In the past, my goals have probably been a bit too "big" {I put that in quotes because it is so relative...} for my current state of being. In other words, I was setting myself up for disappointment and failure.
So I'm starting small. So, so small. If for no other reason, to feel a teensy bit accomplished ;-)
So here we go - June's goals {a week late!}:
1. Keep up with the Summer Shape-up and lose weight! Enough said on that one. So far, so good!
2. Hang at least 1 thing on our walls. We've been there almost four months... and haven't hung a single thing... unless you count bike racks in the garage ;)
3. Create our Summer Fun list! Last year we made one and we did pretty well - definitely need to get this done ASAP!
Ok, now I'm pumped up to get all of this done this weekend... watch me GO!
Showing posts with label Summer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Summer. Show all posts
Friday, June 7, 2013
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
What's Working for ME
I've made a real committment to eating better and sticking to a fitness routine as of late, and it's been paying off - to the tune of 6lbs lost! I'm nearly to the weight I was at the start of last summer, which I'll take. This year started off so rough with me in the body {okay, and mind} department, and this shift in thinking, eating, and exercising has been GREAT for me mentally and thankfully now physically as well.
I'm committed to losing 30lbs by the big 3-0 this December, so I'm on my way! Six down, 24 to go :)
A few things that are working for me:
1. The return of the 5:30am alarm. People are always *shocked* that I get up at 5:30 to exercise, and it makes me laugh. What other time of day would you like me to fit it in? I'm either working, cooking, cleaning, or spending time with my husband and child. Exercising before work {and before any of those demands get to me} ensures that I get 'er dun and have the rest of my day to take care of everything and everybody else. And frankly, I'm just too tired to put any big effort in at the end of the day. Plus, you get used to getting up early {and then you end up freaking out on Saturday morning when you think your alarm didn't go off, until you realize it's Saturday and you don't have to get up that early!}.
2. Meal prep and go-to meals. A no-brainer, really. Meal planning and prep is so beneficial in so many ways, but I've always had a hard time getting on board with it. Mostly because I was trying to change it up to often. Lately I've been sticking to salads for lunch {see next item on the list}, then a simple protein {usually grilled BBQ chicken} with a carb {rice or baked potato} and salad for dinner. I cut and wash lettuce a few times each week - thanks to the OXO salad spinner hubby got me for Mother's Day! - along with veggies to add to the salads. I'll also slice up some fruit to enjoy throughout the week {a la fruit salad... fruit - fruit salaaaad...} and marinade some chicken. For lunch I'll pack a salad with either grilled chicken or some lunchmeat, then have a cup of yogurt and a piece of fruit. Easy peasy. Dinner is quick and easy on the grill. Voila.
3. SALAD, gone gourmet. Way back when I did the South Beach diet, I spent the first 2 weeks choking down plain salad. It was so hard to eat and I never felt satisfied. I loved {and still love} restaurant-prepared salads, so I knew I could like eating salad as a meal, but I had such a hard time eating salad at home. As of late, the lightbulb went off and I thought "I'll just recreate restaurant salads at home!" Dur. So that's what I do. I make my salad like those I have at a restaurant. Lately, it's been a cobb salad - lots of romaine, broccoli, cucumber, red pepper, hard boiled egg, sprinkling of cheddar cheese, 1 slice crumbled bacon, grilled chicken and lite honey mustard dressing. Delicious and satisfying, with lots of veggies and protein!
4. Having a PIC named VIC. Vic was shaping up and dropping pounds for a 24-hour endurance race over Memorial Day weekend {24 hours of BURN}, so he was committed to cutting out the junk and getting off our butts. That made it so much easier for me to stick to my routine and good eating. It's always good to have someone to hold you accountable; it's even better when you live with that person {and they see you nakey!}.
5. Summer! It's FINALLY here {2 months late!}. The rain has ended, at least for now. Nothing better to remind you that you will need to eventually wear shorts and tanks. Better shape up those legs and arms! Not to mention the sweating... oy. You know summer is in effect in NC when you stand there doing nothing and sweat profusely. I'll take it any day over winter, though - no complaints here!
This week I started the Fitnessista's Summer Shape-Up, and it's been going well so far! She provides a workout plan along with instructions and pictures to help you out. I love her blog!
So that's what I've been doing lately. Habits I hope to keep up to keep myself and my family on track.
Have you made any changes lately that are working for you and your family?
I'm committed to losing 30lbs by the big 3-0 this December, so I'm on my way! Six down, 24 to go :)
A few things that are working for me:
1. The return of the 5:30am alarm. People are always *shocked* that I get up at 5:30 to exercise, and it makes me laugh. What other time of day would you like me to fit it in? I'm either working, cooking, cleaning, or spending time with my husband and child. Exercising before work {and before any of those demands get to me} ensures that I get 'er dun and have the rest of my day to take care of everything and everybody else. And frankly, I'm just too tired to put any big effort in at the end of the day. Plus, you get used to getting up early {and then you end up freaking out on Saturday morning when you think your alarm didn't go off, until you realize it's Saturday and you don't have to get up that early!}.
2. Meal prep and go-to meals. A no-brainer, really. Meal planning and prep is so beneficial in so many ways, but I've always had a hard time getting on board with it. Mostly because I was trying to change it up to often. Lately I've been sticking to salads for lunch {see next item on the list}, then a simple protein {usually grilled BBQ chicken} with a carb {rice or baked potato} and salad for dinner. I cut and wash lettuce a few times each week - thanks to the OXO salad spinner hubby got me for Mother's Day! - along with veggies to add to the salads. I'll also slice up some fruit to enjoy throughout the week {a la fruit salad... fruit - fruit salaaaad...} and marinade some chicken. For lunch I'll pack a salad with either grilled chicken or some lunchmeat, then have a cup of yogurt and a piece of fruit. Easy peasy. Dinner is quick and easy on the grill. Voila.
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| Big serving bowl o' fruit, which lasts us the week |
3. SALAD, gone gourmet. Way back when I did the South Beach diet, I spent the first 2 weeks choking down plain salad. It was so hard to eat and I never felt satisfied. I loved {and still love} restaurant-prepared salads, so I knew I could like eating salad as a meal, but I had such a hard time eating salad at home. As of late, the lightbulb went off and I thought "I'll just recreate restaurant salads at home!" Dur. So that's what I do. I make my salad like those I have at a restaurant. Lately, it's been a cobb salad - lots of romaine, broccoli, cucumber, red pepper, hard boiled egg, sprinkling of cheddar cheese, 1 slice crumbled bacon, grilled chicken and lite honey mustard dressing. Delicious and satisfying, with lots of veggies and protein!
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| Mmm salad. |
4. Having a PIC named VIC. Vic was shaping up and dropping pounds for a 24-hour endurance race over Memorial Day weekend {24 hours of BURN}, so he was committed to cutting out the junk and getting off our butts. That made it so much easier for me to stick to my routine and good eating. It's always good to have someone to hold you accountable; it's even better when you live with that person {and they see you nakey!}.
5. Summer! It's FINALLY here {2 months late!}. The rain has ended, at least for now. Nothing better to remind you that you will need to eventually wear shorts and tanks. Better shape up those legs and arms! Not to mention the sweating... oy. You know summer is in effect in NC when you stand there doing nothing and sweat profusely. I'll take it any day over winter, though - no complaints here!
