5:15 was very early this morning.  I’ve been getting to bed late so it was hard to fall asleep last night.  I was up reading until almost 11:30.  I got up though and I went to yoga.  Before I went, I stepped on the scale and I did not like what I saw, the holidays did my weight no favors.

It was a struggle to love myself unconditionally this morning.  I had many very negative thoughts but I truly tried to fight through them.  Throughout yoga, I was fighting with myself, then on the second set of Rabbit Pose (Sasangasna), near the very end of class, I just felt this overwhelming sense of happiness and calm.

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I left with a big smile on my face and loving myself.  I think the next 28 days are going to be very good for me.

It has also occurred to me that competing in the Half Ironman in June is a goal for the old Chelsea.  The thought of getting in the pool to swim laps and going to spin class sounds AWFUL to me right now, as does the thought of road biking alone.  A Half Ironman demands a very strict training schedule that wouldn’t leave much, if any, room for mountain biking with Shaun or yoga. Training, in the past, has been a very isolating experience for me. One which I relished. I’m not feeling that anymore.  I truly do not enjoy running or road biking with other people and I don’t think I ever will.  I like to be alone when I do those things.  I don’t want to be isolated or alone anymore, I want to be around people and I want to do fun things, not punishing things.  I think my training used to be punishing and I liked it. It’s why I did it.  I don’t want to punish myself any longer.  So, I’m changing my #3 resolution to:

3. Do something active at least 4 times a week. 

After my challenge is over, I’d like to continue to do yoga 3-4 times a
week, run at least 1 time a week, and mountain bike once a week once
the weather will cooperate. And who knows, maybe being active at least 4 times a week will result in that Half Ironman?

*I saw the blog on my sister’s Mac yesterday and it is FUGLY.  I will be making some changes to fix that over the next week.

I went to Bikram today and it was PACKED.  Not surprising in the New Year but I had to practice in a different part of the room than I normally do.  I was right next to the “Challenge Wall”.  It’s the wall where if someone commits to doing 60 classes in 60 days (and then does it), they get to write whatever they want, plus their name, and the date, on the wall. It was so inspiring to see what people wrote and to see all the different dates.  It also felt SO GOOD to be in class.  I felt great about myself and I was thinking very clearly.  I loved the feeling in class today.

As I was walking out of class I heard someone say that they wanted to sign up for the 30 in 30 challenge.  Then I saw a board dedicated to it.  If you finish the 30 in 30, your name will be entered into a drawing and you could win either a month of free yoga or a Lululemon outfit.  I thought to myself, “Why not?” and I signed up. 

Thankfully Shaun is on board because he’ll have to take Lu to daycare 2 days a week vs. the 1 he was doing before.

I came home and figured out my schedule and got really excited.  I can and will do this   My name is up on a board, I HAVE to do this

We’ll see how I feel and if I think I can continue on to do the 60 in 60, then I will.  I’m not ready yet to commit to that one.

Yay for GOOD impulses.

If I don’t win the drawing?  I’ll buy myself a Lululemon outfit anyway-it’s a good reward!

Oh and I threw out 2 pairs of jeans in the last 24 hours.  They don’t fit well and make me feel fat.  Out they go!

I’m a big fan of resolutions.  Remember the 30 I made last year? I hit 23 of them.  I did not hit 7 of them.  Oh well, eh?

Even though I didn’t hit all 30 of my goals last year, I call it a success!  My personal growth last year was huge and I am in a much better place this year than I was last.  I’m so much happier and that’s what counts.

I think maybe it was a bit too ambitious to make 30 goals.  This year I have 3:

1. Love myself unconditionally.
2. Write in my journal EVERY day.
3. Train for and compete in the half ironman in June.
3. Do something active at least 4 times a week.

As a family we have one resolution:

1. Live lean and pay down as much of our debt as we can.  We can almost become debt free by the end of the year if we really put our mind to it.

Lucy has one resolution by the end of the year:

1. Get potty trained!

We’ve all already been working on these so I think they are doable!  Number 1 is going to be the hardest one for me but it’s worth the fight.

It went much better than last year!

She needed Mommy with her but at least there were no tears shed.  What did she say she wanted from Santa?

