Monday, March 28, 2011

Taxes & other miscellany

Sorry I've been off track with my posting lately. I was out of town for a couple of days, busy doing our taxes, & trying to get our summer planned out. I've just discovered that our preschool will be closed in August. Hmmmmmm.. . . That should make childcare very interesting this summer. I've looked into other possibilities, but so far they are all half day programs & we need something full time. Another day, another challenge.

I must admit. . . I have not been tracking my spending this month, and judging by my credit card statement, that's caught up with me. I haven't made any huge purchases (still on the clothing/shoes/makeup spending ban for the year), but the money is definitely trickling out at a faster rate than I would like. Now is the time for me to get back on the wagon & change that. Tracking is important for me to feel like we're spending our money on things that we value, versus spending it mindlessly & frivolously.

On that note, we owe nearly $10K in taxes. Yikes. M & I are going to discuss options for paying that tonight. Always a good time.

I'll be back with my end of the month wrap up shortly. Hope the beginning of spring is treating you all very well!

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

3/23 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - what did you have for breakfast this morning? Are you a die hard breakfast eater like I am? Today I had a little bit of sauteed spinach (had to use the last of  giant Costco bag) with an egg on an English muffin. Plus 1/2 a laughing cow. Yum.

I'm planning to change my blog up a bit & just posting the calorie recaps + workout & fruits/vegetables. It will still keep me on track, but I don't want to put anyone to sleep with the minutiae of my life.

Total calories = 1550 :-(

Workout:
15 minutes running
30 minutes elliptical

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

3/22 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A -

Food:
Breakfast:
oatmeal + 1/2 tbsp peanut butter + blueberries - 180
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Snack:
Protein bar - 170

Lunch (Panera):
Half fuji chicken salad + Half mediterranean veggie sandwich - 560

Snack:
nectarine - 80

Dinner:
Balsamic chicken spinach salad with cottage cheese as the dressing - 350
1/2 serving nuts/dried fruit - 75

Total = 1445
Fruit/vegetables = 3/6

Workout:
30 minutes on the treadmill - ran 1.5 miles, walked 1.2 miles

One 401K loan is paid off!

I am very, very excited to finally be able to say that my 401K loan is paid off! It took forever for the money to clear various places & for Fidelity to finally show a zero balance on the loan/and credit my 401K with the funds, but it's all straightened out. Yes!


Loan History:
As background, we each took out a loan in March of last year for $49,500 (x2 - one out of each 401K) and we used that money to prepay part of our home mortgage, so we could combine both home loans (vacation property & primary residence) into one loan to secure a far better rate. The loans were absolutely the right choice from a financial perspective, but I hated having it around. Unfortunately, the loan terms did not allow for any additional payments unless you had enough to pay the entire remaining balance, which made it hard to chip away at it.

Paying it off:
The payment for paying off the loan (a little over $41K) was made by cobbling together money from various sources. I had a savings account where I stashed all extra funds, which totaled about $15K. But, the big money came from an unexpected bonus M received. The money I was able to save came directly from cutting spending in other areas: hair cuts for me, random shopping, meals out, trimming back groceries, and really just paying much closer attention to where our money went. I'm shocked by how much we were able to save just by really tracking how we were spending our income.

Net worth update:
Paying off this loan is a double whammy for our net worth. Not only does it decrease our liabilities by a huge chunk, but it also immediately transfers over to our assets, because the funds were automatically applied to my 401K, resulting in a $80Kish growth in our net worth. Now that's the kind of progress I like to see!

What's up next:
Next up on our list of financial goals is to pay off M's 401K loan. It's for the same amount, and the same rules apply with regard to pre-payment. His balance is currently hovering around $41K. We're going to apply the same savings principles that we used for my loan, and also apply any unexpected funds (from work, investments, etc) to our savings account until we have enough to pay it off.

After that, our goal is to clear our 2nd mortgage, which has a current balance of $185K.

Our financial situation will be undergoing a few shifts in the next several years. One of our biggest expenses at the moment is child care for the boys (we're paying about $2K/month - down from an all time high of $4K/month when they were infants). My oldest son will enter Kindergarten in the fall, and my youngest son will be in Kindergarten in fall of 2012. Both of these things will eventually reduce our childcare payments to about $600/month, as we will still need after school care. We're toying with the idea of purchasing a rental property once we clear the 401K loans & our second mortgage. I'd like to create other income streams, and now seems like an excellent time to invest in real estate. We qualify for excellent rates, we have stable incomes, and property value has dropped drastically.

