Monthly Archives: February 2007

Frankie’s schedule…or overscheduled

Wow, so much going on. It is hard to find the time to post my thoughts or new ideas.

I started a full time job a couple weeks ago. At 57, it is difficult to get back into the routine of working full time plus still having time to take care of the house, laundry and grocery shopping. We are working on paying off bills and getting a larger nest egg for retirement. Plus, there is so much I would like to do to fix up my home. New flooring for my house would be so great. My brother-in-law offered to help me redo my kitchen but I need to buy all the supplies first.

I am feeling very sentimental this morning…thinking about my Dad’s passing on. I know he is in a better place but it is so hard to believe he is gone. I pray every day that my Mom continues to have the desire to live without him. Fifty-eight years of marriage is a very long time and I can’t imagine how difficult it is to get up every morning and he isn’t there beside her in bed. I try to call Mom every day (or two) and see how she is doing. Some days, she sounds like it is such an effort to even speak. She seems to be doing okay on the days when she has things to do to occupy her time. My sisters are really taking good care of her and I sure wish I could be there in NC to help.

My kids seem to be as busy as I am…Brian just got back from a cruise with his wife, Jen. I think it is great how they find time to do things together. Sometimes, you just have to make time for each other. So you don’t drift apart and go your separate ways.

My youngest daughter, Amber is finalizing paperwork for a new job, too. Go Amber. Nice pay increase and lots of benefits….like traveling. I did get to see Amber for about 20 minutes on Sunday. Long story but it has to do with not enough time.

Bonnie and I are spending a lot of Mother/Daughter time getting things done around my property and keeping each other motivated to lose the weight. We both lost another two pounds on our weigh-in last Friday.

I sure wish I could squeeze some time in to go visit my granddaughter, Madison. Every time I see her, she has grown so much. She is beautiful…not just from a grandmother’s point of view either.

Well, it is 6am now and I still need to get the laundry out of the dryer and make my bed before I start getting ready for work. Better run.

Take time to enjoy life folks. Being busy feels good in one sense….but it sure wears an ole body out.

A lifestyle change…Weight Watchers

The new year began and I promised myself I would eat better and exercise but it was now February and no changes in my life. Time for action…instead of talk.

My daughter and I went to a meeting on February 1 and joined Weight Watchers. Bonnie has a girlfriend whose whole family is doing the program and losing weight. There is a special right now where you don’t pay a registration fee and you can pay $39.95 a month and have access to the e-tools on the computer. We have been using the e-tools a lot.

Our second time at Weight Watchers, Bonnie lost 4.4 pounds and I lost 4.2. Wow. We are very impressed with ourselves and the program. It didn’t feel like a diet because we could still eat whatever we wanted. We are using the point system instead of the core system. It is really teaching us portion sizes and making us more aware of our water intake as well as fruits and vegetables. I didn’t realize how few fruits and vegetables I normally eat. No wonder I am overweight. Bread and meat and desserts seem to be my main diet.

The meetings are great, too. The book says people who attend the meetings are likely to lose 3 times more weight. The meetings are very motivational. People sharing cooking ideas and tips they have learned on their own.

A lifestyle change is what I needed and now I see a way to get there. If you want to lose weight and change your eating habits, join Weight Watchers. I know I have gone twice but I feel so good about it….and me. Can’t wait to get on the scale this week.

A different kind of bird story

Well, I have done a lot of gripping about that stupid Mockingbird that keeps pooping on my car mirrors but now I have a good bird story.

We put a fake owl in our front yard near our cars thinking that might get rid of the Mockingbird. Now we have a real owl visiting us every night around midnight. It is a large owl…to us…and it sits in my Mimosa tree which is bare of leaves right now. We could see the owl so clearly because there was a light from our neighbors’ yard behind the tree and owl. We sat quietly on our back porch and watched him for awhile. We had flashlights and shined them on him to get a better look and he didn’t seem to mind.

I looked up owls in Florida and found my owl. It is called a Barred owl.

My daughter first saw the owl a couple weeks ago when she was letting the dogs outside. She said it was creepy looking and he just sat there as she shined the flashlight at him to get a good look.

Then a couple nights ago when she let the dogs out, the bird flew right over her head. She said she could hear the wings flapping and making a swooshing noise.

My husband wanted to see the owl but he goes to bed early every night because he gets up at 5am every morning. We told him the Early Bird would never get to see the Night Owl unless he stayed up past l0pm. So he stayed up last night and saw the owl.

I suppose the light shining into our yard from the neighbors’ and that big tree in our yard makes a great spot to catch food for the owl. I read they can eat l000 mice a year. We have a lot of moles in our yard so I am assuming that is what he is feasting on from our yard. Also, the owls like palmetto bugs which are in abundance in Florida. I really like that owl. I sure hate palmetto bugs.

We are all very excited about our new bird friend. I have a bird feeder out for the smaller birds and we have an abundance of Blue Jays, Blue Birds and Cardinals which are so attractive. We often see Woodpeckers. And during the winter we see a lot of Canadian Geese flying overhead making loud honking noises as they pass over our home.

The other day we saw about 70 large birds flying overhead. I believe they were the vulture-type birds that you see along side the road eating the dead animals. That was a sight to see, too. It reminded me of the movie “The Birds” by Alfred Hitchcock.

My daughter who has been here since the beginning of November has commented on how many birds there are here. It is winter and birds fly South. Or maybe it has something to do with her living in the city and us living in the country. Either way, she seems to be enjoying the birds as much as we do. She is always surprised by the chickens when I let them out of their pen and let them wander around on our land. She said she just doesn’t expect to see a chicken in the backyard when she opens the door.

Enough for now…bye.