll just be going in on Monday (that will probably change) and Friday each week.  I'm hurting a bit right now but I feel really good. I missed my workouts, I missed feeling strong. 

With all this going on, I am feeling a little better about things.  Thanks again for all your well wishes! I really appreciate it! 

Time to feel like a zombie

Thank you all again for the well-wishes for hubs.   He is doing much better.   He still has a slight headache but it's not getting in the way of day-to-day activities.

Unfortunately for me, I'm not getting any better.
I'm still an overwhelmed stress case.
My attitude  is very poor.

Might be time to pop an antidepressant.  I hate that.  I don't like feeling like a zombie but right now it will be a step above feeling overwhelmed by even the simplest of tasks.  Sigh.

A new day

Thank you for the well-wishes for hubs.
He's doing better today. The swelling has come down and there is less redness. The doctor says the antibiotics must be helping but still doesn't know what it is.   The thing that is concerning me right now is that he's had a headache all day.  He's had headaches before so it shouldn't be a problem, I just worry because of this odd thing that is happening in his legs.

I'm still in a sour mood. Probably worse than I have been in a while.  My mother just asked me about the bathroom status and I nearly jumped off the deep end. She was taken aback by my reaction and really couldn't imagine why I am feeling the way that I am.

My mood is so sour that I took an email the wrong way today. I had the smarts to not respond to it but it still didn't sit with me very well.

Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Count to ten.
It's not that bad.

Tomorrow is a new day. 

Plate is full

Ever feel so overwhelmed that if one more thing, even the tiniest of things goes wrong, you'll go off the deep end?  And by the deep end I'm talking full-on, old fashioned nervous breakdown kind of deep end. You know, where your hair falls out in clumps, you have knots the size of king kong's fists in your shoulders, you begin to have a bit of IBS issues...you get the picture.

So, have you ever felt that way?

That's pretty much where I am at right at this moment.  The trouble is that I have a history of depression.  The above is a fair description of what it feels like to be depressed.  I have to be able to differentiate between an actual depression and "real-life" stress. That's NOT to say that depression isn't real-life, because it IS. I just mean that things can seem bigger than they really are when you are in a depression.  

I'm 99.99% sure that what I am feeling and thinking isn't part of a depression.  I guess I just need to be really careful to not let it get to that point. Meds suck. (Just sayin').  For right now though, there is just too much on my plate. If I go through the list one at a time, I think "oh, that's not so bad". The trouble is though that when things get piled on top of each other, it feels like a mountain. And my mountain doesn't look to be shrinking.

What really stinks about how I'm feeling is that I'm adding guilt to my pile.  Oh, I know I shouldn't ever feel bad (guilty) about how I'm feeling. We have feelings for a reason. When people around me have bigger issues, my little ones that make a big giant pile seem so insignificant which ends up making me feel ridiculous for having so much stress over what is meaningless items in the bigger picture.

What has me so stressed out?
Let's start with the one that has been a big problem for a number of months.  The bathroom. Yup!  It's STILL not done!  Every single time I see an end in sight and think "oh, we should have a shower by the end of next week", something blows that plan right the hell up. I've been fighting tears every day for two weeks about this stupid remodel.  My best guess is that it will be another two weeks before we'll have a working shower in there.  It really gets me down. You have no idea. Even writing right now I am fighting the tears.  The amount of stress this stupid bathroom has caused....
best let it be for right now before I go and have myself an aneurysm.

Then there is a pile of other less-significant stuff. Some I've already handled, some I'm still processing and handling and other stuff that replaces stuff I've already dealt with.  Like having to pay $1000 in car repairs on hub's car today. Or the fact that I also need new tires (only 2) and that will be another couple of hundred.

All that and I'm also worried about hubs.  He has a strange thing growing on his legs.  It started out looking like a possible blood clot (he was tested, it's not). Now it's grown even bigger and is in a few other spots.  Let's leave it as I'm worried about him.  He's feeling OK so that's a good sign. Still can't help but worry.

So, if you have a magic wand, would you mind casting a spell to finish the stupid bathroom so all the smaller stuff won't feel so big?  Thanks.

 

Recovery is hard

The boy's surgery went well.  He was discharged from the hospital a little early because he was doing so well.  As soon as the nurse said "technically he can go now",  the boy jumped out of bed and started getting dressed. He was looking forward to getting home to play with the new Hot Wheels set I bought for him as a prize for having to go through the surgery. Luckily he was hopped up on drugs yesterday and was able to play for awhile before the pain set in today.

