Check On It, Repeatedly

While I don't talk about it openly, it's not a secret that I struggle with my weight. But I think some mothers do have hard time losing those last twenty or thirty pounds after having a baby.

What I didn't know was that nineteen years would pass, and I'd still be carrying it.

After years of fanning myself with the bathroom scale, I hit my all time non-pregnant high a couple of years ago and stayed mostly steady. Since I wasn't working outside the house, I didn't try hard enough to get healthy. Yoga stretch pants and loose shirts became my standard uniform. I lost all confidence because everything I put on looked horrible.

About the time I decided to get serious, using the MyFitnessPal app, I dropped a couple of pounds and gained a new job. A job that required business attire. And hose. And dress shoes.

Being plus and petite does not make for a good time at the mall. Add in a modest budget that doesn't allow for off-the-rack purchasing, and you'll understand my pain. I managed to put together a halfway decent wardrobe, but I still didn't feel confident in my appearance.

Photo Credit: Google Images

Thankfully, I've dropped just over twenty pounds, and while I feel better physically, clothes are fitting nicer. I feel myself becoming more confident and not wanting to hide beneath draping, unattractive layers.

My current favorite pants are a charcoal grey, cotton, and have a neat but slight sheen to them. They just feel good on. I bought them months prior, even though they didn't fit well, as a goal for myself. Plus they were marked down 75 percent, making them less than ten bucks. I even hemmed them. Myself.

I wore them a couple of weeks ago then I washed them. I agonized whether I should dry them.  They are 98 percent cotton (and oh-so-soft). On the other hand, cotton clothes are a pain-in-the----- to iron out the hung-dry wrinkles.

Convenience won over practicality.

Knowing I was taking a chance on shrinkage, and we are six-days post Thanksgiving, I worried they wouldn't fit today.

They did. With extra room to spare.

(Thank you MyFitnessPal and lack of snacks.)

 I was oh-so-sassy today with my fancy charcoal pants, black cowl-neck sweater, black heels. Hair, despite having been freshly washed, laid perfectly. Cute grey and black dangle earrings completed the ensemble.

I stopped in Target before heading to work. Walked all the way to the back of the store - electronics - then over to peruse the books before leaving. I sashayed my way to the front, feeling slim(mer) and confident. About twenty, maybe forty feet before a checkout lane I noticed a woman just staring at me. I smiled. She continued to stare, not returning the gesture.

 At the end of the main aisle, just before I turned, she finally quit looking my direction, and continued on with her business.

Inside the car, I grabbed the seat belt, and that's when I felt it.

My pants were unzipped.

I suddenly imaged her having a conversation with her friend over coffee:

" You are going to love this. You know that dark-haired chick at the bank? The short one? I don't think she's been there long. Well, I saw her today at Target. Girl was all 'click,click,click' in her noisy little shoes like she owned the place. The whole time her pants are gaping open at the zipper with each step. 'Help me, help me.' I was cracking up. Honestly, how does one forget to zip her pants?" 


My mortification over my discovery lasted about as long as it took for me to post a status on Facebook and get a Diet Coke at Sonic. Within ten minutes, I was at work, sassy and confident.

But the security department probably had a good time watching our cameras today since I probably checked my zipper once or thirty times.

Just in case.



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Packing Lunches for Kids

Maybe I should change my hours

I can't remember exactly what sparked such racy conversation when Big Daddy and I crawled in between the sheets last night, but the topic came up over kids' school lunches.

I know; you are already jealous.


The topic of a certain Oscar-Meyer brand makes lunch packing able to be quick and painless in the mornings* came up.

Big Daddy's store is in an area that seems to suffer a good bit economically. As a matter of fact, that county is one of the top three in all the state of Tennessee for the highest unemployment rate. So it is a given that a large portion of his customer base uses the food assistance program. He has noticed that his store also is the highest in his district in sales of convenience foods.

I'll be the first to admit that especially at 5:00 in the morning, the last thing I want to do is cook breakfast and pack a lunch. It would be so easy to throw a pre-packaged box and a couple of cookies in a sack and be done with the whole mess. But there are two problems with those pre-packaged lunches besides the lack of good nutrition:

1. Most of them don't have enough stuff to fill my boys up meaning I'd have to pack extra stuff to go with it.
2. Expense.

Don't get me wrong; it's not that I have never bought any pre-packaged food. It's kind of like fast-food--every once in a while is okay. Actually, the boys look forward to field trips because that is usually when they get such things.

