The Beatings Will Continue Until Morale Improves! (my journal)

[toystoryduo]

Hey Don!

How are you doing????

 

[goldcupmom]

Good about the cruise, Bad about no WDW.

I feel your pain. I haven't been to WDW in 10 YEARS!! I still hang out here, though, just for the atmosphere & support. Some day I'll make it back. My family prefers US/IOA, & I'm outvoted!

Glad to hear you're caffeine free. I have been for over 11 years now(except for chocolate, of course)

Hope you have a great rest of the week. Good Luck to your DS w/ Football!

 

[DisDon]

Well, thought I'd pipe up and say, YIPPEE!!, we're leaving for Seattle tomorrow for our cruise on Saturday!! It ain't Disney, but RCI Radiance of the Seas looks like a very nice ship. Kinda kills me that we didn't hold out a little longer and wait for the last minute deals, because a week or 2 ago Disney Magic popped up for $479 each for 7 days in Sept., interline rate. Maybe in a year or 2 or 3 we can take the whole family. Got a fun group on a Roll Call on CruiseCritic, very helpful and friendly.

Never did really get going on diet/exercise for this, oh well. Only thing I've been hanging on to is the no caffeine, which makes it easier to not be tempted to buy a soda card on the cruise for $42!! I should manage to at least get some good exercise in, even just walking around the ship! Its not the biggest, but still pretty big.

My birthday is the 23rd, the day we get back, the big FOUR OH! Ugh. Did come up with a good thing to do, remembered that we had Magic Mountain tickets that we need to use by the end of the year. Elaine says she'll watch me ride the coasters, yeah right! Tried to research the accessibility of some of the coaster for someone my size, sounds like Goliath might be the easiest fit. It goes up to 85 mph and can cause near blackouts with the lateral g's! Excellent!!

Well, thanks again for all your support and friendship, and I'll see ya on the other side!!!

 

[goldcupmom]

Have a great time, Don!

Happy early Birthday!!!

 

[toystoryduo]

Have a wonderful time, Don! Happy Birthday!!!! (i'm a September baby too! ) I hope you'll post a trip report when you get back!

 

[toystoryduo]

How was your cruise? Hope it went well for you!

 

[eeyore25]

Hi Don,

Hope you had a wonderful time on your cruise. And a great birthday!

Hope all is well!

 

[DisDon]

Hi Jamie, Tracy, Julie, thanks for reminding me to post! Yeah, we had a great time on our cruise, we wanna go again!! I need to work it out with DW that we plan something, anything for a next trip before we leave, otherwise I always get the post trip blues. I do have to say that, as fun as it was, I still would rather do Disney. I love to go to new places and do new things, and one of the things about cruising is that, as you visit each port, you either spend money on excursions, or you just walk around and look at stuff. There were excursions in every port that would have been great, but would have ended up doubling our cost! I guess what I love about places like WDW is that you pay 1 ticket price, and then you have many things to do and see all day. I guess its all just money.

Did gain a little weight on the trip, but not as much as I thought I might. I realized that, yes, we were eating a lot, but we were maybe eating a little healthier than normal. Only had 1 hamburger all week. I drank mostly lemonade and ice water. We were more active than we are at home, walking around the ports and around the ship. I got to play some basketball, pretty cool up on the 12th deck overlooking the ocean, moving ship makes certain activities a little more difficult. Played some ping pong, realized I'm still pretty good at it. Its about all we did everyday during 7th grade. I sang karaoke 4 times!! got lots of compliments, everyone on the ship was very friendly. That was probably my favorite part of the cruise, the other passengers! We had a bunch of people on a roll call over at www.cruisecritic.com, pretty fun board. A couple from Australia from the roll call ended up being our table mates, the guy was a fellow rocker, Dokken fan!

I was surprised to hear DW say, after we got home, that she wants to go again, to reward herself when she loses 50 lbs. I figured I'd commit to 75! It was fun without the kids, but especially the last couple of days I kept thinking, it sure would be fun if they were all with us.

I post more lately, but here are a few pictures,
The Radiance of the Seas:

Me, DW Elaine, Mike and Joanne, at Chops, the outstanding steakhouse onboard ($20 cover per person, for a Morton's style dinner that would have probably cost $100 each at home):

Karaoke!!

 

[toystoryduo]

Hey Don!

Welcome Back! Sounds like you had a great cruise! Now, you can combine your love of Disney with a cruise and take a Disney cruise! I know a good travel agent.

