2 Weeks Down

So, how did we do?

At the beginning of the two weeks, Matt and I wrote a list of things we would avoid eating and taped it to the fridge to remind us not to indulge: pizza, hot dogs, french fries, fried chicken, pasta, desserts, icecream, Dunkin' Donuts bagels,sweets, and bread. Quite the list for two people who usually don't think twice about eating whatever we please.

We are proud that for the most part we stuck to this diet. We only cheated a few times:
1. we went to the movies and had caramel popcorn. oops.
2. we went to DD's twice and had iced coffees (but no bagels or donuts!)
3. on payday we celebrated with a hamburger (yes, we had the bun)
4. Yesterday (the last day) we splurged at Costco and had a slice of pizza...

Not bad!

This morning during breakfast we wrote down new goals for the next two weeks:
1. exercise 6 times a week
2. eat breakfast every morning!
3. In bed by 11:45 (7.5 hours of sleep)
4. drink 8 glasses of water a day (or more)
5. no instant coffee at school

Along with these goals and some Dani-specific and Matt-specific ones, we are also going to stick to not eating the carbs on the list above.

Last night, after eating pizza at costco and a delicious curry and naan dinner, we went for a run. Let's just say it turned into a slow jog/walk one mile in. We both realized that the pizza makes our bodies feel absolutely disgusting, especially since we've been eating so healthy for 14 days and have had no problems exercising until then. This is good because it reminds us how much we really don't need to be eating food like that.

Along with the diet, here's what I did for exercise during week 2:
run: 1X totaling 2 miles
power90 cardio: 3X this week
power90 sculpting: 2X this week

So I worked out for 6 days this week, which was my goal!

I have decided to stop weighing myself every week. I hate my scale and it seems pointless to me. I will weigh myself once a month. Even though I haven't weighed myself, I feel like things are going in the right direction. Pants are looser, stomach is a little smaller, my endurance is up and I feel stronger. One more week until my body really starts getting into this exercise routine. I can't wait until it's second nature for me to work out every day.

Cheers to another week down. Just 9 weeks to go before we are off to Malaysia for some jungle hiking and fun in the sun!

What's For Dinner?

Periodically I will post a picture of what Matt and I have for dinner.

Tonight's awesome meal: home made chicken masala with homemade naan! Delicious!
It was my first time making Indian food but it turned out amazing! Although it takes a lot of prep work and is time consuming, it's relatively easy. We made a huge batch of each to have for dinner the next two nights.
We didn't have the red Indian spice that makes the dish bright red and spicy, but we will look around at the World Food Market the next time we are there. No worries though, it was so good and so cheap! One box of masala spice makes 15 HUGE batches.

Today is the first time we had carbs besides rice for 2 weeks. We are pretty happy with our resolve to go without for 14 days, and we did it! Although we cheated in small ways (a sugary drink here or there), we didn't eat bread, fried anything, pasta, sweets, desserts, or pizza and feel GREAT.

We've decided to just keep a good thing going and only limit ourselves to carb heavy meals once or twice a week. The naan is definitely satisfying and you only need one piece to indulge.

A Look Back: Laos

Laos: the most heavily bombed country in the world. At least, that's what we were told while sitting in an eco lodge alongside a sleepy river in the northern town of Luang Nam Tha. Hard to believe, we thought as we nestled into our sticky rice and pumpkin soup.

The lodge, The Boat Landing Guesthouse, was owned by a British ex-pat and was run on earth-friendly practices: solar power, composting, etc. and provided a charming and relaxing place to reflect after a 3 day trek into the Laotian hills.

Laos is stunningly beautiful. The lack of people (there are more Laotian speakers in Thailand than in Laos), allows the landscape to be appreciated full on. The most you see of civilization consists of heavily eroded, muddy roads and thatched huts alongside sweeping rice patties, both of which (the roads and the huts) seem to co-exist with their surroundings effortlessly.

After the curry-induced coma of Northern Thailand and before the chaos of Vietnam, Laos is a country left in the middle. Completely landlocked, it occasionally goes unnoticed by those who make their way to SouthEast Asia. With Thai beaches to the southwest,famous tailor shops, high peaks, and world heritage sights to the east, and the world's largest temple complex to the south, it's a shame that Laos is passed by. When asked what my favorite country of my 2006 trip was, I often tell people Laos. Of course, my opinions change frequently, especially considering the "what was your favorite place?" question is so loaded.

But when I take most factors into account (the scenery, the people, the food, the "real" authentic experiences), Laos wins, hands down.

Taking 9 hours to drive 100 miles with two flat tires on a muddy, unpaved road is an "authentic" experience, one that I look back on fondly.

Hiking into the hills and spending the night in a Lanten tribe village eating dinner with the village chief in candlelight: an "authentic" experience (along with the following day's hike which consisted of hour after hour of pulling leeches off our legs!).

Dipping my toes into the mighty Mekong as we float lazily around each bend in long, wooden boats, with sunhats and sarongs to keep the sun off our skin, another "authentic" experience.

