HappyHappyJoyJoy!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful happy day so far.  ;-)    I’ve been hanging around in the early 60’s and having a blast with my new weight number. When I went shopping last week, I had gone down TWO whole pant sizes!! (Wooooo-hoooooo!)  I lterally stood in the dressing room (at Walmart because the clothes are cheaper there, LOL~) and cried happy tears of joy as I looked at myself in the mirror.  I bought a couple pairs of pants, and a couple of new T-shirts that were also a size smaller.  The feeling was priceless!!  And I was all ready to go to my husband’s 20th high school reunion!!   

You know, I’ve always been somewhat shy when it comes to being around a large group of people that I don’t know.  But something felt different on Friday night as we socialized and got to know people better.  I felt prettier than I’d felt in quite a long time. Maybe it was the skinnier pants, who knows. (hee, hee!) We had drinks and snacks at a bar in downtown Denver, right next to my favorite piano bar called “Sing Sing.”  It was terribly loud. But the food was good, and I met many of Bob’s old friends as we watched the slide show of all the pictures they had taken in high school.   We stayed longer than I thought, but then we crashed out when everyone got so drunk, I knew they wouldn’t even remember talking to us when they woke up in the morning LOL~ I tell you, being around drunk people is like walking through a sitcom - people say the craziest things. Kinda hysterical.  But we left and went to see the new Batman movie, which was totally awesome!!  and didn’t get home till 1:30 in the morning.  I think I gained back a pound drinking a slurpee and eating ice cream. But hey, just as long as my new pants don’t get tight, I should be okay, eh?  LOL~

On Saturday afternoon, we went back to his reunion which was now at another bar so that my husband could take a class picture and mingle somemore.  We would have stayed longer, but my husband’s sister was having a birthday party at a fun theater in Heritage Square, so we left and enjoyed the show with Bob’s family.  Another late night, but instead of eating a treat this time, I snuck a protein bar in my purse and enjoyed that at intermission. (YAY! Can you smell the new discipline I’m learning?  LOL~)  By Sunday morning, we were so exhausted but there was more partying for my hubby to do, after church of course.  But I stayed home this time because our new kitten had just completed surgery (getting fixed) and she wouldn’t get off my lazy lap. ;-)  So Bob took his little brothers to their old school where they had a picnic, and walked through the school that was re-constructed. Then we had yet another dinner party that evening for Bob’s sister, and we spent the entire evening eating and playing Guitar Hero!  AW, man, that game is so much FUN!   The party didn’t end till 10pm and it was time to go back to work the next day (grrrrr!)     All the late nights are starting to get to me, but it was totally worth it.  Nothing beats a good party with good food, family and friends.  That’s what life is all about, right?

And through all this, I’ve managed to remain in my happy early 60’s  LOL~ Okay, enough of that.  Here’s to another week of fun, working out, coming to Buddy Slim and being inspired by each other, (the sweetest people in all the world), and smiling through all the stress of work galor!  ;-)  Happy Happy Joy Joy to all my buddies - you’re the best!  Keep rockin’ and hang tight to your goals - don’t let go, and please don’t give up!!!!   We can do it - things will always work out.

Peace to all~  Jen Jen

This is a special weekend coming up for my husband - we will be attending his 20 year high school reunion!!!   OMG, has it really been 20 years??  ;-)  My hubby is so cute, and is terribly excited to see everyone from his high school days, considering that he missed his 10th year reunion and hasn’t really kept in touch with anyone.  I wish I were more excited about going LOL~  I don’t know why I really don’t want to go.  (I guess because I’m not as skinny and hot as I wanted to be when we originally planned to attend this thing - waaaaaah!)  But I am curious to meet Bob’s old friends, and hear stories about their high school days in Colorado, which are much, much different from my high school days in Hawaii.  I know it will be fun, and I should be excited to go. Hopefully his friends will see what a hot, cute wife he married and be envious of him. (LOL~ okay, just kidding really, I’m NOT that high on myself LOL~)  But still, I just want him to be proud of me, and proud to show me off on his arm. Tonight they’re having dinner at some bar.  Then on Sunday they’re having a picnic at his school in Lakewood which they have rebuilt.  So it should be an interesting time. Wish me luck! 

