My Second Simply Filling Day

I walked a ton!

Today was a good day. I started out my day with my Weight Watchers meeting and found that I had lost most of the weight that I had accumulated in the week previous. Which was very nice. I knew that most of my gain was water retention and I wasn't that worried about it.

I had an Fuji apple for breakfast with a 16oz bottle of water flavored with Crystal Light. My day continued with no points used of my 49. I am already planning for tomorrow and what I'll be eating then too.

I have been jonesing for some spaghetti so I grabbed some whole grain/wheat thin spaghetti noodles and some plain tomato sauce and paste. I'll add my own flavoring tomorrow while I mix it up. I'll probably stop tomorrow after church and get some ground beef to go in the sauce too. 

I did a lot of walking today. I went to the mall to see if I could find myself another pair of shoes for the job that I will eventually have (no luck there), then kept walking a lap. Then I stopped and grabbed some new tea at Teavana (Moroccan Mint is very yummy by the way). Later this evening I went to Walmart to walk around and get organization ideas and to see how much I could figure I would be spending. I have to know what kind of house and space I'll have before I can even fathom buying any of this stuff though. In any case it helped me get some more movement in.

Here's to another good day tomorrow!

Starting to Do the Simply Filling Technique

I have been going to Weight Watchers for going on two years now (at least this time around) and I have been disappointed with myself. I have lost weight but with the stresses that have been in my life I haven't stuck to plan like I should have. I find myself making excuses and justifying to myself that I deserve some type of food item that I don't need.

I started back on September 10th, 2011. I weighed in at 224.8 pounds. I'm not ashamed to say it, because I never want to be there again. Ever. Last week I weighed in at 202 pounds. I totally destroyed my downward trend that started earlier this summer. I was in it to win. Then all hell broke loose. Now I'm looking at that 202 and I'm upset that I let it get that far.

I went up 4.4 pounds from the week before. It has taken most of this week for me to become totally disgusted with this fact. Because at the beginning of the week I was making excuses of "Well I had Chinese on Thursday (my weigh in is on Saturday mornings)." There were other excuses. People have started making excuses for me. That is the crazy part.

Okay so since I'm having a hard time keeping track of what I'm eating and I'm feeling restricted (which is stupid because you can eat anything you want on Weight Watchers Points+) I have decided that I am going to use the Weight Watchers' Simply Filling Technique. This Technique is exactly how it sounds. You eat until you're satisfied and you eat your 8 healthy guidelines. Very little processed foods at all.

The guidelines in no particular order are: 1) Drink 6 8oz. glasses of fluids (non-alcoholic), 2) Get 2 servings of low-fat or fat-free dairy, 3) Get 5 servings of fruits and veggies a day, 4) Take a multi-vitamin, 5) Get in 2 tsp of healthy oils a day, 6) Get 30 minutes of activity a day, 7) Eat whole grains instead of white when you can, and 8) Eat lean protein.

To be healthy adults and kids even we should be following these steps anyway. They are essentially the food pyramid that we were all taught in school. It is do able. You just gotta do it. Plan it. Do it. Perfect Planning Prevents Poor Performance.

I know that today is Friday and the last day of my week. I get that. I started a day "early." Why not start when it's the day I weigh in right? Well the other mantra is you can always change what you eat as soon as the next meal. You make your own choices.

Last night I planned as much as I usually do and I went to the grocery store. I spent quite a bit of money on fruits and veggies. I am sticking to this. No veggie or piece of fruit will get left behind. They are expensive and I'm going to get my moneys worth.

I'm sure that when I go to weigh in tomorrow morning I'll probably see another gain. I half don't even want to be told if I lost or gained because it's the past and it's behind me there is nothing I can do about it now.

I'm doing the Simply Filling Technique, and I am going to lose!

Also I still have items up for sale on eBay you might want to check out. Right now I have books and DVDs that I don't want to have to move. Next items to go up will be baby clothes.

Getting Back Into EBay

Hello again!

Lately I have been getting antsy. I am going through all of my stuff that needs a new home because I don't especially want to move it to where ever I am heading. If someone else can use what I have even better right? That's what I was thinking. I have been using eBay for a long time since 2008!

I really like using the service because I can get my books and items to other people that will use them! I have sold all kinds of books (because I am a bit of a bibliophile) and I just don't have the space to keep them. All of the books that I sell have been treated like they are my babies. Most if not all of the ones I sell are ones that on the paperbacks the spines haven't even been broken (a pet peeve of mine).

The other things that I have been posting are things that I no longer have a use for or I'm looking to get something different. If my items have something wrong with them I don't even like the thought of putting them up because why would I want to sell something that is defective?

