Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Walking and Wellness

When I began thinking of why I hadn't been blogging, two words leapt to the front of my mind...garden and walk....and I figured I'd just do two long posts and catch up. This is the walking one.....and since it's the last day of the month, it turned into a recap of my wellness journey in June (at the end). 

This morning Stacia and Millie went for a walk with me. It was our first time to try a walk with Millie in the neighborhood. She did pretty good. She was a bit unnerved by big dogs barking at her, but she gamely kept on. We're going to have to figure out where we want her to stay when we have her on the leash...but she'll learn as we learn.
Oh my puppy loving heart!

It's pretty apparent when Millie is done. She walked about 3/4 of a mile with us. That's a good start. We walked by the house and dropped Stacia and Millie off - I continued on for a 6 mile walk.
Ah - so sweet

I set a goal to walk 20 miles a week….and so I've been walking through May and June. When I started a mile was a good day, I've done over 6 miles a couple of times recently.

One day in May I was walking when these two ran by....I'm content to walk. LOL 
May 10th - Stacia and Krista

Such a pretty area! 
May 13th 


When I'm tired of walking "the loop," I walk around town....and during Dad's Physical Therapy. 
May 21st


Some mornings are misty....my favorite farm. I am thankful I was up to see this. 


May 26th....

Spectacular walking scenery...
May 28th 
On the 31st this gal showed up in the hood.....

One thing I have loved about walking is being able to really notice things in the area as opposed to zipping by in the car. This day I noted several places out here have old, original buildings they've left on their place. I think it's cool. The old cabin which was on our place burned down before this house was built. 

Still some snow on June 1st. 

I remember clearly the day I tried a new street and the views just kept getting better and better. I can't get enough of these mountains - even on cloudy rainy days. 

Walking with Benny is always an adventure. 

 Baachan! Watch out. Bad guys! 

And then....about mid-June....color started showing up.  Walking allowed me to notice all the changes along the side of the road. I resisted slowing my pace to take pictures for about a week. I finally just slowed down mid-June and grabbed photos. 






This is the day I conquered my, "all or nothing," mindset. This has plagued my wellness journey for decades. You know...."I've already blown it, may as well start over on Monday...."  "I can't run, what's the point of WALKING!"  "I don't have time for a long walk, I'll go tomorrow." 
June 18th 
I didn't have TIME for a 5 mile walk before Bible Study with Stacia....but I DID have time for a 2.5 mile walk.....then we walked another 1+ mile together during study and THEN we walked AGAIN after dinner. I ended up the day with 6 1/2  miles....on a day when I "didn't have time to walk." 

I was feeling good after my mindset change....and then the next several days...it RAINED...and so I walked in the rain. I didn't melt. I decided I will miss walking in the winter and so I'll just do it every chance I get in the summer....rain or shine. 
The mountain disappeared - it was cold and my pace was much quicker.

June 20th - started out raining and got better as I walked. 

I love this spot....

A quick afternoon walk with Stacia on the 22nd of June
Look hair is combed and there is make up. ::snort:: 
THEN MILLIE JOINED US
June 26th  - Oh I LOVE THE SUN! All 21 hours of it!

I never would have guessed walking would become such a part of my morning. I've walked my way through this Covid season.  I watch YouTube messages, I polo with sister friends and my cousin (not sure why I don't call), I process what I've read in the Word, I pray....

A summary of my wellness journey in June....I participate in challenges with @thegotgoalsgirl (Instagram/You Tube)….June's was #FineTuneJune2020....each week had a different focus, but the overall fine tune message sums up my month. 

For a variety of reasons (budget being one) I decided to go with a cheaper app ($3 a month instead of $20) that would track my meals. I took the money I saved and invested it in joining a weekly small group online.  There isn't a local workshop that worked - I'm not driving to Anchorage or paying $60 a month to attend WW Zoom meetings.  I'm putting out about the same amount monthly and now I have the app and weekly meetings that I enjoy.

