12/30/2010

12/29 - Day 38

I woke up on Wednesday with another migraine!  I was getting concerned that it might be caused by our new mattress pad, maybe I was being supported differently & it was pinching a nerve, or maybe it has a weird smell (it's supposed to dissipate after a few days)?  I mentioned this idea to Joe & he said he would cut the pad in half & keep it on his side but there was no way we were getting rid of it.  Oh well.  I took an imitrex & finished getting ready.  When I went downstairs to make breakfast I was surprised to see our cat licking the coffee maker! 


Joe says she's always trying to stick her head in his cup but this was the first time I've seen her addiction in action.  I probably took 4 pictures of her & she never even looked up.  After sending a picture upstairs to Joe I shooed her off the counter & made myself some breakfast.  The bananas he got at the grocery store weren't quite ripe yet and for some reason I can't seem to make myself eat any other fruit for breakfast so I just made a sandwich.  I almost forgot to take a picture...
The roads were a little clearer then on Tuesday so I didn't have any problems getting to work on time.  This has really been a great week at work, everyone is in a good mood or on vacation plus we're wrapping things up so there's never a shortage of things to do.  These adorable badge holders were delivered today, I just love them!
I went to lunch a little late, I just really haven't been hungry at my normal times this week.
I took some chicken out for dinner but really didn't feel like cooking it; so when Nicole said she was going over to Shop Rite to pick a few things up I decided to tag along hoping inspiration would strike.  We were standing at the deli counter when we spotted this cheese slicer, it was really neat.  It was automatic so all of a sudden it would just go & the cheese would, well slice...  I don't know, I guess you had to be there...
I didn't find anything at the grocery store particularly appetizing, I almost got some sushi but then changed my mind. 

When I got home I found this mistletoad waiting for me in the kitchen, I love it!  I totally forgot I had ordered him from John's niece back in October.
After much deliberation I decided on chinese food.  I had some shrimp with broccoli, white rice, cheese wontons & an egg roll.  It was very good, we've been ordering from Shanghai House in Somers Point, the food is really fresh and it just tastes better then a lot of other places we've tried.
Joe got stuck a work a little late & didn't make it home until almost 9.  We watched the finale of the Sing Off and then went to bed.  That bed is just so fantastic it doesn't make much sense to stay downstairs, lol.
 
Daily wrap up:
1. completed 0 fitness minutes - goal met, at 1465 now
2. 2 servings of fruits/veggies - goal failed
3. 64 ounces of water...check
4. Tracking: 2040 calories burned - 1398 calories eaten = total 642 calories burned...
5. I had a pretty ok day, nothing stressful but nothing special... - goal met
6. I got on the scale this morning (Thursday) and came in at 150, so my goal is still met...

12/29/2010

12/28 - Day 37

I feel like I need to preface this rant because I am thrilled for my friends when they get engaged.  I love weddings and cannot wait to plan my own.  I love giving people ideas & helping them develop their big days, sometimes I think wedding planner would be a great career for me.  But whenever other people get engaged everyone finds it necessary to comfort me, I'm so tired of the you'll be next(s) and the I don't know what his problem is(s)....  I am in no way upset that Joe & I didn't get engaged on xmas; he told me a few years ago that he wouldn't propose on a holiday and I believe him, so I'm never disappointed on Xmas or Valentine's Day.  He got me the beautiful topaz ring, that I can't stop staring at, and love it.  I know he'll propose when he's ready.  But seriously, why does everyone thinks it's ok to weigh in on when we get engaged?  If I'm ok with it why aren't you? 


Thanks, rant finished...  Back to Tuesday...I was actually pretty excited to get back to work.  I really thrive on a routine, if only I could get my workouts back on schedule I'd be sitting pretty.  I'm not sure what's up with me lately but I'm just not hungry in the mornings; it doesn't help that we were running seriously low on food in the kitchen.  I grabbed a granola bar & a glass of Trop 50 for breakfast.  I love Trop 50; orange juice is usually crazy high in calories & we all know how I feel about drinking my calories, this stuff is only 50 calories a cup and I actually like the flavor better then regular oj.
This is just too cute not to share.  Joe got me a new frog shaped thumb drive for xmas and I love him.  It's so funny how his little head hanging out of the computer.
I was starving by the time lunch rolled around but was in such a nice groove getting work done that I put eating off an extra 1/2 hour.
My day flew by, we should really have unscheduled days off more often, you're so busy making up work that there's zero down time to get bored.  

