set up some decorations

so I set up the little amount of christmas decorations I have. my favorite is all the stuff around my fire place. I pretty much got it all from my parents. I really like the new vase and twigs I got this year. i'm not sure if it looks perfect but i'm not so good at these things. I want to make a trip to the thrift store by my house to pick up a few more decorations. they have some fun stuff there!

Week 5 Weigh In

Well as a i was saying i was super super super worried about this week! i did all i could at the beginning of the week to lose weight... walking and counting every single bit i had. Then came Thanksgiving... dun dun dun... i didn't eat anything before dinner b/c i was working and then at dinner i took just a little bit of everything and cleaned my plate. then we headed over to dinner number 2 where i filled up my already bursting belly with mac and cheese! then we went shopping all night and i didn't eat anything but four MC nuggets (4 pts total). slept most of the day and didn't eat too much during the day till dinner where we had left overs! i reheated prime rib and mac and cheese from mats mom. while reheating though i munched on left over ham and stuffing and turkey from my moms house! Then yesterday i had my birthday plans with Kate so i didn't eat anything but toast till i went to her house but dinner was cheese ravioli and bread sticks (i had 4!!) with my low fat spinach dip i made which was pretty good but we ate a lot of it just the two of us and when you eat alot of something low fat it kinda doesn't become low fat anymore lol! then for desert we had cupcakes (cake was low fat but the frosting wasn't) and ice cream... luckily the ice cream we choose was low fat and i only gave a little scoop with our cupcakes! i wasn't going to eat anything when i got home but i ended up eating a skinny cow ice cream sandwich and some popcorn... i didn't keep track of point those three days but i was proud i didn't go totally over board!
anyway the weigh in.... DRUM ROLL~ i lost 1.5 lbs! i am so so so happy with this! i was just hoping not to gain but to lose is really great... i really owe it all to my walks. i swear they make all the difference! they are so easy i have developed a lop that i walk through the neighbor hood behind my apartments and it take my zune and just get going.. pretty relaxing really.
Today i am back on track and keeping points. I started the day off with an hour long walk... i walked my loops twice. I woke up and kept debating on if i wanted to go b/c i just enjoyed being lazy and sitting around my house but i was sitting on my computer and the new episode of Five Hundy was up and i figured what was better sitting at home on the computer listening to them report on their trip to Vegas or taking a walk while listening. So i took an hour long walk that lasted most of their pod cast and the time just flew by because all i was thinking about was my love of Vegas and all the things i wanted to do on our next trip!
So this week i have big hopes for and i really want to keep up my walks so i vow to at least go on one more walk! i work 11-8 three days this week so those days i won't be able to... i would never get up early enough and i don't really want to walk when it is dark! wish me luck!

Week 1: -4 lbs
Week 2: -4.5lbs
Week 3: -1.5lbs
Week 4: -1lb
week 5: -1.5lbs
Total: -12.5 lbs

Thanksgiving Bliss

Well i have to say that i had one of the best thanksgivings I've had in a long time. Not really sure what made it so great this year but it was just nice. Mat and I had to work in the morning from 10am to 2pm but hey, holiday pay! then we headed to my parents house where my family was there. It was just a warm and inviting time and i was comfortable and happy... i even carved the turkey thank you very much!!!! My cousins Halley and Ally and her son Terrence where there. i have to say holidays with little kids just seem more festive. i don't know what it is about it. We had to run soon after dinner (missing the games portion of the night) because we were heading over to Mats family's house. We spent time with his brother, his girlfriend and their two kids and him mom Melvin and his grandma! It was so nice and it was fun playing with baby terry who is just learning to walk...kinda. It's funny that my cousins kid and mats brothers kid have the same name, of course mats nephew is a Jr. All the food we had was great and super filling... it kept me full during our all night shop-athon!

