First of all, thanks to everyone who commented on and off the blog about my downward mental spiral. I've never felt so bad about being normal! And those of you who commented/asked about coupons, how my love affair started and where our relationship is now, I shall dedicate a post to them specifically so that you all may learn the way of the coupon.
So the week isn't going any better, unfortunately. I have more to complain about, and really isn't that what blogs are for? Sure, there are miners being pulled from the earth after months underground, but I have problems, PEOPLE! Problem #1 and the topic of this post is the fact that I would tooootally never get out if I were trapped in a mine. Because after a week of INTENSE workouts as part of the 10 Lb Slimdown, Spark People told me I burned 1800 calories. Guess what I lost? HALF A FREAKING POUND. Half a pound!!
I'd so be the person in the mine they accuse of sneaking food and water. "Stephanie, you're not living off a lemon and granola bar like the rest of us, you CAN'T be because you've gained 12 pounds." They'd all end up eating me at the end of month 1.
All joking aside, I'm pretty devastated about this because I really put my heart and soul into this. I've never been this dedicated to a workout plan, and I was also STILL walking Cous Cous and we did a 4-mile walk at the zoo.
I'm struggling to get motivated this week because of the sheer time and energy it took out of me last week. I need more of a showing to keep me on track! I am still pushing through, even despite the fact that I got a flu shot this week and my arm is painin'!
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
Disorderly Conduct
You know that lingering sinking feeling you get at points in your life when you’re like “wow, I was in the top of my class, I went to a good college, I should feel a lot smarter than I do right now?” Well last week was a continuous week of that.
It started early in the week when I screwed up our passports. Here’s where I confess I got married two years ago and never bothered to change my name on my passport. Unlike Scott’s suggestion that perhaps I was trying to keep an alias and flee the country, I didn’t have a good reason for not doing the name change. It just wasn’t a priority (and, incidentally, when we refinanced, my maiden name came up under “known aliases,” so the whole fleeing the country thing wouldn’t have panned out, anyway). So when Scott’s was up for renewal, I figured it was as good a time as any to redo mine. The DMV suggested we mail them in to avoid extra processing fees. Since mailing crap is my domain, I took over.
I did two things I knew were stupid, and they both bit me in the ass. The first? I told him to make the check out for what the DMV dude wrote on my sheet when I went to get the info after we were first married. Two years ago. I mean, really, if STAMPS go up like 40 cents a year, you can guess passport fees may have changed in two years. And that nagging thought occurred to me, but I figured, “hey, it’s written on the sheet.” The second thing I did that I knew was stupid, I stuck it in a mailbox outside the post office. After I dropped it in I saw a sticker that CLEARLY said anything over a certain weight needed to be weighed in the post office, but I figured “hey, I put two stamps on it, we’re cool.” Neither were cool and now Scott’s passport expired.
Exhibit B.
When we returned from a recent trip, I thought to myself “I will be organized this time! I will unpack right away and do laundry right away, and put the suitcases away right away.” And I did. For the first time EVER, I actually did it, you guys! And it blew up STRAIGHT IN MY FACE! Because a few days later I discovered I was charged for Wee ‘Burb’s carseat, which is technically an assistive device. Only I can’t prove it because I THREW OUT the receipts in my desire to be organized and apparently they have no record of it.
It took, oh, 5 phone calls and 2 hours (and one very confused banker who was so nice as I told her “yes, I know you wouldn’t possibly have the baggage receipt number in your records from my debit card but customer service told me you would and I have to make the call) to determine I was boned. Friendly skies my ass.
Exhibit C.
There’s no other way to say this, I am obsessed with coupons. I love them so much I date them. I’m not kidding, I will not cut coupons in a rush or in any atmosphere not conducive to my love for coupons. I light some candles, I settle in with a good TV show, and I tenderly cut at the designated pre-creased spot. I gently place them in my coupon organizer, which coddles them lovingly by expiration date. And said coupon organizer is velcroed everrrr so gently onto the cart so that they are accessible as I check out. In an act of self-sabotage, I did what I always swear I will not do and did the self check-out. Big Mistake. HUGE! I walked out and got into my car a little dazed by how such a quick trip to the store had cost so much more than I anticipated.