“A cookie.”

Can do!

Today I’m thankful for business travel!  As much as I complain about it (really, who likes to be away from their awesome husband and beautiful daughter?), it really is nice.  I’m in the Bay Area for work right now and I’m staying at a fun hotel in San Francisco.

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It’s funky!  I’m right across the street from the entrance to Chinatown (commence crappy phone pictures):

My room is REALLY small:

But wacky!  As are the hallways:

Last time I was here, I stayed at the Four Seasons.  That was nice!  All the rooms at other hotels were booked and it was a Quality Inn for $175 or the Four Seasons for $185.  I chose the Four Seasons!

I’ve also gotten to stay at The W in Manhattan because of work!  I took the red eye both there and back so that I could spend 2 days on my own in New York (travel time for my co-workers).  During that trip (which was over 4 years ago), I got to eat at a 3 star Michelin restaurant (Le Bernadin) and a 1 star (Gramercy Tavern). Le Bernadin was the most amazing culinary experience I’ve ever had.  The trip to New York was pretty extraordinary.  It’s the only time I’ve been!

Traveling for work is fun-most of the time.

I can’t wait to get home though!

Our Thanksgiving Ham was huge and I froze 4 one pound bags of meat, one destined for Mac n’ Cheese. My friend Sarah made amazing Mac n’ Cheese at Thanksgiving but it’s a secret family recipe that she holds close.  I only got a little bit of the leftovers on Thanksgiving (my fault-there was plenty) and Shaun was sad so I promised to make him some of his own.  I found the Fannie Farmer’s Classic Mac n’ Cheese online and I based this recipe on that.

Ingredients:

-1 pound macaroni-cooked
-2 sticks of butter
-1/2 cup flour
-1 tsp salt
-pepper to taste
-3 cups milk (I used whole since it’s all we have)
-1 lb medium cheddar cheese, shredded (thank goodness for a Cuisinart!)
-10 ounces muenster cheese, shredded
-6 ounces Mizithra cheese, shredded (this may be a regional thing-it’s like a hard goat cheese)
-1 pound of ham cubed (optional)

Instructions:

-Preheat the oven to 400*.

-Melt the butter over medium high heat. Once melted add the flour, salt, and pepper and stir well so that there are no clumps.

-Slowly add the milk while stirring, keep stirring and bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes (continuously stirring). Stir! Did you get that yet?  STIR!

-Reduce the heat and simmer the milk mixture for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

-Once it’s really thick (~10 minutes), add the cheese slowly and stir until melted-another 5 minutes or so.

-Add the cubed ham (optional).

-Put the cooked macaroni in a casserole dish and add the cheese sauce, mix well.

-Bake at 400* for 20-30 minutes or until browned on top.

-I actually used 1/2 cup breadcrumbs on top but I don’t think they are needed or necessary.

-Enjoy!

Shhh, even though this is FULL of things that make my tummy go HMMMMM (gurgle, gurgle, POP!), I tasted this. O.M.G. Heaven on a fork.  It should be for all those calories!  Lu and Shaun loved it.  Shaun ate 2 huge plate fulls and rated it 4.5 out of 5.

Seriously, delish.

I actually wasn’t planning on posting this recipe since it’s so bad for you but I decided that I couldn’t keep this from the world .

It’s the second edition of Shaun Can Cook!  This week’s selection? Green Curry!

Ingredients:

-Cooked rice (Use the rice cooker)
-Half an onion
-1/4 pound green beans
-2 heads of broccoli
-1 green bell pepper
-8 oz frozen peas
-8 oz-1 pound protein (I gave Shaun the choice of tofu or shrimp and he chose shrimp)
-2 TBSP honey
-1 TBSP Braggs Amino
-1 tsp green curry paste
-1 can coconut milk

Implements Needed:

-Cutting board
-Knife
-Big skillet or Wok
-Strainer to defrost shrimp
-Spoon

-Measuring spoons

-Can Opener

-Lid for the pan.

Instructions:

-Make sure your child is sufficiently occupied. She likes to sort food into different colored bowls.  Sunflower seeds being a favorite.

