The Fruits our Our Labor

I love having a garden.  This is our second year and we decided to double the size because we enjoyed it so much last year.  About a month ago I put in lettuce and spinach, and a whole bunch of onions.  There was also an "incident" involving 3 broccoli plants and a small rodent.  One plant disappeared, one was eaten all the way to the ground, and one was completely stripped of all of its leaves.  Thankfully, the one that got stripped, actually survived, so we're going to get a little broccoli this year.  Then this past weekend, we got 2 tomato plants, 1 bell pepper, 1 jalepeno, zucchini, cucumbers, green beans and sugar snap peas.  We also put some parsley, basil and "lime" thyme in a container.  The lime thyme smells fantastic, I can't wait to use it!  I've also thrown some fancy mint in one of my flower beds, since they're perennials, candy mint and chocolate mint, these will be great for teas!  We're also trying out a watermelon plant and some strawberries.  My husband picked out the watermelon, we'll see how that goes, it's supposed to grow 20 pound melons!  Knowing our luck, which, usually tends to be good when it comes to the garden, we'll have a dozen watermelons and not know what to do with them!!

We're already starting to get lettuce and spinach for salads.  There is just nothing better in a salad than fresh baby lettuces and spinach.  Look how pretty that is!

Just a simple salad with grape tomatoes and blue cheese, I could eat this every day!

I'm also about a week into trying to be more active and eating less.  I'm doing pretty well.  I've walked 3 times and we went diving this weekend, which counts for swimming.  I'm also trying to eat smaller portions.  I've tried eating better and eating less, but I don't have the willpower to do both, apparently.  I just don't do well with being hungry!

Or I Could Just Buy Bigger Pants

To follow up my lovefest of a post last week, I'm going to complain a little.  Because I've decided that it's my blog and I can whine if I want to!  So there. 

So I woke up this morning intending to wear my khaki cords to work, since they're comfy and it's cold outside*.  When I put them on, I discovered I don't need a belt to keep them up.  At first I was happy, because I hate wearing belts, then I realized what this actually meant.  That I'm gaining weight again.  Not cool.  The weight gain wouldn't bother me if it didn't mean that my pants don't fit me and that I look pregnant in most of my shirts.  It's just not worth looking pregnant when you NEVER HAVE BEEN.

What this means is that I need to exercise, and probably eat better, or at least less.  Which is what this blog started out to be last year; motivation to get in shape and maybe lose a pound or 10.  Therein lies the problem, I don't like to work out.  It is just too much work.  And I'm lazy.  But I like to eat stuff with lots of sugar and grease. Oh! And carbs.  Wonderful, delicious carbs.  Hmm, remind me why I need to work out again?

I do know that if I start working out, I'll feel better and have more energy.  Plus that 5K isn't going to run itself!

*cold being colder than yesterday-it's in the 50's whereas yesterday was in the 60's

We now return to your regularly scheduled blog posts...

Sorry for the delay, lets get back on the blogging track. This post will be just a quick catch-up post on what's been going on for the last month I've been MIA!
So, got back from our fabulous trip to Indonesia last Tuesday, still recovering from the 13 hour time difference and the 30+ hours of travel time, each way. Man! Talk about jet lag! I'm actually surprised that I feel as close to normal as I do. I've heard it takes a day per time zone, it's amazing the effect that flipping your days and nights has on your body. Oh yeah, not to mention the dramatic climate differences! The first couple days we felt like we had the flu, hot, then cold flashes, stomach issues, insomnia mixed with exhaustion. Fun stuff. But it was so worth it. It was an amazing trip! Stunningly beautiful, both topside and underwater. The culture and people were wonderful. Food (for the most part), was FANTASTIC. I'll give more detailed info when I post pictures over the next couple of days.
So that was 2 and a half weeks of January, from the 10th through the 26th, so what else have I been up to? Well, not much, so don't get too excited! Before the trip, was mostly prep work. Getting packed (roll up spacebags are a Godsend!), filling prescriptions (OMG, the expense of this that you don't account for when you plan a trip), scuba and camera gear checkups, lists, lots of lists, document compiling and finalizing everything. Overall, everything went extremely smoothly! Considering we were going to the other side of the world and all!
Since we've been back, I've been shockingly ambitious and motivated. I have major motivation issues, as mentioned before. But I've just been wanting to knit and sew and cook! Especially cook! I think I've been inspired by both the Indonesian food and the angry chicken and Smitten Kitchen blogs. I've also been trying to eat more naturally, I'm not doing perfectly, but I'm trying! That's one of my goals, to eat more natural, less processed food. The food in Indonesia was all from scratch with no preservatives or chemicals. Not only did it taste better, but I felt better. All the swimming and exercise probably helped too!
After work yesterday I hit Whole Foods for some produce and other miscellaneous items. I want to make the local hot sauce that we ate on absolutely everything, from fish to french fries! It's called Dabu Dabu and it is super simple. I also want to learn to make Nasi Goreng and Pisang Gorang. Basically fried rice and fried bananas. Yeah, not low calorie, but better than cheeseburgers and Wendy's Frostys!
Well, I'll be posting pics soon from our trip and tell you how the Dabu Dabu turned out!

