It's a CYST!

THANK GOODNESS!

2nd 80 degree day of MAY

And I'm sick!   Ughhh....why do these things happen at the worst time.  I couldn't have gotten sick on one of those many days that rained all day long.  For goodness sakes, that's the perfect sleep day but no, I had to pick a nice sunny day to be sick and believe me, the sun is shinning bright through my windows and I'm snoring away on the couch. 

Hope I get better soon cause I have some steaks that are dying to be grilled tonight.  Oh and some asparagus too!

1st 80 degree day in MAY!!!

It only took 23 days to get there but.....today is the first 80 day of MAY!!  Just in time for the Labor day weekend.  Whoo-hoo!

Still raining!

Oh my gosh, this is totally killing me.  It was so nice on Friday but Saturday and Sunday has been non-stop rain!  Yesterday it did stop for like 2 hours or so.  But of course as soon as we left for Cody's last Lacrosse game, it rained.  Well, I probably should say rain, more like a non-stop misty rain.  It was so dreamy, damp and cool.  I stood the entire game.  There was just no where to sit and when I did bring my fold up chair, I just didn't even feel like unfolding it only to get wet.  My umbrella was not the biggest either so it really wouldn't have covered me at all.  Oh and by the way, I couldn't even take photos of Cody at his last game due to the RAIN!!!  Grrrr....

So today, we stayed in.  I actually felt like I was accomplishing something for the first time.  I got all the laundry done, dried and put away.  Well except for the hang dry stuff, that's still hanging on the shower bar.  But everything else is done!

The ferrets got a bath today too so they are smelling good.  I intended to give them a bath last week but sometimes the weekends just escape me.

Around lunch time after I made hot dogs on the grill - shocking for me since I normally don't cook on the grill especially in the rain but it wasn't a downpour so out I went to grill.  Then I realized that I didn't have anything out for dinner.  Oh crud!  I just can't seem to plan dinners very well. In fact it varies from week to week.  Originally the forecasters didn't call for an all day wash out so had I known this earlier in the week, I would have made some sort of soup or something.  It's so soggy out that today just screams clam chowder, or chicken corn chowder, or something hearty.  But I didn't plan so now I was scrambling.

I dug through the freezer only to find a chuck roast and a pork roast all frozen solid.  Ughhh.  The chuck roast was smaller and I thought maybe it will thaw out quickly and I can get it in the oven.  But why would it thaw out quickly?  None of my hang dry clothes are drying quickly.  It's just one of those days.  So I jumped on the internet and low and behold there was a recipe for "how to cook a frozen chuck roast in a crock pot"  Well I'll be...

So I followed the directions and added whatever spices I had in my cupboard and added carrots, onions, potatoes and 1 cup of water.  Put it on high for 5 hours and left.

After I was done bathing the ferrets, we decided to run over to the movie theater to see Jungle Book.
Ken and I actually liked it but Cody seemed not too.  He was so bouncy during the movie which surprised us.  Either he was tired and lost interest or his allergies were acting up and he just couldn't concentrate or what since it was his idea to go see the movie and on a rainy day like today....we thought why not?

When we got home, dinner was ready.  To our surprise, it wasn't bad.  Next time instead of adding 1 cup of water, I'll add 1 cup of beef broth.  I'll also add more salt because it was a bit bland.  But anyway, Ken said this was actually the most tender chuck roast I have ever made in the crock pot so I consider this a win for me today.

Overall...I would say the day was good.  Even though it was a complete wash out.  Now, next weekend is Memorial Day weekend and I plan to take Cody to the pool.  Will the forecasters keep the extended forecast with 80s in it so we can enjoy cooking out on the grill and going to the pool?

We shall see.

rain, rain go away

Today was a total washout!  It rained pretty much all day.  In fact, Cody had his last Lacrosse game today and I was watching for an email all day in hopes that it would be canceled.  I know, sounds terrible right?  But when it's 54 degrees and rainy outside you can't help but not to want to go out.  I'm not one that lounges in PJs the entire day every weekend but today was the perfect lounging kind of day.  I could completely visualize relaxing on the couch and watching some sort of movie marathon.  But instead, Cody and I went through some of his stuff to donate and did the laundry.