I was really hoping to get some exercise in after work but it wasn't looking promising.  There weren't any classes I wanted to take at the gym & Joe didn't sound interested when I suggested we play wii sports before he went over to John's for the Eagles game.  Then I got an email from Angela asking if I wanted to do some shopping.  I figured why not, I need a new coat (I'm starting to look like a linebacker in my old ones) & shopping totally burns calories.  We made plans to meet at NY & Co around 7pm.

When I got home Joe had dinner all ready for us, grilled cheese & soup, my favorite!  Not exactly low calorie but I was still low from breakfast & lunch plus I skipped my snack at work.
Joe & I parted ways around 6:30.  Upon arrival at the mall I was surprised to see Rob had decided to join us on our shopping expedition.  Angela had mentioned he wasn't a huge fan of NY & Co and would probably be staying home.  Anyway, we sent him off in search of deals & started looking through their coats.  I've been thinking about getting a white coat for a while now, they're so chic.  My current favorite coat is longer multi-colored one from NY & Co that Joe got me for Xmas a few years ago.  I used to get lots of compliments on it but it's a large & definitely doesn't fit anymore.  So, I grabbed a medium but Angela said it was too big, I should try a small!  Seriously a small?  Well here's a picture of me in it, totally fits!  For $50 (originally $150, on sale for $75 and I used a $25 off coupon) I couldn't pass it up.
We spent the rest of our time at Macy's.  Rob had looked around a little before we got there & picked some things out.  He's pretty useful for shopping, although he has strong likes & dislikes that don't always match up with what I think, lol.  I ended up getting another coat & two tops.
 I'm pretty sure this is the coat.  I couldn't find it on Macy's website though.
 I think this is one only it's grey not maroon and the belt doesn't come with it.
This one has a tiered polka dot shirt instead of floral but you get the picture.  It's so annoying that they don't have the same things on the website as in the store!

We spent about 2 hours total shopping which burned about 300 calories!  They were practically kicking us out of Anne Taylor.  I got home around 9:30, watched a little tv (I hate that my DVR is so empty this time of year) and was in bed & asleep by 10:30.
 
Daily wrap up:
1. completed 30 fitness minutes, I'm counting some power shopping - goal met, at 1465 now
2. 3 servings of fruits/veggies - goal failed
3. 64 ounces of water...check
4. Tracking: 2208 calories burned - 1277 calories eaten = total 931 calories burned...
5. I had a pretty ok day, nothing stressful but nothing special... - goal met
6. I got on the scale this morning (Wednesday) and came in at 150, so my goal is still met...

12/28/2010

12/27 - Day 36

I'm feeling particularly whiny today.  I was all set to whine about weight loss & lack of exercising but then someone in my office got engaged over the holiday so I want to whine about weddings, so I'll split it up, today weight loss, tomorrow, weddings & how I can't escape them...


Seriously, I hate working out inside my house.  I don't have the motivation to get up off the couch and move my ass on my own but I'm totally game to leave the house for workouts, whether it be going to the gym or running the bike path.  The problem this week is that the weather & gym are not cooperating with me, this snow has totally destroyed my workout schedule!  I can't run outside because it's freezing & snowy/icy so I planned to take a class at the gym & BAM, all classes canceled due to poor road conditions...  I haven't worked out since Wednesday the 22nd and it's not looking promising for me to do anything substantial before Thursday the 6th.  The funniest part is that I hate it, I actually look forward to working out now & I'm annoyed that I know I won't do anything for this long...although I suppose I could just get off my ass & do a damn video...Shana got my a new one for xmas...plus it's really putting the hurt on my eating.  Hopefully I'll be able to squeeze something in soon because I think my body is rebelling, I'm sore for no reason & have a migraine I can't seem to kick.  Luckily I'm still holding strong at 149 so my challenge goals should be ok.


Enough of my bitching...time to recap Monday the snow day...we woke up to lots of snow and very little plowing done.  I am considered essential staff at my job so I assumed I had to go in.  While I got ready Joe went outside to start shoveling out our cars, after about a half hour he came in & told me I should call work to tell them I'd be late.  Our cars were buried and while he would eventually get them out it wouldn't be soon enough for me to get to work by 8:30.  I sent an email to my boss & within minutes received a response to stay home but to be available by email.  Woo Hoo!




