Trials and Tribulations

Have a safe and happy weekend!!

2009-07-03T18:25:00.000-07:00

Have a happy and safe holiday everyone! Sorry its been a while since I have written. I promise to soon update you on all that has been going on! I have been so busy and have been pulled in many different directions by work and family. I am soon going to have to make some changes. Hope you all are well. I will explain and update soon take care ! Happy 4th of July!!!

Something to think about.....

2009-05-27T20:57:00.001-07:00

An expert at anything was once a beginner.

Another book I started to read....

2009-05-26T20:42:00.000-07:00

I think Tori Spelling is so cute. This new book Mommywood is about the love affair she has with being a Mom and the trials she experiences along the way. So far this book seems like it is a fast read. The book has a fun light hearted feel. I don't normally read two books at one time but I figure that in this case the books are complete opposites of each other so it won't be a problem for me to keep all the characters separate.

New book I am reading ....

2009-05-26T20:31:00.000-07:00

I just started reading this novel. "My Sister's Keeper" by Jodi Picoult. The story is about two Sisters. One who was brought into the world to save the life of her older Sister who has leukemia. I see that there is a movie coming out based on this novel so I want to get the novel read before I go to the movie theater to see it. My Sister and a friend are reading it along with me and then we will all go see the movie together. It is a pretty thick book. I hope the movie is as good as the book. I will let you know.

Been so busy....

2009-05-26T20:19:00.000-07:00

Hi all ! I am sorry I have not written in a while. I have been so busy with the new job. I am happy to say that I like it alot! So much better than the previous job. :) So much more professional. No pimping accounts! lol. I was also very happy to have met a new friend. She is actually the head of training in my area. We hit it off right from day one. The drive to work is not too bad either. It is about 15 minutes from where I live. Keep your fingers crossed for me that things stay positive in my life for at least alittle while! ;)

Legally Blondes .........the movie :D

2009-05-05T19:20:00.000-07:00

The movie Legally Blonde's was cute. ;) I am glad that I bought it. I was a tad bit disappointed as I missed Reese Witherspoon character. The girls in the movie were cute and being that this was their first role I think they did a great job. On the DVD extras they talk about how they were discovered. They were in the audience of a taping of their favorite show and the producer asked them to meet with her. All in all I enjoyed it and I am glad that I bought it to go along with the rest of the Legally Blonde set that I have. I made popcorn and had vanilla Golden Spoons frozen yogurt with fresh berries that I cooked in a pot with Splenda earlier in the day and refrigerated it so it would be cold to put on top of the Golden Spoons frozen yogurt. :) Ang go buy your copy!!!! :) I hope you like the girly cute movie as much as I did, let me know.

TGIF! I had a great shopping day today !!!!!!!

2009-05-01T19:06:00.000-07:00

I went to my manicurist today and had my nails done. I went and did some shopping :) I love to shop. I bought some tops at Lane Bryant I had a coupon if I spent $150.00 I got $50.00 off so of course I had to take advantage of that coupon! ;) I also went to Marshalls and bought two more tops there and a perfume set. I went to Subway for a turkey on wheat and then I went to Golden Spoons for a frozen yogurt treat. It was a great shopping day. I love WW because you really can eat anything you want as long as you control your portions.

I am so ready for this weekend. :) Sunday is my 14th wedding anniversary. I feel like I have known my Husband my entire life and yet it feels like we had our first date just yesterday. As people say time fly's by.

As far as tomorrow goes.....remember how I said in a earlier post I will forever be 18 ? Well I am so excited because the movie Legally Blonde's is out on DVD an I am going to purchase it tomorrow! I know it is a girly teen movie but remember I am forever 18. ;) I hope it is good. I hear that it is produced by Reese Witherspoon and she was the original Elle Woods from Legally Blonde part one and two. After I go out and buy it I am going to come home and watch the movie while eatting one of my frozen yogurt treats from Golden Spoons. I will let you all know if the movie is good or not. I hope you all have a great weekend.

