A New Day

Hello all. It's saturday and I have been lazy today. Would you believe that I am still in my pajamas?
I've been watching movies on the family channel all day. I'm out of bed but thats about all. I've been hearing stomping and running around upstairs all day, so I quss my neighbor has her grandchild up there. I couldn't be busy with my daily chores, but I've thrown caution to the wind today and decided to  do nothing. It is a beautiful day outside. I've got a big week scheduled for next week. I'll be volunteering next week at the Botanical Gardens. I've got a doctors appointment on Monday and I'll be hitting the gym again. I've gotten my heart rate to 137. It was at 158 when I first started so I'm slowly getting better. It takes a lot to move around this large body of mine. He He He. I've lost 31 pounds since this morning when I weighed. So thats good. It's all these low carbs that I have been eating. My Dad has designed this diet for me and so far I haven't been hungry to the point of quitting. I;ve been trying on clothes lately and now I've got at least 6 to 7 more outfits I can wear. SO, in another 30 pounds I'm sure I will be able to wear all of my clothes. I've got a lot of clothes, I just haven't been able to fit into them. My blood sugars are a little low but still in the OK range. Their from 75 to 92 in the morning. And in the afternoon their about 104 to 120. If I can just keep my afternoon ones under 150 I'm good. And my overall calorie count for the days are under 1,200. So, I think I've gotten this diet down. As far as today, everything is going well. I'll try to blog again soon.

Volunteering

Hello all. I've been volunteering this week at the Botanical Gardens. It's been nice to get out of the house. I don't work outside, just inside doing office work. We actually worked on Membership Renewals for August. I did this last month as well. The staff there are always appreciative of you time and effort. And the other volunteers are nice too. The volunteers that I have met are usually on disability like I am or their retired.
I think I have a crush on the volunteer coordinator. He is so nice and cute too. I got back in time enough to go to the mall to walk today. I decided to walk there instead of where I live partly because it is indoors with AC. It was just a little warm today.
Now I've got to wash some clothes and do a little housework around here tonight because I'm expecting some friends over tomorrow. Their my friends from Jasper.
I hope everyone has a good weekend.
Talk later...

Tuesday

Well, I finally got some sleep last night. I think my body was so tired that I got 7 hours of sleep. I had a good workout today. I did my 30 minutes of cardio then I did 30 minutes of circuit training. The circuit training is with weights. So I had a productive day at the gym.
Since I've been home I have been shredding old papers. I usually don't throw anything in the trash. So, I have a lot of papers that needed to be thrown away. I thought about going for a short walk this afternoon. But it looks like rain.
My family is in Florida right now and I know their having a good time. Their all going to come back with nice tans.
I volunteer at the Botanical Gardens this week. I wonder what their going to ask me to do.
Well, I hope everyone has a good week..

Late to Wake

Hello. Well, I took a Lunesta tablet last night and I only slept two hours. My doctor prescribed these for me as a sample amount for me to try them out. I'll tell you one thing, I don't need to take that again. I was so dizzy this morning that I had to lay down around 6am. I ended  up falling asleep until noon when the phone rang. Then I was still dizzy. I needed to go to the gym today but I don't think I can drive like this. That is I'm not going to get in my car like this. I also needed to go to Walmart, but I guess it can wait until tomorrow.
I hate it when you take medicine and you don't know how it's going to affect you. I've seen commercials about this drug that it can make you sleepy or dizzy when operating motor vehicles. I guess I'm one of the few that can't take it. So down in the toilet this will go.
I don't like to be like this. You really can't do anything until the affects wear off. I'm just not sure of my footing. I do usually have a low tolerance to sleeping pills. I guess I just need to stick to my over the counter sleep aides. If that at all. Or learn to go to sleep without taking anything. Believe me, I learned my lesson.

Insomnia

Hello all. It's 4:40am and I have not gone to sleep yet. I know I blogged about no sleep yesterday, but this is ridiculous. I've had bouts of insomnia before. I have tried everything I can think of. I turned off the TV so I wouldn't have any stimulus. I read a book. I drank some "sleepy time" tea. I got busy cleaning out my vaccum cleaner. And then I walked around my home [inside]. I even took a hot shower about 2am. That usually does the trick.
The one night that my neighbors decide to be quiet. I'm tired and my eyes are sleepy, I just can't fall asleep. Once I go to sleep, I sleep like the dead. I'm a very hard sleeper. It's just the "going" to sleep that I have trouble with.
I can remember not sleeping when I was younger. I would lay awake and stare at the ceiling. Staying up for exams when I was in college was a breeze for me because I didn't require a lot of sleep back then. Even if I sleep hard, I usually get about five hours of rest. Thats a long time for me. If I get 7 hours like I got yesterday morning then I am usually awake the next night and that is exactly what happened.
So at 3:30am I got out of bed, made my bed and put my clothes on for the day. I just ate breakfast at 4:30am. I'll take my medicine at 5am. Then I'll wait a couple of hours and then go to the grocery store. Then I'll workout. Thats my day in a nut shell. By noon today I would have almost put in a full day.
What I'm not going to do is to sleep during the day no matter how appetizing that is. Cause I don't want the same thing to happen tonight. I want to be good and tired.
I hope everyone has a nice restful Sunday!!!

