Tomorrow is a NEW ME Day

There is a part of me that wonders...should I change the name of the blog?  Then I realize that no, I shouldn't.  I'm still the same Southern Girl living up in North Country.  I am still learning to adjust, trying to adapt, and handle the multitude of life changes that have happened in the last 7 1/2 weeks.  Yes, I am counting...  We moved in our new apartment on February 1st.  We viewed a total of 6 properties before we chose this one.  We are still happy with our choice.  I do think we may have chosen a different section of town, if that had been a feasable opportunity.  We have quite a bit of space considering it is only the two of us.  I can clean the place from top to bottom, and I mean an OCD kind of clean that involves wiping baseboards and walls, in the space of about 4 hours.  Mind you, that is including laundry, floors, baseboards, and walls.  I only have to do the deep clean every other week and even that is pushing it as again, it is only the two of us.  The river is about one block away and I look forward to being able to walk there soon.  Right now, my body is still protesting the cold!

The point of today's post...is implementing the life style changes we have planned since the kids decided not to join us on this venture.  As some one who is VERY lactose intolerant, I have often struggled with the meals we made.  Almost every recipe out there calls for butter, milk, cream, or cheese.  Don't get me wrong....I love all of those.  The problem is, my body makes me pay for eating these things.  Even in small amounts I get the bloating, even if I take a Lactaid supplement.  Feeding a large household is expensive and to do so on a budget requires ingredients that are not always healthy.  Now that I am cooking for two on a consistent basis, we have made the decision to change what we eat.  We just went grocery shopping today and I must say, what we purchased was almost all fruits, veggies, and lean meats.  I have a cache of recipes that I can't wait to try and the dinner meals are all under 500 calories each.  This is going to be combined with getting more physical.  We both have a gym membership now and it's less than 10 minutes from the apartment.  Andy's work schedule is flexible enough to allow us to go to the gym either before or after dinner.  The ultimate goal, for me, is weight loss and being able to run again.  After my mouth surgery, I wanted to be more active.  We were active over the summer by hiking.  However, somewhere along the way, we fell off the wagon.  Both of us are unhappy with not only our level of activity, but by knowing the food we eat is NOT healthy.  We have been much better since moving in to the apartment, but not as much as we would like.

Tomorrow is a new day...and so it will begin.  We bought a wall hanging today that we both loved and it hangs above our dresser.  It's what we will see first thing in the morning and hopefully motivate us through the day.

We also bought a scale and that is a necessary evil, unfortunately.  For me, the weight is my biggest concern.  I want to be healthy and fit.  I want, more than anything, to be able to run again.  Right now, I'm not sure I could without building up to that slowly.  So, here goes nothing.  I have nothing to lose and everything to gain.  It's knowing that I'm healthy enough to still be around many years from now.

Let it be known though...tonight we are going to eat at one of our favorite spots and I plan to have something completely unhealthy!  You only live once right?!

~trish

We Are Here

We are here...  It was an uneventful trip, as far as the drive goes.  We rolled out right at 10 on Wednesday morning, January 13th.  Andy drove the Penske truck, I was in the car with Belle.  We stopped at the BoJangles in Henderson since there isn't a location up here!  There is not an IHOP, a Waffle House, or a BoJangles up here!!  There is a Dunkin Donuts on just about every corner though.  I guess I will adjust...lol.  We drove a total of 550 miles the first day which was a little over 9 hours.  By the time we got to the hotel, I had aches and pains in places I can't begin to explain.  We started loading the rest of the truck at 7 that morning and cleaned two levels of the house as well.  Followed by 9+ hours in the car.  Belle makes a good travel companion...basically she slept the whole way.  The hotel in Wilkes Barre PA had snow and was up on a hill.  I almost didn't get the traction to get up the driveway.  A bite to eat, some sleep, and we awoke to snow covering the car and truck.  It was quite beautiful!  We hit the road on Thursday morning at 9 am and drove to Albany NY where we stopped for gas, food, and a visit with each other since we were in separate vehicles.  We arrived at Pat's house about 3:30 after driving another 350 miles.  Turns out, Belle loves the snow!  She was rolling around in it, face covered in snow, and hopping all over the place.  I've never seen her this way!  She only loves it for about 10 minutes before she is done and cold, but that is more than I expected.  We took the truck to the storage unit on Friday morning and it only took an hour to unload, arrange, and return the truck to the local office.  We spent a couple of hours at Andy's new job going over paperwork and all the other fun stuff involved in a new job.  We also opened a PO box which took all but a few items off our list of "THINGS TO DO IN NY," which seemed to grow before it shrunk!  Thankfully, there are only a few items left before that list is completed.  Now, on to the house hunt.  We did get to see one property, which the man was so proud of he was charging $1250 per month!  That is MUCH more than we are interested in paying for....especially when it didn't "ring a bell" with us.  I know that patience is a virtue but I am definitely lacking in that department.  Pat is very open with her home, we have our own room with plenty of space, it just isn't "home" for me.  I need to nest, to make something mine.  We are just trying to make sure we choose what is right for us, not what is right now!



There is a side note...  I have learned a few things while up here......  Do NOT run out of washer fluid in your car.  When the roads have been sanded and salted the washer fluid is a life saver.  Without fluid, eventually you cannot see the road ahead! Do NOT leave Carmex in your car over night.  It freezes....OK, maybe not freezes...gets so cold it won't come out!  Do NOT leave drinks in your car over night...they WILL freeze along with your leftover Subway sandwich.  This is gross so don't try to eat it later!  Pat also told me that you can't let your gas get very low as it could freeze.  I'm not sure about this one but I sure as hell don't want to find out!  We park in the garage here but with the wind chill last night, temperatures are in the negative.  There is snow coming this afternoon and they said about 5 inches.  Pat and John (Andy's brother) acted as though this is no big deal.  I, on the other hand, am charging my camera and hoping for some photos!

~trish