Searching For My Inner Skinny

Lights, Camera, Action?

2012-01-10T16:33:00.002-06:00

Today was a rough day. I didn't eat like I should have. I've had 4 biscuits with margarine & strawberry low-fat jam. I've also been sipping at a Trop-A-Rocka Diet Snapple. I had a migraine headache last night that kept me up all night. I slept this morning, after taking a cpl Advil, and got a couple of the things done that I needed to do for the day.

I'm considering turning this blog into a video blog. I saved up my money from Christmas and selling some items around the house that I no longer need to keep around. With that money, I got a shiny new laptop! Yay, me!! This laptop is not top of the line, but it IS new and has a webcam built-in. This would make it VERY easy to record videos for posting.

Right now, I'm concentrating a lot on my medical transcription studies. I'm inside of a month of finishing (I believe). So I'm really trying hard to knock out at least a dozen transcriptions every day.

I did see a video over the holiday/winter break that was quite uplifting and inspiring! A gal compared the calories burned by running/jogging against those burned by playing games on the xBox Kinect (Dance Central & Kinect Adventures). I LOVE playing these games on the xBox! I especially enjoy Dance Central! I haven't tried the workout mode on the game, as of yet. So I'm hoping to get started on that soon. The video I watched showed that you could get the same cardio workout (or close) by running/jogging and by playing these games on the xBox. Yay!! I'm NOT a runner, never have been really. Even when I was much younger and in great shape, I was a great sprinter, at best. So I don't believe marathons are in my future, but a night of dancing could be! *grin*

By video blogging, I hope to be able to see on film (of sorts) my complete transformation! I've watched others on this wonderful world web change their bodies and lives and share this journey with anyone willing to watch and/or read about their trek.

Be well friends! I believe I'm going to rest for a bit and try to get rid of the remainder of my headache.

Sometimes it's the little things...

2011-11-16T20:52:00.002-06:00

When I think about how I'm motivated to lose weight and get back in shape, it's not always the most common things that come to mind. There are the normal things like wanting to have more energy, having better fitting (smaller sized) clothing, etc.... But these ideals aren't what really get my mojo going.

Tonight, I took a long bath. As I was laying in the tub, I longed to be able to sink my body underneath the water. Being tall, I've accepted the fact that my legs and my body cannot both be submerged at once, even in a garden tub. But these days, as I'm trying to hold onto the hot water engulfing my body, I'm a little sad that there's 3 sizable islands amongst my watery paradise. And let's not even BEGIN to talk about shaving...

I often am the one in our household who cooks and prepares the evening meal. From time to time, I've been known to don an apron. I've sometimes thought to scenes often played out on the big and small screen. The man comes home to find a candlelit home, delicious smells emanating from the kitchen, and a sensual woman busy setting the table, wearing nothing more than an apron and a smile. This scenario is less than sexy played out in my real life.

Often times my husband and I volunteer our time at a local concession stand. It benefits an organization both of my children are participating in this year. At the end of the night, one of the tasks is to wipe down the counters with a bleach mixture. More times than not, I'm the one doing this task. This past week, as I was cleaning, I got some bleach on a new sweatshirt. Not because I'd spilled it on myself, but because my midsection protruded in such a way as to touch a freshly cleaned countertop. Oftentimes I'm in the same predicament with respect to dining. Forget about putting a napkin in my lap, the food cannot reach my lap unless I am a couple feet from the table and leaning over considerably. So my napkin sits to the side of my plate, or on one or the other leg.

It's the little things like this that really motivate me to get back on the healthy lifestyle track. Sure, I'll admit that clothes and appearance overall DO play a role, but those are more "big things" and not necessarily the small triggers that get you to go back to the starting line. So tomorrow, I'm lining up once again, with all the other racers out there trying to get to the finish line of this battle.

Be well friends!

End of a season, beginning of the next...

2011-07-21T03:27:00.004-05:00

Next week (and this weekend) is the last trip the kids and I will be taking this summer. I wasable to lose ONE pound over the previous vacation, which isn't too bad considering my limited ability to do significant exercise on a boat on the dock or while at Hubby's dad's house where there's stray dogs everywhere (hence making it difficult to go for walks). So on august 1st, our Summer season will have come to a close and it will be time to move on.

The bad thing is the season which is creeping in on my happy summer. Allergy season! (at least, for me) Ragweed season is seeming to be getting an early start this year, which is no surprise given the fact that it has been SO hot this year in our area. I've been sniffling and rubbing my eyes/nose since we were in Oklahoma the first week of July. I know due to some bloating and general stuffiness associated with allergies it makes it harder to lose weight. So I'm planning to step up my efforts and swim for 1 hour and work out at the rec center for another hour. The pool will only be open for about another month and then its bye-bye swim time! I'm debating adding more Kinect time once the pool closes. Man, I wish the rec center had a pool!!

So hard work is ahead, but there's nothing worth getting that isn't worth working hard for.

Tummy troubles...

2011-07-19T06:31:00.003-05:00

I'll try not to be too graphic here, but I KNOW someone out there in the big bad blogosphere must know what I'm talking about. Every since I started dieting/moving towards a healthier lifestyle my stomach seems to be EXTREMELY sensitive!

For the record, I LOVE a good steak! And my husband cooks a GREAT steak! But if I eat more than 3-4 oz of steak I am in the bathroom all night!! I have to take anti-gas pills a couple of times if I touch broccoli. If I happen to enjoy a nice hamburger its as if I'd have eaten my steak and that of every one else at the table. And beans...let's just NOT go there.

Now I'm aware the an aging stomach can come with complications, and having extra weight on me makes me physiologically-speaking older than my numerical years, but come on people!! It seems that years ago when I was far less concerned about my expanding waistline and food choices, I was not plagued with these maladies.

Just yesterday I enjoyed some broccoli in a buffalo chicken salad I'd made at home. Both of my children decided to spend the night elsewhere, so it was just me and the hubby. I'd been feeling pretty well most of the day, and had taken some anti-gas meds earlier in the day. I thought my worries had been thwarted. So hubbs and I headed upstairs to watch some TV (Netflix) and enjoy the evening after having some homemade pizza for supper (buffalo chicken and pepperoni-2 different pizzas, I also fed the 16 yr old boy I call my son...hehe). I'd only had about 3 pieces of pizza and again, things seemed to be going well. I struggled to keep my eyes open through three episodes of a miniseries we'd chosen to watch (it was very interesting, but I'd been busy all day and was fading quickly).

We came down to bed around 10:30pm and I was ready to call it a day. Shortly after beginning a rerun of Two and a Half Men, the Hubby starts to make his move. He was somewhat upset that we hadn't gotten frisky upstairs, seeing as how we were alone in the house and not restricted to fooling around behind a locked door. I was just too tired! I'd cleaned, exercised, and done some med trans that day and crammed a lot of activity into my awakened hours. I would have been happy to oblige his requests had I simply laid around and watched TV all day without barely lifting a finger to put the house back together. Then I went to the bathroom. Sadly it was not just that last pee before bed, this was somewhat of a matter with a definite purpose being conveyed to me with some urgency by my stomach. I proceeded to make three trips to the "little girls' room" in just about 15 minutes. I took some more anti-gas pills and went to bed. Hubby asked what was wrong and I simply whimpered, "My tummy isn't feeling so great." He didn't try and make any more moves.This certainly was not helping me get in "the mood" for ANYONE and I think he got the nonverbal message. I'd hoped my ails were gone for the day/night. I woke up a couple of times in the night, but just to get rid of the water I'd drank to try and rehydrate myself right before bed and after the multiple trips to the bathroom.

This morning I awoke for what I determined to be the final time around 6:00am. I went to the kitchen and knowing my previous night's tummy troubles, decided to have a glass of tea this morning in lieu of milk. Dairy is NOT my friend after a rough tummy night. I proceeded to make three trips to the bathroom in quick succession. Again, my butt is ON FIRE! What the heck!?!? You'd have thought I ate 3 steaks, topped with bacon wrapped cream cheese stuffed jalapenos, and finished it off with a big helping of beans and steamed broccoli. So today I'm sticking to a bland diet of lots of water and plain sandwiches. I'd wanted to make some Étouffée or Jambalaya for supper, but I think I might have to pass.

Am I doomed to eat a bland diet for the rest of whatever unless I team it up with large servings of anti-diarrhea and anti-gas meds? OR should I just pour me a pretty pink glass of Pepto every time I choose to enjoy one of the "no-no foods?"

Vacations and diets?

2011-07-06T13:22:00.002-05:00

These are two words that simply should NOT ever be grouped together! But sadly, they must be if I plan to continue on my path to a healthier size and life. I don't think this trip its going to be all that difficult to maintain a healthier lifestyle, though. It seems when dear hubby is along, I eat a lot better. True it could be in part due to the fact that he has those lovely judging looks that bore through my junk food appetite.

I have spent a fair amount of time swimming and coasting around in the water, not laps, mind you...but still movement. And then there's the daily (sometimes a couples times daily) trek to the bathrooms. There IS a bathroom on the boat but if I'm going to be indisposed for a bit I tend to shy away from using the one on the boat. You know, if its yellow let it mellow..if its brown, walk to the regular bathrooms. Or something like that. ha!

I'm thrilled to report that this year the marina has WiFi!! Yay!! So I can get on facebook when bored, keep up with my check-ins to my food/exercise planner, as well post a blog or two from vacation.

Well, the dear husband is getting bitchy about the various little messes lurking around the boat, so I'd better go do some picking up....or I could conveniently need to make another trek up the hill. Decisions, decisions...

Something fun for the 4th

2011-07-01T13:02:00.001-05:00

Decided to change up my nails for the 4th of July week coming up

What do you think?

Don't you just hate that?!?!

2011-06-30T11:42:00.002-05:00

You know when you hear from skinny people that you'll feel SO much better about yourself and your day if you exercise regularly? I HATE it when they're right! Ha!

This morning I continued my swimming exercising, but I amped it up a bit and went for 20 laps instead of 12-15. In total is took my about 40 minutes to complete. My eyes are still a bit stingy from the experience, even though I got a pair of goggles the other day. But truth be told, I DO feel better!

I weighed this morning before heading out and even saw that I was down 2.5 lbs this week!! Yay!!

I'm meeting some friends for lunch this afternoon, and still have a LOT of cleaning to do before heading out on vacation Sunday, but I'm confident that I can keep this trend going!

Going it alone...sort of...

2011-06-28T09:44:00.002-05:00

Weight loss, I've been told, is always easier when you have someone to make the journey with, as opposed to going it alone. Well, my family is less than enthusiastic about joining me at the local rec center on a regular basis. One of my close friends around here usually sleeps late as she has trouble sleeping at night. So I've decided I'll go at it alone, sort of. I say "sort of" because I have my Facebook and blog friends/family to encourage me as well. But don't fret! I'm not discouraged at all! I'm finding my inner strength and pushing forward.

My sleep schedule has somewhat normalized this week. I'm going to bed around 9:30-10pm and getting up between 5am-6am in the mornings. I usually check my online games and messages, then do a little personal bible study, then its off to exercise! This morning I spent some time at the rec center, then headed to the neighborhood pool for laps. The only other person awake this morning was my loyal hound, Daisy Mae (a chihuahua). But no worries, it allowed me to gather my thoughts and plans for the day in relative silence.

I go on vacation next week with the kids, Hubby, and my parents. We'll be on a houseboat for a week and then the kids, Hubby, and I will head to NW Arkansas for an additional week. It'll be difficult, for sure, to keep in a good state of mind and motivation, but I'm sure I can do it!!

Choosing the more healthful alternative isn't always the most popular, but I KNOW I'm going to feel SO much better as the pounds melt away and my health improves overall!

Summer Fun

2011-06-27T16:52:00.001-05:00

So every now and then I like to indulge in a little harmless art work. Lots of my friends go to the nail salon a LOT to have their nails done. Mostly there's a lot of French manicures running around here. But lately I decided I wanted to do something more fun and funky. And seeing as how its summer in Texas, I felt I needed an appropriate color, or rather colors, to adorn my fingers.

I did all the colors separately and without guides. Yellow, orange, pink, and red. Then I let them set overnight and I then drew on the palm trees by hand (far more difficult on the right hand...eek!). Afterwards I covered it all with a clear coat of polish.

Just keep swimming...

2011-06-27T06:51:00.004-05:00

Yesterday was a better day, for sure! Instead of rockin' out the xBox or Wii, I instead went to the neighborhood pool and swam some laps in the pool. I did the backstroke, breaststroke, sidestroke, and front crawl (aka freestyle). Swimming has always been a favorite activity of mine and so I thought this would be a great way to exercise. The pool opens at 8:00am, so I think I'm going to do the same today. I consider myself to be a good swimmer, but this really took it out of me! I was winded after two laps. I'm not going to lie, this kind of made me sad and feeling somewhat defeated. But I went on and pushed through.

I wanted to go to the rec center with the rest of the family, but they didn't care to go yesterday, so we just stayed home and hung out. I have lots of errands to do today, so I'm hoping that I can remain optimistic and keep going on a positive track.

Makeup days and excused absences

2011-06-26T06:49:00.003-05:00

I remember in school we had excused and unexcused absences. If you had a note, the absence was excused and you were allowed a makeup day for any work you'd missed. If unexcused, well you were pretty much outta luck. I don't really think diets have excused and unexcused absence days. Don't get me wrong, everyone always has plenty of excuses as to why they didn't stick with their diet, but I don't think many of them are valid excuses.

Yesterday, I had an unexcused absence. I know I can't make up for the lost progress. At the same time I cannot allow myself to torture my will power into giving up altogether. I watched a friend of mine's elementary school aged children (9 and 10). We went to the pool, but we drove there (when we could have easily had walked). While there, I got in the pool and just sat there, telling myself the water was a little chilly and rather than swim mini-laps I needed to focus my attention on the children. After the pool, we went and got pizza. I know that I could have still maintained my healthier choices by only having a slice or two and making sure my choices of toppings were not dripping with grease, neither of which did I do.

So today I start anew, while telling myself that yesterday cannot get me down. I simply need to make better choices today. I joined the local rec center two days ago. I went for a 25 minute workout that day. They don't open until 12pm on Sunday, so it looks like I'll be waiting to go until this afternoon. I'm hoping I can talk the rest of my family into joining me on today's visit. This morning, since the dog and my husband woke me up early, I'm going to take advantage of my current state. I think I'll hop in the bath, shave my legs, and go upstairs to work out on the Wii or xBox 360 for a bit. In fact, EA Active is calling my name this hour.

Be well friends!

Schedules

2011-06-24T05:00:00.002-05:00

I've never really been one for following strict schedules, but when I keep a list and plan a schedule I tend to stick with it. So I need to come up with a schedule for my days at home. I just have to decide what my daily activities will be. I know I need to incorporate work on my medical transcription, eating/snacks (healthy options, not crap), cleaning around the house, exercise, and just plain personal time.

There's now a recreation center in my town and not too terribly far away. I'm considering paying for a family membership (its far less expensive to go with that option rather than individual memberships for 3 of us) and making that my gym. Then on days that I can't get to the gym for whatever reason, doing things around the house for exercise or simply going for a nice walk.

I'm not happy with my body or my energy level, and no one is going to do anything about it but me. So over the next couple of days, I'll be planning a schedule for myself.

Be well friends!

Surgery wonders

2011-06-23T15:12:00.001-05:00

I'm accompanying a friend to a doctor's appointment tomorrow. She's seeing a local bariatric surgeon to consider a lap-band procedure. She said the office already checked, and her insurance will cover all of it.

I'm not proud to say that I'm at a new high weight. I doubt my insurance will cover as much as hers will, but it'll be interesting to sit in on the appointment nonetheless.

I need to get moving! That's my problem. I've been listening to a taped message at night that is essentially a subliminal recording designed to motivate you to exercise.

If you have any tips to keep you daily committed to exercising, please share them with me!

Thanks friends!

How do I get my groove back?

2011-03-22T14:26:00.003-05:00

Its been about a week since my last workout. Last week was a tough one. My grandmother passed away and it hit me harder than I originally thought it would. I haven't been eating lots of junk food to comfort me, I've never really been an emotional eater. But tonight I am getting back on track and back into my workout routine. I'm quite sure it'll be difficult and my muscles will be screaming out to me by the end of it, but I must continue if I want to get to a healthier place in my life.

In the near future I'm looking forward to many celebrations! My son's 16th birthday is just around the corner. My daughter's confirmation at church is just about a month away. My family's annual mother's day camping trip is coming up soon. And then my daughter's birthday and the end of another school year. Things are moving pretty fast this year and I'm confident that if I work hard and keep the faith in my workouts, I can run fast enough to keep up!

Be well friends!

Butt Kickin' Workouts

2011-03-09T07:44:00.003-06:00

So my latest foray into the wonderful world of workouts has been EA Active 2 for the xBox 360 with Kinect. I figured I managed pretty well with the original EA Active for the Wii, this shouldn't be too much more intensive. I WAS WRONG!!!

I am fully appreciative of the increased workout I'm getting, don't get me wrong. This game is kickin' my butt!!! I'm on day two of the workouts, and both days I've downed 2 bottles of water just during the course of the 20-23 minutes of the exercising routines. I'm hopeful that this game will also motivate my posterior to lose a few inches as well. Ha!

I've been watching what I'm eating much better lately as well. This year for lent I was originally going to give up Cokes, but my husband pointed out to me last night that I don't drink that many of them to begin with. So I think instead I will be giving up drive-thru fast food. This will be pretty difficult to accomplish, but with good planning I think I can pull it off even with several small trips coming up.

Be well, friends!

Out of town, but not out of touch

2011-02-23T22:51:00.002-06:00

So this weekend I found out that my grandmother's health was looking less than pleasant. So I decided (hubby and I decided) that I'd take a little road trip down South to visit with her. I've been keeping up with a food journal with the help of the Lose It app on my iTouch.

I don't have my Wii or xBox Kinect with me down here, so today after I had lunch in the park I decided to take a nice long walk around the park. It was wonderfully relaxing and the weather couldn't have been better!! The only downside is I completely forgot about the fact that I had a tank top on and NO SUNSCREEN. Ugh! So I'm a little sunburned, but I'm not going to sweat it, guess it just means I'm starting to get some color on my shoulders a little earlier this year. hehehe

I'm planning on going back over and visiting with my grandmother, aunts, and uncle tomorrow and probably Friday. I'm so happy that I took the opportunity to make this trip! It's truly been a wonderful experience so far!

The Year of Me

2011-02-21T06:27:00.001-06:00

This year I have decided that honesty is the ONLY policy! And in that spirit, here goes...

I have been a slacker! I have not worked out with any consistency for the better part of a year. I have not watched what I ate. I have touched my feet to the scales maybe all of 3 times in the last 6 months (each time cringing at the numbers that flashed before me).

I have to be honest with myself! I have been bad. I'm not helping myself or my health with this largely apathetic attitude.

Yesterday I had a WONDERFUL workout! I did EA Active (Wii), Dance Central (xBox Kinect), Kickboxing (xBox Kinect), and Dance Dance Revolution (Wii). It felt great! I need to find a way to remind myself that though I might struggle to get through some of the workouts while they're happening (namely EA Active), I always feel fantastic after having completed them.

I've recently enlisted the help of my Red/Pink Hat Society ladies to better motivate me to keep in a regular workout schedule. We have planned workouts 2-3 days a week, held at my house. I'm hopeful that this added accountability to someone local will help to boost my will power and put thinner days well within my grasp.