This week I started the Fitnessista's Summer Shape-Up, and it's been going well so far! She provides a workout plan along with instructions and pictures to help you out. I love her blog!
So that's what I've been doing lately. Habits I hope to keep up to keep myself and my family on track.
Have you made any changes lately that are working for you and your family?
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
An Update and some "Sick-Day" Activities
Two-weeks since my last post? Oi. Sorry, but I've really had a case of the "don't really cares," especially when it came to this blog. Just been in a FUNK. I got hit hard with 2 weeks of PMS {WTF?!} that left me feeling physically blah - cramps, fatigue, bloat, and the blues included. Add to that the fact that I was just getting really into swimming laps at the pool and they decide to close it for TWO weeks for cleaning and maintenance {double WTF?! I want the pool back!}.
Last week, I only worked out once. One single, solitary time - a 40-minute spin class. The rest of the week, I was a bum. This seems to happen once every couple months - I need a break from it all to just be lazy and sleep a little more than usual {which I totally did last week}. Since yesterday, I've felt more energized, rested, and very "go-getter!" Perhaps I needed a lazy week to re-energize and get myself back in the right place? Last night I rode 10 miles on my bike and it felt GREAT. Had Valentino not woken up from 2:30-3:30am this morning, I had a 4-mile run planned {I obviously slept until 7:15 instead}... hopefully I'll be able to squeeze that run {or another workout} in this evening. Tomorrow morning will be spin, and we'll see what the rest of the week has in store. I sense an active long weekend in our future!
Valentino is sick right now - poor guy! I can usually tell when he's going to get sick because he gets really grumpy and acts "not himself." This was not the case this time - he was an angel all day Sunday, but then as I was putting him to bed, his nose started getting stuffy. At 11:30pm, he started screaming and bawling his eyes out {plus vomiting mucus} because he was so stuffed up that he couldn't sleep. I gave him some Mucinex, which seemed to help and let him fall back asleep. He woke up so pathetic on Monday morning that we just couldn't send him to school... so home we stayed. There was lots of TV watching, cuddling on the couch, and computer games played, but I also wanted to *do* something as to not totally rot his brain for the day.
I've been really wanting to do some activities/crafts from my Pinterest boards. Enter my inspiration from this pin, originally from a bird and a bean's blog:
The longest part of this project was creating the bike out of tape - that took way longer than I expected! It was worth it though, since we now have an interesting and personal piece of art for our walls :-)
Now, I'm not the type of mom who would ban her kid from the outdoors when they're sick - afterall, sunshine {Vitamin D!} can cure so much! It was a warm, sunny day yesterday, so I allowed Valentino to ride his bike for about 10 minutes {I didn't want him to overexert himself or get too tired}. He and I also did some side walk painting, a la Katie's post {and my pin}:
The recipe from Katie:
1/4 C corn starch
1/4 C water
4 drops food coloring
The product:
Yeah, I know - I made staying at home sick a little too FUN. However, the thing he wanted to do most {play with his friends down the street} was OFF LIMITS. So trust me, it was not all that fun for him ;-)
Last week, I only worked out once. One single, solitary time - a 40-minute spin class. The rest of the week, I was a bum. This seems to happen once every couple months - I need a break from it all to just be lazy and sleep a little more than usual {which I totally did last week}. Since yesterday, I've felt more energized, rested, and very "go-getter!" Perhaps I needed a lazy week to re-energize and get myself back in the right place? Last night I rode 10 miles on my bike and it felt GREAT. Had Valentino not woken up from 2:30-3:30am this morning, I had a 4-mile run planned {I obviously slept until 7:15 instead}... hopefully I'll be able to squeeze that run {or another workout} in this evening. Tomorrow morning will be spin, and we'll see what the rest of the week has in store. I sense an active long weekend in our future!
Valentino is sick right now - poor guy! I can usually tell when he's going to get sick because he gets really grumpy and acts "not himself." This was not the case this time - he was an angel all day Sunday, but then as I was putting him to bed, his nose started getting stuffy. At 11:30pm, he started screaming and bawling his eyes out {plus vomiting mucus} because he was so stuffed up that he couldn't sleep. I gave him some Mucinex, which seemed to help and let him fall back asleep. He woke up so pathetic on Monday morning that we just couldn't send him to school... so home we stayed. There was lots of TV watching, cuddling on the couch, and computer games played, but I also wanted to *do* something as to not totally rot his brain for the day.
I've been really wanting to do some activities/crafts from my Pinterest boards. Enter my inspiration from this pin, originally from a bird and a bean's blog:
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| White cardstock with a bike made out of painter's tape and a sick boy {Notice all his sweeping aparatai to the right - the boy loves to clean!}. |
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| Let 'em go wild with the watercolors - Valentino was very methodical with his paint application. Remove the painter's tape once the paint has dried {to avoid smudges}. |
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| The finished product, framed in our sad "gallery" wall. |
The longest part of this project was creating the bike out of tape - that took way longer than I expected! It was worth it though, since we now have an interesting and personal piece of art for our walls :-)
Now, I'm not the type of mom who would ban her kid from the outdoors when they're sick - afterall, sunshine {Vitamin D!} can cure so much! It was a warm, sunny day yesterday, so I allowed Valentino to ride his bike for about 10 minutes {I didn't want him to overexert himself or get too tired}. He and I also did some side walk painting, a la Katie's post {and my pin}:
The recipe from Katie:
The product:
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| He loved it {and I found a great use for those Easter egg dying cups!} |
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| Welcome Home message for Daddy {Valentino wrote the "HI!"} |
Yeah, I know - I made staying at home sick a little too FUN. However, the thing he wanted to do most {play with his friends down the street} was OFF LIMITS. So trust me, it was not all that fun for him ;-)
Monday, August 13, 2012
In the past week {or two}...
In the past week or two, I've:
1. Rekindled my love of swimming with three 1 mile+ early morning swim workouts.
2. Enjoyed having a new workout buddy who not only joins me in the pool, but who also invited me to a class that I've been wanting to take for over a year {but was too chicken to go to on my own}. We've been motivating and keeping each other accountable, which is awesome! She's trying to convince me to do the Ironman 70.3 when it comes to Raleigh next August... we'll see about that!
3. Attended the aforementioned class - Functional Fitness - then suffered with some intense muscle fatigue and ache all down my backside {arms/back/butt/hamstrings} for four days straight {sitting down was a challenge!}. While I love that I know for sure I got a good workout, I'm hoping to use those muscles more so that I'm not laid up for so long after the class!
4. Ran after/biked along with Valentino on several 4 mile rides on the Greenway around the lake. He's really building up endurance, and he loves our rides {so do I!}.
5. Went on a solo 12 mile road ride last week, then a 31.7 mile road ride with Vic over the weekend. It felt so great to get out, ride, and SCORCH some calories! The long ride was really tough at times, but I survived and I'm glad I did it :-)
As far as non-fitness related activities:
1. Celebrated Vic's birthday!
2. Spent quality time with Vic :-)
3. Took Valentino fishing twice - both times we caught four {very small!} fish.
4. Enjoyed some cooler, though still very warm, summer weather {and thankfully, lots of sunshine!}.
I'm hoping to find time to write more for the blog. I have a whole list of post ideas, as well as some drafts I'd love to finish and finally post.