We bought the paper when getting off work and saved to look at it till we got home. we mapped out our plan of attack... well kinda... We first went to Micheal's because they had a Thursday night coupon in the add. I got some Christmas decorations and our Christmas cards... which i will hopefully work on today! Then we came back home thinking that we wouldn't be starting to shop till four when Kohl's opened but we saw that the Seattle Premium outlets were open at midnight so we figured we would head down there just to till time... if we had gone to sleep we probably wouldn't have gotten up to shop. The outlets is where we came across the worst crowds of the day. i stood line line for almost two hours but i got some pretty great deals and so did mat ( of course he bought stuff all for himself!) we then headed to Kohl's where we were able to meet Tara standing in line toward the front. We got in and out of there in like fifteen/twenty minutes with a king size down comforter ($25) Flannel Sheets ($20) a Christmas door mat and a hooded towel for mats niece! it was a success! then we headed to JC Penny's because it was the only thing open that early and got a few other gifts. After that we headed to Best Buy and were in and out of that pretty quickly as well... the line moved pretty fast. Then we headed to the mall where we split up. mat walked over to target and got him mom a digital camera while i shopped at the mall for him. We were all done by 7am.. basically b/c i has spent my allowance for the day ( i didn't want to over do it and have no money left!)
Over all every single thing we did went smoothly and really relaxed. I had such a great time and really enjoyed every minute of it!

Thankful

Waking up this thanksgiving morning i thought of all the things in my life i am thankful for!

I am thankful for my boyfriend mat. He is always patient and understand, my greatest support and the love of my life. I don't know where i would be without him. we have gone through so much together and grown a lot. I love him more and more everyday!

i am thankful for My girlfriends. Each and every one of them has their own unique spirit that talks to me and understand a different aspect of my personality! I know i could go to any single one of them for advice and get just what i want to hear. I love the hours we have spent together talking and laughing!

I am thankful for my parents. Though we aren't the closest of families i know that if i ever needed them they would be there to help me out in any way they could. i have learned alot from them and I know that i turned out to be the person i am because of them!

I am thankful to have my job and still be getting 40 hours. even though it my not be a glamurous job in some peoples eyes and i may not love it every single minute i'm there. I have security and in these days where the economy is struggling and every day on the news you hear about hundreds of people losing their job i take comfort in knowing people will always need food. and when they can't afford to go out to eat they will come to the grocery store!

a little aprehensive!!

Can i just tell you how worried i am for thanksgiving weekend!? first of all we have TWO thanksgiving dinners to go to... first at my family's house where there is great pie and bread and all the other fixin's then we head over to mats moms house where she make amazing food like sweet potatoes and last year she made oh so yummy mac and cheese and then had my all time fav hawian sweet rolls! None of these foods low in caloiries! that is so much food and it is going to be hard to show restraint! THEN that night mat and i are going to stay up all night and go shopping at midnight! who knows what kind of foods i'm gonna be suckered into in my delierium of all night shopping! THEN Saturday i am having a little girly night with my friend Kate for her birthday... this is the day i have got to control! it is gonna be hard to figure out low point foods that are fun to snack on as well! so far i've got popcorn! i'll figure something out and it will all be fabulous! I have gone walking three days this week in hopes to balance out the end of the week! i really really really don't want to back track! i weighed myself this morning and i was down another 1.5lbs so if nothing else at least hopefully i will only gain that 1.5lbs back and just stay the same for the week! wish me luck!

taking a look in the mirror.

I am a a big hearted person. Almost to a fault i care about people... i am constantly listening to peoples problems and then trying to figure out how i can fix them. I have to learn to realize that my help maybe isnt what they need. i can't fix everything and you know what i shouldn't worry about it. People have their problems... but they are just that, THEIR PROBLEMS... not mine... i have to remember that! i have my own problems.... my own goals... my own life and you know what that is what should be most important to me... because at the end of the day all i have is me. If people want to change it is up to them. and i will continue working towards the person i want to be!

