Spring Break for One

Homeschool

This week is spring break for Beau.  Unfortunately Scraps isn't getting the week off from school because he hasn't been consistent enough with doing his schooling to get large blocks off.  I've been trying several different approaches to get him to do his work.  Some things seem to work for a while, but then fizzle out.  The one I've been making the most progress with is Easy Peasy All in One Homeschool, but I think some of the reading is too advanced for him right now, and he is ahead in the math.  We tried getting into some of the history in it, and he has NO interest at all in it.  I'm going to be meeting with another homeschool mom who has been doing it longer than I have to get a few pointers and to be sure I'm covering what needs to be covered.  If I'm doing any extra, that's great!  I'm we're coming up short, well, then I'll need to adjust.  Now that Chubbermonkey is getting older (OMG he's a year old already!!!) I can finally try to set a schedule to follow a little better!!  I'm going to try to work on a spring schedule this week while Beau is home.

The Battle With CF

Scrappy is going to be going into the hospital next month for his tune-up.  Dr P is trying to get it done before we go on vacation.  Yup - we get an all expenses paid vacation this year!!!  Scrappy is getting his wish from the Make A Wish Foundation!  We will be going on a 5 day/4 night Disney Cruise in the Bahamas!!!  He is so excited - but so are the rest of us.  Especially since they are covering EVERYTHING, including flight, passports, and spending money.  We really need this vacation.  

Now just to make it through the 2 weeks in the hospital.  It's going to be a little more difficult this time because Mayo has become an accredited CF center, so any CF patients admitted must be kept in isolation during their stay.  I guess it'll be a good chance to work on homework....

My Real Life

Some chaos is going on here.  My grandma has not been well. Both of my great grandmothers have not been well.  I've been trying to do what I can to help, but there's only so much I can do.  It's very frustrating.

A little over a week ago, we had to have our oldest kitty, Abby, put down. She'd been vomiting a lot and lost a LOT of weight.  The vet initially thought she had an ulcer and thought it was something we could work through.  After she wasn't getting better, we discovered she had tumors in her abdomen and around her heart.  She was the best kitty a child could ask for - she had the best temperament even for babies.  I miss her a lot.

My health has been frustrating too.  I hit my highest weight ever 2 weeks ago.  My thyroid had been on the fritz for a while, so my meds had been adjusted several times.  Then stress piled on top of it.  I was doing great with working out until my grandma's surgery, but got sidetracked with helping her (I know, another excuse) so I slacked off a little.  But I'm trying to get back on track.  I've officially lost 4 pounds in the last 2 weeks.  So far I'm down another 2 this week (unofficially).  As of March 12, I gave up pop.  Coke specifically.  I used to drink a ton of it.  But my doc changed my migraine medication to topamax, which makes Coke taste like crap as a side effect.

Since I've been struggling with my weight, I'm teaming up with a friend with getting back on track.  She has also recently joined TOPS.  As of today, she and I are starting on the C25K program (again) with the intention of running the Tiger Trot next year, along with (hopefully) a few other 5ks.  Wish us luck!!

Better get busy!

I know it's been a while - again - and I know I keep saying it, but I'm really trying to make an effort to schedule my blogging in.  There are SO MANY things I would love to share other than just on facebook, so many things I think could be helpful to others if only I could get them put in writing.

Many of my friends warn me that maybe I need to slow down a little bit and take a step back from some of the things I'm doing.  I know it would be crazy to bite off any more right now!  

My appointments for Baby are currently bi-weekly.  Can't believe Tuesday will put me at 20 weeks!!  19 more to go!!  It's no fun having gestational diabetes, pricking my finger 4 times a day (when I remember to do it!), taking pills 2 times per day, and closely monitoring my food (most of the time!! lol!!)  I'm having my A1C tested again on Monday.  My 2 hours post-meal blood sugars are coming back fine, but my fasting is still too high.  Doc said I may end up on insulin injections before the end of my pregnancy.  Because of the diabetes, I was also told that I will not be going to my due date, which is April 1.  If I don't go on my own before, I'm going to be induced during my 39th week.  That means March 25th or later.  Beau is really hoping for earlier.  She wants to share her birthday with her little "sister" on March 24.  (Or so she says - we're not finding out what we're having :) )  The concern of going to my due date is having too big of a baby.  Hopefully he/she isn't too big!!  And hopefully my VBAC goes without a hitch!  Monday afternoon my hubby and I are going in for my next ultrasound.  Can't wait to see the little stinker who's been kicking me :)

Homeschooling has been a little bit trying lately.  Scrappy has very interest in his spelling words, yet he loves trying to read to me.  Last weekend he read book 9 of Cat and Rat to me - such a proud Mommy moment!!  I try explaining that the more spelling words he learns, the more he's going to be able to read.  I don't spend much time focusing on sight words - I'd rather he knows how to spell them out.  We've also been working on basic addition and starting on subtraction.  He does really well with his shapes, colors, and number.  Sometimes, though, it's just hard to get him to focus because he is too busy wanting to do other things.  I try to get at least 20 minutes, if not an hour, of reading in most days.  I signed him up for the Book It! program through Pizza Hut.  We set a goal of 480 minutes per month, or 8 hours.  I've been working on a lot of hands-on learning stuff with him.  Last week we made butter from heavy cream.  It was a learning experience for both of us.

Got our heavy cream, jar, and lid.

Filling the jar about half full.

Making sure we have the right amount.

Put the lid on and shake, shake, shake!!

Our first attempt was with cold cream which, of course, resulted in - WHIPPED CREAM.  After shaking for 20 minutes, we realized we weren't getting any butter, so Google to the rescue! Missed one important step - the cream had to be brought to room temperature :)  Our next batch turned out better, although it still wasn't quite right, but was really good on bread with our goulash at supper time! 

