Memories Made

Happy Monday!

The week ahead is going to be much calmer than last week. As of right now, the only thing on my agenda is painting. Love it. As much as I love being busy, it's also nice to have a bit of downtime. Once I get the painting done today, I'm going to do arts & crafts, science projects and other things of the like with the kidlets.

Alright, let's talk a little business before getting to some fun stuff.
Last week's weigh in:  All the water weight was gone and another .5 went with it.

This week's weigh in:  Honestly, I don't think it's going to go so well.  I am swollen again and the last few days I haven't been focused.  I'm quite disappointed in myself, really.  I've been doing really well with keeping the stress eating and every-other-emotional eating at bay.  The last few days have been another story.  I'm not on the "oh screw it" diet. I certainly haven't gone off the cliff, just a bit too much in the deep end.  I have a plan in place for the current week.  Now it's time for some good execution.

Enough about all of that. I want to talk about all the fun-stuff from the last week or so.  I won't bore you with it all at once though.  Today I'm just talking Jovi...

                                 He put on a "Boston Strong" t-shirt that someone in the audience handed to him. 

I am still humming along and smiling from ear-to-ear from the great time I had at the show!  To be honest, even though we had great seats (Row 17, center floor), I wasn't too enthused about going. Gillette and the town of Foxboro were in a tiff about whether or not to allow the summer concerts to go on due to some insurance woes.  There was much chatter about the concert being canceled.  I was secretly hoping that it would be.

What?  How can I say that, you ask? Well, the last show I went to was very political.  I hated it.  It angered me that I spent all that money to see a band that I've been a big fan of since I was in the sixth grade (that's a LONG time, folks!) only to "listen" to political rhetoric.  OK, so it wasn't that bad.  The political stuff was shown up on the jumbotron. I was very annoyed. Just like I get annoyed with all the political crap during the 4th of July parade.  There is a time and place for all that...please leave it out of concerts and parades. Thanks.

OK, off of my soapbox.

As I was saying, this show was much better!  They played a lot of the old mixed in with the new.
I remember from a past show that Jon mentioned how he doesn't like to talk much during the show because we all paid good money to hear them sing.  When he does speak though, he's usually pretty funny.  Jon made mention of the other controversy happening in Foxboro; Gillette had asked for a later curfew for the "older" crowd for this concert in particular.  Jon said something like this: "I've been reading the papers and hear that if I don't get out of here by midnight, I'll be arrested.  Who will come bail me out?"  (ummmm....)

Later, he spoke about Mr. Bob Kraft and the camera panned to he and his son who were sitting in the front row.  He looked like he was having a great old time. Wonder how much he paid for those seats? ;-)

                                                                      He took someone's Patriots hat.

He also made mention of Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots.  He said that he needed to wrap things up before Bill came out to kick him off of his field.    My favorite moment though was when he "f'ed up the words" (his words, not mine) while singing.  Somehow, it made him human. :)

One of the many things I have always admired about the band is how grounded they are.  They never got too big for their britches.  Jon always seems to be a very humble man who remembers where he came from and never forgets "the little people".  He genuinely seems to care for the fans, I can see it in his eyes.  There were a few moments in particular that gave me goose bumps (OK, so the man gives me constant goose bumps)...towards the end of the show, he just looked out into the crowd with this sweet smile and a look of "love" and appreciation.  He is just so beautiful.

My absolute favorite part of the show was when he went "out back" to dry off and came back out onto a platform not too far from where we were sitting.  O.M.G!  Seriously, you guys have no idea! I was shaking.  Now, I have been a bit closer to him once before in the past. This time though, I had my camera.  I didn't make a complete fool of myself when I "rushed the stage".  I just got a little teary eyed, shook, and kept saying "I can't believe this is happening again."  The last time I saw him up close, I cried like a teenage girl. The song was "(You want to) Make a Memory"...both. times. Shivers. Tears. More Shivers.

Needless to say, I had a great time. Now, don't get me wrong, I am not a psycho fan.  I don't follow his every move. I don't know everything there is about him.  He's just a man. He puts his pants on the same way we all do. I've only been "in love" with him since I was a kid.  There is something about his voice that soothes my soul.  I told my girl friend that night that I need to make it my life's mission to meet that man.  Truth is though, that cannot ever happen. I would make a fool of myself. Seriously, I wouldn't know what to say.  I would choke on my tears. You would probably read about me in the papers.  So, I will continue to admire for a far with my teenage girl crush. 

Don't worry Jon, you made a great memory for me! 

Shivers. 

Just a quickie

Sorry again about being MIA. I have been busy with a number of things and haven't had the time/energy to sign on. I'll give you a cliff notes version and will catch up more towards the end of the week.


Weight from last week:  water weight gone. Swelling was down.

Exercise: finally got to the gym on Friday. That was great!

Bathroom: not done.

Bon Jovi: one of the best shows ever!

This week:  at camp with my son, I'm tired already.

