Week 21-Birthday Blog!!!

  Our weekly wrap-up is a wee bit late this week. This week has been kind of emotional for me and I haven't felt much like writing. Today is my 45th birthday. I have never liked my birthday. Not because I'm getting older. I don't feel 45. And I LOVE other people's birthdays. And birthday cake (who doesn't love cake???) and parties with good friends. My birthday has just always sucked. 

45 is a perfectly good number, if you're made of vinyl.

  My birthday is at the tail end of 6 days of celebration in my family. My brother (who is one year younger) was born on June 18th. Dad was out to sea when I was born. He came home and 9 months later I got a baby brother. Okay, maybe it didn't happen QUITE that way, but it's my story and I'll tell it any way I want to! For 6 days every year, Mom calls us her "twins" (which incidentally, we both dislike, but neither of us has the heart to tell Mom). My dad's birthday is June 23rd and then there's me on the 24th. Father's Day is always wedged in the middle of this birthday bonanza. So, by the time we got to my birthday, my family was broke, burnt out and sick of celebrating. When you're little, you hope your birthday will be a big deal, but mine felt more like an obligation. I didn't have parties, or much in the way of a celebration. Sometimes, my family would forget who they were singing "Happy Birthday" to. Seriously.

It's nice being a decade baby. It makes the math easier.

  Every year my mom would make my dad an angel food cake for his birthday. For my 8th birthday, we still had half of Dad's cake left, so Mom turned it on it's side, frosted it with chocolate frosting, wrote "Happy Birthday Angie" on it and stuck two plastic hula dancers on it. Yep, I had a recycled birthday cake. Did I mention that I don't really like angel food cake? 

Words cannot express how much I don't like Angel Food Cake.

  I don't mean to sound ungrateful-Mom did the best she could with what we had. And, as an adult, I totally get it. I know why things were the way they were. We weren't rich by any means. And that's a lot for any family in 6 days. And to my mother's credit, she always made Christmas AMAZING!

  When I was 22, my father died in a car accident. He was 45 years old, the age I am turning today. I spent yesterday, what would have been his 68th birthday, pondering the fact that I am the age he was when his life ended. This was it for him. It's all he got. I like to think I'm only about halfway through life, but we just never know. Dad and I were not close. He was an alcoholic, and the accident that ended his life was a result of his own drunk driving. With our birthdays right next to each other and Father's Day right before, it's so very difficult to enjoy my birthday and not think of him. My oldest daughter, Chelsea, is 22, the same age I was when Dad passed away. I look at Chelsea and think that I can't believe I was so young when I lost my father. She was only 5 months old when he died. 
  So this is why I'm not a fan of my birthday. As an adult, I have had a couple of small birthday get-togethers, nothing extravagant, and have preferred to ignore it whenever possible. I can count on one hand the number of birthday parties I've had. Jeff insists that we celebrate it and is throwing me a party with some good friends and family. He is the sweetest man and I am so lucky to have him.  And maybe this is the beginning of learning to enjoy my birthday. 

My birthday last year-ah, to be 44 again!

  And speaking of celebrating-our weight loss numbers for the week are definitely something to celebrate!
  Well, not mine. I actually gained .2 pounds. I'm not going to stew over that for too long. And yes, if there is a cake tonight I'm gonna eat it! Maybe the whole thing by myself! But I'll pass on the ice cream...that seems reasonable.
  Katie dropped 1.2 pounds this week! She was concerned about possibly having gained weight, but the scale doesn't lie. 
  Jeff lost 3.6 pounds this week! He said that when he stepped on the scale the first time it registered a svelte 269.4 pounds! He ran to grab his phone to link the scale to the app and stepped on the scale 3 more times-each time it read an EVEN 269! He broke through the 270's! I am so incredibly proud of him!
  So our team weight loss this week is 4.6 pounds with a total weight loss to date of (drumroll, please)...101.6 pounds! We have lost over 100 pounds!!! Yay for our team!!! Now pass that cake!

