...made a pact with my friend.

Martina and I have decided we are going to lose 15 pounds together starting January 5th and finishing by February 20th.

We decided this over our lunch of half-pound loaded burgers at the Ram Pub today. After we made the pact we went back to my house and had hot buttered rum. Might as well live it up while we can!

After all that, however, I went to the gym and ran 10 miles because New Year's Eve is coming up in 2 days and I can't be looking bloaty.

When I got home from the gym I had my Tree Top trim because I felt like I was super hungry, though it was 9pm. It worked! I'm not hungry and I will go to bed happy that I didn't gorge after the gym.

...regreted giving myself a break for Christmas.

Ugh. It was painful stepping on the scale today. I didn't want to do it because I knew it would be bad news, but I also knew it would motivate me to eat better today. It was worse than I thought. I gained 2 lbs!!! Oh man! I am going to a holiday soiree and my friends house tomorrow.

My initial plan was to do an all liquid diet till the party. Those don't work. At least not for me. It lasted about 3 hours. Finally, I had a health bar and felt better.

I worked out today with a video on On Demand by Jillian from Biggest Loser. Boy, she does kick your ass. Hope that helps for tomorrow. Parties are always more fun when you know you look good.

Back on the Tree Top trim challenge. More work to do...

...how much UPS sucks.

As I said earlier, I thought I was so smart ordering ALL of my Christmas gifts online 10 days before Christmas. However, the Arctic Blast of 2008 hit and suddenly we weren't able to get off our hill or get garbage service, but mail was still being delivered. However, nothing I ordered to be delivered by UPS, Fed Ex or USPS arrived.

I didn't expect much from the USPS because they are basically the post office and therefore, the government and therefore, wouldn't care about customer service. However, personal shipping is a competitive market. I first called Fed Ex about my missing packages and although they said they couldn't deliver, they answered the phone, were very friendly and provided some solutions (where I could pick up one of the four packages from them I was waiting for).

UPS was NOTHING like Fed Ex. They were awful and rude. They made it seem like I should feel sorry for them because they were so far behind in deliveries. I was left wondering, what does UPS do in Michigan or Utah or Colorado or any of the states where there is snow most of the winter. I am pretty sure they still deliver packages. The worst part was they didn't even want you to talk to a live person on the phone. By the time I tricked the phone system to let me talk to a real person, that person was pretty irritated I got through. She left me no solutions and seemed pretty upset to be having to ask any questions.

So Christmas is tomorrow and I have resorted to printing out pictures of the gifts I ordered for all my nieces and nephews. Lucky them! There is nothing like unwrapping a piece of paper showing what they could have gotten is UPS had done their job.

In the future I will make sure to pick Fed Ex rather than UPS for all my shipping needs.

In unrelated news, I am still on the trim Challenge, though it has been awfully hard to stay away from temptation while being snowed in. Boy, I need a run...

...I'm so bummed nothing I ordered online will come before Christmas.

Snow bugs. I'm really over it. I thought i was playing it so smart - ordering everything online so I didn't have to risk bad driving conditions. Now, nothing I ordered for my daughter and family members will arrive. Everyone will understand, but Meagan who will wonder why Santa didn't bring her anything, but a stocking. Especially because I told her Santa can do anything and snow is what he is used to. She reminded me I said that today.

So, it's time to start getting creative about what Christmas will be like this year and making the most of it. I am really, really happy my sister and her family arrived so it feels more like the holidays. It helps to relieve some of the cabin fever.

I really need to get out though. I want to see my friends. I want to go for a run. Heck, I even want to go to my office.

Stupid snow.

On the bright side, I am still doing well with my Tree Top trim challenge. I haven't gained weight even though I haven't done any cardio exercise in a week. I did shovel the snow on my stairs today, but I don't think I'll make my goal by the New Year.

Stupid, stupid snow....

...I have serious cabin fever.

