Day 141

It's a beautiful 60 degrees today with a bit of gloom. Like my son, I appreciate a gloomy day since it makes me look forward to the sunny days even more. He on the other hand, just likes gloomy days better than any other day. As you know, I've been missing cooking and so I am cooking this weekend. Having had a couple of extra days off makes me feel like I can invest the time it takes to cook something good. First, let me say that I stayed in bed, on purpose, until after 10am! Yes, and it was lovely to do. After arising and feeding the masses with sausages and eggs for breakfast (breakfast is my favorite meal to cook, by the way) I started the planning for the rest of the day and tomorrow. I'm baking a ham tonight so that we have a great evening meal, leftovers for lunches next week and a nice ham bone for my pinto beans tomorrow. Yummy!! However, I also wanted to bake something. I briefly entertained baking some sweet muffins, but decided instead on the savory variety to go with Chili I am also going to cook today. So, here are my favorite corn muffins to serve with Chili. (I don't know where I got the original recipe from, but I made changes, so it is an adaptation of someone else's recipe!)

Chili Cheese Muffins

1 cup yellow cornmeal

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons sugar

1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (I like medium Cheddar)

1/2 cup taco sauce (use picante if you like, I did with this batch)

1/3 cup sour cream

1 egg, lightly beaten

3 tablespoons corn oil (or whatever fat you have and like)

1 can (3 ounces) chopped green chilies, drained

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a 12 cup muffin tin and set it aside.

In a large bowl combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir in the cheese. In another bowl, stir together the sauce, sour cream, egg, oil and chilies until well blended. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients; add the wet mixture and stir to combine. If the mixture is very dry, I add more sour cream or sometimes a little milk or buttermilk. The mixture is a heavy batter what with all the cheese!

Spoon the batter into prepared muffin cups; bake 20 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of one muffin comes out clean.

Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the tin and then remove the muffins to a wire rack to finish cooling. Serve them warm or store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Allow the muffins to reach room temperature or warm slightly before serving. They also freeze well.

As I said, these muffins are great served along side a nice steaming bowl of your favorite chili!  My son always asks for seconds!!

The rest of today will be spent doing things to get ready for my sister's visit next week and more cooking. It's been a long time since I baked a ham, so I'm sure you're going to see pictures of that, too! Along with the ham, I'll be serving Roasted Baby Gold Potatoes with Onions and Broccolini and German Carrots. I hope it all turns out good!

Today so far, I've eaten two slices of Pumpernickel toast, a flour tortilla with some butter and half of one of the Chili Cheese Muffins. All bread!! Watch out everyone, I may actually be a hopeless case!! No, I haven't been for a walk yet, but the day is still young. I'll do my best to either get outside or on the treadmill. I did take good care of my skin this morning and teeth, so there is some good in the day.

Thanks for stopping by and checking out the blog. I hope you found something interesting here. Until tomorrow when I'll likely share more about cooking, chores and life, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Days 139 and 140

My excuse for skipping yesterday is the holiday. We drove to see family (they live in San Antonio, Texas) and I left myself no time for writing. That's my story and I'm sticking to it, anyway. It was a lovely day. We ate great food, spent LOADS of time trying to take pictures and I got to see a Great niece and nephew that I hadn't been able to meet yet. They are both adorable!

Does your family struggle taking the perfect photographs? At one point we were outside trying to take a panorama of ourselves with someone's iPhone when a police helicopter was spotted overhead. I immediately thought, "Which of the neighbors has called the police on us?" We were a mess! Here are my collages of the process. This first one just to the right is what it was like outside as we tried to complete the simple task of taking a panorama photograph that included everyone. This meant that the first person photographed at the head of the line would have to take over the camera so that the original photographer could go to the end of the line and be in the picture. That's right! If a thing like a family photo can be complicated I can guarantee you, we can do it! High comedy is the best way to describe our photography feats!

Next there was the same attempt at the end of the meal. We had many theories about how to make a successful table panorama and we had many attempts, but the best we could do was identify how Jackie, my sweet niece who will be studying to get her PhD in Psychology, will be able to earn all her money just taking care of this family. We are a mess!!

The meal was excellent and there were 14 of the family present. Later in the day, some additional family stopped by to join in the fun. We left San Antonio to get back to our snug little place in Austin at around 5:45pm and were back home by around 7:30pm. I was in bed by 8pm.

It was a great day of fun and if you celebrated Thanksgiving I hope you had a lovely day, too.

As I've said the day was fun, but it left me wanting to cook something! I'll share what I come up with over the next few days. Also, now it's time to plan for Gena's visit next weekend! She'll be here on Friday and she and I will do lots of fun shopping and stuff to get ready for Christmas. It's been quite a while since she visited, so I'm really looking forward to seeing her.

No, I didn't care what I ate yesterday and that is how it should be. I know I have to figure out the food part of my life, but I don't have to do it right now. I want to get outside in the bright, sunshiny day and take a walk. Also, I need to work on plans, update my annual list of 52 things and see where I stand for making my next list of 52.  So far, I've completed 29 of the 52 things. Not as good as some years, but better than some others and I still have a few weeks to get a few more in there. You can check that posting by clicking here or by locating the posting in 2012 for 52 Things, the in archives to the right of the blog. I'll update you tomorrow on my progress. For now, I have things to do and so do you! Go take a walk!!! Until tomorrow, when I'll share more nonsense and hopefully a smile or two, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 138

On this the eve of Thanksgiving Day, there is so much for which to be grateful. I'm sure that everyone has a list of things they are thankful for *smile* and I love me a good list! So, here is my list of the top 10 things for which I'm thankful:

I'm thankful...

10.  to be alive. (Life can be a challenge, you know!)
  9.  for creative people who share their talent with the world every day.
  8.  I'm a girl. (Okay...settle down boys, you're great too, but you know you love us girls! *wink*
  7.  that life is full of surprises and that regardless of what happens, I can always smile.
  6.  that I haven't yet eaten the last cheesecake on earth. **smile**
  5.  to have been blessed enough to be the mother of the most wonderful son ever born.
  4.  for a great job, in an exciting industry working for the best company, EVER.
  3.  to have been blessed to be the keeper and maker of a modest home and life.
  2.  for the love of a good man. (And you know who you are!)
  1.  that Jesus loves me, this I know. For the Bible tells me so.  Little ones to Him belong. They are
       weak but He is strong. Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes, Jesus loves me!! Yes, Jesus loves me. The Bible
        tells me so! (I love that song!!)

