Weigh in...

Well we are getting to the end of the month (one day left)....and so one day left on our intense strict diet regime...

According to my health coach I have reached my 10 pound goal this month...yippee!!!! However for my personal records I still have .8 of a pound to loose till I have lost "exactly" 10 pounds...So I am on a mission. There is no way I can do that with only one day left but I am still working towards that goal...so I will press on till I get to it...then I have 10 more pounds to go till I reach my goal of 150lbs. I think the last time I weighed in at 150 lbs was right after Brian and I got married. It will be exciting to see that number on the scale again....like old friends that have not seen each other in a long time....So I weighed in today at 161.2lbs.

So we have had a lot of work to do this month in loosing weight but we persevered....it was tough to resist the temptation of fast food and my favorite fall back....good old Mexican food! But we have made it. I am hoping to stick to this plan for the next month and see how much I can continue to loose. I will slowly start to add back in my weight training and cycle classes...( I took this month off). So I will have an official weigh in for our monthly end weight tomorrow...then I will continue to weigh in thru April.

Now for any of you who wanted to know ....the program I have been using for my weight loss goals is Medifast. I have not gone thru an official center...I have a personal Health Coach and I order my food online and have it shipped directly to me. It is by far the easiest "diet" I have ever been on. The food is good and you loose between 2-5 pounds a week on average. And I am not spending any extra on food, since I am replacing what I would be buying at the store for myself food wise and snack wise....so it has worked out just right!

Teaching skills!!!

Rory turned 8 this past month and with that came a very exciting new step in her "skill building" of domestic tasks....that sounds so fancy....nope she has been waiting for this for awhile now. She got to take her first 2 sewing classes. She has been taking individual hand stitching lessons from my mother in law...but this past weekend she got to use a machine and learn some exciting new things....including the use of many of the 60 stitches that the machine has on it. ( I rarely use more than about 3 of them) So she had two days back to back....a total of 7 hours in class. I was surprised she still had energy after the classes....but she was so excited.

The first day she went with no expectations...and she left with not only a mini project in hand but some new little sewing friends!!!!

The second day we had to come prepared with fabric in hand so she could make her next project. So the night before I let her go thru my many fabric stashes to pick out what she needed....after some time she picked her fabric out and we packed up all her supplies for the class and she was ready to tackle the next day in class.....and when she came home I just could not believe what she made.... She is also being introduced to the iron....she told us it was easy to use since she has seen me use it a lot..(the sad part is I only use it to iron my fabric when I am sewing not to press clothes)

Forgotten Images!

These pics were meant to be previous posts all on their own....well we can see that never happened! So I am putting them all together today with brief descriptions to make it all one post. On our camping trip out to the Anza Borego Desert....Sally came with us. This was the only shade in our entire campsite...and she needed it....she was such a good pup...she walked and hung out with us all weekend...and even slept so quietly in the tent!!!!

I think she is smiling in this one....

I recently purchased an ipad. I saved up my money over the last few months and went and made the purchase of a 1st gen ipad when they announced the drop in price by 100 bucks...I am still learning how to use it and get all the fun I can out of it...but this is a common sight in this house now...and there is much begging involved! So can I just say that I have leverage!!!!

And Rory's new item.....This was her official present from us. She is getting so tall....4'2"....that her little 16" bike she got from 3 years ago was just not cutting it any longer...so she was upgraded to a 20" bike and wow what a difference. However a very unexpected thing happened...she cried about it and did not want to use her new bike....well after some words with dad and some seat lowering all was smoothed out...and she loves her new bike (and fits on it much better)

Weigh in...

Okay so we are getting closer to the end of the month....it is the 22nd...I have 9 days left on my intense strict diet.....my goal again for those that have not been following was to drop 10 pounds this month that would put me at 160lbs.

Last week I weighed in at 165.1 (Tuesday)

Today: 161.8 lbs

YIPEE!!!!

Only 1.8lbs to go for the month....

I am getting so close. I know I can do it....in my head I hear "I think I can, I think I can!"

Brian has completed and met his goal and is still trucking along. I wont let him jump off the wagon mid month he has to go all month with me...even if he triples my goal!

