Three Day Weekends

Wahoo! I am so excited to have a three day weekend.. It's been a rough week, and from my earlier blog posts, an exhausting week. Thanks for everyone's input on their guesses on what could be the cause. I'm sure I don't have sleep apnea. I used to have it, but that has not been an issue. Iron deficiency and/or chronic fatigue is my guess for the culprit(s). I'm taking an iron supplement, and as far as the chronic fatigue syndrome goes, it's BS b/c you can't do anything about it. It pisses me off!

On another front, I have a confession to make. I have a stubborn intestinal ulcer that doesn't want to go away (since February), and I've had 2 gastroscopes to check it out. I was supposed to have an appointment two weeks ago which I rescheduled to today, which I again rescheduled to mid June. This appointment will schedule my next gastroscope. I want to wait a little longer for several reasons: 1) Money - it will cost me another $300+ for each scope that I have.. If I can delay this one a bit, maybe it will be the last one I need. 2) Fear Factor - If the pesky ulcer is still there, my doctor is going to speak to a surgeon to possibly have that part of my intestine removed. If that happens, I'd have to go on a liquid diet for 6-8 weeks while my intestine heals, and I will probably lose a grotesque amount of weight. That scares the crap out of me. Yeah, who would have thought that a once 315 pound girl would be scared to lose weight.. hell yeah, losing another 10 pounds would rock.. but more than that, and I may look freakish! I've already been told on a few occasions that I shouldn't try to lose anymore weight.. and that's not really my goal anymore. My goal is to become FIT and have stamina, and hopefully in turn I'll have some freakin energy!!! Anyway - that's my confession for the day.

As far as the weekend goes, Michelle is having a mini birthday party at a pub tonight, which will be tons of fun! Then Saturday, I am getting my hair cut and highlighted... and then John and I have a birthday party for his niece. His mom's birthday is next week too, so we'll probably celebrate that this weekend as well!

Also, my poor mom has computer issues right now, so hopefully John (who is in IT) can fix that this weekend before she goes crazy. She's a Facebook game freak, and is missing her games.. lol

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Thursday 13 - My Bucket List

Although I am quite confident that this list is much, much longer than only 13 items, this will be a good start. I've never really thought too much about the things I want to do or accomplish before I kick the bucket.. I've never seen the movie, although I want to!
Anyway - here we go!

1. Get married and have a family... The getting married part goes without saying, but I really want to experience motherhood, and all that comes with it!
   
2. Go ziplining - This looks like soooo much fun! It's exhilarating, yet I'd be connected to something.. I'm too much of a chickenshit to go skydiving! LOL
3. Go to Europe - I've ALWAYS wanted to go, but funds and time have always limited me.. I'd love to spend a good 6-8 weeks exploring each country!
4. Compete in a triathlon.
   
5. See the Northern Lights.
6. Go to Disney World (this will be achieved in July! WAHOO!)
7. Ride a Harley on a road trip (I don't care if I'm the passenger or the driver.. I just want to do it!)
8. Explore the Hawaiian Islands... I want to see molten lava, the beautiful ocean, and absorb the culture.
9. Learn how to dance... I have 2 left feet, and two extremely non-coordinated left feet at that!
10. Get my bachelor's degree - first I need to decide what I want to do when I "grow up."
11. Scuba Dive... I'm currently terrified of this, but I would definitely give it a shot!
12. Visit the Grand Canyon - I want to camp, ride the donkey down now that I won't break it, and enjoy the awe-inspiring scenery.
13. See the pyramids in Egypt.
    

Wow, this one was WAYYY too easy as well... I think I may have to turn this into a little project and add more to it! I can't wait to check some of this stuff off! :)

Any ideas for me for future Thursday 13's?

Join in the game yourself!
Thursday 13

Happy Thursday to you all! :)

Highly Irked!

I'm frustrated... I have had zero energy for the past few weeks. Just getting up and going to work and coming home takes it all out of me, and I'm at my wit's end! I have been told by my doctor that I have chronic fatigue syndrome.. I used to think that it was a fake syndrome for people who wanted to be lazy... Since I've lost my weight, I've become a believer. Before, I would just blame my obesity for my sloth-like tendencies... But now, with no changes in my food, no changes in my daily routine, I go through phases where I can sleep 6-8 hours and feel like I only got a wink of sleep. I am forcing myself through it, doing my day to day activities, but DAMN! I want to have energy and plow my way through being as fit as I can possibly be.

