TGIF (for me)

Hello out there!
Sorry I have been a slacker lately...Ive been a busy bee trying to prepare for my first horse show of the season that is this weekend. So much to pack and buy and get together...Good thing its so much fun :)
So I will hopefully take some pictures this weekend that I can post...I usually suck at taking pictures at the shows...But I will try!
You would think that after 20+ years of showing horses I wouldn't get that nervous pukey feeling anymore...But I have it right now!

Yikes!
Be back on Monday
Here are some pictures of my baby boy!!! :) Isnt he SOOO pretty?? :)

McFatty Monday....

...yes, I know it is Tuesday.
So I haven't updated in a couple weeks but I have been happy with my progress.
Last week after we got back from Napa I was a little concerned about going to my Weight Watchers meeting b/c I had basically taken the weekend off. And by weekend, I mean Thursday through Monday. I ate what I wanted and drank quite a bit of wine, and enjoyed every single second of it. I think I did have WW in the back of my head the whole time b/c I think I ate less than I would have before.
As you all know I am not a fan of telling ANYONE how much I weigh (which I keep spelling way, so if I do that and don't catch it, sorry :)). Well on Tuesday (4/13) when I went to my WW meeting I got on the scale expecting a gain. Well....I was at an even 200.0 lbs. I was excited that I actually lost like .4 lbs, but bummed b/c I didnt get under 200lbs....well my leader rocks. She was like, do you have a cami on under your shirt? And I did...so she had me take off my shirt which put me under 200lbs (199.6)! I WAS SO EXCITED!!!!! I know it might be cheating, but really I didnt care! I was thrilled.
So today...I went in not knowing what to expect b/c I didnt have time to weigh myself this morning....I lost another 1.2lbs! So now I am at 198.4. I even told my husband how much I weighed last week. That is the first time I have ever told him how much I weigh....that was difficult though!
I told him the only way I was going to tell him "my number" was if he told me how much HE thought I weighed when I started WW (I know, I am mean and could be asking for my ego to be crushed)....he said he has kind of figured out how much I weighed by me saying certain things, but he thought I weighed somewhere in the 180's..Bless his heart. I dont know if he was lying, but I don't care. It made me feel better. :)

So my goal for the next 7 weeks is to lose 13 lbs. That is about 1.5 lbs a week. I think I can do it.
I started running outside again, which is a real bitch, but it is so good for me. My goal is to run outside at least 3 days (if it isnt cold and rainy) and then go to the gym at least 2x a week to do some weight training. And hopefully that will get me to my 40lbs lost by the first couple weeks in June!
Thanks for listening to me ramble....I think between my blog and WW it has really held me accountable to this weight loss stuff!
Thanks so much!!
:)

Picture Overload :)

Alrighty...where should we start! We are back from my husbands birthday trip to San Francisco and Napa valley. And it was sooo much fun!!! We flew out Thursday night and got into SF around 5. We got our car and headed to Fisherman's Wharf where we were staying the first night. The hotel I booked informed us that they were overbooked and were sending us across the street to the Hilton. No skin off my back...especially when they informed me that they were paying for the room and the $45 parking fee!! Whoo hoo :) We went to dinner down in Fisherman's Wharf at a bakery/restaurant that made turtles and other animals out of bread :) I was pretty entertained by it!!

 

The next morning Don woke up really early (6:30am) b/c he wanted to go exploring. The first thing we did since it was so early was catch the Cable cars from Fisherman's Wharf area down to Union Square. The great thing about being up that early is that no one is waiting to ride them...so we hopped right on!!

 

They have some crazy big hills in that city. I wish I lived there b/c my ass would be much smaller! Don wanted to go to the cable car museum but little did we know that everything in San Francisco doesn't open until like 10am. WTF is that all about?? So I looked in the window and snapped this picture. But I did sneak a peak into the garage area and one of the workers came up behind me and was like can I help you? And I said no, just looking....and he proceeded to ask us where we were from, and tell us all about the history, and how they run and show us the cable in the street!! It was like our own personal tour :) He was so nice, and he was also from Ireland and had an awesome accent!! :)

 

Next we wandered over to Coit Tower. I was so tired from walking up and down hills when we got there I said I wasnt walking up any stairs to go to the top...Luckily for me when we went inside there was a big sign that said, Elevator Only. No taking the stairs. I was thrilled :) The view from the top was awesome...

 

When we were done at the tower we wanted to go over to Lombard Street. On the way I saw this thing...What the heck is it??? Nothing grows that big in MN. So if you know what this is, please tell me! I love it...and I want one.

 

From the top (and bottom) of Lombard Street "The Curviest Street in the World"

 

When we were done here we were going to go get the car, but I hadnt seen any sea lions...so I made Don walk all the way back down to Pier 39 so I could get this picture...

