Final Post.....

I haven't been writing here for over 6 months and I don't really have the motivation to write here any longer so I have decided to not write here. I started a new blog last night and I hope you will come over and see me at my new page:

JuzCuz



The 2013 year is going to be one of change....I'm ready for the change and the new me that I will get for this change! I hope you will follow me over at the new blog and see all the excitement that I have planned there!

June Tune Up - Week 4

Well this week definitely wasn't my most stellar week. I lacked on most of my goals and it showed on the scale. I was also not on my thyroid medicine the entire week because he went out of town so I had to wait till Monday to get into see him. Now I'm waiting for the dr to get the test results back to let me know what the dosage needs to be. He did say that he saw an improvement in my health and according to his scale I had lost 6 pounds in 2 months that I was on the medicine. Not great but better than gaining 6 pounds in 2 months!

I stayed the same weight this week as I was last week, which in the grand scheme of things is ok, and so did Jen, my partner in the June Tune Up challenge at the Sisterhood
.

I'm hoping that I have at least a little loss over the next few days so that I can say I had a good month of losing weight in these 30 days!

For the next few days I need to lay off the chocolate, eat more salads (only had 2 salads this week!), and finish up the month strong with exercising. I took a couple of days off this week and that always ends up costing me. I have been doing the #JuneToneUp and I really do enjoy doing these little workouts. I added in some 3# handweights the past few times I did them just to change it up a little! That made it MUCH HARDER! and I actually liked it better...go figure!!

Hopefully y'all are finding ways to stay cool. I'm spending a lot of time inside the apartment and tomorrow we are going to a water park all day! Here's hoping I don't come back looking like a lobster!

June Tone Up - Week 3

Here we are 20 days into the month of June, and it's Wednesday so that means it's time for a weigh in with the Sisterhood and an evaluation of my goals for the month.

Starting with weight:

Start of month 207.0
Today: 203.2

Loss of .6 from last week which isn't great but it is a loss so I'm good with that. It's also a loss of nearly 4 pounds in 20 days and I'm not on some fanatical diet that I can't maintain. I'm eating "normal" food, adding in a salad (almost) every day and I'm cutting the soda out (most days). I'm also exercising everyday (even if it's only 10 minutes) so I'm on my way to a great change that will be maintained after this challenge at the Sisterhood.

Jen and I are making good progress on our goals and are losing weight. That was really our main goal which is why we named our team Kick A$$ WIPs. We are progressing toward our goals in a kick a$$ fashion - slow and steady wins the race!

So how are you doing this month?

Sweaty Mess!!

Source: Uploaded by user via Jen on Pinterest

Jen just sent this to me and I loved it so much I had to post it!!

June Tune Up Week 2

Here we are at week 2's check in for the June Challenge and I am happy to report that I LOST WEIGHT AGAIN!!

Last week I was at 205.2 and this week I am at 203.8.


Honestly I wasn't sure what to expect on the scale this morning so I just hopped on and held my breathe!

My goals for the challenge are pretty basic because I figure that's where I need to start to really make this weight loss thing happen. So far it is happening!!

Goals:
EXERCISE EVERY DAY: I skipped Friday night...I was really tired and didnt feel well. I didn't want to do something stupid and end up sick!

EAT A SALAD EVERY DAY: Um, I didn't do all that great on this one this week. I hit 4 out of 7 days, but if I'm being honest that is a huge improvement on my "normal" and that is what this journey is all about. Improvement!!

TRACK MY FOOD: Yep! I did this every day! Even over the weekend when I went way over on calories I still tracked it!

NO COKES: Um, I was really craving coke this weekend, so I caved in and had 1 large one on Saturday and 2 on Sunday! I got that out of my system though so I'm back on track with no cokes!

I have been doing the #June Tone Up workout with the Sisterhood and I'm really enjoying it. So much fun but it is getting harder!! Last night I did 2 sets of 12 squat knees, 70s wacky jacks, and 1 m high knees all AFTER doing the #Ironsisters Stage 2A workout. My legs are pretty sore today, but in a good way!!

Overall I think I'm doing good on the challenge. I started off weighing 207 on the 1st and today, the 13th I am down to 203.8 so I'm pleased.

The Kick A$$ WIPs are doing great on this challenge and we are finding that we are definitely "works in progress" but the great thing is we are making progress daily!!

**And on a totally unrelated note: My Marine graduates today from his MOS school and will be heading to Quantico, VA on Friday. He's not being deployed yet and I'm a happy mom!!!

June Tune Up Week 1

It's Wednesday so that means it is time to check in with the Sisterhood for the newest challenge!

It's been a crazy busy week but I have stayed on target, completing my goals and sticking to a good plan.

I have done some kind of exercise every day of the month so far. I even joined an inexpensive gym so I can workout with real weights and machines. I love it!!

I have tracked my food every day since the first. Even on Sunday when I consumed 5 donuts! Yep you read that right!! It wasn't my best day for sure!!

I have eaten a salad 5 of the 6 days of the month. Yesterday was the day I didn't have one but I did have lettuce on my tacos so that kind of counts, right?!! ;)

I have not had a soda all month even Sunday when we went out to eat and my hubby and That Other Kid had one! I drank lemonade instead! Best part of this is I'm not really missing it! As long as I can have something besides water to drink I'm good!

It's been a good week and I lost 1.8 pounds since Friday!!

Yes!!!

Challenge start weight: 207
Today's weight: 205.2



I'm happy with that loss especially considering Sunday I ate enough calories for almost 3 days!

But as our name points out I am a W(ork) I(n) P(rogress)!! There will be days when things don't go according to schedule but as long as they are the exception not the rule I will meet my goals- to be healthy, fit and strong!

Jen and I are doing great and we are Kick A$$ Wip's! Together we lost over 6 1/2 pounds in just 5 days!! We are kicking it!!

Tuning Up in June

I've been floundering all year. Looking for ways to lose weight, exercise consistently, eat right, etc. It just hasn't been happening...all I know is I truly want to do right but "something" hasn't clicked for me and I haven't done it.

I am determined that June is gonna be my month. I am on medication to help my thyroid levels. I am taking a vitamin D supplement to help my levels on that too. Medically speaking there is no reason I can't get my act together so now it's time to get busy with the weight loss. The year is half over and I don't want to waste the whole year, continuing to gain weight.

Cue, The Shrinking Jeans ladies!! They always know when to start a new challenge and get my booty moving again! So I'm participating in the June Tune Up with the Sisterhood and I'm gonna give this body a tune up! And with all good challenges they are even offering ways to get my exercise in with 3 exercises to do most every day of the month!

This particular challenge is a partners challenge...meaning we team up with someone and we tackle this booger together! My partner is Jen and I'm so excited to be doing this with her! We have been chatting a lot and are becoming great friends but we both need to lose some weight and stop making excuses! Together we are gonna tackle this challenge with all the gusto we can muster...

Our team name is the Kick A$$ WIPs (cuz we are both a Work in Progress). I even have goals for this challenge....GO ME!!

1) EXERCISE EVERY DAY!! Between the June Tone Up, and the beginning of the Komen 3 Day training

and using the Wii and XBox I think I have this one under control.

2) NO SODAS!! 'nuff said...

3) TRACK MY FOOD EVERY DAY, EVERY BITE!! I've been pretty hit and miss with this and I'm sure it has hurt me. I'm on MyFitnessPal with an app on my phone so really I should not have any excuses!

4) EAT A SALAD EVERY DAY!! I'm not a big veggie eater so salads are about the only veggies I normally eat but they have been sporatic. This must change....(I had a salad for dinner!! And WATER!)

That takes care of my goals for the month...as Jen said it's only 30 days! I can do it!! I can't wait to see the changes that happen in these 30 days!

btw, my starting weight for this challenge: 207
Not something I'm proud of but honestly I'm not shocked. More like pissed!!

Tooting My Horn and Other Random Notes

Ok so it's been another 3 weeks since I have written again. Wow! Time sure does fly when you sit around and take care of the mundane business of life, right?

I haven't been doing too much to toot my horn lately that I feel are that extra-ordinary but they have made a difference to some people so I'm going to "toot" about them.

