Day One of Trying to Work Out a Schedule

Oh. My. Gosh.

I cannot even begin to describe how sore I am today! As I wrote yesterday morning, I got up at 4:30 in the morning with Jerry before he left for work. (I'm trying to get in the habit of a good sleep schedule--going to bed at 9:00 and getting up at 4:30.)

After he left, I wrote my blog post and then went out to the garage to work on the drywall. I know you are probably totally sick of hearing about my drywalling the garage, but with this quarantine, there isn't a whole lot to write about!

My days are filled with working on projects--like the face masks, insulating the garage, and now drywalling the garage. I've even been knitting and crocheting.

I really enjoy the drywalling--the day flies by!--and I actually consider that "me time". I gave the kids chores to do because they are out of school for the year. They have been doing some of the things I normally would do--wash and put away their own laundry, poop scoop the yard, clean out the litter box, and stuff like that. Nothing grueling! And when I need to lift a piece of drywall so it butts up to the ceiling, I make them come help me (it's SO hard to lift without help).

I made some serious progress yesterday! I finished an entire wall, so now I have three full walls done. I highly doubt I'll be able to work on it today because I'm so sore. Wall #3:

I'd LIKE to say that I'll spend the day catching up on email (which will likely take 6-8 hours--I've gotten so far behind!). But I have a feeling I'm going to want to head out to the garage again ;)

True to my word, I followed the plan for an evening routine. Once I came inside from drywalling at 3:30, I spent about an hour playing a game on my phone--I'm addicted to Best Fiends!--before starting on dinner.

I planned to make steak and asparagus, along with a small salad. Well, I bought way too much asparagus, so we skipped the salad. My family LOVES asparagus. I honestly cannot even remember the last time that I cooked steak. I really don't like eating plain pieces of meat (I like it to be mixed into things like in a stir-fry or some sort of skillet meal, soup, or casserole).

I feel terrible for not cooking meat for the family like that, and I thought steak would be a treat. It was so sad when I told the kids what we were eating--when I said steak, Eli replied, "You mean like a real steak?!" and Noah said, "Do we each get our own?! YES!" Hahaha, I am going to make it a mission to cook meat like that more often.

This week, when I went to the store, I bought salmon, shrimp, and pork chops; I'm going to plan to make those things as separate items alone with side dishes instead of a skillet meal or casserole or something.

I marinated the steak in this marinade (this site is really difficult to find the recipe and there are a trillion ads, so it was hard to find the recipe--I almost gave up--but I'm glad I didn't). I also added mushrooms to the marinade, because I love mushrooms.

Because I never cook steak, I had no clue how to cook it! I ended up deciding to sear it on the stove and then finish it in the oven with the marinade. I added some olive oil, salt, and pepper to the asparagus and threw that in the oven as well.

The whole meal turned out delicious! I was shocked that I cooked the steak to a perfect medium-rare, and the boys (including Jerry) all loved it. Even though steak isn't a favorite food of mine, I really liked the marinade and the mushrooms. And of course I loved the asparagus! (Clearly, because I had a ton of it on my plate, haha)

It felt good to cook a good meal (with fresh veggies!) yesterday. And especially good to cook something that my kids were thrilled with. Today, I'll probably make the pork chops with Brussels sprouts (my kids actually love Brussels sprouts--I quarter them and then sauté them in coconut oil). I also have little baby potatoes (SO tiny--they are adorable!) so I'll roast those.

So after cooking and eating dinner, we went for a family walk (with Joey, of course) around the neighborhood. After that, I felt kind of rushed. Since I was supposed to be in bed at 8:30 to read my book for an hour before going to bed at 9:00, we had just enough time to watch a TV show together with a snack. I chose to have strawberries and blackberries (I've been craving fresh fruits and veggies SO much lately).

We watched an episode of House. My kids hadn't seen it, and I thought they might like it. We need a show to watch an episode of together in the evenings, so I've been trying to come with something they'll like. They can watch "adult" shows--for example, we watched Breaking Bad together--but I'm at a loss of another show that will keep them interested. If you have suggestions for a 14 and 15 year old, please let me know!

After our show, I felt kind of rushed to get in bed by 8:30 to read my book and then go to bed by 9:00. Just as predicted, I was falling asleep while reading in bed by 8:45! There is something about reading in bed that makes me SO tired.

I slept terribly, unfortunately. My carpal tunnel has been acting up since making the face masks and since I started knitting again. I know it's not from the drywall, because the motions aren't constantly repetitive like they are in cutting fabric or knitting/crocheting.

However, I'd like to make another batch of face masks if I can get a hold of some more fabric. I ordered a special presser foot for my sewing machine that should make it easier and take up less time. Sewing the elastic hair ties to the mask is such a pain! The new presser foot should make that easier. I can always have Jerry or the kids help me cut out the fabric and I can do the sewing to lessen the irritation to my carpal tunnel.

Waking up this morning was much harder than yesterday morning--but I did it! I was up at 4:30. Jerry and I had coffee/tea before he headed off to work. I'm going to work on some emails right now, and then either go look for fabric somewhere (I don't even know if JoAnn's is open).

Wow, this post is much longer than I thought it'd be. And so boring--I literally just recapped my day from yesterday! But like I said, there isn't much to write about during this quarantine, so this is it ;)

I hope everyone is safe and healthy!

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What a Night! (And Other Stuff)

I don't have any good photos for this post, so I'll share a couple of random ones that have no relation to the post! Haha

Well, true to my word last night, I woke up at 4:30 AM with Jerry today! I'm surprised, actually, at how wide awake I felt when I got up. Maybe because I went to bed by midnight instead of 2:00-3:00. I think it helped that even though I wrote my blog post pretty late, I still read a few pages of a book while in bed, and that made me tired.

And my new sheets... they are AMAZING. Holy cow, I had no idea that there are sheets that feel that good. Since I don't use a flat sheet (with the duvet, we don't need one), I'm going to fold it in half and turn it into a throw blanket. I always have a throw blanket when I'm on the couch, and I would love one made of that fabric!

Tonight, I'm supposed to go to bed by 9:00. I feel like this is going to be so difficult! My kids are going to be up later than Jerry and me. But hopefully developing the bedtime routine I described yesterday will help.

I'm sure my body will be exhausted today. I'm going to work on the garage as long as I can physically manage. It's raining today, so it'll be a perfect day to get stuff done in there. I'm loving how it's turning out! I have two full walls done, and I've prepped the third wall to hang the drywall today. I may be able to get the whole third wall done today.

