So today I started my training for the Lake Stevens Half Iron Man. I was supposed to start Monday, but Zoe was playing sick and Tuesday Fara stole my contact lenses and can't remember where she put them. Since I can't even see 3 feet in front of me, I decided it might not be a good idea to swim without them. Luckily my eye doctor had some trial lenses to tide me over until my order comes in. I was all set and then I realized that the girls had used my Speedo Goggles for swimming lessons and they were all messed up. So my training was delayed another day. I am trying not to beat myself up about it. This is life and this kind of stuff happens......all the fricken time!
I have to be honest and say that I was dreading my workout all morning long and kept putting it off and off until about 2pm. It is amazing how fast 7 loads of laundry can get folded when I am trying to avoid something. Here's the deal. I was getting super fit and trim right before Christmas. Then Christmas hit, my birthday, Fara's birthday, New Year's, and then the dreaded post holiday depression that ALWAYS sneaks up on me and puts me under with all this rain. This happens to me every year and yet it always seems to surprise me. Yes, I slacked off. I used to be able to do half a pull up. Now, ummmm, well I don't want to talk about it. Let's just say that I am not super fit and trim anymore. Let's just say that my muscle is lying dormant under a nice layer of love; the love of vanilla lemondrops, white chocolate martinis, chocolate chip cookies, and anything from Matadore.
I finally got my butt down to the gym. I am running inside because a. It is raining and b. It is raining. I loaded up my ipod and went through my entire ritual of running for 5 minutes and adjusting my shoes. Running for a few more minutes and correcting my music or retying my pants. So I finally got into my groove. Today's running music; Beastie Boys, License to Ill. What time is it? Its time to get ill. So today's assignment was to run an easy pace for 40 minutes. It is very hard to run to the Beastie Boys without trying to dance so I probably looked like a spaz on the treadmill bobbing my head and occasionally throwing my hands up in the air with a "what time is it?"
Just in case you don't know, I have a hard time with taking it easy. I am a complete adrenalin junkie. I want to hit it hard, I want to hit it fast. I want my high and for it to be over with so I can go eat. But I managed to keep myself in check for this run. Being that I am carrying a bit of extra weight and the fact that I don't run very much, my knees started to bother me at around 33.5 minutes. "Not to bad," I thought to myself. I could quit now and it wouldn't be shameful. But I pushed through it til the end. But the last minute Boom Boom Pow came on the ipod, so I did sprint it. Hey, I didn't want to be 2000 and late. hahahahahahahahahaa! I was in the front row of treadmills. I thought the gym was dead because all of the treadmills in my row were empty. But when I got off of my treadmill, I noticed that the entire second row was filled.....with men. I swear they were looking at me funny. It was either because a. I was running like a spaz trying not to dance. b. I was running like a spaz because I was in pain. or c. There was a whole lot of jiggling going on and whole lot of junk in the trunk if you know what I mean. I don't think they are ready for this jelly! hahahahahahahahahaha! I am killing it today, I tell you!
Then I rushed my butt down to the pool. I swam on the swimming team in high school and college but as my dear friend, Charles pointed out, that was 20 years ago. Thanks Charles! Next time you want to relive a basketball game, I will point out how old you are too. Add this to the fact that I haven't swam laps, in oh say, two years or so and we have a recipe for success! Not! I pulled out my old swimming suit and put it on. I realized that it is looking kind of raggedy and thin. It is a good thing that it is a black swimming suit. I may have to replace that soon....like tomorrow. Put on my new cap and rainbow goggles. Now I am looking like a champ! Then I realized that I may have missed a trimming session.....or two. Oh come on now! You know I say it like it is. If you don't like it a. Don't read my blog and b. You don't know me very well....sheesh! So with my white cap, rainbow goggles, thinning raggedy suit, and turquoise blue towel wrapped around me so people won't know to what extent I am a mess, I skipped out to the pool.
My assignment today was 200 swim, 200 pull, 200 push for the warm up, 1x1000m swim, and 4x50 cool down. Jeah! That's what I thought. The warm up did kill me. But then I warmed up and the rest wasn't too bad. Okay, my feet cramped up and my triceps felt as if they were on fire, but I did it all except for the last 2 sets of 50. I cut it too close and had to rush to get dressed, no shower, and run down the block with a towel on my head to pick up the girls from their bus stop. Living 2 blocks from the gym has it's perks. I also got to thoroughly embarrass my girls by picking them up with a towel wrapped around my head. That was AWESOME! I did look pretty ridiculous, but do you think I cared! No! I had to pee really bad.
