The skinny [is] on, summer!

Summer is coming. I really think it is just about here. And for that, I am mostly happy. =)

What scares me a little bit is that last summer I was at my slimmest weight and bought a ton of new clothes. Well the clothes were partly due to the smaller size and partly due to a very nice little trip we took called a honeymoon in Belize! Now, since we have been married (252 days) I have worked out very inconsistently. This is due to many different reasons but most of it is due to my own laziness and desire to eat lots of good foods that are very high in calories.

Pre-wedding, I was working out 4-5 days each week and was in a fit kind of shape that I have never been in. Post-wedding, not so much of that. I have been mostly fine with that. Until recently, when I got out some summer clothes that had been stored away and much to my chagrin, could not button the pants. TMI for the two of you, I know. Sorry!

So I decided it had gone too far, seriously, the waist line and the laziness. The hubs and I began by bumping up or daily intake of fruits and veggies, this alone helps tremendously and my ever-gracious workout partner/sister/friend forever (Lacey) said I could work out with her again. The only problem, she is now stronger than me, and faster, and pushes herself harder... Ugh. That is a total different story. So, keep in mind, for the past few months I have been slowly getting some exercise through sporadic gym visits, walking/jogging with Charlie and folding laundry and running the vacuum. =)

Now, today marks the end of the first week that I have had a consistent gym schedule in about 252 days! We worked out 4 times this week and it has felt so good! I am already noticing my big pants that were getting a bit snug were slightly easier to put on in the mornings.

So if you are thinking you'd like to be a teensy bit tinier by summer, go for it! The time is now! If you need an idea of where to start, we do simple weight training for muscle tone, think free weights (as heavy as you can manage) and a balance ball, pushups, and dips; core training for nice abs posture and balance, think all sorts of crazy crunches, lunges, and stabilization poses; and cardio, think bike, elliptical, or treadmill for at least 30 minutes each day. You can do all of this whether you have a gym membership or not.

And in case you were wondering how to fit a workout into your already busy schedule, go to bed a little bit earlier and go to the gym before work in the morning! We are those freakish gym people that go at 4:30 in the morning and I honestly think this is the best time to go to the gym. Especially if you are not interested in seeing half-naked women (and men) trying to attract those of the opposite sex.

Ok, that's all. Just wanted to share my little accomplishment with you and encourage you to start your own.

ae

milka

Have you ever had Milka? I thoroughly enjoy Milka. It is like no other. If you know someone going to Europe in the near future, have them bring you back some Milka. Surprisingly Milka is made by Kraft foods. Very surprising considering how good Milka is. I have now typed Milka 7 times.

Anyway, I was munching on some that my sister was so gracious to share with me and I just wanted to share with you how much I enjoy it. Now, in case you are still wondering what Milka is, let me tell you. Milka is some of the best chocolate you will ever taste. It is sold wherever you would find any old candy bar but I am surprised that they would even put this next to a Snickers bar. It is just so good. The worst part about it, not sold in the US. Well people in Europe will tell you that you can buy it here under a different name or even the same name since it is owned by Kraft. Unfortunately it is just not the same. So get some Milka today! =) It is creamy and tasty and just perfect.

New bed

So we have been talking about getting a new bed for quite a while. We got a decent hand-me-down mattress set and the hand-me-down bed we had was huge and starting to get pretty squeaky. We also wanted to get something that matched our personalities more. So we began our hunt with a walk-through of Furniture Row, American Furniture Warehouse, Wal-Mart, and Target. We found some that we kind of liked but not really so we were back to square one. We started looking on the internet. Target.com had some good options as did walmart.com. Then we looked at Ikea.com and found a winner. Josh wanted to up and drive to Salt Lake City that night to buy it. We looked at purchasing it on their website and then after seeing what a simple design it was we were both struck with the thought, "Maybe we can make it ourselves!"

We immediately sat down and drew up a plan. We figured measurements and exactly how much wood we would need. After that, we went to Home Depot and priced the wood and found that it would only cost about $80-90 for all the wood. About half the cost of the bed on Ikea's website! Since it was late into the evening by then we decided that Josh would go back and buy the wood in the next few days now that we had a precise shopping list created. As it turned out he didn't get to build the bed until after our vacation due to being called for some hire-back shifts at work but that was just fine.

It was a pretty simple design, just a box frame on legs with a slat support inserted into the middle of the box. The box has a small edge around the bottom to hold the slats. The headboard itself weighs in at about 60 pounds. It is a very sturdy bed and no squeaks yet. Charlie is happy because now she can jump on the bed by herself. Great! J

For more pictures, click on the link.

From Bed

vacation

Well our vacation got off to a great start. My sister picked us up at 0 dark thirty and took us to the Colorado Springs Airport. Frontier had just started flying from COS the previous week so check-in was a little slow although we had previously done it online we had to go through the whole process again. I don’t know. J
So we finally get checked in and get to security—one lane open. Our pilot and crew come up to the line asking people if they can go ahead because really we can’t go anywhere until they get through so of course everyone is fine with that. We get through with no problems…or so I think. I waltz through and get my carry-on bag and every personal item that has now been made public and hear the TSA person say wait bring that bag back. Thankfully they were talking about a bag that had just gone through the x-ray, not mine. But of course since Josh is a gentleman and I have gone through before him, the bag must belong to him. I sit down to put my clothes back on…excuse me, my shoes, belt and jacket. While 2 more TSA employees are called to look at the computer screen that is still examining Josh’s carry-on bag.

