Well, it's official. We are in a recession. How bad will it be? How will affect us? Obviously no one can predict the future, so it's a good idea to plan for the worst while still hoping for the best. I admit, we were caught with our pants down. We went 6 months with $3000 income. Brutal is the best way to describe it. But as with all things difficult, we learned some really important lessons. We can weather the storm without killing each other. We might make each other pretty damn miserable, but we're all in this together. Buy less, buy quality. Used is often just as good as new. Travel is fun but not a necessity. Last, but certainly not least, (this might seem obvious) debt is bad, savings are good.
So how do we plan to get through the recession as well as make sure we are ready for another dry spell in income? Funny you should ask. Here is our basic plan.
1. Lower monthly payments. We lucked out. Our house has appreciated a considerable amount. When rates went down we did a refi. We took out enough equity to pay off our debt and still lowered out monthly payments. While I don't recommend this for everyone, and fully understand the consequences of out actions (trading equity to pay off past purchases, trading unsecured debt for secured) for us it really did make the most sense. We now have some much needed breathing room.
2. No new debt. If we don't have the cash for it, we don't get it. This is a hard one. For R it is because he is always tempted to take a line of credit and invest it. I finally had to tell him that it ain't gonna happen again. He still brings it up, I still shut him down. I'm sure a fabulous opportunity is going to come along and I will really have to stand my ground. NO NEW DEBT! I've canceled all but one card with a reasonable limit (for renting cars and such). For me it is hard when it comes to travel. We are planning on a Costa Rica trip this fall, but if we don't have the money saved by then, we aren't going. In the past I would have insisted that we still go for the experience of it, arguing that it is our life after all. I think the credit card companies had me snowed for a bit there with their feel good commercials. Well I'm wise to them now!
3. SAVE!!! I am passionate about saving up a six month emergency fund. A full year would be better, but I will determine if that is necessary when I hit the 6 month mark. R is also working on saving a 6 month buffer for business expenses. That way we won't be tempted to rob Peter to pay Paul. We currently have 1 month saved. It's not much, but it certainly is better than being 5 months in the hole!
4. Increase income. I've been a mostly SAHM for the past 5 years. I've done corporate America and I don't see that happening again for me in this lifetime. The benefits were great, but not worth the stress and time spent doing something I really didn't enjoy for someone else's benefit. I also can't imagine working 40+ hours and having 2 kids. I know lots of people do it, and that's great, I just can't imagine it for me. I don't juggle a lot of responsibilities well. So I've been helping R with his business a few hours a week. but that doesn't actually bring in any money. I have been trying to think of a part-time job that I could see me enjoying and bringing in enough to make having Z in daycare worth it. Well there really aren't any. Then I realized that if I work at his pre-school/daycare, his care is free and I am bringing in some money. Plus I think it would be fun. I have an interview tomorrow. They are looking for some permanent people as well as some subs. I think I may start out as a sub. More flexibility. But I will have to find out what benefits, if any, they provide. The other place I've considered is the rec center. They only pay about $8 an hour, but Z could go to their daycare for free, their shifts are short, and you get a rec center pass for free. Not a bad deal really. By bringing in some extra money each month I'm hoping to a) get that emergency fund built quickly b) take some of the pressure of R and c) give us some fun money for a few wants. It has been pretty lean around here lately.
5. Make every dollar count. It's times like these that you really start to think about what is important to you. When you only have a few dollars to spend, McDonald's because you're too tired to cook isn't as appealing. You start to think about travel vs. a newer car vs. a bathroom remodel vs. retirement or college savings. Some days I want to update my house SOOOOO BAD! And then I read an article about a couple who retired at 40 by being frugal and I realize my house is fully functional (mostly), just out of style and a bit worn. I shop and wish I could buy a million pairs of shoes until I realize my car is getting up there in miles. Or some friends travel monthly and I wish I could too until I realize that my dream career requires a master's degree. It's all about choices. Some people could never imagine letting their children wear hand-me-downs or used clothes. I don't mind a bit. When I score a Tony Hawk t-shirt for $2 instead of $20, I have $18 to put towards something else. Like organic food, which is pretty much non-negotiable for me. Everyone's choices will be different. But knowing what choices are important to our family makes managing the money a lot more simple.
2.19.2008
2.05.2008
1.28.2008
In Defense of Food (a review)
I just read In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan. Last year I read his book The Omnivore's Dilemma and LOVED it! So I was really excited to read this new book. I realize I'm kind of a geek to get so excited about social commentaries about food as well as the food economy. Guilty. I still love them though.
So he starts out by explaining why another book about food. In the Omnivore's Dilemma he goes into extreme detail to map out food systems. But he never did say what it is he now eats after doing all this research about how our food gets to our table. So in this book he does. He basically boils it down to "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." This reminds me of Marion Nestle's advice, "Eat less. Move more. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Go easy on the junk". Which is advice I have taken straight to heart.