I haven't been able to drive anywhere for two days and it doesn't look like I'll be getting out tomorrow. I need to go for a run! At least I've had my daughter dragging me outside to sled or I would be getting next to no exercise.

In times like this it's even harder to eat well and stay on a challenge. I really would love to have some bad for you comfort food and eat non-stop, but it's helpful that I know I am my own Tree Top trim Challenge and that I'm writing about it on a public blog or I would be cleaning out my fridge.

I hope I'm not snowed in for too long or I'll be out of trim...

...it's another winter wonderland day.

By experience, I know these days are the hardest to stick to the Tree Top trim challenge, but my plan is to keep busy and stick to the plan of juice for dessert. I plan to play in the snow a lot so I am hoping to see some weight loss tomorrow.

...still loving the trim Challenge.

I think I will just continue this habit of drinking trim for snacks and desserts rather than having something less healthy as much as possible. I really do actually feel great. I lost another pound and it helps curb the craving for something sweet after I eat lunch and dinner. It has helped me cut calories.

Another totally independent, non-biased Mommy Blogger wrote about trim. I am really excited it's getting all this attention because for me it's like a baby you want to see succeed because you know how good it is and you want the world to know. I really do think the more people that try it, the more will be hooked on it like me.

...discovered it's hard to stick to a challenge when you are snowed in.

All I want to do today is sit in front of my TV on the couch with my daughter drinking hot chocolate. However, I know if I do that it will totally ruin my challenge. That doesn't mean it's totally kept me from temptation, but I have done pretty well considering. One trim so far today, instead of hot chocolate.

I think I'll go sledding with Meagan later to work off the two pieces of garlic toast I had with my soup...

...and had a long day of working, celebrating and shopping.

I'm exhausted, but feel like I really accomplished a lot today - especially finding a new favorite restaurant.

We celebrated my Dad's 66th today and I took him to dinner at a great place in Portland on SE Stark called The Country Cat. It was AMAZING. I had read about it and learned that the chef/owner was formerly from Wildwood and his wife was the pastry chef at Lauro. It was like home style cooking with a fancy twist.

The restaurant had a great feel and for the taste, it was very reasonably priced. I liked that they had a kids menu that got Meagan to try something new -buttery noodles with cheese. She loved it.

My Dad and I had the special - Flank Steak with house made sausage, chantrelle mushrooms, kale and new potatoes. De.lish.ous. The picture doesn't do it justice.

My Mom had the burger which she said was very good. She ate till she was stuffed.

We also ordered dessert (of course). Our favorite was the Bittersweet Chocolate Bundt Cake with Ovaltine Ice Cream. Best. Icecream. Ever. Yummmm. I am going to think about that meal for days.

I will definitely plan to go back. I want to try everything on the menu. The bar food was very reasonably priced and it looks like they make some good drinks. Also kids eat free on Sundays. Awesome. You should go there.

After eating at the restaurant, my sister and I went to finish our Christmas shopping and get some supplies in case weather keeps us up on the hill the next few days. Poor Meagan was exhausted, but I am proud to say I am done with Christmas shopping. Yay!

BTW - Still doing great on the trim Challenge. No weight loss today, but loving having the juice for a snack.

...was surprised to see I lost another pound.

With the snowy weather as it is and all the comfort food I have been eating, I was pleasantly surprised to see my trim Challenge is still working. Yay! Another pound lost. Tree Top trim is my friend.

...it's day 7 of the trim Challenge.

Still haven't lost any more weight, but I did not resist the temptation of the dessert offered me the last two nights. However, I did stick to trim as snacks during the day. I know that's not quite the challenge, however.

Today I am taking Meagan to a birthday party where there will definitely be cupcakes or cake. Because I am writing in this blog that I will resist taking a piece, I will. Boy, I better have lost more weight by tomorrow...

...and had another successful day on the Tree Top trim challenge.

