“Picture Pages, Picture Pages,Time to get your Picture Pages,Time to get your
crayons and your pencils…”
“You can play with Picture Pages,Fill your day with Picture Pages, ‘Till Bill Cosby does another Picture Page with you!”

My mom bought me Picture Pages when I was little. I watched a lot of Nickelodeon as a kid and really wanted to do the Picture Pages with Bill Cosby. But the day they came in the mail, I worked all of them. My mom was mad, but I was very proud. Or so she tells me. I don’t really remember.

That’s a long story just to introduce the day of pictures, isn’t it?

Yes, I am home from work today. I’m draining (I hate snot!) and my body hurts. So here I am. And here are the pics from today.

Here is the no make-up shot. I found this to be very liberating. So not only am I free of cosmetics, but I am also in the throws of a terrible cold and my eyebrows are not exactly well groomed. And here is the picture for all to see. I do think that my short hair is absolutely adorable and my face may even be looking a little thinner. I am wearing my favorite green shirt (that I stole from Nate). What you can’t see is the rest of the pathetic sick day attire: pink and green plaid flannel pants and bright pink crocs. If I worked as a news anchor, I would definitely only be made up from the waist up.

So you should do the make-up free shot too! Put it on your blog and link it in Adventures In BabyWearing just like I did!

And for the random shot of the day:

I originally took this picture to send to Nate’s mom to show her the tables we painted. But then I realized that the picture is supportive evidence for several things I have mentioned previously in this blog.

1. Notice nice, blue night stands. The night stands in action! And mine (the one on the left) is not cluttered yet! Nathan’s will never be cluttered.

2. I have mentioned before that I love waking up in a nice, white room and white sheets. It always feels like I am starting the day over fresh and clean. I just thought I’d show you more of that.

3. Farley puts himself in pictures. I grabbed the camera, and he followed me upstairs. He jumped on the bed and proceeded to lay down like he’d been there all day. And he looked at me, begging to have his picture taken. I had planned to take the picture from this angle. Its the best shot of the room, but not the most flattering of Farley. That’ll teach him.

4. This is also where I am going to spend the better part of my afternoon. I am going to take my iPod full of sermons upstairs and refocus. And probably nap too. I’ll let you know what I learn.

Have a great afternoon!

Hello all. I’m still not feeling well. I am full of snot and coughs and I have a new strange pain in my left knee. Can my knee hurt from laying around on the couch? I guess so.

I haven’t eaten all that well, but that’s what happens when we spend the weekend with our parents. Yesterday was not bad: starbucks (venti iced decaf nonfat white mocha) and banana; point-friendly chicken salad sandwich; chicken, green beans, and roasted potatoes; a handful of tortilla chips; my dad’s homemade frozen coffee (with non-fat ice cream); and a Fiber 1 bar. Today: starbucks, bowl of frosted flakes; beef and noodles (light on the beef) and peas; Iced Cappuccino from Tim Hortons; bowl of wonton soup. I need to count up the points. I’m sure I’ll do that tomorrow ’cause I’ll probably be home sick. I hate using sick days when I am really sick. Boo sick.

However, this time has allowed me to catch up on my reading. Blog reading, to be precise. I always need some more blogs to read, and I’m excited to share some of my favorites today with you. If you need some good reads, just follow the links.

I LOVE PastaQueen’s Half of Me. I have been aching to link you to all to her opinions on an interview with Drew Barrymore in the latest People. I am so excited to hear that a celebrity has honest things to say about beauty and health. A few quotes from Ms Barrymore:

“I just think happiness is what makes you pretty. Period,” she tells the magazine. “Happy people are beautiful. They become like a mirror, and they reflect that happiness.”

When do you feel most beautiful? “Right after I’ve worked out and I’m sweating all over the place and my face is two different colors of white and red and my hair is half wet, half dry and I look like I’m about to have a heart attack. I feel like I’ve changed the shape of my body temporarily into something more flexible and strong.”

