A Day In The Life...

2012 New Year's Resolutions

2012-01-04T17:13:00.000-08:00

This year, I resolve to:

1). Lose 20 lbs through better eating habits and smaller portions.
2). Spend money only when necessary, add to savings. Limit "discretionary" spending.
3). Read more.
4). Drink less (alcohol). Drink more water.That's it. Super easy. I'm already working on them, and it's hard, but I have to keep telling myself that it's really not that hard and the more I work on it and the longer I keep them, the better I will feel about myself!

Long time, no blog.

2012-01-04T16:23:00.001-08:00

So I know no one checks this anymore, so it will become more of a timeline for me. Looking back, it looks like 2011 was a pretty pathetic blogging year for me. I've been catching up on other blogs, and it always amazes me to see how much people really keep up with it!! I know I've been good in the past, but since this summer, I haven't really done much.

I still have a ton of pictures from this summer that I haven't posted that I want to get around to...I just hope I can remember what all happened! That will have to be a totally different post.

And it's also not so much that I don't have any free time - I have a ton of free time! It's so weird that I find myself each day just wishing it would be 5 pm sooner, to only have that thought immediately followed by "Why? So you can go home and eat dinner and then...what?"

I have tons of books to read, and movies I want to catch up on, and craft projects to complete. I also have an almost 4 year old dog that has been cooped up all day and who wants to play all night!

So I don't really know why I don't blog. I guess I feel like I don't have much to say.

I will follow this blog entry with another one for New Year's Resolutions. In the past, I have always hated making them because I always break them. Then a few years back, I thought, why must I already be defeated before I start? So I started making them again...and upon looking back...Yep - definitely didn't accomplish them all. Previous years shown here (2011) and here (2010).

This year - I am making resolutions, and I WILL stick to them. I'm so sick of hearing other people always complaining about making them and then failing, and I'm also sick of myself doing that exact thing!!

So stay tuned, anyone that's out there - and I will get back to my old ways of creative photos and clever writing!

Back to running!

2011-09-17T13:18:00.001-07:00

As you can see from my last post, I am running another 5K! You can follow my progress and thoughts on the training (and hopefully eventually photos) on my running blog here: http://learningtorun.blogspot.com/

Thanks for your support!

5K for a cause!

2011-09-17T13:15:00.000-07:00

Since November 2008, my brother and sister-in-law have been in the process of adopting two young children from Ethiopia! However, the cost of international adoption is significant. In order to adopt their children, they need to raise money for agency fees, international airfare and travel expenses. For example, the cost of one ticket alone can be between $1,200 and $1,800!

I am trying to help them out! I will be running a 5K on Saturday, October 1st, to raise money for their adoption, and I need your assistance in making it happen! The race is called the “River Run for Orphans”, and the organization’s goal is to raise money to change lives of orphans globally and locally. You can find out more about my race or their organization by visiting http://www.riverrunfororphanscoloradosprings.org/.

All the proceeds I am able to raise by running this 5K will go specifically to Brian and Kathryn Creveling (my brother and sister-in-law) to help them adopt two orphans from Ethiopia. My goal is to raise at least $500 to help them in completing their family and to help 2 orphans from Ethiopia find a loving home.

Please prayerfully consider helping us share God’s love by donating money for my race and to the Creveling’s Adoption Fund. This donation is tax-deductible. I will be collecting all donations and will submit the final total raised to Brian and Kathryn. Please make checks payable to Karen Creveling and write “River Run for Orphans” in the memo line and contact me for my mailing address if you would like to donate.

Thank you for your help - anything helps!

Adoption Fundraiser!

2011-08-28T19:46:00.001-07:00

In honor of my brother and sister-in-law being #8 on their adoption agency's unofficial waiting list for siblings, they are giving away a football signed by #8 TROY AIKMAN! Purchase one ticket for $10, two for $15. Tickets must be purchased by 9/11/11. The winner will be drawn after the Dallas Cowboys Season Opener on 9/11/11! Enter as many times as you wish!

You can donate via Paypal on their blog at http://texascrevs.blogspot.com/. Or you can donate via our adoption agency to receive a tax-deduction. Send your donation to:
AWAA - Eternal Family Fund, 6723 Whittier Ave., McLean, VA 22101.

Please include your name, address, email address and specify that it is for The CREVELING's adoption. Or you can donate directly at
https://www.awaa.org/forms/payment.aspx (Note: all credit card transactions incur a 2.5% fee).

Thanks for supporting their adoption and GOOD LUCK!

July (so far!)

2011-07-24T12:27:00.000-07:00

There shouldn't be much more stuff happening in July, so I feel safe blogging about it so far. If I do anything else, I can always add a blog!

I took Friday, July 1st off to hang out with my sister and her kids, and we went to the zoo!! I always have fun there! July 4th was nice because I was also able to take the day off from work, so we mostly just hung around the house and had a small BBQ with my mom and dad. Susanna, our HR intern, came over and joined us as well! She was a huge hit with my sister’s kids, mostly because she played the “pretend” games with them and let them crawl all over her! I was also a big hit because I had gotten quite a few glow sticks from the Dollar Store and gave them to the kids as a surprise – it was a HUGE hit! They were SOOO excited! They had bracelets and necklaces, and each kid had their own wand. I learned from last year that those definitely keep them entertained while we’re waiting, plus it’s always easier to see them in the dark when you know where they are!

That week was also the week of the US Women’s Open! It was pretty slow for us in the Administration offices, but we got out to the Merchandise tent to help at the register. It was packed, and it didn’t help that it rained all 4 days of the Championship and everyone came inside to do some shopping! It was crazy, but it added to the already memorable experience of saying that you worked at a property that held a National USGA golf tournament that got worldwide recognition. I even came out of it with “credentials” and a free Cutter and Buck t-shirt! So I would say it worked out well!

I also went with Katy and Susanna (both from work) to a Sky Sox game! The Sky Sox are our Minor League team that feeds into the Colorado Rockies. The stadium is really close and it’s really affordable – the seats closest to the field are only $12 plus tax! Then the food and drink are priced what you would expect, between $6 and $8 but that’s not bad! We had a blast, and we stuck around for after the game when we saw FIREWORKS!! Nevermind that we just saw them a few days earlier for the Fourth, but they shot these off RIGHT outside of the ballpark, which is relatively small.

I also went to another Rockies game, this time with Susanna and friends from her school program, Sarah and Lumi! We had a great view from Right Field, but we were in direct sunlight the entire time – IT. WAS. SO. HOT. Thank goodness Susanna had 50 SPF sunscreen in her purse, or we would have burned skin off – it really was that hot. The only breaks we got were when we got up to get food or beer and when a large cloud covered the sun for a good chunk of time. We also decided to go to the gift shop and buy the first white sleeveless tank top we could find to help allieviate some of the heat from our black cotton t-shirts! 3 out of the 4 of us got a new tank top that day, and changed in the bathroom. The shirts fit a little funny, but it was worth the $27 to have even a little bit of relief! On a non-baseball related note, I think that I had the most amazing cheeseburger I have ever eaten at the game – SO yummy!! They also gave us so many French fries that I couldn’t eat them all, and I didn’t even need dinner! My dad also gave me an old camera of his – the camera wasn’t really that old, but he wasn’t using it and didn’t sell it in the garage sale they had that weekend. But, it has 12X zoom and I was able to get some really cool shots! The only bad thing was that the closer you zoom, the fuzzier the picture got. But it was still cool!

Finally, I completed my 5K!! You can read about that here. I bought a 5K sticker to put in my car’s rear window and might even continue running – might even do another 5K!

So, with that all finally being said and done – here is a highlight of July so far (with a few more photos to come – the next few weeks are busy too!):

2011-07-24T12:26:00.001-07:00

Yet another Rockies game! However, it was someone else who had the tickets this time, and gave them to my team. My boss and 2 co-workers made it out on a Tuesday (yikes!!) and got a nice hook-up with seats. My boss was able to get an upgrade because he helped someone in the Rockies box office with their training program, so we had AWESOME seats! We’re generally a silly group of people who work hard but then like to relax and so of course we had a blast. The fun didn’t stop, even though we hit massive amounts of traffic on the highway on the way home. Next time, we’ll go to a game where we don’t have to work the next morning – we were all dead.

I was also invited to go see Brett Dennen in concert in Denver with a friend in early June, very last minute, and it was a blast as well!! In fact, because I went, I saw that probably one of my top 10 favorite bands was playing at the very same theater later in June – PANIC! AT THE DISCO!!!!!!! I have loved them since 2006! I went home and promptly bought 2 tickets because I couldn’t wait and it’s a good thing I did because it sold out!!! I blogged about it here, and took Susanna with me! It was seriously the most fun I have had in the past year.

And lastly, I surprised my sister with a dinner at the Penrose Room – a restaurant at the Broadmoor hotel in Colorado Springs. It is the only 5 Star and 5 Diamond restaurant in Colorado! I won it as a prize for winning Employee of the Month in May, and decided to share it with her! She had NO idea what we were doing and I kept sending picture clues to her all day to keep her guessing. She was completely surprised and excited and was extremely happy. We ending up eating (in varying portion sizes)- caviar, lobster, rabbit, halibut, filet minon, and more!

Yet another barrage of photos (this time from June):

Catching you up!

2011-07-18T19:41:00.000-07:00

I haven’t really been blogging on here because of my running blog, http://learningtorun.blogspot.com, but then again, I’m not quite as busy as most of my peers! Most of the things I do are normal, everyday things, which aren’t really that interesting!

However, I have been pretty busy the past few weeks, so here’s an update…I've broken it down so it's not a marathon blog!

May:
My company has 4 tickets to the Rockies, and allows employees to sign up for one game per season (based on availability) on a first come, first serve basis. I was able to get tickets for an afternoon game on a Saturday, which is great because I hate driving all the way down from Denver really late and especially if I have work the next morning. Susanna had just been there one week and I invited her to go because she didn’t know about baseball!

We got there and it was overcast for most of the day, until it started raining around 3 or 4! Bummer! The worst news was that we were both wearing flip flops because when we left, it was nice and warm, but at the game, our little toes got cold and wet and it was pretty rough. Susanna had purchased a foam finger for one of her roommates and found that it made a very nice temporary “sock”! I had thought ahead to bring a rain jacket (someone tell my mom!) and Susanna had packed an umbrella, but forgot she had it until she had been sitting in the rain for a while (oops!)

All in all, even though it was overcast and foggy and wet all day, we had a really great time and it was a great baseball experience!! May was also when I started Yoga (shocking!) and my Couch to 5K program. I am proud to say that I have stuck with both, except that I will not be doing Yoga this week so that I can practice running some more, because I have my first 5K on Saturday!

I also went to an event in Denver called the Furry Scurry! This was before I started running, so I did not run this but it was event to raise money for animals in shelters and it was HUGE!! There were thousands of people and tents set up, and Bailey and I spent almost 2 hours just wandering around – he even got to have a cup of doggie ice cream because it was so hot out! Well, that and I love him to death and spoil him like crazy.

Then, I brought Susanna to something called Territory Days. It's held every year over Memorial Day in Old Colorado City, Colorado. It's basically a gigantic street fair meant to celebrate when the city was the capital of the Colorado Territory. The weather was perfect and it was just a lot of fun! (Even though there were large crowds!).

Let the photo montage ensue:

Panic! at the Disco - BEST. CONCERT. EVER.

2011-07-02T13:00:00.000-07:00

So I love Panic! at the Disco. Duh.THEY. ARE. AWESOME.

And yes, you have to have the exclamation point in their name, because that's legally how you write it.

Back in college, circa 2005, a friend of my boyfriend at the time knew that I liked "punk" music (Bowling for Soup, Blink 182, Simple Plan, etc.) and she handed me a purple burned CD of this group called Panic! at the Disco and told me I should listen to it because I should like them.

I had vaguely heard of them before in passing, but really had no idea who they were. At first, I thought "this is way too weird for me" and slightly wrote them off. But the more I listened to it, the more it grew on me until I loved them!! I hadn't really heard about them a few years later though, and they fell off my radar.

Until I was invited at the last minute to a concert in Denver with a work friend. It was for an artist that I had never heard of, but as we drove past the theater, I saw Panic!'s name on the billboard for a future date in June and FREAKED OUT!!!! Now, he had never even heard of them, but it was like they jumped right back onto my radar and I wondered what had happened to them!

So later that night, I did some research and found out they came out with a brand new album in March of 2011!! So I immeadiatley purchased this album on iTunes and bought tickets the very next PayDay. (This turned out to be a very smart move on my part because it sold out!!!)

I bought 2 tickets figuring that I would find someone to go with me, and at the very least, I would just go with myself. Either way - I WAS GOING. (Fortuately, my office has a super cool intern working with us who I really get along with and she was game!!) And…the best part????? She took video of a lot of the songs and I can not WAIT to see them!!!!!!

Turned out to be an AWESOME move!!!!!! The concert was last night and it lived up to every expectation - in fact, I'm sure it actually blew any expectations off the road and then waved at them as the concert passed them by - it really was THAT GOOD. At least for me.

So if you feel like it, go check out my photos from the event - but be advised, they were all taken from a cell phone camera at a distance, so apart from the colors, they probably won't look that different to you. But it will be an amazing experience that I will never forgt, and will NEVER regret doing.

New running blog!!

2011-06-22T18:44:00.000-07:00

I have now created a blog just to chronicle my running program - leading up to my first EVER 5K that I've signed up to run in July. Then, the future will be determined once I reach it! Please follow the blog at:

http://learningtorun.blogspot.com/

I will still be updating this one from time to time, with non-running related news, but I wanted to keep that one separate, as it is a separate part of my life right now. Thanks for checking in and following this blog!

Reading Update

2011-04-30T18:28:00.000-07:00

I am addicted to Emily Giffin. It first started with Something Borrowed. I saw a preview for the movie coming out soon, and wanted to read the book before the movie came out. It was an impulse buy and - I finished the book in 24 hours.

It was that good. Another amazing impulse buy (like Eat, Pray, Love).

