[expletive deleted] We're getting old.

So MrT and I are both on holiday at the moment. He has been catching up on computer games and I have been catching up on reading. Also I have been buying thoughtful insightful but not budget breaking christmas presents for 25 people... Thank goodness MrT doesn't speak to many people on his side of the family. 

So after two weeks of reading and kitchen experimenting and playing copious amounts of candy crush and solitaire and other iPad games as well as catching up on months of interwebs,  I was feeling a bit bored. 

At 930pm tonight we decided to go on a spontaneous road trip. 

Now here is a surprising fact about becoming an adult (roughly around the time you start paying a home loan instead of rent, or when your friends start divorcing instead of breaking up, or when you get married). See, before this time, 9:30pm is when you start wrapping things up at the bar where you have been drinking to go start the real partying. After this time, 9:30pm is when you get up off the couch, switch off the TV and go brush your teeth and hopefully be in bed by 10. (Reading by bed side light and married persons cuddles not included)

So at 9:30pm tonight we set out in our jerseys and jammies and my fancy car and playing some excellent tunes we decided to go to the KFC drive thru. MrT declined to have anything and so exactly one milky bar Krusher, three road trip songs and 20 minutes later, we were safely back home. 

MrT surprisingly is back at his computer game and I am once again reading. And soon we'll be brushing teeth and lying in bed browsing real estate agents websites for our next family home. (Or something else vanilla)

I fear we are long past our childish days to ever go back. (Until we have our own kids and become childish in a whole other way)

Tales of a gym newbie

So MrT and I finally did that thing that I always thought was only done by wealthy people who can afford to waste money on trivial things.... We joined the gym. I grew up thinking normal hard working people just ran around the block to stay in shape.

Now other than a singular visitor visit many many years ago, I am a complete total and utter gym virgin. Growing up I stayed skinny by walking to and from school and a healthy amount of gymnastics training wriggling out of my brothers grip while they tried to give me noogies on the scalp and arms. I joined road running clubs but didn't have the staying power. I joined one again just after getting engaged to be a typical Beautiful Thin Bride but alas starting a before work morning road running habit in winter is only for extreme morning people, better yet, insomniacs. 

And so, after a health review in October where the results were some what shaming, Eben and I decided it was time to change our sedentary lifestyle that has too much pasta and cheese and wine and chocolate and too little fresh fruit and fresh air and other heathful things. Also, we'll both be past 30 years in 18 months and we are realising that 30 years is when the body starts hinting that you are not young and spritely anymore.... It seems our bodies, like cars, are overdue for a major service when the mileage is at 30 trips around the sun. Sucks for you if you haven't been taking regular care of things.... And been eating cheese while watching too much SATC until 2am on a work night. 

Now my weight is around about normal for my height and age but I am a little too much fatty fat and a lot too little muscle mass. Typically it is all on my bum, belly and boobs.

And so, (to move things along) last week, Vitality discounting memberships in hand, we joined the local gym. We took one last weekend to eat red meat and butter cooked mushrooms and asparagus and drink heartily of liqueurs over ice and bourbon with cola all guilt free. 

This morning, not at all bright and early, we very nervously arrived at the gym, towel and water bottles in hand ready to give this thing a bash. 

After asking around and explaining that we we're completely new to this, the personal trainer took us to the super circuit to get started. As MrT and I were training together (my absolute precondition to joining a gym - or else I'll never get into the habit) we had to take turns wit he machines. So while he was on machine 1, I was doing stair exercises. Then we swap and I press/lift/weep while MrT conveniently remembers he has knee troubles and does the easy stair hops. And swap again. 

New realization: be it the current cold I have or pending older age, my balance is pretty shit. The stair exercises were a bit hit or miss after the first 10 repetitions. 

But on to the super circuit. I was pretty good at the first few (the energy jump from banana bread and tea for breakfast having not worn off yet) especially since a lot were leg exercises. But at the later machines (like all of them from 6 to 10) I was seriously taking some strain. It is worrying when on the lowest weight possible, you can't make the machine move. But I did my very best at each machine trying to do 20 repetitions, followed by 10, then 5, then 5, then 1, then 1, then please can we be done now, then one more, then oonnée mooreeeee, and Yes done! Time for a sip of water... And more graceful jumping up and down the stairs. 

Needless to say, after all 10 machines I was feeling more than a little ragged. I had excuse myself to take a polite bathroom break because I was afraid I was going to puke, pass out and my legs fall off all at the same time. I might be a newbie but I have my dignity (what dignity left that I hadn't sweated off or left in the hands of the trainer helping my lift the tiny 2.5kg weight on the arm machine of terror. )

After saying our thanks and good byes to the trainers we went home for a shower (MrT is a little gun shy in the change rooms at present) and now 12 hours later I can't say I am in agony. This means that I'll be fully capable of going back in a day or two. Joy! more pain and profuse sweating.

And so to wrap up, setting some new healthy living goals.

Very short term goal: do the super circuit with out help from the smug trainer

Short term goal: start fitting my current clothes better. (I am horrified to be getting too chubby for them and my ego cannot Cannot handle going up another size)

Medium term goal: be capable of a 5km run

Longer medium term goal: lose 5kg by Easter and be able to go for a run with my dad or brother and be able to keep up. 

Long term goals: a longer marathon perhaps, being able to to kill my fear having flabby flappy swinging upper arms. No more muffin top. Be on the B side of a C cup. Be back at my end of varsity weight (so lose 20% from what I am now) A thigh gap like when I was 16 yo would be nice but I may be beyond such youthful legs now. 

Disclaimer: being fat or thin or round or pear or apple or stick or watermelon is beautiful, all ladies should wear bikinis if they feel like it and have the right to feel sexy. (Fat old men wear speedos because they feel sexy in it and they don't give a crap what anybody thinks)

But we try to stay healthy for the family and friends who love us and want us around to the end of making good memories. 

