Don't wait for success - make it happen!

28^th February 2018

Actions prove who someone is, words just prove who they want to be.

I came home last night and went straight to bed once I’d sorted mom, I’ve had a bad head on and off for a week and yesterday it hit a new height and threw in nausea – yay.  I went over to pharmacist and he thinks it’s most likely a migraine but if it hasn’t gone by the end of the week to go to doctors.  Happy days!   I’ve slept almost 11 hours, waking up in-between but going back to sleep so hopefully that’ll help.  I’ve only had one stabbing feeling in my head since waking so fingers crossed.

Other than the hand, yesterday was awesome, I thoroughly enjoyed my meetings, I’ve loved being tagged this morning by members who have done the challenge I set them, it’s good to know they do listen and take on board what I say.   I’ll tell you all about the meeting Sunday once I’ve finished doing it in my meetings, it’s a good one if I do say so myself, although being in the actual meeting would be better!

Food wise yesterday I didn’t have a lot, I had toast for breakfast, then stewing steak, mash and veg at lush which I threw up thanks to the nausea, so I didn’t bother with anything else for the rest of the day, just water.   On a positive, it’ll help my weight loss journey!  I do poorly quite well, except for when my heads involved, I can be a proper brave soldier but if it’s my head I’m a big wuss and it’s one of the times I get scared.

Moms just surfaced so I better go sort her, see you can’t be ill when you’re a carer can you or when you’re a mother!  Back in a bit… 

Oh it’s difficult being ill round someone who can’t remember you’re ill.

I know this may be reading as if I’m down but I’m not, I actually feel emotionally better than I have this year and I’m hoping the headache is on its way out now.  I’m going to eat and drink super clean for the rest of the week and give my body a rest, no junk, no wine, minimum tea, no coffee.  I had a mug of hot water yesterday and that was sound, I forgot how I can drink that and it’s as good as a coffee.  Maybe having the migraine has done me a favour because it’s made me stop and think about what I’m putting into my body.

Yesterday I heard from two people how they’d been diagnosed with diabetes, I think until you see the effect unhealthy living is having on your body you tend to ignore it and hope it won’t affect you.  We’re all delusional aren’t we!

Apart from the awesome tagging in posts from yesterday’s meetings, I woke up this post https://www.facebook.com/weightwatchersuk/videos/1604759542892991/ my Angie, on the Weight Watchers UK page, sharing her success!  Now Angie is proof you can turn your world around, losing weight and working on herself both physically and emotionally has meant she now walks every day despite terribly painful arthritis and she’s learning to put herself first too.  I’m super proud of the journey Angie has taken and now she doesn’t just inspire others, she supports them on their journey via my members Facebook group, one amazing lady.

Another post I woke up to was from Sam, who’s opened her own dance school, another member who’s turned her life around, it isn’t just about the weight we lose, it’s the life we gain!  Well done Sam, let’s get you some customers.

Right I need to stop being a patient, scared to move and get dressed and go for a walk and test this head out!  If it returns, I’ll drug myself up!

Be safe out there BeYOUtiful, take care of you – you’re important too xx

Making my life work.

27^th February 2018

We cannot solve problems with the same thinking we used to create them.

Glad I went to bed before half eight last night because I was awake for two hours just after midnight with stomach pains – yay to being female!  I’m good again now though, the drugs do work 😛.  I had my second counselling session yesterday and she was pleased with the changes I’d made and the difference in my thinking so much so she wasn’t sure what else she could do for me, I’ve asked for one more check-in in a fortnight as I won’t be 100% convinced everything’s all good again till I’ve done a complete hormonal month, I was at 90% belief though and actually after being awake that’s now 95% which is awesome. 

I’m feeling pretty confident I’ve made adequate changes in my thinking and my work life to give me my balance back, I’m going to make sure I make time to do things I enjoys doing, that includes quality time with mom when I’m not already exhausted.  I spoke to my boss on Saturday after my diamond award and he’s sorted my request out for me already, so that’s a relief, now to share the news with those who need to know.  I’m prioritising me and my self-care in order to be happy and able to best take care of mom.

Don’t neglect yourself, I’ve always told others this and lately I’ve been guilty of doing it myself, yeah I’ve still had my massage which made me believe I wasn’t but the truth is I need more time, life is short, work less – live more.  Set a good example to those around you, especially your children, let your daughters know that their needs matter too, if all they see is mommy doing everything for everything and having nothing for herself, they’ll think that’s the way the world should be and this isn’t the way the world should be.  Everyone’s needs are equally important.

My self-care yesterday was having my feet done, mom was due to have hers done too but the lady said to leave them another fortnight, she smoothed the souls of my feet and cut my nails the lot, it was good.  Then I did a couple of hours housework (not so good) but we have lovely clean new bedding, moms rooms all tidy, mines have done, I want to sort out the clothes in my room, a girl only needs so many tshirts and I have way too many.

I nipped to Sainsbury’s to return the dresses I’d bought, realising I don’t actually need more clothes, I exchanged on for a different size but had a refund on the other.  I bought hot dogs for lunch and they were delicious, they worked out at 4sp for the bun, 2sp for the jumbo hotdog then a point for the ketchup and mustard.  Each hot dog was a well worth it 7sp.

