Ah, and here we are. The New Year came far too quickly, and I had to rush out to Staples today and buy a new wall calendar because sheer panic set in every time that I looked at my old one and didn’t see January 2013 on it! A girl cannot live by planner alone! My planner is for my purse…I cannot function without my wall calendar.
So, yeah! Now that all is right in the world, I thought I’d come and babble to my favorite people: My readers!
The holidays have come and gone, and I can honestly say I am relieved. All that shopping and running around…I am getting way too old for that! Haha!
Christmas brought some awesome surprises!
For example, upon leaving my aunt and uncle’s house the Saturday after Christmas, my uncle told me to make sure I had room in the Jeep…and I was totally confused! Turns out, I needed to make room for this:
I was so beyond excited, because I have never owned a television before….let alone one that is brand spanking new!
When I got back to San Diego that day, Sean and I exchanged gifts. He seemed surprised by his Tag Heuer watch, and has been wearing it to his new job at the bank. 🙂 I didn’t expect him to get me anything, but lo and behold, another first!:
He gave me the scarf, and then a few minutes later to check in his jacket for a hoodie his dad was missing, and my jersey was hanging up when I opened the closet door! YAY!
I am also really excited about one of the gifts Alex got me!
I can’t wait to start tracking my progress, and the tips and inspirational quotes are so awesome! I know this will be a great resource! She also got me a hilarious gift, that was on my Pinterest “Must Have” board!
It seems silly, but I always see whole pineapples on sale, but I don’t buy them because I don’t have ANY idea how to cut them without wasting half the fruit. Also, I am currently obsessed with domestic/houseware type things, and this just seemed too good to be true! But, alas, it is true. Because Alex got it for me! Thank you, Bestie!
I had to buy myself a couple of things for Christmas this year. Top of my list was the Pure Komachi 2 Knife set at costco, for $29.99. They are super colorful, and we were giving them away at work as part of the “12 Days of Christmas” giveaway at work….everyone who saw them and had them, raved about how amazing they are, and with my domestic obsessions lately, I decided I’d like to have them.
Also, after all the After-Christmas shoppers calmed down, I stopped by Target to catch the Neiman Marcus for Target collection sale, and picked up thge Diane Von Furstenburg yoga mat. It has a carrier strap, and it is the premium thickness that my current one (which is actually one of Alex’s THREE yoga mats)Â lacks.
Last splurge of the season….remember that gold dress from the LC by Lauren Conrad that I was talking about in that last post? Allow me to refresh your memory 🙂
Well, Kohl’s didn’t let me down! My Auntie Crystal gave me $40 for Christmas, and I managed to scoop up this dress, a $40 cardigan and some $88 Rock and Republic jeans for just over $38! Yup….I said it! One of my best receipts in the last year, if I do say so myself:
I mean seriously, how can you not feel like a superhero when your receipt says you saved $156.48?!?!?!
Speaking of dresses, I have QUITE a few hanging in my closet that haven’t been worn, so I’ve been taking every opportunity I possibly can to dress up and use them. Here are some of the recent ones:
I really love this one. It’s from Forever 21, and actually, Sean picked it out. It’s a bandage dress, so it can get a little tricky when it comes to camoflaging lumps and bumps, but I was pretty pleased with this little number! It was the perfect mix of contemporary and classic to me!
Ok, so I was at TJ Maxx with Alex a few months ago, and came across this dress when I went in the fitting room to try on a Jessica Simpson blouse. I saw it was a size 8, but sometimes, you just look at an item of clothing, and if you know your body (and you used to be a personal shopper, like myself), then you can pretty much tell if something is going to fit or not. I grabbed it, asked the attendant to add it to my items (and sweetly ignored her skeptical look), and went in to try it on….it’s Calvin Klein, and was on clearance for $20….and it’s a SIZE 8!!! Definitely goes in the 2012 Shopping Hall of Fame! Lol. And I just wore it to church this past Sunday, and was definitely pleased with the end result. Plus, Sean came to spend the weekend with my family in San Bernardino, and we went to church, so he got to see the dress too….normally he only sees me in sweats or jeans.
Speaking of Sean….everytime I need a pick-me-up, I find myself going back to a convo of ours that I just had to post on Instagram a few weeks ago:
Sean got me Rosetta Stone Italiano for Christmas in 2011, and while using it the other day, I sent him a corny/mushy text, and this is what I get back. HAHA! Gotta love him!
Also on Instagram (@SeeSondraSlimmer), you can catch me posting the occasional inspirational/motivational image! Some of my faves?
Of course, you can expect to see my face from time to time as well! My current favorite? My pre-workout shot I caught before yoga….I felt like a fit goddess, and channel that feeling often since!
That top and sports bra were also gifts from a coworker, and they are amazing! Everything at Target is AMAZING, dang it! EVERYTHING! Lol.
I think that is all for now, but stay tuned for the next installment of the 30 Day Challenge, as soon as I get someone to take the photos. It turns out my plastic surgeon’s office called today and asked to push my appointment back, but thankfully it’s only by one day! So I will meet Dr. Ariya on January 30th, and discuss my panniculectomy (a procedure to remove the excess “apron” skin), and thighplasty (a thigh “lift,” so to speak).
I am excited to see what will happen in the futiure, and cannot wait to keep you all posted!
I hope everyone’s new year is off to a great start! Let’s kick 2013 in the butt, and MAKE THINGS HAPPEN!
‘Til Next Time!
XOXO