So then, the next night, I couldn't wait and went to Borders and got the sequel - Something Blue. It's a followup to Something Borrowed. I got it on a Friday - finished it Sunday afternoon. Less than 48 hours. Must be a new record for me.

Now I'm addicted. She has 3 other books out there - Baby Proof, Love the One You're With, and Heart of the Matter. They're all seperate plot lines from the first two, but I realized that I really liked how she wrote.

I just bought Baby Proof online 5 minutes ago. I didn't want to spend the full $15 at Borders, so I found a website selling it for under $4 - including shipping!!! It's used, which doesn't matter to me. It's still the same book! Plus, after I read them, I plan on trying to sell them online, so I should get some money back. Good deal.

Can't wait!! Only 7-14 days til Baby Proof arrives, and when it does, before I even finish it, I'm ordering another one because I know it will be done in less than 2 days!!

I've said it a million times...

2011-04-12T19:32:00.000-07:00

But I really need to get back to reading. Recently, I read "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert. I watched the movie and then bought the book online on impulse.

Best. Impulse. Buy. Ever.

Anyway, I saw a movie preview for "Something Borrowed". And I then (impulsively) bought it online from Amazon.com. And I know, I'm years behind the curve, but at least I'm not a bandwagon fan, right?

I read several reviews, and it seems like it's a very popular book. Plus (duh!) it's being made into a movie!

So between Emily Giffin and Elizabeth Gilbert, I've got a great series of books to start on either way! Not to mention the 18 books I already have stacked up at home to read, but at least it's a start!

Any thoughts/feedback/opinions on "Something Borrowed"??

Brief Update

2011-04-10T14:11:00.000-07:00

Well it' s been more than a month again. And I can't say I haven't visited this site during that time; I have been catching up on your blogs! I keep checking the website and reading other blogs and thinking "wow I'm boring". But you know what? I've never been happier. I recently got out of a bad relationship. It's like a breath of fresh air. I spent almost 2 years being miserable, but now only have to think about ME finally. I recently moved into my "own place". Granted, my parents own it, but now (again), it's finally all about ME and what I want. (On a side note, I went out and bought a combo modem/router So, as I promised over a month ago, I will update you all on the remaining "topics" I had listed:

Recently, the lady who runs our employee events and employee newsletters (things going on at work, weddings, babies, etc.) moved to another department in the hotel. So her role was open. It was filled briefly by someone else at the hotel, but she then decided to go back to her original department, so it was open again. Basically, I was handed all of the newsletters and any kind of graphic design stuff that the position used to do! Another lady I work with got the party planning stuff (which is fine with me) and now I get to be much more creative. It's GREAT!

At the time I wrote my last entry, a Hungarian named Luca was living with my parents. She came to the US a year ago to work at the hotel, and my parents became her "host family" - basically, when they come work in America for a year, they're away from all their friends and family, and my parents would have her over for dinner, and to do laundry and basically be there for her. It was like having a roomate! She's my same age, and we talked about boys and family and life. She went back to Hungary, but it was nice having her around!

My New Year's resolutions (Yea, they're pretty much all broken by now). Not much else to add. But again - I'm just happy.

Don't remember about my reading list - but I haven't touched a book in a month. I should really start reading again!

Phone Saga - I switched to a Samsung Instinct back in October. I hated it. Other than the phone calls and texting, it didn't do a single thing I wanted. So I switched back to a Blackberry over a month ago. Again, another breath of fresh air. I LOVE it!!! And I have 2 sparkling rhinestone-type cases. HEAVEN.

Necklaces - for about a month back in Feb/March, I was making beaded necklaces like nobody's business. Well, that has slowed down a bit, but it was creative and sparkly and it felt good.

Whew. Well, that was my list. Hopefully another month won't go by before I blog again.

A Life-Changing Haircut?

2011-03-08T19:29:00.000-08:00

So, as I promised, a real blog. And I'll be spreading out what's going on over a few blogs, as to not overwhelm myself or anyone who reads this.

Last night, I had the weirdest dream. I can't remember where I was in the dream, but some stranger came up to me and just cut off a chunk of my hair, specifically on my right side. First of all, it cut my bangs (which I don't have) and secondly, there was no reason or provocation and I didn't even know who this person was!

I googled "dreams about getting your hair cut". Believe me - that's out there. I found a website that offers interpretations of many different types of dreams and found this description:

"If you dream that you make a drastic change to your hairstyle, then it means that you are making a drastic, new approach to some issue in your waking life. To dream that you are cutting your hair, suggests that you are experiencing a loss in strength. You may feel that someone is trying to censor you. Alternatively, you may be reshaping your thinking or ambitions and eliminating unwanted thoughts/habits. "

This actually makes sense to me. About 5 months ago, I made a major life change. I had been dating a guy named Justin for over 2 years and I ended it. Without going into details, it was a very rocky and harmful relationship at the end, and an even worse break up. But it had to be done. I moved back in with my parents and spent a few months just basically recovering. I'm happy to say that I feel like I'm finally getting back to "me". So I am (or recently have) made a new, drastic approach to my life. I'm living it without that on my shoulders.

Now, in the dream, I wasn't the one cutting my hair but I do feel that back in October and the few months after that I did experience a loss in strength. I can't begin to explain all the emotions I was feeling but I did feel pretty sucked dry. I did feel like someone was trying to censor me (or you could call it smother or control). And then I began to reshape my thinking and led me to eliminate unwanted habits - him. So, if you were to really interpret the "other person" cutting my hair, you could say it was Justin shocking me into realizing what the hell was going on and that I needed to make a drastic change.

I am extremely thankful for all of the support I recieved from friends, co-workers, and especially my family.

And now, I'm facing the great opportunity of moving out and living on my own again. Finally, my life is getting back on track!

That's 2 blog topics down - 6 to go!

What happened?

2011-03-07T21:04:00.000-08:00

Well...I feel like I should really blog, because it's been almost a month. But at this point, it's already 10 pm, and I have to be at work at 7 am tomorrow. And it's a very hairy day ahead. So I think instead I will watch some Netflix and doze off. But I have every intention of blogging a REAL blog soon, so to help my anal-retentive and somewhat spacey mind, I have to make a bulleted list so I remember.

I had a dream last night that someone walked up to me and just cut a huge chunk out of my hair for no reason. I did some googling, and I think I have the answer.

A major change in my life that happened a few months ago, and another one coming up in a month or two. (*Disclaimer - no, I am not pregnant!)

A promotion that I'm stressed/excited about at work.

A Hungarian student named Luca (pronounced "Lootza", like "pizza" but starting with "loot")

My New Year's resolutions (Yea, they're pretty much all broken by now)

My reading list

My phone saga

My necklaces

On second thought, maybe I should space those out into other blogs. Yea, that might be good. For the 8 followers!! :) Maybe I could get to 10 if I posted more??

And on that note, I wanted to share a picture that makes me happy:This is the cover of this month's Texas Monthly magazine. I may be in Colorado, but I'm still in love with Texas!!

2011-02-17T21:11:00.000-08:00

So I’m back!! I figured I was due to update my blog and my resolutions on how I was doing.

First of all, I’m on track with my one book a month resolution. In January, I started to read "Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell and Know" by Alexandra Horowitz, and it’s a really interesting book (mini-review to come once I’m done), but by today, it’s simply not finished.

However, on Friday, January 28th, I walked into the library for employees we have next to my office, looking for a future month’s selection. I grabbed one short book (probably 25-30 with large print), called “Dinner with a Stranger” by David Gregory.

I read the entire thing over my lunch break. My resolution was technically achieved in a matter of half an hour without me knowing. It’s about a man who receives a dinner invitation by someone who claimed to be Jesus, and the man accepts. The more “Jesus” talks to him at dinner, the more the man starts to really think the stranger is Jesus. It’s basically a really good book on apologetics. It puts out some very familiar questions that I’ve either been asked or asked myself, and could never put it into words, and it actually has answers that just simply make sense.

However, it’s still bugging me that I haven’t finished my original January book, so I intend to finish it in February. I feel that I can say I read one book this month, since it’s the only one I’ve read in February and I will finish it!

Also, I have every intention of doing my scrapbooking page for this month this weekend. It only takes me about an hour a page, so I feel like I can do it – it’s just a matter of buckling down and getting started!!!

As for the weight loss, I’m not really down from January 1st, but I'm not up either. And the eating better – well, that fluxuates depending on the day. But, I have been very disappointed in my January performance, so I’m making a more conscious effort to consider what I’m eating and determine – “This is enough. You don’t need more, right? RIGHT!” Plus, I’m very busy at work, so I’m noticing that I’m not hungry as much as I used to be, which just proves to me that I eat out of boredom. I haven’t really worked out much, even after buying The Biggest Loser for Wii, but I’m just not a work-out type of person. I seem to do just fine without it.

And there you have it!! Thanks for sticking around!! And I can use your support and encouragement, so if you have any suggestions or comments on anything related to what I blogged about, then please share!

Inspiring Thoughts

2011-01-06T18:52:00.000-08:00

I've had a rough few months recently, and along with the Bible helping me get through, I've found inspiring thoughts just randomly "hit me" at the right time, and today, I got two in a row!

“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” – Plato (from my daily calendar)
- I've been working on my issue with patience, especially with people who I feel make my life more difficult, in whatever way, and I find myself either being short with them to their face, or complaining about them behind their backs. This simple little quote brought it all to light for me in one statement - you may be frustrated with this person, but remember that you're not the only one with problems, and you don't know what this person is going through. Definitely something to think about.

“Re-examine all you have been told…Dismiss what insults your soul.” – Walt Whitman (on my Celestial Seasonings tea bag tag)
- Part of my rough past few months includes a lot of mental and emotional issues where I had constantly been told (in not so many words) that I had screwed up so much that I could never be "good" again and that I was having trouble forgiving myself, even though others had. This quote just made me realize instantly - All those thoughts, motions and words that hurt my soul...just forget them. They don't have any place in my life and they can only bring me down. It's in the past now - dwell on the things that will uplift your soul.

So even though they weren't bible verses, they "spoke" to me...and it just seemed to be exactly what I needed to hear.

No more "negative" thoughts - Phillipians 4:8 - "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things."

Success!

2011-01-06T18:44:00.001-08:00

First of all, let me share an adorable picture - When I come home for lunch during the week, I let the dogs out and let them sun themselves by the front door. They LOVE it!! And today, they all piled up by the front door and cuddled. SOO CUTE!!!

And...I've already had success on my resolutions!!

So far, I've already changed my blog design from the "Fall" theme to something far more relevant to me - sparkles!

And, I've already done my allotted "one page a month" of scrapbooking!! I have taken a picture for proof:

Not my best work, but I've been out of practice for a while. Whew...that really took it out of me!

2011 New Year's Resolutions

2011-01-01T21:27:00.000-08:00

So I got a kick out of reading my blog resolutions from last year (found here). It was actually pretty interesting to see that I kept 2 of them and didn't keep the other 3!! That's progress for me - the previous year, I didn't keep any and before that I didn't even make any because I didn't want to feel bad about breaking/not keeping them.

I was able to lose almost all of the 30 lbs that I wanted to (about 22 total) but I felt and looked great and was able to fit in a ton of my old clothes! And that loss was due to another resolution, which was to eat healthier and try new recipes! I joined Weight Watchers, and it worked and the rest is history!! However, since I lost that weight, I've gained back about 8 lbs in the last 3 months. NOT good.

I feel like it's only appropriate to make some more, and to make sure I include those from last year I wasn't able to keep. So here goes!!

1. Clearly, I need to redesign my blog theme and heading. Oops.
2. Save money!
3. Scrapbook at least 1 "event" a month. I have quite the backlog, and 1 page a day or week is a little lofty.
4. Read 1 book a month. I just got 4 new books in the last week, so I definitely have a good start! No excuses!
5. Lose 10 lbs to get back to my Weight Watchers weight. And keep it off!

Happy New Year!

Bailey Update

2010-12-01T15:28:00.000-08:00

So I know when I posted yesterday, I intended for it to be my last one for a while. But I’ve got an update for my 8 followers (most of which I assume haven’t read this in a while!).

I posted a while back that he had somehow cracked a nail, all the way from the tip to the base, and exposed his quick. Well the vet gave me some medications and told me to keep an eye on him. When I brought him back in, they said it was infected and they had to rip out his nail (OUCH and EW) and bandaged it up and gave me more medication for him. He had to go back a couple of times to get it re-bandaged because the silly dog just can’t stay still! Anyway – my mom took him in to the vet for me today and GOOD NEWS – He no longer has a bandaged foot and his nail is growing back!!

The vet said that it was growing in crooked (which you can totally tell and I think is hilarious), so in order to see if it will correct itself and grow straight, they won’t be wrapping it anymore. And he doesn’t need to have a sock on or anything when he goes outside either, which will be SO much easier!! He does, however, have a weird rash/cut where the bandages rubbed against the very thin skin/fur on his leg. They gave us lotion to help with that and just said he needs to have his foot soaked in Epsom salt once or twice a day to keep it cleaned out.

I just hope he doesn’t do anything else stupid. I can’t afford to keep paying for his goofs!

And I swear – I MUST find my camera and cord, because these no picture posts are driving me nuts!!

Last Day of NaBloPoMo and First Snow!!

2010-11-30T15:44:00.000-08:00

Today is the last day of November and the last day of National Blog Posting Month!! I must say, much like last year, that I'm somewhat relieved. I managed to post at least once each day, but if you go back and look, you'll see that most of them were pretty sad. I must not have that much to say anymore!! Part of the reason is that I moved in the middle of it all and can't find the cord to get pictures off my camera, and then, lost my camera! I know it's somewhere in the house, but that's pretty much it. I know it's all excuses, but I can at least say I did it!!

I mentioned it on my last post, but we had our first snow on Sunday!!! I was SOOOOOOOO EXCITED!!!!! It started Sunday night, probably around 6 pm and snowed pretty consistently for a few hours. I had to go out and put a towel on my windshield so I could save time the next morning when I left for work. Which worked! (Yay!) We got several inches of snow (maybe 2-4 in places) and it was all fresh and sparkly and calm....LOVED IT!

