Third World Bazaar and French Cafe

What a lovely day!  My friend Cynthia and I spent a couple of hours perusing the Third World Bazaar. I had to take pictures and just try to take it all in. Third World Bazaar I did buy an elephant carved in a large piece of wood (looks like drift wood) and a scarf and of course a couple of items for Christmas! I have two weeks to go back and purchase some more items. Such a beautiful place!

We then went for lunch at French Cafe in Manotick. I had never even heard of this little place and we found it purely by accident. All fresh ingredients!  We had a great meal and fantastic conversation. It all just made me want to travel as much as possible!  Maybe some day!  I'm sure there will be a chance in a couple of years! My list of places to see is growing longer!  Thailand was never high on my list, I think I was always afraid of the "busy-ness" of the place, but now I want to go more than ever. Many of the items from the Bazaar are from Thailand (as well as Indonesia, Mexico, Ecuador, Cuba, etc), but I would also like to visit Soi Dog Foundation  and Boon Lott's Elephant Sanctuary.  Of course going back to Portugal is high on the list, as well as Spain and Italy. I would love to also see Romania and meet our Sponsor child Izabela!

Here are a few photos from today;

                                                             



Cynthia displaying one of the gorgeous scarves from Thailand!

  One of the beautiful walls of scarves!

     French Cafe in Manotick                                                                                                                                                                 

                                                                                                                                                                     
Just a couple of mugs left over at the French Cafe!

A lovely day!! :) 

November 5, 2011

Well, it's been since April and what has changed?
I am still recovering from my fall, the broken tailbone has led to some nerve issues, but on a good note, I can finally get up the stairs quickly without feeling dizzy!!!  Yeesssss!!!

We're still a vegetarian household and some days I think about becoming a Vegan, but it's pretty hard!  Not only do I like cheese and Greek yogurt, but there are so many products with dairy in them. I think as if I work harder on eating well as a Vegetarian and limit as many animal products as possible, then I'll be doing okay. Bread is a major downfall, so I am thinking of just getting rid of it for a while. I do have some Vegan recipes, so perhaps I will just try one or two of those!

The pets are doing well!  We are now at two dogs and two cats. They all get along very well, although Fletcher likes to assert himself at times... okay, most of the time! But they make us happy and I'm pretty sure we do the same for them!

On the note of pets, if anyone happens to see this... lol... there is a friend of a friend who is going through a very hard time and has thought that perhaps she would have to give up her dogs. It is breaking her heart, so I have given her some options that may help her keep the boys. They are so cute. She basically feels that perhaps if she could have them fostered for a little while that would help.. but maybe even someone to go and walk them every day while she is at work would help as well. She has had to move to an apartment and is feeling guilty. If only she knew that they are so much better off than many dogs; they are loved, well taken care of and happy. I will add pictures of them, if you know anyone who can help, please leave a comment.

Oscar and Felix

April 20

Well, not a whole lot has been happening lately. I am still laid up with a sore butt (broken tailbone) and a concussion and it's just not a lot of fun!  I think next week, in order to try to speed this along, I am going to take the week off. I am already off work of course, but I think I will take the week off from everything else as well. No work from home, limit the computer time, limit the moving around... just rest and try to heal. We'll see how that goes!

Other than that. Camp planning is moving right along. FSWO and Girls in Gear planning is moving right along. Next step, planning the FSWO launch. I had better work on getting my money back for the website hosting and look for an easier one!!

Oh, one thing... no sugar, caffeine, alcohol, or gluten for three weeks. Gluten is the hardest, and only because gluten free is hard to find, expensive and the flour alternatives taste crappy! I found one bread today that tastes pretty good, no chickpea flour (that's the worst)! So far so good, but I feel like crap this week. Hoping next week will be better!

 So, I added this picture as a reminder not to feel sorry for myself. Some days I wish my tailbone and brain were healing faster and I whine and complain... but then I think about Steve. This picture is how you will almost always see him, giant smile on his face. Steve retired from the fire department a couple of years ago and since then, has been diagnosed with cancer, swarmed and severely beaten up, been in a terrible car accident and yet, he smiles! He is back to playing hockey and is always happy to see friends, share a pint and tell some great stories. He is definitely one of my favourite people!
Always a good reminder that no matter what happens in life, you can always be positive!

April 2

So, I have been laying on this couch for two and a half weeks, and apparently will be laying here for at least 2.5 more!  Sigh... be careful on the stairs!
I went to the Ranch with Jan on Wednesday. It was nice to get out and see the animals. I wasn't able to do much of anything. Andy wanted me to take some pictures. I brushed a couple of cats and was happy to see that Lucy (the Siamese) is doing really well. Unfortunately Owen, the gorgeous red, was brought back seemingly in the middle of the night. We found him in the morning, in his cat carrier, with the sample bag of food beside him. He is declawed, so meant to be an indoor cat. He was dirty, hair was matted, he has visibly lost weight and his eye looked to have an infection. Poor fella, I wanted to bring him home when I brought him Gizmo, but thought I would give it a couple of days at least to make sure all was good. He was gone the next day. I should have snagged him when I could. Hopefully his health improves, and if so, he is coming home with me. Sadly, I can't have him here and sick with Franc because of Franc's heart murmur. He needs to stay healthy.

