I.

I've gotten a lot of comments about this post--so I'mw wondering, would you be interested in more of these sorts of things? Maybe not a lot of them, because there's a limited memory bank from which to draw, but an occasional series? In general, I think I'm going to be doing more recipe posts as we get into the fall, because I cook a lot more when it's not summer. 

II. 

This week really flew by. I mean, flew! I wasn't particularly busy, so I'm not sure why it felt this way. Maybe it was the ton of reading I did? :) I'm working on Middlemarch, Cloud Atlas, and Unglued right now. A big book review post is on the horizon for this month. 

III. 

Since it's a long weekend, and I don't have CCD, I think I'm going to try a few new recipes. When I was working full-time, I loved to try new recipes over the long weekend, particularly things like baking, which tend to require more time. So I think I might make Clodagh McKenna's tea brack recipe (brack is a loaf of bread with dried fruits soaked in Irish Breakfast tea). I've been loving her writing style and her recipes sound delicious, so this will be the first one I try. 

IV. 

I'm making bookmarks for Christmas gifts, so Project Purl is paused for the moment while I get these done. It's amazing how Christmas sneaks up on you when it comes to projects you have to make! 

V. 

I've been thinking about body image and health lately. I know, women are always thinking about this. But one f the things that I've noticed when I go to my doctors is that all they (the doctors) care about is if I've lost weight. They don't care if I'm trying to eat better, or if I'm making strides in physical areas (like the fact that I can do two sets of arm weight exercises, which is up from a month ago). It's all about the number on the scale. And this flies in the face of what a lot of people say about exercise/health/fitness--it's about how you feel, about getting better, about being healthier, in ways that the scale can't quantify. 

Currently, I have lost weight from my last clinic visit. And that's good. But I feel like if all they care about is weight, that doesn't precisely motivate me to do better. What about when I don't lose weight for a week or so at a time? The levaquin I was just on really hit me in the joint/muscle department; there were days when it was hard to stand, let alone go to the gym. I didn't sleep well for two weeks, either, which also affects weight. But it seems like we should be talking about the entire picture--shouldn't we? 

So my question is, how can I focus on doing things to be healthier, when the Powers That Be just care about the number on the scale on a given morning? Because it's really easy to get frustrated when all we care about is the scale.

(Ha, and yes I am going to clinic in about a week----how did you guess?)

VI.

 Any good book recommendations? I can always use some more. I love that I can get kindle books from my library. 

VII. 

No CCD this week, because of Labor Day, but we will have it next week. The kids had TWO weeks to do TWO PAGES of homework, so I'm hoping they don't forget about it. I'll be sending a reminder to parents next week, though, to cover the bases!