Noah wants to build a desk and I think it'll be a fun project for us to work on together. But my garage is a disaster right now! I have to keep moving things around and squishing them together in order to make room to drywall. I can't wait to have the use of my garage again!

Once the walls are done, we have to do the ceiling--I'm dreading that, because it seems so intimidating. However, we're going to rent a drywall lift, so it lifts the piece of drywall to the ceiling and holds it in place while I screw it in. Let's hope it's as easy at it sounds ;)

Here is a photo of my boys from yesterday. My dad restored a little row boat he had, and the kids are able to put it in the water right across the street from my house. It's perfect!

Yesterday, I went grocery shopping for the week, and I bought a load of healthy food. Jerry and I are both really unhappy with our weight gain and we want to get serious about losing the weight. Also, with the kids being home all day, they've been snacking way too much. I want them to at least have some healthy things to snack on.

I especially want to drop some weight before summer! Summer is so uncomfortable while overweight. I know I'm still over 70 pounds less than I was when I started losing weight, but the way I feel now seems the same as it did then: feeling heavy, out of breath, super self-conscious of how I look, and not fitting into my old clothes sucks. Thankfully, I can still wear my size 10 jeans that I bought when I finally accepted my weight gain. But in another five pounds or so, I don't know if I will be able to!

If this week goes well, I'd like to start Wednesday Weigh-Ins again. I know I'm always saying that, but I never stick with anything for long enough to see progress! I'm still continuing with the 3-3-1 goals (three goals for three days (twice in a row) and then one day off each week. (I don't mean a "cheat day"--I just mean that I won't have specific goals to meet.)

As I said a couple of days ago, I got all of the face masks mailed out. If you didn't receive an email from me, I'm so sorry, but I didn't send you a mask. I had a HUGE response for them, and I feel bad that I wasn't able to send them to everyone.

If I get the urge, I may buy some more fabric and make more.  But I'm not sure how much longer it'll be recommended to wear them... so we'll see! If I do make another batch, I will definitely post it again. (And I think I'll do a random drawing instead of first come first serve.)

Okay, I'm going to head out to the garage now and listen to my podcasts while I work. I know it sounds strange, but working in the garage with my podcasts is my favorite place to be :)

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Developing a "Normal" Sleep Routine

For my entire life, I've had problems with sleep. Either I am dead tired and I toss and turn all night long, feeling so frustrated that I can't fall asleep; or, I am wide awake and I never feel tired at all. I can go to bed at 2:30 AM and wake up at 5:30 AM and feel totally fine!

A lot of times, it has to do with my bipolar--when I'm hypomanic, I can easily feel great on 2-3 hours of sleep. When I have depression, I tend to toss and turn, feeling SO tired but unable to sleep--and then I am just dragging all day from being tired.

I've never been a napper--even when I've tried, I simply CANNOT fall asleep during the day. I could be dead tired and still won't be able to take a nap.

In setting small goals lately, and trying to make positive healthy changes, I would really like to work on my sleeping patterns. I'll probably have to really force it at first, but I have a plan for how I'd like to make it work out.

Since Jerry works the day shift now, he wakes up at 4:45 AM. He really should be going to bed early--like 9:00 PM--but he stays up until about 10:30. Lately, I've been staying up until 2:30 or 3:30 AM, so he wakes up shortly after I go to bed! And then I wake up at 7:00 or so. It's been all over the place.

Ideally, I'd like Jerry and I to have the same schedule, so that we can go to bed at the same time and wake up at the same time. I really wish that we were able to do it on MY schedule (night owl), but obviously we'll have to so what works with his schedule.

So, here is my plan:

Jerry gets home at 6:30 PM, so we'll eat dinner right when he gets home. After dinner, we will go for our family walk. Then we'll either play a game or watch a show with the kids while we have a bedtime snack.

At 8:30 PM, instead of watching TV before bed (right now, Jerry and I will usually watch TV and eat snacks--something that has become a really bad habit), I will read a book until 9:00 PM. Reading in bed always makes me SO tired... to the point where I'll even fall asleep for a split second and drop my Kindle on my face sometimes, haha. I think that by reading instead of watching TV before bed, I'll be tired enough to fall asleep early.

Then, I will wake up with Jerry in the mornings at 4:30 (kill me now!). We can have coffee/tea together before he leaves for work. I'll write a blog post after he leaves (usually I write posts after he goes to bed), so it'll be nice to have time to get that done early in the day.

I'm really hoping that making this a routine will help me develop a real sleep schedule--and that I'll get more sleep in general. I've been wanting to work on reducing stress and anxiety so that I'll stop gaining weight from emotional eating! Also, going to bed early just means less time for snacking in general.

I'm super excited, too, because coincidentally, our new Brooklinen sheets arrived today! As you know, I am obsessed with Brooklinen bedding. I've had the same set for a few years now, and I've been eyeballing their new Linen collection. We had the Luxe Sateen (and it's amazing), but when I saw that they came out with a Linen collection, I was in lust.

So, I bit the bullet and ordered the Brooklinen Linen collection (sheets, duvet cover, and pillow cases). They are AMAZING. I'm sitting up in bed typing this right now, and I just love the feeling of this bedding. They were expensive--I'm not going to lie--but considering I'm going to start spending one-third of my day in bed, I might as well be as comfy as possible!

(By the way, if you use this link and order anything from Brooklinen, you will get $25 off of an order over $100; and it gives ME a credit for $25. So, if you end up wanting new amazing sheets (or other items they sell--I haven't tried anything else), pretty please use that link. I am not affiliated with Brooklinen in any way, other than to say that I'm obsessed with their bedding!)

Okay, well, I'm going to go to sleep now because I have to get up at 4:30 AM! Let's hope that I can get some restful sleep. Good night :)

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Cat Hair is Both a Condiment and a Fashion Accessory

I cannot even begin to describe how sore my body has been for the last few days! Hanging drywall in the garage has been killer on every single muscle in my body. I literally feel as sore as if I'd run a marathon.

I never imagined that hanging drywall would be as difficult as it is! I thought you just held a sheet of drywall in place and then screwed it into the studs and moved onto the next sheet. But it's so much more than that. Drywall is HEAVY.

I have to hang a 2x4 on the wall before placing the sheet of drywall up (I use the 2x4 to set the sheet on, because I obviously can't hold the ridiculously heavy drywall in place). I don't know how much each sheet of drywall weighs, but it feels like a ton!

