Me on the map

I almost forgot about this link up! Typical me to work on deadline and do it on the last day.


Anyhow, my blog friend Michelle (don't you love her name, haha!) is doing this cute "Me on the map" link up where you post about where you live. I LOVE the town where I work (and I live just outside of) so of course I wanted to post. 


The place I call home is Sikeston, MO!

This is a town not only rich in history, but proud of its history! Several Civil War battles were fought nearby, and every spring there is a re-enactment. In 2010, Sikeston celebrated 150 years, and had several sesquicentennial bashes. 


Have you heard of Lamberts? You know, the home of the 'throwed rolls?' Well, the first restaurant was built in Sikeston, and it was here that the first roll was thrown. I actually had one of those rolls today. Yum ...

There are a ton of parks here, and people who really love the town and want to make it a better place. One of the best examples of this is the Sikeston Jaycee Bootheel Rodeo, which is in August every year. 

This is an amazing event that attracts people from all over, and makes a huge economic impact in our town. As it is organized and run strictly by volunteers, all the proceeds go back into the community. 


I love being a Sikestonian and hope my post convinces y'all to come visit! 

miscellany monday

{1} springtime blues

it's hard to call it spring when the highs are in the 50s. i know the 80s we had last week are totally not average, but 50s aren't either. give me the 60s! actually, let's just skip spring and go straight to summer so i don't have to blow an entire paycheck on allergy meds, k? 

{2} hormones

this may be a bit TMI, but i've decided to stop taking my birth control for a month. definitely not trying to get pregnant. but i feel like it just isn't agreeing with me here lately. i totally blame it for some weight gain, because i really started gaining and couldn't lose in some places once i started the pill. i already feel a bit weird, but want to see how things are until i go see my doc in April. i mostly use the pill to regulate, so i'm interested in what other options i'll have if i decide to not use the pill anymore ...

{3} crazy woman

which would be me. this morning, i realized that i forgot to put the load of laundry i washed last night in the dryer. whoops. but they didn't stink, so i just threw this in this morning. am i the only one who does this? i am forever leaving loads in the wash and/or dryer. and it's just the two of us! what will i do when there is a bambino? 

{4} running

for those of you who have run a 5k ... how long does it take you to build up? right now i'm at the point where i can go about a mile running nonstop, then i rotate walking with running. i have just under three weeks to race day. this weather isn't helping training so i'm going to do the treadmill a bit. i'd like to run two miles, walk about a half, then run the rest. so is that even possible at this point? without me dying, of course. 

{5} blowing the budget

we went out on saturday night and dropped over $100. ouch. i remember back when we did that without blinking an eye, but that was back before we had a mortgage! ach! i've got to get back in savings mode. but with j going to a bachelor party this weekend and me planning a bachelorette and shower, i have a feeling i won't be able to save much until june. sigh. sometimes, it just sucks to be a grownup. 

{6} cleaning out the closet

with a yard sale coming up in just a month, i seriously need to start going through my closets. please tell me i'm not the only person who freaks about doing this?!?! i always think "what if..." you know, what if i lose 30 lbs, lol. actually, i'm gonna blame my mom for this one. she is the world's worst at holding on to things. she even second guesses me when we have sales about whether i "really" need to get rid of something. ugh. 

happy monday, friends!

Fitness Friday - Advice?

It's been a rough week. After taking about a week off due to being sick, it was really tough to get back into the workout grind. 
Anyhow, after I regained some weight last week, but when I weighed in this morning, I was back where I was two weeks ago (-1.2 lbs.). I guess that's better than nothing, although I am positive now that I won't reach my 5 lb. weight loss goal for the month :( 
J claims that he thinks I am slimming down in my hip area, but I don't see it yet, nor do I think it's possible this soon. But maybe?
I'm starting to do better on my eating, I think. Yesterday I was CRAVING sweets and went to a ribbon cutting with cake. But I actually snuck out early and didn't have any. 


Anyhow, here's what I did:
Monday - 3 miles jog/walk
Tuesday: Jackie Warner abs and upper body circuits
Wednesday: 3 miles jog/walk (VERY HARD to walk against 20 mph winds, so I didn't even attempt to run back!)
Thursday: JM Six Weeks to Six Pack. Whew! I'll have a review of this coming soon. 


Here's where the advice part comes in --- I am absolutely exhausted! We're talking sleeping on the couch by 9 the past couple nights. What do you all do to keep energized while working out? Any specific vitamins or anything? 

What I'm Loving

It's a beautiful day here in Southeast Missouri, so it's easy to come up with a list of what I'm loving :)

{1} Spring is definitely in the air! I love seeing the lillies bloom and the flowering dogwoods in my front yard.

