Friday!

kettle-bell swings: 10 2-hand, 10 each side, 10 alternating
clean & press 10 ea side
bent over rows 10 ea side
squats 10

Have a good weekend!

All the right moves

Things I  did yesterday:

• Tracked my food on my fitness pal
• Went to the gym
• Washed my face and brushed my teeth - AM and PM (I'm a compulsive tooth brusher but sometimes I do a quickie job with the evening face washing!)

Go me!

I got home late and naturally didn't want to go to the gym, but we'd agreed we were going to have to suck it up, buttercup.  On the way home from PA, T gave me a big talk about how I might get mad at him, but that he was going to remind me how my lack of fitness impacted our trip as he dragged me daily to the gym. The tables were seriously turned yesterday! LOL  But we went and did 15 minutes on the elliptical.

Today I packed my food

Yogurt and lunch meat are snacks, salad and leftover Mexican casserole with brusselsprouts is lunch.

I bought myself a 15 pound kettle bell and it is sitting under my desk. So far today I've done 40 swings and 20 clean and presses.

I am convinced my little choices are going to pay big dividends if I am consistent.

Take care!

Back at it

We are going to the gym this evening.  I am counting calories in my fitness pal.

TGIF

Down 1.8 pounds this week.  We are getting married 8 weeks from tomorrow.  Gah!

Me & my fitness pal

T convinced me to join Myfitnesspal.  They have an app, it makes tracking your food easy, etc.  And I'm sure it does, but I am used to sparkpeople.  I know how to use some of it, but haven't figured out entering my recipes or how to scan food with my phone.  Yes, I've begun tracking my food again. I'm aiming for around 1500 calories a day, but the main thing is to stay accountable ALL DAY. What I don't enter I track on paper.

I'm glad we decided to be responsible and come on home - T got a call yesterday at 5 for an interview today! Woot! I get that for schools, lateral entry candidates are the least desirable simply due to the amount of paperwork - not to mention they are essentially an unproven asset in the classroom, but still... school is right around the corner! :-O  This job search has really gone down to the wire, which is surprising considering how this state is in a teacher shortage.  Worst case scenario, he is approved to substitute teach next year, but obviously a full time gig is a lot more desirable.

So many good things are coming together in my life right now.

Take care!

At home today

I am working at home today and it has been so nice.  I had a couple of things I needed to take care of in the nearby bigger town, and I was able to get that done at lunch. I was able to wash a load of work clothes and make a deposit at the bank.

And that is the down side of working 60 miles from home.  I love my job and I love going into the office, but it's nice to have 1 day to do the little things at lunch.  It lets me focus on the bigger things on the weekend.

Here is a picture of my ring set. Notice Jordan photobombing!  Classic. :-)

Home, again

Well, what used to be my 2 week annual camping trip in PA was 4 days this year (including travel days).  Boo.  But at least I got to go for a bit and see some friends.  We are feeling refreshed and re energized, and spent a good bit of the drive home discussing goals for this year.

1. Now that we've been in the house just over a year, we are fully unpacked, all the rooms are painted, and (except for the bedroom which will happen this weekend), all rooms have curtains up and furnishings and art are set.  I'd still like to purchase some area rugs, but the house is essentially "done."  Next step is to inventory, organize, and declutter.

2. T wants to run the half marathon they have at our event next year. So our goals are to complete a coach to 5K program, then do 5k, 10k, and then finally a half marathon.  I am going to try & do it with him.

3. Continue to work on paying off debt as quickly as possible.

We went into more specifics, but that's the broad outline.  It feels so good to be with someone who is on the same page.  I am a seriously lucky woman.

Take care!

FINALLY

The house in Florida sold!!!!

About last night

There was the healthcare vote (which upset me pretty badly), then my son called asking about his insurance b/c he'd hit himself in the lip with a grinder (stitches), then I got a flat tire a half mile from work. After roadside assistance came, T was nearly to my office - he didn't want me driving that far on the doughnut alone. We agreed to meet at Cracker Barrel for supper. Lady there complimented my earrings - my hand reached up to touch them and I realized one was gone. Then had a lousy meal - order was wrong, the parts that were right the cook put the wrong stuff on the plate, and the hashbrown casserole was only half cooked.

I really wanted nachos & a beer, but I didn't have anything. Go me!

