Trina's tips

Yesterday my brother-in-law was fortunate enough to get 4 free tickets to the Redskins/Cowboys game. It was a last minute thing but I figured it would be fun to go because I have never been to a professional game. We caught the obligatory interstate 95 traffic jam and got to FedEx field right when the game started. We parked in a really muddy lot and followed some other people through a shortcut in the woods. We literally went over the river and through the (pitch dark) woods then up a hill to get to the main road. I dropped my purse in the mud and my blanket. When we got back out into the light, I noticed quite a bit of mud on my jeans and my shoes were caked in it. Once in the stadium we had to walk up what seemed like an endless ramp because we were in the nosebleed section. Row 28 of 29 in the tippy top of the stadium. It was about 34 degrees last night with wind of 5-10 mph. But when I hiked to the top of the stairs to my seat, my heart was pounding and I was sweating. I peeled of...

Merry Maraschino Cherry Cookies. I love maraschino cherries. These go on my Christmas baking agenda.

It's been a rough couple of weeks. A good friend of mine suddenly passed away and it was really shocking. I am trying to get out of my funk because I know that she was the type of person who worked very hard and she wouldn't want me to be feeling this way. She would want me to get back to work and make her proud. I am giving myself until Friday then I am getting back to the grind. Her life and death were an important reminder not to take anything for granted.

Today my feelings have been very high and very low. I contacted a Realtor and a broker in order to assess if we could sell our condo and upgrade to a larger home. Things looked good. Our credit was looking great and I was already having visions of more space and room to grow. But then when D got home we talked about what buying a new home would really entail and it hit me like a ton of bricks that we would need more money for the down payment and closing costs. Unfortunately, we do not qualify for the home buyers tax credit due to being current home owners so that can not help us with our situation. I got so depressed when I realized that we have to delay our dream of more space even further. D asked me what is the big hurry and I guess there isn't one. I had just got excited about something new. I pictured a bigger, nicer home to have children in. I wanted to move NOW! All hope is not lost though. We regrouped and came up with a plan to pad our savings and hope to be in the market...

In the work that I do I often encounter people and families that lack what I take for granted each day, each moment. Every so often it just hits me how much I am thankful for the big things and the little things. I have an education, I have reasoning skills, I can use a computer, I know how to be professional, I have a family that looks out for my best interests, I have a home, I have a job, I have a car, I have my health, I am of sound mind, I have friends, I have freedom, I have love, I have faith, I have hope, I have the power to make decisions. I am thankful to be blessed!

Today I cleaned out the closet that I intended to clean out during the month of October (better late than never). I deposited some money into my IRA that has been sadly neglected since 2007. I gathered items for the yard sale that my mom is having this weekend. And I weighed in at Weight Watchers (down a total of 1.8 lbs since starting). Now I am about to work on my weekly notes for work. Feels great to cross some items of the to-do list.

I have been a little neglectful of my blog. Time to update what has been going on in my corner of the world. I have worked on two of my three goals this month. I joined Weight Watchers and I am being a lot more mindful of the choices that I make at each meal. I did get off track toward the end of my first week due to a mini vacay with my hubby but started right back up on Monday. I feel that this week will be successful for me. I also took the time to study for the exam I need to take in order to apply for the teaching program. I have to move forward with that process soon because the deadline to apply is in January. Time is flying by! I have to admit I feel a little bit anxious about whether or not I will be accepted into the program. I have had a bit of a rocky past with my jobs. I started off really solid, staying at my first job for a little over 2 years. But then ever since, there have been a string of short lived jobs. I made some choices that weren't right for me, was the vi...

Today while working with one of my teenage clients (and her friend), the following conversation took place: Teen 1: (looks out window of my car) There goes some Mexicans. Me: I keep telling you that they are not all Mexicans. The proper thing to say is Hispanic. Teen 2: But that is what they are. Me: How do you know? Teen 1: They all look the same. Me: That is offensive. Teen 2: (to teen 1) It's no point in arguing with her. She wants to be all proper. She talks like a white girl. We call other people either Mexicans or Chinese. Me: (having the overwhelming sensation to bang my head on the car window) This is our future. Be afraid....