Anyhow... hoping to get to the pool on Monday. The doc gave me the okay, as long as it is not too draining. He figures since I will not have to focus or think too much.. lol.. so I should be able to do it. But I have to swim with a buoy so I don't use my legs. If it hurts too much, then I have to wait. Sigh... hopefully it doesn't hurt!! :)

K... must get back to work on the Camp FFIT lesson plans! Here is a picture of Owen before he went to the house that destroyed him. Get better Owen and come and live with us! :)

March 26

No updates for a long time... oops!! Considering this is really just for me anyway, I guess that's okay! I have ordered the book Veganist by Kathy Feston and can't wait to get started with replacing the foods in my house with "friendly" foods! Being such an animal lover, it doesn't seem to make sense that I would contribute at all to the horrible animal industry that surrounds us. I don't mind if others eat meat, I just wish they were more conscious of where that meat comes from. Eating animals that have been treated so poorly and inhumanely cannot be good karma. I do understand that God gave us dominion over all and we are at the top of the food chain, but I doubt the plan was ever to pump these animals full of drugs, put them in living quarters barely the size of their bodies and slaughter them inhumanely, simply for profit and with no thoughts of what it does to those eating it.

So, one small step at a time. There hasn't been meat in this house for almost a year now and that is working out just fine. There has been no milk for months, and that is just fine too! Next step... CHEESE!! Eeeks!!

Also, we have a new doggie, after the horrible experience with poor Polly. I'll always say she was the sweetest dog, but she was not an ideal pet to have here with Fletcher. It turned out that Polly had cancer and was actually very close to end stage when she was here. One more month and she went downhill very fast, was barely able to stand, was shaking and wouldn't eat. She went to the vet and it was confirmed that she was near death. She was put down and buried in the back field at the Ranch. At least she had love and fun before she passed. Lord know what happened to the poor girl for the first 6 years of life, but for the last 3 months, she was well loved.

The dog we have now, is 2 (we're still deciding on his birthday). He and Fletcher get a long, although Fletch has been pretty jealous. We're working on making sure he still feels like the #1 dog. Gizmo (the new guy) is hilarious. He can be outside off leash and not run away, he loves to play and just has the oddest little body. He's a Jack Russell mix, just not sure what he is mixed with!  haha... he's a lot of fun!
I have broken my tailbone, so the boys (dogs), have been great company!!

Fletcher and Gizmo at bedtime!

 Little Gizzie (Gizmo)! Best ears ever!!

17 лютого

Well, not doing too badly!  Yesterday I had zero sugar (counting refined and/or added sugars). This morning after work, of course, I had a cupcake... lol... but those will be gone soon!
Food yesterday consisted of 4 meals;
1 - oatmeal with peanut butter and banana
2 - spinach salad with pineapple, almonds and wonton noodle thingies with Bragg salad dressing
3 - two eggs; mango, blueberries and vanilla yogurt
4 - vegetable mousaka

Workout was a dive bomber challenge; max reps in 10 minutes.
15 regular and 53 modified (on knees).
Skipping 10/30 for 25 minutes!!

Awesome!!!  Now, I may nap!! :)

This is one of my favourite pictures of Taylor. I believe this is from grade eight!  So cute! :)

15 กุมภาพันธ์

If I could just stop eating cupcakes!!  I'm sure an easy way to achieve that is to stop making them!  I must work on the "no sugar" thing. I completely forgot!

The workouts from the last couple of days were awesome!!  I loved today's!!
Dumbbell Sumo Squat 16,14,14,12,10,11,15,9
Plank Knee Touch 13,16,15,14
Dumbbell Swing 17,15,11,14,13,13,12,12
Side to Side Plank Jumps 23,25,32,26
One leg squat with kick 6,6,6,6,6+squat,6+squat

Today's pic is a lonely sunflower at the dump!  We were supplying the rope safety for a Trench training day!

Can't wait for tomorrow's workout!!

Feb 12

No workouts for 3 days now...  I had better get to the gym today.  My little dog was attacked by the foster dog two nights ago. He's got sutures and bandages a cone around his neck and he spent the night last night whimpering. Poor dude.
I did just have a really great breakfast... two eggs, spinach and soy cheese!  Yum!!

I'll start posting workouts again soon!
Here's a pic of poor little Fletcher.

10 Φεβρουαρίου

Well, workouts have been going okay. I miss days when I go to the Ranch sometimes, because it's tough to get there when I get home. I should be doing some of the workouts at home. I love the snow, but when it melts, I'm going to do workouts outside!! Yay!!

Food is still an issue. My weight is hovering around 184, it was down to 179, but I need to work on my diet in order to get it back down.

I hope I can add the picture of my new dog today!!  Nope, so I'll add this one instead. Anisa and I at volleyball camp in 1988!!

February 6

All is well, working out as much as possible and trying to do just a little more. The food is getting better. Taylor is more on board now, and as long as I can control the cravings, I will do okay!  I do find this really hard, but I will keep working on it!

