Zee Best

I'm cheap.  The polite thing to say is that I'm frugal but the reality is I'm pretty cheap: I hate spending money that I don't have to especially on things that don't make me or others smile or fill my belly with a full o' fab food feeling.  Do I want to spend money on cleaning supplies? No.  Do I?  Yes (well I pay for some of them and my amazing mother-in-law purchases others for us).  Does it make me happy to have money spent on cleaning supplies? No.

As of a few months ago I made the decision to no longer purchase window cleaner because it is a ridiculous waste of money.  I spend money to have a fabulous woman clean my home twice a month because it makes me super happy to come home to a clean home after a long day of work and I almost never have to mop floors which makes me extra happy BUT paying for window cleaning solution that I know can be made for pennies: no longer happening.  That was the longest sentence ever.

I have tried out two recipes for window cleaner since I made the decision not to purchase it any more and silly me did not save the links or write the recipes down.  Both were decent but nothing to call home (or blog) about.  Today I could not find the most recent bottle of  cleaner I had made and the patio doors were screaming my name.  The four huge sprays of bird poop that I've been staring at while trying to enjoy meals could no longer be ignored.  I considered taking a before picture but really who wants to see a photograph of bird graffiti?

I searched the web for something along the lines of "Best homemade window cleaner recipe" and I was led to... the BEST homemade window cleaner recipe.  Seriously.  Awesome.  Be sure to shake the bottle well before you use the spray each time you go to use it or you might clog your sprayer.

Thank you Crunchy Betty for a freaking awesome recipe!! 

Alvin Corn Homemade Glass Cleaner (taken from the Crunchy Betty blot)

What You Need

1/4 c. rubbing alcohol
1/4 c. white vinegar
1 Tbsp cornstarch
2 c. warm water

What You Do
Combine everything in a spray bottle, and shake it up!

Another thing I learned today about cleaning windows is that removing masking tape residue from glass can be a royal pain the ass.  There are a billion recipes and tips available online but I found that straight rubbing alcohol and a little scrubbing worked wonders for me!

Serenity Wednesdays

image source

I pledged (to myself) to find some 'me time' in 2011 and not feel guilty about it: so far so good. We are lucky enough to live in the same city as both Mike and my parents and both sets LOVE spending time with the Rockstar so finding someone to watch the wee man is not an issue. Did I mention how lucky AND grateful we are for this, because we do realize just how blessed we are.

Yesterday I was a total mombie after a long night with a terribly sad little shark who is teething - that Tooth Fairy better not cross my path, she won't like what I have to say to her - so honestly the last thing I wanted to do was get dressed and leave the house. Unfortunately we had our first swim lesson of the year at 845 am ARGH which went really well until the Rockstar dropped his face into the water and took a big gulp (I'm not sure who was more surprised, him or me), The remaining ten minutes of class was spent sniffing back tears (his, not mine) and chewing on a rubber fish (him, not me) while snuggling in the pool. Poor little guy was out of sorts thanks to those nasty teeth.

As if an early morning outing wasn't enough for one tired mombie, I had a yoga class booked for 330 pm. I could have bailed but I said I was going to try to be more active this year and I'm sure I'll miss another class or two somewhere along the line for a legitimate reason (being tired just didn't seem like a good enough reason to me). The Rockstar's Granny came to play with him and I stumbled out of the house...

Was it worth it? OH. MY. GOD.

Yes that's appropriate wording because it was a heavenly experience. It's not that I haven't been out of the house since The Rockstar made his first appearance on June 24th, because I have. It's just that I haven't been out for an extended period of time doing something purely for me that doesn't involve me talking to someone (keep the smart ass remarks to yourself big bro) such as a hair dresser or massage therapist.

It was by far the best yoga class I have ever attended and that's saying a lot because I loved my pre-natal yoga classes. The instructor is fabulous (she's a friend and colleague who I thought would be a wonderful yogi and she did not disappoint), the space is one where you are instantly relaxed just walking through the doors (same place I did my pre-natal and Baby & Me yoga), and the 1.25 hour class was exactly what the doctor ordered. I left that class feeling like a million bucks: I couldn't stop smiling and I felt fully rejuvenated.

Did I easily clear my mind and focus on the task at hand? Definitely not but I was conscious of the fact that my mind continuously wandered to The Rockstar, dinner, The Rockstar, returning to work eventually, The Rockstar (you get the picture) and every time I realized I was thinking of something other than my breath/my body/my being I pulled myself back into the moment and concentrated on me at that point in time. Wow, who knew an hour could make such a huge difference. It was another long night last night and although I was super tired today it seemed so much more bearable than it did yesterday.

I can't wait for next Wednesday! Thank you, Wendy!

A Bump Update!

What's new with me and the Bump? Hmmm...

