Biggest Loser Princess and Tinker Bell 2011 and 2012 -- OLD please see NEW thread

[Worfiedoodles]

It's Christmas Eve, and !

My 10M are in the book, and now I can relax and take care of my last minute tasks before the football game. I have decided to go a bit faster next week on my 4Ms and my 9.5M on Saturday. I feel like it's time.

Nancy -- What a wonderful opportunity to introduce Master Matthew to his family! I think you are going to have a great afternoon, and your tomorrow sounds lovely, too! I predict the bike will be a big hit.

Lisah -- Would you believe Dennis made the sausage balls and pancakes for brunch tomorrow last night? He doesn't want to spend all day cooking, and we just don't have time tonight. My parmesan hash brown cups will be fresh and we're just heating giant cinnamon rolls we got at BJs. Pamela already took me to task for my naughty breakfast. I promise I won't have another one until New Year's Day I am so proud of you for doing 14 miles. I have never done that, what a fantastic accomplishment!

Kathy -- Yep, I'm glad I went to Macy's downtown instead of at the mall yesterday. So scary Why must people be this time of year?!
You have quite an agenda today! All that cooking and cleaning -- but I know it will be well worth it, and you are going to enjoy the special time with your family so much! It's not that I want to go to church every week (actually, I'd be perfectly happy a couple times a month), but the mandatory attendance for confirmation is starting to get to him. He can only miss two Sundays. He doesn't know this yet, but he's going to miss one for a birthday present in Feb., and he wants to skip on his actual birthday in January. I'm not sure how I'm going to handle that yet, I kind of want to make him go on his birthday, so we still have a Sunday in our back pocket if we need it

Merry Christmas to Rose, Lisa, Lindsay, Pamela, Dona and any other lovelies who may be lurking!

So, the schedule for today:

1-4 Patriots
4 over to the neighbors with the fudge and choc chunk bars I made yesterday
5ish Christmas lights drive
6ish Italian dinner
7ish A Christmas Carol

Theoretically we should also try to fit a puzzle in there, but I just don't know where...

Tomorrow's schedule:

7 up and setting up Christmas
Open stockings, then presents, then eat Brunch
12 Celtics/WDW Parks Parade (Guess who is watching which )
3pm Leftover Italian dinner (yep, we're not cooking again)
4pm Maria's nap

Oops, just heard Dennis arrive home from his run. Gotta Fly Now!

A Very Merry Christmas to My Beloved Friends!

Maria

 

[dumbo_buddy]

looks like we're buying more DVC! the sellers accepted our offer. wow! we are buying 240 pts at BLT for $73/pt that is a total low ball offer and i wonder if we will get ROFR'd (disney has right of first refusal in these contracts). we shall see.

merry christmas to us! nothing like spending oodles of money that we don't have to cheer us up!

maria - sure would love to know how dennis made the sausage balls. i just made the casserole for tomorrow and put it in the fridge. hurrah for make ahead meals!

i'm watching the giants/jets game right now. the whole family is in jersey right now watching but we're here - a toddler's nap trumps family gatherings! all the tyrrells are giants fans but pretty much all the "outlaws" are jets fans. kinda like how it is with the mets. we are all mets fans but it seems like everyone that married into the family is a yankees fan (dummies)

 

[Worfiedoodles]

Sausage-Cheese Balls

These little appetizers make a big hit with any crowd. They continue to be one of our most-requested recipes!

BEST OF 2010 Winner:


PREP TIME
20 Min
TOTAL TIME
45 Min
SERVINGS
102

3 cups Original Bisquick® mix
1 pound bulk pork sausage
4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (16 ounces)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves, crushed
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley or 1/2 teaspoon parsley flakes
Barbecue sauce or chili sauce, if desired

1 Heat oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease bottom and sides of jelly roll pan, 15 1/2x10 1/2x2x1 inch.
2 Stir together all ingredients, using hands or spoon. Shape mixture into 1-inch balls. Place in pan.
3 Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until brown. Immediately remove from pan. Serve warm with sauce for dipping.

We do make a double batch, and Dennis does not include the rosemary or parsley, as those are too "frou-frou"...we put maple syrup on them. We also get about half the servings, because ours are 2-in. Yum!

Painfully watching the Pats right now, having faith things will turn around...

Maria

 

[dumbo_buddy]

i like that it says "servings: 102" - what is that? for 102 teeny tiny elves??

thanks for that. my friend sarah made these once and they are so delicious! maybe new years morning i'll make them you know, for me and 102 of my closest little friends! (or just me and john!)

 

[mommyof2Pirates]

Good Morning everyone!

Nancy- Im glad you had a great christmas eve with your family. Your santa hats were just so adorable. I hope thomas was thrilled with all the gifts santa brought and I hope that helped take away some of the sorrow you and your neighborhood family have been dealing with. Congrats on purchasing more DVC.

Kathy- I hope poko settles down a little with the nipping. My first dog which is still living at my parents house was alot like that when playing. as a puppy I thought it was cute and never addressed it with him and it continued on and as he grew it was so not cute anymore. You are doing great training him. I hope you had a wonderful christmas with Michael and your family.

Lisa H- I cant imagine the day when my kids dont race upstairs to get to bed for santa to come. So what time did he get up in the morning for presents??? I hope you all had an enjoyable day.

Can I also just say you lady have totally amazed and inspired me this challenge. From the running and races to your becoming the BL. You are so awesome and great job on continuing to not give up. The Tink is going to be your best race yet.

Maria- Wow what an annoying shopping trip. Nothing is worse when you are trying to finish up your xmas shopping and things like that happen. I was cracking up at ben's comment. I asked my boys who was born on christmas day....can you guess what they said???? Santa Claus. Then I reminded them about what we learn at sunday school and they said oh yeah right, Jesus. you gotta just love these kids. I hope you enjoyed your festivities on xmas eve as well as xmas day.

Hi Rose I hope you are having a magical holiday at the world.

**********************************************************

Well it has been a whole ball of emotions here lately but overall we had a wonderful day yesterday.

