Friday Confessions & A Recap of My Week

It’s been another one of those weeks and I haven’t had much time to make any fabulous finds. So instead, I decided to follow up my Friday Confessions with a little recap of my week as it’s been a somewhat unusual one. Without further ado, here are my confessions...

• I was proud of myself for only eating four of the delicious chocolate chip cookies my boss brought in on Tuesday. {In my defense, they were fairly small.} If I keep this up, I will never get Daisy de la Hoya’s body!
• I am horrible when it comes to getting my hair cut. I routinely go six months between trims. {I can get away with this somewhat because I have long hair that’s pretty healthy.} I just hate going to the salon! I’ve had too many bad haircuts. The last time I got my hair cut, the “senior master designer” at Regis who cut it completely butchered it {i.e., did her own thing rather than doing what I asked for} so obviously I’m scared to go back there. But as my last cut was in October, it’s time to do something. I finally broke down and scheduled an appointment at Gene Juarez on Monday. Fingers crossed that this cut will be better than my last chop job!
• I have the worst short~term memory on the planet. It is not uncommon for me to ask Nate 2 or 3 times within several minutes if he slept good, how his day was, or if he had a good workout. Not only do I forget that I already asked him the question, but I also FORGET HIS ANSWER! At first, this really irritated him, but now we both just think it’s really funny. Well, I think it’s really funny. He may just tolerate it silently…

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I reopened my garter shop last Friday. I still don’t quite have my inventory as well stocked as I’d hoped, but I’m working on garters every spare minute I have. My goal is to have at least three of every garter I make in stock at all times so I can get orders out more quickly. {By this I mean just the garter body without the embellishments ~ I can store them easier without embellishments and adding the embellishments is by far the quickest step of the garter~making process, so it’s really easy to slap them on when I get an order and get the garter{s} out in the mail.} I’m so glad to have my shop back open, even though my sewing room is still a work in progress because I’ve received multiple orders in the past week including SIX requests for custom garters!

In other wedding industry news, Nate and I made the decision this week to start a small wedding decoration rental business. {This ties right in with our future plans of having our own wedding venue.} We’ve started searching on Craigslist for gently used decorations, and made a trip down to our local IKEA on Wednesday to pick up some candle holders and vases. We’re so fortunate to be so close to this amazing store ~ we’re only about forty~five minutes away. As always, our trip there was enjoyable, until SOMEONE STOLE OUR CART!!! We had about fifteen items in our cart, included the reusable shopping bag we bought on our last visit. We were looking at pillows and had wandered away from our cart momentarily ~ when we went back to get it, it was gone! Fifteen minutes later {after we’d gone back through the store and re~gathered everything}, the cart was returned ~ some batty woman had wandered off with it thinking it was hers. The trip was mostly a success ~ Nate found some curtains for his photography studio and we got a few odds and ends for the house, but we were a bit bummed when the duvet cover we fell in love with was not in stock in the size we needed. No matter ~ it should be in in 7~10 days, giving us an excuse to go back!

On the way home from IKEA, we stopped by the hospital to visit Nate’s dad, Doug, who had been admitted for surgery following a discovery during a routine colonoscopy that day. His surgery {which was yesterday} went fairly well ~ from what the surgeons saw, the mass was caused by diverticulitis and while they won’t know for sure until all the pathology comes back, they’re 90% sure that it is not cancer. Great news. But the surgery was more involved than anticipated, and Doug has a seven to ten day hospital stay and a six week recovery ahead of him.

That’s it for my week {so far}. We’re hoping to have a somewhat relaxing weekend that I’m sure will include several trips to the hospital. I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend and a wonderful Mother's Day!

~Heather

Extreme Makeover: Me Edition ~ One Thing I Love About Myself

I met Amber of {aefilkins} on Monday through Kasey’s Friend Makin’ Mondays. She. Is. Awesome. And she hosts Extreme Makeover: Me Edition every week, which I am very excited to join in on today. Here is a quick overview, but to learn more, visit Amber’s blog. Each week, participants update each other on their progress and share any tips they’ve discovered, and answer the weekly question that Amber has posed.

