let the christmas countdown begin!

my posting has been a little sparse lately. on friday it was a huge snow storm so i didn't go to work. i have to drive for 40(ish) minutes so it just wasn't worth it because a) it would have taken much longer and b) the chance of getting into an accident and dying an untimely death are somewhat high. and i don't have snow tires and wouldn't want to hurt anyone.

instead i went to my boyfriend's school for his christmas concert. cute!

i didn't weigh in on friday because i forgot. really! but it's probably a good idea. my clothes fit and nothing is really out of control, but i don't want any bad number (if it so exists) ruining my holiday enjoyment.

i have been doing really well in the exercise department. on friday i walked on the treadmill for four miles, on saturday i ran 5k on the treadmill (30 minutes without stopping), on sunday i went for a 40 minute swim, and this morning a 30 minute swim. i might do some more treadmill walking tonight depending on how tired i am after a long waking-up-early working monday. i am meeting a girlfriend at swiss chalet tonight for our annual festive special hooplah, so i should allow for some extra calories.

that's about it. oh, and i didn't get the other job either. BOOOOOOOOO! Hissssssssss! i guess it wasn't meant to be. :(

i have to work tomorrow too (with ma mere) but not wednesday or thursday (obviously). i am looking forward to some good old fashioned family time. by that i mean too much booze and family squabbles. i kid i kid. ;)

keep going

i really was oscar the grouch yesterday. when i got back to the city, i had an email from one of the companies. a rejection email! surprisingly i'm not that bummed about the job. i feel a sense of peace because i know. knowledge is power. anyway, being turned down motivated me to send an email to the other company, asking about the status of the job and just mentioning again why i'm the best person for the job. maybe being pushy like that is a good idea, maybe not. it can't hurt. at least now if they haven't chosen a candidate yet, i will be in their mind as a motivated person. and i feel like i've done everything i possibly can, so there is no self-doubt. if i get the job, i will be ecstatic. and if not, i will try to convince myself that it wasn't meant to be, and that something else will come along soon.

last night my book club potluck was a great success. there was lots of yummy food and fun times. it was a big mess but i cleaned it up pretty fast by dumping all the leftover food. what is the point of keeping it if i'm not going to eat it. like leftover slices of homemade pizza, spinach dip, those little baked appetizers, etc. there were also some cookies and holiday treats, but i think they were re-partied to begin with. and not really that good or exciting. i wouldn't re-party them, because i wouldn't want to say they were leftovers, and i definitely wouldn't want to imply that i made them! so into the garbage they went.

tonight is my boyfriend's holiday work party. i am bringing the cookies i made (all four kinds from the kraft website listed a few posts back) and lower fat oreos half dipped in melted white chocolate and sprinkled with green sprinkles. yummo :)

yesterday i didn't get in any exercise, but i woke up early this morning and swam for 30 minutes. i really didn't want to but once i started it was fine... better than fine... good!

apparently the city is being attacked by "snowmageddon" tomorrow morning and all day. i didn't make up that word... the weather people did!

bah humbug

i'm here, all is alright. tonight is my holiday book club potluck party. last night i ran for 30 minutes without stopping and without bum pain. i have not heard from EITHER job position and it's really frustrating me!!! those stupid jerks. don't they know i am going crazy?!?! my anniversary was very nice and romantic. we had dinner at the top of the CN tower in the revolving restaurant and my main squeeze gave me a diamond heart necklace. ooh la la.

crazy week coming up!

good morning. this week is going to be crazy. let's start at the very beginning.

monday: today is my two year anniversary (with my boyfriend). exciting! we are going somewhere or doing something but it is a surprise. i love surprises! i made him a scrapbook with photos from our year together and love quotes on fancy paper. the "glitter stack" of cardstock. i am fairly certain he doesn't read this blog so the surprise won't be ruined. ALSO, today i am definitely (i think) going to hear about one of the jobs. for some reason, instead of being excited about it, it has turned me into a nervous wreck. all weekend the hamster wheel in my brain was whizzing around at a thousand times a second. as soon as i woke up in the morning, no matter how early or how late i went to bed the night before, i was up because i couldn't stop worrying. i need to calm down.

moving on. tuesday: actually this day is nice and chill. i have to clean my apartment, bake the festive meringues, and watch the season finale of the biggest loser. nice!

wednesday: i am hosting my book club's holiday potluck party. so far i have made the chocolate clusters (amazing!), the no-bake holly cookies (interesting but a bit weird... they look good anyway), and this morning i made the teddy graham marshmellow chocolate bark. it is cooling in the fridge right now. i am planning ahead. so that's going to be really fun. i'm "bringing" a shrimp ring to the potluck. "thaw" - it doesn't get any easier than that. it even came with the sauce.

