What keeps you motivated? Topic

Joycetime 05/02/20
I had a bad day...had the grandsons and they wanted Pizza Hut pizza. Not just any pizza stuff crust. I had 2 pieces so good but that isn't the way to lose weight. Tomorrow I will eat light to make up for it. We did go to the lake at the park and walked and walked so maybe use some of those calories up. I acted like a crazy mamaw and sang songs loudly and had a great time! They wanted a stay over but the oldest one didn't get all his homework done so need to go do it. I bought them 2 books...they are book worms so they were happy. Going to bed hoping for better eating healthy day!

Jloughlin 05/02/20
Yeah, I bought dinner from a restaurant for my wife’s birthday yesterday. Not terrible, but not good either for the diet. Been real good today. I made a huge kettle of beef barley soup. I will keep some for myself, but I am starting to make some food to take to my daughter when we decide it is safe enough to go. We live on the coast as far south as you can go in North Carolina and my daughter is in Maryland northwest of DC. So a 7 hour trip. We do FaceTime several times a day, but it’s not the same .
I have been retired for fifteen years now and love it. I had two careers. I managed farm cooperatives for twenty years and then taught farmers how to keep computerized records for fifteen more. That was in Ohio, not too far from Ball State. Then my mom and Dad needed help, so I retired and helped them till they passed.
Just got back from my first bike ride since my fall. Still a little sour, but not bad. Drove 30 miles to a strawberry farm today only to find that 100 people were waiting in line for them. Was not interested in waiting two hours to find out they ran out, so came back empty.

Joycetime 05/02/20
Glad you getting better from your bike accident. I wish your wife many blessing on her Birthday! Hope she had a nice one...it sound like it if you brought dinner home. It sounds like you have had interesting career. My Dad was a farmer and in banking I worked with all the farmer around here. Did there farm loans, line of credits and stay on top of all their paper work to run the farm.You do have a distance to have to see your family but good thing for face time! Ah fresh ripe strawberries sound so good.We have a restaurant called Ivenhoes up here that serves the best strawberry, short cake, ice cream and top with real whip cream. I have been keep real good count of my calories..I think that is why I have not bee losing to fast. To weight watcher points I'm doing great but to calories to high. Mynetdiary says I can have around 1400 and I have been having more than that so need to count down on portion size. I made taco soup yesterday...it was good but it makes so much I frozen some. I'm ready for summer for the vegetable and fruit stands. I can live on that! Hope you get to go soon to see the new little one.

Jloughlin 05/04/20
I wrote you something yesterday, but it seems to have just disappeared. I got my blood test today to see if I have antibodies. Won’t have the results for a week. Ughh! Looks like my son in law will need to go back to work in a couple of weeks, so I will probably wait till then to go up and help. Doubt my wife will go with me. Her health is not as good as mine and she probably has not had the virus yet. We will probably spend 2 1/2 months starting mid July when my daughter needs to go back to work. We don’t want the baby to go to day care till he is at least 5 months old.
Hot here today. Low 80s. Spent several hours shopping today. Went thru 4 sets of gloves and have a mask to be washed. Takes the fun out of shopping when you have to glove up and put on a mask!

Joycetime 05/04/20
It was hot here also Sunday but today Monday had beautiful sun shining but breeze was a little cold. The mowing man came and mowed the yard...so wish I could. I always dreaded mowing but after I mowed and showered I felt so gooooood. Get this weight off where my joints don't hurt to hold all this weight I will try again. I bet you can not wait to see your new grandchild and of course your daughter. A daughter no matter what age is a Daddy's girl! It is so good you can take time and go help her when it time for her to so back to work...the virus is way to dangerous for a new born. Plus it needs Papaw and Mamaw time or should I say Papw and Mamaw needs spoiling time. I was able to change my plan on Weight Watcher to this plan I have to count almost everything goes into my mouth. I get free non starchy veggies and some fruit. I needed that change badly...the other plan I was on I was eating to much free food...you give and overeater an inch and they will take a mile in food. I have been doing it for 2 days now and in those 2 days I went down 1 lb. Got me an air fryer today in mail. I keep hearing friends on my facebook talk about it so gone try some chicken and veggie in it. Saw you were talking about wearing mask and gloves. I wear a mask but not gloves...I just carry wipes with me and use all the time. I first made me 3 mask than finally got some health ones in. I sit and think about this and can't believe in my lifetime I would be going thru this virus and scared about something. My daughter has me scared talking about it from the line of field she is in. Being a Christian I think about what the Bible says about when Jesus come back and the end of the world. The Bible says to turn our worries to him...I try. Have a wonderful day and live and love like there is no tomorrow.