Well my ridiculous chocolate peanut butter cravings (they were OUT OF CONTROL) have been curbed thanks to an absolutely fabulous package that arrived on our doorstep last Thursday.

Jenny & Mike sent enough chocolate peanut butter to last the average person a couple weeks (a few items were missing by the time I snapped this photo - couldn't resist) but I am not the average person and the stash lasted until tonight which means it lasted SIX days which I think is rather impressive length of time for a pregnant chocolate peanut butter monster. NO I did NOT eat all of it by myself, I shared with Mike and the baby ate more than the two of us put together. Greedy, greedy baby! Thanks again Jenny & Mike!! xox

Of course this package doesn't really help with the 'being healthy while pregnant' goal I'm trying to focus on during these final few months but neither did the french fries I ate today. You may remember me talking about my french fry cravings during the first 4 months, I've been REALLY good for the last couple months and only have them once a week now... I was going to try to skip them this week and then some very inconsiderate office manager brought McDonald's fries into the room next to the space where I was teaching this morning. R.U.D.E. Obviously I couldn't sit there smelling Mickey D's fries and not stop at the golden arches on my way to the next school. Obviously.

So how are my Body During Baby goals going this week? Let's see...
* prenatal yoga - I really didn't like yoga when I tried it a few years ago but I signed up for pre-natal yoga when my doctor suggested that it might help with all the pelvis discomfort I was experiencing. I am SO glad I listened to her. The class I'm taking is through Blue Skies Yoga in Kitchener. The studio is BEAUTIFUL, the teacher is AMAZING and the yoga is FABULOUS. I love being in a class surrounded my beautiful bellies attached to glowing mamas. I have every intention of continuing with this once the baby is here and we have settled into some sort of routine. There are mommy & baby classes offered at this same studio, as well as baby massage and more. I thought I would dread my Thursday night classes but instead I find myself counting down the days until my next class.
* drink more water - I have made a conscious effort to drink more water but I know I can do better
* fruits and veggies - check! More fresh fruit in the house this week.
* swim once a week - coming soon
* walk for 20 minutes - an hour walk last night and another hour tonight
* rest & relax - thoroughly enjoying my bath and have my feet propped up as I type

I'm feeling good this week, last week was a rough one being back at work after a week off. I was moving s-l-o-w. Sleeping isn't as great as it was; I tossed and turned most of last night but I suppose it's my body's way of preparing itself for NEVER SLEEPING AGAIN as so many people like to remind me.

We had our first appointment with our OB yesterday. After a two hour wait we found out that Smidge is right on target size wise, I'm measuring at 28" which is exactly where I should be at 28 weeks. I start to going to my OB every two weeks now which is CRAZY!! I'm in the homestretch with only 11 weeks and 4 days to go until my due date. Eeek!

We also found out at the appointment that I am RH negative, in other words my blood type is O negative. What does this mean and why should I care? Well only about 10% of the population has RH negative blood and Mike isn't one of them, if he was then the baby would also be a negative blood type which would be fabulous but he's not so our baby will most likely be RH positive like his daddy and positive and negative blood don't like each other. Holy run-on-sentence. If something happens that my blood mixes with Smidge's potentially positive blood my body will think the positive blood is an invader and will attack it. The doctor told us this isn't really a concern for Smidge since it's not likely our blood will mix but I need to get a shot that will mask his blood (trick my body into thinking his blood is positive if they do mix) just in case they do - during the third trimester there is a risk of slight risk of placental tearing so it's better to be safe than sorry (HELL YEAH). If left untreated (if I don't get the shot) this RH negative thing is likely to be an issue in the future when I get pregnant again because during Smidge's birth his bits of his blood will definitely mix with mine. In a future pregnancy if something causes the baby's blood to mix with mine (say a minor tear in a blood vessel) my body will remember that the positive blood is foreign and will attack it, in turn attacking the baby. In other words I have a higher risk of miscarriage. The OB said that left untreated each subsequent pregnancy would be at greater risk since the memory becomes stronger each time. THANKFULLY there is a solution to this potential problem: a shot of RhoGAM now and then another after Smidge arrives. These shots will keep Smidge safe and my future babe(s) safe too!

That was terribly long winded and hopefully it makes sense to you. I went to the hospital today for a blood test to confirm my blood type and will find out tomorrow if I definitely need the RhoGAM but it's not likely the first test was wrong so I'm sure I'll be poked again in the next couple days. I should add that I'm not worried about anything, I'm just happy this has been caught and is being dealt with.

And that my friends is my weekly update. Hope I didn't bore you!!

Body DURING Baby Challenge

One of the new-to-me blogs I've found semi-recently is Mama Notes. I was originally drawn to the blog thanks to some fabulous giveaways but there's so much more to it than freebies! Samantha is the creator of this fabulous find and not only does she write great blurbs about her personal experiences, she also shares guest posts and poses questions relating to parenting advice and product reviews to her readers. Mama Notes is a great resource for soon-to-be, new and experienced parents.

