New Life, New Me

I have come to the point in my life where I need to make some serious changes. I don't like where my life is headed. Diabetes, oxygyn, wheelchairs and more medical problems are looming on the horizon if I don't make some serious changes.

So as of September 20, 2010, I embarked on a journey of self-discovery and weight loss. I currently weigh 432 pounds. That is a huge amount of weight on my small frame. I know how I got here, now I need to get 200 pounds lighter to make my life a lot less difficult.

I have given myself two years to accompish this goal. If, at the end of this two years, I have failed to lose 200 pounds, I will the go the surgical route with the Lap Band. If you think that is taking the "easy" way out, you don't know me. I have been fighting with my weight my whole life. This is the last time I do this. Why is this different than anytime else? Because I am enrolled in a weight loss program that will keep me on my toes weight wise. I also have another support person in my Nurse Practioner. She is going to keep me accountable for my weight and help me keep on track.

This is the beginning. I will be posting as my journey goes on. Maybe I will inspire someone else to get on the weight loss bandwagon and do it right, instead of trying the quick fixes.

Wish me luck!

Vacation Approaches

On Thursday we will be getting our first "real" vacation in many years. I am really looking forward to the time off and relaxing. Not that we are going anywhere special, we are going to mostly hang out in the local area, as that is all that we can afford. The point is that we don't have to work!

Good-bye Alberta

It has been quite a while since I posted anything here. My mother-in-law died from stomach cancer in late Febuary and we buried her on March 6th. It has been a very difficult time for us all. Mother's Day is this sunday and it will be a difficult one for my beloved husband. I am going to do my best to make it as easy as possible.

December Snow

It has finally begun to snow here. There is something about December snow that uplifts and brightens my mood. Perhaps it is a holdover from childhood, when snow was a magical thing and a joy to behold. There is a line in "Frosty the Snowman" that goes, "Christmas snow is magical snow. There is nothing like it."
Snow brings out the child in me like nothing else. I immediatly get happy and want to catch snowflakes on my tongue. It chases away, albeit for a brief time, the cares and worries of adult life and gives me a brief moment of childhood happiness.
Thank you God for December snow. Thank you for the reminder of simpler times and simpler joys. Thank you for the reminder that you are never too old to catch snowflakes on your tongue. :)

Many little and not so little things.

It has been a while since I last wrote on this blog. Many new things have happened in my life. Our vehicle broke down and was fixed. We discoverd that the problem with it is...it's old. The mechanic put a stopgap on it, but if that doesn't work we will have to tear down the transmission to find the problem. A very pricey endevour. So, we are looking into our very first new vechicle purchace. A daunting task to say the least. Car payments are as expensive as our rent payments. Can we really afford it? Not really, but we cannot afford the couple thousand it is going to cost to fix the darned thing either. So how do we get by? We keep trying our best is how we get by.

I recently opened an account on facebook. Interesting site facebook, or FB as the users call it. I found several friends that I thought long lost and several found me. We don't talk as much as I would like, I have missed them greatly, but we talk enough. I also found some dear friends on FB as well. I think I talk too much to them. They seem a bit annoyed by me. Sorry dear ones. I really don't mean to be annoying. Simply put, I miss you and like to talk to you every chance I get. :)

I am a very social creature. Except when I am not. I love to talk to friends and family whenever I get the chance, but, being Bipolar there are times when I don't want to talk to anybody. My FB friend Mindy is going on a walk for Mental Health on Sunday. I wish I could join her, but with my knees as bad as they are, walking is almost impossible now. Good luck Mindy, I am with you in spirit.

I know this is an atypial blog post for me. My apologies to my regular readers, all two of you. :D I have to write about what is happening in my life. Hmm my "I" key just fell off my laptop. Another installment in the wide, wierd world that is called my life.

Perfection

I know that perfection is impossible to reach but yesterday I came as close as I possibly could. I made the perfect apple pie. The crust was light and flakey, the filling was still slightly crisp, but perfectly sweet and spicy. The top crust was a light, golden brown and there was no spillage of the filling. I am so thrilled!

You may ask why this is such a big deal to me. Simple. I can make wonderful cakes and cookies but pies have always illuded me. The filling isn't right or the crust is too hard or cardboard like. I finally hit on the perfect pie crust recipe and method for making the crust. Oh, I am so happy! :)

Blessed

We have been so blessed lately. THings are going well for us. We have the one thing that we have always wanted, *enough*. Enoungh food to fill our bellies, enough money to pay our bills and have some left over for other things, enough towels to dry us, enough toys to play with and enough love to go around.
We are blessed and I am glad.