On christmas eve I am happy to announced that I relaxed. We went to church for 7pm and on the way I realized we didnt even have dinner first. Thats how relaxed I was, I normally dont miss a meal. Church was over at 830 so we decided to do mcdonalds drive thru for lack of other quick options. It actually was fine all sitting with our tv trays eating dinner at 9pm while watching the christmas story. Then the boys did there one million traditional things that we have incorporated over the years. Hang the secret key on the door, throw out carrots for the reindeer, write a letter to santa, put out milk and cookies, etc.

Christmas morning was as exciting even at 555am when the first child awoke. They were thrilled with all the gifts. Then we went to my parents for breakfast and presents. The boys big gift was an XBOX and kinect. Get this......you will now really know how spoiled I am......My parents bought us a 40" TV. Gotta love them. My mom felt bad that I spent hours outside of best buy all for them. Shes such a trip.

We then went to my Nana's and did the secret santa exchanges with the big family. Overall my mom, dad, and I were able to put on a pretty good face for the day.

We ended the evening with my in laws coming to our house. We ate some more and then played dance central 2 on kinect. I LOVE it!!!!!!!

Today I am heading over to moms...actually suppose to be there in 10min and i still am in my PJ's. We are going to order flowers and then shopping for something to wear to the funeral. Services are on Wed. We wanted them tomorrow but with the holiday it was hard to fine someone to dig the grave. Apparently they dont realize that people cant hold off on dying for the holiday. Anyway it will be fine. We have decided to let the boys come with us. I feel like this may help them to understand what happens after someone dies and my grammy was very very old and they were not really close to her so I think it will help prepare them if god forbid anyone else close to us dies. Ryan is going to be a paul bearer and he of course is excited at his new call of duty.

On the eating front I need to get myself going yet again. Slacked off the past two weeks but this week I am going to get back to the gym and my fitness pal. I feel disgusting!

 

[lisah0711]

Good morning Princesses and Bells!

Sounds like everyone had a lovely week-end and Christmas!

i like how you break down the tink race. seems like it'll be easier to do if you think about it in littler chunks. i'll have to do that for the marathon. break it up into ALOT of little chunks. what are the pirate songs that you listened to? i'm going to have to download some good music soon

Nancy, your boys were so cute on Christmas! Those matching pjs were adorable and I saw on FB that Kathy had given them to you. Nice!

The Pirates song that Lisa told me about was The Black Pearl (Radio Mix) by Scotty. That is a great song. It also leads you to lots of other mixes -- there are apparently a lot of them. I'll look on my phone and see what else I downloaded. I haven't deactivated my iTunes on my old computer so am doing everything on the iPhone now.

I'm downloading Jesus Christ Superstar, Tommy and maybe Phantom of the Opera for my last long run before the Tink the first week of January. That should kill a few hours at least. It's okay for those songs to be slower because I am doing those at a slow pace -- if I had my way I would burn myself to a frazzle just to get it over with.

I read that you are doing a half in May on the big thread. Where is it? When is it? That's a great idea to help you with your marathon training. Can't wait for January 2013!

One of my neighbors captains a freighter so I asked if he went to the Maritime Marine College by your house. Turns out he went to the nearby rival college. But he knew alot about the college by your house and later Ed asked "how do you know so much about that place when you've only been to NYC once?!?"

Maria, thank you for sharing the recipe for the sausage balls. We thought your whole breakfast sounded pretty darn delicious!

We had a hash brown quiche from a Paula Deen recipe that turned out well. You could make it healthier but, of course, we used the original recipe. It was just a few servings.

We did almost all of our cooking on Christmas Eve and it made yesterday so much more fun and relaxing.

Nice job with the 10M in the bag! You will be so ready for the Princess. It's nice that you can take this time to work on your speed. I'll be interested to hear how you do that on the TM.

14 was a ways -- I'd never been that far either! I got a few blisters which I always do when I go a longer distance. But actually by the next day I didn't really feel much else because I had gone very slowly. I think the problem with these longer distances is boredom more than endurance. :sad2

Saturday I tried on my fabulous new black running skirt with the sparkly green WISH feather. I really like it and I think I may be able to avoid using my iFitness belt during the race because of all the pockets. I also discovered that I can fit into my women's WISH shirt which made for a happy day!

How long will your Dad be visiting? Sounds like you are having a good time together!

Lindsay, sounds like you all had a great Christmas! Yes, incredibly some day you will be waiting for your kids to get up so you can start Christmas morning!

Hope the shopping trip went well today. It is nice that you can help your folks with the planning details.

I'm sure that you will prepare the boys for what happens at the funeral. I was 10 when my grandfather died. No one told me what to expect and I really remember how shocked I was when they opened the curtain in the family area and I saw him lying in his casket. I sobbed the whole time.

I noticed that last time I was on myfitnesspal it told me that you might need some encouragement since you hadn't been on in awhile. It's probably saying the same thing to you about me now! We can do it!

Kathy, hope that you and Michael had a great Christmas.

I think that Nancy gave you some excellent advice on the nipping thing. Poko is such a good girl I'm sure she will get over that stage quickly.

Lisa, hope you and all your family members are feeling better and had a great Christmas!

Rose, hope that you are having a wonderful time at WDW! Can't wait to hear all about it!

I managed to do reasonably well with the holiday eating. The scale is up a smidge but everything feels like it is the same size so hopefully I can still get my 50 pound clippie this month. Have to keep this momentum going!

Have a wonderful day ladies!

 

[mikamah]

Good morning Tinkerbelles and Princesses!!

The Tinks come first, since their race come first!! I bet you both woke up now that Christmas is over, the next big day is the day of the Tink!!! I saw Corinna's post on facebook about the Goofy, and felt very excited for her, but a little jealous too, thinking back to this time last year, and the Princess was on the horizon. My hours go up january first, so I'll have to see how the budget goes through the summer, and once you all start planning your 2013 marathon weekend trips see where I am at. I would love to go there, but will have to see. I do think we are going to put our DL trip off a year, and try for august 2013 instead. With the dog, we will want to do some camping/hiking trips, and am thinking about our trip to Maine, and if we do that for a week, I'd put her in a kennel, and I wouldn't do that for 2 weeks. Plus, I want to do it right, and we can do wdw so much cheaper than southern cal, so for right now I think I might not be planning a disney trip for 2012. I sound so spoiled. A year without a disney trip. Oh whatever will I do. I know, i'll live vicariously through all of you.

