Category: The Blog

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RBW Week 10

Romance Biggest Winner: down .65% this week and a new number on the scale that I haven’t seen in a loooooooong time.

Did you see that our team (Double Ds, Team 2) won last week? Woot! Hoping for good results this week too.

Last night I hinted on Twitter that I was very sore. So sore I didn’t know if I’d be able to get out of bed this morning. I actually feel a lot better today than I thought. Whew. But what made me so sore, you ask?

Princess Monster has been training in PE to build up to running 2 miles this year. On their track, she has to do 6 laps (1.5 miles) and jog/run half a lap, walk, repeat — twice a week. She asked if we’d take her up to practice yesterday because she was losing a day and didn’t want to get behind. We said absolutely – we’ll all go.

So up we went to the Jr. High track. We started walking, while she did her half mile jog, then walk. Pretty soon I could tell that she wasn’t really “into” it. She didn’t have her coach there yelling at her, or her friends to laugh with. It was hard to make herself run when it wasn’t really part of her grade. She wanted to quit and just walk.

So I said I’d jog the last two with her.

*dies laughing*

Me, jog? I mean, I’ve never successfully jogged. NEVER. Even when I was young and healthy I hated it. My knee hurt in high school. I quit track after my first disastrous meet. HATED it. Plus, hello, I’m old and overweight and haven’t jogged in twenty+ years — I could keel over anytime.

But I had a sudden burst of insanity and decided to try. I told her not to pace herself with me — she’s already taller than me and has an incredible stride. I’ve got a “trot trot trot” sort of pace, which makes me snort just saying “pace” because again, I don’t jog, haven’t jogged, why am I even contemplating this?!?!

But I did it. I jogged half the lap, just like she did. Yeah, I was way behind, but because I was doing it with her, she went ahead and did her lap. I listened hard to my body — afraid I’d just break apart right there on the track! My shins did hurt a little but nothing alarming, and my knee held up okay. I had to walk the entire lap in between to recover, but then we jogged the last half lap too, and it was actually easier on my body. I was breathing like a freight train at the end, but I did it.

My tally: I jogged .25 miles (in two separate laps) and walked a total of 1.25 miles.

Of course now she wants me to go up with her all the time.

*dies* I’ve created a monster! Who wants to torture me with jogging!

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Holiday Laziness

Happy Labor Day to all my US friends!  I hope you’re enjoying this last long summer weekend!  I have to admit it feels more like fall here today – FINALLY.  The temps have been high 90s again this past week, but this afternoon it’s a balmy 70 and was actually a little chilly last night. 

We’ve spent our long weekend on a horror movie binge.  Well, cheesy “animal” horror movies, not slasher types (too much for the monsters).  The best one we’ve watched so far is Black Water, a crocodile horror tale with only some bad language.  We also watched The Reef and Deep Blue Sea last night.  I really want to watch Snake Island but I don’t know if That Man wil make it through the movie — he hates snakes! 

While watching all these cheesy movies, we’ve been stitching.  WE!  It’s so cool.  My two youngest monsters decided they wanted to stitch too, so I let them pick out some materials from my old stash (Aida, DMC).  They’re just free-handing embroidery-style stitches, making shapes, etc.  They’ve been at it all weekend and their projects are looking really cute.

I’m still waiting on my new supplies to arrive for my next projects, and the next part of the mystery SAL hasn’t been released yet…so I pulled out an old project, Autumn at Hawk Run Hollow.  I finally finished the first block yesterday — pictures coming on Wed.  I also got a good start on the next block.

Papa from Mexico (my Dad) came down yesterday and we celebrated his birthday by taking him out to eat and treating him to some coffee from a new place we found:  Classic Rock Coffee.  I love their blend names:  Back in Black, Atomic Punk…  And the coffee is quite tasty too.  They roast it right there in house and then make some of the best mochas and lattes I’ve had since Caribou (in MN — we don’t have one here). 

Despite all this laziness and yummy coffee, the scale is at a new low this morning.  Hoping to still be there tomorrow for weigh in!

Have a happy Labor Day!

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Giveaways Around the Blogosphere

If you’re interested in winning a copy of Curse of the Golden Flower and my latest release, Golden, stop by the Carina Press blog and tell me about a movie or book obsession.

I’m also at EverybodyNeedsALittleRomance today talking about all those famous movie/story endings that leave me going ARGH!!!  (Clue:  Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.)  Stop by for another chance to win Golden!

Lastly, I’m at JoJo’s Book Corner blog bash talking about hair tribulations — remember our long search for Gregar?  Another chance to win Golden!  (And see a drool-worthy picture of Rhaekhar aka Tecun aka the hunk standing by the pyramid in one of my blog headers.)