Ten on Tuesday

1. This week will be an off week because the girls only go to school one day this week and we do all the rest at home...
2. And we have parent/teacher conferences....why did I schedule them so early in the morning....I must have been having a duh moment.
3. Ok peeps...I am down to 162 lbs I am getting closer to my monthly goal...hoping I can get down to 160 by the end of the month (good things its a longer month!)
4. We (Rory and I) have a research project ahead of us this unit...and it gets to be an insect report...oh goodie....I hate insects!
5. I went to TJ Maxx last night and had so much fun with a good friend of mine...we picked thru stuff to find exactly what we needed....what I needed...nothing...what I got...three new tees that I can wear to the gym or just anywhere...
6. I am very pleased with my deals and sweet tees!
7. The girls went to a science fair on Saturday and informed today that they want to be beauty shop girls and scientists when they grow up....wow that is great...will they experiment on hair or in a lab?
8. Can I just mention that my girls have learned to tie their own shoes....Nordy's offers a free shoe tying class and so I signed them up and they were taught and picked up on it very very fast....it sometimes just takes someone else teaching them.
9. So you should check with your local Nordy's to see what they have to offer...this week down here is a kids fashion show...all free!
10. Am I a bit crazy to already be thinking about Mother's Day....maybe....but sometimes being prepared gives you more options....think on that this week!

Weigh in...

I am officially at 163.8 lbs

Wahoo!!! I have officially lost 21 lbs (since August)people!!!!!

Crazy. I am in a frenzy and excited state....when you have accomplished something that you have wanted to do for a long time!!!!

EXCITED!

The Finale to Turning 8!

We discovered that the Corvette Diner is the coolest place EVER to have your birthday when you are 8 years old! Its fun, magical and very girly! Rory was given the option to take 2 friends with her to the diner for her birthday dinner....it was perfect! Enjoy some fun pics and highlights.

Hey mom...Look at me! Can you believe she is 8....?

Yup but even though I am 8 I can still be silly!

Just what she wanted "twinkle toe" shoes.

Abi was in her element. She loved it there. She got up and danced with the waitresses when they danced in the aisles and she had all the moves!

Yup! Straws in the hair= lots of cool fun!

This is when the waitress is putting straws in the birthday girl's hair!!!!

And Fun milkshakes to make you feel extra special!(on a side note don't you love that Rory put on her sparkly necklace, earrings and tattoo's for this very special evening)

All the girls got their own booth....they all felt so grown-up.

And just me and my girls....truly a great birthday! I hope Rory has wonderful memories of her 8th birthday. I know I can remember my 8th birthday so I hope she can when she is older.

Birthday Weekend-Camping Style!

Off to the desert for a weekend of camping birthday fun! Rory turns 8 today so we took the opportunity to enjoy the desert before it got too hot! So we were off to Agua Caliente last Friday! It is a San Diego County Park...and it takes about 2 hours to get out there. So we left Friday and headed on out there.
We set up camp and started having fun!
How cool is this? They have a swimming pool that is naturally fed! So we had the opportunity to cool off after all the fun!

Plenty of cactus to see glowing all around!

Proof that I actually was there....just trying to find a bit of shade (however I still ended up getting sun burnt!)

I know its not the best picture but I love this...shadows and light in the background. Its just gorgeous!

Rory and Abi on a hike with daddy. They took a 2.5 mile loop and got to encounter their first rattlesnake....Abi wanted it to be her pet and Rory froze up and could not move! Oh the differences between sisters!

Rory finding shade on their hike!

So pretty! The desert is so different from the mountains we are used to going to! I was just in awe of the amazing beautiful view!

I know its not the best picture but its fun. I was trying to take a pic of the girls roasting marshmallows and Rory started to move and this is what we got. You can see that we are wearing shorts because it was not cold....loved it!

Here are the girls and Brian enjoy some hugging!!!! Good Times! Good memories!

The Big 8!

Happy Birthday Rory....we have come along way in 8 years....I remember it like yesterday though...you were so small we needed premie clothes and your hair was so red ...we just could not believe how beautiful you were! We love you very much and thank God everyday for giving you to us...allowing us to be your parents!

