Tuesday, April 17, 2012

It's been a long time since I came around

LOL sorry that title just cracks me up. You gotta love GaGa. So this is just a quick blog with lots of pics. I have been busy and meaning update better but dang it I just haven't.

My hubby running the St Louis St. Patty's Day 5-mile (he's the one in the green in the middle of the pic). I was so proud of him.


Was inspired by this blogger to put up this "yellow lovin" little number over the bed. 



Also made a quick new front door wreath for spring/early summer. I will be doing a flag themed wreath for end of June beginning of July time. I am eventually going to need a whole room just to house all of my wreath creations......hahaha


Made this amazing healthy lasagna......recipe to come later. 




Although I haven't been the greatest and because my knee has been killing my I have skipped a couple of Insanity videos I am still showing great progress. I haven't been able to wear these jeans in months. Very exciting moment for me, I just love the way the fit my shortness. 

The hubby and FIL playing a little bags on a beautiful Easter Sunday


Allie-girl decided that her "momma" was a pillow on this particular evening.


 Made an amazing grilled BBQ chicken ranch pizza. We grilled out BBQ chicken boneless skinless chicken breasts, used a whole wheat boboli crust I used ranch instead of marinara then added the chicken and topped it with fat-free mozzarella cheese and a little more BBQ sauce. It was flippin amazing........will so be making this again and again and again.



For Easter I took some pretty little cuppie cakes. I just fell in love with these chicks that were all over Pinterest. Used a new cake recipe and they turned out ok, still looking for that "perfect cupcake" I will get there someday.  


We needed something over our couch and I for whatever reason associate the hubby and myself with birdies. I just thought this was so cute and decided to paint up a big canvas. The best part which unfortunately you can't see very well is that the red heart is actually all glittery :)


and here we have my dog deciding that I needed a scarf while trying to sleep. Sorry about the grotesque-ness of the no make-up look I have going



My sister, niece, and myself at a competition to see our momma (Madigan's Gwa) play some piano. 



While the kids and my sister were down in the MO area we took them to the St. Louis Zoo where they proceded to think that I was a human jungle gym




So that about does it for the time being. Studying hard for school so far doing excellent. Probably going to be going back to light-duty work in the near future and for that reason is why this blog had to get done quick. With work and school and trying to keep working out I am sure I will slack on the blog writing for the foreseeable future. Till next time......later.

Monday, March 19, 2012

Insanity

So as much as I was loving Jillian Michaels 30DS I finally purchased the Insanity program and am so excited to get going on this.

Today was the first day and so it was just the fitness test. After having some recent knee problems, well old knee problems that had popped back up again. So anywho I got myself a brand new knee brace and inserted the first disc.


My results for Fittest numero uno:

Switch kicks   63

Power Jacks   55

Power Knee   60

Power Jumps   30

Globe Jumps    6

Suicide Jumps   6

Push-up Jacks   10

Plank Obliques   40


Not great numbers but you gotta start somewhere right. I took before pictures but just can't bring myself to post them on here. I am hoping that my after pics are good and then will post both at the same time.

Monday, March 12, 2012

Birchbox for March 2012

So I decided to do my own version of a birch box reveal here each month with just simple pictures and descriptions instead of a vlog, as I am too shy to even put a short video out to the internet world.



For the Lifestyle Extra this month:  Tea Forte/skin smart teas.  A mega antioxidant tea that tastes amazing and helps your skin look more radiant. I received:

Cherry Marzipan:  Special reserve green tea with the tart-sweet lushness of acerola cherries and the depth of nutty toasted almond. Packed with powerful antioxidants for healthier, younger-looking skin.

Honey Yuzu:  Green tea with the bright exotic citron flavor of yuzu sweetened with full blossom bee pollen. Helps with fine lines and wrinkles and to reverse skin cell oxidative damage.

Cucumber Mint:  Green tea with invigoration cool notes of cucumber fruit and fresh mint, with the taste of succulent blueberries. Helps in collagen production and the flow of healthy, youthful looking skin.


 Color Club Nail Lacquer in Jackie Oh!
Brighten blah fingers and toes with this on-trend pink polish. What you unfortunately can not tell from this picture how hot pink it truly is. Can't wait to try this out soon.



 Ahava Essential Day Moisturizer, Normal to Dry:  Keep your skin protected from environmental irritants with this mineral-enriched formula, which is packed with vitamin E and aloe vera.


