I bit the bullet and did it...again.

I joined Weight Watchers Online today. I signed up for a 3 month membership. I'm pretty excited.

I have done Weight Watchers in the past. Several times. As a matter of fact, any time I've ever lost a significant amount of weight, it's been on WW.

About 4 years ago, I dropped around 30 pounds going to WW meetings. The only reason I stopped going was because I got burned out. The meetings started to become so repetitive to me. "Yes, eat your daily servings of veggies and fruits." "Yes, track your meals and points." " Ok, get your activity points in." Got it. Got it. Got it. My weight loss started dwindling. Finally one day, I just decided I could do it on my own (which, if you are disciplined, you CAN do it on your own) and I quit. Except...you know what happened. I didn't do it on my own. Fortunately, I haven't gained the weight back, but I didn't lose anymore either. And I REALLY want to lose these last 30 pounds.

This time I am doing WW Online. The site is vastly different from the last time I looked at it. It's so easy to pull up and enter your daily points! I typed in "mcdonald's salad" and I quickly found my salad and dressing, and entered it into my daily points tracker. The challenging part is going to be entering what I cook at home. It's a little more time consuming, but the payoff is worth it.

Another bonus to me starting this adventure is that my office is starting up the Biggest Loser contest again. The contest starts Monday and ends June 28th. I want to win! But most of all, I just want to LOSE. ;)

Wish me luck!

The Cub Meets the Besties

This weekend was all about introductions!

On Saturday, my friends had a cookout at their home. Most all of my besties were there with their hubs and kids. We grilled out (which is what we do in the South - we grill, we don't barbecue) hamburgers and hot dogs. It rained, but that didn't stop us from having a little fun. The Cub was introduced to everyone, and it went great. No one seemed to notice the age difference, or if they did, they didn't care. The sweetest moment came at the end of the evening when my friend's little boy went to tell us all goodnight. He immediately went straight to The Cub first, and jumped in his lap for a big ole hug. Guess he approved!

Sunday afternoon, I drove to the country to his house and we attended his 9 year old niece's birthday party. I got to meet the rest of his family - aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. I've already met the parents, but still, I was a little nervous. However, everyone was super nice! His family is pretty big. I have to say I'm not used to big families. Since my dad got transferred to SC right before I was born, all I've ever known at holidays and special events is the 4 of us. Most of my extended family lives in TN or GA. His family all lives in the same small town. And I must say, as loud and crazy as it was at times, it was fun, warm and inviting as well.

Sadly, I didn't get any snapshots from the weekend! But I will leave you with one photo: this is the sun coming up in the country from his back porch. I will blog next about what a transition that has been for me. I'm such a city girl, but I'm slowly (v e r y slowly) learning how to adjust to life in the country! Whether or not that is my future, I have no idea. But for now, it's an fun, interesting ride... :)

Miss Trish at Target

If you are in the market for some cute affordable sandals, check out the Miss Trish line at Target.

LOVE.

Time for some fun

Kacy posted this CELEBFFS on her blog. Thought it would be a fun thing for Wednesday! (aka I got nothing else for ya!)

Who would you choose to be your celebrity BFFs?

1. THE bestie: the one who I would tell my deepest, darkest secrets to. the one who i would be able to call any hour of the day or night just to tell her something only SHE would appreciate. shopping trips, inside jokes, everything...this award would go to:

Drew Barrymore: I've always loved her because she reminds me of myself. (minus the drugs ha) She's quirky and silly. She's funny. She makes mistakse (how ironic I misspelled mistakes! haha). She doesn't alway follow the path that everyone else thinks you should. And she doesn't apologize for it. She and I would get along perfectly.

2. The gay BFF: the guy I'd get my fashion advice from. the one who would tell me the stories of his boyfriends or his style...and to keep me in check. this award goes to:

Neil Patrick Harris

3. The stylish BFF: This would be the one i go to for all of my fashion advice. The one I go shopping with and take her advice....she is the one who accessorizes and helps me decide what would look best on me...and this BFF award goes to:

Kristin Davis

4. The best GUY friend: This is the guy who would be there to kick my boyfriend's ass when he fucks up. this is the one i can trust with anything and always comforts me when i need to hear positive comments. The one i can sit back and watch action movies with and not have to dress up around. he can see me without make up on and it wouldn't matter because he doesn't judge me like that...this award goes to:

Adam Sandler
















5. the FRIEND with BENEFITS: this would be the one that i pretend is JUST my friend, but those nights we drink a LITTLE too much or perhaps get burned by someone we care about....we always have those OFF moments. We both know we are MORE than just friends...and that would be:

Sawyer (if only...)