I left the gym with somehow really good hair and not feeling as tired as I thought I was going to be. I made dinner; prawns with peppers, garlic, pasta, and Parmesan cheese. YUMMY!!!!!!! Folded the rest of the clothes. Put my clothes away. The other people in this house can put their own damn clothes away. Let's be honest. I don't even fold their clothes. I just put them in piles and make them fold it them damn selves. Except Babyfara. I fold hers. But she is different. She's a baby. I then put together a bunk bed..... an IKEA bunk bed! Jeah! I know! I made some bread. And I kept my goal of not eating after 7pm. Hey, I do have to put this body into a bikini soon. Eee gawd.
Now that I am sitting down reflecting on my day, it has hit me. I am freaking tired! I may actually go to bed on time tonight. I may just go to bed early. My workout tomorrow is going to be a breeze. I have a 30 minute run and and hour bike. Since I teach 2 spin classes tomorrow, that is covered and I made a running date with one of my gym peeps for after class, so I can't put it off and think of a reason to get out of it.
I may be a spin instructor, but I can think of every reason in the world not to work out. I didn't feel so bad after I read that even Iron Man champions have to talk themselves into working out. They would rather sit on the couch and watch GLEE too! Also, I have never left a gym feeling worse than when I walked through the doors. I need to remember that more. Exercise really is my Prozac and with this damn rain and gloomy, cloudy weather, I really, really need it. That, and I want to have a rocking fit bod to parade around on the beach with this summer. Then I can say when you look at me with all that jealousy in your eye, "jeah! I'm 40! What!"
Yes, that will be a sweet day!
Oh, that and getting through the Half Iron Man without making my children orphans.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Homemade Microwave Popcorn
I had a sweet tooth and was craving something sweet and savory. I wanted popcorn balls, but all I have is microwave popcorn. This is my relationship with microwave popcorn; I love it! The buttery the better. One time I bought some light microwave popcorn and ended up melting butter and pouring it over the popcorn anyway. Here is the thing with microwave popcorn...it is really bad for you! The lining in the bag and the chemicals that make it taste so good....BAD< BAD<BAD! And even though microwave popcorn is not that expensive, it is way more expensive than it needs to be. Then I had an epiphany. What if I made microwave popcorn with the big jug of kernels I have in my pantry? So I tried it. I put 9 tablespoons of popcorn in a paper bag, rolled it up and microwaved it for around 3 minutes. It worked! Holy shit! Usually my little experiments don't work, but this one did. Now I can melt all the butter I want to pour on it guilt free....well kind of guilt free. I am trying to trim down a little bit before I am expected to bare my glow in the dark white body in a bikini on the beaches of Puerto Rico. I also have an amazing recipe for Kettle Corn, but that would require actually getting a pan out, so I will post that later.
Countdown to my $100 a week Grocery challenge. It begins the first of April. This Friday. Scary!
Wish me luck!
xoxoxo
LB
Countdown to my $100 a week Grocery challenge. It begins the first of April. This Friday. Scary!
Wish me luck!
xoxoxo
LB
Monday, March 28, 2011
My reality
Before I get started on my month long challenge, I need to get a few things straight. In the end, I am about ease and convenience. I want to challenge myself to get my grocery bill down to $100 a week, but that does not mean that I want to drive all over town looking for the best prices, clip coupons, or change the way I eat. I know! My BFF from Ecuador texted me the other day with "$100?! hahahahahahahahahahaha!" She knows me quite well and knows that above all else I tend to be a bit of a foodie with a splash of laziness.
When I was on the playground the other day with Fara, I was talking food with some of the other parents. I mentioned that I make a loaf of bread almost everyday and there is very little processed food being consumed in my house. One mother said to me, "That's great! If you have the time to do it, you totally should. I wish I had that kind of time." I simply told her it didn't take anymore time than running to the store and left it at that.
