Losing Weight to Improve my Overall Health

I have been on a rollercoaster of losing weight for as long as I can remember. One of my doctors had told me to eat no more than 1,000 calories a day to lose weight. That was working great and I had lost about 10 lbs UNTIL I finally HAD to eat, I was SO HUNGRY all the time. I started gaining, losing/gaining, losing…repeatedly and it was not working.


My internist and I discussed this matter and he did not agree with the method for losing weight. He said it is not sustainable and that is why I am having so much trouble keeping it off. SO he suggested sending me to a dietitian since I am insulin resistant and need to eat based on that, not simply reducing calories. I also had been told by a pulmonologist that I have pulmonary hypertension and that my heart is enlarged based on tests performed a few months ago. WELL after getting a second opinion and repeating the tests at a separate hospital, the second opinion was that I do not in actuality have pulmonary hypertension and my heart is within normal ranges. Now a battery of doctors differ in opinion on this dX, basically two against two and one undecided. My cardiologist who agrees with this second opinion told me that I must fight the pain and make my body work against the symptoms I am having as he believes that my main problem is severely poor health due to the severity of psoriatic arthritis and how immobile I have become as a result of battling the pain, which have caused a multitude symptoms ongoing for quite awhile. I actually am leaning toward this idea that I do NOT have this disease of pulmonary hypertension. I also believe I am simply in poor health just as the cardiologist has suggested.

After consulting my internist, he has said regardless of whether I have PH or not, losing weight will help reduce the symptoms no matter the Dx. This is my main motivation for losing the weight in addition to sleep apnea becoming worse in the past year and regaining control of it.

So far, I have lost 12 lbs since seeing the dietitian a month ago. I will check in with her monthly for accountability and I am eating plenty of healthy food to keep me full. For the first time in a long time, I feel in control of something health-wise and there is something I can do to improve and help the symptoms. I see a glimmer of hope springing through the darkness.

Dogwood in Bloom

Our little dogwood in the front yard is blooming again. This used to be my father-in-law’s place and when I see a dogwood, I am happy and sad at the same time. I am happy because the flowers were my father-in-law’s favorite. I’m also sad because it makes me miss him even more thinking about how excited he used to get when this season was here so he could see his favorite tree and flower in bloom.

My father-in-law and I became close friends after my mother-in-law passed away. At the time I was not driving because I had not been put on arthritis injections yet and did not discover the strength yet that they give my joints. He drove me anywhere I needed to go and he enjoyed this task. I am now thankful I did not know about the injections yet because I would have likely missed out on becoming true friends with my father-in-law if I had been on the injections and more independent at the time.

When the dogwoods started blooming, we took back roads just to see more of them on our way to town. My father-in-law transplanted a near perfect little dogwood from our wooded property to our yard and it is also a gorgeous little dogwood, but smaller than the one pictured above. When my weeping cherry tree died he talked for months of getting me a pink dogwood to replace it. We never got that pink dogwood but I think I will get one in memory of him to grow in all its beauty in the yard he took such good care of for so many years.

My father-in-law was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in March 2012 and sent home under Hospice care. We set his hospice bed up and from the window of that room I often walked to it and looked at this dogwood. Each day I told him the progress of the blooms because I wanted so bad for it to bloom for him. I remember it bloomed the last week before he passed away on April 15th last year. While we cared for him, I spent some of my time on the front porch in a rocking chair wishing he could see that tree one more time.

The good news in all this is the dogwood bloom has always carried with it the story of Jesus our Savior.

Although this is a legend, the message behind it of Jesus is what is the truth and important.

My father-in-law became a Christian while in the hospital just three and a half weeks before he passed away. I imagine him now no more in pain from the cancer and its effects, no longer mourning his wife, now reunited with her and his parents…and with our miscarried baby, his grandchild he never even got to know a thing about here on earth. Heaven holds many wonders but the best is our Lord, I can only imagine the moment he beheld his Savior, the one who cares for us more than anyone ever has and ever will, our Creator and His Son. Oh just imagine the love that emulated over him during that initial encounter and evermore, a place of no more sorrow, no more tears, no more dying.

The dogwood represents so much to me now and I just felt inspired to share this morning how its symbolism has touched our lives.

Little Tidbits of Teresa’s Life

It’s Italian…Well it’s a Little Italian Inspired Table Runner

As I may have said, not sure, but we moved into my hubby’s childhood home last year. I have been redecorating here and there, room by room when I am up to it. Recently I finished the dining area in the kitchen except we have talked of refinishing the corner cabinet to match our table. That’s for another week, though and more a project for hubby.
At any rate, we got a table and chairs at Ashley furniture last year in espresso color and because I have a large family, I ordered the four additional chairs as my birthday present to myself last year. I love my prezzie! Now all eight of us can sit comfortably around the table!
When my mother in law was decorating, she was going for a bistro type theme. I kept that in the kitchen and added a little more. The pictures tell it better than I can.
The picture above is the dining area with a runner which I painted the squares, pieced and quilted. I actually finished this around Christmas but only got my house in working order this week so I haven’t taken a picture…blogging brings out confessions from me!