Be well friends!

Oh the drama....

2010-11-02T03:05:00.002-05:00

So my son is 15 years old and has recently been seeing a girl that is 17. This past weekend he went to her Halloween party. While only there a short while he texted me and told me "not to get too comfortable" as he wasn't having the best time there. Apparently this girl sees my son as mainly in the "friend zone." One of his good friends is who she's really interested in, but the dude is a real stand up guy and went with the "bro code" and laid off as he knows my son is really into her.

The night eventually got better and I picked him up several hours after that first text. Upon picking him up we talked about what happened at the party. Let me preface this by saying, you should all know that NOTHING is off limits with my kids. We talk about EVERYTHING and are quite proud of our open-door policy. So he goes on to tell me that he believes "kids" shouldn't be having sex in high school(specifically until after they're 18 yrs old), "there's enough crap to deal with without having to do that!" I almost cried in the car!! I love that he is thinking about this in a very mature manner!!! I had "the talk" with him when he was 10 yrs old when we caught him looking up "girls having sex" on the Internet. I pulled no punches and told him all that I could. I told him it is not a horrible thing, his curiosity was a normal part of life, and that it can be a great thing shared between two people. I also told him how it can be very superficial and dangerous both physically and emotionally. We've had more "talks" through the years and recently my husband and I bought him a box of condoms. I've told my children that I do not expect them to wait until they are married to have sex, but I DO expect them to wait until they are married to have UNPROTECTED sex!

I'm sure most all parents will agree with me that I hate to see my children struggle with relationships, be they platonic or romantic. I'm just very happy to see that all those talks did good and my son listened and took it all in, instead of rolling his eyes and thinking about what else he could be doing instead of listening to his mom prattle on.

Measuring up

2010-10-14T15:56:00.003-05:00

Tomorrow I'm going to start an all new 30-day challenge on EA Active on the Wii. I think before I begin though, I'll start by taking my measurements. They might not be the most attractive numbers in the world, after its done, but they're a starting point. Then at the end of the time I'll measure again and see what, if any changes have come about.

I hope to see several inches having been dropped! I have been making some clothing lately, as part of my being a member of the Red Hat Society means wearing lavender. I don't own a lot of lavender clothing, and that color is a little difficult to find in the Fall/Winter. So I've taken to sewing up some proper shirts, dresses, PJs, and such for myself!! And I must say, I've liked the way they've all turned out and I know they're at a fraction of the cost that I would have paid for something comparable at any department store or the like.

Spoiled?

2010-09-30T01:41:00.003-05:00

For today I'm going to take a little aside from talk of dieting and exercise and write about something that has been heavy on my mind and REALLY having doing a number on my moods as of late.

So when you grew up never having heard the word budget how to you become a frugal adult? I wouldn't say I was an overindulged youngster. (Hmmm...is that what all spoiled kids say? Ha!) I wasn't really into labels growing up. In my household I don't ever remember seeing the 'rents balancing a checkbook or making a grocery list from a store circular. I went to college right out of high school (OK, Jr college) and towards the end of my freshman year I met the man that would become my husband the next fall. This man had been on his own for 6 years (out of his parents' home, with student loans, a job, and a weekend warrior with the Army Reserves. Man, talk about grown up!!

During our first few years I thought I was Superwoman and could do the whole budget, keeping house, keeping up with the bills, and be the best wife and mother EVER thing. We wound up in the red in the bank and having the biggest fight we'd had up to that point. I couldn't do it and that crushed me. Sadly, with my husband's growing salary I thought we could live high on the hog and soon learned that this was not the case. We still needed to budget and I needed to NOT spend so much of our money!

But how do you learn to budget when you've never been taught and seems like every inch of your fiber is fighting against it?!?! I know things would be much better between the Hubby and I if I could master this task. And I know that I would be a happier person and likely feel more like I am contributing in a tangible way to this household.

I feel like a small child when I want to grab a bite to eat for lunch away from the house when I'm on my own during the day. I feel like I should go home and sit in a time out chair or do some other penance for my misdeeds. I sold several bags of books to Half Price Books and find myself having to explain myself for buying my son dinner before he heads off to do chains for a JV football game instead of making him wait until he gets home 4-5 hours later to eat something. How do I change my way of thinking about money and budgets without feeling like I'm changing who I am? How do I stop crying and alienating my husband every couple of days because I feel like I can't measure up to his idea of a good manager of our money?

You're getting sleepy...sleeepyyyy....

2010-09-29T02:40:00.005-05:00

So the other day I was wandering around Half Price Books waiting for my couple of dollars for the boxes of books I'd brought in when I found myself in the "Audiobooks" section. One of the CDs I perused was on hypnotism to help you stay on your diet. I didn't buy it, mostly because I'm somewhat of a skeptic when it comes to all things hypnotic. Supposedly this thing was supposed to help teach you how to go into a "trance," overcome cravings, keep yourself motivated to stick with your diet, encourage rethinking about exercise, and more. Something along the lines of this.

I won't lie to you...I almost DID grab it up to see if it'd do anything to help. I've stuck with my weight loss path pretty well recently. Through migraines, sickness, etc...I've managed to workout on a regular basis and say NO to many tempting food stuffs! Yay me!!

OK, anyway, back to what I was saying...in the past I've gotten CDs that you're supposed to listen to at night that help you subliminally be excited to exercise and motivate you in general. But my problem is that I don't sleep alone. There's that pesky Hubby in bed next to me most nights. And because of this cohabitant I would have to use ear buds/earphones to listen to anything "in my sleep," as he wants it silent and as dark as we can get it in the room for an optimal sleeping environment. I'd use ear buds, but I have to tell you I have a somewhat irrational fear that I'm going to get the cord wrapped around my neck and be strangled to death. For the record, I do NOT want to kick the bucket before I get laser hair removal on my chin/neck...Hubby's threatened to "let it grow" postmortem. I DO NOT want THAT look at my funeral!!! ICK!!

So I'm curious if there's any of you out there in the blogosphere that have any opinions concerning hypnotism for more than just embarrassing yourself at a stage show or laughing at your friends when they start clucking like a chicken every time the dryer bell dings.

Pink hats

2010-09-23T07:12:00.004-05:00

This past week I joined a new group! A friend of mine asked me if I'd like to come over to her house for some fun and friendship. I jumped at the opportunity (as getting out of the house and being more social has kinda been a thing of mine these days) and headed over. I soon found out this was no ordinary group. These were some WONDERFUL gals!! The group is called "Disorganized Divas" and actually a chapter of the Red Hat Society!

For those who might have heard of the Red Hats but don't know anything about them, I'll let you know a little something. From my understanding its a social group of ladies. The ladies over 50 wear royal purple and red hats. Anyone joining who is younger than 50 wears lavender and a pink hat. So that makes me a Pink Hat. They get together for meals, shopping, vacations, and just to be together. So far they have been LOADS of fun!! I went over to our Queen's house for pizza, companionship, and karaoke that first night. Then yesterday I met with some of the ladies from our group and another group for lunch downtown.

We laughed SO much and had a fabulous time!! They gave me a little ribbing for ordering a salad at lunch, but ah well...all in good fun.

The Red Hats are a worldwide organization and such a great group of women! If you have the opportunity I would suggest finding one for yourself in your area. I can say with all confidence that I believe I've made some life long friends (and possibly even a workout buddy! Yay!!).

Move It! Move It!

2010-09-17T15:47:00.003-05:00

One thing I've discovered over the years I've been searching for that tricky little thing I call skinny is that I LOVE to dance!! The great thing is that dancing is a GREAT work-out when you really get in to it. Usually I'll just work on Dance, Dance Revolution, which has their own song list. but sometimes I like to do step aerobics to my own songs on Wii Fit. Here's my workout song list, its pretty varied (don't judge..ha!) and includes current songs as well as some older tunes.

3 - Britney Spears
4 Minutes - Madonna & Justin Timberlake
1985 - Bowling for Soup
Ain't No Other Man - Christina Aguilera
Alejandro - Lady Gaga
All Star - Smashmouth
Anywhere USA - PYT
Baby Don't Forget My Number - Milli Vanilli
Back in Time - Huey Lewis & The News
Bad Romance - Lady Gaga
Beat It - Michael Jackson
Black or White - Michael Jackson
Blah Blah Blah - Ke$ha
Break the Ice - Britney Spears
Bulletproof - La Roux
Bye Bye Bye - N*Sync
California Gurls - Katy Perry
Can't Hold Us Down - Christina Aguilera
Candyman - Christina Aguilera
Celebration - Kool & The Gang
Check On It - Beyonce
Circus - Britney Spears
Cold Hearted Snake - Paula Abdul
Cruel Summer - BLESTeNATION
Dance Dance - Fall Out Boy
Dirrty - Christina Aguilera
Dirty Little Secret - All American Rejects
Disturbia - Rihanna
Down - Jay Sean
Dynamite - Taio Cruz
Electric Avenue - Eddy Grant
For Your Entertainment - Adam Lambert
Gimme More - Britney spears
Girlfriend - Avril Lavigne
Gonna Make You Sweat - C&C Music Factory
Gotta Get Through This - Daniel Bedingfield
Hangin' Tough - New Kids On The Block
Hey Ya! - Outkast
Hips Don't Lie - Shakira
Hurts so Good - John Cougar Mellencamp
I Can See Clearly Now - Jimmy Cliff
I Like It - Enrique Iglesias
If You Seek Amy - Britney Spears
Imma Be - Black Eyed Peas
Jump - Van Halen
Just Dance - Lady Gaga
Let's Get Loud - Jennifer Lopez
Let's Get Rocked - Def Leppard
Locomotion - Kylie Minogue
Love Game - Lady Gaga
Low - Flo-Rida
Magic - Selena Gomez
Me Against The Music - Britney Spears
Music - Madonna
My First Kiss - 3OH!3
OMG - Usher
Party For Two - Shania Twain
Please Don't Stop The Music - Rihanna
Poker Face - Lady Gaga
Pour Some Sugar On Me - Def Leppard
Push It - Salt-N-Pepa
Rise above It - Lock, Stock, & Barrel
Rock That Body - Black Eyed Peas
See You Again - Miley Cyrus
Secy Back - Justin Timberlake
Shake That - Eminem
Smack That - Akon
Step By Step - New Kids On The Block
Suddenly I See - KT Tunstall
This Ain't A Scene - Fall Out boy
Tik Tok - Ke$ha
U + Ur Hand - Pink
Up! - Shania Twain
Walking on sunshine - Katrina & The Waves
We Got The Beat - The Gogo's
Yeah! - Usher
You Can Leave Your Hat On - Tom Jones
You shook Me All Night Long - AC/DC
Your Love Is My Drug - Ke$ha

That's the total 79 songs, which is WAY more than I'd probably need in any one workout session. Although, if I REALLY get into it, you never know! Ha! Do you have a song list that pumps you up and keeps you going? Is music even a motivator for you while you're "in the zone" of calorie burning?

Mixing It Up

2010-09-17T10:45:00.003-05:00

Recently I have to say I've been doing pretty well with my weight loss. I got on the Wii Fit this morning and had lost 0.4 lbs since last week. No, its not exactly anything to write home about. Yet, I feel considering the fact that I've been sick over the past week, its a success nonetheless!

One of the things I've been trying to do is to mix it up with my food choices. Money is SUPER tight around our house right now, so eating out has definitely been cut from the budget!! I'm eating at home every day!! And in order to keep myself from getting bored with the same things every day, I have to search out new recipes that are tasty, filling, and still healthy for my personal goals.

I have MANY cookbooks around the house, but also get the magazine Cooking Light delivered to the house. So monthly, I thumb through my periodical in search of something yummy. Here's some examples of recipes I've discovered and found to be SUPER delicious.

Chicken stuffed with spinach and feta

(above is the dish cooking)

Chicken stuffed with spinach & feta cheese
served with brown rice and green beans

Tuna Salad in a Pita
ingredients:
Tuna (canned in water)
Craisins
Celery
Green Grapes
Dill Pickle Relish
Light Mayo
Ranch Dressing
Hard Boiled Eggs

Another treat that just doesn't photograph as well, is Sugar Free Jell-O mixed with Fat-Free Cool Whip. I just combine the two in a bowl and stir together gently. I usually cube the Jell-O and add it to a bowl then add in the Cool Whip. This is a delicious light afternoon snack or great somewhat impromptu dessert.

All of these things have been super tasty and very filling!! Do you have any recipes that work for you that are budget, taste, and weight loss friendly?

Happy dieting?

2010-09-14T05:24:00.005-05:00

I've known many women who have dieted, some have been successful...others not just yet. One thing I have come to notice is that dieting seems to change people in more ways than physically. This phenomenon also changes you emotionally. I have come to notice that larger gals, myself being one of them tend to get pigeon-holed into a certain role. We are expected to be jovial, in a sense. I think its kind of a "Santa Claus Syndrome" where you are expected to laugh fully and be a vessel of happiness to all around you. Even thumbing through a Lane Bryant catalog, most of the women appear to be smiling.

Then I catch a glimpse of a fashion show on TV supposedly aimed at the every woman (saw it on the View) and not a single model is smiling. If I do achieve somewhat of skinny status someday, am I to be doomed to not smile if trying to look fashionable? Why are they always looking so upset and unhappy? I know women who have lost weight and it seemed a little more of their bitchiness came out. Now, far be it from me to say that I can't bitch out with the best of them. I just don't think its excused as easily when I'm heavier.

So I wonder is does this transition into a less positive attitude always happen when losing weight? I can say that I have known people who are still just as happy and fun folks be they heavy or thin, so I do not say this as a blanket statement. I guess I'm saying I'd just like to see the occasional professional fashion model smiling on the catwalk.

Do you know people whose personalities seemed to change with their dress size?

Be back soon

2010-09-13T08:12:00.001-05:00

This post will be a short one. I've been doing well with my eating and keeping everything in a food journal. I have not been doing well with exercise, however. The reason for this is that I've been sick. Ick! So, I've assured Hubby that if I don't get to feeling better later today, I'll go to the doctor tomorrow. It's been a miserable mess if stuffiness, headaches, sore throat, fever, and overall feeling of yuckiness for about three days. Here's hoping things improve today.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Stay on track

2010-09-08T20:07:00.002-05:00

It's not always easy to stay the course when you feel like you're on a weight loss plan by yourself in a house. Last night I did manage to get hubby to do 30 minutes of yoga (had to convince him that doing so naked would only make me laugh hysterically and throw off his balance).

Again this morning I woke up around 4:30am. The only difference was this time I stayed awake all day instead of taking a 2-3 hour nap mid-day as I did yesterday. I've been going to bed around 10pm every night, so I guess by then my body is just done sleeping for the evening. Ah well. I've gotten out of bed in the morning rather than try to fight it because it seems like in the past when I have gone back to sleep I've just laid around the house all day and gotten absolutely NOTHING done at all!

I've been keeping my food diary on my iPod, so I'm pleased with that facet of this process. I didn't pick the best food choices today, but I have managed to stay under my calorie goal by about 600 calories. I've tried to at least have a bagel in the morning for breakfast, or a s*** fast shake, so I get things going early on. I know all too well that skipping breakfast can only hurt you rather than help you when trying to lose weight.

Tonight I think I'll do some Wii Fit Plus yoga, a little strength training, and then finish up with some step aerobics. Now that I have songs on my iPod again, I want to take full advantage of the upbeat newly added tunes.

I think I'll take the movies back to Blockbuster tonight, too...that way I can get the next set in the mail and get the new ones that come out next Tuesday when I'm ready to trade out again.

Postings everywhere!!

2010-09-07T05:49:00.004-05:00

Welcome to my new tool box! Yes, Post-Its/sticky notes! I have put then up all over the house to remind me to do little things throughout my day. =) One of the messages greeting me at every corner says this:

As I mentioned before, I do better at keeping up with weight-loss related items if I blog on a regular basis. So that should explain this one.

The next is also kind of self-explanatory.

This one is the most prevalent in my household. I think I have one or two in almost every room in the house. This morning it seemed to do the trick, and I'm hoping that it will continue to do so later in the day when I go for workout-round 2. I'm trying to mix up my workouts these days, so I don't get so burn-out so quickly and just let it fall by the way-side. This morning I started with some yoga, followed by a little cardio dance instruction courtesy of a Dancing With The Stars DVD. This afternoon I think I'll hit the EA Active "game" on the Wii. Then I'll follow it all up with some Dance Dance Revolution this evening.

Here's the last post it:

Again, kind of self-explanatory. We seem to have a problem with achieving a steady stream of finished laundry in this house. I placed one of these by all the hampers in the house (master bathroom, son's room, daughter's room), on the wall in the kids' bathroom, and on the door that leads to the laundry room. By doing this I'm hoping that at least three loads of laundry will get done every day. I know that may seem like a lot, but eventually it'll even out and we'll have to do less (I hope!). And for the record, I already started my load today.

I'm thinking I'll make some chicken salad for lunch today and have it with some pita bread. I LOVE that stuff!! If it turns out to taste super yummy, I'll post the recipe. I think its one I took out of a magazine.

Be well friends!

Time management

2010-09-06T14:37:00.004-05:00

I have recently acquired a new laptop. Well, sort of. My mother-in-law seems to have this thing for buying electronics. They're kind of disposable for her. She bought the one I'm talking about and then one day discovered that it no longer turned on. So she put it aside and went and got another one.

With my penchant for laptop repair, hubby thought he'd bring it home and see if I could diagnose and fix the problem. Knowing already that it wouldn't turn on, I decided first to check the battery. I took the battery off of my laptop and plugged it in (as my battery was fully charged). And wah-lah! We have start-up! Turns out the problem was simply that the laptop wasn't recognizing the AC adapter. So I went about dismantling the case to get to the appropriate plug. I got to it, sort of...its encased in plastic that I was unable to free it from without probable serious permanent damage.

So comes the chance for some serious time management. With a fully charged battery, I have just under 4 hours of life on this portable life support machine I call a laptop. Ha! Yes, I could go upstairs and play around on the desktop PC up there, but I'm trying to save that one for business purposes only. So I am resigning myself to cutting down the time I spend "plugged in" to the virtual world I keep in my head and on the Internet. This should help me with my exercise routine as well. If I'm not always on a computer, then I will have time available to do other things.

For more years than I can remember, when I've asked hubby what he wants for his birthday, he has responded with: "a clean house and a BJ." So this year, seeing as how we are in a cash tight situation for the time being, I've decided to give him just that! So today the kids and I are busy cleaning the house and organizing things. I even got the kids to help me move a non-working car out of the garage so I could get another dresser and move it into our bedroom for more storage room. I'm kind of good at the second part of that request, and even enjoy it, so that shouldn't be a problem either (after the kidlets get tucked into bed for the evening and the appropriate doors locked...ha!).

Another advantage of this new scheduling adjustment in my days is more time to keep the house clean! This is another constant request from hubby. And truth be told, I do feel more at peace when habitating in a tidy abode. *grin* Just don't tell hubby!! Ha!

So I'm off to take care of some other online duties, before my timer runs out and this contraption starts yelling at me telling me the battery's about to go out on me; then its off to more cleaning. He'll be home in just under 2 hours after all!

Good luck in all your endeavors, friends!

She lives!!!

2010-09-05T05:51:00.002-05:00

This past month, August, has not been one of my better months, I must admit.

Kyle and I had an unfortunate, but altogether necessary, financial "come to Jesus meeting," which ending in my "voluntarily" surrendering of the credit cards. My neighbor and good friend's mother passed away. My old maid great aunt passed away. And to top it off, I fell HARD off the weight loss wagon.

