Diet Day 10

This morning the scale says I have lost 6 pounds...

I'd hoped for more, but I still have today and tomorrow...

And we have been doing some serious talking about changing our eating habits long term. I am so not happy about the 10 most forbidden foods... which are:

1) pizza

2) french fries

3) potato chips (even low cal)

4) anything fried or breaded

5) sweet breakfast cereals

6) regular soda (non diet)

7) cake and desserts (even fat-free)

8) chocolate of any kind

9) overeating too much bread (but having a small sandwich is ok)

10) ranch-style salad dressings (choose thinner dressings instead)

#8 and #10 are seriously going to kill me!

The good news is, I am not feeling as hungry in between. And not eating as much! This diet really IS training our bodies to be different...

But can I say that Randy is not exercising with me much, and he promised. And the *&^%$#@ has lost 10 pounds!!!!!

{JK honey I love you... and I am happy for your success! I know how important it is for your health...}

A Narrow Escape!

Well, ok, maybe not THAT narrow...

Today I got up REALLY early - my friend Sabrina calls it "the butt-crack of dawn" - to go riding north of Payson with some friends. We rode from the Geronimo Trail Head, on the Highline Trail which is now part of the Arizona Trail. I'll share just a few pics...






THEN... I am looking at the clouds because I love storms and I love rain and it never rains at home so I was hoping to get wet! And the clouds looked kinda funny all of a sudden... then I realized, it was SMOKE! It was hitting the clouds and spreading out instead of continuing upward... but the color, and something about the look... asked my friends and they studied it for a minute and the general consensus was, FOREST FIRE! Good thing we were headed back already. Heard from some campers near where we parked our trailers that one of their party had headed out the way we came in, and found the road closed... luckily the road goes all the way through to Highway 87 so we went out the other way... this is what we were leaving behind:




One of our party was behind us on the way out... we called both the others, got voice mail for one and left a message, reached the fourth and she was out safe, and also told us the rig we couldn't reach was right behind her...

So we said prayers for those being evacuated, those with homes in the area, the animals and the firefighters... and skedaddled on home!

F-ride-day in Wittmann

This morning my good friend Shirley came out to ride with me. The goal was to find a way through the brush and washes over to Mary's on the SOUTH side of Patton Road... as I am getting bored with the north side, having mostly ridden there for the past 7 years.

We rode about 3 hours, encountered several dead ends where we had to turn back, but we did make it to the "big wash" which means we can get through, as I have ridden to and in that wash several times leaving from Mary's.

HOWEVER.

The south side is BORING!

Good thing Shirley was there to talk to!!!

So I think I will go back up to the north side next time and see about finding a different way to go... it's just a lot prettier in that area! Only a mile or two distant but what a change in the desert - oh, and much fewer houses on the north side! At least, once you get away from the two big subdivisions with their brick fences {sigh}

Makes me so glad I have a trailer and friends to go camping with! Next weekend, GROOM CREEK!!!!!

On another note, both Radar and the male pup (we call him Justin) are back home with us. Retirement center apartment living just isn't working out for either of them, and although Randy's dad loved the little pup, and the pup loved him, and also loved playing with the kids, SIL was not raised with pets and just doesn't want them. Since mom and dad already had one dog when they moved in, she put her foot down at two.

Darn it!

So the pup will be going back up for sale, to try and recoup some of the original purchaser's money... he's 5 months old and only 4.2 pounds so he's gonna stay a little guy!

Diet Day 6

Now I know why they say do NOT weigh yourself daily. I am still doing my walking, I have NOT cheated at all (so proud of that!) and the darned scale has gone UP - well, only by .8 pounds, but still, UP!

Reading the "fine print" of the diet tips, Randy points out that it states right there that this 11-day program will not show much, if any, weight loss in the first five or so days. The second half is when you start to lose...

Good Lord, I hope so! It's not as bad as I thought, but if I am going to "torture" myself like this, I WANT TO SEE RESULTS!!!!! After all, I am counting on that incentive to do it again!

Diet Day 5

Randy asked me, did I notice anything about eating? I mentioned my surprise that I wasn't getting shaky, but didn't really know what he meant. He said he thinks he is actually getting "satisfied" on less food than a few days ago.

