Tag: love

Daily Food Diary – Day 75 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today,  I am celebrating 75 Days since I began recording and posting my Daily Food Diary.  75 DAYS and I am 75 hits and 0 misses. 👍

Today, I am also celebrating St. Patrick’s Day.   (Photo from my Jigsawscapes App.  My daily jigsaw obsession).

Happy St. Patrick’s Day to you and yours,  especially to all of my Irish friends who are celebrating today!

Today, I am ALSO celebrating what would have been my Father’s 116th birthday!

My Dad & Son Dan

My Father passed away 32 years ago. That is inconceivable to me. For some reason, my Father and my Mother have been popping up in my dreams on a regular basis lately.  To me, there is nothing odd or upsetting about their appearances.  The dreams are not about them, they are just there, very normal, very natural, very familiar. 

I was fortunate to have parents who worked hard to provide a stable, secure home for my siblings and I.   I appreciate all that they both did for me, but to be honest, I was closer to my Father.  Yes, I was a Daddy’s girl.

My Dad was everything I strive to be –  kind, gentle, strong, happy, caring, determined,  dignified (and determined to respect the dignity of others). 

Last year, my sister Jeanne reminded me of something that I had forgotten about my Father.  Something that seems so timely with all of belittling, dehumanizing, and hateful treatment towards people nowadays – based on their color, religion, nationality, sexuality or whatever!

My Father had a Grade Two education – French education.  Despite this, he was a very intelligent man and accomplished in many ways.   I knew that his Mother struggled with serious health issues and that when my Father left school, he went to work to help his father provide for his siblings.  He sat in the basement of the general store, removing the eyes from potatoes, to keep them marketable. 

Over the years, I came to believe that Dad quit school because  his family needed his help at home taking care of little ones and bringing in what little money he could from his humble position at the general store.

What I forgot was that he was expelled from school. IN GRADE TWO! Why? Because his teachers, good Catholic Nuns that they were, decided that he was stupid and unteachable because he was left-handed and refused to change his wayward ways.   He was deemed unworthy of an education.

Amazingly, they did not break him.  He was who he was – caring, kind, strong, loving, respectful, patient, and more.  Most important to me … He was my Dad.

Food Diary – Day 75

Breakfast:

(1) c coffee (2) (.3)

(2) potato patties (240) (2)

(2) eggs (160) (14)

(3) slices bacon (135) (7.5)

(1/2) medium tomato (11) (.5)

Snacks:

(36) oz water

(1) c Cinnamon Tea

(1) PC Matrimonial Cake (139) (1)

(25) Lay’s Classic Potato Chips (160) (2)

Supper:

(1) Large bowl Baked Onion Soup – beef broth, caramelized onions,  (soda bread) croutons, shredded marble cheese (368) (19.5)

Total Calories: 1222

Total Protein: 48.3 grams

Daily protein goal: 46 to 58.5

That’s it for today. Take care and have a great day! 😊❤️

 

Daily Food Diary – Day 66 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

I am  66 Days into tracking and reporting everything that I eat and drink in a day.   Generally, this is getting easier as I go.

Using the Lose It! app has made tracking calories and nutrients easier so that has helped.  Being retired has made it easier to take the time to do a blog every morning.  Using habit building skills that I have been utilizing for years, definitely helps me to be consistent without a lot of effort.

On another note… Today is International Women’s Day.    Of course,  I am celebrating the women in our family.

Daughter Jennifer with her daughters….Genie,
Maddy, and Prim  
Daughter-in-law Amanda with daughter Gabby

All of the women in our family – young and not so much,  are strong, independent, intelligent, capable, caring, adventurous, ambitious and so much more. It is easy to celebrate them. 

However, I have to admit that I am disappointed that we are still at a point where we need a special day to celebrate women,  a special day to fight for women whose lives are made harder simply because they are women, a special day to show respect and appreciation for women who deserve respect and  appreciation every day of the year.  

In my mind men and women are different in many ways, but as humans they are equal – and  they should just be treated as equals, in the workplace, in the home, in the news, at the ballot box – everywhere and every day.   😏

Food Diary – Day 66 of 365

Breakfast:

(1) c coffee (2) (.3)

(1) c Honeynut Cheerios (147) (2.7)

(1/4) c milk (31) (2)

Snacks:

(24) oz water

(1) c Lemon Ginger tea

(2 1/2) oz fresh coconut (175) (6.8)

(2) tbsp Chocolate topping (129) 2)

(1/2) c sunflower seeds in shell (360) (12)

Supper:

(1/3) Tray Nachos (865) (31.7)

(12) oz carbonated water

Total calories:  1707

Total Protein: 57.5 grams

Daily protein goal: 46 to 58.5 grams

That’s it for today. Take care and have a great day! ☺️❤️

Daily Food Diary – Day 44 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

First off today…Happy Valentine’s Day To You and to all of the significant others in your life!

