Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Oops!

Make that 10 pounds down for the month of August!!!!!!! Just had to share my excitement!

Oh & I ate a bug today on my run thus causing myself to dry-heave for a few minutes. Good times indeed! Still had a good pace so take that little protein bite!

Happy Tuesday!

Monday, August 30, 2010

Hmmmmm.

I don't have much to say other than I can't believe it's almost September!!!! Vacation is just a couple months away & we are so fired up! We got our tickets for Universal & Halloween Horror Nights already too! NO backing out of HHN now! lol In fact, we plan to go on Friday & will get a "Stay & Scream" pass for Sunday if we 1) can handle it again & 2) don't see all we want to on the night we go!

Things have been moving right along with my own personal conquest back to my "best life." I dropped 8.5 pounds in the month of August! Woohoo!! No goal date in sight but I do want to look my best for my honeymoon ;) But you won't hear "I want to weigh x pounds by 10/26." Instead, I'll be focusing on doing well each day, enjoying some goodies along the way & bringing my best me to Orlando!

Running is also going fabulous! We are only doing 3 runs a week anywhere from 3-6 miles but that's perfect. We don't have a need to run longer than that though when the cooler temps come & stay for good, I'd like to clock some longer runs. Why? Because I can!!!!

Wow, exciting in my world, eh? haha On tap? Hubby turns 35 on Thursday & my MIL turns, um, 25?, on Saturday! ;) I'm treating everyone (including my Dad & his girlfriend) to dinner that night then we'll all head to the casino for some more fun!

Have a great week all!!!!!

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Ready to meet Fear.

So many of you already know that we are headed to Orlando for Halloween for a late honeymoon. Mostly because I'm obsessed with Halloween! And in spite of being a big chicken...we are going to Halloween Horror Nights. It's like walking through a horror movie....over & over & over. Universal has FINALLY released the themes for the houses & "scare zones." Here's the promo...



I shall meet Fear head on & he'll probably make me pee my pants! hahaha

One of the houses is an actual paranormal house & that too will make me pee my pants! Eeek. I'm so excited! We got our tickets today too! Bring it on!!!!

Here's the themes as detailed by the Orlando Sentinel:

Houses

Horror Nights: The Hallow’d Past – “Now, you have the opportunity to travel into a realm where Horror Nights isn’t just an event, but a reality.”

The Orfanage: Ashes to Ashes – ”Misunderstood by all around her, she has had enough of her playthings at the Good Harvest Orphanage – now is the time for vengeance”

Hades: The Gates of Ruin – “Hades bids you welcome.”

Psychoscarepy: Echoes of Shadybrook – ”Although Shadybrook’s doors have indeed been closed for the last 15 years, the place is still very much alive with all of the criminally insane souls that have ever walked its halls.”

Havoc: Dogs of War – “Through an inhalant that includes a compound of testosterone, adrenaline, and other anesthetics, Shadow Creek’s latest run of volunteer test subjects are ready for inspection.”

Catacombs: Black Death Rising – “During a plague of Paris and Marseilles in 1534, thousands died due to an undisclosed viral outbreak. A group of doctors took it upon themselves to quarantine the most infected citizens of the city. They had no way of knowing that the townspeople would betray them, sealing them into their doom.”

Zombiegeddon – ”The United States government has re-taken the continental United States, and is actively engaged in clearing the remaining infested pockets of Canada. The government also licenses and sanctions private companies to capture ‘un-live’ subjects and use them as practical targets during these training sessions.”

Legendary Truth: The Wyandot Estate – “The Spirit Seekers have come up with a machine that actually gathers spirits toward it. The group has decided to do a live broadcast from inside one of the most reportedly “haunted” sites in the entire United States, The Wyandot Estate, built in the 1920s in Carey, Ohio, by the entrepreneur Malcolm Wyandot and his wife, Lydia. The house has been rumored to be haunted since Malcolm brutally killed 13 dinner guests and his wife Lydia before committing suicide on October 30, 1929.”

The scare zones — “dead” spots between houses and attractions — sound like they have some distinctive Universal Orlando flair.