On the 12th of this month my sister in law's father passed away. He had diabetes and had gotten bit by a brown recluse spider. Complications caused by the diabetes caused him to go into cardiac arrest early Saturday morning. Since her dad lived with them he was definitely part of the family so That Other Kid and I loaded up and made a quick trip to Kansas. My oldest niece was so happy to see me she started crying, and that made the whole trip worth it. I hung out with her boyfriend during the funeral and we both just hung back to support the family. I'm glad I went...but oh boy I am getting too old for these quick trips to Kansas. Once I got back I just wanted to sit and vegg out!

Bonus for the trip is I got to meet Rachel
. She lives just 20 minutes or so from my brother and so we went out for dinner while That Other Kid hung out with his cousins and my brother and sister in law! It was a great way to end a crummy day! It's always nice to meet one of my bloggy friends and just get to know them on a IRL manner.

Most of you know I homeschool That Other Kid but in case you didn't...now you do!!
I slacked a lot this past fall with school so we will be working (on a reduced schedule) throughout the summer but we have a few more weeks to go before we take a couple of weeks off to enjoy some of the summer fun then move to our summer schedule. He's not too thrilled with that idea but I reminded him that it's too hot to do anything outside anyway, so we may as well do school and then enjoy fall when it finally gets here! My Marine will be finishing up his MOS school and graduating on June 13th. There really isn't a ceremony for this graduation so we are not attending, but he said he will have about a week before he gets orders for a station or a deployment so he will probably come home for a few days and I don't want to be busy so I'm planning our break for during this time. That Other Kid and I want to hang with him while he is home since who knows when he will be home again?

I have been on thyroid medicine for just over a month now and I am already starting to notice a difference. I'm hoping by the end of this next month I will be able to start SEEING a difference.

I started training walks for the Komen 3 Day
at the beginning of the month. The actual 3 day isn't until November but it's best to train if you expect to really be able to walk 60 miles in 3 days! It's not a cake walk we are talking about! This past weekend our training walk was supposed to be 5 miles but I clocked it and it was 5.67 miles. We walked it around 1 hr and 40 minutes so we were moving at a pretty good pace, in a pretty difficult area of town with a steep hill. I was huffing and puffing by the time we took a break after the hills so I can really tell I need to bump up my cardio workouts at home. It was already pretty warm out at 9 am! I'm not looking forward to summer but I am looking forward to training and walking with my friends for a wonderful cause!

I have been slacking with the New Rules of Lifting for Women workouts but I am determined to get back to it. Tonight is my night....I made it through Stage 1 and so I'm going to start over with Stage 2. I am determined to stick with this...it will be good for me to be combining lifting with my walking training too!!

That's it for me...I'm doing ok, just busy with the routine business of life and I don't have much to "toot" about but life in general!

What are you "tooting" about today?

If you want to help me in my goal of reaching $2300 for the Komen 3 Day you can donate here Every dollar counts in this fight against breast cancer.

A Month Later...

It's been a whole month since I have taken the time to write on this blog. I can't say that I haven't had anything to say...just haven't had time or inclination to sit down and actually write. So I'm going to try to catch you up on my life with some handy, dandy bullet points. They always go fast and are easy to tackle, especially since I don't seem to be able to write in a cohesive fashion this will handle my ramblings quiet nicely!




*I have been weighing in with the Sisterhood
but haven't really been putting much into my weight loss efforts. It has shown - I'm pretty much the same weight that I was 5 weeks ago. Not cool but I'm not sweating it anymore.


*I have been working out with the #Ironsisters
and am ready for the 3rd workout in Stage 2. It's hard and is hurting my knees. I'm hopeful that I can continue doing it.

*I went to the doctor nearly 2 weeks ago and got a bunch of blood work done. I haven't been myself; cranky, tired, gaining weight even when eating right, tired, cranky....you get the point. I had an extremely LOW thyroid and my Vitamin D levels were at 25 and should be a minimum of 60. So he has put me on a high dose of thyroid medicine and 10,000 units of VitaminD3 a day. He also told me to spend time outside in the sun without sunblock for at least 30 minutes a day. I'm getting better at this but I still need to work on it. Sometimes it doesn't seem there is 30 minutes in a day to go outside!

*My triglycerides are a bit high also, but he said not to worry about that right now. He thinks they will even out once the thyroid gets regulated. I figure if I start eating better food that will help both the triglycerides and the weight!

*Jen and I have been chatting quite a bit and we have come up with a plan to set up some goals for the month of May to help us get focused and make sure we make it to where we want to go. Our goals are both pretty much the same:
4 solid workouts every week
morning stretches
tracking everything, every day
(this one is mine) writing out daily to do list - what do I need to do this day and in what priority?

*I am not going to weigh in for the entire month of May. I have been gaining weight over the past few months and it has done nothing but discourage me and depress me. I need to get my hormones fixed up before I worry about my weight. I have weighed in for so long on Wednesdays that I may need a reminder to STAY AWAY FROM THE SCALE!! k?

*We have been homeschooling pretty consistently over the past 7 weeks and I feel like we are finally getting somewhere. I am planning for us to take a couple of weeks off in June but pick back up and school for a few hours a day throughout the summer. It gets too freaking hot here to do much outside and we can only swim so much in the summer! :) This should get us ready for 3rd grade curriculum by the end of summer even though we have taken so much time off. (This is another reason I haven't had much time lately!! It takes time to homeschool, even if it's only one student!)

*I love to read but lately reading has taken a backseat to other things I want to do. I was able to buy a Kindle at the beginning of April and I have downloaded A LOT of books for free but it seems there is never enough time in the day to actually read them. BUT...I am reading Jane Eyre and Jen and I are going to have a kind of "online book club". I have only read 3 chapters so far but I now understand why it is a classic. I'm liking it....can't wait to get further into it!

*I am walking 60 miles in 3 days the first weekend of November to help fight breast cancer. This disease affects families everyday! Me walking 60 miles and raising $2300 is just a small way I can help! Fundraising and training walks are starting up in earnest. I truly would appreciate your support as I work to find a cure!
You can donate here

It could be your mom, sister, best friend or yourself you save simply by donating a few dollars you know that you will be doing your part in finding a cure!

Motivation Board - SpringN2Action

I realize its been a while since I have posted but I've been busy and haven't had much to say! I'm making up for it tonight with this great motivation board idea from The Sisterhood of Shrinking Jeans

At the beginning of February Bari started doing pushups, situps, and planks for the February FabAb workout. The workout gradually increased up to 100 situps, 35 pushups and a plank for 2 minutes and 30 seconds. I started out doing it and felt good but then I got a sinus infection with a double ear infection and gave up on myself. I quit...I was mad at myself. I was frustrated with my body and plan ol' aggravated.


This was me at the end of February...so I wanted to change that!!


February 27th, I started lifting weights following this plan. I am doing it with a wonderful group of women and it has done more for me than build my muscles. It has built my confidence!


Then March approached and Lissa put together the #6PackMarch workout. It was the same workout only a couple of days longer! Even though I was committed to doing a weights workout with some of the other wonderful ladies from the Sisterhood I decided I wanted to prove to myself that I could do this! So I signed up and started doing it. Some of my #Ironsisters told me to use caution. Don't do too much, I was out to prove to myself that I could follow through and do this.


Tonight I FINISHED IT!! AND just for the heck of it and so I could have visual proof that I am stronger than I think I am I took video of it!

Tonight I did 100 SITUPS!! 35 modified PUSHUPS!!! and a 2 minute 30 second PLANK!!! I FREAKIN' DID IT!!!









Some of you may be asking what does this have to do with the motivation board but let me tell you it has ALOT to do with it. See I usually give up on myself when things get hard. I usually think since I'm not in my 20's or 30's or even early 40's that I can't do "it"!! Whatever the heck "it" is! It really doesn't matter what that "it" is. I usually talk myself out of it but what this did was prove to myself that just because I'm not in my 20's or 30's I can still do something that is HARD for everyone!!

After watching the videos I realized that my butt was too far up in the air for the plank and that I need to work on the pushups a bit more so I don't fade out toward the end but hey, I did them! I completed the month long challenge and I'm proud of myself!

I'm busting my tail so that That Other Kid will always think it is a good thing to try new things, work hard to accomplish his goals, and want to be active! I want to be a good example to him!! This afternoon he got the skateboard that he has been asking for since he was 3 and he wasn't afraid to try something hard! He looks pretty happy and I want to look that happy when I try something hard and new!!




I want to always remember this day. I want to always remember how good I felt after doing this month long challenge! I want to remember that if I decide to do it I CAN DO IT!!

