JOSEY - Where in Calgary do you take capoeira lessons? I always thought it would be a cool thing to check out, but am quite intimidated by all those guys that look like they could take your head off if they wanted, haha. It would be good to check out a place with some beginners.

Yay for Spring. After our somewhat of a snowstorm a few days ago, the weather is finally really nice! That means hiking soon near Canmore which is a huge favorite of mine! Lets hope I am not crazy out of shape because I like to hike up massive mountains lol!

Good Morning Beautiful Canadian Ladies!!
MONDAY!!! And I can safely say that we are back from the Peg with all the students in tow. I can also safely say that I do love Winnipeg. I think it gets a bad rap sometimes. Anyways Aunty Jam--I did take my runners AND use them Saturday morning so that's a good thing!
I am at my desk taking a break from report cards so I thought I'd log in to keep myself honest. I've been down to the cafeteria once and avoided cookies and muffins! Woot! And I will go for that mid-day walk once I get my day in order.
Have your lovely selves a good monday!
Tam

:wave: G-R-E-A-T- NEWS ~ Well, April is turning out to be my month for sure. I decided to brave the scale yesterday (I usually weigh-in on the 7th) to see how I did over the winter becuz I made some changes to shake things up a bit. I upped my calories, and starting cycling them (between 1500-1900). Well, it paid off big time ... :D

Since last fall when our local dietician weighed me, I am down 23 lbs -- now some of that was water & clothes becuz she weighed me late afternoon with my clothes, vest, and boots on. I have a water retention issue in my legs and that can bounce up & down 5-10 lbs. So, my real loss looks about 10 lbs and that's great! :dancer: :dance: :dancer:

I decided to check that for 3 days running to make sure it's not a fluke cuz last time 4 lbs of water came back on and stayed. So this AM, I weighed again and am down another 1.5 lbs -- yahoo! Now, just one more day ... tomorrow and I'll change my signature.

EVEN MORE GOOD NEWS: I also had many other NSV's over the winter: thinner fingers, face, arms, looser clothes, and 2" off my tummy too! Plus, I am sneaking up on my 100 lb goal; hope to reach that by summer ... :^:

We are starting this month off with lots of :sunny: too and temps in the mid-40's as well. That is melting all that snow we got last week. Have a great week everyone ... :flow1:

So, it's official as of the AM -- weighed exactly the same as yesterday, so that 4 lbs of water came back off, and 11 more of fat, we'll say ...

Changed my signature and gained another dragonfly too. Wow, am really sneakin' up on that 100 lbs, only 3 to go ... :dancer:

:welcome: ERICANNE ~ glad you found us over here. That Capoiera looks daunting, but I'm sure they must have classes for beginners somewhere.

Well, we had a bit more ***** fall today, but it all melted right after; and we had :sunny: right up until dusk tonight. The temps have been in the 50's mostly, which isn't too bad; and some of the spring birdies have returned. I can hear them singing in my lilac bush just outside this room.

Eating has been going really well. Today, DH & I did the floors in the house really well. I did whizzing while he did washing; and boy, that's good exercise for sure. Hope you all had a nice Easter weekend.

Take care, and have a great week ... :flow1:

I agree with you 100% on this :( We also have a chronic lack of funds and it leads to all sorts of stress and fighting. I'm glad you took your runners and used them :)

Josey - In Calgary? I'm just 3 hours north of you... ;) You know where.

Rosebud - So close to your next goal!!!! Go girl go!!!

For the record... I didn't like the wii zumba. I knew it was going to be hip hop songs and everything.. but it was so targeted towards kids, not serious at all. I just didn't care for it at all and it didn't feel like a work out, just me flailing about. A lot of it was hard to do on the carpet too.

It's 15°c outside right now!!! I'm going to go stand outside for a few minutes ;)

THANKS, AUNTY ~ ya, I'm working on that 3-4 lbs; will not weigh until next month though becuz I am a very, s-l-o-w loser ... :lol: I think I may be able to get over the top by the end of May though. :crossed: ... ^:angel:^



I'm sorry to hear that this is such an issue for both you ladies, esp since you both work. I took a business/accounting course in college (the second time around), and have been using budgeting strategies to keep our finances in line.

