Acclimating... to getting up at oh-dark-thirty again after having two blissful weeks off from work.
Celebrating... that I survived the month of December, which was a virtual minefield of temptation and diet saboteurs, and gained no weight! In fact, I lost 4.9 pounds between November 28 and January 1 for a combined total of 29.1 pounds to date!
Walking... a lot! Sometimes indoors, sometimes out, sometimes in mild weather, sometimes in cold.
Cursing... every time I write 2016 instead of 2017. Old habits do die hard.
Working on... 53 report cards that are to go home tomorrow. Whew...
Hauling around... a lot of bags to work on days that I walk. I swear some mornings it looks like I'm moving in! LOL!
Resisting... the urge to buy more of these tasty little nuggets. I bought them to use in the goodie bags I made for my students last month and had a few left over. I like them therefore I need not have them around.
Beginning... Erin's latest book challenge - Book Challenge By Erin 6.0
Loving... my new Pure Vida bracelets. (Yes, I know I have hairy arms... Sigh.)
Taking... down the few Christmas decorations I put up this holiday season. Yes, I'm one of those people who leave their stuff up into the new year. LOL!
Scorching... my mouth with Atomic Fireballs. Yes, I have discovered that these hot jawbreakers are just enough to knock out some of my cravings. A bonus is that the hot cinnamon singes my taste buds and I don't want anything to eat after I've had one!
Reading (listening to)... the audiobook I Let You Go by Claire Mackintosh
Liking... my new lunch bag. Thanks, Aunt Jane.
Letting go... and moving on. There comes a point of where you just have to say - enough.
Enough.
Looking... forward to the new year and the opportunity to live bolder, to embark on more adventures, to show more kindness, to be a better friend, and to love deeper.
So, what have you been up to lately? Have a very happy Thursday!
So, what have you been up to lately? Have a very happy Thursday!
Linking up with:
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Oh, Atomic Fireballs! There's a blast from the past!
ReplyDeleteMy decorations are still up. They can't come down until the 6th. (Also partly because that day is a public holiday where I work so I actually have time to put them away).
Yes, Epiphany. Our decorations never come down before Epiphany. Not sure why we adhere to this, given that neither my husband and I are very religious. LOL!
DeleteAnd, yes, the atomic fireballs... I stumbled upon them by accident, but discovered that they work in terms of satisfying cravings. Who knew?
As Bev alluded to, the Twelve Days of Christmas song exists for a reason.
ReplyDeleteI Like the bag.
Your hair is a different color in each walking pic.
How observant, E Man! Yes, the picture of me walking with the toboggan was taken earlier in December. The picture of me walking with the bandana wrapped around my head was taken New Year's Day. I cut and colored my hair in the time between when the two pictures were taken.
DeleteThank you! Doesn't the lunch bag kinda remind you of a beach bag?
Nice bag and well done on not gaining weight over Christmas. Unfortunately I can't say the same! My decorations started to come down yesterday. Hopefully I'll finish that job today.
ReplyDeleteThank you and thank you! Not gaining weight (and even losing) required a lot of discipline. I did have a few indulgences, but I was very wise in my choosing. Thank you for stopping by.
Deletemy tree is still up LOL. i keep thinking: "I need to take that shizz down!" but nope, still up.
ReplyDeleteOne year, it didn't come down until MLK weekend! LOL! It will eventually... Thanks for stopping by!
Deletedang girl! you go with the weight loss, especially over the holidays. highest of fives to you! don't tell me those nugget things are good lol my MIL has them all over the house and i keep easily avoiding them because i thought they'd be gross. love love love your new lunch bag! so pretty. my decorations didn't go up at all this year lol but normally i take them down christmas day. just call me the grinch ;)
ReplyDeleteThank you (weight loss) and thank you (lunch bag)!
DeleteI can see the appeal of taking decorations down early, especially if you put up a lot of stuff or put it up super early. I just got the ornaments on the tree about a week before Christmas this year, so the novelty hasn't worn off yet. LOL!
I love love love my Pura Vida bracelets, the fat braided ones are my favorite.
ReplyDeleteI saw those. They reminded me of the friendship bracelets that were super popular when I was in junior high (1985-88). Seeing them was a little blast from my past!
DeleteI just finished "I Let You Go" (the audio).
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I'm ready to start carrying a backpack (I asked for one for my birthday) because I'm so sick of hauling 3+ bags out the door each morning.
Tuesday, I did paperwork ALL DAY in an attempt to get report cards done. And we have a reward system based on grade calculations and GPAs, so that took another 2+ hours of my time. Ugh.
I think February 1st will be a good day to take Christmas down :)
I started carrying my travel backpack to work a few years back bc I was tired of all these little bags that I was toting back and forth. Even though I'm still carrying around a lot of bags, at least they are bigger and easier to keep up with.
DeleteWhat did you think of I Let You Go? I'm not the halfway point yet, but I keep thinking - who in the world did it???
I've started seeing more and more people with the Pura Vida bracelets and they are so cute. I love that they pretty much go with anything. Getting up when it's still dark out is the worst, I'm eagerly awaiting summer sunshine and 9:30 sunsets even though it's only January!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations - 30 pounds down is amazing! Ummm ... I don't even want to look at a scale because I indulged. And indulged. But now I need to get back on the wagon. My goal in 2016 was to get healthy and I got healthier but not "healthy". But this year - NO EXCUSES! That lunch bag is gorgeous and I may need to upgrade my lunch bag now. :D I Let You Go was one of my favorite reads from 2016 so I hope you're enjoying it. And a big YES to letting go and looking forward.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the weight loss!!! I put my Christmas decorations in a pile on the middle of the room because I was too lazy to get the bins out, and I FINALLY put them in bins last night! The tree has all the decor removed, but is still up. And our outside lights are still up. And it's super cold so I don't want to deal with that but I need to! I just read I Let You Go and really enjoyed it. And that lunch bag is super cute!
ReplyDeleteWow, that's amazing- congrats on teh weight loss! I know Decemeber can be a very trying time! And Atomic Fireballs to curb eating- that's pretty brilliant, and I completely agree, they singe my taste buds too! I took down Christmas on the 28th, mostly because I'm not a huge fan of the holidays, and I had some time. Usually I leave them up until Three King's Day though (1/6), which is like a 2nd Christmas in Hispanic culture. I just started Erin's Challenge too, with One for the Money by Janet Evanovich. Good luck with letting go- that's definitely one of the hardest but most rewarding experiences!
ReplyDeleteThank you! It was a little challenging at times, but not as bad as I expected. Yes, the Atomic Fireball thing happened by complete accident! Who knew? I loved the Stephanie Plum series! The earlier books are the best in my opinion! I had so many laugh out loud moments! Enjoy!
DeleteThat lunch bag is awesome - so stylish!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the continued success with your personal weight loss journey. I was pretty pleased myself. I started in early November and was worried late December/early Jan would do some damage on me as well, but it didn't! I'm at a total of 12.1 pounds lost. You've inspired me :)
My first book to read of 2016 was I Let You Go, and you've seen me sing it's praises. I hope it kicks off a good year of reading for you in 2017.
Congratulations on the 12 lbs weight loss! That's great! I'm very honored that my "journey" inspired yours.
DeleteAw, cute lunchbag! That's awesome you're walking a lot and LOST weight during the holidays. I really don't want to know what my weight is right now but I am planning a big health program soon (fingers crossed) so that will be nice.
ReplyDelete-Lauren