Well, for as long as Murray has been a part of our lives, he has always had another dog in the house to be his playmate.  So, when Alvin was gone – Murray became pretty depressed.  He started clinging to me more than usual.  He was eating more than usual.  He reacted differently when we came home from a trip to the store.  Basically, he just wasn’t himself.  I think he didn’t A) know how to be an “only” dog, and B) was really lonely.

So, I did some searching on petfinder.com to see if I could find him a playmate.  I really wanted another beagle, because their temperament seems to do well with children, they’re dog-gone cute, and relatively small.

I came across several dogs in our area – one in particular stood out.  A petite little girl that was in the same shelter that was once Murray’s home.  We made plans to go look at her. We took the boys with us to make sure she would behave with children.  We also took Murray to make sure she was not aggressive toward other dogs.  She passed both tests with flying colors and voila – we came home with a new dog.

Macie at home in my lap.

Since then she moved right in and made herself at home.  For the first couple of days, all she did was sleep.  She didn’t seem to be feeling well.  After a quick trip to the vet we found out she had Kennel Cough.  Once she had some meds, she perked up into a lively little spitfire.  Now she only stops for a brief snuggle before finding something to get into.

Macie snuggled on the couch.

Murray and Macie snuggled together in the sunlight.

I had forgotten that one habit that many beagles enjoy is digging.  Luckily, the place she is most fond of digging is in a barrel.  I figure if she’s gotta dig, that’s a great place because at least it has a bottom and she doesn’t tear up the yard.

Macie caught in the act.

"It wasn't me, Ma!"

I try to scold her, and she tries to tell me that she didn’t do it.

"Murray, did it! It wasn't me!"

But with a face like this, she gets away with just about anything.

Well, to update my stats on my quest of weight loss.  Last week I lost 4.6 lbs., this week I lost another 2.6 lbs, which brings my total to 14.4 lbs – >this< close to reaching the halfway point to my 30 lb. goal.   Again, I’m so proud of myself, I think I could bust.  Since October 28th I have lost nearly 15 pounds, which means I made it through Halloween and Thanksgiving.  And, I not only didn’t gain weight, I lost it! Woo-hoo!

Now I still have a looooooong way to go.  Most people don’t notice any change.  But I have already felt some big changes with just 14 pounds gone.  First, my knees and ankles don’t scream at me first thing in the morning.  I get up now and they don’t hurt at all.  It’s kind of weird to walk to the bathroom and realize nothing aches.  The other thing I’ve noticed is the change in my view from the top.  It sounds kind of silly, but when I look down I don’t see my tummy like I used to – it’s still there, and there is still lots of it that needs to go, it’s just that I can tell something is gone and THAT is a good thing.

We’ve also been playing with our Wii quite a bit more lately.  I’ve really enjoyed the Wii Fit.  I do have to claim an injury from it though – I overused muscles in my left wrist when boxing.  I guess I need to do it more often so I can build them up.   We’ve also played Mountain Sports, and the Sports Resort games.  They are fun to play, but they don’t make me sweat like the Wii Fit can.  I’m thinking I might want to add the Wii Fit Plus to my Christmas List for the year.

For Thanksgiving, my parents came up for a short visit.  I always love it when they come.   We had a great time, and due to their schedule, we re-scheduled Thanksgiving to Wednesday.  It was great!  We made turkey, dressing, gravy, cranberry relish, “miracle mashies”, and an apple-pear crisp.  The only thing that wasn’t “cleaned” with healthier products was the gravy.  The dressing was made using a low-points value recipe for the corn bread and turkey sausage. The cranberry relish and the Apple-Pear Crisp were both WW recipes.  The Miracle Mashies were from a Hungry Girl cookbook.   Which means I managed to stay in my points range for the day – even on Thanksgiving.

There’s more to share but it’s getting late and tomorrow’s schedule is packed.  So it’s off to bed for now!

I’m down another 1.6 lbs!  Woo-hoo! Bringing my 3-week total to -7.2 lbs.  Bringing me very close to being 25% of the way toward my goal of 30 lbs.

I’m still excited about the program because this is obviously something that actually works for me.  I like that there are no “forbidden foods”.  Because in all honesty, as soon as someone says “You can’t eat that”, then “that” becomes all I want to eat.

Some of the changes I’ve made include:

Portion control – this was by far my biggest downfall prior to WW.  Learning to be satisfied with enough, instead of too much.

Bring on the veggies – I’ve added a lot more broccoli and cauliflower to my menu.  I love it, and my kids love the broccoli.

“Cleaning” recipes – I’ve gone through some of my favorite recipes and cleaned them up by using more “fat free”, “low fat”, and “sugar free” ingredients when possible.

Hungry Girl – I purchased one of her books.  I’ve made her Chocolate Cake twice in the past week.  It’s soooo yummy, and the POINTS value is pretty low.  (Her recipe is to take a box of Devils Food Cake Mix or I used a Chocolate Cake Mix, then mix it with a can of pumpkin.  Don’t add eggs or oil or water – just pumpkin.  The batter will be pretty thick when it is mixed, but it will taste wonderful.  Bake it as the box directs for the type of cake pan you use.  Voila! Yummy cake, at about 4 points per piece. And I promise, you don’t taste the pumpkin at all.)  Now, if I could just get Hubby to slow down on the cake eating, it might actually last a couple of days.