Our ultimate goal is to hit a net worth of $1M by the end of 2012. If we pay off M's 401K loan soon, that will create another increase of $80K (again, the reduction in our liabilities combined with the money immediately transferring to our assets), which makes the number look doable.

Wrap Up:
I'll be posting a big end of the month wrap up as usual, but I couldn't resist updating our net worth for today.

Net worth as of 3/1 - $815,065
Net worth as of 3/22 - $896,594

Total change in net worth: +$81,529!!

Monday, March 21, 2011

3/21 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - happy spring! The weather was lovely over the weekend (cold but clear) & I'm very ready for spring to arrive & an opportunity to be outside more. What's your favorite season?

Weight = 152.8. Down a tiny bit from my weigh in earlier last week

Food:
Breakfast:
1 piece toast + egg + 1/2 laughing cow - 170
coffee + milk + fiber - 30
strawberries - 30

Snack:
dried fruit/nuts - 150

Lunch:
edamame - 150
egg salad (made with greek yogurt - no mayo) - 75
Dr Kracker - 100
roasted vegetables - 50
bread with tomato/cheese - 100

Snack:
frozen yogurt + mini oreos + granola - 180

Dinner:
cottage cheese - 100
roasted broccoli - 50
1 pc wheat bread with egg salad - 150
edamame - 145


Total = 1400
Fruit/Vegetables = 3/5

36 minutes on the treadmill. 3.10 miles running, .14 walking.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

3/20 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - What's on your menu for the week? Are you trying any new recipes?
Weight = weighing in on Monday

Food:
Breakfast:
english muffin + 1/2 laughing cow + egg - 230
coffee + milk + fiber - 30
strawberries & blueberries - 60

Snack:
fruit smoothie - 160

Lunch:
handful of nuts - 80
cottage cheese - 100
edamame - 150
1/2 banana wheat germ muffin - 80

Snack:
pear - 80
Dinner:
1 homemade taco salad - 300
Skinny margarita- 100

Total = 1370
Fruit/Vegetables = 6/5

Workout:
30 minutes on the treadmill running/walking
30 minutes on the elliptical

Menu Plan Sunday (3/20/11)

Lunches:Generally I take leftovers from the night before, plus add things like: edamame, fruit, vegetables + hummus, & nuts. Today I also made a healthy version of egg salad for my lunches (eggs, fat free greek yogurt, celery, mustard, pickles, salt & pepper). I plan to bring that with vegetables, crackers, etc. this week.

I baked banana wheat germ muffins for M's breakfasts. He's a huge muffin fan. :-)

Dinner:
Sunday - Homemade tacos
Monday -Italian baked chicken and pastina (from the freezer - I always make two of this dish)
Tuesday - Baked tilapia & sweet corn risotto (from the feezer - I made the risotto a few weeks ago & stashed the leftovers in the freezer) 
Wednesday - Baked shells with pesto, mozzarella & meat sauce (from the freezer - I made this last week & it makes a huge quantity)
Thursday  - M is out of town. I'll have grilled chicken on a salad.
Friday - M is out of town. I'll have any remaining leftovers or grilled chicken salad.
Saturday - We'll be out of town.
Sunday - Salads with balsamic chicken (we skip the dressing/bacon part & use our own) -

Saturday, March 19, 2011

3/19 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - any big weekend plans? My parents are in town to continue the celebration for N's 4th birthday. He's thrilled. :-)

**Wake up early to workout before soccer practice**
Food:
Breakfast:
1 pc wheat toast with peanut butter - 200
1 homemade waffle - 175
strawberries & blueberries - 80
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Lunch:
1/4 burger + fruit- 200
2 nuts - 20

Dinner:
2 glasses of wine - 160
1 piece pizza - 300
side salad - 200

Subtotal - 1365
Fruit/vegetables = 4/4

Friday, March 18, 2011

3/18 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - This can apply to both money & healthy eating, I've found, so how do you recover from a bad day? Do you jump back on your plan (be it saving or eating well, etc) the next day, or does it take you a while to get over your own frustration and slipping? I'm more of the former, but I've certainly struggled with this.

