I'm BaAaaaack

I haven’t written in a while.

Not because nothing has happened, I just haven’t felt like it. I didn't really mean to take a two month hiatus. Sorry.

So here’s the rundown:

·         I went to DC the weekend after Thanksgiving. My cousin goes to George Mason and Aunt Mary Ann was there visiting. So Aunt Irene, Katie, and I went down to visit. We also went to the Smithsonian. I wish we had more time there. I’ve never visited DC before-only driven through. Which seems silly now considering it’s only like 3 hours away.

·         I visited Mom and Papa Steve for 5 days the weekend before Christmas. It was fun and relaxing. It just doesn’t feel like Christmas down there. Although, I feel like more people decorate there than here.

·         Christmas was good. All of the gifts I got were useful and won’t sit in the bottom of my closet (like that purse-hanger thing I got last year). I got a Kindle Fire, gift cards, a pretty sweet Phillies hat (it’s plaid!), a very cozy blanket that I wish I was curled up in right now, this Wizard of Oz poster, and some other smaller things.

·         Kellifish had the baby! Her name is Lily Alaina and she’s a little peanut.

·         Coconuts (Dana) got engaged.

·         I set some goals for the New Year-most of which have to do with paying off debt. One has to do with jumping out of a plane with my brother.

·         I signed up for Code Academy’s Code Year. I have the first lesson sitting in my inbox and I plan to get to it this weekend.

·         I’ve been watching far too much Grey’s Anatomy. I’m trying to catch up to the current season. I’ve been knitting while watching, so at least I’m being productive.

·         The Foo Fighters and Blink 182 are playing Bamboozle this year. I really think I’ll need to go.

·         I want snow. Just one good snow day where I don’t have to go to work. Then it can be as mild of a winter as it wants.

I’m hoping by posting I’ll get back into the groove of writing. I hope everyone had a great holiday season!

PS-I'll post some photos of some of the things from the list later. I just felt like I needed to hit publish before I put it off any longer.

I Kind of Suck, but the Shore Does Not

You guys…I kind of sucked at being healthy last week.  I didn’t work out at all.  Unless you count walking on the boardwalk exercise.  Which I would, except that I got Kohr Brothers frozen custard and a small is NOT a small.  But chocolate and peanut butter swirl is SO worth it.

Anyways-I skipped the gym Monday because my legs still hurt from Saturday and Sunday.  Except I forgot that Wednesday was my friend’s bf’s bday-so I skipped that day too.  And then I was at the shore Friday-Sunday (re: Kohr Brothers), so I missed my Saturday gym time and my Sunday yoga.  I took my running shoes with the best of intentions, but being lazy got the better of me.  Also, I ate way more cream cheese brownies, cheese curls, and ring bologna than I’d like to admit.  I’m really afraid to get on the scale, so we’ll just wait on that until my normal weigh-in day this weekend.

So we’re getting serious now.  I have three and a half weeks to look amazeballs in my bridesmaid’s dress and I am determined, damn it!  So here’s the plan:

1.       Eat less crap. That means anything from the bakery at job #2 except fruit cups. No baking for the next few weeks.  And choosing meals out wisely.

2.       Not eating the free food that’s left on the table in the lunch room.

3.       Getting back on track with C25k, ie running 3 days a week (Monday, Wednesday, Saturday)

4.       Going to yoga twice a week.  Beginner’s class on Saturdays before  I hit the gym for running and so weights. And Vinyasa on Sunday to get the week started right. Side note-Vinyasa is effing hard.  Downward dog is our “rest position”.  My shoulders/arms best look amazing at the end of this.

I’m already on track.  Sort of.  There are a couple of brownies left, but I did not buy fudge on the boardwalk this weekend.  I could have…the other girls did, but I didn’t. This is a first and also a little bit of a miracle.

The weekend was fun though.  It was a bridal beach weekend.  We were down a bridesmaid because she had to work, but it was still fun.  I got to read, lie on the beach, eat, and help the youngest girl with her summer history homework.  We hardly turned on the TV, except Sunday before we left because the weather was crappy.  Hopefully I’ll be able to get down there once more before the summer is over, but it might not happen because there’s so much going on. 