I just had to vent today..... Hopefully I can come back later and be a little more upbeat! :)

xoxo to you all!!!

100!

Wow, I have 100 followers! That's incredibly amazing to me that there are 100 people out there interested in what I have to say. :)

I hope you all had a great weekend!

Saturday night, we made some pho and it was delicious. We cheated a little, and used a broth mix from the Asian Market... otherwise, making the stock would have taken about 4 hours, and I was a hungry girl! Jil taught me how to make eggrolls, and they're incredibly easy!

For the Pho - The Cheater Way
Get some pho broth, pho ban noodles, mung bean sprouts, fresh cilantro, mushrooms, and superfine sliced beef... You will want some sri racha sauce for certain!!! Mmmm!
Boil the broth, cook the noodles per directions, and make a pretty little spread on the table...
The raw meat goes into the broth and cooks right before your eyes... DELISH!

The eggrolls were baked in the oven, and although Jil thinks they should be fried to taste better, I liked them baked and crispy! :) That was a package of cole slaw mix (sans dressing) and some chopped up chicken with a little bit of soy... wrap those babies up and cook!

Super easy, but pretty meal! And, quite healthy while you're at it!

The spring rolls above were made the cheater way too... purchased at the store! HA! They didn't have the wrappers, so we just got em pre-made. They were quite yummy!

Anyways, I wanted to let you all know that I appreciate you all taking moments out of your day to read my little old blog.. I really enjoy reading everyone's and it's great to feel so connected to so many people out there that I haven't even met!

xoxoxo

Friday, I'm In Love!

Oh, how I love Fridays.. It's the start of a brand new weekend, the start of a life outside of work!
Especially Fridays like these.... HALF DAY FRIDAY! I officially start my weekend in a wee 45 minutes...

What to do?!

Well, I'm going to start it off by a trip to the gym.. The gym and I have missed each other lately. Then, I'll head home to shower... or, be a good girlfriend and mow the yard, then shower! I need to update my iPod playlist b/c I"m getting really really sick of my Workout-a-go-go list! Any suggestions?

I have no clue what John and I are doing this weekend, and I'm looking forward to that! Is that sad?

What are your weekend plans? Part of me wants to be a tourist and just explore the city... I haven't done that in awhile... but, I'm trying to save money, and I have a knack for finding cute little boutiques and blowing my wad! LOL

Xoxoxo to you all... enjoy the lovely weekend!

Thursday 13 - Itching to Go Shopping!

I've had the shopping bug for awhile.. but, I've been behaving myself for the most part. I splurged on my cute skirt last week, but besides that I've been very, very boringly(is that a word?!) tame!

If I could go on a spree now, here's what tops my list (this is not one of those, "if I had a million dollars" things.. It's stuff I truly want to purchase soon, and am/will be saving for it.

