BLING!!!!!

Here is my engagement ring!!

In its box...

On my finger!

So exciting to finally pick this up last night! I've only had it about 12 hours, but I cant stop gazing at it! I was watching Heroes last night, and during each ad break I kept looking at it (my OH was having a few peeks at it too - he's quite impressed with himself!) and even when I was flossing my teeth last night I caught myself gazing lovingly at it... hehehehe :) The novelty will take a little while to wear off I think!

Yesterday I did my measurements, since it had been two weeks since my last weigh-in. I wasn't going to do it, since my frame of mind over the last few days has been less than positive. Well I did it anyway, and was quite surprised by the results. My scale weight hasn't changed since a fortnight ago, but a couple of my measurements have dropped by a centimetre, and a couple of skinfolds have reduced too. Particularly surprising as I've been less than perfect, especially in the last few days. My total bodyfat has dropped a whole percent too (whoopee!) - well, a loss is a loss...

Today I have the day off work, as I'm going in to have the laser iridotomies in my eyes. I am FREAKING out but I'm sure it will be a piece of cake (!!!!) Think of me... getting holes drilled into my eyes....

Cucumber addict

I have decided thats what I am... a cucumber addict. Last year it was American Mustard - but I think its time has come for it to be replaced. I am going through two per week, which is quite restrained I think. I could easily eat more. My other half absolutely detests them, which is fine with me cos it means I get to eat it ALL!!!!!

I had a 'nothing' weekend. You know, one of those weekends where if people ask me what I got up to on the weekend, my reply is "nothing". Well, nothing interesting, that is. I trained (half-heartedly) cleaned, washed clothes, did the groceries, I cooked for most of the day yesterday in preparation for the week ahead... boring boring boring!

I did buy a couple of CD's on Saturday - that was about the most exciting thing. One of the CD's is System of a Down; Hypnotise. I LOVE System of a Down and this album is pretty cool - I was headbanging in the kitchen on Saturday afternoon, and had it playing so loud in my car this morning!

I am a bit flat today so this is not much of a post. There is so much going on in my head at the moment that I dont really know where I'm at.

Where did my post go??

I posted this on Tuesday by email, but blogger mustn't have liked it. Oh well, here it is again....

Had a bit of a yuk day yesterday, Sunday night kept waking up with a sore stomach. It was like an ache, but not in the traditional 'stomach ache' way. Felt like a brick was lying on my upper abdomen. So I didn't train, in fact, I could barely keep my eyes open all day - sooo lethargic. Lots of people at work have been down with a virus in the last week, upset tummies and everything, so I was assuming I was coming down with it.

Anyway, still had an achey stomach last night but this morning decided to get up and train anyway... and I am so glad I did! Had a SMASHING weights session! I powered through my weights, felt strong, beat all my weight/reps from last week, and then kicked butt through an amazing interval cardio session on the cross trainer. Followed up with 10 mins on the bike, and then stretching............ felt so good!!!! See, training is good for you!

Stomach feels ok at the moment, but as a precaution I'm avoiding the sugar-free stuff, and not training abs for a few days.

Last night we went to visit friends who have just recently a baby. He was sooo tiny! I got to hear all the horror stories of the birth too - she had a bit of a rough time, poor thing. Is it just me, or is everyone having babies at the moment? I feel like everywhere I turn, everyone is either pregnant or has just had one. Em has just recently had her little boy, and we have these friends who've just recently had theirs. Then I have another 4 friends who are all at various stages of pregnancy, and two other friends who's little ones have just had a first birthday (cant believe how fast they grow!). Must just be our age-group.

But I think I might finally be getting a bit clucky..... (eeeeeek! - insert scary music here!)

Is it just me?

... or does everybody else feel like a wet rag at the end of the week?  By Thursday morning I am usually absolutely shattered, super tired and very little energy, and Friday is just a struggle to get out of bed!  A lot of it is to do with lack of sleep during the week - the last two nights I've only gotten about 5 hours sleep each night.  Unfortunately that's pretty normal.  That's why I need the weekends to catch up on rest.  How perfect would it be to work Monday to Wednesday, then have 4 days off???  For the same money???  Dream on.... :)

So our ring shopping was successful!  Not a bad Valentines present huh?  But because my fingers are so skinny we have to have it made (ring finger is a size H - yeah I have 'skeleton-fingers'!!!).  Anyway, its white gold with a princess cut diamond and little stones dotted down each side - and I have to wait 2-3 weeks!  I sooooo wanted to take it home with me right then and there!  Dont worry, as soon as its firmly on my finger I will post a photo.  Cant wait!

Yesterday morning I did Body Attack - happily my stamina is improving fairly quickly and while I still left with a beetroot face, I wasnt about to collapse on the floor either!  This morning I dragged my sorry arse out of bed and did a step class too - every little bit helps!

Freaked out a little bit this week as I found out that I have to have a little pre-eye-op laser surgery - in two weeks.  I had forgotten about this (conveniently) so it was a bit of a shock this week to realise that I'm going to have two "iridotomies" holes lasered into both iris' on the 1st of March.  These are kind of 'drainage' holes to relieve any pressure build up I might get in my eyes after the REAL operation.   I have even started to think about backing out of the surgery, but I'm sure this is a normal nervous reaction!  I just have to keep reminding myself how amazing its going to be to throw away my glasses and contact lenses after its all over!

Happy Friday everyone!

Pumped

Its that great time of the week where I'm feeling all pumped and strong.  I'm loving it!

Eats have been spot on this week, no deviations from plan and 3 litres of water each day.  On Monday afternoon I took the dogs for a walk, but with one small difference.  I took them both together.  It may not sound like a big deal, but it was.  I have always thought they would be too much to handle to take together, but they proved me wrong.  OMG I am so proud of them!!  I felt like I was walking with a pair of sled dogs - they even walked in formation!!  The only problem was that a couple of times Shavez stopped to pee on a tree, and poor Elke got tangled in the "reigns"!  I was grinning from ear to ear when I got home, and because I was walking both of them we stepped up the pace, so I had my heart rate around 150-160 the whole time! 

Had an amazing back/bicep session on Tuesday morning, I left with a jelly-upper-body - which is a strange feeling!  This morning I did legs again - I was really lacking in energy.  Probably because I didn't sleep very well last night.  So no records broken today I'm afraid.

This morning was a scheduled measurements day... In a week and a half I have lost 0.9kg and a centimetre each from my chest, waist and hips!  Also did my skinfolds and am quite pleased to have lost a few mm already - mostly from my hip and abs.  Next measurements day is in two weeks, so I'm shooting for an equally good result.

Tonight we are going ring shopping!  Hope we find something we like!

Its all good

My eyes, that is.  Had my eye appointment on Friday morning - it was quite horrible!  First I had anaesthetic drops in my eyes and the girl got this pressure tester gauge, which she then tapped on my eyeballs (like, I could SEE this thing hitting my eye repeatedly) but it didn't hurt, it was just weird.  Then she put the dilating drops in my eyes, and warned me that these drops were EXTRA strong.  She said that my pupils could stay dilated for up to 3 days afterwards (she wasn't joking)!!

So after my pupils dilated to the size of saucers, I saw the doc.  He actually started the examination by saying "This will be a bit unpleasant"... hmmmm ...  Picture this, the room is dark, the only light is the one the doctor is holding, and its searing into the back of my eye.  Because your pupils dont work anymore, he has to hold my eyelids open (the natural reaction is to close your eyes).  Then he gets this "poking stick" (thats the official name) and presses it into your eyeball, still blinding you with the light, while all the time you have to 'look left, look up and left, look up, look up and right...' etc.  By now my eyes were streaming - and all that poking around my eyes really hurt!  And just when you think its over, then you have the other eye to do!

Finally he suctions this glass lens thing onto your eyeball, and had another look at my retina.  When he removed the lens, there was this gross "sucking noise" and then it felt like about half a glass of water splashed down onto my cheeks - just a little bit of water from the eyes!  The things we have to suffer!  Anyway, looks like its all good for the eye op, in just over a months time.

So on Saturday I got up to find that my pupils were STILL dilated, which meant I couldn't really take the pooches for a walk.  Even with sunglasses, the sun was so bright that everything outside was literally brilliant white.  I still did my chest and tricep workout at home though, and took the dogs for a big walk on Sunday to make up for it. 

Had a few slip ups on the weekend food-wise, so I'm not very happy with myself.  Why oh why do I struggle on weekends?  Not enough water, and bad food choices.  I always find it easy to focus during the week, but come Saturday I lose that determination.  I think I need to throw myself into this house renovation - then I will be so busy on weekends that I wont have time to think about anything else!

