Happy Halloween!

I'm happy to say that for my monthly scale check in, I'm down 1.8 pounds. I don't think anyone sets out to lose 1-2 pounds per month, but heck, as long as it is going in that direction, I will be happy.

I'm leaving soon for my extended weekend. Hope you have a wonderful Halloween! Stay safe!

Hugs!

Ten Things Thursday

1. Good morning! The scale is still bouncing around but I was on the low end today. I would love it if I could have a loss for the monthly weigh in tomorrow. Stay tuned!

2. I went to Jazzercise last night and it felt so good. I'm sure part of it is the steroids I'm on but I really do feel that I have gotten myself back into some decent shape.

3. My steroids and plethora of medication is helping my allergic reaction. It still itches, but it is getting better and it is tolerable. I did wake up at 3am in the middle of a scratch-fest, but I was able to settle and fall back asleep. I feel sure that it will be all better soon.

4. I'm going to run at lunch today. I hope it goes as well as it did on Tuesday!

5. Here is my new Gwynnie Bee outfit for the day:

It's funny because it didn't have a very high rating, but I got it anyway. I have received tons of compliments this morning! It is loose fitting, but it hints at a figure. I LOVE it!! Here are the shoes up close that I paired with it:

I have had these shoes forever and I have always loved them. They look super cute with the dress.

6. I'm looking forward to the weekend. Tomorrow afternoon, we are having a work fish fry then leaving early for the day. BFF & I are going to work on our new storage unit. How exciting, right? Ha! But it will be nice to get all of the boxes out of the living room and bedroom. I'm sure she feels the same. Saturday we are going to Canton, TX which hosts this big huge flea market, craft show thing. I have never been but always wanted to go. On Sunday we are going to the NASCAR race. We don't have season tickets anymore, but friends of our gave us theirs so we decided to go.

7. Monday I took the day off to do laundry and such. I was thinking about dropping in at the close CrossFit affiliate, but they never answered my email, so I don't know. We will see how motivated I get. If I don't, I can always go to Jazzercise.

8. Are you watching Jane the Virgin? It is the CW's take on a tele-novela. I love it! It is such a fun little show.

9. My godmother asked if I would sponsor her son through his confirmation this summer. She is a very devout Catholic and I know she put a tremendous amount of thought into it before asking. I couldn't have possibly been more touched. My heart is full today. He won't be my godson, but I know I will feel that way about him. I love that as a child free person, there are many wonderful children in my life.

10. This is silly, but it added to my awesome day. A few years ago, we did this odd little renovation to part of our offices. We are a traditional company, but we were working on a trendy project, so that area was decorated in a very modern and trendy way. One of the items used was this medium sized blue shag rug, similar to this:

I LOVED this rug! Apparently I was about the only one and people even teased me for liking it. I didn't care, I think it is awesome. Anyway, we are now redoing the whole floor into a cohesive mostly traditional but updated fashion. Guess who gets the rug for her office? Hee! Love, love love!!

 

Hugs!

Wednesday, October 29

Yesterday was a particularly lovely day. After starting the day with my Gwynnie Bee fun, it just got better. I went for a run at lunch and it actually didn't suck. I was out there for 8 songs (like how I measure things?) I walked most of the first song and all of the fifth one, but jogged the rest. I stopped because I was out of time. I think I could have run a 5K yesterday!

Don't get me wrong...I was running, so it wasn't fun. I still had to focus on breathing and had to encourage myself to keep going. BUT. The big thing is that it didn't hurt with every step. My lungs didn't feel about to burst at any moment. It was more normal hard, not excruciating. Dude. I will take it.

Then BFF & I went out to dinner. It wasn't anything exciting, but we always have fun. During dinner, that weird rash I seem to have contracted flared up which wasn't so fun. Luckily I went to the allergist today. Turns out that he believes it came from contact with something. He thinks that because I run hot, it never settled down and then it got infected. I have to cure the infection and keep it cooler so the treatment can make it better. I have FOUR prescriptions. Plus, no hot showers. Hopefully it gets better soon now. Good news is that he expects that once it is healed, it won't come back. Fingers crossed.

Here is my Gwynnie Bee outfit of the day:

I love it! It isn't my favorite pattern, but it is cute and I like the colors. The dress is fully lined so it doesn't overly cling, and it hugs exactly the way it should. The sassy red tights and platform shoe booties set it off perfectly. Interestingly though, I had a completely different vision in my head. Here is the website pic:

I think that it ended up being a lot darker and smoother than I anticipated. But I feel cute, so YAY! I hope that things continue to be this fun!

