Have any other pinners notice this? It seems that in the Pinterest world, if you simply put something in a mason jar it automatically becomes a GREAT gift.
“GREAT GIFT IDEA! – make, put in mason jar, tie with bow, add a tag!” – Actual text attached to a pin.
That made me giggle and led me to make this beautiful picture.
GREAT GIFT IDEA! – catch, put in mason jar, tie with bow, add a tag!
I promise normal posting will resume after our wedding/honeymoon. Most likely a picture-heavy post!
Well, it’s been almost a month since my last post. As you can imagine, things have been getting pretty busy with the upcoming wedding. Our invitations officially went out on Monday. This past Saturday my friend Madison came over to help me craft the table numbers. I should probably finish that…
With now less than 2 months left, my posts are sure to continue being far and few between. Hopefully I’ll be back up and writing more often after the wedding. So hey, why not SUBSCRIBE so you know when there’s an update?
Anyway, I’ve read quite a few books since my last post. Rather than write about all of them I am just going to simply list them and recommend ALL of them because they are all good:
She Can Run by Melinda Leigh (Really loved this one!)
Every Secret Thing by Laura Lippman
Cracked up to Be by Courtney Summers (Also great!)
The Girl in the Woods by David Jack Bell
Now I’m going to scan the online selection from the library to find some ebooks to borrow.
More coming soon, I promsie.
I haven’t watched American Idol in years. With the change of judges and format, I thought I’d give it another shot this season. My mom has watched it pretty much every season since it started. I was fairly convinced they found the best singer in America in season one. I’m still convinced of this – come on, Kelly Clarkson’s vocal range is ridiculously amazing… but it doesn’t mean there’s not other talented vocalist/performers out there.
Anyhoo as I said I decided to give it a go this season. If you watched tonight, you know the sad outcome of America’s poor judgement… Colton Dixon was sent home. He was my absolute favorite. I love his personality, his voice is awesome, and he has great stage presence. I would buy his albums, go to his concerts… if I was a tween I’d probably hang pictures of him from Teen Beat on my wall. There is just something about him that I think is awesome. But it’s ok that he got sent home, because Colton Dixon is the next Chris Daughtry.
A few seasons ago a crowd favorite, Chris Daughtry, was stuck with fourth place. So disappointing. That actually may have been the last time I watched Idol. Taylor Hicks went on to win it… and then he faded into the background. Meanwhile, Daughtry has had continued music success. As we learned tonight, Hicks will be playing in Vegas this summer – I’ll let you determine if that’s “success” because I think it’s pretty clear what my opinion is on that.
So fret not, Colton Dixon fans, in my completely non-authoritative opinion, we will see much much more of him. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had a record deal by the end of next week, especially if Ellen has anything to do with it!
It’s been almost 3 weeks since I’ve “blogged.” I’ve read three books since then and have been up to a lot. Where to start?
My friend Madison and I at my bridal shower.
Bridal Shower – My bridal shower was back in March. It was a bridal tea and everyone wore big hats! Kevin and I got a ton of stuff that we still haven’t finished putting away and a bunch of gift cards that we still haven’t spent. It was so nice to see everyone. Afterward, I went out to dinner with my bridesmaids and we had some drinks and played some games.
Work – Work is work, but after being at work all day I rarely feel like sitting on the computer at home writing my blog entries. Especially with the gorgeous post-winter weather we’ve been having.
Running – I’ve been running. A lot. My gym membership has been heavily neglected and I really need to get my butt back in there to do some weights once or twice a week. I just can’t deny this beautiful weather before it starts either raining all the time or it gets too hot to enjoy my outdoor runs.
Easter – My parents came to Ohio for Easter. Piled into the car with their silly dog Lucy and made the 6 hour drive out to our place to spend Easter weekend with us. It was fun! We went out to “Easter Dinner” on Saturday night and they left shortly after church on Sunday morning. Lucy spent the entire weekend chewing on her new bone I got her and getting a lot of play time and attention from Kevin and me.
