shuffle...scramble

I was in a bit of a panic. The dance class I registered dear daughter in was cancelled. I kind of knew this might happen as there were just way too many spaces available when i signed her up. I noticed another class at the same covetted spot but it was full, on to the wait list she went... but then after looking at every community centre and every class available on every possible time I was able to reschedule swim for Sunday mornings, and dance is now when swim was going to be... at the same time in the same place at dear son's swim... thank goodness it will all work out! and thank you to the holiday season for a slow work day !!! Gave me time to work this all out while at work getting paid :)

Reviews

Haven't done a product review in a long time. I used to love reviewing the new things I bought but really haven't bought anything newsworthy lately until today.
I went to Sephora to look at eyeshadow pallettes. Most of mine are pretty much done and I only have the super dark "night-time" colors left- the ones I hardly ever wear- since i hardly ever go out! I was drawn to the Hello Kitty Noir collection pallette in a collectors tin. It is so cute and there are so many colors to choose from. 25 to be exact! I can't wait to try them all. It also comes with 10 lip glosses. I tried one and it is a very deep color. Quite pink actually, nice but will take a little getting used to! Can't wait to see if the color actually lasts!

sick and sick

So I finally get back to working out. Had 2 or 3 great days and was starting to feel good about the routine...even went skating at lunch one day.. when bam... i am struck with a dumb cold. I know I can still work out a little when I'm not feeling well but I just don't have the energy for it. I'm going to try some of the wacked out cold busting methods some co-workers have shared with me. They might help and they definitely can't hurt. A combo of vitamins c and d .. plus cold fx might just to the trick. For now I'm up at an ung-dly hour just trying to breathe.

My nails

update: over all they are holding up well except for one large chip in my thumb nail. I keep planning to go back to venetian to have it fixed but due to all sorts of reasons just haven't had the chance. The chip happened late Saturday afternoon and all the other nails are still perfect! I will definitely have it done again but won't be going back to Venetian for it. Firstly they don't do an amazing job and secondly, they are fairly pricey. I can get a Shellac mani for much less elsewhere and in the same area!

Nails Take Two

Decided to give Shellac mani a second try. Got one done on Wednesday afternoon a dark brown/redish color. LOVE the color and so far the mani has held up well but I can see a tiny bit of bubbling/texture where I don't think there should be any. Looking forward to seeing how long this will last! The last one I got didn't make it the promised 2 weeks and I ended up peeling it off (and a layer of nail too!)

December Days 3 and 4

Did well on the eating front... more due to a burning I have in my chest every time I eat anything- gotta get that checked out today! Went back to my first Weight Watchers meeting on Saturday for the first time in well over a year. It was great to get back to it-although I"m not %100 convinced I loved this leader. My old one was amazing but it is just too hard to get to meetings during the week and Saturday mornings are way more convenient. SO I will stick with this one and see how it goes! Didn't work out over the weekend, I truely planned on it but honestly this feeling like my lungs are punched in every time I eat or take a breath put a major damper on those plans. I am going to see my doctor today (or any doctor for that matter) and have this problem  resolved so I can get back to the working out challenged I posed on myself.

December Day 2

Did alright all day with the healthy eating plan...until dinner time. Hubby came home with his weekly store bought roast chicken and latkes and i resisted those yummy latkes for almost the whole meal...when my resistance wore thin and I tried one bite...which turned to two and suddenly the whole giant fried potato pancake was all gone. but it wasn't all that bad because I did keep my chicken down to 3 ounces and didn't have anything else...except one piece of challa. and since I was in bed by 9:30 I didn't have time to eat any other junk...

Today is a new day and so far I have been doing great!

December Day 1

Kept fairly well to the eating healthy plan. Ate all my vegetables and dairy servings. Did jump on the elliptical for 30 minutes and took the stairs several times today.

