Diaries of a Domestic Goddess

Heart Rate Monitor Watch

Awhile back, I was watching the Dr. Phil show (don’t judge) and I saw a heart rate monitor watch. I was drawn to it because you didn’t have to wear a chest strap. Of course, I forgot to write down the name so I couldn’t remember what it was called. Last week I was at Dick’s Sporting Goods and while I was waiting for my husband and son to finish in the fishing section, I wandered into the fitness section and picked up this watch. In the upper right hand corner were the words I was looking for “As Seen on the Dr. Phil Show!“. After a quick Google search, I read the different heart rate monitor watch reviews and knew that this was the watch I wanted.

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About the Heart Rate Monitor Watch

Now on to the important stuff…the specs for the Mio Motiva Watch:

Accurate heart rate WITHOUT a chest strap
Full featured sports watch with exercise timer, alarm, date, and backlight display.
You have the ability to track the amount of calories you’ve consumed throughout the day

Looks like a pretty good wireless heart rate monitor to me! For me, I want a heart rate monitor so I know if I am working out efficiently. I don’t have a lot of time to spare so spending it working out inefficiently is stupid!

Image courtesy of Naypong at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I used the watch today. After entering my weight, age, and sex, all I needed to do to see how many calories I burned while working out was to push start and take my initial heart rate. This started the exercise timer. Periodically during my workout, I took my heart rate. When I was finished with my workout, I pushed stop and it told me how many calories I burned!

I don’t know if I will use it to track my calories consumed during the day. I use My Fitness Pal for that. However, workout wise, I like being able to see how many calories I burned and it is much more accurate than the sensors on the machines. Making the decision to buy heart rate monitor was a good one!

Oatmeal Cookies to Die For!

2 Jul By Leah Kanaan 6 Comments

I found this recipe when my daughter first started having issues with dairy. I never imagined that it would be such a hit! And talk about a nice ego boost when you are specifically asked to bring this item to EVERY get together and they are the first thing to go!

1 cup margarine or butter, softened**
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups oats, uncooked

1. Preheat oven 350.
2. In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugars until creamy
3. Add eggs and vanilla and beat well
4. Add combined flour, baking soda, cocoa, and salt; mix well
5. Stir in oats. Drop onto ungreased baking sheet
6. Bake 8-10 mins (I do 9 mins)

**I use crisco instead of butter or margarine.

Enjoy!

Contact Me!

30 Jun By Leah Kanaan

Do you have any questions or comments or a product you want reviewed? Well if so, you can contact me via email and I will get back to you as soon as possible (usually the same day).

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What I’m Reading Now

30 Jun By Leah Kanaan Leave a Comment

This summer I signed up for a summer reading contest at my local public library. You have to read a book set in each decade (30s up through 2000s), read a book published in each decade, watch a movie released in each decade, watch a movie set in each decade, and listen to a CD with music originally published during each decade. There are weekly drawings, as well as a grand prize drawing.

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So currently I am reading, The Winter of Our Discontent by John Steinbeck.

“The story revolves around New Englander Ethan Allen Hawley, who works as a clerk in a grocery store he used to own. His wife and kids resent their lowly social and economic position, and don’t put any value in the high levels of honesty and integrity that Ethan struggles to maintain in a corrupt society. Under this constant pressure, Hawley will eventually manage to get back the store by renouncing his morals, but the new-found wealth will not bring happiness.”

I have only read the first chapter, but I am hooked! I normally don’t go for books by John Steinbeck. I was forced the read The Red Pony in high school and it was torture (no offense to those of you who love that book).

Anyway, if you want to read something different this summer instead of the newest book coming out, I highly recommend you check this book out of your library. It seems like it is a pretty quick read. While you’re at the library, be sure to ask about the different reading programs they have for kids! Get your children reading too! I know our library has a lot of different programs for kids and the kids have a blast!

Proud or Pissed?

27 Jun By Leah Kanaan 6 Comments

So husband is out of town and the kiddies are driving me insane. Constantly running to the basement and bringing up things like decks of cards, etc. Now if you lived with my husband you would know that he is an insane pack rat and I basically have to stash things where I can…keeping things like decks of cards or board games out of the kids hands is not always easy.

The last straw was when I came out of the bathroom and the kids were in the garage swimming in a freaking cooler that my husband was SUPPOSED to have emptied. It was the cooler that we filled with ice and pop for Z’s party almost 2 weeks ago. After dragging the damn cooler to the entrance of the garage and emptying it, I changed the kids clothes and got them in the car. I had it. We were off to Home Depot.

Now you have to understand something. I HATE Home Depot. Whenever I am dragged there by my husband, I constantly complain to him how the place just sucks the life out of me. I don’t know what it is, but I literally feel all my energy draining when I am there. But, nonetheless we were headed to Home Depot.

After wandering the store to find what I need, I finally settled on getting two of those chain locks. You know, those kind you see on apartment doors. One was going on my door leading out to my garage and the other was going on the door leading down to my basement.

My next step was to locate all the tools I needed for my project. Now remember, I mentioned above that I live with a pack rat. He says he organized his tools. Ha! Not really. But I finally found what I needed and got started. Let me tell you…there is something about using power tools and accomplishing what you set out to do, that makes you feel so proud of yourself! Sure I could have waited until hubby got back from out of town, but I did it myself and now I am not going to be beating my head against the wall with the kids constantly opening those two doors. Not to mention the whole cooler thing…thats just dangerous.

So hubby is either going to be proud of me or severely pissed that I drilled holes into a brand new door (door leading out to garage)…not to mention the holes I drilled into the molding. Ah well!