We had a lovely Christmas and Christmas eve. Poko was so well behaved on Christmas with everyone here. I watched here closely when she was frisky with the little kids, and she seems to see me there, and almost behave better. It may totally be my imagination, but I'll take it. I ate and drank too much, and it was hard to stay awake to play santa. Michael didn't go to bed til 12, and asleep after 1230. I forgot a red sox poster in my closet, so I think I'll sneak it out later and hide it behind the tree and pretend michael missed it. Yesterday we had a low key morning walked to the park and let poko run, and michael played on some ice, and then I watched the disney parade while michael did some fusebeads. I kept dozing off during the parade and after we went to my sisters which was fun and we got home around 7. We took Poko for a nice long walk last night, over an hour. I kept looping around the neighborhood, and waiting for Michael to ask when we we were going to go home, and he finally did. It was a really nice ending to the day. I didn't feel as much like a cow from all I ate and drank all weekend.

Today is a new day, and other than finishing the chocolate mousse pie for breakfast, it will be a more in control day. I had a banana too.

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.

Lindsay-Sounds like you had a really nice holiday considering all that's happened. I hope everything goes smoothly this week for you and your family. I'll be thinking of you.

LisaH-14 miles and feeling back to normal in the morning is awesome!! You are going to be Tink-tastic!! So funny, Robert was going to stay up late and you were going to do the presents in the am. How late was he up? and how late did he sleep? I love how you have broken the race down into smaller goals, and I'm sure once you're back in the parks there will be no sweepers, not that you'll be anywhere near them. You and your svelt Onderland body will be way ahead of them. How cool that JG is telling you to slow down. I am so happy for you.

Maria -Love that you have your nap scheduled into your day. I need to do that next year. My bil brought those sausage ball to my house christmas eve, and they were delicious. We needed sauce so we used maple syrup, and they were even better. You still have a couple days off right? Enjoy!!

Nancy-Thomas is so cute in the video on Christmas morning. Made me think I should have videoed Poko's first christmas. My camera has tapes, and I couldn't find any for michaels' concert so I used my little camera for video, and my big camera for pics, but I definitely should invest in a newer video camera again. Congrats on the new DVC!!! I should think with all the dvc you have, that disney couldn't turn you down. That must have a play in it. I hope it all goes through.

Rose_Hope you're enjoying the most magical place on earth. I said to michael during the parade, "my friend Rose is there right now!" He said you are soooo lucky. I'll have to check facebook for pics. I think Lisa said you have posted.

Hello toLisa, Dona, and Pamela! Hope you all had a wonderful holiday!!

I think I'll upload my christmas pics before we watch the movies. Have a fabulous week!!!

 

[mikamah]

I'm following you today Lisa!! Just like old times.

 

[mikamah]

Lisa-I am so excited that your womens' wish shirt fits!! I know how very exciting that must be because mine still sits on my bureau waiting to fit me. The skirt sounds adorable. Is it from Sparkleskirts? Love to see a pictures of it. The wish color will be awesome for the tinkerbell race.
And a smidge on the scale after Christmas is nothing. I'm up 5 pounds this morning. But that was bacon for breakfast and ham for dinner, so I hope it will be gone by 1/1/12!! It's nice to have so much done ahead. On Christmas eve when something wasn't done that i meant to do, I'd blame it on poor Poko. Like I was going to knit scarfs for my sisters, but I got a dog instead. The basement was going to be really organized and cleaned, but I got a dog instead. I could go on and on, and if I didn't get poko, probably half of what wasnt' done wouldn't have been done anyway. Are you home today? Hope so and you have a great day!!

 

[dumbo_buddy]

hi friends! happy day after christmas!

lindsay - sounds like christmas was nice considering losing grammy so close to the holiday. mcdonalds for christmas eve? sounds divine! i had a similar experience as lisa - i was 11 when my grandmother passed and seeing her in the casket put me in hysterics. i wish someone had told me what to expect. good luck

um, totally AWESOME about the new TV!! 40"! wowsa! that's like, the size of my whole living room wall! enjoy it!

lisa - thanks for the pirate music info. i'm going to check it out. downloading broadway music is a great idea! my mom and i used to go downtown and get half price tickets to shows pretty often. maybe i will download joseph and the amazing technicolor dreamcoat, cats, and blood brothers. great music in those shows too!

as kathy says, you are SO going to be tink-tastic! and that 50 lb clippie is so close!!

kathy - so glad poko was a good hostess during your christmas eve party! i'm SURE she knows that you're watching. dogs definitely know who their masters are and definitely know "the look" that tells them to behave! i hope you'll be able to make it to marathon weekend 2013! hiking with the doggie sounds like fun!

hi to lisaR, maria, rose, and all of our other friends!

well, now i have the baby on me so i cab only type with one hand!! make it quick - christmas was nice and relaxing. the in laws called about 7 or 8 times to make john feel bad that we werent there. ridiculous.i got one of those gps watches and today used a gift card to get an ipod nano. all set to start the training! oh Lisa - i'm going to do the long island half. it's only about 30 min away. the week after we go to disney so it's like disney will be my reward for running the half. that's funny about your friend knowing about SUNY maritime! i wonder where he went. if he's been there then he's been like a 5 min walk from my house! cool!!!

ok can't do any more one handed typing. night!

 

[mommyof2Pirates]

Good Afternoon Tinkerbells and Princesses!!!!

Nancy- that sounds like an amazing reward to completing the half. I am contemplating running the local half here again at the end of april. The training plan would start mid January and I feel like I am not quite prepared but you have motivated me to stop making excuses and just sign up already. Glad you had a good holiday. Sorry John's family continued to be a bunch of PITA's. Im sure even with the phone calls your holiday was better without a visit with them.

Kathy- your holiday sounded picture perfect. Glad poko behaved herself for you. I too would love to get to WDW marathon weekend 2013...Im trying to save my pennies.

Lisa H- I agree the longer runs do get quite boring and I can imagine purposefully going slower must drag it out for you. Glad you found some new tunes to keep your mind busy. How exciting about the outfit fitting nicely. That is such a great accomplishment. I would love love love to see some pics.

Hello to all my other friends too!

