Pretty Shoes in the Nest

I am excited about some change that will be coming to the blog in the next few months. I am about to embark on something a little different with my weight loss journey and I will be sharing it very pretty soon with all of you!

I had a great night at home with the hubs last night. While we were watching Glee (our favorite as a couple can both agree on it show) I decided to make some peanut butter cup brownies for him. I bake when I’m happy and right now I am coming out of some personal issues and am feeling better than I have in quite some time. I am not 100% but life is a process and I am getting there.  Of course I had to try said brownies butI managed to stop with one  and bagged the rest up for the hubs. He is running AND doing P90X so he can have the calories. 😉 Speaking of baking and happiness- I find I am nesting a lot lately. I am cooking and cleaning and care giving all over the place. The hubs and I want children eventually but now just isn’t the right time. I guess hubs, and the pups will have to deal with all of this domestic
diva-ness until a tiny running in pink project fan comes along!

This morning I was the one making the “to-go” breakfast sammies with whole grain English muffins, 1 egg, and 1 slice of turkey sausage. I also made one for the hubs but he prefers his with cheese (I don’t charge 60 cents for the cheese like McDonalds does though!!;) I also grabbed some V8 fusion and headed into the office.

Lunch was nothing exciting (which is sad) just left over stir-fry from Monday night.  Work was  work. I was mildly amused to find my boss and I were both sporting the same shoes. We picked them up at the CASA shoe event that several coworkers and I went to last month. She was a good sport when I asked her foot to pose for the blog!

After work (which I left right on time. Woohoo) I headed over to the gym. Wednesday is cross training or as I fondly referred to it today as 60 minutes of cardio hell. I was pushing myself hard. I feel like I have to in order to keep up with the fabulous people around me dropping weight like it’s their job. Maybe the course on self-comparison at the Healthy Living Summit this year will help me stop doing that.

Tonight’s dinner is whole grain spaghetti with loads of veggies and some ground turkey. Do you have a special spaghetti recipe you would share with me? I am looking for unusual twists on common dinners.

Tonight is some husband, puppies, TIVO bonding (in that order) and writing another card to my Grandpa. I always say he’s my original best guy and being hours apart I miss him like crazy. I am sending a get well card out to a pal ala Caring in Pink project as well as planning a little “urban camping” (ie a sleep over in my back yard) for this weekend. It was my husband’s idea and I am warming to it especially when I was cleared to sleep inside if I wished. Torches and s’mores
ingredients are on my list. What else should I pick up for this little adventure?

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Frilly Friday

So as I mentioned in yesterday’s blog I had banked enough hours at work this week to not have to go in today. Normally on these days I will clean, run errands, etc (all things I could have been doing today). However, today I decided to have some “Me Time”. I love my friends and family as fiercely as anyone can and I love being with them but every now and again every girl needs a little time alone. I know I am busting out yet another old school Sex and The City Quote but, “The most exciting, challenging and significant relationship of all is the one you have with yourself. And if you can find someone to love the-you-you love, well, that’s just fabulous.” Sometimes you have to take a little time for you! We all need to do that.

I started my morning pretty early since Bryan was up and getting ready for work. I had some organic whole grain waffles with organic peanut butter, a touch of honey and a V8 Fusion (not pictured).

About a 1/2 hour after breakfast I headed to the gym. My trip to the gym was weird but my workout was great. We can start with the weird. I go in and see a sign that says: Members The Ellipticals have not been stolen. They are being repaired and will be returned. Thank you. Random yes? I figured they were trying to make a joke but it was just odd. I hop on one of the machines and a super muscle guy comes over and asks one of the trainer “Where are the rest of the Elliptical’s?” (Umm read the sign helloooo. ) The trainer explains they are being repaired and this guy kind of loses his mind because none are open (never mind there were 10+ treadmills and tons of bikes or stair steppers he could do instead). Anywho he starts ranting about how “f-ing ridiculous it is” and how “this is bull-s*^t”. I so badly wanted to giggle at his temper tantrum but I was scared he was going to knock me in the floor and take my Elliptical! 😉 So I kept on keeping on. I did 60 minutes of the most intense cardio I have done in ages. I felt so great when it was done.  I am so glad I took this little hiatus from running this week. I am ready to go full force back to the trails next week.