Must scoot off to bed - the alarm's set for 4:45am so that I can make it to the pool around 5:10 :-)
1. Rekindled my love of swimming with three 1 mile+ early morning swim workouts.
2. Enjoyed having a new workout buddy who not only joins me in the pool, but who also invited me to a class that I've been wanting to take for over a year {but was too chicken to go to on my own}. We've been motivating and keeping each other accountable, which is awesome! She's trying to convince me to do the Ironman 70.3 when it comes to Raleigh next August... we'll see about that!
3. Attended the aforementioned class - Functional Fitness - then suffered with some intense muscle fatigue and ache all down my backside {arms/back/butt/hamstrings} for four days straight {sitting down was a challenge!}. While I love that I know for sure I got a good workout, I'm hoping to use those muscles more so that I'm not laid up for so long after the class!
4. Ran after/biked along with Valentino on several 4 mile rides on the Greenway around the lake. He's really building up endurance, and he loves our rides {so do I!}.
5. Went on a solo 12 mile road ride last week, then a 31.7 mile road ride with Vic over the weekend. It felt so great to get out, ride, and SCORCH some calories! The long ride was really tough at times, but I survived and I'm glad I did it :-)
As far as non-fitness related activities:
1. Celebrated Vic's birthday!
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| This is what I wanted to get Vic for his birthday... they were sold out of his size ;-) {No, in reality - this showed up in my search for a "Speedo Women's Swimsuit" on Amazon... WTF?!} |
2. Spent quality time with Vic :-)
3. Took Valentino fishing twice - both times we caught four {very small!} fish.
4. Enjoyed some cooler, though still very warm, summer weather {and thankfully, lots of sunshine!}.
I'm hoping to find time to write more for the blog. I have a whole list of post ideas, as well as some drafts I'd love to finish and finally post.
Must scoot off to bed - the alarm's set for 4:45am so that I can make it to the pool around 5:10 :-)
Saturday, July 21, 2012
2012 Family Vacation, Take 3: The Ride Home and Wilmington
First, Vic is at the Valient Thor show @ Cat's Cradle tonight, and I am guiltlessly enjoying episodes of Girls on HBO on Demand ;-) Funny stuff!
Second, the diet is going well so far, but today/tonight has been really hard. I did great this morning, but in the afternoon I was absolutely starving/nauseous and without any snacks. I had to resort to some trail mix from the vending machine... not terrible {like a candy bar}, but technically nuts and raisins are not allowed. This evening I also had a few bites of pizza {so hard to resist!}, a few kernals of pop corn, and a sugar/fat-free cup of pudding. Not so great, but I didn't lose control of the situation, like I would've before this diet.
So now for the last re-cap of our trip.
After our trip to the zoo, we spent the evening at Heritage Park in Canton, a park that I spent a lot of time at while I was growing up. It was so sweet to be there with my son and husband, as a full-fledged adult. And it kind of made me homesick...
We trekked to Ikea on Tuesday and drove around town, enjoying our last day in MI. {Ikea totally disappointed me - it was under renovation, so they only had about half their usual items.} Wednesday morning, we enjoyed some of Grandma's french toast, packed up our car {to the max}, and hit the road. The trip home got tense with about four hours left, and we were all very ready to be home. On Thursday, it was a million degrees out and we were all wrecked, so it was a nap-filled, relaxed day.
Friday morning, we headed out to Wilmington for an overnight stay. It was 100* both Friday and Saturday, so the beach was really the best place to be.
We had our fill of the beach for the day, headed back to our hotel, and got ready to go to dinner:
Then set out for the Downtown Sundown Concert in Wilmington - a Led Zeppelin tribute band. {An interesting crowd, for sure!}
Saturday was more beach time before we left for home. Sunday was another relaxed day - a good way to end the vacation.
All in all - we had a nice vacation. It was perfect to break up the time between a long road trip/visiting family and relaxing beach time for just the three of us.
Second, the diet is going well so far, but today/tonight has been really hard. I did great this morning, but in the afternoon I was absolutely starving/nauseous and without any snacks. I had to resort to some trail mix from the vending machine... not terrible {like a candy bar}, but technically nuts and raisins are not allowed. This evening I also had a few bites of pizza {so hard to resist!}, a few kernals of pop corn, and a sugar/fat-free cup of pudding. Not so great, but I didn't lose control of the situation, like I would've before this diet.
So now for the last re-cap of our trip.
After our trip to the zoo, we spent the evening at Heritage Park in Canton, a park that I spent a lot of time at while I was growing up. It was so sweet to be there with my son and husband, as a full-fledged adult. And it kind of made me homesick...
We trekked to Ikea on Tuesday and drove around town, enjoying our last day in MI. {Ikea totally disappointed me - it was under renovation, so they only had about half their usual items.} Wednesday morning, we enjoyed some of Grandma's french toast, packed up our car {to the max}, and hit the road. The trip home got tense with about four hours left, and we were all very ready to be home. On Thursday, it was a million degrees out and we were all wrecked, so it was a nap-filled, relaxed day.
Friday morning, we headed out to Wilmington for an overnight stay. It was 100* both Friday and Saturday, so the beach was really the best place to be.
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| Valentino flying a kite at Ft. Fisher beach |
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| Getting his feet wet {that's about as far as he went in - the surf was a bit rough that day!} |
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| The boy loves the beach! |
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| Hamming it up. |
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| Sunset in Wilmington |
All in all - we had a nice vacation. It was perfect to break up the time between a long road trip/visiting family and relaxing beach time for just the three of us.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
2012 Family Vacation, Take 2: Visiting Family and a trip to the Detroit Zoo (including zoo review!)
Our trip to Michigan was timed around us going to my cousin's graduation party - mostly to celebrate this great achievement, but also to visit with family we haven't seen since Christmas 2009 {right before we moved to NC}.
The party was the evening of the first full day we were in MI {Saturday}. After hanging around my Grandma's house all morning, we drove out to my Aunt's {my mom's sister}. All of my mom's siblings {my Aunt and 3 uncles} were there, plus my Dad and his new wife {whom I hadn't met until that night - my Dad and I aren't in contact with each other much, and they just got married last year}, plus my sister, niece, cousins, Grandma, Great Aunt/Uncle, and some other extended family members were there, so it was nice to catch up with everyone. It was also a great way for everyone to see Valentino as a young boy - he was pretty much a toddler last time we were there.
The weather was perfect, and the kids were entertained by the trampoline and all the bigger cousins who looked after them. Vic helped set up badminton/volleyball and played with the graduates, then he set up a bonfire for everyone. Once it got dark, a few "big" {read: illegal mortar-type} fireworks were set off while the adults enjoyed beer and goofing around on the deck. We didn't leave until after 11pm {party animals, right?!}, and Valentino was asleep within 2 minutes of pulling out of the driveway.
Sunday we goofed around Grandma's house some more, then ended up going to our favorite mall {Twelve Oaks} with my Mom, Sister and Aunt for some Coney Island {a Detroit-area staple!} lunch and walking around.
My Mom left from the mall to head back to WI, and then my Grandma watched Valentino Sunday night so that Vic and I could go to a movie together. We saw the Adam Sandler/Andy Samberg movie "That's my Boy!" It was GREAT - probably our favorite Sandler movie thus far. Raunchy, very quotable, with lots of silly Vanilla Ice jokes/cameos. So funny! It was so relaxing to see a movie in the theater together knowing that our boy was in good hands.
I really wanted to do some kind of fun activity while we were in MI and we've been wanting to go to the zoo for a while, so on Monday we picked up our niece and took her to the Detroit Zoo with us.