Then I realized: I had forgotten to scan my coupons! The entire point of going to this dreaded place instead of Target was double coupon day, and I had failed to use my precious, precious darlings….who were nowhere to be found! And then it hit me, like a horrible punch to the stomach, I had left my coupon holder ON THE CART!! I thought about going back, but I had visions of me frantically searching for the person who DARED abscond with my coupon holder and I felt nothing very flattering or lady-like would come from it. I’m still in mourning. All I can say is thank goodness Wee ‘Burb is almost off formula because I had some awesome coupons in there. I wonder if home insurance covers coupons? Anyone?
Exhibit D.
In an odd way, it links to both B and C. Scott and I have separate bank accounts, for a lot of reasons that make sense in our relationship. So he had written me a check to cover my ill-fated grocery trip mentioned in Exhibit B, and for the trip I took today to Target to get the rest of the items I hadn’t gone to get on double coupon day.
I lost the check. No idea.
I absolutely know I put it on the edge of the table and my first thought was that Wee ‘Burb had taken off with it. Yeah, because in the midst of my mental meltdown, she thought it’d be a cool idea to learn to crawl. We’ve only been practicing and fretting over this milestone for, oh, 2 months. Since our normally level-headed pediatrician informed us if Little Miss Lazy Pants didn’t get off her fat Huggies and start moving, we’d be forced to take her to a physical therapist. As I mentioned here, we have a high-deductible plan, so while yeah I don’t want to hear my kid is behind, I also don’t want to pay $100 per visit to have them play with her legs and tell me she’s lazy. Is that just me?
Where was I? Right, so I figured she’d made off with the check. Scott was nice and cool about it, but I couldn’t stop beating myself up. Losing coupons is bad enough, losing actual money is just too much.
So I pull into Target today, and to add to my crap mood someone decided after weeks of construction AROUND Target, it’s time to do the entire parking lot, forcing me to park 12 miles from the store on a day where I have a million things to do.
And I pull in and there’s this old dude leaning on the front of a car, his feet halfway in to the spot I want to park and I’m thinking “dude, you BEST not be saving that for someone who’s been circling, because I will run you over” and he just crosses his arms for a second, purses his lips, and then begins DIRECTING me into the spot. WHAH????
As I begin to think about the merits of giving him a piece of my mind (pro: it would release a lot of stress I’ve been building in my week of mental goo; con: I don’t have bail money…there was probably a coupon for that in my lost organizer, now we’ll never know), I pick up my purse and feel something sticky. It’s the tag from one of our suitcases (no, sadly, not the one I needed, wouldn’t that be a happy ending?) and attached to it is the check I thought I lost!
So what’s the diagnosis, Doctor Readers? Am I going insane? Is this the dreaded Mommy Brain I’ve heard so much about and dismissed as myth? Is there coupon insurance??
It started early in the week when I screwed up our passports. Here’s where I confess I got married two years ago and never bothered to change my name on my passport. Unlike Scott’s suggestion that perhaps I was trying to keep an alias and flee the country, I didn’t have a good reason for not doing the name change. It just wasn’t a priority (and, incidentally, when we refinanced, my maiden name came up under “known aliases,” so the whole fleeing the country thing wouldn’t have panned out, anyway). So when Scott’s was up for renewal, I figured it was as good a time as any to redo mine. The DMV suggested we mail them in to avoid extra processing fees. Since mailing crap is my domain, I took over.
