slacker

hey y'all!
i've been slackin' on the blog posts this week. i had a lot going on with work...like whether or not i would have a job next week, and that's been resolved. i took a mental health day on tuesday, and it helped me out a lot. i've been trying to think very positive thoughts the whole week, and last night that came to fruition - i will have a job at the same company i am a contractor at, and y'all i get a raise!!!
i think i'll have to bullet out my weekend/week :)

• jl came in on saturday, and we had a great time eating at ok cafe! we also went to flip burger boutique for lunch on monday! y'all, i think those are two of my faves here in atlanta. we also played on the wii fit, and i need to make a bigger effort to play on that! jl leaves to go back to dc today, and even though we only saw him for a bit, it made me miss dc! good thing i'll see everyone in april for the race :)
• we got to meet missy's family last weekend as well! now i know where she gets her sweet demeanor from. she's so incredibly nice, just like her family! and her nephew is such a little cutie!
• i saw the curious case of benjamin button - i liked it a lot y'all, but i really don't think those accents are very authentic :)
• i'm so annoyed hosea won top chef - seriously, he's so gross! and i don't like people that cheat on their significant others...i would have preferred stefan or carla as the winner, even though carla didn't seem to have a plan on what she wanted to do.
• i slacked off so much on my training this week - i only ran on tuesday for my 2 mile run, and i forgot my watch, so i'm not sure what my time was. i was a mess this week!

i hope that catches y'all up! i keep forgetting to upload pictures!

on love and training

hey y'all! i found this little love quiz over at sundry, and i decided to give it a try!
update on the training - i ran 1.5 miles yesterday, and it felt great. the focus on breathing and form has helped me maintain a great heart rate (i think), and i finished in 24 minutes! i'm doing much better i think, and i'm feeling even more motivated for saturday's run. jl is coming on saturday, so hb & i will get our run out of the way before picking him up at the airport. hope you all have a happy weekend full of exercise :)
onto the quiz -

What are your middle names?

hb doesn't have a middle name, mine is cristina

How long have you been together?
it will be 4 years (dating) on april 27

How long did you know each other before you started dating?

a week?

Who asked whom out? hb asked me out. we got mixed up on who was supposed to call who (or is it whom?), and he ended up calling me and saying "are we going on a date, or what?" LOL

How old are each of you? hb is 35, i am 30

Whose siblings do you see the most? i don't think we see either the most, when we lived in dc, i would say his since his sis is up there

Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? i don't think we have encountered that yet. i am thinking the hardest situation for us is that i'm a spender, and he's more of a saver, but i would like to think that i'm becoming more aware of my purchases, and trying to save a lot more, and he's trying to not overthink too many purchases that he NEEDS

Did you go to the same school? nope, i went to the best school ever - LSU, he went somewhere else? is there anyone else but LSU? ;)

Are you from the same home town? nope, i grew up in the great state of louisiana in gonzales, and hb grew up in maryland (rockville).

Who is smarter? hb would say me, and i would say hb. we both have our strong suits. he's better at math (quelle suprise!), and i'm better at writing, i think :)

Who is the most sensitive? me!!!!

Where do you eat out most as a couple? we have been trying to stay away from going out to eat, but our regular place is hudson grille...we have our own waiter and the manager knows us by name :)

Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple? tokyo, japan

Who has the craziest exes? neither one of us

Who has the worst temper? me!!!

Who does the cooking? hb does for the most part, i try every now and then :)

Who is the neat-freak? me! i'm ocd about cleaning. i would have to say cleaning is my hobby. i love it when the house is tidy! i've been slacking lately because of work, but when there is a guest, i clean like a champ!

Who is more stubborn? i don't think that we are stubborn at all :)

Who hogs the bed? ME!! it takes me a while to get situated in the bed. i don't do it on purpose, but i sometimes take the covers from hb.

Who wakes up earlier? ME!!!!

Where was your first date? hb took me to carlyle in shirlington...sooooooo tasty. he took me there again for our 3 yr anniversary. he originally wanted to take me to a japanese place, and i planned in advance with my roommate to ask him where he was gonna take me and then have her suggest carlyle. i'm sneaky like that.

Who is more jealous? me, but i would like to say i'm better about it.

How long did it take to get serious? i would say about 4 months in when hb told me he loved me

Who eats more? hb even though i LOOK like i'm the one that eats more :)

Who does the laundry? i do, but hb has helped me out a lot by taking clothes out or folding or putting it away

Who’s better with the computer? i would have to say hb, but i'm getting better.

