Summer memories

Summer in Iowa is the best! I used to try to convince myself that Autumn was my favorite time of year. Who was I kidding? Me, evidently. Sure - there's football and the colors are pretty. Weigh that against days are getting shorter and you know what that means. And I tend to get migraines when the weather turns.

Being an empty nester in the summer is fun. Most Sundays Paul and I can be found biking and beering on the trails in central Iowa. Last Sunday we were on the Greenbelt Trail just west of 515 Brewhouse.

Nevertheless, I can't help being nostalgic for the summers of my youth in small town Iowa. What was not to like?

• Three months of glorious time off school
• A neighborhood filled with glorious Baby Boomer families - home all day long
• A backyard that held a swingset and playhouse - flanked by the "woods" 
• A nice shiny bike
• Grandparents who lived in a beautiful home near downtown
• Jud, the Wonderdog (25-pound full sized dachshund), who followed us about the neighborhood, ready to protect us at any time
• A Mom willing to cart us to the pool (complete with a snack shop)
• Dairy Queen, Popsicles, and ice cold Coke
• Summer camp - Bar-L Ranch in Guthrie Center! 

I didn't know how great I had it back then. The gifts my family bestowed on me - a warm house, my twin bed, in a room shared with my sis Betsobean. Susi and Cindy's room was across the hall. A mom that took care of us, laundry, cranking out 3 meals a day. Dad was home on weekends with his happy smile, grilling delicious. Our family wasn't perfect. I doubt any is. Still, we had a great childhood.

I'm grateful for the gift of my life today. It's the little things especially. Like summer.

But not my metabolism. I remember when I could eat anything. Oh yeah, that was when I was in the throes of Grave's Disease and shed 10 pounds without trying. Then menopause caught up with me.

Paul and I are coming to grips with our new older, slower metabolisms. MyFitnessPal is helping keep us in line. We have noticed that our shopping habits are becoming healthier. At the grocery store, we tend to cruise around the outer edges - staying with fresh stuff. Sliced bread is a thing of the past. When we used to have baked potatoes, we're now substituting other types of grilled or baked veggies like squash and asparagus. My sis Cindy recommended frozen tilapia cutlets from Costco - perfect cooked in a bit of olive oil and Penzes spices. We need to find more fish recipes to add to our repertoire. Some nights we eat meat-free salads - something I never thought I'd get Paul to agree to. He also takes them for lunch some days.

Eating out is still our guilty pleasure - but we so enjoy it. One must live, right? That's one reason why exercise is also part of our routines. (I've never been one of those "love those endorphins" people). You get to add extra calories (figured per type of exercise according to our App) onto your daily intake that way. Biking gets me more add-on calories quicker than walking! The App keeps track of sugar and fat intake too.

The pounds have not melted off me - I'm likely the only person that can even tell that I've lost a couple pounds thanks to how my clothes fit. I can hear you thinking - "cut out the restaurants and beer and you'll be svelte in no time". See comments about Living, Fun, Little Things. I can't just sit around and count calories the rest of my life. The important thing to me is that we've adjusted our lifestyles - we're not dieting, we're adapting to our new soon to be 60 bods. Can't wait for what's next.

Happy Summer!