Lacrosse – Two games so far this season. Being a post-collegiate league, most of our players are high school and middle school coaches, so the spring season is actually a slower season for us. We’re off to Cincinnati on Sunday to play two games. It should be pretty awesome because, well, lacrosse is pretty awesome.
"Rag" blanket I made Christina for her baby!
Baby Shower – My first & fantastic Ohio friend, Christina, has a bun in the over… eer, or however you’d like to put it. Her baby shower was this past Saturday. Pretty much the norm: belly-string game, question/answer games, gifts, cake. I made her a blanket for the little one and gave her some clothes.
I guess that about sums it up. No exciting adventures lately, just the same old stuff! Counting down the days until our wedding (95!) and trying to get things ready for it. It just feels like every weekend is booked with other stuff. My real countdown is until our honeymoon – I’m ready for a vacation!
Spring has sprung! I feel like I’m repeating myself.
Due to the longer days and bout of warm weather in March I have spent way more time outside of the gym these past few weeks. Fret not gym, surely it will begin to rain constantly here soon and I will be confined to your walls. In the mean time I will take advantage of running outside in the beautiful weather as much as possible.
Running my first 10K in 2010. (Yes, I know it's a copy-written picture. I bought this photo, but can only find the proof right now.)
Unfortunately there are some downsides to the outdoor run.
1. Dog Poop
If your dog poops on the sidewalk please pick it up. Don’t leave it there. I’m not trying to practice hurdling over a pile of poo. I definitely don’t want it drilled into my running shoes either. Oh, if your dog poops in the grass you should pick that up too. Come on, grab a bag. It’s not that tough.
2. Dogs Walking
The dog is on a leash – can you not keep it out of my pathway? Not to sound like a snob, but it really throws me off my rhythm when I have to jolt around your dog. Also, I’m really not trying to step on your dog so please don’t make me almost trip as I’m trying to two-step past your dog that you seem to think is okay running right up to my feet/legs.
3. Cars Blocking the Sidewalk
This is actually a peeve of mine for a bigger reason – sidewalks are for people, not cars, and this creates a dangerous situation for the little ones. If your car cannot fit all the way in the driveway, park it on the street or elsewhere. If young kids are out playing or riding their bikes they shouldn’t have to go in the street to go around a car that is blocking the sidewalk. I don’t feel it’s safe for me to jolt into the road either. So here’s the deal, if a car is blocking the sidewalk and I have to go around it I run on the front lawn instead of into the street.
4. Cars Turning Right
You know the drill. Have the walk sign, going to jog across the street, check to the left and have to stop dead in your tracks for a car that is oblivious to the fact that people cross the street. Always look for cars because they are not looking for you. This also goes when running on the side walk past parking lots. Drivers seem to just look straight ahead and never seem to realize that some people DO travel on foot or bike.
5. The Drive-By Honkers
I’m a female and I’m jogging. So hot, I know. So much so that the creepers feel the need to honk. This actually happens during my winter runs. You know, when I have 5 layers on creating a blob of a body, an ear warmer, gloves, and a bright pink face and gushing snot nose. I always just disregard these drive-by honkers, but generally if someone honks it’s a warning or an alert. Please don’t alert me that you think it’s hot that I’m running, alert me if a car is about to hit me or something.
What are your downsides to running outside once the weather finally gets warm?
Update (As of 3/19/2012): UPS never called Kevin by 9:22 a.m. as promised. The elusive “local office” still ceases to exist. However, the package magically appeared at our back door! I will never use UPS if I have a choice not to, especially if it means shipping a package to someone I care about as I now know how terrible their customer service is.
UPS – They Love Logistics, but They Can’t Locate a Package (Or Deliver Decent Customer Service)
I arrived home today around 5:15 to find this UPS InfoNotice stuck up high and clear on our glass sliding doors. Oh, a missed package! I pull it off the doors and notice that it is not filled out – no date, no name, no checks as to where the package is or why it isn’t at our back door. I check the front door in case the slip was left there as a flag that I needed to check the front for a package (though he could have easily checked the off on the slip), but there was nothing. Our delivery guys usually leave things at the back door anyway. I did notice an InfoNotice number. I figured maybe I just had to track that number to find out details on the package.
