I CAN do this!

I can do this, I know I can. I started my week out strong even though I got home late and wasn't able to cook a "good" dinner. I don't think I have mentioned that I have been following Core for a few weeks now. I am and I love it. I hate counting and I hate measuring so it seemed like an easy choice. The first week was tuff, I found myself spending more time preparing a second meal for lunch. I found an easy solution that works for us though, I cook 4-5 servings at dinner time and bring leftovers (and send some with Derek). It seems to work out most of the time and when it doesn't I find myself making a big salad or steaming some chicken quick. The biggest downfall for me...$money$...I am going to the store twice a week for fresh veggies and fruit. I love having them, but if it is this expensive in the summer I can't imagine my bills this winter.
For now I am sticking with it, my body feels great, I am happy with the choices I have and tracking seems like much less work.
The work-out front is going really good. I am spending more time walking outside and only spending 2-3 nights in the gym. When you live in MN you need to get out and enjoy what sun you get! I have also been wearing a pedometer to work, I sit for most of my day but it motivates me to get up and get some steps in (I don't track these, just do it for the heck of it).
The wedding is 5 months away! I have a lot on my plate there, I can't put into words how stressed out I feel from trying to plan everything there. I will spend a week up North with my sister and Rosie and I am hoping that I have time to get a bit more organized.

Looking forward.

This next month is going to be a challenge for me food wise. There are 2-3 "eating" events every week. The scale is starting to move down, but with weddings, dinner meetings, concerts and a week vacation planned I AM SCARED! I am trying to plan as much as I can, working out in the mornings to get some extra APs when I can, cooking meals and lunches at home so I don't waste any points, the hard part will be when I am faced with reception meals and wine and need to say "NO".
When I am not confronted with these challenges I am doing fine, I need to find a balance though. There will always be lunch with friends, dinner with clients, drinks and vacations. I need to learn to listen to what my body wants and what my body needs!

My Scary Night

I went to a Bachlorette party for a girlfriend on Saturday and I am freaked out. We went to a couple bars downtown Minneapolis and I had a total of three (3) beers. What's the big deal? I woke up Sunday morning more hung-over then I was on my 21st Birthday. I don't drink often, but I can handle my beer and 3 beers should not have put me in bed for a day and a half. Derek seems to think I may have gotten something dropped in one of my drinks. I did set my drink down a few times and there were a lot of creeps, but who knows! All I can be thankful for is I stayed with my group, and everyone went home safely.
The rest of the weekend was great. I got 2 long walks in and stayed OP. My night out with the girls did cost me nearly all of my WFPs, but I only have 2 more days this week. The scale is up since the party, I am retaining something! Hopefully a healthy few days of eating and drinking my water will get things back to normal!

Warning...INBOX full

This is the message I received when I turned my computer on this morning. I had all intentions of checking my email while I was up North but as luck would have it our dial up was not working. I have been at work for 6 hours and just now read through all my emails, it's going to be a long day. So here's a quick update:

* Eating - I am tracking, and pre-planning meals for the week.
* Weigh-in...I was down 1 lb. this week. It's small but it's progress.
*Wedding...we are putting invitations and centerpieces together this week. Next week I meet with the reception hall lady to coordinate the meal and set up. We are 5 months and a few days from the big day!
* Work-outs...I am staying on track, I don't know how I am fitting it in this year. I am at about 31 miles/week.

A birthday weekend

Guess what? It's Rosie is TWO! Can you believe it? Well since her birthday was this week and I have been feeling like crap lately I have been ordered to take some time off. Honestly, I don't know how I can relax knowing everything that is going on at work right now. My sister, Rosie and I are leaving for the cabin in the morning and we will be up there for 4 days! We are bringing the bikes and there are some great biking/running trails about 4 miles from the cabin. I can't wait to spend the time with Rosie.
I am going to try to catch up on everyone before I leave, you'll hear from me on Wednesday!