After having a handful of All-Bran crackers I showered and got ready to go out. I opted for my new flip flops today. I LOVE plaid and I love flip flops so this was a no brainer when the hubs picked them out for me a couple weekends ago.

I was feeling very Springy so I decided to pull my hair away from my face which is something I never did last summer (in the fear that my face was too chubby). Its funny how things have changed. 🙂

Too bad the weather didn’t match my happy mood. Normally my drives to Roanoke are sunny and fun but everything today was gray.

I cranked the U2 and made the best of the weather situation. At least it didn’t rain. My first stop was Bubblecake to get my fix for the week. 😉 They make the best cupcakes on the planet. I am not kidding. I of course will cut mine into halves or thirds to enjoy in calorie controlled portions BUT I did get one to enjoy in its entirety and the BBQ tomorrow. Mmmm! I will have the calories for it and I am jazzed!

My Berry Shortcake Cupcake. YUM!

Tomorrow this cupcake is MINE!

French Toast Cupcake for Bryan

Cut into thirds to be eaten during the week. Mmmmm

After my quick stop at Bubblecake I headed over to do some shopping. I did not want to spend a ton so I was bargain hunting today. I ended up buying out of season which I do a lot. Since they were fall pieces I did not want to buy the size I am now. I am losing steadily so I bought the size I will be if I keep losing at relatively the same pace. It is not my goal size per say but rather a realistic fall goal size.

I picked up a couple of Spring shirts but then I found this cutness. I love this dress. I think it could work with a blazer at work, a colorful punch of color with a cardigan on the weekend or a shrug for a night out. The “skirt” part has pockets with casual it up a bit and I just think it’s a very cute look. Also, it must be last season because it was tagged $118.00 and I got it for under $20! Shopping Ninja I tell you!

The detail sold me!

After wandering around, trying on some clothes and shoes, and not finding a ton that I was crazy about I headed back through Macys to get to my car. On the way out I spotted a rack of these super cool kimono style shirts. They were 85% off. It was crazy. I tried one on in my current size to get a feel for the shape and they were cute. At $7.00 I could not help but pick one up for the fall. I could wear it with black pants to work or a skirt. My weekend plans would pair it with some dark denim jeans and fun shoes. Maybe my favorite find from the CASA shoe event last week.

The sleeves make me happy

Just a disclaimer: I am not a person who buys something just because it is a good deal. Im also not a cheapskate. 🙂 With that being said I LOVE bargain hunting. Its fun and its practical on those days when I want to get out and shop but my budget is a little tight. I had a great time trying on clothes and finding a couple cool pieces to buy.

After shopping I was really hungry so I looked around the shopping area for food.My options…

1. Pizza??? No
2. Chinese Food??? No
3. Soft Pretzels??? No
4. Fast Food??? No
5. Ben and Jerrys??? Hmmmm 😉 No

Since I did not have time to sit down in a proper restaurant I thought “I will stop at the grocery store since there is lots of food there”. 🙂 I grabbed a huge bottle of water and some sushi.  Salmon and Avocado. This is maybe the best avocado I have ever tasted. This was a big serving so I saved 1/2 for tomorrow.

I headed back home and waited for Bryan to get home from work. We headed out to pick up some food and supplies for a family BBQ tomorrow night. I am really wanting a burger (badly) so I got some 93% lean ground beef for myself, whole grain bun, fat free chips, etc. I will at least look like I am eating what everyone else is eating!

After the hunting and gathering we had a quick dinner out. I had some veggie soup with a touch of pesto and my 1/2 of a turkey and spinach artichoke panini with tomatos and onions.