Ta-Da!!!!!!!!! We've lost 100 pounds!!!!

Week 20-Pie Oh My!

  Week 20 has come and gone and we are inching toward our goals! As always, there are temptations around every corner. Sometimes, we are able to stay strong and stick with our plan to lose weight and eat healthy. Often we find the desire to succumb to our weaknesses for sweet, salty or fatty delicacies and the social aspect of sharing a meal, no matter what it may cost us later.

I can't believe you guys can't get it together for one whole week!

  This past Sunday found Katie and I at the church's fellowship time following Sunday service, hosted by our Disciples Women's Ministry. These wonderful ladies were hosting their annual Pie and Ice Cream Social, a fundraiser to benefit the group's community outreach. I have known these women for a long time, some of them since I was a teenager, and see them as family. Here they were, offering up pies home-baked and prepared with love, asking for donations to support those in need in our neighborhood. How do you say "no" to that? Oh, sure, we could have just given them a few dollars and passed on the pie. But do you tell your favorite aunt or sweet little grandma "no thanks" when she is serving up baked goods she created herself? Of course you don't! I selected a delicious cheesecake with blueberry topping. That's healthy, right? Blueberries have antioxidants, after all, and there has to be calcium in cheesecake, right? And I did pass on the ice cream. Although we allowed temptation in, I feel it was a lesser sin than to not support the ministry of our church and break the hearts of these women who carry out God's work. 

Would YOU say no to this???

  For the most part, we do a pretty good job of eating healthy and sticking to the eating plan. I think it's ok to occasionally let go and have a treat. As long as we don't get carried away and abandon our diet altogether, we'll still be healthy and lose weight.
  Katie has been celebrating the end of school and friend's graduations for the last week or so, which contributed to a one pound weight gain. Summer is going to be a challenge for her, I think. A lot of tempting treats and fun with friends. We're going to have to find ways for her to stay active and I'll join her if she wants me to. 
  Jeff lost .2 pounds this week. I don't know where he slid off the plan. A few beers with friends maybe? He's still losing weight and he is determined to lose at least another 12 pounds between now and the end of July when we will be heading down the Oregon Coast to the dunes so he can ride his quad and feel the wind in his hair and the sand in his shorts. He's got 5 weeks, so Jeff really needs to get focused on his goals. He'll need to shed more than 2 pounds per week if he wants to hit 260 before our trip. 

He's gonna get better jumps in this year!

  I managed to drop 1.6 pounds this week (could've been 2 pounds if I hadn't had that cheesecake I'll bet!). But I am not complaining! I am currently 128.6 pounds with a BMI of 23.5! I weigh a little less than I did when Jeff and I first started dating and it feels really good! I read somewhere that George Clooney's wife said she sees herself as an extension of him when they go out, and I like that analogy. I want Jeff to be proud to have me on his arm (not that he wasn't when I was plumper). 

We look just about the same as these two, don't ya think?

  So our team weight loss for the week is .8 pounds and to date it's 97 pounds even. *sigh* We'll get there one of these days!

Week 19-Oh No! Plateau!

  So our Monday weekly wrap-up post is a few days late. Sometimes life just gets crazy-busy and my writing time is limited to when I'm asleep. Although that could make for some interesting nocturnal musings, I haven't quite figured out exactly how to multi-task while I'm unconscious. But it's good to have goals, so I'll keep you updated on my progress in making that happen!

Nap AND write at the same time! Genius!

  We did manage to actually weigh in on Monday morning and the outcome was not exactly numbers to brag about. We, as a team, have plateaued. It was bound to happen sooner or later. We have been working on this weight-loss for 19 weeks and although we have achieved great success, we have been stuck for some time now. 
  I have maintained my weight at 130.2 pounds-no gain, no loss for this week. So that could be a whole lot worse. But it could also be much better. I think this may be due to the fact that I've reached a healthy weight and I look and feel a lot better than I did in January when we started. So I've let the healthy eating slip a little. It hasn't helped that it is the end of the school year (I work for the school district) and there have been several "Here Comes Summer" celebrations. You all know what that means-FOOD! And nobody celebrates with salad! The teacher's lounge and classrooms have been overrun with treats and sweets and my willpower is only so strong. Cookies are my Kryptonite-they cause me incredible weakness and I don't have the fortitude to drag myself away. Thank goodness summer break is less than a week away! 

