Can it possibly be a month?!

On March 3rd I headed to the gym for the first time in a very long time. I was nervous and felt a bit dumb since it had been so long. But I got out of bed and went anyway. I got up at 5 AM...which for me is basically the middle of the night. I got on the treadmill and thought for sure I was going to die. I walked for about 30 minutes and called it a day. For the next week I went to the gym every single day. Frankly, I was scared to miss a day because I was afraid I wouldn't go back. But the time eventually came that I missed a day. And you know what...I did go back. But I was also a little frustrated because I didn't seem to be losing much weight. That first week I did nothing but walk on the treadmill, and think about how the weight machines were freaking me out. But on day 8 I decided that I needed to try the weight machines, so I did. It was ok, And I started working them into my workout. I still wasn't losing much weight. So I began researching and asking people at work. One guy suggested that I needed to change up my routine. And I had read on the internet that sugar could also be the culprit. So I decided sugar was out, and I needed to change my workout. I added biking and still worked out on machines, even adding in the Ab Coaster once, which I felt ridiculous on. The week of sugar free sucked! OMG I thought for sure I would die. But I made it. I couldn't believe I made it...and I am still pretty much sugar free. And you know what's really funny...I don't miss it. I thought I would die without it. But I haven't I am still here.

My other big accomplishment this week is I got on the elliptical. I have been staring at that machine all month, and I swore there was no freaking way I would ever be coordinated enough to get on it and not look like a complete dumb ass.Well I threw caution to the wind this week and got on. It was awkward, don't get me wrong. The first time I last 11 minutes. That was two days ago. Today I was on the elliptical for 20 minutes! I can't tell you what a major accomplishment this was for me. I had never ever wanted to get on that machine in public...but I did it. And I have started losing weight again.

One other big change for me is that I gave up Weight Watchers. It worked for the first 20 lbs, but it had stopped working and I needed something different. So I checked another program and decided on My Fitness Pal, which is FREE! It shows me not how many points, but how many calories I have going in and out on a daily basis. It also has the nutrition value added in so I can see where I am over on certain things (mainly salt) and where I needed to add more stuff (mainly protein). It also links to my Fitbit, which I have a love/hate relationship with. One day I love it, the next day I want to throw it out the car window. Like today, I was on the elliptical for 20 minutes, sweating like crazy and it registered 1 activity minute. Whatever! It does not work well on the elliptical or biking. Tomorrow I am going biking. And I think I am going to attach it to my shoe. Maybe that will help.  Yeah, you read that right..I am going biking! I have no doubt my rear is going to be so sore on Sunday, but I don't care. I have a bike rack on my car, I ordered a clip for my GPS and a saddlebag and I am going out with several of my friends and we are going to place caches along a trail. A year ago I would have never considered making this trip. And not only am I going, but I am going alone. Dave and the kids are staying home, no safety net for me. I am excited.

Weight loss update

After posting yesterday with the Pintester movement it reminded me that I haven't posted an update in a while about the weight loss. It seems to be going fairly well. Halloween was a bad time as the candy called out to me...but I have still managed to keep losing. Right now I am at a total of 17 lbs lost since I started. I have started to incorporate strength training and I am really curious to see how that helps reshape my body.

Everything else in life seems to be going pretty well. Lindsay is starting to cheer for her new school and is already looking forward to high school. With her heading to high school next year it will mean that it is Adam's senior year and we will be looking to start a whole new chapter with him away at
college. I am not ready for that at all! This year just seems to be going way too fast for me.

Pintester - HO HO HO edition - Christmas ornaments

I found myself with a little time to do some Pinterest crafts and of course Pintester has a challenge for us! BTW - if you have not read Pintester's blog or watched her videos...you must do so NOW! Here is a link for you: http://pintester.com/2013/11/pintester-movement-ho-ho-ho/

So, I decided that one ornament was not enough and I must have three different ornaments to complete. Yes, I was an overachiever, especially when I found out I also had to make 14 cheer bows on the same day. The men were happy I was occupied elsewhere so they could watch college basketball.