Today was such a gorgeous day outside--I spent all morning and half the afternoon working in the garage, and I got the second wall done. It was very meticulous because I had to work around the garage door and all the gadgets that make it work.

I LOVE the way the garage is looking though--even though the drywall hasn't been taped and mudded or painted, it still looks a million times better than the bare studs.

While I was working on the garage, Jerry did some yard work (cutting the grass) and he washed our cars. I realized today that my car has half a tank of gas... and I haven't filled the tank in over a month! I actually ran an errand today and I forgot what it was like to drive for 10 minutes straight. I love that my car still has the "new car" smell ;)

Yesterday, I spent a couple of hours addressing envelopes and stuffing them with face masks. I haven't addressed that many envelopes since my wedding, haha! Today, I took them to the post office. I put the masks into business sized envelopes instead of the larger ones I used before, hoping that the postage would be cheaper.

I had about 50 envelopes, and I was really hoping that I could just put stamps on them instead of having the postal employee weigh each envelope for individual postage. Thankfully, I was able to ship them for $1.10! (I had to put two stamps on each envelope.) Previously, it'd been almost $4 per envelope.

(I haven't yet emailed everyone who is getting a mask... I will try to do that tomorrow!)

When I got home, I saw that Jerry had brought in the mail from the mailbox, and I got a package. Surprise packages are the best! It was from a blog reader--remember when I did a giveaway for the two Anne Taintor mugs? Well, the package I got today was a "thank you" package. I admit, when I read the card, I felt horrible--I thought that she'd confused me with someone else, because I couldn't remember sending anyone a "crazy cat lady" mug!

Hahaha, then I remembered the giveaway. Anyway, she sent me the sweetest card and this hilarious towel!

I legit laughed out loud when I saw it. When I was packaging the face masks, I was so worried about the masks having a cat (or dog) hair on them--I inspected them way too thoroughly. And then I even thought about including a note with the masks that read something about how you will always find pet hair on your clothes or in your food at my house.

It's inevitable!

There are even a couple of pet hairs forever embedded in my epoxy countertop, hahaha.

This afternoon, Becky stopped by with Luke and Riley (I made her a face mask, so she came to pick it up). We got to spend some time with the kids (from a distance) and it was great! I've missed them so much--and I can't believe how much they've grown. Riley is crazy smart and Luke is a chatterbox (as he always has been).

Eli and I made dinner together. My mom gave him some money to buy ingredients for a dinner that he wanted to make--and he chose to make some sort of Asian dumplings. While I was at the post office, Jerry took Eli to buy the ingredients at the store.

The prep for dinner was a lot of work, but it was nice to spend quality time with Eli. We stuffed wonton wrappers for what felt like forever! But they turned out to be really good. This is the recipe we used. We laughed a lot because we were horrible at shaping the dumplings, and every dumpling was shaped differently as we tried to make them look better.

It's been a long day! And I haven't been following my goals for the three-day challenge I made for myself. But you know what? I don't feel bad about it. I think going up and down the ladder in the garage and hanging drywall for hours burned WAY more calories than a three-mile run. And I literally can't even describe how sore I am (not to mention the bruises on my legs!).

I know I need to get to running so that I can train for the Detroit Half (I really will... soon!), but I really enjoy working on the garage, and it's serious exercise.

I also learned today that we are getting our kittens on Sunday! I am SO EXCITED. Jerry and the boys are, too. I can't wait to post pictures of them. The last time I had a kitten was nearly 20 years ago, when we got Chandler. This is going to be so much fun :)

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RECIPE: Moroccan Meatballs over Orzo

This is one of my VERY favorite meals!

The thought of putting cinnamon in a savory dish seemed so odd to me, so I don't know what possessed me to try this. When I first made it, I was tempted to leave the cinnamon out, but chose to try it... and I'm so glad I did!  The combination of the cinnamon and the jalapeño really "make" this dish.

(Also, I have a memory of making this dish one time and getting jalapeño juice in my eye! My eye wouldn't stop burning, and Jerry was searching home remedies online while I panicked, doing all the remedies he could read. I tried EVERYTHING and the trick that finally worked was a paste of baking soda and water. Who knew?!)

Here is a printer-friendly version!

Moroccan Meatballs


Ingredients:

2 (14 oz) bags of frozen meatballs
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 fresh jalapeños, minced
1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (15 oz) can crushed tomatoes
1-1/2 tsp sugar
1-1/2 tsp ground cumin
1-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
6 servings of cooked orzo

Directions:

Put the meatballs into a bowl and microwave for about 3-4 minutes to thaw them out.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and pepper, and cook gently until the onion is soft. Add the meatballs to the skillet, along with the sugar, cumin, cinnamon, ginger, and tomatoes. Bring the sauce to a simmer, then cover and cook over low heat for about 10 minutes, until meatballs are hot. Serve over orzo.

In the crock pot: Combine all but the orzo in a slow cooker and cook on low for 4-6 hours. Serve over cooked orzo.

Makes 6 servings.

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I'm actually doing it! (Drywalling the garage)

This photo is what I looked like AFTER coming inside from working hard in the garage and then taking a shower. I was cold and felt gross (for lack of a better word) and put on my cat onesie pajamas! (I was so cold for some reason, and I really felt the need to wear the onesie today)

My whole body ACHES but in a good way. It's kind of ridiculous to see my shins--I have bruises in all states of healing, and it kind of cracks me up. I don't have any medical conditions that cause bruising... I just happen to be extremely clumsy when working on home projects.

Mainly, I use the ladder to brace myself when working--and the rung above the one I'm standing on presses into my shins and leaves bruises. I have no idea how I get the bruises that are on my upper thighs, though!

For the past few days, I've been working in the garage on the drywall. I finished the insulation and moved onto installing drywall--I'd never actually hung drywall before, so this is totally new to me. I've been terrified of screwing the whole thing up, but I keep reminding myself that I'm a pro at using drywall compound to fix problems with the walls, hahaha.

The drywall job I'm doing in the garage is "good practice" as my brother, Brian, told me. This was after he looked at it, so clearly he thinks I should be a professional contractor by now--BAHAHA. He meant that doing it on my garage is better than practicing on a house ;)

Technically, you're "supposed" to hang drywall horizontally (although people do it both ways), but since our walls are exactly 8 feet tall, the drywall fits perfectly (it's 8 ft x 4 ft) when we hang it vertically. I did that for a couple of sheets, and then realized that the studs of the walls were just not even close to perfect. Hanging it horizontally made more sense to cover the defects of the studs.