Kerastase Elixir Ultime:  Add this nourishing oil to your hair regime to hydrate, smooth, and sleekify your strands.

Juice Beauty Blemish Clearing Cleanser:   The name says it all this eco-friendly cleanser uses botanical ingredients to purify your pores. It states that if you have problem skin within 4 weeks you should see a dramatic difference.


Annik Goutal Eau d'Hardien:  Inspired by Tuscan citrus groves, this bright scent features a winning combo of lemon, grapefruit, and green mandarin notes.








I love getting this box every month and have received some great products that I will continue to buy in full-size versions. I hope you all enjoyed my birch box reveal for March 2012.

My last week and a half in photos........

My little Allie-cat was very sick and decided it would be a good idea to cuddle on the bed and sleep......she slept forever.

Finally picked up the new Baby Lips from Maybeline. These are really nice very moisturizing. I got the pink punch but it is a little more pigmented then I actually wanted but the peppermint is awesome.


At my moms house Allie really enjoyed the piano. Mom played for her and she ended up sitting right by her feet pretty much the whole time.


Made some awesome homemade pizza for Ryan's return home. Very big and tasted better than takeout in my opinion. Again just want to say thanks to my mom for giving us a bread-maker for Xmas :)


Enjoyed the first day of spring by running errands with Allie all the windows down and loving the sun and fresh air.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Major case of the blahs................

So what's the one thing I do when I wake up with the blahs..........
why paint my nails of course. This was some UBBER-glitteriness. Is that even a real word?????

So d/t the blahs I decided to do the other thing that always helps to make them go away......go stay with my momma. I know it might be a little weird that a woman in her 30's would pack up her stuff and dog to go sleep at my mom's house but it just makes me feel better.

I love my momma she is as beautiful on the inside as the outside and we seriously have way too much fun when we get together. Even more exciting is the fact that I get to bring Allie-girl with me. She lives in a gorgeous sub-division so I am also bringing my running gear to get outside and move since the other thing we do is eat too much :(

When dealing with the blahs it's always of most importance to get your ass up and move around a bit and luckily I have Jillian and the #30DS to help with that. But the most important thing is my workout partner who always makes me laugh uncontrollably.
 Although I don't think she was sweating as much as I was in the end!!!!
I go tomorrow morning for yet another follow-up with my Dr. about the wrist, then out to lunch and wedding dress shopping with my girl Holly. I am so happy for her and her man Matt. They have decided to get married in Vegas which is an even bigger plus as I have never been there before :)


So I let myself sleep in this morning and then went right to working out so I kinda skipped breakfast. I know I'm horrible but the rest of the day I have been good at least.

Lunch was a nice low-cal flat wrap with tuna salad (tuna, greek yogurt, s&p), and some cottage cheese on the side

After some lunch I had a few errands to run and played outside with Allie for a bit then was hungry again.

So I had awhile back tried to make some homemade LUNA bars and it just didn't work out but as I try  to always see the good in a bad situation I made a crumble with the dates and pecans. I put the mixture in the freezer so I sprinkled some on my greek yogurt.


As you can see here the ray of death has taken another animal............lol just kidding. After a hard day of doing nothing she passed out while I did some things around the house.

I decided to make up a quick batch of homemade apple chips for the drive to mom's tomorrow. Made the house smell amazing and they will taste even better while driving and singing with Allie.

Dinner was amazing. I roasted some Brussels sprouts and added taco seasoned lean ground beef and brown rice. Topped it with mexican greek yogurt hot sauce and some avocado. It was delicious now I need to get to packing and watching hours of Big Bang Theory re-runs. 

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

I love the sunshine




So after a long day inside a horribly stuffy courtroom looking outside to the wonderful sunshine I was so happy to get home and get outside to run.

See I am so happy......except for the fact that there was so much wind I kept swallowing things being blown into my mouth :(

So time was not that great I ran 2.02 miles in 22:36. Getting better all the time I know it's not fast yet but compared to six months ago when I couldn't even run a half mile straight I am feeling better and better everyday.

I had to run and get some things at the store and while I was there saw these...........
..........hello where have you been all my life?!?!?


Glad I finished up all jury duty today as I can't sleep while Ry-guy is gone and my insomnia is really kicking in. I was practically falling asleep during deliberation today. My plan for tomorrow is sleep till I wake up NO ALARM. That is going to be a treat it is still supposed to be nice and I am hoping to get another good run in outside.

