I'm moving.

I'm moving my blog over to a wordpress site. The new address is: https://frompennsyltucky.wordpress.com/

I'm hoping that my few readers will come along with me, as many things in my life have changed, so I thought it was time to keep up with it all.

See ya there!

Progress!

Things are moving right along on my weight loss journey. I have been sticking to the Weight Watcher's Plan for more than three weeks now, and I'm starting to see quite a bit of progress.

In my closet reside three different sizes of jeans.

1. Jumbo-Ginormous

2. Ginormous

3. Haven't worn since I was 24.

In a strange turn of events, My Jumbo-Ginormous pants are baggy, and my larger-cut versions of the ginormous pants are comfortable. But the most exciting thing of all? The smaller-cut versions of the ginormous size I can actually wear! YES! You see, I haven't worn these pants since I first met Sweetie. That was four years ago.

So, Progress!

But, my ultimate goal would be to wear size "Oh God! When I was 22 I totally wore you!" Which is in this line up:

4. Haven't worn since I was 23

5. Wore for a blip of time and on bloated days when I was 22.

6. Oh God! When I was 22 I totally wore you!

Ahhhhhh, the good ole days. Days when I could walk into a "normal" store and buy clothes that were cute...not feedsacks to cover my "fluffy" body. Also known as the days when I didn't have more than one chin, and my ass looked Goooooooooood. So good in fact, that I used to wear short-shorts...and turn heads in a good way. Days when guys acted like gentlemen toward me, and not as if I was invisible. (That happens a lot now, rarely does a man hold a door open for me when I'm out and about, even if my arms are full of stuff, they will let it swing shut behind them--this is a complete change from my "fairly hot bod" days.)

Point is, I'm well on my way to at the very least, the pants that I haven't worn since I was 24. Go me! The best part of all of this? I haven't even ratcheted up my workouts yet! I'm just doing 30 minutes 3 times per week! Imagine what will happen when I kick it up a notch to working out 5 days a week for an hour!

Visions of new clothes are dancing in my head.

Oh, I forgot to mention that Sweetie promised that when the clothes in my closet were all too big, he would take me shopping and pay for new ones!! Hell Yeah that's incentive! (And don't think I'm not adding bags and shoes to that! I am me after all!)

Oh, yeah, right, it is Fitness Friday, so ya'll wanna know my weight? 227. That's right baby! 10 lbs down!

The Trouble With Labradors.

I know you've all at this point viewed pictures of my two babies, Mojo and Macie. They are my children, or at least the closest I plan on getting to having offspring of my own. They're cute little buggers, but lately Macie had been having a smelly problem. Anyone who has Labradors probably knew this, but I had no idea that Labs are particularly sensitive skin dogs. They are very prone to dry skin and other skin allergies. I had no idea until I couldn't take the smelly gymsock smell that permeated her coat just days after she had been bathed.

Poor dog smelled like a gym locker. Yeesh. I had tried everything I could find. I even went to the pet store and talked with some of the associates. I dropped a lot of money on "fixes" that did not work. At. All. Finally, I was at the end of my rope and Googled smelly lab...yes that is what I googled "smelly lab". At that point I was introduced to the fact that poor Macie wasn't alone in her stinkiness.

I read all of the petowner message boards I was pointed to and got quite the edumakashun about the breed and the skin problems that come with it. Having never owned a Lab in my life, I had no idea these dogs were such sensitive little guys. So, armed with this new information, the fact that Macie had some severe dandruff finally made sense. She wasn't chewing her hair off or anything, but she sure did itch herself a lot, and since I never found a flea on her ever (good flea stuff buyer that I am), I knew that couldn't be why she did it. Everything came together for me while reading the boards...as Oprah would say, it was my "A-ha! Moment".

So, I read on to see what others had done. I kept seeing the same product mentioned over and over. It was one that I had never heard of, and after a quick call to the local pet stores, was surprised to find that they didn't even carry. We had to buy it online, and it didn't come cheap, but it is a total miracle! So, for others out there in my situation, I'm ready to "endorse" an awesome pet shampoo, conditioner, and doggie-coat deodorizer. Seriously, this stuff works or I wouldn't mention it. It's called Nova Pearls, and it is a god-send to us.

This is the shampoo
This is the Conditioner

And this is the deodorizing spray.

This is my happy, not stinky anymore dog.

Well, she sorta cares.

Look how shiny her coat is! She's super-soft now too, it's like her puppy hair never left. And, she smells fan-freaking-tastic! It's been two weeks since her last bath, and there isn't even a hint of the stinky gym socks anymore. It's awesome!

(I am in no way affiliated with this product, they have no clue who the heck I am, and wouldn't care if I ceased to exist.)

Beee-you-tee-fulll Sunrise.

