We woke up pretty early today. Correction.. HE woke up early today. I wanted to stay sleeping but I’m sure he wouldn’t let me if I had slept past 10am so I got up around 9:30am. We’re enjoying coffee right now. He’s watching some Boxing match on TV. Blech. Boys =P I’m about to get up and make breakfast. Scrabble is in our near future, I think. Tonight we’re going out to dinner with Katie, Ashley and Shannon. It should be fun. I wanted to go to a Chinese Buffet because I haven’t been to one in a really long time. I’m going to try to remain mindful of what I am putting in my mouth. I have to be careful at a buffet. Especially when I’m around people who don’t really watch their weight and don’t really care what they put in their mouths =/ I’ll choose brown rice, load up on veggies, grilled chicken or fish. I’m sure I’ll have a taste of a few other things but I won’t get a heaping pile of lo mein on my plate.

Anyway. I should get going before the boyfriend starts crying before he’s hungry lol.. Talk to you girls later. Have a wonderful Sunday. I’m sure I will be on to read and comment later tonight after I drop Drew off at the station.

- Nikki

Yesterday was a pretty good day food wise. I’m pretty sure I was low on calories though. If I made my calorie range it wasn’t from healthy foods because of the small popcorn and m&m’s at the movie theater. Honestly, the popcorn we had was WAY too salty. I got it with no butter and the salt was just.. way too much. Shannon and I shared a medium and we only ate half between the two of us. Not bad. I just wasn’t hungry through out the day. I don’t know what it was. Work wise the day was okay. It went smoothly up until the end of the night when Indranie had an unnecessary hissy fit. The new girl came in and everything was going smoothly. She got started with vacuuming and Shannon was talking to her while she unravelled the cord. Indranie was on the phone and under her breath said “Okay, I’m getting annoyed. We have to get the store cleaned.” Fifteen minutes later the store is vacuumed and cards, which is her job, still needed to be done. After work Shannon and I saw New Moon together. AWESOME movie and a thousand times better than Twilight. I’m very happy with it and looking forward to Eclipse. Though, I’m hoping they didn’t rush that movie because its set to come out next June. Hmm.

Work today is from 12 - 7 though I may go in a half hour or so earlier. I got a voice mail saying they wanted me to come in a little earlier but I only woke up about a half hour ago. So, I suppose I’ll shower, get changed, grab coffee from Starbucks and head to work. Don’t know if I’m going to drive or walk today. Think I might drive. After work it’s home to relax, watch some TV and read. Patti gets off of work early on Saturdays so we could hunker down and play a few games of Scrabble =) Tonight I have to pick up Drew from the train station so I’m really looking forward to seeing my baby. I miss him.

Anywho, I guess it’s time to get going. Shower time. Enjoy the day, girls =)

- Nikki

Anyway. I slept well last night. Woke up at about 5am with a pouring rain coming through my screen windows! I didn’t catch it fast enough because my windowsill is soaked and there is water in my empty fruit basket =P Hmph. That was unpleasant. I woke up kind of tired this morning, actually. Just couldn’t jerk myself awake from my slumber before 10:30am =P Sucks. Also have a bit of a headache. Already took two advil and a cup of coffee so I’m hoping it goes away.

Work today is from 12 - 7. Not bad. Should be a relatively easy day. After work Shannon is grabbing me from the store and we’re off to see New Moon. I have high hopes for this movie. It looks good. And Dakota Fanning is playing Jane which is AWESOME. It’s a completely different kind of role for her so I’m curious to see how she played it out. =) After the movie it’s home to read, relax, compute and then bed. Work is at noon tomorrow so I’ll have time to wash my sheets, comforter and do my last load of clothes laundry. Yayay.

