Bridal brunch

Whew, how was your Christmas? Your New Year's Eve? I can't believe I was gone for so long. First I was studying for finals, then I was spending the holidays not thinking about the wedding.

But in between the two, I got together with a few other brides-to-be—my mom and my soon-to-be step-sister—for a "bridal brunch." I made us all breakfast and pomegranate mimosas (champagne, orange juice, and sparkling pomegranate juice... yum!) and we all spent a few hours looking at bridal magazines and doing price comparisons on some of the vendors we had found.

It would probably have been a lot more fun if we'd had more of an agenda. We started out talking about invitations (why the smallest details first?) but then we got distracted by dresses. But with three weddings and everyone being family, no one knew whose dress we were talking about, or for which wedding she would wear it. So confusing! I've decided I won't even consider dress shopping until after both of their weddings are over (in August), so that we don't get all distracted!

Anyway, now that 2009 has started and my schedule has changed, I've decided to revamp my workouts. Instead of going back to the gym, I'm pulling Buff Brides back out and working out at home. I got some heavier dumbbells for Christmas from D's family (so very sentimental! ;) so I'll be able to modify the workout somewhat—I'm a little beyond the "Intermediate/Advanced" level in some categories.

The new plan is to get through weeks 1-12 on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, adding cardio on Saturdays and Sundays—I play soccer on Saturday mornings already, and I'm sure I can get a run or a hike in most Sundays. I'll do yoga if I can when I have extra energy, but it shouldn't interfere with the other two for now. I'd eventually like to add more cardio during the week, but since I'm out of the house fourteen hours per day on Tuesdays and Thursdays, it might not happen this semester.

After week 12—if I make it that far!—I'll be in finals panic mode again, so I'll have to reassess at that time whether I can keep going on in the program to four days a week of weight lifting, or if I need to take a break or put myself in a holding pattern.

The good news is, I made it through the winter holidays without putting on any weight (in fact, I may have lost a pound), so I can tell my workouts are at least marginally effective ;). That makes me more motivated to get back on the program that I know works.