Good Morning, and its a cool one here!

We are at 41′ out, cool for sure, but it is very refreshing.  We actually get some frost and perhaps snow here in Tucson. Can’t wait, I really missed the seasons, so we will get some of that here. Sunny and cool.  Perfect!  We got the pool cleaned and covered for the winter.  We did look into several options to heat it, but in all reality an above the ground pool is just not worthy of much! Sad, we couldn’t find any company that would come out and help us figure things out. I finally spoke to one man who was kind enough to give us his opinion on the heater situation, he had been in the pool business for over 50 years and said that the money for companies are in, in-ground pools.  He advised to clean it, cover it and get some heater pads to float on the water next year or scrap it and get a hot tub!  Well we are getting rid of the ole hot tub on the deck and getting a new one.  Already have it picked out.  SO that will be nice to sit in and soak in private on the deck.  Looking forward to it.

Well I lost another 5.5 #’s this week, finally bringing me up to 34.5 # lost.  I finally just got busy and paid closer attention to my portion control and got out all the measuring cups, tablespoons and food scale.  It really does help to stay in check!!!  So I reap the rewards of staying on the straight and narrow on the scale!!  Yay.  I also started the “step” program.  I am getting in my steps each day, amazing how fast you can get to 3500. They add 300 a day until you get to 10K I guess,  I am not sure I will ever get the 10K with my knee but I am going to try, never say never.  I will stay on the straight and narrow again this week, and see what happens.  I do know that my scale and there’s (WW) is 3#s difference, lol but I am going with the flow.  I weigh less at home, and a little more there, its all good. LOL

Well the start of the holidays are just weeks away, we have been invited to a Thanksgiving dinner, we have remained friends with the previous owners of this house, nice couple, and they are have a very casual get together with family and friends.  I think we are going to pass and end up at a restaurant, or I may even cook!!  Who knows.  I am hoping to see my brother and his wife next month.  That would be fun.

So sad about all the fires in California! There are no words.

Happy Veterans Day to all, and thank you for your service !

Heres a couple pictures I took yesterday of the BBG in the gazebo and the perfect frame for a picture of the desert behind us.

 

 

 

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Tuesday all ready!

It seems that the weeks are just flying by.  Its Friday one morning and today is already Tuesday.  Nice that we are busy and bustling about, but really I look up and its another week passed.

I went to WW, they have renamed Weight Watchers to just WW, Wellness that Works. Hummm 50 years I guess is as good as time to revamp the ole club! Pretty sure it all had to do with Oprah buying into the company, and lets face it, she has had a great influence on the club! Anyway I weighed in on Saturday morning, after taking 2 weeks off, just eating as normally as I could, what’s normal really, lets just say that I enjoyed myself, but was very reserved.  I expected to see a couple pounds back on and was pleasantly surprised to find only .6 .  Yay I must be doing something right.   So that was a good day.  I also signed up on an app for Noom.  Its another weight loss tool, they go by calories and body weight. They have you tracking steps and you don’t start at 10K, they work you up slowly.  So far my knee is not screaming at me, amazing how many steps you can get in just walking around the house.  It was only a 1$ to try it out for a month, I have seen it several times on my phone and Facebook. So I am keeping it and WW and doing them together.  Noom actually has you reading educational information about weight loss, the why’s and how come’s  about it, interesting, nothing I haven’t read about all ready, however I am in a different head space about loosing weight and it seems to be more interesting than all the other years I have read about it ! I am not going to try to analyze why, it could take the rest of my life to answer that question, LOL however since its seems to working, I am going for it. I dug out my food scale and all my measuring utensils, both cups and teaspoons alike, and have been getting back to basics.  My eyed 1/2 cup certainly isn’t the same as a measured one, LOL  so its good to be accurate and own it once again.  So feeling good on the weight loss front.  Haven’t really noticed much change in my clothing yet !  It will happen, good things come to those that wait!!