We have a whole bunch of other fun projects we're planning on.  We're using the book Colonial Kids: An Activity Guide to Life in the New World for our current lessons. (Have I mentioned how much I LOVE the public library??)  I got about a dozen books about Thanksgiving, Pilgrims, and Colonial times, along with some other 'fun reading' books.  We try to get to the library about once a week, and this week we got the closest we ever have to the book limit.  We have 45 of a possible 50 books checked out!  To try to keep track of them, I try to return any we've read any time my husband or I will be going by the library.  I'm glad they have a drop box because they aren't open Friday or Saturday and only open a couple hours on Sunday.  I'm going to try to post more of these as we go!!

Of course, every week I still have my TOPS meetings.  And I LOVE my TOPS group :)  A few of my friends there are a little bit concerned about my lack of weight gain with this pregnancy.  Lack of weight gain?  I should say, with my weight LOSS.  At almost 20 weeks, I am down about 13 pounds right now.  My doctors aren't concerned since we have frequent ultrasounds.  I wouldn't be too sad if it keeps up either!  I'm less than 10 pounds from my lowest TOPS weight so far.  I'm going to try really hard to keep it off this time!  We have group walks scheduled 2x per week.  I try to get to them.  I hope to make it to more of them and hoping we get the stroller fixed.  One of the tires won't hold air, but I can't find the leak.  Hopefully hubby can fix it soon!

Every other week I'm busy with Girl Scouts still.  I'm a little disappointed with a few of the girls I have because it doesn't seem like they all want to be there and they don't want to put in the effort.  At the level I teach, the girls are responsible for completing their own badges.  They can do as many of as few badges as they want.

Then there's my business.  When I'm not doing one of the above (or even when I am), I'm usually working on something or another for work.  I'm really loving working for myself - REALLY for myself and not doing direct sales and only getting paid a fraction.  Plus at craft shows/vendor fairs, people want the instant gratification of getting their items immediately and I'm able to take custom orders so people get exactly what they want.  So far so good - I'm just hoping over the next couple shows I do that business takes off a little bit more.  I'm still working on building up my inventory a bit and feeling people out for what they are looking for and what is going to sell well.

Scrappy just finished these projects a few minutes ago.

I think it's time we do a bit of reading now.  Mama's gotta get some meal planning done too....

Getting the Kids Involved

As many moms do, I often find myself wrapped up in my daily routines.  I feel guilty that I don't spend as much time doing fun activities with my kids as I would like to.  I have been making more of an effort to do that lately, and to do it inexpensively.  I have been reading books and blogs on the topic and taking notes on what does and doesn't work for my family.

Beau often asks for a hot breakfast in the winter.  We have accrued about 15-20 boxes of cold cereal because of WIC, which she is usually OK with during the rest of the year.  I've said it before and I'll say it again - I am not a morning person.  Unless it's something easy - or unless I've been up for an hour already and had my morning coffee - I don't usually cook.

I found a great solution for breakfast!  And it gives Beau a feeling of responsibility by allowing her to do a little more cooking.  She's quite responsible and careful, and if she has any questions she's sure to ask.  I used a "universal muffin" recipe and figured measurements to use some oatmeal I had in the cupboard.  I based the rest on what my family likes.  Their favorites are blueberry, oatmeal raisin, and chocolate chip.  I've expanded on the chocolate chip a bit by adding about 1/3 cup of peanut butter to it.  We only have crunchy on hand, but that adds a little extra texture too.  This week I also figured up lemon poppy seed muffins with chia seeds added.


The kids helped me with this.  Scrappy and I measured and mixed up all of the dry ingredients.....

.... while Beau measured and mixed up the liquids. 

I found quart jars are just the right size for the dry stuff, while the pints work great for the wet. 

When it's all mixed up, it makes a dozen regular muffins in 20 minutes or 2 dozen mini muffins in about 13 minutes.  (Even hubby usually gets time to eat a couple before he leaves.  We've been doing mini's most mornings because those seem to be the better size for Scrappy.)  Now, in the mornings, Beau knows she can turn the oven on to 350, grab a jar out of the cupboard and one out of the fridge (all are labeled so we know which liquids go to which dry.... we've been doing 3 at a time and don't make more until all 3 are gone, which has been working well), mix the 2 together, and there's breakfast!

The kids also asked for some dessert that evening.  Since I had all the mess out anyway, I decided to keep going.  We made "rocky road" brownies with a box of fudge brownie mix I had found in the cupboard.  We added about a cup of mini marshmallows, half a cup of chocolate chips, and a quarter cup of pecans to the mix.  After it had baked, it was hard to tell there were chocolate chips in there, and the marshmallows had caramelized and seemed to have risen to the top of the mix. But they were still really good!!!!

Since I had soup on the menu for a few days later, I also made a starter for sourdough bread.  That sounded like it would be good with soup.  It was my first time, and I didn't realize that it would rise and bubble up so much.  It overflowed and made a mess on top of my microwave!  At least it was sitting on top of a towel.  I thought the end result was pretty good even though my hubby said it didn't taste like sourdough.  I guess that means Beau and I will have to eat it then!

Scrappy has his Valentine's party at daycare tomorrow. (He currently goes to my neighbor's daycare on Thursday mornings when I have my TOPS meetings.)  He wanted to make his gifts and cards, which worked out pretty well.  He wanted to make "big crayons" for his friends.  (Beau has a Crayola crayon maker that she got for Christmas a few years ago, but I decided to try someone else's method and made them in an old muffin tin.  It was a lot easier than the crayon maker!!) 

I found some outlines online, printed and cut them apart, and he decorated them. 

We were very happy with the final product of the crayons!

He's happy too.  I can't wait to see what his friends think :)

Making Progress - and trying my hand at frugality (one piece at a time!)

It's been a busy - but productive - week here!!  The kids have been keeping me running (as usual) and I've been keeping myself running!  I've also been doing great with sticking to my resolutions!!!

At my weigh-in on Thursday at TOPS, I was down a full 3 1/2 pounds!!!!  That is about half of what I had gained in the previous 2 months!!!  Honestly, there have been no gimmicks or fad diets or anything like that.  I have a couple of friends who are also on the weight loss journey, but are doing it by taking a lot of medications.  They are losing weight, but I worry about how they will do when they stop taking the medications.