Life in the microwaved sponge

The heat is thankfully leveling off - it's been miserable.

Day 1 of no caloric beverages was successful.  I also managed 30 minutes of exercise.  No snacking last night - I had a god awful stomach ache for some reason - I took some medicine and when I went to bed I still felt crappy, but knew I'd feel better in the morning (which I did).

Tim made an excellent dinner - shrimp louie salad - I highly recommend it. It was lovely to have a cold supper on such a hot day.

Take care.

Challenge this week

Yesterday I decided that I would try to change one thing.  Just one. I thought about my habits - which habit bothered me the most, which habit did I think would be the most impactful? My goal for this week is to not consume any beverages with calories - no beer (real or non alcohol), no wine, no lemonade.  I have a thing of flavored sparkling water for the evenings (no caffeine).

Why this habit?  1) Calories consumed in drinks are probably not as good of a nutritional value. 2) Alcohol and caffeine in the evenings can interfere with my sleep patterns, and I've been having a particularly nasty run of insomnia of late.

It's hot here - like 100.  And this isn't Arizona - our heat is accompanied by humidity.  It's been miserable and my energy level has been non existent. I need to do something to help offset that, and better quality sleep is a good place to start.  

Another week of the dropped blogging ball

It's been a week already?  Whaaaaat??????

T continues to look for teaching jobs.  House deal seems like it will close.  I am still loving my new job.  Life stress seems to be leveling off! Yay!

Busy planning a medieval event for my group in September and a (small) wedding in October. I still have stuff to do to get ready for our (abbreviated) camping trip in PA early next month.  I am struggling to fit exercise in, and we eat out too much.

In short, life isn't perfect, but I'm feeling like my life stress is dropping back down to manageable levels.

Have a good weekend!

TGIF

Jordan says "Happy Friday!"  She went to the doggie spa and they put a bow on her.  I can't tell is she hates it, digs it, or could care less.

Insane weekend

The weekend started when I was less than 5 miles from home Friday night, planning to grab a quick bite and head out. There was an accident right in front of me and I was the only witness to stop. It was clearly the fault of one driver (we had the green light and she made a left turn into oncoming traffic), but I wanted to be sure that 1) they were okay and 2) it wasn't case of the word of 1 driver v the other with no witnesses.  They were okay, but the lady who was hit was pretty shaken (both her airbags deployed) and yes, the other woman tried to say it wasn't her fault.  I ended up waiting 45 minutes for the highway patrol so it was after midnight before we got to our hotel for the night.

The weekend was good but sad.  Alma is slowing down a lot and her memory isn't nearly as good.  This was the first time that she didn't go out to eat with us or stay in the hotel. She did ride down to Pine Mountain and we visited a couple of times.  My son and his gf came down - he hadn't seen Alma in 2 or 3 years. It was a long trip for them, but they turned it into an adventure and saw some stuff nearby, so I was glad. Alma will be 98 in August.  I think she's not happy and ready to go, which is sad but understandable.

We got home Sunday and I cut the very end off my right thumb in the vegetable mandolin, so I spent 4.5 hours at the emergency room.  Ugh. Overall, not the best weekend.

No word on the Florida house, but it's a cash deal so no news is good news?  We got a full price offer, but were already under contract.  And who knows what would have happened.

T got a call from a friend of his parents - he is opening a new restaurant in our area (landlord is kicking him out of the shopping center where he is) and is looking for a kitchen manager.  Since T hasn't gotten much back from the school system, I think he is going to pursue it.  So we'll see what comes of that.

I'm fat.  We went to the gym yesterday.  My boss offered me a cookie this morning and I took it without thinking.  I can't seem to get things together. I feel like a lot is still up in the air, but that's no excuse.

  

Headed south

T is home and resting up after a long drive (twice) and a bunch of yard work.  Mom and I are headed to Georgia as soon as I get home from work to visit my great aunt.  She's 97!

I hope you have a terrific weekend!

Moving on (we hope)

T is on the way home.  The work he did should be enough to satisfy code enforcement. He is exhausted and ready to be home, but feels like he accomplished a lot.

The house is under contract with the flipper for $43K less.  We need to move on.  Fingers crossed that things work out this time.

Happy 4th!

Happy holiday!