Waking up in Luang Prabang in the darkness to the beat of low drums and stumbling onto the quiet street to watch a procession of brightly orange clad monks receiving their alms for the day: Simply beautiful.

Laos is poor. Laos is communist (I have nothing against this). Laos is quiet. Laos is laidback. Laos is one of the 10 poorest countries of the world, but their poverty is not blatent. There is minimal street begging, minimal homelessness. Just those working the fields, in huts on land their families have kept for centuries. Laos makes you wonder about the true meaning of happiness. Is ignorance really bliss? This country will prompt you to think about many questions, while unobtrusively offering you the answers.

I can't wait to go back.

Today's Happy Maker

I am stealing the name of this post from one of Matt's good friends from the trail (Appalachian Trail), Bon Bon, who frequently posts updates on Facebook that make her happy each day, including bird sightings (she is an avid bird watcher).

Today's Happy Maker: My students! How could these pictures not make you smile?!

These were taken on last Friday, which was sports day at Mannyeon Middle School. Much like "field day" back home, each homeroom class competes against each other in tug o' war, relay races, pi-gu (Korean dodge ball), jump roping, three legged races, and cheering competitions. Each class picks out a matching outfit for the event, which is a lot of fun! It's one of my favorite days of the year, and this year didn't disappoint! My kids are so stinkin' cute!!

And yes, your eyes aren't tricking you. Those are playboy bunny shirts the boys are wearing in the middle picture. Thankfully there are completely unaware what that symbol really means! To Koreans, it's just a cute bunny :)

Bonus: last Friday we had crazy thunderstorms in the afternoon so the final tournaments were rescheduled to today. Yay for no afternoon classes!

1 Week Down

Just completed week 1 of the diet and exercise. Research has shown that it takes around 21 days of doing something repetitive to make it routine, so I still have 2 weeks to go in order for my body to adjust to exercising every day again, but so far so good!

Along with restricting our carbs (we did cheat a few times, but it was rice!), I ran along the river 3 times and did 2 nights of cardio and sculpt with a workout DVD. 5 days out of 7 isn't bad. I would like to exercise 6 days a week from now on.

WEEK 1 STATS:

week 1:
weight: 2 pounds lost (according to the scale, which I am trying to decide whether or not to trust)
exercise: running (approx.6 miles)/weight lifting: 45 minutes/abs workout: 200 crunches
diet: no bread/fried foods/pizza/etc. Lot's of veggies, chicken and eggs


Onto week 2!! 5.5 weeks until final exams, 8 weeks until the last day of school and 10 weeks until Malaysia! I don't know where April and May went, but I am looking forward to June and July, which are both busy months (teacher training, open classes and summer camp prep).

Mom & Me in Vietnam!

This just in: tonight I booked a ticket for my Mom to meet me this winter in Vietnam! I am having my dress made there (more info coming soon with details), and so we are going to spend 6 days having mother-daughter time in Ho Chi Minh City! I could not be more excited!

Last September I was fortunate enough to have my mom and aunt visit Matt and I for 2 weeks in Korea. It was my Mom's first time traveling abroad, and we had such a fantastic time! Here she is at Jogyesa Temple in Seoul.



While we were visiting Korea's subtropical island, Jeju-do, we were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the famous female divers getting ready to go out for the morning. We quickly pulled a u-turn and pulled over, making our way down the slope to the water's rocky edge. The ladies were extremely friendly and even danced with us when they saw us dancing for some video footage! It was a great moment that I am so glad I got to share with my mom and aunt.



Now we have 8 months to gear up for my mom's next adventure: Vietnam and Thailand! She and I will spend the first half of her vacation in Vietnam, getting the dress altered and exploring Ho Chi Minh. Then we will fly to Bangkok, Thailand to meet up with Matt. the second half of our vacation will be spent soaking up the sun on Thailand's beaches!

I am so happy that my mom can make it to Vietnam to be there when I try on my dress. It's hard enough being away from home while planning your wedding, and one of the hardest parts is knowing you can't go for dress fittings with all of the important women in your life. I am so thankful that she can join me!!

Now how am I ever going to concentrate on my job with all of this trip planning?!?

Oh, to heck with it. Tomorrow is Sports Day anyways. It's all fun and games here half the time!

OK, it's on!

In exactly 15 months these two goofballs will be getting married!



Weren't we adorable? What happened? hehe

Really?

It's day 3 of our low carb diet and I walk into the lunchroom today to find rice, spaghetti, AND potatoes on the menu! What the heck?! We rarely ever have spaghetti or potatoes, and for some strange reason the chef thought it was a good idea to have 3 carbs in one meal. ARGH.

I passed on the rice and potatoes and ate a small amount of spaghetti with as many vegetables as I could scrape from the sauce in the bottom of the pan. I filled up on the 2 other items: cabbage soup and kimchi (re: fermented cabbage). Carbs and cabbage anyone??

Usually our lunches are well balanced. Maybe the head chef took a sick day? Oh wait, Koreans don't take sick days. I'm all out of ideas.