6. The GOSSIP BFF: the girl who i can call and talk about anyone and anything and she wouldn't judge. she knows all the juicy stuff and we can laugh all day about the crazy drama that this town is infested with. but i also wonder what she says when i'm not around...

Courtney Cox: LOVE Cougar Town















7. THE BFF to have FUN with: the girl i wanna go dancing with! the one who is the life of the party and never to take too seriously. party, drink, take a million photos with...i'd do this with:

Kloe Kardashian: You know you want to hang with a Kardashian. Even if just for a day!

8. The one i could LIVE with: This girl is responsible, clean, and not annoying. She is dependable and easy to get along with. drama-free and someone i could co habitate with:

Jennifer Aniston (maybe minus the drama-free part but overall she'd be a fun roomie.)

9. The one i'd end up marrying: This is the guy friend that was always JUST my buddy. My childhood friend. the one who i end up happily ever AFTER with....and i should have just realized it forever ago!:

Paul Rudd

10. The BFF i could do nothing with and still have fun: This is the girl who has known me since i was a little kid. the one who sits with me when i blog, watches old movies with, and knows my whole life story. the one who is in my wedding and always gives me good advice:

Jennifer Garner

*honorable mention for a celeb BFF =Chelsea Handler

She's just a nut :) Love her!

A Fresh Start

I just wanted to blog about the fact that I'm excited to be back on the healthy bandwagon again. It's been awhile since I really gave it my all. Probably since February, early March. That was my last 5K. Since then there was spring conference, birthday, a gnarly upper respiratory infection, pollen...you get the idea.

This weekend I bravely took some photos of myself. Not so flattering. The scale says I've only gained about 3-4 pounds. But I can tell I've gotten flabbier. My legs are not as toned as when I was running regularly. My arms are not as firm. My face feels puffier. And overall, I just don't feel good about myself.

So Sunday was my fresh start! Thank goodness for fresh starts. I went to the grocery store and loaded up on lots of fruits, veggies, healthy snacks, etc. I'm very excited to start back on my green monster smoothies again. I had one last night. It was delicious.

I started back working out again. A friend and I did a Rep Reebok class last night. I am pretty sore today, but that's a good thing. Tonight I plan on walking 3 miles. Hopefully within a week I'll start back up running again! Excited!

Baby steps right? Rome wasn't built in a day. Have any of y'all fallen off the wagon? What's your trick for getting back on track? I don't know about y'all but the fact that bathing suit season is staring me in the face is pretty darn scary and motivating.

Sunday Funday

Spring has sprung in the Carolinas, and yesterday was just extraordinarily beautiful. I spent the day with my family, and after lunch my mom and I sat in chairs in the backyard just talking and soaking up the sun. I of course, took some pictures. They are from my Blackberry though. so the quality isn't as great.

The backyard - I have lots of great memories in this yard from my childhood. That tree on the left is HUGE and has been there for over 30 years.















Her beautiful azalea bushes that have been blooming since I was a little girl.

Debuting our spring/summer footwear!

The sun peeking through - the sky was so blue!

Me and my mom :) (And don't worry, my roots are getting done tomorrow!)

I love dogwood trees. This one has also been in their yard for years.

Happy Spring!

In case there was any doubt...

Two of my friends gave this t-shirt to me for my birthday. hahaha Move over cast of Jersey Shore! It also came with matching thongs that say "the situation" on the front.

No I will not be modeling those....

Happy HUMP Day! :)

The way to a man's heart...

...is through food right?

Since The Cub lives out of town, we've been trying to make an effort tosee each other at least once on the weekend and once during the week. Tonight he's coming to my house, and I'm making dinner for us. Since I knew I wouldn't have much time after work, I pre-made a lasagna and refrigerated it last night. Hopefully it'll turn out delicious. I figure with enough cheese, you can't go wrong, right?

Then I shocked myself by making a homeade blueberry cobbler for dessert. What?? I refrigerated it as well, but I definitely had a little taste test. And it's delicious I might add. I got the recipe off of AllRecipes.com.

Ingredients:
3 cups fresh blueberries (I used frozen - fresh are still too expensive right now)
3 tablespoons white sugar
1/3 cup orange juice
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 pinch salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. In an 8 inch square baking dish, mix blueberries, 3 tablespoons sugar, and orange juice. Set aside. In a small bowl, thoroughly mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, cream butter and 1/2 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Gradually add flour mixture, stirring just until ingredients are combined. Drop batter by rounded tablespoons over blueberry mixture. Try to cover as much of filling as possible.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until topping is golden brown and filling is bubbling.

Of course, I bought some vanilla ice cream to top it off!















I'll update on the lasagna tomorrow!