No more food talk

You may or may not have noticed that I have not posted the foods I have consumed over the last few days. And you may be reasoning that it is because Brian and I went away for the weekend for our anniversary and likely ate more than I was willing to document. You're partly right. Right about the eating a lot part, but not right about my reason for not having disclosed the details. The truth is, I have a certain very dear friend (whom I promised not to name) who was brave enough to tell me that my food posts were not a good idea for a multitude of reasons--not the least of which being that lists of soggy cereal and leftover spaghetti do not make for interesting reading. And while I appreciate her setting me straight, I've got to say, I'm a bit disappointed because being accountable to you for the things I've been eating really has been helping me. Nevertheless, from now on, I'll be forced to do my best to control my eating habits because it's the healthy thing to do and not because others might otherwise think I'm a pig. So that's it.

But Brian and I really did have a fantastic weekend away. We went to dinner with Jen and Tim, ate Pizza Pipeline bread sticks and watched a little of the Olympics, and then headed to Dez's and Nate's house to spend the night. In the morning, Dez made us a delicious breakfast and then we headed out to do some shopping--or looking, rather, for the most part. It was totally laid back and totally cool. Brian had me laughing a good part of the time, and seriously--what's more romantic than that? Not much, in my mind. Later in the day, we met up with Dez and Nate again, who treated us to dinner, and we then stopped to pick up some groceries before heading home.

So tomorrow, actually, marks our ninth wedding anniversary. Yep. That's right. We've enjoyed eight really good years. Ha Ha. And as it turns out, I don't like Brian as much as I did when I married him nine years ago. I like him more. Happy Anniversary, Sexy.

* One big(ish) bowl of wheaties
* Two handfuls of chashews
* One small piece of chicken
* half of an apple
* two crackers with a little bit of low-fat cream cheese
* the equivalent of two PB&J sandwiches (mine and the leftovers of Jane and Danin)
* one plate of spaghetti leftovers (again)
* one piece of toast
* a bite of cereal

Oh, and I drink water. Pretty much just water.

Yeah, this has GOT to help me lose weight. I find myself always being a little bit hungry. I really feel like if I can just program myself to stop eating before I feel stuffed, I'll lost weight because I'll be eating less. I don't know. We'll see.

Oh, and yesterday at the gym I got a better workout than usual (and certainly better than I was planning on), because I just happened to pick the worst part of the gym in which to work out--right next to a personal trainer. Apparently, he couldn't bear to witness such a pathetic work-out, so he took it upon himself to advise me on how to beef it up a bit. Really, though, it was good for me. I mean, people who have more money than me pay for that kind of service. And my arms have been sore today and that's always a good sign. But anyway...

You now what word seriously drives me crazy? Wriggle. Really? Wiggle isn't good enough? And you want to know what wriggle means? It means wiggle. Why in the heck do we have two words that mean exactly the same thing and are spelled almost identically--except for that annoying little 'r.' I know it sounds weird, but it is seriously difficult for me to even say it when I come across it while reading. It's almost like it makes my mouth uncomfortable or something--it's hard to explain...
I better go to bed.

Just one piece of taffy

Wow. This food documenting thing really makes for lame posts. And guess what? I can't find the paper on which I wrote all the things I ate today. No, I'm serious. There is no sign of it in the junk drawer where I put it after dinner. So I'm just going to have to do my best to remember.

* The leftovers of Jane's frosted mini-wheats
* The leftovers of Danin's frosted mini-wheats
* One Nutri-grain cereal bar
* Two handfuls of cashews--Yikes! (Atleast they're the good kind of fats)
* Did I have some peaches?....Yeah, I think so.
* One burrito (leftovers from dinner on Monday)
* One piece of saltwater taffy
* A couple bites of Danin's leftover casadilla
* A small portion of broccoli and cheese rice-a-roni rice
* A plate of leftover spaghetti stuff
* A couple more bites of cereal (the kids got lucky and had cereal for dinner.)
I think that's it.

But I'm still hungry.