Food:
Breakfast:
1 piece wheat toast + 1 tbsp peanut butter - 200
1/2 pear - 40
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Lunch (out):
1/2 Mexican chopped salad - 300
6 tortilla chips with salsa - 100

Dinner:
Leftover Mexican chopped salad - 300
wine - 160
1 pc chicken - 110


Total = 1240
Fruit/vegetables = 1/6

Workout = 38 minutes running/walking. 3.25 miles.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

3/17 - Fitness & Nutrition

Happy St. Patrick's Day to everyone! Any big plans? It's my son's birthday, so we're going out to dinner. His choice was Greek food, so we'll be eating Gyros & then taking the boys to swimming lessons. We're party animals. :-)

Weight: unknown. Will weigh again on Monday.

Food:
Breakfast:
oatmeal with strawberries - 230
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Snack:
1 pc cheese - 100

Lunch:
soup & sandwich (Panera) - 550

Snack:
1/2 luna bar - 95
Trail mix - 150

Dinner:
Greek salad + 10 fries - 300
1/3 small piece of cake - 100

Total = 1555. I had a not great workout today, so I comforted myself with a bag of trail mix. Foolish mistake, because it pushed me over my calories for the day. Better success tomorrow!

Fruits/Vegetables = 3/5

Workout = 20 minutes running/walking

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

3/16 - Fitness & Nutrition Update

Weight = 153. Wooooo!!!!!!!!!!!! I did it! First mini goal is achieved. :-) I've lost 10 pounds since January 1st, and I've officially lost all of the weight that i gained during my pregnancy with my second child. One day before his 4th birthday, which was my goal. Next up, losing the 9 pounds I didn't lose between pregnancies. And getting back into the 140s. Can't wait! Can you tell that I'm excited?

Food:
Breakfast:
1 piece wheat toast + 1/2 laughing cow + egg - 170
banana & strawberries - 60
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Snack:
granola bar - 140

Lunch:
hummus/cheese/turkey wrap + salad - 300
frozen yogurt + mini oreos - 200

Dinner:
Chicken over 1/2 serving of pasta - 350
salad + light dresing -30

Subtotal - 1270
Fruit/Vegetables = 2/4

Workout: 38 minutes walking/running 3 miles.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

3/15 - Fitness & Nutrition Update

Q&A - The month is 1/2 way over. How are you doing with your March goals? I'm doing well with the fitness-oriented goals, & still working on the financial side. I am (im)patiently waiting for the funds to clear my 401K loan payoff, so I can officially check that loan off the balance sheet, update my tickers & change our net worth in my financial tracking. Can't wait!

Weight = 153.2 So close to my mini goal of 153!

Food:
Breakfast:
Greek yogurt + granola + strawberries - 250
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Snack:
1/2 luna bar - 95

Lunch:
1 Dr Kracker + 1 tsp peanut butter - 140
spinach salad with chicken & cottage cheese - 275

Snack:
2/3 vanilla ice with nonfat milk - 200
Dinner:
spinach salad - 275
1/2 banana + 1 bite chocolate/peanut butter
roasted broccoli - 50

Total - 1385
Fruit/Vegetables = 2/6

Workout:
40 minutes running/walking. Ran 3 miles today without stopping!

Monday, March 14, 2011

3/14 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A: - Do you have a favorite wine, or other adult beverage? M found my favorite wine at Costco last night, so I'm very pleased. It's Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc, & it's AMAZING. Love that stuff. Plus, it's only $10.99 at Costco, which is all kinds of a good deal. :-)

Weight = 153.8. Only .8 of a pound until I hit my mini goal. Can't wait! Next weigh in is on Thursday.

Food:
Breakfast:
1 piece wheat toast + 1/2 laughing cow + morningstar sausage - 180
1/2 Greek yogurt cup - 70
coffe + milk + fiber - 30

Snack:
1 luna bar - 190

Lunch:
cottage cheese - 100
Mini turkey sandwich + salad - 400
frozen yogurt + mini oreos - 150
Dinner:
Brussel sprouts - 100
Wine - 80
Chicken dijonnaise - 150
Total = 1450
Fruit/Vegetables = 0/5

No workout. Rest day.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

3/13 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A: If you have a spouse/significant other, what's your favorite way to spend a "date night"? I'm easy. As long as there's a bottle of wine & a meal I don't have to cook, I'm in! Actually, I love to cook, but don't like the cleanup part. What about you? :-)

Weight = 154.2. Only 1.2 pounds from my mini goal. Yeah!

