Trials of a Long Haired Girl

Happy Thursday a/k/a Friday eve!  Fall is here, even though it doesn't really feel like it in our neck of the woods.  The crafting bug hit me!  I offered to host Thanksgiving for my family at our house and it suddenly hit me that I needed to decorate for fall.  I used to enjoy working on some random crafting project with my Mom or playing games, but I told my husband, I think my mind just needs that down time so that I am forced to focus on something different.  I don't know about you, but I struggle with shutting down for a bit and getting overwhelmed with what I have going on.  For less than $20.00, I made this cute little flower arrangement from things that I bought from the Dollar Tree.  It is currently sitting on our front porch.  I'll be adding some additional items to my decor, but seriously I'm loving being creative!  The smaller scarecrows came in a 2-pack, but if my estimate is correct, I spent less than $15.00, tax included on th...

Happy Thursday a/k/a Friday eve! My thoughts today are on the fact that I just celebrated 10 years of marriage with my sweet husband. I am not sure I could be more blessed than I am with this man who supports me and loves me. We have been through so much during our time together, including moving my Mom in with us and then losing her. Being with me after my son’s multiple hospitalizations for various things. Let me tell you that I honestly don’t think I  could have done or handled all of that without him. He has been my rock. There is no one that I  would rather do life with than my sweet husband. Even though he really doesn’t need to lose weight, he has been so sweet as to support me when I  buckle down to get control of my health/weight loss. He eats what I cook, without complaint.   No fat, low fat, full fat, vegetarian, Southern cooking, he eats it all. He gets up early to go walk  with me. I know not every man would do that, but he does.  ...

Happy Tuesday!  Today's Tuesday talk is a topic that I know I have struggled with for many years and it is such a great reminder for me - Body Confidence.  Yep, I said it.  I have absolutely struggled and can remember calling myself fat for years.  Here's the thing, when I was calling myself "fat", I was smaller than I am currently.  It wasn't until I originally started WW before my DH and I even started dating that I really realized that I needed to change the way I talked to myself.  I am blessed to have some fantastic people in my life who remind me that I am unique and I need to be thankful for the "me" that God created.  I try hard to focus on the more positive self talk.  There are some parts of my body that I'm not entirely happy with, but I am focusing on things that I can do.  I wish my arms were in better shape...as I was moving my arms last night and noticed that my arms were waving back, I was not entirely happy about that....

Happy Thursday a/k/a Friday eve, friends!   Hope everyone has had a great week so far!   I was reminded earlier this week just how important it was for me that I roasted those veggies over the weekend.   We had a very rough night dealing with insomnia.   If you have never dealt with insomnia, be grateful!   Quite honestly, if I hadn’t prepared some roasted veggies and had some chicken that I had purchased pre-cooked, I likely would have ordered out on Tuesday.   If I’d ordered out, it most likely wouldn’t have been on plan.   I have really been trying to stay on plan so the fact I did some prep saved me time on the back-end, not to mention calories!   I think we can all agree that there are times, like when we are tired, that we would be more likely to go with whatever is convenient.   For the coming week, I will be trying to focus on using the items in my freezer.   Do you do that periodically?   If you do, how often do you...

Happy Monday friends!  Hope everyone enjoyed a wonderful weekend!  Overall, it was a good weekend for me.  I am a little disappointed that I didn't have a loss on the official scale, but I am not going to let myself get too upset about it.  Things that happen this week that might have contributed to not seeing a loss...I was put on Prednisone again this week and with the added workouts with the challenge, I think I may be retaining water.  Either way, I know the loss will come.  I am moving more, I'm eating better, so the loss will come.  Our meals are going to be "Italian" heavy this week, but hopefully we'll enjoy them all.  1. Eggplant Parmigiana and salad; 2. Fettuccine Alfredo (I'll have this with zoodles or spaghetti squash), likely with salad and garlic bread; 3. Bean Burritos; 4. Veggie Plates with biscuits; 5. Burgers or hot dogs. I got some family time in on Saturday and will likely be heading north again this coming Saturday....

Happy Friday, friends!  Hope everyone had a great 4th of July!  We had a great one.  I still got in a workout and enjoyed some family time.  The July challenge that I joined with Jess over at Journey to Healthy on YouTube has helped a ton with my level of motivation.  Focusing on that blue dot is even more important this month than it was originally.  I don't want to say it's the end all, be all, but I'm also focusing on getting in more fruits and veggies this month so that's going to help me as well.  I am proud of the fact that while everything didn't go exactly as planned, we rallied and ate some good food and I stayed within my blue dot range.  That's 4 days in a row and includes a holiday!   Because it was a holiday, my sweet husband and I waited until the evening before heading for a walk so we could "sleep late", which isn't really late for a lot of people, but we slept until around 6:30 or so and since he wanted to paint, we...