This morning I did the cycle class again - and yay! found it a bit easier this week... hopefully my fitness is starting to come back!

Sore

I'm sooooo sore!! My lats are screaming, I'm having trouble straightening my arms because my biceps and forearms have locked up, and my legs... well I'm moving very slowly at the moment - I think Selina called it "tin man" legs? I reckon it feels like I've got glass in my legs, and it shatters with every step.

Obviously it was a good leg workout then! Actually, from the very first squat I knew that I was going to be in trouble for the rest of the week. I think I actually felt the muscles swearing at me. I'm now at the stage of lowering and raising myself on chairs with my arms - although with sore biceps and forearms I'm kinda moving in slow motion at the moment, with a constant grimmace on my face hehehe

Yesterday I staggered to the gym and attempted my first body attack class - oh how humbling - every time the music stopped I was gasping for breath, stumbling for my towel and water, wondering how could 6 weeks off do this to a person??? I was giving the instructor death stares as we did the last track - lunges and squats - the day after my first leg workout??!! I must have been a bad girl in my last life, and being punished for it now!

This morning I'm going into the city to have my final check up before my eye operation, I'm going to a Retina Specialist, he'll dilate my pupils to have a good look at my eyes and make sure everything is ok. He has the final say on whether this op can go ahead or not. Wish me luck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Where did my strength go?

Back into full-on training this week, and it feels great!  Yesterday morning I did a cycle class.  OMG it hurt!  I kept saying that I must have got the "hard" bike (you know how some bikes seem harder than others) and my legs were burning, but soooo good to sweat so hard!  Then yesterday afternoon I got home and walked the dogs.

This morning I did weights for the first time in 6 weeks - where did my strength go????  I deliberately scaled back the weights I was using cos I knew I would have lost some strength, but I did not realise just how much strength I'd lost.  Felt like I was using baby weights!  Today was back and biceps - and I think I'm gonna be sore tomorrow!!  (cant wait actually!).  After weights I did 20 minutes interval cardio on the Cross Trainer.

Food is spot on - and I'm feeling good.  I've switched to using Calorie King instead of Fitday, and I'm finding it heaps easier because all the Aussie brands are there.  Anyway today I thought I'd give Cottage Cheese another go... I keep trying to like it, but I'm afraid its just not working.  Today I had cottage cheese mixed with a packet of Splenda, cinnamon and chopped up pieces of apple.  It was ok to start with, but the more I ate the more I wanted to gag.  YUK!   Cottage Cheese and I are never going to see eye to eye, so I think I'll just stop now.

Yesterday I took my measurements and skinfolds.  I was absolutely horrified by my bodyfat %, its gone up 5% in 6 weeks - ouch!  Never fear, it wont be there for long!  Funny thing is that I seem to have put the weight on in places that I dont normally... like my boobs.  :)~   My other half is quite chuffed!

Thought for the day:  Dont eat lunch at your desk if you are a messy eater - I speak from experience and have ended up with mustard all over my mouse "roller"...

I'm going to Phat Camp

I have finally bitten the bullet, and have pre-registered for Phat Camp on the Gold Coast. How exciting, now I really have a goal to work towards... to have regained my fitness and lost those pesky 4kgs by April 27 (and also put on a bit more muscle).

This weekend has not really gone as planned. I had planned on getting up early each day and taking the poor pooches for a much needed walk. Normally I'm awake by 6 or 7am on a weekend, plenty early enough to do this before the day gets hot. But this weekend I have not woken up until 8.30-ish - and even then I've felt sluggish and super tired. I'm still sick of course, still coughing up a lung every half hour and blowing my nose - so no "walkies" yet. Sadly the drugs dont work as well as I thought they would, I just cant seem to shift this chest infection. Looks like I might even have to fill the repeat prescription for the antibiotics the doctor gave me. Yesterday I was nearly crying with frustration at this stupid cough... you know when you cough and cough and cough, so much that you end up dry-reaching? Thats me. What a lovely image for you all.

Well anyway, tomorrow is day one of my next challenge. The next 6 weeks takes me up to my first eye operation on the 15th of March, after which there will be some enforced rest for a week or two. Stage 2 of this challenge will begin after both eyes are done.

Some more photos... ah... a trip down memory lane...

Beaumaris Castle, North Wales

Hadrians Wall, England (those bloody Romans were amazing!)

A BIG cannon at Edinburgh Castle, Scotland. Note the gorgeous hot pink beanie in these photos - it was my best friend during the trip!

Well thats me for the weekend - a big week awaits me. Better chuff off and get my meals organised for the week. Bye-eeee!

I have one tastebud back

... but only one.  Yesterday afternoon was the first time I was actually able to taste something.  That was very exciting, and if I concentrated hard, I could sort-of taste my stir-fry last night - woohoo!.   I'm coming good s-l-o-w-l-y, but its still all settled on my chest, and I'm still snotty - GERMS BE-GONE!

The great news is that we took Shavez to the vet yesterday afternoon, and his lump has turned out to be a Lipoma, which is a non-cancerous "fatty" tumour.  Apparently they are quite common in older dogs, and not anything to worry about.  There is no need to remove it either - so that is a huge relief!!

This morning my alarm went off at its "old" usual time of 4.50am - and I was like "Oh no - its not time already, is it?"  Ha!  Doesn't take long to get used to sleeping in!  Anyway, I dragged myself out of bed, got ready in record time, and off to the gym - for the first time in about 6 weeks!  The first 10 minutes were spent saying hello to everyone, and telling the ladies my engagement news.  Its amazing the changes that happen in the gym in just a few weeks - lots of new posters on the wall, and lots of new faces in the gym too!

And man-oh-man, did I feel out of shape!!!!   I got on the treadmill and set the incline on 10, and powerwalked for 30 minutes... and wow did my legs feel it!  I even jogged for 5 minutes at the end, until I had to stop to blow my nose.  Then I finished up with a good 10 minutes on a bike, followed by abs and stretching.  Ouch that stretching hurt! 

Anyway, it felt great to be finally doing something.... even though I certainly broke no records today.  And the best thing is that I am HUNGRY today for the first time in ages... I cant wait to have lunch!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Antibiotics

Well, the drugs DO work.

Yesterday I woke up feeling no better, in fact, feeling a burning sensation in my chest every time I coughed. So as promised I went to the doctor, who prescribed me some drugs. I absolutely HATE taking antibiotics... I only ever do so as a last resort. I think they do nasty things to your system. But anyway, happy to report that I woke up this morning feeling much better.

Had the day off work yesterday too - hence the new blog template. Finally figured out how to do it!

And I'm going back to gym tomorrow!!! Cant wait! Going to do some much needed cardio, and continue through the weekend. I have prepared my training diary, designed my weights programme, written up my goals - so I'm ready!

And with any luck my sense of taste and smell will come back very soon. It has been almost a week since I lost it. You dont realise how strange it is, not being able to taste things, until you cant. Its weird. I keep asking my other half - "does it taste ok?" "What does it taste like?". And when you're cooking things, you cant taste test anything to see if it needs seasoning or anything, you just have to hope for the best. Takes all the enjoyment out of eating!

This afternoon we have to take Shavez (our 10 year old Alaskan Malamute) to the vet - I found a large-ish lump just forward of his hip - if you were a human it would be on your oblique abdominal muscles. I am very worried, but trying to stay calm - it could be anything. Our animals are children... cross your fingers for us.

Just call me "snot-queen"

Yes, its gross, but that's what I am at the moment - Snot Queen. I dont know where it all comes from, but I blow my stupid nose every couple of minutes until its empty, and yet 5 minutes later, its full of snot again. My poor nose is red raw, dry and scratched from all the blowing! I'm taking a day/night cold and flu tablets, which are supposed to dry my nose up (yeah right) but I dont think they're helping much. I got up this morning to find that it has travelled down into my throat and chest, so now I've got a phlegmy cough too - ah the joys! If its not better by tomorrow, I'm going to the doctor.

Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes. I actually did NOTHING on my birthday. My wonderful fiance made me breakfast in bed - french toast. It was so sweet, just unfortunate that I couldn't taste it because I've lost my sense of smell and taste at the moment. Then I lazed around the house, did my ironing for the week, had some family pop in for a little while. We went out for dinner to our local Indian restaraunt - but I still couldn't taste anything!

Yesterday was the first day back at work, and boy was I dreading it! It wasn't too bad - spent a large amount of the day telling people about the holiday, showing the photos, blowing my nose and sifting through hundreds of emails. We had a birthday cake (caramel mud) too, which was lovely. I'm trying to get back into my normal routine with eating - but I feel like my system has shut down a bit though. Metabolism has definetely slowed - I had to force myself to eat all my meals, just wasnt hungry. Hopefully it wont take long to get it firing again. I want my appetite (and my tastebuds) back!