The book is broken down into 3 parts. The first explains how we have gotten away from eating foods, and now worship the cult of nutritionism which is instead eating nutrients. So instead of eating carrots because we like carrots, and we know that carrots are good for us, we eat carrots because we are trying to get more beta carotene. And then we may wonder if we really need to eat the carrots and instead take a beta carotene supplement. Then we wonder why we just aren't that healthy. We talked about this in my advanced nutrition class last year. My professor pointed out that nutritionists have found that supplements usually fail to do what a good balanced diet does. We obviously don't know everything about what is in food and how the body digests food. The sum of the parts don't equal the whole.
Section 2 talks about the Western Diet. He goes into how most traditional diets, whether vegetarian, mostly meat, high fat, low fat or anything else, have tended to have populations with far less incidence of disease. Pretty much any diet is healthy but the Western Diet. But maybe that is because we have gotten away from eating real food and instead eat a lot of refined foodlike substances that are primarily made of corn, wheat or soy, repackaged artfully to seem like different types of food. It looks like a diverse diet, but it's not. And of course there is the conspicuous absence of fruits and vegetables. Lots of meat (raised on corn,wheat and soy), lots of processed foods packed with refined starches (corn, wheat and soy), lots of sugar (more corn), trans fats (corn, soy) and salt. We are plagued with excess calories and still we are
undernourished, a feat not really thought possible before.
Section 3 goes into the basic "rules" or guidelines he follows as a result of his research. 1) Don't eat anything your grandmother wouldn't recognize. Go-gurt anyone?
2) Avoid food with ingredeints that are a) unfamiliar b)unpronouceable c)more than 5 in number and d) include high fructose corn syrup.
3) Avoid foods that make health claims (I mostly agree with this, but I love me some Cheerios). 4) Shop the perimeter of the store
5)Get out of the supermarket if possible and instead patronize farmer's markets, CSAs or grow a garden.
6) Eat mostly plants, especially leaves.
7) Remember you are what your food eats too
8)If you have the space, buy a freezer.
9) Eat well grown food from healthy soils.
10) Eat wild foods when you can
11) Be the kind of person that eats supplements, but then don 't.
12) Eat more like the French, or the Italians, or the Japanese, or the Indians, or the Greeks...(those who have traditional diets tend to be healthier)
13) Don't look for the magic bullet in a traditional diet (enjoy your food, don't just eat...dine.)
14)Have a glass of wine with dinner
15)Pay more, eat less.
16) Eat meals. Don't snack and graze your way through the day.
17) Do all your eating at the table.
18)Don't get your fuel from the same place your car does.
19) Try not to eat alone.
20) Consult your gut. (Stop eating if you are full. If the food makes you feel like crap, don't eat it).
21) Eat slowly.
22) Cook. And if you can plant a garden.
I've spent many, many years reading nutrition books and the latest diet books. For a little while I felt totally messed up. I've got lots of fitness fanatic friends. I've got friends that follow strict diets. I've tried them myself. About a year and a half ago I decided I was done. No more diets, not more diet books, no more latest nutrient, no more supplements. I just wanted to eat. And at first I let myself just eat a lot of crap. Did I gain weight? Not really. I've been about the same weight for 2 years. Then I read the Omnivore's Dilemma and decided that my gut feeling that organic foods really are the best idea for health and the planet. Then I read Marion Nestle's book What to Eat. I loved that she is a nutritionist but has a totally common sense approach to food. I made my New Year's Resolution: Eat LOADS of fruits and vegetables. I've done pretty well so far. Recently I have decided I am ready to try to lose the 20 lbs I need to shed. And the seduction of weight loss products started to creep back in. Should I do a cleanse? Should I talk to my doctor about weight loss medications? Should I give up starchy foods? And then this book reminded me of what I really think the key to weight loss is: Eat less, move more, eat lots of fruits and vegetables, go easy on the junk. Eat food, not much, mostly plants. It's a simple as that.
So he starts out by explaining why another book about food. In the Omnivore's Dilemma he goes into extreme detail to map out food systems. But he never did say what it is he now eats after doing all this research about how our food gets to our table. So in this book he does. He basically boils it down to "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." This reminds me of Marion Nestle's advice, "Eat less. Move more. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Go easy on the junk". Which is advice I have taken straight to heart.
The book is broken down into 3 parts. The first explains how we have gotten away from eating foods, and now worship the cult of nutritionism which is instead eating nutrients. So instead of eating carrots because we like carrots, and we know that carrots are good for us, we eat carrots because we are trying to get more beta carotene. And then we may wonder if we really need to eat the carrots and instead take a beta carotene supplement. Then we wonder why we just aren't that healthy. We talked about this in my advanced nutrition class last year. My professor pointed out that nutritionists have found that supplements usually fail to do what a good balanced diet does. We obviously don't know everything about what is in food and how the body digests food. The sum of the parts don't equal the whole.