I had a friend come stay a couple, nights a couple weeks ago and I sent her home with all my “fat” clothes, I used to wear nothing but skirts, tanks tops with a button shirt opened in front,  I am talking years!!  So they are all gone, there is a gal in Yuma that is pretty big and she takes all my clothes I don’t want.  Plus I ordered so much on-line to come to find out I hated them when they got here. I really do have a style, lol, its true bohemian, and I am looking forward to getting back into those clothes.  It felt good to purge the ole closet and shoes.  I am refraining from buying anymore clothes until I get down to a certain weight, lets be honest, I already have a boat load of bohemian tops hanging in my closet just calling my name !  Some are a little to tight yet, but I am getting there.

So I missed the deadline to vote in Pima county, here is Tucson so I had to take a road trip to Yuma since I was registered in that county to vote.  Got to visit with my brother and his wife who just arrived, that was nice, and found I didn’t miss the wind that is always in Yuma!!  Nice hot day, but that wind was there.

Got to stop at my favorite vegetable stand…. Mr. Gonzales was wondering why we hadn’t been in.  Sure wish he was in Tucson.

Some pictures of the sunrise the morning I left,  this one is out our front door.

This one is on the way out from our house in Saguaro National Park, the hot air balloon at one point was very close, but I couldn’t stop until this little area.  What a great idea to take a balloon ride over the park in the early morning hours.

I found a great pottery place, she is really expensive, but a girl can dream can’t she!!!

 

Sunset from the deck, my little phone does not like to take great pictures, but the color was there, the sky was on fire for a couple minutes.

Our little Chika is almost 10 months old.  She is such a joy to have around.  What a personality!!!  Spoiled would be an understatement !!  LOL And yes she is still a lap dog..LOL

We are enjoying life here in Tucson.  really enjoying all the wild life, snakes, coyotes, rabbits, javelinas, hawks, falcons, big spiders, LOL  Wishing you all a wonderful month of November, T-day coming up on us soon.

I will back on here Saturday after I weighed in. and yes I did join a gym, no I haven’t been back yet, just busy….LOL

 

Sunday

Well I did not go weigh in this week, I had a friend come over and stay a couple nights so we went out exploring and looking for new places to eat.  Not that was an excuse to not go weigh in, I just needed a break away from counting, journaling and all that.  So back at today and feeling great.  Weather is great, plants are all happy on the deck, haven’t seen a brown squirrel, so that’s a plus.  My geranium is ready to bloom again.

While I was out running around, I did stop at a LA Fitness gym and signed up.  They have a nice heated pool and spa area.  I get a free hour with a trainer, and I will see him tomorrow at 11a.  I am pretty sure he thinks he is going to put me through the ropes, LOL  he has another thing coming.  I did mention I had arthritis in most of my joints and that I had limitations.  Pretty sure he’s never met the like of me.  LOL  I will give him the benefit of tryin, but I know my limits.  Not my first rodeo in the gym.  Otherwise not a lot going on her in the desert southwest.

We are finally feeling like we are home.  its a nice feeling.   So until later.

Has it really been over a week!!!

LOL  I actually had to look up the dates on the calendar, LOL  seems just like yesterday was Saturday…I thought I had posted my weight lost from last Saturday, down another 3.6, but because I had gained 2#, I am only giving myself 1.6, but I will take it.  I have been on track all week and getting a lot done around the yard, nothing like raking, pruning and filling bins full of ole dead cactus and bushes.  LOL  So exercise has been a huge part of the week also.  I also have stopped eating after 6p again.  I am sleeping better and waking up full of energy. I hit the floor a running.  LOL  not quite but way more energy.  I am looking forward to Saturday weigh in….Weight watchers is changing its entire program, not the food plan, the flex plan and the 200 free foods are still in play, but they are no longer calling it Weight Watchers, its now Wellness Wins, still the WW but not focusing just on the weight loss.  More on the overall program of getting healthy from all angles of life.  Personally I think its a move in the right direction.  I like that the meetings are more about the whys and whos and whateffer’s of over eating, than just what the scale says.  No longer is a meeting just a meeting, its a studio, that is so California…LOL They have given everything new names, Chic I guess…but as long as it works for me I am happy.  I truly believe that Oprah had a big hand in the change. Good for her, people listen when she speaks.  LOL

