Little down this morning

So, I got back on my low carb diet this morning. I took my weight and everything before I started so I can get my re-starting weight. I'm a little ashamed to say that it was 192. I was going to start doing some body weight exercises this morning as well, but, my migraine is still kickin, so, no exercising for me. I need to get the hubby to take my measurements as well. Maybe I'll be able to do that tomorrow morning.

Since I've been dealing with this migraine for the 2nd day, I've been doing a lot of TV watching and sleeping. I'm one of those people that cannot sleep during the day, so, if I'm sleeping during the day, you know that I'm very sick or in a LOT of pain. This morning was not any different. I did take some more Imitrex, even tho I only have 2 more doses for the rest of the month now. That makes me a little nervous that I'm using these meds more than I "should" be.

On the other hand, I am considering taking on a new adventure. Sam and I are talking about it right now. I'm not certain about it. It's a home based business, kind of like Scentsy, or ItWorks, or whatever... but it's actually all natural skin care products. You can do home parties or things of that nature. I'm just not sure that I am the right kind of person to do it. I do have one of the best marketing trainers wanting to train me, to take me under his wing, and to help me be successful. I'm just apprehensive because of the start up money that is involved. Maybe apprehensive is not the correct word. Maybe worried? I know that a lot of the home based businesses have a start up cost, mostly for the products that they send you to start your business. I guess we will see. Sam and I have some talking to do before we decide if this is right for our family or not.

I'll keep you all (does anybody read this at all? LOL) informed about our decision. :-)

Monday Weigh-in and Chili!

Today is my little girls 9th birthday. I can't believe 9 years ago she was just a tiny little thing wrapped up in a pink blanket! She has grown SO much, in more ways than one! She's super smart, she's in all advanced classes in school, she is a helper at our church, and everywhere we go, she always knows someone, and if it's an adult they always tell me what a sweet girl she is. Makes my heart smile. :-)

Anyways! My weigh in! I lost! WOOHOO! I'm at 204.6 as of this morning. According to my Sparkpeople.com goal tracker, I SHOULD be at 201, but, that's okay! I'm slightly behind, but, not enough to be a big deal. I will figure out how to lose that "extra" at some point in time.

Yesterday I put chili in the crock pot before we went to church, and when we got home, the entire house smelled so good I wanted to eat the air! It was REALLY good! Tho, if you have or have people in your family that have sensitive mouthes, scale back on the chili powder a tiny bit. :-D

Crock Pot Chili
Serves 10-15

• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1 28oz can diced tomatoes with juice
• 1 8oz can marinara (or regular tomato sauce)
• 1 small diced red pepper
• 1 small diced green pepper
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 stalks celery, diced small
• 3 medium carrots, cleaned and shredded
• 4-5 TABLESPOONS chili powder (I used 5, kids said it was a bit spicy)
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 15oz can of red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 15 oz can pinto beans, drained and rinsed.

1. In a large non-stick skillet, crumble ground turkey and brown, turning often until pink is gone, 6-7 minutes. Transfer to 6-quart slow cooker
2. Add remaining ingredients and gently mix
3. cover and cook for 8 hours on low, or4 hours on high.

Monday Weigh-in and a Recipe!

So, my husband left last night to go to Quantico Virginia for 3 weeks, so these past few days has been "celebration time!" For those of you that don't know, my birthday is tomorrow (12June) and my daughters birthday is next week (18June). We ate out a few times. I didn't get exercise in as much as I would have liked.  Wednesday night Bug came home from school and was crying saying her throat, head, and stomach hurt. I took her to the doctors and she had strep AND the flu. Then Monk started throwing up later that night. They both missed the last 2 days of school. :-/

Anyways! No excuses! I weighed in this morning, and I'm back to 207. GAH! It's okay tho. I didn't go any higher, and I'm getting back on the Turbo Jam wagon, back on the healthy eating wagon, and we'll be fine! :-) Sam is gone for the next 3 weeks, so it gives me time to work out a new routine with the kids being home for exercise and everything else.

Last night we had some REALLY good nachos!! (I LOVE NACHOS!!) I thought I would share the recipe with y'all!