Still have not done any exercise - I'm dying to get back into it, when this cold eases up I will start back. Will hopefully be able to go back to gym later this week, and will start hitting the weights again next week. That should help in terms of getting some energy back too. My muscles have ceased to exist - I want my shoulder definition back!!!!

Well thats about it for now, with any luck my next post will see me bouncing off the walls!

I've got a cold again

Grrrr I've got another cold! All this jetting around the world really does nothing for the old immune system. I first picked up a nasty cold in England at the beginning of January, and it never really went away (well it died down to a hacking cough) - and then yesterday it resurfaced. Or else I've picked up another one. Anyway, the runny nose and sore throat are BA-ACK and I'm pretty fed-up with it. Having a cold in Summer just makes you feel worse than it usually does!

Tomorrow is my birthday (32... *shudder*) and I dont think we're doing anything. The holiday sort of counted as our combined Christmas/Birthday treats this year, but maybe we'll go out for dinner or something. If my nose doesn't unblock, I might not be able to taste anything though!

On Monday I go back to work (groan) and I'm also going to get stuck back into training and clean eating. Going to spend this weekend writing my goals which should take me up to my first eye operation, which is the 15th of March. During the eye operation period, I'm not really sure how much exercise I'm going to be allowed to do, apparently they frown on any sport or exercise for a few weeks afterwards.

Kerry tagged me with this a little while ago - I'm a few weeks behind sorry!

A-Z Of Hilary -

A - Available or single? Neither - newly engaged!
B- Best Friend? My fiance
C- Cake or Pie? Cake
D- Drink of Choice? Currently white wine
E- Essential Item? Ipod.
F- Favorite Color? Purple
G- Gummi Bears or Worms? Neither I'd rather have chocolate
H- Hometown? Brisbane, Australia
I- Indulgence? Castello Cheese, crackers and wine
J - January or February? – January, my birth month
K- Kids and names? Shavez (Alaskan Malamute), Elke (Border Collie) and Connor (Siamese Cat)
L- Life is incomplete without? My partner and my animals
M- Marriage Date? Steady on! We only just got engaged!!
N- Number of Siblings? One brother
O- Oranges or apples? Neither - I dont really like fruit
P- Phobias/Fears? Spiders, Heights
Q- Favorite Quote? Don’t have one
R- Reason to Smile? Coming home
S - Season? Autumn
T - Tag three people! I think everyone has done this by now
U- Unknown fact about Me? I used to smoke
V- Vegetable you hate? Artichoke
W- Worst habit? Snoring (occasionally!!)
X- X-rays you've had? teeth, head, spine (for Chriopracter)
Y- Your favorite food? Roast Vegetables, cheese and crackers
Z- Zodiac? Aquarius

Still jet lagged

Thank you so much to everyone for your warm wishes and congratulations - it means so much to me!! Thank you!

I am so glad that I took this extra week off to recover - I am still jet lagged! We have been home now for 6 days and I still feel like crap. By the second day I was back to normal sleeping habits, and I'm sleeping like a log each night (having some crazy dreams too) but I still feel like my feet are made of concrete, I feel like I have no strength. I go through short bursts of energy, but the rest of the time I feel so fatigued that all I can manage is to sit and read or watch the tennis.

Yesterday we went out for about 2 hours, but we had to cut it short and come home, because I could barely manage all the walking/climbing in and out of the car/climbing stairs etc.

The bad news is that I have put on about 4 kgs in 5 weeks. I read in a medical book that a diet rich in carbohydrates will help the body to combat jet lag, so I have been having carbs with every meal. I dont know if it is helping or not!!! Anyway, next week I go back to work, so I'm planning on hitting the gym from Monday too - as long as I feel up to it that is. Fingers crossed!

Here's a couple more photos from the trip - I have about 500 to choose from!

Caernarfon Castle, North Wales

Edinburgh Castle, Scotland

Inside the Colosseum, Rome

The beautiful ski fields of Schlick 2000, Innsbruck - Austria.

Happy Australia Day everyone!!!

I left with a boyfriend and came home with a fiance...

I'm ba-ack and yes you read that title correctly... we got engaged!!!!!!

It was Friday the 12th of January, we were halfway up the Austrian Alps, alone in a gondola/cable car, and my beloved boyfriend got down on one knee and asked me if I would marry him!!!

Of course I said YES!!!! I was completely taken by surprise, it was the most romantic setting ever! This is the view we had from the cable car - not a bad view to get engaged to, eh?

So we are going to buy the ring in a few weeks (now that we're home) but he did make me a temporary ring... he had taken a table napkin from the hotel restaraunt, written the most beautiful message inside, and folded it up lengthways, so he could tie it around my finger - I will treasure that forever... sigh... so romantic...

So - the remainder of our holiday was great! Before we left England we travelled down to London, met my uncle, did a fabulous day tour to Stonehenge, Salisbury and Bath. Then off to Innsbruck for the skiing (and engagement!). My fiance (hee hee sounds funny) tried snowboarding, and I skiied (i had skiied twice before) and he was covered in bruises after the first hour, but we had a ball. I managed to stay on my feet for about an our before the first stack.

After Innsbruck we went to Naples, Pompeii and the Isle of Capri. Pompeii was mindblowing - I kept walking around saying "I cant believe I'm finally at Pompeii" over and over. Spectacular, and the Pompeii ruins themselves were really big - far too big to walk around in 3 hours, which is all the time we had.

This is me at Pompeii, with the volcano Mt Vesuvius in the background.This is the bay of Naples - the day was quite hazy, but fairly warm too (16 or 17 degrees C) considering it was the middle of winter.

Finally we headed back to Rome, where we had two days to see the sights. I didnt like Rome itself, dirty, crowded, noisy, and crazy drivers! But Ancient Rome was fantastic. My favourite place was the Roman Forum - ahhh it was amazing. I cant believe I got to walk around and touch ruins that were over 2000 years old.

We went to the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona, St Peters Basilica, St Pauls, Capitol, and finally the Coliseum, where we spent our final afternoon. We both loved it - the history of the place is incredible.

I have many more photos, so I will post more in the days to come. Right now I am exhausted, as we seemed to be coming home forever. I think I have slept about 5 hours in the last 48. Lucky I have one more week off work - I think we need it!

Thats about it for now, I will catch up with everyones blogs in the next day or two!

A few more pics

York (today) ... really cool old place

Me and BF - at Edinburgh Castle
Blackpool

This might be the last post for a while - tomorrow we head to London and I dont know when I'll have access to the internet again.

Today we went to York - really cool place, shame it rained most of the afternoon. We went to the Jorvick Centre and saw all the Viking history of the place - just amazing! My throat is not much better - I'm in danger of losing my voice.

We'll be off enjoying the rest of our holiday (Austria and Rome) until the 20th of January - may not get back here before then, so everybody train hard and see you soooooooon!!!!

PS; I miss eating healthy and going to the gym! I've been eating crap and doing no exercise for the last 10 days, and I'm in chocolate heaven over here. I'm going to have to get stuck back in when I get home!

The adventure continues...

Getting drenched at the Merlion in Singapore!

Seeing the sun rise over the Swiss Alps from the plane...

We are having a fabulous holiday! Here are a couple of photos from the first part of our trip.

Last Monday we went to Leeds to meet some more of BF's rellies, and we went to Haworth (where the Bronte's lived - unfortunately the Parsonage and Museum was shut). On Wednesday we went to Chester (really old Roman town) and to Liverpool, on Thursday we went to North Wales and visited to two really cool castles in Snowdonia. Then on Friday we got taken to Scotland. We stopped at Gretna Green (where lots of people elope - but dont worry, nothing to report from there!!) and then made our way to Edinburgh. We stayed overnight in a hotel in Edinburgh and then on Saturday morning went to Edinburgh castle (which is where they do the Military Tatoo, and we saw the Scottish crown jewels) and then got on the open-top double-decker bus around town. It was bloody freezing and then it started to rain a bit, so we got off!

On the way back from Scotland we went to see Hadrians Wall, which I loved. I cant believe I'm getting to see stuff that is 2000 years old - it just blows me away. We also saw the ruins of an old Roman Fort.

The weather has been fantastic, we have seen the sun just about every day, and rain too! It hasn't been too cold, mainly between 5 and 10 degrees, which feels quite mild. Its only when the wind picks up that you can really feel it. I have come down with a sore throat which has been annoying me since Tuesday. BF has got a bit of a runny nose too. Today I feel quite crappy - exhausted and sick, so we are staying in today and we are having a roast dinner, which we are really looking forward to (cant wait to have some vegies)!!

