A little over a year ago I wrote about why renting isn’t so bad.  I still agree with my points in the article (and our choice of a condominium where some of those points still apply is no accident), however there are also some intangibles to consider.

A major reason we began to look into owning a place was that we have wanted to get a dog for quite some time.  Not a necessity, but something that can certainly improve one’s quality of life. Our current apartment is not dog-friendly, and as we began the search, we realized how difficult it was to find a rental that included all the things important to us (read: kitchen & dog). Pets also incur additional rent charges and fees.  We’re excited to search for our new pet once we’re all settled in.

We are equally thrilled to be moving to downtown East Lansing, MI.  As they say in Real Estate, it’s all about ‘location, location, location.’   Our location is very walkable and we can’t wait to explore it more.

Now to hope that the weather holds out until we’re finished moving Saturday.

Honeymoon

Back in April Jason and I went to Hawaii for our long awaited honeymoon (we had been married for almost a year by the time of the trip). It was wonderful and we feel like we have some unfinished business there. We’ll definitely have to return someday!  I took millions of pictures and if you’re interested, you can view my collection on Flickr.

Health & Fitness

Jason and I had achieved our goal weights prior to the honeymoon, so that was quite an accomplishment! Surprisingly, the trip didn’t undo all of our hard work either.  We’re still working out as much as possible.  Zumba is my absolute favorite workout, and Jason is working on his 5k time.  I’m not as strict with the calorie counting, but I feel a lot more in control of my diet.

I also tried out acupuncture for my allergies, but it didn’t really seem to have long term results for me.

Food

I haven’t stopped cooking and taking pictures, but I have moved food posts over to Tumblr.  I like how quickly I can publish posts there – for some reason I feel compelled to write more substantial posts here than I do on Tumblr.  I’d like to find a way to pull tumblr posts into this blog.

We’ve also been trying out making our own soda syrups to use with the Sodastream we got as an anniversary present. Jason made a delicious cream soda.  It has really been a treat to drink homemade soda with no weird ingredients!

Work

We have some exciting things on the horizon for our side business, hopefully I’ll be able to announce them soon! At our day jobs, we’re getting deep into Drupal development for websites, so that is promising to be a challenging experience.

I can’t believe how fast the summer has gone, but hopefully with the coming of fall I’ll have a bit more time to blog.

A lot of this new product madness has stemmed from suffering very dry skin on and around my nose lately–likely due to using a lot of tissues. I began to research ways to get as much moisture possible onto my skin throughout the day while still having an even skin tone. What I discovered was a product called tinted moisturizer. I think I became a little obsessed with researching the perfect product but finally decided that Covergirl Aqua CG Smoothers would be the one for me. But after looking for it at a couple places and not finding my shade (“Fair to Light”), I settled on the Physician’s Formula Organic wear® Tinted Moisturizer in “Ivory to Fair.”

A Little Bit About Tinted Moisturizers

Tinted moisturizers..

• provide sheer coverage that evens out skin tone–if you have a lot of blemishes that need covering, this type of product is not for you. The term “sheer” cannot be stressed enough.
• are generally light and more liquid-y than traditional foundations and include SPF, making them a great choice for summertime when you don’t want to be wearing loads of makeup
• tend to handle flaky, dry skin better than normal foundation, and thus may function nicely for some folks as a sort of primer for full coverage makeup
• usually provide a “dewy” look or natural glow
• tend to come in very few shades, but are generally pretty forgiving
• are sheer enough that you don’t have to worry much about seeing a line where the makeup ends
• can have a slightly tacky feel after application
• let freckles show through a bit, in case you have them and are proud of them :)

Physician’s Formula Organic wear® Tinted Moisturizer Quick Facts

• From the Physician’s Formula Website: 100% Free of Harsh Chemicals. 100% Free of Synthetic Preservatives. 100% Free of Parabens. 100% Free of GMO’s. 100% Free of Synthetic Colors. 100% Free of Synthetic Fragrances. 100% Cruelty Free.
• SPF 15
• Comes in four shades: Ivory to Fair, Fair to Light, Light to Natural, and Natural to Tan
• “80% certified organic ingredients, including jojoba seed oil, sunflower seed oil, avocado oil, and shea butter to moisturize the skin”
• Listed as $9.95 on the Physician’s Formula website, but I believe I paid $10.27 at Target
• has a interesting light scent which took me by surprise, but I kind of like it?–the scent doesn’t persist after you rub the product in
• be sure to shake the product well before using
• Like all Physician’s Formula products, it’s hypoallergenic and non-comedogenic

