Summer Days of Fun: Family Time & Civil War Reenactment

I'm not sure if this is some kind of record but 3 trips to Michigan in 8 days is at least a personal record for me. However, this weekend's trip was definitely worth the drive.

On Saturday, my dad and I spent some time visiting with my grandma and family. One of the main reasons for the trip to Michigan this time was because my uncle Jerry from Orlando was up visiting my grandma and my dad hadn't seen him in ten years.

 We just watched some old home videos, had dinner, and just spent time together. Also while at my grandma's my dad fall in love with one of my grandma's cats.

I have to say that Mike (that's the name of the cat) is one of my favorites as well. He's a giant black cat who is so sweet, loveable, and just little dumb- the prefect cat combination.

The next day, my dad and I return to my grandma's and visited for another hour or so before we started on our journey home. Little did my dad know that I had additional plans for our weekend other then just visiting my grandma- we were going to a Civil War Reenactment.

Turkeyville is only a ten minute dive from my grandma's house and I got to visit with more family at this stop.

My cousin's do Civil War reenactments throughout the summer and the picture above is of their campsite. I have always seen pictures from their reenactments but have never been able to attend, so I figured being that this was so close to my grandma's I needed to stop by.

It was kind of cool seeing so many historical things in one place that wasn't your traditional museum. Plus, watching the battle (once it really got started) was pretty cool.

Those canons were really loud and would take you by surprise if you weren't paying attention. All in all it was a great weekend and it's always nice when you get to spend some of it with family. 

Personal Trainer = Very Sore Stacy

With my mid-week trip to Michigan meant I had to reschedule my personal training session, so yesterday I had my personal training session. All I can really say is that I'm hurting today. I'm moving like an old lady and my body currently hates me, but I know being sore means that I worked out hard.

So I'm off to Michigan, but I made sure I did get in a quick workout in before I hit the road. And like I promised here is my Saturday weigh-in.

I'm not too surprise to the scale higher from last Saturday, but my workouts were on the lighter side this week. This is how my week looked:

Sunday: Cardio
Monday: No workout
Tuesday: Cardio
Wednesday: Walking around the farm
Thursday: Cardio & lifted some weights
Friday: GOT MY BUTT KICK- with personal trainer
Saturday: Cardio

I know I do a lot of cardio, and I know that will not give me results very fast but I know it's good for my heart.

Well, I'm asking for prayers for safe travel and a good visit with my family. Have a great weekend!

Mid-Week Michigan Trip

I have to say taking a day off in the middle of the week really makes the week go by faster and it is a really nice break. There is a long story behind the extra day off, but in a nut shell, I have 5 personal days I need to take before the end of the month or I'll just lose them. With that said, I decided to join my mom, bring Sam along, and make a day trip to Michigan I see my family.

Our first stop was to visit my grandma. My grandma is now home, so we stopped her house to visit for a quick visit. I'm glad she's home and is feeling a little better.

After leaving my grandma's, we were off to my grandpa's farm to spend some time with him.

The weather was so nice that Sam and I went for a long walk down the property. We walked at least mile before we didn't have a path to walk on anymore, so we turned around. 

My mom's family has a tradition of meeting at a local lake for swimming and cook out every Wednesday night during the summer months. So we decided to join in on the fun considering we were already in the area.

I love when I get a chance to spend time with my extended family because sometime you do feel a little disconnected living 2 states away.

The major of our time was spent talking and letting a 9 month old entertain us.

 I can't believe how big Sophia has gotten. The last time I really got to see and spend time with her is when she was a newborn.

There was no holding of Sophia this time around. 1. She had way to much energy to sit still  2. She not a big fan of people she doesn't know.

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However, she had no problem stealing my water bottle from me and using it as her own toy. It was pretty funny, she just kept doing laps up and down the picnic table and we were there just to make sure she didn't fall off. It was a game of  "Catch the Baby".

I'm so glad that I got to see so many family members in just one day. And I'm also glad that Sam decided to come along for the ride.  However, it won't be long until I get to see some of my family again, because I think a another Michigan trip maybe planned for tomorrow. My uncle Jerry from Florida is up visiting my grandma and I haven't seen him in about 5 years, so I think a trip to see him is in order.

I hope everyone has a great and safe weekend! 

Wedding Shower- from the guest view point

Believe it or not- the first wedding shower I ever attended was my own. I kind of knew what to expect and what to do, but I just did what I was told because I really didn't know any better.

However, this weekend I attended my first wedding shower as a guest. It was for our friends Mike and Ashley, who will be getting married in August.

(Sam & Ashley - at our shower- I love the look she's giving him)

(Mike crashed our shower and he brought a fire truck with him!)

Their shower was lovely. Three of my bridesmaids were at the shower. I love that I have a large close group of friends and the majority of us have been friends since high school.

