And Then Life throws you a Curve

Hey, so life is actually looking up this week. I have a short post then it's off to the races - or at least the shower. You know they say the only day that is important is today. Yesterday is gone and tomorrow will never come. So, on Tuesday (vs. tomorrow) I am going to re-join the gym. Fact is, I'm far too busy today. It's already 10:30 and I've had a busy morning. Got the kids off to school and set up the dishwasher and threw a load of laundry on. Then I got on the 'ole internet to apply for a job I've been eyeing for a couple of days now. I played with my resume and shot that puppy into virtual, give me a call sometime land. Then I chatted with the boss-lady at Weight Watchers about picking up some daytime meetings over the next little while. Turns out, lots of the ladies (and gentlemen) are taking vacay over the next few weeks, so subbing for them will keep me busy.

So you're asking 'what are you talking about? donchu work full time?'. Well, I've alluded to career changes in the past and it looks like it's happening. I took a semi-generous severence package - look, I'm in no way complaining since some people just get shown the door, but others are more generous - and am taking some time to pull things together.

The rest of today involves a shower, walking the dog, getting supper together and prepping for tonights WW meeting. If time allows I'll be doing the grocery list - if not I'll do it first thing tomorrow.

What else is cool about this? Next week is March Break and, since hubby is evenings, I can still do some daytime WW meetings, but also plan some great quality March Break time with the kids - something I've only been able to do one day in the previous 5 years. How awesome is that? I'll have to research where the 'free' times are - you know, like $2 movie day and free admission skating and free admission swimming and such. Oh, and the Wildlife park craft mornings with admission to the park - craft, a walk and wildlife sounds fun to me.

Tomorrow morning...I mean Tuesday morning...I will join the gym. Cranky, I better do something. My pants are getting snug and I r.e.f.u.s.e to buy a larger size.

Frency's vs. Bib & Tucker

So when the 10 year old 'needs' new pants or tops, where do I head? Frenchy's! She's a sweat-pant kid and likes her tops long. Women's Small tops that are a tad too short in the arm for me fit her perfectly. These are the filler items we all need in our wardrobe.

What to do when she wants 1 'good' outfit to feel pretty in though? Good luck finding that at Frenchy's (although you may luck out on occassion, without child in tow you're pushing your luck). I have scoured the Wal-Mart's, Zellers, Sears, Winners and any other store I've been in looking for a suitable outfit. Last night I decided, 'frig it'. I've likely saved hundreds on the kid shopping Frenchy's for so many of her clothes that it was time to bite the bullet. I headed to Bib & Tucker and walked out with a 'dress' or 'long shirt' depending on whether she matches it with the pants or leggings - the outfit I chose was not near in the price-line of some of these items, but for someone who isn't used to spending more than $50 at a time on the kids, the almost $150 receipt threw me a bit. To tell the truth, the pants look awesome with the dress and give it a funky look. I got a squeal, jump and hand clap after she paired these up - and that made the price tag worth it, even though hubby chastised slightly. Christmas Eve outfit down. The 5 year-old's was ordered from Sears at a much smaller cost. And mine - came from Frenchy's.

And now she wants nice shoes to go with it. I should have known - if you give a moose a muffin, they'll want raspberry jam to go with it.

MWAH - Have a great Christmas.

Oh, My Nerves

With regards to doing the WW meetings, last week I only did the intro. I introduced myself and gave out the celebration stickers then turned the meeting over to my mentor.

This week she stayed in the reception area. I called her up on one question, but other than that she let me do the meeting. A couple of points to note:

1. I have to learn to engage the group more. They aren't so eager to respond to questions.
2. I need to have a sense of humour and joke with them more. It doesn't matter if they like me - it's me liking them that is important.
3. We have a lot of new members, but that doesn't mean they're new to WW or dieting. They have history, so feed on that.
4. I really need to learn who the talkers are. That will help in the coming weeks.

I prepared a 2-page presentation. It did take me the whole 30 minutes, but I'd like to get it down to a page or two of points. I'll get the flow down in a couple of weeks.

My mentor is there again next week and then I am solo. Meanwhile, I've been asked to cover for MY leader tonight. In front of MY meeting members. Am I up for it? I think so. I have a couple of things in my favour. First, I've already given this meeting once and second, I know who the talkers are.

