We Bought A Van RV (and Weekly WI)

 While not necessarily the plan in this phase of life...

We bought a van RV!

 

While there are many benefits to my current career choice, the biggest one is the ability to retire in my 50s.  The Hubs and I had talked about once we retire, perhaps we would travel around the US in an RV. 

 

I’ve watched some YouTube videos, explored the different options, checked pricing, and visited RV shows.  But we have never really shopped for an RV.  I mentioned to Kenyon there was a used RV that looked pretty good base on You Tube (spoiler…not the same RV year/style) and surprisingly, the agreed to go tour it on our Juneteenth holiday off together.

 

Um, the used RV was a no-go.  It is easy to try and talk yourself into something you don’t really want because overall, I really do want a van RV.  It just doesn’t feel like the right time.  Plus, we have an HOA with rules about “behind fencing” which complicates things more.

 

To make a long story short…I asked if they had a Winnebago Trovato we could look at to confirm we liked that size/layout much more than the no-so-great used RV option and WHAM…we bought an RV.  It is a 2026 Thor Tellaro 20L Sport model and was a killer deal.  Hence why we bought an RV about nine years too soon.

 

I am sooooooooo excited!  We pick it up on Wednesday and I can hardly wait.

 

How else has the week been going?  Pretty good.  I lost 1.2 pounds last week.  Tuesday & Wednesday were great with my commitment to activity.  By Thursday, my week got busy, and it is packed from now until next Sunday.

 

I hope to have at least another small loss for my end-of-month weigh-in on Tuesday.  I head to Seattle for a couple days with my favorite gal pal Dawny and then it is bac to business for the month of July.  I’ve got goals that need slayed and overtime money to earn.

The TWA Hotel & A Visit To The #1 Elks Lodge

Our Bermuda Cruise sailed out of Manhattan, which we visited ahead of our New England Cruise in 2017.  Alaska Airlines flies to JFK while Southwest only flies to LaGuardia and Newark.  Kenyon mentioned visiting the iconic TWA Hotel and it was decided we would skip NYC a second time and stay at the TWA Hotel near the JFK airport.  It was a fantastic decision! 

 

From the moment you walk into the hotel lobby, the 1962 theme was sprinkled throughout.  The elevators, the rooms, the cocktail lounges, and the restaurant.

 

There is even an old plane converted into a cocktail lounge.  It is a cool experience.

 

We booked a terminal 5 runway view room and had the best time entertaining ourselves with the planes flying in/out.

 

The rooftop pool also had runway views, a restaurant, and bar.

 

If you ever get a chance to visit…do it!  It was expensive but worth it.

My travel research uncovered we were only seven miles from the New York Elks Lodge…the #1 Elks Lodge which was founded 157 years ago.  Now, it isn’t the original location, which was Times Square.  But the memorabilia and the members are the heart of the Elks, and you can feel it.  We had a great visit and it was also a highlight of the trip.

 

Our next cruise isn’t until August 2026 and, in the meantime, we have some US trips on the books.   

Weekly WI: What Does Progress Look Like?

My weight loss journey feels like a constant back and forth battle lately.  This is typical when I have travel and social situations on my calendar.  I feel like I am not making much progress and what progress I made before we left for our Bermuda cruise has gone to the wayside.  It feels so hard to stay motivated.  I would love to see a consistent weight loss trend, even the tiniest bit.  

In order to see consistent weight loss, I need to be CONSISTENT with my tracking.  That is the first step.  I need to identify what I am allowing to stand in my way which I’ve allowed to create this mental hang up.

I am back to work tomorrow for a long stretch after several days off.  It has been really nice having time off and I am feeling the dread to return to work.  I have not been feeling connected for several months now.  

We visited my in-laws to celebrate my mother-in-law’s 80th birthday.

I also took my Aunt Barb and my brother/sister-in-laws to visit the Albuquerque Elks.  As always a great visit with my fellow Elk members.

Before I left town, I bought a bubble maker after seeing a Facebook post from a friend.  Originally in search of the rose, I found this adorable daisy.  I fired it up last night and enjoyed all the kid-like wonder of having automatic bubbles for a little while.  It goes through a lot of bubbles in a short time buy they are cheap so why not.

On our way home from New Mexico we routed through he Vegas airport.  Kenyon won $936 on a bonus game.  It was epic!  Rarely do we come home with a win so this was great.

I attended a 1st birthday party on Saturday along with a wedding which was beautiful.  We were missing the bride’s mother who passed away from liver cancer two years ago.

Last night, I met up with the Boise Beer Buddies Group at Pub & Putt, a new beer/mini golf location in Nampa.  A high school classmate was in town and met for a visit.  It is always so great to see Maria when she comes to town.

I have a potluck dinner and a going away part at the Elks tonight where I than start my 7-day stretch at work.

Weekly WI: Keep On Going

Hello and Welcome June!  What have you all been up to?

The last week of May was a busy one.  I had planned and unplanned events, as well as planned and unplanned food disruptions.  

Friday, I volunteered at the Namptons Beer Festival which was soooooo much fun!

Saturday we celebrated Phoenix’s sister Nicole ahead of her wedding next week.  Also soooooo much fun!  