Working through the flu

I have had some sort of stomach flu since Monday, the Doctor said to try to take it easy for a day or two but I can't seem to get a break. Work is hectic and I haven't been to bed on time all week. I have been making progress everywhere though so it feels good.
On the weight front, I'm holding steady at 130 lbs. I would like to see that number start to drop but I know that I need to focus on getting healthy again. I got in about 2 hours of cardio on Monday and then 3.5 miles last night. I am planning to get to the gym tonight and tomorrow night but we'll see how it goes.
We got our engagement photos back on Monday, I think I look fat and I wish I would have worn a different shirt. Blah! If you want to view them click here. The password is snowflake (there is music to them, so turn it up if you can)!

I brought it...

I had to work late last night, the good kind of late though...aka...meeting that turned into dinner and drinks on the client! We went to an upscale restaurant downtown Minneapolis, the cheapest drink on the menu was $10. The food was AMAZING, it's specialties from all over the world and they serve it family style. Other then the 2 Mojitos I sipped down I don't think I did too bad. I stuck to grilled fruit, rice and chicken. I am counting points and since I didn't have NI I counted my entire meal as 12 points + 8 points for the cocktails...ouch! Thank goodness for flex points and APs right?!?

Well, by the time I was driving home (9:07 PM) Derek had already cleaned up the house and packed lunches for the morning, regardless I held to my grounds and picked a fight. What did I decide to get angry about??? His cellphone! He has a cellphone yet he never picks the darn thing up and when you do get a hold of him he doesn't listen...for instance...I called him before my meeting yesterday and asked him to please take out turkey to thaw for Thursday night...he never took it out, and he doesn't remember talking to me!!! How did we resolve the problem? When I call him on his cellphone he will turn the TV off or put his book down and concentrate on the call. If I ask him to do something I need to ask him to write it down or complete the task while we are on the phone. So in the end we each found a way to help mediate the problem and we are going to see how it works.

In other news, do you remember me telling you about the "Bride"? Well intending to be nice I offered to help out with anything she needed and somehow I am now in charge of planning her shower and bachlorette party! I don't really care because I love that sort of stuff, but, she left me a VM last night and I just about went over the ledge. In short she said that she was "a little upset" because I hadn't called anyone with plans yet and "why did I offer to help if I wasn't going to?". The truth of the matter is, I not only have reservations made, t-shirts ready to be printed, invitations designed, but I also helped Derek plan the entire bachlor party as well, so "EH!!!" We had a long conversation and I nicely told her not to worry about anything. I know it must be stressful with the wedding so close, but really?

Last but not least, I just got these uploaded. Connor is my cousins son, he is about 3 weeks younger then Rosie and he came for a visit from Texas a few weeks ago. Aren't they cute?

Life is her Vacation!!

This is for you Steph! Rosie and I say "hi", remember to keep cool, relax and enjoy every minute of your journey!!

BIG NEWS!!! Auntie and Rosie are spending the whole weekend together. Derek will be out of town and my sister is leaving on Friday for a quick weekend away. I am so nervous and excited! I love being and Auntie. Oh, and guess what??? My little picnic turns 2 next Thursday! Can you believe it. I will be taking pictures this weekend and posting next week. Rosie is working on Potty Training, her reward for #1 is Ice Cream after dinner and her reward for #2 is lunch with Auntie (how special is that?)!

It's on...Like Donkey Kong

Part of our preparation for marriage in the church includes counseling with another couple. The couple we are paired up with are very fascinating, the husband is a retired marine and the wife is a nurse. They lived most of their "younger" married life working opposite shifts, so when he retired and was home more they realized how distant their marriage had become. They started going to retreats and learning about marriage counseling. Today they counsel several couples preparing to enter marriage in the Catholic Church. Anyways one of the activities they have us do is start and resolve a conflict. How hard could that be? Well, the truth is, we haven't had a single thing to "fight" about this week and we need to have our assignment complete by tomorrow night. So, I am going to do what I have to do to get it done! Ha! Wish me luck!
My throat is killing me today, I hope this isn't a sign that I am getting sick. I can't afford to be anything but 100% for the next 2 months. Work is going to be hectic. We are in the final months of our 3 year project, it feels awesome to be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel, at the same time change is always difficult!

This is fun!

This tag also comes from Amanda!