Of course the HautTote giveaway is still running here too!

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Cross Stitch WiP Wednesday

I was excited to receive the next part of the Mystery SAL! Here it is all stitched up:

 

Since I’m having so much fun with this one, I decided to sign up for another SAL.  This one isn’t a mystery at all (you can see the glorious red band sampler if you go to the group’s homepage linked above).  The only problem is picking the materials.  I had one piece of 40ct. linen that was long enough, but it had a yellowish cast to it that I didn’t really like for this.  You KNOW I’m going to use at least red silks, maybe black too….so yellowish linen just won’t work.

So of course it was time to do a little shopping.  :lol:

I ordered some Weeks Dye Works 40ct. linen because I’ve heard great things about it.  I went with the basic “linen” color.  Now if I can just settle on which silks to use…

Decisions, decisions!  I have to hurry up and decide, though, because several pages have already been released.

I also have supplies coming for another glorious red project:  Antique Lace Band Sampler designed by Northern Expressions Needlework.  I’ll have to learn some speciality stitches for this one, and it has both beads and ribbons!  Definitely a challenge, but I can’t wait.  It’s just too pretty.

I can’t wait for all these goodies to arrive!

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RBW: 5-0 Edition

Don’t forget the HautTotes giveaway!

Romance Biggest Winner

This last week I hit a significant milestone.  Since Jan. 5th, I’ve lost 50 pounds!

I’ve been on a lot of diets in my time, but I’ve never lost 50.  40, even 45, but I always gave up for some reason or another before I hit 50. 

I’m not giving up this time.

I think what’s different this time is that commitment I talked about earlier.  I’m not “interested” in losing weight — I’m committed.  Even if that means the scale is not cooperative.  I’ve battled 3 extra pounds off and on for the past two weeks.  It’s weird, but one day I’ll be up, and the next, I’ll be down the entire amount.  The next day, up .5 or 1 pound, then back.  It’s like my body isn’t sure about this new place and is fighting just a little.

What’s different this time around, too, is I’m taking a more realistic approach to dieting.  It’s not an “all or nothing” battle for me any more.  Weight Watchers allows for and even encourages occasional treats with weekly points above and beyond the daily points.  I typically eat well within my daily points, but hardly ever dip much into the weeklies.  Until I want to eat at Mythos, say…

And I can do that without guilt, because I have the points.  In the overall scheme of weeks and months and years of living healthier, a planned splurge isn’t going to kill me.

I do still get a little anxious about losing daily points, but I’m working on it.  It’s a good thing to eat less as I go, because my body doesn’t need that much fuel any longer.  I think as I get lower, I’ll be more dependent on dipping into weekly points, which might mean even slower losses, but that’s okay.  This isn’t a race.  I just have to stick the course.

I’ve had to buy new smaller bras and I found a stash of brand-new underwear (still with the tag) stuck in a drawer that fit now.  Yay!  I’m wearing jeans just about every day, when I owned only one pair before I started this journey.  And those jeans are getting big enough I have to wear a belt to keep the waist from gaping open.

The road is long and hard at times, and I’m never going to “get there.”  The journey will go on forever.  I’m always going to have to be mindful of what I eat.  So I might as well enjoy the scenery and plant flowers as I go.

This week:  .81% lost!

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Golden Release Giveaway

Celebrating Golden’s release from Carina Press tomorrow, I’m giving away this gorgeous tote from HautTotes (edited to note:  the size will be the larger full-size tote not the mini)!

To Enter:  comment on this post and tell me your favorite Asian movie.  Red Cliff?  Curse of the Golden Flower?  Legend of the Black Scorpion?  Or simply throw your name in the hat.  Anyone on the planet can enter — I’ll ship internationally.  I do not retain your name or address after the giveaway is over.

Optional:  for more chances to win, review or rate Golden on any online site (Amazon, GoodReads, your blog, etc.) and send me the link.  Each link will gain another entry in the giveaway.

This giveaway will remain open until midnight (CST) Sept. 10th.  If I’m unable to contact the winner after 48 hours, I’ll pick another name.

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Middle Monster Becomes a Mama

Last weekend, Middle Monster found a huge gorgeous moth in the back yard with damaged wings.  I’m pretty sure it was this Polyphemus Moth — freaking big enough to creep her out when it hopped around.  But she couldn’t leave the poor thing outside to get eaten, so she scooped it up in a plastic bowl (at least it wasn’t my good Tupperware this time). 