And he's right!

Day 1 my first meal was scrambled eggs and ham. I ate 3 eggs and 4 slices of ham. I could have eaten more but the goal is to be "satisfied" and not "full".

Today my breakfast was again scrambled eggs and ham. I ate 2 eggs and 3 slices of ham. And I was satisfied.

I am also amazed at how a handful of peanuts can be so satisfying.

I did have the "big boss" in the office yesterday. He's a nice guy but high maintenance and lots of stress. Big boss days are also known as M&M days.

Yesterday I would have almost killed for just one M&M.

Now you are worried... did I do it?

I have the key to the drawer...

NO! I am woman, hear me roar lol. Roar yes... M&Ms, no. At least, not today...

Good thing the big boss isn't expected back until a week from Thursday ;)

PS Of course since I told him I was NOT getting shaky... this afternoon, I did. But I was able to eat my #3 meal half an hour sooner than planned and the rest of the day went just fine!

Diet Day 3

A big diet rule is, do NOT weigh yourself every day. But we got this new scale and I just can't resist... got to see if I am making any progress!

Bad idea. The morning of Day 2... weight is the same.

Yesterday, Day 2, was "fruit day". 3 meals of fruit only, and one "deli sandwich" which is 2 pieces of bread and whatever sandwhich meat you prefer. I did really well as far as hunger too, except for the "lunch" meal (meal #2), which was my sandwich. Because of the ride (see yesterday's post) "lunch time" was later than it would have been if I was at home... I was SO ready for that sandwich! But I am really proud of myself. Day 2 with no morning coffee (yes coffee is allowed, but only PLAIN, and I do NOT do "real" coffee... my "coffee" consists of half hot chocolate and half instant capuccino mix, english toffee flavor... so definitely a big NO-NO on this diet!) and even when offered a soda I stood firm and did not cheat!

This morning, woo hoo, 206!!!!! 3 pounds in 2 days. Yeah. I can do this!

Iron King Trail - Prescott

Had an AWESOME ride today on the Iron King Trail east of Prescott. First time there for me...
Saw a small herd of antelope from the parking lot but my zoom isn't that good... one of the horses spotted a deer but by the time we got the camera out it was gone, I did get to see the white butt leaving though! And a friend took this of the squirrel we saw...
Curious little guy!

Awesome rocks (I love rocks!)

This trail is the old railway bed from the Santa Fe, Prescott & Phoenix Railway... the tracks are gone but the trail is "double-wide" so nice for chatting :)

...and they have some of the old cars off to the side from time to time... with a warning sign!

...which Topper (left) and DD (right) chose to ignore! Those two were determined to check out this odd creature.

A couple of the other rail cars...



There were 3 of these iron bridges to cross, so going out and back we ended up crossing six times. The horses did great! It was pretty loud though... I will try to add a video that one of the girls took soon!


Trees growing right out of the rocks! I know how it happens, but it still blows my mind...

More rocks.

Our first glimpse of Watson Lake...

There were several canoes on Watson Lake. One held a father and his 7-year-old son who wanted to come see the horses... the little boy fed katie a couple of carrots and touched her nose but we couldn't convince him to get on. Even though he said he'd never ridden a horse before, he gave up his first chance. His refusal was cute though - he claimed that the canoe was enough for one day!

A Katie earcam of the lake - it was just beautiful! Right before we finished our lunch stop there was a light shower, almost couldn't feel the drops but wow it was gorgeous to see them plopping on the lake and a lovely sound as well!

Two boys just KNOW there is a lizard under this bush!!! Yup, TWO!

Look right in the middle... there he is!

Despite the green grass and several carrots of her own, Katie thinks she needs part of MY lunch (I think she saw me slip a little turkey to the dogs!)


Easy to get to and a gorgeous ride (even though the early part of the trail is a little boring lol - our trail boss even apologized for it! But of course the rocks and the lake more than made up for that...)

Diet Day 1

Randy and I have a spirit of excitement going... yesterday after the dog swap we checked our menues and did our shopping. Today we started prepping so that we can do this with a minimum of daily fuss. I chopped and stored a lot of fruit. He did cheese and meat... even pre-cooking so later in the week we can quickly reheat. Which will help tremendously because his palate is wider than mine so he has more choices, which in turn made our daily menus DIFFERENT!