Days like today, I just want to go home and curl up on the couch to knit...

Work has been stressful this week, cleaning up data in one database so we can build a new one, with a deadline of April 8. That's on top of everything else that I have to do. But the biggest thing is that my grandpa went into the hospital on Monday. He's been on periteneal dialysis since November, but just switched to a cycler at night 3 weeks ago. Since then, he's become weaker and weaker, and the doctors can't seem to figure out why. He's not in any pain and he's come off the oxygen (he's had emphysema for 15 years), but isn't gaining any strength back. He's not even able to pull himself up in bed or move his legs without help. Doctors have been putting him through test after test and can't figure out anything, but that's only when you can find anyone to talk to. Hospitals kind of suck sometimes. Not to mention its rainy and soggy outside, bad weather never helps anything.
On a good note, I got a delicious lunch from Noodles and Company. Japanese Pan Noodles with Sauteed Beef, yum! I don't know if it's good or bad that food is one of the few bright spots in today. I guess you gotta find joy in the small things... :-)

Cold Water Diving and Divemastering

So, we went diving last Friday at Lakeview RV Park in Lancaster, Ohio. It was cold!! I was bothered by the cold on the surface more that day than I was on our ice dives! We did one 40 minute dive, vis wasn't too bad, about 10-15 feet. Sounds crappy, but for Lakeview, it's not bad at all. I'm an Ohio diver, I'm used to low vis! We had a pretty good time despite the cold, and I'm jealous that Jeff is going up to Gilboa without me this Friday! I'm not a big fan of missing dives! But, it sounds like it's going to be yucky weather, so maybe it's not so bad.
Also, I'm cracking down on the Divemaster studying. I've got to get the book read and the tests taken. I still have the watermanship skills and the 4 confined water dives to do too. Thankfully the weather is getting warmer and I'll be more motivated since we'll be diving more. We've convinced our neighbors J & V to get certified and took them to Scubafest this past weekend to get them in the pool for a Discover Scuba session. V's not really sure about it, but J is really going to do well I think. V just needs some more pool time to get comfortable breathing underwater. We're humans, we're not supposed to breathe underwater, of course it's going to be awkward at first!
I swam at the rec center again today, man that's a workout! I did 550 meters in about 30 minutes. I'm so out of shape! I've been running too, and trying to watch my diet, but I'm just not cut out for dieting. I don't have the willpower, and I like ice cream too much!
Well, I need to go read before the husband gets home. I'm going to take advantage of the empty house!

I'm Totally Working Out Tonight... Really!!

I HAVE to, I haven't worked out since Friday. I'm a slacker. And I had cake for breakfast. Plus I found (through the Ravelry forums) 2 awesome motivational websites, 1 on Runners World, this is an article on getting started running. An 8 week plan to get you running 2 miles in 30 minutes.
Swin Plan, you sign up for this website and enter some information about your level of swimming abilities and it will build a custom workout plan for you! Cool!
Since it's raining, and I don't have workout clothes, I will be working out at home tonight with this video: Jillian Michaels 30 day Shred
The first time I did it, it was way harder than I expected it to be, but, it's getting easier. I'm also starting the 200 Sit-ups program. Yeah, I get bored easily. I've just got to get my butt into shape! Once the weather starts warming up, I've got to get out there and get my divemaster swimming done so I can get my instructor done by the end of the summer.

I've done better with the diet than I usually do, but I'm just not cut out for dieting. I like junk food too much and I have no willpower. But, when I weighed myself on Monday, I had lost 2 pounds! So I'm happy with that. And I haven't given up yet on it and said screw it I'm eating McDonalds for breakfast Wendy's for lunch, Taco Bell for dinner and topping it off with ice cream. Okay, so maybe I'm not THAT bad, at least with the fast food. But I loves me some fast food...mmm, Frosty...

BTW, the diet I'm following is the ABS DIET POWER food diet.
A-Almonds
B-Beans
S-Spinach
D-Dairy-lowfat
I-Instant Oatmeal
E-Eggs
T-Turkey and other lean meats
P-Peanut Butter
O-Olive Oil
W-Whole Grains
E-Extra Protein-in the form of whey protein powder
R-Raspberries and other berries

I Heart Fat Quarters!

Went to Joann's today at lunch and they have all their fat quarters on sale for $1 each! Yay! Pretty much all of their other fabric is on sale too! Look what I bought:

I especially love the doggy one and the pink ovals.

The blue and browns are for pillows for the living room. Haven't decided completely what they're going to look like, but the solid brown is the back panel.

And I picked up the liner for the purse I'm going to make. The silky fabric is the liner and the gray and teal is the outside. They were both remnants, a yard of each and less than 6 bucks for both! Yay for cheap stuff!

So, no knitting or diving stuff today, but today and yesterday I've done good with my eating habits, but bad on the working out. I'm being lazy. Maybe tomorrow, cause I'm eating dinner now.