Day 5:

Though I didn't lose any weight, I was successful in avoiding what I shouldn't be eating. I really, really wanted some dark chocolate after lunch, but I went to the fridge and poured some trim. I ended up being pretty happy with it and my craving for the chocolate went away. I am really hoping to see some more weight loss in the next couple days though.

Tonight should be a challenge. I am going to a cousin's birthday party and there's always lots of good food around. I know there will be many challenges like this all month so it will be a good practice party.

More tomorrow...

...it was day for of the trim challenge - and the toughest yet

I am proud to say that it's late and I am really tempted by the oreo/cream cheese brownie that's upstairs on my kitchen counter, but I am drinking a Tree Top trim and it's pretty darn good. I stuck well to the challenge today and was happy to see that, while I didn't lose another pound I didn't gain anything either. Tomorrow, I will be happy if I see the same result considering I had pasta for lunch AND dinner.

I really, honestly like this challenge. I have a sweet tooth and I need to have something sweet a few times a day. It helps to have this in my fridge to go to. I am really not just saying that because I have too. It is true.

...it's totally working!

I lost my other pound I unknowingly gained. I am so happy. Yesterday I had two glasses of trim. First I had the Pomegranate Blackberry, then I had the Mango Peach. I prefer the Mango Peach, but both are good. Actually, my favorite is the Pineapple Tangerine, but they aren't distributing that yet.

Anyway - I have definitely felt satisfied after grabbing a trim, rather than something else. Plus, I probably also feel proud that I am making a better decision. Every serving has 1 full serving of fruit so it helps me get that in. I don't typically buy fruit because it goes bad before I can eat it all. It also has 3 grams of fiber and I am sure I never get enough of that.

I would love to be able to see if I can lose 7 more pounds before January 1. Then I'll have a really good start for my resolutions.

We'll see where I am at tomorrow. Because it's going well so far, I know that I will definitely be able to keep it up today.

...it was day 3 of my Tree Top trim quest.

I lost 1 of the extra pounds I had! Yay! I am still disappointed about the 2 extra lbs, but think they would have been gone if I didn't scarf down a huge Italian meal last night.

This is the first day in my quest that I will be in the office all day. I tend to snack the whole day, so my goal will be to go for the trim in the fridge anytime I want something other than lunch. Also, I will see what happens when I eat a more respectable size dinner tonight.

It's kind of fun to start a quest like this BEFORE the New Year's resolutions I'll declare.

More tomorrow...

...and it was trim test - day 2.

I felt great when I woke up this morning and was sure I would like what the scale said, but I actually gained 2 pounds! What?!

Ugh. To be fair, I did eat way too much yesterday and it was only the first day of my Tree Top trim test so I will be very interested to see what tomorrow's scale reads. Today I haven't actually craved so much extra food. I don't know whether it's due to the delayed effects of trim or because I know if I want anything extra it has to only be a glass of juice so I have avoided going to the fridge. I just really haven't felt as hungry today. Hmmmm... I like that.

...felt really guilty I hadn't posted lately.

I wanted this to be a daily blog and boy, has it fallen short. Iwill still shoot for daily, but mostly likely it will be "frequently" updated.

I have tried many different products in my functional food test and I am glad I started it. If I hadn't I might have not known I liked these types of foods/beverages. I did recently find a very most favorite bar: Cookie Dough Balance Bar. Seriously delicious. It had about 250 calories, but it had so many vitamins and it actually tasted like cookie dough. Yummmm. I wish I bought more than one because I want one right now. They were on sale at Fred Meyer for only a buck. I will definitely be buying more.

Since starting this quest, I notice that I feel pretty good most of the time. It has helped me keep weight off and when I choose one of these snacks or soups I feel like I have made a very healthy choice.

So now - I will continue eating and evaluating these foods, but I am starting a new test. I recently got Tree Top as a client because they are launching a new functional beverage - Tree Top trim. I really like it for the taste, low calories, metabolism boost and fiber, but I want to know it works and want to test what happens if I drink it every day. I want to see if I lose weight. I am not typically a juice drinker, but my new goal is going to be every time I am in the mood for a snack or dessert I am going to pour a glass of this juice.

