Tell Me More, Tell Me More!

Starting Over

2012-01-31T21:55:00.000-05:00

Today was the day! I've started over and went back to Weight Watchers tonight. A big hug from Kelly, Steve and Susan welcomed me back. I was very nervous to face anyone there but I feel so much better now that I did go. So tomorrow morning starts a more rigorous effort at keeping track of points and tracking all my food. I entered the foods in my phone tracker so I can try using that.
So, it begins again but I'm ready now.
:-)

My Answers for 5Q

2012-01-28T21:42:00.000-05:00

Head over to My Little Life and grab the questions below so you can join in the FUN!!!

1. Do you swim in the winter? No, no, NO. The winter cover is on and it's WAY too cold here in PA to even consider swimming in the winter. OK, enough being silly but NO, I don't because our high school pool is cold when you get in and are in and I've tried but just don't have time anymore.

2. Do you love or hate winter? HATE HATE HATE.....and Yes, I know I shouldn't hate but I detest winter. OK, the snow is pretty....the first time. Then I'm done. I don't need to see it again. See it hasn't learned to stay off the roads when it has snowed so I can live without it. But my family is here and I won't ever live away from them so I'm stuck. Thankfully this has been a very mild winter...so far!

3. Do you put makeup/actual clothes on when you know you're going to be home all day with just family? I have days when I don't do makeup and then I catch a glimpse of myself and I scare myself so lately I've been trying to put at least some on every day. I LOVE days spent in pi's however I don't think I've had one where I'm in them all day since before Emma was born. But leggings and a big t-shirt are on my body if I'm home all day.

4. How old were you when you had your first alcoholic beverage? I was in high school. I learned to drink and be responsible and while others wouldn't agree with how I learned that I know it worked. I do not drink and drive and never did. I won't go into any more detail though...some things should be kept private.

5. How many ill calls in a 12 month period do you think are acceptable? Well, in my school year I'm permitted 10 sick days and 3 personal days. I try not using them all but ever since I was pregnant so many years ago, I've not been able to build my days back up.

Friday in a Different Place

2012-01-13T18:12:00.002-05:00

1. What's the the last thing you bought for yourself? A sweater at Kohl's only because I had Kohl's cash to spend and couldn't find anything for Emma that was springlike since she has enough winter clothes. I haven't been buying myself anything since I'm not happy at what size I am now.

2. What is your favourite meal on a cold winter day? Anything hot. We had Chili the other day and it wasn't particularly cold yet and it hit the spot. Today it's really cold and we had pork chops and well it didn't hit the spot as much. Ever get stuck on what to cook?

3. Have you started looking at swimsuits for this year, and do you buy a new one every year? Heck no for looking at them. I can't imagine this body in a swimsuit! I've really put the bulk of my weight on since summer so none of my suits will fit if I don't get this weight off. I lost 5 pounds this past week though with going back to eating as I should on the WW way. It's a start. :-)

4. If you could be any candy what would you be and why? Oh wow! Candy....when I just ate pork chops that didn't hit the spot and I'm doing WW and not eating candy. Maybe it would be best I not dwell on this one too long. Candy..mmmmm

5. What are you most passionate about? My family! There's a lot of things I can tolerate in life but do not wrong someone I love.

**Bonus Question: What is your favorite thing to "pin" on Pinterest?
I absolutely LOVE pinning lots of things but my favorites are Weight Watcher recipes and Stampin'Up! cards. It's SUCH a cool space. If you need an invite just leave me a message with your email and I'll be glad to send you one.

OK.....Friday questions are being hosted in a "guest" spot over at Kate's World. Mama and her hubby are off on a beach in Mexico somewhere so Kate stepped in to help out. Very nice of her huh. So go on over and grab the questions and play along. It's really easy. :-)

5QF

2012-01-06T00:05:00.001-05:00

1. What is the weather like where you are and do you like it? This week we've had some snow and it's been very cold and I do not only NOT like it...I HATE IT! Bring on the sun and 70's. One bad thing about living in PA....I think I read we have a total of only 53 sunny days in an entire year. uggghhh

2. When you're sick what do you seek comfort from? My blanket. I just want to lay on the couch or in bed and be left alone. My hubby is good most of the time about letting me alone and making me scrambled eggs if I ask (they are my comfort food when sick.)

3. What do you need to do before the end of the month? Buy birthday cards and present. Hubby, my granddaughter, my Dad....all 2 days apart. YIKES!

4. Have you ever served on a jury? Yes, last year I did. A criminal case. Was extremely stressful time. It last a week and I had a VERY hard time after it was over fearing for my safety even here at home even though the defendants live on the other side of the county. I wasn't sleeping well or doing well with being home alone.

5. If you could be any animal, what would you be and why? My favorite is a penguin but I'm not sure I'd want to be one. I also love elephants but don't think I'd want to be one of them so probably I'd want to be one of those ultra spoiled dogs that people have and treat better than they do humans.

Well, that was fun for this week. Head on over to My Little Life and grab the questions and put your link on her linky to have some fun of your own.

Back to eating the WW way and not the junk anything you want way. It's only 3 days into it at this point, but I'm giving it my all and I've made up my mind I need to change. I HATE HATE HATE being fat again!

Have an awesome week! Stop back again soon. :-)

Happy New Year 2012

2012-01-01T15:10:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year 2012 to you and your families. May it be one of good health, happiness and prosperity.

Today I've come to some "resolutions" of things I want to make happen for myself. Jumping on the scale and seeing I'd be way off saying I'd put on 50 pounds when it's more like 75. That was a hard hit! I worked SO hard at being successful at Weight Watchers and I've really fallen off track the past 6 months. Yes, the majority of that I put on in 6 months. I've had virtually no exercise. No walking, no gym, no nothing. So that's all got to change in this new year. For ME. I'm very unhappy with how I look and feel having put this weight on. It's one thing to be fat and just that be how you've been but when you know how it feels to be thinner and to look good....well, this now is just not cutting it. So I'll be working to make some major changes again. I'll also be going back to WW meetings. I KNOW how important they are but I lost making them a priority in my life.

I also look at books longingly and want to spend more time reading, more time stamping and just reclaiming those things that give me joy.

So wish me well. It's not an easy journey but I hope to climb the mountain and stay at the top this time.

Actual Friday Questions on Friday

2011-12-30T10:58:00.000-05:00

1. What's the oldest piece of clothing in your closet? Well, it's not in my main closet but it is in a closet in our now spare room.....my band jacket from when I was in high school. We got them at the beginning of our senior year and even though it might be 70 degrees we put those heavy jackets on and wore them for the rest of the year. I can't bare to throw it out because it has so many good memories attached to it.

2. How many random blog readers have you met? One...when I met Betty at a Stampin' Up! regional. I honestly most of the time feel no one reads my blog anyway. Now that I'm off WW, I'm sure she doesn't either.

3. Do you let your kids stay up till midnight on New Years Eve? (Or, if you don't have kiddos yet, did you get to stay up until midnight as a child?)

Yes, I always allowed my son to stay up. We used to celebrate with my one sister and her family and would be playing card games as the kids played so they stayed up. Then for the last I don't know how many years we've gone to my youngest sisters and the kids always stay up. One night doesn't hurt them.

4. What are the gas prices where you live? I think I saw $3.29 when I was out yesterday. Since hubby fueled up my car before Christmas and I'm no where close to needing any though I didn't pay close attention.

5. What is one resolution that you know you should do but are too afraid to

try? Cleaning out my house of all the excess "junk" and it's not that I'm afraid it's that it's overwhelming and I don't know where to start. My actual resolution is to get back on WW and lose this 50 pounds I've gained so I feel better about myself again. Here's to the new year!

Happy New Year! Jump over to My Little Life for the questions above and to link into some cool other blogs.

New card

2011-12-19T19:54:00.000-05:00

Here's a card I recently made using some of the new products to be released by Stampin' Up! in the new mini coming out soon.

I will share the recipe soon.

Friday's questions

2011-12-16T11:46:00.000-05:00

1. What's the best Christmas present you've ever received? The year my husband gave me diamond earrings before we were married. The reason was more that he was so romantic and hid them in a jewelry cleaner box. He's never been one much for romance so it's always been one of my favorites.

2. Worst/Funniest White Elephant gift ever received? I've never been part of a White Elephant thing and I'm not even really sure I know what it is. I DO know though that last year after I'd been at goal weight the girl who had me in gift exchange went to the thrift store and bought the largest bra she could find and boy did she glam it up shall we say. Let's also say the person I have in the gift exchange this year should expect to see that beautiful bra in one of their packages. LOL

3. Is your Christmas tree plain and simple (white lights and matching ornaments) or is it wild and crazy (colored lights with lots of ornaments collected over the years)? We just bought a new tree and it HAD to be multi colored. Do you know how difficult it is to find one of those prelit that has a decent amount of lights on it??? My ornaments are mostly hallmark ones we've bought through the years for one another and the new shatterproof ones I bought last year because of Emma. This year she seems to have taken a liking to taking the ornaments off the tree.

4. "How" do you iron your clothes? The old fashioned iron/ironing board way, the shower, back in the dryer, etc. Old fashioned iron. It's permanently set up in our basement and we iron as we go. My husband irons better than I do!

5. How much baking do you do for Christmas and what are your "must make" items? (I'm looking for recipes here, peeps...) The past few years I quit baking. With being on Weight Watchers I didn't need that extra temptation around because with being off work the week after Christmas I KNEW who would be eating anything I baked.

So that's our fun for this week. Please play along and go to My Little Life for the questions and to link your blog into a bunch of others. Fun Stuff!

My Questions/Answers

2011-12-10T17:24:00.000-05:00

Head over to My Little Life and as she says "HAVE FUN"

1. What is your favorite Christmas cookie? My Mom makes these cookies she calls devil dogs which most people I know call them gobs. Well, the 4 girls of my family have loved these so much we'd sneak down to the freezer and steal them. We still like them better frozen. Our kids all love them too!

2. What's your favorite holiday movie & why? I love the movies this time of the year. I could sit and just watch Christmas movies all day. My favorite that I always look forward to is probably the Grinch but since that's not a movie I'm going with Elf. It makes me laugh.

3. Is there a gift that you bought for your kids that you wish you hadnt after they opened it?

To this day I regret buying my son Xbox and he doesn't even live with us anymore. When he plays it too long (which is always) he becomes nasty because he has the live version and that's how they all talk to one another....like they are garbage and I really hate it.

4. What is the messiest room in your house right at this moment? My bedroom. I need to get up there and take the old carpet out of my son's old room and get a new throw for up there and then I'm going to move all my scrap stuff to that room. But I just don't have time....or gumption to do it right now. This has been a long few weeks because I've not felt good.

5. What is the furthest you have driven for the holidays? When my one sister moved to Indy we went there for New Year's Eve. Hit a TERRIBLE snow storm on our way home where we couldn't even see the road. Scary times and I'll never do that again.

Have a great week!

Making a Difference

2011-12-02T19:16:00.001-05:00

At Stampin' Up!, we believe in making a difference in the lives of others--whether they're our demonstrators, our employees, the people who use our products, or children in need of a way to express their creativity.
Since 2005, Stampin' Up! has been honored to participate in the TODAY Show's Holiday Toy Drive. This year, Stampin' Up! will be donating over $500,000 worth of stamping and paper crafting products to the following organizations:

Action for Boston Community Development Inc.
Alliance for Children's Rights
Boys & Girls Clubs Harford County
Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York
Community Partners of Dallas - Rainbow Room
Diocese of Saint Augustine
Friendship Project
Help USA
Interfaith Nutrition Network (INN)
Kids In Need Foundation
National Council of Jewish Women, Cleveland Section - The Dignity Project
Operation Homefront
Puerto Rican Family Institute
St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital
Stephen Siller Foundation/Katrina Fund
Welcome House
Youthbuild USA

In conjunction with the donation, Stampin' Up!'s Shelli Gardner will make an appearance on NBC's TODAY Show on Tuesday, December 6. We are honored and excited to once again participate in this annual holiday tradition of giving back and making a difference!

Five Q on a Friday

2011-12-02T18:45:00.001-05:00

Over at My Little Life, I've found these cute 5 questions each week that keep me posting on my blog so that I don't have to write about the failure I've been at maintaining my weight. So if you feel like indulging, hop on over and get in on the fun too!

1. What is your favorite Christmas decoration in your house? Well, my hubby is dragging out the decorations now as I type, so maybe once I see them all I'll have a better idea. We're SO behind this year. Amy and Zach moved last weekend and we've been busy helping them get situated. So hopefully tonights the night it goes up even though it does seem very odd to be doing it and Zach not be here. :(

2. Do you finish your Christmas shopping early or are you a last minute type? Well, I'm not typically a up to Christmas Eve shopper but I seem to always be shopping the last days before Christmas. I need to take stock in what I have to decide what else I need to buy. Still way too much I know. Decisions, decisions

3. When do you turn on your heat? As soon as I get cold. I honestly can't say when. We have crazy weather here in PA. so it can be cold as anything one day and hot the next. Definitely have the heat on now.

4. Do you ever wish your blog was private? You mean it isn't???? I mostly think I write for myself. Occasionally someone may pop on and read but I don't think many. I'm not very interesting.

5. Do you put your deodorant on before of after you put on your shirt? Definitely AFTER. I do not want those white marks all over my shirt. I'm always in a hurry so my luck I'd be a mess.

See you next week!

Questions on Friday

2011-11-25T20:53:00.000-05:00

1. Is there a special dish you prepare that you are famous for? I cook most of the dishes for Thanksgiving and nothing out of the ordinary. This year I had to throw away 2 pumpkin pies because after I made them I found out the pumpkin had been recalled and I didn't want to chance anyone getting sick. About made me sick to have to pitch them and make 2 new ones. On ordinary days, I try making new things all the time for our family to try out so there's not one particular thing I'm famous for. But I do have to say...whatever I take they almost always really like.

2. Are you (did you) go Black Friday shopping ? I did go. Left the house before 9:30 p.m. with Amy and my youngest sister and we arrived back home around 7 a.m. this morning. Had a really rough start at Walmart but then hit pay dirt at Target and just kept going. Had breakfast in there too which used to be a tradition when my youngest sister and another sister and I would go out together. I missed my other sister but she lives in Indy now so we texted for a while last night but it's just not the same. Got a good start on my shopping but have a lot to do yet!

3. What are your strangest holiday traditions? I can't think of anything strange we do. We're a pretty ordinary family.

4. Pecan or pumpkin pie? (She actually asked "Apple or pumpkin?" I just T-giving'ed it!) I don't like pecan so that would never be a good choice so pumpkin wins. It would have been really close if it had been apple or pumpkin. 2 of my favorites.

5. When will you put up your Christmas tree? Usually the Sunday after Thanksgiving but we'll be helping the kids move tomorrow so I'm not sure we'll have the umph left to do it but let's hope so. I like getting it done so we can focus on shopping in our spare time.

So that's it for this week. Hop on over to My Little Life for the questions so you can play along too. It's fun. Honest.