Section 2 talks about the Western Diet. He goes into how most traditional diets, whether vegetarian, mostly meat, high fat, low fat or anything else, have tended to have populations with far less incidence of disease. Pretty much any diet is healthy but the Western Diet. But maybe that is because we have gotten away from eating real food and instead eat a lot of refined foodlike substances that are primarily made of corn, wheat or soy, repackaged artfully to seem like different types of food. It looks like a diverse diet, but it's not. And of course there is the conspicuous absence of fruits and vegetables. Lots of meat (raised on corn,wheat and soy), lots of processed foods packed with refined starches (corn, wheat and soy), lots of sugar (more corn), trans fats (corn, soy) and salt. We are plagued with excess calories and still we are
undernourished, a feat not really thought possible before.
Section 3 goes into the basic "rules" or guidelines he follows as a result of his research. 1) Don't eat anything your grandmother wouldn't recognize. Go-gurt anyone?
2) Avoid food with ingredeints that are a) unfamiliar b)unpronouceable c)more than 5 in number and d) include high fructose corn syrup.
3) Avoid foods that make health claims (I mostly agree with this, but I love me some Cheerios). 4) Shop the perimeter of the store
5)Get out of the supermarket if possible and instead patronize farmer's markets, CSAs or grow a garden.
6) Eat mostly plants, especially leaves.
7) Remember you are what your food eats too
8)If you have the space, buy a freezer.
9) Eat well grown food from healthy soils.
10) Eat wild foods when you can
11) Be the kind of person that eats supplements, but then don 't.
12) Eat more like the French, or the Italians, or the Japanese, or the Indians, or the Greeks...(those who have traditional diets tend to be healthier)
13) Don't look for the magic bullet in a traditional diet (enjoy your food, don't just eat...dine.)
14)Have a glass of wine with dinner
15)Pay more, eat less.
16) Eat meals. Don't snack and graze your way through the day.
17) Do all your eating at the table.
18)Don't get your fuel from the same place your car does.
19) Try not to eat alone.
20) Consult your gut. (Stop eating if you are full. If the food makes you feel like crap, don't eat it).
21) Eat slowly.
22) Cook. And if you can plant a garden.
I've spent many, many years reading nutrition books and the latest diet books. For a little while I felt totally messed up. I've got lots of fitness fanatic friends. I've got friends that follow strict diets. I've tried them myself. About a year and a half ago I decided I was done. No more diets, not more diet books, no more latest nutrient, no more supplements. I just wanted to eat. And at first I let myself just eat a lot of crap. Did I gain weight? Not really. I've been about the same weight for 2 years. Then I read the Omnivore's Dilemma and decided that my gut feeling that organic foods really are the best idea for health and the planet. Then I read Marion Nestle's book What to Eat. I loved that she is a nutritionist but has a totally common sense approach to food. I made my New Year's Resolution: Eat LOADS of fruits and vegetables. I've done pretty well so far. Recently I have decided I am ready to try to lose the 20 lbs I need to shed. And the seduction of weight loss products started to creep back in. Should I do a cleanse? Should I talk to my doctor about weight loss medications? Should I give up starchy foods? And then this book reminded me of what I really think the key to weight loss is: Eat less, move more, eat lots of fruits and vegetables, go easy on the junk. Eat food, not much, mostly plants. It's a simple as that.
1.26.2008
The Dilemma of Laundry
Laundry. I hate it. I hate sorting it, soaking it, folding it, and especially putting it all away. I daydream about the day M and Z can do their own. R? I should make him do his own, but I figure, he does support the family and all. I'll give him a pass for now.
So as much as I already dislike the chore, I find it is beginning to bring about a whole new level of stress beyond "Do I really have to do it?". Am I doing it in the "right" way? The most environmental way?
I try to do full loads. It is rare that I do a smaller emergency load. I generally wash in cold unless it is whites. I buy a "green" detergent from Costco. Is it really green? I don't know, I just believe it is because they say it is. I haven't found the time to research my laundry products. Does it work as well? Not as well as say, Tide with bleach, but it is acceptable. Does it cost more? More than Costco's Kirkland brand. About equal to Tide. I've begun adding Borax. This I know is environmentally OK. I use it to boost the only acceptable detergent. It's a new cost, but minimal. About $3.50 for a box that last's about 2 weeks. I used to use Clorox 2, then I switched to Purex all fabric bleach for colors. Now I'm using nothing. Are my clothes as clean? No. I use more Spray n Wash now, which I'm sure is a no-no. I tried several environmentally correct stain fighters. None really worked all that well and they cost a fortune. I don't use a fabric softener in the wash. And then there is the bleach problem. I tried not using it for awhile. My white towels, which I bought because they were "simpler" because they all matched, didn't fade and I could always bleach them white again, require bleach to stay white. Then I found out bleach was bad. So my towels began to get dingy. Plus what about Z's "accidents"? I sure do like to bleach his little undies white again, plus I know they are really clean. Not sure if just hot water would kill all the germs. So I began to use bleach again. But now I feel guilty. This month's Martha Steward Living says to use Oxigenated Bleach instead. They show a photo of an environmentally correct brand. Will Oxi-Clean work? Or is there something in there that isn't good? And does it kill germs as well as clean stuff? More research to do.
