Sampling of life

I've started sampling again and have decided to chronicle what I receive - here, on my blog. Today's mailbox surprise was a sample size Dove NutriSkin Replenishing Lotion.

Five month weight loss

 

I have to share!!  I have PolyCystic Ovarian Disease, which has caused me to gain 150 lbs in 8 years.  I may not exercise like I should, but I am a fairly healthy eater.  No matter what I did, the weight kept piling on and nothing I did caused any of it to go away.  Fast forward to this past January when I changed doctors.  The new doc made the connection between the PCOD, the type 2 diabetes I'd developed, and the huge weight gain/inability to lose.  She put me on medications to reverse the effects of the "famine mode" the PCOD had convinced my body I was in and the weight started dropping.  Five months later, I'm down almost 40 lbs. I knew I'd been losing and I do a happy dance every time I have to buy new pants, but it did not occur to me how much better and healthier I looked until I took a new full-length pic this morning and compared it to an old full-length pic from when I was at my heaviest.  Talk about motivation!!  We're moving this summer and joining the rec center in the new town.  I can't wait to compare again after a few months of hitting the fitness room and indoor pool!!

The skinny bitch inside WILL make another appearance sometime in the future!!

• Starting Weight: 288/January 5, 2011
• Starting Shirt Size: 3XL
• Starting Pant Size: 22-24

 

• Today's Weight: Somewhere between 250-255
• Today's Shirt Size: XL or 2XL
• Today's Pant Size: 18 and getting really close to 16!!

I admit it – I keep pulling up the pic and just staring at it!!!

 

Changes are a-comin'!

It's been a while, so I have a few updates today!


Health:
My glucose counts are still doing really well, as is the weight loss. I've taken myself off of the injection that I was prescribed a few months ago. It's an "extra" med and I'm just not seeing the major benefits the doctor talked about - especially not at $60 a month. :) On the plus side, I'm still losing weight. At last count, I've lost almost 40 lbs, 1 shirt size, and 3 pants sizes since the first of the year and I feel great!


Job and Home:
James has started a new job and I'm leaving mine. He's driving for a company that is located about two hours south of where we live now. So, we're moving there hopefully before the end of August. It's not a huge move for us since it's only two hours away (and I graduated high school nearby), but it's a big move for us in terms of getting back on our feet and moving on after everything we've been through over the past 3.5 years. And because of the move, I'll be looking for work. I'm crossing my fingers that I can run across a secretary/bookkeeper position at one of the schools that will be starting around the time we move. Those of you who really know me know that while I don't want to teach, my heart is in working at the schools.


Craftiness:
I finally made something! Well, deconstructed and remade something. :) Several years ago, I bought a jewelry box that I hate. Yeah, I know: "Why did you buy a jewelry box that you hate?" Well, long story short, it held jewelry and I needed something that did just that. I finally bought something different to use for my jewelry, so it was time to do something about that tacky jewelry box (forgive the quality of the pictures). The first pic is the before. Nothing stayed organized and I had to untangle necklaces anytime I wanted to wear them. That just did not work for me! So the lid became a hanging mirror with hooks along the bottom (perfect for drying unmentionables that do not go into the dryer) and the bottom became a corral for all of my perfumes that tend to jump off of the dresser. More crafty things to come!

Your turn:
So what's new in your life? Any big changes happening? Tell me about them!

Diagnosis + 1 month

 

I had a follow-up doctor’s appointment today.  this was to test my progress after taking diabetes medication and changing my diet for one month.  My diet did not require a lot of changes since I had already made most of them when hubby was diagnosed with diabetes in February 2010. 

The good news is the doc was VERY pleased with my progress!!  Long story short, my weight on January 4th was 286 (although my scales at home show about 4 pounds less - evil doctor scales).  My weight today *drum roll please* 271 pounds!!  I’ve lost 15 pounds and most of that was in February!!  I’m definitely feeling the motivation!

To help with the weight loss and to get my morning glucose numbers a little closer to where they should be, the doctor also started me on an injection today.  Giving myself a shot – quite a new experience, but surprisingly not unpleasant.  I think I convinced myself it was going to be horribly painful, but in reality, I didn’t even feel the needle go in.  That will teach me to psych myself out. 

