Friday.. Where the hell have you been all my life?!

In the spirit of it being Friday and taking a lead from Krysten at Why Girls Are Weird and her "10 Things That Made Me Happy This Week", I think I'll follow suit and play that game.

Ten Things that Made Me Happy This Week:

1. Going to see Unbroken with my Mom and Jeff Tuesday night;
2. Having sore muscles.  It means I'm doing something right and not plateau-ing all the time.
3. To have a full fridge of food.  Some people aren't blessed to have a full fridge or food on the table.
4. Baxter's 7th Birthday yesterday.
5. I love having 5 months of the year where my two boys, Charlie and Baxter, are the same age (born 7 months apart from each other, yet still sharing the same blood (they both have the same momma and dad). 
6. Planning a little overnight getaway to Niagara Falls/Buffalo in March to celebrate the upcoming wedding of a friend.
7. Seeing the schedule for the 2015 Yoga Conference and happy that the lovely and inspiring Seane Corn will be there this year (she was in South American last year for an Off the Mat endeavour but will be back again this year). Yayyyyyyyyyyy!!!!! :)
8. My evening with Jeff last night. *smiles*
9. Knowing that I get to have dinner with my friend Tara tomorrow night after day 1 of 2 of the restricted/unrestricted gun course her hubby and I are taking together (Jeff and Tara are both licensed).
10. TGIF mother*ckers!!

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I just got back from the gym and my legs are sooooooore! I was off on Monday and therefore didn't make it to the gym.  Tuesday I wasn't able to get to my usual BP class so I did legs and abs on my own.  Wednesday and Thursday I did BP.  So there goes to the legs.  And today I did a spin class with Leanne, figuring that I'd spin my legs out a bit and loosen them up.  Uhmmm no.  Not at all.  So I'm betting on waddling tomorrow.

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Work continues to be busy as shit.  Which, I suppose, is good in theory and sure the days fly by but sometimes I just have so much to do and don't know where to begin. 

 

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Baxter's 7th (!!!) birthday was yesterday and so after work, we went to Global and got the boy a stuffed polar bear (which, might I add, lasted all of 5 minutes tops before he decided to bust it open and get the squeaker out.  LOL.  We got him some yummy treats, bully sticks to chew on and puppy ice cream for both him and Charles.  The second we got home, they were on us because of the yummy bag we had in hand and they stared up at the counter until they had their dinner and THEN I gave them their yummies. 

 

Charlie is still limping a little bit.  I feel like a bad pet parent but I just don't feel he's in pain nor do I feel like spending at least $200 alone for an xray that will only show breaks and shadows that indicate arthritis.  I don't believe it's a luxating patella because he puts weight on his leg, and he's not in any pain.  Not once had he cried out or whimpered and he can also bend his leg, something that luxating patella's won't allow.  Plus, with luxating patellas, they're most often detected earlier on, they don't usually just develop just like that.  So for now, I've been trying to keep him quiet, alternating with confining him (which of course he hates) and he's now getting glucosamine twice daily, which can't hurt him and is good for his joints.  The thing that's sad though is that he just doesn't know how to slow down; he still thinks he's a young lad but he's getting up there.  Depressing but that's reality, right?  So we'll see how things progress with him......

 Isn't this pretty?  I can't recall the artist but I believe I saw this on The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust's Facebook page and I loved it.

Pretty much.... lol

 Enjoy your weekend folks! xo

Uhmmmm.. It's Wednesday already?!!  Not that I'm complaining but seriously though, where the F does time go?!

 

Less than one month until Christmas now.  The weather has been all over the map here.  One day it'll feel like a mild, spring like day and then the next, you're pulling out your winter jacket again.  It makes it difficult getting dressed.

 

Last night I went to a hot yoga class with an instructor that I know through the yoga studio where I used to do karma exchange.  Wow, what a class that was.  It was a Moksha and it was a hot flow class and dang it was a good, sweaty one.  Just hours before that, I was at the gym on my lunch and doing Liane's 1-hour BodyPump class.  While I was a smelly, sweaty mess yesterday for the better part of the day, I felt amazing last night leaving yoga. 