I love her thoughts. I love that she has to work hard at the gym. What I don’t love is that a famous person has a healthier self-ideal than I do. Ms Barrymore has taught me that I have a lot of work to do. And I want to thank PastaQueen for bringing it to my attention. I often avoid tabloid magazines because they make me feel crappy. I should have picked up this one.

I also read something on the Pudge Budge that really hit me in the face.

Remember that something is always better than nothing. Even if you intended to walk 20 minutes, a 10-minute walk is still vastly better for you than doing nothing.

One of my biggest struggles is my polar thinking. I’m all or nothing. Either I go full force and count every bite that goes into my mouth or I go food crazy. Either I go to the gym and work out for an hour, or I don’t go at all. She reminded me today that something is better than nothing. Thanks for that reminder.

Then I spent a while surfing, and came across some very cool things. The first is this challenge by Adventures in Babywearing to post pics without makeup. It is brilliant. I think we could all benefit from being brutally honest about who we are. So that’s my plan in the morning. After the shower. I just can’t handle it tonight.

And, from there, I came upon this awesome poem at Amy’s Blog, and I had to share it with you.

And I don’t know what to say about MetaMorphose’s blog, except she totally rocks. I am almost obesessed with it. Read it and read it all.

So when I don’t have much to say for myself, I just point you to others who inspire and entertain me!

Have a great night and don’t get a cold!!

Big thanks to Aimee for letting me interview her. She did an amazing job answering the questions with honesty and candidness. Check it out here.

Thanks for chanting with me yesterday, but it didn’t work. I am sick. Nothing major. Sore throat. Full of snot. I just hope that snot doesn’t weigh a lot. I need low numbers for the weigh in tomorrow morning. I feel like chanting, “Low numers! Low numbers!” like I used to chant “No whammy! No whammy!” along with the old game show Press Your Luck. I guess I’m just in the chanting mood. (You know you remember the Whammy!)

I told you that I would show you pics of our new nightstands, and here is one of them! The before pics were nothing exciting, the tables were just wood-grain. I would have taken pictures of them in place, but I didn’t feel like making the bed to take pics and then get right back in bed.

Okay, so I lied in a previous post. I do care what happens with Meredith and Derrick. I never thought I could feel so distraught over a television show. But at least Christina picked the red velvet cake. I am so glad that the writers are leaving them alone, if just for now.

I did really well point-wise again today. I used all my extra points for ice cream at the Fudgery. Banana Pudding ice cream. It was good.

I’ve had several questions about the South Beach Chicken Salad kits. Today I had the Santa Fe Chicken Salad. The kit was 4 points (5 if I would have eaten the jello, but I generally don’t like jello). I found them with the lunchmeat. It’s nice and neat and everything comes in the box that you can mix together. The Santa Fe Chicken somes with lime cilantro pita chips, spicy cubed chicken, cheese, and salsa-ish dressing. (Oh, and jello.) I mixed all the chicken stuff together and then put it over lettuce. I ate the chips with some salsa I brought from home. Very yummy and filling.

Tomorrow I am eating a repeat of Wednesday’s lunch, the Cranberry Walnut Chicken Salad Kit. This one is 6 points. It’s wheat pita chips, chicken, lite mayo, cranberries, walnuts and strawberry jello (I’ll probably eat that jello). I will also eat that chicken salad on a bed of lettuce.

I am excited about weigh-in on Saturday. But at the same time, I really don’t care what the scale says. I mean, I do, but other things ae more important. My clothes fit differently. And that makes little to no sense since I’ve had a lot of (real) ice cream this week. I’ve eaten all my flex points, and I’ve managed to keep myself within the expected range today. Maybe I wasn’t eating enough the past few weeks. Or maybe I’ve just been holding water. I don’t know. What I do know is I’m wearing clothes I couldn’t wear last week. Who knows what the scales will say. I guess I’m more curious than excited, but I’m ready!

I’ve emailed interview questions to Aimee. Check her blog for her responses! I’m still working on yours, Annie!