What has been working for me?  Two things, really:

1) I have been writing everything I have to eat and drink (other than water) down.  I'm not tracking quantities or calories or anything like that.  But I think just being aware of what I'm eating helps.

2) Exercise.  I've been doing something almost ever day.  I went walking with my Opa a few times.  Otherwise I have been doing my Wii Fit Step again, for at least a half an hour.  Usually while watching some show of choice, like Grey's Anatomy or something else.

I have been trying to find ways to save money for our family still.  I will be posting various things that I have been doing and how it has helped with our family.  My current projects include:

1) Finding a recipe and making homemade bread that my family likes (after some experimentation, I found my husband likes the recipe for white bread in the Betty Crocker cookbook.  I use my bread machine to make the dough, but bake it in the oven.  He didn't understand why I do that until I explained how the machine leaves a hole in the bottom.  Awesome news on the bread machine - scored it BRAND NEW a the Salvation Army for only $10!!)

2) I have been making homemade laundry soap for over a year now.  (I actually made 2 batches so I always would have some ready.  The recipe I use takes 24 hours until it's ready.  When one bucket is empty, I use the other bucket until it's about half empty, then make another batch in the empty bucket.  I like the leeway it gives me.)  I figure for each 65-load batch I make, I'm saving about $11.20 over buying scent-free, dye-free Tide and getting just as good results, if not better.  If I have a particularly soiled load of laundry, I just set my washer to "heavy duty" and that takes care of it! 

3) Finding more low cost/free entertainment for the kids.  Home Depot offers a free kids' workshop on the first Saturday of each month.  Last Saturday, Beau had to go to make a bird house for Girl Scouts, so I figured why not take Scrappy?  It was free, would teach them skills about using tools and following directions, and would keep them happily occupied for a while. I don't know why we didn't do this earlier!!  But we didn't paint them until today, and they did that at home.... (I had a bit of a headache when we were at HD, and it only got worse with all the pounding!)

She was getting a little frustrated cuz a few nails were bending.

He was so proud - all Mommy did was hold the boards and he pounded
the nails himself(and my fingers a few times!)

They like a LOT of color!

We also got a free night of BINGO last night.  Beau's school had a family night event of Burger BINGO.  

My boys at BINGO

Each person in a family gets a card to play, and each family gets one raffle ticket to start.  For your first BINGO, a family wins a complete meal (hamburgers, buns, ketchup, jello mix, apple slices, 5# bag of potatoes, can of pork and beans, and a half dozen mini Hershey's bars).  After that, a family wins additional raffle tickets.  At the end of the night, they draw for various MOA tickets and for Tiger (school) shirts.  We only won the meal, but that's just fine since they only gave out 100 of them!! (I was the mean mom who told my kids we weren't paying $1 for each slice of pizza and ice cream because we had leftovers at home.  But honestly, our family eats out waaay too much).

4) Starting a price book.  Heather highly recommends it on her site, and has proven over and over again how useful they can be. (Per her recommendation, I checked out and am enjoying a money-savings book also.  I had to get it through inter-library loan, so I have been trying to track down my own.  I found a copy online today in good shape, and should hopefully have it in about a week or so!! I will post more on the book later!)

5) I've successfully learned how to can meat and stock!!!  Found out what I was missing too - it can ONLY be done safely with a pressure cooker.  I managed it - with the help of my Opa!

Meat and stock before sealing.

I'm also keeping a list of all the books I'm reading too.  If someone were to take a look at my Kindle, they would probably laugh.  I admit, I'm a self-help-book junkie!  I'm always reading on ways to help with time management or organization or weight loss or almost anything else you could think of.  I will periodically post my take on the books I'm reading, especially if they are something I find useful!!

Back to TOPS!

So far so good with the new year!!  I have been working pretty hard on sticking to my resolutions.  Even though I haven't made it to the gym yet this year (Scrappy is still on winter break from school) I have managed to be a bit more active just here at home.  I have been making quite a bit of progress on my sorting and purging project also.  My kitchen is slowly but surely coming to order.  I'll post pictures once I get closer to being done with it.  I've been very persistent with keeping my counter tops cleaned off and getting dishes washed, which was usually something I would procrastinate on.

Yesterday I went back to TOPS for the first time in over 2 months.  I must say, in spite of everything that has happened since last time I was there, including my miscarriage the beginning of November, I'm happy to report I gained only 6 1/2 pounds where I had thought it was more like 10 or so.  I have also been recording EVERYTHING I have had to eat since Jan 1.  I'm still working on my plan to attend as many meetings as possible this year for TOPS.  We talked about officer positions, and I am the #1 choice for President.  However, I have a dilemma.  I no longer have child care for Scrappy.  My friend who had been babysitting for me has a full time job now so she can no longer watch him.  So now the search is on for a morning sitter.  I'm really hoping to get this figured out soon!!!

I'm kind of lacking in the energy department today.  I was told to "take it easy" for the next 24 hours because I donated blood last night.  My husband went with and tried donating for the first time, but unfortunately his blood pressure was a little too high, so he was rejected.  We ended up picking up supper on the way home since it took longer than we had planned.  We ended up eating out the night before too because we spent a couple hours trying to find new snowpants  and winter coats for the kids.  (Normally I pick up new coats for them in early spring when they are on clearance, but their coats were still big, so I didn't get them new ones.  Of course, they had growth spurts now and their stuff is too small :/  But their new stuff should fit this year and next too since they're each a size too big....)  Over the weekend, I need to be sure to cook healthy and plan out meals for next week.  Realistically, we could have had leftovers, but we decided dinner out was just easier (though not healthier).

