The perfect view.

I'd like to say "I hate Thursdays", but let's get real. Homework Thursday is more like Homework Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Check it out: I'm actually just in the midst of procrastination (like a pro, if I do say so myself).

I'm going to try not to jinx myself by also saying that I think everything is finally slowing down. David is not working ridiculous hours, so we get to drive home without me having to wait on him or him having to wait on me (well, not for too long anyway). I'm getting off from work at a decent hour, getting my homework done, getting dinner ready, and yesterday, I even had time for a run. (Count it. Number two since I've been here.)

My run last night wasn't too bad. Minimal cramping. It's all a matter of staying properly hydrated and stretching more. But I did it. In this heat. With all the other crap going on. Without David. I need to stay on track. We've definitely fallen out of our pretty solid health routine. Patience, right?

Essie 'Devil's Advocate' and 'Set in Stones'

I know it's not Friday, but here's my Nail Files post anyway. I did the glitter on this number in the car on the way to work this morning...AFTER David spilled my entire bowl of cereal all over the center console in the car. Needless to say, I had another bowl as soon as I got home from work to satisfy that unshakable Fruity Pebbles desire. I had planned on leftovers (I hate them), but David decided to go to his sisters, so I'm all by my lonesome, and therefore, don't have to pretend I enjoy them.

On a sad note, I was really looking forward to my mom's visit this weekend. She had some sort of procedure done to alleviate the pressure she's been having for her hip, and can't make the 10 hour drive without anticipating excruciating pain. I guess I can understand. I'm just bummed. It's hard getting in some fellowship time when you live forever away from your church friends, and our neighborhood is full of older adults and families, rather than with people our age. It's great in most circumstances, but not when we're trying to make some friends. Luckily, my new bestie, Amanda, and I get to see eachother every. single. day. at work...so no lack for fun times there. This is how cool we are:

If you can't quite make it out, that would be a taxidermy armadillo that she's pretending to birth from her hoolie. This woman is nothing but class, I tell ya! (But for real, I love her.)

Southern lifestyle is definitely taking a toll on me. I think I said "y'all" for the first time in my life the other day. I smiled when it came out, thinking I must sound ridiculous. But it was alright. No one even noticed.

If you hadn't recognized the obvious difference in my picture taking, I broke down and got an iPhone. Notice how the nail picture is nice and clear and the picture of Amanda looks like I took it with a 1990's camera? Yay iPhone. Really though, I've been having problems with Boost service, and I end up getting a new phone every year. So I figured I might as well make the investment and get on board with AT&T. If you haven't added my new number, please do! It's on my facebook wall, for the friends who are too lazy to get on and check out my awesome picture timeline and haven't seen it.

Speaking of awesome, I think I promised pictures of our new furniture. Here's what we got!

Forgive my messy table. It is homework-procrastination time, after all. It's really coming together over here!

I need to get working on this homework. Stupid Ethics! Who needs you?! Obviously, it's not a good idea to have sex with the mentally unstable clients you're working with. I mean really.Why am I spending three hours working on this nonsense? *Shakes head* I just don't understand school. I spend so much time learning...well...hearing...a lot of common sense. Oh well. I'm only paying $50,000 to learn things I already know. No biggie.

Before I go, I'd like to mention that about a week ago, David woke up and told me about this crazy scavenger hunt dream he had. Today, the daily Groupon is a city-wide scavenger hunt in Charlotte. I bought 'em. One set for David and I, and another set for Amanda and friend. If we get to work as a team, I figured it'd be best to have some people who know plenty about the area, but I have a feeling we're just going to end up competing against them, get lost, get frustrated (David with me) and eventually give up. We'll see though. First prize is a cruise for two!

Happy Homework Thursday, dears. 

And Git er done.

xoxo

Busy bees

We have been busy, to say the least. Even though it hasn't felt like it the past couple of days. We've managed to sleep in a day or two, and somehow found ourselves asleep before 9pm a few days this week. We're so old!

Monday! Whew! Talk about out of shape. I couldn't believe we'd only been sans exercise for a month. You'd think it was a year! While we both finished our very first Charlotte run with pretty decent stamina and buckets of sweat, both of my legs were cramping as I neared the end of my workout. With every step, I was anticipating falling head over spaghetti legs and flat on my face. More water, more potassium. Noted, body. It's three days later and I'm finally starting to feel some muscle relief. *Shakes head* This is an utter disaster. All that work....basically undone! The good news is that I'm more motivated than ever to get this whole "new beginning" thing under control. We're doing so well in everything else. As soon as we can get back on track with regular exercise, I think we'll be set.

4th of July 2011

Tuesday, we decided to ring in 4th of July at Dave and Buster's. It was fun to eat out, play games, and day dream about giant stuffed bananas. Against his better judgment, David has agreed to help me save up tickets so that, one day, I'll be the proud new owner of said banana. *Swoon.* He's so good to me!

Wednesday: Happy 4th!!! We spent a few hours swimming with the family at the Y, followed by extremely delicious food that led almost directly into napping. I woke up, ate more food, and then drove home...to sleep. I'm pretty sure we were both passed out before 6. I didn't even hear fireworks through my mini-coma. Did I mention old?