Until next time!!

My weight is not my fault (Repeat as often as necessary)

 

My weight is not my fault. My weight is not my fault. My weight is not my fault.

It feels so good to say that and mean it, because I now know that MY WEIGHT IS NOT MY FAULT!

What was that?  Why not?  I’ll tell you why not.  It’s because of the evil that is Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). 

Long story short, PCOS wreaks havoc on a gal’s body.  The body “forgets” how to properly use hormones, process insulin, and even burn fat.  Everything escalates to the point that systems start to short-circuit and even shut down.  PCOS can lead to infertility, weight gain, heart disease, Type 2 Diabetes . . . and the list goes on. 

PCOS is an endocrine system disorder to which there is no cure, but the symptoms can be treated.  The key to living successfully with PCOS is finding a doctor who understands the relationship between the symptoms and is not afraid of putting you on the treatments that will help.  After eight years and four doctors, I’ve finally found a doctor who understands this disease and is doing what it takes to finally get it and my body under control!!!!

 

Now to the long story, which may contain TMI for some of my readers:

My experience with PCOS has been hell, but that is changing.  It started with irregularity in my monthly cycles while in my late teens.  I didn’t think much of it and neither did my doctors.  Their viewpoint was, “a lot of women are irregular until they have children.  Here, have some birth control pills.”   When the BC did not regulate me, I started questioning whether something else was going on, so then I began the quest for answers.

2003 - Doctor 1 recognized that I had issues with irregularity.  He ran labs which showed several things as being out of the normal range, yet he told me my labs were fine (he didn’t know I’d gotten my hands on my own copy of the lab results).  He had his nurse spend three days talking to me off and on about a treatment that would take care of the irregularity, but leave me unable to have children (which I already knew I did not want).  When I went for my consultation regarding the procedure, he pulled the age card – “You might change your mind”.  See ya, jerkwad.  I’m moving on. 

2005 - Doctor 2 realized that what I was dealing with was PCOS, but she gave me no answers as to WHY it was PCOS or what was going to happen in the future.  I left her office with yet another BC prescription and zero answers.  If she had stopped talking down to me through the entire visit, she might have found time to explain some more things. On to #3, after a few years of being ticked off at docs in general. 

2009 - Doctor 3 was a little closer to hitting a homerun in the diagnosis department.  I felt good (and still feel good) about going to see him.  He took the time to explain the things that had been left unsaid by the first two doctors and made sure I understood why I had been diagnosed with PCOS.  He still didn’t go so far as to explain what would happen in the future, but I felt he took more time with me and my condition than anyone else ever had.

Current – Doctor 4 is my lifesaver!  She is my general physician and when I went for a physical (and my first visit with her) earlier this year, she immediately saw the connection between all of my issues.  She explained how the PCOS has caused my body to stay in “famine” mode, which caused me to gain a lot of weight very quickly.  She also explained how that famine mode prevents me from losing weight, no matter how little I eat and how it has now caused me to develop Type 2 Diabetes.  Every medical issue I’ve had through the past few years, she was able to relate to the PCOS and snap another puzzle piece in place.  By the end of the visit, I felt like I FINALLY had the answers I’d been seeking for so long.  My first visit with her was on January 4th and my first medications to control the diabetes and help to reverse the effects of PCOS were prescribed on February 4th.  It’s been almost a month and I have my first follow-up coming up soon.  For the first time in a long time, I am looking forward to a doctor’s visit and especially to stepping on the scales.  I know what my scales at home say, but that official weigh-in is going to be the motivator I need to keep my energy levels up and my chin in the air.  I can do this because MY WEIGHT IS NOT MY FAULT!!! 

What a craptastic day.

My husband is a truck driver, but has been unemployed since he had a wreck 2.5 years ago. Long story short, we're having a hard time finding anyone who will hire him now, although it's the ONLY wreck he's ever had in 25 years of driving. He found a company two weeks ago that said they didn't care about the wreck or the unemployment because his history has been otherwise great. The recruiter told him last Tuesday or Wednesday that everything was approved and she would call him on Friday or Monday to tell him what day his orientation began and to make arrangements for him to travel to the terminal by Greyhound. He never heard back, so today he called them. The recruiter LIED. When she told him everything was approved and he was hired, NOTHING had been approved, and when his app packet went to upper management, they denied him for the reasons she said didn't matter - the wreck and the unemployment.



