.Something in the way she moves.

I'm back!

It's been over a month since my last post, but I always come back :).

I figured I can finally talk about my work out routine since I have been doing it pretty regularly for about 3 months now. I also have a short term goal to work towards. When I say short term, it's REALLY short! As in 7 days away! I'll get to that in a minute.

I started going to the 24 Hour Fitness in Pacific Beach back in March to do their Body Pump class 3 times a week. The gym is only a couple miles from my house, but it was such a PAIN to get there! There is no parking and the classes were always packed! After not being able to get into a class one day, I decided to check out the La Jolla West 24 Hour Fitness. I love it over there! It is so much further (I have to get on the freeway to get there), but there is a beautiful view of the Pacific on the way there and the parking situation is a breeze!

My class is 2 days a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays. I get to the the gym 30 minutes before my class starts so I can get on a treadmill and run... Well, it's more of a jog! Haha! I don't really have a specific distance to go, I just try to stay at a steady pace for 20 minutes or so. The farthest I've gone in the 20 minutes is 2 miles! That is GREAT for me :).

After my jog, I do 60 minutes of Body Pump. No matter how many times I do this class, it does not get easier! I have been able to up my weights quite a bit since I first started, but there are some areas that I struggle with. Mainly lunges and shoulders!

I wrote briefly about Body Pump in a previous post. That class focuses on all the major muscle groups in progression. You start with a warm up, then move on to squats, chest, back, triceps, biceps, lunges, shoulders, abs then end with a cool down. It is intense!

On Saturday's, my Mister an I have been going to the gym on Sub Base Point Loma together. The gym is amazing, and it's never busy when we go! Mister has been doing the CrossFit workouts for a while now, so he modifies them for me, and we do them together! It's a great way for us to get out of the house, and we motivate each other! I don't want to look like a weenie in front of my hubby so I push myself! An example of one of our workouts together starts with a warm up run of about 10 minutes, 50 pull ups (on the machine! I can't do a "real" pull up yet!), 100 cow bell swings, 100 jumps ropes and end with 100 squats! Needless to say, I was sore for about a week after that one!

Lastly, I have been getting ready for a last minute 5K I'm doing with my mom one week from today! I have a good 4 more days of "training" before I head out to visit my family in Minnesota. I love that my family likes staying active! It motivates me to continue to be active too.

Results?

After about 3 months, I haven't really lost any weight, but I have noticed a change in my body. My arms, legs, butt and even tummy are firmer. I know I need to change my diet in order to loose the pounds, and I know how to do it... I'm just not sticking to it! Hopefully the Mister and I will have some good news next week that will motivate us to eat healthier! To be happy and healthy is all we really want to be :).

That's all for now folks! Time to wake up my Mister so we can head to the gym!

Until next time!

~ T. Don



.Penny Lane is in my ears, and in my eyes.

Have I ever told you I have the most AMAZING sister in whole entire world? Seriously, the ENTIRE world! She has given me something that has been missing from my life (and iPhone app!) for quite a while now... Something amazing to count down to!

That's right folks! I'm going to England! And why, you may ask, is my sister amazing for that? Well, not only does she live in England, but she PAID for me to fly out to see her!

When did my baby sister get so cool???

Now comes the fun part for me...

Planning!

7 glorious days in England.

There is so much to do, so much to see!

Only 133 days to go :) 

More to come soon!

Until next time folks.

~ T.Don

.One thing I can tell you is You got to be free.

The San Onofre "boobies"

Happy Easter!

It's been another long break in between postings. So long in fact, I had to re set my password because I could not remember it! Whoops!

So much has happened the last month to catch you all up on. I'll start with this weekend and work my way back as a new excuse to keep writing :).

Saturday morning started out wonderfully with a birthday brunch for an old friend I was reconnected with. We went to this really cute bistro downtown called St. Tropez Bistro.

Yummy coffee and a great group of people made for a late start to the Mister's and my camping plans!

Sitting in traffic on the I-5

Now, if you know us, we are not much of a camping type of couple. We love being outdoors and in nature, but my hubby is so anti RV camping (and we do not have a tent!) that we usually go spend the day with our friends then head home. That was not the plan for this weekend! We stayed with our friends in their camper at the San Onofre State Beach campground. We had a blast! 

I did, however, almost die.

Ok, not really. I was "rescued" by a lifeguard though!

It was more embarrassing than scary, but quite funny at the same time!

Mrs. "Wayne" and I went out boogie boarding with the kids boards (mistake numero uno), in waves that were much to strong for a wimpy swimmer like me (mistake numero dos). I could barley swim out far enough to ride a wave in! I had a voice in the back of my head telling me to go back to shore, but I REALLY wanted to get a good wave to take me in (and not look like a wimp!) so I kept swimming out.