Tomorrow we are going to York for the day, and then on Tuesday we head south to London to visit my uncle. On Wednesday we have a day tour to Bath, Salisbury and Stonehenge, and then on Thursday we are off to Innsbruck!

I think I'm going to be knackered by the time we get home!

Hope everyone is well and enjoying the nice hot weather!

Happy New Year!!

Hi All and Happy New Year!!

Well here we are in the UK - enjoying our holiday immensely! We left home bright and early on Christmas Day and spent most of the day in the plane to Singapore. Singapore was great, not as hot or humid as we were expecting though. Turned out that December is one of the cooler months (still 30 degrees) and is right in the monsoon season... it rained pretty much the entire time we were there! Typical!!

For the 2.5 days we were there, we managed to cram in as much sightseeing as was humanly possible... we did 4 tours all up. A night tour of the city (included a visit to Raffles and a brief tour on the river), a day tour (visited Little India, Chinatown, Orchid Gardens), a day tour of Sentosa Island, and the absolute best thing was the Night Safari... OMG it was amazing to see Lions, African Elephants, Hyenas, Giraffes, Zebras, Rhinos, Hippos etc etc up soooo close! It was just an awesome experience!

On our flight over from Singapore, we had a breif stop in Zurich, and when the plane took off again we got to see the most amazing sight of seeing the sun rise over the Swiss Alps... absolutely breathtaking... took a photo of that!

So now we are in England! We've been to Blackpool, which was just so cool - totally different to anything in Australia, but absolutely FREEZING walking along the promenade! Then it started to rain and we got to experience a bit of good old English sleet.

We are going to Leeds tomorrow, and to North Wales on Thursday to see some old castles, and then Scotland next weekend - cant wait!

We've been eating and drinking far too much (its difficult to try to keep up with the locals!) and not a lot of exercise, but hey, I'm having a ball! I have managed to do some tricep dips and some push ups, but that's about it.

Tonight is New Years Eve, and there will be a party here at BF's cousins house, so that should be good. Funny here - you can buy fireworks from the local supermarket (and alcohol too)

Anyway, thats about it from me for now - hope everyone has had a fabulous New Years, and I will post more when I can!!

Merry Christmas!!!

This will be my last post for a little while, so just wanted to pop in and say a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all my blogging friends! Thank you all for your wonderful friendship and support this year - I look forward to another great year in 2007 with you all!

We are off on our trip tomorrow (I just cant believe its nearly here!) and I think I'm almost all set. Just got a minor detail of packing to do today! Also have to do my nails, go to BF's family's place to celebrate Christmas (and nieces' birthday), finish chopping dog food, do more washing, go buy a bigger suitcase for BF (so we can bring lots of goodies home)... OMG I best get cracking!!

I will try to blog whilst overseas, but I'm not sure how often it will be... otherwise we'll be home on the 20th of January, so will hopefully update soon after that.

We go to Singapore until the 27th of December, then in the UK until the 11th of January. Then we're in Austria until the 14th of Jan, then Italy until the 19th of January..... oooooh I cant wait!

Hope everyone has a fantastic break! Byeeeeee!!!!!!!!

This time next week....

...we'll be on the plane!  7 days to go... I'm so excited!!

Yesterday we went out and bought ourselves some thermal tops, and also I got my very first pair of hiking boots!  I was quite excited about these, and so I wore them all afternoon around the house.... it did look quite funny (especially on me) wearing shorts, black socks and these great clod-hopping boots ;-)~ I said to BF that I looked like I should be working at Australia Zoo or in a wildlife park.  But had to break them in, dont want to get sore feet whilst tramping around England or Scotland.

Picked up the tickets on Saturday, along with itineraries, travel vouchers etc... so it REALLY feels like its not far away now!  Finished off my Christmas shopping too, so its all coming together.  This week will be a mission, trying to organise money, copies of passports, chopping up dog food (a months worth!!), packing, having Christmas a few days early with both sets of families, boyfriends' birthday on Thursday... plus working up til Friday, and still finding time to train!

We're having 'dress up theme days' this week at work - Wednesday is "Wiggles" Day - I'm dressing as the yellow one, although I had to go buy a top especially.  Why cant there be a black Wiggle... I've got lots of black!

Anyway, a short one today - lots to do...

Have a great week!

Robbie Report

Wow what a fantastic night!  I'm not hungover, but I am sooo tired!!   It was a fabulous concert, my feet are still sore from standing up and bopping all night, and my voice is a bit hoarse from singing and "woohoo-ing" all night!

So it was a great show, the support act (Sneaky Sound System) did not impress, but other than that it was a fabulous night!  We got ready at work (and this started from about 3pm yesterday afternoon) - so it was fun trying to find a spot by the mirror in the bathroom!  We left work at 4-ish and went to one of the ladies houses for a quick glass of champers, and then into a mini-bus and to the stadium.  The corporate box was open air - and we had a few plates of nibblies and finger food through the night - I even managed to eat 2 King Prawns, and I dont like prawns, so this was impressive for me!  I managed to eat more than my share of cheese and crackers though!   But OMG it was so hot and humid, I was wishing I hadn't worn jeans, and I would have killed for a hair band to tie my hair up cos the back of my neck was all sticky... yuk!  I had a couple of glasses of wine, and about 3 bottles of water, had to stay well-hydrated.

When Robbie came on it was just this amazing atmosphere, everyone screaming and jumping.  It was great - I took a few photos so I will try to post them, but they are a bit fuzzy because I had to use the digital zoom to get close enough to see him.  We were about halfway down the stadium, so we had a pretty good view, but still a little far away for photos.  It was weird because I kept finding myself watching the screens, rather than the "actual Robbie" on stage - everyone else said they kept catching themselves doing the same thing.   He had to be finished by 10.30 because of the noise restrictions around Suncorp Stadium, and he actually finished by 10.20.  So we were back on our bus by 10.30, and I was home by 11.30. But that is suuuuper late for me and I am so tired! 

Anyway, a great night and we are all walking around with big sleepy grins on our faces today!

Yesterday I jumped on the scales and found myself at 56.8kgs - woohoo!  I have been hovering just above 57kgs for so long now, it was nice to break into the next bracket down.  I was over that this morning, bit too many carbs last night took its toll, and not going to gym this morning probably didn't help.  Hey - sometimes sleep has to take priority!

Well thats about it from this tired little bunny - looking forward to a good sleep tonight.  Have a great weekend everyone!

Blah!

I had a bad week last week.  Not enough exercise, too much bad food.  I'm blaming the hormones - bloody PMT!   Cranky, moody, bloated, emotional basket-case, cravings, arguement-picking... that pretty much sums up my week last week!

Anyway, putting it behind me now.  My weight went up over the weekend, and everything feels huge at the moment... boobs, bum, belly!  Blah! 

Saturday was a big walk with the dogs, and then I tried to finish my Christmas shopping, I got close, but didn't quite finish it.  We had the electrician around all day fixing our new gates, intercom, and outdoor lights.  The dogs got bathed (Elke took much less time to bath now that she's got no hair!).  Saturday night dinner with friends.

Sunday morning we awoke to the sight of a dead possum on one of the dogs beds.  We have no idea which one of them did it, but we were most unimpressed.  BF went outside to put the poor thing in a bag, and turned to look at me in horror... there was a little baby possum lying beside it.  It was about the length of your thumb, no hair, it was so young that its eyes werent even open yet.  And then... it moved - it was alive.  Poor BF, he was so upset.  So we scooped up the poor little baby, and I rang the 24 hour emergency vet number.  It was heartbreaking - when we first picked it up it was as cold as ice, I put my finger out to touch it and it grabbed my finger with all four legs, just like a human baby does with your finger.  So we put it in a little box with cotton wool, wrapped it in a heat-bag, and we rushed it up to the Animal centre.  Poor little possum bub.  It didnt take long for him to warm up with the heat bag, and the vet nurse said they would do what they could, but it was probably just too little to survive.  So sad.

So then I went to the shops and bought bells for the dogs collars.  They sound like cats running around now, but who cares as long as it saves the wildlife.

It is two weeks today that we leave on our trip.  In fact, by this time in a fortnight, we should be in Singapore.  It feels like its coming so quick, but also like it will never get here.  The anticipation is half the fun I think.

And... 3 more sleeps til Robbie!

Some photos

"The wilderness" Our front yard - before bobcat. This is looking from the house to the front fence.

The Lawn! Our front yard - after bobcat and turf.

Our new car, parked on our lovely dirt driveway where its getting quite filthy.














"What have you done to me?!!!!"

