15 Week Challenge - Week 1

So, I recently signed up for the 15 week challenge on Amy’s Quest to Skinny. I thought it would be a good way to motivate myself. I’ll also be able to get with more bloggers and this always motivates me to do better. There are 164 people participating, so I certainly don't envy her the work involved!

Anyway, today was my Week 1 weigh in. I lost 4 pounds this week (weighed in at 213). Go me! I’m very happy with the result, because that puts me back to a total 25 pounds lost since I started Weight Watchers.

The challenge, in addition to the weigh ins, has two other things you can do each week. On Workout Wednesday Amy posts a workout for everyone to do, if they want to. I can only do a portion of it this week due to all the different crunches she has included (doctors orders not to do crunches due to a bulging disc), but I’ve done the rest. I’ve done some modifications to get in some ab work.

The other challenge is set each week. This week, it is to remake one of your sinful favorites into a healthier recipe. Being the lazy bum that I am, I’ve chosen something simple. I’m going to tell you how I’ve changed making stew.

In the past, when I made stew it was beef, lots of carrots and potatoes (cut fresh), a can of whole kernel corn, and a can of mixed veggies to fill it out. THEN, once that was good and hot, I added gravy mix and made it REALLY thick. Then ate a lot of it.

Now, this is not the worst thing in the world to eat, but could easily be made more healthy. And be made with a lot less effort. So, I’ve changed how I make my stew.

Ingredients

≈1.1 lbs. of a lean beef, frozen (whatever is available in the sale row at the grocery store)

≈1/4 cup of light soy sauce (I really just dump a bunch in, but this was the measure when I started)

≈2 teaspoons of thyme (Again, I don’t measure anymore. I just dump some in)

≈2 teaspoons of crushed rosemary

Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

2 bags of frozen mixed veggies

Enough water to cover everything (doesn’t have to COMPLETELY cover the veggies)

I put the above things in the Crockpot (in the order listed) and cook on high for about 6 hours. (I put it on at lunch and it’s ready when I get home.)

To finish out the healthy meal, I cook rice to serve this over. Brown rice is obviously better, but I use white rice because I’ve never cared for the taste of brown rice. (I’m also not sure if my husband likes it!) I cook the rice in a rice cooker, but even instant would be fine. I also sometimes eat a salad while waiting for the rice to cook.

I don’t have any pictures of this, but I think it’s fairly easy to imagine. I usually cook this on the nights I have class since it doesn’t take the rice long to cook and the main portion of the meal is already done.

Sadness...

Not about the recent celebrity deaths... I don't care about those, to be honest.

My doctor has grounded me. No biking for two weeks. I won't go into why, it's not really important. And it's probably a good thing anyway since I'll be getting an epidural for my neck on Thursday.

I went with a bunch of friends to see Transformers 2 this weekend. It was a pretty good movie. You should definitely go see it if you enjoy an action movie.

I've been trying to play a 'new' game on the DS. Atlus recently re-did The Dark Spire. It's freaking HARD. So I've switched back to playing Luminous Arc 2. It's proving a little hard since I'm more than half-way through, but I'm enjoying it a lot more.

I also read a good book this weekend. Love without Blood by Raz Steel. It's a romance novel, but doesn't really read that way. I also didn't figure out the title of the book until the VERY end.

Well, I'm off to working and blog reading, and all that stuff. Have a great week everyone!

Summer Reading

Currently, I'm reading Feast of Souls by C. S. Friedman. It's a very good book, and I hope to finish it and move on to the second book in this trilogy soon. If you have an interest in magic or fantasy novels, give it a try.

Another book I'll be reading this summer is Relentless by Dean Koontz. He's been a favorite of mine for years. I even wrote a paper about his work while I was in high school. Koontz has a terrific article on just why you should read this book this summer. Check it out here.

On the bike front, I made it to work this morning without incident, again. Although there is one pedestrian on this campus that I could shoot at the moment. Really, is there a reason you have to walk so slow that a snail will pass you? Why can't people actually move their feet? If I tried to walk that slow I would end up falling flat on my face! End of small rant.

