I love my dad...

Sometimes I think it's funny what happens. My dad and I were on the phone. We were talking about my cousin moving and such and how she probably won't get married out here since she's moving next weekend. My dad was originally going to come and see me when he went to her wedding since I live an hour away from her. Anyways, my dad then decides to ask me the famous question..."So, when are you going to get married?"

I love you, dad. That has been on my to-do list forever and all of my friends know I am wedding-crazy and want to get married soooo badly! Especially since I'm positive that I have a keeper on my hands. You see, my dad used to always tell me to "slow down" in relationships and to really test it out first to see if we should get married. Now, he is really wanting to know when it will happen because he really likes the guy I'm with! This, folks is a definite first in my dating history. My dad has never thought that anyone was good enough for me and he thinks that Phil and I should be on our way to getting married!

I find it a little ironic. After my last big break-up my dad and I prayed for God to bring me a quality guy. I made out a list with all of the good qualities I was looking for that I would not budge on. I prayed over that list and over the guy that God would bring me, namely, my future husband. What I didn't know is that my dad was praying for the exact same thing only that the next guy God would bring me would be my husband!

Sure enough, only a couple of weeks afterwards, I started talking to Phil and within a few weeks of talking I was positive that this was it. I had this feeling from God that this is the person that God had in store for me!

As you can imagine, this dating process has been a little crazy considering I want to get married and know that my dad approves (which is a serious feat!) and God laid it all out there. Phil is an amazing man, but likes to take things a little bit slower. I have come to accept that and know that when the time is right, he will pop the question so all I have to do is have faith, keep praying, and be patient...which, unfortunately is not a strong suit of mine at the moment!

It's just so great to hear my dad say that he will give Phil his blessing and my hand whenever he is ready. It means so much to me to know that my dad sees all of the great things that I see. Phil is a wonderful man and I am so lucky to have him in my life. I can't wait to have our relationship move to the next step and I keep praying that it will happen when the time is right.....i may or may not mention something about sooner rather than later when I pray, but I'll never tell!

Exhaustion=Boxed Dinners :(

The past few days I have been having a terrible time sleeping. This morning I literally woke up and was completely annoyed by the thought of getting up, getting ready, going to work, then going to the gym...mainly the last one, but still. Of course I did all of those things anyways because when you are a nanny, you can't just call in when you would rather sleep mainly because who would watch the kids if I did that?

As my day progressed I started to feel better and actually had a really great workout at the gym! I'm not noticing results yet, but when I do the elliptical it is 100 times easier this week to go the same amount of time but faster!

After the gym I ran some errands, hung the laundry up on the line, and cleaned out the fridge in my apartment. Picking up Chick-fil-A on my way back to the house to get the little one from carpooling from school on the way back.

Fast forward to sitting at the house eating lunch...I suddenly felt exhausted. Seriously? I just had so much energy and contemplated going home tonight, making dinner, cleaning up, going back to the gym or to group depending on my mood.

Now...all I want to do is sleep. I feel incredibly tired and it is draining just thinking of making dinner and cleaning up. And I have resorted to making hamburger helper for dinner *shudder*. There is nothing wrong with hamburger helper, but I just feel so much better if I make something more homemade than that. It tastes good, but the Food Network watcher in me screams "DON'T DO IT!" Lol. It's a problem, seriously.

I am going to be going to the grocery store soon to get some easy-quick-fix things to make for dinner for nights like tonight.

Tasty Tuesday

Today, over at Etta's blog she is hosting a Tasty Tuesday post where you can share your favorite recipes! I love cooking so much and since I'm always looking for new recipies, I've decided to post one of my favorite ones that is a hit with Phil's family for dinner! I actually got this recipe from Phil's mom who got it from Phil's Gram. I have made it before for my previous bosses and for the family that I work for now as well and everyone loves it...especially the sauce. So, without further delay here's the recipe:

Meatloaf

2/3 Cup of Bread Crumbs
1/2 Cup Milk
1 1/2 Pounds of Ground Beef or Ground Turkey
2 Slightly Beaten Eggs
1/4 Cup Grated Onion
1 tsp. Salt