This is what UPS InfoNotice looks like. See how easy it is to fill out? Two boxes and some check marks. Lazy lazy!
I went inside and settled in after a long week at work. I pulled up UPS’ website and typed in the number. Nothing. Just an error message that no information has been entered for that number. Not a big deal, maybe the guy just came. I’ve had packages shipped with UPS before and I know that it takes some time for it to process. So I call the phone number to enter the tracking number. Nothing. The slip says on the back that if the package needs to be picked up, the centers are open until 7. At this point it was 5:30 so I thought I should call customer service and find out the info since I would still have time to pick up the package. They told me nothing. “Oh, the driver hasn’t scanned it in yet.” At this point I’m getting annoyed – a slip with absolutely no information and then a tracking number that doesn’t work? What was the point of that? Are they going to try delivering it again? Do I need to pick it up? Why couldn’t it be left at our place? I repeatedly hounded my customer service representative (who was clearly giving me the run around) to find out what good a slip was with no information and an incorrect tracking number. Of course, this poor guy can’t help me – he only knows prompts and steps of what to do. I ask him to transfer me to a supervisor.
The supervisor gave me the same BS. A bunch of excuses. At one point, he said, “The tracking number may be invalid.” What? A shipping company with invalid tracking numbers? There’s a company I can trust to get my things where they need to go! Then he says, “Maybe the package wasn’t meant for you, maybe it was delivered to a wrong address. We don’t know yet.” Right, we wouldn’t know because the driver was too lazy to fill in 2 blanks and check a box. Also – another reason not to trust this company – the package may have a failed delivery attempt to the wrong address. How would the real recipient even know? Wow, so trustworthy! That guy should not be a supervisor. He promises he’s passing my info along to this elusive “local office” of which he does not have a phone number. Come on dude, I work in logistics too, I’m no idiot, someone has a phone number… or maybe phone numbers really don’t exists for the drivers or local offices and that’s why they’re so terrible at logistics! Anyway, I’m promised a call within an hour. I very sternly say, “So by 6:45 I should receive a call from the local office, is that correct?” He tells me that is correct.
I was finally able to get in touch with Kevin and found out the package is for him. He pulls up the tracking on his phone – SURPRISE – according to that UPS driver’s scanner, the package was delivered around 2:30 p.m. At this point it’s 7:05 – an hour and 20 minutes after I was promised I would get a call.
I call customer service back. ANOTHER SURPRISE! No record of my first call despite talking to TWO, yes TWO people, including a supervisor. Except, I’m not really surprised as it has already become clear to me that these people don’t give a crap. I finally get a woman that is nice and calm and seems to want to be helpful. Of course, I give her the tracking number and she tells me that the package has been delivered. I kindly explain to her that no, no it has not. Instead, there is a BLANK InfoNotice. She says the notes say the package was left on the front porch. I kindly explain that we don’t have a front porch and that the notice was left on the back patio. She verifies the address. It’s correct. She goes through a list of questions – “Could it be in the front? Could a neighbor have taken it inside?” I kindly ask, “Would it make sense for a UPS driver to deliver a package and leave it at the residence but then leave a blank InfoNotice where it can be clearly seen on the door?” She responded no. She was correct.
So clearly this is looking really suspicious to me – the package has been checked in as delivered and a blank slip with no date and therefore no proof of when it was left on the door is at our home. So it’s one of two things: 1) The driver is a complete idiot or 2) The driver stole the package.
