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Kat Scratch Fever Posts

2016: A Plan

I’m not saying these things are New Year’s Resolutions persay, but there is something about the start of the year that makes for a good time to sit down and evaluate what you want to get done. I don’t buy into that “New Year, New Me” thing so much (though I’m pretty sure I did use that hashtag last year haha), but I do think that having a plan is good.

So, here are some things that I’m hoping to accomplish in 2016!

Personal:

– Plan a successful, fun, and reasonably priced* wedding. I’ve got the venue and photographer booked so I’m on the right track. We’re a little crazy and are getting married in September.

– Lose 20lb to look awesome in my wedding dress and feel good and all the other benefits of losing some extra weight. I also want to start doing yoga.

– Spend more time reading.

– Learn German, and brush up on my Spanish.

– Get a puppy (maybe haha).

Work:

– Expand my business. I haven’t decided what direction I want to go yet, but I want to start doing either some freelance web design, or photography. I also plan to start selling a small quantity of handbags.

– Catch up on my business taxes. I’d like to actually have the funds in January for them, not in April. I’m tired of always trying to keep up and would love to actually be ahead of the game.

I think that’s pretty much it! I think 2016 is going to be pretty good and I look forward to seeing what it brings.

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2015: A Recap

So I know I said that I wanted to do more blogging, and then I didn’t. It’s kind of the story of my life sometimes. Let’s see if I can do better in 2016! But, I suppose there needs to be a recap so those of you that aren’t my friend on Facebook or even Twitter know what I’m talking about (… as if anybody reading this doesn’t fall under one of those categories haha).

Traditionally, I’m guessing chronological order is the best way to go about it, but I just want to start with the most exciting bit!

So for Kevin’s birthday in early December, we went back up to Victoria so that we could see the lights at Butchart Gardens. Apparently Canada is our birthday-place haha. So we were there and the lights were all beautiful and we had a great time. The best part was that while we were there, on his birthday, surrounded by adorable Christmas lights, Kevin asked me to marry him! Of course I said yes, how could I possibly not?! We’re very excited.

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Ok now that I’ve said that, I can go over the rest of the year. It’ll be quick, because everything pales in comparison.

– As you know, Sonia came to visit me earlier in the year. She actually came again this month because I needed her here in person to squee with. That was awesome!

– Saw Phantom of the Opera, which I was way thrilled for because I’ve been dying to see it on stage since high school. We looked snazzy and had a great time.

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– Went on a mini vacation to Leavenworth, an adorable little Bavarian town not too far from here.

– Participated in a lot of sewing swaps.

– Turned 30, but you already read that blog post.

– Did a bunch of archery, and also wound up with an airsoft pistol. Also fired a real gun for the first time ever.

– Failed Whole30. Oops. I actually need to try to succeed at that again, I have a pretty dress in my future that I want to look awesome in!

– Went to my first Mariner’s game. Had amazing seats! Went into crazy overtime but sadly we lost in the end.

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– Saw Rocky Horror Picture Show, dressed appropriately for it.

– Drank way too much Starbucks.

– Played a lot of video games. Started a YouTube channel and another neglected blog related to said games.

– Went to Canada and GOT ENGAGED. Oh, I said that already. Sorry….

– Got a bunch of awesome Christmas gifts. Had a quiet New Year.

And there we are folks! All caught up. Tomorrow* I’ll make a post about what’s coming up in 2016. Yaaaaay! 2015 was amazing, I hope 2016 is even better.