All the sudden, it was 2:45 and we were suppose to be at the game at 3pm for practice.  Oooopppssss!
Off to the toll road I go, high ho, high, ho, high ho.  Unfortunately the toll road is the quickest route to the game which thank goodness was changed to a more local spot since it was a turf field.

The team did well but standing there for 1 hour in the drizzly rain was driving me nuts.  I hate to complain I really do but it's May 21st for goodness sakes and I really would like to see a little sun during my son's game.  I didn't bother bringing the camera since I didn't want it to get wet.  So I have no photos of Cody today but I did video some of game.

So the extended forecast calls for 80 by Wednesday...we'll see....

Cold, warm, cool

So, this morning it was 47 degrees.  Brrrr!!!  When is this chilly weather going to ever end.  I had such high hopes for the month of May.  So on with my turtleneck, pants and boots.  Ugghh.  I'm really ready for summer clothes. 

I ran out to Walmart at lunch to pick up a few things and the sun was shinning bright.  What?  Blue skies?  Where have you guys been for the last 2 weeks?  It's so good to see you!  Suddenly I realized that I was getting a bit warm in my turtleneck sweater.  Then I thought, oh geez I sent Cody to school in long sleeves and sweatpants.  I could swear they didn't forecast this.

But....as the day rolled on the weather started to cool down.  I picked Cody up from Lacrosse practice and it was starting to get a little breezy.  Brrrr...  I think tomorrow it's suppose to be 59 degrees and rainy.  Hopefully not but this is how we are rolling in May. 

Personally I say it's its a cool May then it must be a warm September and since we got so much rain, I may even say a warm October too.  But then it won't feel like fall so maybe I'll let October slide on the temps.

Its darn cold out

Funny how your body changes.  Seems like just 2 weeks ago it was 70-80 degrees and now it's 50 degrees.  That just feels so darn chilly to me.  But yet, when it was in the 30's, 50 would feel so warm.  But now that it's May, 50 doesn't feel warm and recently we've had several overcast days in a row of 50 degree temps and rain.  It's been so dreary.

So with Memorial weekend literally 20 or so days away, I wonder will we be warm enough to actually go to the pool.  And speaking of warm, I haven't even planted my garden yet.  I won't get tomatoes till July or August this year if I'm lucky. 

Come on Sun!!!  Come back...we need you!!

2 more

So here's our 2 new additions to our family. 

We haven't decided on their names yet but the black and white one is a boy and the grey and white one is a girl.

Step Sisters Ribbon Run 5K

I love running this race.  It's means so much to me and this year, was special because my son and sister ran it with me.  This year they changed up the race course which was completely different and challenging.  It was a nice run, but there were hills and we ran through a tunnel which was fun.  Another challenge was keeping My "survivor" sash from falling off my shoulder.  I guess I should figure out a better way to keep it on while I run.  And my goal next year again is to actually run the race with Cody.  So we can cross the finish line together!

Cody and I before the race

Sisters!

Cody starting out strong

Whoo-hoo!

Cody's just about to finish (little guy in yellow)

Just crossed the finish line

Go Wendy!!

Cody won a prize

 Each of us had a raffle ticket attached to the race bib.  And they actually called Cody's number which was so awesome! 

A Great Mission

Cody and his medal

3rd place

Cody got 3rd place in his age group.  He ran the race in 29 min 57 seconds.  We were so proud of him.

I AM MY OWN HERO!

I ran the race in 34 min 56 seconds.  Not my best but certainly not the worst.  I'm proud of myself and will continue to run this race. 

OUR RACE BIBS!

47 days till SUMMER!!!

I heard it with my own ears this morning.  The weather forecaster said although it's super cold in the morning for April (32 degrees = brrr) Summer is just 47 days away.  And to that I say THANK YOU!

Super cold and WINDY!

