Gayle, I was surprised to hear that you are not yet 60. I guess because you are retired I assumed you were already at retirement age, but I guess retirement age can be whenever you want it to be. DH retired when he was 59, also. He was home by himself for 8 years before I finally retired. I thought it would be hard with both of us home all the time but we manage to stay out of each other's hair.

Love2garden, when I had shingles, I was in severe pain for a few days before the blisters came out. I didn't know what was causing the pain but I thought I was dying. After I got the meds the pain wasn't so bad, and I went back to work after 3 days. The pain after that was tolerable, but lasted several months off and on. DH refused to take the meds so he was in horrible pain and it lasted a long time after that. It was around his chest. To this day, if he puts his cell phone in his chest pocket he gets a burning pain after a while. They say not to keep your phone close to your body anyway. Those young girls who put them in their bra are asking for trouble down the line.

Just got home from the retirees brunch and shopping. For brunch and i ordered 2 crepes which contained cottage cheese and strawberries on the side. The lady next to me and I wished they had mixed the strawberries with the cottage cheese. It was good but too much cottage cheese. I would not order again.

I got some art/craft supplies for my granddaughter. May go out tomorrow for a shorts and tank top or something but I'm tired of shopping for today.

Love2Garden - The dish my dil described was tortitos made with steak. The way she described it sounded very fresh and good. She said the steak was very tender and there was not all the usual cheese on it. I may have the name wrong or spelled wrong because when I tried to google for it all that came up was tostada. I do remember thinking that I saw it on the menu and I think I will recognize it when I see it on the menu. Tried to bring up the restaurants menu but it was not readable no matter how large I made it. No matter what dish I get I am going to ask for them to leave the cheese off or just a tiny bit. Glad your dental visit went well. I have had a few hygienists like the talky one you described too.

Did I tell you guys about Serial? It is a murder mystery in serial podcasts, I love mysteries so I enjoy listening to it...You can listen online or on an ipod or whatever device that supports audio I guess. I just listen online. So far I am really stumped as to who did it..:D I just continue to do other things...work on my budget, post or whatever while I listen.
http://serialpodcast.org/

Good morning GG's,

It is raining again here today. So far, the storm they predicted hasn't turned out as bad as they said ~ thank goodness.

I've got a few minutes ~ Maddie is doing her iPad thing ~ that is the first thing she wants to do when she gets here in the morning. Mama has put a 45 minute time limit on it.

Started PT yesterday for this sciatic pain.

Mary ~ your podcast thing with the mysteries sounds interesting. Is it kind of like listening to an audio book? How is your colon pain? Your new doctor that you like so well should be able to help you. Hope Joe would pace himself with his yard work. Feel bad that he is in so much pain, but keeps going. These men.

Carol Sue ~ I am not yet retirement age. I'm sure my husband was wanting me to work until I reached that age. He had already retired and wanted me to keep working to get the health insurance. He had retired at 55. He didn't share with me that that was his plan. When we moved here, he let me keep thinking that he was gonna get another job. But time went by and it didn't happen. Finally, he admitted that he wasn't going to go back to work. I was jealous, I wanted to be retired too. But he had worked real hard and long hours for years, so I guess he deserved it. Anyway, the unit I was working on at the hospital shut down and I lost my job. I'm not sure if missing a lot of work that summer had anything to do with them letting me go (I had started on another unit, but that job disapperared into thin air). The reason for missing work so much was because of the RA ~ which at that point hadn't been diagnosed. I went through the job search/collecting umemployment process. By the time the benefits ran out, DH had done some juggling with the finances and figured out a way that I could stay home. We lived very frugally, but it was worth it. The job was ok, but I liked being home better. Plus, my fear was that I would get sick and die before I ever got to retire. Every time you turned around they kept upping the retirement age ~ it seemed hopeless.

Like you, we manage to keep out of each other's hair ~ LOL. Oooo ~ your can opener is pretty

Love2 ~ I was 58 when I was diagnosed with RA. My grandma had it, so I guess it was in my genes. It was in there, but dormant or what ever you call it. I had read that it could be triggered to start due to stress. The spring of that year, was very stressful. My boss kept warning me to try not to stress so over things. My daughter was going through a bitter divorce. Son-in-law and his mother were awful ~ making threats on Facebook and doing other stuff. The stress was awful. It affected DH as well ~ he developed high blood pressure because of it.