In other news, Matt and I ran on the river last night and I am proud to say that I ran about 2 miles in all, which is awesome considering it's been months since I've ran and I usually have to work up to longer distances (re: more than two minutes). Not only that, but I'm not even sore today?! Awesome!

Now let's hope for a better lunch tomorrow, or else it will all be for nothing! ;)

A Look Back

I have three trips to plan for (4 really including the trip home for the wedding) in the next two years, and if you know anything about me, you know that's no bad thing.

If someone were to describe a hobby of mine, those who know me best would say trip planning. While some people I know twiddle away their free time looking at stupid pictures online or playing video games (*ahem*), I am nose deep in a Lonely Planet or furiously writing down notes from an online travel forum.

This is no new obsession. I have been planning trips as young as the second grade when I convinced my mother to drive me to AAA to pick up free expired travel brochures. Thank God for the internet!

I am in the process of planning:
1. Malaysia (August 2011): for fun
2. Vietnam/Thailand/Cambodia (January 2012): wedding dress shopping
3. Plane tickets to Maine (August 2012) : wedding
4. Extended Asia trip (March 2013): honeymoon/last trip before settling down?

When I'm not lesson planning, thinking about my next meal, wedding planning or exercising, I am planning trips. As you can see, I have a busy 2 years ahead.

Matt is constantly trying to figure out a way for me to earn money planning trips, and he's not the first one to suggest it. Maybe someday in my future I can start my own travel business, who knows.

"A Look Back" is going to be a series of entries dedicated to past trips. Look forward to seeing some pictures and reading small excerpts about:
Ireland
Honduras
Thailand
Cambodia
Vietnam
Laos
China
Mongolia
Korea

It's almost lunch time in Korea, and you know what that means: rice and kimchi. YAY.

Inspiration Board

Throughout the next 15 months I will be posting entries labeled "Inspiration board" that pertain to the wedding. Usually these will be pictures from other weddings, or design ideas, or DIY projects that I admire and may or may not use for my own wedding.

For the first entry, I thought I would post some pictures that have inspired me so far to pick my color choice: blue and white (with green and yellow accents). My favorite color has always been blue, and even though I haven't thought much about my wedding until getting engaged (I was not one of those girls who had their dress and colors picked out since elementary school), I knew I didn't want extremely fancy, or anything covered in pink.
Because we're having a mainly DIY wedding, keeping it simple is going to be top priority. I will talk about decorations and flowers in another post, but these pictures have inspired me to grow wild flowers and use glass mason jars as centerpieces on the tables. Simple, beautiful, and not incredibly expensive.

Now I am still trying to figure out what shades of blue I want to use. From what I have found online, blue weddings are usually either light or aqua blue for beach side ceremonies or icy blue for winter wonderland weddings. I am having neither, and I don't particularly like any of those blues.

This hydrangea has been on my actual inspiration board in my apartment for awhile now and is the best example of the shades of blue I am obsessed with.

I like all of the shades in the flower but mostly the dark blue in the back and the lighter blue on the left side.

At first I was thinking of incorporating blue green and yellow into all aspects of the design but now I am realizing it's going to be difficult to match shades and keep everything streamlined. I want to use pops of yellow and green by using sunflowers and maybe some green lanterns. Still trying to pull it all together!

No carbs for me

So matt and I have decided to cut back on our carb intake for the next two weeks. Although we would really like to try going sugar free, this proves a problem for us during lunchtime. We eat Korean food for lunch and it's virtually impossible to go without eating white rice, especially when you walk into the lunchroom to find something nasty on everyone's plates like fishcake soup or blood sausage. Suffice to say we would starve to death some days without the rice.

Other than lunchtime, it's veggies and meat for us!

It's a goal of mine to lose 50lbs before the wedding. I admit I have a hard time sticking to an exercise routine and a healthy eating habit, but I try. Now that time is ticking and I have a lot of things to be fit for, it's time to get my ass in gear.

Periodically I will post about my progress, which will hopefully inspire me to stick to my schedule.

Lunch today is a yummy veggie and cheese omelet. I love the weekends!

The countdown begins

In just three days there will be exactly 15 months until the wedding. Although 15 months might sound like a long time to some, it seems close to me. Living in a foreign country has warped my sense of time. I have been in korea for 16 months now and most of the time it feels like I just arrived.

When you live abroad you section off your life into segments, usually centered on vacations and going home to visit. This is easier when you are a teacher in a public school, because everything is measured in semesters. 1 month until final exams, 2 months until summer break, 2.5 months until vacation (Malaysia, wahoo!), etc. I am a big counter, and I find that time flies when you are constantly counting down to things. This is not to say I don't value each day and that I am constantly thinking about whatever I am counting down to, it's just a way of measuring my time here.

Here are the big things:

2.5 months: 2 week trip to Malaysia
8 months: trip to Southeast Asia for a wedding dress (more to come on that soon!)
15 months: wedding!

Here's to countdowns, crazy busy schedules, vacations, and exam schedules.