And So it Goes..

I'm behind on points for the day. Weird, about 12 my tummy settled and I haven't been hungry. I had a small lunch. I wish this would happen every day. Tomorrow I'll probably be willing to eat the wall paper off the walls again.

My son and I are going to go out of state this weekend to the health fair. (It's only a 2-hour drive from us.) They will do an Omega-3 panel for $25, and a standard blood test for $25. They also have booths and different things to visit. I'll have my blood glucose tested for free. That one scares me the most. Really.

I am sitting here looking at my blood test results from one year ago. I was hospitalized due to a massive panic attack where I thought I was dying, having a heart attack. It was very scary. The nice nurse printed out all the blood tests for me, which my doctor never does--he just writes me a letter mentioning the not normal numbers. So I want this blood work done for a baseline. I wish I could have done it at the start of my journey.

I notice that I gained 18 pounds from one year ago until my starting weight of 282.5. I'm 3 1/2 pounds from last year's weight! I'm thankful for that, and anxious to see it continue to fall. It was the hardest year of my life. Without a doubt, the stress nearly did me in. Thankfully I have Xanax now, which helps tremendously. I gained 50 pounds in about six months when my mom died, so at least it was only 18 this time.

Hubby offered to stay home and babysit all the doggies instead of going with us. He wanted to go, but we both decided that taking three dogs to a motel, one adult having to wait in the van with the dogs (even though they're crated) while the other runs in to do the blood test, was all too big of a PITA. So he said...this is funny...he said, "I'll let you go." Oh, evil me, I said, "WHAT?" He thought that was so darned funny, he said it on purpose. We live in a very small town and honestly, it's like going back in time 50 years. I'd say 3/4 of the people we know actually think like that. Thank God my husband does not. Without my even telling him why I wanted to go, he told me he thought it would be a great idea to get a baseline of my blood work. Ah, great guy.

So DS and I will get a room, swim Friday night, I'll have to fast, ugh! We'll get up and go straight to the fair and hope and pray I don't have to wait long because going 12 hours without food isn't pleasant, and I'm not fun to be around. Then I'll eat a breakfast cookie which will be in my purse, we'll check the rest of the fair out and then we'll go to the Olive Garden for lunch. Then we'll come home.

As my husband joked, it would be easier for me to just go to the doctor. And cheaper. Shoot, this is more fun. Besides, I don't think my doctor would order a blood test in May if he had just given me one in April. In fact, depending on the results of the test, I may just make my appointment in June instead.

Every time I've come to the computer, I've checked out motel rooms. This town we're going to is more expensive, and an indoor pool is a must. I can get a room right across from the fair for $80. I just keep freezing, not making the reservation. A weird little quirk of mine.

Tomorrow we start basic obedience with all three of our dogs. My husband was quite shocked when I reminded him of that. He was looking forward to a quiet evening at home where he could eat whatever. Now he'll be subject to Taco Bell, which he doesn't like.

I have screwed up supper again. Hubby and DS went to the store to buy the poor dogs a bone, and they decided to get a deli chicken while there. I didn't get the cheeseburger crockpot stuff going. So Ill have to make something for me. Something tells me my dinner will include pasta.


I have to do laundry, get my taxes ready and make an appointment--last year we were the last appointment on the 15th. Hopefully I'll get an appointment next week. I'm so stupid to do that. I also have to get my car license plates renewed...they expired today. Gee, hubby took my car, I hope he doesn't get pulled over!

I did not exercise today. I did vacuum the entire house and mop and mop and mop the floors. It's spring, the back yard is mud, and I have three dogs. What a mess.

Yada, yada, yada. I am a bit loquacious, aren't I?

Spaghetti Soup

This came through on one of my recipe groups this morning. I haven't re-checked ponits, but I thought it sounded very yummy. This would please my son for sure.

Spaghetti Soup

Points Value: 4
Servings: 4
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Level of Difficulty: Easy

2 tsp olive oil
2 medium garlic cloves, crushed
14 1/2 oz canned tomato sauce
1 T canned tomato paste
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
4 cups water
1 average Herb-Ox Vegetable Bouillon Cube
5 1/2 oz uncooked spaghetti, thin (I use Smart Taste)

Heat oil in a large saucepan and saute garlic for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, basil and oregano and bring to a boil (bubble).

Add water and bouillon cube, and bring to a boil.

Break spaghetti into short pieces, add to soup and simmer until pasta is tender, about 15 minutes.

Serve.

Middle of the Night

I woke up about 1:30, got up for a bit and then tried to go back to sleep. No go. I got up again, had a breakfast cookie and glass of soy chocolate milk, hoping it would induce sleep. Nothing yet.

