blonde ambition

1-31-12


Ordinarily I would not be able to write today due to reports being furiously done. Sadly, we once again had some kind of technical difficulty resulting in me now having everything on hold.

My hair is getting lighter thanks to another hair treatment that we did last night. The blend is significantly better, but I would like to see most of the bottom lighter and closer to the shade of my top portion. I am still not 100% sure of whether or not I like it, but I am ok with rockin it for a while.

It appears that I have broken through my plateau. I lost 4 pounds, bringing me closer to breaking the 250 mark. I am very excited about this and am hoping that with some pushing on my end that it will happen shortly.

The one nice thing about having a husband who likes Lego is that he has gobs of certain kinds of Lego for the boys to use. I recently found an old Bionicle when I was cleaning, which thrilled the boys. Sadly, I only found one guy. Well, that was ok. Ken had an entire bag of parts to make several robot dudes. Last night, the boys played for a long ass time, building guys and having a good ole time.

Ken is concerned about the weight lifting I am doing. Based on what Judd, Aaron’s trainer, says, I should be doing less weight, more reps. So far, I feel good when I do my work-out in the gym. I don’t feel it is ‘easy’, and the soreness I get is the good soreness. Ken is going to show my paperwork to Judd to see what he says. I also am hoping Judd can possibly suggest some good things for my gut. Although, really, I think I need to do some kind of sit ups at home for that. Sometimes we know the answer, but we look for something else.

Dax has his dentist appt today. I had thought it was a couple weeks ago, but we were wrong. So today my poor baby gets his first shots in his gums. Thankfully, Dr. Weston is awesome, and it shouldn’t hurt too bad. However, what Dr. Weston doesn’t know yet is how strong and opinionated Mr. Dax is.

It just occurred to me that there is a citizen of the month assembly today, and Dax has been doing really well. I hope he doesn’t get it and miss the assembly!!

I wish I could have one or more of my critters with me at work. There is something incredibly satisfying about having a pup at your feet or a cat on your desk while you work with excel.

drinks and hair

1-30-12


The weekend started with a bang.

I headed out with Stephanie and Kam to Howl Friday night for an evening of music and drinks. I didn’t drive at all, which meant I was free to get as drunk as I could. Kam saw to it that I always had a drink in hand. I am very grateful she has connections since I had several shots due to her friendships with the bartenders who hooked us up.

The music was loud, and so was the place, but it was a lot of fun hanging out, laughing at the large array of 50 something women who were clearly trying to relive their youth.

There was a small group of gays and their hag that hung out near us. They were positively adorable, especially one that was gracious enough to allow me a picture with him and even gave me his name so I could find him on Facebook. He is just a kid (ok, he is at least 21, but when you are pushing 37 he is just a baby!) and I laughed when I thumbed through his profile on Saturday.

I got to bed a little after 3 in the morning. It was really fun to be wild like that every once in a while. Especially since I was getting up early to walk to the park!

I got up around 7 and the boys and I walked/scooted up to Wilson Park where we were going to meet up with Brandy at the Farmer’s Market. The boys played a bit before Brandy arrived, and I think they had a pretty good time. Dax, however was growing rather impatient as we wandered the market.

The original plan had been to walk home, but between Dax’s attitude and the text from Ken saying Coach Ed was going to be at the fields Ken was reffing at, we opted to hitch a ride with Brandy. We were probably home for all of 10 minutes. It was long enough for me to whip up a couple sandwiches, refill my water and head out.

Sometimes I forget how much I enjoy soccer. I found myself totally involved with the boys game that Ken happened to be reffing. I cheered for good plays, got angry at asshole coaches, and cried when one boy got his hand crushed by someone’s cleats.

This lady was there selling puppies. They were ridiculously adorable. Let’s just say it is good that they were not free.

Saturday afternoon we went to a World War I traveling exhibit down by the Queen Mary. It was small, but very interesting. They had a pretty good amount of items for it being so small. It is always interesting to see how things used to be. The patriotism, the honor and even just how we treated the military.

Saturday night was movie night. We watched Real Steel as a family. That was such a fun movie. I really enjoyed it a lot. The boys seemed to enjoy it, which makes sense based on the fact that it is giant robots fighting.

Ken and I then watched Paul, which was quite funny. Simon Pegg is pretty dammed charming, and the homages to just about every alien movie ever made were fantastic.

Sunday was supposed to be a day of rest, but we did a lot of house clean-up. It was much needed. In addition to cleaning, I also started my new hair.

