Pictures Taken for the Community Challenge

Here are some random pictures of me from the It's Time Texas Community Challenge. 

walking during cafeteria duty

chicken, rice, and green beans

banana, chocolate chip, peanut butter blender muffins made into bread

trying a new yogurt

actively monitoring during testing

chicken, rice, and peas

salad for dinner with my sweet man

banana, chocolate chip, peanut butter blender muffins made into bread

trying another new yogurt

actively monitoring during testing

chicken, rice, green beans, and peas

trying a CarbMaster yogurt for a snack on a late dinner kind of night

more homemade peanut butter banana chocolate chip muffins (made in a bundt pan)

Books!

Over on Facebook, a friend asked for book recommendations. I put off answering b/c I knew it would take some time as I created my list. I get so excited when I talk about books.

My BFF, Jill Culmo, whose list and Blog I shared with you on January 1st, is much better put together.  Here is a list of books I have enjoyed or read lately.

The Never List by Koethi Zan

One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus

All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood

The Day the World Came to Town by Jim DeFede

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Any book by Gillian Flynn

Any book by Liane Moriarty

The Perfect Mother by Aimee Molloy

In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware

The Last Mile by David Baldacci

You can also check me out on Goodreads!  I keep track of what I have read and what I plan to read on there.

My problem with creating a list is that as soon as I think I am finished, I think of something else to add.

Girl Scouts--Adult Awards

These last 2-3 years, I have been the ARS for our Service Unit.  I am responsible for getting out the info about nominating adult volunteers for awards. I also have access to training records and the nominations to make sure everything is in line for the adults to actually received the awards.

What I have found is that most Girl Scout volunteers do not like to nominate themselves and most girls/families won't nominate their volunteers.

I just simply keep communicating. I send out emails to volunteers/leaders. Our communication person sends out info to our families. I post info on our social media site.

I nominate everyone I think of to get the ball rolling.

I was just sitting here thinking. I can see all the nominations that come through for our SU. Very few, if any, are done by girls and parents. Why not? The amount of time and energy leaders put into Girl Scouting warrants these awards.  Why are the girls and parents not nominating their leaders/volunteers?

Anyone else out there have this problem? Found a solution? I would love to hear your ideas!

Valentine's Day Ideas

So, I am a newlywed, and I want to do something or get something special for my sweet man. I have been searching through some sites based on a 1-800-FLOWERS email I received. Saw some cute ideas, but I was wondering what you all might suggest for our first Valentine's Day as a married couple.

Hashimoto's and My Thyroid

My labwork finally came back, and my dr called to say she wanted me to come in to chat about the results. I was a bit nervous at first thinking something might be seriously wrong, but she didn't sound overly concerned, so I calmed down.

Apparently, my brain is not registering much, if any, Thyroid activity or hormone creation/activity. This really surprised me. We discussed changing my meds to something that should work better, decided on a milligrammage to start with, and discussed what to expect. I cannot start with the full mg b/c it will be like I'm on Speed or something, so we will start a little lower and work our way up.

In the past, I have been able to tell, or so I thought, that my THyroid has been off, but I haven't felt that way lately. That is why this surprised me.  However, it does explain a few other concerns surrounding hormones.

I am looking forward to working with this dr and getting answers.

Anyone out there have any ideas or suggestions for those with Hashimoto's?

What I Never Expected to Learn in GS

28 Skills You Never Expected to Learn at Girl Scouts blog post from Girl Scouts

I just read and enjoyed this blog post.  Like I have said before, Girl Scouts runs in my blood.  I joined as a Brownie in Kindergarten (Daisy was not a level at that time), and I stayed in all the way through Senior Year, earning my Gold Award.

I cannot even remember everything I have done, let alone learned.  Girl Scouts has truly made me who I am--along with my parents, grandparents, family, teachers, education, and friends.

I remember the Junior badge for Car Care.  My dad had me in the driveway changing the oil and tires on the car. I learned a lot about cars, their care, and got some idea of what to ask or say if I needed to take a car into the shop.

We camped all the time, so I have learned to create a packing list and how to follow it. I know how to prepare recipes, shopping lists, and meals. I know which rice to buy and which one not to get. (We always laugh about that!) I know what to do if the plumbing is bad and how to find firewood, create a fire circle, set-up/start a fire, and how to safely put one out.

I have made lifelong friends.  Not only did I meet my BFF, Jill, in Girl Scouts, but I have a ton of other friends I can call on if needed. We could go to lunch, catch up, and it be like no time has passed.
Girl Scouts also gave me the opportunity to spend time with my mom. She was our leader for many years, and I treasure that time we had.

Through skills learned in Girl Scouts and by working along side my mom, I learned to pour concrete, dig holes, move a fence, build a pool deck, fix things that broke around the house, learned who to call when I couldn't, how to sew, and more.

We were put in so many positions to be leaders, make decisions, handle money, make/set plans, and more that lead to skills in today's jobs.  I cannot remember learning anything specific, but I know how to work with people, listen, voice my opinions and concerns, and problem solve.

Girl Scouts surrounded me with girls with good morals and ethics.  I was never tempted by drugs, alcohol, or anything else that would put me in harm's way. I kept great grades and set goals for myself. Those surrounding me supported me.

I have also had the opportunity to work with girls in 4 different troops since I was in high school. Giving back and helping them to have some of the same experiences I have has been so rewarding.

If you have influence over a young lady in your life, register her for Girl Scouts, find her an amazing troop (or lead it yourself), and help her stay in through high school. You won't regret it!

Eating Healthy and Gallstones

At work, we have been doing the It's Time Texas Community Challenge.  I have been making sure I am eating healthy meals 3 times a day along with a healthy mid-morning snack (since I don't eat until late). I work in a workout or something when I can (mostly when I do lunch duty and walk around the cafeteria or when I am actively monitoring testing and walk all over the room).  Funny that I am trying so hard to watch everything during January and this is the time my gallstones start moving around causing me great pain and agony.

Since I was diagnosed with gallstones in 2010, I have maybe had 2-3 days of pain.  Well, they decided to start moving and keep moving for a week. In a 5 day period, I saw the doctor twice, had 12 vials of blood drawn, a urine sample, an ultrasound, a sonogram, a chest x-ray, two EKGs, a CT Scan, and an ER visit.

All led to us learning my Thyroid meds need to be changed (even though I don't feel any different since changing them last time--I have felt pretty good in that regard) and that I might have Gastritis and Cholelithiasis.

Thank goodness they are sitting still most of the time now and the pain has gone away for the most part.  So much for trying to be healthy!  Now, I have to stay away from fried foods (Hello! I have Celiac!  There are no fried foods!) and lower my fat intake/eat low fat.  Fine. I'll give it a try, and I have been doing pretty well.

Actually, I am still just watching what I am eating and making the best choices I can.

Anyone else have gallstones and have some advice?