Lately I have been feeling so unfocused. I begin one task and then move to the next without finishing it. I have an issue with follow through. I get so overwhelmed by all that needs to be done so I end up doing one of two things: 1. Nothing 2. Just a little bit of something. Since it is a new month I have been inspired to break my to-do list into bite size pieces and tackle it. So this month here are my top 3 items to do. 1. Join (officially) Weight Watchers and lose at least 8 pounds. I now have a buddy to go to meetings with and that helps a lot. I have promised myself that I would give it at least a two month try since they are running the buy one month get the next free promo. 2. Study more for the exam I need to take to apply to the teaching program and register to take it in December. 3. Organize my living room closet. It is scary in there. All of these goals feel manageable to me. Today I am going to work on studying since I have a little free time. I now feel a little more in c...

Lately I have been feeling a little bit blah. I work a high stress, high burnout job. I am thankful for many things about my job, most of all just having one! But... that doesn't mean it still doesn't get to me at times. Being a counselor I hear about other people's problems all the time. I am basically a sounding board. When I am done absorbing other people's problems, who do I unload on? Today I called my health insurance company to inquire about my mental health benefits. I found out that each session of outpatient therapy would cost $40 in copayment. Most of the time outpatient therapy requires weekly visits, so that would quickly add up. I told the lady not to even bother with the authorization because I just couldn't afford that. It's a shame that even with heatlh insurance, healthcare is not very affordable for working people. The people that I work with get better service because they are on Medicaid and at no cost to them they can have counseling and wh...

I was just sitting here watching Oxygen (Top Model reruns were the best thing on at the moment) and saw a commercial for The Naughty Kitchen . This show looks a hot mess. It's a reality show that follows an obese chef who makes naughty (rich, fatty but of course delicious) food at her restaurant. Why do we need a show that promotes unhealthy lifestyles? This cancels out their other show, Dance Your Ass Off. Little stuff like this irks me, because all of this crap adds up to make our culture that much more crappier.

Last week I learned that my former next door neighbor passed away at the very young age of 51. This was a woman who was not only a neighbor but a friend. She was in attendance at both my parents wedding and mine. She gave me advice when I made the decision to go into social work because she was a social worker herself. She had two boys, so she liked to do my hair and encouraged me to pledge the sorority that she tried to join when she was in college (although I didn't). I was so shocked and it was just another reminder of how we must cherish this gift of life that God has given us. I could say so much more about this but the words just won't come out right. I just know that I appreciate her presence in my life and I take with me the lesson to appreciate my loved ones each day and to take better care of myself too.

So my feelings of wedding withdrawal are a little late setting in (2 1/2 months). I was just looking through a facebook friend's bridal shower pictures and I got a little sad that all of that stuff is behind me. There was so much planning and events and good times and it all is behind me with nothing but pictures to show the fun that was had. Usually when someone is in the newlywed phase they are in a new house. But I have owned a house for over a year now so nothing new there. And the baby plan is not in action yet so it is not yet time to throw my energy into thinking about pink or blue. I would be distracted from this feeling if I had a friend who was getting married or having a baby because then I could break out my inner Martha and plan fabu events for them. But I am the first of my group to move into this phase of life. I guess I need a hobby or something now....

Down 3.2 :-)

That is what I feel like right now. The one thing I have no business eating right now is calling my name as I sit in Panera. I just finished my chicken noodle soup and salad and I want a big ole chocolate chip cookie! But if I were to eat one it would mean no more food for the rest of the day due to using up all of my points. Must.....resist.....temptation........