I brought home one of the dogs from Big Sky Ranch on Friday and I don't think she is going to be going anywhere. She was supposed to be here for the weekend, then I took her to the vet and they discovered her ear is sore and itchy because of a bad bacterial infection. So, I told Andy I had better keep her for the 10 days she will be needing the ear drops!!  She's such a sweet dog. Treeing Walker Tree Hound!  Love her and Fletcher loves her too!!

For some reason the pictures that I add cannot be located right away... not sure how to change that, but I'll post a Fletcher/Polly pic later!  So here's one of boxing instead!  lol

February 2

Lazy blogger these days! I have worked out well recently, although no workout yesterday. I got up at work yesterday morning, then off to the Ranch, came home napped, picked up Taylor and off to pick out her new glasses. I was really too tired to work out, so today, I will be back at it!
Today's workout will be
3 one leg squats with press up (like a pike press, but legs are bent)
4 minutes skipping, 10/20 seconds
5 Rounds!

This should hurt, especially after shovelling, which I will be out to doing in about 20 minutes (after another cup of tea... or maybe I should hold the tea until after the shovelling!!)!

This photo is my lovely TayTay! :)

28 ianuarie

My legs are killing me today!!!  Lots of workouts and work at the Ranch, not to mention my job... yup, legs are taking a beating! No workout today, but back at it tomorrow.

The workouts are on bodyrock.tv. I'm so tired I don't even want to type out the workouts. lol
Workouts are listed under January 25 and January 26

Food has hit the crapper... I have some work to do there for sure. I'm not going to beat myself up for falling off the wagon, but I am going to have to work harder to get back on it!!

This is Polly!  I am working hard to find her a forever home. She needs a lot of attention and work to get over her anxiety and to feel safe. She doesn't even know how to play with toys. The right owner will help that!!  She's a sweetheart! :)

Januari 26

So, yesterday I was told I needed red meat and chicken in order to get my Omega 3's!!  Sadly, I was told this by a personal trainer who also provides meal plans for his clients. The best sources of Omega 3's are fatty fish such as salmon and sardines, flax seeds, nuts, tofu!!  Hmmm, seems to be the things I eat!  Red meat was pretty far down the list and it was also mentioned that land raised animal fats are higher in Omega 6 and should be eaten in moderation. Good to know that being an herbivore does pay off!!

Anyhow, it has come to my attention that keeping up with this every day is tough, especially with the trips to the Ranch, etc!

I've been getting workouts in, but not enough. I am back up a couple of pounds, but not too worried about it. I'm going to have to get to the gym before going to the Ranch, it seems I am too tired when I get home, plus I have to shower first which just relaxes me too much!  haha! I'm going to give it a try tomorrow morning and see how it works out! The next two workouts are tough!!

Food has been okay, good while at work, but not great at home, which used to be the other way around!!
I'll keep working on it. Bad habits don't change overnight!

I missed two important things today because we were up so late last night. It was close to 3:00 when I got to bed and then I was up before 6:00. We were honoured with a certificate from the City Manager for our efforts with camp FFIT. That's very exciting, and nice to be reminded that we are making a difference for these young ladies!  I also missed the Belarus to Canada meeting in Brockville tonight. It's a good thing I didn't go, I have a really bad headache right now and think I just need some water and a good night's sleep!!

Tomorrow always has great potential! :)
"I'm not afraid of storms, for I'm learning to sail my ship." ~ Louisa May Alcott

January 23

Hmmm.... well, it's been a couple of days. I did the side lunge challenge/workout on the 22nd and no workout yesterday. I had planned on working out at work, but ended up downtown and my legs were so sore that the 7 flights we had to climb was a problem. Eeesh, I"ll be happy when my body catches up with the workouts!

My meals have been pretty good. Except for dinner tonight. I've been craving corn pancakes... or Loose corn pancakes, so I made some, then put butter on them, then fake maple syrup. lol... ah well, a little "bad for me" now and then, as long as I don't go back to doing it every day!  Eat to live, not Live to eat!!

I'll have to get my book to post the workouts and meals, or maybe I'll just move forward... It's in the book!

This morning when I got up it was -37 with the windchill and then actually cooled off even more when the sun came up to -39. Oh boy!  I spent three hours at the Ranch, unfortunately the layers are awesome in the cold, not so great in some of the barns. I ended up sweating and then getting really cold!!  I warmed up though!  Tomorrow morning is going to be almost as cold and the farrier is coming to do the horse's feet. Bbbrrrrrrr!!!!!

This picture is Blanket the Highland Bull. She was rescued in Oshawa. When Andy and Trevor went to get her, they also found about a half dozen dead cows and a couple of dead dogs. I don't know why people would ever own animals if they were not going to take care of them. Sad. But this fella has already been adopted and will be picked up tomorrow! :)

Ngày 20 tháng 1

A great morning at the Ranch. We went on a rescue mission and brought back an injured horse!  Hopefully he will be okay, he's an absolute sweetheart!! :) Got home, had some lunch, fell asleep by accident, lol, then woke up in time to catch the last two of three of Tay's vball games!  Then off to dinner with the ladies!

