Apple Pie

Hi friends,

I just finished baking a yummy apple pie. I haven't attempted many pies from scratch yet, but most have turn out pretty well so far. I have high hopes for this one. :) Honeycrisp apples are back in season and they are some of my favorites! This will be the last pie for a while though. It is time to get back on the chicken train and lose some more weight! Therapy has been going well and I am ready to kick it up a notch. Going to the gym last Wednesday and not participating in Zumba made me very unhappy.

A very thoughtful friend, who taught me to bake said yummy pie, bought me my own nice pie plate. I am happy to say that I have been putting it to use!

How are you doing on your journeys? I really value your comments and love to hear your thoughts so please share.

Workout train, whoot whooooo!

Hi all,

I worked out yesterday in the gym for the first time in months. Oh, my gym closed! Ahahahaha! I was like, really? Really? How did this happen AGAIN? This is the second time my gym has up and closed its doors and left us all in the wind. The only thing I could do was laugh.

However, the GREATEST THING EVER happened--the building management company is keeping it open and it is FREE! For now anyway... tehehe I like free!

My ankle started complaining after 20 minutes on the bike and after my other exercises. Today, it is a bit stiff, but doing alright overall. I am seriously considering just pushing hard and beating my ankle into submission. You know, that or re-injure myself. It is a toss up right now what I will decide.

Stay tuned!!

I hope your journey is going well! I miss you blog world. Please update me on how you are. I really love your comments and try to respond to every one!

Blessings,
R

P.S. I shall tell you the story of the Air Conditioning Debacle in my next post!

Therapeutic therapy

Hello friends,

I have been busy doing a lot of nothing lately, thus no updates for you. However, we have progress! Here is what is new in my corner of the universe:

I have added more resistance and exercises to my physical therapy routine!! Woo!!

Ok, so I know that is not super exciting to all of you, but celebrate a little with me. I am making progress! Yay! My ankle kills still most days. It gets pretty sore, but I can feel a difference in the soreness. It is a strengthening soreness instead of an injury soreness. Hopefully you know what I mean and if you do not then I hope it is because you have never been injured in your life! :) Want to know what exercises I am doing? Of course I would be happy to tell you! Thanks for asking.

Exercise ball wall squats
Balance board for my ankle
"Monster" walks (resistance band tied around ankle and go forward/backward/side to side)
Writing air ABC's with my ankle
Circles with ankle
Lunges (ugh!)
Resistance bands up/down/left/right
Legs lifts with weights
Heel raises on a stair
Stand on balance squishy blue things (I swear, that is what they called them) while throwing a ball into a trampoline and catching it (this one seems rather pointless to me, but they tell me to do it so I do as told)
Biking for 10 mins

Ice & stim have to be some of my favorite parts at the end. And as much as the hard tools used to massage my leg/ankle/foot hurt they really help.

That is my life as far as working out goes. I have to take it easy in between because of how much my ankle hurts from how hard they work it. I have been pretty faithful doing the stuff I can outside the office on my own time too. God willing, I should be better in the next couple weeks. I can feel strength returning! Onward! Hope your journeys are going well too. I would love to hear your story and support you too. I love your comments--they are a huge encouragement to me!

Blessings,
R

Mockingjay

Hi friends,

So, anyone else out there waiting for Mockingjay, final book of The Hunger Games trilogy, to come out? I totally was. I bought AND READ it all today, tehehe. I was fortunate enough to have Mr. Chaos want to take almost a three hour nap and My Little Princess want to play educational games on PBS Kids (as well as a few other distractions)! I was a bad, checked out mommy today. Ok, not entirely--I did a couple of crafts with them and went to visit a friend this morning and play and ok, so I did not entirely fail as a mommy today. :) Anyway, I snatched bits and pieces until I finished. So, so, so phenomenal. I actually cried at one point. I may have choked up at points in other books, but I actually shed tears. I am being intentionally vague because it was just released today and not every person will be able to finish it in a day like I did.

For those who have no clue what I am talking about I was blog hopping and found out about The Hunger Games series. Everyone raved about it (even the 3 employees in the bookstore when I was on my way to check out!) and only had good things to say. I love to read and it gets put on the back burner to being a mommy, but since I have extra time on my hands since I have not returned to a full on workout routine again I need something to fill my time. Anyway, check out these fantastic books if you are needing a good read. Be forewarned that picking them up will probably be hazardous to your sleep!

Blessings,
R

Good news!

Hi friends,

Remember how I kept putting off my visit to the doctor for my ankle in hopes that it would continue to get better, but it plateaued and has not gotten better? Weeeeeeellllll, I went to see him today and got some good news!

At this point my issue is re-building strength in my leg and ankle again and I will be doing four weeks of physical therapy. He said I should be right as rain by then. I see him again in two weeks and he said I probably would not be at 100% by then, but I would be a lot better. Here is my only reservation: he was a cocky, know-it-all who made me feel stupid for not coming there sooner. I really wanted to say bite me, big stupid ninny. Or, well, something to that affect. I am just happy to know that I was correct in thinking that at this point it is mechanical/muscular. I need some expert help to fix this problem and I am getting it. A little late, yes, but at least I am doing it, jerk! :P

That is what is new in our corner of the world. How about you?
Blessings,
R

UPDATE

Hi friends,

Quick update for all those who follow me. :) I had a massage yesterday and she did a lot of work on my ankle/leg and it feels a lot better (but worse too). I can feel that things are going back to where they should be. She mentioned that the way I walk may be inhibiting the healing process too.

Also, we pulled the trigger and I have an appointment at Mr. Fantastic's kick-a** orthopedist for this coming monday! First day of preschool for My Little Princess and the ortho appointment--not going to be a busy or emotional day at all there. *insert eye roll and sarcastic tone here please* I'm looking forward to it and want to hold it off as long as possible. :)

Blessings on your journey,
R

Many apologies

Dear friends,

I suck at friendship. I apologize and hope to do better in the future. I could give you a list of reasons, *ahem*, ok, excuses (like the whole family came down with strep and apparently amoxicillin does not work for any of us and we just get sicker and have to go back to the doctor for something stronger--all the while taking this first medication wondering why on God's green earth we do not feel any better and in actuality feel worse!!) and hope that you will forgive or I can get on with my post.

Part of the reason it has been so long between blog entries is that I am unsure what to write about. I am semi-on the eating right plan. I have been bad at limiting my sugar intake and cheating daily. However, I have not gain weight (in truth I think I have lost weight due to being sick), but I also have not weighed myself recently.

I have not been working out consistently. I tried to start back slow--3 days, 30-45 minutes, slow pace, walking and biking. Then the strep hit. Boo! Before that though I have still been dealing with this ankle injury. No, I have not made it to the doctor yet. Mr. Fantastic thinks I should go see his orthopedist who was awesome after his knee injury and like 3 other doctors failed miserably and should have their medical licenses pulled for idiotic treatment option suggestions were unable to diagnose the problem (it was entirely mechanical and they wanted to cut tendons). I would like to, but I just have not made it a priority. I should. You all (if anyone is still reading this) should bother me until I do.

So, there it is: I am not eating whatever I please with abandon (yay!), I am not working out due to illness and ankle injury (boo!), I am a terrible blogger (boo!), however I have discovered a lot of great blogs because I still desire to blog and like to get inspiration from you all!!! Talk amongst yourselves.

Blessings,
R

Mr. Fantastic is on board!

Hello all!