Glad that all is well with your teeth. How are you doing with your steps this week?

Well, Maddie's time is up, I've lost track of it and she has gone a litte over (she proabably likes that). So, I'd better get going. DH has his cardiac rehab today. Maddie and I are gonna drop him off, then go to Walmart ~ DD wants one of those exercise balance ball things, so I'm gonna get that for her for her birthday.

Hope you all have a good day.

Gayle, I'm glad you didn't think I was just saying that I thought you were older, because it was just the retirement thing. I remember when you went through the problems at work and eventually lost your job. I guess I thought you got another job after that.

DH retired on the spur of the moment. He has lost his job around age 50 but got another job that paid less. When he was 59 he found out that he could get his pension from the first job if he quit the second job. He was not allowed to do the same type of work and collect his pension. He quit the second job and collected his pension, but was supposed to get a part time job to make up the pay difference. He applied for a couple jobs, but he wanted to work a couple days a week, and these jobs wanted a few hours every day. I didn't blame him for not taking them. I was still working and enjoying it and had good medical insurance so I continued to work, even after my heart surgery. At 64 I decided to take SS and go part time. At that point, DH could go on Medicare and I would just have to pay my own medical insurance for 6 months until I reached 65. I worked 2 days a week for a couple months, then got sick. I didn't know what was wrong, but I couldn't even show up for work 2 days a week, so I quit. I found out it was pneumonia and went into the hospital for a week. I think not going to work has been better as far as reducing stress, but I think I was more active when I was working and therefore felt better. I have never felt as good as I did when I was working.

I have a funny comment I heard today. This guy on the radio was talking about Donald Trump announcing that he's running for president and he said that is Mantra will be "We will overcomb." LOL

Hello GGs!:) We finally got back to the gym! Unfortunately without thinking about it I didn't get in my full 30 min, I mean we were probably there about that long but probably only about 20 min spend actively exercising. I walked/sorta jogged the track ten min. I now have to force myself to walk, more so when I try to walk fast and my jogging is funny..not a real jog..more like a slow, wiggly jog. LOL but at least I'm still trying and I can still walk faster than many older people. Going up the stairs to where I work out is probably hardest of all. I'm slow now getting up there because of my hip..it still hurts a little (not badly) and is just kinda weak I guess...so dh goes on ahead of me. I asked him today (half joking) if he would even notice if I didn't get up there. The reason I asked is because he gets up there, talks a bit to another guy while getting his ipod set up and we don't usually walk together because I do still walk faster than him. I do keep an eye on him though. He can't hear anything with his headset on. So with all that I'm not sure he'd even notice I'm not yet up there! :dizzy: But I'm sure someone would help me as there are lots of people going up and down.

Carol Sue -My son told me last night about Trump and I said well I hope he gets a better haircut. ;)

Glynne - Yes Serial is a podcast series. I just listen on my computer though. I usually listen to only one a day but last night I listened to three, I got so interested! There is some bad language but not as much as most movies these days. The main narrator is a detective who is responding to a request on the behalf of the inmate (who's been convicted of murdering a former gf) to check into his case as he says he is innocent...at least I think that's right. But you hear other voices as she talks with different people including the inmate. I think I heard it is based on a true story and is interesting if you have patience to just listen. I've never been much interested in audio books but since I do other things on the computer while listening I can handle this. Of course I probably don't catch every single thing so that is why I can't remember for sure about how the detective started working on his case. I'm usually really good at figuring how "who dun it" but so far I am as confused as the detective. I'm glad you were able to retire. I love being retired and we find it takes less money to live now. We spend now based on needs and wants not on stuff to keep up with job regulations or what society says we must have. Not that I thought we did that so much really but I guess we all do to some extent. Now we focus on what is really important to us and for us that is #1 giving and #2 traveling and #3 maintaining our home. We occasionally have to put #3 before #2 and that's ok because we enjoy our home too. With no debt and a little savings plus a good retirement income (mostly dh's) we do fine, better than I ever expected. When I retired at 62, I was so sick of working, I didn't care if I was poor...as long as I could enjoy being home with dh, I was fine. Dh and I have no problem with being together...there was no adjustment there thank goodness. He keeps very busy with his own activities...the yards and fishing, I'm more of an inside person and don't mind being alone at times although mostly I want to be with him. Some days I have things planned to do here at home but he'll ask me to go someplace with him and I drop it all and go. Only God knows how long we'll be together on this earth, and I want to treasure it. The house will be probably be here long after both of us are gone. I have also stopped going to some of my own activities...my prayer meetings and womens group at church, or to the gym alone because after he fractured his leg when I was not here, I don't like to leave him, even though he leaves me:) When he leaves me, there are usually lots of people around in the places he goes and he has his phone. I'm not saying anyone else should be that obsessive...its just me. After God, He is my life, however I know that should he go before me, I will be ok even though it will not be so easy. It may not sound like it but in many ways I am a very independent woman, and tend to make all my own decisions and most financial decisions. So I'm kinda a crazy mix I guess.:dizzy:

