Two months out

My Dad died two months ago today. I did go to church with my Mom tonight and I thought about him a lot. I miss him quite a bit, especially now that there is this canyon between my mom and me. He was the fabric softener in the life of our family. He kept us from sticking together and rubbing each other the wrong way.

I am trying to start to care for my diabetes better again. I actually took my blood sugar this morning. It was high at 170. I suspect it will be high again tonight after eating a Rueben and french fries with gravy. It's the first time I've checked my sugar in about three weeks.

I went to church with my mom only after she called last week asking me if I would start to go up with her again. She wanted me to start up again and then go out to dinner with her afterwards. I told her I would let her know today and I didn't make my official decision until almost 1:30 this afternoon. I think part of why I am going is for me and not just because she wants me to go. I feel better after sitting in church, saying prayers, and being in the presence of the Lord.

This week I also saw my therapist and he said some things that were proverbially hitting the nail on the head. That man is underpaid but he is worth his skinny little weight in gold. He's tall and rather thin and then there's me all short and wide, akin to Jack Sprat and his wife from the nursery rhyme.

I also did some Just Dancing this week to get myself ready for a dancing showdown in early February. I plan to do some solid a$$ kicking in that regard. I have some friends who plan to get together so we can dance with the Wii and I've been told to bring it, not sing it, so I am dancing my pants off to show them what I can do.

You just keep walking, one foot in front of the other. I wondered how I would get to today but that's how you do it. You just keep walking and breathing.

I hope you're proud of me, Daddy.

First Monday

Today was the first Monday of 2011 and I survived. Yippee!

I made it to work okay, even though the roads were a snowy mess and visibility was quite limited between the dark and the pelting snow. I got to work and my classroom had a minor flood from the ceiling and several tiles were broken and on the floor. Welcome back, Weeble.

After work I came home from some errands and proceeded to do some Just Dance 2. I was having a great time and danced for almost 40 minutes until the phone rang. It turned out to be my college bestie from Maine. After the call ended I did another 15minutes of dancing.

The road to weight loss is paved with minutes of Just Dancing.

I need to get myself motivated and get my diabetes under control. I have not tested my blood sugars in well over a week. I haven't had my Victoza shot in days. I almost never take my Glipizide 30 minutes before I eat; I generally take it as I eat. Sometimes I don't take my two doses of Metformin. The diabetes stuff is just out of control but I don't think my numbers are too bad off. Then again, it's hard to know for sure when I'm not testing.

Get it together Weeble before some real damage is done! You can do this, girl.

I see my therapist on Wednesday afternoon and that is another step in the right direction.

My MS symptoms are under better control today also.

All in all, today wasn't bad for the first Monday back to work after vacation.

A little bit fraudulent

I posted my A1C and glucose levels yesterday. They're much better than I thought they would be and I am delighted about that. But I must come clean...

Sometimes, often times, I take my blood sugar when I know it will be low so I can record it. I have been a little bit fraudulent with my readings therefore but I am overall doing much better than I ever thought, as evidenced by the A1C. You can't fake that as it is the the last three months worth of readings averaged out.

So here I am trying to cut down on my carbs at night and starting on a new diabetes med called Victoza. Victoza is a daily shot, not insulin, but another new med that works with the pancreas. I am no longer on Actos and I have been on this new med for a little over a week now. It has a side effect of weight loss and I think I am eating less on it, even though I have been dealing with major hormones the last few days. Losing weight and pulling lower numbers at all times would be a great thing for me to do.

I am also slowly getting back into using my Wii. I have been dancing and boxing a few days a week. Way better than my doing nothing. I still need to lose about ten pounds to get back to my lower weight (and then keep going from there).

Work is going well even with one stressful class. I seem to be doing okay with the major change in grades and learning all 100+ kiddos. I am healthy and happy and thriving even with the new obstacles.

I guess I'll keep on keeping on!

The MS Walk and the Wii

Last year at this time I was out of work due to my MS and depression. This year I am signing up for, strike that, have already signed up for the National MS Society Walk on May 2nd. I'm going to walk for those who can't move it due to MS!

I have started a team called Weeble's Wobblers aka Team Weeble for short. I am doing my best to rope in my friends and colleagues to be part of this awesome team. I have a goal for our team of $1200 in donations. Just today I have received $150 in donations through Facebook. If you'd like to donate and we're Facebook friends, you can click on the link at the bottom left of my page and it will take you where you need to go to donate.

*Thanks BJM for being a part of my team!

As far as the Wii goes, I have lost 23 pounds since January when I started the Just Dance. I added in the Gold's Gym Cardio Boxing in February and that added a whole new dimension to the "shake up the fat" zone. The next thing I am going to do is add in Zumba DVDs to dance and shake my bountiful booty. I am actually enjoying moving my body, challenging it, and making it sweat. Maybe I will eventually hit my goal of running again! Woohoo, that's something to think about.