I think that's great that you and Elaine are going to commit to weight loss together. It always helps to have someone who can encourage you on your journey.

Hope you'll post more details about your trip! Have a great Thursday!

 

[eeyore25]

Hi Don,

Welcome back!!! Sounds like you had a wonderful time on your cruise! Thanks for sharing your pictures. Can't wait to see more. Your vacation pounds will come off soon, they usually do!

Keep up the great work and both you and DW will be able to make your goals and go again!!!!

Keep it up Don!

Happy Friday

 

[toystoryduo]

Happy Thanksgiving, Don!

I hope this finds you and your family doing well. Please post an update when you can.

 

[DisDon]

Hi Tracy, everyone! Well, with no more trips planned since our cruise, I have a hard time getting back to my journal. I did lose back the weight I gained on the cruise, but not any more than that. DW joined WW, but I'm still a low-carb believer, so that's kind of a source of contention.

DS13 Andrew's football team won the championship this year! After 3 years of making the playoffs and not winning, twice in the championship game, it was more a relief than anything. He's now just over 6 ft. tall, 230 lbs., wears size 15 shoes! Now its time for basketball!

The Univ. of Utah football and basketball teams have not been as good lately, but now the Utah Jazz are flying high, so I guess I'll have to jump on that bandwagon. Been a few tough years since Stockton and Malone retired.

Got my rockin' Christmas mp3's loaded up. Hope to go see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra concert next Saturday, they're awesome!! and I've heard that their concerts are even better than their albums!

Don

 

[toystoryduo]

DS13 Andrew's football team won the championship this year! After 3 years of making the playoffs and not winning, twice in the championship game, it was more a relief than anything. He's now just over 6 ft. tall, 230 lbs., wears size 15 shoes! Now its time for basketball!

Oh my goodness, Don! How old is your DS again? He sounds like quite an athlete! Congrats go out to him and his football team on winning the championship!

The Univ. of Utah football and basketball teams have not been as good lately, but now the Utah Jazz are flying high, so I guess I'll have to jump on that bandwagon. Been a few tough years since Stockton and Malone retired.

Well, now... I hate to brag, but my Ohio State Buckeyes are (ahem!) #1 !!!!!!!!! Woohoo! Thank God for college football because between the Browns, the Indians, and the Cavaliers, we have had enough heartache and dissapointment to last a lifetime.... That's why Cleveland's mantra is "Maybe next year!" I am hoping LeBron brings a championship home soon though.


Have a great time at the concert!

 

[DisDon]

Oh my goodness, Don! How old is your DS again? He sounds like quite an athlete! Congrats go out to him and his football team on winning the championship!

Just measured him at an even 6' 1" yesterday morning, he'll be 14 in January! He's 2 inches taller than I was at his age, I'm 6' 1" now. We're pretty excited for basketball too, he's a little slow but pretty strong, there's another kid on his team, same age, 6' 4"! DS6, Matthew, is also getting ready for basketball, he's also tall and a good shooter, to about 8 ft. from the basket, not quite free throws yet, been practicing at night with him at the church gym. I'm starting church ball too, practiced last night, got a little bit of a workout. If you want to see a funny movie, based on Mormon Church Basketball, see Church Ball. Its available at netflix or where ever, http://www.churchball.com.

Well, now... I hate to brag, but my Ohio State Buckeyes are (ahem!) #1 !!!!!!!!! Woohoo! Thank God for college football because between the Browns, the Indians, and the Cavaliers, we have had enough heartache and dissapointment to last a lifetime.... That's why Cleveland's mantra is "Maybe next year!" I am hoping LeBron brings a championship home soon though.

yeah, the Buckeyes are having a great year, even with their weird old nickname . I think LeBron will end up being considered the greatest player of all time if he stays healthy. He is amazing!!

My Utes are still down, not good since Urban Meyer left for Florida. Our new coach is a little too conservative, and the offensive coordinator that he hired drives us crazy. The Utes basketball team is horrible, worst its been in many years, quite depressing. At least the Jazz are doing well, crossing our fingers that it will last!

Have a great trip!

 

[toystoryduo]

Hey Don,

That's great that all of you guys will be playing B-Ball!

I had to laugh yesterday because when we went to get our car rental we ended up getting a car with Michigan plates. Now, how will I explain wearing my Ohio State stuff and getting out of a Michigan car? Did I also mention that the car is blue too?