I’m unsure as to what food is going to be. You know what I noticed though? Whenever I wake up early I’m hungry almost right away. If I got up at 7:30 I would have breakfast down at 9am. I woke up at 10:30am this morning. It’s 11:08am and I’m still not hungry. Not only am I not hungry but I have no urge to eat anything just yet. This happens all the time. The later I get up, the less I eat through out the day. Why is this and why can’t it be the other way around? Heh =P

SO! Food today. I don’t know. Not really in the mood for planning, actually. I think lunch is going to be a nice big salad w/ veggies & chicken from the super market. Maybe I’ll pick up a small thing of fruit and snack on that through out the day. I’ve already come to terms with getting a small popcorn at the movie tonight. I really want one and it’s a nice thing to look forward to. Small popcorn, no butter. That’s it!

When I first started working out I used to walk to work every morning. It was a good way to get myself started for the day and that little activity really made a difference in my mood when I got to work. So, this past week I’ve been doing just that. I walk to work. It’s around the block so it’s about five minutes but if I have to do it twice that’s ten minutes. In the evening there have been times where I could have gotten a ride home and got out of the cold but I just bundle up and deal with it. It’s a nice end to my day, actually. Hmm. Maybe that little bit of activity will get me pumped up for the gym again =P

Anwho, I should get going. I have work in less then an hour and I’m still sitting here in my PJs. Heh! Not sure what I want to wear today. I just recently went through my entire closet. Cleaned it out. Got some stuff sitting here ready to go to good will or something. Need to find a drop off spot or something.

Grr. I want to keep writing. I like doing this again. Okay. Seriously. I’ve got to get going or I’m going to be late and I don’t think my excuse of wanting to write on 3FC would sit well with the boss.

Have a great day, ladies =)

- Nikki

————Meal Update————-

• 1/2 grilled chicken panini w/ cheese, lettuce & spicy sauce
• teriyaki chicken wrap
• small movie popcorn, 1 package of m&ms, diet pepsi

Today was a good day. I had work from 9 - 7 but I got out at 5 because Indranie skipped the gym classes she was going to go to. Work went smoothly. The new girl came in. She’s nice and funny. I think she’s going to fit right in.

Food was pretty decent today. I’ve been doing good with keeping portions at a minimum and really making an effort to stay away from junk, especially when I’m just bored and looking for something to chew. My meal plan today was:

• turkey egg white flat bread, coffee
• tuna on arnold sandwich thin (wheat)
• 1 serving lays chips
• nature valley peanut butter granola bar
• 2 small slices of pizza w/ tradional sauce & reduced fat cheese
• 1/4 cup m&m’s, 3 vanilla midgees

Not bad. I’d say calories were probably around 1400 or so. Maybe less. Not too sure on the pizza calories. Most of my days have looked like this. I feel satisfied at the end of the night. Sometimes a little too satisfied what with my sweet tooth at the end of the night. Tends to make me feel a little bit guilty, actually. Hmm. There is no reason for guilt though, I think. I did not gorge myself tonight on candy. I had one serving of m&m’s and a few tootsie rolls. I need to come to terms with the fact that it’s O.K.

I think I’m going to take a look at my work schedule for next week. I’ll write up a plan and make sure to stick to it. I’ll pick four days out of the week to get to the gym for at least 30 minutes. Whether it’s after work or before work. It’s something that needs to be done. Perhaps I’ll also pick two nights out of the week to do my Denise Austin - Fat Burning Yoga. I really enjoyed it the last time I did it.

Okay! I’m feeling motivated again. I put on a tank top today with my black stretchy pants and I’m noticing the tube around my stomach coming back. It’s just a tube of fat. Nothing attractive or useful in it. Just a tube of fat making me feel sluggish, unhealthy and simply …fat. Need to stop.

Bed will be early tonight as I didn’t get much sleep last night. Have a great night, ladies.

