Well, I have lost almost 20 pounds. I'm so excited about that! I feel a lot better about myself now than I have in the past couple of years.

I can't believe it's already Christmas time. It just seems this year has flown by. I don't really have much to talk about except I've actually lost 11 lbs. I'm so excited about that. For years, I've wondered why I kept gaining, and I finally figured it out. So, once I get my thyroid meds regulated, and keep doing what I'm doing, I will hopefully be down to my old size by June. Just in time for DukesFest '06! Can't wait, either. I want to look GOOD for John Schneider. :)~ Plus, I want to meet the others like James Best (gotta love Rosco!) and Ben "Cooter" Jones. What would be really cool is if Tom Wopat actually came this year, and I got to meet both Bo and Luke... Just a thought. :)~

I love those pictures! Chase had bought me a digital camera for my birthday, and I was playing with it to see what it could do. I also took some scenic pics too, then made them pretty in Photoshop.

Yep, I turned 25 on Labor Day. Doesn't feel any different than 24, but that's normal. Oh well!

Just goofing around!

This is what I look like now. I decided to play with my new digital camera this past weekend and took some pictures. This one was the best, I think.

Chase had an art exhibit the night before, and here I am!

In Galveston 2001...don't I look thrilled?

On our way back from Padre Island in 2000

This is Chase and I in Christmas 2000

Not much to report...Still trying to exercise, blah, blah, blah...

Took my mom out shopping last weekend, ended up having fun with her. The only time I really spend time with my mom is on weekends at her house. We usually go to this vegetable farm in Alvin, and getting fresh produce, so we did that. I had to go get some pictures from Priscilla, so my mom got to meet her, and we went to Bed, Bath and Beyond in Silverlake. It just turned out to be fun. Ever since Dad died, Erin, Elan, and I have been trying to keep her busy, so she wouldn't be so lonely. Also, she's one of the most independent people I've ever met. She likes to do for herself, and not have any help. Anyway, we had fun.

Gotta go for now! :)

I am trying to figure out ways to lose this weight. It's really hard, and I'm having to retrain my brain not to eat all the time. If I get bored, I eat. Which is really, really bad. I'm taking Chromium Picolinate to boost my metabolism, but so far, it hasn't worked. I did take up exercising again, but everyday, it's something different so I don't get bored with it. I've been swimming, doing yoga mixed with Pilates, walking, etc. I'm trying, that's all I can say...

On a more positive note, Chase is getting a lot more business for his art. I'm SO proud of him. I set up a site that you can go to...

http://johncyates.blogspot.com

Check it out...gotta run! :)

I had an interesting weekend. My brother, his family and my sister went to see the NASCAR races this weekend in Ft. Worth, and my mom stayed at my brother's house to take care of my nephews. (2 of Elan's and 1 of Erin's) Anyway, I had to stay down here to take care of my mom's animals for her. I was so tired from all the running around that I had to do just to take care of them. Meanwhile, I went to our family reunion we had this weekend, and spent time with my aunts, uncles, and cousins. I had fun, but there were too many people to talk to. I only reason I went was to represent someone in our family. Besides, I think my dad would've wanted me to go. A lot of people asked how Mom was doing, and it was the usual answer. Taking it one day at a time, doing good, staying busy, blah, blah, blah. It just felt weird being the only one there, but it turned out okay.

One thing I definitely realized this weekend is that I'm going to have to lose some weight. Ever since I married Chase, (which will be 6 yrs at the end of May) I have steadily gained weight. And it's not like I'm fat, but I am overweight. So, I'm going to start walking again. Hopefully, I won't tire from that. I'm trying to improve myself, and I feel like I'm making a little progress. But, in order for me to feel good about myself, I want to lose 50 lbs. That way, I'll be as skinny as I was when I was in high school, and I'll be healthy. Also, I don't want to end up in the same condition my dad was in. He had diabetes, congestive heart failure, emphysema (what we thought was emphysema, turned out to be COPD), high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc. I don't want to end up that way. So, I better bite it in the ass now before it's too late. Plus, I have hypothyroidism. I have to keep in shape because of that. I thank God everyday that I'm here, and I'm alive, but I want to improve myself drastically. So, from now on, I'm going to write about my weight loss, so I can deep track of it.

Gotta run! :) :)

Here is a barn that is next door to my parents' house....

Here is one of an old cowboy...

Here is Chase and myself when we were engaged...

This is a picture of my dad that Chase did for my mom for Christmas this year. My dad died a year and a half ago, and I thought that I'd share it with you. I'm really proud of it.

How was everyone's weekend? Was it good? Mine was basically the same, hang around the house on Friday, do errands on Saturday, and clean on Sunday. I watched Tom Selleck's movie Stone Cold, and it was really awesome. I liked it... Wanted to take some of the girls in the movie and knock the **** out of them, but otherwise, it was cool. Anyway, the voting starts on American Idol tonight, and I am so excited to see who goes through Wednesday. I hope that America likes Constantine, because it's time for a hardcore rocker to get in there. The ones I want to go through, I really hope that they make it. I think that this season will be the best.

Anyway, that's all I have to say for now. Bye!! ;)