{2} I'm LOVING the leadership group I am in. Not only are we learning a lot, we are having a good time getting to know one another. 


{3} I'm LOVING that the entertainment for the annual Rodeo here in town will be announced tomorrow. I already know who is coming - and I am super pumped!


{4} I'm LOVING that we got to spend some time grooming our horses this weekend. 


{5} I'm LOVING Easter candy. I know it sounds weird, but although I hate whoppers, Robin's Eggs are my fave. 

Jelly beans are pretty awesome also, especially the Starburst and Lifesavers brands.

HAPPY WEDNESDAY, Y'ALL!

miscellany monday

{1} I am absolutely in LOVE with this weather. We got to enjoy a fabulous weekend. Although I had to work for a few hours, inside, on Sunday, J got to enjoy the day outside and even got a bit of a sunburn. Today, the high might reach 90.


{2} And I'm even more excited that spring is finally here! If it weren't for all the pollen and my crazy allergies, it might be my favorite season.


{3} This weekend, we decided to redo our landscaping (that we just did last August) because a few of the plants didn't make it. I'm thinking we will have to get on the ball ASAP. 


{4} The 5K is four weeks from yesterday. Serious training begins today. I am contemplating whether I should do treadmill or a track. And speaking of fitness, I didn't do Fitness Friday last week because I felt really bad due to the medicine I was on and was eating a lot of carbs to cut down on the nausea, so I didn't want to step on the scale. Nor did I have the energy to work out.


{5} The scars on my chin have cleared and I'll finish the last of my antibiotic tomorrow. Yay! And I'm not getting nightly headaches anymore, either.


{6} We went to BWWs to watch the fights on Saturday. I picked every winner. Based on their shorts. Ha!


{7} I think that's it for today :)

What I'm Loving

{1} I'm LOVING this amazing weather forecast for the next six days - especially Thursday!

{2} Still LOVING my iPhone! I keep finding more and more fun things to do with it and don't know how I've lived without one. Pretty much every night, we're playing Words With Friends until our phone die :)

{3} I'm LOVING that I spent some time with my mom picking up pecans a few weeks ago and ended up with quite a bit! I typically only use pecans for pies or Christmas candy and take my moms, but this year she informed me that since I had the chance to do them myself I wouldn't be getting any! I picked up about 5 gallons and then we took them to a local store that cracks and shells them, then I had to pick them out of the shells and bag them. Considering that I only have about 2 bucks a bag in them (plus my time) I'd say it was a pretty good deal!

{4} I'm LOVING good doctors and even better medicine. I'm having this skin rash right now that I seem to develop once or twice a year. It pops up on my chin in about four hours and looks like pimples. I got one yesterday and decided to go to the doctor, and she told me she thinks it's shingles. Um, what? Isn't that an old person disease? Turns out, it is derived from chicken pox, which lies dormant in your body unless you have anxiety or some other stress to make it activate on a specific nerve, which then pops up. I'm not really sure what triggered it, but I have medicine to clear it up and kill the virus. And thankfully, it's not contagious other than by touch, so I can still go to work, etc., just need to wash my hands very often!


{5} I'm LOVING seeing how a community can band together to make great things happen. There are lots of fabulous fundraisers going on right now where I live, and it makes me so happy that I can call this my home. 


{6} I'm LOVING that we filled out the forms to run our first 5K! It's one month from tomorrow - yikes!


{7} I'm LOVING the new Gaga song/video "Born This Way." Not really sure why ...





{8} I'm LOVING my sweet man. He takes such good care of me --- even when I feel like I have the plague. 

miscellany monday

{1} I'm coming to you from my couch today :) Still in pajamas. It's a nasty, rainy day here, so for once, I'm glad that I'm scheduled to work this upcoming weekend because I get to stay home today :)


{2} We did, however, get some fabulous weather over the weekend. Friday was pretty nice and Saturday was forecast to be even better, so we made some last-minute plans for a barbecue with friends. Best part of barbecue weather? It's completely acceptable to be tipsy by 6 p.m.


{3} After so many people suggested I add the "words with friends" app, I did over the weekend, and it's safe to say that I am now obsessed. I've learned that J and I can't play each other thought - we are both so competitive and he actually got a little upset with me last night because of a move that I made. If you want to play, my name is Michelle1761.


{4} My laptop has a huge owie. It was sitting on the desk on Friday night and a heavy boot from the top shelf somehow crashed down and hit it. So now my LCD screen is cracked :( I'm waiting to hear back from the tech guy at work (which bought my laptop) to see what the best way is to fix it. I never thought my clumsiness would affect my electronics, too. 


