It was one of those weeks where Monday seemed to stretch into more than one day, and everything I touched I made a big mess! I over-flowed my sink, I spilled everything I touched, and then I was under the weather while also being super busy. It was actually kind of funny, but this Monday is turning out to be much better haha.

The trip was a lot of fun though, and it was great to have a whole week of hanging out with my family at the beach. And the weather! It was perfect, kind of chilly some days, and definitely sweater weather! I'm always happy when it's sweater weather, haha!

One day was pretty warm and we lucked out and had almost no wind, so we went swimming in the ocean that day. The hotel we stayed at was right on a wide, flat part of the beach, and you can go out really far into the water and it doesn't get very deep. It's a great swimming beach when the weather is good.

We also were nearby the Oregon Coast Aquarium and so we spent one afternoon walking around there. It was more fun than I thought it was going to be (I don't know why I thought it wouldn't be, but things like that just aren't usually my first choice), and it had been so long since I'd been to an aquarium, it was pretty cool to see.

My favorites were the jelly fish and the harbor seals (which I didn't get a good picture of) and the sea anemones :)




I also convinced my parents to come hike up to the lookout at Cape Perpetua, even though it was so foggy/smoky that day that you couldn't really see down to the coast. I just love how that area is both woods and coast, and I wanted to go enjoy some of the trees :) even though we couldn't see down, it was still fun!




I had a lot of fun, my sisters and I played nertz almost every night, and it was nice to spend some time with my parents since I hadn't seen them since June. There was a lot of silliness, and good times, and lots of photo evidence ;) haha!


I just love my little sisters! :)

In other news, I also have a house update to share with you this week, so it's a good week on the blog, haha! I thought I would have one way sooner than this, but that is house building as I'm finding out, so stay tuned for that.

I hope your Monday is treating you well, and thanks for stopping by!

Listening  She & Him, Volume 3. I love this album so much! It has such a summer feel, and maybe it's just because that retro sound always sounds summery to me! Either way, it's great and I've been listening to it a lot lately.
Thinking  About our plans today. We're doing a group belated birthday/Father's Day barbecue with Dane's family today. One problem I discovered with celebrating Father's Day late, is that if you didn't buy your card on time, you can't buy one at all! They are all gone! Drat.
Smelling  That wonderful, amazing, morning smell. I think you all know what I'm referring to. Yep, coffee!
Wishing  That I had been able to go to sleep earlier last night. I'm tired, and running behind this morning (surprise, surprise). I hope I can get my sleep habits under control, because since I don't have a summer job, I'm going to have to give myself some structure to my days. I don't have the will power to get out of bed at a decent time, if I consistently fall asleep after eleven!
Hoping  To create a new housekeeping schedule this week. I used to have one, and it worked really well! There was a period of time that housework was never an issue as long as I mostly followed the schedule, but that went by the wayside a long time ago, and it's been a struggle ever since. So, once I get things running more smoothly on a day to day basis, I can get to some much needed deep cleaning and organizing!
Loving  That I'm (mostly) getting back to my better eating habits. Our trip really took a toll on me, but after just one day of being home, and not eating out, I noticed a difference in how much better I was feeling. Now, hopefully I'll be able to drop those vacation pounds soon!
Wanting  To get a mani/pedi. My finger nails have been neglected a lot lately, and my toe nail polish is chipping. I should get gel polish, because that stuff lasts forever!
Feeling  Happy to be back in my own home, even though I had a blast on vacation! There's always a certain relief in coming home and getting back into the usual routines.
Clicking  Not a whole lot. I read some of the funny tweets about baby North West,  even though, for the record, I don't mind the name! It's just unfortunate that it was paired with west, ha! And I have been doing a lot of reading a research on weight lifting. This weeks starts my lifting program, and I found so much good information from the blog Girls Gone Strong. If you are interested in using some heavier weights, I totally recommend checking out their site!

We spent all afternoon Sunday in Santa Cruz, and it was so great! We found a great bookstore, walked on the boardwalk, and rode a roller coaster! Plus, the weather was a whole lot nicer. But, I will share more on that later, with a lot more pictures to come!