Back in 2005 I joined Weight Watchers. I lost about 30 pounds. I planned my meals, measured my portions, and counted up my points faithfully. I never really felt deprived. I would even still have dessert everyday and eat fast food once a week. Fast forward to 2009. I have gained back all the weight I lost plus a few more pounds. I have realized that, like many other people, I am an emotional eater. If I have had a hard day I comfort myself with a slice of pizza or some fried chicken. If I am bored, I eat a 100 calorie pack (or 3). If I am having a great day, I top it off with a visit to Chick-fil-a. No matter the situation, I use food to reward, entertain, or comfort myself. I think that before when I had success, I was more mindful of my emotions. I would get up during each commercial break of watching tv and jog in place. I would clean up each day or cook my own dinner. I gotta get back to these habits. Maybe I should walk Andy whenever I get the urge to snack outta boredom. When I a...

The facebook quiz thing is getting way outta control. I mean is there really a need for a "What black greek organization stereotype are you?" quiz?! Everyone that has shown up on my frontpage that has taken this quiz does not belong to any of these organizations, so why the hell do they take the quiz? It just irks me for some reason. And I am not even a part of a sorority so I bet it's really annoying to those who are.... Why do people like to complain about always being broke but then stay with the "new-new" every time you see them. It amazes me that even in this sucky economy that people don't have their priorities straight. If you want to stay fresh, that's fine. Just don't complain about your lack of cash. On the same note: if you choose to have children, don't always complain about how they don't give you a moments rest. You signed up for that package when you declined to use birth control.

Last night/early this morning (I never went to bed),I had a light bulb moment while I was doing my last minute work. I realized that the plan that D and I have to start having babies clashes directly with my next career move. Here are the factors: *I am 27. I want to have my first child before 30. *We want to at least celebrate our one year anniversary before getting pregnant. *I need to shed about 20 lbs before I start thinking about conceiving. *The program that I am trying to enroll in to become a teacher would begin in January 2010. I would start teaching in September 2010 on a provisional license while finishing up classes. THEN I would be eligible to get a regular 5 year teaching license. I would be 29 at the conclusion of this program. My hypothetical future children are already switching up my plans....

June was a month of extreme highs and lows for me. I went to the ER twice, went on my honeymoon but had to do some work while I was there (boooooo!), celebrated my 27th birthday, got into a car accident and totaled my poor lil car, and celebrated one month of marriage. The for worse part of our vows got a little bit of a work out in the first 30 days! So I am happy to start a fresh new month today. I celebrated by getting to some of the cleaning that I have been putting off. Tomorrow I finally get the prints and the disks of all of our wedding pictures, so my mom can run the announcement in the local paper. D and I both have Friday off so we can get to a lot of things that we have been putting off. I gotta go new car shopping at some point this weekend and we are celebrating the 4th with D's family on Saturday.

Here was my list of things to accomplish in 1001 days. It never made it to 101 but I got a solid 35 out. To update a few items: 6. Grow my relaxer out and cut off my hair. I cut most of the relaxer out when I got my hair cut last week and I am not putting another in, ever! 9. Become an ESL teacher. I completed mi clase de espanol with a B+ and I am taking the tests this fall so that I can start the career switcher program in February 2010. 11. Wear makeup more often. Now that my hair is shorter I have begun to put on more makeup. 17. Take pictures more often. I have been taking more pictures and purchased more rechargable batteries so I am always Kodak moment ready! 35. Increase my veggie and fruit consumption. I have been eating more salads and I going to the grocery store today to buy fruits and veggies. If you are working on some goals, how are you progressing?

For anybody who happens to read my lil blog who hasn't seen them on FB....

