A Positive Attitude Means Everything!

This week began with me simply in a funk!  Driving to work on Monday I was sappy, weepy, and just down in the dumps!  My commute was spent whining, moaning, and crying to Michael, who always seems to say the right things to pull me out of my funk.  On top of that, my fashion for the day was even a downer - I was wearing pants, logo polo top, jacket, and FLATS!  A couple gals even asked "where's your dress and heels for today?"  I was off my game, which may be attributed to my having sugar along with an excess of red meat over the weekend.

However, the week has gotten much better!  I'm back on my abundant veggie plan and continued exercising every day.  In fact, today I walked without my teammates and kicked some serious booty!  Super fast walking twice around the building along with hiking twice up eight flights of stairs.  With my fleece jacket still on so I was sweating big time!  There were also a few more unexpected blessings that occurred and for those I'm grateful.

I'm looking forward to finishing up this week then counting down the days to our final Biggest Loser weigh-in on Monday.  The contest may soon be over but my journey to improved health has just begun!!

Coffee, Tea or Lionel?

Oscars Bid Adieu for Another Year

One of my favorite shows of the year, the Oscars, was on last night.  It was fairly predictable....Anne Hathaway won the supporting actress award, Argo won best picture, and Daniel Day Lewis was once again best actor.  Seth McFarlane promised to be humorous; however, I thought he fell flat.  He should stick to singing, dancing and Stewie, whom I find to be hilarious!  Charlize Theron dancing with Channing Tatum was to die for and hearkened back to the glorious 30's.   

The fashions had their ups and downs.  Sally Field - you are still too young to wear such a matronly dress!  The dress she wore was more suited to a woman of Helen Mirren's age, and she was sporting pink hair!  Melissa McCarthy, comedienne with the top rated movie this week, looked so blah in the gray dress.  LOVED Guliana Ransic's dress!  Wondered why Brandi Glanville, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills fame, was at the Oscars and who told her the ill-fitting, abundant boobage gown looked good?  Norah Jones looked spot on in her yellow fifties dress with matching hair.  Jane Fonda was preserved to perfection.  Nicole Kidman's daughter picked out her dress....ugh, not a good move. 

Adele looked back to form from the Grammy's....sparkly dress and to-die-for hair and makeup!  I'm going to download her pic to my phone so I can aspire to look this wonderful!

Making Up for Lost Time

Last night was the first time in so long that the Blue Jacket Diva's were able to get together.  We met up at Parker's Steakhouse then sat in the lounge enjoying cocktails then dinner.  I exercised and saved up my calories for the day in order that I could indulge.  Prime rib, baked potato, and a few Malibu Rum and Diet Cokes hit the spot.  We swapped stories, laughed, toasted each other, then made fun of the really bad band in the lounge.  Friendship....it's a good thing!!

Key to Target Clearance

Ran across this Pinterest item - very useful!! 

EVERY Target shopper NEEDS to know this: If the price ends in 8, it will be marked down again. If it ends in a 4, its the lowest it will be. Targets mark down schedule. - MONDAY: Kids Clothing, Stationery (office supplies, gift wrap), Electronics. TUESDAY: Womens Clothing and Domestics. WEDNESDAY: Mens Clothing, Toys, Health and Beauty. THURSDAY: Lingerie, Shoes, Housewares. FRIDAY: cosmetics.

Glowing Green

Big sis Luna sent me the following link regarding the Glowing Green Smoothie.  This recipe is by a "celebrity" trainer, who encourages you to have one as the perfect start to your day.  Looks interesting and I may just have to try it.  She's also has a ton of other information on her blog which will be useful for my weight loss goals.

Courtesy of: Kimberly Snyder

TGIF!!!

Wednesday found me leaving work early due to a bad headache and upset stomach.  I believe I may have experienced my first and only migraine.  Arriving home I immediately went to bed and slept; waking up, I grabbed a snack then went back to bed.  My poor little head was just not feeling its best!

Yesterday my head continued to hurt some but I made it to work.  Although my daily walk was not calling me, I kicked my butt in gear and forced it to take the walk.  And you know what?  It actually helped! My headache disappeared and my mood was so much better after that walk!

