|
|
January
2007 Journal
It's
2007! The years go by so fast.
Two major events for this year. I will be going to
school and Mommy & Daddy will have been married for 10
years.
This month has in it's future, bowling on Sundays, gathering
with friends, the PA Farm Show, a special baby shower, PJ
parties at daycare and maybe a trip to see my Aunt Susan &
Uncle Allen.
Big question from me....WILL IT EVER SNOW?
|
|
Happy New
Year ~ 2007
January 1, 2007 |
I slept in a bit
this morning since I was up past midnight watching the big ball drop
in New York City (I really want to go there and see all the tall
buildings and all of those lights at night!).
We had a quiet day. I played with my new toys and we watched
some movies. I helped Daddy make his sandwiches. Mommy
got me my own special knife so I can cut things but not have to
worry about cutting my fingers! I did a good job chopping up
the ham and cheese! Boy, Daddy sure did make A LOT of
sandwiches. I even took a nap today....I haven't napped in
months at home, that is. I even put myself there! I told
Mommy and Daddy I was going upstairs to "take a nap". I think
Daddy checked on my later, I guess they didn't believe me!
heehee! No one really made any resolutions for this
year. We have some ideas in our heads, but I don't think we
are going to write them down...yet. It's hard to look back and
realize you didn't do something you said you would, ya know? I
would have to say that our resolution for 2007 is going to be to:
HAVE FUN AS A FAMILY AND LOVE ONE ANOTHER MORE EVERY DAY!
How's that?!
|
Blatant "New
Year's Resolution" Purchase :)
January 5,
2007 |
Well, not
really. It just so happened to be the timing of the sale at
Sears! Mommy has been thinking about getting some kind of
exercise equipment for awhile now. It was going to be her
Christmas gift from Daddy but they decided to wait until a good sale
hit...and when do people start "getting in shape"? That's
right, for New Year's!
Mommy picked out an elliptical trainer. I had a great time
helping Daddy to put it together. I had to get my tools out
and I was sure to be safe and wear my goggles. I love helping
Daddy to build things. I also love that my Daddy lets me help!
The machine is kind of huge and is sitting in the living room right
now. You have to stand on it and move your feet around almost
like you are peddling a bike. Mommy will have to keep an
update in a journal or on here to let you know how it's going.
I know the first time she did it, she only lasted about 5 minutes
and then the next time 15. Daddy did about 30 minutes, showing
off I think! HA!
So, maybe it's safe to say....documented New Year's resolution #1:
Exercise more!
|
Geocaching
Adventure ~ Our 3 Year Anniversary!
January 6,
2007 |
First, let me
start by saying....today was ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL! The
temperature high for today was in the upper 60's. If it
wouldn't have been for the occasional breeze, we could have very
easily gone without jackets!
We decided to not go to the opening day of the PA Farm Show and
spend our day outside doing a little geocaching! We found the
first one, easy, on a nice little bike path in Hershey! Next,
we went on a much longer hike along the Swatara Creek. I am
glad that we wore our boots and old clothes because of the warm
temperatures the ground was pretty muddy! You would have
thought it was Spring! I had fun sliding down the mud too.
We didn't have much luck finding this cache, we were in a fun spot
so I didn't mind that we were there for so long. Finally,
Daddy called for a lifeline, good thing he did because the owner had
just picked up the cache to fix it! Oops! Daddy said he
knew he should have double checked the cache page before we left.
Oh well...we still had fun. We will go get it another day!
Move on to the next one....this one was on a nice level biking path
along the Conewago Trail. We looked and looked and looked some
more and came up empty on that one too! Bummer! Daddy
wasn't able to get a hold of anyone to help us out, so we will have
to go back there sometime too. It was hard to really look
because of the nice weather there were a lot of people out and it
was hard to be "inconspicuous". Daddy just said that the
"caching Gods" weren't with us today. We'll get 'em next time!
What is important is that we had a nice day out, got some exercise
and just enjoyed being together as a family! (Hey, that sounds
familiar)
|
The 2007
Pennsylvania State Farm Show
January 7,
2007 |
After a morning
of bowling...we headed to the Farm Show! Today was "Family
Day!" so we knew it would be crowded, but it wasn't that bad, or we
just have gotten used to it! We parked at the nearby college (HACC)
and took the shuttle into the complex center. Boy, that place
is huge! Anyway, we found the butter sculpture right away!
It was Ben Franklin with the Liberty Bell made from 800 pounds of
Land O'Lakes butter! That's a lot of toast...heehee! We
checked out all of the displays. I found the electric train
model set and watched that for a while. I really liked looking
at the exhibit that Penn State had set up from their nature center.
They had snakes, turtles and toads for us to see, all native to PA.