Inspiring man today on Oprah, Michael Hebranko....

2009-04-30T17:42:00.000-07:00

Have any of you ever heard about Michael Hebranko? This is his picture. Today was the first time I have heard of Michael Hebranko and his life battles. I was watching The Oprah show and this man is so inspiring. He is not only inspiring to people with weight issues but he is inspiring to everyone in any given situation. Michael's outlook on life is so beautiful, empowering, astonishing and inspiring. I encourage all of you to look up Michael Hebranko. I am so happy to say Michael has a blog here on blogspot! :)

Sunday is weigh in day....

2009-04-26T14:06:00.000-07:00

I am so happy to announce that I have lost 2 more pounds! That makes a total of 17 pounds. In an earlier post I mentioned I had a goal. I never had the chance to mention what it was since I have been so busy with everything and frankly it slipped my mind! My goal was to loose 20 pounds by my 14th Wedding Anniversary. My anniversary is on May 03. and it looks like I just might make my goal. I am 3 pounds away! yipeee! If I don't make the 3 pounds, I will still be proud of what I have accomplished and then set a new goal. However, I am staying positive. I do after all have one more week to go.

Something to think about .......

2009-04-25T18:45:00.000-07:00

No matter how dreary miserable, or bitter the weather, birds can always be heard singing.

Music

2009-04-20T20:28:00.000-07:00

I added a music player to my blog. I hope you all like the songs I have added. They are some of my favorite girly feel good songs. If you don't like the songs. Shut your volume off and I hope that you continue to follow along with my blog! :) I must admit that I always say that I am eternally 18. I guess my song choices may reflect that! he he he he

Good day

2009-04-20T15:36:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! Today was such a hot day. It is a lovely day just so hot. I can't take the heat. I am so glad that the apartment that I live in is in a cool location but I think I have gotten spoiled by this because for the first time in over a year my apartment reached 78 degrees and I felt like I was about to die! I am starting to wonder if this mostly cool apartment is not good for me. Now I can barely handle 78 degrees. I am not kidding I was feeling sick! How can this be? The house I lived in prior to this was an old historical home and had no air conditioner. That house reached temperatures of 104. I hated it took many showers during the day but I was able to handle it and now a little old 78 degrees has me running to turn the air on! I would of loved and been so thankful for the 78 degrees before and now I am sick over it.??? uggggggg :/

Update on new job and WW :D

2009-04-19T20:23:00.000-07:00

Hi all -

Sorry it has been so long. I have been so busy with the new job and the new WW plan my Sister put me on. So much has gone on.......

Where to begin....

First off I went in with high hopes for the new job but to my surprise I hated it!! This bank location was in a supermarket not a traditional free standing branch. I hated it ! I felt like I was in a glass box suffocating! This location is also open 7 days a week and they told me the hours just changed and now we would be open everyday until 7:00 pm! ugggggg It was not the normal professional banking environment that I am use to. This branch has the staff doing so many things that it just didn't fit with my personality and morales. The Manager actually has the staff go out and "pimp accounts"! I say "pimp accounts" because my best friend on a rough day made me laugh hysterically by calling it "pimping accounts". The Manager would have the staff go out into the market to tell customers we were there in the supermarket and even have the staff approach customers in the parking lot when they are getting in their cars!! The last straw for me was when she told me she wanted me to go to the local park to tell people about the bank and try to get new customers! I just imagined myself looking down at all the drunk people and homeless people laying and lounging on the grass and then imagining them yelling at me about how they don't even have a job and no money and who am I to tell them where to put the 2 cents that they had left! Thank God I have an understanding old fashion Husband that gives me the option to stay home and would rather have me home than actually work. This allowed me the option to quit the job immediately. I have never felt so free in my life! I must say the staff was excellent and I would have loved to work with the team longer but not with what the Manager requested us to do. On the upside to this I got a call from the second largest financial institution in the US and they offered me a job!The location is a free standing branch in fact they don't have many branches in supermarkets :) and they are closed on Sunday and Saturday they are open until 2pm. I was so happy and I figure I will give them a try. They have to be more professional than the last bank they couldn't be so big if they weren't right? I hope. Well if I don't like it, I will quit there too! :D I start the new job this Thursday.
Now as far as WW plan goes I have FANTASTIC news!!! I have lost 15 POUNDS since I started WW!! I am so excited. Could this be the magic plan I have been waiting for?? It has been very easy to stick to for me. The part I dread is giving my Sister the credit for getting me on it when I was against it for so long! ugggggg I hate it when others are right ! he he he :D