The Good

I must say, I LOVE this product so far. I can’t believe I went so long without trying a tinted moisturizer.  My skin is normal to dry, so this really helps keep my face nourished. I consider this product a must-have for my “good skin days.”  I also think that it promotes better skin because of how light it is, whereas many foundations can clog your pores and perpetuate a cycle of breakouts.

This product goes on fast and is essentially goof-proof. No blending down to your neck! I usually finish it with a little loose powder. I’ve also noticed that if you add a little extra under your eyes, it helps to brighten them and makes the dark circles fade a bit. It evens out your skin tone and gives your skin a sort of glow, but not a “shimmer” like other tinted moisturizers (I believe Neutrogena’s mentions shimmer on the package).

The Bad

The package design leaves a little bit to be desired. While a squeeze tube is good for getting every last drop of product, it doesn’t work great for something of this consistency. It’s too liquid-y.  I find I need to store it upside down so that a bunch doesn’t come rushing onto my hands when I open it in the morning. I have also seen a couple reviews by ladies who have had the tube break. So far for me the package has been only a minor annoyance, but I might consider putting it into something like a small travel container for lotion or shampoo.

Conclusions

If you are looking for sheer coverage and a touch of moisture, I would definitely recommend this product.  I was a little hesitant about trying an all organic product-I liked the idea in theory but wasn’t sure if it could deliver.  The Physician’s Formula tinted moisturizer does what it promises. The cost is a bit more than the Covergirl equivalent, but the tube comes with a little more product and something 100% natural, hypo-allergenic, and cruelty free is definitely worth it.

I do plan to keep around a normal foundation for times when I need more coverage, but this tinted moisturizer is my go-to product every day. I may try out other brands next, but so far I’m happy with my purchase.

A Tea Party

For a fun office get-together, we recently had a British style “High Tea.” It was a lot of fun and there was tons to eat.  Everyone pitched in and brought a dish, and ours were Ina Garten’s lemon bars. I wanted to make lemon bars for a couple reasons. I’d never made lemon bars from scratch before, and I’d never eaten one made from scratch.

As evidence of why I continue to treat Ina’s recipes like gospel, the response to the lemon bars was borderline ridiculous. We got multiple comments and requests for the recipe. People were talking about them days later. They were that good. Thank you, Ina!  If ever there was a case to be made for using fresh ingredients, these lemon bars would be it. Zesting and juicing 6 lemons was well worth the work. I wish I would have taken pictures, but I didn’t cut them until the next morning before work and I was running pretty short on time.

Here’s the catch: afterward, Jason calculated each lemon bar to be about 300 calories in square format. The recipe actually says to cut them in triangles which would cut the calories in half, but I had never seen triangular lemon bars before and wanted to go standard.  It was definitely a little depressing to find out just how high in calories they were.

The Weight Loss Thing

So you might be thinking, “what’s so bad about a lemon bar once in a while?” And my answer would be that normally nothing is wrong. The real reason it was so depressing to find out how many calories a single bar had was that it became pretty clear that even once in a while, those lemon bars would really hinder our fitness goals. It reinforced that there are lots of things we could probably do without.  I have to think to myself: “Is this lemon bar worth 35 minutes on the treadmill?” When I think of it in those terms, I realize I can probably live without it.

The Honeymoon

I haven’t written many posts about fitness, but it’s actually a main goal for me and Jason right now.  We obviously want to get healthy in a way that we can maintain, but another reason to start was because of our upcoming honeymoon in April.  We’re going to Hawaii and while I’m super excited, I want to be sure I look good in my bathing suit! Having the honeymoon as a goal has been very helpful because it’s something tangible that makes all the hard work worthwhile.