I am pleased to announce to you that Mr. Fantastic is starting his own new eating program!!! Yay! He has always been fantastically supportive of me as I take this journey. He also confessed to me that he wishes he had just taken the plunge and started eating differently when I did. :) Can anyone else say (ever-so-lovingly!), "I told you so!?"

His eating plan is a lot different than mine. Let us face the fact that men and women are different. All you feminist feel free to hate on me. Done? Right then. Mr. Fantastic is 6'7" and weighs in around 310 pounds. As you can imagine 300 pounds is not outrageous on his frame. And his arms, oh mama, his arms make me weak in the knees. Enough bragging. ;) He, like most of us, is carrying the extra around the middle. So, here is to you, my wonderful husband! I hope I can be as supportive to you as you have been to me.

The other thought that popped in to my head was that now not only will my husband smell like that ridiculously adorable Old Spice Man, but he will be looking like him soon too. My next thought was, "Well, better than him because his biceps are bigger, tehehe." Love the carpentry muscles. :)

Anyone have any thoughts on the Insanity workout??

Blessings to you all!

R

Boating in MN

Hi friends,

Ready for some story time?

Over the 4th we went boating with my dad. It was so awesome to take My Little Princess tubing! We took her two years ago before we moved south, but she was too young to remember. She enjoyed it soooooo much. Huge smiles and it was a great memory that I got to make with her. :)

Unfortunately I do not think that Mr. Chaos Little Man enjoyed it. We hit a rather large wave while on the tube. I had one hand holding on to him and one hand holding the tube. I tried, but I could not keep us on the tube. If I had been by myself it would not have been a big deal. My instinct was to let go of Mr. Chaos and grab the tube to keep us on. I knew immediately if I let go of him, even with him in my lap, he would be bounced out while I was still on. I never let go of him but he really did not like going under the water even for a second. Apparently Mr. Fantastic has not boated as much as I previously thought because my dad had to tell him to stay in the boat while he brought it back around to pick us up. He has been more of a canoe/fishing boat type of guy as apposed to a speed boating/tubing/water skiing kind of guy to this point. I was completely calm and we were fine, but he wanted to rescue us. Dad explained that it was faster if he stayed in the boat so he could swing back around to pick us up. How chivalrous my husband is!

What family activities do you enjoy now or did you enjoy growing up?

Blessings,
R

Aggravation

Hello all,

I hope you all enjoyed your 4th! We certainly did. I got to attend one of my best friends' wedding and see fireworks all at the same time. Then I picked out my bridesmaid dress and My Little Princess' flower girl dress for one of my other very bestest friends' wedding coming this December! I am so happy for her. All my roomies from college will now be getting hitched within the next year. We had a great time. Although, My Little Princess was super disappointed that we could not take the dress home that day and that we could not take ALL the dresses home she tried on, lol.

I have realized that I should probably get my ankle x-rayed now that we are home again. It seems like it has not gotten any better over the last month. My injury happened May 29th. It should be feeling better than this by now. Grrrr... this aggravates me. I dislike doctors. However, that is another story for another time. So, I'll make my appointment and let you know. In the mean time I am getting on the Wii Fit today and going to work out tomorrow morning at the gym. I have to work out some of this soreness from boating fun over the weekend! :)

Blessings,
R

Work out update

Hi friends,

I went and worked out on Monday at the gym. I rode a bike for 45 minutes. I watched an episode of Burn Notice. In case you were unaware, which I most of you probably are, I am a huge fan of Burn Notice and Michael Weston! Anyone else? ;) I rode about 9.5 miles and burned approximately 250 calories. Yay me! I was so bored biking though (thank goodness for Burn Notice!). Also, I felt a bit out of place. The only other two people on bikes were pregnant ladies. Kudos to them for staying active! I could feel the strain in my ankle in a major way. It is still very weak. :( I have been doing ankle exercises to try to restore some strength, but it is just not happening as fast as I would like. I am frustrated that I am not recovery as fast as I thought I was and at how weak my ankle still is. :(

Now, my ankle has been stiff for the past two days and I am supposed to go salsa dancing with a friend on Saturday. I think an ankle brace may be in order to protect my ankle and not re-injury it. Just another bump in the journey, I suppose. What is that saying that so many people in my life love? Oh, yes: "This to shall pass." True enough, but I am still discouraged today. So, I choose to move on and have a good attitude. It is a choice, you know. That reminder is me talking to me. Ok, have a fantastic day and know that you can choose to have a good attitude despite circumstances that try to steal your joy!

Blessings,
R

Swimming success!

Hi all,

We decided to skip church yesterday since our weekend was cut short by Mr. Fantastic's work and go swimming as a family! Mr. Fantastic was surprised at how well My Little Princess was swimming. He has not seen her swim since we started lessons. Perhaps you remember this post? Yes, he has not been able to swim for the past month which is about how long we have been doing swimming lessons. Can I just tell you that is was a great bonding and playing time for all of us?! And, with it being over 100 degrees all day, just what we needed to cool off.

Both of my children love the water. Mr. Chaos even figured out how to put his face in the water and blow bubbles (I have been working on this for months, y'all). This all makes me very happy because I love the water too. Always have. Not sure why, but I do.

Isn't it great that even though we did not go to church as a family the Lord provided such a great family time for all of us. He was totally present and I think we got more out of swimming than we would have at church. What a great God!

What are the family activities that you love to do and bring you closer as a family?

Blessings,
R

Getting my groove back

Hello all!

I hope this day is treating you well. My family and I have been sick for the past four days. We have had stomach issues. You can imagine how fun that has been, or maybe you do not want to. Anyway, since I have not been eating much aside from crackers and gatorade I figured that this would the opportunity I needed to get back to basics. I have been cheating more than once a week--try more like once a day! Eep! I am not going to start entirely over, but I need to get back to more protein in my eating habits and less sugar.

If you new here and are wondering about my eating plan check out my first post on the subject, as well as this step, and I have come to the point now where I get to cheat once a week and eat something like a donut or a glass of wine. :)

Here's my update on the swimming lessons we started. My Little Princess is swimming a ton better now. I feel like I can take her and Mr. Chaos Little Man swimming by myself. We have started in a semi-private class and I feel like we have been moving backward the past three days. I have decided we are going to stick it out and see. I am not happy right now though. :(

And for those that wanted to know, we killed the mystery flower. I think that I over watered it, even though I live in AZ. However, one of our four pots we seeded is doing awesome! Wanna see? We expect pink, red, and white blossoms soon! :)

How does your garden grow?
Blessings,
R

Out stain, help me get it out!

Hello friends!

I have a conundrum on my hands. I need some help getting puke out of bed sheets. Apparently, Mr. Fantastic checked them carefully before throwing them in to the drier and now the stain has shown up as a result. So, I have a baked in yellowish, stain in super cute Pooh Bear bed sheets. Sorry for the gross factor. What tricks do you use to get stains out?

I got a very nice compliment from my aunt on Father's Day! She said that my diet change is clearly working. :) She also mentioned that my being so young helped in my weight loss journey. I could not agree more! I will take every advantage in my corner.

My ankle is still recovering. I was actually kind of planning on heading back in to the gym today, however, Mr. Chaos Little Man threw up. I figured I should make sure he is vomit-free for at least 24 hours before bringing him in to the gym. Tomorrow I shall bike! Granted we continue to be barf-free. So far, so good.