Today was a bit rough.  He woke up in pain and no sooner did we give him his meds did he start vomiting.  The poor kid. Imagine having your tonsils out and then having to vomit on top of it. Ouch!  On top of all that, he ended up spiking a fever.  That worried me a little.  They say it's normal after surgery but I still didn't like it.

Needless to say, it's been a long day.  I'm thinking tomorrow should be a bit better as his fever broke a little while ago and he finally agreed to drink something other than the few sips of water that I had to plead to get him to drink.  Hopefully tomorrow we'll be able to get him to eat a little something.

It's going to get rough even as he's healing because I'm told to keep him relatively inactive. That should be fun.  I have a four year old boy. You do the math on that one!  I'll just have to take it one day at a time, I guess.

This has been a rough road emotionally and physically.  The physical stuff has to do with the types of stuff I've been eating over the last few days. We've been so busy this week that I never even thought to make sure there was enough in the fridge to get us through surgery day and today.  I was left eating less than stellar kinds of foods.  Let's put it this way, I am dying for a proper meal.  I can't believe that I used to eat like this on a daily basis!  No meals.  Just icky snack-like items that are packaged and come with no nutritional content.  I'm craving a salad and some fruit!  Thankfully, hubs has offered to run to the grocery store tonight to pick up some essentials for the morning. I'll then be able to work on a meal plan for the rest of the weekend and into next week.

The weather is cooling back down.  With that, I plan on starting my walks back up.  The rough part though is that tiny man can't join me on his bike...not for another 10 days or so!  Poor kid.  Until then, I will walk on my own on the days that I can and I am committing to start my at-home workouts back up.  I feel like sludge and don't like it.

Setting goals for the rest of September:

• Lose 11 pounds-or as much as I can (that's what I've gained-YIKES! -I'm owning it. No excuses. No nothing.  Moving on).
• Hydrate!  Oh how I haven't been drinking enough water.  Every organ in me hurts. And the swelling!  Ugh. 
• Along with hydration - cut down on the diet soda. I'll quit some day.  I'm just not ready just yet.  You can show me all the posters and statistics you want, I'm still gonna drink it.  I'll get off it again.  I probably won't announce it though until I've stopped for quite some time. This is a rough one for me. I'm an addict and I know it. :) 
• Get back into exercise. I'm not going to the gym right now, can't afford it. I will commit to doing at-home stuff though.  I need it. I feel better doing it. I will be a happier gal if I just do it. 

That should be a good start. I keep trying to hit that restart button and then get derailed.  I'm pretty sure I've hit my "rock bottom" for now though. I hate the way I am feeling. These last few days have really helped me to remember why I was eating better and getting into the gym.  Have to just take it moment by moment and those moments will eventually turn into days then weeks...you get the idea. The rough part is getting started. Need a few great days under the belt which is always good for a bit of momentum.  

Busy, busy

I have a love/hate relationship with days like today. It was a busy morning with running errands which ended up being cut a little short when I realized my tiny man was passed out in the back seat. When we got home, he woke long enough to tell me to put a big blanket on him and take his shoes off. When he woke up, he had a fever. Not good. I'm going to reschedule his surgery which he is going to hate because he'll have to have blood tests done again. He hates that!  

Anyway, I head to work only to worry about him at home. Work was straight-out crazy!  My boss laughed at me because at one point I started talking to myself. Hey, it's the only way I can keep semi-sane sometimes. I'm sure you do it too. Right? Right. 

The good news with being this busy is that there isn't much time for eating. The bad news is much of the same.  Although, today was pretty good. I really didn't make terrible choices and feel like today is a win.  

Tomorrow is another story.  The temps are supposed to reach in the mid-high 90's with 100% humidity.  We've been hanging around in the 70's so it will be a huge adjustment.  Thankfully it's not sticking around.  It's just going to be an extra bummer if the boy has a fever, he'll be yelling at me to turn the A/C off for sure. 

I need some much-needed "me" time. I'm thinking that if tiny man is still with a fever tomorrow, I may set him up with a good movie in the playroom and I'll do a little crafting. I will also have to do some mommy/"baby" snuggle time. 

Alright, off to unwind for the night. I have a sneaking suspicion that I may be in for a long day tomorrow. :( I hate it when the kids are sick. Breaks my heart to see them this way. 

Back to the routine

We're settling back into a routine over here in New England. My nine year old started back to school last Wednesday and my little guy started his last year of preschool today.  It's nice to have them both back at school. There is less fighting, less yelling (that will be short lived, I'm sure), and we are all settling nicely into a routine.