Week 4 Weigh In

Well today was the big day and let me tell you i had big expectations but little hope. I knew i did pretty well with my points and in no way went over the extra 35 points we have for each week. but i could just feel that i hadn't lost weight. in fact i have felt bigger then ever! plus i really haven't been drinking nearly as much water as i had in the past weeks! oh wait i haven't told you what i lost lol.... drum roll please........i lost 1 whole pound! bringing my total to 11 lbs! which i am glad to say that at least my weight isn't up i still wish i could have lost more. at this rate it will take me four more weeks to get to my next reward! BOO! plus thanksgiving is this week which really scares me. i so don't want to gain any of the eleven pounds I've lost! i am going to be so strict this week in hopes that when i eat thanksgiving dinner it balances out! plus i vow to go on two walks this week! when we first started this diet i walked like everyother day and the scale showed it. i was so careful and consise and it reflected! i need that motivation again.... i tried doing a workout video and stopped ten minutes in yesterday... i just feel tired... at least with walking i can even walk slow and it makes a differnce! ok well wish me luck this week and hope i don't pig out too much on thursday!

Week 1: -4 lbs
Week 2: -4.5 lbs
Week 3: -1.5lbs
Week 4: -1lb

take foot...insert in mouth

AGAIN A FITTING HOROSCOPE:
It's all about open and free communication, today. You've got to say what you feel as soon as you feel it! It's time to liberate your mind and free yourself to say whatever comes to mind at the moment it pops up in your brain. You're open to the fact that once or twice you might say something silly. You might stick your foot in your mouth, but so what? That's a small price to pay for feeling free and open with the people you'll be dealing with, today. Embarrassment can bring people closer.

I am a blunt, say how i feel, kind of person... i, a lot of times, say things that could have been said in a better way and been more affective. something I'll have to work on, not only for my personal life but for my professional life as well. but for the most part i just wanna say what i have to say because if you try to say it nicely the point doesn't get across or i don't get to say all that i need to say. i need to find a balance... and i will one day... i am a work in progress... remember that!

my grams e-mail sign off quote: Be who you are and say what you feel--Those who mind don't matter & those that matter don't mind.---T.G.

Ten pound reward!

Well today is my day off and I decided to start the day off with my ten pound reward.... a peticure! Kristin and Laura were both free to join me so we met there and all picked our colors! it was so muchfun being able to sit with them and catch up.... especially with laura whom I never get to see and hang out with and chat. I think this was a super fun and relaxing and and absolutly had nothing to do with food.
I think learning to do things that aren't based around foot is really something I need to work on... it is hard though when u r surrounded by skinny people who can eat whatever they want and they do base things around food.
anyways it was a great reward and now I am working toward my next reward which is buying a hardcover book and having a guilt free day to myself of reading and relaxing... NO CLEANING OR COOKING!
wish me luck

I am an AME graduate!

Well i have been taking an AME class for four weeks now through work. Achieving Management Excellence is a class that help you figure out your strengths as a manager and how you can just them to your advantages. They teach you a lot of tools for you to take back with you on how to manage your employees and better move forward in management. I thought the class was very helpful to me. I feel i still have A LOT to learn to be a really great manager but i have the drive to be successful and i think this is something that i really am going to be able to work with for the rest of my life. I learned not only things that i am good at but things i didn't realize i did while managing. One thing i took out of the class what that i need to SLOW DOWN! i am constantly feeling like i am in a rush to get things done and under control that i don't take time to properly coach people.
The class although at times seemed to drag on was good. I constantly wanted to be the one to answer the question but then there were other times when no one else would answer and for some reason i felt the need to answer... even though i hadn't thought of an answer and found myself talking without any real direction of what i was saying and ending up just feeling like a fool. i would tell myself i not going to answer another question all day.... but then i couldn't hold back and i would answer again. i don't know if this is a good or bad trait for me.. maybe another skill i need to work on (oral communication) but over all i came out of the class feeling better about myself and the direction i am taking.
Now i still don't know if or when I'll be turned into a second assistant but i have decided that i don't have to rush it. It will happen when I'm ready and it will be all the better so that i don't get over whelmed.

this one is fun!

Ok so i totally don't believe in these things except the power of persuasion but today's horoscope is pretty fun and fitting for a ten pound weight loss day! te he he...