I have to tell you a story about the song above. As a little girl I learned that song along with so many others in Sunday School. As an adult, whenever I've had a scary, sad, bad moment, that song is what I've heard playing in my head and it is the most comforting reminder of what is important in my life. Regardless of how bad it is or how bad I am, Jesus, still loves me.

I just looked up and see that it is just 3 minutes till midnight. So it's time for sleep. Until tomorrow when I'll share the experience of Thanksgiving with family, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Days 135, 136 and 137

Day skippage appears to be inevitable. No, I haven't been 'too busy' but I have been giving myself a bit of a break from writing. I just haven't been feeling well. I think it must be due to the weather. Since any excuse will do that should satisfy.

For the last couple of days I've been working at what I do and trying to just take it easy in the evenings. Last night, I struggled with sleeping and learned something important about myself. It seems that sometimes when I can't sleep and find myself tossing and turning, I calm quickly and fall asleep if I get up and put myself into a place where I feel snuggly surrounded, almost like in a cocoon. Luckily for me, there is a small wing back recliner that sits in my bedroom next to my bed and when I sit back in that lovely chair I immediately feel like I'm being held. I don't think I'm explaining this well, but the bottom line is sometimes I just need to be in a position that prevents me from moving very much in order for me to relax and fall asleep.

This is the chair and my sweet little bedroom!

Weird, maybe. But I was able to fall asleep and stayed asleep in that chair about 2 hours. Then returned to the bed and slept the rest of the night. I hope I've sufficiently tired myself out so that I don't toss and turn tonight.

In years past I would at this point in the days before Thanksgiving, have been cleaning the house like mad and chopping every kind of root vegetable imaginable. Not so this time! We will visit family who are taking on the chore of hosting Thanksgiving this year. I'm so excited not to be cooking and cleaning. I love to cook, but I really love to

The ghost of Thanksgiving past!

cook for just my family. Cooking is hard work and I want everyone to have their favorites, so you can just imagine how many dishes I end up preparing when we have 12 to Thanksgiving dinner! It's lovely to see everyone happy with what I make, but I'm honestly glad to allow someone else get the praise this year. As a confirmed 'Old Dog' I have learned a few new tricks and this weeks new trick is sit back and let someone else go crazy over Thanksgiving!

Days are passing quickly and I still don't have myself back on track in the area of food or exercise. I have to be honest, I don't know the answer. All I know is that I'm positive that there is a solution and
that I just need to figure it out. Don't worry, I'm not tempted to do anything rash. I've crazy things to lose weight in the past and I can tell you that the side effects are not pleasant. Therefore, I'll not take drastic action ever again. Although I'm probably going to find that the solution is easy, apparently I'm so blind that I can't see the resolution beacon anywhere on the horizon. What is it people say about it being darkest before the dawn? Does that mean I'm going to slap the side of my head with a solution any day now? GOD! I hope so!!

Now it's time for me to take myself off and start to get myself ready for bed. Thanks for dropping by and checking out the craziness that is my life. Until tomorrow (and I promise I'll write tomorrow) when I know things will be more interesting, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 134

What a great weekend day it has been. Normally I would be resting now from my errands, but since I was on vacation yesterday, I was able to do some errands yesterday. That gave me the ability to actually rest today, which was good since I didn't feel great to begin with. I'm better now and have been busy even though I rested all along.

As you know I'm cooking again, and so today was a great day to do one of my favorite things, make beans. Although there are thousands of ways to make beans, I prefer to bake beans. No, I don't mean like the Boston kind with tons of sugar. It's more about the method than the style. When the weather is hot, I cook beans on top of the stove and they are great, but the best way to cook beans is in the oven. Today I made Red Runner beans, my second favorite bean on earth. The best dry bean is the Christmas Lima bean. However, they are sometimes hard to find and I didn't have any. What I had were my number 2 and 3 beans. If I don't have Christmas Limas or Red Runners, I make Pinto. Here is my recipe of for Baked Red Runner Beans (Baked ANY Beans, really!)

1 lb. Dry Red Runner Beans (or whatever beans you like)
1 large yellow onion
1 can diced roasted tomatoes
Olive oil
1 quart Beef Stock
1 pound Chuck Roast (well trimmed and cut into cubes)
Fiesta Brand Uncle Chris' Gourmet Steak Seasoning Blend (if you can't get this...I'm sorry for you)
Mrs. Dash Garlic Herb blend
Salt and Pepper

Clean the beans making sure they are free of debris or rocks (dry beans are notoriously dirty) and wash them in a colander. Place the beans in a Dutch Oven and cover them with cold water to within an inch of the pot rim. Place the pan on the stove top, cover and bring the beans to a rolling boil. Turn the burner off and set the timer for 1 hour and allow the beans to soak covered. About 15 minutes before the soaking ends, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

When the beans complete their soaking, drain and rinse the beans and return them to the pot. Cover the beans with beef stock and add cold water to cover the beans by 3 inches. Cut the onion into large slices and add them to the pot.

In a large skillet heat the olive oil and sauté the beef, seasoned with the Uncle Chris' and Mrs. Dash, salt and pepper at medium high heat. When well browned add to the pot. Pour in the tomatoes and stir. Add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to the pot and place the covered pan into the oven to bake.

Set the timer for 2 hours. After that time passes, check the beans for liquid and stir. Return them to the oven for 2 more hours. Again, stir and check for liquid. I like my bean more on the dry side, and so typically I do not add liquid during the process. Bake the beans until done. For me that is 6 hours at 400 degrees (checking them every 2 hours).

Here is what my beans looked like in the end today:

They may not look beautiful, but these are great beans. Red Runners are large, dark beans and I love them. The baking process keeps them whole and the long baking creates a complexity of flavor that is so delicious. We will eat these beans and meat over rice for supper. Yummy! I tasted them already and they are perfect! Just like I like 'em!

Yes, I loved cooking today. The oven kept the house warm and I indulged my love of TV cooking shows (something I don't usually do since they make me hungry). I still have some errands to do, but I'll go do that next.