I hadn't been to the Detroit Zoo since my Sister was about Valentino's age {so over ten years ago}, and with the overall decline of MI/Metro Detroit, I wasn't entirely sure what to expect. I grew up mostly going to the Toledo Zoo - my family had always said that it was nicer and had more animals, so that's where we went when I was a kid. I didn't really want to head south to Toledo for the day, so I decided that we could give the Detroit Zoo a try.
We actually had a great time, and I thought the zoo itself was quite nice - clean and shaded, with plenty of exhibits and information. We arrived around 11am on that cool, sunny Monday, and although the parking garage was packed, the zoo itself didn't feel that way. Admission/parking was kind of high in my opinion - for the four of us, admission and parking cost $51.00 (it would've cost $40.00 for us to go to the NC Zoo). One perk we noticed right away is that the zoo allows coolers and "outside food" and they have many picnic areas - bringing your own food and drinks can save you from buying the mediocre and overpriced park food.
One of my favorite features of this zoo is the Rackham Fountain towards the front of the park. We were sure to snap a few photos there:
Another cool feature is that they have free-ranging peacocks walking around the grounds. During my last visit with my Sister, we saw a peacock fanning it's plume. This time, we didn't get a plummage show, but Valentino was able to get really close to {and even touched!} the peacock!
The kids really wanted to see elephants, but this zoo does not have any - we broke the news to them and they requested the giraffes instead, so we worked our way through the zoo, exhibit by exhibit {of mostly sleeping/lounging animals} until we reached them... at the back of the park. Luckily, the kids were happy and didn't fuss as long as we fed them snacks and gave them drinks.
Valentino was so great with his cousin - he was sure to share everything with her and try to include her in/tell her about what was going on. There wasn't a single bit of bickering or arguing between the two of them, and they were perfect all day.
I was really excited to check out the Arctic Ring of Life - it had been under construction at my last visit - and I have to say that it didn't disappoint {mostly}. The exhibit features some outside viewing areas for seals and polar bears as well as an underwater walkthrough tunnel. The seals were being fed, which we watched from outside. As we went through the tunnel, the seals were swimming all over - it was so fun to watch and to see them up close. It reminded me of the polar bears Vic and I saw at the San Diego Zoo on our honeymoon. On the website, it seemed as though the polar bears also swim around you in the tunnel {there's supposed to be a wall between the two tanks}, but we didn't see any. The single polar bear we saw here was quite pathetic looking - it was out in the sun panting and laying around.
Everyone was getting hungry and ready to leave so we started the walk back to the front of the park - stopping at the carousel for a ride {Valentino rode the praying mantis and my niece was on a horse}, through the petting zoo, and in the penguin house {which I so clearly remembered from a visit in kindergarten!}.
A stop at the gift shop for some souvenirs {$21 later... for 3 small things}, then we split. The kids played wonderfully in the backseat for the ride home and everyone seemed happy with the outing. I'm glad we were able to do something as a family {including my niece} that I think we'll all remember for a long time.
While we probably won't be visiting the Detroit Zoo again anytime soon {if ever}, I'm glad we went and I feel it's worthwhile for those in the area. There are plenty of exhibits and things for the kids to play on, and it's very do-able - there's walking, but it's not excessive and there are plenty of benches and restrooms along the way.
COST: $14/adult, $9/child for general admission {we didn't get any of the extras}, plus $5 parking and $2/rider for the carousel.
BRING: Comfortable shoes, sunscreen, sunglasses, picnic lunch, water/drinks
The Detroit Zoo is located at 8450 W. 10 Mile Rd, Royal Oak, MI 48067
On a personal note about this outing: this was our first "run" of sorts with two young kids. Two car seats in the car, two stollers, two admission tickets, two souvenirs, two mouths to feed... it was a glimpse into life with two. With that said, any minor incovenience or extra cost was very worth seeing them interact, share, converse, and play with each other, and it made my heart and uterus yearn for a sibling for Valentino {don't get me wrong - I know it's not always rainbows and sunshine with two kids - my brother and I are two years apart and I can remember fighting and bickering quite a bit!}.
The party was the evening of the first full day we were in MI {Saturday}. After hanging around my Grandma's house all morning, we drove out to my Aunt's {my mom's sister}. All of my mom's siblings {my Aunt and 3 uncles} were there, plus my Dad and his new wife {whom I hadn't met until that night - my Dad and I aren't in contact with each other much, and they just got married last year}, plus my sister, niece, cousins, Grandma, Great Aunt/Uncle, and some other extended family members were there, so it was nice to catch up with everyone. It was also a great way for everyone to see Valentino as a young boy - he was pretty much a toddler last time we were there.
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| Valentino at the party |
Sunday we goofed around Grandma's house some more, then ended up going to our favorite mall {Twelve Oaks} with my Mom, Sister and Aunt for some Coney Island {a Detroit-area staple!} lunch and walking around.
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| Valentino obviously liked the play area best - we need a nice one like this in Raleigh! It's HUGE. |
I really wanted to do some kind of fun activity while we were in MI and we've been wanting to go to the zoo for a while, so on Monday we picked up our niece and took her to the Detroit Zoo with us.
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| At the gates of the zoo. |
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| Turtle, turtle! The zoo had many of these bronze animals throughout the park for the kids to climb on |
We actually had a great time, and I thought the zoo itself was quite nice - clean and shaded, with plenty of exhibits and information. We arrived around 11am on that cool, sunny Monday, and although the parking garage was packed, the zoo itself didn't feel that way. Admission/parking was kind of high in my opinion - for the four of us, admission and parking cost $51.00 (it would've cost $40.00 for us to go to the NC Zoo). One perk we noticed right away is that the zoo allows coolers and "outside food" and they have many picnic areas - bringing your own food and drinks can save you from buying the mediocre and overpriced park food.
One of my favorite features of this zoo is the Rackham Fountain towards the front of the park. We were sure to snap a few photos there:
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| Big bear butts. |
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| Resting by the fountain |
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| He would've followed that guy all day |
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| Valentino sharing snacks with his cousin and my hair growing longer and unruly-er by the moment. |
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| Clearly amazed by the zebras |
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| Walkthrough underwater tunnel - the seals were swimming all around us |
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| Waiting {not so} patiently for the carousel |
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| Riding on a preying mantis |
While we probably won't be visiting the Detroit Zoo again anytime soon {if ever}, I'm glad we went and I feel it's worthwhile for those in the area. There are plenty of exhibits and things for the kids to play on, and it's very do-able - there's walking, but it's not excessive and there are plenty of benches and restrooms along the way.
COST: $14/adult, $9/child for general admission {we didn't get any of the extras}, plus $5 parking and $2/rider for the carousel.
BRING: Comfortable shoes, sunscreen, sunglasses, picnic lunch, water/drinks
The Detroit Zoo is located at 8450 W. 10 Mile Rd, Royal Oak, MI 48067
On a personal note about this outing: this was our first "run" of sorts with two young kids. Two car seats in the car, two stollers, two admission tickets, two souvenirs, two mouths to feed... it was a glimpse into life with two. With that said, any minor incovenience or extra cost was very worth seeing them interact, share, converse, and play with each other, and it made my heart and uterus yearn for a sibling for Valentino {don't get me wrong - I know it's not always rainbows and sunshine with two kids - my brother and I are two years apart and I can remember fighting and bickering quite a bit!}.
