Day Two

Yesterday.  YESTERDAY.  Was.  Plain.  Awful.
Seriously.
Like way worse than I anticipated on the "feel meter".  I felt like shit.  Literally awful, kinda like the, I am about to get the flu kinda funk, exhausted.  I ate ok and drank alot of water, for me.
After work I literally ate dinner, threw half on the floor for the dogs and crawled my sorry ass into bed at 7:00.
Was it the lack of sleep the night before??
The early morning gym situation?
The lack of caffeine?
The lack of sugar???
Today has been better, much better. I wasn't very hungry this morning and I barely finished my shake.  I am drinking water, not as much as I should.
Lunch was a bunch of strawberries, 2 kiwis and an orange. I had a salad but wasn't feeling it.
Dinner was grilled london broil over a nice salad that had some berries and avocado in it.   I also broiled some little potatoes but wasn't hungry enough for them.
Dessert was a peanut butter and chocolate shake.
I have great energy right now. I just banged out some Scrabble tile order prep by cutting vinyl and staining the wood, prepared a pallet for painting and I'm about to package some Poshmark sales!
Early to rise tomorrow, gym time!

Day 1 - Dragging. Ass.

Up at 6am
GYM....shower at gym.... wasn't awful, just a royal pain in the ass trying to pack all my crap to drag there to get ready.  I managed to remember everything.
Except my work ID.  oops
Drank a wicked amount of water at the gym.
no coffee.
Made my shake when I got to the office, enjoyed it. 
Lunch was a jar salad with the homemade orange poppyseed dressing found here 
and a side of stawberries and kiwi.
Mid day snack was another shake.  I have only used the dutch chocolate.....I like to blend in some ice, coconut milk, spinach and frozen cherries.  
Dinner was spicy pulled chicken with gluten free tortillas and some avocado. I fed the tortillas to the dogs. They were terrible. (yes the Sriracha has some sugar in it, baby steps people) 

Rules of the shred:

1. Add more fruits and veggies to your diet, I am supplementing with these.  They are quite yummy....the veggie one is a little meh.  They come in capsule form too but I don't like swallowing pills. 
   • Twice a day, have a whole food plant-based, gluten-free, non-GMO,shake mix that can either be shaken with water, coconut water, plant-based milk such as rice milk,or blended with more whole foods such as leafy greens, a variety of seeds, and seasonal fruits. Get creative with them. I am using this. 
2. Completely avoid dairy (animal milk products, including even goat cheese and yogurts) and gluten (wheat, rye and barley). This will significantly reduce inflammation in the body.
3. Eat real food.
   Avoid artificial colors, sweeteners, chemicals and GMO foods.
4. Avoid late night meals. Allow 4-5 hours between your last meal and when you go to bed.
5. Get 7-8 hours of sleep. Plan your day accordingly for 10 days.
6. No caffeine or alcohol for 10 days
7. Reduce your stress through breathing and meditation practices. Just take 10 deep breaths a few times a day or during stressful moments.
8. DRINK WATER!  my hardest part
9. 30 minutes of exercise a day....I did one hour already today so I am taking tomorrow off...lol

It is now 7:15. I'm in bed. Exhausted. Didn't sleep well last night.  Was up early. Then no caffeine. Hopeful for a better tomorrow. 

Time to shred

Well, Monday it begins. All hell will break loose. Stay away. No caffeine.  O sugar. No alcohol. Should be amazing.
I'm cringing as I type this.
I'm trying to get fit. Get healthy. Shed a few lbs before Mexico.
Follow my journey. I hope to share recipes and updates.
Before photos. Measurements. To follow. Ew.
For now. My menu planning. Lists.
Pumping on the bike right now.
Up next food shopping. Look at Costco, ShopRite. I smell.

Houston, I have a problem.

So, I started seeing these relatively bland mugs on my frequent visits to Marshall's, but paid them no mind.  One day I saw one that said HELLO, I am kinda a big ass Adele fan and felt like, "OMMMMMGGGG I SOOOOOO NEED THIS HELLLLLLLOOOO FROM THE OTHER SIDE" mug.  Well, it was chipped.  Badly.  I painfully placed it back on the shelf and cried inside.  I vowed I would find another.
Welp, that didn't exactly happen.....but I did do a vast amount of research on these tall fonted, messy mugs. They are super popular, some words are super coveted.....and if you find the bakeware or a canister you have found the epic unicorn of the collection.
I discovered Rae Dunn, the artist behind this pottery.

And she doesn't just make mugs, oh no she does not....
She makes a ton of potterific stuff. Plates, planters, bowls, etc.

The hunt for HELLO began.
I came up empty handed at every Marshall's, TJ Maxx, and Home Goods in the area.
I did find a shit ton of other ones.  And that started what I call a collection.  I became a DUNNkie.
Now it's the thrill of the hunt.
I did manage to find a reseller with HELLO and I sucked it up and spent triple the price of the mug just to add it to my collection. I do pick up plenty of extras and doubles in my travels to help others that need the joy that I find with collecting this crap made in China....and to repay my bank account for my hoarding tendencies.
Well, now I am 31 mugs in.
Yep.  THIRTY ONE.  Do 30 of you want to come by for coffee??  Hello is mine.

The most recent haul.....

Hi. I'm Dawn.

Hello!  Welcome to a little micro corner of the internet.  A smallish little space for me to dump some thoughts, ideas, photos, infinite rambles, and profanity.
You see, I like to write.  I like grammar.  I have no filter.  I might have a book in the works. 
Years ago I used to blog nearly daily.  Mostly about my kids....two boys, now 12 and 15.  They decided I was a little too open and didn't want their lives spewed all over the net. 
So that blog is on lockdown.  
I have been asked if I will ever write again? My usual answer is no. Well.....here we go.  
I can't confirm it will be daily, but I will be here.  
So say hello once in a while.  
I guess I should do a little introduction.....I like to ramble (told you so)....
My name is Dawn, I live in NJ. 
I have been married to my husband for 18 years.  
We have two sons who will be affectionately referred to at Ned (15) and Goober (12).  Not their real names, I promise.
As far as pets go, we have a few.... two dogs, Shihpoos, Ellie and Ollie.
And seven chickens.  Stella, Scarlett, Emma, Lucy, Lanie, Piper and Penelope.
I have a lot of hobbies (you will get to meet a lot of them here),I live on coffee and margaritas, I have a touch of OCD and I use the word fuck like a comma.