The Nelson Narrative

So as you may know, I've really been struggling with this cycle of losing a few pounds and immediately gaining them back.  On May 1st I, once again , made a recommitment to diet and exercise.  I lost 2.6 pounds by the 10th, then we left for Hawaii the next day.  My goal was to just not gain any while on vacation, as I knew to try to lose would be absolutely pointless.  For the most part I did really good, avoiding most of the junk that the in-laws brought into the condo, but I did have a burger on our snorkel trip and some ice cream on the way back from Hana.  Anyway, I reluctantly weighed myself the day after we got home and was shocked to discover that I had lost 2 pounds!  What?!??  That NEVER happens!  I usually can't even maintain my weight on vacation, let alone lose!  Then again, I did start out the trip kind of sick and didn't eat much the first few days (more on that here ). Then yesterday I weighed again and was down another 2.6 p...

We had such a great time.  It was SO nice to be somewhere warm!  I loved being able to walk around anytime of day in shorts and a tee shirt or tank top and not be cold.  Coffee on the deck first thing in the morning?  Perfectly warm.  Walk on the beach at sunset?  Perfectly warm! We mostly spent our days between the beach and the pool.  The girls loved digging in the sand with their pails and shovels, and they loved playing in the ocean in their floaties.  In the pool, they both were able to "swim" by kicking their feet (they wore "water wings"), and Olivia was putting her face in the water for longer and longer periods.  It's weird, because at first Kayley was the braver one, "swimming" by herself without us hanging on to her, but by the end of the trip it was Olivia who was all over the place with her face in the water. Paul and I were able to do some things on our own while the in-laws watched the girls.  We went on a roma...

Our trip got off to a very bad start, but luckily things turned around and we had a wonderful time.  We left Tuesday evening (the 10th) to stay in a hotel near the airport just to make things easier the morning of our flight.  We could leave our car there all week and they would shuttle us to and from the airport and they had a free continental breakfast.  So the girls were all excited about our "slumber party", all of us together in one room for the night.  We got there around 8:00 PM, only for Paul to discover that he had left his wallet at home!  We were able to get checked into the room with my credit card, while he went home to fetch his wallet (about 40-45 minutes one way).  I probably should have been the one to go since he obviously didn't have his license with him but I really didn't want to and he knew right where it was.  When he finally got back to the hotel it was after 9:00 and the girls were asleep.  So much for our fun sl...

Tonight we'll stay in a hotel by the airport and tomorrow morning we board a plane to Hawaii in honor of our 5th anniversary on Friday.  We are all so excited and so glad to be getting away from this awful, cold and rainy weather!  Sun and sand, here we come! (Google images) Unfortunately, the girls are both fighting some sort of bug.  It figures it would hit now, after staying pretty healthy all winter.  Hopefully it will pass quickly.

We had such a busy weekend and I'm really behind.  First, on Friday we had a mom's group Meetup at the Cougar Mountain Zoo.  The weather was great for once and we had a great time.  It's a very small zoo so it's perfect for babies/toddlers/preschoolers.  And I had a Groupon voucher so it was pretty cheap for the three of us.  After the zoo we went to McDonald's for lunch which was a huge mistake because Olivia didn't want to leave the play area, but it was such a nice day I really wanted to be outside.  She had a total meltdown and I had to literally drag (well, carry) her out of there kicking and screaming.  It was really embarrassing.  But then we went to a park to enjoy the rest of the afternoon and all was well. On Saturday we went to the community egg hunt.  We got there a bit late because I thought it was going to be held somewhere else, so it had already started as the girls and I were frantically running across the baseball f...

I'll start with the bad.  Turns out the Easter season is a really bad time to try and lose weight, at least for me, being a raging chocoholic and all.  I curse the Cadbury Corporation and their insanely delicious and addicting Creme Eggs and Mini Eggs.  Anyway, I started off April very well, losing 2.5 pounds by the 6th.  Then I went out with a girlfriend that evening for a $25, 90-minute facial (!) at the Aveda Institute (beauty school) and we went for drinks/apps first, of course.  Then, like usual, instead of getting right back on track (not that we ate that bad, but still worse than I otherwise would have) the next day it's taking forever (I have yet to get back on track and it's now the 18th!).  And I've gained back those 2.5 pounds plus another pound or so. Now for the good.  So while my diet sucks lately, I'm totally kickin' butt on the C25K front.  I'd been stuck in week 6 forever, because one day I would maybe be able to do the 25...

I love to read, and before the girls came along I pretty much read every night before bed and sometimes during lunch/breaks at work or on the ride home in my vanpool.  Once the girls came, though, reading pretty much went by the wayside.  What little free time I had was spent doing other things, usually computer stuff (facebook/email/games/message boards/blogs/surfing/etc.).  At the beginning of 2010, I made "read more" one of my resolutions.  I just decided to use nap and pre-bed time to read instead of playing games on the computer or whatever.  I'm not a super fast reader, however (not like those people who go on vacation for a week and read 4 or 5 books--are they literally reading all day, every day?  I just don't get it.  I might get 2 hours in at most, and not every day, on vacation and at the most I'll finish one book and maybe start another), so I set my 2010 goal at 15 books and came in at 14 1/2.  Unfortunately, the ...