Tonight I'm Jazzercising. Looking forward to a fun weekend!

Hugs!

Tuesday, October 28

Today I got on the Gwynnie Bee train. A few of my friends have tried it, so I decided why not? For those of you that don't know, Gwynnie Bee is a fashion equivalent of Netflix. You put together a closet of items you would like to wear. They ship to you per your membership level (my level is to have 3 items out at once). Wear as much or as little as you like. Send them back.

After you send an item back, Gwynnie Bee will ship another item out to you. So, if you don't like something, send it back without even wearing it. They take care of any dry cleaning or that sort of thing. The theory is that for a flat monthly fee, you always have something new to wear!

I received my first three items yesterday. Here is my first outfit:

The tunic was my item. I think it looks super cute with leggings and boots. It is a little "Fall"ish for the warm temperatures here in Texas, but it works. I guess I got so wrapped up in it this morning that I forgot earrings. Oops!
I'm not sure if this will be a long term thing or not, but it is sure fun to try. I will keep you posted!

Yesterday was a nice chill day. I ate well and went to Jazzercise. I'm having a bit of a dilemma though. It is one I ran into several years ago. I'm at the point where my body is keeping me from getting the best workout I can get. I can't bounce or jump in class any more than I am now without my feet/knees/ankles hurting too much. It is so frustrating! This is one of the things that caused me to seek out CrossFit back in the day. I absolutely love Jazzercise, so it is good to know that I can always do it, even if I have to do it low impact.

Now that I'm settled in my new place, I should at least try a new CF place. I could give it a month and if it wasn't working out, I could do something else. It is just so damn intimidating. I was safe at my old place, you know? Ugh.

Hugs!

Monday, October 27

I had one of those "a-ha" moments this weekend. It isn't the first time and I'm sure it won't be the last, but I came to the realization that for the rest of my life I will be trying to lose "just 5 more pounds" or "10 pounds" or whatever. In order to keep from letting myself become morbidly obese (again), I have to actively chase losing weight. Maintenance just doesn't work for me.

Unfortunately, that means getting looks from people when I choose to have a piece of cake and they think I should pass. That means getting back on the hamster wheel every Monday morning after a weekend of good eats and drinks. That may mean spending the rest of my life within a five pound range of where I am now...if I'm fortunate.

Whatever. I'm okay with that.

My life is so fun and awesome right now. I have a lot of responsibilities and I also have a lot of blessings. If it means every Monday is going to be Groundhog Day in order to have 4 great "diet days" in order to enjoy the weekends, so be it. I think maybe this might be coming off as defensive, but I want you to realize that is not how I mean it. It is freeing. I'm not "giving up" or "letting go", quite the opposite. I'm doing what I need to do to live!

I had a super fun week and weekend last week even though I didn't check in here. I had an issue with the allergic reaction and I'm still fighting that a bit. I may have to go get more tests. Stay tuned.

Anyway, last week...Tuesday we went to go see the Stars play and sat 2 rows from the ice. It was awesome.

Saturday, we had our annual Jazzercise Halloween extravaganza. I was rocking the Wonder Woman outfit!

One thing I have been trying to do since moving into my new place is to have fresh flowers around. I love them and they always make me happy. Here is this week's version:

 Also this weekend, I spent some time going through old pictures. Here is precisely why I'm okay fighting the same 5 pounds for the rest of my life and why I won't stop.

That's me, 2nd from the left. I may not think that Wonder Women a couple pictures up is the epitome of hotness, but compared to this? Yeah, that is a fight worth having. :-)

Lastly, I will leave you with this funny that everyone fighting this battle can relate to...

In case you can't read the caption: manana republic: n. that part of your closet reserved for things you can't fit into now, but maybe will be able to tomorrow. Hee!

Hugs!

 

Wednesday, 10/22

We had a blast at the Stars game last night! The seats were two rows from the ice and there was a lot of action. I don't know much about hockey, but I enjoyed myself immensely. I would say that my food choices were not bad, but I ate too much. I guess 1 of 2 is better than 0 of 2. Onward.

I'm not sure if I mentioned it earlier, but this weekend I started getting a rash on my hips. At first I thought I had a mosquito bite, but then they started to multiply and then there were tons of little bumps. It started on Friday, but by this morning it just wasn't getting any better (plus, it itches like mo fo) and I just didn't feel well.