Ok I got a load of laundry in and have done most daily stuff..now need to shop again for gd. Mama says she needs solid color tank tops...so think I'll get at least one, maybe more and perhaps some shorts. I rarely buy clothing for these two gc as I know their nana buys a lot and they don't often need anything.

Have a good day!

Mary Understand about DH not hearing. We carry our cell phones so if we get separated we can connect, especially when shopping in those big box stores.

Agree with you, I was sick of working when I retired, but waited till I was 70. Really enjoy the freedom now much more than I do the lack of good income.


Carol Sue Glad you had time working at a job you liked. What type work did you enjoy?

I enjoy the volunteer work, but the best job I had was raising our 4 kids. Loved it all. I wanted to be a mother from the time I was under 10 years old and was blessed with children and stayed home with them. We had part time company in home that enabled me to help DH with his work, learning skills that later I used when we combined with DS and DDIL.

Gayle Wow, I'm glad you didn't get really bad untill later in life. A relative had RA as a teenager and went off meds to have one more child. Has 3 now and the meds let her do so many things she couldn't do otherwise.

DH got tooth pulled, I got last knee shot. We actually have a week without any medical appointments. June has been full of them.

BOth of us are supposed to stay quiet for today and for DH for tomorrow to make sure his gum where tooth was pulled doesn't start bleeding.
We're restless as we feel "forced into inactivity."

Mary, DH and I go almost everywhere together as I hardly ever drive. He is always going here and there to buy car parts etc and that's when I don't want to go every time. I need my home time. I told DH if I wanted to get up and go somewhere every day I would have continued to work. LOL This is a terrible thing to say, but when he had shingles and stayed in bed for 2 weeks I got to stay home and got a lot done around the house! But I wouldn't want him to go through that again. I worry about him when he's sick.

If I should go before him, he will need help taking care of financial matters and his meds. He calls his meds "the big pill and the little pill." Doesn't know their names. And doesn't think he needs a refill until the bottle is empty. If he goes before me, I will need help with yard work and repairing things around the house. I doubt if my step-children would really help me. I would seriously consider selling the house and renting an apartment, and using the proceeds from the sale of the house to pay the rent. DH gets mad when I "plan" but I told him, you have to think about what you're going to do "just in case" so you are not blindsided. We aren't getting any younger.

Love2garden, I did auditing/accounting most of my working life, 33 years. At 55 I lost my job but was able to take my small pension and got a very generous severance package. I took that severance pay and paid off our house, car, and all of our bills so we just had utilities, insurance, food and the like. I wanted a less stressful job so I went to work at Medco, the prescription company, for the last 10 years of my working life. I really enjoyed that, because all I did all day was enter patients and doctors names and addresses into the computer. It was low stress, and it didn't take much thinking. It didn't pay as much money but my pension made up the difference, and it was only 3 miles from home. The medical benefits were great, and they carried us until it was time for medicare.

Gayle, I hope you find relief for your pain. Now that you are eating healthy and losing weight, there could be big changes in your life without all that pain. I hope your DH starts to feel better, too. Did the doctor say why he isn't feeling back to his old self? After I had my first blockages cleared I was actually running up and down stairs, but then, I was only 50, then.