Poor Elke, after being shaved on Sunday. She looks like a little puppy here, but she's a 3 year old border collie cross Keeshond. Its just the head that looks a little strange. I'm sure it wont take too long for the rest of it to grow back, but in the meantime she's gotta be loving the feeling of being cool.

My jeans fit !!!!!

Last Friday I tried on those couple of pairs of jeans that I have that I couldn't get into, and they now fit!!!!!! There is one pair that I probably still wouldn't wear in public at the moment, but the others are fine now... this was my major goal for the trip, so with a couple of weeks to go, everything should be fitting just perfectly! Sweet!

The weekend was busy again, as usual. Saturday: up early and took the dogs for a walk, then coffee with a friend and an optomotrist appointment. Got some more stuff for the trip (a satin eye mask, a large red handbag so I can carry more crap around with me, a new belt, and a travel journal) and actually have started putting things in the suitcase, which is exciting. Saturday night we went to a BBQ - BF had been working like a trojan all day building our new electric gates, so I let him drink. Its easier to stay on plan when you are the designated driver! I had far too many crackers and Castello cheese though - yum!

Sunday i went and got my hair done - I had a fair bit of length chopped off, and a colour, plus this gorgeous slash of colour down the right side of my head. Its bright orange, maybe an inch and a half thick - I love it. Then I filled my nails, and did a french polish - so I'm feeling all girly again. Ahhhh grooming up to date!

On Sunday afternoon we shaved Elke. Its been sooo hot for her. She had lovely shiny hair down her back, very silky and soft, but she would never let you near her rear end to brush it. Consequently the bottom section of her was all matted and knotted - her tail was pretty much dreadlocks. So she got clipped. I will have to post a photo, she is a little bit funny looking, poor thing, mostly because we left her head as it was, just trimmed it a bit. So she looks like a black lion, only little. Felt sorry for her, because it had been hot and humid all day, and as soon as we shaved her down to a one-blade, this storm came over and it rained and got quite cool. Poor little thing was curled up in a little ball in her bed! Must have felt quite strange for her, but I'm sure she'll appreciate it in the hot days to come.

I'm taking her for a walk this afternoon, I hope the other dogs dont laugh at her! :)

21 days to go! The days are going so fast, I bet the holiday will be over just as quick!

Tired

OMG I am sooo tired. I just cant catch up on my sleep, and I wake up feeling worse than I did when I went to sleep. Last night it tried to storm, and it was so windy that I kept waking up hearing stuff falling on the roof. This morning I am overcome with guilt, because I was too exhausted to get up and go to gym. I cant wait for this holiday, although it probably wont be much of a rest! 25 days to go!

Training is going well, eats are going well too - although I struggled last night to keep it clean. Sugar was calling me, but I managed to ignore it. Blah. I'm staying strong, and beginning to feel a lot leaner. I think my arms are showing much more definition, although the scales and measurements arent moving all that dramatically.

On Sunday morning when I was doing my weekly groceries, I got to the register and had one of those "hmmm" moments. The young guy at the register picks up my bag of snow peas... looks at me quizzically and asks "are these beans?"

"no, snow peas"....

He then picks up my cucumber and says "this is a cucumber, yeah?"

"yes" I said, thinking; does this boy not eat vegetables? He then picked up my leek - and all he had to do was hesitate and look at me, so I jumped right in saying "its a leek".

"A leek?... how do you spell that?"

hmmmmmmm. Maybe it was his first day? It really makes me wonder how anyone could get to the age of 17 and NOT know what all this stuff is!!! OK I'll grant him that a leek probably isn't your everyday vegetable, but the rest???

Tuesday I went to the eye specialist to find out about Implantable Contact Lenses (as i was unsuitable for Lasik) - and I'm now booked in to have it done - the 15th of March next year (the Ides of March, my dad tells me... is that a bad omen?) - my right eye gets done first, then a few weeks later the left gets done. Exciting and frightening all at the same time!!

Have a great Thursday!

My fabulous week

I'm baaa-aaack! What a busy week I've had! Tuesday morning I was up at 4am and then off to the airport to catch my flight to Rockhampton - what a long day that was. Spent my day training new staff members, then found myself a gym and joined up for a 5 visit pass. I had been to this gym before, but I'd never explored it before. Its an old building (think it might have been a bank once) and its HUGE. I've never seen such a huge gym. They have an enormous aerobic room (which had supporting columns up through the middle lol! - not good if you forget they're there) a normal weights room, then a pretty big womens weights area (and no baby-weights either, very pleased to see) and a special cardio area. What I didn't realise that this place had another level underneath, containing a 25m pool, RPM bike area, boxing gym, squash courts and a "Powerlifting" weights area!! Almost made me want to move to Rocky!

Despite all this, there is little or no airconditioning, and it gets pretty hot up there. I did a Body Step class on Wednesday afternoon and I was dying afterwards - so hot! Aaaaaaannnyway, I kicked butt while I was away! I visited the gym 5 times in 3 days, on Wednesday I burned 819 calories all up (very pleased with myself I was!) - and by Thursday afternoon I had already reached my weekly goal of 2400 cals burned, 8 hours of exercise. I was also shattered and exhausted! Probably did too much too quickly, but I felt so motivated.

Food was brilliant - I kept logging my calories to keep track, and it really helped. My only blunder was a breakfast omlette one morning... made with whole eggs, and it had bacon and cheese, and came with white bread and butter. I ate it. It happens. But all in all, I survived pretty well!

Some other exciting news... my work got a corporate box organised for the Robbie Williams concert in two weeks. They announced last week that there were 7 tickets to give away, and that they were going to draw names out of a hat.... yep you guessed it... I'M GOING TO ROBBIE WILLIAMS!!!!!! Woohoo! So exciting! And in a corporate box too!!!! Its on Thursday 14th December.

And to cap off a brilliant week, yesterday we went to have a look at an Nissan Xtrail, and ended up driving home with it! Its exciting, and I love it, but I will miss my V8. I used to love driving it because it had a lovely V8 rumble and I felt a bit tough! The Xtrail will be a lot cheaper to run though, its a 2003 model, white, automatic, tinted windows... my new baby!

Just when everything is going well...

... you get sent away for work again. I've been working so hard on establishing my new fitness routine, gym every morning and walking the dogs in the afternoon, and now I have to go to Rockhampton tomorrow for the rest of the week. grrrrrr. The bonus is that I will have a car, so at least I can go to gym up there.

Travelling for work has always been the biggest problem for me, I find it hard in terms of nutrition. Its a challenge to eat clean when you're dining on restaraunt food all the time, and sometimes the places I stay at dont understand what you mean when you say "No dressing, and I dont want the potato" - they look at you like you're from another planet or something. There is usually no option to cook for yourself either. I generally take my own food for meals 2 and 4, so thats no problem. Its breakfast and dinner that have "undone" me in the past! But I WILL be saying no to the breakfast buffet, and WILL say no to carbs at dinner... send me your positive thoughts!!!!

Well, measurements day was Saturday, and I'm quite pleased with the results. Although the scales aren't moving a whole lot, the cm's and mm's are coming off. After 10 weeks I have lost a total of 9cm all over, and 9mm in skinfolds. Technically I have only 2 weeks to go, but I have decided to continue my challenge until just before the trip. I realise that I wasted the first 6 weeks by not focussing properly, and its only been in the last 2 weeks that I have been really determined. Having this deadline of the trip dangling in front of me has been the best motivator ever!

Paid for the balance of the trip on Saturday, and then went outside and got myself a little sun. I've decided that I refuse to go to England and be whiter than the locals. So I'm dedicating half an hour each Saturday and Sunday on getting a little suntan. I dont need to look like a 'bronzed Aussie', but I dont want to be white as a ghost either!

Hope everyone has a fantastic week!

Spiders

We're not in the bush, but we're in an area that is close to bushland, and bigger blocks.  And that means more "wildlife".  And that means huges spiders.  The other night I was watching TV and I saw something out of the corner of my eye..... I shrieked "HUNTSMAN HUNTSMAN HUNTSMAN!!!!"  Oooh it makes my skin crawl just thinking about it.  Huntsman are especially bad because they are big and hairy and they bloody jump at you... So poor BF had to get up and get the spray and chase thing thing around the lounge room, while I hid in the kitchen (I actually got into the pantry and shut the door... sad arent I?)

Then a few days later I was about to leave for work and I went looking for the cat (just to make sure he wasn't locked in the bathroom or anything) and he was sitting in the garage.  Just sitting - looking at the bar-fridge.  I asked him what was wrong, and he "meowed" and walked up to the fridge door (we have a strange relationship, me and the cat - he's a talkative Siamese, so we 'chat' quite a bit).  So I bumped the fridge and a mid-sized huntsman ran out from underneath.  So the cat chased it around and batted it like a ball for a bit with me yelling "GET IT CONNOR - GET IT!".  Not sure if he got it - I had to leave before the game was finished.   I hope he did, otherwise there's another spider loose in the house.

