Sunburned again

Wow this week is just flying!

I got absolutely roasted on Sunday afternoon... sitting by the in-laws pool after a swim. I felt a bit cold when I got out of the pool so I sat in the sun to 'warm up'... not a good move cos now my chest is bright red. My arms and face copped a bit too, but my chest is the worst. When will I ever learn?

I had a lovely day on Monday (thanks for the birthday wishes everyone!). We went for a nice drive to Springbrook in the Gold Coast Hinterland. Because of all the recent rains all the waterfalls were flowing again, and the rainforest actually FELT like rainforest - lovely! We also went to Natural Bridge, had a nice lunch in a cafe, and then took a drive up to O'Reilleys. I took lots of pic's on my new little digital camera, so I'll try to post a few when I figure out how to upload them. OOooh I scored a Lorna Jane voucher too and I cant wait to spend it!

The last couple of years I've felt a bit sooky when it comes to birthdays. I've decided I dont like them anymore. I tend to get a bit sullen and cranky for a few days before, silly really, because its inevitable - we all get older.

Aaaanyway, training has taken a bit of a backseat this week. The sunburn hurt so bad that I just didn't think I could face dragging a crop-top over my head and over the burn, so I skipped it and doused myself in cream instead. I went back to gym this morning and it felt ok, my skin is now just covered in little bubbles where the sweat tried to break through, and it starting to get itchy.

Well that's about all from me, have a fantastic Friday!

How to get shoulder DOMS without even trying...

Step 1 - Get a tetanus shot...

Step 2 - wait a few hours...

Step 3 - say "Ouuuuwwwwww"

Attack of the barbed wire gate.

I had a bit of a bad day today... :(

Firstly driving to work I saw a little kitty get hit by a car... horrible... it ran in front of me (I thought it was lucky because I saw it and slowed down to avoid it) but unfortunately the car racing up to the right of me was going too fast, and kitty got clipped on the back of the legs. He kept running off the road and into the bushes, so I'm not sure how badly it was hurt. I couldn't stop because it was an extremely busy intersection. I was only about 5 minutes from work so by the time I arrived I was trying not to fall apart into tears.

Then I went out to look at a damaged door for work. I had to go way out to woop-woop to a farm area, so lucky I've got my trusty GPS! When I finally got there, I had to get through a barbed wire gate. This was not a 'normal' gate with a top and bottom rail that swings open. This was a "gate" (I use the term loosely) made of two upright posts with 3 strings of barbed wire through it. It had a chain and a long stick to keep it in place. I couldn't figure out how to open it.

I stuffed around with it for a few minutes, and thought bugger-it, and tried to climb through. Big mistake number one. It snagged my pants, and I started to lose my balance so I grabbed the wire - got a barb right through my left palm. Great - now I'm bleeding and cranky. The cows were giving me the evil eye too!

Anyway, got through, walked about 50 metres to the shed. Now I had to get through an electric fence. Had to reach through the fence to unplug the battery (all without getting a shock) so I could climb through. Managed to do this without electrocuting myself too!!

So I took a couple of photos of this damaged door, and then when I left I had another battle with the gate. Well, since I was bleeding already I didn’t particularly want to climb through it again, so I thought “I’ll have another go at opening this thing”. Big mistake number two. I got it open ok, but then I couldn’t figure out how to get it closed again!! It took me another 5 minutes… getting crankier, hot and sweaty, and then I sliced open the back of my right hand… twice… before I figured out how it worked! So now with both hands bleeding I grumbled all the way back to the office!

So now I have to go have a tetanus shot tomorrow morning. :(

Despite all this I’m still smilin’; I wore a pair of pants today which two weeks ago fit just right – and today I had to keep pulling them up! Yay!

Have a fabulous Friday and a great long weekend! (Its my birthday on Monday and I get a public holiday - how cool!)

Peas

I dont know why, but every now and then I go through "phases" where I crave a certain food non-stop. You may remember my American Mustard phase, where I plastered absolutely everything I ate, from salad, to fish, to chicken, with American Mustard. Last year it was the cucumber obsession - and while I still love cucumber, I can now eat a salad without it if I had to.

Lately its been peas!! Nothing special about peas I know - but I never liked 'em as a kid, I used to do the whole "hold my nose and swallow them whole" when I was little (especially since mum and dad wouldn't let me leave the table until every last pea was gone LOL!). Last month I bought a bag of frozen baby peas on a whim, and now I love them! Baby peas are much nicer I think. I'm also a bit partial to raw green beans in my salads too lately - another vegie I used to loathe when I was a kid.

We had some steamed veges with our lamb tonight, and I was savouring my peas and saying to OH "mmmmm I just LOVE these peas at the moment!!". He just shook his head at me... he doesn't get it - food is "just food" to him - sometimes I wish I could be like that!

I had a busy weekend - I wrote myself a to-do list on Friday night, and I'm happy to report that I accomplished almost everything on that list. I just didn't get to the butcher, bugger. Its a good feeling to have a tidy house and all the cleaning, washing and ironing up to date - its just a shame that there will be more chores to do next weekend!

Have a fantastic week everyone - next weekend is a long weekend - yahoo!

Tuesday update

Jeez I had forgotten how going to work every day eats into your leisure time!! I havent had much time for blogging lately. Going to work and cramming lots of information into my poor old brain has been a bit of a shock to the system after 7 weeks off, but its good to have some mental stimulation again.

I had a bit of a downer of a weekend. I got stomach pains again and I was a bit of a misery to be around. I suppose I have to admit that the doc was actually right - he said it was IBS. My trigger normally seems to be artificial sweetener - and the only thing I had this week was a protein bar on Wednesday afternoon. I stupidly thought that one little old protein bar wouldn't hurt, obviously I was wrong! My glass of wine on Friday night probably didn't do much to help either... :(

We went to a wedding on Saturday night and the boys got SMASHED!! I was the designated driver (couldn't risk drinking with my stomach the way it was) so it was quite funny to watch everyone get more and more plastered.