Thank goodness Cody's lacrosse game is only 1 hour.  It was so cold and windy out that I don't think I could have made it more than that.  And thank goodness for CuddlDuds that kept me extra warm out there.  Seriously, my noise and fingers were chilly but my legs and body were fine!

Where's the warm weather???

Brrr it's cold out!

Friday temps rose to almost 80 degrees.  Saturday was rainy and cool but eventually got sunny and nice.  I wasn't wearing shorts but Cody was since he was outside playing with his friends.  But last night the winds picked up in full force.  It was so windy and loud outside.  Cody was getting a little nervous about it but we assured everything was going to be okay.

So this morning it's chilly!!!  What happened to those beautiful 80's?  Come back!  Working a little bit in the yard yesterday makes me so excited about the upcoming flowers and garden that's on the horizon.  It's April 3rd for goodness sakes.  Let's get this party started!!  Go away cold weather!

Spring is here!!!

Ken's a mowing

Lilac bush

Lilac bush

Cherry tree blooms

Hydrangea bush is looking healthy

I am overly excited!  Spring is here.  The flowers are blooming, the sky is blue and the grass is green.  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE SUMMER but I got to admit, this is pretty.

Zumba workout =

heart rate going up, up, up!!!

I like Zumba but SHREW.... it wore me out!

Slightly emotional and stressing

I would say today was a great day.  Cody and I went to an Easter Egg hunt which was surprisingly a lot of fun.  They organized it well and the children all played in various activities like tug a war, children bowling and of course the easter egg hunt.  It truly was a good 1 1/2 hours of fun.  Afterward, Cody and I walked home and it was actually turning out to be a very nice day weather wise.  The sun was shinning bright and the coolness of the morning was wearing off to the point that I changed from jeans and long sleeves to capri's and short sleeves.

Cody and I ate lunch outside on our back deck.  Daddy already ate before we got home so I heated up a few left overs and we put a blanket down and ate.  We have such great conversations too.

Later Ken came out and started working in the yard.  I decided this would be a great time to clean out Mr. Krabs cage too.  So as I was doing that, Cody started to get a little bored.  How could he be bored today on such a nice day.  So he started riding his bike.  I texted his friend Alex's mom to see if Alex would like to come over and hang out for a bit.  He did and Cody was happy.

After about a hour Ken and I thought it would be fun to have Alex eat dinner and watch a movie with us.  I got the ok from Alex's mom so I thought hamburgers and hot dogs would be perfect on the grill. Alex wanted to ride bikes outside so I walked with them to his house and picked up his bike.  The boys were having a great time.  I went back inside the house to check if I needed to buy anything from the grocery store.  Next thing I know I hear crying.  Crying? 

Alex's dad was walking back toward our house with Cody.  Apparently Cody rode his bike behind Alex and he got to close touching Alex's back wheel with his front wheel.  Cody said, Kowabunga.....and down he went.  He was a hot mess.  Thank goodness for helmets but somehow he got his hand all scrapped up and his nose and the skin between his nose and upper lip.  He was crying bloody murder which I had never heard that loud of a cry from him before.  I felt so bad that I wasn't there to help him.  I just saw the boys like less than 5 min ago.  They were just riding up and down our street and....crash!

Ken cleaned him up and urged me to stay away since Cody seemed to be more dramatic whenever I got near.  He has it in his head that I baby Cody.  Which I swear I don't.  So I went to the grocery store and got hot dogs and a movie while Cody was getting "taken care of" by daddy.

When I got home, all was well.  The boys were in the basement and I told them I would have dinner ready in 30 min.  Whipped it up and they all ate it up.  I'm impressed with my grilling skills.  I know it's only hot dogs and hamburgers but still I haven't really used the grill in several months.  So I have to get my timing down so I don't over/under cook anything.

The movie "The Good Dinosaur" was really cute but there were "tear jerker" parts in that movie.  So it got me a bit emotional.  Don't laugh, I know it's a cartoon but geez...it just made me think about how precious life is.  Thank goodness Cody just fell off his bike and didn't run into a car or something more serious.

