Valentine's Day, Schmalentine's Day

Can I just say I am a total fan of this cheesetastic sorta hallmarky holiday? I think people get too caught up in the relationship aspect of it, when it really is just about demonstrating love to all people in your life (but hey maybe that is easy to say, when you are in a relationship).  But even back in college, my friends and floor mates exchanged Valentines' elementary school style. And this year I sent my friends Hello Kitty Hologram Valentines via snail mail (I just can't help myself)!

Adam and I decided to go out for a dinner and a movie date night last night to celebrate. We really hadn't gone out on a real date in quite a while. First, I was recovering from surgery for quite a while, and in those weeks I was not that fun to hang out with. Did I ever mention how emotional I was post surgery? It seemed like anytime I went anywhere, I would find a reason to fall apart and cry in public. I don't even know why!  I'll be honest, I'm a total crier, and a totally over emotional girl (but I am not a public crier). And then Adam was out of town for two weeks, so it was about time to get our date on again.

We went to Applebees, perhaps not the most romantic of spots, but a spot I could get a plain grilled chicken breast. I had to laugh because Adam saw a deal where we could get two entrees and an appetizer for a good price. I said, "You know I won't be able to eat the appetizer right?" He was like, "But it is such a good deal..." I understood that logic, that is fat people logic! So he ended up eating like 9 mozzarella sticks, chicken fingers, and french fries all by himself.  I ate like 3-4 bites of the chicken, one bite of zucchini, and one bite of a mushroom.

Here is the ironic part, he ate all that GREASE, all that CHEESE, and all that FAT. Yet, when we were driving away from the restaurant, Adam had to pull over and I, not he, puked up my dinner! Who knows why. Maybe it was too dry, maybe that 4th bite was one bite too many.  I was shocked, I haven't thrown up in ages (and by ages I mean weeks).

So I was like, "Thanks Babe, for buying me a nice dinner, that I only ate a few bites of, that I couldn't even keep down! You are awesome at making sure I don't puke in the car and shielding me from the public humiliation of it all! Happy Valentine's Day."

It's the little things right?

After dinner, we went to see the Lego Movie! Because of course, everyone knows we are Lego obsessed! I was thinking there wouldn't be a ton of kids there at 7:00 on Valentine's day, but I was wrong, wrong, wrong. That place was packed, almost every seat was taken! I was so worried the children would be annoying (and yes, I obviously love kids, but these are not the kids I'm working with, and I wanted to enjoy my movie).

But those kids were so good at not being distracting. They were a lot better than some of the adults I've been around lately in theaters. Maybe because their parents kept them in check? Maybe adults who like to talk in the movies,  should be required to go with their parents, so they will show some manners.

The Lego Movie was so good! I'm not even kidding. I don't mean good for a kids movie, it was truly, truly good. We laughed non-stop, and we have been talking about the movie continuously since last night. Go see it now, if you really want to escape and laugh for an hour and a half. 

I guess no Valentine's Day would be complete without gifts. My gifts to Adam had a Zelda theme. The card was from Zelda, and then I got him a classic Zelda themed mouse pad. I guess it was also a geeky theme, but he LOVED it. Adam got me the board game 13 Dead End Drive!! 

This was such a thoughtful gift. A few months ago, I told Adam that as a kid I always wanted to play that game and never got the chance! I can't believe he remembered that. I can't wait for it to get here, so we can play it! I just want to drop a chandelier on Adam's head (this will probably deserve its own blog post)!

Of Love, War, The Olympics, & Snow

So far I have had two snow days off of work, and I don't have to go into work until 11 a.m. tomorrow morning. It is ironic that tomorrow we only have a delay because this afternoon/evening is the only day we have actually seen any snow! 

I was woken up from a glorious, afternoon nap by a flurry of text messages from my coworkers about the snow (via group text). They were mostly complaining about cabin fever. I think one coworker summarized the whole conversation by saying, "this weather is bad for my waistline and my relationships!" And my other coworker said, "My husband and I are thinking about going to wal-mart and WE HATE WAL-MART." I had to laugh about the "bad for my relationships" comment  because Adam and I did get in the most ridiculous of all ridiculous fights today, most likely brought on by all that togetherness. 

I also committed a faux pas by taking a nap (going to bed) angry. Adam said, "Aren't we going to talk about this?", and I got all pouty and hollered, "NO!", and then took a nap. But really it worked because when I woke up I was no longer mad, mostly because A. The Fight was Stupid and B. It was snowing like crazy! 

