Power of One -- New Challenge Week 1

It's time for the next challenge at the Sisterhood of Shrinking Jeans and it is perfect for this time in my life!! I'm glad that they read my mind and set this up!!


Here we are at the end of 2010 and nearly ready for 2011...I don't know about anyone else but I'm glad this year is almost over! This has been a difficult year for me and my family. One that I never thought we would have to go through. The beginning of the year found my husband without any kind of income...or clients to make that income through. He's an architect and little did we know at the time but architects had (and in some areas still do) an unemployment rate of somewhere around 50%!! That's just craziness!

Thank God he has been able to find some good clients now so he is once again working and "bringing home the bacon". During the first couple of months of 2010 he just couldn't find ANY work (oh wait, yes he did he made $600 in January and $600 in February!!) Because it's kind of impossible for a family of 4 to live on $600 a month I went to work overnights at Walmart just so we could have some steady income....and let me tell you that was difficult!! I went to work right after putting That Other Kid to bed and got home about the time he woke up. I then took a shower and went to bed for a few hours and then I took care of things around the house. I tried to homeschool, cook, clean, and take care of the mom kind of things...I wasn't very good at any of them either! I was just too exhausted to do anything well.

During this time (7 months and 5 days to be exact) I slept when I could and did what I could to stay on my healthy living journey. The one bonus to this job was that it was VERY physical so although I didn't lose weight during this time I did continue getting stronger and I basically maintained. In July I moved to 2nd shift and it wasn't as physically demanding and I started gaining some weight...but only about 10 pounds...it could have been sooooo much worse!! During the 2nd week in September my hubby told me he was busy enough that I could quit working! That was a happy day...I gave my 2 week notice and looked forward to the last day of September. It was at that point that I started getting focused on me again and started trying to lose the weight again.

And so here we are at the end of 2010 where I am looking forward to the new year of 2011 with a new Challenge that will focus on me! I think it's about time to focus on me. During this year I have focused on me more than I ever have in the past but I need to really concentrate on taking care of what is important so that my family will have the best ME they can! Because ultimately if I'm not healthy and fit, neither will my family be that way...This year will bring on some new challenges for me (that I don't want to discuss with everyone yet) and in order to get through this year stronger, healthier and in top physical condition I'm going to need to concentrate on ME.

So...my stats:

March 2009 (which is when I started getting serious about this journey): 226.8




Today, December 29, 2010: 196.0 (which is ALOT better than I thought it would be based on all my indulgences of the past 7 days!)



My long term goal weight: 150 -- which according to the personal trainer at the gym would put me at a REALLY LOW BMI

Short term goal (for this 8 week challenge): 184 (which is what I weighed the day I found out I was pregnant with That Other Kid back in the spring of 2003 and I haven't seen it since)

Some of my healthy living goals:

EXERCISE DAILY -- it doesn't really matter what; running, walking, playing with the numerous Wii games I have...just something to get my body moving. I am happier and less stressed if I do some kind of exercise! I really want to do something for 30 minutes a day...but I know some days I'm not really going to commit to that length of time so I'm just going to say any time as long as I'm EXERCISING - meaning heart rate is elevated!

DRINK MY WATER -- cuz I've found if I'm drinking water, I'm not drinking soda!! Studies show if you drink half your body weight in water daily you will lose weight, so right now that means I need to drink a minimum of 98 ounces of water!

My next goal (and this one will make my hubby happy) is to CLEAN/ORGANIZE something in my apartment everyday for 30 minutes. We live in a 3 bdrm apartment and it is cluttered and disorganized. It is also full of STUFF that needs to find either a new home or be thrown away. Since I homeschool That Other Kid and hubby works at home we are usually all home, which means the place is easily cluttered!! This needs to be changed...We are all tired of clutter!!

My final goal for this challenge and this is strictly for ME (cuz this challenge is for ME, right?) -- READ MY BIBLE and something for FUN (either fiction or non-fiction) EVERY DAY!! I love to read but find I rarely take time to do it unless I specifically set aside time to do so, so I am going to do that during this challenge. It will be good for me and it will get me into some great habits for the new year! It will also help me through some challenges that I will be facing this year that I already know about but can't really talk about right now.

We all need to find some way to treat ourselves good and I can't think of a better way to treat ourselves good taking care of myself; body, soul and spirit!

So what are your goals for the new year?? Are you focusing on you?? You should...My motto for the new year is gonna be:

Take Care of yourself, cuz who else is going to?!!

Awesome Christmas...Details to Follow

Well here it is early Wednesday morning after Christmas and I just got the pictures uploaded onto the computer. We had an awesome whirlwind mini-vacation and got to see family and friends to celebrate Christmas. Normally our Christmas plans are made months in advance but this year things didn't work out that way and they were made on Tuesday night before Christmas!! Things went incredibly smooth for such a quick trip, too! No snags...and lots of fun!! Pictures will be uploaded onto Facebook and the ol' blog tomorrow if I have time.

I have to take That Other Kid in for his 7 year Well Child checkup in the morning...and of course he is not feeling well. I'm guessing its just allergies since we were in Kansas without allergy medicine but I have to say I am glad we were already scheduled for a dr visit!

Things are still kind of in a chaotic state of being since That Kid just came home on the 23rd and just threw his stuff down...he has found an apartment to move into for a few months since he has decided that college is not his thing right now, so things are probably going to remain in a state of limbo over the next couple of weeks.

But I am going to get back into a routine of sorts and the first one being is I am going to get moving again! It has been 10 days since I have run and 1 week since I have done any exercising and I am really feeling it. My mood is blah. I am feeling fat. I am more tired than usual...so it's a good thing a new Shrinking Jeans challenge is starting Wednesday! Something to kick me into high gear and get me moving again! I am supposed to run a 5k with my sisters over at Shrinking Jeans on the 8th, too so I need to get moving so I can complete the C25K program and be ready for my 5K. There isn't one local that I want to run so I am going to create my own!

Anyway...I need to get to bed, but I have to leave you with at least 1 picture from our Christmas celebration. This one definitely depicts the joy on Christmas morning...Hope yours was just as good!

It's Officially Christmas Eve....

and we are just hours away from leaving town for a "quick" weekend trip to see family. Just days ago we had not decided what we were doing and now we not only know what we are doing but we are packed and ready to go! All we need to do is pack the toiletry bag, take showers, grab the snacks and head out the door!

I am so excited!! Probably more so than the boys! For some reason it was very important to me to spend Christmas with the family. Maybe because we didn't get to last year. Maybe because this year has been so hard. Maybe because we don't know where That Kid will be next year at this time. But whatever the reason, I am glad that it is happening!! I will also get to spend some time with a bunch of my high school friends this weekend and I am beyond excited at this possibility! Several of them I haven't seen in YEARS...but through the wonders of technology and FaceBook we discovered we will all be in the same town on the same weekend and so we are working on plans!! Don't worry the camera is packed so pictures will follow next week!! One of my childhood friends is now a musician who plays with many different acts in Branson so that will be fun to hang with my friend "the star"!!

Ok..enough of this talk...I need to get some sleep so I can go all weekend with as little sleep as possible so I can cram as much family and friends into the trip as possible! I hope your Christmas is filled with family and friends and all the joy of the Christmas season!!


Recent picture of That Kid and That Other Kid...for our family pictures!

Merry Christmas!!

HoeDown Finale

It's time for the HoeDown Finale with the Sisterhood.This has not been a very successful challenge for me, but it has nothing to do with my wonderful team members or the challenge itself. It has EVERYTHING to do with the follow-through on my goals. I had 4 goals for this challenge...let's see how I did, huh? (or maybe we should just skip this part??!!)

1)continue tracking my food in LoseIt on Ipod Touch, NOT SO MUCH -- in fact I have it set up to send me an email showing how I did each day...for the past 2 weeks it shows I haven't eaten anything nor done any exercise. Um...obviously, that isn't true.

2) eat my fruits/veggies 5 servings a day, NOT SO MUCH here either -- probably 1 or 2 a day (but since I didn't track my food, maybe not even that much)

3)exercise EVERY SINGLE DAY, DID OK on this one, not EVERY day but most but the problem with this one is that most of the time it was done LATE at night when I just didn't have the energy left to put much into it!
This week I did 355 minutes of exercise and last week I did 347 so I did increase the minutes (albeit just a few minutes) so I met that goal from the Sisterhood!