I went to the doctor and after going through the whole thing, he looks at me silently for a couple of beats. Then as straight faced as could be, he says "So, probably Ebola, huh?" It was hilarious. I know he couldn't make that joke with everyone (particularly in Dallas), but I cracked up. Anyway, it turns out that it appears to be an allergic reaction, most likely from something ingested (like a drug or food.) The only drugs I have taken this week were birth control, allergy meds & advil, all things I have taken often. So, it is probably food.

I have this sinking feeling that I have developed an allergy to peanut butter. Maybe not, but the last couple weeks, I have been eating a lot of it. I have been having a lot of band issues, but I'm also starting to think that might be part of the allergy reaction as well. I guess we will find out. It is treated with a steroid. He said that it could go away and never come back or it might pop up again at which time I will need to figure it out with my allergist. When I was tested 5 years ago, I had no food allergies, but just like anything else, that can change.

Anyway, I took something for my fever, but I'm still super hot. I hope that fades soon. And the itching. Really hope that fades soon anyway.

I guess it is always something, but I guess this really isn't that big of a thing. Just an annoyance. I would post a picture, but I'm not that mean. 

Hugs!

Tuesday, 10/20

Yesterday and today I seem to have some tightness trouble. I don't feel "stuck" but I have a lot of reflux and discomfort. I stuck to easy stuff yesterday and I'm going to continue to do that today. I sometimes have a tough time staying on track when I'm on liquids/mushies, but I'm making every effort.

The scale doesn't seem to be moving, but I have to say that I'm feeling better in my clothes. I don't know if I just feel better in my Winter clothes, which is totally possible, or if I'm tightening up a bit. Either way, the last several days I have really enjoyed my outfits and how I have looked. I posted this update picture on my main blog page yesterday:

I bought the tunic last year but I only wore it once because it was too snug. I will take it as a very positive sign that it felt great yesterday.

Tonight is Tuesday which means it is "out and about" night. We are headed to a Stars hockey game. One of our banks gave us tickets up close and personal. Should be fun! I wanted to start a downtown blog, but I'm too lazy to format it. Anyone want to set one up for me for a reasonable price? :)

Hugs!

The Lost Month

It hasn't been a full month, but the last few weeks have been CRAZY! When last I left you on 9/26, I was moving down-tooooown. (Did you just sing that, like I did? No? Never mind.) The weekend of the move was crazy busy and hectic in every way, as you can imagine.

Now, three weeks in to living there, I can say without any reservation, that I LOVE it! BFF does too. We have fallen into a little bit of a routine. Mondays we Jazzercise after work. Tuesdays we do something, for instance tomorrow we are going to the Stars game. Wednesdays vary, but mostly Jazzercise. Thursdays Jazzercise.

Fridays we go out. Two weeks ago it was Rocky Horror Show, this week it was Pitbull/Enrique Iglesias. Then on Saturday, it is errands day, that mostly starts with Jazzercise. We go, go, go all day running errands and whatnot until it is time for 5pm Mass. Then after Mass, we have dinner and finish errands, if necessary.

Then it is Sunday Funday. Mine starts with a 2 block walk to my new breakfast place. I take my paper and read it while I drink coffee, eat breakfast and watch the tourists get over their hangovers. It is positively delightful! Then I go home and do laundry and chores while I wait for football to start. Then I watch football and do other little things when I need a break.

Other than the fact that I'm having a terrible time sleeping, I would say that it is perfect. Last night I only slept 4 hours and 31 minutes. Sigh. Sundays are awful. Other nights I get about 6 hours. It's fine. I think if I lost 10 pounds I would sleep better.

Speaking of! I haven't gained ANYTHING since moving. It is amazing because I have pretty much ate and drank whatever I wanted. But with my current fill level and the fact that I walk SO MUCH more living downtown, I have stayed steady. Hence, the reason I'm back. I need to focus. Again, just 10 pounds or so and I would sleep SOOO much better.

If I have maintained with no focus, my hope is that I can get back to losing with a little attention on it. I mentioned the walking. I park in a parking garage, so I have to walk up to my apartment. I thought I might start taking the stairs, but that hasn't really worked out. Regardless, until this week I was getting over 60,000 steps per week instead of 50,000. This week I only worked out 3x instead of 4 or 5, so that made a big difference.

This week, my plan is to eat right. I'm not really logging, but no drinking and no sugary sweets during the week. I slipped a little on that last week. For fitness, I'm Jazzercising M, Th, & S for sure. I can't work out tomorrow, but Wednesday, I will work out at lunch.

Thursday I'm taking the first part of my multiple part insurance test. I think there are 9 or 10 of them. I really hope I pass. I should go study. :)

Bottom line is that I'm super happy!

Hugs!