It has been snowing non-stop for six hours! Never in all my years in Alabama have I seen snow like this, usually we just get a dusting. Tomorrow it will be a mess I'm sure, but tonight it is just gorgeous. I love sitting around watching it snow, snow, snow.

The time off has given me a lot of downtime of course, and I've been watching the Olympics non-stop. I am an Olympic fiend, I have been since the first Olympics that I remember (Atlanta, 1996). I just remember the moment when Kerri Strug vaulted in gymnastics on her injured ankle so clearly, I think that is when I got hooked.

I watched all four hours of the Opening Ceremonies on Friday, and I had some fun with the whole #sochiproblems thing. When the one snowflake didn't materialize into an Olympic ring, my friend said, "Someone just disappeared because of that mishap." All jokes aside, I really love Russia & their culture & history.

I do have some unanswered questions about the Olympics though. How come people don't bet on the speed skaters, like they do horses? Who decided to combine shooting and racing on skis? When does one wake up and decide they want to luge? How come there aren't more South American bobsled teams ala the Jamaican Bobsled team?

Yes, I have been watching most of the sports mentioned above, but I have yet to see my favorite Winter Olympic sport, CURLING! Curling is so absurd in so many ways, and I absolutely love that there are people in the world who have devoted years to this sport, spending days on days, brushing the ice and HOLLERING at a stone.  But it is oddly compelling isn't it?

And of course, I love figure skating. I have been to champions on ice many times over the years, and I remember being a wee little kid pretending with my friends to be Nancy Kerrigan & Tonya Harding. I was Tonya Harding of course. But this was before she did all the bad stuff (and I don't mean the sex tape).

So I want to thank Winter Storm Pax for allowing me the time to get my "Olympics On," as the kids would say. That is, if they kids are even watching the Olympics nowadays.

Around the House

Just a Few Projects Going on Around the House this Week:

Since I started running, I've been saving all my running bibs, medals, and various knick knacks you get from races. I've just been piling them in the drawer of my night stand, not wanting to part with them, but I wanted to organize them in a better way. So I hit google and found gone for a run, and I bought a bibfolio. It was a little pricey and a splurge for me, but I love it! It such a nice way to display them, and I love the stat inserts to keep up with details from each race. This really encourages me to keep on doing these runs, so I can put more in my book.

To give credit where credit is due, putting my nail polish in the vase was not my idea. It was a pinterest idea! But the pin doesn't have a proper link, so there's that. When I saw it, I loved the idea. So I got a discount glass container from hobby lobby and grouped all of my Essie nail polishes together, and this is the result. It took me awhile to decide if I liked it or not, but I finally decided I really do love it. It is like a nail polish "sculpture."

I found this tutorial for transforming medicine bottles and using them for other things. The tutorial used scrapbook paper and modge podge, which is a perfectly easy way to do it. But I was feeling particularly lazy that day, and I thought why not try it with decorative duct tape! It was so quick and so easy! I may paint the tops later on. I am using them to carry headphones in my purse & laundry quarters. I use the bigger bottles to store my kindle and iphone chargers, so the cords are not just all over the place!

This is a not a particularly exciting and creative project (except to me). But I had boxes and boxes of scentsy supplies sitting in my closet, and I hated all the cardboard boxes and disorganization. So I got these cute bins (and mini bins not pictured) to oragnize it all. I was able to put my room sprays and scent circles in one container and my extra scents in another. I even have a place for my promotional materials! I love walking into my pristine closet now. 

Nothing makes me happier than a clean, clean, clean closet. How lame is that?

The Weekend Report

This weekend I had planned to head up to Lexington, Kentucky, for the Scentsy Convention. Unfortunately, they had some bad winter weather that I didn't want to drive in, and I ended up not going after all. I was a little disappointed of course, but I was OK with having a quiet weekend at home, since Adam is coming home soon. I just can't wait for him to be home. I love my alone time, but now I'm ready to get back into our normal routine again (i.e-I really hate dishes and taking out the trash-which are usually his jobs). I also want him back because of, you know, the love.

I was so mad that I was already all packed up though. I hate packing and unpacking, so all that work was for nothing. What a shame, I always love having a reason to take out the Vera Bradley.

So instead of touring the Bluegrass state, I spent the weekend shopping, watching the movie Lovelace on demand, and trying out solid foods. I was so excited when I went to the store Friday night to get some new foods I'm allowed to have! I can eat Tuna! Tuna! It is something new, and I rather like Tuna! So much so that I must capitalize Tuna! I may have gone a little Tuna! overboard. I was so excited, I lined them up all pretty in the cart to snap a picture!