 

Work has been busy today so I didn't get much of a work out in today, I just went to the gym to do some deep stretching, some abs, a few leg things and then rolled out my quads, hamstrings and ass on a scary looking roller that hurt like hell. 

 

 

A little more about MOI..

 

What industry/line of work am I in? I work in the securities regulatory industry and that is all I will say.

 

Travel plans for 2015?  We were toying with the idea of doing Dominican Republic (Punta Cana) next September but I feel like it's already too soon.  I'd love to go away tomorrow, don't get me wrong, but I want to save up properly so that we can do a shit ton of diving.  I'm not positive if whale sharks are on the migratory path so that we can see any there but I know that they have a marine sanctuary there where sperm whales come every year to mate.  You're not allowed to dive with them but from what I understand, you can snorkel or bob with them on the surface, you just can't dive around them.  I've seen a few videos and they're amazing.  One video showed a mother and her calf and she was just chillin in the water, probably about as curious of us as we are them.

 

Three places you could travel to RIGHT NOW?  Barbados. Bahamas (hello Stuart's Cove aka shark diving).  And Europe, I'm going to say Paris or Amsterdam.  This girl right here LOVES Europe. :)

Do you have a favorite book? Or a book that just changed your life - gave you a whole new perspective on things? Hmm, I've certainly read a lot in my day but I'd say The Yoga Sutras by Nicolai Bachman and The Daily OM by Madisyn Taylor.  Those are everyday-type books.  Of course I love me a quick, entertaining read by Stuart Woods so anything of his is good.  Same with Iris Johansen and Gillian Flynn.

What three people would you want to have dinner with, dead or alive? My Dad, hands down.  He's been gone now for 27 years.... My Grandma, my mom's mom.  She passed away in 1997 I want to say and I miss her so much.  She was such an awesome lady and I spent a lot of summers with her. For the third, I'll pick someone famous and say I'd love to have dinner with Eminem.  LOL.

Would you get a goat or a horse? What's your dream pet? "Pet" not so much but elephants.  But between a horse and goat, that's a tough one.  Horses are beautiful but goats can be funny, mischievious little creatures.  I pet sit three of them and they were like waiting little children when you arrived at the home and they heard you in the yard.  You can read/see pics here, here and here.

 

 



Life lately

LOL

Road trip up north last weekend to Jeff's parents house

In Bala, for Cranberry Festival

Jeff's parent's yard

Fitness and what I'm doing these days at the Gym

Mondays - Gillian Michaels BodyShred. In this class I'm usually soaked afterwards and feel like I'm having a heart attack. Both good things.  This class is 30 minutes of sheer hell.

Tuesdays - I do weight training, better known as BodyPump, which is a 60 minute class. 

Wednesdays - I sometimes take a spin class or I'll do my own thing, cardio and some weight. 

Thursdays - Usually a 60 minute BodyPump class or a yoga class.

Fridays - Usually BodyShred or a BodyPump class. I often do that twice if I'm feeling wrecked. 

Weekends - I used to sometimes do a class on Saturday and Sunday's both but I've learned to listen to my body.  It needs to recover.  Plus, in addition to listening to my body a bit more, in the last few months, I've been helping out on my off-weekends with petsitting, and then things like a wedding, a bachelorette party.  Sometimes life gets in the way but I'm okay with that. 

