Scales For You

One of my New Year’s resolutions is to clean out and straighten every closet, pantry and drawer in my house.  Now this shouldn’t be all that hard since our house burned with everything in it 7 years ago and we’ve only been living in this house 3 1/2 years.  How much stuff can you accumulate in only 7 years and how cluttered can closets and drawers get in just 3 1/2 years.  Also, I make this resolution every year and work on some of them, I just never seem to get all of them before the urge leaves me.  I’m dreading my clothes closet this year because almost all the clothes in there no longer fit.  Keep in mind that all of these clothes have either been purchased or were given to me in the last 7 years.  Yes, I weigh quite a few pounds more than I did just 7 years ago, and I have lost this same weight at least twice during that time. 

I would like to take care of my weight problem without an organized diet program.  I hate paying money to be weighed each week while attending some meeting where people try to encourage me to eat right.  I know what I need to do, it’s just a matter of willpower.  A set of scales in the bathroom and some nutritional scales in the kitchen should get me started in the right direction.  Besides the need to fit into my clothing, all of this excess weight makes my knees hurt, my feet hurt, and causes shortness of breath when I’m trying to sing.  I know the weight is causing all of this, because every time I lose the weight, everything gets a lot better.  Maybe cleaning out the closets and drawers will at least burn a few calories! 

We hear a lot today about multitasking.  As a working mom, we find ourselves trying to keep the house in order, keep the laundry done, keep the family fed, attend school functions, keep the family in church, etc. along with the responsibilities of our job.  A person with a “one-track mind” is in serious trouble in today’s world.

Sometimes we can find a gadget or appliance, etc. that can also multitask.  Multifunctional scales can weigh in ounces, pounds, grams, troy ounces, pennyweights, etc., and can help in kitchens, labs, hobbies or any number of activities.  They are available in different sizes, colors and styles at www.holladaypartners.com  

My mom always taught me that eating prunes would help prevent constipation.  Now new tests at the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University have found that the antioxidants in prunes increase bone formation in animals.  They suggest that eating prunes could benefit people at risk of osteoporosis.  Prunes have more antioxidants than any other fruit because their dried form concentrates antioxidants.  Antioxidants help combat virtually every chronic disease, including cancer, heart disease, diabetes and dementia.  What more could you want?  Another study showed that elderly people who ate more prunes, apples, vegetables, olive oil, fish and legumes had fewer wrinkles and less sun-damaged skin than those who ate lots of meat, butter and milk products.

It’s hard to come up with a reason for not losing my excess weight.  I’ve tried to think that if I lost weight, it would increase my wrinkles and make me look older.  Now eating prunes, apples, etc. will take care of that problem.  I’m about out of excuses!  I’m going to get some food scales and start measuring my food portions before they’re placed on my plate.  My will power seems to be stronger if the extra food is not on my plate.   www.holladaypartners.com has a wide selection of scales in many colors, sizes, and styles, including digital and spring scales.

The holidays are not even over–really not even officially started, but we’ve been celebrating.  As usual, it’s all about food–turkey, ham, dressing and gravy, cranberry salads and sauces, green beans, pies and cakes!  Everyone in my family has already gained weight, even the dog.  We can’t quit now, Christmas is not even here for three more days. 

We’re all going on a diet New Year’s day.  All we need is some cooking scales and some will power.  We can plan our meals ahead, measure our portions, leave off the fats, fast food, and sweets, and start an exercise program.  That sounds like a lot, but it’s really not that hard if our mindset is right.  Trying on clothes that once fit may give us a little extra incentive, and a feeling of success when we can wear them again.  Check out the scales at www.holladaypartners.com   They’re cool!  They come in many sizes, styles and colors.   We’re sure to find some that fit our decor.

Have you ever thought about comparing budgeting your money you are spending with budgeting your food you are consuming.  A new VISA study found that American “misplace” about $3,000 in cash every year.  It may go for gadgets such as iPods, iPhones or Blackberries or just things we want for our kids.  In order to stop this “mystery spending”, we must review our purchases regularly so we can see quickly what we’re spending, then set a budget and stick to it.  This will help eliminate impulse buying and help us start to save. 

Doesn’t this sound a lot like dieting.  We “misplace” food by eating-on-the-go, snacking, eating while reading or watching television, and eating when we’re not hungry because someone else is eating or providing food.  In order to stop this “mystery eating”, we must document what we eat so we can see quickly what we’re consuming, then set a food plan and stick to it.  This will help eliminate impulse eating and we can start to lose the excess weight.  We will need scales to measure our food portions and scales to weigh ourselves in order to make this process work.  A variety of scales in many colors, sizes and styles are available at  www.holladaypartners.com   These are quality designer scales that will match any decor at the lowest prices ever.  Check them out.  You’ll be glad you did!