Now that the vows have been exchanged, cake has been cut, and the honeymoon has been enjoyed (check out the view from our suite).... It is time to get to work on some things. Here is my to do list for the next few weeks: 1. Finish writing all thank you notes and figure out who the heck gave us the Foreman Grill ?! 2. Find a home for the gifts that I wrote all the notes for. 3. Cut my hair. I am seriously considering the cut that Tia Mowry has. And I gotta cut out this relaxer. I am going natural!!! 4. Get my oil changed 5. Scrapbook the last 2 years of our relationship so that I can be ready to scrapbook the wedding and honeymoon. 6. Run a wedding announcement in the local paper whenever we get the pro pics back. 7. Plan the next trip :-)

I'm back and I'm a Mrs! The ceremony was beautiful. The reception was fun. I learned a few things that I will take into my future work as a wedding coordinator (something I have always wanted to to). I have a few things that I wished we would have done differently. I kinda wish we had hired a different wedding coordinator. She did do her job and she pulled the day together but... I don't feel like we were really heard during the whole planning process. So, my advice to anyone who is still in the planning process: 1. If you hire a coordinator, pick someone who respects your budget no matter what it is. 2. Be really detailed with what your vision is for each element of your wedding. Make sure that the person who is in charge of the day has a thorough understanding of that vision. 3. Things will go wrong. Don't sweat it. The morning of the wedding I woke up to a text from my hair and makeup person saying instead of her arriving at 8:00 she would be there at 12:00. I didn...

Here we are a few days out from our wedding and I am getting so frustrated with our wedding coordinator. I have sent her 5 emails that have gone unanswered since last week. I just called and she hit the ignore button. I am trying so hard to not be negative about this whole situation. All I am trying to do is finalize a few last minute things and let it go! I really don't want to be concerned about this stuff this close to the wedding. That is why we hired her in the first place. We paid too much money for her services for her to be blowing us off like this. Ok, I gotta take a deep breath and try to stay positive. I know that when it's all said and done it will all come together. I have been pretty laid back about it this whole time. I just need the last few days of this process to go smoother.

I have a few more things to get done before I can shift into full-on wedding mode. Right now I am procrastinating doing my notes for work but once that is behind me I don't have too much work to do this week. Here is a little preview of some of the elements of our wedding: Our centerpieces Our "logo". It was on the invites and will be on various signs used at the wedding and on the cake. Speaking of cake.... This is our cake design inspiration. Our cake is loosly based off of this cake. I am so excited to see how everything comes together. I'll be back after the wedding. (or maybe before if I need feel the need to blog away jitters :-)

16 days until I make the change from Ms. to Mrs. I feel like I am not yet getting the chance to soak it in. I am still trying to adjust to the new job and keep up with my normal household tasks. I guess I will fully realize it when I put on the dress.

I hate UPS! The first thing that they did to get on my s#*t list was to loose D's wedding band. It took a month to get another one shipped to us. I was so glad I ordered it way in advance of May. Now they are giving me the run around on a lovely wedding gift that my moms co-worker purchased for us. Here is the saga: I wasn't home for the first delivery attempt, so they left a slip. Since it required a signature to authorize me to leave it with a neighbor, that is what I did. Yesterday I was home for 75% of the day. I left for a while and taped the slip to the door in case I missed the UPS man. He had checked the boxes that he would be at my house anywhere between 10-5 (what a ridiculous time range!). I got home after 5 and the slip was still on the door! I took the slip off and figured he would just come the next day. I did a few things around the house and then I ran out to Target to get an ink cartridge (had to print my Oprah KFC coupon, LOL). I got back home around 7:30 and...

I need to find some energy from somewhere because all of this rain is making me so laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaazy. I have two reports to turn in and several more visits with my clients but I don't feel like doing any of it. That is the downside to making your own schedule. It can be incredibly easy to mismanage your time and not get everything accomplished. It doesn't help that there is twitter , facebook , and pogo . All of these distrations, along with my google reader and e-mail get me caught up. Ok, time to step away from the computer.

Only 26 days until my single life is over! I am quite overwhelmed with all the last minute things on my to do list. We keep reworking the budget, shifting money from one category to the other in order to make everything as nice as possible while keeping in mind that there is life after May 30! Now that we are so close and everything is in motion, I wish I would have just stuck to a smaller wedding. But it is hard to do that because that means really limiting the guest list. It means possibly hurting some folks feelings because there isn't room on the guest list for them. So many times D and I talked about revamping the plans for the wedding. We talked about just getting married in my church and having a cake and punch reception. But that did not feel like us. We wanted dancing. We talked about having a dry reception but that too did not feel like us. We drink and so do our friends. Let's be real, if you have ever went to a reception that was dry, people eat then bounce. Not muc...