Cheesy Chili Nachos (adapted from Eat More of what you Love)
Serves: 4

• 8 oz lean ground turkey
• 3/4 cup diced onion
• 1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup diced tomatoes
• 1/2 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 oz whole grain tortilla chips
• 2 teaspoons butter
• 2 teaspoons flour
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• pinch of garlic
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1. Add ground turkey and onion to medium skillet at medium high heat. Cook until meat is browned and onion is soft, about 10 minutes
2. Stir in chili powder, cumin, and cayenne peper. Stir in tomatoes and 1/2 cup water. Reduce hit to low, cover, and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in beans and heat until warm.
3. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt butter and add flour, whisk until smooth. Add chicken broth and garlic and bring to boil, stir continuously until thick. Remove from heat and whisk in 1/2 cup of cheese at a time. 
4. Spread chips out over plate (or platter). Spoon meat mixture evenly over chips, and drizzle cheese over chili. Top with favorite garnish, and serve!

It really  filled you up with all of the whole grain chips, and it was lower in calories!! (around 200)

We watched Secret Millionaire and Extreme Makeover: Weightloss Edition last night. I really like Sunday night "feel good TV." Secret Millionaire makes me happy that there are still people out there willing to help. Gives me hope for the human race. EM:WE makes me REALLY happy! I absolutely LOVE Chris Powell! During the program, he challenged everyone to do his "commercial exercise" which was 15 sit-ups, 15 push-ups, and 15 squats. He said that doing that during the commercials was something easy to do and it gave you quite the workout. I did that for about an hour.. maybe a little longer. I can say that my abs and arms are a bit sore today! I guess that means that I need to do that every night while we watch our TV shows.

Anyways! Busy day today! I thought I would share with you a little video about the program that I'm currently doing. It's called Turbo Jam, and it's REALLY fun!! If you have any questions about this, or would like to order a copy of this AMAZING workout, let me know!!

Monday Weigh-in

So, I'm going to keep it real this week.

I stepped on the scale and it said 206.8

Yup... I gained.

I kinda figured I would.. considering I worked out one day and didn't track any of my food. What the heck is WRONG with me?!

I will be back at it today. Working on my Turbo Jam. I just have to remind myself that just because I had a gain this week, it doesn't mean I need to give up! I just have to be more diligent with working out and tracking my food!

So, here's the truth...

I'm fat.

Yes... I said it. I'm a fatty. Oh I know... you look at my nice little banner up there at the top and say "There's no WAY that she's fat!" Well.. that picture was taken more than 4 years ago by a great friend of mine. He was trying to build his photography portfolio and I agreed to help him out. I used to LOVE to have my picture taken... but not so much any more.

This morning I stepped on the scale at exactly 207 pounds. Egad. My scale has a weight tracker option where it gives you 4, 8, and 12 week past weights. 12 weeks ago I weighed 27 pounds less. Holy CRAP! That's gaining a little over 2 pounds a week for 3 months!

Today is the day that I'm going to change that.

So, today until June 15th, I'm going to do Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred. I've had luck with that one before. It's a 20 minute work out, 27 if you could warm up and cool down. I can do that between getting Austin off to school and waking Jillian up to get ready. I'm going to cut out all soda and juice. Water (and milk) only! I'm not going to add sugar to things. (Unless the recipe calls for it... like bread) No more sweets!!!!! After my initial 30 days, I'll be moving on to TurboJam. After that, hopefully I will be able to afford TurboFire! I REALLY like TurboJam, but, until I can get myself back into a routine of eating right, working out, and housework, I need the short, sweet, bust your chops workouts.

I'm not a big fan of "Lets cut out fat!" and all that stuff. I would rather lose weight eating better, than replacing my foods with chemicals. I'll still drink my whole fat milk, because that's what I like, that's what my children like, and even tho Sam buys reduced fat milk, I can't stand to drink it because it has no flavor.

As soon as we get our bills under control with Sam just starting his new job... I'll be getting back on Shakeology as well.

We have a book called Eat More of What You Love and it has some really good recipes in it. Altho we haven't cooked any, I can tell by the recipes that they will be good. I'll update more when I've cooked some of them.

I don't have any good recent photos of me.. because I hate having my picture taken since I've gotten so big. There is no excuse for me to have gotten this big other than I'm too lazy to work out and eat right. I've let Sam slide under the radar one too many times when I've spotted him putting cakes, candies, and chips in the grocery cart. No more!!

I guess that's maybe why I haven't done so well in my Beachbody biz. I feel too much like a hypocrite telling people that they can lose weight and be healthy when I can't do it myself. As my Pastor always says, let your test be your testimony! My testimony starts today. :-)

Stress-- It's A Killer!

