Merry Christmas

One discussion my wife and I had to have was what to put on top of the Christmas tree. I know there is probably tons of really pretty, modern, cool tree toppers and all, but I'm sort of traditional in the fact that I just wanted a simple star or an angel or something and not all the 'stuff'. Well, you can see we had to meet in the middle a little.

What is on the top of your tree? Or what would you like to have on your tree that is, and why?

a day at the park

Well it's probably one of the last really great days before the time change and cold weather so I decided to take the dog to the park for some exercise (might as well bring along the camera for some action shots!)


The first one is on the way to the park driving about 35 mph and not looking through the viewfinder, pretty awesome if you ask me!

NYC Recap

NYC was a big trip for us.  We celebrated our 5 year anniversary this past May and decided not to do anything at the time.  However, Oct 17, 2009 actually marks 10 years since we started dating so we combined the two anniversaries and tried to celebrate big.  I love you Celice, and I must admit I love you more today than when we first got married.  Now onto the stuff I'm sure you are more interested in reading about.

We had to leave the house about 515am on Thursday. When we got there we were able to check-in. Had a really nice king corner room 18 floors high with huge windows on 2 walls. Then we walked around and had to get to our Letterman tickets, actually got front row seating!! It was wet and cold that day, but thankfully the rain stopped for the most part after Thursday. Letterman took the better part of that day. We got changed and went to some really too fancy for me kind of dinner at 21 Club. Coat and tie required sort of thing, but at least the portions weren't tiny! Dinner went from about 8pm-1030/1045 when we finally left.

Friday we bought subway passes and headed down to Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty. That took several hours so then just walked around in South Manhattan all day, this is the financial area with wall street and Ground Zero and all that. Lots of really, really old churches that have been around since pre-1800s even.

Saturday we walked around shopping all day, up and down 5th Ave, in which we passed Rockefeller Center. It was exhausting but then I was able to score us some game 2 ALCS Yankee tickets. We were in left field about 6 rows up, actually in front of the bleachers. The best seats I have ever had for any sporting event ever. The game went 13 innings and a little rain, but we still made it home about 2am!

Sunday we just walked around a lot again. Went to Bryant Park and the NY public library (which was closed), then to Grand Central, Chinatown (Celice bought a knock-off designer purse for $25), Ground Zero and then more shopping.

Monday we were flying back, but not until 8pm. So we got up early packed and had the hotel take care of our bags all day and headed up to the Empire State Building, Central Park and then the Museum of Natural History. Saw lots of dinosaur bones and stuff there, didn’t really get into the rest of it, probably because I was so exhausted.  The last pic is of Carnegie Hall, which we happened to stumble into when we were trying to get back to the hotel.

We did so much it seems I'm always forgetting something when trying to remember everything we did. We walked a lot, ate a lot, and saw a lot, but still couldn't get to everything we wanted. It's really an interesting place that everyone should visit at least once if you haven't. Especially to see how authentic Chinatown is and then to see such diversity everywhere, and even in the architecture itself with some buildings hundreds of years old right next to another building 10 years old.  Well, this is my longest post ever (counting the pics) so if you stuck around till the end... WHY?  Just kidding, here's the mushy stuff to end with.

compared to this...

 

Again, this is just another setting that shows more of her true "colors" app=F5 shutter=1/6

playing with the camera

 

I guess this would be Celice with dark hair and a tan, lol. Just one of many times I was playing with the exposure settings. F5.6 S 1/20.

The way to a man's heart...

This I just had to share because my wife is beautiful and she cooks!

New Camera

Well I got a new camera so this is just me messing around to see what I can come up with. Our dog, Layla, doesn't exactly love pictures but this one I like.

long time no blog.....

Well, I missed a week of blogging last week. There's a reason. I was furious. our weigh day was Wednesday and I had gained 3 lbs. I knew there would be the possiblity of gaining at least a pound - but 3 just made me so mad! However, this week came - a loss of 4.2...so I feel better! :) The thing is....we didn't work out last week. I'm actually wondering....maybe i should just stick with the diet until New York, try to lose the weight and then put on muscle! Just kidding. I know it's better to go ahead do the workouts....It's just frustrating not to lose any weight. Inches or no, it'd be nice to lose some weight - I don't win any competitions by losing inches.....

