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just really busy! I'll try to blog later today. Lately my life has been...
snow,
cooking,
work,
working out,
child care,
husband care,
dog snuggling,
laundry,
snow,
snow,
snow, and guess what's on the agenda starting this evening?
SNOW!
I'll try to blog more later! Have a great day friends!
Hi Everyone!
Another long stretch of time without a post. I've just been very busy, so what else is new?
Lots of new weight management groups starting up. I have some fantastic people in my groups and I am so honored and excited that they'll be working with me to get healthy. It's such an awesome job that I have and I feel so fortunate. Obviously, I don't blog about other people's journey's since losing weight and getting healthy is such a personal thing but I've had a lot of success in my groups and have seen so many healthy changes in people that it thrills me, I love helping people realize how much fun it is to be healthy!
The Son turned six last weekend. We had a party for him at the Y and it was very successful. I have pictures of course but you may have to wait a while to see some of those. My MIL visited and we had a really nice time. She lives in Maine which is hard on The Son, and on her but she makes time to see us as much as she can.
I am going away for the weekend with my fantastic cousin, Chrissy Cuz. She is coming from Connecticut to go to a scrapbooking weekend away with me. My sister usually goes but her daughter, The Baby Niece, is a little too high maintenance right now for her to be able to join us. We're sad about that and will miss her a lot. Next year Sissy, next year... So, I've been uploading and uploading and uploading pictures to have them printed at CVS. Next year, will someone please remind me to start this in November, not a couple days before I have to go. I always have good intentions to get started early but alas, it never happens.
I'm about to get The Son ready for school and myself ready for the gym and work. If you notice my running mileage in my sidebar, you'll notice it's gone down considerably, that's because I am trying not to over do it so that I can have good runs for my training plan. I am running more than the plan suggests because I just can't bring myself to run only three even when it tells me to do three, I just use the extra miles as warm-up and cool down. Soon, I'll be wishing it only asked me to do three I'm sure!
Have a great day everyone! I have a few more photos to upload and then we're heading out.
Well, not THAT fun of a day but so far I've been a little productive so that's always good. I got caught up on my oh, so important facebooking. Replying to messages, responding to others status updates and my general over-sharing that I am so apt to do. ;) I also planned out our dinner menu for the week and I am thrilled to say that it contains TWO brand new recipes! If I manage to follow through with what I've planned, I'll meet my monthly goal of trying the recipes and then I'll simply have to blog about them. I also tried to plan to use up food items that we already have because I don't know about you but we tend to go to the grocery store before really using up all the things we've already bought and that's a bad habit to be in in this "tough economy." I made up a shopping list for what I have to purchase and if all goes well, I shouldn't have to step foot in the grocery store more than once this week. I forgot to mention that that is also a resolution of mine, to make a list and stick to it and then USE UP what we bought.
So, do you want to know what we're having this week? Too bad, I'm going to tell you, I put the items in italic that we already had.
Sunday-
London Broil, roasted asparagus, potatoes, biscuits (this is all left over from last night)
Monday-
Shrimp Fra Diavolo (new recipe from Cooking Light) we already had the shrimp, salad, garlic bread flat
Tuesday-
same as Monday night, it's a recipe for 4 servings and The Son won't eat any.
Wednesday-
Trader Joe's Marinated Chicken, Broccoli, Cauliflower Rice (I'll have to tell you about this) and Wild Rice, also from TJ's
Thursday-
Blueberry Bison Burgers (new recipe from Eating Well cookbook, it sounds weird doesn't it?) we already had the bison, Baked chips and a veggie.
Friday-
Trader Joe's Ravioli, salad and garlic bread flat.
Saturday is The Son's sixth birthday and the MIL is coming from Maine, it's also Parent's Night Out at the Y and The Son is going to attend, he's thrilled because he'll be six which means he will be allowed to swim as a part of the PNO fun! I am guessing that The Husband, The MIL and I will all go out somewhere for dinner, THAT sounds pretty thrilling to me! ha ha! That's about as far ahead as I can think at this point.
We had some company visiting us this weekend, the youngest visitor will definitely be the subject of a blog post this week and trust me, the cuteness will be worth waiting for. I am heading to the gym today for a good run and a leg work out, I had some really ugly blisters on the arches of my feet from Friday and I bought some "advanced healing blister" Band-aids, some new socks with NO cotton in them and some Band-aid "Friction Block Stick." I'll give you a report as to if this all works because blisters SUCK! I hate being sidelined by a little thing on my foot that The Son says looks like a dried apricot. ha ha!