I also go back to work today.  I'm looking forward to my two nights away at work.  It really does the Mama good when she has time away from the house. I'm supposedly starting work for my brother today too. He was supposed to call me over the weekend to get things set up. I'm still waiting. Honestly, it's fine with me if we don't start today. I want to enjoy 3 hours to myself!

I usually have my gym time scheduled for now. I purposefully didn't schedule anything this week so I could enjoy some much-needed quiet time. As it turns out though, I won't be able to start next week either because my son is having surgery (nothing serious) on Thursday and will be out of school all next week.  It's all good though. Mama really needs some quiet alone time.

Little man and I have started an afternoon bike ride (well, I walk). He and I have had some fun taking our afternoon walk/ride around the neighborhood.  The only trouble is that I've been breaking out in hives from the sun.  It's been quite annoying and is getting worse.  I'm at my wits end about it. I feel like a lot of the fun has been sucked out of my life because of allergies of one kind or another. If you're a kid with allergies, you don't know what you're missing. As an adult with adult-onset allergies, you really tend to get ticked off. Trust me.

All this food allergy stuff makes me think long and hard about really giving juicing a try.  Trouble is though that every time I juice anything, my gag reflex kicks in. Even with things I like -(apples and carrots). I'm also seriously considering the Whole 30 program.  That would also be a rough one for me, I'm not a fan of many veggies.  Either way, I have to do something.  I can't keep getting hives all the time.

With all this routine talk, I'm adding this blogging business back to my stack of to-dos. It really helps to keep me on track.  So, back to the routine it is. Back tomorrow.

Happy Monday!

Only 9 more sleeps til the big kid goes back to school!
I can make it.
I can make it.

*sings* "It's the most wonderful time of the year"

Sounds terrible, I know. I'm just tired of the kids fighting and am really looking forward to having a routine back.  I think they are ready too.

Camp was fun, exhausting, frustrating and rewarding.  The camp last week was an all day, weeklong scout camp.  I was a "den escort" which basically means that I would bring the kids to each of their scheduled activities.  The hardest part of the whole experience is having to repeat yourself a hundred times a day, "keep your hands to yourself" was the biggest issue.  The other frustrating part was when the boys wouldn't listen to instructions from either myself, another escort or a program instructor.  They missed out on completing a few projects because of such behavior and they were spoken to by the camp director because one of the program areas complained about our den.  Now, you might be thinking it was me who couldn't keep them in line.  No, not quite.  My group had 15 boys with 4 adults and then we had another den with us who had 8 kids with 2 adults.  For some reason, the two groups just couldn't get their stuff together.  Alas, we made it.

Even with the problems though, I really did enjoy myself.  My favorite moment was while the boys were fishing.  Sure, I was almost hooked in the face twice and had to help hook a few worms (ewww) but when the boys listened to my instruction and actually caught a fish, oh to see their excitement!  Made all the frustration worth it!  There were a few moments like that throughout the week.  It was those moments that made me realize why teacher's teach; the other moments made me realize that teacher's really need to be paid more. Oye!

Anyway, it's back to (mostly) reality.
Still working on the bathroom. Waiting to find someone to do the shower pan.  This has been a crazy adventure.  Hopefully we'll get someone in here soon. Tired of not having my own shower. It's really beautiful though!  I'll post pics when everything is done.

This week is all about finalizing the back-to-school lists and getting back into some sort of a nightly routine so we are all fresh in the morning. We're also working on getting us all back into better eating habits.  I really thought I would be good last week. The thing I really realized is that when you are overtired and not sleeping correctly, it's a surefire way to overeat. So very true.  Last week was a disappointment in the food department.

Putting all that aside and am ready to get back into the swing of things.

Have a happy and healthy day.

Week(end) Wrap Up

Just a quick check in.
Things have been hectic around here and I'll be continuing on that path for the next week or so.
Bear with me while I wrap up summer with my kids before I can get back into a more steady routine.


As far as things go for this past week. 
I did the official weigh in on Wednesday and I was "only" up 5 pounds compared to the 7 from a few days prior.  I'm still watching what I eat but the working out has been very lax.  Honestly, it's probably been a good 2 weeks since I've had a decent workout.

Bathroom update:
We have a completed floor.
A working toilet and sink!

The shower tiles are being worked on as I type.  I suspect it will be at least another 2 weeks before everything is 100% done.  Not sure if I mentioned this or not but the tile guy that is supposed to just do the shower pan broke his neck earlier in the summer. Hubs will give the guy a call this week to see if he is ready to get back to work yet or not. The rumor is that he's close.

