Arizona, Mesa - Saturday, January 30, 2016 - More Projects

The January mail delivery from our South Dakota post office brought lots of Christmas cards, the delay just extends the joy of the holiday season. 

 

 

We’ve had a couple of weeks of really nice weather but it is supposed to turn cold (into the 50’s) for a couple of days early this next week.  After that everyone here is hoping it will stay warm.  The really nice days are later coming this year than last.  We’ve been out walking enjoying the nice weather and the beautiful flowers they plant here at the resort.

I think this huge cactus is amazing.

 

 

But even more amazing is that some kind of little bird can get between all of those spines and make a nest.

Not only are we out walking, we are working three days a week, square dancing three times a week and going to the fitness center.  We haven’t ventured out to do any “tourist” things yet, but we are keeping busy.

We are still losing weight, both of us have lost just over 30 pounds.  Clothes are starting to become an issue.  We were hoping we could get by with what we have until we are done with the weight loss mode and go into weight maintenance.  We might not be able to wait that long.  Greg’s jeans are beginning to gather around his waist because he has had to put some more holes in his belt in order to keep them up – I suggested he might be really stylish if he just let them slide down, he didn’t go for it.  I have several pairs of pants that look like clown pants now, boy are they comfortable.  I’m having to give Goodwill some shorts I bought last year and didn’t even get a chance to wear.  I tried them on thinking they might fit now and they just hit the floor without even being unbuttoned.  I don’t really feel like I look that much smaller because I still have a long way to go, but evidently we are making progress.  We get our blood pressure checked here at the resort every other week and it is now well within the acceptable range.

We’ve reached the point where every waking minute isn’t devoted to thinking about sodium and calorie counts.  I’ve tested enough recipes and we’ve decided on the ones we like.  We both know what we need to buy at the grocery, what a portion looks like and what we can have for a snack (we buy produce at least a couple of times a week).  I can pretty much recite by memory the calorie and sodium counts of everything we eat.  However, we still measure and weigh everything we eat and record it in a journal as we go through the day.

But, every once in a while we do let ourselves have a “splurge” meal.  Last week all I could think about one day was a Big Mac from the McDonald’s across the street.  We were really good the rest of the day and treated ourselves to McDonald’s one night.  We’ve been out one time with our square dance group to a Chinese restaurant.  It seems as long as we plan ahead our splurges haven’t hurt us too much as long as we get right back with the program.

Since I’m not spending as much time with our food I’ve taken a couple of quilting classes.  This table runner is coming together in a Beginning Quilting class.  I should have taken this class before I tackled some of the other things I have done, they might have been easier and come out nicer.  My only problem with this project is that it doesn’t go with anything in our home – not a hint of blue or yellow there.  The fabric was provided by the lady who is teaching the class.  Although the fabric wasn’t to my liking, the class has been amazing.

 

 

My Halloween placemats just need binding to be finished.  I’m waiting till we get to the binding lesson in the Beginning Quilting class to finish them up.  Greg thought they should have been black and orange but we already have some black and purple decorations these should go with nicely.

Our latest purchase is a Himalayan Pink Salt Lamp.  This is a big chunk of carved salt with a light bulb in it.  These are supposed to help purify the air, take out dust particles and whatever it is that our electrical items put out into the air.  Since we have lots of dust here in the desert and we have lots of electrical items in our small space I thought they might be a good idea if they really live up to the hype.  If not, I still think it is kind of pretty.  We are supposed to be able to tell a difference in allergies, headaches, etc. after about a week – I’ll let you know how that works out.