HHN: 20 Years of Fear – ”Encounter the most frightening characters of Halloween Horror Nights past.”

Fear Revealed – “The souls of Chaos, Death, Sacrifice, Mythos and Vengeance — He created them and gave them terror. … What has been 19 cycles for some have been eons for him. He’s waited patiently for the final piece, and now on the 20th cycle… HE IS REVEALED.”

Zombie Gras – ”This Mardi Gras parade has gone severely off course.”

Esqueleto Muerte – ”Revel in the seductive taunts of Death as you wind through a glowing skeletal nightmare.”

Saws ‘n Steam – ”Steam power is essential to the inhabitants of New Yorkshire, but diminishing oceans have put the city in jeopardy, forcing the citizens to evil lengths. Beware upon entering the city, as the water in your body is now a coveted resource. And the citizens will stop at nothing to get it.”

The Coven – ”The Cult of the Raven has unsettled spirits, and its Sirens are screaming throughout the witches’ realm.”

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Dear Jewel,

I would like to take a moment to thank you for carrying Fanny May candies in the individual portions & even having them on sale this week for a buck!!!

Sometime in the future, I will enjoy a mint meltaway.


Then in that same future (though not together,) I will enjoy one of my Mom's favorites, a trinidad.


Both will be savored immensely & since I know they will be around for a long time to come, there's no need to eat them both at the same time.

Thanks again for making this treat available with a sweet deal! (no pun intended)

Love,
Heather

Monday, August 23, 2010

Really?

So I also forgot to add something that happened at the picnic. We were sitting in my uncle's garage & I hear him call my name. He says "Charlotte (gram), you know who she looks like?" Gram plays along & you will NOT believe what came out of his mouth....

Are you kidding me? My Grandfather (who's brutally honest) proceeds to tell me that I look like Jennifer Aniston! And we even have a similar smile. It was SO funny not only because I accused him of sucking up but because a guy at the gym said to Kevin last week "not everyone can have a wife that looks like Jennifer Aniston." I'm NOT kidding. I'm not sure I see the connection other than the flat chin & cheekbones but I'll take it. I certainly do not have her body but am working on getting MY best body so I'll accept that. And we are close in age so it's a win there too.

It was so funny, I was totally flattered because I know my Grandpa loves me dearly but he'd NEVER say such a thing if he didn't mean it.

Busy here at work. Things have picked up & we have doubled our crew in the last week so I'm adding new hires, updating payroll sheets, etc. Then I will of course catch up on my shows (The Gates.)

Have a great week. Own it again. I'm waging battle against PMS that leaves me CRAZY hungry so I'm increasing my foods just a bit (two eggs instead of one, nuts with afternoon snack, a little more at dinner.) Nothing crazy but doing that will curb a desire to snack & hopefully keep the hunger at bay. Smart girls plan where they can ;)

Happy Monday!!!

Love, Jen ;) hahahaa

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Scoooooooooooooooore!

Someone might have been rocking her size 8 skirt that she's not been able to wear since the post-show disaster. And hubby said it looked great!

Fantastic run. Rocking my favorite wardrobe pieces again. Feeling fabulous.

What more could a girl want????

Life is good, my friends!

Saturday, August 21, 2010

Laughing out loud!

Does anyone share my love of Bethenny Frankel??? I'm watching her "lost moments" from her show & just laughing to myself. I just adore her. She's brass. She's catty. She's geniune. She eats. She & her now hubby are SO much like Kevin & I that it almost creeps me out. Right down to their age & how life is unfolding. Well, minus the oops baby & the fact that she's loaded. LOL

Back to my show.

Remember the name!

First things first, you have to go read about my run today. Seriously. GO but then come back :) Thanking my thunder thighs for moving me right along today!


Isn't that awesome?? As I ran, I realized that I felt like myself again. The girl that used to take off & run whenever not thinking about the weather. I just went. I still had it. And it felt pretty damn good!!!!!! As I rounded the corner for my last mile (after crossing to avoid the geese that were making it clear they saw me) a song by Fort Minor came on my iPod called Remember the Name. Have you heard it? Though it's not a Christian song, I think of God when I hear it. And suddenly found myself thanking Him for the physical abilities, the determination to press on, for legs that move, for a heart that won't quit....I think you see my point. My favorite line from the song?