So, last month we sort of went over our budget by a lot a smidge.  And so September is going to be a bit tight for us. We will be able to make it, but, the first half of September is going to be really really tight! I hate hate HATE being low on funds. I don't like how it seems to fuel Sam and I getting into arguments. I don't like it when something comes up and we have to try and move things around so we can make things work. I don't like thinking that I'm going to miss on something really big. I don't like living paycheck to paycheck. It's terrible!

I know I shouldn't complain because we have a lot. I guess that's why we're in the mess we're in. Bad choices made in the past. I got so comfortable when I was younger always having this or that or the other. Always being able to say "Hey Mom! Can I have $5 for gas?" and three days later ask for more. Now, mind you, $5 in gas back then was like half a tank or more! *I have come to terms with the fact that I am now considered an Antique* I got used to driving new cars. I got used to always having my Momma there to bail me out when things got rough. (And by rough, I mean I spent my money on other things that I more than likely should have never bought in the first place.) In the past few years, I've done a lot of growing up. Things most people learned when they were much younger, like, how to manage your money while living on your own, I never learned. I went straight from living with my Mom, to being married. From there, you would think that I would spread my wings and learn to fly. Well, I did, kinda sorta. I learned that living away from my family isn't all that fun. I learned that having a car with no heat in Colorado just doesn't work that well. I also learned that being married to a man you really don't like doesn't make for a very successful relationship. Don't get me wrong. I loved my ex-husband, but, I think the parts of him that I loved the most were my 18 year old imagination making him into more than he really was. I can honestly say that the only thing I learned about life while married to my ex was how to stand up for myself in a fight, not back down, and that I shouldn't let people get too close to my heart. Momma was there to help me pick up the pieces. She's a great Mom. She's more of a Mom than I probably deserve.

When I moved to North Carolina, I was full of hopes and dreams that I could start over, get a fresh new life and prove to everyone that I wasn't the person that I was before. I wasn't the 26 year old little girl that my whole family knew. I can take care of myself! I'm an ADULT! Yeah. It turns out that I really was a 26 year old little girl, just like my family told me I was. But, I have learned SO MUCH from being down here. I've learned to take care of my bills first, because they really do come back to haunt you if you don't take care of them. (Even if that means eating ramen and PB sandwiches for 2 weeks.) I've learned that I am strong enough to do things on my own. (Thanks for always telling me that Momma!) And just recently, I learned, just because I want something, doesn't mean I need it. (I really don't like that one!)

I'm still learning to manage money better. Sam and I are still learning life lessons together. But what really matters is that we are a family. We're learning this together. We try to teach the kids about money, that way they don't have to take the hard road like I did. I thought the world OWED me all the nice things that my mom provided for me. I mean, I shouldn't have to work for them because I'd had them my whole life, why should it stop just because I moved out of my Mommas house?! How DARE the world not give me what I want. Yeah, I was pretty selfish. Now, when we go to WalMart or the commissary, or anywhere else really, instead of saying "Oh Mom! I want THIS!" and then begging for it until I get mad and throw it in the cart just to shut them up, they comment on things. They will say "Oh wow! Wouldn't that be nice to have?" I'll admit, they still have their weak moments where they see something that they REALLY want and will beg, but after I tell them no a time or two, they usually drop it.

As I said in one of my previous posts, I'm now an Independent Beachbody Coach. When I started this I was so gung-ho! I thought EVERYONE should be using these products and I had no qualms about telling you why and what you should be doing and where you could go to get them, to my website, of course! I still think everyone should use these products, but I'm not quite as in your face about it as I used to be. It's finally starting to pay off. I've got 2 people that are signing up to be coaches with me, and one of those already has a coach prospect! It makes me really happy that I can share the nutritional value of Shakeology, that I can tell someone about which exercise program I would suggest for them, that I can help others lose weight and be in better shape! I still have that passion about it like I did when I first started, because I know that it works. I've seen it working in me! But, I can't make everyone motivated like me. Some day they will see what wonders it's done for me, and they will want what I have, but I can't force it down their throats.

I know I've done a random, ranting post about seemingly nothing, but, it helps me to get things off my chest. That's the ultimate goal of a blog, isn't it? One of these days, I'll be able to have a blog about how great life is, about how I can devote time to sewing, and crafting, and be able to go buy Sam and the kids gifts at random times "just because." That day isn't today tho. Today, I'm cleaning the house, doing the laundry, and making the kids clean their rooms as well. I think tomorrow I'm going to sit down and make a list of things that need done on a daily basis and start a "checklist" that I can print out and hang up so I can just check things off as I do them. Some day, I'll be able to tell you guys how great life is, but right now, life is just life. A little bit stressful, a little bit not, a little bit fun, and a lot of love!