Breakfast had been beans and egg on toast, and my other meal was a bag of chicken wings - what a waste of 12sp, it wouldn’t have been if they’d been the hot and sticky deliciousness they should have been but they weren’t they were semi warm as I ate them in the car, but I couldn’t bring myself to bin em.

I’m all stocked up on tinned veg and long life milk just in case we get snowed in 😀 mom made me do it, she’s been reading the papers, looking outside I think we’ve got away with it for now but the forecast is snow.  We’re supposed to be walking on the chase on Sunday, we’ll have to see how the weather plays out I think.

Mom got on the scales yesterday and has agreed to not having so much junk in the house which is going to help me enormously - can't eat what isn't there.  She can still have treats but healthier ones and more controlled.  No more biscuit tin under her chair for her constantly to pick from.

Right I’m off to make me a cuppa, gonna need a little caffeine to spur me into action this morning, only a little though.

Looking forward to catching up with my members this morning, here’s to a great day however much snow falls.

Prioritise your own needs BeYOUtiful, remember you’re important too.

Hello shiny new week

26^th February 2018

Wake up and smell the endless possibility.

Oh I had a lovely day yesterday, I never got round to the 2 hours of housework – oops, I managed 5 minutes to clean the bath, then I put bubbles in it, filled it with warm water, put smelly candles by the taps and spent an hour soaking and listening to my audiobook instead, that did me way more good.  I have been a grown up this morning though and I've ’lready stripped my bed, I’ll do upstairs today – honest!

Back to yesterday, what a lovely lunch we had, The Hollybush (Little Hay Lane, Staffordshire, WS14 0QA), I was very impressed, even more so because I’d used my Tesco clubcards to get vouchers, £2.50 got me £10 worth of food, so our meal only cost us £30 total for drinks and tip once we’d used £80 of vouchers.  Result.  As always we had a giggle, my besties realised they need to get me out more often when I started quoting Gibbs from NCIS!  Yeah, that was me who actually said the words “Gibbs says there’s no such thing as a co-incidence” deep sigh, shakes of heads then laughter.  I think this is what I will do when stuck in a quandary in the future, I will ask myself “what would Gibbs do?”  And if this isn’t proof I need rescuing from myself, I don’t know what is. 

4 hours of friendship and laughter was the best medicine ever, plus as a super bonus, I got back to mom in a cracking good mood and we enjoyed the rest of the day.  Alfie even got 2 walks yesterday.

The only negative was the 2.5lb I lost last week had returned this morning, but I’m sorry, I don’t care, I enjoyed every morsel of my 3 courses, I had macaroni cheese for my starter, 

it was delicious, it’s a new food to me believe it or not, probably only tasted it a few months ago for the first time, now I’m hooked but aware of how high in points it is, so I need to find me a healthy version. The Co-op one mom has is 18sp, this recipe is 12sp a portion and lots of members have recommended it to me in the past.

Mac and Cheese

Serves 1, 12sp

1 large Tomato

4 sprays Calorie controlled cooking spray

50g White pasta, dry

10g Plain white flour

200ml Skimmed milk

10g Low fat spread

20g Half fat cheddar cheese

¹⁄₂ leaf Bay leaf, dried

¹⁄₄ medium Onion

¹⁄₂clove Garlic

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 6/200°C/fan oven 180°C. Place the tomatoes in a square baking dish and spray with the cooking spray. Heat until skins start to crack. Meanwhile, bring a saucepan of water to the boil. Add the pasta and return to the boil. Cook for 10 minutes or until tender. To make the cheese sauce, blend the flour with a little of the milk and low fat spread in a non-stick saucepan, stirring until smooth. Gradually add the rest of the milk. Drop in the bay leaf and bring the sauce to the boil, stirring. Simmer for 2 minutes then remove from the heat and stir in the Cheddar cheese. Remove the bay leaf. Drain the pasta and mix with the cheese sauce and tip into the baking dish on top of the roasted tomatoes. Gently mix together. Add onion and garlic and bake in the oven for 20 minutes until crisp, golden brown and bubbling.

My main was an incredible lamb dinner with a Lancashire hotpot too, oh yeah a meal on the menu that made it legitimate to have two mains in one sitting.  Then pudding was sticky toffee pudding but it beat me, I couldn’t eat it.  I know most people live for pudding but I’m all about the mains and starters.  I believe we have two stomachs and one of them is for dessert, I think my pudding stomachs broken because it fills up too quickly.

Mom’s weighed in this morning with me and agreed that we both need to sort it out so hopefully that will help this week because her biscuits and treats are killing me at the moment, usually I resist but I’m finding it really difficult.  She’s going to have rations, I’ll give her a set amount each afternoon and once they’ve gone they’ve gone.  How she’ll feel about that later is another thing, but we’ll wait and see. 

We’ve agreed to sausage and mash with peas for dinner today though.  Penn Road chicken sausages of course! 

Yeah today’s gonna be a good day, even if there was snow trying to fall when I woke, I’m not gonna let the weather change the days vibe.  Let’s get this day started BeYOUtiful, however your weekend went – it’s Monday, let’s make it magic.