Contemplating Calories

You know, a true friend is someone who can tell you what you need to hear in a way that is completely unoffensive. I knew Emily and Becky were true friends when, while talking about their exercise routines, I mentioned that my 4 months of YMCA membership haven't exactly made me the svelte gal I once was, and they kindly hinted that one does have to monitor one's food intake.

Huh. What a concept.

I've been eating as if I was still 17 (or 30, for that matter). But somewhere between ages 32-34 my metabolism started changing, and, my friends, I don't think it's ever coming back.

(Now for those of you who don't see me regularly, it's not like I've gained a ton of weight lately. I'm 10 pounds less than my post-marriage heaviest, but also 10 pounds more than I was post-Couscous. And there has definitely been some continental drift going on, if you get my drift.)

So I tried a new experiment. I didn't want to call it a "diet" because that sounds too restrictive. But I started counting calories. Wow. It's kind of embarrassing how much thoughtless food I was putting in my mouth. So I started keeping track of my calories and fiber I was eating every day. (I took off 4 calories for every gram of fiber I ate. Don't ask for my scientific rationale.) But whether I was calling it a diet or not, those first 3 days were killer. I was hungry all the time. I did start getting into the groove of things though, and I decided to weigh myself once a week at the same time and just watch all of my self-restraint pay off.

I have been finding dinners hard (my recipes don't always give a calorie count), so I stopped counting those calories, and just am really careful during the day, and eat smaller dinner portions than usual. I did cheat for my son's birthday celebration a week ago Sunday, and I did go out for Hibachi last Saturday night without any self-restraint. So maybe those are the reasons, but when I weighed myself Sunday morning (yesterday), instead of seeing the expected results, I had gained 2 pounds!! That just made me so mad that when they passed around Ghirardelli Pecan Pie Chocolate Squares in RS that day, I took one and ate it with a sense of rebellion.

Help! What's going on? True friends, I really need some advice, help, motivation, whatever, because I'm about ready to post this and grab some ice cream! If my self-restraint isn't paying dividends, I may as well enjoy life--and food--passionately. Help!

Move Over, Martha!

Or Rachel, Paula, Barefoot Kitchen Contessa, or whoever is the latest cooking guru! I am so proud of my own little accomplishment! It's nothing professional, I know, but for me, it's amazing.
I got most of the ideas from http://www.coolest-birthday-cakes.com/train-birthday-cake.html. I used mini-loaf pans for the cars. For the engine I cut down 2 loaves, added a TP tube covered in plastic wrap, and a frosted marshmallow. (If I did it again I would use something bigger than that tube, but smaller than the cans I could find.) The track is made of licorice and KitKats. Crushed grahams for the sawdust and dyed coconut for the grass. I just decided to leave the chocolate cake showing as coal in the coal car. And although my son thought the caboose was a house at first, he was open to my suggestion that it be a caboose :) Happy 2nd Birthday Little Guy!! Glad you loved it. It was fun making it for you.

(I Muffed the Poll--Re-vote Please?) Facebook 101 Needed

Hi Friends. I just jumped into the world of Facebook, but I have a lot of questions. Since I saw many of you there, maybe you can help me out.

1. What's the point of it? In my limited experience of 12 hours on, I have found 2 benefits.

First, I was able to connect with people that I haven't seen for along time--even grade school aquaintances and people I taught in the MTC. And there is something nice about being able to say, "Hey! In this big old world I still remember you and you still remember me. What's up?" But do relationships ever grow? Or is it just like signing high school yearbooks everyday?

Second, speaking of high school, it was very eye-opening to go through my high school class profiles. Wow! As far as I can tell, there are three groups: those who look like supermodels, those who look greyer/balder/chubbier, and those who chose very discreet pictures so that you can't see them clearly. After going through every picture file, it seems my supermodel ones have disappeared and the only ones I can find would put me in the greyer/balder/chubbier category. (Is it any wonder that all the ads on my facebook page are about anti-aging strategies?) So can I have your help? Here are three pictures. Will you please vote on the sidebar for which one would best represent me on my facebook profile?

Picture A (which, for those of you who asked, also shows my new haircut & Marci, I've cropped all I can):

Picture B (cropped from the first version)

Picture C

Picture D (thanks for the ideas, Jen)

2. The second question I have is about your philosophy in adding friends. Do you add every positive acquaintance? What about second cousins twice removed? Are you obligated to add family who asks to be added? Should you send a friend invite to people you had crushes on in high school, even though you are perfectly and happily married (yes, ballroom dancing is back on track)? And theoretically speaking, does it really matter if you have 100 "friends" on facebook, but you wouldn't call any of them if you were having a bad day and needed to talk?