Today was a long day. We both had to be in to work at 6am, and left around 5:30pm. I had way too much coffee. I'm still a little wired. I'm anxiously awaiting my sugar crash--gratefully prolonged by apple pie and ice cream (did I mention we were eating healthier? diet fail.). I'm hoping to fall asleep within the next hour or so. I can't wait for Friday! (Nothing important is happening on Friday. Sadness.)

This weekend will be full of moving (I hate moving.) and niece-ing. Saturday, we're due a sleep over with the girls. And they get to meet Leo! Very exciting.

Hope everyone enjoyed a fun, safe 4th of July.

Happy birthday, America!

xoxo

The newest news that I know.

Let's talk about what I should be doing.

WHY must I have homework due (and lots of it!!) when important things happen in my life?

Seven days ago, I was fired from a job that I hated. Today, I was called by two new employers looking to hire me; one of which was in Tallahassee, the other of which was in Charlotte.

For all those not up-to-date on our business, we have spent the last week putting in dozens (literally) of applications. To be safe, we put in a few for Tallahassee. But we'd been hopeful that God would give us the opportunity to use this "end" as a new beginning. For a week, I've been praying hard, and asking for direction. When I got the call today about the position in North Carolina, I couldn't have been more ecstatic...or more sure that this is what we were supposed to be doing. I was practically screaming my excitement at David. And the job is perfect! More about that when it feels more real. For now, I just want to cry. So much to do in so little time. Leaving everything behind. Moving to a new place where I don't know anyone. Ya know.

So now it's that really annoying part of reality where I have to start thinking about expenses and have to make sure we have somewhere to live in the next week. We've got lots to pack, lots to toss, and lots to prepare for. Coming to Tallahassee was liberating because I knew I'd be out of my parents house, and on to new things. But sh** just got real, fools! For the first time, I'm taking a [monstrous] leap of faith without having much security. Soon, I'll be catching you up from our (gasp!) couch in our new apartment. What?

Oh, and while I have you here:

WE'RE NOT GETTING MARRIED. 

That seems to be the real issue (for the people we've told) with this whole moving in together thing. *Gag* Dealing with his night gas is enough. To damn myself for the rest of my life is a big step that I'm not willing to take just yet. But seriously. Let me help you off that high horse. I've been there, done that. Everyone remember Justin? Too soon, people. Too soon.

Moving right along.

If you're local and want to help, it would be much appreciated. We need some serious lifting and packing assistance. I believe we were talking about getting the truck on Saturday morning (19th) and heading out the same day. Unfortunately, this cuts into our first 5kness. Obviously, we can't be caught up worrying about 5king when we're planning on moving the same day. Priorities, right? Priorities and sadness. Speaking of fitness, I haven't run in what feels like forever. Homework and working out. Two things I have not attended to at all this week. Excellent.

That awkward moment when...

This weekend without David was strange. Waking up with a new boy in my bed provides additional, half-drowsy challenges. Though I'm sure Kossin wouldn't have minded a good morning kiss, I'm positive that David 2 (also known as boyfriend) would've felt encroached upon. It was a good weekend though. I never see enough of my favorite people (insert Lauren, Daniel, David, Angela, and Lee here) being as Tallahassee is literally in the middle of nowhere. Aside from being surrounded by other cities that are also in the middle of nowhere.

Saturday was spent mostly failing at everything. Our order ticket got lost when we went out to breakfast: cue 1.5 hours of waiting on a meal that would never come. After my first geocache (EPIC!), we picked up Mallory and headed downtown to the local crawfish boil. There was a cover charge to walk the street that didn't include the cost of food or drinks so we walked a few more blocks to check out the Saturday Farmer's Market...which apparently ends early in the afternoon. Then we drove across town to get smoothies and visit Mission San Luis (my favorite historical site in town). Surprise, surprise....closed 10 minutes prior to our arrival. We drove home and watched Easy A instead.

"My David" and I successfully finding my first Geocache. Also, WHY DON'T MY GLASSES EVER STAY ON MY FACE?

Additional awkwardness occurs when you're hanging out with the first guy you ever dated and his mother who pretty much thinks you're satan-spawn. Oh yea, and his entire extended family. Kossin always looks at me afterward, to which I usually respond with, "Don't. Say. Anything." Some encounters never stop being weird.

***

So, for any one who has attempted Insanity: kudos. Seriously. I didn't realize that the fit test would be so...high powered. I did half and then decided I'd rather run a marathon, naked, in the snow than do ten more minutes of the fit test. I settled for 5k, clothed, in Tallahassee humidity. Tomorrow's Day 1 should be an eye opener. Maybe we're in over our heads? It seems that jumping up and down and doing "power jacks" and scissor kicks only accomplishes one of three things: 1) Leo barks and pounces at my ridiculousness, 2) I scare myself as I hit the thin hardwood floor, sure I'm going to fall through, and 3) my legs--not my core--burn incessantly. I'm obviously doing it wrong, as well as sounding like a retarded dinosaur. If David still loves me after wedding dancing and embarrassing workout techniques, then he definitely deserves me. Or maybe it's me who deserves him. I'm a mess.