Food:
Breakfast1 pc wheat bread with 1 egg & 1/2 laughing cow - 170
honey dew - 20
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Snack:
smoothie - 150

Lunch (just got back from a big workout & wanted to eat everything in our house):
1 pc pizza - 300
cottage cheese - 100
cashews - 80

Snack:
hummus + celery + pita chips - 120
strawberries - 50

Dinner:
Parmesan chicken spinach salad - 250
wine - 140
Subtotal = 1430
Fruit/Vegetables = 5/5

Workout:
42 minutes on the treadmill (ran/walked 3.25 miles)
30 minutes on the bike

Menu Plan Sunday (3/13/11)

Lunches:Generally I take leftovers from the night before, plus add things like: edamame, fruit, vegetables + hummus, & nuts.

I improvised a lot last week & made the balsamic chicken into spinach salads several times last week. As a result, you will see a few items reappearing on this week's menu.

Dinner:
Sunday - Giada's crunchy parmesan chicken tenders on top of a spinach salad.
Monday -Italian baked chicken and pastina (from the freezer - I always make two of this dish)
Tuesday - Baked tilapia & sweet corn risotto (from the feezer - I made the risotto a few weeks ago) 
Wednesday - Chicken Dijonnaise (Williams Sonoma French cookbook)
Thursday  - Our son's birthday. The birthday person always gets to pick the meal the night of their birthday, & he's opted for going out for Greek food. :-) Smart boy.
Friday - Baked shells with pesto, mozzarella & meat sauce (from the freezer - I made this last week & it makes a huge quantity)
Saturday - Having a little family get together to celebrate my baby turning four. We're going out for pizza.
Sunday - leftover pizza (if there is any). If not, pepperoni casserole from the freezer.

3/12 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - do you workout outside? How do you handle bad weather? I'm in Washington, so I'm learning that I'm pretty much going to have to suck it up if I want to run outside. :-) Today it's 45 and raining, & I'm rallying myself for my run. Good luck to me.

Weight = 154.4 - WOOO! In the 154s. Only 1.4 lbs toward my mini goal of my pre-second child weight. I'm almost there.

Food:
Breakfast:
spinach, egg, & feta on a piece of wheat bread - 250
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Lunch:
cottage cheese - 100
bowl of strawberries & blueberries - 100
small piece of pizza - 250

Dinner (out):
2 glasses of wine - 160
Side salad - 150
Bruschetta & Chicken - 300

Total calories = 1340
Fruit/Vegetables = 4/6

Workout = 20 minute walk/run - 1.5 miles

Friday, March 11, 2011

3/11 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - what are you wearing today? Are you at home, the office, or somewhere else? I'm wearing dark skinny jeans, tall black boots, & a pink sweater. My office is very casual, so I can where whatever I want. I do try & pull it together a bit.

Weight = 155.2. Holding steady. Can't wait to break into the 154s. :-)

Food:
Breakfast:
oatmeal/apple pancake with 1/2 cup greek yogurt - 300
coffe + milk + fiber - 30

No snack (bigger breakfast today)

Lunch:
Spinach salad with grilled chicken, feta & cottage cheese (no dressing) - 275
pasta salad, hummus, pita - 150
frozen yogurt + mini cookies - 200

Dinner:
1 pc pizza - 300
Salad + light dressing - 50
wine - 120

Subtotal = 1425
Fruits/Vegetables = 3/6

Workout:
38 minutes run/walk = 3 miles.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

3/10 - Fitness & Nutrition Update

Weight = 155.2. No progress.

Q&A -

Food:
Breakfast:
1 fiber wrap + 1/2 chicken sausage + egg + spinach - 260
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Pre-workout snack:
Greek yogurt - 110

Lunch:
wrap + hummus + cheese + tomato + cucumber - 280
apple - 80
1 protein bar - 190

Dinner:
spinach salad with feta, cucumber, tomato, & balsamic chicken - 300
wine - 80

Total = 1330
Fruit/Vegetables - 1/6

Workout:
ran 1 mile + 25 minutes on the elliptical = 40 minutes of cardio
10 minutes of stretching.

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

3/9 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - Do you make smoothies? I'm trying to get into smoothies, & I've been experimenting with flavors. Current favorite is: splash of juice, greek yogurt, banana, & strawberries. If you're a smoothie fan, what are your favorite ingredients?