4) lose 10 pounds (186.2), putting me at LESS than what I have been in OVER 7 years.
Um...ok so this is the one I'm most upset about...I only lost a MEASLEY .2 pounds this challenge. But when you look at all the other things that I struggled with I guess its better than gaining 10 pounds which could have happened!

I started this challenge at 196.2 and I'm ending it at 196. I have to admit that I am very disappointed in the lack of dedication and success that I have had in the past month, BUT instead of beating myself up over it for the next 2 weeks and eating even MORE food (cuz of course that would make me feel better, right? NOT!!) I am going to look at what I know I need to do to get back on track and really stay with this. I need to kick up the exercise, eat more fruits/veggies and TRACK my food! These are tried and true things that will work for me, IF I DO THEM!!

I also need to get over my emotional funk that I have been in the past few weeks and just accept the things in my life that I can't change and only concentrate on the things that I can change!

I am so grateful to have been part of the Lean Green Losing Machine and from what I have seen EVERYONE has a had a VERY successful challenge of losing weight and changing this holiday time of little exercise and weight gain and turned it into a time of healthy(ier) eating and losing weight. (Of course I can't really say losing point 2 pounds was successful, but whatever!!) Everyone else did AWESOME and we won the Fitness challenge every week except last week so we are all on the road to great health and fitness!

That being said, I'm looking forward to the next challenge that starts next week because I really do need to focus on ME for a while. I have LOVED being part of the teams and we will be sticking together to build each other up and support each other but I really need to focus on getting my act together. There are some things coming up in my life very soon that are going to test me beyond my wildest imaginations and I need to be focused on taking care of me or I am going to be crashing hard!! So...if you are the praying kind I would definitely appreciate some prayers. As the time gets closer and more sure I will talk about it in more detail but for now I just need to STAY FOCUSED ON MY HEALTH and WELL-BEING so I can handle anything that comes my way!

The way things have been going time wise I probably wont be back on here till after Christmas, so if I don't chat with ya'll again....I pray each of you have a Very Merry Christmas!!

Another Week of Holiday HoeDown

Another week has passed on the Holiday HoeDown and I am surprised that I haven't taken the time to write any posts in the past week. What is up with me?? I wish I had an answer other than just blahs and not really interested in doing much for the past few weeks. But....it's weigh in time and although I haven't had a stellar week and I've had the blahs I have to keep checking in for Weigh-ins. It keeps me "somewhat" on track.

So...here are the numbers

Last week's weigh in: 196.8
This week's weigh in: 196 (at least that's what the Wii board told me and that's what I have to go on this week. Apparently the "lithium batteries" that NEVER DIE...DIED this week because my regular scales aren't working!)

I will take the slight loss and just go with it...cuz that's all I've got, ya know!!

As for the other challenges for the HoeDown with the Sisterhood I did get some minutes in but NOT anywhere close to what I should be doing....it was only 347 minutes. I know for some people that would be considered a great number of minutes but for me my goal was to exercise AT LEAST 60 minutes per day...and I fell WAY short on that.

I have been working through the C25K program (ready for Week 7) and the past week has been extremely difficult to keep up with. My legs are sore, my hips are sore and I'm just plain tired, so that kept my exercise minutes very limited several days. I have been stretching, taking advil, and soaking in espom salt baths and they seem to be helping but I still am hurting when I do much of anything. Last night I just got tired of all the complaining and whining in my head and did the WiiFit Plus Free Step Aerobics while I watched the Biggest Loser Finale. It was nice to be moving instead of sitting on my hiney watching the show....because if I'm sitting there watching tv I'm feeling sorry for myself and probably eating. This way I was moving for 1 1/2 hours!! Nice!!

Another part of this weeks challenge was to "do something new" for exercise....sadly I can't say I did anything new...pretty much all the same stuff. Looking back over the week, I can't say I have any excuses for not trying something new...other than "just cuz I didn't". But this week will be different. I will do something new and I will report on it.

Hope ya'll are staying focused on the true meaning of Christmas as you are going through the busy-ness of the month of December....and are having a great time with your family and friends. This year I am spending a lot of time reflecting on what this time of the year means to me. Hope you are too!

Holiday HoeDown -- Week 3 Weigh In

Today is Wednesday and so we all know it's time for Weigh In over at the Sisterhood. Once again I didn't feel real confident in how well I did this week, but all I could do was hop on the scale and see what it told me.

Last week's weigh in: 197.6

Today's weigh in: 196.8

So...not a big loss but a loss is a loss at this point in the game for me. I haven't been doing great on the eating plan although I have been trying to be conscience of what I am doing, and I haven't logged my food in several days -- BAD for keeping me "in the know" of what I am doing.

I have been doing pretty well with the exercise and I have started using the EA Sports Active 2 game that I won through the Shrinkvivor challenge as well as continuing with the C25K training program (for the Virtual 5K with the Sisterhood on January 8). I completed my second 5K this weekend so that added a good amount of exercise minutes! My total minutes for the week was 461 which wasn't what I wanted to aim for but it is still a lot of exercise for one week!!

For this week our non-scale related challenge was to do something different that we have never done! Before Saturday I had NEVER, EVER RUN for more than 20 minutes without stopping to walk, but I did it this weekend and even added 2 1/2 extra minutes to that!Not only this, but I did this race with my 20 year old son! It was something that I want to do again! It was awesome!! You can read my full race report on my previous post. It was a big day for me!!

ok...it's been a crazy few days and I'm exhausted so I'm off to go to bed. Hope ya'll are having a good week and a great Holiday season!

Karate and 5K Weekend....

Catchy title, huh??

Saturday morning we got up bright and early to attend That Other Kid's karate belt test! He was testing for his "red belt" in the Little Dragons program (for 6 and under students) and he was stoked! Friday night he practiced his kata for Form 2 and perfected it just in case he was asked to do it for his test. He had been told he would have to know Form 1 and Form 2 in order to get his new belt, but we weren't sure if he would actually have to do it or not. This is the last belt before advancing to "American Karate" for students 7 and older so it was a BIG DEAL!!


Horse Riding Stance


Beginning Form 2


part of Form 2


Finishing up Form 2

I was sooooo proud of him....he did awesome during the belt test and concentrated to the best of his ability for this test. He had some awesome kicks and powerful punches and one of the moms told me "he did great"! Toward the end of the testing session after the entire group was done the lead instructor called him out of the group and said that "since you are the big bad brown belt you get to show us your kata". He was the only brown belt in the test so he had to do this by himself. The instructor asked him which kata he wanted to do and he replied "form 2". So he was told to go ahead. He turned to face the crowd of parents and started. I couldn't believe how well he did. He kicked above his head on some of his kicks. He did every move just as he was supposed to and shocked even the instructor with his performance! It was a proud mommy moment when other parents came up to me and said he did "awesome"!


First sweat to tough your new belt! And yes, there was sweat, especially after the kata!


Congratulations to the newest Red Belt!


Once he received his RED BELT we left the studio and went to breakfast to celebrate. It was a nice way to celebrate his achievement. After breakfast (whole wheat pancakes w/fruit for me) we went home and I started preparing for my 5K race with That Kid.

My friend that was going to watch That Other Kid at the race injured her foot and was not able to attend so That Other Kid had to stay home since dh had to work. He was really bummed out and told me if he "couldn't go then neither could I". I felt bad for him, but I told him there would be other races that he would be able to attend. Once I got to the race location I'm really glad he didn't go...there were sooooo many people there it was crazy. There were 1355 racers for the 5K and before that there was a 1 mile "fun run" for kids. I have no idea how many there were in that race but it was crazy just how many people were there. The park that the race was in is not really that big and there were masses of people EVERYWHERE!! It took more than 5 minutes to get up to the starting line and I wasn't even at the back of the pack!

That Kid got to the race site about 20 minutes before the starting gun went off so we didn't really have time for much of anything other than getting his shirt and the timing chip on him. We had another race participant take our picture together and I had him take mine but that's all we got. I was kind of bummed that I didn't get one of me crossing the finish line but there will be other races!! (I have to keep saying that to make sure it happens!!)




Anyway...here are some of the details from the race!

