Pump It Up!

This was a relatively quiet week on the activity front, but Tomkin and I kicked our exercising up a notch. Last Thursday we biked to the gym and worked out, and later we took Chloe for a nice long walk. I got another new gig, working as a freelance editor for Idea Girls. For the life of a freelancer, it's all about multiple income streams!After working hard on Friday morning, Tomkin and I indulged in some retail therapy at Target. There's something very soothing to me about shopping there. We took Chloe for a long walk, and that evening we exercised in the basement (taking turns on the stationary bike and treadmill) while watching the first season of "Project Runway." Neither of us has seen the first season before--it's fun to see how much has changed! (Heidi was so much chattier with the contestants back then, but hardly said anything as a judge.)Saturday was my aunt Nancy's birthday, and I forgot to send her birthday wishes! She's a regular reader of the blog, so I'm sending my belated birthday wishes here. Happy belated birthday, Nancy! :-)Tomkin played paintball on Saturday morning. He hasn't done that in a while--he had a great time! After he got home, we took Chloe for a walk to a nearby park and let her run around. Then we all lounged around. It was such a gorgeous day! We went to a wedding in the late afternoon that Tomkin officiated. It was an outdoor wedding (at the Nicollet Island Pavilion), which seems to me like a risky move the end of October in Minnesota. But the risk paid off! The temps hit 70 degrees, and the autumn leaves made a beautiful backdrop. It was a little chilly, though, so the reception was held inside. Everyone was very nice, and the place was beautiful. I realized, however, that the real fun of going to weddings is getting to see family and friends who you haven't seen in a while. It didn't help being on Weight Watchers and not being able to indulge in delicious wedding foods. We did have a nice time, but we cut out a little early. We had another event to go to, anyway! Our neighbors across the street, Wayne and Sheila, had invited us to a game night at their place. Tomkin had thought he was banned from their game nights after a previous instance of answering trivia-game questions before they were fully asked...but apparently all is forgotten. I was pretty sleepy, so we didn't stick around too long. Just enough to answer some trivia questions--but not in an obnoxious way (I hope!).
Remember when I mentioned that it hit 70 degrees on Saturday? Well, on Sunday it snowed. Not enough to stick, but still--it was snow. Tomkin and I braved the slushy cold to head to Adam and Cheryl's on Sunday afternoon for their annual pumpkin-carving party. We didn't actually end up carving a pumpkin, but we did hang out and talk for a while. They had quite a spread! Later that day we bundled up and took Chloe for a walk. I thought I could get away with a "light" winter coat--I was wrong! A stop for some hot coffee helped, but I was still really cold by the time we got home.Monday morning we started out the week by going to the gym. Tomkin rode the exercise bike while I did the elliptical machine and then lifted weights. It was a nice, healthy way to start the week, but not such a good way work-wise. I spent the rest of the day playing catch-up. Live and learn! Monday night I had dinner with Jill at Sawatdee. I'd never been there before--it was delicious! (Even just ordering light appetizers...and wine.) It was really fun to see Jill and catch up about everything. Both of us still miss Holy Covenant. She has actually found a local Methodist reconciling ministry that she really likes. I haven't even started looking for churches yet, although I have a list of good ones to try.
Tomkin and I worked much of Tuesday, then took Chloe on a nice long walk to the post office and bank. That night we exercised while watching "Project Runway," and then I watched "Dancing with the Stars" while Tomkin read. (I'm rooting for Lance & Lacey!) Adolfo and Juliet gave us a pair of headphones for our wedding, which work really well when I want to watch TV and Tomkin wants to read. He can't hear a thing!
Today we had lunch with Tomkin's folks, then went shopping at Trader Joe's. I love that place! We're supposed to be getting one less than a mile from our house by next summer. I can't wait! It was a beautiful day (about 60 degrees), so I got my work done quickly, and we took Chloe for a walk. Then I headed to my Weight Watchers meeting. I lost 3.2 pounds this week! That's a total of 4.6 so far. All that exercise and not eating party food apparently paid off! I had my weekly phone call with Mom tonight. She and Dick are hoping to get their dog, Bosley, in for some experimental treatments since it looks like his skin cancer is back. Thankfully he seems to be feeling well, but it's still pretty scary. Tomkin is off at his weekly poker game. And we have a very eventful week ahead! By the time I blog next week, we'll have a new president-elect. And I really, really, really hope it will be Obama. I truly believe he is the leader our country needs to help heal our wounds, both domestic and foreign. He's a thoughtful, intelligent man of vision, and I believe he will do great things. If, by some chance, you're on the fence about who to vote for, I encourage you to check out Obama's website to see where he stands on the issues. To me, he is the clear choice.Have a wonderful week!