Weight = unknown. Will weigh in again tomorrow.

Food:
Breakfast:
Smoothie (1/4 c apple juice, 1/2 a greek yogurt cup, straberries, 1/2 a banana 1+c spinach) - 200
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Snack:
1/2 luna bar - 95

Lunch:
almonds - 150
mini turkey sandwich & pasta salad - 250
cereal with milk - 300
Dinner:
crackers and peanut butter - 275

Total = 1400
Fruit/Vegetables = 4/5

Exercise - 30 minutes running - 2.57 miles. Woo!

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

3/8 - Fitness & Nutrition Update

Q&A - are you a lunch packer? If so, what are your favorite lunches to bring? I'm boring & generally just have leftovers. I do love to make a wrap with hummus, cheese, & vegetables if there are no leftovers to be had. That + greek yogurt, fruit, hummus & vegetables, etc are some of my favorites.

Weight = next weigh in is Thursday. I'm trying not to let the daily fluctuations on the scale influence my life so much anymore. :-)

Food:
Breakfast:
1 pc wheat toast + 1/2 laughing cow + egg - 170
strawberries - 40

Snack:
greek yogurt - 110

Lunch:
1/2 pc pizza - 150
cottage cheese - 100
smoothie - 150

Snack:
carrots + hummus + 1 Dr Cracker - 160

Dinner:
handful of cashews - 80
cottage cheese - 100
1 pc bread with peanut butter - 250
roasted brussel sprouts - 75

Snack:
fruit - 50

Total = 1430

Fruits/Vegetables = 6/4.

Workout:
38 minutes run/walk.

Monday, March 7, 2011

3/7 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - what is your favorite breakfast? I made oatmeal with bananas & strawberries this morning, & it was pretty yummy.

Weight = 156. Not surprised after eating pizza for dinner last night. Kept the calories under control, but salt in the evening always makes my weight higher the next day.

Food:
Breakfast:
oatmeal (with milk) + 1/2 banana + strawberries - 250
coffee + mik + fiber - 30

Snack:
skinny macchiato - 100

Lunch:
1 pc vegetable pizza - 300
cottage cheese - 100
granola bar - 140

Snack:
Edamame - 150
1/2 apple - 40

Dinner:
Salad with cottage cheese (as dressing) + grilled chicken & tons of vegetables - 350
Subtotal = 1460

Fruit/Vegetables = 2/5

Workout:
36 minute run/walk. I think it was about 3.25 miles. We ran 70%ish of it/walked the rest.

Weekly Spending (2/28-3/6)

I've gotten a bit off track with my weekly spending, due to our vacation, but I'm back & ready to rumble this week.

My goal for 2011 is to keep my monthly flexible spending (i.e. what I charge on my credit card & includes: groceries, dining out, gifts, clothes, lessons for the kids, etc) to $1750/month. This nets out to around $58/day, which is pretty eye opening. I am regularly overspending the $1750/month, so I need to start keeping a close eye on this figure. Keeping the monthly spending in check is a critical part of paying off my 401K loan in 2011.

Monday:
-$.29 at Rite Aid. I picked up three rolls of dental floss that were $1/each & I had a $1 coupon for all three. The $.29 is the tax.

Tuesday:
-$63.48 on flowers for my Grandmother & Mom. Lots of hard things happening as my parents deal with both of their parents rapidly aging & facing dementia all at the same time. My mom is carrying most of the burden for this, despite her siblings. My dad, luckily, has a brother in the area that is also helping, but lots of emotions & heartache right now.
-$6.75 at Safeway for a few items for lunch (Greek yogurt, protein bar) & sweet potatoes for home.
$26.57 at Trader Joes for lunch items/snacks for the office & a few bags of pasta for home.

Wednesday:
-Lunch at Nordstrom using points (free)
-$5 at the grocery stores for a few Vitamin Water Zeros (they are my fun treat)

Thursday:
-$32.32 at Fred Meyer for pasta, risotto, & Luna bars.

Friday:
-$34.64 at Rite Aid. Picked up nail polish so I can give myself a manicure at home, and a few makeup items that are free after rebate. I should be getting back $24 after the rebate.

Saturday:
-$86 -Dry cleaner
-$50 on hair cuts/tip for the boys
-$130 for dinner out. Date night.