Tomorrow is also my Friday at work because Friday is a Tysabri day. That means I can go to McDonald's and get a Shamrock shake before the Ty. Yummo!

I miss my boxing.

I did not box today and I swear I am having withdrawal symptoms. I'm cranky and alert when I am usually sweaty and winding down. I took the day off from boxing because I have been working out like crazy lately. Everyone knows you need to rest up and not wear yourself out by doing too much too often.

Last night I was up about 3 hours after falling asleep and I was in some pain. My legs and back ached. Ached, people! I took some Aleve and finally got back to sleep. That was my sign to take it easy today.

A day off helps the body rest and repair itself from all the activity it's been undergoing. I just can't imagine three months ago saying that I miss exercise but it's true.

I'll keep moving it for as long as I can, with those occasional rest days thrown in there. Hope you're feeling well and able to move as much as you can!

OMB (Oh my blog!)

Yep, I'm at it again. Here I am typing away for a second day in a row. I hope there's still someone rambling around out here in my part of cyberspace to read this.

So what have I got for you?

No snow day again. No surprise. For those of you that don't "know" me, I live in the snow belt. We get a lot of snow in the winter, usually a minimum of 120 inches or so. We have not had one snow day yet. Any teacher in these parts will admit to being restless and eager for a snow day. SOON!

I know that no one else really gets snow days off. I understand your envy of teachers getting a day off for free. It's a bonus day that they pay you to stay home and watch TV and nap. Life doesn't get much better than that.

We have 5 days scheduled for snow days on top of our regular work days. Not one has been used and this is a record. We have never gone this long in the winter season without a snow day. Teachers all over the area awake each day to turn on the TV in hopes that a real snow storm has struck that wasn't on the radar. I can almost hear the collective groan of these dedicated workers getting up at 5 a.m. and being denied that special day.

I know, suck it up.

I will and I do. I go to work each day, sometimes begrudgingly, but my day will come.

In other stuff, I danced and then boxed for a good hour. I know I have had a good workout when my eyesight starts to get blurry. I know this is a typical occurence for MSers when their body temperature rises. Stuff tends to go a little haywire but it's just temporary.

I also know I have had a good workout when I am sufficiently sweaty and my body feels good. I am starting to crave this thing called exercise. I used to be thin a long time ago and I worked out often. I was even a runner. Then I got fat, real fat, and then I got sick and finally I got diagnosed with MS. Since MS I haven't done a lot of serious moving around until now. I never thought my Wii would motivate me because the Wii Fit didn't do much for me. I thought it was boring and not fun enough. Turns out, I just needed to find the games for me.

Who would have thunk that a Fatty McFattypants like me would be getting in shape with video games? Stranger things have happened.

Like no snow days, for one!

Houston, Wii've got a problem

I know some of you out there have the Nintendo Wii systems and some of you even have the Wii fit. I've got a bone to pick with the Wii Fit.

First off, you have to make a character that looks somewhat like you with your height and weight statistics. As you log in to get tested it tells you what your BMI is (too high, imagine that) and what you current weight is according to the Wii Fit machine (too high, imagine that). Now I am five feet tall with big hair but I made myself 5'4'' because let's face it, we all lie about our height and weight. I assume the people who designed this incredible masterpiece took that into consideration.

Problem one, every time I get on the blasted thing it shows me fatter than the time before. I have been to the nutritionist and made some good changes in the right direction and have lost a few pounds. Not a lot but a few so why am I going up on the Wii Fit?

Problem two is that there is no way I am running as fast as the little monitor shows I am. I "ran" (which means fast walked) for ten minutes and went 2.711 miles. That is completely impossible. First off I'm extremely fat and slow and when I used to run run I never ran less than a 5 minute mile, not even close.

Are they making it seem like I'm a superb exerciser while I'm growing fatter? As you now know, Wii have a problem.

Do you miss me?

I've had a few people notice (ahem) that I haven't been writing on here much for the past few weeks. You're right, I have neglected my blog but in my own defense I have been busy. Now that things seem to have quieted down, thank goodness, I hope to be back here more often.

It feels like Spring has sprung where I live in the snow belt of central NY with temperatures in the high 30s and low 40s. It has not snowed for several days now and the existing snow is actually melting. Yes, my friends I wrote the word melting.

Melting snow is a good thing because the snowbanks make driving a dangerous obstacle course around where I live. You have to pull out into traffic in order to see if any traffic is coming in either lane. If no one is coming, then you're good to go. However, if someone is coming in either lane then you get a dirty look and usually have to put the car in reverse and start the whole process over again once the car has passed. So melted snowbanks is a good thing.