So, I hung a couple of them vertically before switching to horizontal, so if you know at all about drywall, please don't point out all the flaws. Like I said, this is good practice! And once I tape and mud everything, it shouldn't be too noticeable, anyway. (Hopefully not at all noticeable).

Today, I finished the first wall--so now I just have three more walls and the ceiling to go! Hahaha, I feel like I'll be done in six years at this rate. Drywall is HEAVY, and I have such a hard time getting it in place. This morning, I made Noah and Eli come out to the garage to help me hoist a piece up and it helped so much! I'm going to use their help from now on when I have to do the top pieces.

This piece on the top right was super heavy and it helped so much to have the boys come out and help. Here is a before and after of that part of the wall:

Anyway, despite running into several problems with with the studs, with the drywall itself (I actually broke the first piece that I lifted!) and my own inexperience, the wall certainly doesn't look perfect. But I think it looks much better than before and I can't wait to tape and mud it so that I can paint it and it'll look finished!

The hardest part of all of this is trying to maneuver around the garage. We have a huge garage, so you wouldn't think it'd be a problem, but we have junk everywhere and it's hard to push things out of the way... bicycles, a huge lawnmower, a snowblower, a push lawnmower, the kids baseball equipment, Noah's punching bag, all of my tools, etc. It's amazing how much space it all takes up!

The wall that I finished today was one of the tougher ones (lots of space for drywall); the wall I plan on working on tomorrow is the one with the two-car garage door (on the right in the photo below), so there isn't a lot of wall space. I should be able to finish the entire thing tomorrow.

Here is a before and after of the entire wall... keep in mind, this is just the drywall part. I still have to tape and mud it, and then sand and paint it. I can't wait to get it done!

Even thought it's a lot of work, I really enjoy doing it! I open the back garage door so my squirrels can come visit (to beg for walnuts--I keep a jar there for them) and I listen to podcasts while I work.

I'll share more progress as I keep going on it :)

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A little something to look forward to!

Gosh, I had no idea how many people would request a mask! I feel really bad that I don't have enough for everyone. I decided that instead of sending up to two per person, I'll just send one--that way more people can get them. I apologize if you requested two.

Tomorrow, I will email everyone that I will be sending a mask. I'm going to try to sort them out by color and hopefully, give you the choice that you asked for. I just have to buy some more envelopes and then I will get them in the mail (hopefully on Monday!). If you don't get an email from me by this weekend, it means I just didn't have enough masks--I'm so sorry! If I should get the urge to make another batch, I will let you know!

We just got word that Michigan is going to be under lockdown until May 15th. And we are "strongly encouraged to wear homemade, non-medical grade masks when leaving the house".

I haven't written about this yet, because I don't want to jinx anything, but I am REALLY hoping that the lockdown gets lifted soon because of a very selfish reason... we are adopting kittens!

Now, I have to say... I have always been against adopting kittens because kittens are usually the first to be adopted. Older cats have a much smaller chance of being adopted. After we (tried to) adopt the two kitties last month and it didn't work out, the woman who runs the cat rescue said that kittens are very easy to adapt to a new environment.

Considering we have two older cats at home (Estelle is about 10 and Phoebe is about 11, I think), I thought about adopting kittens (so that Estelle and Phoebe will have an easier time adjusting). The woman who runs the cat rescue has something like 10 kittens that need a home! She said that they have four black kittens, which are very hard to find homes for--everybody wants the ones who have cute colors.

Of course, I love the cute colors as well, but if I'm going to come up with a compromise, I decided that we could go ahead and adopt two black kittens. They were taken from their mother when they were just days old and have been hand-raised by this woman and her husband. We've already been approved to adopt them, so as soon as they are ready, they will come home with us!

Unfortunately, due to the lock down, the kittens aren't able to be neutered or vaccinated to prepare to go to a new home. So, we have to wait. It's been torture! The whole family is so excited to get them. However, we are willing to wait until they are ready.

In the meantime, here are a couple of pictures. How could anyone not want to adopt these little guys?!

They are currently named June Bug and Lennie, respectively, but we will change those, of course--have to stick with our Friends theme! (They are both male.) I love the black hair and green eyes, but of course I must be biased ;)

We just hope we can get them soon. It will make this quarantine period go by so much faster. Or least be more fun!

From what I've learned, kittens adapt more easily to a new environment, so I hope that they'll be happy here. I'm curious to see how Phoebe and Estelle will react. I have a feeling that Phoebe will have some sort of maternal instinct and Estelle will be a brat.

When we first took Phoebe in, we got her from someone who said she was a stray. I knew a woman from a Mom's Club that I was in, and she said her sister had taken in a stray cat and she'd had it spayed and gotten its shots. She was looking for a home.

Jerry convinced me that we just "needed" another cat, so we picked her up. She was missing half of her tail (I believe it was slammed in a door, based on the way the end of it feels) and she had a bb (from a bb gun) embedded under her skin--the poor cat had been shot! She was very skittish, but she was so sweet. I am SO GLAD that we took her in, as she is now my favorite pet (shh!).

Anyway, I saw on her vet paperwork that she had been in her second trimester of pregnancy when they spayed her, and it made me so sad! She obviously never had her kittens, and it always makes me wonder if she knew that she was expecting kittens but they were gone. 

So, our new kittens have an appointment on May 1st to be neutered, and we should get them shortly thereafter, but with this lockdown, it may take longer. I'm excited, though! It'll be fun to have kittens to play with.

Meanwhile, I've gotten totally addicted to a stupid game on my phone called Best Fiends. I heard the ad for it several times on various podcasts I listen to, and one day I decided to try it. Of course, I got addicted right away, so I've been playing that way too much.

Today, however, I spent most of the day working on the garage. The insulation is done, and now I'm working on the drywall. It's much more difficult than I thought! Drywall is SUPER heavy and awkward to move. I even broke the very first piece I picked up!

I've only gotten about 2/3 of a wall done over the last three days, but I'm starting to get the hang of it more. I'm totally dreading the mudding/taping part! But even thought it's not perfect (not even close!) it's looking better than it did before I started working on it, so there's that.