Joycetime 05/06/20
Got my air fryer so today lunch had 1 medium sweet potatoes cup up into fries... so good and sweet. I think you could taste the sweetness alot better. For dinner had chicken breast with Mrs Dash herb...when took out looked like it was breaded from the herbs, inside was moist and good. Tomorrow gone try tuna patties made with dry low calorie bread crumbs, oinion, peppers, and and egg...probably sounds weird but I love tuna. I make it into loafs, noodles, and veggies. Mom when I was little said I would open a can of tuna and eat it plain. Actually I love any kind of seafood. I have not been grocery shopping for 4 week..I go tomorrow after I go have some test run at the hospital ...I can wait want some fresh veggies. I have been low on them. Enjoy you day to the fullest!

Jloughlin 05/07/20
Within a few weeks the water temperature should get warm enough to make inshore fishing profitable. In the past, I did a lot of kayak fishing and would like to get back to it. It is something I can do during this time of nothing happening. Spurred Sea Trout, Red Drum, and flounder are the normal catch. They all all big enough to make a meal for both of us. Nothing like fresh fish and I get some exercise to boot. We can buy fresh shrimp off the boat a few blocks from my house. We have lots of seafood restaurants, but I would rather cook my own.
Lot’s of people here have boats and go deep sea fishing, but I have never had the urge to invest that much money in a boat and a slip (typically $250,000), spend $150 in gas to motor out 40 miles to where the big fish are, and then spend an hour cleaning the boat up after spending 8 hours at sea.

Joycetime 05/08/20
I envy you all that seafood...flounder and shrimp I have had. I really like scallops put in oven or grill with lemon butter mmm. My fishing up this way is out of lakes mostly bass. My daughter, grandsons and I was fishing one time and stopped fast, catfish look to be over yard long...we said noway are we taking that off our hooks lol. Never had much money. enough to live on and that is about it, specially while my husband fought cancer...medical took all our CD's. So only type of boat we had a paddle boat ...we had a camper on alot by a lake..love it but had to sell it after Mike passed away help pay for our daughter schooling and pay of the final medical bills. I don't like bills pretty much bill free...have a 2016 jeep and an older home all paid for. As my Dad always told me keep a good roof over your head and enough food to nutrition you and you are blessed. I feel I am bless with happiness and family love. Now you have me hungry for seafood! Have a blessed day!

Joycetime 05/09/20
I have not asked you lately how is your weight loss doing? I wish you could snap your fingers and have it gone but I guess we would never learn how to eat right if that would happen, lol. My middle sister came down today. She has been on a diet less than a year and has met her goal. She wants to take off just a few extra pound...by looking at her I would say she is small enough. She said she eats healthy and walks but it just not coming off. She said her husband said she could be on Survivor because she don't eat anything. She is a diabetic so I know she has to eat right or she would be in trouble. Below 300 is my first goal and I will make it by end of June...than 275 by sometime in October..by Christmas I want to be below 250. I remember when I lost before somehow between 275 and 225 it went so fast...that was maybe 9 or 10 years ago. It was like I was 275 beginning of summer and by end of summer 225. I was feeling so good down there at that weight. Today had boys didn't eat so healthy but did stay in my points and calories. My body feels the non healthy food...feel sluggish and just blah. Had a great day with them although...there Mom was taking the last half test...really important ones. She got a B on them. In her fields she has to maintain a B average. She has been maintaining almost all A except for this one. Have a great weekend and eat healthy..you will feel it!

Jloughlin 05/09/20
The weight is starting to come off a little slower, but I am still ahead of my plan. My first goal was 250 by June 29. I weighed in at 246 this morning. My next goal is 225 by Nov 6th. Then I will see if I want to try some more. At some point losing more weight will mean having to limit my diet more than I want to.
Got a heck of a deal on some chicken thighs today. We have a chicken farm that normally sell to restaurants and so their demand is really down. They have been loading a semi and taking them to towns in North and South Carolina . Today I bought 40 lbs of thighs for $25. I vacuum packed them with barbecue dry rub and some fresh oregano and will start sous viding them tomorrow. Freeze them and some will go north to my daughter.
I bought 40 lbs of breast from the same people a couple of weeks ago. Shared half of those with neighbors and found a really good chicken divan recipe and I have been freezing small casseroles for my daughter and meal trains at my church. The recipe is a killer recipe, but pretty rich for my diet.
I also made a southwest salad today that I really like. A bed of red quinoa topped with a mixture of black beans, yellow corn, half a bunch of chopped cilantro (dressing- mayo, vinegar, lime juice, salt &pepper), then chopped tomatoes, chopped avocado, Gorgonzola, and the last half of the chopped cilantro.

What keeps you motivated?