Monday, July 9, 2012
July Goals {a lot late} and June Goals Review
To break up all the vacation posts, I thought I'd throw in a normal{ish} post, too. I'm really trying to become a more regular blogger, regardless of who/how many people actually read it. I kind of enjoy having a written record of everything going on in our lives.
A quick review of June's goals:
1. Lose at least 10lbs. FAIL. Big, FAT F-A-I-L. We bought a new scale and Vic and I began weighing ourselves daily. We shared a chuckle when we both realized that we are almost exactly {within tenths of a pound} the same weight as we were at this time last month. As in, zero pounds lost. There were ups and downs all month {we went on vacation, afterall!}, but we ended where we started. I will say that the daily weighing is helpful - it really keeps me accountable and motivated. I'm totally ashamed that June went by without any loss, so I am really going to make July count!
2. Cut the junk. Mildly successful. We don't really have junk food in the house, and I'd say that on the whole, we cut out some of it... but there's a lot of room for improvement. Work in progress.
3. Fill the frames/get working on our family photo album. FAIL. So bad. Nothing was accomplished in this arena. After our vacation, I now have even more photos to sift through and pick from... will this ever get done?
4. Have a great vacation! SUCCESS! Good family memories, beautiful weather everywhere, and minimal strife = successful vacation. We tried to make the best of where we were and we were all able to relax, bond, and spend time together.
June went by in the blink of an eye, especially with all the planning and preparations for the vacation {and the vacation itself!}. It's so hard to believe that July 4th has come and gone, and we are truly in the depths of the dog days of summer {how 'bout that heat, right?!}. We've crossed several things off of our Summer To-do List, but there are still several things we're looking forward to :-)
With that said, I give you my July goals (so late, once again...):
1. Lose at least 10lbs. Like I said, this will be on the list until further notice, although hopefully not much longer!
2. De-clutter the house/our life. Valentino was spoiled on vacation, of course - he came back with a keyboard {it used to be mine when I was a [not so] musical kid} and a box full of trucks and cars, plus all the things I bought him to occupy him on the trip. Needless to say, the kid's stuff is everywhere. Our house is bulging at the seams {although, when I see houses on Hoarders, it doesn't look quite so bad...}, and we've GOT to get rid of some of it. We're planning on getting a storage unit for some of the things we want to keep but don't immediately need, but I don't want anything going into storage that is JUNK. What's the sense in that?!
3. Seek guidance. I have several personality and intrapersonal issues that need to be dealt with. I can't seem to figure them out on my own {nor can I even understand what exactly they are}, so I'm going to get some therapy. I've heard good things about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy {CBT}, so I'll be looking into something in that realm. We've also been talking about attending church on Saturday evenings, which I'm hoping we can do one of these weekends... perhaps some spiritual teaching would be good for me? We shall see...
4. ENJOY SUMMER! As I said, we've done several things on our Summer List - a road trip, swimming, days at the beach {3 so far!}, hiking, fireworks, playing in the sprinkler... we LOVE summer in this household! We're hoping to continue to make the most of every warm, sunny day. We're also hoping to keep as up-to-date as possible with the TOUR! Vive le Tour! {We're on Stage 5 as of now... I think the riders are on Stage 9. We'll get there... eventually!}
Edited to add: I've also taken up dry brushing my skin before showering. I've done it twice now, and my skin feels so much softer. A small side goal I have is to keep that up as well as become a better flosser :-)
A little factoid to end on:
I read this last week, and it really hit home for me. I often feel like, with the hustle and bustle and rush of everyday, I run out of time to *be* with Valentino and really listen to what he's saying and give him my undivided attention. I'm working on being more aware of this and totally plugging into him when I can. I've also started keeping a notebook of funny things he does/says, because sometimes {although I hate to say it}, I completely forget.
Something I really hate to say to him:
"We don't have time for that."
I'm going to make time for that instead.
A quick review of June's goals:
1. Lose at least 10lbs. FAIL. Big, FAT F-A-I-L. We bought a new scale and Vic and I began weighing ourselves daily. We shared a chuckle when we both realized that we are almost exactly {within tenths of a pound} the same weight as we were at this time last month. As in, zero pounds lost. There were ups and downs all month {we went on vacation, afterall!}, but we ended where we started. I will say that the daily weighing is helpful - it really keeps me accountable and motivated. I'm totally ashamed that June went by without any loss, so I am really going to make July count!
2. Cut the junk. Mildly successful. We don't really have junk food in the house, and I'd say that on the whole, we cut out some of it... but there's a lot of room for improvement. Work in progress.
3. Fill the frames/get working on our family photo album. FAIL. So bad. Nothing was accomplished in this arena. After our vacation, I now have even more photos to sift through and pick from... will this ever get done?
4. Have a great vacation! SUCCESS! Good family memories, beautiful weather everywhere, and minimal strife = successful vacation. We tried to make the best of where we were and we were all able to relax, bond, and spend time together.
June went by in the blink of an eye, especially with all the planning and preparations for the vacation {and the vacation itself!}. It's so hard to believe that July 4th has come and gone, and we are truly in the depths of the dog days of summer {how 'bout that heat, right?!}. We've crossed several things off of our Summer To-do List, but there are still several things we're looking forward to :-)
With that said, I give you my July goals (so late, once again...):
1. Lose at least 10lbs. Like I said, this will be on the list until further notice, although hopefully not much longer!
2. De-clutter the house/our life. Valentino was spoiled on vacation, of course - he came back with a keyboard {it used to be mine when I was a [not so] musical kid} and a box full of trucks and cars, plus all the things I bought him to occupy him on the trip. Needless to say, the kid's stuff is everywhere. Our house is bulging at the seams {although, when I see houses on Hoarders, it doesn't look quite so bad...}, and we've GOT to get rid of some of it. We're planning on getting a storage unit for some of the things we want to keep but don't immediately need, but I don't want anything going into storage that is JUNK. What's the sense in that?!
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| Valentino and his keyboard - he puts on shows for us hourly. |
3. Seek guidance. I have several personality and intrapersonal issues that need to be dealt with. I can't seem to figure them out on my own {nor can I even understand what exactly they are}, so I'm going to get some therapy. I've heard good things about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy {CBT}, so I'll be looking into something in that realm. We've also been talking about attending church on Saturday evenings, which I'm hoping we can do one of these weekends... perhaps some spiritual teaching would be good for me? We shall see...
4. ENJOY SUMMER! As I said, we've done several things on our Summer List - a road trip, swimming, days at the beach {3 so far!}, hiking, fireworks, playing in the sprinkler... we LOVE summer in this household! We're hoping to continue to make the most of every warm, sunny day. We're also hoping to keep as up-to-date as possible with the TOUR! Vive le Tour! {We're on Stage 5 as of now... I think the riders are on Stage 9. We'll get there... eventually!}
Edited to add: I've also taken up dry brushing my skin before showering. I've done it twice now, and my skin feels so much softer. A small side goal I have is to keep that up as well as become a better flosser :-)
A little factoid to end on:
There are 940 Saturdays between when a child is born, and when he turns 18.
I read this last week, and it really hit home for me. I often feel like, with the hustle and bustle and rush of everyday, I run out of time to *be* with Valentino and really listen to what he's saying and give him my undivided attention. I'm working on being more aware of this and totally plugging into him when I can. I've also started keeping a notebook of funny things he does/says, because sometimes {although I hate to say it}, I completely forget.
