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Twas 5 days before Christmas

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And all through this place,

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I’ve hidden little things,

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That my Sweetheart can’t trace.

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There’s a bag of Jelly Bellies,

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And a giant Hershey’s Kiss!

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And a bag of Reeses Pieces…

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Is there something I’ve missed?

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Oh yeah, a red stocking 

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To stuff it all in,

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With the hopes it will make

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My Sweetheart grin!!!

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I got him a new bag that fits,

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Under the seat on the plane.

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He’ll never have to check

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His workbag again!!

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Together with the GPS

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And the double carousel

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I’m certain that Christmas morning

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Will go really well.

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Now I’m all set for Christmas

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I do believe.

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We’re going to the casino for Christmas,

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So I’ll let him open presents on Christmas Eve!!!

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Ok, not exactly “The Night Before Christmas” but it’s my version and I’m happy with it!!

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Went out shopping again today.  I found a shopping center that’s just a mile from the apartment!!  Can’t beat that!  And yeah, I have all my Christmas shopping done!  Actually I had it all done Monday afternoon, but I found this travel bag at Tuesday Morning that will be perfect for Micheal when he flys.  The one he uses for work now won’t fit in the overheads so he ends up checking it.  This one is guaranteed to fit in the overhead or under the seat.  And it was only $30!!!  So I couldn’t resist.

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I know a lot of you will be out-of-pocket between now and Christmas, so I just wanted to wish everybody a very Merry Christmas,  , Happy Haunnaka,  , Happy Kwanzaa,   or whatever holiday you celebrate!!!  Just as long as it’s happy and healthy is my wish.

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And remember:  Don’t let a little slip  ruin your trip!!!

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Hey all!!

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This has been a day for total relaxation.  I woke up aching this morning and decided I’ve just been pushing it too much this past week or so, trying to get tags on my truck last week, packing in a flurry and driving all the way to Minneapolis, (approximately 800 miles!), all the running around we did this weekend, and all I did yesterday.  I’ve learned the hard way that when my body speaks to me, I listen!!

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So I’ve spent part of the day in the recliner under my afghan with a book, and part of it on the computer.

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A little while ago, I read Dawnie’s blog and it got me started thinking again (and that can be a dangerous thing!!!).

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In my comment to Dawnie’s blog, I mentioned my ‘online friends’.  A lot of people don’t understand how you could consider someone you’ve never met face-to-face, a friend, much less a best friend.  I consider that really sad, especially considering that’s how I met Micheal!  But some of the best friends I have in this world, actually most of the friends I have, are right here on this website, and I’ve never met any of you face-to-face!  Can you believe that?  Micheal is truly my best friend.  I have one really good friend in Arkansas that I used to work with, but I don’t know that I consider her a best friend.  I guess she’s about the best I have.  And I have a couple of good friends from high school.  But when it comes down to it, most of my real friends are right here on BuddySlim.

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I don’t really know whether one would consider that weird, fortunate, or downright pitiful!  But I do know that I don’t know what I would do without my BuddySlim friends.  And know this…I do consider every one of you my friends.  I am a lot closer to some BuddySlimmers than others, but it’s that way in everybody’s life.  You can have lots of friends but some will be closer to you than the others.  And who knows, if we were to meet face-to-face, we might not be able to stand each other!!! (but I don’t think so!)

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I said all that to say this…I love you guys.  When any of you are gone from this site for a while, I truly miss you.  And when I have to be away, I’m lost to an extent.

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I depend on you to be here when I need a shoulder to cry on, when I’m happy and need someone to share my happiness with, when I’m hurting and just need a little sympathy, and when I’m angry and need to vent.  And someone IS always here for me.  You all don’t know just how much that means to me.

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I can only hope that you feel you can come to me when you need someone to bounce something off of, to vent to, or just to be here for you.  Cuz that’s what I want…to be here when you need someone.

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I know I don’t say it very often, but I appreciate all of you more than you could know.  Your comments on my blogs make me feel as if somebody really cares.  If you knew how little I’ve had of that in my life, you would understand what that means to me.  Thank you for being here for me.

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Ok, that’s my sappy blog for the day.  I hope everybody has a wonderful evening!