Based upon my scale at home (where I weigh in au natural) I've lost another 2 lbs today, which takes me to a grand total of 19 pounds.  Only one more week left for the Biggest Loser contest but I'm looking forward to continuing on my weight loss journey.

 

Barbie Before and After

Isn't this funny? Barbie looks about 12 when she isn't all decked out with her fake lashes and lipstick!!  She's just like the rest of us - with a little oomph, she becomes an icon!!

Biggest Loser for the Week

Teammate Bobby sent me proof today that I had finally won the Biggest Loser for the Week at work!  Yee haw!!!  The sign is right next to my symbol...a high heel.  Here's to continued progress!!!

Bedroom, Birthday, and Bathtub Faucet

Two extra days off from work led to the accomplishment of many home projects.  For Valentine's Day I broke out my new $3.49 red clearance dress from Ross then enjoyed a sweet Valentine's dinner with Michael, including pink tulips and candy.  On Friday, we made our way to Portland; in search of the perfect pair of running shoes, we stopped at the Nike Outlet.  Alas, nothing had the right cushion or was in my price range so we departed with only a couple of Nike clearance tees.  Our last stop was Jantzen Beach before heading home...wow!  It is in huge remodel mode! Most of it was torn down and stores had been relocated nearby while the new strip mall is being built.  It is about time - such an artifact from days gone by and definitely needed a makeover.

Saturday we spent an entire day installing a new garbage disposal.  For the past few days the sink was clogged and we discovered a crack in the current disposal.  Enlisting the help of Sam, the old disposal was swapped out with the new.  After a dose of Draino Maxx Gel, the sink drained fine Sunday morning and the disposal purred like a charm.  Now if I could only figure out why there is water in the bottom of the dishwasher.

Saturday afternoon we began switching out my bathtub faucet with a new one.  Unfortunately, after finally removing the skanky old one, we discovered the new one was the wrong model.  Sunday morning found me up bright and early returning the wrong model for the right one at Ace.  Arriving back home, we installed the new one and voila!  The faucet works like a champ!!! 

Following that accomplishment, we moved my bedroom around to give it more space.  When it was time to move the dresser, there was good news and bad.  The bad news was I had crammed so many items into it that clothing had fallen into the back.  The good news is I found an abundance of my missing underwear and bras!!!  Made me so happy!!  It was also a sign to clean out my underwear and tees to give me room for my favorite items.

Following a late lunch, we stopped at JC Penney so I could spend my $25 birthday gift card from co-worker Andrea.  It bought me a fabulous black leather purse!  Thanks Andrea!!

Also on Sunday we celebrated my Sam's 18th birthday!!  I'm now the parent of two adults....wow!!   It's exciting to imagine what life will be like after Sam graduates - possible big adventures in store for all of us! 

It's the Weekend!!!

Isn't the following amazing?!!  I think so!  Today I celebrate a four pound loss, which takes me to 17 lbs loss so far.  Yippee!!!  Only two more weeks until the Biggest Loser contest is finished; however, the results don't matter because my team and I will be continuing on after the contest is over. 

Enjoy the weekend!!!  In honor of my weight loss I've taken Friday and Monday off from work so it will damn sure be a great weekend!!!

 

 



I'll Be Watching You

Sister Luna sent me the following link after my post today about departing Facebook. So true!!!   These are The Kinseys.

Keepin My Chin Up and Distractions Out!

Determined to maintain an optomistic mindset, I've put a few changes in place to ensure I'm focusing on the positive.

First off, I prepared numerous Post-It notes with affirmations to keep my spirits high and focused on positive outcomes, along with a few reminders about the changes I've made and plan to continue.  Along with writing my own original affirmations, I searched the Internet and found a ton that spoke to me, including:

*I respect myself and deserve respect from others;
*I treat myself with kindness and patience;
*I have the right to be wrong and the right to make mistakes;
*I am thin!

Each day when I get ready for work, I read these notes to myself in order to keep the important things in mind. 

