Missed Meeting Coupon

That is how I am referring to today. As a missed meeting.

This week I was on track with my Points and I worked out every day with my EA Active. I was so proud of myself when I did the Marathon workout on Hard this past Thursday. An hour of squats, lunges, running, punching and band work and burning off 300 calories felt so great.

And then comes last night.

My plan was to do another workout to compliment my morning one, and to nosh on a big salad for supper. I derailed my plans by hanging out with my cousin to watch a movie and have chinese food.

I have a problem with sodium. I retain water like a camel. Mind you that steamed rice, egg roll and five chicken balls were really really good.

In the end, I wake up this morning so puffy that the Ghostbusters were wondering how to make me into a big old smores bar.

And my weight is up. Out of the rabbit hole and out of Onederland. I weighed in at 200 even. And it peeves me off to no end.

All of my work towards Saturday morning weigh in lost because I couldn't say no to steamed rice and chicken balls.

Oi.

Missed Meeting Coupon, I'm calling you in!

Goals!

There are so many people I am meeting who are on the journey for weight loss or just to get themselves into better shape. I love being able to share in that journey and selfishly I get so much out of it by learning from any struggles they're having on the way. It kind of reinforces that when I come across them, it's not uncommon and it is possible to get past them.

What is even more inspirational, though, is when someone makes it to goal. Last week my co-worker Chrissy made it to her Weight Watchers goal. How amazing! After months of working at it, she is right where she wants to be. And she looks amazing as well! She didn't have an easy go of it and would fall off the tracking wagon and make some food decisions she regretted, but she got past it and got to where she is going.

From her, I'm learning about the maintenance program and what that will be like. I see Chrissy and I know that will be me soon enough.

Here in the blog world, the writer who goes by Bitch Cakes, reached her goal at Weight Watchers as well. I cannot urge you enough to read her post about this. I was in tears reading this as her journey has been long adn well fought out. What an amazing story she has and I cannot applaud her enough for this accomplishment.

Soon enough, I will be able to write a goal post, too. It happens. It's not only about the climb to get there, but it's also about being there in that moment. Reaching goal is attainable.

I can do it, too.

Working and Working Out

The title pretty much sums up my days so far this week. I have been getting up early in the morning and working out for about 45 minutes with my EA Active and Wii Fit. I honestly do enjoy these activities. The EA Active is a strong workout with squats, lunges and the arm work. I'm going to get the second part of it as it includes some ab workouts.

Then I head into work and get ready to take on my new job on the 16th and distribute my current work profile to three people. That's a lot of time spent training peeps. Ouch, lol.

Needless to say I've also been having early nights.

Except for tonight, it's Big Brother night and I love the house drama, ha ha! I have Matt in our work pool and I'm not quite sure that he's as much of a "genius" as he says he is. Oi! PoV tonight. Lord hopes it goes his way. I want to win this pool!

I can't think of a good title today

Today started out well. I was expecting a bit of a gain and was happy with a 0.4. I'm still in Onederland and am going to do my best tracking to be a loser next weekend!
Last night I hung out with my cousin and we went to the Boardwalk at Magnetic Hill. It was a lot of fun seeing her again and getting out to do something that was not food related but activity based. We went through Butterfly World where the wings were busy:

We then went and hit some balls in the driving range. This was my first time doing this that was not in the safety of my livingroom on the Wii. Let me just tell you that the Wii is not the driving range, ha ha:

Next we drove around the go-karts and then headed off to the casino. With $5 in hand, I lost it in one hand. Christine came out better with a $27.50 win:

I wish I had brought my camera this morning with me as my mom, her neighbour and I went to the downtown market. It's always a busy madhouse there, but so much fun. Veggies were on sale this week at the supermarket, so I was fine without buying much there, but I did find some new buys.

I had a fish cake with tomato chow for breakfast. Absolutely amazing recipe this woman makes, doing the patties up fresh on the grill.

I picked up some homemade hummus:

Two ham and cheese biscuits for breakfast tomorrow (DH has never had a ham and cheese biscuit before):

And my fave, a stand called Red Earth where they make glutten-dairy-free soups. They had containers with the frozen soup and a long list of choices which included carrot curry, truffle chicken and mushroom and loads of others. I decided to try tuscan vegetable:

If it's as good as it looks, I'll be back next weekend to buy more! It's something I am trying to be more concious of is my sodium levels and as much as I love Campbell's soups homemade is always better. Can't wait to give it a try!

