One time I read a blog post that recommended if you haven’t blogged in awhile not to blog about not blogging in awhile. Yeah. So, I’m going to ignore the big pink elephant in the room staring at me in the face telling me I haven’t blogged since March 22nd, 2011.

Yeah.

I think my issues with blogging are that I am tired and busy, and also that I talk and talk all day long about stuff on Twitter leaving me with nothing to say on here. I feel like Twitter allows me to micro-blog all day long. But honestly, I have a lot to say. Just ask my husband. Bless his heart, I have no clue how he puts up with me.

For now, I’m going to just give you all a rundown of my progress in life.

Weight loss:

I am kicking ass. Sure I haven’t lost 50 pounds or gone down 11 dress sizes or done anything ridiculously fabulous and fantastic, but I have improved my health. I’ve dropped 25.4 pounds, dropped about 11% of my body weight and exercised EVERY FAAAAAH-REAKING day of 2011. Yes, EVERY SINGLE DAY. Insane? Perhaps. Tiring? Always. Impossible? HELL NO. Not everyday is easy, lord knows that. There are some days where I am like, “Monica, just do the f-ing 30 minutes and you can have a popsicle.” Yeah, I bribe myself. But those days are few compared to the days where exercising the highlight of my day. I feel strong, empowered and fit. Me, I know, FIT. I couldn’t do what I am doing now back in January. I was weak and out of shape. And in 110 days (yes, keeping count…) I’ve improved. I’m sore, tired, and happy. I’m about 25% of the way to my goal, and I know I’ll get there eventually because I am addicted. It’s my life.

The Dining Room:

Ugh. This is where I suck. You all know my last post was about the cabinets. And maybe I feel so defeated that I have just been putting off the inevitable; I have to finish the cabinets! My personality is weird, and it appears I have better success when I tell people what I want to accomplish. Which is why I tweet incessantly about my struggles with weight loss. Hopefully someone will feel inspired, a little less alone and it keeps my chunky butt accountable. However, let’s keep me accountable to finish the dining room, mkay?

The Plan: To finish painting the cabinets.

Thursday: During lunch, make a list of materials and buy anything not already on hand in garage. Section 1 will be primed in the evening on Thursday April 21st. It will dry overnight.

Friday: In the morning, section 2 will be primed and in the afternoon section 3 will be primed and in the evening section 4 will be primed.

Saturday: Zumba in the morning, in the afternoon coat 1 of paint will be applied to section 1 and 2.

Sunday: Coat 1 of paint will be applied to section 3 and 4.

Monday: Coat 2 of paint will be applied to section 1 and 2.

Tuesday-Friday afternoon I am out-of-town in Austin.

Friday: Coat 2 of paint will be applied to section 3 and 4.

Next Saturday: Touch-ups on all paint, apply polycrylic (still debating on this because I don’t want my paint to yellow…suggestions?)

Next Sunday: Let paint cure. Lay in snuggie watching HGTV.

Next Monday:  Apply hardware & install molding above cabinets.

I think that maybe I could get it all done this weekend (I have a 4-day Easter weekend), but I always overwhelm myself and give up. This plan of mine now gives me time to do it right and take my time. Mostly because if I can’t get it right this time, I’ll give up. I don’t want to give up because I know this project has the potential to rock and make our home so much better and add value.

I can do this right? I can exercise for 4326 minutes in 100 days, but these cabinets are intimidating me? No way! I got this.

Maybe.

Now that I’ve put it out there, you all have got to encourage me and keep me accountable. Harassment is totally fair. I’m game.

And I promise to try to blog regularly. Maybe 3-4 posts a week. Luckily I have some sponsored posts coming up with some awesome stuff to review (Margaritas, knee wraps and paint! Squee.)

Also, I do have a topic on my mind that I want your opinion on:

Isn’t my little niece Ava just a total cutie pie? She was born last week, and my ovaries exploded with delight.

Baby rabies- I gots it.

I tend to go into DIY projects with a ton of pep, energy and positivity.

Then 5 minutes into the project, I tend to tell pep, energy and positivity that they can bite me on their way out the building.

Several DIY home bloggers that are far more patient and talented than I am, have blogged about the new Rustoleum Cabinet Transformation kits. The small kit is about $80 plus tax at Home Depot or Lowes. If you Google to find information about the kit, you’ll find mixed reviews. My review is going to go into the BAD reviews in Google, and I’ll tell you why.

