FREE - I'm Free at Last!

Today is the first day AFTER my 8-week Challenge is over.
And I am SO glad.
But, probably not as glad as my husband is!  Both because today is his BIRTHDAY, so I will have no restrictions on this day AND because he thought it put a real damper on his/our lifestyle!  ;)

This "Challenge" consisted of a group of about 50 people, men and women, most of whom I didn't even know who were competing to win in the healthy arena.  Two of my sisters and one brother-in-law were part of this group.  Every day, there were certain things we had to do in order to get a predetermined number of points.  Starting after the first week (the "Baptism by fire"), each week, one category was worth double points, in an effort to start separating the scores.
It took me several days to actually commit to joining the "Challenge."  Because if I say I'm going to do something.....I'M GOING TO DO IT.  Fully.  No flakin' out.
But, I didn't know if I wanted to do it.
Because I had some hang ups about a couple of the requirements.
Here's what we had to do every day:

• Accomplish a personal goal (it could be anything; spiritual, physical, mental, emotional, relationships, health, etc.)
• Drink 64 oz. of water
• Stop eating before 9:00 p.m.
• Eat two fruit servings (1/2 cup each)
• Eat three vegetable servings
• NO sweets and NO white flour
• Keep a food journal
• Exercise 30 min. (5 pts.) OR 45 min. (7 pts.)

Can you guess which ones were my hang ups???
I'd already been "accountable" to my Fitbit, getting 10,000 steps every day, for the last 3 1/2 months at the time of starting this challenge, so that was no problem.
Water, 9:00, fruits & vegetables were also NO BIGGIE, I don't mind those at all, it just took more planning on my part sometimes.
The personal goal was suppose to be something that you were not already doing, and would be hard, but very beneficial, for you if you did it.  So, that was a challenge - hence the name of the game, "Challenge," - but I had my scorecard on my desk every day to remind me, sometimes I was literally accomplishing my personal goal in the 11th hour, but I could handle that category, too.
The ones that got me were the white flour - I CAN live on bread alone!  That's exactly WHY I've never been tested for Celiac Disease, even though Haylee's doctor highly recommends it due to me being a first degree relative to a Celiac - I can't handle the truth, if I were. ;)  I love my candy, too, but I can do without - I've done it many times before.
And the food journal - I don't dare eat anything because then I have to write it down!  Uh, THAT'S the exact purpose of it, but what a drag!  ;)

Can you guess which ones were my husband's hang ups?
~Water (he wanted a DDP drinking buddy)
~Eating cutoff time (he thinks he's "hungry" after his after-dinner snack, or wants the freedom of a late-night date)
~Fruits & Vegetables (you mean chips & sandwiches are not a complete balanced meal?)
~NO sweets (but Bowman's has their doughnuts at half-price after 7 PM each night!  And what about the weekends.  And parties/social events.  And Family Night treat.  And birthdays??  And Taco Time is now serving Dole Whip!!)
~NO white flour (what about eating out at restaurants?  They all bring out the bread basket.  Or serve white pasta.  Or flour tortillas.  Or white buns/bread on their burgers & sandwiches!)
~Exercise (you mean you're going to go out to exercise instead of sit home with me?  Too much walking with me makes his bad knee ache.)

So, as you can gather, he's jumping for joy (as much as his knee will allow) that this whole thing is DONE.

This Challenge made me realize just how UNhealthy our regular, unconscious living can be.  Unless you're really paying attention, most people (myself included!) don't get any or enough fruits/vegetables, water, and exercise every day.  It also seems like treats &/or white flour are served everywhere we go.  (One evening at Bunco, out of an entire buffet that was provided, I could only select some frozen raspberries and cheese cubes to eat.)
The rules of the Challenge did allow one day a week to eat treats/white flour (you could only earn points in this category 6 days/week), so I had to really look at my week and decide when I would take it.  The problem was, there were multiple days every week that were going to have treat/white flour "opportunities."
My daughter's birthday and Mother's Day occurred during this Challenge.
There's also my weekly date with my husband.
And Sunday night came around every week - when we like to have treats while playing games.
Throw in snacks at my weekly cub scout den meetings, bridal showers, Mom's 'n' Muffins at Farm. Elementary, school Spirit Night @ a pizza place, wedding receptions, catered work meetings, my dad's 76th birthday get-together, extended family dinners, Missionary homecoming luncheons, BUNCO, dinner out with Business Partners, packing a lunch when I was a Field Trip chaperone (what do you do instead of a sandwich, made w/ bread?), Memorial Day BBQ (hamburger w/ no bun!), girlfriends' lunch, and three days of our family vacation...and that translates into A LOT of times that I had to say, "No"!!!
It was HARD to pick just one day a week.....and then PASS on everything else during the week!

BUT.......drumroll, please.....I DID IT!  And I ended up with a perfect score for the 8 Week Challenge, so I win [a piece of] the money!!!
As it turned out, there were seven of us with the highest [perfect] score at the end, so we're splitting the winnings - only about $35/person.  We needed more "slackers" in the group, so I could've taken home the entire $250 that was up for grabs!!!
But, like I said, two of my sisters were in the Challenge (also winners), so I KNEW there wouldn't be any slacking going on amongst us - ya just can't mess with the Fowers' determined/competitive nature!  ;)

AND.....another drumroll, please.....IT'S OVER!  Yay!!!  I'm ready for some freedom!
Hopefully, "freedom" does not equal reversing all the weight loss/health I've benefited from lately.)