Online Extravaganza!

2011-11-21T07:05:00.001-05:00

SAVE 20 to 60% on Stampin' Up! products! The Stampin' Up! On-Line Extravaganza Sale is here Please click here to do any shopping . The On-Line Extravaganza Sale ends Nov. 30.

Here's a PDF link to everything on sale during the On-Line Extravaganza.
There is no minimum purchase required to participate in this promotion.
For product bundles, you must use the bundle item numbers provided. Bundle discounts will not be applied if individual item numbers are used.
Additional products from current catalogs may be purchased on the same order.
Discounts range between 20 and 60 percent.

24 HOUR SALE TODAY ONLY!!! For the next 24 hours, take advantage of a 20% discount on two of Stampin' Up!'s hottest new products, Simply Scored Scoring Tool and Sweet Pressed Cookie Stamps. The 24 hour sale ends at midnight MST today!

Item	Description	Retail Price	24-Hour Sale Price
122334	Simply Scored	$29.95	$23.96
125152	Sweet Pressed Cookie Stamps	$16.95	$13.56

5Q Weekend

2011-11-19T12:10:00.000-05:00

I'm going to have to call these questions weekend since I can't seem to get here Friday. Though last night I was stamping at Kim's so I have a good reason :-)
Pick up the questions yourself at My Little Life

Have an awesome weekend. I'm feeling under the weather so will be laid back one for me.

1. Do you have a go to song that always puts you in a good mood? No, I love music so just about any song can do this. I love Christmas music too so this is an awesome time of the year.

2. Are you a real Christmas tree kinda person or do you go with a real fake one? I've never had a real one since my hubby is allergic to them. Fake it is. Less mess I think too....so I'll take it

3. What are you thankful for? Time with my beautiful granddaughter and family. My parents good health. Sisters and family to love. Wonderful friends who always make me smile. A job to pay the bills (which I like most days! lol) MANY things!

4. Which fashion fad from the past do you wish you could wear today? Bell bottoms. For some reason I just LOVED those pants but they would look awful on me today.

5. Do you wait until the "low fuel" light comes on before you fill up the gas tank? Well, I try to pay attention but it's hard because I don't pass any gas stations on my way to work so usually the light is on before I make an effort to get gas.

Questions on Saturday

2011-11-12T16:20:00.000-05:00

Take a few minutes and head to My Little Life and see others fun answers and to grab the questions yourself to tell us the answers. It's so much fun.

1. What's the last thing you spent too much money on? Well, that happened yesterday when I took a personal day and went shopping with Amy and Emma. I bought Emma a pair of Ugg boots. They are so stinkin' cute on her though I couldn't resist. So we got them a bit big so hopefully she gets more wear out of them. Already today when she came to my house her Mom had them on her. :-)

2. What celeb chef would you want to make you dinner? I don't honestly know. A lot of those chefs use ingredients that I'd not eat. For being so fat, I'm a very picky eater. Yes, I did say I'm fat and one of these days I'll blog about that again too. Too many head issues to go into now but I'm working on it.

3. Where do you hide things when visitors pop over or do you let them see the real deal? We put everything up on our bed in our bedroom but I am a strong believer in that you better come to see me and not my house. You are ALWAYS welcome in my house but don't judge if I'm in my jammies or the house is dirty. It happens.

4. Who is your oldest living family member? My hubby's Grandmother who just turned 94 but unfortunately she has Dementia and doesn't remember anyone anymore and we've not seen her in a long while. She's such a sweetie too. I will always treasure when she came to our house one of the last times and was asking who my Dad was and as I explained patiently, she looked at me and said...I won't ever forget you Denise...but I know she has and it makes me so sad.

5. What is your favorite DQ treat and/or Sonic drink combo (ie: cherry vanilla dr. pepper)? I have never gone to Sonic even though we do have one so I can't pick something there. My favorite DQ treat would be a Peanut Buster Parfait and yes, I had one recently. Now see part of why I'm fat again from above question...*sigh*

Five Question Friday

2011-11-04T17:47:00.000-04:00

1. What movie do you love to quote? Well, my favorite movie is Ghost and I love the line at the end where Patrick says the love...you take it with you. Gets me every time. I don't quote it...but it's a quote I know.

2. Have you ever ridden a motorcycle? Heck no. I've always been too fat to ride on one. Where would I fit???

3. What's your favorite thing to do on a rainy day? Lay on the couch and watch tv mindlessly....but does it happen? Rarely....and I'd not change a second of it because it means I'm spending time with Ms. Emma :-)

4. Do you prefer a bunch of small gifts, or one really big, (expensive) gift? As much as I love expensive gifts (read diamonds) I have to say I love a bunch of small gifts. I always said I'd rather have 10 one dollar gifts than 1 ten dollar gift.

5. Do you ever lose track of days and show up somewhere wrong? My iPhone calendar keeps me pretty on track....well, me and the rest of my family. So I try to be pretty with it when I'm keeping track of times and activities.

Hook yourself up with these questions at My Little Life. Fun times :-)

Happy Weekend. It's a very busy one here.

Jump Start

2011-10-27T23:31:00.002-04:00

1. Do you prefer cotton, silk, or flannel sheets? Actually I like my sheets that are the jersey material. They are soft and I never have to worry about them popping off the bed. What a pain those garters are to put on and with the jersey type, I don't need them.

2. What time zone are you in? Eastern

3. What is your favorite part of the holiday season? The time you get off work and get to spend with family.

4. What is your favorite "wintry" drink? (It doesn't have to be an "alcoholic" drink!) Hot chocolate with mini marshmallows. Don't forget them!

5. In your opinion, what is the worst job in the world? Garbage man. I couldn't stomach the smells day in and day out. Especially on those really hot days. ICK!

Play along with me. As you can see, the questions were quick and simple today so go to My Little Life to get them. :-)

Are you Joining in???

2011-10-21T18:59:00.000-04:00

1. Where do you escape to when you've had enough? I tend to escape from the world when I've had enough. I don't go anywhere and I basically just sit and veg on the couch. When I've had enough with my family I escape to my bedroom but haven't done that for a good while especially since it's just hubby and I living here now.

2. What shows are you watching this fall? Oh some very good ones....but nothing new that I can think of. I really enjoy Castle, Parenthood, Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives. I'm still addicted to House Hunters too. I love living through all these people to see the many places they shoot whether here in the USA or out of country.

3. What was the longest roadtrip you've ever taken and where did you go? Furthest I've ever driven would be out to my sister's house in Indy. Oh wait...it's further for us when we go to Myrtle Beach so I guess that one wins instead of my sister's house. 13 hours to MB is a real killer but SO worth it!

4. Do you plan on taking your kids to Disney World? Kid...one...have taken him twice when he was quite young. Can you say stupid? He doesn't remember. He was about 5 and then 6 or something like that. My brother in law used to be able to get us stand by tickets and we flew really cheap so it was a last minute decision. The first year we went for 3 days. Definitely NOT long enough. We spent 16 hours in Magic Kingdom trying to get it all in. Then the following year we decided to go for 5 days but we lost a day in airports and another in changing hotels. I've never gone to Animal Kingdom or Epcot so that's my goal. I plan on taking Emma when she's a little older. :-)

5. What is something people would surprised to know about you? Let me see....surprised....gee....that's tough because I'm such an open book. Most people are surprised to hear that I was accepted to college for computers but the summer we went for freshman orientation I changed my mind and told my Mom I wanted to do special education. When I've had a really rough day my Mom says "You should have stayed with computers" but after 25 years of teaching it still warms my heart when a kid "gets it" and you see it on their face.

Happy Weekend to all. Are you playing along with the questions yet? If not, how come? It's so much fun. Join in and get the questions HERE

Question Friday

2011-10-14T22:26:00.000-04:00

1. Do you prefer your ice cream in a bowl or in a cone? In a waffle cone please. Just went to Cold Stone Creamery tonight for the first time thanks to Amy. Had Apple Pie al la mode. Oh my goodness was it good!!!

2. What three things do you love the smell of? Emma after she's had a bath, a clean house, cinnamon anything

3. Giftcards or no? (In regards to gift giving...) I do tend to give them but when I receive them, I'm not good at using them. I have some in my purse I've been carrying around for a long time. I'm trying to get better though.

4. What sports did you play in high school if any and do you still play them? Sports and me play them in one sentence??? hahahaha Sorry a little lapse there....but no, I didn't play sports in high school. I WAS a track manager though. Yes, manager....that's as close to a sport as I got.

5. Were you in band in high school? What instrument did you play? I guess this goes with the one above. I WAS in band in high school. I played flute and piccolo although I am first to tell you I wasn't in band for the music but for the social reasons. We competed back then and I remember pretending to play if a judge got too close because I was afraid he'd mark us down for me not knowing my music. But honestly, those are the best memories I have of high school were the friends I made and the good times we had.

Now it's your turn to play along. Leave me a comment please if you do decide to play so I know to hop to your blog to read your answers. The biggest rule is that you have FUN! You can find the questions HERE

Sunday Questions

2011-10-02T10:02:00.000-04:00

1. Do you apologize to your kids if you're wrong? Yes, I'm big on admitting that I'm not perfect and I expect no one else to be. We all make mistakes.

2. Do you have a class ring, Letterman's jacket, or similar obscenely priced high school "must have"? Well, I HAD a class ring. For about a summer. Then on the band bus one night my hands were freezing and someone was rubbing my hands and somehow I guess my ring came off and that was the last I ever wore it. I didn't have a "Letterman" jacket but I did have a band jacket which was pretty much the same thing. We were given them our senior year from the band. I still have that coat in my closet. Won't ever be throwing it out. Yes, now you know why I am such a packrat.

3. If you could be one age for the rest of your life, what age would you choose? I think it would be 24 which was the age I was when I got out of college. Then I'd have that out of the way but still be young enough to go do things all the time and just have fun without all the worries of the world that accompany us as we get older.

4. What is your favorite (unused) baby name? Geesh, I haven't thought about that. I've always liked the name Molly so I guess that would have been it. But it shall remain unused since I'm way done on the baby thing. LOL

5. If you could make your child like something what would it be? My child is an adult so this is a bit hard for me to answer. There's many things I'd like to see him be better at but I have faith he'll figure that out as he progresses through life. Hopefully right?

I'm once again really late on these but it's been a full weekend. This is the first moment I've had to actually put some thought into the questions without Emma pointing to me to close the computer. It's very rainy and dreary and going to be hard today to motivate myself to get my house cleaned. However, I want to decorate for Halloween/fall so that is what I'm hoping will get me going. I also have to finish cleaning my car since well...we won't go there. We'll just say the girls had a really good time at Hofbrauhaus on Friday.

Happy Sunday! Questions found at My Little Life if you want to play along.

Five on Friday

2011-09-23T23:59:00.000-04:00

1. Dream job...realistic and completely unrealistic. For me it's unrealistic. My dream job was always Stay at home Mom and now it's to be a Stay at Home Grandma....however it won't pay the bills and unfortunately, we need both incomes to make it all go.

2. Do you fart in front of your significant other? Girls don't fart. They toot. But we always say excuse me and never claim it like a man would. LOL

3. What's the furthest you've ever traveled from home? How far and where was it? When we were on our honeymoon, we cruised. We went to Puerto Rico, San Juan and St. Thomas. ALL absolutely beautiful. We always swore we'd go back for our 10 year anniversary but well....yeah.....life happens!

4. How do you celebrate birthday for your kids? Family only or friends? ... Alternate for those without kiddos: How did you celebrate birthdays as a kid?

Birthdays are your special day in our family. We go out to dinner...your choice where. Then we come home and have family over for cake and ice cream.

Amy's 21st is this upcoming Wed.....and not sure what we'll do.

5. Fave thing about fall? The beautiful colors as the trees change. I'm constantly driving thanking God for blessing us with such beauty. Unfortunately, it also means summer is over and that icky winter will be

coming. Blah

OK, your turn. Go over to My Little Life and grab the questions so you can answer along too. Lots of fun...honest! :-)

Have an awesome weekend.

Fridays Questions on Saturday

2011-09-17T10:20:00.000-04:00

So I'm once again behind.....posting on Friday is difficult since I'm always tired. But last night I actually had the opportunity to go out for Girl's Night Out with my best friends. We had a great time and many laughs. I hope you all have friends like that that you can just get together and have fun. :)

Don't forget to stop over at My Little Life and see all the fun answers to these questions or to even grab them yourself.

1. If you had a weekly newspaper column, what would you name it? Since she's the joy of my life I know I'd pick something where I could showcase the wonderful little moments I have with Emma. So Gram's Grand maybe???

2. Who is your mentor/inspiration? I don't have a mentor but there are so many people who inspire me. My upline Kim who has such a wonderful Stampin' Up! business and makes such beautiful cards....and always has a smile to share or an ear. My WW leader Kelly, who always has a positive word or encouragement to offer even when I'm feeling down about not being involved with the program right now. Of course there's also my Mom who is always willing to listen or help out in any way she can. The list can go on and on but those are the ones that are outstanding to me.

3. What is your wake up beverage of choice? As the coffee is brewing, I drink a glass of OJ to take my medicines. Helps keep my potassium levels under control also.

4. Would you wear your mom's clothes? Absolutely not! That's only because they would NEVER fit! My Mom is a tiny petite woman. I probably would have fit in her clothes in about 5th grade....maybe!

5. When you were a kid, did you put posters on your wall? If so, what were they of? Heavens NO. My Mom would never allow that. But oh how I would have loved to. Bay City Rollers were my band back then. LOL

Have a wonderful week. Take time to spend with those you love most.

Questions of the Week

2011-09-09T01:01:00.000-04:00

Join in the fun by going over to My Little Life blog and getting these questions then going back to link your answers to others. Lots of fun :-)

1. What ringtone do you have on your cell phone? I've actually changed mine recently to just the old fashioned ring on a telephone....and I still don't hear it. Leave a message please :-)

2. What is your favorite memory from this summer? Going on the SkyWheel at Myrtle Beach. It goes 184 ft in the air and is an enclosed gondola. One of my sisters and her hubby met us there and we all rode together. Was an incredible view with awesome company. I enjoyed it immensely!

3. Paper books or ebooks? While I like the feel of a book in my hand I'm a converted ebook person now. I've owned a Kindle for over a year and I absolutely LOVE it!!!! I get lots of free books which I find on Facebook and I like the immediate satisfaction of wanting a book and Ding...it's there!

4. If you could have one home upgrade what would it be and why? WOW...this is tough cause my whole house could use an upgrade. I think I'd go with new windows. I'd love beautiful windows including a bay window in my bedroom.

5. When was your first serious boyfriend/girlfriend? I was 13 and IN LOVE. LOL We used to send each other notes through his brother (I was in middle school he was in high school...ohhh...and older man!) and we'd draw picture of a person standing with their arms stretched out saying "I love you this much." His sister would also take us roller skating on Sundays. I was heartbroken when he decided he needed a high school girlfriend.

Depressing news of the week....I've tried on my jeans and not one pair fit! Not even close to closing. I'm so depressed!

