Good afternoon, everyone!

I've been crazy busy getting artwork done as JB and I are going on a road trip again to visit my Mom's family in Quebec, and the Ottawa River Valley, as well as attending a cousin's 70th Wedding Anniversary/ family reunion!

I have two more colouring books ready to release and working on several more as well as doing illustrations for a children's book, part of therapy for kids with issues like ADHD, eating disorders, self esteem issues and more. Part of the illustrations are now completed....the rest will be finished when we get back.

Planning what to pack is fun...most of my summer clothes from last year are now too big...not complaining at all, in fact, rather excited about it but that does restrict my packing...lolol...I will somehow manage. And the relatives that we are seeing have not seen me since I lost 40 pounds. Everyone there (huge Irish/French families) always ready to feed us but they do respect it when I say, "thank you...it is all so delicious but my adjusted stomach simply cannot hold anymore"..I drink tea or water when they drink wine and I am quite comfortable with that.

One of my cousins has promised to take us fishing on his houseboat on the river...he says it is just a step off the dock onto the boat...no steps/stairs and very safe and easy for me..and even the bathroom is accessible for me...I was always afraid to try these things for fear I'd capsize the boat or couldn't fit into the bathroom. I miss out on so much out of FEAR and feeling ASHAMED of my body. But being able to buy clothes off the rack is now such a treat. Even my Secret Sister (sorority) bought me a stunning purple glitzy shawl for Christmas and now a lovely white silk shawl (with shades of blues & navy & black fringes) and they both FIT!  I am totally amazed that someone would actually buy me a piece of clothing and it FITS!! Thank goodness she has such good taste in clothes too. *s*

Sincere condolences to those who are losing loved ones...yes, I, too, am seeing this happen a lot more...likely because I am "of an age (68)" and so life moves forward. I just realized yesterday that my hubby is 72, the same age that my Dad was when he died. I felt a momentary panic but calmed myself knowing that Dad had medical issues and hubby, who just stripped off his clothes for me to add to my washing, just did a jig in front of me, stark naked...OMG...just to show that he is not ready to drop dead on me yet....lolol. I have to say how I envy those who are THAT comfortable in their own skin....an issue that I will always struggle with, I guess.

Breakfast : hot chocolate protein drink

Snack: a small bowl of low fat cottage cheese with crushed pineapple

Lunch: vegetable soup with extra greens and a few cubes of leftover BBQ steak for protein

Snack:  fresh pineapple

Dinner:  baked Dutch Croquettes (shredded beef) and greens

Bedtime Snack:  vegetable soup

LOTS of water.....I carry a water bottle with me to every room.

Enjoy your weekend and be safe!

I really noticed my food portion size begin to decrease when I cut out meat. I really struggle with keeping my portions small. After surgery, I began eating in a baby plate or coffee saucer and still use one to this day. When we go out to eat, I take my portion out of my plate and immediately put the rest in a doggie bag. These strategies work for me and they have helped keep my portion control down...but I can eat an entire sleeve of crackers so I just don't buy those kinds of foods.  Chips are another thing that I can eat a lot of, so I don't buy them.  You seem to be doing good in your portions too.  Drinking water is a good strategy and I do that too.  If I get hungry, the first thing I do is slug some water and it does help. 

Thanks All for posting your daily food intake, always surprised at by how little you all eat.

Have to get back to my mantra "do I really want to eat this, do I NEED it or can I just drink water and forget my craving?".

Today my Brunch was G.Foreman grilled frozen tiny chicken breast and a salad, only fat was the olive oil I used with white Balsamic vinegar.

Tonight will be ditto but with a glass of icy white dry vino...it is Saturday after all! And an orange for dessert.

Ladies,

My grandchildren are with their mom this weekend so I am taking advantage of the empty apartment and am doing some cleaning and watching inappropriate TV...you know Orange is the new Black, that kind of inappropriate.  

Today I had loaded oatmeal for breakfast and it just tore my stomach up.  I didn't add anything to it but my husband reminded me that it is a lot of fiber, so maybe it's a good thing. At least I didn't get sick to my pouch....you know?