It just ticks me off so badly that people can screw with the life of others and not think a thing in the world about it. We've been barely existing on one income for two and a half years and my nerves are stretched as thin as a person's nerves can get. This job was our shining light - the help we needed to get us out of this hellish slump we've been in and can't climb out of. I can't take much more of this, but the doors keep getting slammed in our faces. I'm over it. This crappy economy needs to buck up, be a man, turn around, and stand up tall like a man should. No wonder suicide and depression rates are through the roof, not to mention foreclosure and backruptcy rates!!



*steps off of soapbox* Thanks for letting me vent. I needed that.

30 Days of Summer, Part 2 aka 30 Things You Neglected This Summer

On June 12th, I wrote a post that detailed 30 things I vowed to do this summer.  This post is the update of those 30 things. 
 
30 things you vow to do this summer

1. Work.  I know!  Posting work is technically cheating, but it’s the first thing that popped into my head!  Done, done, done, done some more, and even took a few days off here and there!
   


2. FINALLY trim the cedar tree so a lawnmower can pass under it without the driver of said lawn mower playing tree limb roulette.  This one is on my list for as soon as the temperatures cool down.  Who wants to do yardwork in 90-100 degree temps??
   


3. Eat a cucumber that was picked from my plants.  I was able to do this one shortly before the immense heat shriveled the plants up to a hopeless mass of brown.
   


4. Don’t be so hard on myself.  This one’s not happening anytime soon.
   


5. Lose at least one pound.  Everyone has to start somewhere!  I’ve lost three this summer.  It’s a start!!
   


6. Paint the bathroom.  I have the paint. :)
   


7. Make the coffee table “pretty”, as opposed to the tacky that it currently displays.  I didn’t do this one, because we moved the table.  So technically, the coffee table is prettier than it was!
   


8. Play with my nephew more.  I did this one a few times.  Tyler has fun staying overnight with Auntie Heather and Unka James because they let him crumble crackers all over the place. :)
   


9. Meet my new nephew in a few weeks.  Baby Landon joined us on August 4th!
   


10. Take an overnight trip somewhere – anywhere.  I did this one – TWICE!!  We spent the nights of July 2nd and 3rd in Evansville, IN, got home on July 4th, and immediately headed to Fort Walton Beach, FL.  We spent one night there and I put my toes (and the rest of me – fully clothed – thanks waves!) in the Gulf.
    


11. Scrapbook five pages.  Yeah, didn’t happen.
    


12. Create five new things.  I created a few new things, but not five.  I do, however, have ideas and plans in my head. 
    


13. Weed the flowerbeds :-X  We’ll not talk about this one.
    


14. Play in a creek.  Can you believe it’s been too hot to do this??
    


15. Visit a town I’ve never been to before.  We’ve visited several.  Some during our Saturday/Sunday road trips, just to see where the road takes us.  See also #10.
    


16. Learn a new recipe.  Done – several times.
    


17. Taste something spectacular.  Gouda cheese.  Made at a local farm.  The milk is pumped straight from the cows to a cheese room and the cheese is created within hours.  It had such a creamy, rich taste. 
    


18. Watch fireworks.  I took Tyler to his first fireworks show and he loved it!
    


19. Drink something fruity and frozen.  Fruity, frozen, and didn’t have nearly enough alcohol.
    


20. Buy new flip-flops!  It’s time after four years of wearing the same ones.  I did! I did!  I bought myself two new pairs this year.
    


21. Write – blog, poetry, cards.  Hehe we’ll not notice that this blog post is the first I’ve written since June 12.  I have, however, posted some rather witty sentences on Facebook.  That counts, right?
    