Here are the Pinterest pins I decided to take on:
http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/originals/90/d9/d7/90d9d7a384b6282cfb7754f3febdacdd.jpg
and
http://www.diyncrafts.com/3992/home/15-easy-festive-diy-christmas-ornaments/2

The first thing I did was gather the supplies to make three different kinds of ornaments

We have glass ornaments, crayons, pom poms, glitter, mop & glo and a hair dryer

You were supposed to use Future instead of Mop & Glo, but in true Pintester fashion I improvised.
The first ornament we tried was glitter ornament
The first thing you want to do is add the Mop & Glo to the inside of the ornament and swirl it around.

Then you just let the extra drain out. As you can see this is a very kid friendly craft.
The next step is to add your glitter. I am very happy to report I made two of these ornaments and did not have a dining room filled with glitter afterwards. (SCORE!)

Swirl the glitter around and it will cover the everywhere the floor cleaner was on the inside of the ornament. After that you empty out the extra glitter and put the top back on and you are done!

My lovely daughter Lindsay models

The next ornament is a little bit trickier and I will warn you right now...get out the gloves! Those glass ornaments get freaking hot! The first thing we did was take the paper off of the crayons, we used Crayola brand because I had read several reviews that they seemed to work the best.

Next you chop them up in little pieces and add them to the inside of the ornament

 

And then you heat - with gloves!

As you heat the crayon and it starts to melt start turning the ornament to coat.

Finished project

We also did a blue and green one that kind of turned out looking somewhat like the earth

The third ornament we did was the easiest one yet! My daughter chose this one because it looked super easy and it really was the easiest thing ever. We purchased some glittery pom poms and stuffed them in there. It doesn't get easier than that! But it did inspire me to make some ornaments for the cheerleaders. I am going to put red, white and black pom poms in ornaments and add a megaphone charm and bow to the top for a sweet gift for each cheerleader.

Here is a picture of our finished projects - not a very good one since I had handed off my camera to my 10 year old son.

Down 10lbs and counting!!!

Today I had to weigh in because I start a new weight loss challenge with a bunch of friends that is going to take us through the holidays. I am really hoping to take home the cash on this one! I am down 3.4% of my body weight. Which is awesome!!! And that is the only awesome news right now.

Over the weekend I took my first quizzes for my new class - Business Statistics. And let me just tell you...this class is going to suck! It is really really hard. And the professor is really tough. The good news is he lets us take the quizzes and even the final TWICE! That really helps. He also gives us a hint if we got a question wrong, so you know where you have ventured off the wrong path. The first quiz I got 5/10...after the second attempt I got 8/10. On the second quiz I got 9/10...and that made me feel a whole lot better. He also doesn't use the book so I have to print out giant power point lectures to go through. This week there is 5 lectures! It's going to be a long 5 weeks.

Some other not so awesome news is Dave is in the hospital with an infection on his foot. He gets these frequently but this one was not helped with antibiotics. After two days of me basically bitching for him to be seen he finally went to the emergency room. And as I suspected, they admitted him. What I did not expect was for them to think it was flesh eating bacteria. After an MRI it turned out not to be (thank goodness). I can not begin to tell you the scary thoughts that were running through my mind. Like what if he had to have his foot amputated or even if he died. It was a rough day yesterday. And neither Jordan or I slept much last night. Hopefully we will have more good news today.