That's all the time/energy I have right now. I'll tach up later this week.

Thanks for stopping by!

Lookin' Up

We have walls!  Honest to goodness walls. The space is starting to feel like a room again!  Yeah!

We have to wait til it's good and dry before we can paint. That will take about a week or so.  No worries, we can start tiling or more prepping for the tiling. The down side though is that this is a very busy week for hubs.  He won't be home on time let alone early to do much work this week.  Some of the stuff I can do but tomorrow is out because I have a full day ahead of me.  Hopefully though, I can get something done to help out on Wednesday.   If enough of the prep work gets done over the next few days, we'll be able to start tiling by the weekend. Finally!!!

Enough about that.

I was looking through photos last night. I found a picture of me that was taken about 2 years at Disney.  Although I was happy to be there, there was still a miserable sense in my eye.  It really made me cry for her. Which may sound strange seeing as I am no where near a healthy weight.  Seeing that photo made me really realize that I  have come a long way and that girl is not who I am anymore.

There are so many more things that I couldn't do or even wouldn't do back then that I can and will do now.  Just a small example of a thought I had on the subject just last week:  My girl friend and I took the kids to play mini golf. I haven't seen this friend since maybe February.  She noticed right away that I had lost more weight and commented on how good I looked.  While we were playing golf, I started to chuckle out loud and pointed out to her that 60 pounds ago I had to have one of the kids get the ball out of the hole for me because I couldn't bend to reach down into it without fear of collapsing.  Now? No problem. Sure, it's something small but it was just a reminder that there were plenty of things that I struggled with then that I don't even think twice about now.

All of this reflecting has also reminded me though that I've been stuck at this same weight for much too long.  A few weeks ago I was chanting that I was focused...and that still is the truth.  I've been journaling and staying within my calorie boundaries.  The piece of the puzzle that is missing for me right now is the gym.  Now, there are a ton of people who preach that it's all about what goes in and less about what goes out.  That just isn't so for me.  The plays an integral part of my weight loss. And by "gym", I mean exercise but mostly strength training.

I was just speaking with my "paid friend" about this very topic.  Her suggestion is to set the goal of continued maintenance for the rest of the summer. Part of me thinks that is a little dangerous but part of me also realizes that it's more of a realistic goal at this point.  You all know that I just don't do well in the heat so the chances of me working out on my own are slim.  That all being said, I'm thinking a better goal would be to continue to food journal, bring my calories down a bit to help cover some of the calories I'm not burning at the gym along with some other little things I would like to change...now, it's time to put some more thought into this idea and see where it leads me.

Weekend Wrap Up

Well, guess who didn't show up on Friday? 

You got it!  The plasterers.  We did get an email stating that a few of the guys called in "sick" and they would be here on Monday.  I was livid. I mean, I couldn't see straight. Hubs was much of the same way.  He ended up responding to the email; expressing his disappointment in the way we've been treated.   They had best be here tomorrow or I will most certainly crack. 

Needless to say, I am at my wits end over here. 

Things with eating have been OK. Could be better but haven't been off the deep end.  The gym didn't happen at all last week and I'm really feeling that.  I will work on getting into a routine with at home and in-gym workouts.  That, and meal planning are on my to-do list for tomorrow. After all, I need something to do while the plasterers are hard at work. :) 

I have to apologize for weak material these days too.  Honestly, my brain is filled with so much other stuff, I just can't focus on one particular topic for more than ten minutes at a time.  I think I have 3-4 blog drafts out there from this week alone, I sit to write but get distracted or pulled away by something/someone else. A lot of it is that it's the summertime and I'm (clearly) home with the kids but there are other outside things that have occupied (too much) space in my head.  Hopefully, once my house is back to normal, I can be too. 

Wednesday Weigh In

Up 4 pounds.

Like I said, I knew it was coming.  I am very swollen, retaining lots of water which is normal for me during the summah time. The thing that is bothering me is that I'm feeling it.  Feeling it big time.  When I gained that 7 pounds a few weeks ago, I never felt it. This, I do. My hands are huge and tight, my face is bloated and my legs are heavy.  This is one of the things I'm not a huge fan of in the summer.

The good news though is that I'm feeling pretty comfortable in that swimsuit I showed you a few weeks back. I've worn it a few times and have actually gotten in to the pool.  I think I would even go in to the public pool when we head to the park next month.  That's a HUGE step for me!  I know I have a long way to go but I also know that I've come a long way.  I'm trying really hard to not worry about what other's see while knowing where I have come from. Next summer, things will even be better. Nothing but goodness on the horizon.

Food journal for today, looking at just over 1500 calories.

More good news - the plaster guy contacted hubs today. He apologized for the mis-hap and said the crew would be here on Friday.  He also delivered the quote which ended up being about half of what we expected. Finally! Something is going to cost less than anticipated.  Now, if it gets completed on Friday, that will be an added "bonus". Oye!

Things are looking up.

No-Show-Again!

