SHEPDOGG: ONE P, DOUBLE G

Here goes nothing

2012-01-26T11:53:00.002-07:00

After a lot of thought and debate I’ve decided to share my secret with this blog. Last night I was thinking about this little place where I have probably share way to much information with the world and it makes me proud. If you’ve been a regular reader you have probably seen posts about my weight issues, depression, anorexia and self mutilation. I’ve never been embarrassed about those things because they are apart of me and so is this. I’m going to back track to almost a year ago so you understand the entire story. Warning, this post will talk about female issues and some may consider TMI.

In March of 2011 I decided to stop my BCP (birth control pills) not because I wanted to get pregnant but because I had been on BCP for 9 years. I started taking BCP when I was 16 for irregular cycles and I thought my body could use a break. We weren’t ready for a family so we used other contraceptives. I had a regular cycle in March, April and May which made me extremely excited because I thought irregular cycles were a thing of the past but I was wrong.

After my May cycle I didn’t have another cycle until August. Luckily I saw my OB/GYN in July for my annual check. She told me if I didn’t start within a month to go back. So when I started my cycle on day 82 4 days prior to my appointment I called to see if she still wanted to see me and she said yes. On August 9th I was diagnosed with Amenorrhoea (lack of menstrual cycles) and Anovulation (lack of ovulation) which meant I would have to take medicine every month to induce a cycle and that when I wanted to try to have kids I would have to take fertility drugs because you have to ovulate to get pregnant (no egg = no baby). They drew a bunch of labs to see if I was having issues with the hormones in my system but everything came back normal. Unfortunately sometimes they don’t know the cause of anovulation.

So I started taking Medroxyprogesterone for 12 days a month to induce a menstrual cycle. If you don’t have menstrual cycles regularly it increases your chances for uterine cancer. So that is why she put me on this medicine. I have to tell you, I really dislike this medicine. I take it for 12 days and it gives me horrible symptoms like nausea, back pain, headaches and mood swings. Then I start my cycle and it continues for another 5 days. Then 1 week after I have my medicine induce cycle I get yet another cycle (which isn’t supposed to happen) so then I skip my next dose thinking “oh, I’m fixed” because some people only have to use this medicine once. I am not one of those people so then I don’t have a cycle for 6 weeks and I start the entire process over again. This has happened every time I have taken this medicine.

Because I kept having the lovely side effect from that medicine I decided to call my doctor 2 weeks ago and see what she wanted me to do. They called me back and told me to get an ultrasound. Last week I had an abdominal and vaginal ultrasound. I was very nervous for the second part of that ultrasound. Every forum I read said it was miserable, very uncomfortable and some women flat out said it was painful. Sounds like fun right. They were wrong. It wasn’t bad at all. I had an amazing ultrasound tech that explained everything. It was not miserable, uncomfortable or painful. I thought it was easier then a pap smear (I warned you I was going to talk about female stuff). 2 days after my ultrasound my doctor’s office called and told me I have Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) also called Stein-Leventhal Syndrome or Polycystic Ovary Disease.

PCOS occurs in 5%–10% of women. Those who have PCOS 50%-75% of women can get pregnant with the help of fertility treatments.

PCOS signs and symptoms are:
Acne (got it)
Weight gain and trouble losing weight. (got it)
Extra hair on the face and body. Often women get thicker and darker facial hair and more hair on the chest, belly, and back.
Thinning hair on the scalp.
Irregular periods. Often women with PCOS have fewer than nine periods a year. Some women have no periods. Others have very heavy bleeding. (got it)
Fertility problems. Many women who have PCOS have trouble getting pregnant (infertility). (got it)
Depression. (got it)

PCOS also increases your chances of getting ovarian cancer, uterine cancer, breast cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

So there you have it. This is what I have been keeping a secret. My emotions have been all over the place because of it. It is hard to digest when you find out you might not be able to have kids. It kind of made me feel like my body was a failure. Women are supposed to have kids. I know a lot of women deal with infertility and I’m not alone in this fight but it’s a hard diagnosis to learn about your self when you are not even trying to get pregnant. My doctor told me I should consider myself lucky. Most women will try for years before learning they have a fertility issue and that since I caught mine early when I’m ready to have kids I can start treatment right away. But I don’t feel lucky.

I will say I have the most amazing husband out there. He has been my rock in the past few months. He was the only one I could turn too. A few friends know about my diagnosis and when I would talk to them about it they would say something trying to help but it would sometimes make things worse. I told him I was sorry that he might never have his own kids and that I felt like a failure but he told me “I didn’t marry you for kids I married you and we will be parents whether you are able to conceive or whether we adopt”. I am one lucky girl to have him by my side during this time of my life.

So now I’m waiting I’m waiting until the middle of February when I follow up with my doctor to learn what the next step is.

Can you keep a secret

2012-01-25T11:04:00.001-07:00

I hate keeping secrets. I’m always excited when someone tells me they’re secrets but it eats away at me and I just want to tell people. Some secrets are harder to keep then others. The secrets I also want to blab to the world are exciting ones but I just wait patiently as it eats away at me until the day I can tell everyone. I know lots of random secrets some about me, family and friends and I always find it interesting why some secrets are kept. My current secret I’m ready to blab to this lovely blog here because I know I will get support from the few amazing people that actually read what I write. I really want to do a big long post about it but I don’t know what is holding me back and I don’t know why this thing has so much control over who I am. I hate it. I wish I never would have learned about my secret. I know it is nothing to be embarrassed about but that doesn’t make it any easier. So what about you? Are you good about keeping secrets? Do you keep secrets from your blog? This is a very personal space and you can choose what you want to write about but what if the only thing you want to write about you are not ready for your family and friends to know. It sucks. I can’t be the only person in the world that has reactions similar to this. How do you cope? How do you deal with it?

Where have I been

2012-01-20T12:15:00.000-07:00

I have disappeared for a while now. Even when I was posting it wasn’t very often. I have been busy with work, my family and my life in general. I’ve been trying to work through a few things and figure things out. I’ve missed on posting a lot of excited things that has happened. We spoiled ourselves for Christmas and got an iPad2. We celebrated our 6 year wedding anniversary and 10 years of being together on January 14th and bought new furniture. We have visited family and even went to Denver to see another Bears game. I think I have finally figured some things out about myself and I plan on making my blogging comeback. I have missed it but I definitely needed this break. I hope you all have been doing well.

Festival of Trees 2011

2011-11-30T13:16:00.004-07:00

My in-laws and I enjoying making trees to donate to the Festival of Trees here in Utah. Monday was decorating day so I decided to share some pictures of our tree.

All of the dolls, quilt, tree skirt, garland, bow and sacks/bag decorations are all hand made. We painted the and built the covered waggons and we painted the sleds.

I've also included the trees we've made in the past for your viewing pleasure.

Our tree in 2010

Our tree in 2008

This is one of my favorite pictures taken at the festival.

It was of our tree in 2008 looking at all of the other trees.

If you're in the Salt Lake City area I recommend going to the Festival of Trees. It really is a neat experience and all of the proceeds go to Primary Children's Medical Center. And if you go to the festival you should try to find our tree. We are in isle/spot G-03.

Shrinkvivor

2011-11-09T12:15:00.002-07:00

Well, even though I haven't blogged I have been weighing in. 10/26 11/2
11/9

I've lost 8.7 pounds so far.

I wish I wasn't depressed right now so I could actually enjoy it. How have you been doing?

Shrinkvivor Tribe Black Week 4

2011-10-19T12:31:00.003-06:00

This week was very hectic for me. I actually expected a gain when I stepped on the scale this morning. I was very please to see I lost. It may have only been 0.2 pounds but it counts. Hopefully it is enough to keep my on Tribe Black and not sent to Exile.

(SW) Week 1: 178.3

Week 2: 175.2 -3.1

Week 3: 172.4 -2.8

Week 4: 172.2 -0.2
Total weight loss: -6.1

I was only able to get 210 minutes this week. Hopefully I will do better next week since we are counting minutes again.

How did you do this week?

Disneyland

2011-10-14T11:58:00.005-06:00

Last week Chris and I went to Disneyland with his parents. My father-in-law was able to retire on September 29th so we went to California to celebrate. I've always wanted to see Disneyland decorated for Halloween and it didn't disappoint. I will post more about the trip next week. Today I decided to share our scores from the interactive rides at California Adventures and Disneyland.

This is the 3D Toy Story Mania game at California Adventures. Chris was player 1 and I was player 2.

He beat me. But I had a better accuracy!

We enjoyed this game so much we decided to do it again.

I lost again. I actually did worse the 2nd time then the first.

And at Disneyland you can play Buzz Lightyear Astro Blaster! It is a fun laser tag type of game and at the end you can find your picture and have them email it to you.

My MIL and FIL.

Chris and I. Please note the score in the top part of the picture.

I stomped Chris! I was very excited about this.

The last picture I will share today is our picture taken on Splash Mountain. This was the second ride we rode on Friday so it was really early (around 8:30am). Since I was in the front of the boat I was soaking wet. They even offered us to ride again since no one was in line but I didn't want to get even more wet.

We had an amazing trip and I have lots of fun pictures and stories to share. Hopefully I will be able to get them up next week.

Shrinkvivor Tribe Black Week 3

2011-10-12T09:23:00.002-06:00

I missed blogging last week about my Shrinkvivor progress because I was driving to California so I wanted to start with last week's weight.

175.2 (-3.1 pounds)

And this week’s weight is172.4 (-2.8 pounds)

Starting Weight: 178.3
Week 2: 175.2 -3.1
Week 3: 172.4 -2.8

Total weight loss: 5.9

I’m so very proud of myself for losing 2.8 pounds will on vacation! That truly is a great feeling. And with how much walking I did I deserve that 2.8.

This week we are sticking to exercise minutes so hopefully I will rack up a good number for my tribe and the mini challenge is to eat more greens. I’m pretty good at eating lots of veggies but there is always room for improvement.

How did you do this week?

Shrinkvivor Tribe Black Week One

2011-09-29T09:25:00.002-06:00

Hello All! This post is actually a day late since I was traveling for work yesterday. I was able to check in on time but I wasn’t able to get a post up so here goes.

Starting Weight: 178.3

Wow, I’m still amazed at how much you weight fluctuates from day to day. That weight is from my home scale yesterday morning and this morning at weight watchers I was at 174.2 that is a 4 pound difference. But I’m not too surprised. I’m having major swelling this week because of TOM but I’m curious if I might need to invest in a new scale. If I do I will wait until Shrinkvivor is over with so I’m using the same one every week.

This week’s challenge is workout minutes. I have a horribly busy week with getting ready this weekend for dinner with my family, packing a bag for Idaho and packing a bag for California. I’m really hoping to get in a good amount of work out minutes but I’m not expecting too many. Hopefully it will be enough to help me loose weight and keep me on Tribe Black for another week.

Let’s go Tribe Black! We can do this.

I’m still here

2011-09-21T15:15:00.001-06:00

I’m still around. I just haven’t been myself lately. I hate this slump of a feeling. Chris has tried to break me out of it and he took me on a surprise date to see Crazy Stupid Love. I had fun, but I’m still in my slump. This week is premier week and some of my favorite TV shows are back making me laugh but I’m still in my slump. My friend and I are going on a chicka/chicka date Friday to see Abduction and I’m hoping hanging out with her will help. But I’m not planning on it. I wrote a couple posts ago that I learned something about myself. I have official only shared that with 4 people Chris being the only family member the other 3 are my girl friends. I’ve sat down to write a post about my situation but I haven’t been able to do it. I’m embarrassed even though I shouldn’t be. I’m hoping I can sum up the courage to do it soon because I think that will help me get out of my slump. I’m also signed up for Shrinkvivor again! It starts one week from today so at least I will have something getting me active again and a reason to post. So hopefully you will start seeing me regularly again. I hope all is good in your world.

A Utah Man am I Sir

2011-09-02T10:21:00.002-06:00

Utes win 27-10! I'm so happy football is back!

We bleed red

2011-09-01T09:59:00.008-06:00

Today is an important day for us Utah Ute’s fans. Today the Ute’s help kick off college football and today is the Ute’s first game in the PAC 12 conference; and we have tickets!

I wish I was able to leave work early and head down to the festivities that start at 3:00 with the walk to the stadium. I will be patiently waiting to change out of my scrubs get my Ute gear on and head to the stadium. I love the fall; I love the weather and I love football! I hope tonight is a great game and the Ute’s have a great season!

Catch up

2011-08-29T11:51:00.002-06:00

I’ve been really busy lately. The beginning of August was a world wind of family pictures, wedding showers, baby sitting, wedding, wedding luncheon, family from Virginia, family from Oklahoma, family from North Carolina and family from New York (3 different sides of family). That was just the 1st week of August. Luckily the 2nd week slowed down and we went back to work and things started to go back to normal. I learned something about myself that week that I haven’t decided if I’m ready to share it with the world yet. It is a lot to process. The 3rd week I was busy at work with a monitor and my car dies. Chris barley made it home before the transmission completely gave up. So that weekend we towed the car to the mechanics and we are still impatiently waiting on what is going on, when it will be done and how much will it cost. Last week I was in Idaho Monday–Wednesday for work. I took Friday off and Chris and I ran some errands and watch The Help. Saturday was our nephew’s 1st birthday party and Sunday was our niece’s 6th birthday party. Tonight Chris is staying at work late so they can draft their Fantasy Football team and Thursday Chris and I have tickets to the Utes opening game! I can’t wait. So I’m still around, just busy as always.

David and Lindsey

2011-08-05T12:47:00.003-06:00

On August 5th 2011 my youngest brother in law was sealed for time and all eternity to his beautiful bride Lindsey in the Salt Lake Temple. Welcome to the Shepdogg family and I hope you enjoyed your cruise!

Disney Flashback Friday: Cruise

2011-07-22T11:47:00.004-06:00

I was very excited to hear that Magical Day's with the Mouse was starting a Disney Flashback Friday. I had big plans of scanning old pictures of Chris' and I as kids at Disneyland but my scanner decided not to recognize my laptop so I wasn't able too. I still wanted to participate in the fun so I decided to Flashback to just 7 months ago and re-post some pictures from our AMAZING Disney Cruise to the Bahamas.

The Disney Wonder Ship docked at Castaway Cay.

The Ariel View television for the Pirates IN THE Caribbean party.
Oh no, It's Captain Hook!
Pirate Minnie
Pirate Mickey coming to save the day.
An of course, fireworks at sea!

Disney is the only cruise ship that is aloud to launch fireworks at sea and of course they were amazing!

We had an amazing time on our Disney cruise. I can't wait until we can do it again.

Do you have a Disney Flashback you want to share? Head on over to Magical Days with the Mouse and link up!

What I’ve been up to

2011-07-20T13:59:00.003-06:00

I haven’t posted in 12 days. I’ve been a busy bee as usual. In the past 12 days I’ve…

Been in Idaho

Been in Nevada

Was visited by my Step-Brother, Sister-in-Law and Niece from Oklahoma.

Was visited by my Step-Sister from Portland, OR.

Was visited by my cousin, his wife and their 4 daughters from Salem, OR.

Was visited by my other cousin, his wife and their 8 month old son from Salem, OR.

Roxie was attacked by my Mom’s new dog and I’m so very lucky she only got a few scratches since Roxie’s head was in Lucy’s mouth.

Had to take Roxie and Billy to the vet (they both received a clean bill of health!)

Had family pictures taken.

Had a girl’s afternoon out that included pedicures and manicures.

Had two separate attacks of abdomen pain both so bad I thought I was going to end up in the ER.

And I managed to work 40+ hour weeks.

I sometimes feel like superwoman!

And I want to leave you with a picture of me holding my darling niece Logan.

Up

2011-07-08T07:15:00.001-06:00

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I love Disney-Pixar's film UP. It has become one of my favorites. When I saw this news story I knew I had to share it. Builders bring ‘Up' house to life in Utah. I plan on actually going to the Parade of Homes this year so I can see the inside.