I did pretty good with my three goals for three days, but it's kind of a blur now--so I won't recap. Today is my day "off" before I start the three day cycle again. My goals for the next three days:

1) Run 3 miles on Sunday within 30 minutes of waking up and run 2.75 miles on Monday within 30 minutes of waking up. Walk Joey daily, a minimum of one mile. (My kids each walk him daily, too--it's a mandatory chore--so he's getting plenty of exercise!)

2) Spend (most) of my free time doing something productive--working on the garage, mainly. However, I'm not going to feel bad about doing unproductive things that I enjoy, like playing stupid games on my phone.

3) Get in a good eating pattern. Eat breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack daily. Preferably at the same times each day. Right now, I might eat nothing at all until dinner time or I might snack all day long. It just depends on what I have going on. I really want to get into a routine. Bonus points if I count calories!

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If anyone needs a face mask...

It's so odd to even ask this question: Does anyone need a face mask?

I never would have dreamed that we'd come to a day in this country where we are wearing face masks when going to the grocery store or other necessary places. I notice about 75% of the people at the store are wearing masks, and it makes me curious about the other 25%.

Do they just not care to wear them? Or do they not have access to one?

I realized that not everybody has access to a mask or to someone they know that can make one for them. Once I posted photos of the ones that I made for my family, I got a lot of interest on Instagram about selling them.

For years, people have told me that I should sell items that I make, or open an Etsy shop. I would really love to do that (I love crafting, and it'd be great to make money doing it!) but I don't do it for a couple of reasons:

1) My time is worth a lot to me. I would probably charge much more than other people do for the same item, simply because I would look at it like a "job" rather than a hobby. The amount I would charge would have to be worth the amount of time I am spending on it--and I wouldn't blame someone for not wanting to spend that much money! ;)

2) I worry that people won't be happy with what they are paying for. Nothing I make is perfect, and being a perfectionist, I notice all of the little flaws. I would feel really bad if someone paid for something that then wasn't happy with how it turned out. (And these masks are no different--they aren't perfect!)

(This is the same reason I don't typically take on running clients--I would feel bad if I made a plan for them and then they didn't reach their goals, or they got injured, etc.)

Anyway, I really wanted to give people access to masks, but I don't want to "sell" them for those reasons. So, I came up with a compromise...

I will give away masks to those who would like them (while my supply lasts--I won't be sewing more). And then when you receive them, you can pay me whatever you think they are worth to you. (For reference, the cost of shipping + materials is about $5-6; and each masks takes me roughly an hour to make). And I'm so sorry, but I cannot ship them internationally. I'll be paying for shipping myself, so I'm just hoping to get back the money spent on shipping.

I have about 45 masks, so I'll give them on a first-come-first-serve basis (to request one, it must be on this form below only--not comments here, not Instagram messages, etc.) I'm also going to set a limit of two per person.

A little about the masks themselves... I used two types of fabrics. For some of the masks, I used three layers of cotton fabric; for others, I used one layer of cotton with one layer of 600-thread count cotton bedding (an unused flat sheet--my kids don't like flat sheets, so I always save the ones that come in sets to use for fabric).

These are not hospital-grade masks, and they don't have a pocket for a filter. These are great for just going to the grocery store or being out in public when necessary. I cannot make any guarantees about their effectiveness, but I did research online, and they should work pretty well.

(The bedding fabric is actually highly recommended because it's woven tighter--that's why I only used two layers on those masks.) Here is a photo of the back of the mask with the sheet fabric (the zigzag stitch is from where I stitched the pipe cleaner in place).

The masks are made in only one size (adult). And since we are all shaped different, I cannot guarantee that it will fit will. It has two elastic hair ties that go over your ears, so there is a chance it could be too tight or too loose. In that case, you can cut out the hair ties and thread other elastic through or use shoelaces to use to tie it in the back of your head. But so far, these seem to fit well to those I've given them to!

I also included a pipe cleaner in the top to pinch against your nose to form it closer to your face (the more coverage you get, the better).

Finally, I have very limited choices in fabric. If I had been making these for profit, I would have bought a large diverse selection, but I had to use what was in my stash. And unfortunately, that's not much! So, I may or may not be able to give you the one you want. When you fill out the form, just select your favorite choices and I'll see what I can do.

I'll try to figure out how to post a "donate" button on my blog, so when you get them, you can decide what they are worth and donate that way. For now, though, my PayPal address is the same as my email address: katie (at) runsforcookies (dot) com. Please don't donate until you get your masks and are happy with them!


I will email you to let you know if I'll be sending a mask (I have no idea how many people will want these, so it'll just depend on that). If I run out, then I'll close responses on the form.

And just as a reminder, I posted a tutorial for how to make the face masks, which you can find here!

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So many masks!

I'm not going to write a "real" post tonight--I'm exhausted and Jerry and I are watching Gilmore Girls (no, I'm not joking! haha).

I spent almost all day long working on sewing face masks. Last week, I mailed out a lot of them after people on Instagram asked if they could buy them. I didn't feel right taking money for them, so I just shipped them off without checking how much it would cost.

I've gotten requests for a ton more, so over the last two days, I've made about 50 of them(!). I'm not going to "sell" them, because it just doesn't feel right, but the shipping cost was insane last week. It costs about $4 for a first class envelope!

So, when I'm done with these, I'm going to offer them to whoever would like one for a donation--whatever you think is fair. I'm not looking to make a profit, so I would suggest $5 per mask (to cover shipping plus envelope and materials), but if you can't afford that, then I'd be happy to ship one at no charge.

I will post more details once I finish sewing them (likely tomorrow). I don't have a lot of different fabrics to choose from (just what I had in my "stash" at home) and they certainly aren't perfect, but for anyone who needs a mask, I have several to give.

I will post the details tomorrow or Friday. For right now, I'm super exhausted from working on them all day! I was only going to make a few for some friends, but I figured that since I was going to be making those, I might as well make a bunch more.

This is what my table has looked like for the last few days...

If you haven't seen the photo of what they look like on an actual face, here it is:

Jerry's "bank robber" look ;)

Anyway, that's what I've been up to the last couple of days! Once I'm done with this batch, I won't be making any more. I'm totally burnt out.

And if you want to make your own, I did write a tutorial for it--you can find that tutorial for making your own mask here.

G'night!

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RECIPE: Gobby's Noodle Cream Cheese Casserole

Gobby is an affectionate name given to my maternal grandmother, who passed away in 1999. After she died, my aunt made a cookbook out of Gobby's recipes and passed the books out to the women in the family. I love the book! It's so nostalgic for me--some of the recipes are more modern, and some are very old.