So when we got home, Ken mentioned to me that my face was red.  Huh?  A red face.  I was crying a bit through the movie so I'm sure my eyes are a bit blood shot.  He said, no your cheeks.  I looked in the mirror and sure enough, my right side check and forehead is a tad red.  Now that he has brought it to my attention it seems a bit itchy and warm.  And now that I look at it closer, there is a small dot like a mole on my cheek and of course.....where does my brain immediately go?  Yes, you guessed it. Skin cancer!  My friend Chris just had skin cancer right above his forehead and he posted a photo on Facebook with stitches where the dermatologist cut it out.  How could I have not put sun screen on today?  How can I be so stupid??  Now I have this gut feeling that the little mole on my face which I don't recall being there lately is cancer.  I can only hope that its a sun spot but now I'm stressing!

I gave Cody a shower tonight to wash off all the pollen and tend to his wounds.  Neosporin and band-aids are our friends tonight.  So hopefully I will get a good nights rest tonight and try not to stress myself out to much.

So pretty out...

It's a shame it won't last.  That's the joy of spring in Virginia.  Up and down, up and down.  It's like being on a seesaw.  One day I'm up...aka happy and the next day I'm down...aka bummed it's still cold out.  Today was awesome!!!  Sunny and surprisingly warm for 70ish.

Dropped Ken off at the car shop.  He had a total flat tire.  Luckily for us, they were able to plug it instead of replacing the entire tire. Which is good since the tire is only like 2 months old.  Ken apparently found a screw and ran right over it.  :)  So instead of cooking since it was already almost 6pm, I got take out tonight so I didn't have to waste time cooking.  It was Chinese, quick and easy.

Afterward, Cody and I went out and threw the football around for a bit.  Then I decided that we must go for a walk.  So I threw my athletic gear on, grabbed daddy and we all went for a walk. 

There were so many people out everywhere.  Joggers, walkers, people at the park with the kids, people walking their dogs and kids skate boarding.  We walked over to the town center and all got a chocolate shake at Johnny Rockets.  What a fun surprise. 

I finally put some steps on my Fitbit.  I seriously need to walk more and today motivated me because fresh air and lots of people is way more motivating than the treadmill in front of the tv.

I had a wonderful evening with my family.  Hope this weather continues so we can enjoy more evenings like this.

No accumulation

Yup, a few flurries last night amounted to absolutely nothing today!  And I'm a-ok with that.

BRING ON SPRING!!!

rain..rain..rain..rain..SNOW!

What a dreary day today.  It's one of those I just want to lay on the couch and watch movies all day kind of day.  It's rainy and dreary out.  So I took Cody with me to run errands.  He just loves that.  Ha-ha, no he doesn't.   The plan was to go to Walmart but how can I go to Walmart when Ross, Home Goods and Michael's are all staring me down....daring me to come inside.  What could I do...they dared me.  And Cody just moaned and groaned.

So I have Cody's school picture in a picture frame.  Why I just have one of these frames is beyond me.  Probably because I bought the frame before realizing that schools out here take spring and fall photos.  I'm just going to have to buy 2 new frames since I can't seem to find a match to this one.

No luck at Ross or Home Goods.  Man this is a wash today.  Goes with the rainy weather we're having.  And by the way, both Cody and I didn't bring an umbrella or jackets with hoods.  I watched the forecast and the weatherman said the rain would be rolling in later this afternoon.  I should have known better.

So it started snowing around 5pm and far the it's not sticking or accumulating which is fine with me.  It's just too warm out if you call 40's warm. 

By the way, tomorrow is the official 1st day of spring.  Happy SPRING everyone!

Fire pit night!

So this is interesting.  Earlier in the week, the forecasters called for 80's on Tues, Wed, and Thurs.  And like I mentioned, Tuesday and Wednesday did not disapoint.  Of course yesterday did and I was so bummed.  But today....shocker...was awesome.  I think the forecasters called for 60's which is a far cry from 80's but the sun was out, there was no breeze and it felt good! 

