Uber: Great news with all of the clothes NSV's! That's always so fun to be able to shop in normal sizes. I had made it down to where the 16's were getting pretty loose, but I think being solidly in a size 14 pant would be amazing! Hope you continue to enjoy your summer!
Lemon: I've heard that some of the predictions are for an early and heavy snow winter for us. We desperately need more snow this year, but definitely not ready to be thinking about cold weather. While I am tiring of the 98-100 degree weather, I'd love to enjoy some lower 90's and 80's!!!
As for me, the weekend was good. It is just so hot, it makes it hard to do much outside. Hiking is on hold and that makes me a little sad. I'd have to go super early to hike, but I'm not into rushing around on the weekend. So, holding on to maintenance for now, I hope. I just don't need to lose all progress in the next week or so. I do plan to get back to doing more when I get back from the long weekend trip to my parents', but for now.... coasting.
Lemon- Chickens are easy peasy. I did lots of research on Backyard chickens. com And a few other web sites. they have great forums like here but for everything chickens and other birds. Personally I clean their coops twice a year. once in the spring and then again in the fall. I Never clean out during winter because all the "Leavings" acts as insilation. Chickens are pretty cold hardy too, normally all you would need to do is break the ice on their water every morning. Some spoil their birds with warm oatmeal. Haha!
Anyways, have a look around the chicken sites and take a look. Their easy to care for. It was considered a chore for the small children. Just look out for mean roosters if you get one. They don't mix well with small children.
The trees are doing well. The apricot is struggling a bit in this heat. (109 today)
Ubergirl- yeah predators are a pain for chicken people. We have coyotoes, snakes and hawks in my area but I'm thankful that I haven't had any issues with them. You can still keep chickens if you're willing to do a bit extra with the coop. People deal with coyotes, racoons, foxes and even badgers @.@ but a good secure coop will make all the difference.
Slashnl - How cute!
I've always wanted to raise my own turkey for Thanksgiving. Since they need a different diet than chickens we would need to build a seperate coop.
One day.
Weekend was so so for me. I did well resisting all the yummies at a giant mexican birthday party. My man, not so much. He was no match for the Potluck of mexican food. But he did well. I stuck with water. I had just woken up and I never feel like eating for hours after waking up. So that helped. I haven't weighed myself, I've decided to avoid the scale on the weekends.
With the heat wave we're having right now, I like to treat my chickens to cold fruit and veggies in a tray of cold water. Hopefully they ride out the heat wave without a hitch.
Sakai: thank you for the info on the chickens. My concern with winter is we can have -20–40 below in winter w windchills and I didn’t know if that would make them angry and crazy? I don’t even know if we can have them in our little town and I’d have to ask. The kid likes those crazy polish types w the big fluff ball of feathers on their heads.
Diane: did you ever find the chickens who may multi color eggs? I had read w some chickens it’s because of the dirt they ingest in their diets. Have safe travels and lots of fun w family! Fair stuff is in. Now the wait!
Uber: are you coming into the brownout? I keep seeing in Cali that people are to sit in the dark. I’m currently in the dark but I have my tv on, my ac, coffeepot and ceiling fans. Does that count for sitting in the dark? I hope you and Mom are having a good time.
Toasted: how is your challenge going? And your rains?
Hello all!
Am: I thought about hopping on the scale and kept on walking. I thought about doing a day w a fast to start and ate a graham cracker. I’m guessing today is not a diet day and I’m ok with that. I’m running fast w the kids to make sure they are getting to their places and lessons and w/some coordinating w their gramps to help run them (gives him something to do and allows him kid time which he enjoys). And my weight, well will get it going again once things slow down some for me.
Starting to do some planning for this destination wedding. I hope all goes well. I had thought I’d be svelte way back when I said sure to going however not the case. I was just reading an article how they are finding plus size ladies are rockin bikinis and those thin are very slow to embrace unless the body shape is toned and well, perfect in their eyes. I however am not one of those plus ladies. I’d like to have that much moxie. I do not but cheers to those who can. But it’s still a bit of a thought that if I get into the 100s again I’ll do it at least once - or if the belly pad finally leaves. Hah!