And then there is the dryer. In the summer I hang 90% of our laundry outside. I don't really mind crunchy clothes. I learned that using less detergent actually leaves your clothes softer. But in the winter I have to move this operation inside and it takes a lot longer for everything to dry. So when I do use the dryer, once again I try to do full loads, do them in succession to take advantage of a hot dryer, and always clean my lint trap. But I used to use Bounce to tame the ever dreaded static cling. I'm guessing there is something petroleum based in there (research, anyone?) so I bought an environmentally friendly claiming brand at Wal-mart (of all places, which is whole different rant). The clothes are softish, but it does almost nothing for static cling. Seriously, folding socks is a shocking experience, and I keep finding stray socks in my pants.
I have no concrete answers and certainly don't claim to be the pillar of environmental living. I try very hard to do the best thing for our environment. I really do care. But sometimes I get so sick of how hard it is to do simple things like laundry. It would be nice if all so called "green" products really were and there weren't any money hungry corporations out there willing to take a buck they don't deserve by touting their "green"ness, when you read later that they aren't really. It would be nice to live in a world where people wouldn't want to sell you anything that will cause algae blooms or kill ocean wildlife or build up toxins in their bodies, which inevitably we eat and end up building up in our own and children's bodies. What if all products were OK for the environment and our bodies because that was all our society allowed? It would be nice if good products weren't half the size and twice as much. It would be nice if I didn't care if my whites were blindingly white or my clothes soft and static free. There is plenty of blame to go around.
I guess change happens from right where you are. If I do a little better, learn a little more, and decide to put my money where my mouth is, change will come. Hopefully, others will make changes as well and the momentum will pick up. I am a hopeful, optimistic person. I believe that change will come and we will figure out a way out of the mess we've made. It starts with people like me thinking about simple things, like laundry.
Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some research to do.
Peace.
So as much as I already dislike the chore, I find it is beginning to bring about a whole new level of stress beyond "Do I really have to do it?". Am I doing it in the "right" way? The most environmental way?
I try to do full loads. It is rare that I do a smaller emergency load. I generally wash in cold unless it is whites. I buy a "green" detergent from Costco. Is it really green? I don't know, I just believe it is because they say it is. I haven't found the time to research my laundry products. Does it work as well? Not as well as say, Tide with bleach, but it is acceptable. Does it cost more? More than Costco's Kirkland brand. About equal to Tide. I've begun adding Borax. This I know is environmentally OK. I use it to boost the only acceptable detergent. It's a new cost, but minimal. About $3.50 for a box that last's about 2 weeks. I used to use Clorox 2, then I switched to Purex all fabric bleach for colors. Now I'm using nothing. Are my clothes as clean? No. I use more Spray n Wash now, which I'm sure is a no-no. I tried several environmentally correct stain fighters. None really worked all that well and they cost a fortune. I don't use a fabric softener in the wash. And then there is the bleach problem. I tried not using it for awhile. My white towels, which I bought because they were "simpler" because they all matched, didn't fade and I could always bleach them white again, require bleach to stay white. Then I found out bleach was bad. So my towels began to get dingy. Plus what about Z's "accidents"? I sure do like to bleach his little undies white again, plus I know they are really clean. Not sure if just hot water would kill all the germs. So I began to use bleach again. But now I feel guilty. This month's Martha Steward Living says to use Oxigenated Bleach instead. They show a photo of an environmentally correct brand. Will Oxi-Clean work? Or is there something in there that isn't good? And does it kill germs as well as clean stuff? More research to do.
And then there is the dryer. In the summer I hang 90% of our laundry outside. I don't really mind crunchy clothes. I learned that using less detergent actually leaves your clothes softer. But in the winter I have to move this operation inside and it takes a lot longer for everything to dry. So when I do use the dryer, once again I try to do full loads, do them in succession to take advantage of a hot dryer, and always clean my lint trap. But I used to use Bounce to tame the ever dreaded static cling. I'm guessing there is something petroleum based in there (research, anyone?) so I bought an environmentally friendly claiming brand at Wal-mart (of all places, which is whole different rant). The clothes are softish, but it does almost nothing for static cling. Seriously, folding socks is a shocking experience, and I keep finding stray socks in my pants.
I have no concrete answers and certainly don't claim to be the pillar of environmental living. I try very hard to do the best thing for our environment. I really do care. But sometimes I get so sick of how hard it is to do simple things like laundry. It would be nice if all so called "green" products really were and there weren't any money hungry corporations out there willing to take a buck they don't deserve by touting their "green"ness, when you read later that they aren't really. It would be nice to live in a world where people wouldn't want to sell you anything that will cause algae blooms or kill ocean wildlife or build up toxins in their bodies, which inevitably we eat and end up building up in our own and children's bodies. What if all products were OK for the environment and our bodies because that was all our society allowed? It would be nice if good products weren't half the size and twice as much. It would be nice if I didn't care if my whites were blindingly white or my clothes soft and static free. There is plenty of blame to go around.
