Random Snapshots

september goals

Here's what I'm trying to accomplish in September:

1.    No buying the following items:

• Yarn: I could knit socks right now for 3 years and still have yarn leftover.

• Books: I've got a stack of un-read books that is taller than me.

• Magazines: Between MagHound, subscriptions and my mag-binging I have a ridiculous pile of un-read magazines.

2.    Start my "29 before 30" mini-book.  More on this later.

3.    Pack breakfast and lunch at least 3 days every week.

4.    Not pig out on delicious food during my 8 days at home.  This one is more of a dream than a goal :)

5.    Really rededicate myself to the gym and working out regularly again.  I've had some time off from school and now it's time to do work.

What do you want to accomplish in September?

goodbye august.

August turned out to be a good month.  Here's how I did on my list of goals. 

1.    Control my eating out and get to the gym more often:  I haven't made any huge strides here, but I did do better in August than July so I'm calling this a win toward my long journey.

2.    Finish a knitting UFO:  I finished my Lindsay socks - FO photos soon.  :)

3.    Start a date-night tradition with Adam:  We've got a few date nights under our belts and will definitely be continuing this tradition.  We had a really great date night this past Thursday with burgers & fries and frozen yogurt! 

 

4.    Get in the habit of tackling a small cleaning project in the house every week on a certain day:  I haven't picked a set weekday, but I have done something at least once every week which is what I am shooting for.  So far I've organized my tupperware cabinet and my file box for bills, important documents, etc. 

5.    Do something that I haven't had time for: I've been working on teaching myself Lightroom 2 (a photo editing program).  I haven't had too much time to dedicate to it, but I've got a good start. 

Tomorrow I'll post my goals for September.  What are you trying to accomplish in September?

august goals

As of August 10th I will be officially finished with school so I expect to have more free time for the last 3 weeks of August.  I'm ready to re-claim my life and get some stuff done.  In the words of Big Black, I'm going to DO WORK SON!

1.    Control my eating out and get to the gym more often:  I anticipate having more time at night to plan my meals throughout the day which will result in less eating out.  I'm giving myself 2 months to get back on track and shed a few lbs.

2.    Finish a knitting UFO:  This is ongoing for me.  I really need to begin finishing what I start.  I'm shooting for finishing the 2nd Lindsay sock and possibly my Hey Student! cardigan.

3.    Start a date-night tradition with Adam:  This has been on my mind a lot as school winds down.

4.    Get in the habit of tackling a small cleaning project in the house every week on a certain day:  For example -- Every Wednesday try and purge/organize a small portion of a room such as the "junk drawer."  I can manage something in small bits like this and think it will really add up.

5.    Do something that I haven't had time for: Edit and order a bunch of photos, learn to embroider, get back to reading, or do some home project.  Something along those lines that I haven't had time to do in the past 2.5 years.

hello august; you've come so fast!

I'm sure you're dying to know how I did on my July goals, right?!  :)  Humor me because I don't have a lot to blog about right now. 

1.    Print some photos:  I printed a couple for my mini book and one to frame for a birthday gift.  Better than nothing!

2.    Update my blog banner:  Done. 

3.    Continue to work on my EliseJoy summer minibook:  I've added some photos as well as paper trinkets from the month of July.

4.    Get my Sock Summit homework done: I'm very close and this has to be done by Wednesday so I'm calling it good!

5.    Eat better and workout a little more: I've been eating OK, but not working out at all for the last 2 weeks.  I have gotten some Pilates sessions in.

6.    Finish up at least one knitting UFO: Done!  My Embossed Leaves socks were done mid-month.  I didn't finish up a 2nd FO, but my goal was met with one.

Stay tuned for August goals. 

water.drinking.heaven

 

Do you guys use this stuff?  True Lemon and True Lime?  If not then you should buy some immediately!

It's crystallized lemon and lime (they have orange too, but it's not my favorite).  All natural, no additives and it's not sweetened (although they do have a new sweet product that I haven't tried yet).  It's the best stuff ever if you're trying to drink more water during the day.  You can find True Lemon products in the baking aisle of your grocery store near the sugar and sweeteners. 

I like water, but this stuff makes it so much easier to get my daily requirements in.  I love it!  I've been going through it like crazy so last week I decided to order the 500ct boxes of lemon and lime.  They arrived yesterday and I was so happy!  I took this picture to post on their Facebook page in an attempt to win a free t-shirt.  HA!  I hope I win!  :)

Happy Wednesday to you all. 

mid-July already?