Upcoming Week:
This week I'll be away at summer camp with my son. I'm exhausted just thinking about the week ahead but I know it will be a good time.  The "bad" part is that the weather is starting to shift back into the hotsville. That doesn't make for a happy Mamma Camper. All in all though, it should be a fun week.

I hope you have a happy and healthy week.
I'll do my best to check in at least once this week.

Regroup and FMM

Happy Monday!  HA!

Today was my new Day One. Not that I really need a Day One, I just think at this point I may as well go with the notion that I'm resetting myself.  As you know, I haven't been feeling so hot as of late.  I'm still not feeling 100% myself but need to give myself a little time with eating better to see if that will push me up to that 100% mark.  

When I got dressed yesterday, something happened that hasn't happened in a very, very long time.  My pants were a bit tight. That was enough to scare me right back on to the straight and narrow. I hopped on the scale this morning to see where I am at and I'm up about 8 pounds.  This is the real deal.  Not water. Not retention. Not too hot. Just plain old icky fat. 

Not going to start beating myself up.  Since I wasn't feeling too well, I wasn't eating too well. I went over board and when we went away, I continued to go a bit overboard. I'm not going to cry about it. I'm not going to dive into a package of Oreos or have a hot fudge sundae over it.  I'm going to build a bridge and get over it. 

So, for my Day One:

Calories were around 1900. A little more than what I would like to see but I'm still within reason for my height/weight.   This was more of a planning error than an "I wanted to eat more so I did", sort of error.  My blood sugar plummeted and once that happens, it's very difficult to get regulated again. It's done and over with. Moving on. 

 I drank more water than I have been in the last month or so. And have had more fruit. Sadly, not so good with the veggies but am planning a big, huge salad for tomorrow's lunch. 

Moving on to FMM:

If you’ve taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you’re new, please take a moment to answer this week’s question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section here at: www.alltheweigh.com so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. Please invite your blog readers to add their links here too so everyone has to opportunity to be seen. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it’s time for this week’s topic!

Have You Ever?

1. Jumped out of an airplane?  No. Now way! No how! Not ever! 

2. Lived alone?  No. 

3. Met a celebrity? Yes. 

4. Said something to someone that you immediately regret saying? Yes. :(  I've done it twice in the last week or so too. What is wrong with my brain. 

5. Had a manicure/pedicure? Yes. 

6.  Gotten a hickey? Unfortunately so. 

7. Owned a pet that was not a dog or a cat?  Yes. Nothing exotic -just a bird - ICK and a guinea pig. 

8. Been outside of your home country?  Yes. Would love to go back to St. Lucia someday! 

9. Kissed your best friend? daily. :) 

10. Eaten food that fell on the floor?  Depends on the food. If we're talking something saucy like pizza or scetti, no. Crackers? sure. 

11. Met someone online? Yes, then married him. 

12. Been on TV? Goodness no!  

13. Had braces?  No

14. Gone skinny dipping?  Why not?

15. Been to the opera? Not unless you count Phantom of The Opera. 

16. Been caught making out by a policeman? No. I don't like getting into trouble so that would never, ever happen. 

17. Sung in public? No. You're welcome. 

18. Handed out candy on Halloween? Yes!  Love to! 

19. Been snowed in? Didn't I post something about a blizzard this past winter? Oh, I hope that doesn't happen again! 

20. Fallen in front of other people? Yes. On ice. That's always fun. 

21. Cheated on a test? No. Again, I don't like being in trouble. And, I am honest to a fault. 

22. Regretted saying “I love you” to someone? No. 

23. Finished a meal in a restaurant and realized that you didn’t have your wallet? No

24. Shot a gun? Depends on what kind of gun we're talking.  I picked up my first pellet and bb gun at camp a few weeks ago. Does that count?

25. Heard a song that was written for (or about) you? No. But I like to pretend a few of Jon's were written for me. haha! 

Now it’s your turn to answer this week’s questions! Don’t forget to come back here and link up in the comments!  Happy Monday, friends!

Mini vacation

Greetings from my mini vacation!  Pardon any typos -I'm using the iPad without the attached keyboard.

I had a few posts started that I never got to finish up before I left.  I feel like this has been my life right now. Never getting to finish everything I want/need to in a tamely fashion. I'm hoping this mini vaca will help.

