Thread: Mada 2007

Not a big journaling person, but have always had a nagging desire to do it. Have started a number of times, (even here once) just can't seem to keep up once I start. I do love buying journals, though. They seem to call out to me - "Look how pretty I am!" and then I can't resist. Can't count the number of them I've bought, started and then torn pages out of and used as grocery list paper and the like.

The other thing I decided today was that I didn't want a hand-written journal to be all about my weight challenges. Too depressing, I guess. So that's what made me decide to start one here again. We'll see how it goes. I don't understand blogs - guess I don't have the personality to put my life out there to get scrutinized, but somehow journaling here seems different. Guess I'll give it a try.

Am pretty proud of myself today, so I guess it's a good day to start. I have managed to maintain my losses after a 2 week vacation and 1 week illness, and then yesterday I re-started my exercise routine. (The weather is beautiful here, so I can't not be outside!) Went for a LONG, brisk walk yesterday AND did my new yoga DVD. Then this morning I walked again and plan on doing the yoga again later. Really enjoyed it - more than I thought I would.

Well, Joey is up from his nap, so will have to continue later...

Hi Mada, your fellow Montanan here. Wanted to stop in and say hi!

Hi BBJ! How's the weather in Great Falls? We've got rain here - been raining off and on all week, and tomorrow it's only supposed to get to 45. Really depresses me after such nice days. I'm a big warm weather fan and haven't been getting much of it here lately!

Went for a walk again this morning. My "big plan" is to toss the boys into the double stroller and walk around our neighborhood every morning, right after we all wake up. (It's about 2.5 - 3 miles). Then shower and do breakfast afterward. I do better when I exercise right after getting up - like to get it done and then there's a sense of accomplishment all day. Plus energy. It also helps control eating - don't want to waste the exercise I've done that day with a non-LC food. It's a mental thing, but it works for me.

Now the problem - tomorrow and Thurs, possibly Friday too - are supposed to be cold and wet. Like 45 on Wed, then rising gradually. I know I'm not going to be motivated to go out in that, but will have to kick my own butt and just do it. Hopefully it's not actively raining when I'm out walking. But, I really need to move past excuses and just go.

Didn't do the yoga DVD last night, but should have. Vegged out in front of the TV with DH instead. I was tired, so I should have just gone to bed... I can feel the tendons in my left foot - the worst of the two. Really need to keep up the stretching to help with the plantar fascitis. Losing the weight will help, too, I know. At least the scale is moving in a downward direction. I do find it easier to exercise in the evenings that DH is napping. When he's not, I tend to veg in front of the TV with him. Am trying to encourage him to go out and walk before dinner. He could stand to lose about 100 lbs., but I can't do it for him. I know it'll just fall off of him if he just focuses. The first time we ever did Atkins, about 6 years ago, he dropped something like 45 lbs in nothing flat. So there's no question he can do it. I know partially it's his job. Working graveyard is not conducive to good sleep, which affects every other part of being healthy. I just hope he can start focusing on his health. It's a lot easier for me to focus on mine when I have a partner in the process.

Didn't weigh myself again this morning. Really need to remember to get on that scale and see where I stand, officially, since returning from vacation.

Next up on today's to-do list is to continue with the house cleaning, since my best friend and her family will arrive for a short visit on Thurs. Decided today that it's really not the actual cleaning part of housecleaning that I dislike. It's the clutter control. Crap just seems to pile up instantly around here. The desk could be clean and then in a day or two it's stacked with mail and the boys' art, etc. I know that if I just stopped and put everything away as I went it would be easier, but it's so tiresome! I guess because it's not just my clutter, it's everyones. Why I'm in charge of putting away everyone's stuff is beyond me... A is 4 1/2 now, so he's getting better at putting things away, but loses focus pretty easily. Putting away toys at the end of the day takes a really long time unless we're there refocusing him. J is only 1 1/2, so he can't help too much, but does a little. Then there's DH. It's a fine line you walk as a wife. Speak up too much and you're a nag. Keep it to yourself and eventually your head will explode. I wish a little of my OCD would rub off on him...

Hello my fellow OCD friend. I have it and think that it's just prone to women as my DH and two boys could care less if they walked on junk or couldn't open the door if the house was cluttered to the brim.

The weather man said severe wind warning and hail tonight. He lies sometimes so we'll see.

I love my morning walks too. Got my trusty pedometer so can crank in more steps whenever I can even if it means walking around my coffee table. Guess my OCD is a little out of control in more ways then just clutter control.

If you ever find the secret to clutter control, pass it on to me! I'm better than I was, but still have a long way to go. I'm a closet stuffer. Once it's behind that door, it's outta sight, outta mind. Until I need it, and then it comes tumbling out with everything else!

You sure are getting a great start. Maintaining after vacation and illness is just phenomenal. And getting into that exercising is - well - it makes me jealous of your energy. I never had that kind of energy, even when I was young & thin. Enjoy it while you have it, and keep it up. You'll do better as you age with that kind of energy.

Have a great Wednesday!