Andydawg's mom and I am a procrastinator. (Hi Andydawg's mom) This procrastination of mine has been my companion for most of my life now. It all began in first grade. I started going to school on the regular schedule after a whole year of p.m. Kindergarten (11:00-3:00 ish). I did not want to wake up on the earlier schedule, so I would sleep up until the last possible moment. I was starting of my day with procrastination. This still is pretty much what I do to this day. As I type, I am perfecting the art of procrastination. I have a ton of notes to type for work that are due on Tuesday in addition to 3 reports due this week. I told myself that I would work on it this weekend. Instead I helped my BFF pack up her apartment, cleaned my house, ate dinner at BFF's new apartment, and generally goofed around. Even now with it being Sunday night I still can't quite motivate to really get into working. I am always setting myself up for that last minute crunch. Burning the midnigh...

Sometimes I wonder... why is blogging so popular? What makes us tell intimate details of our life to complete strangers? Well... I think that for me it is all about the shared human experience. Whether we admit it or not, we all look for validation from others. If we have a job that sucks, we want to know that others are going through the same thing. Since I am currently planning a wedding (for another 33 days at least!), I have a ton of wedding blogs on my google reader . Some of the blogs I read are for entertainment such as YKYDAW . And still others I read because they help me keep up with friends who I have known forever and meet new ones. When someone writes about something that I can identify with I think it's cool. Sometimes we spend so much time in our little bubble we forget that others have already traveled the path we are on and may have a few wise words to share. D doesn't get the whole blogging thing but I really like it. I know that part of the reason he doesn...

Right now I am sitting on the couch, watching Napoleon Dynamite, next to a sleeping dog and fiance. I feel like sleeping too but I am trying to motivate to get some things done around the house and work on notes for my job. So... here's the weekend in review. I went to class yesterday morning from 8:00-10:30 then I jetted over to my bridal shower. It was very nice. My mom and bridesmaids did a great job decorating and the food was yummy. I got a lot of nice gifts. I loved the dress that I was wearing. I wanted to keep it on for the rest of the day but it was so HOT yesterday that a shower was in order before moving onto the next activity. So after helping clean up the bridal shower I came home and freshened up. I changed into my lovely BR zebra dress (well I wasn't going to wear this one at first but D didn't like my first choice) and we off we went to the wedding of D's frat brother. It was a very nice wedding. It gave me a few ideas for what we want to do with ours (3...

Right now I have quite a few things to juggle. I am in the last few weeks of mi clase de espanol. I am in the last few weeks of wedding planning and I am in the first few weeks of a new job. Whew! That is a lot. I never got around to loosing all the weight I thought I would lose for the wedding. I know I am only making excuses but it is tough to eat right when I am on the run a lot of the time. I do have sporadic pockets of down time and depending on my proximity to home, I can go chill and eat a healthy snack or meal. Realistically speaking, I do think I can shed a few lbs. in the next 6 weeks. If I push myself I can get about 8-10 lbs off of my frame. Of course that won't make me lose a size nor will it really make me look that much different but it will be a good start. I have vowed that I will get to a healthy weight before I start having children. Since babies are in the 2 year plan, I have to be developing the right habits now. Anyhoo, here is my self designed "plan...

Hawaii is really not next to Alaska. It just looks that way on some maps. (Someone recently was confused about this) LOL!