It was kinda weird to eat this way. But we did get both of our 30-minute brisk walks in with no trouble, and although I was hungry in between, I did stick with it!

Day 1 is Done...

Musical Dogs

No they weren't singing... or farting lol. Got a call from the senior citizen who bought Darci's little boy pup, at 86 and living in a senior center apartment, she decided she just can't handle him. We offered to let her try Radar and she agreed. Randy's dad is willing to try the pup so... we loaded up Radar, took him to the old lady, left with the pup and took him to town. Turns out Randy's dad wasn't home (and here I thought Randy had called and made arrangements!) so we left the pup with the BIL (brother-in-law) for Dad to pick up later.

Fortunately we ended up back at the house without a dog ;) at least, for now! Here's hoping everyone is happy with the end result of the game of musical dogs!

If Debby can do it...

Debby is one of the "best friends I never met" that blogging has brought me. I found her through Mikey and was bowled over from the start by her writing style and her sense of humor. She was always pure blessed entertainment and a joy to visit.

Then Deb got breast cancer. And you know what? Her honesty and openness and willingness to share her experience, while not always what one might call "pleasant", have kept me bowled over. She is an inspiration to me as, from reading the comments on her blog, she is to many, many others.

Right now there are a lot of crappy things going on in my life. But any time I need a pick-me-up, a dose of reality, I can get it from Debby. As scary as cancer is, and all the c-r-a-p she has had to go through because of it, she never stops counting her blessings. So how could I do any less?

IMHO Debby is also extremely brave. So with her example, how can I even hesitate to be brave too?

With all that you are probably looking for a big problem to be discussed now. Well, it's big to me anyway... Seems like ever since I hit what they call "the big 3-0", I've been adding a few pounds a year that I can't seem to get rid of. I have tried exercise - it makes me more hungry! I have tried eating less... it makes me light-headed and shaky. My daughter reported that she changed one thing - stop drinking everything but water - and lost 15 pounds! Didn't work for me :(

So a few friends from AZBCR have been trying this diet... and having some success. One 15 pounds... one 9 pounds... the thing about this diet is, it's an 11-day program. So ok, I figure I can stick with ANYTHING for only 11 days - right? And my hope is that if I have a decent weight loss at the end of that 11 days, that will be enough incentive to take the recommended break and then do it again! OK, well, at least that's what I am hoping!

Randy has kindly agreed to join me in this endeavor. And yes it will be good for him too, healthwise. Nuff said. He'd rather not blab every little detail on the internet like I do lol...

We start Saturday!

Here's the really brave part. My weight. Yup. I'm gonna spill it.

209

There. I'm still breathing. Of course I haven't hit POST yet and no one has seen this...

but if Debby can do it...

Another Project...

You might remember that I said, in the post about dropping off Jeffrey, Skeye and Wiley, that we didn't come home with an empty trailer. I meant to take a picture of these IN the trailer but didn't get to it before we needed the trailer and had forgotten they were in there so had to empty them quick and just make a pile:

SEVEN panels PLUS... TWO gate panels! Bent up around the top and kinda rusty on the bottom but the price was definitely right! I LOVE FREE ;)

So MY goal is to replace the brown panels in this pen:

With some of the "new" ones. This will have a two-fold purpose. The "new" panels are 6-rail rather than 4-rail so should keep the foals in better... they can walk right through those brown panels. And then I can take the brown panels over to the "regular" mini pen and enlarge it!

On another note, I got a new donkey. What do you think of this one's confirmation?

No More Rain :(

Which is a major bummer. Because this:

REALLY REALLY needs this:

and this:

And there's just no way when it's this dry :(

Busy Busy Boys...

After this post Mikey wrote to me and said, "Just keep the camera handy!" But I always forget... Well today I was out feeding and saw this:


Which inspired me to go get the camera since this is the first time I have ever seen hot air balloons in THIS neighborhood! So you also get my current project:

I am 3/4 done, just that chunk on the left hanging too low...


And some doggie fun (hence the title)

Sherman saw Tank drinking and decided he needed to wet his own whistle...

