WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR APRIL 2014

jfenner141

Hi all - been AWOL for a few days. My DB had major surgery (he lives about 1 1/2 hours away), so I have been off seeing him in the hospital, staying with DSIL for a few days. She is a teacher and couldn't easily take the days off while BD was hospitalized. She was really appreciative that I spent a few days at the hospital with him. Her school is on spring break this week, so she will be with him when he gets home from the hospital.

Diet has not been great - way too many snacks and junk. Exercise is back on track and am back to logging every bite. Don't plan on getting on the scale for a couple of weeks and hoping to have lost the gains.

Meg - it's kind of spring here - 50's and raw today. But NO NEW SNOW!!!! Daffodils are in bloom and our neighbor's magnolia has toms of buds just about ready to burst into bloom.

Jill in western MA

Katla49

Here are my results

1. Storm is really enjoying our walks.:bigsmile: I have managed to do this even on morning when I go to the gym first. He is really buffing up! I am enjoying the tranquility before starting my day

2. So So :happy: HAPPY:happy: to report that I released 11.2 pounds this month. Did you get that!? 11.2 pounds.:bigsmile:

3. I am remembering every day that I am special!:flowerforyou:

Thanks To You Ladies! I could not have done this without your encouragement, laughter, and reading ears!

Tere

Awesome job, Tere! 11.2 pounds!:bigsmile: :bigsmile: :bigsmile:

mollywhippet

Terre - congrats on the HUGE loss this month! And it's not even over yet! The dog isn't the only one getting buff.

My vet has a sign in his waiting room that says, " If your dog is overweight, you aren't getting enough exercise!" How true.

Sylvia

janemartin02

Have a great sun!
hugs
jane

Cindy781

Hello Ladies,

We are back from a wonderful weekend. The Il Divo concert was excellent. We had perfect seats close to the stage. I encourage any who are fans to go see them if they are in your area. We went to one of my favorite museums Saturday afternoon, it is an old mansion with huge gardens that was donated to the city many years ago. Beautiful architecture. After seeing all of the beautiful gardens we are now very much in a gardening mood. The little old puppy was on perfect behavior too. She handled the noise of the hotel going in and out to do her business. Hubby put her in the carrier and took her because she can't walk very far and we were on an upper floor. She was an angel. AND, I got on the scale when I got home and did not gain. Wonderful meals and wine, but controlled my portions. All in all, perfect trip.

Michele, enjoy your pool. Sounds beautiful.

Yanniejannie, hugs. Sorry about H.

Carol, glad you are having fun!

Sylvia, sorry about neighbors.

Tere, congrats on you weight loss!

DeeDee, glad you enjoyed your visit with your friend.

Welcome new ladies!

I still have laundry to catch up and dinner to prepare, so out of time.

Hugs to all. Sleep well.

Cindy in OK

margaretturk

Good evening,

Welcome newcomers:flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:

Cindy sounds like you had a wonderful time.

Sylvia like the statement about the dog and exercise. I wish I had one to exercise. DH won’t have a dog. I need to borrow one because I love to walk.

Tere 11.2 pounds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jill I know it is hard to eat right when you are away from home. Hope DB is recovering well.:flowerforyou:

Joyce great encouragement from Facebook!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Alison I understand why blue herons are so special to you. They truly are magnificent birds.

Bonnie great bike ride. Impressed!

Katla we got your down pour today too. Rainy, windy, and cold most of the day. At least it is not snow.

Our choir didn’t sing today at church. The sermon centered on the theme of love. Fit well with the workshop I went to yesterday. As a parent and teacher we set boundaries for our children because we love them. I need to remember that when I set boundaries for myself. When I stay under my calorie limit for the day, sleep well, and exercise I am showing compassion for myself and not depriving myself because it makes for a healthier me.

Goal:
To log my food today and stay under my calorie goal, so tomorrow I will wake to a healthier me.

2014 word: contentment

mollywhippet

We are hiding in our shelter. Tornado warnings. I saw that North Carolina had some damage today. I hope you are all safe.

Sylvia

barbiecat

:flowerforyou: I slept late today and walked the dogs in the daylight and beautiful sunshine, then halfway through my hour of yard work, it started to rain and has been raining on and off since. I found plenty to do in the garage and in the house so they day has been productive.

:flowerforyou: Mimi, you’re right about making exercise a priority. I get up early so I can be sure to walk the dogs and have my regular healthy breakfast before I have to do anything else.

:flowerforyou: Heather, most people who ask about my weight loss are hoping to hear some easy miracle solution, rather than all the effort and change of attitude that has been necessary.