Blessings on your journey,
R

It's maddening, and I'm not talking about the hatter!

Hello friends and bloggy buddies!

I have a rant for all of you. Please comment with your wisdom!

I value honesty and forthrightness. As I've gotten older it has become more and more important, no, essential to me. I have never really had time for those people who him and haw and never get to the point or make a decision. That annoys me. I am all for making an informed decision, but make the choice and deal with the consequences--good or bad. I am not saying I am perfect (that would be crazy talk, y'all!), but I like to think I am honest, direct, and tactful. I feel like telling someone the truth in love, even though it may hurt their feelings, is the best course of action.

When I ask you a straightforward question I expect you answer with candor and without guile. Do not worry about hurting my feelings. I am a big girl. It is not kinder to try to spare my feelings. In fact, you will likely be doing more damage. And I do not have the freaking time or energy to waste wondering. Think about this--is it not more torturous waiting to hear about test results than actually knowing the results and being able to deal with what comes next? Have you ever had a relationship break-up and not gotten closure? There are endless examples, but the point is that it is absolutely maddening having to guess!!!

So, I do not have time to beat around the bush or endless amounts of time to wait for you to give me an answer. Be mature and grow-up and own your decision(s). Am I out of my mind to expect this of other people? I am looking for validation that I am not a loony. Your thoughts?

Blessings and peace,
R

P.S. I am letting it go, have let it go, and am trying not to take it back.

Friday Follow

Welcome to the 2nd Friday Follow hosted by our awesome hostesses, Heather at Two Little Monkeys Plus Hubby Make One Happy Mommy, Evonne at All You Need Is Love, and Steph at A Grande Life.  Thank you ladies for being willing to host! I approached them first before we announced the website.

We invite you to join us every Friday to get more blog followers and to find many interesting blogs that you like. This is all about sharing and having fun.

We expect you to be on your honor and to have fun. These are only guidelines to make it more enjoyable for you. Here’s how YOU can join the Friday Follow celebration:

• Link up your blog below.. One Link per blog
• Grab our Friday Followbutton include on your side bar, or post.. grab the linky information if you want it
• Follow the Friday-Follow blog and the hostesses in slots 1, 2 & 3 that have volunteered today to host
• Follow the blogs you want, leave comment saying you are from Friday Follow – use common courtesy
• No spammers, or xxrated blogs – family friendly

 If you need more guidelines about following see Friday-Follow.com

This list is new each week and closes on Saturday at 11:59pm EST. The links do not carry over. Please link up each week for new participants to find your blogs. It will be visible all week to visit the blogs listed.

Congratulations to our first Three Friday Follow Winners!!!

Just Keep Smiling

The Girl Next Door

From Lazy to Lady

Each week we will randomly draw from three (3) blogs from the links for the next week’s Friday Follow, and each blog chosen will be placed in the highly coveted number #7, #8, and #9 position on the blog hop. The first blog chosen will also be given the option of doing an interview which will post on Friday-Follow.com on Thursday the next week. We love your participation and want to give back to you! You could be next!

Spread the word about Friday Follow by grabbing our button for your blog and come celebrate again every Friday. Feel free to also send out a tweet, blog, stumble or share the news in your own special way!

Blessings,

R

Random teeth brushing

Hi friends!

Again, I've dropped the ball! However, I have a really awesome excuse. I had a sick hubs and then on top of that I turned my ankle in a nasty fashion. I'm on week three of recovery and most (not all) of the swelling is gone, though it still has lingering bruising and pain. So, my itch to get back to the gym has once again been postponed. I've actually been very antsy these past few days. I think it is the reverse psychology working on me. I can't work out, therefore, I really want to work out. My chiropractor adjusted my ankle and asked how I was doing since I had started running and this was (he assumed correctly) interfering with that. I lamented about the inconvenience and he sympathized and cautioned me to start back easy. Thanks, Dad. *insert eye roll here* I do know this and I appreciate the care, but it really makes me want to ignore it, lol.

My Little Princess decides to randomly, throughout the day to brush her teeth. I rather like this. I just thought I'd share that lovely fact with all of you. Also, we are on week two, day six of swim lessons and the Little Princess is doing fan-freaking-tastic, y'all!!! I couldn't be much more thrilled with her progress. My only thing is that while she is doing incredible I need her swimming really well to be able to take her and Mr. Chaos Little Man swimming in the pool by myself. She is not quite there yet. I will be enrolling her elsewhere for another session. It's a private instructor and she assured me by the end of the ten days that if My Princess isn't swimming it is because she doesn't want to, not because she can't. I think this will be easier for her to pick up and solidify since we did the city's park and rec aquatics program first. It's 5x as expensive, but I won't have to wait all summer and spend the same amount to have her swimming. Have I ever mentioned I live in AZ and it's hot? :) We really love the water and want to all play this summer. Check back again, because My Little Princess should be swimming by July, baby!!! :)

Blessings,
R

So, I'm a loser

Hello faithful followers!

I know I promised to get back to blogging about my weight loss and working out with the next post. I'm a loser and I haven't been working out regularly, therefore, I have not posted. I do apologize. Working out has become a difficult thing to fit in these last weeks. I'm successful at getting in to the gym or on my Wii Fit about once a week currently--I haven't entirely given up!!! :) For whatever reason my Little Princess has decided now that any time I drop her off anywhere she is going to cry and say no and she doesn't want to and she wants to go home right now (like my run-on?).

So, I'm just giving us a little break from the gym and trying to just make sure the Little People and I are out and active every day. Added benefit of this is they are tired and it is quality family time. Here is the only issue I am going to be coming up against: it is hot in Arizona. Perhaps you remember me mentioning this in the past? It is still true. So, we will be headed back in to the gym soon with it heating up.

Update on the weight loss: I have not lost any more weight, however, I have not GAINED weight either!!! Woohoo! I really, really, really want to wear my all my twelves so that means buckling back down to make it in to the gym and run/bike/swim/dance! Wish me luck, lovies!

Blessings on your journey,
R

Swim lessons

Hello all!

I registered My Little Princess for swim lessons. She is three and a half now and we have a pool in our community that I would love to use, but I can't because she does not swim on her own and neither does Mr. Chaos (fifteen months). I can't swim alone with both of them. Well, I could, but I hate to put a life jacket on her just to swim in the pool. It just seems ridiculous to me. That being said I should have enrolled her in swim classes much earlier than now. I procrastinate. I own that and I deal.

Do you want to know the other reason I enrolled her in swim classes? I have taught her most of the skills they teach in the first class. I am very capable of teaching her all of those first skills. I can even teach her the basic strokes. However, she has absolutely no interest in learning to float. I (and Mr. Fantastic) have tried and I have been patient to no avail. Well, if you swim then you know that floating is one thing you have to kind of have to master before moving on to actual swimming.