Saturday, I went shopping down at Bridgestreet with mother dearest.  I even had her snap my picture while we were there to finally document my weight loss surgery month-i-versary. Can I just say it is always painful to have my mom snap my picture, no matter what camera I'm using? This one was taken with my iphone, the same MAKE AND MODEL that she has. I can't tell you how long it took for her to figure it out. We are lucky this picture is not of me getting annoyed. She has captured plenty of those through the years. I should do a montage sometime. I will call it the "The Many Stages of Death by Parental Annoyance." It will involve lots of eye rolling.

Once we were done shopping, we stopped off at Red Robin. This was my first time eating at a restaurant since before surgery. I simply ordered a grilled chicken burger, without the bun or toppings, and a side of steamed broccoli.  I probably only had 1.5 ounces of chicken and two bites of broccoli before I was full. I took the rest home for leftovers. I am so happy it didn't make me ill! 

I also wanted to share a picture of the Valentine's Day masks I made with my pre-schoolers/kindergarden ADHD group at work this week! Even though, this does not count as a "weekend activity." I was just super proud of myself for finding such a crafty activity, that the children loved (except for the one who went rouge and made a necklace). 

Right here, right now, I will declare my gratitude for pinterest and printers, which are always my lifeline when I'm stumped on group ideas. What did people do pre-interent? I shiver at the thought.

One Month

(via)

I wanted to post a picture of me with this post to "celebrate" being one month post weight loss surgery. You know how bloggers are always posting pictures of their ever expanding pregnant bellies? I was thinking why not do a weekly/monthly post about my ever shrinking food baby.

I could write stuff like, "Dear Food Baby, This week I'm craving pureed chicken, greek yogurt, & refried beans. Well, I don't know if craving is the right word, but it is what I like most out of the stuff I'm allowed to eat. My nausea is getting better every day! I've only thrown up once this week! But it was at work, which was highly unfortunate and inconvenient. Your father has been out of town for two weeks, which means I am no longer a princess being waiting on hand and foot. I have had to take out the trash twice, I keep forgetting to turn off the closet light (I bet it is on right now), one day I went to work with the heat still on full blast, and I had to kill a spider on my own!  (That involved a lot of squealing and chemical spraying until I dared to get close enough to squash it."

See doesn't that sound an awful lot like pregnancy?

But in all seriousness, I really was going to take a picture, but Adam has been out of town for what feels like forever! And I didn't really want to ask a coworker to take a picture of me for my blog. I am allowed to write a blog where I work, but I typically don't bring that up at work, because then they might want to read it, and that might get awkward. Plus, do you ever feel silly saying the word "blog" out loud? I totally do.

So alas, I am picture less on my monthiversary. However, I am very, very thrilled with my progress so far. I am 40-45 pounds lighter than my highest weight (depending on what scale I use). But it really isn't even about the numbers. My double chin is shrinking, my legs look nice and toned, and I am still so obsessed with my skinny ankles. And those jeans that were getting a little too tight, feel so comfortable now.

People are starting to notice, even people I haven't told about my surgery. My coworkers keep asking me how much I've lost and keep complimenting me for it. It is weird to have people compliment me on my body, just because I have never really had that before (except from my husband, he likes the junk in my trunk & is worried I will lose it).

The other day one someone commented on how energetic I am lately. I hadn't noticed really, I  told them I didn't feel much more energetic, just happier. I am so much happier. For so long I felt like I was a car headed down hill with broken breaks, I just couldn't stop it, and at some point I decided I was just going to crash eventually, and I gave up altogether. I feel like I've finally gotten my power back, my self-control, and that makes life so much better. 

But I have started to realize I do have more energy, I don't find it so essential to nap on the weekends anymore, and when I get home from work, I don't necessarily just veg out on the couch. Last week, I spent two hours cleaning out my closet on a Monday night,  and then yesterday I organized the bathroom (I have been on a de-cluttering kick lately, and I am dreaming of a trip to The Container Store).  I am even staying up later at night, although I don't know if that is a good thing.  I think this has less to do with the weight loss and more to do with not eating crap.

I have learned a little about my eating habits too. Sometimes I find myself reaching for a chip because they are on the table or going to grab some candy off my boss's desk, out of habit, not of hunger, and I have to stop myself. Sometimes I will even think to myself or say aloud, "I'm hungry," before realizing I'm really not. I'm just in the habit of eating what is in front of me or saying, "I'm hungry."