And briefly: this is my bajillionth week holding first place in our fantasy baseball league. Also, David tried to trade-rape me. Men don't know anything about how intuitive women are. But women always underestimate the ways in which men will try to manipulate them. You won't fool this girl!

I'll let you all know how Day 1 goes. Or doesn't. Stay classy, San Diego.

Not Nail Files...what??

I know, I know. You were really hoping for a nail file update. I've decided that I like the sleek look of my pink and whites, so I'm going to enjoy them for a little longer.


Surprisingly enough, I just had a hysterical conversation with a caller about how backward the state of Florida is, and how much "the system" sucks. Inefficiency! This state is ridiculous. But the more I think about it, the more I can acknowledge that I'm ready for employment change. Not because I'm bitter about how much my job description has changed since last year {ok, maybe a little}, but because my job has finally brought out the worst in me. It makes me angry, frustrates me, and creates inexcusable levels of aggravation and intolerance. I want to hang up on every person that calls, but not before telling them that FLORIDA is not the COUNTY that they live in (insert expletives here). On one hand, I wonder if God is putting me in these situations to amp up the pressure and give me something to try my nerves. But I go to bed at night dreading waking up at 6:30 am, and I wake up in the morning praying that I have a stomach virus, or some other unfortunate malady that will render me incapable of going to work. But like drugs, bad friends, partying, and living in a pretend-reality, I need to nip this in the bud as quickly as possible.

Needless to say, I've started job hunting and putting in some applications. We'll see how that goes.

Fitness Update! I got on the scale this morning only to find out that I lost another pound! Based on my poor diet choices last week, I feel pretty good about the loss, even though it's only one pound. Can I just say that I will NEVER again wait a week in between training days? Also, I will NEVER again forget to charge my iPod before a run day. Wednesday's run was SO painful on every part of my body, like I was running for the first time. I felt every pound of pressure, every stride, every time. I couldn't focus on my breathing (insert cramps here) because I was so focused on just finishing. At one point, I slowed down to barely jogging; afraid I would stop. It took some serious self-motivating to get myself going again. I was a mess, for real. Good news is that I ran a complete 5k in 35ish minutes, so less than 11 minutes a mile. Now if I could just stay focused on shortening my run time (to about 28 minutes), I'll feel good about May 19th. I'll have to run tonight and Sunday without David. Poo.

Last night, David and I reserved seats at Painting With A Twist. Paint and wine is the perfect combo! I had some delicious Beaujolais and enjoyed my typically horrendous artwork. It really wasn't that bad, but compared to David (no surprise here), I just sucked it up. I still hung it up in my room anyway. It was a blast. I recommend googling to see if there's one in your area.



We got to pick our own background color. David did a "sunset effect" and I chose a coral.



I had to cut Mr. "WHY DO YOU ALWAYS TAKE PICTURES OF ME?" out per his request, but notice that his hand still makes an appearance.



Look at David's awesome shading skills on the left, and then over at my color disaster on the right. Oh well.



This weekend, the boys are off to Melbourne for some camping/gambling/baseball/sans-women adventures. No road trip is complete without chicken teragon sandwiches and snack packs, though. These boys (mostly just mine) are so damn spoiled. I think I'm just overcompensating for the fact that I really want kids. Luckily, "my David" (Kossin) will be in town for Sandy's graduation; offering a comparable solace for "David 2"s absence. Maybe I'll be able to get some homework finished and some sleep while David 2 is away. One can dream!

xoxo

Bye Bye, Birdies.

I briefly mentioned here that David and I had registered for a 5k here in Tallahassee. If you have a chance, please read this article about fallen detective, David White. The David White Memorial 5k will be held on Saturday, May 19th at 9:00 at Tallahassee Community College campus. All proceeds and donations will be donated to the detective's family. If you're interested in walking or running, visit this site to register. It's cheap, it'll be a good time, and it's for a great cause. If you're in the area, please come out and support us!

Though I'm committed to being frugal {let's get real, I've never been frugal in my life...except when I have no money.}, I know that my weight loss journey demands appropriate gear. In this post, I talked about some of the stuff I want to help me get my butt in shape for up and coming 5k-ness.

I was able to get these from here. Vanessa from Ruffles With Love (an etsy shop) was absolutely awesome! On Monday, we talked about the possibility of her making the shirts and then getting them here before I left on Friday, and she was all for it! I checked my email Tuesday morning and I already had a tracking number waiting for me. That's some serious production power. Thanks, Vanessa!!

Also, I headed over to Target and picked up my first pair of compression shorts and four new {neon!} C9 sports bras: yellow, blue, pink, and lime. Perfect in time for summer.

Face it, I look fab. {lol.} But seriously. I'm feeling super good about my weightloss. I'm down 13 lbs since February. Sometimes I look in the mirror and don't feel like I've made any progress, but when I can fit into pants that I haven't worn in about two years....it's hard to deny.