Enjoy your Sunday everyone! I am off to get ready for the YMCA!
...that I was working on making myself an apron? I ask, because evidently, I can't remember the things I tell these days, as my sister so kindly informed me about yesterday's post regarding the Snuggie. Evidently, I already posted about it. Oh well, you know I love the thing so it deserved two posts.
Well, I've been wanting to make myself an apron for a long time so I finally bought the supplies on Black Friday. (when I also bought those beads that yes, are still missing) Anyway, here's a couple of pictures of me in the apron. I realize it's very cheesy, campy and totally over the top as far as aprons are concerned but that's what I wanted. It's a vintage simplicity pattern and there's a couple other options for aprons that I'll have to attempt as well because, it was fun to make. The Son took these pictures so they aren't the best but you get the idea and yes, Ziggy had to get in on the action too. The back has criss-cross straps and a cute, big bow but I decided against posting the photo of me from behind. It didn't come out very flattering considering The Son was pretty much camera level with my rear end. So here ya go... funny huh? Yes, I will wear it and actually already have!
Enjoy your Wednesday everyone, I'm off to do KidWriting in The Son's classroom this afternoon and then I'm heading to the Y for a run. I've been especially hungry this week who knows why? It's probably not going to be a good week for weight loss, that's for sure!
So... I'm editing to change something, as I was running around like a crazy person, trying to get The Son on the bus and myself to the gym for my leg work out routine before heading back to The Son's school for Kid Writing, I stopped and realized it made no sense to do that because I'm just running myself ragged and my work out was going to suffer any way. I came in the house, put my regular clothes on and sat down to eat a small lunch/snack before I have to head to The Son's school. I will get my work out in, it may or may not include my leg weights and if it doesn't, I will not gain back 78 pounds over night because I missed that leg routine. I need to remember that and sometimes that just means I have to step back and focus on The Big Picture. Ahhhhhh, a deep breath... now I'm off to the school for real. Bye!
As I go through my days, I sometimes feel as if I have no time. I wonder if it's just me, am I slow at everything I do or does everyone do so much in a day. Let's take today for example...
I have a few hours this morning before I have to put The Son on the bus and in that time I'll do the basic household things... blogging (notice how that's first) facebooking, laundry, packing lunches, loading the dishwasher, planning dinner, those kinds of things.
After I put The Son on the bus, I am heading directly to the Y to do my leg weight routine. That will be at noon, at 1:00 I am due in his classroom for the Kid Writing program. After the Kid Writing, I will head back to the Y to run on the treadmill and then at 3:00 I will head back to school to pick up The Son then I have swimming lessons to teach from 4:30 to 6:30. In between all that, I'll eat lunch and snacks and have a few minutes to sit and chat with The Son.
When we get home, it will probably be close to 7:30 already and we'll eat dinner and get The Son ready for bed. The Husband and I will eat and then probably watch "Glee" and other shows that we enjoy and before we know it, it will be time for bed.
Tomorrow, I also have tons of things to do including my nutrition meeting, working out and most importantly, putting together a basket for a "Country Christmas" event for The Son's school's PTA fundraiser on Saturday.
On Friday, I am attending a nutrition seminar with my colleagues and believe it or not, this is the day that I'm considering my relaxing day! My cousin and her friend are coming Friday night for the weekend and you'll notice there was no "cleaning" time listed in my list of activities this week. Thankfully, things don't look too bad around here since the house was fairly clean for Thanksgiving.
So, my question is... how does a person (who doesn't work a full time job,) have so many things to do and so many things to get done, I didn't even list them all as that would be totally boring for you to read plus, I really don't have time for all that!
Have a great Wednesday everyone! Stay healthy!