Tuesday's Ten

1. Today was official weigh in day....officially weighed in at 167.1!!! So that is officially down like 3.5lbs since last week. My goal was 5....its all good a little bit at a time is my thought on it.
2. The girls had spring pictures today....I totally forgot about it and well I am interested in seeing how those come out!
3. Why do the girls love these Barbie movies so much....they drive me crazy!
4. The girls got new undies today....they were in need of bigger sizes...its amazing how fast they grow and how undies is one thing you have to buy....you just can not ignore it.
5. Did a run/walk with my sister today. It went well. I think we both will be sore tomorrow.
6. I am extra tired today. No explanation.
7. I made ice cream this past weekend. Thin Mint ice cream....oh it was wondrous!!!!Creamy and minty!!!just what I needed.
8. Countdown for Rory's camping weekend. We leave on Friday for the desert and birthday celebrations.
9. Abi has her dentist appointment tomorrow I am praying for no cavities....it would be a nice treat for the day!
10. yup that's all I got!

Weigh in...

Well I am gonna just put it out there and be honest....

I weighed in on Tuesday and was 170.6 yikers...
Oh well I am on my way to drop these lbs!

Today I weighed in at 166.9

Yipee!!!!

My goal for the month of March is to drop 10 pounds.... I know I can do it if I just stick with it.

Then I only have 10 more pounds for my goal weight of 150!!!!

De-Bunking

I have been on the thinking path of do I or don't I seperate the girls bunk beds....they have been bunk beds since we got them when Abi was nearly 2...so 3 1/2 years now....its been great to have more room for them to play and it worked well with their room. Here is the scoop....as Rory is getting older she is getting bigger...and that is causing a problem with being comfortable in bed. She had the top bunk so there was no way to stretch out over the bed and move around freely....she is going to turn 8 and I figure she is just going to be getting bigger....

So......I asked Brian if he would help me today while the girlies were at school to seperate the bunks...I definetly could not do it by myself....so we lifted the top one off...did a little switch-a-roo of footboards and headboards and whalla! We changed the rest of the room around to accomadate there now being two beds in the room (well 2 that needed floor space).

I thought for sure Rory would freak out and loose it 1) because she does not do well with change and 2) because she would loose her privacy from Abi. But I was proved wrong when they came home from school and proceeded to jump and scream with excitement. They told me that is just how they have "always" wanted it. Well I am happy to oblige!

Now the test will be tonight with bed time...can they fall asleep with all the new things to see in the room????

Ten on Tuesday (on Wednesday)

1. Of course I am one day late at posting....its the story of my life!
2. Finally went to the OB/GYN after not going in since Abi was born....(if you are shaking your finger at me I know I know). The visit was just put off....but finally I went in....all is good and we did a little extra blood work to determine those crazy hormone levels...I sometimes feel I am going crazy!
3. I finally broke down and got one of those non-condensating cups....love it. The ice stays for a long time....and its cute too!!!!
4. So day 2 on our intense diet regime is going strong...hard to resist all the crapola I really want to eat but I have to remember why I am doing this....
5. Anyone seen the new i-pad2 that goes on sale next week....I am in love with it!
6. Saving up for something fun like that for myself!
7. Had to finally break down and have "the talk" with my girls explaining the difference between boy and girls.....it went well but oh my why do they have to ask questions?
8. Looking forward to Rory's birthday this month...she is gonna be 8....holy cow! I can not believe its been 8 years already!
9. At this point in my pregnancy 8 years ago I was on bed rest....and she still came 2 weeks early....I am so glad I don't have to do bed rest ever again!
10. Back to the dr.'s again...why did the lab tech who drew my blood keep calling Mrs. he was like 18 and it made me feel really really old!

Start your engines....

The girls had their last woodworking class last Friday...and their final project was a rubber band race car. These things are super cool! So they brought them home all raw wood...so we decided they needed to be spiffed up....we needed paint and we needed to get crafty!Here they are working on their cars....
Both of them were so thrilled to do this. We spent our rainy day on Saturday taking this project on.
Concentration...painting is a tough job...

This is how the dog decided she could help...was by staying under the table and out of the way...don't you just love how she crosses her front paws...