Ack!  The plaster guy was supposed to be here today putting the drywall up so we can put this bath back together.  He didn't show up. Again.  I swear, I am done with contractors and subcontractors and everyone altogether.  This project is now running over six weeks and counting!  I wouldn't mind so much if it was because we were working so slowly. It's not us!  It's waiting on others. Talk about annoying.  

My girlfriend is in the same boat.  She started her bath a few weeks before we did and hers isn't complete yet either.  I touched base with her today and she said they still don't have a sink and a lot of the smaller touches (knobs and pulls) aren't done.  She is lucky in that they have a functioning toilet and shower. Can't wait til we have either one of those.  A girl can dream.

I really felt bad for the kids today though. We weren't able to do much where I was waiting around for the guys to show.  Luckily, my father took them swimming this afternoon while I went in to work.

That was a bit strange. Working. Again. My boss called last week to see if I could cover today.  She doesn't typically need the help in the summer but needed someone for just today so I went in. It was a welcomed distraction from the depressing/frustrating thing that is my bath.

I'm sorry. I don't mean to sound like all I do is complain.  That certainly isn't the case. I'm just frustrated. Not to worry though, the happy me is in here. I'm really happy that the heat broke!  That 95+ degree weather was going to be the death of me. It was in the 70's today. Supposed to be in the low 80's tomorrow.  It also comes along with rain, but that's OK.  We'll find something to do to amuse ourselves.

I haven't been good about drowning myself with water. My hands are still very swollen.

I am food journaling though, that's another good thing.

My back is also feeling a lot better.  I now know it was the shoes. I wore flip flops the other day and regretted it.  No more flip flops for me (that makes me sad). BUT, I am happy that my back is better!  

I'm also happy that my kids have been getting along fairly well.  The first day of my son's summer vacation, I really thought we weren't going to make it. They have been really well behaved since then though.

See? I'm not ALL complaints.  ;-)

Monday, Monday

Didn't mean to go MIA last week!  I had a post all ready to go, just needed to add some minor details but never really got back to it. I did mention a few weeks ago that I would be spotty at best with the posting over the summer.  There is just a lot going on in my life right now and fitting in time to blog is lower on my priority list...for the moment. 

Anyway, I hope you had a great 4th of July!  Did you do anything to celebrate?  

My son is in the parade that goes through town so we went to cheer him on.  We followed that up with a BBQ over a friend's house then wrapped the day up with some fireworks.  The 4th of July is one of my most favorite holidays.  I am proud to be an American and I love to celebrate that every year. 

As far as weight goes, I was the same last week. This week I'm probably looking at a slight gain.  I am very bloated and am feeling it in my fingers, arms and a bit in my legs.  My trainer actually noticed it last week too.  Should probably drown myself with some water over the next few days, huh?  :) 

Alright, keeping things easy on this Monday.  Participating in FMM:

If you’ve taken part in FMM then you know the rules. If you’re new, please take a moment to answer this week’s question on your own blog then add your link in the comments section here at: www.alltheweigh.com so we can all see your FMM questions and answers. Please invite your blog readers to add their links here too so everyone has to opportunity to be seen. The idea is to connect with other awesome bloggers so take a moment to post your own FMM post and comment on a couple of other posts. Now it’s time for this week’s topic!

 Easy Answers

1.  Are you a planner, or do you prefer to see where the moment takes you?  I'm more of a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of gal.  I like to have a general idea of what we're going to do but will let the rest happen more naturally. 

2.  How often do you blog?  I try to get on here at least 5 days during the week. Some weeks are better than others. 

3.  Do you color your hair?  Depends on what you mean by color.  :)  My stylist gets frustrated with me when I say color when I actually mean highlight. So, I guess I highlight my hair more than color it?  Whatever. Yes. I color it. 

4. If you had to choose between running or riding a bike, which one would you choose?  Ummm...I haven't ridden a bike since I was a kid and running?  That hurts. A lot. Someday though, I would love to be able to run.  Working on it. 

5.  Have you ever traveled outside of your home country?  Yes. 

6.  Do you like weddings?  Depends.  If it's a wedding where I know a ton of people, then yes. If not, then meh. They are OK. 

7.  What is your favorite guilty pleasure on TV?  I love Criminal Minds and CSI. I should probably stop watching, I'm starting to be afraid of my own shadow. ;-) 

8.  Are you good at math?  I'm OK. It takes me a few moments to compute things but I can do it.  I can count back change.  I think that's some important math skills that I fully believe everyone should have some training in.  

9.  What is the last movie you watched?  Hubs and I watched The Sorcerer's Apprentice the other night. It came from Netflix.  I'm still debating on wether or not I should let my older son watch it.  Was a pretty good move. 

10.  Share five adjectives that your friends would use to describe you.  Funny, Caring, (yet witchy with a 'B' - HA), Organized, forgetful. 

Bonus:  Did you celebrate Independence Day?  If so, what did you do?  See above. :)