Last year Samantha created a challenge for moms who were looking for motivation and support to get in shape following the birth of their babes; it was called the Body After Baby challenge. Samantha recently found out that she is pregnant with her second child and due in October, lucky for us because her pregnancy means a new challenge for pregnant mamas: the Body During Baby Challenge!! If you're pregnant you might want to join the challenge, pop over here to find out more and let Samantha know you're joining.

I'm due June 18th so I only have three months to go but considering I've just started *insert Olivia Newton John in leg warmers here* getting physical after a six month puddle-on-the-couch stage I've decided to join the challenge!

So here is my intro post for all the lovely mamas who are taking part in the challenge. My name is Jaime and my amazing husband's name is Mike. I'm a 32 year old teacher who lives 45 minutes south of Toronto, Ontario. I'm 27 weeks preggers with baby number one. We're having a boy YAY and we're super crazy excited about it! I'm feeling fabulous and have been most of my pregnancy, of course there have been aches and pains but I guess that just comes with the territory.

My goals for the last few months of this pregnancy are:
* continue going to prenatal yoga classes right up until the end (I started my classes two weeks ago but I'll talk more about this on Monday when I post my weekly update)
* like Samantha I need to drink more water - I've been pretty good about staying hydrated but could definitely do better
* eat more fruits and veggies and less chocolate peanut butter (Gawd, I can't believe the amount of chocolate peanut butter I've consumed in the last few months - the baby made me do it)
* swim once a week
* walk for 20 minutes on days I'm not swimming or taking part in yoga
* rest & relax when I need/want to - I'm a person who tends to GO GO GO and I have been VERY good about slowing down but need to keep at it. This week I've been on holidays thanks to March Break and I've treated myself to soaks in the tub with a good book in hand almost daily - I want to keep this up!

I think that's all for now. I have quite a few goals but they are all totally achievable!

Thanks to Samantha for creating this challenge and HELLO to all of the moms-to-be taking part, I'm looking forward to reading your updates!


Mama Notes: For Pregnant Mamas: Body DURING Baby

Not Exactly Wonderland

Went to the pool last night for the first time in weeks with my neighbour and new friend, Anne.
I am feeling the ache today in a major way. Swam for 45 minutes and incorporated the flutter board and foam leg stabilizing thingo: a great workout but hell I'm sore. Yowsas. I feel a bit like Alice must have the day after she fell in the hole chasing the white rabbit.

Been meaning to share some of these stunning images photographed by Elena Kalis.



Read about what inspired Elena to create a Waterland for this little Alice by visiting this site.

'Tri'-ed and Succeeded

We did it! All that triathlon training was put to good use this morning: Joanne and I completed the tri in just under an hour. I jumped in the water at 8:15am and Joanne hopped in six minutes later. We wanted to complete the race together so I waited for Jo in the bike transition area which added a few minutes to my time but Jo was kind enough to do the math and my final overall time was 56:26 minutes, which placed me 82nd out of 172 participants - the official results show me placing 116th but of course that counted my wait time.

A super humongous thanks goes out to Joanne who encouraged me to join her in completing a triathlon in the first place. I am sure I would have never attempted this if it wasn't for Jo; having her by my side throughout the event was awesome - she stuck by me even when I suggested she go ahead during the run (I was feeling sick) - and crossing the finish line hand in hand was a truly amazing feeling! All our hard work this summer allowed us to complete a major goal which means I can wipe one of my 32 Things to Do Before I'm 32 off the list! Woo hoo!

Sweet New Ride

The Super Sprint Triathlon I mentioned here is just 10 days away! I'm excited and nervous. The swim portion of the event is still the part that scares me most; Joanne and I went to a tri-clinic a few weeks ago which eased my nerves around transitioning from swim to bike to running, but the thought of swimming in open water with a pile of other people kicking and splashing around me still gives me butterflies.

Jo and I have been training hard and I'm now able to run 5km in about 30 minutes, I'll definitely be increasing my running distance once the event is over, thankfully we only have to run 2.5 km on the big day which ought to be a breeze (granted that's after swimming 350m and biking 10km. We've been completing some bricks (1okm bike ride followed by 3km run) and when we finished the other day we were both impressed with our time and the fact that we weren't stumbling around like drunk orangutans when going from the bike to the run (the term 'brick' is appropriate because you're legs feel like they're full of cement when you try to run after biking a good distance). We have both been training on our mountain bikes; I thought the reason I was working so hard to get moving was because of the fact that my bike is a heavy duty man's downhill bike but DUH it was because my front brake was sticking. In other words I spent 6 weeks training with my front brake on the entire time. Needless to say when I fixed the brake I felt like I was working way less and moving much faster.

