Jacob worked a lot this weekend so it was nice to have time to spend with Hannah because she was off all weekend.  It’s funny because going into the weekend we were both like “lets get a pedicure!”  But once we got up and started doing stuff on Saturday, we completely forgot.  Of course, we had to go thrifting.  Duh.

PicMonkey Collage - thrift

I did not end up buying that wool coat, but I still kind of liked it.  And I wanted to text my decorator friend that I found the perfect piece of furniture for my bedroom – ha!  Actually though, Lori I totally thought of you because the bones of that chair were pretty solid – it just needed to be reupholstered and it only cost $10!

Hannah and then went to Aldi – she’s watching her friends 4 year old for a few days later this week so she stocked up on snacks and apple juice and stuff like that.  It was so nice outside that I knew I wanted to grill.  I stopped in my tracks when I saw this:

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Nearly three pounds of meat for under $7 would have still been a deal, but since the sell by date was the 11th, it was $3 off – nice!   When I got home I marinated the pork in some olive oil, rosemary and garlic and set it in the fridge for a couple hours.  I had to get my steps in and ended up heading to the forest preserve that is literally just under a mile from my house and I kick myself every time I go there for not taking advantage of this gorgeous scenery more often.

PicMonkey Collage - walk

Gorgeous paths, horses, water – what more could you ask for?!  It was some nice alone time and a great way to get my steps in.  Later that night, I ended up grilling the two pork steaks and freezing the third.  Jacob LOVED this pork.  It’s a super economical cut of pork and super flavorful too.  I ended up finishing mine off with some spicy bbq sauce.

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When Hannah and I were shopping, she found a Halloween costume for Rummy – um, let’s just say that Rummy wasn’t much of a fan of this – she was too funny – we set her down on the ground and she didn’t move at all!

PicMonkey Collage - rummy

Yesterday morning while Jacob was at work and Hannah was running errands, I finally got up the courage to clean out Tony’s clothes from the closet.  The flooring is getting replaced next week and it needed to be done.  I was find to start out with, but then I opened the top drawer of his dresser which was in the closet, and found the bag of clothes that he last wore when we were transferred to University of Illinois Medical Center.

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And in that same drawer underneath all of his socks and underwear was this:

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I had completely forgotten about this.  Way back in 2000 Tony came up with a series of numbers that we could text one another instead of actually typing out words – this was mostly for him because back then the phones were really tiny and he always complained about his sausage fingers being too big for his phone keyboard.  I had to crop it, because, ahem – some of the other numbers were sexual in nature – I decided to leave those out for the benefit of my Mom and Parents-In-Law.  But I read the 0101 and I could literally hear his voice when I read those words, and well, the tears started to flow.  Not a sobbing cry like I’ve done in the past, but just . . . a sad cry for lack of better words.  So I packed up his clothes as the tears rolled down my face, and I was glad I decided to do it when I was alone.   It’s just so bizarre how I don’t like to share my emotions about Tony to the outside world, like I somehow have to be the strong one when I know I don’t need to be all the time.  I just really fucking miss him is all.  And a part of me wonders if I’ll ever love anyone again as much as I loved him.

But the weekend ended up in smiles.  Hannah’s best friends son turned 4.  He’s going to be staying at our house for a few days later this week while his Momma gets a much needed vacation. 

PicMonkey Collage - carver

It was a Shaun the Sheep theme at her local park district and it was too cute for words.  They ended up having to do a treasure hunt for the cake and it was really fun.  Just another reminder that life is for the living.

Which brings me to the Whole 30.  You guys – I’ve been eating like shit lately – not so much my individual meals, but all the extra licks and tastes lately that have been adding up.  And stuff I normally don’t eat – ice cream, cookies, donuts.  While carb cycling was working for me before I got sick with bronchitis, I decided I needed a kick start sort of detox for 30 days before going back to carb cycling.  I only planned my meals for this week, and it’s not too complicated – basically no dairy (cheese!), grains or alcohol – my carbs are going to be coming from fruit and veggies.  Eating lean meats and healthy fats.   I need to do this now before I wake up on December 31 fifteen pounds heavier!

What are your thoughts on the Whole 30?  Have you done it?  Interested to see what your thoughts are on the subject.

Now I am off to get some steps in before work – make it a great day!