:flowerforyou: DeeDee, ALS is a terrible disease ….my friend’s son died of it less than a year after his diagnosis.:sad: :brokenheart:

Yanniejannie, sorry to hear that your husband is being so anti-social..it must be very frustrating.

:flowerforyou: Katla, I am still amazed every time I shop for clothes when I try on something in my new smaller size. It’s the same size I’ve been wearing for over four years but it still hasn’t gotten old…..no longer buying large and extra large is a miracle.

:bigsmile: Bonnie, congratulations on riding over 50 miles.

:flowerforyou: Tere, I feel like my time walking the dogs is meditative for me….it helps me get my life in perspective before starting the challenges of the day….congrats on your great weight loss.

Barbie from beautiful NW Washington

bwcetc

Tere ... WOW!! A great month! Congratulations!

Sylvia ... hope the weather moves on and you stay safe!

MimiPersists

Today was better, exercise-wise. I am almost at 5,000 steps for the day - not much, I know, but good for me. I bought a treadmill at the thrift shop ($49!) a couple of weeks ago and have been using it for 10 minutes at a time. It's a perfect way to get back into exercise.

The pace of the day was slower and more "organized." Good for my mental health.

I would have a hard time working around a husband. (There are times when it's nice to be single.) If I ever remarried, I would need my independence. Honestly, I can't imagine having to ask...ask!...if I could do something or buy something. I'm probably better single material lol.

I mentioned yesterday that I share a house with my daughter, her husband, and their kids. It really gives me the best of all worlds. A couple of weeks ago, they got 4 goats from a friend's daughter. The friend and her family were moving to a smaller place and couldn't keep them.

I get to enjoy watching them but don't have to do the work! Suzy's friend actually had two more goats but they were pregnant so couldn't join the others immediately. Well, as of today, we have 11 goats...in addition to the first four, we also have the two mommy goats plus one's twins and the other's triplets. The goatlings are so cute and so sweet.

Several of the goats will be going to a new home in another week. I think we'll end up with five. They'll milk one of them for awhile. Fresh goat's milk will be a treat. Not having to do it forever will also be a treat.

I don't know whether you've ever met a goat in person before. They are interesting critters. They are very social and very inquisitive. A couple of nights ago, they all crowded up on my porch. They would have come in if I'd let them. Felipe, who's a Nubian and pretty lean and lanky (with long floppy ears) tried to climb up on my car. He would have done it too if I hadn't yelled at him.

One of the funniest things was watching my little dog with them. Izzy thinks she's bigger than she is (12 lbs) and took off after them. Being "prey" creatures, they ran.

Then they stopped. Must have thought, "Hey. Wait a minute. That's a 12 lb dog." They turned around and started stalking her. It makes me laugh even now to think of Izzy, backing up and looking for a place to go. She didn't have too many choices. There was the big dogs' area (my daughter and son-in-law's two big dogs stay in it because there is an invisible electric fence) but Molly, who's almost two and weighs 65 lbs, still acts like a puppy and likes to pounce on Izzy. The alternative was the goats. I took pity on her and let her into the house.

My clothes are a little looser now after 6 days of eating healthily. That feels pretty good. The scale is down almost 3 lbs but that's just because it's the first week, all that water acts as a diuretic and some of the excess fluid disappears. The first week is always nice that way.

Mimi SVQ (Sister Veggie Queen - an old title and one that deserves to be resurrected as veggies (fresh and cooked the right way) rock - and I'm glad to get back to them)

GodMomKim

Mimi – sounds like you are back in the groove – I do a morning walk; alarm goes off at 6:25 and I am out the door by 6:45 – sometimes earlier if Levi (my dog) decides to wake me. Usually 45min to an hour; no one misses me at that hour and then it is done; I try to do a second walk between 5-7:30 pm sometime; but that doesn’t always happen.

Heather – Great NSV!!!:happy: Enjoy the compliments! Turkish sounds great - I found a restaurant near me that says it is a turkish grill; but nothing grilled on the menu -- but it sounds great! I'll be trying it soon! When I come to England you'll have to introduce me to real turkish food (who knows when that will be:bigsmile: )

Sylvia – sounds like your studio is a great space! Too bad you couldn’t find some way to share the gallery space so “ you had your cake and eat it too” Clay and photos? Clay and quilts? Clay and plants?? Some way to help with the overhead.

I am just like you I know the names of all the dogs and only a few of the humans. :laugh:

DeeDee – sad to hear about your friend with ALS…:frown:

Yanniejannie - Not in your exact situation, but as a single person sometimes you want someone to go places with – I do drag gal friends along a lot of places with me. If you have any single gal friends they might be willing to fill in.. if we were closer I’d go! :happy:

Bonnie – Great job on the ride! I watched the video – what pretty country! And so few cars; were the roads closed to traffic?