Interesting

2011-07-07T20:00:00.000-06:00

Remember this post about asking for help and this post about getting denied. I thought I would share a funny story with you... she quit. The person they hired started on 6/30 and quit on 7/7 because she couldn't handle the responsibility. She made the 3rd person that has been hired and quit within the past 20 months.

I also wanted to thank all of you for your support. This blog has definitely been one of the best things I've ever started/done. I've met so many wonderful and supportive people this way and I can't thank you enough.

Airplanes and Olympics

2011-06-28T07:00:00.000-06:00

I had an amazing weekend. I watched and Air Show and sat in a KC-135

We went looking for a crashed airplane site and we found it!

We went to the Olympic Park and rode the Ultra zip line, Extreme zip line and Quicksilver Slide.

Then we watched the Aerial Ski Jumpers practice by skiing into a pool.

It was awesome!

Denied

2011-06-17T10:42:00.001-06:00

Remember this post. Well I went for it and I failed again. I knew it wasn’t going to happen because I don’t have a piece of paper saying I went to a 4 year college. I understand degrees are important and I wish I was able to attend school full time so I can get one but that won’t be happening anytime soon. I’ve been denied something 3 times I could do with little to no training at all because I don’t have that piece of paper. So they plan on bringing someone in that will need to be trained because they have no experience in this area.

I’m now trying to decide what I want to do with my life. I want to move out of Utah but Chris doesn’t. He loves Utah. He said if I can find a place where he could snowboard, golf and wakeboard in the same day he would agree. Does anyone know of a place that you can do all three of those things besides Utah? I understand where his is coming from I do. But If I want to quit my current job and stay in the same specialty I will have to leave. I doubt we will actually leave but I would do it in a heartbeat if I could.

Burst Into Summer Kick-off

2011-06-15T08:40:00.001-06:00

It’s that time again; time to start another challenge with the Sisterhood. We are starting the Burst Into Summer Challenge and it includes a bootcamp! I’m so excited and nervous I can’t wait for the fun to begin.

Starting Weight for this challenge is 175.2. I actually almost forgot to weigh myself this morning since it has been a while since I’ve been able to participate.

This week’s mini-challenge is hydration. As always this one is easy for me since some people say I drink more water then a whale.

My walk/jogs with Chicka are going well. Friday we did 6.2miles in 1 hour and 35 minutes. It’s not the fastest time but we went out there and did it. Monday we weren’t able to meet because my family was in town from North Carolina but we are meeting again tonight and we will rock it!

Training

2011-06-10T08:53:00.000-06:00

My best friend Chicka (aka Amanda) who has been mentioned on this blog multiple times is training for the Spartan Race. It is an 8 mile obstacle race with fire, mud and whatever else they might throw your way. The thing that scares me the most is it is only 1 month away and she has never done any races. So we are going to start training together starting tonight. We are going to go ~~walk~~ ~~wog~~ ~~jog~~ run at a local parkway on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. We are also going to do some sort of weight training on the other days. With all this training I’m going to be doing with her I need to find a race of my own to sign up for. I just haven’t decided which one. Feel free to harass me about training if you don’t see me giving any updates. I will need all the motivation I can get.

Issues

2011-06-08T15:06:00.001-06:00

Most people that read this blog know my Mom and I don’t have the best relationship. I’ve talked about it on here a lot. For those who don’t follow me on Twitter Monday night I got a call from my Mom. She asked a few questions and then jumped to her real reason for calling me.

M: Have you weighed yourself recently
T: Yep, It still the same
M: Are you sure because you are getting fatter
T: Yep I’m sure
M: I don’t know if I believe that because you really are getting fat.

I quickly got off the phone as fast as I could. I’m not sure how to handle this anymore. I used to take it far to personal and became anorexic, then I started cutting myself because I was never good enough, now I’m fat and according to her I don’t deserve my husband. She say’s he is too good for me. I want to get out of this relationship but I can’t figure out how. I’ve started playing the bitch role and when ever she calls me fat I turn around and say “you’re one to talk” or “how’s your diabetes working out”. Which obviously doesn’t work. I’m starting to fear I may have to completely end the relationship all together. The thing that I don’t understand is that how can she think this is a supportive way to talk to someone. She is bigger then me, is a diabetic, drinks way to much, has issues with her eyes and her feet and doesn’t believe me that she could lose a leg. She was diagnosed with Diabetes in 2004. In 2006 it was almost completely taken care of my diet, exercise and medication. She is currently on oral medication and injection insulin daily, in the past 3 years her A1C has gone up and up and up now above 10. I could understand it a little more if she was in shape but she does it to be hurtful and I’m sick of it. I’m sick of putting on the nice face when I’m around her, I’m sick of pretending how she treats me is okay. I’m sick of it all. I use to be really nervous that she might find this blog some day but now I don’t care. This is my space to write what I want.

Sorry about my rant, I’m starting to feel like this is all I do anymore.

Flashback Friday: Bee’s Game 2010

2011-06-03T07:48:00.003-06:00

Last August we went to the Bee’s Game with the Pickering family. You may remember this flashback post with my friend Kelly at the Bee’s game from 2007. This game it was Me, Chris, Kelly, Isaac and Miss. Emily! This was Emily’s first Bee’s game.

We had a blast at the game. We were able to get discounted tickets from our work. And I actually caught a free shirt during this game, I was very excited.

Chris and I

Issac, Kelly and Emily

(Emily's hat says "My 1st Bees Hat", I bought it for her!)

Kelly and Emily

Isaac, Emily, Kelly, Me and Chris

Come FLASHBACK with us!
Head on over to Christopher's and Tia's blog to link up.

Updates

2011-06-02T10:22:00.000-06:00

I’ve been wanting to blog lately and I have lots of fun pictures of my recent adventures but my laptop won’t read my SD card. Once I get that figured out expect lots of fun posts!

I just wanted to thank the few people that posted comments on this post. They really helped and I appreciate everyone’s encouragement and thoughtful words. That being said I’m still extremely stressed about life right now. Hopefully within the next week I will know what’s going on and let you all know.

Last week I was having a really bad week so I was looking at the stats on my blog. My Exposed post is my most popular post and has the most comments. I reread my post and then I went back and read all of the wonderfully supportive comments from my readers and it shined a new light on my situation. It reminded me how strong I really am. If you posted a Exposed post too I would highly suggests going back and rereading all the wonderful comments. I know it made my day.

Celebrating Spring with Shutterfly

2011-05-27T08:05:00.001-06:00

Remember that fabulous deal Shutterfly offered bloggers in November to get 50 free Holiday cards. Well, they’re doing it again. Except this time it is the chance to win a free 8x8 hardcover photo book or 50 5x7 flat or folded cards/announcements. I still have a ton of photo books to create so I’m hoping my blog is chosen to win!

I love Shutterfly’s photo books. I’ve made 4 now and have many, many more to do. I finally finished one for our wedding (that was 5 years ago); I made 2 for our cruise. I also made one about Chicago 3 years ago. I have many more ideas in store for photo books. I want to do a cruise book of just mine and Chris’ pictures (not the entire family like the others), I want to still make David a book for his mission and David is also getting married this August so I should start getting ready to make them a book for that too. I really need to get busy.

Shutteryfly has a lot of great gift ideas too. I love desktop plaques, and canvas wall art. I have a few pictures of the Chicago sky line or the turquoise blue water in Nassau that would look great on my living room wall. I also thought these stickers were a cool idea. If I was in Jr. High or High School I would have loved to have something like those to stick in peoples yearbooks.

And of course we can’t forget about all the announcements Shutterfly has to offer. I have a new niece in the family and there are so many cute announcements that are very easy to create.

Sign up if you are interested for a chance at a free photo book or announcements from Shutterfly

Disclosure: As always these thoughts and opinions are my own. I just wanted to share this great opportunity for the chance to win free stuff!

Excited for tonight!

2011-05-24T08:12:00.006-06:00

I'm so excited for tonight. I've actually been waiting for tonight for well over a year. Tonight I'm going to the U2 concert with my SIL Angie! U2 was supposed to kick off their 360 tour in SLC but when Bono had to have back surgery it was postponed until today! We have had lot's of rain the past few weeks here and they think it will clear up in time for the concert. I plan on having yummy Indian food for dinner and then off to the concert. I can't wait, I hope today goes fast.

They're setting up the stage at Rice Eccles Stadium. Go Ute's!

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Asking for help without saying much

2011-05-19T10:03:00.003-06:00

This is going to be a hard post. I have a lot going on in my life right now that I would love advice and opinions on but I can’t give ~~a lot~~ any of the details. I want to go for something that I’ve been denied a few times in the past. I was always taught growing up that you should ask/try for everything because the worst they can tell you is no. I pretty much live my life by this. I ask for things all the time and I’ve been told no a lot and I’m okay with that. There is one thing I want more then anything else and I’m always told no for different reasons. They choose to go a different route and it doesn’t work out. I have the opportunity to try again and I plan on it. But I don’t know if I can handle the rejection again. If I am rejected should I finally call it quits and take my life in a different direction? How many times would you try?

Don’t you want kids?

2011-05-17T13:26:00.000-06:00

I’m amazed at what people say. Last week I was traveling for work like normal and one of my patients had her 16 month old granddaughter with her. I offered to take the baby during her exam and we walked around the clinic and visited all the nurses to show off this darling baby. She was a doll. I asked if I could order one like her but everyone told me “no”. Later on that day I was rooming some of my patients and they told me how cute my daughter was. It took me a second to realize what they were talking about and I informed them I don’t have kids and I was just helping someone out. Then they promptly asked “what, don’t you want kids”. I was a little shocked and had to say someday I hope to have kids. But the sad thing is when that someday comes and they see me traveling with work her comment would be “why aren’t you home with that baby”?

I’ve also had a similar problem with my own family members. I’m one of the youngest cousins in my family and one of my aunt’s always question why I don’t have kids. This has gone on for 3+ years because she wanted to give me baby things. She was being very generous and I told her I appreciated the offer but I politely declined because I didn’t want to store this stuff since I wasn’t planning on having kids for a while. After 3 years of asking when am I going to have kids and me telling her when I’m ready she finally stopped pestering me and I found out it is because she announced to the family that I’ve decided not to have kids. I was a little shocked about this and asked her why am I not having kids and I found out it was because I was too old. I was 24 years old when she told me this. She always placed me with the age of her children not realizing I’m almost 10 years younger and even if I was the same age as her kids early 30’s is not too old to have a baby.

Why do people do these things? Why do people ask very personal questions that it is none of their business? Why do people find this topic completely acceptable in Utah and Idaho? If I lived anywhere else where waiting to have babies is a normal thing and I would never be questioned.

That being said Chris and I do talk about when we are going to have kids and we always create a list of things we want to have in place before having a baby. When I give people this answer I always get the response of “no one is ever ready to have a baby” and I chuckle and say you can control something’s to make sure you are ready. For example, we would like to have a certain amount of money in saving prior to having a kid. I want to have 480 hours of sick time saved up so I can take the full 12 week maternity leave and get paid for it (my work doesn’t have paid maternity leave, you get 12 weeks but you have to use your sick/vacation time if you want it to be paid). We actually used to have a lot longer list but we have already accomplished those things so we are getting closer. I just wish people would mind their own business and stop asking me when I’m going to have a baby.

Sorry for the rant. I just get tired of people some days.

Logan McKenzie

2011-05-10T08:07:00.002-06:00

I would like to introduce you too

Logan McKenzie

she was born on Monday May 9th 2010

8 pounds 3 ounces 19.5 inches long.

She is the first child on my side of the family.

My parents are ecstatic, they are so happy to be Grandparents!

Congratulations Jeremy and Natashia! I wish I could be there to see Miss Logan.

and the winner is

2011-05-10T07:52:00.005-06:00

Brooke at Smart+Strong=Sexy!

Brooke was picked using random.org.

Brooke please email me which items you would like to have and the address to send them to.

shepdogg_ut@yahoo.com

Pretty Little Things

2011-05-04T10:06:00.006-06:00

My extremely talented cousin in Georgia has finally created an Etsy shop. I told her when I was there in March that has soon as she created one I would host a giveaway for her products. But first I thought I would show you the beautiful necklace, earring combo I got from her for Christmas.

I love this piece and I’ve had so many people ask me where I got it.
Okay, these pictures do not do this beautiful piece justice. They were taken with my BB because my laptop isn’t reading any SD card.

She loves to make unique, one-of-a-kind jewelry with old and new materials. She also enjoys repurposing old jewelry and buttons so all of her stuff is truly one of a kind. I stole a few pictures from her website to show you some of my favorites.
Okay time for the giveaway! I will be giving away $10 worth of product from Some Kind Of Pretty. Here is how you enter.

Mandatory Entry:
Visit Pretty Little Things by Some Kind Of Pretty on Etsy and take a look at her beautiful jewelry. Come back here and leave a comment telling me what your favorite piece is.

Extra Entries:

Add Pretty Little Things by Some Kind Of Pretty as a favorite shop on your Etsy account.

“Like” Pretty Little Things on Facebook.

Follow my blog.

You can also tweet about this giveaway. (@shepdogg_ut is giving away one of a kind jewelry http://bit.ly/mS9n0b)

Please make sure to leave a separate comment for each entry.

This giveaway will end at 9:00pm MST on Monday May 9th. The winner will be announced Tuesday morning.

May Your Way

2011-05-01T17:59:00.003-06:00

Today is May 1st and it is also the start of the next challenge at the Sisterhood. I had to sit the last challenge out so I'm really looking forward to this one.

My goals for this challenge are

Track my food. I haven't done this is a long time so I need to get back in the swing of things.

Plan a menu and stick to it. I've been eating horrible the past few months and my body can definitely tell.

Lose 5 pounds.

Head on over to the Sisterhood and join in on the fun!

Date Night seeing Garfunkel and Oats

2011-04-29T08:48:00.001-06:00

Tonight Chris and I are actually going on a date. It has been 2 months since we did an actual date. We didn’t even do anything special with just us for our birthdays. But that’s okay because I’m really looking forward to tonight. We are going to go see Garfunkel and Oats at the Wiseguys Comedy Club!

I first found out about Garfunkel and Oats when Kate Micucci (Oats) performed on Scrubs.

So then I had to look her up because I thought she was hilarious and that is how I found Garfunkel and Oats! This was all around the same time that they released the song Sex with Ducks because of the statement from Pat Robertson.

I know this type of humor isn’t for everyone but I’m very excited to see them perform tonight. I’m sure they will put on a great show.

So do you have any fun plans for the weekend?

Wednesday Weigh In: I love me

2011-04-27T10:24:00.001-06:00

I haven’t stepped on a scale in 12 weeks. I’ve been so busy with work, travel and discovering myself more and more. It’s been wonderful. I haven’t really worked out either. The weather has been horrible here and I’m tired of being stuck in doors. The last time I weighed in I was at 166.4 today I was at 172.8. I’ve gained 6.4 pounds in the past 12 weeks and I’m okay with that. I know I should be losing weight to hit that number doctor’s say is healthy for me but I really am okay with myself how I am. I’m going to start my workout routine again and continue to eat healthy but I’m not stressing about the number on the scale. The number isn’t as important as how you feel about yourself.

While Skyping with part of Chris’ family back east a joke was made about a pink telescope making someone look fat. We ended up having to explain that joke to the kids and my SIL and BIL made sure to reiterate that it was just a silly joke that people say and that you are beautiful the way you are to my 8 year old niece. I loved hearing them make sure she knew that. I didn’t get that as a child and the only person I get that from today is Chris. My family still makes jokes about me and I’ve come to accept that they always will. They will always push fad diets and diet pills in my face. They will always compare my size now to when I was anorexic and I can’t do much about that. I just have to know I was given these challenges for a reason and that I am a strong enough person to handle it.

