Product Review: Green Mountain Coffee Wellness Collection K-Cups

I received a couple of sample packs of Green Mountain Coffee Wellness Collection K-Cups from a BzzAgent campaign I'm involved in. I'm a coffee addict, so I was pretty excited about this one, and it definitely didn't disappoint! I work the opening shift at work, so sometimes I'm not at my best in the mornings. Coffee helps me face the world and be semi-human, but I noticed that when I drank the focus blend, I had an extra edge. I was able to concentrate a little more, speak a little more clearly, and just feel more awake overall. Plus, it had a good, smooth taste, so I didn't feel like I was drinking some kind of weird herbal coffee! I've only tried one antioxidant blend K-Cup so far, but it had a similarly smooth taste, and I can see it being very beneficial as winter (AKA flu season) sets in.

I give this product 5 out of 5 stars!

Note: I received this product free of charge as a BzzAgent, but the opinions are completely my own!

On Fear and Failure

I am afraid of failing.

I guess that's not exactly earth-shattering news to anyone. Or maybe it's not even news. It's a pretty common fear, so I'm far from alone there.

But, I feel like I take my fear a step further than many people do. For example, last Saturday, I had the chance to go horseback riding for the first time ever. I was on an older horse who used to be used as a therapy horse for children with special needs. I had three experienced riders near me who could help guide me and make sure everything was okay. It was probably the best case first time riding scenario than anyone could have.

I went around the indoor arena three times. While someone else held the reins.

Now, the woman who held the reins (my future aunt-in-law...ha ha) assured me that I was being brave by even getting on the horse. I didn't realize what huge animals they are, so I was intimidated even before I saddled up. However, now I regret not trying more. I was scared. Scared of falling. Scared of looking foolish. Even scared of falling and hitting at just the right angle to break my neck, become paralyzed, etc. (see, a step further than most people, right?).

I realize something important now though. I can't let fear control me anymore. Yes, I might fail/fall. Yes, I might look stupid. And yes, I might even hurt myself. But all of that is okay. Babies have to fall down before they learn to walk. I have to fail before I can succeed. I have to quit being afraid of "what might happen" and start just living. I have to start living for myself too, not in a selfish way, but in a way that allows me to make my own decisions and experience my own consequences. Life is messy, and there will be failures, but if I can conquer failure, I can conquer anything.

Wednesday Weigh In: Week 12

I've fallen straight off the wagon and into a vat of sugar, salt, carbs, and laziness (as evidenced by me posting this late for the second week in a row). I'm hitting the reset button on myself and getting back on track in the morning.

If anyone is on myfitnesspal, find me and befriend me! My name is amberiam on there, and I could use all of the help I can get!

The great closet experiment: A wrap-up

My two month experiment in not shopping, getting rid of clothes, etc. has been over for almost 2 weeks now, but I'm just now getting around to recapping it. So, how did I do? Well, these were my original parameters:

1. Wear every piece of clothing I own at least once- including workout clothes, undergarments, pajamas, etc.- I failed at this one. I branched out some, but I still had a tendency to wear the same things over and over again, especially workout clothes, undergarments, pajamas, etc. This parameter made me think that maybe this should be a longer experiment- 6 months?

2. Get rid of things that don't look great on me or just feel "eh"- I did better at this one. Since I'm getting married in March and moving into a new house, I'm trying to be more ruthless about what's going to come into my married life. I think that and this experiment helped me be much more inclined to toss things that I didn't like into the Goodwill bag instead of holding onto them.

3. Immediately get rid of anything that's stained, torn, has holes in it, etc.- I only came across a couple of things with loose hems (an easy fix for some but not for me!), so those got thrown into the Goodwill bag. This one is a good rule to follow.

4. Be creative- I did okay with this one. I tried to put together pieces that I normally wouldn't have thought of together (check out my fashion blog to see some of these examples). I'm working on getting better with this one, especially since I've been getting a style magazine in the mail unexpectedly. I guess the universe knows that I'm interested in fashion and style and gave me a gift subscription...

5. No purchasing new (or new to me) clothes for at least two months- Failed miserably on this one. Part of it was having to get new to me pants since my work pants from last year were too big. Part of it was just blowing money. Argh. This one definitely needs to be given another shot...

Overall I did okay on this, but I think I can do better. I may revisit this after the wedding and turn it into a longer experiment- perhaps June through December 2013, that way I could encompass a few different seasons. I'll keep working on steps 1-4 though!

Wednesday Weigh In: Week 11

This is a very belated post to say that I gained a lot of weight last week. Sad face.

Wednesday Weigh In: Week 10

This week I'm down...

1.6 pounds!

Woo hoo!!

That's all I've got for today. =)

Starting weight: 167 pounds
Current weight: 155.4 pounds
Goal weight: 125 pounds

Wednesday Weigh In: Week 9

This week I'm down...

1 pound!

Not quite as big a loss as last week, but I'll take it!

That officially brings me to 10 pounds since I started this little weight loss experiment. I'm behind on my original timetable, so I'm going to tweak it, as listed below.

My revised goals/timetable:

• 5 pounds lost by 08/29/12. Reward: new nail polish (1-2 bottles) (Accomplished on 08/29!)
• 10 pounds lost by 10/10/12. Reward: new earrings (Accomplished on 10/10!)--Time to go shopping! ;)
• 15 pounds lost by 10/31/12. Reward: new workout socks
• 20 pounds lost by 11/21/12. Reward: new Threadless t-shirt (have some designs in mind...just depends on what's available at the time)
• 25 pounds lost by 12/05/12. Reward: another new Threadless t-shirt because there are several I like! =)
• 30 pounds lost by 12/19/12. Reward: new Pandora charm
• 35 pounds lost by 01/16/13. Reward: new expensive-ish sports bra (I know, between this and the socks, I'm super exciting, right?)
• 42 pounds lost by 02/14/13. Reward: new Toms shoes!

Starting weight: 167 pounds
Current weight: 157 pounds
Goal weight: 125 pounds

Slowly but surely I'm getting there! Also, according to the stats myfitnesspal.com is keeping, I've lost 18 pounds overall since March. I'll let you do the math on how big that made me when I was at my highest weight ever. :-/