My Blog

I’ve lost 40 Pounds!

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0700

I started my weight loss plan 2 days before Thanksgiving of last year (2008). I know, Thanksgiving week, are you crazy??? Well, anytime is a good time to start getting healthy! Here are some before & after photos of my transformation! I didn’t take any photos before I started (I wish I did for comparison), so most of my before pics were in September & October of 2008.

Same dress, different body, 35 pounds less & 8 months later!

What a difference a year makes. I’m 39 pounds lighter & my sis Pammy is 20 pounds lighter!
( my trips to Washington , exactly a year apart)

40 pounds in 10 months........bye-bye!

I just hit my 40 lb mark! WOOO HOOO! Actually, as of today, September 28th, 2009, I have lost 40 1/2 pounds! Not to mention, gaining muscle & losing fat. I haven’t taken a photo of the complete loss yet. You’ll just have to wait for that, until I take a nice one, perhaps in Maui in the next couple of weeks.

My Trip To Washington State

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0700

It was time for my annual trip to Washington to visit my dad & family there. I went the same time I did last year, end of August. This time the weather was perfect! Warm, sunny, mid 70s, what more could you ask for! I was there for 5 days, which went by way to fast, but we pack in a lot. This trip was different. Instead of sitting around, eating & drinking coffee all day, (no complaint, I like doing this) for 5 days, we fished, went boating, & stayed active the whole time! (better for my diet, that’s for sure!)

First day, we just hung out, laughed a lot as always & highlighted my sister Tammy’s hair. The next day, I did a walk/run partly around Lake Everett, which is across the street from my Dad & Pam’s mobile home. I was so proud of myself that I exercised! I made Dad make me one of his famous lattes for me on his expresso machine. Yum! We eventually made it to my sister Pammy’s house. I say eventually, because that’s the theme of this trip. We always get there ....eventually. It takes this family FOREVER to get anywhere. I am not use to that, as it’s mostly just Woody & I, & we just go, ya know? I find this fact entertaining & amusing. Probably because I am a visitor, watching this unfold. Haha! Anyways, Pammy & I spent a lot of time picking blackberries on her property. I love blackberries! I ate more than I saved! I highlighted & cut Pam & Pammy’ hair, which turned out beautifully! We were all to leave early this evening to head off to Pammy’s lake cabin (http://www.laketyee.com/info.htm) , but as usual, we had to wait for many people & situations to clear up, we didn’t happen on time, so we stayed the night there & left in the morning to go. Poor Terry, Pammy’s husband was suppose to come home from working the night shift to an empty house, & he came home to a house of ELEVEN!! Long story.

We spend 2 amazing days at the lake cabin, laughing fishing, paddle boating, swimming, just having a great time. We even went to the Skagit River (http://www.experiencewa.com/attraction.aspx?id=340) to fish for humpys! (salmon). It took us forever to find the right spot to fish, (note to self, ask directions 1st! Remember this family takes FOREVER!) I had one on my line, but I lost it! We had a fun time anyways, as it being absolutely beautiful standing in the river, with my family, with a big smile on my face, just enjoying the moment, wishing it could last forever. When we got back to the cabin, we decided to fish some more at the lake, just at dusk. They say when the mosquitos bite, the fish are biting. Yep! I caught 6 little trout & bass! I set them free. It was so dark we couldn’t see what we were doing. I heard a lot of family arguing behind me, but I just kept casting out & reeling in! haha! We finally packed up & went back home to Everett. We stayed up late talking & laughing about the weekend, amazed at how quickly my 5 days flew bye.

On my last day in Washington, my sis Tammy stopped by early in the morning on her way to work to come say good bye. Being a past barrista, she made me a mocha!! Very delish! We took some late minute pics & had to say good bye. I took a walk to Silver Lake Park, across the street to take a few pics then came back to spend my remaining time with my family. My sis Pammy came by to say good bye also & we all just hung out, laughed & squeezed out all my time left here. Took more pics & off to the airport I went. I hate saying good bye to them.

