We're Having a Baby!!!

That's right! Baby Wooley is on his or her way!

Matt and I are so excited to announce that we are expecting our first baby this coming June.

This is one of the first ultrasound pictures we got of Baby Wooley. I am SOOO excited!

I got this adorable ornament to give to Matt when I told him. Unfortunately I was WAY too excited and spilled the beans on the phone instead.

But yep, we are definitely starting the baby off right...UGA and NY Mets fan from birth.

I have to say I'm a little overwhelmed by everything that is out there for babies...which stroller, car seat, bottles, diapers, etc. But we still have some time to figure all of that out. I have decided that the baby is going to be incredibly spoiled (not necessarily by grandparents), but most definitely by me. I'm not sure I can pass up on all these cute toys and clothes!!!!!

In other news...IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME!!!

It's our first Christmas in our house.

Loving the lights so far! Can't wait to add to them next year.

We are wishing each and every one of you a Merry Christmas!!!

Until next time...

My New Car! (and Cobb)

So as promised, here are some pictures of the new car.

I love the car. It smells new. It drives well. And I am getting awesome gas mileage -- filling up every 2 weeks! And I drive 40 miles a day!!!

 Check out the fog lights

The Altima has a rearview camera

This might be my favorite feature. I rarely ever look at where the radio is anymore!

Matt and I are still working to get the house to where we want it. We've found the sofa we want for the family room, but I'm still conflicted on which chairs I want to get.

While we are still getting settled, you can tell Cobb has pretty much made himself at home. I promised him I wouldn't make him move again. We counted and my poor cat has made 11 moves in his lifetime. Poor thing. No wonder he is tired!

This is pretty much what he does all day long

And this picture is just too cute to share...

Cobb and Matt hanging reading the internet

For the guy who doesn't like animals, Matt is pretty friendly with Cobb. :-)

That's about it for now. Our fall is filling up quickly. A trip to Columbia next month for the South Carolina State Fair (it will be Matt's first visit). Then a family wedding in November. Before you know it, our most favorite time of year will be here -- and our 1 year anniversary!!! I can't believe I've been married to my love for almost a year now! Seems like just yesterday...

Until next time...

Backsplashes, Cars...It's a Busy Time

Wow. What a busy couple of weekends we've had!

Last weekend, Matt and I were up to our elbows in thinset and tiles. We put up a backsplash in the kitchen. We've been looking for months for the perfect tile. We've gone back and forth on the type, accents, etc. But finally decided to bite the bullet after we took a class and settled on the one we both could agree on! We made it through our first home improvement project without a fight or an injury!!

Here are some pics...

Pre-backsplash. It's only drywall and what we've decided is a thin layer of paint -- so obviously it wasn't withstanding splatters very well!

In progress...

The finished product...

I am LOVING the way it looks up against our countertop. It really finishes off the room.

In other news, after days of discussion and an entire day spent in the dealership, we bought a new car today. 2013 Nissan Altima...with several of the features we both wanted. Since it has the better fuel mileage, I'll be the primary driver in and out of Midtown.

I have to say...my husband spoils me. Obviously we have many discussions when making a big purchase, but in the end, he usually says, "is this what you want? Get what you want." :-) So...obviously I love that. But that just illustrates his generosity.

We pick up the car on Monday, so I'll post pictures when I have them!

Until next time...

Take a Minute, and Think

I have great news to share! Since joining the gym a month ago, I've lost 7 pounds. That brings total weight loss to 15 pounds! Here's to the next 15!

Who said 15 pounds was hard to lose? I lie. It's definitely been work. There have been times when I've been hungry. The past week I hit a bit of stumbling block with my changing schedule and being tired and getting to the gym while I was tired. I could tell you that bouncing back and forth from days to nights to days to mornings took its toll and I was just too tired. While it's true, it's also definitely an excuse.

One peak from this week was my being able to walk away from the doughnuts that we had on the morning show. Apparently Krispy Kreme is celebrating 75 years. And I LOVE me some Krispy Kreme doughnuts. They were still hot. But you know, I was an hour away from a spin class and I thought...dang, how many calories are in that? Am I going to spend the next hour on a spin bike working off this one doughnut? (And let's be honest: who eats just one of Krispy Kreme's original glazed doughnuts...when they're hot?)

And this thought came to mind:



As I wrote this, the curiousity in me had me looking up the nutritional information about an original glazed Krispy Kreme doughnut. 190 calories. Granted, not as much as I feared. But still...I'm eating a Lean Cuisine right now that has 240 calories. It has a piece of chicken, chicken stuffing and mashed potatoes. I guarantee it will stave off my hunger for longer than 5 minutes.

So anyways...

Not much else is going on in the Wooley's World right now. Matt and I are working a lot and enjoying the time we get to spend together.

We're about to get some furniture from Matt's parents that we are going to use to decorate Matt's "man room." So get ready to see some pictures of our latest decorating adventure from that.

Until next time...

Die Fat or Get Tough

Yikes! The title of the post sounds threatening, right?

Well, it is.

Now, I have no intention of turning Wooley's World into a diet blog. But our blog does serve as a purpose to keep people up to date about what is going on in our lives, and right now my focus is on getting fit.

My friend and co-worker, Brittany, has lost 90 pounds over the past 10 months. She truly is an inspiration. CBS Atlanta is doing a story on her, and I was listening to her interview today. And she said something that really resonated with me. "I did this to myself." And you know what...that's true. No one force fed me unhealthy food. We are each responsible for what we eat.

So, back to the post title.