Hmm, trying to think of something that doesn't involve the bike. That seems to be my main focus in life currently. Well, I'll be paying off the hubby's car when I go home for lunch. That's something big. I'll be nice to have that taken care of. No more worries about getting to that bank. And we'll have that money to put towards other bills in the coming months. YAY!

Wednesday Weigh In

Well, not happy news on the scale front. I was up 5.5 pounds. I hope it was fluid and will be gone next week. But if not, I can deal with that.

So, on to other things. I did make it home on the bike yesterday without difficulty. Ok. Without accident. Cause that hill is still hard. I didn't ride to work today because I had a doctors appointment this morning. My bulging disc is a little worse, enough to cause the numbness and pain I've had in my left arm. Not bad enough for surgery. Thank goodness. I'm scheduled for an epidural next Thursday afternoon for that. Just what I wanted. Another huge bill. Oh well. We'll manage.

I made a 90 on my last test in class. I think I did better on the one last night. I'm really enjoying this class, but I'm ready for it to be over as well...

The Bicycle Saga Continues

Yes. I made it another day on the bicycle. Well, I still have to ride home from work, but I will do that. It is my only ride home. :)

I almost didn't ride the thing back from lunch. It was a rough ride home, and my butt is sore. I'll get used to it though. I also have a blister forming on my right hand. I guess it's from grip shifting.

I'm not going to ride it to class tonight though. Since class doesn't get out until 10pm, I'd rather not ride the bike. And it's only a two minute walk to class. Of course, the ride back from class is the worst hill of my ride home from work, so I'm REALLY not interested in tackling only that hill for a ride. I'm sure it would be great for my legs, but I think I'll stick to the walking for that.

WHY?!?

So, the University decided to increase the parking fees from $50 to $135 a year. I live a half-mile from my office. I decided I was NOT going to pay that much to drive a half-mile one way.

So, I got the bright idea of buying a bicycle. I haven't ridden a bike in nearly 6 years. I haven't exercised for the past year. Needless to say, it was a tough ride this morning. I have an up-hill portion of the ride each way. It totally sucks. And it's really hot outside. But, even though I'm jelly-legs and have a headache, I feel good for having ridden the bike to work today. I even rode home for lunch. Go me!!!

I lost 2.5 pounds last week. I can't wait to see what this week does. I'm really hoping the bicycling helps my weight loss. Walking to work did, but it's just too hot for that.

Now, my bike is nice. It's a NEXT PowerX. I bought it used at the local bike shop. Rides like a dream. I currently have the seat a little too low, but I'll be raising it up higher once I'm used to riding again. I'm riding in traffic, and I'm not quite used to the breaks yet. I like being able to put more of my foot on the ground at the moment. But I think I'll be used to it by the end of the week.

I didn't get to go see Daddy for Father's Day. Momma had to work, and he had to mow both their yard and my grandparents' place. So my sister and I are going to visit with them on another weekend. I hope it's soon. I want to see everyone again.

School is still going well. I made a 104 on my first test. I get the second grade tomorrow night. I really like my legal class. I hope I have the opportunity to take another class under Mr. King. He's really great.

I'm learning to play Legend of the Five Rings. It's a really great collectible card game. I finally got to play my first game without major help last week. I might try to get another game in tonight with my hubby. A new friend is also starting up a game of Hackmaster. It'll be fun to play a game I haven't played before. I enjoy trying out new things, even if I end up hating them.

And, I think that's the full update on me. I'll try and post my weight loss progress on Wedneday, as well as an update on the bike ride.

And, another update with a long break

Well, at least it wasn't months this time before a new post.

I managed to lose one pound this past week. Considering I had gained up to 215, I hope I do better this week.

I may drop my finance class this summer. I have to contact the teacher tomorrow to see just how bad my test grade was. It's certainly not good though. I think that class will definitely need to be taken as a full semester course.

I did fine on my Legal Environment of Business test though. Well, I won't get a grade until next week, but I know I did fine on that test. So at least one class is going well. I'm really enjoying this course. I hope I can take something else under the professor later.

