Monday, February 21, 2011

Family Dinners


I'm finally really, really trying to plan out dinners for each week.  We eat out way too much, but it is really hard to coordinate cooking with all of our after school activities; the gym, after study, Rich's classes, softball practice, youth group, therapy for the kids, visitation for the kids, choir practice, and possibly track for E?!  This is one of the reasons why I am up a the crack of dawn every day!

So, I finally printed out a template for weekly dinners, filled it out, and promptly failed cooking dinner on night one!!!

The rest of the week looks like this...
  • Tuesday- Pot Roast with carrots, potatoes and celery.  
  • Wednesday- Oven fried chicken, quinoa, green beans
  • Thursdsay- Turkey burgers, sweet potato fries, and asparagus
  • Friday- Homemade pizza and salad
  • Saturday- Chili, rice, and cornbread
  • Sunday- Mrs. Rowe's :)
(Our first homemade pizza...gluten free and all!  Forgot to take a pic when it came out of the oven!)

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

AM Gym

In an effort to increase the amount of cardio I do in a day, I've been hitting the gym in the morning and then attempting to make it back there in the evening.  I really thought that I would hate going in the morning because I already have such a full plate, but I actually LOVE it. 

I have to leave the house for work at 7:15 these days because I am tutoring 3 mornings a week now.  So, I get up at 5:00 am, eat my oatmeal and green tea, feed and walk the dogs in the dark, and hit the gym no later than 6:00 am.  This way I can get 30 minutes of cardio in and maybe a quick workout before heading home at 6:45 am.  This is when it gets stressful.  I have to shower, get myself ready, pack my lunch, and take the dogs back outside all within thirty minutes.  So far I've made it to tutoring on time each morning, but this morning my hair was still wet when I left home and while driving to work I realized I forgot to put on any jewelry.  I just about freaked out when I looked down and didn't see my ring, but I am thankful that I know just where it is.  I've been able to make it back to the gym several evenings during the week as well.

As for the weight loss, no such luck.  I'm still only 5 lbs lighter than I started out at the beginning of January.  However, I was able to run 3 miles in 25 minutes on Monday (just over 8 minutes per mile), so I know I am making progress.  As Rich would say, "My arms are jacked"...or well on their way;)  I probably just need to lay off of the girl scout cookies!  I've doubled my leg workout since this is what really bothers me....so I'm lifting heavy one day a week and then doing lots of squats and lunges two additional days. 

We'll see what this evening brings, but I'm looking forward to trying out my new kicks.  Rich bought me some Nike Free Run+ shoes that I have been on my list since the fall.  I haven't decided if I want to keep the all black look or trade them in for one of Nike's bright crazy colors...

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Birthdays

 We celebrated three birthdays this evening with dinner at Outback.  Brianna, Mike's girlfriend, had a birthday on the 1st, Mike's birthday (the big 3-0) was the 3rd, and my 32nd birthday (really??) was today.  I haven't had lobster in a long, long time so I jumped at the opportunity to have a lobster tail, salad and sweet potato.  The hot fudge sundae that the birthday girls and boy got was really good as well.  I think Rich ended up eating more of the sundaes than all of us combined:)  Thanks, Mom and Dad for a great dinner!

All in all, it was a great day!  I got to sleep in a bit this morning before tackling some cleaning around the house.  Rich was not feeling well so he didn't rise until 11:00.  My plans got a little thrown off, but Jessica was kind enough to clean the rest of the house while I spent a few hours at the gym.  She also baked me a delicious cake while I was out of the house. 

 (Me and my daddy)

 
 (Mom and Mike)

 (Me and my hubby)

(Mike and Brianna)

I got my birthday gift from Rich a few weeks ago.  On one of our days off last month we went to a local spa and he treated me to laser hair removal (underarms).  It takes more than one session, so he bought me a six session package.  I am amazed at how well one treatment has worked!  I can't believe I did not try this sooner.  I'm ready for tank top season now:)