A Day Off With Eddie....

What a wonderful day off - right here in the middle of the week.

My Husband is one of the hardest working men I have ever known!  Since he works in the retail industry, he has to work a lot of weekends.  Bummer!  But, it also means he has a day or two off in the middle of the week....a day we get to enjoy together while the rest of the world is working.

For those of you who don't know him, this is Eddie.

 I truly look forward to these days off!  Of course, there's always something that needs to be done....like today, it was the yard that needed mowing.  But, we worked together on that and, I must say - we make a "bang up" team!  I mow, sweep and clean up; he edges and does the "weed whacking".  When we were all done today, our little house sparkled like a gem!

Just look at that professional edging job!

Once we get the "honey-do" list done, we get to play some.  Today, we decided to hit the local Farmers' Market.  Pepper bounced and bounced, begging to go....so, we gave in....

Pepper always loves to ride along!

The market was smaller than I expected in a town this size, but it was still fun!  We saw alot of squashes, black-eyed peas and cantaloupes and watermelons.  One vendor even had some fresh figs, persimmons and a trio of early pumpkins!  I wanted one soooooo bad, but decided to wait until the real harvest comes in here in a few weeks.  It's early in the season yet.

After the excursion to the market, we headed to the barber shop for Eddie to get a good grooming.  It's a little backyard barber shop - literally, it is in a little building in the barber's backyard!  If he is in the house having a cup of coffee, you just ring the little doorbell on the shop door and he comes out the back gate to the shop.  It was amazing how fast he worked - I think it took all of three minutes for him to clip Eddie's (remaining) hair!

We finally ended up at Lowes to look at garage doors.  Ours is in a sad state of decay - no saving it!  While we there, we played the "Let's Pretend We Have All the $ in the World" game and looked at doors for the front and side entryways.  From the entire selection, we both picked the very same doors for both places!  Guess you could say we are totally in tune on such things.  (Thank goodness!)

Our choice for the front entry....

....and for the side entry.

The remainder of the afternoon was spent with some quality "down time".  The heat from yard work and all the running around had finally zapped us.  For me, this meant curling up with the dogs for a nap; for Eddie, it meant working on his blog.  (If you haven't had a chance to check it out yet, just click HERE  for a sample - the man has Passion and an Opinion.)


As evening approached and the temperature outside started to cool, he fired up the grill and cooked some pork kabobs and grilled the summer squash and zucchini we bought fresh this morning.  Oh, gosh, it was wonderful!  How LUCKY am I to be married to a man who LOVES TO COOK?!?!?     

And now the moon has risen, and our day is winding down.  My heart is filled with Gratitude for this day.  It's been a good - no, make that a wonderful - day!  We didn't do anything "special", but we enjoyed working and being together.  That's what made it "special".

I'm linking up with Heart and Home for Wednesday Gratitude and Chatting at the Sky for Tuesday Unwrapped.  I hope you will check out both of these blogs for some wonderful inspiration! 

Did something Simple make your Heart sing today?  I sure hope so!!!

Jane

Autumn Makes an Appearance...

Autumn is coming to our little home....slowly, but surely. 

As the days grow shorter and the sun slants a bit more to the south, crates and bins of Fall decor are making their way out of the storage shed in the backyard.  Already, pumpkins are turning up here and there around the house.....

 A favorite wreath finds a new home in the wide windows of our living room and catches the warmth of the afternoon sun....

A squatty textured candle nestles among fall foliage and keeps the black crow and the ghost pumpkin company atop the piano....

The kitchen and dining area, hub of the home, gets some seasonal touches, starting with the corner hutch we "inherited" from Mom.

That old window frame has finally been hung by the back door, just as I envisioned, and is draped with a colorful garland of sunflowers, pumpkins and gourds....

This awkward little niche in the dining area of the kitchen has been filled out with part of our cookbook collection, providing the perfect resting spot for this little scarecrow visitor from the cornfield.

Fall even finds its way into Eddie's "Texas Room", where the new curtains on the window echo the warm tones of the season....

Ahhhhhh, I love this time of year....I spend more time on the Porch than ever!  And I'm excited about carrying the decor out there, too...a bit at a time. 