But when I got home, I reflected on the comment and then I got a little irritated. Time!? That is one freaking luxury that I don't have! And then, I know this is really wrong, but I started to judge this woman rather harshly. She had one child at home. No job outside the home and a man who is home by 6pm. Now, those of us with 2 or more children consider....well....I will just say it.....one child is a hobby. Don't get me wrong. Raising one child is hard in itself and sometimes more difficult because all the entertainment falls to you. But you are never outnumbered and there is something to be said about that. Now if you have a partner with that one child, that means that you can actually go to the grocery store by yourself, or god forbid, happy hour with adults once in while.
However, I digress and back to the topic at hand. I realized that this woman and many others out there may not realize what my life is really like. Maybe she thinks that I have all this time in the world and that my children are little angels who do their chores and homework the first time they are told. They do their chores and their homework, but it doesn't mean that it occurred without an exhausting fight. Maybe she thinks that my super handsome husband is actually in the house or the damn state for that matter to be of help. Maybe she just wants to make up excuses about why she can't do the things she wants to. What it really boils down to, is what is important to her to make time for.
I am attempting to spend only $100 a week on groceries beginning in April. I am blogging my experience, because that is what we as a society generally do now and we actually think anybody else will care. Just so that no one will think that I have an upper hand and all the right circumstances to make this work, I want to explain my life a little bit. If I am successful (which to be honest, I have my doubts) I want others to think, well if she can do it in her crazy and insane life with her crazy and insane mind, maybe I can too. Basically, I would like to strip away mine and everybody else's excuses. We make time for what is important to us. The other stuff, we usually just make up excuses. And that is okay. We can't do everything all of the time. Sometimes we have to prioritize and let some things go. We may not like it, but life is busy and life is crazy, and sometimes, life is limiting.
Many of you know, because I am pretty vocal and bitter about it at times, that my husband travels.....a lot. I would say that he is gone about 90% of the time. And when he is in town, he leaves at 6:30am and is never home before 7:30pm. He works hard and I feel too much, but that is a topic for another one of my diatribes. So, what that means is that I am with the kids 24/7. My oldest two, Zoe 10, and Selah 7, are both in school during the day. Fara, the 3 year old is in preschool 2 days a week for 3 hours. I work on Thursdays so the only time I really have to myself is on Tuesday which is usually spent running errands. I teach 3 spin classes a week and often sub for other instructors. The housework, the child rearing, the being part of a community are all on my shoulders. Then of course, being the maniac I am, I decided to start my own business, Blackett Body Basics. Might I add, it is pretty fresh! Check it out! www.blackettbodybasics.com Oh and we can't forget the Half Iron Man in August that I signed up for when I got drunk on my 40th and decided that there was no way in hell that I was going to get old!
My life is crazy. It is often overwhelming! And sometimes it sucks. I do not do the "stay at home" part of stay at home mom very well. I do love my kids. I know that I am lucky to be able to stay home with them. But that does not mean that it is always honky dory, especially doing it all by myself. I get tired and miss the days when my husband used to walk through the door at night and take over.
My main objective wasn't to bitch and moan about my life. It is actually pretty rad, but I am human and I live a real life, so not everything is perfect. That is just what life is. What I am trying to say is that I am a normal person with a basically normal, hectic schedule and a normal inclination to cut corners to make things easier, on a mission to cut my grocery bill in half. Also, if I do cut the grocery budget down, I can spend more money (without the usual arguments) in Puerto Rico in 2 weeks, when I tag along with the husband on a business trips. His job does have some perks for me, like frequent flier miles and the occasional tropical destination.
So the real motivation behind me cutting the grocery budget down is revealed and I am thinking I may take a surfing lesson.
When I was on the playground the other day with Fara, I was talking food with some of the other parents. I mentioned that I make a loaf of bread almost everyday and there is very little processed food being consumed in my house. One mother said to me, "That's great! If you have the time to do it, you totally should. I wish I had that kind of time." I simply told her it didn't take anymore time than running to the store and left it at that.
But when I got home, I reflected on the comment and then I got a little irritated. Time!? That is one freaking luxury that I don't have! And then, I know this is really wrong, but I started to judge this woman rather harshly. She had one child at home. No job outside the home and a man who is home by 6pm. Now, those of us with 2 or more children consider....well....I will just say it.....one child is a hobby. Don't get me wrong. Raising one child is hard in itself and sometimes more difficult because all the entertainment falls to you. But you are never outnumbered and there is something to be said about that. Now if you have a partner with that one child, that means that you can actually go to the grocery store by yourself, or god forbid, happy hour with adults once in while.