Arlene – Welcome! We are a chatty supportive group !

Tere – WOW excellent goal keeping and 11.2 lbs – YEAHHHH!!!!:flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:

Sylvia – stay safe --- The idea of a tornado is so scary to me ! I’ll take an earthquake any day!

Went with another gal from garden club and saw 5 members gardens - they were all so different from one another and so nice. The one I liked the most was a little garden in a condo complex she had space along one side of her home, and around 2 patios - She did such a great job, used the fence as a place for climbing flowers and around the air conditioning unit she built raised planter beds for veggies... Just used the limited space so well! tucked in a dining nook on a patio and in a deep corner 2 chairs and a small table - one with big pillows looked just like the right place for wine and a book. My yard is a big open square; I would love to have more "little spaces" but really am not sure how to do that - and a designer is awfully pricy!

Well decided I really was not happy with meal planning - granted I did it only one week; but it ended up taking 2 weeks to eat all I had planned and some of the veggies went bad as my schedule changed so much! So using the general idea, I planned Wed. dinner (it is a company meal)- doing all veggie and very low carbs starter is red pepper soup, then salad, then wild mushroom-spinach Roulade with Red chile sauce (a new recipe with a to die for picture) and asparagus, I think blue berry tartlets for dessert. and I planned a pot of turkey chile I think with the left overs from last week and from these meals I'll be covered with good stuff. I am hoping as last week was really high on calories; so this week is back to lots of veggies, fruit and complex carbs and tons less sugar!

It was interesting for me to hear how some of your hubbies are not that social - being single I have always felt a bit "jealous" of married couples as they would have a built in person to do stuff with. Guess that is not always true :huh: I wonder how many of my married friends have hubbies like that, think I need to pay attention - a new source of folks to do things with. I often don't ask the married gals on a weekend as they have that time with hub.... hmmmmm.....

MimiPersists

BTW, I was just admiring my ticker with the "3 pounds lost" statement on it. The background is a bit of my backyard with what the girls call the lupine factory in it. I didn't grow up in the country but I sure do enjoy living here. It's a feast for the eyes.

Mimi SVQ

moeggep

Hello All, I am beat. We had company day at Kings Island, our local amusement park. We were there all day, I am sun burn even with sun screen, have loads of steps and didn't eat bad. Last night was our celebration at The Cheesecake Factory for my daughter and I ordered of the Skinny menu and skipped dessert. Yah! for me. I also mowed my yard and did ab class yesterday.
Can't believe I have to go back to work tomorrow.
Ready for bed.
Sylvia, praying for your safety. Will have to catch up on posts tomorrow.
Sweet dreams everyone.
Patty Cincinnati Ohio

barbiecat

:flowerforyou: I keep my freezer full of frozen veggies (green beans, cauliflower, broccoli, spinach, squash) so I always have plenty of veggies on hand for my meals.....I like fresh veggies, but they are often challenging to buy and eat before they spoil.

:yawn: :yawn: :yawn: :yawn: Barbie

jmkmomm

momsamodel, even though my husband is one of the non-sociailble husbands, I still repsect him enough to not go on a weekend trip without him. But I know of many women who go on weekend trips. I have gone on overnight trips with a church ladies group ofr conferences and he accepted that.

Joyce, Indiana

exermom

Kim - thanks for telling me about the vinegar. Can't hurt to try, that's for sure. The other nice thing(s) about it are that it won't destroy the tile and if some gets in the pool, it's not going to hurt the fiberglass, either. Some in the water won't hurt (we put bleach in it today) I'll let you know how that works. Do you use straight vinegar? I have a vinegar/water solution that (believe it or not) I use to clean the hard wood floor. When we moved here, there were these "drops" in the exercise room. Probably from the previous people sweating. Anyway, nothing I could do would clean them up. We were about to have to redo the floor when we called this one place. They said to try a mixture of white vinegar (I forget the ratio) and water. that'd be cheaper than the $1,000 to redo the floor. Low and behold, it WORKED!

mimi - your day sounds wonderful

katla - we spent more time today cleaning the pool.
Actually, it looks pretty good. Put "Rover" (robotic cleaner) in and then when the water was high enough, ran the skimmer some. I did go in the pool today -- but not by choice. I was cleaning one of the steps and fell in! You know, it's funny, I was cleaning the spa yesterday and said to Vince "why don't we use the leaf cleaner (it's this round thing with a bag on top, you attach a hose to it and the leaves fly up into the bag). He said "no, it wouldn't fit". So I tried it and sure enough, it fits just fine. Today I was scrubbing the steps and said "why don't we use that brush we got for the porch" "oh, I don't think it'll work". So I tried it. I thought it worked just great and so did Vince after he saw what I'd done. Glad you liked the cupcake recipe, they do have good flavor