They had a brunch which was awesome because I love breakfast food! They even had an omelet station- it was so good. After the food came the gifts.

I went in on our gifts with my mother-in-law, so we got them a bunch baking stuff. However, the highlight of the gift opening (or at least for me) was watching Mike open the gift my husband wrapped.

If you look at the picture closely- the husband wrapped their gift in a brown paper bag covered in duct tape. It was the classiest looking gift on the table (yeah right). My mother-in-law had me carry it in because of how tacky it looked.

Mike was guessing that is was a case of beer (not a bad idea but it came after the fact- oh well) but it was just a cookie jar with a moose on it. Mike really likes moose, so we (really mean "I") couldn't pass on buying the cookie jar. I really hope they like it because I bought it over a year ago, so they can't return it even if they wanted to.

Congrats Mike & Ashley! One wedding event down- two to go!

Question: What is the funniest shower gift you ever seen?

The Weirdo with the Camera

(I want to thank everyone who prayed for my grandma and my family yesterday. My dad and I made it Michigan and back with no issues. There isn't much news to report on my grandma's status, so continued prayers are appreciated. Thanks!)

In keeping with my re-found need to want to workout, I hit the gym this morning. I've always figured that I must look like the biggest weirdo because I take pictures of the scale, but today just confirmed it. (FYI: I decided that Saturday will be the best day for my weigh-ins because I normally have chance to go to the gyms on Saturdays in the morning. Here's today's weight-in.)

(Considering I haven't workout or ate well for the past two days-
being down 3 pounds since Wednesday just proves more that scales are stupid.)

After my 45 minutes of cardio on the elliptical, I decided to lift some weights. As I was minding my own business on one of the weight machines, one of the personal trainers came up and started talking to me. The trainer's name is Dan and this is how he started our conversation, "So I noticed you took a picture of the scale when you came in. What's that all about it?" 

In that moment I felt like the biggest weirdo, and explained I'm using the pictures to help keep track of my weight lose journey and that I'm just starting to go to the gym on a regular basis again. With that explanation, Dan offered to show me some moves to strengthen my back (considering that is what I was working on when he started talking to me).

After doing some different exercises for my back, Dan offered to set up a full complimentary personal training session. I know that the whole point of the free session is that you enjoy it so much that you decide to start paying for personal training, but as I learned from my cheap family- you don't turn down something that's free. Plus, I'm hoping to learn a few new things I can do at the gym.

Our appointment is set for this upcoming Wednesday and the plan is for him to show me how to get a "total body" workout. I'm excited, but I know my body is going to be mad at me come Thursday.

Well, I'm off to a graduation party! I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Prayers Needed

This isn't the way I hope to start my summer hours where I get 3-day weekends for the next 8 weeks. I'm off to Michigan but not for a fun trip. I'm heading to Michigan with my dad to visit my grandma in the hospital.

My grandma is a really big part of my life. I talk to her on the phone at least once a week for at least 30 minutes to hour. I love your talks. They are never very exciting but it's good to keep connected to your family.

Without my grandma, I wouldn't have this beautiful ring on my finger.

It's her engagement ring! I have always loved it and I feel so blessed that my grandma was willing to let me have it.  I know she not a person who cherishes world possessions, but to give your engagement ring to your granddaughter while your still around- I couldn't feel more special.   

I don't have too many details of what going on but this is the third time in the last few months that she been in the hospital. So if you are religious or just spiritual, I would love if you send your prayers and good thoughts my family's way. First for my grandma's health, second for safe travel, and third for the strength to get through this tough time.

10 Days of Weigh-Ins

I want to start off by saying that I think weighing yourself everyday is just a bad idea. More or less I just think it's really bad your mental health.  Some people decide how good their day is going to be based on what the number on the scale reads- and I think that's not a healthy way to live.

However, with all that said, I decided to weigh myself everyday for the last 10 days. Also, it was 10 days ago that I started going back to the gym and trying to lose some weight. So everyday for the past 10 days, I have gone to the gym, workout, and weighed myself (always before my workout). Here's what the scale read:

Day 1 (Monday 5/28)

Day 2 (Tuesday 5/29)

Day 3 (Wednesday 5/30)

Day 4 (Thursday 5/30)

Day 5 (Friday 6/1)

Day 6 (Saturday 6/2)

Day 7 (Sunday 6/3)

Day 8 (Monday 6/4)

Day 9 (Tuesday 6/5)

Day 10 (Wednesday 6/6)

The time of day I went to the gym varied, just like my weight. My lowest weigh-in is done early in the morning but most day I can't get to the gym until after work. 

I did this experiment to prove a point- you shouldn't put to much "weight" on what the scale says. You really shouldn't let it make or break your day. It is just a number.

Do I wish that after 10 days of working out that I would see the scale go down? Sure- that would have been nice. However considering heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes runs in my family- I know even though the scale didn't move, I know I'm doing something good for myself.