-Place shrimp in the colander and run cold water over them or soak them for ~5 minutes. If you are using a different type of protein, cut it up into bite sized pieces.
-Cut the onion, first in half and then into longer pieces.

-Put aside on a plate (not in the pan)
-Trim each end of the green beans.  You can do multiple at one time.

-Set aside on a plate.

-Trim broccoli so it’s just the tree part.

-Cut the bell pepper in half.

-Cut out the stem, seeds, and white membrane.

-Chop into long pieces.

-Turn the stove on to medium high heat and put 1 tsp of green curry (more if you like it spicier and are not feeding a child) and the can of coconut milk in the pan and stir it up.

-Next add 1 TBSP of Braggs and 2 TBSP of honey. Stir.

-If you’re using meat or tofu, add it now and cook for about 5 minutes.

-Add all the veggies you chopped.

-Cook for about 5 minutes, covered.

-If you’re using shrimp, add shrimp and peas.

-Cover and cook for 5-10 minutes more-until the peas are no longer frozen and the shrimp is pink.

-Serve on a bed of rice.

-Sit back and watch as your daughter eats it all up and asks for more.

Another HIT by Shaun.  He’s doing great!  See?  Cooking is easy!

You get a twofor today since I totally spaced and forgot last weeks!

First, I’m thankful for my beautiful Christmas tree and the experience that we got to have finding it.

Second, I’m thankful that my dear husband is learning how to cook.  Not because he wants to but because he wants to make some of my evenings a little bit easier and to take some of the cooking burden off of my shoulders.  What a guy!

(Tell us how you really feel honey.)

Last night I taught him how to make Green Curry and it was seriously delicious. 

I walked him through the steps but he made it all.by.himself.  Recipe to follow!

I have so much to be thankful for, here’s to NOT forgetting Thankful Thursday again!!!

I don’t think I have talked about my love of Vaseline.  I mean it, I LOVE Vaseline. I use it, without fail, EVERYDAY. Love it!

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As you know, I now live in Boise.  What you may not know is that Boise is the high desert. What that means is that it is DRY here. There is very little humidity and what that results in is very dry skin. Now that I live here, I basically bathe myself and Lucy in Vaseline on an almost daily basis.  I realize that it’s Petroleum but I figure that that does come from the earth and it works.  Plus it’s CHEAP.

I do not use it on my hair.  We all know how that turns out. Need a reminder?

Yeah, not a great hair product.

But as a skin product? It’s awesome.  I use it on my feet, my legs, my hands, my elbows, my arms, my lips, to remove make-up, as an eye “cream”, as face “cream”.  On my face, I only use it at night-it gives me quite a sheen and Shaun always asks me “What’s wrong with your face? I can see you shining in the dark.” Apparently, it can be used as a night light as well .  I use it on the rest of my body as soon as I get out of the shower and I apply it to my hands and lips multiple times a day.

I have a tub in my bathroom, a tub in Lucy’s room, and a tube in my car.  The only problem with the one in the car is that it gets cold and it’s hard to get out.  In that case, I sit on it with my seat warmer on and it’ll come out in about 5 minutes.  Sometimes I’ll forget that it’s there and I’ll get to where I’m going without ever using it. Evidently I am not a princess, nor would I feel a pea.

Lucy has super sensitive skin and I can only use Vaseline or CeraVe lotion on her skin. Even Aquafor (for whatever reason-probably the lanolin, which I have issues with) breaks her out.

On my birthday, I went and had a facial.  Usually, I get told that my skin is a mess and needs all sorts of help.  Not this time.  I was told that my face was in beautiful condition and to continue what I was doing which includes CeraVe cleanser morning and night and Oil of Olay (with SPF) moisturizer in the morning. I use make-up about twice a week that has SPF in it as well (Bobbi Brown). The esthetician did recommend that I use powder with SPF in it throughout the day as SPF wears off after about 90 minutes.  I haven’t started doing that, but I’ll try.  Those years competitively swimming, life-guarding, and teaching swim lessons have done a number on my face but it’s nothing a little Vaseline can’t fix.

For those of you worried that it will give you blackheads?  Worry no more-it’s actually noncomedogenic. Who knew?!?!?!

You do, now

How did it get to be December 6th already?!?!