I am writing now because I just told my hubs that I need to get back on track. This infection has killed me and my skin.  I'm making poor(er) food choices and am feeling like garbage because of it.  My fridge at home is stocked with some good juicing veggies.  That is what I am having as a first meal when we return.  M psoriasis is in a full blown flare, rosecea is bad, and I am having tummy issues. I really need to cut back out on the wheat and sugar. My skin will thank me for it.

That is my declaration to you...I am going to cut back on those foods that I know (am fairly certain) are causing me grief.  If I don't say I've done that by Monday....get on me! Especially you, Marion.  You know how to keep me in line! ;)

Until then, I will continue to eat less than I ever have while away (one more day).

Wrapping it up

This week has been such a blur.
My blogging plan for the week was to talk about Jovi (check), summer camp, scouts and food, and a few other goodies that came to mind during the week.
And here we are.
Sunday.
With nothing done.

I have to tell you, I am looking forward to two things:

1. Bathroom completion.
2. September. Back to normal schedules sounds good to me right now!

Alright, let's talk a little business and then we'll move on to Summah Camp.

Weigh in was exactly the same.  I guess this maintenance thing is working out really well. I wasn't planning on being on this path, but it's working for me.  Considering the amount of stress I've been under this summer, I will take the maintenance as a complete and total success!

That all being said though, I need to add that I've had a little too many "fun" calories over the last few days.  I just made my son's birthday cake (a Minecraft TNT cake- came out pretty good). While I was decorating it, I found myself mindlessly eating some of the frosting. I caught on though and pushed the more tastier frosting out of reach so I wouldn't do that.

TMI warning....

On top of the cake, I'm also "sick".
I have an infection.
The girly kind.
It's a nasty, bad one too.
I'm also being tested for a UTI on top of it.
I started two meds late last week and every time I take this one medication, I find myself eating a bit more during the first day to two days afterwards (it's a one time pill).
It's been since Friday that I've been on meds. I was feeling a bit better yesterday but today isn't any better than yesterday.  Hopefully tomorrow will be better than both days!

I've probably had this infection for quite some time.  Why wouldn't I have known?  Well, I can often go fairly symptomless. I also have a high pain tolerance. Well, that's what I've been told anyway. Between you and I though, I'm a wimp.  My OB, dentist and a few other DR's have told me that they can't believe I haven't complained about certain things in the past.  When I had gal-stones, they were HUGE. I mean REALLY, REALLY BIG! The surgeon told me he's never seen them that large and it was a wonder I hadn't collapsed on the floor from all the pain. The funny thing with that is they were found "by accident".  Crazy, but it never really bothered me.  Sure, in retrospect I can say that the feelings I was feeling at the time were probably related to the stones but I was mobile so I guess the didn't bother me too much.

Anyway, I always find that when I have some sort of an infection, I won't lose any weight.  Truth be told, I was expecting a loss this past week.  Not a big one, but something. I was busy at summer camp and worked out a few times last week.  I didn't hate on the scale though. I take it as a success.

No worries, I am not going to stay here forever.  And I will NOT go back up!  I monitor everything and if I see I'm starting to gain, I pull everything right back in.  I'll talk more about my plans for a small end-of-summer weight loss later in the week.

Alright, I am getting tired and need to unwind before getting some shut-eye.  The Summer Camp stuff will just have to wait til tomorrow...

Thanks for stopping by and for putting up with my lack of writing and lack of losing.  I really appreciate your support!

Memories Made

Happy Monday!

The week ahead is going to be much calmer than last week. As of right now, the only thing on my agenda is painting. Love it. As much as I love being busy, it's also nice to have a bit of downtime. Once I get the painting done today, I'm going to do arts & crafts, science projects and other things of the like with the kidlets.

Alright, let's talk a little business before getting to some fun stuff.
Last week's weigh in:  All the water weight was gone and another .5 went with it.

This week's weigh in:  Honestly, I don't think it's going to go so well.  I am swollen again and the last few days I haven't been focused.  I'm quite disappointed in myself, really.  I've been doing really well with keeping the stress eating and every-other-emotional eating at bay.  The last few days have been another story.  I'm not on the "oh screw it" diet. I certainly haven't gone off the cliff, just a bit too much in the deep end.  I have a plan in place for the current week.  Now it's time for some good execution.

Enough about all of that. I want to talk about all the fun-stuff from the last week or so.  I won't bore you with it all at once though.  Today I'm just talking Jovi...

                                 He put on a "Boston Strong" t-shirt that someone in the audience handed to him. 