Pick Any Two

Here's one of my favorite signs I've found on Pinterest: 

(it's SO true!)

I actually presented it to my husband and told him to do just what it says......PICK ANY TWO!

He looked over the list, and reread it, and thought about it, and scratched his head.  He let out a few, "Hmmmm's."  He opened his mouth as if he was going to say something, and then he closed it without saying a word.  His face looked troubled, conflicted.  He was in a stupor of sorts before he was able to answer.  BECAUSE HE WANTS IT ALL!

But, I told him he had to narrow it down to two.

Can you guess which two he picked?

Hint: he DIDN'T pick the "Works full time" one.
So, I asked him if that meant I could quit my job.
He rebuttal-ed, "You don't work full time."
Well, if he wants to get technical about it, I am not employed at my job "full time" (but don't get me started about telling a Mom she doesn't work!!!)  I also kindly informed him that I work at my job 24 hrs./week - which is 2/3 of "full time," so that means he now needs to decide WHICH of his two picks he will choose for me to reduce by two-thirds to compensate for that?!?
;)

I Got the Message...

We had my nieces & nephews staying with us one evening while their parents were out on a date.
Brookelle and my 3 1/2 yr. old niece came into the kitchen, where I was working, to get something to eat out of the pantry.
While they were close-by, this is what I overheard:


Niece:  "Brookelle, your mommy is REALLY fat."
Brookelle:  (Nervous laughter. Then, looks at me to see if I heard, or not.  Sees that I DID...)  "Come on, (niece's name), let's go!"

....and she's OUTTA THERE!


#ibetteraskforafitbitforChristmas

What a Difference 31 Years Make

Haylee had her 12th Birthday this week!

And, as such, she got an exciting visit from her new Young Women's Leader, welcoming her.  She'll be entering the Beehive class now!!!  (She couldn't be more pleased - especially since she gets to go to mutual [weekly youth activity] tonight!)

One of the things that she received from her leader during that visit was her own necklace that has the Young Women's motto and logo on the pendant, "Stand For Truth and Righteousness."

{You may have noticed olympic medalist, Noelle Pikus-Pace wearing her own Young Women torch necklace on the medal stand this past winter olympics.}

Haylee immediately put it on after the leader left our home.

It's like a TRUE SIGN that she is an official Young Woman!

Then I told her that I had received the same necklace when I was a Young Woman!  

And then I thought.....

In fact, I THINK I still have mine!  I informed her.

And I went to search for it.

Found it!

But, I had to laugh at the difference.....on a petite, 65 lb., li'l 12 year old girl......

.....it looks like a LONG necklace.

And on a [more mature] lady who is.....well.....MUCH GREATER than 65 lbs. AND a foot taller....

....it's like a CHOKER!

{Time to buy a longer chain}

I guess that's a TRUE SIGN that I'm the opposite of a Young Woman!  : (

WHAT "Lazy Days of Summer?"

This is officially the last week of Summer vacation for us and it's simply CRAZY to me.  How can it be over just like that?  

Every year, my children mourn the end of summer and dread the start of school, lamenting,

"We didn't even DO anything this summer!!" 

in their best feeling-jipped-voices.  Which really means they didn't do a million, ba-jillion, totally outrageous, much-too-lofty-of-a-plan, EXPENSIVE, UNREALISTIC things.  Like go to Legoland, Universal Studios, Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm, The Grand Canyon, Seven Peaks, Timpanogas Cave, the Taj Majal, MLB games, Florida, Texas, New York, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Washington, Canada AND Mexico at least once each.  And that they didn't go to Boondocks, swimming, Dairy Queen, Galaxy, the zoo, Classic Fun Center, mini golfing, bowling, gymnastics class, to the movies & museums, boating, hiking, to the beach, and parachuting at least once a week.
And they LOOK OVER the ton of "other things" they DID do!

It never works -- I never have felt sorry for them!

UNTIL THIS YEAR.

Because, THIS YEAR, when they say, We didn't even DO anything this summer.....it's pretty much true!

As far as the traditional SUMMER-ISH FUN that is supposed to go on.

I even bought a pool punch pass and declared, This summer we are going to have "Water Wednesdays" which means we will go swimming every Wednesday.

We went once.

I'm joining the "feeling jipped" members of my family now.

Matt & I even missed our August date....and we were doing SO WELL - DANG!  But, we're in San Diego together right now, just the two of us, does THAT count?!?  ;)


Instead of the "Lazy Days of Summer" we've:

• Sold our home -- TWICE!  (The first people cancelled after a couple of weeks)

• Signed, dated, scanned, and emailed back and forth 14 addendums for the sell of our home.  (Our realtor joked with us that he should start taking a higher commission on offers that go past five!)

• Which also meant I had a continual stream of phone calls and texts from the Realtor

• AND we kept showing our home until we past the "Due Diligence" period with the buyers.