The entire time no one was able to give me any answers. They all “understood my frustration” yet, seemed to continually blame me. I must’ve missed the package – someone must’ve stolen it – it was scanned in so it had to be there. It must be in a common area. No. The UPS driver screwed up or did something shady. Isn’t it a rule in customer service to NOT blame the customer? At this point, since it’s past 7, there is nothing the local office can do. They’re open on Saturday, but not to help with lost packages – just to take money from customers that want to ship packages. Of course! That makes so much sense.
So as it stands right now: No signature or anything special was required for the package that would require the driver to leave a slip and not the package. The package is missing. The package has quite a bit of $$ worth of merchandise in it. UPS claims we have it because that’s how the driver scanned it and there is no way that could ever be incorrect or mistaken. A driver left a blank notice on our door. OBVIOUSLY the driver has the package somewhere. UPS sucks at social media. No one has any answers – UPS sucks at customer service. Kevin won’t hear anything until Monday… by 9:22 a.m. UPS sucks at logistics.
Who wants to guess that the package will magically appear?
Surprisingly, I’ve never had a package lost by the US Postal Service. Sad that they are rapidly losing money to terrible companies like UPS.
Have you ever had UPS lose a package? Did they find it? If not, did you file a claim? Did you have an unhelpful experience with their customer service? Comment and let me know your story!
I know I’m not the only one, check out these related UPS-stinks stories!
UPS – you still suck
UPS Stinks – Amazon Doesn’t
For all of my followers that don’t know – I am a PROUD alum of VCU.
Is there a way I can make my VCU Alumni t-shirt business-casual for work tomorrow?
As my buddy Chad Tweeted: “Hey, America. Remember that liberal arts hipster college without a football team that screwed your brackets last year? We’re back.”
I’d never hear the end of it if he knew I blogged that. We can also be remembered as “the team that knocked Duke out” back in the Eric Maynor days.
Anyway, with VCU’s narrow win over Drexel in tonight’s CAA Championship game it seems the majority of my fellow alum’s (including myself) have completely overlooked the fact that the Rams are CAA Champs and have gone straight to getting ready for March Madness. None will deny it was way too close for comfort, especially after having at least a 10-point lead the majority of the game. But in the end our boys prevailed…. now it’s time to represent the CAA and make some noise in the big dance.
GO RAMS GO!
I had high hopes going into this year’s Grammy’s. Granted all but about 4 or 5 awards are given out before the live broadcast actually starts, there was an awesome roaster of performers lined up this year – much better than last year. I will probably use the world “talented” a ton. That’s pretty much the only reason I watched!
This years Grammy’s gave me hope that good music is making a comeback. Maybe it’s a false hope. Looking over the nominees I was pleasantly surprised. Of course you can’t get away from those few pop stars that just have that star power. But overall, from the nominees to the performers it was a much different show than years past. I mean, maybe I’m remembering wrong, but I feel like in the past years they’ve been throwing in “big name” performers to get viewers and they’re not always the best to represent what the “music industry” has to offer. Which is a lot, if the general public will listen, buy albums, and concert tickets – because when it comes down to it it is the music industry and they will push whatever makes money.
Kicking it off with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. Great move. Love them. He’s the Boss and he rocked that stage. I’m also a Jersey girl so I’m biased, but you can’t deny his talent. I was very happy to have the stereo hooked up to the TV so I could really blast “We Take Care of Our Own” and dance around a little. Good thing Kevin was at rehearsal – he’s not from Jersey so he just doesn’t understand. In case anyone was confused, the crowd was yelling “BRUUUUCE” not booing them.
The opening Whitney Huston prayer and short video – very nice. A good way to get things started and recognize a lost music legend.
Let’s talk Bruno. I love Bruno Mars. Runaway is also my favorite of his songs on his album. He has a great voice and is very talented – but there’s something about his baby face that makes me not able to look at him. Love his voice though, he seemed to be struggling a little but knew when to back off the mic. There’s also nothing better than some big band music. Overall great performance.
Alicia Keys – so amazing, very talented. Love her voice, but she seemed a bit shaky. Bonnie was right on. Sounding great. I love seeing these types of duo’s. Now, if only these types of artists truly ruled the airways… but I’ll get to that in my conclusion.