Our conversation prompted me to get my phone and calculate how much each lunch costs. Here is a breakdown of what I've been packing this week:

Turkey Wraps
     Turkey  1 lb.   2.00/5 =  .40
     cheese             1.99/10 = .20
     lettuce mix       1.49/3 = .50
    tortillas (10 pk)   .89/10= .09
Applesauce(6 pk)  1.69/6 = .28
Sun Chips (20 pk) 6.49/20 = .32
Fruit snack (6 pk) 1.29/6 = .22
Juice Box  (10 pk) 1.49/10 = .15

Grand total for each lunch = $2.16

This is only representative for this week. Some weeks may be more, some less.

The point is (and yes! I do have one) is that those pre-packaged lunches are not that much faster in the mornings. The above lunch scenario? I start my coffee and by the time I am done packing, my coffee is done. And I use a 4- cup coffee maker. The only "work" to this week's lunch was the wraps. The rest was grab and pack.

Some days may take a bit longer. On days that I make mini-pizzas, pack carrots and dip, or have to individually pack some food item, it may take longer. But it's worth it to me. Also, while some may argue that my boys (12 and 11) are old enough to pack their own lunch, that doesn't mean that they couldn't make the same things I have.

My lunch- packing mojo isn't going to make me Mother of the Year. I won't even get nominated. However, my goal here was to show that it is possible to put together a decent lunch rather quickly even before coffee. It's a healthier and less expensive option for a lunch at school.**






*In an effort to totally not offend Oscar-Meyer, I purposely did not mention the specific brand. You know, web crawlers and all. But you are smart and can read between the lines of to what I product I am referring. 


**For those of you that make those Bento boxes, I raise my coffee cup to you. My lunches look like pre-packaged versions in comparison. If my kids were younger, I would totally do it. Sadly, my boys are on the cusp of not bringing a lunch from home. It's not cool in middle school, yo. 

Mental Health: Diseases and Awareness

Did you know that yesterday was Mental Health Awareness Day?


I imagine not. Mental health and related diseases are the least talked about in our country. Such negative a stigma has been placed on what is a very prevalent issue medical condition . There is nothing to be ashamed of or to hide from when it comes to mental illness.

According to the National Institute for Mental Health, a staggering one quarter of the U.S. adult population are diagnosable as having a mental disorder.

That is one in four.

Further, it has been estimated that nearly 20 percent of our children have or will suffer from a mental illness. And with the diagnoses of Autism and ADD on the rise, that number is going to increase as well.

The range of diseases and disorders that fall under the umbrella of mental illness are:

• Anixety (agroaphobia, GAD, OCD, panic disorder, PTSD, social, specific)
• ADD and ADHD
• Autism
• Eating disorders
• Mood disorders (bipolar or manic depressive, Dysthymic disorder, Major Depressive disorder)
• Personality disorders (any, antisocial, borderline, avoidant)
• Schizophrenia 

Perhaps one reason that mental illnesses don't get the recognition that is deserved has to do with the negative associations. No one has robbed a bank or committed manslaughter* because he or she suffered from diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis.

With any disease, there are varying degrees of severity. Yes, it is unfortunate that some that suffer severe symptoms find it necessary to be hospitalized; however, there are plenty of other people that live otherwise regular lives with proper medications and therapies.

I can say this with a bit of authority: I suffer from mental illness. Is my life any different because of it? Not really.

My actual diagnoses are Major Depressive Disorder, Generalized Anxiety, and Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder.

My first diagnosis came when I was 19. I sought help on my own. However, it is likely that my first symptoms were prevalent in adolescence.Of course, that was the 80s and NO ONE talked about such things.

 I have been hospitalized twice. Suffered through postpartum depression after all three births of my children.
But had I not told you this, you would have never known.

The vast majority of mental illnesses are not life-threatening. However, without proper care and treatment, they all can be debilitating. This is why I want to bring some light onto an otherwise hush-hush topic. It's not the medication that I take that helps me live my day to day life; it's the support.

THE SUPPORT.

My husband is probably the most easy-going person you would ever want to meet. He doesn't let things bother him or dwell on the negative. Early on in our relationship, he didn't buy into the whole "illness" diagnosis. He is like many "healthy" people in that regard. Those not understanding feel that a person should just "get over it," or "snap out of it." Getting a mental illness diagnosis is not like getting diagnosed with cancer or even a broken foot. There are no tangible results one can lay hands on.

Over time, he realized that my illness is real. And while the medication (if taken properly) makes life bearable for me, it's not the medication alone that is doing the work. It is his care and understanding that makes living worthwhile.

If you suspect someone you know or love is suffering from a mental illness, offer to find help and then be a good support system.



If you are suffering and feel like all hope is lost, find a support system.

Perhaps if we can all work together to bring the stigma of mental illness out of the dark and into the light, we change someone's life.

 Don't be afraid to support awareness for Mental Illness even beyond the month of May.




For more resources, visit:
Mental Health America
SAMHSA
National Institute for Mental Health








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