A slight change of plans is allowing David to leave town with me on Friday. While I was anticipating spending five days away from him, it looks like I'll just have to be forced into his company. {Please.} It doesn't count that the real reason he wants to come with me is not because he'll miss me, but because he doesn't want to miss out on epic waterpark-ness going down on Tuesday. What a guy.

Anywho, I'm not sure how often I'll be blogging from South Florida, but I'll only be away from you fine readers until the 23rd. Look for my Thursday and Friday link-ups before I head out of town. Happy week, darlings!

The incredibly long post that describes my terrible pre-Easter Saturday.

School starts today.
South Florida in 4 days.
DB and David and Miami in 9 days.
Wedding in 11 days.
Busch Gardens in 12 days.

I hope everyone enjoyed their Easter/Passover weekend. Mine was absolutely ridiculous. Let me recap for you:

Saturday, David and I brought my car in for an oil change. Yay for knowing the manager and getting $20 off of my service (for a grand total of $18.60).

In the midst of making sure I have everything I need for the wedding, we headed to Ross to shop for a dress for the rehearsal dinner. After dragging David around for a little under an hour, I finally found four that I thought would be winners. Less than five minutes after I tried them all on, I realized that I had left my phone in the fitting room and went back to retrieve it...only to find it empty. Panic set in after trying to remain optimistic about the loss, but after making several calls to my phone, the "finder" (that sounds so much better than thief) turned it off. Lost forever.

As a side note: Friday night, David and I found a phone on a bench at the lake where we run. Despite his protests to just leave the phone where it was, I called the numbers on the recent call list to locate the owner, and was able to return it. You'd think I'd have stirred up some good karma, right?

Anyway.

I left my information with customer service, and we headed back to the house so that I could activate an old phone that I had before my Android. Weirdly enough, this old phone was apparently "tied to another account" that was not mine. It would take at least 24 hours to investigate. Needless to say, David and I made a trip to the store to get a new phone that I didn't have the money for.

After that was taken care of, we headed to the mall to take pictures with the Easter bunny as a favor to my mother (a long standing tradition that she cannot survive without). I would post it if I had thought to scan it in before work. My hair looked absurd (and had--very obviously, if I might add--caught in the bunny's costumed hand...sigh) and we have our thumbs up like idiots. But much appreciation to my wonderfully supportive boyfriend. He stood in line for a whole hour while nap-deficient, rowdy kids swarmed around us like flies. We rewarded our patience with Auntie Anne's pretzels. Also a tradition.

And just because:

Right before we left the mall, a man called to say that he had found "a phone" in his girlfriend's purse, and saw that David had texted to "do the right thing" with his phone number. I'd like to believe that he was, in fact, doing the right thing, but my Droid became absolutely useless after I turned off the service and flagged it for theft. Then we got the call that it was "found". I'm hoping it was just a coincidence. The pickup was arranged, and I was ecstatic. It was a few moments later that I realized that my new phone was useless...and a complete waste of money.

Dammit.

What we were looking forward to was our Easter dinner plans with Mallory and James. My mother had reserved us a Honeybaked Ham that we were headed to get after our mall adventure. When I called to confirm with her, however, she told me that was supposed to have picked it up before 3pm. Cue aggravation. After arguing with her, Mallory suggested that we go to the store to see if anything could be done.

We went.

They provided.

Yay, ham.

Before heading back, we stopped at Sam's for remaining Easter dinner ingredients. Bravely, I decided to call my bank to see how much money was left from my pathetic paycheck. Did I even have enough to make the drive to South Florida? When I heard the balance, I almost had a heart attack. My new, non-smart phone phone was incapable of bringing up my bank account, so I used Mallory's. That number was no lie. I had miraculously acquired a substantial amount of money. What?? A little more investigation revealed that after two months of waiting for my tax return claim (there was some information that needed to be disputed), it had finally posted to my account. It was all I could do to hold back the tears in the middle of the checkout line. God is SO good!!

Sunday was much less frustrating. Church, nap, cooking, dinner, walking, David's house, Pirates of the Caribbean, home, Airplane, sleep. I meant to take a picture of our superb cooking, but I was too busy being a lard. I ate everything in sight. Yay, diet. We even decided to forego Day 2 of Week 8 in remembrance of the Resurrection Day (ie. we're fat and lazy and needed nap time). Also, most of my nails broke throughout the day. So now they're short and useless. Perfect timing, nails.

Oh, and David and I have registered for our first 5k on May 19th. If you're local, support the cause here.

***

There is still so much to be done before I leave for South Florida this Friday. I'm requesting prayers for David's sanity this week. I suppose for mine, as well. I can NOT wait for this month to be over. Happy Monday, dolls!

BEAST MODE

I'm super excited for all things healthy. It inspires me daily to keep working as hard as I can. When I'm able to get some breathing room to develop my fitness wardrobe, there are new things to get for my lifestyle change:

I absolutely can NOT wait to get a garmin GPS watch. I'll be able to track my time and distance.  

I'm frequently worried that my iPod touch (and soon, my iPhone!) will get drenched when it rains and I'm running. I'd like to have more protection for those pricey electronics!

These Ruffles With Love tanks are to die for! I'm going to get a few :)

And this one from personTen.

 

C9 by Champion (available at Target) has gotten great reviews. I need these compression shorts!

