Now that we're home....

As we said earlier, we made it home - just in time for some gorgeous weather. We quickly moved the critical things out of the RV and back into the house after we arrived. We got our taxes in the mail on time and got to watch the tracking take them all over the place before being marked as delivered over a week later. Phew!

On Tuesday April 16th, we headed to Knoxville for Stu's appointment with an orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Ivy. All went well and he left after a cortisone shot in his left thumb and an appointment for carpel tunnel release surgery on May 3rd.

Next up was our dermatologist appointments on April 22nd. Stu came out clear, I ended up with a biopsy (turned out benign), a couple of frozen spots on my arms and legs, plus orders for Efudex (a chemotherapy cream for pre-cancerous skin). The instructions were to use it twice a day for two weeks, applying a thin layer on my nose, cheeks and temples. Since I have already had a couple of spots on my nose frozen before, we hope this will take care of everything. I will be documenting the whole process in a later post - my follow up appointment isn't until July 22nd, so you can see how long this process can be!

Here are some photos of the wall behind the parking lot...






Then on April 24th we headed to Knoxville for lunch at the Downtown Brewery with good friends. What a great time we had!






Things were rolling along nicely until I woke up Sunday to a text to call my daughter as soon as possible. My grandson was involved in a bad auto accident. He swerved to avoid a deer, rolled the car, airbags deployed, rolled it again, then crashed into a tree. He had to have multiple surgeries to fix a shattered kneecap, broken ankle, broken wrist and badly broken elbow. In addition he ended up with more surgery to correct a fractured sternum. There were no head injuries, fortunately. He is still in the hospital in Colorado Springs but should be moving to rehab in the next day or two. He's doing much better!

We got a deal of the day on a bigger, better SunJoe pressure washer and Stu was impressed by what a great job it did. He will use it on the house and I will use the smaller one (no detergent tank) to keep the deck clean from mud & the dogs. LOL!


This is a before/after just using the small pressure washer with water only! See how nice and clean the dog chew spots are? {snicker}


So now it was up to Stu to get as much done as he could beforehand, knowing his right hand would be pretty much out of commission for two weeks. The first thing we did was to prune back the six rose bushes in the front and back yard. We hired a local guy to dig out our front planters completely and then dig out all the rose bushes so we could move them over by the fence. He did a great job and we will use him again when we need some yard work done.




Then Stu put in a drain system from the gutter to the side of the planter.


And then added mulch...


We purchased some Leyland Cypress trees to plant along the back fence in hopes that as they grow and fill out, the dogs won't see as much of the neighbors and will maybe not be so vocal about them. time will tell. We lucked out with a discount coupon for Lowe's from our change of address form we put in back in Folkston, GA plus there was a 20% discount if you bought 20 or more trees. Well, he bought all 28 of the available ones and got them planted. The cross fence you see is going to get moved to the front of our garage making it easier to let the dogs in/out without needing to go on the deck (a must when we rebuild it).


Next up is some nice dwarf Arborvitae trees for the front planter. The flowers have been moved to a couple other spots. If they live, fine. If not, that's okay too. Same with the rose bushes (but we suspect they will survive just fine). Here are the rose bushes and so far it looks like they are all budding! (two weeks after transplanting)


In other medical news, Stu saw his ophthalmologist and is scheduled for his cataract surgery. He will get his left eye done the morning of May 13th and the right done on May 20th. Each surgery has a follow-up appointment the same day, late in the afternoon. His follow-up on his carpel tunnel surgery is May 16th. Hopefully he will be done for a while.

The #2doods are loving life, as they always do. They boarded for two nights during Stu's surgery and although they love it there, they are always happy to be home. They have really been enjoying these 70-80 degree days!




They really love it when we sit out on the deck with them.




The carpel tunnel release surgery went well but it made for a long day. We had to be in Knoxville at noon ET, which meant leaving home at nine CT (allowing 2 hours drive time due to traffic issues). They took him back at noon but it was after four when they finally did the surgery. We got out of there just after five, stopped for dinner at Denny's and got home around seven. LONG day... He is doing well, three days of keeping it elevated and taking OTC meds (never filled the Rx for narcotic meds), and tomorrow he goes to a therapist to get the dressing changed and get it evaluated.






It hasn't slowed him down. He's mowed the entire yard over the last two days and even burned up a ton of weeds (his favorite method of killing them).






Oh, and we did have some short-term visitors down by our pond...


Oh, and I almost forgot - yesterday was mammogram day. Results were good!

Ciao for now!

Skin cancer and other medical stuff...

