Here's where I'll be...

Getting excited...

...and nervous...

...doubting my fitness levels will be "good enough"...

I walk all the time - around the hills that surround my home...

...so why not...?



I won't be posting until I get back.

Lots to do.

Cassie has tonsilitis and needs some down time with Mummy before I go on my big adventure...


Stay safe, strong and happy.


See you all when I get back !!!

Confusion...

hmmmm...remember this guy back in the 80's?

He was a boy, named Marilyn...he was kinda pretty, but a boy nonetheless.

Turns out this fellow is a boy as well...kinda pretty too. We named him Marilyn.







What to do???

We are stunned...thought we'd looked. Hubby announced it to us very calmly, but it took us all by surprise. We are shocked.

We are so shocked we CANNOT come up with a name...



....Stay tuned....

Easter Week-End

Friday morning we packed the trailer, girls and dog into the car and headed way out West to spend the Easter Weekend with friends.












We did the same last year, and spent three days in a property owned by our friends, camping and generally "roughing" it. No running water, no power, a camping loo and no internet connection...

It only takes a couple of hours to get used to...the sun is setting by 5.30, and the camp fire goes all day, the men add logs as we need it. After dinner, it is roaring, and Hubby entertains us all, before all inhibitions are lost and everyone is singing along.


Sunday morning all the kids await the Easter Egg hunt, and our youngest camper (5 years old) is adamant that he *saw* the Easter Bunny.

This year the kids ranged in age from 5 to 18, with the bulk made up of six 12-year-olds. Food is shared, as is the wine and nibblies while we cook dinner.

We don't see these people very often - some of them only this once a year, but it is a really lovely time and we have come away both times hoping we'll do it again next Easter.


The worst thing is the un-packing - I forgot to mention that our friends take their dirt bikes to ride around the property...they have three boys (two teenagers and the five year old...) In fact, everyone who goes takes bikes, except for us...although Hubby and the girls would love to own one.

So, the amount of dust that comes back with us is unbelievable...nonetheless, I was quite efficient last night and did not sit down until I had packed the dishwasher with our camping dishes etc, unpacked our food and cleaned out all our camping gear to be packed away again.


Then I took the longest shower I have had in ages and used every exfoliating, cleansing and moisturizing product I had in the bathroom...needless to say, I slept very well last night, and woke up feeling quite pampered...


Now it's time to un-relax my eating and get back on track.


Four more sleeps til I leave for Thredbo!!!!


Oh, before I go - see what we picked up today....?






....meet Marilyn, named after Maddie's idol, Marilyn Monroe...

More on this baby later.


Hope you're enjoying your Easter Weekend!

Girly Day Update

I let the girls sleep in, like I said yesterday. Did just the minimum paperwork that HAD to be done...

When they got up and had brekky, I gave them some options - let's go out and see a movie? Out for lunch at your place of choice? DVD's and pyjamas at home...?

They both jumped at the last option - they don't always agree so readily! - so it was settled.

After showers, we headed to the shops for the basics, some DVD's and "nice" food to bring back home.

We stopped past K-Mart on our way, as they needed new slippers. Came home with a pink, oversized fluffy pair for Cassie, and Maddie went for the animal print bootees. They also picked up a pair of boots each. My kids go through shoes at an alarming rate, so if they see a pair they like at K-Mart, I let them have it. I was very pedantic about having their shoes fitted correctly until they were about 10, I still insist on good quality school shoes and sneakers, but for casual stuff, anything goes.


Then off to the DVD shop - now these two have very different tastes in movies. I had stipulated it had to be something the THREE of us would enjoy...the choice was easy - - -



SHREK!!!!


We haven't watched Shrek for ages! We love the characters, the music, and the story lines are so clever, intertwined with our favourite fairy tales...


We got Shrek 1 and 2 and also a couple of other DVD's that they want to sit down and watch with Daddy - RV and Monty Python....I told you they have varied tastes...


So it was a lovely day - no guilt for being out of the "office", no regrets , just happy to be in the "moment" with my girls. It went by too quickly...


Today it's back to work with a vengeance - must get caught up before the Easter weekend.


If you're driving for a long distance - STAY SAFE !


xoxox

Progress...

Girly Day

Today Hubby was off nice and early to his cousin's place. He is giving him a hand with his reno's, and in return his cousin will come up here one day next week to help out over at our new place...

Which means it's just the girls and I today...at the moment I am enjoying some early morning solitude with a cuppa and my laptop. The girls are both fast asleep. I checked in on them when I got up - Cassie's quilt had fallen off her bed...her cat is curled up, asleep on her pillow keeping her head warm. I put the quilt over her and left them there, in their slumber...

Maddie is a different "sleeper", it's like she hardly moves during the night. I found her this morning tucked right under her covers, on her tummy, Arfer Rabbit poking from somewhere under her neck, like he has done for the past 15 years since Michael's grandma gave him to us for her before she was born...