It sucked. Majorly.

At first, I was all pumped about the kit. I watched the nifty DVD that comes with it about 3 times- I felt confident I understood the techniques needed to get good results. Or so I thought. Step 1 is deglossing which essentially eliminates the need to whip out the sanding blocks or the electric sander. The kit comes with a HUGE bottle of deglosser and 2 scouring pads to scrub down all the cabinet frames, doors, etc. Easy enough. You scrub, wipe with a damp cloth and then dry with a lint-free cloth. Each door took me about 3-4 minutes, so it’s not super time intensive or anything. Easy. A minor annoyance is that they recommend you need gloves to do this, and yet they don’t include any. Seriously? For $80 they couldn’t include a pair of gloves? Minor, but nonetheless annoying. Make sure to scrub with the grain of the wood- super important!

Here’s how a deglossed door looks (very matte):

You let that dry for about an hour and then you can put on the first coat of paint (bond coat). The kit comes with 2 quarts of paint for the cabinet frames, drawers and doors. It doesn’t come with enough paint to paint the interior of the cabinets, but it does come with enough to do the backside of all the doors. I put on coat number 1 using the painting method they tell you which is basically like this- inner panel first, borders last, paint in the direction of the arrows:

I did coat number 1 and immediately, I hated it. Why? The brush strokes! I was using a Purdy brush, and they rock. They are fab. But, the DVD specifically say to NOT use rollers, so I kept on following their instructions using my paint brush. LUCKILY, you start with the back of the doors so you get used to the technique before you do the front. This will be my saving grace later, you’ll see why. But back to me hating it. I tweeted a bloggy friend who is familiar with the kit, and she told me to load up my brushes with more paint to avoid the brush strokes. I also tweeted at Rustoleum, who then told me this:

To which I thought, Why make the glaze OPTIONAL if the painting methods essentially assume you’re going to use the glaze?!

But did I stop painting? No! I even got on the 2nd coat on about 1/2 of the cabinet doors. Here’s what the doors look like after 1 coat and after 2 (2 coats on left, 1 on right):

And then my husband took Pee Wee to the vet, and I just about had a nervous breakdown. I called my mom and was telling her about how I was almost done with most of the cabinet doors (all on the back and 2 I had started on the front already), but I hated the brush strokes AND I hated the color. I chose frost because I wanted a crisp white color, and I was mortified when I noticed it had a slight blue tint to it. It’d be UBER helpful if Rustoleum had swatches at the paint counters (since you pick a color based on a picture on the kit and the paint department of Lowes/Home Depot mixes the paint for you) of what the colors looked like. Because frost did not equal the white I wanted. My cabinets are like the girl/guy you think looks really hot from across the room, and then you start waltzing over to them and you realize they are a HOT MESS. I am a perfectionist and wanted smooth, crisp white cabinets. So, I did what I usually do.

I went nuts.

I blame my mom for this because she was like, “Stop, don’t paint anymore if you hate it” but I heard “YOU SCREWED IT ALL UP! OHMYGOSHSTOP! Put down the brush! You’re killing all the kittens!”

I was freaking out about the money and time I had spent, oh the TIME, I spent on these cabinets only to stop and not finish. Luckily, the money wasn’t a huge issue since Rustoleum does have a money-back guarantee:

So, apparently there’s a check on its way to me to cover the entire cost of the kit. Which is cool. But, I can’t get my spring break back, obviously. I also then had to spend money on 4 packs of these:

And some money on paint stripper and lots MORE time using this:

To take all of these doors:

Back to something like this:

All so that I can do it the RIGHT way. You know, the old-fashioned way of sanding, priming, sanding, 2 coats of paint, a coat of poly, lots of curing time and then I’ll be done.

Would I use this kit again? NO. Not the light kit. I think using the light kit to take dark cabinets to lighter cabinets is a HUGE waste of money unless you plan on using the decorative glaze. If not, save your money and sanity and do it the right way. I would, however, totally use the dark kit to take oak cabinets to a dark espresso color. Furthermore, I am elated that the cabinets I am working on are in my dining room. If I would have screwed up my actual kitchen cabinets, I would have DIED. I was so upset about this mishap, that I think the stress of kitchen cabinets going wrong would have landed me in complete and utter despair. Even though it likely could be fixed.