I thought what a nice day to get Cody outside and enjoy.  So when we got home, he jumped on his scooter and started having some fun.  He soon realized that the kids around the corner from us had a lemonade stand.  1st he was a customer then he was "working" at the stand.

What I love about this kind of weather is hibernation begins to end and everyone comes out of their houses.  People are out walking their dogs, kids are riding bikes, rollerblading, throwing the football or kicking balls.  So to see the kids working together trying to sell lemonade was so fun.

As it started getting dark, I mentioned to Ken how nice it was outside still.  Although I'm not a fan of daylight savings time, it's right around the corner and next week this time we will get one more extra hour of daylight which will really make this time of year so much more fun.  So Ken decided to get the fire pit out and invite the neighbors over.  The kids went to one neighbors house to watch movies and the adults came to our house for relaxation by the fire.

So, I'd say this evening was a complete success.  Great friends, great fire, and great night!

huge disappointment

80+ degrees and sunny?  NOT!!!

The clues started to come early.  I thought why do I feel so cold today?  Oh maybe it's because the weatherman said it would be 80+ degrees today and I didn't want to wear my winter clothes.  So I pulled out a nice long skirt with a short sleeve top.  Or maybe it's due to the fact that I didn't have any closed toed shoes so I wore open toed shoes today which exposed my sweet little toesies.  Or was it the fact that when I looked outside the sky was gray and cloud covered.  Where's the sun?

It was so disappointing.  Walking outside at lunch the sun was no where to be found but a gentle cool breeze was blowing around.  Brrrr....  Today is a bust!  And I'm so bummed. I was really looking forward to the bright sun, a little vitamin D and cooking out on the grill tonight.  Maybe sitting outside dreaming about planting my flowers.  Nope, not today. 

Another one gone!

MRI

What a day!  I decided this year to skip scheduling the MRI on my birthday due to that being the stupidest idea I ever came up with.  So this year I decided to schedule my MRI on Saturday and that was stupid too!  All I wanted was someone to go with me.  I just hate getting poked with a needle and being by myself.  The stress of the unknown (what might they find) in the scan just drives up my nerves.  So I thought this year, I'll bring Ken and Cody with me for comfort.  Did it work?  Yes and no. 

We got there at 9am.  My appointment was a 9:15.  Since Cody was with Ken in the waiting room, neither could go back with me which I was somewhat fine with since at least they were there.  The nurse was polite and knew I was nervous so we chatted a bit before she put the IV in.  I really hate IV's.  Anyway, she took me back to the SUPER cold room where the MRI would be done.  I immediately asked for blankets cause there was no way I could hold still while freezing to death.  As I was getting on to the machine (laying face down) I told the nurses that I do get dizzy afterward so I might need help when the procedure was over.

She gave me instructions, a plastic cap to pull back my hair and I laid down on the table with my arms above my head.  With all the pads, it's comfy but does get old real quick.  She then gave me the panic ball to squeeze in case I needed her.  I closed my eyes as she pushed me into the machine and all the sudden the room was spinning.  I said out loud that I'm dizzy.  She acknowledged but there was nothing she could do.  The tests began.

It seemed like forever.  I tried to focus on so many things like summer vacation or playing with Cody later today.  But then thoughts of Virginia popped in my head.  I thought about how she had to go through these types of tests and how her results were devastating.  Then of course I wondered what my results would be.  I didn't cry thank goodness but the worry was there.  How can I get my mind to go elsewhere.  How can I get it off this dark path?  I tried to think about so many other things.  But the time was dragging on and the test seemed to last forever.  She pulled me out of the machine just long enough to put the contrast in.  I hate that so much but I didn't feel a thing.  Maybe a little weird taste in my mouth but nothing like the contrast in the CT scan. 

Back in the machine I went.  UGhhh  dizzy.  Soon thereafter I realized that my arms were falling asleep and that panic ball that I was holding...I couldn't even feel at anymore.  My hands were numb and my fingers were stiff.  How does this happen?  How long have I been here.  The machine stopped and I said how much longer?  The nurse said last one - 2 min.  And seriously that was the longest 2 minutes ever.  I even started counting myself and I went past 2 min to 3 min.  Is this test really only 30 minutes?