I am still humming along and smiling from ear-to-ear from the great time I had at the show!  To be honest, even though we had great seats (Row 17, center floor), I wasn't too enthused about going. Gillette and the town of Foxboro were in a tiff about whether or not to allow the summer concerts to go on due to some insurance woes.  There was much chatter about the concert being canceled.  I was secretly hoping that it would be.

What?  How can I say that, you ask? Well, the last show I went to was very political.  I hated it.  It angered me that I spent all that money to see a band that I've been a big fan of since I was in the sixth grade (that's a LONG time, folks!) only to "listen" to political rhetoric.  OK, so it wasn't that bad.  The political stuff was shown up on the jumbotron. I was very annoyed. Just like I get annoyed with all the political crap during the 4th of July parade.  There is a time and place for all that...please leave it out of concerts and parades. Thanks.

OK, off of my soapbox.

As I was saying, this show was much better!  They played a lot of the old mixed in with the new.
I remember from a past show that Jon mentioned how he doesn't like to talk much during the show because we all paid good money to hear them sing.  When he does speak though, he's usually pretty funny.  Jon made mention of the other controversy happening in Foxboro; Gillette had asked for a later curfew for the "older" crowd for this concert in particular.  Jon said something like this: "I've been reading the papers and hear that if I don't get out of here by midnight, I'll be arrested.  Who will come bail me out?"  (ummmm....)

Later, he spoke about Mr. Bob Kraft and the camera panned to he and his son who were sitting in the front row.  He looked like he was having a great old time. Wonder how much he paid for those seats? ;-)

                                                                      He took someone's Patriots hat.

He also made mention of Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots.  He said that he needed to wrap things up before Bill came out to kick him off of his field.    My favorite moment though was when he "f'ed up the words" (his words, not mine) while singing.  Somehow, it made him human. :)

One of the many things I have always admired about the band is how grounded they are.  They never got too big for their britches.  Jon always seems to be a very humble man who remembers where he came from and never forgets "the little people".  He genuinely seems to care for the fans, I can see it in his eyes.  There were a few moments in particular that gave me goose bumps (OK, so the man gives me constant goose bumps)...towards the end of the show, he just looked out into the crowd with this sweet smile and a look of "love" and appreciation.  He is just so beautiful.

My absolute favorite part of the show was when he went "out back" to dry off and came back out onto a platform not too far from where we were sitting.  O.M.G!  Seriously, you guys have no idea! I was shaking.  Now, I have been a bit closer to him once before in the past. This time though, I had my camera.  I didn't make a complete fool of myself when I "rushed the stage".  I just got a little teary eyed, shook, and kept saying "I can't believe this is happening again."  The last time I saw him up close, I cried like a teenage girl. The song was "(You want to) Make a Memory"...both. times. Shivers. Tears. More Shivers.

Needless to say, I had a great time. Now, don't get me wrong, I am not a psycho fan.  I don't follow his every move. I don't know everything there is about him.  He's just a man. He puts his pants on the same way we all do. I've only been "in love" with him since I was a kid.  There is something about his voice that soothes my soul.  I told my girl friend that night that I need to make it my life's mission to meet that man.  Truth is though, that cannot ever happen. I would make a fool of myself. Seriously, I wouldn't know what to say.  I would choke on my tears. You would probably read about me in the papers.  So, I will continue to admire for a far with my teenage girl crush. 

Don't worry Jon, you made a great memory for me! 

Shivers. 

Just a quickie

Sorry again about being MIA. I have been busy with a number of things and haven't had the time/energy to sign on. I'll give you a cliff notes version and will catch up more towards the end of the week.


Weight from last week:  water weight gone. Swelling was down.

Exercise: finally got to the gym on Friday. That was great!

Bathroom: not done.

Bon Jovi: one of the best shows ever!

This week:  at camp with my son, I'm tired already.

That's all the time/energy I have right now. I'll tach up later this week.

Thanks for stopping by!

Lookin' Up

We have walls!  Honest to goodness walls. The space is starting to feel like a room again!  Yeah!

We have to wait til it's good and dry before we can paint. That will take about a week or so.  No worries, we can start tiling or more prepping for the tiling. The down side though is that this is a very busy week for hubs.  He won't be home on time let alone early to do much work this week.  Some of the stuff I can do but tomorrow is out because I have a full day ahead of me.  Hopefully though, I can get something done to help out on Wednesday.   If enough of the prep work gets done over the next few days, we'll be able to start tiling by the weekend. Finally!!!

Enough about that.