Saturday was C25K Wk5D3 -- walk 5 minute for warmup, run 20 minutes, walk 5 minute for cool down, so my goal was to do my training for this race and then walk and "maybe" run some afterwards. We started the race at a sllllllooooooowwwww walk to get up to the starting line and I had already decided I would start running when I crossed the line, so I did. I started my run at 2:27 into my "warmup" and kept running until the podcast said, "cool down" !!! At that point I started walking and took off my long sleep t-shirt!! I was HOT!! It was only 50 degrees and already close to 5p.m. but I had worked up a sweat running for 22 1/2 minutes!! I was about 1 minute away from the 20 minute run session being complete when I looked down at the IPod and saw that I had already RUN 20 full minutes!! I almost started crying I was so shocked and happy! I asked That Kid if he thought I could do this well and he said, "Yeah, I knew you could do it"!! I can't tell you how happy that made me!! Another proud mommy moment!

At that point, after I had shed my t-shirt and did my "cool down" I told That Kid I wanted to finish off the race by running 1 minute/walking 1 minute intervals so he started timing me and encouraging me to keep it up! I was going slow but I was keeping up with the intervals. Toward the end of the race we had to go up a hill and I had to take a walk break on that one, but then I ran extra on another of the intervals. A couple of times as we were running he started running backwards and had me do short sprints to "tag" him in order to start walking again! He made it fun to keep pushing myself harder even though I was tired at that point! One time he was running backwards and I passed a lady and she said, "show off!" and I said, "yeah, it must be rough to be able to show off like that so far into the race"!

Btw, I was passing people all through out the race and I can't tell you how good that felt! Yes, lots of them were walking or with dogs but I was still passing people even some RUNNERS (or woggers)!!

I finished the race with a burst of UPHILL energy (what is it with putting the finish line at the top of a hill???) with an official time of 46:19 and 58th out of 83 in the 45-49 year old females!! That time is 2:09 faster than my first 5K that I did with my brother in October and I can assure you I ran A LOT MORE during this race!

The C25K program is slated to be complete on January 8th and the Sisterhood of Shrinking Jeans is holding a virtual 5K that day. I'm hoping to find a "real" 5K to run here the metroplex. I've already told That Kid I'm planning to run on January 8th if he wants to run again with me! He didn't say yes or no, but I think he's at least thinking about it!

It was a great Saturday!!

The I Lost Weight This Week!!! Weigh In

Today's weigh in for the Sisterhood was one I wasn't really looking forward to. Over Thanksgiving I really threw caution to the wind and ate a lot of crap I don't usually eat and I ate ALOT of it, too! So this morning when I got on the scales I didn't know what to expect. I did know that the past 2 days I had eaten well within my calorie allotment and I had drank ALOT of water. I also stayed on track with my exercising at least 1 hr a day. The rest of the week I was lacking in many of these areas...ok how 'bout all of them?? if I'm going to be honest!

So..onto the scale:

Last week's weigh in: 197.6
Today's week's weigh in: 196.6

I could hardly believe my eyes!! But I was happy to see that I had lost! This told me that I can lose weight any time....all I have to do is be dedicated to working out and eating right and even if I blow it for a few days I can recover quickly!

YAY!!

A couple other victories for me this week...my hubby told me it looks like my stomach is getting smaller now that I am running so much! That really made my day!! He's told me that several times this week so that tells me that it really is happening!! My stomach seems to be the one area of my body that (to me) is staying the same or at least getting smaller slower! and I have been keeping on track with my C25K training and ran 5 minutes in 3 different sessions on Monday. I'm about to head out to run for Wk5D2 now and I'm supposed to run 8 minutes twice! I'm a little nervious about that but I know if I just decide I can, then I will! My true test of how far I have come with the running will be Saturday when I am supposed to run for 20 minutes without walk breaks! This will be during my 5K with That Kid, too so that will make it even more special!!!

Ok...off to run...and all the other mom stuff slated for today. Hope ya'll had successes this week!

Thanksgiving Confessions....

Time for Confession time again over at the Sisterhood. I knew that this week would be somewhat of a challenge, but I had no idea I would go this crazy with the food...

Here are my confessions:

I love to bake...and I baked ALOT over the past week...unfortunately I ATE MOST of what I BAKED! Apple pie, pumpkin pie, banana bread, oatmeal cookies, chocolate chip cookies...and that's just the desserts! As far as the meal I did fine with that and didn't even eat a million dinner rolls like I usually do...it was the "after dinner" that I failed at!

Since I had done so miserable with the desserts and baked goods on Thursday I figured the rest of the weekend was going to be miserable with digestive issues and just didn't watch what I ate at all....way too many desserts (gotta get them out of the house, ya know??!!)

Then I just threw caution to the wind on Sunday and ate a cinnamon roll for breakfast, some banana bread and a soda for lunch and a cheeseburger, fries, coke, and Butterfinger Shake for dinner. I figured the weekend was a bust on the eating so I was at least going to end it with a shake! But...the good news is I have eaten well yesterday and today!!

My hubby asked me if I was gonna confess these transgressions to my "peeps" and I told him, "yes I needed to make sure everyone knows that I am weak!!" I thought it was funny that he was asking me about this!!

I got my EaSports Active 2 game from Mr. UPS yesterday and That Other Kid wanted to play it before me...I wouldn't let him! I wanted to play it first and I did!! It was great, btw! But he was up first thing this morning wanting to play it! He's played it twice today and he got his heart rate up WAY higher than I did last night...I guess I need to work harder! lol

I got the "junk" out of the house and I am back on track for eating right and I have been guzzling water so I am hoping I don't have a major gain tomorrow morning! Glad Thanksgiving only comes once a year!!

C25K Training -- Preparing For the Next Race

Over the past 4 weeks I have been running with some of my Sisters over at the Shrinking Jeans. We have been preparing for a Virtual 5K to take place on January 8th, 2011. It has been fun to train (virtually speaking) with all these other great women and I'm finding that although I don't really love running like most of the die-hard hard-core runners do, I am finding that I actually like to run. At least I like the challenge of it! On my first 5K that I ran with my brother on October 2, I was very ill-prepared. I had been running ONLY on the treadmill and I didn't know how to deal with weather conditions and hills, etc, etc. This time I am running outside and I'm learning (although sometimes not happily) to deal with different weather conditions!

As the January 8th Virtual 5K approaches I decided I wanted to "see how I was doing" and run in another race before this one, so I found one that was local (in Ft. Worth) and decided to sign up! The race I signed up for I was supposed to run with a friend but she couldn't do it because of some family obligations so I asked That Kid if he would like to run it with me. His response was "Ugh, No I hate running!", but on the night before I was going to sign up he texted me and asked me details of the race and said he would like to run the race with me!! Oh be still my heart!! I quickly signed us both us and now we are 6 days away from race day! The race is at 4:30 p.m. on December 4th and I'm beginning to feel ready for it! And besides I get to spend some one-on-one time with my oldest son!! A mom can't beat that (especially since he's 20 years old and is rarely around!!)

According to the C25K training plan I am supposed to run for 20 minutes NON-STOP that day!! Right now that looks pretty "out there" but I'm going to give it my all and do as close to that 20 minute run as I can. My plan from there is to do walk/run intervals and cross the finish line RUNNING!! My secondary goal is to do it UNDER 48 minutes because I want to beat my 5K from October!

This is also a fundraiser for the Arthritis Foundation, so although I'm not really trying to raise huge amounts of money I would like to raise some money for this great organization that does so much for so many! Here is the email they sent me giving some more information regarding the race and the fundraising necessary for the organization. I would love to have your support...either by having you there with me or with your donation!


This year, I am tying jingle bells to my shoelaces and raising funds for the Jingle Bell Run/Walk for Arthritis. Did you know that one in five Americans has arthritis? That's more than 46 million Americans including over 300,000 children – yes, kids get arthritis too.


Arthritis is much more than just aches and pains. For many, it significantly impacts their ability to complete simple tasks like dressing themselves or even walking.

Arthritis hurts. You can help. Please join me in the fight against arthritis by supporting me with a donation to the Arthritis Foundation.

It is easier than ever to support this great cause - you can make a donation online by simply clicking on the link at the bottom of this message. If you would prefer, you can also send me your tax-deductible contribution made out to the Arthritis Foundation. Any amount you can give will help!

Or, you can accept this simple challenge and join me at the starting line!