And it has been a lot of hard work.  Thanks to Jason, we’ve gotten back onto the calorie counting wagon and as a result, we’ve discovered that this whole weight loss thing is a lot more tolerable if you supplement with as much exercise as possible.  For example, without exercise, my daily calorie intake cannot exceed 1200.  That’s 600 less than I could eat per day to just maintain my weight. That’s a large meal or two to three snacks. Kind of a big deal.  If I go for a 35 minute jog, I suddenly get 200-300 calories I can spend while staying within my daily goal. The extra padding makes a big difference and I feel better because I’m improving my muscle and cardiovascular strength.

So that’s where most of my time has gone lately. As soon as we get home from work, Jason and I head to the gym.  Then we come home, make dinner, eat, and clean up. By the time we finish, I’m exhausted and just want to vege out a little.  So that’s why I’ve gone a little quiet lately.

The Progress

As much as I hate, hate, hate counting calories, it’s really the only thing that works consistently. It’s the only way you can ever really know how you’re doing.  I’m not going to lie-it kind of sucks being so accountable for everything you put in your mouth, but it’s the only way to have long-lasting results. It’s a complete lifestyle change.

I don’t know about you, but I’m always curious to see exactly how much people lose.  I think it’s what makes us able to sit through the insufferably long weigh-in process at the end of each episode of The Biggest Loser. I hope I don’t jinx myself by saying this, but since the beginning of July, I have lost 21 pounds. I still want to lose about 17 more before the honeymoon, but I would be more than happy to settle for 12. It’s still a long way to go, but I feel like I have the tools to do it.

If I don’t meet my goal I’ll only have myself to blame because after all, it’s all about the math.

Oh, Exercise

In the end of June, we got back into the Couch-to-5k plan that we had started earlier this year before we lost a family member and began planning the wedding. We have made it through 4 whole weeks so far and I’m very pleased with the progress.

We’ve definitely come a long way and I would highly recommend the program to anyone who thinks they can’t run or hates running. I hated running when I started because it seemed so impossible. The couch-to-5k plan shifts the focus from distance to time.

We also have started to integrate strength training exercise on some of our off days from running. Some days we do circuits of workouts with dumbells, while other times we opt for yoga.

The “D” word

Though we’re not following a specific diet plan, we’re watching our food intake by counting calories. We started out using a web app called Hot Cal, but have since discovered MyFitnessPal which seems even better. I have to say, counting calories is not my thing. I hate counting calories and having to figure out exactly what is in every single thing I ingest. Thankfully, Jason doesn’t seem to mind and has been faithfully calculating our meals. It has been really eye opening to see the numbers and how having a sedentary job makes losing weight even more difficult.

The positive thing we’ve discovered is that you can eat pretty much whatever you want a couple times a week. It’s really all about balancing it out with lighter meals and/or exercise.

New Job

To go along with all the changes in our personal lives, I’ve made a change in my professional life as well. I have accepted a position with the Center for Educational Networking, which is where Jason currently works as a Web/Multimedia Specialist. Everyone we’ve told so far has been left aghast when we explain we’ll be working pretty closely together, but I’m actually not too concerned. We have always made a good team and I think we’re both professional enough to make it work.

It has been a rough year, and we’re excited to start this new chapter in our lives.

We had never seen anything like it, and immediately decided it was the set we wanted. The perfect combination of form and function, it was very pricey. We were already engaged at the time though so we didn’t rule it out completely. We spend a lot of time in the kitchen, so a great set of knives would be well worth it–we literally only have ONE good knife right now. Wüsthof knives are also the kind that my favorite cook Ina Garten uses, so suffice it to say they made it to the top of the must-have list.

When it came time to (begrudgingly) start some wedding registries, I was excited to find that the set was available at Bed Bath and Beyond. I added the set to our registry and and told my family it was the only thing we really wanted. We would even pitch in and pay part of the cost if it came down to that. Yes, we wanted the knives that badly.

Part 1: Initial Letdown

So about a month ago, at a surprise bridal shower in Ohio, we were given the knife set of our dreams! We opened it up as soon as we got back to Michigan, but were disappointed to find that the knife block itself was not the dark wood we liked so much. Instead it was a light oak color that really just seemed “blah” with the knives. Since the set was so expensive, I called Bed Bath & Beyond to see what the deal was, since the picture on the website shows the dark block. I apparently got some incorrect information but was told to come in to the store and see if they could order the correct set.