I'll keep the blog updated on what I think of it, but I also wanted to disclose they are a client so I wasn't treating it like the other functional food tests.

I got started today and so far, the juice as a snack and dessert has worked. I haven't still needed something after I finished it. We'll see how it is tomorrow...

...can't believe it's Christmas season already.

I know every year it seems like it starts earlier and earlier, but it just seems so over the top this year. I am sure it's because they are trying to get sales started early in anticipation of a poor year, but it makes me want to hold out even longer in rebellion.

I hereby declare I will not acknowledge or decorate for Christmas until December.

...wonder why freaks contact you on Facebook etc.

The other day some guy contacted me on Facebook with a lame excuse that he was looking up someone else that went to PSU and also named Allison. Yeah, right. He wrote "long time no see! How are you?"

It took me a while to figure out how I knew him. When I realized who it was, it took some control to not write a blunt "leave me alone" message right back. He was a friend of an ex and never a friend of mine. What a turd.

The first thing I saw when I went to his page to see who he was, was his declaration as "conservative Republican". That alone says we could never be friends, but the fact that I couldn't stand the guy 13 years ago, means that we don't need to be friends on Facebook or any other site.

I love Facebook and how it allows me to keep up with friends, family and those I know from work, but I'm not one of those people who just wants to see how many friends I can claim on my page. I'd rather spend my time connecting with people I like. Life is too short and there are too many networking sites to bother with people you don't like in the first place.

Ahhhh. That felt good to rant. For those I am friends with on Facebook, Plaxo, Twitter, MySpace, Brightkite, Culination and LinkedIn - I love you all. This post has nothing to do with you(-;

...Finally lost that fifth lb.

I really do think eating the functional foods and drinking the functional drinks did work. Though expensive, they helped me track my calories and get all or more of the nutrients I needed in a day. Also, I was distracted from foods I shouldn't be eating when I knew I had these available.

I did try a new soup today that I DO NOT recommend. It was the Creamy Roasted Carrot Soup from Pacific Natural Foods. Eww. It tasted and smelled like baby food. Not good. I won't buy it again. Without doing the whole scoring thing - I'll just say it's a 4. It only gets that high of a score because it's so good for you.

Though I've lost the weight I wanted to, I'm definitely going to continue eating/drinking this way. I feel much better, more energetic and like I know I am getting all the daily requirements in.

...started to think my laundry is magically multiplying.

How is it you can do all your laundry one weekend day, and the next you have another pile that has mysteriously appearded? There seems to be no way to keep up.

Now that I think of it, my dishes are like that too.

I have come to the conclusion I was meant to be fabulously wealthy so others could do my dishes and laundry and I'd never have to know about the magical powers of laundry and dishes.

What happened to that destiny? I think I picked the wrong profession...

...I can't stop smiling.

The feeling of pride is still lingering from last night's announcement that Barack Obama will be our next president. It feels so good to be proud to be part of this country again. Words cannot describe the emotions running through me last night as I watched with my family as the the declaration came onto the TV screen. I cried with everyone else as I saw the look on the faces of the people across the world - especially the African-Americans with whom this much have such deep meaning.

While it was great to share those moments with my family, I also wanted to be able to explain the significance to my four-year-old, but then I realized – it's much better for her to grow up thinking that it's not unusual for an darker skinned person to be the leader of our country. In fact, I'd like her to not notice skin color at all.

I think why I feel so much emotion with this momentus change is that I actually do have "hope" again for our country. I didn't expect to feel this way, but I have never seen anything in my life like the reactions I saw on TV last night. I don't expect Barack Obama to make everything perfect in America. However, I believe we as a people are changing for the better. I am excited to see what comes next.

...decided I have a new favorite clothing store for my daughter.

I finally found a store full of clothes that Meagan will actually wear and there is no Hannah Montana gear in site!