Tomorrow night I am meeting with my 'life coach' partner. We're not really life coaches, but she keeps me focused and helps me with my goals. Then it's off to Dance class. It's been a busy week.

PS, I ordered a new suite and a dress. The dress is going back. I also bought 3 'new' dresses at a 2nd hand shop last week; although at least 1 will have to be packed in the next couple of weeks with my other summer stuff. I LOVE retail therapy:)

Quick Hi

Well, I've left the blog in darkness for a few weeks now. Sorry for the ansence, but I've been having fun.

Update on the dirt: not sure if someone kicked up a stink or offered to pay, but our supply ran out. We would have like a few more loads, but as I said before - I'm anxious to just finish the back yard, so this will have to do.

We've been on vacation. It was great. Unfortunately, Mark could not come with us as he had to work, but I got to spend lots of time with my Mom and the girls. We headed up to Mom's place on the first Monday and kicked back there. I hit an awesome sale at Marks Work Wearhouse and bought a couple of tops, 2 work capris, 1 jean capri and a pair of kahki's (sp?). Then I picked up my first ever Croc's on sale for half of what I normally see them for. We also spent time at the YMCA pool for twoonie swim a couple of times and at a local playground:)

Then it was off to Prince Edward Island. Woohoo!! I haven't been there in years. Unfortunately, Woodly Replicas, one of my favourite places, shut down this year. We stayed in a cabin on the North end of the island. I took my eldest for a trail ride and returned the next morning to left the little one enjoy a pony ride. They had cedar boats at the site and I took the girls out for a trip around the little lake, plus, for the first time ever, I started a fire. The other cabins were chopping up the wood into timber to get 'r going, but I guess I learned a thing or two from my Dad growing up.

We visited Green Gables and walked the Haunted Woods and visited the site where the old school used to be. We also went to Santa's Wood, a perfect entertainment grounds for the girls. Cavendish was so beautiful - I wish I could post a picture of the dunes, but my battery died just then. No plays, not too many touristy things, but lots of fun.

I tried to take the girls to Magnetic Hill and Magic Mtn, a water park, after returning to the mainland, but mother nature would not comply. We went shopping for school clothes instead. Then it cleared enough that I took them on Magnetic Hill (the 10 year old has dubbed this Optical Illusion Hill, lol).

Finally, the renters were gone from the cottage and we settled in. We were over at Heather's Beach every day. I love it there and it's life-guarded, plus the beach at the cottage is rocky and mucky - although beautiful to look at. I did so many Sudoku's I was dreaming in 9's. I totally relaxed. We thouroughly enjoyed Mom - she came to PEI with us and spent the week at the cottage, heading home on Friday as Mark was on his way up. I didn't get home until 8pm Sunday night, although I had planned to be home earlier to prepare for the work-week. Oh well. Then last night I worked at WW meeting as the weigher-inner. It'll be good to actually clear out the fridge and re-stock tonight.

Oh, I did hop on the scale for an unofficial weigh last night. I even left my shoes on because I knew it wasn't good. Well, I didn't reach the 2lbs over my goal, and that's all I'll say about that, except that I totally ate what I wanted and how much I wanted for 2 weeks. Funny, Mom thought what I ate was quite healthy, so I guess I've still come a long way. Water should shed a few lbs by Wednesday's official weigh-in.

Take care and have a great week.

Ditchin' The Clothes

I think I'm going to have to start working out in the mornings. The thought of waking up early certainly does not appeal to me, but with summer such as it is I may not have a choice soon.

I started my lower body workout on the deck last night, with alternating lunges, dumbell squats and bunny hops. Then I made my way down to the basement. It's nice and cool down there. I proceeded with the next superset and, before too long, I decided I didn't reeeeaaally need a t-shirt on. In my last superset I also ditched the shorts 'cause they were sticking to me. My dd laughed and told me that she couldn't believe how sweaty I was. I guess I never really appreciated how much those clothes absorbed. On a related side-note, I also need to vacuum that area before lying down on the carpet again. And another nice thing - I was half way getting ready to jump in the shower afterwards.

So - before all that, I went to meeting last night. I did weigh in - up 1.8lbs. I'm figuring it could be just about anything and am not getting upset. 144.4 is still well within my comfort zone for now. I've been picking up the pace with this new schedule, but not focusing on cardio. I've also been slightly off with my eating for weight loss, and I jogged 15-20 minutes to the meeting. Any or all of that was likely a supporting factor. I am back on an eating plan - by that I mean I actually have my daily eats written out and will stick to that until Sunday when I switch it up. Subbing my protein pancake this afternoon for a grapefruit and 2pts of almonds though, since I ran out of time this morning. So, I expect to be smoothed out a bit again next week.