Today I tried to sleep in but my kids had other things on the agenda. We opened up a few other presents some requiring extensive assembly. By the time I got it together they were onto the next thing. We played some xbox and then I had to get ready to go to the private family viewing at the funeral home. The boys stayed with my aunt and nana. It only was a short visit. The funeral director did a great job and my grammy looks very natural and just like I remember her. Its amazing for 98 years old she looks just like she did when she was in her 60's. I can only pray I age as well as she did. Hopefully I have those genes. Tomorrow is her funeral. I am still nervous about taking the boys but thank you all for your tips. I have prepared them for what happens but I will make sure to pay attention to giving them as much details as I can.

I am really ready to get my eating and exercise back in order again. It was horrible yesterday shopping for clothes and being back into a size 16 pants when I had gotten down to a tight 12. I always thought everything in moderation was ok but I have really been thinking that I should really try to stop eating fast food all together. Maybe that would stop me from this yo yo weight trouble.

Well I hope you all are enjoying your final week of 2011. I need to find the holiday thread and join in over there too. I am ready to start the new BL challenge too!

 

[lisah0711]

Good afternoon Princesses and Bells!

Sounds like everyone had a nice holiday.

Kathy, Robert actually changed his tactics on Christmas Eve and went to bed around 10 pm. He still didn't get up until almost 8 o'clock. Ed and I both got up early and waited and waited for that kid to get up. I read some posts on the Disboards about people begging their kids to get up at noon so it could be worse.

Glad that you and Michael had a good time. I wonder how many times you would have gone around the block if Michael hadn't spoken up?!?

I've been wondering how I could bring up your going to Marathon Week-end 2013 instead of Disneyland 2012 after sending you all that info . . . Seriously next year will probably be the last year you can get away with missing any school so you should take advantage of it while you can. I bet Michael would love to do the 5K with you.

I'm following you today Lisa!! Just like old times.

Lisa-I am so excited that your womens' wish shirt fits!! I know how very exciting that must be because mine still sits on my bureau waiting to fit me. The skirt sounds adorable. Is it from Sparkleskirts? Love to see a pictures of it. The wish color will be awesome for the tinkerbell race.

I'll post some pics of the outfit tomorrow. I'll wait to show you what it looks like on me until this Christmas fluffiness has subsided.

I bet those 5 pounds will be gone quickly with all that walking. And Poko will give you a lifetime of unconditional love so a few missed projects are no big deal!

i'm going to do the long island half. it's only about 30 min away. the week after we go to disney so it's like disney will be my reward for running the half. that's funny about your friend knowing about SUNY maritime! i wonder where he went. if he's been there then he's been like a 5 min walk from my house! cool!!!

It's a lot of fun to do a local half and sleep in your own bed the night before the race. I bet you will like it and, of course, I know you will rock it! :rockband

My friend went to US Merchant Marine Academy which is in Kings Point, NY. Looks like it is right across the river from you. He said you had to be appointed by your local congressman just like in one of the military academies. I really don't know how an Idaho boy decided to be a merchant marine but they are very nice neighbors.

Lindsay, I'll be thinking of you and your family tomorrow.

I'm so sorry about the pants thing. I so know where you are coming from. But I have to tell you that it seems a bit easier to get things off on the do over so don't worry.

Rose, welcome back! Can't wait to hear all about your trip.

Lisa, hope that you are feeling better. One month from today we will be picking up our bibs!

Maria, hope that you are enjoying your visit with your Dad.

So did any of you see the snark I got on my FB Tinker Bell WISH meet event posting? It was just one person but it was still very, very annoying.

I'm wondering if we shouldn't start another thread instead of renaming this one if we are trying to be more inclusive?

Have a great day ladies!

 

[liesel]

Hello and !

I went off the grid for a couple of days, it was a nice break, but there were a ton of emails to go through this morning. I'm glad everyone had a lovely holiday!

Rose I hope you are out there somewhere enjoying your vacation. I can't wait to hear all about it!

Nancy Congrats on signing up for your first post bronxbaby half! Just remember not to beat yourself up when it takes a little while to get back to where you were. I can't believe you were sick 3 times while training for the Princess! I seem to remember you had a pretty good time too. I really hope I am done with being sick.

Maria Thanks for posting the sausage ball recipe, so tempting! It sounds like your training is going well. What did you eat for your Italian Christmas Eve dinner?

Kathy Congrats on your first Poko Christmas, I'm glad everything went well. My DS is also 10 and some Christmas Eves it takes forever to wait him out to go to bed. Our first doggie Christmas I picked up a dog stocking at a post Christmas sale for 75% off, so now is a good time for doggie holiday treat shopping!

Lindsay I think you win the prize for having the earliest risers on Christmas morning, although my kids were up and excited too. for the funeral tomorrow and for managing to have a pleasant holiday despite everything. I'm glad you've prepared your kids, like others have mentioned I had a hard time seeing my grandma in a casket too (I was 6). I know you are going to have a successful spring challenge!

My fellow Lisabelle I can't believe we will be arriving at DL one month from today! on the 14 miles and for not expiring from boredom. I'm glad you liked the Black Pearl song, its one of my favorites on my playlist. Thanks for the JG reminder about not running with a chest cold. Looking back, I shouldn't have done the turkey trot the first time I was sick, the cold settled into my chest the next day. DH is also reading JG's half marathon book and reminded me too. Its hard to sit out, I've missed another week of training, but I was feeling much better yesterday and want to try a short TM run today. I think I can pull out this race under pace, but I really want to get my 2 remaining long runs in so I won't be hurting as much after the race. My next long run is 10 miles this Saturday. I hope more snow will be melted by then, I'm sick of running over snow and ice! I saw that the Tink thread is active again, I'll need to check in.

So I am finally feeling better. I was sick for both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, and it was not fun to indulge on those days without the benefit of exercise. DH and I both feel like slugs and are looking forward to getting back to our normal eating and exercise patterns. Today DH signed up for his first half, a local one in April. I am tempted to do this race too, but I want to wait until after the Tink and see how I feel. The course support ends at 13:45 pace, so its a pretty fast field and I would want to be sure that I could be under that. Right now I'm just focusing on staying under 16 mm!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week!

 

[liesel]

Lisa Now we are posting at the same time! I forgot to mention I'd love to hear more about this skirt, you had me at pockets! I'll have to look at the WISH Tink meet FB posting, I can't believe you would get snark! Either renaming the thread or posting a new one sounds good, hopefully posting in the main BL thread and seeing if there are any more BL runners out there would be great!