I also need some new SUPPORTIVE bras. The ones I have just aren't cutting it for me.

Aside from getting new and properly fitted shoes around August, this should at least make running more comfortable, if not more enticing.  

xoxo friends!!

Energizer Bunny arrested, charged with battery.

I felt so silly on Thursday and Friday. I feel like this is a typical end-of-the-week debacle. Today, not so much. The weekend is never long enough.

I generally hate when people take pictures like this, but I'm so ecstatic about 1)  my weight loss and 2) my awesome hair. Forgive my crooked smile. I shamelessly took this photo in the bathroom at work. Not on the toilet, mind you. Behind me, there's a sitting chair in the handicapped (shameless, I tell you!!) stall, you know...in case you bring a friend. So check it out! My hair is finally back to dark brown, rather than the light brown that was slowly getting blonder and blonder. And it's getting so long! I'm super excited about that. In about a year, it'll be the perfect length of long.

Fitness Update:
Wednesday, David and I ran Day 1 of Week 7. After what seemed like an eternity, I started getting discouraged because my calves were aching and I was incredibly waterlogged from having had too much water after church. The "you are half way" voice had yet to ring through my headphones, and I was sure that I wouldn't be able to make it any further. Complete relief rushed over me when I begrudgingly looked down at my stop clock....10 seconds left. What! I don't know why the "you are half way" AND the "one minute left" never sounded, but I was happy to know that I had kept my legs and my nausea under control.

We were supposed to run on Friday, but it was raining. We opted to run yesterday, but we laid down for a few minutes after Nuberri and fell asleep for the night with the light on.  So it looks like we're behind on our schedule, but we'll keep chugging through and finish day 2 in a few hours.

And.

HOORAY for the end of March Madness. I came in a spectacular last place. Surprise, surprise. I'm being roped into Fantasy Baseball, but I think that I'm going to back out of that. Sports fanatics that I know are telling me that it's tedious and gets boring too quickly. I've agreed  to "try it out" (ie. do the draft, drop out 3 weeks later) for David's sake.

Sports-related: Meridian Woods Centurions won their softball game on Thursday! It's like the Heavens opened up and God finally had mercy on our wonderfully terrible boys. Go, team!

And!

Let the count down to Lauren's wedding begin. I'm still concerned about my decision not to get my dress hemmed (it's really not too long). I might get one of my "moms" to hem it for me when I get into town. But I love the dress. I'm ready to get this thing moving. So much still to do!

Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend. Stay blessed :)

Carolina Swag

Prise de conscience: realisation

I am very much in love with David Hindman. I revel in that every single day.

I never attributed my level of happiness to how close I drew to God.  

I can't remember ever being as happy as I am now. It speaks for itself.

I want to live in NC. In David's dream house. With the three "guest" bedrooms.

We've slimmed down so much since then! (10/2011)

Decisions that need to be made about my projected path in graduate school have been creeping up on me lately. Licensure laws and requirements to become a licensed mental health professional are different for every state. And it costs a hell of a lot of money to get licensed. I'm slightly worried about where to get licensed, knowing very well that I won't be in Florida forever. And hopefully not even too much longer. This anxious feeling I'm having is incredibly premature, but I can't shake it. I'm used to knowing and planning and doing. Even as I type this, I know I should be praying harder. But I'm impatient for answers. I'm good at being spontaneous. This situation demands just the opposite. Hello, reality.

Fitness Update:
Day 3 of Week 5 was a breeze! Warm up for 5 minutes, jog for 20 minutes, cool down for 5 minutes. Day 1 of Week 6, on the other hand, was brutal. David and I thought it would be easy; we were back to interval training. We'd already done it. Run for 5, walk for 3, run for 8, walk for 3, run for 5. By the time I was halfway through with the 8 minute interval, I was done. Winded. Exhausted. Mentally defeated. While this could be for a ton of different reasons (wearing a sports bra that has become too big, forgetting to use my inhaler before the run, speeding walking two miles with Monica the day before, the 90-ish-degree-pollen-filled weather), all I'm really left with are excuses. Though I made it through without stopping, I can't help but feel disappointed in my body.  It was so frustrating! Not to mention, it's been so hard to eat healthy. I've been so hungry. I can't afford all the fruit and filling, fat-free stuff that I'd been eating with all the wedding stuff and the whole "providing for two" situation (not that I'm complaining, darling). I'll just be glad when the wedding is over and I can get back on track with my finances. If David can land this job with Florida Commerce, I can start saving again. Then a move to NC wouldn't seem so unrealistic. If I could just save between $7,000 and $10,000 over the next few years, it'll be easy.

Week 6, Day 2 was much easier. I'm enjoying the long distances much better. Yesterday, we flaked out on our running, which means we'll be running Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday this week. I was disappointed that we didn't stick to the schedule, but sometimes quality time together is more important than our "to do" list.