• Built a new home

• Made 1,000 decisions on brick, paint, tile, floorboards, door knobs, driveway and walkway shapes, trex decking color, lights, woods, closet layouts, faucets, stucco, windows, trim, size of patio, banisters, patterns, doors on the left or on the right?, plug outlets down low or up high or somewhere in the middle?, If I should UP my anxiety meds or keep them the same.....

• AND then made many of these decisions AGAIN when the bids came back TOO HIGH or TOO LOW (who am I kidding?  THAT never happened!), or my selections were OUT OF STOCK, or the granite slabs I had picked out BROKE the day before they were to be delivered & installed.

• Called the builder way too many times MORE than he wanted me to.

• Babysat the builder.

• Made the builder fix way too many MORE mistakes than he wanted to.

• Fought with the builder.

• Started the loan process with a lender for our new home.

• Completed tons of paperwork and scrounged up all kinds of info they wanted about past names, drugs taken, jobs, income, marital status, insurance, residences, driving record, credit scores, best recipe for chocolate chip cookies, etc.

• And then the underwriters came back with a list a "conditions" and we had to send them a butt load of other things; copies of account statements and down payment checks and employment verification and my mammogram results....(just wondering if you're still paying attention!)

• All the while fielding 10 calls/texts (minimum) a day from the lender with updates and requests -- one of which I was not able to take because I had just gotten rear ended on my way back from picking out my granite the second time at the warehouse too far away from my home! 

• Closed on our home - and became renters of our own [well now THEIR] home.  We paid more in rent than we did our mortgage pymt - so sad!

• Packing up our home

• Gathering boxes from all sources:  KSL.com, Walmart, friends & family, the Liquor store (it's TRUE - they're great for our canned foods/food storage)

• Packing up

• Packing

• Packed some more  - it just grew!  When I thought we had done a ton - there was still a ton to do!

• Moved the majority of our things into THE GARAGE of the new house (we hadn't officially closed & it wasn't ready yet) because our buyers were taking possession of ours SOON!

• Shop for and buy beds & bedroom sets for the kids who were changing their sleeping situation (going from a shared room to an own room, going from a toddler bed to a "big girl" bed, etc.)

• Packed up the "essentials" we had kept with us at our home, including my work office stuff because I worked up until the last day we lived in that home.

• Moved the rest into the garage 

• Cleaned & did paint touch ups at the old  [empty] home -- thanks to my VT, brother's family, and MIL for helping us with this trying-to-beat-the-5PM-deadline-to-be-out-EFFORT!

• Signed closing papers on the new house

• Got frequent phone call updates from the lender who "camped out" at the title company for two days making sure that our case was getting worked and pushed it through.(thanks to him!)

• Then when we got word that the house was officially ours, we moved AGAIN.  We could move the things from the garage into the new house.  Word came in the late afternoon, so we didn't have anything set up to sleep, so we stayed at our brother & sister-in-law's house that night.(thanks to them!)

• Unpack the new house

• Move things in from the garage to the house

• Put everything away

• Forgot where I put it away

• Unpack some more

• Put together beds

• Unpack

• Hang butcher paper in the windows (after I got tired of crawling around on the floor below window level) so the neighbors don't "get more than they bargained for."

• Unpack

• Called all the Utility companies to stop service at our old home and start at the new one.

• No one knows our address exists, so make several other phones calls to resolve this....still not sure if it's totally "resolved."

• Call for Internet

• Comcast won't serve my "area" - yet the homes on all the streets surrounding me have it - am I not in their same "neighborhood?" 

• So desperate for internet use, set up an "Internet Cafe" on my in-laws porch and "tapped into" their wireless internet.

• Call another company for Internet - they can't come out for another week.

• Begged and bargained with my co-workers to cover my shifts since I didn't have the capability to work from home without internet

• The internet co. came out and couldn't find a ground wire --then they do -- but the main cable has been spliced (inadvertently?) and they can't get anyone out for 4-5 days to fix it. 

• Went over to my neighbor's to use her internet --Since when did we become so dependent on The Internet????

• Had to drive out to the [way too far away] JetBlue office to work (due to no internet and phone at home) when I couldn't get shifts covered at 2:45 in the morning - yep, just me and one semi on the road at that time!

• Unpack

• Meanwhile, we haven't received mail for 10 days - after 3 trips to the post office, we start getting our current mail, but no one knows what happened to all the mail BEFORE she "found" us!

• Unpack

• It takes a couple of phone calls to get new garbage cans delivered, so we have tons of garbage bags piling up.  THEN once they'res delivered, the garbage man passes us by - he can't find us either?!?  This warrants a trip down to city hall myself to get this straightened out.  WHEN YOU'VE JUST MOVED, YOU HAVE TONS OF GARBAGE and we can't be skipped!

• Hire someone to install cold storage shelving

• Get a water softener guy to our new house -- hard water and oil-rubbed bronze faucets and fixtures DO NOT GO TOGETHER!

• Go up and down the stairs 25+ times a day - needing a shower by the end of the day from all the sweating I'm doing.  I've lost 5 lbs. in the last three weeks.  It's called the packing-moving-unpacking diet!

• And I managed to get Ryan registered for High School (his Junior year!) and Kyle registered for Jr. High (an 8th Grader!)  WHAT?! 