Once the afternoon hit, though, my friend the uber headache came calling. I've been head in hands for a while watching G4 and the Comic Con coverage. If I can't drive out to the pool, I will indulge in my geeky side.

May try some Wii Yoga later to ease up the head/back tension and make it an early night.

Have yourself a good one!

Nummers and Numbers

So I'm in Onederland and I'm lovin' it. I've shared it with a number of people at work who know and support my weight loss efforts. We have such an amazing gang who are following WW and getting themselves into a better form of lifestyle.

And while I have hit this milestone and am amazed at how far I have come...I still can't get a grip on some of the plagues in my life. Emotional eating and self sabotage. These things I am putting in the same basket of things to work on.

My eating hasn't been the best this week, going over my Daily Points and nearly finished all of my Weekly Points. This is far from the determined girl from last week who had only a fraction of WP's used.

Saturday: Judy's funeral. Mom and I had to travel to Truro for this and I prepared by packing water (I drank 2L at least) and some healthy snacks. The snacks were forgotten for the most part in favour of the cheeseburger and sweet potato fries we  had when we arrived. I could have and should have ordered the grilled shrimp salad. But I chose the burger and fries. I also had half of an iced cap on the way home.

Sunday: Burger for lunch. Though not too bad since it was only 3 points for the burger, but, still...I had one the night before!!! And then...BBQ chicken nachos I made for supper. 12 Points...but at least I put it together and could control that, but still....

Monday: Got a new job at work. Yay! Pizza and garlic fingers to celebrate. WTF?????

Tuesday: Steak for supper. Oh lord.

So this morning I woke up at 5:30, stumbled down the stairs and worked out with my EA Active. Same story for tomorrow morning and Friday.

The scale is up one pound this morning. It's still under 200lbs, but not by much. Self sabotaging has got to stop here and now and I'm the only one who can do it.

Wish me luck! It's cake day at work. Arrrgghhhh......

Whew....just got in from weeding out the garden for the past hour. It's funny how fast some things willl grow in such a short amount of time!

I haven't showered, had my coffee or breakfast yet, so I'm getting right to the point of today's post...Getting to Know You Sunday!


1. If you had to choose a country to live in besides USA (or the country you live in), which would it be?

Hmmm....Maybe Great Britain? I've always wanted to visit there and I adore Tudor history. So, yeah :) That is where I would plant myself.2. Which would be worse, wearing flip flops in the snow or wearing gloves in the summer?
Flip Flops in the snow. In my part of the country it can get to -40C with the wind chill....I like my toes. I like to pain them. Therefore I would like to keep them!
3. Fried or Bake and why?
Baked for sure...it wouldn`t stick to my thighs as much as something fried would!
 4. If you were an entertainment reporter, which celeb would you love to interview and why?
Harrison Ford. I have been in starstruck love with him since I was four!5. What was your favorite book as a preteen/teenager?
Anne of Green Gables! I loved reading about a red head with spunk! And the Sweet Valley High series!6. List your top 3 guilty pleasure television shows.
Days of Our Lives, Big Brother and Attack of the Show7. What bumper sticker slogan best describes you/your attitude/your life?
Uhm.....I don`t really pay attention to many bumper stickers....but if there was one that said Don`t Stop Believing...I`d be all over it!

8. If you were to join a circus - what performer would you be?
I wouldn`t join the circus. Circuses have clowns. Clowns kill people. Sheesh people!

Christina in One-derland

i did it.

One-derland.

Holy mother of God....

I'm very excited. I tracked like mad this week, every bite, ever sip. I used a good portion of my flex points, though I did get minimal workouts in. I just feel so wonderful to see that number for honest. Now that I'm here, I have more to look forward to. This week, I fit into a size large dress at the store. I'm going to keep on track with this. I'm not going to give up!

Tracking. Drinking water. Making healthy choices.

This has really got me running now!

Another Angel in Heaven

There's only one way to see a silver lining in the loss of a good person and that is they are reunited with thier loved ones in Heaven and watching over us.

One of my best friends' mother passed away from cancer last night. Judy was a wonderful, kind and patient woman who gave everything she had to others.

She lost her husband a number of years ago and it is a comfort to know that they are together again.

Thoughts and prayer for Kyla and her brother Clint are much appreciated at this time.

Getting to Know You Sunday!