Lookie here, i did another week's worth of menus! I'm on a roll...and last week I followed the menu, except for 1 night I didn't feel like fixing what was on the menu, so I went with one of our standby meals.

I'm gonna be out a lot this week so the food is all quick and easy.

Menu

Sunday- eat out
Monday- shredded chicken tacos &
Chips/salsa
Tuesday- steak & salad, rolls
Wednesday- eat out meal
Thursday- Parmesan chicken (spark people recipe)
Friday-grilled chicken salad rolls
Saturday- Leftovers

Tooting My Horn Post

Instead of our usual "confessions" post on Tuesday's the Sisterhood has changed things up and now we are "tootin' our horn". I actually have a couple of things to "toot my horn" about this week so here I am!

Bullets are fast and easy, right?

* I have been participating in the #6PackMarch challenge with a few lovely ladies looking to tone up the arms and core before summer. I have done all 13 days of this during March and today I did a plank for 1 minute and 10 seconds! I also did 17 pushups and 45 SITUPS! These were straight out sit ups. Not crunches, Not knees bent sit ups. I could hardly believe I did them all!

* I have been doing a weight lifting program with a bunch of ladies (we are calling ourselves the #IronSisters) and I have surprised myself with how well I am sticking with it. I realized tonight that next time I workout with this program I will be half way done with Stage 1. I'm actually sticking with something that has to do with weight lifting!! Whooohoo!

* I have notoriously been a terrible lesson planner when it comes to planning lessons for our homeschool, but over the past couple of months I have come to the conclusion that we both NEED me to plan lessons. This weekend I moved into the library and completed lessons thru the month of MAY! That's 12 weeks of lessons COMPLETE! And we have done school according to the lesson plans both Monday and Tuesday!

* Menu planning, UGH! I always thought it was a waste of time, but decided since I was on a roll this weekend I would make a menu for this week. I did it and it's gone pretty well this week. EXCEPT tonight my alfredo noodles tasted YUCKY and I didn't feel like eating a salad....so here it is 10p.m. and I'm STARVING! Goes to show how I need to follow the menu.

That's enough tooting my horn for tonight. How has your week been?

A Menu!! A Real Life Menu

Welcome to my very first edition of writing out a Menu! Everyone has been encouraging me to write out a menu for sometime and I always make some excuse. I decided to follow instructions and do what they asked me to do cuz this week I'm trying to do things differently! I finished planning school lessons thru the end of May (we homeschool year round with periodic breaks for mom to regroup!) and I decided since I was planning lessons maybe I should plan meals, too! Maybe being organized will help me accomplish more! I can only hope, right?!!

So here are dinner meals...

Sunday- spaghetti, salad, bread
Monday- chicken Parmesan, spaghetti, salad
Tuesday- grilled chicken breast, salad, whole wheat roll
Wednesday- eat out meal
Thursday- turkey Parmesan (cooking light), salad, whole wheat roll
Friday-chicken tacos, chips
Saturday- leftovers

Lunch around here is pretty simple - sandwiches or tacos and I'm going to try to include fruit or some carrots in it too.

Breakfast is always the same - Greek yogurt w/apple and almonds for me and That Other Kid eats bread and a couple of slices of bacon for protein.

Snacks - nuts, fruit, and hopefully the cookies Lissa told us about yesterday!

Best part of this menu? I Fixed Spaghetti Today! How's that for a menu and sticking with it?

I'm linking up over here cuz I love them!!

It's Been Awhile....

Here I am again with a few minutes to spend on the computer. I just finished working out with the New Rules of Lifting for Women and I'm finding it a nice change. I have always hated working out with weights and I've always avoided it like the plague!

But...I'm finding that sometimes I need to push myself out of my comfort zone and this is one of them. I am lifting weights at home 3 times a week following the plan set forth in the book. It's challenging and I'm having to improvise some since I don't have weight machines but I am getting a good challenging workout every time.

I'm also doing the #6Pack March workout that is going on over at the Sisterhood. It's like the #FabAb February workout I was doing in February till I got sick and gave up on it. I finished day 9 today and I'm not gonna lie, it was hard to do it all but that's ok to push myself, right?

I've also decided that it is time to make some drastic changes in my diet so this coming week I am going to make a MENU Plan and FOLLOW IT! That's right....I'm going to write out a menu and I'm going to follow it. On my menu? Lots of fruits and veggies and lean meats and a few whole grains and not much else. I need to break through this plateau I have been on far too long.

I'm also going to add in some cardio which I haven't been doing in some time. That should help me too.

On a totally different note, I'm gonna brag a little on My Marine! He has been at his Military Operations School (meaning he is learning his job for the Marines) since the 28th of February and today he sent me a text saying he is number 1 in his "detachment" with a score of 98.45%!! He is training for Combat Photography which according to what I understand is a very cool job in the military. He also received a promotion last Thursday. He is now a Private First Class and if he graduates at the top of his class he will receive another promotion in June. I'm so proud of him! He has finally found something he loves and is excelling at it!

Ok...it's late and I have a full day of lesson plans to tackle tomorrow so I need to get to bed. Just wanted to spend a few minutes chatting with anyone listening. Btw, thanks for all the nice comments a couple of weeks ago when I was so down about my blog. It really is nice to know someone is out there reading! Thanks y'all!

Have a great weekend....

Final for ShrinkYoSelf 2012

Well what can I say? Not much to say really..,I didn't follow through AGAIN and once again I didn't meet my goals. I did lose 6.2 pounds over the past 2 months but really I should have lost 15 to 20. I'm disappointed but I'm not beating myself up (at least I'm trying not to!)

I have been sick for the past 3 weeks which limited my physical activity. It also made me too tired to really care. I'm getting back to "normal", and I've already started working toward getting back into the exercise routine. I've joined a bunch of my friends in a new challenge to lift weights and workout together. I did my first workout last night and I am still sore 24 hrs later! I guess that means I need this!

Even though this is the final weigh in for this challenge I'm sure the wonderful ladies at Shrinking Jeans will have a new one set up soon. I plan to be on board for that one. Hopefully I will do better next time!

Btw, thanks for all the wonderful comments on my post a couple of days ago. Made me realize that people really are out there listening!

Much love to all!

Confessions Time

The past 5 days have been very stressful. Some really crappy real life stuff happened because of negligence on my part. It has cost our family a lot of money that we didn't really have to spend. It has also cost my husband a lot of time that he needed to spend on business stuff. I've spent a lot of time beating myself up. I've spent a lot of time in the bathroom! I've spent a lot of time feeling like a failure.

I have also been dealing with a double ear infection combined with a sinus infection. I haven't exercised in about 2 weeks and I feel like a failure because of that too. I gave up on doing the #FabAb February because I couldn't do the workouts with the sinus infection crap.

Now I have signed up to join a bunch of my sisterhood friends to participate in a weight training workout. As of 9pm Tuesday evening I haven't done the workout although it is first thing on my list after That Other Kid goes to bed. I'm hoping that I can actually be consistent with the workouts and lose weight and build muscle tone. I need this! I need to do this for my health. I need to do this for my family.

The one thing I did accomplish this week is I lost 3 pounds, as of Monday morning (from Wednesday). It hasn't been done in a healthy way but 3 pounds is 3 pounds!

I Should Write Something...

I feel as though I should write something on the ol' blog but then I wonder will anyone notice or care if I do? I wonder why?

Why do I write here? Why do you come read? Or does anyone ever read my blog? Sometimes I think I should just say "good bye" to this blog. I don't get many readers or commenters, but that really wasn't the reason I started this blog.

I started this blog as a place to record my thoughts, journal about my journey to lose weight, and share things about my kids and myself. I will continue writing but lately I haven't felt very talkative. I've been in a funk and I've been busy with life. Together I haven't had much time to think about anything else.

Just thought I would check in...is anyone out there?

Short But Sweet - Starbuck's Giftcard!

I'm going to make this short but sweet! I have in my possesion a $25 giftcard from Starbuck's! Most everyone loves Starbuck's, even if they aren't a big coffee fan (like myself, don't hate me, k?). Most everyone loves boobs and want to do something to save them, right?