Who drives when you are together? hb because i get too nervous driving. i got my dl when i was 27, and i have maybe driven a handful of times.

training update

two posts in one day!! woohooo!
y'all this weekend was great because bee came to visit, but it did not help me in my training.
unfortunately, i skipped my weekend runs due to time, but tuesday i ran 2 miles. i have to say, it was kind of tough, but i finished in about 32 minutes. i think that my form is improving, and i am trying my best to keep that up as well as keeping focus on my breathing. i got on the scale yesterday, and i thought for sure i would be up, but i was actually down .8 lbs (not much, but i was very happy with no gain!). my goal for this week is to actually train through the weekend, even though jl is here. we might even get him running as well since he's training for the 10 miler as well. my veggies of this week are cucumber and red peppers - y'all, the eating has helped me not gain as well. i think slowly but surely the scale will start going down!
thanks for the support, and i hope you all got in some runs this week too!!

weekend update

hey y'all!
hope everyone had a great weekend!
my weekend was packed! unfortunately bee's flight got in 2hrs later than expected, so friday night we opened a bottle of wine, and just chilled at home - i went to bed at 2am! that is very out of the ordinary for me!! the following day, we had lunch at ok cafe - bee tried the pot roast, and i think i'm going to start getting that too. it was so tasty y'all! we also went to see he's just not that into you. y'all this movie is so good! i went in with the lowest of expectations, and i was pleasantly surprised. it explores a lot of aspects of relationships, and made me very thankful for hb! later that night we met up for dinner with bee and his good friend from back in the day...it was fun to see pics of bee when he was in middle school & college. we had a great time! the next day we had brunch with bee and his mom and little bro at the flying biscuit! if y'all are ever in atlanta, try it out. the biscuits are very tasty and sprinkled with sugar - soooo yummy! later that night, i went to see confessions of a shopaholic with missy...it was an ok movie. i thought it was cute, but i would recommend this one for a rental on a girls night in :)
monday was spent sleeping in and then getting ready for taste of atlanta...every year, suntrust bank sponsors a "best of atlanta" party where different places set up booths - the places are usually featured in atlanta magazine in december. it benefits camp twin lakes, and we had a great time! we tried a lot of different places, but none really stood out like last year. the highlights were the chicken mole taco from nuevo laredo cantina, fogo de chao (who doesn't love meat?!?!), and the sweet tea from mary mac's (the sweet tea was better than chick-fil-a!!!).
i hope everyone enjoyed the weekend like i did! my friend jl is coming in on saturday, so i'm looking forward to that - i just have to tidy up our place.

random updates

hey y'all! i have been looking forward to this friday since the start of last week!
i love long weekends, and hope everyone has the day off on monday, and enjoys some quality time with a loved one on valentines day!!

my good friend bee is coming to visit from dc, and we can't wait to spend some quality time with him. he's a dear friend, and since we are now in atlanta, it's hard to really stay in touch especially since bee doesn't really do gchat or anything like personal email during the workday. even still, bee is the type of friend where we can go for months without talking and pick up right where we left off.

my run yesterday went really well y'all. i kept a steady pace throughout the whole 1.5 miles, and i ended up with a lower time than tuesday. y'all, this is really awesome for me! i am so excited to be able to lower it with just a small tweak in pace. it also allowed me to focus on my form and breathing, so i've decided that my focus for the month will be to continue to keep my form and breathing where i had it yesterday regardless of my time. i think with improving my form, my time will lower even more. this week didn't go as planned as far as meals were concerned, but i do feel that overall, my stomach is flatter (not by much, but still). i only went over my daily point allotment once this week, so hopefully when i weigh myself on tuesday morning, i will have lost. my fruit recommendation this week - grapefruit! i had one yesterday and it was tasty! i hear it helps with weight loss, so try it y'all!

on thursdays i attend a conference call for a project i'm working on currently, and the meetings start off with a quote that a selected person is supposed to provide...sort of to break the ice and ease into the meeting. y'all, i was selected for the quote for next week!!! what should i say??!!!
the only quote i can think of is "if you ain't first, ur last"- ricky bobby, talladega nights. needless to say, i'm probably not gonna use that one. what are some quotes that y'all like?

back on the wagon

hey y'all!
so yesterday was my first day back into training. i ran 1.5 miles in about 25 minutes. i was feelin' pretty good during the first 3 laps, and then after i just got slower and slower. i still feel pretty good about the time, and i am confident that my time will only get better. i feel like the 5k is very attainable, and i have to set a time goal that i can work towards. the great thing about today is that it's a cross training day (35 minutes on the elliptical), and my legs aren't too sore!!

last night we went to the hawks/wizards game...and the wizards are terrible y'all! still, i was glad for the opportunity to go to a hawks basketball game! it's pretty fun, and the best part was this dance team called the a-town dance team! they are basically middle age men of all sizes and colors that do a dance routine - it cracked me up! and i really needed that after a frustrating day at work! the things i did NOT need - the food! why does stadium food have to be sooo bad!?! that being said, i tried not to eat too much, but i still gave into fries! one day at a time right??

work is better today, but my day started off a little hectic. when i woke up this morning, we had no water!!!! soooooooooo, i took what i like to call a french bath - basically a wipe down of all the important parts, and perfumed the heck out of my body! the only comfort i have is that at least it wasn't just me! walking to the car this morning, the hallway smelled like lots of cologne & perfume! we don't smell that unless it's a friday night :) too bad it's not friday night!