Until next time, dear reader(s), I'm going to try and see what I can do about cheaply filling my fridge on the 1st!

Not having a good day!

My day started out fantastic. It really did! I got up, I got the kids off to school with no hitches. Everything was going fantastic! I worked out to my new workout video Turbo Jam (which is FANTASTICALLY fun btw!). Things were still good. Still doin my thing. Still be-boppin along being my happy go lucky self! I ask my work out partner if she still wants to work out this morning. Yup! She sure does! Things start going down-hill from here.

I call the DMV to make sure they have transfered my plates from my old car, to my new car. The car that I've had for going on 3 weeks now. The car that I've fallen completely, madly, deeply in love with. (It has a CD player!) Wouldn't you know it, my plates are still registered to old car. So I ask the lady if I get pulled over, I'm in big trouble, yes? She says, "Yup!" My next move is to call the dealership we got it from. I ask them if they've done anything to get my tags switched over because I needed the new registration to get my base sticker. I REALLY didn't feel like getting a new little slip of paper all the time because they were too lazy to do their job. They tell me that it will be fine, that a cop isn't going to give me a ticket because I have 30 days to get the tags changed over, blah blah blah. Well, I'm not sure how things work where we bought the car from, but here, cops can be real jerks. The fact of the matter is, my tags say they belong to a '05 Hyundai Elantra, but they are ON an '09 Kia Sportage. It's illegal, and they CAN write me a ticket for it, even if I have the papers showing them that I just bought the car less than a month ago. I then tell them that I didn't mean to be a #$)&^#( but if I got a ticket, I was sending all the paperwork and whatnot straight to their office and they were going to pay all of it, and get me a lawyer. It probably meant nothing to them, but in that moment I felt very powerful.

While on the way to my w.o.p.'s house, I'm on the phone with my Momma. Momma is always fun to talk to! Well, I keep feeling like I need to itch my leg, so I scratch, still itches, so I look down (yes, I'm driving, yes I know it was bad...) at my knee area to see if something was under my steering wheel scratching me or something. Wouldn't you know it... it's a tiny little brown TICK!!!! Yes. A tick. I'm not normally a person that freaks out about bugs, or snakes, or "creepy crawlies" in general, but, there are a couple that freak me out beyond belief.

One is the June Bug (or June beetle... whatever). I think that the reason I hate them so much was because I was staying at my Dads one summer, and he had one of those electric bug zappers, (Yes... I'm old... thanks for reminding me!!) and one of them caught a June bug. OMG! It took it FOREVER to zap that lil thing! And it was smokin and and zapping and making all that noise and light. It was terrible. So, from then on, I always thought of them as these extremely tough  bugs. Bugs that take forever to kill. And the FLY!!!! (We'll go into that another day...) How could you NOT get creeped out by them. LOOK AT 'EM! EEEEEEW! (Okay... I'm done...)

The other is the tick. Not just any tick tho. I can handle them when they're on other people or on animals, but it was ON ME!! ON ME!!!!!!!!!!! Oh God. I'm so lucky it was just a tiny little thing. I'm so lucky that it wasn't sucking the life blood out of me because I would have put my brand new car into another car trying to get it off of me. I'm SO lucky that I picked it off, rolled down my automatic window (if it woulda been a crank, I woulda died!!) and flicked it out. UGH! *shiver* Now, every time I have an itch, I'm expecting there to be a tiny tick there. *shudder* 

Work out goes well. Her cat scratches my leg, not a huge deal. I get back into my car (after checking for ticks...) and drive back home.  I take my shower, which kinda sucked because I got this FANTASTIC shower head that has several different sprays and a massage spray... man... it's fantastic, BUT!! Now when I go to wash my hair, I can't move it to spray on the back wall of my TINY stand up shower stall! How am I supposed to put conditioner in my hair? Or shave my legs? STINKS!

The last thing that happened to me today (so far.....) is that hubs calls and tells me that he thinks I need to get a part time job. *sigh* Don't get me wrong, I don't have anything against having a job. A job pays you with money. Money is good. I like money. Money can buy me new socks! (Oh how I love new socks!) But I also love being able to stay home, and make bread, and exercise, and work on prospecting for my Beachbody business, and be here when the kids get home and help them with their homework. If I'm working outside the home, I can't do those things. Oh yes... I know... millions of people do it all the time... blah blah blah. I just don't want to. *very sad face* I was getting used to being able to take a nap at 11:30 if I wanted to. Not that I ever did... okay maybe once or twice... but! The point is, if I WANTED to..... I COULD! 

