It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Today is one week and one day away from Thanksgiving. I got out of the habit of blogging because I get right into the Holiday mode the day after Halloween. To me Thanksgiving is the real kick off to the Holiday season. Call me crazy, but that' s how I roll.

We are enjoying a beautiful fall here in the Northeast. It was almost 70 last weekend. But all good things must come to an end and today it's windy, chilly, and the nip of winter is in the air. It's starting to feel like winter....and Christmas.

Lately,  I have been nesting, and decorating and cooking more than usual. I've made some great meals lately and I'll post some of the recipes here in the future. I'm mainly eating very low carb and low sugar and no wheat these days.

 I promise not to be gone so long next time. I just haven't felt that I had anything worthwhile to say. But I miss blogging and I miss keeping in touch with everyone. So if you still want to listen....I still want to talk.

Thought for the day: An appreciative listener is always stimulating.”  Agatha Christie


Tip of the day:  When decorating your Christmas tree, it's easier to place the garland and ornaments with the lights off. This way you can see the bare spots and what areas need more attention and more decorations. If all looks good with the lights off, it will look fabulous when the lights go on!

 

 

 

 
 The photos below might not show the difference since it's so sunny in my kitchen today.

 

 

 

You've always had the power!

I'm back from a wonderful 8 days in the Caribbean. I drank too much, and ate to much, but I didn't gain a pound which is a first for me. I tried to stay on my eating plan and avoided carbs and wheat. I just recently read that many people with thyroid problems do better when they avoid wheat, so for  now I am sticking with that. I enjoyed fish tacos without the tortilla, hamburgers without the bun, and even brought my own almond bread to breakfast. I had to have conch fritters, fingers and cracked conch, so I did get some carbs and bread there, but for the most part I managed very well.

As a long time follower of the Belly Fat Cure, I am finding that for me Jorge's newest plan, The 100 makes more sense. On this plan I can't overdo even the good carbs like I used to do on the BFC. All of Jorges' plans, The Belly Fat Cure, The 100, and his newest that is coming out soon, Slim Belly, Happy Hormones, are all based on the fact that we need to reduce sugar and carbs and therefore control our insulin levels which cause our body to store fat. Some people get confused about the different plans, and I did initially as well. But now that I'm familiar with them, I see how there is a need for these different plans to suit the needs of all the people trying to lose weight. Basically they are the same in theory, just different in the way you count and keeping track.

There are some great facebook groups for all of these plans. Ask to join and they will approve you. I wrote a post the other day and got a really great response. I'd like to share it with you.

This may be obvious to some, but I had a "light bulb, ahh ha" moment yesterday. I was thinking how many of us get frustrated if we aren't losing, how we weigh ourselves everyday and expect big changes in a day or two, and how we focus so much on getting to our goal weight. Maybe subconsciously we think when that happens we can cheat a little more and not follow our plan as closely. When in reality if we have committed to changing the way we eat, and are going to eat this way forever, then that is just the way it is going to be forever. Noting magical is going to happen to our way of eating when we lose faster or when we reach our goal. We will still have to eat this way forever to keep the weight off. So if we are following a plan we believe in, are feeling better, sleeping better, moving easier, then we should just relax and not worry so much about what the scale says. It will move eventually and we will reach our goals. The benefits will be great, but we will still be eating the same if we want to stay at that goal. This is a lifestyle, not a short term fix.

Whatever plan you are following to stay healthy, realize you have to follow this for the rest of your life. Don't pick a plan for weight loss. pick a new lifestyle that you knowyou can live with forever. The rest is a piece of cake!!





Thought for the day:  "You've always had the power my dear, you just had to learn it for yourself."

Glinda from the Wizard of Oz

Time to Get Away!

Hello all. Just wanted to say hello and tell you we are headed off to Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos Islands tomorrow. We have been there a few times before ( when it wasn't so discovered), so this is our fourth time.

Grace bay beach is one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen, and I've seen quite a few. Just pure white sand and crystal clear waters. The photos are what it actually looks like.