It’s time to change the cat litter and go to bed. My throat hurts. I got a monster headache out of nowhere today, but it responded well to Aleve. My legs are a little sore too (and not from any sort of exercise). Say it with me: I will not get sick. I will not get sick. I will not get sick.

Today has been a much better day food wise. I woke up feeling generally nasty, and that has motivated me throughout the day. Although my food choices were not the best (I did have 2 mini peppermint patties and a Healthy Choice ice cream bar), I only went one point over my daily allowance. Go me!

I also grabbed the wrong pair of pants this morning. Pants that I bought last year on clearance with dreams of wearing. Pants I tried on last week that didn’t fit. Well, I wore them to work today. And they looked nice. I think I’ve lost weight since my last weigh in. And I’ve not eaten well. I’m just going to wait and see.

Nathan and I spent the evening painting end tables that are going to serve as nightstands. It’s very exciting. I took before pics, but I’ll wait until there’s sunlight to take afters, and I’ll share them with you!

Speaking of sharing, I got an email from my dear old friend Shirley today. She and her husband are good friends of Nate and I. They moved to Texas a few years ago. But today she tells me she’s started a blog. I knew she’d had weight loss success, but I had not idea how much. Go check her out!

I am not one to review products, but I absolutely LOVED the South Beach Diet’s Chicken Salad kits. Today I had the cranberry walnut chicken salad and put it on a bed of lettuce. I ate the pita chips and the jello and was amazingly full. 6 points for all of it. Tomorrow I’m having the Southwestern Chicken Salad Kit. I’ll keep you posted.

I had a great time at work today. It was my day to lead group (with elementary school kids…mostly with ADHD and autism) and I’m working a nutrition program. Today was taste test day with fruits and vegetables. So we all tried cucumbers, cauliflower, mangos, and honeydew. I was so sad that many of the kids had not eaten any of them before. I felt like I did a really good thing in the course of their healthy lives. And then I had to bring out mean Krissie when two boys tried to convince me that they walked 41 laps (or 4.1 miles) in 40 minutes. I hate to call kids liars, but they walked. That’s a 10 minute mile. No sir. So they are mad at me today. Oh well.

Nathan completely finishes his Master’s degree on Monday with the completion of his last final. It’s open-note, so he’s not stressing. Go Nate, you librarian you! You rock!!

I’m reading Rob Bell’s new book, Sex God but I’m only in the first chapter. I’ve been sleepy at bedtime, so no real reading is getting done. I just wanted you all to know what I’m reading today. I enjoyed Velvet Elvis, although I didn’t necessarily agree with everything he said, it made me think (like in this blog entry). I am very excited for the newest installment of Harry Potter in July. Nate and I preordered 2 copies, one for each of us, and plan to donate one of them to the local library when we are done.

I also need to revisit the Beck Diet Solution. I really was working the program, and it was working for me. I gotta get back to that.

Again, my sincerest apologies to Aimee and Annie…I’ll get the interview questions to you in the next few days, I promise! Tonight was a night of painting…and American Idol. (And can you belive that Top Model was a recap? What’s up with that?)

So my plan for tomorrow is as follows:

Breakfast (6 points): Starbucks and banana
Lunch (6 points): SBD Southwestern Chicken Salad Kit
Dinner (6 points): Huevos Rancheros (Mexican Eggs)
Snacks (6 points): pear, string cheese, 2 dark Kisses

That leaves 4 points to play with. But it seems like a pretty good amount of food for those points, so I’m excited about tomorrow!

Have a great night!

Oh my. I inspired Annie to list her car history. She provided me with laughs. I need them this morning.

I usually get up before my alarm clock. Not today. I pushed snooze twice. Ugh. My fingers are swollen up like sausages. My stomach doesn’t feel too happy with me. This is what I get for eating junk yesterday. I forgot that I used to feel like this all the time just a few weeks ago. Today will be better because I am in control.

No more time. Must get ready for work.