I needed a change, so we decided that going lighter would be different. Sally’s Beauty Supply had this product that removes all the added colors. It was quite amazing, and it did lighten it quite a bit. I then colored it blonde. Sadly, the bottom is still darker than the roots, but I have another treatment, so I think the plan now is to apply it to the bottom again and see if we can lighten it even more. I have to admit, it is strange to look in the mirror at lighter hair. It doesn’t look horrible, but I would like the two tone corrected.

My week looks to be mostly normal. I have a board meeting on Thursday, but really it is the weekend that should be interesting. My 5K is Sunday! I am registered and will pick up my number on Saturday. It shouldn’t be a tough walk, but it is exciting either way. I am hoping it will inspire me to do more, and maybe some time soon I will even care about my time!

rings

1-27-12


Ok, so I was bad yesterday.

I bailed from work around 10. I technically worked 5 hours, so I only left a couple hours early. I got to go hang out with Ken. He had several errands to run and I got to tag along. Maybe it makes me strange, but times like this make me very happy. I love just doing mundane tasks with Ken.

We went to lunch at Weeman’s Chronic Tacos, a place we have been meaning to try for some time. It was quite nummy, and the juxtaposition of old surf music playing with tatted and pierced out workers and owners was fantastic. I felt instantly comfortable there. I am anxious to go back with the boys since I know they will both really enjoy their food.

Ken and I also walked across the street to the Goodwill location there in Hermosa. I found a shirt and we also found a couple of pairs of cleats for Ken and the boys. We also noted that in fact ALL Goodwill locations are doing this huge $2 for all clothing sales today and tomorrow. I would be so tempted to check it out, but I am concerned the mad house that these sales will produce is more than I would want to deal with.

We also hit up Kay Jewelers. Ken had lost his wedding ring at some point, undoubtedly due to his weight loss. We were checking out replacement costs and opted to go ahead and order him a new ring. We also figured since we were there, we went ahead and placed an order to resize my ring. I went down 2 sizes on my ring, which is just awesome. We also are having them re-dip my ring in platinum so that I have a bright and shiny ring again. We should get our rings back next week some time, which is cute since it will be only a couple days before Super Bowl Sunday, which is the day that Ken proposed to me.

In the meantime, we both felt naked with no wedding bands on. Seriously, it just feels wrong. Since we were in the mall, we thought we would go to the jewelry shops like Claire’s to see about getting temporary, goofy rings for a week. We found what we were looking for at one of the mall carts in the form of claw shaped rings. When we showed them to the boys, they were quite thrilled, and I am guessing if they had their choice, we would keep these as our wedding rings. Wouldn’t it be awesome if some day, they asked to use one of these rings to propose to someone? Hee hee!

I am joining my department and AP today for a celebratory lunch thrown by our CFO. He is congratulating us for a year well done. We broke some of our own records last year with collections and he is treating us to lunch. The nicest thing about this is that I will get to workout at 10:30, then I only really have about an hour left of my work day. I am going home from the lunch.


Tonight my adventures are taking me to Howl with Stephanie and Kam. Should be a fun outing. I am not driving, which means I can have a few cocktails without having to worry about anything. I am thrilled about this. I like the idea of just being able to relax.

Tomorrow, the epic walking adventure takes the boys and I to Wilson Park to walk the Farmer’s Market with Brandy. I figure we can also walk around the park a bit, let the boys play on the playground, and then head back home at some point.

Ken is busy doing two games tomorrow. He called up to the show! He is doing the championship games. He is only an AR, but still, it is a big deal. I am excited for him.

Being that I know we will be tired come tomorrow afternoon, the plan is on my walk I will pick up a couple of flicks from the Redbox and we can watch Real Steel with the boys and then we are going to watch Paul after they go to bed. It sounds like a nice and peaceful evening.

Our school is poor. It bums me out that there may not be enough in the way of funding for field trips for either of my boys. They can’t afford the buses. I wish there was some way to help them out. I just don’t know how. Perhaps with giant rummage sale. I may need to propose this idea. If people brought old stuff, and we just put it all out in the playground, we could sell tons of stuff in order to raise enough money for busses. I think I will email the principal.

I have noted a slight increase in hair loss lately in the shower. I don’t think it is enough to freak out, but it is annoying. I have also been noticing that my hair just isn’t the same level of healthy as it is at other times. I wonder if this is due to an increase in washing. I had read that it is an old wives tale, therefore causing me to start washing my hair most days again. Of course, I also wonder if it is in fact period related. Either way, I sometimes find that the net has too much info, and man is it frustrating.