IT'S OVER!

She slowly pulled me out but the feeling was overwhelming.  I was immediately dizzy and needed a few minutes to get the room to stop spinning.  I asked the nurse why this happens and she said that there is a magnetic field that I am going through and that some people react to it.  Hummm....I thought it was from you pushing me in to the machine.  So I eventually got up, got changed and went to the bathroom but the room was still spinning a bit which didn't happen last year.  If I remember correctly, I actually drove myself to the MRI which there was no way I could do that this year.  I met up with Ken and Cody in the waiting room and I had to sit for a bit.  I can't believe how jacked up I am.  When we went to the car, I felt nauseous.  This was definitely not normal.

Thanks goodness Ken had a water bottle in the car.  I drank some water to try to get hydrated.  As he drove, I felt like he was doing donuts in the parking lot.  I thought I was going to puke.  My body was so off.  What was going on?  Stress, dehydration, too long in the machine?  Ken was surprised from my reaction but he did mention that I was back there really long.  I left Ken and Cody at 9:15 and didn't come out till 10:15.  I know I was back there for the IV, and getting undressed and of course getting set up on the machine perfectly so I know all this takes time but could I have been in the machine longer than 30 minutes?

The drive home felt like an eternity.  All I wanted to do was get Emetrol and lay down.  I need to just lay down.  We finally got home and I did take a nap.  When I got up, I still felt off.  I wonder now did I have a reaction to the contrast?  I hope I feel better soon.  This is not good!

ZUMBA!

Tonight Cody and I tried out my new Zumba DVD's that I got for my Birthday 2 weeks ago. 

I love dancing and I'm loving this so far.  Right now I'm on DVD #1 which teaches you in slow motion the actual dance steps.  Of course they speed it up once they think you mastered the dance step which some I do and some I don't.  The ones I'm able to master, I can do faster with no problem and of course the dance moves I can't get, I end up tripping all over myself when the tempo speeds up.  With my fitbit on I can see how high my heart rate goes and it does spike up a bit when I'm dancing fast.  Poor heart...hasn't really worked out that much lately.  But then again, what is the true definition of working out? 

I've been bad lately.  I was on a roll for a bit there.  But then Cody really got into walking/running on the treadmill and my time in the so called "home gym" was not working out.  I either had to work out after he went to bed or at the crack of dawn which neither occurred.  So now my moment of interest is Zumba.  Hopefully this will last for a few weeks.  I do really need to get in to shape.  Bikini season is a few months away but the 5K is just 47 days away and my goal was to run under 34 mins.  Actually it would be nice to run it in 30 min flat.  I doubt that will happen but you never know.  Now that I've said 47 days, that doesn't seem so far away.  YIKES!

Anway...back to the topic.  ZUBMA ROCKS!

LAME!

Rain and Snow then all Snow but it didn't even stick on the roads.  It accumulated on the grass and on the car which was fine.  It was only about 1/2 inch max and when it came down, it was beautiful and fluffy.  But before I knew it, I got that magical call.  Why it was Wade telling us the the school was closed!!!

Oh my goodness!!!  You've got to be kidding me.  The snow was not even sticking and all the other counties in the area were open or had a 2 hour delay.  Now, I'm not one who is opposed to staying home but there was absolutely no reason for a "snow day" today.  Thankfully the after school care program opened up at 11am so I took Cody there for some fun.

Turns out the snow completely stopped and the so called 1-3 inches or possibly 3-6 inches was just a mere 1/2 inch and all melted later that day when the sun came out shinning bright.  So I guess in a way if I knew the day would have ended this way I might have taken a drive up north to go skiing but who knows what the weather would be like 1 1/2 hours up the road.  

So I would classify today's snow day and a mega "LAME" snow!  After snowzilla, nothing will compare.  So if we don't get at least 12 inches, why bother snowing at all. 

Snow or no snow?