You are feeling -- and looking -- extremely good today, and your positive energy will only grow with every social encounter you have. So talk it up and get your flirt on -- shine your bright smile on everyone you meet, and you will make their day! Expect a lot of double takes and slack jaws wherever you go. By the end of the day you might even feel embarrassed at all of the attention you've been getting, but why fight it? The fact is, you are one hot ticket.

Week Three Weigh In

Well this week was kind of a struggle in the sense that i just didn't pay attention to what i was putting in my mouth... i didn't go crazy and i put myself back on track toward the end of the week and come out pretty successful if i do say so myself! DRUM ROLL....... I'm down 1.5 more lbs!!! that brings me to my total of 10lbs in three weeks(thats twenty dollars in my jar!)... not too bad if i say so myself. and that brings be to my second reward... a pedicure! i have Tuesday and Thursday off so i will probably getting it done one of those days! I'm so proud that i have made it this far. it is amazing what you can do when u just take it one day at a time... one hour at a time really for me!
a few things i was proud of myself this week for:
*i grilled veggies: asparagus, zucchini, and red peepers. i had planned on eating them through out the week but ended up eating them all yesterday for lunch before work with some Texas toast. then when i got home i made a grilled panini with the red peppers i had left! amazing for a girl who doesn't like veggies! i even bought more for today or tomorrow!
*i portioned out my snack foods! I have two boxes of reduced fat Cheese It's (b/c i was so excited that they came out with RF white cheddar i had to buy a second box) but anyways i portioned out the boxes with a fun mix of the two flavors so i could just grab and go and know how many points i was eating! i also did it with my reduced fat wheat thins so i could eat it with my laughing cow cheese wedge and not have to sit and count the crackers!
*whenever i was thirsty at work i didn't buy a pop as i usually drink.... i got a large glass of water from Starbucks and kept refilling it all night. i also made glasses of lemon aid at home so it felt like drinking something sweet... I've been doin pretty well not drinking much pop these days... too bad i have eight two liters sitting in my house!
So now is the start of a new weekand i am feeling like i will be pretty sucessful! i hope to fit into my black pencil skirt for new years! how hot would that be! yow!

I gotta keep journaling

so this week hasn't been the best for my diet all because I haven't been keeping track of the foods I have been eating! I need to keep motivated at journaling my foods and measuring out servings sizes! my eyes are ALWAYs bigger then my stomach needs to be. that is not to say that I don't eat all the food I serve myself. but I know that if I just keep track of what I eat and how much I will be successful! I had gained earlier in the week but I am back on track and measuring and counting points so I'm hoping to lose what I had gained at least.

all I need to do now is poop! I swear it has been a week since I've had a good BM and it has upset my tummy... lucky today I have felt a bit better but still no good poos for me! I blame all the string cheese I ate last week... I guess

oh well wish me luck wit my weigh in this Sunday... I will of course keep u updated.

i took a little bit of my life back

I have an on going problem with serious debt... debt so bad that i have usually taken an ignore it attitude toward it. this problem i know is a KEY source of my unhappy days and gray hairs. but today i did something about it... while it is a very small step in improving my debt i am proud i did it at all. I could have taken the little extra money i had and gone shopping...first thought was to save it for black Friday actually. but instead i thought i have this extra money i might as well try a little bit in easing my drama. So i first set aside money for rent something that is new to me since we've moved and is something that has been hard to keep up. Then i paid my cell phone bill all on my own. now i always pay this bill with my own money but i usually give the money to mat (cause the account is in his name) and he pays the bill so me figuring out how to pay the bill and actually doing it is something i am proud of. after those important bills done i felt like i was on a roll and still had money left over way more than is needed to get through the week so i turned to the PILE of envelopes i tend to ignore, that are screaming at me every time i see them and opened two that were on top... one i was able to pay the full amount and the other was something i knew i had to set up a payment arrangement for. this is yet another thing that has always scarred me... i HATE talking on the phone. i freak myself out way before i ever call and then end up NEVER CALLING but today i dialed the number gave the account number and arraigned to pay $100 a week. this amount will be taken out of my account every Friday until it is paid off which should be pretty quick. now to some these issues are mind boggling and would never imagine having debt problems like this but to me it is something that i have just ignored for YEARS! i am proud of myself for taking a tiny little step to improving this problem... and one day i will be in the green rather then the deep maroon red i am in now and i will be a girl making her man marry her. This is probably the number one reason i don't need to get married... i don't want to pass this debt onto mat... it isn't his problem (he doesn't even know how bad it is.... no one does..not even me really)
wish me luck i know this is a lot to learn about lil ol me but hey I'm getting better i just gotta do it in my own time (i guess)