Tomorrow begins a new chapter....

2009-04-06T22:40:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow begins a new chapter in my life. I start my new job tomorrow at the bank. I look forward to this new chapter. This new chapter can only be better than the last one. I packed my lunch right now with all my WW goodies. I hope I am able to have time to eat all my snacks. Each point on WW is precious..hehehe I figure tomorrow can't be that bad. It is just the first day. Today I looked back at the last chapter in my life and a tear ran down my cheek. Tonight I think of the next chapter and tomorrow morning with the sun on my face, my head held high I will look forward to the next new chapter and thank God for all that it will bring. I will keep you all posted as to how it all went.

Chicken tacos

2009-03-31T15:46:00.000-07:00

This is what I had for lunch today. Two chicken soft tacos. This meal is of course compliments of my Sister. As I stated earlier she has me tring out Weight Watchers. These tacos are a total of 7 points. To make these delish tacos: 2 corn tortillas, 1/3 C. Taco Cheese divided onto the 2 tacos, 1 Tsp. each of Sour Cream, 1 Tbls. each Ortega Salsa, 2 Chicken tender grilled with diced white onion and Mrs.Dash seasoning, all ontop of lettuce and cilantro.

Change to my mini goal

2009-03-31T12:23:00.000-07:00

I just did my ten minute everday mini goal. It seems to be getting easier I am thinking I should up the minutes since ten minutes is not really much at all.I am going to up this mini goal to 30 minutes. I have been thinking if I can sit on the couch for 30 minutes to watch a favorite soap I certainly can sit on the bike while I watch it! So my mini goal is changed from ten minutes to 30 minutes. Itell myself I can do no less than 10 minutes but try to reach 30 minutes.

A great day.....

2009-03-30T19:34:00.000-07:00

Today has been a great day. I feel great today. These kind of days I have not seen in far too long!I have been doing my everyday 10 minute mini goal and have been trying Weight Watchers thanks to my Sister. So far it has been great. I still can't believe that I can eat all the food that I have been eatting and loose weight. I told her it is hard for me to believe. I am basically eatting what ever I want it just needs to be counted. So far it just seems too good to be true.

My Sister, my angel.....

2009-03-27T22:52:00.000-07:00

My Eldest Sister, Virginia. She has been telling me and telling me to go on Weight Watchers with her. I tell her, "no its to complicated, I don't want to count, I don't want to buy all the food" as she would say, "blah blah blah, all your excuses." She has lost 50 pounds. So today I told her about the new job. She was so happy. She told me."now you can pack Weight Watcher lunches to have at work" and of course I go on and on with my excuses. So this after noon she tells me in a text,"text me the kinds of fruit, veggies, meat, milk that you like and I will try to come up with a menu for you." So I did I figure lets see maybe she will come up with something interesting! So tonight I get a call from her she asks me," what are you doing? I am thinking to go down to Marshalls by your house and I thought we could go eat at Chick Fil A for dinner." I didn't have plans and hadn't eaten dinner yet so I said, "sure." When she and my Niece arrived their arms were FULL of grocery bags! My Sister bought me everything I needed to start Weight Watcher's! I was shocked, still am shocked. My refrigerator is over flowing with healthy stuff, along with my cupboards! She is is writing out a menu and is going to call me every day to tell me what I need to put together to eat for the day! She is my personal nutritionist now! LoL Now I am more than motivated to continue my weight loss journey. Thank you Big 6 (I call my Sister Big 6 )!!

