Well, isn't THAT special?

After my blissful discovery yestermorn, I finished off the remaining pots & pans in the kitchen and loaded the last couple things into the dishwasher. I put in the detergent, pushed the button, and........................................nothing. Well, almost nothing. It buzzed. No water. No cleaning. Bummer.

Normally it would be just a matter of replacing the dw. However, we are still in the middle of replacing floors and cabinets and we are the ones doing the work. Since Jim is working 60-90 hr. weeks minimum these days, the kitchen is low on our priority list. We can't replace the DW without replacing the floor, the cabinets, and the countertop....our new floor will be slightly higher than the current floor. Anyway, I am not averse to washing the dishes the good old fashioned way. Good thing, huh?

You will be happy to know that I was a good little girl today. My big 'cheat' being tasting a sample at Sam's club. I actually had an all-vegetable/low-fat dinner AND I enjoyed it! Watch out weight-loss world!

Mrs. Charged Up About Losing the Rest of the Weight

Yeah. Finally. November 1st. A new start. It's only 1:30 and candy withdrawal has hit big time. I am actually encouraged because I'm not giving in. I must be entering 'THE ZONE'!

This morning was an encouraging morning.....I went to bed with the house a total wreck, dishes in the sink & on the table, papers everywhere, etc. This morning I woke up to a clean kitchen, and a straightened family room. "Which of my sons has pleased me greatly?", I bellowed up the stairs. My soon-to-be 18-year-old was the clandestine cleaning crew. How awesome was that?

After waking up to that, I am sure that ANYTHING is possible today, including sticking to my former healthy habits. So watch out. I am back. I am unbeatable. I am Mrs. Charged Up about Losing the Rest of the Weight.

Creamed corn, Pineapple & Canned Clams

I pride myself on being able to walk over to the pantry, peruse the shelves, mull over the possibilities, and come up with a tasty dinner out of what happened to be left on the shelf, regardless of what's there.

Not today. Any combination of the three aforementioned items would induce vomiting. I guess it must be time to go grocery shopping.

On the weight-loss front, I have to get my groove back. If this keeps up, I will have to merge the running and weight-loss blogs into one and call it Running out of Pathetic Excuses. It's cold out. I want comfort food. There's nothing in the pantry except the slop I mentioned in the title. I don't feel like shopping. I'm whining.

One of those days. Sorry. Hopefully I'll be 'Mrs. Charged Up About Losing the Rest of the Weight' tomorrow.

Until then,
Karen (the reigning 'Mrs. Sit-on-my-Duff & Eat Junk Food'

You're IT!

I have been tagged for this meme on my other neglected blog some time ago and if you want to read those, go here. However, since it's been a while, I'll come up with six new random things about me.

1) I love to cook. If I didn't have any other responsibilities and if I didn't have to worry about who likes/doesn't like whatever....I would sit around and cook fab food all day. Right now, of the three children still remaining at home, one is a vegetarian who despises anything with even a hint of vinegar in it, one is 17, hates most vegetables and is rarely home at dinner-time (works in a restaurant making pizza dough, among other things), the last is 7 years old and not a very adventurous eater. Jim and I love food but have to watch our caloric intake which certainly limits the scope (and FUN)of my cooking,

2) I love writing. I've always wanted to write copy for an ad agency or something. That is, until my husband worked at an ad agency and I saw what a sleezy, disgusting business it is run by complete dirtbags. (no, Karen, tell us how you really feel!) Now I have a creative outlet. I will be creating custom invitations in my friend's store.

3) Tea. I love it. I have always loved it. I will continue to love it. Red and yellow, black and white.....all are precious in my sight. Herbal, Rooibos, you name it. Before bed every night, Jim and I share a huge pot of Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime. Bury me with my teapot. Please.

4) Fall is my favorite season. Apple pie. Hot soup on cold days. Breathtaking colors and incredible smells. Inexpensive school supplies. Exercise without sweat. Need I say more.

5) I am actually somewhat musical although nobody that knows me now would ever know that.

6) I am a walking disorganized mess.

In a Holding Pattern

I'm not too concerned about it, but I am big-time stuck, weight-wise. I am doing push-ups, running (17 miles last week), doing ab workouts, and being smart about what I eat. My body is changing for the better but the scale doesn't show it.

I'm not all worked up about it though....which is a huge change for me. I can't obsess about what I am unable to change. I've talked to many other folks doing marathon or 1/2 marathon training and they stopped losing weight as well.

I just wish I'd hit the '50 pounds lost' mark. It's only about 4 pounds away but as elusive as Big Foot. In the meantime, I'll keep on doing what I'm doing and let Him take care of the rest. I'm obviously not in control here :-)

Too Much of a Good Thing

I'm happy to report that I haven't gotten crazy since the end of OFNM (Operation Fat No More - for those of you that weren't a part of that). I've spent a week not counting points but still eating very carefully, except......

.....I have this addiction. I think I made a huge mistake buying an enormous bag of roasted almonds on sale at the grocery store last week. I know they're very good for me but I'm having a tough time staying out of them. Last night I finally had to hand the bag to Jim and tell him not to let me even look at them. I know what I'm capable of.

The other thing I just could eat a ton of is the all-natural, crunchy peanut butter. You know, the stuff that is just crushed peanuts. No salt, sugar, or hydrogenated whatever-they-happen-to-throw-in-this-time. That stuff is SO good. The creamy version you can get away with one TBS on a PBJ because it spreads further, but I get a little crazy with the crunchy.

I suppose as food vices go, I've seen (and eaten) much worse.

My weight is pretty much staying the same. I'm okay with that for now. I'm trying to just keep eating right and keeping up with my exercise. The rest is out of my hands.

One Down, One to Go!

Well, the first of two big graduation parties happened last night. I was so excited when I got in the food line and the first two things I encountered were a bowl of plain, fresh fruit and a wonderful mixed green salad with dressing on the side. Ah, what a relief. I didn't have to blow a lot of points. There was also lasagna. I had a miniscule piece. It was very saucy with little cheese so it didn't do too much point damage. I also treated myself to a very small rice krispy treat with a cup of black coffee. Whew!

The next one is Sunday. It should be a little more difficult to navigate, foodwise. That's okay. I'm prepared to use my final cheat day for it. I might not need to as I will be running tomorrow (4 extra points) and I still have a bunch of 'weeklies' left. I just don't want to starve on Monday and Tuesday. We'll see how it goes. I just know that this same family had the most incredible food at their other son's grad party last year.....I don't know that I'll WANT to resist.