This is ten percent luck, twenty percent skill
Fifteen percent concentrated power of will
Five percent pleasure, fifty percent pain
And a hundred percent reason to remember the name!

See what I mean? I listened to it twice.

The rest of the day (once I get off my towel..still sweating) will involve a tanning session, picking up Kevin's shirts at the cleaners & finishing off my cake pops for a family picnic. It's rainy which kinda sucks but we needed it bad!

I better go get some more water & get something in this belly!!!!

Happy Saturday!

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Sucked in...

I'm sorry, I'm not available to blog at the moment. I'm currently knee, okay waist, deep in this....

Please leave a message at the tone, er, whatever & I'll get back to you at my earliest convenience.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Feeling fussy.

Yes, that's right. I feel like a fussy baby. I had the WORST night's sleep in a very long time. Tossed & turned, looked at the clock & only minutes would pass. I was miserable. I really wanted to keep tossing when the alarm went off but knew that I'd feel better if I moved my body. Kevin even offered to just walk (which he detests) but I really wanted to run!

About that run. Let me brag about the MUCH cooler temps we are finally having. It was about 63 when we ran this morning. SO awesome! Dodged the canadian geese once, did our loop then dodged them again by running in a yard. Where....I twisted my ankle :( I think it's okay since I was able to walk it off & keep running. We'll see how it goes as the day progresses.

On a totally separate tangent. Have you guys seen the Tyra promo about the girl with the uber tiny waist? She's going to be on America's Next Top Model. 6'2" & a size 00. Here's the girl (with Ms. J's hands around her waist.)

It sparked a discussion on the radio about size, weight & of course, eating disorders. A woman called in to share her story of eating 37 calories a day but when she couldn't stop the hunger she started purging instead. Her gag reflex stopped working with her finger so she had to use a knife. I had tears in my eyes knowing that people go to such lengths. I've been a hardcore binger. It was really bad at one point in my life (adult life) but now I realize that I can enjoy what I want within reason. Disclaimer: it took a lot of work to get past that mindset. I have coke with lunch, I eat nuts, full fat cheeses, eggs daily, etc. I'm losing weight. I get it. I really do since I've been obese. But you don't have to live that way & you don't have to extreme diet to lose weight either.

See...a tangent. But it broke my heart.

On that note, I better finish payroll. Boys want paid & so do I!!!

Monday, August 16, 2010

Come Monday.....

Happy Monday!!! I know that sounds like such an oxymoron for some but when you are rocking along with your goals then it's fun to start the week with pep in your step!!!

Saturday, we had a GREAT time at the Jimmy Buffett concert. It was HOT HOT HOT & water was hard to find in the venue (for us designated drivers.) Still tons of fun even with having dehydrated a bit.

We even had a special surprise when this arrived with the adorable Patrick Kane!

It was a fun time though & I was amazed with how laid back all the Parrotheads are! So fun!

Sunday was "stain the deck" day where we put the final coat on the rails, did some errands, grabbed lunch & then drank the "Twilight" kool-aid. We've never read the books but finally bit the bullet when it came from Netflix. Verdict? We really liked it. I can now see the draw of Team Edward & why folks like him. But I'm still all over Team Jacob especially since I've been told that he reminds folks of Kevin (LOL.) We'll get the next one in a couple days & are excited to watch. Yep, the sucked in. haha

Not much on tap for this week. We have an "H" family picnic this weekend. I was "strongly encouraged" to bring cake balls so I let my aunt pick the flavor...strawberry cake with cream cheese frosting. I will dip them in white chocolate. Yummy!!!! My family are the BEST cooks so I will plan to enjoy 1-2 bites of everything I want to try (2 bites being reserved for the REALLY fabulous stuff.)

I hope you all had a fantastic weekend & are ready to own this week. I certainly am!!!!! YOU are in control & never let anyone tell you otherwise!!!!

Now, just do it!

Friday, August 13, 2010

Finally friday!