I told Ken I was bored with my hair and he told me to color it red just for the hell of it. I am pleased he is on board, so I think I will start looking into the best way to accomplish this and the best shade. He also said I might try lighter, but I still maintain that when I had light brown hair I looked too washed out. But who knows.

bored and reading

1-26-12


I am re-reading Ender’s Game. Thankfully there is no management here today since it means I have been reading during commercial breaks for Kevin and Bean. Good books suck me in and they are very hard for me to set down.

My webinar was in fact super boring in a lot of ways. I did manage to learn a couple of things, though, and even presented a question that the instructor was intrigued by and was going to look into it. Thankfully I didn’t need to take notes, and the “test” was more of a discussion and her making sure we were participating. I am glad that I have the background that I do as I would imagine being the Treasurer would be a little more confusing if you didn’t deal with GL’s and balancing multiple accounts.

You can tell there is management missing this morning. The troops are restless and distracted. I don’t know that anyone is even at their desk. I don’t mind, since it does mean even less intervention when it comes to me sitting here reading. At the same time, though, there is less predictability on where people will be.

I have been too immersed in Ender’s Game. I feel like I am making up strategies in a battle room.

This is one of those days where I should be ok to be at work, but in reality I want to be home.

5K

1-25-12


I sadly will have to give up my walks on Tuesdays. With Ken’s work schedule, I will be unable to walk unless I want to drag the kids along, which although can be fun sometimes, is not exactly a workout (at least not physically). It means I am going to either go ahead with the boflex at my parents’ house, or maybe I will take a walk there and leave the boys with my dad for the half an hour.

It worked out ok yesterday if only because I am in the process of having the boys finish 4 days’ worth of homework in 3. Tomorrow, instead of homework, we will be going to see Beauty and the Beast. Thank goodness for cheap matinee pricing at the theatre by Stephanie’s house!

In addition to the extra time spent on homework, Dax finished all but 10 of the Valentines for his class. He was very excited, especially when he wrote up the one for Breanna, the girl he said he is going to marry.

I have my treasurer webinar this evening. It is 2 hours long, which I am sure will be mind numbingly boring. I have gobs of distractions around me, too, which will probably result in issues with me taking a test. LOL!

The boys have impressed me recently with their willingness to try new foods. A couple days ago, they both wanted Chinese food, which normally would have only consisted of noodles. Instead, they picked out orange chicken and even tried some of the cream cheese wontons Ken and I get. They both ate some garlic bread on their own, which was a huge milestone. The best thing that they have recently discovered though has to be salsa. Yes, it is such a basic item, but the fact that they enjoy it pleases me. It means they are ok with spicy items now. They also had such a wonderful experience with it, they are even more willing to try new things. Dax tried the sweet and sour dipping sauce for his chicken nuggets. They both tried my iced tea. It is all of these little things that are truly wonderful as I get to watch them grow.

I am anxious to start my workout today. I don’t like how sweaty I do get at work, but I have mostly been able to clean up in such a way that I still look decent. I have not been listening to my podcasts/music while working out so far, mostly because if people come in, I don’t hear them when they say hello. I may just go with music today, and not have it nearly as loud. I think it will help when it comes to some of the exercises that I find myself struggling with because they are not easy.

Now if I could figure out how to read my book while exercising, I would be set! Yes, I know, books on audio, but really, I don’t think I would like that as much. I suppose if I did an exercise bike, it would work ok, but since it is not part of my routine, I don’t see it happening.

I need to register for my 5K walk on the 5th. I am looking forward to that, too. 5K should not be too hard, but it will be fulfilling for me to complete it. I like the idea of Ken and the boys at the finish line, cheering me on. If this keeps going well, I want to do more. Ooh! I could totally collect all the shirts and then cut out each logo and have Ken’s mom make me a quilt out of each race I complete!

fab lunch

1-24-12


I changed up my routine yesterday and for lunch I hung out with a couple of my co-workers. It was a fantastic lunch time and I enjoyed it immensely. I really need to chit chat with more people when I am at work. Not only does it make my day go faster, it is nice to talk to some grownups in person throughout the day.

Google + has put me into a Gena circle. Ok, in reality, this other Google + user has. His name is also Gena. He is from Minsk. It is pretty interesting to meet people from all over the world for random reasons.