{5} Since J and I got the house all cleaned on Friday/Saturday, I had awesome intentions to do some spring cleaning today. So far, I've played on the computer, paid two bills and fed the horses. Must.do.something.soon.


{6} I think I've mentioned that we are doing an 80s-themed party for my good friend's bachelorette? Well, my soon-to-be sister-in-law let me borrow four FABULOUS dresses and I can't decide which to wear. I may have a Blogger poll coming up soon ...


{7} Speaking of the bachelorette, the shower is the same weekend (April 8-10) and I am SO EXCITED to see my friend Bel, who moved to DC in October. 


{8} I've never watched a single episode of Dancing With The Stars, but am seriously considering adding it to my DVR lineup since Kendra is on this season. 


{9} I gave up soda for Lent and it's a lot tougher than I thought. I typically just have two or three a week, but it's a habit I wanted to try and kick and knew it would be an attainable goal. But I can't tell you how many times over the weekend I wanted to grab a Coke! I know some people consider Sundays as "cheat days" and as much as I wanted to do that yesterday, I stuck it out. 

Winner winner, chicken dinner!

Happy Monday, friends!
This morning, I drew the winner for the CSN giveaway :)
The lucky winner in No. 5, Jessica, over at Pearls and Pink Polka Dots.

Congratulations - I will be sending you an email shortly! And thanks to all who entered --- I had fun hosting!

Don't forget!

My giveaway for a gift certificate to CSN Stores ends Sunday night! If you are like me, you don't get on here on the weekends so get entered now. 
Click here for details. 

Happy weekend :)

Fitness Friday - Week Two

Yay, it's Friday! 
I think I had a pretty good week :) Here are the deets:


Friday/Saturday/Sunday - nada
Monday - Jillian Michaels Stepdeck. I thought the DVD was a workout, but it just ran you through all the exercises. So I threw in a couple of rounds of jump rope as well. 
Tuesday - Four six-minute circuits on JM's No More Trouble Zones, plus warm up and cool down. Whew!
Wednesday: Upper body and abs on Jackie Warner's power circuit DVD.
Thursday: 3.2 miles run/walk combo on treadmill @ gym. Also did two sets each of bicep curls, lateral raises and triceps. High point? When a lady asked me how far I run and told me I have great stamina! What a compliment.


On to the total weight loss: 
I have to be honest and say I don't know an exact starting weight, but I do know what I weighed last Friday and I want to be down 5 lbs. from that as of March 31
I lost 1.2 lbs total! I figure if I keep on track, I should accomplish that goal. 


Also, J's weight set came in this week, so I'm hoping that will encourage both of us to work out, even if we are doing different things. Right now, I'm considering doing some of the cardio/weight DVDs at home M-W-F, and then going to the gym for treadmill on Tuesday and Thursday. We'll see. 


Do you have any tips or exercise secrets to share? 

What I'm Loving

{1} I'm LOVING my new iPhone :) Addicted is probably a better way to describe it. I love browsing the app store and downloading free apps. So if you have any favorite apps you think I should get, let me know!

{2} Although I'm not thrilled with all the rain we've been getting, I'm LOVING all the green grass that is starting to peek out :)

{3} I'm LOVING the giveaway I have this week. Go here to enter to win a $15 gift card to CSN Stores!


{4} I'm LOVING that today is Ash Wednesday. Although I don't actively attend Church, I think it's a great period of time to really analyze your relationship with God. Plus, Lent means all sorts of fish fries --- HECK YEAH!!!


{5} I'm LOVING this sweetie. 

Happy Wednesday, y'all!!!

It's giveaway time!

Happy Monday, friends!


I have a great giveaway (my first!) lined up for you all this week! I've been working with the folks at CSN Stores to offer you a $15 gift card!


For those of you who aren't familiar with CSN, there are 200+ sites, with all sorts of products. J and I have a bathroom remodel in our near future, and are drooling over their selection of pendant lighting right now. I mean, who wouldn't love to put on their makeup under this beauty every day?

So, here's how you can win this gift card! (As a sidenote, shipping is only available in the US and Canada.) To enter, you must be a follower!


{1} Go to CSN and tell me how you would use the card.


{2} Tell me what you are looking forward to most in spring!


{3} Follow me on twitter @michellefelter


{4} Place my button in your sidebar.


The giveaway will end at 11:59 p.m. Sunday, March 13. 

GOOD LUCK!!!

Fitness Friday - Week One

This is a short week, because I took February off from exercise and dieting. ha! May as well enjoy my birthday month!


