I've Lost It ...at 50...

I am so excited. I have oficially lost 50 pounds today (yes, I weigh every day). It is amazing how much your weight can fluctuate in a few days, or at different times of the day, for that matter. But as of this morning I reached 50 pounds.

This is the most recent picture taken last week before our Friday night date . I have continued my exercise regime, and healthy eating. I do feel so much better. I was able to cut my lousy cholesterol from 134 to 60. I was a heart attack or stroke waiting to happen. I have more energy, and respond to stress a little better. The very besty part is that I can go into any store and buy "regular" sized clothes.

Now I just have to continue the exercise and tighten up and add muscle tone. ..easier said than done when you are 50.

But I will press on.

Easter Family Fun

We had such an enjoyable Easter Day!

We started the morning sitting out on the screened porch to have our protein shakes. Then we got ready for church service.Mother took our picture as we were out the door.

Then we came home and threw on some tennis shoes and hid about 200 or so eggs in the back yard. We wanted to stay dressed for photos, and the kids were on their way. The kids all arrived...I gave them a bucket of goodies...

We took the obligatory photos. Here are Shannon and Jason with their boys...

don't they look nice all spiffed up? Shawn and Darris looked nice, too. Easter sunday was their one year anniversary. Where has the year gone?


These two were so cute in their new duds. Hudson doesn't usually wear smocked outfits, but if it has tractors on it, then it's OK. I think Hudson fell into the dirt right after I snapped this picture.
We came inside, and tried to take some pictures with Mother and Daddy, but Hudson was not too cooperative by that time.

We were ready to eat. Jackson helped me make our placemats. I forgot to take pictures of the food until it was half eaten, but we had ham, maccaroni and cheese, fruit salad, deviled eggs, roasted asparagus, lima beans, rolls, and strawberry shortcake.

Then everyone was ready to hunt for eggs. It is amazing what you can get them to do when you put some money in a bunch of eggs.

You can see the action here. Joey had pulled the tractor out into the yard for hiding eggs.
They take their egg hunting very seriously.

In fact, Joey had to help Hudson find some eggs,

because the adults were all out for themselves.

Jackson held his own this year.

The boys decided to take a little ride around the yard to hunt for remaining eggs. Once again, I think Hudson fell out right after I snapped this picture. He is a bit clumsy, but he is only 17 months old.

Although he thinks he is big enough to drive by himself...not yet.

They all came into the porch to check out their "loot".

The boys played in the water in Hudson's pool Nanny and Gaga gave him.

The rest of the day was spent visiting and relaxing with the family. I am tired, but so blessed to have all my family so close.
Shawn and Darris took a little nap in the hammock.
Joey was kicked back on the chaise lounge.

I thought Jason was sleeping when I took this one...almost.

Pop, (Joey's Dad ), and Miss Anne came to eat and spend the day with us, too.

The weather was beautiful, the food good, and the company enjoyable.

Thank you God for so many blessings!

My Easter Home

Still during...down 37 pounds...

Welcome to my Easter home.

a little mini typewriter with a favorite Scripture verse...

carrots and bunnies...



.

and an antique typewriter with a typed welcome message ...

my Easter tree...

entry display...

dining room buffet...

a little thrift store lamb...

my rooster egg dish...another thrift store find...

Easter chalkboard...

We are having our Easter lunch and egg hunt tomorrow with our parents and kids and grandkids. We are enjoying visiting a church that we have found just a few miles down the road. Our lunch will be ham, mac and cheese, roasted asparagus, deviled aggs, fruit salad, rolls, and angel food cake with strawberries.
I pray that you will get to celebrate our Savior's ressurrection tomorrow with your family.
I better get to cleaning, cooking, and setting my table.

In Him,

My Journey and Resolutions

I promised you I would share something in my next post. Well, here goes. I have decided to lose weight and get healthier. This is definitely easier said than done. I weighed more than I ever have, and found out my cholesterol was too high, as is my blood pressure. With a high family history of heart disease, I decided it was time to make the change. Mother and Daddy got us an elliptical machine for our Christmas present, and I have been faithful to use it at least 4-5 times weekly. We have been trying to walk outdoors when the weather is nice. We have protein shakes or high fiber cereal for breakfast, eat a lot of turkey, salads and chicken. We limit our red meat consumption, and eat tons of vegetables and beans.

Here are a few "before" pictures. double chins and belly fat

I am a nurse, and I know better. Weight is something I have battled all my adult life. In fact before I had children, I remember saying I would not end up like this. NEVER say "never".

I don't usually make New Year's resolutions, and I don't usually announce them so no one will know if I fail. I like to stay in my comfort zone, you know. I have lost 33.6 pounds, and I am continuing this way of eating and exercising, hopefully, for the rest of my life. I am not calling it a "diet", but just a healthy lifestyle. I go back to have my cholesterol checked in a couple weeks. It better be lower!!! I do feel much better, and I have more energy. There is just one BAD thing about it...all my clothes are too big. This can get expensive. I will continue sharing about this journey I am on. Here is my "during" photo. Much better, I think.

Everything John Deere

What a fun day we had Saturday! Our local John Deere dealership invited us to John Deere Day. Well, my hubby and the grandsons are all about anything John Deere. They had a balloon man, and Jackson was proud of his sword.

Hudson sure loved "riding" that lawnmower. One day when he is a teenager, I hope he likes riding lawnmowers as much. Me and my boy...notice we were wearing the green...

Love Jackson's hat that the dealership gave him when he and Buddy went down to "just look" at lawnmowers about a year ago. They came home with a riding lawnmower for Joey and a Gator ride on for Jackson that day. Notice those ears folded down. Yes, he wore it like that all day.

I loved that they iced down the drinks in the trailer.

Here is Buddy with Hudson.

( Jackson wouldn't sit still long enough for a photo other than action shots.)

Speaking of action...

A favorite was a trough filled with feed corn. Hudson did taste a few bites, but he loved it.

It rained all day, so the dealership cleaned out their garage, and it was a perfect place for a party! They had a band, hot dogs, hamburgers, and BBQ, giant slides, bouncey house, a balloon man, a ride on train, and all the lawnmowers and tractors on display.

It was a wonderland for those two little boys

and 2 big boys, too (husband and son in law).

I haven't posted in a while, and I have something exciting (for me) I will share with my next post. "Til then,

Superbowl Party

Of course Superbowl is just an excuse to get together for our family. We do like watching the commercials, but I was disappointed in them last night. I really didn't have a favorite team, but everyone else was cheering for the Packers, so I did too. We are trying to eat healthier, but game day foods just aren't too healthy. We love hot wings, and I decided we would make our own. I placed them on a nonstick sprayed cookie sheet and baked them for 30 minutes on each side at 375 degrees, and then we crisped them up for just a minute under the broiler. Then we tossed them in a honey BBQ
sauce and a traditional hot wing sauce made with Franks hot sause. The were really good...and a little healthier than those fried ones.

I made a pot of chili, too...
The boys got to drink from special football cups. I had them from Christmas (from Dollar Tree). They had a Santa design inside, so I put our football napkins in the copier, and cut a template to cover up the Santa design.

Some football decorations...

Shawn brought chips and dip, which we scarfed down before dinner
was ready.

I think Jackson was licking the bowl clean ,here.
Hot wings ready...and somebody's plate...

Shannon made some delicious chocolate peanut butter cupcakes.

Hudson will attest to the deliciousness...

Score!

Fun times.