A day of surprises.....

That's always a great way to start your day........full of surprises:) Luckily they were all good ones - or at least so far!

I woke up and caught a reflection of myself in the mirror and I was limping out of bed - HOLY CRAP - I look like THAT?! But in a good way - if I do say so myself! I was shocked at how my legs now look - LOL! Folks have been complementing me on them a bit lately - yet you know how this is - you think you "know" how you look and then one day I guess we suddenly see ourselves as others must because WOW - I didn't recognize these poor tired guys:)

This weekend was filled with even MORE PB's! My gosh I just keep getting stronger and amazing myself! Who would've thought I could lift this! Seems like nearly every week now I go up in either reps, weight, or both!

So I am also amazed at just how sore I am today:) But a good surprise none the less:)

Then I went to get a Hydromassage and learned that this one was on the house - SWEET! Another good surprise! And someone had changed the programming on the thing - so my massage was even better than usual - EXCELLENT!

I then went to the store to exchange a sweater that I bought one size too small...not only did they have my correct size - it was now on sale! Cash back! YIPPEE!

From there went to the Post Office to sign for a package that required i.d. This was an expected surprise - as Carolyn had told me to keep my eyes open for it. However I did NOT expect to have to sign 3 forms, need 2 forms of i.d. and do everything short of give a D.N.A. sample - LOL! And this was the usual place where I always go! THEY were laughing at all the computer prompts that kept popping up!

But it was all worth - because Carolyn blew me away again! A gift so thoughtful, so perfect, so incredibly sweet! And the card....brought tears to my eyes! And I am FAR from a tearie eyed girlie girl type!

So yes - today was a FABULOUS day! The sun is shining great tunes are playing - and I am feeling sunshine and costive vibes from half world away!

I am a VERY fortunate girl indeed:)

Mixed up day..............

Today I am in a bit of a mixed up place.........

It was my last "official" report from Carolyn. She has achieved SO many AMAZING things over this past year - she is just simply inspiring! I am SO very happy for her! And extremely proud of her! And excited for her as she enters this next phase of her life!

But anytime I "lose" a peep I can't help but feel a little sad. Even those that I only "know" for 12 weeks, these are such personal journies, I am so fortunate that they allow me to share in their up's and downs every week! Each and every one "touches" me in some small way!

When I have the privilege of working with someone for 6 or 9 months - it seems a little like attending a friend's graduation or wedding ceremony - you're THRILLED that their lives have moved on to the next "level"! You toast in their honor! You are filled with warmth as they wave and smile!

But the first time you return to that place where you always "met" - you can't help but notice that something is missing. Even when it's for all the right reasons - it still doesn't feel "right".

So this post is to each and every one of my peeps....... please know that I think of you often - sometimes when I least expect it - and I am grateful that our paths have crossed - and that you mean the world to me.

I TRULY hope that you all are living the lives I KNOW you are capable of - there is a star within each and every one of you - just waiting to shine:)

“Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.

Christopher Robin to Pooh”

Are you sure you want to buy this.....

This is what the girl said to me at the grocery store this morning as I was checking out.....

"Are you sure you want to buy this?!" She says as she holds up my bags of romaine lettuce...

"Ahhh...why do you ask? Are the opened? Brown? Something wrong?" Because while I look at these things - I may have missed something - it was early after all.....

"Well - you realize they are the organic ones right?"

"Yup"
"Well - it's just......."
"What?"
"Nothin' Just kinda unsafe don't you think."
"What do you mean - unsafe?"
"No pesticides and all - that's kinda nasty. What about the bugs and things....Of course that's just me"

That poor girl has no idea what organic is and stands for - never minds TASTES like - LOL!
Well my Summer like record breaking weather has passed and it's back to Spring - better than winter weather at least:)
However MY PB's just keep on coming - yippee! I am one sore chick and I LOVE it!!!
I also made a purchase this weekend that I am loving - Carolyn I think of you every time I use it:) I bought a hot tea brewer!

Not a tea pot - or a kettle - this is like a coffee pot - for tea! A girl I work with turned me on to loose tea - however waiting for the silly mesh thing to steep it just plain takes too long. This is little machine brews and steeps in just 2 minutes! As fast as the microwave - but better:) Yippee!!

Actually Carolyn I've been thinking of you a lot this week! Hang in there my friend! Finish strong! Enjoy your moment - you have DEFINITELY earned it!!!!

WOW!!

Wow describes SO many things that pertain to my weekend! (No - I am NOT doing another alliteration/theme challenge - let's just get that out in the open straight away:))

Wow - to this weather - simply GORGEOUS! Sunny, clear, just beautiful:) Literally 180 degrees opposite from last weekend's rain/sleet/snow/wind chills, etc. This weekend has been picture perfect.