58 days......!!!!! That's how long it will be until I am a married woman. OMG! I still haven't lost those 15 lbs I wanted to get off my frame. I haven't tested out the cookie recipes for the dessert buffet. I haven't done a lot of things that I thought I would have done with a little under two months to go. But then again I just started a new job and I am taking a class (that I have five more weeks left to complete), so sometimes I forget I am getting married so soon. My new goal is to do something wedding related every day. Today I printed about 8 treat bags for the dessert buffet. That is kinda slow going because it's hard to feed a lunch bag through a printer. So at this pace I will have them done before the end of the month. I also have to work in physical activity each day, no excuses!

Today I worked my last day at a job that was a bittersweet experience. The timing was perfect that I was able to leave now. I worked in two programs and one of them is being cut. Also, everyone in the agency is getting 10% pay decreases. The harsh realities of the economy have hit my now former job. What a blessing that I am able to move on and not be affected by these changes. I do feel bad for the staff and the clients who will be affected by what has happened. I hope that things start to look up soon. Now my resume looks pretty shaky. I have a string of jobs that did not work out. I started off well. I worked my first post-college job for 2.3 years. I even managed a promotion while I was there. Then things started to get complicated. I met some guys who were interested in hiring me and a friend to help them launch a human services agency. We rode the waves of a new business; bad office space, ever changing policies, and high turnover. The reason I parted ways with the company were t...

D is eating a bowl of Lucky Charms... Me: Let me get a marshmallow. D: There's no marshmallows in here. Me: What did you think those colorful things were? D: I don't know. They are hard, how can they be marshmallows? Me: They are like the marshmallows that come in hot cocoa. D: Those are not hard. They are always soft when I drink hot cocoa. Me: Well they are dehydrated then then hydrate when they hit the cocoa. Yeah.... a sample of what we talk about on a Thursday night at 7:45.

In my quest to loose a few pounds, I find myself once again starting over. I just went to the grocery store and spent $60 bucks on.... IDK? I am gonna make make at least two meals a day for the next 7 days outta this food though and hopefully stretch it out even further. So here are some items in my starter kit: Green Leaf Lettuce Organic Carrots Organic Gala Apples Organic Navel Oranges Red Grapes Organic wheat crackers Sweet corn soup Organic cream of tomato soup Amy's Cheese enchilada Whole Meal Amy's shepherd pie Laughing cow light cheese I am trying to work up the courage to start an herbal cleanse but I am scared. I already spent the money on it and can't take it back but I am a little weary of herbs and I can't find information about the particular ones in this kit.

So I decided that 101 is a bit much so I am going to cap it at 35. With so many other things going on in my life I gotta keep it real and obtainable. (Ms. M feel free to pare yours down too, LOL) Ok so to recap and update...... 1. Pay off a minimum of 75% of my credit card debt. (Already paid off one credit card and working steadily on the others) 2. Loose and keep off 25 lbs. (Uhhhhh, yeah. I'm back on this starting tomorrow. LOL) 3. Sell my condo. (This goal is for later in the 1001 days) 4. Move into a 5 bedroom house. (Ditto above) 5. Participate in a marathon, as a walker. (Next year, for sure) 6. Grow my relaxer out and cut off my hair. (Right after the wedding I am going to start cutting. Actually before we go on the honeymoon) 7. Visit DC and see all the cool historical sites. (This would be cool to do later on this summer) 8. Maintain regular visits with my girls. (I have seen my girls a little more lately) 9. Become an ESL teacher. (I'm taking a class now that moves m...

How it is: I wake up at the last possible moment. I have to be at work at 10:00 so I usually get up at 9:20. I take a 10 minute shower. I put on whatever is not wrinkled and try to grab something to eat for lunch and run out the door at 9:45. I walk in the front door of my job at 10:05. I go upstairs and sign into my computer. I check all 3 of my Yahoo accounts, my Google Reader and my work e-mail account. I go about my day of various client appointments with bursts of goofing off in between. I talk with my co-workers, do some paperwork that is always behind, and make phone calls. Lunch time rolls around at 1:45. I pack up all my items and go to my second office (within the same company). I grab lunch at my desk because by this time no one else is in the break room to break bread with. While eating I check in on Facebook and more Google Reader. I give D a call and see how his day is going at work and usually get calls sent up from the receptionist who forgets that I am on my lunch brea...