The only part that was less than awesome was the drive home.  It took three and a half hours.  Ridiculous for what’s supposed to be a two hour drive.  FYI-New Jersey floods in heavy rain.  Not a fan.  You know it’s bad when I’m happy to see the Blue Route.  (For those of you not from this area-I hate the Blue Route.  It’s always, always backed up at some point no matter what time of day I take it.  And it’s usually for no reason.)

I hope you all had a good weekend!

I'm Still Here

Which you know if you follow me on twitter.  Lots going on in my neck of the woods.  Some of which I can't/am not ready to share yet.  Here's what I can tell you:

~I got my wisdom teeth out.  I only had the top 2 because I'm some freak who never got all of my teeth.  It wasn't as bad as some people made it out to be.  I was scared.  Because I'm a baby.

~My friend's wedding plans are going well.  We're making the centerpieces ourselves.  They're going to look really nice.  Because we're allstars.  I might have found a new career path.  I can totally have a centerpiece business right?

~I got a new car!  It's a cute Honda Civic with a sunroof.  She's dark gray and her name is Lucille.  We're BFFs. (I can cross that off my 2011 goal list!)

~I'm able to cut back on working Sundays at job #2. What?  You mean I can make weekend plans and attend family dinners?  Oh hey Jersey Shore, I will see you much more this year!

~When I say "Jersey Shore" I don't mean the one on MTV.  I'm talking about South Jersey.  The town I go to is nothing like Seaside.  (Unfortunately).

~I'm going on vacation in one month!  Hopefully I'll be all tan when I get back and not all red from sunburn.

~I need to buy new bathing suits and summer clothes because a lot of my stuff doesn't fit right any more.  I've been getting my butt kicked at the gym, but it's so worth it!

Sorry for being away for so long.  Not even going to lie, I've been lazy.  But I'll try to post more normally.

And Then I Decided to Join the Circus...

...well minus the clowns and the elephants and fire and stuff.

I really meant to post this on Monday, but I got tired/lazy/distracted.  And I couldn't get the pictures to upload, and they're kind of important to this post.

AnyADD, on Friday I finally used my Living Social voucher and tried aerial acrobatics!  It was beyond fun! (Minus the fact that it took me an hour to get there-it should take half that-and the fact that Katie didn't make it due to aforementioned traffic.)

The instructors split us into groups and we got to try three stations: silks (like Cirque du Soleil style), the rope, and trapeze (not the flying kind (bummer)).  I had three middle-aged Jersey ladies in my group who were hilarious and also kind enough to take pictures for me.

Silks! We cheated a little-I'm standing on a knot.

Rope-a lot harder than the silks.  It was a nylon (maybe) rope, not a gym class rope.



Trapeze!  I liked this move because it stretched out my hips.

 The ladies in my group insisted that I do the move in the last picture because they needed to see someone do it.  They were pretty awesome.  Overall, I'd DEFINITELY suggest this class to anyone who wants to try it.  I took it at the Philadelphia School of Circus Arts, but something like this could be offered at a gymnastics school or something.  Eventually, I might try to take one of the extended courses.  They're 6 or 8 weeks or something.  I'm so excited that I crossed this item off of my Life List! 

PS
I still have rope burn on my foot.  Worth it.

Why I Heart the Dirty Jerz

I was in Jersey over the weekend.  I had my aunt's house to myself and got to enjoy the quiet and relax.  Some of my favorite things about the shore:

1. My aunt's got a hot tub on an enclosed porch so it can be used even when it's cold or raining.
2. The beach access is two blocks away.  And it's called Lois Lane--loves it.
3. The beach isn't super crowded.  There's a busy part up near the main part of the town, but the part that's right by the house is pretty quiet and relaxing.
4. The outside shower.  I like to commune with nature.  It's all enclosed so you don't have to worry about someone watching you like a creeper.
5. The fridge and freezer is always stocked.  And I can eat whatever I want.  
6. There's a bar not too far away.  So I can head down that way with friends and not have to worry about driving.
7. It's not too far from AC, so I can head up there if I feel like gambling (which is hardly ever).

