I'm Still Standing

 This song came to mind when I was thinking of what to write tonight, so I went with it. I've never seen the video before, and I've gotta say, it's a little weird. Rather than get into a critique of 80s style, I'll get back to my post. I've been quiet for a few weeks on this blog, but even quieter on my other blogs. I don't know quite how, but I wound up in a depressed slump.

Sometimes when I'm not expecting it, depression jumps up and kicks my ass. It started off as just not wanting to write anything. I just didn't feel like it. It kind of grew from there. Looking back, I think that it started around the time we switched to Daylight Savings Time. I don't know for sure, but I think it has to do with less hours of daylight. The ironic thing is that I was talking with my husband about my dislike for the medication I am currently taking and planning to talk to my doctor about going off it. I have felt for some time that my current antidepressant makes me numb to any kind of feeling. I don't feel horribly depressed, but I don't feel happy either. I truly believe that I needed the medication when I started taking it. Without the antidepressants, I would have continued in a downward spiral. I don't even necessarily want to go off medication all together. I just want to get off this medication.

My plan right now is to get through the holidays and then sit down and talk with my family doctor about making a change. After being on this medication for so long, it's going to be a pain to get off of it. Anyway, I'm still here and hopefully I'll be writing more again. I made the effort to get the Wii out the other day and I did a bit of time with Jillian Michaels' game. I wanted to use the Wii Fit, but my disc is hiding somewhere. Hopefully I will find it soon.

The kids and I have been trying to go out for walks after dinner every night. We just go around the block, but it does us good to get outside and get some exercise and fresh air. The nights we walk, the kids go down much better.

I've been trying to organize more by getting more clutter out. A few more boxes have been donated to the local Sally Ann. I've also been tossing a lot of stuff. If the kids leave it out, it's being trashed. I got a new bin for garbage, recycling and compost as well. The recycling was falling all over the place, so this helps to keep it contained. The kids are having fun using the bin to sort things right now. I'm sure this novelty will wear off soon.

As for healthy, I'm sticking to a vegan diet. I'm also seeing my chiropractor once a week now. I'm noticing a difference. When we started chiropractic, the chiropractor told me I had a 97% loss of curve to my neck. It turned out that he mis-read my x-ray and it was actually 107% loss of curve. After 3 months of treatment, I was at 97%. It's getting better slowly, but I feel better already. I've had less headaches and fewer migraines. I'm not falling over tired any more. I'm not as short-tempered and moody either. As I continue treatment, I'm hoping I'll be feeling even better. So, that's me for now. I'm still standing.

Slightly More Organized, A Lot Healthier

I can't believe how fast the summer has passed me by. It was pretty good as far as getting more organized and more healthy. Getting fit? Not so much. I was able to declutter a lot this summer. I got pretty ruthless, but I'm hoping to be able to telecommute for my job soon, so I need office space. To get office space, I had to stop procrastinating and start doing. I've said it before, but it feels really good to let things go. Getting things out of the house releases the guilt tied to them and releases the space they were taking up. Still have a little way to go to complete the main area of the basement for my office.

The best part is that I was able to use a desk that my husband had taken apart but never delivered to his sister. When enough room was cleared out, he put it together for me and now it's not cluttering up my basement any more. It would be really nice if my family would stop putting stuff on the desk though!  I don't have my computer yet, but I will need somewhere to put it when they come to install it.

As for healthier, I really attribute the way I've been feeling to visiting our chiropractor. We've gone through the most intensive part of our treatment and we're now down to 1 treatment a week. When we started, I could not look over my shoulder to see in the back seat of the car. The first time I could turn my head that far, I was amazed. I hadn't even realized I was in that bad shape! My headaches have been greatly reduced. I have maybe take acetaminophen two or three times in the last few months. Considering I was taking it daily and sometimes multiple times in a day, this is a huge improvement! I've had a headache for most of the day today and I think it's mostly because I am very tired. It's nice when pain becomes something you're not accustomed to. I had to take my prescription for my headache today and it has been weeks since I've done so. I'd love to be able to say that I have boundless energy, but I suspect that the fact I'm always tired is because I'm working a late shift at work. I work from 5pm to 10pm, and I take awhile to unwind after work. Hopefully I can go back to a day shift next month and this will start to get better again. I do have more energy than I did before, and I can get more done in a day than I could before I started treatment.

The best part is that I am able to spend more time and energy on my kids. When I was feeling yucky, I was no good to anyone and I think my kids suffered for that. Now that I'm feeling better, I'm making it a point to spend more time with them. They are pretty incredible little girls and I would hate to miss out on getting to know more about them.