The scale and I are in a fight this morning and we're no longer Facebook friends. That's just how big of a fight it is. I mean, seriously, why are you dropping my weight so much this morning in comparison. Sure I don't feel like a swollen balloon this morning and it's actually kind of cool in the house. But that is  no reason to have dropped my weigh so unexpectedly from yesterday. Gah!

In happier news, it's Sunday! Here's something about me you may not have known before....




1. What is YOUR definition of sexy?
Confidence, Friendliness, Kindness. That's on the deeper level. Hugh Jackman glistening in the sun as he comes out of the ocean...oooooooh baby!

2. Would you rather clean up puke or change a poopy diaper?
Considering we are happily without children and have fur babies who go in the litter...I guess I have to clean up puke when there's a hairball incident. Though my gag reflexes are tested at even that!

3. Are you an introvert or an extrovert?
Extrovert. It's the drama in me. I'm usually the first one people will think of at work when someone has to do some kind of funny/silly presentation or hostess thing. I enjoy it as I like to make people happy :)

 4. If you had to give up one of your 5 senses for a year..which one would you give up?
This is a hard one. I love music, so hearing I need. Taste and smell go hand in hand and I couldn't give those up. I'm a klutz in the dark, so I need t see and I love the feeling of petting my kitty cats when I get home. But I think I am more easily grossed out by touch in a general sense. If something doesn't feel right when I touch it, I get the willies. So...yeah...let's go with touch.

5. Cake or Pie?
Can I have both? I like cake a lot. But I think I'd have to go with pie. My aunt makes amazing apple pies and I do make a pretty sweet pumpkin pie. I think with pie you get more variety, especially if you're including meat pies in that equation!

6. If you could play any character on TV (old or current) who would you play?
Well, I absolutely adore Days of Our Lives and would love a chance to crack at Alison Sweeney's character Sammi. That girl has been through everything, lol. But I think otherwise, something from my childhood that made me happy would to be on Happy Days. Any character. That was just the ideal life to me when I was younger.

7. My favorite website is.....?
I'd say my own, ha ha. But honestly, my day is not complete without looking at some LOL Cats. Never fails to crack me up and down and all around.

8. The highlight of my day is....?
Is coming home from work to my family. Whether it's just the cats or DH has worked an early shift, coming in the door to them is heaven!


Alright, it's your turn, head over to Mannland to share something about yourself!

Danica's Giveaway

I love giveaways. I'm a contest type person who gets excited just by entering them. I know...kind of sad but it makes me smile!

Over at Danica's Daily she is having a giveaway for a bamboo dinner set along with a full-sized sample of a new dinner kit from Good Earth.

Everything looks yummy and who doesn't love bamboo?

Give a look and enter :) Don't forget to take a look around her site as well. She has some of the best recipes I've seen in a long time!

It's the weigh it goes

Weigh in this morning brought me down officially by 0.4. I re-read my last posts just to remind myself that earlier this week when I saw Onderland, it was for all the wrong reasons. I was sick and utterly wasted by the heat. This morning I feel like a balloon because of the humidity, all puffy and ick. But I'm hydrated and in pretty good shape in comparison. It's all in perspective!

That being said, I'm planning on being more concious of what I'm putting into my body. Tracking happens only 3 days a week in the past while and though I'm making the good choices, I'm sure that portions are out of whack.

I opted out of doing Weight Watchers online as I have all the material and trackers (3-month planner) here at home. Saving some money for paying for things I don't use properly. But I'm still accountable here and to my friends at work who are on WW.

It also makes me happy that my mother has decided to follow the program on her own as well. She needs to lose over 100 lbs and I'm going to support her as much as possible. She doesn't eat often enough through the day so that she will binge on a meal and not do well. I'd like my mother to stay with me for as long as she can and the only way to do that is get on the healthy track.

I'm very proud of her! Until she was pregnant with me, my mother was a very very slender woman. I hope her body has that elastic memory from the 70's, lol!

Breakfast this morning has been a tasty banana, half cup of grapes, weight watchers bread with PB and a medium ff iced mocha with no whip from McDonald's. Lunch will be a hamburger, sans bun, on top of a nice big salad. Supper is not going to be so healthy. I'm heading to the movies with mom and will snack on popcorn. Oh I love movie popcorn. I don't have it very often, but I figure every now and then it's worth the splurge. Yum!