I'm headed back down that way for the three-day weekend with one of my friends.  Sooo excited.

Summa Summa Summa Time

I love summer.  Not when we have this oppressive heat and humidity combo, but I love it when it's 85, sunny, with very low humidity.  I miss having summer vacations.  We should have those as adults.  France takes the whole month of August off.  I'm moving. 

ANYways...I am going to try to make the most of my weekends this summer season.  Last Friday I took off work and got Hershey Park Happy.  It was nice because it wasn't too crowded or too hot.  And I awarded myself bonus points for not getting sunburned. BTW if you ever go to Hershey GO TO CHOCOLATE WORLD.  There's this tour thingy and they show you how they make the chocolate, and then they give you a little piece at the end.  WIN.  ALSO there's a gift shop.  Where you can buy a 5 pound Hershey bar.  5 POUNDS.  (For $40)  I want to make a 5 pound s'more...mmmm.

This coming weekend and next weekend I'm headed to the shore.  Yes, like the Jersey Shore.  No, not the GTL Jersey Shore.  I'll be southern Jersey.  My aunt lives there, and she's in Erie for a few weeks.  So in exchange for watering a few of her plants I get free reign over her hot tub, her food, and am only 2 blocks from the beach.  Nothing is going to stop me from going short of a hurrisoon (that's a hurricane/monsoon).  I could use a mini-vacay and a change of scenery.  I am counting the hours until I go.  I will be arriving there in about 48 hours.

More Vaca Stuff

As Brother pointed out, I didn't mention anything about the one mall we visited.  It's called Coconut Point.  It's all open and there are a ton of shops and stuff. 

So we walked in and I looked up and THERE ARE CONDOS IN THE MALL.  FOR SALE.  I for serious found my new home.  The condos start at like $150,000. 

Everything I need is there...there was a DSW, a movie theater, a few restaurants, offices, and a super Target. It's just like a city block or village or something. AND it gets bonus points for being close to the beach.

There are some downsides to Coco Pt though.

For instance, hurricanes.  They suck.  Trust me.  I was there during Hurricane Charlie.  Not really my idea of a fun week. 

Also,  that area is a lot of strip malls and condo/development/neighborhood thingies.  Don't get me wrong, they're nice strip malls.  But I'd miss the colonial type houses that we've got in PA and the close proximity to the city.

Lastly (and most importantly), even though my mom's there and I miss her, most of the rest of my family is in this area.  And my adopted family (biffles) who I missed when I was away.  They just need to build something like that a little further north. 

PS--there will be something along those lines in the KOP.  The Village at Valley Forge.

Back!

I'm back from vacation and I reallllyyy wish I was still in Florida.  I had a LOT of relaxation time, so I've come back a little pink, very rested, and not at all itching to go back to work.  I got to hang out with Mom and Papa Steve (my step-dad) and see my aunt and great-uncle.  AND I got my beach day PLUS shopping!!

Most of the time was spend hanging out with Mom and Papa Steve.  I even introduced Steve to Shrek.  He'd never seen it before and it happened to be on TV.  We ended up renting all three of them and having a Shrek-a-thon.  He loves the cheesy, so he really enjoyed the movies.  My favorite part of the third one is when the gingerbread man gets scared and poops a gumdrop--gets me EVERY time. 

I also got to go SHOPPING.  Clearly this is the most important part of the vacation.  There are these awesome outlets in Estero, FL--the Miromar Outlets.  First of all they're gorgeous--and I'm not just talking about the clothes.  There are fountains, koi ponds, and palm trees.  Brother got a new watch and wallet from the Fossil Outlet.  And I got 2 of the same style shirt in different colors from the Banana.  They were $10 each.  I WIN!  I can wear them to work too, so I double win.

I also got a little sunburned, so I guess I lose a little bit too.