Second, after much deliberation, I deactivated my Facebook account.  I found myself checking it in the morning, during the day via my phone, then at night.  For some reason I thought there was going to be some exciting news for which I may miss out when in actuality it mainly serves to be a vehicle for bad jokes, ramblings, and discussing nothing in general with the majority of people I never see in my life.  In a nutshell, it had become a time waster and I decided I have better activities to perform in this life than wait until something exciting occurs in others' lives.  So I deactivated my account, which doesn't mean I've bid it adieu forever, just simply taking a well-needed break.  So I can fit in real life during my day rather than observing other's lives from a distance.  If any friends needs to contact me, the important ones have my email address.

Trying Something New

Yesterday I skipped foundation and my skin looked so good I figured I'd skip it again today.  Now, usually my face would never exit the front door without a layer of foundation, concealer, powder, etc.  But lately after applying moisturizer, primer, and some ELF highlighter under my eyes, my face looks better before I added my foundation.  So I figured I'd roll with it; today I used a little concealer, a very little powder, then blush.  Turned out pretty good so I may keep this habit up for awhile, or at least until age spots begin showing!!!

What Happened???

Adele, what happened?  You are usually so fabulous but you showed up at the Grammy's last night wearing Great Aunty Esther's couch!!!  No becoming at all.  I understand you wanted to mix it up from your standard black gown but this was taking things too far!!  Poor thing - with the hair and all that I'm thinking you were just having a bad night!

And J.Lo....didn't you look in the mirror and think "gee, this pose reminds me of someone....hmmmm, oh well, I don't remember!"  It was Angelina Jolie who wore this look in the first place!!  Nothing like repeating an A list actress's  highly publicized picture!!

Casinos, Coral, and Crack

This weekend found me bonding with my co-workers with a night on the town.  Bobby (our designated driver), Kim and I all met up at her house to get ready before making our way to the casino to try our luck on the slot machines.  Kim was kind enough to let me dig in her closet, filled to the brim with my style of clothes.  She let me borrow a coral pink tank and cardigan - loved it! 

At the casino, we all won some then lost some; after a few drinks, I talked Bobby into grabbing a quick dinner because Mr. Hangover was not gonna visit me!  Kim declined to eat so she was in rare form; unfortunately, I have no photos to prove her wild and crazy night.

As we ate dinner, we met up with some more of our co-workers then ventured on to a homegrown dive bar in Rochester.  It had a Western vibe along with a dance floor, karaoke host, and wood-fenced pool table.  And a lot of crack, if you know what I mean by the picture below.  I had switched to water but entertainment abounded at the bar.  Men getting testy over the pool table, some broad who had been kicked out continuing to come in, and even local cops stopped by to deal with the floozy.  From what I heard, it was the bars last night open so the locals were in rare form.

We made it back to Kim's about 2:00 am, a very long night.  I had an extra bedroom to myself, complete with a twin hideabed.  Popping two aspirin along with the a glass of water, I had a very restful sleep.

Saturday found me recuperating, going to see Side Effects with Jude Law and Rooney Mara (probably give it a B); now it's Sunday and I'm channel surfing between the Grammys and Top Chef.  I'm pretty sure Top Chef is winning!

As a follow up to my Friday weigh in, I only lost .60 pounds but at least it was a loss.  Kudos to my teammates Bobby, who lost 3, and Christine with a 1.50 lb loss.  After indulging all weekend, I'll be back on the calorie bandwagon come tomorrow.  I also picked up some 2 lb hand weights to carry during my daily walks so I'm pumped about burning off those drinks I sipped Friday night.

 

TGIF!!!

Blonde - And No Gray - Becomes Me

Last weekend I set up an appointment for today with Abbie, the stylist who used to color my hair.  I hadn't been to see her in forever (like two years); she always does a great job so I decided it was time to visit her for my color treatment.  Her shop used to be located in the boonies; however, she is now working out of a shop closer to my home so it made an appointment that much easier.

