Menu planning and Goal updates

Well, I wasn't going to follow Corinne's menu next week, but guess what? I looked at it and am psyched. Wasn't crazy about the chicken again (it was in 2 meals last week and 1 this week and what with egg whites I've started to grow feathers), but she said I could substitute white fish or sirloin for variety if I wanted to. So now I really need to decide when I want to sub what and that means...this won't impact my eating with the family for suppers. They can eat what I eat and everyone is happy.

Well, we're on the third week with asparagus on the menu. I'm enjoying it, too. So is the 9yo. She told me it was the best part of my menu - but she's also putting away her share of chicken breast, too.

I'd say the only thing I'm missing is my soy drinks, so I'm going to work it in. I guess, with subbing stuff, I can kind of still make this menu my own quite easily. I'll stick to the 'as written' version for during the day and just switch up suppers for variety.

My goals are going well. I don’t have my notes with me today, so I’m going by memory here.

28 Inches: I am doing good with my food lately, as you can see from above. I’m really focused and am trying to get energized for ST. This week I am only focusing on my ST sessions, and I’m only concentrating on getting 2 in. Any cardio I do is bonus for this week and next – I am just enjoying life right now, but do want to begin incorporating more cardio in. It’s such a great time of year for it. I am inspired by the ‘Hood’ routine – check out PnP today for a blog post by Becca via Corinne on the subject of incorporating cardio and plyo into your daily walks. Corinne also did a video for this on YouTube.

Debt-Down: I was doing a bit of research for opening debt balances and finally broke down and called the student loan centres. I had guessed around $2K on the federal portion and $500 on the provincial portion. Well, the provincial in now paid off and the federal is just over $600. I felt like I won the lottery. I’ve decided to pay off the federal portion with the tax refund since it has the biggest impact on cash-flow, even though it is the lowest interest and the only interest I pay that is tax deductible. Cost vs. benefit – I’d rather re-direct that monthly payment elsewhere.

Positivity: 1) Find them right; 2) Thank them; 3) Ask them to do something easy. I have really been focused on thanking people lately. It is getting easier. Oh, BTW, thanks for reading meJ

Family time: This involves 1) weekly 1-on-1 time between each member of the family, 2) inexpensive or free family outings each week, 3) monthly family dates. We’ve been doing good on this one. Mark and I need to find time for more 1-on-1, but hey, we’re trying.

Learn to swim: I have done absolutely nothing with this. I mean, I learned to swim in the ocean growing up, but I’ve always wanted to learn proper technique. The 9yo taught me some stuff last summer, so I’m looking forward to learning more this year.

Have a great weekend ya'll

Goals Update and Menu

Sorry I can't be more exciting today. But - actually - I am excited about some of the progress on my goals.

Goal #1: This one is hard because it's not measurable, really. I always feel like I've missed the opportunity to thank someone - like last night. A girl taught me how to do a 3-step turn that I was having problems with and I didn't explicitly thank her. Missed opportunity - but at least I am recognizing it and that's progress. On the plus side, I have been thanking the girls at work for all they do and my family for being so great.

Goal #2: Operation Debt Down. I did NOT contribute to my emergency fund this week. But, I did not touch it either. It currently sits at a little under $300. If I am threatened to have my power or phone cut off I can at least pay on the accounts and still be safe. Other than that I paid OFF my first credit card - the HBC. Now, I fully expect the next statement to have residual interest that will need to be addressed, and when I get that statement I will be able to make that payment quite easily. Yesterday I cut up the card and cancelled it today. Woot!!! 1 down, 4 to go.
I was worried about the 3-mortgage month, but neglected to note that Mark gets paid the day before the mortgage is due. I tend to have a reserve for these months, but I had spent it. Anyway, all is good.
So, since I get paid semi-monthly and Mark gets paid bi-weekly, I am going to have to ear-mark his cheques for gas and groceries because it's easier.

Goal #3: 28 inches. Hmmm, you already know that I've gained weight and haven't been exercising, so I guess I'm sucking the big one on this. BUT, I have decided to focus on what I have been doing (see the transition in Positivity: Goal #1 here - finding MYSELF right).
Monday: I went for a great walk with the family on Monday night. I don't want to count this kind of thing as exercise, because this is WHY I exercise - so I can keep up. Mark felt we went too far, Ci biked and had a great time, J went in her jogger and laughed a lot. I pushed the jogger for over half and really hoofed 'er. I walked the dog the rest of the way and really hoofed 'er. 40 minutes of good cardio walking trying to keep up with the bike.
Tuesday: I worked late Tuesday night and missed my scheduled ST, but did volunteer to take the deposit to the bank. It's not far, but I did walk it, then side-tracked to Tim's for a coffee. I think it was 20-30 minutes out. Not what I planned - but it was something.
Wednesday: When hubby went to shower I could have settled in with the kids, tidied up, whatever. NO, NO, that's not what I did. Instead I got them ready and leashed the dog. We walked down the road and up a dirt road in the area so the LO could trike - it's really too small for her, but we'll work on that in a couple of weeks. Anyway, I ended up carrying the trike while walking 'pully dog' most of the time. The walk was slow, but it's the stuff life is made of.
Thursday: I got ready for dance class last night and poor Baloo got SO excited. I felt badly for her. I can't say it was kick-ass cardio, but it was a great, light workout. The stretch was much-needed. 45 minutes of dance and 45 minutes of yoga. Sadly, the season is almost over.