Sunday:
-$18.83 at Fred Meyer for Zbars (kids) + greek yogurt + apples
-$31.79 for pizza. (Will be enough for 2 dinners + a lunch or two)

Total spent for the week = $453.35. Total average spent per day = $64.76. Yikes. An expensive week. The dry cleaner was about 6x our normal bill & date night was a bit more than planned. We need to get in some No Spend days this week. :-)

Sunday, March 6, 2011

3/6 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - do you have any health dinner recipes you'd like to share? One of my favorites is Parmesan chicken with orzo . Yum!

Weight = didn't weigh in today, as I'm trying to become less scale-dependent. :-)

Food:
Toast with peanut butter - 200
1/2 banana - 55
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Snack:
fruit smoothie - 150

Lunch:
1/3 burger (no bun) + mustard - 180
pita chips/hummus - 100
cottage cheese - 100
1/4 apple - 20

Snack:
Trail mix - 150

Dinner:
1 1/4 pc pizza + salad - 500
Total = 1485
Workout:
35 minutes on the elliptical
10 minutes on the treadmill
20 minutes strength training
10 minutes stretching

Menu Plan Sunday

Lunches:
Generally I take leftovers from the night before, plus add things like: edamame, fruit, vegetables + hummus, & nuts.
Dinner:
Sunday - Parmesan chicken with orzo
Monday -Italian baked chicken and pastina (from the freezer - I always make two of this dish)
Tuesday - Baked tilapia & sweet corn risotto (from the feezer - I made the risotto last week) 
Wednesday - Chicken Dijonnaise (Williams Sonoma French cookbook)
Thursday  - Baked shells with pesto, mozzarella & meat sauce (from the freezer - I made this last week & it makes a huge quantity)
Friday - Homemade pepperoni pizza
Saturday - Salads with balsamic chicken (we skip the dressing/bacon part & use our own) -

Saturday, March 5, 2011

3/5 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - what are your weekend plans? We're taking the boys to soccer this morning, they desperately need hair cuts for their shaggy manes, & then we're having a date night tonight. :-) Not sure what we're going to do with our four hours of freedom, but I'm sure it will be fun! M is taking S (our oldest) skiing tomorrow & I'm going to the gym with N (our little guy, who is not into skiing yet). Hope you all have a producting, fun, & relaxing weekend!

Weight = 153.8. Progress! Finally! Only .8 lbs from my pre-baby #2 weight. And, I've officially lost more than half of the weight (I started at 180, & my goal is 130). I've lost 26.2 pounds. Woo!! When I hear that number, I automatically think of a marathon. . . and this process has certainy been that. :-)

I'm a terrible, awful photographer, but I'm thinking of trying to get better so that I can start mixing in actual photos of what I can eat, rather than just a boring list. I hope that will mix things up a bit & not make the nutritiona updates so painfu to read. :-)

Food:
Breakfast:
high fiber wrap + egg + 1 tbsp cheese + salsa - 220
banana - 110
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Pre run lunch:
cottage cheese - 100
2/3 package of edamame - 100
1 pc wheat toast with peanut butter - 230

Snack:
trail mix - 100

Dinner:
1/2 burger (no bun) + 7 fries + beet salad - 500
wine - 160

Total = 1550

Workout:
36 minute run/walk outside. Lots of hills. 3.2 miles. Now I just need to figure out how to not pee my pants on the last stretch. Good times. 36 minutes is 2 minutes under my previous low for my 5K training. Next up is 35 minutes - going to try for it tomorrow on the treadmill. I only felt like I might hurl on two of the hills, which is an improvement from the last time I ran after lunch. :-)

Friday, March 4, 2011

3/4 - Fitness & Nutrition Update

Q&A - do you weigh yourself every day? I'm starting to debate the wisdom of this, although it's something I've done for years. In my case, I generally use the scale to notice trends (trending up, et) so I can quickly correct. However, lately the scale doesn't seem to be telling the entire story (as evidenced here and here) & I'm tempted to move to a 1x/week weigh in - likely Mondays to ensure I stay on track over the weekends. Let me know your thoughts. I know that I'm feeling healthier & more in shape, & my clothes are feeling better, so I'm doing something right, despite what the scale says. :-)

Weight = 155.8. See above. :-)