At one point this month I thought I'd made a real breakthrough! I had started consistently using Dance Dance Revolution on the Wii as a workout tool. I'd dance for about 30-40 minutes a day. I kept this up for about 10 days without missing a single day. Some days I even managed to work in an hour or more with this new trend I was starting for myself. Then death hit across the street. I was spending so much time doing whatever I could to help out a friend (pick up family at the airport, shop for upcoming birthday presents, pick up and pay for food for the reception to follow funeral services, etc...) that I'd stopped making time to work out. School was about to start for the kids and I thought this would offer me the time I was looking for to get back into it.

The first day of my kids' new school year hubby and I were headed to South Texas for the visitation and funeral services for my aunt. We stayed in a hotel overnight and then came home to a lot of busy days. We got back to the house early Tuesday (Aug. 24th) evening and then Wednesday (Aug. 25th) evening I had a meeting at the church for this year's confirmation class. On Friday (Aug. 27th), there was a Meet the Pirate night scheduled (a scrimmage football game and fundraising opportunity for the AFJROTC at the high school) that I was fated to attend and help out with. The next Monday (Aug. 30th) was Meet the Teacher night at both the high school and junior high. Of course, they were both pretty much at the same time as each other. Dear hubby had to work and I needed to be the one meeting their teachers anyway (I'm the one, not he, that deals with homework and parent-teacher communication throughout the year). For Meet the Teacher night at the high school I needed to compose a sign-up sheet for parents to fill out for AFJROTC (I'm the current secretary for the booster club) and get it up to the school and enough copies printed/copied for the task at hand.

Tuesday night (Aug. 31st), dear hubby left to go hunting for the week/weekend. The kids had school and so we stayed up here. We thought about meeting up with him at the farm house on Friday (Sept. 3rd), but the kids wanted to stay in town and attend a youth function at the church instead. Then I found out dear daughter has duties to perform at church on Sunday (this morning, Sept. 5th), so we're staying around here for the entire time hubby's away. Dear son went to a lock-in at the church Friday night and then to a LAN gaming party last night; so his social calendar was all kinds of full this weekend. Hubby will be back some time Monday evening, and until then the kids and I are keeping it low key at home (well I know I am, at least). Hubby DID leave me a credit card for the week/weekend, but with distinct instruction that it ONLY be used for groceries and gas for the car...NOTHING else! And eating out does NOT constitute grocery spending.

So I just haven't made time is what it boils down to in the end. I've been trying to eat better, which not having access to a credit card helps tremendously with that little task! No cash/no credit cards = No dining out!! Hubby shops for groceries, so that keeps me on the straight and narrow as far as eating better goes as well.

I guess in the end I know that I need to buckle down and just DO it! Perhaps I'll post little post-it notes all over the house telling myself to exercise and write my foods down in a food journal...and to BLOG REGULARLY!! I am being honest when I say that blogging on a regular basis has truly helped in me in my efforts. It makes me feel accountable to many people online. And somehow that seems to help me more than even being answerable to a local group of people. I feel like I'm letting various readers of this blog down when I don't update regularly.

So here's to my re-birth into the world of weight loss and blogging! "Dorsey will never go away agaaaaaaaiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnn!" (Just picture me singing it to the tune of "Hello, Dolly!" I'm sure that'll at least give you a chuckle.)

First...er...uhm...well steps anyways

2010-08-01T01:08:00.002-05:00

So first let me start off by saying I apologize for my rant last night. It was a truly tear-filled evening. I went to bed and Hubby and I talked for about an hour about several things (money, habits, love, relationships, weight loss). I DO believe that I've had a few breakthroughs in the past 24 hours.

Hubby has agreed to go for walks with me in the mornings. I think this will really help, as so many times I've felt like I'm all alone in my efforts. No one else really enjoys exercising in this house and all too often no one is available on any kind of regular basis at night to do so.

I also went into our game closet in the gameroom and got out our Dance Dance Revolution pad. I turned on the Wii, got everything hooked up and started the game. I did this for about 30 minutes (I've never played at home and I found it to be a REALLY extensive workout, for sure!) and then the family joined me. We all played a couple of songs and then decided to go to the neighborhood pool. We stayed there for about an hour or so. Did I mention we walked there? (Its about 1/2 - 3/4 of a mile) We came back home (walking again) and then had dinner.

After dinner was over I went upstairs and got a board game for the family to play. We played a game called Cashflow, its a game developed by a motivational speaker of sorts. It teaches about passive income, investments, bills, and many other financial aspects. We had a nice time and I think the kids might have even learned a thing or two in the process.

After the game everyone went their separate ways and I decided to play some more Dance Dance Revolution. So I put in about another 30 minutes or so and worked up as good sweat. ALL good exercise for today!!

I ate pretty well today, and chose water to drink all except for breakfast when I had a small glass of milk. I've decided to switch from full-sized dinner plates to a smaller plate. This was I'll be able to better control my portions and not feel compelled to fill the whole plate ad then devour everything therein. If I head out to eat, either with the family or with friends, I'll ask for a to-go box right away so that I can divide my plate in half before I even begin eating.

I am happy to report that even though our vacation got somewhat canceled, the kids took it well (Hubby told them) and we're going to work on budgeting and being a healthier family this week. We are planning a trip to the farm house later in the week to drop off the camper. And then at the end of the week we're going to my sister's home to get some furniture that belongs to my parents for our house here.

So I'll say goodnight for now my friends. Thank you so listening.

Need taller boots..STAT!!!

2010-07-31T01:09:00.003-05:00

Well, I've gone and done it now. I've stepped in it over my head and regular wading boots just won't cut it. On top of my worry over my weight loss failures of late, I've royally screwed us in our finances. I've tried to take over the bills and such, but my doing so has almost gotten us into the red in the bank. So tonight Hubby and I sat down and looked at several things. I have cried more times than I care to, I'm even struggling not to burst into tears now.

We cannot afford to go on our planned vacation for this week. So no Frio River for us. And I feel HORRIBLE that this is all my fault!! If I'd have kept a better hold on my spending then we wouldn't be in this mess. So tomorrow morning, somehow, I have to tell our children that we're not going on vacation.

I think I'll try to go to bed now. Hubby's just left my side and headed to bed himself. Although I fear I'll just cry more down there with him, I need to sleep. A winning lottery ticket would REALLY help things right about now. Ah well, I guess its time to take my medicine like a big girl.

Vacation time?

2010-07-29T07:50:00.002-05:00

For several years now I've occasionally taken a hiatus from my weight loss journey. I've almost always felt guilty about that when I muster up the courage to step on the scale and find myself with more pounds than I'd anticipated gaining on my time off. So I guess the short of it is that I understand that true weight loss efforts don't get a vacation!

This next week the family (all four of us) are heading to the Frio River here in Texas for a little vacay! We're also going to New Braunfels to hang out as well. The only worry in all of this is the lack of exercise involved in floating the river. I mean, I really don't think that laying on an innertube for hours on end and drifting down in the cool waters burns all that many calories. So I guess its kind of a good thing that the bathrooms an showers are a little bit of a jaunt from our camp site. I'll just have to drink LOTS of water and make sure I need to make trips to the bathrooms often while we're in camp. So this week consists of cleaning the house, doing laundry, and packing.

Usually I wouldn't put so much effort into my cleaning efforts, but supposedly my parents are following us back to the house and staying for a couple of weeks. At the end of our vacation we're going to bring back a lot of their furniture to keep in our house (a couple of beds, chaise lounger, dresser, kitchen table, etc...). So maybe if I do a lot of running up and down the stairs this week it'll make up for some of my laziness next week.

Last week the kids and I went camping at Lake Somerville near College Station with my parents. We were there for seven days and had a fantastic time!! We got to spend some time with my folks and enjoy being outdoors as well. I thought I'd done really well and could look forward to a downward moving scale number upon return home. I weighed a couple days ago (we got back July 21st) and the number was NOT encouraging.

What do you do while on vacation to help ensure success in your weight loss journey?

Interventions

2010-07-13T02:38:00.003-05:00

for the past couple of nights I've been watching the show "Intervention" on A&E online. There are so many sad and tragic stores being told on this show! I begin to wonder if there is an "intervention" for folks in my situation. I am not taking drugs, drinking to excess, addicted to shopping or plastic surgery, or any other such things. But I DO believe I have an unhealthy relationship with food and exercise. Scratch that, I don't really have a relationship with exercise at all. At best, its on again - off again. The frightening thing is that I have researched more than a lot of people I know. I have read all the tips/tricks of the weight loss trade. I can give other people the answers to their own success. However, I have not put them into motion in my own life, not consistently at least.

So I sit here late at night on and wonder if tonight will be the night that I make that change in my life. I have heard over and over that with anything you have to WANT to change to do so. I have WANTED to change for YEARS, more than 13 years to be exact. I had the will power to continue through in school (college) and get my associates degree. I need to take care of myself and my own health. I can not be the best mother, wife, woman, friend, etc I am capable of being without first taking the best care of myself, no excuses!

I LOVE when people comment here and I feel, physically in every inch of my being, the support that I receive from those words.

I am trying to accept myself more these days. This is not to say that I do not need change in my life in regards to my lifestyle as it relates to food and exercise. But I'm trying to see that there are great things in me at EVERY weight!! I have stopped coloring my hair. I DO have some gray hairs, and I've decided to embrace them. I earned each and every one of them. They are evidence of my 35+ years of life and the good, bad, and truly awesome times I have experienced along the way.

Thank you friends for your words of encouragement! Through your words, the help of my family, friends, myself, and God I WILL accomplish ALL my goals!!

Definitions

2010-05-27T05:03:00.002-05:00

Every wonder what defines you in the eyes of other people? I have come to wonder this many times over the past few months. Am I defined by the fact that I'm a mother and wife? Am I defined by the fact that I do not have a job that pays money? Am I defined by the fact that I am an overweight woman? Am I defined by my house and home?

There are nine definitions found on dictionary.com when I searched the word woman. They are as follows:
1. the female human being (distinguished from man).

2. an adult female person.

3. a female attendant to a lady of rank.

4. a wife.

5. the nature, characteristics, or feelings often attributed to women; womanliness.

6. a sweetheart or paramour; mistress.

7. a female employee or representative: A woman from the real estate agency called.

8. a female person who cleans house, cooks, etc.; housekeeper: The woman will be in to clean today.

9. women collectively: Woman is no longer subordinate to man.

I have yet to start a regular exercise routine, though I have been waking my son and husband so that they can go run on a regular basis. Most mornings I wake up between 4:00am and 5:00am. I don't typically go back to bed and wait for the alarm to go off at either 6:00am or 7:00am. I wander upstairs, log onto the computer, and take care of miscellaneous activities there.

I do not want to be defined by my weight, yet I fear that it is more of an identifier in my life than the fact that I am a woman. I am making a promise to myself to do something about my current situation. To no longer worry about how other see me, but instead to change the way I see myself. Even when those pants I wear to work out in might be a little tighter than I'd prefer, and my shape does nothing to match the one on my screen when I exercise with EA Active, I will strive to be more. I will be more than an overweight individual, more than a woman, more than now while working to take up less space.

Scale? What scale?

2010-05-19T04:22:00.002-05:00

It has actually been more than two months since I stepped on a scale. I'm not sure if it has something to do with the fact that my husband moved it from its normal home in the bathroom to the closet, or if it is just my own personal nonviolent protest taking place.

I have done a lot of thinking and retooling my life as of late.

I'm having to work with my son almost daily to get his grades up and keep him out of summer school. He is supposed to be going to Summer Leadership School for ROTC this as well. This starts the first week after school lets out for the year. But if he isn't able to skate by on his grades, then he won't be able to attend that either. I'd LOVE for him to be able to go take advantage of this opportunity, but I will not have him miss summer school if that is the case. I have even taken the time to plot out his next four years in school and plan on showing it to him later this week.

My daughter seems to be on the straight and narrow for the most part. She's only slacking in Math, which is somewhat of a pet peeve of mine considering I'm kind of a math geek. But overall she's holding up her end of the bargain. She isn't doing much in the way of extra-curricular, but that'll come later, I suppose. The only thing I'd change there is her willingness to help out with normal household chores, but this is something that we ALL need help with from time to time.

I've resigned myself to taking ownership of the truck recently as well. We have a pretty newer convertible that I rarely get to drive. Most days hubby takes it to work, citing the excuse of having to drive across town and requiring the vehicle that gets the better gas mileage. Personally, I believe it is simply so he can feel somewhat cool and take all his work buddies out to lunch while enjoying the warm weather, clear skies, and wind in his hair. Now, however, the truck is not running. Well it WILL run, but in essence will not stop properly. There is a leak in the brake line and hubby insists he can fix it and have me running back to new in no time. However his "no time" and mine are not exactly the same. I believe he uses this as a ploy to keep me grounded at home and away from anywhere that might take credit cards as a form of payment. QUITE annoying, I assure you! Yes, he spouts this whole..."get a job and start making car payments and you can have the convertible any time you want" b.s., but I have a sneaking suspicion that even when THAT becomes the case, there will be another convenient reason for my having to drive the truck (see gas/mileage issue from before).

But I am trying to better myself too, not just my children (however feeble that attempt may seem right now in regards to the kids). I'm trying to take a little bit of time out of every day for a bible study of sorts. This is not to say I'm meeting with other people, I'm just working through some devotional books and trying to find some personal time for just me and God. I try to go outside and sit at the picnic table if the weather is nice. Otherwise I tend to sit at the kitchen table and do my studies. I usually have some sort of notebook with me where I jot down notes about what I'm reading and my own personal thoughts on the topic. I also have been trying to write out a little prayer related to that day's readings. This has really been helping, I feel. It gives me a sense of peace about my life and helps to feed my soul.

I am continuing to work through my medical transcription online, and am hopeful that I won't need to file for an extension on the program. If I really get serious about it, I should be able to be finished by the end of July to middle of July. Then, fingers crossed, I'll be able to find employment and feel better about contributing on a monetary level in this family.

Yesterday morning, the rest of the family went out for a run. Hubby likes to run for exercise and tells me I don't know how to run (because I'm more of a jogger/walker and wasn't trained to run in the military). The boy will have to do daily runs at Summer Leadership School and the ROTC program at school is encouraging them to run on a regular basis in order to not have their system totally shocked when they get to camp. The girl says she's cool with walking, and some jogging, but isn't really keen on the whole running gig. She came back early yesterday after the initial jogging/warm-up portion of their routine. Supposedly they are going to give this another go this morning. Let's see if this time the boy comes back and goes back to bed. I'm thinking I won't let him, as I have a list of assignments that have no grades entered in the teachers' gradebooks (or rather they DO have a grade, of zero!).

I need to get back into a regular exercise regimen, as I know that will be the secret to my weight loss success. I need to commit fully a whole three months to exercising without missing any days. If I am still struggling at the end of that time, then I have thought of looking into bariatric surgery. However, I truly feel in my heart that if I were to maintain a good exercise routine and continue eating like I know I should, then surgery would definitely not be needed or warranted.

Thank you friends for being there, and I'm sorry I've been so sporadic about my posting. Right now, Renee at CutieBootyCakes is my hero!! She has done a phenomenal job of getting into shape and looks AMAZING!! Way to go, gal! I think of you daily!

Stress and Weight Loss

2010-03-29T18:00:00.006-05:00

I often wonder how stress will affect my weight loss. I have heard on many occasions that this phenomenom will cause you to gain weight, ultimately. Historically, most people turn to food when they feel stress coning on in their lives, hence the word choice of "comfort food" to help ease your troubled mind. They grab their favorite snack or meal and just keep eating until that cozy feeling of calm washes over them. I feel differently, though. In my personal experience, when stress begins to creep into my existence, my appetite falls off. Yes, I stop eating! Not altogether mind you, but certainly less than when I'm genuinely happy with life.

However, this time, I seem to be plateauing. I think that is because when I feel these pressures, I also stop exercising. This is incredibly perplexing to me, since I know that when I exercise I seem to escape into a different world for those brief times, and my worries almost sweat off of me with the unwanted weight. I also tend to have a greater affinity for naps when I'm feeling down. This is likely brought on by the fact that my migraines increase substantially as well. So instead of taking something for the pain and trudging through, I lay down and sleep for a couple hours hoping the pain will be fooled into going away while I slumber.

I'm currently dealing with a problem that I have become all too familiar with in the past years, my son's grades/schoolwork. He's 14 years old, just days away from 15, a freshman at high school...and one of the most unmotivated kids I think I've ever encountered when it comes to schoolwork. Every day it's the same conversation: "Have any homework?" "Nope. Finished it already." Or the ever popular: "Why didn't you turn in that assignment today?" "Our teacher wasn't here, so I couldn't turn it in." Well, that school certainly needs to take some of our taxes and work on a more effective preventative program with regards to their teachers and insurance, because far too many of them get sick far too often!!

I get very little from the teachers themselves, until there's a problem, of course. But I am trying. He's asked me if I can give him two days to turn things around. Time to get several assignments turned in, get some of his failing grades up. I've informed him that if at the end of this time I do not see marked improvement, then he and I will be attending morning tutorials TOGETHER in any class where he is not currently passing. I will be sending out numerous emails in the morning to inform his teachers of this fact, as well. I would love to say that I have every faith in him that he WILL turn things around, but sadly I don't. I have religious faith, faith in things I have not seen, but this faith is going to require evidence to return.

Thank you friends, for sticking with me through this. I think tonight I'll try out a new Wii game I just got (Just Dance), on top of doing some more Wii Fit Plus.

Wii will beat this!

2010-03-23T19:59:00.002-05:00

We got the Wii back a couple of weeks ago. Today I got the balance board working and got to try out the Wii Fit Plus game. Can I just say I LOVE this game! The added "games" are super cute!! I have yet to try out the personalized workout, but plan on giving that a shot tomorrow. I think I'll do Wii Fit every day for 30 minutes and then also do the EA Active on the scheduled days (two days on, one day off). I'm hoping that'll be enough to jump start me.

I did the body test on Wii Fit, and was pleased to see that I had not gained any in my time off of blogging. I enjoyed our Spring Break mini-vacay for sure!!! We went to my sister's/parents' and then spent some time with my in-laws. Overall we had a GREAT time and also got to see my sister and nephew break out their mad skills on Wii Fit at their house. I WISH I'd have taken video of my sister doing the Super Hula Hoop, it was HILARIOUS!!! Apparently it helps to twirl your hand above your head while hula hooping..hehehe

So I'd better get back to supper. Here's my stats for today:

Breakfast:
1 cup hot tea with TruVia
1 apple

Lunch:
3/4 cup Seafood salad
Reduced fat crackers

Snack:
1 cup frozen strawberries w/o sugar

Supper: Tuna Helper

Exercise:
35 minutes on Wii Fit Plus

Car trouble, pretty weather, and annoying men...

2010-03-07T14:55:00.004-06:00

So this whole weekend has been REALLY nice! The weather has been around the high 60s and so I've had the windows open and enjoyed the savings in not running the heater or air conditioner. I've taken a few walks about the neighborhood and am really feeling better all around!