Making changes

I think God sent me a wake up call on September 13th this year. It just happened to be a Friday. I was coming home from work, taking my usual path and a lady ran a red light and slammed into my car. I was spun 90 degrees and two of my tires lifted off the ground before slamming back down. I was so thankful the car didn't roll over. Someone from a business came out who had seen the whole thing came out and told the police what she had seen. I was so thankful that she actually looked up and noticed the lights. My car was damaged slightly, she hit right on the rear tire, but I ended up with whiplash. I have since been to the chiropractor at least a dozen times. At first I was really depressed about the pain and also about missing a weekend we had planned with friends to go kayaking. But as I have started getting better I have decided that maybe God was trying to tell me something.
About a week before the accident I stepped on the scale was just devastated at the number. How could that even be possible? I stepped off and on several times thinking the scale had to be crazy...but yep, there it was in black and white, I was 10 pounds from the weight I said I would never ever see...I weighed 290 lbs!!  After the accident I turned to my normal stupid comfort foods and spent way too much time laying around feeling sorry for myself. And then I don't know if my brain had just had enough or what but a switch was thrown. The next day was Senior Night for my son's soccer team and I had to take pictures. With every snap of my camera I could only think that next year I would have to walk across that field and hug my son, and I wanted him to be proud that I was his mom. I wanted to feel and look good walking across that field. The next day I started trying to figure out how I was going to get this done. I knew my weakness was afternoon lunch. I hate coming home and not knowing what I am going to eat. I also hate having to take a long time to make it, because if I am hungry I will snack while I'm making lunch. So I decided I would get some frozen meals to start and see if that helped. I have had a couple of set backs. Sunday morning being one of the worst as Dave always brings home muffins and donuts in the morning. But overall I have done pretty well. I joined Weight Watchers Online this week and have been very good about tracking my food and water. And just for the heck of it I actually got some activity in as well! I stepped on the scale today, even though I'm not supposed to weigh until Tuesday...and I am down 10 lbs! I am thrilled! I feel pretty good and have started changing some habits, like eating breakfast, getting enough sleep. The Weight Watchers website really helps with making little changes. I am not one that  takes to changes very easily, but I am really hoping that with baby steps I can be successful! I also joined a weight loss challenge with some friends, so that should help keep me motivated also!

Pintester Movement - May 30th Vootbeer float

I had planned to do something completely different today. But after a really long day at work. I also was in New Orleans last week and it would be nice to have a cocktail tonight. So I decided I would try a fun little drink.

All you need is 2 oz of vanilla vodka, root beer, ice, whipped cream and a cherry. Well guess who didn't have whipped cream or cherries? Not to mention who wants ice in the float? I wanted ice cream. So I decided to improvise a little. I added ice cream and left out the whipped cream and cherries.

I even found a wide mouthed mason jar to add a little special touch.
Here is the finished project:

The only bad thing about this drink is that I shouldn't have had any dinner. It was very rich and filling! NAILED IT!!!!

Check out more Pintester Movement posts:
 http://pintester.com/2013/05/the-pintester-movement-craft-all-the-things

I want to remember...

Last week one of my favorite scrapbook gurus posted in her blog, "I want to remember...", and then she posted random everyday things about her kids.  I loved this idea.  I always have a really hard time journaling in my scrapbooks and writing blog entries. By using those four words I think I can write our family stories much better.  I won't have just scrapbooks filled with birthdays and holidays but actual everyday stories that make my family who they are.  So here is the first in what I hope will be any entries.

What I want to remember about this weekend and today:

This weekend we went to the a geocaching event, the Fall Picnic at Lieber State Recreation Area. Not only was it a great weekend with friends and family but it made for some wonderful memories.
From this weekend I will remember these moments the most.

• Lindsay was the leader of one of the kids GeoSurvivor events and she was so encouraging with her younger teammates. She really makes a great big sister and is so sweet with kids that are younger than her.  It makes me wonder if she wouldn't make a wonderful teacher.
•  Jordan made a wonderful new friend, Kellan.  We had never met his parents before, so we made new friends as well.  Jordan and Kellan were almost inseparable when we got back to the campground and are going to keep in touch over the internet.  Neither one of them have stopped talking about the other. I love had easy my kids make friends.
• Sunday morning Katie, Dave, Fred, Bernice and Daryl and I sat around just chatting.  I love the fact that I could have cared less if my hair was done or not.  We just sat around and shared great conversation.  We also had wonderful stories around the campfire the night before.  It is so hard for us to even go to bed when we are having such a wonderful time.

Lindsay encouraging her younger teammate

What a whirlwind!