So, here's your chance! I am walking in the the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure in November and I have to raise $2300. I know it seems like FOREVER till November but the way this year is just passing me by, I know that it is gonna be here before I can blink too many times. I need to get some money into my fundraising account, so that I can feel confident that I can once again raise $2300 to help find a cure for breast cancer. I know a lot of people are saying but what about the back and forth with planned parenthood donations? What about the politics involved in their decision? To that I say what about it?

IF YOU, YOUR MOM, YOUR SISTER, YOUR BEST FRIEND got breast cancer would YOU really care who they were giving money to AS long as their efforts were going to help YOU (or your loved ones) get past this terrible disease and back to living a "normal" life? I didn't think so. I am walking so that my friends and family won't have to go through breast cancer the way so many others have had to. In 2011 I watched my best friend Glenna go through it. It wasn't fun, it wasn't pretty and it WAS VERY SCARY! She is doing amazing now! And I truly believe that through the power of prayer and the efforts of the Susan G. Komen Foundation she will live a long and healthy life from this point forward. My grandmother wasn't that lucky. She died of breast cancer around 13 years ago. I will never forget how scared I was to realize that breast cancer runs in my family! I remember thinking I want to do SOMETHING to make sure I don't have to go through this! Now I am....I am raising $2300 and walking 60 miles so women all over the world will be able to live a life without the misery of breast cancer!

So...all you have to do to enter in my $25 Starbuck's gift card give away is donate at least $10 to my efforts of raising $2300. It's easy and it's tax deductible! Go here . You never know who's life you might be saving! Maybe someone in your family, although I pray that isn't the case....it could happen. Someone gets diagnosed with breast cancer nearly every 1 1/2 minutes! That's a scary statistic!

This gift card giveaway will end Sunday night, February 19th with a random drawing done by That Other Kid and myself Monday morning! Just donate and your name will be in the running! Go forth, donate and feel good about helping someone in the fight against breast cancer!

ShrinkYoSelf 2012 - Week 7

Last week I failed to post about my "weight loss" cuz honestly I didn't feel like coming here and telling you I had gained weight AGAIN! I almost didn't post today for the same reason....

So, let's just get the boring hum-drum details taken care of then we can move on to something more exciting, k?

I started this challenge on January 1st with high hopes of losing 20 pounds in 2 months. Honestly if I had stuck with my goals and plans I would have made it. BUT...I haven't and I won't. I started January at 205.0. Today's weight was up AGAIN to 202.6. I'm upset with myself. I'm upset that I can't seem to pull myself up by the bootstraps and do what is needed to get this weight off.

I know what to do, it's just a matter of doing it, right? Oh...I have a great list of excuses. But, really I'm just tired of them all! I want to look in the mirror and feel good about what I have accomplished. Not look in the mirror and see my clothes fitting too snug.

For the past week I have been suffering from migraines, and a sinus infection. Sunday I finally decided to go to the doctor and get some medicine. I'm finally feeling a bit better although the migraines are still there. I'm tired ALL THE TIME and have no motivation and energy to do anything beyond the basics of taking care of the house and people in it! Laundry that I washed Monday is still sitting in the basket to be folded and hung up.

Exercise hasn't been happening which is contributing to my depressed state of being. I was doing so good with exercise. I was doing the #FabAb February workout with Bari and Nancy, then it got to the point where laying on the floor was painful so I stopped. I managed to do it this morning (Day 11)...but now I am 4 days behind! Can I catch up when we are supposed to be doing 40+ situps a day? and 40second+ planks? I don't know. This morning those 40 situps were REALLY difficult! I'm gonna try because I like the accountability I am getting from these girls....

As for my Biggest Loser for Kinect workout? I was doing good with it, too, BUT sinus infections and migraines suck the life out of me! I haven't done anything in a week! Now I'm behind on that, too! I hate being sick!

I've been doing decent on my 52 Small Changes Challenges over at the 'hood, but during the past week I have fallen into all the bad habits....time to get back on target! I started tracking again this morning so that's a good place to start, right??

ok...enough of that drivel....My Marine is NOW stationed at Fort Meade, Maryland for the next 3ish months for his MOS (marine name for on the job training) schooling. He arrived this morning and I got a text from him saying he was at his "new home sweet home"! I think he is glad to be out of California! lol Fort Meade is just a short distance from Baltimore and the hubby and I are looking at the possibility of a trip out there! We've never been out east and now we have a great reason to go! And besides I know a lot of my friends live out that way!

Most of you know that I am a BIG supporter of Susan G. Komen organization. I am planning to walk AGAIN in the 3 Day for the Cure Walk in November. Another one of my friends sent me a message earlier this week telling me her aunt was just diagnosed with breast cancer! We MUST find a cure for breast cancer! It affects too many people and I don't want it to be someone else I know! It's time I get going on my fundraising so tomorrow I am holding my first "give-away for donations" for the year. I'm giving away a $25 Starbucks gift card this time! Last year when I did this I was very happy with the results and Thea was the lucky winner of a $75 Target giftcard! Who will be the winner this time? Come back tomorrow for details! All you have to do to enter is donate $10 or more to my fundraising page! Easy peasy, right?!! If you donate today you will get an extra entry...so don't wait! Get a headstart (and an extra chance,k?)!

An Assignment for Your Kids

Yesterday, christieO asked us to have our kids write a "shopping list". Basically we were supposed to ask our kids to write a list of things we might bring home from a typical grocery trip. I thought it sounded like a great experiment and so I "assigned" it to That Other Kid as we were driving to his science class.I asked him to list 10 things I might bring home from the grocery store. His spelling, although not terrible for a early 2nd grade 8 year old boy, should not be held against him! This wasn't a spelling lesson!

The following is his list (unedited) and is a pretty accurate list of what would be brought home. Sadly what this list told me is that I buy less veggies than I should and a whole lot more soda and chips than I should!

Milk bananan Appel chips sodu eggs baken clif.

Bred chicken.

The "clif" that he is talking about are Kidz Clif bars - organic and good for him! He loves them and eats one nearly every day for his breakfast!
I found it interesting that he wrote down both eggs and milk although he is allergic to both he still knows they are staples in our families grocery list!
I also see that I need to teach him about the use of commas!

So, your assignment? Have your kids write a list of foods you would bring home and evaluate it. If you do this please let me know what they write down! I'm curious, and nosey!

After The SuperBowl Confessions

It's Tuesday and over at the Sisterhood we do True Confessions to cleanse our souls of all the crappy stuff from the past week.

Wow do I have a list for you! Here goes....

I started a "no coke" challenge with one of my 3 Day walker friends. She drank Dr. Pepper and I drank coke. We both want to stop...I did great until last Friday, since then I have been TERRIBLE having a coke every day! Until today when I realized how stupid I have been! If I want to stop doing something I just need to STOP!! It really should be that simple...It's called WILLPOWER!! So once again no cokes for me - let's hope I can get it to stick this time!

I went to the grocery store on Sunday (I know, stupid!) when I was hungry! (double stupid!) I bought a bunch of "snacky" things and a bunch of good foods. I bought the ingredients to make the zucchini chocolate muffins and haven't made them yet. I also bought the ingredients (and made) Lisa's salsa! It was a hit in our household! In order to eat salsa you have to eat chips, right?! I ate chips with rotel and salsa during the superbowl....and drank a coke! I also bought and made (and ate) little smokies but I bought the beef ones and only ate 4 with crescent rolls! Yummy!

I started doing the #FabAb workout with Nancy and Bari! It's nice to have accountability with others to do this workout! It's HARD but I need to work my abs big time and this is definitely doing that!



You can join us if you want....I guarantee you won't be sorry! We are all gonna have great looking abs at the end of February!

I have gone over my calorie count on My Fitness Pal for the past few days. It's frustrating but I know I need to work through it and get it figured out. I need to start working harder at keeping my food under control! It will help a lot to stay away from the cokes! Here's to a new start!

Did you read my post Saturday? If not, you really need to. I need to report back that since Saturday I have started focusing more on the exercise and less on the "diet". Today at lunch I decided I wanted a salad! That Other Kid saw me fixing a salad and said, "why are you eating a salad? You said you weren't on a diet anymore!" I told him, "I just want a salad...it's a good choice for lunch!" He seemed to like that idea. I thought it was a great way to change the focus from diet to healthy living/eating. Yay!

Little Eyes and Ears Are Watching....

And here we go again...I thought I hit publish last night but hit save instead!

I started this post last week and never got it completed...life just got in the way but tonight I feel it is necessary to finish it. I hope you read it and hear what I am trying to say deep down.