I never attended any of my own reunions.  On my 10th reunion, I was so overweight and embarrassed that I didn’t even consider going.  It seemed like everyone had kids except for me, so I was also kinda shy that I didn’t have any. (Not a good excuse, I know! But that’s how I felt.)  But anyway, I graduated from high school back in 1989 - 19 years ago.  And this has absolutely nothing to do with anything, but this morning when I woke up and weighed myself, I lost another pound, and that brings my total to 19 pounds down!!  I was so happy and excited that I jumped up and down and almost hit my head on the ceiling!  Working out and eating right has certainly paid off these past couple of months.  And coming to this sight and getting encouragement, inspiration and friendship has also been key. I’m that much closer to my goal.  So today - 19 is my happy happy joy joy number!!!   Well, my 20th reunion will be next year - so now I’m ready to go!!!  I’m not going to hide away and say I’m too fat and I don’t have kids. By the time my reunion comes around, I should be skinny and pretty. And since my Linda (sweeeeeet friend Linda) is praying for me,  who knows? I will most likely have a couple of kids by then too! (hee, hee!)  But even if I don’t - life is good and I can stop hiding now. That’s my point - Buddy Slim has “uppped” my confidence 100 percent! I love this sight sooooo much!

Okay, I’ll stop babbling now because I have to get back to work before I get fired.  ;-)  I hope you all have a happy happy joy joy weekend!  ;-)   Good luck on your weight goals and work as hard as you can this weekend.  Give yourself a treat too, and reward yourself for getting out there and working hard.  We can all do this together!!  Love ya all so much, budddddies!!!   Peace to all…

Jen Jen

  Relaxing from a hard day’s work next to a clean fireplace…and trying to loose cute.  Ahhhhhhh!!  Life is good.

So today I found another fun way to loose some happy pounds…

It’s practically 100 degrees here in Denver today, (ouch!) and we’ve been out working in the sunshine and cleaning our tooshies off. Or should I say, my now shrinking tooshie (LOL~)   It’s been a busy day and we’ve been all working up a sweat in the Colorado sunshine.  We moved into our new house last November and the old owners had left a whole bunch of junk outside and in the garage for us.  (bless their hearts, aren’t they sweet?)  So today was the day we decided to finally get rid of it, so we called 1-800-got-junk? to come and help us. They were sooooo awesome and they filled an entire truck with all of our junk.  Nice!  We swept the garage and cleaned the yard, and wow!  It’s like we’re living in an entirely different home. I am so proud with the results of our labor. Time now to relax!!

And no joke - I am down one more pound today!  My overweight body has now lost a total of 18 pounds!!!  Eighteen pounds - it doesn’t sound real when I say it!  Eighteen pounds!  It sure is fun to write the number 18 and say that I’ve lost 18 pounds.  Have I told you that I’ve lost 18 pounds?  Have I said it enough?  LOL~ Am I getting annoying and you don’t want to read my blog anymore?  I sure hope not.  Because if it wasn’t for the encouragement and support I’ve received from my buddies here and my family at home, this would not have been possible for me.  Hubby is so cute - he is going to take me to Walmart now so I can buy a couple of new outfits. I’m not going to change my entire wardrobe just yet, as I’d like to continue on my downward spiral and loose more weight.  But I think it’s time for a reward - to see the results in the mirror and to feel them in my clothes.  What do you think?

I’m soooooo happy today…  I hope that everyone else is having a wonderful weekend.

Working off a sweat has certainly paid off.  I highly recommend some good sweat and workout today.  I’m trying really hard to avoid the urge to eat some ice cream for a treat. Maybe I’ll go buy some popcicles instead.  Somebody just put a leash on me, and keep me inside… LOL~

Happy Saturday and weekend, buddddddies!  Thanks for sharing my joy with me.  Happy Happy Joy Joy!

Another happy pound has been shed from the skin of my life,  (did that sound poetic? LOL, probably not~)  and I owe it all to my new puppy, Bella. ;-) 

So today I’d like to stand and applause, and thank my sweet little Bella for a job well done.  Before this precious one year old Beagle came into my life, I would come home from work each day, plop in front of the TV with my husband, and wonder what was for dinner as we rested together from our labors.  Now, as soon as we come through the front door, Bella stands in the entry way, looking up at us with those ever adorable puppy-dog eyes, begging my husband and I for some activity - to take her for a walk outside in the fresh air.  Of course she has her reasons for needing to leave right away,  but I’d like to imagine that she loves her new owners so much that she’d like them to come outside for good and healthy activity.  ;-)  After all, why wouldn’t she want us to be healthy? Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?  

