Move it

This song is SO great to work out to.  I am really liking it.....I just want to keep listening to it and dance, dance, dance!

Family

Today while I am home dealing with an upset stomach it gave me time to sit and write some thoughts down.  It's been since last week that I have blogged. Many things have been going on to keep me active and away from the computer which is a good thing, but I also need some time to sit aside to write down my feelings/thoughts.

My Grandmother has been on my mind alot lately.  This is a picture of my mom's parents with me. This picture is old (I was a senior in high school) and it's not the best picture of me but none the less this picture is posted on my corkboard above my computer desk because, well no reason really, it just is.  Maybe there's a higher reason for that that I just don't know about.  I hadn't planned on going out to see my grandparents this summer because I wasn't sure how timing is going to work out.  Haven't seen her or Grandpa in about 3 years now.  I do talk to them at least once a week on the phone.  I have the best relationship with my grandma.  I can talk to her about anything just like my mom.  She is a great lady and I love her dearly with all my heart. Anyway, I am glad to say I will be going out to Missouri to see them in June for about 4 days or so while my mom is out there visiting.  I am excited!

On another note, I will be down today for the count exercise wise, so I am trying to keep my food intake down today but that's okay I need my body to rest and get well.  This mostly discourages me because I was very much looking forward to Zumba tonight to help with my weight loss for the end of the week number.  I have to remind  myself there are other weeks and this is a journey, not a race to get it all off real fast.  I constantly have to remind myself of that.  The first 8 pds came off so quick, but I am struggling now to hit my first milestone of 10 pds.  I have great motivational friends on loseit.com that keep me going and remind me of that every day.  Now I just need to keep remembering that.  :)

I saw a great thing the other day while I was walking that I didn't expect to find surrounded by office buildings in a grassy hill.  It was wooden steps, laid out in a horizontal way.  It reminded me that sometimes the path we are going may seem dark and hidden but it is there.  We have to push through, remain strong, and find ourselves along the way.  That is what is going on with me right now, even though I know my path, it seems dark and jaded and not always clear, like these steps, but it is there. I must travel it and push through.

Hump Day = Zumba

Wednesdays nights are going to be my workout night with the girls. (we also go Sunday afternoons as well)  Marty and I will be doing the gym the other days but I had SO much fun tonight. I was a little behind in some moves, but that didn't discourage me, I just kept moving.  I had alot of fun and will be going again on Sunday for the class.

Other then that not much else to update here on the blog.  I am looking forward to Spring and wondering if the 73 degree weather on Friday will allow me to wear my dress I bought last weekend from Old Navy

Saturday only - Old Navy

So I did get to Old Navy today for the Saturday only sale for tank dresses of $9 each.  I wasn't sure what size I wear since Old Navy typically runs small for me.  I am happy to say I wore the size smaller then I thought I needed. YAY! I am excited to wear these dresses come Spring. I already have two wraps to wear with them at home so I am finally increasing my dresses in my wardrobe and I am happy about that!!!

Here are pictures of the two I bought today:

So it's Saturday morning and after sitting here going over my Facebook page and msnbc.com I have so much I took for granted this morning.  A clean bed, a home that is safe and ground that is stable under my feet.  Japan I learned still had more aftershocks this morning of a 7.1 scale.  While I was watching the videos of what it was like to feel and be there in that moment of yesterday, I teared up a little and it made what I wanted to go do today seem pointless (shopping).  I will probably be sending that small amount to relief efforts.  I know a small contribution won't make much of a dent, but at least I will feel better about it.

 On a different note, I went to go get ready for the day and heard kids out back.   The Condo Association got rid of our pool a while ago and now it is just this landfill of dirt that hasn't changed over to grass for quite a while.  We have a small pond now and the geese from the other pond were there and the kids had food (looked like bread) in their hands. This reminded me of when I was little growing up in Dover and mom would take us to feed the ducks at Silver Lake.  Once one of them knew you had food, watch out, more were to follow, and they brought more friends

So I moved my blog from Tumblr to join blogs with my dear friend Kim who I have known since we were kids.  I really enjoyed reading her blogs tonight and wanted someone to comment/view mine as well and vice versa.