Saturday was also our one year anniversary of getting engaged! (Wow didn't that go fast!) One year ago today we were in Pompeii... *sigh* I want to go back!

Training was non-existant on the weekend, I just couldn't manage it. But I'm feeling better now so back into it. Did Chest and Bi's again today, and tomorrow will be Back and Tri's. I'll do legs on Thursday, and a step class on Friday morning. My food has been nice and clean (and NO artificial sweeteners!!) so I'm starting to feel good. Gotta keep it up!

Australia Zoo... and other stuff

Our day at Australia Zoo was great! Its been about 6 years since we last went, and it has changed BIG time since then. It seemed like it was twice as big as before, and twice as busy. It turned into an absolute scorcher of a day though, and we managed to sit in the front row at the Crocoseum for the show, so I got roasted. Well actually only my nose and tops of shoulders got burned, but I feel like I’m roasted! I don’t know why, but I never ever remember to take sunscreen or wear a hat anywhere – silly me.

We were lucky enough to have Terri Irwin and Wes Mannion do the crocodile show – you should have heard the roar from the crowd when she came running out! We must be lucky, because when we were there 6 years ago Steve Irwin did the croc show, we felt very privileged LOL!

Its very hands-on too. I got to pat a baby crocodile, a koala, feed and pat the kangaroos and feed an elephant! Last time we were there I got to pat a big python.

Anyway, it was a lovely day – here’s a few pics:

Terri Irwin during the croc show

Me and a friendly Kangaroo

A big cat out for a stroll (I think it was a cougar?)

Under the Crocoseum is this sort of memorial to Steve. All the shirts that everybody signed after he died are on display, along with posters and poems and all sorts of things that people have done. It was really quite moving...

**** ******

Other stuff: I started my new job on Tuesday. I was surprisingly calm driving in – I thought I would be super nervous but I wasn’t. I’m really enjoying it, and will be spending the next few weeks learning all the products and processes, before I can start getting stuck into anything much. I’m so looking forward to the challenge! It feels so refreshing to be working in a new environment too.

Training is going well this week, and thankfully I can walk again after last weeks leg DOMS! I have started a new weights programme this week, and I can feel some nice sore biceps coming on already, so its all good! I’m happy to be back into a routine and eating clean again, I feel so much better already.

Last night I caught up with Rachel and Sue for dinner. It was a good night, and it was lovely to see them both again. Luckily the weather has been kind to Sue while she's here - I think its still hotter down south than it is here!

Well that's about it from me. Have a fabulous Friday and a wonderful weekend!

Ugh

It seems that the party season has hit my neck of the woods this week. Three late nights in a row, three nights of alcohol and cheese and nibblies and not much sleep. I'm feeling all bleughhh at the moment... still, nobody's fault but my own I guess!

Tonight OH has gone to a bucks party, but he is feeling a little rough around the edges at the moment too, so he's not having a big night. I have skipped the hens party in favour of heading around the corner to a girlfriends place. I'm hoping we'll have a quiet night and wait patiently for the boys to come home from the bucks! I am so bloated... I need sleeeeeeep... and water....

The last three days has been a bit of a turning point for the house reno's. 3 days of painting, plastering, wall building and sanding (somebody took a photo of me weilding the orbital sander yesterday - dressed in my finest working clothes lol - we wont be posting THAT pic!!) and the house is really starting to take shape. Our converted garage downstairs is actually starting to LOOK like a rumpus room, rather than a "converted garage". Nice. The kitchen has been torn apart, I've lost all my overhead cupboards and I'm SO over cleaning up globs of plaster and dust, but hey - we're getting there!

Only problem is that working on the house was a bit difficult for me, seeing how I'm suffering from some of the worst leg DOMS in my life! I am the walking wounded... takes me 5 minutes to get down the stairs, and climbing up and down stepladders all day was most unpleasant. I imagine all our tradesmen friends were sniggering at me as I hobbled from one paint tin to the next. That's what I get for not training legs for a few weeks (naughty me!)

And I have just looked out the window and the skies are finally blue and its stopped raining! The trees are actually standing vertical instead of blowing over sideways! Looks like the nasty weather might be finally gone yipee! Hope it stays fine - we are going to Australia Zoo on Monday :)

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Welcoming the New Year in with a purrr (not a roar)

It was more of a fizzle than a "bang", our New Years. I nursed a few glasses of bubbly all night, drank two bottles of water in between, and ate far too much cheese and crackers. A fairly quiet night, at a very quiet get-together - man I feel old!

So anyway, despite the quiet night I still didn't get to bed until 2am, so a sleep in until 10am was in order. I dont even remember the last time I slept half the day away. It was nice because it was cool and windy and rainy, and the neighbourhood was quiet as a mouse - good snuggling weather. The thing I hate about sleeping in that late is that by the time you get up and have "breakfast" it's screwed all your meal times up. I've been a bit guilty of missing meals lately, so its time to get myself back to 5 good clean meals per day.

Today I slept in until 7am and then hit the gym, which is finally back to ordinary hours (yay!). I did my first weights session of 2008 - shoulders, bi's and tri's, followed by 25 minutes on the cross trainer. After a week off weights, I actually lifted heavier for shoulders... go figure. But I was weaker in biceps, weird. The gym was almost empty, much to my surprise. I suppose all the New Years Resolutioners wont start until Monday!

Tomorrow I'm heading into the city with some friends to hit the sales. I'm hoping to score some new work heels, work clothes, perfume, cooler bag and whatever other bargains I can find. A bit of retail therapy never goes astray!