 

[Worfiedoodles]

Good Evening and !

I can't believe the is so close! You are going to be tapering and packing before you know it!

Lisa -- I don't sign up for the fast field races, either. I use Dennis's time as my cue. He finishes in the top third at Disney, and for the Run to Remember he finished in the bottom third. That one is clearly not for me I am glad you are feeling better and ready to train and enjoy some good nutrition. I agree, I am also feeling the same way!

Lisah -- I didn't see the snark. But I will quote some great advice I read yesterday -- the snark was not about you and you should not take it personally. The snark is the other person's problem and perception, and you my friend, are doing a wonderful thing setting up a WISH Meet! The women's WISH shirt fitting is excellent! I know how wonderful it feels to need a smaller WISH shirt. That is another goal I have to 2012 -- I want the bottom half of me to make a smaller size possible, because Lord knows the top is not an issue

Lindsay -- My 16s are tighter than I would like, too, and I'm just tired of this being my level of accomplishment. I was so excited to get out of the "plus", and then I've stalled out and become complacent. I'm going to shake things up in the new year for a "new me". I am going to buy some new size 14 jeans in 2012 -- and they will actually fit. You will beat me there with your younger metabolism, but I will be slow and steady and "running my own race", I'm going to get there, too! Want to hear something weird? I always thought sort of superstitiously that since I was born in an even year, I do better in even years -- so 2012 should be awesome! 2010 was the last time I saw a new low weight, so I'm due for serious progress! I know tomorrow will be hard, but I also know you come from strong stock and you will do Grammy proud

Nancy -- I am so proud of you for preparing to do your first Half post Bronxbaby! I wonder if Matthew realizes he was been born to a runner! Lucky Boy!

Kathy -- I'm working tomorrow and Friday morning, which is more of a tease than an opportunity. My buddy is back from Vegas and my boss is on vacation. I have plenty to do, but we are going to lunch and will probably chat away most of the day. There's sure to be very little foot traffic on our floor, so she'll feel comfortable having a seat in my office -- at this point I'm hoping to clear out my e-mail and work on a few things, but not expecting great feats of accomplishment It's going to be a lovely work day, but probably not a lot of time for DISing. Your holiday sounds lovely, like a wonderful evening and day. I'm so glad Poko was there to be a part of your family

Rose -- I read The Four Agreements yesterday. I thought it was so powerful, and something I need to read more than once, so I went to Amazon and ordered a 3-book set, a companion book, and also The Fifth Agreement. I am really excited about putting these principals to work in my life. I can see how they will really change it for the better as I incorporate them more. so much for suggesting this book!

So, our holiday was also very nice. Christmas Eve went as expected, and Christmas Morning was great, too. We had calls from almost all the usual relatives. Nothing from my FIL and SMIL, which was fine with me. Did I mention I figured out we didn't get out "real" gift after she left? We got a generic batch of jam with an unsigned card with no name on it. I think she left with our real gift and this was one they had brought in case someone extra showed up, which has been known to happen. But, I am not going to take it personally, it is her problem not mine.

I got all the things I really wanted (including a VB Weekender in Safari Sunset for my trip!), and as a bonus, Dennis bought me a Kindle. I didn't even ask for it, I think it was a last minute addition when he felt bad for me... But, I'm looking forward to trying it out. I'm pretty attached to paper books, but my friend keeps telling me I'm going to love it, so why not give it a try? Plus, our library has 1,000 ebooks I can check out, so plenty of material I don't have to pay for to try it out!

Dennis wrapped the Disney books I bought myself with a typical tag for him. One of the things we do to make it more fun is write something a little funny in the to/from on the tags. This one was to me from "You're Dreaming" Yep, he still hasn't found the Disney Love. Ben is making noises about going back though, so you never know...

Yesterday I read a few books, and basically didn't leave the 2nd floor. I just needed to regroup, and Dennis had scheduled 3 separate events with his friends and family. The second event was lunch with Dennis's cousin who sends us racist/sexist/politically incorrect e-mails. I thought it best I decline, and for once Dennis did not guilt me into coming to his family event. Anyway, I had a lot of time to think and process, which was really good.

I saw a post from Christina on the Alumni thread that was really a great list of why to lose weight, but it really bothered me she said she wanted to do it so she could finally love herself. I wanted to give her a huge hug and make sure she understands she is worthy of that whatever her size. She is so brave and strong, I wish she could see herself the way I see her. Anyway, it made me think that I do love myself (yea, progress!), but I have not been showing it as well as I can. I am more determined than ever to be the person I want to be, keep evolving, and keep moving forward. We all deserve to feel fantastic about our lives, and I think I'm finally ready to do the emotional work I need to do to get to that point. My life is a cakewalk in so many ways, trust me I am not complaining -- just realizing that I can still grow and do and be more -- and I can't wait to get started!

I am looking forward to making 2012 one of my best years ever, and I'm so excited to share it with this wonderful bunch of ladies! Please leave some time in your 2013 marathon weekend schedules for us to have our own meet/meal! I am already looking forward to something awesome, with great GF goodies for our Rose!

Maria

 

[lisah0711]

Lisa Now we are posting at the same time! I forgot to mention I'd love to hear more about this skirt, you had me at pockets! I'll have to look at the WISH Tink meet FB posting, I can't believe you would get snark! Either renaming the thread or posting a new one sounds good, hopefully posting in the main BL thread and seeing if there are any more BL runners out there would be great!

It really wasn't that snarky -- just annoying when it was the first reply.

Here are some pics of my outfit:

The sparkly WISH feather -- it's on the bottom left hand side of the skirt when you are wearing it.

The whole outfit:

A little better shot of the skirt:

It is a Sparkleskirt. Here is a link to the page. http://www.sparkleskirts.com/sparkletech/
It's the solid black SparkleTech skirt.

There is a large zippered pocket in the front that will hold my iPhone, Carmex and probably my Clif Bloks. There are also two large leg pockets. I figure one leg pocket can be for the paper towel supply and the other could be a couple of gels and/or a small pack of Biofreeze. That just leaves figuring out the water situation. Also, I don't know if I will do the Bondi-band or a visor. I kind of need the sun block of the visor but I also have to have two pairs of glasses, my sunglasses and my regular glasses.