I'm still trying to to work on the whole appreciate where I am right now thing. I have improved my appreciation of my house, having taken the time to rearrange my living room and cleaning my house. It is still not perfect but I feel better about my environment. I am also getting more enjoyment out of the wedding planning process. This weekend my bridesmaids came over and we had an invitation party (to be continued this weekend with Ms. M). Although it was tedious it was a rare opportunity that the four of us got together to just talk and enjoy each others company. The one area that I am still trying to enjoy is work. I have had a string of some pretty rough days lately. Through it all I am still trying to maintain a positive attitude. Just keep swimming.....

Here lately I have been wanting more and better things that what I currently have. I complain that my condo is too small and I can't wait for D and I to buy our dream 5 bedroom,, 3.5 bath suburban home. I complain about the work I do now and how I can't wait to get my teacher certification and license so I can switch careers. I complain about the wedding planning process and how I just can't wait to be married. There is a big problem with this mind set: I will never be happy with what I currently have for wanting the next big thing. I just realized this today. I need to be more mindful of the moment. I can be a much happier person if I choose to be. I can enjoy my current home. I can have fun and memorable experiences from the wedding planning process. I can grow my professional skills and make connections at my current job. Sure, every day will not be a happy one but there can still be happy moments in each day. I can take the lemons that I think life is handing me and mak...

To recap my current list... 1. Pay off a minimum of 75% of my credit card debt. 2. Loose and keep off 25 lbs. 3. Sell my condo. 4. Move into a 5 bedroom house. 5. Participate in a marathon, as a walker. 6. Grow my relaxer out and cut off my hair. 7. Visit DC and see all the cool historical sites. 8. Maintain regular visits with my girls. 9. Become an ESL teacher. 10. Go through all my boxes of random stuff and put them in order. 11. Wear makeup more often 12. Learn to be more of morning person 13. Learn a new craft 14. Be more consistent with keeping my house cleaned everyday 15. Take a course on wedding planning 16. Start a habit of walking Andy every morning for my and his exercise 17. Take pictures more often 18. Learn to have a positive attitude even in the face of difficult times 19. Be less quick to anger when it comes to my loved ones 20. Drink at least 4 glasses of water a day (working my way up to 8) 21. Complete a detox program 22. Reduce the amount of fast food I consume 23....

Very interesting...

To recap here is where I was last month with my list.... 1. Pay off a minimum of 75% of my credit card debt. 2. Loose and keep off 25 lbs. 3. Sell my condo. 4. Move into a 5 bedroom house. 5. Participate in a marathon, as a walker. 6. Grow my relaxer out and cut off my hair. 7. Visit DC and see all the cool historical sites. 8. Maintain regular meetings with my girls. 9. Become an ESL teacher. 10. Go through all my boxes of random stuff and put them in order. 11. Wear makeup more often 12. Learn to be more of morning person 13. Learn a new craft 14. Be more consistent with keeping my house cleaned everyday 15. Take a course on wedding planning And now some more: 16. Start a habit of walking Andy every morning for my and his exercise 17. Take pictures more often (I am treating myself to a new camera for Valentine's Day) 18. Learn to have a positive attitude even in the face of difficult times 19. Be less quick to anger when it comes to my loved ones 20. Drink at least 4 glasses of w...

I have been on my "eat better but don't be stupid about it" plan for the past 3 days and it hasn't been that bad. Yesterday I did have a bit of a splurge. My job took the kids to McDonald's for a field trip (?) and I got a hot fudge sundae and small fries. However, I counted the calories and had a pretty light supper to compensate for it. I am kinda doing my own plan, having a slim fast meal bar for breakfast, a lean cuisine or soup or something light for lunch ( I recommend the Healthy Choice Zesty Marinara Mixer), a slim fast shake for a mid afternoon snack and then a bowl or two of cream of wheat for dinner. This comes out to about 1200-1500 calories depending on the day. I am still fighting off the remnants of my ear infection so I have not worked exercise back into my routine however I have a pretty active job so I feel good about burning a decent amount of calories. Next week I will get back into going to the fitness center at least 3 times per week for one ...