This recipe is my favorite in the book! The cream cheese and sour cream mixed together is a great combo. This is 100% the best comfort food.

I've even used these ingredients to make a lasagna, which makes the lasagna unique with the sour cream. Lots of compliments when I made that for a get-together!

Here is a printer-friendly PDF version!


Gobby's Noodle Cream Cheese Casserole

16 oz (dry) small shell pasta (or radiatore)
2 tsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
16 oz ground turkey (or beef)
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce + 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
8 oz cream cheese, softened to room temp
1 cup sour cream
8 oz cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cook pasta according to package directions.

Heat oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Add onion and sauté for a minute or two and then add the ground turkey or beef. Cook, breaking up turkey, until it is browned and onions are soft. Drain fat, and add the tomato sauce.

In a medium bowl, using a hand mixer, combine the cream cheese and sour cream until smooth.

To assemble casserole: In a large casserole dish, layer half the pasta, and spread half the cream cheese mixture over the pasta. Then spread half of the beef mixture. Repeat layers. Top with cheese.

Bake uncovered at 350 F for 30 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly. Makes about 8 servings.

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A Ridiculous List of TV Shows I've Watched

Before this Covid quarantine, I very rarely scrolled through Facebook... maybe once every 2-3 days! But lately, I've been on Facebook daily. It's still not my favorite social media app (I am partial to Instagram) but I've definitely been on there more lately.

This post is brought to you by a random post I saw on Facebook. Someone listed 100(!) TV shows, and I'm supposed to reply with a checkmark whether I've seen more than 10 episodes of each show. So here goes...

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You never realize how much/little TV you watch until you fill out a list. Put a checkmark by the shows of which you have watched more than 10 episodes.

1. Grey's Anatomy: ✅ I started watching this from the very first episode on the day it aired, and just can't stop watching. I don't like any of the characters, but I still watch. *eye roll*

2. Stranger Things: Tried it, but I hate supernatural anything

3. The Vampire Diaries:

4. The Walking Dead: ✅ (This show was fantastic until the last four seasons or so.)

5. Fear The Walking Dead:

6. Dexter: ✅ (LOVED Dexter! Deb was amazing. And of course, Dexter himself was the best.)

7. American Horror Story: ✅ (I don't know why I watched this. I hate anything supernatural, so I must have been REALLY bored to start this one. I watched about two seasons, I think.)

8. Orange Is the New Black: ✅ (I liked the first couple of seasons of this, but then I stopped watching when the "women took over the prison" for one season (or at least the first episode--that's when I called it quits)

9. A Million Little Things:

10. This is Us: ✅ (LOVED this show until recently... lately it hasn't been as good.)

11. The Simpsons: Fun fact--Never saw an episode of The Simpsons in my life. I wasn't allowed to watch it as a kid, and then when I was an older teen, I just didn't have interest in "cartoons".

12. New Amsterdam: ✅ I'm a sucker for medical dramas, what can I say?

13. Manifest:

14. How To Get Away With Murder: ✅ (I actually downloaded a song that I heard on this show--"All of Me" by Conrad Ricamora


15. Breaking Bad: ✅ This was a great show! I watched it when it was still on the air, but a couple of years ago, Jerry and I watched it with the kids. Now Eli is re-watching it himself.

16. Sons of Anarchy: ✅ LOVED this show!

17. Scandal: ✅ I didn't finish this, but I watched a few seasons. I am not sure why I kept watching, because I am usually very turned off by anything political!

18. Riverdale:

19. The Good Doctor: ✅ One of my very favorite shows I've ever seen!

20. House of Cards: Again, politics. Nope.

21. Once Upon a Time:

22. House: ✅ This show is SO underrated! I reference Dr. House all the time. Loved loved loved this show!

23. True Detective:

24. Dr. Pimple Popper: I've watched a couple of episodes, and I'm a fan! Not more than 10, though.

25. Power:

26. Empire:

27. One Tree Hill: ✅ I got sucked into this, along with Jerry and the kids! I ADORE Sophia Bush.

28. Supernatural:

29. Family Guy:

30. Santa Clarita Diet:

31. Shameless: ✅ My very favorite TV show EVER on television. No exaggeration. So jealous that Jerry got to meet "Ian" in Chicago!

32. Pretty Little Liars: ✅ Got sucked in one summer while I was doing some craft... I can't remember what I was working on. Maybe my race t-shirt quilt? I didn't finish the series, though. I got tired of wait to find out who "A" really was.

33. Chicago PD: ✅ Jerry and I watch all of the "Chicago" shows.

34. Bones:

35. Criminal Minds:

36. The 100: ✅ (I binged this really quickly... It got weird the last couple of seasons, but I still couldn't stop watching!

37. Chicago Fire: ✅ Again, the Chicago shows.

38. Chicago Med: ✅ See above.

39. The Resident: ✅ A sucker for medical dramas--really.

40. Game of Thrones: I tried a dozen times to get into this show, but just couldn't! The dragons turned me off. I don't like shows with things that couldn't *actually* happen.

41. The Big Bang Theory:

42. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia: Tried a few episodes

43. Lost: ✅ I loved the first couple of episodes, but when I realized it was supernatural, I was done.

44. The Sopranos:

45. NCIS:

46. NCIS Los Angeles:

47. NCIS New Orleans:

48. Law & Order SVU: ✅ On and off over the years. It's a good show, but slow moving.

49. Gossip Girl:

50. How I Met Your Mother:

51. Blue Bloods:

52. Two Broke Girls:

53. The Office: This is Noah's favorite show EVER. One day, he asked me for a hug and he was literally CRYING... when I asked him what was wrong, he told me that The Office was over, and he was so sad that it was done! Hahaha. I've never watched it--I am not a fan of sitcoms.

54. Blacklist: Watched about 7-8 episodes of this. It was good, but not enough to make me want to keep watching.

55. Full House: ✅ Of course I watched this all the time when I was a kid!

56. Fuller House: Watched the premiere, but not past that.

57. Downton Abbey: Tried this one (so many times!), but couldn't get into it.

58. Hawaii Five-O:

59. Big Mouth:

60. Last Man Standing: ✅ A fun show for Jerry, me, and the kids to watch.

61. Six Feet Under:

62. Wentworth:

63. Friends: ✅ Yes... could it BE any more obvious?

64. That 70s Show:

65. Girlfriends Guide to Divorce:

66. Heartland:

67. All-American:

68. Greek:

69. Yellowstone:

70. Better Call Saul: I watched about 7-8 episodes of this, but I forgot about it and never went back to it
71. You: ✅ I watched this when it was on Lifetime and I had a temporary subscription for it.