I did two things I knew were stupid, and they both bit me in the ass. The first? I told him to make the check out for what the DMV dude wrote on my sheet when I went to get the info after we were first married. Two years ago. I mean, really, if STAMPS go up like 40 cents a year, you can guess passport fees may have changed in two years. And that nagging thought occurred to me, but I figured, “hey, it’s written on the sheet.” The second thing I did that I knew was stupid, I stuck it in a mailbox outside the post office. After I dropped it in I saw a sticker that CLEARLY said anything over a certain weight needed to be weighed in the post office, but I figured “hey, I put two stamps on it, we’re cool.” Neither were cool and now Scott’s passport expired.
Exhibit B.
When we returned from a recent trip, I thought to myself “I will be organized this time! I will unpack right away and do laundry right away, and put the suitcases away right away.” And I did. For the first time EVER, I actually did it, you guys! And it blew up STRAIGHT IN MY FACE! Because a few days later I discovered I was charged for Wee ‘Burb’s carseat, which is technically an assistive device. Only I can’t prove it because I THREW OUT the receipts in my desire to be organized and apparently they have no record of it.
It took, oh, 5 phone calls and 2 hours (and one very confused banker who was so nice as I told her “yes, I know you wouldn’t possibly have the baggage receipt number in your records from my debit card but customer service told me you would and I have to make the call) to determine I was boned. Friendly skies my ass.
Exhibit C.
There’s no other way to say this, I am obsessed with coupons. I love them so much I date them. I’m not kidding, I will not cut coupons in a rush or in any atmosphere not conducive to my love for coupons. I light some candles, I settle in with a good TV show, and I tenderly cut at the designated pre-creased spot. I gently place them in my coupon organizer, which coddles them lovingly by expiration date. And said coupon organizer is velcroed everrrr so gently onto the cart so that they are accessible as I check out. In an act of self-sabotage, I did what I always swear I will not do and did the self check-out. Big Mistake. HUGE! I walked out and got into my car a little dazed by how such a quick trip to the store had cost so much more than I anticipated.
Then I realized: I had forgotten to scan my coupons! The entire point of going to this dreaded place instead of Target was double coupon day, and I had failed to use my precious, precious darlings….who were nowhere to be found! And then it hit me, like a horrible punch to the stomach, I had left my coupon holder ON THE CART!! I thought about going back, but I had visions of me frantically searching for the person who DARED abscond with my coupon holder and I felt nothing very flattering or lady-like would come from it. I’m still in mourning. All I can say is thank goodness Wee ‘Burb is almost off formula because I had some awesome coupons in there. I wonder if home insurance covers coupons? Anyone?
Exhibit D.
In an odd way, it links to both B and C. Scott and I have separate bank accounts, for a lot of reasons that make sense in our relationship. So he had written me a check to cover my ill-fated grocery trip mentioned in Exhibit B, and for the trip I took today to Target to get the rest of the items I hadn’t gone to get on double coupon day.
I lost the check. No idea.
I absolutely know I put it on the edge of the table and my first thought was that Wee ‘Burb had taken off with it. Yeah, because in the midst of my mental meltdown, she thought it’d be a cool idea to learn to crawl. We’ve only been practicing and fretting over this milestone for, oh, 2 months. Since our normally level-headed pediatrician informed us if Little Miss Lazy Pants didn’t get off her fat Huggies and start moving, we’d be forced to take her to a physical therapist. As I mentioned here, we have a high-deductible plan, so while yeah I don’t want to hear my kid is behind, I also don’t want to pay $100 per visit to have them play with her legs and tell me she’s lazy. Is that just me?
Where was I? Right, so I figured she’d made off with the check. Scott was nice and cool about it, but I couldn’t stop beating myself up. Losing coupons is bad enough, losing actual money is just too much.
So I pull into Target today, and to add to my crap mood someone decided after weeks of construction AROUND Target, it’s time to do the entire parking lot, forcing me to park 12 miles from the store on a day where I have a million things to do.
And I pull in and there’s this old dude leaning on the front of a car, his feet halfway in to the spot I want to park and I’m thinking “dude, you BEST not be saving that for someone who’s been circling, because I will run you over” and he just crosses his arms for a second, purses his lips, and then begins DIRECTING me into the spot. WHAH????
