Happy Thanksgiving!!

for us it will be a mellow day. We are going to the bil's and they are doing it all. BUT we will do another on Sunday with my son and his family. He works today.


of course Thanksgiving has this calorie watcher thinking about calories and weight loss. Moderation is the plan...and lots of veggies. Small bite of desert...now, lets see if I can actually do it. I also need to exercise this morning.


also hoping to put up the Christmas tree today.

as far as the weight loss. Well, since my last post with pics, I have regained @10lbs. I hover around the 175 lbs mark. back and forth. I know what I am doing, I am not being faithful to the food plan...keep having li'l cheats and indulgences.

siiiiiigh. So back to square one. Time to look back and set goals and come up with a plan. NO GIVING UP!!!

Focus on food - log those calories. I find that logging my planned food in the morning works better for me than during the day or in the evening. I just don't spend much time on the computer during those times. AND knowing what my planned meals have, hopefully puts me in the mindset of not thinking 'oh this will be okay'...instead I'll know that that extra 100 calories or so puts me over.

Increase exercise - I've actually done pretty well with doing the 30 minute workouts on my recumbent bike. Nice to do when the tv is on...but need to do a little more. Don't know if I can do 20 min Wii cardio and the bike..but I guess I can try.

for 2012, I want to do the Couch to 5 k...think I'm gonna buy myself a stopwatch and quit making excuses.

I read a great book called "Who Switched off My Brain" about controlling toxic thoughts, so I may try keeping a journal as suggested. Maybe that way I can tackle the roadblocks in my thinking process.

I am happy about the 40 lbs lost ...but it has taken me 2 years to do it. I started November 2009...and these super long plateaus...well, they s*ck. But I know it is me. Not my genetics...not giving any excuses...it is me. I'm just too stubborn a cuss to do what I know I should do. Why sabotage myself like that? The only difference with this time around is I am not giving up.

Other times I would just quit and say this is not worth it....and regain and gain some more. I once did a modified Atkins...got down from 190 or so to 179...but after 6 weeks, had a taste of a warm dinner roll and I was DONE!!! No more counting carbs. Not only regained what I had lost...but got up to 215.

I've done it all in trying to lose weight even had a personal trainer come to my home...but the roadblocks were in me. And I guess that is the work I really need to do now. You know, I watch Biggest Loser and kinda think its so hokey how the trainers try to 'break down' the contestants...but now, I see that it is needed. I understood what Ana was trying to do for Becky and saw myself in how Becky resisted. (Becky is the older lady, right?) AND she irritated the heck out of me...so, I'm not gonna be like that anymore. My daughter always called me rebellious in this area...so, I gotta break that wall...and get healthier from the inside out.

whew, how's that for retrospection?? ha!!!!

do you sit or stand?

Why I stand while scrapping, uh huh, not necessarily by choice.





All my scrapping time has been spent on a wedding album for dd's bff. Whew!!
My room has been in this general state of disarray for a couple of weeks now.




I've finished the ceremony and am now working on the family and party pics. I'm working off of my own pics and those posted on fb...not the professional pics.

Do you make scrapbook resolutions...you know those projects you'd like to start/ finish during the year. I do, but I cannot seem to find it right now...siiiigh.

I think this year I will do a Journal Your Christmas. It will be my 4th year, but I do find that each year is different. to make it easier, I think I'm gonna use a Me and My Big Ideas 8x8 kit I picked up a couple of years ago at Michael's after Christmas sale. Keep it simple, so I can concentrate on the pics and journaling.

Okay, off to stand in my scrap room...hope to work at least a couple of hours this morn. May go 'shopping' this afternoon...not fun shopping...the essential type.

A day off, well from work at least

A day off! yay yay!! Wish I was heading to a showing of Breaking Dawn, but ddil and I are looking at going Monday. Hopefully, at least the kiddos will be in school and the crowds not so bad...we'll see.

This morn, I need to work on letters for a display ddil is doing at the church's minstry day...and work on the scrapbook for Jenn's wedding.

