Hey all, it has been a while since I have wanted to write. Actually, strike that. I want to write, all day every day, but I never seem to push myself to do so… this is my biggest problem… Oh well, better not to dwell on it, and well, just write!
A lot has been going on in my life, and I’m just trying to keep up with it all. I went on two fantastic vacations over the last 2 weekends, and I’m actually pretty excited and relieved to settle down into work- and school-mode. I’ve been blessed with (another) gracious pay raise! It feels good to know that the work I am doing is meaningful and worth time and money. It’s been a little slow at work recently, but I try to keep busy. Wishing I could work more, but my schedule can’t be adjusted just yet–in the summer I will most likely be able to work 30 hours a week. Fantastic! I like my work, and the pay helps a lot. We’re looking to hire one more person for our team, so it will be nice to have training listed as one of my skills for my resume. I like to think I’m pretty good at teaching!
One of my biggest situations as of recently has been figuring out how to graduate on time. Luckily, I have it worked out, taking 3 classes this summer–all depending if I can qualify for a student loan w/ my parent–so that I can take a slightly easier course load this coming school year. And then… I will graduate happily (I hope) in the spring of 2014! I was excited to have an internship this summer, but I think I will have to wait just a bit longer for it while I concentrate on work and summer classes. Maybe I will find some online/work from home/freelance marketing gigs I can do for a few hours a week, that would be ideal. Or I could just blog more. ;)
Speaking of internships and work, I’ve been more open minded to doing some more QA work. I’ve got great experience, that’s actual problem-solving and hands-on rather than running scripts. I’ve talked to the support around me, and they believe it is a good idea as well. Looking to apply to some QA internships for the next year.
Like the title says, I’ve finally decided to do a diet cleanse, and get back into working out. Having a buddy to do it with actually does help! There’s support, and accountability. My buddy happens to be the love of my life. Who knew he would be the one step up? We’re doing a month long (31 day) cleanse of artificial sugars, flour, most carbs. Basically, I’m cutting out all breads, tortillas, white rice, artificial sugars, beer, prepped food, starches, sweets, fried food. These past few weeks I’ve been overindulging, and I celebrated my last meal with pizza and a cupcake yesterday. And I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I am very happy to be doing this cleanse. I’ll try to update every day or every other day with the awesome food and recipes I’m eating.
What I do plan on eating through this cleanse:
- in season fruits
- in season veggies
- berries
- clean meats (more chicken and turkey, less pork and beef, all lean, no fried!)
- non fat dairy products (milk, greek yogurt, very small amounts of cheese, NO butter though!)
- smaller amounts of olive oils
- clean oatmeal
- quinoa, polenta, couscous (NO white rice) (i’m undecided on brown rice just yet, but i plan on avoiding it)
- hummus
- beans, lentils
- nuts
- only smaller amounts of hard alcohol, no wine or beer
I plan on making a lot of salads, stir-frys, chili! Yum.
One thing I am slightly cheating on is some Cheerios cereal. The unsweetened & lightly sweetened multi-grain kind. I will try not to each much of it, but sometimes I’m in a rush and will need it. But other than that, I’m just cutting out more food than I am integrating. Which is fine with me. It will be hard, I know it will, but I can do it. And I like being competitive with my guy. ;) And helping each other reach our goals is nice too.
For breakfast I had a normal bowl of cereal. Fine fine.
Lunch:
- salad: 2 nice handfuls of half-half mix (spring + baby spinach), 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
- one fresh orange (i am lucky oranges are in season! i am cutting out non-fresh squeezed orange juice)
- a handful of blackberries
- some celery
Dinner
I plan on making a small stir fry of chicken and bell peppers, over a half cup of quinoa. Yummm.
I’d like to make some turkey chili for the rest of this week! Off I go to look at recipes!
Wish me luck on this cleanse. Do you have any tips or tricks? What are some cool recipes to integrate?
Hopefully, I am able to hit the gym every day for the next month!
Cheers :)
sophievibes 