It is the 44th day of my Daily Food Diary and the very FIRST day of of the FOURTH YEAR of  my Health and Fitness Lifestyle. 

While losing weight has never been my number one priority over the past three years, I was hoping to weigh in  less than 130 pounds today.   I have been fluctuating over and below that magic mark for at least a week and today I am …. Ta Da..   slightly over. 🤦 I am in the normal range for my height (5′-1″ tall)  and age (69 going on 70 in July).   But still… 🙄

Three years ago, I would have been upset at the fail.  I would have made excuses, blamed God, the universe and anyone who always had it easier/better than me.   I would have  wanted to give up trying for anything that I wanted in  my life.  My day and my life would have been a bust!

One of the benefits of the work that I have put in over the past three years, is that today I am in a way better place attitude wise.   I could have done better and it was only through lack of effort and better choices that I did not. 

While I did not nail this goal, I have gradually come a long way in the past three years…

I feel better physically, mentally, and emotionally.   I am better as proven by my weight,  blood pressure, cholesterol levels, blood sugar, and all of my other health markers that are in the normal range (naturally – without the aid of prescribed or OTC drugs or herbal remedies).   I am less judgemental of others and more aware of what I am doing, and what I can be doing better.  That is far more empowering and way less frustrating.  I am stronger.  A few years ago, I retired to take life easy.  I learned that life is easier when I do the work to make, and keep myself,  stronger.   It hasn’t been difficult, time consuming, or expensive.   It has meant moving more, eating better, and meditating at bedtime.  Most of all it has meant being consistent and developing a desire to Do Better, Be Better, Live Better.

Food Diary – Day 44

(1) c coffee (2)

(1) Potato patty (120)

(3) Slices back bacon (60)

(24) oz water

(1) c tea (1)

(1) Robin’s Walnut Crunch (360) ***

(12) oz carbonated water

(2) Bowls homemade chicken soup (238)

(12) oz water

(1/4) c sunflower seeds – with shell (65)

(1/6) c almonds (150)

(17) mini licorice allsorts (148)

Total Calories: 1126

N.B. The Walnut Crunch was the treat Dan got me for Valentine’s Day.  I ate it yesterday because he also got the mini cupcakes I had requested.

Spoiler Alert…. Today’s Daily Food Diary,  which I will post tomorrow morning, will include mini cupcakes, pan seared and oven baked steak, and probably a Caesar. 😉

That’s it for today. Take care and have a great day! 💞🌞

Happy Father’s Day!

by annemariedemyen, posted in June 2022
Happy Father’s Day 🤗

Happy Father’s Day to all the father’s out there – including Dan, and those like him, who stepped up after the fact. It isn’t always easy (or economical) but hopefully the good days and the grandbabes make it all worth it.

Dan with granddaughter Genie and Molly💞

Happy Father’s Day to my Father and all those who have passed on over the years. It is incredible now to think of all they did to provide and care for their families.

My Dad who (long before I was born) worked as a boiler engineer at an airforce training base during World War II.

And Happy Father’s Day to the new generation of fathers out there. These guys amaze me with how involved they are with their children. Not just the fun stuff! These guys are hands on from day one. This new generation of fathers are loving the experience and their children are all the better off for it.

Son Dan with his son Cason – this isn’t a pose for a picture. This is real as it gets. 💞

That’s it for today. Take care and have a great day!💞🌞

Harmony

by annemariedemyen, posted in June 2022

Harmony – “The quality of forming a pleasing and consistent whole.” – Oxford Dictionary

One of the flower boxes our daughter in law Amanda and I filled when we were there mid May. 💞

“He who lives in harmony with himself, lives in harmony with the universe.” – Marcus Aurelius

“When we create peace, and harmony, and balance in our minds, we will find it in our lives.” – Louise Hay

“You are only afraid if you are not in harmony with yourself.” – Herman Hesse

“Music is the expression of harmony in sound. Love is the expression of harmony in life.” – Stephen Gaskin

“Harmony makes small things grow, lack of it makes great things decay.” – Sallust

“Nature reminds us how to be in harmony with life itself.” – Harold Baker

Have a great and harmonious day! 💞🌞

February 19th – Rumi

by annemariedemyen, posted in Updates - February 2022

There are people who possess brilliant minds. There are also people who possess the ability to express themselves simply and comprehensively. I find it fascinating when these people are one and the same – when brilliant minded people have the ability to share their wisdom in a simple and comprehensive manner.

