182.4 It's Late!

I think this is the latest at night that I have written a post for this blog. I had a great day, a busy day, and we just returned home after being out with friends. So life is good even if my weight isn't where I want it to be.

My walking buddy has returned and we walked this morning. It felt great and we are heading out tomorrow morning, too. But before long, Jeff and I will be flying to Boston and my routine will be totally thrown up in the air - in a very good way! We'll be with our east coast family and that is always very special. I think I will be careful about what I eat (lots of great seafood), but wait until we return and then put some serious thought and ENERGY into getting back to where I want to be!

178.6 Back On The Wii Again

A couple of days ago I got the Wii Fit Plus out from under the coffee table and started it up. The first thing that surprised me was that it announced that it had been... ahem... 45 days since I had been on it. That didn't seem right to me until I remembered that we had been away for about two and a half weeks, and I'd had my eye surgery and so on. The Wii Fit does keep a calendar that comes up whenever you sign in, so I couldn't argue with it.

The second big surprise was that I had lost so much skill in balance and coordination which is measured by most of the activities that I do on it. I'm not sure why I didn't realize that that would occur, but now I have proof that there is truth to the adage "use it or lose it".

I also use a brain skill practice site called Lumosity (lumosity.com). With my family history of dementia, I am determined to do all that I can to stay intellectually healthy. Lumosity provides a balanced workout of brain games designed to improve memory, attention, processing speed, and cognitive flexibility. Much to my dismay, I also went down in all of the areas that I have worked hard over the past four months to improve in.

So now that the vacations are over, the surgery is over and I am getting back into some semblance of a routine, let's hope I can recover all of the skills I seem to have lost recently. And, maybe losing a few more pounds while I am at it is a good idea, too.

183.4 It's Tricky, Coming Home

Today has been a funny day. I've worked hard to get a lot done after being away for so long. I washed, and ironed (something I love to do since I can see the immediate results of my actions - is this akin to instant gratification and food?), worked on a new necklace design, and am getting ready for house guests for the next few days. What makes it different is that I keep thinking that I need to write my blog post and then life gets in the way and I forget! Being away and out of my routine always makes returning home a little tricky.

My weight did go down almost two pounds which is what I expected and was counting on. They say you get dehydrated on planes, but I think I store up lots of fluid in case no water is available when I land. :) Today I feasted on fresh raspberries and cherries and am looking forward to chicken and roasted peppers for dinner tonight. As I have often written, I love eating like this and this is not the way I used to eat even a couple of years ago. I had to have a potato, or rice, or pasta, and a couple of glasses of wine, and maybe a little dessert! That way of eating seems very strange to me now.

So life is good and I am looking forward to busting through the 180 mark. It was fun to see the high 170s on my daughter's scale when we were visiting even though it was a reflection of her scale and not my true weight. It was like a sneak preview and it was good!

no scale I'm Back!

Rather than make a comment, Jennifer Scott sent me an email in response to the last post. Here's what she wrote:

"What was so nice about today's blog is that you really stopped for a moment to take YOU in, all that you are and all that you've accomplished. If we don't do that, then the mountain will always continue to loom larger than life. We all benefit by stopping on a ledge or at a spot alongside the road and just taking note of where we've been."

Life is a journey and making time to go back over the map and seeing just how far we have come, no matter what our goal or destination, should be part and parcel of this experience we call life.

After that wonderful hike and writing that post, things did kind of fall apart. The next day a wasp/hornet type creature decided it had a crush on me and I ended up hurting my back trying to get away from it. We are home now and tomorrow I will see if my chiropractor can help straighten me out.

Tomorrow I will also greet my dear friend the scale and have a reality check about where I am with my weight. Being on vacation is wonderful but I do miss my routines and the foods that I love. My new comfort foods are fish, spinach and fruit! I'm smiling as I write this because I don't think too many people would consider those as comfort foods.

I'll be back with everyday posts starting tomorrow and I'm glad to be back with all of you.

203.5 Holidays Happen!

It's Monday on the other side of Thanksgiving and I can't believe I haven't blogged for so long. The blog has become a part of my daily routine and since I have been in Boston with my family, my routine is definitely very different and unpredictable. Tomorrow we head back to Scottsdale and to "my routine".

Speaking of routines, yes, you are already reading ahead of what I have written, my meals haven't been routine, either. What I have learned is that it is hard to keep losing weight during holidays. I have been able to not gain a lot of weight so I am very thankful for that. Probably the most important thing that has happened is that I have stayed conscious/aware of what I am eating, but that doesn't mean I haven't enjoyed some high calorie very delicious food. And, all this has been complicated by going out a lot with friends and family. So what am I trying to say?

Holidays happen with all the food traditions, friends and family. And I want to celebrate that. What will be very different this holiday season is that I won't spend the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas eating like everyday is a holiday and that it's to be expected. In my life now, it is the exception.