This was the view out of my windshield on my way to work this morning. (Unfortunately you can't see the falling snow very well) The sunrise was beautiful, and once I got past that treeline ahead it was so pink! And all was reflecting off of the snowflakes in the air. Gorgeous! I couldn't get a picture of that though, because I needed both hands to drive. Our road was a rough drive this morning. Happy Weekend everyone!

Fitness Friday

I want to start off by saying that I have gone four days with no junkfood. This hasn't been easy, feels like I should be in "ding-dong rehab". lol. I did work out on Wednesday, and I will work out again today, that's my way of easing into the every day workouts. My biggest complaint right now is that it is so freaking expensive to eat healthy. Seriously. It costs almost twice as much to eat fresh fruits and vegetables. Especially in the off-season. I would love to eat the organic versions, because I don't like the idea of ingesting chemicals, but those are even more expensive. I think that is the main reason a lot of people are overweight. When you have an extremely tight budget, especially if you have multiple mouths to feed, healthy food can seem like a luxury. And lets face the facts here, it's not like there are coupons for apples.

One of the things I have been consuming is the GNC Total Lean Lean Shakes. If you follow the weight watchers program, these shakes are three points apiece. They work well for me when I'm in a rush because I throw two scoops and 8 ounces of water into a bottle, shake, and run. I have the Vanilla and the Swiss Chocolate versions at home, but there are more flavors. And, GNC is running their Gold Card promotion right now. They've extended it through January 10th.

Because I am easing back into my exercising, I haven't been doing my Jillian Michaels DVD's just yet. I will start back up on those next week. They are killer. Seriously, if you want to work out, but can't afford a gym membership, these DVD's are the way to go. She has several out right now and they are about $10 each at Walmart. I'm telling you, when you are done with that video you KNOW you were exercising. I spend a lot of time cursing at my TV.

Another few suggestions, Jello sugar-free pudding with a tbsp of sugar-free Cool Whip. This snack is low in WW points, and helps curb the sugar craving.

For the salty fix I recommend Pringles Snack sticks. They are really yummy.

What I like about these snacks is that they are already portioned for you, so it is a no-brainer. No measuring necessary.

Now of course, you don't want to make a habit of eating these all day long, but they are great when you are really craving junk.

Now, my weight for this week is 235. As usual, it is a work in progress, and of course, I indulged over the holidays--including New Years. And lets face it, ham, cookies, and alcohol is no way to lose weight. So, now I'm back to my uphill battle. I'm on the "serious track" right now, so that number WILL be smaller next week.

P.S. I don't have a personal stake in any of the products I have recommended. They have no idea who the hell I am and if me or my blog disappeared next week, they would not bat an eyelash.

Happy 2011!!!!

Happy New Year everybody! I woke up on new year's eve to the following:

That my friends is a ditch on our property. We actually had a huge snow melt, and my entire yard was flooded. Life in the country sure is fun. I'm not kidding when I say I was standing up to my ankles in water, all from the snow melting.

Luckily, along with the melting snow came balmy temperatures. It was 58 degrees on December 30th, in Pennsyltucky! Far out! But, that only lasted a couple days. Now we are back down to freezing temperatures, and it is snowing again. Such is life near Lake Erie.

But, I wanted to take some time to wish you all a very Happy New Year! It's 2011!

Oh, and I'm getting married this year!!!! (Sorry, still a little excited about that.)

Christmas, Finals, Wedding...oh my!

OK, so I know that I didn't do my Fitness Friday post on Friday...I have a very good reason though. Last week was finals week for school...ugh. I detest finals week. It's truly the most awful week of school...aside from midterms of course. They both rank right up there on about the same level. The only difference between the two is that the week of finals is when most projects are due as well. So, I was completely engrossed in "school-world". All of this doesn't mean that I didn't weigh myself though. My new weight is 233. So, I lost a pound. Not bad...but not as good as I was hoping. I will be posting again on Friday, for those following the saga.

Christmas...ugh. I used to love Christmas. But all it has become to me in recent years is two weeks of complete stress. Mike is a Christmas nut. He would never, ever admit it, but he is Clark Griswold at heart. Basically, he is a really annoying nut who carries around lights, extension cords, and timers. Oh, and makes me his very unwilling helper. No matter how many decorations we put outside, he always finds another spot that "needs something". Move on to the indoor decorations. This is my realm--whether I like it or not. Mostly anymore, not. Luckily, as you all know from my earlier post, I was able to scare up some "minions" for the tree that resides in the Family Room. Oh, how I love minions!

I love you my "minions"! I need more! Brothers! Get on this! However, no minions were to be found when I had to put up the tree that I refer to as my "pretty" tree. Behold, the "pretty" tree:

OK, so I am aware that the tree skirt doesn't "go". This tree has been a work in progress, and used to be Blue and Silver, so at that time it did "go". But since the first year, I turned to the colors in the room as inspiration for the tree. And though you cannt tell from this picture, the color palette for that room is autumn tones. "Pretty" tree--check.