Here is my theory, and I really hope I am right. I am Mommy, therefore, I am not always listened to. Do not get me wrong--my children do well overall listening and following directions. We have worked hard on that and I am proud of that. This is just something that goes with the territory unfortunately (parents, you know what I am talking about, right? Or maybe I am the only one). I am counting on the fact that this teacher is an authority figure and that My Little Princess will listen to them. Lessons start soon. They can't come soon enough for my liking. It is hot in AZ (in case there were any doubts, just letting you know, it's hot) and we really like playing in the water.  I would like to swim this summer! :)

What do you do to beat the summer heat?
Blessings,
R

Um, I don't think so, Mom

Hello friends and faithful followers,

I apologize for my absence from you! I have had no inspiring thoughts to share with you. Well, I have something to share now. Whether it is inspiring or not, well, probably not... tehe

My mother told me a few days ago that she has always had this feeling that there was the "possibility of a third grandchild." She has had it since I was pregnant with Mr. Chaos. Now, Mr. Fantastic and I have said we are done at two. I told him if he wants more he is having them. That pretty much settled it. Both pregnancies were tough on me and I do not want to go through a third. Both of my kids were completely worth it. I just choose not to go through it again. I told God we had a deal--no more. I told a friend that I think I would feel like the universe took a cosmic dump on me if I got pregnant again. She found it hilarious and sad all at the same time. After I got past the initial shock I am sure happiness would follow, but I can tell you that would not be my first reaction to such a precious gift from the Lord another time around.

What do you think was the first thing I did when she told me this? I calmly opened my computer and started researching urologists (these are the people who do the snippy snippy for your husband). I found two that were close to us and wrote down their numbers. Neither one of them took our insurance when I called them the following day. So, I called my insurance company for who was in their network. The first people I called only did children, thank you very much oh, wise insurance referral person. That annoyed me. Moving on, I called the second and yes! they can get us in over Memorial Day weekend.

No, Mom, there is NOT the "possibility" of a third grandchild. I'm picking up my renewed BC this week. Maybe we'll adopt. I'm open to that as a "possibility." Right now, Mommy can't handle that--not any time soon anyway. And I'm trying to fit into my clothes again... You know, the whole point of this blog chronicling my journey from 214, right after Mr. Chaos 15 months ago, to 178 now and still going. Thanks for the motivation to make the snippy appointment, Mom. We're taking care of that ASAP.

Hope you can hear the sarcasm. I love my mom. She's one of my best friends. That's why I can poke fun. Hope you laughed.
Blessings,
R

FLOWERS!

Hey y'all!!

So today we attended our MOPS meeting and my little Princess came home with a cup full of dirt. I have no idea what is planted in it. I was not told, nor given any verbal instructions, or written instructions. I'm curious to see what it is. I just hope I don't kill it. Eek!

Which then got me back to the subject with the little lady of wanting to plant the seeds that Auntie had given her. My hesitation to this point in time has been our backyard, or lack there of. It was basically storage for some of Mr. Fantastic Husband-Man's crap that he's been holding on to since we move... almost two years ago now... and still hadn't gone through... This did not make me happy, but hey, how could I go through 20 years of memories and throw them out by myself? Tempted though I was, I refrained. Well, I am pleased as punch to be able to tell you that 15 bins (not the small ones either, folks) has turned in to 4! And it's mostly just pictures and old t-shirts and books. :) We have a backyard (small though it is) again!!!! Super excited by this fact and spurred on by MOPS we took a little trip to WalMart and purchased our pots and soil. There are four pots of flower seeds bursting with potential and one little plastic mystery cup.

If you want another baby to invest your time in to, but can't afford it or want to continue to sleep at night I suggest planting flowers or a garden. If you do it, you'll get what I mean. Or someone can interpret in the comments. I'm tired. Nikki kept me up on the phone. It's her fault if this is not cohesive or entirely finished thoughts. And Justin too. :P

Blessings,
R

No pain, no pain!

No pain-no pain. That's what my dad always says jokingly about exercise. You probably know the way that saying usually goes is "No pain, no gain!" Mr. Fantastic Husband-Man's mantra is "Pain is weakness leaving the body." Yes, he stole it from the marines, hoorah! My mom works out because, "One day I'll be sexy..." She was kidding with me. She doesn't want the underarm-jiggle-wave. And, more importantly, she wants to be healthy. My mom is a breast cancer survivor! 7 years, baby!!

What is your mantra when you workout and are left with that stupendous ache? Yes, I want to be healthy. I want to wear my old clothes. However, I think I need a new mantra... Neither one of these are doing it for me anymore. The Wii Fit tells me to "Visualize my ideal body." Shut up! According to you I should weigh 129! Can anyone else say unrealistic and twiggish? Ick! Mr. Fantastic might leave me, just kidding. I try to tell myself it's a good burn/ache. I'm burning fat, I'm building muscle. That's wearing thin too.

Help a gal out! I'm sore and feeling whiney, lol. Sooooooooo, how do you stay motivated?

Blessings on your journey!

R

P.S. I'm super excited for my massage tomorrow!!! It's been over a month! I have the greatest chiropractor. :) It's really the little things that make me happy!

A REAL LOVE STORY!!!

I just found this on another blogger's site. She actually has it posted. I couldn't figure out to put it on my blog. How do I do that?

CHECK THIS OUT! SOOOOOO GOOD! And I really do love Anita Renfroe. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLjWDKu0jfM&feature=player_embedded

The Spin Cycle

Hi friends!

No, today I'm not telling you about my laundry (most of which got caught up at the beginning of the week, thank you very much!). I'm talking about cycling, or biking. I decided to be adventurous and try my first cycling class. I have been thinking of trying it for a while, but I wanted to do it with someone. My first workout buddy--my mommy--recently sprained her ankle badly enough that she was on crutches for a bit. Still recovering-strike one. My other workout buddy--my neighbor--was recently put on bed rest for two weeks (she's pregnant with her second child!)-strike two. So, with hopes of seeing someone I knew from zumba, I headed out to try my hand (erm, legs?) at cycling. I arrived to the class about five minutes early after dropping off the munchkins. Good thing I did! I got one of the last four bikes. Unbeknownst to me, this has become a rather popular class. Sadly, I did not recognize anyone in the class-strike thre... BUT WAIT! I decided I wasn't out and I was still going to give it a try.

The instructor chatted with me about what to expect and helped me adjust the seat (oh, I've learned it's called a 'saddle'--I thought those were for horses... moving on). One of the questions she asked me was if I was new to cycling or new to fitness in general. Um, ouch, lady! Just cycling... Alright, so I wasn't offended at the time, but I'm a little offended now as I think back about it. To be fair, I'm not in stellar body shape and that makes it a fair-er question. Who knows, maybe she just asks everyone regardless of size the same question. I'm going to tell myself that to make myself feel better and to give her the benefit of the doubt.

She basically told me not to try to keep up with everyone and take lots of breaks and basically ignore her when she told the class to turn the resistance up and down. Ok, then! Can do! *big thumbs up* I really didn't touch the dial the first 35 minutes of class. The last 25 minutes I did do a little with it. I'm glad I listened to her advice. I'm feeling it today! Love (hear sarcasm here) working muscles in a different way so I can really feel 'em the next day. Although, I have to tell you when I workout now I get that great high. I'm a sick, sick person, I know. lol However, I feel good and rather accomplished for the day and it seems like I accomplish more throughout the day as well. Love that!

I think I shall try cycling again. It's something I'd like to become proficient at. It seems like a lot of people cycle down here. And that makes sense since you can do it year-round in the desert. I've always enjoyed biking, but this takes it to a new level. I think I will settle for being proficient though--I'm not looking to compete in triathlons... yet.

Happy Friday Follow!!!
Blessings,
R

P.S. Do you have any tips for a new cyclista?

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Getting dirty!

Hello all!