One such fascinating person was Rumi, a thirteenth century Persian poet, who is still sharing his wisdom with us today. (Amazingly, his wisdom is as relevant now as it was in the thirteenth century.)

A year ago, I shared a few of my favourite Rumi quotes in this blog post. Simply brilliant words of wisdom.

https://seclusion101withannemarie.com/2021/02/16/rumi/

There was one quote that has stayed with me for the past year and has had a profound effect on me and my life.

“It’s your road and yours alone, others may walk it with you, but no one can walk it for you.” – Rumi

My first thought was ‘obviously’. We are all responsible for our own lives. We are responsible for the choices we make and we are responsible for the consequences of those choices. Others can walk with us, but it is our life and inevitably we have to ‘own it’.

But then…. I had this realization. Everyone has their own road. Not just me…. 🙄

Everyone has their own road, even the people I care about – even my sons and my daughter and my grandchildren. They have to walk their own road. Even on those occasions when I can walk it with them, I cannot walk it for them. I cannot choose the paths they take and I cannot save them from the wrong turns they will inevitably make. They have the right to walk their own roads and the responsibility to deal with the consequences – for better or worse.

It has been a few difficult years for me (parenting wise), but Rumi’s words have helped me to put things into perspective and it has made all the difference. I am on my road and have faith that those I love are on the roads that they need to be on, to ultimately get them where they need to go.

That is it for today. Take care and have a great day!💞

February 15th – More Lessons (finally) Learned 🤦

by annemariedemyen, posted in Updates - February 2022

This month, I have been working to review and update some of my previous blog posts. I have added new thoughts and revised my thinking completely in some areas. Life changes – we change.

Last night, I came upon this post from October of 2020. Like many of my posts from that year, it focussed on my thoughts on peace

Peace is something I have been struggling with lately. Despite my best efforts, it has been hard to keep from dwelling on people and events that have been disturbing my peace of mind. It is my peace of mind, I should have more of a handle on it. Right?

https://seclusion101withannemarie.com/2020/10/15/more-lessons-finally-learned-%f0%9f%a4%a6/

Except, that is not the conclusion that I came to in 2020 – after struggling and giving it much thought. So for my update today, I need to look back and learn from the past.

The thing I realized back in 2020 is that peace isn’t something that we can just hoard for ourselves or share with those who are in our good graces. Peace has to be shared with everyone – especially those disruptive influences in our lives.

I don’t know if the peaceful thoughts and prayers that I devoted to those who were stressing me out back in 2020 changed them in any way. I do know they changed me. They made me more peaceful, tolerant, and compassionate. I know, I have to get back on track with this, because with all of the chaos in the world these days – contributing more chaos is not an option. 🙄

That’s it for today. Take care and have a great day! 💞

Valentine’s Day 💞

by annemariedemyen, posted in life

Happy Valentine’s Day! Wishing Love & Joy to everyone today. Valentine’s Day is a holiday that is typically marketed towards couples. This year however, I am thinking of the singles in our society who have been particularly affected by the isolation that has been a part of this lingering pandemic. For anyone who is alone today and feeling a bit stranded, I am thinking of you and sending hearts and huggs and smiles your way.

Have a great day! If you cannot be with the ones you love, think of them often and do something special for yourself to brighten your day. Thinking of you. AnneMarie 🌞

November 28th – Sunday

by annemariedemyen, posted in Wisdom - November 2021

This month on my blog I have endeavored to share ‘words of wisdom’. On Sundays, I have tried to keep those words as positive as possible. For this last Sunday of the month, I have sourced out ‘words of wisdom’ on what else, but SUNDAY!

“Sunday is a day to clear the mind of all that has transpired the week before.” – Byron Pulsifier

“Have a blessed and beautiful Sunday.”

“A Sunday well spent will bring a week of content.”

“Let this Sunday be a day to reflect, a day of respect for all you have been blessed, let your joy be expressed.” – Catherine Pulsifier

Sunday is the perfect day to refuel your soul and be grateful for each and every one of your blessings.

“Don’t let thoughts of Monday steal your Sunday.”

“Sunday – Take it slow and give your soul a chance to catch up with your body.”

“May your Sunday be blessed with love, joy, peace, and happiness.”

That’s it for today folks. Take care and have a wonderful Sunday! 💞