Now I don't have to worry about sticking brakes and a heavy frame because I picked up my new baby this afternoon. This little beauty is now mine, check it out!
A Devinci Silverstone SL 1 roadbike. It's SWEET! I upgraded to Shimano Tiagra shifters which basically means my gear shifts are killer. They have a dual control lever which makes it really easy to change gears without having to move my hands from the curved handle bars. I changed the seat to a comfy women's seat and bought some super sweet platform pedals. A great big wet thank you smooch to my hubby for encouraging me to get the new bike - such a smart man.

I rode my new ride home from the bike shop and wow! The bike is so light and the tires are so skinny: I fly! It's such a different feel compared to a mountain bike. Heavenly! I definitely have the biking bug now. I can't wait to hop on my new ride tomorrow - I'm thinking a 20km ride is in order.

Some Serious Pork is Flying High

For those of you who have been around since the early days of Jabbering Jaime (my first blog) you'll remember that when I mention pigs flying it refers to me exercising; well ladies and gentlemen the entire effing sty has lifted off! I started running almost daily three, or maybe it was four, weeks ago and my crazy (you'll understand why in a minute) sister-in-law/friend Joanne joined me last week.

Now here's the reason I say the entire sty has taken flight and that Joanne is slightly crazed. We've decided to take part in a triathlon on September 6th. I give Joanne full credit for this insanely fabulous idea - I'm nervous and excited and a little bit thrilled that I now have a serious goal to work towards. We made the decision yesterday and hit the community pool last night to swim 30 laps (660 m); my body is in surprisingly little pain today considering.

I am a pretty determined and goal oriented person but I have a hell of a time sticking to any exercise routine. Mike put it perfectly last night when he said to me that having this goal in sight is exactly what I need to get fit; I'm determined to complete this triathlon and am stoked that Joanne will be at my side when it happens!

We're not exactly sure which of the events we're going to take part in, the options we are looking at are the Super Sprint Triathlon (swim 375m, bike 10k, run 2.5) or the Sprint Triathlon (swim 750m, bike 20k, run 5k). I am definitely leaning towards the Super Sprint at this point in time but we'll see where we are in a month... maybe by then that will seem easy. Both are all women events and totally doable with the right amount of training. The swimming portion is what I'm most worried about since it's open water but I'm a pretty strong swimmer and with a little over two months to train I'm certain I can pull off at least 375m.

CRAZY huh?! If you know me you'll agree... Off to hit the roads dans la bicyclette, wish me luck!

Can't Get Enough!

I nearly forgot... again.

Today I am thankful for Kraft Dinner. I am also thankful that Mike doesn't eat the stuff, if he did I would have a serious problem. Thankfully his lack of love for KD means I only eat it when he's traveling.

He's in Boston... guess what I had for dinner? You got it.

Thanks to The Faz for this pic.

I went to the gym after school today - don't look so surprised - so I don't feel too guilty about eating the entire box. YUM!

This is what I'm surprised I like

I shook my head while grumbling and mumbling about Mike and his mountain biking adventures before August of this year. I thought he was nuts to throw himself down a mountain on a bike... until I tried it myself.

One trip down Whistler Mountain in BC and I was hooked.
I can't wait to go back next year, and the year after that, and the year after that, and the... Yep, I've fallen for biking (literally in the pic above).

Another surprising like of mine:

Thanks photobunny for the sweet onion pic (ha! get it? sweet onion.)

I used to hate onions but love, loVe, LOVE them now. That's probably not all that surprising, I don't think I'm alone on this one. Onions belong in a category along with red wine and fancy cheese, as your tastes mature you learn to love them.

Mmmm now I need a snack. Red wine and onions anyone?

Thanks to Earl and Cookie for the "This is..." theme this week.

Now I Get It!!

I've bitten the bullet and decided to pay for 24 hours of internet access so that I can update everyone on our adventures in British Columbia. We're having the most amazing time!

Mike and I agree that this trip is definitely our second best vacation (first being our Mexico/Jamaica wedding/honeymoon trip) and we're just halfway through it. We arrived in Vancouver last Friday and spent the night with Rebecca; she has the most phenomenal view from her condo on Sunset Beach.

Saturday morning we drove two hours to Whistler Mountain where we had planned to spend five nights. The two and a half hours it took to drive to the mountain seemed like just a blink of an eye thanks to the phenomenal views!

Cara, Herwig and Rosie met up with us in Whistler just a few moments after we arrived in the village. The boys hit the Whistler Golf course where they played a round, drank some pints and enjoyed the scenery.

Cara, Rebecca, Rosie and I spent the afternoon catching up over drinks (milk for the baby, beer for the ladies) and then took a hike to Lost Lake where we snapped some pics, oohed and ahhed over the baby and yapped some more.