Nothing noteworthy today. Eating was terrible. I had McDonald’s twice. Twice. I had the Southwest Grilled Chicken Salad. Quite possibly the best salad I’ve ever had (6 points for salad and 3 for dressing). Then I found myself running errands from work, with my windows down, and thought it was a great day for ice cream. So I returned to McD’s for a yogurt cone (3 points). I don’t think I’ve been there more than twice in the last two years, and I return twice in one day. I hang my head in shame.

I started out with this car. Exactly. A black Plymouth Laser. Man, could this thing fly. It was quick and I always felt that my car was sexy. Maybe climbing in and out of the backseat felt like navigating though the womb, but I was typically the driver, so it didn’t matter. It didn’t matter that the hatchback leaked and there was always standing water in the trunk. It was my baby. And I drove the laser until she met an unexpected demise, as the transmission went ka-put and we sold her mostly for parts.

Then there was this amazing car. Red looked just like this Celica. I loved Red. She became my dearest friend during my freshman year in college. I had to beg and beg and beg for her. It worked. I always felt cute in this car. She, again, did not have the most comfortable backseat, but I loved her. She also went pretty stinking fast, but the steering wheel shook between 45 and 60 mph, and the radio sometimes went out during those speeds. Oh, and one year on Easter, we broke the trunk and it took very skilled hands to coax it closed. She went to about 180,000 miles. I gave her up when I purchased my first car with my own money.

Nothing noteworthy today. Eating was terrible. I had McDonald’s twice. Twice. I had the Southwest Grilled Chicken Salad. Quite possibly the best salad I’ve ever had (6 points for salad and 3 for dressing). Then I found myself running errands from work, with my windows down, and thought it was a great day for ice cream. So I returned to McD’s for a yogurt cone (3 points). I don’t think I’ve been there more than twice in the last two years, and I return twice in one day. I hang my head in shame.

I started out with this car. Exactly. A black Plymouth Laser. Man, could this thing fly. It was quick and I always felt that my car was sexy. Maybe climbing in and out of the backseat felt like navigating though the womb, but I was typically the driver, so it didn’t matter. It didn’t matter that the hatchback leaked and there was always standing water in the trunk. It was my baby. And I drove the laser until she met an unexpected demise, as the transmission went ka-put and we sold her mostly for parts.

Then there was this amazing car. Red looked just like this Celica. I loved Red. She became my dearest friend during my freshman year in college. I had to beg and beg and beg for her. It worked. I always felt cute in this car. She, again, did not have the most comfortable backseat, but I loved her. She also went pretty stinking fast, but the steering wheel shook between 45 and 60 mph, and the radio sometimes went out during those speeds. Oh, and one year on Easter, we broke the trunk and it took very skilled hands to coax it closed. She went to about 180,000 miles. I gave her up when I purchased my first car with my own money.

Nothing noteworthy today. Eating was terrible. I had McDonald’s twice. Twice. I had the Southwest Grilled Chicken Salad. Quite possibly the best salad I’ve ever had (6 points for salad and 3 for dressing). Then I found myself running errands from work, with my windows down, and thought it was a great day for ice cream. So I returned to McD’s for a yogurt cone (3 points). I don’t think I’ve been there more than twice in the last two years, and I return twice in one day. I hang my head in shame.

I started out with this car. Exactly. A black Plymouth Laser. Man, could this thing fly. It was quick and I always felt that my car was sexy. Maybe climbing in and out of the backseat felt like navigating though the womb, but I was typically the driver, so it didn’t matter. It didn’t matter that the hatchback leaked and there was always standing water in the trunk. It was my baby. And I drove the laser until she met an unexpected demise, as the transmission went ka-put and we sold her mostly for parts.

Then there was this amazing car. Red looked just like this Celica. I loved Red. She became my dearest friend during my freshman year in college. I had to beg and beg and beg for her. It worked. I always felt cute in this car. She, again, did not have the most comfortable backseat, but I loved her. She also went pretty stinking fast, but the steering wheel shook between 45 and 60 mph, and the radio sometimes went out during those speeds. Oh, and one year on Easter, we broke the trunk and it took very skilled hands to coax it closed. She went to about 180,000 miles. I gave her up when I purchased my first car with my own money.