Part 2: The Wait

So we packed up our set and headed to the store, only to find out that the item was now on backorder. All we could do is sign up for an email notification when the item got back in stock. We were extremely frustrated, but about a week later, the knives were back in stock. We headed back to the store again and were told a new story this time–that the knife set we got had the same UPC as the online item, so it seemed that the light colored block was correct and that Bed Bath & Beyond probably just had an outdated photo.

“Well THANKS A LOT!” I was thinking. The dark block was a huge selling feature for me and I never would have added it to the registry if I knew that the picture didn’t represent the item you’d actually get. The knife set was way too expensive to not have it be exactly what we thought we were getting. The guy we spoke with was very understanding and offered to call Wüsthof and see if he could get a dark block.

Part 3: Throwing In the Towel

A couple weeks went by with no word on the block and we finally gave up. We decided that we really just wanted to start using our knives and that we could deal with the block for now and buy a dark one out-of-pocket later.

But it wouldn’t be that simple

Part 4: The Unanticipated Complication

While we were placing the knives in the block, we noticed that the tip of the biggest knife was bent. And I mean REALLY bent. So we packed up the knives again and headed to the store (thankfully it’s only a five minute drive). The salespeople were pretty shocked at seeing the knife and did an exchange with no questions asked. The new set was scheduled to arrive in no more than two weeks.

We also ran into the guy we had spoken with before and he told us he’d follow up on the block situation. A few days later, he called and said that they would be able to get the dark block for us and that he would let us know when it came in. We were finally getting somewhere!

Part 5: Rinse and Repeat

Our new set arrived yesterday and we opened it with excitement. When we pulled out the knife block we literally hugged each other and jumped up and down because it was the darker version that we had been wanting! I quickly rubbed it with a little mineral oil and it looked gorgeous. Clearly, I thought, this would be the end of our crazy knife story.

Clearly, I was mistaken.

Jason closely inspected each knife as he unpacked it and slid it into the block. We were aghast to find that the large Cook’s Knife had a damaged blade–AGAIN. Not as much damage this time, but to replace that knife alone would be $129.99. At that price, I kind of expect perfection.

So tonight we will be heading back to the store. This time, we will ask if we can just exchange the one knife, because we would really like to start using the other ones if possible. I will update this post tonight with our findings!

Part 6: Things Are Looking Up

The people at Bed Bath and Beyond were very cooperative and ordered us a new knife, no questions asked. We were able to keep the rest of them, which is great. I finally got to try some of them out tonight and am very pleased. Hopefully the new knife won’t get damaged in shipping for a –third– time.

Update 05/26/2010: I am happy to announce that the Cook’s Knife arrived safe & sound today, in perfect condition! Finally the saga has come to an end!

This year, we’re trying the extremely popular couch-to-5k program. Friday, April 2nd was our first workout.

For Week 1, the schedule is as follows (do this 3 days in week 1):

1. Walk 5 minutes for warm-up
2. Alternate between 60 seconds of running and 90 seconds of walking until you reach 20 minutes (25 if you count the warm-up)

Getting Started

Our first run of Week 1 was on a Friday. It went pretty good and wasn’t difficult to where it takes away all your motivation. We ran again the following Monday and it still felt pretty good.

Then it started to rain. And by rain, I mean it poured. If it were 60+ degrees and pouring, I would have still entertained the idea of a run, but it was only 40 degrees out and cloudy. So we set our sights on Friday.

Cue the family emergency that thwarts even the best intentions. Again, our run would have to wait. Thankfully by Sunday, the madness had died down enough to sneak in the last run for the week.

Thoughts Overall

Though it took more than a week for us to complete Week 1, it feels good to know we were able to fit it in even when life handed us trash (lemons are nowhere near adequate to describe the weekend we had). The 60 second intervals for Week 1 were just enough to get us a little tired but not long enough to make us hate running—really important when you get easily discouraged.

Next stop, C25k Week 2. I’m not really sure how it will go, but there’s no harm in repeating Week 1 if need be.

Update 04/20/2010: While we intended to move on to week 2, we recently suffered the passing of a family member and have not yet had the time to get back into a routine.

Fast forward to now. We’ve signed a new lease for an apartment and are settling in for the long haul. I couldn’t be happier with the decision, so I thought I’d outline some really good reasons one might choose to be a renter rather than an owner. To be clear, this isn’t intended to discourage or mock home owners in any way but rather to challenge the idea that renting is just “throwing money away.”