On a different note, my bulging disc might be getting worse. I'll be having an MRI next week to compare it to the last one (six years ago).

My wrist seems to be doing better from my ganglion cyst excision. I'm still having muscle craps in my hand, but that may go on a while.

Well, that's very bland, but that's life at the moment too. I don't have much going on outside of school. Of course, that MIGHT be changing by Friday if I do decide to drop finance. I can't decide which I would really prefer!

Creepy Stalker?

I just had a really creepy guy in the office that did NOT want to leave. He just kinda kept staring at me. I had to come up with three different ways to say "I'm finished. Now YOU leave." before he would turn and walk away. And he turned back THREE times to look at me before turning the corner that is 10 feet from my door.

I've had stalkers at work before, but none as creepy as this guy. To summarize:

1. The friendly guy that I was kinda friends with who came into the office all the time to just talk.

2. The licquor store manager that came into the office twice a semester for 8 semesters to ask me out to lunch, and to ask why I hadn't called him for lunch. Even after he knew I was married.

I would like to avoid having another one. The other two were nice guys. Nothing creepy other than the constantly coming to talk and ask me out. This guy looked and acted creepy. I've informed a guy I work with that if this dude EVER comes back in the office, he is REQUIRED to come rescue me. At least I have a lot of nice men working in the office!

Been Away....

Ok. I've REALLY been away from my blog for a while now. But I'm back. No guarantees on what posts will be like for the next little while, but I'm GOING to post. I'll probably get folks up to date on what's been going on over a few posts.

Honestly, I just haven't really felt like writing. Nothing personal, just haven't wanted to. However, I had quite the little wake up call at the Weight Watchers office this morning. I was up 4 pounds! And even if I'm not writing about weight loss or how I'm doing in that area, I'm still more conscious of that when I'm writing here. Something to do with the name of the blog, I think. So I'm back.

Back in April I was diagnosed with a ganglion cyst in my left wrist. Great to know why I was hurting so much. I had it removed at the end of April. According to the doctor I'm doing well on my recovery. However, he says it will be winter before I stop having some pain. At least I have a general idea of the when. 6 months to do, and he said the pain should be gone by the time my scars go white! Yeah, a measuring stick there too.

I managed to get an A and a B in my Spring classes. Summer classes started this week, and I like my teachers. The course material is another matter entirely. My finance class is two nights a week for the month of June, and I'm taking the Legal Environment of Business one night a week for two months. These classes are 6pm-10pm. It kinda sucks. But I have to take them to graduate. Unfortunatley, this kills my gaming schedule for June. :(

A few weeks ago the hubby and I, along with a group of friends, went to Mobicon in Mobile. It's a small gaming convention. We had a blast. Some of us playtested a new game, Untold. It was awesome! I just sent in a request to get play test materials so my group can play it some more. Especially since not everyone was able to attend Mobicon.

Let's see, nothing else of major importance. I've just been lazy. I'm off to work on finishing up my homework for class tonight. 2 problems to go, or he won't give me the answers!

April Fool's Day - But a NICE scale....

It may be April Fool.'s Day today, but the scale didn't play a nasty joke on me.  If anything, it was overly friendly.  I went to Weight Watchers to see a wonderful MAINTAIN this week.  I was really expecting another two pound gain on top of last week's two pounds.  But, no, it was very nice.

I have recently discovered that I can't manage to control my eating when I'm not taking my Prozac regularly.  So, back to the daily pill.  I'm doing the stickers on the calendar for everything again, considering I had quit putting them up there.  So, while it is a joking day, I'm taking life seriously.  I'm 208 pounds again, and this simply cannot continue!

Beautiful weather!

Ok.  For those not aware, that's a bit of sarcasm.  It's nasty rainy here in Hattiesburg at the moment.  Good thing I don't mind rain.  And that I have no where to be but home.  I would mind being out and about in it.

The University siren went off early in the evening, and we've been on the local tv channel since.  Apparently we're under a tornado watch at the moment.  (At least I think that's what the guy on the tv said.  I haven't paid that much attention!)

