Got Milk?

I broke my promise. I intended to provide a day by day countdown of the final days as a first year teacher, but my blogging fell by the wayside. Any who...Day 7 Festivities...Career Day

Dairy farming anyone...anyone?

I failed to exercise on the last few days of school, but the daunting task of shutting down my classroom provided some much needed activity....so all was not lost. We moved EVERY piece of furniture to the back of the classroom, and ALL manipulatives and materials found their perspective "summer home." Take a look at the cute red bookshelf. The teacher across the pod from me received a promotion and she gave me the Spot bookshelf, white shelf and the small brown bookcase in the picture. Since I will be teaching Kinder next year, the much needed furniture is so appreciated. Congrats to me! I am super psyched about teaching Kinder instead of Special Ed. I plan to write a blog detailing my first year as a Kinder teacher.

7 Days....

How I spent day 8...

Today the kids enjoyed an afternoon packed full of fun in the sun...and I did too! I ended my day with my favorite summer treat from McDonald's (3 pts.)...

...And yes, I will post a countdown blog daily! I started yesterday, and plan to continue until June 6th. Yes, SATURDAY June 6th is my last day...yes SATURDAY (suck much? Not complaining...grateful to be gainfully employed!). Until then...7 days and counting!

Countdown to Summer Vacate...8 Days Left

As a first year teacher, I am SO looking forward to my first summer OFF! My summer plans include the following:

CHILLIN'!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and

SLEEPING!!!!!!!!!!!

These pictures, courtesy of our field trip today to Bayou Wildlife Park, basically sum up my plans in a nutshell. Of course, I plan to throw in some activity. Until then...8 days and counting...

A few more pics from the field trip:

A goat...looking for a lil' snack. How bout some buttons?

Sally the Camel...she got a lil' to close for comfort...WAY TO CLOSE!

The newest addition to the wildlife park.

Throw Another Shrimp On the Barbie

It's that time! Time to fill the air with the mesquite smoky aroma of meat and fresh veggies grilling. Pictured: Yesterdays dinner and today's leftovers.

EA Wii Active 30 Day Challenge-Day 2?

I started the Wii EA Sports Active 30 Day Challenge last Friday (May 22, 2009)...money well spent. The Wii Active serves as my very own personal trainer in my living room. For the 30 day challenge, the "trainer" develops a routine of various exercises: squats, bicep curls, in-line skating, shoulder raises, running, walking...just to name a few. After completing my first session, my thighs hurt for two days, I assume from the squats and lunges. I REALLY felt the pain when shopping. I could barely lift my legs to try on a pair of Khakis at Tarjay (Target). My sore thighs also resulted in my decision to camp out downstairs...ME and sore thighs + the stairs = TROUBLE. I do have just one qualm about the Wii Active...the leg strap. The strap fit my thigh; however, the strap may not accommodate every thigh. Other than that, I fully endorse the Wii EA Sports Active...2 snaps up!

IHOT

Today, each one of my kids wanted to eat something different for breakfast. I looked at them and stated, "What do y'all think this is...International House of Trina (IHOT)? I threw on my short order cook hat and filled my "customer's" orders.

Up first, order #1 for my youngest: big biscuits, veggie bacon, and hash browns. Oooooooh...to be a kid again.



Next, order #2 for my oldest...piping hot cinnamon rolls. Oooooooooooooooooooo how I longed to gobble one, two, maybe three or four of these scrumptious pastries.



And last. my breakfast...potato and egg tacos with fresh strawberries. My tacos consisted of: 2 whole wheat tortillas, 87 g (one serving size) of hash browns, and 1 farm fresh egg and one egg white. I then topped each taco with salsa from HEB. I love HEB's salsa and pico de gallo.



And the acronym IHOT...not a problem because I hot...get it...as in I'm hot. Never mind.

Ease on down...ease on down the rug...

The Wiz aired last night. I actually jumped off the couch and eased on down the rug when the song Ease On Down the Road played. After my musical number ended, I stopped and laughed at myself. And yes, I was alone when this episode occurred.

Final Day-Weekly Assignment: On Quitting...

Final Thoughts...