So I tried on my dress for the first time in several months yesterday while I was at my parent's house and uhhhhhh.... my boobs are too big for it. So now I have made up my mind to work very hard at shedding 15-20 lbs in the next 10 weeks. That will put me about 8 weeks from the wedding so if I fail ( I sure hope I don't!!!) I can go out and get a dress my chest can fit in. I'm also having a few issues with my invitations. I printed my first draft after I received my paper and showed it to my mom. She said it was too plain and really it is not what I pictured. So now I have to work on that some more.

I currently am under the weather a bit with an ear infection. I am going to attempt to return to work tomorrow after being out all week. While I was out, there were yet again more changes in personnel. Things happen so quick around there it is making my head spin! I have not been to the gym in about two weeks. At first (and still) it was because my code is not working to let me in the door. I notified the correct people about this and it is being worked on. Now even if I had the ability to get into the door, I would not feel like doing anything. I gotta get back on track soon!

First of all, Happy MLK day. Let us not forget how the hard work of this great man and others in his generation who paved the path for President Barack Obama. Today I was thinking of many wonderful changes this country is going to be experiencing in the near future. I know it's been hard for so many people during the last year. My wish is that we all take the time to reflect on what we can do to be better citizens and people. The financial market meltdown has (hopefully) shown us that material things are not what makes us good people. As part of my job, I work with middle school aged children in a after-school program. It saddens me to hear them say they don't care that much about what is going on in politics right now. I get angry when they say a peer is less of person because they are not wearing Baby Phat or Derreon. I want them to realize that there is more to life than things. Yes, I know that they are only children but then again it's different for them than it was fo...

Cinnamon raisin toast- Yum! Watching Living Single re-runs. My fav show! Crossing items off my to-do list When the kids I work with really appreciate what I do for them Having a clean car- inside and out Polka dots Finding great coupons in the paper that I can actually use when I go grocery shopping Goofing off with my friends

11. Wear makeup more often 12. Learn to be more of morning person 13. Learn a new craft 14. Be more consistent with keeping my house cleaned everyday 15. Take a course on wedding planning

A lot of people have created a list of 101 things they’d like to accomplish in 1001 days. (about 2.75 years, or 2 years and 9 months.)I think I would like to jump on that bandwagon myself. Here are my first few items. I will keep you all posted on when I accomplish goals. 1. Pay off a minimum of 75% of my credit card debt. 2. Loose and keep off 25 lbs. 3. Sell my condo. 4. Move into a 5 bedroom house. 5. Participate in a marathon, as a walker. 6. Grow my relaxer out and cut off my hair. 7. Visit DC and see all the cool historical sites. 8. Maintain regular meetings with my girls. 9. Become an ESL teacher. 10. Go through all my boxes of random stuff and put them in order. Ok, I think that's a good start to my list. More to come later.....

Yay for progress! So far this week I have lost 4 lbs. I feel really good about that. I am about to go work out for the third time this week. I currently walk a mile in about 18 minutes which is an improvement over my 21 minute mile a few weeks ago. I am also making progress in planning the wedding. I have came up with a vision of the wedding that blends practicality with fun and class. D and I def. don't have the money to have the biggest, baddest wedding ever. But what we do have planned is sure to be charming, cute, heartfelt, and a good time to be had by all. Really, I think the wedding will be amazing because we expect somewhere in the neighborhood of 120 guests and our budget is way under average and that includes EVERYTHING. Most people don't count the wedding bands and the honeymoon and the hotel rooms. But our budget includes these things. I don't take "it can't be done" for an answer. I am creative enough to find a way. But I think what makes me uniqu...