Take care and have a great Thursday - today is a great day to plan your menu for the weekend so you can make sure you've got the food you need in the house. I call it simple logic - you write what you are going to eat and then just eat it. It works for me.

Weekend Fun

I guess I had lots of weekend fun. Some highlights:

Used clothing: I took the 9yo to Frenchy's and she picked up some tops. I also needed summer clothes - some for work, but I haven't boughten much for kickin' back either. I picked up 3 pairs of shorts, 1 pair of capris, a dress and several tops.

ALSO, I bought a 2-piece bathing suite on Friday night. I'll try to post the suite pictures this week sometime.

Meat: I went shopping at the wholesalers on Friday night and picked up a chunk of pork and a huge chunk of beef tip. I spent some time with the pork on Saturday morning and ended up with 3 pork loin and some other cuts. The beef took me around 1 hour on Sunday and I ended up with 2 roast, some nice steak cuts and a bunch of fast-fry cuts, some beef tips for stir-fry and some stew meat. I decided if I'm going to do this again, I need a better knife. I figure I saved around $15-20 - not great when you're considering the time factor, but it's a learning curve. Also, I decided I'll need a glass cutting board instead of the hunk of wood I use.

Friends: Had friends over Saturday night for a few drinks and chatting. The kids had some fun. Sunday, next door the 4 or 5 yo twins were visiting their aunt. They're always good for some fun - my girls are crazy about them and love it when they visit. Later in the afternoon we went visiting ourselves for a BBQ and swimming. I didn't go swimming, but the kids were in - well, the LO sat on the edge and managed to set down the ladder until under her arms before coming back up - repeatedly. Good times.

Cuddles: Got some great cuddles in last night as we snuggled down and watched Water Horse. Good movie - the 4yo took off near the end and brought back a kleenex box for the tears (hers and others).

Well, it's getting late. Gotta throw on some 'new' clothes and get to work. Have a great day.

Roller Blading my worries away

The 9yo wanted to head out and do SOMEthing last night, so off we went. In all fairness, I planned to go roller blading with her last night anyway, but hadn't mentioned it. 2.5km with the mild to moderate inclines. This is the third time I've done this route. It's a pretty good one since the hubby can take the 4yo in the car to the playground and we meet him there. It's definately a nice change from walking and left me feeling invigorated. I could have kept going.

Black flies are making a seasonal come-back and MY time in the playground was cut short. On the grocery list this weekend: bug spray and sun screen. Also, the 9yo and I are heading to Frenchy's on Saturday for some much needed summer clothes shopping. She's grown and I've shrunk - neither of us has much that fits well enough, and it's important to look good while you're stumbling over gravel crossing driveways while rolling down the sidewalk.

Cheers, ya'll

A New week

Yikes! It's been almost a week since I've posted. What's been going on in the life of Candace?

I got in 2 workouts the last part of last week and it felt good. I missed the rest of the weekend and this is why:

Mom got into town on Saturday morning and we went o-u-t. Normally I enjoy my quiet weekends at home and really need the time to refresh from the week. However, we picked up my wonderful nephew and his girlfriend and just hung out for the day. What can I say about Kyle? He's awesome! Plain and simply, I fell in love with him from the moment I laid eyes on him when he was 10 days old and am in love still. I moved away when he was just turning 3 and cried more nights for him and his sister because I missed them terribly. I'd get letters and pictures from him and cry so hard because he was so far away. Anyway, he's all growed up now and an amazing young man in 1st year university. His girlfriend is very sweet and I feel as though I've known her for a long time. It was a great day. After writing this paragraph I realize that I am NOT going to fare well when my girls leave home.

When we got home there was company in the yard. I was truly exhausted and spent Sunday recovering. Monday Mark started a new job and I had to get up and get the girls ready. By Monday evening I was exhausted. I think I'm finally in the game today.

Oh, I went pants shopping at Suzy Shier's on Saturday (before we picked up my nephew) and picked up 2 pair of pants in size 9/10. They fit snug, but not tight and I feel pretty damn good about that.

