Good advice February 26, 2013 *192.5

When I first started this blog, I had said I wanted to lose 100 lbs before the new year. That is not going to happen, and I am ok with that. Obviously it is too early in the game to predict much weight I am going to lose, but my body is telling me that it 100 lbs is out.

My original plan was to lose 10 lbs a month, and to reach 120 by the end of December 2013. I am averaging a pound a week, so about 5 lbs a month. Which means 120 lbs wont happen this year. Am I ok with that? Yup. I have never lost weight quick, but I sure know how to gain it quick!

I have lost and gained so much weight in my life, that I have become an expert in losing weight. I have kind of switched my focus in the last month.  I am still on my weight lose journey, but I am also working on not regaining it.

I have an addictive obsessive personality. What that means...I am a nut job! Ha kidding (kind of). Every time I lost weight in the past, I would obsess about the amount of weight I could lose in a week. I would get a number in my head, and I would do anything (I mean anything), to get that to happen. Starving and barfing and exercise. If all that didn't work, I would lose courage and start eating, and yup you guessed it...regain everything.

I got wonderful advice early on in my journey, and it really changed how I look at my weight loss journey. 

The number on the scale, really is just a number
Plateaus are a chance to practice maintanence
Trust my body
Restart your diet the minute you fall off, not tomorrow or after the weekend
No one is perfect
Do not obsess
Use your scale as a tool
Stop doing crazy shit to lose weight
Keep trying
Plan everything, meals, contingency plans, diet and exercise

All of these have reduced my stress a hundred fold. Seriously!

The Hills are alive with the Sounds of Music.. 194.0

I am happy to report that I am reading again. That is a sure sign that I am doing great. Now I just have to get off my ass and start exercising again. I have not gone for a walk since this whole 'episode' started. I heard a bird singing this morning, when I let the dog out, and it made me smile. I actually started to sing 'The hills are alive with the Sounds of Music"! Ok not very well, but you get the picture.

I started thinking about depression and how it affects me. I notice ...

Trouble sleeping
Increase in appetite
Grumpier
Sadder
Tired tired tired
Cry at the drop of the hat
Mean little bitch voice in my head
Panic Attacks
No interest in anything
The death nell...not wanting to read!

Soo, I have not been exercising. You know what that means...thats right, I bombed my New Years Resolution.

On another good note though. I have written a huge To Do list. I put them in columns like People to call, Things to Do, Things to think about. Then I color coded them Red (right now), Orange (almost right now), Yellow (soon) and Black.

I have done almost all the red, though it took me over two weeks to do them all. I feel better without all those To Do things hanging over my head too. Some of them were really simple, like calling the doc. I hate talking on the phone, or seeing people. All of the items on the red list were about calling people for appointments. Sheeesh!

Well I am off to go singing...

Homemade Dish Soap

Homemade Dish Soap

I made Homemade Laundry Detergent last month, and I love loved it. I bought some Downy Balls and use Orange infused vinegar as a rinse. I absolutely love it. I will not go back to commercial laundry detergent.

Now I have made....Homemade Dish Soap. 
 

Soap after grated and buzzed

Ingredients:

*1 1/2 cup Boiling Water (I had to add more water, because it was too solid)
*1 Tbsp of Washing Soda
*1 Tbsp of grated bar of soap ( I use Sunlight, and I cant stress enough that it has to be grated fine)
* 1 Tbsp of Vinegar
*Drops of essential oils

Directions:

*Heat water to boiling.
*I use a 2 cup glass measuring cup. It makes it easier for clean up, and pouring the soap after.
*Add your soap, and Washing Soda, and mix until grated soap has melted.
*Let mixture to cool on the counter top for 6-8 hours, giving it a stir every now and then.

Mixture in my blender

*I noticed it started to gel within 5 minutes
*I also noticed the grated soap still had not melted away. Definetly will have to have smaller pieces of soap. It would have made making this sooo much easier. 
* After 6-8 hours, your soap will be ready to pour into your container.

***Edited to add
I ended up doing this a second time. The grated soap just never ended up melting completely. I used my  blender, and blended the grated pieces (I had grated two bars) until they were like corn meal. I went through the whole process again, and I still had a hard time getting everything to melt. So I put the mixture in my blender again! I buzzed the crap out of it, and yahoo it worked. I will keep it in there and buzz through out the day.
 

FYI...I didn't throw out the first batch. I added a tbsp of it to my laundry until I used it all up.

Blog Awards February 18, 2013 *193.5

I am more of a spiritual person than a religiously religious person. I believe in God, but not so much the church. I follow all the holidays in the spirit they were meant. I believe that when a door closes that God will open a window for me. Too many things have happened in my life, for me not to trust in this.

I have been going through another bout of depression, that thankfully is on its way out. I am doing better and feeling better every day. I am not saying receiving two awards changed my life, or even shook me out of my depression. What it did do was make me see that I am not alone.

I am raising a teenage boy (OMG!), who is going through puberty (OMG!), and I am doing this alone. Though I could literally pull my hair out from frustration, he is the reason I am still alive. He was the window that God opened for me. I was on the way out, when I had him, and I imagine if ever something bad happened to him, I would soon follow. Anyhoo that was morbid.

Back to the awards...Short and simple...They made me smile inside.

I realize now that blogger awards are almost like chain letters. Some/Most bloggers do not care when they get one. Sadly I found this out when I nominated people for the Inspirational Blogger Award. The few who did respond, were warm and generous and took it in the spirit that I meant it. I wanted them to know that I appreciated their words, their encouragements, and the work they put into their blog.

Leibster Award!

What?! Another Blogger Award! Stop! I am blushing with happiness. Ok ok stop with the drama. A fellow blogger has nominated me (MOI!) for the Leibster Award. I can not say enough about this....but I will anyways!


Thank you!

Leibster Award Rules

• Each blogger posts 11 random facts about themselves.
• Answer the questions the tagger has set for you
• Choose  3 new bloggers to pass the award to/nominate
• Come up with 11 new questions to ask your nominees
• Go to their page and tell them about the award.
  (No tag backs!)

On to the rules and the homework
Some random facts: I believe in God/ I am/was a cutter/I love every season/I have a 200 lbs English Mastiff/I get my nails done/my house if 625 sq feet!/I got laid off last year/I dye my hair because it is nearly completely white (started when I was 15)
Questions for me to answer
*Favorite Skinny dessert?-I don't eat dessert
*Favorite Healthy Restaurant?-I don't go out

*Favorite exercise?-Walking
*What motivated you to start?-Me...I was tired of me
*What are you really passionate about?-Uhm...me...for now.
*Two hobbies?-Cross stitching and my blog
 Chose they bloggers to pass the award to
 I thought of these two because they are totally awesome!
*Behind the Chintz Curtain
*La Crimson Femme
Now to the questions
Who are your favorite authors?
What is your favorite movie?
Who is your favorite actor?
What is your all time favorite book?
Who is your all time favorite character in a book?
Who is your favorite singer/group?
What is your favorite food?
What makes you randomly cry?
What book have you read over and over again?

pass it on!