Ouch

Just a quick update - I am 3 for 3 days of Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred!  Yay!

The first night wasn't terrible, although she definitely gave me a run for my money.  Yesterday I actually didn't feel all that terrible, don't get me wrong, I was stiff, but it wasn't unbearable.

Until last night when I snuggled up in Cole's toddler firetruck bed with him.  I had full intentions of getting up after a quick cuddle and doing a list full of stuff, however, apparently I fell asleep.  Ryan came and woke me up and when I went to walk downstairs to work out I thought I might die.  I toughed it out and made it through and once I got into it I felt great.

Today is another story, my muscles are aching!  Cole came to hug me and I almost vomited because he pushed on my thigh.   I almost decided to let me body rest and not work out but then I thought, heck...it's only 30 minutes.  So off I went.  Now I feel great but I am dreading tomorrow morning.

All in all, it's going well and it feels great.  I have a calendar going and a lady I work with gives me a sticker if I workout (I feel like a 2 year old potty training - but hey, whatever works!), it's really nice to have people who care and only want you to succeed.  I just want to say thank you to all of you who sent me lovely e-mails and left me such motivating comments the other day, I really appreciate it.

Tomorrow we have a wedding to go to and it should be an absolute blast.  The bachelorette party for this bride was last weekend and it was INSANE.  From a house party with a stripper (yes a stripper - it was TERRIBLE but hilarious) to a limo-bus tour to two different bars.  It was soooo much fun!  30 women on a limo bus dancing and singing away, champagne was flying (along with bags full of jello shooters - mmmm)...what a blast.  So tomorrow should definitely be a good party and I can't wait to celebrate with T&J as they become man and wife, they are such a fantastic couple and such great people.  I am debating between two different dresses and I am equally torn, oh well, I'll figure it out tomorrow.

Off to do more stretching before bed so I can dance my ass off tomorrow!

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

Work It Girl

Tonight was the night.

I have done it all...

I have started tracking food again and upping my water intake

I have printed out fun calendars for tracking purposes

I have continued to get weighed monthly with Weight Watchers to see if I am still at my goal (which I am currently 5.5lbs over)

I have been talking and thinking and planning on how or when I would get back to working out with Jillian

and tonight I finally did it.  Jillian and I got it on with her 30 Day Shred.

I have a love/hate relationship with working out.  I love how it makes me feel and look but I hate doing it.  Unfortunately, I am not exceptionally skilled at any one sport, I am not a runner and I gave up my gym pass when I went back to work.  I started doing the 30 Day Shred at the beginning of this year and I really enjoyed it.  I had finally found a workout that fit into my schedule.  Between working full time and then coming home and running wild to get supper, lunches, bath, bed and housework done, everything else gets forgotten or put on the back burner.  I had first heard about it through the Weight Watchers' boards and I thought it was worth a try and it most definitely was.  For 30 minutes every night I would go downstairs while Ryan took care of bathing Cole and in no time flat it was over.  I noticed a difference in my body within the first month, just slightly though - mostly in the stomach area, but than again, I wasn't doing it religiously but at least 3 times a week.  Lent came and I decided to give up chocolate...well apparently I gave up working out as well and even though I had no problem going back to chocolate after Lent was finished, working out was a little tougher.

I eat quite well and for the most part stick to a pretty healthy diet/lifestyle if you exclude the weekends full of drinks.  My breakfast normally consists of a breakfast sandwich (egg whites, Weight Watcher thin, tomato) and a cup of fruit and then lunch is a salad with chicken breast or egg or avocado.  Supper is always a smaller than Ryan's portion of whatever we are having with either veggies or a salad, however, some days I do overeat at supper and then of course there is snacking.  We do not eat many processed foods at all in our house and I am not a huge carb person, but I most definitely love to snack and I do have a soft spot for fast food.  I am drinking anywhere between 2-5 litres of water a day and other than water I only drink tea.

