Thanksgiving Eve

As you may have noticed, I did not post my calories consumed. The reason is that I lost track... I went to watch my friends bowl last night and I learned that an old friend of mine passed away two days before. He had recently had a stroke and ultimately died of a heart attack. I guess I got a "screw it" attitude and proceeded to stuff my pie hole with a chicken sandwich and fries, Wheat thins, M&Ms and a few other tidbits. I felt like crap last night - all bloated and full. I am still feeling a bit stuffed even. I am not going to let it throw me off though. Back OTK today.

I am picking up my brother at the Airport tonight. He comes in about 7:30 p.m. so I asked mom if she wanted to come along for the ride. She said she did so we will go get him and then go to Fish Market to get a bite for dinner.

Not sure if I will post over the weekend. I am in limbo with Comcast and AT&T. Right now I have both. I will be cancelling Comcast today (hopefully) and getting Internet through AT&T but their may be a lag in between.

We are going to McCormick Schmick's so I will have Salmon for dinner. Danielle will be making 4 turkeys + the spread for the bar so I can have some leftovers. I do like turkey sandwiches and would like to have a little stuffing and her raspberry jello salad. Otherwise I don't care for Thanksgiving fare. I don't even like pumpkin pie... I hope you all have a healthy, happy and safe Thanksgiving. Until next time...

Pseudo Thursday

Did fine at the Outback. I had the Ahi as planned plus a salad and baked potato. It as delish of course! As I tell my mom, I have never met a spud I did not like.

Now that I have made some progress on this journey, I have been looking towards more smilestones like getting to 100 lbs. lost and getting to goal. At this point, I can only conceptualize the 100 lbs. lost. I am trying to visualize myself at goal but I am not able to do that yet. At my current rate of loss (1.3 lbs.) I could feasibly lose 70 lbs. by year end and then 100 lbs. by April. My father died on April 12th ('99) so I am going to make it a goal to reach that smilestone by April 12th, 2010.

I had another cool NSV yesterday. My mom bought me a holiday sweater last year and it was too snug. I never even took off the tags! Well I put it on last night and it looked great! It is a glittery red sweater and will be perfect for our luncheon for work on December 23rd at Maggiano's.

One thing I really really need to do though is get new bras and panties! None of my undies fit anymore and the bras look like h-e-double toothpicks! Maybe I can find some on sale over the weekend. I have to be in the mood to shop for bras if you know what I mean. Until next time...

Superior Scribbler Award + Stuff

Happy Monday! Those two words should not be in the same sentence! Hahaha! Hope you all had a nice weekend. Mine was good. I got to spend some time with Deb and Larry who are my besties and I have missed them a lot. We hadn't seen in each other in like a month so we had lots of catching up to do. They said they noticed a big change. One thing that struck me was we were sitting in their garage shooting the breeze and Larry looks at me and says "Katie, in the 25 years I have known you, I have never seen you cross your legs!" They weren't crossed completely but I guess I did it unconsciously.

I ate fine all weekend but did not track and I did not wear my bugg. I actually got on the scale again and I was down 2 more lbs. which puts me at 58 lbs. lost and 97 more to go. We updated my progress pictures as well and you can see them here. My face is a little washed out but you get the idea. I think I will start doing butt shots as well (Greta!) I would like to put them in a slideshow as well so I can see the progression (Note to self)

My lovely friend Marcelle has bestowed me with the Superior Scribbler award. I am so flattered that people actually like what I write.

The Rules & Regulations are as follows:

• Each Superior Scribbler must in turn pass the award on to five most deserving bloggers
• Each Superior Scribbler must link to the author and the name of the blog from whom s/he has received the award.
• Each Superior Scribbler must display the award on his/her blog, and link to The Scholastic Scribe, which explains the award.
• Each blogger who wins The Superior Scribbler Award must visit this post and add his/her name to the Mr Linky List. That way, they'll be able to keep up-to-date on everyone who receives this prestigious honor.
• Each Superior Scribbler must post these rules on his/her blog.