I love when I have days that there is absolutely nothing I have to do. Maybe it will be an all day spa day :)

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Motivation is a daily uphill battle

Seriously why can't I have as much motivation and will power as everyone else out there in the blog/tumblr/twitter world?????????

I have for years had lots of food issues. I have battled with anorexia/bulimia since I was in high school. So with that I have gone up and down on the yo-yo diet weight loss roller coaster. I would use horrible ways and loose tons of weight then gain it all back again. When I met my husband I was in a horrible place. I was eating on average in a day between 500-900 calories. Most of the time I would just throw up what I ate anyway and when I was hungry I would smoke and drink Coke Zero.

Since being with my hubby he has showed me that if I eat right and work out I can get even better results that will last a lifetime. The problem that I am currently having is that the weight is not coming off fast enough. I am having a very difficult time keeping my own moral up. I know that I need to just suck it up and not be such a little bitch.

 I had the best intentions for this week and next week while the hubby is away and so far I have failed miserably. I am still having terrible pain in my wrist from surgery in January, since starting the 30DS my knee has swelled up to the size of a grapefruit. So this has been a bit of an excuse, I didn't actually work out at all yesterday :(

Today I had jury duty again and we walked to lunch and back and then had a "field trip" during duty and walked around some more there. I came home and before doing anything else got changed and did my shred DVD. I did not eat well today as we went to St. Louis Bread Co. and I just couldn't resist that bread.

So new plans for the rest of the week:

*  get up early and go run at the gym (I am starting with a half marathon training program this week)
*  keep a bottle of water with me at all times
*  No eating after 7:30pm
*  Make sure I eat every 3-4 hours and make it a healthy mix so that I am not starving and go for the wrong    foods
*  30DS EVERYDAY!!!!!!


Thanks for listening to me vent this out. I could go on for ever and ever and ever but know that just getting this out a little bit will help me push through. I need to utilize this blog more even if no one is reading it ;)

Sunday, February 26, 2012

Easy like Sunday morning........ya

So Ry-guy is off and on his way to Georgia it's a cold sunny beautiful day and I personally will not be going out at all today.


Iced coffee the way to start my morning. So tasty and I get to drink it a lot faster than waiting for my scalding hot coffee on a usual morning. 

My biggest plan today is to get my first day of 30DS under my belt then start the cleaning process. For whatever reason whenever one of us leaves for a time the other goes on a cleaning spree through the house. Why can't we just do that with each other while we are both at home? Who knows?!?!

Because I am an uber-dork and couldn't stand the thought of Ry-guy leaving without just one more shot of him and Allie I went hog wild with the camera last night. 


........and then we decided Allie and I needed a new picture..........

and then of course because she is so adorable I needed a new picture of her all by her self............







So after all that craziness we all she passed out......long day of looking cute wore her out. So that's about it for now. Going to hit up the 30DS then study for my upcoming Coagulation class. I love being prepared before the class even starts and this stuff is just so intriguing I can't help myself from studying :)



UPDATE:

Wow so that was a rather hard 20 minutes but I made it through and really didn't sweat that much might bump it up to level 2 tomorrow. I thought I would be a truthful person on this blog and put up my beginning weight and measurements for Day one of 30DS. I am hoping that if anything this will help to keep me on track if I put them up and update everyday with my progress. At the end of the 30 days I will post before and after pics. I am always shocked with how honest people are and usually those are the people who get the most out of what they are doing. So here goes nothing.......


Day 1 of 30DS  (2-26-12)

Height:        5' 4"

Weight:       171

Left Arm:    12"

Right Arm:  12"

Chest:         37"

Waist:         36"

Hips:           43"

Right Thigh: 22"

Left Thigh:   22"

 

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Saturday in my opinion the best day of the week

So after a great night's sleep after lots of activity yesterday I woke up (without an alarm....I love when that happens) to sunlight enveloping our bedroom. I got ready quickly and was out the door. My cousin and his wife who are having a baby soon had a baby shower this afternoon and it was great to see some family I haven't seen in awhile.

I love all my family and although we all live within a short few hours drive in distance we can't always get together so occasions like these make me very happy. My cousin Eric and his wife Sarah are going to make amazing parents to a very lucky little boy. They are both teachers and just have that "parent instinct" to them....ya know what I mean.

So after eating some wonderful food and talking and talking and talking some more I headed back home. Ry-guy leaves early tomorrow morning and it was beautiful weather outside this afternoon so we decided to go for a last run outside before he leaves for two weeks.