They finally release the bag from the machine and a man tells Josh not to touch the bag because they need to search it. Josh starts to look kind of interested. I am sitting watching this whole thing.

TSA Agent-“Do you have any sharp objects in here?”

Josh-“Um, no, not that I know of.”

TSA Agent-“Well it looks like you do.”

Josh-“Well….uh…uh…hmm…OH, maybe I left my Swiss Army Knife
on my key ring?”

TSA Agent-“Um no, it’s a little bigger than that sir.”

TSA Agent continues to search through the bag. I am thinking obviously he has searched the whole bag, there is really just one big opening where you throw everything in.

Josh’s face is continuing to turn a nice shade of red, as the TSA Agent continues rummaging through the bag. Now I am totally intrigued, the thoughts that are going through my head are things like oh my word is there a gun in there? Is he in trouble? What could possibly be in there?!

I am looking from the bag to Josh’s face to the TSA guy’s hands and eventually he finds it. Neatly hidden behind the back padded panel and the back side of the bag from the last time we went camping was a nice, shiny, black, recon hunting knife. This is not some little boy’s pocket knife, no, this is a 12-inch long hunting knife in a very nice shade of black with a fancy handle and sheath to hold it. The TSA Agent pulls the knife out ever so slowly and shows it to Josh who by now has covered his face with his hands and is saying, “Oh my gosh, I am so sorry, oh my gosh, I am so sorry. I did not know that was in there. How did that get in there? Oh my word. Oh man!” I am still watching from the side and I am thinking, “Oh my word, he is going to get arrested and I’m going to go on vacation by myself. What should I do? Tell them his dad works for the president? Oh my life. This is bad.”

So they had to confiscate the knife which was a very nice knife and would cost you a pretty penny so I felt so bad for Josh but he just felt so bad for bringing that to the airport. Not to mention the hundreds of other places he then realized he had taken that bag in the past 8 months…think libraries, coffee shops, parks…oh my life. They let him go right through after that which I was kind of surprised by. There were uniformed police officers there and they didn’t even bat an eye.

That was the start of our vacation and the first thing Josh did when we got to Denver for our layover, buy a coffee. The napkin that came with the coffee said it best,

We finally arrived in Michigan and my mom had planned a get together with tons of people who wanted to meet Josh. That was a lot of fun because some of the people I had not seen in like 3 years! A few days later we drove to Ohio to see some of Josh’s relatives. It was really nice to meet them and his aunt cooked up an amazing dinner along with a wild turkey that his uncle
had shot recently. It was great for both of us to get to meet so many new people because we hear their names from each other but now we have faces with the names in our minds. Then we had some more time with my parents and we went to a Detroit Tigers’ game. That was a lot of fun! We then went to see one of my friends from college who lives in Traverse City, MI with her husband. Josh had never seen northern Michigan so he really enjoyed it. Then we came back to my parent’s house again and helped with a church workday to clean up the yard around their church and also went to a wedding for my friend Stephanie.

All in all it was a great trip; we did a lot of driving, but saw a lot of people and that was the reason we went. Our next trip will definitely be a relaxing vacation! Click on any of the pictures to see more of our travels!

Me and Chris From Traverse City

Joel & Josh From Traverse City

us-bowling From Traverse City

Chris & Joel From Traverse City

Old Mission Lighthouse From Traverse City

The Caldwells of Ohio! From Vacation

us-Tigers' Game From Vacation

Josh & my Dad From Vacation

me & my Mom From Vacation

Ok, that's all folks! Hope you enjoy our stories and photos. Tomorrow's post-the bed that Josh made for us!!

Where in the world have we been?

Well it's been just about a year since we last posted. Not. By the end of this weekend we should have some new posts and pictures up for you to see. J

In the past month we have flown 2400 miles and driven 1300 miles to see family and friends (we called it vacation?), hauled lots of junk from our yard to the dump (3 truck loads), started planting the garden (some of which Charlie may have destroyed), designed/built/painted a bed (Josh is such a handyman), sold some stuff to the pawn shop (we almost have a guest room now), and attended 2 baseball games (Detroit Tigers and CS SkySox). We have been a little bit busy and it has taken its toll. We are tired but we are being renewed each day. Josh caught the crud that is going around but he is doing much better. I was blessed with just 1 night of some kind of sickness. All is well, God is good. We were able to take our vacation and not have the costs hit our budget thanks to a very nice thank you gift from my employer. God is very good.

Some inspiration today:

Pour Out by Shawn McDonald

Pour out your water
That I might take a sip
Your love consumes me
Every drip
It is like Honey
On my lips
Pour out your water
That I might take a sip
Your words
Are a lamp unto my feet
When I walk down these
Dark and Lonely streets
You are all I need
Pour out your mercy
And clear this busy mind
Your love is like Eden
A slice of apple pie
It is like sugar on my tongue
So pour out your mercy
Clear my busy mind
Your words
Are a lamp unto my feet
When I walk down these
Dark and Lonely streets
You are all I need
Your words
Are a lamp unto my feet
When I walk down these
Dark and Lonely streets
You are all I need

Thank you, Shawn, for being the 6^th song that my iPOD chose to play today. J As I said, pictures and all that fun stuff coming soon!

Grace to you,

ae