Then Vada decided that looked pretty good and she ought to have some...

Until Sherman wet MORE than his whistle lol - Vada leaves in disgust - "HEY, I was DRINKING that!!!"

Shaking off the excess...

Do you think they can take Dodge? Ty certainly seems to think he has enough backup lol.


After watching the others, Riley gives it a shot all on his own...


He was so proud of himself - the ran ran!!!


I've got TONS more pictures from this morning so material for a good few days :) stay tuned...

It's NOT Raining :(

Well darn we didn't get much... it was nice while it lasted but I tried to tractor the pasture last night and two cirles had raised a big cloud of dust... so had to quit. Then... the forecast said all the rain we wre expecting for this weekend... is not coming :(

But the good news is I did get back on Luna last night and she did really well. And this morning Katie and I went riding at South Mountain with my friend Shirley. Didn't take the camera but I WILL next time, it was gorgeous. Went swimming and had a nice lunch and chat :) and a FABULOUS easy dessert, and I will share the recipe once I get the details...

IT'S RAINING!!!!!!

IT'S RAINING!!!!!!

IT'S RAINING!!!!!!

IT'S RAINING!!!!!!

IT'S RAINING!!!!!!

IT'S RAINING!!!!!!

IT'S RAINING!!!!!!

IT'S RAINING!!!!!!

{happy dance}

UNbelievable... but wait - is it???

Went for a ride Monday night with my daughter and a friend. At one point the horses started acting up and we were like “What is UP?” then we smelled it – dead critter. Then, we saw it - dead horse! And a bit further, the scattered bones of what looked to me like a calf, but no head so hard to tell. I was appalled, disgusted, angry!!! So I went back last night to take pictures with the intent to report it to the authorities, hoping since it’s on state trust land someone would come clean it up… and was gonna write about it here, and send e-mails to all the folks I know who live out by me, to see if anyone could identify it. Not far from the scattered bones was another skull under a bush… not sure the two go together but it was a horse as well. I won’t post the pictures here as they are horrible, but if you can’t help but look you can click here:

pictures

After talking with hubby and daughter some more, daughter and I had a wild hair and popped in to visit someone we know with the intention of scoping out their little herd… then I said to her, I’m just gonna ask straight out… so I did. {The names have been changed for obvious reasons.)

Me: “Hey, Jack, you guys missing a horse?”

Him: “No… why?”

Me: “Because we found a dead one while we were out riding yesterday on the state trust land.”

Him {looking at his feet, then looking at me, very grim and sad}: “Then yes, we are missing a horse. It’s Red. He died last month and we didn’t have the money to pay someone to come get him…”

Un-freakin’-believable, right? But wait a minute…

Let’s back up here… about 5 years…

Jack and Jill were renting, living month to month, not rich by any means but doing okay. Happened to go to an auction with a neighbor and ended up saving two older horses from going to slaughter. The boys looked pretty bad but with love and care and good food, it wasn’t long before they were healthy again – healthy enough that Jack even rode them a little and said that Red was the best horse he’d ever been on, that Red knew what Jack was going to ask him to do before Jack asked, and was already doing it. But age and previous poor care resulted in health issues that soon made both boys nothing more than pasture ornaments. Jack and Jill didn’t care, they loved the boys and were happy to do whatever it took to keep them in good health and let them live out their “golden years” in safety.

Jack and Jill rescued a young thoroughbred next, and later took in a couple of other horses from neighbors… one with serious emotional issues. Having a boarder also helped with expenses, and Jack got a promotion and a raise which enabled them to purchase a newer vehicle and even purchase the home they were renting. Like any of us, they were doing their best to have the American dream…

Then in March of 2009 Jack lost his job. He hasn’t been able to find another one – even McDonald’s wouldn’t hire him saying he was “over-qualified”. They are living on unemployment and food stamps, and let their vehicle get repossessed so they could still buy the medicine that Red needed, and their home is on the brink of foreclosure. Now well over 30, Red was having trouble getting up if he laid down. They took another financial hit when the boarder left. Then the medicine stopped working and Red couldn’t get up without help.