So I'm back.  I didn't think I was going to be gone so long but things happen.  I can't even remember the last time I wrote anything down, so I guess I will just start from where I am right now. LOL

Life has been pretty crazy lately.  About the middle of July I decided that we wouldn't be sending Jordan and Lindsay back to Holy Cross next year.  I really think Lindsay needs to learn to work on her education as opposed to socialization.  And if I'm going to have one at home, might as well have two.  Of course that meant that I was going to have to find a new school and make sure that they are still going to be getting the same level of education that they were receiving at Holy Cross.  We finally decided on Connections Academy.  So I will be doing school at home, but with a public curriculum.  Before we left for vacation I had to get all the documents into Connections so the enrollment process could start.  Needless to say I was very busy.  And then we ran into the problem with Lindsay's immunizations being recorded wrong.  So now we are enrolled, teachers have been assigned and lesson plans scheduled, and I am still waiting on the call from the doctor we haven't seen in 10 years to find her chart in storage.  Hopefully that will be done soon.  However, the kids are really excited and ready to start next week.  I am trying to not to freak out. I have set their schedules today and I am starting to feel like we are organized and ready to go. 

On another hand Dave and I went to Bash the last week of July.  We had such a good time, but 5 days is a long time to be camping.  I don't think there was an actual day where I felt like I wasn't on a time schedule of some kind.  But it was really fun.  I can't even began to explain the complete craziness that we did while we were there. And that was basically just the beginning of the geocaching season.  We have so many fun events coming up!

On the diet front I feel like I am doing alright.  I haven't been as diligent about juicing as I could have been...but I have stayed on the plant based diet at least 97% of the time.  I did have a small amount of meat at Bash...but not much.  The hardest part of doing the vegan thing at Bash was that we just really didn't have time to eat at all.  I did have some of my friend Katie's meatballs - which are awesome!  And on Saturday I had tacos.  And that was all the meat I have had in over a month.  Since I have been home I did have a very small amount of cheese.  Since I got home I have lost about 3 more lbs, which is pretty good.  I really need to get more organized to get my juice going in the morning.  But I'm sure this will happen next week when I have to get up so early to get Adam off to school.  I am starting to miss certain foods, such as sandwiches and popcorn.  I have found whole grain pitas that I really like and I love putting veggies in them.  I have found that I like Boca burgers, but I really need to make sure I am getting plenty of vegetables instead of starches.  I was missing peanut butter today - so I added some to some apple slices today. I start worrying about adding things like that - and then I remember I haven't eaten any of the crap I used to.  So I am doing just fine.  I want to add exercise, and then I think the weight loss will probably go faster.  Now, I only need to find the time.  I feel pretty good that I am still going!  It's been over a month - it does seem to be getting easier to choose the right foods.

I think I am getting bored.

Today for breakfast, I did not juice.  I was running late and really just needed to get out of the house. So I grabbed some carrots and away I went.  I don't think it was that bad of a choice.  When I got home I was in a hurry - as always - to get Jordan to Wildcat.  So I grabbed an apple and headed out the door. Both times I made sure to take water. 
I think just juicing and juicing might drive me bonkers.  Yesterday I only juiced once.  But I didn't eat badly either.  Today we headed to the food coop to look for some vegan alternatives.  I have been reading labels at my regular grocery store as well, just to see what is going to be doable in the future.  While I was at the coop I got some Boca burgers and whole wheat vegan buns.  So tonight for dinner I am going to have a veggie burger and sweet potatoes. I am really looking forward to it.  It will be a different taste I haven't had in my mouth in several days.  I still had a large salad for lunch....so I am still right on my program.  Tonight I add a little grain.  We shall see how I feel. 

What I learned today...

I learned that cantaloupe is better for eating rather than juicing.  It tasted kind of weird, and it made my morning juice more like a smoothie.

I learned that Quaker Steak and Lube has very little in the way of vegetarian meals.

I learned that I can resist the 4 wheeler at Quaker Steak and Lube, which consists of onion rings, fried pickles, mozzarella sticks, and soft pretzels.  Used to love all those things.  Tonight we went and I didn't have a bite.

