Bathing Suit Season Anyone?

In the not-too-distant future it will be very warm here in the Midwest and it'll be time to break out the bathing suit at The Lake where I grew up. There will be lazy days of floating on a raft with my Dad, days of kayaking with my brother or husband, afternoons of paddle boating with my Mom, and Beach Parties with the neighbors in which I will have to wear my bathing suit. Also, there will be days at the-in-laws neighborhood pool with my skinny Mother & Sister-in-law. Like size 4 skinny. They are the two sweetest women..but I seriously want to DIE when surrounded by the two of them on a hot day in minimal clothing. And my MIL is over 60....and she has a rockin' bod...totally natural. WTF??!!

This is way I have joined these ladies. I was so inspired when I read about Kelly and her quest to get bathing suit ready in 8 weeks and POST THE RESULTS ON HER BLOG. Granted...Kelly IS a former contestant for the Miss America title and they BOTH have less weight to lose than I do..but whatever, why NOT throw caution into the wind? So, Yes. I have agreed to join these women in posting a picture of MYSELF IN MY BATHING SUIT. HERE. ON THIS BLOG. FOR THE WORLD TO SEE. IN 8 WEEKS.

This should totally freak me out....but I am strangely calm. Like, suddenly my body has the power to morph into one of these ladies by June 23rd (the day of the dastardly deed):



Maybe if I just say, "Go-Go-Gadget-Sexy-Bathing-Suit-Bod!!" really fast it'll happen for me?

Back In The Saddle!

I've been working my ass of lately.
Well, not literally.
And that...is the PROBLEM.

With my days being consumed by long hours on my feet nursing..I find myself so pooped when I get home at 4pm I can barely function. The other day I had a beer and passed out on my hammock like a drunken sailor A) because I was so tired B) because I never drink anymore so the beer got me DRUNK and C)the sun drained all the life out of me and I was rendered useless in the hammock for the remainder of the afternoon!

With this new schedule I have really gotten out of my awesome and newly formed work out routine. So in the last two weeks I have been trying to get outside and do cardio 3-5 times per week. Mostly 3 times per week to be honest. I feel like I am finally starting to adjust and I'm being left with a smidge more life to carry out a workout at the end of my day. Today's workout was 30 minutes at the forest preserve doing interval training; 3 minutes walking, 1 minute running, and 1 minute of resistance training with my resistance band and a tree. Sativa, our dog, thought that I was schizophrenic as I changed our speed and started whipping around a giant rubber band every couple of minutes. I'd have to say she was pretty disgusted with me by the end.

So, today is the day of new beginnings and the day when I get back in the saddle and start actively working towards my weight loss goal again. I think I'm going to post my weight in the next week...but not today. I'm just not in the mood for that. :-)

And let me just say, for the thousandth time, I LOVE being a nurse. Everyday is a new adventure..and everyday is scary and exhilarating at the same time. I am learning so much and I work with my friends who have supported me through 6 years of school and life...and now they support me and lift me up as a nurse. It's so great....I wouldn't do anything else with my life and that feels so damn good.

Uncomfortable silence...

"......................................................."

Damn. I knew I should have written down some of my ideas for blog entries.

"......................................................."

Well, I'm back. My computers are working. I am able to email and web surf, and blog read, and update. Joy to the world!
Although, it has been nice being away from a computer for a couple of weeks.

Because I don't have much to blog about at the moment, I'll start with 25 Things About Me (in lieu of 100 Things, because that's just nuts).

1) I went to an amazing hippie college in Arizona that I miss everyday..but the entire time I was there my heart ached for home.

2) I was so excited to have babies...and now...I am just scared. Does that mean I am more ready in a twisted f-ed up way?

3) I have run marathons...and now I can barely run around the block. I need to start running again.

4) I love to make lists. I make lists about everything. Right now I have a summer To-Do that is over 20 items long..and I LOVE IT.

5) I enjoying painting. Like, on the walls in the house. I love the trim taping and being meticulous...I have painted 3 nurseries for friends/family to date and I have painted every room in my house. BY MYSELF.

6) My husband. He's kind of an ass. But I love it...because I'm an ass too.

7) But he's also secretly a mushy-mush...and so am I.

8) I am a nurse and I adore the job. There is nothing else I would rather be doing when I am caring for patients at the hospital. Except for maybe caring for patients at a therapeutic camp of some sort in the mountains.

9) I went to hippie college to be an outdoor educator and use the wilderness in a therapeutic and healing way.

10) I always secretly wanted to go to nursing school and would visit the local community college in AZ to get info on the nursing program every couple of months.

11) I have a 16 year old brother. He is the most awesome person in the world.

12) I grew up riding horse competitively. I was the grunt who would muck the stalls and groom other peoples horses at the horse show and then beat those richy-riches when it came time to compete.

13) I worship Martha Stewart and Real Simple magazines.

