Diet Makeover Update

I did good this week! I started cardio last night, which I will squeeze in at least five times per week. I'm minutes from going on my morning walk, and thanks to my new S-pod (see Photo Blog), I am pumped up...I will let My Chemical Romance keep me pumped up when I'm sweating like a pig in the 100 degree heat. I lost 4 pounds this week, which I know will start leveling off soon. I lose the most weight right at the very start. So, yea me!

I'm in Love With A Vampire...

Vampire Edward Cullen or the beautiful Robert Pattinson who portrays him in the Twilight movie, either way, it makes no difference. I'm in love...the head-over-heals, be-still-my-heart, weak in the knees kind of love.

For those of you who are worrying about the loving husband I adore - don't. He knows. He laughs it off and I let him because I don't want to break his heart. Ahhh, but my love for Sid IS stronger. In fact, it's the only think keeping me from grabbing my girlfriends (yes, they love Edward/Robert too...so instead of fighting for him, we'll just share.) and driving cross country to the movie set in Portland, OR and risking my prison-free existence by breaking through security like a wild woman, just to gaze upon his face in person.

Yes, my friends, I've got it bad...even worse than my eighth grade love for Joey McIntyre of New Kids on the Block, which is saying a LOT, considering Joey got a homemade poster with my picture on it AND I wore his "I Love Joey" pin to school and the mall for weeks.

So, for all you girls out there who share my love, back off. He's mine. (Because naturally, given the choice of 100 million idolizing women, he would pick ME)

Why do I love him? Let me count the ways (No, I didn't make this video, and I have no problem tackling this chick if she steps in my way):

Diet

I've decided to blog about my diet, because maybe, just maybe, knowing that I've put it out into the cyber world will keep me motivated. I don't know HOW it will help, unless I make myself post the number of pounds I've lost each week. So, maybe that's what I'll do. I'll pretend that my diet starts today, and next Sunday I will post my pounds lost. Knowing that you all will see if it's a big fat ZERO will keep me motivated.

Twilight

My good friend Amanda is a book freak like me. When she told me about a series I had to read about teenage vampires, I laughed out loud. But, she persisted and assured me that I would not be disappointed, and I bought Twilight by Stephenie Meyer the very next day. I literally could not put the book down. It is THAT mesmerizing, and I am so excited for the movie, coming out in December. I am so in love with this series that when Amanda mentioned that Barnes and Noble would have a midnight release party for the 4th book, I insisted that we go! I am not ashamed to stand among preteens in costume, nor will I be embarrassed to giggle outloud like a silly schoolgirl when I get my hands on the new book. Our husbands, however, might want to stay home that night.

I'm on the third book, Eclipse, and I've already read 150 pages tonight alone. Let me know if any of you have read or are reading the series, but if you reveal anything in Eclipse that I haven't read yet, I will hunt you down like a thirsty vampire. Kidding...maybe.

Family Photo Op

This past weekend, we celebrated the completion of my parent's new home and Father's Day with a little family reunion. Not everyone was with us, but it was still a fabulous weekend. Here is our family photo (a couple managed to sneak out of this snapshot). By the way, Randy was not disgustingly dripping in sweat as the photo might suggest. He had just given his two pups a bath so they wouldn't smell up the car on the drive home.

Four Silly Things I'm Thankful For

1. My new Croc flipflops: They're ugly, they're bulky, and they're heavenly. I feel like I'm walking on a puffy white cloud and my feet have never been more content. Oh happy feet!

2. My new hammock: I've never dreamed I could love so much until I found it. Not really, but you haven't experienced true peace until you've swayed under a perfect blue sky dotted with beautiful white clouds with pretty birds gliding over head on a quiet Sunday afternoon (okay, so the birds were a little much - I literally prayed to God that one wouldn't poop on my face).

3. Our new DVR sytem: Pause and rewind live TV!? Record up to 100 hours of programming and two programs at a time? Are you kidding me? Yes, I realize this technology has been around for several years now, but it doesn't make it any less mind-boggling.

4. Wind: While temperatures have been well into the 90's for weeks, you wouldn't know it. Like a loyal and steadfast companion, the wind has been unwavering. Lovingly, it has cooled these hot summer days and made summer a "breeze" - get it?

Quantum Wellness

I am sort of a book freak. This is my nightstand at the moment. I'm notorious for reading several books at a time, and some end up half-read when I lose interest.

My current read (don't be skeptical just because it's on the bottom of the stack!) is Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston.

I've only read the introduction, but I've gathered that according to Freston, health isn't the absense of aches and pains. There are 8 Pillars of Wellness she believes will lead us to true health and wellbeing. They are:

1. Meditation (daily quiet times)
2. Visualization (visualizing the person we want to be)
3. Fun Activities (making fun a priority in our lives)
4. Conscious Eating (not just eating healthy, but knowing where our food comes from)
5. Exercise (1/2 hour per day)
6. Self-Work (learn about ourselves, spirituality, emotionally, physically)
7. Spiritual Practice (making this a priority in our lives)
8. Service (don't lose ourselves in our own worlds, but reach out to others)

One radical (in my opinion) choice she advocates is a vegan diet. I am an animal lover. So much so that I cover my eyes when I drive through Amarillo (the first time I saw all those cows shoved together in a filthy pin I cried), I cry when a truck load of pigs on the way to slaughter pass me by on the highway, and I've sheltered myself from learning what really happens in animal factory farms. I'm excited to dig deeper into the issue and discover how this book will change my diet. I have no idea what I believe. I do know that God gave us animals for our survival, and I certainly don't believe eating them is sinful! I do, however, believe that animal abuse is. I'm looking forward to self-discovery on this particular topic.

I read lots of books that I certainly will never blog about but I have a feeling this book is going to change my life. I'm so guilty of walking through life a bit out of touch with the world around me and certainly out of touch with my own wellbeing.

Let me know if any of you have read this book! I would love to hear what you think.

Today Was a Special Day

Today, we said goodbye to Grandad. It was a beautiful, perfect ceremony lead by my cousin Mark and brother Randy, with help from Sid. We laughed, we cried, and we fellowshipped, just as my Grandad would have wanted. Mark said it best when he joked that Grandad had warned us every Christmas for the past ten years that it might be his last (and after his speech, we would all solemnly nod at Grandad but wink at each other because we knew he was healthy as a horse), but that didn't make it any easier today when we said goodbye. 90 beautiful years he lived and we all loved him to pieces. I also added a post to my photo blog: http://leighsproject365.blogspot.com