Thank you Audrich – there was a page break, so I didn’t see your comment when I replied a moment ago. The homestead is very good for me – there is always plenty that needs doing (We call it Ten Things Farm, lol).

Thank you too, Carla! 🙂

Church was nice today, and I’ve joined a study that is very timely for me. I plan to spend some of this afternoon reading the material from the study, and working on a project that I may share later on….once it’s in motion.

I completed a scarf yesterday – it’s pretty, with lots of springtime color. I make them to sell, and the $$ goes to Heifer International. This past Christmas was the first year I did it and it was a lot of fun, and really rewarding. I’m going to take a break before I make another. We have other things going on right now.

This coming week I’ll fast Thursday – I’m not sure what my other day will be. Friday might work well, but I don’t usually do two days back to back. I might try it to see what happens. I hope everyone is doing well with fasting and working it into the routine. It is helping me an awful lot.

Have a great week!
-catinhat

Today was an ‘eating day’, so I just ate normally. Drank my water, walked two miles, and did stuff. We took care of all the neighborhood animals we’re pet-sitting for, and I weeded our home library…at least, the children’s books. I will do adult nonfiction tomorrow, I think. I got some organizing done by the basement door, too, so now all the shoes and coats, scarves and hats – they all have a place. It should make getting in and out that much simpler.

It doesn’t sound like it was much of a day, but I am tired, so I think I’ll get my shower and read a bit before bed. I hope everyone is doing well and making good progress with 5:2. Tomorrow is another eating day for me, but I’m considering a fast day on Wednesday.

-catinhat

Thank you, Stef! Traveling Europe – wow! I go days without leaving my own street! 🙂 I completely agree about calories and nutrients and nourishment. I may not practice it so well, but I know it’s the way things are. You are smart to make goals about what you eat rather than weight – I may be setting myself up for problems, but that seems to be a reasonable goal for me right now, and it would be the first time in 25 years I got to that weight without some sort of strict dieting, so I think it would be a good milestone of sorts. Or not. I really don’t know.

Meanwhile, I think tomorrow will be a fast day until suppertime. I am at that place in my cycle where I get very nibbl-y and want something every five minutes, so we’ll see how it goes. My ongoing truth has been that fasting goes well for me until I eat something, so I guess I’m figuring that if I try tomorrow and fail, I’m not at the tail-end of the week and feeling like I missed a day entirely.

I have another goal in mind that is not at all related to 5:2 or losing weight or any of that, but rather to me getting generally healthier and happier. I’ve been in therapy for a bit, and I know I’ve mentioned that before. I have done a lot of healing through it and I feel stronger and more hopeful than I have in a very long time. My faith is stronger, I am more joyful…everything is good, without being sunshine-rainbows-phony good. I’m in a study at church about gifts of the spirit, and I’m really drawn to a program called Stephen Ministry. There is training and supervision, and it sounds like a way for me to give back – to walk alongside someone going through a tough time, support and pray for them….I will continue to consider it, and then talk to the head of the program to see if I would be considered. I’m excited about the possibilities.

Today was a pretty day. We did school, tended animals, went for a walk and did some housekeeping. All in all, a good day. My eating was okay, but could have been better. I am still adjusting, I think, which is why I feel like it’s time to do a fast day tomorrow. I also started ‘planking’ – it’s supposed to be very good for core strength. I can only do 15 seconds at a time, but I will keep at it, with a goal of a full minute at a time as my ultimate goal, at least for now.

I hope everyone is doing well, and I’ll check in soon! Thanks for all the kind words and support!
-catinhat

Well, when I can’t manage a full-on fast, I try to at least skip a meal. I know it’s not the same, but I’m doing the best I can. This morning I’m down another pound…and a little surprised about it, though it has been a fairly busy couple of days.

Today we are going to a market to try and determine what we need for my husband to keep him away from wheat. We’re also going for a hike in a forested area and doing some other little fun things…you know, like shopping for gravel. My…er…’Christmas Present’ is that we are having the earthmover guy come and grade the driveway properly, then put down gravel. It’s been too frozen to do it so far, but whenever he is ready, we want to be sure we know which gravel we’re wanting, so that’s going to get figured out today.

Other than that, I’ve got horse barn chores, along with caring for my little flock of hens here. Not a terribly busy day, but not a boring one either. I hope everyone has a lovely weekend with much success!

