Photo a day - Day 17 - 25 (01/17/09 - 01/25/09)

Okay, so I've obviously been bad about blogging, but I'd been good about taking photos! So you get 9 days of photos in one post!

Saturday, Jan 17. - Spent most of Saturday scrapping. I had this magnetic board put up in my room. I decided to put my cards up on here. Cards from: Kim, Stephanie, Linda, Lesle, Mary & Leslie. I love them!



Sunday, Jan 18. - I usually spend Sundays cleaning something. This Sunday it was my bedroom. This is about as clean as it gets. I don't usually bother folding my blankets. Cause I'm lazy like that.

Monday, Jan 19. - I finally took down my Christmas lights today. I wanted to take a pic of them first, since my Dad put them up so nicely for me. I had the camera on the wrong setting, but I thought it turned out cool!

Tuesday, Jan 20. - HORRIBLE day at work. I do payroll and we had direct deposit issues and NO ONE got paid. Ugh. It had already been planed for Laura and I to go out after work, but I ended up getting really drunk. Her husband had to come get us. It was fun!

Wednesday, Jan 21. - I came home to a package in the mail! Coffee syrup from Kim! THANKS KIM! It's pretty tasty. In milk, NOT on ice cream!

Thursday, Jan 22. - Clouds rolled in last night and we got the first rain in a while. This is what was left late in the afternoon.

Friday, Jan 23. - Been on the lookout for Tofu Shirataki noodles, which were no where to be found. So I went to the new Asian market and I found them. They are odd. They have a strange texture that throws me off. I tried them in a black bean and garlic dish. I'll have to try them with a cream sauce or tomato and see how that is. Anyway, the Asian store was interesting. First, I don't think I've seen that many Asian people total the almost four years I've lived in AZ. Second,the smell. Just ick. And the check out lady was not nice. She didn't say anything to me the entire time she was ringing me up. Here is a pic of the refridgerator section.

Saturday, Jan 24. - Cleaned out the fridge. This is my sink full of meat. Seriously??? I don't even eat that much meat!! Gross!

Sunday, Jan 25. - Cleaned my kitchen today! WOOT. I love a clean kitchen. I just need to put the pots away.

Food changes

WOW. Two posts in one day!

Anyway, I'm really trying to get back on the weight loss train. I was really good this week, at least with the eating out. I'm going back to the only one day a week eating out. Friday is usually the day, but it was Monday this week. I cooked and brought my lunch the rest of the week. It wasn't a really great week though, because there were still so many sweets left over from my bday. But that's ok, slow and steady right?

I got the Hungry Girl book with one of my bday gift cards. It seems fun. I made my first recipe, Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge. It's different, for sure. But pretty good! I took it to work and my boss even liked it. So score there! I also went to the store and picked up a lot of stuff that was in her book. Low fat bread, turkey hot dogs, 100 calorie English muffins.

Yesterday for breakfast I made a healthy breakfast sandwich. Egg beaters, 2% cheese, Canadian bacon and the English muffin. It was pretty good! I also ate a banana. I've also made English muffin pizzas with turkey pepperoni, which is VERY tasty stuff. I made scrambled eggs with veggies this morning (mushrooms, onions, three colors of peppers). I had a turkey hot dog last night for the first time. It was good. I have to admit, I had to look up how to cook a hot dog on the Internet. I have never made one!! Crazy, I know.

I'm still on the lookout for the shirataki noodles that she talks about on her site. I've been to three stores with no luck so far. Maybe I'll have luck at the Asian market.

I took a big step and am trying to work more Splenda into and more sugar out of my diet. I took my sugar container and mixed it half and half, Splenda and sugar. I can't handle the flavor of pure Splenda, so I thought this was a good compromise.

I worked out three days this week. I'm going to go out in a bit for a walk to Target. It's about a 30 minute walk round trip, so that's perfect to throw in on the weekends. I'm going to try to get in at least 5 days a week. I need tobe better at work. My girlfriend at work has started working out with me after work, so hopefully we will be able to push each other.