Saturday

Hello all. Well my family left for the beach this morning and I wasn't with them. I wanted to go this year, but I decided against it at the last minute. I'm still getting sick after I eat but not much. I've had this stomach bug for now five days.
It's so beautiful outside today. Even though I'm still getting sick, I took a nice walk around the complex today. I didn't walk long, I just wanted to get out of the house. I have bad cabin fever. You don't really know how much things pass you by when you're sick and stuck in the house.
I've been busy this morning. I have dusted all of my hardwood floors, dusted the furniture and vaccumed. I say this morning because I've only been up since noon. I didn't sleep at all last night and finally drifted off about 5am this morning. I was up and down all night.
Plus my neighbors next door had a little party last night. Their radio was so loud that I had to go over there about 1am this morning to ask them to turn it down. I shouldn't have to do that. Their like, "oh did we wake you"? I'm like dah....
They don't care about being noisy cause they sleep all day long, then it's up again the next night. But I got about 7 hours of sleep this morning. So I guess I shouldn't complain.
But you know when you live in a condo complex you should be aware of your neighbors. These people aren't. Their country people and don't care if they leave beer cans all over their porch. You would think that being in your 60's you would be quiet. But they aren't. I either can call the police at night or tell them personally to shut up. Plus, if I call the police I don't know what these people would do.
So, I'm left with noisy neighbors.

Friday

Well this is the fourth day that I have had this stomach bug. It's been nasty. I'm partly on solid foods now and I'm still getting sick. So I've been drinking a lot of gaterade and chicken boullion.
I haven't worked out since Tuesday and I have been stuck indoors. My energy has been zapped most of the time. But today, I've been up and washing clothes. I even cleaned my kitchen.
So not much is going on with me. Tomorrow my family leaves for a family vacation in Florida. I was going to go this year, but at the last minute I decided not to. I've got my volunteering lined up for next week at the Botanical Gardens, so I'll be busy with that. Plus, I have some dear friends coming into town next week. I'll be able to spend a little time with them. I'm going to get back in the gym by Monday. Well thats about all for me. Hope everyone has a good weekend!

Ugh....

Hello folks. It's been a couple of weeks since I last blogged. I'm home sick today. I caught some sort of stomach bug. Yesterday I started feeling a bit nauseated. Then last night I started getting sick. The only thing that I have kept down is sipping on gaterade and hot tea with honey in it.
This just sucks. I have to really watch my blood sugars from getting too low. My morning blood sugar today was 62. So I've been sucking on these glucose tablets that are designed to raise your blood sugar levels if they are too low. So thats what I've been doing. I'm going to try and drink some chicken boullion this afternoon just too get some substance in me. My friend that lives in Jasper has had this same thing and her doctor told her that it's going around. I was around someone this past weekend that had had something, so I don't know if this was it. I've already taken two showers to see if that would make me feel better. It did initually, but then I start feeling bad again.
So I guess I'll just be hanging out today. I hope this passes soon.

Sunday

Hello there. Even though it has been cloudy at times, today has been a beautiful day.
I slept in til about 9am. Believe me this is late to me. I got up, ate my fruit and took a long walk around my complex. Actually I walked around four times.
Then shortly after lunch, my Dad came over and I took him to this gym that I just joined about three weeks ago. Then we visited for about an hour. It was nice seeing my Dad. We normally don't get to spend a lot of time together so when I do get to see him it's extra special.
I've been doing Ok on this low carb diet. And I have kept up working out. By the end of the year, I expect to loose the majority of my excess weight. I know I've probably said this before, but I really want to loose the weight. Not only for the many things I'll be able to wear but for my health in general.
I won't be so self conscious anymore. Because anybody who has gained weight always feels that no matter who you are. I want to be able to walk down the street with my head held high and a big smile on my face. This is my year.