72. Rescue Me: ✅ This was a great show! The first song on my running playlist is actually the intro from this show... "C'mon C'mon" by The Von Bondies...



73. Scrubs: ✅ Watched a little of this a long time ago

74. Community:

75. Letter Kenney :

76. Kitchen nightmares:

77. The Masked singer:

78. Robot Chicken:

79. Vikings:

80. Mindhunter: ✅ LOVED this show--I read the book first (a memoir) and the show was based on the memoir.

81. New Girl: ✅ I'm not usually one for comedies, but I really loved Zoey Deschanel in this.

82. The Good Place: ✅ I ADORED this show until the very last episode of the first season. My whole family was so disappointed at the twist that we didn't watch it again.

83. Black Mirror: ✅ I'm obsessed with this show! I can't wait for more episodes. This show is amazing for conversations topics and debates. It's so scary to see that these things could actually happen.

83. Lucifer:

84. Peaky Blinders:

85. iZombie:

86. Parks and Rec:

87. Brooklyn 99:

88. Handmaid's Tale: ✅ Love this show! Scary to think it could become reality one day.

89. Modern Family: ✅ It's been a long time, but I watched the first couple of seasons. Again, I'm not big on sitcoms.

90. Smallville:

91. Seinfeld: Never saw an episode!

92. Gilmore Girls: ✅ LOVE this show! Jerry and I are currently watching it. I watched it before a few years ago, but this is his first time, and he really likes it. The one-liners in this show crack me up!

93. Charmed:

94. Private Practice: ✅ No idea what possessed me to watch this, considering that I wasn't a huge fan of Grey's Anatomy, but I actually liked this show. Maybe a girl crush on Caterina Scarsone? (I know she's on Grey's now, but I like her on Private Practice before)

95. Lost Girl:

96. True Blood:

97. Roswell:

98. Haven:

99. Mad Men:

100. Arrow:

And there it is! I feel like I've watched way too much TV. But there are a lot of shows I've seen that aren't even listed here, hahahaha. One of these days, I'll write a list of my favorite shows!

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A Great Sunday: 3-3-1 goals for the week start today

I have NO idea where this post disappeared to! It showed up on my feed, but now it's completely gone from my blog. That's never happened before! Anyway, this is yesterday's post.

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Today, I'm going to give a (hopefully) short recap of the first day of my 3-3-1 goals. Starting today (Sunday)...

For the next three days, my goals are:

1) Go to bed by 12:00 am. I'm going to turn off electronics and read a book (well, all electronics except my Kindle Paperwhite--which I don't use a backlight on, so it literally looks like a page in a paperback). I've found that by going to bed early, I have the energy to get up in the mornings and run within 30 minutes of waking up.

I didn't have a run scheduled today, but I do tomorrow, so I want to get in the habit of going to bed early. I can't say how well I did on this today, because it's only 9:00--but I plan to be in bed reading by 12:00!

2) Run within 30 minutes of waking up on Monday. I have 2.5 miles on the schedule, so I plan to get out of bed, throw on my running clothes, and head out the door to get it done early. On the days that I don't have a run scheduled, my plan is to walk Joey for two miles.

Today, Jerry was off work, so the four of us (Jerry, me, and the kids) took Joey for a walk to my parents' house. We haven't seen my parents at all, really, and since it was a nice day today, I thought it would be okay to go visit outside, keeping a distance of at least six feet. It felt odd, talking across the deck that way, but it was nice to have a conversation with them!

3) Cook dinner all three days (Sunday, Monday, Tuesday). Since I've been having a hard time with this lately, I made a SUPER simple menu this week--so that even when I don't feel like cooking, I can take a few minutes to whip something up.

Today, I made grilled cheese. Not just any grilled cheese, but the BEST grilled cheese ever. (That's actually what I call it--"The BEST Grilled Cheese". There is an art to making a good grilled cheese, and this is perfection, if I do say so myself ;)

Here is the recipe. Hard to call a grilled cheese a "recipe" but the bread and cheese are very specific.

Let's hope I can get up and run tomorrow! ;)

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RECIPE: The Best Grilled Cheese EVER

This is kind of a stupid "recipe" to post, considering it's "just" a grilled cheese. But it is SOOOO delicious that I had to post it.

The keys are: cooking over medium to medium low heat using oil instead of butter (which makes the perfect toasted texture), and the combination of the rye bread with havarti cheese. Don't make substitutions on this recipe!


Here is a printer-friendly PDF!

The Best Grilled Cheese EVER

Ingredients:

2 thin slices rye bread
1 slice Havarti cheese (if there is an option, get the "cream Havarti")
2 tsp. extra light olive oil  (the "light" just means light tasting, not light on fat or calories)

Directions:

Pre-heat skillet over medium heat (don’t be impatient with this—the best way to cook a grilled cheese is “low and slow”.

Spread each slice of bread with 1 tsp of oil (alternatively, you could put half the oil in the skillet, and the other half when you flip the sandwich). I like to spread it on to make sure each slice is covered.

Set one slice of bread in skillet, oil side down, and top evenly with the cheese. Set the other slice of bread, oil side up, on top of the cheese.

Cook (low and slow; keep on medium to medium-low heat until the bottom bread is nicely brown). This takes roughly four minutes per side, if you're cooking it low enough. Flip the sandwich and toast the other side. Cut and serve. It’s delicious with tomato soup for dunking!

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How I Gained 45 Pounds in 2 Years

I've been writing a lot lately about my "recent" weight gain (I can't even really say "recent" anymore, because it's been over the last couple of years. In December 2017, I was at about 133, my goal weight. Fast forward to now, a few months into 2020, and I'm at 179--the most I've weighed since early 2010.

(If you're new here, you can read about my weight loss and then gains and losses since then here.)

As I've written several times, I've been struggling with this weight gain quite a bit lately. I've been doing a lot of introspection about why I've gained so much weight in the last couple of years, and I'm pretty sure I've narrowed it down. (I wrote about finally facing the scale here)

Here is a photo from December 2017 versus now:

Thoughts on my reasons for weight gain:

Mainly--Stress. I have been putting a lot of pressure on myself, but also with Jerry's change in work schedule, my life was thrown for a huge loop and I feel extremely overwhelmed much of the time.

