tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81302309784364872552024-02-20T02:01:31.622+00:00KnitFarm Health SpaMy blog for talking about weight loss and finding some fitnessSusie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.comBlogger83125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-70591526873252759842008-03-10T18:16:00.001+00:002008-03-10T18:16:49.811+00:00Monday Weigh-in194 today. But at least I got ON the scale :)Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-26234101655197010762008-02-20T11:13:00.001+00:002008-02-20T11:14:43.948+00:00Wednesday Weigh-InOK - I refused to believe MOnday's rotten number so waited for Wednesday's not so rotten one. It's 193.5, or up a tad. That would be due to the large amounts of rice pudding and other things I've eaten in the past week. Back on track since MOnday, but it'll take a while to get rid of the gain and keep heading down.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-63669450683710091572008-02-11T20:10:00.000+00:002008-02-11T20:12:27.981+00:00Birthday Weigh-inToday I'm at 191.4, which is down a tad over a pound. A nice little birthday gift. Just finished late supper here, and cake for dessert. YUMMY. 400 calories and 20 g of fat worth of decadent chocolate cake. Just right. Good thing we got a teeny 6-inch diameter cake, so I can't have more!Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-52135854429300830112008-02-10T15:17:00.000+00:002008-02-10T15:21:37.904+00:00Still here!I've had a couple of days of no FitDay, not for any particular reason except that I didn't sit down at the computer to log things, and then forgot to log or forgot what it was I'd eaten. They weren't horrible days, foodwise, although I did eat TOO much roast chicken (even skin!) on Friday. It was gooood chicken, though. That's one of the few meats I can cook reliably well. <br /><br />I can tell I'm no longer PMS Woman, since the cookies or chocolate bug isn't grabbing me at all.<br /><br />Today, I was in a hurry and ate a string cheese for breakfast, but had a decent lunch out with the kiddies later on. It's homemade chicken noodle soup tonight, and probably a good thing as both kids seem to have developed runny noses.<br /><br />How's YOUR food consumption going, Gentle Reader?Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-3582706731818135132008-02-07T18:56:00.000+00:002008-02-07T18:59:36.979+00:00Monday WAS Weigh-in Day!Ooops, there. Ooooooops, there. Missed a post. Sorry, all you breathless readers....<br /><br />Monday's weigh-in was 192.6, for about half a pound gone. I'll take it!<br /><br />This week's been meh for eating....too much bread and many flapjacks (like oatmeal cookies) have ended up in my gullet. I tossed them this morning, getting smart in my old age. Apart from that, all's well, though. How are you??Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-45897427714691356922008-01-29T17:08:00.000+00:002008-01-29T17:11:09.756+00:00Deep BreathOK...moving onward. Yesterday's return to the Cadbury deliciousness (times three candy bars) proved to be enough, and I'm back to normal. Or at least normal eating.<br /><br /><br /><br />Bright spot in the day? I kept my blogging daily streak alive because I blogged here yesterday, if not at the main site. Yay, me.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-53366279930928572432008-01-28T10:11:00.000+00:002008-01-28T10:18:21.719+00:00Monday Is Weigh-In Day<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh14vt6hrFL1DPj8xeCm06uu9AdM-Ljs9nMSqVlXPLm_Kb7Hyn0tuHeaNh7Xl98mDQjCeBUT8qV2a0Docf7pfoN_trW8OAWQfhdfAkeWeQEoSjhcf7j0XEqOHGZ0IeU-iZ62p71mUmX_Z8/s1600-h/scale.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5160469720658014498" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh14vt6hrFL1DPj8xeCm06uu9AdM-Ljs9nMSqVlXPLm_Kb7Hyn0tuHeaNh7Xl98mDQjCeBUT8qV2a0Docf7pfoN_trW8OAWQfhdfAkeWeQEoSjhcf7j0XEqOHGZ0IeU-iZ62p71mUmX_Z8/s320/scale.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Today's weight is....193.0, for a loss of 0.4 pounds this week. Tada! Let the trumpets sound :)</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>That's all right with me, as I DID have a trip to Cadbury World. Actually, the saltier food that I ate for dinner and lunch on that trip might have more to do with the small scale change. This is also the week that I tend to have a small loss, if any, so it's quite normal. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I remember back in 2001 when I lost over 40 pounds, I freaked out for a couple of months when I would have great losses 3 out of 4 weeks. It didn't dawn on me for a while that my body had a say in the water retention, too.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Hope you all are having a great start to your week. I have a little sickie girl at home today, so my plans have shifted, but I'm sure I'll get SOME house stuff done in there...</div>Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-57905203066121224042008-01-27T20:03:00.000+00:002008-01-27T20:28:55.938+00:00Cadbury World, or, How Fares the Healthy Eating?Well, we've returned from our foray to Cadbury World, and it was not as utterly awful as one might fear, foodwise. The lunch options weren't great, as the cafe is being renovated, limiting them to things like sandwiches, but I didn't spend the 5 hours we were there inhaling chocolate, either.<br /><br />I have no idea how to itemize my food in FitDay, but I had about half a packet of Cadbury buttons, one bite of Fry's Turkish Delight, most of my Essence mix of chocolate and jelly babies (which was about equal to a melted candy bar's worth of chocolate), and 3 chocolate box type chocolates. Oh, yes, and a slice of toast, grilled tomato and mushrooms, yogurt, berries, and muesli for breakfast; and half a cheese and tomato panini and a coffee for lunch. Plus a flapjack (like an oat bar). A pear. And 6 cups of water.<br /><br />So...not the usual day of eating, but not crazytastic either. And Cadbury World? A heckuva lot of fun, for all of us.<br /><br />[Edited to add: I added in my food for today on FitDay after all. A little bit of "By guess or by God," but close enough...]Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-80754229771799861842008-01-23T17:35:00.001+00:002008-01-23T17:39:33.140+00:00What I Did for Me TodayToday, I got some great activity in. Chrissie and I hit the track and walked five laps, yakking the whole way. That is 1 and 7/8 miles, I believe. We also walked a good quarter mile there, and back. I felt so energized afterward.<br /><br />Now? Still feel good, except that my shoulder is KILLING me. Completely not walk-related, but it hurts, boy... It feels like the joint is pinching something so the whole arm is sore and achey. Took Tylenol and am waiting for relief, please, thank you very much. <br /><br />Toni suggested a great challenge in the comments on my other blog, in my post [rant] about sodium in foods. How about a month of no processed foods? I think it's a fantastic idea. I'm not ready...yet...to take the big leap, but I can see that it would make such a difference. Right now, my ready meals are a big portion control crutch, so I have to think about ways and means for a bit.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-13896053631658867842008-01-21T16:13:00.000+00:002008-01-21T16:15:28.827+00:00Monday Is Weigh DayIt was a good weigh day, too. Down a good bit more, to 193.4. I was pleased as punch, let me tell you, Gentle Reader.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-25504110288838629992008-01-20T16:26:00.000+00:002008-01-20T16:35:52.863+00:00Non-scale Victories: Today's EditionVictory the First: Tossing out the remains of the macaroni and cheese we had for lunch. The kids ate theirs, and I ate three quarters of a cup, after telling myself I'd eat something else. And then I stopped. Didn't eat the rest, and tossed it. <br /><br />It's <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Crap</span> Food anyway, with a hugely high fat and salt content. My darling bean loves it so much, I bought some again. She turns her nose up at other types of "macaroni cheese" but I think we'll <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">just</span> have to suffer with that, because I don't want to harden HER arteries either, frankly. If I start making my own, or making a lower fat version, she'll come round in time.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-8837139119313827502008-01-18T20:15:00.000+00:002008-01-18T20:19:28.199+00:00Interesting ConnectionSo. <br /><br />I'm an emotional eater, you might say. I came down the stairs just now from putting the kids to bed, thinking to myself "What can I snack on? I want something sweet," and wondering where the heck that's coming from. <br /><br />I've just eaten a lovely and filling dinner, and had 2 cups of water. What in heck? Then, it dawned on me. I don't feel like cleaning up the dinner dishes. I don't want to go back to sorting the Christmas stuff.