I was TERRIFIED to leave WW...and then I had the "tool talk" breakthrough late in May. I used both apps for a week or two and noticed something shocking. I was EATING MY WW points....I was NOT going over....and I had stalled for about 6 weeks.  Even when I lost it was about 4/10th of a pound a week.  The new ap can track calories, carbs etc...as well as points...and I SAW I had been averaging 600 -800 calories a day. Wow...adding calories has started me losing again.

I've lost 4 lbs in June.  

I've walked 105 miles.   I don't miss the elliptical. 

I'm 8 lbs from my WW goal....but that's another thing I changed this month. I've chosen to deliberately put more focus on the daily practices/habits I'm gaining than in the "goal."  Those habits are ones I will need to continue...I'm focusing on what I need to do to maintain....and the weight will stop coming off when it does. 

I'm content. 

Monday, June 29, 2020

Monday, Monday....

I walked 5 miles today and was THRILLED to be out walking again. I'd hurt my toe last week and hadn't been able to get much walking done for the last few days.

It's a race to see which arrives home first - me or the rain. I beat the rain today. I love walking by this farm and seeing what's growing.

The test result we were waiting for was inconclusive. Out of an abundance of caution, we have chosen to return to quarantine - or at least really shrink the bubble.  To be honest, we were heading to Valdez today. As soon as the test result came back negative we began to  "move out."  I believe it was the Holy Spirit who whispered something we'd not considered to Michael's heart...."Do you WANT to be camping if Dad T gets ill?" No, we don't. We have a lifetime to explore Alaska. It's ironic we've had a camping trip on the calendar every THREE WEEKS all summer and we  have YET to go out ONCE.

"Stay at home" in our household means those working at essential jobs will continue to work.  The rest of us will  go back to curbside shopping, avoid gatherings and people who do not live in our home, and if we do happen out will wear a mask. We'll do projects around home, go for drives, walks and hikes. We may even go camping overnight somewhere local (we're fully self-contained).  This will protect anyone we may come in contact with - and that's our goal. Our prayer is Dad does not get sick. We'd love you to join us in that prayer.

Sadly, Lori's (the black cochin broody hen) nest today showed a cracked egg and an under-developed chick. She's still setting.

The boys were home waiting for test results and they MOWED THE LAWN...this is a BIG deal around here. It takes all of us working for several hours. We made huge progress.  Nolan and I even consolidated brush piles. I think cutting a tree down is the easy part - at least it's just the start of dealing with it. LOL


And just like that I have a green layer in the lasagna bed to cover the brown layer we added this weekend.


Michael and Dad went after the blooms and seed pods of Devil's Club. 

I called the RV park we had reservations for in Valdez and moved the reservations to August. They were MORE THAN HAPPY to do this for us.

I attended a  wellness coaching session. This is what I'm doing in lieu of WW meetings and membership. I am tracking with the app I already mentioned, and attending these coaching sessions with a You Tube gal who inspires me. She's lost 194ish pounds...and she's real about her successes and struggles.  It's working. It has been good for me to have both calories and bites as the data helps me see why I was stalled. LOL

Stacia made a yummy dinner - Chicken Parmesan, Garlic Green Beans, Salad, Perogies and a sugar free pudding dessert. Yes, sugar free.

I picked some food from the garden - mostly thinning rows out -  but it makes good eating. 
Buttercrunch lettuce, Red Leaf lettuce, Radishes, Onions and Spinach 
We continue to try to avoid our teething puppy's sharp teeth. Tricks and tips are welcome. We've given her a peanut butter jar with peanut butter, a kong, a rope, a pvc pipe and a pair of jeans which no longer fit me. She chews them all and comes back for US.


Sunday, June 28, 2020

Cloistered Sunday

We spent another cloistered day at home.  Someone we have been close to is waiting on Covid-19 test results. OUT OF AN ABUNDANCE OF CAUTION the boys employers told them to stay home and wait for results, and we chose to do the same.

We played Puppy Roulette. This is where you sit around the table and wait to see which person will jump first and highest as puppy nips feet and ankles. Yes, we ARE working to stop such behavior - but she IS teething. She's still the cutest thing in the house. LOL She has a kong, a rope chew toy, and a peanut butter jar - lined with a bit of peanut butter....but skin is best?