I might start a li'l online Christmas shopping. I have not done much to start Christmas and it feels w e i r d. I'm usually one of those who starts in Sept. Of course, with kids grown, it is all very much simplified. But the day after Thanksgiving, I'll pull out the decorations. I do a different color scheme every year...I'm leaning toward a blue this year. Oh, maybe a lime green. or blue and lime green....oooooooh! that could be cool.

I have a Bunco get together tonight. Not sure if enough gals are going, but if not, we will hang out...eat the goodies and watch Bridesmaids instead. Still sounds good. I'm looking at bringing something sweet, as there are a lot of 'savories' already signed up for. Pulled out my Prairie Girl cookbook...I'm sure I'll find something good.

So, off to start my busy day off...!!!

this weekend.

yesterday, there was a Celebration of Life for Michele's grandson. It was very well done, moving, sad, ...that young man touched so many lives. He will be missed.

I found out that Michele will be moving closer to me. That is one major regret, that I live so far away that he did not know me and I did not know him. I knew of him, but we never really connected. I get to see Michele and family about once a year, but that is not enough. During high school she and I were connected at the hip, and her family was my family. I am Aunt Karen to her son, but did not have the opportunity to truly get to know his son...and it was my loss. Not his, he had a great life filled with love and joy. Sounds like he was a great kid, full of spunk and character.

So, when the kids asked me to babysit my dgd in the evening, you KNOW I said YES! Time is the only thing we can never get back. And I do want to spend as much time with the people that are important to me. So being able to hang out with the Missy-boo is top of the list. Daddy gave her chocolate after her nap, so she was a bit hyper...I got videos to prove it. But she was so much fun. Such a li'l stinker.

The other evening, when I took her out for a movie and pancakes as we were pulling into IHOP, out of the blue she asked me, "How is your sister?". "She's fine". Then "How is my sister?". "Well, she hasnt been born yet...do you want a sister?"...she thought about it...."Hmmmmmmm, No!". Okay, random, but okay!!

don't know how to title this.

I got my pics...since the Coolpix wasn't talking to the computer, but the D3000 was...I just put the card in the D3000. yay! and duh.

But I also had devastating news Sunday Afternoon. I don't feel it is right for me to post about it, but if you think about it please pray for my friend Michele and her family. I won't see them till this Sunday, please pray that I am able to be of comfort to them.

I've never known how to help people thru tragic times. You want to say the right words, but there are no words. I just feel her pain. I got to talk to her yesterday, and she was being so strong...so brave, I'm the one who started choking up ..and cried after we hung up.

Frustrating Saturday,

ughh! I cannot get the pics on my Coolpix to transfer to the computer. So, not a good way to start the day.

I then spent the rest of the day with Cassandra (my elderly cat)...I think she has had a relapse. She did not eat much yesterday...so I gave her half a valium this morning. Hope she eats today.

I'm not seeing any throw up or diarreha...oh, I want to do the right thing for her.


I did get the chance to clean my scraproom in the morning. Is it a reasonable goal to do a wedding scrapbook before Christmas? Guess I need to just dive in and try.

Since I was in the backroom with her, I did get to watch some of the shows I dvr'd while on my trip. Once Upon a Time and Biggest Loser and ANTM...oh! so happy with ANTM, my least fave...Bianca and Alexandria were taken off. I was on the fence about Kayla...she has become so 'one note' this season. My fave is Laura and Alison...so, we'll see how they do.

okay, one more attempt at the coolpix...wish me luck!

Aloha!

Dh and I just returned from an 8 day trip to Maui...absolutely wonderful, except for the mega sunburn across my chest. At least it happened our last full day there.

I'm having some trouble downloading from my Coolpix, but here are some pics from the D3000.

from our balcony at the Hanua Kai resort on Kaanapoli



Trying to capture the sunrise our first morning during a walk on the beach



Sunset on in Lahaina, while waiting for the Feast of Lele luau...



Miguel, our extremely charming waiter at the Luau...




Honomanu Bay during the Road to Hana, our last stop, as we needed to make a Zipline appt.



Zipline pics are on the coolpix...but here is Ho'okipa State Park, where a parasailing competition was being held on our way back. Unfortunately the winds were not high enough for the competition...This is also a famous surfing spot.




I loved this jeep...it had a bumpersticker that said "Do Not Feed the Hippies"