So, in honor of eARTh Day I wanted to blog about my hike on Sunday with the family! We had a good time going to Superstition Springs Mountain Range and hiking the Hieroglyphic Trail. We only made it about half a mile in and then had to turn around. My little princess was walking for part of it and going REALLY, really, really slow. Then Mr. Fantastic Daddy carried her for a while, but my back was starting to hurt from lugging Mr. Chaos Little Britches around. For as great as our Kelty carriers are they aren't perfect. I need them to be a little bit shorter in the torso and they just don't adjust down quite that short. What can I do? I'm short, or travel-size, or fun-size, whatever.

Side note: This is why I am dreaming of my Osprey Ariel backpack for my anniversary trip into the BWCA next summer!!! Soooooooooo, comfy! Anyone out there wanting to send me one for free? I'm looking at the 65. Just in case! :) I'm wishing they made a kid carrier. Or maybe I need the newer model from Kelty. Either way, not in the budget just yet.

Back to the story! So, it was getting hot as we gotten a later start than planned (right about noon) and it was dusty and we had to stop at all the flowers and rocks. I do know that Princess is a bit young to be hiking on her own (she's only three and a half!), and we know this will involve short hikes whenever we go with the intent that she walks. What I did not count on was her being soooooooo slow this time. We probably could have finished the three mile hike with myself and Mr. Fantastic Daddy-Man carrying the kids, but I can only handle Little Chaos Man on my back for so long I've discovered. Maybe next time!

I loved seeing all the flowers in bloom here in the desert in the spring. We are surrounded by a lot of brown, but the desert really comes to life in the spring and when it rains. Mr. Fantastic and I are on the same page about the kids being out in nature and learning about this amazing world God has given us. So, we got sweaty and hot and dusty and had a great time! :) It was our early eARTh day celebration. I'm considering taking My Little Princess to Disney Oceans. Any thoughts?
What did you do on eARTh day or in recognition of it?

Blessings all,
R

P.S. Check back tomorrow to see my thoughts on cycling! I took my first class today. :)

Ever used a Magna Doodle as a pillow?

Hello one and all!

Greetings and salutations! I hope you all have had fun-filled happy days!

I made it a goal today to do no chores or house work or the like. Today, I was devoting my day to play. It worked out pretty well! I've been cleaning and keeping things clean because of all the family/vacations/holidays recently that I felt a bit disconnected from my children. Tell me I'm not the only one this happens to, please! I got everything ready for my spa event that I was helping out with last night and planned on playing with my children all day! Now, it would have helped if I'd been able to fall asleep before one in the morning, but I digress. 

We had a great day! We watched some wonderful children's programming after waking up (love, love, love SuperWHY!), ate breakfast, played, took naps, played more, ate more food, and played more! I even got a load of laundry done. I wouldn't have done it, but I've been putting it off and my kids were running out of clean clothes... Eep! lol I even attempted coloring with my one year old son and three year old daughter. My son only was successful in eating part of one crayon. Success, baby!! Then we played tea party on our rug. Things got interesting. My Princess is still learning to share and do cooperative play with her brother, Mr. Chaos (who, as a one year old little man, doesn't have a clue as to what we are trying to accomplish--teachable moments, love 'em). Well, there were some tears, but I think overall progress was made! Happy day.

Then tiredness hit mommy. For whatever reason I was feeling very, very homesick for Minnesota last night and couldn't sleep. Last time I look at the clock it was after one am. One of Princess's favorite games is tucking us in for naps and singing and giving kisses and telling us it's time to be quiet (can you tell what I do with her?! lol). I laid down on the floor for just a second to stretch (our tea parties get long... amazing I don't have to use the restroom every fifteen minutes after so much tea!) and she jumped up to get a blanket to cover mommy for nap! My head landed on the Magna Doodle (or Doodler, as I like to call it) and it was surprisingly comfortable. I could feel the urge to drift wash over me. WHOMP! Mr. Chaos body slammed me (he's about thirty pounds now, people, which is freakin' huge for an almost 14 month old), giggled, and pulled the blanket down to peek-a-boo me. Nap time was over! Tickles and laughter ensued for all. I do love these days.

I sure do have a lot of dishes to do--tomorrow! I encourage you to take a day of play and get on the floor and get outdoors and play with your children. The dishes, laundry, shower scrubbing can all wait until tomorrow.

Share your stories with me! I love reading your comments!

Blessings,

R

Purse giveaway that you shouldn't enter...

Anyone who knows me knows I absolutely love purses (my husband practically drags me by that section in stores). What's better than a new purse? A FREE, new purse! Don't enter, ok? Because I totally want to win this one. Ok? Do not click, do not follow the instructions, do not enter. Got it? Thanks for helping me up my chances!!! :) And Mo is actually a pretty neat girl, so you should check out her blog. 

Josiah's Nest: Oh, look. It's Thursday. Time for an Etsy Contest: Win a pouch of your choice from CharmDesign! http://ow.ly/1yGam (Sweet, right?!)

Blessings all!

R

Josiah's Nest: Etsy Contest - CharmDesign
ow.ly

For this week's Etsy Contest on Josiah's Nest, I am featuring CharmDesign, an awesome handmade purse boutique! Ranja, owner and designer of CharmDesign, has decided to give away a round zipper pouch to one of my blog readers! ...

Back on planet earth...

Hello faithful followers!

I'm sorry it's been so very, very long since my last post. Much has happened in the last two weeks. I went off the reservation with my new eating plan, but I'm back and re-learning. :) Well, I've got these first two weeks mastered, but I'll be charting new territory again by adding back in veggies and low-carb, non-fat ice cream! :) I was also told I may have four strawberries a week. Yum, yum!  I can also have eight ounces of steak as long as I get up and walk within the first thirty minutes after eating and drink some green tea. Good times, right, friends?!

Have you been anticipating my weigh in? I've been anticipating it a lot. I think I mentioned in a previous post that losing 20 pounds during the MOPS (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers) year was one of my goals I set. I started out at 200 (yikes!) and I weighed in today just under 180!!!!! Yahoo!!! *does a happy dance* You can do a happy dance too because you are so excited by my success and how it's going to inspire your own success. I want to hear your stories too!

I have failed to do pictures. Eep! Sorry. I will get around to it. I have to say that I'm not super excited about doing this, but I will. It will also be nice to be able to look back and say I've come really far.

Anyone else catch Glee last night? Ok, was this last one like super, super drama filled, or was that just my perception? And I wasn't a fan of "Vogue" either. "Let your body move to the music..." I don't think so! She was so stiff. You are on a musical show now, lassy. Learn to loosen up! Ok, rant over.


Blessings all!
R

Giveaway winner and update!

Hello friends and followers!!

Jackie from My Perfect Little World has won the hand towels!! If you are sad that you missed out this time, don't worry, I will do this again! I have so much fun making my hand towels and I will give more away in the future. Stay tuned! :) Or, if you can't wait for a chance to win them then you can buy them at My Etsy Store!

Ok, so an update on how everything has been going for me. As some of you will remember my dad came for a visit recently (and yes, we did get that Princess bike and my little lady loves it!) and we all ended up taking a mini-vacation up to Las Vegas! We had a fantastic time swimming in the wave pool, laying by the pool tanning, walking up and down the strip to see the sites and the lights. I did rather poorly gambling, but I had fun! Which is the point for me anyway. :)

My challenge came in making the best of the food choices with what was available to me. I did pretty well for the first two days (even my dad was impressed by my willpower and complimented me on it!), but the last two ended up just being too much for me. I felt like I was compromising so much that it wasn't worth it to keep going and that I really needed to start over. I could literally taste the sugars and fats in the foods. My body and taste buds and mind really revolted and I had no desire for these things but they were unavoidable. Gradually my resistance wore down as I kept eating more and more. Again, I felt like I had compromised way more than I wanted to and needed to detox my system of the sugars and carbs and so on.