Brent also lost a pound this week. Which...he didn't exercise really either....interesting we both lost when we didn't work out. But it's still good news for us. It must mean we're doing ok on the diet. We could probably both afford to be a little better, but at least we're still working on it.
So I guess that brings us to a total of:
Brent: -10.5 lbs
Celice: -1.2

Not so much fun!! Hopefully we'll get back to starting our workout routine again today.

Another week gone by

Well, I guess I'm a little late writing this... late seems to be getting more common, I got to make that adjustment quick. This week was another poor week. Mainly my fault again, just being busy and tired and not working out. Its really hard to get motivated to workout when you have a four-day weekend.... It wasn't even that much fun either, we spent 3 days pulling weeds out of the flower beds so it was pretty exhausting. I must still be tired from it this week because I haven't slept right.

Last week after 0 or maybe 1 workout and not eating great (birthday parties to go to and Labor Day cookout) we both gained weight. I gained 0.9 lbs so that made me feel better knowing that the diet is still doing some good. But this week we are not off to a good start already.

This is our week...
* Monday - Labor Day - pull weeds, golf, cookout, get home late (no workout)
* Tuesday - Celice is helping someone with bridal pictures and then Bible study, get home late (no workout)
* Wednesday - Celice has choir until 845p, get home late (no workout)
* Thursday - wedding shower @ 7p, dessert (I know) with friends @ 8p, get home late (workout?)
* Friday - help out at a concert/cookout for the college kids, get home late (workout?)
* Saturday - having a wedding shower at our house (I'm golfing!!), then a surprise party that night.... get home late... (workout?)

I'm ready for a vacation!!!! Oh yeah, only 34 days from now! On another note, my mom has started blogging and even got on facebook recently. Well, this is a surprise since usually anything 'new technology' is just dismissed and she doesn't care to learn. However, I must say I'm proud and excited for her (mainly because I'm a terrible son and don't call her enough to see what's going on).

I'm also really, really proud that she has decided to quit smoking! It's been 2 weeks now, just quit cold turkey it sounds like. She has smoked for 40 years and just quit; its not always easy, but it will be worth it! Apparently dieting/exercising and me not wanting to be fat has inspired my mom; hopefully her faithfulness in quitting cold turkey can inspire me to not be so quick to walk away from a workout. I know I'm busy, I'm tired, I'm full of all kinds of excuses but if she can break a habit after 40 years, surely I can lose this weight I've had for 10 years!!

I'm very, very proud of you mom - sorry I don't tell you more often.

Update at the end of week 4....

Well, as Brent was saying on Wednesday (sorry, I'm a little overdue for my weekly post) the endo of this past week was the end of the first rest week (week 4 of the program). However, I had still hoped to lose a pound this week because I had actually done really well with my diet even last weekend (which are always the hardest time to stay good on the diet). But, no....of course not. No change in weight at all. No loss, no gain. However, as Brent said we did do measurements. At my natural waist line I lost 1" and also have lost 1" off my thighs. This is definately good news. Loss in inches is always good.....it's still just a little disheartening that I haven't lost so much as a pound. My pictures also did not show a difference that I could see. I still look soft in places I would rather not look soft in! :) Oh well....I will press on and continue with the workouts.

That day again...

Well, today is Wednesday Weigh Day which means our weekly post time! This week (week 4) is somewhat of an off week. Weeks 1-3 involve more strength training. Week 4 is stretching twice (which we skip), yoga twice (which I skip), and then kenpo, cardio, and core training. Week 5-7 will be back to additional strength training so I was assuming this week my be my first gain week or maybe, if I'm lucky, I'll lose 1/2 a pound. Well surprise, surprise; I lost 1.8 lbs this week bringing my total to 9.5 lbs in 4 weeks.