Last day till the last month

of the year. December first is tomorrow and it's time to start thinking about New Year's Resolutions once again. Two years ago I resolved to lose the "baby weight" and I did it. That was a serious challenge but I kept at it and obtained my goal. I had some deep rooted motivation and now almost 2 years later I am going to resolve to keep up the healthy eating habits I gained while on my weight loss journey. I am also going to resolve to get more active again. I know how to eat healthily and now I must learn how to incorporate activity into my lifestyle as well. I have all the tools and knowledge but need the deep rooted motivation to filter into this part of my brain! I need to focus on the positive energy working out more will give me. I am digging deep inside me to figure out what exercise  I love best and plan to stick to it.
December is my month of personal challenge, to figure out how to incorporate activity into my life, to find a routine and schedule that works for me. I plan to try out some new classes at the community centre, revisit my love of  Zumba and perhaps give yoga another try (so many people love it- maybe I will find the type that I love too)
I will keep you posted on my journey of self discovery over the next few weeks and hope that I find something to truly move me

Update on "Party Cool"

So it turns out party cool is just another word for "dressy" Everyone showed up at the bat mitvah in suits, fancy dresses and loads of bling. (except for one of the bat mitvah girls friends-who showed up in jeans,sweater and pumas -boy did she look uncomfortable!) I am certainly glad I wore a little black dress and not a skirt and top or dress pants as I had originally thought I might!
Next event I throw that requires an explanation of dress code will simply say Fancy but NOT formal. Or perhaps something like "cocktail party attire" that sure would have helped clarify what to wear to this event!

WWYD...

if you were handed a cheque for $6000???
Would you spend it on yourself? Go on a shopping spree at your favourite store??
Would you use it to pay off a loan? Line of credit?
Would you purchase new appliances for your home? or play it safe and put it away for a rainy day???

Oh the possibilities!

Party Cool???

We were recently invited to a Bat Mitvah. The invite states that the dress code is "party cool" now really WTF does that mean? A few years ago we were invited to another family function at the dress code on the invite said "elegant casual"... seriously! Now I know for sure that hubby will be wearing a suit- no need to make the same mistake twice but I have no idea what I'm going to wear! I have a great dress I'd love to wear but I wore it to a wedding last year and think it might be too dressy... and the sweater dress I recently bought will probably be too casual...so i guess a shopping trip is in order! Any suggestions on what to wear when the invite says "party cool" that is really a totally new one to me!
(and really, what is with the new dress code lingo all about- just say what you mean so people actually understand what is going on!!!! )

Today I commit to...

starting all over again.

I am promising myself that today I will get back onto the healthy eating and exercising track.
I will make better choices, in both my eating and behaviour.
I will think before I act. I will look to the future before reacting in the now.

before and reality!

I find it amazing that what we think we might do before hand is often not what we end up doing at all! I never imagined being that mom. The one who got annoyed by my kids, freaked out at them and yelled at them all the time. The mom I used give dirty looks to when i was a teenager working at the grocery store. Time to learn how to deal with tantrums and kid fits without raising my voice and feeding the fire!!

Yom Kippur

The Day of Atonement, when you ask G-d to forgive you for all the sins you have committed over the past year. The day when you give up all pleasures and fast without food or water for 24 hours... the day I have always dreaded all year.
This year I am hosting the "break the fast" meal at my home, which means that I must spend most of the day cooking and cleaning my home while not eating a bite and taking care of my 2 little ones (my hubby will be at shul for more of the day than me so I'm primarily responsible for the care of the beasts)! This shall be interesting.
I am making a "simple dairy" meal which consists of nothing containing meat. The only problem is simple doesn't = easy! I still have to make a kugel or two, prepare soup, make home-made vegi pizza and a broccoli braid (using tuna instead of chicken)...then there is the cleaning! oy vey.
My last minute attempt at hiring my cleaning lady to help out didn't pan out-she of course was booked months ago for the night- what on earth was I thinking leaving it to the last minute!!!
Maybe now is a good time to start meditation and serenity now techniques!!

