Where Are We?

So a quick funny story...

Hubs and I were going to look at a house in a different town.  The directions on the Crye-Leike site said to take "Severice" Road.  Well, according to the directions it was right off of the interstate.  So, we get off the interstate and start looking for this road.  After about 15 minutes of driving, we end up in a small town out in the middle of nowhere.  So, I decide to google the road name on my phone. 

That's when google asked me if I meant "Service" Road.  Oh my gosh.  Why hadn't we thought of this before hand?  We just spent 15 minutes looking for a Severice Road when actually it's suppose to be "take the Service Road."  Wow.  I was tempted to email the listing agent to let her know of her misspelling!  LOL

The Hunger Games Triology

First off, thanks for the comments yesterday!  They really helped!

Now, I'm almost always the last person to read the books that everyone raves about.  It took me forever to read The Twilight Series and I've still not read any of Harry Potter.  (Gasp)

I finally read The Hunger Games - all of them.  They were amazing.  They made me want to stay on the couch and read all day (Yikes!). 

I'm not going to share what the books are about, because truth be told, if you had told me the summary of the books I wouldn't have picked them up.  They're different - but in a good way. 

To be honest, I read through the first book super duper fast.  I loved that book.  Then, I got really, really mad in the second book.  I almost quit reading the series.  But, I pushed through and finished the second book.  Then, I went crazy again in book 3.  I loved the ending.  That's all I'll say about that! 

So, I'm sure most of you have read these, but if you haven't and you're looking for a new read - grab them!  Then you can come back and thank me later.  :)

Week 2

Beginning Weight:   145lbs.
Week 1 Weigh-In:  142.8lbs.
Week 2 Weigh-In:  144.4lbs.

I so did not want to report this, but I said I would and I like to stick to my word.  Like I said yesterday, hubs and I ate terrible this past weekend.  I'm embarrassed about how much we ate out.  Although it may not look like it, I climbed back on the wagon Monday and have been watching what I eat and have been working out.  So, with that being said, I'd hate to think about what the scale would've shown this morning if I hadn't!

This week it's on like donkey kong!  Saturday morning I'm meeting my friend Naomi at the gym and we're taking a class called Swimsuit Prep (or something like that).  So, I'm looking forward to that!  Also, the weather is going to be lovely the next few days so I'm going to try to fit in a run in there, too!  Plus the cycling I'm already doing.  So, scale beware - next week we will see better numbers!!!

Random Musings

Thanks for all the support on yesterday's post!  Ya'll really came through with excitement for us! 

Now, for just some random stuff...

• Tonight is my Org Behavior class.  This class takes a ton of prep time and I'm not fully prepared for it.  I'm close though - I think.
• My teacher seems easy to get along with.  He expects a lot out of you, but at the same time he seems laid back.  We'll refer to him as Dr. H.
• Tomorrow is weigh-in #2.  I hate to report this, but I'm not sure if I've lost anything.  We ate really badly for dinner Thursday-Saturday.  Yikes.  I've been pretty much on track on the other meals and since then though.  I've been riding my bike trainer alot, too.  So we'll see.
• Speaking of eating badly... I have "reasons" for it.  We were very busy with house stuff.  We're putting our house back on the market.  Our original plans were to be done this past Monday, but that didn't happen.  We're shooting for this next week.  I'll post pictures once it's on the market again.
• Of course that means we're house hunting again, too.  Let's hope that when we find "The One" this time that our house sells quickly thereafter.  That's what stopped our purchase in October - our house wasn't getting much traffic.  Boooo housing market boooooo!

My Announcement!

Remember how I said that I've started training for something that is not running related?  Well, it's not just me, it's hubs, too.  We've decided to do the first annual Ranch Ride! 

The Ranch Ride is a ride that benefits Soaring Wings Ranch, here in Arkansas.  You might recall that the 2 half marathons that I've done also benefited Soaring Wings Ranch.  So, of course, when I heard about this ride I knew that I had to do it!  And since cycling is more hubs thing, I knew that I could probably talk him into doing it with me!  Score!

