Greats and Groans #1

I haven't decided whether to post a food journal every day, once a week or not at all. I know I'm going to keep one-so far it's been just scribbles at work. Any ideas about journaling?

Greats: I rode my bike yesterday and plan to do so again once I'm done blogging. Only 15 minutes/100 calories, but hey, it's a start! Some gals in my neighborhood want me to join Curves. Thinking that's a great idea. I'm doing FAB on not eating after 8 p.m. That alone has some serious potential for weight loss. Feeling pretty cocky about my progress! I took lunch to work today and yesterday I ate a Wendy's chili and side salad (no dressing)--so lunch was a good choice.

Groans: So, I don't even love chocolate. I like it and trust me, I'll eat it, but I don't crave it. I know, that's super weird. I tend towards salty treats like popcorn, chips, nachos... now there's some cravin' stuff. So, the fact that yesterday and today I ate a Reeses candy bar (not even just bite size guys) and two pieces of chocolate from Cori's Christmas chocolate box just steams me. It's like I'm a rebellious teenager going, "See, I can eat what I want!" to my dedicated-to-weight-loss self. Dang! Also, I stopped at Taco Time on the way home from work to try the bite sized crispy burrito bites. Note to self: 1) not that great, 2) not really fun to eat in the car and 3) not gluten-free. Sooo not worth it.

Call for help: I've got to find something to help me get through the afternoon. It's crazy, but once I eat lunch, I could keep eating the rest of the day. What the heck?

I'm out for now-gotta go sit on a bike and ride into the sunset!

Taking a Stand

Here I go! I'm about to lose it. No, no; it's a good thing. I want to lose 50 pounds by the time I turn 50. That's a little over a year, February 17, 2011. I've told some ladies at church, some friends at work and home, some of my family, and some of my demo friends. Now I'm telling you.

How am I going to do it? I will confess I don't know exactly. It won't be shots or shakes. I applaud those of you who can make that work, but that's not for me. It will be sensible and slow. It will be vegetables and lean meat. I know myself well enough to know that's the only way to go for me. I also know I won't eat after 8 p.m.

Baby steps.

I'm going to go ride my bike now. I promised Jacque that I'd do that for at least 15 minutes a day while I try to decide what other exercise I can do.

Wanted to put this out to the universe and garner your support, recipes and great ideas.

Go me, take state!

Giving Thanks and all that...

Thanksgiving is the best. I love all the holidays (any excuse to eat and sleep in is fine by me), but Thanksgiving rules. Perhaps that's because I'm not the mom or hostess so it's a low stress time for me. I love all the rituals (really, do we have to have little nut cups with our names on them?), the time with family, and of course, the food.

We rarely get together for Thanksgiving as an entire family. Since both of my parents have passed away, the question of where to go for Thanksgiving is ever present. For many years my sister Linnea and I would rotate among family members. My older siblings are now grandparents (what the heck!), so there are always fun, noisy kids around.

In recent years, I have joined my sister and her family in Logan. The reason for this is simple (no, Loene and Alan, it's not because I love Annette the most): gluten-free stuffing, gravy, rolls and pies! Celiac disease really puts a damper on the holiday feasting, but since 6 out of 9 in my sister's family are fellow Celiac-kers, my sister cooks up a fabulous gluten-free feast. This year my nephew, his wife and their 3 girls also joined us. Casey actually made the pies and did a great job with the gluten-free crusts. It was a fun day-beautiful weather in Logan.

Another thing that made this a special holiday was a special man in my life, Sammy. Now before you get all excited, Sammy is my friend's shitzu. I got to be his foster parent for a week. He is a smart little soul; very loving and snuggly. It was fun to have him around. Sometime I'll get a dog, but for now I'm better off just being a once-in-a-while parent.

That's it. Lots to be grateful for!

Stampin Up! Down Under!

I was given the most amazing opportunity last month. I spent a week with the wonderful Australian demonstrators and two of the Australian Stampin' Up! employees.

