Tuesday, May 31, 2011

May 31

Olympics, Day 1
We started our end-of-the-year activities today with the opening ceremonies of the Olympics followed by a nationball tournament amongst the civilizations. I get excited for how excited the kids get for all of these activities.

May 30

"Murph"
In honor of Memorial Day and all those who sacrifice to keep this country free and safe, the CrossFit world did a workout for our fallen heroes. We do many hero WODs, but this one is by far one of the most difficult ones.

In memory of Navy Lieutenant Michael P. Murphy, 29, of Patchogue, NY, who was killed in Afghanistan on June 28th, 2005. The workout was one of Mike's favorites and he'd names it 'Body Armor.' From here on it will be referred to as 'Murph' in honor of the focused warrior and great American who wanted nothing more in life than to serve this great country and the beautiful people who make it what it is.

1 mile run, 100 pullups, 200 pushups, 300 air squats, 1 mile run

I ripped my hand in the third round of my 5/10/15 partition of the WOD so I subbed situps in for the pullups. I felt like a wimp because I didn't really do the workout as intended, but I still got through it.

May 29

The hard truth
I came across this picture of myself from September of last year. It was two weeks into me doing CrossFit. It was the largest I had ever felt. I know that I work hard doing CrossFit, but I'll be honest with you, the numbers on the scale haven't moved much. Sure, I haven't gotten the eating down until my recent attempt and I'm hoping that it sticks this time around. But I had no idea how much I had changed until I saw this picture of me.
I look swollen. I cannot believe how large my face looks. I mean, I see myself every day, but I had to forward this to a friend to ask if I still looked this large.
So here's a small testimony to CrossFit working. I can't even imagine how much I'd change if I could get my eating reasonably under control.

May 28

My friends rule
And are super creative and crafty. A few of us met for a T-shirt ripping/tying party to glam up our mudrun T-shirts that finally came in. One of my friends volunteered to have it at her place, the day before she was hosting her daughter's 10th birthday party. So before the T-shirt ripping began, I got a lesson in what it means to be a crafty mom. I'm sure this is no big deal to most, but to the single girl with no kids, these are rad party favors. Who would have known that melting chocolate, pouring it into a mold with a pretzel stick, throwing it into a bag, and attaching a handmade hair clip would have been an easy, but tasty and time consuming gift.
I enjoyed this glass of sangria as I marveled at her creativity.


May 27

Keeetteeee
If you could only hear the adorableness of how that really sounds when my Baby Cheeks says it. She loves her kitty. She kisses her kitty. She takes her kitty everywhere. It's super cute.

May 26

Cheese!!
I know it's day 10, but I'm eating me some cheese in some bean burritos. Thanks, Mom. :)

May 25

Open House
You know what that means??? The end of the school year is near. And that we need to build our globes that we started during the first week of school. They're a cool part of the classroom decor for parents to see. Plus, they're fun for those who are tactile learners and a HUGE challenge for those who aren't are are used to being good at everything.
Best line of the morning, in reference to half of the globe put together: "This looks like Whoopie Goldberg's hair!"


May 24

Here they are
In all their glory. Man they crack me up. It's been a good year. They were dressed up for their mythology presentations. They couldn't get an A without dressing up as the god/goddess they were presenting. I was impressed that most of them dressed up.

May 23

Love
Just me and some of my CrossFit ladies. When posted on Facebook, one of my friends said that we were probably the buffest chicks in the place. That's right!!

May 22

Rapture-who?
If you know me, you know that the rapture rumor was pure humor to me. In fact, one of my friends told me on Friday that if she didn't show up for work on Monday, I could have her house, car, and belongings. She said that because she knew that if in fact God opened the heavens above and took his chosen followers, I would not be one of them. For the record, if that would have happened for real, I would have seriously reconsidered my agnostic beliefs. But it didn't, and so I remain.
This was probably THE funniest picture that was posted on Facebook that day. Man I love people's sick sense of humor.

RIP Macho Man. RIP.

May 21

The turnaround
I made this delicious meal with the cleanse end-of-the-week groceries I had in my fridge. It didn't taste as good as it looks, but I was still pretty damn proud.

May 20

Oh wait, there are other options?
Still coming out of my crazy cleanse meltdown, I decided to come home from work and pout on the couch on this Friday night. When a friend texted and asked what I wanted to eat (she was trying to cheer me up), I said a protein burger from In-n-Out on a whim, and as a joke. But what I didn't realize was that I actually COULD have it. So I did. Two of them. And then I had two more the next day. It was what ultimately got me over the hump of the halfway point in the cleanse. Phew.

