Craaaaazy

Resolutions !!!!!!!

We all make them.

We all break them.

You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em; Know when to walk away, know when to run.. WHAT?? get outta here Kenny.. wrong song.. and I don't even like country music.   Anyway... as I was saying.   This year I have lots of things I want to do/change/be/start/end etc.    So instead of standing there at midnight making rash promises - I have spent the last couple of days making a board.

So I present - My 2011 Resolution Board

I took a large piece of tin (left over from an old project) and punched a couple of holes (good ole cropadile) and hung it by wire.   Because the edges of the tin were a tad sharp, I wrapped the edges with 7gypsies tape.   Over each hole where the wire came through I put two buttons as added stability to stop the wire pulling back - and as luck would have it I had two buttons with the #1 on them so it is for Year 11!     Then I grabbed some el cheapo wooden pegs and glued magnet strips on to the back of each one (which came with a message board and will never be used).   Then I painted the pegs in different colours.

Peridot - Daily

Periwinkle - Weekly

Aquamarine - Monthly

Red - Year

Then I set to, and made the actual resolutions for each peg.   Some are just visuals, some are words, some are a combination.   Scrappy items came in handy here!   The whole time I was making it - I was thinking about all the things that I wanted - and even before it was finished - I had/have already started to implement some of them.    This is hanging in my little office area so everytime I walk in and out I see it.  

So here is a close up of the different areas.

DAILY

These are things I want to change on a daily basis. 

I found some fun images in a recent magazine and some I had on my computer.

No that is not moisturiser on the moisturise label but liquid pearls - looks realistic though!!   

My personal fave - Stop letting it - with the visual of  time slipping through my fingers

In making the actual board - I already started on the save money part by using items I already had.   You might laugh at the "dressed before 9am" - but let me tell you - working for yourself from home, it is so easy some days to get up and start working - and suddenly it is nearly lunchtime and you are still in your jimjams!!   Enough I say!

 

WEEKLY

The 2lbs down goal - that is my minimum - I think I can do better - but that is my weekly aim.  

Some of the exercise goals will change to daily. 

The SWIM is swimming don't you think?

Fix Something refers to the house.   We all have little jobs that need a bit of DIY - that always seem to get put off - no more!!

 

MONTHLY

My poor old Vespa has not been ridden in yonks.  With the way petrol is flying up - I need to get back in the saddle! 

1 layout a month might seem paltry - but as I have done NONE layouts a month over the past year, well!!   It seems as though since I started *working* in the scrap industry my own scrapping has become a thing of the past!

Something for me - a little AB FAB dahling - or a little putting me first.  Might be as a simple as a pedicure, or lunch with friends, or as involved as a weekend away.

I am changing my albums up - pulled the layouts all out over a year ago - they still sit... sadly waiting for a new home.

DATES!!   I want some!!   Not just a night at the movies either!

 

YEAR

These are goals I want reached in 2011.

The bath - that actual bath (and tap) is sitting in our garage - in a box - waiting to be installed. 

We bought it last year along with a new basin unit.  

We want to totally redo the main bathroom which is 70's kitsch small YUK horrible nasty.  

It is going to be a big job - everything ripped out - along with an adjoining wall (cupboard) to make the room bigger, and a skylight pushed through - as it is an interior room and dark as a coalmine with the lights off.   But this year it is HAPPENING!

I love the font for learning something new - and I know what it is I want to learn - and no I am not fessing up.      The other image is very self explanatory and I won't be commenting!

 

So there you have it - the Board.   I am thinking this should be the topic for the layout I do for this month!    I have a few other items to go on the board - need more pegs - and over the year some of the items will change their status to daily, weekly, monthly.    Some will be bumped up (exercise) and some will be bumped down (dig photos) as situations change or get completed.

I've been reformed!!

on this instrument of torture that is!!

 

I have always wanted to try out the Pilates Reformer machine - and a while back Groupon (what, you have never heard of Groupon??.. check out the link to see if they are near you for some great deals on all sorts of fun stuff) had a special where you got 3 private lessons for pennies... well not pennies but a damn site cheaper than normal.   So I was in.   I finally got some time to book my 3 lessons - and I have the last one today.

I was also looking for something different to do exercise wise to get me out of my rut AKA - not exercising at all.