Other news:
Everyone's talking about it, so I'm sorry for the repetition. (I'm not.) The Hunger Games movie was...decent. I enjoyed the slight character development that was only suggested in the book, rather than actually explored. And for the sake of "theatrics", the movie wasn't that far off (ahem...Harry Potter) that I was upset. Most noteably, the "pin" situation, and Haymitch's character (even though Woody is awesome). All in all, it was alright. Stanley Tucci (Ceasar), Jennifer Lawrence (Katniss), and Josh Hutcherson (Peeta) were great. I would see the other two if they came out as movies. As a side note, I wasn't gunning for Peeta until I read the third book, Mockingjay. Also, read the books before you see the movie. It's a must.

Saturday, I went to a "spa night" with some ladies from my church. While I didn't really get spa'd up, I got to enjoy some great company. I painted a lot of nails, and got to work on my french manicure skills. Oh. And I made my own foot scrub! I was hesitant about adding food coloring to the scrub (it was an awful diarrhea yellow), but after testing it on myself, I knew it would be fine. For about a week, I had been considering opening an Etsy shop after experimenting with a few scrubs. I'm thinking this summer will slow me down so that I can concentrate on some products, and maybe get together with Brittany so she can sell her awesome homemade polish.

May the odds be ever in your favor!

David is knee deep in The Hunger Games. And I'm in full Hunger Games mode. I'd go to the midnight showing on Thursday if I weren't so old and tired. I only go to midnight showings to see RP (we're on an initial-only basis).

It seems to be an ongoing trend that I've ceased taking pictures when I'm having a good time. When I get my new iPhone, I'll taking and posting ridiculous amounts. Our weekend in Orlando was great. Turns out that I was desperately in need of girl time. I got a little migraine/nauseous on Saturday night and had to catch a cab back to the hotel from CityWalk, but that was the only hiccup. Thank God for mini-golf, outlet stores, and Tu Tu Tango.

Skylar, Lauren, Me, Amanda, and Jessie in the center!

Lauren and I on St. Patty's wearing not one speck of green!

And some mustache greatness.

***

Back to the Hunger Games, I really want these (these particular ones sold from Etsy, but I want ones like it):

Now that David is reading the books, he'll understand why I want them. :-D

And last, but certainly not least: David and I are starting week 6 of C25K this week. Yesterday, we finished our last day of week 5: running for 20 minutes with no walking. I thought it was going to be difficult, but it seems that it was just in my head. We both finished strong. Such progress is exciting!!

Look for my watermark tee tutorial tomorrow. See you soon, lovies.

Weight loss: Week 4

Some weight loss updates:

Forgive the awkward leaning in the second picture that makes me look pregnant. I was reaching over David's shoulder.

I took the first picture in September 2011. It's a pretty similar representation of the weight I was when February 2012 rolled around. So for all intents and purposes, let's just say that picture one is my starting point (though, I was probably heavier). Also, 185 is my last known weight-in around December/January. That also might be an under-representation. I don't have a scale, so my current weight is unknown. SOON!!! But the picture definitely shows the differences in just 4 weeks (second picture taken at the end of 3 weeks). Notice the thinner face and smaller chest (some people are not as pleased with the latter). I've even got some chin definition going on! I'd rather lose the weight from my midsection than from my chest, but I'll take what I can get. One step at a time!

Confessions:

I crave everything sweet on a daily basis.

I hate that I can't eat sweets.

I can't eat sweets because I have no self control or concept of moderation.

I hate that David is so much better at 5k-ing than I am.

I wish my legs were longer.

Currently, David and I are on week 5 of our 8 week C25K program. It's started to kick my butt (thank you, asthma), but I'm pushing through and trying to regulate my breathing. After we're finished with this, we'll be continuing our running and adding in some other training (Insanity is a good possibility). This woman's blog has been inspiring me to eat better and train harder lately. And thanks to an awesome local workout page (Super Awesome Workout Semester, or SAWS) started by my friend Nathan, I've discovered this 5k-10k training program AND heard about this awesome Zombie 5k in November.

Hooray for lifestyle changes.

Hooray for accountability.

Hooray for good workout music.

Catching Fire

On a slightly random, unrelated note: only 17 more days until The Hunger Games premiere!

I hate to admit that I've neglected you all week. The week started off ridiculously slow, but toward the end of last week, things were crazy as we got ready for our trip to Charlotte.

Last week:

David and I went to the Duke vs. FSU basketball game. It was my very first (yay, new things)! We seemed to be two of maybe four Duke fans in our section, but sports controversy is something I'm good at (Go Yankees). After all that, they go ahead and lose (despicably) to North Carolina (look at me talking like I know something about basketball). Speaking of sports, apparently I'm participating in March Madness. I'll be sure to keep you updated on my terrible team picking skills.

While I'm thinking about it, I've recently decided that I'm a fan of double dates...or even just group get-togethers...as in we need to start going on them. David and I rarely get pictures together because we go out/travel alone. And I'm not really a fan of this:

Anyway.
After church last week, Mal and David went with me to pick up a craigslist find that I'd been working on securing all day. I've always wanted a "tall" bed. One that people have to struggle to climb. One that Leo has to get a running start to jump. I thought what I needed was a new bed frame, but what I really needed was to put a box spring underneath the tempurpedic. After a totally sketch trip behind the Tallahassee mall, I was able to create the perfect tall bed.