Well I can say for sure that we no longer have any boxes packed in this house!!  YAY  that fells good.  Most of the pictures are up, there’s a couple quilts I want to hang in my office but all in due time.  I am starting to feel like I am no longer on vacation and this is home, Peter is coming around too.  However I will never get over the scenery on our drive in and out of here, Saguaros everywhere…Winter weather has set in, day time temps just barely reaching high 70’s and nights are down right cold, well for us anyway, the 50’s feel real good!!!  Peter had dug our all his sweats and hoodies and lives in them.   LOL  We are not in the middle of the Sonoran Desert anymore, thank goodness, and the temps reflect that.  I am enjoying the cool evening and the fall weather.

Just took Chika outside to do her thing, the coyotes were serenading us.  I am glad we are in a locked front yard, its a little eerie at how close they are.  We have one that wanders the edge of the yard every evening lately, looking for rabbits I am sure.  We have a new visitor make there nuisance selves present, the brown squirrels, they have been eating my flowers on the deck at record pace!!!  Little beggars.  Since I last wrote , we had a bull snake, a baby one, in the front yard, it was about 3 feet long and 1/2 inch in diameter.  Seems to be living under the pond area, its surrounded by rocks.  This morning on our way out the front sidewalk, a bug brown/blonde (female) desert tarantula was out sunning herself.  I had to prod her along with a stick, they live in holes in the driveway apparently.  LOL  We laugh because we drove around the entire USA and barely saw an animal other than domestic, or dead along the road and in a matter of a month we have seen a huge variation of wild desert animals.  Unfortunately I am not getting close enough with my cell camera to get pictures.  LOL

Heres our spider

We went for a drive out one of the roads near our house and found this beauty, I stopped counting arms at 37, I would bet she, Oh, all Saguaros are my sisters, so that makes them female, LOL she is aboht 150 years old.  I couldn’t walk out around here as we had just had a good rain storm and the it was a little mushy off the road, found another one further out and stopped at 40 arms.  couldn’t get a good picture of her, I will be going back, its about 15 miles from our house. Those are all arms down in the bushes attached to her.  The rest are sunsets off the deck…fall makes for a very beautiful sky at dusk.

All different evenings….I will check in on Saturday…..

 

 

Time does fly by…

Wow, I looked up and saw its been almost 10 days since I posted, been busy I must say.  We have had a rainstorm, more furniture delivered, hung more pictures and quilts, had a sick puppy….the list goes on and on…LOL  but its a good list.

The rainstorm was wonderful, it rained for about 12 hours straight, some flooding around the house, but not bad, Peter said now he knows where to did a trench for run off. It did flood around the surrounding areas and some roads were closed, but I am thinking that’s pretty normal when it rains that hard.  After all there are signs everywhere that say “Do not enter when flooded”.  Kinda gives you the hint it happens a lot.  The rain left the desert happy, everyone got a good washing and the bushes and cacti are all standing up straight full of energy. Sure pretty.  I took some pictures of the yard when I was out checking it out,  I did a walk about and counted 22 Saguaros on our property.  This is the front area of our home.   Its funny because we live out back on our deck and rarely walk around here.  But we do get to drive by it all every we leave.  I am pretty happy with my new yard and I didn’t have to do any of the work!!!  Win Win for me.

Here’s a picture of the drive home, we went out and looked around after the rain stopped, it was so beautiful.  This is about 4 miles from home in the Saguaro National Park. Part of our drive home from town.  I pinch myself every time I drive through this !

