Monday ~ A new week, a new month, a fresh start

First, I would like to thank you all for the encouraging comments (both private and on my blog) on my "bare my soul" post of last week. It means alot to me and I promise to see my doctor and fill her in on all the "loveliness" that is going on in my life. 

Until then, I am starting a new way to pack my lunches for the work week. I got a new Bento box from Lock & Lock and I think I am already in love. (For those of you who do not know, bento boxes are a traditional Japanese lunch box. They are proportionately sized for the individual and are typically filled with artistically prepared food. I am skipping the artistic approach and just using this as a way to limit/monitor my food intake.)

This box is proportionately sized so it will be hard to overeat, (unless I pack lots of extras, which I do not intend to do). It comes with two stacking boxes that will hold a total 700 mil or a whopping 24 oz of food. (the set also included collapsible chopsticks with a case that fits inside the bag- not shown)

Today's lunch consists of a little meatloaf - last time a made meatloaf, I baked some of the mix in a muffin tin and then stuck them in the freezer - a bit of potato salad and some black cherries in the first tier. The second tier holds some green salad. (Dressing packed separately)

It all packs nicely into this adorable red lunch box. I felt so spiffy carrying this in to the office today!

I also packed separately, a greek yogurt for my afternoon snack. I will definitely be ordering more items from Lock & Lock. I may order the same set with the water bottle. I don't really need the water bottle but the bag is taller so I will be able to put my dressing and yogurt inside the bag, in place of the water bottle.

I did some sewing over the weekend and that is always good for my spirit. I hope you all had a great weekend as well.

Have a wonderful day!

Dawn

I'm still here..........

Not really sure I want to lay this out there but what the heck! It’s been heavy on my mind and I need to “talk” about it.

My life has been a train wreck of late, which has caused a lack of crafting/sewing and a lack of the will to blog. I have been kind of depressed lately.

Along with what seems to be the usual financial and family issues, I have come to the realization that I have an emotional eating disorder. I eat when I am depressed, anxious, lonely, stressed, bored, you name it. Food is my tool of choice for comfort. Of course, the benefits of emotional eating are that you get to become morbidly obese and have various health and mental health issues including depression and very low self esteem.

You have to love yourself to take care of yourself and this is something I am going to have to learn, somehow. I don’t think I have loved me in a very long time. We all have issues in our childhood and our past that have left emotional scars and I can certainly think of quite a few. What I do not understand is how a person can recognize what is wrong and why things are the way they are but is still incapable of “fixing it”. If you know what your inner demons are and why they are, then why can’t you make them go away. The monster in the closet goes away when exposed to the light, so why don’t the demons go away when they are figured out? There should be some sort of closure, right?  

Hubby is very supportive of me but he was raised with the mentality that you can just have the will power to get over things without doctors, drugs and therapists – those are for the weak. Therapy might as well be a four letter word in my house.

I am not really sure what the next step is that I need to take but I do think that writing about it will help to a certain degree. I have found others online that are battling similar demons and some have conquered them. Maybe I should give myself a deadline – if I cannot overcome this by my own methods by the end of this year, then perhaps the next step has to be therapy…*Gulp!*

Have a wonderful weekend Dear Ones. I will do my best to keep my nose out of the fridge!

Soap Sack

What do you do with all of the little bits left over from your bar soap? Do you try to smoosh them onto the new bar? Do you throw them away? That can be costly in the long run.
Well, yesterday I decided to crochet "soap sacks" for hubby and myself.

Now we can put our bars of soap in the bag and use it similar to a wash cloth and we can use up every little bit of those bars of soap. They have a draw string at the top for easy "loading" which also serves as a hanging string so we can hang them in the shower and allow them to drip dry.

What did you do this weekend?

Time for the World Cup game! Go USA!!!

Dinner - 7/15/11 Yummy Burrito/Taco Filling

I was inspired to make a yummy taco/burrito filling here - http://notexactlybento.com/?p=328

I made a few changes but not too many. First, brown 1 pound of lean ground beef along with 1 cup chopped onion. I had red onion on hand so that is what I used. I added copious amounts of chili powder, garlic powder and a pinch of S&P while it was browning.

 Drain the fat off of the meat/onion mixture. Add 1 cup of frozen corn, 1 cup of Salsa and 1 can of drained black beans.

Simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the corn and the beans are tender.

Put a healthy spoonful on a tortilla (or taco shell) of your choice, top with your favorite topping (I used guacamole) and enjoy!!

Nom Nommy goodness! I am sooo full!

Primitive Doll

A dear friend of mine is battling an inner demon. She named her demon "Poison Ivy". Well, I decided she had to be able to put a face to this demon so I made a (very primitive) doll for her. (She can use it for a voodoo doll if she chooses!)
Here is Ivy ~ (her hair is in a pony tail behind her). Her smile is a little crooked and her eyebrows make her look not so nice - which is how poison ivy truly is....

I also wrote a little poem to go along with it to give her a little more of my support.

Poison Ivy

My name is Poison Ivy

I have lived inside your head

Now that people know of me

My world is filled with dread

                                                                You’ll soon have no need for me

As you grow stronger every day

My leaves will start to wither

And then just blow away

You’ll see that life is precious 

And be as healthy as can be

Life is so much better

Without the Poison that is me

                            DS

                                                                2011

She loved it and will keep it with her as she goes through therapy and always to remind of where she was and what she has overcome. I love her lots and am so glad that I could help her in my own little way.

..........Makes me wonder if I should make one to represent my own inner demon so I can beat it up whenever it rears it's ugly head!?!

Blessings,

Dawn

Off to regions unknown

This past weekend my Air Force son left his home in Italy for regions unknown, for an undetermined amount of time. We feel fairly confident (hopeful?) that it is not to a war zone, but the unknown is always a bit scary.

His little girl, Miss A had this to say yesterday, " Momma, we forgot to pick up Daddy from work." Mommy replied, "Remember, Daddy said he's got to stay at work for a while?"  Miss A, "That's right Momma. Daddy's out protecting us and he'll come back. HE ALWAYS DOES!"
She certainly is a well seasoned military dependent at the tender age of 3 1/2!

We are very grateful for the sacrifices her and her momma make and very proud of our sons, out there protecting us and all that we hold dear.

Have a Blessed Monday! Dawn

Still having blogger issues.....

I do not know why, but I am not able to leave comments on any blogs without them showing up as "anonymous". I have checked all my settings, deleted cookies, etc. When I comment, it asks me to log in again and then it marks it anonymous anyway! It is frustrating to say the least. Rest assured, I have been reading my lovely daily blogs, and I love seeing all the nice projects and sentiments. Sorry, I can't tell you all individually.

Myself, I seem to have hit a lull in my creativity right now. Too much going on personally I think. Oh well, there is always tomorrow.

Have a pleasant day!
Dawn