followup is key

For the record, here's how my report card stacks up for some of my goals over the last six weeks:

1.) Keep a food journal every day for one month -- solid A. Having a target number of calories to stay below each day is kind of like a game. Who doesn't like games? In the end, this may have been the most productive thing for me to do. Just knowing that I would have to record something was often enough to keep me from ingesting it if I knew I shouldn't. By the way, did anyone even look at my online food log? Ungrateful punks.

2.) No seconds -- A-, for a few weak-willed moments with a tater tot casserole.

3.) Six servings of fruits and veggies every day -- B. The beginning of the week is always easy, but as the week wears on and the produce disappears, not so easy anymore.

4.) Drink 10 glasses of water per day-- A. By far the easiest goal to meet. My water bottle and I are good buddies now. I have also become much more familiar with the men's restroom in my department since I have to visit it about, oh, 10 times a day.

5.) Oatmeal 5 times a week for breakfast -- A. I even liked it.

6.) Eat fish once a week -- C. We had fish three weeks out of the six. Given B's distrust of seafood, I consider that this was actually somewhat of a victory.

7.) Test my cholesterol at the end of the month -- F. I thought about doing it, though. I promise I did.

So overall, my first real attempt at setting some fitness goals was a self-esteem builder. Now, on to bigger and better things, I suppose. Watch for the new goals in the upcoming days.

Fun in the LA Sun

What a lucky girl I am. Q agreed to spend a couple of days playing Mr. Mom so that I could go visit an old roomie in LA and enjoy some sun and relaxation before Q Junior arrives. So Karene, Brian, and Cole played great hosts -- we spent time at the beach, the pier, Universal City Walk, and the park. They also introduced me to Trader Joe's and Joe's Crab Shack. I can't even explain how amazing it was to have a BBQ in their backyard with the sun washing over me (I did feel a twinge of guilt when I thought about Q and L back in Columbus and the cold grayness there). We did a lot of girl-gabbing and catching up... especially since we had about 12 hrs in line for THE PRICE IS RIGHT! Yup, we braved the rain and the crowds and showed up at 1:00 am the morning of the taping. We didn't start the taping of the show until 1:15 pm that afternoon, but it was SO COOL to be in the studio. I'm glad that Cole woke us up at 11:30 pm, because if we would have gotten in line when we'd planned on it we might not have made it in. Anyways, watch the March 20th show and I can almost guarantee a good crowd shot with me in it. Jamie (a firefighter from Connecticut who looks like Brendan Frasier) was sitting RIGHT next to me in the audience and he got called to Contestants Row.

After a canceled flight (an extra day in LA!) and an overbooked flight that had me taking a cab from Cincinnati to Columbus I finally got home to spend the evening with my Valentines. Q and L had gotten me flowers, my favorite ice cream, and a special Valentine shirt. It was great to be back home where I felt so loved. Thanks for the chance to recharge Q -- you're the best!