We hear all the warnings. We try to get our yearly check-ups. But for me, too many years spent in the Florida sun back when sunscreen wasn't a big thing, means a lot of pre-cancerous spots to be frozen each year.

My check-up was generally good. One biopsy taken (results in 2-3 weeks) on my right shin and several pre-cancerour spots were frozen.

But this year the dermatologist decided it was time to try a different approach on my face. I've had several spots on my nose frozen and since I have had a lot of sunburns there, I knew it would continue to be an issue. She also found several pre-cancerous spots on my temples and cheeks.

I am now using Efudex (5% fluorouracil) on my face twice a day for two weeks. According to Google, it's actually considered chemotherapy.

"It can treat rough, raised areas of heavily sun-exposed skin (actinic or solar keratoses). It can also treat skin cancer (basal cell carcinoma)."

A good friend and fellow author, Nick Russell, went through this a few years back so I had a rough idea what I might look like. I then made the mistake of going through Google images....eeek!

I am currently on day six and see a few spots getting redder. There is a little itching in some spots and an irritation where my glasses sit seems to be sloughing off. When I can, I'm wearing readers that I can perch lower on my nose. So far the worse side effect is a strong metallic taste in my mouth a couple hours after the morning application.

I plan to take selfies to show how this progresses. My follow-up is in late July so that is how long it can take to complete the process. Oh, and did I mention, no sun if at all possible? That exacerbates the process. So broad-brimmed hats if I have to go out, but in general, I'm trying to avoid it completely.

Starting pic....the red you see is my natural complexion (and always shows in photos)

Wish me luck! I have to go out in public on May 1st (Stu's optical check to prepare for cataract surgery), May 3rd (Stu's carpel tunnel surgery on his right hand), May 7th (my mammogram), May 16th (Stu's follow-up for his hand surgery).... Growing old isn't for sissies!

Ciao for now!

A little Amazon shopping fun.....

Yes, we love our Amazon Prime and it's especially handy when we aren't super close to any major shopping areas. Thought I'd share a couple of things we've bought recently that we really like and find valuable (at least to us).

We have several odd sized, different material shopping bags but we tend to not take them into the stores with us. For the most part, they get used when we go to Sam's Club. Tired of wasting all the plastic, we looked for a set up bags that met several criteria. First, the material had to be sturdy and the quality first rate. Second, they should have flat bottoms. Third, they needed to be the same. Fourth, short handles. Fifth, not too big (or they'd be overloaded and I wouldn't be able to carry them). And sixth, a nicety but not a must, they should come in some sort of convenient carry case.

Not easy, is it...but I found a set that looked they hit all points and I ordered them. BagPodz! When they arrived, I was even more impressed with the quality and convenience. This set comes with either 5 or 10 bags. Since we tend to shop less frequently, I opted for the ten bag set (currently not available, keep checking) in the bright blue (they come in four colors). I had a chance to use them this week and LOVE THEM! Here is my shopping cart with 6-8 (can't remember exactly) and not all of them are filled full. (Note, they are about the size of a traditional plastic shopping bag but hold MUCH more weight.)

BagPodz @Amazon

Next up is something I never considered until hurting my knee this past week. Walking the dogs several times a day, initially I carried nothing with me. Most days I wear leggings and without pockets, hard to bring even a phone with two dogs. But after getting injured, I realized I needed to always have my phone with me. After several searches, I found the perfect wallet, Running Buddy.

Finally, remember the chewed up dog bed? Well, the price has gone up a lot on the same one, so I found another brand and ordered it. So far, so good! Good inside or outside a crate, I suspect the other crate will get a matching one soon and the old one will go in the back of the car. The only downside, no color choice. But hey, the #2doods don't complain!

Ciao for now!

A mere shadow...

It's true - we're a mere shadow of our former selves. Why did we do it? When did we do it? How did we do it? Here's a bit of a recap as well as some hints/tips for those considering this as a new way of eating (it's not just a diet, it's a diet change for life).

The pluses, besides the weight loss and better health: we rarely feel hungry and we crave the bad foods less and less. We know we're eating healthier, too, even when we eat out we find it relatively easy to order something that fits our needs. No sauces or gravies, hold the dressing (best on the side), forgo the pasta, potatoes and bread. Even fast food places are used to people ordering burgers without the bun.

But don't discount the medical benefits. Stu was taking three different medications for hypertension and one for type 2 diabetes. Is off all the original meds and only taking a low dose of another med for his hypertension. His blood sugar is consistently in the 80-90s every day. He is still on a statin for cholesterol but doesn't get more blood work done for a couple more weeks to see if that has improved.