I'm having some trouble explaining why we need to eat healthy to my daughter.  Beau, like most kids, would prefer chips and fries at every meal.  We got into an argument about breakfast this morning.  She asked what was for breakfast since we had muffins the last 2 mornings.  I told her there are leftover muffins, granola bars, cereal, or toast.  Of course, instead of having a granola bar, she wanted one of Scrappy's high calorie/high fat bars for breakfast.  Then she decided that if she couldn't have one, either could he.  Which started the argument about who is the parent in the house.  Hubby and I then explained to her - again - why Scrappy needs high calorie and high fat foods and she doesn't.  She is a little overweight already - not enough to be concerned about, especially since she's only 9 - but I don't want her to have to go through a lot of what I did dealing with weight problems.  If she can learn healthy eating habits now, it will help her in the long run.  I've been trying really hard to set a good example, including passing on junk food, limiting sweets, planning healthy meals, and being active.  I really don't know what else I can do to help her more....

Another Year

As the year is coming to a close, I look back and came to a realization.  I really didn't do anything this year.  Nothing memorable really.  Basically a year wasted away, days blurring into one another. 

I'm back where I started with my weight loss.  I haven't been to TOPS in 2 months because lack of motivation and because I don't want to deal with one of the nasty old ladies there.

There have been a lot of decisions made.  Now actions need to be taken on the decisions. 

Our house is currently under construction, as we are adding on to the back of the house.  But I don't want the new part to be overrun with junk and crap.  All the chaos has been greatly contributing to my anxiety.  That is why I have taken a little time to find some 'tools' to help me control the chaos.  I'll share more on the specific websites as I apply some of the methods, and report on the effectiveness of the methods.  I know, not everything works for everyone.  I need to figure out what works for me.

Since tomorrow is New Year's Eve, I've already made a list of what my resolutions are for the new year.

1) I am going to give myself designated time to update my blog at least 2x per week.

2) I am going to have office hours at least 1x per week so I can get some work done with my businesses.  Even if it is just filing or sending emails!

3) I'm going to focus more on my weight loss.  I have 3 steps to this:

1. Going back to TOPS weekly - even if it's only for weigh in and I can't stay for the meeting
2. Tracking all of my food and water (since I know I don't drink enough water)
3. Do some sort of exercise every day, even if I can't get to the gym

4)  Organize and PURGE - get rid of stuff!!!  I am already starting on this one.  I have a box started for garage sale stuff, a box for the Epilepsy stuff, and a tote with clothes for my favorite consignment store (the last time I bought stuff there, I paid $0.13 for 2 pairs of like-new jeans for Scrappy since I had money on account from previous sales.)  I've also learned what items she likes, so when I took the last batch in, she kept it all :)  I will definitely be posting pictures!!

5) Spend a little more Me-Time - I want to set up morning and evening routines for myself because a lot of days, my personal stuff is waylaid because of something or another of the kids'. 

The dishes are calling my name and the cupboards aren't emptying themselves.... so onward I go!

Surviving

I survived the weekend.  It was very difficult though!  At TOPS I was down 3 pounds this week, which is encouraging.  When I see progress on the scale, I have more motivation to keep it up.  I've been trying to push myself to get more motivated and exercise more too.  

And now that I have the motivation to go to the gym, I can't.  They are closed for remodeling until Wednesday :(  And I've also found out that a friend of mine goes to the same gym, and we've been missing each other just by an hour out there.  We're going to try coordinating to go together for accountability and motivational purposes.

I have a confession to make.  I had been down a total of 27 pounds not too long after we had lost Baden.  But because of the stress and depression I've been fighting with, I have gained almost all of it back.  As of last weigh in, I am a total of 5 pounds below my starting weight at TOPS, which is my highest weight ever.  And I'm not happy about it.  I do know that being on the 'diabetic diet' does have significant weight loss effects just from when I was on it when I was pregnant.  However, unlike when I was pregnant, I have been able to incorporate exercise into the mix.

Hitting the gym has also helped to deal with more of my stress too.  All the pent-up energy from being angry or frustrated I redirect to my workout.  Since the weather is a bit cooler now, I'm going to try to get out walking in the neighborhood.  Unfortunately I won't be able to multitask and do my reading while I'm walking, so I'll have to make up for that somehow.

I've been trying to plan out my meals to help with keeping my carbs in check.  Saturday I had class and packed a lunch of stir-fried veggies and a little rice to take with me.  For supper we were invited to the campground to eat with my parents and family.  Unfortunately most of what was being served was not on my menu.  I brought my own pork chops and a summer squash since, in addition to the low carbs, the dietitian said "low salt and low fat."   They were serving ribs, corn, potatoes, and cornbread.  I can have potatoes, but I didn't realize they were being served in a creamy gravy.  I took some anyway and scraped most of the sauce off and also had a half ear of corn.  I did take a little bite off of my husband's cornbread, just so I could have a taste.

I'm very proud of myself for not giving in and breaking down.  I did it again on Sunday for lunch when we went to the family reunion too.  I'm still amazed I was able to peel off and give up my crispy chicken skin (my FAVE!!) to my husband.  A few tablespoons of tater tot hotdish, some applesauce, some musk melon.  Like I said, I'm surviving.  It's amazing how easily I've been saying no to some of the things I really love.

The hard thing to give up is my Coke.  If I don't have any, I end up with a horrid migraine.  So I've allowed a compromise:  I use one meal's carbs toward one can of Coke, usually in the morning because I have that and some eggs for breakfast.  My doc has suggested that giving up caffeine will help with my fluid retention problem.  But fall is coming and I love my coffee. I just can't bring myself to drinking decaf.  I think I should be OK as long as I don't add a bunch of carbs in sweeteners/creamers to it.  I'll have to check my Coffeemate, since I have 2 bottles of it.

I suppose - I need to try to get motivated for the day.  Scrappy has preschool orientation tonight and starts preschool on Thursday.  I need to get some laundry done, maybe throw him in the tub, and I really should get my house cleaned up and catch up on dishes.  I can't wait until we start (and finish!) construction so I have a place to actually PUT things!  And I can't wait to get my new office since our contractor has decided to put another room on the 2nd floor!!  This just isn't moving fast enough for me :(  Oh well, good things come to those who wait, right?  Right?

