Following through with some goals.....

I didn't make any New Years resolutions this year, but I did set goals. One of my goals was to be more proactive about my health. Yesterday I went to see Dr. Yao for a full physical and to discuss my concerns. We laid out a course of action that we both agreed to. I have a consult appointment with the nutritionist and today I will begin my excercise program which will be adjusted every six weeks. I am also charting my monthly cycle for the next six months to see visually any patterns that exist. I've used this tool in the past and basically it'll just give me a heads up as to when I should expect any physical/ hormonal changes.

In addition to meeting my weight goal, the excercise program will help me manage my condition and tone up. My weight goal is between 110-115lbs. this is what I weighed most of my adult life until I turned 30 and then got pregnant with Gabriel the Great. Since giving birth over three yrs. ago, the lowest I've weighed is 124lbs. For me personally, I feel sluggish and not physically fit or strong at my current weight. My goal isn't to get skinny....I like the curves I do have. I just want be toned, strong, and healthy. Anyhoo....I am posting a weekly weigh in here to keep me on track. Here's my first:

20 lbs. to go!!!

Four years since you've been gone....

I didn't remember this day last year until it had passed. I had a dream about you early this morning and it wasn't until I was fully awake that I realized the date. Four years ago you left this world for a better one. I miss you Grandma...... I'll always remember one of the last conversations I had with you and Grandpa. As we sat , drank coffee, and ate some sweet treats. (grandpa's favorite thing) I spoke of how I missed home and expressed my fears about living so far away. You both told me to see, do, and take advantage of the opportunities that lay ahead of me. You both told me to travel, see the world, and experience life. You told me to LIVE. I hope I've made you proud...I love you.










I miss you both very much.

Umm..Bartender I'll have several shots of tequila!!!

Living with PMDD is a hell I can't begin to describe. I'm in the throes of it as of a week ago. God please fix me!! Only a handful of people have known that I've been trying to function with this shit since being diagnosed with it in 1996. I have dealt with it most of these years without the blue little pills my doctor prescribed to me. Hell is an understatement. I HATE it....I Hate what I experience two weeks out of the month like clock work. I hate what I feel.......I hate everything about it. I hate experiencing this hell. My mood swings are so severe I sometimes don't know what I'm feeling by the minute. All the while doctors/people debate about whether or not it's a real disease!! Yeah....ask my husband and kids if it's real. Better yet ask the 8% of women and their families who suffer and have to deal with it.

Missing home...

Ahh...How many time have I heard "I'd switch places with you in an instant." Yes, I am thankful for the opportunity to live overseas, but sometimes the everyday stuff can be a bit burdening. There are conveniences big and small that I miss back home. Italy, especially the southern parts, compared to other European countries is third world. On top of that the culture is much different and frustrating at times. I love it here, but there are days that I hate it too. I've emailed this video before...it's funny and so true. Most drive horribly, don't believe in giving you personal space, can't form a line, and southern Italy has trash EVERYWHERE.




Things I miss back home in no particular order:
* Poor boy brisket sandwiches....I'd do anything to have one of these!!! Anything LOL
* Target stores
* cheap, clean, and healthy produce
* clean unpolluted water...I have to use bottled water for cooking, brushing my teeth,and cleaning. Thank God the goverment pays for the bottled water...because the cost added up when we had to pay out of pocket.
* fast food restuarants...especially Chick-fil-A
* my family
* authentic Chinese, Thai, and Mexican food
* clean air
* Cracker Barrel.....uummm
I'm getting hungry. LOL

Rainbows are his FAVORITE thing....

He even asked Santa to bring him one for Christmas. How sweet is that. I told him it probably wasn't going to happen, but without fail the good Lord blessed him with one anyway;D

Hellur.....

OMG I am laughing my ass off. Trent and I were introduced to Madea back in 2001 and I can never tire of her. Here she is in all her glory.

Madea finds out someone's cheating...

Rik needs to needs to listen to this Madea clip:

She is CRAZY!!!

The Phattest city....I mean FATTEST.