Happy Monday friends!  I hope this Monday finds you well and that you have a great start to the week!  In the spirit of honesty, it's been a rough few days and I haven't been as consistent as I need to be with my eating.  The antibiotics that I've been on making me sick to my stomach and often times I don't feel like cooking or eating.  Having a plan definitely helps though me not get so far off track.   For the coming week, the menu plan is:   Quesadillas, Caesar salad, smothered bean burritos, pizza bubble up casserole, cheeseburger and tot casserole and cheesy hashbrowns and baked potatoes.   To be honest, we may wind up having a "leftover" night or I may change one of these meals for a breakfast for dinner option.  It's always a good meal for us to have and will allow me to change things up a bit so that I will have meatless options for my DD16 now that she's decided she wants to go vegetarian.  It is definitely make ...

Happy Thursday a/k/a Friday eve friends! Happy Valentine's Day!  This one is a bit of a two-for.  My Mom always made Valentine's Day special for me, even when I was single.  I still have a red teddy bear with a rose that Mom got me years ago.  I have so many great memories of hanging out with her having a special dinner and she was always my Valentine, even after I got married.  For our Valentine's day dinner, I am making a meal that I know everyone likes.  I was reminded again recently just how blessed I am with my husband.  I know now is a time to get a little sappy, but I have been thinking about this for a bit.  My husband and I were everything that we thought we didn't want.  God clearly had other plans.  Mom told him at our reception that there was no exchanges and no returns.  Seriously, I firmly believe that if I had gotten married when "all my friends" were getting married that I would not have been truly prepared for m...

Happy Tuesday friends and Happy New Year!  Can you believe it's already 2019?  Where has the time gone?  Or maybe I'm the only one that feels that way?  I suppose that could be.  For those of you that have been with me for a bit, you may remember that I made the decision awhile back not to make resolutions for any new year, but instead to set goals.  I did not hit all my goals for 2018, but I am feeling pretty good going into 2019.  I have set some goals for myself using my handy Living Well Spending Less Planner.   My biggest goal this year is to hit my weigh loss goal.  I've discussed this with my husband and I have a plan in place to make this a reality.  My biggest thing is to make time for workouts, track my food and to meal plan.  These are huge things for me that I know will help me reach my goal weight.  As they say "Abs are made in the kitchen!", so I'm really trying to make sure that my meal plan works fo...

Happy Tuesday friends!  Some of you know that I am a fan of the audiobook and ebook.  I was randomly searching in the library catalogs that I have access to through Overdrive and I came upon a book entitled "Talk to Me Like I'm Someone You Love" by Nancy Dreyfus, Psy.D.   I realized after looking at this book that it is a book to help with failing marriages, but it prompted a whole train of thought with me.  This book reminded me of something that was said to me years ago.  A dear friend asked me when I was doing very well on this journey years ago if I would say something negative that I said about myself to a her or another friend.  I stopped and thought about it and responded no.  I wouldn't want to hurt anyone's feelings.  She said then why do you keep saying to to yourself?  She reminded me that we do not see ourselves the way others see us.  The fact of the matter is that we often say things to ourselves in our struggle to c...

Happy Thanksgiving friends!  I have not been good about posting this week and for that I apologize.  I wanted to take a moment and say thank you to those of you that stop by and read my blog.  Also to say that I am thankful for an amazing church family, my biological and unbiological family and my friends.  Today I want to focus on the things that I still have.  Today is sometimes a difficult time for me after losing my Mom.  I can remember feeling so alone in a room full of people.  I am so thankful that God gave me another day.  It is all about perspective.  My heart is overflowing and my cup is full.

This past Saturday, October 27th, we had a women's conference at our church.  It was an amazing morning.  Our keynote speaker, Sis. Cindy Faulk, shared some great insights.  Well, there were definitely insightful for me and I suspect others as well.  While I may not have the exact phrasing correct, she made one statement that really struck a chord with me. She said that no matter what I do, no one can do things the way I do things.  Someone might be able to do the same task as I would, but I  bring something special to the task that no one else can quite duplicate.  The same goes for each one of you taking the time to read this.  Much like the story of Cinderella, that glass slipper fit no one but her.  This hit me like a ton of bricks because when I was so deep in the depression, there were days that I wasn't sure anyone would notice if I just fell off the face of the earth.  I am blessed with some amazing friends and family who have ...

Happy Sunday friends!  I hope you have had a fantastic Sunday!  We certainly had blessed services at church this morning.  I always feel recharged after a good service.  I was reminded at service this morning that we need to have "Great Expectations" of God.  Truly some good food for thought.   I have less than a 100 steps to get to my step goal and I am determined to hit it.  One step at a time.  I feel positive about this week.  My DD will be at camp, but I'm hoping that I can start getting my workouts back in order and get things on a schedule.  I know how I feel when I workout and I need to get started again.  My eyes are burning pretty badly so I am off for the evening.  