• And we went school shopping - four different days for four different children.  I realized, girls are FUN to shop with - BOYS are not.

So, ALL of THAT dominated our whole entire summer!  But, we're in our new home (pictures coming sometime!)  not totally MOVED IN, but we are sleeping there now.  There are still unpacked boxes and things in the garage that need to be put away, but we're working on it EVERY DAY - some project or another.

Next up:
Window coverings
couches
Bonus room organizational system - I don't know what to do!  Suggestions?
yard
other furniture
TV(s) (that's only on Matt's list)  :)

So, we're FAR from done.  WAAAAAAAHH!

BUT, to make up for everyone's "LOST SUMMER" we've got a Fall Family Vacation coming up that we have been saving for and planning for years......

 

It will be a nice break from all the selling/buying/moving WORK we've spent the summer doing.  :)

Are You Sure we Share the Same Genetics?

Haylee's about as big around as my pinkie....

Yet, she's on the "ALL CARB DIET".  Have you heard of that one?  I'm sure you've heard of the "low carb" or the "no carb" diets, but Haylee has no interest in those - she prefers the "NOTHING-BUT-CARBS" diet.  If you're a bit dyslexic or have 40+ yr. old vision, your eyes may have read it this way: "All CRAP" and "Nothing-but-CRAP."   
It's pretty much the same thing!  No meaning lost with that mistake.  :)

Yet, she looks like this:

In our family, every week, a different person gets to decide the dinner menu [then help cook] for one night.  Do you know what her choices have been over the last few months?  I tried to tell her to pick a "real meal."  She says her choices ARE real....

She eats SO WELL on these nights!  (As compared to "normal" nights when she is forced to take one morsel and just stares at it for 30 min.)  By complete contrast, on "Haylee's Choice" nights....Seconds?  Thirds?  Fourths?  YES.  She takes 'em!

And for her most recent birthday, she wanted a "Cookie Bar" - and she put us all to shame in her consumption abilities.

Yet, she looks like this....

{the Karate belt could go around her 4 times!)

On the flip-side, while I was shopping at Costco yesterday, I just LOOKED at the Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies, and I'm up about 3  1/2 pounds this morning!?!!?!

It's the Day After Palm Sunday

Do you know what that means?
It means Lent is over.

I made it 40 days - and was 100% on my "No Candy" resolve.

Did I notice a difference? you ask?

Why Yes! (thanks for asking!) I got on the scale this morning......

AND it had changed by 5 pounds.....in the upward direction!

What the ???????????

So, if it doesn't even matter anyway..... I just went ahead and helped myself to a couple of Caramacs my in-laws just brought us back from Hawaii.

Baby, It's Cold Outside

Colder Weather = Exercise Conundrum

Because WHO wants to go run/walk when it's a WHOPPING 16 degrees outside? Not me.
In my driving around town lately, I passed a fitness gym, and on their marquee it read,
"The average person gains 10 pounds between Halloween and New Year's."
{yikes!}

And since I don't belong to a Gym....
And Jack Frost has made himself known....

Does this count?
JUST DANCE on the Wii
I'm saying it does.
Because that's what we've been doing.
And for the record...."Eye of the Tiger" is MY SONG....as visions of ROCKY dance through my head -- no one can beat my at that!

Uh oh...not a good sign when both competitors are NOT doing the same dance move....one must be getting a "GREAT" while they other is getting an "X"

Dancing or imitating gorillas?

It must count because it sure works up a heart rate!
Afterwards, I'm wet with SWEAT!

And from tears of laughter!

And from peeing my pants!

Hahahaha! :)

TMI?

Guess What November Means?

Wish me luck!

Retirement

This month of MAY marks three different Retirement milestones in our family.

FIRST:
Ryan has decided to retire from Percussion.

At least in the school band sense. (His Final School Band Concert was last Wednesday.) He would just like to be more of a "Basement Bedroom or Garage Jam Session" type drummer. He still has HIGH HOPES he will get his own set one day. Remember his BIG DREAMS?


Truth be Told -- this makes me sad.

When he was entering Jr. High and was deciding on what instrument he wanted to play, practically EVERYONE wanted to be a Percussionist. But the Band Director didn't want JUST ANYONE to be a Percussionist, so he made them go through a "tryout." There was a screening test, to weed out the "non-oriented musicians" basically. I still remember being in the Band room the day of the test and watching Ryan just writing answers down fluently and breeze through the test --and then seeing another girl just staring up at the ceiling, gnawing on her pencil, seeking for the answers by way of divine intervention, or something! Anyway, there were over 40 students vying for a Percussion spot back then. Only eight were chosen. Ryan was one of them. (He could FINALLY thank me for all those years of piano lessons I made him take!) I'm of the opinion that since he made it IN to such an ELITE group, he should stay IN. But, he says he's done now. sniff, sniff. Sometimes it's hard to let them make their own choices.

SECOND:
Haylee is retiring from Dance.
...after just two years. (Her last dance recital was 2 weeks ago) She says she's a baseball, soccer, and swimmer girl.

{Haylee: in the standing group of 3, left side}

Truth be Told -- this makes me sad - and glad.