[Just to clarify, when I use the term "owner," I mean someone who has a mortgage on a home, not someone who owns a home outright.]

1) Grounds-keeping duties are not your problem

Hate mowing the lawn, pulling weeds, or shoveling snow? When you rent, all of that is taken care of. Instead of spending time doing those types of chores, you can spend your time doing things you enjoy.

2) Maintenance is included in your rent

It’s a big relief knowing that if an appliance breaks, your landlord will take care of it. No need to worry how an unexpected repair will fit into your budget. It just gets fixed.

3) You may not be responsible for all utilities

It’s fairly common for at least some utilities to be including in your rent. Heat, water, and trash removal have all been included. This is simply impossible in the land of home ownership. And depending on what you’re renting, your utilities might cost a lot less than a home or condo.

4) If your financial situation changes, it’s much easier to get out of a lease than a mortgage

Consider two families. Family #1 rents a duplex, while family #2 owns a home. The economy starts to downturn and layoffs mean that both families are now down to only one income. Family #1 decides that it it would be best to break their lease and move in with a very generous relative until they get back on their feet. Family #2 also has a generous relative, but “breaking” the mortgage isn’t an option.

The point is that Family #1 has a lot more flexibility to make drastic changes in order to prevent going into debt. Though breaking a lease will result in a fee, it’s a one-time hit. Getting behind on a mortgage can really quickly snowball into foreclosure.

5) You don’t have to pay property taxes or interest on a loan

A major factor that caused Jason and I to stop house hunting was that we weren’t sure we’d be staying in Lansing for a long time. If we had found a house, the first few years of payments would have just gone to paying off the interest on the loan. Therefore, a home is a good long-term investment.

Property taxes are an easy to overlook part of home ownership. They can significantly change how what mortgage payment you can afford and they never go away. As a renter, you don’t directly pay property taxes, rather, it is included in your rent payment.

Conclusion

This probably sounds like a renter trying to justify the fact that they couldn’t afford to buy a home, but that’s definitely not the case. We simply took a hard look at our finances and realized it wasn’t the right time for us. We don’t regret our choice and have learned that home ownership isn’t always the best option.

Update 05/31/2010: Jason found a helpful calculator for determining how long you would need to live in a house for it to be better than renting.

Last weekend was a bit cold and rainy, but I spotted some plants sprouting up around the apartment. I was pumped and grabbed my camera to snap some pictures. I forgot my lunch at home one day this week and I ran home to eat. The sun was out and the Crocus plants that were just buds on Saturday were blooming! I knew I couldn’t pass up this photo opp. Here’s one of my favorites:

If you like it, you can check out a slideshow of my spring 2010 pictures so far.

We decided that aside from Food Network, there wasn’t a great deal of television content that we tune in to regularly. By and large, we could access most of the programs we enjoy online. With that in mind, Jason began the search for media center software we could run from a PC and connect to our TV. The idea was to have a server for our personal media files and use a program to access them and play them on the television in addition to streaming online video content. He found Boxee, which was designed to do just that. While it shows a lot of promise, it also behaves a little wonky on my Windows XP machine.

The fatal flaw in our plan (and the reason we eventually gave in) relates to how we use television. While we don’t tune in to many shows regularly, we do a lot of passive viewing. Until cable was gone, we didn’t realize how often we found things to watch just by channel surfing. With only the basic local channels, there is a lot less to surf. We also tend to use the television as background noise.

Our passive viewing style was in direct opposition to what a program like Boxee requires. Streaming television over the internet is very purposeful: you actively pick and choose the shows you want to watch. It’s great when you missed last week’s episode of Scrubs. Not so great when you just want to chill out on the couch and watch some random television. You are also at the mercy of your connection speed when your main source of television content is streaming over the internet. And if your internet connection is down, then your television options are limited too.

After one too many choppy streams of The Daily Show and finding nothing on our local channels, we threw in the towel. We didn’t get anything fancy—no HD, DVR, or On Demand. Though it changes our budget, I’m looking forward to once again watching Barefoot Contessa on Saturdays and going to bed with The Daily Show on weekdays. This time, Comcast, you win. This time.