The house finally feels like ours and I am actually cooking in my kitchen.  We still have the feeling the vacation is coming to an end and we need to leave, but getting the curtains up and pictures on the walls has helped.  But every time we are in the pool, we both just start laughing and shaking our heads, still surreal when were swimming.  LOL MY husband is a true skinny dipper, who knew!!  I am a little more modest only because I have a feeling the neighbor has seen us, I mentioned to him, I bet you hear us in the pool every afternoon don’t you?  He got all red and just smiled.  So I am using a tube top to cover the top half, LOL  But life is good at the Meyer’s !!!

Chika had a virus of some sort, made for long nights taking her out every couple hours, I felt so bad for her.  I changed her diet and added organic pumpkin puree and she is on the mend, Had a good nights sleep last night, only up once.  I wish animals could verbalize there pain or discomfort better than showing me. Glad she’s better.

This was sunset last night from the deck.  The sun is going down earlier and earlier…but sure pretty.

 

So last Saturday I was going to my new WW meeting near our home, its 11 miles but the closest one on a Sat. morning.  Much to my big disappointment, all WW meetings were closed in the entire state due to a annual conference  in Phoenix!! I was already dreading the weigh in as it had been a hard week, not excuse, just the truth and I was sure I had put a couple #s back on.  SO when I returned home, I told my husband I am going to find a place on Sunday and go weigh in, I have to, I need to!!!  So I looked it up on the computer and aghhhhh the nearest was 17 miles across town at the store front for WW.  Much to my surprise my husband mentioned to me when I was pouting at my computer, get dressed and lets go and you can weigh in.  Boom I was up and dressed and ready to go face the scale!   I got there and of course there was a long line, so I patiently waiting, well it looked like I was patiently waiting, LOL  My turn, I get on the scale, get off, standing at the counter I glance over, and say how much damage is done, I could see a 6 where she had written down a #,  She said no damage, you lost 6 more pounds!!  Tears of joy and relief immediately were running down my cheeks.  I thought for sure I had gained 6#’s, whew!!!  That makes my total loss 26.8#s, I will take the ounces!!  What a surprise to me, I had been counting and journaling even though I was over some days, being honest and truthful with myself, after all I am the only one I have to lie to, and really how stupid is that!   So I must say the new free style plan works.  I am a believer.  I had happy tears in the car with my husband!!  So I feel I am on my way to getting back down, I have quit asking myself why, and am asking why not! I still have regret that I didn’t do this 10 years ago, but am learning to let that go!  I will never be able to understand the why’s and why not’s of who I am and why I always over ate, I am sure I understand it to a point, but then I am just to tired and old to want to dig up old buried feelings, so I am just letting them go, and living life for me in the here and now.  What happened to me over the years is melting away.  I forgive, and am learning to forget those that hurt me.  I feel in control again, and empowered by the move to a more beautiful, positive place to live.  Further away from my kids, but they are just a days drive away if I need them, or they need me.  They really do have there own lives to live and both my kids are in a good place.  They have someone who loves them, and they love back and enjoy life with.  Isn’t that what its all about.  Enjoying life, each and everyday!!

Sorry for the long winded post, but been a while…I am making my self a promise to post at least twice a week.   See you all soon….Enjoy the fall weather…

 

 

September is coming to a close! Life is slowing down, finally.  Husbands birthday on Sunday, going to BBQ and take a day for us.  Sounds wonderful.  Its not like everyday is for us already, retired, doing what we want.  However most days have been filled with rearranging, and then rearranging some more, emptying boxes, hanging curtains.  So Sunday will just be a day to not think about what isn’t done, and what’s next!  However we are getting a lot more settled.  My office is taking shap, curtains up, desk in, new comfy chair to sit in. There is still a couple boxes in the corners but nothing that is bothering me.  LOL  Irony of life, we just sold 2 huge curio cabinets full of stuff, and low and behold we have bought 2 more and they are full of stuff.  LOL  I found a wonderful antique boutique, the owners name is Pauline, she has wonderful stuff and is a really nice gal.  I think I have met a new friend.  I told my husband I wouldn’t mind working there.  He said no way I would spend my paycheck there.  LOL So true.  Still in the pool every afternoon by 5p, so nice to step out back and take a dip.  I actually got some exercise in today, started jogging.