We also did pics and measurements, which we'll do at the end of every rest week. I was starting to feel somewhat of a weight loss in simply being able to put on some of my dress pants a little more comfortably, but assumed it wasn't much. They before and after pics were really good to see. I can honestly say that the first pics are really rough to look at!! I'm getting better but nothing to send in to Tony Horton just yet. Measuring I was a little surprised that I've gained some areas where I assumed I lost such as the thighs and my bicep.

However, in my areas of concern (belly and waist) I'm really excited about the improvement. When I measure my belly I try to go for the widest point, somewhere around the belly button maybe a little higher. For my belly I've lost 3" and can really, really tell the difference in the picture comparison. I also measure my waist under the belly about where I wear my pants and I've lost 1" there also. All this in a month and I'm pretty excited!! NYC is about 6 weeks away so my goal is to lose a total of 20 lbs before we leave. I fully expect the weekly weight loss to slow down but I'll have to work that much harder.

I still haven't decided if I should put the before pics, 1 month in, 2 months in, and the final pics. Mainly because its not something I'm that proud of so it may just depend on what the pics look at when all is said in done.

As for an update on Celice... well, I may just let her post (vent) when she has time. She's been doing every exercise with me and we eat the same things so she expects the same results. However, she was already in a lot better shape than I was to begin with. I have cut out 3-4 sodas a day (170 calories each) as well as all my snacks (mmm... m&m's almost daily) and even whole meals (there were several days I would eat cereal at home - 6am - then eat eggs/bacon/biscuit at work - 830am)!

Where I am at right now, 185lbs, is the heaviest I'll ever be again.... hopefully...

The Infamous Weigh Day....

Not much to report! Brent and I both turned it up in our workouts this week. We worked so hard and are both incredibly sore! When I say sore - I mean really sore. It's never hurt so bad to sit down in my life! :) However, as hard as we worked...neither of us lost even a full pound!!!! I actually gained .2 lbs and Brent lost like .6 or something crazy. I'm sure if we thought about it we could figure out what happened. I'm sure the splurging on the pizza, coke and wingstop didn't help at all! ha ha! I can say that I still fill like things are fitting differently, which at the end of the day is just as good. I'm determined to fit into that pair of jeans I have sitting in my closet either way it goes! Brent has some things that are starting to feel like they fit better too. So.....to wrap it all up, no weight lost this week to speak of....but things are looking up!

So far not so fun......

So, I completely understand how men lose more weight faster than women. However, I'm just here to say that pretty much stinks! How is that fair?! I expected it. However, it doesn't really make it any better when Brent loses 3 lbs and I only lose 1.5....to put me back at about where we started when we first started weighing in - the week before P90X. However, since I'm so stubborn (it's pretty much ingrained in me) I refuse to give up! Bring it on P90X!!! I am starting to see things fit a little better even if it doesn't show on the scale - that's a nice reward.
So, tomorrow starts week 3 on P90X. Can't wait to see if I can lose more next week.....
We'll see!!!

Weekly Weigh-in and Wagons...

Well, week 3 of weigh-ins. We both had a good week and worked hard. Celice is enjoying yoga much more than me so we both have a Wednesday rest day and then I also slack on Sundays. But I may try to start supplementing a new workout on Sundays for variety and b/c I can't do yoga!

8/19
Brent - 3 lbs
Celice - 1.5 lbs

I have however, really, really, REALLY been craving sodas again and today was the day that I fell off the wagon. I woke up craving Mt Dew!! I waited, drank some water, waited, but when lunch hit; well thats another story. I had to get out for a haircut and decided to pick up lunch on the way back. I went with WingStop!!! Best wings by far and I was needing some manly food, so I got 10 wings, fries, and a LARGE coke. I'm sure I'll pay for it later or next weigh-in but I just needed something not as healthy, something comfortable, something that just feeds my soul and not just the body!!

Here's hoping I wake up on the wagon in the morning. I still have 3lbs to lose and would like to drop 13 if possible!! 20 lbs in about 12 weeks? why not!! We are going to NYC and I need to be in walking shape!

Celice you're doing good, but just b/c I had this one weak moment don't think I won't beat you again next week!!

Time for me to contribute.....