And that was my Frilly Friday! Fingers crossed there is no rain in Virginia tomorrow or Bryan will have to eat dozens of burgers and a tie-dyed color sheet cake all on his own!

Have a Happy and Healthy Weekend!!

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Good Health Guidelines

Thursday is one of my favorite days of the week. By this time I have always hit my stride at work and that light at the end of the work week tunnel is getting brighter and brighter. This morning I decided to sparkle my day up a little with a bracelet I found on sale around the holidays. I am a huge fan of over-sized pieces when it comes to costume jewelry/accessories. Something over the top can make a boring outfit suddenly have personality.

Speaking of accessories here is a better picture of my yellow bag I talked about yesterday. I do accessorize my accessories especially when they are 50% off! What’s better than a sale? A sale at COACH!

I can now proudly say that my shopping addiction will not only serve me- Next weekend I am shopping for a cause. I made my $25.00 donation and scored a ticket to the preview night for the Heart and Sole campaign sponsored by CASA. This is a really cool event where companies (brands youd recognize) donate overstock shoes, last season’s styles shoes, etc to this event. Then shopping savvy girls such as myself go in and purchase shoes ranging in price from 5-25 dollars (most are around 10). All of the money goes to CASA since the event is run 100% by volunteers. Even if I only buy a pair or two its totally worth it for the fun experience. I will make sure to post any fabulous finds after the event next Friday.  For those not wanting to make the donation you can shop for free next Saturday and Sunday and all of the proceeds from sales will go to CASA. Local girls you should definitely go out and show your support!

Today I made a little promise with myself to get back to the good health guidelines outlined in my Weight Watchers plan. They do this so that people don’t eat an entire day’s worth of points in bread or Easter Peeps or something. The idea is to learn healthful eating.

This morning I started off with my Vitatop, turkey sausage and V8 fusion. This meal is a little drab but quick. I am thinking I HAVE to try something new next week. Maybe I will be brave enough to make my first green monster.

After a couple of hours I was hungry so I snacked on berries (blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries). They were just what I needed to perk up for the afternoon.

Lunch was some of our left over “slim pigs”, green beans, and yes more berries. I cant stop with the berries. A pretty yummy lunch although while I was eating I could not help thinking that the presentation was a little sad. I think I am going to be on the lookout for some bright and fun plastic dishes/bowls that I can keep at work and just wash daily. I might even get extra fancy with a place mat.  I can say it will definitely be more zen than eating out of mismatched Tupperware. Do you have a cute lunch bag that you like to take to work?

I decided on a day of cross training since the pollen here is out of control. I hope this choice does not hinder my performance Saturday in the Susan G Komen race for the cure 5K. I am really excited about it. Post workout I was starved so I opted for an Ezekiel English Muffin with a touch of organic strawberry preserves Mmmm and a serving of skim milk (I need at least 2 dairy servings a day according to my guidelines). Also, I cannot say enough good things about this brand of English muffins. They are so filling and yummy!

Dinner was some tandori style chicken. It is a somewhat modified Rachael Ray creation since I used all boneless skinless chicken breasts. I paired it with some organic wheat mac and cheese and some organic green beans. YUM! Normally I make my own Mac and cheese but this “Back to Nature” brand is for sure my favorite boxed version.

At the end of the day my guidelines broke down like this:

Fruit and Veggies: 7 (possibly more since my second serving of berries was HUGE)

• Whole Grain: 3

• Protein: 4/5

• Oil/Fat: 2

• Dairy: 2

Points: Came in 100% on target

Without REALLY paying attention it is so easy for me to get off track and start lacking in an area. How do you keep up with your calories/diet/food consumption? I literally just headed out with my husband to pick up the desert that I will not be partaking in (banana cream pie). On the up side he did buy me a box of WW ice cream bars for the weekend. 3 little points of heaven! 🙂

I am off to organize for 20 minutes. Tonight’s project the little “catch all” area where the unwanted mail, receipts, coupons etc all go. Do you have a “catch all closet/drawer/or even room at your house?

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