Best,
-catinhat

Thank you, Toms. I am mostly just trying to take it all in stride, and really, I’m doing OK. My ‘official’ weigh-in is the first of each month, though I weigh often in between. Seeing that number move around a lot – up a pound one day, down two the next, back up one the day after – it actually seems to be helping me have some perspective. The overall trend is downward, and really, it’s a number. It helps me measure progress, sure, but there was a time that I would have been devastated by any upward, even if it was just me retaining water, and I would then give up. So somehow, I’m finding a way to be gentler with myself about all that.

Yesterday was a warm (for January), sunny day, so I went to the neighbor’s house. I coaxed the horse out of his stall (difficult, because when he sees me, he thinks there will always be grain), then cleaned up his stall and pen. I even tidied the pasture a bit and cleaned up the barn quite nicely. It was an hour or so of puttering and fresh air, so it was quite nice. It also made me feel a little better about the appearance of the barn – I’ve never had a horse, so I don’t know what is typical, but I like for it to be tidy in there, and now all the stray bits of hay and such are cleaned up and I think it’s much better.

Today I was really glad I’d done all that, since it’s snowy and freezing.

This week is mostly us at home, though I’m working at the library tonight. I plan to skip supper and then breakfast and lunch tomorrow, which will get one of my fast days in without too much effort. I’m working through dinnertime, so it won’t be hard to start, anyway. My daughter has a friend coming Thursday for a special day, and we are looking forward to that. The rest of the week is school, housekeeping, that sort of thing, which we really don’t mind at all.

I hope everyone is well and having a good week!

-catinhat

Well, I’m officially down 5.5 lb. for the month of January. I’m very happy with that number! 🙂

Thank you, Stef, you are a sweetie!

I started seeing him (my therapist) because of the panic attacks and anxiety, and he’s helped me with it a lot. I was having 4-6 a week, now it’s one, maybe two in a month’s time. It’s still unsettling, though. We didn’t get to talk about it this past Friday (other things took up the time), so maybe next week. 🙂

We have a fair amount of snow on the ground right now. I like all the seasons, so I’m enjoying it. I took my walk outside yesterday – twenty degrees and tromping through snow – it was lovely. I like living where we get all four seasons. Some will think I’m daft, but when I lived in Hawaii, I missed the changes of season.

I have been crocheting a lot of late – I’m making scarves mostly, for a fund-raiser I do for Heifer International. Today I finished a scarf and I’m nearly done with a hat to match it. I’ve got yarn prepared and matched for a fe more scarves as well. I like scarves – they’re easy, they are small enough to ship, and they go together quickly, so I feel like I’ve accomplished something.

I hope everyone is well. I plan to continue this process and hope to keep on shrinking! 🙂

-catinhat

Thank you, audrich and Lindyw. I always feel a little happier when I see that someone has left me a note.

Audrich, my hubby is doing well with the gluten free thing. That said, I am trying to do it ‘for him’ whenever I can, by making the things I have always made, just with substitutes that make those foods safe for him. I figure he has enough adjusting to do as it is, so I’m trying to make it less of a burden for him. His attitude about it is really good, and I appreciate that. He is feeling better and better.

Lindyw, I have seen the fast exercise book mentioned here, and I am going to ask our library district to purchase it. I would really like to red it myself. For now, I mostly do walking – partly as exercise and partly because it feeds my soul somehow to get out and think and walk and pray and just let my problems solve themselves.

Ten days into this month and I’m down another 1.5 pounds. Sure, I’d like it to go faster, but when I look at the past ten days, I’m honestly just happy it’s gone down at all. I’ll not complain, anyway. 🙂 I hope everyone is finding success and doing well! 🙂

-catinhat

Thanks so much, Carla! Audrich, I hope your weigh-in goes well!

We went to a friend’s house last night for ‘fondue’. I thought it was the kind where there is fruit and veg and you dip it in cheese. It was the kind with raw meat and hot oil and you fry everything. There was that and salad and homemade rolls…and then I brought chocolate fondue and fruit. We ate and ate and ate, and I feel like I blew it…but it was one meal, and I suppose I’ll recover (ha!) It was fun and tasty, also excellent company, but I’m a bit disappointed in myself for going overboard.

Oh well.

Today I pick up my husband at the airport, and we get back to our version of normal. That will be very, very nice. 🙂

-catinhat