Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Apron Swap!

So I finished my apron for the Sassy Apron Swap with a LOT of help from my wonderful mother. I decided to post pictures of both of our aprons. The first one is of my mom's apron. The person she's swapping with wanted something thanksgiving related. The second picture is the one for my swap partner. My person loved the color green and autumn so I tried to incorporate both :) Enjoy!




Fitness Blog

I decided to create a fitness blog to keep track of what I eat and what not. I tend to do better if I know people are watching, know how much I weigh, and what not, which is odd I know. Hey I never said I was normal ha ha.

Anyway, I didn't want to take up so much space on my main journal by publishing every day what I've been eating and stuff, so if you would like the link to my fitnessy blog just let me know :)

Oh and I found this list from a nutrition class I had a SUU that was compiled by an RD and it is pretty awesome. I would choose these any day over those 100 calorie packs! They compiled the list as alternates to the 100 calorie packs, and I decided all my snacks for one week can only be taken from this list. Yes some are over 100 calories, but it is better than eating the pre-packaged snacks with little to no nutritional value. What I also like about this list is that it does incorporate things like ice cream because I totally binge if I go without sometime for too long ha ha.

Here are 22 portable and healthy snacks:

  1. Half a peanut butter sandwich on whole-wheat bread
  2. Low-sugar, whole-grain granola bars that have at least 3 grams of fiber
  3. Whole-grain crackers or whole-wheat tortilla with hummus or nut butter
  4. A handful of unsalted or lightly salted dry-roasted nuts
  5. Individual unsweetened applesauce with a few dry-roasted walnuts
  6. Small apple with 2 teaspoons peanut butter or 1 ounce low-fat cheese
  7. Ants on a log -- celery with nut butter, topped with raisins or other dried fruit
  8. Half of a single-serving string cheese with a small piece of fruit or a few whole-grain crackers
  9. 4-ounces to 6-ounces of low-fat yogurt or yogurt treat
  10. High-fiber dry cereal with a few nuts or seeds and dried fruit (put this in a baggie for a make-your-own snack pack)
  11. Individual packs of carrots, celery sticks, or apple slices, with a protein source like a tablespoon of nuts, nut butter, or low-fat cheese
  12. Pretzels and low-fat cheese
  13. Whole-wheat cracker sandwiches made with natural nut butters
  14. 1 ounce of lean meat and a few whole-grain crackers
  15. 3 ounces low-fat or fat-free cottage cheese and a few whole-grain crackers
  16. 1 whole graham cracker and 1 teaspoon nut butter
  17. Raw vegetables with 1/4 cup low-fat ranch dressing
  18. 100-calorie pack of low-fat popcorn rich in whole grains and fiber
  19. Handful of tortilla chips and salsa
  20. 100-calorie ice cream treats
  21. "Skinny" latte (made with low-fat or skim milk)
  22. Small bowl of whole-grain cereal with skim milk or low-fat yogurt
Oh and to keep up with my fitness goals my mom bought me (well us ha ha she's using it too) this yesterday:



I get bored easily so its fun to have different things to do to work out, plus I was VERY skeptical if this would actually do anything fitness wise, and to be honest, I was sore this morning after working out with it for 30 minutes last night. Hey I figure it can't hurt, plus its fun! It even incorporates running (off of the pad thing, but it can actually measure how fast you're running regardless), but my favorite is the step aerobics part.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

A Good Quote

Now generally I think psychology is a bunch of crock and yet I have a degree in it, so go figure. However, I came across this quote just now and it's by Carl Rogers (a psychologist).

"One of the most satisfying experiences I know is fully to appreciate an individual in the same way I appreciate a sunset. When I look at a sunset...I don't find myself saying, 'Soften the orange a little more on the right hand corner, and put a bit more purple along the base, and use a little more pink in the cloud color...' I don't try to control a sunset. I watch it with awe as it unfolds"

I think I wouldn't have appreciated this quote as much as I do if I hadn't had a rather interesting night with Brian. For personal reasons, I'll skip the juicy details, but this quote kind of sums up how I saw things in the end. In some ways this quote is starting to apply how I view myself as well :) . I realized tonight that just talking about something that i struggle with, even if there isn't a final resolution, helps immensely! Why does it take me forever to realize these "duh" things that everyone else seems to know?