I was looking through photos last night. I found a picture of me that was taken about 2 years at Disney.  Although I was happy to be there, there was still a miserable sense in my eye.  It really made me cry for her. Which may sound strange seeing as I am no where near a healthy weight.  Seeing that photo made me really realize that I  have come a long way and that girl is not who I am anymore.

There are so many more things that I couldn't do or even wouldn't do back then that I can and will do now.  Just a small example of a thought I had on the subject just last week:  My girl friend and I took the kids to play mini golf. I haven't seen this friend since maybe February.  She noticed right away that I had lost more weight and commented on how good I looked.  While we were playing golf, I started to chuckle out loud and pointed out to her that 60 pounds ago I had to have one of the kids get the ball out of the hole for me because I couldn't bend to reach down into it without fear of collapsing.  Now? No problem. Sure, it's something small but it was just a reminder that there were plenty of things that I struggled with then that I don't even think twice about now.

All of this reflecting has also reminded me though that I've been stuck at this same weight for much too long.  A few weeks ago I was chanting that I was focused...and that still is the truth.  I've been journaling and staying within my calorie boundaries.  The piece of the puzzle that is missing for me right now is the gym.  Now, there are a ton of people who preach that it's all about what goes in and less about what goes out.  That just isn't so for me.  The plays an integral part of my weight loss. And by "gym", I mean exercise but mostly strength training.

I was just speaking with my "paid friend" about this very topic.  Her suggestion is to set the goal of continued maintenance for the rest of the summer. Part of me thinks that is a little dangerous but part of me also realizes that it's more of a realistic goal at this point.  You all know that I just don't do well in the heat so the chances of me working out on my own are slim.  That all being said, I'm thinking a better goal would be to continue to food journal, bring my calories down a bit to help cover some of the calories I'm not burning at the gym along with some other little things I would like to change...now, it's time to put some more thought into this idea and see where it leads me.

Weekend Wrap Up

Well, guess who didn't show up on Friday? 

You got it!  The plasterers.  We did get an email stating that a few of the guys called in "sick" and they would be here on Monday.  I was livid. I mean, I couldn't see straight. Hubs was much of the same way.  He ended up responding to the email; expressing his disappointment in the way we've been treated.   They had best be here tomorrow or I will most certainly crack. 

Needless to say, I am at my wits end over here. 

Things with eating have been OK. Could be better but haven't been off the deep end.  The gym didn't happen at all last week and I'm really feeling that.  I will work on getting into a routine with at home and in-gym workouts.  That, and meal planning are on my to-do list for tomorrow. After all, I need something to do while the plasterers are hard at work. :) 

I have to apologize for weak material these days too.  Honestly, my brain is filled with so much other stuff, I just can't focus on one particular topic for more than ten minutes at a time.  I think I have 3-4 blog drafts out there from this week alone, I sit to write but get distracted or pulled away by something/someone else. A lot of it is that it's the summertime and I'm (clearly) home with the kids but there are other outside things that have occupied (too much) space in my head.  Hopefully, once my house is back to normal, I can be too. 

Wednesday Weigh In

Up 4 pounds.

Like I said, I knew it was coming.  I am very swollen, retaining lots of water which is normal for me during the summah time. The thing that is bothering me is that I'm feeling it.  Feeling it big time.  When I gained that 7 pounds a few weeks ago, I never felt it. This, I do. My hands are huge and tight, my face is bloated and my legs are heavy.  This is one of the things I'm not a huge fan of in the summer.

The good news though is that I'm feeling pretty comfortable in that swimsuit I showed you a few weeks back. I've worn it a few times and have actually gotten in to the pool.  I think I would even go in to the public pool when we head to the park next month.  That's a HUGE step for me!  I know I have a long way to go but I also know that I've come a long way.  I'm trying really hard to not worry about what other's see while knowing where I have come from. Next summer, things will even be better. Nothing but goodness on the horizon.

Food journal for today, looking at just over 1500 calories.

More good news - the plaster guy contacted hubs today. He apologized for the mis-hap and said the crew would be here on Friday.  He also delivered the quote which ended up being about half of what we expected. Finally! Something is going to cost less than anticipated.  Now, if it gets completed on Friday, that will be an added "bonus". Oye!

Things are looking up.

No-Show-Again!

Ack!  The plaster guy was supposed to be here today putting the drywall up so we can put this bath back together.  He didn't show up. Again.  I swear, I am done with contractors and subcontractors and everyone altogether.  This project is now running over six weeks and counting!  I wouldn't mind so much if it was because we were working so slowly. It's not us!  It's waiting on others. Talk about annoying.  