This month is flying by me at a rapid pace.

On July 1st I set a few July goals for myself.  Simple and easy -- just a few things I wanted to accomplish before the month ends.

1.    Print some photos:  Not there yet, but I still have 14 more days in the month.

2.    Update my blog banner:  Done.  This one should last me through summer.  :)  In addition I've decided to just stick with Typepad for now instead of piling one more unimportant thing on my stack of stuff to do.

3.    Continue to work on my EliseJoy summer minibook:  I won't cross this one out yet, but I have been working on it.  I plan to keep it up through August and finish it in September. 

4.    Get my Sock Summit homework done: Not there yet.  I really need to set some time aside to do this, but the thought of knitting 6 sock cuffs is not appealing to me.  I've got my knitting mojo back right now so I'm enjoying my projects.  But, it has to be done!

5.    Eat better and workout a little more: I'm on Day 4 of Cooler 1 and it's going well so far.  Aside from skipping meals due to lack of time I haven't cheated once.  I've been tempted, but put it out of my mind.  I know I'll make it through tomorrow which is my goal of 5 days.  We'll see how it goes from there.  That being said, I haven't worked out much aside from Pilates.  This week I haven't had the energy with the low cals on Cooler 1.  I'm done with school in 3.5 weeks and have plans to hit the gym hard!

6.    Finish up at least one knitting UFO: Done!  I finished my Embossed Leaves socks on Sunday.  It's been far too hot for a sock photoshoot, but I will get around to it.  In the meantime I have a photo of my Lindsay socks which are coming along nicely.  I really plan to finish these by the end of July as well.

Overall I feel pretty good about getting a few things done.  I'm really anxious to get through July though because that leaves only 1 week into August until I'm done with school.  I know, I know, it seems like it's all I can talk about lately, but in my defense it has been a long ass 2.5 years. 

Cooler 1 - Day 1

Today I'm starting on the Cooler 1 eating plan from the Eat Clean Diet book by Tosca Reno.  If you have the book then you know which plan I'm talking about and hopefully you're wishing me good luck!  If you don't, then I'll tell you that it is a strict eating plan which consists of about 20 different foods.  This plan is used to break a plateau, jumpstart weight loss, lose the last 5-10lbs or prepare for a fitness contest. 

Personally, I'm hoping to jumpstart my weight loss as I've been having a problem doing that on my own for the past 2 months. 

This is the type of eating plan that shouldn't be maintained for more than 2 weeks.  I'm hoping to get 7 days on my first try, but realistically I know I can do 5 days without a problem.  I expect to have a little bit of low energy and maybe feel a little deprived, but I don't think it will be that bad.

Has anyone reading this done Cooler 1?  If so I'd love to hear about your experience -- good or bad.  I'd also love to hear from any other clean eaters. 

Here's my meal plan for today in case you are interested:

Meal 1: 3/4c oatmeal. I choked down 1/2 of it plain but then had to add a little bit of agave to finish.  I should have had a lean protein here too, but I wasn't prepared.

Meal 2: Egg white omelet w/ sauteed spinich & 1/2 sweet potato

Meal 3: Spinich salad w/ radishes, tuna and fresh squeezed lemon, 1 apple

Meal 4: Hard boiled egg whites, celery sticks

Meal 5: 1/2 sweet potato, tilapia and grilled or steamed veggies

I didn't get to the grocery store last night so I packed what I had.  I'm going to hit the grocery store on the way home to get some chicken breasts for grilling and more high water content vegetables (spinich, lettuce, radishes, tomatoes, zuchinni, etc).  The idea here is to always pair a lean protein (egg whites, chicken, lean turkey, bison or non-oily fish) with a complex carb veggie or fruit.  On Cooler 1 you eliminate the fruit (except for 1 apple or pear per day) and eat high water content, low glycemic index veggies.  The book gets into more specifics of the plan.  I suggest that you buy the new "Expanded Edition" if you are interested in the book.  This newer version goes into much greater detail about the Cooler plans.

I'll try and update daily or every other day with my meal plans and progress if anyone is interested.

Happy Monday!   

goodbye June, hello July.

Man, June flew by fast didn't it?!  I think the closer I get to finishing school (5 weeks, 6 days) the faster the weeks, days and hours are flying by.  I haven't been able to keep up with anything lately, including this blog.

I do have some goals for July though.  Just a couple of things I'd like to accomplish without putting too much pressure on myself during this last class. 