I do have the black diamond SparkleTech skirt that I got last year but it is a tad overwhelming with the lime green shirt. It is cute with just about any color singlet though. Even though some people will not be seen in public with me if I am wearing it . . .

I love my WISH bondi-band but will probably look for a visor that I can wear.

Maria, I'm sure 2012 will be the year that all your health dreams come true!

More to say about that tomorrow . . .

 

[liesel]

Maria I forgot to thank you for your preChristmas advice about the cliff blocks. I used them on my 8.5 mile long run and discovered that I need quite a bit of water to get them down, so I will most likely be using them at a couple of water stations. I also learned that I can't take them right after drinking Powerade-too much sugar at once! I didn't use them on my 7 mile run and figured I was good for the 10K, but I was running much faster and didn't have as many calories before the race as I usually do (nervous!). I can only think of one word to describe your present from your SMIL-lame! Its their problem, and I'm glad Rose's book recommendation is helping you, I may have to check out that book myself!

LisaH Thanks for posting the skirt info, I think they will have a booth at the expo and I will have to check these out in person for future events. So far I have my WISH shirt, black shorts that have a lime green stripe across the top, and my newly arrived WISH bondiband. Not very exciting, but I'm not sure I really want to deal with a costume for my first half. I did see the FB post, and I don't get why anyone would post something negative on something meant to encourage others. We'll just have fun at the meet!

Still not on the food and excersize wagon, need to get back on, only 1 month until race!!!

 

[dumbo_buddy]

Good Afternoon Tinkerbells and Princesses!!!!

Nancy- that sounds like an amazing reward to completing the half. I am contemplating running the local half here again at the end of april. The training plan would start mid January and I feel like I am not quite prepared but you have motivated me to stop making excuses and just sign up already. Glad you had a good holiday. Sorry John's family continued to be a bunch of PITA's. Im sure even with the phone calls your holiday was better without a visit with them.

let's e-train together! we can keep each other accountable and make sure we get out for our runs! i'm going to need all the help i can get to keep going! i've been GAINING weight the last couple of weeks so now i have THIRTY lbs i need to lose to get to goal!

you're right, even with all the calls it was a MUCH nicer christmas! we may have to keep up this tradition!

Today I tried to sleep in but my kids had other things on the agenda. We opened up a few other presents some requiring extensive assembly. By the time I got it together they were onto the next thing.

omg we had our first exposure to this. trying to put train tracks together and when it was finally done thomas was totally uninterested!

We played some xbox and then I had to get ready to go to the private family viewing at the funeral home. The boys stayed with my aunt and nana. It only was a short visit. The funeral director did a great job and my grammy looks very natural and just like I remember her. Its amazing for 98 years old she looks just like she did when she was in her 60's. I can only pray I age as well as she did. Hopefully I have those genes. Tomorrow is her funeral. I am still nervous about taking the boys but thank you all for your tips. I have prepared them for what happens but I will make sure to pay attention to giving them as much details as I can.

Well I hope you all are enjoying your final week of 2011. I need to find the holiday thread and join in over there too. I am ready to start the new BL challenge too!

will be thinking of you at the funeral today. i'm glad the viewing went well.

i'm so ready for this new challenge too. we'll have alot of good competition because it sounds like ALOT of people are ready to lose! we'll have to make sure the princess peeps represent well during the challenge!

Kathy, Robert actually changed his tactics on Christmas Eve and went to bed around 10 pm. He still didn't get up until almost 8 o'clock. Ed and I both got up early and waited and waited for that kid to get up. I read some posts on the Disboards about people begging their kids to get up at noon so it could be worse.

we wound up waking thomas up to get his presents! we couldn't take it anymore! it was nice that he is in a crib still because we waited until the morning to put the gifts under the tree. we were too tired the night before.

when i was growing up i was never allowed to sleep in. of course, my parents were crazy strict. 8am was the cutoff of my weekend sleeping. ugh. i guess it was ok because i always had soccer games every weekend so i would have had to get up anyway. but man what i wouldn't give to sleep til noon. ok, not noon. how about 8? how about 7!

I've been wondering how I could bring up your going to Marathon Week-end 2013 instead of Disneyland 2012 after sending you all that info . . . Seriously next year will probably be the last year you can get away with missing any school so you should take advantage of it while you can. I bet Michael would love to do the 5K with you.

in my best chanting voice: "twenty-thirteen! twenty-thirteen!"

It's a lot of fun to do a local half and sleep in your own bed the night before the race. I bet you will like it and, of course, I know you will rock it! :rockband

the only thing stinky about a local race is that there's no super awesome entertainment like at the disney race. however, it will keep me motivated this winter/spring and also get me more ready for the full. i'm hoping in october to do the hershey half in PA (and hopefully get lindsay to go to that too!)

My friend went to US Merchant Marine Academy which is in Kings Point, NY. Looks like it is right across the river from you. He said you had to be appointed by your local congressman just like in one of the military academies. I really don't know how an Idaho boy decided to be a merchant marine but they are very nice neighbors.

ah, yes, that's where i was thinking he went. kings point is literally across the water. a friend of mine from HS went to the merchant marines. the merchant marines is WAAAAY harder to get into than maritime.

Rose, welcome back! Can't wait to hear all about your trip.

me too!!

Lisa, hope that you are feeling better. One month from today we will be picking up our bibs!
one month!! omg!! yay!

So did any of you see the snark I got on my FB Tinker Bell WISH meet event posting? It was just one person but it was still very, very annoying.

i wrote a big comment back to snarky mcnasty but deleted and just wrote, "yikes" - i'm hoping she gets the picture that she was nasty. probably not. very rude. a simple "decline" click would have sufficed.

I'm wondering if we shouldn't start another thread instead of renaming this one if we are trying to be more inclusive?

Have a great day ladies!

a new thread would probably been noticed but a name change could work too. either way, i suppose being more inclusive is the right thing to do

Nancy Congrats on signing up for your first post bronxbaby half! Just remember not to beat yourself up when it takes a little while to get back to where you were. I can't believe you were sick 3 times while training for the Princess! I seem to remember you had a pretty good time too. I really hope I am done with being sick.

ugh yes i kept getting sick! strep throat with a 104 fever that just wouldn't go down for 4 days really knocked me out. then the flu and a few nasty colds. so annoying! i wound up finishing the race in 2:22 which was great because i was hoping for 2:45 or 2:50. all the entertainment and all the people really pump you up! i also didn't stop to pee (not a good thing b/c i was definitely dehydrated!)