Ok I’m off to start the day - the coffee is in me. I need to do a lot today from running to pt w the kid, cleaning (always cleaning I must have the messiest house or the messiest family - controlled chaos? Who knows), getting bills paid etc. lots to do! And I should scrub my kitchen floor. It’s been mocking me for weeks. I need 12 of me this week w fair and all!
Lemon- There are some pretty cold hardy breeds. Wyandottes for one. Welsummer, Rhode Island Reds do well. If people can keep chickens in alaska then I'm sure they'll be okay.
Yes I would be a good Idea to look up the laws in your area about chickens. In my town we can have them (And roosters too) they just can't free range. they must always be contained. So they have a large run to strech their legs
Next year I'll be looking for some blue or olive egg layers I just love having various colored eggs. and they dye amazingly for easter.
Speaking of the birds, my chickens survived the first day of the heat wave. We got lucky in that a thunderstom moved in at the hottest time of day and cooled us off. Only today and tomorrow to get through. and then hopefully no more.
I weighed myself after work, I'll most likely weigh myself again (officall weigh in) when I wake up. I gained my customary 2 pounds over the weekend. I'm still trying to break this habit.
Sakai: is yornarea threatened with fires as well? I see they closed Yosemite, but still that whole area of the country just reads like a tinder box w the heat you have. Stay safe keep those chickens happy and y’all safe!
Diane: have safe travels and lots of fun!
Hello all!
I sit here and I’m trying to work my way back to IF. I have been out weeding for about an hour and half and will go back out after the kids go as my ILS are taking the kids to swim and then on to fun day with them. I’ve got watering and planting and weeding to do. Everything in the ground is struggling so.
So I’m trying. Will see if I can slowly do this and maybe tomorrow I will weigh in.
Lemon- Oh yeah, we're always threatened with wildfires. I know we have a few burning in the state right now. The threat is pretty much year round but it gets pretty bad in June when It's hot and low humidity. Today was hot (109 in my area, 116 in Phoneix.) but the humidity is high -ish so more people are worried about flash floods and heat stroke right now than fire. The birds did well and it may rain tonight which will help cool things off a bit more for tomorrow.
I also really need to get back to IF. Eating at the end of the day really is just a habit now. I'm not hungry 90% of the time. The scale is teasing me a bit now. It dropped to a new low only to bounce back up the next day. @.@ I blame the large dinner before bed. It's time to stop that. I have my massive selection of teas to drink. I just need to sip on those and focus on something else for a few hours before bed.
This weekend my man and I plan on having a diet-friendly picnic up in the mountains. I haven't been up there since the fire last year. Our favorite site survived, but I heard that the last rain damaged some of the roads up there. It's a super dodgy drive,(With one side of the road basically a cliff off the side of the mountain) so iffy roads make me nervous. I still want to try and get to our site, although I know my man will be happy with any of them. He's been down again as of late due to a hiccup that caused him to stop his medication cold turkey for 5 days. But it's been fixed, but the effects are lingering a bit.
Sakai: it would be wonderful if we could stick to our diet Nd continually make the numbers move downward never up. I’m glad you are planning a nice weekend. I’d be freaking out on the drive! I like to feel safe! I once went over that crazy high bridge in md that tall ships can sail under harry something - I thought I WAS GOING TO DIE a two lane road really no shoulder. Total freak out. Got off the darn thing and found you could actually hire someone to drive you across. I think at that point I’d rather sit in traffic
Hello!
Am: went shopping today and feel I spent way too much money. Getting ready for school and the grocery. Forgot a lot like usual! I didn’t get a lot of produce as the gardens are producing! Which is fine because the prices are high right now. I don’t know if it’s gas prices, the heat or fire out west - but things are expensive.
Yep - I’ll keep up w IF as I can - but I’ll just coast it’s the best I can do. School starts Tuesday after Labor Day - but until then I’ll try where I can.
Just a quick hello! Weight is meh and outlook today kind of joins it. I wish we all had switches to just turn off as needed. Currently that’s not possible.
Have a good weekend all. Sorry I have no optimism to spread today - just do your best.