So....I figured it was finally time for me to contribute to the blog. Brent's been giving me such a hard time about it - I just never knew what to write about until now. However, since he's talking smack about our competition, I figured you should hear both sides! :) So, yes, game on. Unfortunately, this week was a definate set back for me. I am very happy for Brent, though (even though he told me I sucked last week when I lost a pound and he didn't!).

I can't wait to see the results of P90X. Hopefully there will be results! There better be if I'm gonna be as sore as I am today for an extended period of time!

So, here we go. Good luck, babe....you're gonna need it!
Love you!

Weight Day

Today is Wednesday so another weigh day. After a hard week of working out we finally had to weigh in. Not to brag too much but I also had a better week of eating than Celice. Although, its not completely her fault; her boss was in town for a few days so lunch was not under her control. However, I made a good effort to stay away from Mt Dew and to avoid splurging during the week.

This week:
Brent -4 lbs
Celice +3 lbs

Well, thats the update.

I have no doubt that she'll be back to normal on the next weigh-in.

P90X week 1

Today is Day 5 of our workout program. We are doing well. Celice is actually doing really great and I'm trying at least. She has really been pushing herself working out more than I expected. I'm a lazy dude so anything is better than nothing for me I guess.


Last night was rough! Day 5 - Legs and Back + Ab Ripper. Legs and Back exercise is a full hour. Lots of squats, lunges, and lots of pullups. I'm pretty disappointed that pullups aren't nearly as easy as I hoped or remembered but I'm recording my progress so hopefully by the end of it they will be much easier. Celice is actually using the resistance bands wrapped around the pullup bar. It is easier but I think she is still getting a good workout so that helps for those that can't do pullups. My arms aren't really exhausted or anything today but my quads are killing me. I thought I might have really hurt myself last night but I'll try to fight through it. My legs are really tight today but I'm walking so it's not as bad as it felt last night for sure.


Ab Ripper X - this is no joke. Honestly I had to skip most of it last night. After a solid hour of killing it on pullups and squats and such I just didn't have anything left. I tried to do as much as possible but it sure wasn't as much as I would have liked. We are really trying to track our progress so I expect things to get easier, after all we haven't even done each workout yet. We actually won't even get to all the different workouts until week 5.


The other thing is that I have never wanted to make a lifestyle change. I would much prefer to diet for awhile, accomplish what I want/need, then go back and drink my sodas again. Well, today is day 2 of quitting sodas. Melissa, a friend at work, recently gave me some 'Crystal Light Energy' to help suplement the caffiene. It's only like 10 calories but 60g of caffiene and it taste good too. I don't expect to never drink any sodas again, but I would like to quit while the competition is going on at least. I think it has to help drinking more water and all its just not my preference!

P90X

Yep, thats right time to get in shape. I actually ordered this by mistake through www.beachbody.com. I put it in the basket and began the checkout process b/c it was being advertised as only $39.95 instead of the normal $120 plus there is a 30 day trial. I wanted to see what the 'trial' was about but as I'm going through it asks a question like do you want to pay for the whole thing now or make multiple payments at $39.95/month. Well, $40 is cheper than $80 so I'll pay for the whole thing now! Easy choice right? No, its actually $39.95 3xs.... so I thought I was paying $60 (incl s&h) but I wound up being charged $150. I was pretty ticked off but Celice was really interested in this so whatever.

So we got it in on Tuesday and I see we still need to go buy lots of extra stuff, such as a chinup bar, exercise mats, some free weights, and reistance bands. It also called for a heart rate monitor (but I can count to 25 pretty easy in 10 seconds so I skipped that) and a body fat caliper (but I'm not even sure where I can get one of those). So Tuesday we opened the box read the directions and tried to figure out what I just spent close to $250 on (after other neccessities). The first thing it calls for is a fit test. Basically there are minimums that 'should be met' before continuing. Honestly they didn't seem to be tough either. Well we did this Tuesday night and it alone was a workout.