5QF

2011-09-02T13:34:00.001-04:00

It's that fun time of the week where I can answer questions provided by My Little Life. You really need to hop over to her blog and read her blog answers. She always makes me actually laugh out loud when I read her answers. :-)

1. Shoes in the house - yay or nay? I'd prefer nay but am not offended if someone keeps them on. I have hardwood floors so I can always easily clean them up.

2. What do you call them- flip flops, slippers, thongs, etc? Well, I'm old. So I used to say thongs all the time until Amy would correct me so now I say flip flops. I've even got a few and wear them quite often.

3. What song are you almost embarrassed to admit you know all the lyrics to? Well, I'm a HORRIBLE singer so any song that I know is not a good thing for those around me. But off the top of my head I can't think of one that's embarrassing to myself. My favorite is "You are My Sunshine." It always brings a tear to my eye. :-)

4. What is the best quality to have in a friend? To be supportive and a good listener. OK, that's not one but those go hand in hand. To be supportive they have to have listened to what I'm moaning about. My friends are the BEST!!! I've had co-workers meet my best friends and tell me I don't exaggerate at all when I describe them and our quirky friendship. But I'd do anything for those girls. In fact, I'd do anything for any of my friends. Friends are VERY important!

5. Do you know what you want for Christmas? Not yet. To retire??? LOL The focus isn't on me...it's on my beautiful granddaughter and bringing a smile to her face. She gets more beautiful every day. The Lord has indeed blessed me.

Happy Labor Day weekend! We will be going to the Toby Keith concert Saturday night and a picnic on Sunday. Time to close up the pool so it will be a busy weekend. Hope you enjoy yours!

Late Questions

2011-08-28T19:58:00.000-04:00

stop over My Little Life who posts questions for you to answer each week and then will set you up in sharing your questions with others. You need to stop and read her answers too....she made me laugh out loud this week at some of hers. :-)

1. Did you make any fun purchases this week? Let's see...I'm eating like crap so buying Oreos probably wouldn't count huh? Otherwise...no...but I am headed to Victoria's Secret tomorrow so you never know. :-)

2. If you could go to any musical concert, what would it be? Oh is this a perfect time to tell you I won tickets on Facebook to Toby Keith on Saturday night. We've seen him twice and he's an AWESOME concert. Thanks to Johnathan Michael's Boutique!

3. What is your least fav/ most fav house chore? Oh I HATE to clean so that's my least favorite....grocery shopping is probably my favorite but I send hubby all the time because he shops to the list. I tend to wander a bit and spend a lot more.

4. Would you prefer new appliances or clothes? I'd love a whole new kitchen....or someone to come into my house and declutter all my areas I have things stashed.....but let's see...clothes! I love clothes since I've lost weight (though am not loving them now I've put on weight...my inspiration come Tuesday when school starts)

5. Miracle Whip or Mayo? Hands down Miracle Whip! No discussion.

5 More

2011-08-19T00:01:00.001-04:00

These questions come from My Little Life blog....check her out...a real, honest Mama sharing her life. :-)

1. Do you close the bathroom door when you are home alone? Heck no! I'm lucky I remember to close it when there are people here. hehe

2. You have to walk around with a word on your forehead. That word describes you. One word. What is it? Grandma.....cause it's the one thing in life I'm so darn proud to be...I just love that little girl to pieces.

3. What store do you refuse to shop at and why? Well, this is a tough one. For years there were tons of stores I COULDN'T shop in because they didn't carry my size. Now I have a hard time realizing I will fit in clothes in those stores. I still talk myself out of a lot of places.

4. If you participated in arranged marriages for your child(ren), who would you choose for your child(ren)? Someone who would love him with their whole heart in good times and bad. I just want him to be happy and surrounded by love. Things have gotten a lot better on this front to which I thank all my wonderful friends and family for their prayers. Please continue to pray for their wisdom and to grow together as a couple and family.

5. If you could pick how and when you would die, would you? In my sleep when I become a burden to someone. But honestly, I don't want to think of it so let's move on.

Just a quick added note.....found out some awesome news tonight....my WW meetings will be moving very close to me come Sept. I've been doing HORRIBLE this summer with my eating. It's like I gave myself permission to go wild and I did just that. I had been wavering back and forth with 10 pounds for probably 5 months and then all the sudden this summer I've gone wild and put on another 15. I'm MISERABLE but yet can't seem to gain my control back. It's HARD!!!!!! I was doing better with my exercising (until this week) but I have to get my eating under control. I feel like a total failure that I can't find that control and that I've put on this weight. Believe me....I do NOT want to go back to where I was. EVER. I'm hoping that with school starting again soon it will help. Oh I sure hope so!

Card & More

2011-08-05T16:10:00.000-04:00

Today was our Stampin' Sister meeting. I've been so bad about posting pictures of any of my cards so while I was thinking of it and had 2 seconds I thought I'd share the card I made for our swap.I actually like how it turned out. I have to give Dawn kudos though since I CASE'd her card. :-)


Not the best picture but love the new Lucky Limeade paper and the Snow Much Fun stamp set	.


This is the inside of the card. See the tiny bit of dazzling diamonds there?

I also want to share a few pictures of Emma since it's been awhile. She's getting so big and is still the joy of my life. :-)

4th of July

Playing in the sand at Myrtle Beach

Our beauty while at our condo at the beach

Five More

2011-08-05T00:04:00.001-04:00

Go to My Little Life to get in on these fun questions and be added to her Mr. Linky. I've found some great blogs that way. :-)

1. Do you have siblings and are you close with them? I have 3 younger sisters. I'm pretty close with 2 of them though the one we don't talk often. I just got home on Monday from a trip to the one sister's in Indy. Saw the sister from Charlotte while we were on vacation in Myrtle Beach. I'm ALL about family!

2. Would you rather be slightly UNDER weight or slightly OVER weight? UNDER hands down. Being OVER will be a life struggle for me. One I'm not winning these days either by the way.

3. What's your favorite State Fair food to splurge on? I've never been to a State Fair so I can't say.

4. What are your thoughts on your kid(s) going to school in a few weeks? I hate it! LOL Of course, that's because it means I'll also be going to school in a few weeks and I feel like summer just started and there's so much I've not been able to do. Mostly swim in our pool and it's been a very warm summer!

5. Pool or Ocean? Just saw this question on Facebook this week and answered it as such: OCEAN if it was only closer but because it's not the POOL. I LOVE LOVE LOVE water! I've not been home from the ocean long and I miss it terribly already.

Questions Answered

2011-07-15T01:50:00.000-04:00

Here are the questions from My Little Life....gosh I'm enjoying doing these each week. We are leaving for the beach tomorrow so I will probably not post them next week. Thanks for stopping by.

1. If you knew your best friend's spouse was cheating on her or him, would you tell her (him)? No, I would not because I think it puts you in the position of being between them. I would however drop "hints" to make her think.

2. Soda in a can or a bottle? Never thought if there is a difference....in a can I think....though I absolutely MUST wash off the top at at least wipe it off. Now if it's beer I'd prefer the bottle. hehe

3. What do you wash first, hair or body? Hair....and then must condition it....and then my face before finally getting to my body.

4. What advice would you give to any new mama? Try to relax and get as much rest as you can. Take all help that is offered. I try to keep it simple so not to be overbearing.

5. What is your best hangover remedy? Don't drink that much in the 1st place because I HATE being hungover. Everything in moderation.

Friday Already?

2011-07-08T00:01:00.002-04:00

Here it is almost Friday allowing me to visit My Little Life and find these questions. Please play along. I'd love to read your answers so please let me know you've published your answers. :-)

1. Do you think cursive writing is overrated? (Schools in Indiana have now voted to take teaching cursive writing out of their curriculum.) heavens NO! How are you to sign when it asks for your signature then??? I also love the beauty of cursive writing. Since one of my sisters works in the schools in Indiana I'm going to have to discuss this with her and see if her school has removed cursive writing. How disturbing!

2. Do you still use a pocket calendar or notepad or do you keep your info on your smart phone? I carry a pocket calendar but have to admit that since I had my Blackberry and now my iPhone, I just use my phone for all my information. That way it's readily at hand when I need it.

3. What 3 things would you save if your house was burning down? (family & pets are already safe) My wedding album because there are photos in there of people who have passed and who we treasure, as many pictures off the walls that I could manage since they are of my granddaughter, son and his girlfriend. Also my family picture of my sisters and my parents is there too. Lastly, I'd probably grab my purse since it has all my important documents such as license, insurance cards, credit cards and many other things. Boy, that was tougher than I thought it would be to decide.

4. Country Mouse or City Mouse, err Person? Definitely a Country Mouse! While I love to go into the city for a fun night out or day out, I love open spaces and going barefoot in my yard. Smelling the fresh air and hearing nothing but nature chirping away.

5. If you could pick ANY reality show to go on, which would you pick? I have watched almost all the Survivor shows but I don't think I could tough it out on there. I'm SO a girl! hehehe So if I'm going to dream of a reality show it will be American Idol because I can also dream then I can sing right? The reality of it is that I'm a horrible singer but hey....we can always dream right?

Hope you're doing well.

Five for Friday

2011-07-01T09:31:00.000-04:00

Visit My Little Life for the questions...it's easy to play along :-)

1. If you had the opportunity to bungee jump, would you? Absolutely NOT. I'm not hanging off a rope for anything or anyone! hehehe

2. Would you rather go to the movie theater or to the drive-in? We tried to go to the drive-in a few weeks ago and were 4 cars from the entrance when a man started walking along the cars (after we waited in line 45 minutes) that the movies we wanted to see were sold out. So I haven't been to any type of movie in ages. I'd take either one.

3. Do you have your groceries delivered? No. I don't think this is even an option around here. I've not heard of it.

4. Eyebrows: Do you wax, thread, pluck, or stay au naturel? au natural right now because I've not known where to go to have them waxed....add that to the list with finding a new hairstylist

5. Would the people you went to high school with be surprised by your life today? No, I'm a teacher which I think any of them could envision and not doing anything else spectacular that would surprise them.

Little Bird

2011-06-30T10:37:00.000-04:00

(Tried posting last night and Blogger wasn't cooperating)

During the middle of the night last night when I couldn't sleep, I open my email to see a note from my friend, Kim, with offers of prayers (THANK YOU) and support. It certainly warmed my heart some after what had been a difficult day. I then opened another email from the "Brave Girls Club" which is entitled as my daily truth. It really couldn't have hit the nail on the head any better if I'd have written it. It spoke to my heart and I need to share. Please check out their website HERE
I hope they won't mind me copying their words to share with you.

Dear Weary Girl,

You are tired today, aren't you? You are tired of holding up the whole wide world, tired of being so darn tough, tired of being tested in every which way....tired of passing the tests, only to be given another one.

It's ok for you to have days like this, you know. IT REALLY IS OK. YOU ARE OK. LIFE IS OK. And....everything is going to turn out ok.

Everything is going to be ok, dear girl. It really is. You are going to make it. Please get some rest, take care of yourself, and keep your spirits up. Keep your eyes on the end goal, and try your hardest to be patient with life's lessons. You are so wise. Remember that good people have bad days sometimes. Smart people do dumb things sometimes. Bad things happen to good people sometimes. And still, everything is going to be ok.

Breathe in, breathe out.....take a hot bath, listen to your favorite music....and TRUST. And then keep trusting.

It's gonna work out.
xoxo

Just stuff

2011-06-28T11:58:00.000-04:00

After going to pull on some of my pants over the weekend and them not fitting (or fitting how I liked) I decided I need to get more serious about getting back on track. Boy, how easy it is to get off track and keep going. However, I don't like how this feels. I want my shorts and pants to feel like they did last summer right after I made goal. So while I've been back to tracking again, yesterday was my first day in actually staying within my points. Yes, it's great to track but when you're consistently 5-9 points over your target, it seemed kind of useless. I also just got back from the gym. I went and walked 2 miles on the treadmill and then did 2 miles on the stationary bike. It feels good.
My stress level is off the charts these days. I'm pretty sure Emma's Mom will be moving out at the end of July which means she'll be taking the joy of my life away. Right now, I'm hurting so bad I can't even have a conversation with her. I'm taking Emma every second I have and cherishing those moments but I find myself breaking into tears constantly when she's not here. It will about kill me not to see and have her every day. I can't even express how much I love her. She truly does bring so much joy to my life every day. I'm angry beyond words with her parents. More her Mom because I do see my son working on things and trying. It seems no matter how much he does it's not enough. I'm just literally sick over it all.
Just my thoughts as of late....hoping writing them might release some of the stress but honestly I doubt it.

Friday Questions Today

2011-06-24T10:19:00.000-04:00

Questions from My Little Life.....visit...she's a Mom sharing about her life with kids :)

1. What is your current favorite tv show? Since it's summer and mostly everything is reruns it's probably House Hunters although I am loving The Voice (amazing voices!) and America's Got Talent always catches my eye in the summer.

2. What's the worst haircut you ever got? When I first got bangs. I had very long straight hair and I BEGGED my Mom for bangs and then HATED them once I had them. The fact that I have 2 cowlicks in the front of my hair...bangs weren't a good thing.

3. What was something that you did as a child that you thought you were so cool for doing? Unlike one of my sisters, I tend to not remember things from my childhood. However, I do remember wearing these striped footed pj's to a friends sleepover when I was in high school. What WAS I thinking??? hehehe

4. Do you have any GREAT frugal family fun tips? There are a lot of great parks out there. Take your family and pack up a picnic and go enjoy the day together. Something we didn't do often and I wish we had.

5. Would you drive across country if you had the money to fly? Some day I do hope to drive across the country so I can stop whenever I want and can go in any direction to see what I want to see but if I could fly I probably would after that because I get bored easily and although I don't like to fly (sorry to Neil my BIL who is a pilot) it would be the fastest way to get there.

Not a whole lot going on here. Just enjoying the lazy days of summer and my time with Emma. We haven't been in the pool for 2 weeks since it's just been kind of crappy like a lot. Going stamping tonight at my upline, Kim's and can't wait.
How's things with you???

June 17 Questions

2011-06-17T13:01:00.000-04:00

Questions provided from My Little Life:

1. What is your favorite summer time activity? Swimming! Hands down. And spending time out on the deck and doing just nothing if I want because it's SUMMER...my favorite!

2. Do you have one laundry soap you stick to, or do you buy whatever's on sale? I used to buy Tide but in the past maybe 6-9 months we switched to Arm and Hammer Oxy Clean. I have to say though....I still miss my Tide.

3. What is your favorite dinner to make in the summer? Salmon on the grill with potatoes also grilled and asparagus! YUMMMM

4. Do you have any talents? I'm just a run of the mill type person. I'm not overly creative although I do Stampin' Up! and love doing it. Coming up with my own ideas though...not so much. My talent seems to be just being a good Grandma to Emma. I'm absolutely DEVOTED to that little girl.