Glee last night was fabulous! I won’t go into details about it incase you haven’t watched but I am going to share one song Quinn and Rachel performed.

Which reminded me how much I love the original TLC song Unpretty. I remember when it first came out and how it made me feel. So I wanted to share that video as well.

I am pretty and I do love me. I just need to remind myself this more often then I actually do.

Sausage Egg Muffins

2011-04-26T10:36:00.003-06:00

When I was in Georgia visiting my family my cousin made Egg Muffins for us to have for breakfast. I hated having to tell her that I don’t eat eggs because I don’t like them. I knew it was something Chris would love and an easy breakfast for him every morning so I decided to make them for him this weekend. They are a huge hit at my house. Chris loved them, Adam loved them, and Chris’ coworkers loved them. Needless to say He finished the last muffins this morning and I will need to make them again soon. I thought I would share my recipe in case anyone else wanted to try them.

Sausage Egg Muffins
Ingredients:

1/2 pound ground pork sausage

12 eggs, beaten

¾ cup salsa

2 cup cheddar cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease 12 muffin cups. (the recipe said it would make 12 but I got 18 muffins)

Place sausage in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine eggs and mix well after mixed combine sausage, salsa and 1 cup cheese and blend together.

Fill the muffin tin ¾ full and top with cheese. Bake in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until egg has set and a toothpick inserted into each 'muffin' comes out clean

This was really easy to make and everyone loved it. I did cheat though. While I was shopping for breakfast sausage I found a package of precooked sausage crumbles so I bought that instead to save me time so I didn’t have to cook my sausage. I just mixed the Eggs, Salsa and Cheese together and fill it with the muffin tin and then I put a spoonful of sausage crumbles in it. The sausage crumbles were perfect because I only used 1/3 of the bag so I can make this 2 more times before I have to buy more.

Enough Egg muffins to serve 2 grown men breakfast for 4 days!

More April Birthday's

2011-04-19T07:30:00.000-06:00

April is a month of birthday's for mine and Chris' family.

Today is my Aunt Rita's birthday!

And it is also our niece Amelia's birthday!

She will be 8 years old and I really hope she thinks her gift from us is cool.

I hope they have a wonderful birthday!

Happy Birthday to us

2011-04-18T07:30:00.001-06:00

Today my best friend turns 27 years old. We have been celebrating our birthdays together for the past 9 years. He is the best husband anyone could ever ask for and he always makes me feel like the luckiest girl in the world. I don't know what I would do without him. I hope he has a great birthday!

and this girl turns 25!

I'm now a quarter of a century!?!

Let the celebration begin.

Flashback Friday: Tillamook Air Museum

2011-04-08T11:56:00.006-06:00

4 years ago my family took a trip to Oregon for my step-sisters graduation. During that time my brother Kenny, step-brother Walter, Chris and I drove from Portland to the coast. We visited a few stops along the way and the Tillamook Air Museum was one of them. When ever someone finds out I’ve been to Tillamook Oregon they ask if I went to the Tillamook Cheese/Ice Cream factory. They’re always shocked when they find out we passed the Ice Cream/Cheese factory (2 of my favorite things) to go to the Air Museum. I really won’t be able to do this post justice without Chris telling me what every airplane is/does. But I liked the pictures and wanted to share them.

Chris and I. Did you know that I LOVE helicopters?

(I'm kind of obsessed with them, I have a small one on my desk that I bought at this museum)

Walter

Chris and I

We look so young.

Walter, Chris and I.

Come FLASHBACK with us!

Head on over to Christopher's and Tia's blog to link up.

I suck at blogging

2011-04-07T12:32:00.004-06:00

Another two weeks have gone by and I didn’t even think about blogging. I’m not sure why my life is so crazy right now. Here are a few things I’ve been up to in the past two weeks.

Work trip to Rock Springs

Work trip to Idaho Falls and the window in my hotel room wouldn’t lock and I was on the first floor. Luckily the awesome clerk not only gave me a new room she upgraded me to a suite!

Worked in my garden/yard the only two nice days we’ve had here in SLC. I woke up to almost a foot of snow the following day.

I’ve been making lots of crafty things but I can’t talk about them yet because someone might be receiving them in the mail and I want them to be surprised.

Bought new hinges and hardware for my kitchen cabinets.
ungly old brass

pretty new nickle.

Visited and played with two of the cutest twins on the planet.

And we used Ear Wax Candles for the first time.

It was gross and awesome at the same time.

ABC’s of me

2011-03-24T11:14:00.003-06:00

I have no idea what to blog about lately. I’m still pretty busy with work but I’m not traveling as much. I have a lot going on in my head right now I just haven’t decided if I want to post it here yet. So I decided to jump on the band wagon and post the ABC’s of me.

Age: 24
Bed size: Queen.
Chore you hate: cleaning the fridge. I hate this most of all.
Dogs: Roxie Hart and Billy Flynn Goat
Essential start of your day: The toilet.
Favorite color: Purple, I love purple. But I really do love all colors.
Gold or silver: Silver
Height: 4’11”
Instruments I play (or have played): I’ve attempted to play the guitar and violin.
Job title: Research Coordinator/Medical Assistant
Kids: 0 of the human form 2 K-9 (see above)
Live: Salt Lake City, Utah
Mom’s name: Twila
Nickname: I was always called –T- and Shorty growing up but my most recent nick name is Tyler.
Overnight hospital stays: 0, multiple trips to hospital/ER but no overnight stays! **knock on wood**
Pet peeve: White socks, black slacks. ‘nuff said.
Quote from a movie: “You may know what you need, But to get what you want, Better see that you keep what you have.”-Into the Woods. I guess that was a song/musical/movie. My second favorite that is just from a movie is “Girlfriends, big or small, thin or fat, worship that body, it's the only one you've got.”-Connie and Carla.
Right or left handed: Right
Siblings: 4 total: 1 older brother (same Mom and Dad) 3 step-siblings (2 brothers, 1 sister)
Time you wake up: Anywhere from 5:40-6:30. It depends on when I have to be to work. Underwear: of course.
Vegetable you dislike: mushrooms! I hate them.
What makes you run late: I’m never late. I’m typically 15 minutes early. Unless it snows, stupid snow.
X-rays you have had done: Wrists, knees, chest and teeth.
Yummy food you make: My Chili and my baked Ziti. Everyone loves those two dishes.
Zoo animal: Penguins!

MIA

2011-03-10T13:20:00.002-07:00

I cant’ believe it’s been 1 month since I’ve blogged. My world has been ridiculously busy right now and my lack in blogging proves it.

In the past month I’ve been to Idaho Falls, Vernal, UT and Georgia for work. I was literally traveling 50% of the time. Oh my, I forget how hectic my work can be.
My desktop computer also died during the past month. I have the most amazing friend a girl could ask for and she fixes my computer any time I need her too. She is the best. I took my desktop and laptop over to her house last night because she is fixing my desktop and putting Windows 7 on my laptop and taking off Vista. I can’t wait until we finish them.
The scale has pretty much stayed the same. Which is awesome considering I only eat out when I travel.
David (my youngest BIL) is engaged to be married on August 5th in the SLC Temple. August is going to be here before I know it.
Roxie turns 5 tomorrow! When I was hanging out with Amanda last night she pulled up a lot of old pictures of her. Once my computer is up and running I will have to share them with you.
My oldest nephew turns 10 today. That makes me feel old.

I have some other things I’ve been debating about putting on here but that will have to wait for another day (maybe).

It's a sad day to be a Jazz fan

2011-02-10T16:48:00.002-07:00

Jerry Sloan Head Coach of the Utah Jazz for 23 years and Assistant Coach Phil Johnson have resigned, effective immediately.

source

You will both be missed.

Check In Wednesday: Power of One WI6

2011-02-09T09:22:00.002-07:00

The end of this week was horrible for me. I over ate during my Super Bowl party I made myself sick. It was also TOM so I retained everything; my stomach is so bloated it’s a little sad. The thing I’m most embarrassed to admit is that I didn’t work out once. I’ve been too busy. I spent all of my weekend cleaning, organizing and cooking. I’ve been working late and fighting some sort of bug that is draining my body and causing major headaches. So it was a bad, bad week.

Challenge SW: 168
1/5: 167.8
1/12: 166.8
1/19:168.2
1/26: 166.6
2/2: 166.4
2/9: 168.9
This week: +2.5
Overall Challenge: +0.9
SW 9/15/10: 174
Overall Change: 5.1

I need to get out of this slump. This challenge I’ve gone up and down horribly. I did finally take over my work out room again. After the holidays it kind of exploded in their but I organized it and it’s my space again. Now I just need to find the motivation and will power to do it. I really need to figure this out now. From the 16th to the March 2nd (15 days) I will be traveling for work 10 of those days. I will be traveling by car at least 21 hours and by plane at least 12. I really need to get back into a routine by then or else I will be very depressed when I step on the scale when I get home.

Taco 2

2011-02-04T12:29:00.004-07:00

On January 20th Chris and I were lucky enough to buy him a new (to us) truck. When we got married we always agreed to only have 1 car payment if possible. My car was recently paid off so we’ve been looking around for a new truck. We had some horrible experiences while looking around. We were never offered a test drive and they always assumed we couldn’t afford the truck we were interested in. They tried to talk us down to even buying a 2 door bucket seat like we already have. My sister-in-law suggested we look at CarMax because she had a wonderful experience with them when she lived in Chicago.

On Monday 1-17-11 we looked on CarMax’s website and found 2 trucks that we were really interested. We made time to go look at these trucks on Wednesday 1-19-11. The service we received was amazing. We walked in and were greeted right away and they informed us that they didn’t have any sales people available for test drive but to please look around or have a seat and it will be about 15 minutes. We wondered around inside and went out into the cold shortly to look around. Our sales person Lauren came up to help us. We told her what trucks we were interested in and then she got the keys and we went out for a test drive. Chris drove both trucks and she even offered to do another loop so I could test drive them too. I didn’t end up test driving them because I trusted Chris’ opinion. I just thought it was really nice that she offered it to me. We picked the truck we like better and we went inside to talk about it. We looked at the Car Fax and what financing they could offer us. One neat thing about CarMax is if you sign a loan with them you have 3 days to try and find better financing and if you do you can switch your loan no questions asked. We left that night with the paperwork to contact our financial institution to begin the paper work. Lauren even gave me her cell phone number so I could get in touch with her on her day off if we had any issues.

Thursday 1-20-11 we got all of our financing taken care of and we bought the truck. We couldn’t believe the service we were given. They treated really well and we will refer them to everyone. Another neat thing about CarMax is you can return the vehicle within 5 days no questions asked.

After we bought the truck I thought it was missing a few things from the pictures on line but I had no way to prove it. Then CarMax sent us our own vehicle history page with all of the pictures and information on the truck. We called them and told them the cup holder divider and the outlet cover was missing. They told us to check under the seats because sometimes things are placed there while they clean the vehicles. We thoroughly searched the truck and couldn’t find them. We called back and told them so they sent us the schematics on the truck, we told them what we needed and they ordered us the parts at no charge.

Chris and his new truck

The parts that were missing.

We just picked up the new parts today.

We are both so please with this car buying experience. I truly believe CarMax’s slogan because it really is “the way car buying should be”.

Disclosure: As always these thoughts and opinions are my own. I have not been compensated in any way for this review. We were so please with the treatment we received I just wanted to share it with everyone.

Go Red for Women

2011-02-03T15:29:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow is National Wear Red Day to bring awareness to Woman’s Heart Disease. Did you know Heart Disease is the number 1 killer of women, taking the life of 1 in 3 women each year? Please go HERE to access a lot of Healthy Heart Tips for women of all ages. If you didn’t already know I work in a Cardiology department and I would like to ask all of my readers to help support Go Red for Women tomorrow and wear Red to help spread the word about Women’s Heart Disease and I would like you all to talk to your physician if you think you may have any Cardiac problems.

Wednesday Check In: Power of One WI5

2011-02-02T08:39:00.001-07:00

Good Morning Everyone. Its Wednesday so you should know by down that means it’s weigh in day at the Sisterhood.

Challenge SW: 168
1/5: 167.8
1/12: 166.8
1/19:168.2
1/26: 166.6
2/2: 166.4
This week: -0.2
Overall Challenge: -1.6
SW 9/15/10: 174
Overall Change: 7.6

Today I’m down 0.2 pounds not much but it’s headed in the right direction. I broke my own rule this weekend and stepped on the scale on Saturday just to see what it said and it read 165 pounds. I was really hoping for that weight today but I didn’t get it.

This past week was a good one. Chris and I drove up to Park City to get away from the crappy Salt Lake air and we walked around the huge outdoor shopping center and also went on a small hike. I didn’t over indulge on anything sweet even though I almost went and bought an entire pie twice because it was on sale. I was having some major sweet tooth cravings which is strange for me. I’m normally not into sweets.

How did you do this week? Did you have any challenges like me and my pie cravings?

New Bed

2011-02-01T10:25:00.001-07:00

This year for our Anniversary we decided to buy a new bed set. We currently had a nice headboard that came with the bedroom set that Chris bought when he first moved out. Growing up I’ve never had a foot board and it was never an issue that my blanket fell off every night (I toss and turn A LOT in my sleep). Now that I’ve been sharing my bed for the past 5 years (I still say the hardest thing about getting married for me was sharing my bed) losing the blanket in the middle of the night has been an issue. We both hate it. The past 2 years we’ve been looking for a foot board that would mach our current set. Since our bedroom set is a lighter maple wood it is very hard to find that color. Almost all of the bedroom sets we could find was cherry/dark wood. We didn’t want to have a completely different color then the rest of our room and we didn’t want to spend the money on an entire new bedroom set because that wasn’t necessary.

While I was out searching one day I found a company that could order it for us. We were placing the order when we noticed the headboard was only 45” and our current headboard was 50”. It wouldn’t work. Luckily we figured this out before signing the paperwork because this company doesn’t except returns for any reason.

I was starting to lose all hope until we went to a furniture store we’ve never been too. It was called Furniture Row. We walked in and were looking around and we found a bed that would work perfectly! The manager came over to us and informed us the bed was on sale for $200.00 less then the ticket price. We decided to order it right then and there. It was going to take 2-3 weeks to get shipped and I was anxiously awaiting the new bed.

Chris picked it up on the 22nd and we put it together. I can’t explain how nice it is to not lose our blanket ever night. I have one small complaint and that is how tall our bed is now. The top of our mattresses now sits at 36”; it hits me at the bottom of my ribs because I’m so short. I now have to climb into bed. I may have to invest in something on my side of the bed to help me get in. Other than that, I love it and I have no complaints. It was worth every penny and this may be the best anniversary gift we’ve ever done.

Source

Check in Wednesday: Power of One WI4

2011-01-26T08:52:00.003-07:00

This past week was hectic but much better then last week. I have a few posts that I will have to share with you soon.

Sorry for the bad pic. The flash turned out horrible. It's say 166.6 if you can't tell.

Challenge SW: 168

1/5: 167.8

1/12: 166.8

1/19:168.2

1/26: 166.6

This week: -1.6

Overall Challenge: -1.4

SW 9/15/10: 174

Overall Change: 7.4

I lost 1.6 pounds this week which makes me very happy. I’m getting back into my healthy eating habits and I didn’t even splurge on crappy food and drink for girl’s night last Friday. That is a huge accomplishment for me. I was jealous of their delicious drinks but my hard work definitely paid off. When I met up with my Best Friend Chicka for the night she even commented on how it looked like I lost weight. That was a great way to start the night and definitely helped my motivation to not over indulge.

I know I will not reach my 15 pound button by the end of this challenge with my yo-yo effects on the scale and I’m okay with that. I’ve updated my goals and I would really like to ear my 10 pound button by the end of this challenge. It wasn’t what I originally set out for but I will still have reached a new goal and I’m sure I can do it.

How did you do this week?