For the Sauce:
3 Tbsp. Brown Sugar
1 tsp. Ground (Dry) Mustard
1/4 Cup Ketchup

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a glass casserole dish with a wire rack lined with foil and holes cut through foil to allow the fat to drain. Or use a broiler pan and line with foil. Cut holes in the foil to allow the fat to drain.
2. In small bowl, mix together bread crumbs and milk. Set aside.
3. Combine ground meat, eggs, onion, and salt. Add in bread crumb/milk mixture. Use your hands to incorporate thoroughly.
4. In separate bowl, mix together the ketchup, brown sugar, and dry mustard to make the sauce.
5. Take the meatloaf mixture and mold it into a loaf shape.
6. Baste the top of the meatloaf with the sauce.

*Bake @ 350 degrees for 1 hour or until cooked through.

**I make extra sauce to serve with the meatloaf as well.

There you have it! It can be served with any kind of potato, coleslaw, or we like it with green beans as well. Let me know what you think.

I love Fall!

Fall is my favorite season. I love the leaves changing colors, the weather...not too hot, not too cold, pumpkins, fall colors--red, orange, yellow, and just the overall feeling of it all.

I must admit that I really love all things pumpkin. Carving pumpkins, pumpkin spiced drinks, making pumpkin rolls, pumpkin pie, pumpkin crafts, and pumpkin patches. In fact, I am convinced that my wedding should be in the fall...October, specifically...and that the center pieces will be pumpkins with wedding symbols and words carved into them. I am definitely lucky that Phil is totally ok with this vision of our fall wedding, but alas, I must get the ring first!

This weekend will have some fall goodness to it. I am going to make a couple of pumpkin rolls *phil's favorite*, pick out pumpkins to carve with my honey, and hopefully make it to the mountains tomorrow to see the leaves changing color in the mountainy-fall-goodness!

What are your plans for the fall?

Letter

Dear Fellow Gym Go-ers,

I think it is terrific, even admirable that you too are going to the gym. Maybe it is to get into better shape or just to be healthy, but whatever the reason it is honestly great.

I find it helpful that the gym has showers and a fantastic locker room with tons of lockers, mirrors, and a bathroom with granite countertops. In fact, this is the whole reason that I like the locker room. The showers are a nice touch even if I refuse to use them, but really, feel free to do so yourselves.

I must admit, however, that there is something that I saw this morning that I do not think is necessary. You see, the gym also has an extra changing room available so that you need not prance around in your old lady undies for everyone to see. I do not enjoy gathering my belongings from my locker post work-out to see an older woman in floral granny panties and a pink bra.

For future reference, I would like for you to consider one of the ample shower/changing areas available not in the open.

Thank you,

Your Fellow Gym Patron

I think I need a plan....

starting NOW.

I have spent entirely too much money in September and October. It's because there have been things that I saw on sale and wanted and some things where I have convinced myself that I have needed.

There may or may not have been many times where I wanted to shop so badly I bought things for Phil just so that the shopping could be justified.

My bank account is not too happy right now.

Phil and I are going to sit down and make a plan....tonight!

Great Weekend

This weekend was a lot of fun minus Friday night. Every Friday evening Phil's family has a family dinner. It is something I totally look forward to every week. Unfortunately I was unable to attend this Friday because instead I was busy waiting for my tub to be looked at since it was filled with water and would not drain. Even though it was necessary to wait around it ended up being fixed to drain, but they need to do something else so that it can plug up for baths.

Saturday was possibly my favorite! My legs were super sore from the leg work out my trainer had me do the day before, but at least I know the working out is working, right? We started off the day by going to lunch and meeting up with a friend at Bob Evans...I love Bob Evans. After that we went to the outlets and went shopping for 4 hours...ahhhh! I ended up getting a super cute pink coat with a faux fur hood. It's super comfy and cute and I really, really needed at coat for the winter. I also got some thermals and a zip-pull over fleece from the Gap outlet.

Today we went to church this morning and we went to the church that we were attending when we first started dating. It was a church that Phil had been going to for years and we left because of some drama between me and the youth pastor. Long story short...I was trying to get involved in youth ministries and the youth pastor was a little busy. He thought he was responding to me and I never got the emails. I thought I was being ignored and got really hurt and upset so we left that church for most of this year. He ended up seeing us in Panera Bread this past week, said hi and I no longer felt ignored. We went back this morning to try it out again.