As I begin to think about the merits of giving him a piece of my mind (pro: it would release a lot of stress I’ve been building in my week of mental goo; con: I don’t have bail money…there was probably a coupon for that in my lost organizer, now we’ll never know), I pick up my purse and feel something sticky. It’s the tag from one of our suitcases (no, sadly, not the one I needed, wouldn’t that be a happy ending?) and attached to it is the check I thought I lost!
So what’s the diagnosis, Doctor Readers? Am I going insane? Is this the dreaded Mommy Brain I’ve heard so much about and dismissed as myth? Is there coupon insurance??
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Things I Love Thursday: RED!
For most of my early 20s, I wore big black shoes and I owned a black skirt, black pants, and a few nice shirts to go with them. I was the girl who showed up at clubs in Boston with ripped jeans and t-shirts, so to say I was lacking style would be just a wee bit of an understatement.
When I started to earn more money and hang out with more fashionable people, I began to see the need for color. I still kept my black pants, of course. A girl needs her black pants, right? But I started to figure out ways to accessorize.
It all started with a pair of purple shoes (hey, I was ahead of the purple trend) from DSW. After wearing them twice and getting insane compliments, I became obsessed with shoes, and particularly DSW. I relied on DSW to show me what was fashionable until I developed my own style (Um, I’m still working on that).
So I was psyched to see red EVERYWHERE on a recent trip and I splurged (for me, spending more than $30 on shoes is a splurge) on these two shoes.
What do you wear to dress up your staples? Do you use shoes or other accessories to dress something up or down?
When I started to earn more money and hang out with more fashionable people, I began to see the need for color. I still kept my black pants, of course. A girl needs her black pants, right? But I started to figure out ways to accessorize.
It all started with a pair of purple shoes (hey, I was ahead of the purple trend) from DSW. After wearing them twice and getting insane compliments, I became obsessed with shoes, and particularly DSW. I relied on DSW to show me what was fashionable until I developed my own style (Um, I’m still working on that).
So I was psyched to see red EVERYWHERE on a recent trip and I splurged (for me, spending more than $30 on shoes is a splurge) on these two shoes.
What do you wear to dress up your staples? Do you use shoes or other accessories to dress something up or down?
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Workout Wednesday: 10 Pound Slimdown
I found a new workout plan for October. I moved on from my walking program for two reasons:
1) October is so unpredictable weather-wise in Minnesota that I need a good indoor program as a back-up.
2) Cous Cous loves the fall. I’ll discuss her dislike of winter and accompanying embarrassing accoutrement she needs in another post, but let’s leave it at this: that puppy loves piles of leaves. LOVES! Which makes our walks verrrry time consuming. We lovingly call her a “frolicking lollygagger.” Sometimes we call her less than loving things. The point is, it’s challenging to get a good stable cardio workout with her right now.
So I’ve moved on to Chris Freytag’s 10 Pound Slimdown which is on free with my Comcast On-Demand Exercise TV.
The Pros: I really like Chris’ attitude and moves. She is positive without being annoying and perky, and she doesn’t spend a lot of time doing deep breaths or other things to burn up time. You will get maximum cardio time from these workouts. I also like the Circuit Training because just as your muscles burn out from weights, you move on to cardio, and on and on. Also? This bad boy HURTS! In a good way. You definitely feel like you’re doing something. Lastly, I love that you have the weekends off in the beginning, it gives you a light at the end of the tunnel.
The Cons: The days where you have to do two workouts are KILLER! Especially when Cous Cous still needs her walk. Yesterday I walked her for 20 minutes and then did two workouts, which was over 40 minutes. An hour of cardio is a challenge, and it’s also sometimes difficult to do without getting up early. And I am not looking forward to moving up to the 6 days a week, that feels overwhelming, even if the workouts are only 20 minutes.