Last week I weighed in only to discover a 1 pound gain. I believe my week's worth of positive thinking prepared me for the scale's betrayal. According to the WW leader, a variety of elements (e.g. muscle gain, eating too many processed foods, body rebelling, etc) triggers a weight gain. In all honesty, I worked out 3 days, ate responsibly, experienced some food choice blunders, but overall...a solid attempt at this new lifestyle change.

At this time I feel...well...STUCK. So now, my task...unstick (again, not a real word) myself. I WILL NOT QUIT!

A man is not finished when he is defeated. He is finished when he quits. ~ Richard M. Nixon

Weekly Assignment-Day 5: Ease On Down The Road...

Tonight I attended an elementary school's rendition of The Wiz. Talk about a play chock full of positive thinking...

1. Look in the mirror.
2. Smile.
3. Say something positive: "A Brand New Day" (lyrics from The Wiz)...Hello world! It's like a different way of living now...Can't you feel a brand new day? Indeed it IS a brand new day!

Weekly Assignment-Day 4: Black Butterfly...

One Saturday, I spent half the day customizing my alerts (i.e. email accounts, text messages, applications, etc.) for my Blackberry Storm. Upon receiving text messages I hear the following...(*phone chimes*)..."Hey beautiful, you have a text message." When I hear it I usually say it, and I believe it. If you don't think you're beautiful...who will?

In addition, I set my phone to send an alert everyday which reads...I want to be the butterfly. In short, I no longer want to be the big fat fuzzy caterpillar. As I alter my lifestyle (e.g. eating habits, exercising more, etc.), I spin my chrysalis. Soon, I will break through my chrysalis of fat to emerge as a beautiful butterfly. I plan to further expound upon my butterfly analogy. This analogy also serves as my personal weight loss mantra. Any who, on to my assignment...

1. Look in the mirror.
2. Smile.
3. Say something positive: "Hey Beautiful!!!"

Weekly Assignment-Day 3: The Game Is So ON!

I worked out two days in a row. "Change is easy. It's remaining consistent that's the hard part." The author of this quote escapes my memory.

1. Look in the mirror.
2. Smile.
3. Say something positive: I made an appropriate health conscious food choice for the birthday celebration lunch today. Instead of ordering a loaded baked potato from Jason's Deli, I opted for the slim-wich, fresh fruit, and chips.

Weekly Assignment-Day 2: GAME ON!

Okay, this post is a day late, but better late than never.

1. Look in the mirror.
2. Smile.
3. Say something positive: GAME ON! I'm on it! I am STILL bringing sexy back. I took a hiatus but, sexy is on its way back. It got lost, but it's coming.

Weekly Assignment-Day 1

1. Look in the mirror.
   



2. Smile.



3. Say something positive: Look how far you've come! 22 point something pounds down. I will not focus on how much I need to lose. My focus...small goals...5 pounds at a time. My next goal...lose 25 pounds by the end of May.

AVALANCHE!

When trying to lose weight...

You ever noticed how one negative thought snowballs into an AVALANCHE of negative thinking and the next thing you know...you find yourself crawling on the floor scrounging for just 1 nickel to buy a kit kat from the vending machine in the teacher's lounge. This may or may not have happened to me. I attended my weekly weight management meeting, Weight Watchers, and the topic of discussion...managing thoughts...provided the jump start I needed to get back on track. Truth be told, I fell of the weight loss wagon.

From the meeting, I learned negative thoughts lead to negative behavior. To illustrate, I suffer from the All-or-Nothing Syndrome. Basically, one wrong decision (e.g. eating 1 dozen of ginger snap cookies in one sitting) sends me spiraling into a pit of self-doubt and self-defeat. As a result, I succumb to the defeat and return to my previous atrocious eating habits. So...the remedy for the All-or-Nothing Syndrome...THINK POSITIVE...easier said than done!

My assignment for the week:
1. Look in the mirror.
2. Smile.
3. Say something positive.

And on a positive note, a few weeks ago I received an award for completing my 16th week as a Weight Watchers member. Today, the leader mentioned members sticking with the program for 16 weeks signifies the decision to STAY and SUCCEED! GO ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!