And speaking of perfect - my training/eats - FABULOUS! Weight or rep increase in everything - YIPPEE!! Today was leg day..... Ugghhh - but in a good way:) I have never experienced nausea from lifting before - cardio plenty of times but never lifting.....until today that is. Sick as it sounds - it's a good feeling. A TRUE sign that I most likely will not be walking properly tomorrow:) I am definitely spent - as the numbers of typos popping up is simply INSANE - hehehe!

Speaking of INSANE - I watched a documentary called Running on the Sun - about the Blackwater Marathon. Steve - please tell me you are NOT signed up for this one?! My goodness - talk about a challenge! VERY inspirational though - tech documentary. So many amputee's pushing themselves to limits I would NEVER dream possible......

I watched this last night. Between the documentary, anticipating leg day, and the weather I simply could not sleep! So excited for Sunday to arrive:)

Fabulous a.m. cardio - then breakkie - then puddle of ........"Poe" - hehe - get it? Bad joke I know:)

Great day with the "Peeps" - caught up with friends.....and some terrific new tune finds - YIPPEE!!! All in all a GREAT day!

I was turned on to a GREAT site for upcoming artists it's called SellaBand.com. Kind of like myspace - but exclusively musicians looking to be discovered. You can sponsor a band that you believe in in hopes o f them getting an actual record deal - and when they do - you profit from their success:) Their is some SERIOUS talent on their - from all over the world! No doubt this find has lead at least in some small part to my excessive DOMS right now - I am LOVING my training/driving because I have new FABULOUS tunes to listen to! I am seemingly always rocking out to something - the documentary was the only time I tuned on the tele in 2 days! And even if they don't make it big - it's nice to know the $$ goes directly to the musicians in hopes of achieving their dreams:)

And speaking of dreams - it is getting late here - so I should turn off the tunes and get some much needed rest - tomorrow is predicted to be another FABULOUS weather day, and it is rest day - tank goodness - hehehe, and I have dinner plans with friends - so I better get some ZZzzzzzzz's.


Have a great day!!!

I survived!!

Another Nor'easter that is:) What a disgusting mess last week turned out to be, rain, sleet, snow, back to freezing rain and then just rain again. Cold, windy - but it could have been worse. If it had been all snow it would have been FEET of snow - instead the final rain washed most of it all away - leaving us with mud.

But that's o.k. - as today - just 5 days later - Spring is back! The sun is shining - it is 65 outside, the birds are chirping - ahhhhh!!!!!

Lots of good news this week! Super busy - but with all good things. Great training! Good news that all of my deadlilnes were met so in a few weeks I'll be receiving a nice refund - YIPPEE!!!

I'll be able to "un - do" some of the damage done during for my recent shopping excursions - hehehehe!

I also experienced my first FRESH. LOCAL ORGANIC produce delivery of the season - YUMMYY!!!! Anyone who knows me know I LOVE my veggies! And when they are fresh, local and affordable - my world is just about perfect! Thanks so much for the GREAT tip Jaemi!

I have now become the new "recruiter" for this organization it seems! Handing out brochures and spreading the word to any and all of my family and friends that are willing to listen!

The only downside is now that I HAVE had fresh yummies - the frozen stuff in the freezer just doesn't sound even remotely appetizing! It only took one fresh meal for me to want to throw all my leftovers out and start anew!

But I won't be wasteful *sigh* - but maybe I should have XBF over to help eat the leftovers to make room for better stuff this week - hehehe!

No word on the final pics yet - but the photographer has been tossing around some different ideas - I'll keep you posted here as well!

Any way - just a quick post so everyone knows I'm still alive! Off to take advantage of the nice weather and clean the car a bit - but only after hitting the gym and working on these lizards lats some more!

A girl's gotta have priorities you know!

Surprises!!!!!

The past few days have been SO full of surprises - and they are all good ones too!!!!! Well, mostly good ones. I'll start with the good ones, they're always more fun:)

I went to work Friday morning and one of my coworkers/friends started my day with not one but TWO new cd's of bands she and her Hubby listen to and she thought I might enjoy! SWEET!!!!! And she hit the nail right on the head - I LOVE Them both! One has been blasting my brains at the gym, the other greets me in the car - 3 days straight now - I'm not tired of them yet!

Lifting has been AMAZING! I am BLASTING through my weights from last week in every exercise! Little Hercules! Friday night while I was lifting a girl stops me and comments that I am freakishly strong for my size - LOL - I THINK that's a compliment! I took it as such at least:) She also tells me that two guys were watching me lift saying they wished THEY were as "jacked" as me - NICE!

Saturday I took a VERY big step.......I am a very private person. I don't let a lot of folks really "know" me - and I try very hard to keep my world's separate. Meaning I don't socialize with coworkers outside of work, I don't "party" with gym people, etc. So I keep my IBO and training news to myself - not talking or promoting it at work. I don't want to push my lifestyle on others.