5. If you could instantly be an expert in something, what would it be? Why? I'm not sure I'd chose to be an expert in anything. I think the experts tend to bore us and I can do that all on my own. hehehe

Your turn......

5 Questions

2011-06-12T13:28:00.000-04:00

Tracy from Craft Junkie Too shared this and once I checked it out I really like the concept so am going to give it a try. It's supposed to be done on Friday but I just found it so excuse me in being late this time. :-)

1. How close to your childhood dreams is your life now? I'm not sure that I had a childhood dream other than to be married and have a family which I do. I also have my darling granddaughter. The only thing I could wish for that I've not had is that I wanted to be a stay at home Mom and that just financially wasn't possible. Now I'd like to be retired so I could babysit Emma anytime but we're doing pretty good on that one now so is all good.

2. What is one must have item for the summer? A swimsuit. I LOVE to swim and be out at my pool. I actually have quite a few suits.

3. Do you have your kids stay up on school stuff during summer vacation? (Or, if you don't have kiddos, did your parents make you keep up on school stuff during summer? My son is older but when he was young I would try to encourage him to do some fun, learning books. He hated it! Summer is MY time to rejuvenate.

4. Do you can or freeze fresh produce? I have canned in the past but haven't for a number of years. My Mom does it and I'm guilty of just borrowing her canned stuff when I need them. I should help more!

5. Do you get ready for the day first thing in the morning? Nope. I'm a huge procrastinator and love being in my pjs.

Now if you'd like to play along here's the link to the questions: My Little Life Thanks for the motivation to get posting again!

Walk It

2011-05-27T18:49:00.000-04:00

It may have taken me most of the week to find time to blog....however, I'm proud to say I was able to have the time to go walk with my Weight Watcher friends for the annual Walk-It Challenge this past Sunday. It was a 5k and renewed some friendships for me. I realized as I was walking with Kelly how much I've been missing the people of my meetings. They were like family when I was going to meetings. I've not been to a meeting since December. *sigh* I've been up and down with 10 pounds trying to find the balance in maintaining and my time is so limited with watching Emma that I've not made it. I sure miss them all. I've been really making a real effort at getting out to walk more often usually pushing the stroller. The weather has been so much nicer there's no reason to not be out there. Keep your fingers crossed for me.
We also on Sunday had Amy's sister, Kayla's, baby shower. Things went well and she received a lot of nice things. I was also able to meet the girls 2 young sisters who have been adopted along with their adoptive mom. What a huge heart I told her she has to take in 4 kids. She humbled me by telling me she heard I also have a huge heart. We all do what we need to.
Happy Memorial Day! Thank you to all our soldiers serving and protecting our country whether currently or in the past.

Mother's Day

2011-05-08T23:20:00.000-04:00

Today is Mother's Day. I spent some time with my Mother in law and my own Mom however, I spent most of the day crying. Today was the day my son, his girlfriend and the baby moved out and are sleeping in their own place. Tonight it's eerily quiet and although I got kisses from Emma before they left, I miss peeking over and seeing that beautiful face. I know it's all for the best for them to be out on their own and they didn't move far, however, today my heart is just breaking with the thought of them not being here all the time.
Maybe some of you who have gone through this can share some words of wisdom. Having spent the first 15 months of Emma's life seeing her about every day and having her 24/7 and now her not being here....a tough bit to swallow. I think that even my son who always couldn't wait to move out has been having some thoughts of oh crap what have I done! He asked Amy the other day why she was in such a hurry to move since it was going to be weird to not live with us. *sob*
Time to try to sleep...........

Mending

2011-04-26T20:31:00.000-04:00

Hello! How are you? ::::tapping the mic hoping I'm not talking to myself::::

Surgery went OK. I had the end of the collarbone shaved off and a bone spur removed with some other cleaning out I believe. I had a HORRIBLE time after surgery though. They had given me morphine which I don't tolerate well and I was extremely nauseous all day. Every time I moved I felt sick. The following days have been tolerable with my pain meds although I'm trying hard not to take them until I absolutely need to. I was able to take the bandages off on Easter Sunday and unfortunately that made me sick and I missed church. I've been trying to not push myself too hard so it can heal some. Just straightening out my arm is very painful. Most of the time I have my sling on. I went back to work today and although there were no students, it was an extremely long day. I'm sitting with ice on as I type and I did take my percocet so if I make no sense, chalk it up to the drugs! hehe I started physical therapy yesterday. OUCH! Trying to make my family understand I still can't take of Emma on my own and can't cook and do everything they are used to me doing has been the difficult thing. Thank goodness for my parents who do understand. My Dad even came today to get Emma out of her carseat and my Mom is coming tomorrow to do the same for me and stay in the evening since the kids both work and hubby has bocce.
I'm going to miss my demo meeting the first weekend of May since we'll be in WV that day but I decided to participate in the card swap so I can see all the great cards my sisters come up with. My card is almost finished since I wanted it all done before my surgery. I'm hoping to take a picture and post a few pictures in the next week of some things I've done recently. Cross our fingers.

Lastly, WW is having it's annual Walk-It Challenge and Kelly has emailed me that she's organizing a walk on Sunday, May 22 at Penn Middle. It's at 9:30 a.m. and a 5k. No entry fee. Just show up and walk. Amy's sister's baby shower is that day that I'm helping throw but I'm hoping to at least stop and say hi if not walk with everyone. Please join if you can. It's a good time with good people!

One day at a time.......

Surgery

2011-04-19T23:05:00.000-04:00

Surgery is scheduled for 8 tomorrow morning. I have to be there at 6:30 so off to bed and hopefully will sleep.

Heart Ache

2011-04-09T23:45:00.000-04:00

My heart aches to the point I won't be typing much today. If you don't see posts from me for a while you will know why. My kids are moving out in about a week. While they aren't going far (2 houses and across the road) it's just the idea I won't see Emma all the time. I also KNOW that it's for the best and they need to be on their own and I even agree...but my heart aches. I can't talk or think about it without the tears pouring down my face and feeling like I'm going to start sobbing out of control. It was also hubby's last day of work yesterday...30 years and moving on. It was difficult for him...more than I think he would like to admit. He went camping this weekend with Scouts which I think was for the best. I've been working on baby shower favors and the invites tomorrow need addressed to go in the mail on Monday. The shower is May 22nd but I need to have it all done since I don't know what is ahead.
My surgery is scheduled for the 20th and we'll see what that brings.
If you don't see me here, you know.

Blessings

2011-03-27T23:07:00.000-04:00

MANY prayers have been answered for us this past week. My job and all those in my small building will be secure for the next year at least. A day later my hubby was offered a job with the company he's been longing to work for. He gave his 2 week notice on Friday and I think both our hearts and minds were instantly lifted back off the ground. To be unhappy in your work is a miserable feeling. Many nights he couldn't sleep and I know the stress was really wearing at him. We also did some financial stuff which should make life much better for us.

OH and I can't forget....another blessing I have is to have a wonderful upline in Stampin' Up! Kim is not only my upline but a friend. I'm so thankful that she's added another time and day to her stamp camps and I can now attend again. What beautiful cards we made Saturday at her house.

I didn't make it to Weight Watchers because of the job offer and the discussions hubby and I were having but I know that when I can make it, they will welcome me with open arms.

We are very thankful for all the blessings that have been bestowed on us this past week. God IS good!

Surgery

2011-03-15T22:49:00.000-04:00

Today I finally did it. I saw another orthopedic doctor and have been scheduled to have my shoulder repaired. I've been experiencing pain for well over a year and have finally decided to go forward with the surgery in the hopes that the constant throbbing I feel in my arm goes away. I can't say I'm not already VERY nervous because I am. The surgery isn't until the Wednesday before Easter so I'll have a few extra days off without losing sick days. It will all depend on what she has to do when she goes in on how long my recovery will be. We're hoping she'll just go in and clean out the arthritis, bone spurs and other growth so that it won't be as extensive of a recovery period. She won't know until she goes in if I have a rotator cuff tear but she doesn't believe I do. I hope that is the case since it will definitely change my recovery. I am hoping to return to work the following Tuesday even though I will probably be in a sling.
This hasn't been an easy decision. With watching Emma I've put it off this long and I could continue to put it off. However, the pain limits how I move my arm and how much I can do so with losing the weight that held me back for years, I don't want anything else to hold me back.
I'm sure I will stress extensively before the surgery. I'll need to decide on whether to have a nerve block and all that and the pain makes me very apprehensive. Considering how things continue to be up and down with both mine and hubby's jobs, it's bound to be a stressful time. The answer is NOT food! :-)
(repeating to myself over and over)
How's life for YOU?

time

2011-03-10T22:18:00.000-05:00

Another week gone by....where DOES the time go? Still wavering up and down with my weight but not giving up or in. This maintaining thing sure is difficult. Especially when you've gain just a bit and need to take it back off. My bit is still just a bit and won't become more...I won't let it.
Lots of stress in my life again. Uncertainty over jobs with both my hubby and myself. Although I'm trying to not worry too much that is often easier said than done. All we can do at this point it hand it over to God and trust in him that it's all going to work out.
Please keep my cousin Judy in your prayers. She's going through some very difficult times right now.
Sending out a special hug to you if you're reading this and somehow seem to still come back to read my ramblings. Thank you!

For Tomorrow

2011-03-03T22:42:00.000-05:00

This is basically copied and pasted from my Facebook because I LOVE LOVE LOVE the idea of a day like this. I think we can all (myself included) do a better job at being kind to one another. I hope you'll read it and consider joining in.

My proposition is simple:
One day, March 4th, we all stick to three simple rules that will make the world a little bit more bearable. Feel free to partake in this before and long after then; the only reason I have the event set that far into the future is because I want word to spread and allow this to have as big of an impact as possible. (it was started in Jan.)
This event is to take place everywhere we go in the world, preferably all the time.
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Rule #1.
Say not a single unkind thing about anyone or anything. If at all possible, try not to even think a nasty thought. If we do, reflect on why it was that we thought to say it in the first place.
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Rule #2.
Show everyone we cross paths with some genuine human compassion. Be it with a smile or kind words, just spread some love.
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Rule #3.
Make not one person the exception to the rule. Not everyone deserves to have roses thrown at their feet and have a holiday in their honor, but nobody deserves to feel alone. Reach out. Talk to someone new. Care about them, and we will be cared for in return.
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Please spread this as much as possible, and please actually attempt to do this.

This can be big. If we all band together, well, maybe we can all start living a little bit nicer lives. Maybe this won't work for more than one day; maybe it will. I honestly don't know what will happen, but what I do know is this: if we can get at least one day of happiness and peace out of this, well, I'd more than consider that a success.
This is not intended to be a "Let's be nice for one day and go back to our old ways the day after" kind of thing. It is meant to give us all a little more incentive to be better people.
This is not a hippie or a religious movement. This is just an attempt at brightening the world up a bit.

Recipe and More

2011-02-22T19:46:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd share a recipe I came across on the WW site last week. I tried it and it was a huge hit with my family. My son wasn't home that evening but had it the next day and even raved over it. (VERY unusual for him)

Tomato and Pepper Lasagna
Points Plus: 6
Servings: 8
Prep Time: 20 min.
Cooking Time: 65 min.

24 oz. marinara sauce, store-bought
1 cup canned diced tomatoes, fire-roasted, drained (I did not drain)
1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese (Parmigiano-Reggiano suggested)
1/4 cup fat-free egg substitute
1/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp dried oregano
6 dry lasagna noodles, regular or whole-wheat
1/2 cup roasted red peppers, water-packed, cut into thin strips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small pot, combine marinara sauce and tomatoes; set over low heat and simmer 10 minutes to allow flavors to blend.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses; stir to combine. Stir in egg substitute, salt, pepper, and oregano.

Spoon 1 cup of sauce in bottom of an 11x7 inch glass baking dish. Arrange 2 lasagna noodles over sauce, down center of dish. Spread half of cheese mixture (about 1 cup) over noodles; top with pepper strips. Place 2 more noodles on top; spread with remaining cheese mixture. Top with 1 cup of marinara sauce; place remaining 2 lasagna noodles on top. Spoon remaining sauce over top and gentle press down on lasagna.

Cover dish loosely with aluminum foil, bake for 40 minutes. Remove foil; bake until sauce is lightly browned and noodles are tender when tested with a knife, about 10 to 15 minutes more. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes to firm up slightly. Slice into 8 pieces and serve. Yields 1 piece per serving.

I also saw in the reviews where a lot of people would add spinach when they made it again. I added mushrooms.

I am down to only about a pound over my 2 pounds of leeway on my goal weight. I've been sticking to my plan with a "cheat" on Valentine's Day. So even if I've not gone to a meeting I've still not fallen so far off the wagon as to be back to my old ways. I've worked too hard to EVER go back so no worries, (Kelly...and THANKS for the postcard....it was nice to know I'm missed and I miss you girls too!!!) I hope to be back to going to meetings again soon. With the crappy weather we've been having (yep, was off work again today) and having Emma on Tuesdays, it's been hard to get there. I'm still tracking faithfully every day and eating lots of fruits and good food. Amy and I also walked a mile today to Leslie Sansone's walk tape. Felt good to be moving and sweating. (NO, I didn't really type that, Kelly) LOL
Weight Watchers helped me reach my goal and I am there for LIFE!
How are YOU? To end this post, here's a picture of my family taken at 7 Springs Resort when we went tubing for the kids. It's hubby, myself, Amy, Emma and Zach on the deck at the lodge which overseas the ski slopes.

Putt Putt Putt

2011-02-11T19:15:00.000-05:00

Just to keep myself accountable too.....I'm puttering along in getting those extra pounds back off. I've been eating well all week and staying to my points and the scale rewarded me so I'm back on track. Once I make up my mind you know there's not stopping me! hehehe
Happy Friday and weekend to all! Thanks for stopping by :-)

Back in the Saddle

2011-02-02T11:01:00.000-05:00

This morning I wrote very large in my tracking journal....ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! I've had so many foods recently which I haven't counted the points (probably because I knew they'd be immense) and just keep eating and eating. Then I step on the scale this morning and it was NOT kind. As Kim defined it for me....I was on a "cake walk" for the last week. Between hubby's birthday, then Emma, then my Dad, then my brother in law, and then Emma's big party. Every time I've had cake...at the minimum.
So today it's back in the saddle. Time to get serious again and ONLY eat those things I know I can account for and WILL account for. Staying in my point total and trying to get some exercise in my schedule also. I have to get get back on track. I don't like how my clothes are already fitting and I will NOT continue to slip in the wrong direction. I've worked way too hard for that.
So if you have a good, easy recipe I can take to a Superbowl party that is WW friendly, please share.