Food:
1 pc wheat toast + natural peanut butter - 150
strawberries - 20

Snack:
1 pc cheese - 100
1/4 blueberry scone (small) - 75

Lunch:
mexican salad with 1/4 chicken breast & 7 tortilla chips - 350
1/2 plum - 20


Dinner:
pesto, mozzarella & shells casserole - 300
wine - 160

Snack:
trail mix - 100

Total = 1275

Fruits/Vegetables = 2/5

Workout for today:
Total run/walk = 45 minutes
Details:
walk - .25 miles
run - 1.5 miles
walk - .25 miles
run - .5 miles
walk - .25 miles
run - .5 miles
walk - .25 miles

Thursday, March 3, 2011

3/3 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - What is your favorite flavor of nutrition bars (Lara, Luna, etc). I'm currently in love with the Luna White Chocolate Macadamia Nut. I try & eat mostly whole foods, but if I'm going to miss a meal or need a big snack, this is fabulous. YUM.

Weight = 155.8. I briefly saw 154 flicker on the scale this morning. ;-)

Food:
Breakfast:
1 piece wheat toast + egg + 1/2 laughing cow - 180
coffee + milk + fiber - 30
plum - 30

Snack:
Greek yogurt - 110
1/2 luna bar - 85

Lunch:
Healthy veggie pizza from the gym - 375

Snack:
carrots + hummus - 100

Dinner:
Balsamic chicken salad (homemade, small serving of cottage cheese as dressing)- 300
cashews - 80
Wine - 80

Total = 1370
Fruits/Vegetables = 2/6

Workout:
50 minute workout class that focused on strength training & cardio. I loved it & I am so sore that my entire body is shaking. Nice! That means I will definitely be back. :-)

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

3/2 - Fitness & Nutrition

Q&A - where is your favorite vacation spot? Mine is a toss up. We love the Oregon coast for casual, family vacations. We adore Las Vegas for glitzier adult-only trips, and Hawaii is my hands down favorite place to go. It's not too far from Seattle, but we're generally only away from the kids for a long weekend, which is a no go for that long of a flight. What about you?

Weight = 155.4 Down. Finally. :-) 2.4 lbs from the weight I was at when I got pregnant with my second child. Woo!

I also wanted to say this about my weight - I'm feeling much better about my lack of progress. Not that I'm giving up or not working hard at losing weight, but I want to recognize that I am feeling so good right now - I'm feeding my body good food, I'm working out, & I have a ton of energy. Being healthy is my number 1 goal. The number on the scale has too much power in my life, so I'm going to try hard to change that & focus on other factors.

In other news, M knows just how to cheer me up. He bought me a bunch of fun stuff at Lululemon, to encourage me in my workouts. Love that guy. :-)

Food:
1/2 wheat bagel with natural peanut butter - 220
1 plum - 40
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Snack:
greek yogurt - 100

Lunch (out with M):
1/4 grilled chicken sandwich + 10 fries - 250
1/2 grilled vegetable salad - 200

Snack:
Edamame - 150
Dinner:
2/3 serving corn risotto - 250
1 small piece baked tilapia - 75

Total = 1315
Fruits/Vegetables = 1/6

Workout (this morning! Finally got up early enough to squeeze it in):
20 minutes walking on the treadmill - level 4.2, elevation 2.0. I was incredibly dehydrated (jumped on the treadmill as soon as I was up), which was a mistake. My heart was racing big time. I kept the workout short, but need to figure out improvements going forward so I can be hydrated but not get a side ache (what normally happens if I drink right before I run) in the mornings.

March Goals

In order for me to be successful with my 2011 goals, I need to break them down into smaller tasks & track them monthly. I'm trying to get better at refining my goals each month. Here's the plan for March!

1) No shopping for clothes, shoes, or makeup for myself. Also, no shopping for the kids unless I've already checked their closets & it's something they need (no impulse shopping).
2) Keep variable monthly expenses to $1750.

3) Pay off 401K loan as soon as the money has cleared my account!

4) Log 5500 minutes of cardio workouts in March.

5) Log 150 minutes of strength training in March.

6) Log 100 minutes of stretching in March.

7) Organize and clean my closet. Sort through every item (shoes & clothes) to keep or toss.

8) Have one date with M.

9) Get together with two friends.

10) Add to my list of favorite meals, so that we have 20 compiled by the end of the month.

11) Complete a 2010 family photo album.

12) Read two books.

