First trip

I have been hired by Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, International as a Membership Services Consultant. Sounds fancy, right? It is basically a job where I get paid to do my favorite thing that I did as an officer for the Pierce Butler Chapter at William Mitchell College of Law. That is, they are paying me to recruit. I get to travel (flight, car rental and hotel paid, plus a per diem for food) around the country to weaker chapters of the fraternity and try and help them reactivate by recruiting new members. I leave for my first trip today.  I am headed to Louisiville, Kentucky. I will spend a couple days there and then move on to Nashville. I will be there over Labor Day weekend so I will have a little time to see the sights. Unfortunately I will be missing my husband's birthday on September 6. :( It is too expensive for me to fly back home to spend it with him.

After Nashville, I am moving on to Oxford, Mississippi. Did you know the best hotel you can get near Ole Miss is a Super 8? And you get to choose between smoking or non-smoking rooms! Can't wait for that one. Lastly I will be in Alabama. From there I fly home to my hubby!

I get a week at home before I take my next trip, which will be to Indiana. My little sister Ruthie is getting married this winter and all she wanted to do for her bachelorette was go to a Colts game. But there were none near MN. So I decided to invite her to drive down with me to Indiana (I hate to fly so I am renting a car). I bought us two tickets to a Colts game. She will fly out after the game. I told her it is a combination birthday-bachelorette-bridal shower gift because each ticket is $150!!

My last trip is in my own back yard, which is great because I get paid like I am traveling, but I can be at home. I will visit the U of M, St. Thomas, and Hamline law schools.

This will be my first time traveling alone for such a long period of time. I studied abroad for a month in England and Ireland in college, but I was with a professor and a whole class, so that doesn't really count. I am nervous and excited. I hope to post about my travels. I also have several knitting projects that I will update on as their finished!

Oh! And we moved! It took a lot of work, but the house looks pretty good so far...

The office/craft room (my husband is awesome) still has to be put together, but everything else is pretty much finished. I like it better than any house I have ever lived in, and I will miss it while I am traveling!

Speaking of traveling...


“No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow.” – Lin Yutang

Scale Buster

So I've had a busy year. Which makes it hard to notice things. Like how all my jeans feel like they just came out of the dryer, no matter how many times I've worn them. And I certainly haven't had a lot of time for the gym. And who wants to (or even can) diet while they are studying for the bar? Comfort food reigns in times of stress, and It takes me less time to order pizza then it does for me to cook dinner for my family.

So when I got on the scale at my mom's house earlier today, I didn't expect it to be good. But I definitely didn't expect it to be THAT bad. I was shocked. I am not revealing any numbers, but I am currently the heaviest I have ever been. And here I had thought it couldn't get much heavier. Of course I ran to the gym to make sure my mom doesn't have an old wonky scale. Turns out she doesn't. In fact, my mother's scale was a little kinder to me than the scale at the gym.

All this amounts to a resolve to do better. I don't want to have to buy new clothes (and we couldn't afford to, even if I did).  Time to buck up. And get a new plan to help me to feel better about myself.

The way I see it, this plan has three main components:

1. Track my food with Weight Watchers, AND STICK TO IT. I have used Weight Watchers before. The first time was before my wedding. I lost ten pounds in about two months. Not too shabby. So I know the system works for me. And I enjoy eating fruit (zero points) so the diet isn't too restrictive. Except when it comes to cheese and carbs. But hey, stuff doesn't come for free right? And I can still enjoy the occasional slice of pizza, just maybe not five slices every other night. And okay, liquor eats up a lot of points too, but it won't kill me to drink less and drink less often.

My problem is falling off the wagon. No, I don't mean falling off the sobriety wagon. We're not there yet. BUt I start to cheat on my diet, or get lazy about it. And there are no immediate consequences. No one knows, and I don't visibly gain weight. But it all adds up, and before long, I am not tracking at all.  A few months of that and I end up where I am right now. Feeling bad and wearing sweatpants. So this time I will go to the meetings every week. And do the dreaded weigh-in. That way I can track my progress, or lack there of... I will also be accountable to someone other than myself. And my husband, but what can he say about how I look except "great"?

2. Exercise. Duh. But I hate to run. Hate hate hate. I was one of those kids that walked for half of the mile run in elementary school. And I only half-heartedly jogged the other half. My best friend had asthma and she still beat my time. Recently I discovered the C25K app for the iPhone. And I am in love. It turns running rejects like me in to stars! Well maybe not stars, but certainly into someone capable of huffing their way through a 5k without needing a break. And it's not intimidating. I can track my weight and it plays my music through the app, and "pings" when it is time for me to pick up the pace, or slow it back down.