My legs are in good shape today. I did my workout yesterday, trading in the painful step ups for ones that still challenged me, yet left me with the ability to still walk. I topped it off with a very vigorous walk in the rain. I don’t know what it was, but I had such an amazing stride and I felt very powerful with my walking. I then went and ruined it with eating too much Chinese food for dinner. The boys were very excited about Chinese New Year, so I wanted to continue this excitement. Thankfully, I have zero appetite this morning.

I was tempted to play hooky this morning. I had a couple of reasons. One, Dax has to get a cavity filled this morning. Two, my stomach is pretty angry at me from the orange chicken from last night. Three, Ken has to get to a class this afternoon and it will be a tight window between me getting home and him needing to leave. I may still leave early.

piercings and tidepools

1-23-12


Despite the pain in my legs on Friday, I did manage to walk to the school. I did take the old, shorter route, and it did take me almost 30 minutes (which is pretty sad considering it normally takes about 10), but I did it!

This pain put quite the damper on a lot of my activities over the weekend. Friday night I could have gone to Howl with Kam, but I opted to not sit on a stool for several hours. On Saturday, while the boys and Ken walked out on the rocks and explored tide pools, I opted to stay up near the parking lot. Luckily, I had the feral kitties to keep me company. By Sunday, I did manage to walk to the clothing donation bin with the family and did not have Ken pull me back in the wagon. LOL!

I feel better today, and will resume my weight training, with steps ups that are not as high. Ken spoke to Aaron’s trainer, Judd, who said really, the height of my step ups were way too high for me right out of the gate. Hopefully there is something like a step in the gym today so I can utilize that for my step ups. I did a little light yoga yesterday, which really helped stretch me out, so this is good. I also noted that at night I actually had a better time of healing. My legs were toasty warm under the covers, and I tend to bend my legs while I sleep, which meant I was stretched out. All good.

On Saturday, we went to the piercing place So Cal Tattoo recommended and I got my nipple pierced. I love the guy there. He was really nice and funny. He also was ok with the boys and Ken being in the room with us. In fact, he told Ken and I that we might be the best parents he has seen. We were very matter of fact with the boys, and they thought the whole thing was interesting, and were more than ok with everything.

I do think I made the piercer a little nervous at exactly HOW relaxed I was during it.

After our long outing on Saturday that included a drive along the coast, shopping at the new Goodwill in MB, and wandering the rocks and tidepools, we made it home where we would meet up with Sandra. She came by with several boxes of Doug’s clothing. There also was some comic books and other books including one that was his favorite as a kid. This one was pretty exciting since it was written by a woman who wrote one of my favorite books as a kid.

In addition to the clothing, she brought me a couple of rings, one of which was one that was his favorite and one he has had since High School. There also was a really amazing Celtic ring that he loved. In my rummaging through the boxes, there were a couple of stuff monkeys that I am sure she included for the boys. What I am guessing she didn’t know about was this little necklace that is a little hook with a skeleton carved into it. It is really cool. I love these things.

Sunday was spent at the house. It was nice. Ken and I worked on the Valentine bags, we did laundry, and we worked on other random projects around the house. We even sent the boys on down to NB’s house so we could have our own time for a bit. Hee hee!

I resisted the urge over the weekend to go into Fantastic Sams. I am planning on trimming my bangs so that they frame my face. Not a major cut, so I didn’t want to spend the money right now. Perhaps right before Vegas.

It is a sad and happy day this morning for my friends with their critters. Sad news is that poor Brandy must say her goodbyes to Stinkerbell this morning. It is such a shame, especially since she is so very young. On a happier note, Stephanie is bringing home her new addition of a sweet pup from the shelter that she found yesterday. Goodbye, Stink, and welcome pup. Hugs to all.

Ouch Ouch Ouch Ouch

1-20-12


I normally start my blog around 5:30 in the morning, if not earlier. It is now after 7. I am a little out of it. I am sore and stiff. My workout, although awesome, has left me battered. The act of sitting in particular is hard. Not fun for someone who has to go to the bathroom a great deal due to how much water I drink. Standing back up is also a challenge. Walking is awkward, and I have a real issue with it. My plan is to still try to do at least some of my workout. I can handle the items that don’t tax my thighs in particular. I will still probably do my walk this afternoon, but we will see how I feel.

I am also tired. It is hard to get comfortable when you are stiff and sore. Thankfully I will have a couple of factors on my side tonight. I will have the glorious sound of rain outside and the knowledge I can sleep in. I may also be going out, so perhaps a good buzz will work to my advantage.