She put lots of grass and flowers and leaves in the bowl, determined to “feed” and “water” it.  The next morning, she came in and told me the butterfly was “pooping” in the bowl.

Ummm, do butterflies poop?  Anyway, this moth was not pooping.  In fact, it was laying eggs.  Absolutely thrilled, Middle started moving the tiny eggs into another plastic container for safe keeping.  Before Mama Moth died, she laid at least 20 or so eggs, and I’m pretty sure Middle found each and every one of them.

We had a somber burial for the poor damaged moth.

All this week, Middle rushed home from school to check her eggs.  Now I had no idea if the things would actually hatch or not, especially with all her handling and moving.  I also had no idea how long they’d actually take to hatch.  But when she came screaming into the house tonight after school, I knew the miracle had happened.

Middle Monster is now the proud mama of three tiny little caterpillars.  They’re about 1 cm long.  She immediately went racing about the yard gathering every green leaf she could find (it’s been very dry and hot this summer, so not as easy as you’d think) to “feed” her babies.

If they all hatch, I’m going to encourage her to release most of them.  I have no idea if we can feed and grow a caterpillar into a moth, but she’s determined to try!  What a nice little science experiment, too.

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RBW Week 8

Romance Biggest Winner

I’m still up nearly 2 pounds from my low weight, although I am heading back in the right direction this week with a .24% loss. 

It’s incredibly frustrating.  In the past, this kind of “unfair” gain would have derailed me.  If I’m dieting and following my plan, I “deserve” a loss.  Right?

Wrong.  Well, yeah, sure, I’d love a loss.  But a woman’s body can be just as fickle as the scale.  I’m eating the right things and making good choices, but there’s more I could be doing.  I need to return to my exercise program.  Excuses, like getting the monsters back to school, making up some time during the day for work (because I have to pick Princess up everyday since we don’t have bus service this year) instead of working out, Revision Xibalba instead of working out…

I have to make exercise a priority or it won’t happen.  So that is my number one goal this week:  return to exercise in some shape or form.  Find the time, plan the time, and do it.

I can’t allow lack of progress on the scale to derail me.  Someone said on the WW forums the other day:  Just because you trip on one step doesn’t mean you throw yourself headlong down the stairs.  I’m only going to succeed long term if I learn how to deal with these scale droughts.  It’s just a number.  A meaningless number.  If I’m eating healthy and moving my body, then I just have to be patient.

A new food I’ve eaten this week is a quick and easy sort of “peach crumble” that’s really healthy.  Peaches are in full season here and readily available.  I dice up a nice peach or two (if they’re small) in a bowl (no need to peel unless you don’t like the skin), sprinkle with a little Splenda and cinnamon (or nutmeg), and microwave for about 60 seconds.  If I need to get a healthy oil in to meet the WW guidelines, I add a little coconut oil to the warm fruit.  Then I sprinkle old-fashioned oats on top (1/4 c = 2 pts), stir, and optionally heat a few more seconds.   It’s not quite as decadent as real peach crumble but it’s very good, warm and sweet and fruity.

Aside:  WW doesn’t really count coconut oil for the healthy guideline – the oil should be pourable.  But coconut oil is my go-to miracle cure for all sorts of things.  It’s anti-microbal and anti-viral!  (When I got a painful split in the corner of my mouth, I tried everything to heal it and it just got worse and worse.  Started putting coconut oil on it twice a day and it healed in a few days.)  Plus it tastes great and is very, very satisfying.  I decided to count it for myself as a healthy oil but I only use it at most once a day.  Really more like 2-3 times a week.

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Good News Monday

Revision Xibalba for THE BLOODGATE WARRIOR is DONE!!

I struggled to find time over the weekend to write the one new scene with a family dinner and then laundry and errands yesterday.  Plus a few things still nagged at me that weren’t quite right, so I did another read-thru and tweaked a few plot elements.  Finally, I made my way to the next-to-last scene that I needed to add, but it was 10:30 p.m. last night.  With monsters going to school and the Evil Day Job, I just couldn’t stay up.

So I got up Dark & Early this morning and finished that new scene.  I only needed a couple of hundred words to finish it, and then smoothed that last scene to make sense. 

Whew, I’m exhausted yet very happy with how this story came out.  It’s a nice meaty (almost) 42K smoldering romp steeped in Maya mythology and Guatemalan history, including a pyramid sacrifice hot enough to hopefully sear off a few eyebrows.

I already contacted a few people who expressed interest in beta reading this story, but if you’re interested and didn’t get an email from me this morning, drop me a note.

Do you have any good news to share today?