Last Sunday afternoon That Other Kid learned to ride his bike! It was a glorious day for both of us! I have been working with him for about 2 years, and until Friday afternoon he really had no desire to learn. Friday afternoon we went to the skate park where he saw skateboarders skating all over the place. He has wanted to skate board since he was 3!! BUT my rule has been that if he wants to skateboard he has to learn to ride a 2 wheel bike PROFICIENTLY! So we came home from the skate park and he instantly wanted to ride his bike! BUT he got easily frustrated and mad and kept falling! Rinse, repeat for 45 minutes! Finally I called it a day and made him come in. Then Sunday he went out and after 10 minutes he was riding! It was pretty awesome! After 1 hr of riding he was doing great!

I'm really proud of him and now it's time for me to buy a bike so we can go biking together! I love biking and can hardly wait to ride with him! Great memories are to be had!

So I started looking for a bike on Craigslist and asking around to see if anyone has a bike. That other kid has been listening as I talk to people about my search for a bike. On Wednesday he said something to me that really made me think. (before I continue know that the hubby and I have always taught our kids to speak honestly and openly to us, to tell us what they think!) He said, "maybe you need to get skinnier before you can ride a bike."

continued tonight....

I didn't really think too much of his comment till later that evening. I started reflecting on what I am teaching my 8 year old about being healthy and fit. I started thinking about the impressions I am giving him when I say "I can/can't do this because I am overweight". When I am "skinnier" I will be able to do "xxxx" with you. I started thinking about how he doesn't know what it is like to have a mom who is at a healthy weight. Yes, overall I am in pretty good condition. I can (and did) walk 60 miles. I can lift and carry 80 lbs of water into our apartment from our car. I can (and have been) exercise daily for at least 30 minutes a day. I can run VERY short distances (although I don't really do it often). BUT...am I really healthy? No, I'm not. I'm still at the "obese" category on the BMI charts. I still need to lose at least 40 pounds. I still need to learn how to feed my body properly ON A DAILY BASIS, not just when it is convenient or I feel like it. I still need to learn how to prepare healthy, nutritionally balanced meals for our family. I have a long way to go...but as I keep telling myself it is all a process. One day at a time, right?

But...the clincher came tonight right before he went to bed. My 8 year old, 4'2", 62 pound, karate blue belt came into the living room and said, "mom, will you put me on a diet? I'm getting too big!!" That nearly killed me inside! I thought I was going to start crying right then and there. My child who doesn't have an ounce of fat on his body wanted me to put him on a diet! I told him that, "he was supposed to get bigger! He's a growing boy! He's not fat! He's healthy and fit!"

The saddest part of this is that he learned about diets from me! I am constantly "dieting". I am constantly telling him I can't have this or that because it isn't something that is "good" for me. I am teaching him by example that there are 'good' foods and 'bad' foods. Yes, I realize that there are "good and bad for us" foods but my point is nothing should be seen as something that is totally off limits! That is how I got in this place in the first place. (Well that and not taking care of myself for 20 years!)

Now I need to do damage control. From this point forward I will eat foods that are nutritionally sound. I will choose wisely. I will start setting a good example for my son. I want our family to be healthy. I want us to be fit. I want to raise a child who doesn't look at food as a "good or bad" thing. I want him to look at food from the view of "fuel" for his body. Eat when hungry, and only till not hungry. I don't want him to go through life thinking he is fat or unhealthy just because he isn't built like most of his friends who are lean and tall. I want him to live life to his fullest potential, exactly as God created him.

Raising children can be a very daunting task. Raising them to have a healthy self-image is even more daunting. Raising children to grow up healthy and fit, knowing what that means for each individual is apparently even more daunting!

I want what's best for my son and I want what's best for me! It's time to start proving that to both of us!

ShrinkYoSelf 2012 - Week 5

Wow! February already? I know most everyone is having the same reaction...this year is moving right along and we've already finished 1/12th of the year! Anywho, it's Wednesday and that means it is time for weigh in with the Sisterhood. It is also the beginning of February and I had decided I would do my measurements at the beginning of every month this year to "watch" the progress I am making. Keeps me looking at the big picture...how is my body changing?

During the month of January I lost 8 1/4" around various part of my body! I'm happy with that! 2 of those inches were around my waist, 3 of those inches were around my hips!

I started this challenge on January 1st weighing in at 205.0.

Today I weighed 200.0.

That means I have lost 5 pounds in 1 month...not what I wanted but hey it is a loss and a pretty decent one so I'm ok with it.

My goal for this challenge was to exercise EVERY DAY in the month of January using the Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred Dvd and an additional ab workout! I am thrilled to report that I accomplished that goal! Not only that but yesterday I did ALL 3 LEVELS of the 30 Day Shred at once! Back to back levels! It was HARD! I was a hot, sweaty mess BUT oh what a fantastic feeling!

For February I have decided to use the Biggest Loser XBox Kinect game that My Marine bought me for Christmas. Honestly I had only played with it for about 10 minutes before this morning so I spent some time setting it up and figuring out what I wanted to do. I am going to workout with this game 4 days a week and do something else on the other days that I'm going to exercise. My goal for February is to exercise a minimum of 6 days a week. I feel like I might want to take an occasional morning off so I'm allowing that "day off" once a week. Have any of you used the Biggest Loser game? I'm not sure how I like it...I don't like having my "body" show up on the screen the whole time. I don't like how if I'm not in the "exact" right location it doesn't register my exercise. I know it's new to me and there is a learning curve and everything so I'm not quitting! Besides maybe if I see myself on the tv 4 times a week I will be more attentive to what I'm putting into my mouth!!

Ok..so in short: I lost 5 pounds in the month of January instead of 10 like I wanted.

I haven't followed the low glycemic index plan very well and that explains the reason behind the smaller loss.

I have stopped drinking cokes again and I'm staying accountable with a local friend so that helps me stay on track with that.

So onto February goals:

Workout a minimum of 6 days a week for at least 30 minutes a session.
Work harder at staying on the low glycemic index plan.
Stay away from drinking cokes.
Continue losing weight and inches.
Start doing some sort of "workout" with That Other Kid.

Confessions: I Did It Edition!

Here it is Tuesday again so it is time to confess the good, the bad, and the great of the week for the Sisters! This has been a pretty good week so I will start with the bad to get that over with.

I had started down the slippery road of drinking cokes again EVERY time I left the house to run an errand or going out to eat. I recognize the pattern now and desperately wanted to stop it before it got totally out of hand. So I mentioned it to a friend Saturday morning and we are keeping each other accountable! No cokes for me. No Dr Pepper for her! So far I'm doing great, I haven't had one since Saturday morning!

I just finished eating 2 scoops of yummy Culvers ice cream! I'm not sorry just figured I should confess since I'm writing a confessions post!

Now onto the good and the great! At the beginning of January I made the decision to exercise every morning in January using Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred DVD. I started on the first and worked my way through each level. 10 Days per level, 3 levels. But wait there are 31 days in January. What about today? So last week as I started getting close to the end I decided I wanted to do ALL 3 LEVELS on the last day of the month! That was this morning!

And guess what? I did it! I did all 3 levels back to back this morning! I was a hot sweaty mess when I was done but oh my! What a great feeling! Now I feel as though I can accomplish other goals I have for myself!

Exercise Goal for February....workout 6 days a week alternating the workouts and continuing to workout in the morning! I know I can do it! I've proven to myself that I can!

ShrinkYoSelf 2012 - Week 4

I saw this picture this morning on Facebook and it seemed to fit perfectly so I borrowed it for today's Weigh in post with the Sisterhood.

For the first 2 weeks in January I was on track and doing great with my goals for health and fitness. The last week and a half I have seriously been slacking. I could give you a laundry list of excuses but instead I choose to just suck it up and say I haven't had my head in the game. I have been going through the motions but haven't been doing what is necessary to apply the knowledge I have to lose the weight I want to lose.

So...here are the facts based on the numbers:

Starting challenge weigh in: 1/1/12 - 205.0

Last week's weigh in: 1/18/12 - 199.6

This week's weigh in: 1/25/12 - 201.0

Like I said I could give you tons of excuses for why I gained more than 1 pound this week but bottom line is I have been eating more calories than I should and at least 1 day this week I ate more than double the calories I should have eaten in 1 day. I HAVE been tracking my food and calories and workouts in MyFitnessPal app so I knew things on the scale were NOT going to make me a happy momma. I got off my "eating ONLY low glycemic index" foods and it is hurting me.

