Taking Care of Myself – A 100-Day Challenge

So it has been quiet around here again for a while *sound of crickets* Well, I am back now. :)

I have just recently realized that what I have been struggling with for the past year and with increasing difficulty is in fact depression. I have been experiencing major struggles in life as of the last few years related to professional growth, family life, health conditions, and some other quite essential things. In many ways I feel trapped. Last weekend I had a very long Skype chat and phone call with my sister in Germany and I finally opened up about a lot of my struggles I had previously kept to myself. I am trying to learn to talk to people without telling myself I am a burden. I am still working on this while trying to figure stuff out before making any decisions on how to change my life for the better.

One thing that is known to help with depression is regular exercise. So, other than the physical health benefits and getting me closer to my goal of becoming fit and healthy before I turn 30 years old, it also helps me with my depression. I have felt this effect before several times. I am going to be honest. Since being at my all time highest weight (again) earlier this year, I have lost 16.4 pounds so far (12.3% of my total weight loss goal of 133 pounds). This did not happen fast, but slow and steady. I attribute 95% of this weight loss to my healthy eating habits and I give 5% credit to exercise, maybe even less. See, I love the feeling after working out. I even enjoy working out most of the time. Somehow I don't do it consistently. I usually have a phase of about one or two weeks where I work out every day or almost every day and then I just stop. Why? No clue. Well, hold on, I might actually have a clue. In recent years, I (almost) always put others first, mostly my children and my husband. The same goes for other people as well, just not to the same extent. I have realized that I am not taking the time to take care of myself. I have made everyone else a priority and told my own needs and wants to wait in line. Then I let others' need and wants skip the line, pushing taking care of myself toward the back again ...and again. Having realized this and the fact that, to be able to care of others long term, one has to take care of oneself first, I am determined to work on taking care of myself. This starts with regular exercise.

My friend Amanda created a 100-day challenge in which participants exercise at least 10 minutes each day. I was hesitant at first and that showed me just how much I need this challenge. So I am in. For me personally, I am expanding this challenge. Not only will I exercise at least 10 minutes each day, I will also do one thing strictly for myself every single day. This can be anything. Reading a book, working in the yard, doing something creative, treating myself to some gelato, cuddling with my cats, writing in a journal, meditating, planning a vacation, working on my Spanish skills, reviving my French, learning something completely new. Anything. As long as it is for me and brings me joy.

I hope that, by doing this challenge, I can create healthy habits which will become natural by the end of the challenge. I am starting the challenge this Saturday, August 23rd and will finish on Sunday, November 30th. I chose a Saturday to begin the challenge so that I can start it off with a long walk or hike in the park and so that both my start day and finish day are on a weekend.

I will update here on a weekly basis with a summary of my workouts and feel-good activities. I will try to snap a picture for each one and include them in my post.

Fußballfieber & Fourth of July

Fußballfieber – rauschhafte Begeisterung für den Fußballsport
[ecstatic enthusiam for the sport of soccer]

I am so excited about this year's soccer world cup! Admittedly, I always get excited about the soccer world cup. This time has been especially exciting though, because Germany and the USA were both in the same group (Group G), which was considered the "Group of Death" during this year's tournament. Of course, I am rooting for Germany, but I have long been a supporter of the US team as well. They have been the underdog for quite a while and it seems they improve a bit with every world cup. I love seeing an underdog team becoming more and more successful and getting more attention.

Now, that the US are my home, I root for them even more. I was thrilled that they made it into the Round of 16 alongside Germany, even though we beat them in the group game. ;-)

For the longest, soccer has not received much attention here in the US, aside from being a popular team sport for school age kids (mostly girls). Funny, because in Germany soccer is considered quite a manly sport, if not the sport of men. Anyway, the US men's national team and the soccer world cup as a whole seem to have received more attention than usual. I like that. I like soccer.

I love the world cup and how it brings all kinds of people from all kinds of countries and all walks of life together.

I also like basketball and have become a San Antonio Spurs fan. How do you not love this team? They really play as a team and I love that they are such a great mix of players from all over the world. This year they finally won their fifth NBA championship. The Spurs have a pretty solid fan base here in San Antonio and  this city went crazy during the finals. So much fun!

I might enjoy baseball and even American football one day, provided someone explains these sports to me (I am clueless).

Back to the soccer world cup. Unfortunately, I was only able to watch one game live so far (Germany vs. Ghana), because all the other games were usually played while I was at work. I had a live feed on my computer though and my coworker Rob and I got a little crazy during the US vs. Germany game. I was working on a report, not paying attention to the live feed when Germany made their 1-0 goal. I heard Rob in his office next to me exclaiming, "Nooooooooooooooooo..." when I realized what happened. So I walked to his office, saying, "Yeeeeeeeeeeeeesssssssss!" to "rub it in" and tease him a little but also to let him know that Portugal was not making enough goals to beat the US in terms of goal difference meaning the US would advance alongside Germany. So the Teuton (me) and the Texan (Rob) were both happy.