Happy 1st Birthday

2011-01-26T15:20:00.000-05:00

Dear Emma,

It seems hard to admit that it's now been one year since your Mommy and Daddy brought you into the world. From that first moment I saw you I fell deeply in love with you. Every day I've been blessed to have you be part of my life so that I can watch you grow. I'm constantly amazed at what you're doing at just one year old. You are walking all over the place, climbing stairs and coming back down them, opening drawers and even the refrigerator. You pretend play with your little kitchen with me and we eat "soup" as we play. You even offer to share with me. Although you don't say many words, you are finding a way to make your wants known. You also have quite a little temper when you don't get what you want. But as you grow hopefully you will understand that it's all out of the love I have for you to keep you always safe.
I love our snuggle time together and how your face lights up when you first see me each day. I hope that never changes and we always have a close relationship. I will always be here for you to come to no matter what it might be. I hope that life has minimal bumps in it for you (yes, unfortunately, everyone has bumps) and that you'll always be our sweet little girl. Your smile can light up a room and your giggles make us smile. Your beauty shines no matter where we go.
Happy 1st Birthday, my dear Emma. May you always be blessed and happy from the tip of your head down to those beautiful little piggies I so love. You give my life new meaning and I can't imagine not having you and sharing your joy.
I LOVE YOU, EMMA MARIE! Happy Birthday!
Grandma

How long?

2011-01-18T18:32:00.000-05:00

How long is this winter going to last already? lol I'm SO over it! We've missed 3 days of school and I had to drive this morning with icy roads for a 2 hour delay. I'm ready for sun and fun! Not the kind of fun I've been having either.

I'm super busy (as always.) Emma's 1st birthday is next Wednesday. Can you believe it!!! I can't for sure. She is walking all over the place and as cute as all get out. She sure keeps us hopping though. Her Pap will be 50 two days before her birthday so we can't forget all about him. More on that later.

Weight Watchers.........well, I haven't been there so nothing to report there. With the crappy weather and having the baby, I've just not made it there. I'm also lingering about a pound more than I need to be. I know why too....putting the wrong foods in my mouth. So I'm working on redirecting my thoughts away from food again and finding other things. I've actually had some time to read as of late and am really enjoying that I might finally finish my "Wicked Appetite" that I've been reading since probably the end of summer. I'm also going to my Stampin' Sisters demo meeting at the end of the month and my supplies just came in yesterday so I need to get hopping on my cards for our swap.

So that's what is new with me.....what's new with you?

Happy New Year 2011!

2011-01-01T16:03:00.000-05:00

I wanted to wish everyone a very Happy, healthy, new year! May this year find you moving only forward in life and doing and being with people that make you happy.
I'm not a resolutions type girl but I have a few in my mind this year that I really want to keep to. The most important one is taking time for ME in my life more often. I too often feel I get "lost" in being a Mom, wife and Grandma. So that means time to go to the gym and time to do more stamping and scrapping which I just love doing. They feed my soul and that's what it's going to be about.
Did YOU make a resolution?

Merry Christmas

2010-12-22T20:29:00.000-05:00

Since I've done a very poor job of posting as of late, I thought I better write now while I have the chance. Merry Christmas to each of you who stops by to read. Thank you for that.
A quick note also----the new plan for Weight Watchers has done exactly what I hoped it would do for me. It has made me refocus again on what I'm eating instead of just taking it for granted. There are many changes and though it's not easy it works! I had put on about 6 pounds over Thanksgiving and the baptism time and I was able to get it all back off and even lose from last month when I weighed in. So I'm extremely pleased. This is a difficult time of the year. Just today I commented to someone that I can finally see how I had gotten to the place I was before I lost this weight. I've been indulging in the appetizers at work and at friends houses lately and of course, I'm watching the scale go up again. Before I didn't watch the scale and just plain didn't care what I weighed. Now I know that although it's going up I can get a grip on it and with sticking to the plan again tomorrow and the upcoming days, I CAN indulge occasionally even if at times I feel like I border on out of control. I'm NOT going back to where I was. EVER. So I won't deny myself everything like I've done in the past, however, I do try to limit it some and if I don't, I know tomorrow is a new day and I'll try again then.
Wishing you all many blessings and hopefully lots of time with your family to make memories to last a lifetime. Remember too that JESUS is our reason for this season and we celebrate his birth. What a true blessing we've all been given.

Kicking it off

2010-12-01T21:14:00.000-05:00

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I've been super busy with hosting Thanksgiving at my house and then turning around and having a lunch after Emma's baptism on Sunday. Both were very nice and I hope yours were also.

I haven't been posting as much due to a few factors. One is lack of time. It's difficult to sit and type when Emma wants me holding her or she wants to hit all the keys on the laptop. Would make for some interesting reading now wouldn't it? The biggest factor is I feel like all I've done in the longest time is complain here. So I figure why post...no one wants to read about my belly aches. Everyone has their own. I'm going to work on trying to find the positive again. Especially at this time of the year when we have so much to celebrate with the birth of Christ. It's so easy to get caught up in the bah humbug of the season but I'm going to try hard not to get sucked into it. I'm excited to be able to see all the lights and wonder through little Emma's eyes this year.

Last night at WW a new plan was kicked off. It's called PointsPlus Plan. Now instead of using calories, fat and fiber to figure out your points, we will instead use fiber, protein, fat and carbs. While I get more points now, most of the foods I've been eating also have gone up in point value. Fruits and veggies are no points though which is wonderful because tonight I ate a banana, the first one in a long time and I really love them. I'm very excited about the change even though we're always all resistant to change. I'm excited because it's making me think again about my choices I've been making almost automatically. Now I have to again reconsider how many points a food is and whether I feel it's going to help fill me up or not. Today I also kept track of my liquids and whether I was meeting the daily health guidelines. A refocus you might say. I'm really hoping this is the kick in the pants I need to lose the last 10 pounds that I'd like to lose. Keep your fingers crossed for me. But one thing I have to say is that I'm one of those people (my son gets it honestly) that once I make up my mind to do something, there is no stopping me.

Tip of the day says: "Happy are those who dream dreams and are ready to pay the price to make them come true." Leon J. Suenes

Such a headache!

2010-11-17T22:07:00.000-05:00

3 days now of a sinus headache that comes and goes throughout the day is enough to make a person scream. Add some stress to it (who doesn't have that) and you're close to a migraine at times. I go back to the doctor on Monday so maybe she will have some suggestions for me. The weather is constantly changing lately with a lot of rain so that doesn't help.

Went to my WW meeting last night. Unfortunately, I missed my favorite meeting of the year. It's when Kelly gives us a plate and we decide what we'll have for Thanksgiving dinner. It's always helped me plan ahead of time for my dinner that day and stay in control.. So this year let's hope I've learned my lesson from the past.
WW is rolling out a new program on the 29th of this month. All Kelly can say is that it's the biggest change ever for WW but she thinks I will like it. So now I'm excited because although I can be resistant to change, I'm looking forward to this to recharge my batteries so I can take off this last 10 pounds I'd like to lose. That way I'll also have a little leeway in my goal to not having to worry each month about being too close to it at weigh in. So we'll see what the end of the month brings!

Watch out for that Deer!

2010-11-09T22:29:00.000-05:00

Sunday evening, hubby and I were at the gym when my cell rang and here it's our son. He was driving Amy's car....they'd gone to her parents for dinner....she forgot her cell phone so they turned back to go get it when across the median comes jumping a deer right into them. On a main highway no less! He said they were fine...Emma slept through it all....but the car wasn't driveable. So hubby calls for the rollback at his work to go get them and we head out to go pick them up. As we arrived, the state police had also just arrived. He looked over the car and said he felt it could be driven. The driver's door won't open because the door bent. Rather than explain it, here are the pictures. The deer hair are still stuck to the doors. Ewwww It's to go in the garage in the morning for the next 7 days. Thankfully they were all OK. That's what matters most!

I didn't make it to WW tonight. Still struggling to keep everything out of my mouth. Sometimes I win and many times I lose. *sigh*
Since I have my camera out, here's also a few pictures of the zoo when we went a few weeks ago. I can't say enough wonderful things about the Pittsburgh Zoo. It's just awesome!

Last, and I know this is a long post so please hang in there with me.....I was chosen for a jury last week. There were 2 defendants accused with attempted homicide, aggravated assault and possession of firearms. It was an extremely stressful week listening to all the testimony. Then Friday we deliberated for 10 hours before we decided that they were not guilty. We had too much reasonable doubt about the evidence. It's bothered me tremendously wondering if we did the right thing. It was covered in the newspaper today. If you'd like to read about it more, send me an email and I'll be glad to send you the link to the article.
Until next time, please stay safe and well.

Finding the Balance

2010-11-03T21:55:00.000-04:00

Finding the balance of maintaining continues to be a struggle. I gained 1.8 pounds this past month. Now I've had some things that I know I wouldn't have normally, but again, I'm trying to find that middle ground of having the occasional treat with following my normal healthy eating. Obviously, I'm not doing so well at that. It's a bit frustrating especially with the holidays soon to begin. I am making it a goal to get to the gym at least 3 times a week. I went last night and it felt good. See, I'm also on a jury this week. I had jury duty on Monday and was chosen to be part of the jury. The judge has informed us that the trial will last until Friday. So the stress of having all this information circling my head, not being at work and knowing I have things that need to be done there, and still helping with Emma...........well, know maybe you will understand better why the gym felt good last night. Tonight I'm about exhausted so I will keep this short.
If you are working toward maintenance and have any words of wisdom, please do share. I could really use that extra motivation right now.

Happy Halloween

2010-10-31T22:44:00.000-04:00

Happy Halloween to you all! I'm not going to talk much....just put pictures here. Still have the zoo ones to add....will do that soon, I promise.

Emma's 1st Halloween

Daddy and Emma carving his pumpkin

Daddy and Emma showing off his carved pumpkin

Mommy and Emma with their carved pumpkins

Our pumpkin fairy dressed up and ready to go trick or treating

Emma and Sydney ready to trick or treat....she's such a great big cousin!


Sydney, Allison, Emma after trick or treat	Aren't they beautiful?

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-30T19:21:00.000-04:00

We've been super busy lately. Last Saturday we went to the pumpkin patch for Emma's first visit. Today we visited the zoo. I also finally went to the gym yesterday. YAY! Today with all the walking we did at the zoo, my legs are telling me they know I went to the gym. The leg cramps aren't pretty though.
Here's some pictures:

Amy, Emma, Zach at Schramms for their first pumpkin patch visit as a family

what the heck are these things???

Hey! They are pumpkins and are my size!

Grandma and Emma with the Penguin mascot...right? lol

Aunt Kayla helps Emma sit on her 1st pumpkin


If Zach and Amy are Queen and King then it only goes to reason that Emma is our princess	....	.	and she is!

Guess How Many?

2010-10-25T11:44:00.000-04:00

Over at Shelly's Designs, she's having a neat contest where you can guess how many candy corn are in the jar. Now you know you want to go have a look so head on over HERE.

One week later.....and still no gym visits for me. *sigh* I have good intentions and then we get busy with something and I can't make it. *double sigh*

Stay tuned. I'll be posting some pictures soon of our visit to the pumpkin patch on Saturday. Emma's first visit. :-) Great time was had by all.

Have a fabulous day.

Gym

2010-10-18T23:01:00.000-04:00

Our theme last week at the WW meeting was recharging yourself when you find yourself in that "slump." Unfortunately, when I left that night I was feeling blah like I was in that slump. But just the time you think you're slipping down that hole something happens to raise you up. Exercise has always been my weakest link. While I don't really mind doing it, I have a very difficult time finding time to do it. The time I have for myself seems to shrink more each week as Emma grows. However, she's the important priority that I have in life. Today she climbed up the step into my kitchen. 8 months old and able to do that....oh my!
So while time is so limited we have joined Snap Fitness....a 24/7 gym. I can't do any exercises with my arms because of my shoulder (hurting like the dickens as of late) but I figure if I walk on the treadmill that's more than I'm doing now and it's keeping me active. So I absolutely MUST find time for me. Not sure how I'll manage that, but I will accomplish it. we all know what I can do once I make up my mind. I also need to focus on making time for stamping. I've made one card since coming home from the Baltimore Regional. One. *sigh* But I did get my house clean tonight....and that's always a difficult chore any more too.
Tomorrow is another meeting. I'm not sure I will make it since Amy has a mandatory meeting and Zach has to work so I'd have the baby. Depends if she is napping when it's time to go.
Bedtime....another thing I'd like to do...get more sleep. Wow my list is getting long! lol

Maintaining

2010-10-05T23:09:00.000-04:00

Tonight was weigh in and I was exactly where I was a month ago when I weighed in. Just typing that I realize I hadn't weighed in for a month. Time just seems to fly by me lately. Considering I was away last week and I've been indulging some in foods and snacks I've not had, I'm thrilled to maintain. Even though I want to lose 7 more pounds before I'll truly be content, I've been playing with adding a special treat here and there to see if I can maintain.
I had a nice talk before our meeting with one of my friends who has now set her goal. She's only 2 1/2 pounds away from making it and I KNOW we will be celebrating her accomplishment very soon. When I missed the meeting last week she was afraid I wasn't going anymore. However, I'd just told some of the girls at work today that for me, being there every week is essential to my success. I NEED to hear the discussions at the meeting and to be held accountable. Weight Watchers isn't just a way to lose weight, it's truly MY way of life. Determination to take the weight off got me here and determination to not gain it back will keep it off.

Baltimore Regionals

2010-10-02T19:50:00.000-04:00

I want to share some of my pictures and experiences from the Stampin' Up! Baltimore Regionals which I attended yesterday. I traveled with 7 of my Stampin Sisters on a very rainy Thursday to Baltimore. We arrived later than we anticipated and then played a game with our catalogs that our fabulous uplines had us searching high and low through for prizes. They also had some awesome gifts for us. Then we headed to dinner and afterward headed back to our rooms to meet and do some shoebox swaps. What fabulous ideas everyone had!
Yesterday morning we got up early and headed to the Baltimore Convention Center. We swapped cards with other demos while waiting in line. Dummy me forgot my nametag so I had to stand in the longer line. Went inside and traded swaps until mine were all gone. As I went back to our table, a lady approached me telling me she follows my blog but had never left a comment. She'd thought of emailing me but hadn't. I have to tell you, Betty, you made my day!!! I've always said I blog for myself but it's sure nice to know someone reads what you type. It's like Kelly will tell me....you never know who you might touch with your story if you tell it. Before the day was over I had to have a picture taken with her....so please visit Betty's blog: Stamps - More or Less to see some beautiful cards and a genuinely nice person. Even though her eyes were closed and my hair is a mess...here we are:

The speakers were just awesome, the cards inspirational, and I won a stamp set! Plus 2 of my stampin' sisters, Jana and Jenny both won the main prize for fabulous cards. WOOHOO! Only problem was that right after the convention was over, Jenny had to be taken to the ER. Unfortunately, she experienced some more problems today and I've not heard how she is and I'm waiting to find out. Her husband met the car she was in to get her to the hospital again today.

Here are the 2 winners Jenny and Jana:

Here's a picture of all 8 of us(thanks Glenda):

Front: Heather, Kim, Lynne (our FABULOUS uplines...bowing down!)

Back: Laura, Jana, me, Kimberly, Jenny

Here's my roomie, Kimberly, and I:

Last, I can't say enough kind things about how wonderful Kim, my upline, is....she's

so generous, kind, giving and supportive I just love her.

