Fell off the wagon!

Soo........I believe that my birthday is something to celebrate!  I like to spoil myself and surround myself with those I love......

Unfortunately, this year I sabotaged myself!  I didn't fall of the wagon, I was being dragged behind the wagon, holding on for my life!  I was doing so well on Nutrisystem and had lost 6 lbs in 9 days.  My gluttony began Thursday night and didn't stop until last night.  I didn't make any good food choices.

I did learn that bread is my ENEMY!  I feel disgusting!  I am not disappointed in myself because I knew what I was doing....but my body is revolting!  I feel like there is a gluey substance just sitting in my stomach...

So I woke up this morning with a new resolve......walked for 30 mins before I came to work, walked to work and plan to walk 4 buildings this afternoon.  I will follow it up with a 30 min walk with Sadie after work and then some arm cycling.......(I love my bike pedals and am getting definition in my arms).

I have had some ups and downs since last May, but didn't start trying to change my lifestyle and eating habits until February.  I am proud of the progress I have made and look forward to continuing the journey!

NutriSystem

Okay....before you judge....I KNOW I have the knowledge and tools to lose the weight without a pre-packaged plan.  I have been frustrated lately that my weight number isn't going down.  I know I am losing inches.....and I SHOULD be happy with that (and I am to an extent), but I want the weight to come down.

I decided to try NutriSystem because it is risk free.  At the end of the program, if I am not satisfied, I can call and get a complete refund.  I am hoping the program will kick up the weight loss.

I started today and am STARVING..........that just means I need to pack more non-starchy veggies for during the day because I can eat as many as those as I want.  I also need to drink more water because that keeps me full.

We shall see.......

Body Changes

It is has been almost a year since I posted.  Life threw me a curve ball in September and I was rushed into emergency surgery on September 9th.  I am one lucky girl and although, I may never regain all of the feeling in my saddle area, I am thankful every day to be walking and that I regained most of my functions.

My mother was a saint through my healing process!  She had to help me with things she hasn't had to help with since I was a small child.  My dog took on roll of protector and whenever I moved she would get my mom and make sure she came in to check on me.  She loves my dad, but wouldn't let anyone in my room unless my mom was there too.  It was very cute.  I also learned quickly who my true friends were and the people who were willing to put aside their fears and step up to the plate and send me positive vibes, joke about the ridiculous events occuring and let me cry when I needed to.  They all made the situation about me and I didn't have to worry about reassuring them I would be okay.

My surgeon was amazing and the day he discharged me, I was a little sad.

Through this journey I recognized I had been lying to myself about my size.  I always knew I was big, but didn't realize how big I got.  Nobody ever said anything to me and those of you who struggle with weight understand that sometimes when you look in the mirror, you don't see your true reflection staring back at you.

I made the decision to change my lifestyle.  It is a struggle everyday to make the right choices and I don't always do it, but I TRY and forgive myself when I slip.

I started using myfitnesspal.com to track my progress.  I exercise daily even if it is just for 30 mins and I joined the YMCA.

I have lost 30 of the MANY pounds I need to lose.  My goal is to be at 235 by the time I am 41 so I can zipline over the treetops in Costa Rica..........

I have been vocal about my journey because it keeps me honest.  I have now added a weight loss ticker to my blog so you all can follow me on my journey as well.  Slow and steady wins the race (or so I keep trying to remind myself)!

I plan to post a picture of me from last may next to a picture of me now in the same outfit so you can see the difference.  I didn't notice it at first, but the 30lbs definitely shows and I feel better everyday!

One Visit lots of VC's!

After a very long 10 years, a finally visited my friend Jeffe and got to meet his husband!  What a great weekend and just what I needed at the right time!  It is amazing to have people in my life I could go years without seeing and when we get together again, it feels like no time has passed!

Not only was I able to spend time with Jeffe, but I was able to cross some things off of my life to do lists!

I added another ballpark to my list making the count 19........lots more to go.  I am hoping to make it to Miami this summer to catch a Marlins game.  I loved the ballpark....we had great seats and the D'Backs won!  Maybe the best part of the ballgame was seeing a prostitute meet up with her pimp after failing to find a John at the light rail stop......that was definitely a first!

We spent the day in Sedona and Jerome which meant LOTS of wine!  I think I drank more this weekend than I do in a 6 month period and who would have thought I would find some of my new favorite wines in AZ?  If you are ever in the Sedona area, check out the wineries they have, you will not be disappointed.  Of course it is embarrassing to have to have the bartender help you add the tip to the bill......DAMN YOU WINE!

Here are just a few:
http://www.caduceus.org/
http://bittercreekwinery.com/

I was honored that Eric shared his family with me.  Great people, great food and a great time playing Catch Phrase.....I decided to not play corn hole...but enjoyed watching others play.  The weather was perfect, not too hot with a cool breeze.