Sometimes its just important to have a day of doing what you like early and then doing the work of errands later. That's today. Thanks for stopping by and checking out the day's activity. I hope you try the beans. Remember, any dry bean will work and of course, any seasonings you like. The best food is the food you like! Now it's time to do some errands. Until tomorrow when I'll share a Sunday full of life, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Days 132 and 133

I continue to ride the roller coaster of weather here in Central Texas. Today the high temperature was at about 1AM this morning and the current temp is 33 degrees! Brrrr...I'm cold! I like cooler weather, but cold just makes me want to stay in bed. There are several good things about cold weather that I do like. I can bake things in the oven when it's like this and I can wear layers, which I love! I just love a jacket, gloves, scarf and a groovy hat! I'm kind of a hat fanatic. The only problem is I don't really look great in hats. Anyway, it's cold!

I was supposed to be off today and I kind of was, but I did have to work at a couple of things. No problem! I love my work and I'd rather have to take a little time out of a day off to do something for someone at work than not have my great work to do! They were short tasks and meetings, so all is good.  Catastrophes are always the start of something new! Today's events weren't catastrophes, but at one point it felt close! **smile**

Have you ever dreamed of making a major change in your life? I've always wanted to visit England, but live there? Umm...I'm not sure about that. In fact, if I had to choose another place to live, other than the United States, I think I'd choose Norway or Switzerland. I have no Norwegian ancestry, (at least I don't think so...my father was adopted, so I just don't know) but my mother is 100% German, so Switzerland seems right to me. Both of these countries are places I would at least like to visit some day. Since I'm a dreamer, I'm always thinking about all the possibilities. That's part of the fun of life; figuring out all of the possibilities that exist for any given scenario. Maybe someday I will live in another country, but I can't imagine it, so probably not.

Today was supposed to be my day to put on clothes designated from my closet and take pictures. Since any excuse will do, I'll use the rain and cold weather as the reason there are no new photographs of me in my 'old/new' outfit. I'm a SAD individual who has not been watching what she eats for at least a month now. #DowncastEyes #Failure #StupidGirl  Yes, this is my thorn. Honestly, I'm not even thinking about being thin, I just want to be in good health. The more weight I carry around the harder it is for me to move around and moving is KEY! On the other hand, I am cooking again and I love how I feel doing that. I'm getting vegetables into my family and I'm happy about that. My problem is still my problem and there is a solution. I'm still just baffled as to what it is.

I visited my favorite store today and purchased my Christmas gift for me that my son will be giving me. I'll wrap it up and put it under the tree, but I can't wait until Christmas day to open it up! I love Christmas!! The tree this year is going to be a small 2 foot one, but again, that's okay! I don't have to have a HUGE tree to feel the spirit of the season. Since I'm a Christian, I do celebrate the holiday as intended.

Okay, so that's about it for the last two days. I'm making it a point to add new snapshots to Instagram as often as possible, so be sure to check me out there. I'm HumbleVoyager there too! Now, it's time for me to clean my face, brush my teeth and get to bed with a nice read. Until tomorrow when I will sleep late, cook beans, bake cornbread and run more errands, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 131

As you can tell, I've done a bit of redesigning on the blog site. Lets face it, I get tired of looking at the same old thing. So, we have a new look and feel. The new aesthetics gives me more flexibility and photos and videos stand out better. One of the things I'm working on is how to get the embedded YouTube videos to be visible on tablets. I'm scratching my head over this one, but I'll get it figured out. Until then, if you're using a tablet and you see a big open space in the middle of the blog, there's a video there and you will have to go to a computer to see it.

One new thing I've added is my Instagram postings. They are in the right sidebar at the very bottom. I'm newly into Instagram, but I love it! I hope you like the pictures I'm sharing there. Be sure to go over to Instagram and follow me...if you like, that is! No pressure!! **smile**

Today was a fun day completing the annual recertification of my company's business ethics and corporate code of conduct. A necessary evil, I know. Whenever I have to do something like this I know that people ahead of me messed it up and so that's why we have to go through that work. Why can't people just do the right things? Is it just too much to ask?

Besides being a FANTASTIC day at work, day 131 was just down right fun. I took some coworkers to lunch as my Thanksgiving gift to them. I'm very thankful to have great people to work with. The day was full of laughter and fun and I'm glad I got to experience it. Dinner tonight was leftovers from last night and I had just one serving which I portioned out last night. It was perfect. I just have to stick to that going forward. I really think the eating thing just needs to be uncomplicated and sort of invisible. I want it to be where no one can tell that I'm watching what I eat, or how much I eat. Normal sized people don't do anything special...do they?

Exercise was not present in today's activities. Yes, I regret that, but tomorrow is another day to get it right. I want success with this renovation, but I also have so many things that I want to accomplish at the moment. Focus is what I lack, but I'm not certain focus is possible with so many things being important. You've heard it said that, "If everything is important, then nothing is," right? Well, I think I'm experiencing that at the moment! Lord, give me patience with myself! I will get this right...eventually...at the end!

Now it's time for me to go prepare myself for rest. I've earned it and need it tonight. I should have done laundry again, but I didn't, so tomorrow will be a creative day of figuring out how to dress myself for work with the limited number of clean clothes remaining in my closet. I think I have it all worked out in my head, so we'll see how it works out in reality! Keeping my closet 'lean' has it's down side. **smile** So, until tomorrow when life will deal me a hand like no other and I'll force you to read about it, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 130

I love life. Yes, I'd prefer to be free of concern and fear, but I suppose that is what makes me appreciate the good that is around me. Today was like most other work days, in that I got up, got ready, traveled to work, did my job, traveled home and now am doing what I love, writing. I'm conditioned to do what I do everyday. There is more to my day than what I listed here, but it is sufficient to say I also did all of the necessary things one must do to be alive on planet earth.

One of the things I did today was watch the latest episode of MarieTV, which I'm going to link below, because I think it is wonderful and that all of you GREAT people out there need to know what she knows. Also, she's just cute as everything and I just love watching her. So, here you go! Watch, learn, enjoy and thank me later!

Don't you just want to stick her in your pocket? She's so cute!! She is just fabulous! I love how she teaches with humor for human beings. We are real people and I'm thankful that she's around talking about real, successful people in ways that other real people like me can understand. Be sure to subscribe to MarieTV on YouTube and sign up at her website (www.marieforleo.com) for weekly email updates. Helpful stuff! I promise!!