Bonnie - thanks for posting that link about the ride. I especially liked the areas that you were riding thru (you didn't stop at the stop sign!!! lol). The houses, businesses, rivers, etc right alongside the road. How quaint!

mimiarlene****son - welcome. Yes, this is a great place for advice and support

Tere - big congrats on the wonderful loss

jill - hope everything works out for your brother. Glad SIL can be there now, at least temporarily

Sylvia - what a neat sign at your vet's office.

margaret - check at your local Humane Society. I know they have programs where they have people just come and walk their dogs.

Didn't get up until around 6:30 today. I think part of it was because I had to get up in the middle of the night to get the soup out of the crockpot. Anyway, did an hour of training games on the Wii. Tomorrow I'm planning to do the pilates DVD, hold my plank and then take the extremepump class.

mimi - loved reading about the goats and dogs

Patty - kudos to you on your choices at the Cheesecake Factory

Kim - I used the vinegar on the tile. Some of the "salt" came off. But I think I know why it works so well for you and didn't for me. Your sink is a horizontal surface. My wall is a vertical surface. There was no way I could keep a rag wet with the vinegar on it on that wall. I had to rewet it a few times, but the vinegar still evaporated. However, it did get some of the "salt" off.

Michele in NC

mollywhippet

The tornado hit just south of us in Quapaw Oklahoma and Baxter Springs Kansas. Two people were killed, many injured, many homes destroyed. It's just awful. It nearly got Joplin again, too. It was a scary evening here. We have another tornado watch till 2am.

Cindy, what part of OK are you in? Did you get anything there?

Sylvia

RebelRenny

Hello there lovely ladies.

I started cleaning/organizing the (home) office space today. It will take me another day at least. A lot of things get "dumped" in there. One of them being my old binders from my studies, which I completed in 2001! No less! Time to burn those papers. I would have burned more today, but it started pouring rain, so back at it tomorrow. I am also getting rid of 2 old non-working pc's. In addition, we had stored boxes of wine bottles, which hopefully someone will take off our hands. DH had purchased them for our son's wedding 4 years ago, with the intent that he was going to make wine for the reception. However, government regulations proved to be prohibitive to go ahead with that idea.

All of this to say that the thought of downsizing is on my mind. I think it's a good thought. Our house is already fairly small, so time to get rid of the clutter is important at this stage.

I found some old letters today too. That will be a trip down memory lane.

Wishing everyone a good week.

Renny
Vancouver Island. BC

Best to all.

yoyonomore55

Sylvia- I just saw a story on the news about the devastation from the storms. It must be horrifying a experience. Stay safe. My prayers are with you and all in the path of the storms.

Deb A in CNY

cityjaneLondon

Good morning from cloudy Hampshire:flowerforyou:

Sylvia - so sorry for your nearby fatalities. Hoping for your safety.:flowerforyou:

Cindy - It sounds as if you had a wonderful time. Congratulations on not gaining!:flowerforyou:

Tere - Oh boy! ! ! Fantastic effort!

Mimi - love the goat stories. Keep them coming! I love goat milk and goat cheese. I also love goat curry, but maybe that's a forbidden subject!

Kim - What a delicious sounding meal!:flowerforyou: The red pepper soup is one of my favourites. My gourmet son always insists I sieve it to get rid of the tomato pips. :grumble: The roulade sounds delicious.

Renny - downsizing! :noway: I find I need more space as I get older. Grandchildren is one reason. Spare room for reading in the night! When couples come to stay these dsys they sometimes need two rooms because of the husband's snoring so I make up the sofa bed in DH'S study. Then they can migrate in the night! ! ! ! ! My son was banished last time!:laugh: Then there's gym equipment. . . . If anything happened to DH I would probably move to a smaller place, or rather somewhere a bit smaller in a town. But I do love having visitors .. . . . . . :noway: Let's hope that doesn't happen for a long time. I can just hear the children in 15 years time saying, We're so worried about the parents in that big house. They can't cope! :laugh: :laugh:

DH off to cricket. It's forecast to rain this pm so I have told him to go the pub for lunch with his friend so I can have some time off!:bigsmile: I always have a delicious laksa soup,, very spicy, and watch a film or catch up with a recorded tv show. Today I want to make the rabbits while watching a programme about French wildlife on my tablet.:bigsmile: I do start to miss him after a while, but adore my few hours alone.

Bye for now ladies. Tonight baked fish with a pesto crust. Fresh peas.:drinker:

Hesther in trying to rain Hampshire UK