So what is Facebook? A great social networking tool? or a newer, better, trendier way to waste time?

stupid, stupid, stupid

I am so stupid. Yesterday I started the book Sarah and AnnaMarie recommended--Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I took it to the Y and started it while exercising. Wow. I was rightfully nervous about the premise (think a TV reality show like Survivor, only contestants aren't voted off, and the winner is the last one alive). But I got sucked into the story. I remember crying at some point, something about the love of the girl and her sister, which I'm sure looked ridiculous while I was on the eliptical machine. Anyway, I got home and put the book away for later. "Later" was the second my last child was in bed. I picked the book up at 8:30pm, and I honestly didn't come up for air until 11:30pm. I had no idea time was passing so quickly. I made the mistake of not giving myself a time limit, and jumped back into the book. Then it was 12:30am. I know that my kids wake at 6:30am. I know that the book will still be there when I wake up. But I'm so close to the end and I just want to know how 2 things get resolved. And guess how I'm rewarded at 1:20am? With a transitional moment and "The End of Book One" on the final page!!! Ah!! When is the sequal coming out?? I've got to know what happens! Surely Katniss will find a way to lead a rebellion against the inhumanity of the Capitol! And whatever will happen when she reunites with Gale? Did the mockingbird pin have any unknown significance? This is killing me! And yes, there was violence in it. I could never watch this story on-screen. But it didn't seem to go overboard. But I still wouldn't say it qualifies for "Wholesome and Uplifting", which are the criteria for books we read in Relief Society Book Group. I'd put it more as "Exciting and Suspenseful". But I am just dying with exhaustion as I try extra hard not to take out my stupidity on my kids in grumpiness.



You know, I know I haven't posted for awhile, and it's been a busy month, so if you want to know what's going on, please read the next post.

New News

February has been a busy, short month. Here's what's new with us:

1. T & I are taking a ballroom dance class together once a week. I really want us to learn to dance well together because, well, I've danced with good dancers and T just isn't one of them. I mean, he can do a killer disco, but partner dancing...? Not so much. I also hoped that our taking the class would bring us closer together and not just make me frustrated. Pride goes before the fall once again, I guess. On the first day of class I was doing my best to recall what I had learned in my BYU social and ballroom dance classes years ago. I guess I was getting a little mixed up because the first words of feedback our 70-year old Italian dance teacher gave was to me: "You are being way too bouncy. The foxtrot is supposed to be smooth and graceful." oh. maybe I wasn't the best dancer of the two of us. So that knocked me down a few notches to where I was more willing to be a team in learning together. We had a good time the first time, and the second time. We missed the third time, and the fourth time was miserable. I don't know if T was stressed because we had missed a week of instruction, or if I was being too lazy, but T started being critical of MY dancing. Excuse me? I wasn't pointing out his weaknesses, and he wasn't perfect either! The dance teacher came to help us and when I danced with the teacher I always ended up in the right spot at the right time. So it couldn't have been all me--that's all I'm saying. Anyway, wish us luck because we still have 5 more weeks to go and I don't want this to be what finally sends us into unhappy marriage-land. We probably just need to actually practice at home in between classes. That would do us a world of good.

2. We went to Texas! Sunshine, cousins! It was a wonderful time. The temperature was 30-50 degrees warmer than we are used to here. Glorious! The kids had the best time with their cousins and our family was so hospitable. I was the lamest guest I'm sure because I spent the time either tired, sleeping, reading, or feeling embarrassed that my kids are so noisy and messy! Their kids are perfect--or close to it anyway. And I came back more motivated to keep my house tidier. They were amazing. And Melissa, if you are reading this, your RS lesson was awesome. (It's STILL totally winter here. No hint of spring at all!! But Couscous finally just had enough, pulled out her bike and rode around with her snowpants and winter gear on. She did have a tough time navigating the icy patches on the sidewalk though.)

3. Haircut! Shorter than ever and I like it! It wasn't exactly intentional, but it's fun to try something new.

4. New and improved basement playroom! Thanks to our landlord, our playroom looks like a room and not just a storage area with carpet thrown on the floor. I didn't actually have to build it, but there was moving things around, and dealing with most of the toys being upstairs and messing it up.

5. Tried to do something about the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. In January, about 30 people signed my letters to Walgreens and Barnes and Noble asking them to be proactive in keeping the covers out of sight of children. It's funny because I don't know what in-store result is. I haven't even been in those stores. I did such a good job of avoiding Walgreens after last year's incident, that I don't even think about going there anymore. I didn't hear back from B&N, and I got the same exact letter from Walgreen's this year as last, only from the corporate headquarters instead of the district offices. They say that they can't just focus attention on one magazine because it's hard to draw the line of appropriateness. I kind of understand what they are saying. In truth, most popular magazines have inappropriate pictures or words on the cover. How can they say no SI, but then carry other mags that are nearly as offensive? It really needs to be blanket policy, not just focusing on one mag. The other day I was thinking that one day, Avandra is going to stop looking at the delicious looking cupcakes on the front of cooking magazines and look at the mags I don't want her to see. And she's going to ask me, "Mom, what is an org*sm?" So I decided that if/when that happens, I will say, "That's a great question. I know just the person to answer it." We'll call over the store manager and I'll say, "My daughter has a question for you." I'll let Avandra ask it, and while the manager is still stunned I'll say, "You don't need to answer that question, but may I come visit with you tomorrow about how we can make this store a little more family-friendly?" I almost wish it would happen.