13) Pack a lunch 12 times in March.

14) Track all spending.

15) Have 10 no spend days.

February Goal Wrap Up

February was a more difficult month than January - it was both a shorter month, & we were on vacation for 4 days. I feel like I need to re-energize to get back on track for March. However, I am going to be paying off about $40K of debt in the next week or so (it was ready in February, but I need to wait for the funds to clear), which will pay off my 401K loan. That is, by far, the best part of the month. Super excited for that. I think the hardest part for me in February is that I lost .8 of a pound. That's it. I was even yesterday, but weighed myself this am & I was down .8 of a pound from February 1st. That's pretty much a heart breaker for me. Enough about that - I've spent plenty of emotional energy on it, & the only thing to do now is dust myself off & focus on ways to change that in March. AND I WILL.

1) No shopping for clothes, shoes, or makeup for myself. Also, no shopping for the kids unless I've already checked their closets & it's something they need (no impulse shopping). - Fail. As noted, in this post, I went to the gym to work out & forgot my pants. I have minimal guilt about this. I'm back on track for this month, but do plan to buy a better sports bra for running. Again, no guilt about this. :-)


2) Keep variable monthly expenses to $1750. - I think we were close, but I didn't track while we were on vacation. Most of our food expenses were already covered, but it's possible that I spent some time at the spa while we were there. We haven't done a very thorough job of detailing where vacation spending comes from, so for now, I'll consider this a semi-success for February. I'll work on the vacation spending going forward to make sure it's all properly accounted for.


3) Save all extra money in my 401K payoff fund. By the end of January, have $12,000 in my 401K snowball fund. - I more than exceeded this goal, thanks to some unexpected income from M. I will have this loan paid off (all $49,500 of it!) in the next week or so. Can't wait!!


4) Log 500 minutes of cardio workouts in February. This should be easy with my ski lessons.-  Achieved! I completed 514 minutes of cardio in February. This is lower than January for a few reasons - shorter month, fewer ski lessons due to poor conditions, and I was on vacation for a few days. Overall, I'm proud that I managed to deliver these numbers for the month.


5) Log 150 minutes of strength training in February. Fail. :-( I only completed 45 minutes of strength training in February, which is even worse than January. Epic fail - I really need to focus on this. 


6) Log 100 minutes of stretching in February. Fail. I only completed 50 minutes of stretching in February. I had originally planned to take pilates or yoga classes, & it never happened. This needs to get kicked into gear in March, and in fact, I've already started adding classes to my calendar.

7) Organize & clean my closet & bedroom - I achieved 1/2 of this - I cleaned & organized my bedroom, but no my closet. Shivers. That's quite a project, so it will be my goal for March.

8) Have one date with M. - Achieved! We went on vacation together, which is like one big extended date. It was fabulous!

9) Get together with two friends. Semi-fail. I had one get lunch, but my other lunch got moved out to yesterday, so it went into March.
10) Create a list of 20 favorite meals. Semi-fail. I'm at 15 right now, so although I added to the list, I didn't hit 20. I think I was overly ambitious for a short month where we were on vacation. :-)


11) Complete a 2010 family photo album. Fail. Did even start on this.

12) Read two books. Achieved! I read 6 books this month.

13) Pack lunch (or eat at home) 16 times this month.- Honestly, I didn't track this & we were on vacation for a few days, but I'm pretty sure I failed at this.


14) Track all spending. Fail. I was doing great until we went on vacation.

15) Have 10 no spend days. - Fail. Again, I think I was overly ambitious for a short month where we were on vacation. :-) I had 5 no spend days in February.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

3/1 - Fitness & Nutrition

Happy March!

Q&A - what is your favorite healthy snack? I'm currently loving hummus & carrots, edamame, or cheese. Cheese .. . yum. :-)

Weight = 156

Food:
Breakfast:
1 piece wheat toast + 1/2 laughing cow + 1 egg - 190
1/2 plum - 20
coffee + milk + fiber - 30

Snack:
Luna bar - 190
Lunch:
1/2 piece bread, hummus, salad, cottage cheese - 400
small serving frozen yogurt + 1 tbsp mini m&ms - 100

Dinner:
Leftover chicken pastina - 300
roasted brussel sprouts - 60
plum - 40
small salad with light dressing - 50

Total = 1380
Fruit/Vegetables = 2/4

No workout