On the one hand, we were on the waiting list for a looonng time before we were able to get in with this teacher. So, I think she should consider herself LUCKY and stay put. On the other hand, she fought me EVERY week! Because of this, she was LATE every week. She rebelled against the dance dress code (she'd change in the studio's bathroom into [non-approved] clothes she'd smuggled in her dance bag.)

{story detour}

One day, she didn't make it home from school on time to go to dance, so I just grabbed her dance bag and set out in the car to find her along the route. **She has insisted that her dance bag was ready the night before when I asked her.** However, my kids have a habit of answering in the affirmative to many questions their Mom asks them. "Have you cleaned your room?" "Have you practiced the piano?" "Did you put on a new pair of underwear?" "Is your homework done?" "Did you flush the toilet?" They know it's the fastest way to shut their Mom up! So, when I found Haylee and told her to change in the car, she started protesting greatly that she didn't have her dance clothes in her bag - at least the ones she likes. Now, I don't know HOW this happened, since she [said she] had completely prepared the night before. It's such a MYSTERY!!!!! There was a leotard, a pair of tights, and ballet shoes in the bag, though. PERFECT! Right?!? WRONG! She hates leotards. I told her to just put it on and she could wear her T-shirt she'd worn to school over the top since I was on my way to dance already and I wasn't turning back. She did. Fast Forward to AFTER dance class. When she came out, I noticed that the tights were kinda hangin' low on her in the crotch. I looked....and I thought....That's weird. Shouldn't her leotard be holding those tights up?...and I looked again....and I saw THERE WAS NO LEOTARD! Just tights over her panties and her T-shirt! I asked her teacher if she was just wearing tights and panties for the class that day.

"YEP!" the teacher confirmed.

"She was in a dance leotard when I dropped her off!" I explained, horrified.

"She went straight to the bathroom when she arrived," the teacher informed me. "I noticed, but I didn't want to say anything, and bring attention to it, in case the other girls didn't notice...so that's how she stayed through the whole lesson."

((Nice Teacher))

When we got back to the car, I asked her where her leotard was. She screamed, "I HATE LEOTARDS!"

"More than dancing in your panties in front of your whole class?" I asked.

Now it was her turn to be horrified. Apparently, she assumed the T-shirt would cover her all up. You know what they say about assuming.....

{end of detour}

She also refused to wear make up for recitals and pictures. There was much weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth EVERY week! (by both of us). So, it's a good thing, right?!? It'll save me about $300.00, too! Sometimes it's hard to let the child assert themselves - especially when it's against you.

And FINALLY:
There's me. I've retired from "Healthy Habits" Challenges. There was another one starting this week, but I did not join. It's the first one I've declined over the last 2 1/2 years. (Matt already informed me after the last one that I was not allowed to be on a "challenge" during our upcoming all-inclusive [READ: Lots o' Food] Cancun vacation in June.)

But, then again, I've reached the "finish line." I don't need it. Just look at my results.

BEFORE

AFTER

Pretty AMAZING, isn't it?!!!?

Actually, in all the FIVE TIMES I've done the "challenge" I've only received cash winnings ONCE. I got 3rd Place in one of them which awarded me $10. TEN [lousy] BUCKS. Exactly the same amount of the entrance fee, so it was just "a wash." So, I'm going into retirement.

Ya know what's funny? OR sad? During one of the "challenges" I was actually doing Weight Watchers (official program), but I lost the exact same amount of weight that time as I did the next time when I was NOT on Weight Watchers. Now what is wrong with this picture? And on my most recent 8 WEEK "challenge", I lost some weight - not an impressive amount by any means - but still, it was something. But, then it all came back on the moment I ate a Mimi's Cafe muffin the week the "challenge" was over.

And that's how My Retirement came about.

Now, who's to say I won't be like Brett Favre -- and come back -- 32 more times, but for now Excuse Me, I think I hear someone (something?) calling my name....

Random Question of the Week

How much weight would you guess a person would lose while training for a Triathlon all Summer?

Let me give you with the details...

RUN two times a week...

BIKE two times a week...

SWIM three to four times a week...
ALL Summer so far.

{That amounts to double or triple workouts on some days.}

So, what d'ya think? How much?

9 pounds?

13 pounds?

18 pounds?

Nope...those are all wrong!

Try a weight gain! (To the tune of 7.6 lbs.)

Aaaauugh!

WHAT THE ??????

It scares me to think what would've been had I NOT been training!

And what's gonna happen in 4 days in my "Life after Triathlon" when the training significantly lessens (or stops)?

I Passed up the Root Beer Float

....for Family Night treat on Monday

...as visions of dressing room mirrors flashed through my head.

(I DO realize the real word in the poem is "danced," but that word has a joyful, upbeat connotation to me -- and that would be a very inaccurate way to describe my experience!)

With my Triathlon only three weeks away, I decided it was time (overdue, in fact) to get me some Triathlon clothes. Are they even called, "clothes?" Should I be using a more official name? Like "Gear?" "Outfit?" "Triathlon wear?" My novice-ness is really showing through, huh?!? Anyway, I needed a "get up" that I could wear for all three events without changing, so I could run-bike-swim without stopping [at tremendous speed] because wearing a swim suit underneath shorts and a T-shirt to run and bike in is NOT my idea of comfort and fun! Wedgie, anyone? How about a good dose of "rubbing rash?" Got sweat? [in a swim suit.] And let's throw in the bouncin' bosom, as well! :)

So, I forced took my [supportive] chauffeur husband with me on the quest. As we're wandering around the first store, an employee asks if we need help. My husband asks where the Triathlon clothing is, so the employee takes us there....to the Men's. Matt had to inform him that we were there for ME and we needed the womens' department!

