Our Married Life

Recap of 2008. There were several ups and downs but overall it was a good year.

1. Brian got a new car.
2. Dad got sick and was hospitalized for 2 weeks.
3. We got puppy Leah.
4. I traveled to Richmond for work.
5. Both my parents health has been stabilized.
6. We went to San Diego for vacation.
7. My maternal grandmother passed away. Click here to see neat a mausoleom my mom’s family built in Cambodia.
8. We bought a dining set (my half of the deal since Brian got the new Macbook). Only one more room to fill – formal dining room.
9. We threw a holiday party.
10. Took a much needed vacation where I did absolutely nothing.

So here’s my personal resolution for 2009. I know it’s silly to make resolutions especially when they’re broken in about 2 months, but hopefully, just maybe I keep these resolutions.

1. Workout 4-5 times a week
2. Learn how to meditate
3. Read at least 1 book a quarter
4. Eat more veggies
5. Eat out no more than once a week at work
6. Cook more
7. Blog more
8. Wake up earlier and begin a morning routine (ie. do chores, walk the dogs, eat breakfast, chill, then get ready)
9. Organize our closet
10. Do more gardening
11. Read the news more
12. Organize the stuff in our cabinets
13. Fix the hole in the ceiling of our dining room
14. GO TO EUROPE

I think all of these are attainable, with the exception of the last one. We’re hoping to plan a big trip for the fall, but I haven’t even begun to do my research. I was hoping I was going to get some that research done during my holiday vacation, and I suppose I still have a couple days left, but the task seems to be overly daunting. Maybe I should just call the travel agent that a friend recommended.

Happy New Year everyone!

I feel old. Or maybe because I treated my body pretty badly this weekend because my body feels really lousy today. On Friday, I went to a work happy hour. After mentioning that I needed a drink, a coworker organized a happy hour. I got a bit tipsy, but it was definitely needed after the long week. Those drinks at BJs are strong! I then proceeded to go eat BAD fried catfish at a local dive in Allen. Brian and I ended up here by accident because the place we were looking for was closed. So we decided to stop here since it looked quite busy. The people there looked a little rough around the edges, and there was karaoke. So weird. I can’t remember the name of the place, but whatever it was called, it’s in downtown Allen. Stay away people.

Then on Saturday, we spent a couple hours at my parents place before heading out to the ballpark in Arlington to watch the Astros and Rangers. The Rangers won. We haven’t been to a ballgame in a two years, but it was fun and we’ll have to do it again. The only reason why we went this year was because I got the tickets from work. Too bad the hotdogs and nachos we had sucked, but Brian did enjoy his cotton candy which he reluctantly shared it with me. And…shame on me for having processed meat! I suck at trying to be vegetarian.

Anyway, we left the game after the 8th inning and went to a friend’s house for some drinks. After getting tipsy some more and eating more junk food we finally headed home at 3am and crashed until lunchtime the next day. By the way, these people’s house makes me want to redecorate. It had a lofty feel to it, which is the total opposite of our decor.

On Sunday, I had to finish up my cupcakes for the cake decorating class. Before the class, we went to Chili’s for lunch and I for some reason craved their fried stuff, possibly because I was eating lousy all weekend long. My body definitely paid for it last night and this morning because I didn’t sleep well at all and woke up with a stomach ache.

So this week, I need to get back on the healthy routine. I had a veggie sandwich for lunch, and need to plan what to have for dinner since we have nothing to cook with at home.

I also need to do a better job of meal planning. I haven’t been cooking as much which isn’t a good thing. On top of that, I need to start going back to the gym and doing some of those free classes. I enjoy those much more than the boring cardio workout. I think I’ll go to yoga tomorrow morning at Sunstone. That is if I can wake up at 5:30 am….