We currently own three cars, yes three. One is a 2000 Dodge Ram 1500 Pickup truck, one is a 2008 Chrysler Sebring Convertible, and lastly is the 1991 Chevrolet Cavalier. This last one was bought cheap to be the Hubby's work car as it used less gas than the truck when he was going to and from work. Of course, since getting the convertible THAT has become the new "work car" for him. The Cavalier has been out of commission and parked in the garage for some time now. For some reason it won't start. We've replaced spark plugs, spark plug wires, ignition coils, and more...and still nothing. This car has been earmarked for the boy. Sure, its a piece of shit, but its four wheels and so many young people DON'T have transportation upon turning 16. That having been said, I've told the boy that his dad (Hubby) is more likely to work on it if he (son) asks his dad (Hubby) to HELP him with the car. And since son's grades are less than stellar right now, and he can't get on the computer, this is really his only option for "something to do" on the weekends. They started working on the car yesterday. Today they think they have it narrowed down to the ignition module. So the saga continues... The boy turns 15 April 3rd and is hoping to have the care running by then so he can practice in the car he'll be driving. I'm just hoping the weather holds out.

Lately my husband has decided that he wants to have some fun annoying me. and the object of this annoyance is his facial hair. He's one of those guys that can grow a full on beard in a week easy. And he's had a full beard since early fall. But he decided that it was getting too itchy, the weather was warming up, and he wanted to shave it. But instead of just shaving down to a mustache (my personal preference)..he's on a hair crusade. Here's a visual:

Starting with the beard

His words: "Phase 1 of driving the wife crazy. Next phase is likely removing the thin sideburns. Suggestions?

Again his words..."Phase 2, removing the mustache 'Hetfield Light' is complete. Thanks for the suggestion, Dave!"

He knows I detest a goatee on him and now he's thinking about transitioning from a goatee to a soul patch...Ugh!! Yikes! If he were a heavier sleeper I'd shave it in his sleep!! He's posting these pictures on Facebook and asking his friends for suggestions on what he should do next. I guess my only solace is knowing that in a week's time this little "experiment" will be OVER!! Ugh!

This past week I DID send the Wii off for repairs, so hopefully it'll be back before the end of the month and I'll be able to resume Wii workouts too!!

I haven't weighed in today, likely will tomorrow. Happy dieting friends!

Planning out menus

2010-03-04T18:23:00.003-06:00

So part of my greatest successes has come when I sat down and planned out what the family (or at the very least, the Hubby and I) would be having for dinner every night. So I sit down with a print shop program, a stack of recipe books/cards, and do just that. I try to do this a month in advance, though some times (like today) I've been too preoccupied to do so and have to wing it once in a while.

Here's a picture of one of the menu plans:

Feel free to click on the picture for a more clear view of the items listed within. If by some chance we have leftovers one night, or deviate from the plan, then I just cross it out and write the next month's name over that date. So that way that date's food just gets thrown into the rotation for the coming days.

Tonight I think I'm going to wing it with grilled chicken salads for the whole family. We all tend to really like salad nights, and I'm thrilled to say when we DO have salads, the kids even join us!! About half of the time, they turn their noses up at what I'm making and opt for a sandwich or other such quickie-food. I don't keep a lot of snack-type junk food in the house, so usually I don't mind if they choose to fend for themselves.

Well, I need to get to it and go make supper (then come back in here and work on March's menu). Happy dieting friends!

To anime or not to anime....

2010-03-03T10:15:00.002-06:00

Alright, this is NOT about weight loss, but rather something I'm seeking some advice on.

Last night my daughter (currently 12 yrs old) asked if I could help her put together an anime outfit for a friend's birthday party. Her and her friends have been into anime for a while. She watches it on you tube ALL THE TIME! I always laugh since she has to be able to hear it, even though it is all subtitled and spoken in Japanese (and no, she doesn't speak Japanese or understand it...she reads the whole darn thing).

So I start thinking, sure! Its a cute idea for a costume party. Then when the hubby comes home she tells him that they will go on from the friend's house to an anime convention in Dallas. THIS made me stop for a second. I would post pictures I've seen of other anime convention goers, but they are SO NSFW (not safe for work)!!

So my question is, am I just being overprotective by thinking it is not such a good idea to take a bunch of 13 yr old girls all dressed up (and mind you my daughter HAS been mistaken for a high school and/or college-aged girl before) to an anime convention?

Oh my aching legs!!

2010-03-01T08:39:00.003-06:00

Yesterday was a GORGEOUS day here!!! The sun was out, there was a slight breeze, and temperature was cozy (not too cold, not too hot). It wasn't the perfect day, temperature-wise, but it was pretty close. So I went to early service at church and after Sunday school decided my plan for the day. I sat in Chili's eating a nice salad and figured I'd go for a brisk walk for my exercise for the day and then wash the convertible (it has REALLY needed it).

I got home, changed clothes, and then decided I needed to recruit others to join me. It was easy convincing the dog, she's ALWAYS willing to leave the house. Hubby thought it was a good idea, but wanted to shower, grab a bite to eat, and change clothes first. My daughter was ready and willing to get out of the house (and skirt any chance of having to clean anything). My son decided to stay home and pick up stuff around here rather than walk with us. No biggie, I figured at much.

So off we went. I had already planned our route in advance. We were going to walk to the skate park. I did NOT plan that this would be quite an undertaking. The distance is about a mile and a half. When we'd gotten in front of the middle schools (somewhere around 1/2 of the distance) I could feel my hips and upper thighs SCREAMING at me. They were pleading with me to STOP! GO HOME! END THIS INSANITY! But I kept on. Granted, I would slow down and keep up the back area of our little group from time to time. I felt what was important to consider though was that I kept going!! My husband would pick on me for slowing, but I just took that opportunity to remind him that my pace was not what he should be concentrating on, rather the fact that I was determined to complete this walk. And finish I did!!

We made it to the skate park, sat down to rest, and take in the show the local boys were putting on. I think they might have thought my daughter was about 16-17 years old, as they seemed to stay in her line of sight most of the time and tried to pull out their best tricks. hehe One of them even said to one of the younger boys, "Here, I'll show you how its done." My dear dog appreciated the rest as well. She sat in my lap and just relaxed for a few minutes before demanding we give her some love through scratchings.

After a short break we made our way back home. It might have taken a little longer to get to the house than we'd anticipated, but no worries. No need to call the boy and have him drive the car down to pick us up. hehe We got home and remedied the only regret I had throughout the whole trip. I'd forgotten to bring any water and the fountains at the skate park were not working. We all drank plenty of water and got rehydrated. Then we decided to play some board games. We played Settlers of Catan and then Uno to cap off the afternoon.

I made spaghetti for supper and then the Hubby and I took in some TV and were off to sleep around 9:30pm or so. A little earlier than normal, but we'd REALLY been tuckered out on our walk. So all in all, I'd do the same walk again, but next time I'll REMEMBER the water!!

Celebrating a small success!!!

2010-02-27T21:20:00.002-06:00

So although I've been less than wonderfully dedicated to the exercise cause, I have been watching my eating (and writing it down) which is HELPING!!! I'm down 6lbs since last week! And by normal standards that is a lot, but when you're over 280lbs, it is understandable. I weighed in last Saturday afternoon and I was topping out at 284.5lbs...this afternoon the scale read 278.5. Yay, me!!!

My top weight has been 284.5lbs and quite frankly it scared me! My husband stated that he was more worried about me developing diabetes and that kind of woke me up again. I had FOR SURE been sleeping on the healthy job in the past several months.

I had a Tastefully Simple party last night where we tried all kinds of yummy foods. Jennifer Longstreet came by to do the party and she did a GREAT job!! Please feel free to click on her name and shoot her an email if you're ever in need of any products. I plan on incorporating several seasonings and things into my regular cooking schedule. I have to celebrate my keeping up with that schedule! I've diligently made a schedule of supper plans for two months now. And only about 3 nights a month ave we strayed from the game plan. I'm going to sit down tomorrow after church and make up March's menu. Perhaps some time I'll share my more tasty recipes with all of you!

Well, I'm off to watch one of my favorite classic musicals (Annie). I always preferred the older one with Bernadette Peters, Carol Burnett, and such... and possibly enjoy a small bowl of popcorn with the show. =) Laters, friends!

To loop or not to loop...

2010-02-25T16:04:00.002-06:00

So since I'm a stay-at-home mom I peruse the channels on TV rather often. And there seems to be a lot of bariatric surgery (both stomach stapling and lap-band) commercials on during the day. And as I struggle through all this and fight my impulses NOT to work out (I truly detest the practice on a whole), I wonder if that option would make things better. Being severely obese (which I am at more than 100lbs overweight) I think this might make things easier.

But SHOULD things be easier? I mean, grated it was incredibly easy to put this weight on over the years, but perhaps it SHOULD be a struggle to take it off again. Maybe in that struggle you find your true strength and begin to appreciate those thinner days so many years ago. Or by chance, it makes you happier to STAY healthy when you DO achieve your goals, because you know how much work it would take to get there again.

I'm sure our insurance would kick in in the payment arena, being that I have a family history of diabetes and such. But I'm thinking that I NEED to just bite the bullet and struggle through. I do not judge others that have taken the surgical route at all! We each must decide our paths for ourselves. And I believe my path rotates on a loop upstairs in the gameroom and goes by the name of treadmill.

Helping out...

2010-02-23T21:24:00.002-06:00

This evening my plans were a tad derailed...I had a friend call and need me to come over and watch her kiddos whilst she visited her mother who has recently been hospitalized. So I threw together a plan for supper, told the hubby what to get on the way home, and headed out.

I've sat here and read through a few blogs, and I'm only hoping that I can be inspired enough by these wonderful folks to continue the trek towards a healthier me. I'd say a better me, but I beginning to change my mind about that. I think I'm a pretty fabulous me right now, I am just not near as healthy as I'd like. Just last night (or rather QUITE early this morning) I got some reassurance from my Hubby. He woke me up around 1:00am for...SEX!!! Yep! He woke up in the middle of the night with a craving, and it was me!!! I have to admit I was mildly annoyed to be plucked from a deep slumber for a poking session. hehe But I can't say I didn't enjoy it and it does help to know he still finds me desirable.

So tomorrow morning I will wake up, exercise, shower, and get dressed...even if I never leave the house. Because I'm a pretty hot chick as I am, I just need to be healthier. =)

Can I take a personal day, please?

2010-02-23T09:02:00.002-06:00

So this weekend I did pretty well on my food stuff, I have it written down here in a journal, but won't bore you with all the gory details.

My concern today is...can I take the day off? I plan to weigh in later this morning. But I must tell you I've been sneezing since I woke up this morning. Ugh!!

I got two new workout DVDs that I plan on trying this afternoon...

To be perfectly honest, I'm tired of watching all these celebs dance their butts off on the show and drop the pounds. So I'm hoping to learn some smooth moves (whilst dreaming of Maksim) and lose a few in the process.

In lieu of snacking...

2010-02-18T11:55:00.003-06:00

So like some people who are trying to quit smoking or any other habit they're trying to stop, I've found that in order to stop with mindless snacking I need something to do with my hands. Sure I could get on the computer and play some equally mindless game, but somehow that just doesn't cut it. It would appear that the two mindless activities are drawn to each other, ugh! Go figure.

So I do crosswords. But I am kind of a cheater and not like a hardcore crossword doer. I LOVE LOVE LOVE People magazine crosswords. Every time they come out with the special puzzle books I snatch them up and take them home to get to work on. I don't complete most of the puzzles in the book, but will work on them from time to time. Usually before I go to bed, when I'd really rather go grab something from the fridge or pantry, instead I grab my puzzles and a pen and get to work. Of course this is only mildly mindless, since I have to think about the answers often times. Somehow this occupies my mind enough that I don't feel the need to snack at all!

What about you? Do you have some special activity that you do to avoid some habit you're trying to break?

The good day...

2010-02-17T22:30:00.004-06:00

Today was not necessarily a good day in the eating department, but it WAS a good day in terms of how I felt!

Here's the run-down on food-stuff:

Breakfast:
Hot tea and strawberries

Lunch:
Chicken Sandwich
About 5 tater tots
2 mozzarella sticks
1 cherry limeade

Snack:
1 Pepperoni Pizza Pocket

Supper:
Spaghetti with meatballs
Garlic bread
Salad

Alright, so that's out of the way. Yep, I did a bad, bad thing, but I'm not going to punish myself about it.

Now onto the better thing! Today I felt genuinely pretty!! I got all dolled up to go to Ash Wednesday service. I'm in the process of growing my hair out, so its at that in between stage (too long to wear the normal way I was wearing it, and too short to do too much with as far as a medium length hairstyle goes). So I decided to try something I haven't done in over a year. I broke out the curling iron and went to work. And I LOVED the way it looked!! I put on my makeup and everything went just right. Lashes curled just so, no clumping of mascara, lines of eye shadow were just as I'd wanted them to be...it was greatness in the mirror. I grabbed a long skirt, my best pair of Spanx, put on my pantyhose, slipped a nice sweater over my head and I was out the door to pick up the kids from school.

I sat in the car waiting for my son to get out of class and saw my reflection in the side mirror. So I grabbed my phone and snapped a shot of it. Here it is:
So today, I felt pretty! I posted this picture on my facebook page and got a lot of great feedback about it. Sure, I still have a few more chins that I'd care to have and my face is a little more round than I remembered it being so many years ago. But today it didn't matter, because I felt pretty and tomorrow is another day to do better with my food and regain the me that is hiding deep inside...continue my search for my inner skinny and bring it out for all the world to see.

I did my best when...

2010-02-16T17:31:00.003-06:00

Over the past couple of day, I've been trying to go back over in my mind when I had my greatest successes with weight loss. And I've come up with a couple of simple truths.

I did my best when I was keeping a food journal.
I did my best when I made it a point to exercise in SOME WAY every day.
I did my best when I drank plenty of water every day and stayed away from Cokes and such.
I did my best when I made a point of NOT eating fast food!
I did my best when I just wrote it all out.

So over the course of this week I will re-implement each of these things into my every day life. Today I start with the food journal. And I think I will use this blog to help keep track of that very thing. The best part about it is by doing these things I will be checking in and writing more (which helps with the last one). So here's what I had today:

Breakfast:
None

Snack:
1 cup hot tea with 1 TruVia packet

Lunch:
Chicken & Beef Fajitas
4 Flour Tortillas
1 Serving Spanish Rice
1 Serving Fat Free Refried Beans
2 Cans Diet Dr. Pepper

Snack:
3 Pork Egg Rolls with Sweet & Sour Sauce
Grapes
Strawberries

Plans for Supper:
Shrimp & Scallops with
Fettuccine noodles and
Light Bertolli Alfredo Sauce
Garlic Bread

So bear with me friends and supporters, and I'm sorry if this isn't going to be the most thrilling words I write. I need to get back to me. I need to get back to those wonderful feelings of wanting to be out there with others and see and be seen!! I have crawled into a cave known as my home and barricaded the door with things like laundry, needing to make dinner, miscellaneous housework, and so much more. and in the process, I'm barricading myself against my friends and family that have supported me throughout everything and whose love and affection hasn't wavered even once!

Snow + Exercise?

2010-02-12T11:27:00.003-06:00

Alright, I know my northern friends will think I'm full of it, but I don't care. I LOVE the snow!!! Dallas got 11.5 inches of this beautiful white stuff yesterday!! We got 6 inches here at the house. Here's our snowman we built:

Yep, he's about 7' tall, because we do things BIG in Texas, y'all! hehe

The kids and I got up this morning and went to work on just enjoying the snow. Seeing as how we so rarely get any in Texas, this is a REAL treat! And the great thing is, its that good sticky snow (perfect for snowmen and snowball fights). I did my fair share of running around, chasing the kids, and pelting them with snow...so I think I might have burned off at least SOME calories in the process, right?!

So today, I'm going to continue to eat right, and just enjoy the day. I might even get around to the treadmill later on. I'm thinking about just going outside and taking a long walk instead though, gotta see if anyone else built Texas snowmen. hehehe

Fits like a glove

2010-02-09T15:25:00.002-06:00

Sadly I do not mean a new dress or other outfit. Instead, I'm talking about this blog. I took quite a bit of time off from the blogosphere. I wish in my time off I could say I'm svelte and sexy and what-not, but alas I'm not.

I've reached a new high, but for the past two weeks I've been making an effort to get up early, make breakfast for my family (and self) and get work done every day on my medical transcription. I hope to be done with the program and seeking employment early next month. Most morning I wake anywhere from 4:30am to 6:00am. I end up crashing into bed some time around 10:00pm most evenings, although a few its been a bit earlier.

I NEED to get back into a good exercise routine, especially given my recent waking habits. Unfortunately the Wii is out of commission, and has been for some time (I need to send it off for repairs and just haven't gotten around to doing so, yet), so that means no Wii Fit or EA Active Sports for me. I still have several exercising DVDs and the treadmill as well. So I just need to commit to it and do it.

Why is it that it is always easy to say "this will be my year" or " tomorrow I start anew" and the such, but when it comes down to it....I never seem able to keep that motivation up. I've thought of joining a gym, but I have had memberships in the past and not stayed with those either. I don't think I need any surgical help, nasty powdered shake, or diet pills to get me on the right track. It just takes determination, and no one can provide that but me, myself, and I.

So tomorrow, when I awake again early in the morning, I hope to exercise and keep on track until I reach my goal.

What I've had today:
Breakfast: 5 Homemade Sausage Kolaches, 2 cups diet cranberry juice cocktail
Lunch: 3 Kolaches, 1 Diet Dr. Pepper, 1 slice key lime pie
Snack: 2 cups hot tea with Truvia sweetener

Plans for supper are to make Jambalaya or Gumbo

A special thankful thursday

2009-11-12T16:38:00.003-06:00

Yesterday was Veteran's Day here in the U.S. I attended a Veterans Day program put on by the local AFJROTC (Air Force Junior ROTC). Joshua is a member of this special group. I snapped several pictures but found a few to be my absolute favorites. In the first is pictured two of my favorite veterans...my hubby and my brother-in-law. The others are other veterans whom I do not personally know, but I am equally thankful for. I know I'm a day late...but I didn't get online at all yesterday and instead spent the day with family.

Thank you to ALL of our vets! Past, present, and future!! We owe you everything!

Perfect present for women?

2009-11-09T09:57:00.003-06:00

Alright...I happened upon this lovely little trinket while browsing through another blog and couldn't help myself but to share it here!!!
Yes, they're Vulvas!! Wear your vag around your neck? I'm not sure I'm THAT into female empowerment or whatever this is supposed to symbolize. Ugh! I guess it COULD be used to finally show your man where your clitoris is..but REALLY!?!?! And get this!! Each one is personalized!! You send in pictures and then its crafted to suit you!! O.M.G!!!!

I'm speechless and DEFINITELY making sure this is NOT on my Christmas list!!! Your thoughts? Perfect gift for the feminist in your life? Sign of your individuality? Learning tool? Or kinda creepy?

Just this side of full....

2009-11-03T08:07:00.003-06:00

I've been doing better about working out these most recent weeks. And I might have found something even better!!! I've been eating better. And by that I don't mean healthier, necessarily, just smarter. Typically I eat at a pace somewhere between average and hurried. Here of late, I've been slowing down. I've enjoyed conversation while eating and taking it easy. This has helped because I've been more able to gauge when I'm getting full. And so my habits have changed, instead of stopping when I'm full...I stop just shy of full (so that two or three more bites would fill me to the top of my gauge). I've still been more than satisfied with every meal and it seems to be easier not to snack between meals. I'm hoping this will lead to me craving less and less over time and that "nearing full feeling" will come quicker and quicker, making worries over portion control a thing of my past.

Let the transformation commence...