I am home thinking about my trip with a huge smile on my face. Wishing I could post ALL my photos & tell ALL my stories of my trip, but what happens in Washington, stays in Washington.
I miss & love you all, Dad, Pam, Pammy & Tammy. Give hugs & kisses to your families for me.
Until next year....................

Go to Washington pics to see photos from my trip.

VEGAS BABY!

Sat, 23 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

O.k. I know you are never going to believe that I, living in Southern California, have NEVER been to Vegas. Well I never have, UNTIL THIS MEMORIAL WEEKEND!!!! I went with one of my best friends Su. She & her husband, Dave treated me to the most amazing weekend! It was full of laughs, smoke, meeting new friends, a “celebrity” sighting, shopping, smoke, people watching, winning, smoke, losing, more smoke, freak watching, sun bathing, & just plain fun!
To see the evidence of this weekend, go to Lisa’s Photos.

It starting with me flying out of Long Beach on Saturday afternoon. The last half of the flight was really bumpy & lots of people were shouting when we would dip down & go back up quickly. I was feeling kind of sick, so I just kept my eyes closed, breathed deeply & just tried to think groovy thoughts. What didn’t help matters any, was someone near me was passing really stinky gas throughout most of the flight! I was so glad to get off that plane! I was lucky to get a really nice cab driver who let me sit in the front seat with him, so I wouldn’t get any more queasy than I already was. He dropped me off at the MGM, where Dave & Su were staying in the most amazing suite called the Skyloft. As I arrived Dave & his friend Josh were headed to the UFC fight. Jen (Josh’s wife), Su & I, all in our matching Hudson jeans, went out to dinner at in the hotel & then we went & saw the show KAA. We had fantastic seats (free!), thanks to Jen & Josh’s connections! (Thank you guys!) After the show we HAD to gamble, we’re in Vegas, right? I was just giddy with anticipation, being my first time & all. We had a blast! I was nervous at first, but Jen & Su showed me the ropes & created a monster in the process! My favorite is the Wheel Of Fortune slot machine. It’s like 2 games in one! I would only use the quarter slots, dollar slots are too rich for my blood! The guys met us after the fight & we all headed to The Palms, for sushi, dancing at a club (for Josh) & of course more gambling. Su & I were staying at The Palms for the rest of the weekend.(Leaving poor Dave by himself for his last night all alone in the large suite). After sushi, Dancing Josh was too tired (yea, I didn’t want to go) to go to the club, so they took Dave back to the MGM & then home, while Su & I had fun at the slots. We ended up going to sleep at 2:30 am!!!! That’s pretty good for me! I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to stay up. You have no sense of time in Vegas, so I was shocked it was so late! Kinda proud of myself too!

6 hours later we get up, get COFFEE & go to the pool for an hour. The pool is so nice & it wasn’t crowded at all, that early. It was hot though! Dave met us then for a great Sunday brunch there. We saw Nicole Richie & her adorable baby, Harlow having brunch also. They smiled & waved as we passed by. They were actually staying the the suite right across from ours. We saw Dave off, & then it was just the 2 of us to conquer Vegas! We shopped, gambled some more & shared nachos. We got really lucky at the Flamingo. Not the fanciest of hotels, & quite smoky, but we liked the slots there! We had to pass through there to get to Caesar’s to shop. We took the monorail to get there. On the way back to The Palms, I had to buy Ethel’s chocolates. DELISH! Su had some in their room & I fell in love! A friend told me about Ethel’s before I left, so I had to get some. We showered & got glammed up for our night on the town.