Exhaustipated

I wish I could take credit for that brilliant little word, but I found it on Facebook yesterday - and quite fitting.  I've been up every night, coughing up a lung from some postnasal drainage, so my AMAZING husband decided to let me get some much-needed rest.  I went to bed at 9:30 last night - and didn't get up until 10:30 this morning!!  Needless to say we missed church, but I can definitely say I feel a WHOLE LOT better!!

The last few months have been quite busy and many things have been going on... I'm still trying to sort it all out.  I've met with the counselor at my school a few times.  I've found out that I don't have a fear of failure, but I do have a fear of success.  Who would've thought?  Which explains why I have trouble finishing things I start.  And why I procrastinate on some things.  Or commit self-sabatoge.  Like with Weight Watchers before and TOPS now... I was doing so well, and now I've started backsliding again, making excuses and getting lazy about what I SHOULD be doing.

I've checked a few things off my list, though, with the help of the counselor.

I've applied to Walden University for my Master's degree - MBA self-designed with focus on Project Management and Leadership.

I've also taken the first steps towards becoming truly self-employed.  Actually, I have my first consult with a client tomorrow.  I figured out what I want to do and how I can help people.  My business is to help people get their homes - and their lives - organized and under control.  Each client is like taking on a new 'project.'  I'm pretty excited!!!  I need to come up with a business name though.....

I had to push back my AAS degee completion to next semester now, though.  With Scrappy losing his insurance, I've been extremely overwhelmed with the amount of paperwork I need to do to try to get him on disability.  As a result, I've let a couple classes slide.. and now will need to retake them later :( 

I'm still kinda tired today.... thinking I should go to bed.  Hopefully I have the time (and energy) to update more soon!!!!

Test Results

I went in for my 'annual checkup' last week.  On Friday, I had to go back so I could have a fasting blood test done.  I got a call yesterday morning with the test results.

Not good.

My thyroid levels are low - again.  My doc did send in for a new dosage, so we'll see if that helps.  My good cholesterol is too low, my bad cholesterol and trygs are too high, and my blood sugar is high.  Everything is "just a little" high or low.  According to the nurse practitioner who I'd had my appointment with, most of these issues can be caused just by my thyroid being off.  It could also explain why my anxiety attacks have been more frequent

It's frustrating, especially since losing weight is supposed to help get the numbers back in check.  Even my bp was up a little more than usual at my appointment.

I go back to see my family practice doc in 2 weeks to see if the thyroid meds are helping enough and to determine what to do next.

I'm hoping for another good number at TOPS this week since I'm still being pretty good about watching what I'm eating.  I need to get back to exercising a little bit more than what I have been this past week even though I haven't felt up to it much (another side effect of my thyroid - fatigue).  Last week I dropped 4 1/4 pounds - bringing me back up to a 26 pound loss since I joined last year.  I'm aiming for 30 pounds total by my 1 year anniversary **fingers crossed**

Progress!

Feeling a lot better!  My wonderful hubby brought home some cough drops and real Kleenex for me since my poor nose was so sore from using cheap tissues.  He let me just rest and he wrangled the kids for the night on Wednesday night. 

Even though I still had a little bit of a cough, I still went to TOPS yesterday.  I'm glad I did! I had a good feeling about the weigh in because I've been diligent about tracking everything I eat and been getting workouts in at least 4 times per week.  I aim for a minimum of 30 minutes, but have actually been getting an hour or more most days!!  There are certain show I just LOVE to watch, so I set up the Wii for Free Step and do that while I watch tv.  The maximum time it can be set for is 30 minutes, so sometimes when the 30 minutes is up, I'll reset it for another 20-30 minutes.  It must be working cuz this week I lost 3 1/2 pounds - yay!!!!

My total loss now is at 22 pounds.  The past month and a half before this hadn't been the best, but I'm back on track and hoping to be over the 30 pound mark by my 1 year anniversary with TOPS, which is March 24.  I think I can do it!!!

I've stopped using http://www.fitday.com/ because most of the food values need to entered manually and it's too time consuming trying to figure out all of the calorie counts.  A friend referred me to another website which is now in my 'favorites' bar and is an absolute necessity for me - http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ .  I love that you can join discussion boards and request friends.  It also has an extensive database of foods already entered, as well as exercises.  The daily goal already has subtracted out the calories needed for weight loss.  If you have extra calories left at the end of the day, or you 'earn' extra calories by exercising, it tells you how much weight-loss progress you would make over the next 5 weeks.  If you haven't checked it out, I highly recommend it.

I invite anyone reading this (if there is) to try out http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ for ONE WEEK and see what kinds of results it gives you!  Feel free to send me a 'friend request' (yes it's kinda like facebook in that) at mindy_shs.

And now I'm off to cram on my homework - I've been procrastinating too much on it lately, and now it's due tomorrow :(

Finally winter? and Scrappy's surgery

The house is settling down after a busy week.  I feel like I'm finally getting caught up on the sleep I missed this week, but my whole sleep schedule is out the window :/

Tuesday night I had to call the hospital to find out what time Scrappy's surgery was.  Beau was going to stay at my sister's for the night since we usually have a 6am report time and Beau still had school.  (She's already missed enough.  I kept her home all of Thanksgiving week because it was a short week and we were trying to prepare the kids for what to expect at the funeral.)  We tentatively planned for her to stay there Wednesday night too since we didn't know if the surgery would be inpatient or outpatient (it was initially scheduled for outpatient).  Very glad we, too!!

He was scheduled to report at 12:30 pm.  Most adults would have trouble fasting that long, let alone a 3 1/2 year old!  He couldn't have anything after 4:30 am, and I wasn't sure how we were going to handle it at first.  After discussing it with my hubby, we decided to keep Scrappy up as late as possible.  Then he would be able to eat later and would hopefully sleep until we had to leave.  And it worked!  He crashed about 2 am and slept until we woke him up to get him ready.  Long story short, because of an emergency being squeezed in ahead of him, Scrappy didn't end up getting taken back for surgery until 4:30pm.  We felt so bad for the little guy, not being able to eat or drink anything.  Since he got out of surgery so late, he ended up being inpatient.