2009-10-19T02:16:00.002-05:00

So out of necessity more than anything else, my children now have cell phones. Ugh! We got them for them on Friday and gave them the phones on Saturday as an early Christmas present. The funny thing is, it seems that ever since they've been on them almost non-stop! It was hilarious watching Hannah try to text with three people at once. Ha! I DID get them to turn them off for a bit yesterday, during church. I told them absolutely NO phones on at church!!! And thankfully, they adhered without any conflict.

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On the weight loss front, things are going well. The Hubby went out of town last week, but I managed to behave myself and not eat out every night. hehe I've resumed exercising on the Wii with EA Active. But I have to be honest with you, its been more than two weeks since I even stepped on a scale. I'm thinking maybe this morning I'll brave that front. My clothes have been fitting a little better and so I'm not too nervous about what that little digital read-out will display, but any time you step on the scale when you know you're still vastly overweight is a little unnerving. I've been choosing water over most any other drink for a little over a month now, which will help for sure! Thanks for your continued support!

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Well, it would seem that I'm drawing a blank for the time being, so I'll sign off and wtach Doogie Howser, M.D. on Hulu. Gotta love the internet! hehehe

Gimmicks

2009-10-07T07:38:00.002-05:00

Do you ever get tired of hearing gimmicks? I am at home most days, and usually there's a television on in the room I'm entertained within. All day I hear commercials for EVERYTHING! And I sure get tired of hearing all the gimmicks!! One of the local news stations does something called "deal or dud". They test out various products and then report back on the authenticity of their claims.

I want to see a series of "Deal or Dud" segments with all these weight loss products! I mean REALLY people, who are we kidding but ourselves? Most of these things maintain that with good diet and exercise you can achieve the desired results. And we all rush out to grab them hoping they'll be the next "wonder-product" and make a thin overnight. But we're skipping over the fact that if we just maintained a balanced diet and exercised, we'd likely achieve these results without said "wonder-product".

So yesterday I did pretty well overall.

Breakfast: Single serving instant oatmeal
Lunch: Tuna salad w/o crackers
Supper: Homemade chili w/ two pieces of cornbread

Exercise: stairs, 10 reps (I count one rep as 1 trip up+1 trip down)

"Kinda weak moment:" 2 strawberry margaritas..it was a VERY trying day! hehehe

I was originally going to walk outside for my exercise, but there were storms throughout the area, so that put the ka-bosh on that idea.

I'm trying to avoid fast-food altogether and instead just make things at home to eat. If I feel the need for something quick, then I need to plan ahead..make stuff...freeze it..and carry on. Yesterday that worked out well, since I'd made the tuna salad on Sunday and it was already in the fridge.

One rung at a time...

2009-10-01T18:15:00.004-05:00

Weight loss is a tricky thing. I think any of us that have set out on this venture have made the maiden voyage a hundred times over!! We keep promising ourselves this time will be different, yet we continue with our insanity.

In recent days I have discovered that our Wii is broken. It won't turn on at all. I haven't taken the time to fix it, I've just redirected my energy into studying and finishing up my medical transcription course that much sooner. This weekend I won't be doing any tech support with it either. We're going out of town so the hubby and son can hunt and I can just get away from all this craziness that lives in this house, at least for a couple of days. I know having the Wii out of commission is stopping me from getting back to EA Active challenges, but it doesn't have to stop me from exercising on a whole.

We have several tools at my disposal to use to exercise (a nice neighborhood to walk in, a treadmill, weights, chairs, resistance band, etc...). So in the Wii's downtime I guess I'm just going to exercise the good old-fashioned way...without the help of a video game. hehe I know what you're thinking...I'm going to have to research how that's done, seems like ages since we didn't rely on something else to tell us how to do everything. hehe

I'm doing a better job right now controlling my portions. I haven't eaten BOTH Lean Pockets in one sitting (my son has, but I have not!). For lunch today I made myself some tuna salad and ate it with some salad crackers. I have just enough to fill me up, and then put the rest in the fridge, like a good dieter! hehe

The hubby will be out of town next week Monday through Friday if all goes as planned at work, so that's when it'll be especially hard to keep up the portion control and avoidance of fast foods, but I'm going to do my best to keep my goals in mind. This month, October, I want to lose 10 lbs. It doens't seem like that much, but considering my wedding anniversary is this month, as well as Halloween and all the parties that ensue because of such, it could get tricky again.

Thanks for all the support! Things are looking up in my little world. =)

**Side Note**
I got all my pictures and digital scrapbooking junk moved over to a regular desktop computer updatirs, so now I can relax in that way in peace without dealing with electronic narcoleptic fits.

Support

2009-09-29T07:49:00.002-05:00

A little over a week ago my husband came home with groceries. This is really nothing of note, as he usually is the one who buys the groceries. He came into the bedroom with a package of Lean Pockets. He stated that he got them for me to have for lunches, but he had one request. He asked that any time I wanted one, I eat just one and then wait a while. If after waiting a reasonable amount of time I was still hungry, then and only then have the other one in the package. I somewhat understood this, as I've been known to eat both of them out of the package in once sitting without blinking an eye. He's trying to help me in this attempt to regain my figure of past. And I have to say I prefer him going about it in this way rather than nagging or complaining.

I have had minimal successes in the past couple of weeks, which is better than none, I guess. I am battling horrid seasonal allergies and migraine headaches. Both of which make it difficult to maintain a normal routine. Most of my days consist of waking up, taking some allergy meds, doing some studying, taking a nap, more studying, shuttling the kids where they need to be, some mindless playing, then off to bed again.

The naps and my heightened importance of studying make any sort of exercise regimen hard to enact. If I forgo the allergy meds, then I develop the headaches and find concentration WAY hard to maintain. But the only way I seem to be able to stay awake all day is NOT to take the allergy medication. Sucky catch-22!!

So I guess all things considered, my small victories aren't so bad. And the sooner I finish my medical transcription coarse then the sooner I can start working and have one less stress to weigh on my already too heavy self.

Thanks for allowing me some venting.

Another day, another pound?

2009-09-28T14:00:00.002-05:00

A I go through my daily routine in the fall, I try to motivate myself to include exercise in the motions of the day. I have fallen hort of this here of late. I am still FAR TOO overweight for my liking, and not losing anything much to write home about.

But I DO have support! I have friends and family who support me daily, I have a husband willing to do whatever I need to get me motivated and keep me there!! I should be having greater successes. But I think I'm jhust taking it all for granted. This week that is changing!!

I'm starting another 30-day challenge on the Wii EA Active. I'll let you know what all it requires me to do and if I'm having any great troubles or celebrations to speak of.

Thanks to all for hanging in there with me!
~Dorsey

Wake-up call

2009-09-08T16:26:00.002-05:00

A few weeks ago I took my daughter to get shots and an athletic physical. During the coarse of all this they took her height and weight. My twelve year old daughter is five foot eight inches tall and weighs 145 pounds. She looks fantastic!! She's much more muscular than I was at her age, and even older. I was always more "lanky" when I was younger. But what struck me about this is that my daughter now weighs the same as I did when I met my husband, over fifteen years ago. I am currently more than 110 pounds heavier than that, and I have been for the better part of this last year. That is a hard thing to admit. And not a hard thing to admit to others, but mostly to myself. I have truly "let myself go" and not done much of anything about it.

I am in NEED of a wake-up call!! I HAVE to stop eating the wrong foods! I HAVE to make myself exercise! I HAVE to re-take control of my life!

I have started, as stated before, a medical transcription program. I am a third of the way through it, and one month in. At this rate I'm hoping to be done in 2 - 2 1/2 more months and get working!! This is a BIG step towards conquering my own life. But my health is also in need of rescuing. Sadly, I know only I can take on this mission. As much as I know my husband would help in ANY way I asked him to, he cannot "fix" this situation. Don't get me wrong, having his help will be an insurmountable positive influence.

I am grateful to all of you for your continued support. I hope in two year, when I plan on going on a cruise with my family, to be 100lbs thinner.

**************************************************************
My children are making me smile daily! My son is in AFJROTC at the high school and loving it! He's planning to ask a girl to Homecoming this week. I pray she says yes, as I SO want him to experience the elation of having his feelings returned by a girl he likes. He's really come into his own with regards to his confidence. He also chosen this year to go to a lock-in at the church in lieu of going hunting opening weekend. This was taking place at a church that we just recently started attending regularly. He didn't know a lot of people there and had only been around some of them twice before (Sunday school the week before, and confirmation classes on day that week). I was elated!! And when he carried the cross to the front of the church before the service dressed in his ROTC uniform, I'm not ashamed to say I got a little teary-eyed. My son is 14 years old, and becoming quite the man.

My daughter, who I mentioned at the start of this posting, is doing equally well. She is doing phenomenally in school! I think she just might be getting that cell phone at the end of this six-weeks. She hasn't picked her extra-curricular specialty yet, but she's mulling over several of them. She has become interested in the opposite sex. YIKES! She's not allowed to "date" yet, but she's definitely intrigued by boys. She met a boy at the lock-in that is 16. Ugh! WAY too old for her! For the time being we've set a limit of 1-2 years older than her. And yes, although my dear hubby is more than four years older than myself, at her age (TWELVE) two years is about the most. The reason for this is maturity. I am aware that girls mature faster than boys, but one thing is that girls who date boys much older than them find themselves advancing to the older boys' sexual maturity level. And seeing as how I DON'T want her being sexually active in JUNIOR HIGH for sure, I'm instilled this restriction. So sorry, 16 yr old Adam, but she will NOT be your "girlfriend" for some time.

Well, I need to get back to my studies so I can get to bed at a reasonable hour and get up in the morning and make a healthy breakfast then hit the workout first thing.

Take care friends and thanks for always being there.

I think I can...I think I can...

2009-08-11T10:03:00.002-05:00

yes, yes I know!! I made a promise to blog more often and I totally dropped the ball! Ugh! Summer's are just near impossible!!!! Most of my time is spent chasing my kids around trying to get them to help clean the house, or telling them that there IS food in the kitchen and I'm NOT going to Wendy's or Chick-Fil-A to get them lunch because there's "nothing to eat here."

We've been on a vacation, sent the kids off to the relatives for visits, and had out fun around here. And all this while I've STILL been searching for a freaking job, to no avail!! I even applied at Target and never heard anything back. Ah well.

So the hubby talked to a friend of his that does medical transcription at home and she recommended a few schools that are online AND credible. I looked into them, found the one that wouldn't send us into financial ruin AND had job placement assistance, and signed up!! Yep, its back to school, sort of. I'm doing it all online and hopefully in about 3-4 months I'll be able to be working and making money. Because then I'll get my car BACK!! (His excuse for why he takes the car to work every day is that as soon as I get a job and start making the payments I can have the car back.)

And on the weight loss trail...well, I'm doing alright. I haven't gone past my peak, but I'm not doing as much as I could either. With having taken control of my professional future recently, I'm looking to take better hold of my physical future too. I'll be making sure I schedule time to work out every day and eating out less.

So I guess in closing, all I can say is that I will TRY to keep this blog up more in the coming weeks. School starts in about a week and a half for the kids, so I'll not have them under foot quite as much, which should free up some time.

Be well friends!

Hard workin' holiday!

2009-07-07T05:01:00.002-05:00

So rather than our usual fun and frolic plans for the 4th of July holiday of heading out to a friend's place and partying it up, we chose to divert from that course of action this year. This time we went down to N. Austin to help our my brother-in-law and his family. They just bought a nice house on some acreage and needed some assistance with the work to be done.

We got there and were thrilled to learn that they had just gotten INDOOR plumbing, well toilets at least, a few days before. There were no indoor showers however. They had an outdoor shower set up by a tree in the backyard. So every evening we would all brave the freezing water coming from the hose and take quick showers. (In the day the water changed from this icy "goodness" to near scalding hot. I found this out one day when I went to try and spray my hair down to cool off from the heat. OUCH!) Apparently before our arrival, the only toilet was a lovely place they named "poop rock". Can't say I'm not glad I missed that!!

We took our pop-up camper down there and set it all up Thursday night. Yet, we never slept in it once. They had a large camper there already where they'd lived before they got furniture delivered to the house. But it worked out alright overall. It gave us a quiet place to retreat to at night and plenty of cool air conditioning. I also took the opportunity to clean our camper all up. My mother-in-law, knowing we had a camper, got us a set of camping dishes. Too bad she didn't bother to ask if we needed then as we already had a full set in the camper of the exact thing she'd purchased. Ah well, its the thought that counts. Right?

Over the course of the four days we were there we put up walls, installed a shower, put in an attic fan, dug holes with a jackhammer (only about 4 inches of top soil and then solid limestone below), filled in holes, painted trim and doors, installed a dryer and vent, put in insulation (in the walls AND attic), installed wiring/wall outlets, and helped lay a slab for the hot tub. The last job was truly the MOST daunting, in my opinion. We got started on it around 9:30-10:00 at NIGHT. Which was honestly better than had we done it in the 100 degree plus weather we were blessed with by day. We had a cement mixer, 56 80-lb bags of concrete, an a tractor to work with. We marked out the setting and leveled it as best we could for the pad. Then we had Kyle (my hubby) in the tractor (taking the cement from the mixer to the pad location), Me operating the mixer (tilting it whichever way was called for and holding it in position), Brian (my brother-in-law) on the dry concrete bags (pouring 4 bags at a time of concrete mix into the mixer), Shawna (Brian's sister-in-law) on water detail (adding the necessary water to the mixer, spraying it down between loads, and spraying down the tractor), and Jamie (Brian's wife) on spreading duty (using a garden hoe to spread the cement in the tractor when I dumped it, and also spreading it into the form when it was delivered to the pad). The whole process took us until 4:00 IN THE MORNING to complete. And even still we ran out of concrete and just had to try and settle for what we had. We ended up pulling from the middle to the outside edges and trying to make a path of about two feet all the way around. Later on Brian is going to go back and add either rocks, sand, or more concrete to the middle section before moving the hot tub into position.
We were EXHAUSTED by the time we left! But it also felt good to get in there and do some good hard work. We'll likely make more trips there this summer and fall, as it is going to be a while before its all done. Most of the time there Josh, Kyle, and I spent helping out with various projects that needed tending to at the given time. Hannah helped by provided the valuable babysitting services for all the non-working age children that were there (three boys ages 10, 9, and 7, as well as one girl age 5).
I also found when we got home, actually discovered it after the cement party that I was covered from waist down in chigger bites! Ugh! It kept waking me up both nights/mornings itching like crazy. Once we got home we all took nice warm baths/showers and applied nail polish to our bites. I still work up several times itching. So I grabbed the keys, hopped in the car, and headed to Walgreens in search of some hydrocortisone cream and/or some anti-itch spray. I found both and got both! So now I'm all slathered up and set. And I think I might even be getting sleepy enough to drift back off to dreamland for a couple hours before I have to get Josh up to mow the yard.

What we did...

2009-06-23T07:15:00.012-05:00

Alright, I realize I'm a little late on my Father's Day post, but hey..things have been hoppin' around here! =)

For the big day, I got up and made a brunch of chocolate gravy and biscuits. Then the hubby and I Facebooked some (and totally made a spreadsheet for Farm Town, because we're JUST THAT COOL!), the fam went to the pool for a bit, we played Lord of the Rings (we being hubby, the boy, and myself), and then I made a yummy yummy dinner of Salmon & Spinach in Phyllo!!!

And I'm going to share that last bit with you today! Every time I tell people about this (and they're eaters of salmon and spinach) they drool profusely and beg me for the recipe. hehe I got it from a Pampered Chef Cookbook (Cooking for Two & More) and it IS that yummy!

So here's the recipe AND a step by step pictorial for everyone.

Salmon & Spinach in Phyllo
Prep Time: 20 minutes (which is pretty accurate without taking all the pictures)
Total Time: About 40 minutes

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon Basil Oil or Olive Oil (I use a garlic olive oil)
4 cups baby spinach leaves, coarsely chopped
Salt and coarsely ground black pepper
8 sheets (9x14 inches) thawed, frozen phyllo dough
Nonstick cooking spray
2 skinless salmon fillets (4-6 ounces each), about 1 1/2 inches thick
2 Tablespoons garlic and herb cream cheese spread (I use laughing cow cheese wedges)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Remove stems of spinach leaves and coarsely chop.

Heat oil in Saute Pan until hot.
Add spinach; season with salt and black pepper.

Cook and stir until spinach is wilted, about 1 minute.
Remove spinach to paper towel.
Squeeze out all excess moisture; set aside.

Lay one sheet of phyllo on large work surface and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Place second sheet of phyllo over first, pressing sheets together to seal. Continue laying down and spraying phyllo sheets to create a stack of four sheets of phyllo. Repeat with remaining phyllo and additional cooking spray to create another phyllo stack.

Spread each salmon fillet with 1 Tablespoon (or 1-2 wedges) of the cream cheese spread and top with half of the spinach.

For each phyllo bundle, place salmon, spinach side down, on phyllo stack about 2 inches from bootom of edge of short side. Flod long sides of phyllo in toward center. Gently roll up phyllo from bottom to top. Using a bread knife, make three diagnobal slits across the top of each bundle.

Place bundles on baking stone, seam side down. Spray bundles with nonstick cooking spray. Bake 11-13 minutes or until centers of salmon register 130 degrees F and phyllo is golden brown. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Yields 2 servings!
I always make extra since we LOVE having this for leftovers the next day. We always serve with steamed asparagus and rice pilaf, and this time we had a nice 2007 Reisling to drink with our dinner.

Hint: In order for the spinach to end up on the top, the salmon is placed topping side down. Once rolled, the spinach ends up on top. To easily measure the temperature of salmon wrapped in phyllo, insert a meat thermometer horizontally into the center of each phyllo pocket.

Nutrients per serving:
Calories 450
Total Fat 21g
Saturated Fat 6g
Cholesterol 80mg
Carbohydrate 36g
Protein 27g
Sodium 560mg
Fiber 3g

If anyone else tries this I'd LOVE to hear how it turned out for you! It has become the main thing hubby requests for any "holiday" (birthday, Father's Day, Valentine's, anniversary...) and since its done in under an hour that is not at ALL difficult to accommodate. I just love how its REALLY easy to prepare, but looks all fancy schmancy. hehe

Venting

2009-06-15T16:11:00.001-05:00

Headaches SUCK!

That's all.

~Dorsey

Summer Slump

2009-06-15T00:51:00.002-05:00

I realize that my summer blogging slump really started more in the Spring than Summer, but ah well. I have been busy, I guess. Mostly house and kid stuff. By that of course I mean trying my damnest to clean this house at least to half of my hubby's standards and taking the kids for rides in the car and to the neighborhood pool.

My computer has recently come down with a new ailment. Where it used to have issues charging, now it would appear as though it is narcoleptic. For no apparent reason it will just shut down. I usually have a 2-3 second warning...nothing moves, mouse stops working, and then the screen goes black! Here as of late I have taken to waving at the screen when I see the warning signs. Well, that or I flip it off. Neither seems to be helping. So hopefully after I find a dream job and finish paying off the new car, I'll be able to get a sweet new laptop. But that'll probably be more than a year or two from now. Ugh!