BEFORE Dec 2017 - 40# loss - AFTER Oct 2018

BEFORE Feb 2018 - 29# loss - AFTER Oct 2018

We opted to go sort of a lazy keto route (high protein/low carb). Lazy because we only tracked our intake of calories and carbs. We started out by calculating the number of calories needed to maintain our current weight, our BMI, then our calorie intake limits to get our percentages for tracking (we used MyFitnessPal.com to track - the free membership only allows using a percentage and then calculating that into grams).

• Calorie Maintenance Need Calculator
• BMI Calculator
• Caloric Intake Calculator

From there we set Stu's initial calories to 1900 a day and mine at 1200. We both set a limit of 20-25 carbs per day using total carbs (true keto uses a special calculation for net carbs, subtracting fiber from carbs). We had friends interested and I wrote an email outlining some of what we were doing as well as tips for starting. I'm going to copy that here rather than reinvent the wheel.

• Pick a date!
• Get rid of anything in the house that won't be on the diet (Exception, something you don't "crave" and is good for kids/company. I kept rice meals for company. We also bought lo-carb tortilla wraps for sandwiches with company.)
• Calculate your caloric and carb intake restrictions.
• Chose how you will be calculating your intake. We used MyFitnessPal.com because I already had an account. I set up a second one for Stu and tracked for both of us. A bit of a pain but eventually he got the hang of what he could and couldn't eat and his limits.
• Realize you will have bad days! Just go back on the diet as soon as you can.
• After the first 10-15# loss, allow a splurge day but still try to keep carbs as low as you can. For example, where we used to get two large pizzas so we would have leftovers, instead we got one medium and split it.
• DRINK WATER!!!! LOTS of water...twice what you think you will need.
• Realize you may have up to a 5# water loss in the first week until your body adjusts.
• Be sure to get fiber in your diet so you don't get constipated. We use mixed nuts (a serving of 20+/-) and green olives.
• If you start to feel flu-like, you need to get your electrolytes back to normal. We use Mio Electrolyte version as an additive to water. You can also use Powerade Zero, it's pretty sweet so Stu cuts it 50/50 with water.
• You can still bake but you will need some new items in your pantry: almond &/or coconut flour for one thing and a sweetener like Swerve. There are a gazillion recipes on the internet, just Google Keto and lo carb with the name of a recipe you like. You can even make 90 second Keto bread! We printed out two slightly different recipes and kept the one we liked best.
• Our diet mostly consists of: eggs, bacon, sausage, beef, pork, chicken, sliced deli meats, hard cheeses, cream cheese, dill pickles, olives, mayo, real butter, real cream (although I still use 1/2&1/2) and most veggies. We look at the carbs in anything we are going to buy. We use low sugar catsup, for example.
• Fruits are pretty much a no-no unless you can limit yourself to 2-3 strawberries of 8-10 blueberries. Bananas are definitely out initially.
• Corn is out as are all legumes (beans, peanuts). Watch the amount of carrots, onions and Brussel sprouts. 

We rarely hit our calorie limits. We only watch calories and carbs. Stu is currently at 1800 calories, he started at 1900 but we had to adjust when he lost 30#. I'm at 1100-1200 calories and strive for the low end. We both try to stay under 25 carbs, preferably 20 or less. On our splurge days, we go for 30-35 max. We do a splurge day every 10-14 days. It might be a ice cream (one scoop in a junior cup rather than 2-3 in a large cone) or pizza (thin crust and 1/4 the size we used to get. We still get popcorn at the movies but the smallest size available rather than the jumbo refillable bucket.

We track using the free website & app, MyFtinessPal. There are a lot of tracking sites/apps, just find the one that works best for you. I chose to display calories, carbs, fiber, protein, fat in MyFitnessPal but we only closely watched the calories and carbs. We also only did total carbs, not net (a formula where you subtract fiber from total carbs to calculate net carbs).

I have a lot of recipes we have tried or plan to on Copy Me That - a great way to save recipes you find. I print them out but can refer to them online as needed and make notes. Here are the ones we currently have save.

Fat bombs, like the chocolate peanut butter ones I make and we love, help when you might feel hungry or crave a sweet treat. I also make sugar-free jello gummy bears for me since chewy candy is my downfall.

An air fryer is great for this WOE (way of eating) because of the minimal oil used (keeping calories in check). We have also fallen in love with Kerrygold Irish butter. We can even get it at Walmart. I also got our almond flour there. Swerve, for baking, I got on Amazon but it goes a long way.