22. Have lunch with an old friend.  I have a few on the to do list, but still haven’t to done. 
    


23. Visit a place I’ve not seen in several years.  Saturday/Sunday roadtrips are great for seeing how a place has changed. :)
    


24. Meditate – often.  Not as often as I should, but I have found myself meditating more often than normal this summer.
    


25. Spend less time on the sofa.  It’s been too hot to go do anything! Yeah, that’s my excuse.
    


26. Take a walk or ten, even if it’s just around the yard.  See #25 :)
    


27. Drink more water.  I’ve been proud of myself!  I have actually been doing this! 
    


28. Discover a new music group.  I’ve found several – thanks, Pandora and Stephanie!
    


29. Watch a fantastic movie.  Movies are how I’ve occupied my time this summer.  I’ve seen several great ones.
    


30. Watch every episode of So You Think You Can Dance.  Of course!!  How could I dare miss an episode??  Such a fantastic season!

Photos from our trip to Evansville, IN

30 Days of Summer

 

I did it again.  I swore I was going to write regularly, and once again, I’ve slacked off.  I blame work! :)  I’ll try to do better.  I know my handful of readers hang on every word I type and I so hate to disappoint them. ;) 

There is a fantastic blog I follow called Mama’s Losin’ It and it’s brought to you by Mama Kat, wife of Pat and mother of three beautiful children.  Her posts are filled with humor, insight, sincerity, and love.  I look forward to reading all of them.

Each Tuesday, she posts five writing prompts and asks that you write on one or more and return on Thursdays to add your link.  I’ve been too busy or have been lacking inspiration over the past few weeks, so it’s been a while since I wrote on one of the prompts.  One of this week’s prompts, however, caught my eye.

4.) 30 things you vow to do this summer

1. Work.  I know!  Posting work is technically cheating, but it’s the first thing that popped into my head!

2. FINALLY trim the cedar tree so a lawnmower can pass under it without the driver of said lawn mower playing tree limb roulette.

3. Eat a cucumber that was picked from my plants.

4. Don’t be so hard on myself.

5. Lose at least one pound.  Everyone has to start somewhere!

6. Paint the bathroom.

7. Make the coffee table “pretty”, as opposed to the tacky that it currently displays.

8. Play with my nephew more.

9. Meet my new nephew in a few weeks.

10. Take an overnight trip somewhere – anywhere.

11. Scrapbook five pages.

12. Create five new things.

13. Weed the flowerbeds :-X

14. Play in a creek.

15. Visit a town I’ve never been to before.

16. Learn a new recipe.

17. Taste something spectacular.

18. Watch fireworks.

19. Drink something fruity and frozen.

20. Buy new flip-flops!  It’s time after four years of wearing the same ones.

21. Write – blog, poetry, cards.

22. Have lunch with an old friend.

23. Visit a place I’ve not seen in several years.

24. Meditate – often.

25. Spend less time on the sofa.

26. Take a walk or ten, even if it’s just around the yard.

27. Drink more water.

28. Discover a new music group.

29. Watch a fantastic movie.

30. Watch every episode of So You Think You Can Dance.

Lily dreams

The day lilies are asleep,
Curled into themselves,
Dreaming of sunshine.

How I would love to
Watch them awaken, stretch,
And turn their faces to the sun

HLW 06/10/10

Where is the joy?

Where is the joy in a city that is flooded, in damage that is left behind?

Where is the joy in the lives that were lost, some due to carelessness?

Where is the joy in homes that are gone – swept away by the floods or so badly damaged that destroying what is left to rebuilt will be the only option?

Where is the joy in losing everything, to starting over again?

We are alive.  That is my joy.  We will grieve those who were lost, we will clean up, we will start over, we will rebuilt or repair, and we will gain more stuff.  And we will do it because that is who we are.  We are a state built on volunteering, helping, and facing more adversity than should be allowed, but we face it.  We invite it into our homes when it knocks at the door, fix it a glass of sweet tea, and face it with a smile on our faces, because that’s what we know. 

The next few months and years will be difficult, but that’s okay – this state can overcome it.  I am proud of my state.

Until next time,

Small Town, U.S.A.

suggested by Life in Eureka Springs


"If you could change one thing about the town you live in, what would it be?"

This prompt is easy, although I will apologize ahead of time if you find me standing precariously on a soapbox, balanced on one toe while stretching to see everyone between me and the horizon.  I want to make sure no ears miss my message.