All the kids are going and we are looking forward to a great relaxing time. I'll talk to you when I get back. Be well! Sending love and hugs! XO!

Life is a Gift!

Pumpkin candles, and the last of the Hydrangeas! Happy Fall!

Good morning all. I know I am not the best blogger these days. I just don't feel like I have anything to say. I am pretty active on the Facebook page for the 100 diet by Jorge Cruise and I love Rosalie's Belly Fat Cure Facebook page. Maybe it's something different for me, and the blogs have died down in volume. My beloved DIL Meghan suggested that I don't always have to blog about eating low carb and low sugar. I thought about this and I think I would blog more if I could just say what I'm thinking about, what I like, or don't like, or whatever's on my mind. So I'll give that a try.

Last night I woke up at 1am because the wind blew the bedroom door shut. I have no trouble getting to sleep. but once I'm up, the trouble starts. I usually lie there for about and hour. Two comfy and sleepy to get up, but not enough to fall back asleep.

 Last night I reached for my Ipad on my nightstand and started reading a Kindle book I downloaded. I'll tell you more about the book in a moment, but I want to share this tip. Whether or not you have a kindle, I suggest you still download the app on your Ipad, Iphone, laptop, and/or computer.  Download it on every device you have. When you have the app, you can still go to Amazon.com and buy a Kindle book, even if you don't have a Kindle. The app will sync across all you devices. So if you are reading on your Kindle, and then open up the app on your Ipad or PC or even your phone ( like if you are stuck waiting with nothing to do), the app will ask you if you want to continue at the page you were at from another device. I think it is just so clever and useful.

So this book I'm reading, I would highly recommend. It's called God Never Blinks, 50 Lessons for Life's Little Detours by Regina Brett. Each chapter is a short lesson accompanied by a story. You can skip around and read in any order you want. It has some religious connotations, but nothing overly suggestive. So if you are not religious, you won't take any offense. I promise you will get some motivation, comfort, and be uplifted when you read it. Sending love and hugs! XO!



Thought for the day: Lesson 50 - Life Isn't Tied with a Bow, but It's Still a Gift - Regina Brett, God Never Blinks.

Simple is as Simple Does.

Does the idea of leaving it all and moving to a small village in Europe, a lakeside cabin, or a Caribbean island appeal to you? That’s my fantasy. I dream of a simple life in a simple part of the world. Waking to the sounds of nature, a whole undiscovered day ahead of me with plenty of time to read, think, cook, walk, and breathe. No traffic jams, one day sales, or deadlines. Not in my fantasy life.

My day would end as it begun, gently reversing the process. I’d have a simple, healthy dinner, a glass of wine or two, read and slip under crisp sheets while a gentle breeze blows through the curtains as I drift off to sleep.

 

That’s what vacations are for. They remind us how to slow down, unplug and relax.  I just got back from one  at the shore. I’m lucky to have a place  I can escape to once in a while, but why can’t we have that lifestyle all year round? I want that relaxing vacation feel in my everyday life. Is that possible?


As I write this at 2 AM, my mind already a buzz with my long list of things that need to be done today, I yearn for this simplicity. The dog having to go out in the middle of the night, should not set off a chain reaction in my mind of all the things that need my attention. Why can’t I go back to sleep? Too much to do and the thoughts start firing through my brain.

This wouldn’t happen in my fantasy life. There would be no pressing issues to deal with or long to do list. My most pressing problem would be what book to read next or what to make for dinner. There would actually be a dinner, freshly prepared, and not eaten out just because it was easier, quicker, and less stressful. There would no need to have the latest fashions or fancy things. No reason to keep up with the neighbors or have the most current model of anything. FOMO or fear of missing out would not occur in my fantasy.

Every decade of my life, I think this is the time things in my life will get simpler because, fill in the blank here…the kids can feed themselves… the kids are all in school… the kids can drive themselves… the kids are going to college… I’m an empty nester, etc., etc. Yet time marches on and my fantasy remains the same. I want a less stressful, simpler life with more time to do what moves my heart. When one thing changes and frees up some time in my life, there are plenty of other things to fill that space. So I never do get that extra time. Our lives are like a closet, you can always fit more things in there. Stuff them in and fill up space. And that’s what happens, consciously or unconsciously.