Have a great weekend!

 

[toystoryduo]

Merry Christmas, Don!

I hope you and your family had a wonderful holiday!

 

[DisDon]

Ok, well, I guess its New Year's Resolution time. I drank the Dr. Pepper thru the holidays, so I've got the headache today, no more of that. The main points of my plan are 1) no more pop, not even caffeine free. Had 1 can of shasta cola last night, but that's all since Sunday Night. 2) no late night eating, going to try real hard to be done with dinner by 7, and then no more. 3) smaller amounts, no more stuffing myself. Went to the Asian Buffet last Friday, and ate a lot on Sunday night, but that's it. 4) WW core plan? I'm still not totally decided on this, but it would make DW happier. She's still doing WW with her sisters, so it would be nice if we could work together, but I just don't believe in the low-fat diets anymore. 5) exercise, still playing basketball a couple of times a week, want to add some weight lifting to that again.

I really want to do something fun when the younger kids go off track in Feb. They're off for 3 weeks, and I would totally love to take them to the P&P party. We can still get the half price rooms on-site. I'm feeling that if we lose 20-25 lbs. it would be a good reward. Otherwise maybe just a camping trip to Southern Utah, Zion's Natl. Park is warm all winter.

So far today I ate a homemade mcmuffin and a bagel with a little cream cheese. I've got a frozen 10 oz. pot pie for lunch. About half-way thru my 1st 32 oz ice water. Been fighting a cold for that last few days.

Watched the Fiesta Bowl the other night, what a blast! We need a playoff so bad. Looking forward to the Natl. Champ. Game next friday, torn between Tracy's Buckeyes and Urban's Gators. My basketball Utes are still terrible, but the Jazz are still flyin' high, so its all good. The DS's had no games during the holidays, starts up again on Saturday.

 

[toystoryduo]

Looking forward to the Natl. Champ. Game next friday, torn between Tracy's Buckeyes and Urban's Gators.

Hmmmmmm I know! I pick Tracy's Buckeyes! Hee hee! Was that subtle enough?

Your goals for 2007 look good, Don! Don't forget to reward yourself when you make your goals.... (WDW is a good reward! )

Have a great weekend! Go Buckeyes!

 

[toystoryduo]

How is 2007 going so far? Any WDW trips planned?

Have a great weekend!

 

[DisDon]

Hi Tracy, sorry about the Buckeyes, couldn't believe how bad they played. Things here are going pretty well so far, getting over the cold finally, still a little bit of upper resp. gunk. Sorry to read that you've been fighting the gumbu too, get well, eh?

Doing well on the no-soda plan, tempted from time to time, but stayin' strong Late night eating has been reduced significantly, although we did go thru an awesome ice cream flavor, Albertson's Double Berry Cheesecake Got a little crazy at a basketball game back on Dec. 30, threw my shoulder out a little, still aches a little. Only played about 6 minutes of the game last Saturday, then took off to watch DS6's game, and then DS13's. DS13 is starting to develop a few bball skills, he's 6'1" and still around 230, but football toned him up pretty good and he's doing better than last year, which wasn't too bad either. I actually referee'd a game last night at the church, 1st time ever, and it was the 18-35 yr olds, so it got a little intense. Kinda fun tho, wouldn't mind doing more of that, decent bit of running up and down the court too.

Our church has a fast on the 1st Sunday of each month, no food or drink, not even water!, for 24 hours or so. I usually don't participate, just forget, or just get hungry in the evening, but I've done it the last couple of months, and kind of look forward to it now. Just kind of a good, cleansing feeling, and it doesn't hurt on the weight loss front either. Ate at about 4 on Saturday, then nothing until Sunday afternoon. Took the opportunity to weigh myself just before dinner on Sunday, and the scale showed just a hair above 380, so I feel justified in going back to the 15lb. clippie. That's about 5 off what I've been lately, so that's'a good. Still going off the 395 I started at, which is also where I was after the cruise in Sept.

Still looking at the P&P party, looks best on Feb. 12, with a stay at a Value from Sunday night the 11th, coming home on the 13th or 14th. With the interline discount on the value rooms, and the P&P party, would run about $400 + food for the 6 of us in 2 rooms (+DD2, still free until August!). Each extra night is around $90 for the rooms, and I think a day at Blizzard Beach would be fun (Typhoon Lagoon is in refurb). Just gotta convince DW! wish me luck

Keep on truckin!