Okay, so meanwhile, back at the ranch (I always wanted to write that in something **smile**) I was focused on writing my comments today on my yearly evaluation. Yes, it's a bit early this year, but the company is trying to get things done more efficiently. I am okay with this and got the task done. I hope I didn't miss anything! Writing!! Yes, I was in heaven today. In fact, I get to be in heaven most days at work. I love my job and my company and I'm so thankful I get to be there and do what I do with all those great people. Wish I could tell you about the company, but they have rules about people like me to write on the web. Since I don't want to cause any trouble, I keep their name out of things. **Smile**

During this 365 day renovation of Nancy, I've been working on thinking, teeth, skin (which I think includes hair and nails, too), eating and exercising. I have some successes and I have failures. I'm doing lots of falling down, picking myself back up, dusting myself off and starting over again and mainly in the eating area. I refuse to say that I'm hopeless, but honestly...I'm like some sort of brainless idiot when it comes to food. I really think this is my 'thorn in the side' that God placed there to keep me humble and constantly looking for his help and guidance. At 54, I've come to grips with the fact that I'll never be thin. Now, I just want to be healthy and not cringe every time I look in the mirror. So, today was not a fantastic food day, however, I did stick only to the foods I brought from home and I did not venture out of the office at lunch to eat out with people. I kept busy and ate only what I had allotted to myself. The problem is, I allotted a little too much...sigh... When will I get over this? This reminds me of a line from one of my favorite movies, Moonstruck. Loretta (Cher) says, "Bad luck! That's what it is. Is that all I'm ever gonna to have? I should have taken a rock and killed myself years ago." Different context there maybe, but the sentiment is the same. Although I don't believe in luck I am just as drawn to food sometimes as she was to the 'gypsy eyes' of Ronnie! (Go watch the movie, you'll love it!) When I go to packing a lunch, sometimes there are just so many things that I think, "Oh, that will make a nice snack!" or "How about some fruit?" I won't give up, because there is a solution to my problem, I just have to find it. That's what I think about everything, "There is a better way to do everything, we just haven't found it yet!" So, I continue to be a work in progress. In 3 more days, I have to take pictures. I'm afraid...very afraid. We shall see then what the damage is. Again, pray for me...I know I'll need it.

That's if for me today. Be sure to go and learn about the 4 things really productive people do by watching the video above. Really, you will thank me later! Thanks for checking into the blog and I hope you've had a great day!! It's time for me to go and do other fun things like laundry! Aren't you sad you aren't me? Until tomorrow when I will let go with something I think you should know and that I just want to get off my chest, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 129

Can you point to the day that represents the last major turning point in your life? I believe that each person experiences multiple crossroads arrivals during life. Birth, the moment you know you're an adult, marriage/committed relationship, education, career, sickness, you name it! For some of us every decision we make seems like a moment of truth. I've seen people become frozen with fear that they will make a mistake and I can relate, since I've made SO many of those myself. However, I believe that inaction is what should be feared most in life and I'll use the blog today to make my point.

As a writer, I practice my craft all of the time. Besides writing this blog, I write quite a bit in my career, I write stories (beginning to post these online now), letters, and help others with the art of writing. I'm an editor as well as writer in this life. Each writing project presents me with new crossroads to navigate. What is the purpose of the project? Who will benefit from the finished product? How much of 'me' should I invest in the piece? Each of these questions and more present a moment of truth; a place where a decision is needed from me to move forward. They are all important, but unless I put word one down on paper (or computer) the answers to those questions are useless. I love building a plan to get things done, but I've also had to learn that planning can just be another way of procrastinating. Taking action is where the rubber meets the road, so to speak.

Recently my sister commented on how interesting (at least I think she meant interesting...she may have meant weird...who knows) it was that I was always doing something. She secretly fears that I don't get enough rest, but I assure you, I do! Anyway, yes, I'm usually busy with something. This is because I've learned in business that we shouldn't always wait for the BIG project delivery date to see some results. For example, I was once asked to build a dashboard for associates in my company so that they could quickly/easily see their previous day's work performance. This was a HUGE job that I was really not the right person to tackle, but I went on out there and started the planning. Very quickly I found myself bogged down in the process and presenting a timeline that wouldn't have us seeing any portion of a dashboard in my lifetime! Okay, not quite, but close!! The key stakeholder shot back, "Why can't we see this in pieces?" Well, why not indeed! Mainly because I limited my thinking and was investing action in the big picture instead of moving us forward. I mistook my 'planning' as action when what the key stakeholder wanted was a dashboard and he didn't care if it came in pieces or not. Since I love to write, it is easy for me to think that writing a plan is action, but I had to learn a tough lesson; that what is important is identifying what your customer thinks is action and then doing that. So simple!

So, what crossroads am I facing today? Thankfully, I don't think I have any major turning points on the horizon. Middle-age is probably my most recently felt turning point. I can remember being back in my late teens/early twenties and thinking about being 53 and how OLD that was and how FAR away it was. Little did I know then that the years between 20 and 53 would fly by without the slightest how-do-you-do! Here I sit at 54, nothing special, but very happy. Would I do anything differently if I had it to do over again? Well, yes, probably. But who's to say that I'd make better decisions or that the outcomes would be better if I did? I'm not perfect and I haven't had a perfect life, but I'm also not done yet! In the end, whatever happens will be because I stepped out and made it happen. I take action. There is chatter running in my head all of the time. No, not like the guy who says a little voice in his head told him to do some horrible thing! I think it's really self-talk that's going on in there. Some of it is just stuff that people have said to me over the years that rang some bell or was just valuable stuff to know. One of these 'self-talk' things is the phrase, "Don't just stand there! DO something!!" Now, God only knows who said that to me, but honestly I hear that all the time. I may not always do the right thing or I may have to go back and edit myself or even start over, but I wasn't idle and I bet I learned something about myself along the way!

In the end, if there is something to be feared it is inaction. Life does not 'owe' you anything. It doesn't owe you a chance, a living, a story, a dime or a THING! If you want success in this life, "Don't just stand there! DO something!!" Create something that at least needs a good editor. Action is what gets noticed and is what a customer, bless their little hearts, pays for. I have a family member who is 51 years old and has wasted 51 years doing nothing. It is more of a shame than you can imagine. I often wondered how this happened and I've come to understand that it is simply the results of inaction. With so much time wrapped up in inaction, this family member doesn't have a clue what to do and can't even hear the voices of people trying to help get them out of the mess they have created.