Of course, he didn't want to sleep in the big hospital bed by himself - he wanted Mommy to snuggle with him.  That was one of the worst night's sleep I've had in a long time - only being able to sleep on one side, being woken several times a night either by nurses checking on him, giving him nebby treatments, or him kicking me.  I looked forward to sleeping in my own bed Thursday night.  He ended up sleeping between us so he wouldn't bump his nose on anything and so we could keep him elevated.  Here's Scraps with his Buppy (puppy-bear), who went into surgery with him

And Big Bear.

For the next 2 weeks, the little man is supposed to take it easy - no rough housing or overexertion.  Which means no playing in the snow we finally got.  I'm not sure of the official count, but as of 8:30 am yesterday we had 4 inches of snow, and it kept snowing lightly all day.

This is the view out our back door.

I was hoping things would turn around yesterday and I'd get a much-needed break in luck.  I had no plans to leave the house since Beau was home because of Staff Development Day.

Yeah right.  I should know better.

It seemed most things I tried to do yesterday backfired on me.  I went out to try to snow blow the patio, driveways, and sidewalks since hubby had been at work all day.  I tried several times but just couldn't get it started, so I gave up and shoveled some by hand.  When hubby got home, he got it started right away (apparently the circuit to the outlet wasn't turned on.  I didn't know it wasn't on).  When I came in from shoveling, I thought coffee sounded great - and then the filter capsized and got grounds in my coffee :/  Grrrr.

Comfort food for supper - potato soup and baking powder biscuits.... Made them so many times, didn't think I could ever mess those two up.

Hahaha - again, yeah right!

I was distracted talking to my buddy while I was making the biscuits - and totally screwed them up by not adding enough flour.  Of course, I didn't realize it until after I added the liquids.  So instead of light and fluffy biscuits, they were kinda flat.  At least they still tasted good!!

The conversation I'd been having all day with my kids continued after my buddy left and I was finishing up the soup.

Beau: MOOOOM!!  Scrappy is doing it again (annoying her or getting into something of hers)
Me:  Scrappy stop it!
Scrappy: Mommy! My want UP!
Me:  I'm trying to ______ (make supper).  Go play with your (monster trucks/cars/puzzles/trains)
Scrappy:  My not like you.  My want Daddy.
Beau: MOM!  He's doing it again!!
and on and on and on.

As a result of Mama being distracted, thickening up the soup didn't go as planned.  I thought it looked kind of odd as I added the corn starch to the soup - why was it foaming up so much?  And it's not thickening up - how much more do I need to add.

Then I looked in my hand - and realized I had grabbed the baking powder instead of the corn starch!  Really?? UGH!  At least the soup still came out tasting good.

Today Scrappy had a bit of a fever and hubby worked all day, so we just had a quiet day at home.  I didn't get much done today, but that's ok.  I got my workout in - I only missed Wednesday and Thursday doing them this week, but have done more than an hour most other days :)  Looking forward to TOPS weigh in next week!!

Feeling Refreshed!

I really needed to get caught up on my sleep - it's been a rough week!!  Tuesday we had all-day appointments for Scrappy, plus I had my checkup in the morning.  We had to be there at 7 am, so I'd been up since 3:30 am.  No wonder I was crashed in my recliner by 9 pm!! 

Scrappy's appointments were just his normal CF checkups, an ENT appointment, and an audiogram.  His hearing still isn't where it should be, so they decided he does need another set of tubes put in.  He will also be having another nasal polypectomy and bronchial lavage.  This will be his 2nd set of tubes, 3rd polypectomy and lavage, and 4th surgery in less than 4 years.  The ENT also ordered a head CT for Wednesday so she could see if his sinuses were congested with polyps too.  His surgery is scheduled for next Wednesday, the 18th, and is planned to be an outpatient procedure unless she does goe up into his sinuses more.  Praying for a simple procedure and no complications!!

We had to be at the hospital at 8am for his CT, so that meant being up at 5am on Wednesday.  Poor little man had to fast until after it was completed.  Second day in a row that he had to fast from midnight until his first procedure - not fun for him or for us either!!  They had to give him anesthesia to do the CT because he was terrified of the machine!  Because of this, he didn't go in to CT until 1015.  It seemed to take forever for him to come out of it.  He started vomiting up mucus and stomach acid, since his stomach was empty.  That made for a really long ride home!  About 3pm his tummy finally settled down and he came out of it enough that he could eat.

My OB cleared me at my appointment!  I couldn't have a complete workout because of the untimely 'visitor,' but my doc told me I could have the last part of my checkup done at our local clinic.  She asked if we were planning to have another child.  I told her we would like to once we got the go-ahead from her health-wise.  She would like me to try to lose a little more weight in the meantime, which I have been working on anyway, but said as long as my last test comes back ok, there's no reason we can't start trying.  I'm supposed to start taking prenatal vitamins now too in preparation.

Being at the hospital 2 days in a row took a toll on my diet :(  At TOPS this week I had a 3 pound gain.  In addition to the eating out, I didn't get my workouts in for the past week since Scrappy hasn't been feeling very well and wanted to constantly cuddle.  Today I was back at it hard again.  I was vacuuming and picked up the mat in the living room, and left it up so I could try out Zumba.  I did about 5 minutes of it and OUCH!  I'm not coordinated - I'm sure it would give anyone a good laugh!

I set up my Wii Fit to do the entire routine - 81 minutes!  Scrappy was getting a little crabby with me and wanted to play.  I told him if he can't wait patiently for his turn, he wasn't going to get a turn.  I'm sure I'll be sore tomorrow.  It's going to be difficult to get my workout in tomorrow - I have class in 8-2 but am leaving early so I can go to a funeral for a friend.  Very sad for someone to die so young :'(

Another new challenge I've set up for myself in cooking - try one new recipe each week.  I get tired of the same stuff each week and am looking to branch out... Hopefully I'll get some new ideas soon!!

Nature's Identity Crisis

I don't think nature realizes it's January - in Minnesota.  We had a record high of 52 yesterday, and it was still quite warm today - in the 40's!!  Where is all the snow???  I really want to go cross country skiing, but until we get some of that white stuff, that's not going to happen.  Rumor has it we might get some next week.  Wonder if it will stick around?

