Belated Birthday Thoughts and Changes

   I recently celebrated my 49th birthday.  Yes, only 1 more year until I hit the big 50. ;)  I think birthdays give us all time to pause and think about where our lives have been, where they are now and where they are going.  For me, it also made me think about what is and what is not working in my life and how I need to make some changes to make the lives of my husband and I better.
   My husband and I are grandparents now and we want to be around for a good long time to see our grandchildren grow up, get married and have grandchildren of their own.  In order to do that, we have to take better care of ourselves.  First order of business is our health, both physically and emotionally.
   I recently went into the doctor to have some routine blood tests done and found out that I need to make some changes in my diet to keep my heart healthy.  My cholesterol levels were a bit elevated where they should not be and I was deficient in Vitamin D.  Since my husband eats even more cholesterol laden foods than I do, it is time to make some changes in that area. ;)   I have been trying to get more veggies and fruits into our diets along with whole grains and limit the bad fats.  The other thing that I was advised to do was to walk, walk, walk.  That should also help lower the bad numbers, help prevent some other problems from popping up and help keep the stress levels down.
   Our family has been and still is dealing with some stressful situations, as I'm sure many other families are also doing.  Stress is a part of life and we can't totally escape it.  Not all stress is bad either.  Sometimes it motivates us to make needed changes in our lives.  Some things are beyond our control like the health of a loved one, the economy, and the every day things that just happen in life like unexpected bills, car repairs, etc..  Other things though are in our control.  There are steps we can take to make our lives less stressful.  I think every one of us can think of a few things that are in our control that we can do to make our lives easier.  For me those changes include focusing more on the people in my life that I love and enjoy being with.  I'd much rather spend my time and energy on them and enjoy my life than be bogged down by the negativity of a few others.  I'm also going to take some practical steps to stock up on a few things here at home to avoid the upcoming high prices that we will surely being seeing with the droughts that are hitting our nation.  Living out in a small town away from any stores can become stressful if one runs out of toilet paper! ;)  Time to stock up!  And yes, my family that reads this will think that is funny because they all know that I practically have a panic attack if there is not a new at least 8 pack of toilet paper in my stockpile at all times..blame it on a traumatic childhood experience that involved living on an island and a longshoremen strike.