We will see in the morning.  It's raining now but it's suppose to turn to snow sometime tonight.  So the question is.....what will it be....

What?

15.2 inches at 7 am per the news.  Dislike!  That's a long way away from 30 inches and I've got it in my head that we are getting 30!  If not, it will be a complete disappointment.

So they claim it's going to snow for the next 12 hours but its very windy out today.  So when this is all over and we do actually go out to clear the driveway, will we actually know how many inches we got with all the snow drifts?

My big camera is dead so I'm forced to use my water camera (blahh) or my cell phone (blahh).  So we'll see what kind of photos I can get today that are worth posting.

The Blizzard is coming! The Blizzard is coming! So they say...

SCHOOL IS CANCELED!!!  WORK IS DISMISSED AT NOON!!!  THE BLIZZARD IS COMING!  BEWARE TO ALL!

SHUT THE FRONT DOOR!

20-30 inches of snow!!!!  Now you've got my complete attention Mr. Weatherman!

Did someone say BLIZZARD?

I'm not talking about a Dairy Queen Blizzard, I'm talking about a full blown snow BLIZZARD!!!

You've got my attention Mr. Weatherman....please do proceed.

Apparently it looks like models are setting the Virginia area up for a nice little blizzard this weekend which is peaking my interest completely.  I'm not a fan of snow but a blizzard is an entirely different story.  Let's just see how this all pans out.

Weather check

At 12:00 noon it's a sunny 21 degrees in Ashburn and at 10:00 am it's a cloudy 55 degrees in Phoenix.
Brrr...it's chilly out.

The weather forecasters are teasing us with potential SNOW on Friday evening/Saturday morning.  I'm quite surprised that we haven't had any accumulating snow yet this season so we'll see if the forecasters  hit it on the nose or blow this one big.  Whatever the case is, it doesn't really matter to me since it's the weekend.

Keep ya posted.

The chunks have got to go!

I've been talking the talk but not walking the walk.  The chunks have got to go!  It's winter out so I can hide them good but come summer, there will be no more!

Now that I have my fitbit, it's a daily reminder of how many steps I do and a daily reminder of how much exercise I don't do.  The last time I did some sort of aerobic exercise was on New Year's eve when I ran the Ringing in the Hope 5K with Cody and showed my friend Brooke how Cody and I  "Just Dance" later that evening.

So I decided today (on a super cold day) to stay inside and work out on my treadmill.  I got in my workout clothes which is step #1.  Then I took a few pictures of my belly area.....aka....Chunk city.
Then I proceeded down to the basement to workout.  Of course Cody decided he wanted to work out too which caused me to let him jog on the treadmill 1st (with proper instructions and my eyes on him of course).

When I got on I decided to walk/job/run for 30 minutes.  So here is what I got:  Time:  30:22 and Distance:  2.05 miles.

Of course I walked for a while around the house before working out so my fitbit stats are:  5,367 steps and 2.60 miles.

So lets see how well I continue on this path.  I'd really like to post a before and after photo.

50 degress and....

RAIN!  Lots of RAIN!

All I keep thinking is if the temps were in the low 30's we'd be getting a ton of snow right now.  Which would be fine since it's Friday night but....I'm ok with the rain.  It's January and although last year this time we already had a snow day or two.

Cody is ready for snow!  All I can say is just because we're not getting snow now doesn't mean I want to see it in March. 

Windy, WinDY, WINDY!

Wow, it's super windy outside.  Today was an odd day.  Really overcast and misty this morning then the sun came out which brightens everyone's day so I told Cody we have to go outside.

I strapped on his roller blades (thanks Aunt Wendy) and put on the pads and helmet and off he went with a bit of hesitation. 

He looks just so darn cute!  I took a few photos which I will post soon.

I decided to take him over to the park to get some energy out and of course being on the paths, you don't have to look out for the cars.  Man was that place a mess.  I forgot it rained yesterday and all night.  There was water and mud everywhere.  Gross!

So we came back to the house but in the process, I made some major steps in the process.  In fact around 4pm I hit my 10,000th step.  Whoo-hoo! 