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And remember:  Don’t let a little slip  ruin your trip!!!

Just got back from shopping and I’m pooped!  Did a lot of running around and didn’t use my cane at all.  I’m getting so much better at that!

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I had to go find the last few items for Micheal for Christmas.  It wouldn’t be Christmas if I didn’t have him a stocking with Reeses Pieces and a giant Hershey’s Kiss in it!  And I found a 2 foot artificial tree and decided to get it and some decorations.  There wasn’t much left to chose from, but it’s just not Christmas without a tree!!  Last night we discussed getting one and decided not to since we only had a week til Christmas.  We put a tree up at home, but didn’t have one here at the apartment.  But I just couldn’t resist.  It’s not much, but it will make it feel a bit more like Christmas.

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Oh, I forgot to mention yesterday (and the day before, and the day before that) that I lost a pound.  Actually, when you figure it up, I lost 6 pounds cuz I’d gained 5.  But now I’m at one pound below where I was when I hit that plateau, so I must be doing something right!

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I decided that if my body doesn’t tell me it’s hungry, I’m not gonna eat.  That’s all there is to it.  I was stuck in this pattern where I ate breakfast every morning, lunch every afternoon, and dinner every evening, whether I was hungry or not.  And I was stuck on a plateau, just gaining and losing the same pound or two over and over, until that last 5 lb gain.  I decided then that I needed to do something.  Now I’m only eating when my body tells me to, and sometimes I go most of the day without eating a thing.  Oh, I do take my vitamin every morning and drink my water, but if I’m not hungry, I don’t eat.  It’s that simple.

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I know some people are gonna tell me that breakfast is absolutely necessary, and I used to be one of them, but that just wasn’t working for me.  If I’m not hungry, and I eat breakfast anyway, I’m hungry all day long.  My stomach is constantly growling, and I spend the day nibbling this and that, til I’ve overdone it.  No more.  I’m gonna go with what works.  And so far this is.  And when/if this quits working, I’ll do something else.  I’ve learned from experience that sticking to one diet longterm just doesn’t work for me.  And the conventional doesn’t work, either.  In the past, after that plateau of this past few weeks, I’d have quit, but that’s not happening this time.  I’m just shaking things up a bit.  I’m not gonna hit my goal for the New Year’s Day Challenge of a 35 lb. weight loss, but I am gonna weigh less than I did when I started it, so it’s still gonna be a success.

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Well, I’ve got to get off here and start putting that little Christmas tree together.  I want to surprise Micheal when he gets home.

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Hope everybody has a wonderful evening!

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And remember:  Don’t let a little slip  ruin your trip!!!

I’m staying busy.  We got up this morning and did laundry.  I got lazy.  Rather than taking my laundry to the laundromat before I came to Minneapolis, I just brought it with me, since there’s a laundry room two doors down from our apartment, and I already knew Micheal had some to do.  So we just did it all togther.

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After laundry we went shopping…an excuse to play with Micheal’s Christmas present.  I got him a GPS for Christmas, but I let him pick it out himself cuz he knew what he wanted.  He’s been having fun with it.  But he still has a toy to open Christmas morning.

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I’ve been doing a lot of running around, and little eating.  We did go to the grocery store today and I got a bag of oranges and some Weight Watcher muffins.  Maybe that will intice me to eat more.  I haven’t been eating a lot the past few days.  I just haven’t been hungry, and if I’m not hungry, I have to force myself to eat.  Somehow that just seems like it’s not a good thing.  I know I’m supposed to eat a certain amount every day, but are you really supposed to force yourself to eat when you’re not hungry?

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Well, I’m gonna work on that.  I have been drinking my water, except when I was on the road.  That’s a good thing.

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Ok, I’m learning my way around this part of town.  We’re in the northwest part of Minneapolis now.  When I was here before, we were in southcentral area.  And we’re much closer to downtown, but a whole lot farther from the Mall of America.  But that’s ok.  No way am I gonna go anywhere near that mall again til after Christmas!

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Well, I’m gonna go watch Santa Clause 2.  Hope everybody has a wonderful evening.

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And remember:  Don’t let a little slip  ruin your trip!!!

Good morning from Minneapolis!!!