I've been using Fitday again since last Thursday, and managing to keep my calories in check.  I have realised that I was grossly undercalculating how much I was actually eating - it is so easy to consume more calories than you think you are.  Anyway, now its under control, and I feel a lot more focussed.  Actually seeing some changes on the scale, so thats a plus.  For me, using Fitday is a really good idea, it makes me rethink everything I'm about to eat...

Woke up at 3 o'clock this morning - and spent the next 2 hours dozing, then waking up - for some reason I kept thinking I'd overslept.  When I actually got up, the first thing I thought was "Oh well, at least today is Friday.... hang on.... its only Thursday - groan"  Did Body Attack again this morning, got through 400 calories.  Felt like I got through it a lot easier than last week too - yay!  I love the high-kicking track - reminds me of my jazz ballet days when we used to do the Can-Can.  Then I'm taking the dogs for another powerwalk this afternoon, and then Step tomorrow morning.   Just call me Cardio-Queen!

Its Monday again...

I had a fabulous weekend. Saturday I was up early to take the dogs for a long walk before the hydro-bath man came to bath them Then I headed up to the shops and had myself a mini shopping spree! I bought three new tops for work, a pair of trousers, a new hair clip, three gym tops, two sports bras and (this is my favourite one) a "gift pack" of mini-perfumes - Christian Dior - Jadore, Addict, Pure Poison, Miss Dior Cherie and Dolce Vita - all for me!!!! I love those little mini perfumes, they're just the perfect size for your handbag, and you get to try some that you wouldn't normally try. So now I'm all set for fragrance for the trip!

42 days to go, by the way... just in case you thought I'd forgotten my countdown.

Saturday afternoon I was meant to be going to the fitness expo with Andj, but unfortunately she fell sick so she had to ring and cancel. Hope you're feeling a bit better now Andj!

On Saturday night my boyfriend and I had a fantastic evening - first having dinner (and cocktails!) and then going to the movies. We saw Jackass Number Two, and I have to say that despite the bad reviews it got, it was absolutely hilarious. I have to admit that I had never dry-retched in a cinema before, but I have now!! Ewww it was so gross in some parts, but pretty funny - the whole cinema was in stitches the whole way through. Nothing wrong with a little (or a lot of) toilet humour to cap off an evening!

Sunday was the usual groceries, washing clothes, chopping dog food... but I am so proud of myself to say that I ate 100% to plan on the weekend. I had a free meal on Saturday night but I didn't go overboard, I stopped when I felt satisfied, no munchies in the movies, 2.5 litres of water each day, felt GREAT!!!

And... I worked out that I burned over 2400 calories last week, and did over 8.5 hours of exercise - woohoo! Now its my goal to better that this week. Next weekend is another measurements day, got to see some changes!

100 walking lunges...

I dont like the scales. They're moving in the wrong direction lately. I cant claim to have been eating totally clean, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. This week I have been spot on though, and the goal is to still go to gym 5 mornings per week - but also to walk the dogs a minimum of 3 afternoons each workday. Then another longer dog walk on Saturday. So far so good!

Tuesday afternoon after the dog walk I wanted to do more - so I did 100 walking lunges (without a break) around the garage. After about 70 my legs were screaming, and on the final 20 my hamstrings were cramping like crazy. Finished that, caught my breath, and then did 60 pop squats (2 sets of 30), then I had to lay down! Got the heart rate soaring, and I felt GREAT! Think I am going to do that a couple of afternoons a week, that should get my butt into shape. My legs are sore now though.

A funny thing happened at the gym on the other morning. I was doing my usual shoulder workout, and a guy moved to the bench beside me to do some dumbell chest presses. He sort of acted all cocky and confident - I just got on with my workout. Anyway I was between sets, and this guy picks up his weights, leans back to lie on the bench, and as he did.... HE.... FARTED. OMG I was horrified! I didn't know which way to look, I bit my lip and tried not to laugh!!!! He carried on with his set, but he dropped the weights early and got out of there quick-smart!! heheheh

This morning I did an Attack class, my gym is trialling it at the 5.45am timeslot for a month. The whole class was red-faced by about halfway through - my god I forgot what an awesome workout they are! After the "running around" track I thought my ankle was going to break, it hurt so much, and made it a bit hard to finish the class. So I loved it, but jeez its a lot harder on your body than I remembered (either that or I'm getting old!)

This week I received the most lovely surprise in the post. My mentoree and new friend Alicia E sent me the most beautiful thank-you card, and a voucher. I was completely touched - what a wonderful way to start the day! Could not wipe the smile off my face! Hopefully very soon we will be able to meet for a coffee and a chat!

The week is nearly over - where did it go?!

I'll have her body, thanks

Kristia Knowles... motiviation to go for a jog! I love this bikini too.

51 Days til our trip!

A few more days to go than Shar though!

I had an eventful night on Thursday night in bed (no its not what you're thinking - get your minds out of the gutter! hehehe). Got woken up by BF sitting bolt upright and turning on his bedside lamp... "Whats wrong?" I asked. He sat there staring up at the ceiling, looking from corner to corner over our heads... saying nothing. So I asked him again. He said "oh... nothing - must have been dreaming" and turned the light off and went back to sleep.

Took me ages to get to sleep after this. Then sometime early this morning I was woken again by him trying to take my pillow from me!! So I sat up and said "Babe, thats my pillow" - and he looked at me and asked "Where's MY pillow gone?" hehehe I was starting to giggle by now. Anyway, he sort of shrugs as if to say "oh well", and lays back down on his now pillow-less side of the bed. I thought - I cant let him sleep without a pillow... so I climbed all over him to find that his pillow had been thrown onto the floor a couple of metres from the bed. Gave it back to him, and tried to get back to sleep.

Then around 3am I woke with a screaming headache, I must have been dreaming something bad because I was clenching my teeth so tight- my whole face was hurting! Then all too soon the alarm went off at 5 and I got up to go to gym.

Well i asked BF what was going on in his sleep - and apparently he'd been dreaming about a huge spider running accross the ceiling of the bedroom, which is why he turned the light on and stared at the ceiling (I'm so glad he kept that to himself at the time... **shudder**) Also he'd had a dream about being in a car accident - wonder if that's how the pillow ended up on the other side of the room?

Didn't do step on Friday because of extreme tiredness - I would be just as likely to trip over the step rather than put my foot on it. So just got on the cross trainer and treadmill for some steady state cardio. The woman on the treadmill beside me turned out to be my accross-the-road neighbour!

Got up this morning to take the dogs for a walk to find it teeming with rain! It must be Jodie bringing the rain with her! As nice as it is to have rain (we're on level 4 water restriction now) - it does put a stop to things on the weekend. If the rain stops, I will take the pooches out.

Off to go shopping soon for a digital video camera for our trip!! Have a fantastic weekend!

Wednesday - Week 7

Had a mishap in the gym today!  I got on the abdominal reverse curl bench this morning, not even looking at the setting it was on... should have though.  The pin wasn't in properly, and the thing waited until I was fully lying on my back before it popped out and had me crashing down to the level position!!!!!  It made an awful noise, and I leapt off it pretty quick!  Turned around to find the whole gym room staring at me!  How embarrassing!  Took me a few minutes for my heart rate to return to normal after that!  LOL!

Anyway, not a lot to report today. I've been very low in energy the last few days, mostly due to lack of sleep again.   I feel like my get-up-and-go got-up-and-went!

We've had the bobcat in at our place in the last few days... BYE BYE VEGIE GARDEN :(  Our front and back "wilderness" has been removed, and we're now living in a dust pit.  Hopefully we can get a driveway laid soon - our cars are filthy, my shoes are filthy - dust just gets everywhere!  We've still got heaps of big gum trees, in fact, there is still more plant life on our block than in our last place.  We're just trying to tame it a little.  The new vegie garden might have to wait a little while though.

Got this by email today and I thought it was cute:

Dear Dogs and Cats,
The dishes with the paw print are yours and contain your food. The other dishes are mine and contain my food.
Please note: Placing a paw print in the middle of my plate and food does not stake a claim for it becoming your food and dish, nor do I find that aesthetically pleasing in the slightest.

The stairway was not designed by Formula1 and is not a racetrack. Beating me to the bottom is not the object. Tripping me doesn't help because I fall faster than you can run.