I promise to show some pictures of my cards and projects soon.

We had some bumps along the way but what a TERRIFIC time it was.

Bad hair and all!

Just sayin'

Amy's Birthday

2010-09-28T07:22:00.000-04:00

I won't be attending WW tonight since it's Amy's birthday today and I'm having some people over early for her cake and ice cream since Zach has to be at work at 5. We went to the Waterfront last night for her birthday dinner. She'd picked Uno Chicago Grill. It was yummy.
It's been incredibly busy here. We had our demo mtg. on Saturday so I had swaps to do for that one and now I'm working on 100 swaps to get done for this Friday when I attend the Baltimore Regionals for Stampin' Up! There are 8 of us going and I can't wait but oh so much to do before then. Will post pictures of my cards once I get home.
Until then, work still awaits! Hope YOU are well!
Happy 20th Birthday, Amy! :-)

Shelly's Images

2010-09-24T18:02:00.000-04:00

Join in this Saturday night for Fright Night held by Shelly's Images. Shelly creates her images and was kind enough this summer to gift me with one. Unfortunately, time always gets the best of me and while I have it printed out on my desk, it's still sitting there. Ooops. Sorry, Shelly! But if you like digital images for your cards or projects, you need to check out Shelly's. Shelly also has a talented design team who post challenges on her blog. Check it out HERE.
So come join in what I know will be a good time! See the badge on my left side bar for the address.

Counting

2010-09-21T23:17:00.000-04:00

Tonight's meeting was about what would it take to help you be more successful. It also touched on those in your life who you look to for support. We also included those who try to sabotage us. It made me think back especially to the past year. While I've accomplished a lot with my weight loss, it did come at a price of sorts. When I lost 100 pounds someone I thought was one of my best friends, asked what I weighed. When I answered "100 pounds less than I did" she said, "that's not what I asked" and I replied "well, that's the answer you are getting." I know it might have sounded like I was being abrupt, but my loss was never about the numbers. It was always just about losing. Yes, I was shooting for an end result number, but I didn't focus on those numbers as I was losing. That particular person and I quit talking right after that. Though I know many would say she wasn't a true friend, at some points in my life, she knew me better than anyone. Another person who I grew very close to asked us to do something and then didn't give us the final details when the time was upon us. Instead we were left behind like we didn't matter.
Both these relationships have been a real loss in my life. I treasure my friends. I truly believe that we need friends to get us through the rough spots in life and to be there to lend support in any situation. Those two friends haven't been there for the rough spots or to give support and tonight it just has hit me really hard that they haven't. I'd do anything for my friends, would you?

From Blahs to AWESOME

2010-09-14T21:06:00.000-04:00

Well, as life would have it, the stress of running back and forth to the hospital with being back to work and making sure Emma was also taken care of has all caught me. I now have a cold, which I hate! I have no patience for being sick. My Dad stopped over tonight and told me my Mom is feeling the same way. She wants to just pop up and do as she was used to, and her body isn't cooperating. She will see the cardiologist on Thursday so hopefully she'll have a bit more freedom than she currently does.
I didn't go to WW tonight. I weighed in last week and was up point 2. Not bad considering the week and weekend I'd had. Tonight I just couldn't move off the couch to go. I didn't sleep well last night and I'm tired. It was a struggle even getting through the day. Emma is in bed already so I'll be getting my clothes ready and putting on my pjs soon to just watch some tv. I went to the gynecologist this morning and have to have some tests done once I schedule them. If I just ignore the scripts think it will all just go away???? Nice try huh?
Just waiting on my Stampin' Up! order to come in so I can start my cards for the Baltimore Regional. So I need to get better QUICK!
Last, a special shout out to the awesome Kim! Not only is she my fantastic upline, she's also on a roll with setting herself some healthy goals and exercising and eating right to be ahead of where she wanted to be. You GO KIM! I'm super proud of you.
How are YOU?

Home

2010-09-07T07:26:00.000-04:00

We brought my Mom home on Saturday and she's doing well. She's glad my sister from Indy is going home today and can't wait til my Dad leaves the house for a while cause they are driving her crazy, but she's doing well. LOL I had them and my youngest sister and her family over for dinner last night. We had a really nice night. Tonight I hope to make it to WW and weigh in. It's been an extremely busy week and weekend and back to work I go this morning.
Thanks again for all the prayers. They mean a lot to us.

Mom's Surgery

2010-09-03T22:55:00.000-04:00

I spent the entire day yesterday at the hospital waiting for doctors to come in to give us answers only to walk away last night with not all of them. We did find out that Mom does NOT have a major blockage in caratoid artery and will not need surgery on it. However, she is in atrial fibrillation and has Brady Tach Syndrome where her heart beats too fast or way too slow actually pausing a few seconds. So the cardiologist recommended that we do an electraphysiology test which would indicate if a pacemaker was necessary. Called the nurses station first thing morning for no info and then 1/2 hr later am on phone with Mom and very quickly it comes through that she will have this surgery today but no idea what time to it's going to be around 10 am. So Dad and I rushed up to the hospital to find they had already taken her. She also needed another test where they go down the throat to see if there are any blood clots in the heart and to try to put the heart back into regular rhythm. Well, Mom's heart paused 2-3 seconds indicating to them immediately that the pacemaker was necessary and she had one put in. Surgery was around 2 hours long and then we waited probably another 1 1/2 hrs to 2 hrs to see her. She's doing very well though and I was shocked at how good she looked. Her arm is in a sling to remind her to not use it. I think when I left, she was beginning to feel a little pain but she was using the pain medication. We'd been told if she had the surgery she'd go home the next day but right now we are very unsure about that. The nurse tonight told me that because she's started new medication they may keep her to make sure she doesn't have a reaction to it. Mom did NOT like that news!
So Dad and I will head up in the morning to watch the videos with Mom about pacemakers and learn what needs done. Then we'll go from there.
Thanks to those of you who have said prayers and left kind words. It means a lot, especially right now when I'm pretty much exhausted.

My Mom

2010-09-01T23:12:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I had just put the baby down for a nap when my Dad popped in to tell me my Mom passed out at work and he was taking her to the hospital. After texting all 3 of my sisters, and getting my youngest sister set out to find them...we both ended up at the hospital at the same time and spent the evening at the ER as they ran tests on Mom. Her blood work and CAT scan were OK but they wanted her to stay for observation. So we convinced her she was staying. She had a bunch more tests run today to which turned out her carotid artery is 70-99% blocked (they can't tell until in there) and the doctor will be in in the morning to talk to her. Then tonight her pulse rate went very low so a cardiology consult was called in so they will stop in tomorrow. Talking to the nurse tonight (she was GREAT!) she told us that if the doctor sees her tomorrow almost always he does surgery the next day. My Dad had him for his surgery (both sides eventually) and we liked him a lot. So now we wait until tomorrow to see what happens. Trying to keep everyone informed and also adjust to being back to work and I'm losing the battle in sleep.
So no WW this week. Will hopefully weigh in next week for the beginning of the month. Last I checked I was doing good.
Please say a prayer for my Mom. I do appreciate it deeply!

Inspiration

2010-08-29T17:50:00.000-04:00

Sorry I've not been posting more often....this is very unlike me. It's just that now I'm back to work again full time and with watching Emma other times, I find time for myself very limited. I did finally just a bit ago go through all my stamps and find out which had been retired and which were still current. I now have all my stuff divided into SU current product....and all other products. I'm going to be attending the Baltimore Regional at the end of Sept. and want to have cards so I can swap so I need to start thinking hard about what to do. Seems when I am looking at other blogs that I'm trying to get some ideas for my roommate while we're gone because it's a tradition to exchange gifts. That one has really had me in a tailspin.
I'm still maintaining below my goal weight. I had gained a pound 2 weeks ago and last week I skipped out on weighing because I was all bloated. The scale has been kind the past few days so hopefully it continues and I'll weigh again on Tuesday. It really is my intention to weigh in almost every week. Even when I gained I figured I had to face the consequences. I'm still trying to find that fine line of increasing eating without gaining. Considering I still want to lose, I should probably not do that yet.
On to my inspiration stories. If you're a person who stops in here regularly you'll know that I don't take compliments well. At all. On my 1st training day I had 2 weeks ago, I approached my old assistant in the morning and she told me if I had walked by her she'd not have known me. So she was talking with the girls I used to work with and another approached me after lunch and told me that I had inspired her. She has done WW before and been successful but with an illness of her husband and added stresses she had gained back. She said looking at me and seeing what I'd done she knew she could also do it and was going back to a meeting that Saturday. Another girl from the same group also approached me after lunch and came up apologizing. She said she'd assumed I had had gastric bypass and she was sorry she'd not given me more credit and how she admired that I'd done it on my own. That REALLY made me feel good. It's nice to have people look at me and have it register I am who I am and see the shock on their face. Since I still don't look in the mirror and see someone that different, I guess it's nice when others do notice. So it forces my hand in a small way to accept that compliment because I AM proud of what I've done. It's NOT easy but it's SO worth it.
As I also told 2 different people this week.....you do this for YOU. When you start doing it for anyone else you will fail. It was time that I find myself important enough to do it. And I couldn't be more glad I did!

Moving and Grooving

2010-08-12T23:44:00.000-04:00

Add another 2.4 to the weight gone...yay! I was super excited since for the first time in 2 years, I TOTALLY went off plan on Saturday. Went out with my 2 best friends and the one's daughter to the Hofbrauhaus on the South Side of Pittsburgh. It's a German beer house. We went for dinner which was excellent (next time I may only eat the apple strudel because 1 bite didn't seem like enough!) Then we walked around and went into some of the shops there before 2 of us ran through the water fountains in front of the Cheesecake Factory. Fun times itself but then we went back to the Hofbrauhaus where the band was about to begin. They played all kinds of music and we stood and danced on the benches, drank beer and even did a "shotski." We had an absolutely WONDERFUL time. I needed that night out!!!
Boy was I glad to be down on the scale then come Tuesday. It's been kind of rough going as of late here including a visit to the orthopedic doctor again who feels my shoulder most likely will need surgery to help my pain. I told him I can't even consider it now since I take care of my granddaughter so I have an appointment to go back in January when we'll discuss it. Until then, I'm going to physical therapy a few more times and Ashley will make sure I have a strong at home program for when I'm done. (Unfortunately, my insurance severely limits how many times I can go in a year which was another major consideration in putting off surgery.)
Work looms and I'm really dreading the grind of having to get up early to go in. Hubby keeps playing the lottery so we can win and retire! LOL
Keep your fingers crossed.
:-)

Nothing

2010-08-05T11:16:00.000-04:00

Nothing new to report. No weigh in this week since our meeting was canceled and I couldn't get to another meeting. With watching Emma, it doesn't always leave me a lot of free time. So just having some quieter times at home with her and my family. Dreary type days have meant we haven't even been in the pool. I will be doing a "Girl's Night Out" this Saturday with my best friends so I can't wait for that.

Hope you are having a wonderful summer!

Lifetime Key

2010-07-28T15:27:00.001-04:00

It's been a while since I've posted. We were in Myrtle Beach for a week, came home and were gone 4 days later to one of my sisters who lives outside Indianapolis. Now we're home. WHEW

Last night was a HUGE night for me. I found the hours of the day seeming as if they were stuck on the clock. Time went very slowly and my anxiety grew. I knew I was down below my goal weight but not by a lot and I was afraid that the WW scale wouldn't be gracious. I literally was deep breathing while driving to my meeting. My knees were shaking so hard I could barely walk down the steps to our meeting room. I never expected to feel like that. Winnie knew it was my big night and as I came up to the scales she smiled at me. I was thrilled she would be the one to weigh me in because for a long time my weight was our secret. I still don't focus on the actual number but rather how good I feel now. After watching her write the first 2 numbers down I let out a big sigh (well it felt like it to me) and felt I could have fallen over. I DID IT! I had maintained my goal weight for 6 weeks and was now a lifetime member of Weight Watchers. What a journey it has been!!! As Kelly began the meeting we talked about snacks and then she started recognizing peoples bravos and 5 pound stars. She finally started that she thought someone was holding out and asked a few people who played along saying they heard there was big news last night. She passed around firecracker poppers, bubbles, and horns and they all let them off for me. She also had balloons and we did our fireworks display for me (I'm sure most of Penn Township saw them). It was a very special moment in life when she handed me my lifetime key from Weight Watchers.

Has it been easy? Heck no! Do I think it will get easier? Heck no! Will I be able to eat anything I want now? Heck no! Afterall, doing that is what got me in this position in the first place. So in a lot of ways it's been a long time but yet it's the beginning of a new life in so many ways. I'm happy within myself in ways I didn't think I wasn't before. I have the ability to now do things that had become difficult before...including going up and down steps or walking. Most importantly is the sense of accomplishment I now feel at setting out on this journey and not stopping until I reached the end. I've been so overwhelmed with feelings because it's a day I never thought would be here and now here it is. I'm DOING IT! If you're one of my friends who reads my blog and is also on this journey I'd urge you to dig deep within yourself and I KNOW you can do this too!

Last, my family and friends joined me at Dairy Queen. I had my caramel sundae I'd been craving. After not being there for 2 years I have to tell you....it sure tasted good! Before we'd sometimes have it 3-4 times a week. The day was truly special and thanks to everyone who left a comment or was there whether in person or spirit.

I DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A few pictures

2010-07-07T10:33:00.001-04:00

I haven't posted any new pics of our little beauty lately so thought I'd share some of those. We're leaving for the beach soon and I can't wait to see what she thinks of it! Zach used to ALWAYS fall asleep when we'd go. She's liking the pool and is kicking her legs around and starting to splash. My little fish :-)
The weather's been very hot but I'm not complaining since I'll take it over snow any day! Plus it means lots of pool time. Yay! Which also helped in me losing 2.2 pounds this week. Double Yay!