So you may not hear from me again soon, since I might be taking a few days off from blogging to build up a good post! Have a good one!

Bad boots!

2010-11-29T17:32:00.000-08:00

So a few weeks ago, my mom offered to get me some good "snow boots", that I could wear to work. Part of my job is to give tours of the property and I do a lot of walking outside. We found a great deal and although they aren't the nicest looking, they are SUPER comfortable!

For the first time this season, we had our first REAL snow yesterday! (YAY!!!) So today, I had to wear my boots for the first time, because as it turns out, I had a tour today (go figure). I wore them all day, and it was totally wonderful! But...

I got home, and went to take them off. I took off my left boot and the inside sole of the shoe came off with it! Apparently, I wore some of the material off of the bottom of the shoe, exposing the sticky stuff, and it stuck to my sock! So I took off the other boot and while it didn't stick to my sock, it was as worn down as the other one. I mean, I know I did a lot of walking and I wore them all day but ONE DAY?!?! Shoes shouldn't fall apart after one day!

I think we'll try to return them, but I don't know if they'd take back worn and ruined shoes. It's just not fair!!

Christmas Music

2010-11-28T18:56:00.000-08:00

I recently got a new cd of Christmas music, but all instrumental. It's a wonderful CD! Anyway, it happened to have my second favorite song (first is Carol of the Bells) on it, and it's a beautiful version. I tried to find audio but could not. So - Please enjoy these lyrics (and make sure if you haven't heard the song to go out and buy a CD with it on there!!). And if you can find it acapella - that's always the best!

One can hear the falling snow.
For all is hushed,
The world is sleeping,
Holy Star its vigil keeping.
Still, still, still,
One can hear the falling snow.

Sleep, sleep, sleep,
'Tis the eve of our Saviour's birth.
The night is peaceful all around you,
Close your eyes,
Let sleep surround you.
Sleep, sleep, sleep,
'Tis the eve of our Saviour's birth.

Dream, dream, dream,
Of the joyous day to come.
While guardian angels without number,
Watch you as you sweetly slumber.
Dream, dream, dream,
Of the joyous day to come.

SNL Much?

2010-11-27T22:49:00.000-08:00

So I realize it's Saturday, but thanks to Netflix, I've been watching "Saturday Night Live" all day.

Except, a few hours ago, I went over to David's (a co-worker) apartment, and we made turkey burgers and listened to music - SO FUN!!

Wow, I almost can't wait until November is over - my blogs are getting so pathetic!

The Office

2010-11-26T21:27:00.000-08:00

NaBloPoMo is almost over...my sister is almost gone (she leaves tomorrow morning)...and I am watching The Office 1st Season on Netflix (the BEST invention in the world EVER!!). Enjoy some clips of Jim's Office pranks!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T19:16:00.000-08:00

Had good food and fun with the family today! If only the Cowboys hadn't blown their lead...hah!

Didn't take any pictures, and I couldn't post any anyway...I still can't find my camera cord!

But, on a high note - I'll be in Dallas for Christmas in less than a month --- YAY!!! Annnnd...I can officially start playing Christmas music tomorrow without feeling bad about it!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Share Comments & Graphics - Thanksgiving Layouts - Photobucket

Thanksgiving tomorrow

2010-11-24T21:06:00.001-08:00

It's a late night in my house, but it's been a nice day. Mostly because I don't have to work tomorrow, but also because I got to spend the nice with my family. We went to see Tangled!

It was VERY cute! It brought tears to my eyes at moments, and lots of good laughs. I could have done without the songs - they seemed a little forced - but then again, that's part of the Disney movies that I grew up with that I liked (Aladdin, Cinderella, Lion King, etc.) so I give them props for going back to that. Plus, I'm 26 now, and I'm sure I see those songs differently than I would if I was 5 or 6.

I recommend this movie!!

Preview

2010-11-23T17:54:00.000-08:00

Since I have a new Bollywood crush on Imran Khan, I went ahead and got another one of his movies on my Netflix queue....this is from 2008 and was his first starring role. I guess they call it his "debut" movie. Whatever it is - I can't wait!!!!!!!!!! I'm supposed to get it in the mail tomorrow.

It's called "Jaane Tu...Ya Jaane Na" which means "Whether You Know it or Not". I've heard/seen a lot of good things about it online, so I'm really looking forward to it!

New Crush...

2010-11-22T20:59:00.001-08:00

I have a new Bollywood crush, thanks to the movie "I Hate Luv Stories"...

Imran Khan - YUMMY!! And a good actor too!

2010-11-21T20:29:00.000-08:00

I am tired. It's been a long, uneventful day. Long, and boring, but very uneventful. I have nothing to report!

Pretty interesting day...

2010-11-20T20:42:00.000-08:00

So I took Bailey into the vet today to get his toenail checked on - a while back he split one of his toenails all the way open. Then, they didn't think it needed to be removed, so they told me to keep an eye on it.

I thought he was doing pretty well, so I thought today would be a fast and good checkup.

They came out and told me that as soon as the vet touched his foot, it oozed some puss. So they were draining it to see if they could look at the infection better.

Then, probably 20 minutes later he came out with a nub where his foot used to be. NO - they didn't amputate! But as it turns out, they just broke off his entire nail because it was just dead. Then they bandaged up his foot, sent me home with a couple different prescriptions for antibiotics and anti-inflamitories ($$$$$$$$$$) and said to bring him back on Tuesday for a check-up and to get rebandaged. Nice.

My poor puppy!! He's actually doing really well and it doesn't seem that the bandages bother him at all - he hasn't licked at it or tried to get it off. So I guess that's a good sign...more to come on Tuesday!!

(And no pictures because, as you can imagine, it's disgusting!!!)

Winter Thoughts

2010-11-19T21:02:00.000-08:00

Prompt: What do you think or feel when you walk through freshly fallen snow?

Each time, when possible, I like to walk through the snow in silence. Especially if it's still snowing.
Everything is quiet. The snow is on the ground, soft and sparkling. I love hearing the crunch of the snow under my feet. And it's almost like I get to walk where no one else has walked. That's just me, making those markings.

Everthing is perfect. I love to walk in the snow, but I also like to walk in as few places as possible. The snow is just perfectly flat and even and it hasn't been disturbed. It's actually calming to look over a large field of fresh snow and see it untouched and perfect. It looks like velvet that I could run my hands over, but I wouldn't, because I would ruin it.

Fresh snow just gives off an essense of contemplation. I just want to be still when I see fresh snow. It's like, if I move or walk or talk, it will ruin the moment and it won't be the same as it was 5 seconds earlier.

I just like to walk, slowly, step by step, through the fresh, perfect snow and listen to it crunch, crunch, crunch, while breathing in the sharp, cold air. I actually feel most alive, and happy to be alive, when I'm walking through the snow.

Weekend Plans

2010-11-18T20:22:00.000-08:00

I normally don't like to talk about my weekend before it happens, because I usually don't have any plans or if I do, they happen in whatever order. In fact, my co-workers don't even ask me what I'm doing over the weekend anymore. They just ask me how my weekend was on Monday morning.

But I actually have a busy weekend ahead of me!

Tomorrow, I have to:
- Take Bailey to the vet to have them check-up on his broken toe nail and get a nail trim
- Clean up my room (I still have laundry to put away from last weekend!)
- Watch "Paa": A Hindi movie that I got from Netfix tonight. I've heard awesome things!!

- Laundry
- My sister and brother-in-law and their 3 kids are coming to visit for Thanksgiving, and I'm sure it will involve cleaning and organizing before their arrival!

Sunday I think I'm either going to re-visit a Baptist church I went to last week or I may just try out another one that's a little closer to me.

And of course, Netflix is not going to watch itself.

I leave you with this wonderful parting gift from The Office. (I'd apologize for the quality, but I didn't make this video and it was the best I could find on You Tube).

Patience

2010-11-17T20:16:00.000-08:00

My biggest “weakness” is the fact that I have little to no patience with anything. I feel very strongly that God is working with me on my patience issue.

Every single morning, and every night driving home from work, I get stuck behind either the slowest driver in Colorado Springs or behind an 18-wheeler that somehow ended up in a residential neighborhood. Don’t get me wrong – I think that I should be able to drive 35 in a 35 mph zone. I just get extremely frustrated when I can’t!

Then, every single day at work has been screaming busy. I just want to take care of things myself, but most of what I do depends on other people. I just want to scream at them “go faster!!”

But, God knows I need to work on this and is sending these things deliberately. I have to realize when I’m getting impatient or short with someone and take a step back. And then gradually I will learn to just be patient!

Better blogs!

2010-11-16T16:19:00.000-08:00

I haven’t been feeling the creative juices flowing. Any one who has seen any of my blogs for the past two weeks can tell – there’s nothing here. It is partially because of the drastic turn my personal life has taken (for the better) and because we are screaming busy training 2 new staff members and approaching a 3rd new staff member!

But I really can’t blame anything other than myself. I just seem to be losing my touch! I mean, just reading through my blogs from this time a year ago – they were good! And I know it sounds like I’m tooting my own horn right now, but they were clever and creative and funny! So I’m wondering what’s happened to me?!?!

I want to get back to my very creative side so I’m forcing myself to look at blog post “prompts” online. Just a sentence or two to get the juices flowing. Writers do it all the time to keep themselves sharp! I just want to stay away from the normal “cliché” prompts – If you could invite 5 people to dinner, living or dead, who would it be and why? Or, what would you do with 1 million dollars? I want something different!

So stay tuned - I promise the blogs will get better!

The Office

2010-11-15T21:24:00.000-08:00

Ever watch The Office on NBC? You should!! Especially before the end of this season and "Michael Scott" (Steve Carrell) leaves the show!

Sorry for the sorry excuse for the post - I'll do better tomorrow!!

Snow? PLEASE?!?!?!?

2010-11-14T20:10:00.001-08:00

Another pitiful post, but I want to make sure that I accomplish my one blog per day! I am really still waiting for our first real snow of the year!!! I can't believe it's already mid-November and we haven't had a snow STORM!! But to make myself feel better, here are some pictures from a storm last year that I can only hope will happen again soon!!

Bachna Ae Haseeno

2010-11-13T21:53:00.000-08:00

In English,"Bachna Ae Haseeno" means "Beware, ye beauties". I have seen it before but I am watching it again, it is THAT good! If you have a Netflix membership, I highly recommend it! It stars Ranbir Kapoor, who is becoming one of my favorite Hindi actors, and it is a wonderful story line! Please check it out!!

Starbucks

2010-11-12T16:03:00.001-08:00

I went to Starbucks yesterday to get my Pumpkin Spice Latte and saw that they had....

THEIR CHRISTMAS DRINKS ON THE MENU!!!

Can NOT wait to try those! But I want to wait until at least after Thanksgiving. Then I planning on going each morning for one week and trying each!

An answer to prayer - literally!

2010-11-11T09:49:00.000-08:00

Several days ago, I expressed a thought that I struggle with prayer – how, when, where, etc. Then I got my Daily Bread devotional in my e-mail (for free! Check it out here) and I had an answer!

Our Daily Bread Devotional for 11/11/2010:

In my distress I cried to the Lord, and He heard me. —Psalm 120:1

Several years ago, I was driving down the freeway when my car died. I pulled over to the side of the road, got out of the car, and opened the hood. As I looked at the engine I thought, A lot of good this does me. I know nothing about cars. I don’t even know where to start!

That’s how we might sometimes feel about prayer: Where do I start? That’s what the disciples wanted to know when they asked Jesus, “Teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1). The best place to look for instruction is in the example and teaching of Jesus. Two questions you may have are:

Where should we pray? Jesus prayed in the temple, in the wilderness (Luke 4), in quiet places (Matt. 14:22-23), in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22), and on the cross (Luke 23:34,46). He prayed alone and with others. Look at His life, follow His example, and pray wherever you are.

What should we pray? In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus taught us to ask that God’s name be honored and that His will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Ask Him for your daily provisions, for forgiveness of sin, and for deliverance from temptation and evil (Luke 11:2-4).

So if you’re looking for a good place to start, follow the example of the Lord’s Prayer. —Anne Cetas

The Lord has shown us we can pray
Wherever we may be;
And when we say, “Your will be done,”

His work on earth we’ll see. —Sper

If Jesus needed to pray, how can we do less?

I have a lack...

2010-11-10T17:48:00.000-08:00

I have a strong lack of what I should blog about today. No good message from the Scriptures to share, at the moment, no funny family or dog stories....

Technically this counts as a post though!!

I do have an update on my toe - it is NOT broken!! I did not actually go to a doctor, but 3 days after the "incident", the toe no longer hurt and no longer appeared crooked. The bruises have actually even started to go away, and it happened one week ago yesterday. I haven't even taped it in 2 days. So I would deduce, that even though I've never broken a bone anymore, that the toe is no longer broken. Woo hoo!!!

Humming for Peace and Contentment

2010-11-09T16:47:00.000-08:00

As I was driving in to work this morning, the last song I heard before getting out of my car was “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing”. It was such a nice version of it that I sat in my car for an additional minute to listen to the end of it.

I then proceeded in to work to set my things down and get some yummy pumpkin spice creamer. As I was heating up my coffee and adding my additional ingredients, I couldn’t help but hum that song. I turned to leave the break room and saw the Sales Receptionist, a lady probably around my mom’s age, standing there in suspense, most likely waiting for me to turn around so she could identify me.

“Were you just humming that song?” she asked. I answered, “yes. Was I being too loud?” She said “No. I’ve heard that people that hum or whistle out loud are really happy.” I smiled and said “Well at the moment, yes I guess I’m happy.” She then added, “Yea, I’ve just heard that when people hum or whistle that they’re happy, and it’s a sign of peace and contentment.” I couldn’t help but think; I wonder if she knew what I was humming. And if she didn’t, if only she knew!

And then it got me thinking; I never realized that that could be a reason why I had that song stuck in my head. I always thought, like I’m sure most people do, that I was humming it simply because it was the last thing I’d heard and it was just stuck in my head.

