Happy Halloween!!

So this is what happens when you live in KS and put a Jack-O-Lantern on your porch....it becomes squirrel food!

This is after it was outside for 2 days.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

This is GREAT!

I Ate!

I ate...and I'm ok with it. I caved- out and about running errands with Jeff and Lizzy. We were at Costco walking around watching THEM eat samples... I had a terrible headache- and just feeling overall miserable. So we went to Chillis. I had chips and salsa (my fav. there) and a serloin. Yep- I dived right in...haha!

I'm sure that's all I'll eat today- but to be honest I'm glad I did. At least my perma headache is almost gone!

Sunday Morning

It's Sunday morning (10:05) and I feel good! Yesterday was totally worth it ...especially when I stepped on the scale this morning and was 4.5lbs down! I know I know that's not the healthiest way to lose weight.....but it's a great way to jump start.

My discovery of weight loss has motivated me to keep going today.... so right now I'm having 1/2 an apple and a glass of 1/2 cranberry 1/2 orange juice. I've found that I LOVE the combination and it's pretty too!

By the way...I'm glad I ate the small amt of pork last night. It made me feel a lot better and really did keep me feeling full for the night. I'll probably do the same thing tonight.

Cheat...

I just ate about 1oz of leftover pork roast...maybe not even an ounce. But I have to be honest...I feel MUCH better. I feel like I actually have something in my stomach.

Eventhough I "cheated" I still feel good about today. I know after eating that small amt. of food I'll be able to get through the night without a problem.

Cooking Class

I forgot to mention something... I've found a cooking class I want to take. Its at the Culinary Center of Kansas City- located in DT Overland Park (very close to my house). Its 9 weeks long; 1 night/week for 3 hours. I think it will be really fun! Ok, yes there is a downside to everything ...right? Well here it is...it's $875. I know, I know...chump change right? NOT

I have a little over $200 of my own money saved now (wow- I sound like a kid) and I can continue to save until the class...which I believe won't start until after the 1st of the year. The class is currently in session through November and I've sent an email to them inquiring about when the next session will start.

If you know me at all, you know I love to cook - and this is something I've been wanting to do for several years. I do not have interest in changing professions or anything like that...I just think it'd be a fun experience and I'd love to learn more about cooking and cooking methods.

Ok Damnit

I've got the worst headache! I'm one of those people who gets headaches when I don't eat though...so I did expect it.

It's 6:18pm

About an hour ago I had a small apple slice - and now I'm having a Naked drink- "Blue Machine".

Doing Ok

It's 2:08 on Saturday.

For breakfast I had 1 small slice of tomato w/ salt and pepper on it, and 2 small slices of cucumber along with a glass of cranberry juice. Lizzy and I were at Borders and I was starving so I bought a small Naked drink from the cafe there. Now I'm having about 1/3 of a coffee mug of leftover broth w/ pepper from last night.

I'm doing fine....I'm hungry but nothing terrible yet. Lizzy and I rented some movies so I'm going to stay IN tonight and watch movies. Right now we are watching "What Happens In Vegas" w/ Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher (sp?).

I also got "Dexter" Season 2 disk 3&4 and "The Good Shepard" to keep me occupied tonight...

So Far...

....it's not bad. I have had 1 naked drink, a glass of cranberry and 1/2 a can of broth cooked with pepper.

It's 8:55pm

I'll probably have something small for breakfast...just to start my day off right. I think I'll have a slice of tomato and 2-3 slices of cucumber.

Wish me luck!

Weekend Fast

I'm going to do a semi liquid diet fast this weekend. Actually, I started today after lunch- teehee. My goal is to go until Monday morning w/o any meat and very little solid food. The reason I'm doing this is because I REALLY need to find my center- and stop revolving my day around food. Also- a weekend without meat and very little solid food will be good for my digestive system. Here is what I have for the weekend:

3 Naked drinks

1 Bottle of 100% Cranberry Juice

1/2 Gallon Pure Orange Juice

2 Cans Chicken Broth

1 Small Zucchini

1 Cucumber

1 Tomato

1 Apple

1 Serving Applesauce

The food is for when I just can't stand it (most likely dinnertime) and I plan to eat a very small amount when I do.

So here's the deal- I am going to take to this blog when I think I can't handle it or have trouble with this. I have done this before but NEVER made it a whole weekend. I feel it's important for me to prove to myself that I can do this.

So 3:45 first 1/2 day....I last ate at 11:45 today. So obviously ...no hunger yet. Wish me luck!

We WON!!

Mac - n - Seitz Indians WON the Monster Bash Tournament!!!

Yippee!!!!!

Dugout / Baseball Game

Indians WON ...yippee! Game 1 of the Halloween tourney is over. Here is the finished dugout.

Jack Skellington Coming To "Life"

My son is playing in a baseball tournament this weekend. Since it's so close to Halloween of course it's got a Halloween theme. It's called the "Monster Bash"...haha There are several contests involving costumes, spirit etc... The one I chose to head up is the dugout decorating contest. I've got 3 wonderful moms also following my lead...and I've come up with a fun idea. We are doing "The Nightmare Before Christmas". OF COURSE....the new cd inspired me. I've been itching to do something w/ that theme for several years now. Anyway, I painted life size Jack Skellington...and here he is coming to life.....