LOL Nita! Thankfully my closets are OK. It's more just the day-to-day pile up that annoys me. My only suggestion is to cultivate a little OCD for yourself. :wink:

Well, it's raining here today. Actually rained all night and hasn't stopped. Just couldn't bring myself to walk in this weather - I'd be soaked to the bone, not to mention the kids. The stroller has a weather cover, but I doubt it'd keep all the rain out for the whole walk. Gonna have to do something else today. Hopefully this rain breaks and I can walk again tomorrow. I just really enjoy it lately. And I have a great route, with a couple of gradual uphill climbs.

Been cleaning some more - best friend and family arrive tomorrow. Of course, when I clean, I often get side-tracked into a deep clean of a cupboard or the fridge or something. Today it was two of my kitchen cabinets that turned into a 45 minute re-organizing/clean out project. But they're nice and neat now, so it's all good. Cleaned out the fridge too, for tonight's trip to the grocery store.

Jeez - with all this talk about cleaning you'd think my house would be Bree VanDeCamp spotless, but it's not the case. Little people living here keep making mini-messes. At least they're having fun! And with all the rain, they're going to start bouncing off the walls soon. They LOVE being outside, but it's just too wet. We may just have to run laps back and forth in the basement later - HA!

Making pizza tonight for DH and the kids. Not sure what I'll be having. Have a big bunch of shredded mozzerella that needs to get used up, and I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel for groceries around here. I just wanted to wait until today to do the shopping because new ads come out today, so I know the place will be stocked. Made the mistake of shopping on a Tuesday night last week and they were out of so much it was crazy.

OK, break's over. Back to work!

In my random musings today I thought it might be helpful to myself to keep a food diary here, too. I never was one to do this... seemed too tedious so I always kept a mental log, but I'm gonna give it a whirl.

So far today:
3 egg taco w/ sausage, cheese and lc tortilla (would have been a burrito, but I only use the little ones, so it's easier to just fold 'em over)
Chinese food (not the best lc option, but I ate only the meats & veggies... stayed away from the starches)
Diet Coke (really need to quit this habit, but I'm addicted to that evil chemical concoction! Keep telling myself to quit adding to the profits of the Coke megacorp...)
Water (yep, gotta love the stuff)

Tonight will probably be scrambled eggs since I'm low on groceries, and the men in the house are having pizza. Probably will finish off the leftover salad, too, and a bunch of water.

Definitely doing the yoga tonight since it has yet to stop raining. Will probably add the exercise routine from the You:On A Diet book. That'll take the better part of an hour, so now I know what I'll be doing from 8 - 9pm.

Quick update:

For dinner last night I ended up eating 2 beef sticks, 1 cheese stick and about 1 1/2 c. of cauli-mash. It was plenty! Not enough water, though. Should've taken water with me grocery shopping (which took 2 1/2 hours!)... could've downed a bunch then! Live and learn...

Today my best friend and family arrive - in about an hour. A has been asking me "how long until they get here" since he got up this morning. He loves having kids over to play with. It'll be a nice visit, but probably too short. Thankfully, it stopped raining at about 9pm last night and hasn't rained today. Good for the plants, but depressing as hell when all you want to do is sit on the deck with a glass of wine and good friends.

Today's been a good eating day. B-fast was 3 egg taco and a beef stick, lunch was ham and cheese taco w/ cottage cheese. (I say taco because they're the small LC tortillas). Dinner will be ribeye steak with ramen salad and strawberries. (Yeah, the ramen in the salad isn't LC, but I'll walk in the am). Made cookies and a eclaire torte for the guests, DH and kids, and have LC brownies for myself if I need something sweet. They're the MiniCarb brand (don't know if that brand still exists). Our liquidator store has boxes and boxes of them! He's selling them for 59¢ a box, and is moving locations so the other day he took 30% off that yet! Had to buy 4 more boxes. I don't eat them a lot, but they're nice to have around. Can't beat that deal!

Been busy all day cleaning, cooking, laundry, etc. I keep saying that we should have guests every week and the house would remain spotless! HA!

J's asking to go outside, so I'd better get moving.

Best friend and family left this morning - had a GREAT time - was so good to see her again. And she looked great! I think she had lost 20 or 30 pounds and has hit her goal. Total inspiration to me.

My boys and hers hit it off great and they wore themselves out playing. J even fell asleep on his lunch today... took a pic, will have to post it later. Poor kid's mama just doesn't pay attention.

Did walk yesterday, but not today yet. Will probably do it alone later when DH can watch the boys. I don't mind doing it with them, but sometimes it's nice to have alone time.

Making ribs and a big salad for dinner tonight - yum! Gonna go enjoy the beautiful day now.

I'm glad to hear that you had such a good time with your friend. Congratulations on her hitting goal weight!

I can't wait to see the cute picture of Joey. I love that name, btw, when I was growing up it was what I was going to name my boy I thought. Then we named our two boys after my DH and his father. My little girl was going to be named after my sister.

Hope you were able to get in that walk.

