Saturday, February 11, 2012

[124] 36 pounds, and I ain't talkin' currency

In 6 weeks I will be coming to the end of a goal I set for myself 1 year ago.

Original post: Goal: Drop 50 lbs in 1 year

Last January, I weighed 210 pounds. I have never felt an extreme level of embarrassment and disappointment in myself until that moment. Often questioning myself, "How did I let this get out of hand?" Last March I weighed 197 pounds and decided, I've had enough of this. I must get this under control. I've lost a total of 36 pounds since last January and I still have another 27 pounds to lose before March 25, 2012. That's 6 weeks away! How do I plan on busting down those last 27 pounds? Staying positive, continuing to eat fresh & homemade foods, and quite a bit of cardio.

"I've had the urge to go running lately. I'll probably make it to the corner and have to turn around.
...I live on a corner house."

Quoting myself because I'm real cool.

When I started this journey I was wearing sizes 12 and 14. I'm now comfortably wearing sizes 8 and 9! In fact, I only have two pairs of jeans in 8's and one pair in 9 (which happen to be my yellow jeans from my Pichu costume). I honestly can't even remember the last time I was in the single digits. (Single digits for the single girl. Haaaay!)

I have received numerous comments and messages about my progress. People I haven't talked to in years have started to contact me just to say congrats and keep going. All these positives keep me going! Not that I'm relying on others to push me towards my goal, but it sure does help. So, thank you to everyone who has helped me through this. Thank you for taking a moment out of your day to let me know that you have seen and support the improvements and changes I have made in my life to better my health.

I love being able to walk into a grocery store or a restaurant and say "no" to something I don't need.


This picstitch photo sums up how I feel about myself.
I often get the urge to play dress-up now that I feel as beautiful on the outside as I do on the inside. :) Love yourself because there's absolutely nothing wrong with doing so.

1½ years vegetarian & 13 months soda free.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

[123] Oh my hashbrowns

Have you ever woken up and asked yourself, "Did that really happen?"

No? Well then... Me either... *cough*

During my last couple of weeks in MA, I made it a point to get in as much hangout time with my friends before I had to say my see-you-later's. After a couple of late nights at the bar, we ended up at this place called the Golden Greek Restaurant. Amazing eggs and potatoes! I made the mistake of (drunkenly) ordering two eggs and hash. My friends voice still echoes in my head, "Jasmine... that's meat. You don't eat meat!" No worries, everyone. I gave them to the guy sitting next to me. Haha! The next few times I dined there I ordered one egg which comes with a side of potatoes and toast. Yumm! Seriously some of the best potatoes I've had. So good, in fact, that I started eating the potatoes off my friends plates. Yes, I'm that girl.

Now to the point of my post. Have you seen IHOP's hashbrown stacks?! I tried their spinach and mushroom hashbrown stack while out at breakfast with my lady friends. Normally I stay clear of mushrooms, as a high amount of them can cause my eczema to go crazy. But for the sake of not altering the dish, I stuck with it. I'm glad I did. I forgot how much I enjoy mushrooms!
This is pretty much what mine looked like. Before I ordered, I had contemplated ordering an extra side of hash browns, but I went against it and ordered fresh fruit instead. Glad I did! They really piled on the hash browns when they served me my dish. I was very pleased! This girl loves her potatoes. The fresh fruit was a great way to end my meal. If you haven't tried this amazing dish, I suggest you do, and soon! If I read correctly, they're only serving this until February 19th. Get to IHOP!

Friday, February 3, 2012

[122] "This Ain't My First Rodeo"

I've been back in Texas for one whole week now.
(Don't worry, I'm not going to make it a habit of counting how many weeks I have been home. Or will I?)

Before the week was up I took care of all the top items on my to-do list.
  • Unload trailer
    (shove everything into storage)
  • Drop off trailer before turn-in date
    (Bonus: flirt with U-haul employee)
  • Texas license
  • Fix my title and renew registration
  • Inspection
    (Pass with flying colors)
Now it's time for pictures!
Bought a new top in burnt orange, because that is so fitting for a Texan.
Not that I'm some die-hard Longhorn fan.
Breakfast: scrambled eggs and shrimp fried rice.
Long hair. Adding layers soon for more body but keeping the length.
Monday, as I was headed out to go renew my license, my not-so-baby sister called asking for a ride home as she had missed the bus. Perfectly fine by me as this gave me a reason to drive the F250 once again while my car's tags were still expired. I like the noise of a roaring diesel engine as I drive down the highway. In fact, I often crack the window a bit in my car just for the noise. (Am I alone in this?) Anyway. After I picked her up, we headed back home (a little less than 10 miles away). Right before we reached our exit I asked if she minded tagging along to Walmart. She loves hanging out with her big sister. I picked up a few things to eat for the week (as you'll see in the following pictures). The good thing about being vegetarian in this house, nobody will eat my spinach or avocados. Well, except maybe my dad.
Spinach, tomato, cheddar frittata.
Spinach, tomato, cheddar omelette with sour cream and hashbrowns.
First Sonic slush of the year. Powerade.