I truly appreciate your support and will keep you posted on my progress.

If you can help by donating for this cause I would greatly appreciate it. Just click here and the link will take you to the donation page for me!

Thanks!!

I can't wait to write my race report next week!! I'm hoping it's a good one!!

Vlogging Holiday Traditions

you may need to crank up your volume to hear this...I did it with my old camera cuz my new camera takes up too much computing space and I can't download it on you-tube!






Thanksgiving is also the time of the year that I take time out of my busy-ness and sit down and think of all I have to be thankful for....this year I have MUCH to be thankful for...and I have a post coming up just to discuss some of those many things. I hope you take the time out to sit down and think of those things you are thankful for, also!

This is my Grandma's Banana Bread recipe...

2 1/2 cups Cake Flour
3 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup milk (I used skim this year and it tasted fine)
1 1/2 cups mashed, ripe bananas (I usually use 4)
1 cup chopped walnuts; optional (this makes it taste yummy, but I didn't have any this year and I probably saved myself a lot of calories)

Sift flour, add baking powder, salt and sugar. Add in egg and milk to the dry mixture till dampened. Then add in bananas and nuts. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake in BUTTERED loaf pan (don't skip this step...trust me!) Bake for 50 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick or fork comes out clean when inserted in center of loaf!!

Enjoy!

I don't remember a year that we didn't have this banana bread for the holidays and now that she is no longer here on earth with us, I always have to make it. It makes me feel like she is still with me!

Nutritional info: Who knows???? But you could make it healthier by changing just a few ingredients but I say you gotta live a little around the holidays so eat up...just work out a little extra, ya know??!!!

Holiday Hoe-Down -Week One Weigh In

Well let's get right to it shall we? This week was HARD!! Mentally I was not in the game. I got some news/information from That Kid (20 year old son) 10 days ago that has hit me like a ton of bricks and has left my mind swirling in directions that it should not be swirling in. I know I can't change anything that he decides and eating more crappy food to "make me feel better" won't do anything but derail my efforts at weight loss. I "KNOW" this but I can't seem to make myself apply this knowledge.

So...last week's weigh in: 196.2

This week's weigh in: 197.6

Up 1.4 lbs...

I know there will be weeks when I won't lose much weight. I also know that there are weeks when I will have setbacks but this is just a sad display of my lack of effort.

I logged 575 minutes of exercise...My goal for this challenge is to exercise at least one hour per day. I didn't make that goal this week but I did get close and logged some great exercise minutes. For this week my goal will be to consciously eat only when I'm hungry...not whenever I "feel" like it and to eat my VEGGIES....I'm eating plenty of fruits just not veggies.

So I'm going to need some serious help this week from my "Lean Green Losing Machine" team and all my other sisters, so that I can indeed be a losing machine...and meet my goal for this challenge!

New Challenge -- Holiday Hoe Down

New Challenge starts today over at the Sisterhood....and it's gonna be another great one with Teams. The Green Tribe did so well last challenge that we decided to stick together...we just made a couple of small adjustments to it; adding Heather's hubby to the mix and changing the name to The Lean Green Losing Machine! How exciting to be doing another challenge together. We clicked so well together and pushed and challenged each other to do the best we could and I'm not expecting anything less during this challenge. It will be great to be doing a challenge during the busy holiday time, with Thanksgiving and Christmas coming up soon.

So here are my stats:

Starting weight March 25,2009 -- 226.8 (figure I need to start looking at this as a COMPLTE journey not monthly or weekly!)

Ending weight last challenge, November 3 -- 193.4
Last week's weight -- 200!! UGH!!

Today's weight Starting challenge -- 196.2 (so up from end of last challenge but DOWN from last week!)

My goals for this challenge: 1)continue tracking my food in LoseIt on Ipod Touch,
2) eat my fruits/veggies 5 servings a day, 3)exercise EVERY SINGLE DAY, 4) lose 10 pounds (186.2), putting me at LESS than what I have been in OVER 7 years. To me that would be a major victory in this challenge of losing weight and I know if I am faithful to do all I can I will accomplish it!!

I have my team to help me, too....not to mention all the wonderful Sisters at Shrinking Jeans!!

So let's move it on out and lose this weight before the end of the year!!

I'm Signed Up For My Second 5K

I just finished signing up for my second 5K. This one is for a special cause the Arthritis Foundation. I would love to have your support!! Donate if you can, come watch me run if you can or just send me some hugs on Saturday, December 4th! This is going to be a special run, because That Kid is going to run it with me!! Yes, my 20 year old son has agreed to run this race with me....he wants to start running and getting back into good physical condition and I guess he figures this will be a good opportunity to do so! I hope he isn't embarrassed by how slow I run and he will slow down enough so I don't pass out from his pace! I'm so happy to have him do this with me! We haven't done anything special like this together in forever and I'm really looking forward to it!

Now...to continue my C25K training plan and losing weight so I will be able to run a lot more of this one than the one I did in October! By the time of the race I will be finishing up Week 5 of the plan, which is a staight 20 minute run without walk breaks...I wonder if I can do it during the race!! At this point my goal is to do that 20 minute run and then alternate walking and running to finish it up with a time of LESS THAN 48:28 which was my time for my first 5K! I believe that is completely doable!! Check back with me in a couple of weeks though!!

A Giveaway for Lands End -- Not here...but There

Beth is giving away a Land's End coat for either a boy or a girl tomorrow and I'm trying to win it, since That Other Kid could really use a new coat this winter...not that he will wear it that much since we live in North Texas and all and we are expected to have a "warmer than normal" winter but we do go to Kansas every winter and it is COLD there so a coat will come in handy there...anywho....

So...go check out her post and don't comment or anything cuz there is a four in 117 chance I could win right now! k??

If you do go over and comment you can tell Beth that I told ya'll about the giveaway and maybe I'll get bonus points or something!!

The Weigh In Post That Almost Wasn't

I'm here to tell you that the "funk" that I talked about yesterday has GOT TO GO!! It will but I may need help...

I got on the scale this morning and I knew it wouldn't be pretty but I had no idea how "UNPRETTY" it would be. In fact before weighing I thought..."its not challenge week I will just skip weighing". I knew I would not be happy with the number on the scale but I didn't really want to face up to it. I just wanted to sit there and "pretend" it wouldn't be that bad. I wanted to just sit here and be in a funk not really thinking about what the funk was doing to me or my household.

But I got on that scale and almost barfed at the number on it...and then I had a couple of decisions to make: 1) own up to it...my eating was BAD this week, my exercise was less than full force, and I haven't really given much thought to my overall well being; or 2) I could ignore it and pretend "it" (the bad eating, lack or quality exercise and ensuing weight gain) didn't exist.

Well the Ann of last year would have just blown it off and pretended it didn't exist, but I AM DIFFERENT NOW...so I'm going to OWN UP TO IT!! So here goes, and let me warn you if you think Frado's (from Biggest Loser) gain was huge last week I have a shock for you!!

Last week's weigh in: 193.4
Today's weigh in: 200

Ok..so now that that embarrassment is over with let me tell you today is a new day and next week when Wednesday's new challenge rolls around I will not be anywhere near that 200 number! I will be eating and drinking right, getting enough sleep and plenty of healthy-good-for-me exercise! I will continue tracking my food (I have been doing this just not paying attention to the fact that EVERY DAY I have WAY exceeded my calorie goal)! It doesn't really make much sense to track your food if every day you go WAY over your calorie count, now does it?

I have been doing the C25K training run/walks, but that is all I have been doing this week for exercise and that's going to change starting today. I have already done my run for today but tonight I am going to do some kind of additional exercise for no less than 30 minutes...I'm thinking EA Sports More Active or maybe I will let Jillian kick my butt with The Shred since I obviously need someone to kick my butt and get me moving in the right direction again.

Starting today I will be eating 5 fruits/veggies a day, not drinking sodas and eating only the foods that I know I should be eating - not eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich at midnight or polishing off a bag of chips my son is done with and pretending it won't matter!

Ok...so that is my pledge to you, my readers, my Sisters and myself! Please help me during my renewed committment!! I will pull through this week and be a better woman for it!!

Confession Time -- In A Funk

It time for confessions again over at the Sisterhood.