NOW, WHY DID THAT EMPLOYEE ASSUME THAT I WOULD NOT BE DOING A TRIATHLON??!!??

I know the answer.

Look at Matt: Tall, strong, lean machine. Look at Me: Not exactly the picture of a Triathlete.

BUT, I CAN DO HARD THINGS!

Nevertheless, not a real positive start to our shopping experience. Thoughts of "Maybe I shouldn't try to do this" entered my mind.

The first thing that employee shows to me is the "Tri Suit."

What? Is he just trying to make a mockery of me, now?

Oh, NO, NO, NO. I will not go there! No Thanks. NO WAY. NO HOW!

That reminds me of Summer Olympics track too much! Jackie Joyner-Kersee can pull it off -- but let's be honest, NOBODY wants to see me in that.

I wanted to stick with the two-pieced ones, thank you very much. Shorts (8" vs. 4") AND a [full-coverage] top with ample support just seem to provide better security for me.

Problem #2: Since Triathletes are mostly little, skinny, tiny, itty-bitty, lacking in fat, toned, void of flab, slender, small, slim little buggers -- so are the clothes that stores put on their racks to sell to them. Size XXS, XS, and S were available in plenty. Most sizes above that were in short supply! :( At a different store, one employee even referred me to the men's rack as well since "the tops run small."

"What am I doing?" thoughts popped in my mind.

When we went up to make the purchase, the cashier wanted to enter our "profile" into the computer. The employee started asking Matt for HIS name and contact information - to which my husband, again, had to direct their attention to me.

Hello!! Yoo Hoo! Is it too much to even consider? Muscle man over there is NOT the one doing the Triathlon, it's Pillsbury Dough-girl, here!

Should the fact that two different "fitness expert-ish" employees didn't have any confidence in me, be giving me a "plex?" Little do they know that sometimes I make Matt bike or run with me - and I'm continually turning around, looking back to find him since he's unable to keep up. (At least that's his story - I personally think it's his way of getting out of having to talk to me the whole time!)

Anyway, I'm not quite sure which was the bigger shocker.....
The way those tri shorts made my legs look like sausages oozing out of them or the $70 ticket price they carried (on each piece!)

Ouch to both!

****

I did swim the furthest/longest I've ever swam today -- 30 laps! And I did it in approximately double the time that everyone else there did it. woo hoo! ;)

Hello! McFly!

My [brilliant] firstborn came upstairs the other night - right around the time when things are suppose to be [finally] winding down, the kids are in bed asleep, or at least they're not seen by me and I have a moment to breathe - and he declared,

"Ummm, I think I have a problem."

As he held out his arm to show us the damage.

He had a plastic piece of one of my other children's money bank stuck - SUCTIONED rather - to his arm!
OK - first off....WHY does he feel the need to dissect banks? And toys, contents of drawers, garbage cans, and a myriad of other household objects for that matter. Why can't he just LEAVE. THINGS. ALONE. (and nice & neat & clean and in pristine condition. OK, so maybe that's too lofty of a wish).
And secondly....WHAT WAS HE THINKING?
Probably something along the lines of "I wonder what would happen if I put a 10-inch in diameter plastic tube on my 12-inch in diameter bare skin arm?"
And then he definitely found out.
We were tugging and pulling and twisting -- all with no luck.
We used water and Vaseline and Pam cooking spray -- and it wouldn't budge.

I worried if it would cut off all circulation to his arm and would lead to his arm self-detaching.

His Dad, unamused, informed him, "This is the kind of thing that will land you in the E.R."
And I'm thinking, Oh great, that's all I need. I was just settling down for the evening!
Ryan was only mildly embarrassed with all his dad's inquiries about his intelligence.

I started to brainstorm of all the people I knew who had Power Tools that could be used in the emergency removal of this foreign object that refused to come off his arm.

At one point, his dad instructed him to stand opposite of him, facing him, hold his arm out straight in front of him, put his hand in a fist against Matt's stomach. Then Matt pulled down on the bank piece his direction and Ryan leaned back the other way.
The tube didn't budge - it looked like it might, but it didn't.
But Ryan did exclaim, "Man, Dad, you've got Abs of Steel!" (Pretty remarkable for Ryan to say that considering all the non-compliments he'd just been getting from his Dad!)
Since the previous procedure looked so promising while I'd been observing it, I decided to repeat it, but this time with ME on the opposite side of Ryan, pulling it down with his fist bracing against MY bowl-full of jelly stomach. I didn't get it off either.
And incidentally, I received NO comments from Ryan, so I went ahead and asked him, "So, do I have Abs of Steel?"
To which he responded, "Not so much!"

Eventually, we did get it off - at home. Thanks to the commotion that brought our quiet evening to a halt, Katelyn came out of her room and gave us an idea to try which did the trick!

Ryan NEVER was able to come up with an explanation as to WHY he did it, however.