However, I digress and back to the topic at hand. I realized that this woman and many others out there may not realize what my life is really like. Maybe she thinks that I have all this time in the world and that my children are little angels who do their chores and homework the first time they are told. They do their chores and their homework, but it doesn't mean that it occurred without an exhausting fight. Maybe she thinks that my super handsome husband is actually in the house or the damn state for that matter to be of help. Maybe she just wants to make up excuses about why she can't do the things she wants to. What it really boils down to, is what is important to her to make time for.
I am attempting to spend only $100 a week on groceries beginning in April. I am blogging my experience, because that is what we as a society generally do now and we actually think anybody else will care. Just so that no one will think that I have an upper hand and all the right circumstances to make this work, I want to explain my life a little bit. If I am successful (which to be honest, I have my doubts) I want others to think, well if she can do it in her crazy and insane life with her crazy and insane mind, maybe I can too. Basically, I would like to strip away mine and everybody else's excuses. We make time for what is important to us. The other stuff, we usually just make up excuses. And that is okay. We can't do everything all of the time. Sometimes we have to prioritize and let some things go. We may not like it, but life is busy and life is crazy, and sometimes, life is limiting.
Many of you know, because I am pretty vocal and bitter about it at times, that my husband travels.....a lot. I would say that he is gone about 90% of the time. And when he is in town, he leaves at 6:30am and is never home before 7:30pm. He works hard and I feel too much, but that is a topic for another one of my diatribes. So, what that means is that I am with the kids 24/7. My oldest two, Zoe 10, and Selah 7, are both in school during the day. Fara, the 3 year old is in preschool 2 days a week for 3 hours. I work on Thursdays so the only time I really have to myself is on Tuesday which is usually spent running errands. I teach 3 spin classes a week and often sub for other instructors. The housework, the child rearing, the being part of a community are all on my shoulders. Then of course, being the maniac I am, I decided to start my own business, Blackett Body Basics. Might I add, it is pretty fresh! Check it out! www.blackettbodybasics.com Oh and we can't forget the Half Iron Man in August that I signed up for when I got drunk on my 40th and decided that there was no way in hell that I was going to get old!
My life is crazy. It is often overwhelming! And sometimes it sucks. I do not do the "stay at home" part of stay at home mom very well. I do love my kids. I know that I am lucky to be able to stay home with them. But that does not mean that it is always honky dory, especially doing it all by myself. I get tired and miss the days when my husband used to walk through the door at night and take over.
My main objective wasn't to bitch and moan about my life. It is actually pretty rad, but I am human and I live a real life, so not everything is perfect. That is just what life is. What I am trying to say is that I am a normal person with a basically normal, hectic schedule and a normal inclination to cut corners to make things easier, on a mission to cut my grocery bill in half. Also, if I do cut the grocery budget down, I can spend more money (without the usual arguments) in Puerto Rico in 2 weeks, when I tag along with the husband on a business trips. His job does have some perks for me, like frequent flier miles and the occasional tropical destination.
So the real motivation behind me cutting the grocery budget down is revealed and I am thinking I may take a surfing lesson.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
$100 a week grocery bill
Okay, my husband and I fight all the time over money. We have very different approaches to creating and maintaining a budget. We also have very different ideas about what is the most important thing to spend our money on. We come from the complete opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to our concepts of money. For him, I believe, spending money is actually physically painful. I read an article once in the NY Times about the difference between cheap skates and the rest of us. To cheap skates spending money releases a chemical in the brain that actually makes it painful for them. They can't help it. It is part of their physiology. Now, I am exaggerating a wee bit. My husband just feels that it is VERY important not to be in debt and to have 3 months pay saved up in the bank. I think that is a great idea and theoretically I agree. However, I like to LIVE while I live. To me, while it is important to stay within your means, money is money. It comes. It goes. But it is never worth the heartache we allow it to cause. See now the formula for some knock down, drag out fights on the money front.