I weighed myself this week for the first time since the beginning of December. At my lowest point, I had lost 40 lbs. I've gained 23 of that back. I'm so angry at myself. I know the first big part of it was medication, but still. The last bit is ALL crappy eating over the holidays and no exercise. UGH!

Photo a day - Day 16 (01/16/09)

Friday, Jan 16. - I'm SUCH a party girl. NOT. These pics are a typical Friday night at my house. Enjoying the newest issue of Entertainment Weekly and watching TV (this night, the premier of Friday Night Lights, WOOT!). I'm very excited that Kyle Chandler is back on my TV. I worked late, almost till 5. Then I went to two grocery stores looking for two things that I never found. Got home sometime after 6. Watched soaps, made dinner (a turkey dog and a salad), surfed the net, watched Private Practice, part of The Office (again), FNL. Went to bed about 9:30, read a bit (I'm never going to finish this book!!). Feel asleep before 10. Then I slept 10 GLORIOUS hours!!! I hope I can get that many again tonight, I need it so bad.

Photo a day - Day 13 - 15 (01/13/09 - 01/15/09)

Slight delay...I forgot to put my memory card into my camera, so I took pics on the internal memory. Then I had to find the cord for that. Easier said than done. Back to our regularly scheduled photoing!

Tuesday, Jan 13. - Monday was my last day of being bad. Went to Panda Express and picked up a few fortune cookies. This was my fortune. I'm waiting for it to come true. Or maybe it already is?? I am still employeed! THANK YOU GOD for that.

Wednesday, Jan 14. - Every morning when I get to work, two of my first visited websites are People.come and Celebritybabies.com. I'm always thrilled when my day starts out with a George Clooney sighting. In case you didn't know, he's my future lover!

Thursday, Jan 15. - Got off work early today, so that tomorrow I won't have any overtime. So I went shopping. Walmart, nothing. Michaels, not much I really needed, despite the $25 gift card I have. Walmart #2, score! Graphically Speaking and Storybook! I picked up both, not sure that I'll keep them both. We'll see.

Photo a day - Day 10 - 12 (01/10/09 - 01/12/09)

Saturday, Jan 10. - A busy day for me! Saturday I went to see Bride Wars with my friend Nachelle. Then we went to Chilis. I miss spending time with her. But since we don't work together, live on opposites sides of the valley and she is a single mom to two kids, it makes her time limited!!! I was over there till about 4:30, then went to Target and Bed, Bath & Beyond. Got a few things. Came home and checked the mail. I got an AWESOME photo calendar from Edie with great pics of both of our families in it. It's so cute. I love it. When I got home, the following was my project for the night. Tara & Chris were coming over the next day to hang a bunch of frames and shelves for me. So I needed to actually put pictures in the frames! My floor was a mess!

Sunday, Jan 11. - Happy birthday to me!! Tara & Chris came over at noonish. We made mojitos, hung up picture frames and shelves and my new Making Memories Embellishment Center (thanks MOM!). Then we went to Oreganos for a late lunch. I had the pesto pasta bake. They serve it baked in a bread bowl and I got it with sausage. And a bellini. Then cause it was my bday we got a cookie desert, half chocolate chip, half peanut butter covered with ice cream. DIVINE! We came back to my house and did presents and cake. SWEET!! So here are pics of my new pictures hanging, my shelf with things added quickly and a pic of the three of us at lunch.

Monday, Jan 12. - Today is when I start working out again! It was my last day of eating bad. So we went to Panda Express for lunch, and I had cake. Lots of cake. But I worked out! So it's a start. I had lost 40lbs at my lowest and I've gained back 24 of that. So horrible. I can't believe I let that happen. But back on the waggon!!! I HAVE to do something.

Anyway, here are some of my presents! These are what I got from Tara & Chris. I got two books (The Time Traveler's Wife & Tales of Beedle the Bard) and two CDs (OneRepublic and the Twilight Soundtrack).

Photo a day - Day 8 - 9 (01/08/09 - 01/09/09)

Thursday, Jan 8. - Got my kit today from Scrap-room.com. I LOVE my kits. Really, what I mean to say is that I love hoarding my kits. I have 14 of them now that I've never used. Yep, sad! But they are all so PRETTY. They really do an amazing job.