Listening  The air conditioner. We don't have anything else running at the moment. Dane is messing with his tech-y stuff at the moment, and I'm on mine. So, there's pretty much silence. Except, we were just discussing the flushing options on the toilet, ha!
Thinking  About what I'm going to do the next couple of days. I'm thinking pretty much just being lazy.
Smelling  That hotel smell. Has anyone else noticed that most hotels smell the same? And also, our complimentary bag of popcorn!
Wishing  That I hadn't ate that popcorn, ha! I haven't been doing my workouts the last few days, and coupled with all the eating out we've been doing, means that I'm feeling super bloated.
Hoping  To eat a little better tomorrow, and that Dane wants to head down to the pool soon.
Loving  Summer vacations, and companies that put their employees up in super nice hotels, ha!
Wanting  To head down to that pool, so time to wrap this thing up.
Feeling  Pretty fantastic!
Clicking  Nothing really. Facebook and Google maps have pretty much been it.

That is how many pounds I am away from my goal!

It seems crazy to me that I have successfully eaten healthy and worked out for three and a half months now, and that I have seen such great results! This is the lightest I have been in the last five years, since I gained around thirty pounds after my wedding. 

More than the number on the scale though, I have seen so many other benefits. I love the way my clothes fit now, and I don't feel so self conscious about myself. Some of my pants are even too big now! Plus, I feel so much healthier now. I don't feel sick all the time, and when I'm working out, I feel strong!

This whole process has really given me some perspective. I remember being a teenager and, like most teens, I thought I was fat. Or at least I felt like it sometimes. I didn't think I was as thin as most other girls, and there was always someone I wished I looked like more than myself. Well, I definitely wasn't fat, and I wish I had been more comfortable with my body then!

Right now, I am much more happy with how I look and feel, and I'm about ten pounds heavier than I was in high school! So, I'm glad for the new view I have about my body.

I still have a little work to do, and I would still like to see a little more tone in certain spots, but overall I feel pretty great right now. And who know? The scale may keep going a little. I don't plan on changing my eating habits or workouts once I reach my goal. When I started this, it was with the mind set that this is a lifestyle change, not a diet. I treat myself regularly, but within moderation. Most of the time I try to eat really healthy, and that's something I don't want to change!

Also, on a similarly related note, one reason I wanted to lose weight (besides the whole being healthier thing) was for my vacation!

That's right, this weekend we're headed out of town! It's going to be a work/vacation trip, and I'm so excited! We'll spend some time at the beach, and I'll get to spend several days just relaxing by a pool. It'll be an indoor pool, because we aren't going anywhere tropical, but it's still going to be great!

I will try to be a good blogger, and take lots of pictures to share with you all, and I will still be around because of good-ole wi-fi.

I hope you all have a great weekend as well, and that you all find something fun to do on this last official weekend of spring. Thanks for stopping by!

Well, as usual, it is way past my bedtime, and I'm still up on the computer! I'm just so excited though, because I'm planning our summer vacation!

Usually we go on a couple of camping trips with family over the summer, and that tends to be about it. Now, don't get me wrong, I love those trips! They tend to be some of my favorite summer time memories. But it's been several years since Dane and I went somewhere just the two of us, where we weren't camping and we got to stay in a hotel. Last summer we were going to go to Portland on a work trip of Dane's, but then he changed jobs so it didn't happen.

This summer I decided that I want to go down into California. I want to go to the beach, and go somewhere I've never been before. After looking around tonight and doing some research, I've decided that Santa Cruz looks like my number one choice! There is a lot to do, including a boardwalk with an amusement park, downtown shopping, and lots and lots of beach! Then there's the fact that I found the sweetest little inn about fifteen minutes away! It is so cool looking, with ocean views, and since it's not in the heart of Santa Cruz, it's within my budget!

I'm not sure if you can completely understand how excited I am! Do you think I used enough exclamation points?!!!!!

Anyway, since I have vacation on the brain, I thought I would share some vacation inspired pins with you all. Do any of you have any summer trips planned yet?