Another Saturday, another soccer game

Sam has soccer all.the.time. ;-) 

Luckily, the game is at our local elementary school, so just walking distance from our house.

Also on the agenda today:

1. A trip to Costco for grocery shopping
2. A couple of miles around the track (during soccer warm ups, naturally) :)
3. Yoga
4. Make banana muffins
5. The produce stand for some mini cucumbers & strawberries
6. Rite Aid for Motrin. Nick has had a terrible headache for a few days now - poor guy.

And, I think we're going to grill burgers tonight - it's supposed to be 75 today. Mayyyybe, we'll get crazy & make some margaritas tonight. We're a wild crew!

What about you? What are you up to this Saturday? How is the weather in your area? Fingers crossed that the game isn't quite the 0-11 blowout of last weekend. ;-) 

April goal check

The month is half way over, so I thought it would be good to do a quick check on where I'm at. Mostly because I need to refresh my own memory on what I said I'd get done this month. ;-)

All right, so here's my  list of goals, & where I'm at:

1. Lose 3 lbs. - I've lost one pound. Considering we had our little adult getaway this month, I'm pretty pleased about this. On track.
2. Track my calories every day using MyFitnessPal - Yes! This is just habit & I really enjoy taking a closer look at my calorie intake, & how it trends, & how that impacts my weight.
3. No dessert at work! For the entire month! - This has been incredibly difficult for me, but yes! I'm shocked by how many extra calories I have each day to spend on healthier food. :-) 
4. Complete 1,000 minutes of cardio. - I'm at 520, so on track. 
5. Complete 8 strength workouts. - Yes! 4 workouts so far.
6. Complete 8 stretching workouts. I'm good at getting in one workout a week (on Sundays). I need to also do one evening per week. - Fail. :-( Zero. Nick has started soccer on Sundays, which has completely interfered with my schedule. I need to find a new yoga routine.
7. Register for a half marathon, or a 15K. Start training. - Yes! I've signed up for a run in July, and have started increasing my mileage (both walking & running).
8. Better manage my work schedule - take more breaks, work out regularly, and block out time on the calendar. - Baby steps, but yes!
9. Have one date night with M (should be easy - we're doing a long weekend together). - Done! We went to Las Vegas & had an amazing time together. Although, it was too short!
10. Do one social activity. - I had lunch with a friend yesterday, and have been trying to plan an activity for some other ladies that live on my street. It will likely get scheduled for May, but I'm trying to branch out!
11. Find a running club. - Nope. I need to investigate new options, as I've emailed my neighborhood alias & didn't hear back. Not sure what my next step will be.
12. Finalize tax payment plan. - Done, & mailed. :-( 
13. Stick to our budget. - Definitely not. We bought season passes to Great America (with a work discount, almost the same price as a regular ticket), & had to enroll the boys in camps for the summer. .. Camp was almost $4K for all of the weeks. Our childcare costs will be next to nothing in the summer, but in the meantime. . . 
14. Continue exploring next career options. - I haven't spent a ton of time on this, but I think about it often in small doses. It's especially an area that I think about when I'm on walks after work. I think, long-term, I'd like to work part-time. It's not realistic in my current role, but maybe that's something I can work towards. 
15. Make a list/plan for my trip to the beach over Memorial Day of what I want to accomplish/get rid of. It's a fun girls trip, but I plan to take full advantage of being there to go through our stuff. Minimize the pain when we actually sell. ;-) - No, haven't started. 

Not exactly perfect, but I feel pretty good about my progress so far. And, just for fun, here's a picture of my boys - they are on spring break this week, so they went to Santa Cruz with a camp. Other than the fact that my oldest forgot his shoes on the beach (and, they were brand new!), it was a great experience. It was 82 degrees on the beach yesterday!

And, what about you? What were you hoping to accomplish in April? There's still time to refocus your energy & get some things marked off of your goals!

Sunday Night Chit Chat

What a fun & fast-paced weekend it's been. I managed to get in 20 miles of walking & running this week (my goal!). I'm *thinking* about doing another half marathon in July (albeit at a much slower pace from my previous time), and if I keep up the miles at this level, it's within reach.

We had a soccer game yesterday (Sam's team got absolutely decimated) & the tops of my feet got sunburned! That was painful in my running shoes today. Nick had soccer this morning, & both boys attended a birthday party this afternoon, while I ran the track at the park where the party was held. I also made hummus, & pesto from all of the gorgeous basil growing in the yard. It was an absolutely gorgeous weekend, & I didn't work at all. Wish all of my days were like this. ;-)

• Reading: I just finished a book this afternoon (reading out on the patio with a glass of wine - absolute HEAVEN). 

• Listening to: The boys are listening to an episode of Top Gear. They are obsessed with cars. ;-) 

• Watching: Same as above. Top Gear!

• Cooking/baking: I make pasta with pesto (fresh from the garden), and we had a huge veggie tray with homemade hummus for an appetizer.

• Happy I accomplished this past week: I finished our summer camp registrations (oh my, the cost, and oh my the time needed to coordinate!!!) I also got our taxes all mailed off. *Shivers*

• Looking forward to: My friend is visiting from Seattle with her daughter, and we're having lunch on Wednesday. We're also going to Great America with the kids on Saturday, which should be fun. 

• Thankful for: Having enough money to pay our taxes, despite owing a boatload of money. And, that we had such a fabulous weekend together. The boys are growing up so quickly, & the journey is getting very enjoyable. :-) 

What about you? How was your weekend? What are you looking forward to in the week ahead?

A little weekend getaway

M & I took a mini vacation on Thursday evening, while my parents flew in to watch the boys. It was one of my goals of 2014 to have at least one solo weekend, and it was so fabulous. :-) I absolutely adore my boys, but having a little adult time was the best!

