Sunday Snapshots and Many Thanks!

Thank you all for the birthday wishes. You all are so thoughtful and I thank you with all my heart. My birthday was quiet. Mom and I spent the evening going through old photos. It was fun to remember the "old" days, lol. She asked me if I wanted cake since I've been dieting again. I quickly said "of course and make it chocolate." It's very good and very chocolate. Yesterday we went out for steak dinner and that was good, too. Today, I gave the dogs a bath and spent time in my knitting stash looking for a new project. Here are some pics from the weekend and today.

Mom's chocolate cake :)

My new "I Love NY" coffee cup.

Egg in a cup. Today's breakfast.

Sydney and Colby after their baths, smelling good :)

A nice end to the day.

Have a good week!

Sunday Snapshots and Finished Object

I finally finished the scarf I've been working on since summer! Good thing, too, cause I need to get some wear out of it before the cold weather leaves Houston.

Lace Cable Scarf

Here it is, the start of a new year and I've been nothing but lazy about dieting and working out. I ate better last week so at least I was mindful of what I put in my mouth. But all this cold weather has had me seeking comfort food. Chili, crackers, fajitas. Well, fajitas might not be comfort food, but they were something I just had to have yesterday ;). I think I'm a little preoccupied with food again. All the goodies from the holidays keep dancing around in my head. I need, no, make that I want to get back to that mindset I had before where I only ate clean and was satisfied. It's so hard to get back on track.

Today I made a trip to Home Depot for a new toilet seat. You know, those things don't last forever ;). I took off the old one and put on the new one. Now I have a nice, shiny new seat. Funny how the simplest things in life can bring such joy, lol.

Since it's been so cold, I've been thinking about warm places. A special place that comes to mind is Cambria, California. I took my mom and son on a Pacific Coast journey the summer of 2001. Someday I would like to live there but that's just a dream. It's an artsy little place that grabbed my heart. This picture was taken on film so I scanned it in.

Moonstone Beach, Cambria, CA (2001)

Have an awesome week! Stay warm and drink your water!

Weekend Update + Sunday Snapshots

I have fallen by the blogging wayside. Thank you to all for missing me. I have been checking on most of you. So even if I didn't leave a comment, I tried to keep up with you. Last week and this week I haven't felt like I had much to say. I've been overwhelmed by some events over the last few weeks that don't even involve me. But sometimes when things happen to people that you hold dear, it's like you feel their pain and so it indirectly affects you. Does that make sense? My heart has been heavy for some of my coworkers. One lost their dad after a long illness. One lost a son due to an act of violence. One made a very bad mistake that has changed his life forever. When I think of the pain and grief these people are facing, my weightloss battle seems so trivial. I just didn't want to blab on about dieting or anything else.

That doesn't mean I haven't been dieting, I have. And, I've now lost a total of 55 lbs! WooHoo! It's just coming off so slowly. But this time around it doesn't seem to bother me how slow, just so long as it comes off. I've been riding my bike and today I got on my son's elliptical trainer and did half a mile. Now, that thing'll kill ya. I think I'll incorporate that into my weekly routine on days when it's too cold or rainy (the cold part still not a problem here in H-town, dammit).

Went shopping yesterday for some new pants. My size 22's have been really baggy in the seat (yay!) so I felt it was time for some pants that fit. I don't want to invest too much in new clothes right now so a 50% off sale got me three new pairs of nice fitting pants (size 20W) to wear for awhile. Most of the 1X tops are too big in the store where I was shopping! Of course, this shop is for plus sized girls so they are more generous with the fabric so in other stores a 1X might be just right. But it was nice to try on something that a few months ago was too tight and now is too big.  I also had to get a sweater that called my name when I walked in the store. I feel very Cindy Crawford-ish in it with my new brown slacks, lol. Well, I can dream, can't I?

Now for some snapshots! This first picture is of my make-shift pantry. Karen wanted a peek! It's not much, but it's making life in the kitchen much easier.

These next pics are for Roxie. I thought of you when I rode past this beauty!

The guy that took my picture put his finger over the lense. My iPhone made him nervous!

November Sunset

Love you guys! Have a great week and be good to yourself. And don't forget to drink your water! I'm just sayin'!

Sunday Snapshots - Belated Happy Halloween!

I spent all day yesterday "creating" a pantry in my kitchen. My house was built in '57, which is a very good year, mind you, but back then they must not have needed a pantry since my house doesn't have one. So, I took my little "breakfast area" and made my own pantry. It's nothing showy, just a couple of wire shelf units. But, it is nice to have a place for things where they can be seen instead of crammed into a dark cabinet that is much deeper than anyone would ever need.

We didn't do trick or treat at our house this year. There are not many kids on the block anymore. When my son was young we always had such fun. I am glad that we didn't have candy in the house, though. No temptation there. Since I've been back to eating clean and avoiding bready stuff the weight is coming off again. (well, last week I had 2 mini tootsie rolls, what can I say, I needed chocolate and they are only 11 cals each)

Had a great bike ride today. Cool, crisp, Texas Fall weather! Awesome.

Sunset on the Mediterranean Sea

Hope you had a wonderful weekend. Make it a good week!

Sunday Snapshots

I love the coolness of Fall in Texas. Here's what I saw while taking Sydney for a walk.

Banana Tree

My favorite tree, basking in the sunset.

Fall color, Texas style!

Have a wonderful week!

And drink plenty of water :)

Sunday Snapshots - Fairy Ring

Fairy Ring - a dancing place for fairies

Sunday Snapshots

Last night, the dinner at the boss's house was good. I spent most of my time chatting with my fav people from work, so that was nice. We had Greek food. I love Greek food and it was very good. The catering company was great. Since I didn't really take any photos today and I'm thinking about Greece, here are some pictures from my trip there (Corfu) several years ago.

Our very cute waiter.

Sunday Snapshots - on Monday

I went to San Antonio yesterday to visit family. It was a nice way to spend the day. This caught my eye in a popcorn shop. And the popcorn was mighty tastey!

And me, looking more like me.

Sunday Snapshots

These pictures were taken yesterday actually, so they're really Saturday Snapshots, but since I posted yesterday, I saved them for today :D

Sydney, after a romp in the yard.

This is a Spider Lily, it blooms every year at this time.

And the hummingbirds love this little bush.

And here I am, after the Tour de Pink ride on 9/13, looking a little too pink from the sun. The rain washed off all my sunscreen and I didn't think to put on more.

Have a great Sunday. Rest and relax, if you can :)