Best Pop Solo – Someone Like You, Adele. I have to be honest, she had some tough competition. I had no clue who was going to win this – I felt most of these nominees were rightfully nominated. Katie Perry is not the best live, but she has some star power. For the most part the rest of the nominee’s have great voices and the award could have gone to any one of them. Adele’s speech was adorable because, well, British accents are awesome. Great to see her triumph.
Gaga’s outfit made me giggle.
Chris Brown can DANCE. No, beating up your girlfriend isn’t cool, especially when it’s Rhianna… but he paid his dues (part of that was scrubbing off graffiti on VCU’s campus. Go Rams go!). I was underwhelmed with his performance though. Some auto tuning, a lot of flashy lights… and I still question if he was singing live. Overall boring performance aside from his dance moves.
Best Rap Performance – Otis, Jay-Z and Kanye West. I don’t know much about rap, but I love Jay-Z. He obviously wasn’t there because he was home with his new baby girl. Kudos to Nicki for being the only girl in the category.
Jason Aldene and Kelly Clarkson. Gosh I love Kelly. Her voice is out of this world. The entrance didn’t go very well… there was obviously issues with the mics as Jason’s last “yeah yeah yeah”s weren’t heard. Side note: Kelly Clarkson’s makeup wasn’t blended very well, her makeup artist should get on that. Jason was shaky – maybe nerves? Pulled it together for the last chorus, but feel like the mic/earpieces issues ruined that performance. She obviously was having a blast.
The Foo Fighters – I think all of their songs sound the same, but they’re always good. Good beat, sounded great. I love a good rock song you can jump to. So excited to get some rock in the show this year – first with The Boss and now with the Fighters.
Rihanna & Coldplay. Love actually hearing Rihanna sing. She spends so much time singing her club-genre music I feel like it’s forgotten that she can sing. Don’t get me wrong, I love her club-beat, but she has a gorgeous voice and I’m glad she started her song out slow. She also has some good dance moves. I have the Colplay/Rihanna song downloaded and really like it so I was happy when I heard they’d be performing together. I like how they used it as a transition between performers. I’ve really been digging Paradise lately, turning the radio up too loud in my car when it’s on and singing “PARA-PARA-PARADISE” like I should be holding a hair brush in my hand in front of a mirror. But I’m in the car so my hands are on the wheel.
By the way, an hour into the show and only 2 awards given out. I personally get antsy because I want to know who the winners are…
New York Giant’s doing the salsa. Yes. GO GIANTS!
Best Rock Performance – Walk, The Foo Fighters. Or is it the Foo Fighters? I missed the little title on the bottom of the screen. Again, not much I can say about the Foo Fighters. But I DID love what Dave Grohl said because it is so true – “It’s not about sounding perfect. It’s not about sounding absolutely correct. It’s not about what goes on in a computer. It’s about what goes on in here (head) and what goes on in here (heart).” The irony in this was that after Coldplay performed a Facebook friend had a status about them not getting all the way up on their high notes. Take that, kid that’s not nominated for a Grammy or performing at the Grammy’s either.
Maroon 5 / Foster the People / Beach Boys reunion. Glad to see Adam and Foster the people, but without John Stamos drumming my interest went out the window. What can I say? I’m the Full House generation. In all seriousness, the performance sounded great.
Stevie Wonder got a standing ovation just for coming out on stage? Yes, because he is awesome! Loved his little harmonic play.
Sir Paul McCartney. He makes me giggle because he still looks the same as he did when he was young. I, of course, only know this from pictures. My mom would probably tell you the same and then tell you the story about how she had Beatles’ trading cards in the attack and my grandmother threw them away and they probably would’ve been worth so much money now. Anyway, even if Sir Paul had sounded terrible (which he didn’t), one can’t really touch such a legend regardless.
