I'm going to take photos of the animals I made for my nieces and nephews tomorrow. I will probably post them tomorrow too, the kiddos aren't really at blog-browsing age and my brothers don't subscribe here, as far as I know.
I've been keeping quite busy trying to get everything done. I'm on my last one, just sewing on some stubby little hippopotamus legs before I get started on a commissioned project that I can't mention.
I have a little more time now that I quit Facebook. You can't ever really quit Facebook, as they apparently hold on to your information until the rest of time, but I probably won't go back for a while. I took a break for several reasons, from my displeasure with the privacy of the site, to some negative experiences I had with friends, to the fact that I'm one of those people who gets an inferiority complex from looking at the facades of other peoples' perfect lives, then feeling bad for feeling bad about my life. To quote Joe Walsh, I can't complain but sometimes I still do.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Working on my fitness
Yesterday, I activated a one-year membership to our local YMCA that I received from my dad as a very, very generous Christmas gift. I had a free session with a trainer, and he took me through a variety of strength activities, as well as a little bit of cardio.
I am super-sore today, especially in my arms and chest. The treadmill is my comfort zone and my happy place, and I was definitely out of my comfort zone. I was happy to meet with the trainer, as we walked through some workouts and set some goals I hope I will be able to achieve.
I'm not allowed to look at the scale for two weeks, as the trainer is trying to get me to focus on how I feel rather than how many pounds I've lost.
My plan right now is to work out two times a week for the next two to three weeks, and try to get through the holidays without giving up. I think with the other program I was in ( a weight-loss contest of sorts) I was more interested in winning then pacing myself and making eventual changes that would work for me. I overloaded myself, working out five times a week and volunteering and going to Bible study, and I didn't think about how fast I would burn out.
One thing the program did show me is that I can reduce my diet by a bit without being too terribly deprived, and that I am capable of losing weight. I lost about 20 pounds at 1 point, from switching to diet cola and working out, but I have gained some of that back. I just need to maintain the workouts.
If you, dear reader, want to support me with a "Keep it up!" on Facebook or something, that would be wonderfully motivating. I am trying to be realistic this time, and really take baby steps, so hopefully I will be able to do it myself.
I am super-sore today, especially in my arms and chest. The treadmill is my comfort zone and my happy place, and I was definitely out of my comfort zone. I was happy to meet with the trainer, as we walked through some workouts and set some goals I hope I will be able to achieve.
I'm not allowed to look at the scale for two weeks, as the trainer is trying to get me to focus on how I feel rather than how many pounds I've lost.
My plan right now is to work out two times a week for the next two to three weeks, and try to get through the holidays without giving up. I think with the other program I was in ( a weight-loss contest of sorts) I was more interested in winning then pacing myself and making eventual changes that would work for me. I overloaded myself, working out five times a week and volunteering and going to Bible study, and I didn't think about how fast I would burn out.
One thing the program did show me is that I can reduce my diet by a bit without being too terribly deprived, and that I am capable of losing weight. I lost about 20 pounds at 1 point, from switching to diet cola and working out, but I have gained some of that back. I just need to maintain the workouts.
If you, dear reader, want to support me with a "Keep it up!" on Facebook or something, that would be wonderfully motivating. I am trying to be realistic this time, and really take baby steps, so hopefully I will be able to do it myself.
Friday, December 2, 2011
Life after marriage
Our married life has been going pretty well, just working and trying to save money for a house, a honeymoon, another car.
I've been working on various crafts, from some things people have commissioned to a crocheted scarf for Special Olympics athletes competing in the Winter Games. Right now, I'm mostly working on Christmas presents, which of course I can't post details about until after Christmas. I will say, the nieces and nephews are getting an animal theme this year.
Dan has been busy with a number of new video games, including Battlefield 3 and Skyrim. I prefer watching him play Skyrim, because he gets to fight dragons and I can side-seat drive when he makes his dialog choices.
I'm looking forward to seeing our family at Christmas. I was able to get the day in question off, so we are planning to take that lovely trip back to Indiana once again.
The logical step that everyone makes once a couple gets married is, of course, now it's baby time. While we are interested in children eventually, I would like Dan to get his associate's degree before there's an infant in the house, and I would like to establish just a bit more job security before I'm off for maternity leave. I am studying up on pregnancy and babies, just because I have no idea in general what to expect. I didn't do much babysitting growing up.
Both of us are interested in getting in shape. Dan is more interested in getting "buff," while I would like to be able to run a 5K again and shed a few pounds.
I am generally a pretty confident lady, but in the past few months I have had several people asking me if I'm pregnant. I don't know if my clothes just don't fit, or if my body is just shaped like a preggo lady's. Either way, I am not really offended and I try to take it as a compliment - I must be glowing. Of course, it means people think I'm fat, too.
I'm not hurt to be thought of as fat, because I have come to accept that with my job and my genes, I'm going to be built for comfort and not for speed basically no matter what I do. The thing that bothers me about strangers asking me if I'm pregnant is that it's rude and reductive to me as a human being.
Once a woman becomes pregnant, it's like her body even more than usual becomes the public domain upon which to comment. She can't hold a coffee cup without people gasping in shock, and I've heard people say that strangers will take the liberty of touching their stomachs. None of that is all right, and furthermore, I don't think it's all right for people to ask about what's going on in your reproductive system. What it comes down to is it's not any stranger's business, and it's not an appropriate or polite way for people to start a conversation.
Of course, for family, all those rules go right out the window. But family members should know if we have any announcements, they'll be clued in as soon as possible.
I've been working on various crafts, from some things people have commissioned to a crocheted scarf for Special Olympics athletes competing in the Winter Games. Right now, I'm mostly working on Christmas presents, which of course I can't post details about until after Christmas. I will say, the nieces and nephews are getting an animal theme this year.
Dan has been busy with a number of new video games, including Battlefield 3 and Skyrim. I prefer watching him play Skyrim, because he gets to fight dragons and I can side-seat drive when he makes his dialog choices.
I'm looking forward to seeing our family at Christmas. I was able to get the day in question off, so we are planning to take that lovely trip back to Indiana once again.
The logical step that everyone makes once a couple gets married is, of course, now it's baby time. While we are interested in children eventually, I would like Dan to get his associate's degree before there's an infant in the house, and I would like to establish just a bit more job security before I'm off for maternity leave. I am studying up on pregnancy and babies, just because I have no idea in general what to expect. I didn't do much babysitting growing up.
Both of us are interested in getting in shape. Dan is more interested in getting "buff," while I would like to be able to run a 5K again and shed a few pounds.
I am generally a pretty confident lady, but in the past few months I have had several people asking me if I'm pregnant. I don't know if my clothes just don't fit, or if my body is just shaped like a preggo lady's. Either way, I am not really offended and I try to take it as a compliment - I must be glowing. Of course, it means people think I'm fat, too.
I'm not hurt to be thought of as fat, because I have come to accept that with my job and my genes, I'm going to be built for comfort and not for speed basically no matter what I do. The thing that bothers me about strangers asking me if I'm pregnant is that it's rude and reductive to me as a human being.
Once a woman becomes pregnant, it's like her body even more than usual becomes the public domain upon which to comment. She can't hold a coffee cup without people gasping in shock, and I've heard people say that strangers will take the liberty of touching their stomachs. None of that is all right, and furthermore, I don't think it's all right for people to ask about what's going on in your reproductive system. What it comes down to is it's not any stranger's business, and it's not an appropriate or polite way for people to start a conversation.
Of course, for family, all those rules go right out the window. But family members should know if we have any announcements, they'll be clued in as soon as possible.
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