There are a million, gazillion websites talking about keto/low carb and many folks will scoff when you mention it and others are like reformed drinkers when they discuss it. LOL! So we usually just say we are doing low carb even though we are closer to what is called lazy keto.

Remember, this is a new way of eating (WOE). It's for life or you will gain it all back, unfortunately.

Some results are obvious, Stu is down forty pounds and I'm almost at thirty pounds. Stu hasn't tracked measurements but because women lose more slowly, I tracked mine. Here were the results almost 2# ago.

So yes, new clothes have been needed for both of us. Stu was wearing waist size 38 pants (a little loose) and 36 (quite tight). Now he's wearing size 34. He's gone from XL shirts (and they were getting tight) to L and even a M in certain ones. Yesterday he pulled out a brand new white dress shirt, never worn, bought two years ago for cruises. He looked like he was wearing a bed sheet! New belts, new pants, new shorts, new shirts and a great new blazer for dress. I've gone from tight 14 pants to slightly loose size 12 and in one brand a 10. Tops have gone from XL to some L and and some M. So the same thing, new tops, bottoms and even my first classic black dress (that I may have bought too early and may have to get tailored). The biggest surprise is my shoes are getting loose!

One last note, just for the women...if you are on Facebook and you are sixty or older, I have a support group for those following a keto or low carb way of eating. It's not a research group and technically not a recipe group, although we do share recipes from time to time. It's a motivation, how are you doing, how can we help, sharing and caring group. (You must be over 60 and female!!) Women Losing it after 60: Keto/Low-Carb Support.

Ciao for now!

A little weekend excitement!

Here's Stu's version:

Well, just another side effect of losing weight. Over medication! Seems the dosage for my previous weight was too much for my slimmer self. That and a full day wrestling with a trenching machine, I decided some chest pains were in order.

Long story short, a late night trip to the ER and an overnight in the hospital, 4 blood draws over time showed I was not having any kind of heart issue. Pulse rate in the 40s kinda freaked everyone out. Drop one of my meds and the problem has resolved itself....follow up tomorrow with my PHP and we adjust my meds accordingly. Most likely a stress test to rule out any issues.

Here's my version:

Well, this has been a fun weekend - not! Stu woke me at 1am Sunday and asked me to take him to the ER due to a pain in his chest that wouldn't go away. Started about 11pm.

Got up, dressed and drove the 30 miles to the closest hospital. They were terrific. Over the next four hours he saw 4 RN's, an x-ray tech and two doctors before he was admitted for observation. Nitroglycerin under the tongue, a shot of Plavix in his stomach, multiple blood tests, a chest x-ray, multiple EKGs and then a nitroglycerin patch on his chest.

I drove home around 5:30-6am, slept a couple hours, got up to let the dogs out and feed them. Texted with him and he said if his heart rate came up (was running in the 40's), he was probably coming home.

Went back to bed for another hour or so. Got up, spent some time on the computer before heading to the hospital. They discharged him at 5pm, new drug orders, see cardiologist for a stress test and see primary care physician.

End result, his 30# weight loss meant the meds he has been taking were driving him B/P and pulse too low. They don't suspect any major heart issues but want the stress test to be sure. Took him off one medication, added an old one back into the mix but at a lowered dosage. He may still need one more taken away. We'll see. He has an appointment with our primary care physician tomorrow, will see what she wants him to do next. 

Ciao for now!

A little organization

Everyone knows how much we buy via Amazon Prime but it's not always the best price. For example, I wanted some mesh metal magazine organizers for the pantry. We keep several flavors and strengths of K-cups on hand for our coffee maker. Multiple boxes stacked haphazardly was not the best solution. I thought this might work out better.

I started looking for them and discovered Target had them at half the price of anywhere else, including the office supply stores. I ordered four and loved them once I got them set up. They worked out well!

In fact, so well, when I found a perfume I was looking for cheaper at Target than anywhere else online, I ordered two more. When they arrived, I reorganized the pantry, pulling out multiple items to take to a local shelter, things no longer on our diets.

Then I added the two additional organizers which let me load one with DECAF coffee on the lower shelf. I love it!

So, what do you think of my new shirt? LOL! Kind of fits, doesn't it.

Speaking of diets....I'm happy. Now within 2.5# of my next goal. Of course once that's met, I set a new goal of 5# less. All in all, my final goal by the end of this year is 12.5# less than where I am now. I think that's quite doable! My bust has lost size so the comparison isn't as dramatic, but I'm happy! I've gone from tight size 14 pants to loose size 12 and sometimes even a size 10 pant.

Ciao for now!