Eight Month Check In!

The fall semester has started back and FryDaddy has gone back up-and-over the mountain for his final year of work in his graduate program. So eight months in to this journey, where do things stand?

It seems that good habits have (mostly) taken root.  I'm continuing with my workouts and, while my weight doesn't seem inclined to change, I feel much, much better.  I have more energy and I'm at peace with the dread machine known as the bathroom scale.  It's normal for me now to get up and do a half-hour workout before getting ready to leave the house, so it's definitely a habit.  I vary the workouts between sweat-inducing cardio (there's a cardio ballet one that I really like, although I'm pretty sure I disturbed the ghost of Pavlova with my interpretations of classical ballet), some light weight training (mostly using my own body weight, sometimes supplemented with canned goods), and stretching for flexibility.

I have housekeeping routines in place that have helped me feel more in control - there's always room for improvement in that area, but the house is "15 minutes from company ready" most days, with the major areas picked up, clean dishes, laundry caught up, etc.  It's rare that I don't have my work things ready the night beforehand and most days, I manage to carve out time for myself, whether it's through a cup of tea sipped instead of slurped standing over the sink or a few minutes a reading non-work stuff before bed.  By the way, FryDaddy is very onboard with this and is more than willing to pitch in.  A less-stressed Mockingbird makes for a happier Nest and who doesn't like that?

Exactly.

Areas for improvement?  Well, I still need to rein in my rampant sweet tooth.  While I eat properly and well about two-thirds of the time, I want to increase that percentage.  And I want to up my workouts to a consistent six times a week.  They don't all have to be in the morning, but I feel better when I do them, so it makes sense to do them often.  For both, I know what I need to do and, just as I Got Serious in other areas of my life, I need to apply the principles to that area as well.

Also, last month FryDaddy worked to tape out the front room and Barefoot and I spent two days in all manner of awkward positions transforming that room from a pale green that I loved seven years ago to a changeable warm off-white that is bright and gorgeous!  FryDaddy and I deep-cleaned the carpet and re-arranged furniture.  We also had some light fixtures swapped around and ventilation fans installed in the two bathrooms.  After starting a "family wall" of photos in the hall, we stood back and marveled and the works we (with some help) had wrought.  Nice.  Very nice.  It's so important that this house be "our" house and to do that, we needed to change some things - it may have taken us the better part of three years, but we're getting there, inside and out.

It's good to work hard and then be content.  That hasn't happened often with me.

Goals for this month?  Keep up the good work, and (aside from a Labor Day cookout), curb the junk food.  I've used the movie show I co-host (now with 50% more FryDaddy   If you're local, check out TV19!) as an excuse to indulge in too much buttered popcorn and movie candy for too long.  Time to sneak in baby carrots and grapes.  It's not a hardship - I like baby carrots and grapes and the movie food has gotten to the point that it's not a treat anymore.

Onward!