Here are close ups:

What is strange about it is I see an uncanny resemblance to my hubby’s doctor and my former doctor in the chef! I didn’t realize I had a muse when I was drawing and painting but I guess I did.

I also found a bread basket with a warming stone and twelve red napkins that had been my mother in law’s things for her kitchen. I miss her so much, so finding such treasures AFTER I incorporated the red really made me feel close to her yet miss her even more because I would much rather be helping her decorated HER kitchen than this be MY kitchen now. I know she’d be glad we are making it home though. That was always important to her, to make a house a home. She passed away in December 2009.
NOW last Christmas, this was a present I got:

My sister did not know I had made the runner, but she gave me these oven mitts that match! I had finished the runner that week before!

Here is the kitchen:

Close ups:

Now the kitchen is pretty much complete except maybe one day we can add a tile backsplash…maybe not (because hubby does not know it yet, so may say no, ENOUGH already! Hah).

Thank you for visiting!

Little Tidbits if Teresa’s Life

A little dirt with your tea?

I’ve wanted to try my hand at stacking arrangements for awhile and today I did it. I like it and it beautifies the entrance to my new screened in porch.

Homemade vanilla drink

As I posted earlier today, I am on the search for drinks that have no sugar or are naturally sweetened as I am on a new weight loss venture. I just made a new drink I like quite a lot.
I make homemade vanilla extract and have posted my recipe here vanilla extract, homemade…
the picture above shows a bottle of my extract, the original vodka bottle i made it in, and the drink i am sharing with you now.
I recently emptied the vodka bottle that held the extract and vanilla beans SOOO I came up with a great idea!  I had all these vanilla beans left over in the bottle and thought I would put them to use again!
I used five of the beans from the bottle and two sprigs of fresh mint to make a gallon jug of vanilla mint water. I added ice and water to the jug and stirred to bruise the sweet mint so it would release flavor and then I filled the gallon jug and stored in the refrigerator to keep it cold.

For my own precaution since the beans were soaked in alcohol to make the extract, keep that in mind when drinking it if you use beans that have been soaked in rum and vodka for extract.  You could always use fresh beans, they do not have to be from extract, this is simply the only beans I had on hand in the house. I just like creating ideas to help stay on this diet and I love the taste of vanilla and mint. If I can help another adult stay on track with a diet, then I am glad to share, so you decide what bean is best for you to use if you decide to try this water.
I poured it my resulting vanilla mint drink over ice to drink very cold and love it with the black pieces of bean mixed in to make it even stronger. If you try this with dry vanilla beans, cut them open down the center to release more flavor and let me know if you liked it, too!

Little Tidbits of Teresa’s Life

My homemade citrus drink for living healthier

I recently went to a nutritionist since I am insulin resistant and my weight is out of control. One doctor had restricted me to 1,000 calories maximum a day and I had lost 10 lbs but was hungry all the time. My internist found out about it and said he did not agree with such restrictions and offered to send me to the nutritionist. I learned I am not eating enough protein so with enough education, I feel I can manage this situation. Accountability is the key for me.
At any rate, I have been searching for solutions to manage sweet cravings and see many drinks online with natural herbs in them. After reading several, I made up my own today with a few fresh ingredients as follows:

2 oranges sliced
2 lemons sliced (if you prefer all lemons/all oranges, go for it!)
About 4 sprigs fresh sweet mint (I found at the local Barn Nursery)
Ice
4 quarts total water after mixing all in pitcher

First cut the oranges and lemons and place in bottom of pitcher.
Next place mint in pitcher.

Next add ice, enough to cover the ingredients and stir somewhat vigorously with wooden spoon to help bruise the mint and release some juices of the fruits.
Next add cold water to remaining pitcher up to 4 quarts and refrigerate overnight to let the flavors mix and really get a chance to release.
Keep refrigerated and enjoy. I use my Pampered Chef pitcher so it is easy to remix as needed.

Update: after also making vanilla mint water which can be found by clicking here, I added just a little to my glass and found it gave it a sweeter taste and I like it more this way…
Little Tidbits of Teresa’s Life

My Tea Cups my dad collected for Me to Make Candles

As promised in an earlier post, I am sharing teacups today…

I have mentioned before that my dad loves to go to vintage shops and secondhand shops. When he heard I want to make candles out of vintage tea cups he took great pleasure in shopping for tea cups for his “baby” daughter.

I have set out all the tea cups and taken pictures to share with you but I have not yet actually made the candles. I have bought a kit to do this but it is an area which I have no experience whatsoever, so I am reluctant to “take the plunge” and make them.

To be continued with candles…

Little Tidbits of Teresa’s Life