Joe also received a call that his store wouldn't be opening until noon so we had a few extra hours at home together.  Lou & Nicole were both off as well so we decided to pool our breakfast food options and eat together at their house.  It was quite the spread.


Nicole cooked everyone omelets and they were delicious!  I'm constantly impressed by what that girl can do, she's a Jill of all trades, not only can she do anything but it's always pretty & professional looking.  I had a ham, onion, tomato & cheese omelet with a side on bacon & 2 slices of whole wheat white toast with butter.
We have an issue with our storm door, sometimes the wind will catch is just right before it closes & whip it so hard that is cracks the door frame, this has happened enough times that now we reinforce the frame with 1x3 and bolts.  We're going to have to replace the whole door soon but this works in the mean time.  At some point during the morning the door broke again.  Joe is not a fan of having to fix it over & over and gets a little angry when it happens so I decided to try and fix the door while he was at work.
the broken wood 
I started by trying to use materials we had at home.  I found a piece of molding in the attic and cut it down to the same size as the broken piece.
After removing the hinge for the door I called my mom in hopes she would tell me the easiest way to get the bolts off.  She suggested a wrench.  I used the orange wrench in the picture below to get the first 3 bolts out, it took about an hour, then Nicole came over to check on me & introduced me to the socket wrench...thanks mom...
We got the last bolt out within a few minutes & started prepping the piece of molding for installation.  Turns out standard molding is not strong enough to do the job.  After cracking the first piece I decided to go to Ace Hardware up the street.  They cut me 3 pieces of 1x3 (in case I screwed one up or for when we have to fix it again) for $1.99 and home I went to try again.  After cracking one of the pieces I got at Ace we finally managed to get the job done.  I love how the sun is streaming in like in celebration of the fantastic job.  Can you hear the angels singing their approval?
I spent the rest of the afternoon watching movies On Demand and eating carmel corn, seriously someone needs to take that tin away from my house.  I started with The Blind Side then Up in the Air, they were good, I would definitely watch them again.  Finally, Leap Year which was cute but cheesy, I would probably let it play in the background while doing laundry or something.


I got a text from Joe around 7 that he was going to meet friends at the Library to eat, drink & watch football so I decided to stop waiting and make myself some dinner.  I had a pork chop & steamed spinach with garlic.
I just thought it was too funny how Ian perched himself on the one spot of clear space on the ottoman.  That's my new bag that Joe's mom got me for xmas behind him, cute right?
Daily wrap up:
1. completed 0 fitness minutes - goal met, at 1435 now
2. 3 servings of fruits/veggies - goal failed
3. 64 ounces of water...check
4. Tracking: 1922 calories burned - 1256 calories eaten = total 666 calories burned...
5. I had a pretty ok day, nothing stressful but nothing special... - goal met
6. I got on the scale this morning (Tuesday) and came in at 149, so my goal is still met plus an lb...

12/27/2010

12/26 - Day 35

It was a snowy Sunday!  The weatherman started talking about the "blizzard" that was heading our way on Saturday night.  For the most part South Jersey doesn't get a lot of snow, we always hear weather reports about how it's going to be the storm of the century and it's never more then a dusting.  I tend to subscribe to the believe it when I see it frame of thinking.  Needless to say when I woke up Sunday to a dusting on the front lawn I was a little bummed I would have to go in to the restaurant.  

Nothing in our fridge looked appetizing so I went in to work without eating.  We were so slow, the snow was getting heavy as the morning wore on and people must have been staying inside...  I made $28 and was home by 11am...  All that down time gave me plenty of opportunity to eat...I managed to only consume 2 slices of toast with butter & jelly.
 first slice had grape
 second was strawberry

I tried to clean up a little and I put our new memory foam mattress pad on the bed.  If I would have realized what a production it was going to be I would have taken pictures.  The pad is vacuum packed & weighs a ton but it is about the best investment we've ever made.  It's seriously so comfortable, your whole body just sinks in, it's so supportive my back actually hurts when I first lay down.  After I had the bed made up I microwaved some leftovers from xmas dinner, ham & broccoli casserole.
Because I've been such a slacker on the picture front I made sure to take some shots of the snow.  This is at about 4pm.  I didn't measure but we must have gotten somewhere between 12 and 18 inches. 
 back deck
 the drift at the back door
 view from the front door, those lit trees are about 12" tall
 The windy snowy weather put me in the mood for some hot chocolate.  I decided to test out some of the butterscotch powder from my Tastefully Simple party.  It was delicious but I'm sure it was worth the calories. I have such an issue with drinking a snack.
We had two pizzas from the restaurant that needed to be cooked for dinner.  They had been in the fridge for a few days so Mike was worried about how they'd come out.  The dough didn't rise very well but it was still tasty.
The snow was still coming down when we went to bed.  I was pretty sure I'd have to go to work in the morning anyway, our department is considered essential staff so we're supposed to go in even during a state of emergency.  Plus it was going to be extra hard to get out of bed with that mattress pad.