I think I mentioned that I finally got my act together and started selling my "big girl" clothes on e-bay, one piece at a time. It's not the most efficient way to clean out one's closet but it's a little more lucrative than taking it all to the Goodwill and when you actually have to replace the clothes you're getting rid of, any extra bit of money helps. I'm not sure that I'm going about it the best way so I'm open to any e-bay suggestions that anyone out there might have. Here's what I basically do... I gather up items that I think will be appropriate for this time of year, a large amount at a time. I photograph them and upload the pictures to my computer, (I find the photographing to be the most time consuming aspect of this process.) I then list them when ever I have a few minutes here and there, usually about four or five at a time. My theory is that as long as I have items listed and especially if I have "watchers" or bidders that they'll take a look at my other items and possibly find an interest in them too. I start my prices at about $3 or $4 for a top, $5 to $6 for pants and maybe a little higher for stuff like sweaters, suits, jackets or dresses. My shipping costs are approximately $6 to $7 and I have a shipping discount if people buy more than one item. Most of my items end up selling right around the prices I have listed, maybe a teeny bit more. I'd love to get more but that isn't really happening. I can't complain though, I think it's going pretty well. I have bags and bags and bins and bins of clothing that could be sold and I'm also contemplating selling some baby clothing so this is a process that could go on for a while. I will say the e-bay learning process has been fun and addicting! Any ideas anyone? My e-bay name is CarenannC so if you want to check out my listings or want to give me any feedback. Please go and check them out. I usually sell individual items but I'm not against lots and did have a bit of success with one lot I sold so I might try that out again too. I'm a little unsure about relisting items or what I should do if items don't sell so I'll take advice on that too. Help me out here people! I'm open to all e-bay suggestions. Thanks!
Basically, I suck as a blogger these days. So sorry! If I had anyone other than my sister and dad and maybe Darlene and MWP read this blog, I'll be lucky if they're still checking me out.
"What have I been doing?," you ask. Well, besides my normal working out and teaching swimming lessons, I've been selling all my "big girl" and maternity clothes on e-bay. I have some really nice things, mostly from Lane Bryant and I'd like to see if I can get any money for them as opposed to just donating them all to Goodwill. I'm using the money to start buying things that fit me now. I have a very limited wardrobe but I'm still hesitant to buy since I will be losing at least 30 more pounds.
We did go to the mall yesterday and I got a few things. Two new bras that I paid WAY too much for but I managed to get a great story for the blog that I'll be writing about this week and I also bought a couple of long sleeved t-shirts from Old Navy that should last me for a while, even as I continue to lose. I have a good pair of jeans, a casual pair of Levi's jeans that I bought at Goodwill and a pair of black pants that fit and are on the tighter side so they should continue to fit for a while and of course, I have the Talbots items I recently bought at Goodwill. I need a few pieces to go with them like a nice basic white blouse. I have a couple of dresses too. (I LOVE dresses.) I'm finding it difficult to shop and I never thought I'd say that. Part of it is that I'm on a tight budget and part of it is that I have nothing in my wardrobe except the aforementioned items so there's really nothing to build on if that makes any sense. I don't want to buy much because I will be getting smaller and don't want to waste money so I guess for now, I'll just stick to my limited wardrobe and items that will definitely fit me for a while. Perhaps I'll have another stroke of good luck next time I hit the Goodwill.
I've been trying things on in the stores and I'm sure the fitting room people hate me because I'm not actually buying anything. I just want to know what size I am. I've also realized it's amazing the difference in the amount of clothing available to a regular-size woman as opposed to a plus-size woman. Back in January, I was around a size 22 maybe an 18/20 on the top depending on the shirt. Now I have realized that I'm a 14! I have some pants that fit that are a 12 and my 16s are getting big so the average right now and what seems to be fitting me pretty much in each store is a 14 in pants, and a Large or Medium in tops. I'm thrilled with that but ultimately, I'd like to be around an 8 or a 10. I can't let myself forget that I still have what is considered a BMI of an "overweight" person.
Today is The Husband's birthday and I'm making a "Cooking Light" recipe for his dinner, Bucatini with Mushrooms. I am in LOVE with mushrooms these days. I don't know if it's because we live in Mushroom Land and they're exceptionally good here but I simply can't get enough of them. I am SO excited to try this recipe. If it's good, I'll do an additional post about it. I must admit that even though it's in "Cooking Light" magazine, it's not as light as I'd normally like but it seems like a nice treat for The Husband so I've eaten a small lunch in preparation for decadence. ;) On that note, I'm off to the grocery store. I have an interesting post planned on some diet controversy as well this week. Let's hope those plans actually come to fruition and I find the time to blog. Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone!
It's been a busy, busy weekend. It usually is. I managed to get a few things done that I have been wanting to accomplish for a while. Blogging however, was not one of them. I am feeling overwhelmed with everything that's going on in my life and unfortunately, the blog is suffering.