thursday: my boyfriend's work party. it's also a potluck, and a kris kringle gift exchange. luckily we already got our gifts. funny how everything can be stress free with a little planning and organization. except waiting to hear about jobs! gah!

friday: i am going to a bachelorette party. then finally i can relax. in a heap, on the floor.

my weekend was pretty good in terms of exercise, but not that great in terms of eating. i saw the sound of music (the musical), and had another sewing class where i learned to make a men's tie. it is so adorable and the best thing i've made so far. on saturday i went for a 40 minute swim and on sunday i did 2.5 miles on the treadmill, 20 minutes of which were running. so far... no bum pain.

my goals this week are a) try to eat sensibly while still enjoying myself. it's fun time and i'm going to try things don't get to try everyday. other things like store bought cookies and chocolates... i don't need. b) try to get some exercise in everyday. today i am going to walk to and from the library, and hopefully get a swim in. that would be the ultimate. c) drink and be merry, but don't drink too much. maybe i will pace my alcoholic beverages with water. 1 booze 1 water. or is it 1 booze 2 waters? d) get enough sleep. this is probably the key for keeping the other goals. when you are tired it's hard to think sensibly.

and finally, here is a picture of my coolio wall decal, and one of my little weenie christmas tree. the lights aren't on in this picture, so it isn't looking that festive.

a little stressed

sorry i didn't post yesterday. i am draining my own mental energy. here is the scoop going through my head right now.

i am in line for two jobs. both have good aspects and bad aspects. one pays more, but i think in my mind i've decided i'd prefer the other one. they are both in my field, but very different career paths. i had one interview for the job i'd prefer on wednesday, and i think they are deciding soon, because they said they wanted someone to start working by the end of next week. yesterday, i had the second interview for the other job and they are choosing between three candidates. they will let me know on monday for sure.

now, here is where my mental stress begins. what if i am offered both jobs? what if i am offered the job on monday and not offered the other job until it is too late to accept or not accept the first one? what if i am offered neither job!?!?!?! it could happen. after my interviews i was thinking gung ho, thinking i'd be offered both. but the more time passes, the more i am second guessing myself.

the rational side of my brain is telling me not to worry. i can't do anything about it until monday at the very earliest, unless something happens this afternoon. i hope it does. it would be the greatest holiday gift if i could start the new year with a new job.

anyway. today is friday weigh in and i am down another 2.4 from last week, which means i am very close to the bottom of my maintenance range, and the lowest number i've ever seen. i had a cookie to celebrate. it was free at the bank ;) now my holiday goal is just to stay within my range. i have some wiggle room and i'm ready to paaarrrrrtteeeeee! :)

i found some very exciting holiday treats on the kraft website. i am all about the least amount of ingredients and baking possible.

check it out:
chocolate clusters: my mom used to make these (except with no butter or peanut butter) and they are heavenly. the best of sweet and salty and crunchy too.
merry meringues: the cooking part is a bit time consuming, but easy and low calorie too. and i just looooooovvveeee meringues.
teddy s'more bark: if this isn't the cutest thing you've ever seen! so cute. not really christmasy, but who cares!
no bake holly cookies: amazing! and look how cute they are. i imagine they taste like rice crispy treats.

i am so shopped out

today i am not at work. i had another first interview this morning. it went really well. except... stupid me forgot to turn off my cell phone and it actually rang! for the love of pete! (who is pete, anyway?) i think i played it cool and it wasn't a huge deal but still. i only forgot because i arrived super early, and then sat outside on a bench reading until it was an appropriate time to come inside... and so forgot. oh well, i'm not going to dwell. what's past is past.

i am still doing really well on my plan. low carb, small portions, walking. i should go and walk now but i am so shopped out. i forgot to mention that after my interview i went to the eaton centre to finish my christmas shopping. and to shop for me of course. i deserve new things too! i got a nice gold make up bag from sephora for my boyfriend's mom. now my shopping is totally complete.

for myself i bought some black tights, satin gloves, black turtleneck, purple shirt, black shirt with lace, lace cover up thing, and two dress from H & M. yes, it sounds like a lot and it is in volume, but everything there is so cheap. the most expensive thing was $25 and some of the items were on for $10. at H & M they have "100 den" tights which means that you can't see through them at all. i love a nice black leg, don't you?

i also bought a fancy red dress from jacob. it's strapless and poufs a bit around the waist, and is knee length. i need a new dress because i am going to a wedding at the end of the month, and for new year's. since i won't be spending those two occasions with any of the same people, i can double up and get my money's worth. i went SO MANY PLACES and tried on dresses: H & M, Jacob, Guess, Banana Republic, Mango, Zara... on and on and on. Banana Republic had that 40% off sale today but I didn't really find anything I liked that was special.