I guess change happens from right where you are. If I do a little better, learn a little more, and decide to put my money where my mouth is, change will come. Hopefully, others will make changes as well and the momentum will pick up. I am a hopeful, optimistic person. I believe that change will come and we will figure out a way out of the mess we've made. It starts with people like me thinking about simple things, like laundry.
Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some research to do.
Peace.
1.23.2008
Nature is Amazing!
I thought I'd give a quick snippet about life around here lately.
Snow, snow and more snow. Wow. It is hard to believe we could get so much snow in such a short time. I've always figured, if we have to have winter, it may as well snow. And boy have we.
So today I took the Z-ster sledding with our Mommy Group. Oh my gosh we had fun! I definitely counted it towards my workout for the day. Lots of walking uphill, followed by zooming, shrieking and laughing. And of course bowling other children over. Z managed to knock our friend Carson over, right in the gut. Carson managed to laugh it off and keep going. Then Z hit his cousin A, who is very petite, in the back. It knocked the wind right out of her, poor thing. My sensitive little Z was yelling, "Did I hurt her?! Did I hurt her?!, Oh NO!!!" I didn't know who to feel worse for. Both managed to recover and a good time was had by all.
M had cub Scouts today. As we pulled in the driveway after I picked him up we were greeted by this sight:
Amazing aren't they?
We are so fortunate to live where we are reminded of the magnificent world we live in.
1.10.2008
Back on the Chain Gang
I'm getting a job. Or at least, I'm pretty sure I am.
I have been pretty adamant that I was NOT going back to work. I've got 2 smallish kids, lots of activities, a household and a husband with erratic work schedule. I have refused to add another responsibility to my daily schedule. I have said I would rather move and/or cut back expenses to the bare minimum rather than spend 40 hours working for someone else's bottom line and then come home and do all the rest of my work, all for a pitiful amount of money. My life energy is worth more than that.
I've been praying for the right gig to come along. Something that meets all my requirements and takes care of most of my concerns. Those concerns have been:
* not paying for M to also go to after-school care (in other words, being available to pick him up from school at 3:15)
*making a reasonable amount more than I am paying for Z to go to the Winner school.
*dealing with Z's bowel problems and not expecting someone else to deal with them.
*not being in an environment where the company's wants and needs must supersede my own.
*getting help around the house.
And then I had the IDEA. Why not work at the Winner School. I love the place. Z is already there and if I am working there, he is pretty much free. And I could be there for the inevitable accidents. That kills 3 birds with one stone. They are always looking for subs at a minimum, which would give me flexibility to start off with and a foot in the door. People work there forever, which shows me that it must be a pretty decent place to work. Plus it just sounds kinda fun. Which I really couldn't say about any of the other jobs I considered.
So I filled out an application. Their receptionist told me that she is pretty sure I could at least sub to start and she would give my app to the owner who incidentally knows my mom from the gym. So now I'm just waiting for a call.
I hope it is all I want it to be!
I have been pretty adamant that I was NOT going back to work. I've got 2 smallish kids, lots of activities, a household and a husband with erratic work schedule. I have refused to add another responsibility to my daily schedule. I have said I would rather move and/or cut back expenses to the bare minimum rather than spend 40 hours working for someone else's bottom line and then come home and do all the rest of my work, all for a pitiful amount of money. My life energy is worth more than that.
I've been praying for the right gig to come along. Something that meets all my requirements and takes care of most of my concerns. Those concerns have been:
* not paying for M to also go to after-school care (in other words, being available to pick him up from school at 3:15)
*making a reasonable amount more than I am paying for Z to go to the Winner school.
*dealing with Z's bowel problems and not expecting someone else to deal with them.
*not being in an environment where the company's wants and needs must supersede my own.
*getting help around the house.
And then I had the IDEA. Why not work at the Winner School. I love the place. Z is already there and if I am working there, he is pretty much free. And I could be there for the inevitable accidents. That kills 3 birds with one stone. They are always looking for subs at a minimum, which would give me flexibility to start off with and a foot in the door. People work there forever, which shows me that it must be a pretty decent place to work. Plus it just sounds kinda fun. Which I really couldn't say about any of the other jobs I considered.
So I filled out an application. Their receptionist told me that she is pretty sure I could at least sub to start and she would give my app to the owner who incidentally knows my mom from the gym. So now I'm just waiting for a call.
I hope it is all I want it to be!
12.08.2007
First Weigh In
It snowed like you wouldn't believe last night. Actually it is still snowing. Several feet are expected from this storm. It's truly beautiful.
I woke up this morning and thought I maybe would have to hit the later Weight Watchers meeting because of the snow. As I lay there procrastinating I heard the plow go by. So off I went. I cannot believe how many people were there regardless of the snow!