It's called Crazy 8 and the best part is – the clothes are super affordable and super cute. Even the boys' clothes are cute. I recommend it for anyone who has kids.

I also love it because Meagan's school dress policy requires that the kids' clothes not be too flashy and be without blatant branding. I'm pretty sure we have been violating the policy the last couple of years with all of her Disney Princess, High School Musical and Hannah Montana t-shirts. Now I won't be getting those looks of concern from the nuns in the hall.

I really hope this is a store that can stay in business through these bad economic times. Check it out for your self at Clackamas Town Center or shop online.

...got the new Nordstrom catalog!

Finally, a good one! The last few editions have been pretty lame. Maybe they realized that and stepped it up due to a drop in sales. Anyway, I pretty much want something on every page. I just need about $2,000 more a month. I'm sure my Dad will understand.

Gotta go, Nordstrom just opened...

...lost another pound!

Yeah. It's finally working. The only problem is this weekend is girls' weekend at the beach. We never eat healthy and I there will be plenty of drink involved. We'll see what kinds of functional foods I can sneak by the girls.

Today I tried Odwalla MoBeta because I feel like I am coming down with something. Love it. It always makes me feel better. Here's how I'd rate it:

Taste: 9 (I love it, but don't love it so much I want to buy one every day like a soy latte love it)
Nutrition: 9 (great for what I need it for - Beta Carotene and Antioxidants)
Hunger Control: 8.5 (not bad. For some reason, juice works to control my hunger pretty well)
Cost: 7 (expensive, but worth it to treat myself when I am starting to feel sick)
Overall Score: 8.375

Stay tuned to see how many pounds I gain back after going on a weekend that's all about over doing it...

...I lost a pound!

Yeah! 4 more pounds to go. I guess it does work if you really replace less healthy meals and snacks with the functional foods. At least I know I am getting all of my daily required vitamins and fiber etc.

Here are the latest products I tried:

PowerBar Pria - French Vanilla Crisp
Taste: 8 (I'm really into Vanilla in these functional foods/beverages. Tastes better than fake chocolate)
Nutrition:8.5 (I wish it had more than 1 g of fiber, but it does have only 110 calories and 60% of your daily folate)
Hunger Control: 6.5 (very, very tiny)
Cost: 6.5
Overall Score: 7.375

PowerBar Pria - Chocolate Peanut Butter
Taste: 7
Nutrition:8.5
Hunger Control: 6.5
Cost: 6.5
Overall Score: 7.125

Pacific Natural Foods Creamy Tomato Soup
Taste: 8.5 (as good as you are going to get out of a box or can)
Nutrition: 8 (I love that it's only 100 calories per serving)
Hunger Control: 9 (I really wasn't hungry for 3 hours after eating the soup and was able to avoid sharing Meagan's Minibon)
Cost: 7.5 (a better deal than V8 Soups, but still expensive)
Overall Score: 8.25

I am trying hard to stick to my 6 small healthy meals plan today, but we're going out to dinner tonight. We'll see if I lose any more weight...

...tried some more functional products.

and STILL no weight loss. I'm sure it's due to the fact that I haven't cut any meals out of my diet, I just eat the functional products on top of everything else.

I've found a few new decent items, but they're pretty average.

I was shopping at Fred Meyer this time and it doesn't seem to have as many options as Safeway or New Seasons. I did try two different flavors of Fred Meyer's Active Lifestyle Chewy Bars. I do have to say you get the most bang for the buck with these in comparison to anything else they have in the store. They taste pretty decent, they are larger than the average, they have more fiber and cost less. Here's how they rate:

Active Lifestyle Oats & Chocolate Chewy Bar
Taste: 7.5
Nutrition: 9.5 (9 grams of fiber!)
Hunger Control: 9 it's bigger than the average and has lots of fiber
Cost: 8 (though - be careful about directly comparing them to others in a box. They only offer 5 bars in this one. Seems like they are trying to be tricky.)
Overall Score: 8.5