I think I can pull out this race under pace, but I really want to get my 2 remaining long runs in so I won't be hurting as much after the race. My next long run is 10 miles this Saturday. I hope more snow will be melted by then, I'm sick of running over snow and ice! I saw that the Tink thread is active again, I'll need to check in.

So I am finally feeling better. I was sick for both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, and it was not fun to indulge on those days without the benefit of exercise. DH and I both feel like slugs and are looking forward to getting back to our normal eating and exercise patterns. Today DH signed up for his first half, a local one in April. I am tempted to do this race too, but I want to wait until after the Tink and see how I feel. The course support ends at 13:45 pace, so its a pretty fast field and I would want to be sure that I could be under that. Right now I'm just focusing on staying under 16 mm!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week!

glad you're feeling better! you have been sick so much this season! really stinky! wow! that local race IS fast! you have to stay at 13:45 pace! that's tough for ALOT of people! i wouldn't be able to do that now. it's a good way to keep up the training though!

good luck with your upcoming 10 miler!

I can't believe the is so close! You are going to be tapering and packing before you know it!

i know! so close! seemed like it was forever until the race and now it's right here! that whole time thing, it sure does fly

Lisah -- I didn't see the snark. But I will quote some great advice I read yesterday -- the snark was not about you and you should not take it personally. The snark is the other person's problem and perception, and you my friend, are doing a wonderful thing setting up a WISH Meet! The women's WISH shirt fitting is excellent! I know how wonderful it feels to need a smaller WISH shirt. That is another goal I have to 2012 -- I want the bottom half of me to make a smaller size possible, because Lord knows the top is not an issue

yes! that snarky gal obvs have issues that have nothing to do with you and your meet! i wish i could go to it! going to the one before the princess was one of the best things i did all year (you know, that and having a kid, hehe)

i really want a WISH shirt. i think i missed the ordering window or something. i don't remember when i last saw a thread about ordering one. darn!

Lindsay -- I always thought sort of superstitiously that since I was born in an even year, I do better in even years -- so 2012 should be awesome! 2010 was the last time I saw a new low weight, so I'm due for serious progress! I know tomorrow will be hard, but I also know you come from strong stock and you will do Grammy proud

i have the SAME superstition. i'm very weird about even numbers. in fact i HATE that my kids were both born in odd number years BUT it's ok (in my head) because they were born on even number days. poor matthew has an uneven month but i like that it's a 1 and a 1 because it looks parallel...and even. i'm so OCD about numbers.

i think we ALL are going to drop some booty fat this challenge! woot!

Nancy -- I am so proud of you for preparing to do your first Half post Bronxbaby! I wonder if Matthew realizes he was been born to a runner! Lucky Boy!

thanks! i need to sign up for something or else i'll slack. knowing this is coming up and telling myself that the disney trip is partly to celebrate the half i will be more motivated (hopefully)


Rose -- I read The Four Agreements yesterday. I thought it was so powerful, and something I need to read more than once, so I went to Amazon and ordered a 3-book set, a companion book, and also The Fifth Agreement. I am really excited about putting these principals to work in my life. I can see how they will really change it for the better as I incorporate them more. so much for suggesting this book!

well, now i need to read it!

So, our holiday was also very nice. Christmas Eve went as expected, and Christmas Morning was great, too. We had calls from almost all the usual relatives. Nothing from my FIL and SMIL, which was fine with me. Did I mention I figured out we didn't get out "real" gift after she left? We got a generic batch of jam with an unsigned card with no name on it. I think she left with our real gift and this was one they had brought in case someone extra showed up, which has been known to happen. But, I am not going to take it personally, it is her problem not mine.

jam? really? lame.

I got all the things I really wanted (including a VB Weekender in Safari Sunset for my trip!), and as a bonus, Dennis bought me a Kindle. I didn't even ask for it, I think it was a last minute addition when he felt bad for me... But, I'm looking forward to trying it out. I'm pretty attached to paper books, but my friend keeps telling me I'm going to love it, so why not give it a try? Plus, our library has 1,000 ebooks I can check out, so plenty of material I don't have to pay for to try it out!

enjoy the e-reader! i love it! i have an ipad and use it mainly just to read books

Yesterday I read a few books, and basically didn't leave the 2nd floor. I just needed to regroup, and Dennis had scheduled 3 separate events with his friends and family. The second event was lunch with Dennis's cousin who sends us racist/sexist/politically incorrect e-mails. I thought it best I decline, and for once Dennis did not guilt me into coming to his family event. Anyway, I had a lot of time to think and process, which was really good.

glad you had a nice day of relaxing. sounds heavenly! and best to skip the in-law nonsense!

I saw a post from Christina on the Alumni thread that was really a great list of why to lose weight, but it really bothered me she said she wanted to do it so she could finally love herself. I wanted to give her a huge hug and make sure she understands she is worthy of that whatever her size. She is so brave and strong, I wish she could see herself the way I see her. Anyway, it made me think that I do love myself (yea, progress!), but I have not been showing it as well as I can. I am more determined than ever to be the person I want to be, keep evolving, and keep moving forward. We all deserve to feel fantastic about our lives, and I think I'm finally ready to do the emotional work I need to do to get to that point. My life is a cakewalk in so many ways, trust me I am not complaining -- just realizing that I can still grow and do and be more -- and I can't wait to get started!

I am looking forward to making 2012 one of my best years ever, and I'm so excited to share it with this wonderful bunch of ladies! Please leave some time in your 2013 marathon weekend schedules for us to have our own meet/meal! I am already looking forward to something awesome, with great GF goodies for our Rose!

Maria

i too felt sorry for that one comment about christina not loving herself. i don't know much about her except that she lost her husband and daughter and every time she mentions it i feel so sad for her. i hope that she can re-group and lose some weight. some of the numbered ones made me and realize that i don't have it so bad. when i'm feeling down i just need to remind myself that i love myself too much to continue down an unhealthy road!

Here are some pics of my outfit:

The sparkly WISH feather -- it's on the bottom left hand side of the skirt when you are wearing it.

