haven in the long cold winter and dental sedation -- of course...

We have a lot of bunnies running around our neighbourhood -- even in the winter.

It's not easy out there in the cold, and lately the wind just picks up without warning.
So, during one of their Saturdays out shoveling, Roomie and Mini decided to make a small quinzhee in our yard for them to take shelter. With a few carrots inside. It's facing toward the house so it's protected from the wind, and so we can see it from our big picture window.

As you can see, right behind it close to the sidewalk is an inukshuk made of snow blocks.

Father and daughter wanted the bunny to be sure he/she would know where to go for a nice carrot snack and a place to hangout.

Because, remember, bunnies are clever.

Frankly, I think Mini had other plans.

In other news...

The kids had dental appointments yesterday. They don't mind going to see their dentist. Seriously! It's not just me trying to tell you my kids are angels -- even though they TOTALLY are.

No, their dentist lures them with various non-sugar treats:
(1) a toy train that drives around the office and examination rooms,
(2) Disney movies to watch while they wait,
(3) new toothbrushes, stickers, and a trinket they get to pick themselves.

And a new addition: a Playstation in the the waiting room. Wah-hoo!!!

I KNOW!!! All I got in my dentist's waiting room when I was a kid were a bunch of old Reader's Digests!

Anyway, no problems, no cavities for either of them, but Lam is getting quite impatient. He's still waiting for his 4 top front teeth! His dentist said they should show up very soon -- within the next 6 months by the looks of the tooth buds in his gums.

How'd he get this way?

Four years ago, he had to have the baby teeth surgically removed -- they'd come in early, were weak, and eroded down to near the gum line.
To avoid any abscess and damage to his permanent teeth, the damaged teeth were removed. Because he was 2, we opted for the general anesthetic rather than the other option, which was -- get this -- sedating and strapping to a board!

If it happened now? Well, the sedating (and NOT strapping onto a board) would be a viable option, because he's older and would understand what was going on.
And afterward, he'd be all funny like this...

stuff I thought you knew about me but actually didn't

Okay, so after being tagged a bajillion times (okay, it was only 3, but I like saying bajillion -- makes me feel famous -- like Madonna) with the 25 things meme that's sweeping the nation (aka Facebook), I decided "Alright, already!" and did mine.

I really didn't think I had any new info to share, since I have this blog, and, you know, I don't know how to hold back. (Because I apparently don't consider talking about my "womanly cycles" TMI.)

So, I couldn't help but go "hm" when some of my blog-reading FB friends said, "Hey, I didn't know that about you!"

Now, who am I to turn down a free post situation?! I'm reposting my 25 Things here on my blog for my readers who haven't friended me on Facebook.

Check it out...

1. I hate talking on the phone. If you call me, you will be speaking to my machine. I will then call you back and talk to *your* machine. On second thought, just email me.

2. I would prefer NOT to be called "Candy" anymore. I have decided that it will be my stripper name -- you know, just like Clark Kent's stripper name is Superman... oh no, wait...

3. As a child, I was busy almost every night with some lesson or other: swimming, hula dance, ice-skating, organ, piano, tae kwon do. All work and no play makes Nen a highly-skilled, exhausted, young girl.

4. I know all the words to the Spiderman Theme from the 60s, and I sing it to my kids upon request, much to the amusement of the people at Canadian Tire last March.

5. I don't drink alcohol anymore, with the exception of a glass of egg nog at the Harmzie Christmas party each year. That stuff is evil good. I just have to stand beside the bowl and get drunk on the fumes.

6. I used to play bass guitar in a new wave rock group called The Contrast. We were also considering calling the band Tragic Element, Mots Nouveau, and The Algonquins. We weren't really serious about the last one. Or were we?

7. I've had 3 boyfriends. Ever. In this lifetime. No, not at the same time. I married the last one.

8. In university, a classmate stood on his chair, and, in front of the lecture hall full of students, declared me the most beautiful woman in the world he'd ever seen. No, that isn't the reason why I married him. I also don't remember this happening.

9. Despite -- or maybe, because of -- having religiously devout parents, playing organ at church (under duress I might add), and attending Catholic elementary school (St. Edward's School) and high school (St. Mary's Academy), I don't go to church or follow any organized religion any longer.

