Week of Bliss

This week I gave myself the present of free workouts.
Consequently, this week Jameson gave me the gift of time to have my free workouts.

This week started out with the goal to go to the gym every day. This was for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, I was sick of complaining about how out of shape I felt to Jameson all the time. Second, I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it. Third, I wanted to do something about how I've been feeling.

Monday: Feeling good and proud, I went to the gym and signed up for a week free trial. I hit the treadmill with confidence. Not so far into it the confidence left. My worst fears felt realized. I was ridiculously out of shape. I was losing weight and felling good about myself, so being defeated was pretty awful. I managed to stay on and get my hour work out.

Tuesday: Two words: Spin class. WOOO! I like it, I love it, I want some more of it! Katie is the best teacher I've ever had. It was in a dark room, blaring music and lots of energy. I got my bum handed to me on a silver platter (and the sore nether regions the next day). I felt glorious. It was nice to be back in a place where I actually felt accountable for my workout. I made a friend next to me from Omaha Nebraska and we kept each other going. I walked in the door of my home with my arms raised and Jameson knew I felt victorious.

Wednesday: Swimming laps. There is no better way to put me in a better mood than giving me a lane and unlimited swimming. I did some drills and a slew of 200s (my race in college). I even had an extra suit and shorts for drag. Smelling like chlorine the rest of the day was nothing short of fabulous. By today, I could feel myself walking taller, shoulders back and feelin' darn good.

Thursday: Body Pump! Hurt oh so....oh so good! I couldn't make it through every rep and twice I had to stop and change my weights. But I am still feeling this class deep in my muscles. Katie was the teacher again (yes, I planned that. She was in my ward). She kept our spirits up, the track pumping and made us smile through the pain. We did a new track for triceps that just came out... Let me tell you, I am SO glad Chloe is not any heavier than she is. Otherwise, I couldn't lift her. The rest of the day Jameson could hear me giggling all over the house because I couldn't lift my arms above my head or hold something up.

Friday: ZUMBA! Oh my goodness. If you ever want to see a whole bunch of white girls shakin' their thangs, poppin' and lockin' or droppin' it like it's hot, this is where you go. It was awesome! Katie (Katie, Katie, Katie) is the best! Getting a hint here? She made the class so much fun! In the middle of a routine she split us down the middle and it was like we were competing with one another with shimmies and booty shakes. It was an awesome way to wind my muscles down from the Body Pump the day before.

Tomorrow is my last day. Because I work tonight I cant go to an early class with Katie. So it may just be a free day for me or there is another Zumba class later, or a Boot Camp. I've been debating about it. It is my last chance so I want to fit in another class while I've got the option. But time is crunched because tomorrow we celebrate my love's 24th birthday! If we were pilgrims, Jameson would be considered an elder! Weird, huh?

Just wanted to share with you my week of bliss! It has been amazing. Jameson has been awesome taking care of Chloe while I've been away, despite his recently feeling a little under the weather. He inspired me to go to the early classes and helped me to get out the door when Chloe wanted me to stay. I couldn't have had this fabulous week without you! Thank you for letting me get some time doing what I love and loving what I do. It has made me happier, which makes you happier, which makes for one heck of a happy, healthy home.

Three cheers for free gym week!
Hip Hip Hooray!
Hip Hip Hooray!
Hip Hip Hooray!

On how my intelligence works

I have decided that I am good at several things. I make fantastic cookies. I can dress myself in a manner that indicates that I am not, in fact, colorblind. I know a thing or two about music theory and can work my way around a guitar, bass, and a few saxophones. I learned to read at a young age and have been doing so ever since. I can do rudimentary math, I can vacuum, scrub anything, sweep, mow lawns, and do a tiny bit of woodwork. I am fairly good at video games (almost done with FFX) and I can write with at least enough competence to earn me fairly good grades in school (I graduated with a 3.42).

What I cannot do, however, is figure out a grocery store.

Sure I can figure out superstores like Target. After all, I'm on my second round of working at one. In fact, I probably know more about the area I work in than anyone else who steps inside that store on any given day.

Grocery stores, on the other hand, are full of trickery. And deceit.

I like to think of myself as at least a decently simple guy. How stores work out their sales is beyond my comprehension. Enter story.

Yesterday I decided to go to the store to buy some necessities like Corn Pops and cheese. Macey's is having a sale on cereal, so off I go. I took Chloe and left Becky to sleep since she worked all night. After all, I'm a man. I can spend money and come back with things we need. As I get to the grocery store I grab an ad for the sales and see that if you buy four boxes of cereal then they're only 1.88. Nice right? So I walk over and there are four varieties in the area: Corn Pops, Fruit Loops, Apple Jacks and Frosted Flakes. I like the pure sugar while Becky likes the substance, and Frosted Flakes is the most substantial so I got two boxes of those and filled in the other two requisites. Then I went off to get the other things for dinner.

As I get to the checkout, I hand the guy the coupon and he says that Frosted Flakes are not a part of the sale. Yes, in fine print on the coupon it says that the other three are the only varieties eligible. But...what? They were all in the area under the banner! Why would you include non sale cereal? To catch suckers like me that's why. So I spent more than I wanted, was irritated at this store, and set off.

I get to the car and load everything up when I realize: I forgot the tubes of croissants for chicken rolls. Sigh. Grabbing Chloe, I walk back in to the very back while my milk sits in the roasting car and bring a few tubes to the checkout. After buying them, making my way back to the car and putting Chloe back in, I realize that we have no cream cheese that we need. I would have to go all the way back in and to the back of the store to pick some up.

So that's the story of why we had Hawaiian Haystacks last night instead.

Mothers

I know this is a little late, but it still bears noting. And I think I put this up every single year, but that's because it really is that good. Please watch this.

Sorry for the horrible quality, but I still think it's the most awesome Mother's Day video ever.

Happy Mother's Day to my wonderful wife Becky and to our fantastic mothers!

Summertime

So, while absolutely everyone knows this, I have graduated! Yes, it's been that long since I've written. And let me tell you, being a graduate is stupendous. I could go on about the benefits of not having to set an alarm ever or the great plans for the future I have, but that would be a lie. You see, I still wake up early (I woke up yesterday at 10:30 and it was the latest I've slept in in a while. I went to bed at 6am) and I still am working at Target (hence the 6am bed time). To be honest, I have no immediate plans for the future. Not of my own design of course. I wasn't accepted into grad school and I haven't heard from any job I've applied for yet. It's been hard and disappointing, but we're making do right now.

So what, you may ask, am I doing to celebrate being graduated? What are my plans for the summer?

Well, I'm doing a lot of this:


And that is the most blissful thing I can think of.

(yes, that is me reading Chloe a video game magazine. By the time she's older, she'll know the top 200 video games of all time by heart. She loves those pictures)

Have a great day everyone