First off, I'd like to thank those who left me comments regarding my last post. It's such a big change in my life and having people in real life and in the blogosphere who support me makes it so much easier. I'm proud of myself and I probably get a little bit annoying with my constant thoughts about health, diet and exercise. It's the first time in my life though that I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is a forever change. I don't know why it took me nearly 40 years to get to this point though.
I had a pretty big victory this weekend... I ran a treadmill 5K in 32 minutes and 27 seconds! The fastest I had ever done it before was 34:30 so shaving off two minutes and three seconds is huge. I hope that I can continue to cut down my time and that that wasn't just a fluke. The Sister and I are running a brain cancer run in honor of our mother in early November and I want to do well.
I also got a big task accomplished this week. I listed all my plus size maternity clothing on e-bay and started listing all my "big girl" clothes. I already sold three dresses, one pair of pants and a lot of Lane Bryant items and have some nice bids going on a couple other things. The maternity stuff just got finalized today so I don't know what to expect that will bring in. I doubt that The Husband and I will have another child but if we did, I wouldn't be able to fit into any of that maternity stuff anyway so I thought... sell it! I will continue to list all my bigger clothes until they are gone. There as absolutely no reason to keep them and I have lots and lots and lots of clothes.
So this week will probably be as busy as the past few weeks have been. I stupidly agreed to teach an art class at the Y because the original teacher bailed and it's stressing me out because it's right after swimming lessons on Wednesdays. The Son was very tired last week and I really wish I hadn't agreed to do it. Ugh! I guess I have to stick it out for the rest of the session though.
Well, on that note, I'm off to google some art lessons that I can do with my students. Enjoy your Monday and I'll try to get back to the blog at least a couple times this week.
It's just that I am adjusting to my new schedule as Mom of a Kindergartner, worker-outer extraordinaire, swim instructor, and professional weight loss consultant/nutritionist, not to mention my newest venture of selling all my "big girl" clothing on e-bay. With all that, I haven't had much time to focus on being a blogger or a homemaker and wife for that matter. Sorry Husband but it looks like you and The Blog are getting the short end of the stick.
I'll work on that...
after I investigate e-bay a bit, take The Son to the bus stop, pack my lunch and his snack, gather up all necessary swim teacher supplies, work out at the gym, eat my lunch, pick The Son up at school, go back to the Y, teach swimming, go to a weight loss meeting...
Like I said... I'll work on that.
Have a great Monday people!
Sort of.
Last week, I ran the "Kitchen Chemistry" camp at our Y and was SO busy but this week, I had this lovely plan that I would get all of my blog post for the week finished this morning and schedule them to go up each day at 6 AM. I LOVE when I do that, it makes me feel so productive but instead I...
- Took The Son to his first half day of "Dinosaur Week" of camp.
- Watched the Executive Director of our Y tell some idiot that he couldn't smoke a cigarette out in front of the Y after he heard The Son comment that he smelled smoke. It was a little bit thrilling I must admit.
- Got gas in my car.
- Came home and did dishes
- Checked my facebook and played a round of "Typing Maniac."
- Marinated a london broil in Balsamic Cherry Marinade from my Eating Well cookbook for The Husband to grill for dinner tonight.
- Marinated some chicken in this marinade (SO DARN GOOD! don't be afraid of the "liquid smoke") for us to grill tonight and eat for lunch this week.
- Uploaded pictures
- lamented that it was already 11:30 and I have to pack lunches and my swim stuff in order to work tonight and that it's already time to leave to pick The Son up from camp.
So, there you have it, none of my posts for the week are done. I should tell you that I lost another 2.2 pounds last week and my grand total is 55.8! I am loving it! I should have done a Living Healthy post regarding it but you'll have to count those recipe links as this week's Living Healthy post and let me just say that that chicken marinade is FANTASTIC! I especially love it grilled and served cold for lunch. If you like smoky flavored things, you'll like it too, plus, it's easy and healthy!
I have been mentioning that we made The Husband a special Father's Day gift and I'll post those pictures for you, just to get it out of the way. A few weeks before Father's Day, The Son and I went to one of those paint your own pottery places. He made this for his Daddy:
And I made this for myself:
Each piece was $20 which included everything from start to finish. It was a little more than I anticipated but we were there for three hours so all in all, it was worth it. The Husband loved his gift and I'll most likely be going there again for difficult to buy for men/grandfathers in our life. (Disregard that past statement if you're MY Dad...)