Check In Wednesday: Power of One WI3

2011-01-19T09:38:00.002-07:00

Did you read my confessions yesterday? I had a bad week. I didn’t exercise, I ate horribly and I traveled again for work.

Challenge SW: 168
1/5: 167.81/12: 166.8
1/19: 168.2
This week: +1.4
Overall Challenge: +0.2
SW 9/15/10: 174
Overall Change: 5.8

I told you it was bad. I will get out of this slump. I’m not sure how yet, but I know I can do it.

I’m also nervous about next week all ready. Friday night is Girl’s Night with some of my favorite High School friends. We go to a local Pub and we are going to see No Strings Attached. Last time I had a girl’s night I gained 2.4 pounds. It was another bad week with no workouts and lots of stress and then I had a blast at girl’s night and probably drank a few too many cocktails. I can’t have another bad week next week but I know the cocktails are going to kill my calorie counting efforts come Friday. I’m looking for any good drink suggestions so I can still hang out with the girls and have a great night. I would normally order wine but since it is a pub they don’t carry any. So please, I’m looking for any and all suggestions. I would appreciate it.

True Confession Tuesday

2011-01-18T07:00:00.000-07:00

It was a bad weekend for me. Thursday and Friday until dinner I did great and then the celebrations started.

I had my favorite dessert of all times. The Cake (which is more like a pie) from a local restaurant.
Saturday we went to a movie which included Soft Pretzel, Nacho Cheese for dipping, Skittles and a Coke.
After the movie we stopped at Baskin Robbins to order a Ice Cream Cake. After we ordered our cake we got Mint Chocolate Chip Milk Shakes to go.
Sunday I had Pepsi with my breakfast. This isn't normal for me but it tasted so good.
Sunday we picked up the Ice Cream cake and headed to my in-laws for my MIL's birthday celebrations. Lasagna, bread, ice cream cake.
Monday I went to the Aquarium with my SIL and her kids and we went to Chili's for lunch. My first choice they were out of so I ended up with a high calorie salad and lots of chips and salsa.

I'm scared for the scale tomorrow.

Flashback Friday: Anniversary

2011-01-14T08:32:00.007-07:00

It’s been a while since I’ve participated in a Flashback Friday but I couldn’t miss today. 5 years ago today I married my best friend.

Getting my Bridals done.
My mom walking me down the isle.

Chris' Groomsmen

Maniel, Jeremy and David

Jimmy the ring bearer

My bridesmaids

Lindsay, Kelly and Amanda (aka Chicka)

My flower girls

Jasmine and Cameron

My Grandma's lighting the memory candle for my Grandpa's.

Chris and I lighting the Unity Candle

Our darling old judge.You may kiss the bride!

Mr. and Mrs. Shepdogg

Our Mickey and Minnie themed wedding cake

and we danced the night away

My Grandma's were originally in the Limo waiting for us.

Off we went!

I can't believe I've been married for 5 years and I can't wait to see what the future holds for us.

and the winner is!

2011-01-13T08:10:00.003-07:00

Bari at Live, Laugh, Run, Breathe!

Congratulations to Bari. Please send me (shepdogg_ut@yahoo.com) your shipping information and I will send off your new game as soon as I can.

Wednesday Check In: Power of One WI2

2011-01-12T11:17:00.002-07:00

Today is check in time with the Sisterhood. I don’t have much time today. I just got back from Idaho with work and I am slammed with paperwork.

Challenge SW: 168

1/5: 167.8
1/12: 166.8

This week: -1

Overall Challenge: -1.2

SW 9/15/10: 174

Overall Change: 7.2

I’m so happy I lost a pound this week. I was a little nervous of the scale this morning considering I had a Pepsi, Flaming Hot Cheetos and Peanut M&M’s for dinner last night since I was driving home from Idaho.

We have 6 weeks left and I’m only 7.8 pounds away from my goal for this challenge. I know I can do it!

Also, Today is the last day to enter my Zumba Fitness Giveaway for the Wii!!! The winner will be announced tomorrow!

Blogoversary Review and Giveaway

2011-01-07T09:02:00.004-07:00

Today is my 2 year blogoversary and I decided I would review my newest Wii Fitness game.

Earlier this week I was lucky enough to find the Zumba Fitness game for the Wii on sale. I picked up 2 copies so I could have one for myself and give one away to one of my lucky readers. I tried it Monday night after buying it and I really enjoyed it.

Zumba Fitness is an exercise game and program for Wii that taps into the Zumba dance-exercise craze that has swept the nation. Surprisingly challenging, and addictively fun, the 30 heart-pounding Zumba routines that make up Zumba Fitness utilize the motion sensing capabilities of the Wii Remote or Wii Remote Plus controller which work along with the exclusive Wii Remote belt, included with the game, to create a fun but result-producing workout. Additional features include: 4-player support, including a two-on-two co-op option; multiple skill levels along with a training level; multiple in-game instructors and venues.

Game Features

Bring the Zumba Fitness experience home with you in the first interactive game based on the successful brand.
Learn and perfect nine different dance styles: Reggaeton, Merengue, Salsa, Cumbia, Hip-Hop, Mambo, Rumba, Flamenco and Calypso.
Includes more than 30 Zumba routines - some exclusive to the game.
Follow your on-screen Zumba instructor’s routine in a high voltage party atmosphere. As you fine tune the steps, the stage and party transforms in dynamic new ways.
Strap the Zumba belt to your waist to turn the Wii Remote into a hip motion sensor.
Supports up to 4 players as you team up and try to earn the highest workout score as a group or play against each other in Zumba Attack! Mode for the ultimate fitness dance off.
Dance in a range of venues: learn the basics in the Zumba gym and then take the party to a fantasy night club, an industrial factory, a skyscraper rooftop and a futuristic
Zumbathon stadium.
Includes "Learn the Steps" training, Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced routines for all skill levels.
Dance steps learned can be taken with you if you attend a real Zumba class or on the dance floor at your next party.

The game was a lot of fun. After watching me Chris decided to give it a try. He did beat me only because he cheated and was still shaking his hips when he was supposed to be stretching durning the cool down routine.

Likes:

Similar dance moves to a regular Zumba class
It will speed up your moves if you follow along well.
You can learn the steps in a training session.

Dislikes:

On my workout the trainer reminds you to drink your water after every routine which is great but they only give you 6 seconds to do it. She never reminded Chris to drink his water during his and we did the same routine.
The graphics aren’t anything to be excited about but it works well with this game.

I also had a really hard time figuring out the best way to use the Wii Remote in the belt. I would create your profile prior to putting the remote in the belt. I would also put the remote in the belt before you strap the belt on. I had a few mishaps at the beginning but once I figure that out it was great.

Overall I really did enjoy this game and I’m very excited I bought it.

Okay now to the giveaway. I have one copy of Zumba Fitness on the Wii to giveaway! I’m sorry but you will have to be a US resident to win this prize for shipping purposes.

Mandatory Entry: In the comments section below tell me if you’ve ever tried Zumba or thought about trying Zumba. I want to hear what you think about it.
Extra entries:

Follow this blog and leave a separate comment below telling me you do.
Tweet about this Giveaway and make sure you use my Twitter name in the tweet @shepdogg_ut. Please leave another comment linking back to your tweet.

This giveaway will end Wednesday January 12th at 10:00pm MST. I will announce the winner of this giveaway next Thursday January 13th.

Good Luck!

Disclosure: As always these thoughts and opinions are my own. I purchased these video games on my own for review and giveaway. I was not compensated at all.

Black Friday Love

2011-01-06T10:10:00.000-07:00

I just realized I never told you guys my big Black Friday purchase. I was finally able to get a Nook! Best Buy had the Nook on sale for $99.99 as a door buster on Black Friday. I had wanted one for a while and I had been downloading the free books every week so I would have a nice library when I got it. I also really wanted it for the cruise and plane ride.

Chris hates Black Friday and decided he didn’t want to go fight the crowds with me. We drove by Best Buy Thanksgiving night and there was already a line to the end of the building. This made me nervous so I decided I didn’t want to fight the lines there. Chris told me he would pay me $50.00 if I didn’t go out shopping to make up the difference so I could just buy the Nook at full price. I told him I wouldn’t set any alarms but if I woke up I on my own I would go. I woke up at 5:20 (the sale started at 5:00. I threw on some clothes and ran to Wal-Mart. The closet Wal-Mart was sold out but since there was another one just a few miles up the road I went to it also and they had it(thank you Wal-Mart for price matching)!!! I walked in at 6:00am and walked out Nook in hand at 6:15!!! I was so excited.

After I finished shopping that morning I charged my Nook and registered in under my name. I was very happy that once I registered it to my email address the 39 books I had been purchasing for the past few months were there. I just finished my first book on the Nook on 12/30 (I’m a slow reader and I don’t get a lot of time to read). It was Billy Boyle by James R. Benn. This was a free book back in August and it was the one I looked forward to reading the most. I really enjoyed it. I’ve actually just started the second book in the series The First Wave.

The Nook was great to have on the plane ride to Florida and I was even able to get some me time on the ship to read. Even Chris liked having it around. He enjoyed playing Chess and Sudoku. I’m also excited to take it Idaho next week when I travel for work. I know I’m going to be reading a lot more since I purchased the Nook and I’m so happy I was able to get it $50.00 off. I’m not sure if I would have ended up buying it at full price.

Hopefully now you will see me talking about more books on my blog.

Wednesday Check In: The Power of One WI1

2011-01-05T11:32:00.001-07:00

I was a little nervous to get on the scale this morning. It’s my TOM and it came full force this month. Last night I couldn’t even get off the couch I was in so much pain. I also didn’t eat as well as I should have this weekend. This morning I was at.

167.8

Challenge SW: 168
1/5: 167.8
This week: -0.2
Overall Challenge: -0.2

SW 9/15/10: 174
Overall Change: 6.2

I wish I could have put up a bigger number this week. I’m just glad the number did go down.

I know I will do better next week. I’m hopping to start using some of my new DVDs/Wii Games. I’ve been much better about packing a lunch and healthy snacks. I’ve also made dinner every night this week so far. That is a big one for me. I’m normally too tired and we just do something easy.

Also make sure you check by my blog on Friday. I will be reviewing my newest Wii fitness game and I will also be hosting a giveaway.

How did you do this week?

Emotionally Connected to Food

2011-01-04T09:10:00.001-07:00

Am I the only one that has an emotional connection to food? I’m not talking about just loving certain types of food because everyone does that. There is one type of seasonal food that comes and goes every year and I will literally cry and feel like a horrible person if I don’t buy and eat them. I’m talking about Little Debbie Valentine Cakes.
Little Debbie makes lots of seasonal cakes but the only ones that mean anything to me are the Valentines ones. When I was a little girl my Grandpa Mauch would buy them for me all the time. I associate this food with my Grandpa. This Grandpa practically raised me and took me to and from school and watched me afterwards while my Mom worked. This is the Grandpa that helped me build my My Little Pony collection to over 150 thanks to the DI and other thrift stores he shopped at. When ever these treats came out Grandpa would buy them for me and we would always share them. I loved that time so much I can’t even explain it. My Grandpa has been gone for 8 years last month. I miss him terribly and every time Valentine Cakes pop up in the stores I stand at them wanting to cry because I know I shouldn’t be eating them since they are not good for me at all. But I feel like I’m losing part of my Grandpa and our traditions if I don’t get them. So I end up buying 1 box and allow myself to have just 1 cake (not the 2 in the wrapper) every couple of days. I’m trying to figure out if this is a normal thing. I feel crazy every year when this happens. Chris and I will be walking down the isle and I see them, stop and look at Chris trying to figure out what to do. Then he just grabs the box so I don’t lose it in the store.

I have to know if any of my readers experience the same type of thing. I have other emotional connections to food and relatives but not like this one. This one I can’t stop doing it or I feel like a horrible person.

Recap of 2010

2010-12-31T08:00:00.000-07:00

The Good and The Sad of 2010.

The Sad (let’s get this out of the way)
We lost multiple amazing people in our lives…
My Grandpa M.
My Grandma M.
Gary A. (Chris’ best friends dad)
Uncle David W. (Chris’ Uncle)
Uncle David F. (Chris’ Uncle)

We also had a few health scares with my Grandma B.
Chris got Orbital Cellulites
I dropped my camera in Bear Lake.

The Good..
I won running shoes from The Sisterhood.
I trained for and finished my first race!
I Exposed myself and realized I really do love me.
I went camping at Bear Lake with friends.
We went to The Lion King
I donated another tree to the Festival of Trees and it sold!
We welcomed a new niece to the family.
I found out my Sister-in-Law is expecting. (First niece/nephew on my side of the family!)
I went to Oklahoma twice!
I got a new camera.
David (Chris’ brother) came home from his mission.
I went on an amazing Disney Cruise

2010 was great but I can’t wait to see what 2011 has in store for me.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Holiday Card

2010-12-30T12:48:00.002-07:00

I just realized I never showed you guys the Holiday Card I picked from Shutterfly. I know I wasn't able to send a card out to everyone so I thought I would post it on here to share. I love how it turned out.

My plan of action

2010-12-30T09:24:00.000-07:00

So I told you yesterday I lack motivation to start exercising but I love it when I finally get going. In hopes to help me with this I bought myself a present today. I bought the iFit Lose Weight with Jillian Michaels. I love working out on my Elliptical but I normal just get on it and go. I don’t ever change this up; I just get on it and run. One of my friends gave me the iFit card level 3 because she no longer has her elliptical but I’ve always been scared to try it. So I ordered level 1 8 week program today! I’m hoping it arrives soon. I’m hoping switching up my Cardio routine will help with this challenge.

I also want to start doing strength training. I haven’t decided how I want to do this but I know I want too. So if you have any strength training DVDs recommendations or tips I would really appreciate it.

Wednesday Check In: Power of One initial weigh in

2010-12-29T10:10:00.002-07:00

Today starts the newest challenge over at The Sisterhood. The Power of One starts today and ends February 23rd 2011. That is 8 weeks of weigh-ins, challenges, and soul searching galore. There are no groups for this challenge. It’s all going to be about me. My starting weight for this challenge is

168 (that’s down 0.4 from last week)
Total weight loss since 9/15/10: 6

I’m still up 0.8 pounds from my Shrinkvivor weight but I’m heading in the right direction again. They want us to create goals for the next 8 weeks and I’ve been thinking what mine should be.

I would like to earn my 15 pound button. I’m 9 pounds away and 1-2 pounds a week is a very healthy weight loss expectation. This will also put me in the 150’s!
Exercise on a regular basis. I still haven’t figured out a good routine for me. I enjoy exercising once I get started but I lack motivation to actually get started.
Pack a lunch at least 4 days a week.

I also need to figure out what I want my overall weight loss goal to be. According to BMI for me to reach the healthy range I need to be 120 pounds. That is still at the high end of “normal”. I really don’t believe in BMI so I don’t want to set that as my goal. I really don’t think that is a healthy weight for me. I’m thinking a good healthy weight for me is to be around 130-135. That is where I was when I got married and I thought I was skinny then. According to BMI I would still be overweight in that range but I think the most important thing is me being comfortable. What do you guys think?

I’m always up for suggestions. If you have any please feel free to share. Sometimes I feel like I need all of the help I can get.

If you want to join this awesome challenge there is still time. Head on over to the Sisterhood to sign up!

Wednesday Check In: Holiday Hoedown Wrap Up

2010-12-22T09:16:00.004-07:00

This is my last check in for 8 Sisters Shrinking and the Holiday Hoedown. I missed last week and it made me super nervous to get on the scale this morning I had at least one (sometimes 3) desserts everyday on the cruise (in my defense the times I had 3 it was a sampler platter of desserts and they were perfect bite size portions. I was actually eating a smaller amount with the sampler then if I just order one dessert). This morning I hopped on the scale and it read.