The weekend went by fast, but I know it will not be another 10 years before I visit again.  Who knows...maybe next time we will head to the Grand Canyon or maybe I will head out there for the Tuscon Gem Show..........all I know is it won't matter what we have planned because it will be a great trip!

My Life Desires- Organize Recipe Book

So, it may not sound like that big of a deal, but I have had loose recipes scattered around my house for years.  I used to just keep the magazine or email that had the recipe in it but that caused me to have way too many useless items taking up valuable space.

This weekend, I went through all of my magazines and organzied the recipes into a 3 ring binder.  They are all in protective sleeves so they don't get dirty as I am using them while cooking.  They are organized by category. 

Now the trick will be keeping up with it as I get new recipes!

Easter

Easter has always been an important holiday for me.  Not because of the religious aspect of the holiday, but it has always represented time with family.  I remember going to church in our pretty new Easter dresses, hunting for eggs that the Easter Bunny hid in our yard, Easter brunch at my Godfather's house and spending time with my Grandfather and Crazy Nana!

I moved away from home when I was 18 years old and because of the distance between me and home, I rarely made it back to MA for Easter.  Easter was always difficult when I was not spending it with family.  When in college, my first year I spent Easter at my friend Patty's grandparents trailor park, my second year I spent alone in my room crying over a stupid boy, I have no recollection of my third year and my 4th year I spent with Heidi.  I don't have any recollection of how Easter was spent when I lived in TX, but can remember each of my Easter's in SF very clearly.

We always did Easter at my house on the island.  We usually had a good group of people.  Some came for dinner and stayed, some came for the after dinner drinking games, but everyone (even those I didn't really care for) was ALWAYS welcome.

I was really worried about my first Easter away from SF when I moved to SC, but my bestfriend (AK) came to visit and we had an amazing time....of course, shortly after that visit things were not so great between us, but hey, this blog is about Easter.  We went to FL and I was able to show him around Eckerd College, introduce him to my friend Al and take in a baseball game at Tropicana Field.

We lost my Godfather in February 2010 so I new last Easter was going to be tough for me.  Thankfully my friend Julie and I decided to take our first vacation together and it was life changing!  I was so thankful to be hanging out with a good friend in tropical paradise.

During Easter, I seem to cling to my Polish heritage more than any other time of year.  I try to cook traditional foods (even though I still have not mastered pierogies).  It seems to help me feel closer to my family and friends.

Don't get me wrong, the religious significance of Easter is not lost on me.  I still following my Catholic upbringing and give something up for Lent every year.  This year it was meat and I can't tell you how happy I am I will be eating meat in just a few days!  I love the idea of making a sacrifice or committment and following through with your agreement with Christ.

So whether you are religious or not, I hope each of you have a wonderful Easter and remember to reach out to your loved ones because you never know if they will be with you this time next year!

Lent

Lent in the Christian tradition, is the period of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Easter. Lent is a time of sacrifice for Jesus. The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer — through prayer, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial — for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, which recalls the events linked to the Passion of Christ and culminates in Easter, the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

According to the Canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, Jesus spent forty days fasting in the desert before the beginning of his public ministry, where he endured temptation by Satan.

I don't claim to be the best Catholic around, but over the past few years, I have renewed my relationship with God and have begun to embrace more of my faith.  Each year, I struggle with the decision of what to give up for Lent.  This year, the decision was even more difficult because normally I give up Dunkin Donuts iced coffee and then donate the money I would have used on the coffee to Big Brothers Big Sisters.  Seeing I have only had 5 DD iced coffees since January 1st, I didn't think that would be much of a sacrifice.

I thought about giving up soda...but for those of you who know me, that would have been UGLY!  I am addicted to caffeine!  I didn't want to give something up just for the sake of doing so, I wanted it to benefit me in some way.  I decided I would give up eating meat for Lent.  I am not a huge meat eater, but I do eat chicken at least 5 times a week and I have been going to brunch almost every weekend which of course has to include bacon or sausages.  Giving up meet will allow my body to "clense", it will force me to be more creative with the ways I utilize vegetables and more creative with finding good protein sources.

I have a few friends who have been sending me vegetarian recipes, but if you have any I would love to see them! Forty days is a VERY long time to go without meat, but they say it takes about 21 days to change a bad habit or create a new one, so...........I will give it my best effort and who knows what may come of it at the end of Lent.

 Last year, giving up DD did nothing!  I was so excited to find that Nassau, Bahamas had a DD.  When my friend Julie and debarked the cruise ship and arrived in Nassau, I literally bumped into a woman who was holding a DD bag.....I said (out loud) THANK GOD!  It may have been one of the best Easter's I have ever had! (right next to the trip to St. Petersburg in 2006 to a new ballpark and a visit with an old college friend).