Well, in all seriousness, I really didn’t have anything to blog about today.  (if you couldn’t tell LOL~) But all I can think about right now is how good things are going in my life, and how grateful I am for the simple things in life.   The sun, my mother who survived her cancer scare, my husband who works so hard for our family, my friends who are simply the greatest ever, healthy snacks that boast me, the computer that gives me something to do, pictures of Elvis that keep my mind occupied while at work (LOL~)  But most of all, that God who gave me life.  Man, life can be really good!  My life has changed so much since the day I first woke up and realized it was time to do something about my weight.  I feel like a new person now.  I get up each day with a new attitude, and a new enthusiasm for life, knowing that I can eat healthy, exercise when I can, and feel good about myself again.  The scale really can go down, despite our past experiences.  But even when it goes up, it doesn’t matter in the end - just as long as we don’t give up. We can really do this!!  Honestly, we can…

And we will!! Take advantage of all the opportunities that you have, even if it’s just a little beagle who wants to get you outside to take care of her business. (Best not to have her business done on the carpet anyway, huh!!)  Get out and have some fun.  Life’s too short not to.

Well thanks to everyone who encourages and supports me.  I love reading through other blogs on Buddyslim and seeing the experiences that everyone has, many of you with the same struggles I’ve been facing.  And I’m grateful for all the new friends I’ve made here. You are all one in a million.  ;-)

With that said, happy, happy, joy joy to all my adorable budddddies out there!  Have a wonderful day. 

I stood on the scale in complete shock this morning as I slowly realized (wiping my eyes a million times to make sure I was reading the thing correctly) that I had lost yet another pound in my quest to loose weight, and I’m now only 6 pounds away from my mini goal!  ;-)  I can’t believe it!  I never thought it would be possible for me, and it’s suddenly becoming a reality.  I couldn’t wait to share the news with my buddies here on Buddyslim - I know that you are the people who truly understand, and I am soooooo blessed to have the support and friendship of you all here on this sight.  Thank you for the encouragement, the good information, and the booast you’ve all given me to keep going, and not give up. 

I am a happy happy joy joy girl this morning! ;-)  I couldn’t let the day pass without sharing this with you. Keep to your goals today (find your happy pants, as our cute friend Sarah Jade says!) and don’t give up! This can happen for all of us, and it can only get better from here!

Aloha Nui Loa~

PS  My doggie and kittie touched noses last night briefly - making contact for the very first time. There’s hope for my household yet LOL~ LOL~

     Okay… I think I’ve finally figured out how to add pictures into my blog.  (I know, I know, I’m a blond and it takes me a little longer sometimes LOL~)   The quality isn’t great, but at least you can see the two baby girls that I love the most.  God has not chosen to give me real children, so I will take these babies instead.  They are just as fun, if not easier than real babies, but more loyal and more non-judgemental 

Meet Bella - the newest addition to our family!   I just LOVE my beagle!!!  She is the sweetest little thing, and I love her with all my heart. I’ve never owned a dog before, so this is a new experience for me.  So far, I’m lovin it!!

And the other cute picture is my 5 month old kitten, Galaxy.   ;-)  She is such a character!  I’ve had cats my whole life, but there is something extra special about her.  She hasn’t warmed up to the puppy yet, but I’m sure someday she will.  I love her with all my heart.

By the way, if you couldn’t tell, I love my animals!!

 Happy Happy Joy Joy!!

Sooooo, I just figured out why I’ve gained so much weight in the past few years.  I blame reality TV.  ;-) 

Does anyone watch the Bachelor/Bachelorette show on ABC?   It’s a program I’ve been watching faithfully for many years now. Don’t ask me why I enjoy watching people fall in love on camera, (sometimes fake, of course), then break up, fight, drool, get hurt, and all that other drama that comes from putting members of the same sex in the same house. Well, for some reason, this show has always captured my attention and I enjoy a bowl of popcorn and Rootbeer while I watch (LOL~ hence, the weight gain).  Well last night was the Finale of this seasons Bachelorette and once again, as in seasons past, I picked the WRONG person to win in the end.  (This time I didn’t eat popcorn and rootbeer, I only had biting my fingernails with a glass of water LOL~) I won’t give away anything in case someone hasn’t watched it yet. But I’ve always ended up liking the person that never gets picked. (EXCEPT when Trista picked Ryan in season two)  and I sat there and cried, and cried as I hurt for the handsome man who went home with a broken heart.  Then I got angry and had a sudden craving for a large bowl of ice cream, which I had none in my freezer, thank goodness!!)  As I sat there stewing in my misery over a silly TV show, it dawned on me where all my weight gain had come from in the past. Sitting in front of the TV, stressing about things that shouldn’t affect me, then dwelling in my misery.   Kinda silly huh.   It’s all laziness for me, and I’m sick of it.  Well, I decided I don’t want to sit and watch those reality shows anymore.  I’d rather be outside playing with my puppy or riding my bike with my husband.  So that’s my goal for this week - no more television!!!    (Of course I’m a sucker for Survivor and the Amazing Race, but hopefully by the fall I’ll have accomplished my goal weight so I can sit and watch TV without feeling guilty. LOL~)    I’m going to get out and exercise, enjoy the world and live in MY reality. 