168.4
This week weight loss: -1.0
Total challenge weight loss: +0.7
Total weight loss since 9/15/10: 5.6

Woot, Woot! Honestly who goes on a cruise and manages to lose 1 pound. I know it’s not much and I did end up gaining 0.7 pounds overall on this challenge, but since I managed to lose weight on a cruise I am happy as can be. Did you notice I also got my 5 pound button back, I knew it wouldn’t be gone long.

This week’s challenge was exercise minutes again. Last week (when I wasn’t able to weigh in because I was in the Bahamas) I had earned 230 minutes from all of our activities. This week I only managed to get 60 minutes due to sickness. I started feeling crummy on our flight home and I’ve been fighting horrible head congestion so I haven’t felt up to working out.

Just because this challenge is over doesn’t mean the Sisterhood isn’t already working on the next challenge (those ladies are AMAZING) and it is called The Power of 1. There won’t be teams, because this time they want you to focus on ONE person: YOU. So head on over there and sign up, I did.

Disney Cruise Vacation Days 5 and 6

2010-12-21T14:40:00.000-07:00

Wednesday morning we woke up and were able to dock at Castaway Cay (Disney’s Private Island) and it was a beautiful day. We went outside and meet up for our excursion. We did a walk/kayak adventure today. Our tour guide Ricky was hilarious, informative and over all amazing. He taught us about the plant life on the island, Bahamian culture and the islands history. After the walk we made it to the Kayaks. We kayaked into the Mangroves and then back out to where we started. David was the first one back to shore and Chris and I was second in our group. I grabbed the camera to take pictures of everyone coming in while David and Chris walked out into the water about 100 feet. I saw a shadow in the distance but didn’t think anything of it. Shortly after Joey (the other tour guide) shouted out “hey guys, there’s a shark following you” Chris and David shrugged it off as if she was joking and she said “no really there is a shark behind you”. They turned around to see a 4 ½ foot nurse shark about 15 feet away. Chris gracefully (considering how scared he was) walk back in.

After the Kayak tour we walked around the island and rented water tricycles and rode around the bay. Chris and I headed back to the ship to get our stuff ready. We went to dinner for the last night and afterwards we watched Disney Dream which was my favorite show! After the show we put our luggage together and left it outside our door.

We woke up bright and early to make it to our 6:45 breakfast and our last meal with Geffrey and Imade. After breakfast we grabbed our backpacks and said goodbye to the Disney Ship Wonder. We were off to pick up our minivan and then we went to Downtown Disney to kill time before our flights. We headed back to the Airport at 2:20 since Angie’s flight was at 5:00 even though our flight was at 6:00. It’s a good thing we got there early because some sort of security threat happened only at our check because it took us 45 minutes to get thru security but it took an hour to get on the tram to get to our gate. We got at our gate with only 20 minutes to spare. We then took the long flight back to Utah any my Mom was waiting to pick us up.

It was an amazing trip that went to fast. I can’t wait to do another cruise someday.

Chris, David and I at Castaway Cay

Chris and David in front of our ship. Ricky our guide Gary and Tracy

MIL and FIL Angie and Todd Cruise Ship! Mount Rustmore Christmas in the Bahamas Christmas in the Bahamas Chris and I on the ship at Castaway Cay 4th night towel animal Our couch Our room Our room # The warning signs at the rental car place Downtown Disney Chris and Woody in the Lego store Downtown Disney

Disney Cruise Vacation Days 3 and 4

2010-12-20T19:52:00.011-07:00

On Day 3 of our vacation (Monday) it was the first morning on our ship. We woke up in Nassau and went up stairs to get breakfast. While Chris and I were eating they announced over the intercom that most of the shore excursions had been canceled because of the weather. Fortunately our excursion wasn’t cancelled so we headed downstairs where we were supposed to meet. While we were waiting for all of our group to arrive they were warning us that the boat ride would be horrible, that if we got sea sick we could cancel and they would refund us our money. Nothing was going to stop me from this excursion. I’ve been looking forward to this since we booked this cruise. This was the day I was going to swim with Dolphins. We got on the ferry and went to Blue Lagoon and meet with our trainers. They taught us about the dolphins and then we put on our wet suits and got in the water. It was AMAZING. I was able to kiss, hug, dance, fed them, touched their teeth and my Dolphin even went shopping and brought me a rock. I was ecstatic; I was the only one in our group to get a gift from the Dolphins. We got out of the water and they prepared us for the foot push. We got back in the water one at a time and the dolphins pushed us 50 feet across the lagoon. It was amazing. After swimming with the dolphins we changed, bought pictures and walked around for awhile. The ferry picked us back up and we were headed back to the ship. We walked around Nassau for a while and then got on the ship.

Monday night was the Captains dinner so we got into our dress clothes and headed to dinner. While we were walking to the restaurant the captain announced due to weather conditions we weren’t going to be able to go to Castaway Cay on Tuesday like schedule. Because of the weather we were going to do our day at sea on Tuesday and hopefully go to Castaway Cay on Wednesday. After dinner we went to Toy Story the Musical. It was another great show.

Tuesday we sleep in and headed to breakfast. After we ate I picked up Cameron and took her to see the Princess’s. We saw Belle, Snow White, Ariel, Tiana and Cinderella. I also took her shopping to pick out a new Disney pin for her collection. While we were shopping we also got all of the kid’s telescopes for the Pirates in the Caribbean party that night. We then put swimming suites on and it was time to go swimming and sit in the hot tub. After swimming it was time for dinner, when we arrived for dinner we each had a bandana sitting at our seat that said “Pirates IN the Caribbean Party”. After dinner we went to watch Tangled in 3D. After Tangled we headed up to the 9th deck for the party. It was awesome. We danced the night away and watched Mickey fly above us to start the fireworks at sea. Disney is the only cruise line that does fireworks at sea and they were amazing. After the party we watched Pirates of the Caribbean; The Curse of the Black Pearl on the Ariel View television under the stars.

Chris and I with Dolphins!

A dolphin kissing me!

A Dolphin Kissing Chris

Me laughing in the water with a dolphin

Chris and I

Chris and I at Dolphin Encounters
Chris and I in the Bahamas. It was just a little windy.

Donald

FIL and baby Rachelle. I LOVE her big eyes.

My nieces and nephews

MIL and FIL with Geffrey and Imade.

Chris and I with Captain Gus

2nd night Towel Animal

Me! It was just a little windy.

Chris and David

The Shepdogg crew
(Chris and I forgot our Mickey shirts so we had to buy Disney Cruise ship shirt. I felt horrible)

Chris and I

My MIL and FIL.

Gary and Tracy

Angie and Todd

David eating snails **ewwwww**

Angie's Birthday Cake and Geffrey

Night 3 Towel Animal

Minnie in Pirate costume

Captain Hook Pirates IN THE Caribbean Party
Pirate Mickey! Fireworks at sea

Stay tuned for days 5 and 6 tomorrow.

Disney Cruise Vacation Days 1 and 2

2010-12-19T19:30:00.007-07:00

Last week I was on the Disney Cruise ship Wonder with all of Chris’ family. We had a wonderful trip and did a lot. Since we did so much I will be breaking it up into a few blog posts.

Saturday December 11th Chris and I had a direct flight to Orlando Florida. We landed ahead of schedule grabbed our checked luggage and went outside to wait for our hotel shuttle at 4:00. At 4:30 we called the hotel again and they reassured us he was on his way. At 5:00 we called again. Every new person that showed up to our shuttle stop kept asking what hotel we were waiting for and how long we were there. Finally he pulled in at 5:15 and everyone around us started cheering. We drove the 15 minutes to the hotel and got checked in. After we settled into the hotel we walked to TGI Fridays for dinner. We had a nice dinner and walked back to the Hotel.

Sunday morning we got ready, had breakfast and went downstairs to wait for our family. The shuttle showed up shortly after 11:00 and we were off to Port Canaveral to board the ship. As we pulled up to the Port and unloaded our luggage the rest of our family got off another shuttle. We went thru security and got checked in for our cruise. We boarded the ship and went to have lunch since our rooms weren’t ready yet. After lunch we toured the ship, settled into our state rooms and got ready for dinner.

Before dinner there was a big Adventures Away party on the top deck. Chris, David and I headed upstairs where they were handing out streamers for the party. I got enough for the kids and ran them back down stairs.

After the Adventures Away party our ship didn’t leave. We thought this was a little weird but right before dinner our cruise director Christian announced over the speaker that they were waiting on one family headed from the airport. Their flight was delayed because of the bad weather in Minnesota. We ended up leaving about 1 ½ hours late. I was very impressed that Disney waiting for them. I know if I was that family I would have wanted them to wait for me.

We went to dinner at 5:45 at Animators Palate and this is when we meet our AMAZING servers Geffrey and Imade. We had two tables since our group was so large (17) and they suggested all of the adults would sit at one table and the kids sit at the other. They were the best servers EVER. They helped the kids pick out what they wanted, they cut their food for them, they made them paper airplanes or origami to help entertain them and after their desserts they did magic tricks for them. They truly made our vacation wonderful.

After dinner we went to Mickey Mania game show trivia and then to The Golden Mickey’s. Then we were off to bed.

David with Minnie

Cameron with MinnieDavid, Cameron and Abby with Ariel
David with Ariel
Chris acting drunk with Ariel

Chris' sister Angie

Excited Chris and I

Chris and his lil' brother David

Chris, David and I

Adventures Away Party. I love the sailor outfits.

Adventure Away Party

Chris and David at the smoke stacks.

Chris and his Dad at the Adventure Away Party My Mother and Father in Law at the front of the ship. Disney Cruise Line Building

1st night towel animal.

Stay tuned for more Disney Cruise updates, days 3 and 4 tomorrow.

Wednesday Check In: Holiday Hoedown WI4

2010-12-08T09:30:00.002-07:00

I’m angry with myself right now and it’s my own fault. I say the things I’m going to do to help me accomplish my goals and I don’t even do them. I don’t even come close to doing them. Let’s just get on with the ugly part.

169.4
This week loss: +2.4
Total challenge loss: +1.7
Total weight loss: -4.6

Did you notice that I lost my 5 pound badge? I’m so mad at myself right now it’s ridiculous. I can’t even explain my anger and frustration but it’s my own fault. I say what I’m going to do to help me reach my goals and then I don’t do it. I let my life, stress and anxiety get in my way and then I take the easy way out.

In the past week I haven’t worked out once, not once. I can’t find the time to do it and I don’t make time to do it is the problem. I said last week I was going to give myself “me” time of 30 minutes a day to work out but that didn’t happen.

My new goal for the next 2 weeks (since I won’t be weighing in next week) is to not gain weight on my vacation. I need this vacation so bad right now and I’m going to enjoy it. But since I’m going to be active with lots of walking, swimming, hiking and kayaking I really don’t want to come home with a gain.

I was also talking to Chris this weekend about after our cruise and I told him I wanted to join Weight Watchers. With their new Points Plus program most fruits are 0 points. I’ve never official joined Weight Watchers because I didn’t think it was right for me. I would follow along with my MIL and some old material that she gave me but it seemed like 23 points for a day was just too little. I will get more points with this new program (I know it works out the same but my brain understands larger numbers better than lower ones) so I'm going to try it.

I will turn this around for me. This is just a minor detour in my plan and it will not completely force me off the path like it has in the past.

Wednesday Check In: Holiday Hoedown WI3

2010-12-01T10:37:00.006-07:00

I’m in a funk. I thought after David came home and I finished the tree for the Festival I would be back to my normal semi-stressed self, but I’m not. I can’t find time to do anything right now I’m so busy. I thought for sure my life would come to a screeching halt when I got the big things out of the way, but I was wrong. Since I’ve been so busy lately I have taken horrible care of myself. Monday while I was at the Festival of Trees I brought my water bottle but didn’t even start drinking it until 1:00pm (I started decorating at 7:00am). I also ate horribly. I hate ¼ of a scone around 1:30 (it was the first thing I ate that day) and then 4 mozzarella sticks from Arby’s at 3:00 and then I made a bowl of cereal for dinner and it tasted funny so I didn’t eat it and I grabbed a personal serving size bag of chips and a cookie. Those are the only things I ate all day???

I did well on Thanksgiving though. We had lunch with Chris’ family at 12:30 and I had 1 small plate of food without seconds and 1 piece of cake. Then we had dinner with my family and I only had 1 small plate with a piece of pie. I even got up Thanksgiving morning and did 2 miles on my elliptical!

I’m also always tired lately. This isn’t just “I’m a little tired” kind of feeling. I honestly think my face could smack down on my keyboard right now and I wouldn’t wake up because I’m so exhausted. I feel like I’m sleeping at night. I don’t remember waking up in the night but I don’t feel rested in the morning.

But the stress, lack of good sleep got to me this past week.

167.0
This week loss: +1.3

Total challenge loss: -0.7

Total weight loss: -7.0

I was able to get more minutes for this weeks challenge. I was able to complete 140 workout minutes and get lots of water every day except Monday.

This week’s fitness challenge is going to be minutes again but they are encouraging us to try something new. I’m not sure what I will be trying but hopefully I will figure something out. I just found out yesterday that the Field House where I work is offering free classes to employees on Monday’s. Maybe I can go try a new class there next week.

This week’s non-fitness challenge is to look a head to December 31st and visualize ourselves as lighter, happier and more in control. They also want us to outline 3 things that will help us during this month.
1. I want to be completely done with Christmas before our cruise. I only have 4 more people to shop for and if I can have everything bought, wrapped and shipped I think I will be able to relax more and enjoy our cruise without stressing about that.
2. I need to plan 30 minutes of me time everyday. This time can be spent reading, working out or just do something for me that I want to do. I have a brand new Jillian Michael's yoga DVD that I haven’t been able to open because I don’t plan me time.
3. I need to take control over my eating habits. I need to make a weekly dinner menu and stick to it. I’m great at planning my breakfast and lunch but then I make a lousy dinner choice. I need to be better with dinner. I also need to prepare myself to make healthy options on our cruise.

Those are my 3 things I will do this month to help me be a lighter, happier person who is more in control of her own life.

Festival of Trees 2010

2010-11-29T19:06:00.005-07:00

Today was decorating day for the Festival of Trees. It turned out better then what I could have expected. Tomorrow they will auction off the trees and it is open to the public from Wednesday 12-1 to Saturday 12-4. If you live in SLC and you plan on going to the Festival please take the time to look at my tree. It is on isle C spot 23 and remember all of the proceeds from the Festival go to Primary Children's Medical Center.

Wednesday Check In: Holiday Hoedown WI2

2010-11-24T08:22:00.008-07:00

I was terrified to step on the scale this morning. My week has been filled with a happy homecoming with my younger brother in law, lots of delicious eating out with family, a huge welcome home luncheon with WAY to many desserts and I sampled most of them, and work pot luck to wrap it all up. I was only able to get in 90 minutes of work out for this challenge. I was running a lot and staying busy but only 90 minutes of actual work out time. I was just hoping for a small gain because I never thought I would lose this week, but the scale read.

165.7!
SW 9/15/10: 174
HH SW 11/17/10: 167.7
11/24/10: 165.7
Total challenge loss: -2.0
Total weight loss: -8.3

I can’t believe I lost 2 pounds!!!! I know I was paying attention to what I was eating but I didn’t think I was cautious enough to lose 2 pounds. That was a huge relief. I’m also 1.7 pounds away from my 10 pound badge.

This week we are continuing the minutes challenge. My goal is to do better than last week. I have to do better than that, right?

The non-fitness challenge is water. This is easy for me. I drink so much water some days it is a little pathetic. I actually just ordered the new Kor Delta. I love my Kor One I had to get the Delta when it came out.

Well I’m super busy today. I took the day off work so I can finish getting things ready for the Festival of Trees on Monday. I also have to go shopping for Thanksgiving once the roads clear up from the storm we had yesterday.

I have to use these

To make this
And to wrap all these.

I hope you all have a great week and a Happy Thanksgiving!