Why can't I just win the Powerball and never have to worry about working again? Why must it be so difficult to be comfortable these days?? Maybe I should just sell a kidney or something.....

A-Quiltin' We Will Go!

So, it's no secret that I read a TON of blogs (82 and counting!)! Usually my morning routine, after getting the kids off to school is to read thru all of the blogs that have posted over the night, and periodically throughout the day. That's a lot of blogs I say, but each and every one of them has something that I want to learn, or improve upon, (Well, except for those few that are family and friends!) I added one yesterday about how to improve your marriage. Sam and I have a pretty good marriage these days, but, it NEVER hurts to find ways to improve things!

So, the other day, I found this FANTASTIC site called Cluck Cluck Sew, and she had this really cute quilt on there, and talked about Charm Packs and all kinds of things that I had NO IDEA existed. Allison is really nice too! Anyways! I was talking with Sam last night, and I told him that I would like for us to MAKE a quilt TOGETHER! So that way, we are spending time together, he gets to use his fantastic artistic ability, (who knew a colorblind guy could be so great at art?!), and we get a new comforter for our bed (which we REALLY need)! Oh, and it doesn't hurt that I'll be getting to use the fantastic sewing machine that he bought me last year! (Sadly, I've only used it a handful of times!) He thought it was a FANTASTIC idea! HOORAY! So, I guess that only leaves us to plan the pattern (anybody have any ideas for simpler quilt patterns??), pick the colors, buy the fabric, make the blocks, sew all the blocks together, get batting, and find someone to teach me the rest!! LOL

I think that this will be a fantastic adventure that Sam and I are about to embark upon. Never know, maybe I'll do so well at it, that I'll make one for Monkey and Buggy! I thought about making a Purple and Gold quilt for Monkey, maybe with some ECU Pirates fabric thrown in there as well. Never know! I think Momma has something up her sleeve for Monkey with purple and gold. I have no idea what, but I think she does. (I could be wrong tho!) For Buggy, it would be super simple... pink and purple. She's ALL girl! I'm not exactly sure WHERE she gets it from. I'm almost the opposite of girlie! I don't wear make up that often, I love t-shirt and jeans, heels are very uncomfortable to me, and I HATE doing my hair, but every once in a while, I like to get dressed up, look really nice, and be girlie (like, once or twice a year, seriously.).

Okay! Well, I'm stalking the UPS man today. My new workout video in on his truck! I'm off to do some recruiting, clean the house, figure out what I'm makin for dinner, work out, and have a hot shower with my new shower head! YAY! (Yes, the simple things really do bring me the greatest pleasure!)

Thursday 5

Okay, I'm a thief. Yup, call the Blog Police now. I have committed the worst possible offense in bloggerdom!

 I STOLE this post from Nicole. I think it's a fantastic idea! (Yes, I've seen it many many times Nicole... just never stole it from you before.... LOL) 

Basically what it is, you say what in the past week has made you thankful, giddy, happy, excited, and adored. So! Here we go!!

I was Thankful this week that Sam and I finally worked out our issues with personal transparency. 

I was Giddy when I ordered my new workout video! (If Kristy can lose 90 pounds using it, I can lose too!)

I was Happy Sam told me that he changed one of our magazines (that we never read) to a subscription to Boys Life for Monkey.

I'm really Excited that Sam told me that we're going to go to the Gator Ball in the Spring! (If he's still in) Which means I don't get to go to the MC Ball in November (which kinda stinks), but I'll be in much better shape this spring! :-D (Silver lining people!!)

And I felt really Adored when Sam, Monkey, and Bug all told me that I looked really pretty. :-D

Trapeza-wha???