I know you love a pretty picture and I wish I had a great one for you that represented this blog posting. Can you take a picture of a turning point? Just let me say that I had a nice day, worked at what I do, tried to eat reasonably and thought about how to help the people around me find their own brand of happiness. I think those were all really great actions for a splendid day on planet earth. For your viewing pleasure, may I present the last rose of the season (I think) which is currently fighting for it's last breath on the bush in the front yard:

I don't know a thing about that bush except that it puts out the biggest, hot pink blooms on the planet! I love it!! Now, it's time for me to go refurbish myself (as my husband puts it) and get ready for bed. Until tomorrow when I will, no doubt, make you think again or at least read, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 128

What a lovely weekend! I drove to Temple, Texas today to pickup an item ordered by a nameless person in my life. It was such a lovely day I had a great time driving and listening to big band music on the radio. It was GREAT! The weather was HOT today. It got up to 90 degrees so, if you're having fall like weather, just remember us down here. We're all over the place with the weather. One minute we're freezing the next we're baking in the sun. I wouldn't be surprised if people start to get sick from the weather fluctuations.

Since it was a full day with driving and such, I didn't do some of my normal Sunday stuff, but I did cook.  Made a big pot of soup, which I'll be eating for lunch this week and baked chicken (game hens) and rice. Yummy!! I think I've really been missing cooking! I'll probably be cooking more and I just have to stay out of the kitchen and not eat such big portions.

I am slightly disgusted with myself about eating. I've eaten WAY too much this weekend. Tomorrow is another day and so I'll do better, but I wonder sometimes if I ever will truly solve my problem.  Although I fail, I will always keep working at it. The work is too important to me to ever give up again. I'm tired and want to get to bed, so I'll leave you for now. Until tomorrow when I know I'll have more to say **smile** sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Days 126 and 127

I am a YouTube-aholic. There, I've said it out loud. I can safely say that because I don't find that my addiction is actually causing any problems in my life. YouTube actually teaches me stuff and I love to learn something new. In fact, I spent over 30 years of my adult life not doing something that YouTube has helped me learn to handle again, makeup. This may seem trivial to you, but to me it is monumental. I have a couple of skin conditions that range from debilitating to just annoying. The debilitating condition doesn't affect my face, thank God, but the annoying one does. I leave the worst for another blog, but the annoying condition is Rosacea. I've suffered, and I do mean suffered, with it for most of my life. It was only about 20 years ago that I learned it could be controlled with a topical ointment. However, more than 10 years ago, that stopped working well for me. About 1 year ago I began seeing a dermatologist for both of my skin issues and now I take a daily pill which keeps the Rosacea fully in check. This made it possible for me to wear makeup once again after more than 30 years. With so much time away from the art of good makeup, I needed to learn a trick or two...or 1,000. Anyway, in steps YouTube. I also read makeup Blogs as well, but I must say, YouTube has provided hundreds of videos for me to watch and copy. I've even made a couple of makeup related videos for my own YouTube channel! What fun!! I have a reason for wanting to talk about makeup...really...I do! There is a tag flying all over YouTube called the Perfect Palette Tag, where the YouTuber makes a video in response to the following about makeup palettes:

1. Best Packaging
2. Best Color Payoff
3. Most Versatile
4. Best for Traveling
5. Biggest Regret
6. Best Color Names
7. Least Used
8. Most Used, Most Loved, Desert Island

It is my desire to do this tag on my blog today! I love makeup. I love the colors and the art of it and I love how it makes me feel. Now that I'm actually able to use makeup, I realize that all those years without it I either looked sick from all the breakout on my face, or I looked like I didn't care. With makeup, at least I look like I made an effort. No one could possibly understand if they don't have Rosacea, but with the condition under control, I will always wear makeup whenever I desire. So, here is my response to the tag list above:

1. Best packaging: The award goes to Urban Decay for the Vice 2 palette! (By a hair...Inglot is great too!)

Oh, MG, this is the most fantastic packaging. I complain every morning while putting on my makeup that some of the companies who design the product packaging, don't actually use the makeup! There are some packages that I have to grab my trusty tweezers that my sister bought me to get the dang things open!!

2. Best color payoff: The award for rich color again goes to Urban Decay for the Vice 2 palette!! I've only had the palette for a short period of time, but the looks I've done with this shadow have been so rich and beautiful. Also, I just barely tap the brush in the shadow and that's all I really need! I'm so glad I invested in this palette!

3. Most Versatile:  And the award for most versatile palette goes to Inglot! I can change out the colors with tons of color options and this palette gives me shadow, powder foundation and blush, to boot!

I've only had this palette since my trip to Las Vegas and it is my first Inglot palette. I can tell you for sure it is not going to be my last. Love it!!

4. Best for traveling: This got the test during my recent trip and proved to be perfect. Small, colors I love and great packaging on top of that! The award for best traveling palette goes to Marc Jacobs!!

I love the small shape, protective pouch and the three colors work great for me. The included mirror is large and it fits into my small handbag perfectly. Thanks, Marc!!

5. Biggest regret: This award goes to Urban Decay for the Naked2 palette. I bought it and I've used it maybe 5 times, but it doesn't have colors I run to and the palette is really big. It was expensive, so hence, the regrets.

I like the Naked Basics palette better!

6. Best color names:  The award for this goes to Too Faced for the Natural Eye palette. The shadow names are sexy, like Velvet Revolver, Honey Pot, Sexpresso, Erotica and Silk Teddy. The colors are beautiful and the eye looks I've made have been lovely. I especially love Nude Beach!

These colors look really great with my brown eyes, or at least, I think they do! **smile**

7. Least used:  The award for this goes to Tarte for the Aqualillies palette.  I've used it twice. The best way I can describe this palette is, "Meh!"

The palette should be great for travel as it has face and eyes covered, somewhat, but I don't like how the products look on me. The blush doesn't look like anything special, the bronzer is way too orange and the highlighter is too yellow! Expensive too!! The best I can say is it is round, which is different.

8. Most used/most loved/desert island:  The palette that I love and use the most and would not want to be without is one that probably no one else likes. The award goes to Sephora for their Natural Instincts Palette! I use this palette most of the time. I love that I can do neutral to smokey looks and lovely down-played blues for my brown eyes. Thanks, Sephora!!

I wouldn't call it the most pretty palette, but it has neutrals, golds, silvers, grays, blues and browns. I love every look that has come out of this palette and the shadows are very pigmented, too! I just dab and go, so the palette should last me for quite awhile.

So that's my palette love for today. I wore a no-makeup makeup look today which I'm working to perfect. You'd be surprised how much makeup is needed to make you look like you don't have any makeup on! Crazy!!