Another thing that's been on my mind is divorce. No worries, peeps!! Not me!! I just know an increasingly large amount of people who have been, are getting, or are contemplating visiting the Big D (and I don't mean Dallas). It has gotten me wondering some things. So many times, I hear that people just feel like they can do better. They settled and they're tired of putting up with it. But I know at some point, they did NOT feel like they were "settling" for anything. At some point they said those words, and believed them...."till death parts us...I will love you forever...etc..." But when asked what I think about all of it, I keep coming back to the same question for them. I ask, "Do you WANT to work it out? Or do you just want out?" I firmly believe that if deep down you don't WANT to work it out, then you won't. Things will NOT get better.

A while back, Hubby and I went through a MAJOR rough patch and it just about did us in. But we BOTH really WANTED to work it out. So we did. We talked about things even if they were painful to the speaker OR the listener. We never went to professional counseling because we didn't feel we needed it. I believe that counselors help you to talk about things you wouldn't on your own. This was never the case. There was a lot of cleansing crying, but very little yelling. We just talked about everything! Why is it that someone you pledged your life to one day, days, months or even years later you feel nauseated talking to about your feelings? When and HOW does that happen? I don't understand it, honestly.

I'm concerned for my friends who are going through, have gone through, or are considering these life events. I think of them often and hope they find peace and happiness in whatever their decisions. Believe it or not I even pray for them all. Nightly I pray for everyone. Friends, family, acquaintances, people I have never met or might never meet, and my enemies...

I gotta say...sometimes I just wish I understood more, but at the same time, I'm happy I don't at the same time. They're right...ignorance IS bliss! =)

Be well friends, and know I think of you all often. And I'm going to try to get back to writing here more.

SO much to tell!!!

2009-06-02T13:26:00.005-05:00

So the last time I left you all, I was sporting a new haircut and still searching the near un-gettable deal on a convertible!!

Friday night my loverly daughter, Hannah, celebrated her 12th birthday with a sleepover. We had hot dogs, cake, movies, and more. She had a great time and had about 4 other girls here. Luckily, NO major drama moments! (Which is saying A LOT with that many 11/12 yr old girls! hehe)

I didn't have time to bake her a cake,
so we picked this one up at Albertsons.
(She picked it out)

Saturday I went to a tea house in a nearby town and it was DIVINE!!! We had finger sandwiches, scones, fruit, and plenty of hot tea in pretty and dainty little china tea cups. I went with some moms that I've been bowling with a time or two. Here's a couple of pics...

The table before everyone got there

The birthday girl =)
LOVE her hat!!!

The Grand Tea presentation
fruits and desserts on top,
scones in the middle,
finger sandwiches on bottom

All of us in front of the loose teas

And last, but certainly NOT least....I GOT MY CAR!!!!!! I left the tea house and went to Dallas Dodge to check out a car I'd sent an email request with offer in on the day before. When I got there, the gentleman I'd spoken with before was busy with some other customers, so he handed me to another salesperson. I looked at the car, drove it, sat in the back seat while she [salesperson] drove it (to check the real comfort the kids would have), and then started to hammer out a deal. As I was talking with them (Korneljia, the salesperson, and John, the used car general manager) I explained that I knew I'd have to get a job to help make the car payments. John mentioned that they were looking for a night receptionist. Hmmm...I replied "I could do that job, I could do that job well!" So I took their offer home to discuss it with Kyle. On the way home, I determined that is THIS didn't work out I was giving up on the whole thing. Get the damned Intrepid's transmission fixed and just drop it! So he and I wnt round and round. We looked at the NADA site online to compare values, we argued prices, we talked jobs...etc... We decided on Monday that I would first call the other dealership and ask about the car we'd been keen on until then (a hard top convertible) and see if he could work any better deal. Nope! He wasn't willing to budge. So I went back to Dallas Dodge armed with my resume. I gave them my resume (should hear something this week about an actual interview), arranged for them to pick up the Intrepid from the mechanic's shop (instead of us having to tow it in ourselves), and agreed on a price. Then I went to get Kyle and we got all the i's dotted and t's crossed! Here are pictures of my new car, a 2008 Chrysler Sebring Convertible, Touring Edition....

When I brought it home, my son said..."Oh are we trying out another one?" I simply replied.."This ain't a test drive, boy!" He smiled so big I could almost see his molars. hehehe

And my hair works GREAT with the top down!! hehe No tangles even!!

Hair today, sore tomorrow...

2009-05-25T10:21:00.004-05:00

So for some time now I have toyed with the idea of cutting my hair SHORT! And anyone who's known me for a couple of years knows that I flip flop all over the place in regards to my hair. I'm constantly tired of the style I have it in or the color of it overall. Well, yesterday I bit the bullet and did it. A few days ago I'd gone to the grocery store and picked up every hair magazine I could lay my hands on. Then I proceeded to cut out pictures of hair styles I liked. (I do this EVERY time so I can show the stylist what I want, be that color or cut.) I had about 15 different ones that I'd liked ranging from short short to medium length styles. So I put them all out on the kitchen table and began the process of picking. It goes kind of like when you're at the eye doctor and he asks you, option one or option two, one or three, and so on...I narrowed it down to two pictures. One of them I liked how the top and sides were cut and styled, the other on for the length in the back. So off I went to Regis Hair Salon armed with my photos and credit card. Luckily I got a gal that also has short hair (for some reason if I'm getting a short haircut I always like it better when the stylist also has short hair, I guess I trust them more with these styles). She did a fantastic job and even the gal behind me at the salon that was getting her hair straightened commented that she thought it looked really cute. Cool! So here's what it looks like...

On the workout front, I'm on day 6 and EA Active is telling me to rest today. So I will probably just see about doing some walking on the treadmill or maybe break out a little Wii Fit for old time's sake..hehe But I'm doing well with the weight loss and getting a little less sore every time. Yesterday I even completed the whole circuit without having to stop to wheeze and syke myself up to finish the run.

Well, I'm off to make breakfast. Hubby requested oatmeal since the boy is out with a friend today (my son's the only one in the family that doesn't like oatmeal). Be well friends and if anyone else is doing EA Sports Active please tell me what YOU think of it!

Some people on Facebook have commented that it would appear as though I'm wearing a nurses' cap when in fact its the window behind me. So here are some altered pics w.o the window/nurse's cap:

How a Wii game brought me to my knees...

2009-05-21T14:32:00.003-05:00

So years ago when I was in Jr. High school I was put on the track team. I begged to be put on the hurdling team and could sprint the crap out of ANYONE else on the team!!! But they said I "jumped wrong" over the hurdle. WTF?!?! I cleared it didn't I? So I was put on the relay team. I trained with everyone, and part of our group training was long distance running, at which I SUCKED!!! Even then when I had about 6% body fat and looked SMOKIN' hot!! heheI just didn't have the endurance I needed to run long distance. So the day of the track meet comes up and I head to the high school with the rest of the team. We're all getting warmed up and its our turn up for relays. We had to do one lap around the track on each heat...I took off like a bullet and we came in first! I was third to run, not starting, not anchor...not bad. I finished that race and was jazzed!! Then the coach told me I was up for the race after next. What?!? That's the long distance race? EIGHT times around the track?!?! Um, WHEN did I agre to THIS?!?! So I ran it...and heaved...and finished it...LAST! When I crossed the finish line I dropped to my knees. I thought I would DIE right there on the track! My sides hurt, my chest hurt, and I was sure I'd never walk again, much less run. That ended my track career right then and there.

Fast forward to yesterday...I went out and got my copy of EA Active and thought it would be a really cool way to beef up my lacking workout routine. I put it in the Wii and started it up. Before I even got to the workouts I was liking this more and more than Wii Fit. I was able to put in my own weight (I didn't lie and went with what I'd weighed that morning), AND I picked how my character looked!! No ballooning Mii for Mommii!! hehe And I was VERY encouraged when I stepped on the balance board and it didn't say "Oh my!" I started the workout with walking, then it asked me to run. Aw shit! I'm screwed!! I got through that and did pretty wll on the other exercises. But when it got BACK to running again, I thought I was going to DIE! I swear I had flashbacks to that jr. high track meet when I just wanted to finish the race and then be measured for my coffin. I noticed my vision started to blur half way through the run, though that MIGHT have been because I was tearing up and beginning to cry. I'm SO happy no one was there to see me, point, and snicker at my increasingly evident shortcomings.

I finished the workout and was intent that if I DO stick with this it will DEFINITELY help me reach my goals!! And I do have to say I enjoyed the workout better than Wii Fit. Even today when I went back to it. I was still sweating up a storm within the first five minutes, but that's what I needed to do!!! I'm confident that sticking with this as a routine every day and sucking down the gallons of water that I crave after each workout session will have me dancing on poles in no time...ahem, I mean looking svelte and sophisticated very soon. =)

I still haven't found my perfect car, but I have several different salespeople out looking for me. And they all know that I'm serious and have TIME to make a decision. So I will continue to shop.

Car troubles...

2009-05-20T08:12:00.004-05:00

Well, as I stated before, the car is in the shop. But in this process a co-worker of my hubby's suggested instead of putting the $2000 into a car that probably isn't worth that fixed, why not get a new car? So the hubby called and told me to start researching another sedan. I swallowed hard and took it initially. But the more we talked the more I got my nerve up. I was about to get SCREWED and NOT in the style I like!!

Years ago dear hubby and I said that when the Intrepid died (and this is pretty damn near close now, we drive cars until they die...) we would replace it with either a convertible or a Jeep Wrangler. And now I was being asked to research another sedan, which is neither of the previously agreed upon vehicles. I shared this with him over the phone. And after some more discussion he agreed upon a convertible...a Chrysler Sebring Convertible.

He had some VERY specific guidelines for what he wanted though. With the automotive industry being somewhat in the slumps right now, we were hoping to play upon their desperate desires to sell a car as often they have played upon our emotions when purchasing a vehicle in the past.

Well, after 2 days worth of searching, I'm not a lot closer to my goal. I've ticked off more than one salesperson, I'm sure. A few have told me that my demands are just NOT possible. So I continue to look. If, after a decent amount of time, we are not able to procure my convertible, then we will go get the Intrepid from the shop, tow it home and keep looking. Luckily we have three cars...a 2000 Dodge Ram 1500 Truck, a 1991 Chevy Cavalier, and a 2002 Dodge Intrepid. We have recently replaced the spark plug wires and done some home tune-ups to the Cavalier to get it road worthy again. I went yesterday and got the tags updated, today my goal is to find the front license plate (and reattach it), and get it inspected. So even without one car, we are not handicapped to sharing a vehicle. Meaning I have the car salesperson's worst enemy on my hands...time and patience.

Here's a picture of the car that I'm looking for...(but not specific to color)

The look with the top up

Top coming down

Top down

the inside with top down

I'm also going to check out the Toyota Camry Solara Convertible, but not sure I'll be able to get the same deal on price with one of those. If anyone knows of a convertible that will somewhat comfortably fit a family of four...PLEASE let me know. I like the Sebring because with the bucket seats in the back it offers a little more comfort. A mustang might as well be a two-seater for our family and I just am not a big fan of the PT Cruiser. Any suggestions?

Moving a little slower today

2009-05-18T08:57:00.004-05:00

Well, I'm not gallivanting about town this morning for sure!! This weekend we headed out to the in-laws and got about 1/2 way there when the car's transmission went OUT!!! Ugh! So we called a good friend to come pick us all up and bring us back home, called the in-laws with our regrets, and planned for how we were going to get the car home/to the shop. Kyle ended up buying a $100 tow chain and I got to tow him down I-20, I-635, I-30, and then home the back way. Ugh for sure!! I was SOO stressed pulling the car home and dealing with the assholes that felt the need to flip me off because I was only going 40MPH on the interstate. I'm in the right lane d**khead!! Go around me!!

This morning we get the call from the shop with the diagnosis. Yep, needs new transmission. This means about $1900 out the door and to the mechanic. Ouch!! Hubby called and told me to be frugal, which I guess is his nice way of saying "Don't go shopping/spend any money!"

I AM going tomorrow and getting a copy of EA Active for the Wii though...but I have CASH! So no need to charge that. I first really got interested in it when I saw Sammy, aka Alison Sweeney, showing it to Ellen and talking about how this is what she's using to get her baby weight off and get back into shape. It looks a little more intensive than Wii Fit and I certainly am glad to find something else to do. And this "game" has running, kickboxing, a 30-Day challenge, and lots of other activities. And I like that it has a leg strap so you have a place to put the nunchuck that can gauge when you're running and such a little better. Looking forward to it! And thanks to Renee for confirming it comes out tomorrow for me!

Well, I'm off to clean the house and stay away from shopping. hehe

New paths and old beginnings

2009-05-15T09:01:00.003-05:00

I am happy to report that I had a WONDERFUL Mother's Day weekend!! We played in the water, drank our adult beverages, and soaked up all the sun we could. I took lots of pictures, but as per the request of some of my loved ones, I've decided not to post some of them. I can't see the harm in several of them, but then again..I don't want to step on anyone's toes with my actions either. Here's one of my son that seems to sum up the relaxation just perfectly!

One night we all sat in a semi-circle just a matter of yards from the water's edge and sang any song we could remember at least one verse of and danced around about the beachy area. My mother was out for that evening, but for the rest of our time there she seemed to stay in her camper for the vast majority of the day. It did sadden me some. She was continuing on the same path she always had, over-doing it one evening/day just to throw herself into such a state that getting out of bed before afternoon became near unbearable.

I've been doing well with my dieting efforts lately. The weight isn't falling off by any conjuring of the imagination, but it IS coming off. Slow but sure wins this race, right?

I have wondered here lately, with some of my dealings with several people in my life over these 34+ years, what makes people seemingly pigeonhole themselves into distinct categories. Do you know someone who constantly seems to be the victim? Another who is always smiling and trying to keep the peace? Another who naturally takes on a parenting role? The pot-stirrer? The drama starter? The wise one who merely sits back and observes but has the advice of the ages in their eyes?

I feel fortunate to have, at one point or another, come into contact with all of these types. And I consider myself fortunate because without all these various types (and more) coming through my life I wouldn't be the woman I am today.

I have taken up bowling with a wonderful group of moms. Now only afew of us ever clear 100, but we sure do have a hell of a lot of fun!! Here's a picture of this past week's enjoyable night out.

That's me in the middle on the bottom =)

Mark all as read...

2009-05-04T07:41:00.002-05:00

Its hard to do that, honestly. I feel like I'm letting down my followers as well as the people that I follow. But its been a LONG two weeks and I just don't think I could catch up to 502 new blog posts.

My sister and I have almost gotten my parents completely moved out of their house and into her home. MY mother is NOT doing well with the transition though. She is lamenting over the fact that they are now "homeless", which is something they could not say about themselves for quite some time. But the way I feel about it is that it could be a LOT worse. At least they have kids they can lean on in this time of their lives. Neither my sister nor I are destitute, and we have room for them in our respective homes for as long as they need the roof.

I've been doing well with my weight loss, staying on track for the most part. I haven't seen any huge drops in numbers, but I just need to recommit to working out to get that happening. The hubby wanted me to get him up this morning at 6am so he could start running again. Alas, I got up at 7:15 to get the munchkins out of bed and then came down to check email, put money in my daughter's lunch account, and dear hubby lays next to me still, softly snoring. Maybe tomorrow morning will work out better. *wink*

This weekend I'll be going camping!! Yay me!!! Well, actually yay family!!! Every year, for as long as I can remember, my mother's family meets at Lake Somerville (a lake near Bryan-College Station, TX) and camps for 3-4 days for Mother's Day weekend. The time is spent playing in the water, having adult beverages, laughing and telling stories, and just enjoying the time together. For the past several years we have had a large float that is anchored a little ways off shore for all the adults to lay on for the majority of the day (usually Saturday) and drink and laugh upon. Most everyone gets there Friday night or Saturday morning and leaves Sunday afternoon. Saturday nights we pool our foods and barbecue at one person's site. Sunday morning the guys usually make breakfast (with again pooled ingredients) and serve all the mommies. It is wonderfully relaxing and something I look forward to every year!! I'll be sure to bring back plenty of pictures this year to share with everyone!

Well, I'm off to start my Monday with a bit of exercise. I think I might even make some breakfast for the hubby and I. Be well friends and I'll try not to get so far behind now that things are calming down a bit.

FYI, I STILL have my "trench" and the tree is almost dead.

Flashback Friday

2009-04-17T11:58:00.004-05:00

1979

What girl DOESN'T love race cars as a kid?!?!
(I'm the blond)

What every mother wants...or why I wish my son could join the army now

2009-04-16T14:27:00.003-05:00

So yesterday I had a pounding headache. I didn't bother even LOOKING at my backyard. THIS was a mistake!!! When my son came home from school, with his cronies, I began to hear clanking sounding. I turned towards the direction of the mystery noise (it wasn't a pipe bomb..whew!) and saw a wheelbarrow and three teenage boys wielding shovels and assaulting my backyard. WTF?!?!

I looked up some more and saw a large hole forming. Again...WTF?!?! My son came in and told me that they were digging because they wanted to...and were interested in digging a trench. Ah yes! THAT is what I thought my backyard needed...a trench, to hide from the invading Plano people, I'm sure (as that is SUCH a problem here in the N. Dallas suburbs)! With every clink of a shovel onto the wheelbarrow my head had little tiny explosions going on inside. I informed my darling son that if he was SO interested in digging a hole, why not dig UP the tree that had grown on its own next to the house and replant it in this sinkhole (aka trench).

He and his buddies then turned their attention to the tree and started "uprooting it". After they had replanted it, he came in to share his pride.

The boy: Mom, we got the tree moved. We put it in the middle of the dog crap land mine.

Me:(thinking: of course he did! You wouldn't want a trench in hte middle of a mine field.) my reply: Where?!?! NO BOY! You were SUPPOSED to put it in the hole you already had dug up!!!

This morning I peered outside and saw the tree down on its side. So obviously I needed to fix their replant. Its a nice tree, I just didn't want it growing its roots under my house and screwing with my foundation.

I walked outside and immediately went to where the tree had been moved. Hmmm...seems kind of shallow. So I placed it upright, stepped on the roots and tried my best to shove it back into the hole. It fell over again while I went to inspect the area where it originally resided. Ah ha! That explains it. The hole left by the boys where the tree USED to be COULD HAVE BEEN DUG BY MY CHIHUAHUAS!!!! It wasn't even 1/2 a foot deep!!!! Oh yes, that tree will die soon.

I took some dirt (clay) from the wheelbarrow and packed it into the replant hole and pounded it down so that it would stay upright. So far, so good. I didn't even need to install supports to keep the tree up.

Then I went back to look at the "trench". OMG! Words cannot describe! Here's pictures of the "damage".

The downed tree

The reinstated tree

The hole where the tree USED to be

The "trench"

So you tell me...think he'll make it to his freshman year of high school?

Random Crap...or maybe not?

2009-04-15T11:40:00.004-05:00

So the other day I was looking at a scouting group of ants searching my kitchen floor for food remnants. Usually they attack the dogs' food bowls minutes after we put food into them. But a while back my BFF turned me onto a cool little food bowl attachment.
So its called a Sani-Moat Ant Barrier and I got it at Petco. Basically the white circle in the center is a strong sticker-type thing. So you peel off the protective cover and stick it to the bottom of your average food bowl. After you've gotten it all stickied on it looks like this...

Now the base detaches from the bowl with just a little twist and then you have two pieces...like so...

Then you just squeeze a little liquid dish soap into the "moat" and twist the top back on. And for some reason the ants don't cross the soap moat. Pretty cool, huh?