The late night rain left a display of beautiful clouds.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

[121] My Life in a 5x8 Container

Have you ever looked around at all of your belongings? Deciding what size trailer to rent for a one-way move?
I have. Multiple times.

Not-so-long story short, Shawno and I broke up. I have been homesick for the last 6 months of 2011, so, with the breakup, it was time for me to move back home. New England just isn't for me, nor would I have been able to afford to stay there.

I packed up everything I owned in our apartment, shoved it in a 5x8 U-haul, and started on my 2230 mile drive home. This trip didn't come without its complications. Somewhere along the highway in Connecticut, drivers were making poor choices.

On more than one occasion, a few people had to slam on their brakes in front of me. If you've ever towed a full trailer, you'll know that slowing down takes a little extra work from your brakes. Unfortunately for me, my front driver side brake pads needed to be replaced. I made the decision to drive all the way to Virginia with brakes that sounded absolutely horrible. The day I arrived at Regina's, we stopped at the auto part store so I could pick up some brake pads, rotors, and other essential items. Finished the night with Chinese buffet for dinner, short trip to Babies R Us to get wooden toys for the kiddies, and a couple more stops for things before heading back to her house.

The next morning, I was up at 6am, and outside by 7am to start working on changing my brake pads and rotors. This was no easy task. I had trouble removing my front driver side wheel. For whatever reason, this thing would not come off. No matter how hard I pulled. (And yes, I did remove the lug nuts before someone tries to get smart.) Luckily, Regina contacted a friend to come out and help me. I am so thankful for this man. He also had a c-clamp I lacked. I had everything else I needed thanks to my trusty new tool kit!

After banging at the wheel with a hammer for a bit, it finally loosened and we were able to start changing the brakes. Mike changed the driver side (while I watched every step) as I have only done this once before. He had me turn the car around so I could change the passenger side pads and rotors. Exactly what my dad does when it comes to working on car things. So thankful for Mike!

People think I am crazy for spending the night at highway rest areas and Walmart parking lots. They're a lot safer than Lifetime makes you think. After leaving one part of Virginia, I spent the night in the parking lot of a familiar Walmart. (My family holds a reunion in that area every summer.) The drive was smooth up until Tennessee where I ran into some heavy rain. Major highways through major cities are always rough during rush hour. I was almost successful at planning my stops to avoid any rush hour traffic.

The weather continued to be rainy through most of Tennessee and on into Arkansas. The rain finally let up shortly after West Memphis. Smooth ride through Oklahoma, except when my energy drink kept me from napping. One final nap before I finished that last stretch of highway through Oklahoma, down into Texas. Walked in my parents front door at 6:30am Friday morning. Running on a Monster Rehab, I was unable to sleep until Friday night, after a day trip to Arlington to visit my sister-in-law (bff's wife) and kiddies. Best way to be welcomed home!

Now I'm back in my hometown and living in my parents house. Keeping it classy at 25.

I'm on the hunt for topics to blog about. I have a few things on my craft to-do list for friends. Included on that list is my next batch of hand-made items for Christmas time. As well as hand-made items I've promised to a few friends. :)

First of all, I must tackle my old bedroom. It has managed to become a bit of a storage room as my siblings have moved out, while my 16 year old sister has taken over our 22 year old sisters old room (for the sole reason that it has cable hookups). This project will require freshly painted walls, steam cleaning the carpet, and switching out furniture between this room and my sisters room.

The second project will be to tackle the computer desk which is currently in the kitchen's breakfast area. I fully plan on turning it back into a breakfast area, but first I want to remove the huge desk (that is barely used by anyone other than my little sister). Change it out for a smaller desk/table and get my dad a filing cabinet for his important documents.

The third, and biggest project, will be to clean out the "game room". Aiming to turn this room back into a computer room/den for my dad. When we first bought the house in the 90's, the game room doubled as my brother's bedroom and dad's computer room. If not a den, I would love to make this a guest bedroom. It would be nice to have a place for friends and family to stay when visiting.

Whew, so many projects. On top of that, I have less than 2 months left to reach my weight loss goal. Once I get my scale set up I'll figure out how much I have left to lose. Thanks to this unusually warm winter season, I'll be able to get out and go for walks/jogs/runs without freezing. Time to get back into eating more fresh veggies!

Happy Blogging!

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