The next week I will be cooking for the first time in about 4 months. We're going to see if I can eat normal sized portions of my own cooking with lots of veggies and fruit. Pray for me! I think I'm going to need it.

In the area of exercise, please make it a point to go over to gooveanywhere.com and check out their site. These folks are really doing a great job and they are helping me get the exercise right and even enjoy it. There are also helps for nutrition and such. Really, don't take my word for it, go look!! That's okay...you can thank me later!

Now it's time for me to get on with other things in my day. Until tomorrow when you'll hear about something I just can't wait to tell you about, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 125

Today was a success. As you know, I live life on my own terms and I don't judge the success of my days based on other people's opinions. Although others should be listened to and learned from, in the end, I decide if I was successful or not. Success and perfection are two different things, so I don't want you to start thinking I have perfect days, but in general I can find something in every single day that points to success; even if it's just waking up! Today was successful beyond just being alive.

Nancy having a successful day 125 at work. Taken with LG9 Smartphone (note to self: Use iPhone for pictures).

There are crazy little things I do each day to help me keep a laser focus on what I desire most out of life. One of them is to review two statements that I wrote some time ago. One defines what I desire most out of life and the other describes what I'm willing to give to get it. At some point I will share these two statements in the blog, but that is for another day. Just let me say that every day is a success for me when I write. Nothing brings me more joy than writing this blog, in a diary, a story or some business document. I love writing. There is nothing productive I'd rather be doing than writing, which is saying a lot since I could also eat bread for the United States and win gold if it were an Olympic event! Success in life is important for every human being. I don't believe anyone wants to be a failure, but failures are important and each of them along the way are teaching moments. So, even failures are success! Wow!! See how I did that? You weren't ready to hear that, but it's the truth. It's what you do with a failure that makes the difference. Don't stop. Don't ever stop. If what you desire in life is still what you desire after a failure, then stand up, dust yourself off, make clear note the teaching moment and go at it again.

Food today was okay, not perfect, but okay. I had a typical breakfast sandwich that I've come to enjoy and a lunch of a cup of soup and half of a sandwich with lots of veggies. Supper was leftover nachos (sounds crazy, but they were good and made with ground turkey and low-fat chips) and I enjoyed every bite. My plan is to use My Fit Foods and frozen meals to get back on track next week. That will start for me on Saturday, as I will replenish supplies then. The portion control is what I miss most. I will eat everything that's in front of me, simply because it's there. I don't want to do that, so I have to control what is in front of me. The pre-portioned foods are best for me.

Exercise is also an issue. I'm getting my sleeping habits settled and now I need to get the exercise settled again. There is just so much to do! I've given up cooking, which has given me back lots of time, but I've put all that time to use.  Now I have to figure out what I have to do to get that essential exercise in there. I know I'll figure it out, because as Napoleon Hill says, "Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve." I believe I can eat right, exercise daily and feel great! Therefore, I can achieve that! Maybe since I haven't set up statements of success and what I'm willing to give to get it, about this eating and exercise thing, that's the reason I'm experiencing repeated failure! Hmmmmm....I have to think about that. I've always used the success/investment statements for desired business/financial success, but maybe I should be applying that to ALL of my life! Hmmmm...I'm thinking...and no, it doesn't hurt!! Cut that out!!!

So, I'll leave you thinking about what I'm thinking about. For now it's time for me to clean up and lie down and read some more of a favorite book, sleep and start it all again. Until tomorrow, when I will probably have another great day, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 124

Okay...who left the refrigerator door open? Oh, it's a bit chilly down here in Central Texas. This morning when I left for the office it was about 32 degrees outside. In my world, that's just cold. The nice thing is it warmed up to 50 degrees and the sky was bright blue and the sun was warm. A really beautiful day, which I saw briefly during my drive to and from the office and from my office window. I am very thankful for my window. Not every office has one so I know I'm blessed.

Today my company took us through a presentation about how the new health care laws would affect us. My company is one of those who uses a big name insurance company but self-insures so there is no insurance underwriter. This means that they call the shots. So far, it's all been good and although I know I will have health care, it was clear today that the increase in cost to each employee, due to the new laws, is going to be sizable. Remember all this when it comes time to vote, please.

Even with that bit of news (which common sense told me was coming...I do read newspapers and keep up with the current affairs) it was still a nice day. Lots of work, problems to solve and people to learn from. As usual, it's all good because I make it so. This evening I watched some videos and then gave myself a mini-spa night. While I was in Las Vegas with my sister, we shopped at one of our favorites stores (Sephora) and they always give great samples. So, I took some of my samples and gave myself a facial and then used some of the wonderful Josie Maran Whipped Argan Oil Ultra-Hydrating Body Butter over my very dry skin. When the cooler air arrives it takes some of the humidity with it and then people start turning on heaters (and you know who you are). OH MAN!! My skin drys up quickly. This Argan Oil cream is fantastic! It has a lovely apricot scent and I love apricots/peaches! They also make a citrus scent (which my sister likes, since she thinks peaches smell like dirty socks...thanks, Gena)! Anyway, I'm feeling all pampered and ready for bed. All I have to do is clean my teeth! **smile**

So, I'm finding it difficult to get back into the eating and exercise groove after vacation. During our trip I ate more food more often than I have in months. I know I put on pounds, but now I need to get back into the right place with eating and exercise. Also, I have to figure out how not to be like this. There really is something wrong in my head that makes me think it's OKAY to do what I did...un-concsious eating/no exercise.  Just when I think I have it licked, wham, bam! I'm right back in the wrong place again. So, how is it a person who is so good at making herself feel great cannot seem to eat right or exercise properly? Can someone please answer my question?!??

Okay, I'm not going to beg, I'm just going to go clean my teeth and lie down in my bed and read. That's what I need is a little of my favorite book. Until tomorrow when I might hear words of wisdom from someone about my crazy eating habits, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 123

I've been thinking and no, it didn't hurt...about what it is that actually makes up a great day. So, I have to ask the question:  What really makes a day great? I suppose that is for each individual to decide. Personally, I don't like to limit myself. Fundamentally what I believe is that thinking is what is at the bottom of greatness. A thing is great because I think that it is. Today was a truly GREAT day for me because I thought that it was! So uncomplicated, yet intricate in its simplicity.