Luckily, in our kitchen we’d be going from blonde/normal oak to a dark espresso color…essentially opposite of what I was trying to accomplish in the dining room. Rustoleum has awesome products, I just feel like this one is new and might need some tweaks to be great. If you do purchase the kit, make sure to read the box to see what other materials/supplies you will need.

I also thought about taking the easy way out and just staining the cabinets…but they ended up looking exactly the same, so that is not an option. I want white cabinets so I can make this picture come to life in my home:

There’s my dining room makeover update. I essentially wasted hours upon hours of time, and am now worse off then when I started. I have to sand all the doors and do it all over again- the right way.

This leads me to think…when do I have another week off?

Hopefully they’ll be done by Christmas.

Have any painting tips for me to get the gorgeous cabinets I am lusting over? Wanna send me some tequila?

{Image Credit: Live on Purpose}

I’ve hit a wall. I’ve hit it so hard that it’s just knocked me out. I’m on the floor, gazing up, out of breath, exhausted and can’t get up.

I’ve hit a wall.

I can’t get up. Or maybe it’s not so much that I can’t get up, it’s that I don’t want to. I try to be inspiring, motivating and friendly on Twitter and on this blog, but I gotta keep it real y’all. I am human. I am not perfect. I don’t have this all figured out. Today is 77 of the 100 days challenge (being active for at least 30 minutes a day- INTENTIONALLY). I’m proud to say I’ve completed 76 days. Some days have been stretching workouts or leisurely walks or sanding the hell out of some cabinets, but I have been intentionally active everyday since December 29th. Technically, it’s day 80 for me, but I’ve only been counting “officially” since January 1st.

I don’t even CARE about finishing anymore. That necklace I am working so hard for can kiss my ass. The thought of 23 more days ahead of me (plus TODAY since I haven’t worked out yet) just makes me want to crawl into the fetal position and rock back and forth. Or eat some cake. And maybe have a tequila shot.

And that’s just to finish this challenge. I still have the overall challenge of wanting to be a skinny bitch. I have a shit-ton more days then, pardon my french.

ohmygawd.

I don’t know if I can do this. Well, that’s a lie. A big, fat lie. I KNOW I can do this. I WANT to do this. I am just really burnt out. Tired. FED UP. And hey, 80 days is good, right? And I have all these people on Twitter who are like, “You can do this!” and while that’s all lovely and quite nice, I feel like screaming, “Yeah, when was the last time YOU worked out for 80 days straight and didn’t want a break?!” But really, I love it when people encourage me, so excuse my snark today, please.

I’m a lunatic. Really I am. If you saw what went down earlier at my house you’d agree with me. I became the absolute meanest person in the world to the person I love the most…my husband. It’s almost like I don’t deserve him. I was so mean. It’s partially because I am going nutso over the dining room makeover (the cabinets, oh the cabinets…more on that tomorrow) and partially because I am just so tired of counting every crumb of food I eat. Weighing every glass of wine. Fretting over every thing I so much as smell because I don’t want to gain weight back.

And yet this week, I have. I’m up almost 3 pounds as of this morning even though I haven’t eaten much this week. See? Stress can add weight even if you don’t stress eat. I am so talented that I can GAIN weight, 10500 calories worth, without even eating them.

I am a professional at being able to be fat. Like a super pro.

I say all this knowing fully that I haven’t binged eaten nor skipped any workouts. I guess I’m just saying I wish I could take a break without being judged. Not that I’d go binge eating for a week, but I know I’d get comments on how I was “so close” to finishing the 100 days and aren’t I disappointed? Maybe I would be. Maybe I’d be happy to just rest.

Or maybe, just maybe… I’ve hit a wall.

Becoming a Runner Girl

Hi guys…erm…gals! I’m Brooke from Smart + Strong = Sexy. I didn’t start out as a fitness blogger, but have slowly evolved into that over time. My blog originated as a place to document my wedding plans. A few months after I got married, I got sick of people telling me how much weight I was going to gain now that I was married, so a friend of mine and I started taking advantage of the exercise classes our work place offers.

One afternoon she stumbled upon the Couch to 5K program and worked up the genius plan in her mind. We’d start the program and run the inaugural “5K in May” being hosted by a charity in our hometown.