Her 1st bikini....and 1st time going into the pool

Just looking so dang adorable with new sunglasses while in her exersaucer

contemplating what to do for the 4th of July

Wonderful Day

2010-07-02T00:42:00.000-04:00

Today was one of those days that's almost perfect! (OK, going to the dentist doesn't count but even that I got to see the super Stef) When I got home, Amy, Emma and I went and picked up Kayla along with Carol, Allison and Nikki, and we all headed to Twin Lakes for the annual festival. Check it out here. It's one of my favorite summer activities and to have spent it with Amy, Kayla and of course, Emma, who had all not gone before, was wonderful. Usually that type of thing isn't for Amy and she really enjoyed it. The weather was about perfect. Warm in the sun but a nice breeze blowing to keep it from being unbearable.
Then this evening as Amy went swimming I held Emma in my arms on the deck as she was swimming. She fell asleep in my arms and we all had some excellent relaxing time. Just a wonderful day.
I hope you're having many of these kinds of days this summer. :-)

Stress

2010-06-29T19:40:00.000-04:00

Tonight's WW meeting was very enlightening for me in a few ways. The topic this week is about traveling and how to manage while away. We also had quite a few people share how they'd gone on vacation recently and how they stayed on track and actually lost when returning. I then posed to the group that the hot fudge sundae wasn't my problem but the crab legs at the all you can eat buffet are my problem. Knowing I can stay away from the fried foods there (YUCK) and not needing the butter on them.....I want the crab legs. When we kept talking I realized it's not the crab legs that are the problem, it's the traveling itself. What to eat while in the car when everyone else is eating garbage and our choice of a quick dinner is fast food. Knowing I can have salad there but using more points that I would typically and not feeling full. It's more about the STRESS I am putting on myself to be at lifetime weight come July 27th. Someone asked what would be the worst thing if I don't and I had to admit that I'd feel like a failure. There were many moans but I can't help how I feel. Yes, I've worked darn hard the last 2 years HOWEVER it's not easy. It's never easy. Will it ever be easy? Probably not. I have food issues. Obviously. Look at where I started. Kelly rightly told me I have to focus on all the positives I've had and she's right. I take this all one day at a time and vacation should be no different. I've been lazy lately and it's showing. I gained .2 this week. Nothing big thank goodness but I have to do better and I can. It's just like the people I told about a few posts ago, I can't let others failure affect me. I can't allow negative thoughts to take over I won't let them!

I still have 10 days until we leave so stress be gone! There's no room for you to be packed in the suitcase or take up residence in my body. :-)

Parade

2010-06-27T11:57:00.000-04:00

I had the most amazing WW mtg this past week. I'm just sorry I'm only now blogging about it. It seems that for days off I'm busier than ever!

At our meeting, Kelly started the meeting recognizing those who had done well in the week. (NOTHING good to report from me...I gained) Then she starts gathering people and giving them things such as pom poms and those poppers that shoot paper out and noise makers. She asked for a suggestion and someone suggested they sing when the Saints Come Marching In to which someone quickly chirped in to change the words to When the Pounds go Melting Off. It was extremely cute and I know I turned 12 shades of red. See, Kelly had planned this to mark my 2 years of being a Weight Watcher. She also wrote this poem which Susan read.

Two years ago Denise was skeptical you see...
Would WW work she asked me?
It was her friend Judi who asked her to come and join us all for some WW fun!!!
Week by week, at each meeting Denise would be,
She had turned into a role model for her group and WW family!!!!
There have been milestones reached, 5K's and Lose for Good,
and Denise has persevered like a WW should!!!
Ups and Downs oh you bet,
but Denise was as determined as you can get!!!!!
Denise we wanted you to know, we are all so happy for you on your special day,
and we will support you the rest of the way!!!!!!

It was VERY special and many at the meeting spoke at how I've inspired them. With gifts and cards from a few, I was indeed humbled. I thanked them from the bottom of my heart because they each inspire me!
What a week!!!! Thanks Kelly :-)

People

2010-06-19T11:48:00.000-04:00

Ever notice the comments people say to you? Sometimes I know I get caught with wishing I'd not said something...but wow! The biggest one I've heard this week is having someone congratulate me on meeting goal and then asking if I intend to lose more. SLAP me in the face will ya! WOW! Brought back all those feelings that what you do isn't good enough. There's been another comment made to me which really hurt and I can't even put it into words because I don't want to justify it. It seems that some people don't want you to be successful. It must make them feel better when you're failing yourself. I don't know. I'm really trying hard though to not let it bring me down. Amy and I went shopping yesterday for bathing suits and typically I'd be focused on the sagging arm skin or around my knees. I can tell you honestly that I never noticed it and I tried on a LOT of suits. Instead I was able to see the suits that actually made me look thin and be excited about that.
I guess I'm no longer giving someone else the power to hurt me with words. It still stings and occasionally hurts, but I'm not letting it drag me down where it's what I believe. It's not easy but nothing that's worth having is easy.

GOAL ACCOMPLISHED

2010-06-16T00:14:00.000-04:00

Tonight with a loss of 5.6 this past week (WOW) I made goal. One week shy of 2 years since I began this journey. My knees instantly began shaking and I thought I'd have to sit down. Kept the tears to a minimum as I went out then and called hubby and my Mom. It's still an overwhelming thought. When I walked in that meeting 2 years ago, I NEVER NEVER NEVER thought I'd ever stick with it and it would work let alone that I'd be able to lose this amount of weight. All along my theory has always been to keep losing. I never put a number value on it. I remember when I hit 100 pounds last year and how emotional it was. To accomplish something that you thought you could never do is mind boggling. Instead I made up my mind I COULD do it and I DID do it! It's not always been easy. There have been so many times I wanted some type of food or drink that while I knew I could have, I'd not like the results at the scale so I'd skip them. I often hold both hands out and say....piece of cake on one hand....and the other hand....lose weight. I choose to lose weight. I can't tell you how wonderful I feel to have made that choice and to stick with it.
So tonight I thank Judi for showing me the way to Weight Watchers. Watching her achieve success and her holding my hand as I went to that first meeting scared to death to get on a scale in front of someone and have to face that number. I thank Debi and Donna who were full of enthusiasm as they showed me that larger amounts of weight could indeed be lost with this program. I wanted to be them and now I'm proud to say I am. I thank Mr. Danser who kept me motivated to try to get ahead of him to reach the 100. He beat me but that's OK cause he started before me and we were both glad to have reached that milestone. I thank Winnie would is the kindest person to weigh you in. She'd cheer me on in her quiet way each week and if it was an off week she'd be like it's OK it happens. She's right...it does happen. I never gave up though. I wanted to get back there the next time and show her I could still do it. Debbie was the same way when she would weigh us in. Unfortunately, the numbers have been down lately so she hasn't worked at our meeting for a while. Lastly, there's Kelly. You've all read how wonderful I think Kelly is. I could repeat it over and over again. She inspires me when I think that there's no inspiration left in me. She knew that today would come. I'm glad ....no thrilled.....she was there to share that moment.
Finally, there's all the friends I've made both online and at my meetings who I've come to know. They all inspire me to keep taking this journey and I thank them. My family has been incredibly supportive. Even my son tonight told me good job. I look forward to all the new memories we'll make as I now move ahead, healthier and so much happier.
I DID IT!!!

Sweet Break

2010-06-14T16:12:00.000-04:00

Today is the beginning of my summer break. YAY! I can't begin to tell you how much I needed this day to be here. Everyone at work did. By this point of the year, we're all so ready. I heard someone saying this morning that just the sound of another coworkers voice was on her last nerve. That's how bad it has gotten.

So today begins the freedom to do as I please each day. I'll be helping with Emma of course, but at least other times I will now have some time to enjoy the relaxation of summer. Pool time, grilling out, spending time with friends, sleeping in, vacations and no alarm clock. Mostly though I'm looking forward to having time to stamp and scrap. That's at the top of my priority list. Getting all my SU stuff organized and going through it to see what I have that is being retired. I can't wait! Now this darn headache just needs to go away! LOL

Chug chug chug

2010-06-08T20:46:00.000-04:00

Many times I feel like the Little Engine that Could. The only difference is I no longer say I think I can....I instead say I KNOW I can! Lost 1 pound last week. Now I need to lose 1.6 to meet goal. It's quickly approaching my 2 years since I signed up at WW and I'd love to meet this goal before then. It's in MY power so we'll see what the week brings. Emma now has the sickness I have. We took her to the doctor this afternoon. Chest and ears sound good. I feel HORRIBLE that I gave it to her. Called and got some cough medicine for myself yesterday. I also saw the orthopedic doctor yesterday. He gave me a shot in the shoulder containing cortisone and 2 other meds. It hurts like heck today! He says he thinks I have such arthritis that it's inflamed my shoulder joint causing irritation to the tendons around it. I'm to also go to physical therapy so I need to look into that.
It's been a long day with the day spent at the Pittsburgh Zoo (awesome day to go...had a fabulous time), then doctor, then WW where we partied to celebrate Kelly and all she brings to our meetings. Over and over I kept hearing women tell her too that they'd gone to other meetings and it wasn't working for them until they came to our meeting and met Kelly.
I'm all over the place with my thoughts. I'm SO SO tired. So I apologize. Waiting for summer break to start so I can have some time to myself to stamp and get myself all situated with my SU stuff.
Last I leave you with something that left such an impression on me. Shirley, a woman from the Gbg. meeting, came to our walk on Sunday. I found out tonight she planned on doing 1 mile of the walk. Well, she did 2!!! I walked the last piece with her and she was so happy to have walked 2 miles and I asked her if she could have done that before and she said no....and the smile on her face that she'd accomplished this will stay with me for a long time. It's that feeling I wanted to share with someone because I experienced it last year. She made my day and week. THANKS SHIRLEY and keep on going cause you are going GREAT!

Walk Today

2010-06-06T07:56:00.001-04:00

Woke up to Tornado Warnings. Am watching a storm come across from Ohio. Tornado warning is set to expire at 9:00 with the walk at 9:30 but I do think we will get wet.
At a time where I'm already sick....UGH!
Keep your fingers crossed for us so that hopefully the weather holds off until we are finished.

EDIT: We had about 40 people show up to walk. Linda and I thought we'd have to cancel or at least
reschedule, however, Kelly came with her family, and we went ahead and got things ready. She was prepared to hand out the drawings. As it turned out, we had BEAUTIFUL weather. Buddy and I were the last to pull out of the parking lot and it began raining just as we did. Everyone commented how nice it was and we enjoyed walking with one another. YAY

Article

2010-06-04T10:01:00.000-04:00

Here's a link to our local paper, The Tribune Review, and an article that was in today's paper about the walk on Sunday.
Follow Healthy Path

Making the News

2010-06-02T09:44:00.000-04:00

Last night when I arrived at my meeting one of my friends handed me a copy of the local Penn Trafford News paper. Seems our story for the walk is in it. They had called and interviewed me one day and I was very pleased with how it turned out. It gave credit to everything I'd have wanted to even mentioning what a fantastic leader I feel Kelly is! So how awesome was it when I weighed in and had lost 2.4 pounds! I'm now 2.6 from goal. Chug Chug Chug! I feel like the Little Engine that Could. We went this past weekend to Indy to visit my sister for a very quick trip. My nephew graduated on Saturday from high school. So we had his party (or as they call them out there...Open House) right afterwards. While everyone else picked and munched to the point of being full, I stayed as close as possible to plan but found myself late very hungry because they all hadn't ate any dinner. Finally at about 8:30 I had my hubby run out to Wendy's for some Chili because I knew I couldn't make it through. Took it out on the deck then and just slowly ate it to enjoy. So with traveling and eating on the road and the party then it was Memorial Day, I don't feel I did too bad. It's still not easy, but one step at a time. Even now I'm trying hard not to overwhelm myself with the final goal, but just keep taking those steps every day. Doing rumba at our meeting last night with the baby in my arms should count for extra steps right? LOL
Wishing you a wonderful week! Don't forget to either come walk with us at Penn Middle at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday or find somewhere close to you to walk on Sunday. Either way.....just get out there and walk! We can do this together :-)

Sign Up and No Weigh In

2010-05-26T23:53:00.000-04:00

Last night I went to Kim's and signed up to be a SU demonstrator. YAY! Except right now I'm only planning on doing as a hobby demo which means for myself. That can always change in the future which is part of what I love....the flexibility of the company to grow and change as you do. Being with the Stampin' Sisters on Saturday really inspired me. I've found that even though I've been incredibly busy the last few days, stamping is constantly on my mind. Kim's a HUGE inspiration also and goodness am I fortunate that she's come into my life. Not only because she's so willing to share her talent but because she's an awesome person!
Our WW mtg. was canceled this week since the church where it's held had a function. I originally planned on attending another meeting tonight but woke up with swelled feet, on very little sleep and a need to spend some time at home. Only problem was it didn't work out that way. Found out my cousin and her husband are visiting from VA Beach so I headed out to one aunt's to visit with them. I took Emma who was a bit clingy and fussy because she had shots today. (Poor baby!) We sat on my aunt's deck outside and had a great visit. (Sending a big WOOHOO out to Jackie since I heard you've joined the WW family) I LOVE my family time. It was worth being tired again tomorrow cause I'm running on empty. Well, OK, if I'd sleep some it would help....darn arm!
Emma weighed 14.3 pounds and is a bit over 24 inches long. Such a sweetheart!
I'm heading to my one sisters this Friday to see my nephew graduate on Saturday. Go Bryan! LONG trip for a very short visit since we'll have to head home on Sunday since Zach has 2 parades on Monday morning.
Did I mention I'm SO ready for summer!

Sweet Scoops

2010-05-24T11:34:00.000-04:00

Here's my card I made for the card swap on Saturday. Thanks to Rachel who's card I used for inspiration.
Everything on the card was made using SU products.

Birthday Boy

2010-05-23T23:22:00.001-04:00

Today is my son's 19th birthday. Happy birthday, Zach! I love you more than words could ever say even when we fight tooth and nail because we're so alike.
We've had a very good day. It's been an incredibly busy weekend. Lots of shopping topped off with dinner out tonight and then family over for cake and ice cream.
One of the real highlights for me though was attending a SU demo meeting to see what it was like and if I had enough interest to join. I was incredibly nervous about our card swap but wasn't there long and gave some of the girls a peek for them to all like what I'd done. WHEW! LOL I enjoyed the meeting immensely. A lot of the other girls are all new so I felt it would be super place to also be learning. The girls are so supportive of one another and give each other tons of positive feedback. Just thinking about it again now brings a smile to my face. They also are extremely willing to share business tips with one another. So I've decided to go ahead and sign up as a hobby demo. Tuesday is the day :-)
I'll have to get my camera out and take a picture of my card. I'm thinking of starting a new blog just for all my Stampin' Up stuff so keep an eye out for that.
No Tuesday meeting for Weight Watchers this week. The church has a function so we can't meet. Am planning on attending a different mtg. on Wed. but we'll see how the week goes. LOTS to do this week as we get ready to leave Friday for a trip to Indy. My nephew graduates from high school on Saturday morning and we will be there! Staying only until Sunday since Zach has 2 parades Monday with the band.
Whew! I'm getting tired and haven't even started the week yet. Thank goodness my house is clean and that's one less worry.
But it all works out and is all good. Life is good. VERY good!

Last 5

2010-05-18T22:47:00.000-04:00

Tonight at weigh in I lost another pound which now puts me exactly at needing to lose 5 pounds to hit my goal. UNBELIEVABLE! Another member summed it up for me when speaking of himself because I remember being where he is now.....it shows you CAN do it. I remember sitting and listening to Donna and Debi and hearing that they'd lost 60 and 90 pounds and thinking to myself...Wow...people do this...and I will too. They are the ones I looked to to be my inspiration so I could achieve what they had. It's been almost 2 years but I sure hope to feel that accomplishment. Has it been easy? HECK NO! In fact, this last 10 might be the hardest I've ever had to take off. But my determination hasn't changed. I remain focused on that goal. We don't have our meeting next week so I'll have to go to another place. I also bought another pedometer tonight since I could not find mine. I'll begin wearing it again tomorrow. I remember the first time I wore my 1st pedometer and I thought I moved but at the end of the day I was shocked to see like 200 steps. WHOA. Talk about a wake up call.

