...so I was hoping to get out of GD before having to travel to Pittsfield, MA but no such luck. I was told today that I'm flying out Wednesday night for an emergency meeting on Thursday morning with one of our customers and then flying back Thursday night, ugh. This should be interesting, the GD facility is 1.5 hours from the closest airport, which means I get to make that journey by myself in a rental car. I sure hope I can get an afternoon flight out and not have to make the drive at night...I'm not thrilled about this but I don't really have a choice.
Joe was going to price out sump pumps today and we'll have his friend install it for us, hopefully on Wednesday. I have piles of laundry and it's driving me CRAZY not being able to wash them! We also have to contact the insurance company because it got into some of the carpet downstairs...I hope we can claim it and get brand new carpeting down there!
I finished week 5 on Sunday by running for 20 minutes straight and I did it without walking! There were times when it was tough but I just kept pushing through and it got a little easier after a while. I think I ran over 1.5 miles that day, which I didn't think I would ever be able to do again after hurting my feet. On to week 6 tomorrow, woo hoo!!!
We also talked to a realtor last week to determine what to do about my townhouse. My renter has indicated he'll be moving out sometime this fall, so we're exploring our options...not good news. We're not sure what to do, the market isn't looking good for townhomes or improving anytime soon. And I know I won't luck out twice with a good renter either.
Life seems to be so crazy right now...I feel so overwhelmed most days and I'm hoping it goes back to normal sometime soon. I finally hit my breaking point today at work, I'm talking with one of my program managers tomorrow morning and will hopefully get some of my workload taken off my plate...I hope it helps and I don't come home crying every night, which has unfortunately been a regular occurrence lately :( I know God never gives us more than we can handle but some days I wonder...
Monday, August 30, 2010
Saturday, August 28, 2010
just another day in paradise...
I want to go back to the days of renting...home ownership is SO overrated, especially when you're stuck with two mortgages you no longer want but can't do anything about them. I had such big plans of being productive and painting the window trims in our kitchen today...but as I stepped into the laundry room to get the supplies, my sock was drenched after one step. Awesome. What's even more awesome, Joe is up north visiting his Dad this weekend. Joe luckily has some old friends who work for their dad's excavating company and were able to come pump our septic tank this afternoon...unfortunately that won't solve the problem, our sump pump is completely shot. Double Awesome. They had to go empty their truck quick, so I don't even want to know what the sump pump damage is. And we can only use limited water until it's replaced, which will be this coming week sometime...this should be fun. Oh how I long for the days when you could call the landlord and they would have to worry about fixing and paying for the repairs...it was their problem, not yours. It seems like whenever we've recovered from the last disaster, another one pops up and pushes us even further back...do you ever get ahead or do you continue your whole life just recovering, only to fall right back down? So instead of painting, I'm sitting on the couch, sulking. I'm so over owning a home AND being a landlord AND being an adult.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
week 5...
Today begins week 5 in my c25k workout plan...it was a little tougher than last week, although the running minutes didn't change much from last week. It was 5run-3walk-5run-3walk-5run. I tracked my mileage on WalkJogRun (a fabulous website, BTW...I used it all the time when I was training for the Twin Cities 10 miler). I'm currently running about 13 minute miles, which means I ran about 1.2 miles today...not too shabby considering I couldn't even imagine running 1 mile four weeks ago! Thursday will be 8run-5walk-8run and Saturday is 20 minutes of all running, no walking...yikes!!!! My goal for the 5K would be to run around 12 minute miles...I should be able to get close to that, I think...I still have a little under a month before the run!
My feet are doing a lot better than previous weeks...my calves did tighten up more than usual today though...I'll have to make sure to stretch them a little longer next time.