let's hope we have water so i can take a shower after my workout! i have never looked forward to a shower as much as i have today!!! i'm ready for a workout too! but the shower more so :)

inspiration, perspiration

hey y'all! welcome new readers :)
this weekend was lovely y'all, i relaxed and got a lot of things done!! the weather was amazing, and even though i didn't get out and enjoy it to the max, i did enjoy opening up our windows and letting the sunshine and fresh air in. it felt like spring (but without the allergies!), and hopefully it will stay that way.

y'all this weekend, hb & i went to see slumdog millionaire, and it was so great! go out and see it. i wasn't too fond of going to see it because usually when something gets so many raves, i end up disappointed because i have high expectations. for slumdog, i was pleasantly surprised, and i even teared up a bit!

i have a confession y'all, for the past 2 weeks, i have really slacked off on training - granted i was sick, but still! this weekend i tried out a new show - ruby. y'all ruby totally inspired me to get off my butt this week, and really go back to training! alice has too! she's been running now for a bit, and i think she will become a full fledged runner by the end of summer :) here's the thing - i have been so unmotivated about anything for the past couple of weeks, that watching ruby has really inspired me. she's lost like 100 lbs y'all, and she is getting to do so many things that she never thought she could do. things that i have taken for granted, like being able to just get up off the floor without help, she has just not been able to do on her own. if ruby can do it, then so can i! with that said, i'm starting back on weight watchers (i find the point counting helps with portion control) but staying within my blood diet parameters. i'm so excited about this journey! keep me honest y'all!!!

so now that i've got the inspiration, i need to ante up my perspiration. this week, i am going back to my 5k training, and i'm going to make sure i do my wii fit training at least 15 minutes everyday! y'all, alice set up some nice records for all the balance and aerobic games on our fit, so i've got a goal! i hope i beat her by the end of summer! speaking of perspiration, the terps played ga tech last night, and boy did they sweat it up. i was sweating by the end of it y'all! the terps WON!! by one point!! what in the helicopter was that about?!! it was an exciting game, and i'm proud of them. i am hoping for more terp wins!!

y'all i'm so happy that i have set some realistic goals for myself, and i'm happy to have the support of my friends on this journey. part of the reason i wanted to start this blog was to be accountable, so y'all make sure to keep on me about these goals!

week in review

hey y'all!! did ya miss me? :)
i've been pretty sick lately and busy with work, etc. so really this was the first chance i got to blog. i figured i'd go ahead and just recap what's been going on with me with bullets! bullets are my friend today!!

• the lovely alice came for a visit y'all! and we had such a great time! i've known her since my days workin' at an airline, and it was so nice to have such a sweet guest! we went to taco mac after she landed, and i introduced her to purple haze!! y'all abita purple haze is the jam! (i'm partial to it because it is a louisiana beer) we also went to the sweetwater brewery - unfortunately, there was not a tour due to some construction they were doing, but we got to taste all the beers! hb & i went before with jess & b, but this time we got to try the new beer called happy ending. it was pretty tasty. basically you buy a pint glass that has 8 tickets for $8, and then you are SUPPOSED to get half a pint, but they give you much more than that. so, you get 8 beers for $8, and you drink it in the course of 2hrs. needless to say, i needed the food after that so we met up with rich at the vortex! tater tots there are great, so if you are ever in atl, and you go to the vortex, get them!!! the rest of the weekend was nice and relaxing, watching tv, playing wii fit, going to the movies. hb & i were so happy to have alice here! thanks for the nice gifts alice!! we are enjoying the chocolates and candle!!
• hb & i went to a superbowl party in greenville, sc and we were originally planning on going to charleston the next day, but i got so sick with a sore throat and just bad cold symptoms in general that we decided to nix it! BUT we will get out to charleston soon! i'm really wanting to go try the low country grub and tour the historical buildings :)
• for some reason, i'm extremely unmotivated here at work, and i don't know how to get out of this funk. i am really over my coworkers i think because they are lazy, and i have to keep telling them to do the same thing over and over. on the bright side, i guess this will prepare me for when i am a mother, and i have to tell my child to do something over and over. however, i would like to believe that my child will only have to be told once :) i really hope that's not wishful thinking!!!
• so far, my feb. has been kind of yucky with me being sick and stressed at work, but next week my good friend bee comes to visit us, and we can't wait to see him!!! i'm looking forward to presidents day (i love having a monday off!), and then seeing my friend jl the following saturday! he's here on biz, and also training for the cherry blossom 10 miler, so we are all probably gonna go for a run!

that's my week in review! i can't wait for the weekend - only 4 more hours to go :) hb & i will be at ga tech this weekend watching the yellow jackets play the terps! let's hope this game goes much better than the duke game! if maryland does not play well, hb & i are gonna have to refrain from going to another game!