Sunday Drive to Wilderness Lake Preserve

Well, we took a Sunday drive to check out all the new neighborhoods up North in Pasco County. We went on a wild goose chase trying to find Connerton and finally found it just 10 minutes away from home ! While we were looking we found WLP which we always wanted to check out. Here are some pics from the neat Lodge and Lake. The kids LOVED the neat tree-fort playground and the fish that they got to feed. Overall, we thought the lodge was amazing. They had a spa, a nature learning center, boats you could check out, a swimming deck, a great pool, etc. But, the homes were just OK. Nothing really made us feel that the homesites were any different than anywhere else. I wish they had forced the builders to all build in the NorthWest lodge or cottage style of home. There is nothing stranger than seeing a great lodge and then a Florida style stucco house with palm trees - UGGH.

Here are some more pics

Our Anniversary

8 years ! Can you believe it? Well, Jen surprised me this time and made reservations at Armani's, the same place that I proposed to her. In fact, this picture is taken at the very table I said those words. Well, 8 years later and our lives have changed quite a bit, but we still are in love just like the day we met. I love you Jennifer !

A Day at MOSI

We decided to check out the new Children's Museum at MOSI in Tampa and it was great. The girls loved it. We even saw an IMAX movie all about those guys from the Broadway group STOMP. There was lots to do for the kids. The new Kids in Charge section was really neat. They have some more work to do on it before it is 100% complete, but the girls loved it anyway. They would have stayed in the Publix grocery store section for hours if we had let them.

Check out the pics here...

Washington DC

I worked in DC for a few weeks and was able to take a look around. My office was right across the street from the capital building. The US Capital is a gorgeous piece of architecture; one that makes you proud to be an American. Too bad I was sick for about the whole 2 weeks I was there or I would have been able to take in alot more of the historic town.

Baby Nate's 1st Birthday Celebration

We were invited to a small family gathering to celebrate baby Nate's 1st Birthday. What a cutie. The girls had a great time playing with Nick and Nate. Pizza and cake - how could you beat that???

Here are some great pics of the occassion.

http://share.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=EeAN2jFm0aNGbYUg

My Week Off With the Family

Wow...what a wonderful week off. I took 1 week to spend at home with absolutely NOTHING on the agenda, but to do stuff with the girls. It was heavenly. MerMer was in town for the week as well and we did all kinds of fun things.

It was really weird to have a whole week at home to do things as they rolled our way. We would get up in the morning and say "what do you want to do today girls?" And, of course they had all kinds of great ideas.

I will be posting some pics of our various adventures so what here for more...

GUTS !!!

I said to my team...you got Guts??? We are going Live in just days, people are stressed out, tensions are high, etc. So, it was time for a little extra motivation. How? A shaved head and Go Live Goatee !

A check in....

Man - this project is really taking its toll on me. I haven't been able to post a blog in several weeks as things have been so damn busy. I have NOT exercised in weeks, not for a LONG while.

I am tired, I am beat, I am ready to take a breather and get my health/weight under control.

Sunday (or Monday) weigh in...

165 lbs at 9:30 PM. Not bad for memorial day bbqs. I have been eating better, but still need to kick up the exercise. Sitting in front of the new iMac this weekend wasn't a positive influence.

The iMac Revealed!

My new iMac
Originally uploaded by jwarnke.

Here she is...bright, shining, and new. Come on board...she's expecting you....oops, sorry, I'm still in the cruising mood.

Here is my new iMac. This thing is so darn cool. I can't even begin to tell you all the ways I love it. Everything just works, the first time. No driver installs, searching for new software, etc. This is computing the way it was supposed to be. More to come....In the meantime, enjoy some pics.

New Apple iMac G5

WOW. More details to come tomorrow. I am having too much fun on this thing to even stop for a second....

Starting to get sick...

My travel day started with me feeling a little groggy and then by the time I got off the airplane I felt like I could be getting a cold. I swear there is something about being on airplanes that gets me sick all the time. Hmm, I wonder what it could be....maybe all the sick people that decide to fly every week ?!?!?