Tomorrow is my last day of work for the week, yay!!! Joe has Thursday off, so we are heading the great MN get-together (aka MN State Fair)...so I'm looking forward to spending the day with my hubby and stuffing my face with all kinds of food on a stick! And it's supposed to be like 75...what more could I ask for?!?!? I'm taking Friday as a mental health day...I'm so miserable at work, I really hope something better comes along soon, not sure how much longer I can make it and stay a sane person. I plan to wash away my stress by shopping on Friday...the Gap is having their friends and family promotion this weekend and I need to work on my fall/winter wardrobe, so I'm excited :) I also never got the chance to use my groupon for the Gap last week...so it should be a good time...I haven't been shopping in SO long!!
My feet are doing a lot better than previous weeks...my calves did tighten up more than usual today though...I'll have to make sure to stretch them a little longer next time.
Tomorrow is my last day of work for the week, yay!!! Joe has Thursday off, so we are heading the great MN get-together (aka MN State Fair)...so I'm looking forward to spending the day with my hubby and stuffing my face with all kinds of food on a stick! And it's supposed to be like 75...what more could I ask for?!?!? I'm taking Friday as a mental health day...I'm so miserable at work, I really hope something better comes along soon, not sure how much longer I can make it and stay a sane person. I plan to wash away my stress by shopping on Friday...the Gap is having their friends and family promotion this weekend and I need to work on my fall/winter wardrobe, so I'm excited :) I also never got the chance to use my groupon for the Gap last week...so it should be a good time...I haven't been shopping in SO long!!
Saturday, August 21, 2010
running, recaps and such...
I've been slacking lately...it's been a little hectic, I will get better :)
This week is the 4th week in the c25k workout...and it just got a lot tougher! Last week, I was running intervals for a total of 9 minutes...this week went to 16! I know the jump has to be somewhere but when I did my first run outside on Tuesday after work, it was hard with the heat and wind that day. I thought I was going to die...yesterday was a lot better so that is good :) My right foot is starting to bother me though. I think I ran a little funny last week, the ball of my foot is sore. I stretch it really good and ice it after every run, which is helping...just hope it holds out another month for me!!
Last weekend, my email account got hacked, which was awesome...not sure how they did it but someone in Poland got in around 3:30am and started sending some link to all my email contacts, I apologize if you got one...gmail disabled my account around the J-K but everyone with a first name A-J got the email...seriously, why don't people have better things to do?? I don't think it's linked to facebook...I use different passwords for both, for that reason...but maybe it was still the culprit?? Who knows...as much as I love facebook, there are days I just want to delete it...with all these privacy issues they are having, makes me wonder if it's worth it anymore, what I did learn from the situation was that gmail is watching for suspicious activity, which was awesome to know they can shut it down if need be!
The job search is still on...I was not selected for an interview for the job I talked about last time...which was disappointing but the job itself was a strecth. I didn't have the experience they were looking for but thought I'd try anyways because you never know!
Joe finished up his 3 weeks of training in DT Minneapolis and starts as a personal banker on Monday. He's not too thrilled with the demotion (although WF doesn't see it as such) but it's at least a job and a steady paycheck. I'm not too thrilled that he'll be working Saturdays now...but such is life...I hope something better comes along for him too.
I found a new addiction...GROUPON. I've bought two groupons this week. I got a steal on a 16x20 canvas that I ordered with one of our wedding photos...later that day, I got an email from the company that the picture wasn't sized correctly for the 16x20 so they upgraded my order to 16x24 for free!! I can't wait for that to arrive. I also got the $50 gap one for $25...so excited to get a new pair of jeans today when we go shopping!! :)
Shiloh as been a PILL this week. We've been pretty busy this week after work. She is completely fine while were at work all day...but when we've left the house during the evenings, sometimes for only 10 minutes, she's been pulling things off the counter or out of the garbage and chewing them, ugh. Seriously dog, you are 3 years old in a few weeks and haven't done this since you were a puppy. And I really do NOT want to pull the kennel back out...it takes up so much space and is just an eye sore. However, we've been slacking on her walks/exercise this week too...which I think is the reason...she's bored and mad at us, not a good combo!!! Hopefully we get back into a routine next week and life will go back to normal.