AND! I've finally finished my pallet shelf after months of trying to get it done. Another big "Thank you!!" to the best man ever for cutting and sanding it. It took some doing, but it's beautiful. I also did a major clean up last week (even though my room is generally clean) and threw out a bunch of old stuff, filed important papers, shredded incriminating useless documents, and organized my closet and bookshelves. It's amazing how much stuff can fit into one tiny room.

****

Usually, people find themselves distracted by fantasies and day dreams. Daily, I find myself distracted by the second most incredible thing in my life. Sparing you the sappy, gushy romance, I'll try to make this quick...

Recently, I'd reread all of my old blog posts. It's hard to deny the transparency of pain and aggravation through my words; a tumultuous rush of frustration and slight regret. Did I say slight? I mean, I don't regret it at all. Without such ridiculousness, I never would be where I am today: carefree, drama-free, stress-free, and in love with a extraordinary man of faith, patience, and understanding. I wake up every day and go to bed every night thanking God for the riches I've been blessed with. I've heard that you'll never appreciate happiness if you've never experienced sadness. This has certainly proven itself to be irrefutable. These days, love, trust, honesty, and God-centeredness are few and far between. I am so utterly blessed. With that being said, it's not hard to believe we've made it 6 months (woo!) without angry tears, screaming, or frustrated expletives.

Moving right along.

Charlotte was great, but exhausting. I met so many splendid people over the weekend. It stirred that seldomly quenched desire for a "good" family; decent even. While there are a few people that stick out in my mind as spectacular, loving, trusting, supportive family members, I could count them on one hand. Spending time with David's family, while so inviting, made me feel the strong absense of family in my own life. Knowing the reasons that I have yet to introduce David to my family makes me apprehensive to have him spend five days in South Florida with me in April. At least he understands that their behavior is not a reflection of me. I might as well have been adopted.

We were doing so well! Let's redirect.

We found ourselves in bed every night before midnight over the weekend. We ate a lot of healthy food (not hard when you're visiting healthy people), but treated ourselves to some birthday cake. We even managed to get our butts up and train before heading home on Sunday. (Which actually ended up being an adventure.) Running without my glasses with a vaguely memorized map in my head--my inhaler left somewhere in the house--did not make for the easiest training day, but 30 minutes and a heart full of worry later (I got lost, David was worried and came searching for me), I couldn't help but feel accomplished. Our running schedule has been variable, but we've managed to stay on task and complete three days each week. Today is our first day of week 4. Halfway there!

Have a great week, guys.

Catch up with my link-ups Thursday and Friday!

Stress: nothing more than a socially acceptable form of mental illness

FRUSTRATED!



David, do you see what I see?

A few times a year, I get into a funk that makes me feel rushed and even more claustrophobic than usual.

But let's start with the good:

1) I never got to blog about my trip to Islands of Adventure with David, but it was perfect. It was really the first time we've taken a spontaneous trip (a large feat for the man who meticulously plans everything). I've decided to keep the trip to myself. Oh, and if you haven't already: GO TO HARRY POTTER WORLD!

2) I bought cute, reasonably-priced running shoes. They're both comfortable and chic.

3) I started making my Valentine's Day cake pops. The heart molds came out great!!

Not mine, but similar!

4) The group's first two days of 5k training were a success. I'm sore. But it's wonderful. Turns out that the C25K app (free!) is perfect.
5) David and I are joining Weight Watchers to help get us in shape and lay a foundation for long-term healthy eating habits.

6) My first graduate class was a success. "A", baybay! (Please laugh.)
7) This upcoming weekend is the hockey game; the details of which have been worked out so that we can head to Tampa after our soccer games.
8) The Tallahassee weather has been absolutely excellent!
9) I've been reading the Hunger Games series, and I'm on the last book. I recently ordered The Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy: Shiver, Linger, and Forever. I didn't initially want to read these, but I've heard good things.

And the not-so-good:

1) I had a mini episode (in my mind) when I found out that David didn't want me to make him cake pops for Valentine's Day. I hadn't really come up with any creative, non-cliche back up plans, so I felt like a crummy girlfriend. That and I had spent too much a decent amount of money on all the supplies. Some good came out of it, though. We decided that not making a big deal out of the stupid day will make us both feel less obligated. I felt a little better. And now I can refine my cake pop making skills for Lauren's bridal shower. Here's to thinking positive.

2) Leo (my dog) peed on my mattress yesterday morning (right after my shower, 20 minutes before I had to leave for work). Not just any mattress, mind you. A cashmere, tempurpedic, unwashable mattress. I called in late, tried some oxyclean (which, in turn, bleached it. damn it.), tried some carpet cleaner, and after scrubbing it profusely, put my fan close by to help dry it. I now have new sheets and a waterproof mattress protector.

Not leo, but kind of Leo.

3) The great weather I mentioned is not so great for 5k training and asthma.

