Our Monday

Here is the story about Garth who woke up, went to work, and started to notice his jaw getting swollen and numb. Clearly, this is not normal so I took him to a walk-in clinic in the area. We waited about forty minutes and filled out mountains of paperwork only to see the doctor for LITERALLY five minutes.

This particular doctor was crazy. He didn't look inside Garth's mouth or behind his ears where he was swollen. Nope. He looked at his cheeks and declared that he wasn't sure, but this was probably just a follicle infection and prescribed the strongest medication he could. This doctor could not tell us why he had this condition either. He said, and I quote, "It's like when the girl gets a zit on her forehead the day of prom. Who knows why these things happen. They just do."

WHAT?! You don't know why he has this. You aren't even sure he has this condition. You only looked at Garth's face for a mere five minutes and you want to give him the strongest medication possible to see if it helps.

I don't think so. We left there angry and frustrated. I called our family doctor and made an appointment later that afternoon. On the drive over I needed a bit of a pick-me-up:

We did more waiting at our family doctor. We knew it was probably nothing. WebMD said it would be a tick or spider bite, allergic reaction or tumor. Of course I went to the worst case scenario. Our family doctor thought the walk-inc clinic doctor was hilarious! After much poking, prodding and testing it was determined Garth just had an allergic reaction that turned into an infection. He was advised to take an ibprofen to reduce the swelling.

Quite the opposite diagnosis! It is alarming how off the walk-in doctor was and how quick he was to offer a prescription. I actually heard from co-workers that this walk-in clinic doctor is notorious for just giving out medication for things as simple as a cold. That is crazy!

So that was our Monday. Kinda crazy, turned hilarious. We washed our sheets, pillows and duvet cover when we got home to just make sure Garth didn't have another allergic reaction. I usually put the duvet cover back on, but I caught Garth trying to do it and I had to take photos because it is so funny.

He started out okay...

But then it started going downhill fast...

Faster...

But he did it!

I'm hoping your Monday was less eventful! And I'm thankful it was just an allergic reaction and not something more serious.

Life Update

Garth and I tried this new restaurant Friday night and it was such a fun experience. The food was incredible, the service was good, the atmosphere was fun and they had beer and wine flights. Garth had the wheat flight and I tried the ale flight. Another cool part of the experience was the beers were all Michigan made... and delicious!

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We turned on the air conditioner for the first time on Sunday. Summer is here!!

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Today is my brother and SIL's three year anniversary. Time flies. Happy anniversary Eric and Jess!!

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I made a pasta salad this weekend for the cookout we had with my family and it is dangerous. It is too good. I have to really watch my portions and I may need to not be allowed to make this again. It is just too good. It's a recipe of a friend that I copied - whole wheat pasta, a bottle of Italian dressing, black olives, chick peas, and cheddar cheese.

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Garth and I dog sat this little guard dog this weekend.

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My parents just got back from an Alaskan cruise and we looked at their photos Sunday. I could not get over how beautiful the scenery was or how incredible glaciers are. And the whales. Moose. Grizzly  bears. Oh my! So. Cool. I wanna go now!

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I did a little craft last week that was super easy and cheap. My favorite kind of craft. I found this "How to order beer around the world" card at World Market for $3 and knew it would be fun to have this in Garth's man cave. I put it into a frame I already had at home and hung it up on the wall. Perfect!

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Menu Monday

Happy Monday! It was such a fun weekend of working around the house, going out to dinner to celebrate my three year anniversary at work, and hosting my family for Father's Day. Here is what we have on the menu for the week:

Monday - Leftover brats from yesterday's cookout 

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Tuesday - Rachel's Skinny Crock Pot Thai Peanut Chicken. This looks so good and is there anything better than a healthy crock pot meal? Bonus is it seems like take out!

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Wednesday - Falafel Burgers with Feta. I think I am most excited for this recipe this week. I hope they are yummy!

Thursday - Leftovers.