The Ranch Ride has 3 distances:  8, 34, and 54 miles.  The hubs and I have decided to do the 34 mile distance.  Originally I wanted to do the 54 mile distance, but since this will be our first bike race (what do you actually call bike races?? LOL) we decided that the 34 miles sounded more doable.  The furthest we've ever gone on our road bikes has been around 25 miles on one ride, so this will be a new distance for us. 

So, as you can probably tell, I'm pretty excited (and scared)!  I've never done something like this and truth be told, the thing that scares me the most is either falling off my bike or getting a flat tire!  Hopefully I'll figure out how to change a flat before June 4th!  (Hubs knows how; I'm sure he'll teach me.)

So, June 4th and 34 miles here we come! 

*Picture taken from The Ranch Ride website.

Ya'll Are Great

I got a lot of supportive comments yesterday - this is why I love the blogland.

One thing to clear up about the fit train challenge....

Ya'll don't have to put your weight on your blog.  You can just note the amount of weight you've dropped each week (because, lady's we're NOT going to gain, ha).  That being said, I'm so glad that there are so many of you who want to join me in this.  I think it's great to have a support group and people to hold you accountable!

On a sad note...

Please take time to go over to my friend Brandi's blog today and give her some virtual hugs.  Her and her husband found out yesterday that they lost one of their IVF twins at 7.5 weeks.  She's 9 weeks pregnant right now.  Please send her some hugs and sweet words of encouragement in this tough time.

Join Me!

We all have a few pounds we'd like to lose, right?  I know I do.  So, this week I started eating better and exercising on a regular basis.  I'm trying to get back on the fit train, so to speak.  Once a week, I'm going to share my weigh-in.  I'm not going to measure or take before/after pictures, even though I know I should.  It seems when I do those things, I get stressed out and quit.  I know the scale wont move after a certain point and I'll see the biggest difference in how things fit.  But, humor me.  I'm a numbers girl :)

So, let's begin with this week:

Beginning Weight:   145lbs.
Today's Weigh-In:  142.8lbs.

So, there you have it - my weigh-in.  Every Thursday, I'll post my numbers - good or bad.  I have a goal in mind (although I'm not ready to share it) and I'd love it if ya'll would jump on the fit train with me! 

On a side note, I've started training for something that is NOT running related!  I'm so excited (and nervous!!!!) and I'll share that with you all next week!

Not Really Wordless Wednesday

• This is what our desk looked like last week when I was working from home. 
• They're calling for snow/ice tomorrow and I'm hoping that they're wrong.  I do not want to work from home again this week.
• Tonight, I start my Organizational Behavior class.  I'm only take one class this semester and after looking at the syllabus, I'm very thankful for that!!  This one will be a LOT of work!
• They're bringing in Papa John's pizza for lunch today as a "Thank You" for working so much overtime.  We're still on overtime, but atleast they've cut back for the time being to one hour per day instead of two.  I'm very thankful for that!

Biometric Screening

Once again, it's Biometric Screening time at work.  This is something that is voluntary and is provided by our work once a year.  I've posted past results on here (click on the label at the end of this post).  Sadly, my body fat percentage sky rocketed this year.  I knew it would, just because I haven't been as active with school and all.  But, honestly, it's still in the "okay" range.  Ugh.

Total Cholesterol     149  Should be below 200
HDL Cholesterol     67    Should be above 60
LDL Cholesterol     82     Should be below 100
Cardiac Risk Ratio  2.2    Should be below 4.0
Triglycerides           50      Should be below 150
Glucose                  82      Should be below 100

Blood Pressure  112/62
Height 5ft 7inches
Weight 145lbs <--yes, it definitely went up.  I like to stay under 140. 
Waist 31 inches
Body Fat Percentage 30%  (should be 26% - 31%)  <--I don't want to talk about it.  LOL
BMI    23 (Should be below 25)
Flexibility 17 inches

In other news, we started our "diet" yesterday and I did an hour on our bike trainer.  The slim down is on!

A Request

I have a request for ya'll today.  I'd like you all to go read this story and help this family get the graveside marker that they're wanting for their little boy. 

