2012 Resolutions

First off, I realize that I haven't blogged in a while. I have several posts to catch up on, but I wanted to get this one out here before January turns in February.

2011 Resolutions

Be able to run 3 miles without stopping

Lower my BMI by 3 points of lose 20 pounds

Only go to the grocery store once a week

Stick to our allotted budget

Go to Europe

Be more positive in my dealings with family members.

Convince my husband to play hooky from work at least once so we can go play.

Take the dogs to hike at Sam Houston State Park

Take the challenge route on the MS150 this year

Improve my average cycling speed.

Seriously reduce the amount of sodas I drink.

Keep up the blog!

Work at being a positive, uplifting wife.

I sat and thought about resolutions last night and while I do well with organized specific goals, I think I would benefit from a little less overachieving this year. I tend to allow myself to become very focused on goals so I’m giving a different route a try this year. We’ll see. If I hate it, I can always change them.

2012 Resolutions

Obsess less about pregnancy weight gain.

This has been a big issue for me. I’m very meticulous about my weight and pregnancy isn’t exactly the time to worry about it. I’ve done well so far, I’ve made it 17 weeks and gained 3.5lbs. I’ve been very good about what I eat-only indulging once at P.F. Chang’s where I’m sure I ate my weight in Kung Pao Chicken and Dan Dan Noodles. I know it will all come off and that I don’t need to stress, but old habits are hard to break.

Enjoy my marriage.

Hugh and I have a great time together and I want to make sure that we keep focusing on us and our relationship.J

Maintain my workout regimen (even if it’s modified) the entire year.

I’ve struggled with jogging since I’ve been about 8 weeks along. While it’s perfectly fine to keep running since I was doing that prior to my pregnancy, it’s just not comfortable. I’ve still been going to the gym and doing cardio and circuit weight training. This week I’m starting back to swimming and planning to keep that up.

Keep a positive outlook about my job.

Just relax.

Enjoy pregnancy, birth and motherhood.

Where did Jenn go??

Whoa! I haven’t blogged in forever.

I’m going to quit beating myself up about it and simply tell you about what all Hugh and I have been up to. Hugh and I have gotten moved in and semi-settled. We’re down to one room full of boxes and we’re in no hurry to get them unpacked. We LOVE the new place. The dogs are enjoying all of the extra room to the extent that I have to DRAG them inside every afternoon to cool down for a while and we’ve had to increase their food intake because they were losing weight. One of the best moments we’ve had in the house happened this past Sunday. Hugh and I had gotten up early so we went down to the Heights and got tacos for breakfast. We came back and sat on the back porch and read the paper (ok, I read the ads and comics) while the puppies played in the yard. It was so relaxing and we were both so very happy. :) Of course, the temperature was in the 70’s. That might have helped a little.

I decided last January to do an administrative certification program that didn’t seem too tough or time consuming. The deal was that I would be able to use my technology internship documents for the internship thus making it not a big deal. I mean, who would sign up to write an additional thesis when you’ve already completed one? Well….come to find out there’s a lot more work involved in this last class and I’m semi-drowning in the paperwork. I only have 2 ½ weeks left to get it all done and then I can relax and be home free, but getting there is consuming most of my time. That is essentially what I’ve been up to and why I haven’t been blogging.

Hugh and I hosted our nephew Jackson’s first birthday party last weekend at our new place. It was a great success and I’ll post pictures as soon as I get a chance.

I will also finish blogging about our summer travels. I PROMISE!

Last Monday Hugh and I decided to sign up for the Houston Mud Run sponsored by the National MS Society. This is the same group that does the MS 150 bike ride every year.  It’s a 10k run (6.4 miles) with over 15 muddy obstacles thrown in. I think it’s going to be a ton of fun but there’s a wee small problem with my running ability: I have none. Hugh swears that it’s all mental with me. I can swim miles at a time and yet when you ask me to run a mile it’s as if my legs don’t understand.  So, I did the only think I could think of: I decided to pick up the Couch to 5k program on my iPod starting at week 5. I had been using this back in January when I decided that I wanted to be able to run 3 miles without stopping. I quit using it when I was swimming 5 days a week. Thus far I’m doing fine and I’m having no problems keeping up with the running program. In fact, when I ran yesterday I was able to continue on past the stopping point. Since I only have 4 weeks left my goal is simply to be able to run for 30 minutes at a time without stopping. If I can get to that point I know I’ll be fine. Plus, signing up and paying my money was definitely the best motivation I could give myself. We’ll see! I’ll keep you updated on the progress.

Monday Goals: I decided to give them a try and I have to be honest and say that I seem to suck at them. I write the goals down and then stress about getting them done, and then I give myself a hard time if I wasn’t able to complete them. Since the whole point of goal setting is motivation and focus I feel like I’m missing the whole point. Maybe I just need therapy. Lots of therapy. So, for now I’m going to hold off on them. I might try doing them again in a few weeks when my stress level is a little bit lower, or I might just try something different. We’ll see what happens.

Have a great week!

Weekly Goals-Second Week

Goals for the week!

Ok. Here’s an update on last week’s goals.

·         Finish packing the kitchen by Wednesday. I know this might sound like a silly goal, but you haven’t seen my kitchen! Done! Here’s a thought though: if you pack up your toaster, don’t wonder why you can’t locate it the next morning. 

·        Find and buy a pair of khaki pants for work. Didn’t happen.

·        Have three sugar-free days this week. Sure as heck didn’t happen.

·        Workout 5 of the 7 days. (This is usually the normal, but last week I only made it twice and I felt like crap for doing so.) I made it to the gym twice and ran outside once. The rest of the week was devoted to moving. I do think that the three days I spent moving stuff outside in the heat should count!

·        Find the time to do something just for me this week. HA! I wish.

Hopefully I can do better this week. Last week was completely nutso with the move but I am confident that things can be a little more normal this week.

Goals for the week of August 15-21^st.

• Workout 5 days! We’re in the process of switching gyms, so this will most likely be cardio in the new neighborhood.

• Change our address with the chronicle, banks, credit cards and license.

• Unpack the guest bathrooms

• Find a pair of khaki pants for work. (Trying this again!)

 I'll keep you updated!

Weekly Goals- First Edition

A friend of mine started doing a weekly goals list every Monday on her blog, and when she asked if anyone was interested in joining her plan I volunteered. I love to make lists and cross things off as I accomplish them, so I’m hoping this will help me stay motivated.

Here goes: Goals for the week of August 8-14.

• Finish packing the kitchen by Wednesday. I know this might sound like a silly goal, but you haven’t seen my kitchen!

• Find and buy a pair of khaki pants for work.

• Have three sugar-free days this week.

• Workout 5 of the 7 days. (This is usually the normal, but last week I only made it twice and I felt like crap for doing so.)

• Find the time to do something just for me this week. :)

There they are! I’ll post new goals next Monday and update on the ones from this week. Have a great week!

Love,