My tummy was really bad today. By dinner time it was all better, though. I just don't understand it. So when I got up the second time, I figured maybe it would feel better if I had something in it. It bums me, eating in the middle of the night. I decided to take the points from the flex pool instead of Wednesday's allotment. I'm still afraid of eating those flexies because it just seems like too many points -- more than when I did Winning Points.

I've been catching up on blogs. I read through Bloglines and it doesn't always update instantly. So I was thrilled to read all the great losses everyone is having.

I Googled health fairs in my area. There is one this weekend in a town about 100 miles from here. I would really like to go. I wrote my hubby a note and taped it to the cupboard that houses the coffee so I know he'll see it. I'd like to get a CBC done. I don't go for my physical until the end of May, and I want to see my numbers. I'd like to see if they've improved over last year, and if I can get them even better by May. The blood work is just as important to me, if not more so, than the weight.

I have decided that even if he doesn't want to go, I may go anyway. My son and I could make a day of it, hit the zoo or go shopping or do something fun. I'm suspecting hubby will say no due to the fact we have three dogs now. It's hard to travel with that many critters, and we don't have a good kennel in our town. Shoot, they've never even been boarded overnight.

Well, I'm going to try to get some sleep. My tummy is feeling better. I need to remember many small meals when it's upset like this. For some reason that helps.

Supper Tonight

Kelly had an interesting post today about photographing food. Pop on over for a quick read.

I decided to photograph my dinner again tonight because of the article. Once again, it's not very colorful. I'm going to have to have a salad as a snack later tonight.

Eggs: "Fried" in Butter-flavored Pam

Bacon: Microwaved, blotted with paper towels

Toast: Light Bread, sprayed with Pam

Hash Browns: Fried in Pam

One cup tomato juice

9 point meal. Comfort food for me.

For the record, I looked up vegetable juices, and 1/2 cup counts as a serving. The brand I bought shows 1 cup has the same points as 1/2, so I had a cup. It's high in sugar and sodium, though.

So much for my menu planning. We were supposed to have a roast tonight, but I didn't get it thawed. I then thought of making the crockpot breakfast, but it was too late to get that going.

This worked, and everyone was happy.

From My Son

My son made this coffee cup for me a long time ago. It's my favorite. When I found this blog skin, it reminded me of the mug. It was a must-have. Plus, I love barns. Now I need to find or make a nice header to go with it.

Coffee and Motrin, Please

I woke up very early for me. I couldn't get back to sleep, so I poured a cup of coffee and decided to watch the sun rise. A beautiful misty/rainy morning with no direct sun, but I enjoyed watching it get a touch brighter. The wet weather has the birds really singing, which I've been loving.

When I woke up, I was ravenous. I was ready to eat now. So I had a bowl of cereal. I never eat this early. I usually eat an hour after waking up. Not today! My weight was the same as yesterday.

I am really feeling the effects of Jane Fonda's workout yesterday. My butt is sore. My back--there are muscles in there, who knew! My legs, thighs...wow. The worst? Oh my, I have muscles in that big tummy, and they're feeling it today! So today I'll take a short walk and call 'er good.

BTW, the Jane Fonda tape I did yesterday is not an aerobic workout. There is a very short aerobic section, very short, but that tape works individual muscles groups. That's why I'm so sore this morning. I think what makes it bad compared to what we know about exercise today is she bounces while she stretches. We now know to just stretch and not bounce.


Yesterday my pain hit me hard. My pain is a pain I get out of the blue and/or related to my cycle. I have discussed it with my doctor many times. It's always in the exact same spot, and sometimes it is so bad it bends me over. Yesterday I had to lie down as it was so bad. This morning I awoke to it. Motrin does nothing for the pain. Neither did the anti-spasmodic meds I once took for it. It sucks. What it's telling me today is that my cycle is about to start.

When I first showed the doctor where the pain was, he said, "Why, that's your bowel." The way he said it...it was is if he was Goofy. I've been experiencing this for quite a few years now, and it's no fun. I have hopes it will go away as I lose weight and get healthier.

It's time to wake my son and start our day. I know one thing for certain: today I will need a nap. I was up way too early and it will catch up with me. That's okay, as I got to enjoy a beautiful morning!

Does Anyone Do This?

Make a menu plan for the week, then make the dinners out of order? lol

I do. I'm very anal and it drives me crazy. Yet sometimes I crave certain things, like tonight I really wanted cola chicken. So I drive myself crazy and satisfy my cravings at the same time.

I guess it works. =)