Jake Love and his family live in the same town as I do.  I bought one of their fundraising shirts last year.  We all had hope that this little guy would make it, but his time on Earth was cut very short at only 2 years old.

The owner of the blog that I just directed you to is one of my friends.  I know that the address and the request is legit.  I'm asking you all to help in any way that you can. 

Thanks.

TGIF

Thank goodness this week is over!

I've worked from home two days (which I hate).
I've worked a 50 hour week.
I've been getting home at 6pm, instead of 4:30pm (which it's dark before 6).
I've been getting to work at 6:30am instead of 7am.

And you know what, it's all okay!  Why?

Because I've got a 3 day weekend!  We're off for MLK, Jr Day!

The hubs isn't off on Monday, so it's gonna be a ME day.  I'm kinda excited ;)

Ya'll have a great weekend and be safe!

His Name Wasn't Mickey

Warning:  This post is gross.

I've debated about sharing this, but I guess if I can't be real and share it all, then who can I be??

Back story...

There is a field and creek that runs behind our privacy fence.  Inside our privacy fence is where we keep our two dogs.  Every now and then we'll find dead field mice in our backyard due to the dogs.  Here recently, we had to move the dogs inside because of the below freezing temps. 

Our dryer vent is in the backyard.  The dogs have chewed the vent cover off, so it's just an open dryer vent.  You can see where I'm going with this....

Yesterday...

Hubs was home for lunch (thank goodness!) and he heard a sound coming from our laundry room.  He thought he heard something the other day, but I thought he was crazy.  Well, yesterday he decided to take a further look.  When he moved the dryer back, he found a mouse or...RAT!  So, he did what any sane person would do... He shot it with a BB Gun.  *sigh*  Well, that only injured the rodent.  The rodent then hid in a little spot under our dryer where hubs couldn't see him.  Well, hubs thought that maybe he crawled back in the hose and ran outside. 

So, he left for Home Depot to get a new dryer hose and vent cover.  When he came back home, he saw the rodent in our hallway!  The moment the rat saw him, he took off running (the best he could, he was injured).  Well, hubs got the BB Gun again and shot him a second time.  This time, the rat died.  He then sent me two pictures (I'm only sharing the least gross one.  You can thank me later.).  And yes, that is blood that you see.  Not to worry, it's been disinfected, swiffered, and disinfected again.  Trust me!!

After almost 3 hours of messing with it all, we now have a dryer vent cover, a new hose, and a dead rat.  I'm so so so so glad that the hubs was home.  Can you imagine what I would've done if I saw a rat in our house?!  I'll give you a hint, you might've seen me running and screaming down the street!

1 Mile In The Books

I took the plunge yesterday.  I ran my first mile in 2011.  It was only 28 degrees and it only had a wind advisory out... ha!  But, I had cabin fever and I needed some type of release.  So, I layered up and went to run the half mile loop around my neighborhood.  I have to admit, it didn't feel that cold.  The tights that I have are really comfortable and warm.  However, I was bored out of my mind and the wind was blowing like crazy.  Plus, let's be honest here, it's been a while since I've really ran.  So, I decided that after a mile run, I was done.  But, you know what, it felt good to be out there again.  Even if it was a very short run.

So, with mile 1 in the books, I've decided that I'm pairing up with my friend Naomi and doing a 5k in February.  It's in another town and called The Valentines Day 5k.  It's on Feb 12th and I can't wait.  The really great thing is, they give out long sleeve technical tees for race shirts (or they have in past years)!  It will be my first time to run it, but I'm super excited - even if I will suck wind.  And yes, as my friend put it, we've become the girls who pick races based on the t-shirts! ha!

Indeed A Country Girl

My husband has no idea I took this picture.  Our secret?
Saturday, we decided to go 4wheeling in the woods at his deer lease.  It was right at 40 degrees outside, so we layered up and rode around different "trails" for about 3.5 hours.  We packed bottled water and Cheez-its and had an amazing time.  So much fun, that we've decided we're definitely going to do it again soon.  I love doing this kind of stuff and I'm so glad that I married a southern boy.  I can't imagine living life any differently.