But here's what I was wondering. What if you had a particularly crafty group of ants. And these ants threw themselves, one after the other kamikaze-style, into the soap moat. Until they had built up a dam of ants, and a bridge of sorts. Then the less self-sacrificing ants could just walk across their fallen comrades corpses and get to the food. But then I figured those little fire ants probably wouldn't do that. It would probably be something better conceived by those big army ants, and they're better organized any way...and it likely wouldn't take a whole platoon even, just like 3 or 4 ants.

I shared this idea with my BFF and she asked "why they wouldn't just throw leaves onto the soap and crawl across the leaves?" Then I was all..."because there's no glory in walking across a leaf bridge!"

Have you ever had random crap thoughts like this and hoped that those you shared it with wouldn't just cock their heads to the side and whisper to your family members "Has the ALWAYS been 'special'?"

Photoshop is your friend?

2009-04-13T14:56:00.004-05:00

So I went out and bought Photoshop Elements 7 at Fry's this past weekend, and am hoping to hone my skills at repairing photos in the coming year. So here's my first attempt. And yes that's a picture of me...hehe probably on a boat on the lake when I was around 8 or so.

Before

And after I toyed around with my fixin' skills

I have another picture that I am desperate to fix the color on, but have yet to figure out how to do so. But if anyone has any helpful hints for me, BRING them on, please!! dorseybell(at)gmail(dot)com

Flashback Friday, a couple days late

2009-04-12T21:51:00.003-05:00

Sorry all, I got busy on Friday and had to take my computer apart in an attempt to get the power working again. Ugh! I got the power to work, but it is still not charging. Ah well...didn't have to spend $200 on it, just $30 and some time.

So here's a picture that was taken about 24 years ago in the Bahamas on a family vacation. This is a picture of me, simply enjoying the surf and sand on a beautiful day.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!

Very TAKSing, indeed!

2009-04-06T18:53:00.003-05:00

So this past weekend my hubby somehow managed to break my son's glasses. And I'll have you know the child is BLIND without them!! Ugh! So today, Tuesday, he has his Math TAKS test. And he is required to PASS this in order to continue on to the 9th grade. So I took him out of school yesterday to try and get him a new pair of glasses, even if they were sub-par frames and such. But unfortunately his prescription is too strong for anything to be done in about an hour. Everyone has to order them. So we were left with only a couple of options:

Keep him home from school
Have him attempt it "blind"

I managed to track down the home number of the school's counselor, and test coordinator for the campus, and talk to her about these options. The only problem with keeping him home is that we'd have to keep him home and unable to go up to the school all the way through this Saturday. So that wasn't going to work because they'll resume normal class instruction on Wednesday after the test was over. And of course I didn't want him missing any of that.

So we were stuck with the second option. But the counselor assured me that if he opened the testing booklet and couldn't even do one problem, then he could turn his test in and it would be coded as "other" then taken up. I made sure that this would not mean he'd failed and have any effect on his scheduling next year. He's been told not to just try and "soldier on" as is his usual way, but if it is seriously beginning to give him a headache or he just feels too uncomfortable attempting the test to SPEAK UP!

He took his iPod with him to school and was told he could probably just hang out in the library and listen to it if he couldn't complete everything as normal. (Obviously sitting quietly and reading a book isn't going to work out too well) But I did assure him and the school that he could always call me and I'd come get him and bring him home. I managed to convince the counselor that if they resumed normal classes this afternoon then I'd be happy to bring him back up there at that time, I just needed to be notified.

The counselor also told him that he could not be penalized in his regular classes for having difficulty with seeing his work. So his teachers should be giving him extra time, if he needs it, and just overall working with him during the time that he doesn't have the glasses. Luckily his frames are still under warranty, so they're just ordering another frame and when that comes in (a week to 10 days) he'll be back in action.

I'm doing alright overall, just wish this freaking cold weather would STOP!! I'm ready for SPRING weather!! Not freeze alerts in APRIL in TEXAS!!!!! Ugh! I'm even attempting to grow some veggies at home. I have planted cucumbers, bell peppers, squash, zucchini, and jalapenos in several plants/pots. I had to move them all inside last night. Today I'm going to chance it and plant my flowers in the front flower beds and hope this ill-timed cold weather has bitten us for the last time this season.

Flashback Friday

2009-04-03T10:52:00.004-05:00

This Flashback Friday is dedicated to my son. Today he is 14 years old! He's grown into quite the little man. It only moderately pains me that he and I are almost the same height. hehe I'm personally looking forward to when he's 16, Whoop!! Can you say designated driver?!?! I'll be the envy of all my friends...hehe So here's to Josh.

Even with a room full of toys (including a ball pit just his size) he would run to the kitchen and find the toaster and pull it around the house...hence it became renamed his "toaster pull toy" - age 2

Chillin' on Lake Eufaula while we were on vacation - age 5

March 2009 - Josh moving the Cavalier (his future car) into the garage

Happy birthday, my boy!

A New-Age Weight Loss Plan?

2009-04-02T12:50:00.002-05:00

So, who knew that I'd lose 4 lbs over the course of a day when I was blessed with migraine headache?! Day before yesterday I had a headache when I woke up. It was all on one side of my head and throbbing slightly. And since just a few days, maybe weeks, before I'd watched the Today Show special on headaches, I KNEW this was for sure a migraine!! So I took some Advil and tried to start my day. About 2 hours later, the hubby and kids had vacated the premises and the throbbing was getting louder. I had a small bowl of soup to try and convince myself it was just a hunger headache. Good thing it was soup, since even crunching the saltines made the throbbing worsen. So I gave in and decided to try to sleep it off. So sleep I did, for about an hour and a half. Damn!! Still there!!!

Next I moved to the hard stuff...hydrocodone. Within 30 minutes I had that all over floaty feeling, but still a minor headache. I hoped it would go away though. I called the hubby to let him know that there were plenty of leftovers in the fridge and he and the children would be fending for themselves tonight for dinner. I was going to bed early. And with that, I dozed back off. Woke up when hubby was home and having his dinner next to me in the bed. He offered me some, but I knew I'd have to chew and at this point even opening my eyes caused piercing pain, so I KNEW I didn't even want to try chewing. Besides, at this point I was beyond nauseated. I asked what time it was and he told me. Ugh! Headache still here!!! And it had been a good 5 hours since I'd taken my happy pills. So I took another and drifted back off to sleepy land.

When I woke up the next morning the headache had decided to go away...FINALLY!!! So I did my usual morning routine...pee, brush my teeth, kiss the hubby through the shower door, and step on the scale. To my surprise..I was down! FOUR pounds! Yipee!! Whereas I'm not going to try this method for long term losses, I am using it to continue on my path towards a skinny me. =)

I also just spent an insane amount of money at Sally's Beauty Supply on manicure supplies, well insane to me is anything over $70. I realized that I can probably do it by myself just as good as the chick at the nail place. So I'm off to do just that right now, and watch some downloaded episodes of Wizards of Waverly Place (just LOVE that show..hehehe). Do you have some kid-type show that you really like to watch, and will even if the kids aren't in the room?

The Apology

2009-04-01T07:36:00.002-05:00

Hey all, this is going to be a short one...

I've been MIA for a bit now. I went this past weekend to my niece's birthday campout and had no internet access at the lake. Then I just didn't feel like blogging on Monday. Tuesday, yesterday, I had something great in mind, but the migraine I had all day put the kabosh on that one. So sorry I haven't been around. I've got about 150 new posts to read through throughout the day, which I plan on devoting my morning to right after I take the kids to school.

Hopefully that bright idea I had stolen from me yesterday by the headache wil reappear later on today. =)

Flashback Friday

2009-03-27T14:24:00.004-05:00

This picture is from Halloween 2002. My dear hubby dressed as one of the "Budweiser girls" from the commercials from long ago (where men dressed as women in order to take advance of ladies' night at a local bar, mustaches and all).

Standing with my hubby is my son, Agent J of the "Men in Black"

The next year we decided to go as Beaker and Bunsen Honeydew (from The Muppets). I DO just LOVE Halloween!!!

The importance of good water

2009-03-26T19:18:00.004-05:00

Alright, while we were on vacation we picked up some bottled water to take along on the trip. While I was bored once, I started looking at the bottle. And I noticed something odd...an expiration date. on water. umm, REALLY?!?! It claims it expires on 03-08-2011. So that got me wondering. What happens to water when it expires? Does it lose its taste? Oh wait! Water DOESN'T HAVE A TASTE!! Its WATER!!!!

I know it is an important part of weight loss and and proper diet to make sure you take in a proper amount of water daily, but when does it become hazardous? If I take one of these bottles and hide it away for two years, will it have turned to a different color than clear when I re-discover it? Like green? Because THAT would be coolness! hehe What do you think will happen? Anyone been brave enough (or patient enough) to already try this little experiment?

Oh! and on my sad laptop situation with the charging, there MAY be hope in the near future. I just ordered a part that HP told me could be at the heart of my problem. Its the little plug inside the side of my laptop that the power adapter goes in to to charge the battery/hook up to AC power.

Yep, that's the part. I've been told that a local place can repair it. If it needs to be soldered on then I have to wait 7 days to get it back, otherwise it'll just be an hour or so. And since I've become rather un-trusting of my laptop in other people's hands, I've verified that I can remove the hard drive and they can still fix it with it missing. I have lost way too much information when other people have "fixed" my computers in the past. NOT this time! Luckily I still have a desktop computer upstairs and my iPod to check email and blog posts on in its absence. =)

Yea, what's it to ya?!?!

2009-03-25T14:05:00.003-05:00

SO hubby pointed out this morning that I've been a bit touchy lately. He asked if everything was alright, and expressed that he had been a bit concerned. I found this somewhat comforting. I guess I have been somewhat out of sorts. I'm gonna chalk it up to hormones though. Case in point...
Over the past two days I've been doing mountain loads of laundry. And as I would take a load out of the dryer, it would quickly be transported to the couch. So by the end of the day yesterday you could make out the arms and a little of the back of the couch. The rest, covered by loads and loads of clean clothes. My original plan was to haul all the clothes upstairs yesterday morning and fold clothes while I vegged out in front of movies. Instead I did nothing. So last night we got into it, just before going to sleep. So I felt like CRAP!! Hubby has a special way of making me feel like total shit whilst using a minimum of words. So weepy me stumbles out of bed in the dark and goes to the other room. I took ALL those clothes upstairs and folded them all. Then I slept upstairs. I got to sleep somewhere around 2am.

Als over the past couple of days the hubby and I have argued over a platform bed. I want to just go online to Wal-mart.com and order one site-to-store. It'll cost about $130. This bed is for my daughter, who currently sleeps on a mattress and box springs that reside on the floor of her bedroom. His idea? We should bulid one instead. It would be sturdier and likely cheaper! Well folks, here's my mock up for the bed (after 4 hours of online research for how to make this happen):
Pretty sweet wouldn't ya say? Problem is....this will end up costing us at LEAST $180 after buying all the materials!!! And I mean REALLY!!! Its a f*cking platform bed?!?! How unstable could it be? There's no drawers, no rolling parts, just a box with a flat piece on top!!! I mean I LOVE to build shit, but c'mon!!! I'll put the damned thing together after I pick it up from the store!!

And to my benefit I TOTALLY avoided picking a fight at his dad's place when he said he'd be happy to hang out around the house the whole time (even though when we visit my folks he bitches about that VERY THING!)...nope, I walked away and let it go. Or maybe I let it fester and this is just the ooze from that sore bubbling to the surface?

And OMG! Is it a slow news week or what?!?! I do NOT need to be updated every 15 minutes on grey clouds in the skies around DFW which will possibly cause pea sized hail and rain!!! Quit interrupting my shows!

Spring Break break...

2009-03-24T11:51:00.004-05:00

This past weekend/week the fam and I went up to NW Arkansas and did a little "camping" with the in-laws (we parked our pop-up camper under father-in-law's carport and hooked into his power). I didn't do too much exercising, as there's not a lot to do out there. Even going for a walk would require a large stick and guard dog escort as there are many loose dogs that are not at ALL shy about chasing cars or people with intent to bite. So I watched what I ate and tried not to snack too often. When I got home on Sunday I had lost one lb over the course of the 5 days. Not bad, considering the whole not exercising bit.

I think I exercised my right index finger the most though, snapping pictures. Here's some of my favorite shots I got...

The dam at War Eagle Mill

Kyle, Hannah, and Josh at War Eagle Mill

Josh fishing

My father-in-law

I thought they turned out pretty darn good even without some fancy photoshopping tools..hehehe

Well, I need to get back to all the laundry that is awaiting me. I just marker 289 posts as all read, because I just couldn't bring myself to try and catch up on them. Sorry if I missed something.

Feeling demotivated?

2009-03-17T16:22:00.003-05:00

A while back I happened upon the website despair.com and I never laughed SO much!! Their "demotivators" are hilarious!! They take those lovely motivational posters you see in most business offices and put their own sarcastic spin on them. Well maybe the first time I found Engrish.com I laughed pretty hard too. Here's some of my all-time favorite demotivators!! Visit the site for more.

CLUELESSNESS
There are no stupid questions,
but there are a LOT of inquisitive idiots.

CONSULTING
If you're not a part of the solution,
there's good money to be made in prolonging the problem.

DYSFUNCTION
The only consistent feature of all your dissatisfying relationships is you.

GOALS
It's best to avoid standing directly between a competitive jerk and his goals.

INTIMIDATION
No one can make you feel inferior without your consent,
but you'd be a fool to withhold that from your superiors.

A lot of the ones I like the most are punctuated by the pictures they chose to use. Greatness!!! Can YOU think of some people that these would be PERFECT for?!? hahaha!

Quality Family Time

2009-03-16T15:26:00.003-05:00

This was the first time I'd used the 10 second delay mode on the video setting of my camera. It turned out to work VERY well! Here's how we spend our family time together at home often times.

On lead guitar..ME!!

Hannah on vocals...

Funky Josh K on drums..

And Hubby on bass!!!

Monday Mosh Pit

2009-03-16T10:09:00.005-05:00

I read several other blogs that do a "Friday Fragments" where they just sort of spout out about whatever is on their mind with no particular linkage between the thought processes. But since I already have grown to love my flashbacks on Fridays, I decided I would take today to air my fragments via the Monday Mosh Pit (because mosh pits seem, to me, to be a mixture of TONS of things going on without much to link them besides maybe music...this all links via my blog)

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Firstly, do NOT adjust your televisions!! THIS is what my TV downstairs looks like on a normal basis.
No Ellen is not in 3D, the color guns on our TV are going out. It drives me crazy but I've become too cheap to try and do anything about it that would cost me money. Sometimes everything lines up and the picture is perfect, but at LEAST 80% of the time it looks like the above picture. My son wonders if we put on 3D glasses if it would work and look like Ellen was coming out of the screen at us. Hmmm? Not sure but might have to hunt down a pair of them and try it out. hehe Then I can be all "Ellen was dancing in my living room" and that would be cool! hehe
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I had a first this weekend! I did our taxes! Every other year the hubby has trudged through the muck and done them for us. This year he just didn't want to and asked that I do them instead. I giggled frequently when Turbo Tax would ask me if I wanted some help or if I knew what I was doing. "Hell no I don't know what I'm doing!! Where the, 'I'm a virgin at this...be gentle' button?!" But I managed to get through it and not lose any hair in the process. Yay me!!

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I finished Twilight!! In less than FOUR DAYS!! This is a RECORD for me! I usually take at LEAST four months to get through ANY book!! For those who have read it already, you'll probably know EXACTLY which parts I'm thinking of here. At one point I kept reading because there were ACTUAL tears coming out of my eyes!! I was just so touched by some of the sentiment that it overcame me. Then I HAD to keep reading because it got rather scary and I couldn't go to sleep with all that crap in my head!! Then I was just so damned near the end I kept reading to finish it. Last night I started on New Moon and am already 100 pages in. hehe I'll probably go ahead and borrow the last two books from Lacey before we leave town so I can possibly finish those up on vacay.

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I'm going on VACATION!! Well, sort of anyways. We're headed North a bit to NW Arkansas. My father-in-law lives up there VERY close to a beautiful lake. So I called them yesterday and made sure they would be there for our visit. They will be and are excited about us coming up. So tomorrow I'll be cleaning up the camper and packing our stuff for the trip. We plan on leaving first thing Wednesday morning. That being said, I'll be away from internet access for several days. I'll be back on Sunday and I'm sure I'll have a crap load of stuff to read upon my return.

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Lastly, I got an award from Sally's World!!!
Thank you SO much! I am truly honored!! I'll think on it and nominate some others later in the day. This is gonna take some thought, for sure!

Flashback Friday

2009-03-13T10:01:00.004-05:00

Summer 1987

Yeah, I'm cool
Jams...check!
Guess Shirt...check!
Swatch watch...check!

I was SO proud of this Snowman (alright, he's a Slushman at best)

I will not waste this day

2009-03-12T14:30:00.002-05:00

So I started to try to post this from my iTouch, but it doesn't seem to want to cooperate on that front. Yesterday I ran errands and didn't get ANYTHING done around the house (except for making some yummy cupcakes). Today, not so much.

So far I've gotten out of bed, taken the kids to school, ate lunch for breakfast, taken a lovely nap, had a cupcake, and spent WAY too much time reading blogs and playing Cubes on my iTouch. hehe

I have a pile of laundry just a few feet away from me that is beginning to reach a level that might require protective climbing gear in order to get to the top of it. Hubby has clean clothes, they're just not folded. Ugh! And my children infuriate me every time they fold towels...they do it WRONG people!! So I'm left to do it myself.

The weather outside isn't helping..its movie and nap weather...you know, cold and raining off and on. My question to all you fantabulous people out there in bloggy world is HOW DO I MOTIVATE MYSELF?!?!?!

Oh, I forgot..I did sign onto someone's blog to hopefully review some sex toys and stuff for Eden Fantasys. How fun would that be?!? I'm thinking of gathering some more info in the form of a questionnaire to help Tiffany find the perfect toy for her. I did just send a different friend a little goodie box and I'm SOO anxiously awaiting hearing from her that she's received it!! hehe If you have a minute, visit these women's blogs..they are GREAT!!!

Guess I'll go sit by the clothes and see if they're downy freshness inspires me to fold them.

A Muumuu kind of day...

2009-03-10T09:13:00.002-05:00

Yep! That's today! I got sucking into this "Twilight world" that is the first book and found myself reading until almost 3:00am. Several times the hubbs leaned over to say "What the heck, babe?! Aren't you going to sleep?!?!" I decided to call it a night at chapter 14, which is where I plan on starting up again this morning. hehe I have to confess something, I wasn't "getting it" at first. I usually read things like Hannibal by Thomas Harris and felt that this writing just wasn't appealing to me. But I yearn to have more things to talk about with my daughter so I'm determined to read these books in their entiredy. Twilight seemed to start out slow and only in these last couple chapters have I been enticed to read "just one more page" instead of just putting it down for another night.

This morning when the alarm went off at 7:00 I was half tempted to allow the kids a "hookie day", but instead I got up and did my morning mom duties instead. THEN I went back to bed. I turned off the alarm when it went off again seven minutes later. And a few minutes after that the hubbs leaned over me to see what time it really was (yes, I really should change the clock on the VCR..don't judge me for still having a VCR...we need it for the porn..HA!). I guess he thought I hadn't been up yet, because he trapsed upstairs to get the kids up himself. I saw no reason to interject that I'd already done this.