Best R&B Album – FAME, Chris Brown. I’ve heard that it’s a great album. I don’t listen to R&B, but I do believe there is a lot of talented people in that genre. But he could’ve buttoned up his shirt to accept his award and looked a little classier.
The Civil Wars. They’ve become one of my favorite this year… Taylor should’ve been opening for them. Beautiful voices, great songs, haunting harmonies. Look out for them – big things to come from them in country music.
Taylor Swift. Slowly but surely her live performances are getting better. Her voice is getting stronger and her pitch is getting better. Her pause about “how I can’t sing” was epic… almost as epic as her “Someday I’ll be singing this at the Grammy’s”. GO GIRL. You show that critic that just because Stevie Nick’s voice is so unique no one can really duet with her doesn’t mean you’re terrible.
Song of the Year – Rolling in the Deep, Adele & Paul. I don’t remember Paul’s last name. Adele is so cute. Good win.
Katy Perry. The only pop star that can perform with blue hair and look cute. She always has good songs. Cute, but I was underwhelmed. Overall, this performance made me wish Pink would come back from maternity leave.
Best Country Album – Own the Night, Lady Antebellum. So excited about this win. This is a great great great album. Every song is good, every song is country. Well deserved. Good choice by whomever makes that decision.
Adele. Probably the most anticipated performance of tonight’s Grammy show. Coming back from vocal chord surgery, she said she would not lip sync tonight’s performance. So much talk of her voice being “back.” She. Is. Gorgeous. In appearance, voice, and personality. Flawless performance. Not that she had to prove anything, but she totally proved why she won tonight’s awards and all her past awards. This was for sure a performance to remember. Adele is back and here to stay. And her little giggle coming off the last note at the end of her performance was adorable. Such nice support for her from the audience. I can’t even begin to imagine how it felt for her to stand there and see some of music’s greatest stand and applaud her on her comeback.
The Band Perry. There’s some real talent being hidden on the country stations. If “Top 40″ stations have to play pop, hip hop, and rap, then why not country? Chew on that a bit.
At this point my energy level was dipping and the reality of Monday was setting in.
Tony & Carrie. So cute and classy. Why was Carrie’s hair to one side though? That was weird, but maybe it was just because I was tired. Anyway, very nice – he sounds great.
They cut to Rihanna and her Tina Turner hair do during the show a lot.
Best New Artist – Bon Iver. SCREAMED. Seriously. Screamed. Very exciting win for a talented artist. This is also big because if you’ve read my bio you know that Kevin and I went to VCU. Kevin majored in music. One of his classmates now plays with Bon Iver. So this means big things for him with Bon Iver. VERY exciting. Also, why do people think it’s funny when they don’t know who
Jennifer Hudson. She is beautiful. Sounded great. What a beautiful tribute, they could not have picked someone better to do that.
Nicki Manaj. I love her… she’s so weird she’s awesome. But I did not dig her performance. She was confused and apparently thought she was performing on the VMAs. See, here’s the thing – when Gaga does her weird theatrical musical performances she spends the majority of the time actually singing. Most of this was talking and fire and dancing. I really wish she would’ve just gotten up there and performed Super Bass.
Record of the Year – Rolling in the Deep, Adele. There used to be that rumor that “Best New Artist” was the kiss of death. Adele proves that to be untrue, as long as you have talent. I just love to hear her talk.
Diana Ross. I have a friend that is beyond obsessed with her so I was excited that she was giving an award because I know he was excited. HA.
Album of the Year – 21, Adele. Well, I guess she swept the show! Wasn’t sure about this one either because she still had some tough competition. The good news is, I got to hear her talk again and I loved that.
I’m disappointed Mumford & Sons didn’t win anything this year. I know they were up against Adele for all, but they are very talented and they have a great album. They got snubbed!
The title about wraps up my thoughts on the Super Bowl.
I heading over to Buffalo Wild Wings with my buddy Zoara (a Patriots fan, silly girl) to watch the game. Had some yummy food, drank some beer, was overall kind of bored with the game until the last two minutes when both of us thought we were going to pass out. Thank goodness my Giants won.