I have been in a funk all week, don't really know why, but it is true. It's affecting the way I exercise, the way I think, the way I eat and the way I act around my family. I have been sitting around just vegging out at night blog hopping. It hasn't been pretty, either. DH has noticed and he wants to know "what's wrong?"

I don't really have an answer.
I physically am not sick.
I feel a little blah.
I don't want to sit in a dirty house, but don't really feel like cleaning it either.

My hormones seem out of sorts, cuz I am grumpy sometimes for no apparent reason.
I feel bloated but that may have something to do with my minimal exercise and excessive eating of salty foods.
I don't really have "that time of month" too often but I seem to be feeling like I should, ya know? Maybe I'm going through pre-menopause? Any ideas?? I don't know but I really need this feeling of "blah-ness" to go away.

2 weeks ago the trainer at the gym asked me how committed I am to losing this weight and I told him on a scale of 1 - 10 I was definitely committed 100%....but the past week I haven't acted like it. Maybe I just need a swift kick in the booty!

I have been following the C25K training plan and running/walking but that's about all the exercise I have been getting the past week and a half. That's gotta change or my weight will NOT go down...

Help me pull out of the funk, will ya??!!

Healthy Food Choices Make A Difference

This month is The Taste Of Sisterhood month over at the Sisterhood of Shrinking Jeans and I was asked to show/talk about a meal that I love.

Well it's nothing fancy and it's nothing special but it is what I eat nearly every morning for breakfast! The fact that I just said I "eat it nearly every morning" is a major change for me in my healthy eating journey of weight loss. I used to HATE eating breakfast and NEVER felt "hungry" at breakfast so I wouldn't eat it. But NOW I eat breakfast every day (and on those days I can't eat my "normal" breakfast I grab something to eat in the car or on the go....BIG change for me!!

Anyway, without further ado here is my breakfast of choice --


No Fat Plain Greek Yogurt with a diced apple and almonds!! YUM!! and with a decent sized apple and 20 raw almonds it is only 323 calories which is (according to my calorie count) just about right for breakfast!

It is filling and good for me! On those days I just don't have time to eat this for breakfast I grab a banana and a Fiber One bar and within about 1 hour I am hungry again. When I eat my yogurt breakfast I am not hungry for around 3 hours (ie lunch time)!! Love that!!



For the Monday Project this month we are supposed to cook one thing that the ladies/gent featured and talk about it. That one was pretty easy for me because as soon I saw Ryan's sausage/egg omlete I knew I was going to make it as long as I could find the 2 main ingredients. That turned out to be an easy task, too since they were both at the local grocery store I shop at all the time...in fact I was there 3 times in 2 days this weekend! lol Although I did make a couple of substitutions -- like no salsa and "spicy italian" instead of "habanero" (which my grocery store didn't carry) I think it was a pretty successful healthy breakfast for my dh...I gave him a piece of whole wheat toast too!!

My eggs didn't turn out as nice looking as Ryan's did this morning because he forgot to mention in his instructions to make sure to use LOTS of cooking spray before you put those sausages in the pan!! My husband said the sausage was great and made the plain, boring egg whites edible!!







So there you have it...breakfast for the adults in this household today!!

Homeschooling: The First Grade Edition

I don't talk much on the ol' blog about the fact that I homeschool That Other Kid, but it's true, I do. During the time when I was working full time it was EXTREMELY difficult and if I'm being honest here (which I want to be) I really didn't do much in the lines of school the entire 7 months I worked, but in my opinions that is one of the beauties of homeschooling in Texas. I didn't have to "prove" my work (or his) to anyone other than myself and dh. Now don't get me wrong, we worked on some math and some handwriting and even attempted working on phonics occasionally it just wasn't consistent and it wasn't much. It never really seemed to matter that much to That Other Kid because he was busy playing, watching tv and just doing whatever. UNTIL we went to Kansas for my 5K and he started talking to his cousin who is 5 months younger than he is! He then found out that "she is in first grade and I'm supposed to be in the same grade as she is because I'm older than she is!!"

Hold on here...peer pressure from the cousin...hum, something I had never thought of!
So when we got back to good ol' Texas I told him I was no longer working and I would be home almost all the time now, so we were going to get moving with school, so he could be in first grade like his cousin. Before I continue I should mention that he has been doing first grade math (ABeka) and handwriting (A Reason for Handwriting) since he started kindergarten last fall because he basically knew everything in the kindergarten curriculum before we started doing ANY school....but phonics was another story. He knew his letters but start putting sounds to those letters and he was stumped so we had to take phonics at an incredibly slow speed (at least it seemed to me). So we were about half way done with math and handwriting and only about 1/3 of the way done with Level 1 of Hooked on Phonics, which is what I am calling kindergarten phonics. So...enter in some peer pressure. He wanted to know when he would be in "real" first grade like his cousin, so I told him once we finish Level 1 of phonics he would be in FIRST GRADE! So we did a little math and a little handwriting this past month but mostly concentrated on phonics! On Friday he had 10 little books to finish reading and then he would be done. Over the weekend, YES, I SAID WEEKEND, he finished all 10 books so now we start this week as "an official first grader"! He was sooooo excited yesterday when he finished his last book that he was literally bouncing off the couch and screaming, "I'm a first grader!!"

So...today we start first grade and I plan to add spelling (spelling words from Hooked on Phonics words he is learning), geography and art into the mix and see how that works. We already go to a cool science class every other Friday, so that subject is pretty much taken care of for this year. We will probably finish his math and handwriting up sometime in January so then I will need to decide if I'm going to buy the 2nd grade level or just do some "extra" things for math and handwriting until he "catches up". Just another day in the life of a homeschooling mom!

So...I just wanted to let ya'll know that I have an "official first grader" and I will be spending more of my time getting That Other Kid edjamucated!! I am almost as excited as he is but don't tell him!!

C25K Training -- Day 4 of Week 1

Today was really Week 1 Day 4 of the C25K training plan, but according to my Ipod it was only Day 3. Wednesday when I was at the gym doing my run, I switched over to another app right before the end of my training session and erased my entire Day 2!! So...I had a choice to make...either run today to "make up" my missed day on the app or just make my new "week" start on Wednesday instead of Monday. I really want to try to adhere to the Monday, Wednesday, Friday or Saturday training plan so that my body has time to recover so I decided to take advantage of running this morning before the day got too busy. I'm soooo glad I did!

Today I went by myself since dh was home to supervise That Other Kid and so I was free to take a little bit more of a risk as far as where I went. I went out onto the main street (sidewalk only) and so I was able to run/walk freely. I ended up going a total of 2.77 miles in the 31 minutes that I ran! I'm so excited to see the progress from just this week! I can only imagine where I will be in a couple of weeks!

Here is the progress for the week:

Monday - I'm not real sure how far I went, but I'm guessing around 1.75 miles

Wednesday -- On the treadmill at the gym, 1.83 miles

Friday -- In my old neighborhood with the wind and cold temperatures, 2.5 miles

Saturday -- In my neighborhood, including the busy street/sidewalk, 2.77 miles

I think that's pretty good progress for one week, huh??!!

btw, I added this nifty gadget so I (and ya'll) can see my progress of weightloss! I think it will help me stay motivated if I see this in my face all the time!

Thanks For Your Support

Well today was the day for the Ultimate Shrinkvivor announcement. I knew I was going to be gone most of the day so I got up and looked right away to see if they put the announcement of the winner -- to no avail. They posted a great recipe, but not the announcement I was waiting for, so I left with That Other Kid and my phone fully charged so I could CONSTANTLY check for the announcement I knew would soon be coming.

Would I be the Ultimate Shrinkvivor?? It was anyone's guess at this point and I was anxious to find out!

We went to see MegaMind with some friends and then went to lunch. The movie was great so I was distracted enough with the movie that I didn't check my email or the Shrinking Jeans website till after the movie. Still no announcement and it was nearly 1 p.m.!! UGH!! When will they get the winner posted??!! We went to lunch and I check a couple of times during lunch...still nothing! After lunch we went to the park and I had planned to run for my C25K training. It was cool (only 58 degrees) and windy but I needed a distraction and I really didn't want to run on the treadmill again today, so I left That Other Kid at the park in my friend's care and took off with my Ipod, my pedometer, my heart rate monitor and my bottle of water!