Sunday afternoon the fun continued...
I now understand my husband's obsession with mountain biking. Cara, Rebecca and I rented some bikes and gear and hit the trails and WOW was it fun!

I'm totally hooked on mountain biking. I had a blast zipping down the hill with Reebs and Neen, three runs were just enough to get me hooked!

Monday and Wednesday there are women's clinics offered for a crazy good price at Whistler so I attended both clinics on my own and loved every minute. The girls were super cool and the coaches were awesome. They split us into groups by riding ability and there was no pressure to ride any runs we weren't comfortable with or to move at any particular speed. Both nights I rode with the lower intermediate group because I was comfortable riding blue runs (green are the easiest). I learned some basic riding techniques on Monday; Wednesday our coach, Jim, taught us to jump. Hitting table top jumps was what he worked with us on - not jumping over anything so mom don't fret - I caught a little air on a few of the table tops after practicing over and over again so that was pretty cool!

So far I've ridden Easy Does It (green), part of Golden Triangle (blue), B-line (blue), a bit of Ho Chi Min (blue) which was my least fav due to the zillion rocks and roots, Crank-it-up (blue) which I loved and Heart of Darkness (blue) which is pretty intense thanks to the drop on the right but wow is it fun! Mike is pretty stoked that I liked riding, we're going to bike together tomorrow! Yay!

Jessy, Colin, Ian and Jackie all arrived on Sunday afternoon. Rebecca headed back to Vancouver after riding but Cara and Herwig stuck around for another night. Remember I said we had planned a five night stay in Whistler? Well it has turned into eight nights thanks to a crazy rock slide that has blocked the only highway from Whistler to Vancouver. Thankfully our hotel has offered us a fabulous price for additional nights while the road is blocked. We've got it made at the Mountainside Lodge and would definitely stay here again in the future, we're right at the base of the mountain in the village. Check out the view from our room.


Monday the girls all went kayaking while the boys rode and others (Herwig - such a good man) took care of Rosie.

We had such a good laugh, particularly when Jessy flipped her kayak landing in the freezing cold creek next to a beach where three strangers were sitting, thankfully they were kind and helped us to right jess' kayak before they laughed at the situation. Hilarious!

We've been up to much more since Monday but I think this is a long enough post for today. I'll tell you about some of our other adventures tomorrow. It really has been a fabulous week!

She'll Walk Like a Cowgirl

Tomorrow I may very well resemble a cowgirl.

For the first time this year I hopped on my bike and I'm very proud to say that I rode it 8 km to my parents house; I spent 3 hours scraping paint off the back of the house, cooled off in the pool and then climbed back on my steed and rode 8 km back to my place. I will admit I took two different routes ensuring I had big hills to ride down each way, that being said there was no getting around big hills to go up on both routes as well.

On the way there I honestly considered stopping and turning around when I was less than half way - it suddenly hit me that I would have to complete this journey a second time in the same day. Thankfully I talked myself out of turning around and I completed my trip.

I said that my holidays would officially start following the presentation on "Abuse in the Deaf Community" I had committed to giving at the university and that took place this morning soooo HAPPY HOLIDAYS to me!

I've been terrible about keeping active even though I continuously publicly declare my intentions but here I go again. I will do something physical, even if it's just a 20 minute walk, every day of my holidays (now until August 24th) because I have absolutely no excuse not to.

The life of moi

I've had bags on the brain and really haven't posted about much else lately so here I am with an update on the life of moi.

Life with no school is amazing. This is a short list of things I have done since I finished school:
1. Finally visited Hannah's Tapas with Jess. Martinis and tapas = a perfect "end of my degree" celebration.
2. Try not to get too excited about this one. I organized my kitchen utensil drawers. Maybe not the most thrilling news but I swear less in the kitchen now.
2. On multiple occasions I've breathed in fresh air after work while standing outside in my yard rather than pressing my face up against the screen in my office wishing I was outside.
3. Walked. A 2.5 hour walk with mom on Sunday and a few other shorter jaunts on my own. We live near fabulous paths and I'm finally taking advantage of them.
4. Wandered through the mall just because! Do you know how long it has been since I've gone shopping without a plan? A long ass time. I miss window shopping and am enjoying it thoroughly! I spent 45 minutes in Michael's yesterday and managed to spend $0.00. This is an impressive act of self-control for me. I will admit that I did well at Michael's but heading into the Fabric store with the intent to 'just look' is a ridiculous and impossible feat so no more buying lunches, my weekly lunch bill is going to go towards fabric.
5. Signed up for the next level of Pilates, advanced level classes here I come.
6. Played with my sewing machine. As you can see from the posts below bags are on the brain! I spent two hours tonight surfing the net looking for funky bag handles and have decided that a trip to Japan is necessary. Not at all realistic but I'm allowed to dream dammit.