4) I worked on the cake pops last night. Turns out that the molds were too thin for even the super skinny lollipop sticks I bought. Thankfully, David was there to reassure me that my crisis had a solution, and I combined two cake pops with the stick and some chocolate in the middle to make one giant pop. The candy melts were a whole other issue. I tried to lower these incredibly heavy pops into the chocolate, and ended up losing some cake. So the frosting job was shotty, at best. I quickly ran out of chocolate for this first batch, and only ended up with four pops. Frustrated and discouraged, I decided that that was enough for one night. I will say, though, that David really did a good job of consoling me about my baking failure (thank you, darling). Truthfully, the cake pops were delicious, and my standards for the aesthetics were too high.

All in all, there's honestly not much I need to be stressed about. I think it's really just the prospect of going out of town a lot in the next few months, and helping create the best (and hopefully only) wedding experience ever for my best friend.

February 17th-19th: Orlando/Tampa for hockey game
March 3rd-4th: Charlotte with David
March 16th-18th: Orlando for Lauren's bachelorette party
March 24th-25th: Camping with the gang
April 13th-22nd: West Palm for Lauren's wedding-ness

Between the trips, I'll still be working (we're losing another person at work...still not hiring new people), training for the 5k, trying to eat healthy, and getting my course work finished. Prayers for strength!

Oh, and HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Coming to terms with reality? I'd say so.

I wanted to start my first blog of the week with pictures from our wonderful day at Islands of Adventure, but I woke up this morning with a different nagging blog topic.

I have been making a better attempt to decrease my sugar and calorie intake by minimizing the amount of dessert I eat, drinking mostly water and coffee, and returning to a fast-food-free lifestyle since I dated (and almost married...ugh) a fast-food enthusiast. Being a generally healthly, incredibly physically active child/adolescent/young adult, I never anticipated the effect that losing control for just a few months would have on my body. I first noticed how out of control my weight had become when David and I were in Georgia last September. Now that it's February, I'm feeling fat enough to do something about it.

I got a gym membership at the YMCA for a few months later last year, but the monotony of working 8-5 began to drag me down at an alarming rate. Like any slightly depressed, recently single and even more recently not-so-single, overweight woman, I started off determined to get back to where I had been just one year ago. You know how they show commercials of intense weight loss from "one year ago" to "one year later"? I did the exact opposite. In September 2011, I'd gained a wonderful 50 lbs since December 2010. I like to blame on it the stress and upheaval that occured during the Justin phase, but you can really only blame being out of control and abstaining from exercise on yourself.

And it just continued to get worse.

I tried to stick with the gym, but I got discouraged when I couldn't find a work out partner. It was harder and harder to keep going everyday while I lacked motivation. So then I started walking (convenient...free...). My roommates were also determined to shed some pounds, so we all agreed to set up a walking-plan around the neighborhood, which would total (2) miles a day, every day. Unfortunately, they (sorry to call you guys out) started to fall out, and I found myself walking alone; upset at the lack of commitment and certain that I, too, would eventually begin to avoid the daily walk. Low and behold, a string of missed days followed by the end of that pact confirmed everything I supposed would happen.

Here's the beginning (December 2010): 

This wasn't even the height of my health kick (that's what I get after dating a health and exercise nut for three years)! Simply the beginning of the end...

And here's what I'm working with (September 2011):

Check out those rolls...and the chin(s)!

The picture above is from September. I can only imagine that four months and two fat holidays (Thanksgiving and Christmas) later, I've only gotten heavier. Needless to say, I feel DISGUSTING, ugly, and miserable; and I'm pissed because I keep having to buy clothes that I swear will be too big for me, but really end up being too small. Soon I'll end up walking with a waddle and eating my food off a plate that rests on my stomach like a table. And then I'll be featured on TLC'S Strange Sex series (not that I'm having any) for overweight people who are into "feeding".

Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little.

And to make matters worse, both and David and Mallory have settled on NOT running in the 5k with me, leaving Lynn and I to fight this seemingly hopeless battle alone. Sure, they (David and Mal) agreed to "train" for it, but what motivation do they have if there's no means to the end? I fear that, like the walking, I'll soon be alone in this endeavor too. While everyone is gallivanting and having fun and playing Ticket to Ride (I seriously hate this game) and eating whatever the heck their stomachs crave, I'll be denying myself anything delicious while in a constant state of exhaustion. Here's the good news: I've made the conscious decision to move from A to B and drastically alter the messy, fat downward spiral that I've created. I'm even in the process of selecting the perfect 5k worthy sneakers to seal my dedication to this transformation.

The training: (3) days a week (I've settled on Saturday, Monday, and Thursday), based on the 8 week Couch to 5k program. I'm starting Day 1 this Saturday, February 11th. This would make April 7th the date to work toward. After I reach that, I'll be working on maintaining the stamina and improving my run time. By the time December rolls around, I'll be more than ready for the 5k.

The goal: Be able to complete a 5k--without stopping, by December for the Color Run.

Your job: KEEP ME ACCOUNTABLE! Ask me how I'm doing with my training, if I've slipped up any, and give me a friendly slap on the wrist to remind me of the mission.

I'm desperately hoping that I can stick with it, and thereby change the outcome of my current, gross situation. Whether or not the rest of the group drops out, I'm never on my own with God.

Please keep me in your prayers, and stay blessed, friends.