Out with the old, in with the new

This is our old heating/cooling unit (well, at least a part of it). It's as old as I am, and it's broke.
Today, it's been replaced by a super shiny new heating/cooling unit that is also crazy efficient, and henceforth, good for the environment and our wallet.
The old A/C unit was barely hanging in there. Poor thing.
The new, modern lean machine.
Big investment, but so worth it in the long-term.

Surprise! And happy birthday, C!

Despite my throbbing jaw pain from all that dental work, I decided to go to C's surprise birthday party that his awesome wife organized for him. C is my former boss and he and his wife are now good friends of ours. C is the primary reason I became an Apple snob.

There he is, eating the yummy ice cream cake, next to J, also a former boss.
It was nice seeing some old friends and making some new ones.
There s C's wife B, being a gracious hostess. By the way - I love their house and their kitchen. They even have a farmer's market right in their backyard! I am envious.
We were all huddled in the bright, sunny kitchen throughout the entire time. It was pretty crowded.
And I can't believe how big their kids have gotten. H (the little blond sunshine boy on the left), and Br (cutie on the far right) have grown unusually quick. What are they feeding those kids? They were sweet as ever.
It was a nice evening and I am really glad I stopped by, despite my toothaches. We promised we would get together soon and won't let years pass before our next get-together.

5 root canals!!!

5 root canals and 2.5 hours on the dentist chair (and a HUGE bill) - 'nuff said!

I got lots of medicines to numb the pain, and I am taking tomorrow off. I was trying to be a champion about it all, but my dentist said "you don't know what you're in for". Apparently, the pain is incredible after the numbness wears off.

I guess I'll keep you posted.

I must be crazy

What I am about to do takes some guts, so please be gentle. :)
I've been struggling with weight for a while now, and this year is the first year that I have been making progress through diet and exercise. At the beginning of this year, I weighed in at 183 lbs. This has gone down, but I still have a while to go to be in the normal BMI range. Plus, I got to work on my cholesterol and other health issues.

Inspired by this season's Biggest Loser TV show, I decided to share my struggle via this blog. I hope it will keep me motivated and maybe inspire someone else out there. So, starting this Tuesday night at 11:00pm, I will post my weight on a weekly basis. It will be every Tuesday night at the same time, in the same clothes in the same exact spot in my bathroom.

These updates are really for my family and my awesome fitness buddy, who have been the greatest support through all this. They are always interested in how I am doing, and they always cheer me on. Oh, and they really keep me accountable.
So here it is... 167.2 lbs. Woohoo!

Soccer!

I've been sick all week, so haven't had the energy to do anything exciting. Now I have also infected my poor hubby, so now we are moping around the house together. Last night, we actually spent the evening napping on the couch to the background noise of the Public Television channel.

We did, however, get three things done yesterday. We emptied our closets and donated the clothes to Goodwill (63 whole items!). Lots of my clothes were things I no longer can wear since I lost weight. Yay!

I also attended the soccer game my hubby coaches for his nephew. Below is our niece with her little friend at the game. Cute!Hubby and his sister getting the lineup ready before the game.My hubby, the coach. :) It was nice seeing my quiet, soft-spoken husband in action and in charge.It was a good game, even though we lost by one goal. Afterward, we visited my parents who were in good spirits. I got to eat my favorite Bosnian dish, "grah" with my mother's fresh "kruh". Yummy!

I am sick...yuck!

I've been at home all day - sick with a bad cold or something. I figured I'd spare my coworkers the sneezing, coughing, and germ-spreading. So I've been lying in bed, sleeping, watching movies, talking on the phone, and drinking tea. Let's hope I feel better by tomorrow. Being sick is no fun, even if I didn't mind spending my whole day here:
Oh, and I watched "Under the Same Moon" - a WONDERFUL movie (you must see if you have a heart), and I also watched "The Counterfeiters", a German movie. Both were awesome.
Unfortunately, a DVD is stuck in my MacBook Pro, so I will have to take it in to get it fixed. Grrr...

Saturday and Sunday

On Saturday I met my girls D and S at a sushi place to celebrate S finding a decent job.
S finally got the scarf I knitted for her. Not very timely for warm September days, but it will come in handy come winter. Sushi was delicious, as expected. I tried to restrain myself from eating all of it (but barely).
Afterward, we goofed around Target, where S found some 60s and 70s hits CDs. We ended up singing along to the blaring classics in the car all night long. Met some friends (and made some new ones). It was, as always, tons of fun. These two are trouble.
Sunday was a little more low key. Got to catch up on some house work, and then met my team to work on our class project. (Hi guys!)
We had the most wonderful meeting place (at a pretty lake), and our meeting lasted a mere 30 minutes. What a dream team! If only everyone was as easy to work with...