I have a lovely wine rack given me by a friend a half-dozen years ago when he was moving and paring down stuff; at that time I sent a smaller wine rack of mine to my son. I haven't refilled it during the spring or summer because when I have wine there I tend to drink it - a bottle every 3 or 4 days, but still, it was a steady source of calories when I was trying to reduce. My goal at the end of my weigh loss summer is to restock a few bottles and continue my modest consumption, but maintaining the lower weight.

I'm at 35 pounds lost now, aiming for 40 and hope to get there before cooler weather sets in. It's much easier to maintain one's weight during cold weather than it is to lose weight in cold weather.

A note about wine - I've often used it in cooking and my kids have participated over the years in cooking with wine or having it with the meal. My son (about 16 at the time) and I were in a grocery store checkout area when a woman slid a bottle of red into her shopping bag, missed, and it shattered. As we walked past he remarked "that smells really good!" and we circled it once, trying to get a look at the label. My goal was to raise kids who understood that alcohol was best consumed alcohol with food.