Zoara with her head on the table and me cheering after the Giants score their final touchdown.
Kelly Clarkson can sing. I’ve always maintained they should have ended American Idol after the first season. Yeah yeah yeah, Carried Underwood, blah blah – there is no other Kelly Clarkson. She is simply amazing. Except I could stand a change in her bangs. I’m sure this video will be removed from YouTube soon because the NFL owns the National Anthem. (I’m kidding, of course – but what good is this performance if it can’t be repeated? Hey NFL – put this up on YOUR YouTube channel then.)
My favorite ad was for the VW commercial with Bolt the dog!
Naked M&Ms was cute/funny, but that is very expected from them.
That about sums it up! I know I’ve been slacking on my blog posts – work is so busy that I can’t muster up the energy to do a good write up on the weekend.
Yes, I’m “thin” “skinny” “little” – however you want to put it. In a country full of “obese” “fat” “big” people, this seems to be quite a conversation starter.. or rather, an open invitation for people to say what I am or can do because I’m skinny. I know – tough life being thin! But seriously, would you want to be told 50,000x a week things about yourself that aren’t even true just because you’re thin? It’s no different than assuming because someone is overweight he/she doesn’t work out, eats fast food all of the time, etc. So I’m here to debunk some “You’re so thin” myths.
Skinny until dinner - Thanksgiving 2011
Just because I’m “skinny”…
DOESN’T mean I can eat whatever I want.
I hear this one all of the time and it’s probably the most annoying. “Oooh, you’re so skinny. You can just eat whatever you want. You just have that metabolism.” I can only tell you this isn’t true because the truth is I don’t eat just whatever I want. Our house is not full of junk food. Growing up the house was never full of junk food and I guess this just sort of spilled over. We had the typical cookies and ice cream, but this was a treat and having cookies meant having only 2. A really great day meant we got 3! How exciting! My mom and I were laughing the other day about these Friendly’s Ice Cream single cups she used to buy my sister and I once in a while as a special treat. They were vanilla ice cream and one side had peanut butter on top and one side had chocolate fudge with M&Ms. They’re probably terribly high in sugar and fat and calories, but this was such a rarity in our home my sister and I would make it last as long as possible. What would have taken many about 10 minutes to eat we would spread out over 4 days. Only a quarter today, a quarter tomorrow. The peanut butter today, the rest of the ice cream tomorrow. We were by no means deprived of sweet treats, but our parents really controlled our intake and these sweet treats weren’t used as “snacks”.
So what do I eat? First off – breakfast. I’m not talking a breakfast bar or granola bar with 26g of sugar. Eggs, Greek yogurt, cereal (not something super-sugary), and always with a piece of fruit. We cook a lot and always have a vegetable. I pack my lunch every day. However, currently Kevin and I are working on portion sizes. I’ve been telling him for about 2 years that our portions are too big and we have been working on correcting that. There you go – myth debunked. I can’t eat whatever I want. I try to make smart choices when it comes to eating, choosing things that are nutritious and yummy, but not beating myself up forever if I splurge and eat a candy bar.
DOESN’T mean I don’t have to exercise.
However, I don’t exercise just so I don’t gain weight. I find it to be a great stress reliever. I get really bogged down and tired when I don’t exercise and I like using the time to clear my head. Just like anyone else, if I completely stopped exercising I would start to see some weight gain.
DOESN’T mean I exercise a ridiculous amount of hours a week.
30 minutes a day, 3-4 times a week. I have just as much to do as anyone else. There are plenty of people that spend more time than that and also have a ton of stuff to do. The point is, you can’t determine the amount of time a person spends exercising by how they look. Myth debunked – skinny people don’t necessarily live in the gym. (This may be true for some, so this is only debunked for me personally.)
DOESN’T mean that when you see me eating a chocolate I’m an unhealthy person.