Anyway, I just really wanted to share that quote which is why i wrote this entry :)

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Old Fashioned Baseball!

On Sunday Brian and I went to Old World Wisconsin to go to a vintage 1868 baseball game. It was so fun! Old World Wisconsin is this place where they took a bunch of old buildings from around Wisconsin and moved them to one location. Then you can tour them, and they have farmsteads growing the things that each nationality of farmhouse that they have would have grown back then. In addition, they have random events throughout the year, like baseball games.

For the games, they use recreations of equipment, uniforms, and the rules from 1868. I was thinking that it wouldn't be that much different minus the uniforms, but it actually was. There were a bunch of different terms they used for different things, like the batter was the striker. The rules were slightly different too, like you could catch the ball on one bounce and it would still be considered an out, and if the ball went over the fence (out of bounds)it was a ground rule double, not a homerun. I'm sure there were other differences but thats all I really remember. They also have people dress up in old fashioned costumes walking through the audience, so I thought that was fun too! Brian is always extra amazing and brought his camera so I thought I would share some pictures!

This is Brian and I waiting for the game to start. Yup it sure is one of my famous self-portraits (though Brian is infiltrating the "self" part ha ha...but I don't mind)




Here is the rival team (the Milwaukee Grays) lining up for introductions



This is the umpire! He was the coolest haha!



This is a picture taken during the game, and some guys big fat head



This is more of the game, and the BFG's head again ha ha...he wasn't really that fat but look at that neck roll!



Aw and another cute picture of Brian and I :)

Monday, August 18, 2008

Go figure...

I already ruined my goal thing, after like one day...how awful am I? Go figure is all I have to say to something like that. I always announce that I'm an emotional eater, and today just proves it because in one hour I've downed Dr. Pepper, a little debbie snack cake, and some trail mix. Ok so the trailmix wasn't so bad because it was just unsalted soy nuts, dried unsweetened cranberries, and almonds. The other two i don't really even like. I just HAD to have regular soda and its all we had left, and I needed chocolate and we had some little debbie snack cakes which of course I then had to have. The trailmix was for my salt craving. Ugh I'm so mad at myself.

I have a lovely job interview tomorrow with the dental school of Marquette University as a registration assistant. I was excited about the job, but now I'm not really for a variety of reasons. Why did I go to college to get an entry level clerical position? I worked my butt off for 6 years and for what? So I can get a job that requires a high school diploma and a year of experience. It makes me wish that I had gone into one of the 3 areas that are actually in need of employees: NURSING, accounting, and like business or graphic design. The sad thing is, even if I had a masters there would be very few jobs I could apply for. I think I might go back to school in the spring for...something...I don't know I just am having a hard time feeling like my schooling was worth anything. My other thought is going back to Viterbo because they have a bachelors of dietetics which means I could go straight into my internship since its part of the 5 year program and then just take the RD exam...skipping graduate school all together, and there are a few RD jobs that come up occasionally. I'm hoping with my nutrition degree I can forgo some of the classes so it will take less than 5 years, but who knows.

I'm half tempted to just purposely bomb my interview, but then again if I get the job I would get free tuition to a decent school so maybe I should try. Tough choice ha ha i kind of am liking the idea of just BSing the interview and answering with atrocious answers. But lets be honest, I could never really do that.

Other than that, my life is boring. I did get to go to the waukesha library today for the first time in oh I'd say 8 years, and it was actually kind of exciting. I've always been a HUGE reader so it was like being in a candy store ha ha. Though, the two books I really have wanted to read are fairly new and you have to "rent" the new books. Like they charge you $1.00 for a week to rent them, and $1.00 a day for every day after that initial week. While I did indeed have $2.00 on me to rent both books, I was a little put-off by the fact I'd have to pay for them. Isn't the point of the library to get books for free to heighten your leaning? Though I did get a new library card complete with the cute little keychain sized one to put on your keyring so that was exciting and made up for the bad part.

Oh and I found this on a friends blog so I thought I would do it for my name. I know these things don't really mean anything but I pretty much fit everything this thing says ha ha.




What Stacey Means



You are the total package - suave, sexy, smart, and strong.

You have the whole world under your spell, and you can influence almost everyone you know.

You don't always resist your urges to crush the weak. Just remember, they don't have as much going for them as you do.