Wednesday Check In: Holiday Hoedown WI 1

2010-11-17T08:33:00.005-07:00

Its Wednesday so if you’ve read my blog for a while that means its check in time with The Sisterhood. We are starting a new challenge today called the Holiday Hoedown and I’m a proud member of 8 Sisters Shrinking! We were able to pick our own teams this time around and I convinced my cousin Mariah to join in on the fun.

This morning when I jumped on the scale it said

167.7

SW on 9/15/10: 174
Holiday Hoedown SW: 167.7
Total Weight Loss from 9/15/10: -6.3

I’m up another 0.1 pound. I kind of feel silly writing that I’m up 0.1 but that is what the scale said and I’m not surprised. I’ve been very lenient with my food choices lately. I honestly can’t remember when the last time I cooked at home was. I know I haven’t touched the stove in the past week and I was out of town the week before that. I really have been bad lately. That is all changing today though. I’m working on a grocery list for tonight and I have big plans on making more meals at home. I’m also trying to figure out something to take to Thanksgiving next week. I want to be able to cook it in a Crock Pot because I know Stove/Oven space will be hard to get with 4 women trying to cook something. So if you have any awesome, healthy side dishes that can be done in a Crock Pot I would LOVE to hear them.

This week’s fitness challenge is to log as many minutes as you can. You can log minutes starting today until Tuesday 11/23/10. I plan on doing at least 30 minutes a day. I would love to commit to more but unfortunately I have way to much going on right now.

This week’s non-fitness challenge is to outline a goal for this challenge. My original goal was going to be to get to the 150’s before my cruise but I don’t know if that will be possible. I’m all about losing a healthy amount of weight each week and with my cruise in less then 4 weeks that might be pushing it. I still want to try but I don’t want to be mad at myself if I don’t get there. So my real goal ~~before my cruise~~ for this challenge is to earn my -10 pound button! I’m only 4 pounds away and I know I can do that. I also want to get back into the habit of tracking my food daily again.

Dirty Little Secret

2010-11-11T11:29:00.007-07:00

I don’t like Christmas. I try to like Christmas but I have a really hard time with it. I do participate in my Family Christmas Party, Work Holiday Parties and sending out cards. Sending out cards is one of the only things I actually enjoy doing but I refuse to send out Christmas Cards, they have to be Holiday Cards. I also always send cards with pictures. Some people find this silly since we don’t have “real” (their words not mine) children. We always do a group picture in our house or at a local park for our cards. When I heard about the fabulous deal Shutterfly is offering bloggers, I couldn’t pass it up. They have a ton of options of Christmas AND Holiday Cards.

Here are a few of my favorite.

Stylish Snowflakes Black
5x7 stationery card

Wonder Trees Noir
5x7 stationery card

Mod Sparkles
5x7 stationery card

These are my top two. Skating Party 5x7 stationery card

I love the penguin on this one. It is my favorite animal for this time of year.

Holiday Confetti 5x7 stationery card
I love the simplicity of this one and how it covers everything.

Shutterfly has a lot more to offer then just Holiday Cards. I love that you can create your own photo book! I actually did this for our trip to Chicago two years ago. I’m not a scrap booker so when I found out about this it is the best of both worlds in my mind. I plan on doing another one after our cruise next month and I may even make one for my Brother-in-law with all of his mission photos.

If you want in on this awesome deal you can check it out here.

Happy Veterans Day

2010-11-11T09:47:00.000-07:00

The Military is very near and dear to my heart. I had 3 Grandparents, my step dad, my Uncle, my Father in law and many friends serve in the Military.

My Grandpa Mauch served in Navy and the Army. He was in the Navy during WWII and joined the Army after that. I’ve carried his Honorable Discharge Card from the Navy since 2002 when he passed, it is always with me. I also have his flag on display in my living room. He meant so much to me.

My Grandpa Burnham served in the United States Coast Guard during WWII. He actually joined before he was of legal age so he could serve for our country. His flag is on display in my Grandma’s living room. He passed 5 years ago.

My Grandpa Mason served in the Navy during WWII also. He passed this past spring.

My Uncle Terry followed in his fathers foot steps and also joined the Cost Guard. He has some of the most amazing pictures of sea rescues that you couldn’t believe.

My Step Dad Larry retired from the Air Force. He served for 20 years and was stationed all over the US and in some other countries.

My Father-in-Law was drafted into the Army and when he finished there he enlisted into the Air Force Reserves.

I’ve had multiple friends join the military out of High School, most of them are finished but a few are still serving strong.

One of my closest work friends is currently in Afghanistan. She is a medic in the Army Reserves. She was sent on her current tour when her son was just 10 moths old. She blogs about her experience here.

I’m so appreciative for all of the Men and Women that have served for our country. I cannot Thank You enough.

Check in Wednesday

2010-11-10T08:47:00.003-07:00

Weight: I’ve been MIA. I haven’t posted anything for a long time. I wasn’t able to post my final Shrinkvivor weight because I was in Idaho Falls with work so I thought I would start out with that weight. My final Shrinkvivor weight was

167.2!

My Starting weight on Tribe Burgundy Babes was 174. I lost 6.8 pounds equaling 3.9%! I’m very proud of myself for that. I was scared to step on the scale this morning. I haven’t been able to really work out because my toe is still hurt and since I was in Idaho last week I don’t have much control over where we go to get food. I’ve been having major bloating, stomach aches and digestions issues for the past week and I hate it. I feel like my clothes don’t fit and it’s extremely frustrating. I was scared that I would be over 170 when I stepped on the scale this morning because that is how I felt. Luckily, that wasn’t the case. This morning I was at

167.6!

Only a 0.4 pound gain while being out of town and not being able to work out is a HUGE win in my book. I was so happy that it wasn’t something outrageous like I thought it would be.

Life: Not only has my life been hectic from work but with everything else that I have going on right now. My BIL will be home from his mission 1 week from tomorrow. I can’t believe that in 8 short days he is home. This Saturday we are getting together to make posters to welcome him home at the airport.

I still have about 100 empty boxes I need to wrap, hot glue wire and ribbon to for the festival of tress. I also need to figure out (or pay someone to do it for me) how to make a big pretty bow for the top of my tree. I ordered the rocking chair yesterday and I hope it arrives in time. Decorating day for the Festival is on November 29th and I really hope I get everything done before then I need too.

I haven’t read anyone’s blogs lately. This makes me sad but I haven’t had anytime too. When I travel I don’t even have access to a computer let alone anytime to check in on anyone.

The last thing I want to leave you with is a picture I snapped this morning from my kitchen.

When I took the dogs out I saw all the horses behind my house and it made me smile so I thought I would share it with you. I count 19 of them! I definitely have to stop and pick up some carrots for them tonight.

A little Owl & Mommies little Miracles

2010-10-29T09:23:00.002-06:00

Christie O. at Average Moms Wear Capes is hosting a virtual baby shower for a preemie moms group called, "Mommies Little Miracles," they’re throwing baby showers for moms who have babies in our local Neonatal Intensive Care Units of Tampa Bay. Six NICUs and some of those have up to 50 babies in them. If you do the math, that's upwards of 250 babies in our NICUs here in there city at any time! She explains more about that here.

Today’s baby shower is posting a Halloween picture of you and or kids (four legged ones included!). My four legged children don’t like dressing up and I don’t have a new costume that I didn’t already post on this blog so I attacked my friend Kelly (she’s a slacker and doesn’t update her blog but I linked you to it anyways) and asked her if I could post a picture of Emily on my blog.

Kelly is my first friend to have a baby (outside of high school) that I still talk to on a daily basis. You may remember THIS post announcing Miss. Emily’s birth. I kind of spoil Emily as if she was my niece and I’ve even bought a special present just for her when she comes to my house Trick or Treating tomorrow.

Isn’t she the cutest little owl you’ve ever seen! I love her so much.

I’ve never thought about preemie mothers missing out on their baby shower until Christie O. mentioned it. I use to be able to say I’ve never had a preemie birth in my family or friends until 3 weeks ago. 3 weeks ago one of my cousins in Oklahoma went into labor. She was only 34 weeks along. We were so worried about her and I couldn’t wait to hear and update. Fortunately Audrey was born weighing 6 pounds 4 ounces because she was able to get some steroids prior to birth. She was lucky and didn’t have to spend any time in the NICU. Home health did have to check on her regularly and she’s had some problems with her bilirubin.

This is another great cause that could make a new mothers day. I couldn’t imagine the stress of going home without my baby and it having to stay in the hospital.

Wednesday Check In: Shrinkvivor WI7

2010-10-27T12:13:00.004-06:00

Today is another weigh in day over at the Sisterhood. This post is up later then normal and I blame it on a silly little thing called work. I know you are all excited so we will jump right to the scale.

SW: 174
9/22: 172
9/29: 170.6
10/6: 169.6
10/13: 170.2
10/20: 168.9
10/27: 167.1
This week: -1.8
Overall Challenge: -6.9 pounds

I am extremely happy with those results. Of course I wish it were more but I can’t complain one bit.

This past week I joined Tribe Outlast! The remaining contestants were all combined into one tribe. There are 26 of us in Tribe Outlast and the 7 people with the highest weight percentage loss will be competing for the title of Ultimate Shrinkvivor and they will be winning all of those amazing prizes! I don’t think my overall percentage is enough to be top 7 but I can’t explain how happy I am to make it this far.

This week’s non-fitness challenge was to watch labels and to pay attention to trans-fat. I did horrible. I completely forgot about this challenge and I don’t think I looked at a single label. I typically eat the same food so I hardly ever check for calories any more because I already know what I’m eating. I need to get back into the habit of looking at everything I eat.

This week’s fitness challenge was miles, again. The first time we did miles I got 12.26 the second time I got 9.5 this time 6. It was hard to even get that amount. I’m so disappointed with myself because I had high hopes of beating my 1st amount and I didn’t even come close to it. Do you remember me complaining about my foot, it still hurts. I finally went to the doctor to find out I have a small stress fracture. It hurts like hell if I wear my old work shoes or my tennis shoes. I think it starts to get better and then I switch shoes and my oh my does it still hurt. I actually bought new work shoes with a larger toe base and no heel so it doesn’t bother my foot.

I hoping my foot will get better soon so I can start pushing myself again. But I have to be patient because I don’t want to end up in a boot.

little boy big heart

2010-10-26T07:00:00.000-06:00

Lissa at Whooo's That Girl has one amazing little boy. Her 7 year old son Bridger decided he wanted to help bring clean water to countries that are not as fortunate as us. He also decided instead of Christmas present for himself this year he wanted to raise $5,000 for his charity. If you are looking for a charity this winter I suggest helping Bridger out, he would really appreciate it.

My First Vlog

2010-10-25T20:19:00.002-06:00

Below is my first vlog. I didn't think I would ever make a vlog but when the Sisterhood announced they were giving away TWO tickets to Fitbloggin'. To win the grand prize pack they asked us to complete a vlog and explain why we wanted to go. My vlog is a little pathetic, I sound silly and it's poor quality. It was filmed on my Blackberry. I don't have a web camera or camcorder so I used what was available to me. I hope this works and if I'm picked to go to Fitbloggin' I look forward to meeting my amazing sisters in real life.

Wednesday Check In: Shrinkvivor WI6

2010-10-20T09:45:00.003-06:00

Its check in Wednesday time at The Sisterhood. I was a little nervous when I got on the scale this morning. It’s my TOM and I’m definitely feeling its effects. But to my surprise it said…

SW: 174
9/22: 172
9/29: 170.6
10/6: 169.6

10/13: 170.2
10/20: 168.9
This week: -1.3 pound
Overall Challenge: -5.1 pounds

Do you see that! I’ve lost 5.1 pounds during this challenge! I’ve earned myself one of these babies.

Not only did I earn my 5 pound button, I also am back in the 160’s! I knew I would return.

This week’s nonphysical challenge was to join the Exposed Movement. I just checked this morning and 110 male and female bloggers have joined this amazing movement. You can read my Exposed post HERE.

This week’s physical challenge is minutes. Work out minutes any way you can get them. I was only able to get 180 minutes. I hurt my big toe on my left foot last week and it hurts so bad Thursday, Friday and Saturday I thought it was broken. After lots of heat packs and staying off of it as much as I could it is finally starting to feel better.

As of right now the Burgundy Babes are still going strong even though we only have 3 people left. I’m curious how we did this week compared to everyone else. I can’t wait until tomorrow’s tribal council to find out.

Go Burgundy Babes!

Elder Shepdogg

2010-10-18T10:15:00.002-06:00

In one short month Uncle Dais will be coming home from his mission. He has been serving a mission for the LDS Church for the past two years. The last time I saw Uncle Dais was December 1st 2008, and the last time I was able to speak to him was on Mother’s Day 2009. I’m a horrible sister-in-law that hasn’t really been writing him when he’s been gone. A few months ago I decided I needed to write him more but something always came up, then it was “he will be home in 2 month’s I don’t need to write him”. Luckily, everyone else in the family has been writing him regularly. I’m pretty sure Chris and I are the only slacker siblings. I know it’s no excuse but I never know what to write him about. When Chris and I would write him we would always give him sports updates. That was pretty much the only thing we would ever talk about. I just can’t wait for him to come home next month so I can see him and find out about everything he did on his mission. I’m curious if he is going to have an accent since he’s been speaking Haitian Creole and I’m curious if he has gained weight. I know that he’s enjoying the Creole food and I think he’s been getting a lot of it. Luckily, I only have to wait 1 more month.

Exposed

2010-10-14T07:00:00.000-06:00

As I sit here and type this I don’t really know how I should start. I see all these amazing people who have joined the Exposed Movement and I decided I needed to also. Last year Michelle at Eating Journey posted a picture of herself highlighting the beauty of the different parts of her body and why her body is amazing. She did it again this year. While looking through all of the people that have joined the Exposed Movement, Mary at A Merry Life Exposed, Take 2: Still Awesome probably inspired me the most.

Disclosure to anyone that doesn’t want to see my exposed body, don’t scroll down. I’m not naked but understand I’m not dressed modestly to your standards and it may make you uncomfortable.

I’ve always struggled with my weight. I grew up with an unsupportive family. I was called names daily and it really hurt me. I was young so I didn’t stand up for myself because they were my family so obviously they new the truth and I didn’t.

I really took it to heart when I was in 7th grade. I pretty much stopped eating. If I did eat during the day it was way less then 600 calories. When my Mom noticed the change in my appetite I simply responded with “I’ve decided to become a vegetarian” and that was the end of that conversation. I lost a lot of weight and I took my body for granted. I would cut my legs and wrists just to see them bleed. I wasn’t trying to commit suicide but I was fascinated with self mutilation.

In 10th grade I met my ~~friend~~ ~~crush~~ ~~boyfriend~~ husband and with his help and along with all of my amazingly supportive friends I realized that I was crazy for treating myself the way I did. I still thought I was fat and didn’t have high self esteem but it was an improvement.

After Chris and I got married, and after I stopped working two jobs and was promoted to my current position, I started gaining the weight. In the past 4 years I’ve gained 40 pounds. I know I’m not at a healthy weight, because I’m so damn short I’m actually considered obese but I don’t agree with BMI ratings. I did a few therapy visits and even started taking anti-depressants. Then I really started to love me. Since then I’ve come off anti-depressants and I now stand up for myself. I’m still called fat on a regular basis from my mom. She tells me to “suck in my gut” every time she sees me. I just remind her that she is one to talk since she is also obese and diabetic. I think I finally drew the line with our relationship when she said “you need to lose weight so you can be happy”. Man, she is wrong. I am happy and I love me. That is why I decided to expose myself. I’m hoping someone, somewhere, might come across my story and realize they’re not alone.

Beauty comes in all shapes and sizes.

Mine is 4’11” and 170 pounds. It’s all me, and I am beautiful.

