Montreal, you have my heart

A couple of girlfriends and I went to Montreal for a spa weekend as an early bachelorette party. It was amazing!

We went to Bota Bota spa where we had 90-minute massages, enjoyed the water circuit for a few hours, and ended the day with personalized facials. We had delicious food and drinks and walked around a beautiful old city. 11/10 I will go back. What a perfect weekend.

Rainy days and Mondays

Last week Monday-Wednesday it was 95 degrees, sunny, and humid. Today is 57 degrees, rainy, and chilly. It’s like summer just left in the middle of the night. While I do enjoy fall for the changing leaves, the football, the boots and sweaters, and fall activities, I am NOT ready for what comes next.

Because I lost such a significant amount of weight back in the day, I think that when I want/need to lose weight now, it should come off at the rate that it did when I had 150 pounds to lose. That is NOT the case and I am quite irritated about it. I am praying that the 2.8 pounds I’m up from 2 weeks ago is just because I’m doing weight lifting and different muscle movements that I was before. Because I think I just might lose my mind.

I still don’t know exactly what is wrong with me in terms of hormones/weight/whatnot and I am so annoyed. I want answers!!

I did a lot of baking this weekend; banana bread, apple crisp, and two batches of chocolate chip cookies. I don’t tend to eat what I bake, not sure why, I just rarely want to eat the finished product, even though I KNOW it’s delicious. (So I know it’s not that I’m sabotaging my diet! I track and eat so well, but nada)

We went to a friend’s house for a fire Friday night. Our dogs played so hard that they both were limping and they were exhausted the next day as well. Sunday we had a little get together with friends for NFL games (I watched my Husker game without a crowd Saturday as I really don’t enjoy watching those games with non-fans) and the dogs once again played super hard. They both passed out on the couch and barely moved. They’re about 5 or 6 years old (both rescues and we honestly don’t know their exact age) but it makes me sad to see they’re getting older. I mean, look at these faces!!

This is Rio. She’s a lab/Husky mix and is just the best girl.

My sweet Charlie boy.

Ok friends, I’m heading home to workout! Have a great night!

Tagged by @morningmiles

Rules: Bold what you prefer and Tag 10 people

1. Go apple picking or go on a hay ride

2. Scary vs. sweet

3. Sweaters vs. boots

4. Socks vs. mittens

5. Bonfires vs. football

6. Tick-or-treating vs. watching scary movies

7. Apple pie vs. bake cookies

8. Halloween vs. Thanksgiving

9. Bake pie vs. bake cookies

10. Rain vs. fog

11. Black cats vs. owls

12. Ghosts vs. wizards

13. Harry vs. Halloween

14. Go hiking vs. sleep in

15. Cinnamon vs. nutmeg

16. Reading vs. writing (I can’t choose!)

17. Hot chocolate vs. tea

18. Live in a cabin in a forest vs. have it be fall 24/7

19. Candy apples vs. caramel apples

20. Blankets vs. pillows

21. Roasted marshmallows vs. roasted chestnuts

22. Coffee vs. apple cider

23. Read leaves vs. orange leaves

24. Braids vs. bows

25. Scented candles vs. the smell of fresh baked goods

26. Carve pumpkins vs. make pumpkin pie

27. Pumpkin spice lattes vs. chai tea lattes

28. Coats vs. oversized sweaters

29. Beanies vs. berets

30. Candy corn vs. peanut butter cups

31. S’mores vs. apple crisp

32. Jump in a pile of leaves vs. swing on a tire swing

33. Corn maze vs. haunted house

34. Bob for apples vs. visit a pumpkin patch

35. Whipped cream in hot chocolate vs. marshmallows on hot chocolate

I’m tagging @wiserstrongerbetter , @keepgoinggreen , and @breatherunlive

Health Care in this Country is a Joke

I had to have an internal ultrasound and a lot of blood work two weeks ago. This morning I got my EOB’s and of the $2200 I was billed, I owe nearly $800! For some blood tests and an internal ultrasound! The bloodwork cost more than the ultrasound! I also still owe just over $1000 for the procedure I had done last September 15th. I’m so depressed.