What do I have planned for the next little while?
1. More bags
2. Some volunteer work. I'm volunteering for a few hours on Friday after work to help the student I spend my days with finish off her community service hours... then it's time to sign up for some regular thang. Still have to figure out what that might be.
3. Making these - you know I have an obsession with bath goodies so why not save a few bucks and make my own? Amy Karol mentioned these on her blog and they sound super easy to make.
4. Celebrating mom & dad's birthdays.
5. Planning our summer trip out West.
6. Eating more gelato.
7. Hitting the gym at least two days a week.
8. Catching up with some peeps I've been missing.
9. Reading. This might not be for awhile yet, I am enjoying browsing websites and blogs but can't find it in myself to read at length just yet. I'll need a bit more time to let my brain rest.

And that is that.

Inside & Out

You may remember my public declaration back in October: "I'm going to start exercising." I thought writing it for the world (or at least for the three regular readers I have) might motivate my lazy arse. t didn't.

I didn't even bother making exercise one of my new years resolutions this year because I knew I would break it but now I'm making a new promise to myself, one you've heard before: I am going to start exercising. School is finished as of friday (praising the martini will be taking place to celebrate), spring has sprung and it's time to get healthy, not just my body but my mind. I want to spend the time left before I begin teacher's college - wow that feels good to write - pampering my mind, body and spirit. Sound cheesy? Maybe so but I don't care, I intend to make the most of my free time.

A friend of mine won a gym membership at the Fireman's Fashion Show a few weeks ago and she passed it my way since the gym is right around the corner from my house. I figured this was a sign, it's time to try the dreaded gym once again. I was a gym girl for a couple years but then lost interest. I officially quit the gym a year ago, I was tired of paying a monthly fee for something I wasn't using. A few months back I considered the idea of joining the new gym near my house for a fleeting moment but figured I would likely be throwing my money away once again. Thanks to Lori's winning ticket I'm now a member and it's not costing me a cent.

I went to my first cardio/weight class Monday night and although I looked like I was about to explode (picture a panting tomato) and was sweating like a stuck pig within five minutes of starting, I felt damn good when I was done and can't wait to go to the step class tomorrow night! The facility is super small and I think that's what I like most about it, there were only six girls working out in the cardio/weight room and another six in my class when I was there Monday; I love going to classes with only a few people, there's nobody to hide behind so I push myself harder. I'm still aching from that class and every time my muscles scream at me I feel like screaming high fiving myself, but that would be weird.

I might start a new blog to keep track of my attempts at becoming healthier... we'll see. In the meantime I'm going to post weekly updates of my progress, not to bore you but to help me keep track of where I'm at.

My mental hygiene attempts over the past week have involved water. I posted here about my love of baths a month ago, that same night I ordered some of those super cute cupcake bath bombs by Feeling Smitten. I've tried two of them and so far this one is my favourite:

Frosted snowdrops = YUM.

It smelled sweet and left my body feelings smooth and silky. I figured it would dye my tub blue and was stoked when I came back 20 minutes after the tub drained to find no residue. Perfect!

I actually tried the butter cream icing pictured below first, since it wasn't my fav bomb I was pleasantly surprised with the blue baby above.

I was a wee bit disappointed with the butter cream icing. The scent of the little cake before I placed it in the bath was divine! It was faint but I still had high hopes for it, once it was in the water the aroma was barely sniffable. I thought it might have just been me so I yelled at Mike and asked him to come and take a sniff, he couldn't smell anything at all. I even made him to smell my arm after my bath and he shrugged his shoulders: nothing. There wasn't much to this one, it didn't have the same silky texture in the water as the blue bomb. Maybe it was a dud, if there was a little more scent added to it I would have enjoyed it almost as much as the silky frosted snowdrop. Hmmm, maybe next time I should order a big one! I bet that would satisfy my sweet tooth.

Speaking of my sweet tooth, I'm terribly angry with Tanya. We finally made it out for a stroll Uptown last night, it was a beautiful evening and she took me out for gelato. A new addiction, just what I need, thanks Tanya. Passion fruit and chocolate hazelnut were my choices and what a perfect combo for my first gelato experience. My taste buds spent today crying out for more but I will not give in, I will not indulge... at least not until Mike gets home from Vegas. He's going to die when he tries the chocolate hazelnut, it tastes just like Kinder Buenos and he loves those things. What will it take for me to forgive Tanya? Another stop at gelato heaven maybe?

Just around the corner

Christmas is no longer creeping up on us, it's ready to run at us full tilt - one week from this moment it will all be over and I'll be curled up on the couch stuffed full of 5 days worth of food and ready for a week of hibernation. BLISS.

Rebecca comes home from Vancouver on Saturday and will be staying with us off and on until the new year. I'm so happy!! I miss her like crazy.

