WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR MAY 2016

Lisa - HOORAY!! Good going, hope it works out well. And thank you for your comments. I do feel much better this afternoon. Pushed it and did weights this morning and stationary bike this afternoon.

Janetr OKC

Hi Ladies - I'm a newbie here. I notice there's already a Carol in the group... do you have room for one more? I'm committing myself to lose 30 pounds and I'm doing it for my health more than for my looks. I think looking better is simply a beneficial side effect to being healthy. The biggest advantages to being a healthy weight is that you FEEL better and have more energy. Tomorrow night should be interesting ... I signed up for 3 weeks with a personal trainer. I'm really nervous. I haven't exercised for more than a year, and my body is so stiff and I'm so out of shape I just dread the pain that is going to come, but I know it's critical to my well being.

I have been diagnosed with an aortic aneurysm. I have a spot in my heart that is weak and stretched out and too much strain will cause it to burst... most people don't survive when that happens. When I got the diagnosis I was a frightened and didn't know how to incorporate new restrictions into overall wellness. I went from being very active with a healthy weight lifting and cardio regime to hardly moving at all. The cardiologist wants me to be active but I have a restriction of not being able to lift more than 20 pounds. So I should be able to do Zumba, walk, hike, any "non-intense cardio" - BUT then I got plantarfaciatis and I just quit moving. I've gained weight, my whole body hurts, and I have zero energy. Now it's time to get out of the pity party and toughen up.

I'm looking forward to joining this group and sharing stories, hints, and motivation. My goals for this month are:
1. Exercise 5 days this week, rest one day, and stretch one day
2. Log ALL my foods and stay within my calorie limits
3. Lighten up and enjoy myself
4. Drink my water
5. Make all the wellness appointments I've been procrastinating: Dentist, Cardiologist, and get a physical.

Wish me luck!
Carol

CJ - such talent!!!! love the afgan, I have never seen a theme like that... just colors

Cargram - Carol - welcome

Kim in N. Cal

Cheri, love the afghan squares!

I'm all about the convenience. I do an online workout in my livingroom. My trainer is only 1/2 mile from me so I walk there and my normal walking routes are in the neighborhood. If I had to get in the car to go to a park or something it would never happen. I have a rowing machine next to my bedroom and it gets used on days I don't walk (rain rain rain of course). The best exercise though is the joy of gardening, yard work and playing with the grandkids. I'm all about that type of exercise.

Sat at the computer all day today ... got started on a spreadsheet project that won't let go of me. But I did stop to have breakfast, lunch, and dinner ... and I also watched the last episode of Granchester and a move on Netflix and had a nice talk on the phone with my DSis and Dson, so I wasn't completely on the machine ... it was raining most of the day but tomorrow should be a dry day and I plan to go work outside for about 1 hour.

Mmy hevens, this thread really moves! There were 78 posts since my last visit, this is a really popular thread!

Hello ladies,
Thanks Barbie for continuing the thread. Now I have to see if I can go back and get caught up for April. Boy, miss a couple of days and there is a lot of reading. Since I started somewhere in the middle of the month I didn't really set many goals for April. So for May
1. Still working on cleaning out the closet. Did manage to put some things aside for charity just going through the dressers.
2. Drink more water, I've gotten pretty lax with that.
3. TRY to watch salt intake!! I can be a salt -aholic.
4. Continue to log every meal.
5. And last but not least add different forms of exercise to the mix.

Have a great night and morning everyone, and Charlene I love the quilt. All of you ambitious ladies both inspire me and depress me at the same time!!

Oh Joyce, I'm so glad you went back to the dentist. I think you'll be feeling better in no time. So sorry about the dry socket. I live in Northern Indiana about 25 minutes from Lake Michigan.

I'm out until tomorrow. Night all!
Jamie from Indiana

New Carol, does your doctor know about how much your blood pressure will be going up with Zumba and your training? This nurse is worried about that. As you said, it can be a very life threatening condition.

Wow Jamie, you are on the opposite end than me. Isn't Indiana having fun right now. I will be glad when tomorrow is over.

I think my packing is coming out. I don't know if that is something to be expected or not. I have an appointment on Wednesday for him (her, the dental assistant) to change it. Thank you to people like Allison that do the job that the doctor orders but doesn't do. So far I haven't seen any difference but I have only taken one antibiotic and I can't eat much. Tomorrow I am going to have to go to the store and get me some things I can make into smoothies. I don't have a smoothie machine, just the small ninja. I know there is a ready made smoothie that you add something to it but I am sure it has a lot of added things to it. So far the only fruit I can come up with that I like is a banana. I would have to chew canned peaches and the pineapples I already have at home would really have to be chewed and my jaw just does not do that right now. I don't even think I can eat a can of soup unless it is completely cream like tomato soup. I wish I could make a grilled cheese sandwich and cut it in little bites but so far it's a no go.

Joyce, Indiana

[Barbie Thanks for keeping the conversation going for another month.

Janet Your DD is a graduate! Hurray. It is unfortunate that you could not be there but given the unsafe weather and Tara's condition, you definitely made the right call. It is strange how we often experience great joy and sadness at the same time. I hope that the happiness over graduation tempers the sadness of Tara's death. She seemed to be such a remarkable young woman.

quote="GodMomKim;36342024"] CJ - such talent!!!! love the afgan, I have never seen a theme like that... just colors

Cargram - Carol - welcome

Kim in N. Cal[/quote]

KimI wish that I could take credit, but it is Cheri who is making the adorable sea life afghan.