I learned that I can resist birthday cake and ice cream even if it is from my own kid's cake.

I also learned this weekend that I need to be more vigilant about my water.  My weight loss has slowed, and I'm sure it's because I haven't been drinking my water like I should be.

It's been an interesting weekend with grilling, eating out and cake, but I have resisted it all.  I find myself thinking, "Surely I can have one thing..."  but I haven't had anything that isn't on my list yet.  I hope I can keep up with this program for at least another 10 days.

Day 9 of the Reboot!

I am really bad about this blogging thing.  I get so busy and don't find time to write. And I know I really should blog and get out all the crazy things that run around inside my head.  Especially now that I have been doing the juice reboot.  I have been juicing for 9 complete days now.  I honestly didn't think I would make it this far. But lo and behold here I am. So after 9 days I have lost 13 lbs.  I feel wonderful.  I think this program has been so easy for me because I really like vegetables.  In the morning I usually have a couple of apples and carrots with maybe some celery added in.  For lunch I have mostly vegetables, celery, spinach, cucumbers, carrots, and maybe an apple thrown in. Sometimes I don't have the apple.  For dinner I have a salad or stir fried vegetables.  I have added in a few black beans in my stir fries and salads for some extra fiber.  The only place I seem to be having problem is getting in all my water.  However, I figured out a solution to that problem.  Starting tomorrow I will be filling up a 2-liter bottle with my water and make sure I get every drop into my body.  I know I can do this! 
The best part about this whole thing is that all the swelling is gone from my legs.  I never even thought of how swollen they were until I could push on them and move the muscles in my calves.  Another bonus is that I no longer need an afternoon nap.  I have even tried to take one and I don't fall asleep. 
The hardest part I have encountered is the amazing smells that come from my kitchen when the kids' meals are being prepare.  I thought I was going to lose it the other night when they were having spaghetti with my homemade spaghetti sauce and garlic bread!  OMG that was hard.  And then this weekend we had Jordan's birthday party, we grilled hot dogs and there were chips, snack mix, smores and M&Ms.  I have no idea how I made it through, but I did.  I didn't even lick my fingers when they were covered with sticky marshmallow.  Tomorrow the family comes for cake and ice cream...I will not have any!
Tomorrow will mark the end of my 10 day phase.  I told myself I was going to take this 10 days at a time.  I went to the store and bought more veggies for juicing...so I am about to embark on another 10 days.  I am planning on doing at least 30 days and then I believe I will switch over to Engine 2 diet, which is basically eating a plant based diet, concentrating on whole foods.  I will probably at least continue to juice once a day.

Day 2 of Reboot

About two weeks ago I watched the movie, "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead."  I was quite inspirational and I really thought it was about time to get my self together and lose the weight that is making me so unhealthy.  I plan on juicing for 10 days and see where I am. I am hoping to lose at least 10 lbs in this first phase.  At the end of the 10 days I will probably go for another 10.  I really want to lose a total of 20 lbs this month! I think by losing a chunk (so to speak) at the beginning it will inspire me to keep going.  I want to lose at least 120 lbs. Although I have to admit I would be thrilled with 100.  As soon as the first few days are up I plan on getting on an exercise plan as well.  A friend of mine is doing the coach to 5K plan which seems to be working very well.  Good for her! I have to give her kudos for continuing in this heat. It's been at least 95 or hotter every day for the last week.  Hopefully the heat wave will break before we head to Bash - which is 4 days of camping on a fairgrounds.  Not a lot of shade.  We don't want to melt this year!

GeoWoodstock X Adventure (part 2 - the weird hotel room)

I love to get deals on hotels.  So, I use Priceline quite often. I have been pretty happy with our rooms, and I can't think of one really bad hotel room we have gotten. In fact, most of the time I am pleasantly surprised at what a great deal I usually get.  For GeoWoodstock X we were booked at the Days Inn in Jeffersonville, IN.  I checked it out on the internet, ad although it didn't have a whole lot of amenities, I thought it would be fine.  We show up at the hotel and the first thing I realize is that there is only one bed and it's not a king size bed at that.  Normally when you book on Priceline you get a double room - 2 queen size beds.  I am not sure this Days Inn had that kind of bed.  The next thing I notice is the bathroom.