<br /><br />It's not that I want to eat something, it's that I want something to distract me from what I SHOULD be doing. <br /><br />So.<br /><br />I'm blogging this discovery. I'm logging off. And I'm headed to the kitchen to clear up after myself. I may or may not get to the Christmas stuff. However, I'm not going to dive into a snackfest as an excuse to escape cleaning the kitchen. How would it benefit me in the long run? Not at all.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-33491137925196390732008-01-18T13:53:00.001+00:002008-01-18T13:57:19.651+00:00The Great Spinach CaperReally, I suppose I should title this <em>The Great Drink More Water and Eat <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Something</span> Green Caper</em> but it just doesn't sound as good...<br /><br />I'm having real success this week at adding water and adding green (spinach, in my case) to my diet. I've had 2 liters of water every day so far, I think. And throwing spinach into anything I eat is dead simple, and hasn't been un-tasty yet.<br /><br />The side effects so far are the usual added bathroom runs, and a MUCH decreased desire to snack. My handy water bottle is always next to me, and I drink rather than snack. I don't know if that's ever worked so well for me before, but it sure is this time around. <br /><br />I feel more energy all around. That's a Good Thing.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-83108460503923559522008-01-16T14:29:00.000+00:002008-01-16T14:42:30.366+00:00ClutterI've logged my food in FitDay for 4 days now. Seeing the effect the dietary "clutter" had on my nutritional pie charts (see Jan 14 for a loooovely example of how quiche can kill a girl) is a good incentive to choose something better the next time around (see Jan 15). Drinking water, eliminating bread and sugar and caffeine nearly completely for the last few days, it's all making a difference. I feel clearer-headed. I also feel less hungry than I did last week.<br /><br />As I remove some of the clutter in my diet (replacing it with water, and spinach, these past couple days, methinks), I'm thinking again about the clutter in our home. I've been starting over with <a href="http://www.flylady.net/">Flylady</a>, from Day 1, and it's starting to sink in a little bit again. Today, I tackled the guest room, a room I've been avoiding for months because I just throw stuff in there when I clean other areas. I didn't go crazy. Just 5 minutes at a time, a la Flylady. After four 5-min rounds, I can see a difference. I can also see some of the floor!<br /><br />This is the strategy that's working with food clutter, too. Little steps, like adding in water for several days, even while I wasn't watching the food at all. Then adding a green thing in every day...a lot easier than I remembered. After some babystepping with this, my body was more willing to give up its dependence on the sugar, floury group. That's gone well, but we'll see how it goes. Starch is a downfall for me. <br /><br /> Fats are another thing - cheese and butter....mmm. By cutting out toast for breakfast, I cut out all the butter I slather on. Cheese - I bought some reduced fat cheese, and haven't really eaten much of that yet. But I am weighing it when I eat it, and writing it down, instead of having a hunk, and then another hunk, and another.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-49366195995548845482008-01-15T19:03:00.000+00:002008-01-15T19:11:48.050+00:00Behold the Power of Spinach<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS40o7kM2O0dRCFc8TYhNyQXcnIRYFX-rsMbvKr0XSdzuQG7jwo62JcnNXZYY3Sfje4V3EmHHFVmmjdIVWDfJhH1t2NN9YZVVmdQsVMsgfRO3RTGiZbkqsiZjtVlxluMGKAbDtjBCEOYE/s1600-h/Beholdthepowerofspinach.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155782612055296930" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS40o7kM2O0dRCFc8TYhNyQXcnIRYFX-rsMbvKr0XSdzuQG7jwo62JcnNXZYY3Sfje4V3EmHHFVmmjdIVWDfJhH1t2NN9YZVVmdQsVMsgfRO3RTGiZbkqsiZjtVlxluMGKAbDtjBCEOYE/s320/Beholdthepowerofspinach.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div>This is what I ate for dinner tonight. Two bowls this size. Spinach made boring pasta incredible. I have gotten away from green in my meals, and I forgot that I love spinach in all its forms. For dinner tonight, I chopped 2 cups of fresh spinach and stirred it into 100 grams (precooking weight) of spinach and egg linguini. Three tablespoons of parmesan. No salt. No oils.