Scrappy went with me to TOPS on Thursday and I only stayed for weigh in (I gained a pound.  I'm getting a little frustrated since it seems like working out doesn't have much effect.  I know, I know.  Patience).  He was still running a fever (with no other symptoms) which finally broke this afternoon, so he couldn't go to the sitter's.  Since we were out of the house to take Beau to school anyway, I had a few errands that just could not wait any longer - I'd already put them off long enough!  (I also told Scrappy if he was a good boy during all our running, Mommy would buy him a donut on the way home!)

After TOPS, the first stop was the grocery store. 9 am is the perfect time to go because, of course, they had just put out a bunch of "Reduced for Quick Sale" items and were still bringing more over.  Now, I stocked up pretty well last time I went shopping but figured, since I had to get milk, eggs, other WIC things, and cat food and litter.  Found some pretty good meat deals again.  3 packages of dark meat chicken quarters (2 per package, $0.89/lb), 2 pork roasts ($1.99/lb), 2 small packages pork tenderloin medallions (2 per package, about $1.50/pkg), and a package 3 bone-in pork chops (about $2.50).  These were really good discounts when looking at the prices of the same items that were not reduced. (I won't be needing to buy meat for a while!)

After the grocery store, we still had a little while before our appointment at the consignment store, so we went to Shopko to pick up 6 prescriptions, then the college to pick up my books.  They only cost $144, but there was a HUGE stack of them.  I didn't have to buy books for 2 of my classes since I already have them from last semester (I failed 2 classes last semester because of my health problems and ultimately our loss of our Little Warrior - but I am appealing these F's since I believe I have a good reason, as does my advisor.) 

When we were done at the college, it was time to go to the consignment store.  I know from past experience that they have a limit of 50 items to be consigned at a time, so I took everything that I had sorted our already.  This was the equivalent of an 18 gallon tote.  I was very surprised that, other than an unopened package of beads, an unopened puzzle, and an old Halloween costume, they took everything.  I was told that if I bring the costume back in the fall, they'll take it then.  Yay!!

The last stop before going to get Scrappy's donut (yes, I delivered on that promise!) was at the funeral home.  I wrote a lot of thank you notes, but ran out.  As part of their service, they provided us with thank you notes. (too bad postage wasn't included!)  I got 2 boxes, although I doubt I'll need all of them... better safe than sorry, right?

Since hubby had to work late last night, we kept supper easy - mac and cheese and hot dogs.  So healthy, right?  But I tend to treat the kids with some of their favorites when he's not home, and work towards making fuller meals when he is.  I prefer if he doesn't have to worry so much about what's for supper since he's the one working full-time.

We really needed something different tonight.  The same old thing gets tiring after a while.  I had noticed when cleaning out the cupboards that I had been finding quite a few taco seasoning packets.  I've also been hungry for Spanish rice.  This made the supper decision easy!  I had kept out 2 packages of the chicken quarters wondering what I should do with them.  Chicken tacos with Spanish rice!  Turned out pretty good too!  Beau's always a big eater, but hubby enjoyed 4 tacos.  Even Scrappy was munching on the meat, and he's very picky.

I bet that chicken would be good on a salad... hmmm....

Checking things off

Yesterday was a much more motivating day - well, at least the morning was!  As normal, I start my Thursday morning with my TOPS meeting.  I gained 1.25 lbs this week, but I guess that's not too bad considering it was over Christmas.  Coulda been worse!!!  Especially if I wouldn't have had my workouts in!  I didn't get them everyday, but did get them more often than not.  I was just a couple pounds short of my 25 pound year-end goal - I finished the year's meetings down a total of 22.5 pounds.  Not bad considering I was pregnant most of that time!  Time to think about what my goal should be for the next year since we do a 'rededication' at the first January meeting.  I definitely want to hit the 25 pound mark before my 1 year anniversary with TOPS, which is March 24 (Beau's birthday!)

**When I was getting ready to go to my TOPS meeting, I went out to start the car and realized I didn't have my Bluetooth with.  I had left it on the counter since the battery was dead.  Since I was going to be in the car, I prefer to use it so my hands are free.  I went back in the house and was looking all over the counter and couldn't find it at first.  Then I found an old key chain that had been hanging on the hooks over the counter.  The key chain was laying on my Bluetooth.  It was a Guardian Angel key chain. I think someone was leaving me a sign that he knew I was thinking of him :) **

I got a lot done yesterday too!!  I went to my favorite consignment store, where I thought I had about $6 on credit, cuz Scrappy needs another pair of jeans (I recently realized having only 1 pair of jeans is not sufficient for him since khakis don't match everything and sweatpants aren't always appropriate.)  Turns out I had over $10 - a nice surprise!  Since it is the end of the year, she cut me a check for my credits, which I used to pay for his jeans ($5 for a pair of almost new Wranglers?  Works for me!)  I made an appointment while I was there to bring some stuff in next week.  I was surprised she got me in so soon since it's normally 1-2 months out!!  She's looking for 'springtime' stuff, and will always take jeans.  Since cleaning out my storage unit, I've found a lot of clothes that didn't sell at my past garage sales.  These things would be perfect to take up there - just have to make sure they're washed first.  And she has a limit of 50 items per appointment, so once I sort through the clothes I'll have to count what I have.  I know I'll need to make an appointment to take in some summer stuff, maybe a second appointment for spring stuff and/or jeans.  My appointment is for January 5.  The Epilepsy Foundation will be picking up on January 4, so anything I'm not taking to consignment is going to them.  Hubby reminded me to go through the stuff up to 2T so that if/when we have another little one, we have some clothes for him/her.  I found a few old onesies belonging to Scraps that I'm going to hold on to.  I have an 18 gallon tote full of maternity and baby clothes along with other miscellaneous items, like bottles, liners, pumping equipment, etc. 

