Hmmm...

Okay, I don't get it! I know that may suprise some of you, but yes, there are some concepts that are just beyond my comprehension. (My husband attempted to help me out with this one last night, but I was not as appreciative of his help as one would think!) You see, I am involved in a contest at work in which employees are being encouraged to increase their physical activity. Our goal is a minimum of 10,000 steps a day, and the team with the most steps is rewarded at the end of a 2 1/2 month period.

So here is the thing...it took me two months...TWO MONTHS to lose 2 1/2 measely pounds! At first the weight went up, and I thought my body had forsaken the goal we were working so hard to accomplish. I mean, I have been walking a total of 5 miles a day! It has finally started down a little, though. I lost weight during the weight loss competition earlier this year (3 whole pounds...whoopie...) only to gain it plus a couple more on our trip to Chicago...mmm...Chicago style pizza...and bagels...and hot dogs...but I digress. Now I that I am on my way back from losing those added pounds, I have decided to try a whole new concept. I am actually going to watch my portions and calorie intake WHILE I exercise. Hmmm, now why haven't I thought of this one before?!?!!

Well, to be fair to myself, I have done this in the past with quite good success. But that was in my twenties, thirties and early forties. The closer I get to fifty, however, (and I'm talking only a few months away) the more independent my body seems to have become. I think it is afraid that each time I eat something it could be the last morsel it will ever get to digest, so it holds on for dear life to every calorie.

So now that I have verbalized everything that I do not want to keep happening, I am going to stop behaving like Lot's wife who turned into a pillar of salt because she just had to look back at what she was leaving behind instead looking forward to the promises of where she was headed. I shall now make a few positive affirmations for my successful weight loss journey:

• I am back down to the size I was whenever I went to the hospital to have my sons.

• I can sit in a stadium seat without having to raise one hip at a time to get out of it.

• I can actually bend over and paint my toenails without cutting off my air supply.

• I can try on clothes without bursting into tears in the dressing room because my "fat size" is now too small.

• I no longer have to turn sheepishly away whenever my husband asks what happened to the Reese's peanut butter cups he just bought the day before.

• I no longer live in fear of the nurse at my doctor's office yelling my weight across the room to the nurse who is "assisting" by recording it on my chart.

• I no longer feel 4 1/2 months pregnant because my stomach has added a layer of insulation to help me through menopause (to this day I do not understand why this necessary, but I am told it is beneficial...probably something thought up by a female doctor experiencing the same mysterious "miracle" of the female mid-life era.)

• I can wear heels again without the balls of my feet feeling like they are being crushed to powder due to the exponential weight added by said heels.

• I can actually watch "The Biggest Loser" without the conviction that I need to be filling out an application instead of eating another bowl of ice cream.

I feel much better now! With any luck at all I can see myself losing at least 5 lbs before this time next year :-)!!

Random Ramblings

Okay, this is really sad. It has been so long since I have written anything in my blog that I had to search Chelsey's blog for the link! So I have made a promise to myself to write more often...even if what I have to say is not earth shattering or life changing.



I guess one reason I was prompted to return to my blog is that I have been feeling a little blue. Don't ask my why because I can't really put my finger on it. Possibly it is because there are so many changes taking place, and I guess I realize that my time here does not last forever. I look at the hours spent at work versus the time spent living life and visiting with the ones I love, and it is a little sobering to say the least. I do not mean these thoughts in a depressing way. Just in a wistful, melancholy way.

Fall is my favorite time of year, and with fall comes a flood of nostalgia. The cooler, drier temperatures...the clearer, more colorful sunsets...the richer, more flavorful foods all draw my most favorite of memories to the forefront. I remember cool evenings spent on the porch at my grandparent's home watching my grandfather's profile fade into the night as he told stories of his childhood. The faint smell of burning leaves is as prevalent in my memory as it was the day I sat in his lap listening ever intently to his adventures as a boy. The atmosphere was saturated with goodness, simplicity and love.

I also remember the fun of searching for the newest halloween costumes at Perry Brothers five and dime store for the upcoming carnival at our elementary school. The best costumes were homemade, but it was so much fun to look at the most popular costumes that sold in the store. I remember getting to be Snow White one year. It was with great pride that I put on that plastic mask, pulling the rubber band over my head and securing it safely around the back of my head. I magically became Snow White...I even had her hair and face (...as long as I didn't turn around, that is...) I can still hear the way my breath sounded with my nose and lips pressed up to the mask.

Back in those days our small town closed down main street and we got to march in a parade and show off our costumes. This was a big event at our house. My grandparents came to the house early and rode with us to the parade. It always began and ended at the elementary school, and we got to be the stars of the town for the evening. After the parade came the carnival that was set up complete with all kinds of games like bobbing for apples, a cake walk, and a spook house...just to name a few of the attractions. Those times were so, so special.

Autumn brings football and evenings around campfires at the farm. My sons were born in the fall, and it was in the fall of the year that my life with Charlie began. Many say I am entering into the autumn of my life. Come to think of it, I suppose that is not such a bad thing after all. Much like the bright hues of orange, yellow and brown that make up the colors of the changing season, fall and autumn is a warm, vibrant time of year. The colors are rich, the smells are memorable, and the skies are clear. This season of life could turn out to be my favorite of all.