January was all about determination

It is just about the end of January....a time to reflect back on what this month has brought and how well I did with what I had set out to accomplish. I heard on the radio on Friday that most people keep their resolutions for 18 days. One of my "goals", NOT resolutions, was to try some new workouts and stick to them. I am a relatively fit person but have struggled lately with my fitness. I love The Biggest Loser show and was intrigued by several DVD's I found done by Jillian. I purchased the 30 Day Shred DVD before Christmas. It is a DVD with 3 workouts at varying levels. I had heard that it was tough and was up for the challenge. I decided I would do each level for 10 days and see how things worked out. I started December 28th and finished on January 28th. I took 3 days off throughout and absolutely LOVED it. It is very hard but I saw some changes. I am stronger, more toned, lost a few pounds, gained some muscle and lost a few inches all around. I am going to keep with it and supplement other workouts with it.

I found myself very determined to finish what I had started. I was upset when the day after my wreck I was so sore I could not work out. I found I was disappointed but knew it was OK. I learned a lot about myself this month through sticking with the workout. Along with the consistent workouts, I was hopeful that we could continue what we started this fall and eat healthier, at the table as a family, most nights of the week. Gary and I have worked hard to plan out our menus and stock our freezer and fridge with what we need to make it happen. We ate out on average 1 evening per week which I think is great. It helped us stick to a monthly budget, have more family time and eat better overall. Gary and I both keep food journals and we were determined to eat mostly what we could measure so we could make healthy choices. Yes, we are those crazies that walk into a restuarant with the online menu printed out to help make our choices!! While Gary has done this for a long time, I have grown to really like it.

I think it will be a goal of mine to have a theme for each month. January was all about determination and I think February is going to be all about organization. I learned a lot about my supposed organization skills when working through all the details of my wreck. I hope to do some things during February to hone my skills and have some of my chaos in order. Check back for results.

Ice = No fun!!

We started hearing predictions of a massive winter storm coming our way mid-week. Those of us that have lived in Memphis most of our lives know that this equals a lot of anticipation but nothing worth anything comes of it!! The radar looked ominous...Oklahoma and Arkansas were being slammed but Memphis was just going to be on the cusp. Early Friday morning we started to get some "wintry mix" and ended up with a little snow but A LOT of ice. Ice is no fun. You can't build a snowman with it...the roads are yucky...all of which adds up to cabin fever. Everyone in the Zyriek Zoo was home on Friday due to schools being closed and the workplaces too. This actually made sense this time, unlike earlier in January when schools were closed and the roads were completely clear. The kids had fun playing all day. They went straight to bed once we finally made them settle down. Gary and I were exhausted too from all the chaos in our house. Poor Ally had to have her splint wrapped up every time she went out. I think she made it outside for a record number of times to ANNOY us!! We did get a few pictures of the kids outside today. Not much to do but they tried it for a while anyway. Gary and I ventured out to check out a few cars and were THE ONLY customers. One salesperson even said "Are you guys crazy?" when we started looking around the lot. My car was totaled on Wednesday and I will get my check on Monday so today should have been our big shopping day. That will have to be postponed until Monday when the temps are once again above freezing. Maybe one time soon we will get some true snowfall....Jackson, TN got 9 inches....they are 60 miles up the interstate!!! The girls would have LOVED that!! Keep wishing!!

after slipping about 5 times in the driveway, caroline obliged with a pic with gary

gary with the girls...anna added her own flair. LOVE that they are NOT wearing jackets and it is below freezing....why do kids do this??

gary and me in front of the icicle laden swingset

Birthday Fun

Sunday was my 36th birthday....could not quite hide my age since Anna made pictures for the front door with my age ALL over them!! Very cute and I loved it. Gary and I enjoyed dinner and the Tigers game on Saturday night with the DeSouzas. The kids stayed at mom's so I was actually able to have a quiet home on Sunday morning....kind of strange!! Gary fixed a nice breakfast for us and then we headed to church. We enjoyed a fun lunch with the DeSouzas including all the kids. Gary urged me to take some time for me on Sunday so I called and managed to snag a pedicure appointment. It was nice to get out for a little while by myself. We had dinner with my dad, Julie, Blair, Kim and their son Benjamin at Memphis Pizza Cafe....one of my favorite casual dining places in town. All in all, a great finish to a not so great week!!! Happy Birthday to me!!

gary and me with pouncer @ the Tigers game

part of my yummy birthday morning breakfast

my sweet girls with me before dinner

Orpheum Family Series

Gary and I took the girls to see Harold and the Purple Crayon live on stage Friday night at the Orpheum. It was part of the Family Series that brings several well known children's books to stage for a low price. The girls enjoyed it greatly and I had to admit that the presentation was very creative and well done. They used intricate costumes, puppets and lights to recreate all the Harold draws with his purple crayon in the famous series of books. We will definitely return for the other two shows this spring.

anna is ready for the show to start

caroline really loved harold!!

