The day after Halloween. November 1st. I cannot tell you how relieved I am not to be a teacher facing over 100 students hyped up on their Halloween candy! Tough enough on a “normal” day.
The day after Halloween walking through the neighborhood lie dozens of deflated pumpkins and goblins strewn all over lawns. A testament to the seriousness of holiday decorating in our neck of the woods. We’re the bah humbug neighbors. Our days of decorating ended when we became empty nesters. At least, BH still sits outside with 150 pieces of candy which lasted all of one hour.
The day after Halloween, also known as All Saint’s Day, commemorating all saints whose good works have landed them in heaven, also known as All Hallows’ Day. We dress up on All Hallows’ Eve to ward off all evil spirits. But I’m not a believer in heaven or hell or evil spirits with the exception of the one sitting in the White House.
The day after Halloween also means the snowbirds have landed. Add at least another 15 minutes to get anywhere due to the intense traffic and the fact that every senior citizen has to drive in the left lane even though they have no intention of turning for at least five miles.
Don’t even try to go out to eat unless you’re way more patient than me. A 45 minute wait is usually the minimum. Most restaurants will not take reservations unless you have a party of eight or more. You will notice a lot of Publix salads and Amy’s frozen dinners in my fridge.
November 1st is one fantastic day for us, because that is the day we open up the house after living in air conditioning for seven months. This past September and October has been the hottest and driest months on record. How BH goes out there and bikes every day in that stifling heat and humidity is beyond me! I prefer my indoor exercise in the AC watching Morning Joe!
We are not lovers of AC, although how I ever slept without it growing up in Florida pre-AC is mind boggling. We didn’t even have fans. I know my kids are rolling their eyes right now! Truth, though.
So when that nighttime temp goes below 70 degrees, all the windows go up and the sliding glass doors open and there exists this divine cross breeze flowing through the house. The birds return, waking us up to their happy noise. And, I think to myself, is this what heaven is like if I believed in heaven? I think so.
Saturday, November 9, 2019
Saturday, November 2, 2019
Only 35 Years
That’s how long it took me to actually hit my goal weight. And I am shouting it from the rooftops! That’s how long it’s been since my third and final pregnancy. It’s been a ridiculously long journey and I blame it all on potato chips. Okay, there’s also the wine.
For the first 30 years of my life, I could literally eat anything and not gain a pound. Even in college when I contracted mononucleosis and was down to 87 pounds and had to live in the infirmary, the nutritionists fed me three milkshakes daily and very, very slowly I got back up to 95 pounds.
After my first child was born, I bounced right back. Even the nurses were calling in their colleagues the day after I delivered to gawk at my flat stomach. What did I know? I’d never had a baby before so I was puzzled by all the fuss.
Twelve and fourteen years later, I had my babies 20 months apart in my late 30s and, let me tell you, no nurses were coming to gawk at my fall stomach! No, no, no. I was appalled! What happened to me?
Heaven knows, I tried. I played racketball, took long walks, went on Weight Watchers, and became a huge fan of Jane Fonda’s workouts. There was Jazzercise and high and low impact classes. I tried yoga and water aerobics. I kept a diary of everything I consumed. That dreaded muffin top was going nowhere.
I’m an organizer but never seemed to be able to plan weekly meals. Basically, I was overwhelmed by a stressful job and being a single parent didn’t help. Plus, all of our schedules didn’t make for a Leave It to Beaver dinner time with the family. Sad to say, fast food and Domino’s pizza delivery found its way to our home on way too many nights. Not good for someone trying to lose 15 pounds.
Needless to say, I didn’t. By the time I retired, I weighed the most I had ever weighed. One of my vows when I retired was to workout every day, which definitely helped but it didn’t get me to my goal weight. I recorded my intake and exercise on my Lose It app daily, but, then, I’d get discouraged when I hit a plateau and couldn’t make that scale move in the right direction.
I thought the South Beach diet was the answer. Tried it but wasn’t wild about the no-wine-for-10-days rule. That should’ve told me something right there but I soldiered on reducing my carb and sugar intake drastically. Not enough, though.
And, then, intermittent fasting became the craze. My cousin turned me on to it and he was living proof that it worked. I started it three years ago and it was okay, but it didn’t get it where I wanted to be. In March of this year, BH and I took a Caribbean cruise and, of course, I ate everything in sight….it was just all too delicious. But, when I got off that boat, my whole attitude changed.
This time I was determined. And that is what was missing. I had a goal: get to my goal weight before I get on the next cruise which is coming up on November 16th. It appears I needed more discipline. I got serious about intermittent fasting, eating under 1000 calories daily and only eating between the hours of 10 a.m to 6 p.m. It also helped that my wine intake has been drastically reduced to one glass a week. And, I don’t even miss it. Never thought I’d say that!
On Wednesday, I hit my goal weight of 115. Time to set another goal, maybe 110. But, first, I’m going to reward myself with a delectable piece of key lime pie!!
For the first 30 years of my life, I could literally eat anything and not gain a pound. Even in college when I contracted mononucleosis and was down to 87 pounds and had to live in the infirmary, the nutritionists fed me three milkshakes daily and very, very slowly I got back up to 95 pounds.
After my first child was born, I bounced right back. Even the nurses were calling in their colleagues the day after I delivered to gawk at my flat stomach. What did I know? I’d never had a baby before so I was puzzled by all the fuss.
Twelve and fourteen years later, I had my babies 20 months apart in my late 30s and, let me tell you, no nurses were coming to gawk at my fall stomach! No, no, no. I was appalled! What happened to me?
Heaven knows, I tried. I played racketball, took long walks, went on Weight Watchers, and became a huge fan of Jane Fonda’s workouts. There was Jazzercise and high and low impact classes. I tried yoga and water aerobics. I kept a diary of everything I consumed. That dreaded muffin top was going nowhere.
I’m an organizer but never seemed to be able to plan weekly meals. Basically, I was overwhelmed by a stressful job and being a single parent didn’t help. Plus, all of our schedules didn’t make for a Leave It to Beaver dinner time with the family. Sad to say, fast food and Domino’s pizza delivery found its way to our home on way too many nights. Not good for someone trying to lose 15 pounds.
Needless to say, I didn’t. By the time I retired, I weighed the most I had ever weighed. One of my vows when I retired was to workout every day, which definitely helped but it didn’t get me to my goal weight. I recorded my intake and exercise on my Lose It app daily, but, then, I’d get discouraged when I hit a plateau and couldn’t make that scale move in the right direction.
I thought the South Beach diet was the answer. Tried it but wasn’t wild about the no-wine-for-10-days rule. That should’ve told me something right there but I soldiered on reducing my carb and sugar intake drastically. Not enough, though.
And, then, intermittent fasting became the craze. My cousin turned me on to it and he was living proof that it worked. I started it three years ago and it was okay, but it didn’t get it where I wanted to be. In March of this year, BH and I took a Caribbean cruise and, of course, I ate everything in sight….it was just all too delicious. But, when I got off that boat, my whole attitude changed.
This time I was determined. And that is what was missing. I had a goal: get to my goal weight before I get on the next cruise which is coming up on November 16th. It appears I needed more discipline. I got serious about intermittent fasting, eating under 1000 calories daily and only eating between the hours of 10 a.m to 6 p.m. It also helped that my wine intake has been drastically reduced to one glass a week. And, I don’t even miss it. Never thought I’d say that!
On Wednesday, I hit my goal weight of 115. Time to set another goal, maybe 110. But, first, I’m going to reward myself with a delectable piece of key lime pie!!
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