I have only had three times so far, where it slightly bothered me that I couldn't just eat what I wanted. Two of those times seemed so silly. I really wanted to try the new Cheeseburger pizza from Papa John's and the Chicken Enchilada Sub topped with Fritos from Subway. Man, those commercials made it look so good! And then Thursday at work, the whole building around lunch time smelt like a combination of Taco Bell, Jimmy John's, and sugar. They even served a cookie cake at our staff meeting, which had me pining a little. But I got over it fairly quickly.

That is such a win for me, free food is not something I could ever easily turn down. I love free food. Once I went to Taco Bell and their debit card machine was broken, so they gave me my meal for free! It ranks as one of the best moments of my life. I kid, I kid, but it was pretty awesome.

The one thing I have been struggling with is people telling me they are "proud of me." Part of me feels like my stomach is doing all the work. Sometimes I feel like I should have been able to do this the old fashioned way. 

I've been watching my 600 lb life on TLC lately. It is a show about extremely obese people getting weight loss surgery. One of the women on the show, continues to gain weight in the days/months/year after her surgery. I find this astonishing. It was so hard to even sip water in the beginning, I have no clue how she was still eating fried foods so soon. You would feel so sick. Of course, I read the comments about the show on twitter, slaying her, and bashing fat people in general. But my heart goes out to her, her food addiction is soo strong.  

I was telling my own therapist about this show, and later I told her how I didn't feel like people should be "proud of me." She pointed out, that not everyone who has the surgery, does what they are supposed to do (like the woman on 600 lb life), and I am doing what I'm supposed to do.

And you know what? She is right. I am proud of myself for that.

He Said, She Said

 (Image Via)

Just a few conversational nuggets from the last few weeks:

Brittany: I feel like I will be doing stupid things for the rest of my life.

Adam: And I will spend the rest of my life reprimanding you for it, that is our journey.

Brittany: Did you play cop and robbers when you were a kid?

Adam: No never, I played Ninji Turtles.

Brittany: (joking) that is what a heretic would say

Adam: I'm not a heretic, I'm a Lutheran

Brittany: I'm watching this show where they are giving these people weight loss surgery. It is neat to see what they did to my stomach, you can even see the laparoscopic tools they used that made my incisions.

Adam: I hope they didn't put a government chip in you.

Brittany: I kind of hope they did.

After seeing the sorry state of my closet last week:

Adam: (Adam comes running down the hall) There was an explosion in the bedroom and there are clothes everywhere!! Are you alright?

Brittany: Shut Up!

Adam: I want to jump in your closet and make a clothes angel!

The Norman Rockwell Exhibit

Today my mom and I went to the FRIST (Frist Center for the Visual Arts) in Nashville to see the Norman Rockwell exhibit. When I woke up this morning, I truly did not want to go.  I was tired (although I slept crazy good this weekend) and it was rainy outside, which is the perfect weather for staying home, but not so much for going out.  We almost didn't go, but then I thought, "Might as well." 

I had been to the FRIST once before when I was much younger. I remember seeing some famous paintings, but I did not remember much about the building itself (probably because I didn't care about those kinds of things at 15). But the building is BEAUTIFUL inside. It is the old Nashville post office, and the inside is full of 1930's touches.

My mother and I bought one of the fancy schmancy audio tour gadgets and immediately headed upstairs to see the exhibit. I was so happy to see it wasn't too crowded. I guess we have the rain and Superbowl Sunday to thank for that.

(Note to self: Superbowl Sunday is an awesome time to go to an art exhibit, but the Saturday night before the Superbowl is an awful time to go to the grocery store. That place gave me high anxiety. All those people blocking the items I needed to get, making me have to pretend to be staring intently at the items next to the items I actually needed. And really lady, it shouldn't take that long to pick out a flavor of yogurt).

The exhibit was so engrossing. I knew I had always liked the Norman Rockwell paintings and illustrations I had seen in the past. But I had no idea the history and meaning behind them. I had never before noticed how detailed his paintings truly are. He had a reason for everything he added to his paintings!

I loved learning about his process for creating and how he used his models (which often times were his children!). I even think I have discovered a few new favorite paintings (the one pictured above topped the list for me)!

After the exhibit, we went to the gift shop and I bought a Norman Rockwell coffee table book, American Chronicles of Norman Rockwell. I really just can't wait to read it all!