Just. Breathe.

I'm sensing a pattern. One week, 2 pounds. Next week, less than 1/2 pound. Following week, 2 pounds...and on and on. So guess what this week is? That's right, the little number -- minus point 4. My irritating scale still won't even move to odd numbers. Total so far: 23.5 pounds I actually wasn't feeling well most of last week, AND we were busy 4 out of 5 nights, AND I didn't work out earlier in the day to make up for being gone in the evening (see the "wasn't feeling well" part) so I really can't complain about a low number. ______________________________________ Why do schools have to schedule Every Event We Couldn't Be Bothered To Do Earlier in The Year in the same two week period? I've got a sophomore in high school dealing with after-school choir practices and a concert, finishing two projects in the same weekend, finals (she was thankfully exempt from most of them)...as well as regular life. Life that includes friends having...

I can't believe I've been doing this for 20 weeks. That's like 1/3rd of a year. Yeah, I do math. That's a pretty big deal to me, actually. Twenty solid weeks of paying attention to what I eat, making myself move more, not "cheating" or making bad choices for more than a few hundred calories. On to the countdown... This was a good week. I've stayed on Paleo, but I will admit to sneaking a couple handfuls of cereal, just because it was there. It wasn't as good as I wanted it to be, so I moved on. Only put feta on my salads twice, not because I couldn't do it more, but just because I knew it would still be good without it. And I lost two more pounds. Grand total in 20 weeks: 23.1 pounds. Slightly above average, and that works for me. ________________________ My next measurable goal is to have lost a total of 30 pounds before my mission trip to Haiti in July. That's eight weeks from now, and I think I'll be able to stay on trac...

A friend sang that Mercy Me song at our son's funeral. Zac was 17, and died in a freak automobile accident ten years ago today.   "I can only imagine...what it will be like..." The song, of course, is about Heaven, but it seems strangely appropriate to life these last ten years. Eleven years ago, I couldn't have imagined at all what our life would look like without Zac in it. But now, it's just a fact. So I let my imagination go to picture him through the last 10 years: He was getting really good on the guitar, and he loved it. I imagine he'd still be doing something with music. He would LOVE Rock Band/Guitar Hero. Seriously. I think of him every time I play. Napoleon Dynamite came out a couple of years after his death. Not only would he have loved it then, I think it would be a regular viewing event, like most of us with A Christmas Story . "I told you! I spent it with my uncle in Alaska hunting wolverines!" Kids flocked to him. Kile...

I had no idea that Mother's Day weekend ranks up there with Thanksgiving in the eating category. Apparently I've been getting gypped all this time. Ate out Friday night with friends, cooked for the mom and aunt on Saturday night, then went out Sunday afternoon for Mom's day. It. Is. Impossible. To. Eat. Out. And. Still. Lose. Weight. There. I said it. We all know it's true. There are not enough workouts in the world to burn the calories you consume with food prepared by someone else. The math just doesn't work. The portion sizes alone will torpedo most healthy eating plans. And the BREAD basket. Just stop it now.... The total week's results weren't awful - no gain - but only losing a part of a pound does NOT fit into my overall goals. I haven't been in this weight range for a while, so I'm not sure my body knows what to do now! Overall total is now 21 pounds. ______________________ In other news, Tuesday was the official end of the Paleo Di...

On Father's Day last year, I wrote this entry about my dad. It seemed only fair that this year my mom would get some attention. I'm the youngest of four - two boys, two girls -- by quite a bit. My siblings are 7, 9, and 11 years older than me, which of course means I'm the favorite. :-) Not really. But it does mean that I got to have Mom to myself a little more than the others. Just a few quick memories: Running lines for my various plays Listening to her sing in church Wishing my fingernails were long and pretty like hers Watching her take care of my baby girl when we came home from the hospital Fish sticks and french fries on Wednesday nights Endless games - card games, board games, dominos For the longest time, if I had to pick a word to describe my mom, I would have chosen "soft." Her skin was soft, and she had a gentle personality - at least that's how it seemed to me. It could have been in contrast to my dad, who was outgoing and louder, a...

Finally. Seems like it took forever to get here, but I guess 18 weeks isn't that long in the grand scheme. As of this morning, I'm down 20.9 pounds! That's minus 2.4 pounds this week. Yes, I peed again to see if I could get that .1 -- didn't work. I think my scale likes even numbers better. First goal met! And only a week later than I originally planned. Now on to the next ten pounds, with the July 15th goal date for a total of 30 pounds lost. I downloaded my reward book! __________________________________________ It's getting hot in Texas. In the last couple of weeks, I went for runs at different times - early on Saturday (before 9) has been my favorite so far. The 5pm runs are just not comfortable anymore -- I went on my lunch hour a few times, too. Still too dang hot. Sadly, that means it's time to start planning the early morning runs. Unlike last summer, when I was dying doing the C25K plan, I can be really good in my estimates of how far I ca...

This weekend I did something new - and everyone who knows what Canton is can't believe I've never in my life been out there. Canton, Texas - home of first Monday trade days. For four days - Thursday through Monday -- of each month, Canton has four million people selling 300 bajillion things. And apparently I need it all. [Numbers not official - that's just what it felt like.] There are some crazy creative (and really, really weird) people out there. Beautifully handmade stuff - everything from clothes to jewelry to furniture - sitting right next to "made in China" items. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it made me laugh. Y'all know it's almost summer, right? First week of May in Texas is about like August most other places. The booths are housed in big barns -- we didn't make it to the more "flea market" section out in a big field where there's no shade. Sue me. Anyway, the barns aren't air conditioned so you wan...

Bummed. That's what I am. First goal date is today, with the goal of 20 total pounds lost. Sadly, the scale has not moved a freakin' ounce this week. That leaves my total so far at 18.5 pounds. On the positive side, I didn't gain anything and I was not hungry this week. I had some good runs and tried new recipes. But Paleo so far isn't a big bump in weight loss for me. I think it might be the amount of fat allowed on Paleo -- I don't think I'm being excessive, but being able to eat nuts and guacamole is probably doubling my fat intake over what I have been eating for the last 4 months. Maybe that sort of change explains the lack of progress. I've got two more weeks on Paleo. It actually feels good -- I'm sleeping well, I've not had deliberate sugar (no cookies, no obvious sugar additions) and no grain carbs or dairy. R-Dub's blood sugar is staying below 130 which is a HUGE incentive and a sign that this is good for him. I'm waiting to t...