I feel like I will never stop paying medical bills.  I just got paid yesterday (my second 3rd paycheck month of this year) and I wanted to save $500-$1000 but now I’m going to use that to pay off this latest hospital bill. I am grateful that I can afford to do this, but I’m so frustrated with how crippling medical bills are. 

I then checked how much how wedding trip will cost, and the price went up $200 from last night. We still have time to book, but that just frustrates me. I also talked to the resort wedding photographer and found out the prices so now we have to find another $1300-$2000 for that. ARGH! IT NEVER ENDS!!!

In other news, we’re going to the New York State Fair this weekend. I have mixed emotions about whether or not it will be fun or just sticky and expensive. I am excited to go–it’s in Syracuse so we will get out sticks where we live, but I feel like it might be a waste of money. At least we will get to go the Husker Football Watch Bar in Syracuse so I can watch the game with my fellow transplanted Husker Fans!!

Have a great weekend, friends!

Hump Day Happenings

  • It is 78 degrees in my office. I am melting. Last week, the air was cranked down to sub-zero temperatures and I needed a jacket. Can we please find a happy medium?
  • After much deliberation and a chat with @high-heel-mileage I have decided to try out The Transform App, by Chris and Heidi Powell. I’ve only used it one day, but so far I dig it. You get a week free, but if you sign up online before next week Tuesday, you can get the year for ½ off! It is actually making me EXCITED to work out again! Finding my motivation is HUGE for me right now. I will keep you posted.
  • I found out this week that when we’re married, the Army or VA (as my boo is medically retiring from the Army in a few months) will fully pay for me to get my Masters degree. The university I work for will also pay for it, but under some conditions–I can only take so many classes a semester, I will get taxed on the money and (of course!) it will mess up my income taxes the following year, etc. That makes me less likely to want to do it, just because if I’m going to do it, I want to get it done NOW. But I’m NOT about to take out any student loans, as I paid my undergrad loans off in 2015 and it has been amazing not to have that payment! (Living at home afforded me the luxury to pay my loans off in 9 years and 9 months!) 
  • So, with the news that they will pay for it, I have been researching online, accelerated Masters of Communications degrees. I would NOT start that until next fall. 
  • We are supposed to meet some friends for dinner and a concert tonight. Dinner starts at 8 and the concert at 9 (at the same place). I’ve officially hit the age where I do not want to do anything on a work night. Especially something like this that starts at 8pm! #oldladystatus

Have a great rest of the week, friends!

Thursday Things

  • I walked into the bathroom at work on Monday to find Paula Abdul’s face staring back at me from the cover of Ladies Home Journal. Someone had cleaned out their stockpile of magazines over the weekend and brought in some from 2008 and 2009 to give away. Coincidently, that is about the last time I even thought about Paula Abdul.
  • I am simultaneously struggling with wanting to write ALL THE POSTS to finding that I grapple with an intense dose of writer’s block that strikes the instant I sit down at the keyboard. Because, after all: 
image

True story, Ernie! (Or computer, be that as it were.)

  • Fun fact: I want to be a published author one day. More than just news releases and stories I mean. I worry that I would go crazy being alone in my head all the time while my boo is at work, and I worry that I would have a hard time staying motivated. 
  • I MIGHT get to go back to Washington, D.C. the week of Labor Day. One of our professors has a film documentary premiering there and it has the potential to be pretty big in the academic world (focusing on open access and the academic publishing industry). My boss told me today that I should go with him to facilitate interviews with big players in higher ed publishing. I’m crossing my fingers!
  • I am on the struggle bus with working out and getting into that routine. I ran a measly mile last night after work, which was something, but I am kicking myself for not being able to get up before work and getting my workout in. I just won’t do it after, but here I sit, at 3:15pm and my workout is NOT done yet. Le sigh.
  • I ran out of watermelon last night. I have been bringing it with my lunches for weeks now, and I miscalculated my grocery store trips and now I don’t have any and WAH! 
  • Ok, I need to get back to work now. Enough time wasted!