 Here is the shower, it barely has a lip to keep the water in.  I mentioned this and Dave said, well if it leaks out there is a drain in the middle of the floor it can drain into.  Good point.  The water definitely did not stay in the shower.  The second thing was that there was a seat in the shower...we did not request a handicapped shower.  It was really no big deal until I realized it was the only place to put my shampoo.  There were no soap dishes at all.

So, as you can see, I just threw everything on the seat and went with it.  The other thing I noticed was that apparently giants frequent here as the shower heads are almost to the ceiling.  Dave adjusted the shower and I had to jump to put it back where I wanted it.                                
We will not even discuss the patched paint job.  I didn't get that at all.  Especially when there was a sign outside that said, "Yes, we are now open."  Maybe you should have waited until the painting was done before opening. Then next thing I noticed was the amount of safety features in this room. All these devices were on the wall of the main room, and the bathroom.  Yes, one says "door bell", but I never saw a door bell anywhere!

 I must give the Days Inn kudos in the fact the are trying to be creative in their decor.  This was hanging above our bed, and on the wall right next to the bed.

Isn't it lovely? It had metallic in it and everything.  Did I mention we are about a mile from Kentucky?  And yet, the Indian motif is what they decided to go with?  And I'm not even sure that's it's Indian either.  The one downfall for this trip for Dave had to be the coffee.  The packet for the coffee says it makes four cups.  He tried that, it tasted like water.  So he attempted to make just one cup...that didn't do it either.  We ended up at Waffle House for coffee.

Worthless coffee pot, since the coffee grounds are so weak.  But cool sink!

Our GeoWoodstock X Adventure part 1

I think I am going to try something a little different with this blog.  I am going to start writing about some of the trips we have been taking. 

This last weekend we headed down to Sellersburg, IN for GeoWoodstock X.  For those that don't know we are geocachers, which means me use multi-million dollar satellites to find tupperware in the woods.  We have a lot of fun and meet some wonderful people.  GeoWoodstock is a Mega-event, which means more than 2500 people will be descending on a little town in Indiana.  It was very close to Louisville, so we spent some time there as well. 
Our Friday night began with the Miles of Smiles event where we could pick up our registration packets and t-shirts.  The bag we got was pretty cool, had geocache containers, logs and our laynards for our tags.  We also got pathtags and our badges.  We headed over to get our t-shirts, and were none too thrilled to find out that the t-shirts were solid black.  OMG - the forecast for Saturday was supposed to be 98 degrees!  I will not be wearing that shirt on Saturday.  Oh well, it's good for other times.

 This is the event as we approached from the North.  We had to drive around the block to find parking. 










 The big blow up sign! GeoWoodstock! We finally made it. 









 This is one of the smilies. They had the streets lined with them and all you had to do was follow the signs.  They also had them set up for the next day, which was good because it would have been tough to find otherwise.

 This is Jon, myself, Dave, Brian, Michelle, Angie, Tim and Heather having dinner at Rocky's.  They had wonderful food.  And even though I was not too thrilled about sitting outside, I was certainly glad we did since we had this wonderful view of Louisville.  Of course, no trip is complete without Brian showing us his boobs.





 On Saturday with the temperatures soaring we headed into Sellersburg for the main event.  We knew it was going to be hot, but you just don't know how freaking hot until you are standing in a field with very little cover.  Thank goodness for the sno cone vendor and little bits of shade here and there.  Even with some shade I was done by 2:30, I had wanted to stay much later but just didn't have it in me.

 You can barely see them, but up on the hill they spelled out GeoWoodstock X in huge letters.  The balloon was here for awhile, but even the heat put that down within a couple hours.

 Signing the 3D log. 

 Larry Davis aka Super Genius as Signal the Frog  He was so animated and fun.














Saturday night brought another meet up with friends for dinner.  After a nice cool shower I researched some places to eat and came up with Buckhead Mountain Grill.  We piled in there for some refreshments and pretzel bread and were good to go.