After church to clear the air I went up to talk to him and explain what happened. We concurred it was a big misunderstanding and we both apologized. He extended another offer to volunteer with the youth ministry program and all is better. I figure we will continue to go there and hopefully we will make that our home church again.

Other than that we had lunch at home and ran some errands. It is so wonderful to have the whole weekend to do whatever we wanted and not worry about what time Phil has work.

It was a fantabulous weekend!

Day 1

The motivation I had yesterday to get started with the trainer has really kicked in. Today was my first day with my new trainer...and...I loved her! She was everything I was looking for in a trainer. After the last trainer I had, it was great to have someone who seemed interested in my goals and what I have to say. I'm really glad that I requested her and was adament about it. I figured that if she is always in the gym working out, then she must be pretty decent at it and seemed nice.

We talked and figured I would do 3-4 days a week with her and some extra classes of cardio when I am not working out with the trainer. It was a bit costly, but will hopefully be worth it. She was so encouraging and made sure to give me only one homework assignment for my diet for this week which was to eat one more fruit or vegetable per day than I normally would. Easy enough! She said she didn't want me to get overwhelmed with the workouts and completely changing my diet all at once because then I would be more likely to give up on it....See? She rocks!

I have another appointment with her tomorrow morning since she has decided to come in even when it wasn't in her original availability. It is so great to work out with someone who is encouraging and will push me when it needs to be done.

Hopefully we will see some results next month when we do the next set of measurements and weigh in!

Let's get the party started

Let's face it, I've gained 20 pounds in the last year. That's kinda a lot and I am not happy with it at all. The weight gain has been mostly because of stress with some "love weight" thrown in there by falling in love with an incredible man. Either way it needs to go.

I'll be the first one to admit that I am a procrasinator. The gym to me seems like a great idea until it is time to go. I'm also the best excuse maker ever --due to years of practice when I was a kid --to get out of anything I did not want to do.

I'm also a stress-eater. When stress comes my way so does my appetite. Cheeseburgers, pizza, bacon, ice cream, chocolate, cake, cookies...you name it, I want it.

Because of all of these things it has been really bad on my health. I have back pain, knee pain, and I get winded going up and down stairs. When we were at DisneyWorld this past summer, I couldn't even walk around the whole time. My back was in so much pain. My knees hurt, and my feet were so swollen I couldn't even fit into shoes or my sandals I had brought! It has gotten so bad that part of my leg feels swollen and will hurt if I have it bent too much. Unfortunately Phil's sister in law is a doctor and said it is not swollen. This of course means that it is just my fat that hurts....ouch :(

I am, honestly, about 55-60 pounds away from my goal weight. It's been exhausting to not be able to bend down while sitting to get things without having my belly get in the way. Phil will actually volunteer to do many things for me to help because he knows that it is incredibly uncomfortable for me to do myself--like carrying things up the stairs for me at his house. I'm not incapable and I do many things, but the weight does get in the way more than I would like it too.

I had just about had it today when the realization came that my insecurities all stem from my weight in some form or another. The once a month personal training is not working because we only meet once a month and other than that the average gym trip has been once a week...not too good.

Phil and I had talked about how I need more training from a professional multiple times a week to really see results and be motivated. With feeling so insecure lately I decided to talk to him about actually doing that and headed off to the gym to get prices on different training options. He agreed, surprisingly, that it would be a good idea to have me try it out for 3 months meeting with a trainer 4 times a week! This way I am guaranteed to go to the gym 4 times a week for the next 3 months and there should be some kind of significant progress by that point.

My first appointment is tomorrow with my new trainer. I am hopeful that it will go well and that it will be the kick in the butt I need to get going with weight loss and living a healthier lifestyle.

First Day

It is definitely a big day...Phil started his new job today and I couldn't be prouder of him if I tried! Luckily, I was able to talk to him on my way to work to make sure he got there ok. He had about an hour and twenty minute commute and had to be there by 8am. He called me again on his lunch break to let me know how his day is going so far and he said it was going well! They had given him a tour of the supply closet (lol) and said they would have to give him a better one later in the day. He has a cubicle and will be making changes and additions to previous maps using cartography software.

