Sand Up Sunday - Week 9

You may have noticed that we didn't post last week. Rebekah decided that she needed to take a step back from the link up, but Britt and I wanted to keep going. We have a new button and just a different posting timeline. 

We will now be posting the first and third Sunday of the month. We figured it can be hard to post each week and sometimes there isn't a big difference from one week to another. We still hope you'll join us! The button is at the bottom of this post! 

   How many pounds did you gain or lose?

I’ve been seriously lacking in the weight loss goals lately. Something pushed me off track and it’s been hard to get back on. I’m still going between 158 (never 157.9, always 158) and 159.6. I definitely need to work on this. At least I need to hit 157! At work we had our mid-way weight loss check in and I had lost 5lbs.

How many inches did you gain or lose?

I still haven’t measured myself… so nothing to add here!

Your weekly exercise or step goal, and did you meet it?

I’m still LOVING my FitBit and except for a few days week before last in which I just did not get out to do long walks in the evenings. I did finally get back on track this week and I am above my 70k goal per week! In the last 7 days my FitBit says I've walked: 94,854 (as of Saturday night - and of that 21,049 are from Saturday).

What was your biggest challenge this week?

I was pretty good this week but I did got out to eat twice. Part of my problems the last couple of weeks have been home problems. We had a gas leak and so the gas was off for over a week. Then our garbage disposal broke so doing dishes was difficult since I couldn’t run the dishwasher (yea, I know, that’s princess-y of me to say/do).  We also had a lot of issues with our refinance and our TV/Internet. It’s all been resolved now (well, minus the refinance, that’s in the works) so things should be getting back to normal.

What is your favorite healthy snack or meal?

I started eating apples with Tajin (look it up if you haven’t heard of it!) and have been enjoying it. I’ve also been sticking with Yoplait Low-Fat (90 Calorie) yogurt cups (in Cherry mostly).

Do you have any advice or tips for the rest of us?

Get back on the wagon when you fall off. Eventually it will pay off!

<a href="http://my-sunshines-blog.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l574/Britt_Hanson/Step%20Up%20Sunday.png" alt="Step Up Sunday" style="border:none;" /></a></div> </span>

Happy Birthday Gabriela and Mika!

Yesterday was my mommy's birthday and today is both my sisters' and my nieces'. 

This is my sister as a little girl in my grandma/aunt's house in Argentina.

My sister would have been 43 today and my niece is 13! Finally a teenager! 

Sending them both so much love so that they have a wonderful day!

Feliz Cumple Mami!

Today is my Mommy's 72nd Birthday!

She is such an amazing person and mommy and I am lucky that she is mine! 

I am lucky that I live near her and she and I rarely go a day without seeing each other and even less rarely without speaking with each other. 

I get to go shopping with her and on long walks where we can just chit chat. 

I'm wishing my mommy a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY and MANY MANY MORE! 

He Drives Me Crazy, But I Still Love My Puppy

I'm so excited that Christine reached out to write about our doggies! Don't forget to check out her post over at: So-Called Homemaker! We both have dogs that we love but that sometimes drive us crazy, so we wanted to share our frustrations and the reasons why we love our babies so much! 

I’m new to having pets. I thought I was prepared for a dog… but after having Lance for a few months I realized that there are things I wasn’t ready for and that drive me crazy!

O N E – Potty training. I have not been able to potty train him to save my life. Maybe half the time he goes number two on our balcony, but pee is generally on our carpet. He will not use a pad. I even got him one of those fake grass things and he won’t use it. I’ll give him credit, though, he is good at going outside when I take him. I just can only take him in the evenings and that does not seem to be enough for him.

T W O – Chewing things. At first he seemed perfect, he kept to his toys. But it has gotten out of hand. He has chewed up the carpet and pulled it up from the wall and gotten to the stuff under the carpet.  He will also grab anything off our coffee table and start trying to eat it – including my husbands’ antibiotics (don’t worry, it was Keflex which dogs use, so he was fine!). I know this is probably our fault, but it’s so frustrating!

T H R E E – Biting/nipping. This is probably a puppy thing, and he’s still working on dropping his last baby tooth, but I am tired of it. Putting on pants, sitting on the cough, petting him… he wants to nip at your hands and feet.

