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Showing posts from 2014

It's That Time Again (No, I Don't Mean Christmas)

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I haven’t blogged much here. But then again, we all know I’m a bad blogger. But now I’m getting ready to move again, and it’s time to think about my (short) time here in Maryland. For starters, I’ve been spending every Monday with my BFF, Misty. She works from home 3 days a week, so I watch the girls while she works. It’s mucho fun. I love getting to spend time with her, and I’m bonding with my goddaughters. I usually take Rem with me, and he loves having a yard to hang out in. My whole health and fitness thing hasn’t gone all that well. Getting a new tattoo meant a few days off while I healed, then I had a swollen ankle, then I got Hand, Foot, and Mouth from my darling goddaughter. But I feel like I’m starting to get back in the swing of things. In fact, in the few months I’ve been here, I’m able to use heavier weights on some of the moves J and I do on weight days. My bench press started with 10 pound dumbbells and now I can do 20s! (We don’t have barbells at our fitness ce

Sometimes I Open My Mouth And My Dad Comes Out (Or, Daddy's Girl)

Girls are supposed to grow up and become their mothers, right? Not me. I’m becoming my dad. I play with kids and animals the way he does. I make up my own words like he does. I find myself using nicknames for my nieces and nephews that he used to use with me. And I make silly sounds for little kids just like he still does. I have his sense of humor, and his DGAF attitude. My dad has a shoe collection, mostly work boots. My shoe collection is mostly running shoes. I once compared signatures on driver’s licenses: mine, dad’s, and grandpa’s (dad’s dad). They were all very similar. My dad has a tendency to just set things down wherever is handy. I do the same thing. I’m working on that, trying to assign a place for things and put them in that place. My dad can walk past something 10 times without seeing it. We used to leave his presents sitting on the table, unwrapped. We’d wrap them just in time to give him his gift, and he would be surprised. No clue it had

Thoughts On Motherhood (Or, A Serious Post)

I have to get something off my chest, and this won’t sit well with quite a few of my acquaintances and even some friends. However, it’s something I’ve thought long and hard about, and I think some of you will agree. I am not a mom.   Having pets does not make me a mom. I admit, I refer to myself as “mommy” and J as “daddy” when talking to my pets. I am willing to call myself a pet-parent, but I cannot equate that to being a mom of human children. So often these days, especially around Mother’s Day, you see everyone sending special well-wishes to pet-moms and saying, “You’re a mom, too, just with four-legged, furry kids!” They try to say that I’m just as much a mom as all those who’ve grown and birthed a human child, that I deserve to celebrate motherhood as well. Well, I disagree. I am not a mom. I did not go through pregnancy (the thought of which scares the shit out of me, honestly), I did not give birth. Yes, I adopted my pets from a shelter, but let’s be honest he

Arrivederci, Oklahoma

Last morning in Oklahoma. I reached a point where there wasn't anything else I could get done right now. Still have time before I head over to J's graduation ceremony, so I'm playing around online (internet gets turned off today). So, what did I like about Oklahoma? First, there's green and water. There are plains, but still woodsy treed areas. I loved riding on post through all the trees. The couple rides I did through the Wichita Wildlife Refuge were amazing. It's some gorgeous land around here. The wind, though rather strong and constant, was predictable. If it was from the south, it didn't suddenly shift to the north. You could go on a bike ride and know which direction the wind would be coming from. So much easier than El Paso. Work. I got a job! And then another job! I made some good friends at both jobs and am ever so thankful for the experience here. Friends. Not just those from work, but I got to spend time with Kristy and her family before t

Working On My Self

I've followed the first 2 weeks with Sasha , and after a binge-induced weight gain of 2 pounds at the very beginning, I got down to 159 for the end. So while I put those 2 pounds on, I managed to take them and another pound off. I also lost an inch or so on my waist and hips. Let's analyze. The workouts: I enjoyed the workouts, and found myself motived to keep going. I even managed to get a good workout in with a migraine, just fewer reps and moved slower. For this new set, I have 2 longer days and 2 shorter days. On the short days, like today, I can do a half hour of cardio before doing the workout. Today, I ran the 3 mile track with pup, then did a core workout in the grass. On the longer days, I'll warm up with some cardio and then try to get in beast mode. Friday went well, working on my upper body. I was nice and sore for my bike ride Saturday. I'm still putting long rides in on the weekend. Only 2 weeks until the Hotter'N Hell Hundred . I signed up fo

Stitch Fix The Perfect (I Mean, Third)

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This is my first Stitch fix in a while, and first since starting work again. It's also the first one in which I'm buying the whole box. Yes, it is perfect. This stylist, named Jin, totally got me. My colors, my styles, and everything fits!! I will be incorporating probably all of these pieces into my long weekend in Denver at the end of the month. My cousin is getting married, and these pieces are great for travel and dress. I got some sad news today, so this was a needed pick-me-up. Here you go, pics aren't the greatest and I apparently need to dust my full-length mirror. Gilli Maxi Dress with Pomelo Cardi (pockets!) Gilli Maxi Dress by itself Pomelo tank with Chris&Carol maxi skirt Renee C cross-front top and same skirt (my own cami underneath) detail of the Pomelo tank detail of the Renee C top  Wanna give it a try? Please use my referral link.     http://www.stitchfix.com/referral/3189571

Che Si Dice?

*warning* this is basically a rambling, stream of consciousness type post That's Italian, basically asking, "What's up?" I downloaded a couple Italian language apps on my phone, but only kept one. I felt like it was easier to navigate and that I was learning easily. I have a long way to go. BTW, that app is called Learn Italian - Molto Bene. (Yes, I've been dieing about all the molto benes and the Doctor Who reference that they don't even realize they are making.) I suppose some of you might not know why I suddenly gave up my love of German (well, set it aside, really) and took up Italian. Here's the news bomb: we're moving to Italy. When I got the email with J's RFO (that's like, pre-orders, so there's a small chance the Army could still change it's mind) saying we were headed to Italy, I was so excited I wanted to scream and bounce around the room. I couldn't because I was at work. Then the shock started to sink in, and i

Plated: A Food Review

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I got caught by one of the facebook ads that look like a post. However, I’m rather enjoying it so far. Plated is yet another shipped box of goodies. This time, it’s ingredients and recipes. For my first box, I ordered 2 plates each of 2 meals. We had Pollock with marinated cucumbers and dill yogurt sauce the night the box arrived. The recipe card is a full sheet that has easy to follow instructions and pictures for each step. You supply the dishes and a couple basic ingredients like olive oil, salt, and pepper. Read through your recipe before doing it, then just follow the steps, and voila! Dinner. The Pollock was very delicious. It had Israeli couscous, which I had never had before but enjoyed. We loved the yogurt dill sauce, and Pollock is often used for fish and chips, so it brought back fond memories for me, without the breading and grease. Pollock, marinated cucumbers, yogurt dill sauce and Israeli couscous We just had the other dish, Green Goddess roast c