Tuesday: Run outside. Ran over one mile nonstop, but total trip was about 2.5 miles, alternating running/walking.


Wednesday: Nada. But I did pick up pecans with my mom that afternoon if that counts?


Thursday: Level One of Jillian's 30-Day Shred. My shoulders and quads are killing me today!


Be back next week! And if you have any tips to share for avoiding the workout blahs, please do!

What I'm Loving

{1} I'm LOVING that the bright sun woke me up this morning! The days are starting to get warmer and the grass is turning green. Could this mean it's almost SPRING?

{2} I'm LOVING that it was nice enough for us to take a run outside yesterday. After a month of not exercising, I was able to run/jog just over a mile without stopping, and a few smaller stretches. I think we went about 2.5 miles total.

{3} I'm LOVING that, as of today, this baby is paid off! In just over 10 months.

{4} I'm LOVING that we get to celebrate a great friend's birthday this weekend :)

{5} I'm LOVING this sweetie, who did such a great job cleaning my car windows this weekend it's like they aren't even there! (Photo circa 2006)

Top Two Tuesday {Money}

Whoa, I feel like I am on a blogging roll today! My followers probably know I don't always participate in T2T — because I never want to blog just for the sake of blogging — but I love this week's topic!

Top Two Things I've Learned About Money

{1} Just because you have it doesn't mean you have to spend it. 
My parents taught me this at a young age, always making me put any Christmas and birthday money in a savings account and save at least half of my paychecks from my part-time job when I was in high school. Although it may have stunk at the time, I was SO GLAD to have those savings to fall back on while I was in college. While I didn't make the greatest money decisions right after I graduated and had a full-time job (basically quadrupling my income, and I don't make much!) I feel I have gotten back on the path. I grow a garden during the summer and preserve as much as possible, I shop sales and use coupons. It's nice to see how far I can make $50 stretch — and also to have that money to save or purchase other necessities. 
And on the same note, just because you are approved for it, you don't have to borrow it. I've seen too many people get trapped by credit cards and end up filing for bankruptcy! J and I do have two loans outside of the house and his truck, BUT they are both 0% interest for a set period of time, and we make larger payments so we can get it paid off without accruing any interest. This works out really well for us :)


{2} It's OK to splurge every now and then. 
Did you just do a double take? Ha! Yes, even though I am Miss Frugal, I've learned that you can't pinch your pennies all the time. Every now and then, it's OK to go out and spend 50 bucks on a nice dinner date just for some time out. It's OK for me to get highlights in my hair a few times a year, if that's what makes me happy. It's alright to have a night out with the girls. A couple years ago when we got serious about buying a house, J and I didn't have  much savings built up, and that kinda freaked me out. Although we qualified for a 100 percent loan and closing costs, I was apprehensive about borrowing that much and having little to no equity, and no nest egg. So we saved BIG TIME for about five months while we house hunted. During that time, we basically quit going out and didn't buy anything for ourselves. While I think that's a good thing to do for short periods, I noticed that we definitely splurged once we were off of our savings kick. Like right now, we're really starting to focus on saving up for our wedding. But that doesn't mean we stress over spending money on other things we want, we just do it in moderation. 

March goals

I've seen several other bloggers post their goals at the beginning of the month and always intended to do the same. I'm a list-maker, so I think I'll do much better with posts like these! I actually remembered about this on the first of this month :) In all the future months, I'll probably recap how I did the previous month and lay out my new goals all in one post. 


Goals for March:
— Work out at least five days a week, journal it and share on the blog on Fridays (so I can keep myself accountable.)
— Lose 5 pounds.
— Run at least twice a week, train for April 5K.
— Drink at least 64 ounces of water daily.
— Save something (even if only $25) from each paycheck.
— Play with Hank at least once a week. 
— One date night or day, outside of the house.
— Order photos for my hall collage and get it hung (I've had the frames for a year!)
— Clean off the desk in the office, throw out papers we don't need!
— Only one meal out per week.


I think that will do it for this month. I don't want to set myself up for failure, after all! 

iPhone or Droid?

My office has some big changes coming up and have told me to go out and buy a smartphone to be able to handle them while I'm on the go. 


I've heard great things about both the iPhone and Droid, so I'm really not sure which one to get. So will you help me? 


If you have either phone, will you please leave me a comment or send me an email with your thoughts? Although my office will be paying for the upgrade, I want to make the best decision for a phone that will last me a couple of years. I'm not sure if it makes a difference, but I am an AT&T customer and don't intend to change. 


Thanks friends!