Official weigh in: 174. So I lost 1.6 pounds. I'm sure it would have been more if I hadn't gone off program and had a couple of drinks as well as cheese fondue last night. Oh well. 1.6 is right on target. If I lose 1 pound a week I will be at my goal by Summer.
I've decided that Saturday is my free day. I know WW doesn't have a free day, but I do. I don't plan on going crazy, but I do want to be able to have a few of the things I haven't been eating because they aren't on Core. Like Honey Nut Cheerios for breakfast. We've got several parties tonight and I just don't want to be worrying about every little thing. We'll see how this strategy works. If I still lose a pound or more by next Saturday I'll keep my free day. If not, I'll re-evaluate.
Happy Snow Day!
I woke up this morning and thought I maybe would have to hit the later Weight Watchers meeting because of the snow. As I lay there procrastinating I heard the plow go by. So off I went. I cannot believe how many people were there regardless of the snow!
Official weigh in: 174. So I lost 1.6 pounds. I'm sure it would have been more if I hadn't gone off program and had a couple of drinks as well as cheese fondue last night. Oh well. 1.6 is right on target. If I lose 1 pound a week I will be at my goal by Summer.
I've decided that Saturday is my free day. I know WW doesn't have a free day, but I do. I don't plan on going crazy, but I do want to be able to have a few of the things I haven't been eating because they aren't on Core. Like Honey Nut Cheerios for breakfast. We've got several parties tonight and I just don't want to be worrying about every little thing. We'll see how this strategy works. If I still lose a pound or more by next Saturday I'll keep my free day. If not, I'll re-evaluate.
Happy Snow Day!
12.02.2007
A Week in the Life
So I did make it to Weight Watchers yesterday, barely. We woke up to one heck of a snowstorm. It is about time! I weighed in at 175.4. About what I figured. So my first goal is 6 lbs. for December. I want to be 169.4 on January 1st. Too ambitious for the holidays? I don't think so. It's just of matter of priority, and right now, decluttering my body is right up at the top.
This week has been filled with the mundane: school, work, karate, homework, cleaning, carpooling, etc. I finally got going and painted my kitchen ceiling yesterday. I took M and got some Christmas shopping done. Today I painted one coat of the yellow I am painting the walls. Already it looks so bright and happy. I know I'm going to love it. I moved some shelves downstairs to put the games in. My plan is to have one of my chrome restaurant style racks full of only dishes. I want to start using "the good stuff" all the time. Why the heck not?
R took the boys out sledding yesterday. It was quite a storm and they had a great time. I think I will take them out again tomorrow after school.
We went to dinner with some close friends that I just adore. Neither of us could find a sitter, so we loaded up the boys (they have 2 as well) and headed to a local pizza joint. It was a little crazy, but also fun. Sometimes I get a kick out of the madness that can be family life. I was proud of us, especially of R, for just going with the flow and having a good time. We went back to there house and just talked and enjoyed each others company. I had a really great time.
Today we decorated the Christmas tree. It looks really pretty. Every year I want to buy a new pre-lit tree and I then I can't convince myself to spend the money on it. And the past few years I have wanted to change my ornaments, but I just don't have the cash. Then I get it decorated and it looks so pretty that I don't really mind.
I'm sitting at the kitchen table overlooking the valley all blanketed with snow. The valley is clear (a rarity these days) and you can see all the way to the Great Salt Lake. The pine trees in my backyard are covered with snow and icicles. You really couldn't plan a prettier picture. It's moments like this that I am filled with gratitude and awe. It's these moments I need to remember when I'm frazzled and focusing on the problems.
I have just planned M birthday party and e-mailed to reserve a spot at the Utah Museum of Natural History. He wants to do a Super Sleuths party. It should be really fun. I've also designed our New Year's party invitations. I'm feeling a little more in control now. December is always a hectic month for me. Besides the normal Christmas craziness I also get to plan a New Year's party for a huge crowd, 2 birthday parties for my kiddos, come up with gifts for kiddos 2 weeks after Christmas as well as a gift for my mother, and plan spotlights for my kids at school. If I don't get a start early, I'm doomed. So I'm glad to have completed a few tasks.
So here's to another fabulous week!
This week has been filled with the mundane: school, work, karate, homework, cleaning, carpooling, etc. I finally got going and painted my kitchen ceiling yesterday. I took M and got some Christmas shopping done. Today I painted one coat of the yellow I am painting the walls. Already it looks so bright and happy. I know I'm going to love it. I moved some shelves downstairs to put the games in. My plan is to have one of my chrome restaurant style racks full of only dishes. I want to start using "the good stuff" all the time. Why the heck not?
R took the boys out sledding yesterday. It was quite a storm and they had a great time. I think I will take them out again tomorrow after school.