Phoenix is also pretty - though he's got a nasty attitude and simply blusters, spurs and chases Stacia, Gpa and I. We take Michael or Alex if we go inside the yard - and that makes me sad. I go alone (with a big walking stick) but I really don't want to have to fight him off. I suspect it will just give him more of an attitude. 

The little ledges Michael added to the nesting boxes are serving their purpose. This batch of hens is simply not laying as well as the first batch. We only got 3 eggs yesterday! 3. They are not earing their keep at all. 

The Buttercrunch Lettuce is shaping up nicely after a day of rain.

It's been awhile since we simply sat and played a board game. Flashpoint is a bit safer, though less exhilarating that Puppy Roulette. 

If results come back as hoped for, the boys will go back to work tomorrow and the rest of us will head out in the RV for the week. We shall see.

*Note more blog posts now that the garden beds and greenhouse are done...and the garden is planted. We'll have a bit of a breather this week and then begin the push to can last year's salmon and fish for this year's salmon. We also have a couple of house projects to finish before winter. Summers are busy; Winters are lazy. Sort of. 

Saturday, June 27, 2020

Saturday's Surprise

I woke early and took Alex to work.

We had no idea HOW to hatch chicks...but we have a hen who was adamant she WAS going to set eggs...so we moved her to an isolated cage and left her alone. TODAY....we heard peeps....

We'll give her another few days...she still has a collection of eggs she doesn't plan on leaving....she kicked one egg out last week...this one hatched....we figure she knows how to take care of it....and we'll divide the chicken yard soon and let her and the chick(s) have their own section. 

There's nothing to see here - just move along. LOL  Why, yes, I did give her a planter to nest in - it worked. 

I got called to pick Alex up early. He wasn't sick....but one near and dear to us is being tested and it appears we may be heading for quarantine again depending on the results. Enough said?  Michael had picked up some "bwananas" for Benny. I decided to swing by and drop them off as I was going out anyway to get Alex. Stacia and Millie came along.

Benny ran to the car, Stacia opened the door, and he was so excited! "You have a dawwwg!" 

Millie also met Arielle and Kimber. 


In honor of Lori (the mother hen) we decided to do a job we've been trying to get to....we cleaned out the coop....and Michael added a ledge to the front of the nesting boxes to keep the shavings (and eggs) IN the box....

This year's lasagna bed needed a brown layer - it got it. I added a bit of lime to the top and watered it all in. Not to fear - nothing will be planted in this bed for at least a year so the chicken litter is fine. 

I put in an online order with Walmart. Am I the only one noticing prices have gone up? No yeast and some of our vegetable requests were out...but everything else was pretty good. I enjoyed a visit with Nolan as we went to pick up. Stacia made dinner. These young adults bless us.

9:30 p.m. and I realized I'd not found time to sit and "be" in the garden...so I went out and did just that.

I think these potatoes are going to need way more dirt....we're thinking we'll fill in the trenches...maybe. Do you grow potatoes? We usually make hills but we planted 160 starts this year...and I saw this method on YouTube....they promised a follow video on how to "hill" them....but they haven't made it....and I need to know. LOL 

It's starting to feel more like a garden and less like a horse pasture. 

Standing at one end...the garden goes beyond the bush in the middle....there are 6 rows of corn behind the make shift green house....which covers two new beds. The potatoes are too the left - along with a row of broccoli, cauliflower and dill. The black pastic covers ground that is ROCKY and CLAY LIKE and grows nothing well but chickweed. I covered it with plastic and tried various squash here....and the tires were given to us by the place which replaced the RV tire. I planted flowers in them and they hold the plastic and cardboard in place - weed blockers! The two hoopy beds are doing well...and the beans in the boxes of the previous greenhouse have not been found by the moose! 

I thought this plant was dying - but it appears to be about ready to put forth some new effort....I am growing two hills of spaghetti squash and would love to actually GET SOME SQUASH.

I got lured into weeding and then realized it was 10 p.m. and if I wanted to blog, I needed to LEAVE THE GARDEN!

I'm sad to miss church tomorrow - but we'll slide back into our old norms....and that will be nice too. Leisurely....