DH & I each get a PA: a personal allowance each month -- it is in our budget just like our household bills & savings each month. It comes off the top, then we work around the rest. I find that people that don't take a PA, often end up angry & bitter; and I think everyone should have their own personal spending money.

I put half of our allowances away in our savings accounts now, so we can save up for those things that we really want. We save our coins up for Christmas gifts & other stuff too (I save the toonies, and DH saves the rest). I shop around for the best deals each month & any money that I save off the groceries, household, laundry, and utilities, I put away in savings too. It has become like a challenging game for me now ... ;)

We have a lower income compared to many people we know, but we have no debt; and we bought a home last year. We decided to nix the cable/satellite TV and just buy movies on sale, and we use/save that $100.00 a month for other things we want instead (like the internet). I don't use our dishwasher when there is only two of us here becuz it takes only minutes to do dishes for two people.

I bought a portable dryer rack on sale (which holds an entire load of clothes). I used that & my clothes line to save more money. I only used my dryer once this winter. Our hydro bill is half of what our last place was. We kept the heat at 67-68 degrees all winter -- we just put another fleece blanket on the bed, and were fine; I don't like it too hot anyways.

A lot of people could have more discretionary funds if they put away some money each month, bought less on credit, hunted down sales, and just did without until they saved up for things. We had two friends that were in debt and broke before month end, and I helped them see where they were wasting money. They moved to a lower priced place & sold their vehicle -- they both bought bikes, use public transit, and walk more. They paid off their debts, and now save for trips, gifts, wants, etc.

The other couple just learned how to buy & spend better; that's all they needed to do. One couple we know had two vehicles & cut back to sharing one; taking turns driving each other to work each week (alternating).

One of my friends took cooking & budgeting classes; and they lived off the highest household wage (her husbands); and saved hers for vacations, gifts, and the home they were planning to buy. She saved up the entire price of their first home & paid cash for it.

Sorry, I didn't mean to rant or preach; but I see this all the time. Everybody's different, but many people could save more than they think they can. I have seen people that make 5 times as much as us, and they are broke all the time, simply becuz they live way beyond their means, carry too much debt, and refuse to save anything.

A lot of fighting over money could be prevented if people just learned how to manage their money better. I have always thought that there should be manditory finance & budgeting courses in every high school; and, no diploma without it.

OK, I'll get off my :soap: now ... have a wonderful weekend!!! :flow2:

Rosebud - thanks for the advice. It's no soapbox. Not for me anyways. and By the way ....
:bravo::congrat::balloons:
It sounds like everything is going VERY well for you. Excellent work.

I have come to the decision that I really need to visit here more often than I have been. I tend to avoid coming around if I haven't been exercising or watching what I eat. So regardless of whether I am munching on a cookie or heading out for a walk, I will check in to try to keep myself more accountable.

And now I am off to plan for the afternoon and then after teaching to hit the books. I can't believe they have an emoticon for that.
:book2:

ok...okok....ok... here it is.... (drumroll) I am going to attempt zumba. again. tonight.
I've gone for a wee walk and picked up some broccoli and a pear for a snack and enjoying the sun. woot! I hope everyone is doing well and loving life!
xxtam

TAM ~ that' great -- I am so happy for you. Let us know how it goes. One lady here taking it, says her knees hurt at first, so when they start to hurt, rest them a bit then continue on with other moves. I know it looks easy, but I bet at first, it is a bit taxing ... have lots & lots of fun!!!:D

@Tam - Noooooo! Do or do not, there is no try!!!!!! I don't want to here "attempt" Zumba. Go and rock that place!!!

Crud. I stayed at work until five and didn't get home in time. I did not do. As a result of not planning.

@Aunty Jam - going up there tomorrow!!! Gotta cheer on my boys again the Rush (Calgary Roughnecks for the win!) I am actually outside of Calgary, rural but close to the city is how I like it :-) Lots of space to hang and workout.

Next time eh? :D It's lots of fun!