But then I thought about it more – you get songs stuck in your head, but you don’t always sing them out loud. What would make you hum or whistle a song out loud? I guess she was right – I must have been so happy at that moment that I couldn’t keep the song inside anymore. I guess God is really working in mysterious ways!

On a side note – I heard a wonderfully moving song (for me, at least) on the radio yesterday and then I heard it again as I was driving home. It’s called “You are More” and it’s by a relatively new Christian group from Florida called Tenth Avenue North. Apparently it’s off their second album, and they only have 2, so I’m not so far behind that I have to get 12 albums or anything!

It really spoke to me, because, as I’ve mentioned, it’s been an emotional few weeks for me, personally and professionally. But it was so nice to hear the message of the song, that I actually cried in my car. And I knew that I needed to have the song. So I downloaded their album off of iTunes, and am looking forward to really listening to it. But in the meantime, please read through their lyrics, and hopefully you will take something from it:

Tenth Avenue North: “You Are More”
There's a girl in the corner
With tear stains on her eyes
From the places she's wandered
And the shame she can't hide
She says, "How did I get here?
I'm not who I once was.
And I'm crippled by the fear
That I've fallen too far to love"
But don't you know who you are,
What's been done for you?
Yeah don't you know who you are?

(Chorus)
You are more than the choices that you've made,
You are more than the sum of your past mistakes,
You are more than the problems you create,
You've been remade.

Well she tries to believe it
That she's been given new life
But she can't shake the feeling
That it's not true tonight
She knows all the answers
And she's rehearsed all the lines
And so she'll try to do better
But then she's too weak to try
But don't you know who you are?

You are more than the choices that you've made,
You are more than the sum of your past mistakes,
You are more than the problems you create,
You've been remade.
(repeat Chorus)

'Cause this is not about what you've done,
But what's been done for you.
This is not about where you've been,
But where your brokenness brings you to
This is not about what you feel,
But what He felt to forgive you,
And what He felt to make you loved.

(Repeat Chorus X2)
You've been remade (repeat 4X)

Winter Forecast

2010-11-08T16:22:00.000-08:00

This had SO better be the case, or I'm going to be very angry with the weatherman! It's November 8th for crying outloud - where's the winter weather?!!?!

Broken toe?

2010-11-07T21:06:00.000-08:00

Last week I stubbed my toe SO hard that I was sure I had broken it. But, it's only been 3 days and it doesn't hurt at all! Just a lot of yucky bruises. And by yucky, I mean really awesome!! So I don't think it's broken.

Also, I took some really awesome pictures of it (for memory/posterity) but I seem to have lost my cord to transfer pictures from my camera, so I can't share any!!

I feel sad about this vain attempt for a post, but I must keep NaBloPoMo alive!! See you all tomorrow!

Work? On A Saturday?

2010-11-06T13:35:00.000-07:00

I have to go into work today - A Saturday! My work week is supposed to end on a Friday! But that's ok I guess...It's only an hour and a half and I just have to give a tour of the property, which I could do in my sleep. So at least it's an easy day.

Plus, then a co-worked and I are going to his place to make homemade hummus and turkey burgers!! And he is an AMAZING cook! So I'm really excited to reward myself with food after going into work on a Saturday.

Sorry this is such a short, sad blog. But I have to go get ready for work! Have a good weekend!!

Memory lane...

2010-11-05T16:19:00.000-07:00

Found my cd's from high school and college and had a great walk down memory lane! I didn't see a music video for this song, but I feel it could be my theme song for this moment in my life! Enjoy a walk down memory lane yourself, and check out this video!

Missed the weekend devotionals

2010-11-04T17:24:00.000-07:00

I accidentally left my devotional book at work last weekend, so I read through them yesterday. I love when a devotional speaks to me - it's amazing that no matter how many times I hear that God knows my heart and knows what I need, that each time I'm blown away by things that speak to me. It's like God is saying "duh!!" So here are my thoughts on my "missed" devotionals...and, if you read all the way through, some prayer requests.

October 30 - Hebrews 12:1 - Let us run with patience.

There are 2 kinds of patience. The kind where you are still and reflective. But, even stronger evidence, is the ability to cope with problems in the public eye, and continue on being "strong" in the presence of others and supporting them, giving them joy. You must really "run" with patience, because you still have to continue to function in the public eye while continuing to sort through your personal issues. Jesus did this on his time on earth - dealing with the immortal struggle of good versus evil, but in the meantime going out and creating joy for others, and helping them with their issues.

I pray that I will have that kind of patience. I do agree that it is hard to go through the daily motions while dealing with personal issues. But I have also realized recently that helping others actually does help me - not only does it make me feel better, but it puts things into perspective for me. I am not the only person in the world dealing with issues and trying to live "around" or "through" them. And there are people with bigger and harder problems that I have, and they don't have the support on earth that I do. So the patience that I want to pray for is the ability to perservere through my issues and problems, while being able to live my life to the fullest and to help others when possible. Patience will help me understand that my issues will be worked out and resolved over time, and I can't just sit around and wallow in self pity - that won't accomplish anything for anyone.

October 31 - Romans 8:26-27.

Sometimes I just don't know how to pray. I don't know what I should pray for, or if I should pray in a certain order, or "Should I thank God first, or should I come right out and ask for help?" or "Is it selfish for me to ask for things I want and need when I should really be praising God for what he's already done?" It's actually a big conflict for me. It's actually part of why I don't like to lead public prayers - I don't pray outloud in bible studies or before meals for example.

This verse talks about how it doesn't matter if you don't know what to say outloud, or even to yourself in your head. All that matters is that God knows the matters of your heart, and even things you don't even realize you're feeling, and he can see that and can act on that. The whole point is that you ask for help and thank Him for his help, in the past, present and future and he knows exactly what to do.

I struggle with control. I like to be in charge of things, and be able to control what happens to me and around me. That's a hard thing to let go for me. I want to control my job, my friends, my relationships, etc. But I need to pray for the ability to let go! I know that's my main issue, but I don't know what else I'm really feeling or thinking about it deep down inside. But God knows. And He knows that I am aware of my basic flaw, and he knows everything else and what needs to be done to help.

The devotional also gives an example of a mother and child seated next to each other, while busy with other things. They may not be speaking to each other, but there's a peace - the mother knows the child is there, and the child knows the mother is there. So they are in fellowship. And a calm that you are not alone. In the same way, a believer can be going through their day as normal, and even though there may not be a constant verbal communication with God, they can beleive and take comfort in the fact that God is always with them and has a hand in all that they are doing.

In Christ Alone

2010-11-04T10:42:00.001-07:00

Heard about this great take on a great song by Owl City - the same group who sings the very famous song "Fireflies". Enjoy, fellow bloggers!!

Writing Prompts

2010-11-03T11:53:00.000-07:00

Since it’s NaBloPoMo, my goal is to write a least one blog a day for the entire month of November. However, my life is not always that exciting. Hardly ever, in fact. So I thought I would turn to the web and Google “NaBloPoMo prompts” and it turns out that other people need help getting their creative juices flowing too! Each day, someone posts a “prompt”, like a thought, suggestion or question, to get you to start thinking. Some questions are like “where were you 10 years ago today?” or “what was your first Halloween costume?” and things like that.

I just have a hard time with those kinds of questions – they have a “structure” (sort of) because they give you a place to start, but my mind is so busy that I have a hard time pinning a good starting place down, and if I do, I have a hard time getting it written. I like the prompts that are usually more specific. Like, “What 5 items would you want to have if you were stranded on a desert island?” or “If you could invite 5 people to dinner, alive or dead, who would they be and why?”

I couldn’t find one that I really like for today, so I came up with my own. I’m unfortunately a normally pessimistic person. I need to start looking at the positive, especially if I want to turn a bad day into a good day. So for today my prompt is: Write down 3 things you may see as negative and say something positive about it.

1. It’s not snowing. Normally, by this point of the year in Colorado Springs, it’s snowed 4 or 5 times. I am totally obsessed with snow. I spent 22 years of my life with hardly any so now it’s an amazingly wonderful event for me to see snowfall, each time it happens.

But – on the plus side, since it’s so nice outside, I don’t have to worry about road conditions, and I don’t have to worry about getting my car fixed or getting into an accident.

2. It’s only Wednesday. It feels like such a long week, and it’s a hard week. My boss is on vacation, it’s the week of our annual Benefits enrollment for 1,500 employees, we have Orientation this week (and I set for all the classes), we’re still training 2 new Training Managers, we’re almost done with revising our employee guidebook and I have to make all of the changes, and I have to cover some of our receptionist’s job duties while she’s on vacation while handling things that come up at the last minute. AND still do MY job!

But, on the plus side, the week is almost half over! Plus, no one really knows how stressed out I am, so I can’t really get annoyed when someone asks me something. It’s also one day closer to the weekend and Law and Order: SVU and Los Angeles should be new tonight! I’m also in charge of planning and making dinner on Sunday and I’m looking forward to grocery shopping and then cooking! The best news – next week we don’t have Orientation and there’s nothing extra planned, so I get a nice breather! I just have to make it through Saturday afternoon!

3. My phone screen is broken. A while back, Bailey knocked my phone off of the couch and the screen cracked. It looks extremely tacky and I can’t quite see things on my screen very well.

But – on the plus side, my phone still works just fine and I could easily switch back to an older phone that’s in good shape and possibly save money on my cell phone bill. (If I could only get used to NOT having internet and Facebook on my phone!)

So what about you? Is there anything you’re looking at and thinking “well that sucks” that you could turn around and find a positive in?

NaBloPoMo - Year 2!

2010-11-02T17:51:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know, November is National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo)! Last year I was able to accomplish the feat of posting a blog at least once a day for the entire month! So here I am to repeat!

In honor of this blogging month, I've decided to post about one of my favorite things - the show "30 Rock" on NBC! I recently decided to sign up for my own Netflix account and the streaming video instantly on my computer has become ADDICTING!! So I just finished watching the entire 4th season and now am about halfway through the 3rd season (yes, I'm working my way backwards).

I now can not go without doing a little dance every time I hear the theme song, and have started to quote the show's lead character, Liz Lemon (played by Tina Fey) on a regular basis. So please enjoy some of my favorite "Liz Lemon catchphrases". (I tried to find funny images/icons but I found this video instead - SHE'S MY FAVORITE)

Buy Raffle Tickets for $5 - Get Club Level Stars Seats for free!!!

2010-11-01T19:13:00.001-07:00

Buy some raffle tickets and win Club Level Seats! All proceeds go towards helping an Ethiopian adoption!!

Numbers 9:19

2010-11-01T19:07:00.000-07:00

Yet another good devotional passage. “When the cloud remained…the Israelites…did not set out.” - Numbers 9:19

Yet another wonderful reminder that storms will come and it may seem like the smart thing to do to pack up and move away from the storm. Or, it may feel like a storm is approaching, and you’re stuck, and there’s nothing you can do but wait for it to hit you.

But it’s a great reminder, especially for me, that while I may either be in the middle of a storm, or see one approaching, that I am equipped to handle the storm. I may feel trapped in the storm, sure, and feel like I’d rather be anywhere else where I didn’t have to handle the brunt of the bad weather. But just like the metallurgist doesn’t leave the precious metal alone in the fire, God doesn’t leave you empty handed in the storm. That’s what the Bible and church and family and support is for – they’re your rain gear, to help protect you and get you through the storm!!

The devotional book starts off by saying it’s a test of obedience – rather than picking up and abandoning things, by staying put and sticking out the storm (with help), you’re showing God your obedience and trust that he has you there for a reason, and he has every intention of seeing you come out the other side safely, and a better person for it.

It’s also all about patience. It may be a long, tough storm. No one knows when the storms will end. Rather than praying for the storm to end, I need to work on being patient, and know that God has everything perfectly planned, and I should really be praying that he will give me the tools and equipment to get through it. That will be hard for me. I’m not naturally a patient person – I want it done right now.

So maybe, I should actually pray for patience. And maybe God has me going through this long storm so that I may actually learn patience. While it’s only been 2 weeks, I can actually look back at the last 2 weeks and see my change – while I’m still struggling with patience, I’ve seen a lot of things that I can put my trust in and ways that God has improved my patience. It’s just evidence that patience IS a virtue and there are benefits – I just have to keep reminding myself of that.

Thoughts...

2010-10-29T10:27:00.000-07:00

I must admit, I haven’t done a daily devotional probably since high school, or at least my freshman year of college. I can’t even say that I’ve thought about it, or missed it, or wished I had been doing them. However, some recent events have prompted me to go back to it, as I find myself needing daily encouragement and words to help me get through the day. I’ve struggled with finding the right time for me to do this, but I think I’ve started to figure out that starting my day with a devotional will help prepare me for the day, and I can constantly remind myself of what I’ve read and refer to it throughout the day.

A while back, I bought a 366 Day Daily Devotional book called “Streams in the Dessert” by L. B. Cowman, edited by Jim Reimann. I couldn’t tell you when I bought it, but I can tell you I most likely purchased it because it’s an “updated edition in today’s language”. I have My Utmost for His Highest, and sometimes the language is a little over my head, but “Streams in the Dessert” Revised seems to speak to me.

Today’s devotional talks about the refiner’s fire. The verse is Malachi 3:3 – “He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver”. It talks about how God is like a metallurgist; the metallurgist knows that only a refiner’s fire will melt the metal enough for it to finally be molded to its perfect shape. Similarly, God knows that we all need to essentially go through a “fire” to come out perfectly shaped and molded on the other side. It’s almost like life is a series of “fires”, because in my opinion, while we strive to be perfect, and that’s God’s sincere goal for us, we will never achieve perfection in this lifetime. He’s getting us ready for what’s after this lifetime.

