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.

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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. :)