Here are the 5 people that I think are Superior Scribblers too.

1. Candace at Believing in C - C is Me
2. Leslie at Something Brilliant is Brewing
3. Alan at Fools Fitness
4. Bearfriend at Friend of the Bear
5. Kate at Fab at 50

There are so many wonderful blogs out there but these folks stand out in the crowd and if you have not had a chance to read them I highly recommend you do so.

Mom and I will be going to Outback tonight. I will have the Ahi Tuna appetizer, a salad and mashed potatoes. I have been hankering for a steak though so we shall see. Until next time...

Bargain with Betty

Just a short post for today. I am going to my mom's in a little while to work on paperwork again and I still need to finish working on my room so I told her we could get together tomorrow night so she gets a bonus visit. She agreed and I am relieved. I updated my progress pictures finally as well. I hadn't done them since August! You can check them out here. I need to update my measurements as well. Will do that soon. Hope you all are enjoying your weekend.


I wanted to acknowledge that I was graciously given an award by Marcelle and I will formally post it tomorrow. Thank you my dear sweet friend. You have such a kind heart! Sending hugs to you in Germany XOXO

Do I get to keep it?

Went to dinner with my mom last night. Went to the Fish Market and had Covina Sea bass. It was yummers. We are going to go to Macy's tomorrow to check out their sale. Mom said if I find something that she will get it as an early Christmas present. Yay for me!

So I got on the scale this morning and it said 259 which means two things: I have broken into a new decade AND it also means I have 99 lbs. to lose vs. 100+ but since it isn't my normal weigh day do I get to keep it or should I wait until next week to count it?

I have been having trouble with the local cable company Comcast. I called them at the end of last month and I have yet to get it installed. I won't bore you with the details but they are finally coming this morning to connect the land line, cable and Internet. However, they have made me mad and I can reduce my bill by getting Direct TV and they are going to come out tomorrow a.m. to install their service. The best thing about that is the DVR! I have never had one before. It is so funny because I am technically savvy but I am always the last person to get the latest technology. I had a dial TV up until 2 years ago and ran the cable through the VCR. Some of the younger readers might not even know what a dial TV is. Damn I am old! Anyhow, I am just glad to have TV again. I hope you all have a nice weekend! Until next time...

Diabetes Awareness Month

Carla at Mizfit made me aware that it was Diabetes Awareness Month. I wanted to share my personal story relating to Diabetes in hopes that it may help someone.

I was diagnosed with Diabetes in 1997 at the age of 31. I was actually diagnosed by a dermatologist who knew right away based on the fact that I have a skin disease called NLD. He sent me in for glucose testing and it was confirmed. Since I am adopted, I am not sure if there is any family history of it. Initially I was put on medication (Metformin) which was supposed to help with blood sugars and weight loss. All it did was make me sick and so I ended up stopping it and told my doctor at the time that I would try to lose weight and increase exercise. I did lose about 40 lbs. by cutting out junk food. I maintained the loss for awhile but eventually gained it back and then some. Eventually it started to affect my health considerably and my doctor suggested I start doing insulin. My initial reaction was no freakin way!! There was NO WAY I was going to inject myself with a needle every day. I held off for as long as possible and eventually was feeling so poorly that I finally (more then a year later!) agreed to insulin shots. When I first started I was doing 2 shots a day of 60ccs. I eventually needed 2 shots of 100ccs. That is the most that can fit in a syringe. It was at that point that I knew I had to do something. I could not face doing more then 2 shots per day. Well fast forward to a year and a half later and I have been able to reduce my shots to 1 shot per day of 60ccs and my goal is to get completely off the insulin by next summer. I am due to go in to get an Hba1c test which is the test that provides a snapshot of what blood sugars are over a period of time. The last time I had it tested it was 6.8% and it should be 7 or below. One thing I do struggle with suprisingly is the testing. It actually hurts more to me then the shots. I should be doing it at least once a day but I don't. I really need to work on that.