Actually, "overwhelmed" couldn't be a more fitting word for what I felt in 2019.

When Jerry's work schedule changed, he started working straight days instead of swing shift (where he would work nights for a month, followed by days for a month, and repeat). When he would work nights, I got a lot of help from him as far as driving the kids around; but when he switched to day shift, I've been doing it all myself, and I feel like I live in my car. (The Covid quarantine has changed things, but I'll get to that.)

I also used to get time to myself in the evenings. The kids would go to bed at 10:00 pm, and Jerry would be working nights, so I'd have time to do what I wanted--watch TV, read a book, work on my blog or a craft, etc. When he switched to day shift, he's home every evening. (No, we don't have to spend that time together--but I really do like spending time with him! Now, I've resorted to staying up way too late after he goes to bed.)

I have always struggled with insomnia, too. But it has gotten so much worse since he's been sleeping in the bed with me every day. Jerry sleeps like a rock the second his head hits the pillow; but I toss and turn all night. I never realized (until recently) just how much the lack of quality sleep affects me.

I was starting to feel like I was reaching a breaking point just before the Covid outbreak. I was really getting concerned for my mental health, because I was feeling so stressed and overwhelmed... and I was eating to make myself feel better. Ice cream was my way to de-stress, and it (clearly) wreaked havoc on my weight.

I had also quit drinking for all of 2019 as a challenge to myself--because drinking wine would help me relax, and I didn't want it to become a problem--and when I quit drinking, I started eating more to fill that "void".

Until a couple of years ago, I never felt stress like I did the past couple of years. Yes, there were periods where I felt overwhelmed as a mom and wife; but those passed in a relatively short amount of time. The past two years, however, have just kept going and going.

This Covid quarantine, as horrible as it is--please understand that I am not at all trying to trivialize how devastating this has been for all of the thousands of people that have been affected--has changed things quite a bit as far as my stress levels go. Because I am at home all day, I finally feel the freedom to do things I really enjoy without feeling like a bad mom or wife or daughter or sister or aunt.

This quarantine isn't going to last forever (at least I hope not!) so I'm taking advantage of the de-stressing while I can. I am doing crafts I enjoy, binge watching TV shows that have been on my list forever, playing games on my phone, and pretty much anything I feel like doing. My house isn't as clean as it probably should be, and the laundry piles up for a couple of days before I finally wash a load.

But I don't feel nearly the amount of stress that I did a couple of months ago. Back then, I kept thinking that I just needed time to stop for a while so I could just take a break and breathe before going again. And this is that break.

Still, I'm not making any progress to drop the weight I've gained. I think this is because I got so used to changing my good habits into bad habits over the last two years that I'm having a hard time getting back to those good habits.

In 2009-2010, it took a long time for me to develop those good habits! At first, I was still eating junk food, but I was eating less of it because I was willing to sacrifice food quantity in order to shed the pounds. Eventually, as I tried new foods in order to reduce the number of calories I was eating, I started to gravitate to healthier options (I still ate junk food, but most of the time I was eating relatively healthy).

I started eating oatmeal all the time, and I LOVED it; I ate fruit with lunch every day; I cooked a "normal" dinner and divided it into four portions, and then ate only one portion; I learned to love certain vegetables, particularly when roasting them; I never did learn to love salad or yogurt, but I still try them from time to time in order to see if that's changed. I even developed the habit of sticking to a running schedule, no matter what else I had going on. No excuses.

They were strong habits that developed when I didn't even notice.

Over the past two years or so, I've undone all of those habits that took me at least a year to develop. I don't like the thought of oatmeal for breakfast, or tuna sandwiches for lunch, or a piece of fruit for a snack. Cooking and meal planning have not been at the top of my priority list because those things are stressful to me.

Several people have suggested having my kids and Jerry cook once a week, and I like that idea. The kids need to learn that stuff anyway, and now is the perfect time for it.

Today, I wrote a meal plan for the week (I'm starting a new 3-3-1 plan on Sunday), and Jerry went grocery shopping. (I have to admit, it was SO HARD for me to let him do it--I am such a control freak--but he did great! I gave him a very specific list and he probably did it faster than I would have, haha.) And I have a couple of meals on there that I will have the kids cook.

So, to answer the question, in a nutshell, of how I gained about 45 pounds in the last 2 years:

1) Life changes as we get older. And I wasn't prepared to change with it.
2) I didn't learn how to manage stress in ways other than eating.
3) I stopped making time for myself, which only made me feel overwhelmed and unhappy.

Whether you can relate to this or not, I don't know. I just wanted to share my introspections and observations as to what caused this radical weight gain.

I feel desperate to gain control over my habits again, and I think I need to start by controlling my stress in healthy ways. I know that running has always helped with stress and anxiety, so starting my training plan for the Detroit Half will be helpful. Even though I know I'm not going to want to hop out of bed and into my running clothes, I will feel a million times better after getting in that run.

Making time for myself is crucial, and even after this quarantine, I am going to make sure to set aside time to do whatever I want--even if it's just binge watching a TV show.

Also, I felt really good about myself when I took the time to do my hair and make-up recently (and dress in something other than stretchy black pants and an oversized sweatshirt). When I need a boost, I can make sure to do that again. (It's not always practical, depending on what I'm doing that day--when I work in the garage, I end up pulling my hair up in a messy bun and wearing my "painting" clothes that I don't mind getting dirty.)

I really like the 3-3-1 approach (setting some goals to accomplish for just three days... then resetting and doing another three day session... and then taking a day off before starting over again). I don't know how long it will help going forward, but I can't believe the difference in my mood when I did the first round--I felt fantastic!

I know a lot of you are in the same boat I am, having lost a large amount of weight and then gaining some (or all) of it back--and I thank you so much for sharing that with me!--so hopefully we can get back to our healthy habits together. Identify the problem and look for ways to solve it!

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Things That Make Me Laugh

Good grief! I have been staring at this blank page on my computer, and I went through numerous lists (literally for over an hour now) and I just cannot think of anything to write about today.

I eventually decided to post a bunch of things from a Pinterest board I have called "Things That Make Me Laugh". I legit belly laughed over these when I first saw them, and I still like referring to my Pinterest board when I need a good laugh.

So, here are some of my favorites. Hopefully they make you chuckle too!

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