About Me

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Kennesaw, Georgia, United States
My name is Billie, I am a 43 year old mother of two. I have been mostly losing the battle of the bulge for the past 20+ years, now I'm ready to lose it for good. Come along on my journey to beat the battle.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Phil 4:13

Monday, November 15, 2010

Whatever happened to Thanksgiving????

Why is it that Thanksgiving is becoming a lost holiday in the commercialization of all the holidays? I went to Dunkin Donuts over the weekend to get pumpkin donuts for church. I get donuts or some sort of treat to go with the coffee at church every week. I always do a theme for the seasons. So it's fall we need fall treats. I started in October getting a different fall treat every week, mini cupcakes with fall leaf sprinkles, munchkins (from Dunkin Donuts) with fall colored sprinkles, you get the picture. So I had had the pumpkin donuts when they first came out, and had bought some for work, and I thought were great,so I was waiting until closer to Thanksgiving to get them for church. Can you believe it, it is only the middle of November and pumpkin donuts are out of season??? What has the world come to? Pumpkin is a Thanksgiving treat, not a Halloween treat. And Dunkin Donuts does not even have the munchkins with the fall sprinkles either anymore. What happened to Thanksgiving??? Why is it a lost holiday?? With all the commercialization now a days everyone skips from Halloween and goes directly to Christmas. Is it really that important to get a whole extra months jump on the Christmas season, just to sell more useless stuff to people who can't afford it in the first place.

Thanksgiving Traditions

In many American households, the Thanksgiving celebration has lost much of its original religious significance; instead, it now centers on cooking and sharing a bountiful meal with family and friends. Turkey, a Thanksgiving staple so ubiquitous it has become all but synonymous with the holiday, may or may not have been on offer when the Pilgrims hosted the inaugural feast in 1621. Today, however, nearly 90 percent of Americans eat the bird—whether roasted, baked or deep-fried—on Thanksgiving, according to the National Turkey Federation. Other traditional foods include stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. Volunteering is a common Thanksgiving Day activity, and communities often hold food drives and host free dinners for the less fortunate.

AND PUMPKIN PIE !!!! See Pumpkin has always been a Thanksgiving thing...

BUT Anyhow, enough of that rant.

My food has not been great lately, been under a huge amount of stress and been eating my way through it. I haven't exercised in a week and a half, but I am going to go to the gym tomorrow.

I made it through one Thanksgiving dinner, and it was not too bad. Two more to go, and then it's on to Christmas. Although Christmas at our house does not center around food all that much, there are all the darn holiday parties where you have to have snackey foods and you must at least have a glass of wine, which we all know is just empty calories.

Erma Bombeck, No One Diets on Thanksgiving
What we're really talking about is a wonderful day set aside on the fourth Thursday of November when no one diets. I mean, why else would they call it Thanksgiving?

May your stuffing be tasty
May your turkey plump,
May your potatoes and gravy
Have nary a lump.
May your yams be delicious
And your pies take the prize,
And may your Thanksgiving dinner
Stay off your thighs!


Thursday, November 11, 2010

Thanksgiving just around the corner

I just came to the realization that Thanksgiving is only two weeks away. I am doing Thanksgiving three times this year, so weight loss may not be in the forefront of my mind. I have a dinner this Saturday for church, and you know how church people eat. Then Tuesday before Thanksgiving we are having dinner at work. Then of course THE Thanksgiving dinner with family. Although this year it won't be that big. Just Shane and I, hopefully the kids will come and the in-laws. Shane's dad really hasn't been feeling that well, but he says he will try to eat with us. This is also the reason it will be relatively small. My family does not live close and the ones that do have their own things planned, and Shane's family doesn't live close either (except Mom & Dad).

I have worked out exactly twice since joining the gym two weeks ago. Getting a slow start, but I'm starting. Next year by this time, I'm going to do a half marathon, so I gotta get on it. I haven't worked out this week, but hoping to get back at it on Monday. I am so busy with church, work and family that any free time I have, exercise is not the first thing I want to do. I know it should be, but really isn't.

Shane and I went on a marriage retreat last weekend. It was really great. The only thing we had to pay for was our food (which was not cheap either). It was just a great time for us to get away and leave all our problems at home.

Biggest Loser this week, they sent home two players. And of course they were two good players. Bob visited them at their house after the show and they had continued to lose weight and looked great. I wonder if anyone actually goes home and doesn't lose any weight. That would be a little embarrassing, I would think. And why do these people always cry when they leave, it's a game and somebody's gotta go home. Oh I would probably cry too, just cuz I'm emotional like that.

Trying to decide if I want to jump back on the wagon before the holidays or wait til after. My boss suggested that we do a biggest loser here in the office starting the first of the year. That sounds like a great plan to me. Tammy and I are already on board. I know he wants to get the guys in better shape, but we can do better because we know how and we know what we need to do.

My water has been better today, and I really didn't do too bad with my eating...oh wait, I did finish off the pumpkin loaf Tammy made me this week. But i had my 90 calorie pimento cheese on 100 calorie sandwich thin for snack and two 120 calorie tuna salad on 100 calorie sandwich thin for lunch. Back to my oatmeal for breakfast tomorrow, so I'm going to be on a better track. I also have a pumpkin latte addiction right now, but I do not stop at Starbuck, I make my own, with pumpkin spice coffee, 4 calories per cup X2 (large cup) 1/4 c skim milk and 2 splenda packets. So it's very calorie affordable.

Anyhoo, that's all for now.

“The older you get, the tougher it is to lose weight because by then, your body and your fat are really good friends” ~ Unknown Author

"Your body is the baggage you must carry through life. The more excess the baggage, the shorter the trip." ~ Arnold H. Glasgow