Here is a little glimpse into a great day for me:

1. I slept 8 hours the night before.
2. I did not rush my morning routine, but rather enjoyed the process of getting ready and out the door.
3. I ate a light breakfast at work (as I prefer to have breakfast later in the morning).
4. Cleared away the email log jam caused by my vacation last week.
5. Completed all my meetings.
6. Had lovely conversation with people; solved problems and laughed a little.
7. Got home at a reasonable hour.
8. Had supper with my family.
9. Communicated with my son about his school work and imparted a bit of wisdom about reading.
10. Had time for myself to do a little of whatever I liked.

To me, this made the day great. The traffic didn't bother me. My work didn't frustrate me. People didn't crush me with their words or actions. I had a really, SINGULAR day!

All this may seem funny to you, but I find it important to consider greatness and make sure that I feel it all around me. Ultimately, I believe I'm the one responsible for my experience. If I want mediocre days, all I really have to do is be a uninspired thinker. I do not choose that it should be so! Greatness isn't about looking a certain way, but rather about feeling a specific way: GREAT!

I've written all this to hopefully help my readers see that they can open the doors of greatness and make a truly fantastic life, by simply thinking about what they experience as exceptional. No one else will have the same experiences that I have. I am a unique collection of experiences that are special only to me. To me, that makes my life GREAT! Even the bad stuff that happens has its place in my life and my whole life is a collection of tiny experiences. How can a bad experience be great? It isn't the thing that happened that's great its what I chose to think about it and how I selected to react. That is where the greatness comes into play. Did I want to have cancer? No, I didn't, but had it I did and how I chose to respond and think about cancer has added to my life. I'm different than I was before cancer and I'm sure there will be other things that happen in my life that will test my ability to find greatness. It's almost like a game for me now...looking for the great parts of life and lifting them up as high as I can; illuminating them in my thinking so that they WAY outshine any mediocre parts of life.

Okay, crazy lady, you can stop now. Everyone knows that you want them to change their thinking so that they have great lives. Here's hoping everyone who reads this will think they are great and have exactly the life they want. I'm routing for you! Now it's time for me to slow down for the evening and stop thinking so much. Until tomorrow, when I will likely make you think about something when you really wanted to watch TV, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 122

Hey, there! It has been a GREAT day here in Central Texas. Today was Veteran's Day and to all the men and women who have served our country and given so much to ensure our freedoms, I say, "Thank you! From the bottom of my heart." Like most families, my family has veterans, but my father was not a military man at all. He served briefly in the Texas National Guard in the 1950's to avoid the draft. They discharged him rather quickly; probably because he was a pain in the a**.

It was so nice to be at home today. This was my last day of vacation and I wanted to use this time to just get back into sync with my surroundings, do the mountain of laundry that I brought back from Las Vegas and do something I haven't done in over 4 months, cook...a little. Yes, as you may have read before, I love to cook. Unfortunately, I also love to eat. This time though, the cooking is all for the boys. I didn't have time to go to Central Market and pick up their favorite, chef prepared quiche, so I needed to make this myself. I purchased the necessary ingredients and have baked two sister Quiche Lorraine's. This is their favorite variety of quiche. Here is what they look like:

Yes, that is a frozen pie crust. I'm sorry, I'm not perfect and I knew I wouldn't have time to make crust, so shoot me! They smell pretty good for an old girl who hasn't cooked in 4 months! I've still got it and yes, I enjoyed the cooking, but honestly I think I'll let the chefs do it for me. I want to eat every bit of those quiches sitting in the kitchen! I guess I'll never be any different than I am right now.

I was able to sit outside for awhile today, but the mosquitoes again, drove me in. I spent the better part of the afternoon watching a couple of old movies and folding laundry. I also, did and re-did my nails. They are okay and we'll see how long they last. The "Kiss Me, I'm Hot in Vegas" nails lasted the whole trip! I didn't get a chip until the final travel day and I thought they looked great. The secret is to be so busy you don't have time to pick at them. Yes, I'm a picker. When I don't have something to keep me busy, my mind goes wandering, my hands start picking and my feet get restless. When I'm busy, I don't have time to think about all that. Needless to say, I try to keep busy. For the most part I'm successful, but just let me start day-dreaming and poof! I'm off picking at something again. Honestly, I'm hopeless!!

Okay, well that's enough of my nonsense for today. I need to wrap up all that's going on here with the laundry and get myself into bed as I go back to the office tomorrow. Have a lovely evening!! Until tomorrow when I'll WOW!! you with another look into life with Nancy, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Days 115 through 121

Vacation!! That is where I've been and it is also the reason for 7 days of slippage. Yes, I truly had a vacation from everything. When I say that I mean, everything! I didn't exercise, watch what I was eating, look at email or work. I kept up with my family, but that's it. I had a great time with my sister, but now it's time to get back to normal. Since day 121 (today, Sunday November 10) is the day I'm supposed to take the next set of progress pictures, I'm afraid I'm going to disappoint everyone. Both yesterday and today were travel days for me, so I haven't had a chance to go in and take pictures. Also, I don't see that happening any time soon. So the next check in will be on day 133. That gives me a chance to get back to normal, catch up on the important things of life and then focus on taking new pictures.

I did want to share some of my shots from Las Vegas. Although I've visited Las Vegas now 5 times (4 times with my sister and others and once on business) and this is the first time I've stopped and taken photographs with the Las Vegas sign. Come to find out that the sign and I share the same year of birth! So, here are the shots of the sign and I:

It was a short 15 minutes or so total that we were at the sign taking pictures, but it was really fun. The weather was GREAT the whole time we were in Las Vegas. There were other outdoor activities including two visits to Hover Dam; one at night and one during the day and a walk around the Fremont Street Experience. Here are a few shots of Hoover Dam during the day:

I love Hoover Dam. I could visit it every day and never be tired of it. We walked all over the dam and spent as much time there as we could. It truly is one of the most beautifully designed and constructed things I've ever seen. In the lower right hand photograph, you can see just how far down Lake Mead is. The water should be covering the lower half of the intake tower just to the far right in the shot and you can see the lake level indicated by the white rock on the surrounding cliffs. The people leading the tours said that it was down about 30 feet and that it can be blamed on the lack of snow in Colorado. We also went out to the dam at night. Here are a couple of shots at night:

These shots were taken from the first observation lot on the Arizona side of the dam. We had to go through security to drive across the dam and we were not allowed to set foot on the dam itself at night. Security is VERY tight now, which was a huge change from when we visited 15 years ago. I mentioned to my sister that if I lived in the area I would walk that bridge every chance I got. It is so beautiful! The story about its creation is truly inspiring.