The other to-do is finish planning our trip. We’re undecided between a fancy hotel or the standard economy hotels. I know we won’t be spending too much time in the room, but it is a vacation afterall. I looked at the rates for the Solamar Hotel that Terri recommended, but I think it’s too much of a splurge. I did see some good rates at Temecula Creek Inn, but it seems out of the way. The Hyatt Regency in La Jolla had some good rates. If I had it my way, I’d go with the Hyatt, but Brian had some sticker shock only because he doesn’t do any of the planning and didn’t realize how expensive stuff was. I guess we’ll figure it all out tonight.

So Brian and I went to our second session at Sunstone Yoga today. This time we were a bit more tired and a little less motivated. Only because it was already 6pm and we’re usually at home by then. Perhaps we should stick to doing yoga on the weekends. About halfway through, Brian mouthed that he was tired and ready to go. That pretty much broke my concentration and I too was ready to go. But we stuck it through the entire 90 minutes. My clothes were drenching with sweat, but this time I was able to tolerate the heat much better than the last time and also my breathing was more calm. Maybe it’s because I put less effort in the poses. But it’s so hard trying to grab on to your toes or legs when your hands and legs are all slick with sweat. So our 10 day trial period is over. I think we’ll buy a pass and use it as a supplement to working out. I’m going to try to get Brian to go to the yoga classes at 24 hour fitness to see if he likes that as much before we commit to anything….

I am doing good with cutting out meats. I did have a tuna sandwich for lunch today but otherwise I haven’t missed having real meat. It’s been 4 days. The only problem with going vegetarian is having to cook two separate meals. I got some tofu and chinese eggplant that I’m going to cook up tomorrow for dinner, but I doubt Brian is going to eat that. So I have to find a way to make two quick meals on a work night. I supposed the only reason I’m cutting out meat is that I’m trying to eat cleaner. I figured if I cut out the meat, I’m forced to eat more veggies and therefore cook more of it. I suppose eventually if I ever do want to eat meat, we’ll go for organic and free range ones.

Anyway, we spent the day today cleaning and reorganizing. It’s been almost a year since we’ve moved in and the place is a clutter. I cleared the kitchen counters so it looks less cluttered. I even moved some of the canned goods and spices into the cabinet next to the fridge to make room in the pantry.

Brian spent the morning hanging some floating shelves that we got for Christmas and then spent the afternoon clearing out the tubs in the back bedroom. It looks less like a storage room. Even the office downstairs is clean.

We even went and looked at some new model homes to get ideas for decoration, but I was more inspired by all the modern touches of the houses than I was with the decor. Too bad we didn’t take any pictures. I would love to someday have dark wood floors downstairs. Although it might clash with our cabinets.

I am so glad the studying is over. It’s so nice not having to spend all your free time studying or thinking about studying. I can now enjoy reading the book for my work bookclub and watching tv. Next week, we’re having a rock band party and I’m going to spend Sunday planting flowers in our yard.

Oh and since I’m rambling, Reesey had an animal’s head in her mouth yesterday. I could tell she had something in her mouth as soon as she ran inside. I was too afraid to try to take it from her, so I threw a snausage across the room. She dropped whatever she was trying to eat to grab the snausage and I shrieked the entire time I was trying to pick up the nastiness that she brought into the house. Brian was still in bed as it was only 7am, but he came running down to see what was going on. I had him look in the trash and I think we both agreed it was a head of some sort. I could totally see guts sticking out from the head. Yuck. What a gross doggy!! No kissies for her!

Anyway, I haven’t started meditating yet, but I will start this week. I need to find articles or books to see how I can do this effectively. So if anyone has any recommendations, let me know. I know a girl at work that is interested in doing it with me if I happen to find a class. But I think I’ll try mastering it by myself first.

I need to learn how to meditate. I’ve never been one to see the benefits of meditation, but I really need a way to relax and clear my mind. My brain never shuts off even while I’m asleep. I think if I can just invest 10-15 minutes relaxing and meditating that will at least alleviate some of the stress. I’m also going to change my diet. I hate feeling cruddy all the time and I’m sure whatever I’m eating is helping with that. What’s the point of working out if you don’t eat well?