Next on the list of "Crap for Christmas" is buying presents. This is not my favorite, and thus, is still not finished. I. Hate. To. Shop. Yes, I realize this is not a normal thing for a chick, but I do not enjoy the crowds, the lack of parking, the helpful salespeople (which is strange since I work in sales), the holiday carols playing over the store intercoms (mocking me), driving in bad weather to spend hours at the mall, nor waiting in line at the cash register. Shopping--not check.

Wrapping--oh, my favorite! It really is. I wrapped all of the presents that Sweetie bought so far (except for what he got me) and thoroughly enjoyed every sweet second of it. Observe: That's not all of 'em, just a small selection. I will be wrapping more as well, the only thing that makes shopping worthwhile.

Next on the list is cookies. Normally, I do about a bajillion different kinds. This year, I am doing three. That's it. If they don't like it then they can bake them. I do not have the time.

On to drama-creator in my life number three...wedding plans. This should not be a problem. I am slowly beginning to understand why the brides on Bridezillas are well, bridezillas. Planning a wedding is really, extremely, exhaustingly stressful. Aside from figuring out all of the logistics, and the money portion of the wedding, I still have to pick out my dress (which I haven't done, because it requires shopping, and worse than that it requires shopping and trying things on...I'm allergic to trying things on. I don't even like to try on shoes.) and I have all of these meetings and appointments that I have to get done now. I mean it, I have to get the bulk of it done now. I am on break from school right now, so my schedule is only half as crazy as normal. For some oddball reason, the vendors for my wedding can't seem to make it to a single scheduled appointment. And frankly I am getting tired of hearing the myriad of reasons why. I do not have time for the drama. My wedding date is not waiting, and I am running out of time. I am pretty patient as it is, but my patience is being pushed to the breaking point. I actually had a meltdown at work today, Bridezilla style.

Seriously...me. I broke down. Freaked. Lost it.

The wedding planner from the venue that I am using cancelled. This isn't the first time. But, right now, we really need to get some of the things that are being done there nailed down, set in stone, finalized. Such as what the hell we are going to be feeding people. I honestly have no time for these delays, so I was really mad. Funny thing is, she cancelled with me over my voicemail. I think she actually asked for my voicemail, because then I couldn't lose it with her.

After my initial meltdown, I happened to get a call from Sweetie, who had gotten a message at home from her off of the answering machine. Boy, I thought I was mad. He was livid. He's the "money-man" by that I mean that he wants numbers right now. Plus, he's sick of all of the cancellations that are going on as well. Especially since he works third (oh, did I mention that chink in the schedule?) and the meetings are hard to come by, and, as I said, this is not the first cancellation. So he was losing it on the phone. The innocent person who had to hear it? That would be me. Like I wasn't mad too! Thanks so much Wedding Planner Lady!

Anyhoo, now I'm home, my blood pressure is starting to return to normal, and I am pulling the last stinkin' batch of freaking cookies out of my oven...

So how's your holiday going?

Merry Christmas.

Fitness Friday

Well, it's Friday, so it is time for my first "Fitness Friday" post. This is going to become a regular thing. Today I'm going to talk about something that sucks the life right out of your healthy eating plan, stress bingeing. Raise your hand if you do this . This is one of the worst habits that I have. I am by nature a nervous person, so I get upset and stressed out really super easy. I don't deal with this by losing it, I deal by eating everything in the immediate vicinity that is not nailed to the floor.

Unfortunately, when it comes to stress eating, vegetables and fruit are out of the question. When stressing out, the only options available are the foods that are "comfort foods". You guys know what they are: doughnuts, cookies, chips, french fries, Big Macs, ice cream, a handful of Hershey's kisses...stuff that tastes like heaven, but later makes you feel like hell. These foods to do absolutely nothing for your energy level.

Handling stress is a real problem for me, and I can get stuck in the rut of grabbing crappy food and scarfing it down. And lately, I've been stressed to the max. That is why when I weighed myself this morning and found that I have gained weight this week and not lost it, I wasn't at all surprised. I was surprised at how much I have gained however. That never ceases to amaze me. I haven't stuck to my plan at all. With Mike back on third shift, evaluations at work, the last week of school, trying to deal with holiday madness, and wedding stuff weighing on my mind daily, I've managed to pack on seven pounds. Yup, seven. 234 this morning. Not good.

So, what does everyone out there in cyber space do to deal with stress? I'm looking for ideas/suggestions here. Don't be shy. You would be helping me deal, and I appreciate any help.

I really wish I was one of those people who had the opposite problem and didn't eat when they stress. This isn't really healthy either, but would be way more helpful in my quest to not look like the Stay Pufft Marshmallow Man at my wedding.

So ideas??? Anyone???? Bueller????