- Nikki

Still haven’t been to the gym in a long time =/ I’m tired of not going. I keep on saying that and then when it comes time to go, I don’t. Sigh. My bag is packed and at the store right now. I’m hoping to get there after work. I’ve got work for a mere six hours. Gym really needs to happen today…

I’m learning to apprecaite food, lately. Drew makes big hearty delicious meals when I am with him. It’s mostly on Sundays when we will have a big breakfast of eggs, bacon and french toast. I stay away from the bacon or sausage because I don’t like to eat pork. It. Is. Okay. To. Eat. It’s okay to eat and ENJOY food. I like to eat. I like the taste. I like the feeling. I like being happy with my food. I’m slowly learning that it’s okay. I don’t like the feeling that fast food gives me. I like the feeling of home cooked, delicious, REAL food. I’ve spent a long time eating healthy and using nonfat substances. Sometimes those fatty foods are OK! Drew makes french toast with white bread. He uses butter and syrup and it’s delicious. I forgot just HOW good something like that can be. I really did. People make the mistake of cutting out those foods when they “diet” that as soon as they eat something not normally labeled “diet food” they say to hell with it and continue to eat badly thinking the diet has failed them. I’m a woman who loves to drink beer. I love to eat wings. I love midnight food runs. This is something that has not changed in me. It is, however, able to be controlled. I feel okay with my relationship with food lately. I get a good mix of good for me, rich in fiber and veggies food but I also enjoy those fatty tastes. I can’t explain it and I’m not sure if I’m doing a good job trying =P I just know that I’m trying to go about things in a different way. Now, to just get the gym back on track!

Today I have work from 1pm - 7pm. After work I plan on getting to the gym - NO MATTER WHAT. I need to sweat! I need to feel my body move and get back into some sort of routine. I want to not only look good but I want to feel good about myself. Drew loves me no matter what I look like and he has no problem with how I look. I do though. So I need to fix it. When I was losing wieght I felt like I was on top of the world. Like I could do anything. I could be anyone I wanted to be. I started to kind of slide back into submission and I don’t like this feeling =/ I need to get back to it..

I guess that’s all for today. I have to figure out what food is going to be for the rest of the day. Later, girls.

- Nikki

This past weekend was good. We had the Halloween party at Drews house. It was really wonderful to see everyone. It was even nicer since we didn’t have to drive any where. When we decided to go to bed that was the end of it. His mom is starting to get on my nerves. She talks a lot. And it’s mostly about herself. Almost like she’s looking for sympathy. He warned me in the beginning about her but I didn’t really pay any attention to her. Hmm. So, that was Saturday. Sunday we spent the day huddled up in bed with one another. He was sick as a dog from the previous nights party so we were just lazy. Went to a burger joint and got a few burgers and fries. It was delicious but holy hell.. VERY greasy. They threw the fries in the bag and the grease was seeping through =/ Not to mention, the burgers were BEEF burgers. I never eat beef. I have to change my ways again because spending so much time with him is changing my eating habits and I’m not okay with that. The trip to and from CT were both good. Not much has changed.

Today was a good day. I ate well but did not deprive myself. My meal plan went like this:

• 1 egg white & 1 whole egg on wheat toast w/ 1 slice american cheese, coffee
• 1/3 bag of single serving size doritos
• fresh southwestern turkey wrap w/ tomato, lettuce, cheese and an apple
• 1 cupcake (Ashley brought them in)

So, that’s it so far. Not too shabby. The cup cake wasn’t necessary but Ashley had brought them in so I figured, why not? I only had one and it was delicious. Everything else for the day was pretty good, minus th Doritos but again, it’s not so bad because it wasn’t even a serving. Portion control, Nikki. Portion control! I’m not sure what dinner is going to be. As of right now I’m not even all that hungry. I don’t want to not eat and then be starving later though so maybe in a little while I’ll heat up the last turkey dog that I have. Throw some sauerkraut on there and call it a night. Maybe have a small bag of popcorn for dessert. Hmm.

New developments at work! We have a new employee. I’m very excited. I met her briefly today and she seems super nice. She’s 21 and will be starting tomorrow. The boss is going to the gym so me and Ashley will get to play with her all night. She seems really sweet and the kind of person we could all hang out with. =D Yayay!

Welp, I should go check on my laundry. Not much going on tonight. Gonna curl up with some TV and my book. Good things, good things. =) Have a good night, ladies!