1) New D-SLR Camera - I haven't decided on Nikon or Canon yet, but leaning towards Canon. It's a good $600-1200 depending on lenses, etc... So, obviously it will take me awhile!
Canon Digital Rebel XSi 12.2 MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens (Black)
2) A New Car Stereo - I commute roughly 2 hours a day, and I'd LOVE to be able to hook up my iPod to my stereo. I bought one of those FM transmitter things, and it was crap. Probably b/c I live in such a large city so there are tons of radio stations.
I like this one!
3) A Le Creuset French Oven - It's beautiful, lasts forever, and is very useful. I'm becoming a cooking queen, and would love to have some of the best tools of the trade!
Le Creuset Enameled Cast Iron 5 Quart Oval French Ovens
4) A Street Strider - Have you seen this awesome thing... I about died when I saw how much it was, but it is AWESOME.
5) A good set of knives... My santoku didn't even want to cut a tomato last night... I was sad!
Zwilling JA Henckels Four Star 9-Piece Knife Set with Block
6) A good pair of shoes for working out... I want one nice pair that I can use in classes and on machines, and maybe even venturing into that C25K stuff... Is there such a thing?
7) Dang.. we're getting a little too kitcheny here! Another thing I want is a salad shooter... I had one long ago, but I didn't get it when I was going through my divorce. I WANT IT BACK! I know that bastard never uses it. Anyway..... I would really like one again! LOL
Presto 02970 Professional SaladShooter Electric Slicer/Shredder, White
8) Some new clothes - nothing to link here.. but I'd like to get some more jeans, some cute tops, maybe some shorts if I can get over my "I HATE MY UGLY LEGS!" syndrome.. Yeah, I doubt I'll get over that.
9) A hammock - We have an awesome backyard... I'd love a hammock to lay out and read some books, cuddle with my guy, cuddle with my puppy, etc... It seems dreamy!
10) A new OVEN - We have a craptastic oven that nothing fits in, and it is off temperature, and basically a grown up EZ Bake Oven... blah! I would have slid this up the list, but I just thought about it... ha!
11) A hot tub... Like #9, I love our backyard.. it'd be nice to have a hot tub in the back yard... Very relaxing!!!
12) A Personal Trainer - Yeah, Jillian Michaels would be ideal, but I'm realistic here.. I would love to have 5-10 sessions with a personal trainer and see how I'm doing form-wise, and what I need to be doing that I'm not.
13) A Massage/Facial Membership - I used to have a monthly massage membership, but I gave it up for the greater good of getting out of debt. I had a massage last Friday and realized how much I freakin miss it! I'm starting to wonder if this is one of those things that I should hang on to just to feel human. Hmm...

Wow, this one was way too easy, and that's kind of pathetic! LOL I usually have to think a lot more when I do a Thursday 13!
If you'd like to join in the fun, here's the site! Thursday 13

Happy Thursday to you all! Maybe I should get a 2nd, 3rd and 4th job! HA!

Happy Hump Day

Yeah, so this post has nothing to do with Yoda or Mr. T, but isn't it so freakin cute? In a weird, weird sort of way? Yeah! I thought so too! :-)

Well, I had my healthy baking class last night. It was strange. The chef wasn't the normal one who teaches the classes, her business partner does... so, right there I knew I wouldn't learn a whole lot.
Here's what we made, and my review:

1. The best healthy ooey-gooey chocolate cake ever - It had potential, but was overcooked by the chef. So instead of being ooey-gooey, it was dry and dense.... But it looked pretty! I may try this again with some changes and see if it turns out better.
   

2. •Easy and delicious carrot cake with cream cheese frosting - This was absolutely delicious and didn't taste healthy. It had Greek yogurt and pineapple in it.. and of course carrots. The frosting could have been better, but I'm not a big frosting person to begin with.. I could see making this as a muffin for breakfast sans frosting.
   

3. •Miniature cherry covered cheesecakes - Again, not a fan. It was alright... but not something I will try to make again.
   

4. •Scrumptious Peach shortcake - This was alright... Basically a biscuit with peaches and whipped cream, so we learned how to make biscuits.. LOL She used bottled whipped cream, which I thought was odd for a baking class.

I learned a few things, but I think I would learn better from a book.. My issues with baking are measuring properly (when to pack the ingredients, when not to, etc.) and our items were pre-measured for us... and then judging when something is done, and the chef put our items in and removed our items from the convection oven.. Plus, I don't have a convection oven... the recipes were for a conventional oven thankfully... If I got another Groupon, I would probably try another class, but cooking, not baking. I wouldn't pay full price though.

I'll probably post that to Yelp too! HA!

Today we have a work lunch at Grand Lux Cafe... I am thinking that I'll get one of the lunch specials with salmon.. I love salmon, but hate making it at home because of the stench..

I only have to work until 4PM today, so I'm going to hit the gym on the way home... I am not sure if I'm going to do a group class, or visit the elliptical machine for some alone time.. I'm ready to sweat though.

Anyone know any plastic surgeons that want to donate their expertise to a girl who wants to get rid of her bat wings? Just thought I'd check! LOL

Have a lovely day... The week is halfway over... Wahoooooooooooooooooooooo!

xoxoxo

New Pics.. and more!

