Runnergirl

I lost another 1lb at WW last night, true it's the same lb that I have lost many many times since last Summer, but, combined with a successful run on Wednesday, I feel like I'm getting back my motivation.

Nick and I are exactly the same weight at the moment - he's not happy either because he'd like to weigh at least half a stone lighter too - personally, I'd love, for once in my life, to actually me lighter than my husband/boyfriend!

Anyway, we are encouraging each other along, knowing that we could lose half a stone to a stone before we depart on our Summer hols. The irony that I could be at my goal weight by now is not lost on me.

I am waiting in today for the new boiler to be delivered, then, post work (finishing at 3 as I started at 6!), I shall be going to the garage to get my car tyre sorted, and a quote for the damage to the bodywork. Then, I shall head to the gym. I am aiming for an 8 miler tonight - that may be pushing it, but we shall see.

Nick is away this weekend, and I have a wedding on Saturday afternoon/evening - so whilst the new boiler is being installed, I am planning on doing the first coat in the bathroom, then completing it on Sunday in readiness for Nick's return.

In other news, my second orchid (in terms of time that I've had them!), now seems to be growing a new stem - or 3.... very exciting. I thought it's flower producing days were over, but, 2 years since the last lot, we might have some more. I'm not very good with orchids - not sure how to keep them flowering really.

How many pair of shoes do you have? Out of those pairs, how many do you wear more than a few times a year?
Submitted by fightinggale.

Hmmm.

2 pairs of knee length boots - 1 black, 1 brown - I wear about once a month

3 pairs of brown ankle boots - 1 pair that I wear pretty much every day, the others are back-ups for when these die (although they are pointy toes and keep tripping me up by hooking into the opposite trouser leg...)

2 pairs of trainers - 1 for running, 2 for casual

Bored now.

For eating more slowly.... eat with chopsticks. Until of course, you get to be a bit of a pro and end up eating just as fast with chopsticks as you did with a knife and fork.

for saving money... watch where you drive.

That is all.

Well, I was going to blog about how nice it was to go to sleep last night with the window open. The warmth and the distant hum of outside traffic always reminds me of being on holiday.

Then, around 4:30 when I woke up to go to the loo, Nick was most distressed about his eyes being lasered. He is now panicking that he has done the wrong thing. That the light sensitivity, poor night vision, and halo-ness isn't temporary and is in fact permanent. He worries that he rushed into it, that although he researched the procedure and companies, he didn't research the possible long lasting side effects, and didn't ask enough questions beforehand. He has another check up tomorrow, which I won't be there for, but I hope they will reassure him, as he was most distraught last night. I've told him to research online, but he tells me he is scared of the answer, and scared that it will be permanent and that he shouldn't have had it done. I don't really know what to say.

Then, this morning, around 6:45 as I am driving into work, I get into a fender bender with a lorry/van thing. I think it's his fault, he thinks it's mine. I get flustered, get his details, but let him drive off without calling the police etc. Especially as I notice he's flattened my tyre and I need to call the AA to get me moving again. As a result, I don't get into work early enough, and have had to cancel my doctor's appointment.

Although, I'm actually not feeling too bad about that because yee-ha, last night I managed to run 6 miles, and I probably could have done a bit more, but I ran out of water and brow-mopping tissue. My knee started to ache a little bit, but I was so chuffed because that is the first time I've managed to run more than 2 miles in around 2 months. Maybe I will be able to do the 10k in a few weeks after all.

Anyway, together with the broken boiler and the damage to my lovely car (although thank god it wasn't Nick's!), this is likely to be an expensive month.

So, we were thinking of going to the Maldives next year for our Summer hols, but now we're actually thinking of somewhere closer to home...

We were thinking... balmy Summer nights by the pool, homemade cocktails, enjoying locally made cheese, bread and wine... a gite in France...

Essentials - a private pool, a local town/village

Nice to haves - in a wine making region, bicycles available

Any suggestions on where we should go in France? We'll be planning on going end of June, before schools break up, and want somewhere warm enough to swim!

Well, I had what turned out to be my last therapy session last week.

My therapist felt that my resistance was too high, and that I needed some time out for my subconscious to relax and maybe let out the big secret on its own.

She's convinced there is something hiding though, because of the strong emotions that have come out, and the memories all have a theme.

She also felt that doing the therapy and the stress it's causing might be manifesting itself in my inability to run anything further than 2 miles at the moment. I'm still seeing the docs this week - going to be brave and have my blood taken.

I think I've found the reason for my lack of weight loss however. Basically at weekends, I haven't been counting points, on the basis that the amount of running I was doing was earning me plenty of bonus points to allow for a few treats. However, last week, I bought an eating out guide, and where I thought I was making sensible meal choices, well, it turns out that it is nigh on impossible to have any main course in most restaurants for less than around 15 points.

So this has been the problem - where I have been earning maybe 20 bonus points, I've actually been eating around 40 extra points over the space of a weekend, with a couple of meals out. Therefore, I need to not eat out, which is hard, because I love going for meals out.

Anyway, I lost 1.5lb, of the 5lb or so that I put on over Easter, but am hopeful that I will lose again this week. I am not doing as much exercise, and trying to count points over the weekend. We had no meals out this weekend, and I stuck to salads and vegetables at the birthday party at the weekend. I did have some cake, but I think I'll be okay.

So, basically - no eating out, or if I do, one course only, and choose beforehand if I can.

And I have to stop drinking again.

Pronounced dead this morning.

Anyone got any ideas on what Condensing Regular Boiler we should look at?

Show us a picture of the pet you'd most like to have in your life.

Easy!

Panda

Tokyo's Panda dies

So - fitness levels not improving - again, struggled to run 2 miles last night, but also did 20 minutes on the stepper before I started feeling a bit nauseous. I'm going to try and do an outdoors run this weekend, to see if I'm better outside.

Boiler completely packed in last night - not just the usual issue of ignoring the thermostat and timer and staying on all day, but actually not even turning on. So we had no heating or hot water last night. Hooray for dishwashers. Had to put the immersion heater on during one of my nocturnal visits to the loo so we could at least have a hot shower. Rang a different plumber who wanted to charge me £120 for a call out and first hour. Hah! Rang our usual plumber again, who has said he'll come over tonight or tomorrow morning. Luckily I'm working from home tomorrow.

After one of the girls bringing in a dead bird on Sunday, Maud brought in a live one this morning - a little baby sparrow I think. I rescued it and released it and it flew away so I hope it will be okay. It's ironic because just the other day we were saying how lucky we were that they didn't bring in animals... I think it's because the smaller birds are easy for them to get unfortunately, whereas we've gone 6 months without them bringing in anything, and before that, just the one bird and a catapillar. I gave her a real telling off, so hopefully she'll learn not to do it again. Hah!

Workwise - pretty quiet today, got a few bits to finish off before I work from home tomorrow (which will be reading 33page industry reports and summarising them for my stakeholders - oh joy.)

Am hoping for some weight loss this evening anyway. Am slightly stressing about getting everything done - I need to go to the supermarket for ingredients at lunchtime, get home at 5 for the upholsterer, leave at 6:20 to get to WW, back home at 7:20ish to do dinner, and try and find sometime to relax!

I'm not sure about cake quantities, so think I will just get a load of ingredients and keep making cake mix until the cakes are big enough to feed 20 people (+kids) each. Still not settled on final design, but thinking a field with sheep in for Evie - and some balloons tied to fences.... am wondering if I could get a fairy in there somewhere as well!