If you think you are at risk for Diabetes you may want to take this handy test: Diabetes Risk Test It is a manageable disease and it you can take steps to avoid getting it. Statistics show that 4,320 people will be diagnosed with Diabetes today. That is one person every 20 seconds. That means that within the first week of this movement that started on October 29, 2009, over 120,000 friends, family members and colleagues will be told they have the disease. In the next 24 hours, diabetes will claim the lives of 200 people. That’s more than 5,887 friends, neighbors, co-workers or family members every week. We need to Stop Diabetes Now.



P.S. My calorie deficit for Wednesday was 834 cals.

Winsome Wednesday

My bugg ran out of batteries so that is why there is not activity after 6:00 p.m. Calories were up a little as I had a corn dog as a snack.

Had another NSV which was way cool. I have a black blazer that I have hung onto for the last 10+ years but have never worn it. It is one of those timeless items and I just could not bear to part with it. Well I am glad I kept it because now it fits and it looks good! (IMHO) I did take out the big ol' shoulder pads though.

Totally unrelated topic but I have some pretty nice neighbors. There are only 8 units in the building and I have met everyone already. They are all friendly and one has been especially sweet. Her name is Angela and she is 81 years old. She brought over a grocery sack of food and has also given me some persimmons and lemons. She speaks Spanish and I have been wanting to learn so she has been expanding my vocabulary and I have helped her with her English. Win-Win. The only bummer is the guy upstairs. His name is Big Dave and he is the manager. He is a nice guy but he and his friends make a whole bunch of racket and apparently have no regard for anyone around them. I did know this moving in but it has been pretty smooth up until last night. I will learn to deal with it by either wearing earplugs or putting on soft music. Oh well... Until next time...

Terrific Tuesday!

Took Mom to Dr. B and her vision is stable so we will go back in another month. That is the longest appt. ever. We are always there over an hour. Plus yesterday they were blasting air conditioning and I was freezing. I even requested that they turn it down. That is one thing that I have noticed with weight loss is that I feel temperatures more. I used to run warm all the time and now I really feel the variance in temps. I ended up coming home instead of going to Fish Market with Mom. Just wasn't quite up for it. I will go on Wednesday.

When I got on the scale I was pleasantly surprised to see a 2 lb. loss for a total of 55 lbs. lost! Yay!!! What is exciting too is that I will be in a new decade in one more pound and I will have double digits to lose instead of triple. Next week baby! I also had a great NSV. I have a warm cozy top that I have not been able to wear for at least two seasons and now I can and it feels great.

Today is also the release of John Mayer's new CD Battle Studies. I am a big John Mayer fan and have all his music. I am going to go get the CD at lunchtime. Until next time...

Shout Out & The best layed plans

Hope you all had a nice weekend. I took the opportunity to take a little break and didn't post or read blogs this weekend. I missed it but it was a nice little reprieve. I also did not wear my bugg.

First of all I have to give a big shout out to Shelley at A Forty Somethings Weight Loss Journey. She has lost 100 lbs! You can read all about it here. She is such a wonderful lady and is so supportive of so many of us that are on this journey and I am just so happy and proud of her!

I had all sorts of grandiose plans for the weekend and did not really do what I set out to do. I had a sinus headache on Friday and cancelled dinner with the girls. Saturday I went to Dave's class and hung out and hung some pictures and watched The Ugly Truth. Yesterday I was going to go to church and have Deb and Larry over but that did not happen either. It was a pretty lazy day and I ended up bbq'ing with some friends. Oh well - still had a nice weekend though.

Today I am taking my mom to the retina specialist, Dr. B. They will be measuring to see if her macualar degeneration is stable or not. We will most likely have Fish Market for dinner.

This week my focus will be on getting my bedroom in order. I still have at least 5 loads of laundry to do. I want to hang some pics in there as well. I also printed out the schedule for 24hr so I can try to catch a class there this week. Until next time...