So, I guess ya'll have heard that the "Blizzard of 2011" has hit.  I'm working from home for the 2nd day in a row.  Don't let the sound fool ya - it's not as fun as it sounds.  Especially working 10 hours days.  Yuck.  Maybe tomorrow I'll show ya some snow?

The Small Things

Today is going to be a great day because of the small things.  Like....

• Finding my textbook on Amazon Prime for WAY cheaper than the bookstore, plus 2 day free shipping, plus the book is new instead of used!  For those who don't know, Amazon Prime has a little bit lower prices than Amazon and has free shipping (sometimes 2 day) for most items.  Most people have to pay a yearly fee for Amazon Prime, but it's free to students.  Just tie your school email address to your Amazon account and wah-la!  You're Welcome! ha!
• The other day a coworker had nachos from Cactus Jack's in the office and they smelled wonderful.  Well, today a coworker and I are going to eat there for lunch!  I rarely eat out for lunch!
• Today is payday!  That's always a good thing! ha!
• The last book in The Hunger Games series should be on my doorstep sometime today!
• And, the hubs and I might go watch a movie tonight!!!  We never ever go see movies in the theatre!

Happy Friday, Friends!  Enjoy the small things!

3 Things Thursday

1. Starting next week, they're making us do 2 hours mandatory overtime per day.  That means 10 hour days for me.  I hate 10 hour days.  But, my check should be nice.  I guess.
2. School starts back next week, too.  Thankfully, it starts on a Thursday and I only have a Wednesday class.  So, I don't go back until the 19th.
3. I've finished the first book of The Hunger Games.  I'm half way through the second book and the third book will be on my doorstep tomorrow.  Oh about that...  I went to Walmart to buy the book and it was $12.99.  I checked on Amazon Prime and it was only $7.89 with free 2 day shipping.  Oh, Amazon how I love thee. 

Wordless Wednesday

Oprah: A Biography

Book #1 for the year was Oprah:  A Biography by Kitty Kelley.  As you may have figured out by now, I like to read biographies, because I'm ...nosey. 

Going into this book, I had no real expectations.  I liked Oprah okay.  I didn't love her, but I didn't hate her either.  Well, that has changed.  Although, hate is a strong word.  It's more like a strong dislike.

Now, I realize you might not believe everything Kitty Kelley writes, but I will say that there are several quotes from her family, her ex-staff members, her friends, and people who have interviewed her in the past.  The book uses several of her quotes from interviews she's done through time and there are several from different sources throughout the book.  All of that to say, there are about 30 pages of credits given to her sources of information.  So, I feel like Kitty Kelley is telling the truth through the documentation.

So, skipping to the point, I don't like Oprah at all after reading this book.  There are things she's lied about and tried to cover up, but then there are also the ways she's treated the people around her - her family, her so-called friends, her employees, etc.  I know that we all have skeletons in the closet and we all don't treat people like we should, but I think we own that.  Oprah does not.  She tries to come off as the all golden and philanthropic goddess.  But, she's far from that.  Sure, she's done some good deeds - for publicity and ratings.  I just feel like she's a fake.  A total fake.  I had a hunch before the book, but now I'm sold.

2011 Resolutions

I'm a little late on the resolutions train...

So, without further ado, here are my 2011 Resolutions:

• Read 12 books for fun.
• Become pregnant.  (We've been trying for over a year now.)
• Sell our house and move.
• Pay off remaining debt (besides the vehicles and house).
• If not pregnant, set a new 5k PR.  Possibly train for another half marathon.
• Make A's in my grad school classes.
• Don't take each day for granted - try to find something special in each day.

I'd like to add that I've already started on the first goal - I finished a book this weekend and ALMOST finished a second.  Why didn't anyone tell me that The Hunger Games were so addictive and awesome?!

P.S.  Yesterday my Dad turned 50!  I love that man!  I believe we're going to celebrate it this coming weekend!  (Yes, my family celebrates birthdays a little late, ha.)