I wanna be arm candy

awake at six in the morning what else is there to watch but music videos? it is amazing to watch the fashion that they have in these and I can't help but wonder what I would wear if I had the body for it. I, for the most part, am not shy but I know what just doesn't look good and a fat ass squashed into and outfit that is three sizes too small with rolls hanging out every which way is not hot.... but watch out for when I reach my goal weight... if only for one day... I wanna be arm candy with swinging hips and an attitude to match!

Laura's Birthday Party!

Well this weekend was super fun! not only because i got to weigh in... always my favorite part of the weekend **rolls eyes** but also because i was throwing Laura a surprise 22nd birthday party! It was actually mats idea but Kristin and i did all the work! We tried for a night club feel. We made a fun light up club Laura sign and i got a disco ball with lights (which will be returned because it was so not worth the 40 bucks it cost!)

It was fun to have Laura's brother and wife over along with a few other friends. we started the night out waiting for the guest of honor to arrive. we ate my yummy chicken and rice (the boys had burger master) Once she arrived... not at all surprised at the party of course... the party started. we played a drinking game right off the bat and by nine we were all pretty well buzzed! we slowed things down a bit by playing apples to apples while we waited for Tara to arrive! you can never go wrong with a good 'ol game of apples to apples i always say! Tara arrived by 10:30 and we were all well gone by then so i of course encouraged her to catch up with us with major quantities of alcohol! the other guest had left so it was time for Laura to open her gifts from us! we all had our days with her planned out and came up with creative ways to tell her about them... we all realized just how BUZZED Laura was when she got the most excited over a box of hamburger helper Tara got her to symbolize dinner!

Over all it was a pretty great party (even though the surprise wasn't much of a surprise) we had a good time and I'm pretty sure Laura had a blast and really that is all that matters!

Week Two Weigh In

Well it is Sunday again and you know what that means... weigh in time!!! i am happy to report that i have lost another 4.5 lbs this week!! That gives me a grand total of 8.5 lbs total I've lost! This week i also met my first goal and so was able to enjoy my first reward; a bubble bath and face mask!

So after eating dinner and recovering from Laura's birthday party (more on that later) Mat and i headed to walmart to pick up a face mask! I got a fun blue clay mask for my face but being in the pampering aile i decided i wanted to do a little more and make it really enjoyable. so i also bought some cucumber melon bubble bath, a fun sleepy time bath foaming ball, a bath pillow (which let me tell you is the best thing to have in the bath!) i had also gotten some stuff from my mom so i had fun pedicure stuff too. I set up my bath: candles and soft lighting, filled the tub with bubbles and blew up my pillow. i grabbed a WW peanut butter cup sundae and laid back in the tub! i was in there for a good hour and when i got out if felt like a new women! Bubble baths are so relaxing and enjoyable! one thing i enjoy as a lose weight is being able to have more room in the tub! te he he!

I am only 1.5 lbs away from my next goal for ten lbs so if all goes well next week i will be writing about that enjoyable experience!

I voted!

I must admite that I didn't vote last election, which would have been the first I was allowed to vote in.... but I did this year! my reason is simply what would I tell my future children about this historical election if I hadn't even voted in it. I wanted to be part of history. although this might not be an ideal reason and I might not know every detail of all the issues I knew who I was voting for and I went and filled in the ballot!

the first chili of the season

I have made my first pot of chili for the year! I made chili from scratch last year and it didn't turn out so great and so I was hesitatant to try it again but I asked around at work and I decided to go the easy route and bought the packaged seasoning. I got the two alarm seasoning, browned some ground turkey, added a can of tomatoes, and a can of black beans, chopped up an onion and it will simmer in my crock pot all day long. this is so great cause when mat comes home from work he can eat then it will still be warm and waiting for me when I get off work! it will also be great to have outhouse filled with the yummy aroma of simmering chili. oh how it feels like fall!