- Nikki

Today was a good food day. My menu so far has been:

• weight watchers muffin - 180
• whole grain cheerios - 220
• buffalo chicken wrap on whole wheat w/ lettuce, tomato & cheese - 400
• regular size pemagranate yogurt w/ blackberries & dark chocolate - 300
• 1 serving baked tostitos and salsa - 125

So, calories were about 1225 for today. I guessed on the wrap because I picked it up from the super market. Not bad. Still keeping the calories low which makes me happy. It’s so strange because I dont eat bad. I always buy healthy foods, I very rarely eat fast food, I don’t drink soda or sugary drinks, I don’t add sugar to my coffee and I don’t eat white bread/white rice and what not. My lack of activity and over drinking on the weekends is my problem. Candy has been an issue with me too. Whenever I get bored at work I turn to candy or scratch offs. Both are bad for me. Sigh.

Tomorrow I have work from 9pm - 7pm. It’s going to be a very long day. I’m really hoping to wake up some what early tomorrow morning to have some time to myself in the morning to journal, drink a cup of coffee and have a yummy breakfast. Tonight I’ll get my food and gym bag together for tomorrow. After work tomorrow I’ll get to the gym for at least 30 miles. I’ll knock off 2.5 miles with any luck on the treadmill and then work on circuit trainer. I need to work out again =(

Anyhow. I guess that’s all for tonight. I’m gonna fix up my room and get the stuff ready for tomorrow. Hope everyone had a wonderful day.

Yesterday was really great, actually. He woke up first, got coffee and because I heard him getting up I got up too. We had picked up Scrabble the day before so we spent the morning drinking coffee, eating breakfast that I had made and playing Scrabble. Perfect. We made a quick trip to the mall to check out some of their other games, filled up my gas tank, came home and played another game. Mom and Dad got home from the vets early and made a big dinner of mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes, green beans, rolls and pot roast. Mmmm! Delicious. Drew is so adorable. Everytime he is here my mother makes a big production of it. He alwyas says they don’t have to go to the extreme when he is here but that decision is out of my mind. That’s all my mothers doing. We settled down on the couch with my family, watched a horrible movie and ate dinner. Lovely. =) But.. as always, there is never enough time for us to be together to satisfy me. Soon enough it was off to the train station. I didn’t take into account that it was Friday at rush hour so I was nervous we would be late. It was all fine though. I still had my time to say goodbye to him.

Coming home after dropping him off at the station is probably one of the worst feelings in the world. It’s so lonely. It’s trully indescribable. I fell asleep, curled up last night thinking about him holding me from behind. Sigh. I miss him. Six more sleeps and I’ll be with him again.

Today I have work from 12pm - 7pm. Not bad. It should go decently fast. I think I’m working with Linda and Indranie today so that’s okay. With any luck Indranie will take off early. I don’t care if I have to take my lunch an hour after I come in. I just don’t want her to be there the entire time. Heh. I’m going to do my best to just stay out on the floor all day long. I don’t want to deal with anyone. I’m sure it’s going to be a very quiet day. We’re supposed to get A LOT of rain so… yeah. Whatever. Work is work. Tonight my family and I may play poker. I bought a puzzle yesterday at the store so I think I’ll get a big piece of cardboard from work today and then use that to put the puzzle together =) I’m excited about that. I haven’t done a puzzle in a LONG time.

Anyway, I should get going. I need a refill on my coffee and I should figure out what I’m going to have for breakfast. Enjoy the day, all.

- Nikki

Anyhow, today was alright day. I had work from 9am - 7pm. I was alone with the boss for the first five hours of my shift. She was not in a pissy mood at all. She was marginally happy. Though I dislike working alone with her because she tries to joke around with me and have conversations. It bothers me. I don’t like talking to her and everything she does bothers the crap out of me. I had no one to really chat with for the first five hours. Ugh. Ashley finally came in and made me immediately happy. I hate my boss. I hate my job. However, it’s decent money for what I do and I know I’m looking for another job in the mean time.

Sleepys has not called me back. It’s been almost a week and I’m losing faith. I guess what is meant to be will happen for me. If that doesn’t work out, then it wasn’t for me. Enough said about that. Time to move on.

I’ve been watching The Biggest Loser this season. Last season I did not watch at all and I thought I’d be even less into watching this one but the fact remains that the show still motivates me. And even though there are advertisements thrown into the show and the crying is getting absolutely ridiculous, the results and the people are still real. They are still doing it the right way and that gives me hope.