But I'm here to put it in writing...5 pounds watch out....cause you are on your way OUT! Afterall, Dairy Queen awaits :-)

Going Down

2010-05-13T21:06:00.000-04:00

Let me start with the end of last week. I went to the doctor and she wants me to go see an orthopedic doctor for my shoulder and has scheduled me to have a MRI so that will be done. She also took me off the medicine she'd prescribed because it wasn't helping the pain and it was leaving my feet and hands very swollen. I can't get an appt with the ortho until June 7th. UGH. Instantly the next day I felt relief from the swelling and knew I'd dropped some weight. The scales were kind to me this week. 2.8 So I'm finally a pound down from where I was 3 weeks ago. Such struggles! No one said it would be easy. At our meeting we talked about a few things but one was what do you do once you are within sight of your goal and the weight just doesn't seem to want to come off. MANY get discouraged and quit. I shared that I've not worked this hard for this long to not meet my goal and that's what motivates me to continue. I WILL meet my goal no matter how long it takes me. I've now lost 162 pounds with 6 to go to goal. Someone suggested wearing their pedometer to make yourself aware of how many steps you are taking. I sat at the meeting and made it my goal to find mine and put it on the next day. Well, I failed at that goal. As of today, I still can't find my pedometer. I broke my initial one, but I'd bought a new one and worn it for a while. So if I can't find it by Tuesday, I will buying a new one.
I went today for my MRI. I've had one before but had to have an open one because of my size. Even then, I remember how embarrassed I was because I barely fit. But I didn't do anything but eat some more. So this time I had the closed one (I was glad it was over because I could feel the panic starting to set in) and the man said I could call the doctor in 3 days for results or if really need to know, the results would be done tomorrow morning that way I could "see what I was in for." So I'm an admitted worrier and it's set in. Double UGH.
The other part of our meeting the other night, we also discussed people who try to sabotage you and your efforts. My husband has always been my biggest supporter. At the beginning he even followed the plan himself casually to make it easier for me. Tonight that came to a screeching halt! My birthday is tomorrow and I said he could order a cake for family as long as I had some cake myself to have. He ordered a fourth a sheetcake! When I mentioned how cruel it was to have cake sitting around that I can't even eat, he laughed. I however am NOT laughing. He has a cake for me in the oven (after telling him 4 times it was just the cake mix and a can of diet pop....I was losing patience) that I'll have with fat free cool whip. He won't win this one....I will.
One last note....I'm giving serious thought to becoming a hobby demo for Stampin Up. Does anyone else do it this way or has considered it or tried it and could give me some feedback?

Catching Up

2010-05-08T11:39:00.001-04:00

WOW! Has time flown by! I've been super busy and it seems never get a chance to sit and catch up with my blog. I've wanted to add some pictures too and seems if I do have time, I'm not near my camera. So today it is! LOL

Let's do the weight thing 1st and get it done. I gained 2.4 pounds 2 weeks ago. UGH. I've been experiencing terrible pain again with my left arm so I called the doctor and she prescribed an anti-inflammatory and recommended I keep my arm in a tennis elbow brace to try to remind myself to rest my arm as much as possible. She knows Emma lives with us and how difficult that is. So I've not done anything different in my eating and have been walking when I can and to have a gain that big was really hard. My feet and hands have been swelling so I know it's the medicine. My feet actually hurt like they hadn't since I started WW. NOT good. I lost .6 this week so that at least went in the right direction. I saw the doctor again yesterday and am not taking the medicine anymore. Besides the side effects, it's not working in helping with the pain. I'm not scheduled to see an orthopedic doctor on June 7th and will be scheduling a MRI this next week.
I went to 3 WW meetings this week to issue the invitation to other members to join us on Sunday, June 6th at 9:30 a.m. to walk a 5k at Penn Middle School. I'd been promising Kelly for over a year that I'd attend meetings with her to talk about my loss. It's one thing to sit and blog about myself, but it's another to stand in front of your fellow WW and talk about yourself. We're each in it together though. I took something away from each meeting which gave me a push of motivation. Still plugging away to that 9 pounds now til goal!

We've been traveling each weekend with Zach's bagpipe band. 2 weekends ago we spent the entire weekend in Lexington Park/Prince Frederick Maryland. For the 1st time since Zach joined the band, they came in 1st place and were recognized as such. (They'd placed 1st last year but it wasn't until after the awards were awarded that it was discovered that they were in 1st not another band.) Here's a picture of him, Amy, and Emma celebrating afterward. (OK so Emma was sleeping) It was Emma's 1st festival and she did GREAT. Even though it was a drizzly, cold miserable day. It was SO nice to getaway.

Here's 1 of the whole winning band!

Then the next weekend we spent a Saturday in Bridgeport, West Virginia and again they placed 1st. WOOHOO! Now we'll not compete again until the end of June.

My cutiepie, Emma, is just growing and changing so much. She's holding her head up nice, holding her toys, sleeping through the night (most nights), chattering away to us and she's found her piggies. Here's a few pictures of her. The 1st one is the day she went for her 3 month pictures at Target. Every one of them was so stinking cute!

Last picture I'll share is one of a card I made a while back. Yep, actually had time to make a card. LOL

A Goal in Mind

2010-04-20T19:36:00.000-04:00

As I've gone through the past almost 2 years, the entire time people would ask what my goal was. My answer without fail has been, "To keep losing." Now however, I find myself with a real goal. 7 pounds to go. Tonight I officially hit 161 pounds lost since I lost 1.2 this week. Kelly asked what has kept me going this long to which I answered that as I've lost it fueled my fire within myself to keep losing. I've liked how good I feel now(with the exception of a sore arm...explained later) and the clothes I can wear. I can't say I like how my body looks because I have a difficult time looking at myself and not seeing all the baggy skin I have around my knees or under my arms. I also grab the middle of my belly that still has way too much roundness for my liking. Aren't we our own worse enemies though? Amy and I will go shopping and I won't like a pair of shorts because I can see the skin flab sticking out and she'll say....but you see that but others won't even notice when they look at you. I can't imagine going shopping for a bathing suit. With a pool here and a vacation scheduled at the beach (thank goodness for income tax returns) I'm going to need a few suits so somehow I'll have to get through that.

My other goal I set was also one which is more of a reward. When I make my goal weight I want my WW friends, and all my other friends and family to meet me at the Dairy Queen for a sundae to celebrate. I couldn't and wouldn't be doing it without huge support in my life. Even tonight my Mom still said to me...keep up the good work. So if you're a friend who doesn't happen to live close, stay posted because I'll let you know and PLEASE go to your local ice cream eatery and have a sundae thinking of me and help celebrate. It won't be for a bit yet, but I'll let you know.

The sore arm is actually that old sore arm that has been hurting since November. The doctor says it's tendinitis and if you remember, I did a double dose of steroids in January and it felt SO much better. Well, it's been aching pretty bad again, so I called her yesterday. She's prescribed a stronger pain pill and wants me to wear a tennis elbow brace to remind myself to rest it more. So far it's only making me very tired and not taking away the pain. Julie made me laugh tonight when she said I'm wearing the brace for sympathy. LOL But Linda hit the nail on the head when she said.....don't you hate...you lose all this weight and feel better to only have something else hurt. How true!

How are YOU?

Busy

2010-04-15T22:25:00.000-04:00

Life has been so busy as of late I feel I neglect even getting here to post. This week I lost 1.2 pounds. That puts me 8.2 from my goal with a total lost of 159.8. I kicked up my walking which I know helped. I this week have also walked 2 days since our meeting. It's supposed to rain tomorrow and possibly Saturday so possibly my walking will be around some store. LOL With the weather beginning to change, I'm really hurting again for clothes. All my capris and shorts and skorts are too big. Unfortunately, it's come at a time where we're really watching our money. Tomorrow I'm going to try to make a stop up at the "Boutique" which is what we at work call our Thrift Store because it has such nice clothes at it. Keep your fingers crossed I get to go and that I find something.
Have a fabulous weekend!

OH and a new product....Thomas' has thin bagels which although thinner than normal bagels, they are quite satisfying. They are 110 calories. Makes a great start to my day with low point value.

Challenge

2010-04-07T09:53:00.000-04:00

Lost .2 last night which brings my total to 158.6. Just inching toward my goal weight. Considering it was a holiday though, I'll take it.
Last night we kicked off the Weight Watchers Walk Challenge. Last year, we organized a team and walked in a 5k at Bushy Run. This year I'll be on vacation then, I think. Instead, WW is challenging it's members to walk a 5k. They are having a date of June 6th for people to walk across the country. I'm going to do some legwork and see if we might be able to walk at our local track that day as a group. The only problem I foresee is that they will be resurfacing our track and field this summer and I don't know when they plan on starting. So I'll need to make some calls. I hope if you're local, you'll join us and if you're not, you'll find another event near you to participate in. Since walking I feel SO much better. I'm glad to see the beautiful weather so I can get out again. The nice part about this WW challenge for me was the booklet we were given last night. It tells if you are just beginning walking, how to train for a 5k to be able to walk for that long. Since I'm just getting back to walking, I thought it would be a very good guideline and I'm challenging myself to follow it. Not necessarily for the time allotments but for the walk/rest schedule. I'm hoping that will motivate me to put more activity in my life.
The challenge is out there. Are you ready to take it with me?

My Easter Blessing

2010-04-05T10:40:00.001-04:00

It's been a while since I've shared any new pictures of my granddaughter, Emma....so here are a few :-)

This was as much help as Emma could give her cousin Sydney in finding any eggs.

The end of a LONG day for Emma

but isn't she just beautiful :-)

I have many other Easter pics but they include my niece

and my sister would not be happy if I share them.

So here instead are a few of my other favorite pics of Emma

from other days.

she finally sees the toys above her and was watching and smiling at them

Her Mommy takes her for walks about every day.

They both loving going out.

After a bath...you could just eat her up!

Inspiration

2010-03-30T21:47:00.000-04:00

Tonight's meeting was about inspiration. Who gives you inspiration? So I'm giving a HUGE shout out to those who gave me inspiration and continue to do so. If it wasn't for these ladies, I don't know where I'd be in life.

Judi gave me the courage to get through the door that first meeting. After watching how successful she was, I thought I could do it too. She's the one I ran across the street when I didn't know what the heck I was going to eat for breakfast because everything I used to eat was too high in points. She encouraged me and still does.

Debi and Donna, the sisters at my meetings who are so full of life you can't help but smile when with them. They'd lost 60 and 90 pounds and that was the most I'd ever actually met someone who'd lost that amount of weight. Again, I remember listening to them and thinking that I could be them and do it too. Thanks for that push in the right direction girls.

Kelly motivates me weekly with her enthusiasm for the WW program. She's lived it and she knows it works. Through all the ups and downs that happen called life, it works if you work it. It can't do it on it's own. How easy would that be if it could? I can't imagine life at our meetings without her. (and no, I'm not just throwing that in there Kelly cause you said your hubby wants you to quit...I'd truly miss you!)

The people at our meetings each week who are living the program. Who struggle. Who celebrate their successes. I struggle and celebrate with each of them. It's a place I've been and will be again. It inspires me to keep going on. Being determined to get the final 10 off and make my goal. I'm .6 closer this week. I can't wait to celebrate with everyone....including those who comment frequently here and offer your support. THANKS to you all!

Same same Same

2010-03-23T21:32:00.000-04:00

This week weigh in found me at the same exact weight as last week. A bit discouraging because I have been trying to move more (went for a walk last night on my own and I was MOVING...and boy do my legs hurt to show for it!). It's like in previous times though when I've been close to a milestone and have a few weeks of no movement. I sure hope this isn't weeks of not moving! LOL I'm tired and battling a headache so going to actually try to call it a night early tonight. We'll see if that works.
How's things with YOU?

It's Within Sight

2010-03-20T13:14:00.000-04:00

This past week I lost 2.2 pounds. Bringing my total to 157.8. WOW! More exciting for me though is the fact that I'm in sight of my goal. I'm now 10 pounds away from it. I NEVER thought I could be here. I NEVER thought I would lose this amount of weight. Heck, who am I kidding? I NEVER thought I'd stick with this. However, I didn't count on the fact that I'd find a determination inside of myself that drives me to WANT to stick this out and meet this goal. People say to me often: "I don't have the willpower." Well, I didn't either. But I've won the head game that exists in stopping each of us from having that. I have made the CHOICE to not have the things I know will sabotage my efforts. It's NEVER easy. As I stated in our weekly meeting this week....we each have to do what works for us. This weight didn't go on overnight and I'm in for the long haul. I hope to have many of my friends join to celebrate when I DO reach goal. Having a wonderful support system is also vital.
Counting down now until that day........................

Sunshine Award

2010-03-14T13:08:00.000-04:00

Oh what a terrible blogger/friend I've been. Melissa sent me this LONG time ago and I told her I'd pick it up and I'm just getting around to it now. Sorry Melissa! She's feeling a bit under the weather but hopefully now on the mend but stop over to her blog and see how creative she is! Playing With Paper

1. You must pass this award on to six (6) other bloggers/followers
2. Link your nominees within your post
3. Let your bloggers/followers know you are passing this award to them by leaving a comment on their blog
4. Add a link to the blog of the person from whom you received this award

So I'm passing this along to:
Barb for all her inspiration: Snowmanlover's Paperie
Tara for bring so many new things into my life through her blog: Magpie Club
Kimberly has a fantastic blog especially if you like making tags: Scrap Rebellion

Oops...hear a fussy baby so have to run....will do the rest later.
THANKS for being such great friends and stopping by.

Week of Mine

2010-03-13T12:03:00.000-05:00

It's been a tough, busy week. There has been lots of out of town family in for the funeral and we've been trying to make time to visit with them. (hi Jackie.....see what happens when I find out you read my blog! LOL)
I didn't go weigh in this week. It was more important to me to be with my family. I haven't felt that I'm still moving much. The weather has been gorgeous this week but I've actually not made it out to walk since we've not been home a lot. Just remember.....if you get stuck in a rut....go back and reevaluate yourself what you're doing. Are you not measuring or counting your foods anymore? Are you not tracking? Are you attending meetings for support? Are you moving enough? We all get stuck in a rut at some point. But tomorrow is a new day and a new opportunity. Do YOU have the motivation within yourself to continue your journey? I know I do....even through the rough times.
Off to clean my house so I can enjoy the rest of the day with my cousins. They leave for VA Beach (their home) tomorrow and I don't see them often enough so I'm enjoying every moment with them I can now.
Have a WONDERFUL day. That wonder lays inside you not with any weather or anyone else.

Blog Candy

2010-03-10T11:00:00.001-05:00

Here's a late hint to you to go get involved in Barb's wonderful blog candy she's giving away.
Sorry am so late in posting this but with everything going on I haven't had time. Barb's a WONDERFUL person so go check out her blog: Snowmanlover's Paperie