ANYWAY, happy news I’d forgotten to share. When I went shopping for a bathing suit over the 4th of July weekend, I was able to purchase a size SMALLER than I have in the past!!!!!   I actually had tears in my eyes when I faced the clerk and told her I didn’t need the larger size anymore.  Boy, you should have seen the smile on her face when she saw my tears of joy and asked me if I was okay.  You bet your buttons I am!!!!   I’ve never been happier in my entire life!  Especially as I sat at the pool and my brother in law asked me if I’d been eating.  Say what???  I looked at him and said SURE, I eat!  And he smiled and said that it looked like I wasnt eating anymore, and that I was looking great.   Talk about tears of joy.  It’s actually happening, buddies.  It’s actually happening to me…

Thank you all for your support!!!

And with that said, here’s a cute email that made me smile this morning. It’s called Catholic Shampoo:

“While shopping in a food store, two nuns happened to pass by the beer.

The second nun answered that, indeed, it would be very nice to have

one, but that she wouldn’t feel comfortable about buying it. The first

Nun replied that she could handle that without a problem. She picked

up a six-pack and took it to the cashier. The cashier had a surprised

look on his face, so the nun said, ‘ We use beer for washing our hair; a sort of shampoo, if you will.’

Without blinking an eye, the cashier reached under the counter, pulled out a package of pretzel sticks and

placed them in the bag with the beer. He then looked the nun straight in the eye, smiled, and said, ‘ The curlers are on the house.’

Happy Happy Joy Joy, budddddies!! 

Hi budddies!  

How was everyone’s holiday weekend? Still recovering from all the food? ;-)   I know I sure am!  And wow, what a fun weekend it was. I’ve never been so busy, busy before in all my life.  I guess it helped me retain the same weight on my scale at least - I didn’t have time to eat much LOL~

On the evening before the 4th, my best friend picked me up from work and had a wonderful surprise for me. When we were single many decades ago, (LOL~) we hung out together almost daily with a couple of guys - Leif and Steve.  My best friend ended up marrying Leif (yay!!)  but Steve eventually disappeared into the wild blue yonder and we didn’t hear from him for ever!!  Well - Steve was HERE in town, and they surprised me with his presence.   It was such a wonderful reunion and I wanted it to last forever.  There is no greater gift in life than friendships - I know that for a fact! And I never want to loose touch with my best friends, ever! 

So then the 4th was upon us. We had a fun pool party with my mom (who is recovering great from her surgery, and looking better and better each day!)  We didn’t BBQ this year after working out in the pool. Rather, we ate out and let someone else do all the cooking.  Loved it!!!   After playing with my sister and her family, my husband and I prepared for the next event - a baseball game for the Denver Rockies, then a firework show afterwards at Coors Field.  Well, to make a long story short - we drove all the way downtown, parked, and walked up to the ticket gate only to learn that my mother in law had bought us tickets for the WRONG DAY!!!  LOL~  Oh, she was so livid when we called and told her that we were going home.  Personally I didn’t mind, even though it would have been fun to see the fireworks.  My hubby, sister in law and I went to a fun arcade place called “Dave & Busters” instead and we played our tushies off!  And to top it all off - we could see the fireworks from our own balcony at home. ;-)  It was beautiful.

Saturday we picked up the newest addition to our family - our new beagle named Bella.  I’ll have to tell you those adventures on another blog because this one is getting WAY too long LOL~  but we spent the day cleaning, cleaning and cleaning the house that we sold in only 3 days! (wooo-hooo!)  which is my husband’s childhood home.  And we topped off our hard work with ice cream from Dairy Queen (the only time I was really bad this weekend LOL~)

Sunday after church (and tending the kids in the nursery -which my husband and I do every week for our calling) we got ready for yet another fun gathering. My sister in law met a cute,  interesting guy on the internet named Billy. He is from Texas and is in town visiting with her for the next 3 days, and getting to know her and her family.  I felt like we were on the Bachelor show as we piled him with questions, hopefully not too embarrassing. I think he had fun, but they were more than ready to leave when our dinner was over (LOL~)  My sister looks so happy, I really hope this works out for her. She deserves to be happy…

Okay - so now I’m here back to work - RECOVERING from all the fun, parties, food, animals and work.  Hopefully our home will calm down this week and things can get back to normal.  I’m a girl of solitude, as my husband and I really enjoy our quiet and our privacy.  However, the most important things in life are family and friends.  This was a weekend that helped remind me of that - my priorities!