I flew into Sydney. Unfortunately, my luggage wasn't in the mood to travel, so it remained in Los Angeles. By the time we got things documented, I had missed my flight to Melbourne. I arrived there Friday afternoon (love Melbourne!) and met up with Aaron and Hollie who work for SU Australia. We walked and walked and walked to a yummy Thai place, then I crashed.

Still no luggage, so I presented some stamping techniques using my hotel amenities kit-the shower cap, nail file, q-tips, etc. It was fun and the event attendees were super sweet to me. My luggage showed up around 7 pm.

Sunday I flew to Hobart in Tasmania. I love to say that. Who gets to say they flew to Tasmania for work? I enjoyed several days on my own, then Aaron and Hollie joined me. Our Hobart event went well. It was great to be able to really stamp!

I ended my trip in Perth, where we held an event for 200 attendees. I really enjoy Perth and the demos there. For some reason it feels like home to me. We ate some amazing Indian food that night then Aaron flew to Syndey. Hollie left in the early afternoon the next day and I didn't fly out 'til 11:00 pm, so I was grateful when Ngaire Anderson called to see if I'd like to take a field trip. She brought her two kids and we went to a memorial park (cemetery) where kangaroos just roam around. There were lots of mamas with joeys. It was so cute! After that we went to Hillary's on the Indian Ocean and ate some fish and chips. Ngaire's kids are darling. They created a great memory for me to take on my journey home.

Getting home was horrible. A major delay in leaving Sydney (after an all-nighter to get there from Perth) resulted in further delays in the LA. I was plumb tuckered out by the time I landed in Salt Lake!

My darling friend Cathi brought me over dinner, then I crashed around 8 p.m. and slept until 11 a.m. the next day.

New friends, fun stamping, great food. What's better than that?

Saying Goodbye to a Dear Friend

I never intended to wait this long to post, and I was ready to report on Australia...but last Saturday I got a text from my dear friend Mary telling me her husband, Neil, was in critical condition at the hospital due to the H1N1 virus. After stuggling for days, Neil passed away last Wednesday night.

I am so sad for Mary and her kids. I'm sad for me. Neil has taken fabulous care of my yard for two summers. I will miss his attention to detail and pride in what he did. I will miss his dependability and stability. Neil was always there and now he isn't.

I am sad.

Christmas (Jingle) in October

Christmas Jingle Simply Scrappin' Cards

I'll admit it---I love Christmas anytime. So, last weekend when I had some time to play, I created 36 cards out of one of Stampin' Up's! Simply Scrappin' kits. I had so much fun trying to just use the materials in the kit--I didn't even use adhesive! I still have all six sheets of beautiful designer series paper I can use for other Christmas projects. Pretty stoked about this. I think I might even be motivated to email my once-a-year card making friends and get a girls' night out going!

I do love a nice long weekend to create and refill my bucket!

Gratification

I am beginning my day with an icy glass of ginger ale. It's 6:30 AM, 34 degrees outside, I bailed on my work out friend (sorry Cathers, who pulls a muscle during sleep? It's beyond me! But I digress...), should be tidying the house a little after last weekend's stamping marathon, but all I can think about is my ginger ale!

Can I explain? I am all about immediate gratification. Fast food, fast internet, tv on demand, crash diets...you get the picture. So, it's surprising that I am enjoying this ginger ale after weeks of anticipating it, days of shopping for it, and beginning to make it last night at 7:30 PM. Yes, I said make it.

My friend Donna found a recipe for ginger ale and surprised me with some a couple of months ago. I wasn't home, so she left it in my fridge with a note about how to assemble the perfect glass. I can't explain how delicious that glass of ginger ale was. It was a party in my mouth. The sweet, tangy ginger with a hint of lime both surprised me and made sense to my taste buds. Since then, I have been planning to make my own. I finally bought the ingredients, then realized I'd left the recipe on my computer at work. Arghh!

Gratification delayed.

After peeling the ginger and adding it to a simple syrup, I had to wait for the concoction to cooto room temperature. By then it was too late to sip.

Apparently it's never too early to sip! I'm wrapped in a blanket watching the wind blow while I drink this cool, sweet, bubbly treasure.

I recently heard you should start every day with a win.

I won!