You are a seeker. You often find yourself restless - and you have a lot of questions about life.

You tend to travel often, to fairly random locations. You're most comfortable when you're far away from home.

You are quite passionate and easily tempted. Your impulses sometimes get you into trouble.



You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection.

You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive.

You have the classic "Type A" personality.



You are very open. You communicate well, and you connect with other people easily.

You are a naturally creative person. Ideas just flow from your mind.

A true chameleon, you are many things at different points in your life. You are very adaptable.



You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone.

You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together.

At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together.



You are a free spirit, and you resent anyone who tries to fence you in.

You are unpredictable, adventurous, and always a little surprising.

You may miss out by not settling down, but you're too busy having fun to care.

Friday, August 15, 2008

Ugh I have to do this!

So lately I just have been so blah, and really have like dreaded things like having to get ready because I always feel fat and I hate doing my make-up and hair because tha requires actually analyzing myself in a mirror. Today I really thought about this, and I realized that its because I haven't been living really healthy. So today I decided to re-make some goals that I made a few months ago that I didn't really keep up. So these are my new goals:

-Giving up soda period, including diet ones. Mass headaches to pursue, and probably crankiness, but I think I can handle it. Watch out everyone around me though ha ha.

-Reducing my Starbucks consumption to once a week, and to light drinks. I have this evil little card that lets you get cold coffee drinks for 2 bucks after 2 pm...and I have been using mine a lot. Well, I'm only going to treat myself once a week, and I realized if you get the small one in the light style its really only 3 weight watchers points which isn't a bad lunch (I always get them for lunch ha ha). Now i'm not really doing weight watchers because it tends to make me more obsessed than I should be, but I still use the points thing occasionally to judge how "bad" or "good" something is for you.

-NO MORE EATING FAST FOOD! Ok so this one will be slightly more difficult because since neither Brian nor I live by ourselves when we want a meal we do go to a restaurant, but just because we get fast food or even restaurant food in general doesn't mean I have to get something bad. I can get something like a salad with reduced calorie or non-fat dressing. Now yes sometimes salads are worse for you than a burger, but for one, I never use even half of the dressing, nor do I ever actually finish a fast food salad since they're ginormous.

-High Fructose Corn Syrup-Now I bring this up in hesitation. So I learned in advanced nutrition about how this works in the body and it truly is awful. However, things like yogurt that have it in it aren't necessarily "bad". Like the benefits outweigh the negative effects of the HFCS. Granted, you can get yogurt without it, but its never the kind that I actually enjoy (I'm picky about yogurt). The same goes with some breads. So, things like that will be allowed because its better to eat the tiny bit of HFCS than miss out on the benefits that stem from foods like yogurt and whole-grain bread. Yes I realize some fast food salad dressings have HFCS in them, but again its better than eating something deep fried. Its definitely going to be a balancing act between two evils when it comes to things like eating out. I think this goes to be a "little bit is ok every so often" type thing. Oh and my main "hunger killer" food has high fructose corn syrup in it, but also has 35% of your daily fiber needs. They're the fiber one chocolate oat granola bars...seriously they're only 1 weight watcher point, and for a snack food like a granola bar thats pretty dang good. Plus it kills my chocolate (or peanut butter, they also have PB ones) craving and are EXTREMELY delicious...they taste just like the quaker chewy granola bars that really have no benefit to you.

-Exercise. I HATE running. I posted about my running thing a few months ago and it was AWFUL. I dreaded doing it, and as a result I stopped. So I thought about this, and I realized that just because running gives you quick results and is really good for you doesn't mean its the only way to be healthy (this is a total duh to everyone else, but I always thought if you weren't a runner you sucked basically ha ha). I realized that walking for an hour and a half every day (power walking, not just strollin along) can be just as beneficial, same with biking, rollerblading, and anything else cardio. The important thing is just to do SOMETHING. I need to get over my whole "I HAVE to run to be healthy" thing.

-Calcium. I have a hard time drinking milk, I really do, but my aunt recently has gotten extremely fast bone thinning and it kind of scares me. I will try very hard to get my RDA of calcium and drink more milk. Plus, some studies show it reduces adipose tissue in the stomach region so thats another good benefit...though some studies say thats not true, but lets just say it is for sake of motivation!