10. I am the only filipino I know who doesn't LOVE Karaoke. There. I said it.

11. I wish I hadn't gone back to Engineering after 1st year.

12. I wish I'd moved out of my parents' house WAY before the age of 23. I tried when I was 21, but they wouldn't let me.

13. In the Philippines, I had a pet chicken named Manok that my grandmother gave me. It died when I gave it a bath and left it out in the hot sun to dry. I was 2yo.

14. I will live in an eco-home that we build ourselves, be it slowly reno by reno or by complete tear-down and re-build.

15. I went on 2 honeymoons: (1) the typical tropical honeymoon in Cancun, and (2) the "geek" honeymoon at the dinosaur museum in Drumheller. (2) was my favourite.

16. I love hanging out at coffee shops with my kids and just chatting. They are crazy fun and have some great ideas.

17. Some people think my first celebrity crush was Scott Baio. Ha! Wrong! It was Donny Osmond. Because, you know, he was a little bit rock 'n' roll.

18. I would eat sashimi and pavlova everyday, if possible.

19. The words guaranteed to make me cry: "I love you, Mama." Seriously. Total blubbering idiot.

20. When I lived in Hawai'i, my apartment faced a lagoon, which we had to stroll through to get to the grocery store and mall. Of course the lagoon was filled with crazy tropical ducks. Man, they were nuts.

21. My thumbs are different from each other. One is just slightly longer than the other. Ask me to show you next time you see me. It means I'm clever, hot, and can make a mean banana muffin. It's true, you know.

22. I can't drink regular milk anymore because, after drinking soymilk all this time, cow milk tastes too much like "cow".

23. As corny as it sounds, my husband really is my best friend.

24. My favourite day is spent here at home -- hubby, kids and me in our pajamas -- relaxing.

25. I'm a pescatarian. That means "vegetarian who eats fish"... oh, wait, no, it means "SEXY vegetarian who eats fish". There, that's better.

week 4: another one bites the dust

That's the song that really got me into Queen. It's that bass. Gets me every time.

Whoa, hold on a minute. My son just said fushizzle. Fushizzle?! Are you freakin' kidding me?! He's 6, for pete's sake. Fushizzle?
He's on the family room computer playing Cardjitsu on Club Penguin against his sister, who's on the dining room computer. (And I'm typing this on my laptop in the livingroom -- Yeah, this place is geek heaven.)
Anyway, fushizzle.

Damn. I have to go and make sure he doesn't shizzle his dizzle. OMGWTFBBQ! Hang on.

Okay, I'm back. Where was I?

Oh yeah, another one bites the dust. Or should I say... another pound bites the dust.

I was back on track again last week. The water retention, cravings, and lethargy -- a distant memory. And I was ready to start experimenting again!

As many of you know, I do a ridiculous amount of research on health and fitness, so much that I tend to get stuck at the "research and planning" stage and never advance to the actual "implementing" stage. A remnant of my software design engineering days? Perhaps.
(And because of this, my husband often dismisses any kind of fitness advice I give him, citing my lack of firsthand results as reason to believe I'm a raving lunatic never to be believed. Damn his logic.)

Anyway, needless to say, during the downtime/maintenance/stare-at-my-pretend-boyfriend period of week 3, I did even MORE research, which meant week 4 was my week to implement my findings...

What I did:
1: Continued my alternating tabata/resistance training and interval training workouts -- except I did them in the morning before breakfast but after a glass of water.
2: Ate high protein breakfasts of an egg white omelette and a protein shake.
3: Stuck to 3 meals/day instead of the "recommended" 5-6. (I really started gaining weight when I started doing the frequent meals thing.)
4: Did a once-a-week mini-fast on Wednesday - A mini-fast (a fast which last less than 24 hours no more than twice a week) increases GH serum, regulates the release of fat stores, and will NOT slow metabolism.
5: Continued to avoid sugar... no Treat Day for me!

What happened:
1: Loss of one pound - which I'm thinking is just fat; no loss of muscle.
2: A noticeable loosening of my jeans - and these are my fat winter jeans that were tight at New Year's.
3: The softening of the fat on my face and midsection - they've lost that dense feeling; more mushy now.
4: No sore muscles - time to step up the intensity of my resistance training.

I still haven't purchased calipers to measure my bodyfat accurately, and I'm still terrified to pull out the measuring tape. Soon. I'll be brave eventually.

Total Pounds Lost: 4 (16-ish more to go!)

Now, one of my goals is to wear a bikini by July, so, with that goal looking more and more attainable, I decided to start looking at bikinis online. These are from Nordstrom.com. The burgundy's my favourite! Inspiring, non?! :)