With all that fun, along with the unplanned food disruptions, I gained back 1.2 pounds of the loss from the week prior.  I knew this week might be difficult to pull out a loss and when I stepped on the scale at home this morning, a day early, I was hopeful for a gain no more than 1 pound.  Now we just keep moving forward.  

That is all we can do right?  My morning started with a walk as our temps have temporarily dipped this week.  I have some time off work which has been wonderful too.

I spent some time this morning reflecting on my weight graph.  I am presently surprised my current weight is 11 pounds more than last year.  

That feels like success and I plan to keep working my way down the scale as under 200 pounds is still in my sights and I really do love how I feel at the lower weight.

I listened a great virtual workshop today and I get to see my favorite WW members today and tomorrow.  I can’t wait!

Week Ends Tomorrow

Good Morning! 

 

Today, I am thinking of all who lost their lives serving our country.  Each person made the ultimate sacrifice, and their loved ones miss them terribly.

 

My week has been going great, and I am very pleased with my commitment to the WW program.  What seemed like a very busy social week turned out to be manageable.  I am also patting myself on the back for staying the course on Sunday after what is a typical busy Memorial Holiday weekend.  That was a huge turning point!

 

My Mom got this cute cupcake bouquet for Hailey's 21 birthday.

Food: I have been committed to tracking this week including my high point days to the best of my ability.  I was able to find low point foods to off set the high point days and some meal planning and preparation also helped keep me on track this week.

Activity: I returned to the gym with weight training three times this week.  I also hit the pavement with some walks as our weather has been beautiful.

Mindfulness: I found some really great looking mocktails and bought in the ingredients to test them out.  OMG they are great!  This really helped me with my goal to drink less alcohol this week.  I have a bachelorette party on Saturday and plan to make up pitcher size batches for mixers and a way to slow down the alcohol intake!  I modified the recipe and dropped the points. I’ve been drinking these all week.

 

I will check in with home scale on Tuesday and plan to complete my employee weigh-in the first week of June.

Weekly WI: Tackling The Vacation Gain

Good Morning.  Happy Saturday!

I checked in on the home scale Tuesday and was pleasantly surprised.  On the days leading up to Tuesday, I was feeling ready for a re-start.  I didn’t have high hopes for a loss since I didn’t get out of vacation mode.  It was nice to see some of my vacation weight gain dropped.

 

This week we celebrated Weight Watcher’s 62^nd Birthday.

 

A WW member asked for a consultation about our GLP-1 program, who took the quiz and qualified for the WW Clinic.  I completed the quiz on the Weight Watchers website to see which program was the right fit for me.

 

I matched with the points program and Workshops.  That is a good thing since I like workshops.  Can you imagine if I was a new member and could drop the weight in the amount of time the WW algorism thinks I can.  Wow!  That would be amazing to lose weight at a consistent rate.  I am happy to report I am back on track and working towards tackling more vacation weight.

Return From Vacation

Good Afternoon.  Happy Saturday!

Wishing all of you Mommas out there a very Happy Mother’s Day!  You ladies have a super tough job and a very important one too.  Put up your feet and relax.  You’ve earned it.

 

We are back from our cruise to the Bahamas, and it was amazing.  I really enjoyed my time away from work as it has been super stressful lately.  The water is gorgeous.  We had amazing weather.  I am looking forward to a repeat trip at some point in the future.  I’ll work on getting those recaps out soon.

 

My vacation gain when I checked in with the home scale was similar to our last two cruises…8 pounds.  

I would love to report that I got out vacation-mode ASAP and have been slaying goals this week.  Eh…not the case!  I have several social commitments on my calendar and have given myself an excuse for getting back on track.  Sadly, this is where temporary weight becomes permanent weight.   I will check in again on Tuesday for an “official” weigh-in.

 

Regardless of how the rest of the week shakes out, I am ready for a re-set.  I really loved the momentum I’d built pre-vacation, and I have two other out-of-town trips coming up in June. 

December 2024 Travel: Regal Princess

The main reason we traveled to Galveston, TX was for Dickens on the Strand.  But…being so close to a cruise port meant Wanda and I had to get on a ship.  We found the Regal Princess sailed from Galveston, TX the weekend we were in town.  Destination: Western Caribbean, which we have visited once before on our YouTube Vlogger Extravaganza Group Cruise.  We didn’t love these ports, and this cruise redeemed itself because we signed up for excursions vs. just walking around the port.

 

This was our first Princess cruise, and we were told several times the layout was almost identical to P&O Britannia.  It almost felt comfortable boarding this ship and I made instant friends with several staff members.  Time and time again, the BEST thing about cruising is the staff.  This cruise I handed out some glo bracelets during the 80s night and the staff loved it.  It made my day!

 

The food was good, and we enjoyed the main dining room restaurants.  The Princess Plus comes with the drink package, crew appreciation tips, specialty desserts, and a few casual dining, which is like the specialty dining on NCL.   While the extra dining venues were nice, the desserts were a lot of sugar and not necessary when you really gauge the extra cost.  So, we only partook in those a few times.

 

The entertainment was good and many times there was something happening in the atrium.  This is such a great venue space to hold parties, and I really like this concept.

 

We gambled…a lot…and earned free play for a future cruise. 

 

Overall, a very nice ship and a cruise line we would sail again in the future.