After when seemed like forever, I caught up with Mrs. Wayne, just in time for a bunch of huge waves to knock me off my child size boogie board and cause a horrific charley horse in my left calf. I was already exhausted from the ridiculous amount of energy it took to swim out, and now I could not use my left leg!

Luckily the water without waves was shallow enough for me to stand and catch my breath for about a millisecond before the next set of waves came barreling down on me!

Even without the waves, I could not get any closer to shore! Every time I made any progress, I was sucked back by what I found out first hand was a very strong rip current. I knew I could make it in, but it was just taking a really long time! After yet another crazy set of waves, I see a lifeguard running into the water all Bay Watch style and diving into the waves to get to me. (Side note, I was camping with a group of Navy Divers. They would NOT let me drown and were quite annoyed that the lifeguard came out in the first place! I was standing in waist deep water, and I could have gotten in on my own. I am thankful for the help though. The lifeguard was just doing his job!) Next thing I know, I have a floatie around me and then I was at the shore!

I have always had a healthy fear of the ocean, waves in particular, and this incident showed me first hand who is boss!

Happily, the rest of the trip was not as eventful! We had a delicious kabob dinner followed by a wonderful bonfire right on the beach. This morning I helped our friends hide Easter eggs for their kids, cleaned up and headed home. 

Overall, it was a wonderful holiday weekend! You can't go wrong when you have good friends, good food and good wine!

I still have lots of stuff to catch you all up on! Check back for updates soon!

Until next time folks!

~ T. Don

P.S. Favorite quote of the weekend from my hubby: "Let me roast that marshmallow for you sweetie. It's the least I can do for almost letting you die!"

.Something in the way she smiles.

It's been a while again since my last post. I was in quite a funk the last couple weeks. First I wasn't feeling well, then work started getting stressful and I was just sad. Lucky for me, I have great friends and an amazing husband to snap me back!

This past Friday marked 6 months of married bliss for the the mister and myself. Time has flown by! We celebrated with our friends at a yummy brewery in Escondido. It was a great night with exquisite food and fun company! I really have the most amazing husband. He is my rock and I love him so much!

My work schedule changes starting tomorrow. I have to work on Mondays for the first time in months! Like I've said before, we're in the process of a lot of change, so it's been a little stressful in the office. I'm trying to stay positive, but it's getting hard. I know it will get better once our systems are in place, but the process to get there is taking it's toll on me. I don't like feeling unappreciated when I am really doing my best to keep things running smoothly.

Enough of that!

I'm back to being a ray of sunshine!

I joined a book club. Our first book is called Fault Lines by Nancy Huston. I'm really enjoying it! It's not a book I would have picked on my own so I'm glad to have an excuse to read it!

My new "thing" that I'm trying is couponing. I've subscribed to the Sunday paper and have joined a website to help me learn how it all works! I will keep you updated on how it's working out! 

I have also committed to myself to stick to a work out plan! I am finally motivated enough (which means I'm absolutely disgusted with myself and all the 'bliss fat' I've gained the past 6 months) to stick to it! I started this morning with Body Pump. Tomorrow (weather permitting) the mister and I will go for a jog to the bay. It's not going to happen overnight, but I am willing to work hard to get back to my pre-wedding shape!

Time to finish the 30 day survey!

Day 25

A picture of your favorite day

Since I've already used my wedding to answer a bunch of questions I decided to pick my favorite day from our honeymoon! We had the BEST tour guide! We had so much fun exploring Antigua. Ya mon, cool!

Day 26

A picture of something that means a lot to you

My first trip to Europe really put the travel bug in me! I am obsessed with seeing the world! I never have enough time to explore as much as I would like! I have a bucket list a mile long of places I want to see!

Day 27

A picture of yourself and a family member

My sissy love!

Day 28

A picture of something you're afraid of

I'm afraid of E.T. I refuse to put a picture though!

Day 29

A picture that can always make you smile

Jajajajajaja! I need more weenies!

Day 30

A picture of someone you miss

There are a lot of people I miss. I miss my family in Minnesota, my sister in England, my friends in Ventura... I especially miss my grandpa's who are both in heaven watching over me every day. There are too many for a picture!

Time to relax with my mister with a glass of wine and a movie. It's raining cats and dogs right now! The sound is actually quite soothing. Until next time folks!

~ T. Don

.And life goes on within you and without you.

Wow, I really have been slacking with my blog! 

The mister and I were both not feeling well last week. Needless to say we didn't get much done! 