In a bit of a shock, this marks the 3rd week in a row in which I have not needed to leave early or take a day off. Of course, it also means I am itching to leave. LOL!

I wonder if I can go get pierced this weekend.

I hate my stomach.

Ken showed me a coupon for Old Navy, and so I put two items in the cart for him to order. I didn’t hear back from him, and I checked my Old Navy account and found that no orders had been placed. I proceeded to monitor shop for a bit, adding stuff to the cart. Ken then places the order last night, and then notes after the fact that he purchases everything. LOL! Oops. Although, I now am not sure if he even placed that order since I don’t see it on the acct still.

Ok, seriously, my legs are killing me. As the day is progressing, I am really noting the pain I am in. Fuck. Fuck I say! I will be unable to do squats or the step ups. Rowing and pull downs should be fine. I think I can do the push-ups too. I may need to take advantage of my spa tub later. Although in reading about strains, I might need ice. I hate that there are so many pieces of advice for how to treat pain.

wacky dreams

1-19-12


Why did my dream include boating to some strange tiny island that was actually just a giant house that we thought was vacant but in fact was inhabited by tons of cats and a little old man who was locked in one room because he had some horrid disease? Two of the cats were cats, but they were really just a bunch of those colorful pom pom things you use in crafts. Another cat was about 30 pounds, but not from fat. He was huge, and hairless and very grey. While we were there, people in hazmat suits came in to clean, and then they put on a huge show for us and the kids. They even brought them giant stuffed animals. It was odd.

I am sore today. But even though I hurt, I feel so amazing!!!! I worked out with the trainer yesterday. Holy fuck, lots of stuff. He has given me 8 exercises, with how many to do. I have 20 bench squats, 20 push-ups, repeat those two. 20 bench step ups on each leg, 20 seated rowing at 55 pounds, repeat both sets. 15 Cable trunk twists at 40 pounds and reverse 15 grip pull downs at 70 pounds, repeat both. Lastly I do ½ squat with 15 pound dumbbells 20 times, and then 20 straight bar pull downs with 70 pounds, and then repeat those. He says ultimately I am going to be able to do all of that in 20 minutes. That is the goal, and once I get to that point and am finding the resistance too easy, he will up this. He says this set should be good for about 4 to 6 weeks.

My plan is to do these exercises at around 10:30 or so every day at work in the gym. I then can do my normal walk when I get home each day. So weight training and 2 miles a day. I sure do hope for some results. The trainer said he was impressed with how strong I was. In fact, he upped the original ideas he had of only doing 15 reps to 20 because he could tell I could handle it. Even if this was just positive trainer talk to encourage me, I will so take it as a compliment.

I got my first catcall in ages! I was walking yesterday and I had to wait for the light, so I was doing steps up and down on my toes to keep moving. A guy rode by on his bike and whistled and did some of the grody construction worker leers. It was awesome!

I would love to be fit enough that when the boys are in high school that their buddies always want to come to our house so they can check out Mrs. B.

I am in hate with my hair right now. It is at this awkward length with the layers kind of growing out and its wave being off. Not sure what needs to be done. Do I cut? Do I get bangs? Do I do a new color? Or do I just try to be patient?

Last night we went to the evil Ralphs. It appears that the once portal to hell is really trying to impress me with the numerous bargains it is throwing our way. When I entered, I didn’t feel the cold chill of evil I did the first time. We also picked up a half a dozen frozen turkeys that were all $5 each. They are all huge, too, normally priced at $30. I figure I can cook them from time to time, allowing me to have lots of protein for the mornings. We also picked up some incredibly marked down coffee for Ken’s mom’s new coffee maker we got her for Christmas. All in all, a good shopping trip.

I went through my closet again yesterday and got rid of a handful of things. Ken also helped me in figuring out which items he could take in easily. I have one uber fancy dress that he said he can take in very easily. Another one of my favorite skirts he said was also easy, so I am excited about this. Bobby was my fashion consultant during much of this and we were discussing my weight loss. At one point he says to me, “I still liked you bigger.” I asked him why and he says, “You still always looked good.” That kid is going to make someone an amazing husband.

I am very close to telling Greg that I don’t think I am the person to help him with his project. He wants things done a certain way, and I really don’t know that I can do it. Especially based on the time it will take. Hopefully this evening we will talk about it some more on Google+, but at that point I may bow out.

I need some cute exercise clothing. If I am going to be changing into them each day and staying in them for the last couple hours I am at work, I want to look nice.