Wednesday Check In: Shrinkvivor WI5

2010-10-13T11:41:00.004-06:00

Its check in Wednesday time at The Sisterhood. I’m just going to jump to the scale and get on with it.

SW: 174

9/22: 172

9/29: 170.6

10/6: 169.6
10/13: 170.2

This week: +0.6 pound

Overall Challenge: -3.8 pounds

My time in the 160’s were short lived but I will be back soon. I was thinking all morning of what my excuse would be for my gain. I came up with a lot of good ones but it’s my fault. I ate horrible this past week. I had Pizza on Friday and Saturday, Olive Garden on Saturday with friends, Taco Bell on Sunday with Grandma, Café Rio on Monday and I didn’t work out very much. This week we repeated the miles challenge and I was only able to get 9.5 miles. Last time I got 12.26 miles. I didn’t push myself this week. I’m lucky I only gained 0.6 pounds. That really isn’t that much.

It was good that I had a gain this week. It reminded me that I really do have to pay attention to what I put in my body and make myself workout even when I can come up with a 1,001 excuses not too. I just hope my gain isn’t going to send Burgundy Babes to Exile Island.

Go Burgundy Babes!

Wasatch Woman: Love Your Body Race Report

2010-10-10T21:01:00.005-06:00

On Saturday 10/09/10 I competed in my first race. I walked 2 5K’s with my family as a child but I’m not counting those. I participated in the Wasatch Woman: Love Your Body 6K. I was one of 1800 women that participated. I was amazed at how many women were there. Women of all shapes and sizes, a couple even completed this race in their wheel chair. It was inspirational and amazing.

I’m slow, but that’s okay. I did the race with my SIL so the race music I prepped I didn’t even use. She is about 10 inches taller than me and her jog was my run, her speed walk was my jog. I really slowed her down but she stuck with me the entire race. I appreciated it. I ran the first mile with no stops, I was proud of myself. I know it’s not much but I’m improving. Then my asthma kicked in and I had to walk. I did the rest of the race in jog/walk intervals. I did make sure I finished strong and I ran the last 0.5 mile and I sprinted the last bit before the finish line. I thought my legs were going to fall off but I did it.

Do you remember THIS post about how I get distracted running outside. It was no different in this race. The race was at Thanksgiving Point through its beautiful gardens. I’ve never been to Thanksgiving Point before (even though it’s only 40 minutes away from my house) and I got side tracked by a few of the amazing features.
I was told the waterfall at Thanksgiving Point is the nation’s largest man made Waterfall. We ran past the side of it but I wanted to see it. So Angie and I ran down the huge soaking wet hill to see it, then we ran back up the great big hill.

I also got side tracked by the Italian Garden, it was really neat.

We also ran by the Secret Garden but we ran in it to take a look.

Unfortunately I don’t have any pictures from the race. I stole the pictures above from Thanksgiving Point’s website.

My race was mapped out to be 3.72 miles but with our detours through the garden it mapped out to be 4.2 miles on Angie’s Nike+. We finished the race in 1:01:43. I finished number 886 out of 1067 for the 6K. I wasn’t fast but I did it and I’m so proud of myself. I will only improve from here. I just need to keep with it.

I felt bad for the ladies that ran the 10K though. It turns out they sent them in the wrong direction somewhere and their race mapped out to be 7.2 miles instead of 6.2. Who knows maybe next year I will be able to do the 10K. Only time will tell.

Shrinkvivor Challenge 4 and 6K

2010-10-07T10:23:00.002-06:00

This week’s Shrinkvivor Challenges should be pretty easy. The non-fitness challenge is to continue with lots of water, no drive thru, 5 fruits or Veggies a day (I went grocery shopping last night and bought pairs, apples and carrots!) and they added food tracking. I’ve been a member of Spark People of a while and LOVE IT! I even downloaded the free Spark People App to my Black Berry. It makes tracking food very easy.

The fitness challenge is miles again. We did so great the first time they decided to have us repeat the miles challenge. Last time I walked 12.26 miles in 5 days. This time I will have 6 days so I’m hoping to do much better. The one thing I’m nervous about is over doing it today and tomorrow. Because I don’t want to over do myself and be tired for my 6K on Saturday.

The Wasatch Woman Love Your Body 6K is Saturday. I picked up my race packet yesterday. I got my chip, bib and awesome shirt. Any race my friends or family have done in the past they get a regular cotton t-shirt. My shirt is an actual running shirt. It’s a nice light weight long sleeve running shirt which will come in handy this winter. When I was picking up my packet at the local running store I splurged and bought myself a good sports bra! The ladies there were wonderful and measured me at a 38C or 36D (it sucks being between sizes) and gave me 4 styles they thought would be great for me. I ended up buying Moving Comfort Vixen. I can’t wait to try it out on Saturday.
I can’t believe the 6K is Saturday. The lady that checked me in explained what I should expect on Saturday. She also gave me an email address so I could contact her with any questions I have. I’m not sure how many women have signed up but I do know they’ve had more sign up this year then ever before.

I’m now getting my play list together so I have some awesome music to keep me going and I’m looking for any suggestions. I’m also up to any suggestions in general. I’ve walked 2 5K’s when I was younger but it was just because my family was doing it. This is my first real race so I’m not sure what to expect. If you have any great tips for a newbie like me I would appreciate it.

Wednesday Check In: Shrinkvivor WI4

2010-10-06T09:41:00.004-06:00

It’s weigh in Wednesday again so I hopped on my scale this morning and I was pleasantly surprised with what it read.

SW: 174
9/22: 172
9/29: 170.6
10/6: 169.6
This week: -1 pound
Overall Challenge: -4.4 pounds

I’m very proud of myself for this week’s loss. I had some major struggles with the non-fitness part of this weeks challenge. I was able to get over 5 servings of Fruits and Vegetable’s most days. The only day I didn’t do it was Thursday and Saturday. Even though I was traveling I managed to not go to a drive thru. I had Subway for dinner on Monday and we had Great Harvest on Tuesday. I did sneak Grandma’s fries on Sunday so I didn’t do as well this week. I did great on my water though!

This week’s fitness challenge was to run your fastest mile. I pushed myself at the hotel gym yesterday and I ran a mile in 13:20. I was shocked and so damn proud of myself.

I’m nervous that this will be the last week for Burgundy Babes. We have some pretty low numbers and the two tribes with the lowest percentage get sent to Exile. It’s been great getting to know these ladies and I just hope that we will have one more week together.

Go Burgundy Babes!

Love Hate Relationship

2010-10-05T13:39:00.000-06:00

I have a love/hate relationship with the treadmill. I normally don't jog on a treadmill because I don't have one. I'm normally out in my neighborhood.

When I'm out in my neighborhood I don't push myself. I take my time and enjoy what I have around me. I hate that I have nothing to look at on the treadmill. I get bored.

But when I'm on the treadmill I watch my time and I pay attention to how slow or fast I'm going. I make myself go faster and faster until I'm uncomfortable. I run at my uncomfortable rate for at least a minute, sometimes 2 or 3 and then I slow down. I give my legs a break and then I do it again, but faster. Because I did that this morning I set a new personal record. I did 1 mile in 13:20 minutes. I was shocked, I've never done a mile that fast but I've never pushed myself like I can on a treadmill. My legs felt like jello afterwards but I did it and I think I can do it again.

Maybe I should look into a gym membership this winter so I can get better and better.
Sent on the Now Network� from my Sprint® BlackBerry

True Confessions Tuesday

2010-10-05T06:00:00.000-06:00

I’m writing this post Monday night before heading to Idaho for work. This week’s non-fitness challenges with The Sisterhood were Fruits and Veggies at least 5 servings a day, and no drive-thru and drink lots of water. I hit one of these out of the park, can you guess which one? The water, it’s super easy for me.

Drive Thru: I forgot to pack a lunch on Sunday for Grandma’s house. Chris and I stopped at Subway on our way there so I could get a sandwich and not be tempted by McDonald’s. We only ordered what Grandma wanted but I still found myself munching on Grandma’s fries.

I’m also driving to Idaho tonight (being Monday). We normally stop at Subway for dinner but who knows if someone decides to stop somewhere different. Since I will be in Idaho I will be eating out tonight (Monday) for dinner and tomorrow (Tuesday) for lunch and dinner. I don’t have much control over where we stop so I may do great or I may fail.

Fruits and Veggies: It’s been hit or miss if I get enough Fruits or Veggies in. Some day’s I get 6 or 7 and other days I get 1 or 2. I need to be better at this.

My mom made Banana Cookies this weekend and they were delicious. I ate way too many. Does Banana Cookies count as a fruit? I didn’t think so.

I didn’t really count Calories this weekend. We were at my SIL and had soup and scones for lunch on Saturday. I’m afraid that lunch sent me way over my calories for Saturday alone.

The hotel I’m staying in always puts out fresh baked cookies from 6:00-9:00. I can never avoid them, the lobby smells so delicious when we walk in I have to have one. I’m hoping I can stay strong but I’m not sure.

I think that’s everything. I hope I didn’t confuse anyone to much with the tonight(Monday) and tomorrow(Tuesday) talk since I know you won’t be reading this until Tuesday.

i love me

2010-10-02T21:23:00.003-06:00

Yep, I said it. I love myself. I didn’t use to though. I used to have a lot of problems with loving myself, but I’ve now learned I was wrong. It still isn’t easy and I have to remind myself daily how amazing I truly am.

So along with my Shrinking Jeans Sisters, I am participating in the Monthly Project for October and taking the pledge to love myself unconditionally, without strings attached and just because I should.

Won't you join us? Raise your right hand, button up and/or blog:

The Pledge to Love Myself.

I pledge allegiance, TO MYSELF.
Today I will proclaim it
out loud,
TALL AND PROUD
I LOVE MYSELF.
From this day forward,
I promise to be nice.
TO myself and ABOUT myself.
I will accept my quirks and I will love my faults.
I will love my shape, whatever it is
My bones, my muscles, my hair and my face.
My body, all of it, inside and out.
Because that is what makes me, ME.
And there is only one of me.
I will finally allow myself
to see what others see.
My kindness, my spirit, my love.
And starting today, I will share some of it,
with ME.
Because I deserve it.
I will fight for myself, because I’m important.
And I deserve to be everything I am capable of in my life.
I deserve to find my greatness and live my life fully and completely.
With no regrets.
There is so much I want to do in my life,
but first, it begins with “me.”
I LOVE MYSELF.
Today, tomorrow, and every day after that.
I LOVE MYSELF, DAMMIT!
And no one can stop me.

Happy Birthday Grandpa Mauch

2010-10-01T16:13:00.001-06:00

Today would have been my Grandpa’s 84th birthday. He passed away December 25th 2002. He was the second Grandparent I lost on Christmas Day, this is one of the reason’s I hate the Holiday but that will be for another post.

My Grandpa Mauch practically raised me. He took me to and from school starting in pre-school until half way though my sophomore year of High School. The only reason he stopped then was because of the Olympics made it extremely hard to get in and out of my High School (that is when Chris started giving me rides home) because of security. He was always the healthiest of all of my Grandparents. My Grandma totally relied on him and he did everything for her. My Grandma never had a driver’s license so it was always up to my Grandpa. The only time he ever was sick is when I was in Elementary school (I’m guessing around 4th grade) he had a Heart Attack and had to have a CABG procedure. This is the only time I walked to school for more then two consecutive days. They would plan their vacation around me and my schedule. When he would pick me up from school I would get to pick which friends we would take home and which ones we didn’t (he spoiled me). Then he would hang out with me at home until my Mom was leaving work. We would always watch old westerns together on cable. He also started my My Little Ponies collection. I have close to 200 original My Little Ponies because of him.

The end of my sophomore year in High School is when Grandpa got sick. He was diagnosed with Prostate Cancer that quickly spread to the rest of his intestines. He went down hill quickly. He is the reason I went into health care. In December 2002 he lost all control. He was around 95 pounds, couldn’t eat and couldn’t move on his own. It was my turn to help him how he helped me though the years. For 3 days I stayed at their house during the night so Grandma could get some sleep. I would have to try and get him to the bathroom, and when I couldn’t get him up I would remind him that he was wearing a diaper and he could just go. He would try but nothing would happen because of the cancer. This is when they had home Hospice come in to help, a few days later they decided they couldn’t do anything so we moved him to the care center on December 24th 2002. When I woke up Christmas morning he was gone. I was 16 when this happened.

I miss my Grandpa so much. He was always there for me even though he wasn’t really my Grandpa. He married my Grandma when my Mom was just a few months old and he raised her as his own. Out of all 19 Grandkids my brother and I were the only kids to call him “Grandpa” on a regular basis. All of my cousins would tell me “Your Henry’s favorite” and I would say “Maybe it’s because I call him Grandpa” and their response “He’s not our Grandpa and he isn’t yours”. This always hurt me, he was my Grandpa and he always would be.

Someday ~~when I finally decide to have kids~~ I hope that I will have a little boy. If I’m graced with a son someday he will be named Henry in honor of the amazing man that was always there for me. I miss you Grandpa.

Cardiopulmonary Stress Test: CPX x2

2010-10-01T15:11:00.001-06:00

Today I did my VO2 Max Cardiopulmonary Stress Test on a treadmill. Do you want to know what the worst part was…..

The stupid mouth piece and head gear. It was horrible. They had to give me a pediatric size mouth piece because I was gagging with the adult size. This is what it looked like. The treadmill wasn’t even going fast. I was at a 2.0 mph for most of the time, towards the end the bumped me up to 3.0 mph but I wasn’t even jogging. It was just a fast walk. The thing that killed me on the treadmill was the grade. I was at a 16% grade and I thought I was going to fly off the back. I wasn’t going fast enough for that grade so I finally stopped. I worked out for 20 minutes (most patients go for 10-12) including a warm up and a cool down. My lowest heart rate was 95 (I always have a higher heart rate) and my highest was 193. As of right now I only have my EKG from the test, I don’t have my breathing results yet but when I get them I will let you know how I did.

Overall the worst thing about the test was the head gear and mouth piece. I wish the treadmill was either going faster when I had a 16% grade or I wish I didn’t have that high of a grade. The grade is what killed me and why I finally had to get off. I’m happy that I did this test because I will be able to really explain to my patients what they will be experiencing and understand what they’re going though. I probably won’t volunteer for another one though.

Wednesday Check In: Shrinkvivor WI3

2010-09-29T06:25:00.004-06:00

Good Morning All, I made it another week competing in Shrinkvivor at the Sisterhood. I was nervous to step on the scale this morning because I don’t think I worked as hard as I should have. I felt like a slacker and that I let my team down. I’m happy to announce the scale said otherwise.

SW: 174
9/22: 172
9:29: 170.6
This week: -1.4
Total Challenge: -3.4

I’m happy with those results, it isn’t as much as last week but I definitely didn’t work as hard this week.

The fitness challenge for this week is minutes. Workout minutes any way you can get them. I was able to get 193 minutes over the past 6 days. I wish it were more but I should be happy with what I was able to do.

The non-fitness challenge was no fast food and I did it. I packed a lunch for the Air Show on Saturday and I packed a lunch for my Grandma’s house on Sunday. I still went thru Taco Bell’s drive thru on Sunday but I’m happy to say I didn’t get anything for me. I also got over 101.3 ounces every day. Even on the weekend when I normally have a hard time getting that much.

Go Tribe Burgundy Babes! I hope we make it another week.

I’m off to another Out Reach Clinic today but I have no gas in my car luckily I’m not driving, no wallet to put gas in my car or to buy anything for the trip. I’m so frustrated at myself for not noticing my wallet was gone. I’m hoping the 3 granola bars and 1 container of Chobani yogurt will be enough until I get home tonight so I won’t be able to check in on everyone else until late tonight or tomorrow. I hope you guys had a great weigh in and your day is going better then mine.