Friday

Boy, I over did it on Wednesday at the gym. Every time I take a step, just walking my knee pops. I did an hour on my cardio then and I thought I wouldn't be sore. Today when I woke up, my knee just throbbed.
I tried walking around my neighborhood this morning, but that didn't work either. I've taken advil every six to eight hours and still it hurts. I guess I need to get a knee brace the next time I go to the gym.
Not much else going on today. I've been shredding a bunch of financial statements. I'm one of these folks that don't throw away anything. So now, my filing system is just bursting.
Oh and I weighed last Sunday and I've lost 16 pounds. Going to the gym, eating low carbs and just being more active is the result of the weight loss. I've got eighty more pounds to loose. That sounds like a lot, but my dad seems to think that if I continue to do what I'm doing now it may take 6 to 8 months more. I don't see it. I'm thinking it will take at least a year to loose the rest. We'll see.
But I know that I am completely committed to this now. I'm tired of making excuses for myself. Tired of being fat. I have so many cute outfits that I can't wear. Heck, I have a whole wardrobe just waiting for me. And when I go to the gym, I'm not self conscious because I see ladies in there that are even bigger than I am. And everyone are so helpful.
When I joined the gym, I had a fitness trainer design my program. But I haven't seen him since. So when I go to the gym, I work my program which is one the first day I do the 30 minute circuit training. This has different weight machines working your back, legs, arms, shoulders and abs. Then it has a step up bar on the floor where you step up and down. On the second day, I do 30 minutes of cardio, then work on my abs. On the third day I do what I did on the first day. And on the fourth day I do what I did on the second day. So all in all I am working on resistance and cardio. My heart rate was 158 when I started two weeks ago, but now it's 144. The target heart rate for my age is 110, so I've got a long way to go. The higher your heart rate is shows how out of shape you are.
I'm confident that the more time goes by, my stamina will get better.

4th. of July

Happy July 4th. I can't believe it's already July. Too bad it's going to be storming today. I still plan on watching the fireworks over Vulcan park. I'll be watching them on Fox6. I can't remember the last time I ventured out to Homewood to see the show. I think we did that when my nephew was little.
Not much more going on today. I slept in and have been watching movies all day. I didn't go into the gym this morning, giving my knees a break. Yesterday I did my cardio for an hour then I played around with the weights. I feel like I over did it.
My blood sugars have been real good lately. I had to go down on one of my medications because it was making me sick. But otherwise from that my diabetes is going well.
Well I hope everyone has a nice holiday.

Volunteering

Hey! It's the beginning of the month and whats a nice thing to do is to volunteer. I started my first day at the Botanical Gardens. We did Membership Renewal Mail outs. It was a lot of fun. There were about three other volunteers there helping out. I met some of the nicest people. Oh and the staff over there were very thankful that we were there. They have a really neat business office. Every person I met. either in the office or on the grounds were nice.
Then I had a doctors appointment in the afternoon. It was across town. The drive wasn't too bad, just some crazy people on the road.
All in all, I had a pretty good day. I like this new busy feeling.

Wednesday

Hello all. Well I'm on my fourth day to working out. It's going pretty well. I've met my goals everyday
and I have lots more energy. I'm still waiting for this new volunteer job to follow through. I do go on Monday. But after that I just have to see if they will need me. If this turns out to be a job that is
"as needed" then I will find another place to volunteer where I'll be on a schedule.
I have seen two friends that I haven't seen in awhile. So thats been nice. I even went to the park
last weekend and had a good walk. It felt good to be around people again. I've sort of been isolating myself lately.
Nothing else is going on. I hope everyone has a good week.

exercise

Well, I started at the gym this morning. I did a cardio circuit workout that involves eight [ i think ] different machines and a step up where you lift one leg at a time and step up on this block. The machines work your arms, legs, chest, abs and back. Then I rode the bike.
Tomorrow I'll do a 30 minute cardio workout either riding the bike or walking on the treadmill. Then on the third day I'll do what I did today. On the fourth day I'll do the cardio workout and abs. It was really neat, you go in and create your own fitness program month by month. And there's always staff there to show you how to do a machine.
I'm already sore in my knees. I think it will get easier as time goes by. But I'm committed. And I saw other women there that are about my size, so I'm not so self absorbed with the way I look. All I can do is my best. But the key is to keep moving even if I get tired. If I can't do the workout, I should just march in place. I think I can do that...

busy

Well, I've been busy this week. I joined a gym and I found a place to volunteer at. It's the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. I met the volunteer coordinator today and he real nice. I'll volunteer three days a week. I'll be helping with office work and working in the library.
I'll also start back with the Wildlife center in July. So, my schedule will be full. And I'll just schedule my doctors appointments around my other stuff. I plan on going to the gym every week day, so hopefully I'll loose more weight. I am still on the low carb diet my father designed and thats doing good.
I'm not as depressed as I was a few days ago. Hopefully I can keep a positive attitude because that makes things easier. All in all I feel a little better about myself.