Okay...edit in here...I still have access to the online Points tracker until my subscription runs out (yay) and I honestly wonder how movie theatre popcorn can be 3 Points for 3 cups sans butter (I'm not a melted butter fan on popcorn. Makes it too squishy). That seems so low....but I figure I have a two free large popcorn/sodas with my entry and I'll really only eat half of that...I'm putting in 7 points for half the bag...I think...oi! There's no NI on the theatre's website either. Boooo!

Hope everyone has a great day!

You take the good, you take the bad...

Well, I stayed home yesterday and did my best to fight the heat and claminess that was me. I survived with the exception of horrible icky sickness throughout the day,evening and night.

The scale was kind to me this morning.

But a 5lb weight loss since Monday morning is not the healthiest thing.

But it does make me go awwww, thanks for the cheering up.

I'm currently sitting in the coolest, breeziest part of the house. The cats envy  me.

At least I wasn't the only one...

This morning the temperature was a balmy 19 degrees at 6 am when I trodded into kickboxing. I was a little bit late, but fell into step.

The gym was not 19. It was closer to 30. I lasted 40 minutes before I had an epic fail and was led over to the chairs. I was out for maybe a second or two, but it was enough to waste me.

Shortly after I went down, so did my partner. And a young guy I hadn't seen before.

Killer.

Workout.

I'm taking the morning easy and will head into work later. But wow. First time I've been taken out by kickboxing since my first attempt in September '09...but that just made me pukey.

Ugh.

Will recoup. Will not be let down. The instructor said that his top in shape karate trainers have done the same and that we shouldn't feel bad.

I'll get my grrr on again.

Frustration...thy name is scale

So I am a scale addict. There is no 12 step program to break this love I have with my scale. It's something deep and true.

That being said, I have a love-hate relationship with it.Obviously on Saturday we were not friends. I tried to make amends with it this morning by reminding it how much it meant to me and spending some time with it.

It teetered on 199.8 before popping up to 200.6 when I finally stood still.

Let's look at that bar on the left-hand side and the weight it tracked on the 3rd. You see that 202? Yeah, so do I. Now, it's not like I don't know why the scale was mean to me on Saturday. I didn't drink my water Thursday and Friday, despite working out. I can't blame the scale. But I do. It's an easy target.

So this week....I'm going in with good expectations. I'm drinking my water, being at work all 5 days. Even though it's horridly humid and gross, I'm going to morning workouts inside the gym instead of evening workouts outside on the field. I'm doing my EA Active and making good choices. I'm setting myself up to see that 200 mark, or possibly less, on Saturday morning.

I can do it.

I will do it.

I may have had some ice cream on my pineapple bowl just now.

Hush. Don't tell the scale or it'll be mean again.

New week, new start and getting off my butt for games

I like looking at the calendar and seeing a new row of days to go through. It makes me think that last week happened, it's in the past, Hakuna Matata and all that. So despite yesterday's weigh in that we won't talk about, this is a new week!

I woke up and hauled myself out of bed shortly after 8 this morning. After the obligatory playing with the kitties, I headed downstairs to work out with my EA Active. Of the workout games I have for the Wii (Biggest Loser, Wii Sports, Wii Resorts & Active) I find that this one gives me the full body workout. Tons of squats, lunges and workout with the resistance bands to sculpt the arms and back. Seriously, my fave of all.

That being said, I'm looking forward to the new games that Microsoft's XBox 360 is coming out with Kinect. Like the Wii, it's going to be motion sensored, minus the need for a remote or board in hand. The "Your Shape" game looks like it has potential to be pretty hard core if used properly. And I'm seeing some fun in the future with Zumba! I can shake it like I mean it without worrying how I look next to those other girls at the Y.

I'm a big fan of these games that get you up off the couch and playing. My husband is old school and likes to just sit and hold the remote. I wonder how he'll be with Kinect? I know he's only meh with the Wii, but....who knows?

Okay, on to the fun stuff with Mannland's Getting to Know You Sunday

1. What do you look forward to the most on the 4th of July?

As a Canadian, this is just another day for me. Canada Day means a nice day off and fireworks. I guess I do like to watch the Macey's Fireworks from NYC, though. Always nice!

2. Are you a hugger?
Yes! My family is mostly huggers, which I understand some people find it off putting. I guess it's just the way we were brought up. My husband...not a hugger, but he endures it from my family from time to time. That's love!

3. What is your favorite BBQ'd food?
I think everything is better on the grill. Pizza, veggies, nachos...everything. But a perfectly grilled steak or a juicy chicken breast...yum! Oh and corn. I take off the husk and silks and put it right on the grill, turning it every two minutes or so. When it starts to get grill marks or the kernels pop, it's juicy and ready! Now I know what to have for supper tonight!