So, this is me. Starting over for the third time... but it will have to wait until after Easter! I need a break from the mundane of chicken, ham, and more chicken. :) I have enjoyed dessert, ice cream, and plan to enjoy pasta in over the weekend. Don't worry, I won't go overboard and will continue my working out. I shall resume come Monday. Plus, yes, pictures will be taken over the weekend and I'll weigh in.

Want to see my downfall in Vegas? It was dessert at the Mandalay Bay in their Bayside Buffet. I ate two. I figured if I was going to toss the last three weeks of hard work out then I'll go all the way! lol It was very, very yummy.

How are you all doing on your journeys? What do you do when temptation strikes? How do you stay strong?

Blessings,
R

Baby steps=more food choices!!!

Greetings friends and Happy Follow Friday!

So I hit the two week mark of being very good and sticking to my eating plan. :) Woohoo!!! This means that I get more food choices now! Yippee-ki-yeah! Worth it-totally. I see a huge difference already and so do others. Maybe I can ask them for a few quotables for you all to read. I'm very excited by all this. Can you tell?

Want to know what I can now eat in addition to my basics? For a review of the basics check out this post.
Here's the next page in my eating plan:
Follow the same foods as before. However, there are more substitutes you may have.

2 pieces of low carb bread (a day) OR 1 low carb tortilla
Tuna sandwich or egg salad sandwich (low/light mayo)-no cheese
OR plan ham sandwich with lettuce & tomato only
OR turkey-bacon sandwich with lettuce & tomato only

No more than 1 cup of skim milk (I had been wondering when I would get to drink milk again!!!). Kashi Go-Lean is a great cereal (I've heard the Go-Lean Crunch is best tasting) to eat or mix with yogurt.

Snack substitutes (I'm so thanking God for this because I was soooooo bored with my snackage!!!):
1. Stuffed mushrooms with hamburger meat, mozzarella (I'm assuming low cal/light though she didn't specify that), and spices
2. Stuffed jalapenos with spinach
3. Lettuce rolls with any kind of meat (no sauce other than salsa though)
4. Sunflower seeds (non-salted) 1/2 cup
5. Nuts 1/2 cup
6. Sugar free jello (I've never been so excited for jello!!! ahaha)
7. Pepperoni chips (I'm very excited for these though I've never had them they sound good)
8. Pork rinds
Low carb fudge bars (1 a day if you want) <-------See that!?!?! I get to eat something that tastes super yummy now!!! Woohoo!!! *dance party* Break it down, na! lol

Mustard is fine with anything. Eat tons of pickles if you can (those burn the heck out of fat cells!!!)
She also mentioned adding salsa and vinegar to any time to any thing to help burn up those fat cells.

She also decided to add sit-ups to the routine since I'm already supposed to be doing at least 30 minutes of cardio, working up to 45 minutes 3-4 times a week. I say supposed to because I was already doing 45 minutes of cardio about 4-5 times and recently an hour of zumba two days a week. You can read about my zumba experiences here, here, and here. There are weeks I make it to the gym or am active 6 out of 7 days. Go me!! When I realize how good I've been I take a day off, lol. I'm just at the time in my life where I can make it a priority and am choosing to do so. Buzz word: I choose to do so. You really do have to choose and commit if this is going to work. This is not another fad diet (dirty word) or something you can try and decide it didn't really work for you because until you get through the first two weeks I don't think you've given it an honest, committed effort (My first two weeks weren't strictly committed and I had to start over! That's how serious she was able this with me). She said it took her three tries before she could get serious and just stick to it. So, that being said, this isn't for everyone. It really takes dedication and support (My family has been amazingly supportive and given up things too just to make it easier on me and I never asked them to, but they did! How cool is my family?!). Don't feel bad if this isn't realistic for you! Maybe one day it will be. And maybe you don't need something this intense. I do. And it's working!!!! :D

Back to the sit-ups. She wants me to do 3 to 5 minutes of straight sit-ups, well, crunches because I want to protect my back. :)
Here are the instructions she wrote:
3 to 5 minutes--->Go until you can't anymore, then wait 30 seconds and continue on until you hit the 3 minutes mark. After 2 weeks you should be at 3 minutes straight. Start working toward 5 minutes.

Say it with me, "Ouch!" Well, that is one of my areas on my body I take issue with so I suppose it's not a bad thing to add this in. I do inwardly wince at how much this is going to hurt, especially the second and third days. Ooooo, not a pretty thought. Shake it off. Just do it, right? I think I'll probably start this after my mini-vaca! I will still keep up the eating plan and we will be very active so I'm not worried about that part. :)

Can I tell you that the last two nights I've not had the impulse to snack?! My mindset is changing ya'll! Wheeeeeee! Part of this eating plan is changing my mindset towards food and it is taking hold in me. This has gotten easier as the time has passed. Though I have to admit that my Grandma's peanut butter cookies that she baked especially for me fresh on Tuesday so they could leave the airport with my dad early Wednesday morning to make it into my hot little hands was very, very tempting. Soon, Grandma, soon I may have them again! What a nice thing to do though, huh? Did I mention I have a fantastic family? :)

Blessings on your journey today!
R

P.S. Don't forget to enter my giveaway!!! Clicky, clicky here for details! Best of luck!

FF sponsor:
 

You are sooooo gonna enter this giveaway! :)

Hello all!

So, here is what I'm going to be giving away!

Pretty neat, right? I make crochet toppers for kitchen towels so you can hang them in convenient reach instead of figure out where the last person who used it left it. I have so much fun making these and I thought it would be fun to give some of them away. I have a plethora of these right now. I will be giving away a set of two towels to one lucky winner!

Ways to enter:

1. Become a follower or let me know you already are! (1 entry)

2. Follow me on twitter (or let me know you already do). (1 entry)

3. Visit my Etsy store (button on the right) and leave a comment about your favorite towel I have for sale currently. (2 entries)

Bonus entries:
4. Blog about this giveaway and leave me a link in the comments. (5 entries)

5. Tweet about this giveaway and leave me a comment letting me know. (1 entry per tweet, limit of 3 tweets a day)

My thought behind this giveaway was that I'm spending more and more time in the kitchen and so I could give something away that was related to time well spent in the kitchen. And I just happen to make and sell these (shameless plug)! Plus, I love to make these and I wanted to share something I love with you!

Must have all entries in by midnight (CST) on April 1st! Thanks for stopping by and entering!

Blessings!
R

My 1st Giveaway!!

Hi all!!!

So I've decided I'm going to be giving away some of my hand-done kitchen towels!

I'll post the official ways to enter, along with a few pictures, tonight!

You know you're excited!!! I certainly am!

Blessings,
R

Progress report-STAT!

Hello friends!

How are all of you doing today?! I am fantastic! Just thought you'd like to know. I did zumba tonight instead of this morning because I picked up my dad from the airport during that time. We are having a great time having him here with us. We've already picked up the much-anticipated princess bike and my little girl is a pro! Ok, not quite yet, but she is well on her way. She hopped on the bike in the store and just started riding. All that practice when she was littler and fit on the littler bike paid off, ya'll! :) She fell down a couple times when she leaned too far (mostly in turns) but started to figure out her limits within that half hour we were able to squeeze in riding before dinner. :) I'm such a proud mommy, can you tell? I really adore my children, especially when they aren't whiney or crying. tehe!