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The trip was totally uneventful.  I got here about 3:00 yesterday afternoon, safe and sound, but I had much better things to do than get on the computer! 

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We have a busy day planned for today so I won’t be on much.  Micheal is still asleep so I thought this would be a good time to get on here and blog and read everybody else’s blogs.

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Thanks everybody, for the well-wishes for my trip!  You guys are the best!!!

Ok Buddies, I’m on my way.  I went to BMV this morning and raised hell.  They gave me another 30 day temp tag so I’m heading to Minneapolis.  I’m gonna go part way today, spend the night somewhere, and go the rest of the way tomorrow, so I won’t be on here again til I get to Minneapolis!!!

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Hope everybody has a great day!!!

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And remember:  Don’t let a little slip  ruin your trip!!!

I’m so infuriated with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles right now!!!  I called early this afternoon to see what’s up with my title and getting my tags.  They tell me they’ve had no response at all from the lien holder and I needed to call them.  So I did.  The lien holder said they’d gotten no requests from the BMV.  They gave me their fax number and told me to call BMV and have them fax the request and they’d have a response in 30-45 minutes.  So I did.  BMV said they couldn’t use a faxed copy of the title so I had to wait til they got the hard copy, but that they would fax the info to them.

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So, I went out and ran a few errands.  When I got home, I called the BMV to see what was going on.  They said they faxed the request but got no response and I needed to call the lien holder again and find out what was going on.  So I did!  The lien holder said they never received the fax.  They got the info from me and said they would have the title in the mail on the way to the BMV tomorrow morning and that they should have it within 2-3 days.  I can only hope.  The BMV is open on Saturday, so maybe I can be on my way by Sunday.  I can only hope.

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Now how’s this for funny!!  I just called the lien holder again to make sure they sent the title to the right office since there’s about a dozen offices around here.  According to the guy I just spoke with, the computer is showing that there has been no request and that they haven’t ordered the title to be sent.  So now it will be tomorrow morning before that happens since BMV is already closed for the day..  So, now it looks like it will be the middle of  next week before I can leave since the BMV is closed on Monday!  Things just don’t seem to be falling into place for me right now!!!!    I’m so agrevated I could just scream!!!!    

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So, I’ve been so busy today I didn’t eat anything at all til about 3:00 this afternoon.  I was out running around and decided to stop at my favorite Mexican place and get a chicken taco salad.  I couldn’t even eat it all.  I didn’t even eat any of the salad shell.  So I’ve not eaten much at all today…lettuce, chicken, a little cheese and a little sour cream.  And I feel stuffed.  So at least I’m not overeating in frustration!!!  That’s a good thing.

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Anyway, I guess that just about sums up my day.  Wouldn’t you love to be me right now?  I wish Micheal was here cuz I sure could use a whole bunch of hugs!!!   Guess that’s gonna have to wait a few days.

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Hope everybody has a better evening than I’m having!!!

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And remember:  Don’t let a little slip  ruin your trip!!!

So it’s another cold, rainy, windy day.  At least the temp is above freezing!  And I’m glad I got most of my running around done yesterday.  Mostly what’s left is laundry and getting the tags on my truck.  I’m still waiting for them to get the title from Arkansas, and I can’t leave for Minnesota til that’s taken care of!  Boohoo!!!  And I have to go to the laundromat to do my laundry, so I’m gonna put that off til tomorrow, since it’s not supposed to rain tomorrow.

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Now for a bit of contemplation.  Jo had a line from a song on her blog that was very profound “Til you make peace with yesterday, you’ll never have a future”.  That really says a lot.  And I’m thinking that might be part of my problem.  Maybe I haven’t made peace with yesterday.  But I’m not sure I know how to do that.  I have so much trash in my yesterdays, I don’t even know where to start.  That’s something I’m gonna have to work on.

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And Jo again…LOL!!!  (Jo is a fount of inspiration!!!)  She was talking about the Vegas marathon,  how it wasn’t her best time, and how she had to walk part of the way, but she did finish.  And that got me thinking…(yup I’m thinking again, which could be a dangerous thing!!!).

