The Seashelly Tales

One month of the new year is now gone.    Other than keeping up with my goal of blogging everyweek,  I've been doing good elsewhere. A) Pantry Challenge/Weight Loss As January drew to a close, I had lost a total of 7.5 pounds since I began this challenge.  I will soon be entering a new "decade" and I can see "Wonderland" in the near future!   "Decade" refers to the 10 pound range (110's, 210's, 180's, etc.) and "Wonderland" means the first digit of the weight is a 1 (ie: 197 vs 244). Pantry Challenge - is going strong.   I have not spent more than $25 per week on groceries.   In fact,  I've been going 10 - 14 days between shopping trips.   I'm still going fairly strong against the forbidden 9 - I've had a couple of weak momments, but the next day I am back on that horse as it were.  Unfortunately, I have not been cooking up as much as I had planned and had a couple days were I did not have enough p...

Hello All! Another week down the drain, only 50 more.  I am NOT going to count the days until Christmas if that's where you think I was going to go.  Lots of snow or rain.  I mean, lots of rain.   Tons of rain.  Dreary days. 1) PANTRY CHALLENGE/WEIGHT LOSS   Another week, and this week the scale said I lost 2 Pounds !!  Total since I started this blog:  3 pounds gone! As for grocery shopping, I have not shopped since I last mentioned shopping on the previous blog.   Part of that is because this week I received my organic vegetables from Boston Organics so I have not needed anything.   I probably will be shopping later this week.   2) HPCKHC Crafting a) Finished Objects  - I have two finished blanket squares this week - one was turned in to Ancient Runes and the other was for Quidditch.       b) WIP's:  I've got another block on the needles should be done during th...

Hello All! It seems the calendar changed years during this past week.  It is now officially 2014.    So without further ado, here we go: A) Pantry Challenge: Weight Loss:  My "official" weigh in days are from the day of my colonoscopy done just after Christmas.  I'm using that weight as my base for the year.   Granted, everything in my system was flushed out in preparation of the procedure, I kinda expected the number to go up slightly once the bowels started to accumulate food in them.   I was quite surprised to notice that I had lost 1 pound!    Niceway to start the year!   Grocery shopping:  I had set a limit of  $25 per week to shop for food with.  The last time I remember actually going shopping for food and not buying food anywhere else (with the exception of some Chinese Food for New Year's Eve) I managed to eat quite well using what I could find in the refridgerator and cupboards....

Not quite there yet, but am busy plotting, planning what I want to accomplish in 2014.  Goals are not quite set, I usually do those on New Year's Eve. One thing I plan on doing is to post here once per week.   During that post I plan to update on various topics any progress made during the week. The topics I am choosing are: A:The Pantry Challenge Update:  The Pantry challenge is to feed myself for the week using only what's in my cupboard, plus one shopping trip per week limited to $25 spending.   Plus, every other week I receive my share in an organic co-op of vegetables.   The Pantry Challenge topic also includes my progress as I lose weight and get my blood sugar down and myself out of the pre-diabetic condition.   And whether or not I managed to avoid the "forbidden 9"  - potatoes, rice, pasta, bread, cereal, dairy, sugar, alcohol, fruit - except one apple per day or 1/2 cup berries - for the diet plan I am following....

Hello.   Wow.  Another year has flown by.   Ouch. It's almost that time of year to review goals made, how well did we do, and what goals you want for the next year.  That will not be this post.   But,a good topic for another night - AFTER christmas. This year is the year I have been pre-diabetic.  Thankfully, I've been able to maintain my weight (been bouncing within the same 5 lbs all year) avoiding the daily prick testing and meds.   Now, I'm starting to get my head wrapped around the idea that maybe, finally, it's time to get serious about weight loss.  My kitchen is pretty much void of the nasty stuff, but to start a weight loss plan at this time of year is just plain foolishness.   All I can hope for is to become better at making better food choices and limiting the quantity I eat.  No gorging until beyond stuffed.    The main problems I have with weight loss: 1) I'm ADDICTED...

Again, I realize I've neglected my poor suffering blog.   Where has the time gone?  What have I been doing?  It seems that when we are young, time seems to crawl.   For the last day of school.  But then suddenly it's the last day of summer and back to school we go. As adults, we go about our busy daily routines, then suddenly we wonder where did the year go?   The older we get, the faster the years fly by! It's that time of year again.   The time that usually sends me into a tailspin depression.   But not so much this year.   I seem to finally have  a handle on that. Yeah, it sucks that the year flew by and I'm wondering  WTF?  So, where have I been and where am I going? As far as my crafting has gone,  It's been quite a productive period since my last post.    I've challenged myself in both knitting and spinning endeavors. I've been a member of that knitting/crochet ...

I know most of us have learned to bring our knitting with us when we go to appointments, etc. where we know we will be spending some time waiting. We have learned to put that waiting time into productive use. It is possible to knit/crochet while driving! However, there are rules that must be followed to keep out of trouble with the traffic cops! Why? How many times have you been driving along and then wham! You're stuck in a parking lot. Traffic is not moving. Everything is at a standstill. Now all these happen for various reasons: road work, accidents(#1), whatever. So, instead of sitting there, aggravated, blaring your horn at other drivers who are most likely feeling the same way you do, so why not take advantage of this stand still time by working on your knitting/crochet project? Turn wasted time into productive time! However, like I mentioned above, there are some "rules" to make this a pleasant experience for you and all around you. 1) BE AWARE OF THE TRAFFIC AROUN...