More Purging

My new favorite YouTuber is Diane in Denmark. I found Diane while doing research for a possible trip to Scandinavia in 2019. She does share interesting facts about her region, but her channel's primary goal is to teach others how to make daily "chores" easier and less stressful.

I've always been organized and I hate clutter. I also love to purge and keep my house neat and tidy. Diane in Denmark is all of those things, but she's extemely practical and frugal in her approach.

Currently I'm participating in Diane's 40 in 40 Challenge, which began February 19. Everyday, for 40 days, participants purge one item. It can be as small as a broken pencil or as big as a piece of furniture. It doesn't matter the size. The objective is to be consistent, always keeping an eye out for items that are just cluttering up your space. Like many participants, I'm posting my daily items on Instagram if you're interested.

With Diane's motivation and tips, I'm now finding daily and weekly chores much less arduous. She's just what I needed at this time of my life. I love YouTube!

Branson Winter Getaway

My view from the condo's rocker recliner.

Last weekend we took advantage of hubby getting Presidents Day off and drove to Branson for a three-night getaway. We had such a relaxing time we didn't want to leave.

Danna's BBQ

I found a condo in our price range on VRBO with everything we wanted. Click here to see where we stayed. It was super clean with an extremely comfortable king-size bed. And the kitchen was well stocked with all we needed to prepare simple breakfasts and dinners. For our lunches, we enjoyed barbecue, once at Danna's and once at Rib Crib.

On Saturday afternoon we toured Titanic, which we thoroughly enjoyed. We were there 2.5 hours and appreciated the off-season lighter crowd.

Hubby working on jigsaw
puzzle number two.

Then on Sunday we spent most of the afternoon at the outlet mall, taking advantage of the Presidents Day Sale. We scored great deals on wardrobe items hubby and I both needed. And I was able to finish Easter shopping for our grandsons and granddaughter. I also treated myself to my first Coach bag, which was 75 percent off!

The rest of our days and evenings were spent relaxing in the condo. Hubby assembled two jigsaw puzzles and I watched shows on Britbox, my newest app for watching British TV. I just binge watched all five seasons of Scott & Bailey, which I highly recommend.

Branson is quickly becoming our go-to for quick getaways. Last year we went twice and we're already planning our second visit for this year. In May, hubby's birthday month, we're looking forward to the Bluegrass and BBQ Festival at Silver Dollar City.

We got home Monday afternoon and I'm still feeling so much more relaxed than I did before our getaway. I don't know why it took me so long to appreciate the Ozark Mountains. But I do know I'm now quickly falling in love with Branson.

The Titanic Museum is a must-do!

On the back of the Boarding Pass
is the name and story of a passenger.
At the end of the tour, it's revealed
whether or not the passenger survived.

Here's some of our outlet mall haul.
This doesn't include two pair of shoes,
one for me and one for hubby.

Same Five Pounds

I've been recording my weight on the LoseIt! app since January 2015. Recently I took a close look at that log and found I've been losing and gaining the same five pounds for three years. That's good news and bad news.

The good news is I've managed to stay within five pounds for three years. The bad news is I now know why I'm feeling so defeated. It's as if I've been treading water for 36 months. I haven't gotten anywhere and I'm exhausted!

I'm tired of counting calories with little positive results. I'm also tired of doing hours of research looking for a better quicker way to lose weight in my 60s. And I'm tired of having to think long and hard before joining others eating cake and ice cream at a birthday party.

But what can I do except continue with what I've been doing for the greater part of the last three years. I'll continue recording calories on the LoseIt! app, staying within 1450 daily calories recommended for my height, weight, and age by several sources. And I'll continue working out three times a week, doing a mixture of weight resistance and intense cardio.

Nevertheless, I've nearly given up on my goal to firmly lose 10 pounds. Now my main motive is to continue fitting into my favorite bottoms. Pray God that's not asking too much.

New Approach

After the holidays, I decided to do better at planning meals and managing our food inventory. So far so good.

I'm only going to the grocery store every other week now instead of weekly. And I'm not purchasing items I already have. Instead I'm making a conscience effort to use pantry staples and freezer items I've had for months. I'm also no long buying more than I'll need for a two-week period, or stock-piling staples such as buying six cans of diced tomatoes when I only need two.

Because I'm using up what I already have and not buying in abundance, I've obviously been able to reduce our grocery costs so far this year. But an additional benefit that wasn't so obvious when I started is how much easier it is now to keep the freezer drawers (2) and produce drawers (4) clean and organized. And you know I love that!

I'm also having more fun cooking again. I'm enjoying the challenge of creating something with what I already have. Today I made soup with frozen chicken stock, some fresh mushrooms, some not-so-fresh carrots and celery, and rice. I also made pumpkin muffins with a can of pumpkin leftover from the holidays and my last box of cake mix.

In addition to better food and meal management, I've also been steadily progressing through my yearly household purging and re-organizing. I think I'll tackle the pantry next. Why not? Now that it's less cluttered, it should be super easy!