A hodge podge of shit for a Friday/Saturday

So naturally I began writing this yesterday and now Saturday is upon us.  I came home from work last night and packed up some things to go to my mom's for the weekend with the dogs, too, of course.  Jeff wanted me to have my mom close by if I had a bad allergic reaction and needed to get to the hospital.  So we went over around 9:30 last night and from the amount of shit I'm bringing, it looks like I'm staying for a month.  LOL

I was abandoned in bed last night.  Mom and I finally went to bed around 2 and it was so funny, we were all having conversations about the dogs and who was going to settle where.  Everyone left me for Mom and my step-dad.  LOL  Mom brought in Baxter because he was moving too much but he left at some point through the night.  I had a night wake up call this morning though. LOL

I'm just about to head out to the gym with my mom.  Afterwards, I'm going to head up to see my friend and her fiance at his farm.  Should be a good day.  AND I'm taking the DSLR today and not whipping out my iPhone.  Have a great Saturday :)


Heard this girl belt out Les Miserables song and her voice is like that of an angel...

My rant of the day - Instagram Fitness Coaches/Meal Planners

There's something that's been chapping my ass for a bit now and here it is:
Fitness Coaching/Meal Plans/Trainers on Instagram - It seems to be the latest craze everywhere I look on social media, particularly Instagram is where I'm seeing it.  Everyone and their brother is a fitness expert and you can purchase their meal plan/workout plan/etc. for a low price of ______ (fill in the blank).  Now, I know in this day and age of technology and rampant social media, we can get by with seeing and interacting with people and doing things online like we weren't able to before.  One being, coached by someone online or buying a fitness program or meal program from someone you've never met and someone who you don't know jack squat about and their qualifications.  I mean, hey, if it works for you and you're happy, cool, but I just think it's bogus.  And hey, if you can make an income from doing just that, good for you.  But that's also a lot of leg work, promoting, marketing, and sell-sell-selling yourself.  Some people also need others' motivation and support and input but I don't, myself.  Just my two cents.  I go to the gym at least 5 days a week, sometimes 6 if I'm feeling spunky on the weekend but I'm also learning that I also need rest days.  My quads and hamstrings are always tight and aching from doing squats, dead lifts, etc.  Also, in this day and age where we have tools like Google at our disposal, why the fuck aren't these people doing their own research?  Educating themselves instead of paying someone to do it for them.  I just feel like people are getting more and more stupid and more and more lazy.  I guess some people want to look and feel good but don't want to put the work or effort in. 

Don't get me wrong, I think there are legit people out there in the internets that have proper credentials but I think so many people are naïve.  And lazy.

Another thing that makes me laugh at the gym:  chicks that wear sports bras with a push up underneath.  It's like, seriously, you look retarded.  Just stop that non-sense.  Just stop.  In our spinning class, there are a few, plus there's also a few that just give oogly eyes to Scott, the instructor.  Sure he's nice looking from the neck down but dude is OLD.  Literally, STOP drooling on your bike and batting your eyelashes.  Work out.  Stop being ridiculous and get your sweat on.  That is why you go to the gym, is it not?

Another observation about the gym:  What is with the people you see day in and day out for years, still out of shape and their bodies aren't changing.  Or if you don't know how to use a machine, ASK.  It's that simple.  I totally understand that gyms can be intimidating, especially if you're new to them, but come on.  Speak up.  You want results?  Put in the work and you'll see results.  There are no quick fixes or miracles.

Alright, sounds like I'm being bitchy here so I'll leave it at that.  :)

TGIF!

How about some randomness right off the bat, shall we?I need someone to re-design my blog.  Looks so drab and it's not pretty or unique like so many others I see out there.  

I also need to start thinking about topics to ramble on about because I feel like I'm boring, so I apologize for that. 

Huzzah!!! It's Friday bitches. Christ it's been a long week. I did a weights class today at lunch, which was great, but man my legs wanted to give out. I was D Y I N G!! But in a good way of course, there are no negatives or drawbacks to health and fitness.

We're having my mom and step dad over  for dinner tomorrow evening but we haven't really got any plans this weekend. Last weekend, however, was enjoyable. For a couple of years now, Jeff and I have looked very casually for a new couch or sectional. Lo and behold, we bought a new sectional! And grey! I'm absolutely in love with it. We also got an arc lamp that hangs over it. Super nice and needed; the couches we had before we're bought in 1990 by Jeff's parents (!!). So I took some pics to remember the old and bring in the new. 

