Oh what a week! Ups and downs, bad and good

Today is a much better day than many, recently. For that, I am extremely thankful. We do not realise how much we take for granted, until we are without it, or something goes wrong with it. Nor how helpless we can become in certain situations.

What a week!  Life has a habit of getting in the way of the best laid plans and work goals! I am sooo  thankful for my AVON!  If I worked for an employer, I'd have been fired long ago. And I would not have had money going into my bank while I was not working! It has been such a blessing for me!

Last week, Thursday, leaving for work, my hubby ran over one of our 4 legged children, Angel. 13 years old ... strong willed ... she has a broken rib, inflammation and is lucky to be alive. Giving her the pain pills and anti-inflammatories has been a battle of wills, with winners on both sides. Her "treat" - McDonald's cheeseburgers - became a way to fool her into taking them. The vet was awesome but it was a bill we could have done without.

Friday, we had rented a truck to pick up a new (to us) washer, take our old one and some other household goods (a tv etc) to recycle, and remove cut tree limbs from our yard to the recycle place, for mulching. Hubby's back started going out, so halfway through the day, we returned the truck and the tree limbs remain in the yard.

Then, Saturday, we had a tire started going flat, resulting in us needing to get 2 new ones put on ... another bill we did not need.

The stress, and the heat, made my blood pressure go up, to high 180s/100 and working my business was farthest from my mind. thankfully, 2 of my online customers placed orders totalling almost $100. I was extremely thankful.

Tuesday, unable to get my blood pressure to go down, I went to the doctor, and we have decided to up my meds for the time being. having maternal grandparents, one who died of a stroke and one who had an aortic aneurysm, I HAVE to take my BP seriously.

Anyway, I am feeling semi-human today, so am trying to work a little, while I feel up to it.

On Sunday, in trying to relax and lower my blood pressure, we went out to Cedar Falls  - not realising that my "quiet place" was a weekend mecca for loads of other people too. The parking area was packed and the disabled spot was taken by a young gal in a pick up truck, no placard and she was running around, partying, but I managed to squeeze into a spot, and with my hubby and my trusty walker - and resting at various points along the way - I made it to the bench that looks out over the whole river as it comes down from the old mill.

I sat there maybe 30-45 minutes, laughing at kids playing in the water, and just enjoying the view.

My trusty walker, though, is old and one of the "stop and go" variety, so making the 100-150 yard trek was (for me) a huge struggle. Thus, when my AVON bonus hit the bank this past Tuesday, I blew some of it on a newer, modern version with a SEAT and BACKREST!

I will collect it tomorrow from my local neighbourhood Walmart, after ordering it from them online. I have such high hopes of being able to attempt to walk more.

On a good note, my Tuesday doctor visit revealed that I had lost another 8lbs, making a total loss of  61lbs so far. It seems I am definitely getting the hang of this, and I'm finding some fast food faves along the way, that keep me out of the kitchen and thus away from temptations!

My beloved Chick-Fil-A Spicy sandwich - even done as I had it before on wheat with no butter and no pickle - took just too much of my day's calories/fat/carbs up ... for now it is off my menu. Me, being such a picky eater, what would they have to offer that I felt good about having? The Market Salad! I am hooked, it is amazing, only 200 calories, grilled chicken, bleu cheese crumbles, shredded lettuce, shredded red cabbage, grated carrot, blueberries and strawberries. I must admit the cheese is pretty piquant, but I am acquiring a taste for it. I do it without dressing, but they have a wide choice of them available! I also don't add the toppings that come with it, granola and nuts.

Out of the blue the other week, hubby had not had Bojangles in forever, so we stopped to get him something, and I noticed their new salads, so decided to get one of their Roasted Chicken Bites ones. Sadly, in checking out the nutrition, it was higher in sodium than I could allow myself to have in one meal ... easily remedied. I divvied it in two, and saved one half for lunch the next day. The one I had for dinner, I used about 1/4-1/3 of the pack of Ken's lite ranch dressing with it, and added the nutritional info of both to my Sparkpeople log for the day.

I also discovered a new fave food. Well, the lady in the seafood department at our local Publix turned me onto it. They do a grilled salmon. She gave us some to taste ... and I fell in love immediately. The pieces are approximately 6oz each, and I divvy them into 3 of approx 2oz apiece, and freeze them. 

Every morning, I get 2 slices of my Nature's Own Double Fiber Bread, and I spread them with one triangle of Laughing Cow Light Creamy Swiss Original Cheese. Then, because I do not like oatmeal ... but am ok with the oatmeal grains on multigrain bread, I now take 2 nice pinches of dry oatmeal and sprinkle over the spready cheese and use the knife to smooth it into it. Then I break up 1 piece of salmon over the top on one slice and pop the other on top to make a sandwich. I like to cut it into 4. It's a heart healthy breakfast and quite filling. The 10gms of fiber is almost 1/2 what most people need in a day ... and it's given me back my sandwiches, now that I have cut most processed meats out of my diet due to sodium content and the preservatives. so I'm a happy camper again!

Well, in the words of Bugs Bunny "that's all folks!"  I'm getting tired and the buzzing in my ears is coming on (telltale sign - for me - that my BP's going up). Have a great day, and enjoy your weekend!