Note to self: must remember to wear skirt on christmas eve. Last friday while spinning around the living room (in between hopping like a frog and laying on the floor being a baby) I promised my nearly 3 year old niece that I would wear a skirt on christmas eve so that I could 'twirl' just like her. Thankfully she thinks I dance perfectly at this point in time and a skirt will be the icing on the cake. Give it a few years darlin and you'll realize Auntie Jaime's got no rhythm. There's a reason my parents didn't enroll me in dance classes.

It's going to be weird to have Cara & Herwig missing from the mix this year; with Cara only a month away from delivering her little nut she won't be making the long journey from West to East. This is the first christmas in about 10 years that I won't be spending at least part of the holidays with Cara. I'll miss you Cara Nina.... and your giant German too!!!

Weird. This growing up thing... sometimes I question the sensibility of it. Messes with my routine.

Dans ma bicyclette

Studying for my french exam while riding my bike - multi-tasking is my middle name.
For those keeping count, as I'm sure each and everyone of you are diligently doing because it's such an exciting thing to keep track of, yes it is only the second time I've climbed on Hilda (mom get your mind out of the gutter) but it will not be the last!

Time: 34 minutes
Distance: 11.3 km
Calories: 917

Followed up by some Pilates (just a few exercises)

So I burned off part of the Mexican feast prepared by Jessy for our girlie night last night, the rest I'm sure disappeared during the mad game of Celebrity that took place after dinner. Such a fun game and super easy to play, all you need are pens and some paper. I am notorious for not knowing the names of famous people but it was super fun and I actually guessed and acted out a pile of celebs successfully. This is a game to keep tucked in the memory for the next dinner party we attend.

Back to the books I go, then off to Mike's parent's for his birthday dinner. Wee roasties = YUM!

Gotcha!

Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!! That's how it should be spelt, not just Wii. Two teeny tiny 'i's do not do it justice. Let me explain.

Mike's birthday is quickly approaching (one week from today) and for the first time ever I broke down and gave him his birthday gift early. The only satisfaction I received from doing this was in the delivery. Miguel was in his lair working on music when I decided I couldn't wait any longer - he had to open the gift early because Walmart wasn't going to allow me to return it after the 20th if it had been opened (30 day return policy) - so down I went with gift in hand. I stopped just outside the door of his studio and stuck my head inside so he saw my bean but not the gift. With a very serious expression on my face, so serious in fact that he actually turned the music off before I opened my mouth, I explained: "I have to do this. It's going against all of my morals but it must be done, I'll explain why after..." I must have sounded pretty damn serious because mike looked worried, really worried, like 'oh my god what has she done' or 'what have i done' or 'what is about to be done' type of worried. HA! I rarely manage to frighten my husband and maybe I'm a cruel woman but there is some satisfaction in scaring my husband for just a brief moment in time.

Then I handed him his birthday present and he opened it up and was THRILLED! Wiiiiiii! My legs and arms hurt from bowling and let me tell you, I think I have found my calling, I need to find myself a bowling league. I'm not a big video game girl but the nintendo Wii is a swiiiiiiiit device.

Total change of subject
I'm stoked that I finally took myself to the doctor two weeks ago, the test results came back and I now know what my problem is, it's not 'just stress' or 'just overdoing it', I have a vitamin B12 deficiency!! Yay! Something that can be easily fixed. I started taking 1000 mcg per day of B12 on Friday and I am starting to feel better already! Is it partially pschosomatic? Maybe but that's okay with me, as long as I'm not ko'd on the couch at 9pm I'll be a happy and productive girl.

My uplift in mood might also have something to do with the fact that I chopped off my hair and dyed it black friday afternoon. I've been feeling so blah lately that I figured a change in appearance might help a girl out (the brown just wasn't doing it for me) and it worked! My fab stylist did an amazing job, I heart my new do!

Finally, pilates, i forgot to post last week. I went and it was fantastic! I think I've found my 'thing' I really love going, my body feels good after a session and the instructor is just phenomenal. She asked me last week if I've done pilates before and told me she assumed I had - I haven't!! I can DO this and I look and feel like I actually should be doing it - unlike volleyball or soccer which I've played in recent years and let me tell you it's not pretty to watch.

Hmmm I wonder if I can count playing with the Wii as exercise? Why not?!

Shedding

My declutter rampage continues! My used-to-be-obscenely-cluttered office is now part office and part work-out room! It took almost the entire day yesterday to get things organized but it was definitely worth the time and effort. My muscle aka Mike helped me drag out the big bits that were taking up space to make room for the exercise bike that has been hibernating in the garage for the last 3 months. Now I have no excuse to not exercise, I can actually listen to lectures or complete my readings while pedaling furiously on Hilda (the bike).

