Need a Little More Time

Found at Dumpaday.com

I feel like I have dropped off the planet lately and certainly out of the blogisphere! I have had a whole lot of things going on, most of them good, but I have become a little overwhelmed. I have said in the past that I have Fibromyalgia and the overwhelmed thing is part of the territory. Fortunately it only gets really bad about once a year!

There are some fairly significant milestones for me that have caused me to reflect and make some decisions as to what's really important to me. Hubby and I celebrated our 35th wedding anniversary last week. We spent a few days away just relaxing. Needless to say, he is just a little bit important to me:)

The second milestone is my 60th birthday coming up in four weeks! I really didn't think this birthday would bother me and the age thing doesn't. What does bother me is that I have lived this long and there are still so many things I want to do. I need to start prioritizing and making sure I do those things that are really important to me.

Blogging is important to me. I look forward to writing my blog posts and sharing with you the things I love. Unfortunately, my blog is not important to my husband and he doesn't understand why I do it. His frequent question is "What do you find to write about everyday?" This is sometimes frustrating. I feel his pain, I really do. I don't understand everything he does either! He is much better at managing his time than I am. Take this morning for instance...hubby left early so I read my email, ate breakfast, checked out a few websites (still in my pjs at 10:00) then the phone rang! Ah, my brother-in-law! So we visited a bit. Then a friend came to the door (we don't get much company way out here) so guess what? We visited with me in my pjs! See what I mean?!!! I finally got dressed and picked 2 quarts of raspberries at 11:30! Dishes still in the sink and clothes need to go from washer to dryer:( The day just gets away from me!

So, I am going to order me a Franklin Planner (used one for YEARS and it worked wonders) and get myself on a schedule! It is so easy when being home without children to just fly by the seat of your pants but I think the seat of my pants is worn through so I need to fix the situation!

All of this to say, give me till July 1 to get myself together and I will be back full throttle!!! Be sure to sign up to be notified by email when I post ("be the first to know when I update my blog"). 

Thank you!

Kat

R is for Retirement

Again, I was struggling, trying to decide what I would share with you--about me--that started with the Letter R. Hmmm...Reading? I love to read! Raspberries? Yum, they are starting to bloom and my mouth waters every time I think about eating those lush morsels! Red? That was my favorite color for the first 40+ years of my life then changed mysteriously to Lime Green! 

Last night I still didn't have a clear idea of what to write so just let it rest. Then this morning I was emailing the Stampin' Up! Retirement Lists to my customers and it hit...Retirement! Well, duh! This blog IS called Kat's Retirement Journey, right?!!! 

I have been retired for nearly 4 years now and retired early (age 56) because Fibromyalgia was making living and working difficult. My health and energy were dipping lower and lower and it became evident that working was NOT helping me have a good quality of life! The stress was literally killing me! So I retired!  

Unfortunately hubby was not able to (nor did he really want to) retire with me so my life in retirement looks pretty much like a Stay-at-Home Wife with a few side trips:) The perks of retirement are: I am able to travel with my hubby when he goes on business; stay longer at my daughter's when I go to visit; blog; spend more time crafting, cooking and reading! Hubby and I are also able to holiday a little more than my work vacation schedule used to allow. 

My life and environment are relatively stress free so the Fibromyalgia symptoms are more manageable; I am not taking pain medication and sleeping every spare moment!

This summer I am hoping to take a road trip with friends to Missouri; go to Washington to celebrate granddaughter's 9th birthday; and maybe spend a few days at the Oregon Coast for our 35th wedding anniversary:) 

Are you retired or looking forward to retirement? Does retirement scare you just a little? What is the ONE thing you would like to do in retirement?

Have a great day! Tomorrow, Letter S! And I already know what I am going to write about:)

Kat

H is for Health

I really want to thank Jeremy at Being Retro for the amazing badges and alphabet he made for us to use for the A to Z Blogging Challenge! Some people are sooo talented!

Health is a huge part of who I am from my health issues to what I do to maintain good health.

So as not to bore you to death with this topic, I will just make a list:

• I was a very sickly child; if it was going around, I caught it and caught it bad!
• I became a vegetarian in 1980 
• I'm not sure when I got Fibromyalgia because it kinda sneaks up on you but have had it for at least 15 years. I had to retire 4 years ago because the stress of my job was making the symptoms worse.
• I am becoming a vegan--most days I do fine but then a fish taco attack happens! I do have to stay away from dairy and eggs because of allergies
• I am allergic to peanuts, watermelon, dairy and eggs
• I am 30 pound overweight:(
• I exercise 5 days a week; use our Infrared Sauna 2 times a week; make fruit smoothies for breakfast and a handful of supplements every day

What do you do to maintain good health? Do you have any health challenges/food allergies?

Thanks for stopping by today! Have you learned anything surprising about me yet???

Kat

Little Mini Vacation?

http://myfibrostory.wordpress.com/

I have to quit taking these little mini vacations from blogging because those who know me start to worry that I might not be doing well. And, they might be right! I have been in a bit of a slump since a week ago yesterday. I should be easing out of it soon as they usually don't last more than two or at the longest three weeks. I think it has something to do with my Fibromyalgia but not sure. The last one I had was in July so the episodes are pretty far between. 

In case you are interested, an episode for me means...

• I feel really lazy. It takes me a lot longer to get anything done and I could literally sit in a chair and do virtually nothing for days. 
• I become somewhat anti-social which is easy for me because I live in the middle of nowhere.
• Brain Fog--yuck! Thinking is really difficult so I try not to, thus not blogging. 
• Walking on the treadmill (or anywhere) is very painful and difficult -- no energy. I have found that exercise it critical to living with Fibromyalgia so I push myself to exercise anyway.
• I can only stay in the Infrared Sauna for 20 minutes max before I have trouble breathing (but I do stay in for 20 minutes)! I know the sauna is going to help with the Fibromyalgia if I am consistent. 
• I hurt everywhere but especially neck, shoulders and upper front thigh muscles and the intestinal issues...well, let's just say Not Good!

I have some fun things coming up so need to get back to feeling good again. 

• I will be linking up with Carla at My 1/2 Dozen Daily this month for her March Challenge: Take 3! I will be posting my goals for the Take 3 Challenge soon. If you get the idea I am Blog Stalking Carla, I am! I so admire so many things about her and love reading her blog posts and seeing her wonderful creations! Go Carla!!!
• I have a trip planned with my daughter and granddaughter March 30-April 3 to visit family in southern Oregon.
• I will be linking up for the A to Z Blogging Challenge for the month of April--six blog posts per week, blogging my way through the alphabet:) There are a lot of reasons to do the A to Z Blogging Challenge but my main one is it forces me to write and to write about things I might not normally write about. I am picking a theme this year and I think it will be Retirement--mine! Not written in stone yet so I am open to suggestions.

I hope to be back tomorrow for Carla's Sunday Night Chit-Chat!

Kat