I HAVE been VERY consistent with working out. As of this morning I have worked out 25 days in a row, doing the Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred and an additional 10 minutes of Ab work, since that is the area of my body I am most unhappy with. I'm looking at options of different kinds of workouts for the month of February and feel like it is a good idea for me to commit to doing a couple of different kinds of workouts. I think my body gets too used to doing the same things too quickly and then doesn't change. My Marine bought me The Biggest Loser for Kinect game for Christmas so I want to use that at least 3 days a week and then do something else the other days of the week that I work out. I am most content and happy with myself if I am working out most of the week so I will probably commit to doing a workout 5 days a week but most of the time I will workout every day.

As for my discipline issues with the eating right??? I just need to do what I know is right. I need to decide I want this weight loss badly enough. I need to accept that there are some things in life that aren't easy or fun and this is one of them. I know I can lose weight. I know I can do it! Every time I have decided I'm going to do something and pour myself into it 100% I have done it!

Now, the question is "how bad do I want to lose the weight?"
I guess next week's scale and My Fitness Pal chart will be able to answer that pretty clearly!



Speaking of pouring myself into something I am once again pouring myself into the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure Walk. This past weekend we had a team meeting to go over details for this year's walk. I am getting excited to start raising my $2300 and doing my part in finding a cure to breast cancer. You can help me by going to my fundraising page and making a donation! No donation is too small or too big! Please help by donating HERE!

10 Minute Confession

I literally have 10 minutes to write this but I feel I MUST get this out in the open so here are bullet points. Short and sweet!

* Exercise has been excellent! I have completed all 24 days of exercise his month! I have exercised before doing anything else in my day! Meanig sometimes school starts at noon! But I am done with exercise for the day!!

* My food choices for the past week have pretty much SUCKED! I'm guessing it will show up on the scale tomorrow, too! Sunday ate enough calories for 2 days!

* That Other Kid learned to ride his bike Sunday and I'm hoping to get a bike later today so we can start bike riding together! I LOVE BIKE RIDING!!

* I'm starting to think about what kind of exercise program to start in February, cuz I will be done with the 30 Day Shred on the 31st!

ShrinYoSelf - Week 3

Here we are in week 3 of 2012 and it's Wednesday so that means it's time to weigh in with the ladies at ShrinkingJeans. So I'm just gonna go ahead and get right to it.

Starting weight for this challenge: 205.0

Last week's weight: 200.0

This morning's weight: 199.6

Ok...so it definitely wasn't what I had hoped for this week in the weight loss department but it is what it is! I'm UNDER 200 pounds and that made me happy! Honestly when I first got on the scale this morning it said 200 and I just couldn't accept that I hadn't lost ANY weight this week. I did have a couple of "off" meals but to go through the whole week exercising and eating less than my "alloted" calories and NO weight loss, I couldn't accept. So, I got on the scales again and it went down to 199.6! That is a number I could accept. Minimal loss but a loss regardless.

I have been doing pretty well on the 52 Small Changes challenges going on over at the 'hood. This week's challenge is to find little things to keep our body moving. I parked further at Target, used a different parking area for my car Monday night, helped carry My Marine's heavy sea-bags to the car and then into the airport Tuesday morning when he left. I have also been drinking my 100 oz+ of water so I go to the bathroom alot! All of these little things add up to extra movement, and extra calorie burn!

Ok..so yesterday I didn't get my Confessions posted, so you get to hear my excuses confessions for this week in this post, too! I know you are excited...so here they are in bullet points, since that's easy!

*I went to Schlotzsky's Friday night and ate a 880 calories cinnamon roll! Not exactly on my Low Glycemic Index diet plan!

*Sunday went out for a final "family meal" before My Marine left to go back to California for his next phase of the Marines. We went to the Texas Roadhouse because he loves their bread! I do too BUT I only ate 1 roll! It was a wonderful roll BUT it wasn't on the plan! But, I ate a SALAD AND GREEN BEANS instead of my usual salad and baked potato! Those were ON my plan! Yay me!

*Oh and I DID NOT drink a coke with my meal, like I usually do!

*I didn't go to sleep Monday night because I needed to take My Marine to the airport at 4:00 am. I decided it would be better to stay up and then go to sleep AFTER getting home from the airport. I DID NOT drink soda on the way home from the airport! Nor did I stop at the NUMEROUS DONUT shops that were on the way home from the airport like I normally would! Score for me!

*I came home from the airport and got in bed at 6:30 am and got up at 11:00 am. If I would have been able to sleep all the way through that time I would have been ok for the day, BUT I got interrupted by the hubs, That Other Kid and the cats numerous times! I figure I got 3 or maybe 4 hours of sleep!

*I was tired all day but DID my Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred dvd and my 10 minute ab work shortly after getting out of bed!

*I went to sleep shortly after 10 p.m. last night and slept till 9:30 this morning! I felt a bit sluggish from getting that much sleep!

*I skipped lunch today and was sooooo hungry this afternoon. I bought mozzarella cheese sticks from Sonic. Then for dinner I ate a huge cheeseburger, french fries and a COKE! I knew when I ordered all of this food I was making a huge error in judgement! I knew I should have gotten something MUCH better for my body but I didn't feel like going to another food place and I really didn't care at that point that it was not on the Low Glycemic Index plan!

*Honestly the food didn't taste good and the coke just left me MORE thirsty! It didn't really satisfy my desire for salty food either!

***Yes, eating the right foods for me makes me feel better and I know that although eating "crap" food occasionally will happen I feel a lot better mentally and physically when I eat what my body NEEDS!

***Eating right and exercising at least 30 minutes a day helps me mentally and physically feel so much better! I'm glad I have finally figured that out!

***I completed Day 18 of the 30 Day Shred with additional ab work this morning and I'm beginning to be able to tell a difference in my body shape. My stomach does seem to be shrinking, although I haven't taken measurements. I'm going to wait till the end of the month to measure but it is noticable enough that my hubs can tell!

***I sent My Marine off to Camp Pendleton, CA yesterday morning and only shed a few tears. I probably won't hear from him till he is done with this phase of training in 3 weeks. Then he will head off to Ft. Mead, Maryland for his final phase of schooling for nearly 3 months. During his final phase he will have more freedom and I'm praying that I will have more contact with him. I don't know when he will get to come home again....and that makes this difficult BUT I am pretending to be strong! I have to be, I raised a Marine!!

I absolutely LOVE this quote! I got this card today from 'Lissa and it really hit home with me!

Ok..so there you have it. My confessions for the week as well as my weigh in post! Nothing like killing 2 birds with 1 stone, huh?!

Hello From 2013!!

ChristieO wants us to write a letter to ourself about the things that happen in 2012 from the point of view of it being 2013. Confused? Yeah, me too! But what a great exercise in goal setting! I did it last year and didn't have great success, but this year will be different! Read and enjoy the year that I'm about to embark on.

Good morning!

It's been a year since I talked you into taking a chance with yourself and convinced you that you are indeed worth living a healthy lifestyle! I'm so glad you listened and took the bull by the horns and stopped half-assing your workouts and your diet! I know you are too because you are so much happier now than you were at the beginning of 2012! This was a great year full of learning how to live without constantly thinking of the "what-ifs". You now concentrate on the "nows" and that makes life so much less stressful! Speaking of stress, yes there is still plenty of it but you have really learned how to keep yourself from freaking out about every little thing that doesn't go according to plan. See that Charlie Brown cartoon up there? You saw that cartoon and applied it to your life! What a great way to live 2012 (and beyond)!

The hubby had a great year...full of meeting some pretty significant goals. It was a wonderful thing to watch the transformation!

My Marine is doing better than you imagined as a Combat Photographer and is getting to see some pretty awesome sites! He emails and sends you pictures all the time. This helps you feel more connected and helps you not miss him so much. Yes, you still miss having that day to day connection with him but it is getting easier! He's been a Marine now for a little more than a year and it feels wonderful being able to tell people that your son is a Marine! You raised a good person!

That Other Kid is growing up and excelling in school. Not that that is a big surprise to you. He's always been a smart kid but it's good to know that as a homeschooling mom you are doing the right thing with him! He still knows how to push your buttons and make you want to throw him out to the windowdoor world but you know in your heart of hearts that you are his best teacher! He has learned that school comes first, then building all his wonderful lego creations can come next! You have learned how to keep him focused on his school stuff and it helps you as well!