Two years ago, she and I struggled with week 1’s “run 60 seconds, walk 60 seconds, run 90 seconds, walk 90 seconds” Today I’m not only an avid runner, but also a triathlete and marathoner. This January I ran 26.2 miles to complete the Disney Marathon.

That’s me after pausing for a photo op 10 miles into the race – yes, I really was that happy!

I’m not here to brag on myself, but to say you can do it too!

Maybe you don’t want to run a marathon, and that’s fine. But please give running a chance. You might fall in love and join me in the less than 0.1% of the population who’ll call themselves marathoners.

Or maybe you’ll be like my running buddy who has never ran more than a 8k, but that distance provides her with all she needs to maintain a healthy weight and challenge herself to improve her speed.

Still yet you could be like our mutual friend who was inspired to start running because of us…but quit because she didn’t enjoy it. We’re still her friend even though she has bad taste in workouts.

Just kidding…but seriously.

You may hate running, but I’m urging you to please give it a try. Running does far more for me mentally than it does physically. Its empowered me to know that I can do whatever I put my mind to. I’ve shut up critics who’ve doubted my ability to jump from a 5k (3.1 miles) to a half marathon (13.1 miles) in six months.

Running helps me shift my focus from what my body looks like, to what its capable of achieving.

All you need is the Couch to 5K (or similar walk/run plan), a pair of tennies, and a place to train, and a 5K race signup sheet. I’d not recommend sinking a lot of money into shoes before you know how well you’ll stick with it.

As you continue in the sport wicking fabrics, an Ipod, an SPI belt, and some sort of long-run hydration system are handy to have. But for now, put on some sweats, lace up those shoes collecting dust, and hit the road.

You won’t regret it.

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I am so not a runner, and this post makes me consider trying it again. A smidge. I hope all my guest bloggers inspired you to make your lives a bit healthier and beautiful leading to a world with more birthdays, more laughter and more happiness. This is the final guest blogger entry, and I’d like to thank all of my guest bloggers for doing such a great job motivating, inspiring and educating us. Have you ever tried running? Would you ever try running? Let Brooke know in the comments! I’ll be picking winners for the guest blogger comments on Sunday! Leave comments on any/all of these blog posts for chances to win.

Hi everyone! This is Fit Bee/Colleen from www.thefitbee.com

When it comes to working out we can all come up with millions of excuses of why we cannot. One of the most prevalent I hear is “I have no time”. Of course in this day and age no one has extra time. But really exercise is an investment in you. There is no greater gift you can give your body than some exercise, it boosts endorphins, makes you feel great, and improves your health. Making even just 20 minutes a day for you to have some me time and get in some activity should be doable.

One great way to get exercise in a fun challenging way is workout videos. I love these because they can be done at home on your own time in your own way. If you have accesses to On Demand they have exercise TV. On exercise TV there are hundreds of free workout videos available for your viewing pleasure. This is a great way to test out some styles and find out which one you enjoy before going out to buy one. Also many videos can be previewed online before you buy them.

My advice, keep trying different videos until you find a few you like. There are tons of great videos out there and every trainer does things a little differently. This gives you an advantage of seeing different styles. I also like to rotate my favorites to keep my body guessing and working.

I enjoy the videos that combine cardio and lifting weights. For me it is the best of both worlds wrapped into 1 intense workout. I really feel they give you the most ‘bang for your buck’. The 30 Day Shred is a great workout that does just that.

Lately I have been using a kettlebell. I love the kettlebell because it is more dynamic and incorporates strength training with cardio. The kettlebell really works your core building it to be stronger. Jillian Michaels came out with Shred It With Weights and I fell in love with this workout.

If you have a child at home, then a home workout can help you greatly you can exercise while they nap, play in another room, or early in the am or after they have gone to bed at night. Workout DVDs give you the freedom to do this. If you work odd hours, cannot afford a gym membership, really if you just prefer to be home then try a workout DVD today!

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Thanks Colleen! Colleen is a huge source of inspiration for me. She’s lost a lot of weight, seriously, check out her AMAZING weight loss on her website. Her journey has made me realize that I can do it, too. And it should make YOU realize you can do anything you set your heart to. How do you find time to exercise or be healthy? Leave a comment for an entry to win some earrings! Now I’m off to exercise before the Lady Gaga concert…gotta make time for it!