Friday morning, I was woken up at 7 AM by my bestie informing me that there was a massive earthquake in Japan. 8.9... The fifth largest in recorded history. Not only was it a horrific earthquake, it triggered a tsunami that had the potential to cause damage all the way out here on the west coast. My poor bestie did not know what she should do seeing as she lives about half a block from the ocean! The tsunami was scheduled to hit the La Jolla beaches at 8:48 AM... Obviously we are ok! We are the lucky ones. The poor people of Japan will be recovering from this disaster for a long time.

Friday evening, the mister's parents came down to visit. We had a nice visit. We found a nice wine bar to do a tasting in downtown San Diego. It was just a quick trip, but it was nice to see them. They left this afternoon so the mister and I enjoyed a nice relaxing day in our orchard (AKA our backyard!). Tomorrow is the start of another busy week. I hope it's a good one!

I'm going back to day 19 because I found out what it really was!

Day 19

A picture of you when you were little

Day 20

 A picture of a place you would like to travel

The mister and I were supposed to go to Croatia on our honeymoon, but it has been indefinitely postponed. I WILL go there one day!

Day 21

A picture of something you wish you could forget

Yeah... This was the morning of my wedding! Needless to say, I did NOT leave like that! My wedding was not Hairspray themed!

Day 22

A picture of something you wish you were better at

I loooove doing makeup! I wish I was good enough at it that I could make a living off it :).

Day 23

A picture of your favorite book

I'm a big Harry Potter geek! I loved all the books!

And finally!
Day 24

A picture of something you wish you could change

I wish there was something I could do to help this :(

Ok folks! Promise I won't go so long between updates! Still not feeling 100% and the damn heartburn is coming back! Until next time!

~ T. Don

.All my loving, darling I'll be true.

Why does time go by so quickly when you don't want it to, and slow when you do want it to??

Yesterday was a wonderful day, even with the rain. Anthony and I got to see some family friends we lost touch with for a while for dinner. Our friend Ms. Carol had surgery on Friday so we (and be we, I mean I!) made dinner and brought it over to them. We feasted on baked ziti and a yummy spinach salad and some delicious brownies! It was great to see them and catch up.

Today was another great day. I got to meet up with an old friend at yet another yummy cafe. We went to Jr. High and High School together and are now both military wives. It was a nice day at work as well which always makes for a good day! My poor hubby has not been feeling well for a while now. I hope he's not sick because I've been lucky enough to stay healthy this far through the flu season! He hit the rack early tonight so hopefully he feels better tomorrow. Speaking of hitting the rack, I will be there soon! I have pictures in the morning so I need to look my best!

Day 18

A picture of your biggest insecurity

I am sooooo scared I am going to end up like this one day! I try so hard to take care of myself, but it's so easy for me to give in to temptation! I decided for Lent (starting tomorrow) I am giving up all sweets, soda's and fast food. Hopefully that will jump start my motivation!

Day 19

A picture and a letter

...

I'm not to sure what this means, so I'm going to skip it!

Until next time folks!

~ T. Don

.And when the night is cloudy, there is still a light that shines on me.

I am suffering from the worst heartburn EVER tonight! Ugh, I've been taking tums like they're candy. I don't know what I ate, but I don't think I wanna have it again!

Today was a well deserved lazy day! We had so much fun with the "termites" AKA the Brodie's this weekend. Julie and I ran 3 miles to Mission Bay Friday afternoon. We have promised ourselves to do something active each time we see each other! Friday night's dinner was so nice! The weather was warm enough to break in our new patio furniture and light a log in the chimnea. Nice weather, good food and amazing company, what more can you ask for! Ms. Termite and I had a lot of running around to do Saturday. We went dress shopping which was so much fun! We did a $2 wine tasting at BevMo and got some good wine. We had dinner at a yummy Italian restaurant in Mission Beach. I had the lobster ravioli and it was to die for! We ended the evening up in Cardiff with Mr. Termites cousin celebrating his big 3-0. We all drank way too much and had an amazing time! Today consisted of getting breakfast, and going back up to Cardiff to get my car! Other than that, we have been sitting on the couch watching netflix. I'm glad to have had a lazy day today. Tomorrow is the start of another busy week.

Lent is coming up. I'm not a practicing catholic, but I am trying to figure out something to give up. Maybe I'll try to de-cafinate myself or give up sweets. We shall see how it goes!

Damn you heartburn! Please leave this body!

Day 16

A picture of someone who inspires you

My mumsy! She is amazing! I'm inspired by her more and more every day!

Day 17

A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently

Being married has made a HUGE impact on my life, as it should! We are each others family now and are thinking about starting our own family!

Here's to a wonderful new week!

Until next time!

~ T. Don