I’ve been journaling a lot at night time and I think I need to start waking up early to have “me” time. I really miss that. I want to drink my coffee, have a nice breakfast, journal and get my mind in the right place for the rest of the day. It sucks waking up at 8:15 and being out of the house 30 minutes later. It doesn’t give me any time. I always notice I’m in a much better mood when I have time to myself in the morning so this is my new goal for tomorrow. I’ll set the alarm for 7:15am and will hopefully actually wake up at 7:15am. I go to bed decently early every single night. There is no reason for me to sleep any later.

I need to get to the gym tomorrow. I have work 9 - 4 and then I have NINE hours until Drews train comes in. I’m going to go stir crazy thinking about seeing him. I could hit the gym for about an hour and come home to shower, change, relax and maybe head to Ashleys house to watch Glee with Shannon. I’ve GOT to keep myself occupied. Anyhow, I suppose I’ll get going now. It’s almost 11pm and I’m pretty pooped.

Later, all.

The weekend was good. Work on Saturday took far too long as usual. Ashley ended up calling out so I had to stay a few more hours then expected. I still made my 6:16pm train out of Hicksville to Penn Station though. I made it to Connecticut at around 9pm. I waited ten minutes for Drew to get there and then it was off to his house where I quickly showered, dressed, did my make up and then we were off to the Halloween party. Let’s just say that my idea of a party isn’t sitting around a gaming console and playing video games the entire night. Drew and I came home and went to sleep around 4am after some alone time together.

Now, I didn’t think I drank that much that night but when I woke up, I had the worst hang over. I vomited until there was nothing but bile coming up and I had a pounding headache. I’m getting sick way too often in Drews house and it’s getting embarassing. I did not drink a lot that night. I know I didn’t. Drew said the same exact thing. I think the reason why I got so sick was because I didn’t eat much. When I was heavier I could handle my liqour like it was nobodys business. It also helped that I was *always* eating something. And now, I’m not eating as often so I don’t have that food in the belly to soak up that alcohol. It’s just getting to be an old story and it’s really starting to bother me. I have a small confession to make too. I am SO terrified of being put on the spot to drive that I will drink just so I am not looked at to drive. There. I said it. I’m embarassed by it but that’s the truth of it. I’ll drink to get intoxicated so I don’t have to drive. I *have* to stop drinking so much. It’s not only bad for my weight but it makes me do things that I’m embarassed by. Such as vomiting at my boyfriends house on a regular basis. It’s pathetic. Not to mention I wake up with a horrible hangover. I end up staying in bed until noon and I don’t get to get out and enjoy the day with my boyfriend whom I only get to a see a couple times each week. Apparently Drews mother has been asking about me and asking if I got sick after a night of partying. Sigh. I’m embarassed. It’s okay to drink. It’s okay to have a good time. It’s not okay to get sick and wake up with a pounding headache almost every time. I’m a binge drinker. I drink to get drunk. I rarely can stop at one. It’s a problem and I need to figure it out for myself. If I can’t control myself then I can’t be around it. I think before the Halloween party I need to tie something around my wrist. A little reminder to let me know to keep myself in check. I see a problem and it needs to be fixed.

Anyway. Lunch is prepared for tomorrow. It’s going to be a ten hour shift tomorrow so I should bring a little extra to keep me through the entire day. For breakfast I’m going to try to wake up early and make a breakfast wrap. Eggs, turkey sausage and cheese in a wrap. Or maybe multigrain cheerios with fat free milk and a banana. Haven’t really decided. I hope I wake up early enough to make myself something. I’ve been buying at Starbucks every morning =/ Not good on my wallet or on my waist line.

Sometimes I just want to say “To hell with all the rules about having to save money and watch what I eat.” Isn’t there ever a time in life where we can just live and be happy with who we are? And if there is, how do we work to reach that blissful state of mind? Hmm..

To much going through my head right now. I’m gonna curl up in bed in a little while. Hopefully wake up with a clear mind.

- Nikki