</div><br /><div></div><div>Two bowls' worth of this was 340 calories, with 7 grams of fat. I must confess, I was full after a bowl and a half, but I ate it all anyway. Probably not the greatest idea.</div><div> </div><div>It does demonstrate how you can add a whole lot of volume (and good stuff) to a meal, though.</div><br /><div></div><div>I impulse-bought a diet Coke today, and opened it this afternoon (haven't had soda in a couple of weeks). The funny thing? Three hours later, it's still half-full, because I have been carrying my water bottle around and keep drinking from that instead! Cool.</div>Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-17161794089412741152008-01-14T18:00:00.000+00:002008-01-14T18:02:43.282+00:00Monday Weigh-inWho wants to know? Mmmm, anyone? Anyone?? Bueller?<br /><br />I weighed in a lovely 196.6 this AM. And was happy to see it! On the way back down now.<br /><br />The biggest changes this past week - much less bread, and lots of water, water, water. I still ate portions that were too large, and made some cruddy choices (Kraft Mac and Cheese, I'm talking to you!), but it's starting to look do-able.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-10734943093485879992008-01-13T14:07:00.000+00:002008-01-13T14:24:09.642+00:00What's Going Right.Today, I woke up at a decent hour. I made decaf coffee (OK, with a sprinkle of caf in the grounds, but at least 80% decaf). I ate yogurt and muesli and an apple for breakfast. <br /><br />I threw a load of laundry in, unloaded the dishwasher, took my vitamins, and filled my water bottle, all before I sat down to breakfast.<br /><br />And I felt like I Got. Something. Done. <br /><br />I moisturized. I refrained from taking scissors to my hair and cutting it like a madwoman (only because - Must. Be. Strong. Toni and Guy posh haircut scheduled for Thursday.)<br /><br />And I am even drinking the water in that water bottle.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-35210230790212129802008-01-12T19:38:00.000+00:002008-01-12T19:46:34.222+00:00A Little Good, A Little Bad...Weighing In<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqqrHbTYtxc3zNxHxvFQpRmFxndQCTU6WAMkOkODdyOUUbnnHf3nFEPPDnfBmZBbI2ev5HI2c10Y1AU2C_4nYq1damkyzqSNkVitRK6pBlIOPuKRXfGCB8OwG6I4o3tdf88-GQUodKzQY/s1600-h/Scales.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154678247114476402" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqqrHbTYtxc3zNxHxvFQpRmFxndQCTU6WAMkOkODdyOUUbnnHf3nFEPPDnfBmZBbI2ev5HI2c10Y1AU2C_4nYq1damkyzqSNkVitRK6pBlIOPuKRXfGCB8OwG6I4o3tdf88-GQUodKzQY/s320/Scales.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />So far today, I've had a liter of water. Good.<br /><br />I ate a slice of cookie pizza, even as I was telling myself I wasn't going to, and was going to have an apple. Bad.<br /><br />I had the apple, too. Probably good, all things considered.<br /><br /><br /><br />I had bean soup for dinner. Good.<br />I ate my daughter's pizza crusts. Bad.<br /><br />I haven't done an exercise DVD today. Bad.<br /><br />I did walk around in four different stores. OK.<br /><br />I talked (emailed) with my best bud, about how I'm really feeling emotionally. Very good. Well, I'm not feeling good emotionally; actually, I'm feeling pretty dang shaky. However, talking about it? Very good.<br /><br />And good friends? Priceless. Thanks, <a href="http://ramblingsofsusie.blogspot.com/">Susie</a>.Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-63095570690878701812008-01-10T14:13:00.000+00:002008-01-10T14:26:58.266+00:00Baby SteppingI've been taking teeny steps this week, and it's working. Drinking at least a glass of water, often more; remembering to take vitamins; adding green things to my dinner choices. You know, all that stuff I was already reaaaally good at doing last year at this point.<br /><br />Evening<span></span> snacking was better last night - I had a couple of fruit bars, but not an extra meal or three.<br /><br />Last night, I also took down my three exercise DVDs, all unused before now.<br /><br />Today, I pulled out the yoga mat and did <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Simply-Yoga-Yolanda-Pettinato/dp/1865159263">Simply Yoga, with Yolanda Pettinato</a>. I think she's Australian. Lovely calm voice, and a simple 30 minute session with a few poses. Two minutes into the DVD, I could tell it was going to be tough for me, even though it wasn't supposed to be arduous. As soon as I lay down in Corpse Pose, I hurt. My back must be terribly misaligned. Every pose that required my back to be flat, or to curl down a bit at a time, was impossible to do correctly. <br /><br />I think the DVD is aimed correctly at me, the beginner, but if I can't loosen up my back muscles, it will be a problem to do the poses right.