New Job!!!!!!

2009-03-27T22:39:00.000-07:00

I am so excited!! I went on an interview last week with a local financial institution. It went great. Today I received a call from the financial institution and the Manager extended a job offer to me!!! I accepted the job offer. The position is a Banker position. The location is perfect. I could literally walk...... if I wanted to....baby steps....baby steps. Needless to say things are looking up. I have been truly blessed.

Everyday ten minute mini goal!

2009-03-27T22:32:00.000-07:00

Today was a great day I did my ten minute mini goal!!!!!!!!! Yippee It really wasn't that bad. I did it while watching one of my favorite soap operas The Young and The Restless. This made the time fly by. Small steps to success.

My everyday ten minute mini goal

2009-03-26T20:15:00.000-07:00

Ok everyone this is my stationary bike. One of many pieces of equipment that I have. Why is it so hard to get my big butt on top of this thing? Who knows i guess I am just lazy. I even have it parked behind my sofa so that when I get on it I can actually watch television. This hasn't helped! I am going to attempt to make a small goal and not allowing any excuses. I am going to start out with ten minutes. Everyday ten minutes. I owe it to myself. It is just a small ten minutes. That is all I am going to commit myself to right now.Why do some things that are so small seem so difficult? When I was younger I use to ride my other stationary bike for hours while I just listened to the radio. How things change! Wish me luck! :)

Moving forward

2009-03-24T15:45:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone I want to thank you all for the thoughtful comments you have made to me. It really means alot to me and has helped me get through this very tough time. I have been blessed and have alot of positive things going on right now. I am staying focused on these things and trying to move forward. I am back on my diet and have my food intake back under control. My wedding anniversary is May 03 this is the date that I have set to achieve my first goal I will let you know what it is in a future post. I will try to send out more comments to everyone. I am still new to this blog thing and still figuring things out! Thank you all for being out there for me.

A great affordable red wine

2009-03-02T22:33:00.000-08:00

This red wine is fruity, bubbly and affordable it's a great complement to ethnic foods such as Indian, Spanish, Chinese, or even burgers.

My favorite salad right now!

2009-03-02T21:28:00.000-08:00

Organic spring mixed greens

Cucumber slice

Cherry tomatoes

Onion

Black Olives

Alfalfa sprouts

Gorgonzola cheese crumbles

Dried cranberries

Walnuts or almonds

Grilled chicken breast sliced or cubed

Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Red Wine Vinegar for dressing

2009-03-02T21:04:00.000-08:00

This is so yummy!!!!!

2 tangerines or clementines
1 pint vanilla frozen yogurt slightly thawed
1 pint orange sorbet slightly thawed
3/4 C. orange juice
Directions:
1-Peel and segment the tangerines or clementines. Freeze the segments until firm about 5 minutes
2- In a blender combine all ingredients and puree until smooth
3- Pour into 5 chilled glasses
4- Garnish with tangerine or clementine segments enjoy!!!!!!!!

A heart full of tears

2009-02-19T17:14:00.000-08:00

I haven't written in awhile. So much has happened. This has been a year full of agony for myself along with my family. It began with the family pet chihuahua Mia. We have had Mia for 16 years and she passed away on Dec.22,2008. On Jan.04,2009 my Father passed away and if that wasn't enough on February 10,2009 my eldest Brother Robin passed away. It has been so much for us all to handle. As you can read in my earlier posts, I began my diet just before the loss of my Father. With the recent loss of my Brother my appetite has been out of control. It's not a matter of just wanting to eat, I feel like I have not eaten in months. The Doctor gave us some papers on the things we feel when we are grieving and I am feeling just about everything on the list! I need to get a hold of my emotions and my eating and get back on with my plans.The best thing is that I do not feel guilty for eating. I think this is all part of a healing process. Life is unpredictable and though I may never know why my family and I had to have so much grief in such a short period of time, the one thing I do know is that the loved ones that have passed on would not want me to stop living. They would want me to pick myself up, dry my tears and continue on with my plans. This is what I have to do. I know it will be along time before my heart feels whole again but in the meantime I need to carry on and push forward.