Like the last plan, I’m not necessarily focused on the 10 pound loss, although I would love to lose that before Wee ‘Burb’s first birthday, which is coming up next month. Since I’ve officially LOST THE BABY WEIGHT (YAY!) this is more for firming and toning and getting to a better weight than I have been previously. So the bottom line is, I’d be happy with 5 pounds.
So there it is! It’s a free workout so if you want to join me, I’d love to have some support. Or share your favorite workout program with me! What do you do when your workouts have to go indoors?
1) October is so unpredictable weather-wise in Minnesota that I need a good indoor program as a back-up.
2) Cous Cous loves the fall. I’ll discuss her dislike of winter and accompanying embarrassing accoutrement she needs in another post, but let’s leave it at this: that puppy loves piles of leaves. LOVES! Which makes our walks verrrry time consuming. We lovingly call her a “frolicking lollygagger.” Sometimes we call her less than loving things. The point is, it’s challenging to get a good stable cardio workout with her right now.
So I’ve moved on to Chris Freytag’s 10 Pound Slimdown which is on free with my Comcast On-Demand Exercise TV.
The Pros: I really like Chris’ attitude and moves. She is positive without being annoying and perky, and she doesn’t spend a lot of time doing deep breaths or other things to burn up time. You will get maximum cardio time from these workouts. I also like the Circuit Training because just as your muscles burn out from weights, you move on to cardio, and on and on. Also? This bad boy HURTS! In a good way. You definitely feel like you’re doing something. Lastly, I love that you have the weekends off in the beginning, it gives you a light at the end of the tunnel.
The Cons: The days where you have to do two workouts are KILLER! Especially when Cous Cous still needs her walk. Yesterday I walked her for 20 minutes and then did two workouts, which was over 40 minutes. An hour of cardio is a challenge, and it’s also sometimes difficult to do without getting up early. And I am not looking forward to moving up to the 6 days a week, that feels overwhelming, even if the workouts are only 20 minutes.
Like the last plan, I’m not necessarily focused on the 10 pound loss, although I would love to lose that before Wee ‘Burb’s first birthday, which is coming up next month. Since I’ve officially LOST THE BABY WEIGHT (YAY!) this is more for firming and toning and getting to a better weight than I have been previously. So the bottom line is, I’d be happy with 5 pounds.
So there it is! It’s a free workout so if you want to join me, I’d love to have some support. Or share your favorite workout program with me! What do you do when your workouts have to go indoors?
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!!
Thanks for those who participated in my first ever give-away. Since it wasn't enough to use the random number generator, the first three who replied get a special code. So, Rachel, Amanda and HungriGyrl, please e-mail me at stephanieinsuburbia@yahoo.com and I will e-mail you your code.
Thanks for playing!
Thanks for playing!
Monday, October 4, 2010
Suburban Soap Opera
First off, just want to announce I am extending my Shutterfly giveaway until Wednesday. So comment on that post if you want a chance to win some free codes from Shutterfly.
After this post on hiding candy in the broiler from LambAround I had to tell you all about a similar domestic disaster experience. Looking back, the outcome was obvious, but at the time it made so much sense!
After years living in Boston with no dishwasher, I made a short list of requirements for my first apartment back here in MN. One of those requirements was a dishwasher! I was so happy when I got my new place, and sweet sweet freedom from dishpan hands.
For the record, my job at home growing up was to empty the dishwasher, I rarely loaded and I definitely never turned it on.
So about a year in to my awesome dishwasher apartment living, I had a big holiday baking session. I threw all my pots and pans in the dishwasher when I realized that I had no detergent. It was after 10 p.m. and there was nowhere convenient to grab detergent around me.
But I didn’t want to leave the dishes unwashed, either, because I was afraid the baking ingredients would cake on and then it would take forever to clean. See? I knew that much! I also knew I definitely didn’t want to hand wash.