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This journey we’re all on, this weight loss journey…it’s kinda like a marathon.  We begin with high hopes and expectations.  We start off with every intention of staying the course and running every step of the way, not looking back, only looking forward toward the finish line.  But there are stumbling blocks along the way that tend to slow us down or cause us to have to stop for a moment, and maybe even cause us to take a step or two backwards.  But if we’re determined to finish this race, it doesn’t matter if it takes us longer than we anticipated.  And it may be a bit painful at times (emotionally more than physically).  But just think about how good it will feel once we cross that finish line!!  And having our Buddies there to cheer us along will make it that much easier.

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I’ve never physically run a marathon like Jo has, and I probably never will.  But I’m gonna run this one, even if it takes 2 or 3 years to complete.  Every pound lost is one pound closer to that finish line.  And if I stumble, or take a step backwards, I’m gonna keep on going toward that finish line.  I may cry and moan and complain, but I’m gonna keep going.

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And one of these days I’ll cross that finish line.  I hope all of my buddies will be cheering me on along the way, and are there waiting for me when I finish.  I know I’ll be here cheering all of you on!!!

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And remember:  Don’t let a little slip  ruin your trip!!!

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Where is everybody today?  I’ve found a new blog from only one of my buddies so far today.  That’s highly unusual!!  I think I may need to file a missing persons report!!!!!!

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It’s much warmer here today, although it’s turned cloudy this afternoon.  At least I got my running around done that I’d scheduled for today.  But I still have more to do before I leave to go to Minneapolis.  Micheal called a little while ago and he was packing things to move from the hotel to the apartment.  He said the apartment is even bigger than this trailer we’re living in, even thought the apartment only has one bedroom and the trailer has two, so without all our stuff, we’ll have lots of room.  And he said the kitchen is huge, so we’ll have fun cooking for a change, instead of it being a chore.

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I’m holding my own on core.  I’m back down to 330 (I didn’t record any negative changes on my ticker).  I’m hoping it will go down more from there.  I’m working on getting more exercise.  While I was out running around today, I didn’t use my cane at all.  As a matter of fact, I haven’t used it in about a week now.  So my mobility seems to be much better.  At least the walking I’ve been doing hasn’t been hurting me.  That’s a good thing.  I feel like such an old lady when I have to use that thing.

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Well, guess I’m gonna go sort laundry and get ready to go to the laundromat in the morning.  Uuuuggggghhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Hope everybody has a great evening.

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And remember:  Don’t let a little slip  ruin your trip!!!

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  That’s what Micheal wanted me to do this afternoon, but it just wasn’t possible.  I have to wait til I get the tags on my truck and take care of a few other matters before I can go to Minneapolis, but that should be taken care of by the weekend.  Then I’m Minneapolis bound!!!

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And we’re not gonna worry about getting back home for Christmas.  Micheal is moving into the apartment tomorrow evening.  When I get there, we’re gonna go get a little Christmas tree to put up.  And if we don’t make it back home before spring, oh well!!!  Before I head that way, I’m gonna pay the rent ahead a couple of months and then I can pay any other bills with a credit card over the phone.  My housekeeper will take care of our mail and check on things around here, so we won’t have any reason to be in a hurry to get home. 

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As far as either of us is concerned, being together is more important than anything else.  We’ve even discussed selling absolutely everything and just living in the temporary housing provided by the company.  Heck, we’ve lived in hotels for the past 2 years and done just fine.  There’s nothing here that I can’t live without…NOTHING!!!

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We had a great weekend together. We spent a lot of time just cuddled in front of the TV watching Christmas movies. 

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Micheal and I both realized that the trouble we were having sleeping was definitely because we were apart.  We both slept like babies while he was home.

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We did go out long enough Saturday to get new cell phones.  Both of ours were having trouble holding a charge so we got new flip phones.  We didn’t want anything fancy, but decided the flips were better than what we had and we decided we kinda like the camera feature.  As a matter of fact, I took a picture of Micheal to have as the wallpaper on mine!!  He took a picture of me while we were standing there at the counter in the store.

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Well, not much else going on here.  I didn’t even try to count calories or points or anything else while Micheal was home.  Gonna have to get back to it this evening, or first thing in the morning.

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Hope everybody has a wonderful evening.

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And remember:  Don’t let a little slip  ruin your trip!!!

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