Friday the 13th

Small deficit because I was grazing in the evening. I am sure I had more of a deficit though because I took my bodybugg off after work but I was moving furniture and doing laundry so I was burning some calories.

Tonight I am going with Debby, Judy, Laura and Tracy to P.F. Chang's. I have never been there but have always wanted to try it. Anybody have any suggestions on what is good? I printed out the menu and the nutritional information so I will review it today and make an informed decision about what I am going to eat. I think I will allow myself one adult libation (thinking...lemon drop) but NO BEER. I do love Chinese beer though... I have been doing good with not having any beer. I will allow myself some beer on Christmas or New Year's.

My plan for the weekend is to continue settling in and to hang pictures. I am going to an Al-Anon class at S.A. for Dave at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow and then a pedicure @ 3:30 p.m. Sunday I will be spending the morning at church and then in the evening I will be having Debby and Larry over for Salmon dinner. Debby loves my salmon and I want to thank them for ALL their help with my move and everything. I recently bought a Beginning Yoga DVD that I want to check out. Hope you all have a great weekend! Until next time...

Trepidition Thursday

As I mentioned yesterday I wanted to wait until this morning to weigh in because I forgot to take my water pill. Well... I am glad I did because I am down 1 lb. to 262. That is 53 lbs. to date. If I bust ass this next week I could break out of this damn decade.


I also had a cool NSV (Non Scale Victory) I have a Pandora charm bracelet and it had gotten too tight on me but now I am able to wear it again! Yay! I missed wearing it. In celebration of being able to wear it again. I bought a new charm for it. See!




I am finally feeling settled in a bit. I have a mountain of laundry to do (7 loads minimum) so that is what I will be doing tonight. That is A LOT for just me! Dave spoiled me by doing my laundry for the last 4 years. I can count on one hand how many times I have actually done my laundry myself. How sad is that! I would also like to get some pictures hung. I can wait until this weekend to do that though. Until next time...

Waylay Weigh Wednesday

Well I have decided to waylay weighing in until tomorrow. Reason being is that I forgot to take my medications yesterday. One of the meds I take is a "water" pill and therefore I could potentially be retaining water. Whatever it says tomorrow I will make it official though.

I saw mom last night for dinner. She had some paperwork she wanted me to look at. The other day she went to the Hallmark store and was pulling in to a parking space and just slightly scratched the car next to her. No marks on her car just the other one. (Side note: She has never been in an accident in her entire life. The only other time she hit anything was when I was 7 (1973) and she hit her car with my dads car backing out of her driveway.) Anyways, she is a little freaked out about it since this is all new to her. I was able to calm her down a little and walk her through it. I need to remember to be more patient though. I think part of my frustration is that it is hard for me to watch her struggle with her vision and memory. I feel like I am losing my mom and slowly switching roles *sigh*

Please take a moment this Veterans Day to think about the sacrifices of members of the Armed Forces both living and passed. My dad was a disabled Korean War veteran who was paraplegic due to spinal cord injury from a gunshot. He passed away in 1999 and is buried in the Garden of Honor at the cemetery near my mom's house.

Until next time...

The Goo Goo Dolls and Elmo Sing Pride

It is Sesame Street's 40th birthday! Happy Birthday Sesame Street!

Rings & Things

No screen shot for the weekend. I did not have my bugg on at all. It was a productive weekend though. My goal was to get the kitchen unpacked which I did. I still haven't used it because I had leftovers from takeaways (Marcelle!) Food for the weekend was okay. I did not eat stellar but I did not go overboard either. I guess the scale will tell me Wednesday.

As I was sorting through my stuff it got me to thinking about rings. I have always wanted to wear rings but being wearing a Size 13 ring only gives you a very small selection and most of them are designed for men. I have decided that one of my Smilestone treats will now be a ring. I would like to get it as a symbol of making it to Onederland which is 63 lbs. from now. I will start looking for one and let you all know what I decided. It most likely will be silver though because that is what I wear and what my budget will allow. Until next time...

Finally Friday!