Climbing Back On the Wagon

I went on an 11 day "Leave of Absence."

Of paying any kind of attention to what I was eating.

Or how much I was eating.

Or what time I was eating it.

Just completely abandoned my "Eat Less, Move More" mantra -- and instead adopted the exact opposite (Eat More, Move Less).

The Damage?

4.8 pounds!

Incidentally, that's the exact number I lost that one time when I wrote down everything I ate...it's a wash, I guess!

Is that possible? Come on! That hardly seems fair, at all. It was only Dec. 24th thru Jan. 3rd.

But, IT IS WHAT IT IS. (boo, hoo!)

And that's all about to CHANGE!

Because I've got myself into another New Year's Challenge.

This year...different people, different focus, different twist, different time frame....

BUT, one thing stays the same.

I still refuse to reveal my weight to my fellow competitors!

(No, my husband still doesn't know my weight -- they say, "What he doesn't know, can't hurt him!" right?!!)

The Moment of Truth

I got a letter in the mail.

It's from the Driver License Division.

Uh Oh...

It's a "Courtesy Driver License Renewal notice."

Apparently, I have reached the MAXIMUM number of years allowed to renew my D. L. by mail.

Oh, no.

THIS YEAR I am required to appear IN PERSON at a D. L. examining office.

And, at minimum, I will have to blah, blah, blah and complete a new application AND have my photo taken (I just skimmed over some things since these are the two that have sent me into a panic!!!)

OH CRAP!


You see, I have managed to avoid this for quite some time. In fact, I have a Driver License that probably looks like no one else's from my state. I just don't have the "OLD" one, I have the "OLD, OLD" design of license...yes - they have changed the look of our State's license TWICE since I've gotten one. And I don't like the new look. PLUS, I have enjoyed living with all the "false" info & photo that is on my current D. L. When I renewed last time, I was seriously 8 months pregnant with Kyle and when I asked, they told me I should not put my current weight on the application (since it was "temporary" - HA! So much they knew.) They told me to write down my "pre-pregnancy" weight or just to leave it the same as my previous license. So, I took their suggestion, of course! I have been driving around with a license that has my weight from when I was 24 yrs. old on it - for the last 15 years!! And, amazingly, considering my great-with-child state I was in, the photo may have been my best D. L. photo of the three that I've ever had - way better than I could produce now, that's for sure!

Now, can you understand WHY I am not embracing this opportunity?!?

I've been trying to formulate a plan in my mind....Is it possible to get back down to my 24-yr. old weight in the next 8 weeks, so I can keep the same number? How about I just don't weigh myself between now & then so I can honestly say, "I don't know my weight." And then on that day that I appear IN PERSON, I'll just "guess" - and by default, I would most likely "guess" the weight that I've gotten used to seeing on my D. L. during the last 15 years. Can I just enter my "happy weight?" Or would that make me unidentifiable? I could just "meet in the middle" (of actual & "happy weight") with my number. Or go more towards the low-middle. Or low-low-middle. Or would 20-30 lbs. under my actual weight be more believable/acceptable? Maybe I'll just put the actual weight, I mean how many people really look at my license anyway? Only the cops, and TSA, and airport crewmembers, and grocery store clerks, and bank tellers, and people who find my lost wallet at the Ball Park, and MY KIDS who snoop around in my stuff...Okay, THEY could be the most damaging witnesses of all...it'd for sure come up in a future Home Teaching visit. Or in school. Or amongst their friends while engaging in a "one up" conversation - it'd give a whole new meaning to the classic My-Mom-is-bigger-than-yours banter! Can't have THAT! How many other people LIE about their weight on their license? Is leaving it blank an option? They don't have a scale there and force you to stand on it, do they? If not, I could literally write down ANY number I wanted, right? But, I'm such a "rule follower." Hmmm...

Well, whatever it is I do about the weight thing,

there's NOTHING I can do about the photo!

DOUBLE CRAP!!

I bought some new capris yesterday -- SAME dang size as what I have been wearing. (And for that reason, I will NOT be posting a photo of me IN the capris!) Come on!! I figured it wasn't going to be anything MIRACULOUS like five sizes smaller, BUT couldn't it have just been one size smaller? It's gotta just be that this brand "runs small," right?!...RIGHT?!?

**On another health note: If I was cooking some brocolli which I fully intended to eat for lunch, but neglected it for a little too long (while being distracted by this blog) and it & the pan really stink now, and so I don't even wanna be around it, let alone eat it, does it still "count" that I DID eat it - do I still get the healthy benefits?!

The Power of Accountability

Last week I got curious.
I wondered about my eating. How bad was it? How good was it? Did I really want to know? YES! I decided I did.
My friend, Jill, (there - I dropped your name!) knows all about the nutritional value, points, calories, etc. of food, so I just told her I was going to write down everything I ate the next day and then show it to her to check.

And a very interesting thing happened...

The next day, I had some Easter candy in my cupboard that I'd been planning on eating. BUT, I didn't want to write it down that I ate it - so I didn't eat it! I showed my list to Jill that night and she said I was doing fine...but I was still curious - that was only ONE day.