And that's just what I did today. Read a chapter for Moral Issues while riding my good friend Hilda. My butt muscles are going to be screaming tomorrow. Yes it's true ladies and gentlemen, pigs flew today! That's twice in one week if we count the week from Sunday to Sunday. Two cheers for me! Three cheers will be granted once this becomes a true habit.

Here's the breakdown aka boring bits for my records only- not for entertainment purposes by any means:

Hilda: 30 minutes, 10km, 850 cal.
Crunches: 100 (various)
Weights: pathetic.

It's a start anyways...

Fresh Start

I am starting to stiffen already. Tomorrow I'll likely feel like pulling all of the muscles out of my body and taking a meat cleaver to them. Yes it's true... pigs flew today.

My first pilates class was pretty good. My mom is my partner in crime for pilates and she liked the class too. The pace was slower than I expected but it's a fundamentals class so we're learning the basics slowly to ensure we do things right and don't end up injured. The last time I tried pilates I used a DVD and because I'm cheap frugal I decided to skip the basic DVD and go for the intermediate. I wouldn't recommend this route for those of you considering it. I tried to pull off the moves by carefully watching the instructors in the video while twisting myself into the modeled moves (hello gumby). I ended up creating a pile of knots in my neck and back and pulled a muscle as well. My massage therapist gave me hell for skipping the basic level and suggested I set aside my DVD and take a class to learn proper form. 4 years later I take her advice... better late than never.

This is my week of new beginnings and some 'try agains'. Pilates and a new bedtime are part of the former. I've been heading to bed at 11pm on weeknights since I was in my last year of high school - after my weekend of 9pm bedtimes due to exhaustion I realized that my less than 8 hours a night sleeping pattern might be part of my problem. I've always thought I was one of those people who function well on 6 or 7 hours of sleep but maybe I'm wrong! Imagine that. Maybe I would feel a whole lot, or even just a little bit, better if I actually managed to squeeze in an extra hour of sleep every night - 8 blissful hours of slumber.

So far so good. I woke up yesterday morning feeling like a million bucks (granted the time change was on my side) and today was a better start than most too impressive considering I'm still teetering on the edge of this cold thingo.

I'm attempting to keep track of what I'm eating and this falls into the 'try again' category. I've done really well with healthy eating in the past when I kept careful track of what I was stuffing into my gourd. When I don't write it down I eat whatever is in my path. I love food. It's a damn good thing I married a man who eats simply for survival because if Mike was a food lover like me I honestly believe I would have a serious weight problem. My main goal when it comes to food is to try to get back into the healthy eating habit. More fruits, veggies, grains etc and less sugar. I like sugar... a lot.

So there you have it. I'm off to a decent start, let's see if I can keep it up.

Oink, Oink - Fly Little Piggie, FLY!

That's it damnit, I'm tired of feeling like a pig and it's time to do something about it once and for all.

Now please don't leave me any comments telling me that I'm "just perfect the way I am" or that I'm "not fat". I know I'm perfect and I know I'm not fat. Feeling like a pig does not mean that I think I look like a pig and just to set the record straight: looking relatively thin does not mean that one is healthy. There are lots of unhealthy thin people and lots of healthy thick people. I'm not going to ramble on much more about this but it's one of those things that drives me crazy, "Oh you're fine, look how skinny you are."

I want to make it very clear that my use of the word PIG has nothing to do with size. Just because someone is obese does not mean that they are a pig. I chose pig for me because I feel like one: lazy, unhealthy (come on, they'll eat ANYTHING including a human being if you fed one to them - ew) and awkward.

The other reason I'm going with the pig theme is because "exercise and Jaime" go together about as often as "pigs and flying." Not impossible but it takes a whole lotta effort and happens rarely.

Now before you ask I'll answer the question that is on your mind: when do pigs ever fly?
My reply: I have very little doubt that some kid has flung a pig (a small one) across a barn yard somewhere in the world recently. I'm not saying I agree with it but really... if you lived on a farm and your mother told you that you would be allowed to... let's see, "stop going to school forever to become a pro wrestler 'when pigs fly'" wouldn't you head on out to the pig pen and see what you could do to help make that dream a reality?

Point being, it's time to make those damn pigs fly. I'm declaring publicly (to the 4 people that might read this anyways) that I am going to start exercising. For real this time. I figure seeing it on my blog is the motivator I need. I'll post when I actually do something physical and then I can weep in shame if I look back over a week and have no posts stating that pigs have flown. Hold me to it dammit. If I don't make pigs fly at least twice a week then please consider poking me with a stick or at the very least say no to chocolate when I ask for some.

Just for the record: I went to aqua aerobics last night - 15 minute ab class followed by 45 minutes RunFit (deep end). I pulled my toe while doing the rapid flutter (don't ask) and it was totally worth it. That's right ladies and gentlemen, you read it here: PIGS HAVE FLOWN.