Welcome to Macon County, Tennessee, estimated population 22,000 people. 




Home to friendly people, lots of livestock, farmland as far as the eye can see, and a lifestyle that is focused on family, friends, and hard-work, but this town is dying.


This county was once home to numerous companies who manufactured such things as clothing, automobile parts, and furniture.  Now, the ghosts of forgotten factories sit in the industrial park while the people who call Macon County home drive to places like Gallatin, Portland, or Lebanon for work.  More and more people are packing up each year to move closer to their jobs because they just can’t afford the gas or the time on the road.  Why?  Why has this county gotten to the point that the majority of it’s residents have to drive somewhere else for work?   So many have given up on finding work that is within an acceptable distance and they’ve turned to welfare to provide for their families.  Parents should not be put in the position of thinking welfare is an acceptable option.  County leaders – fix it!


We need industry in this county, and not just of the manufacturing variety.  Sure, we have Fleetwood and Nestle Waters and Walmart, but how often do you hear of them hiring anyone – at least anyone who doesn’t already know someone who works there?


Bring in new shopping options – clothes, video games, home decor.  Build a small shopping open-air shopping/dining center with stores like Claire’s, Kirkland’s, Old Navy, and Taco Bell.  The new shopping options will provide jobs.  The act of shopping will feed tax dollars into our economy.  With the other small towns around us, like Hartsville, Celina, Scottsville, and Holland, there’s no reason this area can’t carry a few larger stores successfully.  City leaders – take a few steps toward reviving this town before it’s too late to revive anything.  Just my two cents.


Until next time . . .

Spring is almost here!

Inspiration for this blog post comes from 

 

 

 

 

Prompt: 5.) Share some photos and stories as well as what you love about spring.
(inspired by Amanda from Welcome To My Life).

New growth on the trees . . .

Daffodils and tigerlilies . . .

Baby bunnies . . .

Happy fun days . . .

Flip-flops . . .

Playing in puddles – PLOP!!

 

Until next time,

Random Thoughts, part 7,429,321

I have a lot of random thoughts – too many of which get posted to Facebook and probably not enough of which get blogged about.  I really should discipline myself into occasionally taking a random thought and turning it into a well-developed blog post.  Occasionally means once every year or so, right? ;)

I find a lot of my problem is I just can’t seem to find the inspiration to sit down and write.  I’m really struggling with what to blog about or how to find reasons to blog more often.  I’ve recently started following a blog. . .

. . . that hosts a writer’s workshop, meant to offer inspiration in the form of a weekly post with five blog prompts.  I think I’ll try to tackle one of this week’s ideas later tonight or tomorrow. 

So this whole one-sided conversation begs the question, “Where do you get your inspiration?”   Do your blog ideas come to you in a dream, from something overheard, from a site like Mindbump?  If all of the above, which do you find to be your most fruitful source of inspiration? 

Until next time . . .

New Journey

My family started a new journey today and it's not one we would have chosen for ourselves.  My husband was diagnosed with diabetes.  He went in for a physical and his blood sugar was 242.  We did an A1C Home Test and the result was 11.4%.  Just before dinner, he tested at 221 and two hours later it was 347. 

This diagnosis is going to require a lot of dietary changes for our family but we will deal with it.  Our family has already been through so much together and this is just another hurdle for us to leap over.  In a way, it is kind of a relief to get this diagnosis because it explains several things that have been going on with him lately. It will definitely be a difficult journey, but we can do this. :)

Until next time . . .

Friday Fill-in

1. There are places I want to go!
2. Take a deep breath and blow those clouds away.
3. Standing in the middle of nowhere, wondering where to go from here.
4. I'm going to Vegas in March, oh boy!
5. He went out tiger hunting and got eaten. :)
6. I put duct tape on my head to keep my mind from wandering .
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to hopefully NOT freezing to death, tomorrow my plans include more of that not freezing stuff and Sunday, I want to THAW OUT!