It won't be long until I will place big pots of colorful chrysanthemums on the steps....and soon the fresh-cut pumpkins will be in the store, just begging to come home with me.....I can't wait to start putting that all together!

Has Autumn made an appearance at your place yet?  For some inspiration, I'm linkin' up with The Fall Festival over at This Blessed Nest.  Click HERE throughout the month of September to get yourself inspired! 

I would love to hear about how you welcome in the new season!!!

Jane

Just Watching the Sun Set....Together

Late-in-the-season summer day....still mighty hot here on this Thursday just before Labor Day.  But, it's the day after dove season opens, so Ed and I loaded up the truck and headed out to Noodle, Texas (population, can't be over 50) about 5:30 pm.  He was looking forward to bagging some dove to put in the freezer....I was armed only with my camera.

Thanks to a very gracious friend, we have a place out in the middle of nowhere we can go for hunting and even just target practice, if we want.  He inherited this place from a couple of old bachelor uncles who lived in this now-abandoned house.  

While we're there, it is so still....just the sounds of insects and the breeze in the trees.  The slight wind, bringing in a storm, keeps the humidity down a bit and makes being outside a little more bearable.  The grass and weeds are so tall...thank goodness I wore long jeans and tall boots.  Swatting at flies and gnats around my head and brushing grasshoppers off my legs, I'm thinking to myself - "Oh, Lord, this is going to be a nightmare...."

There's not much to do as we wait for the sun to set and the birds to start moving, but just gaze around.....

And that's when I am struck by the sheer beauty of the place. 

The angle of the sun across the clouds....the darkening clouds as the storm headed our way builds and we hear distant rumblings of thunder. 

The sunset was spectacular!  The waning rays of sunlight caught the tips of the swaying grass and set it aglow.

I closed my eyes and thought of how it must have been to live in this little house way back when, sit on the porch and watch the sunrises and sunsets, listen to the birds and the humming of insects...and the quiet....

Before it gets dark, we dig in the cooler and enjoy sandwiches and cantaloupe brought from home.  Then I break out the oatmeal cookies, baked fresh that afternoon.  I don't know why our little picnic tastes so much better than if it had been consumed in front of the television....but, it's yummy even as the bread crusts dry out quickly in the wind and heat.

We came home empty-handed....but heart-filled with the beauty of the time spent together out in this place.  I have snapped 70+ photos in just a couple of hours, trying to capture the evening forever. 

I love how this outing caught me by surprise.  Sometimes, it's just the simplest things that end up meaning so much.  Do you know what I mean?  I hope you do!

I'm linking up with Wednesday Gratitude over at Heart and Home, where you can read Heidi's blog about life on the Redwood Coast and get your "gratitude groove" on.

Also linking up with Emily over at Chatting at the Sky for Tuesdays Unwrapped, where you will be inspired to find the gift hiding in the ordinary.

Strivin' to keep it simple....

Jane

Super Simple Autumn Snack Idea...

Autumn decor fills the aisles of Hobby Lobby and Michaels.  Halloween candy is already out at the grocery store.  With the cooler weather we've enjoyed here the last couple of days, it is obvious that Fall is just around the corner!  YIPPEE!!!

That being the case, I wanted to share this super simple snack idea for this time of year.  A nutritionist/registered dietician friend of mine turned me on to it last year.  Thanks a million, Barbara!!! 

 Simply combine one large bag of traditional candy corn and one can of lightly salted cocktail peanuts.  Voila!  This mix is declared healthy enough to snack on - guilt-free!  And each bite tastes like a Payday candy bar - honestly, it does. 

Candy corn has zero fat and the fat in the peanuts is the "good "kind of fat.  Plus, the nuts are a great source of protein on the go.  Put them together and you have yummaliciousness to the max! 

So, go ahead and try a bite.  Bet ya love it! 

Healthy munchin'!!!

Jane
 

Summer, 2010 - The Walk

I love going to group exercise classes at the gym!  Pumping weights to loud, pulsing music and stretching and doing yoga poses to calm, inspirational music is great.  (There must be big money in sound systems for gym facilities!)

But, I think my favorite exercise activity is my daily walk.  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE IT!!!