How have you accomplished this wonderful feat? You both exercise every morning before starting school! Yes, you decided that if it was good enough for you to exercise in the morning then it was good enough for That Other Kid too! You get up and do your morning exercise routine then you both do some kind of exercise together! It's a great way to spend some quality time together doing something fun as well as good for you! Some mornings you play a Wii or XBox game, some mornings you go walking, biking, or playing catch with the football! And your favorite? Is using the punching bag you bought him for his birthday in 2011! It's a great cardio workout for both of you! And what's more...he loves spending this time with you! After this great workout you sit down and get some good book-learning done! You are both focused and ready to take on the day!

AND you have lost a ton (well not literally) of weight this year because of your constant exercise! It feels so good to finally be at a healthy weight and be able to do so much more because you have gotten the weight off! I'm so proud of you! You have learned how to balance eating right and exercise into your day to day life as well as tackling that ugly stress beast!

You also raised the money necessary to walk your 2nd Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure! This definitely was one of the high points of the year. Finding a cure for breast cancer and helping bring awareness to others has become such a passion for you and you did a great job bringing it front and center this year! Not only did you walk but unlike last year you didn't gain a bunch of unnecessary weight while doing it! You were smart with your calorie intake and made it a wonderful experience without gaining weight!

At the beginning of the year you started reading and following the book 52 Small Changes with all your sisters over at the 'hood and I am happy to report that you made it through all 52 weeks and yes, you are happier because of it! You have made great changes to your life this year that you will carry through with you the rest of your life! Another wonderful thing you accomplished this year!

Another highlight from this past year is that you finally got a handle on your organization skills! You made organizing a priority for your household and family and it shows in every area of your life! What a great feeling!

It's been a great 2012 and I can't wait to see what 2013 brings your way!

Hugs to us!

Your 2013 self

ShrinkYoSelf 2012 - Week 2

Yes, it's already the 2nd week of the new year. And it's also Wednesday so that means it's time to do a weigh in for the Sisterhood. As I was watching The Biggest Loser last night I was thinking about how normally the 2nd week of any diet/exercise plan is a small weight loss week. I was also thinking about how to ensure that I wouldn't be disappointed if the scale reflected that this morning. I decided that I would look at it this way. If the men and women that are working out with Bob and Dolvett are only losing 4, 5, and 7 pounds I should keep my eyes focused on what I am doing and be happy with any loss this week. Regardless of the size of the loss as long as it is a loss I would be happy!

So I got on the scale this morning and I was indeed HAPPY!

Starting challenge weight: January 1, 2012 - 205.0
Last Wednesday's weight: January 4, 2012 - 201.8
Today's weight: January 11, 2012 - 200.0

So that means in 11 days I have lost 5 pounds! Yes, that's 5 pounds that I have shred from my body in just 10 days! Like the men and women on the Biggest Loser I wish I could have seen a number in Onederland BUT I did lose 1.8 pounds this week! I am going to be happy with that and continue working toward my goal of losing 10 pounds in the month of January and another 10 pounds in the month of February! Heck, I'm half way there for the month of January and I still have A LOT of month left!

So as far as the challenges for the week - we are supposed to be exercising a minimum of 20 minutes/3 times a week for vigorous exercise or 30 minutes/5 times a week for moderate exercise.

I am happy to report that I have done a minimum of 34 minutes of exercise for every day of this month! Yes, I have gotten up early (or not so early) and exercised! I am beginning to like exercising in the morning...shhhh, don't tell my head that! Yes, I still have a hard time actually making myself get started but once I do I like that it is over early in the day and I don't have to worry about it in the afternoon or evening!

I am following along with the 'hood groupthat Christy set up for 52 Small Changes. Last week was getting enough water! Clear, plain water! I do that one by drinking a minimum of 100 oz of water every day and was successful even on Saturday when I was out most of the day without access to extra water! This week's challenge - is getting between 7 & 8 hours of sleep a night! This is a HUGE challenge for me but so far I am doing it! Yay me! My goal is to go to sleep at 12 midnight and sleep till 8! Last night I got in bed at 12:03 and woke up at 5:34 but went back to sleep fairly quickly. I slept till my alarm went off at 8! Then I got up and got started exercising BEFORE 9!! Yay me! The night before I went to bed at 12:16 and slept THRU my alarm at 8 and woke up promptly at 9:01! Even though I got up an hour late I still exercised in the morning! Another Yay me! Normally I would have said "ugh I'm already an hour late, I will just do it later!" But the new me said "screw the schedule, exercising is more important!"

I'm running behind on my assignment for the year; my "Dear Me" letter. A letter written by the 2013 me telling me what great things my 2012 me did this year. I don't really have an excuse for why I haven't done it yet, I just haven't taken the time to do it yet. These letters take a lot of mental focus for me and I haven't had much of that lately! BUT...I am committed to doing it by Friday night! I will get this letter written and posted and linked up. I think it's a very important process to do this and it's kind of fun to think of what I want to do this year!

So how are your goals going for the year? Honestly, my health and fitness goals are going great but the others not so much! I guess I can only focus on one thing at a time till I get the hang of it, so I'm not beating myself up over it. I'm just going to focus on the accomplishments that I have made and keep striving for improvements one day at a time!

Some Good Confessions

Today is 10 days into the new year...about the time I usually cave in on my resolutions or weight loss journey. Today is the day that I usually just decide I can't do this anymore. Today is usually a hard day to do the right things in my journey and then I figure if I can't do it longer than 10 days then I obviously can't do this. In other words I give up on myself.

HOWEVER, I am happy to say that today was a new day! It was a new year! Not only did I NOT give up on myself today but I had a major victory! If you've been around me long you know my love of ice cream! I passed this love on to "My Marine". Tonight after dinner (a new recipe yummy!) he said he wanted ice cream! I told him "we have chocolate ice cream in the freezer; help yourself." (Yes, chocolate ice cream has been in the freezer since the beginning of the year and I haven't had any!!) He said he didn't really want that. I had to go out to run an errand and was going to be near Braums so I asked him if he wanted that. He said, "yes." Then I asked the hubby if he wanted ice cream since he has been asking for junk food for the past week or so. He wanted it too! So I ran my errand and went through the Braums drive thru and ordered 2 (not 3) ice cream mixes!! Victory for ME!!

And in reality it wasn't even a temptation. I smelled it all the way home and wasn't tempted to even have a sample! Whooohoo!

In other confessions for the week...I have been doing really well following the low glycemic index plan. Basically if it's lower than 55 on the GI list I can eat it. If its higher than 55 I can't! And surprisingly it hasn't been too difficult while eating at home. BUT...Saturday I was out all day doing a fundraiser for the Komen 3 Day that I am gearing up for. So I went to Subway thinking that would be a great choice for food. It was, except the sandwich wasn't enough so instead of ordering the chips which is what I normally would do I ordered the yogurt parfait. It tasted great and added something to my sandwich to make me fuller. BUT...after I got home and logged it into MyFitnessPal I found out it was very high in SUGAR! UGH! Oh well, I moved on and just took it for what it was. The best choice for me at the time (best I could tell!)

Other than that flub up on Saturday I have had a really great week. I have been getting plenty of water! This weeks 52 Weeks Challenge is to get at least 7-8 hours of sleep! I can really tell a big difference when I don't get enough sleep and it's an area I really struggle in so I'm glad this challenge is pushing me to sleep more!

I'm really excited to get on the scale tomorrow morning! This is new for me...as I haven't looked forward to the scale in some time.

I'm also moving up to Level 2 on the 30 Day Shred tomorrow morning and although I know it will hurt I am looking forward to it! I have done Level 1 of the workout every morning and I'm feeling like I am getting my exercise groove back! My plan is to continue with the Shred this month along with the ab work that I have been doing, but I feel that maybe I should do something else too, so I'm trying to figure out what to add to it.

2012 is gonna be my year!! How is your year going so far??