Spa Cucumber Water

2009-02-02T17:45:00.000-08:00

I love "Spa Cucumber Water." It is so refreshing! It also improves the look of your skin. I am one of those people who would go an entire day without drinking any water at all but never missing a soda! Making my water more special has made it easier for me to drink. I have a few other water recipes I will soon share with you. This is my favorite.

In a pitcher, mix the water, 1 cucumber sliced not peeled, 3 or more mint sprigs and 1 lemon sliced not peeled. I let it rest in the fridge for 24 hours. If you prepare the water at the last minute, it just won't have a strong flavor. For your first batch I suggest you taste test every so often to see how strong you like it.You can always add more or less of everything. Before serving remove the cucumber slices used to flavor the water. Then stir with a wooden spoon. If you want add some ice cubes fresh cucumber and lemon slice and mint sprigs for garnish. You can also add Splenda. Try it without Splenda first it tastes pure and fresh on it's own. I hope you enjoy this refreshing drink.

How much water to drink in a day to help weight loss.

2009-02-01T21:37:00.000-08:00

My Doctor told me that a big help in loosing weight is to drink plenty of water. It helps to flush the fat, toxins, regulate all your bodies functions and shrink your skin. The Doctor told me that everyone who is trying to loose weight should drink half of their bodies weight in ounces of water. For example if you weigh 200 pounds then you should drink 100 ounces of water a day. Needless to say you will be on the toilet a lot! But it is worth it. It really helps a lot. If you can't drink this amount right from the start it's ok just slowly add more water everyday. By the end of the month you should be drinking your full amount.

What a beautiful day/weight loss

2009-02-01T15:11:00.001-08:00

What a beautiful day it is today. I must say this is the first day in a long time that I am feeling great! I feel stronger than ever before. I have more energy and I have hope and possibilities going through my mind for tomorrow and the days to come. I don't have a scale in my house. I tried on some pants and they fit much better than before! :) I know this will be a long journey but a journey I am now strong enough to take. I have been discouraged to go to the local fitness center. Tomorrow will be my first day. I am strong enough to go now.

My weight loss journey.

2009-02-01T14:49:00.000-08:00

I began my weight loss journey just before my Father passed away. I have to admit that my mind has been on the loss of my Father and not on food or eating. In some way I think maybe my Father is helping me to get through this as he knew how I hated the fact that I gained so much weight. Since his passing I have not been able to eat beef steak or even my normal intake of that ever so wonderful dark bubbly highly addictive soda. I drank soda like I should have drank water and beef and beef steak at least 4 times a week. I am not sure why I can not have these things right now, maybe it is to heavy and the soda too sweet. I have been eating a lot of salads and chicken, fish, veggies, fruit and a ton of water. Thinking back to when this began, I feel like something inside me had just clicked and all of a sudden I was ready to go on this journey.

One of my favorite treats!

2009-02-01T00:34:00.000-08:00

Plain Greek yogurt
1 Medium bag mixed frozen berries
2 Tbls. Rose water
1/4 C. Splenda

In a small pot add the frozen fruit, Splenda and rose water. Turn heat on low and let the fruit cook until melted and it becomes a little thick. Taste test depending on your liking you may want to add more or less Splenda and Rose water. Let cool and pour on top of the Greek yogurt and enjoy! This is a great summer treat.

Two very good movies.

2009-01-30T23:00:00.000-08:00

I just watched two movies, "Slumdog Millionaire" and "The Reader." I was pleasantly surprised with, "Slumdog Millionaire." The description of the movie did not catch my attention. With my Brothers reviews of the movie I decided to give it a try. I am glad I did.

Mourning the death of my Father

2009-01-30T16:45:00.000-08:00