Tues 30 Apr

Last day of April for this year. The weather has been so up-and-down this year that it's hard to realize we're moving toward the summer months, but so we are. In less than 3 weeks, we'll be heading to the UK for our grand hiking/London adventure, and when we return, it may well be summer here. Food: 8:00 am 78 g OH raspberry kringle, 103 g blackberries, coffee

Mon 29 Apr

Did Schmeeckle in full-out rain yesterday. Discovered that the seams of my rain jacket are a weak point, so whereas my torso and head stayed dry, the back of my neck down to my upper back soaked through where the seam from the hood was overwhelmed, and there were wet spots on my front around the zipper seams as well. Will try to seal the seams if we can since the rest of the jacket functions well. Food: 7:55 am 99 g Costco morning bun, 104 g blackberries, coffee

Sun Apr 28

Had a nice day yesterday, starting with a Bukolt Loop walk to get all our steps in lest the travel/erranding and potential bad weather made it difficult to get a lot more later on. Drove down to Madison after an early light lunch, hit Costco/Woodmans/TJs, and had a lovely dinner at Lombardino's. The bad weather never really materialized other than fairly strong winds throughout the day. Food: 7:55 am 67 g blueberry kringle, 107 g blackberries, coffee

Sat 27 Apr

Heading down to Madison today, so again it will be difficult to get 20,000 steps though I did get to 16,000 yesterday. And we did get a brief part of our Schmeeckle walk with a light rain at the end as well. We'll do our best to get something in today, perhaps a Bukolt loop before we go to Madison if we aren't meeting Laura for lunch. Food: 8:00 am 76 g blueberry kringle, 102 g blackberries, coffee

Fri 26 Apr

Clouds today, but reasonable temps. Coffee this morning with Bootstrap buds, which doesn't even displace Body Pump as Nicole isn't going to be there so they're offering the other class I don't like anyway. Got an extra shift at Bootstrap this afternoon as they were short-staffed for today. Might go to see Laura tomorrow, but she's had a Covid exposure, so masking and extra caution is required. Food: 7:55 am 68 g blueberry kringle, 101 g blackberries, coffee

Thurs 25 Apr

Another sunny but cool morning. Hoping to get in a long walk in this morning as I have an OBT board meeting after Bootstrap so no evening walk today. I have managed to keep up my streak of close to 20,000 steps per day since Saturday, but I probably won't get that many today. Bob agreed that we will go for some long walks this weekend even if it's raining. Might as well get truly prepared for what we may encounter in the Cotswolds. Food: 7:55 am 98 g blueberry kringle, 101 g blackberries, coffee

Wed 24 Apr

Another nice, sunny day, though almost 20 degrees cooler this morning than it was at this time yesterday. So goes spring in Wisconsin. Have gotten close to or over 20,000 steps four days in a row now, so am working on the endurance piece that I lacked last year. It will be more challenging come this weekend when it's supposed to rain several days in a row. Don't know if I have the mettle to keep up my walking practice in the rain. Food: 7:55 am 78 g blueberry kringle, 102 g blackberries, coffee

Tues 23 Apr

A little warmer again this morning, so I'll try to get out for another long walk to keep up my endurance training. My Fitbit got down to 6% charge yesterday, cutting out functionality at 10% during OBT. Didn't get credit for anything much after 1 pm til I got home and charged it up, but it seems okay now. Fingers crossed. Food: 7:55 am 73 g blueberry kringle, 103 g blackberries, coffee

Mon 22 Apr

Daughter turns 39 today! Hard to imagine. Hope she has a good one. Had a couple of very good longer hikes this weekend which really helps to build endurance for the Cotswolds. Hope to keep it up til we go so I don't poop out on the longer days like I did in the Alps. Food: 8:00 am 95 g Costco morning bun, 104 g blackberries, coffee

Sun 21 Apr

Sun is shining and it's supposed to get a bit warmer today. Had a really nice hike yesterday on the Plover River segments of the Green Circle and are planning to go up to the Ice Age Trail beyond Wausau in search of spring ephemerals after Mass today. Saw some Siberian squill on the trail yesterday but that was it for flowers. Food: 8:00 am 98 g Costco morning bun, 104 g blackberries, coffee

Sat 20 Apr

Weekends come quickly when you travel the previous Sun-Tues. Had hoped to lunch with Laura for her birthday, but she has other plans. Gives us a free day to plan something fun. Food: 7:55 am 98 g Costco morning bun, 102 g blackberries, coffee

Fri 19 Apr

Nice to see bright sunshine today. No real plans for the upcoming weekend. Can't believe how quickly laundry day comes around each week. Used to seem that Fridays took forever to come when I was working. Food: 8:00 am 96 g Costco morning bun, 104 g blackberries, coffee

Thurs 18 Apr

Leadership summit tonight at Holy Spirit, possibly due to go late. But there will be ice cream to belatedly celebrate Dave Baker's 80th birthday at the end. Will try to do Duo this morning so I don't have to fit it in after Bootstrap. Food: 7:55 am 141 g caramel pecan roll, 103 g blackberries, coffee