No, there was no cheese. Yes, I had the sauce. Don't judge me.

May 19

MELTDOWN!!!
This is what happened to me when I was faced with making dinner decisions with my friends. Dinner decisions. Seriously. I was so hungry and all I wanted was a piece of bread but I couldn't. What I didn't want was another chicken breast with veggies. I needed something else. Anything else.
What a brat.

May 18



I seriously love him. A lot.

May 17

And so it begins
Days 1 and 2 were ok on the cleanse. I was strong. I felt healthy. I had no temptations.
And then day 3, 4, 5, and 6 hit and I wondered why I was doing this cleanse. My class had a going away NACHO BAR for my student teacher, whose last day was today. I couldn't eat the nachos, but I had promised them this party and couldn't leave the room. So I had a salad instead. It hurt. It hurt a lot.

But I powered through. Barely.
 What they ate

What I ate. Yum.
 

May 16

Wanted: A pedicure that lasts longer than 3 days
Um, can someone tell me what happened to the nail polish on my toe? Don't worry, the nail is still there, but the nail polish decided it didn't want to be a part of my foot anymore. And really, after looking at this picture, I don't blame it. Why does my foot look like it belongs on an 80-year old woman?

In case you're wondering (and I know you are), I went on to lose 3 additional toe nail polishes. It's still a mystery.

May 15

Doom's day starts tomorrow
I decided to clean up my eating. I figured I'd jump start it with a 10-day cleanse that I start tomorrow. This cleanse involves fiber drinks (which don't have as bad an effect as one might think), probiotics, fruits, vegetables, and lean proteins. So basically I can't eat any carbs or dairy, or drink anything but water. The drinking isn't going to kill me. The lack of carbs will.

No carbs here :(

After an hour of grilling chicken, cutting fruits and vegetables, and preparing my meals for the week

May 14

First competition
Not  big deal for the normal folk, but this weekend was the first time our gym, which opened in September of last year, competed. I did not compete, but our team of four kicked some major behind this weekend and put our gym's name and hard work on the map. We came in third overall out of 19 other gyms that competed. I was so proud of us.

After the second workout... exhausted

Team support

May 13

Friday, the 13th
Because I posted a picture of one of the rad Cheekses, I shall follow up with a picture of the other rad Cheekses. I don't remember when this was taken, but I do know that it was one of the many times where me and Cheeks were messing around with the camera on my phone. This one was my favorite of this bunch, because it shows how randomly hilarious she can be when she's comfortable.

May 12

Bringing it back
Because I'm SOOO behind, I'm going to post some pictures that I came across while going through my files for a slide show. I'm pretty sure there are things that have happened in these last few weeks, but if there's not a picture for it, I forgot it.
So here's random #1:
My niece, kickin it in her shades and hoodie.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

May 11

My window?
Although it has nothing to do with my post from the other week about a door closing and a window opening... It's still pertinent to use the same metaphor.
Today I got word that I will be placed at a Jr. high as a Language Arts teacher next year. Granted, it may change 10 more times before the school year actually starts, but the possibility is there and the thought is in my head. And I'll admit, although I don't want to leave my secure spot that I have now, the challenge is appealing. And I'm ALWAYS up for a challenge.

P.S. That girl in the picture is not me.

May 10

I flippin RULE!
I don't know why I enjoy this pain so friggin much, but CrossFit does something to me that I cannot explain. The last two days of workouts have been brutal, but I've done them. And I've done them at the prescribed requirements. And although ripping my hand from the bar is painful and I'm a big baby about it, it gives me a thrill that I get through these workouts.

May 9

California State Testing
We had started Testing last week. I capitalize the word Testing because it's THAT serious. Like, I have to check out and in my testing materials each day from a locked room, be with them at all times (and if I'm not, have them locked up somewhere), read DIRECTLY from the test administrator's booklet, not answer any question about any test question, .... and watch the kids suffer through 1.5-2 hours of testing for four days. It's brutal. And unnecessary. I mean, I get that there needs to be accountability. I'm all for that. But honestly, there has to be a better way. My kids are 12 and they struggle. I can't even imagine the SEVEN-YEAR OLDS who have to do the same thing.
But I digress...
The POSITIVE for the day is that one of my severely ADHD students, who on any other occasion, has rushed through and been known to mark down literally anything to just finish, has taken her time on every section of this test. I know how painful it might be for her to sit still and silent for so long, but she has made an honest effort to read each and every passage, question, and answer. In short, she tried. And that made me so proud.