I hope you all had a great holiday weekend, I'll be back tomorrow with another post and I'll try to get back around to visiting all my blogs that I've missed because of camp. Life is busy but good!
Yes, I know, I know, I've been a blog slacker this week. I have SO many posts in my brain but I also have SO many pictures for said posts on my camera. As I have mentioned countless times, uploading photos is an effort for me, I will do it tomorrow no matter what. I promise.
Today, The Son is graduating from Pre-K. Evidently this involves mini caps and gowns (rolls eyes... I hate that for little kids) and lots of cuteness and singing which of course, I know I'll love. So you see, I'll be taking more pictures that I'll want to share with you and then I'll have to upload those too. Better to do it all at once, don't ya think?
I already hit the gym today, ran my 5K on the treadmill, did my full body weights and did a 15 minute interval program on the AMT machine for a grand total of 800 calories burned! (at least that's what the machines say after entering my stats... I know it could be off somewhat) So, I'm feeling pretty good right about now. Tomorrow is weigh in, here's to hoping I'm still feeling good after that.
I must go shower and get ready for this afternoon's festivites and then I have to teach swimming tonight which will mean that I am taking three, count 'em, THREE showers today. Thank Goodness I often shower at the Y, our water bill would be out of this world if I didn't.
Have a good Wednesday, bloggy friends, I'll be back in the bloggy swing of things soon! MWAH!
Thursday 1-15-08
5:45 Hit snooze
5:50 Hit snooze again
6:00 One more time...I showered last night
6:10 Get up
6:45-8:30- Work at the school for child care
8:30- home to take care of The Son and organize for the day (this includes the blogging and internet junk I have to do)
10:45-12:15- The Son- Gymnastics at the Y
12:15 - Drop off The Son and the MIL back at home.
1:00 - 2:00- Living Healthy, Living Well meeting back at the Y
2:15- Go back home, pick up The Son and MIL head out to Delaware for party supply store and dollar store. Who knows how long that will all take?
6:15-6:45- The Son to karate
6:45 - head home, make dinner, make cupcakes for birthday at school tomorrow, clean, organize decorate, etc., etc., etc.
8:30- facilitate getting The Son to bed, the MIL will probably do most of it
9:15- 9:40- Watch "The Office" through the DVR to avoid commercials.
9:40-9:45- freak out because I still have way too much to do
9:45- realize it will all get done one way or another and continue watching shows recorded on the DVR until I go to sleep in another hour or so.
Wow! That's a lot to do, notice there is no work out time on there and also no scheduled time to eat lunch. I'll have to squeeze the lunch in somewhere but I'm afraid the work out will get pushed until tomorrow.
I know it's not an interesting blog post but I wanted you to realize why I still didn't get pictures of the decorating posted yet. Gotta Run! Lots to do!
Hi again everyone! Am I just the biggest blog/giveaway slacker ever? I think so. But the thing is...I'M BUSY! It's two days before Christmas Eve and that means lots of baking, crafting, gifts for the teachers, a stupid, useless, not going to tell us anything new at 6:30 PM meeting at work that I agreed to bring cookies to, cleaning the house for family on Christmas day and wrapping the presents, not to mention all the normal everyday things like laundry that have to be done. I haven't uploaded pictures for the giveaway yet although things are pretty much complete. I might add another craft to it since I've been taking so long to make it happen...that will mean two winners!
I didn't figure that my 200th post would fall at this very busy time of year and now it's making things difficult on me. I have decided that the giveaway will happen on December 29th! We will be celebrating my 200th-ish post AND my 29th - I wish 39th birthday all at the same time. You'll get presents and I'll have fun giving them.
So now, we know I like comments and you want entries so...for every comment you leave between now and the 29th...I will give you an entry. (One per post please) I can't guarantee that I'll be posting a lot but who knows, I might need a break from the aforementioned chores. I will also have an extra entry if you mention my giveaway on your blog but you should probably wait until I have an actual giveaway post to which you can link back.
I'm off to bake some cookies now...the batters are mixed and chilling and my oven's heating up. The Son is at pre-school and I have two hours before I go back to get him so I must get busy. Have a great day everyone, I hope your holidays are going well so far.