Well...I LOVE IT!  

Over the years, and especially since the 2 back operations my flexibility has steadily worsened and my hamstrings are about as flexibile as an iron bar!   I love the stuff we do on this - I can feel I am getting a workout - and the next day know I have done one - but not so bad that I am walking around like a cripple.

Some of the movements are just downright fun - does not even feel like exercising!   Some of them scare the crap out of me... standing up on it and letting the mat slide out... being the main one.   OOH baby feel the stretch!

But let me tell you - it works you out!   I cannot believe how much I sweat doing this.   More than anything else I have ever done.   I am a little dripfest by the end of 55 minutes.   It also gives my legs the collywobbles... it is a bit of a challenge driving back home - especially if I have to hold the brake for a while - my knee is shaking and jiving all over the place like it has a mind of it's own.    Thank god I don't still live in Wellington and drive a manual *LOL*

I will definitely be signing up for more classes.   They say it makes you leaner, longer, stronger and seriously I already feel so much better.   I will do a couple more one-on-one lessons then will join in the group classes (slightly cheaper way to go).

The place I am going to is just around the corner which is great and the instructors are fun and fantastic.

Thanks Equilibrio!!

PLUS 1 week home MINUS 11 pounds !!

yep you read it here first!!

Not even sure how I did it!!   My charming daughter Hannah thinks I have worms!!   If that is the case, I will keep them for a while longer *LOL*

I have met 2 - two week goals on the Wii in 7 days.   Just had to set the 3rd.   Let's hope this continues!

I think it is my body going into shock at the cold weather - it is burning extra calories!!

splish splash

I did it.. 

yes not a pretty picture I know

and realised the minute I got in the water - how much I had missed it - and how much I love to swim!!  

Started yesterday - have been every day since!

Saving my pennies

because the way Miss Rach is kicking my green kiwi ass - I will be biggest loser because I will not be the biggest loser.   Confused??   My dear friend Rachel has embarked on a journey - one she knows I have been on.. and off and on for a while.   She has inspired me to get back on the horse so to speak - and try harder.   

The loser (although we are both winners for the journey) has to fly to the winners city!     She is screaming ahead of me at the moment and I am so so proud of her - I just know she is already feeling amazing and looking amazing.

Here is my ticker which I will post off and on.    

While this looks great - most of this weight loss was achieved earlier in the year. I am proud of the fact I had kept most of it off - but that is only through sheer willpower and trying to eat sort of right. I had gained a little but since I restarted with Rach - I have lost 2.4 pounds.  My weigh in is Wednesdays - this week is not looking too good... hoping for a miracle by Wednesday morning!!

Maybe I should do another ticker- actually yes I will - and here it is... the backgroun is a swimming lane - to remind me to start swimming laps again which I love to do!!

In other news I may be a little underground the next couple of days dealing with the IRS *bleech*.   Mike and I spent ALLLL day - 12 plus hours - yesterday sorting through a years worth of receipts from 2007 to give them copies to PROVE I really did have certain expenses.   *sigh*    Today I will hopefully finish it off.

Jill Kills!!

  

    YES I am finally back to exercising

    BUT

  for my birthday LAST JUNE!!!... I asked for this DVD along with another Jillian Michaels DVD.  

  So finally - on Friday I put it in and I did the first workout - Level 1.

  I was PATHETIC.  

  Each routine is made up of 3 lots of 6 minute routines totalling a 20 minute workout.

3 minutes cardio

2 minutes strength

1 minute abs

Rinse and repeat

The first 6 minutes... not so great

The second 6 minutes ... well if I am honest... I probably reasonably did 4-ish

The third 6 minutes ... does lying on the floor whimpering count????

Oh yes... and over the weekend NADA - I could not MOOOOVE - well we did all work outside on Saturday tidying the yard and putting everything away for winter but no exercise routine to speak of.

So today... finally... my thighs are ALMOST mobile so I will be doing level 1, workout 1 again - and hopefully I can improve - if only slightly.

I think my 30 day shred might take a tad longer - but at least I have my exercise MOJO back on!

Catching up...

well trying to anyway!  Adding in here - the choices of fonts on Typepad are limited... I need to get on to jazzing up my blog... I pay for all the juiciness but I don't use it!