The whole outfit:

A little better shot of the skirt:

It is a Sparkleskirt. Here is a link to the page. http://www.sparkleskirts.com/sparkletech/
It's the solid black SparkleTech skirt.

i love the outfit!! awesome!!!

**********************

ok it's 8:41 and i started posting this at 6:35. our swing is broken and i keep having to get up every 2 minutes or so to swing it a little. when it stops, matthew cries. poor kid just wants to nap in that swing and it just won't turn on! we have a replacement piece coming and i pray it comes SOON!

both boys have check ups today with the doctor. my cousin tracey is going to come with me. thomas will want to just play in the waiting area so i'll need her to keep an eye on him. hopefully it will go smoothly.

i'm getting waaaay sick of complaining about my weight. it's the same thing every day. i do awesome for the first part of the day. then when/if the boys are both sleeping in the afternoon i sit and eat. i'm just too tired to do anything and i turn to food. i need to start going out when the babysitter comes and even just walk. if i can get matthew to go to sleep when she comes it will be easy for her to watch both kiddos. at night i shovel cookies and crap in my mouth. god forbid i say no! when i was losing weight a few years ago (40 lbs) i used to have a hot chocolate for dessert. it satisfied me and i got the low cal kind so it was a healthier choice. i have to get back to that. this challenge is going to be very good for alot of us, i think.

ok back to swing duty! argh!!

 

[Rose&Mike]

Lindsay--I hope today goes ok. I'll be thinking about you.

Lisa--It was snarky. Just a little bit. But Maria's right, it was definitely her "issue" and not yours.

Maria--I'm really glad you liked the book. I need to read it again. It doesn't make all the hurt and sadness go away, but it really helps me to put things in perspective sometimes.

I just skimmed, so I need to go back and read better so I can do replies.

We had a great trip. The weather was fabulous. The castmembers--outstanding. I feel like there must have been something that happened down there recently--cause it felt like old times--folks happy to help, in a good mood, even handling cranky guests well.

My anxiety on the other hand--not so great. I am really hoping it's cause I am not getting as much exercise as I would like. I just became fixated on things and couldn't get them out of my head. We had two issues--Christmas Eve and Christmas night. Both involved crowds. Christmas Eve was at MK. We got there at 8:30. It was so bad, they had an exit open through the off stage area, but it dumped you back on Main Street. It took us an hour to walk down Main Street, take a picture and try to leave. In the past when it's been that crowded they have set up paths on the sidewalks so traffic would keep moving. Well, no paths and people were NUTS! Using strollers as tanks to plow through, etc. So Christmas Night we wnet to DTD for dinner at Raglan Road and the entire city of Orlando was at DTD just walking around in laps like they were at the mall. There were no security guards to be seen, the place was PACKED, no one was spending money except the hotel guests, they were just walking around drinking out of red dixie cups having a good old time, I guess, but you could tell that some of the guests were a little uncomfortable. It was just so crowded with no crowd control visible. The server at the restaurant said he had never seen it like that before and he's been there 5 years. The stores were pretty empty cause everyone was just walking around. We had dinner and left. We went back to the hotel and sat in the lounge and watched football.

We have probably been at Christmas 10 times before, so I don't know why it bothered me so much this time. I think cause I showed up stressed out. The big thing is, I have been trying to figure out what upset me so much.

To put it in perspective--The screen on Tom's brand new computer cracked while we were there, Tom's phone was also not working right (trust me when I say there was drama) and Mike's phone died and NONE of this bothered me like the crowds and lack of crowd control. Maybe I just don't like feeling unsafe.

So that's it for my complaining. We really did have a great time. The tour was so fun! We all went down the Pirate Slide at BC. We rode the horse trolley at MK. The decorations this year were the best I have ever seen! And even after dealing with the crowds those two nights, we had a great night on the 26th--went back to DHS to see the Osbourne Lights again.

I will catch up on replies later, and post some pictures on my journal too.

TTYL.

 

[mommyof2Pirates]

Lisa H- Did you delete the snark comment? I didnt see it. People really do have issues. I agree even without reading the comment it is them not you.

Lisa- I am so sorry for all the illness you have been dealing with. I hope you are feeling better and can get back into your running groove soon. Dont worry it comes back really quickly when you are only out of the game a few weeks. Its missing months without any other exercise when it starts to fall apart. You will do great at the tink.

Maria- Sounds like you had a wonderful xmas day. Great gifts that you got too. Im sure dennis new better than to even ask you to go visit his family. I have a story that you may find funny since you are a VB lover. My husband got me slippers for xmas and when I opened them he bragged about how they were 40$ but he got them for 12$ (he always has to tell me the deals he gets.) but then he goes there vera bradley slippers. I started laughing and I was like close hunny but they are vera wang. Men what do they know.

Nancy- Ah not the swing. That is pure torture. I hope the part comes soon. maybe get the broom so you dont have to get up every time and you can just move it with the broom handle. or you can tie a long string to the bottom of the carrier part so you can just give it a little tug to get going. I always can come up with ways to not have to get off the couch. Now we can see why I have a weight problem.
I will definitely be thinking about hershey in Oct. I remember it was fairly cheap for a family of four for the overnight stay and it included park tickets, 1 half marathon entry, and 2 kids races. I think it was in the 200$ range. So I may very well consider it. Keep me posted if you make a definite decision on it.

Rose- I am so glad you made it back home safely and although some anxiety had a great trip. I think I would have gotten a bit anxious myself with those crowds. I hope tom's computer gets fixed without having to buy a new one.

**********************************************************
Today went as good as it could have for being a funeral. It was a very nice service. When we went out to the cemetary it was so cold and windy. I was happy that the pastor kept it short out there.

The boys did great. They did not seem bothered by seeing my grammy in the casket and they were very proud standing up with me and my parents to greet the people that came. When it came time for the family to say our last goodbyes we all were crying a little and Ryan started sobbing. I felt so bad for him at that moment. He started crying again during the singing of amazing grace and then after we came back in from the cemetary. He kept saying he just felt so bad for grammy. He broke my heart. I still think it was good for him to go to. It really shows that he has a sensitive and caring heart to be able to understand this all at such a young age.

Now Its back to work for me tomorrow. I am coaching on the holiday thread so come see me over there.