Back to Work!

Tom & Katie enjoying the view of the ocean, FI, NY July 2009

So, tomorrow is my first "official" day back to school. Of course, I have been there for at least a few hours for the last few days. I couldn't dream of getting everything accomplished that I need with only 2.5 days of planning. Well...that is the life of a teacher, though. But in preparation for the new school year, I am putting up a few of my favorite pictures from summer.

Summer was wonderful. It was relaxing. It was rejuvenating. It was full of lots of laughs, memories and exercise.
Exercise, you ask? Well, back in January I decided to lose weight. I didn't like how I looked, and I CERTAINLY didn't like what I saw when I stepped onto the scale. So I did something about it. I changed my diet and I started to be more mindful of how I ate, when I ate and what I ate. I also started to exercise more frequently. By May I had achieved my goal weight. About that time one of Allison's classmate's Mom told me about an Abs/Core class held at the Y. I decided to give it a try. The instructor, Lisa, is fantastic. Over the course of May and June, I attended the class every Monday and Wednesday. By the time July rolled around (and Fire Island vacation) I was in the gym working out twice a week and walking anywhere from 4 - 6 miles on the weekend. Lisa set me up with a great regimen to maintain over the vacation, and now I am hooked. I am trying to accomplish strength training 2 times a week, and cardio 2 times a week as well. My cardio is usually running, and I am now up to 4.5 miles. I am addicted. For the first time that I can recall, I like how I look. I look in the mirror and I am comfortable with what I see. I am less stressed, and I find myself looking forward to working out, instead of dreading it.
Okay...enough rambling...here are my favorite pictures from the summer. Starting with the most recent:

The whole gang at Maguire's, Fire Island, NY

Me meeting Mike & Allison at the Ferry dock after being apart for 2.5 weeks. That was TOO LONG!

Me & Tom dancing on the boat dock. This was our last night on Fire Island and you can hear the band playing in the background. It was such fun!

Picture of the family at the nightly ritual of getting ice cream after dinner.

Our blond bombshell:

My annual girl's weekend with Nathifa. This year we went to Nashville, TN. The first pic is at Layla' Bluegrass Bar. AWESOME place. We danced the night away. Literally.

Fido's, a great little breakfast place on 21st St in Nashville. So yummy!!