The line that really struck me the most from the devotional is “It is with the most precious metals that a metallurgist will take the greatest care”. I haven’t really been feeling like a very precious “metal” lately. I’ve been disappointed in myself and have felt that others have been disappointed in me too, or that others deserve to be disappointed in me. Everyone makes mistakes, but recently I’ve had a hard time understanding that God wants you to make mistakes. Because ultimately, in the end, it’s those mistakes that will make you who you are (which is who He wants you to be). And they’re “planned” mistakes, meant for a purpose. While what you’re going through may not be perfect to some people, and it’s hard to see while you’re right in the middle of it, that’s the fire that’s melting you so that you can become the person God wants you to be. I’ve just been struggling with feeling “precious”. It’s hard for me to feel like there’s a light at the end of the tunnel when I’m in the middle of the “fire”. But reading a devotional like this seems like it’s exactly what God wanted me to hear.

It goes on to say that while the metal is in the fire, the metallurgist doesn’t leave it; rather, he sits down next to it to watch it so it isn’t overheated and the fire won’t harm the metal. In this same vein, God made choosen to put me “through a fire”, but He will never leave me and doesn’t want to see harm done to me; rather he wants to make sure I get exactly where I need to be so I can be molded to be perfect.

To pick up a random devotional book that I haven’t looked at in years, and have this be the particular passage I’m “scheduled” to read when this is how I’m feeling, can only be explained by the simple fact that God can see and hear my fears and knows that I need comfort. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and this “fire” I’m feeling will pass and will only make me a better person at the other end; the mold of what He wants me to be, perfect in His eyes. It’s just hard for me to be in the fire, but it wasn’t meant to be easy.

Excerpt from a poem by Arthur Tappan Pierson –

And the gold grew brighter and yet more bright,
But our eyes were so dim with tears,
We saw the fire - not the Master’s hand,
And questioned with anxious fears.

There is more before and after that section, but that part sticks out the most for me. Like I’ve said, it’s hard to be in the middle of the fire and see that there’s something good that will come out of this, or to understand that we’re going through something for a reason. And it’s easy to cry and have anxieties and fears and question your life – I’m just glad that I have this devotional today to help remind me that it’s all for a greater purpose, and while it’s not up to me what happens, God is in charge and is keeping an eye on the “fire” and he knows what he’s doing and when we’ll be ready.

Should we think that is pleases His loving heart
To cause us a moment’s pain?
Not so! For He saw through the present cross
The joy through eternal gain.

Amen!!

*On a side note – I took a page from my dad’s devotional “playbook” and brought my devotional book into work this morning, since I knew I’d have a least half an hour to myself before people started to arrive. Shortly after arriving though, a co-worker of mine also arrived and I thought my plans would have to wait. However, she left the office for what I thought was a quick run to the kitchen for coffee, so I thought I’d just read through today’s passage in the 5 minutes or so she’d be gone. But…I was able to spend the next 35 minutes reading and reflecting on the passage and she never came back. As soon as I was done, my boss arrived for the day.

How’s that for God’s perfect timing???!!!

Dallas Area Dallas Stars fans!! (And coffee fans!)

2010-10-26T11:46:00.000-07:00

Dallas Area Dallas Stars fans - my brother is selling $5 raffle tickets (or 4 for $15) for a chance to win 2-$100 Dallas Stars tickets vs. Atlanta on January 15th! They will draw the
winner on December 11th, and add more tickets the more entries we get! They are also offering discounted tickets to other games - anyone interested?? Let me know and I'll get you their info!

He and my sister-in-law (see their story here) are working on adopting children from Ethiopia, and every little bit helps! They are also selling African coffees, with $5 from each bag going to their adoption!! If you love coffee, check these out! --> Buy coffee to help adoptions!

Fall Decorations

2010-10-04T17:11:00.000-07:00

Can't say it would blow an interior designer's mind, but I'm pleased to have some fall decorations in my home!

What you see when you come in - I made that larger cross-stitch in the middle saying "think autumn".

Here's the guest bathroom in the entrance hallway, some pumpkins and Jack-O-Lanterns (thanks to Mom!)

My mom made this for me a while back ... this will be out until Halloween until that passes, then it goes on to the next pillow!

This one my mom also made, but it's good until Winter!!

It's not a lot and it's simple, but I think my fireplace is cute! (But much better for Christmas though!!)

More Adventures in Cooking

2010-10-04T16:55:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to share a few more culinary accomplishments for me...

Broccoli and cheese quiche!! This consisted of half full eggs and half egg whites, but it was good. The bad news - I used too much broccoli, and after about 3 days, it started smelling like it went bad. So I couldn't finish it. At least what I tasted was good! But lesson learned...use less broccoli!!

So this isn't a feat of culinary accomplishments, but it was AMAZING and I was stuffed until about 2 pm!! These are breakfast burritos...3 eggs whites and 2 turkey bacon slices (split between the 2 burritos), high fiber tortillas, fat free Cheddar cheese, and I poured about 2 tbsp of Salsa Verde over each before rolling them up! And I also tried the Fruit2Day drinks I've been hearing about - the juice is great, but they put pieces of fruit in them, and I really can't stand that. It really bothers me to have to chew my drinks. So I won't be getting them again. But...that doesn't mean you shouldn't! Like I said, the juice was good.

Adventures in Cooking

2010-09-23T18:57:00.000-07:00

September has been a month of cooking/experiments! Check out some of my creations below!!

A nice acorn squash with salt, pepper, and roasted pumpkin seeds. YUMMM!!!

Then, Justin wanted a Weight Watchers meal (you probably heard me gasp around the world)...so I made a healthy pizza - from scratch. Whole wheat crust, fresh tomatoes, fresh cilantro, mozzerella and pizza sauce. Also YUM!!!
And I had purchased some butternut squash at a Farmer's Market recently, and I wanted some soup so I improvised. See the amazing recipe below!!

Butternut Squash Recipe:

1 large (or 2 small/medium) butternut squash
1 cup Fat Free Milk
1 cup Fat Free Cream cheese
Garam Masala spice
Curry spice

Peel and cut all the squash. Boil over the stove for 20 minutes, or until squash is soft enough to smush with a fork. Drain the pot, and mush all the potatoes to as smooth or lumpy as you'd like.

Put all the mashed squash back in your pot and put the stove top at about medium heat. Add the milk and cream cheese, and stir until all the cream cheese has melted and you reach desired consistency. Add the spices to your taste preferences. (I just did a dash or two until I got it right where I liked it).

This recipe will make a very thick soup, almost like a paste. But I looove really thick soup. You can slowly add more milk to make it thinner until it gets to your preference. And I just picked those spices because I love Indian food!

And I made sure I picked fat free cream cheese and milk because I'm on Weight Watchers. But it reallllly tastes yummy!!

Update for Accountability

2010-09-16T17:07:00.000-07:00

Well, unfortunately, I had another weigh-in yesterday, and I gained back almost as much as what I lost the first week. So I'm not sure where I went wrong, but I'm going to try 10 times as hard this week!

I made sure I had a WW meal for lunch, so it could be easily counted, and I picked a healthy frozen stir-fry option with lots of veggies for dinner. I also got some WW desserts so I could still feel "bad" but still stay within points. I will have 2 points over after dessert, so I'm doing good for today!! (I hope this shows up next Wednesday in my weigh-in!)

Weekend Update

2010-09-13T11:49:00.000-07:00

Boy it was a busy weekend!!

Friday:
I got home from work and Justin called from his office and invited me to go downtown with a bunch of his co-workers. Fortunately, I had already fed Bailey, so I left and met up with them downtown. We hung out at a few places and headed to our final destination because a girl we were meeting wanted to do karaoke. So Justin and 2 of our friends, Kyle and Amanda, all drove back to our place and hung out for a few minutes first, while Justin changed out of his work clothes. We then headed over to Hatch Cover and met up with Megan and Mike, and it was a great time!! We ordered a bunch of food and it was like we had a buffet at our table! We never actually ended up doing any karaoke (thank goodness!) because it was the conversation was great, and it was extremely crowded, but we did pick a bunch of songs on the jukebox and it was a blast!!

On a side note – Amanda LOVES Hindi movies almost as much as I do! At my place, we had a blast going through my movie stash and I explained plot lines, gave recommendations, etc. Plus, the girls drove home separately from the guys, so Amanda and I rocked out to some Hindi soundtracks I have in my car. We made plans for when the boyfriends go on a business trip later this month to go to a local Indian restaurant for lunch and then go back to my place and watch a movie! (Or two! Or three!)

Saturday:
I managed to get up around 6:45 am and shower and meet up with my parents at Panera Bread at 8! They go each Saturday at 8 am – it’s a “tradition”! I brought Bailey with me, and they brought their puppy Cody, but they had errands to run, so they left and Bailey and I went to the dog park – go figure, right? Plus, the weather was still pretty nice and wasn’t miserable yet, so it was nice.

Then I had a quiet lunch at home while Justin was out fishing and I watched a new Hindi movie on Netflix called “Welcome”. I say “new”, but it came out in 2008, but Netflix just made it available to add to your instant queue, so I could watch it on the Wii without having to wait for them to ship a disc. I definitely won’t buy the movie, and I didn’t really enjoy the music all that much. But, you win some; you lose some. It was good and funny in some parts, and it was a Bollywood movie, so that much I enjoyed.

I wanted to watch the UT game, but it wasn’t televised in my area. Booo!!! I ended up just watching some documentaries on the History channel about 9/11 and then went to bed.

Sunday:
I got up somewhat early, and realized that I had a TON of laundry that I forgot to do Saturday, so I was a “Laundry Queen” all day. I think there were about 3 or 4 loads of laundry total. Whew!! Around 11, I ran some errands with Justin and got some brats for NFL Kickoff Weekend!! We also bought ingredients for homemade chili on Saturday, which has become a football Sunday tradition. That bad boy started in the crockpot around 9 am and kept it nice and hot all day long! YUMM!!! (And it’s like 85% veggies, plus beef, so I could still enjoy it and stay on WW!!)

Football Sunday consisted of watching the Broncos lose, then the Eagles, then finally the huge disaster that was the Cowboys/Redskins game. Not a good day for us. I started to watch another Hindi movie in between games, but I wasn’t really focused so I’ll have to finish it tonight!

Update

2010-09-12T19:33:00.000-07:00

I'll probably give a full weekend update tomorrow (once I have a chance to remember it all!) but I wanted to document that as of my self weigh-in last Wednesday, I was down 2.8 lbs!!

So I can do it. I can be smart about food. I just realized - it's hard to think about what you eat. Why can't all the Sonic food and the junky stuff just be enough for me??? Oh well, making some good progress so far... yay!!!

Back on the wagon...

2010-09-08T16:37:00.000-07:00

For Weight Watchers, that is.

And I must say, it seems so much harder this time!!

In the 4 ½ months since I finished my 13-week session, I’ve gained back approximately 5 pounds. It isn’t the end of the world, and I can still fit into the clothes I could back then, but I’m just disappointed. Plus, when I finished back in May, I was only 5 lbs from my goal weight, and now I’m at 10 lbs away.

I don’t know if it’s the meetings that make the difference or not, but I’m not going to be attending them this time, but I did on my last time on the program. Granted, I only started it up again last week, but it seems so much harder this time already.

I know all about the point system, how many to start with, how to get extra, what foods are good and filling and which are not, etc. I know exactly what I should be doing, and yet I’m finding it really hard to stay within my points for the day. I can’t remember if it was this hard the first week for me last time or not, because that was back in January. But I lost 5 lbs that first week!!

I just seem to be finding myself having a 7 or 8 point lunch or dinner, and then feel good about only a 1 or 2 point snack and then boom – it’s 7:30 pm, I’m starving and I’m already close to or over my allotted points for the day. I know that there are 35 flex points for the entire week, but I don’t want to keep dipping into them each day and then halfway through my week, they’re gone. It just seems that what I ate the first go-around filled me up more then than they do now, which is weird.

I am getting some daily exercise, in the form of taking Bailey to the dog park. I walk to the park, spend about 30-40 minutes there, and walk back, totaling about 45 minutes round trip on average. It’s low intensity, so I don’t earn as many activity points, but it’s hard to go and “haul-ass” around the park with a dog that likes to stop and smell and run off, and stop and play, etc. Plus, it’s also a great mental break for me, because I love dogs (especially Bailey), and it makes me happy to see him enjoying himself and being silly. So I go for a nice leisurely walk – better than sitting on the couch all night. And then he gets exercise too – maybe even more than me!!

I’m just a little frustrated with myself this time around. I do need to give myself some slack though, as it is still in the first week of this for me, and I should allow myself some time to re-adjust back to eating well and controlling portions. As long as I keep up with that and work hard at it, and continue to exercise, I can see this working for me again. I didn’t even do any exercise last time, so I’m hoping that gives me a slight advantage the second time around.

200th Post - Road Trip to Missouri!!

2010-09-05T14:30:00.000-07:00

200th Post – Road Trip to Missouri

So 2 weeks ago, my dad and I had lunch at Schlotszky’s on Thursday and he was telling me about a camper that he was interested in getting. He had been dreaming of getting one for years, but my mom has always been opposed to it. One night, he happened to show this camper to my mom and she said “ok”…and then he had the green light to get the camper!!

So then on Friday, August 27th I got into work and had an e-mail from my dad. The subject was “Are you up for an adventure?” In the e-mail, he invited me to take a road trip with him that weekend. He was able to get an amazing deal on a camper that someone was selling, who had only used it once. The only problem –

He lives in North Carolina.

He either wasn’t willing or able (or maybe both) to ship it or bring it to Colorado Springs, so he and my dad worked out a deal where they would both drive halfway (about 12 hours) and meet in St. Louis, Missouri. My mom couldn’t go because they had a house guest staying with them who was flying out at noon on Saturday and she was taking her to the airport, plus she had a dinner party on Saturday night. So my dad asked me to go! It took me all of 2 minutes to realize that I had no plans and I was going!!

Friday night I went over for dinner at their house, planning on staying over so that I could leave with him really early the next morning. We had a great dinner and then I convinced my dad that if we drove a few hours that night, then we wouldn’t have to spend the entire Saturday in the car, and we’d get to St. Louis earlier. He loved the idea, so we started out at 6:45 on Friday! We drove through the night and ended up at a hotel in Colby, Kansas. Boy – there was NOTHING out there. It was about 11:30 pm (10:30 Colorado time) but I was starving and we hadn’t eaten in about 6 hours, so we stopped at the McDonald’s next door for a late night snack.