My week health~ and body~wise has been so~so. On Friday, I decided to start a 30 day Pilates challenge {which I didn’t actually start until Saturday ~ always the procrastinator!}. I did pretty well the first few days ~ I completed three of my 30 sessions Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, and then I took Tuesday off to let my muscles recover. My plan was to do my fourth session last night after our shopping trip to IKEA, but we ended up visiting my almost~father~in~law in the hospital instead. {To read more about him and why he’s in the hospital, click here.} I’m hoping to get my fourth session in tonight, but that will all depend on how his surgery today goes and whether or not we spend the evening with him and the rest of the family at the hospital.

My eating has been so~so as well. I really struggle with snacking, and have a particularly rough time avoiding the snacks that always seem to be available in my department at work. This week has been no exception, especially with the temptation of delicious Cinco de Mayo treats. And having pizza for dinner one night and pasta for the following three nights probably wasn’t the best move either… But I did stick with my plan of eating a salad at least once a day every day, and have had one every day since last Friday. My big thing is to keep reminding myself that this is a journey and if I stumble one day, I can pick myself up the next.

This week, Amber has asked us to share one thing that we absolutely love about ourselves. Because I've been so down on myself lately about my body, I decided to share one thing I love about it, which was actually pretty easy ~ my back is {and always has been} my favorite body part. I still have my ballerina back and shoulders, and love to show them off in halter tops and backless dresses anytime I can.

I look forward to offering support to and being supported by each of the other participants of Extreme Makeover: Me Edition!

~Heather

Favorite Thing of the Week ~ My Pup, Daisy {And a Request for Puppy Advice}

My favorite thing of the week is Daisy {who, by the way, is not named after Daisy de la Hoya; as much as I love her body, I would never name a puppy after her!}. The breeder sent me a few new pictures last night, and I am so excited to share them. I love that she’s finally starting to look like a puppy, not a guinea pig! Six weeks, two days, and counting before she comes home!

After posting Daisy’s first pictures last week, I received several comments asking what kind of dog she is. She is a Papillon ~ you can read more about the breed, my decision to get one, and my search for a breeder here. Here is a picture of what she’ll look like when she comes home.

And what she’ll look like full grown...


Daisy will be my first dog and I’m starting to get a little nervous. My concern is that I will baby her too much and not focus enough on disciplining and training her. Obviously I want her to be a well~behaved and happy dog, but I’m fearful that if I treat her the way my gut instincts tell me to treat an adorable little puppy, she will end up being a spoiled brat. I have done lots of reading and watched many episodes of “The Dog Whisperer,” but would love any advice any bloggy friends have on bringing puppies into the home and turning them into wonderful dogs.

Thank you!

~Heather

Prayer Request for My Almost~Father~in~Law

Please say a prayer for Nate’s dad, Doug today. He went in for a colonoscopy yesterday, and they found a large mass in his colon. They are doing surgery today to remove the mass and his left colon, and there is some concern that it may be colon cancer. They did a CAT scan last night which showed that his liver is clear of any masses, which is good news, so we are hopeful that whatever this is, it is confined to the colon. Please pray that the surgery goes well and that his recovery is smooth.

{I do want to offer a little explanation as to why I refer to Doug as my almost~father~in~law. Even though Nate and I are not married {yet}, I consider both of his parents to be my family. “My boyfriend’s dad” and “my boyfriend’s mom” just aren’t sufficient terms for me ~ they are both so much more to me than that.}

I Want Daisy de la Hoya’s Body!

Because we are all friends and I feel I can trust you, I’m going to make a confession ~ I watch trashy reality dating shows on VH1. I haven’t watched them all, but once I get sucked into a season, I watch ‘til it’s over. I’ve watched multiple seasons of Flavor of Love, I Love New York, and Rock of Love, so naturally it follows that I have started to watch Daisy of Love. While Daisy is a bit of a dummy, has too much collagen in her lips, and wears more makeup than she should (she looks far prettier with less on), there is something adorably endearing about her. I really want her to find love this time around! Plus she’s got a rockin’ body. And I want it. I love that she’s a little curvy, not skin and bones, and that she’s a shorty too. (She’s 5’2 compared to my 5’ ½”.) She has toned arms, defined abs, and gorgeous legs. I know it’s probably really silly to base weight loss goals on a reality star’s body, but my new goal is to get her body (minus the silicone breasts). I’m hoping that watching her every week will help keep me motivated to stick with my new healthy living plan.