4. Do you like to watch parades?
I love parades! The bands, the floats, the balloons...however I will only love a parade as long as there are no clowns. Clowns are evil. Clowns will kill you. Yup. True story. No clowns.

5. Who has stinkier farts..boys or girls?
Oh lord, boys for sure. I'm sure that they are brought up in a secret society that teaches them how to ferment their gas before releasing it. DH, I'm talking about you here. Ugh.

6. Vampires or Werewolves?
Unicorns.

7. Do you read your horoscope?
All the time. There are days when it's spot on and scary how accurate it is. Other days, I'm like, you weren't talking about this Gemini!

8. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
Have you seen the size of my butt??? What flavour don't I like, lol. But seriously, I'd say some kind of chocolate. Or the Bailey's Irish Cream flavoured. Mmmm.....

Okay! Off to enjoy the gorgeous day we've been given! Link back to Mannland with your own GTKY!

Saturday morning Weigh in

bleh.

That's all I really have to say about it.
I know why.
I know how.
I just don't agree with it.

Better late than never

The title says it all. I came back inside last night from the fireworks (awesome show, btw, I thought fireworks would be ruined for me forever since seeing the ones in Disney) and sat down on the couch. Ten minutes later I was asleep.

Ouch.

I did take a little walk around the block while waiting for the show to begin. It was a nice night, a bit on the cool side, but everyone I passed was in a good mood, which made all the difference.

I had a vacation day today so that I could extend Canada Day. I was up at 7:30 and made up my workout from last night. Have you ever tried the EA Active? It works up quite the sweat! I fully plan on doing another work out tonight since I'm almost done putting things together for our yard sale tomorrow morning. Then the lugging things out to the tables will start early in the AM.

Since the DH isn't going in to work until later today, this morning we took a half hour drive to Amherst, Nova Scotia to this store called Liquidation World. They have a bit of everything there from clothing, electronics, furniture and food. They get the items from stores who have gone bankrupt, or orders that people never claimed. I picked up a few Christmas presents (first time I'm actually ahead of the game) and a few fun things for me (a girl needs a treat!).

We had lunch at Wendy's and I had the Southwestern salad. I love Wendy's chili and topped on a salad...mmm...to die for!

Here's to fingers crossed for weigh in tomorrow morning. I'm not putting pressure on myself. It seems that summer is winning and that's okay. The weight can go down in a slow fashion as long as it goes down! I'm going to take a queue from Melissa and focus on making healthy choices and less on the scale number. The girl has a lot of smarts!

Have a great one!

Bad bad bad...

Last night I didn't go to kickboxing. I used the excuse that it was our wedding anniversary. I told everyone that I was going to do my EA Active Thursday and Friday to make up for the missed classes.

Thursday.

Woke up. Raked lawn. Sat on couch. Made lunch. Sat on couch. Drove DH to work. Sat on couch. Played Harry Potter Leggo. Made supper. Sat on couch. Dug through closets to find stuff for Saturday yard sale.

Do you see EA Active in that list? Nope. Me either.

Plan...it's 9:36pm. Canada Day fireworks are in a few minutes. I'm going to walk to my back yard and watch them, come back inside and work my booty off before bed.

I hope.

Ugh.

Wait...can't leave...Glee episode has Mr. Shu and Kristen Chenoweth singing. Must sigh in dreamland.

Ohhhhh Canada! Happy Anniversary!

Yesterday I celebrated three happy years of marriage to my best friend. He's an amazing man who has never thought me anything less than beautiful and reminds me of that when I'm at my lowest. He's supportive and helpful and makes me smile.

We didn't do anything special, though I did splurge on a footlong Orchard Chicken sub at Subway if that counts...and a glass of Bailey's and Milk (I know how to live). Saturday we'll be going out for a nice supper and hanging  out with friends. Just how we like to spend our time :)

Today is also Canada Day! I honestly think that Canada has most of the things in the world right. I am thankful for being in such a country that takes care of its people and land. Yes, our taxes are high, but it's the price to pay for free hospital care and beautiful land coast to coast.

There is a commercial that came out a few years ago for Molson's Canadian beer. I'm not a beer drinker, but this commercial reminded me just how awesome we are!



Here's to many more years of wedded bliss and many more years to come in the True North Strong and Free!!!