Wed 17 Apr

Lovely time in Door County, and once again, the Lord provided us with excellent weather for hiking and enjoying our break. Hiked Sunday at the Riges, Monday at Three Springs Door Co Land Trust in the morning and Peninsula in the afternoon. Tuesday we walked the trails outside our resort along the water and the bluffs before heading out. Had a very nice dinner Sunday evening at Lure, lunch at Al's on Monday and Main St Market ribs in the room for dinner, and a wonderful potato waffle with smoked salmon and creme fraiche for lunch before leaving on Tuesday. The resort provided nice grab-and-go breakfast both days. Food: 8:10 am 142 g caramel pecan roll, 102 g blackberries, coffe

Sun 14 Apr

Planning an early start to Door Co this morning. Went to church yesterday evening - twice in one day counting Judie Janquart's funeral! Going to be beautiful weather here, though a little cooler in Door Co. Hoping to see a spring ephemeral or two poking out on a hike. Food: 7:10 am 3/4 c TJs Maple Pecan Crunch, 1/2 c skim milk, 101 g blackberries, coffee

Sat 13 Apr

We'll go to Judy Janquart's funeral this morning to support Gina Buda, her sister. We have a beginner plant ID class as Schmeeckle at 1 pm and church at 5, so a busy day. Food: 8:00 am 3/4 c TJs Maple Pecan Crunch, 1/2 c skim milk, 103 g blackberries, coffee

Fri 12 Apr

Having money worries. Woke up in the night thinking about Bob presenting me with half of his expenses for estimated taxes and car insurance and realized he probably has had very little income in the first quarter of the year. Between being in Spain for a month with zero income, and having worked outside jobs very rarely since we returned, he probably has almost nothing coming in. Time for a serious discussion of expenses and finances. Food: 7:45 am 3/4 c TJs Maple Pecan Crunch, 1/2 c skim milk, 102 g blackberries, coffee

Thurs 11 Apr

Yesterday was a lovely, mild day and we did get a hike in at Rib to the top of the big hill. Had dinner at the Dane with a really nice waitress who said she had lost over 200 pounds. She said they have actual Noom counselors in Wausau, but she wasn't overly fond of their program. She waxed poetic about some of the foods at Kwik Trip; they pay her to do cooking videos for them. Food: 7:55 am 3/4 c TJs Maple Pecan Crunch, 1/2 c skim milk, 103 g blackberries, coffee

Wed 10 Apr

Looks to be a lovely, sunny day today with hopefully time for an afternoon hike at Rib to appreciate the weather. Made it to Schmeeckle yesterday evening. Hoping the weather in Door County is pleasant enough for some good hiking Sun-Tues. Food: 8:00 am 100 g lemon blueberry loaf, 101 g blackberries, coffee

Tues 9 Apr

Some sunshine out there among the darker clouds. Temps have been milder. Hopefully a hike either today or tomorrow while the forecast is still good. Food: 7:55 am 73 g lemon blueberry loaf, 102 g blackberries, coffee

Mon 8 Apr

Happy 43rd anniversary of our first date. So it all began. Temps are moderating a bit more this week, though we may see some minor precip. OBT today without Poffinbarger, but Eric should be back. Food: 8:05 am 83 g lemon blueberry loaf cake, 103 g blackberries, coffee

Sun 7 Apr

Sun is shining this morning, but the clouds are moving in fast and it's supposed to precipitate most of the day. Shame to have a free day when the weather isn't great for a long walk. Food: 7:55 am 92 g lemon blueberry loaf, 101 g blackberries, coffee

Sat 6 Apr

Sunshine again today - most welcome. I cantor tonight, but otherwise unscheduled. Hoping for a nice long hike during the day. Food: 8:00 am 70 g lemon blueberry loaf, 101 g blackberries, coffee

Fri 5 Apr

Feels just a tad warmer today, though it could be my imagination or wishful thinking. Cantor on Saturday so no real weekend plans. Hopefully the weather will cooperate for a longer hike as we really haven't walked at all this week. Food: 7:55 am 72 g raspberry kringle, 102 g blackberries, coffee

Thurs 4 Apr

Snow continues to drift down, but fortunately not to accumulate. Looks rather dreary outside. Hopefully we'll see some spring-like weather again someday soon. Food: 7:55 am 72 g raspberry kringle, 102 g blackberries, coffee

Wed 3 Apr

The multi-hour snow yesterday left very little in terms of accumulation thanks to temps that hovered just at or above freezing most of the day. Would be nice if winter was winding down, but of course this is Wisconsin, so I won't hold my breath. Food: 7:55 am 62 g raspberry kringle, 102 g blackberries, coffee

Tues 2 Apr

Got my new magnetic phone charger/holder so I don't have to balance my phone on the pen holder to read it in the morning. Nice. Lots of fun things have come into our house in the last month or so: new hot tub, new exercise bike, new coffee maker. Wow, we are blessed! Food: 8:05 am 84 g raspberry kringle, 106 g blackberries, coffee

Mon 1 Apr

Temps aren't too bad today. We had a fairly mild walk at Schmeeckle yesterday afternoon, then a visit from M/T who downloaded the video game they have been telling us about for some time. Michael helped set up Bob's character while we watched, then I tried to set mine up and got really frustrated after they left and I could, 101 n't figure out what to do. After calling them twice to get unstuck, I shut it down and will need to gather my courage to try again. They did mention some online sites that could help, especially with newbies so I may look them up. Food: 8:00 am 88 g raspberry kringle, 101 g blackberries, coffee