Jeff slept on the couch one last time last Friday night. 

On the curb.. Bye bye couches, you've been good to us. 

Beautiful! Comfortable! Huge! And we all love it, dogs included, although they were a bit confused at first lol they had to be coaxed on to the couches and told it was okay. They now have certain spots that are "theirs" :)

Charlie's has managed to find a vantage point to get some rays. :)

And here is Baxter on his throne, he definitely likes the chaise part. 

And lastly, Baxter turned 6 (!!!) on Wednesday :) 

Going Vegetarian and other things

I've been unintentionally putting it off but I think once the New Year hits, I'm going vegetarian.  I want to.  I need to. It's going to happen.  I've seen too much, read too much... all of which can't be undone or rather, I can't plead ignorance like so many billion people do.  I know that animals are sensitive BEINGS and I don't care if you disagree with that statement or not, it is my opinion and mine alone.  You can't tell me that animals don't feel.  Look at mother cows that have their calves taken away, same with horse... They cry for days..... Same with marine life, they bellow at ridiculous unchartered levels of decibels trying to communicate with their loved ones that are taken from them or mercilessly slaughtered.  There is no humane way to kill an animal.  There just isn't.  So, it is what it is, I'm not going to be a staunch, rigid vegetarian that turns my nose up at stuff I won't eat, I'll be polite.. and of course that's not to say I'll never, ever eat meat again, but at this time in my life, I can't do it anymore.  So I've set a deadline and I'll abide by it.

On a different note, I just got back from the sweat box aka the gym and combat class kicked my ass.  I only lasted 35 minutes of the 45 minute class, fuck they're intense.  I'm realising that I'm not completely 100% yet, almost but not quite.  I just feel gassed and low energy.  I'm about 3 weeks into taking my new meds and while I feel infinite times better than that first week/week and a half, I'll hopefully be feeling marvelous by 4 to 6 weeks.  My dilated/enlarged pupils still creep me out but hopefully that subsides too.  We'll see. I'm optimistic.  Most of all, I'm happy again and smiling and not just pretending or faking it because that's what I feel I have to do to be normal or to get by.

Totally unrelated but wanting to write about it.  So now that I'm 30, it's like I've turned into an old lady.  Jeff and I both are old farts.  We get up once, twice a night to pee and usually end up passing each other coming and going in the hall way, it's hilarious.  Not really.  It's really disruptive to our sleep!!  The boys never budge.  Charlie has been sleeping above my head or on my pillow lately, he's been quite tired.  Poor little love, life is just so damn tough.  And Baxter, the past couple of mornings he's been laying at the end of the bed stretched out and I'll pass beside the bed and he'll crawl under the covers and be my leg warmer.  I love having a warm furry beside me sleeping, it's so comforting.  That's not to say I don't like sleeping beside Jeff, lol, I do, of course!  *smiles*  Speaking of the dogs, they're over at my mom's house today for a play date with her two, along with Lily and Stella, a neighbour of ours' dogs that lives downstairs.  They go visit my mom for the day at least once a week and they come home EXHAUSTED!  It's adorable just how tanked they are.  They come home, have dinner and then both disappear into their respective hiding spots to sleep, Charlie in the closet and Baxter stretched out on our bed.

Well, it's been a busy afternoon so that's all for now.  Off home to get the dogs, go home, make dinner, wait for Jeff to get home from crossfit and then go out and buy something and make for my work potluck lunch tomorrow. 

Peace and love xo

Purty flowers Jeff got me for no reason at all

What's up Wednesday!

Does marriage get any easier?  This past year has been B R U T A L!  I'm tired of everything being thrown back in my face like I'm the problem, I'm always wrong.  I'm so sick and tired of it.  I realise that I'm not perfect, I'll be the first one to admit it, but fuck!!  End rant.

On to more positive shit.  It's really hard for me to be positive when things are seemingly well and then they take an abrupt nose dive.  But I'm learning.