Carol Sue Your planning and way of working out your career sound so good. No wonder you both are able to retire and enjoy NOT WORKING. Your planning sounds like wisdom to me.

DH had his tooth pulled yesterday, back upper that didn't hit any bottom teeth so no use to cap it. He is managing his pain meds so well that I'm amazed. I used to do that for him, but he has been so active, so free of the stress that his job gave him, free too of family issues because it is a family business and he always worried.


Now with us both retired from the family business we know less of family issues and sometimes it can be a good thing.

We have Social Security and the 401-K retirement that we began 20 years ago. Had to use former retirement money when one job ended before we began the family business and began tor receive income again. Still, by working the extra years, it does make a difference. We had the health to be able to do so, too.

Just reread my last post and realized I said I retired at 62...no, I retired at 52...sorry about saying it wrong..I was younger than most but I was sure ready.:) No regrets. If dh goes first I get a portion of his retirement plus my SS so I think I can manage. Told dh I have to keep him going as long as I can. :D I certainly don't think I could find a job now with all my health issues unless it was something I can do at home.

I hit another new low in my weight today...recycled pounds of course..I was 165.5 today! Hope to retain it til next Wed but I rarely do...usually have to go up and down a few times first.:dizzy: My BS was high all day yesterday even though I didn't do badly on my carbs...but I did terrible with veggies...I didn't eat any unless you count beans. I had maybe/almost 2/3 cup of pinto beans and counted them as my protein last night. I didn't cook, we just got our own, it was pantry night. I just heated up the beans, added a tiny bit of salt and a slice of swiss cheese and they were delicious! Just wish I'd thought to make a salad to go with. Will try to do better with veggies today.

Yesterday I shopped for my gd and got her three tanks and 2 prs shorts. They are very inexpensive and hope they don't shrink too much or fall apart too soon, LOL, but they are cute. That and her art/craft supplies will be our gift. Her party is tomorrow night, then on the 27th is another gc party so will have to start shopping for her soon too. I didn't get anything much done here at home. Today I have to be quiet so not vacuuming, but hope to dust the living room and family rooms. I'll try to vac later when son is up.

Speaking of gc, I turned down babysitting today. Felt bad but my son (who lives with us) worked all day and all night and finally got home about 9 am for some much needed sleep and I have to keep the house quiet. I would have gone to their house but they have stairs and I am in a lot of pain this morning. Because son was gone, and dh was doing a sleep test (for O2 sat)) I had to get up at 4 am with Halo...she was outside almost 1/2 hour and though she did go back to sleep after she came in, I could not so I didn't get much sleep and my legs hurt bad from a little before 4 til now. At 4 I took Asa but it is just now beginning to ease a bit and I'm still very tired.

Carole Sue - Thanks for sharing about your former work...I was wondering what you did. Nice that you enjoyed it. Dh is not much better about his meds...I mean, he does remember to take them (better than I!) and mostly knows what the meds are for..he forgets the supplements sometimes though.
He kinda depends on me for health things and asks if he really wants to know. If I weren't here I don't think he'd really understand much what the doctor says, but he would do what he tells him, that is IF he hears it.:( Keeps me feeling needed.:D

Glynne - How you doing today? Hope the new med helps you. Any improvement in your dh's condition?

Good afternoon GG's,

I got to stay home today while DH and Maddie went to the weekly $1 family movie. I asked if he minded if I stayed home, so maybe I could work on preparing some of these foods. It doesn't magically get done by itself ~ LOL. I was feeling frustrated yesterday with it and almost ready to grab something I shouldn't. I feel overwhelmed some days, having to prepare everything from scratch. No grabbing something store bought and heating it up anymore. And it is hard with Maddie here. We try not to let her watch TV too much, or do the iPad too much. When she is not doing those things, she wants us to play with her. I don't mind that, but I can't play and have these foods prepared too. And playing all day with a young one is tiring to both of us with all the health things that are going on right now.

So far, I have made a fruit salad. Cut up a whole bunch of vegetables for roasting (got 3 pans worth). And made a sort of a salad with avocados, tomatoes and white beans. One more thing left to do ~ I am going to try a recipe for a meat loaf knock off made of beans. I tried bean burgers one night ~ they tasted ok, but were kind of disappointing ~ dry.

