Clothing Casualty

This pair of pants from Brynn Walker Is the first casualty of mine and of my new lifestyle plan. They will be heading off to the Goodwill box and when the box is full you’ll be able to find some really nice pants Goodwill.  I had to go through my closet a day to see what fit. I know they’re will be more of this in the future. 

I know we will be driving to Scottsdale for a shopping trip since the Tucson Bryn Walker got priced out of the rental market.  By the way the store is still sits empty.  Such a smart move by the owner’s rental property. 

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I am purging  my house of processed foods in an effort to get healthier. For the last 2 days I have been working on this. I am trying to go back to the way my great grandparents ate. I am not sure all this processed food is having a positive effect on my health.  Although in the short term it has left my body very sore. 

If you have been following my blog for awhile you will remember that in 2009 I give up all artificial sweeteners and all diet soda.  This made a very positive change in my health.  I have my friend Kay of blessed memory for leading me to this change.  It was not easy and I had withdrawal headaches for 2 weeks  

In 2017 I gave up all sugar sweetened sodas.  That made another positive change for me. Although it did make those 48 hour work days next to impossible.  

Now I am making the next step in this slow set of  steps. I am trying to give up processed foods.  In some ways it is easy, we do not eat much fast food.  Bread, bagels and tortillas are going to be a little bit harder. Although, as I went through our 2 pantries I was really amazed at how much processed foods we have in the house.  So much so, that I am down to 1 pantry.  That one pantry even has extra space. Did I mention that this leaves more room for yarn. Maybe I can consolidate some of the yarn I have around the house to 1 or 2 rooms. It is worth a try. 

This has lead to 13 bags and 2 boxes heading to the community food drive this week.  See the picture below for the bags.  The boxes are up on a shelf.  

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.