Food for the day:
breakfast
coconut rice with light vanilla soy milk and raisins
tea with vanilla soy milk
Lunch
english muffin with margarine and molasses
Supper
Antojitos at Montanas (not a lot of vegetarian choices at a Rib joint,.. lol)
Snack
ice cream... yup, it's true, and it was delicious!!

Workout
3 Rounds for time
30 lunge with knee up (left)
30 lunge with knee up (right)
Sandbag row (I used 25 lb dumbbell)
Dancing crab (I was only able to lift my leg, not touch my toe with the opposite hand... holy!)
Tabata jump squats *4 minutes, 10 seconds rest, 20 seconds max effort, 8 rounds*
Total time 27:57
Number of squats
1 - 11, 9, 10, 10, 11, 9, 10, 10
2 - 10, 10, 11, 10, 10, 10, 10, 9
3 - 9, 8, 9, 9, 8, 7, 8, 8

Good Day!

This is Rupert!!  He is currently my favourite cat at the Ranch!  He is so loveable, just purrs and wants attention!  Handsome little man!!

19 ژانویه

Good day at work on the 19th! Finally getting in a groove!
Food for the day;
Breakfast
muesli with light vanilla soy milk
banana with yogurt
tea with light vanilla soy milk
Lunch
spaghetti squash with roasted brussel sprouts and chick peas
Snack
Chocolate soy milk with banana
Supper
Fish meatloaf
spinach salad with pineapple and almonds

Workout
Mash up... really painful!!  lol
Part 1 - 9 rounds
Snow boarders - 20, 19, 17
One leg squat with side kick - 6, 7, 6
other leg - 6, 5, 7
Part 2 - 8 minutes
Push up lunge combo - 17
Part 3
Shelf butt exercise 10, 12, 12
Half pistol squat with pike press - 3, 3, 3
other leg - 3, 3, 3
20 minutes skipping!!!

This is when we were lost in a not so great area of Lisbon... and still, I find it beautiful! :)

17 janvye

Not a bad day at all!
Early morning call at work, so I had breakfast at work. Then off to the Ranch; walked the dogs, played with the mini pot belly, cleaned out stalls, changed water (they were all frozen), and took some pictures for the website. I love that place.  Came home and hung out with Taylor, she was home sick today. Had a nap and instead of going to the gym, I took the day off. I am going to have to figure out a way to get up and get going. Sometimes I just need a nap though, especially after working nights. Today should be better!

Food
Breakfast
whole grain bread with peanut butter
banana and a blueberry yogurt
tea with vanilla soy milk
Lunch
Meatloaf fish (so good... much better with very little bread crumbs)
spaghetti squash with roasted brussel sprouts and chick peas
Supper
bun with peanut butter (kind of switched lunch with supper)
Snack
mozzarella cheese

Workout
none

On to a better day... time to get moving!!

Note the mess in behind (oops) and of coure the dog who would love for me to drop some of that on the floor!  I saved him some of the fish, he loved it, even with the onion! :)

Január 15. és 16.

Well, I have to admit, I don't remember what I ate on the 15th, but I do think it was nothing too substantial. I came home from work, had a nap, and sort of "rested" for the day. Made some meals in the evening and did not work out. I saved it for the next day!

So... next day!  January 16
Breakfast
one waffle with blueberries (at work, did not want to offend the cook.. haha. delicious)
2 eggs
tea with vanilla soy milk
Lunch
spaghetti with tomato sauce (delicious)
slice of bread
Snack
piece of toast with butter
banana
tea with soy milk
Supper
POLPETTONE DI PESCE (meatloaf fish)
spaghetti squash with roasted brussel sprouts
fresca


Workouts
Workout 1
Swimming in Sweat
One arm dumbbell swing (20 lbs - 25 for last two rounds) each arm
20 burpees
next round 19, then 18, etc until 11 - for time
32:40


Workout 2
Get up Step Up
lay on mat
stand up in front of chair
step up on chair (alternate legs each round)
max reps in 12 minutes
67 reps
10 minutes skipping 


I'm getting shin splints, I could even see swelling this weekend, so I will definitely have to rest on the skipping.. but I love it... I guess spin bike it is!!
PS - work was tough this weekend. I realized that sometimes you can do too much. Capt was upset because he felt we weren't doing enough, so I did more and made sure to stay busy... that upset the flow, so I have to learn to step back at times. I have a hard time leaving jobs, but apparently if I do them when he isn't watching, that's okay!  lol  Ah well... I chose a picture of our Honour Guard (part of it), because that is how I feel about our job!! :) 

14η Ιανουαρίου

Well, a shitty day at work, but I still managed to stay sugar free and I got my workout in. I was unable to do the skipping beyond 5 minutes. My shins were swollen... the inside of the shin...must ice today and likely sit on the bike instead of skipping!!

So, worked 24 hours and didn't sit down until supper time. It still did not go well. Just not a great day. It's hard to do enough work to make the boss happy, but I'll keep at it... maybe some day!  haha Ah well!!