My parents managed all of the normal kid activities (the school walkathon, two soccer games, and two soccer practices), while we played blackjack by the pool, sipping mojitos. ;-) I got a great massage, and we had leisurely meals together. It was way too short (we had to fly back on Saturday evening, as my parents Sunday evening flight got moved up by 5 hours!).

And, we were fully back to reality on Sunday morning. Nick had soccer at 8:00 am, I took my parents to the airport, Sam had a soccer game (scored his second goal of the weekend!), Nick had a birthday party, and finally, Sam had a pool party with a friend. Other than doing the laundry & picking up groceries, it was all I could do to survive the day. ;-)

We came home with a little bit of money, which is always a great way to end a trip to Las Vegas. :-) The time away really reminded me how much fun we have together, and how important it is to reconnect. It's so easy to get caught up in the day to day of parenting, but we also need to make time for our marriage. Since our last getaway, we've - moved, both switched jobs, and there's been a tremendous amount of stress and change. I'm hoping to schedule more regular date nights, since weekends away aren't possible without a lot of advanced planning.

Back to reality! Here's our menu plan:

Monday - tacos
Tuesday - grilled burgers & homemade buns
Wednesday - Leftover tacos
Thursday - Chicken & pasta
Friday - risotto. Not sure on the flavor yet. Maybe asparagus & chicken?
Saturday - homemade pizza
Sunday - Still have to figure this one out, but if Costco has salmon, we will likely grill that with corn or asparagus

It's supposed to be warm all week, so we're looking forward to the nice weather. What's on your menu this week? How do you make time for your spouse? Regular date nights, or weekend getaways?

April Goals

It's time to look ahead & set new, fresh goals for April. Here's what I'm planning on doing:

1. Lose 3 lbs. 
2. Track my calories every day using MyFitnessPal
3. No dessert at work! For the entire month!
4. Complete 1,000 minutes of cardio.
5. Complete 8 strength workouts.
6. Complete 8 stretching workouts. I'm good at getting in one workout a week (on Sundays). I need to also do one evening per week.
7. Register for a half marathon, or a 15K. Start training.
8. Better manage my work schedule - take more breaks, work out regularly, and block out time on the calendar.
9. Have one date night with M (should be easy - we're doing a long weekend together).
10. Do one social activity.
11. Find a running club.
12. Finalize tax payment plan.
13. Stick to our budget.
14. Continue exploring next career options.
15. Make a list/plan for my trip to the beach over Memorial Day of what I want to accomplish/get rid of. It's a fun girls trip, but I plan to take full advantage of being there to go through our stuff. Minimize the pain when we actually sell. ;-) 

I think that will work. What are you planning to accomplish in April? 

Sunday Night Chit Chat

Thanks so much to Carla for hosting!

• What are you watching? - The boys are watching a car show about Porsches. ;-) 

• What are you looking forward to this week? - My parents are flying in on Wednesday. Super excite for them to see the boys, and to spend time with them. They have never been here, so it should be fun. M & I are also going away for two nights to Napa. CAN'T wait!! :-) 

• Lesson did you learn last week? - That I need to branch out, socially. And, manage my calendar more diligently. Also, I learned to give a bit more (socially) at work. I'm all business (but friendly), but have discovered that investing the time & energy to be more social means a happier & more enjoyable work environment. I'm naturally more of an "eat lunch at my desk, run back & forth to meetings, & then hustle out to pick up the kids" person, but I'm trying to carve out like 30-60 minutes per week to be more social. 

• What was your best moment over the last week? - Today, spending time with my boys, playing in the sun, and laughing. So nice! I also made the effort to go & talk to two of the neighbors & exchange email addresses, so maybe we can go for the occasional hike. I miss having friends, so these are needed steps!

• What is your #1 goal for next week? - Finish our planning to come up with the money to pay for our major tax bill. Good times! ;-) 

• What was your Best/Worst Financial decision over the last week? - Best decision - rather than suggesting take out after a very long & wet soccer game, I threw together a quick & delicious dinner. Worst decision - not last week's decision, but not finding an accountant until it was too late. SO painful to go it alone this year. 

• Which recipe is next on your "to try" list? - I've been craving chicken parmesan, so may try this one. 

I managed to walk 4 miles today (split into two groups), did my power yoga, made homemade pizza for dinner (chicken pesto, with goat cheese for the adults, cheese for the kids), made bread, cleaned the fridge, did laundry, coordinated the April soccer carpool schedule (I swear, i need a masters degree in scheduling), & started to pack for our trip. Great & productive day!

How about you? How is your Sunday going?

Taxes are finished

Oh, sweet love a duck, was it ever ugly. We've owed every year, but I went out of my way in 2013 to plan better. I had more deducted from each paycheck, and I saved a substantial chunk of my bonus. However, nothing could quite prepare us for unexpectedly moving, switching jobs, renting our house, and dealing with California state taxes as well as the relocation costs.

We are getting an $11 refund from the state. Party! :-)

We owe $14,300 to the IRS. Sobs. . . I have almost all of the money saved, but need to pull a bit from investments to cover the rest. Oh, sad times. Sad, sad times. We continue our search for a tax planner to help us figure out how to minimize our tax burden while planning ahead for our total taxes in 2014. Fingers crossed that someone will free up after tax season.

On that note, I'm off to be productive. We had an 8:00 am soccer practice, and I've been relaxing since. I need to make bread for the week, pack for our adult getaway, squeeze in yoga & a walk, and do the stack of laundry that is sneaking up on me daily.

Back for chit chat later.

Are you done with your taxes? How did they turn out?