Ok, so zumba was a great workout tonight. I am finding I really like this "dance" class. :) I still want to try cycling so if I can ever get a copy of the class schedule I will be trying that next! Tips?? Tricks?

I had my mom pass on an "OMG" comment to me about looking so fabulous. And now we have another lassie who wants to take a swing at this new eating plan. Another one down and another one down... I'm rather excited by this compliment. People are noticing. This makes me want to jump on the scale and see what it says (yes, even though it is not the best measurement of progress, it's one of the easiest to obtain :P).

Anyway, at the end of the month I will be posting pictures of myself. This will kind of be the starting point for all of you, but this will be me about 3 months back into seriously working out and about 5 weeks into this new eating plan for me. Sound good? Great!

I can tell you that after my son was born a little over a year ago I weighed 214 (AHHH!! I know, right?!). In January I weighed in at 193 (not great for weight loss, but terrible). The reason I didn't go back to working out like a mad woman to lose the weight was that I was nursing and they tell you not to diet or lose a bunch of weight as it can really interfere with producing enough for your baby to eat (did I put that delicately enough? lol). So losing 21 pounds during the first year isn't too bad for progress I'd say. :) And it doesn't really matter in the grand picture because it can't be changed now! ha

So, I'm very excited to see what I weigh in at and to see if I met my MOPS (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers) goal I set for myself of losing 20 pounds during the MOPS year (which, until this last month, was while I was still nursing). I was around 200 at the beginning of the MOPS season so my first goal is 180. Next goal will be 160. I haven't figured out where exactly I'll land and much more weight loss will start to get difficult after that because I will be building muscle. Muscle weighs more than fat so at that point the scale pretty much becomes useless and then I have to go by how loose my clothes are. :) If you didn't know, now you do!

Thanks for sticking in through that long post!
Blessings,
R

P.S. I get to have green veggies tomorrow!!!!
P.P.S. So my grandma in MN made me fresh peanut butter cookies yesterday and sent them down with my dad especially for me because she knows how much I love them. I was super, super, super tempted to throw in the towel and just start over again. Grandma's cookies are almost worth it. Almost, but not quite. I'm committed and I'm not starting over yet again! :)

Quick time-double time-don't drop it!

Hello all!

So my dad is coming to visit us in sunny AZ this week! I'm very excited by this. And my daughter is VERY, VERY excited for this. She is really looking forward to that new princess bike. :) My dad has gracious decided to give us a gift and bring us to Vegas for a bit while he is here! My husband has never been, but I really love the chaos of Vegas. :) This will be the first time I've been there and be old enough to gamble, lol!

Here's my hesitation-how on earth am I going to be able to keep up with my eating plan?! This is going to be a real test of my willpower and my creativity. lol So, I vow to make healthy choices while I'm away and I will blog about the results and what I learn when I return. All I can do is my best and that's what I plan to do. I don't want to have to start over, yet again! *insert eye roll here* I know I'll be getting plenty of exercise in the pool and walking all over the strip, tehe.

Other good news: I have to get a new bathing suit!!! Well, I am by no means ready for a tiny string bikini (and don't know if my modesty will ever let me where one of those!) I am ready for a smaller suit! I do love the results of all this hard work. This is just another incentive to not lose all the progress I've made.

And my new workout song for the day is "It happens" by Sugarland. We all have "those" days and all we can do is get back up and have a better day the next day. I find this song amusing because I know even when I'm having a fantastic day I've been there and it actually makes me more thankful for the good times.

Happy Monday and blessings!
R

Friday Follow

Hi all!

Thanks for stopping by for FF! This is my first time participating!

You can check out my last blog post about my zumba experience!

Enjoy reading and I will return the comments and follows! :)

Blessings,
R

La vaca, MOO!

Hello loves!

Thanks for your kind comments! I love reading them. :)

Let's get down to business. I told you that I would try zumba, and not just once, but a few times so that I got a clear perspective of the class and what it has to offer. Well, I generally give new things about four tries (usually over a four week span). Today was my fourth zumba class. They added a morning one! I liked this change mainly because the floor was less crowded and I could actually move without worrying about running into someone if I messed a step up. Trust me, I do this often--messing up a step, not running into someone. Moving on.

Zumba, for those who don't know, is a "dance party" kind of a class. It combines different dance movements and aerobic exercise. It is mainly inspired by latin dances (think merengue, samba, etc.). The music is loud and it is very high-energy (think lots of jumping around). Ok, so you all read about my first experience here! as well as my second adventure in zumba here!

Here's my conclusion: It is an incredibly good workout. You practically never stop moving. Most of the time you are jumping or moving your feet (quickly) or yes, shaking your booty, booty, booty, booty. One thing I was really surprised by and didn't expect was this--I went to my chiropractor to be adjusted today and there was absolutely nothing out of place in my hips or low back. I have never, in the approximately three years I've been seeing a chiropractor, had this happen--ever. So, all that hip movement has really helped to align my back! Crazy, huh? I love this fact and will continue to do zumba because it is a great workout and it has helped my back in a fantastic way! I'm still learning the steps and still constantly mess them up, but the instructor said today, the more you come the better you'll get. This is true of anything-the more you practice the better you will be.

For all of you that already love zumba and are addicted or are curious and want to try it, I have news for you! The instructor informed us this morning that zumba was coming out for WiiFit in December. Gosh, I should really be getting paid for this, lol. That's what I know. Go do some investigating and report back!

Blessings all!
R

P.S. The "La vaca, MOO!" title is one of the songs that is stuck in my head from this morning. It keeps repeating "la vaca, MOO!, la vaca, MOO!, la vaca, MOO!" and I can't get it out of my head, lol!
I tried to grab pictures from the zumba site for you, but you'll just have to look yourself--Zumba!

My husband is so creative!

Hello everyone!

I just had to share this with you all. My husband got a big, easy chair box and made it in to a house for our kids. He totally thought out where the door should be and the windows and even that the roof should be open so I can peak in on them while they play! He pretty much rocks at life! :)

Wanna see?

There are windows also on the ends like the one on the right. They have so much fun going in and out and playing inside. I know many of you out there are crafty, but how many also have creative husbands? Highlight the creative men in your life and leave me a comment so I can check out their creativity too.

Blessings all!
R

P.S. Eating and exercise are going well! Zumba with my neighbor tonight. I may attempt a core muscle class Wednesday morning and then Zumba after--1.5 hours of working out? Bring it! I sooooo want my old clothes off their hangers. Katie R., I thought about seeing if I needed to dust them! Ha!

Count backwards with me now...

Hello friends!

So, it is officially official because I'm announcing it on my blog: *drum roll please* I am no longer wearing my size 16 clothing! I am wearing my size 14 clothing!!! Can I tell you that I'm super excited that this has happened in three weeks time?! I can wear all my size 14 clothing comfortably and not be squeezing in and sucking it up just to button my pants (come on, you know you've done it too!). I feel amazing! I have more energy to give during my workouts and during my day with my kids and my husband thinks I'm hot (Ok, to his credit he always thinks that and makes me feel beautiful!). My body is starting to respond quicker to what I ask it to do and so on. I haven't "arrived" yet, but I'm on my way!