So, Tuesday I had tea with my favorite guy that isn't related to me by marriage or birth, Bill. While on the way to pick up Bill from the car dealership where his brand new truck was being worked on (That's a whole 'nother story!), I noticed that my neck hurt. I thought "Geez! I must have slept on it wrong. Oh well!" I took some Tylenol when I got home, and it seemed a little better. That night in bed, I had Sam rub my neck and shoulders. He did a fantastic job, and I promptly fell asleep with a nice kink-free neck and back. Wednesday morning, I wake up at my usual 5:30 to get Monkey off to school and then wake Bug up at 7 to get her ready for school. When all the kiddos were off to school I sat here for a little bit and decided that I was tired of how the book case looked and I wanted to rearrange it. That way, when I finally get around to putting the laptop on the desk, or when we get a new tower for over there, or even a chair that's slightly comfortable, I won't have to look at a horrible looking bookcase all the time. It was then that I noticed that my neck, back, and shoulder were REALLY hurting! I decided to go to the doctor about it, and sure enough, I had tweeked my Trapezius muscle! So, the extremely attractive Doctor told me that I should rest it for about a week and hold off on any upper body exercising. Now, for those of you that know me, know that I've been trying to lose weight like CRAZY the last couple months. So far I've lost 10 pounds in the past 30 days. (WOOOOOHOOOOOOO!) So, the super hot Doctor telling me that I had to take a week off just didn't make me happy! I did some cardio yesterday tho. It felt great, even tho I felt like I was going to die while doing it! LOL

The next post I do, I think I'm going to post about my hobby. Everybody that doesn't partake in this hobby is going to think that I'm a fruitcake (most people do without even hearing about my "strange" hobby!) when I tell them what I do for fun, but, I think it's fun, so that's all that really matters! :-)

Until then, keep on keepin on!! (A little Joe Dirt for ya!)

Happy Labor Day!

So, this morning has been quite the morning! Sam and I stayed up late last night and watched Stargate SG1 and went to bed around midnight. I specifically told the dogs "We are sleeping in tomorrow! No barking and waking us up until at least 8!" But they didn't listen, barking started at 7. They never listen! They're worse than babies, I swear!

I decided that I would be a nice wife, and let Sam sleep in. It's 9:17, and I've not decided yet that I'm going to go wake him up. The last couple days I let him sleep till around lunch time and then went and bombarded him with kisses and told him to get up for lunch. We have been having meals a little backwards for the last couple of days. Breakfast is still our normal cereal or toast (Shakeology for me!), but lunch seems to be the big meal of the day. It's strange, but, oddly it's been working for us! I know it won't stay like that. Today it's going to be a light lunch, and a bigger dinner.

The kids are enjoying the day off today. As much as they love (or dislike) school, they're both glad to have the day off to lounge around and watch TV or play video games. Currently, at (almost) 10AM, (Yes, I realize almost an hour has passed since the last paragraph) they're playing Super Mario Galaxy. It's a cute game, plus, they have to work together! It's a glorious thing to see my two kiddos getting along!

As I said yesterday, I have started a new blog about diet & exercising. Here's the link. I would love to get more followers on there. Later today I'm going to post my "mini-meatloaf burgers" on there!

It's been a while

Okay, so, I've been a bad blogger! Sorry about that.

I've been pretty busy since we came home from vacation!
Lets see, there was getting the kids ready to go back to school, which went pretty well! Monkey started 6th grade, and has 6 classes that he has to "commute" to. He even has a locker this year. It's not that big of a deal, he had one when he was in 4th grade as well when he went to school in Ohio. He really isn't too fond of going to school, but, he always says he's had a good day when he comes home. He's usually not all that excited about doing homework, but, he can usually get it done pretty quickly, at least for now. Bug loves school. She's in 2nd grade this year. She loves her teacher and classmates already. She's also found a little girl that rides the bus with her that she really likes. Most days she comes home, does her 15 minutes of reading and what little homework she has, and hops right on the phone to call her friend and stays on there for most of the evening. It seems like it has started already!

I recently became a Beachbody Coach. If you don't know who (or what) that is, it's the same company that does P90X. It's really a fantastic company. Their products are excellent! I've been using the Shakeology for not quite a month, and I've lost almost 10 pounds! I'll admit that I've not been working out as much as I should be, but I'm still losing weight! Soon, I think I'm going to get Slim In 6, which is a home workout that helps you reshape your body in 6 weeks! I'm really excited about this company! They give so much back as well! The company recently hit 30,000 coaches, and they donated $150,000 to Raincatcher for providing rain catching systems to 10 schools in Kenya & Uganda! That will provide clean drinking water to over 100,000 people!! That's not all though! Beachbody will also be donating $5 for every active coach the company has on December 31, 2010! This company really cares about people! I'm so proud to be a part of this company!