Lunch will be turnips, greens, squash, and peas. My daughter's garden is going crazy.  Dinner tonight will be salmon, the leftover veggies from lunch, and probably for me some shrimp or mushrooms.  I am not a big salmon eater. My DH loves it but it is a little too dense for me...so I usually eat a bite or two and fill up on mushrooms. 

Last night, after we took our grand babies to meet my daughter, we stopped and ate at a little Chinese restaurant that we love. The owner is a delightful woman from China whose husband came here years ago and started the restaurant and after years in the restaurant business, he died and she had no choice but to take over the handling of the restaurant. Her son was my student and he ended up with an MBA from our university and he works for a huge corporation 8-5 and helps his mom in the evenings...and they are both delightful people. Whenever we eat there, she always gives us expensive chocolate candies with our fortune cookies and we take them home and DH eats them...so we went there to eat and she had her chef make me so steamed crab legs and they had just gotten a shipment of stone crabs in so he made those for me too and I love eating crab meat...it's my favorite seafood in the entire world.  I like cracking the legs and pounding the claws and it gives me an excuse to play with my food and dip in butter....all my favorite things. So, I was eating the crab and then out came the stone crabs and I was eating those and she comes over and sits with us and in her broken English, she tells me that she wants to take the Citizen test but her English isn't good enough....I told her of course I will work with her and she will pass the test so starting next week, she and I will be meeting every single day during my lunch hour and we will begin her reading and writing English studies.  She was so happy and I was so happy and when we went to pay, she wouldn't take a penny, so DH left the cost of the meal as a tip to the waitress....a win by all was had.  I have picked out the language books she will use and I have lesson plans for the next few months and I am pretty sure she will be ready to take the exam before Christmas.  Yeah! One of my favorite community service volunteer jobs was when I taught the GED classes and the ESL classes for citizenship.  I volunteered for the Ozark Literacy Council and had a blast working there until I took my full-time job at the university. I think, though, it might be time for me to go back and see if there's a place for me to teach at least one class.  

Well, let me get off here and get my butt in gear....I am going to wash all my dang bed covers and get them put up until winter and that means going to the laundry mat to use their big washers and dryers.  

Ladies, eat smart, move a little, and practice mediating.  I promise you positive results from just soothing your mind a few times a day.  It's like doing Kagels...you do it a few times a day and you can sneeze without losing a drop of urine....same with meditation, do it and you will learn to control the stressors in your life and not the other way around....speaking of Kagels, I'm doing them now...see, tighten the floor of your pelvic region to reinforce your bladder and gain control of that sphincter....great way to save money....no more pads....

Laureen,

It sounds like your head is in the right place. So many of us start this process with the notion that the surgery will get the weight off of us and we rarely work on the problems we had prior to the surgery such as working on our health and the rest will fall into place.  Getting your strength built and endurance back will help with the other and that was my mindset when I decided to gain control of my weight gain.  I talked to my nutritionists and my psych guy and we decided that my only option was to work toward health and not toward weight loss...it's the weight loss idea that sends so many of us into stress attacks which as we all know creates a chain reaction that pushes us towards eating.  

Moving and taking care of your body are the best choices...and the eating, it looks like for you, is taking care of itself.  

I hope your visits to the chiropractor are successful.  I have a masssues and his hands are like liquid heat and he makes my neck and shoulders feel so good. I really wanted to go to a chiro but my insurance makes us get a referral from our doctor and my doctor said because of my back and neck conditions, he wanted my neurologists to do the referral and you all are probably familiar with the ongoing battle between chiro and neuro docs so I didn't get a referral but he did refer me to a physical therapists who does massage and who is familiar with where my back injuries are and how to handle the nerves and so forth....he also uses electrical stimulation and some deep ultrasound....but sometimes I just want my back cracked...you know?  

Well, let me get off here and see about doing some cleaning. The kids are with their mom this weekend so I am taking advantage of the emptier apartment.