May 8

Momma Llama (and remembering Grams, too)
Happy Mothers' Day to the world's best Mom. No joke. I'm for real. Like, literally.


And to a Grams whose memory still lives strong in my heart.

May 7

Beach blanket bingo
Or something like that. Spent the day at the beach for a friend's bday. I was super excited the clouds burned away for a few hours so that we could really enjoy the sun. Overall, a super fun day.



May 6

An oldie, but goodie
So I'm organizing a group of 30 girls from my gym to do a mudrun in June. I got the paperwork together, I got everyone's payments, I sent in the paperwork. Some of the girls wrote checks directly to me. This was one of them. This is why I love the girls from my gym.

May 5

Fight Gone... better than I thought!
So there's this CrossFit workout. It's called Fight Gone Bad. And it's probably my least favorite workout of all the CrossFit workouts out there. Granted, I haven't done all of them, but this one SUCKS. Let me break it down for you:
It's a 17 minute workout.
Minute 1: Wall Balls (giant beach ball that weighs 14 lbs. Squat. Throw up against a wall. Catch. Squat. Repeat.)
Minute 2: Sumo Deadlift High Pull (55 lb bar. Pull from ground to shoulders with elbows up. Control bar back to ground. Repeat.)
Minute 3: Box Jumps (Jump from ground onto 20in box. Jump down. Repeat.)
Minute 4: Push Press (Lift 55lb bar from ground to rest on shoulders. Push bar above head, locking out elbows. Back to shoulders. Push above head. Repeat.)
Minute 5: Row for calories (Sit on a row machine. Strap in. Row the heck out it.)
Minute 6: Rest.
Minute 7: Repeat minute 1.
Minute 8: Repeat minute 2.
Minute 9: Repeat minute 3.
Minute 10: Repeat minute 4.
Minute 11: Repeat minute 5.
Minute 12: Rest.
Minute 13: Repeat minute 1.
Minute 14: Repeat minute 2.
Minute 15: Repeat minute 3.
Minute 16: Repeat minute 4.
Minute 17: Repeat minute 5.

Minute 18-20: Die.
Minute 21: Stand up and find out what you scored.

I've done this workout 3 times now. The first time I only did 35lbs and stepped up on the box (as opposed to jumped up). The second time I did the 55 pounds and wanted to die. I scored 188 total reps. This time I did it, 55lbs, had a difficult time getting the Wall Balls up high enough (aka ROM, range of motion), still wanted to die, but scored 213 reps. A big, fat PR (personal record).

Hell to the yeah.

May 4

Anyone?
Anyone need a refrigerator? It's from my old apartment. Was only used for 2 years... and if you know me, it wasn't used much. My new place came with appliances and this has been sitting in my garage since September.
No, but really. Refrigerator for sale. Inquire within.

May 3

I love them
It really is the small things that I love. For instance, dry, crunchy leaves. I LOVE to step on them. Something about the sound and feeling under my foot makes me so happy. So you can imagine my excitement when I walked onto my campus and saw this!!


I revel in the possibility of it...

Monday, May 2, 2011

May 2

Angel? Notsomuch
This has been in our staff lounge for a very long time, probably as long as I've worked at my school (this is my 9th year), and this is the first time I've really "noticed" it.
And then I laughed when I thought of 50 other words that could replace "angel".

May 1

When one door closes...
You know what they say about the ending of a chapter in one's life? Actually, I'm not sure how the ending of the chapter quote goes... but I'm sure we're talking something close to the door/window analogy.
My point is this... I hadn't realized that this door closing was such a large chapter in my life (see how I combined the two?). And when it was brought to my attention, it kind of side swiped me like, "Oh, duh, that makes complete sense," and I haven't been able to NOT think about it since then.
So the moral of my story for May 1st is that a door closed today. I didn't even realize it was such a huge, cathedral-type door, but it is. And maybe now that this realization has occurred, I can actually move on with the next chapter in my life.
Or maybe I just think about this stuff far too much....

Sunday, May 1, 2011

April 30

Epic
What started out being an easy little Saturday morning, turned out to be the best.idea.ever. A friend of mine suggested that we all go golfing. Genius. I've never been golfing before, but I've been on a golf course a few times. So I said I'd drive a cart. I'm not sure how many of you "non-golfers" know this, but driving a golf cart around 9 holes of a golf course is amazing fun, if you're with the right people. I seriously haven't laughed that hard in a really long time. I actually golfed at a couple holes, which was fun, but honestly, driving the golf cart was the most fun. Especially in the dark, through sprinklers, screaming. I'm just sayin...