About half an hour later my daughter comes downstairs (already dressed for school minus socks/shoes and her belt) and laments to Dad that she "doesn't feel well, and thinks she should stay home today." This is how the conversation went:

Hubby: What's due today?
Hannah: Nothing, I don't feel good.
Hubby: What homework did you forget?
Hannah: I think I might have thrown up last night?
Hubby: Really? Where is it, your room?
Hannah: No, I think I made it to the bathroom and didn't make a mess.
I'm now trying my best to stifle my giggles under the covers a few feet away in the bed.
Hubby: (putting his hand to her head) Yeah, I'm not buying it. Head's cool as a cucumber. Oh wait! Can't find a belt?
Hannah: No.
Hubby: Go find a belt. DORSEY!! Get up and help her find her belt, its already a quarter til!

Dammit! I soo didn't want to get out of bed and have to get dressed and take her to school. Ugh! So I throw on a dress MIL gave me years ago, complete with embroidered zoo animals on the front. Classic Small Town Mommy Muumuu!!

I found her a belt and grabbed hubby's keys..HE lost mine at some point on Sunday even though I suspect he hid them to keep me from leaving the house to buy fast food or anything else for that matter. Took the girl to school and made my way back to the bed to flip open the laptop and start my electronic day. I decided to indulge myself today and just hang out. Not going to stress about working out..if I get to it, I get to it. So be well friends! I'm going to go back to my reading and let my laptop charge, since it seems to be being nice to me this morning and doing just that.

That's what I get

2009-03-09T15:33:00.003-05:00

for taking the weekend off, essentially. I opened my Google Reader and had 184 new posts waiting for me! Ugh!!I'm so scared for what will await me after Spring Break. Eeek!

So this past Friday evening my daughter had already gotten clearance to have a friend spend the night. But because we're planning on camping during Spring Break, we needed to go to Clifton and get the camper. We told her that she was welcome to bring her friend along. But as it turned out, her friend invited her to stay the night over there instead. We worked out the details and we were good to go. Then my son decided he also didn't want to go with us. So we arranged for him to spend the night with one of his friends. Then the hubby and I trotted off to Chili's for some dinner and then off to the farm house to spend the night and get the camper.

We enjoyed the solitude and came home early afternoon Saturday. We checked in with both kiddos and both wanted to spend another night out. Sure! We'll take that opportunity! We decided it would be a good idea to buy a lottery ticket, as our luck was most definitely improving for the weekend! Sad to report I'm not writing to say we've won the lottery. I made jalapeno poppers and we snacked for supper and played on the computers. Around 7:00, Hubby decided he wanted to take this golden chance to go to a movie. We were all set to go see "Watchmen" at 9:55pm.

We got to the move and found a seat. We watched as several other folks made their way into the theater. Then something caught my eye. WTF?!?! Someone was walking up to find their seat with a little girl that couldn't have been more than THREE YEARS OLD!!!! Umm, excuse me, did you get lost on your way to "Hotel for Dogs"? This is a rated R movie. OMG! This is such a pet peeve of mine!! In a film where there is a LOT of violence and blood (gory blood, not so much artistic blood), LOTS of sexual references, and a pretty artisticy soft core porn sex scene. Umm, NO!! That is just wrong on SO many levels!! We sat through the film and enjoyed it alright. It wasn't what we expected it to be, but it wasn't bad either. QUITE different from some of the other comic book films out there though. As we were leaving both of us couldn't help but comment on how we'd rather have waited until it came out on DVD and watched it at home. We have a great TV, a freakin' popcorn machine, and the seats are MUCH more comfortable!!! We also wouldn't have had to put up with the teenagers that kept giggling and talking through the film, and getting up to walk across the theater to talk on their phones. Yes, it IS worth it to save yourself the $20 it costs (and tha's JUST for the tickets) to go see a movie in a theater.

What are your thoughts? Do you spend the money to go to the theater? Would you have said something to the parents who brought their little one to see this very adult movie?

We ended the weekend well enough. The whole family cleaned out the garage some so that we could put the camper in there until Spring Break and also the car that needs some repair done to it.

Oh and for all you guys out there that have read Twilight, my daughter is obsessed with Edward and I told her I'd buy the movie when it came out and take her to see New Moon if she read both books. So I borrowed copies from a friend and she's started reading. In an attempt to also keep up with whether or not she's actually reading it, I've also downloaded a copy of the book to my iPod and I'm currently on page 82. I hope to have it done before we go on our little trip, so I can read New Moon that week. Here's a picture of why I'm the favorite mom on the block right now.
I got it for her at Blockbuster and she squealed "OH!! Its Robert Pattinson!! He is SOOOO cute!" when I unrolled it and put it up for her.

Sorry for being late...

2009-03-09T13:00:00.003-05:00

Well I start this by apologizing. I picked a winner for the Skinny Bitch books giveaway, but barely got on the computer to post about it. So Congrats Laurie!!! So please send me an email (dorseybell [at] hotmail [dot] com) at your earliest convenience with your mailing address so I can get the books off to you.

I'll write a longer post later on, but for now I need to get back to laundry. Here's some pics of what we entertained ourselves with this weekend.

My son and daughter cleaning off the camper before we put it in the garage.

My daughter and her friends enjoying the sun and warm temperatures by playing in the water

Flashback Friday

2009-03-06T08:02:00.002-06:00

No its not flashing back to the 80s, well not really. It was when I used to play Bunco with some other moms in the area and we decided to make them themed. This one's was the 80s.

Oh yeah! I'm rockin' the mall bangs AND the blue eye shadow!!

Morning Routine...

2009-03-04T09:01:00.005-06:00

Seeing as how I have been able to acquire a regular day job as of yet, I've become quite the morning TV connoisseur. This morning the hubby woke up just before 4 am and got up to go for a run this morning (NOT his usual routine, but I'm hoping he starts including it more often). He even got the kids up and showered!! WOW! Go SuperHubby!!!

Now my morning run around is a tad bit different. Usually I try to get up and get moving about 7:00 when I get the kids up and moving. I try to go upstairs and exercise before I do anything else. Now most stay at home moms (SAHM) have a small one in the house and are inundated with images from various networks targeted for children...i.e. Nickelodeon, Disney, PBS, etc... Now my kids are older and in school so I don't have to watch the same shows as many of these mothers, my fellow SAHM in the fox holes of motherhood. So here's my typical TV tune in...

First thing in the morning, NBC's Today Show

Then I usually move on to Live with Regis & Kelly (locally on FOX), only if I can stand Kelly Ripa's perkiness and Regis' being Regis...otherwise I channel flip or watch a DVD

After that I indulge in ABC's The View (especially if I'm feeling low on estrogen..ha!)

Then I move on to The Bonnie Hunt Show (back on NBC) if I remember.

After this I usually either watch Martha Stewart or The People's Court. I usually prefer People's Court, but if its a rerun I switch back to Martha.

Then I'm back to NBC for Days of Our Lives, the only soap I'm somewhat addicted to and try to watch most days. I ADORE Alison Sweeney and her character and I could dine on the guy who plays E.J. for a week!! SOOOO yummy!!!

Now mind you, I don't have cable currently, so that sort of limits my choices. I will admit that more times than not the television serves as white noise throughout my day. Hubby and I DO often watch at least half an hour of the Today Show from bed in the mornings. Now weekends are all together different and often times the TV stays off completely, or I'm watching DVDs to pass the time.

So what serves as white noise for your mornings when you're at home?

Side note: GREAT news!! Three days in a row my Wii Fit has NOT chastised me! I've lost weight every day!! Granted it was merely 0.2 lbs yesterday, and 0.4 lbs today, but I'm not complaining!! Every little bit counts!

How many teens can you shove in a Pod?

2009-03-02T14:56:00.005-06:00

I'm thinking four if you're talking about this one:

It's call the PeaPod, a new electric vehicle. I was watching Martha Stewart this morning, People's Court was one I'd already seen, and the guy who "invented" this little cutie came on. The one they're coming out with first is a "NeighborhoodPod" that goes up to 25MPH only (which might be JUST the thing for my son when he's 16!!). They DO plan on coming out with a "CityPod" that can go regular speed limits (I'm thinking up to 70MPH or so). The hubby is SUPER into the whole electric vehicle revolution and has ideas spinning around in his head about wind powered turbines for vehicles or something...I IM'd him as soon as the segment was done and he was all "Cool! That would be AWESOME! How much?" So I hit him with the numbers...$12,500 USD!!! ONLY!! That is TOTALLY reasonable for a 4-door!! Then I saw what the inside looked like...

Oh yes, that's right!! It plugs into your iPod!!! AWESOMENESS!!! I could download MORE apps for my iTouch!! hehe And check out the seats!! They're freakin' OFFICE CHAIRS!! They have moveable backs--not adjustable, moveable (like your regular office chair adjusts when you lean back a little). And they're meshy. Alright, meshy might not be a good word, but its my blog and I'll call it what I wanna!! So if I mention them ALL over the place, maybe I could covince them to send me one to try out...wouldn't that be FANTABULOUS!!!

Supposedly it will be available (the NeighborhoodPod) for purchase on Earth Day (April 22, 2009) but won't be delivered, YES DELIVERED!!!, until September 7, 2009. From what I'm to understand, someone drives this little cutie to your home and hands you the keys! Would you drive one?

And while I'm on totally cool things...I got an award!! The person awarding me, America's Next Top Mommy, apparently was convinced I was impersonating her until she read my IQ Answers and discovered I was an Aquarius. Let's just hope she didn't have the same virginity loss answer...awkward!! ha! But I think I might TOTALLY interview her now!! She's got all these pesky rules for the award, but I gave up french fries for Lent, and said NOTHING about following the rules all the time. Ha! So thank you SO much, ANTM!!! And she thinks I'm "insanely gorgeous" which makes her my new bestest best friend!! So all my peeps that read this know that I think you are ALL hotties and would totally list out all of you and why I like you, but that would go on for a LONG time!!! So all you wicked cool hotties consider yourself awarded!!

Oh and for the record, I want to throw out an extra entry for Susan in Tattooed Minivan Mom's Sex Toy giveaway!!! And if she ends up not winning I'm going to send her a swag bag which will be EXCELLENT!!! Heck I might send her one anyways! hehe So what do ya say, Mom? Can we count it? Not that you're MY mom...just don't know what else to call you...hehe

So far as I could tell not ONE she-male in the bunch!

2009-03-01T18:44:00.004-06:00

Last night I actually got out of the house alone, and the kids weren't in school, the hubby wasn't at work. I went off to meet some relative strangers, fellow bloggers. I had to put two calls in to my BFF in order to find the best route there and left an hour early. Before I left, my son asked me an interesting question:
Boy: So how do you know they aren't just a bunch of she-males?
Me: Guess I don't until I get there. But maybe if they are they'll be nice and pay for my dinner. =)

I am happy to report there wasn't, so far as I could tell, a single lady-boy in the bunch! Dinner was FANTASTIC!! I has salmon, mashed potatoes, sweet mash, broccoli, carrots, and snap peas. Dessert HAD to be the white chocolate raspberry cheesecake. I ate about 1/3 of both and brought the rest home to the hubby. Which made him REALLY happy!

I was coming off a couple days of having a sore throat, so I had that great Kathleen Turner thing going on. ugh! Then this morning I had nothing but a whisper of a voice.

They said next time we might just get a room instead of having to be split up between two tables, to which I thought hubby is really going to make sure I take the camera if I tell him we're "getting a room". hehehe

We talked about our blogs, kids, spouses, and told funny stories. It was more fun than I've had in ages!! We talked about anonymity, what we blog about, how we come up with something to blog, etc...Here's some pictures of the evening, due to the concerns of some of my fellow bloggers I won't be disclosing any of their identities.

For those who stuck around I am going to tell a story I told last night.

Several years ago, when my son was 7 and my daughter was 5, we were all sitting around the dinner table. We'd picked up Subway sandwiches after my daughter's soccer game. When we got home, she'd take a bath and was wrapped in a towel at the table. Suddenly Hannah (my daughter) started wriggling around in her seat. The following conversation went something like this:
Me: What is wrong with you, why are you squirming around so much?
Hannah: My weenis hurts!
Me: Your what?!?!?
Hannah: My weenis.
Me: Ok, where on earth did you hear that?
Hannah: From Josh [her brother]
Me: The word is penis, and secondly...you don't have one.
At this point Joshua, being seven and knowing EVERYTHING, as all seven year olds do, decides to interject his wisdom...
Joshua: Yeah Hannah, boys have a penis...girls have an agenda!

Oh yeah, hubby and I FELL OUT OF OUR CHAIRS laughing!! When we had regained our composure we told him...Well, son..the word somewhat, the word you're looking for here is vagina. And we hope she doesn't have an agenda YET! The hubby went around for days saying how the boy was wise beyond his years!!! hehehe

Flashback Friday

2009-02-27T13:52:00.003-06:00

Today I am flashing back just over 14 yrs ago. I must admit these pictures were taken about 2 months apart. hehe

This is our engagement photo. My GOODNESS we both look sooo young!!! I think this will always be my second favorite photo of my dear hubby (yeah, he's been forgiven for his transgressions of late...he made up for it yesterday) and me. What's my first favorite you ask? This one:

Both of these pictures were taken in 1994. And I'm thrilled to say, every time I kiss my hubby I feel just as "on air" as I did those days. Who needs Red Bull to give you wings when you have a yummy hubby around and a happy marriage?!?!

Click here to find out about my first giveaway.

My IQ

2009-02-26T19:55:00.002-06:00

No, I'm not going to talk about my intelligence...well, not really. Recently I have had the opportunity to be interviewed by one of my bloggy friends, Texan Mama at Who Put Me In Charge of These People.
I am super thrilled to be asked questions by fellow bloggers..so here goes...and could someone please touch up my make-up and hair. What?! This isn't a paid interview? Ah well, no big.

1. What's the best birthday present you've ever gotten?

The BEST would have to have been a leather jacket with fringe I got when I was about 14 yrs old. It doesn't seem the BEST fashion choice now..but then..I was hawt!!! More recently I think it was my combination Christmas/Birthday present of my new digital camera.

2. What is your astrological sign?

I'm an Aquarius. (I think the new "What's your sign?" pick-up line is "A/S/L?" That's what I've seen online at least when you go into any public chat room and the people there even SUSPECT you might be female!! hehe means Age/Sex/Location?)

3. If you won a prize of $10,000 and you didn't have to pay taxes on it, what would you do with the money?

First of all I'd take some of it and put it towards credit cards. Then I'd probably buy myself a new kick ass laptop. hehe And then I'd probably do something silly and sensible and buy like $1000 worth of scratch off lottery tickets! hehehe Knowing me I'd likely use a good chunk of it on home improvements like paint, flooring, and such for the house.

4. Can you name the current heads of state of at least 5 world countries?

Ummm....Amadinajad, Queen Elizabeth, Bradjelina (haven't they founded their own country yet?), and that's about it...besides our own...Barak Obama

5. Where did you lose your virginity?

Sadly, in my boyfriend's rent house...sad thing is..he was sort of..umm..lacking in certain areas, and I wasn't totally sure I had lost my virginity...ho hum...and I stayed with him for over THREE years!!!

6. Why did you start blogging?

I originally started blogging here to give myself an outlet to get my weight loss frustrations and successes out. Blogging has been my therapy for quite some time now. I started a couple years ago on yahoo 360 and myspace. Then it was just somewhere to write out my thoughts and occasionally get some feedback. Only later did it become a venue to vent overall. I also started a digital scrapbooking blog so I could share with family members some of the things I was putting together.

7. Who was the first singing group/artist whose cassette/CD/8-track YOU bought (with your own money)?

Brace yourself...New Kids on The Block's "Hangin' Tough", my mother bought me Vanilla Ice's with "Ice Ice Baby" on it because she liked that song so much (GOOD thing that's the ONLY song she listened to!!!) and she also bought me a Fresh Prince cassette (the one with "Nightmare on My Street" and "Parents Just Don't Understand").

8. How do you wake up in the morning?

Generally with a chihuahua ass in my face...stupid dog! I generally wake up somewhat cranky as my first order of business is to get everyone else in the house up and let the dogs out so they don't crap on the floor. Most of the time my alarm on my phone or my husband's evil half broken Smithsonian-bound alarm clock rouses me, or the sound of my children's alarms going off above me that I seem to be able to hear through the floor but they can't seem to hear from across their own freakin' bedroom!!!!!

9. When was the last time you wrote someone a letter?

I did this earlier this month actually, with a stamp and everything!! I have a friend who is serving some time in white collar jail for a very bad mistake in her own judgement. She and I have corresponded throughout her stay there.

10. Name 3 things you'd like to do before you die, that you haven't already done.

Go to a tropical resort for a week with my hubby
Read the entire Bible, cover to cover
Learn two foreign languages fluently..preferably Spanish and French

Thanks again, Texan Mama for the interview! I had a blast answering the questions. I think I might have to come up with something similar in the coming week.

No rest for the Mom...

2009-02-26T13:56:00.002-06:00

I am SOO incredibly thankful that today is a GORGEOUS day in N. Texas!! It is 82 degrees F outside!! Every now and then there's a slight breeze, and best of all..I DON'T have Spring allergies!! So after waking from my Theraflu induced sleep this morning-ish (it was about 12:30pm, but I was just waking up..so it totally counts as my morning), I made myself a light lunch and proceeded to open all the doors/windows that I could. And no worries all, THIS time I had on shorts and a very light 3/4-length sleeve shirt (no need revisiting yesterday). What makes this day so wonderful is it is the FIRST day this week I've really felt half way decent. My nose is not too drippy today, the aches are subsiding, and no headache on the horizon!! Yipee!!! Last night was another story.
Yesterday, pretty much all day, I fought chills and fever along with overall yuckiness. I spent the vast majority of the day in bed drifting in and out of consciousness. So around 6:30pm the hubby calls to let me know he's on his way home. The conversation went something like this:
Him: Hey honey, I'm on my way home. Need me to get anything on the way home?
Me: (weakly)No, I don't think so.
Him: OK, so what's for supper?
Me: I don't know...I've been in bed all day. I haven't even thought about supper.
Him: Well, think about it. What are we having?
Me: I'm not sure...I guess we'll figure it out when you get home. Bye.
Him: OK, bye, see ya in a few.

WTF?!?! Now I must warn you, I'm one of those nurturing wives. When my hubby doesn't feel well I all out PAMPER him!! I dote. I bring him meals in bed. I check on him often. I threaten the children with unspeakable consequences if they make too much noise and disturb his rest. THIS apparently is a one-sided thing in my house. That same morning before he went to work, while I laid in the bed being about as pitiful as one could be, he whined "What? You didn't make me a lunch?" I just gave him a look, grabbed one of the dogs like a teddy bear, and rolled over.

Yesterday after my son came home from school he came into my room, laid down with me in bed, and watched Blossom reruns on DVD with me for about an hour and a half. He even asked if I needed anything.

After my darling hubby got home he continued to lament that he was HUNGRY!!! So I got up, moped into the kitchen and started some spaghetti. It was only after getting everything started that he huffed and said "No dear. Go back to bed. Remember, you're sick. Go to sleep."

I did just that! This morning I got up and cautiously stepped on the scale. I have not done so in several days. I've been lucky through being sick that I haven't had any stomach issues, so I've been able to keep everything in. And I have been trying to keep to a good meal plan. So I almost jumped for joy when those little digital numbers showed up FOUR AND A HALF pounds less than the last time I'd been on the scale!! Yeah!!!! So I'm on my way to being a Skinny Bitch!

Don't forget about my giveaway if you too are searching for your inner skinny and hoping to release her!!