I cannot buy anything bigger than a king size bed. I am very sorry about this. Do not think I will continue sleeping on the couch to ensure your comfort. Dogs and cats can actually curl up in a ball when they sleep. It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other stretched out to the fullest extent possible. I also know that sticking tails straight out and having tongues hanging out the other end to maximize space is nothing but sarcasm.

For the last time, there is not a secret exit from the bathroom. If by some miracle I beat you there and manage to get the door shut, it is not necessary to claw, whine, meow, try to turn the knob or get your paw under the edge and try to pull the door open. I must exit through the same door I entered. Also, I have been using the bathroom for years; canine or feline attendance is not mandatory.

The proper order is: Kiss me, then go smell the other dog or cat's butt. I cannot stress this enough!

Hope everyone is having a good week!

"It has been said that our anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, but only empties today of its strength."

Where did the weekend go?

Weekends just go too fast.  I need a holiday!

Got up nice and early on Saturday morning, walked the pooches, cleaned the house, did the groceries etc, and then one of my girlfriends came over for lunch, along with her 9 month old son Joshua.  He's growing up so fast, and really turning into a little man now, lots of personality!  hmmmm, am I getting clucky?

Saturday night we watched a couple of DVD's, during which I had 3 glasses of bubbly and fell asleep on the lounge!  Just cant keep up the pace anymore - jeez I'm getting old.  I woke up on Sunday morning with the beginnings of my stomach pains again, but my "miracle cure" glutamine seemed to save the day - after a shot of that I seemed to improve dramatically.  I really want to take my glutamine overseas with me, but I'm a bit worried about how I will go travelling with a "suspicious white powder"!!!  Might have to switch back to tablets for the duration of the trip.  I think it is really helping with my stomach issues though.

Not much else happened on the weekend - we went and looked at a car (for me), a Nissan Xtrail.  I liked it, and the price was right too.  We'll see what happens. 

Anyway, another week beckons, I am at week 7 of my challenge now - how fast time flies!  Weight went back up a little on the weekend, bugger.  Did the bike class again this morning, I think there was something wrong with the bike I was on - the tension was stuffed or something, I kept turning up the tension and it didn't feel like I was working hard enough.  I like to think that its just me getting fitter, but in reality I think the bike was faulty... Finished the class and jumped straight onto a treadmill for a 10 minute jog - jelly legs after that. 

56 days til our trip!   eeeeeeeeek!

Eye Assessment

Well I went and had my Lasik eye assessment yesterday afternoon.  First I had to watch a video about all the potential risks and dangers associated with Lasik, then had a whole heap of tests done, only to find out that my cornea is too thin to have either Lasik or PRK.  To meet the Australian Standard, the cornea has to be a minimum of 510 microns or something, and mine is way thin, getting down to 380 microns in some parts.

He said it was nothing that I've done, its not like I've worn away the cornea by wearing contact lenses for so long, its just the way I am - like having fine hair, or thin fingernails... thin corneas cause no other problems other than if you want to get Lasik done.  But I do have an option - I'm suitable for Implantable Contact Lenses, which has not been done a lot in Australlia, but if I go with that it means that I CANT get them done before the trip.  Plus you have to get one eye done at a time, with a few weeks in between.  So this might be an option for February next year.  Got lots of research to do!

Unfortunately because I was so excited beforehand, and totally had my heart set on being able to have it done, I was so disappointed when we left that I burst into tears as soon as we got in the lift.  And I was weirded out with having dilated pupils (which means that your eyes cant adjust to the light and bright light/daylight hurts),  and I was feeling quite low yesterday afternoon.  Spoke to mum and dad about it, and they were great - dad was telling me to be philosophical about it - things happen for a reason, and this other procedure sounds like a much better alternative, its reversible, the results are instant rather than waiting for that "adjusting" period of 3-6 months that Lasik has... I just cant have it done now, thats all.

Anyway I had a glass of wine and a handful of peanuts last night, which made me feel even worse.  I felt so gross and even drunk on ONE glass of wine!   Didnt feel like going to gym this morning, but I got up on autopilot and went anyway.  I humm'd and haaah'd about doing Step because I felt really lacking in energy.  At the last minute I decided to do it anyway, but only used one block instead of two.  Felt absolutely shattered afterwards, burned 430 calories, but also felt much better.  What would I do without exercise?!!  It always makes you feel good!

And was rewarded this morning when I stepped on the scales to find that I've reached 57kgs!

This week for some reason I'm not enjoying my food.  Apart from last night I've eaten 100% clean and on plan, but I'm so bored with my food!  I need to find some good recipe alternatives for dinner.  There's only so much chicken and salad, lamb and salad, and fish and salad that a girl can bear.  I've been eating this way for a year and a half now and always enjoyed it, but for some reason this week I cant stomach it.  I eat stir fries for lunch, so I dont want to eat that for dinner as well.  Does anyone have any suggestions, or point me to a few websites?

Good luck to all who are competing this weekend in Melbourne - wish I could be there!!

Monday

My weekend wrap-up... On Saturday morning I got up early and took the pooches for a walk around the new area, then we had Foxtel come out to do our installation.  Unfortunately they were unable to do it because there are some issues with the power pole that they need to run the cable from... long story, anyway, we had Energex come out and fix the power line, then had to re-book with Foxtel - so poor BF has to wait another two weeks to get his Fox Sports back!!

We went shopping after that - for a new lounge suite!  We're so picky, the sales people must hate us!  I think we went to about 6 different places trying to find the right one. We found one that we really really liked, but it was too big for the lounge room!!  So we came away without a purchase, but its still on the agenda.  While we were in Harvey Norman we found these fabulous "massage chairs" - they had about 6 or 7 models ranging from $1000 to about $9000.  OMG these chairs are amazing!  I got on one expecting that it would just vibrate or heat up, but its acutally got little "fingers" almost!  They have a rolling motion, or kneading, or tapping, and goes all the way up your body - even massages your feet, hamstrings, butt... everything!  We sat in these chairs for about half an hour, all the time we were going "oooooh... aaaaaaah.... OH MY GOD that feels good!!!" its a wonder we werent chucked out!!  hehehe.  If you've got a furniture store near you - you HAVE to try one of these chairs!!!!  When I win the lotto, I want one! :)

I had an optomotrist appointment on Saturday afternoon, and I received the good news that my script has not changed!  That's now 2 years with a stable script, and also my eyes are in great health.  Sooooooooo.... I have booked in to have an assessment for Laser Eye Surgery... I will find out on Thursday if I'm eligible!  I have been wanting to have this done for about 10 years, but I've never had stable vision.  So now, cross your fingers, I might be able to get it done before our trip!!

My challenge is going really well, this morning I was under 58kgs which I'm quite happy with.  On Saturday I was able to squeeze into a pair of 3/4 denim pants that a few weeks ago I couldn't do up.  Well they were tight, but at least I could wear them and still breathe... an important factor dont you think?  We have a new Amart AllSports open near us, and they have a huge sale on.  So I went and bought myself a new pair of gym shoes (finally - after months of putting up with shin splints!)  They are New Balance running shoes, white, with hot pink trim!!  Very snazzy, and my feet were glowing in the bike class this morning (darkened room with fluoro lights).

Food was great on Saturday, could have been a little better on Sunday though  - had a real sweet tooth last night unfortunately.  Anyway, I didn't do too much damage.  I'm going to have a sensational week this week!  Bring it on!!!!!!!!!!!

The kitty and the toad

This story has a happy ending!  But I had a rough night!

Last night my lovely boyfriend added the final touches to Connors' "Grand Cat Palace" and added the cat flap.  Connor was very excited that he could come in and go out as he pleased!  The food and litter was promptly moved outside, and he was all set.

At about 9pm, we were just watching the end of Spicks and Specks, when I heard the cat come in and what sounded like paper being rustled.  I thought "oh he's playing with one of his paper balls - he must be happy".  Then he ran past us and up the stairs... where he sat and looked at us and shook his head.  When I looked up at him I though "oh how cute - he's still got the ball in his mouth!"... then I realised that the paper ball was actually FOAM... he was foaming at the mouth... and what I had thought was paper rustling had actually been him shaking his head and the froth hitting the floor.

Well I jumped up in an immediate panic!  The only thing I know of that turns an animal into an instant froth-maker is cane toad poison.  I whisked him up, ran to the kitchen sink, got BF to hold the cat down in a headlock, grabbed a syringey thing (no needle of course - it used to contain cat medicine in a paste) and squirted water into his mouth over and over, much to Connor's disgust.  It was actually heartbreaking to hear his cries - he was obviously in shock, and yowling, kicking, scratching, foaming, biting me.  Imagine the poor little things fright - he's obviously had a toad come into the enclosure, he's chased it, maybe tried to bite it - got rewarded with poison being squirted into his mouth, only to run inside and get pounded with mouthfuls of water for 10 minutes by his protector - me!!  We washed and washed his mouth and wiped his face, and only when we put him down did I start to freak.  Cane toad poison can kill a small dog, so imagine how scared I was for my poor little 4kg cat!  Freaked out so much I started crying.