I just have to stick to it. To keep the pressure on, I am planning to run the Anoka Grey Ghost run in late October. Plus I get to dress in a costume. It's a win-win.

3. Cook healthier! I won't have to make my points stretch as far if I use them more wisely. And I love to cook anyway. This will give me an opportunity to try some new recipes.

That's the plan anyway. Here's hoping it works!!

Won't you be my neighbor?

So, we have nice neighbors. Really nice. Only we just met them and we won't be living here much longer. Our neighbor Tara came over the other day because she heard that the tailless yellow cat is our very own Butters (see below).

As you can see, the Butts-man enjoys the outdoors. Which was fine when he stayed in the yard. Except that punk found a way to get out of the yard. And when we found that way and fixed it, he found another way. And so on... Then Butts started taking off for a couple days at a time. Me being the worried kitty momma that I am, I was convinced he had gotten run over by a car.

He always came home though. And he seemed so much happier being able to get out all the time. Not to mention he's a hell of a lot skinnier. But right before we left to take the bar, Butts came home with a bloody back paw. Since we're dirt poor, we decided to keep an eye on it. He wasn't limping or anything. Then he took off again and didn't come home for four or five days.

J was convinced he ingratiated himself with some other home, and he was right. Then Butters came home and we shut the windows and wouldn't let any of the kitties out anymore. No matter how loudly they protested. And they protested, LOUDLY. And gathered around the window, looking forlornly. 

The next day, a woman from down the street came to our door.  She told us that Butters had literally walked into their house and they had kept him. He slept for a day and a half. His paw was worse, so the woman had her veterinary friend stop by and look at it. They bandaged him up and fed him. Then after about five days, Butts in a very Butts-like fashion promptly escaped from their place and returned home.

We were very grateful they took such good care of him. I wanted to do something nice, so I baked some banana bread. 

And sewed a dishtowel with a kitty print to wrap it in.

Hopefully our neighbors in Minneapolis are just as friendly. And if not, I am sure my delicious banana bread will win them over!!

The List

So the other day, I was trying to figure out what I was going to do with myself after the bar exam. This is the first time in my life (well, since before pre-school) that I won't be a student. So naturally I am wondering what the hell I am going to do with myself... Enter "The List." It's a list of stuff I have decided that I will finally have time for, now that the time- and soul-sucking pursuit that is law school. Some of The List is stuff I want to do with my husband (don't worry, I won't get THAT personal). Other items are purely solitary pursuits (minds out of the gutter people...).

1. Learn Spanish via Rosetta Stone - When my husband and I first started dating, we invested in Rosetta Stone Spanish, Levels 1-5. I am still on Level 1, Unit 1. It's been over a year.

2. Teach myself to sew - I am well on my way with this one... I even took in a couple of my mom's favorite shirts this past weekend. (Go Mom for losing a ton of weight with Weight Watchers!) But I want to be proficient enough to make dresses for myself, and clothes for my future babies, and current step-daughter.

3. Make exercise a part of my daily schedule (aka lose 10 lbs, aka make my clothes fit better, or again) - I am working on the Couch to 5k plan right now. It's going well actually. I am a terrible runner, I don't enjoy running unless it's for a sport. But, my goal is to be able to actually RUN the Anoka Ghost Run at Halloween.

4. Go to a show at the Guthrie - My husband and I got a gift certificate from our wedding shower. Much Ado About Nothing is on the schedule for this fall. Yay! Jason brought me to Wicked last year. We had SUCH a great time. I'm lucky to have such a great theater buddy. :)

5. Move to Minneapolis - Yup. Moving, again... Even though I swore the last time I moved that I wasn't moving again until it was going to be the last time I ever moved. But then the people we rent from wanted to short sale their house. And I happen to have a very high strung dog. A yorkie, you ask? No. Maybe a pomeranian? Nope. Must be a cocker spaniel then... Still wrong. He is a hundred pound Chesapeake Bay Retriever. He's quite excitable. Especially when he sees strangers, or really anyone, approaching his home. So waiting around for them to sell the place with realtors and prospective buyers in and out all the time is not a good option for us.

So we are moving to the house my husband owns in Minneapolis. Formerly owned with his ex-wife. Was I crazy about that at first? Hell no. But we've refinanced the house into our name, getting her off the mortgage. And we'll save a ton in housing expenses. Plus I have never had a place that is MINE. I mean not even my parents' place was mine growing up. But this joint will be all mine. I could paint my bedroom hot pink if I wanted... Okay so maybe J isn't going for that. But we have talked about starting a garden, and finishing the basement, and redoing the fence. Best part is, now I really don't have to move again!

6. ??????

The List keeps growing. Hopefully it will keep me busy!

“Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.” - Dale Carnegie