Anyway back to my post.

Since I got back from the retreat I have been counting, inventory-ing, Accounting, reordering, planning, and generally playing catchup.   The last 2 weeks have just gone by in a flash.  I also had to catch up on all the mail that had come in - deal with bills, and deal with the influx of email and retreat signups.

I still have a bit to do in terms of my online store.   So many new products that I still do not have in there - just big gaps!   Plus I have to get a newsletter out to everyone about that and the 2010 retreats!

My body has also been playing catchup - I think it decided to tell me that the last 6 months have been a little full on and it had had ENOUGH!   In the weeks leading up to the last 2 retreats I had been running on very little sleep, and to say I was a tad stressed - unusual for me - was an understatement.    However I now have a break until early November - and I think my body caught on, fast!    Twice last week - in the middle of the day I fell asleep. 

I    N E V E R    do that.   

It has honestly taken me the last two weeks to also get back to *my* normal sleeping habits.   I think today is maybe the first day I feel sort of okay.   Not 100% yet - but getting there.   Which is lucky - because I think Mike is about to hand me the keys to the spare bedroom!

Part of the bad sleeping has also been the heat.   It is officially autumn now - ha ha ha - because we have been getting what was missing most of summer HEAT.   Been 90 and over every day for over a week now, we have hit 100 more than once, and this weekend over 100 is forecast again.   Our backyard gets SOOO hot - thank god we have the pool.

Last week I also began to eat better again.   There had been too many days of skipping meals, or having a snack and mealtimes around here in general had gone to hell in a handbasket.  Not a great example to be setting!

This week my plan is to try and get some sort of exercise regime back into play - although here we are, already at Thursday and so far a big fat nothing.  What I am going to start back doing, I don't know - I just know I have to start getting out and doing something!! What I do know is...

I

just

don't

feel

healthy

In fact, I feel anything BUT!  This year I seem to suddenly be getting all sorts of injuries in my joints - knees, ankles etc.    I wouldn't mind if I was actually doing some sort of high impact exercise and could say 'oh yes - it was when I was basejumping!'... - but just sitting, walking around etc should not be causing problems!!   My body is telling me something!!   

I have also been catching up on TV.   We had so many things taped on the DVR that we actually ran out of room!   No kidding!   In fact we had to delete some stuff without even watching it.    Of course all the new series have started up - so this week I have taken the luxury of watching a couple of things I had taped while I am eating my lunch - so that has made a bit of space.

One thing that has just started back up that I do enjoy is Biggest Loser.   It motivates me.   Earlier this year - I lost 20 pounds - between January and March - because I was motivated!!   In fact I only stopped exercising because I buggered up my knee.   It came right - however I did not restart exercising!!

I now have no excuses!   BL is back on - my motivation is there - so I can lose another 20 pounds by Christmas.   I just have to get back on the horse.   The hardest day is the first day!!

Lastly - my blog!   I have been lax-lax-lax and no not the airport!    I have made the odd post, but hope to be better.  Enough rambling from me... bloody hell...  not even any little pictures or blinkies in this post... just WORDS!

So I will leave you with this pic - taken a couple of weeks ago when Mike and Johnno were here from NZ - I love it!!.. although poor old Johnno got DROWNDED when they all hit the water!

finally.. the downward trend is back!

March was a weirdo month for me - my weight seemed to boomerang a little - mainly because my exercise was not as strict as it had been.   I could make excuses - and there were some, but in all honesty - each day I could have made the time to still do my workouts even when I did not feel like it.

I was so pleased over the last couple of weeks to see the small amount of weight I had gained come off, and for the downward trend to carry on, and I am now lighter.   YAYY.  I even met my WiiFit goal a couple of days early - and WiiFit is worried about me *LOL*

Not sure I will make that goal of mine to have lost 20lbs by the wedding in Italy - I now have to lose 18 pounds by April 27 to make it - but I am going to give it a damn good try.     I have my retreat this weekend so will have to be very careful about what I shove in my gob, especially as I won't be able to exercise!

In other news - the dresses have arrived so I will try them on today and see which one (if either) looks the best!

In other other news - I *won* two spots in the Creative Escape lottery.   But I can't go!!!       Anyone out there want my code?