Mom On The Run

Wow! January flew right past me! How about you?

This year I made a few resolutions so I’ve decided each month to go back and re-visit them. To re-cap, my resolutions were to:

1. Learn how to cook
2. Eat healthier
3. Feel better about myself
4. Train for a half-marathon
5. Lose 16lbs (get back to my wedding weight)

So how am I doing with my goals?

1. Learn how to cook
   I’ve definitely been trying and making a big effort in this department. This has been a rather expensive little goal because previously all of our meals came from packages, so I had no spices in the house with the exception of pepper, salt and cinnamon. Purchasing all the spices I need has been expensive, but it’s been worth it. I’ve made a few things that my family has loved: Banana bread, Low-Fat Turkey Chili, Tuna casserole, Beef stew, Beans & Bacon Saute (These recipes can all be found on my Fitness Cheerleader site) and I’ve made some stuff my family hated: Tufu & Veggie Stirfry in a Peanut Sauce (Peanut Butter FAIL), The Best Ever Mashed Potatoes (Parmesan Cheese FAIL). I also made a Quinoa & Black Bean Salad that I love and have been bringing for my lunches.
2. Eat healthier
   This goes hand-in-hand with learning to cook. So far I’ve been successful with this. We’ve definitely eaten a lot less packaged foods, though there have been a few nights where my kids ended up eating a bowl of grapes and a peanut butter sandwich for dinner because the meal I tried to cook didn’t turn out very well. I’ve had a lot of healthy left overs for my lunches, and I even made healthier choices the few times I did eat out. Oh yeah! I almost forgot! I CUT OUT COFFEE!! I’m now drinking decaf green tea instead. I haven’t completely given up caffeine though – I do have one caffeinated green tea from Tim Horton’s each day. This is as much a social thing as a nutritional day because I walk over, and line up at Tim Horton’s every day with one of my co-workers. The nice part about this is that I now sleep WAY better! Yay!

3. Feel better about myself
   This one has been really hard, though I’m starting to be more aware of my mood cycles and have picked out some triggers. Such as:
   • Sleep (or lack of it)
   • Too much caffeine
   • Processed foods
   • Not exercising
   • Missing hubby

Thankfully most of these things I have control of. I can go to sleep earlier, minimize my caffeine intake, eat healthy (clean foods), exercise. I’ll keep working on these things over the year.

4. Stop rushing around and plan ahead
   I did well with this for the first two weeks of the year but I’ve totally slacked off in this department. Brooke has been sleeping horribly (she’s transitioning to a big girl bed) so I’ve been “too tired” in the evenings to pack stuff up, then sleeping in because I’ve spent an hour or more listening to her whimper and try to fall back asleep each night. I’ve done a great job planning meals, grocery shopping and having food on hand. I really need to make more of an effort on the packing and preparing lunches ahead of time thing.
5. Train for a half-marathon
   I’ve really done a great job over the past month sticking to my training plan. This week has been a bummer due to my calf injury, but I got my 10K in this weekend which was completely awesome!
6. Lose 16lbs (get back to my wedding weight)
   I have no idea why being larger than I was 6 yrs ago bugs me so much. I have had two kids after all. But I know I can be fitter, leaner, stronger with more energy – the kind I had before kids. The training, sleeping, healthy eating and planning are all helping with this goal and so far I’m down 6lbs. Not bad for 5 weeks! At this rate I’ll be down to the weight by our 6 yr anniversary on April 6, 2010.

How are your resolutions going? Have you been sticking to them? Don’t worry if you haven’t – you can start over again any time. Every meal and every day is a new fresh start!

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I found this on the blog of my favourite DJ, Mad Dog from Virgin Radio 99.9 FM.

30 Skills Every Woman Should Have Before Turning 30

1. Hard boil an egg – Ummm does sort of count?  You put an egg in boiling water, but for how long?
2. Diplomatically tell Mom to butt-out – NOPE 
3. Ace a job interview – I hope so – I had one today
4. Ask a man out – YES – that’s how hubby and I began dating
5. Send a thoughtful thank you note – YES Read the rest of this entry »

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Think back to the last time you went shopping for new eyeglass frames – do you remember how horrible an experience it was?  Thousands of frames lining the walls just begging to be tried on.  Mirrors everywhere so you can see how the glasses look on you from every angle.  Now after trying on 6, 7, maybe even 10 frames do you remember what the first one looked like on you?  Yeah – me neither.

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The fan forums and Twitter have been completely a buzz with the rumours of a spring New Kids On The Block tour for months!  But FINALLY our wait is over and you heard it here on Mom on the Run first!.  The NKOTB have added 17 more concert dates.  Yes – the Beantown five that I love have added more tour dates for this spring!  Read the rest of this entry »

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Block off (no pun intended) May 15-May 18, 2009 on your calendar’s ladies ’cause New Kids On The Block (or NKOTB as they prefer to be called now) just announced the ultimate Facetime opportunity….  A 3 Day Cruise! 

"We’re not going to be drinking pina coladas, we’ll be serving them!" Joey McIntyre says.

How big a fan are you? 
Pricing starts at $799 (USD)/person for a double or quad room.  ALL cruise tickets will include:

• NKOTB Welcome Cocktail Party
• NKOTB Experience with all band members
• Full Concert performance by NKOTB
• Photo Session with NKOTB in small groups
• Question & Answer Session with NKOTB
• Deck Party with NKOTB and DJ
• 2 Additional Deck Parties with DJ’s
• Gift Bag with cruise event souvenirs
• Trivia Contest with special prizes
• Karaoke
• Chances to enter other onboard drawings for exclusive NKOTB Event Opportunities!
• Full Access to all of Carnival’s activities and facilities!
• VIP Concierge at your service!

Here’s their cruise announcement:

Get your head right and your bikini’s right, ladies, ’cause the New Kids On the Block are going on a cruise!

(Now if only I could win the lottery sometime between now and then so I could report to Deck A to attend Danny Wood’s Fitness Class *wink*).

Thanks for stopping by!
-Janice aka @momontherun

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