We went to the Bellagio to see the fountain show, gambled a bit and then we had a late dinner at Ruth Chris Steak House. We were just in time for Happy Hour! 11:30 pm to 2:30 am!! We got there at 11:45 pm to eat. I am already adjusting to Vega time! lol We ate at the bar & met a “mentalist” who can move & bend things with his mind! Seriously! The Bartender had told us what he had done earlier &convinced him to show us as he was leaving. He stood right next to me & made my straw swirl around in my glass without touching it! The he put my fork on my champagne glass, made it turn in a circle along the rim & then flip off! AMAZING! After he left, we notice that a glass with moving on the rack. Our bartender told us that the mentalist told him when he left that night he was going to make a glass move. That wine glass kept moving for 10 minutes! None of the other glasses moved along with it. CRAZY, but TRUE!
We then headed back to our hotel & gambled some more, then finally went to bed at 3 am! (Boy, I am getting use to this Vegas time!)

Next morning after 6 hours of sleep, we headed to the pool for an hour then we got cleaned up, packed, checked out, gambled again of course, had a bite to eat & took off for the airport. We had a little wait, so what did we do? Found some slots & tried our luck one last time. I hit two spins right away, landed on 250!! & then 120!! I won about $80! So with that, I broke even for my first trip to Vegas! Not bad!!! It was an amazing, memorable 1st trip to Vegas that I will never forget! Thanks Su & Dave, & Josh & Jen for a fantastic time. I am proud to say I am no longer a “Vegas Virgin”. I can’t wait till next time! It has to be an annual girl’s trip now! I just need to get over my sore throat from all the smoke!

Reality Check! Time to go home

Mon, 19 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Reality Check! Time to go home.
Since I hadn’t mailed any postcards we decided to get our last chocolate croissant & creme cafe at Paul’s & then buy stamps at the post office. It’s sprinkling some. We go into Paul’s to sit down. Our waitress is a very short lady who looks like the midget lady who was a medium in the movie Poltergeist. You know the scary one. Anyways, we order 2 creme cafes for here & 2 chocolate croissants for ”take away” ( go to). Well, she didn’t like that idea at all, but relented. After we were done with our coffees I asked for out croissants. She hands me my bag. It only has one in it. I tell her that I wanted 2. Well, that was it. She let out a big sigh so loud that the ladies next to us laughed at her reaction. She grabbed my bag & returned it with 2. I noticed that it was plain ones, not chocolate, but I was to afraid of her to tell her of her mistake. So much for my last chocolate croissant in Paris. lol! She was scary!!! She definitely was not a morning person! We then bought stamps & mailed my postcards at the post office. We had to be back at the apartment in time for the taxi to pick us up at 9:45 am. Nor wanting out Paris trip to end, we did one last walk in the “hood”. We ended up on a street we somehow bypassed every time (Odeon, I think) . It has the original cobblestones, one of the oldest streets in Paris. It is so uneven & the shops lean over so much, it’s amazing they stay up! With the street glistening from the rain, I thought,” Now this is so Paris. I will remember this scene in my mind & heart forever”. I saw the restaurants that so many people talk about on this street, Relais Odeon & Cafe Procope. Next time I will have to go to these places. Since Woody took pictures of many hair salons while we were there, we had to take some of an amazing looking salon we saw, called Marianne Gray. Thinking we were walking in a straight line, we thought we would turn down the next street to get home. Next thing we know, the street ends & we are at the Seine!! Omg! The street must have run diagonal & we were so preoccupied by the sights, we didn’t realize how far we went! We had to run back to our apt. to get out taxi. We got back with 7 minutes to spare. Sweating, we carry our bags down 3 flights of scary stairs, hoping not to fall down. The taxi was there & off we went to the airport. Our driver was a sweetheart, who talked to us about economics in Paris, etc. We hit some traffic, but not too bad. I think the fare was about 55 euros & 1 euro for the extra bag this time. We got some yogurt & water to eat with our PLAIN croissants (from the morning) at the airport, since there were no other options really. I bought some chocolate & vin chaud seasoning for some friends, and off we went. The flight was a bit long. The video system wasn’t working, so no movies or shows. My screen worked enough to play games at least. Most screens didn’t. There was an older couple next to us, who caused lots of drama & between the 2 of them stood almost the whole flight. So their behinds were in Woody’s face for 10 1/2 hours. I have to say, Air France gives you a lot of food! Two meals, tons of baguettes, free alcohol, plus ice cream & sandwiches mid flight! Wow!
So now here I am, typing my final words of my Paris trip report. It has taken me almost 5 weeks to finish! My memories will last me a lifetime. I encourage everyone to write a trip report, so you will remember all the little details you will forget over time. I am counting the days till we can return again. I want to thank everyone who helped me make our trip the amazing trip it was. Merci.
If you haven’t already, go to My Paris Photos on this site, to check out some of our favorite pics!
Je t’aime Paris!