We decided to get up at 5 am (4 am MT) to be on the road by 6, and then we were on our way again (after, of course, another stop at McDonald’s for breakfast). I’m not really into audio books, but thank goodness my dad had one with him, because it really helped the time fly by. It also was great to just talk with him and catch up on things, and tell funny stories and memories and between all that and the several stops for gas and bathroom breaks, we were in St. Louis before we knew it! Throw in another stop at McDonald’s for lunch, and I was starting to feel like the guy from the documentary “Supersize Me”.

The man’s name who was selling my dad the camper was Jeff, and he was really nice. We got to St. Louis around 4:15 (3:15 MT) and spent about 1 ½ to 2 hours getting the rundown of all the features and hooking it up to my dad’s car. Then after driving it around the parking lot to get used to it, we were ready to get back on the road. Seems kind of silly to drive 12 hours just to spend 2 hours in St. Louis, and then drive back, but it worked out so well driving a few hours Friday night, so we were ok with it. Plus, it was also equally silly to set up camp at 6 pm and then just sit around, waiting for the next morning to arrive.

After only about 2 hours of driving, my dad and I decided that we should probably start looking for a campground before we got to Kansas and there were practically none. Plus, we also wanted to set-up the camper and make sure it all worked, and we didn’t know how long that would take (since we’re both first-timers). So around 8, we finally got a campsite and I convinced my dad that we should probably eat something other than McDonald’s for dinner. The campground host recommended a 50’s Diner close-by, and since we didn’t want to fiddle with un-hooking and hooking the camper from the car (since we didn’t know what we’d do if we couldn’t figure it out!) we took it to dinner with us. But, it was a little rushed so that we could get back and settle in. Thank goodness for electric hook-ups and A/C in the camper – it was so humid and muggy that the A/C was awesome! After checking Facebook and watching an episode of Law and Order SVU on Netflix, we headed to bed.

We got up again at 4/5 and made our way back home and, for convenience, had McDonald’s for breakfast one last time. For those of you counting, that’s 4 times in 2 days we had McDonald’s. So it was a mutual decision to get Quizno’s for lunch that day, so we could actually say we had fresh veggies and whole wheat bread at least once, and to feel better about our food choices.
We finally arrived back in Colorado Springs around 5, had dinner with my mom, and then I had to rush home to finally take a shower!! Whew…

It was a great weekend, and it actually went by too fast. I love road trips!! I can’t wait for my next one! Here are some shots I took on the way back so that I could share:

Dad test driving the car with the camper...

Good morning Kansas. Really??

Here's my dad getting the run through from Jeff...

Here's my dad at the campground on Saturday night getting everything ready...

Place in Kansas where we stopped for gas had this in the window - thank goodness they were closed.

More of Kansas...it was actually kind of therapeutic...

Driving through Kansas...

My dad drove the whole way - what a trooper!!

Always the photographer, never the subject.

Thank goodness for audio books...this one was great!!

Bales of hay in...you guessed it...Kansas!

Finally back to the mountains!!

Thanks for reading!!

Camping at 11 Mile

2010-08-15T18:59:00.000-07:00

This weekend, Justin's office had their annual camping trip, so we tagged along to 11 Mile, just past Woodland Park, Colorado. It was soooooo much fun!!! It went by so fast, I can't believe I'm already home! I've got the camping bug, and I can't wait to go again!!

Here are some of the guys:

Here's Justin and his new fishing buddy, Eric (and his little girl, Sadie, a Vizla):

So, Bailey doesn't quite understand that he can just gracefully and politely walk through the water. It's hysterical. He looks like a banchee.

Here's a quick view from our campsite...I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can I live at a campground, please? Bailey and Marley keeping me company while the "daddy's" fish. Some of the guys around our campfire...
I totally love the fact that this kid on the right is sticking his tounge out...classic!
Justin decided to take a nap with Bailey...here is the result...SO CUTE! Some of the guys...I had a blast!!!

Heaven on Earth

2010-08-04T18:19:00.000-07:00

Panino's. Serving Colorado and Minnesota. And there are 2 locations within a 15 minute drive from me. They serve some of the most AMAZING food I have ever had.

You crave it.

You dream about it.

You drool over it.

Yea. It's that good.

They serve a signature dish, called a Panino. What's a panino? According to their website, http://www.paninos.com/, the panino is "a gourmet creation made with the finest garden fresh vegetables, top quality meats and cheeses, and then baked to a golden brown, rolled, sliced, and served to you piping hot." As it was described to me, it's bascially a pizza rolled up. So it's a panini on pizza dough, instead of just regular bread/ciabatta bread.

But they also serve traditional pizza-parlor fare: oven baked pizzas, fresh pasta, eggplant parmigiana, chicken parmigiana, manicotti, lasagna, ravioli, spaghetti with one meatball or sausage. Amen.

Like I said. Heaven. I ate there last week and have turned on at least 2 people I work with onto this wonder. And I'm going again Friday. The minutes are dragging. Here are some amazing shots (if you don't go to their website, you should still appreciate their amazing fare!). You know, while you dream about it and I can actually consume it.

Yes please.

These first two are paninos.

Forecast

2010-08-04T18:14:00.001-07:00

Here's what we're sitting at right now...

My area is juuust about to get hit --- yay!!!

Scrubs

2010-08-03T20:38:00.000-07:00

I can't help it - I wish this show could go on forever...Best. Show. Ever.

I love my dog park...

2010-08-03T17:11:00.000-07:00

I love the fact that not only do I live 4 minutes from a HUGE dog park, but that I have great views along the way. So this is the view of Garden of the Gods from the entrance to my complex:

The cute little path that I take for about 2 minutes before I'm at the park:

Well, when I got there, a big storm appeared to be rolling in:

I was right. Fortunately, it didn't start until an hour or so after I got home.

Bailey loves the park! Each time we go, he "abandons" me for other owners. Apparently I don't give him enough love at home.

There are pretty patches of sunflowers all over the place:

And you can see the dog park from my front porch!! It's also a good shot of the storm coming in. It's going to be AWESOME watching the snow storms roll in come late September/October!

Jealous?? :-)

Bailey Update

2010-08-02T17:20:00.000-07:00

I've been updating on myself but not on Bailey! He has gone from a whopping 128 lbs (oops, Mommy!) to now a nice 108. The vet said somewhere in the 110 range would be good. And he's still up to his old, weird, silly habits.

This is my current fav - it looks like he dumped his toy basket over (notice the paw still in the basket) and played until he was pooped. Love it.

I like ice cream

2010-08-02T17:05:00.000-07:00

Bailey likes ice cream. And luckily, I found a doggie ice cream in the frozen desserts section in Safeway!! So I indulged myself (since doggies things like this are just as important to the owner, if not more, than to the dog).

I didn't know how messy it would be, so I fed it to him outside. Turns out it stayed mostly in the container/his mouth, so I could have done it inside. But better safe than sorry!

So here's the proof that it's actually doggie-safe ice cream. It's actually made by Purina!

First, I attempted to feed it to him in the original container. It was too frozen and a little too small for the Monster's face!!

So I thawed it in the microwave, put it in his dog bowl, and he went to town! Much better!

So for those of you who think dogs doing anything is adorable, here's a little action shot! (Only 11 seconds...)

Are you ready for some football?

2010-07-31T17:58:00.001-07:00

Well, I sure am!! All this talk of training camps starting is REALLY starting to get me amped up!! I don't want to wait until October!! At the same time, I have some real internal conflicts happening. I'm a Cowboys girl through and through...and I am fighting the urge to go throw on my Tony Romo jersey.

But I've really grown to like the Broncos! And I can't wait to see Tebow get some on field action...hopefully he gets a chance and does well!

Don't worry - when it comes down to it ... it wil always be GO COWBOYS!!!

Before and After

2010-07-27T17:51:00.000-07:00

It’s time for yet another chapter in my wonderful hair story. My hair has been dyed too many times to count. It’s been everything from Strawberry blonde to black. It’s been a short little chin-length cut, and halfway down my back. Thankfully, though, I’ve never had a bob or shaved it all of. However, I’ve even received chili-bowl haircuts as a child (thanks mom and dad), complete with my dad combing it exactly like his hair when my mom was out of town. Talk about traumatic. I even blow dry it daily and use a good mix of my straightener and curling irons regularly.

So needless to say, my hair hates me. I don’t think I’ve had more than half a dozen good hair days in my entire life. And technically, part of it is genetics – my dad has thin hair – but I have put it though a lot of abuse over the years.

Long enough story short, my hair has really been getting long and I haven’t had it cut for a while. So it was long and probably not really healthy. I took the big “plunge” and told the lady to chop off all the bad stuff.

So...Before (not my best shot, but shows how badly I needed a cut):

After:

Taylor Park Camping - Weekend #2

2010-07-19T20:15:00.001-07:00

We loved camping at Taylor Park Reservoir so much that we went back!!! I didn't take near as many pictures this time, but we got some great shots of an amazing rainbow!! (And check it - you can see 2 rainbows in the 2nd and 3rd pictures!

Camping at Taylor Park Reservoir

2010-07-13T15:36:00.000-07:00

Justin and I went camping again this past weekend, and boy was it a trip. It actually almost ended before it even began!

We were supposed to leave work at 4, and be on the road by 4:30, and then hit the campsite by about 7:30 pm. What we didn't calculate was the fact that we had to toss our bags with toiletries in the car and stop for groceries. We didn't get on the road until 5, didn't hit Walmart until 5:30, and weren't even on our way until 6 pm. At that point, we had to decide if we wanted to drive 3 hours in the rain to a place we'd never been (mostly on unpaved country roads), and then set up camp in the pitch blackness. We voted no.

So we had 2 options - drive all the way back home and go up the next day or find a campsite near where we were and camp for the night. We figured since we'd already packed everything, already had all the groceries, and were already about halfway there to just camp. So we drove to a nearby campsite we'd been to before and enjoyed and then our trip started!!

Here's Justin working on getting our dinner started - we hadn't eaten since about noon, and that's another reason why we didn't want to drive 3 hours and then set up camp. Who knows when we would have eaten?

Bailey would not wind down! This is one of those rare moments where he wasn't up and alert. I LOVE camping!!!

When we finally made it the next morning, here was our amazing view!

It was a bit physically demanding to set up and tear down our tent and equipment twice in one weekend, but it was worth it!

This is my new desktop background - Bailey and I went on a hike after we set up camp.

There were some amazing flowers all around - this was my favorite shot!

I took a picture of myself just so I would have proof that I was there, and Bailey just happened to turn up in the background!!

The guys getting dinner started on Saturday after they went fishing.

Here are the "kids" - Cooper, Bailey and Shelby!

Saturday night Bailey kept pacing back and forth by the tent and wouldn't relax. Turns out he wanted to go to bed. So I let him in the tent and went to check on him 10 minutes later. He was passed out on my cot with all the blankets and pillows. So I helped him out by throwing a blanket on him and he never emerged!

Check out this first video for my discovery of my silly dog:

The next morning, we had the car all packed up - I think Bailey wanted me to know he was ready to go home!

We stoppd at a lake on the way home so the boys could go fishing one more time - Bailey wanted to run in the water of course!

I had Bailey tied up next to me so he wouldn't take off after Justin. He didn't like it at all:

He vigilantly watched after Justin and wouldn't stop crying!! Here's where he was...

And here's where Justin was.

So for fun, I let him off the leash to see what Bailey would do. He TOOK OFF after Justin like a bat out of hell! I caught some of Bailey's trip back to the shore:

So I finally had enough of the crying and put him in the car. He remained alert for a while...

And then he finally got sleepy after he lost sight of Justin and took a nap...

Camping really takes it out of him. But what he doesn't know is that I'm the one that has to clean up all this mess!!!!!

4th of July Festivities

2010-07-08T18:56:00.000-07:00

As I pass the one month mark from blogging (*GASP!!*) and realize that my last blog was about camping, I have recently gone on another camping trip - so be sure that there will be pictures to follow.

But on that note, let me share a few pictures from the 4th of July festivities from my parent's house. I hope you had a great 4th!!!

Baxter and Bailey hanging out while we ate.

Sophia (my niece) and I - great self-shot, if I do say so myself!
We ate outside on my parent's new patio!

My sister , brother-in-law, and their kiddos!

Bailey with my parent's puppy, Cody. My dog has a big butt.

I always have pictures of Bailey, but NEVER me with my dog - this one turned out great!

It's nearly impossible to get all three dogs in one shot looking at me - so I had to take an "action shot".

One of the only good shots of fireworks from my balcony...they were pretty far away so they're all pretty small.

Hope you had a happy 4th!!

First camping trip of the season!

2010-06-05T08:57:00.000-07:00

I'm taking a break from packing the apartment (since I start moving tomorrow!!) to watch Law & Order: SVU. And I realized that it's been over a month since our first camping trip and I still haven't blogged about it! So let's all take a trip down memory lane, back to May 7th, and I just happen to have pictures to help us along!!

Bailey in front of our tent - a safe distance from the fire. We moved him closer later that night when it got colder.

He just looks like he was born to be outside.

Here's the haul - Justin and Greg got the food all on their own, and they didn't forget anything!

One of the views from our campsite.

Justin's friend Greg chopping the wood.

Pretty fire - came in handy when it got REALLY cold!!!

It was cold enough to bring out the sweatshirts and winter hats - ON MAY 7TH!!!

Bailey got cold too - so we moved him closer to the fire. So those are embers you see flying around in the pictures, not ghosts. :o)

Here's our campground from the car - a good, safe distance!

Bailey wanted to know why Greg and Justin went camping and didn't take him.

All in all, it was a nice weekend! Now back to packing - pictures to follow later this week!

Another milestone!

2010-05-25T17:42:00.001-07:00

My blogger let me know I've already used this heading. But I don't care - I have some good news!

In preparation for moving in 2 weeks, I've started rummaging through boxes and seeing what I want to keep and what I can get rid of before moving. So I found a huge box that I probably haven't looked at since I moved in because it was my "no-fit" box...