I love my new shoes and my boring compression socks which I swear have made all the difference in my being able to run on a consistent basis without my knee popping out of place or swelling to the size of a cantaloupe.

I need to find some new workout wear I don't know if I have mentioned this before but I wear the same pants for every run and I have only 3 pairs of plain white compression socks. Maybe one of these days I will go on a shopping spree and just buy tons of new pretty workout things. I have never been a consistent worker-outer so I have never really paid much for workout stuff.

Now I plan on chillin on the couch, eating some bad food, playing some yahtzee and spending as much time as possible with they hubby till tomorrow. I just hate when he leaves even when it's just for a short time.

Tomorrow is gonna be filled with lots of cleaning, running, my first session of 30DS, and Oscars in the evening. I might have to make something extra special for that one. Hope you have all filled out your sheets to vote on your picks for the golden statues. I will tomorrow but I don't think I have seen any of the movies anyway so this is gonna be a total guesserou for me :)

Friday, February 24, 2012

Feeling good and becoming strong

So this week has been a bit crazy for me. First off I had to withdraw from my chemistry class as I am still having so much trouble with my wrist/hand from the surgery in January. We went to my hometown over the weekend for a show choir competition and I will say it's just lovely getting to see my family and hang out with old friends.



I love my momma and don't get to see her that often and my sister as well they are both such wonderful people and have been with me through my best and worst times. Although I am young I have lived a rough sorta life and they have been my backbones of my survival.


(my sister is the blonde in the front and my mom is the blonde in the back)


We are crazy and loud and since we don't all get to see each other that often we tend to stay up way too late and then go fast and hard the next day as well. So unfortunately Ry-guy and I ended up at home on Sunday sick as dogs and in bed pretty much all day Monday. So our runs just started up again yesterday. It was so absolutely wonderful outside that our windows were open and we went for a run in the adjoining neighborhood. 




Now today we wake to horrible Illinois cold snowy weather.......WHY do we still live here. Anywho we went bowling this morning and let me say I haven't gone in years and it was totally awesome.





There was this old man there that kept coming over and giving me tips. He ended up increasing my strike percentage. Somehow my husband managed to take one of the most unflattering pictures of me EVER and because of that there isn't any to be posted today of me while bowling :(


I have an unhealthy obsession with bowling shoes I have always wanted a pair and have yet to actually buy some don't know why but I think this year is the year that it happens.

 
So after bowling with a new friend for about two hours we decided to come home change and head to the gym. Just a quick run in then home and finished up Kinect adventures for the Xbox. Lots of activity today.


Waiting for a nice relaxing weekend. Baby shower for my cousin and his wife tomorrow and then Ry-guy is leaving Sunday morning for a two week stent in Georgia for some Army schooling.

I am planning on starting the 30DS on Sunday and keeping up my running routine since my 5K is in 16 days. Hopefully my hubby sees a little difference once he returns. 

Till later have a lovely weekend all.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012




So I recently started running. I have jogged on and off for years but was never that good at it. I wanted so badly to join the ARMY right out of high school but do to a pretty severe knee injury that was just not possible for me. My husband though is a Captain in the Army National Guard and he runs a lot. So with his encouragement I have started running, I guess at my speed it would be considered jogging but at least it's a start.

I have come to see very quickly how absolutely addictive this running thing can be. I went last night with Rye-guy and when I woke up today I was ready to go again. As a form of true motivation I signed myself and the hubby up for a 5K in March. Now he can't go due to some military things and I will be running alone. Well let me tell ya that put a spark under my ass.




After running for a bit now I decided to go and get a "real" pair of running shoes that were fitted for me. I love my new shoes. I love being an utterly sweaty red-faced mess after my runs. Even though I am hurting during them it's not my knee its simply a lack of running in my past.




I did manage to do something that was for me at least spectacular the other night. I ran the equivalent of a 5K while Rye-guy was lifting weights. I seriously almost started crying right there in the middle of the gym. I know it doesn't seem like a big deal to other more experienced runners but for me it showed that if I work hard enough I will accomplish whatever goal I set for myself.


 


So our goal as a couple is to be able to run a half-marathon together next year. I don't see this being a problem in the slightest and am very excited about it.


I tried to convince him to do the Tinkerbell run with me and was given the NO WAY IN HELL look...LOL. I figured that one wouldn't go but maybe that is another goal for me to do on my own.




Off to do some work around the house then dinner and a late gym date with Rye-guy :)