My girls reflect their personalities in how they sleep. Cassie tosses and turns and never stands still, whilst Maddie is happy to just "be". If she finds a comfy place, there's no need to go trying out different ones, familiarity is what she thrives on, whereas Cassie is the adventurer. They are good for each other. If Cassie hadn't come along, Maddie might be just TOO quiet, a little bit TOO shy. And if Maddie wasn't there, Cassie would not have big sister to pull her back when she gets just a little bit TOO adventurous.

They are beautiful, kind hearted girls, my two.

It's sometimes hard watching them grow up in this world, where little girls grow up too quickly. The emotional roller-coaster is heart-breaking.

Image related issues attack them from every angle, all I say to them is that they have no idea how beautiful and perfect they are. If only they really heard me. But then I think back to my twenties, let alone my teens, and I remember how I was never happy with how I looked...boy, I would love to look the way I did at age 25 again !!!


So this morning, while they sleep, I will catch up on Blogs, get some paperwork done and then the three of us will do something together - maybe a trip to the movies? or just get a couple of DVD's and declare it "pyjama day"? or maybe out to brunch at one of our favourite coffee shops...?


I will let you know.



Enjoy your day!


xoxox

Purchases...

On the weekend, Cassie's "bestie" Emily came to stay. Emily and her family moved to Wagga just after Christmas...Cassie and Emily have been at the same school since Kindy, and just as they were looking forward to the big world of High School together - her dad gets a transfer and they moved.

We've promised the girls that we will do our best to make sure they catch up every school holidays, even if only for a couple of days - so far so good...


On Sunday I took them to the Plaza for some shopping, very proud of these two! They are seasoned bargain hunters and got some great stuff on sale...

We ran into Emily's mum and grandma at GJ's and joined them for a coffee, then we all went our separate ways.

The girls really wanted to walk around for a bit on their own, so we designated a meeting place, and then I had half an hour to myself...hmm what to do??? I am the world's worst shopper...I do not like fitting rooms, I do not like crowds, the whole shopping thing does not excite me.


I "wandered" into Sussan's (as you do) and came out with these items...




They all fit sooo beautifully - the skirt is a little snug, but it's just the right incentive to drop some more weight and take the training up a notch...they say running is the sure way to slim thighs and butts...

It may all look a bit monochromatic, but I have a lot of red/burgundy and purples in my Winter wardrobe, so these will work in beautifully.


These few items have filled in the gaps I had in my wardrobe, I feel like I'm set for the next few months...now I just need some shoes to go with these...some wedge-heeled boots, maybe? ;)


Are you like me? Or do you enjoy spending whole days in the shopping centre just "looking" or trying clothes on?

Fast Walking

This morning I woke up at 1.45am...tossed and turned and the last time I looked at the clock it was 3.35am...drifted off to sleep some time after that, and woke up very hazy and irritable at 7.00am...

I had to drop off Cassie's friend Emily to her parents along the highway on our way to Maddie's Orthodontist appointment at 9.00am

Needless to say, I didn't walk this morning.

I fumbled my way through the day, tempted when I filled the car at the service station to grab a bottle of V to help "wake me up" a little, but I thought of the additives, and most of all those empty calories and decided it wasn't worth it.

So, I suggested to hubby that we go for a walk after we dropped Maddie off to work. We parked the car behind the village shops and headed down one of our favourite streets. We'd noticed a sign pointing to some bush walks and decided, seeing we had no deadline looming and most importantly no little dog with us, to try the shorter version of this walk, which is supposed to take an hour.

It started off with a fairly steep descent (I hate walking down slippery mossy leaf littered tracks) and came upon about three water falls, spaced a few hundred meters from each other.

As we were starting to make our way back up, I spotted this fellow - hubby walked right past him without noticing him. He was quite large, would weigh about a kilo, I'm guessing...





So, after taking a few wrong turns, we found our way back to civilization, and headed back towards the village. I looked at my watch and we appear to have done the whole walk, plus an extra kilometer and a half back to our car in 1 hour 15mins...so we must have walked faster than the "average" walker that the sign was intended for.

...not bad considering I was sleep deprived and all...


To wrap-up the day - Nutrition has been on track, and I got a good walk in!

Note to self - Drink more water!!


I really want some sort of a gizmo that will track distance walked/run and calories burned etc.

Any suggestions?

I think it's going to be my Mothers' Day Present!!! :)

That and a Lorna Jane voucher - the new catalogue came in the mail , and what with LizN and Kerry raving about their love for LJ, I figure it wouldn't hurt to give my workout wardrobe a bit of a make-over!


Sandra
xoxox

How's that??? Two missions accomplished in one Post! I can add pictures AND I can add a link...I think 2011 is my year of "I CAN DO ANYTHING! ALL I HAVE TO DO IS TRY!"

Slept in this morning - out the door for my walk at 6.45 rather than the usual 6.00am

That's what Sunday's all about, isn't it...? Relaxing the routine a little...?

After Fiona left, I didn't walk very regularly, I avoided taking the route she and I used to walk, sometimes I would come home and have a little sob...I know, I'm very emotional...she is the best walking partner I've ever had - she's also my best friend ever, and I miss her.