Something I really hate to say to him:
"We don't have time for that."
I'm going to make time for that instead.
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| I'll definitely be making more time to build sweet Lego houses with him! {Check out the guard! He has a shovel!} |
Saturday, July 7, 2012
2012 Family Vacation, Take 1: To Grandma's house we go!
We did it. We survived 1,500+ miles of driving in the car together, and for the most part - it went smoothly!
We left Raleigh around 8:30am on Friday morning with a stuffed car and lots of snacks and toys to {hopefully} keep Valentino entertained - coloring books/crayons/markers, kid computer games {like MobiGo and Leap Frog toys}, library books, white board w/markers, and iPhones and laptops with apps and cartoons. Of course, Valentino immediately wanted to play with everything - his absolute favorite for the whole trip was the whiteboard and set of 6 Crayola whiteboard markers. He drew endless pictures and demanded that I take pictures of each of his creations so that we could show them to Great Grandma:
This stuff kept him entertained up until the point we got to Pilot Mountain, NC {about 2.5 hours in}, at which point the whining started and he looked like this:
Needless to say, we made a pit stop just outside of Pilot Mtn for gas and to stretch. This is when we encountered some super nice, but super Southern, Pepsi delivery men at the gas station. One of them may have very audibly farted several times while bending over as I was in close proximity to him, with no apology. Charming!
Back in the car and thankfully Little Mister occupied himself and then passed out, which I definitely didn't expect would happen {he's not known for sleeping in the car}:
We arrived at my Grandma's in Michigan around 8:00pm, and my Mom and sister {who had driven in from Wisconsin that same day} were there waiting for us. Valentino hasn't seen my Mom or Grandma since he was 2, so he didn't really recognize them right away, but he was playing and bonding with them in no time. The weather was beautiful and because MI is on the west side of the Eastern Time Zone, it stays light there until 10pm so we were able to play outside for quite a while that night.
The next evening was my cousin's graduation party {the fact that he's graduated from H.S. blows my mind... I remember the day he was born!}. We ended up putzing around all morning at my Grandma's:
My mom was able to pick up my three year-old niece {my brother's daughter} earlier that day from my SIL. We haven't seen her since she was about one, so this was really the first time we got to "meet" her. She and Valentino got along great and they played so well together:
I really enjoyed spending time with and getting to know my little niece. She is a beautiful little girl and she has a really cheerful and happy personality, plus she says some hilarious things.
That's it for the first part of the trip - I'll be recapping the rest of our vacation in at least 2 more entries ;-)
We left Raleigh around 8:30am on Friday morning with a stuffed car and lots of snacks and toys to {hopefully} keep Valentino entertained - coloring books/crayons/markers, kid computer games {like MobiGo and Leap Frog toys}, library books, white board w/markers, and iPhones and laptops with apps and cartoons. Of course, Valentino immediately wanted to play with everything - his absolute favorite for the whole trip was the whiteboard and set of 6 Crayola whiteboard markers. He drew endless pictures and demanded that I take pictures of each of his creations so that we could show them to Great Grandma:
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| The three of us in our car w/our dog on a leash, Great Grandma is in the bottom right corner and of course the sun is shining! |
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| He was ticked that I took this picture - "MOM, I wasn't smiling!" A meltdown ensued. |
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| Pilot Mountain from the car - I really want to climb it one day! {Side note - on the way home, I could see it from about 50 miles away on a mountainside in VA - cool!} |
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| Like a champ. |
The next evening was my cousin's graduation party {the fact that he's graduated from H.S. blows my mind... I remember the day he was born!}. We ended up putzing around all morning at my Grandma's:
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| Valentino slaloming some cones on a bike we borrowed for him. |
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| Can't keep this boy off his bike! |
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| Sitting on a rock during a walk around the block - look at that happy face! {PS: I used to sit on the same rock when I was kid and I went on walks with my grandparents} |
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| Vic took me for a ride on my uncle's Harley. He's been wanting to take me on a motorcycle ride since we've been together. It was fun! |
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| Playing trucks and cars in Great Grandma's kitchen |
That's it for the first part of the trip - I'll be recapping the rest of our vacation in at least 2 more entries ;-)
Monday, June 11, 2012
Lightning FAST!
...Which is, incidentally, not how one would describe me running or cycling ;-) But it does indicate the speed in which I will write/post this (okay, and the speed in which I will inhale my lunch - leftover "burrito" - while I type this post).
Workouts as of late:
This morning - 4ish mile run, no idea of the time. It sucked and I felt out of control the whole time. Plus, my dog is a moron and nearly killed me at least 5 times.
Saturday - 13 mile bike ride at 6:30am. So. Early. But lovely, really. The world is so quiet and peaceful at that time. It felt great to be on the bike, but I'd be lying if I said that I didn't miss my Saturday morning run.
I can't remember what I did last week, but I will tell you that there wasn't much running. I think I did one 4-mile run at some point, and I know I went to the gym one morning.
It was a quiet, but beautiful weekend here. We spent a lot of time outside in the beautiful sunshine - I even laid out and got a little color (oh, I know - so bad. But so were my bright white appendeges). Vic did a long 61+ mile bike ride Saturday morning and Valentino rode his bike a lot (he's getting SO good at it!). We were active!
After running errands yesterday morning, Valentino and I had lunch, went to the library, then headed to the pool. This was our first visit this summer, and Valentino had a blast! We hang out in the 10-18" kiddie pool, and he was laying on his stomach kicking and jumping in from the side.
I'm suffering from a bad case of the Mondays today (and it seems that everyone else I come in contact with has the same problem). I'm hoping to double-up on workouts this week as much as I can. We leave for our trip in about 10 days!
Workouts as of late:
This morning - 4ish mile run, no idea of the time. It sucked and I felt out of control the whole time. Plus, my dog is a moron and nearly killed me at least 5 times.
Saturday - 13 mile bike ride at 6:30am. So. Early. But lovely, really. The world is so quiet and peaceful at that time. It felt great to be on the bike, but I'd be lying if I said that I didn't miss my Saturday morning run.
I can't remember what I did last week, but I will tell you that there wasn't much running. I think I did one 4-mile run at some point, and I know I went to the gym one morning.
It was a quiet, but beautiful weekend here. We spent a lot of time outside in the beautiful sunshine - I even laid out and got a little color (oh, I know - so bad. But so were my bright white appendeges). Vic did a long 61+ mile bike ride Saturday morning and Valentino rode his bike a lot (he's getting SO good at it!). We were active!
After running errands yesterday morning, Valentino and I had lunch, went to the library, then headed to the pool. This was our first visit this summer, and Valentino had a blast! We hang out in the 10-18" kiddie pool, and he was laying on his stomach kicking and jumping in from the side.
I'm suffering from a bad case of the Mondays today (and it seems that everyone else I come in contact with has the same problem). I'm hoping to double-up on workouts this week as much as I can. We leave for our trip in about 10 days!
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Review: Annie Louise Wilkerson, MD Nature Preserve in Raleigh
This family {myself in particular} really enjoys getting out and doing things on the weekend. We try to experience everything that we can - mostly free festivals, inexpensive family outings, and whatever else we can find that entertains us as well as Valentino. I'm going to incorporate a few "reviews" of things that we do.