Anyway, I rang the 24 hour animal emergency number and they said I had done the right thing, if he was going to show signs of it he would have been convulsing and fitting by now.  So I felt a bit better.  They said I should continue to wipe his mouth out with a wet cloth, getting around the gums and inside of the cheeks etc - yeah right - have you ever tried to do this with a cat?!!!  So poor Connor was tortured once again - BF had started to look like he was a cat himself - he was drenched in water and covered in white cat fur, not to mention all the scratches and bite marks from holding him down.

So we finally ended the torture, and I stayed up with him until about 11pm, which is soooo late for me.  But I had to be sure he was going to be ok.  He seemed to be back to his old self this morning - all I can say is that he was very VERY lucky.  Cane toads are nocturnal so I've decided that I'm only going to let him out into his enclosure during the day.  Most of the websites I've looked at say that cats are very smart and dont usually get struck twice - so hopefully he'll be very wary of toads in the future.

And because of that debacle last night I hardly slept!  So there was no way I could get up to go to gym today.  I've been good with food though, not really even wanted to eat junk so thats good.  Had to drive down the coast today, traffic was horrendous - all I can say is B.L.O.O.D.Y. INDY!  Grrrr

Here's to a better night and day tomorrow!!

Back into it and going strong

Alright I've really got my head in a good space at the moment - now that all the stress of the house stuff is out of the way, I'm focused and committed and ready to work.  I've figured out that I've got about 10 weeks until we leave on our trip, (eeek which also means 10 weeks til Christmas!!) so its time to put my head down and DO IT!

A major motivating factor here is that I tried on a few pairs of jeans on the weekend, and cant zip them up... aaaaaaauuuuurrrrggggh!  Now I'm going to be in the UK, Austria and Italy in WINTER, those jeans HAVE TO FIT!!  I refuse to buy a new wardrobe - these jeans are only a year old for heavens sake!  A few centimetres off the hips will do the trick... that seems to be the first place that I put on fat, and the last place I lose it from.  :(

Did a bike class yesterday - I'm really getting into these classes and loving the burn in the legs.  I'm a sicko I know.  I'm so motivated right now that after the bike class I just wanted to jump on a treadmill and run... but sadly I had to get home and get ready for work - silly day job!  This morning I did shoulders/biceps/triceps and then 20 minutes jogging following by 10mins powerwalk on the incline.  Again I wanted to stay for more but ran out of time.   Happy with myself that the last two mornings I have left the gym with a bright red face, so although I looked goofy, I worked really hard.

Anyway I promised the pups I would take them for a "walk" this afternoon (I use that term loosely, as I've said in previous posts - its more like me being dragged at top speed - but we call it a "walk" anyway) and now that I've promised the dogs, I cant let them down!!  Concentrating on having totally clean food - that bloated feeling is slowly going away (after my big carb-fest last week) - looking forward to having a flat stomach again.  Need to buy a new training diary, I've got one day left in my current one!!  Ahhh now I have a good excuse to pop into Rebel Sport and drool over the gym clothes!

It's Connor's birthday today!!  My little kitty-cat is 9 years old now, cant believe how time flies! 

Photos!

Andj, me and Deb at the QLD INBA's last weekend. Note the obvious skincolour difference! Why is it that us Queenslanders are all so pale when we have so much sun? (except for competitors of course!)

Today I had the priveledge of meeting Selina who is down for a brief visit to Brisbane. We chatted away for a couple of hours - it was lovely to meet her, she really is sweet and has the most amazing eyes! I'm so glad we got to meet as I felt like I already knew her. It was so hot today in Brisbane - 30 degrees or something.

This is my little man Connor this morning, basking in the sun of his new "Grand Palace" that my boyfriend made for him. It is at least three times the size of the one at the old place (he's an indoor cat, so his 'outside' area is important to him) and now the only thing missing is a cat door so he can let himself in and out! (a minor detail dont you think?!!) This will be rectified this week, so we should have one very happy kitty!

Update!

I really need to post more often, there is too much to say and you will all be bored with reading it before you get to the end!

Soooooo - where to start?

I guess the most important information is that our old house settled yesterday.  I have to say I feel like the biggest weight has been lifted - I was getting quite anxious about it and just wanted it to be done.  So we are now the proud owners of ONE mortgage, not two.  Phew!

Last Saturday I went to the QLD INBA's to cheer on Deb and Alicia, and it was a really good day.  Congratulations to Deb on her outstanding 2nd place, she was awesome!   And well done to Alicia, she looked fantastic on stage and has come so far in such a short time!  Almost made me want to get up there myself!

It was great to be able to hang out with Andj for the day - Andj is lovely and we had quite a few good laughs - thanks for the company!  I met Rachel too, and she was so sweet and friendly and just about ready to "pop" with the baby - I have to thank her for letting me join her "cheersquad"!  I met Liz, who competed in a very tough field - I thought she looked amazing - great physique, and great hair!  I think I said it over and over how much I loved her hair, and when I wasn't saying it, I was thinking it!!  Lovely to meet you Liz!

Unfortunately the photos I took were blurry, I just cant figure out this camera!  I did get a good one of Deb, Andj and me, which I will post this weekend. (Andj has posted it on her blog too).

On Monday I went to Gladstone for work, and was lucky enough to meet with Carolyn and Tracey!   Carolyn joined me for an early morning treadmill session and we had a great chat about pretty much everything!  It was awesome that she was able to take the time to train with me - it made the hour on the treadmill just fly by, and I hope we can catch up again soon!   Then on Tuesday afternoon Tracey and I went to the Coffee Club where I had a lovely Chai Latte and we talked away the early evening.  It was so good to meet her, especially after we didn't get to meet at the comp on Saturday.  Thank you both for taking the time while I was there - you were both as gorgeous and friendly as I thought you would be!  So I've been very spoiled in the last week to get to meet so many wonderful and inspiring women!

Hmmmm what else - well we've finally got internet back on, so my boyfriend is happily e-baying away.  I havent had much time to get on it actually, besides I have to fight him for it!

Bit disappointed with my own efforts at the gym this week - haven't had much time for weight training, and there have been a few celebrations in the last week so my food is all over the shop and my weight has gone back up.  I feel like I have gone a little backwards this week - one step forward, two steps back... nothing that a little hard work and clean food wont fix!

Stay strong everyone, have a great weekend!

All moved in

We are all moved in to our new place, living amongst a sea of unpacked boxes and holes in walls!  Saturday was a HEEEUUUWWWGE day, basically we were on the go for 12 hours before we actually sat down for a rest.  My hamstrings were absolutely killing me from all the bending over and reaching down that I was doing (probably should have used my knees more I know) - but anyway, its all done now thank goodness.

There has been so much going on with the move, the old house due to settle next week, and also planning more of the upcoming holiday, that I think I'm going a bit senile.  I'll skim-read things, then I not fully understand what I've read... like the other day I saw a sign on the road and it said "Commuter Carpark" but for some reason I read it as "Communist Carpark".  I'm forgetting so many things - people ask me to do stuff and 10 minutes later I forget what it was that I was supposed to do.   On Monday I filled my mug with hot water and a dash of milk before sitting down and realising that I forgot to put the coffee in first... and last night I was getting my glutamine out to have some before bed and I dropped the container and half of the powder all over the floor.  WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME???!!!!!!    :-)~  Just too much excitement I think.

Anyway my challenge is going pretty well - apart from the crap takeaway that I ate for 3 meals last weekend.  Well I had no kitchen and I had to eat something!!

So far, 3 weeks into it, I have lost 3cm off my waist, and 2cm off my (stubborn) hips.  Scale weight has only dropped less than a kilo.

I still have no internet at home, and I cant access blogs from work (sending this via email) so I havent been able to read what anyone else has been up to.  The ISP has indicated that I should be connected by next Friday.  BF is having E-bay withdrawals I think!  Plus we haven't got Foxtel hooked up yet - so he's not happy!

Good luck to all those who are competing in the coming days!  I'm sorry I cant log on and read everyone's results just yet.  I'm going to watch the Qld INBA's this weekend to cheer on Splice and Alicia N.  Good luck girls!  Will be great to catch up with everyone again.

And I have just found out that I have to go to Gladstone next Monday for 3 days.  Will just have to make sure I finish all the unpacking on the weekend... so much to do - so little time!

Perseverance is failing 9 times and succeeding the 10th.
- J. Andrews