-Treats! I think this is most important. I tend to not treat myself when I diet and then I binge, so I'm going to have to find a way to incorporate small treats occasionally to avoid this bad cycle of eating well and then binging. Like I love french fries, and a small (the size of a kids meal) thing of fries really won't do a huge damage to my diet as long as I balance it out somewhere else in the day.

I have lost 10 pounds (with more loss than that, but I gained some back) so far, which is barely a dent in my 50 pound weight loss goal. I KNOW I can do this, and I know I have to do it for my health and my future. Plus, in October I potentially have to don a swimsuit to an indoor water park resort, and goodness knows no one wants to see THAT when I look like this. The last time I wore a swimsuit was 3 years ago on HOPE tour...So here goes...Hey and the more weight I lose the more cute clothes i get so that has to be motivation ha ha. Anyone want to join me? I figure its better to do things together :) it always seems to make things easier.

Sunday, August 10, 2008

New (to me) car!

So today I got my very first car ever! Lindsey asked for pictures so i thought i would post them. Its a 2007 PT Cruiser (judge from the outside if you will, but once you drive one you will LOVE it despite the outward appearance). It only has 30,000 miles on it and cost me about 10 grand but I for once am mobile. Minus the fact of course that I don't actually like to drive, which Brian teases me endlessly for ha ha. Though, I'm more excited to drive now that I have my own vehicle!





So there you go Linds those are just for you, and its super pretty inside but I have yet to take pictures of that. I love the color, its like a periwinkley blue :) The technical name is like Marine Blue Pearl...but periwinkley is more fun to say :) Oh and don't mind the way I look in this picture ha ha its terribly unflattering.

Thursday, August 7, 2008

Soundtrack to my Life

Ok so I've done this before on myspace, but I got tagged so I'm doing it again. This one took quite a lot more time than I thought, but if you're bored like me, then go for it.

a.) Put your itunes on shuffle
b.) Hit next to answer each question (no cheating!!!!!!)
c.) Post a line or two from each song (unless its instrumental) and why you picked that line for the category (optional).


1.) Opening Credits: "Girls Like Me"-Kellie Pickler
"I might be afraid to fall but I've still got a dream" - I am petrified always of the life I'm leading right now, but I know its exactly where I am supposed to be. Its kind of the story of my life right now, good for an opening song of a movie

2.) Waking Up Scene: "I Know You Won't"-Carrie Underwood
"I'll say I'm done, and then you smile at me, and I'll forget everything I said" -I always wake up making big plans, and then something happens and I always forget everything I was planning on doing ha ha

3.) Car Driving Scene: "Stupid Boy"-Keith Urban (my my we're on a country kick)
"It took a while for her to figure out she could run, but when she did, she was long gone"-I played this song when I was leaving Utah a lot (so it was by plane, not car, whatever ha ha), because to me, Utah was sort of the stupid boy. There was so much there for me and so much history but I had to move on with my life. (I love you all still there for the record)

4.) High School Flashback Scene: "Perfect"-Simple Plan
"Now it's just too late, and we can't go back, I'm sorry I can't be perfect"-I have one regret from high school, and that is turning down the boy who asked me to prom my senior year. He wasn't someone I hung out with often, but a few years later he confessed to me that it took all his courage to ask me and he liked me practically forever. I wish I would have said yes and not been such a beast towards him because in retrospect he's one of the greatest guys I've ever known.

5.)Nostalgic Scene: "Should've Said No" -Taylor Swift
"It's strange to think the songs we used to sing, the smiles, the flowers, everything is gone"-I miss the "Old HOPE Days" as we often refer to them. The nights of playing Disney Scene It, Pimp Lando marathons (thanks Billy!), watching Mystery Science Theatre 3000, and of course HOPE singing 24/7. Thanks to everyone who was part of those "Old HOPE Days"...you made my life more amazing than I ever thought possible!