This past weekend the weather was absolutely, positively GORGEOUS. No humidity, slight breeze, mid-70s. Simply amazing for early June in NC {I told my co-workers that it compared to a nice July day in Buffalo, NY - the only nice thing about B'lo}. On our bike rides, we've passed by Wilkerson Nature Preserve many times, and in keeping with our vow to be healthy and teach healthy behavior to our son, we thought Saturday would be a good day to check it out and take a hike. We had a GREAT time! Valentino loves hiking, and the amenities at this park are perfect for kids!
First, we popped our heads into the Welcome Center to grab a map. As Vic grabbed one and got the low-down on the best trail to take, Valentino and I perused the bookshelves that were full of "nature" items perfect for a kid to explore - molds of animal prints/teeth/eggs/poop, fossils, books, and diagrams. Then, Marty {who, as it turns out, is the manager of the park} informed us that they had trail packs that we can check out. The kid-sized trail packs were donated by REI and contained a bug box, magnifying glass, compass, maps, guides, a journal, and binoculars, and Marty also had a large net that we could use. Valentino's eyes were huge as he was being handed all this stuff - he couldn't wait to get going!
After applying copious amounts of bug spray {there were "watch for ticks" signs everywhere}, we took off on the "Hidden Rocks" trail. It took us through the woods, past some huge boulders:
In all, the hike was just about 1.5 miles, which was plenty for Valentino. I highly recommend long pants - we pulled several ticks off our legs {thankfully, none had latched on} - or lots of bug spray w/DEET and vigilant awareness of what's on your legs.
We will definitely be returning to the park for future hikes! The easy terrain, relatively "short" paths, and amenities from the Welcome Center make this an absolute must-do for any family who enjoys the outdoors! I can't recommend this park enough!
COST: Free
BRING: Bug spray, water, snacks/picnic {there's a picnic shelter}, camera, kite if it's windy {although they have some to borrow as well}, well-behaved dog
Annie Louise Wilkerson, MD Nature Preserve is located at 11408 Raven Ridge Road, Raleigh, NC 27614
This past weekend the weather was absolutely, positively GORGEOUS. No humidity, slight breeze, mid-70s. Simply amazing for early June in NC {I told my co-workers that it compared to a nice July day in Buffalo, NY - the only nice thing about B'lo}. On our bike rides, we've passed by Wilkerson Nature Preserve many times, and in keeping with our vow to be healthy and teach healthy behavior to our son, we thought Saturday would be a good day to check it out and take a hike. We had a GREAT time! Valentino loves hiking, and the amenities at this park are perfect for kids!
First, we popped our heads into the Welcome Center to grab a map. As Vic grabbed one and got the low-down on the best trail to take, Valentino and I perused the bookshelves that were full of "nature" items perfect for a kid to explore - molds of animal prints/teeth/eggs/poop, fossils, books, and diagrams. Then, Marty {who, as it turns out, is the manager of the park} informed us that they had trail packs that we can check out. The kid-sized trail packs were donated by REI and contained a bug box, magnifying glass, compass, maps, guides, a journal, and binoculars, and Marty also had a large net that we could use. Valentino's eyes were huge as he was being handed all this stuff - he couldn't wait to get going!
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| Valentino modeling his pack and net |
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| I'm a sucker for little kids in backpacks! |
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| Vic and Valentino on top of the "Hidden Rocks" |
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| Ranger Valentino, scoping out the route |
COST: Free
BRING: Bug spray, water, snacks/picnic {there's a picnic shelter}, camera, kite if it's windy {although they have some to borrow as well}, well-behaved dog
Annie Louise Wilkerson, MD Nature Preserve is located at 11408 Raven Ridge Road, Raleigh, NC 27614
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
June Goals {a little late}
I ran after work today and I don't know why, but I am seriously wiped out now! I did my usual 4 miles around the lake, but the effort was really hard and I felt sloppy. I'll blame it on being P -5 days ;-)
Workouts since my last post:
Sunday: 14 mile bike ride with Vic pulling Valentino in the trailer {it was mostly leisurely, but a nice calorie burn nonetheless!}
Today: 4 mile crappy run
I'm planning on hitting the gym tomorrow morning then squeezing in a bike ride after work. Burn baby, BURN!
Amazingly, June has started - I cannot believe summer is in full swing already! I absolutely love summer and I have a feeling this will be the best summer yet!
Time for June's Goals:
1. Lose at least 10lbs. Ultimately, I need to lose at least 20lbs to be close to my "ideal" weight. That being said, this goal will continue to stay near the top of my goal list until it's been acheived completely! I'd love to exceed the 10lb mark in June, especially with vacation and beach trips coming up {in addition to our *hopefully* big plans in July!}
2. Cut the junk. Vic and I are working together to eat healthier and to be more mindful of what we eat. We're going to keep junk food and soda out of the house, and only allow them every once in a while when we're out. So far, so good :-)
3. Fill the frames/get working on our family photo album. I started our gallery wall back in, oh... January? Several of the frames are empty or have temporary pictures in them. I need to get on Snapfish and order some prints to fill the frames, but I keep putting it off. I also need to get to work on the MyPublisher photobook that I have a LivingSocial coupon for.
4. Have a great vacation! It's going to be interesting - between a long road trip {12 hours} and my unpredictable-ish family - but I know we're going to make the best of it. I'm hoping that the weather is nice and we can visit Frankenmuth {a German-themed city} while we're there, as well as check out some of the other local attractions {zoo? Kensington? something great I don't even know about?}
Let's hope I can improve upon my goal failure rate from May!
Workouts since my last post:
Sunday: 14 mile bike ride with Vic pulling Valentino in the trailer {it was mostly leisurely, but a nice calorie burn nonetheless!}
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| He's grown a bit since the first time we put him in there! {Take note of the lunchbox full of snacks - of course, we never leave the house w/o it!} |
I'm planning on hitting the gym tomorrow morning then squeezing in a bike ride after work. Burn baby, BURN!
Amazingly, June has started - I cannot believe summer is in full swing already! I absolutely love summer and I have a feeling this will be the best summer yet!
Time for June's Goals:
1. Lose at least 10lbs. Ultimately, I need to lose at least 20lbs to be close to my "ideal" weight. That being said, this goal will continue to stay near the top of my goal list until it's been acheived completely! I'd love to exceed the 10lb mark in June, especially with vacation and beach trips coming up {in addition to our *hopefully* big plans in July!}
2. Cut the junk. Vic and I are working together to eat healthier and to be more mindful of what we eat. We're going to keep junk food and soda out of the house, and only allow them every once in a while when we're out. So far, so good :-)
3. Fill the frames/get working on our family photo album. I started our gallery wall back in, oh... January? Several of the frames are empty or have temporary pictures in them. I need to get on Snapfish and order some prints to fill the frames, but I keep putting it off. I also need to get to work on the MyPublisher photobook that I have a LivingSocial coupon for.
4. Have a great vacation! It's going to be interesting - between a long road trip {12 hours} and my unpredictable-ish family - but I know we're going to make the best of it. I'm hoping that the weather is nice and we can visit Frankenmuth {a German-themed city} while we're there, as well as check out some of the other local attractions {zoo? Kensington? something great I don't even know about?}
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| From our last visit to Frankenmuth in December 2008. It was seriously cold and drizzly/snowy, but we had fun {Sidenote: my legs look [were] so much skinnier then!} |
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| I look creepy, but German, right? And 4 years younger, of course. |
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Summer lovin'
Tuesday = 3 hard, sticky, sweaty (but slow-ish) miles after work.
Wednesday = rest. AH.