Wild drive to work

Thursday morning was like any other morning in the Zyriek house....I woke up a little late but still got my work out in. Gary and I did our usual tag teaming to get the girls fed and dressed for school. We all departed around 7:40 which is a little late for me, but oh well. The traffic on Germantown Parkway was atrocious for the second straight day. As I approached Walnut Grove, I was in the far right lane of Germantown Parkway....a nice lane created about 2 years ago to aid in the continuous flow of traffic that will soon turn right onto Walnut Grove. In the blink of an eye, a very old turquoise colored Saturn sedan was in my lane, having turned left in front of four lanes of traffic and I could not stop. I plowed into the car, airbags deployed leaving me freaked out in rush hour traffic!!! I started crying almost immediately trying to put the pieces of the past minute together. As I exited the car I noticed that my phone must have landed somewhere out of my line of sight. The two people in the other car were non-English speaking and unhurt, luckily. I called Gary, my parents and the police in that order. As I waited for their arrival I surveyed the damage. A lot of damage to the front end of my car. My neck was hurting and I had a sizeable burn on my hand and wrist from the airbag. All in all, I was in good shape. As the police arrived, we learned the other car held 2 illegal immigrants with no drivers licenses or insurance. Just my luck. My only 2 accidents in the past 10 years were a) not my fault and b) with uninsured drivers!! The driver was arrested and taken to jail and ticketed for the accident and for failure to have a drivers license, which I think were the least of his concerns. I ended up having Gary drive me to work to try and put back the pieces of my crazy morning. Currently, my car is at the body shop....estimate was not done yet on Friday afternoon. We are very curious to hear if it is totalled or if they will repair it. More to come. Thank goodness I was alone in the car without the girls and I was ok. I have been told many times that cars are replaceable but I am not. Good to hear the encouragement!!! I will have to blog separately about my dealings with the tow truck company. Whew....that will wear you out to read about!!

the results of a very powerful collision

airbags did deploy...thank goodness!!

Ally update

I have had lots of folks ask how our dog Ally is doing. She broke her leg over 5 weeks ago and is faring well. She saw the vet yesterday and had a tumor removed in her armpit. The vet feels it is harmless but sent it for a pathology report. He took a look at her leg while she was sedated and said that it is healing well. The bones are fusing together well and there is minimal atrophy. She got a new splint put on yesterday. The girls requested pink again. While she did not return with pink, they were very pleased with her new design. It is green, blue and red with flowers and bumble bees on it. Ally mainly rested last night and overall is getting around very well. We will go back in 3-4 weeks for an x-ray and then decide whether to keep it in a splint for a few more weeks or to let her try her leg out on its own. Her personality has remained throughout her healing including eating Caroline's muffin that she left on the table last week and begging for treats and to roam the area in front of our house while we get the paper. Thanks for asking!!

groggy ally with her new fashionable splint

Anna the A/R Star

Anna's school participates in a reading program called Accelerated Reader or A/R for short. It is a chance for kids to read books on their own and then take short review tests on the computer to check their knowledge of the books. The books are catalogued by reading level and point value. Anna started this last year but has really excelled with it this year in first grade. This is not for a grade but for enrichment. Each class has a goal for the semester. Anna way surpassed her goal and was very excited. She was the second highest point person in her class. Yesterday the kids in all the grades got to shop at the "AR Store" and buy things with the points they earned. They could buy things like getting their fingernails painted, a coupon for "jeans day" rather than uniforms and fun little prizes. Anna did not use all her AR dollars.....she is like her mommy and saves, saves, saves!!! Anna's teacher told Gary and I earlier in the week that Anna would be recognized during Friday's chapel with a trophy for her achievement but this was a surprise. We attended Chapel which Anna did not find strange as parents often attend. However, when they rolled out the cart with the trophies and started talking about recognizing the top readers, I could see the lightbulb go off in Anna's head. She was so proud to receive her trophy and be recognized in front of her peers. So glad that she has a passion for reading (like her mother did) at such an early age. Keep it up Anna!!!

anna with her A/R Star trophy

gary and i were very proud!!!

New Year's in Dallas

We returned to Dallas for our now annual New Year's trip. If only Auburn had been picked for the Cotton Bowl then it would have been perfect!! My kids LOVE playing with their 5 cousins that live in Dallas and I enjoy hanging out with my brother and sister. The weather was not the best but we still had a great time just hanging out, eating good food, watching good (Auburn) football, playing Wii games, drinking yummy champagne and overall relaxing. We were there for five days and returned in time for Gary to be at work for Monday. Good thing the girls and I were off on Monday so we had one extra day to sleep in....and speaking of that, the girls slept until 8:30 on Monday. I was worried they were ill. My early risers never sleep past 7am normally but managed until 7:30 throughout the break. Glad for school be back so we can get back into our routine.

caroline and drew rockin' out on the guitars

blake and anna hamming it up

funny cousins

our trip to the american girl store. fun!!

new year's eve wii trivial pursuit results....women take all!!!

New Year's Stats

It is the beginning of a new year and a great time to record some fun facts and stats about the the girls in particular. Gary and I will not be posting any "stats" about ourselves!!!



Anna:

Age: 6 1/2

Grade: 1st grade @ Harding Academy

Height: 51 inches

Weight: 55 pounds

Clothing size: 6 or 6x in most things....7 in pants (see height!)

Shoe size: 1 or 2

Best friend: Mckayla

Favorite fun thing to do: Read books

Favorite place to go: School

Favorite food: Chili

Favorite tv show: Phineas and Ferb

Favorite color: Blue

Caroline:

Age: 3
Grade: Early Childhood, older 2's @ Harding Academy
Height: 38 1/2 inches
Weight: 32 pounds
Clothing size: 3T
Shoe size: 8 1/2
Best friend: Mark
Favorite fun thing to do: Play dress up
Favorite place to go: Park
Favorite food: Cheese and milk
Favorite tv show: Dora the Explorer
Favorite color: Pink and purple