Big bird...Big butt... Big tree...Big hair

Hello and Happy Monday, gang!
Thanks for sharing some of your favorite quotes last week - there were some good ones. The one I found for Thanksgiving was, "He is a wise man who does not grieve for the things which he has not, but rejoices for those which he has." ~Epictetus


Big birds
I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday with loved ones. I was working, but still managed to squeeze in two different dinners ... impressive, I know. Michael and I ate at his brother Pete's house before I came to work. The place was packed with family and Pete & Kris put on a great spread. The entertainment was our nephew James. He plays guitar, drums, and violin and sings and he was belting out all sorts of Beatles tunes while playing "Rock Band" on the Xbox. It was a riot. After anchoring the early evening shows, I met Michael at the Lacona's house for dinner. This is where I always get into trouble because all of the food is just so amazing. I mean, I just keep eating and eating and eating. When I got back to work I could hardly breathe and to be honest, I was a little concerned about my ability to get through the ten o'clock show. Thankfully, we had a lot of fun video and sound so I survived. Did you make a pig of yourself on Thanksgiving or did you stay in control? Is there a particular food that you know is terrible, but you just can't pass it up on the holiday?

Big butt
Thanksgiving is just one day. My problem is that I've been eating with that kind of wild abandon A LOT during the past six months or so. It is time for me to get it together or soon I won't have anything to wear. I'm reaching that point where even my "fat pants" are on the snug side. I refuse to buy new clothes - it seems like I'd be rewarding my bad behavior. A few months ago a gal I know from high school posted on her facebook page that she was starting a "fruit and vegetable detox" diet. She explained that for several days she was eating nothing but fruits, vegetables, green tea and water. This sounds like a good idea in theory but I don't know if I'm capable of doing it. I suppose all it takes is planning and a bit of willpower. I'm also looking into the Body Bugg and other similar devices that help track your calories consumed and calories burned. Have any of you tried this approach? I feel like it would really help keep me accountable, and I know the competitor in me would really get into seeing the "calories burned" number go up with different workouts.

Big tree
Our Christmas tree is up... whew! Michael likes having a tree that touches the ceiling and every year it seems like what we end up with is bigger, and bigger and bigger. This is especially an issue when I am not along for the tree picking process. I know it's hard to believe, but I am the voice of reason. Well, Michael bought the tree on Friday when I was at work. Friday night we brought him inside and stood him up and said "Oh, geesh!" He was touching the ceiling (and bending over a bit) before we even put him in the stand. Michael cut off some of the top and after much heaving and pushing and pulling and praying, we managed to get the thing upright, and stabilized. I have to admit, it might be the best tree yet. Pictures next week. Oh - and a question, do you do real or fake?

Big hair
After watching the Iowa game (ugh!) on Saturday we met up with Heather Burnside at 7 Flags Events Center. Why? The band Hairball. We'd never been to one of their shows and Heather insisted we would not be disappointed. She was right. If you loved hair bands back in the day, you'll love this group. Some of the performances are so spot-on, you'd swear you somehow traveled back in time to see Poison, Twisted Sister, Bon Jovi, Guns N' Roses ... you get the idea. It was a blast.

That wraps up the "big" edition of the blog... have a great week!
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com