I'm just happy that the power only BLICKED earlier.  It hasn't actually went out totally.  We did have a bit of a scare with the tv though.  The picture didn't want to come back with the regular lights!  Luckily everything is fine.  The thought of ANOTHER tv going out at the moment is really scary...

Contest!

Newlywed Girl, who has an awesome blog, is running a little contest. It's for a really cool personalized necklace.  And she has a great story for WHY the necklace.  It's really sweet.

There are several ways to enter, including giving a small donation to for a charity walk she is doing.

So go check it out.  Even if you aren't interested in the contest, you can show a little love and support!

Excited!

Ok, so this week has kinda sucked. Sunday night my external hard drive crashed. It's where I stored all my ebooks, a lot of music, all the files for my current DnD character, resumes, old school work, and the backup of my work laptop. And we can't do anything about it. This really pissed me off. But, I should be getting my new external harddrive today. Of course, I will have lost a ton of stuff. But I will get by. I don't really need the old school work. It's about time to do a new backup of my laptop anyway, I can download my ebooks again, my wedding pictures are all on cd SOMEWHERE in the apartment, and I backed up the journal and character sheet for Mori on googledocs. And my current semester of school work was still on my l aptop. The bad thing is that I don't think I have another copy of my resume anywhere. At least Josh should have his around somewhere. And all the downloads I did during Spring Break (with the exception of one) are still on my laptop. I haven't deleted those yet. So, in addition to studying for my Economics exams, I'll be spending the weekend downloading files and moving stuff to my new harddrive. I guess that's not a bad way to spend the time. Now, off to see if I should use the software that comes on it, or format it right way. It's a Seagate FreeAgent, so if anyone has experience with these, let me know what you think!

And it ends...

Today is the last day of my Spring Break.  I've got the bad luck of ending it on with a headache.  I'm just hoping it doesn't make it to migraine levels, although it's definitely trying.

Today Josh and I are at his parent's house.  We watched The Transporter 3, and I really enjoyed it.  I slept through them watching some stuff that didn't interest me.  Now we're watching Kings, at least I think that's the title of the show.  It's interesting, but not necessarily something I'll try to keep watching at home.

I'm still loving the haircut.  It's lightweight and doesn't require any work.  Very nice.  I love simple.  I might have to keep this one, depending on how I like it after a week at work.  I think that's the real test.  How it works if I'm running late and have to wash it, if I can keep the bangs out of the way, etc. 

Well, I'm off and away!  Here's hoping the headache is gone in the morning!

The New 'Do

I went this afternoon for my haricut, and I am rather pleased. Here you go!

















April put in peek-a-boo streaks in a red called forbidden. Since I took the pictures with my cellphone, I don't think you can really see them. She also did the color so I can show off more or less of the red. The streaks are slimmer with it parted as in the picture, but if I do the bangs to the other side, they are bigger and stand out more. I'll have to dig out my camera to try for some better shots.

What's really great, is she didn't really do anything to fix my hair. Just dried it. No curling iron, round brush, no hair products. It does the flips and curls naturally. Now I just can't wait to see what it looks like when I do it myself!!!

Haircut?

I'm going to get a haircut on Monday afternoon. I'm excited. I have something VERY different in mind, and several people have told me it's a good idea. Of course, the closer I get to the appointment, the more I get nervous about it. The final decision and execution will really fall to my beautician. If April likes, we do. If April says no, I'll just tell her to do something that she thinks will look good.

When Josh and I went to her house for his haircut this morning, we did talk about my coloring plans. We decided on red streaks. I think it will look awesome, with any haircut. The color will start out kinda stark, but it will fade into my actual hair color. And she said if I think it's fading too quick, she can get me a shampoo with the same pigment in it to keep the color brighter.

I wish my appointment were earlier!!! Oh well. I'll just have to pretend to wait patiently.

T-Virus

Ok. So any gamers out there are at least a little familiar with Resident Evil and the Umbrella Corporation. You'll also remember, from the game or movies, the container.




Avon had a new product that is interesting. It's supposed to fill in wrinkles, or something like that.




So, what do you think???