All of these things have made my husband and I consider that maybe he is not the right dog for us and that we are not the right humans for him. He might need a yard or someone that can take him out more than once a day. We got a Chihuahua because it was recommended for condos… but he is one big Chihuahua.

HOWEVER I really do not want to give up on him or us. When I started to really think about giving him away (to a good home, not a pound or anywhere that he won’t be loved) it made me very sad. I have definitely grown to love him and so has my husband (much more than either of us expected, I think).

Lance is VERY loving. In the morning his favorite thing to do is to come and lay on my lap for an extended morning sleep. When I come home he jumps up on me, letting me know much he loves me. When I take him for walks and we meet up with my mom, niece, and nephew he can spot them from a block away and suddenly his tail begins to wag and he butt shakes and his ears go down, showing them that he is happy to see them!

Lately he has taken to put his head under my chin in burrowing into my shoulder and just staying there - it feels like it's his way of hugging me. It's the sweetest most amazing feeling. 

So even though he can drive us crazy and we'll have to change our carpets sometime soon, the love he provides us is more than enough to keep him around. 

Learn About Me - From A to Z

A.   Attached or single?

I am… attached (duh!). We have been together 3 ½ years and married almost 1 whole year (on 4/2).

B.   Best friend?

This is a hard one. I don’t know if I have a best friend. I want one, but no one seems to be mine. I have a few friends that I talk to often, mostly at work though.

C.   Cake or pie?

Hmm, this really depends on the kind. Peanut Butter pie by Claim Jumper is AMAZING. Costco Pumpkin pie? And the Trader Joe’s Pear Tart (that counts)!! Ok… yea, I have to go with pie.

D.   Day of choice?

I’ve never really thought of having a favorite day. I guess I’ll go with Saturday. Just because.

E.   Essential item?

        My phone. I seem to now be attached to it. Mostly due to blogging. And             Instagram. 

F.    Favorite color?

Blues. Different hues. I love them.

G.   Gummy bears or worms?

I think I’ll go with worms because they take longer to eat – and I prefer the sour ones!

H.   Home town?

Los Angeles. Born and raised in the San Fernando Valley (aka “The” Valley). But my family is from La Plata, Argentina and it feels like home to me, too.

I.    Favorite indulgence?

Desserts probably, although I can’t pick just one. I love getting Cinnabon every once in a while. Or Trader Joe’s Pear Tart (seriously, try it, it’s amazing!).

J.    January or July?

I almost instinctively said July because that’s summer vacation and I was on that type of schedule for so long – but I will say January. It’s too hot in July (ie: 100+). January has perfect temps.

K.   Kids?

Not yet but we will definitely have at least 2, maybe 3. We have not decided that yet.

L.    Life isn’t complete without?

Family! Family is super duper important to me and my husband. Most weekends are spent either with his or mine or split between both.

M.  Memory you cherish

The first one that came to mind was Christmas 1991 when I was in Argentina with my mom, brother, and a ton of cousins, aunts, and uncles and my grandma. It was the first time that I met all of them (well, except my mom, brother, one aunt, and grandma – but I met her when I was a newborn so it doesn’t really count). It was an amazing time and I remember it like it was yesterday!

N.   Number of brothers/sisters?

I have (had) 2 sisters and a brother. My eldest sister, Margarita is 45 and blogs over at I Say!. She is 15 years older than me. My brother is 44, 14 years older than me. Gabriela was the youngest of the three of them, she passed away on May 21, 2014 after a lifetime of medical problems. She was 42 at the time and 12 ½ years (to the day) older than me.

O.   Oranges or Apples?

Neither? I prefer peaches and plums. I guess I eat Granny Smith apples more than I eat oranges – but as far as juice, orange wins (but only freshly squeezed).

P.   Pet Peeves?

        The first thing that came to mind was hair on clothing. Right after I shower         I shed a ton and there is hair all over my clothing. I can’t stand it and am           constantly looking around to pull it off. Slow drivers as well. I cannot stand         it. If you are slow, get in the right lane and let others drive. People who             talk with their mouth full – the person who sits next to me at work does             this while talking to clients. Uggg!

Q.   Quotes?

My mom taught me this one... "it's better to lose a minute in your life, than to lose your life in a minute". Very true. 

