This is how I get through my days.  Iced coffee with whipped cream on top.  In a mason jar.  Because Mason jars make awesome juice glasses, that’s why.

I gave up drinking soda a few weeks ago.  It wasn’t easy, but it’s so unhealthy and I figured maybe it would help with the 15 lbs that won’t go away.  I also have been more mindful about what I am eating during the day, I’ve been drinking a lot more water, and Maddie and I have been running.  We’re doing the Couch 2 5K running program, hoping to get fit.  So far I’ve managed to gain 3 lbs.  *Sigh*.  Hopefully it’ll all work out in the end.  (Um, I would like to point out that the iced coffee pictured has HALF the calories of a can of soda, I only drink one of them a day, and it’s a whole serving of non fat milk.)

Besides the zero weight – loss progress, there is other bad news as well.

I know, I’ve been told no one wants to hear my bad news.  But, I feel like it would be a lie to make it look like everything’s all peachy and rosy here all the time.

Our house is worth way, way less than what we owe, thanks to the great economy and the several foreclosures and short sales in our area recently.  This means we are stuck where we are indefinitely.  We even considered renting the house out so we could still move, but our mortgage payment is apparently twice the going rate for rentals in this county so we’d be losing money.

I am not really sure how to proceed.  It’s been “gently” suggested to me that I give up on the idea of having animals.  That they’re too expensive and not a worthwhile endeavor and that I am being financially irresponsible.  I am sharing this because I think it’s not uncommon.  I think a lot of people don’t “get” why anyone would want to be a farmer / shepherd.  They don’t understand why anyone would want to work so hard for so “little” reward, and I know I am not the only one who has had to face these prejudices.

For now I am at a stand still , with a giant, gaping hole in my life that a lot people cannot comprehend.  I imagine the feeling is not unlike a balloon with all of the air having been let out.

Next week I get a small vacation and I’ll be working hard on sewing and knitting projects.  Until then, when I have progress and fun things to share, things may be kind of quiet here.

Right now? It’s time for more iced coffee.