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One Whole30 Week Down…

Clearly I must just have an aversion to blogging, but at least I’ve been live-tweeting my Whole30 experience! Here are my thoughts from the last few days, shamelessly copy/pasted from Twitter:

  • Whole30 Day 3: when I need to find a new appreciation for black coffee because life without coffee isn’t worth living.
    (I know I said that in my last post, but it was worth re-stating, because it’s that important to me haha).
  • Whole30 Day 4: the carb cravings commence. My kingdom for some pancakes! (I haven’t even had pancakes in months, whyyyy cravings?!)
  • Today and tomorrow are supposed to be the “Kill ALL the things!” days, but so far today I’m not grumpy, just perpetually hungry #whole30
  • Whole30 Day 6: I have a nasty, nasty headache today.
  • (In response to someone asking me for motivational tips): When I feel deprived, I eat bacon ;)
  • Oooh… its a day late according to the timeline, but the “kill ALL the things” phase just kicked in. #badmood #whole30
  • (In response to someone saying I’m making them never want to try Whole30): It gets better. And it’s not like I’m never grumpy otherwise ;) It’s not [fun], but I get amazing results from it. A little suffering builds character.
  • Whole30 Day 7: My kingdom for something that is NOT eggs for breakfast…

So that’s where I am right now. Sick to death of eggs, still missing my coffee, tired and slightly grumpy. The good news is that next week will be better. Also, I really need to get to the gym, but I am remarkably unmotivated to do so lately. Gonna try hard t make myself go this weekend though.

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Whole30 Day 3 Thoughts

Starting a Whole30 on a weekend is rough. It’s the preferred beer-drinking time of week, for starters. Not to mention that there’s just something about playing Pathfinder that makes me crave junk food (I’m pretty sure that’s genetically hardwired into all nerds).

All weekend long, both Kevin and I kept saying, “All I want to eat is things I’m not allowed to have”. I don’t usually start off so discouraged, which is a little bit not-promising for the longevity of this plan.

I started my day today without coffee, which sucks. A day without coffee is a bad day. So I bought an iced Americano while I was grocery shopping and added a little coconut milk to it, and it’s drinkable. I will need to find an appreciation for black coffee if I’m going to stay sane.

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Whole30 Take… 4?

I’ve spoken about wanting to lose weight here before, a long long time ago. What I didn’t speak about (mostly just because I wasn’t blogging at the time) was that about two years ago, I actually lost almost all the weight that I wanted to lose; those last five pounds are still neigh impossible it seems.

I did it by doing CrossFit at a great place down in Beaverton with really friendly people and super helpful coaches. I was there about 3 times a week working up all kinds of sweats and lifting heavy things and having a ton of fun. A few months into being there, I started a Whole30 because I needed to stop eating so badly. I went through the kitchen and got everything that wasn’t Whole30 compliant out of the house, and whilst quitting Starbucks cold turkey was tough, I survived the 30 days and saw great results. After I was done I wished I had blogged it, but I did at least take pictures of much of the food I ate.

After that, I was staying mostly-Paleo for a while, and continued seeing good results. I had lost almost 30 pounds, I had a ton of energy, I was sleeping better, and I wasn’t embarrassed to wear a bikini out in public. I wish that was the end of the story! I wish it almost as much as I wish I was rich.

Shortly after that I met a boy. I love him dearly, he’s awesome and I still have him and plan on keeping him forever and ever, but it turns out our favorite thing to do is eat, and we really love pizza and beer. Sooooooo here I am, two years later, pretty much back at the weight I started at. Ugh! We’ve done a couple Whole30s together during these two years but we’re not diligent about not reverting straight back to really bad habits, nor about going to the gym. Pizza and beer occasionally is great, but we wind up eating all carbs all the time when we’re not paying attention.

So now we’re at today. A couple months ago I started trying to lose weight again but it’s been a little half-hearted. Now it’s time to kick things back into high gear, and we’ll be starting yet another run through 30 days of no processed carbs and no added sugar. I also plan on checking out a couple of the local CrossFit places to see if one is a good match for me, because I really miss it and it works well for me.

This time around though, to help with accountability (and also because it’s kind of a fascinating 30 days), I’ll be blogging some about how it goes. What I eat, how I feel, how tired I am of eggs, whatever strikes my fancy. Probably not daily, but I’ll strive for at least once or twice a week. We’re starting on August 1, and I’m going to try really hard not to gain 3 pounds drinking coffee and eating ice cream before then, but I make absolutely no promises!

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