I'm going to start another blog soon to recount my weight loss journey and business as well! I'll let you all know when I think of a good name for the blog! You guys can make some suggestions as well. :-)

Day 15: A fanfic

Fan fiction. I'm sure we all have one of these... even if we haven't read it any in years.
I think my favorite Fanfic series was Goosebumps by R. L. Stine. It was a great series!! I always had fun reading it. They were a little bit creepy, a little spooky, but always a great read.
Of course, this series is supposed to be for kids, so I haven't read any in quite a while. I think I may try to get my kids interested in them tho. See if I can get Monkey a little more interested in reading. We try to pick books that are just slightly above his reading level to give him a little bit of a challenge. Maybe some Goosebumps books will do that for him! I guess we will have to see.

On another note, I'm half way done with the 30 Days of Me. I should be way more done than that, but, some days I forget, some days I don't feel like it. I started my diet and exercise program over. The July 4th holiday was NOT good to my weight! I gained back the 3 pounds that I had lost the week before. I guess that means that I need to get a little more serious with my work out! Tomorrow I'm taking my friend Hannah to the airport, then I will go to Britts and work out. I'm trying to get the gumption to work out today. I really need to. I know I need to. The kids are up, and I just can't get the motivation to pop in that DVD!

Day 9: A photo you took

Okay, so I've been pretty bad about actually blogging EVERY DAY! But, I have other things to attend to as well! You know, like cleaning the house, cooking, doing laundry, working out. Yes. I said it. I've started exercising again. I lost some weight last time. I'm going to try it again. Using pretty much the same methods, but this time, I've got a work out partner. I got over to my friend Brittneys' house on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to work out. We do Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred, and Tuesdays and Thursdays, I do The Biggest Loser Cardio Max. We will see how this goes! I really want to get in shape. I hate being the size that I am, not to say that I'm a big ol fatty, but, I'm not comfortable with how I look. I've also tried to start cooking more. I HATE how generally unhealthy things are for you. I would be none the happier if I could just have a lot of land, with a couple cows, some chickens, maybe a goat and a biiiiiiiiiiiiiig garden! I would be super super happy. Of course, then I wouldn't need to work out because I would be outside all the time working with the garden and the animals!

Okay, anyways. Todays' picture is one that I took when we went to the Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium. Monkey actually seen the Cardinal before I did, and I took a picture for him. I think it actually turned out pretty good! Maybe I do have a bit of my Momma in me after all! :-)

The Final Countdown!

So, tomorrow my Momma and Step-dad will be here. We're all really excited for the arrival of my parents (and Grammy and Pampa-Punkin Head). I have got practically nothing done! I did get the carpet cleaned, but, that feels like the only thing that got done!! With Bug being sick, it's taken most of my time to get her to this doctor or that doctor, running her, running there. I admit, I did go on a snail excursion to New Bern to try and find a pink or purple snail, but that didn't take too long! I guess just the fact that my parents are coming is making me a little bit nervous. I've got to try and "out-cook" my soon-to-be brother-in-law sister, which I know it's not a competition, but I still like to try and impress Momma a little bit! The kids rooms are a mess!! Of course, when aren't they?! I've got laundry to do. I've got to clean our bathroom, I did the kids bathroom yesterday. I've got to sweep and mop the kitchen and both bathrooms. I've got to vacuum. I've got laundry to put away. UGH!!! TOO MUCH!!

On a lighter note! Bug looks SO much better this morning than she did a couple days ago! The redness is s-l-o-w-l-y going away. She's not as itchy. She's REALLY bored!LOL I told her this morning that if she didn't let me get my work done, that I was going to send her back to school. She said she didn't want that so she went back to watching Hannah Montana. God love her!

Okay, it's back to cleaning! I imagine that I should probably shove some food down my throat before  I start cleaning everything!! *sigh*

Julie and Julia

So, as of late, I have become a little bit of a Domestic Diva. I've learned how to make Amish bread (partly in the bread machine, of course), I've learned to cook more than roasts and soup beans in my crock pot, and I've (sorta) learned how to sew. I've kept the house fairly clean, been shopping and recipe swapping, and have even gone out to brunch! I've learned the best way to get stains out of clothes, and the quickest ways to iron a shirt, and which fabric softner works, and smells, the best!

Tonight we watched Julie & Julia. It was a pretty good movie. I love food, and apparently it really loves me, it likes to stick around. (Bah duh duh!) I did some laundry while watching it as well. Monkey had an accident again, despite going to the bathroom right before he went to bed. It happens every now and again, but I try not to dwell on it and just wash the sheets. I never ridicule or make fun of him. It's not his fault that the muscle just hasn't developed yet and there's honestly nothing that the doctors can do about it. (We've been to one... said it's normal.) Monkey and I made his bed, I grabbed him a comforter since his hadn't made it's journey through the washer and dryer yet. Both of the kiddos are now sleeping peacefully in their beds while visions of sugar-plums dance through their heads. *Yes, I know it's not Christmas* While all of this is wonderful, I have a rather busy week ahead of me.