How much snow have we seen where I live? Somewhere about the average total for the winter season has already fallen. That's about 120 inches so far which is ten feet of snow. Thankfully, we don't get it all at once but there was a spell where it would snow every day to a point where you would have to clear your car off. That gets really flipping annoying because you have to schedule that extra time in time before you leave for any appointments. Then my car would tend to get stuck in my spot despite my rocking it back and forth. That would take even more time when you were trying to go somewhere. That kind of stuff gets on your nerves when it can start snowing in October and can keep on snowing into April.

So snow, schmo... It looks pretty when it first comes but it's all just an illusion. You stare in wonder at the trees all coated in white and think about the holidays and then before you know it your thought process has changed. You bitch and moan when you wake up and look out the window. You need boots and gloves and a winter coat. The path out of your building is probably not shoveled yet. Then there is the juggling on the ice while trying to get your car warm and ready to go. No wonder people are so miserable on winter mornings. I don't even have coffee as a vice to get me through this!

This means I still have February and March and I need to keep my eyes open for April. I do love the Spring with the grass peeking up, the daffodils pushing up through the last remnants of snow piles, the blue skies and the sun. Oh the beautiful orb, the sun, that is missing on almost all of our winter days, hidden behind clouds and snow storms.

On another note, I am glad to see that I am not alone with my PIP issue. It seems no matter how small, tall, or how much you weigh, that pants in public can be a downright important issue that links us all together.

Some of you have asked when I would be returning to work or if I would be, and the answer is Friday, May 1st. That means for now, with my physical therapy, my job is to get stronger by using my Wii Fit and the other Sports games and doing my Walk Away the Pounds DVDs. I'm working on the balance and aerobic games on my Wii fit. I can feel some of my clothes fitting differently but my old PIPs are still way too tight. I'm just so glad I have some new PIPs to wear so I can bench the sweats for physical therapy only. Most of the time I wear shorts around my apartment and they are starting to fit differently too. Yippee, baby steps.

Then I need to work on the food issues. All in due time.

By the way, on the local news they are forecasting 60 degrees on Wednesday of this week. This means I can wear shorts outside as long as I shave my legs. Woohoo!!

Welcome back dear readers

Wow, it has been a long time since I've been back here, over a week. It's good to have something positive to write about on a day when the sun is actually out and shining where I live.

My dad finally came home from the hospital yesterday afternoon after two and a half weeks of being a patient. He has gained 35, yes you read that correctly - 35, pounds of fluid from his hospitalization so his clothes don't fit right now either.

{As a complete and selfish aside, I wore PIP (pants in public) the other day and they fit me. Must be using the Wii fit is shaking off some of my fatness.}

Dad now has to wear a special vest 24/7 for three months. It has something to do with measuring the electrical conduction of his heart. He was going to have a defibrillator put in earlier this week but the doctors were in disagreement over whether he truly needed it. Instead of getting that done he has the vest which apparently beeps all night according to my mother.

My brother is still home on his emergency leave (instead of going to Australia he came home) and he is a big help to my mom. My dad has a hard time walking because of all of the fluid and being in a hospital bed for more than half a month so my brother can help out with things like taking him to the doctors' appointments that he has tomorrow. My brother is home until his birthday (2/13) and then he goes back to Iraq.

My sister left on Tuesday morning and is back at Ft. Campbell, Kentucky. Her unit is returning today from Kuwait after being in Iraq for 15 months. I believe her next stop will eventually be for captain school in Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri in April.

My brother is officially a Sgt. now as of 2/1 so I am proud of him for that. I feel bad that he lost his R&R to Australia but I am glad that he is home to help out with dad. I will go over now and then but I am not really tall enough for Dad to lean on at my meager height of about 5 feet. My mom is about 5'6'' and my brother is 6'1'' so they are more in line with the height of my dad.

Hopefully he will stay off the cigarettes as he can't drive for four weeks so he'll have no real escape unless someone picks him up and drops him off somewhere. I suspect he'll stay close to home due to feeling uncomfortable due to all the fluid and being unsteady on his feet. He is now on a diuretic so get out of his way when he has to go!

I'm back at physical therapy and riding the bike each time to warm up. It's rather pathetic because I am so short and have such a round stomach. I'm pretty much too short for the bike and my knees are riding up high when I try to pedal. I don't pedal in a super smooth motion but it's getting better.

I am also trying to play my Wii fit at home. However, I have been a little overzealous on that and seemed to have bothered a nerve of mine that runs from my right foot up through my right buttock. I generally do the aerobic and balance games. I do the running but it's more of a combo of a slow jog and a fast walk, the hula hooping, the slalom skiing, and the penguin one where you're trying to catch fish. I try so hard on the ski jump and it never shows me taking off even though I am squatting down and then go up on my tip toes (and no I do NOT jump on the board). The stupid ski jump always says I extended too late no matter how early or how low to high I move on the jump. Grrr....

It could always be much worse. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers and emails.