1. I constantly compare myself to others. For instance when walking by windows I will look into them and compare my waist with other girls to measure how thin/fat I am. It's a horrible habit, but often I am surprised by what I see.

2. I hate being touched around my neck. Even if it is someone I trust completely I start to feel dizzy and can't breathe.

3. I love to read, I read at least 20 pages every night before I go to bed. My favorite author is Jodi Picoult. If you haven't read any of her books, pick one up and read it...you will be hooked. I recommend "The Pact".

4. I can't drive at night or in the rain. My vision gets very blurred and my perception is totally off. When I do need to go somewhere at night I always get a ride or carpool.

5. I wish I could repaint and redecorate my entire house. I would change nearly everything, including the silverware.

6. I really don't have any of the same friends I did in High School. I sometimes think I must make a bad friend because I don't keep in great contact with anyone.

The rules:Link to the person who tagged you.
Post the rules on your blog.
Write six random things about yourself.
Tag six people at the end of your post.
Let each person know they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

I tag...Michelle!

I've been tagged

and twice! So here goes the first one from Amanda:

Ten Years Ago:
1998! Well, this was the summer after my freshman year of high school...I was 15 years old and didn't have much of a life. This was my last summer without a car or a job, so I spent most days riding my bike or sitting at home. My best friend at the time was Jen, she lived 30 minutes away from me so I am sure I had to beg for rides A LOT! I also spent most of my weekends at the cabin, I miss having that sort of time.

5 Things on Today's To Do List
1. Go to the gym...running 4 miles!
2. Make dinner...chicken, corn and rice.
3. Shower before bed
4. Watch "The Tenth Circle" a movie I taped last week. I read the book last month and can't wait to see how the movie turned out.
5. Make a doctors appointment...I need my 3rd Gaurdasil shot this week!

Snacks I Enjoy:
Chips and Salsa, licorice and popcorn are a few of my favorites.

Things I would do if I was a millionaire:
1. Pay off all our bills
2. Travel to every country, just to see it...then spend time in a few working to help teach building and construction skills to the people.
3. Go back to school
4. Adopt

I get to tag someone now...I choose Tina!

It feels like I just had surgery.

So, my tender skin turned into a burn over the day. The stomach is the worst of it, this is the first time my surgery wounds have seen the sun and they are sooooo painful. I actually ended up switching into a pair of low rise shorts yesterday afternoon because the pain was so bad where my jeans came up. I did put a call into the doctor to make sure nothing was abnormal. Today I have ice packs for my stomach and burn lotion for my scars. Hopefully the pain subsides soon!
As for WI, I am officially down 3 lbs! Woo Hoo...I need to keep on track this weekend though and not blow all my hard work with mindless eating. We have our engagement photo session on Monday morning so I especially don't want to feel bloated for that! Maybe that will help keep me in line!
Well, I am trying to get all my work done today so that we can head up North as soon as my meeting is finished up tomorrow. Have a wonderful and safe 4th of July everyone!!!

Tender

I hate this feeling, my skin is so tender...not burnt, just tender. I think 2 more minutes in the sun and I would have been burnt. I have only been sunburned twice before and I remember feeling miserable. It's weird because my skin feels big and bulky right now, like it is puffy or something.
We had our first (successful) fundraiser this weekend for the 3-Day. We hosted a garage sale and raised almost $1000 for the Breast Cancer 3-Day!! Hooray, just $7,000 left to go. I had a blast working on the garage sale with my teammates and I cannot wait to get to San Diego for the walk.
I managed to make my goal of getting 15 miles in last week and I am shooting for 16 this week (baby steps). I am also planning to get in an hour of cross training, maybe I'll go swimming this weekend.
We are heading up to the cabin on Thursday afternoon. My parents and some friends are already there and the weather is supposed to be awesome. We are so excited to get out of town. I know that there will be a lot of temptations there (my favorite malt shop and Mexican restaurant). I am planning on staying active and eating a lot of healthy fruits and veggies. We are also bringing up turkey for hamburgers and some chicken breast so we can grill at the lake. Now I just hope the bugs aren't bad!
I have my official WI tomorrow morning so I will try to update that before heading out of town!