I thought the toad looked just like the one Daddy caught last summer
and accidentally let loose in our house!
Next, we had to find the animals. We saw the draft horses (oh
man, are they HUGE) getting all "dressed up" and ready to be hitched
to their wagons to be judged. We found the cows and watched
some of them getting groomed. Some were being shaven (that cow
didn't look happy about it all all....he kept squinting his eyes)
and some being combed and dusted with air blowers. The pigs
were all pretty tired and the poor, poor sheep all had their wooly
coats removed....I think they look funny like that. My
favorite animals to look at are the ducks and chickens. Who
knew there are so many different and odd looking types. I also
enjoy the rabbits. My favorite are the white ones...I think
Mommy got a picture of this really fluffy white rabbit, I believe he
was an angora bunny. He was cute. We also got to see the
Champion Turkey...he was huge! He kept puffing up his chest
and spreading out his feathers too! Speaking of feathers...I
got my very own peacock feather!
Next, off to see the tractors. I didn't climb on very many of
those this year, I was more interested in just looking at them.
I did like looking at the cars and trucks that the Dodge dealer had
there. Daddy and me really checked out the
orange Dodge Caliber. Mommy should have taken a picture.
Ooops. I also really liked this cabin that they had there...it
was only 15,000 dollars! It has a tiny kitchen area, a living
room, a shower, loft for sleeping and a small back porch! It
would be neat to have and put up in the woods at Pa-Pa's house!
Next, it was time to eat. One of the very reasons to go to the
Farm Show is the food! Daddy and Mommy got some
mushrooms...Daddy had soup and Mommy had a salad! We all had
milkshakes....a MUST of the Farm Show! Daddy had some fried
cheese cubes and then a pork sandwich and Mommy had a roast beef.
I had a soft pretzel and later I got some cotton candy for the trip
home!
Daddy loaded me on his shoulders and we walked back to the car
instead of taking the shuttle. It was still a nice day, a bit
cooler than yesterday, but perfect for a walk! Besides, Mommy
figured she better walk off that milkshake and sandwich!
|
Mommy's & Daddy's
Workout Update
January 9,
2007 |
Take it away
Mommy....
Okay, once Mark got the Elliptical machine put together I jumped
right on there and strained through 5 minutes! Ugh, boy could
I tell that I haven't "really" exercised in a long LONG time!
I didn't feel like I was that out of shape, but whew! Then of
course panic and a bit of buyers remorse quickly set in. What
have I done? I'm never going to be able to do this machine?
Should I have bought the treadmill instead? I quickly put
those thoughts back in the farthest part of my brain. It
helped a bit when Mark jumped right on it and did a 30 minute
workout. He likes it and is excited about using it too.
This will help my motivation.
I got up Saturday morning and jumped on again....this time pushing
myself to do a 10 minute workout. I put something mindless on
the TV and got busy. Well...this time I managed to push myself
to a 15 minute workout. I wasn't discouraged, felt good, and
remembered "baby steps". I haven't really "worked out" in over
5 years or more if you don't count child birth! heehee!
I found it was a little easier to find a better pace and am learning
to get my footing right on the machine. Also, I 'm not used to
something that MAKES you move your arms too. I've always used
a treadmill or stair climber. Both of these I stayed clear of
because of the effects they can have on your joints. As I am
getting older, I have been noticing more joint pain in my knees.
This I will attribute to 1.)being older 2.)genetics 3.)being
overweight for far too long and 4.) working with children, being up
and down a lot and standing on a cement floor. I have
been hearing good things about elliptical machines but will admit
that Mark and I made a blind purchase. We never tried one out
before we bought it. So far we are more than happy with it.
It will be fun to look back on this journal entry in a few months or
year and see if we feel the same!
Anyway, we skipped our workouts on Sunday as we were walking all
around the Farm Show and we walked back to the car instead of taking
the shuttle. Monday, after work, I put my soap on TV and
my goal was 16 minutes. Surprisingly, I was able to complete
the FULL 30 minutes weight loss workout! It was tough and
painful in some places but I DID IT! I felt great afterwards,
no muscle pain at all for the rest of the night or into the next
day. I played around with my foot placement again and trying
to set a better pace. I peddled backwards for a minute
too...yikes, that was tough and felt completely weird!
Today, again I completed the 30 minutes and felt much stronger, but
still had some tough spots. I think I kept my heart rate at a
better place too. I've always struggled with that...I don't
think I breathe correctly. Mark has been doing his 30 minute
workouts too. I think he burns about 10 more calories than I
do, so we are pretty much on the same track. We both "walk"
(it's more like a light jog) approximately 1 1/2 miles too.