Frankie's Travels: ancestral homeland

I finally made the list of invitees to go visit the office based in the UK for Work. Officially I am going for training and business development. Secretly I am going to prove to the people there that our office has young engineers and to allow me to make a few friends so I can call them up for help later.

I am 50/50 split on my feelings about this trip. I am stupidly excited to be going to see a new country - especially one with so many preconceived notions in my head thanks to too much fiction and tv. It might be a fun (if expensive thanks to the 14:1 exchange rate) Trip. It will be nice to see how things operate in another office and nice to change the work schedule a bit. It is also good to stretch your self a bit contemplating making it through one 11 hour flight, getting the next connecting flight in a different terminal, getting a taxi, finding the hotel, checking in, cleaning up and getting a taxi to the office all over the next 25 hours and all on my own. Married life makes you too comfortable about never having to do things alone and despite having flown to foreign countries for several years now, this is still a bit daunting. Whoot for adventures!! 

HOWEVER.... This trip also means leaving my beloved husband alone for a week. We fight a fair bit because we are both stubborn and independent but it only takes an extra few hours without him to make me clingy and lonely and needy. I'm like a limpet trying to get Eben to wear me like a backpack. If it was me staying home and Eben travelling, I would be climbing the walls with anxiety and loneliness and quietness before Monday morning. But Eben is too strong and manly to admit to anything like that. Perhaps he will bury his time in work things and make the week zoom past. Secondly, I really wish I could take Eben with me on a trip like this. Months because I afraid t go alone but because I want to share the excitement and newness of things with him.

I'll try keep things updated with my adventures in the land of eternal mud and rain (so I hear) but I suspect the trip story will be a lot of sleep-eat-work-eat-sleep with sprinklings of snow and icy winds. 

First adventure will be praying to the fairies of aeroplane seat allocations for a rare sweet empty seat next to me. Followed closely by attempting to sleep in a cramped leg room position. 

Yaaay! Let the Travels commence!

New Travel Blog

I am getting married tomorrow! I can't believe I am finally able to say this. I'll be blogging my travels from a new blogger spot at mrsfrankiestravels.blogspot.com Feeling all excited to depart on my new adventure on Sunday morning with my new husband in tow. Zoom! Zoom! Zoom!

No good byes until we say adiós

So yeah, if you have noticed, this blog has ground to a solid halt.

I think that maybe I am not longer the bloggy angst ridden person I was a year or two or three ago. I no longer need to discuss all the confusing ideas swirling around my head. Or else perhaps I no longer need to be passive-aggressive over the internet at random strangers and non-strangers. 

I have transferred all my "Frankies Travels" to a new blog which will go live in a few months at the very start of my Mrs-Frankie days in time for my next very big adventure. 

And, without spoiling the surprise, I can tell you it will be one heck of an adventure. :)

New Month - New 2012 fun times

New Month - New 2012 fun times

Last Month was insane. To start with, MrT and I purchased a house, we ordered our wedding bands, we booked our wedding photographer and Almost had our freebie engagement shoot (sadly postponed due to the rain). We started our wedding preparation course and are now half way through it. We did some serious financial planning and started the legal agreements around co-owning the house.

We have been solidly busy since the start of the year and I am exhausted. But I am proud of us for making so much progress. Proud that we are motoring ahead towards our new life and the Big Day that celebrates the start of it all.

In the course of being engaged these past seven months I have had some pretty low days where I have really wondered what I am doing with his ring on my finger and considered the ramifications of breaking the agreements and running for the single hood hills. But now lately I am feeling that everyday we inch closer to the wedding day, I am more certain that MrT and I are making a great decision to be together. I am no longer dreaming for a wedding and now dreaming about a marriage. This is a Huge step for me because I have been massively afraid that My head was only absorbed in the wedding and ignoring all else. I am actually looking forward to the days of being His Only One for the rest of my days and the days of him being My Only One.

So February is now here and I think MrT and I may slow down a little and enjoy the scenery. (and try get into the swing of working for a 5 day week uninterrupted)

Best of all this Month is wishing Happy Happy 30th Birthday to my older brothers. Gonna have a fun time celebrating it this weekend. It is generally going to be a good year for celebrating family. My grandmother passed the big 9-0 last month and my splendid Father is crossing 60 at the end of the year. Heck Yeah!

Regaining my enthusiasm

It has been a busy few days in terms of wedding planning and house buying. The banks have responded to our home loan applications. Some of the replies were hopeful and some were not at all. (what is a first time home buyer supposed to do with a 60% offer from the bank? Only purchase and live in 60% of the house?)

We have been waiting with baited breath for the final official response from the banks which have made nicer provisional offers.

It is agreed that as I have a nest egg investment, that I would be taking care of the transfer duties. Now I plan to stand by this agreement even though I am very sad to have to dissolve these investments. But I die a little bit more inside every time the transfer duties are mentioned at a higher and higher price.

So I was feeling pretty low this past week after writing up an expected expenses list for the next six months. Low low low and poooooooooor.

But this isn't a sad story :)
I have had a first meeting with the lady who is going to design and make my wedding dress for me. And the dress is gonna so great. So great in fact that my enthusiasm and excitement is driven only by the 30 second sketch she drew based on my requests. And I have a LOT of excitement. Anyway she gave me an estimated price to do the job and she is well within the budget which is a massive bonus. (getting exactly what I want without having to break the budget - can I get a Heck Yeah?!)

The strong independent woman in me is giving the wedding obsessed part of me long looks of deep disdain that a wedding dress is enough to turn my money blues around.

In any case, the optimist in me sees the money blues as a good time to get started on that wedding diet...