So, in conjunction with my 28 inch goal I also need to reign in my eating. So, I will post my nenu for today to be accountable to that (did you like that segway?).

Early morning: some water - did you know that drinking some water .5-1 hour before breakfast actually kick-starts you metabolism. Mark usually brings me coffee, so I've requested water instead. I drink it in bed while he's getting ready then hunker back down for a while.
Breakfast: Super-smoothie with coffee. Sometimes I add my 1C coffee directly to my smoothie so I don't have to use a point for the whole milk I add. It's kind of a gimped up latte and I usually drink it in 5 seconds. It's great for Mondays and Fridays. I do 5 points. 1C lf soy drink, .5 banana, .5 scoop pp (I used Lead Dessert Banana Cream today), .25C prepared oatmeal, 1C brewed coffee.
Drive in: Tim's coffee (large, half milk, half cream, splenda) 1 point
Snack: Orange and coffee with whole milk 2 points
Lunch: Sheppard's pie (points estimated by comparison to PC product) 6 points
Snack: less than 2C carrots, 12 whole almonds 3 points
Supper: Tim's coffee, 12 almonds 3 points
Before bed: 1C lf soy drink 2 points

Total for day: 22 pts

Sounds like an exciting day so far. In my cooler I have almonds, peanut butter, can of tuna and can of black bean soup. I'll need to work the details out for the rest of the day. The pb and canned stuff are just staples I keep at work, but I don't go home for supper on Friday nights, so will eat before I leave work and bring a snack (likely some almonds) for through the evening. Fridays are left-over days - lots of fun. The plan is 24 pts today.

Oh - Have a great weekend. It's a long one for me - technically. Hubby missed out on OT as the union guys took all the spots (can't blame them at triple time), so I may go in for a day or so. For those who celebrate, Happy Victoria Day. Have a great weekend.

You can catch more flies with Sugar

Well, I am wanting to report on my positivity goal today. I am SOOOO excited that we finally got up the casing on the bathroom door. Hubby has vowed never to do another 45% angle, but I do like them so much more than the blocks. Next step - frame in the bathtub. There's a warp in the wall that is giving him some problems, so he's been dealing with it by not dealing with it. Long weekend coming up - we'll see.

Left to do in the bathroom:

- Frame in tub
- Decide on cabinets and mirror above sink
- Hang said cabinet and/or mirror
- touch-up paint
I am actually thinking something like this for functionality. Easy to clean, cabinet is recessed, and no handles. I also have a wooden mirror that won't fit there. We were thinking about putting it above the toilet, but I may just leave it in storage until another day.

Getting this far is no small feat. It was labour day 2006 that I took the kids out of town for the weekend so hubby could tear out our old bathroom. We feared major mold issues, but it turned out to be surface, mostly. He put in a new 3-piece tub, new toilet and new pedastal sink. Word to anyone considering pedastal sinks - save it for the half-bath. You lose your counter, under-counter storage. I now have toys, magazines, bottles, etc everywhere else but in the drawers and cupboards that they used to be stored. He doesn't seem to mind that it has taken almost 2 years to get to this point - and in fact it may very well take the rest of the summer to motivate him to finish this. He's definately not a full force ahead until complete kind of guy. The plumbing is done and the floor is laid - I think he would have quit there.

Speaking of positivity, the girls both complimented on Sunday night supper so much so that hubby decided to try for a similar effect last night. Sunday we went to mil's and I made pork loin, boiled potatoes, boiled carrots and spinach. Last night he was motivated to try to please them in similar fashion with some chicken breasts. They liked it, but I have a feeling Sunday may have had more to do with the fact that we were at Nanny's. Anyway, a compliment goes a long way, and that's important stuff.

Anyway, I am so excited and really want to buy a new, vinyl bathroom door as well, but I'll wait until the other stuff is done first.

Goal Updates

It's been a crazy week I tells ya. The 4yo broke a fever again Sunday night, so I've been with her the past 2 days. Daddy took off work today to stay with her as Mommy needs to get caught up at work. But first:

The 9yo was in a dance festival last weekend. Her group took gold for their jazz routine and silver for their hip/hop routine. GO Sissy! This week she is at a Music festival with her school. I've never actually been able to see her at the music festivals, but will get to see them sing at their school soon. She's packing for the trips with brownies, pro bars, almonds and water. Not able to eat on the trip the say - ha! She hides the foods in her jacket citing that she just can't go that long without eating. And I agree. I couldn't either.