Have you heard of Richard Bromfield’s book How to Unspoil Your Child Fast?  Many of us know how to spoil our children (especially our grandchildren), but few of us think about unspoiling them until they reach that awful age called “teenage.”  Following are some tips from Mr. Bromfield’s book that could be helpful to us.

1.  Commit to Unspoiling  Halfhearted attempts will fail.

2.  Remember who’s boss  Children want their parents to be in charge even when they don’t act like it.

3.  Toughen up  Someone has to say, “No.”  Your child needs you to be a parent, not a friend.

4.  Say What You Mean  Set your limits and expectations clearly, then stick to them.  Follow through on consequences.

5.  Don’t Bargain  Don’t offer endless choices and don’t reward every ounce of cooperation. 

6.  Give Less  People who get more tend to appreciate less.

Spending quality time with children is necessary for bonding.  However, a lot of that time can be spent working together, rather than playing.  Get a good set of kitchen scales and ask the child to help with the baking.  While you are bonding, they will learn about measurement and cooking; and you’ll be surprised at how much more open they will be while they’re working with you.  Holladay Partners offers kitchen scales in many colors, styles, and sizes at the lowest prices ever. 

Some things never die, they just fade away.  Genesco had a shoe factory in our town from the early fifties until it closed in 1986.  Almost everyone in our surrounding area worked there at one time or another.  After the plant closed, they started having a Christmas party at a local restaurant each year for anyone who had worked in the factory and their spouses.  The plant has been closed 22 years, yet last night, there were 52 people at the Christmas party.  Doesn’t it give you a warm, fuzzy feeling to know that those people care enough about each other to attend the party each year?

Some things displayed in my home give me that warm, fuzzy feeling, because they bring back happy memories of some event or trip in the past.  My dial scale reminds me of the old country grocery store that we used to visit on our way home from school.  The storekeeper would slice off a slab of balogna, place it on the old dial scale, then slap it on some bread with mayonnaise and sell us the sandwich.  Somehow, it tasted better if the sandwich was made on the spot, rather than taking the balogna home to make sandwiches.  A sandwich and an Orange Crush drink could really make the day just right!

Sometimes, we of the older generation or seniors, are a little slow to get involved with new technology.  I finally, with the help of her daughter, talked my 69 year old neighbor into getting on line.  We found a used laptop for $75 and she ordered internet service.  This morning, I went over and helped her set it all up, got her online, and sent an email to her daughter.  To say the least, she and her daughter were both excited.  I’ll probably have to make several trips over to her house before she learns enough to feel comfortable with her new technology, but we have definitely made progress.

Electronic scales are not necessarily new technology, but they have been vastly improved over the years.  They have the “hold” feature that allows us to step off the scale and then read the results.  This is especially helpful to the ones of us who have a sight problem.  Who wants to ask their spouse to tell them what they weigh?  Upgrading our old spring bathroom scales to an up-to-date electronic scale can give us a real uplift to help us get started on that new diet. 

We Americans, in many ways, are a culture of extremes, and we tend to flip-flop from one end of the spectrum to the other.  A bandwagon comes along and we hop on and ride to the end of the line, then catch one going the other way.  We buy stocks hoping to cash in on some quick, easy money, then sell in a hurry, fearful that the bottom is falling out.   We exercise and diet the same erratic way.  We run marathons, even when our joints and knees are past feeling the pain, then we become couch potatoes.  We eat no fat, then no carbs–whatever the latest diet information tells us to do.  By the way, the latest study I read shows that eating healthy is more important to heart health than exercise.  Moderation is the best approach in most situations–moderation in eating and exercise.

A kitchen scale that can measure our portions before we eat them is probably a wise investment.  Since money is tight, a spring scale could be the right choice.  They are less expensive, yet do a good job of weighing accurately.  The bowl covers the scale when not in use.

Many different diet plans are available for people who want to lose weight.  You can count points, measure portions, eat at different times of the day, write down what you eat, drink lots of water, and numerous other things, but the bottom line is that calories count regardless of what kind of food you’re eating.  To manage your weight, you have to balance the number of calories you eat with the number of calories your body uses.  If you eat more calories than your body is using, the food is stored as fat.  So, to lose weight, you have to eat fewer calories or burn more energy.  By balancing the calories you eat with the exercise you do, your weight can be managed for a healthier body. 

Kitchen scales are useful in determining the amount of food that can be eaten to supply the needed calories.  If you don’t want to invest a lot of money in scales, you can try a set of dial scales.  They are attractive in the kitchen and have an easy-to-read dial.  The bowl is dishwasher safe and can be used as a cover for the scales when not in use.