Blonde suits me well but my hair needed a little more oomph so she added in light blonde, medium blonde, and a few brown streaks throughout my hair.  I previously texted her some pictures of what I had in mind; of course she worked her magic and it turned out great.  We also had a great time catching up on what's happened in the last two years.  Good thing I was in for a color because it took that long to swap stories.

My new hair color is a mix between the two below - without the weird face, or the length!

Blessings in Unexpected Places

Ugh, I was not in the mood to exercise today!!  Aunt Flo is knocking on the door and the thought of of brisk walking in the cold at lunch simply wasn't calling me.  Thankfully, bud Bobby said I had no choice so I strapped on my tennies and joined the crowd to fast walk around the lodge.  We walk around the entire resort, including the parking lots, so it's a good trek.  At the very far end of the back parking lot, I spotted something wet on the ground.  It was....a tee-shirt!  A new tee-shirt with tag attached!  Of course, it was on the ground, dirty and wet, but that wasn't going to stop me from claiming my find.  We were going to take two loops around the hotel so I left it there for my return.  Everyone but Bobby and me dropped off for the second loop; I ran in to my office real quick to grab a plastic bag for my find.

We continued our walk and I picked up my tee. As we continued on our walk, there sat in my path a lucky penny!  Oh, the unexpected finds were certainly abundant today.  And I would have missed them all if I hadn't gone on the walk.  It was a good sign and a blessing for me to stick it out and get some sweat in today.  That muffin top is on its way of being history!!!

No no to the muffin top!!!
 

Coffee and Cardio

For the second day in a row, I arose at 5am, changed into workout wear, and performed the Cardio Kickboxing fitness video from On Demand. Whew!  I'd much rather exercise in the morning; however, the routine of pajamas off/workout clothes on/workout clothes off to shower/work clothes on feels very much similar to shopping at Winco.  Groceries into cart/groceries out of cart/bagged groceries in to cart/bagged groceries out of cart to car, etc.   A never ending cycle of the same.  Perhaps I can sleep in my workout wear to cut out a step; however, falling asleep with bra in place is not a recipe for a good night's rest!

 

I'm Just Sayin.....

Here's a Diva original......now that my hair is long enough to French braid or have an updo, it always turns out just wrong!!!

Tis the Season for Pink

Here's my art project while I watched the Superbowl (okay, yes, I did watch it off and on.)  Pink and polka dots.....how adorable can you get??!!

Perhaps Top Chef Next?

Son Sam is currently taking a Teen Cuisine course at school and has brought that chef spirit home.  Today he was chomping at the bit to make cookies; after reviewing our available ingredients along with the cookbook, he settled on Chocolate Crinkles with a kick - instant Starbucks coffee in the mix.  So Mocha Crinkles.  Of course he wanted to do everything by himself so I was reduced to foreman status, simply pointing and instructing.

The cookies turned out well, at least from the quarter cookie I tasted.  Thankfully mocha isn't my cup of tea so these sweet treats won't be hard for me to avoid.

On to dinner!  Sam chose chicken fried steak along with cheese bread and "corn in a cup" to serve.  I was able to make some cabbage slaw with apple and light dressing just to have something green on the menu.  The corn in a cup recipe is from his buddy's house - whole kernel corn with juice mixed with chili powder and mayonnaise.  Not calling you?  Wasn't calling me either.  Luckily I was able to grab some corn without all of the extras. 

Sam's supper was fantastic but the best part?  He wants to make dinner again tomorrow night!  As long as he doesn't make more cheese bread....now there's my weak spot!

Chef Sam in the house

A Few of My Favorite Things

1.  Veggie Sandwiches - made with wheat bread, light cream cheese, light Swiss cheese, and tons of veggies like tomato, cucumber, sprouts, cabbage, red onion, etc.  Yum!

2.  Monistat Chafing Gel - as a face primer!  Love this stuff! 

3. Vitamin E Oil - A few times a week after washing my face at night, I rub Vitamin E oil all over my face.  My skin is rather dry so this treatment really gives it a good moisture treatment.  After my face, I run my hands through my hair to give it a little moisture as well.