J is going on day 3 with this fever. I just called Mark to make sure her contacts the doctors office today. Hopefully he's there now. She's starting to get lethargic and has had very little to eat since Sunday mid-day.

GOAL#1: Project Manipulation.
Updates on this: I have really been focusing on asking the family to do simple tasks and making sure I thank them. I must admit though, that I've gotten grumbly a few times and let them know that the requests did not have optional answers. Gotta focus on NOT doing that. However, they have helped a few times with getting ready for dinner and putting some things away. The 9yo drew up a schedule for brushing the dog. Mark put my bench together. I've been focusing on being grateful to them. It's a work-in-progress.

GOAL#2: Operation Debt-Down.
GROCERY BUDGET: This is always a trouble spot for us with several small trips at $20-40 per trip plus the weekly trips. I managed to stick to my grocery budget. We did a really good menu plan last weekend involving treats, awesome suppers, etc. I'm testing the waters of batch cooking. I made lasagna Sunday night (serves 8) so there were left-overs - with a salad. A large chicken cooked in the crock Monday had enough meat for a couple sandwiches, lunches, and soup. Ground chicken was on sale so I bought that and did up a large batch which later was divided in 2. I mixed half in a small casserole dish as the base for sheppherds pie and the other was drained and returned to the pot and I added most of what I need for chili. When we want chili it's just add the beans and adjust the spices. Honestly, I think the only thing I'm running out of is milk for coffee. I even cautioned the 9yo that I made/bought her 12 snacks and when they're gone, that's it until Saturday. She's been a little more careful about eating them all up and is saving them for school snacks when she needs them, rather than wants them - hoping this kills 2 birds with 1 stone.

BUDGET PLAN: I drew up a base budget with all my monthly payments and monthly income. I called most of the credit card companies to get balances, due dates and minimum payments due and documented everything and made sure they were up-to-date. This is still in its infancy and I will need to work on this for a while. For now the student loans are just fixed monthly payments even though the balances are quite low. I think they're paid off next winter but don't want to check on that just yet.

EMERGENCY FUND: This is where I'm starting to waver. I put my money in the emergency fund last week, but realize that there is enough there to eliminate the HBC card (28%). Also, I have $1,000 room on the Visa if I need it. I guess the idea is that, as long as I have access to my emergency fund, does it matter if it's cash saved? Or am I running with the mindset that got me here in the first place?

GOAL#3: 28 inches.
Ab routine: I have not focused on that this week.
Strength training: I am thinking about dropping out of the Fast and Furious challenge at PnP for now and focusing on doing 2 ST/week plus 2-3 cardio session/week. I think that, right now, expecting myself to do more leaves me feeling guilty for not doing it. I may mean that the results won't come as quickly - or maybe it'll mean that I will actually stick with my routine and get there more quickly.
Menu planning and journaling: As mentioned in the budget message this is going very well. I know they grumble when I want to sit for a half hour and document meals for the week with their input, but this is such an important part. I need to know that I can stick to budgets and provide healthy, well-rounded meals that everyone will EAT. So, with the roasted chicken we also needed to provide canned gravy for the 9yo for dipping. Important information. I haven't been doing as well journaling - or measuring. Call it an emotional break. Will re-focus after weigh-in tonight.

Project "Manipulation"

I have a few goals and one of them is to be able to motivate and direct others by positive influence. This article on How to Train People to Give you What You Want speaks to me. This kind of thing comes naturally to some, but to me it is often not my first (or even second) reaction. My friend has dubbed this goal as "Project Manipulation" and believes that I could have my husband eating out of my hands. Now, this isn't exactly the motivation for me, and of course, I have shared all of this with my husband so he is not an unwilling participant. In fact, I think the quantifiable goal would be to eliminate arguments at home and minutes/hours spent frustrated due to incomplete tasks.

To ellaborate on why I want to do all of this, let me first reiterate that I am, likely, a stereotypical accountant. Not really good with people and more comfortable doing things on my own. When I 'ask' for something from a co-worker, it often comes across as an order. In short, I need to work on my soft skills. So, I ask for something to be done and, once done, I will say "OK, thanks." Now, for myself, I know that if I got that response I would think that whatever I did wasn't so important and may not give it priority the next time I'm asked. Umm, yeah, my co-workers feel the same way. Try this, "Thank you so much for getting that done so quickly. Your efficiency really helps with my getting reports to management on time."

Next, I go home and my counter is clean. I think, "It should be like this all the time." and don't say anything. The next night it is teaming with dirty dishes and crumbs. I grumble and complain. My husband disappears and I miss out on his company which makes me grumble again and complain about him 'hiding' all the time. So, what would happen if I thanked him for cleaning, gave him a hug and told him how nice it was. Flip side of same coin, but how motivated would he be to take the few minutes needed to tidy the counter every day?

So, I am making this my MONDAY report. The thinning out of negativity. Right now I am simply concentrating on being thankful to others - Finding them right - and I will keep you informed on how this affects my daily life and, hopefully bring news on tasks that are getting completed (by others) without my getting upset.