My girlfriend is in the same boat.  She started her bath a few weeks before we did and hers isn't complete yet either.  I touched base with her today and she said they still don't have a sink and a lot of the smaller touches (knobs and pulls) aren't done.  She is lucky in that they have a functioning toilet and shower. Can't wait til we have either one of those.  A girl can dream.

I really felt bad for the kids today though. We weren't able to do much where I was waiting around for the guys to show.  Luckily, my father took them swimming this afternoon while I went in to work.

That was a bit strange. Working. Again. My boss called last week to see if I could cover today.  She doesn't typically need the help in the summer but needed someone for just today so I went in. It was a welcomed distraction from the depressing/frustrating thing that is my bath.

I'm sorry. I don't mean to sound like all I do is complain.  That certainly isn't the case. I'm just frustrated. Not to worry though, the happy me is in here. I'm really happy that the heat broke!  That 95+ degree weather was going to be the death of me. It was in the 70's today. Supposed to be in the low 80's tomorrow.  It also comes along with rain, but that's OK.  We'll find something to do to amuse ourselves.

I haven't been good about drowning myself with water. My hands are still very swollen.

I am food journaling though, that's another good thing.

My back is also feeling a lot better.  I now know it was the shoes. I wore flip flops the other day and regretted it.  No more flip flops for me (that makes me sad). BUT, I am happy that my back is better!  

I'm also happy that my kids have been getting along fairly well.  The first day of my son's summer vacation, I really thought we weren't going to make it. They have been really well behaved since then though.

See? I'm not ALL complaints.  ;-)

Monday, Monday

Didn't mean to go MIA last week!  I had a post all ready to go, just needed to add some minor details but never really got back to it. I did mention a few weeks ago that I would be spotty at best with the posting over the summer.  There is just a lot going on in my life right now and fitting in time to blog is lower on my priority list...for the moment. 

Anyway, I hope you had a great 4th of July!  Did you do anything to celebrate?  

My son is in the parade that goes through town so we went to cheer him on.  We followed that up with a BBQ over a friend's house then wrapped the day up with some fireworks.  The 4th of July is one of my most favorite holidays.  I am proud to be an American and I love to celebrate that every year. 

As far as weight goes, I was the same last week. This week I'm probably looking at a slight gain.  I am very bloated and am feeling it in my fingers, arms and a bit in my legs.  My trainer actually noticed it last week too.  Should probably drown myself with some water over the next few days, huh?  :) 

Alright, keeping things easy on this Monday.  Participating in FMM:

If you’ve taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you’re new, please take a moment to answer this week’s question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section here at: www.alltheweigh.com so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. Please invite your blog readers to add their links here too so everyone has to opportunity to be seen. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it’s time for this week’s topic!

 Easy Answers

1.  Are you a planner, or do you prefer to see where the moment takes you?  I'm more of a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of gal.  I like to have a general idea of what we're going to do but will let the rest happen more naturally. 

2.  How often do you blog?  I try to get on here at least 5 days during the week. Some weeks are better than others. 

3.  Do you color your hair?  Depends on what you mean by color.  :)  My stylist gets frustrated with me when I say color when I actually mean highlight. So, I guess I highlight my hair more than color it?  Whatever. Yes. I color it. 

4. If you had to choose between running or riding a bike, which one would you choose?  Ummm...I haven't ridden a bike since I was a kid and running?  That hurts. A lot. Someday though, I would love to be able to run.  Working on it. 

5.  Have you ever traveled outside of your home country?  Yes. 

6.  Do you like weddings?  Depends.  If it's a wedding where I know a ton of people, then yes. If not, then meh. They are OK. 

7.  What is your favorite guilty pleasure on TV?  I love Criminal Minds and CSI. I should probably stop watching, I'm starting to be afraid of my own shadow. ;-) 

8.  Are you good at math?  I'm OK. It takes me a few moments to compute things but I can do it.  I can count back change.  I think that's some important math skills that I fully believe everyone should have some training in.  

9.  What is the last movie you watched?  Hubs and I watched The Sorcerer's Apprentice the other night. It came from Netflix.  I'm still debating on wether or not I should let my older son watch it.  Was a pretty good move. 

10.  Share five adjectives that your friends would use to describe you.  Funny, Caring, (yet witchy with a 'B' - HA), Organized, forgetful. 

Bonus:  Did you celebrate Independence Day?  If so, what did you do?  See above. :)