the Lazy Train

was coming... choo choo... I just haven't been up for posting, cooking, exercising or doing much these days. I don't what came over me through most of August and the first part of September but whatever it was I think it is passing.
After becoming so lazy and not exercising much, eating pretty much whatever I wanted and starting to feel like a blimp again my dear hubby decided to give me a much needed kick in the ass. He told me that I had to stop complaining and just do something about how I was feeling. I was annoyed with him at first but then really heard what he said and got right back on that elliptical. I have been working out every other day for about a week now and miraculously feel slimmer already! I only do a 30 minute workout but I adjust the settings myself using the manual mode rather than a set course which is much more challenging- I actually break a sweat- something I never usually did on the elliptical at home (probably part of the reason I gained a shit load of weight in the first place- going from a hard core workout at the gym every day to a half-assed workout at home over the course of several years was not good for my waistline! ) ANYWHOO... I feel like I'm back and going to be giving it my all again.
Next step- attending my motivational meeting again!

still at it

keeping up with healthy habits. Took a mini-break but got back on the elliptical tonight and it felt great. I know now that if i miss a few days it doesn't mean that is the end of it- it just means it's time to start over again!!

Day 26

Got distracted with life and haven't had a chance to blog...or exercise that much for that matter!
Did start an ab work out on Sunday evening which came with a balance ball and resistance band set...it was so hard I had to turn it off after a few minutes- that was a major blow to my ego! BUT on the other hand it was a harsh reminder that I must work on my core strength. Will get to that soon!
Last night I managed to get out for a short run. It was the perfect weather for running. Nice and cool with some breezes too. My only problem still seems to be those iPod earphones which always fall out of my ears while running. I have been meaning to go and get over the head headphones but just haven't had a chance (well i went to bestbuy and for $50 a pair i decided to leave them in the store and will try somewhere else)
As for eating well...haven't been keeping to the WW program that well but haven't gone completely over board eating crap either- just a few too many handfuls of cereal in the evenings and not weighing/measuring portions that well- and of course I had to eat a huge piece  the cake my little man made at a cooking party the other day- it was delicious! Will get back on track and will probably do okay at my next weigh-in- so that is all that matters with that right now!

Monday Madness

Had a follow up doctor's appointment yesterday. She has found nothing and really no reason for the ongoing dizziness. I'll stick to the theory that my blood pressure is a little low but it's not overly serious and certainly no excuse to eat like a glutten!
Was supposed to have a new cleaning lady come yesterday. She never showed up! I was quite annoyed as I have doing most of the cleaning myself these days but it is very hard for me to keep up and the house is starting to look a little worse for wear. When I discovered this one for $8 an hour I thought my troubles had been answered  but I guess the old saying "if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is" holds true in this case! She had made promises of helping with laundry and cooking too! Oh well. Guess Craigslist is not the most reliable place to find a good cleaning service! IF ANYONE OUT THERE KNOWS OF OR HAS A RELIABLE CLEANING LADY PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE LET ME KNOW!!!
On the exercise front...managed to get out and run for just under 3km yesterday evening. It was so hot I almost passed out but I did it! If felt great but today my leg muscles are quite sore! I wonder if I'll ever be able to get past 3km in one session...

Feeding Frenzie

Yesterday was not a good day on the eating front. Since I've been suffering dizzy spells lately, the doctor said I have low blood pressure and should make sure to eat frequently throughout the day. I took this a little too much to heart and was eating the whole day...to the point where I really didn't feel that great.
SOOO last night I decided to get my shoes on and run. I planned to run for as long as I could but my run was interrupted by the sight of police helicopters and police cars all over the neighborhood. I was close the end of my run when this disturbing sight caught my attention. Alls well that ends well though...the apparent abduction of a 13 year old boy was not an abduction at all but an angry dad and son dispute (thank goodness!!!)
Back to my point though...did run and felt good about it but muscles are quite sore today. Forgot to track how long I ran   (distance and time were lost in all the commotion). Didn't exercise for most of the week but I'm hoping to get back into it again this weekend!