I have really gotten into the habit of taking a walk every morning.  It's just something I do - whether or not I "feel" like it.  Get up, throw on my slouchy shorts and a tank top, lace up my shoes, and hit the streets of the neighborhood.

I have a pretty regular 2-mile route, weaving around the neighborhood, and it takes me about 35 minutes to walk it.  I live in the best neighborhood for walking - not much traffic, a good number of other walkers, beautiful homes and lots of large shady trees! 

What makes this activity so enjoyable for me?

Well, for starters - the music.  (Thank you, Lord, for IPods!!!)  I have a playlist that is quite diverse....

Celine Dion, Reba McEntire, Barbra Streisand, Clay Walker, Amy Grant, Andrea Bocelli, Clay Walker, Michael W. Smith, Clint Black, The Pretenders, Michael English, LeeAnn Rimes, Christina Aguillera....

my music is all over the place! 

I listen to my IPod about 50% of the time when I am walking.  The other 50%.....

Well, I think....about lots of different things....

Like, what I need to get done on this particular day; what do we need from the grocery store; what a beautiful shade of blue the sky is; how badly we need to get the windows on our house reglazed before cold weather.   See what I mean?  Totally random....

I look at houses and wonder who lives in them and what they're like on the inside.  I have even snapped a couple of pics on my Blackberry when I noticed an exterior paint color I like or a particular garage door that would work well on our house.

I talk to the dogs, out loud, if they are with me.  I really think they like that!  Their tails get to wagging when I do it. 

I talk to myself, out loud, if I am alone.  I've had some great conversations with myself and even worked some things out.....so, even though I probably look like a lunatic, I will keep doing it.

I use the time to pray, particularly when something is really weighing on my mind and won't wait for "quiet time".

I greet other walkers, bikers and joggers, and people out in their yards.  I always try to smile, make eye contact and say "Good morning" because it's just the right and polite thing to do.

I concentrate on the feel of sweat running down my face, my neck, back, you name it......and know that I am accomplishing something good for my body.

And sometimes, I allow myself to "zone out".  You know, just let go of all thoughts and walk, enjoying the sound of my shoes hitting the pavement.

When I don't make my walk in the morning, I feel a little let down - and a lot lazy!  I usually make the effort to squeeze it in that evening if I can't get to it in the morning. 

I know the day is coming when the weather won't be so conducive to walking in the great outdoors.  That's when I will have to pack it up and head for the treadmill at the gym.  But, that won't be too bad.  They have lots of tv's to watch and you can plug in headphones to listen to several different kinds of music on their soundsystem if you forget your IPod.  (Yep, that fabulous sound system - they even have music playing on speakers outside.)  At least I have the option to take it indoors when the weather turns bad and for that, I am grateful.

But, for the last few months, it has truly been a blessing to be able to get in part of my exercise outside! 

What is your favorite form of exercise?  Do you like to listen to music while you're doing it?

Here's a loaded question....what's on your IPod???

See ya down the road....

Jane

Exerspy - My Favorite "Tool"

You know, most people greatly overestimate how many calories they are actually burning each day - and greatly underestimate how many calories they are consuming!  

Here is a solution I have discovered to help me accurately gauge where I am really at in balancing calorie burn with calorie intake.  Meet Exerspy - my favorite "tool" in a quest for better health!!!

Seriously, this little gadget is AWESOME!   Worn on the tricep, it has sensors that record heart rate, core body temperature, perspiration....it even works like a pedometer and counts your steps.  It can tell when you're sleeping and how efficiently you are resting.  (I have tested this - when I wake up during the night and stir, I will look at the clock by my bed.  When I look at my sleep data the next day, I can see in my sleep pattern the exact time I woke up and how long it took me to fall asleep again.  That is way cool!)

What does this mean?  Why is this so important? 

Well, for starters - I can download the data to my computer (thru a USB port) and tell immediately how many calories I am burning, minute by minute throughout the day.  It indicates whether my physical activity has been moderate or vigorous.  I can see if I am on target for my 10,000 steps each day - and know if I need to take another walk or bike ride in the evenings to reach that goal. 