 The pretzel bread with beer cheese was pretty yummy, but huge portions!

 Alex smiling behind his pacifier in his sleep.  We were at dinner for over two hours and he was perfectly content.  He had some bananas, a bottle and when it was time for us to eat he was fast asleep. 

 The very tired, scorched crew.

Crazy but fun weekend!

Our first camping trip of the season was last weekend.  We had planned to go to Mounds State Park, but we changed our minds because a situation happened that made us all want to really be together rather than split up over a couple of parks. 
As the trip approached I found out that I was going to have to have the kids but my ex-husband had something going on.  This was going to prove interesting since Adam had a math thing at IPFW and Lindsay had a volleyball tournament.  But I decided that changing the trip to Pokagon State Park with our friends would solve the problems.  I would be close enough to return home to get Lindsay and Adam on Saturday. And then I started watching the weather forecasts...it was not looking good.  It was supposed to be very cold with chances of rain and even sleet.  I just told everyone to pack warm and see what happens.  And on top of all that I also knew the next week after our trip was going to be Finals week and I would be overloaded with studying, and I had a huge project I needed to get done for Holy Cross. But with all that going on I decided a relaxing weekend was on the agenda.  I worked hard all week to get all my homework complete so I didn't have anything left over when we got home.  It took me until Thursday night, very late, but it was done.  I got home on Friday, we packed the cars, waited for Jordan to get out of school and away we went.
The first thing we realized was that we had forgotten a tent.  So Dave and I set up Jordan's tent and headed into town.  We started at Walmart, but I was not impressed with their selection.  However, on our way out we find dishes that match our current set that Target had discontinued.  Finally!  We now have enough plates that match for everyone.  Bought the plates, Jordan a pair of jeans (I forgot his clothes), and headed over to Dunham Sports.  We found an 11 person tent for $120!  It was huge.
We went back to camp and set it up.  I felt like I needed a road map to find my way around. 
Since there were so many of us, 20 in all, we had teamed up with everyone and Katie's stepmom agreed to cook meals if we all chipped in ingredients...DEAL!  She put out an amazing spread and we ate like kings all weekend long.  We socialized around the fire, dodged the rain and sleet - it did downpour on Saturday morning and had a great time.  I traveled back home to pick up Lindsay and Adam.  Since it was so cold on Saturday, and pouring I decided to just come home in my pajamas and take a shower here at home.  That was really nice.  I also was able to pick up an extra air mattress for Amber since her's had sprung a leak.
All was going well, it was cold, but nothing that couldn't be managed.  We started packing up on Sunday and Fred noticed that there was something wrong with the truck.  He had broken a brake line, and if that wasn't bad enough, he was towing their trailer.  Thank goodness he found it at the campground and not on the Interstate.  Amber had Gold AAA which would get the truck towed back to Fort Wayne, and the tow driver even hooked up their trailer!  Because we had driven separately we had room for Fred, Katie and Jeremiah to ride back with us.  It just shows how things work out.  We all worked together to make things happen. 
All in all it was a really good weekend with a few unexpected events, but we made it work!

A week of endings and beginnings

I am so bad about writing on here. It seems that so many times I get so busy doing other stuff and lost in my own head that the thoughts never get here.  The last couple of weeks have been crazy ones, and most experiences I wouldn't want to repeat. 
On Good Friday a friend of mine had her mother-in-law suddenly pas away.  She backed out of her driveway and put her car in park and just died.  In retrospect, that is how I would want to go. She was in good health, she didn't have to go through a lingering horrible disease.  Boom, she was gone.

And then on Easter Sunday a friend's daughter drowned in their pool.  She was just a couple days shy of her 10th birthday.  I personally don't know how you get out of bed after something like that happens.  A couple of friends and I traveled to Michigan for the funeral.  It was a sobering experience to say the least.  We tried to make the best of it by doing some geocaching on the way up and the way back.  It did seem like we had a hard time finding our spirit though. 