I did job a bit with the kids to keep up with them.  Cody on the roller blades and Bella on her scooter but the fitbit didn't pick up my mini run/job.  A little bummed but I guess I wasn't really consistently running or that my heart rate wasn't really up that high.  That's ok, cause I am still nursing a cough so it's probably best not to overwork myself but when I do start feeling better, I'm totally going to run on the treadmill or do my workout videos.  I just have to find the time to do it.

Things that make you go hummmm...

Winter is here!

Holy smokes it's 14 degrees out with a nice little breeze!  YOWZA!  It's darn cold out.  I think winter is finally here!

Technology

I'm baffled by this Fitbit and technology in general.  It's amazing and I'm in the wrong line of work.

The goal on my Fitbit is set for 10,000 steps a day.  This past week I only hit that goal once which is fine since I'm off from work and there are days I just want to hang in the house and chill.  Right now I'm still enjoying watching the number of steps I take and Cody is too.  So a few months ago, I signed Cody and I up for the Ringing in the Hope 5K race.  Part of me likes to run these races.  All the people that you don't know all getting together to run for a cause.  (In this case, ringing in the hope is supporting the local charities and the people they serve in your community.)  I like the thrill of wondering how fast/slow I'm going to run the race and I do love getting Cody outside, away from electronics and get his blood pumping as well.

Cody was really excited for the race.  The last race he did a few months back he ran it in 31 min.  He was determined to beat his goal so to me that was really impressive.  I myself would be happy too if I could beat 34 min but I'm doing this race cold turkey again so I'll be happy if I tie my time.

Here's our race results from last year:  
Jen:  39:54 chip time  (12:52 min/mile)  215th place (women)
Cody:  39:50 chip time (12:51 min/mile)  176th place (men)

Last year Cody stayed with me.  This year he and his buddy took off.  But I wasn't too far behind them.  I could actually see them and I actually caught up with them at one point which totally didn't happen on the last run in the fall.  I think the boys were goofing off a bit in the beginning before the race started so they blew some energy out.  Then I think since they were together they sprinted at the start and started to peter out as the race went on.  I told Cody always pace yourself.  But does he listen?  NOPE!

So to get to the point of my post on technology.  My Fitbit must have picked up a significant amount of heart rate spiking as I was running.  Because when I checked my Fitbit this morning, not only did I pass the 10,000 steps (which I knew since it buzzed when I reached my goal) but it actually listed a new category on App which was RUN!  I was amazed.  I guess I didn't read up on my Fitbit like I should have but it was a cool surprise this morning to see that it picked up my 5K run. 

So on December 31st at 1:01pm I ran for a duration of 36:13 min (which sounds about right and if so, totally blew my previous race time back in September) and I had 6,025 steps.  So this little gadget has peaked my interest and is actually seeming to be motivating me to beat these goals.  Like I said Technology!  Very cool.

And to top it off, last night I was showing my friend Dance 2015 and 2016 not thinking anything of it.  I told her that this game is cool cause you're dancing but yet exercising at the same time but it's fun so you're not thinking about it.  But it's so incredibly exhausting for those (like me) who are a bit out of shape.

Low and behold, when I looked at my App this morning, there was a history of an aerobic exercise which again blew my mind.  I started it at 10pm which was right and in the process completed 1,103 steps and danced for a duration of 18:57 minutes.  Which again blew my mind because I was having fun doing it and never realized that I was doing it for almost 20 min.

I also can see where my heart rate is during both activities and during the run I averaged 165 bpm  and during my aerobic activity I averaged 117 bpm, and while I'm tying this post, I'm at 76 bpm.
Dare I look to see what's a normal range and what's not?  Nahhh.....no need to scare myself right yet.

So as I said earlier, I'm baffled by this Fitbit but I think I can understand how it does what it does.  I sit here and wonder why I never thought of this?  I guess I wasn't meant to be a millionaire. 

But I am enjoying it and so far it's motivating me to keep up the good work!

By the way, the race times aren't posted yet for this years race. Looking forward to seeing our times.