I took out a few of my favorite things from way back when to wash and then ... see what happens.

I just tried them on and about half of them fit!!!! It's an amazing feeling - it's like I got some nice additions to my wardrobe for free! I can't wait to go to work and wear these items and get asked "Is that new?" just so I can respond - "Nope!" Yay!!!

WeimFest2010!!

2010-05-23T20:34:00.000-07:00

Normally, whenever I go somewhere and there are more than 2 other Weimaraners, I make up some crazy name like "Weim-a-palooza" - but I'm not kidding ---- I went to WeimFest2010 today!!!! It was put on by the Mile High Weimaraner Rescue group, and was totally free! So I drove about 1 1/2 hours with Bailey and my parent's Weim Baxter and we had a BLAST!!! I was in Weimaraner heaven!! I imagine that today is what heaven will be like, at least for me. :-)

So, enjoy some of the great shots I got today of the Weims from all over! I would do it again in a heartbeat! (Except maybe I would remember sunscreen - ouch.)

Saturday Update

2010-05-22T14:45:00.000-07:00

I got up early and caught up on some Food Network shows (Rachel Ray's 30 Minute Meals), while Justin headed out to go fishing in the great 80 degree weather we're finally getting!! I brought Bailey over to my parent's house since I'm dog-sitting Baxter while they're on vacation, and basically let them run around the house. Speaking of the house, the wind was INSANE!! Things were flying around everywhere - it blew all the petals off of all the tulips, the patio chairs were strewn all over the backyard, tree branches broke off of trees and flew around the neighborhood, and my parent's Hummingbird feeder flew off the tree and broke upon impact and their seed feeders all blew sideways and dumped all the seeds on the ground. Whoa. I did not stage these photos:

While the dogs ran around, avoiding flying objects, I watched another Hindi movie, called "Love Aaj Kal". It was a really great movie - good story line, good songs, and a tearful ending. Yea, I cried at the end of a Hindi movie - what of it? It was good!! I also finally got some laundry done - the nice thing about staying at my parents; I don't have to put in quarters to do laundry!

Then, I decided to pile on the sunscreen like I was going to the beach, threw on some shorts and a tank top and went to the dog park! I felt so guilty thinking about how nice it was outside and even though they were in the backyard, I just had to get them out and socialized!! Finally, after the park I took a very needed shower and gave Bailey a bath, then relaxed and planned out everything I would need for my fun-filled Sunday!!

Chicken with Pine Nuts and Orzo

2010-05-12T19:10:00.000-07:00

I have GOT to share this AMAZING recipe I made last night!! Well, 2 technically. The Chicken Recipe is Weight Watchers, and the orzo recipe I got off a box of orzo - but it was spectacular!!! I will definitely make it over and over again. In order to help you duplicate this extremely tasty dish, I have copied it exactly as it is from the recipes I used.

Orzo with Spinach, Pine Nuts & Parmesean Cheese
1 cup of Orzo
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pinch dried red pepper flakes (optional)
10 oz. fresh baby spinach leaves
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 pine nuts, toasted
1/4 cup shredded parmesean cheese, plus extra for serving (as much as you'd like!)
Salt
Pepper

1. Cook orzo as package directs.
2. Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and pepper flakes and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
3. Add spinach and stir to mix in garlic. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 5 minutes until spinach is wilted. (*This was the point I added the pine nuts so they could get toasted**)
4. Once spinach has wilted, stir in balsamic vinegar. Add drained orzo to skillet with basil, any additional pine nuts and parmesean cheese. Toss well and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with additional cheese, as desired.
*Makes 3 entree or 5 side dish servings.
**No nutritional facts listed, therefore, no WW Points :-(

WHILE PASTA IS COOKING, START ON CHICKEN!

Chicken with Pine Nut Gremolata
4 6-ounce skinless, boneless chicken breasts
Salt (*I used kosher salt, but I LOVE salty food!)
Pepper
2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
1 cup loosely packed fresh flat-leafed parsley, finely chopped
2 tablespoons pine nuts
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon grind
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1. Place chicken breast halves between 2 sheets of heavy duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2 inch thickness using a meat mallet or a small heavy skillet. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper, seasoning to taste.
2. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan, and cook 5 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. (**The recipe doesn't call for this but for the last 5-10 minutes the chicken was cooking, I threw in a handfull of pine nuts to roast them - TOTALLY made the recipe!!!)
3. While chicken cooks, combine parsley, pine nuts, remaining teaspoon oil, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon lemon rind, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss gently to combine. Server gremolata (this mixture) over chicken.
Yield - 4 servings. (Serving size - 1 chicken breast, 1 1/2 tablespoons gremolata)
Weight Watchers points - 5

As Rachael Ray would say - YUMM-O!!!!!

Still alive!

2010-05-01T21:42:00.000-07:00

I'm still here! I've been extremely busy at work as we approach our busiest season, and each night when I come home, I just love to crash. But, here's a little update on my life currently:

1). Justin and I were approved to rent an awesome townhome right across the street from the local HUGE dog park!! So not only is the place really nice with a lot of space, but I can take Bailey to the dog park everyday, getting both him and me some great excercise!! And come June 7th, I have no excuse! I'm really excited about it!!

2) Justin's new job is going really well, and I really like the people he works with. He's spending a lot of time at work, and working really hard, and he's having a great time. It's so great to see him so happy! And he'll be on his first business trip for them the last week in May - they're sending him to Kansas City for a full week of training; pretty intense!

3) My parents leave this month for a 2 week cruise around Italy and Greece (jealous much?!?!?!?). They're sending Cody (the puppy) to a dog-sitter who works at their vet's office, so I only have to watch Baxter! They're doing that for 2 reasons: they know my schedule won't allow me to be home during the day and Cody is still in the stage where he needs to go out several times a day, and they also know that the three dogs with just me will be really stressful after a while. But Baxter is a great, easy dog and it's easy to have both of them at either the apartment or the house.

And, the best news is, the 2nd week of the dogsitting is when Justin is on his business trip, so I will stay at the house the entire week, and minus the dogs chasing each other a few times, it will be so quiet!! I can't wait!!

4) No news on the weight loss front, unfortunately - but I have less than 5 lbs to go to get to my goal weight, and if I just started walking more, I should have that off in no time! The best news is that I'm at least maintaining, and I haven't had any gains.

So thanks for checking in! I hope to be back on here soon with some pictures of what's been happening!!

Cooking Adventures

2010-04-22T18:13:00.000-07:00

Since I started on Weight Watchers, I've really gotten in to cooking. I find that it really calms me and puts me in my old little world and it's just amazing to me to see things come together and make fantastic tasting items!! I turn everything out except what I'm cooking.

So I've taken some pictures of 2 recent dishes (on my cell phone, so I apologize for the poor quality) that I was excited about and that turned out well!

Dish #1 - Cheese Quiche from scratch:

This was the quiche going into the oven. It was supposed to be a spinach and cheese quiche, but the spinach wasn't defrosted by the time I made what you see below, and I didn't want to leave a bowl with raw eggs and milk in the fridge overnight.

And I can I just say that the finished project (below) looks YUMMY?!!??!??!?! I didn't have the spinach ready, but I felt like adding something extra, and so I just threw in the rest of the onions I had in the fridge. This was breakfast for me for about a week. O....M....G....

And then here's a great side shot of a slice of the best quiche ever (sorry mom!).

Then...
Dish #2 - Turkey Burger:

I attemped 2 first with this dish: I had never tasted ground turkey, let alone a turkey burger, AND I had never made my own turkey burger from scratch! Here's what it looked like in the bowl when I mixed it with onions and seasoning - the MOST disgusting consistency and feeling in between my fingers I have ever experienced. It was like the feeling you get when you chew your gum too long, and it goes from being "elastic" feeling to dissolved in 2 seconds. Ew.

So, it looks great, but here are the two patties I made (Justin wanted one). Still kind of yucky...

But, in the end - doesn't this look good? It was really tasty too - with a slice of cheese and some spinach leaves, on a whole wheat flattened sandwich bread. So all in all, I think I would make it again, because it was SOOO good, but I'm really not looking forward to touching the ground turkey again. EW - just had another nightmare flashback.

Quick Update

2010-04-11T13:12:00.000-07:00

So I realize my posts have been getting few and far between, and not really full of substance, but I like to think it's also a way for me to look back and see my own progress. So maybe these past few posts have been just for me, but someone could be reading them ... who knows. I will try to bring "good" posts back!!

We had another weigh in last week and I'm now at 22 lbs lost!! I only have about 10 more to go before I reach my goal weight. I can say that I'm very proud about my B.M.I. and how much I've reduced it in just 3 months!! (B.M.I. - Body mass index (BMI) is a measure of body fat based on height and weight that applies to both adult men and women.)

When I first weighed myself on my Wii Fit Board, my B.M.I. was over 25. Now, as of this morning, my B.M.I. has reached just over 21. YAY!! I went from being in the overweight range to the normal range - and once I reach my goal weight, I will be at exactly the B.M.I. I should be! I'm finally glad to see results and that I'm making progress - I can do this!!

2010-04-07T16:47:00.000-07:00

No news on the Weight Watchers front - I'm not gaining, but I'm not losing anymore. I just hate exercise!!!

However, I'm still being a good eater, and now my new favorite thing to do is to look at menus ahead of time! I know that sounds weird, but I'm the "take-30-minutes-to-look-at-every-item-and-drive-my-guest-nuts" kind of restaurant order-er. It's very exciting for me to now have 3-4 options when I got out and have my #1 choice ready, and then BOOM it's good!!

Makes me a nerd, but it makes me "me".

So, at least I'm maintaining!!

Yummy...

2010-03-30T18:04:00.001-07:00

Saw this today while I was searching for more images for our Food Safety and Sanitation class..
Slices of tomato and mozzarella with black pepper, fresh basil and olive oil.

YUMMMMMMMMMMMMM.......

Another milestone!

2010-03-26T15:16:00.000-07:00

We had another weigh in this week, and I finally hit a HUGE milestone - I finally lost this many pounds ...

WOOOO HOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I don't want to toot my own horn, but I am very proud of myself. I am proud that I've finally stuck with something, and very happy that I've seen results. I'm also proud that I haven't seen a little progress and then stopped. I'm just very excited! I now have less than 10 pounds to go before I reach my goal weight!!!

Weight Watchers update

2010-03-21T20:56:00.001-07:00

This will be a short blog but I wanted to share some victories!

At my weigh-in last week, I was 1.4 lbs down!
I was able to take Wednesday off this week because my sister was in town, and when I was getting dressed that morning - I fit into an old pair of jeans from my "skinny stack"!!
I am only 3 lbs away from reaching my 20 lb mark!
Exercise - Wednesday at the zoo, we walked for 4 hours, then later I was at the dog park for 45 minutes. I'd definitely say I put some miles on my sneakers that day. Then, I went to the dog park today for an hour! I'm feeling good!

Weekend Update

2010-03-21T19:03:00.001-07:00

I write this blog with heavy eye lids - I need more sleep!! I wouldn't say I've had a busy weekend, but I did get a lot done.

Friday was a fluke day in the Springs...we had 2 straight days of 65-70 degree weather and then BAM - an all day "blizzard" with several inches of snow. So needless to say, our plans to go out to dinner were put on hold when we passed a stopped car on the highway, then watched in my rearview mirror as another car slid right into them.

Saturday was a lot nicer outside, and we got a lot of chores done around town and just stopped at Sportsman's Warehouse for some window shopping. We got haircuts (I needed it BAD!) and even got some groceries. We had an early dinner at home and then went bar hopping downtown. It really was a great night!

Today was a great weather day, so while Justin went fishing, I got a few things done myself. I went to the dog park for an hour and earned 2 Activity Points! (Weight Watchers "gives" you points for exercise, much like eating food takes points "away"). Anyway, I was able to do the dishes and pick up the apartment and even take a little nap with Bailey. It was a great day!

The only bummer - I've had a sore throat since last Tuesday. It was really bad through Saturday, and finally started to let up. But, while there's no more "dagger" pain, it still hurts. That's the only thing wrong, no fever or aches or anything else. It's just because of the sudden, drastic weather changes. Could be worse though...at least it's almost gone!

So thanks for following my blog and checking in! Have a great week!

Flowers in a bucket

2010-03-09T20:14:00.000-08:00

I haven't done a "creative" blog in a while, but I was searching for images for a project at work, and the search including looking for a bucket - and these beautiful images came up! It's a pretty cute idea, actually. If only I had a green thumb!

Lack of motivation

2010-03-02T10:45:00.000-08:00

I’ve decided that while I’m still struggling with motivation to work out, that I can at least mentally work out. I have a large stack of books that I have been clinging to, in hopes that I will read through them. While I never read them, I continue to add to the list whenever an interesting book comes along.

A while back, I made a plan to alternate a fictional book with a non-fiction book with the idea that I would get through them faster by not focusing on one genre and feeling bogged down. That plan may have worked – if I had picked up 1 book to begin in the first place.

I just prefer after being at work all day to come home and unwind or “veg out” from the day by hanging out on the couch and playing with Bailey. But…I also do chores, like laundry, the dishes, cook dinner, etc. So when I’m done with what I NEED to do, I’m even more tired than before and am just not motivated to do what I WANT to do – read a book, exercise, scrapbook, etc.

But last week in my Weight Watchers meeting, we discussed being “empowered” and doing something you didn’t think you could do or have been putting off for a while and the feeling you get after you’ve finally accomplished that task. My goal before the next meeting was to scrapbook, and I did a page on Sunday while at my mom’s house!! It was just one page, and I still have many more pictures piled up to do, but it did still feel pretty good.

So my goal for this week (From tonight until Saturday) is to spend at least 30 minutes a night doing something I WANT to do. I want to feel like I can accomplish carving out 30 minutes to do something for ME. And it can be any of the tasks mentioned earlier – I just want to get into that habit. Then maybe I could make one night a week a particular task and then it will become a part of my life. But – if I can make it through at least 30 minutes a night, I can finally believe in the fact that I can really do whatever I put my mind to.