Active Lifestyle Oats & Peanut Butter Chewy Bar
Taste: 7
Nutrition: 9.5 (9 grams of fiber!)
Hunger Control: 9
Cost: 8
Overall Score: 8.375

I also did try the SlimFast Optima French Vanilla Shake Mix
I have to say it's really not too bad. If I were at Safeway, I still would have bought the Safeway brand, but didn't have that option. It really doesn't make me feel full and it has 200 calories rather than 170 per serving like the thicker and better tasting Safeway canned version. This is how I rated it:
Taste: 9 (as good as you'll get with these mixes)
Nutrition: 8.5 (I like the protein and 4g of fiber, but 200 is too many calories)
Hunger Control: 6
Cost: 6.5
Overall Score: 7.5

Tomorrow my goal is to actually let these items be substitutes. I'll let you know how that goes...

...went to the pumpkin patch.

It's that time of year.

When you have a four-year-old you want to do more than just pick out pumpkins at the supermarket so we chose Leipold Farms in Boring, OR. I had high expectations because they seemed expensive when I read about them online and seem to offer activities for all ages.

It wasn't what I expected. They did have a big corn maze I can't judge because we didn't go through it, but we did take Meagan in the preschool kids area. Gross.

Meagan wanted to ride the rickety old carousel and that was the best thing that area offered. Everything else was dirty and broken down. You can sort of see "Heather's Tea House" in this picture, which was probably great 30 years ago, but I am amazed it has been removed as a safety hazard. Meagan went inside briefly, then came out and said "that was creepy!"

Meagan did enjoy all the painted wood cut outs to stick your face in, so that was probably the best thing about it for us. She also enjoyed eating the bland tasting caramel off the apple we shared.

I do have to say that they had pretty good pumpkins and they were cheaper than we expected. Last year we went to a great pumpkin patch in Hillsboro that offered train and boat rides. I think I'll go back to Hillsboro next year...

...and it was school picture day!

I didn't even know it. I just happened to look at the school calendar right 10 minutes before we were supposed to leave.

Crap!

I didn't even give Meagan a bath the night before.

I had to think fast. How could I get Meagan excited about getting her hair done, when she normally refuses to have anything in it? How could I get her to wear something "picture worthy" and do all this in 10 minutes without making her freak out?

I decided to get her into too. I let her know I just realized it was picture day and it was an emergency fashion situation. She decided she wanted braids. Easy. She picked out her nicest dress (though she seems to have gotten a few inches taller since wearing it last). Easy. She looked so cute she wanted me to take some pictures of her before we left.

She's so Top Model. We'll see how the school pictures turn out...

...realized I forgot to post yesterday.

Yesterday, Meagan and I went to visit our newest family member and got some more good pictures.

What a sweet little boy. He is so low key and slept most of the time we visited. When the nurses came in to weigh and poke him he only squeaked a little.

Kelly is also doing amazing and looking great. Of course, it helps that Keeton slept almost through the night.

Before heading up to the hospital, Meagan and I stopped at Elephant's Deli just off Burnside in NW. They make excellent chocolate mousse and it's Kelly's favorite. She loved it and at it BEFORE dinner. Good for her!

By the way - my other favorite item at Elephant's is the Tomato Orange Soup. Best. Soup. Ever. Try it.

...my sister was in labor!

at 9:21pm tonight - after 23 hours of labor - my little sister Kelly had her fourth child and her fourth boy - Keeton Joseph Thomas Sayre.

It was awesome. I got to be in the room so I could help take care of two of her other sons, Daniel and Ian who also wanted to witness the birth. Kelly was amazing. She was so calm throughout. She made it seem like giving birth was no big deal. Of course, she did have an epidural.

I didn't get to stay to see how long Keeton was or how much he weighed, but I think he was a heavy little guy. He's all chubbed up, just like his brothers were.

It's so fun to get a new family member.

I'll update with day old pictures tomorrow. For now, I am tired and I'm going to bed...