tonight is date night, after dinner. and tomorrow morning i have a second interview (for a job i interviewed for last week). should i go and walk now? did all my mall walking count as today's walking? i will let the universe decide and wait for a sign and go eat some raspberry jello light in the meantime. :)

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boring bob

i feel like a bit of a boring bob lately... you know, not much to say, not much going on. of course that will all change next week when my life turns into a crazy madhouse with events almost every night. not that i'm complaining. it's better than being a social hermit.

yesterday i was on plan all day, and managed to get in a 3-mile walk on the treadmill at night. my boyfriend is a teacher, and through his school board i got a discount on magazine subscriptions to "shape" and "fitness" and my first shape issue came in the mail yesterday. love it! i like reading the success stories, as well as the recipes and health tips. i am not that into the exercise routines... they always look so complicated even though they probably aren't. that wouldn't make sense.

when i got home from work last night the fire alarm in my building was going off. it is so loud everywhere: in the underground parking lot, in the stairwells, in the hallways, and in each individual unit. it was so annoying. i decided to escape and go grocery shopping. it was still blaring when i returned. luckily i bought ear plugs at the grocery store which muffled the sound slightly. there is a new "phase 2" condo that went up beside mine and people have just started moving in. i guess one of the units started to flood (water pouring in through the heating vents) and that's why the alarms were going off. i had to walk up 10 flights of stairs to get to my unit, and then down 10 to go to the gym. good exercise? thankfully the elevators were working again when i left the gym.

did anyone watch gossip girl last night? chuck bass was looking really good in his angry state. normally i'm a nate type of girl, but this episode was all about chuck.

i'm listening to a new audiobook: "drop dead beautiful" by jackie collins. i have never read (or listened to) anything by jackie collins before and i am very surprised by how sexually explicit it is. shocked, actually! it's a pretty good story though. lots of juice and drama. last week i finished listening to "little earthquakes" by jennifer weiner. that was my first book by her, as well, and it was alright but nothing special. it was read by the author who was speaking too slowly for me.

i think that is about it. oh, apparently tomorrow there is a 40% sale at banana republic. on everything except one specific line. i am definitely going. normally i don't shop there because of the prices. whee!

back on it

ah monday, you kill me every time. actually today i'm feeling alright. i just want to go to bed and read lots of books and drink copious amounts of tea.

my weekend was pretty good. i did some relaxing, some shopping, had a 40-minute swim on saturday, and went to a girls holiday kris kringle exchange party. i got a book that i really wanted to read (three cups of tea), and i also overindulged in holiday treats. but that's ok. i didn't feel stuffed. i just wanted to try everything once. and a few things twice. ;)

i am back on my game this week. i don't really have any evening events this week, so i am going to do the same thing as last week (monday to thursday). small portions, higher protein, only eating when hungry, and walking 2.5-3 miles a day. it was easier than i thought it would be last week and really effective. i forgot how good it felt to be back in the middle of my maintenance range, instead of at the very top. the week after this one is a crazy one for holiday parties.

i feel so sleepy today! z is for zombie.

list it up friday

another list since i'm latey mcgoo AGAIN today:

1) friday is weigh in day and it's a christmas miracle because i am down 3.6 pounds this week. can you hear the angels singing hallelujah? i can! my hard work and diligence this week paid off and now i am blissfully back in the middle of my maintenance range. my goal now is to try and not gain (too much) on the weekend, so that i can maintain this loss next friday.

2) my hair looks fab (i got my roots done last night) and my boyfriend's show was great. i am the number one dancing groupie and i love it.

3) remember those purple, blue, and gray heels i bought on aldo online? well, i bought them in size 8, and then thought maybe they were too tight. so i exchanged them (in store) for a 9. but then they were too big, so i bought some cheap sole inserts to see if that would tighten things up, but they were still too large. so back i went to aldo and luckily they had size 8 and 10 left, and i exchanged them again. three exchanges. they must think my brain is made of flip flops. this time the salesgirl told me that they will stretch, not to worry. thank you! now is only i knew this multiple returns ago.

4)oliver my cat is so naughty. santa would cross him off the list for sure. he is chewing the bows on all my wrapped presents. little bugger. and then when i covered them all up with a towel, he pounces at it and creates an even bigger ruckus. there is nothing i can do! except not display the presents of course, but what fun it that. if i have to replace the bows at christmas time, that's fine with me - they were only $2 at walmart for a big bag of assorted ones.