So I am making it official and making myself accountable to all of you.  I am going to continue to workout, starting with at least 3 times a week and hopefully working my way up to more.  I need to do this so I can stop feeling sluggish and so that my clothes will look and feel good as they once were before.  I'm not focusing on weight (although if I can lose 15 more pounds I will be thrilled), but mostly on inches.  I want to see the difference and record it.  Tomorrow evening I am going to have Ryan take some pictures and my measurements and hopefully I will be able to come back here with some great numbers soon enough.

What are your favorite healthy lifestyle tips and tricks?

Seriously?!

Tonight has been a busy one.

Normally R picks up C after work as he is home earlier than I am but tonight I was off earlier than usual and R decided to get his hair cut so I offered to pick up C at daycare. Sometimes every single time when I pick C up he has a bit of a temper tantrum.  You see, he's a little particular.  He likes things his way and only his way.  He likes to choose what shoes he wears, which of his 6 BBs (blanky) he wants (clean or dirty), what glass he drinks from, this week he does not like pajamas, and he loves his Daddy frig Mom and the fact that you carried me around in your body for 9 months, gained 65lbs and are still struggling to lose the last 10.  You get the idea...
We actually made it all the way to the front door of the daycare building when he decided 'nope, I'm not going to make this easy on mom' and turned and fled all the way back to his class room.  When I finally caught up to him (running after a 2.5 year old in heels on slippery floors is not fun!) I picked him up and it started.  All the way to the car, once in the car, all the way home, in the driveway for 5 minutes and then again inside.  FINALLY when I decided to ignore him he came to find me in my room and was ready to start the evening over.

After dinner (which he really didn't eat a whole lot of) and bath, R took off to training for the evening.  C asked to watch some 'yardigans' (Backyardigans) so we did.  10 minutes into the show he is crouched down in the corner doing his business and then he comes up to me and says 'look mom, a booger'.  Only it wasn't a booger.  My dear, sweet, innocent, loving, perfect child had stuck his finger in his diaper.

Are you kidding me?!

Thankfully he is sound asleep after 15 minutes of diving in and out of his firetruck bed window.

I am off to chew a bottle of vicodin  have some tea, hopefully tomorrow is a little less 'eventful'.

Love

I have fallen in love and am absolutely addicted to...

Kraft Low-Fat Creamy Poopyseed Salad Dressing, it's delicious.  Go get some and try it out today.

What's your favorite salad dressing?

Wordless Wednesday (sort of) & Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday to my dear sweet husband who is 32 years old today.

C showing off his mad biking skills (although he has not figured out how to peddle)

My niece L, she is seriously adorable!  She reminds me of a little fraggle (Fraggle Rock anyone?)...I could just eat her up!

Thank You

I just wanted to say a quick thank you to all of you who have sent recipes to me for the cookbook.  Your help is sooooo appreciated.  For those of you who have not yet sent me your recipes...please do...now. :)

Have a great night!

Happy Friday Tuesday everyone!

Last weekend (now two weekends ago) was a long weekend for us and we spent it up at camp cottage with all of my immediate family.  The weather was great, the food delicious, the company fantastic and the drinks heavenly.  It was so nice to be away from the busyness of reality and to spend some time with my parents, siblings and nieces and nephews.  We haven't done anything like that since I was a child so it was overdue for sure.  C had such a blast in the boat and on the beach.  He fished for the first time and caught the second biggest fish of the weekend (Hubby caught the biggest at 13.5lbs).  The whole way home C cried for his fishing rod and kept asking if he could go fishing again please.  So adorable (and so overtired).

This week (now last week) was a short one which was nice, but it was also quite busy. R's birthday is on the 18th and I got tickets for us to see Alan Jackson at an outdoor concert last night.  We went with some friends and we had so much fun.  I love outdoor concerts, they are always a blast and this one was no exception.  We had several drinks and lots of laughs.  The crowd was huge and it cooled down just enough outside to make it enjoyable.  I apparently need to invest in some plaid and a pair of cowboy boots as I was one of the few people wearing neither.

