Today Was A Good Day

 Hello, my lovelies. We have arrived at day 5 of The Depression Chronicles. It is Saturday, September 5, 2020, and it is a beautiful 87 degrees (farenheit), here in Iowa. There is a slight breeze, so I am sitting outside writing this blog, listening to the wind chimes sing on my porch as I type this. This entry is coming a bit earlier, today. I think I might be getting the hang of this, now. 

Today has been a good day. I went to sleep as I meditated, at an earlier time than normal, slept a lot longer than normal, and I woke up naturally, not needing to go anywhere early in the morning. This started my day off pretty well, I'd say. 

I decided that I was going to make my husband and I some 'special' coffee this morning. I filled up my kettle and started grinding coffee beans in my Grammie's antique hand crank coffee grinder. I love the smell of freshly ground and brewed coffee. It's one of the most precious smells to me because of the time and memories shared with my Grammie, my husband, and meetups with special friends. As I was standing at the stove, waiting for the kettle to start singing, my husband walks into the kitchen and says, "how about we go out for brunch?" What? Really? Uh, yes, of course! You don't have to ask me twice! That changed my plans for the garden this morning, but I don't get many opportunities to go out on a date with my husband, so those plans got put on hold for the day, without hesitation.

So, the kettle sang and I shut off the stove, pouring that steamy water into my french press and over the freshly ground coffee beans. The beans steeped while I went hunting for clothes to wear. I've really always had a hard time trying to dress in my 'nicer' clothing, because they usually don't fit right after about the second or third time wearing them; I've usually gained too much weight. I struggle with that battle, as well. I'm sure that most can relate. Since my depression has so much control over me most of the time, I struggle with inactivity and weight gain. 

I decided, why not? Let's try on one of my favorite summer dresses and see if it fits any better since before my surgery. I was nervous. And, I was not optimistic. As I buttoned up each button, I was becoming more optimistic. My elation was starting to rise. I got to the last two buttons, took a deep breath, and slipped them through the button holes. Voila! They buttoned! The gap that had prevented me from wearing this dress; gone. Oh, what a victory! This gave me even more motivation. That made me feel like I needed to get dolled up and make this day even better.

I put up my hair, put on my makeup and stepped out of the room, to my husband smiling. It's been a while since I got dressed up nicely. He told me how nice I looked and smiled again. I felt pretty good. I put on some sass and got into the truck.

We went to brunch, to Target, got my basic girl Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks and then I went trudging around a lumber yard for 2x4's to start building up the current coop into a much more useful chicken tractor. I got spoiled. Now, I'm the type of gal that thinks tromping around Menard's is a pretty good date, so it obviously doesn't take much to impress me, does it? 

Today's events helped me stay in a good mood. The best part, I was with my husband, talking, laughing and holding hands. It was the human connection that kept me going the most, throughout the day. Sometimes, when your significant other just says, hey, let's go, it makes your day a lot less depressing.

Well, the icing on the cake today? I bought a scale. Now, I haven't had one for several years, because, as I stated earlier, I've struggled a lot with my weight. It's always been 'one more thing' that depresses me. I had a hysterectomy on August 4, 2020. On that day, I weighed in at 173 pounds before surgery. Now, I had been weighed on May 1, 2020, and was 180 pounds, then July 8, 2020, I was at 177. (Please keep in mind that I am only 5'1" tall, so this is a lot of weight for my bone structure to carry.)I haven't been weighed since my surgery, and, because I was able to fit back into one of my favorite dresses, I was very curious to see where I was at. 

I zeroed out the scale. I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself a bit. My feet touched the cold metal of the scale, I closed my eyes and then slowly peeked down at the dial. Are you kidding me? This can't be right! There is no way that this is right. I got off the scale and zeroed it out again. I stepped on it again; no! I did this routine 4 times and had the same reading all 4 times. I was flabbergasted! I was 160 pounds! Oh. My. Gods. That means that I've quite possibly lost 13 pounds in a month! I cannot believe this! 

Now, understand, that my uterus was just removed about a month ago, and the doctor said he has never seen such a large uterus, but, I don't think it weighed 13 pounds on its own. I'm going to take this as a small victory in the war against my weight and depression. This has really made my day even better. 

It's amazing how something so little can make your mood so much better. How little victories and human connection can make such a huge difference in your mood and attitude. Today was a good day.

I wish you many blessings and want you to know that you are not alone. Hope you're having a wonderful Labor Day weekend.