Daily wrap up:
1. completed 0 fitness minutes - goal met, at 1435 now
2. 1 servings of fruits/veggies - goal failed
3. 64 ounces of water...check
4. Tracking: 1982 calories burned - 1489 calories eaten = total 493 calories burned...
5. I had a pretty ok day, nothing stressful but nothing special... - goal met
6. I got on the scale this morning (Monday) and came in at 150, so my goal is still met but I need to get back to the gym...I haven't worked out since Wednesday and I feel terrible...

12/26/2010

12/25 - Day 34 - Xmas Day

Merry Xmas!  If ever there was a day I would have loved to skip tracking my calories it would have been this one!  Wait until you see my totals!  It was totally worth it, I had a great holiday!  Joe & I were like little kids, we were up early, our normal time, about 6:30.  We started the morning with mimosas, we've decided to make it a tradition since being in our new house.  I totally had a buzz on before 8am!
We exchanged gifts and were both very happy with the surprises we got each other.  I felt a little bad because I seemed to be opening more gifts then Joe but that's just because I got him fewer, more expensive items.  Here's a shot of my gifts (and the cat).
I'm pretty excited about everything there...the highlights are a seat heater for my car, a couple of games we can use for our NYE party next week, a super cute penguin mug, a spot bot, a memory foam mattress pad, a few sweaters & fleece tops, plus assorted other goodies.
 Like this gorgeous blue topaz ring, I LOVE IT!  I wore it all day with my pajamas.
Almost as soon as we stopped opening presents the cats went to war in the wrapping paper.
We went next door to give our neighbors the few gifts we got for them.  This was Jack's first xmas and although I'm pretty sure he didn't get the whole concept he seemed excited about the new toys.  He really enjoyed the A-Team DVD Lou & Nicole gifted Joe.
We were starting to get ready to eat around 10am so we went to my mom's a little early.  Luckily she had some cinnamon buns ready for us. 
Shana & Bill arrived just before 11 and the boys were surprised to find out that they were wearing matching pajamas!  Shana & I hatched a scheme to all dress alike back on Black Friday and the Joe & Bill didn't seem to mind when they found out so maybe we'll make this another tradition. 
After opening gifts (I got a sewing machine & some workout gear, including a shake weight) we were ready to eat.  My mom made a variety of goodies but I only had the hungry man casserole & ham. 
After all that food we were ready for a nap so we went home for an hour or two before going to Joe's parents for dinner.  Vic & Tammy stopped by with Luke and we exchanged gifts.  Luke was pretty shy but I think he liked the truck Joe picked out for him.  


Before we knew it it was time to head over to dinner.  Joe's parents were very generous & gave us lots of gift cards and other goodies.  Here we are hanging out in the sun room.
There was a bunch of appetizers set out for munching on before dinner.  I had a few crackers with crab dip & and couple of carrots & cucumbers. 
My eyes were bigger then my stomach when dinner was served & I loaded my plate up with ham, cole slaw, sweet potato & broccoli casserole.  I wasn't able to finish all of it so Joe helped with my leftovers.  I was so full I couldn't even think about dessert and really thought I might get sick...luckily I was much better after a little coffee & some water.   
We really had a great holiday!  Probably the best in a few years.  Plus they were forecasting a snow storm for Sunday & Monday!


Daily wrap up:
1. completed 0 fitness minutes - goal met, at 1435 now
2. 3 servings of fruits/veggies - goal failed
3. 64 ounces of water...check
4. Tracking: 2011 calories burned - 2420 calories eaten = total -409 calories burned...it's a holiday but I'm not proud of it & will have to behave this week if I want to meet my 150 goal.
5. I had a day/good night, totally worthy of a relaxing title... - goal met
6. No scale for me for a while...although I may have to check just to see how much work I have ahead of me this week...