The Shawl That Grew in the Closet

 It may not seem like it at times that I am making progress.  In 2009 I started making changes to my diet and lifestyle.  I cut out aspartame and all artificial sweeteners. As time went on I made more changes like cutting back on sugar and carbs.  Recently I cut out red meat and most fats. I also started moving more.  The more I move, the more I lost and the more I moved.  It’s a very slow cycle.  I was trying to to do anything to make my arthritis better. I did a lot of reading.  I was not even trying to lose any weight.  At about the same time I knit this shawl in the largest size.  It barely fit. I used a small knot to hold it in place.  I was a size 4X at the time.  

Fast forward to September 2021, I am no longer a 4X.  Depending on the designer I wear any size from medium to XL. I am on a lot less medication and don’t have to take aspirin all the time. This was my main goal.  Everything else was just a bonus.  The shawl that just fit, well just look at the way the shawl fits today. It’s down at my hips.   I know that my face is a bit square today, that’s what my Sjogren’s  looks like during a flare up. So no smiles today.  

Bits and pieces of COVID19

Nothing says the house needs to be reorganized more than “sheltering in place” do to the COVID19 outbreak.  But I am limiting myself in the amount of time that I am spend.  Today the hour before breakfast was spent putting our extra blankets in vacuum bags for John to put up higher in the closet after his work at home shift had ended. This gave me space for things I use all the time at a level that I could reach. Also more baskets and bags off the floor.

Another thing that I have noticed is that I am not eating enough during the day and find myself hungry at night.  I did not have this problem before because we ate most of our meals out.  Now that I am only eating when I am hungry and not planning my eating times around how crowded a restaurant will be I am just eating less.  We are also eating better sized portions and healthier food. Take to day for instance I had only had 560 calories from the time I woke up until after dinner.  This meant that I had to eat roughly 700.calories before bed.  So my bedtime snack was a toasted cheese sandwich, dried fruit and a breakfast bar.

Even worse this is the time when I would normally be shopping for smaller clothes.  Wearing the skirt at the rib cage is uncomfortable.  I am a touchy feely  person when it comes to clothes shopping, gee it must be the fiber arts in me.  I like to feel the fabric before I try on clothes. Today’s skirt was 6 inches above my waist sitting on my rib cage to keep from tripping on the skirt or having it fall as I walk. Real first world problems during a pandemic.

Well it is time to wind down for the night.

Exhausted

Tonight I am exhausted. Partly because of an arthritis flare up. Partly because John and I were very busy today with friends and chores.  Even though I was exhausted I managed to get my steps, drink my water and eat right.

I hope you all have a wonderful and productive weekend.

Changes

Life after we said goodbye to Eric have been strange and at times overwhelming.  Today would have been Eric’s  birthday.  We would normally wake up early and wake him up with the birthday guy singing happy birthday and then start the day. We would play the birthday song as much as possible during the day and the last time at bedtime.  Today John and I knew we had to play the birthday song.  I finally got the courage about 8:00pm.  We played the song for Eric and cried.

Going out to eat is different too.  We do not have to decide what to eat before we get to the restaurant.   Then order as soon as we sit down. We can actually look at the menu and possibly try something different. There have been times when we look at each other thinking that we have to hurry up and eat so we can take over Eric care.  Then it dawns on us that Eric has said his final goodbye to us.  We take a deep breath and comment on how strange this all is.  Then relax a bit.

Another time I  remembered how I used to knit scarfs while sitting on a rock at the end of the driveway.  Thinking about how much Eric loved to ride the bus with Don, the bus driver. That memory left me smiling for hours.

Also I  don’t know how I managed it but I kept to my eating plan while Eric was in hospice. I managed to exercise and eat right.  Now I am down another size.  I will have a lot of clothing going to Goodwill. I do not have any pants in the next size down and will need to go  shopping.  Thank goodness I have the technology for that. I just need a good body day.

My need to create is slowly coming back. I have a hand knit shawl with hand spun yarn almost finished. I also have a scarf on the loom, that is also halfway done. I hope to work down my back log.

I could have not done any of this without you and you support. So a huge thank you.

I Made My Goal Early

The big news today does not have to do with the house.  Nor does it involve everyone being sick, which we all are.  Not even knitting, spinning or weaving.  It involves a long term goal made when I went off one arthritis medicine which caused me to put on 50 pounds in 6 months.  For those of you who follow my blog on a regular basis I have now lost 1/2 of the weight I put on with the medicine.  Slow and steady is winning the race for me.  

So after much research I went off aspertame and high fructose corn syrup. The first 3 months were very rough. I started using smaller plates for almost all my meals, I still use a soup bowl for cereal though. I eat a lot less fast food. Most of my cooking is now from scratch.  When Eric is home sick and PBS is on all day, I do the excersice breaks with Hooper, which are much easier now. I walk more and do more of my own house cleaning. I set a goal of losing 5 pounds a year, because most people my age put on 5 pounds a year.  I figured that this would put me ahead of the game.  It was a few big changes and a lot of small ones. Today almost a full 2 months early I have hit my 5 pound weight loss goal for the year.  This means that I can now start using my Wii fit again, I am now under the maximum weight. 

The plates below are as follows: The daisy dinner plate ( this used to. be our dinner plate )was the standard size Correlle dinner plate of the 1990's, which is now used as a serving platter.  The yellow luncheon plate by Fiesta is now our dinner plate. The clear glass desert plate is now our lunch size plate.  Usually divided into 25% protein, 25% starch and 50% vegetables.  

Since I have no medical degree, I would recommend that you check with your doctor before making these or any changes to your diet or excersice routine. This blog is not meant to replace your doctors advise.  This is just about my life and what works for me.