When I put up a listing I try and put up as many pictures as possible with the item. And since the advent of the eBay mobile app it has made the whole process even faster! You can take pictures, add information, list, and share with social media. Awesome stuff.

Right now I mostly have up books and DVDs on my site. Feel free to stop by and take a look. Shortly I will be posting things like baby clothes and toys. I hope to see you soon over there. :)

Butterflies...

Butterflies can flap their wings and create change. Just think of what you can do. 

Can't Wait to Organize My Own Place

I wish that I had a place that was my own, so I could decorate it however I saw fit. Then I could have a fresh start at organizing everything. So that it could be a place that I called home.

Last night while I was out and about. I decided to make a trip into Bed, Bath, & Beyond. Right now since it is the beginning of August every place that sells stuff like BBB are doing college dorm sales. Which means they have everything that has to do with organizing and storage on sale. They have check lists out everywhere. To be quite honest it made me wish that I still had my studio apartment in Grand Rapids.

A Super Soft Footstool @ BBB

I was taking in all of the cool accessories and it made me wish that I could just buy it all. Only problem is that right now I have no place for it and I would just be moving it again anyways (probably into a space that it wouldn't work in). And since most of the stuff that is out right now seems like it's for college kids (and not quite my style) I'd still use the organization stuff.

I seriously want to get crazy about organizing stuff in my drawers. This is something that I've never really been. Before it's always been if it is in the drawer it's organized, or if it is in the closet it is organized. What I've come to realize though is that those places are just hiding clutter! Everything should have a place and my stuff doesn't really. My drawers are just hidden piles of clothes.

Pinterest and I are going to become the best of friends in a bit when it comes to organization. Feel free to follow me over there where I start pinning great ideas for my next place.

What are some of your favorite ways to organize? I'm open to suggestions and links :)

Some Crepe Myrtle

Excuses Excuses

My weight loss is a journey. That is what I have to keep telling myself. It's the only way I can keep at it. Because deep inside me is that part that says "I want it off right now and if it isn't going to disappear then screw all of it." It is a journey. It just happens to be an incredibly long one if I don't stick with it and do it.

I have tons of excuses. Here are a few:

1. You're going through a divorce.
2. You're having to look for work.
3. You're having to look for daycare.
4. That sushi looks really good.
5. It's just one piece of cake.
6. I'll get right back to it after this...

They go on and on, but all they do is just make the journey longer. I guess it is going to come down to how much longer do I want this journey to take. I have set goals before to reach before a certain date and it doesn't work. Because if I don't make the goal I set for myself then I self sabotage and gain a couple of pounds back.

I try to make activity goals and those don't seem to work either. I'm really gung ho about them in the beginning and then other things get in the way. Here are a few of those:

1. I don't have time.
2. My favorite program is on.
3. I'm too tired.
4. It's too early.
5. I just took a shower.
6. It's raining out.

I need to realize that no matter what I'm doing there is some way that I can work in some kind of activity even if it is getting up and walking in place while I watch my favorite TV program. There is all of the time in the world to watch those, and for those minutes wasted sitting I could be up walking in place just so that I'm doing something.

I need to release these excuses and move on and instead of saying "I can't" I need to start saying "I can."

What are some of your excuses? What's holding you back?

The Writing's Been Good

The writing has been pretty good lately. I have been able to get down crazy amounts of pages of hand written journal. I have been able to take writing prompts and run with them. Where has this part of my brain been in the past six or so years. It seems like I could never do this much writing before. It's like someone has pulled a plug and everything just started oozing out.

I have also been going crazy on Twitter lately too. I'm surprised no one has told me to shut up yet. But twitter is just that kind of place where everyone and no one is listening all at the same time.

There is a website called Writers Write and they give amazing advice and writing prompts. I follow them on Facebook and Pinterest and here lately on Twitter. Looking through their writing prompts that they post on Pinterest early yesterday morning just made something click in my head. My mind is turned on and I'm so happy for it.

Writing Old School Style

I have also found that I am able to write with more focus when I'm not on the computer doing my first draft. I always seem to get sidetracked. Because there is Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest. They are all distractions. Another great website that I have going in the background when I've been writing today is Coffitivity. What it basically does is give background noise to make it sound like you are sitting in a coffee shop without actually having to be in a coffee shop. Now if I could just remember to brew a cuppa before I started my writing I probably would be better off!

I want this phase to continue. I am happy when I'm producing something. I have this problem though. I'm very flighty. Something else will pop up like my unfinished crochet project that is almost done and I'll drop everything else. But I need to get that finished so I can show it off too. :)

If you write what is your favorite method? Do you like pen and paper, laptop, or a typewriter (do they even make those anymore?)?