Nowadays, though, I've decided not to walk is NOT an option...time to put emotions aside and get on with it, girl! After all, Fee would not want me to miss my walks and blame HER in the process...she's a no-nonsense type of gal, that's why I love her so much.

Meet my new walking partners...






Hubby and Ollie have decided to join me on my morning workout...we sort of joined up, see hubby and Ollie had started walking a few weeks back, and then I decided if I was going to fit a walk into my day it had to be done the minute I got up...so we walk "together"

Our walking styles are different...I walk at a steady brisk pace, whereas these two do intervals. Ollie needs to pee on anything growing by the side of the road, so there's a fair bit of stop-and-start...they go from strolling, to standing still, to sprinting.

Here they are on the last leg, about 1km from home. For some reason Ollie always sprints when we turn into this street...




So that's my walk done for today...it's turning into a glorious Autumn day, so I might go out for another walk this evening - just love being out there when the colours of nature are so vivid, it's my favourite time of year...

Does nature draw you to exercise outdoors? What is your favourite time of year?

Enjoy your Sunday!


Sandra
:)

Aaaaargh!!!

Are you guys sick of me yet???

I don't blame you.

PLEASE if there's anyone out there that could help...I would really appreciate it.

Blogger will not let me download my Ticker Factory weight loss gadget because "it contains illegal characters..."???

HOW DO I SOLVE THIS PROBLEM?

Oh, and by the way - somehow - the little Ticker downloaded to my old Blog at Wordpress while I was playing around with it this morning ROTFL

Hey, I'm having fun! It's wet and dreary out there, I've already done my walk for the day, so what better way to spend the afternoon than fighting with Blogger...?

See ya!

Before ... or should I say "After"...?

Going out on a limb, here...

I took these photos exactly one week ago. I don't mind being photographed, if the photographer knows what they're doing...but this is just me with my Blackberry, bad lighting, and a pile of folded washing on my bed.

I got side-tracked while putting away the washing. The weather is getting cooler, and I started thinking that I should be pulling out some warmer Autumn tops to the front of the wardrobe...so I thought I might try on some jeans...bad idea, or maybe it was good? Maybe it was what I needed to give me a reality check.

You see, these images were quite confronting. The jeans I'm wearing are a Size 11...but having said that, they are a bit larger than my Size 12's...go figure.

The shirt and slacks are Size 10's...a year ago I was very comfortable in both outfits, in fact, I looked OK in them...

Lately I feel like my arms are huge, and they are bigger than they've ever been. But if you look at the photos, most of my excess lard is centred around my middle...boy oh boy, that was a real eye-opener.

I don't want to go down the path of worrying about my weight from a health perspective, but it's getting that way. There is a history of heart related disease and strokes also seem to "run in my family"


Enough!!! This is the biggest you will ever see me. Since those photos I have got together a meal plan, which involves sensible eating - I won't bore you with details - maybe later ;) and walking briskly/jogging five times a week for an hour around the beautiful hills that surround my home.


Why do I say these are my "After" photos...? Because this is what I look like AFTER I let myself go, AFTER I stopped caring. I have never been this size, unless I was pregnant. Even after my first two babies, I had dropped well into the mid-sixties by the time they were three months old...


So, on a different note : Yay for Bluetooth!

Looks like I can tick off one item on my Techno-to-do list.

Bugger! Still can't get that ticker to download :(


Hope you're enjoying your weekend!

xoxox

Hey there!

Truth be told, fitandfabinmyforties was a very boring Blog, even if I say so myself...

My hopes and dreams for this new baby is that it is going to be a lot more colourful, not just in appearance but also in content.

Sure, the main thing I will be blogging about is my fitness and weight loss, but I would like this to also be a place where I can share all sorts of "stuff" about my life.

So here it is, my journey to Fabulous - why fabulous? because I've always wanted to say that, Dahlings...I want to be fab at everything I do, I want to look fab while I'm getting fit, and losing the excess weight, and I want to be a fab wife, and mum and run a fab business...

So, in case you didn't get it from that last paragraph, I also want to have a bit of a giggle at myself in the process...who knows? this could be the Blog that's here to stay!


Trying to download a little Ticker gadget to track my weight loss, but wouldn't you know it??? the thing will NOT download to my Blog.

The lovely Lucy from Diminishing Lucy has told me exactly how to download it, but I keep getting the message that "this gadget is broken..." WTF???


I'VE SAID IT A THOUSAND TIMES, TECHNOLOGY AND I DON'T MIX!

So, does anyone out there have any suggestions on how to "fix" the ticker?


I have a couple of basic things I want to learn how to do on this Blog, which I think would make it exactly what I want -


* how to download photos/images (bear with me here, I know it's probably dead easy for some of you...)
* how to link someone's Blog to their name


My aim is to be doing both those things by the end of the first week, then I'll move on to more advanced stuff... ;)


Back soon with an update on all things Sandra


How much time do you spend on the appearance of your Blog? Does it come easy to you?