Anyhow... Food for the day
Breakfast
oatmeal with banana
tea with milk
Lunch
Home made lentil soup
whole grain bun with butter
pineapple and kiwi
Supper
tofu stirfry with red and green peppers, carrots, celery, onion, leek, tomato, oregano, ginger, garlic and lemon!!  YUMMM!!!  Oh and coconut rice
No snacks.. no time and no need.

Workouts!
I did two workouts, because I took a day off to rest.
Workout one - Harder Than Ever (as titled by BodyRock)
reverse pushups - 17
prisoner jump squats - 18
mountain climbers - 65
clapping pushups - 20
jump lunge - 21
bicycle - 57
bench dips - 21
forward/backward jump lunge (left) - 16
forward/backward jump lunge (right) - 15
siede crunch (left) - 25
side crunch (right) - 30
burpees - 10

Exercise Challenge
Max Rounds in 10 minutes
2 jumps forward, 10 high knees, drop down and power up
alternate with
2 jumps backward, 10 high knees, drop down and power up
- 32 rounds -

I am currently waiting for a headache to go away so I can go to the gym and kick myself in the ass!!

I kind of wish I was hear right now... :)

13 januari

I never seem to remember exactly what I did or ate the day before, I need to remember to do this at night!  Except not tonight, because I will be at work!  lol

13th was good. I worked the night before, stopped in at Merivale on the way home to sign a form for the kid, home to feed and play with the pets, then off to the Ranch until lunchtime. My abs were sore, so sweeping was fun!  haha!

Food
Breakfast
tea with soy milk
toast with peanut butter
Lunch
2 eggs, 5 mini potatoes (very mini) one slice of toast
Supper
Home made nachos
banana bread
I actually had a couple of snacks of banana bread throughout the day!

Workout
None - I had a nap instead, I was really tired, my brain and my body.
I'm at work for 24 hours tomorrow (today) so I hope to have a chance to get two workouts in!!

Very cool pic taken by the kid, lol Taylor, at the National Palace in Sintra, Portugal!

Студзень 12

Today was pretty good!  I am writing it the next day, so I am trying to remember what I had for lunch!  lol

I spent the morning at Big Sky Ranch!  I am loving that place! Lots of work, but lots of fun with the animals! Came home, had a little nap and then off to work for the night.  Thankfully it was a quiet night, working for someone on C group all the way to station 53.

Food for the day:
Breakfast
2 pieces whole grain toast with peanut butter
green tea
Lunch
I forget... lol
Supper
Lentil soup
salad
garlic pasta
Snack
Mango and blueberries with blueberry yogurt

Workout;
Exercise Challenge
60 side burpees (30 per side)
I will have to update the time later, book is in the car.
These were hard!

Me in my Boxing days with Barry Dolan and Shaun Donnelly.

Enero 11

Today has been better!!

Dentist this morning was kind of sucky. I've learned that my mercury fillings are splitting my teeth. Yuck, so I need to get them replaced.. when it comes right down to it, though, I should be getting all of my fillings replaced. Apparently mercury fillings can lead to things like:

1. Psychological Disturbances (erethysm)
Irritability, Nervousness, Fits of Anger, Memory Loss, Lack of Attention, Depression, Low Self Confidence, Anxiety, Drowsiness, Shyness/timidity, Decline of Intellect, Insomnia, Low Self Control.

2. Oral Cavity Disorders
Bleeding Gums, White Patches - Mouth, Stomatitis, Bone Loss Around Teeth, Loosening of Teeth, Ulcers of Gums- Palate- Tongue, Excessive Saliva, Burning of Mouth, Foul Breath, Gum Pigmentation, Metalic Taste.

3. Gastrointestinal Effects
Abdominal Cramps, Colitis, Crohn's disease, Gastrointestinal Problems, Diarrhea.

4. Systemic Effects
Cardiovascular, Irregular Heart Beat, Changes in Blood Pressure, Feeble or  Irregular Pulse, Pain or Pressure in Chest

5. Neurologic
Chronic or Frequent Headaches, Dizziness, Ringing or Noises in Ears, Fine Tremors (Hands, Feet, Eye Lids, Tongue)

6. Respiratory
Persistant Cough, Emphysema, Shallow or Irregular Breathing.

7. Immunological
Allergies, Asthma, Rhinitis, Sinusitis, Swollen Lymph Nodes in Neck

8. Endocrine
Subnormal Temperature, Cold Clammy Hands & Feet, Excessive Perspiration, Muscle Weakness, Fatigue, Hypoxia, Edema, Loss of Appetite, Loss of Weight, Joint Pain

It seems the only symptoms listed there that I don't have are the loss of appetite and weight!  lol  If all this time, those damn fillings have been to blame for the weird and unexplained symptoms I have had for years, I will be... well, I suppose I will be happy to have it fixed!  haha!  Time to put some money aside and take care of them... unless I can prove they are causing these symptoms, maybe OHIP will cover it... hmmm!!!