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Friday - Basil, Tomato, and Garlic Pasta. Pasta night is back and it is always a favorite in our house. The only change is I will use whole wheat pasta.

I have found doing a day or two of leftovers is less overwhelming for me and I tend to stick to the meal plan a lot better. Also, I found the weekends are too unpredictable to meal plan so we just go with the flow. I like being flexible and being able to meet friends for dinner at a moment's notice or just make something from the freezer. We always have Lean Cuisines  and Trader Joe apps in there for those times we don't know what to eat.

What is on your menu this week?

Fit Friday!

This week has been a long one, is it just me? But it's Friday! YAYAYAYA. And I lost another two pounds. WOOHOO!

Here are the stats this week:

Pounds Lost: 2
Pounds to go: 16

Here is my work outs for the week:

Sunday - Ripped in 30 Level 4
Monday - Ripped in 30 Level 1 and walk 3.5 miles
Tuesday - Ripped in 30 Level 1 and walk 3.5 miles
Wednesday - Ripped in 30 Level 1 and walk 3.5 miles
Thursday - Ripped in 30 Level 1 and walk 3.5 miles
Friday - Ripped in 30 Level 1 and walk 3.5 miles
Saturday - Rest

I am really loving Ripped in 30. I just feel amazing after a workout, dripping in sweat and sore. I notice muscle definition as well. As much as I want to fit into some of my pants after 4 pounds lost, I am just not there yet. But. But! I have noticed my new skirt is so loose on my now! It really is the small victories. 

A tip a friend told me that I'm really loving is to keep attainable goals. Losing 20 or 30 pounds is a long term goal and can leave me feeling like a failure since it takes months to attain. She suggested a goal like going to bed each night content with my food choices. That is a goal I can make and attain each and every day. It has actually been helpful to measure my choices in this way. As for hour by hour, day by day temptations that pop up I like a tip I heard on Drop 5 Pounds with Good Housekeeping. The host suggested asking yourself, is this goal going to bring me closer to my goal or further away? I like that and I find myself asking that question when I'm tempted to eat the donut at work. Or not wake up and work out. 

What are you tips? Tricks to keeping you motivated?

Pinterest Love

Here is what I'm loving on Pinterest right now:

THIS farmhouse table DIY project. I want to make this for our dining room, like, yesterday:

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A $10 / 30 minute wreath craft? Heck yes!

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I'm all about this! Especially after touring a home for sale at the garage sales that was done up to the nines in Pinterest style ideas. I'm motivated again for some projects like this:

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Can you tell I have kitchen remodels on the brain yet? I think this is a good way to start!

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I love these maxi dress ideas since I'm obsessed with wearing them all summer:

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This looks delicious and it looks easy to make. I'm sold!

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This is just crazy cool and creative:

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Breathtaking!!

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I want this frame in my house:

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Don't forget to follow me!

Life Lately

Work has been so busy. I like being busy though. Also, listening to the Hanson station on Pandora helps!

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Check. It. Out. Our garden is growing! I see a little hole from a rabbit already digging our carrots, argh! But our onions are growing so fast. LOVE. I just cannot wait to eat what we are growing.

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I had my first bowl of Michigan cherries this week. There is just nothing better! It truly is the taste of summertime. In a bowl. YUM!

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I am currently obsessed with HGTV Magazine. I don't know why I ever thought I wouldn't be. I mean I love the channel.  Thanks to the magazine I now am wanting to paint our kitchen cabinets turquoise. Is that crazy?

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Monday night it was pouring rain so Garth and I sat under the awning reading and listening to the rain. So relaxing! Until we came inside and I had about 20 mosquito bites on my legs. It stopped raining so we decided to go for a walk. We were at the furthest point from our house (of course!) when it started to down pour again. Our walk turned into quite the sprint back home, but it was definitely a funny memory.

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I was drinking a glass of wine Sunday and realized I now put ice in my Sauvignon Blanc now. I am my mother's child.