<br /><br />Almost 3 years ago, I spent a month or do doing some yoga DVDs (actually recorded from TV) where the instructor was <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=dvd&field-keywords=Rodney%20Yee/103-8158693-8464604">Rodney Yee</a>. Those were great, and I see he has one called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Back-Care-Yoga-Rodney-Yee/dp/B000069HPZ/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1199974512&sr=1-10">Back Care Yoga</a>. I may just have to order it.<br /><br />First, however, I am going to check out and report on my other two unopened exercise DVDs. Stay tuned!<br /><br />[Apologies if you read this when it posted earlier, with a link and no text.]<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Simply-Yoga-Yolanda-Pettinato/dp/1865159263"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=dvd&field-keywords=Rodney%20Yee/103-8158693-8464604"></a>Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-35736445308415282072008-01-07T07:46:00.000+00:002008-01-07T07:47:55.795+00:00Weigh-inOh, who's been out there, waiting with bated breath? OK, self, the number is....<br /><br />200 exactly. As I predicted, a gain today. And a new decade on the scale. Crud. Is this perhaps what we call motivation?Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-66889858553095570582008-01-06T21:39:00.000+00:002008-01-06T21:42:06.028+00:00Update before Monday's Weigh-in...Well, I singularly spectacularly failed in the "less snacking at night" plan, in fact sometimes eating Second Dinner. (Am I a hobbit? <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Mebbe</span>.) I would expect no loss, perhaps a gain, tomorrow. Nevertheless, I'll post it for me, and for you. Accountability is a good step.<br /><br />I meet up with Chrissie tomorrow for coffee after running some errands, and we will plan a gym trip once a week. I still need to find a yoga class near home that meets midday.<br /><br />Ciao for now...Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-36012674958010811272008-01-03T14:02:00.000+00:002008-01-03T14:12:39.804+00:00January, January...A New Year means time to wake up and smell the coffee, or perhaps more accurately, get up and put down the mince pies.<br /><br />As you can see from the sidebar, my weight has skedaddled back up. I put back on 20 of the 27 or so pounds I lost this past winter/spring. I forgive myself, and I know a lot of it was emotional/comfort eating. However, that being said, the best way to deal with grief is NOT eating yourself into an early grave.<br /><br />The second half of 2007 wasn't all bad. Our trip home for Mom's memorial was all I could have wished. Wonderful time with family and friends, and a truly lovely goodbye to Mom. Once we were back here, David was home all year after the Germany stint, until mid-December. The kids were, as always, a source of amusement and joy. The garden looked great, especially after Mole Man (really Mole Boy) did a third pass, chasing the little buggers out completely. There were several quick trips to London. I found a good new friend who is creative and funny and wants to get fitter. Around September, I started to crawl out of my depression and sadness. And it's good to be alive.<br /><br />Baby steps here toward renewed fitness. I weighed in on New Year's Day, and will weigh in each week. I threw away the mince pies (biggest downfall for me in a British Christmas). I stocked up on fruits, if not veg. I'm drinking water again. <br /><br />Next baby step: eliminate post-dinner snacks.<br /><br />I'll be back. Nag me if I'm not, if you're reading this...Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-31255338460938951032007-07-29T08:30:00.000+00:002007-07-29T08:42:18.336+00:00Update on Me, Weight, the Universe, and EverythingI have posted a tad more frequently over at The Knit Farm, but I am still here. I've talked a bit about mom and how I'm feeling over there - very short synopsis, I'm still awfully sad muchof the time, but doing better. I find myself existing on the surface a lot; when I dig deeper, it's still raw, and I'm not handling raw so well. A note from someone (thanks, A., for reading the archives of my posts and commenting!) was just the right nudge to get me over here for an update post.