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on a roll

i am really on a roll this week. three perfect days so far and i only have one left which will be easy! surprisingly it hasn't been that difficult. i've been eating small portions, high protein, low carb, every three hours. 8am, 11am, 2pm, 5pm, and 8pm. i have hardly been hungry at all! each day i've been walking for just over 40 minutes... about 2 1/2 miles.

last night was my final sewing class for the skirt. we had the option of putting in a waistband, and i decided to do it because it looked more polished. it was time consuming though and i didn't finish the skirt. i just have to sew the hem, which i have to do by hand anyway, so i can do it at home later.

today is another busy one. right after work i have a hair appointment. my roots are out of control and i need a trim. and THEN i am going to watch my boyfriend play a show. his band (which had been together for almost ten years) broke up last spring, and he has been working on a new project. this is the first live gig... i'm so excited for him, but nervous too!

this week has been crazy. getting out of bed this morning was difficult to say the least. i can't wait for tomorrow at about... oh, let's say 5pm. i need more coffee.

oh, and my interview yesterday went really well. i like the company and the people who interviewed me, so i hope i get it.

i wonder if i can get a walk in between my hair appointment and the show...

my tree is a cat toy

so i put up my tree last night. i think it looks smaller than 3 feet but it's still cute. it's decorated all in gold. i decided to forgo the red bows because they looked kind of tacky and even though they are small were dwarfing the tree. i also wrapped presents while i watched biggest loser.

i also put up this wall decal i ordered a while ago. i have been scared to put it up for weeks, and with good reason. it was a nightmare. first i had to cut it up the way i wanted, then tape it to the wall to make it look alright, and of course the tape kept unsticking. then i had to take it off the wall, press any bubbles out with a credit card, remove the backing, and then try to apply this clear sticky paper to the wall exactly where i had it the last time. it kept sticking everywhere and generally annoying me. it ended up not looking perfectly straight but still beautiful in my opinion. here is a picture of the wall decal i bought. this isn't my house, but i will post a picture of my wall (and baby tree) soon. it's called "birds on a wire" and i set mine up to look exactly like this:


my cat, oliver, won't stop playing with the balls on the tree. i have spritzed water at him about 500 times thus far but it doesn't seem to be deterring him for longer than a few minutes at a time. he even runs away when he sees the spray bottle, but i think it just revs him up for some excitement that i'm not really providing. does anyone have any tips?

this morning i am at my mom's office, and i have another job interview this afternoon. yes, another one! and then my final "a-line" skirt sewing class tonight. it already is looking pretty awesome. maybe i will wear it tomorrow and impress my mother. it's so long though, i look like a farmer. hopefully we are shortening them tonight.

yesterday was another completely on plan day. marvelous! i am feeling very on top of the ball and accomplished. i just need to make it until friday and then i can slack off a little.

tis the season!

hello friends. tis the season to be busy which i why i forgot to post today. until now! and i've been lacking in the commenting department as well, but i plan on catching up today and tomorrow. all of your blogs are waiting in my google reader!

yesterday i stuck 100% to my eating plan, even with my boyfriend tempting me at night. i didn't put one bite in my mouth that wasn't planned and it felt so good. except when he was eating in front of me. that's old news (yesterday) and i don't care about it anymore. having one great day under my belt makes it so easy to do well today.

today i bought my very own (and first) christmas tree and decorations. canadian tire had a great sale. i got a pre-lit 3-foot tree for $9.99, 60% off regular price. and a package of mixed gold decorations for $9.99, 50% off regular price. and some small red bows to jazz it up a little.

my big plans tonight include setting up my tree, and watching biggest loser. last week evil vicki actually showed some emotion - can you believe it?

hmmmm, what else? i am having a love affair with tea. it's so wonderful and warm. and it's perfect for tasting whatever you want to taste with no calories. peppermint, pumpkin spice, sugar cookie, vanilla, gingerbread... etc. i even have a flavour called "chocolately chai" which is heavenly and really chocolately.

not much to say

this weekend was really lame. i did nothing! i wasn't feeling that great and my boyfriend was even sicker, so we just mostly stayed in and took care of ourselves. on saturday during the day we went to the one of a kind show, and on sunday i went to my second book club which i just joined. it was a lot of fun - i love meeting new women who are so nice and genuine.

needless to say i didn't get any exercise in this weekend. just feeling too weak and weary. i don't think swimming is the best idea until i am fully recovered, so i am going to take it easy and just do some treadmill walking. food wise this week i think i'm going to try reducing my portions but eating more frequently. and not adding salt to my food (very difficult) and choosing more protein sources. i've noticed recently that when i'm eating alone i go for days and days without eating any meat at all. it's not necessarily a bad thing, but i'm not really choosing protein-y alternatives, like peanut butter or beans. food for thought. pun!