6.) Bitter, Angry Scene "Behind These Hazel Eyes"-Kelly Clarkson (not kidding, how perfect)
"Broken up, deep inside, but you won't get to see the tears I cry, behind these hazel eyes"-This actually was my break-up CD when Stephen and I broke up (I have one for every serious relationship that ends). I tend to say my eyes are hazel cause I have no clue what color they really are so this was always my 'bitter song' as I called it during those post-Stephen days

7.) Break-up Scene: "Praying to the Wrong God" -Jon McLaughlin
"So I'm praying to keep me from breaking, from being another loser helpless at her side"-Uh, I never have really listened to this song and honestly I just thought these lyrics were hilarious and sort of break-uppy

8.) Regret Scene: "How Far"-Martina McBride
"Keep on giving, go on living with the way things are" -I try not to live my life with regrets because it doesn't change anything really...you learn from all experiences.

9.) Nightclub/Bar Scene: "Like a Knife"-Secondhand Serenade
"Goodbyes are meant from lonely people standing in the rain, and no matter where I go It's always pouring all the same" -Doesn't that just sound like something playing during a depressive bar scene post-break up in a movie?

10.) Fight/Action Scene: "Dancing Through Life"-Wicked
"Dancing through life, swaying and sweeping, and always keeping cool" -yes because in my life my fight scene would be a dance sequence...think West Side Story!

11.) Sad/Breakdown Scene: "Why"-Secondhand Serenade
"A frozen line, a single tear is harder than I ever feared" - it just seemed fitting

12.) Death Scene: "Beautiful"-Maren Ord
"If you could open up your eyes and see the color of my tears, they're not that grey, they're not that blue, they're beautiful" -I want people to cry happy tears when I die from me having lived a good and productive life.

13.) Funeral Scene: "Bessie"-Randy Newman (from Cars soundtrack) -no lyrics but thats kind of hilarious haha

14.) Dreaming About Someone Scene: "I Melt"-Rascal Flatts
"I Melt, every time you look at me that way" -I do melt a little when I think about things about the person I'm dating ha ha ha

15.) Sex Scene: "I Can Love You Like That" John Michael Montgomery (awkward)
"I'm no Casanova" I'm not going to explain this ha ha

16.) Contemplation Scene: "Every Time I Hear Your Name" -Keith Anderson (for the record, every time I hear this song I think of Devon and I cuddling on the couch watching football and having Billy walk in wearing cowboy garb having been making a video for Schmem...and him chasing her family's red car on the video ha ha...two shout outs to the Billy in one survey...go you)
"But when I hear your name I feel rain falling right out of the blue sky, and its the fifth of May, and I'm right there staring in your eyes" -its always good to contemplate things like this I think

17.) Chase Scene: "The More Boys I Meet"-Carrie Underwood
"The more boys I meet, the more I love my dog"-ummm dogs chase cars! good reason

18.) Happy Love Scene: "Thats How You Know"-Enchanted Soundtrack
"Everybody wants to live happily ever after, everybody wants to know their true love is true..." I LOVE this song ha ha its a song about love, all the words work

19.) Happy friend Scene: "Cowboy Take Me Away"-Dixie Chicks
"I wanna touch the earth, I wanna break it in my hands, I wanna grow something wild and unruly" -This makes me think of when we tried to garden at my old house, it was fun to do as roomies in the good old days

20.) Closing Credits: "When the Sand Runs Out"-Rascal Flatts (how perfect)
"I'm gonna stop looking back and start moving on, and learn how to face my fears. Love with all of my heart, make my mark, I wanna leave something here."-This just sounds like lessons you would learn at the end of the movie or something ha ha so it works.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Tragic Loss to my Eyelids

Today was a very sad day in my life. You see one time, about 4 years ago or so, I was given a LOVELY set of pink make-up brushes that were super expensive (seriously, they were $150.00 for 6 brushes). I adored these brushes, and kept them up and cleaned them regularly. That is, until today the brush I used the most out of the set (the eyeshadowey one) was tragically lost when it decided to take a dive into the toilet. Now some may argue that I could clean the brush and use it...but to me...I would rather eat leftovers (and we all know my theory on leftovers). My mom said she'll replace it, but still I feel like my eyelids will never be the same.

However, my mom and I took a trip to Mukwonago and upon going to the store we found Banana Split Creme Oreos!! Yes my friends they are oreos with banana creme! Chocolate...banana...excellent. I tried to find a picture to post but I couldn't find one. It kind of softens the blow of my tragic brush loss for the day.

Plus I have tomorrow to look forward to! My mom has to work late so Brian and I get to hang out and have some alone time for once since we both live at home. It shall be fun!