First on the agenda, deep cleaning the dinning room carpets! You guessed it! I never got to it on Friday with all of the commotion of going to appointments and whatnot. So, I said I wanted it done by Monday, so it will be done by tomorrow! Then, I need to finish up the laundry. I've also got to go to the grocery store and figure out something for dinner, and make another loaf of bread. I think that will keep me busy for the majority of the day. I've also got to slip in a workout as well!

Tuesday brings another day of busy-ness. I want to wash all of the windows, at least on the inside and clean the curtains. (What curtains that we do have!) Then I want to clean out the cabinets and rearrange every thing, and also clean the cabinet doors as well. (That means upper AND lower cabinets.) Also fit in a work-out and made dinner as well.

Wednesday, I believe I will wash the sheets (for my parents), and the blankets in the dogs crates as well. (No, not together Mom...) More than likely the blankets that go in the living room as well. I will more than likely vacuum and dust as well. (Hopefully) Also, clean both bathrooms, sweep and mop. Did I mention work out in there at all? Oh... and Girl Scouts!

Thursday, I and going to sweep and mop the kitchen. Since the kitchen gets used so much, the floor can get rather icky, and even with mopping it, sometimes there is still some gunk left on the floor, so I'm going to scrub it with a scrubby sponge. I haven't done that in a while! (Oh yeah... and work out!)

Friday is pay day! (Hooray!!) So, I would like to pick up some sheer material and a curtain rod for the dinning room and make a curtain for the sliding glass door, get Bug a new set of blinds, and maybe even make some curtains for her room as well. Also, I will more than likely pre-make the apple pie that I want to have for dessert for Saturday, which is when my parents will be here! Shew!!

Saturday morning, I'll throw the beef Burgundy in the crock pot for dinner, and relax a bit before I have to pick up my parents at the local airport at 11! Shew!!! I have a VERY busy week ahead of me! Here's to accomplishing it all! Now it's off to bed to read a bit and slip off to Never-Never Land in the arms of my wonderful husband!

By the way, I forgot to mention that Friday was my FANTASTIC step-dads' (That's you Kevin) birthday! Hope you had a good one, and glad you liked the cards! :-D*

Weight loss

So, I went to the doctor today because my back was really hurting from working out. I lost 3 pounds!! I need to work out today and tomorrow and then do my regular weigh in and tape on Monday to see if I've lost any body fat or anything. The doctor said that a good weight for me would be around 145, so, that's what I'm going to shoot for. At that weight I would need to lose a total of 50 pounds. I can do it! I think what I will do is go ahead and look for a part time job for when the kids are in school. We don't exactly NEED the money, but it would make life a little easier with some extra spending cash. I will continue on with my work outs as well. Hopefully I can find a place that will let me work these few hours and not have a problem with it. *fingers crossed*
Today, we're going to a birthday party for one of our friends kids. He turned 1 today! Hooray! They're having a small get together with some hot dogs and such. Just a little bit for today. I have so much to get done! Hopefully I will have time again on Sunday or Monday to do a better blog entry! 

Diet and Exercise

So, yesterday I started a new diet and exercise regime. Frankly, I was petrified to stand on the scales because I knew I weighed almost 200 pounds. I was always skinny when I was younger, and ate pretty much whatever I wanted, and a LOT of it! I remember my older sister coming in the door one day to me eating my after school snack, an entire pizza, and her telling me: "Some day, you're gonna get fat because you eat so much!" I told her that I would never get fat! After my first child I bounced back to within 5 pounds of pre-baby weight in a couple of weeks! By my 3rd child, I weighed right at 200 pounds at 9 months pregnant and quickly lost about 30 pounds. I was 165, and I was pretty happy about it. I didn't really care who thought I was fat, or if I was! Flash forward almost 7 years, and I have yo-yo'd between 165 down to 130 and back up to 195, which was my weight yesterday. So! I popped in my Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred workout video, and 20 minutes later, lay on the floor wishing that every muscle in my body would quit trembling! It may only be 20 minutes, but she REALLY kicks your ass!! This morning I felt pretty good laying in bed, but when I got out I felt like my legs were jello! I went ahead and worked out again today, and it felt pretty good. I'm still really sore, but I imagine in a few days it will feel much better!! Here's to getting healthy and in shape!