Whew. We made it through yet another week. And another weekend we're totally busy though we've been having a lot of fun...still busy. Even Dad's dog seems to have had a rough week. Yes, he's under my desk! And yes, his tongue is sticking out (sign that he's pooped!)

In talking with a friend the other day, I realized I'd never updated on what's been happening with my finger. You'll remember that I had a pea-sized mass removed from the top of my knuckle. It was attached to a tendon. I was feeling a good deal of stiffness in the morning & expected that would pass. It hasn't. I cannot bend my finger in the morning & it's very painful though it loosens up before we get to the gym (with exercises.) There's a bit of a "crater" where the previous mass was located & now appears to be another one forming :( My finger (knuckle) is also larger than before (probably the new mass forming) & I can no longer wear any of my rings on that hand (including the one Kevin bought me for a wedding gift. So bummed & will have to go back to my surgeon but am waiting until I pay off the first surgery. So that's the update there. Not good news unfortunately.

As for everything else? Fabulous!!!!! I continue to make progress in Operation My Best Life (lol.) Yea, I just made that up but it's fitting. I swear to dish more on that soon BUT you can follow along now with my daily eats & workouts here.

What's your plan for the weekend?

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Journal...sorta

I'm going to start using this page once again to track my dailly stuff.

For now anyway......

Parrots & parties.

So it's confirmed. Saturday night, we are going to see this guy....

Do you know? I'm not a super fan like hubby & his friend but I like a good cheeseburger (hint.) It'll be fun & I agreed to be DD! Not only is it an hour away (easy drive) but it's supposed to be almost 90 out. Me + alchohol + extreme heat = reminders of passing out at a Bodeans concert. Not good. It'll be purely entertaining watching the Parrotheads get drunk & silly!

I'm also debating my 20th class reunion. I was excited to inititally go but then started to waiver. I keep in touch with the folks I want to via Facebook. I'm hearing the cliques (our included) are still in full force (some still extremely, well, you know) so I started to rethink it. It's $60/person. I think we are going to just go to the Friday night mixer instead. Did you go to your 20th? I missed the 10 year since I'd just moved to Vegas.

Thinking outloud here ;)

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Food for thought?

Literally. Another edition of what I ate today. I think this may be a typical Wednesday. We'll see.

Eat
Rice cake with smear of almond butter & preserves
Slice of toast with an egg & slice of cheese (open face egg sandwich)
Half roast beef with cheese & mustard, apple, coke
Grapes & Zone bar (the chocolate mint taste like Thin Mint cookies)
Burger (no bun) & sweet potato fries

Move
Shoulders & Core (this morning)
20 min of something (after work)

I was EXHAUSTED today & fell asleep after the gym this morning in the chair. We planned to do our 20 mins of cardio after training but I had NO energy. Still tired but will pull something out of the dark later. Probably end up doing 20 min of Insanity. The heat index would kill me though I'm really itching to run!

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Thick legs, in shape, rump shaking both ways.....

Let me share with you the first song in my workout today. Killer session on the elliptical which left me a sweaty beast by the end. I think Kevin was kinda grossed out. Haha! Anyway......I present you Missy Elliott!


I LOVE this song! Does everyone remember when Missy got skinny? This was the first song that came out. Love her first line (clipped for title.)

Anyway, it's a kick-ass song & really got my blood pumping. What songs do that for you? I have a lot but usually the first one I hear during my workout sticks. Well, that & anything that I hear by LL (I have dates with him pretty regularly!)

I wanted to share an epiphany moment with you all. I've been working the "K-Factor" lately (tease tease tease) which is all about eating real food, moving daily & enjoying life. You could call it living large if you'd like. But with that, I'm finding myself feeling pretty liberated & letting go of some "rules" that stick in my head. Not all of them are gone & I get some tough love (not complaining) when they creep in but it's been really good to work through. I'm enjoying the part where I find my way back to who I once was.