So I am going to implement a few steps to make my life simpler. Step by step, I am going to chip away at the layer of stuff taking up space in my home, laptop, mailbox and mind. I’m going to get that breathing room, that simpler life. But it will take some time.

First step:   I am unsubscribing from the myriad of daily web site emails that I get because I am afraid to miss out on something. 

 These emails pile up because I haven’t had time to read them. They really do stress me out.  I don’t need the shoe of the day, groupon deal of the day, travel deal of the day.

 I’ll keep the wine of the day emails. I will need that in my fantasy life.

More steps to come.....

Thought for the day:

 Much may be done in those little shreds and patches of time which every day produces, and which most men throw away. ~ Charles Caleb Colton

When Life Gives You Lemons!

Hello dear followers. I can't believe that we are in the last weeks of August and Labor Day is just two weeks away. This summer has surely flown by for me. How about you?

Last weekend my husband, dogs, and I were at the shore. It was blissfully quiet as we had no family down, and I had the windows open, with some cool breezes blowing all weekend. That doesn't usually happen here in August but we have had a cool period lately. Believe it or not we had night time temps in the high fifties last week and beautiful fall like seventies during the day.

 I love nothing more than to throw open the windows and let the breezes blow in. In my opinion, sleeping with the windows open and hearing the crickets chip at night is the best way to fall asleep. It's not lasting though, heat and humidity coming back in tomorrow!

I have been addicted lately to a simple quick version of lemonade. I just felt like something tart and a little sweet. I didn't feel like squeezing a lemon so I used this lemon  juice that I bought at a local grocery. It  comes from Italy. I squeezed a bit into the bottom of a glass, added water, lots of ice, a few drops of liquid stevia ( I like the NuNatural brand a lot!) and topped with some fresh mint.

 I love it. I've now forsaken my beloved ice tea for this concoction and I can't get enough of it.

My DIL Meghan also loved it, and it was our beach drink of choice a few weekends ago. We also made it with lime juice, but it just didn't have the pucker up tartness that the lemon did.

Let me know if you try it and if you like it. Sending love and hugs and lemon kisses from me to you!!

Thought for the day: When life gives you lemons.....make sugar free lemonade!!!

Conversation with a Corn Muffin!

Corn muffin:  I am hot and delicious and right out of the oven. Wouldn't I taste so good with some cold butter melting into my sweet, crumbly deliciousness?

Me:  Yes you would. Let me get out that butter. One little corn muffin won't matter. How much sugar can be in one little corn muffin?

Very little voice inside my head:  Don't do it. You abstain from sugar, and one of those muffins will set you off and you will want more. It's a slippery slope.

Me: Maybe, but it's only one muffin, I can handle this.

Corn muffin: C'mon, I'm still warm. The butter will melt nicely. Don't you remember how good I tasted when you made these last week? You said you made them for your son, but be honest....you made them so you could have one. And you did. Have another. They won't last long once the boys and your guests get here.

Me: Yes, I know I had one last week, and it did set me off. I had a terrible week after that and ate all the white stuff I gave up before. Maybe you were the reason why.

Corn muffin:   Hey, don't blame me. Everything in moderation. It's okay if you just have one.

A little louder voice inside my head:  Yes, that very well could have been the reason you slipped up. You can' t handle moderation of some foods and you know it. There will always be corn muffins. Just because you don't have one today doesn't mean the rest of your life that you will never have an opportunity to have one. YOU are in control. YOU decide if it's the right choice. There will always be corn muffins.

Me:  You are right. I choose not to have one. I'll have a nice glass of ice tea instead. I can't always have what I want when I want it.

Corn muffin:  LOSER!!

Me: I most certainly hope so this week!!

Loud voice inside my head:  You did the right thing.  You won't regret it.

Thought for the day:  Willpower is a muscle. The more you exercise it, the stronger it gets!