 

We went to the Golden Gate Park on our way out of town. We stopped at the Conservatory, it was overrated. Sorry people who like it...but the Como Park Conservatory in St. Paul, MN is way better...and cheaper to get into!

 

This was also in the park...

 

Next we went to the ocean. I had never seen the Pacific Ocean... 

On to the Golden Gate Bridge! We drove across it and parked on the Sausalito side, and then walked about half way back. I was irrationally scared that someone was going to push me over the edge...They had signs up along the way that told you what to do if you wanted to jump, and what would happen if you did jump! I don't really like bridges as a general rule so walking out on this one was kind of a big deal for me. But it is really cool, and the view is awesome.

 

Hello, Wine Country!!!! After a quick stroll through Sausalito we headed up to Napa. We were actually staying in Calistoga, but we wanted to check out Napa first. Of course we had to stop at the Target. My husband loves looking at Targets he has never been to...Hes a strange fella. :) 

This is our room at the EuroSpa and Inn. It sounds cheesey, but it was really nice!! They had a continental breakfast every morning, snacks and wine in the afternoon and the people who ran it were super nice. And originally from Minnesota!

 

Saturday morning I had booked a hot air balloon ride. So we got up at 5am and headed to Napa, which was about 30 minutes from our hotel. Well...it was too windy and foggy that morning so after checking in and standing outside for almost an hour they told us we weren't going to be able to fly...oh well I guess. So we went about our merry way...and decided to check out a hotel Don had once stayed in with his parents...and then on to a couple wineries...

 

This was the hotel in Yountville that we checked out, The Village Inn...really pretty!

 

Oh, on our way to the wineries Don decides he wants to find this random dam that is on the map. So we start out on this adventure to find it...We find this stream of water running down a hill. Ok. Well Don wants to climb up the hill to see what is above it. I do not. But he goes and then when he is about half way up..I change my mind. So I start climbing. This sucker was STEEP!! By the time I get to the top I am pretty sure I was having an asthma attack. Not even kidding. When I climb hills my lungs get really tight and I cant breathe. So it was awesome. I thought I was gonna die. Anyway, turns out there is a cool looking lake at the top and so we explore al ittle. Well on the way down we get smart and realize there is a path about 500 feet to the right of where this picture is taken...Much easier than the path we took up!

 

This is the Rhine House at the Beringer Vineyards. This place was gorgeous and we just went there for a tasting b/c all their tours were done for the day.

 

This is on the way up to Castello di Amorosa. "The Castle" as people call it, I guess, was built by a man who has another winery in Napa. It cost him $39 million dollars and he solely funded it. It was built with old bricks and stones from Italy that were once old castles. It was really cool, and they had really good wine. We bought three bottles from there!

 

On our way back to the hotel we decided to check out the California version of "Old Faithful". It was in this cheesy little park and it costs 10 bucks to get in. They had it so you couldn't even take it seriously. They had a petting zoo and everything. But the geyser did go off every 10-15 minutes so we got to see it a couple times... 

Saturday night we went to dinner in Napa at Coles Chop House. It was amazing. This was Don's birthday dinner...

 

Sunday we took the Platypus Tour bus to four different wineries. Platypus is an awesome thing to do b/c you don't have to drive to any of these wineries and you can get wasted :) None of the wineries we went to this day sell outside of the winery, so you can not get them in stores. The first one was Tudal...the guy who did this tasting was really cool and he gave us a lot to drink :) We didn't buy anything from them, but their wines were yummy!

 

Next was Rutherford Grove...this place was really cool, and we had lunch by the fireplace since it was cold and rainy outside. We bought a bottle of Merlot from here. I have never liked Red wines but I found a few I liked on this trip...looks like I am growing up in my old age :) 

Next was Honig.This place was pretty cool. The guy who did our tasting couldn't stop talking about Minnesota. I guess his sister lives here and he really likes it... We bought a bottle from here but I don't remember what it was :)

 

Next was the place that is on this banner. I don't remember the name..and cant pronounce it either. This place I was pretty much over all the wines. Everything started tasting the same. But it had an awesome view which I was infatuated with! We bought a bottle here too...Don't ask me what it was though.

So that is about it! If you made it this far in the post, kudos! I went a ltitle overboard with the pictures and commentary. But I wanted to get it all up in one post, otherwise I would probably put it off and never do it.
Hope you enjoyed! :)

Two posts in one day!

  Look at me go! Two posts in one day is pretty good for me ;)

So I went to my Weight Watchers meeting today and I lost 1.8 lbs! I was stoked b/c of the holiday and how much candy I ate :) But I am .5 lbs away from having a "1" in front of my weight. Whoo hoo :)

Ten on Tuesdays!

