I Can Make You Thin

A few nights ago Josh and I spent time with our friends Jonathan, Joy, Matt, and Sayo. Sayo taught Joy and I how to made "gyoza" which are Japanese dumplings. Oh my, they're good. Look 'em up!

I recently stumbled upon a special on TLC called "I Can Make You Thin." I watched it for a few minutes and wrote down four the "4 Golden Rules" of eating. Here they are (roughly):

1. Eat when you're hungry.
2. Eat what you want.
3. Eat consciously.
4. When you think you're full, stop eating.

I'm astounded by these "rules," because they aren't the typical diet guidelines. The first two happily negate what everyone's been telling us about weight loss. I've had trouble completely cutting out certain food groups; I end up eating a whole box of Girl Scout cookies the third day in. I'm sure there are those out there who've mastered the art of discipline, but I don't think it comes down to discipline only. "Everything in moderation" or "balance" is a better approach to LIFE--and food. I've mastered both extremes--health-nut AND cake-and-cookie-connoisseur (usually on the same day)--and I'm ready to combine the two for a healthy lifestyle.

I decided to try these rules for a few days. Rule number 3 is a biggie; "conscious eating" means no distractions. For me this means not eating in front of the television. I can easily down a whole box of Wheat Thins during one episode of Super Nanny. Conscious eating brings your mind back to the true main event: THE MEAL!

As suggested by the program: take a bite of your food, put the food and utensils down, chew the food twice as long as you usually would, enjoy the taste of the food, swallow, and repeat. A woman who loves macaroni and cheese tried this exercise. She had a big plate in front of her and ended up eating only half of what she'd normally consume. Supposedly there's a delay between when we're actually full and when we realize it. By slowing the eating process, we're letting our body tell us when we're full.

The effects of this exercise, I realized, reach beyond the amount of food I eat. When I took the time to "enjoy" the food, I noticed that certain food didn't taste as good. The foods which taste better happen to be healthier foods. The program recommends trying this exercise with a fast-food meal. We're used to eating these meals so fast that we don't pay attention to how they taste.

I'm not sure about some of the other techniques of this program (yet), but the rules were fun to try for a few days, and they're relatively easy to stick to.

New job

I officially start my new job tomorrow. I will work with a different real estate team in the same office I was working in before. This team subleased the space of the company I was working for, so I don't have to settle in to a new location. The team's current office manager is in great need of a permanent vacation, so she's training me to be an office manager in the next few weeks. I'm ready for a challenge. Who knows what the next few weeks and months will bring?!

To be or not to be . . . a blogger

I may become a serious blogger one of these days. It won't become a collection of poetic thoughts (although they have a place in the blogosphere) or a set of "here is what I did today" posts (although there will be some of those), but I want to post questions, ideas, valuable info, and gather it from others as well.

Sometimes there's nothing "funner" than curling up with a friend's blog. I especially enjoy thoughts of friends who are new parents. I'll be one of them someday, so I value the tips.

(Is handwritten journaling becoming obsolete? The other day I tried to write a grocery list and my hand was tired by the eighth or ninth item [not to mention the essay test I took the other day].)

Texas

Texas was a fun adventure. We started the drive a few hours after work on Thursday night, and arrived home Sunday afternoon. Though the trip was short, we made some friends and had a great time celebrating our friends’ wedding. On our way home Saturday night, we drove through downtown Dallas and took a few pictures. I even hummed the “Dallas” (my mom’s favorite show) theme song until Josh kindly asked me to stop.

If you’re ever craving Cajun food, try Dudley’s Cajun Cafe in Longview. Josh gives the gumbo a thumbs-up, and I ordered some fried catfish tails which were equally amazing. We enjoyed the food with Joy and Jonathan’s friends—an amazing group of people who I miss already. It’s always bittersweet coming home after such a fun time, but we’re glad to be back.

Laundry List

Gunter's fixed! For the time being, at least. We'll see how he handles.

It's been over six months since we moved into our first house, and we finally painted our first room! I was a little scared to commit to a color, but we painted two walls of our living room chocolate brown. The color makes the place looks more lived-in, and the furniture my dad left with us help so much.

It's been about two months since Josh and I gave Emma up to the Great Pyrenees Rescue. She was adopted more than a month ago, and we receive occasional updates from her new "mom" who spends almost all day with her. We still miss her, but we're so relieved that she found a great home. Despite the difficulty of letting her go, Josh and I know we made the right decision. It was so fun to have a dog around for a few months, but dogs deserve better than a life of solitude.

Our friends' weddings are soon approaching. Josh and I will drive down to Longview, Texas for Jonathan and Joy's wedding February 16th. Josh and Jonathan have known each other since youth group days, and Jonathan was Josh's best man at the wedding, so this wedding means a lot to us. I'll probably be riding in the backseat to Texas, so some Dramamine will be in order!

School is going well so far this semester. I'm taking a light load to allow myself time to plan Lambda Pi Eta (LPH) stuff, but so far I'm not sure if it was worth it to drag my graduation out to December of this year. I think I made the right decision, but December sure seems far away! So far, Whitney (co-president with me) and I have sent out invitations to potential members and we'll soon be planning an induction ceremony. The ceremony will be in April, and it'll be an opportunity for incoming members to invite family and friends to recognize their membership. Overall, the greatest challenge for Whitney and I is to lead an organization we've never been a part of. Our faculty advisor selected us after we took several of her courses. The offer came as a huge surprise, and now we're building LPH from the ground up. Though the UCCS chapter has existed for a couple years (which is nothing compared to other schools in the country), the previous president went on to law school and left us with little to work with. Follow this link for more info on LPH: http://www.natcom.org/nca/Template2.asp?bid=21

Gunter

Josh and I bought a car yesterday. His name is Gunter, and he’s a 1983 VW GTI. We’re going to be rolling in style…once we get him to work. Josh drove him home after meeting with the seller last night, and the car DIED the minute he pulled up! We had friends over last night, and we joked, “At least Josh didn’t have to bother to turn off the car!” Thankfully, the company who last worked on the car will look it over and hopefully fix it for free.

Last night Josh and I had pizza at our house with our to-be married friends. One of the couples is getting married next month, and the other will be married two weeks after that. Last weekend, Josh and I accompanied them to a bridal festival at the Phil Long Expo. We sampled cookies, and I wanted to swim in the glorious chocolate fountain. After that, the girls browsed perfumes at Dillard’s while the guys explored the shoe section. I’m in love with Dior’s J’Adore, but images of Charlize Theron pop in my head whenever I smell it.

The house is so quiet now that my sisters have been gone for a week, but the new peace in the house has inspired me to finally paint our front room. I start my weekend class tonight, though, so we’ll see when I can squeeze the painting in.

Get well soon, Gunter.

Sisters and Weddings

My sisters have been staying with us for the past couple of weeks, and they're leaving this coming Saturday. It's hard leaving early on the weekdays and coming home in the late afternoon, but Josh and I enjoy the time with them. Yesterday we got our hair cut for $7 each at the Toni & Guy Academy, spent some time at Starbucks, and watched "The Majestic" with April. Even the little things are special when we don't always get to see each other.

Josh and I are so excited--there are four weddings to look forward to in the next few months! Particularly, our friends Jonathan and Joy are getting married next month. Joy eats the popcorn I drop on the couch when we're watching movies, and we agree that crackers and cheese (with the mousse-like dispenser) would make a good sneak-in snack at the theater. I can't wait to spend more time with her. Jonathan and Josh have known each other for years, so it's only natural for the four of us to spend time together. And, congratulations to Matt and Sayo, Keith and Sara, and Justin and Shara.