Do you think the kids would riot if we replaced the party food with this?

  Katie has had the same challenges as my own, lots of after-school activities with a bounty of buffets and temptations to celebrate freedom from learning. She actually gained two pounds this week. Thankfully, Katie has a super-positive attitude and isn't letting this minor setback get to her. She feels pretty proud of the weight she has lost, and she should! 54 pounds lighter, she looks and feels amazing! But, she is allowing herself a considerable amount of cheating and knows she needs to get herself back in the swing of this diet if she wants to reach her goal weight. Katie was also introduced to Starbucks S'Mores Frappuccino, a deadly concoction of sugar and fat that apparently is highly addictive. This frosty treat has practically replaced her first love, Nutella. Heaven help Katie if they put a Nutella Frappuccino on the menu!

Gotta be honest-I tried one and I think it's pretty gross. Katie, I just don't get it!

  Jeff lost .6 pounds this past week-yay for the big winner of the team! He is currently 272.8 pounds which amounts to a 24.2 pound total loss. Jeff is not immune to the temptations of the sweet-tooth twins that comprise his teammates. He led me astray for a date night indulgence of pizza and peanut-butter pie last weekend and has had a few carb-laden frosty cold beers this last week. Hey, man-it's been HOT here. Well, our kind of hot. Listen, we natives of the Great Northwest don't get introduced to the big ball of fire in the sky too often, so when it shines in all it's cloudless glory, our skin starts to sizzle. What better way to chill out than with an ice cold beer? Also, Jeff ran out of his ThermoFit this month, so it's time to place another order and see if that can nudge him off this plateau.

I SAID, "Get back on the diet, slackers!!!"

  So our team has had another setback with a combined GAIN of 1.4 pounds this week and a total loss of 96.2 pounds to date. Last week we were sitting pretty at a total loss of 97.6 pounds. Somehow we got thrown in reverse. 
  Time to rally the troops, find better ways to beat the heat this summer and force our flab off the plateau!

Sounds reasonable to me...

Week 18

  The past two weeks have gone by under a cloud of sorrow and loss. Jeff has been spending this time supporting his family, especially his father, through the passing of his step-mom, BJ. The end of her life came far too early and has left an incredible void in the hearts of her family and friends. 
  It is during these times that we naturally ponder our own mortality and appreciate the moments we share together. I was not fortunate enough to have the time to get to know BJ very well or to develop a close relationship with her. I do know that she was loved and admired by many, was a generous and supportive woman and her presence on this earth was a gift. 

BJ and Denny

  Throughout these past two weeks I have been witness to a most amazing testament to love and devotion through the labors of BJ's husband, Jeff's dad-Denny. He went to the greatest lengths to ensure her comfort in the final stages of life, to care for her and to fulfill her wishes for her final resting place. And I am immeasurably grateful to have a man like Jeff in my life, who takes after his father in so many ways.
  I won't go into any great detail of our eating habits or lack of exercise over the last two weeks. Our meals and movement have not been at the top of our list of priorities. We are now beginning to get back on track and our progress will continue. 
  Jeff and Katie's weight remains exactly the same as where we left you on May 18th (the last time I posted here). This weigh-in was a small relief to Jeff, who feared that some of the meals he indulged in would have disasterous results to his waistline. 
  I also had feared that I had gained back some of the weight, but I actually managed a .2 pound loss. 
  We are still looking to meet that first 100 pounds lost goal. We are creeping toward it with a total of 97.6 pounds lost to date. If we can each lose 1 pound this week, we can finally reach that amazing milestone.