Friday, Jan 9. - My pre birthday birthday pic! Laura brought me this tiarra today. It was a loaner from her daughters birthday...who turned 1 in September. Thanks Jenna! I wore it for about 20 minutes before it made my head ache! This may be the pic I use for my 32 year old layout. We'll see what happens in the next two days. I can see in my face how much weight I have gained back. Ugh. Monday I get back on the waggon!!

Photo a day - Day 5 - 7 (01/05/09 - 01/07/09)

WOW. As if I didn't already know how boring my life is! Now I have pictures to prove it.

I shelved all the books I bought over the weekend. Well. Not only did I have some of those books already, I had TWO COPIES already of some of those books! So I did a bood cleaning of my book shelf and now I'm pretty sure I only have one of each book. I took a huge bag of books to work for the community book shelf. I also cataloged all the books I have, so that this won't happy again. Yeah, good luck that I'll keep up with that!

Four days till my birthday. And what do I have planed?? Not a damn thing. That makes me sad :( I love my birthday. No one else does apparently. I miss my friends back home, this would never happen.

I've been (pretty) good about taking the photos, but the blogging, no so much!

Monday, Jan 5th. Yep, a good repesentation of my day. I sat at my work computer and waited for payroll to come. Yes, I know. FACINATING!

Tuesday, Jan 6. Meet my SEXY new cell phone! Nokia 5310. It's got a music player, it plays the radio, IT HAS GUITAR HERO ON IT. Yes, it pretty much rocks. And it's red, my favorite color. I haven't had a red phone since my first phone, many moons ago!

Wednesday, Jan 7. Just another 70 degree Arizona winter day. Sigh. I know, some of you are jealous, but I'd rather it be in the 40's.

Photo a day - Day 3 (01/03/09) & Day 4 (01/04/09)

DAY 3 - Jan 3, 2009

I actually DID take this yesterday, but I forgot that I needed to post it until I had already turned off my computer!

I did some shopping yesterday. So here is my haul from Michael's and Joanns. I used my Michaels gift card plus most of my Visa gift card as well. Oh well. I'm not sure yet that I'll keep all of it. We'll see!

This next pic is just to show the difference in weather from the first to the third. It was overcast yesterday. But no cold. The park that I drove by was PACKED!

DAY 4 - Jan 4, 2009

MMMM...new books! Half price day at Goodwill, so I got each book for a buck. I know I already have some of these, but for a dollar I can't resist. I'll donate to the library the ones I already have. There are a few authors I collect. I want all of their books: Patricia Cornwell, Michael Crichton, Robin Cook, Jonathan Kellerman, Faye Kellerman, Tess Gerritsen, Iris Johansen. Well, I guess that's more than a few! So when ever I see them cheap, I pick them up. Do you collect books? I need a new bookshelf, mine is so full!!

Photo a day - Day 2 (01/02/09)

I really did take this pic yesterday, I was just having internet issues. Which is all too common lately. I hate when my internet does that!

I got off work late yesterday because it was payroll day. I had some books to return to the library, but when I swung by, it was already closed :( But I saw these Christmas trees instead. They made me sad because Christmas is over.

I slept until 10 am this morning! That is unheard of for me! And no only that, I don't have the too much sleep hangover either. Oh joy! My room was the perfect temperature and I was all snuggled into my bed. It was great.

I think I'm going to go to Goodwill today. It's half off day and I want to see if I can get some books. Yes, I know, just what I need, more books!! But I'm trying to replace some of my hardbacks with softcovers. The hardbacks just take up too much space.

Photo a day - Day 1 (01/01/09)

Alright, I'm really going to give this a go! I might not post every day, but I'm really going to give it a try to take (at least) a photo a day. Now that I have a cell phone that takes OK pics, this should be a bit easier!

So here are my Jan 1st, 2009 photos. I just took these. Gives you a taste of what New Year's Day is like in AZ. The temp reading is in the shade as well!