I am getting more used to being able to make some things quick and getting a feel for how often things will need to be made and how much to buy.

Maybe I am going to have to take a day when ever and cook several things, that will hopefully free up some time other days.

Mary ~ I am doing ok. I have opted to delay the start of the new med so I can get the shingles shot. I had some pain in my hand last night ~ being off the meds, I am not sure if it is bacause of that, or because of some of the things I am doing for PT. I am sorry you did not sleep well and that your legs are hurting so bad. This pain stuff sure isn't any fun. Way to go with the new low weight.

Love2 ~ I'm glad for you and your kids that you got to stay home with them like you wanted to and that they could have that kind of upbringing. I worked full time at first when I only had one, then when the second one came along, I got to cut back to 2 days a week for several years, so it was almost like being home all the time. Hope your knee is feeling good and that your husband's gum is healing nicely.

Carol Sue ~ they told my DH that after they placed that stent, that he would be running around with lots of energy. When that didn't happen, he was kind of puzzled. They think I guess that it is because his blood pressure meds were making his blood pressure too low. They have adjusted those and he has to go back for another check up. Some people have told him it just takes time. So, we will see. He gets tired more than he did before, but is taking it easy and seems to be doing ok. He goes next week for a carotid ultrasound ~ they thought they better check those out. Sounds like you have things pretty well planned out for the future. I think it is better to do that, than not. My dad didn't want to talk about that and got mad at my sister when she tried to discuss it with him. When he passed it was a great big mess.

It has been fun hearing a little about each of you ~ your work and families and plans for the future.

Guess I'd better get on to the next thing.

Hope you all are having a good day.

Glynne - Why do you have to make so much at once or are you doing that to not have to cut them up every day? Just curious. I don't do much in advance generally. Today I did have to marinate the meat for tonight, but that's not always. I do plan my dinner menus ahead of time a week at a time, but one day is leftovers or pantry meals, another day is eating out usually. I don't go exactly by the planned days, but choose the day before what I think will work best and sometimes I have more meat than I really need so I then plan another meal for the remainder of the meat. That happens most weeks at least once. So sometimes my meal plans last longer than a week because of that or because we eat out more. Veggies are similar...I kinda mix and match them to whatever else I'm serving as some last longer than others. I realize you probably aren't eating meat right now, but was just wondering why you have to prepare so much in advance or perhaps you just choose to do that to save your time on other days. I have the book but have not followed the diet at all so I'm sorry for my ignorance about how it works but I'm wondering what makes the preparation so different from what I do now. I might want to try it sometime.

Hello again,

Mary ~ I guess I wanted to get some stuff made, so that when Sara gets here to pick up Maddie ~ between 6:30 and 7 pm. ~ (and lately, she has been staying longer to do a 30 minute run on the treadmill.) that there is something all fixed that just needs to be heated up. I am too tired to start supper from scratch at that time.

I guess it takes longer now because most all of the food is fresh stuff and has to be cut up how ever you want it to cook it or what ever you are going to do with it.

I have never had enough discipline to plan out a menu. There would just be stuff I could make each night. And often I would make a big pot of something or a casserole and we would eat that until it was gone, then I would make something else. I was lucky to have a family who would eat left overs.

It is a whole different way of life for us ~ we are trying to use as little processed stuff as possible. It is no meat, fish, dairy, eggs. Only fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds ~ only plant based things.

We asked BIL what things he uses. Since he has been doing it for a couple years now, we figured he would have it down ~ and maybe have come up with some short cuts. One thing that helped was to be able to use canned beans instead of having to soak the dried ones and go to all that trouble. Also, he said that he tried making his own hummus and didn't like it, so buys that. And we buy vinaigrette salad dressings instead of trying to make those ourselves. That was just going too far for me.

There are some things you just can't make ahead ~ like salads, I guess you could, but I prefer not to. Also the fridge is usually full, so no room to fix stuff like that and have room to put it in there until we're ready for it.

We have been eating things like:

Breakfast ~ a bowl of fresh spinach with fresh strawberries, mandarin orange sections and fresh blueberries. Sprinkled with some sliced almonds. Or, soaked oats with chunks of apple and some other fruit. Later on a plate of different fruits sliced up. We buy what is in season and then other stuff we like. Breakfast has been pretty consistently like that. I'm not sure it is ok to do the oatmeal very much, so I have been using that when we have to go somewhere in the morning and don't have time to mess with cutting up the plates of fruits.