The little "bad" surprise was some of the reactions I received from sharing a few of my pics. Some of the responses I received while not bad, were just not what I would have expected. Some of my online friends were so receptive and sweet their response brought tears to my eyes and fuzzies to my heart! And I LOVE these pics. I am very excited. Once the collage is finished - I am certain I will have exactly what I wanted. My training is going so well, I have clothes that fit - I'm happy:) I'm excited! And I want to tell the world:)

So I took the proofs to work - along with some older shots of me to show just how much I've changed. And guess what - they were VERY supportive! They loved them! And said they were amazing! And they seemed genuinely happy for me! Happy Surprise!!! YIPPEE!!!

FABULOUS chest and tri session Saturday night, more increase in weights! And a different girl asked me form questions - cool! I LOVE helping others!! I get such joy of helping someone fulfill their own dreams.

I leave the gym Saturday - and there's a long stem rose on my car! No note! Hmmmmmm I'll keep you posted on this one.

Sunday - feedback day at IBO, peeps are making great gains, this equals more fuzzies for me! A great local "tip" on fresh produce from a friend - SCORE!!!! Bargain for me + good for my community - more fuzzies!!!!!!

So riding this wave I head to the gym for legs - more weight increases - tomorrow is going to be painful - but in that job well done way! Thank goodness it's rest day. You can bet a Hydromassage is on my "to do" list. But the surprises weren't over just yet - a guy I talk to occasionally in the gym stops me to to give me ANOTHER cd of a band that HE has discovered and thought I might enjoy!

The skies might be grey here - but I feel like there is a big golden floating over me right now!!!!!!

What the heck?

What was all of THAT I just had to do to sign on to my blog and post? WOW - took nearly 10 min just to get here. You never know what blogger is going to send your way first thing in the morning:)

But that's o.k. - my whole world seems to have me saying "What the heck?" Quite a lot these days. Let's start with my weather.......

It was warmer here Christmas day vs Easter Sunday! And they are predicting a NOREASTER for THIS Sunday! I am shaking my head as I type this - a NOREASTER! That's where mother nature throws all of her punches at once and can dump several feet of snow, or several inches of ice on us poor folks in just one afternoon! Folks just 30 min north of me have been receiving several inches of snow a DAY for over a week now - some areas have a foot or more on the ground again! We had snow on Easter - but it has melted again - for now.

Another "WTH" moment occurred at work this week - when they announced the big "Who's the father of Anna Nicole's daughter news"......... I was waiting on a patient - a senior citizen who's cell phone rang while I was fitting him for his new eyewear.......he looked at his phone - held up the one finger "just a moment" sign, did NOT excuse himself, did NOT walk away, did not even TURN away, just stopped me mid motion - answered his phone to receive this call.

The big news....... Larry IS the father of Anna's daughter.

Wunderful - now my day is complete - thank gawd someone called to share that with us.

UNBELIEVABLE!

Another WTH moment - when I turned my page a day calendar this morning and learned this.......Brest Milk cures warts! Check this out:

According to The New England Journal of Medicine of June 2004, a cream containing human breast milk appears to be an effective treatment for stubborn warts. The key ingredient of the cream is a compound called alpha-lactalbumin-oleic acid. Its Swedish creators have nicknamed the cream HAMLET, for Human Alphalactalbumin Made Lethal to Tumor cells.

Where's Michelle?.............

Wow - HAS been awhile since I had a free moment to post a quick hello:) SUPER busy week - most of it for good reasons, but certainly a LOT of running around and phone calls!

I finally decided that yes, it is true, I have been this size for over a year now so it's time to break down and buy some properly fitting clothes. I'm not normally one who enjoys shopping - so I usually dread this. However when the numbers go down - and things fit so well, and the sales are simply UNREAL.........

Let's just say there are a lot of bags here:) But since I don't like to try things on there - there was a bit of returning and exchanging which of course eats up even more time. Oh well - it's all for a good cause.

I received some potentially very good news from an adviser that I work with - but this too involved a bit of scrambling to get all of the paperwork in order to be certain that it would all be done before the deadline. Deadline has been met - now I cross my fingers and wait.

Speaking of waiting - I received a "sneak" of the pics taken last month and WOW! These look really good - YIPPEE!!!! But I don't have anything that can be posted here yet - so you all must wait a bit longer:)

I learned that my gym "friend" IS married - and while that doesn't render him completely harmless - it does lessen his effect slightly. However he still insists on interrupting me mid sprint - which we all is based on my LAST post...........

If a girl is "in the zone" - just leave her there - 'Kay?

Training has been FABULOUS! Tonight is leg night - so I figured I had better post early because I don't seem to have very many brain cells left after legs:)

And all of my peeps know what project awaits me this weekend - gotta love technology:)

That's my week in a nutshell - hope everyone is doing well and having a GREAT Holiday weekend!

This is a public service announcement.......

People of the world - if you should ask to work in a set (or two) with someone on a certain piece of equipment - i.e. hamstring curl machine - there are a few basic "rules" that should be adhered to......

1. WAIT until the person using the machine has finished the set they are currently performing.........

and

2. - WIPE YOUR SWEAT OFF THE EQUIPMENT BEFORE WALKING AWAY!

That is all.