Dots

Things are NOT going well on the diet front. Over the last couple of weeks I have found myself unable to stay within my point range and yesterday I actually ate some candy. Dots.  Many of them.  Like I used to do, mindless stuffing of face with sweet nuggets of gumminess.  And I even hid the box under my pillow so no one would see, but of course my observant 7-year-old noticed them.  Busted!

I know from sad experience that a weight loss so painfully eked out over an 11-week time frame can be regained in two weeks (or less!) if an eating frenzy is allowed to occur.  I believe I know what has caused this to happen, and there isn't really anything I can do about it.  But stepping back to observe my behavior over the last two weeks has indicated to me that something definitely changed, and the urge to overeat is incredibly strong.  "Will power" just isn't cutting it.  Something takes over that is overwhelmingly powerful and demands that I just EAT.

But I'm NOT going to throw in the towel, as in times past.  I have worked diligently to lose the 12 or so pounds, I feel much better, clothes fit better, and life is just better overall without overeating.  So, even with Thanksgiving coming up, I will continue to track my points, log my exercise and consider this just a blip in a weight-loss effort that will probably take about a year.  And then there will be maintenance, of course.

In good news, I'm going backpacking Friday-Sunday, in the Gila wildnerness.  I have a five-day holiday weekend and after cooking dinner on Thanksgiving and hanging with my kids, I will pack up and meet my dad at the trail head for what should be a fun trip.  18 miles round trip, with a pack, and access only to the food I carry with me should help to break the overeating cycle, but sometimes it backfires.  Example:  I went on a six-day backpack to Wyoming several years ago.  Backpacking for six days at altitude requires a lot of energy, and thus food, so I ate heartily on the trail.  Problem was, when I got back into civilization, my body wanted me to continue to eat heartily, and I did.  End result--I was 20 pounds heavier 3 months later.  Ugh. I even broke the zipper on my wedding dress--but that's another story.

So, I will have to watch for that pitfall, but I think the trip is going to be great.  If the weather holds.

In succulent news, my baby toes has a couple of new flower buds but I think it wants more sun, as this picture indicates:

Poor flower stem on baby toes plant seeking sun (window to left)

its's always hard in the winter to know where to put my succulents to keep them happy.  With these delicate little guys, just a slight difference in sun angle can make a big difference.  I have kind of a dark house, and very little windowsill space that isn't in the direct attack zone of my big dog's tail, which is a unique and powerful weapon, or accessible to little kitten teeth.  All I can do is place the plant, not move it (they don't like getting schlepped around at all), and hope for the best. 

My support stockings have not yet arrived.  I even called to inquire about them.  That's fine with me!  They can get here months from now and I won't mind!

Will report back . . .