Then later in the day a bowl of beans ~ I mix a can each of chick peas, black beans, light red kidney beans and a can's worth of edamame (frozen, shelled) ~ with some vinegarette dressing on it. It is so pretty ~ things are more appetizing to me when they are colorful. Since I would really rather be eating other (not good for me) stuff, I think it helps to make it look attractive. You could do any types of beans you want. That is just my concoction.

Other things we eat during the day, more fruits. A plate of raw vegies and dip or hummus.

For supper, I had made a pot of soup and then make a salad to go with that. The soup lasted for several days. I have tried two different soup recipes so far.

We have had the roasted vegetables before and really liked them. I thought I made a lot last time, but they kind of shrizzle up a little. Between the two of us, we finished off the whole pan (cake pan sized ~ the layer of vegetables spread out on the bottom of the pan).

I tried a bean burger recipe before, but was disappointed with that ~ it came out dry. Tonight I tried a recipe for a mock meatloaf made out of beans. I liked that a whole lot better. I think DH liked it too. Plus, I didn't have to fool around with making patties out of it. So we had that and some of the roasted vegetables and a dish of coleslaw. Then a bit after supper we usually have some kind of bowl of cut up mixed fruits. DH would have gladly eaten another heap of the roasted vegetables, but I had him eat the coleslaw to make the vegetables last for more meals.

Like I was telling DH and you sort of said it too ~ by making a couple pans of the vegetables or a pot of soup ~ rather it is one pan or more, I have to haul out all the same equipment, so I might as well do a whole bunch at a time. Yes, so that way, I will have time for other stuff on other days, and sort of give myself a break from fixing food.

I have never been a planner much, we each kind of got our own stuff and it was simple stuff ~ usually something frozen that we just heated up ~ a chicken pattie or a chicken breast, and some frozen vegetables. What ever struck our fancy that evening. I would occasionally cook a casserole or some kind of recipe from scratch when I was in the mood, but was usually too tired to mess with stuff like that.

Don't apologize for not knowing what is in the book. I have not read it all, just parts of it. But DH read it from cover to cover ~ like he was studying for an exam or something, highlighting and all. He was serious about doing this, so wanted to make sure he understood and knew what to buy, what was ok to eat and what not to eat.

He did kind of frustrate me about one thing ~ he said we could eat when we were out and about if it got to be meal time or we were hungry before we could get home. So, we were going to be out one day and I tried to research about what options were available at different places. I found a salad at McDonalds that didn't have meat on it (I guess if it did, you could just ask for them not to put the meat on it). He proclaimed that we were not going to eat processed foods. I think he just has it in his head that anything that comes from a fast food place is processed. I don't think salads would be considered processed.

This way of eating is a lot of work. Maybe I am making it harder that I need to, but it is new to us and I am still finding my way. Maybe after I have done it for a while it will come easier.

DH told Sara that she should do this. I said she could if he would cook all her stuff for her. BIL suggested this diet to me a couple years ago when I was still working ~ there is no way I could have done this at that time. And I don't think Sara could either. She has such a long drive and not much time at either end of the day. She does a crockpot sometimes, but that is about all she can pull off ~ trying to do stuff ahead of time.

You asked one simple question and you got a book ~ sorry. Hope what I shared was helpful.

Very interesting, thanks. It also sounds pretty tasty to me. Not sure I'd like spinach with fruit for breakfast but I do like spinach with scrambled eggs or in a smoothie now and then. Are you allowed eggs? I love fruit and veggies, oats and beans so I could handle that but I'm sure eventually I'd miss meat even though I don't eat a lot of it. Dh doesn't eat a lot either but wants some at both lunch and dinner. He prepares his own breakfast and lunch and when he makes his own dinner either from leftovers or some Asian frozen or boxed thing he's bought. Same with his lunch. I keep a little frozen veggies on hand for quick meals, but I prefer fresh so don't often use them.