This book landed on my desk at work about a month or so ago. I flipped through it and then put it down. Tonight, I picked it up again. I have multiple reasons for wanting to read the book. The first: I'm having the author on my public affairs show in a few weeks, and I want to pull some quotes out to round out our segment. The second: I'm curious as to what he has to say.

So, as I ease my sore muscles in my wonderful jetted tub, I started reading. And a few things hit me right off the top.

The first...I am responsible for being overweight. Over the past few weeks I've been going over the reasons I gained weight in my head. Sure, there were certainly external factors. But ultimately it comes down to personal responsibility. (And that is one of my pet peeves.)

I could blame the time in my life when I was limited to spending $50 for two weeks worth of groceries. It was during that time that I figured out how to sneak extra food into my diet and not be discovered. These typically came in the form of getting cash back at the grocery store (so really...I was spending my $35-40 on two weeks of groceries), and then using that money to eat out during the work week. (This is one of the things I've never admitted to publicly.)

I could blame my severely sprained ankle the week before I started college that has never been the same and always aches when I workout.

I could blame genetics. "I was just born fat."

And right now, I could blame the spin bike because I am in PAIN from my first class.

I'm sure genetics plays a part. But the rest are just excuses.

1. I chose to eat out at lunch and I picked the delicious, mouth-watering cheeseburger over a sensible salad.

2. I chose not to get back to working out as soon as my ankle healed.

3. I knew getting on that spin bike was going to be painful.

Bottom line...I made choices and now I have to pay the price for those choices.

I love Winnie the Pooh. But I most certainly don't believe this:

Sorry Pooh Bear! I may be short...and I may be fat...but I am most certainly NOT proud of that.

So as I continue to nurse my post-spin class pain, know I'll be back up there. And next week, no excuses. Go to sleep early. Get up and get moving.

Can't wait to see you soon and...

I most definitely could not start and stay on this journey without my darling husband, who throws his support behind everything I do. I want to make him proud to be seen with me (I know, babe...you are). But I want to know that I am best wife I can be...physically, spiritually, and emotionally.

Until next time...

So It Begins...

That's my new mantra.

Ever since high school, I've had an up and down battle with my weight. Back then, my mom and I joined Weight Watchers and the gym right down the street from our house. And we were pretty successful. I did a good job of staying at a healthy weight throughout high school - granted taking ballet and tap classes, plus production rehearsals 5 days a week definitely helped with that! I remember being "bigger" (at least in my mind) than most of my friends in high school. But looking back at pictures, I have to admit it was in my head.

Then came college...and the dining hall food plan. I can't say honestly that I made a real effort to make smart choices when eating my freshman year of college. I gained about 20 pounds and hated my body. At the same time, while I wasn't making those smart choices, I wasn't taking advantage of the free gym the university offered to its students. I started working out again when I moved to an apartment, but it wasn't nearly what I needed to really lose weight.

My first year out of college, my mom and I joined the gym again (my apartment complex offered a free membership, so why not?!) I probably lost about 20 pounds by working out every morning with my mom. We continued the gym thing after I bought my house in Columbia...and we were pretty good at working out together. I did BodyPump and met her to ride the bike afterwards.

Then I moved to Jacksonville. A few rough years down there led to me eating whatever I could find and I only popped in and out of the workout room at work.

When Matt and I moved to Atlanta, I saw a picture of myself and was like, "whoa!" Enough is enough. We started eating healthier and I lost about 20 pounds before our wedding back in December. But then I got complacent again. I've been working out with a friend for the past two months but haven't seen the results I'd like to.

That brings me to today...

I joined the gym this morning and took my first group fitness class. Tomorrow morning, I'll be up early to take a spin class.

I know in my mind how much I want to lose, but I know you can't always go on pounds. I'll keep track with measurements and see how my clothes feel. (Hey...if I lose enough weight I'll have to go shopping! Who can say no to that??)

I want to be a healthy wife. I want to be a healthy mom.

Most importantly...

So here's to being accountable and healthy!! Stay tuned for updates!

Until next time...

Who Loves New York City???

The answer to this is a resounding...ME!!!!

Matt and I went up to New York this past weekend to help his mom and dad clean out/organize a storage unit and to get some of Matt's grandmother's stuff to bring back for the house. We got some pretty cool stuff I'm excited about.

Anyway, while we were there, we got a chance to head into the city a few times. (Matt's parents actually live in White Plains...a short drive/train ride away.)

Sunday, we headed into the city for the Mets/Cardinals game at Citi Field. It started to rain momentarily while the top to Matt's dad's convertible was down -- yikes! But luckily the rain stopped just as suddenly and it didn't ruin the game.

Citi Field

The "home run" apple from Shea Stadium

Shea Bridge -- an homage to the former Mets stadium

It was the Hall of Fame induction ceremony for 2012. The Mets inducted John Franco. He was a pitcher for the team in the 90s/early 2000s.

Who knew the NYC Dept. of Sanitation had a pipe and drum band?

John Franco - then

John Franco - now

Check out the big white ball head -- that's Mr. Met

Me and Matt at the game

Check out the awesome seats my dad-in-law got for us!

Monday we took the train and headed back to the city on the Hudson River Line.

Little Italy food - YUM!!

Times Square

We visited the M&M store

Mets M&M collection

A wall of M&Ms

Matt drinking his M&Ms

Hershey store in Times Square

Grand Central Station

The best cannoli's in town -- from Ferrara's Bakery

"It's coooooold."

Awesome trip!! I can't wait to go back up!!

Until next time...