I will post pictures of the dugout this weekend....

You've Got To Check Out This CD!

I'm cranky

I'm cranky today. I was cranky last night too. I need to snap out of it. I'm so engulfed in the weight issue I'm having that I'm making people around me miserable. Too much of the "tone" of my household depends on my attitude.

I was mean to my kids last night...they were just being kids and I was over the top (for me anyway) in how I reacted...I'm going to give them extra love today to make up for it.

As parents it's up to us to recognize and reconcile when we have crazy mood swings or find ourselves cranky for unexplained reasons. I do it sometimes. Especially since I had a hysterectomy....I can tell when my hormones are out of whack.

So yesterday was 9 months w/o smoking. I guess I should stand up and cheer.....eh. When will I quit counting??? The anniversaries will keep coming...and they will become less and less important. I've accomplished my goal.

Last Friday the 3rd was Jeff and I's 4 year anniversary. I'm not positive about that date....but it's the one I always use. Neither one of us even remembered to say anything or do anything. I guess when you're married your "we've been together x long" anniversaries don't count anymore. Well we've been married 2.5 years....3 years December 2nd. That one will count.

Take Time For The Classics

When I'm at work about 90% of the time I work with headphones in my ears. I do this because it helps me concentrate...and tune out outside noise.

I love classical music. Did anyone know that? I bet not many of you do....it's not something I talk about often. Here is one of my favorite classical songs...by one of my favorite composers:

Tchaikovsky Arabian Dance

Victory #1

The Outside Kennel is DONE! I'll post a pic soon. The dogs don't hate it...and we can FINALLY get some relief here in our house.

Yippe!

Have I bitten off more than I can chew?

I think I may have bitten off more than I can chew. As I write this I have my precious devil Sophie on leash next to me. This is the new rule in this house for her. She cannot be trusted for 1 minute alone....or she will pee or destroy something.

I call Sophie my precious devil for obvious reasons.

The Good: She is absolutely beautiful...very fun and has the cutest personality. She LOVES belly rubs and will show it to anyone. She is extremely confident and very dominant. She is SMART as any dog I've ever met. She is a problem solver.

The Bad: She loves to check out what's in the trash...lift herself up to the counters to see if there is anything good she can eat...she jumps up with joy on people OR things at will...it freaks a lot of people out. She has a peeing problem that I just don't know how to conquer. My house currently smells like vinegar because I ran straight vinegar through my carpet cleaner the other day to get rid of the pee smell. She understands going outside...as I said in a previous post.....she just loves to pee inside for some reason. I think she saves a bit just so she can mark in our house.

She obviously thinks it's her house...haha

I have to admit I'm at my wits end with this dog. I know Jeff and I can provide the best home for her so I'm committed to solving this puzzle. She's only 8 months old....I'm hoping we can "break her" with a little hard work and these scenarios will be an issue of the past.

About 3 weeks ago Sophie jumped the fence and ran about 2 blocks away. Jeff was able to get her thank God, but it changed the way we have done things for the last 3 weeks. Since Sumo has also jumped the fence recently, we decided not to let them outside w/o being on leash. This means when they go outside to pee, we are there. They cannot go outside to play at all. We purchased an outside chain link kennel- and it's in the process of being put together. This will allow them to go outside and play together w/o the opportunity to jump and run away. I can't wait for it to be done.

It's very hard for me to have her on leash all day. Especially since we cannot let them outside right now which has magnified her problems. Both of our dogs need their space. They're both stir crazy. Sophie has been destructive. (I've already had my favorite pair of heels at the shoe repair shop) When the dogs get in the mood to play, in the past we'd let them outside....but now we have to let them play inside...after all....they HAVE to have time to play together and have fun. It's CRAZY when they do though...they run through the house rolling around all over each other. Although cute ...having 2 dogs- one 60lbs and one 90lbs play fighting in the house is stressful!

I love my dogs. They are not just pets...they are part of our family and in turn part of me. It's hard for me to deal with the fact that I am failing to train her properly....especially when our other dog Sumo is such a well trained boy. He's very docile and we run his show.

I know that this cannot last forever. I also know that I will take each day one at a time and continue to work on this problem. She is worth it. How can you not love this dog?

1 day at a time....

I didn't eat last night after dinner!!

Wow...I'm lame

TURN OFF MY MOUTH!!!!

Ok...I've got a serious problem ....I can't seem to turn off my mouth at night. I'm a night eater and it's getting the best of me. I was at the Dr. the other day and I stepped on the scale- 145. It was actually hovering between 145 & 147 and I jumped off before it stopped because there is NO WAY I'm going to admit (even to myself) that I've let it get this far. My ideal weight is 130. I work out ...more than a lot of people I know- I life weights and do cardio several days a week and yet....I continue to sabotage myself with this night eating. I do SO good during the day.....

I've decided to take to my blog to vent about this because ...I guess in a way it's me admitting I have a problem. Here is a picture of Aphrodite's ass.....yes, that's what I want my ass to look like so....I have to learn to turn off my mouth......and STOP eating after 8pm.

Starting tonight...haha