Losing Weight – Part 2

 

 

http://www.healthywage.com/referral/healthywager/name-your-own-prize/82032012300057

About a month ago I posted about my weight loss journey – so I thought I should post an update.

Yesterday I was so excited to step on the scale and discover I am now 20 pounds lighter than I was on March 5!  Yes, TWENTY pounds!

March 8

Oh. My. Goodness. It has been soooo hard on some days to avoid those chips and garlic bread and chocolate that has called my name (quite loudly at times)!  (And why does the bread basket always end up by my spot at the table???)

Fortunately, almost all of the time those foods calling my name have not been worth the money so I have avoided them. Occasionally I have sent a “help” text message to some friends telling them I just want to eat so bad – and they have graciously told me to persevere – and drink a big glass of water! It’s amazing how you don’t want to eat right after a huge glass of water and you get a few more steps in later as you keep going to the bathroom.

And, knowing I needed to write this blog post helped – I really never dreamed when I posted last month that so many people would read my blog (now if I could just get half to follow it I’d have quite the readership – hint, hint!)

But, you ask, how am I doing it? No tricks, no gimmicks and not even a lot of exercise – I even caught a cold and did almost no movement for a week! But I have stopped eating all sugar (I eat fruit but no other sugar in any of its many names) and all bread. I guess it is like a low carb diet but don’t count the carbs – just avoid any that aren’t vegetables or fruit. It is also kinda “clean eating” since it is easier to avoid the sugar and refined flour if it is not processed. And I don’t eat a lot of fat – no bacon or a lot of cheese.

And in some ways it isn’t difficult mentally – no real counting calories or carbs or fat grams. No weighing my food. No drinking yucky tasting shakes.  No making sure I’m getting my 10,000 steps in each day or religiously exercising an hour or two every day.  Just eating less and making sure that all my food choices are good ones.

On the other hand, it is the hardest thing I’ve ever done! Saying no to dessert every time. Not going and getting my free cone at Ben and Jerry’s. No pizza. No pasta. No bagels – not even for breakfast with a friend. No garlic bread (okay- I caved on that one once!). Getting over the addiction to sugar and pasta and bread was HARD!

But now, 7 weeks later, I can say no very graciously and firmly and most of the time not even think about what I am not eating. Instead, I remember I am wearing jeans I had outgrown, my energy level is better, my health is getting better and I am getting closer to my goal and prize!

If you think that having a challenge like mine would help you, I’d love to have you join me! (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, read my previous blog). Here’s the link again:

http://www.healthywage.com/referral/healthywager/name-your-own-prize/82032012300057

Room for Hope – A novel

Between the cover of the book and the excerpt on the back, I was hooked!

In a desperate time, can Neva find forgiveness for a grievous wrong—and make room for hope?   Neva Shilling has a heavy load of responsibility while her husband travels to neighboring communities and sells items from his wagon. In his absence, she faithfully runs the Shilling Mercantile, working to keep their business strong as the Depression takes its toll, and caring for their twins.   When a wagon pulls up after supper, Neva and her children rush out—and into the presence of the deputy driving a wagon carrying three young children. The deputy shocks her with the news that Warren and his wife have died, insisting it was their last request that the three children go live with “Aunt Neva.”   Neva’s heart is shattered as she realizes that Warren’s month-long travels were excuses for visits with his secret family. She wants nothing more than to forget Warren, but can she abandon these innocent children to an orphanage? Yet if she takes them in, will she ever be able to see them as more than evidence of her husband’s betrayal and love them the way God does?

And the book did not disappoint! It was wonderful! I could not imagine being in Neva’s shoes – grief because her beloved husband was dead; anger because of his complete betrayal; disbelief that he had the audacity in his dying moments to send his other children to her; overwhelmed as she now had 5 children to care for and run the mercantile; and finally, compassion for the sweet, young orphaned children thrust on her. But even as she cares for them, can she forgive the children for being her husband’s other family? And as she adjusts to three more children, can her two teens accept them? Will the townspeople ostracize them all if they learn the truth to the children’s background?

Not only is this a great story with a great background of the Depression, it has a sweet romance, “A recent widow, one with so many uncertainties hanging over her, shouldn’t encourage a man no matter how hard it was to shake her head in refusal.” The author also weaves a mystery and the topic of bullying through the novel. But the heart of the story is one of forgiveness. The minister preaches it, “My dear friends, if you’re here today and are holding on to a wrong, whether bitterness or vengeance or unforgiveness against your neighbor, now is the time for mercy. As you have been given mercy, extend it to those around you. Even if they haven’t asked for it, even if you perceive they’ve done wrong, offer mercy.” Neva lives forgiveness, “but with the minister’s words ringing in her heart – ‘Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful’ – she found the strength to offer mercy instead.” And other characters receive forgiveness and mercy!

I really enjoyed this book and had a hard time putting it down. Furthermore, I didn’t want it to end! I highly recommend it! I received this book from Blogging for Books in return for my honest opinion.

 

About the Author:  Kim Vogel Sawyer is the highly acclaimed, best-selling author of gentle stories of hope such as When Love Returns and Room for Hope. With more than one million books in print, Kim has garnered numerous awards including the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) Carol Award, the Inspirational Readers Choice Award, and the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence. She lives in central Kansas with her retired military husband Don. She enjoys travel, quilting, and spending time with her daughters and their families.

http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/books/221712/room-for-hope-by-kim-vogel-sawyer/