A friend of mine noticed the difference my new plan has made and said she wanted to join me! You can check out her journey of a different sort here!

I was thinking how fast my reaction time used to be playing basketball and how I could run down the ball and get in front of another girl to make the block and so on. I was thinking about the fact that I could ask my body to do that right now, but it just wouldn't be able to because of the extra weight I'm carrying. Soon though! :)

I went for a hike yesterday and carried my son on my back while doing so--I so rock! :) It was a shorter hike, but the terrain was kind of rough actually (we didn't do the hike we thought we were going to with our daughter). Check this out (and by this I mean me!):

I actually worked out every day last week except Saturday! It is a goal of mine to go every day, but I rarely make that happen (many of you understand that life with kids isn't exactly something you can plan). I was super excited yesterday when I realized what had happened! I took my daughter on a bike ride one day while my son napped with daddy at home. We had a great time! Another day, instead of going to the gym I decided to go to the zoo and push about 70lbs worth of children around in the stroller! And yesterday I hike carrying my "little" guy. He weights 27lbs and he's 1! Crazy, I know. So, I encourage you to get out this week and do something different: rollerblade, walk outside, play a sport, bike, swim, just do something different!

Oh, so I have to tell you one more thing: since I "cheated" and ate pizza and a hamburger I had to start my first two weeks over with this new plan. Apparently I do have to be super strict right now. Oops! tehe I've been kicking butt for the last five days and been sticking to this like white on rice, baby! No deviations, none, zip, nada, zilch. The best reason out of the several I was given is because I'm training my body to grab the good, healthy protein and use it for fueling my body. Eventually, when I'm allowed a cheat time, my body will just automatically say this doesn't belong here and not store the extra sugar/calories/carbs/whatever and just release it. I'm liking that! This process is about two months long, I'm told. So, I've started my two weeks over and am again looking forward to eating my green veggies! I really do heart my asparagus! Zumba tomorrow!

Good luck and blessings on your journey, whatever it may be!
R

P.S. Guys, stop reading now. You probably don't want to know this last bit.

P.S.S. Hey ladies, especially you mommies, I'm sooooooo done with nursing bras now and I'm super excited to put back on the regular ones with the awesome support that actually look right under my clothes!!! YAY!!! I can't even tell you how excited I am. Yes, I know that's silly. No, I don't care that you are laughing at me and shaking your head. Some of you can relate! ;) And guys, I did warn you to stop reading so it's not my fault you are weirded out and thinking you could have lived a fulfilled life not knowing that detail about me. Deal with it. :P

Another giveaway from another blogger!

Free blog make-over!! Sounds good to me!!! :)

Oops, I did it again!

Hi all!

Ok, so it wasn't exactly an oops, but I did Zumba again on Tuesday! This time one of my friends was there who has been doing the class for a little while. It was nice to see a friendly face. I totally recommend going with someone else. Even if you are both new to Zumba a friend helps-just for morale support-when you mess up the steps or have no idea how to even start to follow along (been there!).

Here's what changed for me this time: My gal friend said, "Ooooo, I like this one because it really works your butt!" That got me thinking. Instead of just seeing this as sexy, latin dance think about why you are doing the move you are doing. By bouncing your butt in the air you really are strengthening your glutes! I felt the burn. When I focused on that fact, instead of how some of this felt inappropriate in public (and I still kind of wish the that the floor to ceiling windows and doors weren't completely glass and next to the free-weights where the men typically hang out), I started to really see the benefit of Zumba and why it is catching on.

There is another element at work--it is fun! You are dancing and moving feet and raising your arms and squating and lunging and, yes, shaking your groove thang. I was sore after the first time for a couple days in places I wasn't used to. This time was better on the soreness factor. It is an excellent way to challenge your muscles in a different way than other exercise like running or yoga. Also, this is latin-inspired. There is an element of sexiness that is undeniable. I was at a party with some other ladies and (this was before I'd tried Zumba) one woman recommended you not practice Zumba naked in front of the mirror if your husband is around. You won't be practicing Zumba moves anymore... ANYWAY

So, second time out, I had more fun partially because I knew what to expect and partially because I had a friend there. :) I will let you know what my conclusion is after two more classes. I figured I should give it a fair shake (pun intended ;) ). AND there was less booty shaking this time (not my imagination at work here--someone else commented too)... however, there was more booby shaking, lol. Ladies (and--this is a little awkward for me to say, sorry--gentlemen, if applicable), doubling up the sports bras to keep girls in check if you are well-endowed is a must.

Lastly, went for a bike ride with my daughter today! She asked and I couldn't resist (little brother napped at home with daddy!). We did about 40 minutes. Man, oh man, I forgot how much biking really works those inner thighs! My daughter rode in the bike trailer for this one so that was at least 55 pounds I was hauling between her and the trailer. Good workout and great treat for my baby!

Grandpa, I know you are reading this blog. Please get that Princess bike soon so I can just haul your grandson next time and your granddaughter can ride next to me. Much obliged! :)

Blessings all,
R

Giveaways!!

Check out this blogger's giveaway!

http://imasleeperbaker.blogspot.com/2010/02/le-giveaway-of-le-creuset-it-kind-of.html

Someone else has a similar one you should check out too:

http://leighvslaundry.blogspot.com/2010/03/its-giveaway-time-at-leigh-vs-laundry.html

Ok, so it'd be super neat to win this stuff, don't you think? :)
R

P.S. Vote in my poll! Would you all want to see me disappear? Well, not exactly, but you get the idea... *muttering* That didn't quite sound as cute typed as it did in my head... And now I'm talking to myself, er, typing to myself... best stop now...

And now, back to the show!

Hello all,

So we've been having a couple very interesting days around my house! I got my monthly visitor for the second time in about two years and barely slept (but I went out yesterday to find out if Midol makes a PM formula and, cha-ching!, they do!) and then my daughter got sick about 5:15 am and then daddy was called into work about five hours earlier than normal and it was raining (in Arizona!!) yet again (this is so not normal, but I do love it!) and life happened. Like my run-on sentence? It's time to get back to our regularly scheduled programming, or a more routine routine. :)

Yesterday was not one of my more shiney days as a mommy. We watched a lot of PBS kids. Anyone else love SuperWHY? :) Today has not been a shiney day in my mommy book either, but daddy is definitely filling that roll today. I'm so thankful for my wonderful husband. I married the most amazing man on the planet. You can try to disagree with me, but you'd be wrong (and I'm very biased and I don't care, lol).

Moving on, my eating plan went out the window yesterday. I incorporated some of my regular menu choices into what I ate, but went outside of it in a major way. I love peanut butter toast. It is my ultimate comfort food. :) I also went to In & Out for dinner. I'm not ashamed and I'm not letting this completely derail me. We are back on track today. And I will go back to a workout tonight. Here's something I know and you probably do too:

Just because one day doesn't go according to plan doesn't mean you chuck the whole plan. You just turn around the next day and get back to routine. No need to be discouraged or get down on yourself! Life happens and you need to move beyond measuring yourself against a perceived standard (set up by your expectations or the world's expectations) and live life.

So here are my questions for you: What standard(s) are you setting up in your life that are unrealistic and that you want to move beyond? What do you do when life doesn't go according to plan? What gets you back on track?

Feel free to comment!
Blessings,
R

P.S. I absolutely love my hobby! This one isn't for sale, yet (I might just keep it, tehe). Check out my Etsy store for others I've made. There's a button on the right----->