Perhaps this is where the eat-whatever-you-want thing comes from, but I make a daily effort to eat healthy. No “trendy” diets, no counting calories, carbs, etc., just trying to eat balanced meals. So if I decide I want a cookie or candy bar I’m going to have it. It doesn’t mean I’m unhealthy because I’m not on the same crazy diet as you and am eating a cupcake. Most people I know that are on some trend diet don’t even need to be, but it’s like if they don’t have someone telling them how to eat they just don’t know how to eat healthy. Myth debunked: I like sweets too, so if I want one I’m going to eat them. Don’t worry, I still have my veggies with dinner.
DOESN’T mean it’s any easier to motivate myself to exercise.
It is just as tough for me to get motivated to the gym as everyone else. I work 40 hours a week and would love to just go home, put on some sweats, curl up on the couch and watch TV (especially during these Mid-West winters!). I have things to do around the house too, I have dinner to cook, laundry to do, etc. The big difference is, like all those other people in the gym with me, I just go and get it done. For some working out in the morning and showering at the gym before work is what they like. I like evening workouts. I get changed at work and am at the gym by around 5:30. I work out for about 30 minutes. Then I head home, shower, cook dinner, eat, clean up… and by then it’s about 8pm. Yeah, pretty much my whole evening is gone – but that’s my routine and it’s what I like/am used to. I do give myself a break – I never work out on Monday and generally give myself one other night off during the 5 day week. But going to the gym and actually doing the work is tough. I’ve been paying extra for a trainer twice a month just to be sure I get a good workout in and am pushing myself. So another myth debunked – I want to go home and sit on the couch as much as the next person.
You think I WANT to do this all winter? I hate the treadmill!
DOESN’T mean I can wear anything in the store / am a size 2.
Guess what! Clothes are made just as they’re sized – small, medium, and large. It means the clothes get bigger and bigger in a baggy way. The new style are those tent sleeves that actually hurts my figure more than flatters it. I have just as much trouble shopping for clothes as anyone else. If it’s right in the waist it doesn’t fit in the butt, if it fits in the butt it’s too tight in the waist. Don’t even get me started about tops – I am well endowed and that’s a whole other “Just because I’m” post. The only outfit that has been easy to shop for was my wedding gown. Myth debunked – clothing stores don’t carry clothes that are actually sewn to fit body shapes so skinny or fat, it’s a frustrating and annoying experience.
DOESN’T mean it’s in my genes.
“It’s in your genes, you’re lucky.” My mom and dad have always been on the thinner side, but there are definitely people in my extended family from both sides that are not thin. I’m lucky to have grown up with family members that are active. I can remember a few extended-family softball games in the yard of my cousin’s house and one volleyball game in high school at the same spot. I have a lot of memories of being outside with my cousins (post on that later to come as I’ve been thinking about all those things lately!). Myth debunked – just because I’m thin doesn’t mean the rest of my family is due to some magical gene.
Circa 2007 - if you're wondering what I'm doing, I'm taking in the "Mediterranean Breeze."
DOESN’T mean I will be forever.
It really irks me when an older woman that has had a kid or two talks about how skinny I am. Hey lady, I haven’t had any kids yet! I can guarantee you my body will change post-kids, just like everyone else’s. Plus, I’m in my 20s… my metabolism will start to slow down, my hormones will change. Weight gain is inevitable. It doesn’t mean I will stop making healthy choices, but it is the reality that the figure I have now may not be the one I have forever.
So please oh please, the next time you see someone that is “skinny” “thin” “little” “fit” – don’t assume that he/she is just “naturally” that way and lives some unfair magical life where every thing comes easy and he/she doesn’t have any cares in the world. Don’t assume that person goes into a clothing store and everything just magically fits. Don’t assume that the person doesn’t struggle with overeating, or has never been overweight before. Don’t tell that person, even jokingly, that you “hate” how skinny they are or how easy it is for them. And if you see me… please, don’t make any of the above statements. Just because I’m skinny doesn’t mean I live the life you think I do.