Thanks Heather! I'll pass along the congrats to her. She's struggled with her weight all her life like me, and it's great she's finally conquered it. Here's the pic of J, as promised:



And here's the latest one that I love of the boys together:



I did get a walk in today - all by myself! I love the boys, but sometimes ya gotta have your quiet time. I forgot to take a watch, though and thought I was walking slow, but actually was on pace. It's hard to tell when you don't have a watch along.

Been reading about a new diet today. I had never heard of this until I saw the Woman's Day magazine yesterday and bought it. Too funny, because I had read Dr. Oz's You: On A Diet and tried it, deciding it was a good idea, but liked Atkins better. So I've been trying to incorporate both. Well, it seems like this does just that, and it's still low carb.

Anyway, will probably move toward that type of lc woe, since I've been trying to figure it out on my own anyway. Just not going to give up LCE's boards, either. I enjoy it WAY too much!

HAVE to remember to weigh myself tomorrow. Once we have linoleum in the bathrooms the scale will take up permanent residence there, but right now it's in a closet near the kitchen, since that's the only place that doesn't have carpet right now. That'll be helpful...

Built a canopy with DH for the boys' sandbox. Used PVC and a tarp. It turned out pretty nice. It will be nice to have it shaded from the sun for them. (Not that it gets that hot here, but ya know...)

Tomorrow is Walking Day for MOMS Club, so I'll be going to that (if it's not pouring rain), and then who knows? We leave for North Dakota on Saturday for a week, so the week will be filled with laundry and packing in addition to MC spring banquet, MC group outing to the Bozeman Children's Museum, a mall project meeting (trying to raise $72 G's to put in a play area) and a Dr's appt. (Good grief!) I should get some rest, but I think I want to try and find a webcast of The Starter Wife... started watching that the other day, but I'm behind now...

Hi Mada..I saw in Heather's journal that you are thinking of trying kimkins so I popped over for a visit. By the way, your boys are ADORABLE!

So..I have been doing kimkins for 3 weeks now and I can't say enough good things about it. I am so happy that I decided to give it a try and I highly recommend it. I don't know if kimmer was ever a member here. I couldn't find her on the member list. She was however, a member of the message boards over at "Low Carb Friends," the boards associated with netrition. You can find all the info you need to do the plan at that site under the "other plans" thread. I joined the real kimkins site because I wanted the extra motivation of having paid for the plan. I figured it would strengthen my resolve if I had to pay. I have found that it was money well spent. There are some women on those forums who have been very successful with the plan and they are readily available to anser questions, give advice, and just offer support when needed. and kimmer is very active on the boards as well. Ok...didn't mean to hijack your journal...

Mada - Your boys are so ADORABLE (as Vickie put it so well)! Nice to be the only girl of the house sometimes don't you think? Yesterday I watched a chick flick by myself while I was on the elliptical in my bedroom. Didn't ask for "me" time, it was happily given since no one wanted to watch "Because I Said So." What were they doing? Watching Mythbusters. I like the show too but need some girl time ya know? This is why we have two TV's and a bathtub for soaking in. Glad to hear you find ways for "me" time too. Have fun at your mommy's club. Will you be starting kimkims when you come back from vacation?

Hi Vickie and Heather! Thanks for the compliments. I think they're adorable too (most of the time), but heck, I'm only their Mama.

Yeah, Heather, we are pretty similar! And true, sometimes it is nice to be the only girl, but other times... like trying to pound in A's head that he needs to lift the seat! I swear that kid may not make it to his 5th birthday if this keeps up!

As for kimkins, I read some more about it and think I'm going to wait until after vacation. I can do just meat and veges and cottage cheese instead of potato at my in-laws pretty easily, but to cut it down to kimkins rules would be just too difficult. So, another week and a half and I'll be giving it a go. Am a bit afraid I'll be hungry, but I think I read that you could eat more protein. Am also wondering about the calories, but wanted to check my Dr. Oz book and add up the calories from his meals just to see how they compare. More research required!

This morning got my walk in with my MOMS Club friends and the boys got to feed the ducks at the end. A also rode his bike the whole way. That was probably close to 2 miles! He needs the practice, though. He's my over-cautious, hyper-sensitive one, so he's still got the training wheels on and doesn't want to go too fast. If we do that walk once or twice a week, it will be good for him.

Had 3 hard-boiled eggs and a half piece of sausage for breakfast (J stole the other half) and lunch was a taco salad. Dinner? Yikes! Forgot to pull out the chicken legs, so will probably do Tyson chicken wings and salad.

Went shopping yesterday and bought a top for our banquet tomorrow night. It's formal/semi formal because the theme is "red carpet awards." However, I haven't had a need to wear any of my formal clothes for about 6 years now, and none really fit. I guess 2 kids and some weight to drop will do that. Anyway, I have a pair of nice black pants that I was thinking of, and found this glittery top at, of all places, Vanity - a juniors store! It fits, but I was having trouble with the bust area. I tried it on without a bra because it's sleeveless and mostly backless, but since my boobs are like 20 years past their teenage prime, I really need a bra under this thing. So I bought it to try on at home with my strapless and backless bras. Hopefully it'll work, otherwise I'm going to have to find something else. Waiting for DH to get up and then I'll be able to work on my wardrobe.

Off to do more chores!