I did my run around the neighborhood (which happens to be my OLD neighborhood) and got back to the park where I sat down on the sidewalk to stretch. I took my phone out of my phone carrier (also known as the holder of the "girls"--where do ya'll keep your phones while you run??) and checked my email! Lo and behold, Melissa had just sent an email telling us the link was up! I was so excited...I tried to click the link but because it was a video I couldn't get it to pull up! I was sooooo bummed but I thought "hum, I wonder if Lissa is still online? She just got the link and email sent, maybe she is still there!" I emailed her and told her I couldn't pull it up on my phone...who won??!! It was truly my lucky day...she was still online and replied right away!! She told me Mary had won the Ultimate Shrinkvivor and that Sam had won Exile Island! I was momentarily bummed that I had not won, but it literally only lasted a moment, because I was sooooo happy for her. She really did work hard and lost a lot of weight. Plus once I realized who Mary was I really didn't think I had a chance. I mean come on now, Beth is her daughter! Beth is how I found out about Shrinking Jeans and I KNOW her network is HUGE! Not only did Mary have Beth supporting her but she has several other adult children and even grandchildren and extended family to support her! She's one very fortunate woman to have all of this love and support!

Anyway, I really appreciate all of you that voted for me and cheered me on during this challenge. I would not have been able to stay so focused without the support I got from everyone. I really appreciate all the support I got from the Green Tribe, too! We really did do amazing things during the past 7 weeks and I am so proud of all of us ladies. Not only did I lose 13 pounds but I met some wonderful women to share this journey of weight loss with! I know that the bonds we started building over the past 7 weeks will continue to grow because we are all in this together!

There are other challenges coming up soon so if you are in need of a wonderful support system to drop some pounds, no matter how many or how few pounds, you need to check the ladies of the Sisterhood out! You won't be sorry, and who knows what you will gain out of the experience? I do know one thing you will gain out of joining the Sisterhood....FRIENDSHIP!!

**C25K training update -- I ran/walked almost 2.5 miles today on my run! and I did it in 31 minutes!! I was soooo excited when I saw how far I had gone! I may actually be able to do my next race in a reasonable amount of time!!

Shrinkvivor Challenge Final Weigh In

The Shrinkvivor Challenge is nearly over and I am excited to report that I have lost a significant amount of weight this time around - 13.2 pounds to be exact!!

On September 15 (the beginning of Shrinkvivor) I weighed in at 206.6.

I have lost weight every week since this challenge started (which is a first for me during the Sisterhood challenges). Sometimes it was only a couple of ounces, sometimes it was much more, but the good news is I lost EVERY WEEK. Finally consistent weight loss!!

Today, at the final weigh in for this challenge, I weighed 193.4! Last week I was at 193.6, so not much change but a change in the right direction, non-the-less!

My goal weight for this challenge was 195 so I definitely met that goal!

My goals I had for this challenge were:

Track my food daily -- MOST DAYS
Lose weight EVERY week -- CHECK
Exercise NO LESS than 3 days a week (more than work related exercise, too - I don't really count that, although it is sometimes physically demanding I want to do something more organized) -- CHECK; I actually exercised 6 days a week! I took Wednesdays off...I needed the break!
Weigh 195 OR LESS -- CHECK
RUN my first 5k on October 2 -- and RUN more than I walk!! -- NOT SO MUCH -- I ran and walked my first 5k, but I have to admit it was more walking than running but that is changing as I start training for my next 5K!
Sleep no less than 6 hours a night -- lack of sleep has been scientifically proven to hamper your weight loss efforts. I don't want "lack of sleep" to be hindering me!! -- CHECK, I actually managed to sleep 7 hours a night except for 1 night that I only got about 5 and that day I took a nap that was at least an hour long!

So all in all I would say that this challenge has been a MAJOR success! Not to mention I am one of the Top 7 finalists which I never would have dreamed of becoming, but am excited to be a part of!! Won't you take a few minutes and go vote for me?? You have till Thursday night at 9 p.m. to vote! So go here and vote, k???

Thanks for hosting such a wonderful challenge Sisters!! Without your love and support who knows where I would be today!! Ya'll are the BEST!!!

***Edited -- I almost forgot (ok I did forget!) to mention I tried the rowing machine and the spin bike out at the gym this week! They were both challenging and FUN!! Gonna give them both some more of my attention in the coming weeks! Maybe I will eventually try a spin class...although I don't think I'm ready for that one yet!! Thanks for pushing me to try new things, ladies!!

Starting Couch-2-5K Again

***Edited...don't forget to vote for me over at the Sisterhood for the Ultimate Shrinkvivor! You can vote once a day thru Thursday night now!! Go Forth And VOTE!




Over the course of the next 9 weeks I will be training to run a Virtual 5k with my sisters from the Sisterhood of Shrinking Jeans. Last year they hosted a virtual 5k and I told myself there is NO WAY I could do that! Wow!! What a difference a year makes, huh? Not only am I going to do it, but I already did my first 5K last month. Before the virtual one takes place on January 8th I am planning to run with one of my real life friends on December 4th! That's only 1 month away!! Can I do it? Who knows if I will be able to run the whole thing by then but I'm going to give it my best shot! That will be my preliminary, test run for the January 8th one with my sisters!

Anyway, I wanted to make sure that I am ready for running outside this time, since my earlier 5k I didn't train at all for outside and I think that really threw me a BIG curve ball....so today I started the C25K training plan over by running outside. I also got this really cool app for my ipod that told me when to walk and when to run! It was one of the best $3 I have spent in a very long time! It played my music in the background and it was SUPER easy to use! Just the way I like it! It really helped alot and it was fun to be able to look down and see the minutes ticking by till I could stop running or till I needed to start running!

As I said I am doing this training a lot different...I have a good pair of shoes, I am making sure I am running outside (unless I just absolutely CAN'T), and I brought along a little running partner, That Other Kid! Since I homeschool him and he's only 6 (going on 16) I can't leave him at home alone. DH is not always home to supervise him for 30 - 45 minutes so I decided that he could do some of these training runs with me. He is naturally athletic but has become rather lazy because I couldn't get him out much while I was working, so he is in essence training for a 5K also! As the runs get longer I may not be able to take him along, but then again I know some kids that run that far for that long without too many problems. We'll see what happens.

Today was our first run and I explained what we were doing before we got started. I was surprised to hear him want to quit so soon after we got started which was after the 2nd run set! He complained that his legs were sore. He faked injury a couple of times and he said he was soooooo tired he just couldn't go on! But he did run most every time it was time to run. Of course, as soon as we got home he wanted to play football/catch with me and he was miraculously healthy once again!

I'm not real sure how far our course was today, but based on the milage in the car tonight I'm guessing it was about 1 1/2 miles. It wasn't the safest course for That Other Kid either, but it was what I started with today. When I have access to the car I will find better, safer courses that I can measure. Of course, I could take my handy-dandy pedometer...but I forgot today!

Anyway, I was pretty proud of myself today. I was able to run every interval the entire time. I was able to pace myself slowly enough that I didn't struggle with breathing issues and I was able to drink my water when it was walk time. I remembered my heart rate monitor and I was in my target zone for the majority of my session today, so I got optimum health benefits as well! I took the advice of my brother and went as slow as I needed to and I was successful! It felt so good! I wish I would have known these things last month...but oh well! Next year I will know how to run that race and run it well!

So...did ya'll start training for the virtual 5K today? If not, it's never too late to start! Just START!!

Vlogging Again-- This Time For The Shrinkvivor Challenge Grand Prize

The Shrinkvivor Challenge is coming to an end and I am one of the final seven! Because of that I am doing my second vlog of the week but....

this time I called in the professionals! My best friend's son is a WONDERFUL photographer and videographer so after I found out I needed to produce another vlog to enter for the "final seven" I sent him a facebook message asking for his help! He loves doing this kind of thing so he was happy to do it for me...and the quality of this vlog reflects the expertise that he has compared to mine from earlier this week. So thanks, Jake! You are great! Here's the video he helped me work up!! He's the BEST!!



Now that that is over with I want to link to all the great sponsors for this contest and let you see exactly what I am trying to win....The power is in your hands! So please vote for me, k? Click, A Beach Comber Bike; Land's End, $150 gift card; EA Sports, their newest game; BornFit, one of their great t-shirts; Fitness Coffee $100 of coffee; and a pair of jeans from MiracleBody Jeans(and who doesn't need a miracle body, right?)