As mentioned a couple of weeks ago, I need your help.  My friend's sister was diagnosed a year ago with breast cancer and has since undergone surgery and treatment and is on the road to recovery.  She has been through hell in a hand basket over the past year and has still managed to keep on top of things, including her 3 children all under the age of 10.  Her first surgery was a lumpectomy in July 2009 and then she had a mastectomy in August 2009.  She started chemo in September 2009 until December 23, 2009.  Radiation was next and was 25 treatments or 5days for 5 weeks, ending March 8, 2010.  K started back to work 1 week before the 1 year anniversary of being diagnosed and she will be back to a full work week in September.  How tough is this lady?!  She is so lucky to have her sister who has helped and continues to with her children.  The two girls shaved their heads together (along with other family members and some friends) and they totally rocked the look.  I'll have to ask for a picture because they both looked incredible.

In an effort to give back to those who have helped her, K and K are making a cookbook to sell and all proceeds will be donated.  I know that they have put a lot of effort and hard work into the cookbook so far, but they are hoping for more recipes, especially focusing on appetizers, desserts, drinks, salads, pickles and preserves.  If you could send me one or several under those categories it would be greatly appreciated.  Include your name as it will be published with the recipe.  Thank you so much in advance for your help.  My e-mail is listed at the top of my blog and if you have any questions please don't be shy.

Thank you again so much!

True Love Rocks

Have you ever had a flash back to when you were younger, wild, carefree and really didn't have any responsibilities?  I do often, but more so lately.  I'm wondering if being married is sucking all of the life out of me and this is my wild inner self trying to escape?  100% kidding with that last comment but some things do bring me back to those days.  I wasn't a bad teenager, but I was definitely outgoing and a little ridiculous at times.  Growing up in a small town of approximately 2000 people was always a bore when we were young but thinking back now it was such an amazing experience.  Most people assumed that since we weren't a large city we were all 'hicks', that was definitely the case most days, but let me tell you we had fun.
Sometimes random things bring me back to my teenage years, it could be a smell, a picture, a piece of clothing, a type of car, etc. and when it happens oh my.  I can't describe the feeling that overcomes me.  I almost feel as though I haven't changed a bit.  I could go on and on listing all the things I have done with all of my wonderful, crazy friends but that would take an extremely long time so for now I'll give you some examples.

-Playing 'Cat and Mouse' (Hide and Seek in vehicles, if you spotted the other you flashed your brights) on our small town streets at 1a.m.

-Breaking into a chip stand in the middle of the night cooking food, cleaning up, paying (and tipping) and leaving.

-Stopping the car on the side of the road to get out and dance because our favorite song (or album!) came on the radio.

-'Borrowing' signs, lawn ornaments, construction tape from all over town and decorating random lawns to our liking.

-Road tours, my goodness did we tour.  We would fill up the gas tanks, grab some snacks and drinks and drive all over God's Country for hours on end.

-Car rallies, organized treasure hunts in a car on back roads (sometimes with alcohol...obviously not the driver) sometimes with up to 40 car loads.

-Packing a cooler, grabbing some snacks and spending every Summer Sunday on the beach with these lovely ladies.

I love to reminisce and believe me when I tell you I am such a lucky girl to have been raised where I was and surrounded by those who live there.  You will never come across a community so full of love and this is proven almost every time we are there.  It's a place where people pay it forward because they care and they know that some day they may need the same help and it will most definitely be there.  It's a community where more than just your immediate family has a hand in raising you and that means that everyone knows everything but in the end, I wouldn't have had it any other way.

I most definitely smile when I think of my younger years and my heart swells with all the love I have experienced, but then this little one grabs my hand and I know that my life is so complete now, more so than ever before.

A demain

I will be back tomorrow with something exciting...I promise.

Ashley
P.S.  The stupid movie Paranormal Activity freaked me out and I only saw two minutes of it.  Now I am scared to go to bed.