Hey guys, last week was a little crazy. I applied for a research fellowship thing and got last minute notification that I was selected and had to go for a research methodology training workshop which was pretty hectic, so I wasn't able to check in. It's a health policy sort of fellowship and not really my special area of public health being more a community-working, health communication project-implementing type but it's interesting and I basically have one month and a mini grant to do some research and writing that contributes to the body of knowledge- eep! Mind, this month includes the GREs and my regular work as well so it's a bit scary, but I'm excited. Travel threw me off my exercise challenge plan a bit but by doing 2-a-days since I got back, I've finally caught up this morning and I'm on track for Week 4. I feel a lot stronger, my upper body and core strength have improved- I definitely see a difference. The unfortunate part is that I've been stress eating and so my diet has not been the best. It seems like I struggle to do both components of weight loss well- it's either my eating is on point but my exercise is crapacious or vice-versa. Le Sigh, y'all. Anyway, I'm determined to be positive and I'm excited about getting stronger and being in a workout routine that is challenging but doable- the benefits of being a higher weight is that I have moderately okay-looking boobs and booty whereas usually it's rock in a sock and y'know Team Lil' Booties Matter, the down side is that I also have a belly and rolls and no clothes to wear so....
Lemon: I don't have my Amazon package yet. My shipping/logistics company has received everything and shipped it to me but it takes a little bit for things to go through customs and clear on this end. I'm looking at doctoral programs and I'm super nervous- I look at things I wrote during my Masters 10 years ago and I sounded soooo academic and smart then... that's certainly not required for real life but I've always wanted to do it, so instead of just talking about it, I'm going to try and apply this coming cycle... Or at least get rid of my excuse for not having a valid GRE result. Re changing decor, to be honest, I'm a creature of habit- I was sad when my parents changed their fancy family room area rug last month after 13 years... But then again, we live in a child-free environment (I'm the youngest and there are no grandkids yet) so stuff tends to stay looking new-ish for a while. If you're sick of your decor, I vote changing it. You want to be excited about your home. Are you looking forward to or not looking forward to school starting? What do you have coming out of your garden right now?
Sakai: 4 lbs down this month is fabulous! And even better at reaching a significant mini goal!!! 116 degrees??!!!! Wowwww! I will NEVER complain about heat again. I'll accept my year-round 80s and 80-90% humidity!
Diane: I get you with the mindset challenges. Summer is kind of weird and I think sometimes it's okay to coast a bit and re-energize mentally for the journey. 100+ Degree days???!!! Eeeeek! Are you getting any hiking in at all! Sending you super airconditioned thoughts. I hope you had a good trip visiting family.
Uber: Yay the NSVs! :Carrot: :Carrot: :Carrot: Being in non-plus sizing opens up a lot of options! Well done you! I used to be not bad at math but I've had no reason to know prime factors or to solve polynomials or do trig or probability in a really long time so I spend ages trying to remember and figure stuff out. Hopefully practice drills will help. The issue is finding time to do the drills. I hope you're enjoying your last couple of weeks vacationing before your son gets back and that your hip feels better soon.
Sakai: So, how was the picnic? That sounds like a fun time, even with the road issues. Hopefully your scale cooperates better and you see some nice drops. It is difficult when you're in a routine of eating each night and you want to break that. But I think your idea about the tea is a good one!
Lemon: Are you still planting things right now or is it mainly weeding and such? The peaches in our area are ready now, so that's an awesome thing! Tomatoes are back, too, so that makes me very happy. I need to can some tomatoes this year. I am putting it off until August, hoping that the weather cools down. It is a hot process anyway, and I don't want to make it miserable too.
Toasted: Good for you with all of your plans to further your academics. I would be terrified to tackle that!!! But, I'm basically lazy now, so it would be tough to gear up for studying and all. Oh, and no... I haven't been hiking at all. It needs to come down a few degrees before I try it again. I hope to keep up strength by going to the gym. I think if I put a bigger incline on the treadmill, it might help. Might also try the stair machine, although I didn't like it before.
As for me, I'm back after a nice 4 day weekend. I was totally off plan for food and just enjoyed it all. What kills me is that I came back with a loss on the scale. Really? After all that eating? It might just be that I'm a little dehydrated since I wasn't drinking water like I usually do. We'll see.
But, I'm ready to get back on track with it all. I didn't go to the gym this morning since I am also coming out of a cold/cough thing, but I do plan to go back tomorrow. I'm also getting back on track with food. Even though I had a loss after the eating weekend, I know that isn't sustainable.