We went to dinner with some close friends that I just adore. Neither of us could find a sitter, so we loaded up the boys (they have 2 as well) and headed to a local pizza joint. It was a little crazy, but also fun. Sometimes I get a kick out of the madness that can be family life. I was proud of us, especially of R, for just going with the flow and having a good time. We went back to there house and just talked and enjoyed each others company. I had a really great time.
Today we decorated the Christmas tree. It looks really pretty. Every year I want to buy a new pre-lit tree and I then I can't convince myself to spend the money on it. And the past few years I have wanted to change my ornaments, but I just don't have the cash. Then I get it decorated and it looks so pretty that I don't really mind.
I'm sitting at the kitchen table overlooking the valley all blanketed with snow. The valley is clear (a rarity these days) and you can see all the way to the Great Salt Lake. The pine trees in my backyard are covered with snow and icicles. You really couldn't plan a prettier picture. It's moments like this that I am filled with gratitude and awe. It's these moments I need to remember when I'm frazzled and focusing on the problems.
I have just planned M birthday party and e-mailed to reserve a spot at the Utah Museum of Natural History. He wants to do a Super Sleuths party. It should be really fun. I've also designed our New Year's party invitations. I'm feeling a little more in control now. December is always a hectic month for me. Besides the normal Christmas craziness I also get to plan a New Year's party for a huge crowd, 2 birthday parties for my kiddos, come up with gifts for kiddos 2 weeks after Christmas as well as a gift for my mother, and plan spotlights for my kids at school. If I don't get a start early, I'm doomed. So I'm glad to have completed a few tasks.
So here's to another fabulous week!
11.30.2007
Time for A Change
I'm making a change. I'm going to lose weight.
Why? I am sick of being chunky. I am sick of worrying about what I'm going to wear to any given gathering. Trying to find the magical outfit that will make me look and feel skinnier than I am. Wondering if I'm going to be the fattest one there. Going on vacation and looking at all the cute bikinis while I wear my oh so cute cover-up. Going shopping and knowing that it will be a miracle to go into the cute stores and find a size 14. Wearing and XXL from Target. Shopping with friends and just looking at shoes and earrings. Feeling like a frumpy mom.
I just finished reading Conversations with God and during the conversation it states that if you don't like what is going on in your life, just choose again. Up to this point I have chosen to be fat. Simple as that. I haven't really exercised in 6 months (while I have used the excuse that I had a foot injury that required surgery 2 months ago, I could have done some other kind of exercise and didn't). I have eaten whatever I wanted. Really the miracle is that I'm not bigger than I am! I won't say the time has been wasted however. I was really muddled in the brain by all the different diets I've tried in the past. Just being, without worrying about dieting has helped me regain a sense of what is normal eating and what my health priorities are.
So, now I'm ready to choose again. I am going to choose health. I am going to choose healthy, whole, preferably organic and local foods cooked in simple ways. I choose to move my body. I choose to regain a body that I can be proud of. I choose to weigh less than 150 lbs. I choose to wear a size 1o or smaller. And I choose not to freak out about it along the way.
So that is what I've chosen. The next question is obviously how? Tomorrow I am going to go back to Weight Watchers. I've done it before and lost 15 lbs before I got pregnant the second time. I am going to do the Core program, not counting points for the most part, just eating from an extensive list of healthy whole foods. The accountability of the weigh ins as well as the support from the meetings will really help me, I believe. R pays the equivalent in a gym membership each month, so I don't feel guilty , AT ALL, spending the money on myself (something I have used as an excuse not to rejoin in the past). I also plan to work up to running again. I am going to head out every morning from 7-8 to walk for the next month. In January I will begin to phase in running again. By May I'd like to run a half marathon in Ogden Canyon.
The when is that I'd l ike to hit certain goals along the way. I haven't worked them all out yet, and will post when I do, but I'm shooting for 145 lbs by June 2008. That's five pounds a month, just over 1 lb a week. Totally doable.
I'm going to my first meeting tomorrow. I will begin posting my stats then.
Why? I am sick of being chunky. I am sick of worrying about what I'm going to wear to any given gathering. Trying to find the magical outfit that will make me look and feel skinnier than I am. Wondering if I'm going to be the fattest one there. Going on vacation and looking at all the cute bikinis while I wear my oh so cute cover-up. Going shopping and knowing that it will be a miracle to go into the cute stores and find a size 14. Wearing and XXL from Target. Shopping with friends and just looking at shoes and earrings. Feeling like a frumpy mom.
I just finished reading Conversations with God and during the conversation it states that if you don't like what is going on in your life, just choose again. Up to this point I have chosen to be fat. Simple as that. I haven't really exercised in 6 months (while I have used the excuse that I had a foot injury that required surgery 2 months ago, I could have done some other kind of exercise and didn't). I have eaten whatever I wanted. Really the miracle is that I'm not bigger than I am! I won't say the time has been wasted however. I was really muddled in the brain by all the different diets I've tried in the past. Just being, without worrying about dieting has helped me regain a sense of what is normal eating and what my health priorities are.