Anyhow.. the day was pretty good other than that (and that may even be good in the long run). I went to the gym and did a killer workout, ate mostly well and am almost ready for bed at 20:00!  lol


Workout;
Cherry Cherry Boom Boom (bodyrock.tv)
As many reps in 50 seconds in order x 4 rounds.
1. Mountain Climber Sprints
  100 - 60 - 70 - 80
2. Single Leg Raises (left and right counts for one)
  16 - 14 - 16 - 15
3. Mountain Climber Sprints
  80 - 75 - 67 - 84
4. Sandbag Squats with Kick (2 x 15 lbs weights)
  16 - 15 - 14 - 15
5. Mountain Climber Sprints
  74 - 62 - 71 - 70
6. Tricep Knee Raise
  14 - 10 - 9 - 8


Skipping for 20 minutes - 50 seconds on, 10 seconds off!!


Measurements today were;
Chest (nipple) - 39
Chest (under breast) - 34.75
Waist - 32
Naval - 36
Hips - 41.5
Biceps 14.5 and 15.25
Thighs - 27 (eeesh)
Weight - 185.5


So.. getting there, one step at a time. I would always like it to be faster, but I know slow is better!!


Oh yeah, food!
Breakfast
2 slices whole wheat bread with olive oil margarine
tea with soy milk
Lunch
carrot/ginger soup
2 organic whole wheat crackers
bowl of fruit (pineapple, blueberries, kiwi, plum) and blueberry yogurt
Supper
Boiled potatoes
Green beans
Soy milk and protein shake (the fish I bought did not smell good)
Snack
Banana cake (organic, vegan)


And.. bed!  Zzzzzz!!


This picture was taken at Black Beach in Saint John, New Brunswick. It's gorgeous!

10. siječnja

Today was a good day (although not).  I have decided that I will be giving up sugar in as many forms as possible. Of course, I will eat fruit and vegetables that contain sugar, but no real or refined sugars. It's a work in progress.
So today I spent 4.5 hours at the Ranch. Cleaned the pig, lama, goat stalls, walked Polly and Mia twice. Caught Princess and Lazer (horses), walked them, brushed them and put them back. Princess tried to through me in the air with her nose in my sternum, she's funny. One of the cat's is very sick, he's new and has such a serious eye infection the pus that we cleaned out of the eye is also IN the eye. Sad.

Workout for today;
Exercise challenge - Hit Your Butt 9:09
30 sets of 5 pulse one leg squats
Exercise challenge - Sandbag Situps (used a 20 lb dumbbell) app 15 minutes (forgot to set timer for the first 20).  - 100 reps

Food
Breakfast - oatmeal with raisins and vanilla soy milk
Lunch - flat bread and feta cheese roasted red pepper dip
Supper - pasta with parm cheese
Snack - toast
Yup, another stupid food day.

Apparently my weight is 190, but my measurements are a little lower, so whatev... we'll see how next week's weigh in is!
I also decided to give up sugar today. All real and refined sugars; fruit, etc is okay!

Oh, and I bought an iPhone 4 today,.. finally!!  Yaaayy!!

9 січня

Well, today was sort of productive! I made it out to the ranch for a few hours, shovelled some stalls, fed the pigs and walked the Mia and Polly!  Of course I also played with the rest of the dogs and Nova the goat seems to be my new best friend!  haha!  I didn't do a whole lot when I got home; the Christmas tree is still standing, the carpet still needs to be vacuumed and the floors still need to be swept, but I had the BEST nap today!! :)

No workout today. I made the decision to spend the evening at home with Tay!

Food ... kind of sucky!
Breakfast
sourdough bread with butter and a tea with soymilk
Lunch
tuna melt and chocolate soy milk
Supper
Delicio pizza

Not sure why I can't get into cooking at home... I sure do cook good meals at work. Perhaps I should stop leaving the selection up to the 16 year old!!

One of my resolutions was helping animals and helping people. The animals are an easy one for sure, I'm working on that! As for helping people, I'm doing what I can there too. I'm going to help Taylor to help people as well. Get her to Toronto if she is accepted for the Free the Children leadership conference and of course send her away for a few weeks in the summer to either India or Ecuador with Me to We!  Free the Children is an incredible organization!!

That's about it for today... double workouts tomorrow after a morning at the ranch!  Oy vey!

Taylor and I in front of the Monument to the Discoveries in Belem district of Lisbon!

يناير8

Today was a long day, but a good long day!
I spent the morning at the Ranch, walked some dogs, shovelled some stalls, and pushed a wheelbarrow through the snow!  lol  Came home, shovelled the driveway and off to the vet with Fletcher. Finally made it to the gym at 19:30!!

Workouts
MMA - Major Muscle Apocalypes
Sandbag side lunge (done with 25 lbs dumbbell) (each leg)
Burpees
Reverse pushups
20 seconds each, 10 rounds

Side lunge left
5 - 6.5 - 7 - 8 - 10 - 9 - 8.5 - 9 - 7 - 10
Side lunge right
6 - 6.5 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 9 - 10 - 9 - 8 - 10
Burpees
5 - 4 - 4 - 5 - 5 - 5 - 4 - 4 - 4 - 5
Reverse Pushups
9 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 10 - 10 - 10 - 10 - 10 - 10

Skipping
20 minutes - 1562

50 knee tucks (hanging)
2:17

Food
Breakfast
2 pieces sourdough toast with margarine
tea with soy milk

Lunch
tuna melt

Supper
pumpkin shake (from Zuzana's site)
sourdough with margarine (one piece)

Yup... pretty crappy food day again... of course there was a piece of fudge in there (but it is finally all gone!!) and a cupcake with a lot of icing. I talked myself out of cookies though!!  Getting there.