4. Sugar Free Jello and Sugar Free Cool Whip - excellent treat.

5. Tropical Fish - Every morning I feed my little fishies then zone out watching them eat.  Occasionally I do this in the evening - meditating while gazing at the colony of fish.  Is it wrong that I've created a Peyton Place in my head for them? 

6.  My Disgusting Flip Flops - Had them for years but they are my immediate go-to when I'm at home.  Along with removing my bra, slipping my flip flops on means I'm home.

7.  Nail Polish - My new creative outlet has been painting my nails.  Glitter, beads, designs, bright, dark, neon.....loving all of it!

8.  Pinterest - A number one time waster but provides hours of imagination and tips.

9.  A Good Nap - Doesn't happen very often but I think it's calling me now!

Pita Pit, Psychopaths and Pencil Skirts

A weekend filled with renewal and creativity - just what the doctor ordered.  Saturday found me up bright and early going on a walk/jog around the neighborhood while it was still dark outside. After cleaning up (and sliding into a pair of jeans that were previously too tight for comfort), the road found me cruising to Vancouver Mall for some retail therapy.   There is something to be said about wandering around in a crowded mall that can take one's mind off the woes and angst of life.

My first stop was to meet up with Michael to exchange our items. It was a bittersweet moment; as cliche as it sounds, I do hope we can remain friends.  After locking myself in a stall at JC Penney and having a good cry, I set my sadness aside and focused on finding clearance bargains at a poor gal's price.  There were some surprisingly super deals - I purchased a couple of sweaters and two high-end bras, all at $5 a pop.  Other than a discount glitter nail polish from Claire's, the rest of my time was spent browsing, examining, smelling perfumes, people watching, and reflecting on life.

While at the mall, I stopped at the Pita Pit for lunch.  Great place and they outlined all the calories for each sandwich.  Yes, I'm humbled to admit I now read the ingredient list for my groceries and calorie counts for the food I eat.  The Chicken Souvlaki met my requirements so it was ordered; during my meal I plugged in my calororic intake to MyFitnessPal.  Diligence has been paying off for me so this habit is on my side.

After the mall my next stop was Goodwill, which was packed to the rafters!  Not sure the draw because there was no huge sale in sight; even the yellow half-off tags were few and far between.  After spending an hour browsing I departed with nothing, other than irritation at the children allowed to run under and through the rack of clothes I was reviewing.  I could tell my annoyance was getting full-board when the thought of kicking the little buggers came to mind.   The worst part was both parents were present and neither of them said "Johnny, quit running through that rack of clothes!"

Adding a piece de resistence to Goodwill, my last stop on the way to home was Woodland Walmart. Nuff said.

Last night my young men and I enjoyed a wonderful family film together - "Seven Psychopaths."  Blood, gore, Christopher Walken....what better way to end a Saturday night?

Today is Superbowl Sunday.  Which doesn't mean much too me but in celebration I spent another 45 minutes walking/jogging the hood this morning.  Today will be spent cleaning my room (arrrggg...never ending), doing laundry, and sewing two skirts.   Stylegawker, one of my favorite new sites, showed an easy way to make pencil skirts so one of my stops yesterday was at Joann's to pick up fabric at a cheap price.  Pink, microsuede at $3 a yard along with a really cool black/gray knit (shown below) will make two really cute skirts. 

Enjoy the Superbowl or whatever activity finds out you today!!!

It Was a Good Day!!

Today was a good weigh-in day!  I lost 5.40 lbs over the last week (which may have something to do with that Jillian Michael's drink I shared last weekend!)  After losing over 13 pounds total, I was number one for overall total loss for the second week in a row!!!  Yippee!!!  My two teammates Bobby and Christine are steadily nipping at my heels so I've got to keep my motivation high!  Christine lost 4 pounds and Bobby was this week's highest loser with a 9 pound loss!!  Because all three of us have been battling the crud, we were happily surprised that we each lost as much as we did.  No complaints here!!

It's Friday! It's Friday!!

It's Friday which means another weigh-in this morning!  The digits are looking good but can't report until I've stepped my polished toes on the official scale.

Have an awesome weekend, my readers!