Good morning to all!
I thought I'd post some pictures from our little get together the other night. Also, if you're on any social networking sites, please add me! Facebook - search for my email: Laurie9797@yahoo.com Twitter - Laurie9797 I have a myspace, but I can't say that I check it more than once or twice a year! LOL

I look a little tipsy here... but I promise you I didn't have a sip! I can't say the same for John! Ha!

Me with some of the girls - L to R - Kristie, Jil, Me, Amber - Jil's lap is nice and comfy if you were wondering! :)
Me with Michelle.. Not sure who is giving me rabbit ears, but I'm sure they got an elbow! :-)

Me with Jil - Don't let her fool you, she's wearing 4 inch espadrilles! LOL

We all had a great time... I love spending time with my friends! There are a lot more pictures, but I'm kinda lazy! Chris - I'll get a picture of me in my adorable skirt soon! It's drying now, so I plan to wear it again soon! :) I was actually wearing it in all of these pictures, but it didn't make it in!

Tonight is my cooking class... wahooo!!!!!!!
I'll be learning how to make:

1. The best healthy ooey-gooey chocolate cake ever
   

2. •Easy and delicious carrot cake with cream cheese frosting
   

3. •Miniature cherry covered cheesecakes
   

4. •Scrumptious Peach shortcake

Love and hugs to you all... Happy Tuesday! :)

Happy Monday!

Hello to all of you out there in Blog Land!
I hope everyone had a great weekend! Mine was excellent.. busy, but excellent!
I had a half day at work on Friday, so I only had to work until 10:45.. I picked my mom up and we went to the Farmer's Market and Costco.. I got lots of yummy fruits and veggies, and spent very little money.. Love when that happens! Afterwards, I met my friend Laurie at a place called Massage Heights. My friend and I got Laurie a gift card there for her birthday, so I met her there and got a massage too.. what a big sacrifice for me! HA! It was great.. I hadn't had a massage in about 6 months, and it was lovely! We went to Macy's afterwards and I saw the cutest skirt ever... but it was not on sale! I haven't spent more than $25 on an article of clothing for myself since surgery, but I kept thinking about this skirt!! I put it on hold, so i could go home and look for it on eBay and other sites like that to see if I could find it for less than $59.. Nope.. no luck! So, I went back on Saturday to buy it with a 20% off coupon that Jil gave me.. Thanks Jil! I LOVE LOVE LOVE my new skirt! :)
On to Saturday - we had a cookout at our house on Saturday.. it was tons of fun, and I enjoyed myself thoroughly. I just wish I would have been able to spend more time with everyone! I made a pasta salad and Jil made a macaroni and cheese.. then John grilled burgers and hotdogs and bratwurst.. It was nice! :)
Sunday, Jil and I met up with my friend Cindy at Genghis Grill, then we went to Costco again (3 times in a weekend for me!), then off to another Asian Market and the Mediterranean Market in town. I'm going to make a pho soup this week.. it's a delicious Vietnamese soup if you haven't heard of it... I can't wait! :) Later that evening, it was off to the movies to go see Iron Man 2. I really enjoyed it. Robert Downey, Jr. is a good actor, and I'm glad he got his life put back together (or at least the appearance of it!). Glad to see he's working again, and had some great blockbusters!
Wow, I'm a rambler! :)
Well, today it's back to work, and I have another half day this Friday! Tomorrow I am going to my 2nd cooking class ever, and it's a Healthy Baking class... I'll be sure to give an update on that! :)
xoxo to you all!
Laurie

Thursday 13 - Old Me

Dang! I missed last week because work was soo freakin busy!
Since I've been struggling with my focus lately, this week will be 13 things that the 312 pound me wants the 160 pound me to always remember... Then, when times are tough, I can always refer back to this blog and hopefully regain some focus and stay on track!

