Getting There

I got some packing done today!  I am feeling productive, despite the fact that I still have a long way to go! I'm trying to do some packing each night, and hopefully I'll be ready by Saturday! :)

It's a Pricey Season!

So here is where my money has been going/will be going:

• Deposit for the new place
• First month's rent up front
• Stuff needed to move in - decoration items, some furniture, rugs, silverware, and other random things in the house
• Paying off my car
• Two trips to Philly 
• Renter's Insurance
• Materials to paint the bedroom

Plus add in all my regular bills!  Oh my goodness my poor, poor bank account!  I have been purposely saving up for this time, so it has been expected, but it's still pretty devastating! Ugh!

I still think about getting a second job all the time, but since I'm already tutoring and babysitting on the side of teaching, I'm not sure there's much time to do that unless I want to give up my weekends.  I'm not really sure I'm willing to do that.

I know it will all work out, and one day I'll actually be able to have a substantial savings account, but for right now I'll just revel in the fact that I am not in crazy debt despite the mass majority of people my age who are right now, and that I will have my car paid off.

Sometimes you just have to keep reminding yourself of the positives! :)

Why must I have such expensive taste?!

I am not someone to go right for expensive jewelry.  BUT I happen to LOVEEEEEEE a lot of the necklaces at Tiffany's right now, and it's frustrating how pricey they are!  Here's some background: necklaces are my thing and always have been; particularly a single pendant on a simple pendant.  Heart jewelry is especially my thing.  I also enjoy stuff that represents teaching too, like apples.

So you can imagine how much I have been swooning over all of these pieces of jewelry:

I know I already bought myself a chi for my birthday, but I may need to indulge in something shiny too...it's soo tempting!

13 days to go!

We move in 13 days!  I could not be more thrilled!  I'm not very excited about the actual moving process: packing, carrying heavy boxes up and down flights of stairs, pivoting the right way for furniture to fit through the door, unpacking, etc.  BUT I am soooo excited to live with Dan!  We are so ready for this step and I really do think it's the best thing for us.  I'm really looking forward to spending a lot of time with him and Codden (the puppy). 

I guess I should start packing pretty soon, huh?

Being good and seeing a little progress

So here are the things I've been trying to work on lately:

• Eating fresh food every day  - I have been really good with this! Lately, I'm all about bananas and nectarines! Yum!
• Washing my face every night no matter what - Although sometimes it's a makeup remover wipe instead of a full face wash, I'm doing at least something every night to clean my face.
• Taking my meds and vitamins twice a day - I've been really good with this, and my bladder thanks me!  I've also been taking these special vitamins for my skin, and I'm already seeing a difference! :)
• Flossing every day - I'm still struggling a bit with this, but slowly getting better. 
• Working out more - Signing up for the Parks and Rec class has helped.  The steps competition at school is also really motivating, because I know that I'll get a lot more steps when I work out.
• No more fast food, no exceptions - This has been surprisingly very easy.  I didn't eat a lot before, but would occasionally have it when I didn't want to make dinner or make something for breakfast.  But not any more!

 So let's talk about the progress:

• Because I'm flossing more, it's less painful (and bloody - sorry to be gross!)
• I haven't seen a change in weight loss yet, but I haven't gained any either, so that's something.
• My face is starting to clear up a bit since I've been washing my face more and taking the vitamins.
• I'm enjoying fruit and veggies now, so it's not a chore to buy them or put them in my lunches.  I actually crave them now!

I really hope that if I stick with all this working out, I will see results soon.  I just want something.  I don't need to see a huge loss right away, because I'm realistic.  But anything at all would be nice.  We shall see!

Long time, no blog

Ok so here are some updates:

*My school system has this pedometer program that is free and can give you gift cards/prizes based on how many steps you take during the day.  This program + my natural competitiveness has really kick started my working out this week.  My first day logging, I had 7,000 steps.  The second day, I had over 20,000!  Yesterday I had over 16,000.  It's awesome because it's great motivation and it's nice to see my progress throughout the day.

*School has started and so far I love my class.  I have two "nudges" that can be annoying, but I knew that going into this year, so not a huge deal.  I have at least one of those kids every year, so it's nothing new for me.

*Dan and I move into our new place on October 1st! I can't wait! We have been shopping a lot for it, trying to find decorative pieces (like art for the wall) as well as some furniture.  We haven't had much luck with the furniture, unless you count this sweet wine rack we got from IKEA. 

*I tried some cupcakes from Kupcakes & Co. in Elkridge during my lunch break last week and they were AWESOME.  A close second to Georgetown cupcake!  My favorite was the snickerdoodle cupcake that was cinnamon flavored with a buttercream frosting! YUM!

*I splurged and bought myself a Chi hair straightener as an early birthday gift.  I have wanted one for a long time! I had been using my roommates for a year, and when hers finally died, we found a great deal online so I took it and got one.  To top it off, it came with free gifts!  Elf makeup, a cool-down cover for the straightener, and a round hairbrush! Sweet!

*Here's one of the art pieces that I just bought for our house:

:)

Apparently the one thing we always agree on: Wine! ...and wine related products.  Gotta start somewhere, right?

Have a great weekend!

Who is that girl?

Do you ever look at photos of yourself and just think "Ugh! That can't be me!" I just looked at my friend Jen's wedding album online from the photographer and that's definitely what I thought when I saw the pictures of me.  I was a bridesmaid, so I'm in a lot of photos, and honestly I'm only sort-of happy with maybe 2 of them (out of 100+ photos that I'm in).  YUCK!

This was my face when I saw those photos!  I think Queen Liz would agree!

My first thought is that I looked like a plus size model for bridesmaid dresses.  I literally had to double-take and make sure it was actually me.  I know that this will be more motivation for me, but I really hate seeing photos like that.  I hate knowing that Jen will have them of me forever!  And I hate thinking that I've let myself get to that point!  I was the queen of photos (both taking them and being in them) for such a long time, it's a weird feeling to not want to have your picture taken as much anymore.

Have you ever felt like that before?