Happy Valentine's Day

Today I ate:
* Another bowl of wheaties
* A good-size bowl of homemade soup
* 2 1/2 little casadillas (on corn tortillas)
* 1/2 piece of leftover chicken breast
*one plate of lasagna/spaghetti (it was an experiment) and salad
* two pieces of whole-wheat toast and butter
* nothing off the floor

Doesn't that seem like a lot? It does to me, but I was seriously using self restraint all day. I would love to enjoy another blizzard right about now, but I'll be good. Brian and I are celebrating our 9th anniversary this weekend, and I'll definitely be having some treats again then.

Oh, and how did the Charlie Brown Project go for everyone?! I've already decided to make it a yearly tradition, because it is seriously so rewarding to feel like you've brought a little bit more light into someone's life. I hope it was a neat experience for any of you who decided to jump on board.

Social pressure

You know how I was pregnant recently? Well, during that time, I gained about six pounds, and unfortunately, those six pounds did not go back up to heaven with my baby. And I know six pounds isn't such a big deal, but it's still six pounds, and I'm sure you all agree that you can feel (and see, for that matter) the difference six pounds make. And you know how when you're trying to lose weight they always tell you to start by writing down EVERYthing you eat? Well, I'm finally going to take that advice. But not only am I going to document every little thing that goes into my mouth--I'm also going to tell you. And I know it's horrible to care about what other people think, but seriously--I really think that having to tell you everything I eat will make me think twice about it. It already has. I definitely would have eaten at least a few starbursts and a couple more oreo cookies if I hadn't been thinking about having to later include them on my list. Big breath. So here goes.
Today I ate:
* One bowl of Wheaties with 1% milk--not the ridiculous "suggested serving size", but reasonable none the less
* One handful of cashews
* One wrap including a high fiber, low carb tortilla; lots of spinach; red onions; grilled chicken; and a little spaghetti sauce........OK, and some cheese (a little feta, a little mozzerella, and a little grated parmesan :))
* The crust from Danin's PB&J sandwich and a bite or two of her ramen
* A couple of wheat thins and a jelly bean that I found on the floor while I was cleaning
*Two tacos--one bigger one in another high fiber, low carb tortilla, and a smaller one in two corn tortillas. No sour cream.
* A homemade oreo blizzard with a small handful of mini oreos, low-fat vanilla icecream and a teeny bit of 1% milk. Family night is no fun without treats.
* One regular oreo
And a partridge in a pear tree.

I don't really have anything to say tonight, but I wanted to post pictures of my much improved bedroom. I wish I had some before pictures to show you, but I'm afraid they are on the hard drive of our old computer, and we haven't extracted them yet. Just trust me that it looks worlds better now. See how my night stand/dressers used to be like this:
Well, I painted them black and they look so much better. And can you tell what it is that I actually matted and framed? (I haven't gotten the glass yet.) Yep. Magazine articles. They were interesting articles and had the right colors for the room. Who said you can't frame pages from a magazine and call it art?
















And I'm afraid I've fallen to idol worship. My idol? Her:

I love every room she designs and I think she's gorgeous.












But don't worry. I still love these guys more. (And the little poo, too, of course. She just wasn't part of the moment.


































Oh, and Brooke! This is the little comic I told you about. Isn't it perfect?! I LOVE it!