Anyways, I felt crappy all day; really worn down, antsy, etc. Nothing I ate seemed to fill me up. That doesn't mean that I overdid it, just that I was generally feeling like poo.

I had a salmon salad for lunch, and a chicken platter with 2 sides from Chicken Out. I was too tired to work out, so I did some work, watched a little TV and then crashed at 10:30 waking up this morning with a horrible sore throat. Not sure if this will turn into something worse, but to be cautious I am loading up on vitamin C and those awesome Airborne tablets.

Let's see if I can beat this thing.

Until later.......

Disney World Food, Oh My!

I also had a bad weekend - the weekend started off fine I was down near the 163-5 mark, but......then we headed to DisneyWorld for a weekend. Ah, let's just say that I didn't stay away from Mickey's treats.

Large breakfasts, big lunches and even bigger dinner buffets with desserts! I did; however, find one of my top eateries on the planet. The buffet at Animal Kingdom Lodge is unbelievable. It was voted one of the top restaurants in the US last year and I can see why. You HAVE to try this place, but please don't eat for a week before you go.

Now, after all that, I ended the week only down 1 stinkin' lb. [169]

Ok, determination and the avoidance of all things sugar, is what will get me through this week. I shall stop at the health food market and stock up for a few weeks. Cardboard and veggies will be my saviors.

Come on Joe, let's kick this into high gear.

EXERCISE will be the only thing that gets these numbers movin'

A much better day today

I ate very sensibly today. A light turkey sandwich for lunch. A chicken ceasar salad for dinner.

I worked out for about 40 minutes (cardio and weights) and it felt wonderful.

I need to keep this up....

My progress (or lack there of)

Sensible breakfast and lunch....and then for dinner I fell apart. All the people on the project wanted stuff from TGI Fridays and my team just ordered something simple for me while I was at another meeting.

Long story short...I had chicken fingers with honey mustard dip and fries. Not horrible, but not healthy by any stretch of the imagination.

I again got no exercise today because I got to the office early and left late. I really need to get up at 5 AM and hit the gym for at least 30-45 minutes. I am not great at wanting to work out at night as I get all amped and can't get to sleep.

Ok - on to a better day today...will update you later.

Weight Loss Challenge

Today Joe Fisher and I started a weight loss challenge...which is really nothing more than keeping each other held accountable to a shared vision of losing weight.

I am the heaviest and unhealthiest I have ever been. We won't talk about the whys as they don't really matter, nor are they good reasons. The important part is that I recognize this and I need to do something about it.

As of today I weigh in at ~170 lbs. I need to get down to the 155-158 range and back into a 32" waist.

Today, to work towards this goal, I took the following actions:
- Ate a breakfast bar, and bottled water for breakfast
- Ate a 1/2 chicken wrap and side salad with water for lunch
- Had a tiny bag of sourdough pretzels for a mid day snack
- Ate a Chik Fil a chicken wrap, fruit bowl and water
- Had a light beer (needed to unwind from stressful workday)

So, this is the first day towards the end goal. One small step for me today, one large step for my future health and well being.

Watch my friend Joe Fisher's journey towards a similar goal at http://joefisher.blogspot.com

Neighborhood Crawfish Fest

Neighborhood Crawfish Boil 


We had a great Crawfish Boil in the hood yesterday. Todd and Jennifer put on their first one ever and boy did they ever do a great job! Yum, they were sure spicy.

Check out the shots here:

"Hey now ! That's not nice, cute, but not nice..." 

"Leesie !" 

Small Town Florida

Dade City Cruise-In 

We took a little one-tank trip up to Dade City, a quaint little town in the hilly NW corner of Pasco County, Florida. During the 1st Saturday of every month they have a great classic car cruise-in. We strolled through the old streets that were closed off for the show and then settled into a nice little family-style restaurant for some warm chow. The weather was kinda chilly, enough for light jackets and sweaters, but the sky was clear and blue. Dade City is definitely a must see - just take the Suncoast Parkway North until you get to SR-52 and head east until you see the signs for Dade City, you can't miss it.

See pics here