What do you think? Have you ever set weight loss goals based on a celebrity’s body? Or copied a celebrity’s hairstyle or style of dress?

Friend Makin' Mondays ~ Favorite Toys

Today for Friend Makin’ Mondays (which is being hosted by Amber at {aefilkins} for Kasey), we are sharing five toys that remind us of our childhood. It was so much fun to go back and think about which toys I loved to play with as a child. What a great way to start the week!

1. Cabbage Patch Kids ~ I loved Cabbage Patch Kids. My first one was a girl with long red hair that came in braids.

2. Care Bears ~ Care Bears were another big favorite. If I remember correctly, the Care Bear and Cabbage Patch Kid crazes coincided one Christmas. Many family members were searching for both for me, and several rainchecks came in right before Christmas. I really raked it in that year with two Cabbage Patch Kids and three Care Bears.

3. Barbie ~ Like many other little girls, I was a huge Barbie fan. I actually sold my Care Bear tricycle to the neighbor when I was four or five and used the money to buy my first Barbie, Peaches n Cream Barbie. I do remember being quite frustrated that her clothes were hard to get on and that her shoes never seemed to stay on her feet…


4. Legos ~ I spent many hours playing with Legos. I liked both the Duplo Legos (I think because I could make bigger creations with them) and the regular~sized Legos.


5. Little People ~ I L~O~V~E~D Little People. They weren’t nearly as cute then as they are now, but they were still a ton of fun to play with. I can’t wait until I have children of my own to buy these adorable little toys for.
Join in the fun by visiting Amber's blog!

Have a fabulous day!

~Heather

The 30 Session Pilates Challenge

I woke up this morning in a fabulous mood. The sun was shining, the birds were singing… (Well, I’m assuming they were. I couldn’t actually hear any birds singing because all our windows were closed, but you catch my drift… It’s a beautiful day!) And it’s the first day of May, my favorite month of the year! I love May so much, not because it’s my birthday month, but because it’s the month that spring REALLY arrives here in Washington. I love spring ~ all the flowers are in bloom, summer seems just around the corner, and we Washingtonians start wearing shorts and tank tops far earlier than we should simply because we equate sun with warmth. (Never mind that the forecast is for highs in the low 60’s ~ it’s sunny! Bring out the summer clothes!)

My good mood increased when I got on the scale and saw that I’d lost another half pound, bringing my loss since Monday to one pound. As part of revisiting my New Year’s resolutions, I’ve been writing down everything I’ve eaten this week, as well as all the physical activity I’ve done. A quick look back at my log showed that I’d lost my two half pounds on the days after I’d done Pilates. Hmmm, I began to wonder if there was something to that…

I started doing Pilates about eight years ago in college. I got this amazing video (on VHS, although now of course is it available on DVD) and was soon hooked. I especially liked what the instructor said ~ “Remember what Joseph Pilates said. You will feel better in 10 sessions, look better in 20 sessions, and have a completely new body in 30 sessions.” I did notice changes in my body at the time, but was never overly consistent about my Pilates sessions to achieve the “new body” Joseph Pilates promised I could have. I did continue with sessions two or three times a week, and was fairly pleased with the results.


The frequency of my sessions decreased when I moved last winter. My favorite place to do Pilates is in the living room in front of the TV (I no longer use videos but like to watch TV from my mat to keep my brain occupied), and this isn’t always easy when you share a living room with three other people. (Turns out that no one likes legs flying in front of the TV set while trying to watch their favorite show.) Now that we’re on our own, I’m trying to get back into my old Pilates routine, and have decided to try a 30 session Pilates challenge. My goal is to get in 5 or 6 sessions a week, so by mid~June, I should have completed my 30 sessions. I am hopeful that I will see real results from this ~ after 18 years of ballet, my body seems to respond well to Pilates as much of its stretching movements are similar to those done in ballet. I’m going to take my starting measurements tonight and Dear Boyfriend has offered to take a “before” picture for me that may or may not be posted at the end of my little challenge. We'll have to wait and see if the end results will make up for the embarrassing "before" shot...

Excited about the promise of a "completely new body" and anxious to share my results,
Heather