Too bad that the US lost against Belgium yesterday. They should have put Julian Green on the field sooner; I think he could have made more goals had he been given more time to play. Tim Howard did an outstanding job of course. I believe the US national team will continue to improve and hope they will advance at least one more level in the 2018 world cup!

I am really happy that the quarter finals game Germany vs. France is on July 4th and the semi finals and final match are on weekends, so I can actually watch them. If  When they win, it will be a double celebration that day. We plan to go downtown to watch fireworks at an event called Stars and Stripes Over San Antonio. Due to the drought here in South Texas, we are not allowed to pop our own firecrackers so this is as good as it gets. We will probably ride the bus to get there, since I anticipate parking will be packed and expensive ($8.00 or more). The bus might take a little longer, but it is cheaper than parking alone (not even factoring in gas prices) and I will get there and back home relaxed.

What are your plans for July 4th? Will you watch the quarter finals? My American friends, will you celebrate Independence Day at home or will you go somewhere?

A Dozen Moves

I just realized that I have moved a dozen times in my life already and I am only in my 20s!

1986/1987 - Move Number One
Oppenheim. A bigger apartment for my Mama, my sister, and me. I was still in diapers and have to ask my Mama to verify the year. Not that I could remember...

1999 - Move Number Two
Oppenheim. From the apartment to my Mama's own house. I was 13 and learned how to lay down laminate flooring, PVC flooring, strip old wallpaper off walls, prime walls for new wallpaper, apply wallpaper, paint walls, and so much more. This was actually a lot of fun. Can you believe I laid down PVC flooring in my bedroom with a black and white cow pattern? Being 13 years old might explain that. I have to give my Mama credit for allowing such a thing. After all, we left the original hardwood floors underneath.

2005 - Move Number Three
Mainz-Marienborn. Out of the nest into a shared "apartment" (basement) with my friend Steffi. We were both 19 and pretty naive. This was a horrible learning experience, thanks to our wicked landlady. More on that later.

2005 - Move Number Four
Bodenheim. My own place. A small subterranean studio in the home of a really nice family.

2006 - Move Number Five
Nackenheim. A rental home with N whom I was dating at the time. This was a gradual move-in. He rented the home through the Army housing office and I stayed there with him. I still had my little studio but was never there.

2008 - Move Number Six
Wiesbaden. N had to go back to the US on military orders. The boys had to go, too, and stayed with their Grandma while N was deployed in Afghanistan. This was the hardest time in our family history. The deployment was hard enough, but not having the boys with me was the worst. Unfortunately there was no way for them to stay in Germany since I am not their biological Mom and there was not enough time for me to legally adopt them. The military orders came (almost) out of nowhere and were very short notice, because the post where N was stationed in Germany was being shut down. There had been rumors about the post being closed for a number of years, but it never happened. Well, it eventually did happen and N was one of the last soldiers at that post. I was staying in Germany for two reasons, one being that I was still in the process of getting my visa, two being that I was almost done with my professional training (I had less than a year left). I figured I should finish what I started and also gain some actual work experience before moving to the US. I moved into a two-bedroom apartment with a roommate to be closer to my workplace.

2009 - Move Number Seven
Frankfurt. After I finished my training and having commuted to Frankfurt (new job location within the same company) for almost half a year, I decided to move there. This was my own apartment in a high rise and actually pretty neat.

2010 - Move Number Eight
Fort Campbell. This was the big one. Leaving Germany and moving "across the big pond" to the United States. This move is what motivated me to start this blog.

2011 - Move Number Nine
San Antonio. After N got out of the Army, we moved in with his Mom until we would find work.

2012 - Move Number Ten
Live Oak. Our first rental (duplex) once we both had found jobs and sufficient income.

2013 - Move Number Eleven
Live Oak. A similar rental which was slightly better and slightly less expensive, yet still a duplex, just up the street from the previous one.

2014 - Move Number Twelve
San Antonio. Our current move to an actual single family house which is a lot nicer and slightly more expensive. This home is also literally across town. We are moving from the far northeast area of town to the far northwest area and back into the actual City of San Antonio.

Looking back, I realize that I have moved every single year since 2008. I guess I can say that I am a pro by now. I definitely learned how to prepare, pack, disassemble, load, unload, unpack, and deep clean a home. Am I tired of moving? I would say so, but the last place has become unbearable thanks to an extremely unprofessional, rude, and incompetent property manager. I am glad when we are gone and this ordeal is over with. I hope we will not have to take legal action because of some unresolved issues. Maybe she will come to her senses in time. I sure hope so.

The new place is very promising and I will post more details about it soon. We have already cleaned the new home, moved a bunch of boxes, and will move all the big stuff on Saturday with a rental truck. I cannot wait to be done. We are trying to finish it all up this weekend.

Here is to a New Year

So we had a pretty awesome start into the year. Riding roller coasters and watching fireworks while riding a ferris wheel. We actually went to Six Flags Fiesta Texas for New Year's Eve this time and we had a blast!