ShrinkYoSelf2012 - Week 1

Well here we are at Wednesday! Over at the Sisterhood that is the day we weigh in and tell the world (or at least our hookersisters) how we are doing and get cheers or a kick in the booty if we need it! I was actually looking forward to hopping on the scale this morning BUT almost forgot! I have been exercising every MORNING (yes, ME EXERCISE IN THE MORNING and if you know me well you know it's hard for me to do anything in the morning!) So this morning I got up did my usual stuff, got dressed, etc and then right before I left the room to exercise I remembered "it's Wednesday! Time to weigh in!" so I went back into the bathroom, undressed and got on the scale! See how dedicated I am?

I was thrilled to see that since Sunday I lost 3.2 pounds! After doing a little happy dance right there in my undies I got dressed and went out and let Jillian Shred my butt some more! It made it a little easier to workout this morning knowing that I lost 3.2 pounds in 3 days! Yes, I realize that most of that weight is probably detoxing the crap out of my system and water loss BUT STILL it looked mighty nice to see a nice loss on the scale! Especially since I baked chocolate chip cookies for my Marine last night (and didn't even want any for myself!) and there are still 3 left and I haven't eaten them! No cookies or crap for me! YAY!!!

I'm participating in the 52 Weeks for Healthy Living Challenge over at the 'hood! This week is easy...WATER! Drink 1/2 your weight in water, nice clear yummy water! Not a problem for me since I got into the habit of drinking water some time ago, I am accustomed to drinking somewhere in the range of 100 oz of water but NOW I am making a concerted effort at drinking that much and even more! I spend a lot of time in the bathroom, but I know I am getting enough water!

We are also supposed to get in 30 minutes of "moderate" exercise 5 days a week or 30 minutes of "vigorous" exercise 3 times a week. This fits in with my own personal goal for the month of at least 30 minutes of exercise every day! I am happy to say that I have been working out with Jillian's 30 Day Shred this week (planning to do it the whole month - every day!) and also adding some ab work to round out my 30 minutes. It feels great to get up in the morning and get it out of the way! This way in the evening if people want to watch tv or play video games I don't have an excuse!
I "think" it's getting easier although my knees were pretty sore this morning so my lunges certainly weren't deep enough, but I kept moving and that is the point!

Ok..so here are my goals for this challenge (and at this pace I should make them, PLEASE??):
Starting weight for challenge: 205.0
Today's weight: 201.8

My goal weight for this challenge: 185.0

Yes, that's a loss of 20 pounds in 8 weeks/2 months! I know that if I stick with the Low Glycemic Index Diet Plan I can do this! It's that big IF that always gets in the way!
How am I planning to reach this goal? I'm going to follow the plan exclusively for the month of January....that means 31 days of nothing but the foods on the plan. That means no soda. That means nothing fried. That means my choices for eating out will be limited but certainly not non-existent. That means I have to prepare healthy foods for myself and keep myself busy when I "think" I want something that doesn't follow the plan. That means I can't stress out when My Marine goes back to San Diego for his next stage of training, in less than 2 weeks. That means I have to focus on MY goals!

The next thing I will need to do is continue exercising. I actually like exercising and I love the way it makes me feel so the biggest problem I have is not making the excuses of why I don't have time! I really do have time! I'm a SAHM who homeschools! What the heck am I so busy doing that I don't have 30 minutes to workout? goofing off on my phone, playing #WordsWithFriends, checking emails 30 million times a day, checking facebook 1 million times a day Yeah, lots of really important stuff there! Yes, I do homeschool That Other Kid. Yes, I am responsible for a household. Yes, I constantly prepare meals, do laundry, run errands and everything else a mom does, but really can't a mom spare 30 minutes to take care of herself?! I think we all know the answer is YES! We just need to make that decision to do it!

Exercise for a minimum of 30 minutes EVERY day for the month of January, and then at least 5 days a week for the month of February. I would like to set the goal at every day for both January and February but I want to allow myself some leeway! For the month of January there is NO leeway! I gave myself a whole year of leeway! There is none left!

My next goal for this challenge is to follow along with the 52 Weeks of Healthy Living. I have the book coming and we have the group set up on the 'hood, so there is not a reason why I can't follow along with these.

I think that's all for this challenge. I want to change my life so much this year and this is the beginning of it! I can't wait to see the difference 2 months can make!

First Confession for 2012

Today is Tuesday and over at the Sisterhood that is when we confess the good, the bad and the ugly! Sooooooo here are my confessions for the first Tuesday of 2012.

Late last week I decided I was going to make 2012 my year of finally meeting my weight loss goals and not just talking about meeting my weight loss goals! I looked at what I would need to do to meet my goals and started formulating a plan. Almost 3 years ago when I started my journey of losing weight I weighed 226.8 pounds and the doctor told me some key things to do to lose weight and get my health under control.
Sunday morning I weighed 205.0 pounds....so I guess I can say I have lost and maintained 21 pounds but that's not the 75 pounds I should have lost and maintained by now!

The first thing he told me to do was EXERCISE! Simple enough - exercise at least 30 minutes a day to get a decent sweat and the heart rate up! (If I would have consistently done this 3 years ago I wouldn't be sitting here telling you how I need to lose weight still!) I started with Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred then and I didn't die 3 years ago, so I knew it would be a good place to start 2012 with!

I have been so inactive the past couple of months that I knew I would be basically starting over and let me tell you, Jillian is kicking my butt! In a good way of course! My muscles hurt and are screaming but I know it will work.
I also wanted to add in some additional abdominal work, so I found a nice short ab workout on Netflix Instant. It is off the 10 minute Toning for Beginners and I'm just doing the ab portion. That gives me a little more than 30 minutes with the warmup/cool down from the Shred and the 10 minutes of ab work!

The second thing he told me to do was to STOP DRINKING SODA! Another no brainer! Soda has no redeeming qualities (except it tastes good!) Again I managed to go 6 weeks without one soda 3 years ago...I can do it again!

So...Saturday evening I drank my last soda of 2011 and my last one for some time. Now in all honesty I know I will drink soda again. BUT....I can't make it my preferred drink. I need to make it a "special treat"! Not something I get when I'm thirsty or because it's "happy hour" at Sonic or because my hubby wants one.
My plan is go the entire month of January and February without soda. I'm determined to not drink ANY for the month of January. We'll see how things are going then! For these first 3 days of January I am having some pretty intense cravings for coke which means I was drinking WAY too much! Having it in the house isn't helping either but my will power is stronger! Right?? I'm doing great on the water challenge that is going on over at the 'hood! I'm supposed to drink 102 ounces a day and I have nailed it on both days so far. I am already at about 45 ounces today so I'm certainly on track for today, but I am spending a lot of time in the bathroom! lol


The third thing the doctor told me to do was to follow a low glycemic index diet plan. He gave me some guidelines and told me to look it up for more specifics so I went home and looked it up BUT I didn't really follow it! It looked too hard, but in reality I was just being stubborn! I didn't want to change my life completely. I still wanted to eat crap food. I still wanted to eat fried foods. I still wanted to eat sugar loaded desserts! So, although I did lose weight (quickly and a significant amount) I wasn't completely committed.

BUT....now that I've decided to really make this change and lose the weight for real I've started following the plan strictly. For the month of January, I have committed to ONLY eat what is on the low glycemic index diet plan. Really it's not that hard...and it's what I already know I need to properly fuel my body. Whole wheat grains, lean meats, moderate amounts of fruit, and lots of veggies. If you are interested in it feel free to use google to find out more about it. I'm a pretty picky eater so I just found the foods that were approved on it and wrote them down on a piece of paper and I'm only fixing foods that are on that list. 'Lissa told me last night it sounded a lot like South Beach Phase 2. I've followed the plan before and had great results...I just didn't stick with it long enough.

Ok...so now that y'all know what I'm doing I will tell you I am really struggling with getting myself together. I have been exercising shortly after I get up (which is hard enough for me!). Then I have been sitting down to record everything and eat some breakfast, and I have ended up sitting at the computer for at least an hour! That's gotta end. I can't be hitting the shower at noon! I need to be able to start school no later than 10:30. Today we are taking another day off since the kiddo is sick but he won't be sick for the whole year, ya know?! So time management is an area I need to work on!

I'm also having some serious junk food cravings. I know its normal to go through these withdrawals but still! Makes it harder for me that the hubs and kiddo are sick too! But, I know I can do it...it just takes will power and the determination to want it bad enough and I DO!!

I heard this quote about 6 weeks ago on the Biggest Loser and it really spoke to me! I think it's gonna be my mantra for this time in my journey.....

"If you believe you can achieve!"