After the consignment shop, I headed to pay the balance on the property taxes and picked up the other 5 cans of Scrappy's DuoCal.  Went to Shopko to pick up his prescription, but turns out insurance won't cover the saline nebulizer solution.  It's only $19 for 100 vials though.  Too bad I only had $5 on me though, so I couldn't pick it up.

I called hubby as I was leaving town to see if he had plans for lunch since I was coming to town to get the kids.  He didn't so he ordered pizzas to be ready when I got to town since Grammy and Opa had treated us last week and since they had watched the kids.  I told hubby I had a doctor's appointment in the afternoon, so just asked if he stop and pick up the meds on his way home.  (As it turned out, insurance wouldn't cover mine prescription either, so they had to find a generic and order it in for next day delivery.)

I've been having a lot of pain in my side, next to where my incision is, and there doesn't seem to be any logical reason.  There's no redness and there's no actual injury (cut, rash, anything).  And I didn't know if my incision was healing since I've had a yeast infection in the skin around it.  My doc was out, so I saw is Physician's Assistant.  The yeast infection seems to be clearing up, there is one small spot on my incision that is still open, but looks ok, and he couldn't feel or see anything that would leave him to believe I had an infection.  He thinks the pain is due to nerve damage from the surgery.  We are going to try a topical cream to see if that helps.  If it doesn't, then we'll try with a pill.  I told him I just need something to get through until I have my next OB appointment at Mayo on January 10.  So we'll see what happens.  (I'll have to wait until hubby gets home though.  I have anxiety issues when driving in bad weather - it started raining about the time I went to bed last night, and now has turned to snow.  Which means the roads are slick.  And there are too many idiots out there.  He can just pick it up on his way  home - hopefully!)

By the time we got home, I just wanted to relax.  I was exhausted, but I'm sure it's because I had such awful heartburn I didn't get to bed until after 2, then Scraps woke me up at 6:30.  I love my kids, don't get me wrong, but sometimes I just wish they would sleep - or at least let me sleep.  I was trying to nap while they were watching cartoons and putting puzzles together, but every time I closed my eyes, all I hear is "Mo-om!" as Beau loves to make it into a 2 syllable word. Grrr.  I didn't do anything after getting home except to make supper then lounge again in my recliner.  After hubby got home, I did nap a little bit, then read a little before heading to bed.  My whole body just ached and I didn't know why - just hoped I wasn't getting sick!!

I guess missing a workout really does show!  I didn't do my workout Wednesday because of the all the work with the freezer/refrigerator, and yesterday was too busy and I was too tired.  This morning the kids were begging to play their Monster Jams Wii game, so I figured I better get my workout done before they take over the TV.  I used it as bribery for treatments this morning too :)  So while Scrappy did his vest, I did 51 minutes on the Fit Plus - and I was sweating :)  And my body feels SO much better - especially my back!!

I need to get lunch going for the kids - we're having leftovers.  Going to make an easy supper too - a Banquet family meal we have in the freezer.  Then I can get a little more done around the house today without having to worry about making a mess or taking much time on supper.  Have a lot of sorting to do before the EF comes to pick up! (Plus, since they take stuff in garbage bags, I'll be cleaning out some totes so I have more of them to use for other things!!)

A Sign From Above

Today was a TOPS day - and the second to last weigh in for the year.  I'm in that area that is 'dangerous territory' for me.  Yeah, I gained the last 2 weigh ins before this one - a little over 4 pounds in 2 weeks.  This week I LOST 2 pounds - yay!!  As of Dec 1, I was down a total of 26.25 pounds, but I was also just back to TOPS and just starting to recover from my surgery and had dropped 20 pounds in about 2 weeks (not exactly healthy even considering I had just had a baby!!)  My goal for this year is to be at the -25 pound mark at the end of the year.  At Weight Watchers, I had a difficult time when I got close to the 25 pound mark - I kinda freaked myself out and blew it.  I don't know why.  I think maybe I'm afraid of success?  It happens often when I get close to some big accomplishment.  Self sabotage.

I haven't had the best day today, but it hasn't been the worst either.  Beau is home from school for Winter Break.  She goes back on Jan 3.  I am looking forward to sleeping in a bit.  I'm exhausted today!!  I didn't get my workout in.  I have been doing it in the morning, but this morning was too busy.  And by the time I got home this afternoon, I was too exhausted.  I guess I stayed up too late last night working :(

After TOPS, I had some errands to run before going to pick up the kids and hubby.  Then we went to the cemetery to visit our Little Warrior and to take his beautiful Christmas wreath out.  A good friend from TOPS decorated it for us.

I know he was watching over us today... he gave us a sign.  The cemetery where he is buried - near much of my family - is on it's own road on the North side of town.  The road does not lead anywhere else.  Today has been quite a cloudy day, but as we turned onto the cemetery road, the sun came out from behind the clouds.  I looked at my husband and told him that I know our Little Warrior was watching over us and knows that we were there.  In spite of the biting cold wind, the sun stayed out until we left there.  Honestly, it gave me a peace.  I know it's only his physical body there at the cemetery, but I felt a lot closer to him there.  We are going to my grandma's for Christmas Day, so we are going to stop out there to wish him a Merry Christmas too.  Here are some pictures of my angel during his brief stay here on earth....

Isn't that just the proudest looking Daddy??  I remember the look on his face very clearly when the doctor held our little guy up.... in spite of the scrubs and surgical mask (emergency c-section), I could tell my dear husband was very proud and was smiling so large.

He is my best friend and the most amazing man I could ever ask for :)  If I had to go through all of this, there's no one I'd rather have by my side than him <3

I don't know if it's because of our loss and the struggles we've been going through, or if aliens have abducted my husband and replaced him with a facsimile, or what exactly, but I'm not going to complain.  He has been a lot more attentive/cuddly/loving towards me lately.  Yeah, we snuggle at night and in the morning a little, but usually not too much.  He says he's not a 'huggy/kissy type of person."  But lately it seems he's become much more affectionate and doesn't mind PDAs as much as he used to.  Who is he and what has he done with MY husband?? haha!!  Shhh - I didn't say that!  I like it and I hope it lasts!!!