This is measurement week. I'm waiting until TOM leaves before dragging out the tape. Also, tonight is WI night. I've been mainly maintaining, so am not expecting anything this week. This is week 4 of maintenance. 2 weeks to go, but I won't be able to stay that night as Mark has to be somewhere.

GOALS:

• I'm going to work on abs this month with the PnP gals. I'd like to lose another 1-2 inches in the waist for the end of June.
• I need to take current pics and think I'll post with the Jan comparisons.
• Switch up the 12 lb weights for 15's
• BFI: last week it was 24.4. My current goal is to move to 24 or less
• Focus on food and break the 148 (small steps now). Get to 145 by end of June.

I'm so glad the weather is finally warming up.

Weight Loss and Other Cool Stuff

I made it to weigh-in last night. I'm now 1.8lbs from goal. That's down 2.6 from the last weigh-in 3 weeks ago. Woohoo. So, I have 3 weeks to make 150 - that was the date I set for myself that I was going to just take the number on the scale. Of course, I'll likely wear shorts and a tank top that night even if it's freezing out if I'm not there yet.


Another cool thing is I realized I've been 'tucking' lately, as in my shirts. Not every day, but as in today I'm wearing a jean skirt and a top I had given up for dead long ago - it's form fitting and tucked, baby.


I took a picture of me and my running pardner, Baloo, the other night. Will post once I find the connector cord to the PC (yeah, I thought it would still be plugged into the PC too...)


Oh, and today is a great day for planning your weekend. Do you have any challenges or events scheduled? How are you going to deal with them. I have my menu planned and we'll be scheduling dinners for next week tonight or tomorrow night so I can build my shopping list for the weekend. Tonight is Dance/Yoga class - I'm going to try it out with the sneakers I'm trying out this week.


And, anyone drink protein powder? Have you tried BSN Lean Desert? It's incredible. My favourite is the Banana Nut. This stuff is incredibly delicious. If interested, I also recommend purchasing from bodybuilding.com - they're top notch.


Take care ya'll and have a fabulous Thursday.

Weigh-In - 0.2 down

Well, I really expected to have a small gain this week, but the scale said I lost 0.2lbs and am now 158

I guess this means I should officially drop my points. I like to wait a few weeks into the new #s before doing this - and, I guess by trying to confine my FPs to 25 for the week I am, to some extent. So, it's official - my new daily points are 21.

On a side, my Christmas Challenge pants - the black ones I never posted a pic of - were definate muffin top at the start of the challenge and have been fitting quite nicely for a while now. In fact, they have recently started to slip (just a bit) in the hips. My Silver 33's are definately getting too big - even hubby commented. So, all is good in the land of wuz.

I keep asking people how they're doing on their Christmas shopping and am getting a lot of 90% done's. Anyone else have 100% to go?

Vanity and Chocolate

Vanity sizing to be more specific. How does it feel to be wearing a size 10? Hmmm, good, but…Clothes sizing means very little anymore. Last night I tried on a size 12 slacks and they fit. I’m still wearing some 14s. And get this – I’m also wearing size 10. It’s the 10s I take issue with – sort of. They are actually my favourite pants. Maybe because they are ‘new’ styles and look cool. But a 10? I have a pair of 11 jeans at home that I used to wear when Ci was a baby. These were snug, and yes, I can button them. But, can you say major re-distribution of wealth. I swear my muffin sticks out a full 3-4inches and I feel like something is going to rupture (this is NOT an exaggeration). What I do know is that these 11’s are from 8-9 years ago – back when an 11 was an 11, not something else. So, I know I cannot possibly be a size 10 now.

So, like I said, I tried on some size 12 slacks and 2 size 10 skirts. I didn’t buy the slacks – the purpose of trying them on was to confirm that I am a comfortable size 12 because slacks tend to still have proper sizing. One of the skirts I couldn’t get done up, but at least it came up to the point I could try (Yay). The other fit like a glove. I’m also wearing other size 10 hand-me-on pants thanks to Heidi.