Loogie

So you know how there are those people who are just born with the gift to find super cute things for fantastic prices? Well, unfortunately--despite being someone who is obsessed with finding good deals--I am not usually one of those lucky people. However, I do happen to be lucky enough to have a friend who IS one of those lucky people, and she recently found me a cute shirt. Unfortunately, it only fits me when I'm standing up. When I sit down, I have to be careful that I don't bust open (no pun intended). Wait. Who am I kidding? Like I even have a bust. But in high school, I did have a bit more of a bust and there was once a time when I wore this rayon (or something like that) button-up shirt to school, and all through the day I found the buttons falling open. Seriously! It happened all day long, and it was horrifying. Those pervs a the GAP...
Anyway, so I still wanted to wear the shirt (that my friend, Maddi got me)to church today. As it happens, today was my day to teach Relief Society, and whenever I speak or teach a lesson, I have to give special attention to what I wear. Why? Because remember I told you that I have that sweating problem? Yeah, well, it's especially bad when I'm going to be talking in front of people. It really makes no sense, because I'm totally comfortable talking in front of people, but whatever. It happens, and it is super annoying. So I either have to layer up, or I have to wear dark colors that won't show the sweat marks. And despite the fact that my new shirt is dark brown with polka dots, I was worried that it may still show sweat lines. So I did just what I did when I went with Tyson to prom and I stuck some pantie liners in my armpits. Quick fix, almost, but in sacrament meeting, I noticed one of the liners sneaking out of my sleeve while the other one was making its way down my side. Yikes! Can you imagine me giving my lesson with that happening? Uh, yeah. Don't mind the pad falling out of my armpit.
So I already had enough to worry about as I gathered up crayons and stuff and hoisted Danin up to haul her off to nursery at the end of sacrament. But as I readied to leave, Danin began sneezing. One sneeze. Two sneezes. Three sneezes! Ah-choo! Out of Dan's mouth came a loogie that flew out and landed on the arm of the woman in back of us (who had just decided to start coming back to church). I am not even kidding. The lady was kinda leaned over talking and she didn't even change positions or turn her head. I'm sure she was afraid to look and afraid to make me feel stupider than I already felt. So I quickly and politely wiped that sucker away with Dan's dress as I attempted an apology and we slunk out quickly.
Thankfully, my lesson went fine, and nothing fell out anywhere. I don't know where in the heck those little liners had gone, but they weren't in my armpits where they were supposed to be. I might have worried that I had inadvertently left a pad on the church's hallway floor or something, but when I returned home and changed my shirt, they were both accounted for.

Oooooohhhhh, and guess what? I changed my room. Did I ever post pictures after I painted my room blue prior to Brooke's visit? I don't think so. Probably because it still looked terrible. Even Sarah asked why I hadn't done anything with my room when she came to visit a while back. It's just been a mish-mash of things that don't really look good together--until Friday, that is. I made a few changes, painted a couple things, moved few things around, and now things look so much better. Still not amazing by any means, but seriously--so much better.

Pictures to follow.

Charlie Brown Project

Man, I wish I had something fun to write about.......
You know what's interesting? Every time I get my hair cut, my little hairs go through a couple weeks of trying to get used to it. You know what I mean? For the first week or two, they just can't figure out how to adapt to the new lengths and the new layers--and they just do all kinds of ugly things. But after a couple weeks, they always seem to finally settle in and remember how things are supposed to go. I was so excited to have had my first good hair day after my recent hair cut, and I was going to write about it, and then I had a bad hair day today. Bummer. But at least I did my hair, right? That's more than I can say for most days. It's funny--these days, taking a shower is the biggest pain in my neck. It seems like it should be a real stress reliever, but instead it just complicates my life. Why? (Well for one--I can't take a shower in peace.) Because taking a shower just means that I will have to do my hair. And it's so crazy because there have been so many days that I have just remained sweaty and nasty all day long after having worked out because the thought of having to take the time to shower and do my hair is just too much. Makes no sense. I could just decide to be clean, for heaven's sake, and just not do my hair--it's not like it would look any worse than it does after I've slept on it and then gone to the gym--but for some reason....I don't know. I don't get it myself...
Is there a point to this?...Oh, yeah! There is. LATELY, (like in the last five days) I have been trying to make a bigger effort to look nice--including taking a shower and doing my hair and putting on normal clothes--so that I will feel better about myself (and about the whole day for that matter), and so that I will look sexy to Brian--ha ha. I mean, for Pete's sake. Brian's not very hard to please. All I have to do is put on a pair of jeans and Brian feels like it's his lucky day. I know. Pretty sad. Jeans. Just jeans, but still a big step up from sweats.
And being close to Valentine's Day and all--I really want Brian to think I'm beautiful. To that end, I want to remind all of you that all we need to do in order for our husbands to think we are beautiful is to show them that we think we are... and they will believe us. Remember what I learned from Chels? Beauty really is much less about long eyelashes and big lips and a perfect body, and much more about confidence. I'm tellin ya. I've been way prettier ever since I got some.

And I'm so sorry to bring it up again, but I just can't get through a Valentine's Day without thinking about Charlie Brown's experience. I mean--it's a holiday special. So anyway, I've come up with an idea, and I'm calling it the Charlie Brown Project. Here's how it works: All of us decide on one person who is likely to have a crappy Valentine's Day and we do something special for them that day. Can you imagine how we could change the world together?! Just one person. Just one special something. Are you in?