Yep, it would be great if according to Men's Fitness my hometown was the phattest ..most rad city to live in, but no it's the other type of fat. LOL San Antonio ranks # 3 as the fattest city. Take a look at the list:
Top Fattest Cities
1. Miami, FL
2. Oklahoma City, OK
3. San Antonio, TX
4. Las Vegas, NV
5. New York, NY
6. Houston, TX
7. El Paso, TX
8. Jacksonville, FL
9. Charlotte, NC
10. Louisville-Jefferson, KY
11. Memphis, TN
12. Detroit, MI
13. Chicago, IL
14. Dallas-Fort Worth, TX
15. San Jose, CA
16. Tulsa, OK
17. Baltimore, MD
18. Columbus, OH
19. Raleigh, NC
20. Philadelphia, PA
21. L.A.-Long Beach, CA
22. Phoenix-Mesa, AZ
23. Indianapolis, IN
24. San Diego, CA
25. Kansas City, MO
Amazing but very true. Here's a partial list of the top 10 fittest cities:
Top Fittest Cities
1. Salt Lake City, UT
2. Colorado Springs, CO
3. Minneapolis, MN
4. Denver, CO
5. Albuquerque, NM
6. Portland, OR
7. Honolulu, HI
8. Seattle, WA
9. Omaha, NE
10. Virginia Beach, VA
Hummm ...Colorado has always been a place of interest for retirement;P Well just food for thought. Now if I could only get my butt off the couch to hit the gym.

Oh my toddler.....what to do???

Is it true...does a teaspoon of sugar help the medicine go down. My little one has a strong aversion to taking medicine. It's a nerve wrecking battle every time. It wasn't always like this though. There once was this perfect magical time where he would just open up his mouth and swallow. Sometimes we gave each other a high five. Other times we praised him and told him how he was such a big boy. Alas, now I question what happened and why the drastic change. We've tried almost everything like sneaking it in apple sauce, flavored yogurt, his juice, putting it on the inside of his cheek and blowing into his face, holding him down by force which is emotional for us and him, and in times of desperation we've tried to bribe him. Lately the usual routine has been to try coaxing him into taking it by himself, but he starts to cry so one of us will swaddle him up while the other forces the medicine down his throat. All the while he is crying and yelling at the top of his lungs. At the same time he is spitting out the medicine we do manage to get into his mouth. Then it usually concludes with him vomiting all over the place because he's worked himself up into an emotional frenzy. I hate that it's become so traumatic for him and us. The experience has become so negative it's no wonder he won't take his medicine.

My sweet little boy I love you so much. Please...oh please take your medicine for mommy ;D Do you have any words of wisdom, advice, suggestions, anything at all to help??? LOL As for the spoonful of sugar...surely I don't think I will try that yet , but one person has suggested that I dip the syringe in sugar prior to giving him his medicine. Who knows????

Quick update...

There are so many things to do and not enough hours in the day.Bear with me, but a bulleted post is all you're getting today:
** I was sick with a cold last week.

** Lesley is having midterms this week in school, so she spent most of the weekend studying.She is also planning to have friends stay over this weekend to help celebrate her 15th birthday. I can't believe my baby is going to be 15!!!!

** Trent and I have decided to pull Noah out of school and home school him again. There are so many reasons why....which I hope to express later, but one of the top reasons is that the flexibility homeschooling provides just works best for our family.

** On top of home schooling I am also going back to school. I am literally starting over in a different career field. From a teaching background I am moving into getting a BS degree in Nutrition. Thankfully most of my basic courses will transfer, but I am starting from scratch in the upper level division courses plus I need to take a lot of chemistry courses that I didn't need for teaching. Ranging from general chemistry to organic chemistry to biochemistry. I am excited, but I also know it is going to be tough. Yes, I'll probably whine at times, need lots of support and cheering on! :D I have a great cheerleader Trent for support though so I know I'll be just fine. I'm betting/praying that we'll get stationed in San Antonio next because the program I'm interested in is at Incarnate Word University. It's a small private catholic school.

** Yesterday we went to see the movie Bedtime Stories. We really liked it. Noah wants a guinea pig with big eyes now. LOL That's definitely not happening...those things bark like little dogs.


** Well I'm off to watch the historical inauguration with the familia. I leave you with the last pics of our Germany trip. An interesting fact I learned about Bavaria is that it is 98% Roman Catholic and on Three Kings Day they write on each others door to bless the homes. Okay hubby's calling Joe Biden is getting sworn in.

Ciao & God bless,
Stephanie

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Fun at the museum....

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