1.  If you could travel back in time, would you?  What decade would you visit?I would probably go back to the 1950's. Things sound so much simpler back then. And I am kind of liking the idea of being a stay at home wife right about now! 
2. What was your best Halloween costume?  (fun to make? most creative?)Well I don't remember the exact costume I had on...probably a clown or a ghost, but one year my mom decided it would be fun to dress up our pony, hook her to our cart that we had and go trick-or-treating in that. It was a blast! I don't think Patty (the pony) appreciated being dressed up, but it was a blast.  
3. Do you like your name?  If you weren't called by your name, what would you want to be called?Its ok. I went to school with two or three other Julie's so it was kind of a pain to always wonder if people were talking to me or another person. But for the most part I like it. 
4. In the past year, what is the BEST recipe you made.  Please share it!I found a really good lasagna recipe that I like. Or the chocolate chip cookies that I make. Those are the bomb. I don't have the recipe at work but I will try and remember to post it.
5. Look around – what is the nearest object or picture hanging on the wall?
In my cube I have tons of papers hanging on the wall...but the first thing I see is my calendar with tropical islands on it...Makes me want to go to one. This months is the Grenadines.
6. What was the last movie you saw in a theater?  Would you recommend it?
We went and saw Avatar in 3D. It was awesome. Totally go see it. And if you can still find it in the 3D theater go see it in 3D. Totally worth it.
7. Did you go to summer camp?  Will you/do you send your kids to camp?
Nope I did not go to summer camp. My summer camp was horse shows. I don't know if I will send my kids. If they want to go I sure will!
8. What kind of ringtone do you have?
One of the ones that is preset on my phone. I really want Hey Soul Sister though...I'm lovin' that song right now!!
9. Where is the farthest away from home you have ever been?
Jamaica. Can I please go back?
10. Has anyone ever written a song or a poem for or about you? No. My husband writes me cute notes though and that is good enough for me :)

So excited!!

Happy belated Easter ya'll!! (Or Passover, whichever it is you celebrate!). I hope everyone had a great weekend! I had a busy, but good weekend.
Friday we hung out with friends, had dinner at their house and then went bowling. I didnt even break 100 the first game, I was annoyed. I am usually a decent bowler so that low of a score frustrates me. Oh well. :) Those friends we hung out with are having some issues getting pregnant. They have been trying on and off for over a year and she is on some drugs now. I feel horrible for her b/c I know how much she wants a baby but she seriously told me that she would be pissed if my husband and I got pregnant before they did. WTF? Who says that to someone they consider a good friend?! They were both in our wedding for crying out loud!! I was just appalled by that and I didnt know what to say to her....
Anyway, Saturday was Easter celebration #1. We went to my Grandmas house and hung out from noon until about 630. We had a big dinner and I got to play with my nephew. He is so freaking adorable!! :) After we got home I decided to run to the gym b/c I felt like a hippo from eating so much and then we sat around at home, did our taxes and laundry. We are an exciting couple I tell ya!
Sunday was Easter celebration #2, this one with the in-laws. We started out with church. I loved it! The priest who married us came back from his 9 month sabbatical to do the Easter Mass. He is awesome, I love him! His homily was awesome and he makes church so much more enjoyable. Dont get me wrong, I like going to church, but when you have someone good to listen to it really helps. When we got married we had a lot of people come up to us and tell us how "worried" they were about coming to a Catholic wedding and then after they told us how great it was and how much they enjoyed Father Charlie. It was good to hear :)

 That is Father Charlie in our wedding picture, he has since shaved the beard :)
After church we went to the in-laws house and did an Easter egg hunt. Umm...let me tell you that there are no children in this family. So it was me (age 28), my husband (30 on Saturday) and my brother-in-law (24) searching for eggs. My FIL told me that until we have kids we have to entertain them by searching for eggs...mmmkay. Then we had dinner and hung out for a bit. When we got home we went for a walk around Centennial Lakes in Edina, it was so nice out! I love this weather we are having.
So Easter was good, but kept us busy all weekend.
Today is my Thursday already! We are leaving for my husbands birthday trip on Thursday, I am SO excited!!
I have reservations in San Francisco for Thursday night and I figure we can explore for a while on Friday before we drive to Napa that night.

We are staying in Napa Friday night thru Monday morning....

Saturday morning (bright and early...630 AM!) we are taking a ride in one of these...I cant FREAKING wait!

Seriously, how awesome will that be?!?!? Has anyone ever taken a hot-air balloon ride? How was it??
Sunday I booked a tour around to some wineries. After some reading and researching I went with Platypus Tours. I hope its as fun as it sounds and looks!

Whoo hoo! Seriously...can you tell I am excited??
I need to empty the camera, b/c I know I will be taking a TON of pictures!!
I hope everyone had a great weekend and your week is going quickly!!
P.S. I lost a follower...Boo.