Today = ~3.5 miles a 5:45am, which felt harder than the 7 I did last Saturday.
Tuesday's run sealed the deal for me - I need to run before work. It's been near or just above 90* most of this week, and I'm not enjoying running after work. With the heat, I feel more sluggish and like I cannot move. On top of that, I hate that my evening runs cut into time with my family and makes the whole evening rush even more "rush-y." I'm now newly committed to getting up early (5:15) and punching out my mileage first thing.
Today was day #1 of early morning running, and it was pretty tough to get out of bed. On top of that, my legs were definitely feeling the burn right from the start. Afterwards though, it was nice to know that my mileage for the day was done and as a bonus, I got to *feel* the achy muscles all day (a feeling I love!).
Although I'm only about 5 days into it, I'm feeling proud of myself for being more mindful about my eating. I have been very, very hungry at times, but I haven't caved. I've learned to distract myself instead of eating something, and even if my body isn't showing signs, I feel better and more svelte.
Progress on my challenges:
Today was day #1 of the Smoothie A Day in May challenge - I made a delicious smoothie for breakfast that had skim milk, a scoop of Optimum Nutrition 100% whey protein, half a banana, 4 fresh strawberries, coconut, and some ice. It was filling, but by about 10:30 I was really, really hungry! Tomorrow I plan on having a similar (smaller portion) smoothie as an afternoon snack.
Photo A Day:
So far so good, eh? It's fun to take part in these - it gives me a little extra mission for the day!
Good reads for today:
Clean eating for dummies {via Lindsay's List}: Makes it sound so do-able!
Just because you make money doesn't mean you know what to do with it {via The Thousandaire}: Reminder to get on that budget/money saving bandwagon!
Wednesday = rest. AH.
Today = ~3.5 miles a 5:45am, which felt harder than the 7 I did last Saturday.
Tuesday's run sealed the deal for me - I need to run before work. It's been near or just above 90* most of this week, and I'm not enjoying running after work. With the heat, I feel more sluggish and like I cannot move. On top of that, I hate that my evening runs cut into time with my family and makes the whole evening rush even more "rush-y." I'm now newly committed to getting up early (5:15) and punching out my mileage first thing.
Today was day #1 of early morning running, and it was pretty tough to get out of bed. On top of that, my legs were definitely feeling the burn right from the start. Afterwards though, it was nice to know that my mileage for the day was done and as a bonus, I got to *feel* the achy muscles all day (a feeling I love!).
Although I'm only about 5 days into it, I'm feeling proud of myself for being more mindful about my eating. I have been very, very hungry at times, but I haven't caved. I've learned to distract myself instead of eating something, and even if my body isn't showing signs, I feel better and more svelte.
Progress on my challenges:
Today was day #1 of the Smoothie A Day in May challenge - I made a delicious smoothie for breakfast that had skim milk, a scoop of Optimum Nutrition 100% whey protein, half a banana, 4 fresh strawberries, coconut, and some ice. It was filling, but by about 10:30 I was really, really hungry! Tomorrow I plan on having a similar (smaller portion) smoothie as an afternoon snack.
Photo A Day:
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| Day two: skyline {of my cozy little rancher on the hill} |
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| Day three: something you wore {a ruffled dress and wedges - it was hot today!} |
So far so good, eh? It's fun to take part in these - it gives me a little extra mission for the day!
Good reads for today:
Clean eating for dummies {via Lindsay's List}: Makes it sound so do-able!
Just because you make money doesn't mean you know what to do with it {via The Thousandaire}: Reminder to get on that budget/money saving bandwagon!
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
May Day! May Day!
I love May! Here in North Carolina, it signifies the beginning of summer - and, judging by the 90* temperatures due to start tomorrow, we're right on schedule! Our family loves summer and {almost} everything it brings - long, warm days, trips to the beach, bike rides, being outside, playing in the pool. We have a lot planned this summer, and the fact that Valentino is at such a fun age means this summer will be one of the best ever. By the end of the week, I hope to put together our "Summer To-do List" {I refuse to call it a "bucket" list - to me, that's what you do before you die, not what you do on a normal, day-to-day basis!}.
I'd love to make these {all found on pinterest}:
But in reality, our list will look like this {but handwritten}:
I have a rough draft in progress, and I bought myself some Crayola markers, now I just need to get 'er done.
4.5 miles was on the dockett for last night's run, and I did 4 {~44mins}. It was sticky out and I was starving, so the effort was hard and sweaty - my running started out strong, but petered out at the end. Today calls for a 3 mile run or cross-training, and I plan on doing some cross-training by doing the ZWOW #1 workout - more on ZWOW in another post :-)
May GOALS:
1. Stick to my training plan. Like I said in my April wrap-up, I am sticking to the long run, and usually to the 2 shorter mid-week runs, but I'd like to adhere to almost entirely. So far this week, so good.
2. Lose at least 10 lbs. This is totally acheivable in one month, so I'm aiming low in hopes of blowing past that goal :-) I plan to keep up my running {see goal #1}, incorporate HIIT workouts {via ZWOW workouts!}, and stick to better eating/calorie counting.
3. Complete the Photo-a-day Challenge. I LOVE instagram, and I love this idea. I've started out the challenge a couple times, but then forgotten about it. I hope to keep it up this month, and post my daily photos here on the blog. {BTW, gramfeed is awesome for quickly and easily saving your instagram photos to your computer!}
4. Plan a cookout at our house! I've wanted to do this since we moved in, and I think we're finally ready to host a gathering at our home. Yes, our house is small and not really set up for entertaining, but our yard is good-sized, so if it's mostly outside, we can handle it. I have lots of ideas for food and activities for the kiddos, and I'm really looking forward to putting it all together.
I'd love to make these {all found on pinterest}:
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| Source |
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| Source |
But in reality, our list will look like this {but handwritten}:
 |
| {This from the land of nod blog, but the link in pinterest didn't work} |
I have a rough draft in progress, and I bought myself some Crayola markers, now I just need to get 'er done.
4.5 miles was on the dockett for last night's run, and I did 4 {~44mins}. It was sticky out and I was starving, so the effort was hard and sweaty - my running started out strong, but petered out at the end. Today calls for a 3 mile run or cross-training, and I plan on doing some cross-training by doing the ZWOW #1 workout - more on ZWOW in another post :-)
May GOALS:
1. Stick to my training plan. Like I said in my April wrap-up, I am sticking to the long run, and usually to the 2 shorter mid-week runs, but I'd like to adhere to almost entirely. So far this week, so good.
2. Lose at least 10 lbs. This is totally acheivable in one month, so I'm aiming low in hopes of blowing past that goal :-) I plan to keep up my running {see goal #1}, incorporate HIIT workouts {via ZWOW workouts!}, and stick to better eating/calorie counting.
3. Complete the Photo-a-day Challenge. I LOVE instagram, and I love this idea. I've started out the challenge a couple times, but then forgotten about it. I hope to keep it up this month, and post my daily photos here on the blog. {BTW, gramfeed is awesome for quickly and easily saving your instagram photos to your computer!}
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| Day one: peace |
4. Plan a cookout at our house! I've wanted to do this since we moved in, and I think we're finally ready to host a gathering at our home. Yes, our house is small and not really set up for entertaining, but our yard is good-sized, so if it's mostly outside, we can handle it. I have lots of ideas for food and activities for the kiddos, and I'm really looking forward to putting it all together.
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