So, now I'm ready to choose again. I am going to choose health. I am going to choose healthy, whole, preferably organic and local foods cooked in simple ways. I choose to move my body. I choose to regain a body that I can be proud of. I choose to weigh less than 150 lbs. I choose to wear a size 1o or smaller. And I choose not to freak out about it along the way.
So that is what I've chosen. The next question is obviously how? Tomorrow I am going to go back to Weight Watchers. I've done it before and lost 15 lbs before I got pregnant the second time. I am going to do the Core program, not counting points for the most part, just eating from an extensive list of healthy whole foods. The accountability of the weigh ins as well as the support from the meetings will really help me, I believe. R pays the equivalent in a gym membership each month, so I don't feel guilty , AT ALL, spending the money on myself (something I have used as an excuse not to rejoin in the past). I also plan to work up to running again. I am going to head out every morning from 7-8 to walk for the next month. In January I will begin to phase in running again. By May I'd like to run a half marathon in Ogden Canyon.
The when is that I'd l ike to hit certain goals along the way. I haven't worked them all out yet, and will post when I do, but I'm shooting for 145 lbs by June 2008. That's five pounds a month, just over 1 lb a week. Totally doable.
I'm going to my first meeting tomorrow. I will begin posting my stats then.
11.07.2007
Chance Encounters
I had such a happy chance encounter yesterday. I walked down to the school to vote and stood in the enormously long line and watched to women talking in front of me. I was thinking how cute one of the women's hair was and how stylishly she was dressed. I realized I had gone to school with the other one, but I didn't know her very well so I didn't say anything. After about 10 minutes I asked Z to go see if he could find his brother who was just finishing up his Spanish class. As I spoke, the lady with the cute hair turned to look at me, and oh my gosh! it was one of my best friends from about 5th to 8th grade, H. We both could not believe how long we had stood there before recognizing each other!
I've missed H. Our friendship was always interesting because we didn't go to school together after elementary. We'd be inseparable during the summer, then see each other less during the school year. She was a year older than me in school as well. I'd always worry when school started up that our friendship would end, but year after year it continued. But when she started high school I barely saw her. Then the year I entered high school she transferred to a private school and I honestly only saw her once after that. I always felt sad about it. Left behind a little. Logically I understood that we had just both moved onto new groups of people, and at the time I really didn't think about it much at all. But as time has gone by, I've realized how unfinished it all felt to me. I have a dream about her every six months or so and we meet up and are best friends all over again. Emotionally she was a huge part of my childhood. When she said she'd always felt bad we lost touch, it was like balm to a wound. Even if I never see her again, I would feel better going forward.
She had moved away for college and after she was married she moved away again. A few years back I heard she had moved back to town but I had no way of finding her. Her parents had moved and were unlisted. I didn't know her married name. Every so often someone, including my dad, would run into her, but no one ever had her number and I probably wouldn't have called anyway. I just kind of figured I'd run into her eventually. I could feel it coming for a long time. And then I did. I'm surprised it took so long. We know so many of the same people. She lives really close so I'm sure we are shopping at the same stores and eating at the same restaurants, etc. Her husbands older brother even dated a friend of mine for a long time. We just never met. Why? I don't know. But I'm so glad we did. It just brings some closure I've needed for a long time.
Do I expect it to be like the dream? BFF all over again? Of course not. But it would be great to keep in touch. Who knows what it will bring. But it certainly has made me very happy to have seen her and caught up for a minute.
I've missed H. Our friendship was always interesting because we didn't go to school together after elementary. We'd be inseparable during the summer, then see each other less during the school year. She was a year older than me in school as well. I'd always worry when school started up that our friendship would end, but year after year it continued. But when she started high school I barely saw her. Then the year I entered high school she transferred to a private school and I honestly only saw her once after that. I always felt sad about it. Left behind a little. Logically I understood that we had just both moved onto new groups of people, and at the time I really didn't think about it much at all. But as time has gone by, I've realized how unfinished it all felt to me. I have a dream about her every six months or so and we meet up and are best friends all over again. Emotionally she was a huge part of my childhood. When she said she'd always felt bad we lost touch, it was like balm to a wound. Even if I never see her again, I would feel better going forward.
She had moved away for college and after she was married she moved away again. A few years back I heard she had moved back to town but I had no way of finding her. Her parents had moved and were unlisted. I didn't know her married name. Every so often someone, including my dad, would run into her, but no one ever had her number and I probably wouldn't have called anyway. I just kind of figured I'd run into her eventually. I could feel it coming for a long time. And then I did. I'm surprised it took so long. We know so many of the same people. She lives really close so I'm sure we are shopping at the same stores and eating at the same restaurants, etc. Her husbands older brother even dated a friend of mine for a long time. We just never met. Why? I don't know. But I'm so glad we did. It just brings some closure I've needed for a long time.
Do I expect it to be like the dream? BFF all over again? Of course not. But it would be great to keep in touch. Who knows what it will bring. But it certainly has made me very happy to have seen her and caught up for a minute.
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