Week One Weigh In

My horoscope today on yahoo: Today is a great time for you to look ahead toward your future. Start putting some new goals into place, and try to get a little bit more aggressive about achieving them. It's very wise to create attainable goals, but it's only the loftiest goals that can inspire you to stretch yourself in new ways. Time is going to move forward whether you are aware of it or not, so you need to make every day count. Creating an awareness of where you are now versus where you want to be will help you do just that.

I thought that was pretty fitting for my day today...even though i set my goals last week for my weight loss i still have to be a bit aggressive to achieve them as well as stretch myself to be able to obtain my goal weight which is a weight i don't ever remember weighing.

So today was the weekly weigh in for the weight watchers diet... drum roll please....... i lost 4 lbs!!!! pretty exciting! i weighed myself on Wednesday and i had lost 3lbs already and that fact kept me motivated to be good through Halloween so that i wouldn't pig out... and boy let me tell you i really wanted to pig out! i had only one piece of candy which i sat and savored every little bite... my friends thought i was crazy but boy was the mini milky way the best candy bar I've ever had!!! Anyways i am now one lb away from my first goal of 5 lbs and the reward of a bubble bath. let me tell you i really wanted to lose 5 lbs this week cause i really need a relaxing bubble bath!! but all the more motivation for this next week!

Ghost and Goblins and DRAMA!!

Last night was Halloween!!!! boy was it a night!! it ended badly due to clashing moods but I'm not going to dwell on that! I'm going to concentrate on all the fun i had and what i though made it a pretty great Halloween!

First of all i finally found a costume that i was excited about! A was a cow girl! and yes i have done that before but this time i really did it right! i had a swead vest with fringe, a leather belt with fringe... to that i attached a gun in a holster! I had a while collared shirt on with ruffles down the front and tight jean 9that i was just happy i could fit into) and finally my brown boots that were fake snake skin and to toes when to a point topped off with Kristin's straw cowgirls hat!... over all i think it looked pretty good and i remember blurs of complements as i walked down the streets in Seattle!

Second while getting ready to go out for the night we were able to carve pumpkins and just hang out together! we as friends tend to only hang out with each other when we have tons of activities planned... it was nice to not feel rushed and be able to just hang out and talk. also while we were getting ready we were able to watch poltergeist one of my all time fav horror movies as well as have many tricker treaters. I was so excited to arrive at Tara's house to find out they get tricker treaters! i haven't gotten any in YEARS and if there are any I'm not usually home to be able to enjoy them! it was so fun to see all the kids in their costumes and see how excited they get when they get candy! it was even cute to see all the kids where it is obviously their first Halloween and they have no idea what to do! so cute!

third is that I'm proud that i stayed by my diet! even though i didn't count all of the food that i was eating i planned ahead and ate just a little before we got together. i only ate ONE piece of candy ( i made sure to sit and really savour the piece as well) and i got a chicken sandwich and a salad at dinner. i didn't let myself go over board when i really really really wanted to... thanks to my friends for all their great support!

fourth i really enjoyed looking at all the costumes that all the people in Seattle were wearing. a few that seemed popular... ghostbusters, bumble bee's, a saw a few female race car drivers which i didn't expect, cowboy was pretty common, there were a few male strippers ( i tore one of their clothes off as we walked down the street behind them!) at one point in the night i was standing outside the bar watching everyone in their costumes and it was so funny to watch a business man walk through the crowd.. it was obvious he was on his way to the airport... probably in Seattle for business! what an entertaining mix of people you can find on Halloween.

All of these things and A LOT more is why i had a pretty fantastic night on Halloween! and all that activities got me a great workout and i was able to sleep like a baby! So Happy Halloween everyone and now onto the fun stuff like Thanksgiving and Christmas!!!