The only one I'll share is my vertical leap. It was 20", which I'm not real sure how good that is. The minimum for guys was 5" and for girls was 3" which is really, really bad. Luckily I passed that part, 20" isn't what I would like but more than I expected. Celice actually cleared 10" I think, which really shocked me!! I'm curious to see how this test relates at the end. The others (pullups, pushups, in-and-outs [crunches-esque], toe-touch, bicep curls, wall squats) will change I see that pretty easily but I don't usually think of my vertical jump improving too much so we'll see.

I won't share my other test results, because they weren't anything to write (home) about for sure. If I can stay with it and improve then I'll post the before and after at the end. We also measured around the neck, bicep, belly button, waist, and thigh - again, it's not good.

Anyway, last night (8/6/2009) was the first video - Core Synergetics. It was tough, really tough. We were huffing and puffing before the warm-ups were over!! It's about an hour long video and we got through (at least attempted) more than 1/2 of the workouts. There were 1 or 2 that I didn't even attempt. They are pretty hardcore! I'm looking forward to doing it again, hopefully with better rest the night before and in the right mindset (at least knowing what I'm sort of doing). I wasn't too sore today when I woke up but getting more and more sore as the day goes on.

The schedule for weeks (1-3) are the same:
8/6 - Core Synergetics
8/7 - Cardio X
8/8 - Shoulders & Arms, + Ab Ripper - I'm dreading this one...
8/9 - Yoga X -
8/10 - Legs & Back, + Ab Ripper
8/11 - Kenpo X
8/12 - Day Off OR X Stretch (another video - probably what we'll do)

You do this for 3 weeks, called the 'bring it' weeks, then switch to 'recovery' in week 4, which is Yoga, Core Synergistics, Kenpo, X Stretch, Cardio X, Yoga again, day off OR X Stretch again.

Also, this is week 2 of our 12 week weight loss bet. I'm changing my diet and trying to cut out sodas and such and starving myself it seems.

Results so far:
Celice - 1
Brent +/- 0

This will be tricky to keep it up since its so time consuming. I still haven't figured out how to do this, eat dinner at a normal time, and still have some of my night free for relaxing, unwinding, and time with the Lord. Any suggestions?

Game On

Well, we are about 12 weeks from vacation time and I need to lose some weight. Well, so I happened to tell my beautiful wife, who doesn't need to lose any, and she has the same goal. So basically we each want to lose 10 lbs in the next 12 weeks. I could stand to lose 20 probably but I want to give my self a realistic goal anyway.

So being the competitive guy that I am, we make a wager.

* If she loses 10 lbs and I do not she gets her $200 designer jeans and $100 blow money.
* If I lose 10 lbs and she doesn't then I get $300, possibly for a blue-ray, I don't really know what I need honestly other than a TV... which I can't get for $300
* However, if we both lose we have to split the winnings so we each would get $150 for whatever we choose.

GAME ON! 10 lbs in 12 weeks for all the money!

Wednesday, July 29 will be the first weigh in. We will weigh in every Wednesday morning and the last weigh in will be Oct 14 before vacation on the 15th-20th. Now granted you may think the odds are in my favor, and I agree somewhat, but she is very good about eating healthy and that's not me. Neither one of us will have a gym membership or anything else. Just old-fashioned eating right and trying to walk/run. Which my problem is that my knees really hurt a lot when I run so we'll see how that goes.

Oh, I also plan on tempting her with goodies to ensure I win, shhhh.... she never reads the blog so she'll never know!

Also I'm willing to take any suggestions you may have.

a great example for all

DJ Williams, an outstanding football player, gives back to others. What a story, its not long but it makes you think would I have done that? Would I give MY trophy to someone else?

http://www.wholehogsports.com/adg/257873

So now I ask, what are you willing to give to someone else today to make their life better, even if its just for a moment. We don't have to fix everyone's everything all the time, but making someONE's life easier is worth it if we are willing.

Good Friday!

It's Friday, but Sunday is coming!!!

Some of you may have heard this but you might have never seen it and heard the full thing. I know I haven't. This is amazing, click on the link below to enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzto6khRp7w&feature=related

Celice's New Do!!

the day BEFORE:

the morning of the "big" day. Celice just now started getting nervous

and the AFTER:

Celice getting ready this morning, probably one of my favorite dresses too!