Good evening and happy Saturday friends!  I hope everyone is well!  I was exhausted last night and wound up dozing off before I managed to even get the computer opened on my lap. I did get up and make a run to check-in with Weight Watchers this morning.  I managed to lose 0.2 lbs in the last 2 weeks. I definitely have some room to improve that's for sure.  I was a little frustrated with myself yesterday but while I didn't get my steps in during the workday, I refused to just give in.  Although, I will admit it was tempting just to go to bed without finishing.  I walked standing next to my bed just to hit my 6,000 step goal.  I was in a similar situation tonight.  We worked on my house so I managed to get some movement in, but not quite enough steps.  I did a little walking around the house to get my last few steps in.  I am feeling pretty good that I have managed to hit my step goal this week.  It was definitely a busy week, but...

Hello friends!  Welcome June!  This year is just flying by for me.  What about you?  I am feeling pretty positive about this month and setting myself up for achieving some goals for this month.  I do need to check in at Weight Watchers so I have a starting weight, but I promised my DD that we would go to the mall tonight to try to pick up some pencil skirts.  It was a successful trip.  For the new month, my goals are: 1. Track, no matter what I eat; 2. Focus on hitting my step goal;  3. Meal Plan, even if I don't have an opportunity to prepare it ahead of time. What goals have you set for yourself for this month?   My Pastor was talking about the "Next Right Steps" and it's really giving me some food for thought.  In the grand scheme of things, it can really apply to different areas in our lives. I am hoping to share a little bit about it soon.  I should get to bed!  Hope everyone has a great night!  

Happy Wednesday, friends!  I hope everyone had a wonderful day!  My day was pretty good and we enjoyed a good Bible Study tonight at church.  I am so thankful for my church and my church family.  It is a blessing indeed. Points-wise, I definitely went over.  I am proud that I tracked though.  Step wise, there was no 1 mile walk in the middle of the day but I did get my hourly steps in for most of the day and managed to hit my step goal this evening after church.  It was another busy day at work, which I am also thankful for.  I hope everyone has a great night, but I'm off to bed!  

Happy Tuesday, friends!  I hope everyone had a fantastic Tuesday!  While not a perfect day, I still feel pretty good about my choices.  Breakfast was a Trader Joe's Pretzel bagel with about a tablespoon of whipped cream cheese.  Lunch was a salad with .5 oz of shredded cheese, 3 oz. of ground beef, tomatoes, mushrooms, red bell pepper and about a tablespoon of dressing.  Snacks were a Golden Delicious apple with 1 tablespoon of crunchy peanut butter and about a cup to a cup and a half of grapes.  Dinner was Trader Joe's Sun-Dried tomato chicken sausage on a hot dog bun and about 1/2 cup of baked beans.  I am in debate on whether I want some Halo Top or not.  I did go to the store tonight while they are still on sale and stocked up on about 6 more.  I just can't see spending $6.00 for a small container of ice cream.  I did buy ice cream for DH and the kids as well. I think I have made the decision to carry this everyday thing into Jun...

Happy Monday friends!  I hope y'all had a blessed Memorial Day!  We had some great family time!  Some family that I don't get to see often.  I was happy to spend a few hours just hanging out and enjoying some delicious food.  I fixed s'mores bites and some s'mores dip with graham crackers.  It was really delicious, as was the burgers and the hot dogs and the fixings.  But the family time was definitely worth the extra calories that I ate today.   I am determined to make small changes this week.  I need to get a good handle on my cardio.  We are going to head to Colorado for vacation and I am determined to get up that mountain by myself!  I know I need to get back on board with Leslie Sansone...start from the beginning again with those 2 mile walks and throw in some strength training as well.  One positive change at a time, right?   I also want to take a moment to honor our fallen soldiers.  I better get some sle...

Happy Sunday friends!  I hope everyone had a blessed day.  While the evening didn't go quite as planned last night, but today has been a good day with some family time and a nice long nap.  Tomorrow is going to be another day filled with some family time.  I have been reminded just how important my family is to me.   Church services of late have been such a blessing.  Providing not only bread for the journey, but truly food for thought.  I know God has been meeting us where we are.  Some days you just need to have a little talk with the Master and know that His shoulders are broad enough to help carry the load. Food hasn't been great of late and neither has my steps, but I am determined to move forward and make some progress with both.  I'm a work in progress and learning to live while working the plan.  Just one step at a time.  I hope everyone has a great night!  

Wow!  This day has certainly not gone the way I planned, but it has been a good day!  We have been busy at work.  I would much rather be busy than bored for sure.  I am determined to get back into a workout routine aside from the walking I've been trying to do.  I haven't successfully managed to hit 5,000 steps this week, but I got close today.  There was just too much going on for me to take the time to walk.  With our new girl getting up to speed, I feel like I should be able to take walks soon.  I tried to make better choices today.  The one thing I do feel like I've done though is get more fruits and veggie in.  Okay, off to bed.  It's going to be a long day tomorrow!  Hope everyone has a wonderful evening and a fantastic Friday!