This is my little dude, Fletcher! He's always cute when there's food around (well, he's just always cute)!

07 janeiro

I am going to pretend it is still the 7th while I type this!! :)

Today was a good day for activity, bad day for food. I am definitely starting to see a trend!! It was snowing and windy when I got home from work around 8:00, and I love to run in the snow!!  So off I went. I ran for 40 minutes, and although my face got a little chilly, it was a good run. Came home shovelled the driveways (mine and neighbours) and inside for a nice early lunch. Then... nap!!  lol I spent late afternoon, early evening baking. Forgot the baking soda in the first batch of cupcakes and had to do it again!  Of course I had to taste everything... sigh.

Workout
run - 40 minutes

Food
Breakfast - oatmeal with banana, raisins and cinnamon and bowl of fruit (same as yesterday)
Lunch - peanut butter sandwich
Supper - Tofu tacos!!
Snacks - cupcakes, icing, chocolate ganach... sigh!

Tomorrow will be better!!!

This is a pic of me after my run. I thought you would be able to see the snow falling, but I guess not!  The grass was green the day before and when I looked at this morning at work, the world was coated in snow again!!  Yaaayy!!! :)  (its a little dark, I took it with my phone).

Big Sky Ranch!!

How could I forget, I went out to Big Sky Ranch yesterday and will be starting there tomorrow morning as a volunteer. I'll be able to feed the animals, clean the stalls, play with the animals... hee hee... walk the dogs and in the spring I will be able to ride the horses to help them keep acquainted with the practice so they will be good for adoption!  Yeesss!!!  I am going to love this place!  The cost in gas will be far less than the cost of owning my own horse and this way I get to see lots of animals and help them as well!!

Here are a couple of the cuties!!

6.ledna

Well, I would rather be going to bed right now, but I'll type this first. I currently feel really, really crappy right now. I just did my workout and pushed as hard as I could... now I am paying for it. I would like to recover faster, but I think shower and bed are in order!

Today was good. Working a 24, started this morning at 6:30. We didn't stop all day and now I am really ready for the rack!  Work out today was a tough one. 50 second intervals with 10 seconds between, in this order with reps

Bond Girl
One leg skipping (right) - 84
Rollover commando pushups - 6
One leg skipping (left) - 76
Rollover commando pushups - 6

Low jump rope jacks - 40
Reverse pushup with kickup - 14
Low jump rope jacks - 40
Reverse pushups with kickups - 15

One leg skipping (left) - 90
Rollover commando pushups - 6
One leg skipping (right) - 81
Rollover commando pushups - 6

Low jump rope jacks - 44
Reverse pushups with kickups - 15
Low jump rope jacks - 47
Reverse pushups with kickups - 14

Food for today:

Breakfast - oatmeal with banana, raisins and cinnamon
small bowl of fruit - pineapple, blueberries, kiwi and red plum

Lunch - sandwich; whole wheat bun with pesto, fresh cheese, lettuce and tomato
bowl of home made veggie lentil soup

Supper - tofu, asparagus, green peppers, onion with oregano, garlic and lemon juice
salad; beets, feta cheese and tomatoes
whole wheat pita (most of it, burnt some of it in the toaster)

Small hot chocolate from Tim Hortons and of course the damn fudge!  There was some left over at the station. I'm glad it's all gone now... but I won't be back here for a week. There's still some at home and tomorrow I'm making cupcakes for Megan and station 24.. haha.. none for us this time! ;)

Here is a pic of my dinner and the mug the guys got me for Mother's Day a couple of years ago!

Janvier 5

Oy vey - just watched Canada buckle at the World Junior Championships. It looks like they ran out of steam and Russia just had new life!  Good game, and congrats to Russia on their gold!!  Nothing wrong with a Silver medal, it took a handful of wins to get there!!

Anyhow, on with my day!
Up this morning, had some breakie and the off to the gym!
Today's workout was a 12 minutes clock with as many rounds of 10 sandbag squats (I used 40lbs on a bar) and 10 reverse pushups.
I managed to crank out 90 squats and 86 reverse pushups!  It was actually quite painful!  I walked a little bit after that and then did a lot of stretching and foam rolling.
Home for lunch and then off to Big Sky Ranch to hand in my volunteer forms. I start there on Friday or Saturday morning... whichever works better for me. I work Thursday until Friday morning, so we will see!!  Probably Friday. I already want to get back out there and see the animals! :)

Food for today... sucked again!
Breakfast
three banana protein pancakes
1 tbsp molasses
tea with milk
Lunch
Indian dish (yes, again) with rice
Snack
toast with peanut butter
supper
I'm not telling, it's too horrible... lol.. small fries and half a small frosty from Wendy's. It made me feel gross, so I didn't eat it.
I'm mildly hungry now, but heading to bed. It's already late and I"m working tomorrow!

Arrrgh!