Right now I have alot going on that I am passionate about.  First off is working on improving not only the living space that I reside in, but my body that my soul is housed in.  I am working hard to lose weight, eat/create meals that are not processed for dinners or fast food.  Marty (my boyfriend) and I had signed up for e-mealz after hearing Kim and her family were trying it however, it isn't working out that great for us being we are picky eaters.  Yes, this I have known since I was a child. /sigh.  So, in any event, today using allrecipes.com I made my own meal plan for the week using Excel along with a second page with the groceries I need for it.  We went to Walmart tonight after I created the first one and so far, so good, it was the same price as the E-mealz.  This overall will just work out better for us because honestly out of the five meals they were giving us a week, we only liked two or so.  The experience wasn't a total waste, we did get some GREAT recipes out of it and I still have some I can pick and choose from till the end of the 3 month time I already pre-paid for.  I also wanted to make sure our meals didn't take long to cook since both of us work and we don't typically have the time to do a crockpot meal or anything that takes 1+ hours unless Marty is off that day. Plus, starting this Monday coming up, he and I will both be going to the gym Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, so we need meals that are quick so I have ones that take 15 mins cook time at the most.  

Here is what our meals I created looks like for this up coming week!

Dinners for the week 3/14/11 to 3/18/11
MONDAY
Turkey in a Hurry	(Prep - 5 mins, Cook 10 mins)
Ingredients	Directions
2 tablespoons butter	1. In a small microwave-safe bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Cover and microwave on high for 45 seconds or until butter is melted.
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme	2. Cut tenderloin into four portions; flatten to 1/4-in. thickness. Broil turkey 4-6 in. from the heat until lightly browned. Brush with some of the butter mixture. Turn turkey over; broil until second side is lightly browned. Brush with butter mixture. Broil 6-8 minutes longer or until meat is no longer pink, brushing often with remaining butter mixture.
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
1/8 teaspoon paprika
1 dash garlic powder
3/4 pound turkey breast tenderloin
Sides
*Baked Potatoes
TUESDAY
Crunchy Potato Chip Tilapa, Salt N Vinegar	(Prep - 5 mins, Cook 18 mins)
Ingredients	Directions
milk (for dredging)	1 Pour the milk into a wide, flat dish. Spread the flour in the same kind of dish or waxed paper.
flour (for dredging)	2 Pour the chips into a ziptop bag and seal. Crush them into small pieces (a rolling pin works well for this.
1 (5 ounce) bag salt and vinegar potato chips	3 Coat the fish with milk, then flour, then potato chips. Arranged in a greased baking dish. Drizzle any leftover milk over the fish to help to coating cook onto the fish.
4 -5 tilapia fillets	4 Bake at 400 degrees for 12 to 13 minutes until golden.
Sides
** Green beans
WEDNESDAY
Grilled Teriyaki Chicken	(Prep - 15 mins, Cook 15 mins)
Ingredients	Directions
1/3 cup water	1. In a small saucepan, combine the first five ingredients. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook for 1 minute. Cool for 10 minutes. Pour into a resealable plastic bag; add chicken. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
1/4 cup sherry, or chicken broth	2. Drain and discard marinade. Grill chicken, covered, over medium heat for 7-8 minutes on each side or until juices run clear.
1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 (6 ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
Sides
**White rice and apple slices
THURSDAY
Burritos	(Prep- 5 mins, Cook 10 mins)
Ingredients	Directions
1/2 pound ground turkey	1. Place the ground beef in a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Season with garlic powder and oregano, and cook, stirring to crumble, until no longer pink. Drain off grease, then reduce the heat to medium-low and stir in the refried beans and salsa. Cook until heated through.
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder	2. Warm the flour tortillas for 2 minutes in the microwave, or until pliable. Spoon 1/4 cup of the beef mixture into the center, top with shredded cheese, and roll up, folding in the ends when you get to the halfway point.
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 (16 ounce) can refried beans
6 (10 inch) flour tortillas
2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese
1/2 cup prepared salsa
Sides
** Corn
FRIDAY
Pizza Night-

Wow, this post got longer then I wanted it to by sharing what I created today.  I give credit to E-mealz, they gave me ideas that I can do this on my own.  We did try it for 3 weeks, it just wasn't working.  Some great sites if you want to try this on your own is www.allrecipes.com and also the Food Network site.  I will more then likely use a combination of those and the E-mealz for the remainder of the 3 months.

I am very excited that Marty will be joining me at the gym.  I am down 7 pds from where I was and I am looking forward to getting to where I need to be.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!