<br /><br />I managed to eat fairly sensibly while we were in the US for a couple of weeks, and not too poorly once we came back. However, the evening snacking is back, lack of greenery in the diet, and lack of menu planning as well - all of these contribute to subtle but steady weight gain, and as of this morning, I was up to 185. Still 21 pounds down since December but 6 pounds up from the beginning of April. 1.5 pounds up a month.<br /><br />The thing keeping me from going <em>too</em> crazy is the fact that I tossed all my old "fat pants" so I can sense even this 6-pound gain in the fit of my clothes. When it hit 6 pounds, my UK 14s refused to fit. So I'm down to 4 pairs of jeans, 2 of which are ratty. The others sit on the shelf in my closet, mocking me... Incentive, boys and girls.<br /><br />I haven't been tracking in FitDay, and I know it's helpful. Getting back to it is another essential tool to keep going. Today I will log what I eat, even if it's not the most considered eating. Gotta start again somewhere!Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-28449717512354501052007-06-08T17:36:00.000+00:002007-06-08T17:42:03.128+00:00Back from Germany<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwvG5G7DF12Mj6S52efnFeMLH2l9qLJadxGbSmTsNFfLUVjG6u2IQyq_WZPYYcfysy0MNMCmRPLKFueujeNOaLiOsWrZ8LWe2pr9FzQCZ9kgepRAGmI_Y9QzaSxTF-epk-IEbB8PkJOkk/s1600-h/SusieDIDgotoGermany.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5073749965701506050" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwvG5G7DF12Mj6S52efnFeMLH2l9qLJadxGbSmTsNFfLUVjG6u2IQyq_WZPYYcfysy0MNMCmRPLKFueujeNOaLiOsWrZ8LWe2pr9FzQCZ9kgepRAGmI_Y9QzaSxTF-epk-IEbB8PkJOkk/s320/SusieDIDgotoGermany.JPG" border="0" /></a> I'm baaaack. In a matter of days, we head to the US for my mom's memorial service, and going through her things that are in storage while we visit relatives...<br /><div></div><br /><div>Germany was fun enough - rainy for the first week, and that was the week DH had his eye surgery so it wasn't really a touristy visit. We took the kids bowling and to a playplace and found a good used bookstore; we ate too much fast food and one good Mexican (!) (in Germany!) meal. We walked around the local village and town, saw some movies, visited old friends of DH, had fabulous ice cream, and toured one castle.</div><br /><div></div><div>It's wonderful having DH home again now, and we are starting to eatsensibly again. I am not tracking food yet, but not inhaling cookies either. I call it a happy medium. Each day gets a bit better. Here's me in Sickingen (a village) - see the Germanness all around?</div>Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8130230978436487255.post-39430825438831916362007-05-20T20:24:00.000+00:002007-05-20T20:35:59.549+00:00Here and floundering...I'm here. I'm sad. I'm floundering. But I'm working on it. <br /><br />My sister, brother-in-law, and nieces were here for a good long visit. Seeing them, being with them, and touring with them kept us all very busy, and left me with very little time to sink into sadness. They headed home a couple of weeks ago, and it's been really difficult since then. Food was OK while they were here, but now that I am by myself (with kids), I find myself using it as a sedative. Every morning, I wake up and think, I will get on track today. By afternoon, I think, how about a piece of toast, or a cookie? Or three?<br /><br />That and some book I've read a million times before are how I get through my evenings. I can't even knit most nights - it seems too hard, although I am working on something I really like.<br /><br />David had to go to Germany for 6 weeks, so we've been alone, me and the kiddoes, since my family left. We head to see him on Wednesday, thank God. I miss him so very much. He was my rock when it happened, and when he had to leave, I was so very grateful my sister was already here. I don't think I could have kept it together if we hadn't kept so busy. <br /><br />I do OK, as long as I don't stop to think. Once I stop and sit down, the grief can be overwhelming. I still don't believe this has happened. I keep thinking of things to tell mom, or to show her. And everything, everywhere, reminds me of her. Even when I am getting through the day, and going through the motions, inside I am howling. How can she be gone?Susie Hhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15521412145877313608noreply@blogger.com1