All Good

I am really lucky. My home was barely affected by the hurricane!!

I would say 95% of my town is currently without power. I am one of the lucky 5% that never lost power!! My basement which tends to flood got no water either!

A tree in my backyard fell down, but fell away from the house and didn't hit anything.

I know how lucky we are. I know so many people whose houses are currently flooded and have been without power for over 24 hours now! A few friends have stopped by to escape their houses for a little. I'm glad I can help in any little way.

I am at work. Most people seemed to have called out though. One of the roads I normally take is completely flooded out. I will have to take a different route this week, but I don't mind.

I'm actually happy to just be out of my house. I was going stir crazy! I was stuck there from Saturday afternoon to this morning.

I can't wait until things start to go back to normal!

Mud Run (I think I'm crazy)

Last November, a bunch of people from my gym did a Tough Mudder. It was a 12 mile obstacle course, through water, mud, the forest and FIRE! I was no where near the shape you had to be to do such a race. But it was one of the coolest things I've ever watched! Since that day, I've known I wanted to do a mud run. An obstacle course like that! I just had to get myself strong enough to complete such a task.

Well I feel like I'm almost there! I feel confident enough that I can complete a crazy run like that. So a few friends from my gym and I signed up for a mud run on October 22!!! EEEK!!! I am so nervous already!

It's called MudmanX (they are on Facebook if you want to check it out) and it's a 5 mile obstacle course here in NJ. 5 miles is a lot. I've NEVER ran for 5 miles before. Throw in crazy obstacles and getting soaked with water and mud.... I think I need to be committed. lol.

I have a little less than 2 months to really train for this. I really do think by October, I will be able to do this! I may not be the fastest, but all I care about is finishing! I want to be one of those people who can do crazy athletic things like this. I want to maybe inspire someone to go after this, like I was when I first watched people do it.

So even though I am scared Sh*tless right now, I'm going to use that fear to push me and make me stronger!!!

I can't wait to tell you all about it in October!

Oh Hey there!

I didn't mean to disappear like that. Last week was just totally crazy. Work was crazy busy, plus I had visitors. Which meant little time on the computer. I missed you all!!! I hate not being able to catch up on blogs!

Here's a quick recap of what I've been up to.

Spent some time with my niece and sister in law before they headed back to India. It will probably be a full year until I get to see them again. Sad face. I am going to miss my niece SO MUCH. She is just the cutest kid and has the best personality.

I saw Wicked on Broadway with my SIL. I LOVED it!!!! I have been wanting to see the musical forever. It totally lived up to my expectations. We had lunch at the Stardust Diner (a total tourist trap) but it was really fun! Then followed it up with the musical. It was a matinee but the theater was completely packed! I'll admit, I got a little teary eyed at the very end! Highly recommend it!

Friday, I saw Ke$ha in concert. I don't really care for her or her music, but it was still a lot of fun. We got cheap lawn seats and there was a good group of us. It POURED though. I had a poncho and I was still soaking wet. Good thing for the beers I drank. It helped me not care about it. lol. At the end of the concert, my feet were caked with mud and confetti! lol. It was still really fun though.

Sunday I went to visit my grandma to celebrate her 89th birthday. There is just no slowing this woman down. She's 89 and in better shape than most people. It was a great day celebrating and lots of good food!!



How cute is she????

Well that sums up my week last week!! Now back to regular programming.

Busy Week

I am so excited to see my niece when I get home from work today! I am going to be so sad when she and my sister in law go back to India on Thursday. I probably won't see them for a YEAR! UGH. I hate that they live so far away. I wanted to try and go back to India in January again, but I don't believe I will have the days or the money for it.

I am taking off work tomorrow and Wednesday to try and spend as much time as possible with them. I wish it could have been the whole week, but I don't have the days to take off work. Plus we are crazy busy this time a year and it's frowned upon to take off!

So I'll take when I can. I hope you all have a great week!!

I've lost 100 pounds!

As of last Friday, I have officially lost 100 pounds!! In less than a year!!

Mid July of last year I really starting to hit the gym and watch what I ate. I was too embarrassed to weigh myself yet though. It wasn't until August 22nd that I bit the bullet and weighed myself. The number 289. Sadly, it was probably like 10 pounds higher the month before. However 289 was going to be my official starting point.

I was miserable. I didn't realize how sad and lethargic I was. I can honestly say I am a totally different person now!






Before pictures that still hurt for me to look at sometimes. These were not taken by me. I always made sure to cut off the bottom half of pictures because I hated my stomach. These were from other people who didn't do that.