How are your bs eating this way? One thing that puzzles me is I've always been taught to eat a little protein in the same meal as your carbs to slow down the rise of bs. Of course beans are protein but they are also carb.

These days seem so short and busy but one of these days I'll dig out that book and read it again. I remember it seemed interesting and I wanted to try it..might have for a few meals LOL,....but then forgot about it. Just too much change I guess and I know dh wouldn't like it. He doesn't care for beans at all but he would eat most of the other things you mentioned but would want meat too and he prefers a sauce with most of them, likes everything moist.

Mary, I think the carbs in beans are different from other carbs because of the high fiber. The body does not process them the same as other carbs. In this plan, beans are considered protein. People who are vegetarian or vegan have to get all their protein from plant sources. Here is a list of plant sources of protein.

http://yumuniverse.com/plant-based-p...rmation-chart/

When I read The End of Diabetes by the same author, Dr Joel Fuhrman, he said that you could have small portions of meat, but more like a condiment to the rest of the meal, like maybe small bits of chicken mixed in with the vegetables. I would miss meat.

Neither DH or I like sauces with our food. He likes gravy on mashed potatoes, that's it, and I use a mix for that since I'm making just a small amount for him. We do eat sauce with pasta. We like our meat and vegetables cooked plain. I don't buy many fresh vegetables because DH eats very little vegetables and they go bad before I can eat them all. I usually buy frozen.

Gayle, I think this food prep is overwhelming to you because you are not used to cooking like this. I make most of our meals from scratch so I do food prep like this every day and never think anything of it. I watch my soap operas from 12:30 - 2 every day, then at 2 PM I start dinner. That's just my normal routine. If I'm busy and don't watch my soaps, they are on again in the evening on another channel. DH would not eat leftovers, ever. It has to be prepared fresh each day, and it cannot be something I brought from the store heated up. He eats a lot more processed food than I do, but that's his lunch that he prepares himself, like canned stew and chili, ramen noodles, Mac and Cheese. I think you and I just live differently, as I have wanted to do craft things for years but I just don't have time to fit it into my life. You have always done these crafts, but never spent a lot of time with food prep. Neither of us is wrong, we're just different.

You're right that Steve doesn't know what processed foods are, because a salad, even from McDonald's is not processed food. It seems to me that the only way you would be able to eat out is if you went to a salad bar, unless there was a restaurant that specialized in vegetarian. Even then, most vegetarian includes things like pasta and rice, which you are not eating. Did you ever watch Dr Fuhrman on public television? He calls his food plan Nutritarian. It is a very healthy way to eat, and you have lost weight, so I think it's doing you good. I could eat that way if I were by myself, but I think I would have a bit of chicken once in a while, like in a stir-fry. Chicken is my favorite meat. I would miss eggs, too.

I wonder if Steve isn't feeling up to par because his body has not yet adjusted to this new diet. That could be possible, because you started this around the same time he had his stent. It might take some time for his body to get used to the change, even though it's a healthy change.

Love2garden, DH and I both get a pension along with our SS. If he goes first, I get half of his pension plus SS, but he does not get half of mine. I would have had to take a big cut if I wanted to provide for him, and my pension is small. I also have a small 401K. We don't use that at all. I think next year I am required to start taking something from it, even though I don't want to. I will have to look into ways I can avoid that. We don't need that money, at least not so far.

I didn't sleep all night, my arm and hand hurt so bad. I got up and took a Motrin and now the pain is going away so I guess I'll try to go back to bed.

Mary, I think I recall that you were a nurse and so was Gayle. Nursing can be a demanding job. I think that it would be very hard to work at that job into your 60s in a hospital setting. I would think a nurse in a doctor's office would be a different situation. Plus, working full time and raising children is not easy. I don't blame either of you for retiring early when you were able to make financial adjustments.

I was wondering if any of your pains started when you started the new diabetes med. I have been taking this med for a while, but my pain started around the time that I increased the dose. I had a lot of pain when I took Cipro and it took 2 years for that to subside after I quit taking it. This pain came on suddenly but feels like the same pain. Both the doctor and the pharmacist told me they didn't think the pain was from the Cipro, but it said in the package insert that severe tendonitis was a side effect! I think the medical people don't want to admit that a drug can cause some side effects. They just want you to take it and shut up.