This week is the 4th week in the c25k workout...and it just got a lot tougher! Last week, I was running intervals for a total of 9 minutes...this week went to 16! I know the jump has to be somewhere but when I did my first run outside on Tuesday after work, it was hard with the heat and wind that day. I thought I was going to die...yesterday was a lot better so that is good :) My right foot is starting to bother me though. I think I ran a little funny last week, the ball of my foot is sore. I stretch it really good and ice it after every run, which is helping...just hope it holds out another month for me!!
Last weekend, my email account got hacked, which was awesome...not sure how they did it but someone in Poland got in around 3:30am and started sending some link to all my email contacts, I apologize if you got one...gmail disabled my account around the J-K but everyone with a first name A-J got the email...seriously, why don't people have better things to do?? I don't think it's linked to facebook...I use different passwords for both, for that reason...but maybe it was still the culprit?? Who knows...as much as I love facebook, there are days I just want to delete it...with all these privacy issues they are having, makes me wonder if it's worth it anymore, what I did learn from the situation was that gmail is watching for suspicious activity, which was awesome to know they can shut it down if need be!
The job search is still on...I was not selected for an interview for the job I talked about last time...which was disappointing but the job itself was a strecth. I didn't have the experience they were looking for but thought I'd try anyways because you never know!
Joe finished up his 3 weeks of training in DT Minneapolis and starts as a personal banker on Monday. He's not too thrilled with the demotion (although WF doesn't see it as such) but it's at least a job and a steady paycheck. I'm not too thrilled that he'll be working Saturdays now...but such is life...I hope something better comes along for him too.
I found a new addiction...GROUPON. I've bought two groupons this week. I got a steal on a 16x20 canvas that I ordered with one of our wedding photos...later that day, I got an email from the company that the picture wasn't sized correctly for the 16x20 so they upgraded my order to 16x24 for free!! I can't wait for that to arrive. I also got the $50 gap one for $25...so excited to get a new pair of jeans today when we go shopping!! :)
Shiloh as been a PILL this week. We've been pretty busy this week after work. She is completely fine while were at work all day...but when we've left the house during the evenings, sometimes for only 10 minutes, she's been pulling things off the counter or out of the garbage and chewing them, ugh. Seriously dog, you are 3 years old in a few weeks and haven't done this since you were a puppy. And I really do NOT want to pull the kennel back out...it takes up so much space and is just an eye sore. However, we've been slacking on her walks/exercise this week too...which I think is the reason...she's bored and mad at us, not a good combo!!! Hopefully we get back into a routine next week and life will go back to normal.
Monday, August 9, 2010
weekends go too fast...
I had a fabulous weekend, I'm so sad it's Monday already! On Saturday, I headed to Stillwater to go on a boat cruise with AJ and Kristin to celebrate Kristin’s 30th birthday this past week! It was a lot of fun, it started out kind of chilly (was even regretting not grabbing my hoodie if you can believe that!) but the sun came out not long after we left the dock and it was hot again! We had a great lunch and chatted, then headed to the shops in Stillwater afterwords. We then spent the night at AJ’s house and grilled out dinner and went to the park with AJ’s little one, Colin, who is getting so big and cuter every time I see him.
We also are trying a new meal planning program through e-mealz.com. AJ recommended the site to us and we are giving it a whirl. It is fabulous so far...for $1.25/week, you can go to your account each week and they post a plan for 5 meals, along with a grocery list. We are doing the “Low-Fat for Two” plan...they have 20-some options to choose from, for both couples and families. We went yesterday and spent $75 on groceries...$50 of that were for the planned meals and it included meats like chicken breasts, pork chops and ground turkey. And most of the ingredients that we bought were common staples we didn’t have or were out of (think bbq sauce, salad dressing, etc), which will be used on future meals too...so it’s not even $50 when you think of that in those terms. And it was easy to make and super yummy! I’m actually looking forward to cooking now...I don’t have to figure out what to make every night because we already have it! It also will eliminate Joe and I not knowing what were hungry for, which usually results in Joe picking up dinner on his way home…not cost effective at all! We also had leftovers, which I brought for lunch today...we'll see savings with that since we'll be buying less lunch stuff (we bring our own lunches most days). Since I’m a super nerdy number cruncher and track our expenses, I’ll let you know what our monthly savings is after August. I know we’re going to see a huge difference!!