So I come to last night when I was at a party (home decor) at a friend's house. She always makes awesome goodies so I fed hubby & didn't eat with him knowing that I was going to enjoy some good eats. I went in with a plan to enjoy one piece of each item I wanted (there were 4 items.) So I had some tortilla chips with salsa, small piece of veggie pizza (the cold kind) & a few dessert treats. I enjoyed every bite. I wasn't stuffed. I didn't feel guilt over what I ate. I had fun with my friends & enjoyed some good eats. Towards the end of the party, I got hungry again so had a few more chips with salsa (homemade & SO good!) But as I did that I sat back & watched my surroundings. That being my friends piling food on their plates.

It really took my head back to where I once was with binging & bad behaviors. I remember when the food hiding started (when my brother died) & doing that at the age of 10 is baffling to me but you know we adapt & create comfort where we can. That's what I did & I was instantly grateful that I could be around that food, enjoy a small portion of it to be satisified & walk away.

That suddenly got deep. Ha! Sorry but it was something that was heavily on my mind this morning. I even told Kevin about it when I got home. We met when I'd already lost over 100 pounds so he never knew that part of me. He's been through a lot with me during contest diet, post-show stuff, etc. But he never fails to tell me that he's proud of me. What a fabulous cheerleader (he's one of a few than are so encouraging to me daily.)

With that, I leave you with a picture of us from the wedding Saturday. My hair is straight but my stylist curled it for me after she cut it. Super fun!!! I need to mention that I felt awesome that night & got TONS of compliments ;)
Have a fabulous day!

Monday, August 9, 2010

Rain on my parade.

Happy Monday (what an oxymoron...) Okay, it's not that bad! The weekend was fun even though it rained while we were in Chicago yesterday. And it was CRAZY windy but they don't call it the Windy City for nothing.

Let's back up. Saturday morning, we got up & did a 4 mile run. The weather has been (not anymore) wonderful & pretty cool in the morning. Kevin went off to work, I got stuff done & before I knew it we were on the road to the wedding reception. We had a FABULOUS time, good eats, good drinks & lotsa dancing. I felt fabulous in my new dress, had my hair done all curly like Kevin likes & we'll just say it was a GREAT night.

I woke on Sunday early with a headache (part vodka, part hormone related) but we slept longer & were headed to the city. It rained but we enjoyed a nice lunch at Cheesecake Factory. I had the portabella sandwich eating all of that but only half the bun, some salad & a piece of bread. It was SO good. Thick portabella with a thick slice of grilled onion & tomato.

We tried to watch Bounty Hunter but I fell asleep catching only the beginning & end. It was cute though. Aniston looks FAB!

Anyway, the weekend was a success in my book. No regrets only fun. It was the last "dress up" event that was planned so it was fun to enjoy it with hubby! I'm really making great progress personally too & will continue to tease on that. Let's just say I'm following the "K-Factor" plan ;)

Hope YOUR weekend was equally fabulous & you got enjoy time with your friends, family or whatever means the most to you!!!!

Make it a great week!

Friday, August 6, 2010

Weekend fun?


Sure! This weekend we have a wedding, will wander the Mag Mile in Chicago & maybe sneak a listen at Grant Park while bands take the stage of Lollapalooza.

I fully intend to enjoy some good eats at the wedding & don't forget the cake ;) Partake in some wine & just enjoy a night with my hubby where neither of us has to stay sober to drive. Thank you to the happy couple for providing a shuttle/party bus from the hotel to the country club (yes, swank reception.)

My sincerest congrats to our friends, Michelle & Eric, who will become one tomorrow.

Have a fabulous weekend everyone. Thanks for keeping along with this little crazy life I like to call mine.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Blah, blah, blah

Today finds me with a couple rants on tap.

The first has to do with my job. It's no secret that my work day is not always filled with meetings, conference calls & other high stress items like it did in the HR job that I left in October 2006. I have to do payroll on Tuesdays, accounts payable on Wednesday then union reports & taxes monthly. That's about it unless I have an audit to prep for (like next week.) Is it exciting? Nope. Is it boring? Yes, completely on some days. That is why I read, spend time on FB, blog, etc. My family & friends know that I left a job I LOVED to come take over the office after my Mom died. So then why do they insist on making fun of my "job" as they often refer to it (yes, even using the quotes when referring to my "job" or calling it "work." You know what? I'd MUCH rather have things be different...my Mom still be alive & me doing my thing at OE (old employer.) But that's now how it is so why do they insist on making insensitive comments about it. It really hurts my feelings.

