A couple of weeks ago I went clothes shopping. I hadn't done that in a long time. Over the last year I've lost almost 50 pounds and am hoping to lose some more so was putting off buying any clothes. But I really needed some jeans that weren't either full of holes or covered with paint. It was so great to actually get some new clothes. I also no longer had much for slightly dressy as they were all too big now. It's also so much more fun clothes shopping for smaller clothes. What I've also realized over the last couple of weeks that the new clothes make me look like I've lost even more weight. Another gratifying aspect is taking the clothes that are too big to St. Vinny's.

I teach a med education group at work. One of the aspects of the meds that we give on my unit is that there tends to be a weight gain. I often tell the patients that I can tell them what to do. That part is easy. What is hard is following the advice. I hate exercising! Not only is it not fun but it takes time away from the things that I do like to do. But I also know that I need to do it. Knowing myself, I know that if I have to go somewhere to do it, it won't get done. So I've had to set up a place in my house where I can get some exercise. I always advice the patients that they need to get to know themselves. What are their triggers, what are their weaknesses and what are their strengths. When you know those things then you can organize your house to help you stick to any plan that you set up. I know that I do not want to have chips and such in my house. I will eat them. Ice cream on the other hand doesn't bother me at all to leave alone. Pastries... a very major no-no. The other things that one really needs to eat healthily is a support person. I have several people at work who are encouraging. None live close enough to be an exercise partner but I'm working on that. Don't really like to do it with my hubby.

Gardening every summer has really helped me get some exercise. I've been making raised flowerbeds by hauling rocks from along one of the roads near here. Last year my hubby and I hauled a lot more than this year to get several gardens established. This year I kind of waited to see how things were looking. Then I also decided to do some landscaping with the rocks and make the front yard tiered above the side yard. It sloped before. So more rocks were needed. Next year we will be adding on to the back of the house and trenches will need to be dug. I plan on helping so that I can get some exercise that way. Once that is done and the patio off the shed is done, then I'll know better where I can put the rest of my flowerbeds. Flowerbeds and some of my plants can be checked out in my webpage http://www.webspawner.com/users/aprilsgarden03/. I'll try to put more of the general flowerbeds on there so that you can check them out. When I planned these beds, I did quite a bit of research on what would grow well where. I've never done that before. I never had the internet available before, either. I have a gardening journal of how everything looked to start with, any information about any plants I put in the ground, and then how things look each year. It helps to remember from year to year what I put in the ground and what kind of soil they need and everything.