We decided to cure that on Saturday though.  A couple of us girls had decided we really wanted a girls day of geocaching.  And although we let a couple of guys join us we ended up just us girls in the end.  We had a crazy day of challenging the guys to see who could find the cache faster.  Turned out very well for us.  Especially when one of the guys couldn't find a cache that was right next to his head. LOL  Poor Tim, good thing he is a good sport.

For the first few days after I got back from my trip it was really hard to get back in the groove of life. I suppose seeing a child's funeral will do that to you.  But life must go on and by Wednesday I had an appointment to go see Yani at Indiana Tech to sign up for classes for next semester.  So on Thursday afternoon I signed up for my next semester's classes that will take me onto my MBA.  In two weeks I will no longer be an Ivy Tech student.  So many changes, and most days I feel like I'm hanging on for the ride, and I'm certainly not steering the car.

Some days it's the small things

Yesterday I really tried hard to make good food choices. I did pretty well, and then the late night munchies hit.  I saw the bag of potato chips...but instead went and got some carrots.  Sometimes it's just the smallest thing that makes me feel better.  I also made sure I had plenty of cut up vegetables and fruit in the refrigerator for meals and snacking. 

Hopefully as the weather gets warmer and the fresh produce starts to come in I will want less "comfort" junk food and more healthy green foods.

The summer of 2012

I have spent this weekend basically just doing homework. I had planned to go on  geocaching run to the Summer Picnic site, but with so much homework I knew I needed to stay home.  And it was pretty annoying to have to be a grown up.  I have had to put off many things while I have been in class because I just really haven't had the time to do things I really want to do.  And then last week I was watching Biggest Loser and they interviewed Kim and it was like they were talking about me.  She does things for everyone else and never makes time for herself.  Not to mention she grew up very poor and having food in the house now makes her feel secure.  My childhood was much like that, and it does make me feel better that there is actually food in the house.  So it is obvious to me I have a long walk still to go on my path. 

So I have decided that this summer (since I am not taking summer classes) it is going to be the summer of me.  I am going to do creative things that I love. I am going to actually exercise for me and work through these stupid childhood scars. I really love my life right now except for this weight issue, which is obviously a childhood scar.  This summer is going to be for me. 

Proud to be a mom

Tonight was Adam's last home game for basketball.  It could be his last home game of basketball forever.  He is a pretty good basketball player, but we have so many great athletes that is highly likely that he will not get a spot on the JV squad next year.  And he doesn't always get as much playing time as I would like, but tonight he played very well.  He went up for a rebound, came down with it and put it right back up for a score. He also made a free throw shot after being fouled by a thug from New Haven.  It was an interesting game to say the least.  Our win was definitely overshadowed by the outrageous rantings from the New Haven fans.  It reminds me why I send my kids to the schools I do, and how they are taught to not act like complete jerks.  Thank goodness for the help we have received along the way to get these three through these schools. 
And speaking of help, I have to give a speech at the Big Give next weekend.  I have to talk about what it has meant to me to receive the financial aide help from the school for my kids to attend Holy Cross. I am pretty nervous about it, but hopefully by Friday night I will be ready. 

All in all today I realize how thankful I am to be "Gilly's mom".  He is a wonderful kid with lots of heart.  And even if he doesn't make the team next year, I have no doubt he will be their biggest fan.  And I have no doubt we will also be in the stands cheering on the Cadets!

Is it all worth it...

I was buried under a mountain of homework tonight and it was really hard to be motivated. It made me wonder and question if I am on the right path.  Is all this worth all the trouble? Is getting my MBA really going to make that much difference in my life? Is it worth all the headaches?  Is it worth all the weekends I am trapped in front of this computer working and working?  I certainly hope so. At least I finished, and I am hoping to come up with a better plan next week to make it work better.

As for as weight loss goes, I am struggling.  I don't want to start over. I don't want to gain any weight back, but for some reasons I am craving sugar this week.  It is such a freaking bummer.  I am sure it is stress, but I hope it goes away soon.  I am down 11 lbs and don't want to go backwards.