Getting Healthier and a Little More Organized

It feels like a rare thing, but things are coming together for me. Getting to the chiropractor has put me on the road to health. Looking back over how I had been feeling, I can now clearly see that a lot of what I was feeling was related to my spine. The part of my neck that is out of whack is where all the nerves for things like mood, depression, anxiety, etc are. The fact that the nerves were being choked explains a lot of how I depressed I had been feeling. I'd gone from rarely having panic attacks to having them fairly regularly.

Now that I've had a few adjustments, I can feel a difference. My mood is still out of whack, but it's getting better. I can usually feel when a panic attack is coming on and try to warn my husband so that he knows that I'm not myself. There is nothing quite like seeing yourself being a bitch to the people you love and not being able to stop it. It feels like you're watching yourself be this way. I'm hoping that as my chiropractic visits continue that the moods will even out as my body starts healing itself. Seeing a light at the end of the tunnel and the possibility of feeling better is such a huge relief. It was just a couple of weeks ago that I cried in my husband's arms in despair, afraid that I would never get better. It's amazing what a difference a few weeks can make.


As for getting organized, my husband and I spent Father's Day clearing more stuff out of our basement. He had to take a load of stuff to the dump today and we've dropped a lot of stuff off at the thrift shop. Some stuff we were holding on to for silly reasons. My rocking chair was broken and had been broken for years, but it was something he was going to fix. We let it go, realizing it was never going to get fixed and it was just sitting down there making us feel guilty. It feels good to get rid of stuff like that. I'm pretty sure we had two non-functioning VCRs, some blankets we were saving for the local animal shelter and a few other things. It felt so good to get the stuff out of here.

We were able to fold up the futon that has been a dumping ground for years and we finally got the sheet off it so we could wash it. Today he set up my desk for my "office" space. I'm getting psyched to work at home! As much as I like seeing my friends at work, I think going home is going to be a good option for me. I can hardly wait for the approval to happen so I can start working here. No more juggling the single car we have with the kids and who needs to be where. Can hardly wait!

Getting Organized, Baby Steps!

timer
Originally uploaded by Aunt Owwee

I've been focusing on the getting fit part of the blog lately, so today I thought we'd take a look at getting organized again. I must admit, I have a reason to get organized right now. I have to find the little one's birth certificate for kindergarten registration. I know it is somewhere in the paper clutter on my table, or around the table or just somewhere! So I have to declutter to find it!

We've been working on potty training our special needs daughter by using a timer. We set it for every half hour, and when it goes off, she knows she has to try to go potty. Well, what I've been trying to do is declutter for half an hour in one place and then take a break. The first day I did this, I had a garbage bag full of trash and another bag full of recycling! Where does this junk come from? Junk mail, newspapers, pieces of the kids' toys that they have left lying around, and just pure junk.

By working for half an hour in one spot, it helped to focus me on the task at hand and I knew it was going to end, so it wasn't too overwhelming. I have a long way to go, but there are some clear spots I can see now. I even cleaned around the hubby's chair, and he thanked me, saying that he had been overwhelmed and just didn't know where to start.

What I've learned is that you just have to dig in and start somewhere. Who knows how far you will go or who you will inspire?

Getting Fit without my Wii Fit!

You may have noticed I haven't really written much about my blog topic, getting fit, healthy and organized. Well, today we're getting back on topic! I've been spending a lot of time out of doors with the kids since the big one finished school. We go for at least one walk a day and we go to the park 3-4 days a week (sometimes more than once in a day!). It helps that Parks and Recreation have a summer program on for two hours a day for the big kid. While she plays there, I play in the park with the little kid going from the swings to the slides and back again. I'm also getting the chance to talk to other parents as well, so it's been very good all around.

Today we walked to the local library which is about a forty minute walk each way. The little one went in the stroller (I'm not quite that crazy!). We missed the toddler time, but we got both girls signed up for the summer reading program and I got to stock up on my summer reading again. Who am I kidding, I read all year round because I love it so much!

So, we're settling into a bit of a routine and it seems to be working fairly well. I'm getting exercise without using my Wii Fit. I dread the next time I use it because I know it's going to bug me about not signing in more often. To be honest, I've gotten a little bored of the basic program. I've heard of some workout programs, so I will have to check them out. I probably should log in again, just to update my weight, but I'm a little scared. While I'm trying to eat healthy food, it's very easy to slip into eating not so healthy foods, especially when I've got both kids with me all day.

OK, so we're getting fit and healthy. How about organized? Hmm, I'm trying, that's for sure. I'm scooping any clothes that don't fit the kids and putting them into boxes right away to be donated. I've got two boxes right now. I try to keep my eyes open to things around the house that we don't really need and pop them into the boxes when I see them. So far, no one has complained about anything that has been missing--and considering the amount of toys that I've stuck in the boxes in recent months, I'm truly surprised. I don't recommend leaving the boxes open or even in the house once you hit the toy box. They're bound to open one and ask why their beloved little toy that they never play with is in there...always fun to try to explain!