Went to KFC last night so hence the low deficit. I am just grateful to have a deficit at all. I still have not unpacked the kitchen stuff so I haven't cooked yet. It is a gas stove which I used to have and really liked but its been 5+ years since I used one. It will take some getting used to. My plan is to get most everything done this weekend. I am such a creature of habit and this has shaken up my little world a bit but things will be fine.

It is going to be in the upper 60s here this weekend with no rain predicted. Hopefully I can pop over to the park and get in some exercise over the weekend and explore the neighborhood a little more. Hope you all have a great weekend. Until next time...

Tedious Thursday

Nothing too exciting about yesterday. Tried Canadian Lingcod for dinner last night. It was yummy. The only fish that I don't like actually is Catfish. It just has a peculiar (insert muddy) taste to it.

One of our friends has been out of work for awhile and I asked him if he would help me do some organizing at my new apt. and I would pay him. He agreed and said he felt a little awkward taking money but he really needs it. I think it is a win-win. I know I will feel a whole lot better once the stuff is put away. I will be spending the weekend working on it too.

Dave is on restriction through his program. I won't bore you with the details but it means no phone calls or visits for the next week or two. The timing just sucks. It's his granddaughter's 13th birthday this weekend. I will drop off a card and money for her. They are having a dinner for her at Outback but I just feel strange going alone. Maybe when he is off restriction we can take her somewhere to celebrate. We shall see. Until next time...

Weigh Day Wednesday

I was able to find my scale and I am down 1 lb. to 263. Total to date is 52 lbs. Just a hair above 1 lb. a week. Nothing to shake a stick I guess. Part of me says that it is a good even pace and it's bettter then gaining 52 but the other part says you could do more Katie. You could really push yourself more and get better results. It will happen it is just that I am impatient and want instant gratification/results and that isn't going to happen.

Having dinner with my mom tonight. We saw Dr. G yesterday and said we don't have to see him for 6 months which is good news. Until next time...

Full Moon Frenzy

Did well on food yesterday. I wasn't too hungry for dinner so I ended up having mashed potatoes and a salad. Made for a good deficit though.

Last night was a full moon. I went to the old apt. to get the cleaning supplies and vacuum that I had there plus my bike. We went upstairs to get the stuff and meanwhile I had locked my bike to the outside of the bike cage. Well in the midst of doing all that I lost the bike lock key! I will spare you the details but I ended up smashing the lock open with a hammer in 5 hits. Who knew they would bust open so easy but in this case I was glad! Then, I discovered the tires needed air so I got my air pump out of the car, plugged it in and I was good to go. I hopped on the bike and rode to the new place and Dave drove. It was such a nice night so clear and cool. It was amazing! Anyways, it was frustrating as all get out but it is over and done with and now I can laugh about it.

My mom called the travel agent and the cruise to Mexico is booked. Booooooohooooo! She told me to come up with another idea. My second choice was to go to San Francisco and stay at Fisherman's Wharf and see the new Cirque Du Soleil show called oVo. San Francisco is only an hour away from where we live. I already have the time off approved it is now just a matter of deciding where to go. I told her that it doesn't matter where we go as long as we are together. Until next time...

New November!

I survived the move! Actually it went really well. I had 7 people helping and we had 3 trucks and a van. It only took a few hours which was nice. I even went out and had a few cocktails on Halloween night. I had vodka tonic since I am not drinking beer until the cruise. I got all confused with the time change on Sunday and was pretty much a space cookie all day yesterday.

Food was junkie all weekend. Hopefully I burned it off with all the moving around. I did not wear my bodybugg at all over the weekend but I do have it on today. It's a new month and clean slate. Time to get the ball rolling again with my weight loss. I really want the next 8 weeks to count! Hope you all had a good weekend.

On a happy note I wanted to give a shout out to Fat Daddy over at Fat Daddy Rants. He hit the 100 lb. milestone today! Woohoo! If you have never been to his blog you NEED to check it out!

Until next time...