I also completed week 2 of my couch to 5K program on Saturday, so far so good! I’ve been able to run outside on a few of the days, which is good because it’s quite different running on a treadmill and on the road! AJ is training with me, so we’ll be able to motivate each other and keep each other going when the big day arrives! Maybe we'll even make it tradition to run 5Ks throughout the year?!?!
Hope you all have a great week!
We also are trying a new meal planning program through e-mealz.com. AJ recommended the site to us and we are giving it a whirl. It is fabulous so far...for $1.25/week, you can go to your account each week and they post a plan for 5 meals, along with a grocery list. We are doing the “Low-Fat for Two” plan...they have 20-some options to choose from, for both couples and families. We went yesterday and spent $75 on groceries...$50 of that were for the planned meals and it included meats like chicken breasts, pork chops and ground turkey. And most of the ingredients that we bought were common staples we didn’t have or were out of (think bbq sauce, salad dressing, etc), which will be used on future meals too...so it’s not even $50 when you think of that in those terms. And it was easy to make and super yummy! I’m actually looking forward to cooking now...I don’t have to figure out what to make every night because we already have it! It also will eliminate Joe and I not knowing what were hungry for, which usually results in Joe picking up dinner on his way home…not cost effective at all! We also had leftovers, which I brought for lunch today...we'll see savings with that since we'll be buying less lunch stuff (we bring our own lunches most days). Since I’m a super nerdy number cruncher and track our expenses, I’ll let you know what our monthly savings is after August. I know we’re going to see a huge difference!!
I also completed week 2 of my couch to 5K program on Saturday, so far so good! I’ve been able to run outside on a few of the days, which is good because it’s quite different running on a treadmill and on the road! AJ is training with me, so we’ll be able to motivate each other and keep each other going when the big day arrives! Maybe we'll even make it tradition to run 5Ks throughout the year?!?!
Hope you all have a great week!
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
job updates...
We found out on Friday that Joe will be transferred to the bank in Coon Rapids, it's actually right across the street from his old office in CR before he had transferred to Maplewood in June. I'm looking forward his 10 minute drive to work with his gas guzzler of a truck and our gas expenses going back to normal again! He does have 3 weeks of training in DT Minneapolis so that means we are both out the door before 6:30am now. I've actually been leaving by 5:45am this week so I can get home by 4 for Shiloh...she's good at holding it but I don't think my girl could go much longer than she has been this week!
The weekend was fun but went by way too fast, like they always do. I headed to Rochester for a Norwex party on Saturday and Joe went golfing while I was gone. He got an albatross, which means he was -3 on a par 5 hole...for non-golfers, an albatross is EXTREMELY rare and really just pure luck. He was pretty excited about it! He also got up at 5:30am on Sunday to golf with one of his co-workers for a breakfast & golf thing at Majestic.
I had a phone interview today, I think it went well...they just started, I was the first person they had talked to in the screening process, so I won't know until the end of next week if they want me to come in for a on-site interview...I'm hoping this one works out, it would be SO much closer to home...and it's an awesome company to work for....keep your fingers crossed for me :)
The weekend was fun but went by way too fast, like they always do. I headed to Rochester for a Norwex party on Saturday and Joe went golfing while I was gone. He got an albatross, which means he was -3 on a par 5 hole...for non-golfers, an albatross is EXTREMELY rare and really just pure luck. He was pretty excited about it! He also got up at 5:30am on Sunday to golf with one of his co-workers for a breakfast & golf thing at Majestic.
I had a phone interview today, I think it went well...they just started, I was the first person they had talked to in the screening process, so I won't know until the end of next week if they want me to come in for a on-site interview...I'm hoping this one works out, it would be SO much closer to home...and it's an awesome company to work for....keep your fingers crossed for me :)
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