Catchup Time

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer. Summer in southern Ontario has been slow to come this year. We have had lots of rain and little sun. The rain has made for a very very lush garden.







I need your help. What is the name of this plant?? It is the prettiest plant in my garden and I haven't got a clue what it is. I don't remember buying it or planting it....I don't remember having it in my garden last year. It is a real mystery. Any ideas?? Here are a couple pictures.





I took the plunge last week and bought a new car. My van was on it's last legs and it was going to cost $3,000.00 to fix it. That seemed like an awful lot of money for a 2001 Pontiac Montana. So off I went car shopping. I quickly discovered that buying a used car was actually going to cost me MORE than buying a brand new car. So in the interest of boosting the economy and helping the struggling car industry I bought a brand new 2010 Pontiac Vibe. I love it. I've named her the Silver Bullet. Huh?? What do you mean, people don't name their cars?? (LOL)









I'm still on track with my healthier lifestyle. I am proud to say that I am still a non smoker. It wasn't easy...but nothing worthwhile in life is ever easy. I still have moments when I would like a smoke but luckily I have the strength to ignore the craving. I also have 32.5 sitting on my shoulder telling me that a cigarette would not be enjoyable in the least. I have 18 weeks of not smoking behind me and the thought of starting back at day one is just too terrible a thought. I am so proud of myself for quitting smoking, I'm not kidding when I say I think there should be a parade everyday to celebrate this achievement....and fireworks and cake....lol.

I'm eating better, I didn't think it was possible to eat 7 to 10 fruits and veggies a day...but it is possible. It's funny when I look at the food in my cart at the grocery store now compared to 6 months ago and it's night and day. 6 months ago it was all highly processed foods,coke and chips (my staples). Now I look in my cart and it's full of fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains, skim milk & yogurt. I am sure my stomach and bowels are still in shock wondering what the heck is going on.

I'm up to walking 2 1/2 miles a day(4K) on days when I am really feeling good I push it up to 3 miles (5k). My Cardiac Rehabilitation instructor tells me by Christmas they want me jogging 5 miles (8K). That will not be pretty site...LOL. I have also enlisted some of my buddies at work to work out with me during the work day. We set aside 10 minutes 3 times a day and do resistance band exercises. The weirdest thing is happening to me. When we first started doing these exercises I would look for all kinds of excuses to not do them...now nothing stops me from doing the exercises..I even catch myself looking forward to it. We do them 5 days a week and we alternate between leg band exercises one day, the next day we do arm band exercises.

OK, I think I have gotten everyone caught up on my life.
Take care everyone!!