The other rant is about my run this morning. I think I once shared that I have potty issues on some runs (usually the super fast or super long ones) where I have to potty right NOW!!!! It happened today when hubby & I were a FULL 4 minutes faster than my pace on Sunday (that also rocked.) So as a result of the "OMG, I have to go now" situation, we had to walk a bit. So close to home (actually in the subdivision) but it just couldn't be avoided. I was SO bummed. At one point, Kevin actually asked me if I was trying to kill him with that pace! hahaha We are normally 9:30-10 min/mile pacers & I'm totally content with that but today we were rocking closer to a 8:45-9 had I not had to walk until the "urge" passed. Next time, my friends. Next time.

I saw this today on a blog (a Bakerella creation.)

My SIL & I made cake pops for my niece's 1st birthday party. (They look frosty since they were stored in the freezer.)

Family saw the pics on FB & were raving about them so I promised to make some for the next cookout. Well, that is happening on August 21st so I let my Aunt June pick the flavor. She is chosing strawberry cake with cream cheese frosting. I'll dip them in white chocolate then put some sort of red sprinkles or something on them. Yum yum! You must try cake pops sometime!

That's not really a rant but I wanted to end on a fun/happy note. I'm nose-deep in my book today. It's getting SO good & I got notice last night that #2 in the series is on hold for me at the library. No pressure to hurry right?!?

Happy Hump Day!

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Eat & Move


So today's ramble will be an installment of "what I ate today." Why? Well, why not? We all read foodie blogs & sometimes wonder what other folks are eating.

-Rice cake with a smear of almond butter & strawberry preserves
-Eggs with a slice of toast (health nut bread..yum!)
-1/2 roast beef with swiss (homemade), sunchips & coke
-Zone bar & grapes
-Veggie burger with garden green beans (thank you Daddy!)

And for giggles, I did 30 minutes on the elliptical this morning. I increase resistance every 5 minutes until the last 5 where I up it twice. Hubby tried to keep up. He failed ;) lol

Have a FABULOUS day!

ps..you wondered about the cupcake pic? I've been a tad obsessed with them the last few days. I blame PMS & am not eating one because we are going to wedding this weekend that will have some FABULOUS cake.

Monday, August 2, 2010

Shark Week!!!

As I begin to update or ramble as it ususally appears, I cannot come up with a title for this post. So I'm leaving it blank for now & should I forget to actually make one up, you'll know why it's blank.

This weekend's plans came to a screeching halt when my BIL called to cancel for the zoo on Sunday. His wife has a bad back & it had been really hurting her this week. Mostly likely caused from us having haul ass in the boat last Saturday to beat a REALLY bad storm moving in fast (we beat it by the way.) So that was scrapped & I won't lie. I was disappointed especially when I learned they spent the weekend boating. I'm glad to hear she's feeling better through!!!

Instead of that, Saturday night we had a fast dinner (wings, taters & a cider) at BW-3 then headed to see Inception. It was a good movie but I don't think it's all it's been preached to be. I like the Matrix much better & perhaps it's because of that. It was interesting & makes you think but not over the top as it's been portrayed!

Sunday, I got up early to run, headed to church then came home to stain the deck rails with hubby. Currently the deck is all one shade of chocolate brown. We are now going to keep the bottom part that color but are painting the rails white. It looks so awesome but it still needs another coat plus we'll redo the bottom as well. Sounds exciting, eh? We watched Green Zone that afternoon, made a fast taco dinner & parted ways. He retreated to the man-cave (aka home theater room) & I went to the bedroom to watch Shark Week!!!!!!

Speaking of Shark Week. You have GOT to watch the first few minutes of Air Sharks. These 1 TON creatures literally leap out of the water to catch their prey (the super cute seals that remind me of puppies.) Truly amazing..anyway...watch!

Air Jaws

And don't blame me if you never want to go in the ocean again ;) FYI, these are located in the oceans off the coast of South Africa so you are safe!

Happy Monday!!!!