Lisa Congratulations on your new job. And good luck with your first sale. You are accomplishing so much.. WOW.

Cheri The pockets are fascinating. I have never seen anything like this before.

CharleenYears ago, I worked in Cabin Creek, West Virgina and the ladies of Cabin Creek Quilters tried to teach me quilting. They were wonderful. I was not. This was a cooperative organized by VISTA volunteers

Pip I hope you have a quick transition to your "new feet".

Katla Congratulations on the DS boat sale. I am still catching up with responding to posts. How is the family adjusting to their new home? There has been an unusual amount of inclement weather. Did everything arrive on time and in one piece?

Anne I am so sorry that you are so troubled. Tomorrow is another chance to start over.

Heather Although I never saw the movie, I am very familiar with Salgado's work.

He is probably the most influential environmental and social action photographer since Ansel Adams. He photographs in black and white and these have such a huge emotional and artistic impact. His environmental center in Brazil is an example that we can renew once barren and over-logged and farmed land. He is very, very well known in the international aid community and I wish that even more people were familiar with him. Thank you so much for bringing this genius to the attention of this group of caring people. Most large libraries, especially those affiliated with universities or colleges will have his books. They are all wonderful. Do go to an exhibit of his work if you can. You might want to download his TED Talk.

I think that my upstairs bathroom decided to go the way of Michele's pool. You might remember that I had to get plumbing help for a bathroom leak into my kitchen a few hours before I left on an overseas flight. This time the water came dripping down through a light fixture. It was totally unrelated to the first leaky water supply line. After much examination with high powered flashlights and a mirror, we determined that this time the leak came from gaps in old grout. A quick trip to Home Depot of clear silicone, and some time spend removing the faucets, applying the silicone, and drying everything with a very high powered dryer used in construction, it appears to be fixed. The proof will be in a few days when everything is completely dry and the shower is turned on.

Instead of 10 miles today, I did 8 miles in 84 minutes and then mowed the yard for over 30 minutes. The mowing was actually quite difficult since the ground was still soggy in places. And we are expecting another 4 days of rain. I am with Marcelynh Enough.

CJ

Allie - I was just thinking about Sylvia also when I was driving back to the ranch last night.

For Sylvia, or any potter/ceramics maker who would care to weigh in--one piece I'm trying to figure out is a small kiln, a Paragon Touch n'Fire. I am NOT, repeat, NOT trying to sell it to anyone here. But I have to figure out a price to put on it, and am hoping someone can tell me what you think would be a fair price in a sale. This one has a push-button, rather than flat panel, control module, and doesn't have the stand, but is about this size. It has never been used, the bricks inside are pristine, and for that matter, the outside is, too.

Ah, here it is 4:30 in the morning, been up nearly an hour already, and starting my second cup, so becoming verbal. Thanks for the congrats, ladies. I apparently need to be challenged in order to feel wholly alive, but have learned over the years to forgive myself if something slips when I start feeling pushed. Have to remember that when I'm up in the middle of everything.

Luckily, the sale at the warehouse is distracting me from stressing about taking on the paper job, and vice versa. I can always divert my thinking from one to the other when I start getting overwhelmed. I got a bit well, not OVERwhelmed, let's call it whelmed when I walked into the warehouse and saw the trailer load in broad daylight, but was able to start moving and shifting stuff, and simply getting it organized into sections that make sense--kid's stuff, electrical, furnishings, small things, etc.

A lot of the bins got loaded without even a chance to look in them, so I'm discovering new things all the time. My sister kept all the gold-plated Colibri lighters she's found over the years, for instance. Probably a dozen of them. That's just a few of the treasures--when we unload the van today (12x4x4 internal space), we'll be unloading two mid-century recliners, two glass-front china cabinets, two bookcases, and a bunch of bits and pieces that we were able to put in the bookcases, as they're lying flat on their backs. I have great hopes for this first sale to be a success.

The secondary benefit is to my sister--she's able to look at all the things they've saved over the years of carrying away unwanted possessions for other people, and instead of being binary about it--keep it or throw it away--she can add a third option, "or store it for Lisa." Puts a whole different light on things. She found ten blow dryers for this sale that she had stored "just in case," and said it made her feel crazy. She knew she had more than one, but had no idea she had put that many away. Now, anything that's "too good to throw away," but unneeded, can go to the storage unit. She was most excited because she finally has a drawer for her socks!

For me, though, mostly, I have to get both things and myself organized. It will let me feel, no matter how much of an illusion it is, that I have a handle on things. Putting a planner together this morning so I can get my to-do lists set out and start checking things off as I do them... The one thing I don't want to let slip is the ability to focus on my own health--I won't be able to do all I need to do if I don't treat myself well, eat right, exercise. That's why I'll be here each morning. Love y'all!

Lisa in West Texas

Cheri, I love, love, love the under the sea afghan. My niece is expecting a baby in December and is planning a coastal themed nursery. That afghan would be perfect. Is it your own design or are you working from a pattern that can be ordered? I couldn't afford to pay you what it would be worth to make her one, but my mother could do it if there was a pattern to follow. As you know, I am challenged in that department.

Welcome, new Carol! We actually have two other Carols that I know of, Carol from NC and PeachCarol from Georgia.

Also welcome to Betsyk! You joined us just by posting. Bookmark us so you can continue to find the thread.