I continued the day after that, too. I happened to go to Costco and, of course, they had 12 or so samples out - all of which I would've normally sampled. BUT, then I'd have to write down everything and that would make for a LONG list, and I did not want to do that - so I passed on the samples! I, again, showed my list to Jill - pretty good...but I was still curious - might as well keep going.

On Saturday, Matt asked if i wanted to go get a Blizzard with him at Dairy Queen (he had a B1G1 free coupon). I wondered what kind of impact that'd have on my daily caloric intake. I looked it up online. Are you ready for this? I checked out the Reese's PB cup blizzard since that's what I planned on ordering...

600 calories. 21 grams of fat. 87 grams of carbs (i.e. sugar)

And that was the SMALL size. No way was I going to write that down! That's all the calories of a meal. That's a whole days worth of fat. That's way too much sugar for an addict like me! Didn't go, didn't eat it, too disgusted to have that written on my list.

On Sunday, Matt made Chocolate Chip Cookies for some other families. They looked and smelled very good. The kids were swooning all around the kitchen at the leftovers. When he set aside some for us, I, again, thought about having to write it down. Instead of 11(+) cookies, I ate one that someone had already taken a bite out of - so, about two-thirds of a cookie. I could handle writing that down. 11+? Too appalling.

On Month End, Matt had to stay late at work, so he invited me to meet him for lunch (so we could at least see each other that day!) We went to Costa Vida. I always order the Fajita grilled steak salad. But, there's two sizes - large & small. Well, guess what? You got it - I didn't want to have to write down that I ate a LARGE one - how embarrassing! So, I ordered the small for the first time ever. And can I just say, it really is MUCH smaller. But, it was fine.

WAIT!...Does it sound like to you that Matt might be sabotaging me?!? :)

On Fast Sunday I made a mini-Thanksgiving meal for dinner. We had the Turkey, real Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Helen Goo's homemade rolls, Jamie's Thanksgiving casserole (vegetables)...Yummm! It really hit the spot for the fasters in my family! :) So much so that a lot of people were having 2nd & 3rd helpings...do you see where I'm going with this? That'd make me look like a PIG if I had to write down all those extra servings. No, not just LOOK - it'd be spelled out in black & white right in front of me - it WOULD be full-fledged PIG! So, I didn't.

So, last night I got curious again. It'd been a week since I'd been writing down everything I ate. Did it make a difference? Of course I wanted to know! So, I stepped on the scale....Oh, it made a difference, alright!

4.8 pounds, baby!

(loss, not gain, by the way.)

All because I wrote down everything that I ate. Who would've thought?

The evolution of My Body

It's that time of year again to think about your weight, your body, your figure (or lack of it), etc, etc. There's talk about "body type" and how you can't really change it - so you might as well just "embrace it" - for LIFE! Well, I'm not so sure I agree completely. I think I've pretty much covered ALL the body types!! And, here they are through the years...

HIGH SCHOOL

Although, at the time, I thought I was soo fat and woke up early every morning to do "Hooked on Aerobics" on KBYU. Ya know the one with 3 different platform "levels" (easy, medium, & high impact) and all three of them wore coordinating leotard/tights ensemble - even the guys?!

I don't think it helped a bit!

COLLEGE

The only reason I really say I was ever this body type comes from a comment a "boyfriend" made to me once - and you'll see WHY he was NOT EVEN worthy to be called that. Imagine me & him sitting on a cliff at Lake Powell with our feet dangling down towards the water. Of course, we're in our swimming suits - we're at the Lake - and he looks at me and says, "Ya know...if you could take some of this (while gesturing to the vicinity of my thighs), and put it up there (gesturing to my chest area), you'd have a REALLY NICE body!!"

Can. you. EVEN. believe. that?!

I hope he's been enjoying his SINGLE life ever since! :D

AFTER HAVING MY 1ST BABY

(ya know what I mean!)

If that "boyfriend" could only see me then! hee hee!

NOW

This is what is said of this body type (from an article I read)...

"You have the body type people want to cuddle. Especially tiny people, who most people call babies. Babies may have shaped your body into womanhood, and you should bear your wounds of motherhood with honor, not shame."

Well, some of the Brenchley's have embarked on our own mini, "The Biggest Loser" for the next 90 days. It's all based on total weight loss PERCENTAGE, so everyone is sharing their weight with one another so we can figure that out. Everyone EXCEPT me, that is. I REFUSE! Not even my own husband knows that nasty, little secret - and the "Marriage Fitness" book instructs that we SHOULD NOT share secrets with others that we do not share with our spouse!! (to avoid becoming more emotionally intimate with another person, male or female.) And I'm sticking to that rule!

It's just too horrific today...and here's some photos to prove it...

Here I am "BEFORE" just 8 [quick] years ago, finishing the St. George Marathon.

(Nowadays I'm having trouble running up our stairs, taking them 2 at a time like I've always done!)

And here I am "NOW" at my recent Vegas wedding (to George Clooney.) They provided this attractive gown to slip on and velcro up the back! I couldn't even do up the dress!

(Don't they have contests for the most hideous "wedding" pictures? I need to enter to win!)

So, there you have it - maybe TMI, but this is MY Blog, right?

One thing's for sure, I'll never be a celery...

But, do ya think I can ever become the "hour glass" again? OR, will I just be a smaller apple?!?