The final outdoor thing we did was to walk the Fremont Street Experience. 

On Fremont Street you can visit old, well known hotels and casinos like The Golden Nugget and 4 Queens. There are slot machines where the prize is a car instead of cash and the whole street has been closed off to just foot traffic and covered with a canopy where they project light shows every hour with loud music. It is an experience! I was having a great time, right up to the point where naked girls came out onto the walk way and danced on top of portable bars. This started after 10pm, so it was time for me to hit the road and see something else. I really don't like the nasty side of Las Vegas.

We shopped (Gena's good at that) and I came home with items from Cato (my first shopping experience at a Cato), Sephora and we visited one of the only Inglot stores in the US! Both Gena and I are HOOKED on Inglot now! I can't wait to try the great pallets I put together there.

So, the trip was grand and I hope Gena had as much fun as I did. One thing we had planned to do was so over-the-top that we couldn't make it happen, so we decided to turn it into a trip of its own in 2014. We were going to drive to Los Angeles for just a day, but it was too far away to do it easily. That means that one of our trips in 2014 will be to Los Angeles. We are planning 4 shorter trips in 2014 and I'll share more about those later. We are in the process of figuring out how much we spent on this trip and deciding how much we have to save each week to fund our trips in 2014. The planning part of trips is almost as fun as taking the trip itself!

That's it for today and gives you a good overview of what's been going on for the past week. I should be back to normal now (whatever that means!) and will go back to work in a couple of days. For now, it's time to get some rest. Until tomorrow when I'll be doing less than nothing, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 114

So, this is going to look like I had two blogs in one day because yesterday's blog was posted after mid night. Really! I didn't have day slippage here. It has just been a busy weekend.

Just a little update as I get ready to travel again. I will work tomorrow from home and leave for the first leg of my trip at about 2:30pm. That will put me in Dallas in time for dinner with Gena Ann. Yes, the first leg involves me driving to Dallas. Good thing I LOVE to drive!

I'm really looking forward to this trip. I've been packing today and will finish at lunch time tomorrow. Now, since I don't have much to provide as an update I'll leave you to your Sunday evening. Until tomorrow when I'll blog from my hotel in Dallas, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Day 113

Home, sweet home! I made it back right on time last night (actually, about 15 minutes early, Thank You, Delta!) to the bosom of my family. Overall, the trip was great and I'm glad to have had the opportunity to meet with my new team. We are really going to be a great bunch of Grips! (Team name; we're The Grips.)

On the way home from Connecticut, I taped a short video of a bit of the drive to JFK airport in New York and a little of the conversation I had with the great shuttle driver. By the way, I've experienced lots of drivers in lots of vehicles over the years and this gentleman was the best! He had spirit, personality and was a dang good driver to boot! He made the trip great!!! Here is a little taste of the trip/conversation:

Now, it's time to get ready for the next trip. I leave for on Monday afternoon around 3pm. This next trip differs greatly from the last, as this one is leisure travel with the greatest sister on earth, Gena Ann.

So, to get ready for the next trip I needed to get some rest and I've done that today. I slept in, enjoyed replenishing the supplies for the boys at a leisurely pace and have spent the evening watching videos and painting my nails. You didn't honestly believe that I would go to Las Vegas with plain old nails, did you?? I hope not!! Parish the thought!!! Here is the design I've dubbed: "Kiss Me, I'm Hot! In Vegas" nails:

These nails were so fun to do! I used OPI Red for the background. Then using NYC Black Lace Cream, I painted a leopard print on the thumb and ring finger and kissy lips in the outer corner on the pointer, middle and pinky fingers. Lastly, I topped the nails with Northern Lights Micro-fine Holographic Glitter Top Coat, by OutTheDoor. These nails are great! The red is WAY more vibrant in real life, but the pictures are close. My only nail art tool for this design was a long, sharp, wooden cocktail toothpick. Give me some nail polish and a toothpick and I could paint the world!! On nails, anyway!! *smile*

I'm having a good time over here getting ready for the next trip. Unfortunately, I ate WAY too much today. I don't know if it's a product of being so busy or what, but I found myself just eating without thought, yet again! I really don't understand myself sometimes, but at least I caught myself doing it and brought myself under control. Now, it's just a matter of getting me back on track. Just for the record, I'm not in a hurry. I want to enjoy my time off, but I just don't want to OVER eat while away. The key will be to make sure I'm having foods I really want. That way I'll be satisfied with less of it. I hope to be so busy that I just forget that I'm hungry! Yeah, Nancy...and when exactly has that happened before???

Well, I had wanted to finish this before midnight, but I've gone past that time. That means I need to get to bed and sleep. So, until tomorrow when you'll hear all about my packing...again, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!

Days 110, 111 and 112

Thank GOD for the ability to have day slippage!  Yes, while traveling I still find it hard to blog.  Leisure travel has more interesting things to write about. Las Vegas next week should provide quite a lot to talk about.

So, the most difficult thing this week was the food.  I can honestly say that I just ate and tried to keep dinner light. There were donuts, burgers and barbecue in my path and yes, I had some. As I've said before, I'm changing my thinking about food. It's in its place now. It's nourishment. I eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full. It's less about what I eat and more about the volume for me.  That is my problem. Like everyone else I'm working to solve my particular problem. Could I still win gold for the US at the Olympics if the event we're 'Eating'? You bet I could!

I also felt the effects of less exercise. I was late getting in each night and so, no workout the whole time. This is bad for me, but again a problem I must solve. I had it all planned so that I could do workouts in my room, but had very little tome there. Ugh! It makes me feel like a failure. Or I should say I'm tell motes to feel like a failure, but what I know is true is the fact that I have made progress and will continue to do so, just not at break-neck speeds.

I'm waiting in the lobby of my hotel to catch the GO Airport Shuttle to JFK for my flight back to Texas.  Here is what the lovely Sheraton Stamford looks like:

It really is a nice hotel.  Staff was attentive. Food was good and the room was probably one of the best guest rooms I've had lately.  I'm easily overwhelmed by size and so I prefer a smaller room that is efficiently planned and well maintained. In the Stamford area, this is your hotel. Here is a little collage of my nice CLEAN guest room:

The bathroom had an open shower, which I love and a rain type shower head. Very nice.  Well done, Sheraton! 

Now it's time to go!  Wish me great travels.  I'll be back tomorrow with life from the hill country of central Texas.  Until then, sweet dreams, Sweeties!!