Here they are, my obligatory new year's resolutions:

1. Further my education. I would like to enroll in college and study Business Administration (AA), followed by Real Estate Finance and Development (BA) in order to advance with my career and eventually become a commercial real estate appraiser.

2. Get healthy. Eat better and exercise more to essentially lose weight and improve my overall health and fitness.

3. Make financially smart decisions. I would like save more for retirement. There is no such thing as starting too early. I have already been saving a bit every month, but I would like to increase the amount that I am saving.


I hope you had a great start into a happy, healthy new year as well. Do you have any new year's resolutions? If you do, what are they?

♥ ♥ ♥

Why three hearts? Today is our 3rd Anniversary and actually the first one we got to spend together. Today is also Mother's Day which reminds me how lucky I am to have my three guys.
The boys surprised me this morning with "Best Mom in the World" certificates which they had made for me. Melts my heart. For the most part, we just stayed at home today spent some quality time.
Later on, my dear husband and I went out for dinner. He let me pick, and I chose Joe's Crab Shack. I always wanted to go there, but we have never made it, until tonight. We picked a table outside on the porch and had a wonderful evening. I love seafood, but I have never tried crab before, so I learned how to crack some crab today. It was delicious. I had a "steam pot" with snow crab and king crab, with an awesome cocktail on the side. Hubby had, well, steak. It was really good though. He was hesitant to try seafood that was not fried, but then he loved my crab, so we ended up trading a little. For dessert, we went to a small ice cream place where I got the best dairy-free pineapple ice cream ever.
After all, it just felt really good to spend our anniversary together for a change. I do not need any big gifts, I already have the biggest gift I could want and that is being with my husband and children, the loves of my life. What more could I ask for?

New Chapter Ahead

Time to "let the cat out of the bag": We will be moving to San Antonio, TX by the end of April.
Hubby is getting out of the Army in the end of May and will be on terminal leave starting early April. He actually wanted to reenlist and stay active duty, but that was not possible. Right now it looks like he will be in the reserves and get a civilian job. We are looking for jobs in the San Antonio and Dallas areas. I would prefer Dallas, as it is a lot bigger and has many more opportunities, but if we both find great job in San Antonio, we just stay there.
Earlier this week I turned in my notice at my current job. I hated to do that, I have barely worked there for half a year now and I am already leaving. But we do not have an option. There is no point for us to stay here once hubby is out of the Army and my job has neither regular/guaranteed hours nor benefits. So we will stay with my in-laws in San Antonio until we get some decent job offers.
I am still working on my resume and finally received some great help here at the ACS (Army Community Service) from a really nice lady called Kristen. I truly appreciate her advice and help, as I was having trouble with wording some of my German education and professional experience.
So this past week, we have been sorting our belongings and started packing again. We will hold at least two yard sales before we leave as we have many things that we do not want to take with us. I will also post several items on Campbell Yard Sales. Today we looked at moving trucks at U-Haul because we were not sure if we should rent a 17-foot truck or a 20-foot truck. After looking at a 17-foot one, we decided to rent a 20-foot truck, as we do not want to be standing in our drive way unable to fit everything in the truck. We have been comparing prices online already, but the guy at the U-Haul place gave us an awesome deal on a 20-foot truck, so we grabbed it! We also looked at moving equipment at The Home Depot yesterday and found the dollies we need. We are still comparing prices on boxes and packing materials. As you would assume by now, we are moving on our own. The Army calls it a DITY move and we will get reimbursed for the moving expenses. They would also pay for a full-service move, but we rather do it on our own as our last full-service move was a horrible experience (water damage of several boxes and a whole crate of our belongings missing).
So we are busy bees again, zooming around the house and garage, sorting and packing.

Shedding Pounds

Have you seen my weight loss tracker?
Since the beginning of this month I am on a weight loss journey. I started with changing my diet and adding exercise.
Four years ago I lost quite some weight by following the New York Body Plan by David Kirsch and I decided to to this same plan again. So I decided to start it again this year. Well the dieting was no problem for me, but the exercising was a disaster. I am out of shape so badly that I could not even finish the work out session. This was a serious wake-up call for me! I could not believe that I allowed myself to get in such a bad shape that I could not even do the same exercises that I did only four years ago. So right now, my work outs are rather moderate, consisting of power walking and light weight training. By mid-month I found this great group on meetup.com: Fort Campbell's "Operation Slim Down" Army Wives Club. This is a group of overweight or obese army wives at Fort Campbell who meet twice a week to exercise together and share weight gain and weight loss experiences along with tips on healthy eating habits and so much more. I joined the group and absolutely love it! Thanks ladies, you are awesome!
Another thing I do is going to a ZUMBA class twice a week after work. I have to say that I am far behind with the moves and need to go many more times before I can really catch on, but I am having so much fun when doing it and I am already "addicted". It is great! I heard about for a while and was reluctant to go for the longest, but as I found out that some of my fellow obese army wives go to ZUMBA too, I decided to give it a try. Now I am hooked!