I'm 20 pounds down in this picture. Even just losing those 20 pounds I was carrying myself differently. I had so much more energy and I was starting to be more confident in myself. Hitting that 20 pounds lost, I knew I could do this! There was no backing away now!



Here I am in India and over 50 pounds down! This is when I really saw a difference in how I looked. I couldn't believe what a difference 50 pounds made! I felt amazing on that trip. I was comfortable in my plane seat. A total first. I didn't feel like I was crushing the person sitting next to me. I was able to walk around for hours and not get tired. It was amazing.



I couldn't believe this picture when I saw it! I thought I looked so tiny! I I'm almost 80 pounds down here. My body was really starting to transform. I still struggle with when I look in the mirror, but looking at pictures I could see the difference. The smile alone, you can tell how freaking happy I was now.



This is me 90 pounds down and in ONEderland!! That was the best night ever. The best birthday. My gym took me out for a night of celebration and I enjoyed every second of it! The outfit I wore was totally out of my comfort zone, but I felt hot that night!



This is me about 2 pounds from being officially 100 pounds lost. It's also the first time I though I looked good in a bathing suit!! I am just so much more confident now. I love myself and that's the biggest thing. I am HEALTHY now. This weight loss is just a bonus. I feel great inside and out!



Here is a picture of the jeans I was wearing in one of my before photos! !!! I cannot believe how big they are now!



Size 24 jeans vs my now size 14 jeans!! EEEK!!!!

I am just so happy I can burst!!! I am setting my next goal to be 160, my goal weight, by Thanksgiving. I've come this far, I KNOW I will get there now. There is no stopping me!!!

YIPPEE!!!!

Tightening my purse strings

I've said this many times before... I love online shopping!! Lately though it's been really out of control. I was ordering something at least once a week! Two weeks ago, I spent over $200 at Nordstrom (hello anniversary sale)and almost $300 at Bloomingdales. I bought both of those within days of each other. Cut to me having a panic attack and slight buyers remorse. That was WAY too much money!

However when the packages came, they were just to pretty to return!!



Hello my new favorite shoe for the fall.

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Hello shoes I will rarely be able to wear... lol



Hello new fav pair of shades!!



This was my favorite purchase of all!!! It is just so damn pretty!!! I am obsessed with it!!!!

These purchases happen about 2 weeks ago when they were on sale. Still expensive, but at least on sale...

Since that week, I've decided NO shopping at all until September 1. Online or in store. That means, no clothes, shoes, accessories or makeup. I will only buy essentials like food or soap if I need too.

So far, it hasn't been terrible. When it's slow at work, it's been a little rougher, because I usually kill time by looking at websites. I just need to find other ways to keep me occupied. I know I can do this though!

The good thing is I don't really need anything. I have enough summer stuff to keep me happy. Come September 1st, I will be able to buy clothes again, but they must be for the fall!! I literally have not one item of clothing that will fit me for the cooler months. They are all too big! (YAY) I will not allow myself to be tempted to pick up last minute summer deals. Fall and Winter allowed ONLY!

I'm hoping this month off from shopping, will allow my to pay off my credit card finally. Every time I get close, I seem to splurge like this. Come Mid September it should be totally paid off. Then my plan is to pay it off in full every month from then on.

I'll give you an update on how successful I was come September 1!

I'm back! With pictures!

I'm finally back after a much needed few days off. I had a great week spending time with my niece and family. It was great, but also exhausting!!! I feel like I need another day to sleep! lol.

One of the days last week I took my niece to the beach. It was the first time she had ever seen the ocean. She loved it!! It was a great day. It was my mom, me, my aunt, two cousins and my niece. We had so much gear because of my niece! But once we got settled, we enjoyed the day!



In her little bathing suit!



Playing in the water!



Me and my cousins

After the beach, we went back to my Aunts showered and had some lunch. Then we headed to the boardwalk! (It was a really long day). My niece was able to go on some of the rides. It was so cute to watch her.



Loving the boats.



Hated the fishy. lol

It was the nicest day! I had a blast, but we were all exhausted afterwards. My niece even slept in the next day!! The rest of the week, I took her swimming a few more times at people's pools. The kid just loves the water! I am so happy about that. I can't wait until she's old enough to learn how to swim!

Now it's back to reality. I woke up at 5:30 in the morning yesterday to drive down to Maryland with my mother to drop off my niece to her mother. We met about halfway between each other. It was a long drive and I was so sleepy. My niece will be in Virginia for the next two weeks and then she'll be back up in NJ for a few days before taking back off for India. I will be so sad when she leaves. I probably won't get to see her until next summer! I hate that they live so far away.