Love ya, every buddddy!!  Can’t wait to hear how your weekend was. 

Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy!!!!!

Can you believe the holiday is already upon us? ;-)  Where did all of the year go anyway??  I guess time just flies when you’re having fun, huh.  I hope every-buddy has fun plans for the weekend, and that all is going well with your weight loss goals.  

So my beautiful, beautiful hubby and I just celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary, ( and I’m still sane? LOL~)  and I bought him a new present yesterday to continue on with our celebration of lasting love.  It was rather a selfish gift, actually. I got him a one year old Beagle puppy from the Denver Dumb Friends League -a cute little girl named Daisy.  She is soooooo precious, and it didn’t take us long to fall madly in love with her!  Bob wants to call her “Bella.”  It’s amazing to me that such a simple gift can bring so much happiness to a man (LOL~)  Unfortunately we can’t bring Bella home until Saturday because she recently had surgery on her eye, and got herself all fixed up as well.  (When we first met her, she was drugged on morphine so it made our bonding experience even more of a trip!) So we have some time to get things ready for her before she comes.  I am very excited for this sweet addition into our small family.  (She’s the only other girl I’ll allow my husband’s life, ha ha~)  My husband has been very patient with me over the years - by letting me keep cats around the house even though he is extremely allergic.  So now it’s his turn to have the pet of his dreams.  And now that we have a yard, things couldn’t have worked out more perfectly.   We are truely blessed.  ;-)  If I can ever figure out how to post pictures into my blog, I will be sure to add pictures of Bella.  (I tried adding pictures, but I can’t size them small enough to fit. Maybe it’s just user error?? LOL~)   

So…. I’m glad that Bella will soon be here. Maybe she will help me get off my tushy and get outside more to play.  I can take walks with her and other activities to help me loose more weight.  ;-)  At least, that’s what I’m hoping.  I’ve already managed to loose 15 pounds just by eating right. And now that I’ve seemed to plateau once again, I need to exercise, get out and get to work!  (Good news- I’m not giving up this time like I did the last time.)  What thinkest ye, buddies o’ mine??  How is everyone doing on their goals this week?  I can’t wait to come around and read your stories.  Oh, and if anyone has a beagle, I’d like to know that too .    *smiles and winks*

If anyone sits to read my babble, I will love you for life!! (LOL~)  Oh, you know that I already love ALL of my buddies, so no worries.  I look forward to making more friends - there is so much fun going around this buddy slim land. But anyway, I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend!! ;-)  Take care and keep smiling.

Happy Happy Joy Joy!!!  PEACE TO ALL!

Happy Tuesday, every budddy! 

Hope everyone is happy and having a good week so far. If not, it’s still early enough in the week to change the outcome, right?! 

I just wanted to check in and see how everyone is doing.  I love going around and reading your blogs - everyone is so special and so unique in their own fun way. It’s comforting to know that we’re all in this together - this crazy adventure we call life, and that everyone is going through heartaches, struggles and also good times.  We have people we can turn to, and that feels real good. Anyway, I wanted to share a cute story that one of my email buddies sent me this morning - she always knows the exact emails to send each day that make me smile big, and I am grateful for her.  I hope the story will also make you smile. ;-)   Hope everyone is having a great day, keeping to your goals and not giving up!!  (My scale has been my friend - even though I’ve had no loss for the past week, I’ve had no gain either. So I suppose that’s a good thing, huh)  I need to get to the gym and work up a sweat so I can keep going down!! 

Anyway, anyway - here’s the story. And here’s to a great day, buddddies!! 

“A mom was concerned about her kindergarten son walking to school. He didn’t want his mother to walk with him.  She wanted to give him the feeling that he had some independence but yet know that he was safe. So she had an idea of how to handle it.  She asked a neighbor if she would please follow him to  school in the mornings, staying at a distance, so he probably wouldn’t notice her. She said that since she was up early with her toddler anyway, it would be a good way for them to get some exercise as well, so she agreed.

The next school day, the neighbor and her little girl set  out following behind Timmy as he walked to school with  another neighbor girl he knew. She did this for the whole  week. As the two walked and chatted, kicking stones and  twigs, Timmy’s little friend noticed the same lady was  following them as she seemed to do every day all week.Finally she said to Timmy, “Have you noticed that lady following us to school all week? Do you know
her?”Timmy nonchalantly replied, “Yeah, I know who she is.”The little girl said, “Well, who is she?”