I am so excited to be part of this wonderful group of women (and man) over at the Sisterhood of Shrinking Jeans. I don't know where I would be without them! They have changed my life forever, so if you haven't "met" them what are you waiting for? Go check them out and get to know them!!

I don't want to forget my Green Tribe Sisters, Becca, Jill, Mary, Heather, Sarah and Kati either! (And Becca and Jill are vying for this prize package too! YAY GREEN TRIBE) They were the best support for this challenge...we pushed each other further than I ever dreamed of being able to go and for that I am forever grateful! Thanks, girls!!

Now the only thing left is to vote...so vote for me (or any of the other 6 women) starting Saturday, October 30th at noon over at the Sisterhood. You can vote for me (or any of the other 6 women) once a day through Tuesday night, November 2. The winner will be announced on Thursday, November 4! Wish me luck, k?

Wow!! I'm One of the Seven!!

Over at the Sisterhood of Shrinking Jeans the past 6 weeks have been spent in a challenge called the Shrinkvivor...think Biggest Loser mixed with Survivor! Like a good little shrinker I have been participating in this challenge with my only goal to lose weight...My goal was to lose 11.6 pounds so that I could finish the challenge weighing 195 pounds. (I started the challenge at 206.6). I knew that if I worked hard, followed along with the tips the Sisters gave up and used the accountability of the Tribe I could meet my goal... but not without hard work and dedication.

Yesterday was the next to the last week of the challenge and I not only met but exceeded my weight goal! I was so excited! I weighed in at 193.6 pounds and I was thrilled! I had finally met a goal I had set for one of these challenges! I couldn't have been happier...UNTIL tonight!

This challenge is a little different from a lot of the other challenges from the Sisterhood. This challenge is sponsored by numerous great sponsors; CLICK, Land's End, EA Sports, MiracleJeans, BornFit! The grand prize (the Ultimate Survivor) will win prizes from all of these sponsors...over $1000 of goodies! And
guess what??? I am in the running for these prizes! I was one of the seven women who
are SURVIVING! I could hardly believe Melissa's voice when I heard it on the vlog tonight! In fact, if I would not have seen my name written on that piece of paper I would not have believed it! I had to listen twice!! I shouted out that I was one of the seven to my hubby! He came out of his office to congratulate me and then I texted my fellow TribeMate, Mary and told her the news. Then I emailed the group to tell everyone in case they didn't hear yet! Not only did I make the final 7 but so did TribeMates Jill and Becca!! Three of the final 7 were from Tribe Green!

Wow! What a great group of women and now we are to create a vlog or a blog entry answering 5 questions and have people vote for us! So watch for shameless begging to commence...VOTE for me (or Becca W or Jill G or Tiffany Z or Staci Lee F or Colleen B) anytime from Saturday afternoon to Wednesday night! We have all done great over the past 6 weeks and we definitely deserve to win!! (Actually we have already won...better health and less weight)!!

Congrats to all of the Shrinkvivors!! And let's not forget those people that have been sent to Exile Island. There are great prizes for the ultimate shrinker in Exile Island, too! We can't forget them...the person with the biggest percentage of weight loss over in Exile Island will win that title! and lots of prizes, too!

That's all for tonight...I will have my vlog up tomorrow night or Saturday morning first thing, so check back in!!

I AM Becoming A Runner....

I never thought I would be putting this badge on my blog page but here I am making a STATEMENT...



I ran/walked my first 5k on the 2nd of October with my brother. I put first in italics on purpose! It is my first but not my last. I have spent the past 3 1/2 weeks learning more about myself and my body and learning what I can and can't do. I learned that I need to pace myself better and get into better cardio condition. I also learned that if I want to run 5k's I need to get OUTSIDE to train! I have started that over the past week or so...I have run some short distances as the marathon running chiropractor has recommended. I ran to and from my mailbox center which (round trip) is about .42 mile. The first time I did it I did it in around 9 minutes, the second time I did it in around 7 minutes. So that is already an improvement! My ultimate goal is to be able to run a whole 5k without walk breaks but I now know that it is all a process...I'm not going to get there overnight.

My long term goal is to run the same 5k I just ran with my high school friends and brother next year and kill that time of 48:28 that I had this year! It's all a process and I'm ready for it...one step at a time, one day at a time and one ache and pain at a time! After spending this month going to the chiropractor I have learned that I need to listen to my body and NOT hurt myself in the process of trying to get fit and healthy! I'm learning! lol

So...if you want to become a runner or are a runner and don't know about the Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans I suggest you head over there and check them out...I have a feeling (based on a post tonight) that there is going to be some interesting running challenges happening SOON!

HAPPY DANCE WEIGH IN!!

This is gonna be short and sweet!! VERY SWEET!!

Starting weight for the Shrinkvivor Challenge was 206.6!

THIS WEEK'S WEIGH IN -- 193.8!! I tell ya I couldn't be happier with that weigh in this morning! It means I have lost over 6.1% of my weight in 6 weeks! It means I met my goal (of 195) for weight loss during this challenge and even KNOCKED it out of the ball park (kind of like the Rangers did with the Yankees this past weekend!)

SO....I have lots to be happy about today. First and foremost losing 12.8 pounds in 6 weeks and secondly for logging nearly 40 miles for the fitness challenge this week. I am also about to go to the gym and have a personal trainer help me find ways to lose this stomach that despite losing over 12 pounds appears to be bigger than it was 6 weeks ago!!

Ok..gotta go get ready for my busy, fun day! Just had to come shout it from the rooftops a little!! I MET AND EVEN EXCEEDED MY GOAL FOR THIS SHRINKVIVOR CHALLENGE!! Whooohooot!!!

Nothing Much To Confess!

For a change I don't really have much to confess for the Sisterhood. Things have been going pretty smoothly.

I could stand to up my fruits/veggie consumption a little bit (read; more consistently).

For the non-physical challenge this week for the Shrinkvivor challenge I am supposed to be aware of my trans-fat consumption. I have to say that for the most part (as long as I am eating at home) about the only trans-fats I eat are in peanut butter, so I have decided I am going to give Almond Butter a try, because I do love to eat peanut butter with apples and for an occasional pb&j! I will let you know what my taste buds think of it!

I have been putting in many, many miles daily of exercise so that has been GREAT! Last night I slacked off but I really wanted to get the laundry done and my vlog done!

I am drinking more than 100 ounces of water a day and when I find I am a lacking my water I start feeling so thirsty! Must be good for me, right?!!

I could also stand to get off the friggin' computer a little earlier in the evening and not spend so much of my "free time" there during the day as well.

But, I am finally finding my routine and getting things accomplished both for ME and for my household....I am getting the laundry washed, dryed and FOLDED within 24 hours! (This is a seriously BIG deal in my house!) I am exercising consistently again and I am staying away from the "junk" that caused my weight demise! We are even getting around to doing school and seeing friends on a consistent basis!

I even did my very first vlog last night so that I could enter a give away to go to FitBloggin in May with all my sisters!! The sound is too low so crank up the volume and listen to the reasons I want to go to FitBloggin 11!!

Hope your confessions for the week are good ones...and if they aren't then don't sweat it....just confess and MOVE ON!!

FitBloggin Vlog!! This Is My Chance!!

Ok..so when I saw the give away for the FitBloggin' tickets from the Sisterhood I was excited. I knew that a lot of my "sisters" would be there and that made me want to go even more! I asked my dh if I would be able to attend if I won the tickets. He said sure, "IF" I win then I could go and leave That Other Kid at home....or maybe we could all go and have a vacation! That made me want these tickets even more! We haven't had a family vacation in MANY years and this would be a great place to take one! So if you will excuse my appearance (it's late at night and I haven't showered all day even though I did a lot of exercising and housework, etc today) I present my very first Vlog so that I can attend FitBloggin' with all my friends and sisters!






I sure hope I win, cuz this is seriously taking forever to load!! What is up with that??

Thursday Three -- Time To Dream A Little

Today over at the Sisterhood Lisa asked us to consider for a minute what we would want if money were no issue. What do we want for ourselves if we could spend an unlimited amount of money to get things we want? It could be for health, fitness or totally unrelated...

Hum....kind of fun to dream a little, isn't it? Very few people know this about me so this will kind of be fun to dream like this for a few minutes...