14) I hate doing laundry. There is a HUGE pile of clothes on the basement floor waiting to be washed. I just step over it.

15) I am a Real World junkie. I have watched every season since the first one in NYC. Yes, I have applied.

16) Also, I tried out for Fear Factor. I didn't make it. I'm not skinny or dumb enough.

17) I love the state of South Dakota. I love the landscape and the people and the wildlife. I would live there if it didn't take me so far away from my family.

18) This is hard

19) I am a picker. I know this is gross...but I love to pick pimples and gross shit like that. I have to bribe my husband to get him to let me "pick" on him.

20) I inherited this picking fetish from my mother.

21) When my husband proposed I told him to "Shut Up!" and I pushed him...like Elaine on Seinfeld.

22) We were engaged on Sanibel Island, FL...his whole family was there and he asked for my Dad's permission before we left on the trip.

23) I drive an orange Honda Element...that car that looks like a giant toaster or roller skate. Lots of people think they are ugly and stupid...but I love my Element and want to keep it forever. Seriously.

24) I secretly wish I had the talent to scrapbook. I just don't have the patience.

25) My second toes are freakishly longer than my big toes. Like weird alien fingers. I'm not even exaggerating.

What THE EF??!

My computers..BOTH of them are being bastards. I can't update my blog daily so all of my good blogging ideas are slipping through the holes in my brain.

I can't check my email. I can't even check YOUR BLOGS. DAMN IT!!

Right now I am at my parents picking up my Mom to do some Spring garden supply shopping at our local garden center, Hawthorn Gardens. I am so psyched. If anyone lives around me in Northern IL...you should DEFINITELY check this place out and support a local small business.

Trevor has to go to Best Buy and buy "something" to fix our computer situation. He will not elaborate on this subject...for fear that smoke might start coming out of my ears as I spontaneously combust.

I hope all of you are enjoying this amazing weather. I will be back as soon as my mother-ef-ing computers are fixed...and I will start writing down my blogging ideas so that when I do come back there isn't an uncomfortable silence between us.

Insta-Karma

Thursday night, while sitting at Bennigans, eating a disgustingly fattening and deep fried Southwest Roll...totally exhausted and wiped out from work all week...I said to my husband, "I think I'll have the flu tomorrow", with a little smirk on my face. I just wanted to play hooky and go to the forest preserve and drink coffee...but I wasn't REALLY going to do that...it was just wishful thinking.

And then. At 9pm that night..not 3 hours after I stupidly joked about having the flu....I began to feel nauseous. My stomach bean to cramp. And I spent the next 10 hours sleeping on the bathroom floor next to the commode with "The Flu" (I will not go into any more detail) and cursing myself for....CURSING MYSELF!

Total Insta-Karma.

Things I Have Been Enjoying Lately

1) Living at my in-laws house while they are away for the Winter at their home in Florida. It's MUCH bigger than ours, has a fancy-schmancy kitchen with a big copper hood, a farm house sink, a giagantor viking stove, a fireplace, a huge shower with 75 sprayers, and is literally 5 minutes from the hospital and 10 minutes from Trevors workplace.

2) Oh yeah, and it's within WALKING distance to yoga. Holy Moly. So awesome.

3) Being a friggin NURSE! I love nursing! I love it, I love it, I love it! I have worked in health care for 6 years now as a "tech" (nurses assistant) and a unit secretary. I have always enjoyed my job, but now I am in LOVE. I love the hospital I work for, I love the small community setting, I love that it is growing and is always striving to improve. I love the $$$. I make 3x what I used to make with the hourly pay increase as well as the increase in hours/week I work.

4) Not being in school. Every time I get a moment to relax...I feel guilty and anxious for a little while. When I recognize these feelings and ask myself "Why?" I realize it's because I think I should be STUDYING! I'm all frantic thinking there's some approaching test or performance exam. But really there's nothing. Nothing.
SWEET!

5) Spending time with Trevor. We have been apart 3 nights a week (3 days straight actually because of his daytime work schedule and my evening work schedule) for the last 3 years. Every night we get to hang out. Also, now that I get to see him everyday, I don't feel guilty or sad when I make plans with friends because I know I'll have plenty of time with him.

6) The new "My Starbucks Idea" website. I was a Starbucks barista 10 years ago. This makes me understanding of their jobs and also a little bit of an asshole when my simple drink request gets f-ed up EVERY TIME I ORDER ONE OF THEIR $5 DRINKS. This website has allowed me to vent about my Starbucks frustrations to someone other than my cousin Katie...also a former Starbucks Barista, as well as make me feel as though these frustrations are being heard by the Starbucks "Man".

That's pretty much it right now! I know that's a lot to be thankful for and enjoy...I'm just settling into my new schedule and life. It is certainly taking some adjustments...but all is good.

How about you? How have you been? What have you been enjoying lately?