I can't even begin to tell you how excited and relieved I am. He graduated in December of 2007 with a degree in Geography and certificate in Geographic Information Systems (GIS). His very unique degree has made it difficult for him to find a good job, but God has finally blessed him with this amazing opportunity!

In other news, we saw the youth pastor of the church we used to go to at Panera Bread yesterday. We stopped going to the church because the guy ignored my attempts to volunteer as a youth leader and eventually ignored me--all while telling Phil that he had been emailing me the whole time...ummm, I never got anything past the one or two emails that told me about the Christmas party and that was it despite my at least three more I sent even saying we could talk on the phone if it were easier for him.

Anyway, we were there and he was sitting at the table right next to us and he actually acknowledged us! This made me feel so much better and seriously less angry about the whole situation so we are going to try to go back to that church this Sunday. We left only because of the way that he was making me feel and the ignoring despite seeing us every Sunday for months. Hopefully things will go well and we have a "home church" again.

Pretty much everything is going well over here! Can't wait for the graduation ceremony in December, it should be a very interesting trip to say the least. Happy Tuesday!

Congratulations to Chris and Heidi!

I love weddings! Today just happened to be the wedding to a really great couple, Chris and Heidi. I've known these two for just under two years now and it has been great to see their relationship grow into something beautiful.

They had an amazing outdoor wedding at a small church in Virginia--which meant Phil and I had to drive three hours to see them and three hours back today because the friend we were going to stay with has the flu :( I love how they incorporated teh fall theme into just about everything from the colors to the centerpieces adn even to the cake. It was incredibly lovely and I was happy we could be there.

And if God has not given us a million signs already...Phil ended up with the garter! It landed close to him so he was the only one who stepped over and picked it up....haha!

Getting Spoiled

Today I decided to pamper myself a little despite being completely exhausted. Phil and I have a wedding to go to on Saturday so I didn't feel too guilty :)

Today I bought some eye shadow, mascara, super cute tights, ribbon, and a quilter's cutting board for my sewing. After work I decided to do one more thing...get my nails done! It has probably been almost a year and a half since I have had my nails done. It's so nice to have them done and I feel so much better.

On top of that Phil's last day working at Wal-Mart was today! He starts his new job as a cartographer on Tuesday and I am so incredibly proud of him. After work he brought me a present "just because he loves me"...Friends Season 1? ....yes please! Have I ever mentioned how much I love him?

I have a lot to get done tomorrow so I'm praying the kids all go to school and don't stay home sick. I have to pack for the wedding in Virginia, iron Phil's work clothes, go to the gym (maybe), do the little one's laundry, and any other errand that I can't think of off the top of my head.

Wish me luck!

Uncivilized?!

The kids grandma thinks that me pulling the car over to give Middle child a much needed time-out is "uncivilized." She also thinks that her "perfect little angels" are sweet as pie and do not need discipline. She also doesn't think that the kids can do things for themselves and does not agree with how I do things.

Guess what...I get the kids to listen, have order in the house, and manage to keep them safe, happy, and healthy. Homework is done daily, chores are done, and I have had no complaints from mom on what is done and how things are managed. Mom comments on how well the kids behave when I am in charge.

This kind of makes me laugh.

The Gym is Totally Kicking my Butt

I've been slacking lately on going to the gym. In the past three weeks I have been once per week. I have been eating better since Friday and have already lost .8 of a pound! I've decided to try to go to the gym more often, but not to pressure myself or there's no way I'll go.

This morning there was a Combat class (like kickboxing) and I went to that right after the little one got picked up from school. It is one of my favorite classes and teachers at the gym and it was great to be able to go. The class is an hour long and I stayed for all of it except the last part where they do some crunches, push-ups, and stretching. Throughout the whole class I...thought....I....was....going....to....die. It's a great workout, but it's exhausting!

They say the gym is supposed to make you feel great and give you tons of energy, but it doesn't so much when you are out of shape to begin with. I am so ready for a loooong nap right now. Hopefully I can continue to go more this week and start to feel the "energy" from going to the gym afterwards, but for now I need a nap!