True Confessions Tuesday: bullet point style

2010-09-28T08:57:00.001-06:00

I’m scared for the scale tomorrow. I don’t feel like I’ve racked up nearly enough minutes to make Tribe Burgundy Babes proud. I think it will be another night on the Elliptical while watching Biggest Loser (after Glee of course).
I ate horrible this weekend. I went to an Air Show with my in-laws and brownies were involved. Then the brownies made it home with me and it seamed like no one else was eating them besides me. This is why I don’t keep sweets I like in the house when I’m dieting. I can never limit myself to just one.
I’m having major problems with my calves. No matter how much I stretch my calves are always tight. It makes it difficult and uncomfortable on my jog/walks. My 6K is in 11 days so I really want to get them back to normal before my race but I don’t know how.
I’m also having problems with my left leg going numb. This has happened a few times this weekend. It’s very uncomfortable and I can’t stand on it when it happens. I don’t know if I have a knot sitting on a nerve and I need a massage or if it’s something different.
I feel like someone flipped a switch inside of me, something’s different. I don’t feel like working out, when I do it’s a chore and I’m in pain somewhere (hips, knees or calves). I’ve also been exhausted lately. I feel like I’m sleeping fine at night but I can’t make it through the day. I just need to get out of this rut before my race.

Cardiopulmonary Stress Test: CPX

2010-09-27T11:23:00.002-06:00

This Friday I will be having a Cardiopulmonary Stress Test. The newest study I’m working on my participants will be having this test done. Before we start enrolling people we always test our equipment to make sure we can get the data we need for the study. I volunteered to be the test subject. I’m not sure what I was thinking, I thought it would be fun, I thought is would be neat to evaluate my heart and lung capacity since I have asthma but I’m starting to get a little nervous. I’m going to be working out in front of my coworkers. I’m not very fit and I’m going to be on a treadmill with EKG electrodes on me and a breathing device in my mouth and strapped on my head. I’m going to look ridiculous.
I will look like this but I will be on a treadmill instead of a bike. I made my coworker promise not to make fun of me since I’m out of shape, he reassured me that I will be able to complete this test with no problems but I’m still worried. I will let you all know on Friday how it goes.

Shrinkvivor Challenge 2 and a Question

2010-09-24T08:56:00.000-06:00

I’m happy to say I didn’t get sent to Exile Island. Tribe Burgundy Babes are still kicking just with one less member (we already miss you Emily). This week’s challenge is minutes devoted to working out. You can do any kind of workouts you just need to log the minutes from it. The challenge actually started yesterday but I wasn’t able to log any. I felt horrible, I had a major head ache, nausea and cramping. I just wanted to lie on the couch and die last night. I only had a PB&J for dinner. I’m hoping I can get in some minutes tonight, I feel better this morning but I’m definitely not myself. I won a copy of EA Sports Active More Workouts from a raffle that Beki at Wild Child Gone Good was having for her fundraiser Relay for Life. I’m excited to start this game and see what it has in store.

The non-fitness challenge is no drive thru which I think also means no fast food. This one will be tough for me. Tomorrow we are going to an Air Show, I’m planning on packing a lunch but I’m sure we might pick something up on our way home or go to a sit down restaurant (luckily, that doesn’t count). But I always pick up fast food on Sunday. That is what my Grandma wants. I’ve been able to drag her out of the house once for lunch at a restaurant because it was her birthday. But she just wants us to bring her a Fish Sandwich (extra tartar sauce) from McDonald’s or a Nacho Supreme (sometimes a Mexican Pizza) from Taco Bell. That is all she ever wants. They also asked us to keep up with the water part of our challenge; this one is easy to me. I love water, I drank 169 ounces yesterday. I’ve already got some water bottle ready to take to the Air Show tomorrow.

Okay so I have a question…

What do I do with my keys during my 6K? This may be crazy but I like to have a plan and I don’t know what to do with them. I’m planning on picking up my SIL that morning and us driving together to the race. I don’t think any of our family is coming to watch and I’m 100% okay with that. But what do I do with my keys? Do I carry them? Do I take just my car key off and stick it in one of those pouches for my shoe? Do I need a pouch for my shoe? I need help and I’m looking for answers.

Wednesday Check In: Shrinkvivor WI2

2010-09-22T06:21:00.003-06:00

Today is my first weigh in with Shrinkvivor that and it could be my last with Tribe Burgundy Babes. Last week our weigh in was just to get our stating weights, nothing scary happened. This week I could be sent to Exile Island if I have the lowest % of weight loss or worse my entire team could be sent to Exile Island. It really makes me nervous, I honestly didn’t sleep well. Its 5:45 as I sit here and type this on my laptop with Roxie snuggled under the blankets on my lap thinking “What the eff are you doing Mom, why aren’t we in bed”. So I will start off with my weight this morning...

Starting Weight: 174
Today’s Weight: 172
Difference: -2 pounds

I’m very pleased with that number, I really didn’t know what to expect this morning. I think I’ve worked my butt off this week. Remember this week’s challenge I told you about on Friday? Well I racked up 12.26 miles! I can’t believe I was able to get that much. I promised my team I would at least do 1 mile a day, well I smashed that goal I set for myself and I’m glad I did. That just proves I can do more then what I think I can do. I also did great on the water challenge, but I knew I would be able to smash that one. Chris always tells me I drink more water than a whale, I wish he would see some of our conversations on Twitter about water so he would realize I’m not the only water lovin’ freak out there. On Friday, Monday and Tuesday I got well over 101 ounces. I can’t remember if I filled up my 33.8 ounce water bottle once or twice after I got that number. On Saturday and Sunday it was closer to 87 ounces.

Around lunch time the ~~Sisterhood~~ Tribal Council will announce this week’s challenge, I’m off to Wyoming today for an out reach clinic so I won’t be able to see it until tonight. I also have to wait until tomorrow to find out if I’m off to Exile Island or if my entire Tribe is. I hope not, I like my tribe. We’re awesome.

True Confession Tuesday

2010-09-21T08:27:00.000-06:00

I can’t remember the last time I did a True Confessions. I’m excited to say I’ve done great this past week. I’ve stayed in my calories everyday. I may have gone over Friday because you can’t really accurately tell how many calories were in that Chocolate Cake I had at dinner. But I only had ½ a vegetarian sandwich and a bowl of fruit so indulging in cake is okay, plus I walked to the restaurant. Yep, I walked to the restaurant all 3.5 miles from work to the restaurant! It about killed me, okay it didn’t about kill me but it was hot, really hot, 90* hot. I was in jeans and carrying a 10 pound backpack. I didn’t really plan that out very well but I did it. I did it in 70 minutes. I’m very proud of myself.

Saturday Chris and I went to the fair and walked some more. I didn’t eat one thing at the fair. Nothing even looked good, okay the corn on the cob looked delicious but I wasn’t hungry.

Sunday while taking Grandma lunch instead of getting something at McDonald’s or Taco Bell (her two favorite fast food restaurants) I stopped at Subway and got me a sandwich. Oh ya, and I walked.

Monday I planned out my breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks and still had enough calories left over to have a bowl of ice cream for my FIL birthday. I also was able to get a quick walk in at lunch and I walked from the train, to the store, to a place to meet Chris when he got off work.

I’ve walked 8.55 miles this weekend. That is only counting Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. I can count what ever I get in today too. I plan on getting another 1 mile at lunch and Chris has already said he would bring the elliptical into the living room tonight so I can rack up some more miles while watching Glee and Biggest Loser.

I’m very proud of myself for this past week. I think I’ve done great and I hope the scale shows it tomorrow morning.

Premier Week!

2010-09-20T09:25:00.009-06:00

So, I’m about to admit to all those who read my blog that I watch WAY too much TV. It’s actually kind of embarrassing . If I didn’t have a DVR I wouldn’t be able to keep up with all of my programs. Chris and I don’t really have a Monday night show. We always just find something on but now that it’s Football season that’s what is typically on our TV.

Tuesday:

GLEE!!! I can’t wait for this season to start. It’s probably what I’m looking forward to the most. I love this show, I’m semi obsessed with this show. It’s kind of sad.

If you haven’t watch Glee but have thought about watching it you can try and win a copy of Glee: The complete first season on DVD. My friend Mommy Mo is giving it away! And of course you could always enter and if you win and don’t want it I would be willing to take it off of your hands. I’m just sayin’ :D

I’m also very excited about The Biggest Loser. I just started watching The Biggest Loser last season and now I’m hooked. It airs the same time as Glee so I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have a DVR.

Wednesday: Criminal Minds

Thursday: Big Bang Theory: Chris and I are just getting into this show. It’s absolutely hilarious. We have been renting the earlier seasons on Netflix so we can get caught up. The Office: This is probably Chris’ favorite show. It has funny parts but it isn’t my favorite.Grey’s Anatomy: I used to really enjoy this show. It’s kind of lacking lately and getting a little old. I wouldn’t be surprised if I stop watching completely during this season.

Alright, I just proved to you that I watch WAY too much TV. Please make me feel better and tell me that you are excited for a Premier this week too.

Shrinkvivor Challenge 1

2010-09-17T12:37:00.000-06:00

So this challenge at the Sisterhood is pretty hard core. Each week 2 tribes are sent to Exile Island **gasp** and 1 person from each tribe is sent. 1 tribe each week can get immunity by winning that week’s fitness challenge. The challenges run from Friday to Tuesday, we will report our fitness challenge on our Wednesday weigh in.

This week’s physical challenge is miles. Miles any way we can get them outside of our normal routine. They can be done via running, jogging, walking, StairMaster and Elliptical. They can not be done on a bike. The non-physical challenge is water! They want you to drink at least half your body weight in ounces (174/2=87), this one is easy for me. I drink at least 2 liters of water a day (only 67.6 ounces) but that is a bad day. It’s normally around 4-5 liters every day (135.2-169 ounces)

I have a plan on how I can rack up some extra miles… are you ready? I’m going to walk anywhere and everywhere I can. Tonight we are celebrating Chris’ dad’s birthday and I’m going to walk to the restaurant. Using Map My Run I found out it is 3.5 miles from work to the restaurant. I could ride the train to the restaurant but I would only walk 2 blocks. I’ve promised Tribe Burgundy Babes that I would do at least 1 mile a day, if I could kick off this challenge with 3.5 that would be awesome. I just can’t decide what time I should leave work. I want this to be a nice leisurely walk; I don’t want to feel rushed. I’ve done 3.5 miles around my neighborhood with Chris in 1 hour. This walk is also mainly down hill (I don’t think I could ever walk to work because I would die walking up a massive hill by the hospital) so that should make things nice. I’m thinking about leaving work at 4:30. Dinner is at 6:00 so that should give me plenty of time and if I get there early I can just walk around the block until it’s time to eat to rack up even more miles.

I will do great at this challenge, I know I can do it and I will succeed!

GO BURGUNDY BABES!

Wednesday Check In: Shrinkvivor

2010-09-15T08:07:00.003-06:00

Today we kick off a new challenge over at the Sisterhood.

It is crazy, I’m a little nervous about what I got myself into. But I’m even more excited. They also have some amazing prizes for the winner of Shrinkvivor. ~~I would LOVE that beach cruiser bike, I want one really bad but Chris says “no” he thinks they are ugly~~ It would be really neat to win but I’m not getting my hopes up. It is going to be one heck of a challenge to win and who ever does win Shrinkvivor will definitely deserve all those awesome prizes.

My weigh today for the start of Shrinkvivor is 174. I know, I’m up but I blame it on not being able to work out because we moved every single piece of furniture out of my house and yes that is a workout. It doesn’t count as one. I will do better. I will kick butt for Tribe Burgundy Babes!

On another note, I need help. When do I tell my mom to back off and step out of her life? Some of you may have read THIS post about my not so awesome family support. Last week my mom got her A1C results they were 10.1 (supposed to be under 7). She is a diabetic and doesn’t take care of her self. She doesn’t see a specialist, she doesn’t watch her sugar intake and she drinks… a lot. I wouldn’t call her an alcoholic by any means but she has more then one mixed drinks on a regular basis and puts alcohol in her coffee. Because her results were high she attacks me. She calls me and tells me how I need to lose weight because I will be the same way if I don’t. She doesn’t understand that I eat healthier then she does, she doesn’t understand that I get check twice a year for diabetes because it runs in our family. I don’t even have any of the warning signs for diabetes my fasting blood sugars are always in the high 70’s to low 80’s. When I tell her she needs to take care of herself she say’s “that doesn’t matter, you are fat and need to lose weight”.

Yesterday, we went to pick up the dogs from her house. She watched them for us so we didn’t have to worry about them while getting our carpets cleaned. The entire time I was there she stared at me and couldn’t take her eyes of my stomach. I knew she was dying to say something but scared I would go bat shit crazy on her ass (I probably would have). Then she called me after we left.

Mom: Did you know you have a Weight Watchers right by you.
Me: Yes
Mom: You should join
Me: Nope, it’s expensive and being a vegetarian I don’t think I would do well. Since some of their programs are based off of protein.
Mom: So you’ve looked into it.
Me: I’ve talked to people yes.
Mom: Well you really need to lose weight so you can be happy on your cruise.

I am happy. I’m happy now then I ever was growing up. I’m sick of her telling me how I need to lose weight, how I’m fat and I think she thinks Chris is going to leave me for being fat. I’m sick and tired of her negative thoughts about me. I don’t deserve it. I’m debating about taking myself out of the picture. Not going over there as often. Not talking to her. Telling her if she doesn’t stop it she will lose her daughter. I just don’t know if that’s the right thing to do. I don’t know if I’m supposed to just deal with it because she’s my mom. I need help. I want to lose weight for me but I know if I do it now my mom will take the credit. I know I’m over weight but it’s not like I’m unhealthy. The rebellious teenager in me wants to gain weight and tell my mom to eff off but I know that is not the appropriate way to handle this. What would you do? Do you have any suggestions for me? I would really appreciate it.

Flashback Friday… Billy (Goat) Flynn Shepdogg

2010-09-10T08:52:00.007-06:00

A year ago today (tomorrow is the actually adoption date) we adopted Billy. I wanted to go to the Super Pet Adoption to just “look around”. Chris decided he had to go with me or else I would have brought home a dog without consulting him (he was right). I left work early so I could pick up Roxie because if I found a dog I had to make sure it got along with Roxie. We walked around the first big tent and didn’t really find anyone dogs we thought would work well with Roxie (she is the alpha dog). We started walking towards the next tent and I saw the cutest little Chihuahua that was bigger then Roxie and his tail curled the same way as hers. I had to meet him. His name was Avian but he had only had that name for about a month. He was at a kill shelter south of Salt Lake and Second Chance for Homeless Pets rescued him the day before he was supposed to be euthanized. We took him for a walk with Roxie and one of the worked because he had shown aggression to other dogs at the shelter. After the walk we went into the off leash play area to make sure there wasn’t going to be any issues. Him and Roxie got along great and we fell in love with him immediately. After that we had to go and pay for his adoption.

Roxie at the Super Pet Adoption

everyone kept asking us if she was up for adoption
Billy in the off leash play area.

Billy and I in the car ride home.

Billy in is new home.

The first place Billy slept in his new home.

He was exhausted.

We couldn’t keep his name Avian, it just didn’t fit. Since Roxie (Roxie Hart Shepdogg) is named from the Chicago musical we figured he had to be too. Roxie’s husband in the musical in named Amos we thought about that for awhile and decided it didn’t fit either. So we named him after the Lawyer Billy Flynn. We call Roxie Ms. Hart all the time but for some reason Mr. Flynn never stuck with Billy. He is Mr. Goat.

Roxie and Billy act like litter mates. Besides there size you would truly think they are brother and sister. We are so very fortunate that we were able to find a great fit for our family.

You can read about my original adoption post HERE.

Since Chris won’t let me adopt another dog this year, I will be volunteering at the Super Pet Adoption. If you live in Salt Lake and are thinking about rescuing an animal, this is the place to go. You won’t be disappointed.

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