30 Day Shred

My friend from another life, Ashlee, has an amazing fitness blog (and, no, I do not believe that I have actually been reincarnated...I just know her from a place where I have previously lived). She gives awesome advice on how to lead a healthy lifestyle, like shop the perimeter of the grocery store because that is where the fresh, healthier food is located. One thing that she uses/used to workout is Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred workout DVD (pictured below).



Jillian is one of the trainers from The Biggest Loser, which I absolutely love. She is so tough and keeps me motivated, plus it's only a 20 min workout (and usually I hate video workouts and quit after about a minute). After warming up, the workout is broken into 3, six minute circuits. Each circuit contains 3 minutes of strength, 2 minutes of cardio, and 1 minute of abs.

Mr. Happily-ever-after made fun of me for doing girl push-ups and needing to take a break during 1. His exact words were, "Why do you need a break? You're doing the easy ones." So, I challenged him to 'Shred' with me one day. Jillian totally kicked his butt and then some. He was covered with sweat and complaining during the 1st 3 minutes of strength. He now admits that I'm not a total wuss, and is reluctant to participate...ha!

My goal is to make it through the entire video, which means working out for 30 days straight. This seems like an easy feat, although I have yet to make it out of the 1st level (there are 3 levels, 10 days in each). In fact, I have yet to do more than 3 consecutive days (I'm a slacker). But, I think that Shred and a C25K program (I'll talk about that in a later post) will be a great combination for getting back into shape.

There, my goal is on the internet now. It's official...kind of like putting something on facebook official.

What a Weekend!

Mr. Happily-ever-after's birthday was earlier in the month, so we celebrated with a party last night. We had our friends that live locally over, plus some friends from undergrad came. We had so much fun! It was great to have one last night to hang out with friends before they/we move. Here's a recap of the night:

We made 5 dozen cookies and some of these

(We also had chips, spinach dip, etc...so not healthy!)

And drank beer and this


These are the cups for a game we played (before we began playing)



And here's us playing the game (takes me back to undergrad, but oh so fun)


Great party, awful for the diet/workout plan. We'll get back on track after we recover and get the house cleaned, tomorrow.

I hope you had a great weekend, too!

Lets Go Pens!

Growing up in Pittsburgh brings a certain loyalty to all teams from the 'burgh. (I still LOVE the Pirates even though they are going for the record of most consecutive seasons below .500) Since it's technically Saturday and the 1st game of the Stanley Cup is tonight, I have to say - LETS GO PENS! It's time for revenge...call Arnold Slick from Turtle Creek (Crick, is the Pgh pronunciation), Lord Stanley is coming home (I hope).
On a more serious note, the Pens made a Katrina-like storm (the Carolina Hurricanes) look like a mere tropical depression. They've 'not seen nothing like the mighty 'guins.'...if you don't get that, read on, read on.

Wii Fit

I’ve been doing a Couch to 5K running program. Correction, I had been doing. You see, I did well, then came the holidays, then I became really sick this spring and am just now getting better. I began to run again, and my right hip is starting to bother me. I stretch after the warm up and after the cool down, but it’s still not doing well…even with new shoes, etc.
Anyways, I’ve been doing Wii Fit to help keep me active, while not doing anything too strenuous. It has helped with balance and overall to help take pressure off of my right side (ironically, Wii Fit said that I put more of my weight on my right side)…I’m still going to the park to walk at least every other day. Hopefully I will be able to run at least once this weekend and get back on track.
I also love using the balance board for Shaun White Snowboarding, Mr. Happilyeverafter is amazing at this, seriously, and Jillian Michaels Fitness Ultimatum 2009. I’m not totally convinced that the Wii Fit/balance board can replace an actual workout; it helps to keep me active. I’ve heard that the new Wii Active gives a better workout, does circuits, etc.; although, I have not tried it.

For further reading on the effectiveness of Wii Fit, read the following (these are not the most reliable sources of research, but what do you expect to find on the internet):
Fitness Magazine
Consumer Reports (old, but still somewhat useful)
Wired (for the gamer in you, don't be ashamed)
Wii Mommies (for all those parents. No, I do not fall into this demographic)

Organization

For those of you that don't know, I am quite possibly the most unorganized person on the entire planet (just ask my parents, husband, college roommates). I'm trying to turn a new leaf, especially before we move. This site give amazing tips for organizing your life. Also, I'm an Organizing Junkie gives great tips (including Menu Planning Monday, which I plan on participating in).
I've been cleaning out all of my old clothes...I still have some from high school! Do I really need them? No. So I've taken 3 trash bags full of clothes to the Goodwill. Our closet now fits both of our clothes, plus I have more space in my dresser (I was used to having 2 before we got married...it's amazing how much you realize you don't need when space is cut in 1/2). Now if only I could get Mr. Happily-ever-after to get rid of some of his old clothes (My personal favorite is a maroon t-shirt from undergrad that was mended, def. not by me, with pink thread - seriously, he has a TON, this one needs to be tossed, not worn).
I've also gone through all of our kitchen 'stuff.' I threw away anything that said "Made in China." Due to the threat of ingesting lead-based paint, no one needs that. Then I made a donation pile of drink ware we've collected (mostly wine glasses) and do not need any more. Other items around the house are either being donated or auctioned on ebay (like the NASCAR wheel for the Mr's XBox 360 that he just had to have, binders from my school days, and other misc. items from around the house). Luckily, my mom volunteers with Relay for Life and many things were given for their rummage sale (you know, those wedding gifts that are nice, but just not really your taste).
I seriously wish that I had pictures of how much we've gotten rid of in the past month or so....More organization updates to follow!

Jon and Kate Plus 8....a little late

Okay, let me start by saying that I am very opinionated when it comes to families...if you don't agree, that is fine with me...I'm not going to argue. This is how I feel.

So I watched Jon and Kate Plus 8 on Monday night. I honestly haven't kept up with it since they began making every episode into an advertisement for a product/toy/trip. I like seeing how they live and make it work - AT HOME. I don't care to watch 30 mins of tv, 20 of which are spent with product placement. I'll stick to commercials/the internet for that. But, with everything in the tabloids (including Kate's alleged infidelities, Jon's social activities, the money, the fights, etc) I had to watch.
It was sad to watch them not do interviews together. What struck me as even worse is (and this may be from the tabloids) that the paparazzi or "p-people" were at the birthday party. I remember watching an episode where they said that they would continue to do the show as long as it was 'normal.' My question is: at what point do you call it quits? Your marriage is falling apart (in front of a national audience), ugly rumors are being spread, you can't have a regular birthday party due to the paparazzi, and, from what friends have told me, only one parent (Jon) spends time with the kids on the show b/c the other (Kate) is frequently out of town...seriously?!?!
Now, I cannot say that I blame them. They were in a situation in which they needed money, and jumped at the chance to do the show. I would have done the same. However, the second my family started to fall apart is when I would call it quits. Hard times are part of every marriage, believe me, I know. During those times, it is best to take a 'timeout' to be together and regroup. Maybe that's what they need to do - step out of the spotlight and take a moment to breath. For the sake of their children.

I'm addicted...

...to America's Next Top Model, that is. They've had marathons of previous seasons on Oxygen all weekend. Mr. Happily-ever-after has to work this weekend, and I have totally indulged myself with watching the show. The photo shoots are amazing, even though I would never be able to pull that off. I give all of those girls soo much credit for putting themselves out there in front of so many people. But seriously, how much fun would it be to do some of those shoots? They would be 'fierce.' To have the opportunities to meet the designers and wear those clothes would be surreal. If only I were about 6 inches taller, sigh.