I did weigh in last Thursday, gained back a 1#, but not sweating it.  Its been difficult to focus on journaling, I have been eating healthy and clean, well mostly.  We did have strawberry short cake the other night, without the whip cream, it was yummy!!!   I will go to my first meeting Saturday morning and it will be where I will hang out every Saturday morning from now on!!  Its over the hill and down the road about 6 miles but it will be worth it.  The meeting closer to me is only at 6:30p and I will be just getting out of the pool at that time…LOL  so I will stick with the 8:30a meeting.  A few more miles away, but so much better for me.

Life is good, still can’t believe I live in Tucson, surrounded by Saguaros and get to witness what I believe is one of the most beautiful National Parks every time I have to leave my house.  Can’t wait to go driving around.  We keep pinching ourselves and smiling.  LOL

Until later

 

Wow, tomorrow will be one week since we started our new adventure.  I still feel like I am at someone else’s home cooking and sleeping over.  LOL  The kitchen is somewhat organized but I still open wrong cupboards and drawers. LOL  The rest of the house is coming along slowly.  We are having a ductless split air put in the master.  We know understand why they used a swamp cooler to help out the air conditioner.  It certainly is not able to cool this entire home at once.  I am afraid to see what our bill is going to be in a month!!  We went out and bought some floor fans to help out so its a little better, I am sleeping in one of the guest rooms until we get a unit put in the master.  Its on the opposite end of the house where it gets full sun till about 2p, so not only is it the hottest room, its the furthest from the ole air conditioner.  Oh well we are getting by.  We love our new home, its big, bright and comfortable. I finished planting all the cactus I brought with me this morning and was able to get some pots on the deck planted as well.

So far the rabbits haven’t found my new flowers.  We have counted over 20 out in the grassy area in the afternoon.  They are not afraid of anything.  Cute little cotton tails, bastards, lol they eat everything !!  The previous owner has a wonderful bed of  aloe eaten to the ground!!  I have a pot of it on the deck too so I hope they keep there cute little tails off the deck.  We have been in the pool every night since we moved in.  I watch the sunset from the pool every night.  Pretty damn nice!!!

I found a good doggie day care just 7 miles from here and Chika had her first taste of reality last week.  LOL  She was a little shell shocked, she always barks a good game from behind the door or the safety of the car but when she is out and near another dog, she just becomes shy and scared.  We are going to leave her a couple days a week for a while till she gets a little more used to being around other dogs.  The lady who runs it is really nice and has patience with the animals.  It also gave us a day to ourselves to get some errands done, first doctor appointment behind us, new washer and dryer coming on Thursday and we had a cute little freezer delivered yesterday.  We still have a list of needs and wants but one item at a time.  NO hurry on the rest, I am going to hit some antique stores in town, see what they have to offer in shelving and old desks for my office area.

Other good news, on our day of freedom with no dog to have to worry about, I stopped in at the official Weight Watchers store front down town, thought I better get weighed in.  I had no idea where I would fall at on the scales but knew I needed to do it.  I lost 6.6#’s in a week.  Wow was all I could say.  I knew I had been sweating my arse off but really!!!  Down 22#’s so far, I am over the moon with happiness.  I will go to a meeting near me  this next week and stay for the meeting.  So that was positive.  One step at a time.  I have been journaling and counting everything that past my lips to my hips, so it must be working.

Just checking in, hopefully next time I get on here I will have a little more time to check in with everyone.  Until then, enjoy the upcoming fall weather.

Remember Mabon ( Autumnal Equinox ) is only a week away on September 23rd !!  XXXX