Paris - Our last full day

Sun, 18 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Day 6. Our last full day.
We woke up to a damp morning. Since it was sunday, we were going to the Marais area. I have read about the fallafels at L’as du Fallafel, & we really wanted to try them. Actually we have been anxiously awaiting these notorious fallafels!! So I was so excited to get them!! We slept in a bit from our late night out, ate a croissant of course & then we hopped on the metro. We got off at the Bastille exit. With my trusty itinerary in hand, we walk to the corner to see where the heck we are & we accidently are right at the beginning of the most wonderful street market I have ever seen! It’s the Bastille/Richard Lenoir marche, (market). All week long I have been searching for a market like this & every time I think I am going to one, I am disappointed in the time I wasted trying to find one & the market itself. So here we are in the midst of what I’ve been dreaming of, & it’s not even a scheduled event in my itinerary!! Screw the itinerary! We spent at least a couple leisurely hours here strolling around, people watching, food sampling, just perusing the aisles of goodies & treasures. We took tons of pictures there. It was so colorful and lively. Real Parisians just living their lives, doing what they do, with their dogs. The smells were wonderful & I would have sampled everything if I had the time. I wish we weren’t leaving the next day, I would have stocked up on goodies. We bought & shared a lovely pear as we walked along, (simple & romantic). There were the most beautiful flowers there and such colorful vegetables. Amazing fresh seafood scattered everywhere and scores of fragrant cheese everywhere you look! We followed our noses & listened to our stomachs & bought a huge piece of Tandoori chicken & devoured it as we sat on a bench. I am still dreaming of that piece of chicken. It was the best seasoned chicken I have ever tasted. One of the funniest sights we saw there, was this wino sitting with the biggest smile on his face. He was drinking his bottle of wine & had a large stash of wine in some bags. He was in wino heaven! He looked just like one of the pirates on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland. There was also a guy there balancing a fish in a vase on his head while juggling. If you want a cheap day with free entertainment, go here! After forcing ourselves to leave this wonderful place, we walked to Place de Vosges. It is the oldest square in Paris. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Place_des_Vosges. We take 2 pictures & it starts to pour! Everyone at the park starts to run for cover. I thought it was kind of funny seeing everyone scurry about like they were going to melt if they got wet! I opened my trusty compact umbrella that was in my purse & slowly strolled for covered in a much more dignified manor. Fortunately there are covered walkways in front of the shops along the park, so we window licked (shopped) for awhile. Since finding the infamous fallafels was our main reason to be in this area, we followed my directions with a little help from a nice store employee. When we turned the corner, you couldn’t miss where L’as du Fallafel was. At first I thought it was a political demonstration. There was a huge crowd! I then realized it was people hungry for those darn fallafels! It must be crack for Parisians on a budget! (Or tourists on a budget!). I told Woody, “We are waiting in this line no matter how long it takes!” He then realized that line was to eat inside. So since it stopped raining after just a few minutes from when it started, we wanted to walk around with our treat. Let me tell you, they are efficient there! They have a fast, organized system to move you through at the speed of light!