I guess what all of this really means is that maybe I should get rid of all of those size 14s. And, sizing really doesn’t mean as much as it once did. But we keep on trecking, which brings me to Chocolate…

How did you do this week? I ate a small fraction of what I ate last year, but did give in to maybe a dozen or so chocolates (give or, well, not give a dozen), a few suckers and hard candies, and a couple of bags of chippies. The chips were when I was at mil’s on the weekend and they were the store brand plain kind. I haven’t had chips in a while and it was nice to indulge with small quantity. So, way more crap than should be consumed by a weight watcher in 1 week, but way, way less than I would have consumed otherwise. I really deserve a gain this week and I really need to get back on track with journaling. This weeks journal remains empty – sad, huh. So, if the 150’s were short-lived I have no one to blame but myself. On the plus side, even the 9yo admitted to feeling sluggish a couple of days ago and has scaled back her consumption all on her own – I’m proud of her. I’m thinking it’s time to confiscate all candy, review the contents and store chips in the basement (hubby said he’d start taking some to work), candy in a high cupboard to be dolled out an item or two per night until the Christmas advent calendar hits the house and we toss the left-overs. I’m seriously thinking about the Polly Pocket advent calendar this year for the LO (a piece of clothing per day), but not sure what to do for my big girl just yet.

In-Between Clothes

Last year in August, I bought 2 suites from The Bay, a black one and a brown one. They were quite pricey (I'm a cheapo at heart), but I wanted something nice as I was in "I need a different job." mode. In fact, I did switch jobs late October and am quite happy now.

Anyway, it's funny I think, because I hate to get rid of these suites. I paid a lot of money for them - they're Nygard and, although I'm not a 'name' person, anyone who's worn Nygard (or Lizwear, etc) knows the quality and feel are totally worth it. It's so nice to have a few articles of clothing that fit like that. I compliment with stuff from used clothing stores, Sears Outlet, and Wal-Mart. Today, I have the black slacks on hiked up with a belt and I actually sent the brown suite to the cleaners without even knowing if it still fits.

Yet, because I am a cheapo, I hate to spend money on new suites when I still want to drop 2 dress sizes by Christmas - well, 14s are starting to get loosy and the 12s I have are still tighty. Grrr. I think what I REALLY need to do is go buy a bunch of nylons and start wearing more skirts/dresses (that'll make hubby happy at least). Once they sit too far below the waist they have to go. Skirts tend to be more 'forgiving' than slacks when they get too big.

On the plus side, I'm back in C nylons after several years as a D. I remember when Mark and I were 'courting' (so corny, but then 'dating' doesn't really seem to fit, either) he used to buy me Bs sometimes when I would send him, and I would chastise him, saying C - you know - C, for Candace. Ahh, happy days!

I did make my way to a used clothing store, but in the end, I'm just not ecstatic with the stuff I got. It really is, "It'll do", at least in the pants department. Tops I'm very happy with. I bought 1 pair of brown casual pants and 1 pair of jeans. The jeans are gonna go now, though. After wearing them a few times I'm just not happy. I am tall and long-waisted and am not carrying a lot of weight around in my lower glutes and thighs (some, just not a huge amount). Whoever had these jeans before me did carry a lot of weight there, even if their waist was the same size as me. The effect, baggy ass pants - need I say more. Tummy looks great, butt - not so.

Still not sure what to do. Guess I'll go get my hair dyed, since I've decided to grow it out again. See, this takes the focus away from the clothing dilema for a while. I always hate to look of longer hair with gray strings. I remember standing beside my then-sil as a teen and thinking, "Why doesn't she colour that. It looks aweful." She had long dark hair with not a lot of gray, but the gray that there was was just so...shiny. Unfortunately, I am the same.

I also saw some great undies in a magazine. They had lycra and a seam up the back-side which is supposed to look great and alleviate the 'uni-bum' when wearing pants. I think they were a gazillion dollars each. I bought cotton Ls at Sears Bargain Basement for 99cents each a few weeks ago. One pair has already torn after a trip through the washer and dryer. A gazillion dollars for 'lift' and 'form'. I'll really have to think about this.

I think my feet have shrunk. Did I really have fat on my feet? Anyway, my shoes just seem roomier lately. Great - something else to spend money on. I'll need $50+ gas funds to go to Mardens in Callais so I can buy shoes for next to nothing. Last time I was there I got 4 pairs of shoes for $12.50 plus tax USD. I figured that to be around $5/pair of shoes. So worth the trip. Issue being - my family members have all moved away from St Stephens now so I'd have to come back right away or spend a night which would increase my costs for shoes exponentially.

About the only think that still seems to 'work' is my bathing suite. I just can't figure that one out.

Cheers,