January 4th

Ouch! Today's workout was painful!
Burpee Fusion!
1. 10 dumbbell swings (also known as sandbag swings or kettlebell swings)
    11 Burpees
This progresses to 20 rounds, with the last one being 10 swings and 20 burpees (one burpee added a round), for time. I managed to finish it in 32:46. I was hoping for 30 or under... next time.
I thought I would hop on the treadmill for a few minutes, lasted 5 minutes and decided to stretch instead!

Food for today will not seem like a lot, but when I work the night before, I often come home and go to bed for a little while if I need to. I didn't get up until 11am, so I had toast with butter (should have had peanut butter) and a cup of tea with milk. I made it to the gym not long after that, came home and showered and picked up the kid at school. More running around and the next thing I know I'm having supper. So, really only had two meals today and of course some fudge. I have no idea what I was thinking making two batches of fudge!  haha.. ah well, I'll learn!  Tomorrow will be better! I'm sure I will have something else today as well, since it's  not quite 20:00.

This isn't fudge, but it's close enough! I have a soft spot for sugar... which is creating a soft spot in my abdomen!  lol ... one step at a time!

January 3rd

Yesterday (Jan 3) was our first 24 hour shift of the new trial!!  It was a great day. We got a lot done, cleaned the compartments on the pump and ladder, did some RK training, cleaned, ran some calls and were still able to see Canada wallop the US in the World Juniors (although the US goalie kept the score from getting ridiculous)!!

As for the workout, it was a pretty simple one, relatively!  1000 skips!  I did a few more than that because I tossed in some criss cross and double unders. I love skipping, but my back is not a fan. Perhaps when I drop a few pounds (or perhaps a few dozen) that will change!

The food intake was great, with the exception of the fudge. I just love it!  haha!  Working on that, step by step!
Breakfast
three banana protein pancakes (rolled oats, egg whites, cottage cheese in a blender)
bowl of fruit with mango, pineapple, kiwi and blueberries
Lunch
carrot ginger soup
salad with arugula, boccocini cheese, grape tomatoes, mandarin oranges, black sesame seeds and french vinaigrette, half a whole wheat PC pita
Supper
Indian dish from Zuzana's website, basmati rice, half a piece of whole wheat PC pita
bowl of fruit (same as above)
blueberry yogurt
Not a bad day at all!

My old crew did this for me the first day I drove the Rescue. haha, it stayed like that for a while, even when the next shift came in!  lol 

January 2nd

So, what did I do today to get one small step closer to a Rockin' body?
Well, the food was an issue because I made two batches of fudge and of course I had to taste them (yummy, if I do say so myself). I had some Kashi Berry crunch cereal, a peanut butter and banana sandwich and sadly, the rest of the day was grazing, fudge and two beer... but they were light beer! :)
As for the workout!  I did December 31 and Jan 1 from the Body Rocker website (which I will figure out how to link to at the left).
3 sets of 35 seconds for each exercise; total number of reps per set.
1. Ninja Jump Tuck
6-5-6
These were brutal. I had to start with one foot on the ground instead of on both knees. By the end of it, I was no longer jump tucking, as much as I was barely leaving my feet.
2. Reverse Pushup (not up as high as I should be)
13-10-9
3. Snow Boarder (no modification)
24-19-27
4. Triple Plank Jump (no modification)
4-3(+1 middle jump)-4
5. Side crunch left
24-24-23
6. Side crunch right
23-24-25

The Jan. 1 workout was a Challenge. 400 Backward lunge with kick up (200 each leg) for time. I was only able to do half. Ouch!
200 - 15:41
I did 20 per leg at first and then right away changed it to 10 per leg. Next time I will be able to rock 400!

I cooked my food for tomorrow.
Banana protein pancakes
lentil soup and salad (with grape tomatoes, boccolini cheese, mandarine oranges and french vinaigrette dressing)
indian dish (from Zuzana's site, although does not look the same.. smells great) with basmati rice
fruit salad (pineapple, mango, kiwi and blueberries)
rice cakes and peanut butter for post workout snack.
I will be at work for 24 hours, so hopefully this will be enough to tide me over for the day.
But, that's tomorrow... right now I am skimping on sleep by typing on here.....

Good Night!

PS - this photo has no significance to the post. I just miss Portugal!

Time to Rock this Body!

So, today is January 2, 2011! I have just begun the Body Rocker workouts and I can't say enough about them. They are tough, challenging and make me feel great!  Check them out here at bodyrock.tv  Zuzana is great, and although has a body I will never attain (just not as dedicated in the kitchen I believe, and lets face it no chest.. lol), she is very motivating!

I have allowed myself to gain some weight over the past couple of years.. about 20 lbs to be exact, thanks to work and life stress, not to mention alienating myself (likely thanks to work stress). It's time to take charge again! I am not going to track my food intake on a calorie counting website, I can't keep up with that, lol, but I am going to list it all here along with my workouts, etc!

Gym opens in 20 minutes, so I had better get my butt in gear!  I have two body rocker workouts to do today... if I can manage it!!! :)

I've attached a picture of me taken when my Aunt Norma and cousin Katheryn came to visit last month! Eeesh... about 189 lbs!