1) IF money were not a consideration I would open and operate a home for unwed teenage pregnant girls. I would clothe them, house them, educate them, help them take care of their babies, and help them make a life for themselves AFTER the baby was born. I would also NOT take any government funds...so that Uncle Sam wouldn't be able to tell me how to care for them.

2) IF money were not a consideration I would adopt at least 2 girls. I always wanted to have girls but apparently God had other ideas for me...I have 2 boys! I love them both with all my heart and soul but I would love to have little girls to play with, teach, train and watch grow into young women!

3) IF money were not a consideration I would love to have a couple of "fun" cars. What is a fun car you may ask? Well I have always wanted a convertible Mercedes....like this one!! As for the other fun car, who knows?? I can't really decide...maybe a Volkswagon Bettle or a different kind of convertible!

Yes, It is fun to dream...Maybe one day, huh??!!!

A Break From The Regularly Scheduled Blubber

Tonight I come to you with a serious and humbling request. Melissa (my friend and sister from the Sisterhood) has 4 children. One of them, a 7 year old boy, has decided that what he wants for CHRISTMAS this year is to donate money so that under-developed (and undeveloped) countries can have clean water. He is donating his own personal money (and money he raises) and money that would be spent on gifts to this organization so that these countries and kids can have CLEAN WATER!

Now, I don't know about you but this just makes me tear up something fierce. That Other Kid will be 7 in just under 2 months so basically Bridger and That Other Kid are the same age and all TOK can talk about lately is what he wants for his birthday and Christmas. He wants this Lego set or that one. He wants this HotWheels set and this video game and this movie. I'm tellin' you it is making me nauseated to listen to all his "give me, give me, give me". I realize he's a kid and he wants new stuff. We all do, and I'm sure Bridger would love to have some new toys too but he is willing to put all his "wants" on the line so that these people can have CLEAN WATER! That makes me sooooo stinkin' proud of this kid I have never even met! Just makes me want to cry!

Ya know...if I want clean water I just go to the faucet and turn it on and viola there is clean water. Or since our water doesn't meet my "perfect" drinking water standards I go to buy bottled water that has been "purified" for my drinking pleasure!

But, these people don't even have water that is worthy of bathing in, or doing their laundry in...and that is what Bridger is trying to change. So will you help Bridger help others? I will!! And maybe, just maybe I can convince That Other Kid to help out too....ya know maybe a little good peer pressure!

This Week's Weigh In....

a bit disappointing but not terribly surprising....does that make sense??

I haven't had a BAD week just have had a hard time staying focused (I guess Christy said it best when she said she was in a bit of a "funk" this week. ME TOO!!) on what is truly important when it comes to eating right. You know eating fruits and veggies, drinking tons of water (although I have done above and beyond that), staying away from the fast food, and other restaurants. For some reason we have eaten out alot over the past week and that has been bad for the "eating right" lifestyle and the checkbook. Gotta change that! I have also had a few cokes...I guess I just wanted something to drink besides water all the time...and I KNOW THOSE HAVE TO GO....that is my biggest culprit to gaining weight and I'm not going to fall to those bad habits AGAIN.

So here are the results of my weigh in this morning.

Starting this challenge at: 206.6

Last week's weigh in: 196.6

This week's weigh in: 196.4

My goal for this challenge is to weighh 195 or less...so I still have over 1 pound to go and only 2 weeks to do it in...time to get moving downward!

So....Technically I did lose weight this week, but I don't know if counting .2 pounds is really fair to say "I lost weight", but I will take it for what it is and accept that if I want to make my weight go DOWN ALOT I have to stay away from eating out, and drinking cokes, and I need to inhale tons of fruits/veggies and I need to bust my tail on the exercise front! I did do something I am proud of this week...I participated in the #Exposed movement and I am happy that I did that. I will be able to look back at these photos next year and see what a difference 1 year can make!! I am also able to look at these pictures and see the GOOD things my body can and has done and that is worth all the mental anguish I endured before I hit publish!

I also got in a whopping 577 minutes of exercise in the 6 days of this challenge!! Whoohooo!!

And a special shout out to my tribe mates! Tribe Green has logged some AWESOME numbers this week...facing numerous health issues and injuries we still kicked some serious booty!! Go Green!!

Confession Time...AGAIN

Before I start this post I just want to tell everyone that I really appreciate all the loving comments that I got on my last post! Putting that post together was one of the most difficult things I have ever put out there but it was also one of the most liberating! I feel like I can now look at myself as I am TODAY and be happy with what I see...not just looking at the things I want to change. I can hardly wait for next year when I can look back at this post and compare the two!!



Now...onto the purpose of today...confession time! I really don't have that much too confess this week for the Sisterhood...although I would like to publicly admit that I have been less than stellar in the eating right and getting enough fruits/veggies department.

But...I am TRYING to eat in moderation and get fruits/veggies in.

When I am stressed out I don't really consider what I am putting in my mouth...until I LOG it into my Ipod's Lose It program...then I think, "OH NO!! I just consumed WAAAAY too many calories!" That has happened a couple of times this week and I'm hoping that it doesn't hurt me tomorrow on the scales!

I have been logging some seriously crazy minutes/hours of exercise this week for the Shrinkvivor challenge (which is probably the only thing that will save me tomorrow during the weigh in!). I guess it's a good thing the physical challenge for this week was to log minutes or I would be in deep trouble.

I went out yesterday and did some exercising with That Other Kid for our PE class (remember we homeschool and even homeschoolers need to have PE!!) One of the things I wanted to do was give running a try AGAIN! My hip is feeling somewhat more normal and I want to try running when I can outside so when I sign up for my next 5K I will be READY to truly run it....so I told him that we were going to RUN to the mail box center and back. So off we start...he is running A LOT faster than I am, but that's ok...he's YOUNG and fit...me not so much!, but before long he is "poofed out" and I'm still going strong! We get down to the mail box and I pull out the mail and start back again...I tell him to run but not too far ahead. I am running along and before I know it we are back in front of our apt. I look at my watch and see that we had been gone about 9 1/2 minutes! I RAN 9 MINUTES!! It felt good to be running again (even though it was slow) and not totally exhausted! I went back and measured the distance and figure that it was somewhere around .3 miles round trip...slow and steady will prepare me for my next race!!

That's it for tonight...happy Tuesday!!

I Can't Believe I'm Doing This!!

This month over at the Sisterhood we are learning to love ourselves. We are learning to accept our faults for what they are. We are learning to love our body for what it has done and what it is able to do. We are learning to look at our bodies and see the GOOD in it, not the bad.

Yesterday when Melissa told us what the Non-physical challenge was for this week I started hyper-ventilating. I want to be a full participating member of the Sisterhood. Accepting the challenges that they set before me (us), because I know they are only asking what they are asking of me (us) because it will help ME (and everyone else) in my (our) journey to a healthier, happier ME (US)! But come on...EXPOSE MYSELF TO THE WORLD!! Don't you think that is a little extreme?? What will this prove??? Will this make me a better person?? Will this make my journey go faster, smoother, easier?? How can I take pictures of myself in skimpy clothes and THEN POST THEM FOR THE WORLD TO SEE when I still weigh 196 pounds?? Wouldn't it be better to do this when I am at 130 or 140 pounds?? I'm sure I'll look soooo much better...

Believe me I debated this for hours last night in my head. I talked it over with my Tribe Green team mates. I looked for as many reasons as I could to not to this...but when it came right down to it, I couldn't really think of a LEGITIMATE reason NOT to do this...other than being ashamed of the way I look. Which is what the whole exercise is all about...not being ashamed of ME RIGHT NOW!! I am made in the IMAGE OF GOD SO I HAVE TO BE BEAUTIFUL, right??

So here I am...




all 196 pounds of me taken by my friend today in her back yard and my dh taken in my living room tonight. I don't look real happy in these pictures but that is because I am still having second thoughts about this whole exercise. In my head I am thinking I must be nuts, doing this...maybe I could just pretend I didn't read/hear about this part of the challenge. Maybe I could just skip it, it won't hurt anyone if I don't do this, will it? I have decided it will hurt someone! It will hurt ME!! I need to do this so that I can see where I have come from when my I am finally at my goal weight. I also need to do this so that I can see for myself the things about my body that are positive!

So here I go....I'm hitting Publish Post....Now