Garage Sale Shopping 101

Garth and I love Salvation Army and sometimes we strike out and sometimes we find everything we are looking for. The same is true for garage sales. I don't scout out or drop everything from garage sales, but I do like to browse our sub and the sub down the street. Sometimes I strike out. Actually, MOST of the time I strike out. 

But this year? I made out like a bandit! As did Garth. Speaking of Garth, he wanted a fridge for the basement forever. A beer fridge to be exact. I found one last year for $25, but he didn't answer my text so I didn't get it. Well, good thing I didn't because Garth came with me this year and scored this bad boy for $5!

It is now the beer fridge:

With a side of fruit snacks. :) As a germophobe I know some people may be grossed out by buying other people's stuff. But I don't have an issue with buying things I can wash. Garth took about twenty Lysol sanitizer wipes to this fridge and I throw everything in the washer as soon as we get home.

Another reason I'm so glad Garth was there was because I went straight to a clothes rack and totally missed the hammock on the ground. Garth noticed it and asked the owner how much he wanted. He was asking $25, which is a steal because we looked at Target and World Market and they were over $100. Garth asked if he would do $20 and he accepted. It looks perfect and it is sooooo comfortable!

Garth got two of the three things on his list, no bad! We are still looking for lounge chairs, but he was pretty happy with his buys. And me? Well, I pretty much bought a new wardrobe! Here are my finds:

This cute tank top was $1. How could I say no?

Work out pants that are ultra comfortable and make me look ten pounds thinner? Best investment ever. Oh and only $2.50 each.

Maxi dress. You can never have too many of these. They are super comfy and flattering and this was $2.

I'm a sucker for anything that says "Peace" so of course I had to have this. And it was $1. You just can't beat it.

My first pair of UGGs. Not knock-offs, but the real deal! I think this is the purchase I'm most excited about. I am sure I will wear them everyday next winter. Oh, and they were the most expensive thing I bought at $10.

I love this lightweight sweater that will be perfect for cool summer nights and make me look super tan. This shirt was $2.

Since I look tan in white I also couldn't resist this tank top for 50 cents.

I bought this dress for $5 and it is super cute with black leggings , cardigan and flip flops. My fave summer attire! And great for work too. Bonus!

I love this sweater/cardigan for next winter for $2.

Speaking of winter, I couldn't resist this fluffy, puffy, furry vest for $2.50. And that's my success story of garage sale shopping. It was a good day!

It was a good thing we went with experienced garage salers (here I go making up words again) because I don't want to rip people off and I don't want to get ripped off. So having my friend Jess guide me and tell me what to offer was soooo helpful! Though most everything was reasonably priced. Sometimes if I didn't say anything at all the seller would lower the price right then and there. Score!

Here are a few more helpful tips my friend, Jess, suggests (my comments are italicized):

* Bring more money than you plan to spend just in case because you never know what you may find. This is good advice, but a little dangerous. You really have to have discernment when garage sale shopping. We almost bought an elliptical, but I didn't have enough cash or my check book. But as I really processed it I realized I didn't need it. I have a perfectly good one I don't even use that often. Sometimes it's easy to get caught up in a good deal and forget to think through if you really want/need this item.
* If you see something you like, grab it and walk around with it while shopping. Even if you decide not to buy it, it is better to hang on to it in case you decide to purchase. This is a good one because we almost lost the hammock this way! Someone else was interested, but luckily Garth was already talking to the seller and snatched it up before the other lady could come over. I was so afraid of a bidding war.
* If you aren't happy with the price they are offering, it's okay to walk away. Even come back later. Jess' husband, Chris, wanted the Big Green Egg which retails for about $400, but the seller wouldn't go lower than $200. Chris didn't want to spend more than $100. Chris said he would come back later to see if it was still there. We finished walking around the subdivision and went back to that house and the seller accepted $100! Jess and I went back to a house we had purchased clothes from and the seller did 50% all clothes so we ended up buying up the rest of her clothes. Ha!

What are your tips?