As part of the DotFit program, I also log in all the food (and drinks) I consume every day.  The program tells me how many calories I have consumed and breaks it all down into a nifty bar graph showing my Fat/Carbs/Protein intake.  This is really helpful in my efforts to balance carbs and proteins (because I am a carb junkie!).

To make this program even more user-friendly, it summarizes both my calorie intake and calorie burn on a summary page (the "dashboard") and lets me know where I am at any given point.  I can see instantly if I have an appropriate "calorie deficit" for the day - this might  mean I need to eat a snack if I'm too low on calories.  But, most often it means I need to skip a snack because I'm too high on calorie intake and too low on calorie burn!  Finally, it projects where my weight should be based on all this information.  I've been amazed at how accurate the projection is when I weigh in each week.

I have been using the Exerspy for over 12 weeks now and surpassed my goals for that first 12-week period!  Working slow and steady - aiming for only 1 pound of weight each week - I did it the "smart" way.  No crash diet - just lots of exercise and eating right.  (Trust me, you're much more careful about what you put in your mouth when you're having to log it all in!)  It's all about healthy foods, eating in moderation and developing a lifestyle that will allow me to maintain weight loss without starvation - no more yo-yo dieting!

Now, I am entering a 6-week plan to loose just 6 more pounds - nice and steady.  After that, I will continue to use my Exerspy to make sure that I am taking in enough calories - and in the right balance - to maintain my weight. 

When I first started wearing the armband, I was a little self-conscious, but that quickly passed.  People would come up to me at the grocery store and ask me about it.  It doesn't bother me at all now - I even sleep in it.  Of course, it makes for a sorta funky tan line - but I can live with that!

So, that's my Exerspy - and now you know why I love it!  That and my gym membership are the best investments I've ever made in my health. 

Til next time...

Jane

Anticipating Autumn

September 1.....wow!  The year is just chugging right along, isn't it?!?!?! 

As we approach the changing of seasons, I pulled out this piece that I wrote last year.  It was right at the start of the Autumn, when we had just experienced one of those perfect crisp Autumn days we all dream about, and I was waxing poetic.  Even though it is still hot as Hades here in Texas, I thought I would share it again ~

Ever notice how many people claim Autumn as their favorite season? Why is that? Well, after a beautiful day such as the Panhandle experienced yesterday, the answer is fairly obvious...

Cool, crisp mornings and evenings, with the occasional whisk of woodfire smoke adding a tang reminiscent of childhood;

Brilliant golden afternoons when the angle of the sun makes your heart beat a bit faster while simultaneously tempting you to slow your pace and lift your face towards it in worship;

Trees attempting to hold onto their shimmering leaves of various shades of red, orange and gold, only to lose their grasp on a few here and there in the mild breeze, creating a dazzling carpet of color on lawns;

Porches and front steps decked out in bales of hay, cornstalks and squatty orange pumpkins brighten even the most humble of homes.

The Beauty of Fall is enough to lull one into recalling the simpler days of childhood, when those Indian Summer days were a sort of salvation after returning to school in September. Oh, what a wondrous thing it was to escape the stuffy classroom and run home, only to slip into sneakers and jeans, maybe even shorts, and gallop outside to enjoy the rest of the afternoon with neighborhood playmates. Riding bikes, playing in the undeveloped wooded area at the edge of the neighborhood, sneaking a handful of cookies from the jar for friends when Mom wasn't looking....running free until summoned home for dinner as twilight approached. It truly was a magical time, when the world was a different place, and it lives on in my memory. These days of Autumn coax those memories out of the corners of my mind, just as they do for so many people, and the sense of nostalgia only intensifies the beauty of the season.

Perhaps that is why so many of us wrap our favorite warm wooly sweaters tighter in the morning's chill, lift our faces to the waning sun in late afternoon to relish its golden glow, and take an extra moment to breathe deeply in the crisp evening air. The physical sensations beckon us back to a simpler time in life when we were safe and loved, creating a feeling of security and warmth.

So, long live the golden days of Autumn, and all the joys of life recalled in the waning days before Winter sets in. I, for one, am definitely entrenched in the Fan Club of Fall!

Are you ready for some cooler weather??? 

What are your favorite memories of this time of year as a child?

When do you decorate for the season?  September 1?  After Labor Day?

Hope you have a blessed day!

Jane