R.   Reasons to smile?

       Waking up! I’ve always been a smiler. I smile constantly and to everyone          who crosses my path. I don’t need a reason to smile other than being alive.

S.   Season of choice?

Living in Southern California I don’t really have a choice. But I would say everything but summer. Summer has become too hot for me, but the rest of the year is great!

T.   Tea or coffee?

Tea. I don’t like coffee at all. I love Teavana and having tea time with my parents.

U.   Unknown fact about me?
I'm an open book so it's hard to figure something out for this question. I'll let you know when I find one!

V.   Vegetable?

Cooked carrots. I love them, but they are not as low in calories as, say, broccoli so I eat more of that.

W. Worst habit?

Picking my nose. JUST KIDDING! That’s not the worst. JUST KIDDING! I don’t pick my nose. Hmm. It used to be biting my nails – I grew out of that one. Not folding clothes immediately out of the dryer? Is that a habit?

X.   X-Ray or ultrasound?

Hmm. Either? I’ve only really dealt with x-rays, cool enough. Although once we are pregnant I will LOVE the ultrasounds!

Y.   Your favorite trip?

My honeymoon to Argentina. I got to have a beautiful trip with my husband to places I hadn’t been before. I got to introduce him to my home country and my family. It was amazing. I want to do it again!

Z.   Zodiac sign?

Libra! I was born on October 1^st but I was supposed to fall into the Scorpio category. Most of my horoscopes are pretty correct – but I’m not big into it.

When Puppy Love Drives You Crazy

I'll be the first to admit that being a fur mom is not always easy - I've definitely learned that in the past few months. 

But the love that pets bring to a household is more than enough to make up for it. I'll go into detail about it with Christine later this month, but I wanted to share this video today. 

I'm grateful for the love that my little pooch brings to me. 

You gotta love the way this still looks! 

Linking up with Emily and Ember Gray...

Snow Trouble

As most of you already know, I live in Sunny Southern California (not trying to make you guys jealous or anything!) but I have had local snow experience. 

A few years ago (maybe 4 years now) after my nieces visited my parents and I in LA I had to drive them up the I-5 to hand them back to their parents at a midway point between Los Angeles and San Francisco. It was January 1st and it was raining at my house. This can mean that it is snowing in the surrounding mountains. 

I looked up the weather report for the mountain range I had to cross, the Grapevine (named for the way the mountains are laid out around the freeway). No snow yet. I thought about buying chains for my '09 corolla, but a stop at a couple of stores gave me a price of $80 for NON RETURNABLE (even if never opened) chains. Since this was the only time I was expecting to use them (and even then I might not need them) I was not ready to fork over that kind of money. 

Well. Umm. It snowed. It snowed A LOT. 

So much snow that the Grapevine was closed. The thing is... they didn't close it until AFTER I got in it. So I had to trudge my car through the mountain range. The 5 lane freeway was down to one lane and cars were trying to stay behind each other in order to not drown in the accumulating snow. 

I was on the phone with my brother the entire time because, quite honestly, I was scared to death. I had NEVER drive in even a little bit of snow before and this was a full out storm. That freeway closure I mentioned? It ended up lasting 3 days! I wasn't sure if I should get off the freeway and wait it out or keep going. The only advise my brother could give me was that I needed to do what felt safe to me. 

I ended up staying on the freeway and made it out on the other side. As soon as we went down to the desert below the snow stopped but it was raining fiercely. 

After what seemed forever I made it to the restaurant in Kettleman City, CA where I was meeting my sister and her husband. We had an early dinner (we had left at 11am and I didn't get to the restaurant until past 4pm, over twice as long as it should have taken) and then I stopped at Starbucks for a Venti something or other to keep me awake for the trip back. 

Remember me mentioning that the freeway had been closed? Ya, well, the only way back to LA was to take a freeway that would take me across another set of mountains all the way to Pacific Coast Highway and then take that down the coast and back home. This, of course, wasn't perfect either since it was still pouring rain and now it was super dark. That side freeway? The 41. It is a one lane each direction sort of road. Since everyone else going south was blocked from going through the Grapevine it was packet. 

I ended up getting home past 11pm, so over 12 hours round trip what should have been 5 hours. The worst part was that my phone died and I blew the spark plug in the car so I couldn't charge it.