Through our almost 8 years of marriage, we have both floated a little more towards the middle. I realize that because of my husband, I will most likely have a retirement. And I try to tell him, that because of me, he should have some sweet ass memories to think back on. He quite hasn't seen that point yet. Go figure! Just to give an idea about how different we are I will tell you about our grocery battle when we first got married.
Selah was 2 months old. Zoe was 2 years old. And Robert had just found out that he had been let go of his teaching job (the circumstances of which I will delve into later because it is a sinister tale of deceit, betrayal, and the untimely death of the boss....okay the last part is not true, but I did wish it for awhile). He had found a job that he was supposed to be making good money at in sales, but ended up only making $1300 a month. We had some money in the bank, but that didn't matter to Robert. He said that needed to be saved for an emergency. In my head I was thinking, isn't this the emergency? So he gave me a budget of $100 a week for groceries and that was to include diapers, toilet paper, and other household products. OMG! Okay is anyone else there thinking what I was thinking? WTH!? So needless to say, I ignored the budget.
So thus our first arguments over money started. Being sleep deprived, I suggested that he take over the grocery shopping. ummmm...yeah. My man came home with the biggest can of beans I had ever seen and a huge bag of rice. I laughed so hard until I realized that he was dead serious and that is what he expected us to eat for the week. I was and am still very adamant about fresh fruits and vegies being plentiful in our house. Can you see where this might cause a conflict of interest?
It is now 8 years later and we are still having the same argument. I keep thinking that the fact that I am a good cook and hook him up on a daily basis should sink in at some point, but then I remember the research and that he can't help it. I have gotten a little bit more sophisticated and I make our bread and have very little processed food in our house. I am venturing out and trying making homemade yogurt. It is right now, at this moment, incubating and I will let you know how it turns out. I am seeing how making things from scratch is not only better for you and tastes better, but is a lot cheaper. So now that he has chilled out ......a little...about the grocery bill (mainly because I am staying in a reasonable budget) I have decided to challenge myself and see if I can feed my family food that is nourishing for both the body and soul for $100 a week. I will blog about it and let you know how it is going.
ps I just made a flaxseed sunflower seed bread that is pretty awesome. I will post the recipe later.
xoxox
Through our almost 8 years of marriage, we have both floated a little more towards the middle. I realize that because of my husband, I will most likely have a retirement. And I try to tell him, that because of me, he should have some sweet ass memories to think back on. He quite hasn't seen that point yet. Go figure! Just to give an idea about how different we are I will tell you about our grocery battle when we first got married.
Selah was 2 months old. Zoe was 2 years old. And Robert had just found out that he had been let go of his teaching job (the circumstances of which I will delve into later because it is a sinister tale of deceit, betrayal, and the untimely death of the boss....okay the last part is not true, but I did wish it for awhile). He had found a job that he was supposed to be making good money at in sales, but ended up only making $1300 a month. We had some money in the bank, but that didn't matter to Robert. He said that needed to be saved for an emergency. In my head I was thinking, isn't this the emergency? So he gave me a budget of $100 a week for groceries and that was to include diapers, toilet paper, and other household products. OMG! Okay is anyone else there thinking what I was thinking? WTH!? So needless to say, I ignored the budget.
So thus our first arguments over money started. Being sleep deprived, I suggested that he take over the grocery shopping. ummmm...yeah. My man came home with the biggest can of beans I had ever seen and a huge bag of rice. I laughed so hard until I realized that he was dead serious and that is what he expected us to eat for the week. I was and am still very adamant about fresh fruits and vegies being plentiful in our house. Can you see where this might cause a conflict of interest?
It is now 8 years later and we are still having the same argument. I keep thinking that the fact that I am a good cook and hook him up on a daily basis should sink in at some point, but then I remember the research and that he can't help it. I have gotten a little bit more sophisticated and I make our bread and have very little processed food in our house. I am venturing out and trying making homemade yogurt. It is right now, at this moment, incubating and I will let you know how it turns out. I am seeing how making things from scratch is not only better for you and tastes better, but is a lot cheaper. So now that he has chilled out ......a little...about the grocery bill (mainly because I am staying in a reasonable budget) I have decided to challenge myself and see if I can feed my family food that is nourishing for both the body and soul for $100 a week. I will blog about it and let you know how it is going.
ps I just made a flaxseed sunflower seed bread that is pretty awesome. I will post the recipe later.
xoxox
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