/ A guy magically appears to take your order (ours was the fallafel of course) and heads you to a window. There you pay (a big 5 euros!) & hand them your ticket. You wait like 2 minutes, while you watch them make your choice with all these fresh ingredients. It’s like a perfectly timed ballet. They are all in sync with each other. I stuck my camera in the window & snapped away. There was a guy rolling the fallafel mixture into balls & cooking them right there. Before you know it, they are handing you these enormous napkins filled with a warm & soft fallafel concoction. Let me just tell you this, the hype is just hype. The fact is, these are the best things I have tasted! I don’t care what anyone says! You can criticized me for enjoying a simple fallafel in Paris instead of a 3 course masterpiece in a country that is famous for it’s cuisine, I don’t care. Talk to my taste buds & my wallet. I guess I’m just a simple girl at heart. I can’t even tell you exactly what was in that thing, other than roasted eggplant, cooked to perfection, sliced veggies of some sort, an amazing white sauce & of course, we can’t forget about the fallafels! Warm & crispy on the outside & creamy on the inside. I thought they were only on the top of my sandwich/wrap thing, but they were in there hiding all the way down to the bottom! I couldn’t finish mine, since our detour at the market caused serious snacking, but Woody happily finished mine. He decided t have a little spicy sauce on his & he said it was a little too hot, since it was just on the top. It would have been better to have it mixed through. to dilute it somewhat. Can you tell we liked them? We walked around while we ate them, along with many other people. It was a funny sight, like we all belonged in the same cult, under the same spell. Walking slow like in a trance, all holding something in the same yellow napkin, trying not to spill on ourselves. I now can’t wait till I can come back to eat another one. We stopped by the Piccaso museum, but since our pass expired, we decided not to go in. We started to go in the direction of home & to see the Hotel De Ville. The sun visited us while we were at Hotel De Ville. What a grand looking building! I am not even sure what it houses, government? Oh, I just googled it! The Hotel de Ville (French for "City Hall") is the building housing the City of Paris's administration. Standing on the place de l'Hôtel de Ville, it has been the location of the municipality of Paris since 1357. It serves multiple functions, housing the local administration, the Mayor of Paris (since 1977), and also being a venue for large receptions. It is beautiful. Anyways, the ice skating rink was fun to see. I think they have it there from Jan to March. I wanted to skate, but I was afraid I’d hurt myself & ruin the rest of our trip, so I safely watched instead. We took some photos (I promised a friend) & then walked back to the apartment. I love just walking in Paris. I love all the store fronts with the apartments above them. The architecture is so beautiful. Woody loves the cobblestone streets, especially when they are glistening from a recent rain. That was one of his favorite memories of Paris when he was there 25 years ago & to see it for myself, I have to agree with him.
As we were walking back home to our apartment we walked around a bit. We finally saw the famous cafes, Cafe De Flore & Les Deux Magots. We saw a guy selling roasted chestnuts out of a funny motorized cart/bike. I just absorbed my surroundings, knowing it was our last day in Paris. Trying to memorized everything. I loved it all! Woody bought some French fashion & interior magazines at a stand. When we got to our neighborhood, we bought some rotisserie chicken, rice and a bottle of wine. Along with some left over couscous, we had a great meal. We then strolled around savoring our last night in Paris. We went to Cafe du Marche & snacked on Pomm Frites (french fries) that were steaming hot with 2 dipping sauces. (tasted like spicy mustard & cocktail sauce). They don’t serve dessert, but they said we could get one next door & eat it there! So, never to pass on a Parisian pastry, I got us a similar pastry as before, layers of custard, flaky philo dough & this time baked pear nestled in it! Delicious! Woody had wine, I had creme cafe. We sat outside on the heated patio & just watched the scene in front of us. Not wanting our last night to end, we walked some more & then went to another cafe to people watch. I had hot chocolate this time & Woody another glass of wine. We then forced ourselves to call it a night, our last night in Paris. So sad.