I had another pretty good week.  Not stellar, but considering some of the lessons I learned, it was pretty gosh-darn great.   I’ve learned to calculate POINTS on everything.  And I do mean everything.  Also, it would be wise to calculate them prior to eating them.  Here’s why:

Hubby and I had a date night at Pizzaria Uno’s in Fort Worth last week.  I had a salad and two slices of pizza.  Now, I know that pizza is not the healthiest food, but I also know that WW will allow a little flexibility.  So, I had two wonderful, delicious slices of the Chicago Classic Deep Dish Pizza – which is the pizza Hubby and I share whenever we go there.  (Luckily for me, we only go once or twice a year.)   Anyway, when I got home I looked up the nutritional information for the Chicago Classic.

Do you care to make any guesses about how many calories are in ONE slice of this amazingly-delicious pizza?

500?

600?

700?

Nope, its MORE!

There are 770 calories in ONE slice of this pizza.  And I had TWO!  Now the good news is that because I knew I would have to write down what I ate, I only had two slices instead of three.  And truth be told, I was feeling quite full with the two – so I’m glad I didn’t have that third one.

Although once I learned the POINT values, I nearly passed out when I went to write down on my tracker how many points I ate at dinner that night.  But, I behaved quite well the rest of the week.  And, drum roll please…

I lost 1.8 pounds this week.  Bringing my two week total to 5.6 pounds, which puts me right in line with what all doctors/experts/health gurus say about healthy weight loss (i.e. right around 2 lbs. per week).

Yay, me!

Hubby wanted to know why the boys “needed” them.

I told him that all Texas boys need a pair of boots and a cowboy hat.

There’s just something about a cowboy that makes you smile.

And once those hats settled on these cute little heads, I nearly went weak at the knees.

Because there’s just something about a cowboy.

I’m overweight.

Not like it’s a huge secret, I mean anyone who sees me – knows that I’m overweight, by a lot.  I don’t feel comfortable enough to share how much I weigh, or how much I could stand to lose – at least for now.  Maybe as I move forward with this in the weeks and months to come, I’ll feel confident enough to share.  But for now, let’s just say I could stand to lose a few pounds.

It’s not like this is a revelation.  I know it, and known it for years.  I’ve tried all sorts diets and schemes.  Some work, some don’t – all of them have required more effort than I was willing to put into it.  Ergo, none of them worked in the long run.

When we were on vacation a couple of weeks ago in San Antonio.  I was really overcome by the thought that I have to do something about my weight.  There was no major event that caused this.  I didn’t fall into the river.  I didn’t have any embarrassing moments.  I just realized as I was staring out at the skyline from our balcony that I don’t want to be like this anymore.  So, I set a goal to lose 30 pounds.  I don’t have a required time frame because I tend to take myself WAY too seriously and quit if I don’t meet all points of the goal.

So, 30 lbs. with a time frame of “get it done, but do it right, and don’t try to kill yourself in the process.”  I know I’m not going to be one of “The Biggest Loser”s and get it all done in 2 weeks.   But I also know that if I’m left to my own devices, nothing will happen.  Something had to change in order for me to move toward this 30 lb. goal.

And, that change is official – I have joined Weight Watchers.

I’ve been doing it for a week now, and for the first time ever – I really feel like I can do this.  I don’t ever remember feeling like this after one week on any other plan.  Sure there were some where I lost tons of weight, but I knew what I did to lose it couldn’t be done for the long haul.  But this WW thing, I really think I can do this!

I love that I can eat normal food, just smaller portions. I don’t have to buy any pre-packaged meals or eat only prescribed foods.  I like that I can still have my coffee the way that I like it, which is a little coffee with my cream.   I like that I don’t have to give any particular food items up.  I like that I’m learning (or rather, re-learning) proper portion sizes.  I like that I’m learning to pay attention to everything I eat.  I like that I have a buddy to go with me to the meetings.  I like that I’m moving toward a healthier me.  And, I like that it has an impact on my immediate family because I’m pretty sure Hubby’s going to end up losing a few pounds, too.

Tonight, I had my second weigh-in.  I lost 3.8 lbs. this week.  Can you believe it?!  Nearly 4 pounds the week of Halloween!  I’m so proud of myself, I think I could bust.

He reminded me of the old Kermit song, “It ain’t easy being green.”

The Help: A Novel

Author: Kathryn Stockett

Publication Information: Putnam Adult; 1 edition (February 10, 2009), 464 pps.

Genre: Literature & Fiction/Historical Fiction

Explanation/Summary:

From the back cover:

In Jackson, Mississippi, in 1962, there are lines that are not crossed. Black maids raise the white children, but no one trusts them not to steal the silver. Black maids clean the toilets, but they have their own out back. Everyone stays within the lines. But, suddenly, three women Aibileen, Minny, and Skeeter find themselves tired of the lines.

Analysis and Evaluation:

Anyway, we went for the rides, and the bounce houses, and the booths that have giveaways – and of course, the food.  There is just something about “fair food” that is wonderful.  Even though it probably ranks among “Worst Possible Food FOR You”, it tastes wonderful.   And, I think there is some sort of unwritten law that states “fair food” when possible, must be on a stick.

My boys LOVE food on a stick.

Several months ago, actually 6 months, 1 week, and 5 days (but who’s counting),  my husband started on a project in our back yard.   Since the day he started, the yard has been in a state of disrepair and frankly it looks awful.  I know it won’t stay like this forever.  In fact, now that the weather is cooling off construction will likely resume on the landscaping  in the near future.

All summer, I’ve longed for something to look nice in our yard.  Even though I didn’t pray for it, God heard my heart.  He sent an invader from the neighbor’s yard – a creeping vine with beautiful blue flowers.

Thank you, God for sending me an answered prayer.