284

284 - That's a very depressing number and it's my weight.  When hubby and I started dating six and a half years ago, I was 160ish.  I had curves, but I was muscular and not overweight.  What a difference six and a half years can make.  I can blame medical issues (which I have) all I want, but when I know my eating habits and lack of exercise are a lot of why I am the size I am.  All I know is I'm sick and tired of being fat.  When I have problems typing my own shoes or walking up stairs, or even walking around the mall, it's definitely way past time for a change.  I don't know if I'll be able to do it on my own or if I'll have to join a program.  I do know that a doctor's visit is in line very soon.  I may be fooling myself, but I'm hoping that once my medical issues are under control, the weight will just fall off.  Maybe I'll be a curvy 160 again by Christmas.  Yeah right. ;)

Friday Fill-in

Courtesy of Friday Fill-Ins

1. Last night I fell asleep before the ball dropped.
2. I want to finally lose weight this year.
3. The funniest thing is when Callie Callie Fat Cat thinks she is being sweet by leaving us mice - in bed - while we're asleep.  Sometimes, they're dead.
4. It's a new year and a new decade, with a chance for new opportunities...so where do we go from here?
5. He said, "I want a new video game"; she said, "dream on, sucka!"
6. The evil fairy hid our never-ending pot of gold and riches and it's up to us to find it.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to lounging around in my jammies and read, tomorrow my plans include grocery shopping and Sunday, I want to lounge around some more!

Teaser Tuesdays

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! 

My Teasers:

1. By the time we got to cruising altitude, I was totally heartbroken at my missed opportunity and put Fruit Stripes chewing gum in my own hair as some sort of six-year-old's version of self-flagellation.
2. His ability to let me live in a world of fanciful perceptions and my interpretations is exactly what I needed in a husband - a partner in life determined to not burst my bubble.

 Page 98

Lopsided: How Having Breast Cancer can be really distracting.  

A memoir by Meredith Norton.

The Penguin Group

Copyright 2008

ISBN 978-0-670-01928-1

213 pages

Trying to get back in the swing of things

I'm horrible about remembering to update my blog! My best friend has a fabulous blog that she remembers to updated on a regular basis and it just makes mine look horrible, especially since I've had mine for a lot longer and I believe hers now has more posts. :)

New Year's Resolution - post at least once a week!!  We'll see how long it lasts, although I suppose it doesn't matter much since I only have about a reader and a half.  Oh well.  All two and a half of us will know it's been updated!

I changed the layout of my blog tonight.  Partly because I still had up a Fourth of July theme - OOPS - and mostly in support of my friend, Kim.  She was just diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 30.  I wish I could be in Miami to help her through this tough time, but since I can't, I'll just send her love here. :)

MySpace Migrated Blog #5

Originally posted to Myspace on February 06, 2008

This is a copy of an email I sent to everyone at work about being out on Wednesday. I'm too lazy to edit it, so here you go:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am going to be out all day on Wednesday, but I wanted to touch base and let everyone know that as of right now, everything is okay. I'm sure by the time some of you get this email, you'll have heard that tornadoes touched down in the area of my hometown in Macon County, TN. As of the time I am writing this email, no one in my family is injured, but we are still working on reaching a few of them. Cell phones and home phones are out in a lot of the county, so a couple of family members are out in their vehicles checking on the friends and family we've not been able to reach by phone.

It's all quite surreal to me right now. I know the natural gas plant that exploded very well. As a young child, it was so exciting to me to be riding down Hwy 141 and see that intricate silver building with all of the lights on it nestled back between the hills. It was quite possibly the most fascinating thing in the Macon County area in the mid-80s. I can't imagine it not being there. My mom lives about 12 miles from the gas plant and she can feel the heat and flames from the fire and hear the roar of the flames.

Lafayette is a different story. Power lines are down all over the place, entire houses are gone, and the last I heard, two police officers were missing. My sister's 17-year-old boyfriend was trying to get to his mother's house to check on her and could not make it down the road because of all of the downed trees and power lines. While trying to get to his mother's house, he came across a house that collapsed and trapped a woman underneath the rubble. He couldn't get her out. I can't imagine being 17, running across a scene like that, and not being able to help. We have not found out the condition of the woman, but we do know at least 15 people have had to be rescued and one is critical. As of now, there are no fatalities.

I'm crossing my fingers and hoping for the best for everyone I know. I will try to keep people updated through the next few days.