So with that said, starting this week, I’m going to try to eat a semi vegetarian diet (limiting my meat intake to once or twice a week, gotta start slowly). I packed myself a bowl of whole wheat couscous with some feta mixed in. So what is sparking all of this?? My visit to the doctor yesterday was ok. My blood pressure is on the borderline of the prehypertension stage (130/90) and I need to get it down. It’s not a horrible thing, but I should start watching my body. That’s probably why I get headaches all the time. So with these small changes, I am hoping that things will get better in 2 weeks when I return to the doctor. I am sure the fact that my dad was in the hospital earlier this month and the looming PMP exam which is in TWO days isn’t helping with my stress. But once the test is over, things will we back in order. In fact, I plan on spending the weekend shopping and gardening. I’ve been waiting all season to be able to replant our flowers.

This whole Spring Forward thing is killing me. I can barely get my butt out of bed at 7am. I’ve been running late the last couple days. Not that it’s a big deal though. Perhaps I should set my alarm for 6am instead of relying on Brian’s alarm. That should give me enough time to get out of bed, shower, make lunch and take my time in the mornings.

This morning’s drive was extremely slow. We had fog today and it’s the most dense I’ve seen in years. There were idiots who drove around without their headlights. One of them was a gray car. UGH. I HATE PEOPLE.

I packed my workout bag again today and will be heading off to the gym at lunchtime. Two days in a row. Let’s hope I keep this up for the whole month. If I can do that, it’s one milestone attained!

Anyway, it’s that time of year again where we’re looking at vacation spots. Every year we keep mentioning San Diego, so for once I think we’re going to book our trip there. Not sure why we want to go there in the first place…

I’ve started saving for our Europe trip next year. That is if the value of the dollar is going to go up. If not we’ll probably wait until 2010. The big trip before we start popping out kids. ACK.

I worked out today. YAY. I actually brought my workout clothes to my cube so I can run downstairs to do some cardio. It’s a good feeling. Now if only I can keep this up for the next few weeks.

I’ve even started counting my calories today. Hopefully that will deter me from eating bad stuff. This morning I had a bagel. Then for lunch I had a frozen entree – Chicken Tikka Masala. I’m not sure what to do for dinner. My plan is to limit the amount of carbs at night. I bought some salmon yesterday, so we be having fish.

This weekend was quite uneventful. Brian hung the speakers I bought him for Christmas. They’re now nicely hung in the downstairs family room. If only he can do the same upstairs or maybe hang some of my other stuff. We also did laundry. I studied some. THANK GOD my PMP exam isn’t tomorrow. I would’ve died from test anxiety. Oh and we also went to Home Depot and got a bunch of grass fertilizer and weed killer. I had a dream the other night that our front lawn was full of weeds. Needless to say, there were a bunch of weeds. UGH. I blame our neighbors.

Anyway, that’s all I got.

Texas weather can be crazy, at least the weather people are somewhat accurate in reporting this time around. It was 80 degrees yesterday and today’s high was 42. I think at one point I saw flurries displayed on my weather widget.

Anyway, I was looking through some old photos, from right before the wedding. Hrmph, I need to get back to the gym. Even Brian had dimples I can see. We’ve both been focused with other stuff, that I think we’ve lost the urge to stay fit. With the Christmas holiday around the corner, it makes it worse. Plus I think drinking more alcohol doesn’t help. It sounds so cliche, but we need to start on a clean diet once the new year rolls around. I keep looking for motivation, but nothing is a better motivation than looking and feeling good. I still want to run that marathon someday. Or maybe just a half.

Anyway, tomorrow is my last PMP class. I need to register for the test so I can have a target date to cram for. I’ve started on my flash card. You usually get a test date 2 weeks from when you register. I think two weeks is too soon. But I would like to take the exam in the 3-4 weeks. Maybe the first of the year would be good. I can’t delay it, otherwise I may forget everything. If I can devote an hour each night for the next few weeks, I think I will ace this test. So far my score is about a 70, which technically is passing, but why go into the test with only 70% of what you should know?? It’s all those dang glossary terms that I have to memorize. Hmph.