I seriously need to get the fuck away, get some sunshine, some relaxation.  I couldn't believe that today is only flippin Tuesday.  Wtf, bro? Woah, took a step back and worked for a few hours and then came back to this.  I need a WTF, today isn't Tuesday, it's Wednesday.  Can you tell I'm exhausted?!

And to boot, I went and did weights yesterday and then followed up with yoga in the evening.  *Sigh*

Took a day off today even though I get cranky when I don't go.  Going to watch me some Joe Schmo later and Survivor. 

Peace!

Questions of Three's

I found this on another blog and I just HAD to do my own. :)

 

Three yoga poses that I love:

1. Tittibhasana
2. Sun Salutation series
3. Utthita Trikonasana or triangle pose

Three workouts that I love:

1. Yoga/Hot Yoga
2. Spinning
3. Body Combat

Three of the worst things to happen while working out:

1. Tightness in the hips
2. Foot or hamstring cramp
3. Blowing out the ass of your leggings.. I can only imagine, this has not, I repeat not happened to me, thank goodness :)

Three of the best things to happen while working out:

1. Mood and endorphin release
2. My overall attitude and self esteem is at its best
3. Feeling great about the work you're doing

Three workouts that I’ve never done (but would be willing to try):

 

1. CrossFit
2. Circus Arts (trapeze, that sort of thing)
3. Hmm not sure, I'll come back to this

Three pieces of exercise equipment I use most often:

1. Yoga mat
2. Bosu ball
3. Elastic tension bands

Three fitness goals:

1. Enrol and complete my YTT
2. Do a half marathon?  (unrealistic IMO)
3. do a Tough Mudder type challenge.

I was thinking just last night that I need to write more and if need's be, carry a small note pad around with me for things that I can talk about when I'm blogging.  I find myself blanking out all the time when I sit in front of the computer and go to write a blog.  I just find myself reading other blogs and I think I'm just not that creative.  Maybe? Who knows....

Seems that diving season is over.  That's one thing that sucks about where we live.  We have cold temperatures for what seems like 8 to 9 months a year and clearly that is not conducive to owning your own scuba gear and having a penchant for getting into warm water.  Sure I immersed myself in water that was in the 60s this past summer, wearing a 7mm wetsuit over it, mind you, but still.  Needless to say there will not be any ice diving for this girl over here, no siree bob.  Speaking of, I'm thinking that either say next June or July, we'll end up going away for 2 weeks.  More than likely it'll be Cozumel.  We've never been and it's supposed to be one of the best diving spots in the world.  It's either there or Barbados again and we'll hook up with Fatima and her crew at the Dive Shop to do up our AOW.  That is, if we can find a good enough deal, so we'll see.

One good thing that I'm looking forward to for snow is snowshoeing.  I really liked doing that last winter and it's a good burn.  Jeff said he'd be down for a lot more of that this winter.  Just realised yesterday that I didn't rollerblade at all this year.  I'm so embarassed that I bought these brand spanking new blades summer of 2010 and I've yet to wear them.  WTF is with that? And it's not that I'm lazy, clearly I'm not given that I go to the gym at least 5 times a week, but dang.....I think it's because I never wanted to go by myself.  And Jeff worries that I'll fall and break my neck or something crazy, but that's cool because that's totally legit, I'm a putz and I know it.  Gotta do some rollerblading next year for sure!!

Not sure what the game plan is for tonight.  Christina may come down for a visit after work.  Alex may come down tomorrow to stay the weekend with us, but we don' t know for sure yet.  Greg is supposed to come by tonight too.  I think I'll take the boys out for a nice long walk if it's not pouring.  Tomorrow morning I have to be at Mitsubishi for an oil change...No clue why I thought it was a good idea to go that early, I guess to get it out of the way, but man, no sleeping in for me it seems.  That's alright though, I'll just take a book.  And I'm flying through books lately so that's okay with me.  I think in the past 2 weeks I've read 4 or 5 books and I've got one on deck waiting for me that I can't wait to get into.