So, WOW. Am I still appalled, disgusted and angry? YOU BET! But I am also heartbroken for Jack and Jill, who did the best they could and finally felt they had no choice, and for Red who didn’t deserve what he got. Did they do the right thing? At least they didn’t dump him somewhere alive to fend for himself… we’ve seen that happen recently too… and which is worse? And to be honest, they aren’t the “perfect” victim in this situation… when Jill came out of the house to talk to us, she had a cigarette in her hand. I don’t smoke and never have – I know cigarettes aren’t cheap but I haven’t experienced the addiction… anyway I can’t bring myself to judge them, because I KNOW they are good people and it was obvious that having to do this really tore them up… and because there, but for the grace of God, go I – or you! And I feel guilty that I have been so caught up in my own problems that I didn’t even realize this was happening… and that we hadn’t talked in so long that neither Jack nor Jill thought to ask me for help. And I feel sad because frankly, even if they HAD asked me for help, I don’t know that there was anything I could have done… And I am frightened and concerned for Jack and Jill and for Red’s auction buddy, who will sooner or later face a similar fate.

BUT I am also SO THANKFUL to have the AZBCR folks in my life… because I truly believe that if it were to come to that point for me, I would at least feel I had someone to reach out to for help, and maybe someone on the forum might be able to come up with a better option for a horse like Red… or if not, there would be cowboy Bill and his trusty backhoe to at least give the poor horse some dignity in death.

So I went home planning to delete the pictures and ride in a different direction for a while… I can’t justify possibly making things even worse for them.

But I kept thinking afterwards, this is exactly what we have been talking about recently on the riding forum: there needs to be some answers for the people out there who find themselves in such a predicament, before they reach the decision to abandon a live horse or dispose of a dead one like this. And maybe there already are, but if so, they aren’t well known enough to reach the people that need them. I wish I had a magic wand … but I don’t. And I don’t know anybody who does. I wish I had a million dollars… but I don’t. And while I don’t know anybody personally who does, well, there are still SOME people in this world with money… so the problem becomes, HOW do we get the needs together with the means?

I’m at a loss. I knew, intellectually, that things like this were happening. We all know it. But when you see it up close and personal, it slaps you in the face. This hurts. It hurts BAD. I want to help. I really, really want to DO SOMETHING! But what? I’ve done rescue myself and donated to others regularly for years, but right now it is all I can do just to take care of my own… and I’m not so sure I can succeed even at that. Doing nothing isn’t an option that will let me sleep at night… if sharing these pictures and this story touches enough people, and things are changed for the better, well then it’s worth it. And if anyone has any other ideas, I’m all ears!

Timothy Update

Got some pictures and a note from Timothy's new parents: He is an incredible little guy and we have been having a lot of fun with him.

As you can see they have found him a little buddy...

Nice digs huh?

Nothing Like Mikey...

I was thinking that all day today. Because Mikey posts a lot about her normal days and they are funny. Well today I got up early and fed, did some chores outside, got hot enough to come in and eat breakfast, took a nap with the puppies while Randy ran to town to pick up his cannon, woke up over 3 hours later and he still wasn't near ready to come home so I did some laundry and cleaned some house... even cleared up the huge pile of clothes on my dresser! When he got home we had to switch vehicles and run back across town to rescue Lindsey whose truck broke down on the freeway shortly after she left her place to come over for a day or so... and that was the rest of our night, got home just at dark which blew our idea of riding and barely could see to feed... ate dinner and {horrors} watched TV and went to bed.

And all day I kept thinking, if I was Mikey, there would be pictures, and this would be FUNNY!!!!!

Poor Riley!

He got a haircut today. Kinda. Maybe he got chopped {eyes rolling} - hey, I am not a dog groomer for a living FOR A REASON! But the poor little guy had SO MUCH HAIR he just panted like crazy every time he had to go outside...

F-ride-day in Payson

Thanks to Mary for hauling, Sherman and I got to go along on a ride in Payson today. It was gorgeous...





After the ride our hostess put out a real spread... and Rose showed up with Wiley, unfortunately her neighbors are complaining about his braying so he's coming back home. Of all those leased he is the best one if someone had to return, since breeding season is nearing and he has 2 potential wives... but I know Rose will miss him, she really got hooked quick!