My Dad is going to have some procedures done and what the doctor said meant a lot to me. My Dad is 80, but he is very active. The doctor told him that the procedure will work better for him that other people since he is in such good health overall. That hit home with me. I would hate to cause myself more problems as I age because I am too overweight. I need to keep going and get this weight off. It is hard, but even in those times of not losing much, I just have to make myself stick with it. So, I hope to keep that going!!!!
diane: isn't it funny how one simple statement can change ones outlook? Good luck on the reigniting the fire for you! You can do this!
Toasted: good grief - I am certainly anticipating the back to school - my youngest will be going all day! FINALLY Don't get me wrong, I have tons to do around and near me. But really I'd love to be a sloth the day they go to school. Like Miss Muffet - I'll sit on my tuffet! No really - I will be busy w/stuff - and I have a lot of it.
Hello all!
Today was kind of a struggle in thoughts type day - I am overwhelmed w/a few bills that keep changing - as in the clinic has a new software and it's not user friendly by any means and just keeps changing the total due so when you go to pay it doesn't coincide w/ones budget. They need to clean it up and I sent them an email because I am sick and tired of worrying if what I sent in will cover the bill. And then I don't get some things the school district is doing and I had my teeth cleaned today and my mouth hurts something awful - Though I do take fairly good care of my teeth everything is sore today and I should just go take an ibuprofen but I am a more - let it wear through the day type gal.
My house is a mess - when is it not? I have laundry about done and I'd love to just move from room to room tidying. However w/my crew there is never a simple tidy.
And my weight - I am bouncing between 230-35. Didn't I say so long to that decade? Evidently not too well. So, once I get things under control, my walking space cleaned up AGAIN and a dedicated outlook to loss - then I will try to walk it on down again. Throw in weddings, birthdays and holidays - woot - I bet you I might just stall back out like I did last year. Except w/the winter vacay i walked 5-10 miles a day. Hah. I ate and lost weight then got home and ate lots.
Oh and my garden - tomatoes are coming in but good. I got a basket full from my ILS so I will be making salsa tomorrow morning. Nothing like fresh salsa. I enjoy that!
Making salsa this am! Only a small batch, have to work with the tomatoes that were ready and these were! But the house smells good and spicy and that's what you need when you are squirreling away foods for the winter. Besides when I have my salsa with my egg when it's -20 below - it's a pop of color and a burst of sunshine all at once in my mouth and for my eyes. WOOT.
Weight - totally stinks. Weighed myself after my risotto dinner - ugh - well I will be busy and trying hard once these kids go back to school. It'd be nice to finally break into 219 but that I have not achieved in YEARS.
hah
ok - you all have good day - I am here for moral support and cheering on. Just know I am the slow coaster right now!
Lemon: If I were you, I would definitely take a rest day on the first day of school!!! Heck yes! Might be the break you need! The salsa sounds wonderful, by the way!
As for me, not a good day of food yesterday. Not sure how that happened. But, I need to be better today. I didn't go to the gym again today. I'm just not feeling great with this cold/cough thing. So, hopefully, I can heal up from that and get back to it tomorrow. It is hardest overnight with coughing. Ugh!
Morning all!
The picnic went great. The roads were perfect. We saw lots of deer and even a fawn. I packed too much for the picnic out of habit. Enough for 4 more people @.@ we ate until full and put the rest aside for the meal that evening. We went on a bit of a hike, tried to identify some mushrooms. Ate wild raspberries and gooseberries, Sat next to a lovely brook for a bit. It was a nice time.
The scale went up, as per usual. I'm already drinking my tea and saw a 2 pound drop this morning. So It still works.
My eggs are one day away from harching. I'm basically staring at the incubator seeing if an egg with shake or rock or any sign of life.
At the start of the year I wanted to be more orginized so I started a bullet journal. It's loads of fun, But I stopped doing it in March because I got lazy. So Since it's the first tomorrow, I picked it back up and started again. It's almost all done and ready for this new month.
I hope you and Mom are having a good time. 
but cheers to those who can. But it’s still a bit of a thought that if I get into the 100s again I’ll do it at least once - or if the belly pad finally leaves. Hah!