And then a lightbulb went off! I’d hand wash it with Palmolive, so I may as well just shove some of that in. Now, I thought this through. I only used about a Tablespoon of the stuff because I figured “it’s probably a little more potent than my normal detergent.”
Yup, just a little.
So I go in to my living room and watch TV and when I hear the dishwasher shut off, I get up to empty it. I’m responsible like that.
Have you ever just had a break from reality when you look at something? Like you’re seeing it, but you’re not seeing it? That’s how I felt when I stared at the floor and saw 3-4 inches of bubbles covering my kitchen floor. I actually thought to myself “how the hell did THOSE get there” and I’m looking around on my CEILING like somehow it rained bubbles in my third floor apartment and I just missed it.
It wasn’t until I saw the dishwasher puking bubbles, and I opened it to find my muffin tins taking a happy little bubble bath that I made the connection.
So in honor of LambAround and I, share your biggest DUH disaster!
After this post on hiding candy in the broiler from LambAround I had to tell you all about a similar domestic disaster experience. Looking back, the outcome was obvious, but at the time it made so much sense!
After years living in Boston with no dishwasher, I made a short list of requirements for my first apartment back here in MN. One of those requirements was a dishwasher! I was so happy when I got my new place, and sweet sweet freedom from dishpan hands.
For the record, my job at home growing up was to empty the dishwasher, I rarely loaded and I definitely never turned it on.
So about a year in to my awesome dishwasher apartment living, I had a big holiday baking session. I threw all my pots and pans in the dishwasher when I realized that I had no detergent. It was after 10 p.m. and there was nowhere convenient to grab detergent around me.
But I didn’t want to leave the dishes unwashed, either, because I was afraid the baking ingredients would cake on and then it would take forever to clean. See? I knew that much! I also knew I definitely didn’t want to hand wash.
And then a lightbulb went off! I’d hand wash it with Palmolive, so I may as well just shove some of that in. Now, I thought this through. I only used about a Tablespoon of the stuff because I figured “it’s probably a little more potent than my normal detergent.”
Yup, just a little.
So I go in to my living room and watch TV and when I hear the dishwasher shut off, I get up to empty it. I’m responsible like that.
Have you ever just had a break from reality when you look at something? Like you’re seeing it, but you’re not seeing it? That’s how I felt when I stared at the floor and saw 3-4 inches of bubbles covering my kitchen floor. I actually thought to myself “how the hell did THOSE get there” and I’m looking around on my CEILING like somehow it rained bubbles in my third floor apartment and I just missed it.
It wasn’t until I saw the dishwasher puking bubbles, and I opened it to find my muffin tins taking a happy little bubble bath that I made the connection.
So in honor of LambAround and I, share your biggest DUH disaster!
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Things I Love Thursday: PURPLE!
Yes, yes, I know it's Wednesday. I've just got a busy few days coming up, so I thought I'd get this up now while I can.
So, I keep hearing that the new fall color is red. Now I love me some red, so that would be cool with me. But then why is it that there is nothing but purple out there? If you had asked me last month what I thought about purple, I'd be all "meh, it's cool and all, but nothing flashy."
Color me excited when I went searching at Nordstrom's for a dress to wear to a wedding and came up with this purple-y goodness:
What's your favorite fall purchase? And don't forget to check out last week's post for my Shutterfly give-away!
So, I keep hearing that the new fall color is red. Now I love me some red, so that would be cool with me. But then why is it that there is nothing but purple out there? If you had asked me last month what I thought about purple, I'd be all "meh, it's cool and all, but nothing flashy."
Color me excited when I went searching at Nordstrom's for a dress to wear to a wedding and came up with this purple-y goodness:
And this awesome bag, which I didn't buy with any intention of matching the dress and I'm still not sure I'd carry the two together, but how awesome is it?? It's the perfect size and weight. And it was a Nine West outlet purchase for $40, so the perfect price, too! My conscience won't allow me to buy purses more than $50 because I become fickle after a season and they're relegated to my closet.
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