So...so far feeling strong and will be curious to see how this helps
my weight loss/maintains for the year. I know it's what
I've been needing to do since I've been "stuck" around the same
weight for a few months now! I've gotten myself back on track
with my points and I am going to try and journal on here about it
more. Writing things down helps me to feel more accountable
for my actions! Another plus about my lifestyle
change is that Cole prefers the light foods, wheat snacks, soy
burgers, rice cakes, etc. Plus, he enjoys exercising on the machine
too! Now, if we could just get that boy to eat vegetables!
|
Fun
Weekend with Company
January
19th-21st,
2007 |
Jennifer and
Sarah came to visit us this weekend. Sam and his Daddy had to
stay home to take care of their goats. They thought one was
getting sick and/or she may have her baby! I was sad at first
that my buddy wasn't coming, but I recovered quickly!
They were waiting for us at our house when we got home from school
and poor Sarah wasn't really feeling all that great. Her mommy
gave her some medicine and then she seemed to be okay. We had
fun playing in my playroom with Lego's and Star Wars toys! I
did okay playing with her but then I just wanted to "be alone".
Then next day the "girls" all went shopping and Daddy, Sarah and me
stayed home and played and made some play-doh.
Next, all the girls left to go to Ms. Jen's baby shower. That
left me and Daddy alone all day to play Lego Star Wars on the Xbox!
I couldn't have been a happier kid...so happy that I didn't even
bother getting dressed! Mommy said the shower was really nice.
Jen and Darrin got a lot of great things to start out their lives as
a family! We got them a backpack carrier for Darrin to use
when we go hiking again with them, once the baby is old enough!
They loved it! I also picked out some blocks for the baby to
play with! Mommy brought me home a treat bag with chocolates
in it and she won a candle playing the "poopie" diaper game!
After the shower everyone went over to the Fisher's house and hung
out for awhile. I didn't hear anyone come home because I was
already in bed. Mommy said that they were really late because
they took Sarah to the ER in Hershey because she spiked a fever
again and her throat didn't look good and she was messing with her
ears. They checked her out and said she had ear infections and
probably strep throat! They gave her some antibiotics and I
hope that she will be feeling better soon!
Everyone slept in on Sunday and Jen and Sarah hit the road around
10am. They have a long drive home!
I had a nice visit with them too....even though they are girls...but
next time I asked (really nicely) if she could please bring Sam!
|
One Year On Weight
Watchers
January 23,
2007 |
|
From the mind of
Mommy again :) ~
So, today marks
the one year anniversary that I started using the Weight Watchers
plan to help lose all that extra weight I've been carrying around
for far too long! Well...I must say to this date I have lost a
total of 48 pounds on WW. A grand total of 63 pounds since I
started trying on my own in October of 2005! To be
honest...it's been easy most of the time. The Weight Watchers
program really works for me! I highly recommend it but only if
you are series to follow their plan. It's all about making the
right choices, portion sizes and counting those points. I did
have some rough spots over holidays, but was able to quickly
recover. I still eat out and enjoy foods that I like.
There are some things that I will never eat again though, like Chef
Boyardee anything (one can of that stuff equals almost 2 days worth
of points!) and regular soda or other beverage that is not diet!
I've grown to love vegetables, always liked them, just got lazy
about fixing them. Since I have added exercise to my weight
loss plan, I've noticed some pounds have peeled away. I think
I was stuck for quite awhile and that seems to have given me the
boost I needed. We'll see. As of 1/22/07 I weighed
156.5. The BMI thinks I should weigh 150 (or about 5 pounds
less) to be at a "desired-low-risk" for health problems!
Calculate YOUR
BMI!
This year as
another one of my resolutions (other than exercising) I think I am
going to try new recipes. I ordered a WW cookbook and can't
wait for it to come in the mail! I did try a new cookie recipe
that I found. The cookies were very small and they were okay.
Cole really liked them, so that's a plus. I may try them again
before making my final verdict on them. A new thing I made for
dinner the other night was a Spaghetti Squash! I can't believe
I haven't tried this gem before! It was great! I fixed
it in the microwave, browned some ground venison, mixed in a
low-point spaghetti sauce and topped with low-fat pizza cheese.
YUMMY! I even got Cole to eat a big bowl of it, telling him
they were a new fancy noodle I bought! HA HA HA! I don't
know the points exactly because ground venison has some fat mixed
into it, but venison steaks are only one point an ounce! So, I
figured it can't be that bad. If you don't have venison just
use lean beef or better yet, ground turkey! The squash, of
course, is ZERO!
I'll try and update once a month on here....it will help keep me
focused and I know people have been asking "how I did it"! I
want to keep it off forever...besides we are planning a trip to
Florida and I want to be comfortable on the beach!
|
|
|