difficult times

Hey. Well it's been a few weeks since I blogged again. The title to this blog represents the last two days. Basically I have been hiding behind things that aren't true and now my family knows about it. I feel ashamed of myself. I went to see a therapist this afternoon to "talk" it out. I am going to be going to  see this man from this day on.
I hate lying and now I just have to face it and own it. My reasons for doing this were at that time to protect myself. Ever since I went on disability I have been hiding in my house, only venturing out to run to the grocery store, get gas or run errands. I've lied to my family cause I didn't want them to know that I have been too afraid to live my life.
All the time that this was going on I knew it was wrong, but I just kept doing it. I told my mother the truth today and she was very angry. Which she should act that way. I don't blame her. And my sister knows about it too. My father was being told tonight, which I didn't hear from him. He's gonna be disgusted, furious and sad that I have been lying all this time.
I guess I don't blame them for feeling like they can't trust me anymore. I just have to keep telling myself that it's going to be OK. I have to from this point on be honest and trustworthy.
After a few days, all of this will sink in with everyone and hopefully I will have their forgiveness.

Hello!

I know, I know.. It's been a long time again since I checked in.
I've been dealing with a lot of pain lately. About a month ago I fell down a flight of stairs landing on my left side. So naturally my left arm, hip and knee were affected. My arm was the first to bother me, but that went away in about two weeks time. Now, I've had a time with my hip. So, I've been taking Tylonal and Advil around the clock. It's made my stomach hurt.
On this past Thursday, I woke up to shooting pain down my leg from my hip. I finally went to see a doctor about this. I had my left side xrayed. There were no breaks anywhere just tissue damage.
At least I had it checked out.
So, I'm back to taking Advil. I've pulled muscles from my hip down to my leg and knee.
If I take baby steps it doesn't hurt as much. The doctor told me that it can be anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months before I start feeling better.
Woopie!

Another blog

Hey there! I know it's been awhile since I wrote. Time just gets away from me. I've been doing my spring cleaning all day. I covered my face with a bandana and swept off my pollen filled porch. That was a job within it's self.
And for the last few hours I have been exchanging my winter clothes over to summer clothes. It sounds easy, but my closet is so small I have to literally take everything out of it to get to my cedar chest where all of my clothes are stored. And Oh, I have the many boxes stacked high around the chest, that my bedroom now looks like a rummage sale.
I hate doing this, but I have too. It's just been too hot to wear long sleeves anymore.
Next, I have to dust. My hardwood floors are littered with dust balls. And if you look under my furniture, it's a disaster with dust. Oh and I can't forget to change the filter in my AC. I just turned it on this past week. I have a feeling that we are going to have a hot summer.
Oh and that pollen all over my car. The only relief I get from that is when it rains. We're not allowed to get the hose and hose down our cars in the parking lot. It's a shame too. But the management is worried about wasting too much water. It also could be because our water bills are going to increase and that means a higher association fee.
What else...
I'm still volunteering and trying to stay busy. Still on my weight program. Still exercising. So all in all everything is still the same.
I do have to say that I saw the cutest guy at the post office the other day. My "desires" in a man have changed. I'm now noticing guys with salt and pepper gray hair. If he's got kids, thats OK. Of course he has to have teeth. That's funny. It makes me think of news channels interviewing folks on TV. It always seems that the interview people with no teeth. How could people not take care of their teeth? And not brushing their teeth everyday? Yuk!!!!
What got me off on that?
Well, I better get back to my chores. Have a great weekend...

Sunday

Well, the first day of spring was this week and it feels like the first day of winter. It seems that it's always like that every year. But I do have to say that the winter wasn't very cold at all.
It's almost April.
I had my nephews dog, Lucy this weekend. My nephew and my sister went to the beach for spring break this year.
The family beach trip is coming up in July and I haven't decided yet if I'm going to go this year. I would like to get away, but to a peaceful place. It's not going to be peaceful with four teenagers going on the trip. And it's always real hot in July, so I'm still considering it. Knowing me, I probably won't be going.
I'm still walking a lot for my exercise program. I walk about two miles every other day now. I was walking daily, but I've had so much trouble with my knees that I'm walking every other day now.
It's Sunday today and I'm doing my household chores. You know, washing clothes, dusting and vacuming.
Not much else to report for the day. I hope everyone has a good week next week.

Spring

Spring is in the air. It's 70 degrees and beautiful. I wish I could take a long walk, but unfortunately I have done something to my knee and it's all swollen. So, I'm off of it for a few days.
I'm weening myself off of Nutrisystem now. Going to be getting on a full protein diet that my Dad has designed for his patients. I have about two months worth of Nutrisystem food left but after thats it's going to be all protein.
So I don't think I'll hit any hunger spells on this. I'm still walking on my program and going to the gym for weight lifting.
The gym has toned me up somewhat. I guess I've been toning up for about five months now. My membership will last until October. I don't have my own personal trainer anymore, but I've learned what to do.
There are so many good classic movies on today. I love the TCM channel. I prefer older movies to newly released movies. So I've been hunkered down today in front of the TV.
Well thats about it for me today. I hope everyone has a good weekend.