1. Print some photos.  I don't care how many or what they are of, I just need to print some instead of letting them live on the computer!  A few months ago I purchased an Espon Artison 800 and that printer is the shit.  The quality if fantastic and I've loved the photos that I've printed so far.    
2. Update my blog banner.  I think that speaks for itself.  :)  I also am considering moving my blog to another host.  I would like to be able to post larger photos in the future and currently I can't do that on Typepad unless I upgrade my format -- aka: pay more.  I'm looking into Squarespace, but open to other options, advice, opinions.
3. Continue to work on my EliseJoy summer minibook.  I don't have a photo of my own yet, but it's turning out to be pretty cool.
4. Get my Sock Summit homework done -- this should probably up in the #1 spot since it is the most important thing I need to do in July.
5. Eat better and workout a little more.  Constant goal for me which I hope becomes easier once I'm finished with school.
6. Finish up at least one knitting UFO (unfinished object).  I'm working on a delicious pair of socks right now which I think I can finish up since the yarn is sport weight.  Here's a sneak peek:

 

That's all I have for now.  Happy July everyone!  I hope you are all enjoying your summer. :)

 

natural week: day five

Day Five: Pilates

1. Joseph Pilates doing "Pilates", 2. pilates, 3. pilates_001, 4. pilates-joseph

Pilates is probably my favorite exercise ever.  It's just about the only thing that makes me truly relax these days.  I hae a tough time with flexibility too and Pilates really seems to help.  I've always been an exerciser -- mostly free weights and cardio -- but Pilates makes me feel really strong.

I chose to include it in natural week because I consider it a very natual exercise.  You don't need any equipment to do the exercises.  You could use a reformer and different accessories if you wanted to, but they are not necessary to practicing Pilates.  Even as you get better and stronger there is always a challenge. 

I started practicing in July 2008 and I look forward to getting better and progressing.  Most of the time I practice at home because it's more convenient, but I do love to take classes at a local studio when I can fit it in.

There are many forms of Pilates these days and it can get very confusing.  When I practice at home I use the true Pilates method as taught by Brooke Siler.  She was a student of Romana Kryzanowska who was the protege of Joseph Pilates.  My local studio teaches the Stott method which is a little different.   

Here are the books that I've learned from:

The Pilates Body by Brooke Siler

Your Ultimate Pilates Body Challenge by Brooke Siler

The Pilates Body Kit by Brooke Siler -- These are CDs and flash cards.  I loaded the CDs onto my iPod and do the mat workouts.   

 

Any other Pilates people out there with tips, hints or recommendations?  I'd love to hear!

That's it for natural week!  I hope some of you found the information helpful.  Thanks for the comments!

natural week: day four

Day Four: Makeup

 

1. Everyday Minerals Fairs (1 BM), 2. Everyday Minerals, 3. Everyday minerals!, 4. EDM Blush Trio

I have a long-standing love affair with makeup.  I think it's the colors and the fact that it's sort of like painting, which I love to do.  Eye makeup is my favorite by far.  We all know that makeup can be expensive and sometimes isn't the greatest thing for our faces.  I have sensative skin so this has often been the case for me.

About 4 months ago I discovered Everyday Minerals.  I had intended to try mineral makeup at some point because I was unhappy with liquid foundation.  I like to wear makeup, but I don't want it to look like I have any on -- who does, right?!  After searching online I found EDM and placed my first order. 

EDM is not sold in stores at this time so you have to do a little bit of guess work with regard to finding your perfect concealer shade.  To aid in this little treasure hunt EDM offers a free trial kit.  Sweet!  The free trial kit can be ordered multiple times as well.  You only pay for shipping.  I think I went through 3 or 4 free trial kits before finding my perfect concealer base which happens to be a 50/50 mix of two different shades. 

I am VERY happy with this makeup.  Currently I use the base, blush, eyeshadow, concealer, highlighter, brozer, and lip balm.  If they offered mascara I'd probably use that too! 

This stuff is all natural and seems to have improved my acne.  Most mineral makeups on the market now contain fillers which means you are getting less natural minerals and need more layers to get good coverage.  EDM doesn't use these expensive fillers which is why it's so inexpensive.  You get more makeup for less money and you aren't putting any chemicals on your face - can't beat that, right!?  Not in my book. 

If you're going to try some make sure and spring for the brushes - they aren't very expensive and they are worth it.  Mineral makeup requires a denser brush for application and these do the trick.  Plus they are super soft and natural.  I love mine.