So much for being organized!

busy schedule?
Originally uploaded by flik

I thought I was doing a pretty good job with keeping up with both of my daughters' schedules as well as my husband's work schedule (he works for himself, so it's always changing) and my own part time work schedule. Then I came downstairs today to find a letter from my oldest's choir teacher inviting parents to a performance on April 24. Yeah, it's May 2, so her performance is long past. I knew she had a performance coming at school and asked her about it and she told me straight out that parents were not invited. Then of course, she came home that day and told me her friends' parents had been there. With my new work schedule, I'm not home when she gets home from school. I thought we had a system worked out where she would show her school bag and communication bag to her dad, but I'm guessing that they've both let this practice slip. Which means that I'm going to have to go through her bag when I get home at night--of course at that point it will be too late to make sure she's done her homework, but at least I should be able to keep up with notes home from her teachers---maybe.

Feeling Naughty

I rush home from work tonight, open the door quietly and put my coat and shoes away. I tiptoe up the stairs, making sure to open the door slowly so as not to awaken my husband. I take off my jeans, put on my gym shorts and sneak back out of the room. Then I hurry downstairs and hook up my Wii Fit so I can exercise!

I didn't really want to exercise tonight, but since I was at home by myself with the rugrat, I didn't get much time in today. I did a few games and a walk, but that was it. So I waited until I came home to do my "serious" work out. I did a couple of the strength training moves--not my favourite for sure. I did the jacknife and the push ups/planks. Jacknife was surprsingly easy. The push ups are not. I apparently do not have much upper body strength. Still, I'll keep trying it every couple of days and hope that I can eventually get it. I spent a few minutes doing yoga. It's not my thing, but I'm happy to do it here in the comfort of my home rather than go to a gym and try to do it in front of all the perfect little yoga bodies out there (you know who I mean!). Then I did the Advanced Step and a new game called Zen. It's pretty silly, but fun.

I logged one hour today, not bad considering I'm trying to figure out how to work this into my schedule. Somehow my BMI and weight went up, but I'm trying to look at that more in the big picture of weightloss over time.

Couple of things I don't like. When my Mii gets weighed, and they post the BMI, she checks around her to see how fat she is. And why does the board have to say "Oh!" when I step on it like it wasn't expecting my weight or something? Thanks for the confidence boost. LOL.

I tried to watch what I ate today. I bought some healthier foods yesterday when I was shopping, so that helped a lot. Raisin bran for breakfast (yum!), a spinach salad for lunch and pork chop and potato for dinner. I love spinach salad, but it is such a pain preparing it! By the time I got to eat it, I was starving! Oh well. It's all for my benefit, right?

As for organize, I didn't do too much today. One thing I have been doing is keeping a box on the main level for clothes that don't fit anymore. My kids keep putting small stuff to the wash, so now, after it's washed, I fold it and put it in the give away box. Now the trick is to get the giveaway boxes out of my house! One step at a time, right?

Getting Fit, Organized and Healthy

Sounds like a lot to do, doesn't it? Well, I have big dreams-dreams of being fit by losing weight and getting in shape, of being organized through de-cluttering my life, inside and out and of being healthier in general by eating better. Is it doable? I surely hope so!

You may be wondering how I'm hoping to do all this. Well, I've got a few plans up my sleeve. First off, I asked for a Wii Fit for my birthday and I got one (a few days early, but I'm not complaining). I wanted one for awhile, but I was truly inspired by Julie's story at Cool Mom Guide. So I was very excited to get my Wii Fit today. I read all the instructions before I set it up, got changed into workout clothes and got on. Can I just say that my Mii looked great until they weighed me? Then she blimped out. I'd like to think that it's not a good representation of myself, but I might be wrong. Let's just say that I wasn't all that impressed when my 6 year old said, "Wow! Mama's fat---on the Wii." She was smart to tack on the last bit, don't you think? According to the Fit, my BMI is obese. The good news in all of this is that I had lost about 14 lbs last year using Weight Watchers and I have kept off some of it. I gained back 8 lbs because I stopped following the points system.

Anyway, on to organization. I'm all about the Flylady. I understand her principles, but I haven't been able to put them to practice yet. I'm still working on that--baby steps, as she says. I am working on decluttering, trying to reduce the amount of stuff in my house slowly but surely. It feels so good to be able to give away or donate things that we no longer use and I feel so much better without having to look at these things.

As for getting healthy, that's kind of tied to getting fit. I want to take care of myself better by eating healthier foods so I can lose the weight and be healthier overall.

So that's my plan right now. If you feel like coming along for the ride, I'd love to have the company! I can't promise that it won't be a bumpy ride, but it sure should be interesting!