T drove to Florida Sunday to deal with the code violations (yard not mowed, pool scuzzy).  It looked terrible.  I'm so thankful he went and I only wish I had agreed and he'd gone a month ago.  In any case, he is getting things squared away.  When my son's friend went over Thursday, there was a code violation letter on the door, so we knew it was urgent that we get that resolved.

It appears that the flipper deal is going through.  We are scheduled to close August 2nd, but will close earlier if we can.  Even though I'm not getting as much money as I would like, I'm thankful we are moving forward.  This allows us to really figure out a budget and prioritize debt repayment, savings, and things we want/need to buy for this house.

T is planning to head home tomorrow.  He's such a great guy.  This is a huge load off my mind.

Enjoy your day!

Is this a home improvement blog?

So we hired a contractor to remove the wallpaper and paint, as well as repair the water damage and paint the ceiling in our bedroom. The impetus for this whole thing was the water damage that insurance was paying for, so we decided to pull the trigger and get the walls done as well.  They only painted where they primed on the ceiling (kinda). I complained so the owner sent a couple of guys out to "fix" it. They half assed it again, and there are paint drips/smears all over my hardwood floors, they didn't cut in, and you can see where they missed spots.

Please note that even though we've asked multiple times, the owner hasn't actually come out to inspect the work his guys did. He offered to send them back out, assured me that the paint will come off the floors (great, you gonna come do that???), and told me how he's losing money on this job.

I guess we will spend our holiday weekend trying to fix this crap so we can move back into our bedroom. I just don't really want the crew back given the mess they've already made on the floor, you know?

Yesterday everything was "poo poo".  It kind of became a joke, but really, I felt like I walked around all day with a cloud over my head.  I don't like feeling that way - I have a lot to be grateful for.  But some days the stress of so many things (house not selling, T's unemployment on the heels of my own), everyday frustrations, etc. just leave me feeling overwhelmed.

I just remind myself it's okay to have those days but to remember that isn't every day.

4th time's a charm?

The house is under contract with the flipper.  He is going to try & schedule the inspection for Friday.  I could use any good thoughts, prayers, whatever.  I need this house SOLD, even if I am letting this guys steal it - I need this over.

The joys of being a grown-up (not)

After discussion, T and I decided to cancel our annual camping trip up to PA.  I am so very bummed, but taking a vacation when we are facing taking a big hit whenever we do manage to sell the house isn't a responsible move.  It's not the trip itself, but we were looking at renting a larger car since ours are both small, plus having to kennel the new dog (Susie) because she is too anxious to spend over a week at my mom's, plus I was taking the time off unpaid - which all added up to a mighty expensive camping trip!

Yesterday I met friends for breakfast, did my grocery shopping, and did the food prep for the week.  Breakfasts are a wrap with my faux gyro flavored ground meat (I had beef in the freezer, so I used that), lunches are bean and guacamole tostadas, snacks are varied: nuts, cheese, yogurt, lunch meat, protein shake, prunes - 200 or so calories of what sounds good that day.

I've quit buying soda at home - I still have one in a restaurant occasionally, but I've cut way back.  So that's good!  At work I drink flavored or sparkling water or unsweetened tea.

T has a job interview starting right this minute - fingers crossed for him!

So yes, we finally set a wedding date! And I didn't realize I didn't post about it, so no wonder you are confused!!!

We were thinking about the end of this year sometime but wanted to see if my son could do it after he got his captain's license.  But he wouldn't be able to in NC, we knew we didn't want a big wedding, we didn't want to elope to Vegas, and we didn't want "just" a JoP downtown.  We were mulling it over in the car on our way to Asheville the weekend before and I popped up and said "If F can't marry us, I'd just like to get married on the beach."  Well, a friend of my son has a friend that is an officiant at the beach! I wanted Columbus Day weekend since it's a long weekend for me and I have virtually no vacation this year since I just started this job.  But T's son was supposed to get married on October 13.  Well, darn if 4 hours later he didn't send a message that they had decided to postpone their wedding a year.

So, we are getting married on the beach on Saturday October 7th!  We are looking at late morning and then going back to my son & gf's house 4 blocks away and having a shrimp boil & seafood & apps for lunch.  And sparkling punch! :-)  It's going to be very small: his parents, sister and BiL, son & fiancee, plus my mom & Jan (ex MIL) and F (my son) and his gf.

So even though there is LOTS of financial stress, life is good. :-)