1. At 312 pounds, I had zero self esteem. I didn't think I was worthy of love, friendship or companionship.
   
2. At 312 pounds, I was dangerously close to having to special order clothes since I was in the largest size at the Avenue/Lane Bryant/etc.
3. At 312 pounds, I couldn't sit in a chair with my back on the back rest, as my butt was too large.. it looked like I was laying back if I tried to!
4. At 312 pounds, I spent my evenings and weekends playing games on the computer and had no activity outside of the house. I was a sloth.
5. At 312 pounds, I had so much anxiety about social situations because of my size. I would try to think of ways to get out of doing anything where people would stare at me.
6. At 312 pounds, I was dangerously close to having Type 2 Diabetes. I had sleep apnea, dangerously high blood pressure, eczema, bad skin, achy joints, and the list goes on.
7. At 312 pounds, I would be out of breath from bringing groceries in from the car, from going up one flight of stairs, or from walking from my car to the building.
8. At 312 pounds, I was too "proud" to ask for a seat belt extension on an airplane, and opted to have the seat belt dig into me and give me bruises afterwards.
9. At 312 pounds, I couldn't sit down at a concert, because I spilled into my neighbors seats as well.
10. At 312 pounds, I wanted to be invisible.
11. At 312 pounds, I made terrible decisions that affected my life for many, many years.
12. At 312 pounds, I would order enough food to feed a family - just for myself.
13. At 312 pounds, I had no hope for the future.

There we have it. The purpose of this post is not to depress anyone, or make you feel sorry for me. I am no longer that 312 pound person. But, I never, EVER want to forget her. When you forget, it's easier to slide back into the bad habits that got me there in the first place.

RIP, 312 pound girl.

WTF?!

Why is it that when I don't really care about what I eat, my weight stays stable. But, when I focus on trying to eat better, my weight climbs up a bit?! I don't get it. Is it that I'm a tad obsessive, and worry too much, and freak out? Or is it just my body playing jokes on me?
Last week was TOM, and I was up 3 pounds.. I'm done with that, and add one more pound to that.

Some possibilities for the gain:

• Water retention
• Fudge from Buc-ee's (WEAKNESS!)
  
• Sour Patch Kids from Buc-ee's (Double weakness!)
  
• My stressful week and 52 hours at work last week still hasn't fallen off

Strategy for getting those 4 pounds (plus a few more) off of me:

• Drink lots of water
• TRY TRY TRY to stop obsessing. I will track still track my food, but I'm not going to obsess as much as I have been. All it does is makes my ulcer stick around.
• Keep at it with the workouts/gym/videos. Last week sucked because of work, but this week will be more active, and I'll get lots of movement in.

If you're puzzled about me saying I'm eating better and in my possibilities for my gain included fudge and Sour Patch Kids, YES, I'm still eating better. I didn't overindulge in either, but I did eat some. And many days, I typically have something like that. I know it's not good, or good for me, but I'm owning up to it, and I AM eating better. I have had more salad in the past few weeks that I have had in the past few years. I've been getting a lot more nutrients in, not just through my vitamins, but through my food. So, I am eating better. :) Just wanted to make that clear! :-)

Sorry for the rant.. I'm just frustrated.. Hopefully I will be able to send the scale in the other direction this week!!

xoxo

Sigh of Relief...

Last week just plain sucked. I work in accounting, and the first week of every month consists of closing the books, getting all of our customers billed, etc. By Tuesday of last week, I already had 27 hours. Thank heaven for overtime!! That extra money will definitely help me add some money to my savings account for Orlando in July!
I hope everyone had a great weekend, and that all of the mommies out there were treated extra special! :) We went to dinner with my mom on Saturday as a giant family, and then on Sunday, my mom and I went to lunch at BJ's Brewhouse... It was delicious. Poor John had to go to work, so he got to eat my leftovers. ha!
John and I went to Frisco (near Dallas) to pick up my mom over the weekend, and we got to spend some time with my sister and her family. We had a good time. I never sleep very well when I'm at someone else's house though, and I was just exhausted by the time we got home yesterday. This morning I hit snooze about 4 times more than normal.. UGH!
Anyway - This week is all about getting back on track. I had 11.5 hours of overtime last week, so as you can imagine, I didn't get very many workouts in. Zero, actually! This week, I am back to my 3X a week workouts. I have ChaLean Extreme now for workout videos at home, and I still have my Brazil Butt Lift. I also have the Firm workout, that I have had for 3 years and it is still in the plastic.. NO MORE!!! I'm going to do 2 gym workouts a week, and 1-2 home workouts. I also hope to get out on my bike this weekend. I'd like to do that before the weather gets too hot!
How was everyone's weekend? Any exciting goals for the week?
xoxo
Laurie