Until Next Time...

Ash and Grant came visit the second week of July.  I always love having them at the house.  I miss them terribly.  So, I knew I needed to get my butt in gear and finish her birthday present. I actually finished stitching these pretties back in May, well before we left Odessa.  I even bought the frame for them in Odessa. And cut out the sticky board LOL  I had ordered a new glue gun, but the wrong glue stick size, so that is what the hold up was.  But, with Ashley coming to visit I got the correct glue sticks and got to work. This was easy to finish up and Ashley loved them.  The pattern is A Year of Celebrations by Hands on Design (one of both mine and Ashley's favorite designers). I dyed the fabric myself.  I believe it was a color called paper bag on the Rit Dye website.  I used some of the called for colors, but most of it was switched to Colour and Cotton threads. With this set being done, I am motivate...

Hello, friends! I'm back with another meal plan for this week. When I got on the scale Saturday I was back down those pesky 3.5 pounds I've been losing and gaining since May. Let's see if this week I can get passed them. I did learn that I will have to be more diligent about what I eat when we travel home for the weekends.  I did not count carbs on either Saturday or Sunday.  I did make low carb choices though.   So, here's the plan for this week. Monday - fried pork chops and cabbage. This was Billy's request. Tuesday- ground beef stroganoff and mashed cauliflower.   Wednesday- shrimp Alfredo. Spaghetti squash for me, noodles for Hubs Thursday- meatballs and marinara. I'm going to eat mine with a salad on the side. Hubs can have his on bread or over noodles Friday- eating out on way home again. This time I'll make a better choice than last Friday.  Until next time...

 Happy Monday, friends!  I'm back with a meal plan for the week.   Let me give you a little update on where my mind is at.  I've postponed my Optavia order.  In fact, I haven't had one since May.  While I like the ease of their plan, I do not want to have to buy their food for the rest of my life.  And I see people who are in maintenance talking about how they jump back on 5 & 1 and have fuelings every so often.  Yes, I know that I will have to watch what I eat and semi-diet if I want to maintain what I lost, but I don't want to have to do it with food that costs $25 a box for 7 servings.  I've been doing some research and found a program called Weight Loss with Real Food that uses Optavia's macros and follows that formula but figures out what they can eat with real food that fits it.  That sounds great, but it's a LOT of work.  More work than I am willing to do.  I am tired of pouring over recipes and counting macros ...

 Today is Wednesday, right?  My days are always off after a holiday.  I'm thankful for the rest and family time, but I'm lost on days.  So, we're just going to go with today being Wednesday, even if it isn't (I just checked and it is!) So, with that being said, here's what I'm working on this week in cross stitch.  First up is my June Cross Stitch Camp piece.  Sherri, The Colorado Stitcher on Instagram and Youtube, hosts Cross Stitch Camp each summer.  Each month, June, July and August, has a theme.  June was stitch something with a bird.  I chose Every Day Things by Heart in Hand (this was released this year at Nashville Market).  I am soooo close to being done that I will finish it in July.  This is on 16 count wren by Picture this Plus with all the called for floss. July's Cross Stitch Camp theme was something that grows.  I liberated Autumn 1831 by Samplers Not Forgotten from my wish list on 123stitch.  I'm...

Happy Independence Day! I hope you are spending it safely with family and friends.  We are doing a small BBQ with Jenna and Emery. Hubs has to head back to Georgia this afternoon for work in the morning.  I'm staying home in Alabama this week. Ash and Grant are coming next weekend and Hubs has to work the weekend to make up for being off today and yesterday. Since I don't want to miss them, I'm staying.  The weight fluctuations has not changed. 2 months losing and gaining the same 3.5 pounds. I'm going out of my mind.  So, I am making a conscious decision to recommit 100%.  With that thought, here's what the menu looks like for the rest of this week- Today- ribs,  veggie shish kabobs, baked beans Wednesday- eating lunch with Lo. She's been talking about Cava, a new Greek restaurant. I'll more than likely get a salad with some grilled chicken.  Thursday- creamy chicken and spinach bake and a salad Friday- shrimp scampi with spaghetti squash  I'll b...

Homesick is defined as acutely longing for one's family or home.  That perfectly described me for the last month or so. As you know, we've been in Odessa since October.  I enjoyed myself there. The landscape was different.  The people were different.  The weather was different.  And I had Hubs and the dog. But the beginning of May brought is talking about where we were going next. That lead to conversations about going home for a bit in between.  And that in turn made me miss my home. It made me miss my kitties. It made me realize I hadn't seen my girls live and in person since February.  I spent Mother's Day without them! Needless to say, I ended up very homesick.  I gained and lost the same 3.5 pounds all month. I didn't really menu plan. Or if I did, I didn't follow it 100%. There were several days when I just sat and stared out the window.  Billy's job was wrapping up but they kept extending the date. Finally we packed up and ...

 Hi friends!  I'm back with the menu for this week.  I know, I missed last week's menu.  Last week was rough.  I didn't feel good.  I didn't really menu plan.  I didn't eat enough veggies.  All of that equaled the scale going up on weigh in day. I'm not even upset because of that.  I'm more upset that my sugar was off sooooo much during the week and I felt bad because of it.  When the readings were between 121-127 I had the most horrible headaches.  I had a headache for 4 days.  I told Billy was tired of my head hurting.  Thankfully, yesterday and today I am feeling better and my sugar is around 119. On to the menu...I really want some turkey.  Like Thanksgiving Day turkey.  So, that is definitely on the menu this week. Monday - slow cooker chicken teriyaki with riced cauliflower and zucchini and squash Tuesday - turkey breast and a broccoli casserole Wednesday -  tacos Thursday - chicken strips and a Medite...