*Disclaimer: While I realize the last sentence of that last paragraph is the world’s oldest (and maybe cheesiest) adage, I think finally at 26 I’m realizing what that could really mean for me.

Plateau

2010-03-01T18:52:00.001-08:00

While I did lose more weight last week at my weigh in on Thursday, I must say, I don't feel I've been doing good the past few days. I haven't been a terrible eater, and I've been sticking to my points, but I don't feel like I'm losing anymore. I think I've hit my plateau.

This Saturday I went with my mom to go clothes shopping because some of my pants are starting to fit pretty loose. Now, technically, it's loose in my legs. It still fits pretty well around my waist. My stupid weight loss is coming off everywhere but my stupid belly!! It's very frustrating because that's the one and only part of my body that practically got me to start Weight Watchers. So unfortunately, for me, shopping was very depressing. I found myself coming to tears many times in the dressing room because the pants were all still fitting me the same as they did 2 months ago. So even though I've hit the 15 lb mark, I still felt a little upset at myself for not going down a pants size or two.

I understand that it' s about being healthy and not about dropping sizes, but it's hard for me to stay so positive when I'm still wearing the same stinkin' pants.

But...

In 6 weeks, I am already 15 lbs down. And that's progress. I recognize that it works and I am going to continue to folow the program. And granted, that's all without me working out. I occasionally do Pilates and I've done my workout DVD once...but that's pretty much it. I know I need to work out to continue my progress, and trim down my stupid belly that I hate so much - but working out is hard for me. Eating better = simple. Working out = hard.

So maybe it's a physical plateau, but it could be a mental one too. Just got to keep pushing!!

Whew...that felt good. Sorry for venting!

Marathons

2010-02-27T08:11:00.000-08:00

I always hate that every time I have a million things to do there's a marathon of one of my favorite shows on tv. Today I wanted to do the dishes, clean the apartment, work out a little bit, buy a new book at Borders, read it, go shopping with my mom (for new clothes - yay!), and who knows what else. But alas - there's a Psych marathon on USA. Fortunately for me, it's on the last episode of the marathon, so I can finally get some work done!

For those of you who have never seen it, you MUST check it out - here. It's a great comedy where the lead (played by James Roday) has great observation skills but pretends that he's a Psychic. It's freakin' awesome. Totally full of one liners and keeps me laughing the entire time. I love the actors too...I like to think they act like that in real life!

What's a birthday like on Weight Watchers?

2010-02-23T20:18:00.000-08:00

Birthday flowers from my co-workers!! Nice surprise...

I am proud to say that while today was my birthday, I had a very good food day!!

I had a Weight Watchers bar (2 pts) for breakfast. It wasn't a problem, because I wasn't really hungry. It's getting under control - woo hoooo!!!!!!!!

Then for lunch, I had to have a Smart Ones Weight Watchers meal because I had to take my car in for a new battery. (I know - great birthday). That was only 5 points, and actually filled me up more than I expected! I also had about a 20 oz bottle of water with a Crystal Light packet, and that probably could have helped control the hunger.

Every time someone has a birthday at work, we have a "birthday party" for them. I put that in quotes because it's more like a 30 minute "come-and-go" type event, where you sit around a table and awkwardly get asked about your birthday plans with people you barely talk to while they make small talk with each other. But...my boss made a homemade tirimisu from a recipe I found, and it was very yummy - and only 4 points per slice!

Finally, dinner was a BBQ Chicken Pizza (SUUUUUPER YUMMY!) which was 6 points a slice. I had 14 left for the day, so I helped myself to a Birthday 2-slices with 2 left over, and salad on the side with about 1 point for the dressing. I wasn't even planning on having dessert, just because that's my downfall, so I try to avoid it. But my mom surprised me - the BEST surprise of the day....

Weight Watchers 2 point ice cream!!! It was so perfect, because I haven't had ice cream in FOREVER (again, I would have just gone nuts and blown my progres), AND I only had 1 points left for the day!! (I would have used an extra point). It was an extremely thoughtful gesture from my mom, since I hadn't even requested a dessert. She just knew I would love it!

And...here's the kicker - - I only had HALF! Seriously, I took a few bites and then *boom* - that's enough. I wasn't really hungry, and I didn't want to finish it. So I stopped. I am so proud of myself! And what's even better is that I only ate about 1 points worth - so I didn't have to use an extra point.

So all in all - I can do this!! I'm very proud of myself for sticking with this progam for this long, and I am already seeing results. I haven't done anything for this long, so this says something to me. I will keep going and look forward to only seeing more good things happen!

Accountability

2010-02-18T18:35:00.001-08:00

I will admit...I haven't been very good. I haven't taken the stairs one day this week. I'm just in a rush in the mornings and the stairs take too long. Then at the end of the day, I can't wait to just get home and relax. But...I still have that goal to work out 3 times by next week, so I know I can do that. In fact, after I finish dinner, I'm going to do some Pilates.

What's for dinner you ask? Salmon with homemade "marinade" with cilantro. And a side of cous cous with some yummy veggies. Smells goooood...

And coming soon - a new blog layout and header! And yes, I will make my own header!

I hate stairs

2010-02-17T18:05:00.001-08:00

I'm just not a stair walker. Especially 4 flights. I must say, it's hard. There's always goals for next week!

Oopsie

2010-02-16T18:09:00.001-08:00

I will be honest and say that I didn't take the stairs up or down at work today. But to be fair, I totally and completely forgot. So I will try harder tomorrow!!

On an up note: I went to Panera Bread today and got an entire meal for ...

ZERO POINTS!!

Oh yea that's right. In my quest to be "good" at a potentially high point restaurant, I was too good. Then I had to make up for it with snacks and dinner. Oops.

So, for those of you who are wondering, I had:

Salad: (their "Classic" handtossed salad)
- field greens and romaine lettuce
- tomatoes
- cucumbers
- onions
- balsamic vinaigrette

Soup: Garden Vegetable, Low fat and vegetarian
- tomatoes
- zucchini
- yellow beans
- chard
- cauliflower
- bell peppers
- pearled barley
- tomato broth
- pesto

Goal Check-In

2010-02-15T20:37:00.000-08:00

Just a quick accountability note...

I'm still trying to eat healthy, but had a few meals over the weekend that didn't have points and I had to "guess". Now, I tried to guess high points, but I have a sneaky feeling that I guessed too low. So I have to be extra good this week. Going to Panera Bread tomorrow for lunch with my dad will be tough - I will need to stick to a nice, light salad, and be sure to have chicken or something on it, but be careful of the dressings and little things added on.

Goal update from last week:
- continue tracking points: I'm still all over it! Haven't missed a thing!
- Lose at least 2 pounds: Didn't make it to two pounds, but I did have a loss. At least it wasn't a gain!
- Try to eat more fruit: Unfortunately, I did not meet this goal. I had some fruit last Monday, but that was only because we had leftovers from a parfait making party from Friday. Fruit is just too darn expensive and goes bad too quickly! Enough excuses..I should at least look for deals.
- Try not to "cheat" and look at my weight before Thursday's weigh in: I'm proud to say that from last Monday on I didn't check! It made me a little disappointed at the weigh in on Thursday though that I didn't reach my 2 point goal though. I keep thinking if only I had looked I could have worked harder and at least lose an extra pound or 2.

Goals for this week:
- Lose 2 pounds: I definitely want to hit this goal, so I'm pushing it into this week!
- Work out 3 seperate times before next Monday: If I want to hit my 2 pound goal, other than continuing to eat properly, I need to also burn calories that are coming in! I haven't fit in any working out so far on this program and I feel that it's time to start.
- Take the stairs up to my office: This is huge. I work 4 flights of stairs up from where I park. And I HATE taking stairs! If I can do it from Tuesday-Friday, then I've met my goal!

10-Day Forecast

2010-02-12T11:19:00.000-08:00

I don’t know if this is accurate, or if it will actually happen, but if it does – I’ve died and gone to Heaven.

Quick Update

2010-02-09T16:43:00.000-08:00

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged, hasn’t it? Part of it is due to the fact that I discovered this wonderful website – Veoh.com where you can either watch tv shows or movies online, or download them and watch them later! (Which is great because then you don’t need an internet connection to view them if you download them to your computer!) And part of it is that I’ve been spending almost the last week watching my parent’s dog Baxter, while they’re on vacation! I’ve spent most of the time at the house with Baxter and my dog Bailey and they’re a handful!

And I guess another reason why I haven’t blogged so much is because of this Weight Watchers thing. I spend a lot of time tracking points and foods, which will ultimately pay off in the end because once I know the points, I know them – I only have to find out once. It’s just all this legwork early on that’s tiring. But it’s working – I’ve lost some weight and hopefully will lose a little more.

Goals for this week:
- Continue tracking points
- Lose at least 2 pounds
- Try to eat more fruit
- To not “cheat” and check on my weight before Thursday’s meeting

I need to post more pictures. I’m sure people see my wordy entries and think “maybe I’ll check back later”. I do tend to ramble, so I get that. I like to think that the more pictures I post the easier it is for people to read it. So since I still haven’t replaced my camera cord (since Bailey destroyed it) but my parents let me use their computer, here’s a visual recap of the last few days:

I had a "I need a BIG Starbucks morning".
Taught my first "official class" last week - Word for Beginners

Reached my first Weight Watchers milestone - my first 5 pounds!
My co-worker Kearstin was on Wheel of Fortune!
We made homemade parfaits at work on Friday for our weekly meeting - YUMMY! (Darn those granolas - they were 7 or 8 points!)
It snowed a few times - the dogs love to go out and "eat" the snow.

A funny little story...

2010-02-02T15:50:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, Justin went fly fishing and Bailey and I tagged along to get some exercise. Bailey was awake from about 9:30 am to 5 pm; no naps at all! That’s pretty unusual, considering that I am at work 8 hours a day and I’m pretty sure all he does when I’m gone is sleep. He passed out as soon as we got home (after eating dinner of course) and didn’t wake up until 9 pm. We had been out by a creek all day, not to mention there was a snow storm that hit in that area last week that was starting to melt, so obviously he was pretty darn muddy. I knew he needed a bath, but I wanted to let him sleep a little first. So he and I hopped in the shower after his “siesta”.

(Side note – I live in an apartment so I have no backyard or “hose down” option, so my only choice is washing him in the bathroom. And I have a walk-in shower, not a tub, so essentially if I want him to be washed, I have to get in with him. I usually only wash him when I need a shower too, to kill 2 birds with one stone. It works. And since I can shut the door behind me, there’s no comedic moment with a soapy dog tearing through the apartment midway through the bath).

Anyway, I get him initially rinsed off and grabbed for his doggie shampoo, only to realize upon opening the bottle that it was completely empty. How that happened, and I didn’t notice before then, I will never know. But here I am, standing in a shower with a fully soaked 117 pound dog. And no doggie shampoo. He needed to be washed. And I had to make an impulsive “dog mommy” decision –

I had to use my shampoo.

Herbal Essences: Long Term Relationship. It’s made for people with long hair, which Bailey definitely does not have. (Not to mention he’s a dog). Needless to say, each time I poured more shampoo into my hands and lathered Bailey up with it, I groaned a little inside thinking “I can’t believe I paid for this shampoo and it’s going on my dog! Now I have to buy shampoo sooner because I’m wasting it!”

There is some good news to share though – he smells AMAZING and I haven’t felt his fur this soft since he was a 2 month old puppy!! I may have to save my shampoo up once a month when I wash him! I’m so glad I have a short haired breed that only needs a shower once a month! (Per the vet and Dogs 101 instructions on Animal Planet!)

Weight Watchers Update

2010-01-29T18:32:00.000-08:00

We had our first meeting yesterday, and had our first official weigh in. I now have my starting weight and a healthy range I’m supposed to be in for my height and age. All I have to do is pick my goal weight – which will be at next week’s meeting. Our leader wanted us to just use this first week to find a good rhythm and get used to tracking before making any big decisions. That way, we can find out the best way that works for us to track our activities, and make the rest of the program really work for us.

I’m really pumped about it! The meeting leader, Pat, said that’s normal. For the first 4 weeks or so, members get really excited and track everything they eat and exercise – and then you start to get “worn down” with all the different things you need to monitor. Officially, I’m in Week 1, but I did start tracking my food and making Weight Watchers meals 2 weeks ago, so I’m around Week 3 in reality. So technically, I’m close to the stage where most people start losing motivation.

What’s really hard for me in regards to “dieting” is keeping motivated. I’m a very big “giver-upper” when things start slowing down, and one of my biggest fears with this program is that after 4 or 5 weeks of being on track that I will start to “slack off” or give up. I’m being very conscious of my decisions so far, and I can honestly say I’m very proud of myself when I’m faced with a good food vs. bad food choice and I pick the good choice. Hopefully this is a good feeling that can keep driving me to pick the good choice.

I just hope I don’t feel bogged down with all the tracking or get sick of making all the different meals. Hopefully, I can find 4 or 5 “staples” of really easy, healthy meals that can be fallbacks for when I don’t feel like thinking to hard. And then just toss in a new meal twice a week for a while (or more often!).

Ultimately, I’m just really proud of myself for finally doing something about losing weight – I’ve been stalling for far too long, and it’s a big step that I’m even starting something like this. Plus, it’s been a New Year’s Resolution for the past 3 New Year’s that I eat better and lose some weight, and this is the first time I’ve actually tried (if I can be perfectly honest).

Here’s to a healthy New Year for me! (Finally!!)

Thumbs Down: Yesterday was when I learned what my “allotted” points per day were. Unfortunately, by lunch today, I’ve already used up all of my allotted points! (I didn’t have anything prepared for lunch, and I tried to wing it). So I have to dip into my “extra/emergency” points just for dinner!

Thumbs Up: This morning at our monthly staff meeting, I had a choice of a muffin, a frosted donut or a Yoplait, and I picked the yogurt. So I started off my day in a good mood, because I made what I felt was the smartest choice for me. It was like giving myself a mini-pat on the back.

But I could have killed for the chocolate frosted donut with sprinkles.